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CNN Live At Daybreak
One U.S. Military Leader Considering Calling for Reinforcements
Aired April 06, 2004 - 06:00 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, this is DAYBREAK for April 6.
I'm Carol Costello.
Much more on the developments in Iraq ahead in this hour.
But first, the latest headlines for you.
We have just gotten word that three U.S. soldiers were killed in separate incidents overnight in Baghdad. Elsewhere, U.S. soldiers killed at least 60 Iraqis during firefights in the Sadr City district of Baghdad. And in Falluja, four U.S. Marines were killed overnight. That makes five in all killed near Falluja. Marines in that area, of course, involved in Operation Vigilant Resolve.
At least a dozen people remain missing after flash floods swept through a town on the U.S.-Mexico border. Flooding there has killed 31 people so far.
The ACLU is expected to announce a class action lawsuit challenging the government's no fly list. The list contains the names of people the Transportation Security Administration thinks are a risk to commercial aviation.
The University of Connecticut welcomes their champions back home today. The U. Conn. men beat Georgia Tech handily last night, to win their second title in the past five years.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The U.S. death toll in Iraq just keeps on climbing. Again, we're now getting word that three more American troops have been killed there. That is in addition to five U.S. Marines killed in Falluja in the past 24 hours. In Baghdad, the U.S. military says at least 60 Iraqis were killed overnight in a series of firefights in Sadr City. These are the latest pictures from that battle. We just got them in this morning. An Army captain says the shootout there lasted three hours.
Also new this morning, these pictures of who the U.S. soldiers are fighting. They are elements from the radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's army. There are no reports of U.S. casualties in this fighting. This recent surge of violence has one U.S. military leader considering calling for reinforcements. So, will more U.S. troops be on their way to Iraq?
Our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A weekend of violent demonstrations by Iraqi Shiites so concerned U.S. Central Commander General John Abizaid sources say he ordered up options for a quick infusion of additional U.S. troops if needed.
A senior Pentagon official called it prudent planning for a worst case scenario in the unanticipated event violence gets out of control but as of now U.S. commanders believe there are adequate forces on the ground and so far there is no request for additional troops.
Because the U.S. is in the middle of a massive troop rotation it actually has a temporary spike in the number of troops in Iraq from 120,000 at the beginning of the year to roughly 134,000 today.
Commanders routinely reposition troops within Iraq and sources say shifting troops already in the country to trouble spots is far more likely than deploying additional troops.
Still, the contingency planning itself shows how concerned the Pentagon is about the problem in Baghdad and farther south for up to now the Iraqi Shiite majority has been mostly cooperating with the U.S.-led occupation force.
Unlike in Fallujah, a Sunni stronghold where the U.S. is convinced a forceful crackdown by U.S. Marines will break the anti- American resistance, neutralizing the fire brand Muslin cleric who sparked this weekend's violence requires more finesse.
The U.S. wants to arrest Moqtada al-Sadr without inflaming Shiite passions or making him a martyr. The U.S. insists al-Sadr is a minor cleric on a power grab whose outlawed militia numbers less than 3,000.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: U.S. public opinion about the war in Iraq is virtually unchanged since last month. A new poll by the Pew Research Center asks: "Did the U.S. make the right decision by using military force in Iraq?"
Fifty-seven percent of those polled say yes. That's actually up from 55 percent. While 35 percent of those polled say no, and that is down from 39 percent in mid-March. The poll has a sampling error of plus or minus four percentage points.
You can hear what the U.S. administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, has to say about the escalating violence. He will be live on CNN's "American Morning." That will happen about an hour from now. All eyes will be on Washington Thursday as Condoleezza Rice makes her highly anticipated appearance before the September 11 Commission. The national security adviser is slated to testify about what she knew of the threat posed by al Qaeda in the weeks and months leading up to the devastating attacks.
One Commission member talked about that with Wolf Blitzer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CNN'S "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS")
BOB KERREY, 9/11 COMMISSION MEMBER: But if you grow up in an era where nation states are the threat, if you prepare yourself to deal with that particular threat, this is a different kind of a threat. It's a non-nation state action. I mean if they'd just come and say look, this guy was 8,000 miles away out in the wilds of Afghanistan and we didn't think he had the capability of doing this, that's an understandable conclusion, a very understandable conclusion. As I said, if I had been the national security adviser, I'm not sure I'd have done it that much differently.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: And, again, you can watch Condoleezza Rice's appearance before the 9/11 Commission live right here on CNN. That is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. Eastern on Thursday.
An investigation into a 9/11 charity tops our look at some of the news across America this morning.
The New York City Fire Department is trying to find out why members of a traveling 9/11 exhibit are wearing the fire department's uniforms. The charity group running the exhibit claims to help families deal with the effects of terrorism and trauma.
Last summer's massive blackout was not the work of terrorists and could have been prevented. That is the conclusion of the task force looking into the incident. Fifty million people in eight states lost power. Do I need to remind you? It was the largest blackout in U.S. history.
The man police suspect in a string of Washington area arson fires has been cleared, for now. Police say Noel Gibson's fingerprints did not match prints found at the crime scenes. But a source close to the investigation tells CNN Gibson does remain a possible suspect. During the past year, 35 arson fires have been set, killing one person and injuring dozens.
Now back our top story and the continuing violence in Iraq.
Let's go live to Baghdad and Jim Clancy -- Jim.
Are you there?
JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, hello to you.
Yes, I certainly am. And, you know, we're getting some reports that are coming in, I've just been listening as they're coming across our wires, taking a look at the situation in Falluja, where U.S. Marines have vowed to go in and pacify the city after those four U.S. contractors, security guards, if you will, were killed and then dragged out of their cars, their charred bodies dragged out of their cars through the streets. With some determination, U.S. Marines have dug in there.
Now, today we're hearing of clashes going on. Some heavy explosions being heard at some of the entrances to the city, where U.S. Marines have deployed, as well as in the industrial area there. No word yet on any specific casualties. What the Marines appear to be doing is ratcheting up the pressure on those in the -- the insurgents inside the city, especially after a night of what was at sometimes some pretty heavy fighting in terms of the exchange of mortars and artillery. And the U.S. even put in one of its aerial AC-130 gunships, the Specter gunships that are able to use .105 millimeter Howitzers as well as .20 and .40 millimeter cannons to go after specific targets.
No word on Iraqi casualties, but the U.S. military sources again telling us four U.S. Marines were killed overnight in al-Anbar Province. Now, that is the province that encompasses Falluja. That doesn't mean that they were in and around Falluja when those fatalities occurred. That's the best that we can offer on that front.
A pretty serious night in Baghdad, as well. Baghdad residents not quite used to the sound of, the rattle of heavy machine gun fire and small arms. Rocket propelled grenades echoing across the city after fighting broke out in Sadr City between Muqtada al-Sadr's so- called Mahdi Army, his private militia, and U.S. forces protecting some police stations there that those supporters were trying to take over.
According to the hospital sources that we have here in Baghdad, at least 36 of Muqtada al-Sadr's supporters were killed in those clashes. We do not have a firm figure on the number of wounded. U.S. forces say they suffered no casualties.
So we have a very fluid situation today. Right now, Baghdad appears to be very calm. But as I said, at this hour we're really keeping a close eye, Carol, on what's going on up in Falluja, where it's believed U.S. forces may be advancing along the perimeter of the city. There may be some shelling going on from the other side, as they did overnight, with mortars and rocket propelled grenades against U.S. forces -- Carol.
COSTELLO: So, Jim, I have a few questions for you.
CLANCY: Sure.
COSTELLO: There's fighting going on in Sadr City, there's fighting going on in Nasiriyah, fighting going on in Falluja. General Abizaid said yesterday that he may want more troops to go into Iraq.
What are soldiers on the ground saying about that? CLANCY: Well, right now, you know, they're in the midst of a changeover, so they're really at double troop strength, at least here in Baghdad; not everywhere around the capital.
President Bush has said it's going to be up to the military men to decide. We talked to senior U.S. military officials today and they said no decision has been made. It's something that is going to have to be measured when you see what the challenges are that face the U.S. military.
In the end, Carol, yes, it is a military decision. But it is also, in this election year, very much a political decision. On one hand, President Bush certainly doesn't want to be seen to having to commit more troops to Iraq than he said he would. On the other hand, if his military people ask for it, that's exactly what he's going to do.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about Sheikh al-Sadr. He's holed up in a mosque, we understand.
Do you think that the U.S. Marines will go and get him out of there and arrest him?
CLANCY: Well, senior U.S. military officials I talked with just hours ago told me, look, in the past we have gone into mosques when we needed to, when there was a good reason. But any effort to go in and to try to arrest Muqtada al-Sadr on that murder warrant that was -- has been issued now for months against him would be thought through very, very carefully. He is obviously surrounded by hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands, of his supporters. You'd have to weigh what the civilian casualties of that would be against his wanted for questioning in this murder investigation. Until now, we have not heard that he's an actual suspect in the killing itself.
So he's wanted for questioning. That's not the kind of a thing I think that you would jeopardize civilian lives in order to do.
COSTELLO: A tough situation there.
Jim Clancy live in Baghdad for us this morning.
MYERS: Guess what time it is?
COSTELLO: I hope it's a happy time.
MYERS: Time to change directions and move on to the mug winner from yesterday.
COSTELLO: Oh, good, because we need to smile.
MYERS: We need some good news out of here.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Two questions yesterday. An airline study came out yesterday. What were the three top airlines? Now, these are the questions from yesterday, so don't send us answers to these. Theyve already been answered and there's already a winner. The answer is JetBlue, Alaska Air and Southwest, the correct answer there. And a major Asian country holds elections yesterday under fears of terror attacks. Which one was that? That was Indonesia.
And our mug goes north of the border today to Pointe Claire, Quebec, to Linda Bento. That's really Montreal, but that's OK. Good morning, Linda. You're getting a coffee mug.
COSTELLO: Oh, and congratulations.
MYERS: You need one because it's...
COSTELLO: We have many friends from Canada watching and...
MYERS: It's very cold.
COSTELLO: ... we're so happy that you join us every morning.
MYERS: It doesn't get spring there until about June 5th. So, you know...
COSTELLO: I know. They always, they always e-mail us and say stop your whining about the cold weather.
MYERS: I know. Yes. It was minus nine there yesterday.
COSTELLO: Woof!
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Is the coalition strong enough in Iraq to face the road ahead? Our Pentagon correspondent will join us next for more on a general's special request.
And one city faces a decision -- let Wal-Mart in or keep the retail giant out?
And competition on ice, but it doesn't involve skates, just clubs and some warm clothing. It's not what you're thinking.
This is DAYBREAK for April 6th.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 6:14 Eastern time.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The man suspected in a string of Ohio highway shootings pleads not guilty. Charles McCoy's attorneys are gathering evidence that could lead to an insanity plea in the case.
Jury selection in the Scott Peterson case continues today. The judge presiding over the proceedings says he's received a number of letters complaining the trial will not be televised.
In money news, computer maker Dell dropped the price of its digital music player by $50. That's in an effort to compete with the industry leader, Apple, and their iPod.
In sports, a dominating performance by the University of Connecticut. The Huskies beat Georgia Tech by nine points to capture the NCAA championship.
In culture, the "Los Angeles Times" has been award five, count 'em, five, Pulitzer Prizes for excellence in journalism. The five awards are the second most ever for a newspaper.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines.
Time for a little business buzz now.
In one California town, Wal-Mart is not taking no for an answer.
Carrie Lee has more on this story live from the NASDAQ market site.
Boy, a community not wanting Wal-Mart?
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I know, something new and different. Actually, there is something different to this, Carol. Residents of Inglewood, California, an L.A. suburb, are going to vote today on whether to pave the way for a new Wal-Mart. Inglewood's city council last year blocked the proposed shopping center and now religious leaders and community activists, including the Reverend Jesse Jackson, are urging voters to defeat the ballot measure, citing concerns over traffic, gun sales, an exodus of small businesses.
Wal-Mart, though, is fighting back and the company has turned to the ballot in a number of other cases. What's different about this Inglewood initiative is that the proposal would essentially exempt Wal-Mart from all of Inglewood's planning, zoning and other environmental regulations, basically creating a city within a city, subject to its own rules. And they have a huge P.R. campaign behind this. So we'll see what happens today in Inglewood, California.
A quick check on stocks. Looking like a weak open. That's what futures are indicating right now. Alcoa tonight, after the close of trading, officially kicking off the Q1 profit reporting season. Wall Street looking for $0.42 a share versus $0.23 last year. And that is the latest from the NASDAQ market site.
You're watching CNN DAYBREAK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
We're laughing because Jennifer Lopez's mom won a big chunk of change.
MYERS: Well, two point something million dollars. $2.42 million.
COSTELLO: Can you believe -- at the slot machines in Atlantic City.
MYERS: Wheel of Fortune, the dollar slots. Doo doo, doo doo. Here he goes harassing her, you know?
COSTELLO: I was just wondering why Jennifer Lopez's mom was in Atlantic City. I mean couldn't Jennifer have sent her to like Monte Carlo?
MYERS: Well, you slam in Atlantic City. Have you been there lately?
COSTELLO: Would you rather go to Monte Carlo or Atlantic City?
MYERS: Well, sure, but Atlantic City has some things going for it, as well.
COSTELLO: That's true, and I have been there many times.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Maybe it's because I've been there so much. I want to go to Monte Carlo.
MYERS: Well, of course. Of course you do.
COSTELLO: Well, congrats, Mrs. Lopez.
MYERS: Exactly.
COSTELLO: Oozy Osbourne, he tops our DAYBREAK Eye-Opener this morning. The rocker has filed a complaint with the California State Medical Board. He's accusing a doctor of over prescribing drugs. Osbourne blames the drugs for his disoriented behavior on his reality series, "The Osbournes." Records show the Beverly Hills doctor charged the Osbournes more than half a million dollars for his services.
MYERS: He needs to get an HMO.
COSTELLO: Wow! Yes, really. That might be cheaper.
This little baby owl is a victim of poor planning by his parents. It seems the parents thought a billboard in Colorado would be a good place for their nest. But when it was time to change the billboard's message, the owlet had to be moved. But he's doing fine this morning.
Thieves caught on tape -- a new way of baiting car thieves in Arizona is catching them in the act. When a rigged car is broken into, sensors notify the police. The high tech method is helping to cut down auto thefts. All right, we didn't show you the Photo of the Day before the break, but we're going to show it to you now.
MYERS: Because it's coming up this week. You will see this exact photo or picture on TV. Kind of zoomed in. You can kind of tell it's a flower.
COSTELLO: Uh-huh.
MYERS: Now, we zoom it out and you can tell it's Augusta.
COSTELLO: Ah. Is that what Augusta looks like right now, all those blossoms?
MYERS: It is the holy grail of golf. It is all there is.
COSTELLO: That's beautiful.
MYERS: That's great stuff.
COSTELLO: Azaleas in Augusta.
All right, here's what's all new in the next hour of DAYBREAK.
Operation Vigilant Resolve -- the U.S. military wants to track down the insurgents behind the latest violence in Iraq. Is the situation there turning into President Bush's Vietnam, as Senator Ted Kennedy suggests? We've got opinions from the left and the right this morning.
And could more troops be called into Iraq before that June 30th deadline? Retired Brigadier General David Grange talks trop deployments with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: The aftermath of an American mission in Iraq -- rooting out the people behind the violence -- violent attacks is no easy task for the coalition.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, this is DAYBREAK for April 6th.
I'm Carol Costello.
Here are the latest headlines for you at this hour.
The number of American troops killed in Iraq has grown to 622. Coalition officials say three U.S. soldiers were killed overnight in separate attacks in a Shiite area northwest of Baghdad.
In the Tyco mistrial, New York police are investigating possible threats against juror Ruth Jordan. She is the controversial juror number four. Investigators are looking into the so-called threatening letter and phone call Jordan received that prompted the judge to declare a mistrial.
Attorney Kenneth Starr -- you remember Ken Starr -- he's been named dean of California's Pepperdine Law School. Starr, who led the investigation into then President Clinton's relationship with Monica Lewinsky begins work on August 1st.
About a dozen U. Conn. Husky fans are waking up in jail this morning. Last night's NCAA championships sent thousands of students into the streets, where they set fires and overturned cars.
Chad?
MYERS: I just don't get that.
COSTELLO: Tell me about it.
MYERS: That still under whelms me. It's...
COSTELLO: It's just dumb.
MYERS: ... doing destruction when you win something.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Up first this morning on DAYBREAK, Sadr City and the fighting there. It is difficult to get information out of Iraq this morning, but we do know of firefights within Baghdad's Sadr City. At least 63 Iraqis have been killed. We know of no American deaths in that operation.
Live on the phone with us this morning, our military analyst, Gen. David Grange -- good morning.
BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Good morning to you.
COSTELLO: This anti-American cleric has some 3,000 armed men at his disposal. He's holed up in this mosque.
How difficult will it be for U.S. troops there?
GRANGE: Well, very difficult, obviously, with 3,000 armed militants that support him. But I don't think they're going to -- that the intent is to go in and fight 3,000 militia. I think the intent is to get the support from other clerics that are not for any anti-coalition, anti-U.S. rhetoric, which we're hearing from Sadr and...
COSTELLO: Well, is that possible, General, to get support from other clerics? The Iraqis haven't been exactly eager to help U.S. forces in Iraq.
GRANGE: That's true. But I think it's worth the effort, they have to do that, and I think they can get a little bit and I think they already have. It's a tough sell, but I think you have to do that because you can't turn this thing into a Shiite-coalition fight with 60 percent of the population being Shiite. COSTELLO: You know, there's been an arrest warrant out for this cleric, this al-Sadr, Sheikh al-Sadr, since last fall.
Was it a mistake not to arrest him back then?
GRANGE: Yes. I think that any time you delay something like this, of course, he just builds up his power base. And that's what's happened. Of course, I would not doubt there's a little outside influence from Iran on this.
COSTELLO: From Iran?
GRANGE: Yes.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about Fallujah for just a minute before you have to go. Already, five U.S. soldiers have died there in smaller skirmishes. The city is in lockdown. Should Americans prepare for many more American deaths there?
GRANGE: There's going to be more casualties, regrettably, but I think that's going to happen. It's, again, you know, finding insurgents in a 300,000 populated city is not an easy task, obviously. I mean, just think about going into neighborhoods and finding criminals (AUDIO GAP)...
COSTELLO: General, do you bring around pictures? I mean, how do you do that?
GRANGE: Well, remember, when those that committed the atrocities were flaunting themselves in front of cameras, they have those pictures as well for finding these people. And so, that will help, I think, quite a bit when they break down the police-type intelligence to find these people, and then they'll find them. I mean, I'm very confident that that will happen. It's just one of those things that it takes some time.
COSTELLO: General Abizaid said yesterday that he may need more troops in Iraq. Are more troops needed there?
GRANGE: I think more troops are needed to show resolve that these last few incidents are not going to cause the coalition to depart, to leave, to say the heck with this, it's too hard. I think you're going to -- it would be prudent to reinforce to show resolve, to reinforce to show that you can do it and make sure that those images are out there.
In other words, send 3,000, 5,000 coalition forces from the U.S. or elsewhere to west of Fallujah, to the Iranian border, whatever, and use them to reinforce if need be. I don't think you want to surge inside the country in these hot spots with what you have internally covering other areas.
And so, you just do that for a temporary period of time -- a month, two months -- and they leave. And then you do it again if you have to. It's good readiness training anyway for the forces back in the states or are positioned in places in Europe and elsewhere, but not permanently.
COSTELLO: Well, we'll see if that happens. General Grange, thanks for joining us live on DAYBREAK this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired April 6, 2004 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, this is DAYBREAK for April 6.
I'm Carol Costello.
Much more on the developments in Iraq ahead in this hour.
But first, the latest headlines for you.
We have just gotten word that three U.S. soldiers were killed in separate incidents overnight in Baghdad. Elsewhere, U.S. soldiers killed at least 60 Iraqis during firefights in the Sadr City district of Baghdad. And in Falluja, four U.S. Marines were killed overnight. That makes five in all killed near Falluja. Marines in that area, of course, involved in Operation Vigilant Resolve.
At least a dozen people remain missing after flash floods swept through a town on the U.S.-Mexico border. Flooding there has killed 31 people so far.
The ACLU is expected to announce a class action lawsuit challenging the government's no fly list. The list contains the names of people the Transportation Security Administration thinks are a risk to commercial aviation.
The University of Connecticut welcomes their champions back home today. The U. Conn. men beat Georgia Tech handily last night, to win their second title in the past five years.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The U.S. death toll in Iraq just keeps on climbing. Again, we're now getting word that three more American troops have been killed there. That is in addition to five U.S. Marines killed in Falluja in the past 24 hours. In Baghdad, the U.S. military says at least 60 Iraqis were killed overnight in a series of firefights in Sadr City. These are the latest pictures from that battle. We just got them in this morning. An Army captain says the shootout there lasted three hours.
Also new this morning, these pictures of who the U.S. soldiers are fighting. They are elements from the radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's army. There are no reports of U.S. casualties in this fighting. This recent surge of violence has one U.S. military leader considering calling for reinforcements. So, will more U.S. troops be on their way to Iraq?
Our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A weekend of violent demonstrations by Iraqi Shiites so concerned U.S. Central Commander General John Abizaid sources say he ordered up options for a quick infusion of additional U.S. troops if needed.
A senior Pentagon official called it prudent planning for a worst case scenario in the unanticipated event violence gets out of control but as of now U.S. commanders believe there are adequate forces on the ground and so far there is no request for additional troops.
Because the U.S. is in the middle of a massive troop rotation it actually has a temporary spike in the number of troops in Iraq from 120,000 at the beginning of the year to roughly 134,000 today.
Commanders routinely reposition troops within Iraq and sources say shifting troops already in the country to trouble spots is far more likely than deploying additional troops.
Still, the contingency planning itself shows how concerned the Pentagon is about the problem in Baghdad and farther south for up to now the Iraqi Shiite majority has been mostly cooperating with the U.S.-led occupation force.
Unlike in Fallujah, a Sunni stronghold where the U.S. is convinced a forceful crackdown by U.S. Marines will break the anti- American resistance, neutralizing the fire brand Muslin cleric who sparked this weekend's violence requires more finesse.
The U.S. wants to arrest Moqtada al-Sadr without inflaming Shiite passions or making him a martyr. The U.S. insists al-Sadr is a minor cleric on a power grab whose outlawed militia numbers less than 3,000.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: U.S. public opinion about the war in Iraq is virtually unchanged since last month. A new poll by the Pew Research Center asks: "Did the U.S. make the right decision by using military force in Iraq?"
Fifty-seven percent of those polled say yes. That's actually up from 55 percent. While 35 percent of those polled say no, and that is down from 39 percent in mid-March. The poll has a sampling error of plus or minus four percentage points.
You can hear what the U.S. administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, has to say about the escalating violence. He will be live on CNN's "American Morning." That will happen about an hour from now. All eyes will be on Washington Thursday as Condoleezza Rice makes her highly anticipated appearance before the September 11 Commission. The national security adviser is slated to testify about what she knew of the threat posed by al Qaeda in the weeks and months leading up to the devastating attacks.
One Commission member talked about that with Wolf Blitzer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CNN'S "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS")
BOB KERREY, 9/11 COMMISSION MEMBER: But if you grow up in an era where nation states are the threat, if you prepare yourself to deal with that particular threat, this is a different kind of a threat. It's a non-nation state action. I mean if they'd just come and say look, this guy was 8,000 miles away out in the wilds of Afghanistan and we didn't think he had the capability of doing this, that's an understandable conclusion, a very understandable conclusion. As I said, if I had been the national security adviser, I'm not sure I'd have done it that much differently.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: And, again, you can watch Condoleezza Rice's appearance before the 9/11 Commission live right here on CNN. That is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. Eastern on Thursday.
An investigation into a 9/11 charity tops our look at some of the news across America this morning.
The New York City Fire Department is trying to find out why members of a traveling 9/11 exhibit are wearing the fire department's uniforms. The charity group running the exhibit claims to help families deal with the effects of terrorism and trauma.
Last summer's massive blackout was not the work of terrorists and could have been prevented. That is the conclusion of the task force looking into the incident. Fifty million people in eight states lost power. Do I need to remind you? It was the largest blackout in U.S. history.
The man police suspect in a string of Washington area arson fires has been cleared, for now. Police say Noel Gibson's fingerprints did not match prints found at the crime scenes. But a source close to the investigation tells CNN Gibson does remain a possible suspect. During the past year, 35 arson fires have been set, killing one person and injuring dozens.
Now back our top story and the continuing violence in Iraq.
Let's go live to Baghdad and Jim Clancy -- Jim.
Are you there?
JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, hello to you.
Yes, I certainly am. And, you know, we're getting some reports that are coming in, I've just been listening as they're coming across our wires, taking a look at the situation in Falluja, where U.S. Marines have vowed to go in and pacify the city after those four U.S. contractors, security guards, if you will, were killed and then dragged out of their cars, their charred bodies dragged out of their cars through the streets. With some determination, U.S. Marines have dug in there.
Now, today we're hearing of clashes going on. Some heavy explosions being heard at some of the entrances to the city, where U.S. Marines have deployed, as well as in the industrial area there. No word yet on any specific casualties. What the Marines appear to be doing is ratcheting up the pressure on those in the -- the insurgents inside the city, especially after a night of what was at sometimes some pretty heavy fighting in terms of the exchange of mortars and artillery. And the U.S. even put in one of its aerial AC-130 gunships, the Specter gunships that are able to use .105 millimeter Howitzers as well as .20 and .40 millimeter cannons to go after specific targets.
No word on Iraqi casualties, but the U.S. military sources again telling us four U.S. Marines were killed overnight in al-Anbar Province. Now, that is the province that encompasses Falluja. That doesn't mean that they were in and around Falluja when those fatalities occurred. That's the best that we can offer on that front.
A pretty serious night in Baghdad, as well. Baghdad residents not quite used to the sound of, the rattle of heavy machine gun fire and small arms. Rocket propelled grenades echoing across the city after fighting broke out in Sadr City between Muqtada al-Sadr's so- called Mahdi Army, his private militia, and U.S. forces protecting some police stations there that those supporters were trying to take over.
According to the hospital sources that we have here in Baghdad, at least 36 of Muqtada al-Sadr's supporters were killed in those clashes. We do not have a firm figure on the number of wounded. U.S. forces say they suffered no casualties.
So we have a very fluid situation today. Right now, Baghdad appears to be very calm. But as I said, at this hour we're really keeping a close eye, Carol, on what's going on up in Falluja, where it's believed U.S. forces may be advancing along the perimeter of the city. There may be some shelling going on from the other side, as they did overnight, with mortars and rocket propelled grenades against U.S. forces -- Carol.
COSTELLO: So, Jim, I have a few questions for you.
CLANCY: Sure.
COSTELLO: There's fighting going on in Sadr City, there's fighting going on in Nasiriyah, fighting going on in Falluja. General Abizaid said yesterday that he may want more troops to go into Iraq.
What are soldiers on the ground saying about that? CLANCY: Well, right now, you know, they're in the midst of a changeover, so they're really at double troop strength, at least here in Baghdad; not everywhere around the capital.
President Bush has said it's going to be up to the military men to decide. We talked to senior U.S. military officials today and they said no decision has been made. It's something that is going to have to be measured when you see what the challenges are that face the U.S. military.
In the end, Carol, yes, it is a military decision. But it is also, in this election year, very much a political decision. On one hand, President Bush certainly doesn't want to be seen to having to commit more troops to Iraq than he said he would. On the other hand, if his military people ask for it, that's exactly what he's going to do.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about Sheikh al-Sadr. He's holed up in a mosque, we understand.
Do you think that the U.S. Marines will go and get him out of there and arrest him?
CLANCY: Well, senior U.S. military officials I talked with just hours ago told me, look, in the past we have gone into mosques when we needed to, when there was a good reason. But any effort to go in and to try to arrest Muqtada al-Sadr on that murder warrant that was -- has been issued now for months against him would be thought through very, very carefully. He is obviously surrounded by hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands, of his supporters. You'd have to weigh what the civilian casualties of that would be against his wanted for questioning in this murder investigation. Until now, we have not heard that he's an actual suspect in the killing itself.
So he's wanted for questioning. That's not the kind of a thing I think that you would jeopardize civilian lives in order to do.
COSTELLO: A tough situation there.
Jim Clancy live in Baghdad for us this morning.
MYERS: Guess what time it is?
COSTELLO: I hope it's a happy time.
MYERS: Time to change directions and move on to the mug winner from yesterday.
COSTELLO: Oh, good, because we need to smile.
MYERS: We need some good news out of here.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Two questions yesterday. An airline study came out yesterday. What were the three top airlines? Now, these are the questions from yesterday, so don't send us answers to these. Theyve already been answered and there's already a winner. The answer is JetBlue, Alaska Air and Southwest, the correct answer there. And a major Asian country holds elections yesterday under fears of terror attacks. Which one was that? That was Indonesia.
And our mug goes north of the border today to Pointe Claire, Quebec, to Linda Bento. That's really Montreal, but that's OK. Good morning, Linda. You're getting a coffee mug.
COSTELLO: Oh, and congratulations.
MYERS: You need one because it's...
COSTELLO: We have many friends from Canada watching and...
MYERS: It's very cold.
COSTELLO: ... we're so happy that you join us every morning.
MYERS: It doesn't get spring there until about June 5th. So, you know...
COSTELLO: I know. They always, they always e-mail us and say stop your whining about the cold weather.
MYERS: I know. Yes. It was minus nine there yesterday.
COSTELLO: Woof!
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Is the coalition strong enough in Iraq to face the road ahead? Our Pentagon correspondent will join us next for more on a general's special request.
And one city faces a decision -- let Wal-Mart in or keep the retail giant out?
And competition on ice, but it doesn't involve skates, just clubs and some warm clothing. It's not what you're thinking.
This is DAYBREAK for April 6th.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 6:14 Eastern time.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The man suspected in a string of Ohio highway shootings pleads not guilty. Charles McCoy's attorneys are gathering evidence that could lead to an insanity plea in the case.
Jury selection in the Scott Peterson case continues today. The judge presiding over the proceedings says he's received a number of letters complaining the trial will not be televised.
In money news, computer maker Dell dropped the price of its digital music player by $50. That's in an effort to compete with the industry leader, Apple, and their iPod.
In sports, a dominating performance by the University of Connecticut. The Huskies beat Georgia Tech by nine points to capture the NCAA championship.
In culture, the "Los Angeles Times" has been award five, count 'em, five, Pulitzer Prizes for excellence in journalism. The five awards are the second most ever for a newspaper.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines.
Time for a little business buzz now.
In one California town, Wal-Mart is not taking no for an answer.
Carrie Lee has more on this story live from the NASDAQ market site.
Boy, a community not wanting Wal-Mart?
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I know, something new and different. Actually, there is something different to this, Carol. Residents of Inglewood, California, an L.A. suburb, are going to vote today on whether to pave the way for a new Wal-Mart. Inglewood's city council last year blocked the proposed shopping center and now religious leaders and community activists, including the Reverend Jesse Jackson, are urging voters to defeat the ballot measure, citing concerns over traffic, gun sales, an exodus of small businesses.
Wal-Mart, though, is fighting back and the company has turned to the ballot in a number of other cases. What's different about this Inglewood initiative is that the proposal would essentially exempt Wal-Mart from all of Inglewood's planning, zoning and other environmental regulations, basically creating a city within a city, subject to its own rules. And they have a huge P.R. campaign behind this. So we'll see what happens today in Inglewood, California.
A quick check on stocks. Looking like a weak open. That's what futures are indicating right now. Alcoa tonight, after the close of trading, officially kicking off the Q1 profit reporting season. Wall Street looking for $0.42 a share versus $0.23 last year. And that is the latest from the NASDAQ market site.
You're watching CNN DAYBREAK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
We're laughing because Jennifer Lopez's mom won a big chunk of change.
MYERS: Well, two point something million dollars. $2.42 million.
COSTELLO: Can you believe -- at the slot machines in Atlantic City.
MYERS: Wheel of Fortune, the dollar slots. Doo doo, doo doo. Here he goes harassing her, you know?
COSTELLO: I was just wondering why Jennifer Lopez's mom was in Atlantic City. I mean couldn't Jennifer have sent her to like Monte Carlo?
MYERS: Well, you slam in Atlantic City. Have you been there lately?
COSTELLO: Would you rather go to Monte Carlo or Atlantic City?
MYERS: Well, sure, but Atlantic City has some things going for it, as well.
COSTELLO: That's true, and I have been there many times.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Maybe it's because I've been there so much. I want to go to Monte Carlo.
MYERS: Well, of course. Of course you do.
COSTELLO: Well, congrats, Mrs. Lopez.
MYERS: Exactly.
COSTELLO: Oozy Osbourne, he tops our DAYBREAK Eye-Opener this morning. The rocker has filed a complaint with the California State Medical Board. He's accusing a doctor of over prescribing drugs. Osbourne blames the drugs for his disoriented behavior on his reality series, "The Osbournes." Records show the Beverly Hills doctor charged the Osbournes more than half a million dollars for his services.
MYERS: He needs to get an HMO.
COSTELLO: Wow! Yes, really. That might be cheaper.
This little baby owl is a victim of poor planning by his parents. It seems the parents thought a billboard in Colorado would be a good place for their nest. But when it was time to change the billboard's message, the owlet had to be moved. But he's doing fine this morning.
Thieves caught on tape -- a new way of baiting car thieves in Arizona is catching them in the act. When a rigged car is broken into, sensors notify the police. The high tech method is helping to cut down auto thefts. All right, we didn't show you the Photo of the Day before the break, but we're going to show it to you now.
MYERS: Because it's coming up this week. You will see this exact photo or picture on TV. Kind of zoomed in. You can kind of tell it's a flower.
COSTELLO: Uh-huh.
MYERS: Now, we zoom it out and you can tell it's Augusta.
COSTELLO: Ah. Is that what Augusta looks like right now, all those blossoms?
MYERS: It is the holy grail of golf. It is all there is.
COSTELLO: That's beautiful.
MYERS: That's great stuff.
COSTELLO: Azaleas in Augusta.
All right, here's what's all new in the next hour of DAYBREAK.
Operation Vigilant Resolve -- the U.S. military wants to track down the insurgents behind the latest violence in Iraq. Is the situation there turning into President Bush's Vietnam, as Senator Ted Kennedy suggests? We've got opinions from the left and the right this morning.
And could more troops be called into Iraq before that June 30th deadline? Retired Brigadier General David Grange talks trop deployments with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: The aftermath of an American mission in Iraq -- rooting out the people behind the violence -- violent attacks is no easy task for the coalition.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, this is DAYBREAK for April 6th.
I'm Carol Costello.
Here are the latest headlines for you at this hour.
The number of American troops killed in Iraq has grown to 622. Coalition officials say three U.S. soldiers were killed overnight in separate attacks in a Shiite area northwest of Baghdad.
In the Tyco mistrial, New York police are investigating possible threats against juror Ruth Jordan. She is the controversial juror number four. Investigators are looking into the so-called threatening letter and phone call Jordan received that prompted the judge to declare a mistrial.
Attorney Kenneth Starr -- you remember Ken Starr -- he's been named dean of California's Pepperdine Law School. Starr, who led the investigation into then President Clinton's relationship with Monica Lewinsky begins work on August 1st.
About a dozen U. Conn. Husky fans are waking up in jail this morning. Last night's NCAA championships sent thousands of students into the streets, where they set fires and overturned cars.
Chad?
MYERS: I just don't get that.
COSTELLO: Tell me about it.
MYERS: That still under whelms me. It's...
COSTELLO: It's just dumb.
MYERS: ... doing destruction when you win something.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Up first this morning on DAYBREAK, Sadr City and the fighting there. It is difficult to get information out of Iraq this morning, but we do know of firefights within Baghdad's Sadr City. At least 63 Iraqis have been killed. We know of no American deaths in that operation.
Live on the phone with us this morning, our military analyst, Gen. David Grange -- good morning.
BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Good morning to you.
COSTELLO: This anti-American cleric has some 3,000 armed men at his disposal. He's holed up in this mosque.
How difficult will it be for U.S. troops there?
GRANGE: Well, very difficult, obviously, with 3,000 armed militants that support him. But I don't think they're going to -- that the intent is to go in and fight 3,000 militia. I think the intent is to get the support from other clerics that are not for any anti-coalition, anti-U.S. rhetoric, which we're hearing from Sadr and...
COSTELLO: Well, is that possible, General, to get support from other clerics? The Iraqis haven't been exactly eager to help U.S. forces in Iraq.
GRANGE: That's true. But I think it's worth the effort, they have to do that, and I think they can get a little bit and I think they already have. It's a tough sell, but I think you have to do that because you can't turn this thing into a Shiite-coalition fight with 60 percent of the population being Shiite. COSTELLO: You know, there's been an arrest warrant out for this cleric, this al-Sadr, Sheikh al-Sadr, since last fall.
Was it a mistake not to arrest him back then?
GRANGE: Yes. I think that any time you delay something like this, of course, he just builds up his power base. And that's what's happened. Of course, I would not doubt there's a little outside influence from Iran on this.
COSTELLO: From Iran?
GRANGE: Yes.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about Fallujah for just a minute before you have to go. Already, five U.S. soldiers have died there in smaller skirmishes. The city is in lockdown. Should Americans prepare for many more American deaths there?
GRANGE: There's going to be more casualties, regrettably, but I think that's going to happen. It's, again, you know, finding insurgents in a 300,000 populated city is not an easy task, obviously. I mean, just think about going into neighborhoods and finding criminals (AUDIO GAP)...
COSTELLO: General, do you bring around pictures? I mean, how do you do that?
GRANGE: Well, remember, when those that committed the atrocities were flaunting themselves in front of cameras, they have those pictures as well for finding these people. And so, that will help, I think, quite a bit when they break down the police-type intelligence to find these people, and then they'll find them. I mean, I'm very confident that that will happen. It's just one of those things that it takes some time.
COSTELLO: General Abizaid said yesterday that he may need more troops in Iraq. Are more troops needed there?
GRANGE: I think more troops are needed to show resolve that these last few incidents are not going to cause the coalition to depart, to leave, to say the heck with this, it's too hard. I think you're going to -- it would be prudent to reinforce to show resolve, to reinforce to show that you can do it and make sure that those images are out there.
In other words, send 3,000, 5,000 coalition forces from the U.S. or elsewhere to west of Fallujah, to the Iranian border, whatever, and use them to reinforce if need be. I don't think you want to surge inside the country in these hot spots with what you have internally covering other areas.
And so, you just do that for a temporary period of time -- a month, two months -- and they leave. And then you do it again if you have to. It's good readiness training anyway for the forces back in the states or are positioned in places in Europe and elsewhere, but not permanently.
COSTELLO: Well, we'll see if that happens. General Grange, thanks for joining us live on DAYBREAK this morning.
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