Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

Condition of Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat; What's Ahead for Bush Administration?

Aired November 05, 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: With Yasser Arafat now in a coma, the debate is over his final resting place.
It is Friday, November 5.

This is DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

Now in the news, at this hour, concern over the health of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who remains in a coma in a French hospital. U.S. officials say he is on life support. But a Palestinian representative says his coma is reversible and his organs are functioning.

In Iraq, Margaret Hassan's captors are now threatening to hand over the director of CARE International to militant Abu Musab al- Zarqawi unless Britain withdraws troops by today.

In Redwood City, California, it is back to work later this morning for the jury in the murder trial of Scott Peterson. Deliberations began on Wednesday -- Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Our Question of the Day, Carol, should be are you surprised that this has actually taken so long. Scott -- I am so surprised. I thought the verdict would be back in two hours, one way or the other.

COSTELLO: You're hooked on Court TV, aren't you?

MYERS: I am.

COSTELLO: He's been glued to the set over the Scott Peterson trial.

MYERS: I'm watching that clock on top of the screen. It keeps saying -- the jury clock -- 10 hours, 11 hours, 12 hours.

COSTELLO: The longer the jury is out, the better for Scott Peterson.

MYERS: You never know. We'll see.

(WEATHER REPORT) COSTELLO: One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. Perhaps no one embodies that more than Yasser Arafat. The Palestinian leader has been a fighter for most of his life, and right now he is fighting for his life.

Let's head live to Jim Bittermann.

He's at the French military hospital near Paris where Arafat is now in intensive care.

Bring us up to date -- Jim.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, not a whole lot to say here this morning. In fact, I think that we are not going to hear very much in the next short while. We just saw the hospital spokesman, Christian Estripeau, leave the hospital, so I don't think we're going to be getting any news bulletins in the next few minutes here.

But we did talk a little while ago to Leila Shahid, who is the Palestinian representative here in France. And she confirmed what she had said earlier on French radio, essentially that while Yasser Arafat is not brain dead, as many people had been reporting, he is, in fact, in a coma. She said that his vital organs are functioning, but that this coma is reversible, that it's possible he could come out of it, although she also said it's possible he will not come out of it.

In any case, she gave us a little bit of a description of how things have been going inside the hospital, something we hadn't heard for a while, and that is exactly what happened Wednesday afternoon. Apparently that was the critical day, that Arafat was making some improvement, was looking reasonably well, and then suddenly his condition made a turn for the worse.

Doctors decided that they wanted to do a biopsy so they anesthetized him and he has been in a coma ever since then -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Jim Bittermann live from Paris this morning.

Thank you.

Secretary of State Colin Powell says the second Bush administration will aggressively deal with issues important to Muslims. Powell made the comments at the annual State Department dinner to celebrate the end of Ramadan. He hosted 200 people, many of them women and young Muslims from the Arab world and Asia. The Palestinian issue was one of his topics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: President Bush is the first president to go before the United Nations to state his support for an independent state of Palestine, living in peace and security alongside the state of Israel, and repeated that pledge at his news conference.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: And Powell was speaking of a news conference in which President Bush laid out an aggressive agenda for his second term.

Our senior White House correspondent John King has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Energized, to say the least, and voicing confidence the election results give him both the mandate and the muscle to push difficult issues through Congress.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Let me put it to you this way, I earned capital in the campaign, political capital, and now I intend to spend it.

KING: The president talked optimistically of post-election goodwill. But his major second term initiatives will trigger bruising debates with Democrats. Keeping a promise to slice the deficit will force spending cuts in popular programs. His Social Security proposal includes private investment accounts for younger Americans. Pushing for a flatter tax system that is revenue neutral, meaning no hidden tax increase, and includes incentives for home buying and charitable giving.

BUSH: The people made it clear what they wanted, now let's work together.

KING: Confident but careful, taking questions for nearly 40 minutes, Mr. Bush sidestepped several pressing issues that will test the post-election mood -- whether more troops are needed in Iraq, what the war will cost next year, the goals of an imminent offensive against Iraqi insurgents and what qualities he will look for if Chief Justice William Rehnquist retires.

BUSH: Well, there's no vacancy for the Supreme Court and I will deal with a vacancy when there is one.

KING: On the world stage, Mr. Bush says he shares Prime Minister Tony Blair's goal of trying to revive the Middle East peace process and he talked of trying to move past strains with other leaders caused by the Iraq War.

BUSH: Whatever our past disagreements, we share a common enemy.

KING: Mr. Bush called the campaign exhausting but marvelous. And he reflected on an Oval Office chat with his father Wednesday morning, shortly before Democrat John Kerry conceded the election.

BUSH: It wasn't clear at that point in time, so I never got to see him face-to-face to watch his, I guess, pride in his tired eyes as his son got a second term.

KING: Off to Camp David for a long weekend of rest, the first lady's birthday celebration, and, Mr. Bush says, thoughts about inevitable cabinet and senior staff changes. Aides suggest the turnover will be significant but gradual. (on camera): The president thanked his existing cabinet at a morning meeting and asked them to quickly get to work on the second term agenda. In a sign of his own eagerness, on the way out of the room, Mr. Bush pulled aside his chief speechwriter and excitedly told him he has a few ideas about the inaugural address.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: More from the political world now. The day her husband conceded the election, Elizabeth Edwards learned she had breast cancer. Edwards found a lump about a week earlier, but waited until the election ended to get it checked out. Her form of breast cancer is most common and treatable. But could the stress of the lengthy campaign have contributed to her condition?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS")

DR. CLAUDINE ISAACS, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER: No. There are absolutely no indications that stress is associated with an increased risk for breast cancer. The other thing about breast cancer is we think that for -- by the time somebody has been diagnosed, the breast cancer has been there for quite a while. So that short period of time, I'm sure, didn't feel so short. But the campaign period of time, one couldn't even have implicated in any way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Elizabeth Edwards is undergoing more tests in order to find the best course of treatment.

In other news across America this morning, rescue crews finally reached two climbers who had fallen down a crevasse while hiking on Mount Hood in Oregon. One of the climbers did not survive the fall. The surviving climber managed to call 911 on his cell phone to report their location. He was airlifted to the hospital and is now in stable condition with broken bones.

A new type of anthrax vaccine is on the way. The government agreed to pay $877 million for about 25 million doses. It'll be kept in the strategic national stockpile for use in case of a bioterrorism attack. The new vaccine is used to treat inhalation anthrax, which is the most dangerous kind.

It looks like Mickey Mouse won't be going on strike after all. Walt Disney World and its largest union reached agreement on a tentative contract. The union has about 21,000 members, including ride operators and, of course, the costume characters. Union members will vote on the deal next week.

The NBA is playing close to the foul line and a slam dunk is heading for your wallet. Nothing but net for basketball ticket prices.

And make no bones about it, we've got information for you about how a simple change in your diet can keep your bones healthy and strong.

And the critics say it's incredible. We'll get a sneak peak at a family of superheroes who've been sidelined with our "Weekend Movie preview."

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Friday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It is time to talk money now.

Time for a little "Business Buzz."

The new NBA season is under way, but buying a ticket will cost you a pretty penny.

Carrie Lee has more on that story from the Nasdaq market site.

So, how much will it cost us?

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, on average for an NBA ticket, prices haven't gone up, oh, about much. The average increase just 2.1 percent, to $45.28. But, it does dumped on the team, because the Detroit Pistons, who won the 2004 NBA title, increased ticket prices by nearly 11 percent. And the New York Knicks ticket, well, the cost went up here 10 percent.

Now, still, the NBA, on average, is more than $9 cheaper per ticket to watch than the National Football League and families will be happy to know that for the 2004-2005 season, over 80 percent of the NBA has family packages available for selected home games.

So, clear, where there's a will there's a way, and family packages may go -- be the way for a lot of people to go this year.

COSTELLO: If you have a family.

LEE: If you have a family.

COSTELLO: If you're going on a date, watch out.

LEE: Well, then you'd better be selective about who you're bringing, right?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq market site.

LEE: OK.

COSTELLO: Thank you.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 6:13 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

Long time Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is in a coma in a French hospital this morning. A Palestinian official says the coma is reversible, but U.S. officials say he is on life support. Arafat's health took a turn for the worse on Wednesday.

The prosecutor in the Michael Jackson case will stay put. A judge turned down the defense request to remove Santa Barbara D.A. Tom Sneddon from the case. Jackson's attorney alleged that Sneddon had a personal vendetta against Jackson.

In money news, more Americans have jobs, but the rate of growth is still disappointing. That's the expected news from today's October jobs report. An estimated 169,000 jobs were created last month. Unemployment is also expected to stay stable at 5.4 percent.

In culture, you're just going to have to wait a while to visit the Monk Museum in Oslo, Norway. The museum will be closed until security upgrades are completed next June. In August, armed robbers stole two of Edward Monk's most important masterpieces, "The Scream" -- that's there. The "Madonna" was the previous painting you saw.

In sports, Willie Randolph is moving across town. The Yankees coach was named the new manager of the New York Mets. The former All Star second baseman becomes the fourth African-American manager in the major leagues and he has a big job with the Mets -- Chad.

MYERS: Well, he's got some good players. He just needs to work on some pitching.

COSTELLO: They just don't play well.

MYERS: Well, they don't play well together, but I always -- that always came on my report card, too, does not play well with others.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.

The words ground zero conjure up similar images and emotions for Americans. But to Saudi Arabians it means something entirely different.

In a "CNN PRESENTS" report, "Kingdom on the Brink," CNN's Nic Robertson has been investigating what's going on inside Saudi Arabia.

In this excerpt, a Saudi TV producer is getting ready to go to New York to make a program about ground zero.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At 35, Eissa believes much has changed since his youth, when all they had to watch was one channel of state TV. He feels a generation apart. EISSA BOUGARY, THREE POINTS ADVERTISING: They're growing up with Internet, with 50 channels from all around the world. So they're overwhelmed by the amount of information, by the pressures that they're, you know, facing.

ROBERTSON: He calculates so few in his audience watch state- controlled TV that he puts his ads on more exciting programs, broadcast from outside Saudi Arabia. But, he says, young people are confused by satellite TV. They love Hollywood movies, but get an entirely different message about America from Arab news channels.

BOUGARY: They're friendly, you know, friendly faces, and then they turn into another TV, you know, news channel and they see their own brothers being killed, Muslims all around the world being oppressed. And they're saying wait a minute, what is going on here?

Ready? We're all ready?

ROBERTSON: With a group of friends, Eissa is fighting back, making programs designed to quell anger with understanding. They discuss a trip to ground zero in New York, to show Saudis a different face of the United States, not the images from Iraq most see on their TVs every day.

BOUGARY: How are you going to address that?

ROBERTSON: Eissa argues with Ahmed (ph), one of the anchors of the show.

BOUGARY: It is wrong to kill a woman, whether it's in Israel, Palestine, Iraq, the U.S., I don't care.

AHMED: That's fine. This is your opinion.

BOUGARY: No, it is...

AHMED: This is what you are saying.

BOUGARY: It's not my opinion. This is human.

AHMED: Yes, but we're talking about Iraqis (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who are actually going and grieving (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

ROBERTSON: What divides them is what fuels anger in Saudi Arabia -- the morality of the U.S. occupation in Iraq.

BOUGARY: The objective is try to go and see why is the U.S. doing this, understand from them why do we have support, why did they invade Iraq.

ROBERTSON: A month later, I joined Eissa and his team at ground zero. Once he was a student in this country and this is the first time he's been back since September the 11th.

BOUGARY: I think it's more than I expected. I expected to feel something, but this is even more than what I expected. (END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: Fascinating.

You can watch Nic's full report on "CNN PRESENTS: KINGDOM ON THE BRINK -- THE BATTLE FOR SAUDI ARABIA." It premiers Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

When Yasser Arafat dies, what will happen to his fortune? Coming up, his will, his wife and the worries of the Palestinian people.

And next, as you sit down to the breakfast table, consider this. Most of you probably don't get enough Vitamin D. How can you fix that? Registered dietitian Lisa Drayer will be along to tell us, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: As the nation's Baby Boomers age, health issues become increasingly important. A new surgeon general report finds that in the next 15 years or so, half of Americans over the age of 50 will be at risk for osteoporosis and bone loss.

Our own dietitian, Lisa Drayer, is here to tell us about a way to help avoid brittle bones.

And really, Lisa, I've never heard of this, that Vitamin D can actually help build bones.

LISA DRAYER, NUTRITIONIST: Exactly, Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, I guess milk, though. Vitamin D is in milk. So maybe I have heard that before and I've forgotten.

DRAYER: Actually, milk, it's interesting you say that. It's one of the few foods that is fortified with Vitamin D. So it's one of the main sources of Vitamin D in the diet, that is.

But when many of us think about osteoporosis, we usually think about calcium. But Vitamin D is equally important because it helps to absorb calcium in the body.

The not so good news is that many women are suffering from Vitamin D deficiency, putting them at increased risk for osteoporosis.

Let's take a look now at some new research on Vitamin D, Carol. Researchers at Columbia measured Vitamin D levels of over 1,5000 post- menopausal women throughout North America. Now, the women were required to have taken medication to treat or prevent osteoporosis for a minimum of three months in order to qualify for the study. So this was a high risk group.

Well, researchers found that more than half of the women had insufficient levels of Din their blood, leading to increased risk for bone loss, osteoporosis, fractures and falls. The good news is supplementation helped. Those who took at least 400 I.U.s or international units of Vitamin D were less likely to be deficient compared to those who took less than this amount.

Also, other factors associated with Vitamin D inadequacy included obesity, not exercising and consuming less than 14 Vitamin D rich foods each week.

COSTELLO: Oh, understandable.

You know, you say women we osteoporosis even aren't taking enough Vitamin D. Are they just ignoring their doctors' advice?

DRAYER: You know, it might seem like that, but, in fact, Carol, the women in this study were talking to their doctor about Vitamin D. They were aware of the importance of the vitamin and they were including it in their diet.

But the issue may be that more Vitamin D is needed than what is currently recommended.

I spoke with Dr. Bess Dawson-Hughes. She's director of the metabolic bone disease clinic at the New England Medicine Center. She says that the current recommendations were issued in 1997 and basically they're outdated. So there's newer research to suggest that more Vitamin D may be needed to ensure optimal protection against fractures and falls. And, in fact, many physicians, including Dr. Hughes, prescribe much more Vitamin D than what is currently recommended, especially to their high risk patients.

COSTELLO: Well, let me ask you this, where can you find Vitamin D? You know, I'm thinking of skim milk, but I don't know if much Vitamin D is in skim milk, because that's really the only kind of milk most adult women drink now, only if they're eating cereal.

DRAYER: Right. Milk, a glass of milk will actually give you about 100 international units. That's about 25 percent, if you're in the age category between 51 and 70. But that's based on the existing recommendations. You can get Vitamin D from the sun. So if you're exposing your hands and your face for just 10 to 15 minutes, about two to three times per week, this will allow your body to meet its Vitamin D needs. However, that's without sunscreen. So that's just something to keep in mind there. And, as adults age, the ability to produce Vitamin D in the skin decreases.

Now, foods do contain Vitamin D, as we mentioned. Vitamin D fortified milk. It's also found in fortified cereals, egg yolks, liver and fatty fish like salmon and mackerel. So a very limited amount of foods, but these are the main sources of Din the diet.

Now, if you are concerned that you're not getting enough from foods, you're not outside, you're wearing sunscreen when you are outside, it's a good idea to consider taking a Vitamin D supplement. A lot of calcium supplements contain Vitamin D. It's also present in multivitamins. But it is a good idea to talk to your doctor about supplementation because very high levels, perhaps over 2,000 international units, can be toxic. So be sure to check with your doctor.

COSTELLO: All right, thanks for the advice this morning.

Lisa Drayer live from New York.

Airline ticket prices are going up. We'll tell you how your bottom line might be influencing their bottom line.

And a look at what role the religious right played in the election and how each candidate played in the nation's pulpits.

This is DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: In a coma and on life support, conflicting reports on Yasser Arafat's condition this morning and what will happen if he does die in the coming hours.

It is Friday, November 5.

This is DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

Now in the news, there are conflicting reports this morning about the condition of Yasser Arafat. U.S. administration officials say he's on life support at that military hospital near Paris, but a Palestinian spokesman denies that, insisting Arafat is in a reversible coma induced by doctors for a biopsy. Hospital officials will only confirm Arafat is still alive.

Russia has completed ratification of the Kyoto Protocol to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The required 55 industrialized nations have now endorsed the protocol and it does take effect next year.

It'll be day three of jury deliberations in the Scott Peterson double murder trial. The judge now says there can be a live audio feed.

Los Angeles International Airport officials are thinking about getting better fences. This after a man stripped naked, climbed over an eight foot fence and got into the wheel well of a plane. Authorities say he was suffering from bipolar disorder and was protesting an airline's refusal to sell him a ticket.

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 November 5, 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: With Yasser Arafat now in a coma, the debate is over his final resting place.
It is Friday, November 5.

This is DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

Now in the news, at this hour, concern over the health of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who remains in a coma in a French hospital. U.S. officials say he is on life support. But a Palestinian representative says his coma is reversible and his organs are functioning.

In Iraq, Margaret Hassan's captors are now threatening to hand over the director of CARE International to militant Abu Musab al- Zarqawi unless Britain withdraws troops by today.

In Redwood City, California, it is back to work later this morning for the jury in the murder trial of Scott Peterson. Deliberations began on Wednesday -- Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Our Question of the Day, Carol, should be are you surprised that this has actually taken so long. Scott -- I am so surprised. I thought the verdict would be back in two hours, one way or the other.

COSTELLO: You're hooked on Court TV, aren't you?

MYERS: I am.

COSTELLO: He's been glued to the set over the Scott Peterson trial.

MYERS: I'm watching that clock on top of the screen. It keeps saying -- the jury clock -- 10 hours, 11 hours, 12 hours.

COSTELLO: The longer the jury is out, the better for Scott Peterson.

MYERS: You never know. We'll see.

(WEATHER REPORT) COSTELLO: One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. Perhaps no one embodies that more than Yasser Arafat. The Palestinian leader has been a fighter for most of his life, and right now he is fighting for his life.

Let's head live to Jim Bittermann.

He's at the French military hospital near Paris where Arafat is now in intensive care.

Bring us up to date -- Jim.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, not a whole lot to say here this morning. In fact, I think that we are not going to hear very much in the next short while. We just saw the hospital spokesman, Christian Estripeau, leave the hospital, so I don't think we're going to be getting any news bulletins in the next few minutes here.

But we did talk a little while ago to Leila Shahid, who is the Palestinian representative here in France. And she confirmed what she had said earlier on French radio, essentially that while Yasser Arafat is not brain dead, as many people had been reporting, he is, in fact, in a coma. She said that his vital organs are functioning, but that this coma is reversible, that it's possible he could come out of it, although she also said it's possible he will not come out of it.

In any case, she gave us a little bit of a description of how things have been going inside the hospital, something we hadn't heard for a while, and that is exactly what happened Wednesday afternoon. Apparently that was the critical day, that Arafat was making some improvement, was looking reasonably well, and then suddenly his condition made a turn for the worse.

Doctors decided that they wanted to do a biopsy so they anesthetized him and he has been in a coma ever since then -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Jim Bittermann live from Paris this morning.

Thank you.

Secretary of State Colin Powell says the second Bush administration will aggressively deal with issues important to Muslims. Powell made the comments at the annual State Department dinner to celebrate the end of Ramadan. He hosted 200 people, many of them women and young Muslims from the Arab world and Asia. The Palestinian issue was one of his topics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: President Bush is the first president to go before the United Nations to state his support for an independent state of Palestine, living in peace and security alongside the state of Israel, and repeated that pledge at his news conference.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: And Powell was speaking of a news conference in which President Bush laid out an aggressive agenda for his second term.

Our senior White House correspondent John King has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Energized, to say the least, and voicing confidence the election results give him both the mandate and the muscle to push difficult issues through Congress.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Let me put it to you this way, I earned capital in the campaign, political capital, and now I intend to spend it.

KING: The president talked optimistically of post-election goodwill. But his major second term initiatives will trigger bruising debates with Democrats. Keeping a promise to slice the deficit will force spending cuts in popular programs. His Social Security proposal includes private investment accounts for younger Americans. Pushing for a flatter tax system that is revenue neutral, meaning no hidden tax increase, and includes incentives for home buying and charitable giving.

BUSH: The people made it clear what they wanted, now let's work together.

KING: Confident but careful, taking questions for nearly 40 minutes, Mr. Bush sidestepped several pressing issues that will test the post-election mood -- whether more troops are needed in Iraq, what the war will cost next year, the goals of an imminent offensive against Iraqi insurgents and what qualities he will look for if Chief Justice William Rehnquist retires.

BUSH: Well, there's no vacancy for the Supreme Court and I will deal with a vacancy when there is one.

KING: On the world stage, Mr. Bush says he shares Prime Minister Tony Blair's goal of trying to revive the Middle East peace process and he talked of trying to move past strains with other leaders caused by the Iraq War.

BUSH: Whatever our past disagreements, we share a common enemy.

KING: Mr. Bush called the campaign exhausting but marvelous. And he reflected on an Oval Office chat with his father Wednesday morning, shortly before Democrat John Kerry conceded the election.

BUSH: It wasn't clear at that point in time, so I never got to see him face-to-face to watch his, I guess, pride in his tired eyes as his son got a second term.

KING: Off to Camp David for a long weekend of rest, the first lady's birthday celebration, and, Mr. Bush says, thoughts about inevitable cabinet and senior staff changes. Aides suggest the turnover will be significant but gradual. (on camera): The president thanked his existing cabinet at a morning meeting and asked them to quickly get to work on the second term agenda. In a sign of his own eagerness, on the way out of the room, Mr. Bush pulled aside his chief speechwriter and excitedly told him he has a few ideas about the inaugural address.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: More from the political world now. The day her husband conceded the election, Elizabeth Edwards learned she had breast cancer. Edwards found a lump about a week earlier, but waited until the election ended to get it checked out. Her form of breast cancer is most common and treatable. But could the stress of the lengthy campaign have contributed to her condition?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS")

DR. CLAUDINE ISAACS, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER: No. There are absolutely no indications that stress is associated with an increased risk for breast cancer. The other thing about breast cancer is we think that for -- by the time somebody has been diagnosed, the breast cancer has been there for quite a while. So that short period of time, I'm sure, didn't feel so short. But the campaign period of time, one couldn't even have implicated in any way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Elizabeth Edwards is undergoing more tests in order to find the best course of treatment.

In other news across America this morning, rescue crews finally reached two climbers who had fallen down a crevasse while hiking on Mount Hood in Oregon. One of the climbers did not survive the fall. The surviving climber managed to call 911 on his cell phone to report their location. He was airlifted to the hospital and is now in stable condition with broken bones.

A new type of anthrax vaccine is on the way. The government agreed to pay $877 million for about 25 million doses. It'll be kept in the strategic national stockpile for use in case of a bioterrorism attack. The new vaccine is used to treat inhalation anthrax, which is the most dangerous kind.

It looks like Mickey Mouse won't be going on strike after all. Walt Disney World and its largest union reached agreement on a tentative contract. The union has about 21,000 members, including ride operators and, of course, the costume characters. Union members will vote on the deal next week.

The NBA is playing close to the foul line and a slam dunk is heading for your wallet. Nothing but net for basketball ticket prices.

And make no bones about it, we've got information for you about how a simple change in your diet can keep your bones healthy and strong.

And the critics say it's incredible. We'll get a sneak peak at a family of superheroes who've been sidelined with our "Weekend Movie preview."

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Friday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It is time to talk money now.

Time for a little "Business Buzz."

The new NBA season is under way, but buying a ticket will cost you a pretty penny.

Carrie Lee has more on that story from the Nasdaq market site.

So, how much will it cost us?

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, on average for an NBA ticket, prices haven't gone up, oh, about much. The average increase just 2.1 percent, to $45.28. But, it does dumped on the team, because the Detroit Pistons, who won the 2004 NBA title, increased ticket prices by nearly 11 percent. And the New York Knicks ticket, well, the cost went up here 10 percent.

Now, still, the NBA, on average, is more than $9 cheaper per ticket to watch than the National Football League and families will be happy to know that for the 2004-2005 season, over 80 percent of the NBA has family packages available for selected home games.

So, clear, where there's a will there's a way, and family packages may go -- be the way for a lot of people to go this year.

COSTELLO: If you have a family.

LEE: If you have a family.

COSTELLO: If you're going on a date, watch out.

LEE: Well, then you'd better be selective about who you're bringing, right?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq market site.

LEE: OK.

COSTELLO: Thank you.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 6:13 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

Long time Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is in a coma in a French hospital this morning. A Palestinian official says the coma is reversible, but U.S. officials say he is on life support. Arafat's health took a turn for the worse on Wednesday.

The prosecutor in the Michael Jackson case will stay put. A judge turned down the defense request to remove Santa Barbara D.A. Tom Sneddon from the case. Jackson's attorney alleged that Sneddon had a personal vendetta against Jackson.

In money news, more Americans have jobs, but the rate of growth is still disappointing. That's the expected news from today's October jobs report. An estimated 169,000 jobs were created last month. Unemployment is also expected to stay stable at 5.4 percent.

In culture, you're just going to have to wait a while to visit the Monk Museum in Oslo, Norway. The museum will be closed until security upgrades are completed next June. In August, armed robbers stole two of Edward Monk's most important masterpieces, "The Scream" -- that's there. The "Madonna" was the previous painting you saw.

In sports, Willie Randolph is moving across town. The Yankees coach was named the new manager of the New York Mets. The former All Star second baseman becomes the fourth African-American manager in the major leagues and he has a big job with the Mets -- Chad.

MYERS: Well, he's got some good players. He just needs to work on some pitching.

COSTELLO: They just don't play well.

MYERS: Well, they don't play well together, but I always -- that always came on my report card, too, does not play well with others.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.

The words ground zero conjure up similar images and emotions for Americans. But to Saudi Arabians it means something entirely different.

In a "CNN PRESENTS" report, "Kingdom on the Brink," CNN's Nic Robertson has been investigating what's going on inside Saudi Arabia.

In this excerpt, a Saudi TV producer is getting ready to go to New York to make a program about ground zero.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At 35, Eissa believes much has changed since his youth, when all they had to watch was one channel of state TV. He feels a generation apart. EISSA BOUGARY, THREE POINTS ADVERTISING: They're growing up with Internet, with 50 channels from all around the world. So they're overwhelmed by the amount of information, by the pressures that they're, you know, facing.

ROBERTSON: He calculates so few in his audience watch state- controlled TV that he puts his ads on more exciting programs, broadcast from outside Saudi Arabia. But, he says, young people are confused by satellite TV. They love Hollywood movies, but get an entirely different message about America from Arab news channels.

BOUGARY: They're friendly, you know, friendly faces, and then they turn into another TV, you know, news channel and they see their own brothers being killed, Muslims all around the world being oppressed. And they're saying wait a minute, what is going on here?

Ready? We're all ready?

ROBERTSON: With a group of friends, Eissa is fighting back, making programs designed to quell anger with understanding. They discuss a trip to ground zero in New York, to show Saudis a different face of the United States, not the images from Iraq most see on their TVs every day.

BOUGARY: How are you going to address that?

ROBERTSON: Eissa argues with Ahmed (ph), one of the anchors of the show.

BOUGARY: It is wrong to kill a woman, whether it's in Israel, Palestine, Iraq, the U.S., I don't care.

AHMED: That's fine. This is your opinion.

BOUGARY: No, it is...

AHMED: This is what you are saying.

BOUGARY: It's not my opinion. This is human.

AHMED: Yes, but we're talking about Iraqis (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who are actually going and grieving (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

ROBERTSON: What divides them is what fuels anger in Saudi Arabia -- the morality of the U.S. occupation in Iraq.

BOUGARY: The objective is try to go and see why is the U.S. doing this, understand from them why do we have support, why did they invade Iraq.

ROBERTSON: A month later, I joined Eissa and his team at ground zero. Once he was a student in this country and this is the first time he's been back since September the 11th.

BOUGARY: I think it's more than I expected. I expected to feel something, but this is even more than what I expected. (END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: Fascinating.

You can watch Nic's full report on "CNN PRESENTS: KINGDOM ON THE BRINK -- THE BATTLE FOR SAUDI ARABIA." It premiers Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

When Yasser Arafat dies, what will happen to his fortune? Coming up, his will, his wife and the worries of the Palestinian people.

And next, as you sit down to the breakfast table, consider this. Most of you probably don't get enough Vitamin D. How can you fix that? Registered dietitian Lisa Drayer will be along to tell us, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: As the nation's Baby Boomers age, health issues become increasingly important. A new surgeon general report finds that in the next 15 years or so, half of Americans over the age of 50 will be at risk for osteoporosis and bone loss.

Our own dietitian, Lisa Drayer, is here to tell us about a way to help avoid brittle bones.

And really, Lisa, I've never heard of this, that Vitamin D can actually help build bones.

LISA DRAYER, NUTRITIONIST: Exactly, Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, I guess milk, though. Vitamin D is in milk. So maybe I have heard that before and I've forgotten.

DRAYER: Actually, milk, it's interesting you say that. It's one of the few foods that is fortified with Vitamin D. So it's one of the main sources of Vitamin D in the diet, that is.

But when many of us think about osteoporosis, we usually think about calcium. But Vitamin D is equally important because it helps to absorb calcium in the body.

The not so good news is that many women are suffering from Vitamin D deficiency, putting them at increased risk for osteoporosis.

Let's take a look now at some new research on Vitamin D, Carol. Researchers at Columbia measured Vitamin D levels of over 1,5000 post- menopausal women throughout North America. Now, the women were required to have taken medication to treat or prevent osteoporosis for a minimum of three months in order to qualify for the study. So this was a high risk group.

Well, researchers found that more than half of the women had insufficient levels of Din their blood, leading to increased risk for bone loss, osteoporosis, fractures and falls. The good news is supplementation helped. Those who took at least 400 I.U.s or international units of Vitamin D were less likely to be deficient compared to those who took less than this amount.

Also, other factors associated with Vitamin D inadequacy included obesity, not exercising and consuming less than 14 Vitamin D rich foods each week.

COSTELLO: Oh, understandable.

You know, you say women we osteoporosis even aren't taking enough Vitamin D. Are they just ignoring their doctors' advice?

DRAYER: You know, it might seem like that, but, in fact, Carol, the women in this study were talking to their doctor about Vitamin D. They were aware of the importance of the vitamin and they were including it in their diet.

But the issue may be that more Vitamin D is needed than what is currently recommended.

I spoke with Dr. Bess Dawson-Hughes. She's director of the metabolic bone disease clinic at the New England Medicine Center. She says that the current recommendations were issued in 1997 and basically they're outdated. So there's newer research to suggest that more Vitamin D may be needed to ensure optimal protection against fractures and falls. And, in fact, many physicians, including Dr. Hughes, prescribe much more Vitamin D than what is currently recommended, especially to their high risk patients.

COSTELLO: Well, let me ask you this, where can you find Vitamin D? You know, I'm thinking of skim milk, but I don't know if much Vitamin D is in skim milk, because that's really the only kind of milk most adult women drink now, only if they're eating cereal.

DRAYER: Right. Milk, a glass of milk will actually give you about 100 international units. That's about 25 percent, if you're in the age category between 51 and 70. But that's based on the existing recommendations. You can get Vitamin D from the sun. So if you're exposing your hands and your face for just 10 to 15 minutes, about two to three times per week, this will allow your body to meet its Vitamin D needs. However, that's without sunscreen. So that's just something to keep in mind there. And, as adults age, the ability to produce Vitamin D in the skin decreases.

Now, foods do contain Vitamin D, as we mentioned. Vitamin D fortified milk. It's also found in fortified cereals, egg yolks, liver and fatty fish like salmon and mackerel. So a very limited amount of foods, but these are the main sources of Din the diet.

Now, if you are concerned that you're not getting enough from foods, you're not outside, you're wearing sunscreen when you are outside, it's a good idea to consider taking a Vitamin D supplement. A lot of calcium supplements contain Vitamin D. It's also present in multivitamins. But it is a good idea to talk to your doctor about supplementation because very high levels, perhaps over 2,000 international units, can be toxic. So be sure to check with your doctor.

COSTELLO: All right, thanks for the advice this morning.

Lisa Drayer live from New York.

Airline ticket prices are going up. We'll tell you how your bottom line might be influencing their bottom line.

And a look at what role the religious right played in the election and how each candidate played in the nation's pulpits.

This is DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: In a coma and on life support, conflicting reports on Yasser Arafat's condition this morning and what will happen if he does die in the coming hours.

It is Friday, November 5.

This is DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

Now in the news, there are conflicting reports this morning about the condition of Yasser Arafat. U.S. administration officials say he's on life support at that military hospital near Paris, but a Palestinian spokesman denies that, insisting Arafat is in a reversible coma induced by doctors for a biopsy. Hospital officials will only confirm Arafat is still alive.

Russia has completed ratification of the Kyoto Protocol to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The required 55 industrialized nations have now endorsed the protocol and it does take effect next year.

It'll be day three of jury deliberations in the Scott Peterson double murder trial. The judge now says there can be a live audio feed.

Los Angeles International Airport officials are thinking about getting better fences. This after a man stripped naked, climbed over an eight foot fence and got into the wheel well of a plane. Authorities say he was suffering from bipolar disorder and was protesting an airline's refusal to sell him a ticket.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com