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CNN Live At Daybreak

'Hot Topics'; Changing Face of Ukrainian Opposition Candidate; Case of Wine

Aired December 02, 2004 - 06:28   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: And good morning to you. Thank you for waking up with us. I'm Carol Costello with Rob Marciano this morning. Let's check the headlines for you now.
Explosions rocked central Baghdad this morning, one person killed, a dozen wounded. You're looking at video just in to us. We got this in about two hours -- this is from one of the blast sites. Police say the explosions were caused by at least five mortar rounds.

Fifteen hundred U.S. troops are getting the call-up from the Pentagon. They're being told they'll soon be heading to Iraq. The government is also extending the stays of more than 10,000 other U.S. forces already there.

The man who stabbed Sweden's foreign minister to death last year will be jailed for life. That's the ruling from Sweden's supreme court. It overturned an appeals court ruling that would have sent the confessed killer to a mental hospital - excuse me.

Residents of the eastern Philippines are getting battered by a powerful typhoon. This one comes after another typhoon killed 420 people. More than 160,000 people have sought refuge from this latest storm, which has winds of up to 150 miles per hour.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: President Bush is back from a visit to Canada. And guess what? He is expected to lobby, lobby, lobby for intelligence reform, at least some think so. He's expected to meet with the Republican leaders of the House and Senate, and maybe lean on them; them, being Hunter and Sensenbrenner.

The subject did come up during the president's meeting in Ottawa. Here's what the two leaders had to say about the war on terror.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL MARTIN, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: There have been enormous pressures on our shared border. We are concerned with domestic security. We must defend this continent, secure its borders, guard its ports. And Canada is absolutely committed to doing whatever needs to be done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The war on terror and the intelligence reform bill, that's actually our "Hot Topics" this morning for our political analyst, Ron Brownstein of the "Los Angeles Times."

Good morning.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: So, will the president really lobby, literally go to Capitol Hill and lobby, lobby, lobby?

BROWNSTEIN: First of all, we could use a "Hot Topic" here this morning. It's a little cold in Washington. I think, look, that is the big question here. There was a report in the paper this morning that George Tenet, the former director of the CIA, gave a speech the other day, in which he said that he opposed the idea of a new national director of intelligence, because it created a new layer of bureaucracy between the head of the CIA and the president.

I wrote a story about six months ago saying that that was White House officials originally felt about this idea. During the campaign, of course, President Bush wholeheartedly endorsed the suggestion of the 9/11 Commission to create this agency.

But now that we're beyond the election and there is not that issue of creating a contrast with John Kerry, people are still questioning his commitment to the bill. He says he's for it. He says he's going to push for it. They have been negotiating with Republicans at their leadership retreat this week, but it is still an open question. And we won't know until we find out whether there will be a vote on the floor of the House.

COSTELLO: Oh, come on, Ron! You think there could -- I mean, the president comes out and says he's for it, but he really may not be. Do you think that's really possible?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, there has been a nod and a wink before. Look, I mean, you recall what happened with the assault weapon ban, which was allowed to expire last year. The president said he was for it, but never really pressured the House Republicans, who said they were not going to take it up, and he allowed it to expire.

Now, in this case, he has, I think, gone beyond what people expected in his comments in Canada. He was very forceful in saying that he wanted this bill.

On the other hand, as you know, the Pentagon has been allowed to oppose elements of it. And the underlying reality, Carol, remains the same. There is no one, I think, disagrees there is a majority for this bill today as written in the House and the Senate. The House leadership is refusing to bring it up, because they say it has too much opposition among Republicans.

And the question is, if they can't reach a deal to remove that opposition, will the president demand that they bring it to a vote?

COSTELLO: We'll see what happens actually next week and, of course, later this week. Ron Brownstein, live from Washington, thank you. BROWNSTEIN: Thanks.

COSTELLO: The opposition presidential candidate believes Ukraine's Supreme Court will rule today on his complaint about vote fraud, and he believes that ruling will set the stage for a new election. Demonstrators were back on the streets this morning.

But at a meeting of the two presidential candidates yesterday, it was agreed that access to government buildings will no longer be blocked. Also, Parliament did vote no confidence in the government of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, one of the presidential candidates.

Something has changed the face of the opposition candidate in the Ukraine election, and that has changed the face of the presidential race itself.

CNN's Ryan Chilcote takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He had movie-star looks, experience in leadership as Ukraine's prime minister. But, according to the pollsters, he lacked the support of enough ordinary Ukrainians to win the presidency.

Then this September, after complaining of food poisoning, he was admitted to a hospital in Kiev, then an Austrian clinic. When he emerged, his face had changed dramatically. His small lines had turned into deep pockmarks, and with them, the contours of Ukraine's political landscape.

Yushka (ph) told his supporters the government was trying to poison him.

VIKTOR YUSHCHENKO, UKRAINIAN OPPOSITION CANDIDATE (through translator): I want to express a special message to the authorities. You will not poison us.

CHILCOTE: Ukraine's top prosecutor investigated. His conclusion: Yushchenko was suffering from herpes.

The same Kremlin spin doctors who crafted President Putin's image in Russia were in Ukraine at the time, to support the pro-Moscow candidate, Viktor Yanukovich.

"The election took on a folklorish, mythic nature," Glev Pavlovsky (ph) says. "It was a lie Yushchenko's staff used to hide the fact that their candidate was ill late in the campaign."

Whether the allegations are fairytales or not, Yushchenko, the politician, became more attractive. Some Yushchenko watchers say he even ditched the makeup he was using to cover up his new face.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

Carol, many Ukrainians do not believe Mr. Yushchenko's allegations that the government was trying to poison him, and there are a lot of -- some of them wild theories that they substitute his version of events with. They range all the way from it was an unsuccessful plastic surgery that he went to -- some of them even that he went to the sauna too early after getting plastic surgery to that he may have some kind of skin cancer.

Still, irrespective of the role of his face, on the campaign and on events since the results came out, his popularity, at least according to the polls there in Ukraine, is only rising -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Politics are pretty stranger wherever you live. A question for you, though, about how this election applies to the United States. It has clearly created a rift between the United States and Russia. How serious is that rift?

CHILCOTE: Well, it's created an enormous amount of distrust, I think. The U.S. distrusts Russia's position in Ukraine. The U.S., I think, believes that Russia really wanted to see Yanukovych win, and that in order to prevent Ukraine under Mr. Yushchenko from becoming part of the EU or NATO, Russia believes that the international observers and the international mediators that are in Ukraine right now really just wanted to see Ukraine part of the Western community, and that the use of the word democratic and free and fair elections was just a code word, because they want Mr. Yushchenko in charge.

I spoke with a senior U.S. diplomat, and he says this is not a watershed moment, this is not the beginning of the Cold War, that the geopolitical agenda between the U.S. and Russia has a lot of common ground, and the two countries will work through this problem.

COSTELLO: Ryan Chilcote live in Moscow this morning, thank you.

In the Middle East, a dilemma for Palestinians. Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti has changed his mind. Despite being held in an Israeli prison, he now says he will be an independent candidate to replace Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat.

Barghouti's wife filed papers for his candidacy on Wednesday. The candidacy of Barghouti spells major problems for Mahmoud Abbas, the Fatah movement's presidential candidate, because it threatens to split the movement.

Back here in the States, organizers of the Black Tie and Boots Inaugural Ball for President Bush says it has been oversold. Some people who ordered tickets by mail will get refunds. This is President Bush' inaugural ball in 2001 you're look at now. The ball is January 19, that is this year, the president will be sworn in the next day at noon.

"The Polar Express" is rolling right by the usual audiences, but it's making money in some alternative places. That's making our business buzz.

And got a wine lover in the family? Don't log on to buy them a Christmas gift just yet.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It's time now for a little business buzz. The IMAX Theater is making big bucks on trips to the North Pole. Oh, I can hear "The Polar Express" a coming.

Carrie Lee has more.

Did you like that, Carrie?

CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I did. I haven't seen the film. I liked the intro.

It's interesting, because "The Polar Express" has been railed by Hollywood as being an underperformer, but not so at IMAX Theaters, which offer a special 3D version of the film. The movie has been opened for three weeks.

And according to "USA Today," it raked in nearly $11 million at IMAX. That's 13 percent of the computer-animated film's total gross of 81.5 million. Very impressive, since the film is only playing at 62 IMAX theaters. That's just 2 percent of the total screenings of the film. So, "The Polar Express" is set to pass other IMAX hits like "Spider-Man 2."

It's also interesting to note that tickets at IMAX theaters run about $3 to $4 more than regular theaters. So, people are willing to pay a little bit more, and we could see more of a trend like this going forward, Carol. Perhaps if IMAX is successful here, we could more 3D films coming out.

COSTELLO: Maybe so. Carrie Lee, live from the Nasdaq Marketsite.

You might say that when it comes to wine sales, the Supreme Court will hear no case before its time. Well, that time is next Tuesday, and the case involves Internet wine sales. Consumers say they should be able to buy wine directly from other states. But 24 states have put a cork in that plan.

DAYBREAK contributor Ali Velshi is here to tell us more.

Oh, this is an interesting one.

ALI VELSHI, CNN DAYBREAK CONTRIBUTOR: I know you're a wine lover. I don't even drink wine. But I've got to tell you, this thing has been bugging me since about 1933. It is David and Goliath all over again. And once again, it is the average person who loses. Small wineries versus the states.

Now, the issue is: Can small wineries sell directly to out-of- state customers? Or does the status quo remain? The status quo is that 24 states, including New York, restrict your ability to buy wine from wine makers in this country. Stupid, yes, but it's a holdover from Prohibition. The 21st Amendment ended Prohibition in 1933, but it let the states regulate the ability to distribute wine. So, a number of states ruled that wineries from out of their state had to sell their production to distributors in the state, who then sold it to retailers. And those are the places that regular people went to buy their wine.

Now, that was 1933. Today, in these 24 states, you still can't buy wine directly from a winery out of state. You can't buy it on the Internet. And if you go in person, let's say to a tasting room or a winery, you might not even be able to have the winery ship it to you. You can buy it in person and drive it home or take it on the plane with you. Technically if you do that you're breaking the law. And the winery would be breaking the law if they knew you were taking it to a wine-prohibited state, as it were.

If that's not silly enough for you, it gets better. Why not buy a case and FedEx it home?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

VELSHI: Well, here is why. Let's take a look at this. From their Web site, private individuals cannot ship wine with FedEx, only approved and licensed wine shippers may do so. If you wish to become an approved wine shipper with FedEx, the steps are simple: Enroll in the FedEx wine shipping program and provide a copy of your alcohol license from your origin state.

Even better, over at the UPS Web site, alcohol is prohibited from being shipped via the UPS one-time pickup services. UPS reserves the right to dispose of any alcoholic beverages tendered for shipment, which shippers are prohibited from shipping, which UPS is not authorized to accept, which UPS states that it will not accept or which UPS has a right to refuse.

COSTELLO: Say what?

VELSHI: Yes.

COSTELLO: What?

VELSHI: They're not taking your wine. The laws turn otherwise innocent wine lovers into criminals for no other reason than they're just trying to get a bottle of wine at home.

COSTELLO: And I must admit, you sneak. You sneak it over, even though you're not...

(CROSSTALK)

VELSHI: Why should it be a crime?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

VELSHI: What are we doing wrong? You can buy...

COSTELLO: So, what's the Supreme Court going to rule, Al?

VELSHI: The Supreme Court is going to rule -- they're going to hear the case. The wineries say you are impeding our ability to do business, and that's unconstitutional. The states are saying, and the big wineries on the state side, are saying this 21st Amendment protects our right to do this. You may think we're impeding commerce, interstate commerce, but we're actually protected.

COSTELLO: You know it all boils down to money and who makes more.

VELSHI: Exactly. The wineries stand to lose if they -- the big wineries stand to lose. So...

COSTELLO: There you have it. And Tuesday, of course, you'll have an update.

VELSHI: I absolutely will.

COSTELLO: We will know. Because we know the Supreme Court always rules when it says it will.

VELSHI: That's right.

COSTELLO: Yes, right.

Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 6:45 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

Five mortar rounds hit the heart of Baghdad, leaving one person dead and at least 12 others wounded.

The U.S. State Department says it is not taking a position on whether U.S. Secretary-General Kofi Annan should resign. The senator leading the probe into U.N.'s Iraq oil-for-food program is calling for Annan to resign.

In money news, weak car sales in November have hurt General Motors and Ford. The carmakers say they will cut production more than expected.

In culture, the Miramax film, "Finding Neverland," has been named best film of the year by the National Board of Review. The story is a fictionalized account of the creator of "Peter Pan."

In sports, a bombshell report this morning about New York Yankees slugger Jason Giambi. According to the "San Francisco Chronicle," Giambi has now admitted to using steroids. The paper says he made that admission when he testified before a grand jury in the Balco steroids case last year.

(WEATHER REPORT)

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

Let's head six blocks down the street -- or is it up the street -- to check in with Soledad...

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: It's up to you.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Down. You're up, you're down.

S. O'BRIEN: Good morning. How are you, Carol? Some of the headlines that we're looking at this morning. The oil-for-food scandal continues. Some folks are saying it is time for Kofi Annan to resign. But are there some reasons for him to stay? This morning, we talk with Senator Carl Levin about that.

M. O'BRIEN: On the trail of terrorists, Pakistan scales back a key part of the search for bin Laden. So, where does it think he is hiding? We'll talk to the last reporter to interview bin Laden, Ahmed Mir (ph), and see what he has to say about all of this.

S. O'BRIEN: And two girls I just love, the Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, are facing off, but this time it's for a very good cause. They're going to talk with us life. All ahead on this "AMERICAN MORNING."

Carol -- back to you.

COSTELLO: Thanks very much. We'll catch you in about 10 minutes.

Still to come on DAYBREAK...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The museum desperately needs money, as do many institutions of its kind. But this is the wrong way to raise it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, why is an art auction going on as planned today and in of America's premier museums and why the controversy?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Let's talk about Chicago now, shall we? Chicago's world-famous Field Museum of Natural History is set to make millions from an auction at Sotheby's in New York today. But what's being sold has sparked a debate over what is art and what is science.

Details now from CNN's Jonathan Freed.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Are these the faces of history offering genuine scientific significance? Or is it simply a collection of old paintings by a respected artist and adventurer?

George Catlin spent much of the 1830s with several American Indian tribes in the West, painting portraits. While many are in the Smithsonian, three dozen of his works spent most of the last 100 years in storage at Chicago's Field Museum.

JOHN MCCARTER, FIELD MUSEUM PRESIDENT: How important are they really to this institution, not having been studied by scholars and not having been put on public display?

FREED: The Field's field is natural history, and its experts have declared the Catlins don't embody enough historical information to have real anthropological significance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There isn't the detail that you actually need to study something.

FREED: So, most of the paintings are being auctioned off and are expected to fetch as much as $15 million.

JONATHAN HAAS, FIELD MUSEUM ANTHROPOLOGIST: The sale of the Catlins is going to allow us to make those new acquisitions, to acquire new materials that will bring life to this institution for the rest of its life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Field Museum is going to auction off its Catlin paintings.

FREED: At a recent anthropology conference in Chicago, some felt the Field is selling out science.

PROF. JIM BROWN, NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY: There were no photographers during Catlin's day. And so, that remains the sole basis on which we have any indication of what peoples were like back then.

FREED: While many Native Americans agree there is historic value in the artwork, others question the artist's accuracy.

DAVE SPENCER, AMERICAN INDIAN CENTER: This is not a native painter talking about native stories or native histories. It's a non- native person telling us how he sees native people.

FREED: Only three of the museum's 50-plus board members opposed the decision. Ed Hirschland quit because of it, and predicts it will curb donations.

EDWARD HIRSCHLAND, EX-MUSEUM TRUSTEE: The museum desperately needs money, as do many institutions of its kind. But this is the wrong way to raise it. One must not ever sell one's treasures.

FREED: The Field insists its finances are sound. And it argues that museums regularly make changes to their collections; adding, this sale is only attracting attention because it's less common for a natural history museum to do it.

Jonathan Freed, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And there's another big auction taking place today at Sotheby's. And it's only fitting it's in New York, because that's where the House of Ruth was built. Babe Ruth's 36-inch ash wood bat is going on the auction block today. It's the one used to hit the first homerun in Yankees stadium history. And, yes, the Yanks were playing the Red Sox.

The bat is expected to fetch at least $1 million, but the bids could go even higher. Ooh, I bet they will.

Stan gets a new look for a special occasion. But first, this is DAYBREAK for a Thursday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Oh, I love this. Who could forget "Monty Python's Flying Circus?" The men in drag, the lumberjack saw, and the knights of the round table. The British comedy troupe has a new musical in the works. It's called "Spamelot." It's sure to include lots of one- liners about that mystery meat, you know, Spam. In honor of Hormel, the maker of Spam, it has produced a special collector's can of Spam. The flavor is golden honey grail. Umm -- Rob.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It sounds...

COSTELLO: Here's a throwback. You listened to Duran Duran.

MARCIANO: Oh, yes, sure.

COSTELLO: You did?

MARCIANO: Yes.

COSTELLO: You remember them? Yes, yes.

MARCIANO: In the '80s, you know, that's when I was -- I don't know.

COSTELLO: That's when you were hip and happening.

MARCIANO: When you were talking about Spam, I'm thinking the Internet. I forgot they still make that mystery meat.

COSTELLO: See how young you are? Exactly.

Anyway, Duran Duran has a new album out, and Simon LeBon and Nick Rhodes will be on "CNN LIVE TODAY" during the 10:00 a.m. Eastern hour.

MARCIANO: Really? Are they going to perform, or are they just going to chit-chat?

COSTELLO: Now, that would be interesting. I don't know. I think they're just going to chit-chat...

MARCIANO: OK.

COSTELLO: ... and try to sell more albums or CDs. There's no such thing as an album anymore. MARCIANO: Right.

COSTELLO: And finally, we want to say once again that Chad is off because, of course, finally his wife had the baby. There is Baby Myers. No name yet. Seven pounds -- almost eight pounds actually. What? Twenty-one inches long. It was a big baby.

MARCIANO: A big baby. He came right when he was supposed to come. And, Jack, I don't know -- although they thought he was going to come earlier. And then Jack Cafferty said something yesterday that was hilarious. He said, he was about to come out, and then he found out who his dad was going to be and he decided he didn't want to come out.

COSTELLO: Thanks, Uncle Jack. I don't think the baby will be named Jack Myers, do you?

MARCIANO: No, probably not.

COSTELLO: All right.

MARCIANO: But I loved it anyway.

COSTELLO: That does it for DAYBREAK today. From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Rob Marciano. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts in 30 seconds.

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 December 2, 2004 - 06:28   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. Thank you for waking up with us. I'm Carol Costello with Rob Marciano this morning. Let's check the headlines for you now.
Explosions rocked central Baghdad this morning, one person killed, a dozen wounded. You're looking at video just in to us. We got this in about two hours -- this is from one of the blast sites. Police say the explosions were caused by at least five mortar rounds.

Fifteen hundred U.S. troops are getting the call-up from the Pentagon. They're being told they'll soon be heading to Iraq. The government is also extending the stays of more than 10,000 other U.S. forces already there.

The man who stabbed Sweden's foreign minister to death last year will be jailed for life. That's the ruling from Sweden's supreme court. It overturned an appeals court ruling that would have sent the confessed killer to a mental hospital - excuse me.

Residents of the eastern Philippines are getting battered by a powerful typhoon. This one comes after another typhoon killed 420 people. More than 160,000 people have sought refuge from this latest storm, which has winds of up to 150 miles per hour.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: President Bush is back from a visit to Canada. And guess what? He is expected to lobby, lobby, lobby for intelligence reform, at least some think so. He's expected to meet with the Republican leaders of the House and Senate, and maybe lean on them; them, being Hunter and Sensenbrenner.

The subject did come up during the president's meeting in Ottawa. Here's what the two leaders had to say about the war on terror.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL MARTIN, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: There have been enormous pressures on our shared border. We are concerned with domestic security. We must defend this continent, secure its borders, guard its ports. And Canada is absolutely committed to doing whatever needs to be done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The war on terror and the intelligence reform bill, that's actually our "Hot Topics" this morning for our political analyst, Ron Brownstein of the "Los Angeles Times."

Good morning.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: So, will the president really lobby, literally go to Capitol Hill and lobby, lobby, lobby?

BROWNSTEIN: First of all, we could use a "Hot Topic" here this morning. It's a little cold in Washington. I think, look, that is the big question here. There was a report in the paper this morning that George Tenet, the former director of the CIA, gave a speech the other day, in which he said that he opposed the idea of a new national director of intelligence, because it created a new layer of bureaucracy between the head of the CIA and the president.

I wrote a story about six months ago saying that that was White House officials originally felt about this idea. During the campaign, of course, President Bush wholeheartedly endorsed the suggestion of the 9/11 Commission to create this agency.

But now that we're beyond the election and there is not that issue of creating a contrast with John Kerry, people are still questioning his commitment to the bill. He says he's for it. He says he's going to push for it. They have been negotiating with Republicans at their leadership retreat this week, but it is still an open question. And we won't know until we find out whether there will be a vote on the floor of the House.

COSTELLO: Oh, come on, Ron! You think there could -- I mean, the president comes out and says he's for it, but he really may not be. Do you think that's really possible?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, there has been a nod and a wink before. Look, I mean, you recall what happened with the assault weapon ban, which was allowed to expire last year. The president said he was for it, but never really pressured the House Republicans, who said they were not going to take it up, and he allowed it to expire.

Now, in this case, he has, I think, gone beyond what people expected in his comments in Canada. He was very forceful in saying that he wanted this bill.

On the other hand, as you know, the Pentagon has been allowed to oppose elements of it. And the underlying reality, Carol, remains the same. There is no one, I think, disagrees there is a majority for this bill today as written in the House and the Senate. The House leadership is refusing to bring it up, because they say it has too much opposition among Republicans.

And the question is, if they can't reach a deal to remove that opposition, will the president demand that they bring it to a vote?

COSTELLO: We'll see what happens actually next week and, of course, later this week. Ron Brownstein, live from Washington, thank you. BROWNSTEIN: Thanks.

COSTELLO: The opposition presidential candidate believes Ukraine's Supreme Court will rule today on his complaint about vote fraud, and he believes that ruling will set the stage for a new election. Demonstrators were back on the streets this morning.

But at a meeting of the two presidential candidates yesterday, it was agreed that access to government buildings will no longer be blocked. Also, Parliament did vote no confidence in the government of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, one of the presidential candidates.

Something has changed the face of the opposition candidate in the Ukraine election, and that has changed the face of the presidential race itself.

CNN's Ryan Chilcote takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He had movie-star looks, experience in leadership as Ukraine's prime minister. But, according to the pollsters, he lacked the support of enough ordinary Ukrainians to win the presidency.

Then this September, after complaining of food poisoning, he was admitted to a hospital in Kiev, then an Austrian clinic. When he emerged, his face had changed dramatically. His small lines had turned into deep pockmarks, and with them, the contours of Ukraine's political landscape.

Yushka (ph) told his supporters the government was trying to poison him.

VIKTOR YUSHCHENKO, UKRAINIAN OPPOSITION CANDIDATE (through translator): I want to express a special message to the authorities. You will not poison us.

CHILCOTE: Ukraine's top prosecutor investigated. His conclusion: Yushchenko was suffering from herpes.

The same Kremlin spin doctors who crafted President Putin's image in Russia were in Ukraine at the time, to support the pro-Moscow candidate, Viktor Yanukovich.

"The election took on a folklorish, mythic nature," Glev Pavlovsky (ph) says. "It was a lie Yushchenko's staff used to hide the fact that their candidate was ill late in the campaign."

Whether the allegations are fairytales or not, Yushchenko, the politician, became more attractive. Some Yushchenko watchers say he even ditched the makeup he was using to cover up his new face.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

Carol, many Ukrainians do not believe Mr. Yushchenko's allegations that the government was trying to poison him, and there are a lot of -- some of them wild theories that they substitute his version of events with. They range all the way from it was an unsuccessful plastic surgery that he went to -- some of them even that he went to the sauna too early after getting plastic surgery to that he may have some kind of skin cancer.

Still, irrespective of the role of his face, on the campaign and on events since the results came out, his popularity, at least according to the polls there in Ukraine, is only rising -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Politics are pretty stranger wherever you live. A question for you, though, about how this election applies to the United States. It has clearly created a rift between the United States and Russia. How serious is that rift?

CHILCOTE: Well, it's created an enormous amount of distrust, I think. The U.S. distrusts Russia's position in Ukraine. The U.S., I think, believes that Russia really wanted to see Yanukovych win, and that in order to prevent Ukraine under Mr. Yushchenko from becoming part of the EU or NATO, Russia believes that the international observers and the international mediators that are in Ukraine right now really just wanted to see Ukraine part of the Western community, and that the use of the word democratic and free and fair elections was just a code word, because they want Mr. Yushchenko in charge.

I spoke with a senior U.S. diplomat, and he says this is not a watershed moment, this is not the beginning of the Cold War, that the geopolitical agenda between the U.S. and Russia has a lot of common ground, and the two countries will work through this problem.

COSTELLO: Ryan Chilcote live in Moscow this morning, thank you.

In the Middle East, a dilemma for Palestinians. Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti has changed his mind. Despite being held in an Israeli prison, he now says he will be an independent candidate to replace Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat.

Barghouti's wife filed papers for his candidacy on Wednesday. The candidacy of Barghouti spells major problems for Mahmoud Abbas, the Fatah movement's presidential candidate, because it threatens to split the movement.

Back here in the States, organizers of the Black Tie and Boots Inaugural Ball for President Bush says it has been oversold. Some people who ordered tickets by mail will get refunds. This is President Bush' inaugural ball in 2001 you're look at now. The ball is January 19, that is this year, the president will be sworn in the next day at noon.

"The Polar Express" is rolling right by the usual audiences, but it's making money in some alternative places. That's making our business buzz.

And got a wine lover in the family? Don't log on to buy them a Christmas gift just yet.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It's time now for a little business buzz. The IMAX Theater is making big bucks on trips to the North Pole. Oh, I can hear "The Polar Express" a coming.

Carrie Lee has more.

Did you like that, Carrie?

CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I did. I haven't seen the film. I liked the intro.

It's interesting, because "The Polar Express" has been railed by Hollywood as being an underperformer, but not so at IMAX Theaters, which offer a special 3D version of the film. The movie has been opened for three weeks.

And according to "USA Today," it raked in nearly $11 million at IMAX. That's 13 percent of the computer-animated film's total gross of 81.5 million. Very impressive, since the film is only playing at 62 IMAX theaters. That's just 2 percent of the total screenings of the film. So, "The Polar Express" is set to pass other IMAX hits like "Spider-Man 2."

It's also interesting to note that tickets at IMAX theaters run about $3 to $4 more than regular theaters. So, people are willing to pay a little bit more, and we could see more of a trend like this going forward, Carol. Perhaps if IMAX is successful here, we could more 3D films coming out.

COSTELLO: Maybe so. Carrie Lee, live from the Nasdaq Marketsite.

You might say that when it comes to wine sales, the Supreme Court will hear no case before its time. Well, that time is next Tuesday, and the case involves Internet wine sales. Consumers say they should be able to buy wine directly from other states. But 24 states have put a cork in that plan.

DAYBREAK contributor Ali Velshi is here to tell us more.

Oh, this is an interesting one.

ALI VELSHI, CNN DAYBREAK CONTRIBUTOR: I know you're a wine lover. I don't even drink wine. But I've got to tell you, this thing has been bugging me since about 1933. It is David and Goliath all over again. And once again, it is the average person who loses. Small wineries versus the states.

Now, the issue is: Can small wineries sell directly to out-of- state customers? Or does the status quo remain? The status quo is that 24 states, including New York, restrict your ability to buy wine from wine makers in this country. Stupid, yes, but it's a holdover from Prohibition. The 21st Amendment ended Prohibition in 1933, but it let the states regulate the ability to distribute wine. So, a number of states ruled that wineries from out of their state had to sell their production to distributors in the state, who then sold it to retailers. And those are the places that regular people went to buy their wine.

Now, that was 1933. Today, in these 24 states, you still can't buy wine directly from a winery out of state. You can't buy it on the Internet. And if you go in person, let's say to a tasting room or a winery, you might not even be able to have the winery ship it to you. You can buy it in person and drive it home or take it on the plane with you. Technically if you do that you're breaking the law. And the winery would be breaking the law if they knew you were taking it to a wine-prohibited state, as it were.

If that's not silly enough for you, it gets better. Why not buy a case and FedEx it home?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

VELSHI: Well, here is why. Let's take a look at this. From their Web site, private individuals cannot ship wine with FedEx, only approved and licensed wine shippers may do so. If you wish to become an approved wine shipper with FedEx, the steps are simple: Enroll in the FedEx wine shipping program and provide a copy of your alcohol license from your origin state.

Even better, over at the UPS Web site, alcohol is prohibited from being shipped via the UPS one-time pickup services. UPS reserves the right to dispose of any alcoholic beverages tendered for shipment, which shippers are prohibited from shipping, which UPS is not authorized to accept, which UPS states that it will not accept or which UPS has a right to refuse.

COSTELLO: Say what?

VELSHI: Yes.

COSTELLO: What?

VELSHI: They're not taking your wine. The laws turn otherwise innocent wine lovers into criminals for no other reason than they're just trying to get a bottle of wine at home.

COSTELLO: And I must admit, you sneak. You sneak it over, even though you're not...

(CROSSTALK)

VELSHI: Why should it be a crime?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

VELSHI: What are we doing wrong? You can buy...

COSTELLO: So, what's the Supreme Court going to rule, Al?

VELSHI: The Supreme Court is going to rule -- they're going to hear the case. The wineries say you are impeding our ability to do business, and that's unconstitutional. The states are saying, and the big wineries on the state side, are saying this 21st Amendment protects our right to do this. You may think we're impeding commerce, interstate commerce, but we're actually protected.

COSTELLO: You know it all boils down to money and who makes more.

VELSHI: Exactly. The wineries stand to lose if they -- the big wineries stand to lose. So...

COSTELLO: There you have it. And Tuesday, of course, you'll have an update.

VELSHI: I absolutely will.

COSTELLO: We will know. Because we know the Supreme Court always rules when it says it will.

VELSHI: That's right.

COSTELLO: Yes, right.

Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 6:45 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

Five mortar rounds hit the heart of Baghdad, leaving one person dead and at least 12 others wounded.

The U.S. State Department says it is not taking a position on whether U.S. Secretary-General Kofi Annan should resign. The senator leading the probe into U.N.'s Iraq oil-for-food program is calling for Annan to resign.

In money news, weak car sales in November have hurt General Motors and Ford. The carmakers say they will cut production more than expected.

In culture, the Miramax film, "Finding Neverland," has been named best film of the year by the National Board of Review. The story is a fictionalized account of the creator of "Peter Pan."

In sports, a bombshell report this morning about New York Yankees slugger Jason Giambi. According to the "San Francisco Chronicle," Giambi has now admitted to using steroids. The paper says he made that admission when he testified before a grand jury in the Balco steroids case last year.

(WEATHER REPORT)

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

Let's head six blocks down the street -- or is it up the street -- to check in with Soledad...

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: It's up to you.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Down. You're up, you're down.

S. O'BRIEN: Good morning. How are you, Carol? Some of the headlines that we're looking at this morning. The oil-for-food scandal continues. Some folks are saying it is time for Kofi Annan to resign. But are there some reasons for him to stay? This morning, we talk with Senator Carl Levin about that.

M. O'BRIEN: On the trail of terrorists, Pakistan scales back a key part of the search for bin Laden. So, where does it think he is hiding? We'll talk to the last reporter to interview bin Laden, Ahmed Mir (ph), and see what he has to say about all of this.

S. O'BRIEN: And two girls I just love, the Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, are facing off, but this time it's for a very good cause. They're going to talk with us life. All ahead on this "AMERICAN MORNING."

Carol -- back to you.

COSTELLO: Thanks very much. We'll catch you in about 10 minutes.

Still to come on DAYBREAK...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The museum desperately needs money, as do many institutions of its kind. But this is the wrong way to raise it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, why is an art auction going on as planned today and in of America's premier museums and why the controversy?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Let's talk about Chicago now, shall we? Chicago's world-famous Field Museum of Natural History is set to make millions from an auction at Sotheby's in New York today. But what's being sold has sparked a debate over what is art and what is science.

Details now from CNN's Jonathan Freed.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Are these the faces of history offering genuine scientific significance? Or is it simply a collection of old paintings by a respected artist and adventurer?

George Catlin spent much of the 1830s with several American Indian tribes in the West, painting portraits. While many are in the Smithsonian, three dozen of his works spent most of the last 100 years in storage at Chicago's Field Museum.

JOHN MCCARTER, FIELD MUSEUM PRESIDENT: How important are they really to this institution, not having been studied by scholars and not having been put on public display?

FREED: The Field's field is natural history, and its experts have declared the Catlins don't embody enough historical information to have real anthropological significance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There isn't the detail that you actually need to study something.

FREED: So, most of the paintings are being auctioned off and are expected to fetch as much as $15 million.

JONATHAN HAAS, FIELD MUSEUM ANTHROPOLOGIST: The sale of the Catlins is going to allow us to make those new acquisitions, to acquire new materials that will bring life to this institution for the rest of its life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Field Museum is going to auction off its Catlin paintings.

FREED: At a recent anthropology conference in Chicago, some felt the Field is selling out science.

PROF. JIM BROWN, NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY: There were no photographers during Catlin's day. And so, that remains the sole basis on which we have any indication of what peoples were like back then.

FREED: While many Native Americans agree there is historic value in the artwork, others question the artist's accuracy.

DAVE SPENCER, AMERICAN INDIAN CENTER: This is not a native painter talking about native stories or native histories. It's a non- native person telling us how he sees native people.

FREED: Only three of the museum's 50-plus board members opposed the decision. Ed Hirschland quit because of it, and predicts it will curb donations.

EDWARD HIRSCHLAND, EX-MUSEUM TRUSTEE: The museum desperately needs money, as do many institutions of its kind. But this is the wrong way to raise it. One must not ever sell one's treasures.

FREED: The Field insists its finances are sound. And it argues that museums regularly make changes to their collections; adding, this sale is only attracting attention because it's less common for a natural history museum to do it.

Jonathan Freed, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And there's another big auction taking place today at Sotheby's. And it's only fitting it's in New York, because that's where the House of Ruth was built. Babe Ruth's 36-inch ash wood bat is going on the auction block today. It's the one used to hit the first homerun in Yankees stadium history. And, yes, the Yanks were playing the Red Sox.

The bat is expected to fetch at least $1 million, but the bids could go even higher. Ooh, I bet they will.

Stan gets a new look for a special occasion. But first, this is DAYBREAK for a Thursday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Oh, I love this. Who could forget "Monty Python's Flying Circus?" The men in drag, the lumberjack saw, and the knights of the round table. The British comedy troupe has a new musical in the works. It's called "Spamelot." It's sure to include lots of one- liners about that mystery meat, you know, Spam. In honor of Hormel, the maker of Spam, it has produced a special collector's can of Spam. The flavor is golden honey grail. Umm -- Rob.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It sounds...

COSTELLO: Here's a throwback. You listened to Duran Duran.

MARCIANO: Oh, yes, sure.

COSTELLO: You did?

MARCIANO: Yes.

COSTELLO: You remember them? Yes, yes.

MARCIANO: In the '80s, you know, that's when I was -- I don't know.

COSTELLO: That's when you were hip and happening.

MARCIANO: When you were talking about Spam, I'm thinking the Internet. I forgot they still make that mystery meat.

COSTELLO: See how young you are? Exactly.

Anyway, Duran Duran has a new album out, and Simon LeBon and Nick Rhodes will be on "CNN LIVE TODAY" during the 10:00 a.m. Eastern hour.

MARCIANO: Really? Are they going to perform, or are they just going to chit-chat?

COSTELLO: Now, that would be interesting. I don't know. I think they're just going to chit-chat...

MARCIANO: OK.

COSTELLO: ... and try to sell more albums or CDs. There's no such thing as an album anymore. MARCIANO: Right.

COSTELLO: And finally, we want to say once again that Chad is off because, of course, finally his wife had the baby. There is Baby Myers. No name yet. Seven pounds -- almost eight pounds actually. What? Twenty-one inches long. It was a big baby.

MARCIANO: A big baby. He came right when he was supposed to come. And, Jack, I don't know -- although they thought he was going to come earlier. And then Jack Cafferty said something yesterday that was hilarious. He said, he was about to come out, and then he found out who his dad was going to be and he decided he didn't want to come out.

COSTELLO: Thanks, Uncle Jack. I don't think the baby will be named Jack Myers, do you?

MARCIANO: No, probably not.

COSTELLO: All right.

MARCIANO: But I loved it anyway.

COSTELLO: That does it for DAYBREAK today. From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Rob Marciano. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts in 30 seconds.

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