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CNN Live At Daybreak

Intel Reform Tops Final Congressional Sessions; Both Sides in Michael Jackson Trial to Turn in Final Witness Lists

Aired December 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: Investigators visit Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch and they come away with something very personal.
He's been silent for decades, but now a U.S. Army deserter speaks. We'll get a taste of what he has to say.

And if you're a car enthusiast, that is music to your ears. We'll hit the road in some American classics.

And it's not your parents' living room anymore. Those plastic covered couches are turning into things of the past.

It is Monday, December 6.

You are watching DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

Thank you for waking up with us.

I'm Carol Costello.

There's a lot going on this morning, so let's check the headlines right now, shall we?

We are following a developing story this morning. U.S. officials say the American consulate in Jeddah has come under attack. Witnesses report an explosion and gunfire. So far, no reports of American casualties. We'll have a live report for you straight ahead.

Still in progress, I should say, that intelligence bill. President Bush is working on that and he's also meeting with Iraq's interim president, Ghazi al-Yawer. Both leaders are pushing for Iraq's January election to go on as planned.

The Abu Ghraib Prison scandal is playing out in a series of courts-martials at Fort Hood, Texas. Today's hearing is for Specialist Charles Graner, the soldier at the center of the prisoner abuse charges.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: More now on our top story.

An attack in Saudi Arabia this morning on an American target. Smoke now rising from a U.S. consulate building. Police out in force.

Our Caroline Faraj is following the story from Dubai.

She joins us live now -- hello, Caroline.

CAROLINE FARAJ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol, the operation is in progress and the attack is still in progress. People are confirming to CNN that they can still hear the fire, an exchange of fire taking place from within, from inside the consulate in Jeddah. There are a lot of reports and confirmed reports, as well, coming from both the Saudis as well as the Americans and eyewitnesses that a lot of ambulances were basically taking shuttles to the nearest hospital to the location, which confirms that some people were killed and some people were injured.

We're also getting, Carol, some reports from the U.S. embassy confirming that some casualties actually were basically, between the casualties were also some U.S. citizens. They were not able to confirm how many were they, but there were three also confirmed through other contacts that the diplomats and some of the U.S. nationals were working for the embassy and the consulate were taken to a safe place.

And the reports that are coming from different places not confirmed yet by CNN that there are some hostages, as well, who were taken, but from different nationalities, not Americans -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Were those hostages, as far as you know, taken from the American consulate, though, or from someplace else?

FARAJ: As you are aware, this is a working day, so it is assumed that a lot of people were queuing, you know, in order to get their official papers be prepared, or even applying for visas to the U.S. So we are assuming that different nationalities were taken from inside, inside the consulate, because the reports are coming that those who were injured or killed, some of them were basically from outside the location of the consulate in Jeddah -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Caroline Faraj reporting live from Dubai.

Just to recap for you, the American consulate under attack in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. We understand there has been casualties, American casualties, but we don't know how many and how serious the injuries are. And we did find out from Arab media that four security forces, Saudi Arabia's security forces, have been killed.

When we get more information, we'll pass it along to you.

It is crunch time for President Bush. He's pushing to get the 9/11 reform bill passed before year's end. Congress returns to work today for perhaps one of its last sessions, but there is still that opposition.

More now from CNN's Kareen Wynter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush's attempt to break a political stalemate on the intelligence reform bill is being met by resistance from powerful House Republican law makers who want changes in its current version. Among the sticking points, measures on illegal immigration that some call too loose; also, concerns that creating a new post for national intelligence director would take too much control away from the military.

Opponents pledge to put up a fight.

REP. MIKE PENSE (R), INDIANA: While the Pentagon has to fall in when the president gives an order, the Congress does not have an obligation to fall in when the commander-in-chief gives an order.

WYNTER: Last week, Mr. Bush spoke with two top congressional leaders about trying to get the bill passed. Some Republicans and Democrats describe this impasse as nothing more than a turf war. Under the new bill, Pentagon control over intelligence would slide to the national intelligence director.

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: This legislation has enough votes in the House and the Senate to pass overwhelmingly. The president should intercede, as he, I believe, has an obligation to this country. We have people that want to be safe in America today.

WYNTER (on camera): Two former 9/11 Commission members are expected to meet with Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday in an effort to break this impasse.

Kareen Wynter, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: An important deadline today in the Michael Jackson case. Both sides must turn over their final witness lists for the January 31 trial date. Over the weekend, Jackson's Neverland Ranch was visited twice by Santa Barbara investigators. This time, police collected a DNA sample from the 46-year-old entertainer.

For what it all means, we are joined by our legal analyst Kendall Coffey in Miami -- good morning, Kendall.

KENDALL COFFEY, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Hi, Carol.

COSTELLO: So what does it mean?

COFFEY: Well, it means that either they just kind of goofed early on, because DNA, you'd think, is a pretty standard thing to include in any kind of investigation of sexually related crimes, or there is something new that's developed in the case, maybe -- and this is what the prosecutors would be hoping for -- some other alleged victim coming forward, perhaps with clothes or some other kind of physical articles against which Jackson's DNA might be tested.

COSTELLO: You know what this reminds me of? The blue dress, Kendall. COFFEY: Well, and as we learned from that, some kind of articles can be around a long time and still have DNA. There could be a lot of other explanations, Carol. But normally you would have collected the DNA, if it was the original victim, at the time Jackson was booked and arrested many months ago. The timing of this late search suggests that the police may have found some other alleged victim. And that would be the key here because the accuser himself is going to be portrayed as a helpless pawn with a scheming mother.

If the prosecutor gets a few other witnesses that said yes, Michael Jackson was, in fact, a child molester, all of a sudden this is a very powerful prosecution case.

COSTELLO: Oh, you know, but the prosecution has mountains, mountains of paper.

Do you really think that the trial will get under way on January 31, especially if they keep having to go back to collect evidence?

COFFEY: Well, the judge is going to be wood shedding these guys, especially the prosecutors, for not getting their investigation done. And I think that obviously the deadline today is going to have to get extended, because we just had a search with some new evidence.

But I think this judge is still going to try to keep it on track for January 31, even if it means everyone has got to do a lot of hearings and some work overtime, even during the holiday season.

COSTELLO: We'll see.

Kendall Coffey life from Miami this morning.

Thank you.

Another shakeup in President Bush's cabinet. There is word this morning that Mr. Bush plans to replace his treasury secretary and a trusted White House insider tops the short list of candidates. More details for you at 14 minutes past.

And he escaped after nearly 40 years in North Korea. He defected there. Now this U.S. Army deserter is offering rare details about one of the most secretive and repressive regimes in the world. We'll have more details on this exclusive story at 21 minutes past.

Plus, he's accused of being the ringleader in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal and he faces court martial. He's now trying to get those charges dismissed. More on that story at 33 minutes past.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Time now for a little "Business Buzz."

Eight members of President Bush's cabinet have already announced their resignations. Are you ready for number nine?

Carrie Lee has more on that story live from the NASDAQ market site -- good morning, Carrie.

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

Good morning to you.

The "New York Times" reporting that President Bush has decided to replace John W. Snow as treasury secretary, and he's been looking closely at a number of possible replacements, including White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card. Now Card has been a long time Bush supporter. He was transportation secretary under Bush, Sr., and he was appointed chief of staff four years ago by President George W. Bush.

It was also Mr. Card who famously whispered into President Bush's ear in that Florida classroom on 9/11, 2001, that the nation was under a terrorist attack.

Now, other possible replacements to John Snow include Gerald Parsky -- he's a wealthy lawyer; also, former Texas Senator Phil Gramm.

So we'll see what happens if Mr. Card is actually chosen. If he does become the new treasury secretary, that means he's basically the chief financial officer of the U.S. government.

So number nine in the works here Carol.

That's the latest we have.

COSTELLO: Yes, I was just wondering what that might mean to you and me.

LEE: Well, rife with possibilities, I can say that. We'll leave it at that and see if this does become official.

COSTELLO: All right, Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq market site.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 6:13 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

The intelligence bill will be back up for discussion when the House of Representatives reconvenes today. Republican leaders may offer a compromise that could bring the measure up for a final vote, finally.

An attack was carried out this morning against the U.S. consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Sources tell CNN that there have been some casualties resulting from the firefight. There are also reports that some people have been taken hostage. In money news, it's getting a little easier to fill up at the gas pump. Prices dropped $0.03 over the past two weeks. The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded now stands at $1.93.

In culture, Billy Crystal opened his one man show on Broadway last night. The show is called "700 Sundays." It's a look back at the time he spent with his father before he died when Crystal was just a teenager.

In sports, just as expected, Southern Cal will meet Oklahoma for the college football national championship. The two undefeated teams will meet in the Orange Bowl on January 4. USC and Oklahoma finished first and second in the final BCS standings.

To the forecast center now and Rob.

MARCIANO: Well, it's a great time of the year, Carol, with the NFL playoffs and then the first weekend in January always nice.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.

Now we have some more information on what's happening in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. As we've been telling you all morning long, the American consulate there has come under attack.

On the phone right now we have Khaled al-Maeena from "Arab News."

He is in Jeddah this morning.

What can you tell us?

KHALED AL-MAEENA, EDITOR OF "ARAB NEWS": Well, the latest is that one of the terrorists has been killed, two have been cornered by the Saudi security forces. The crowd has decreased in number around because of the roadblocks. Ambulances are coming in, helicopters hovering about. But the situation seems to be under control.

There were reports of shooting about an hour ago. Right now it's a stand-off situation. There were reports of 18 hostages. The authorities said they have released them. Three guards were injured. When I say guards, these are not security guards, these are more like ushers in a movie house, two Pakistanis and a Filipino who take in people and take them inside when they go for their visas.

Now, it's a working day, so there must have been 30 or 40 people in to get their visas from the United States, and they come from different nationalities, from different countries. So that's the situation at the moment.

COSTELLO: When you say one terrorist has been killed and two cornered, what do you mean by cornered?

AL-MAEENA: Well, cornered in the sense that they may hidden, because this is a very big block. The U.S. consulate is, you know, it's a long, it stands a long, a large territory and it's surrounded by four roads in a busy area. It's a commercial area the same -- there's a major hospital on the left side. There's a main road of six lanes on the west side. So they may have hidden somewhere.

But the reports speak of one of the people, so there may have been five, if there are two who are cornered, two killed and one killed and...

COSTELLO: And the two cornered.

AL-MAEENA: Yes.

COSTELLO: We see the smoke rising from the American consulate building. Of course, that's of great concern.

Do you know what kind of weapons were used?

AL-MAEENA: Well, we -- our three reporters spoke of a blast. Now, nobody could confirm whether it was a car blast, because this is very heavily guarded and there's no way they could have stopped the car without being knocked off before. So they could have used a bomb.

Now, we heard that the west wall was breached and they went in by, you know, blowing part of that wall. I'm trying to confirm that report, but whatever it is, these people were able to get in.

COSTELLO: By that you mean there's a wall surrounding the compound and they've penetrated that wall?

AL-MAEENA: Yes.

COSTELLO: They didn't actually physically go inside the building?

AL-MAEENA: No. This is exactly the initial reports, because this is a heavy wall. It looks like a fort. I mean this is, the whole consulate is surrounded by, or has traditionally been a very high wall, heavy wall. There are cement blocks in front, armed guards, armored personnel, machine guns on all -- on both the entrances. There are two entrances, one on the Palestine Street and on the other. And apparently some kind of decoy was used, maybe a grenade thrown somewhere to attract attention and misdirect the guards.

But hearing that four of the guards have died is a bit of a problem because these people may have been very, very organized.

COSTELLO: We've heard of some American casualties.

Have you heard?

AL-MAEENA: No, the Americans until very recent, a few minutes ago, said there were no American casualties. Now, I will not be surprised if there are because there are many civilian contractors inside. I mean there are people, there's the educational mission inside. There is the USIS organizations, other people, and also there are Americans who come in, too, for their consular work. So there may have been some people inside.

COSTELLO: Khaled al-Maeena, thank you so much, from "Arab News," for filling us in on DAYBREAK this morning.

How safe is our food supply? When Tommy Thompson announced his resignation as secretary of Health and Human Services last week, oh, he said something that set off alarms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOMMY THOMPSON, HHS SECRETARY: I, for the life of me, cannot understand why the terrorists have not, you know, attacked our food supply, because it is so easy to do. And we are importing a lot of food from the Middle East.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: That got you, didn't it? All day on CNN we will be on the security watch, looking into the question is your food safe? Our series of reports begins on AMERICAN MORNING at 7:00 Eastern.

Still ahead on DAYBREAK, after living 40 years in North Korea, after deserting there, Charles Jenkins gives his first interview to "Time" magazine. We have a fascinating preview for you.

Plus, will we get an intelligence overhaul bill out of this lame duck Congress?

Dick Uliano of CNN Radio will join us live, later on DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Are Americans in danger around the world? They certainly are. This morning's U.S. consulate attack in Saudi Arabia is another grim sign that they, indeed, are.

For some analysis on this developing story, we turn now to terrorism expert Will Geddes in London.

He's head of the ICP Group International, a threat management company.

Good morning.

WILL GEDDES, ICP GROUP INTERNATIONAL: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Your initial reaction to this?

GEDDES: Not enormous amounts of surprise, Carol, to be honest. Jeddah has always been a considerably more vulnerable and possibly easier target than Riyadh. And certainly since the bombings back in al-Hamrah in May of last year, Jeddah has had to probably come a long way to improve its security to the sort of parallel levels of Riyadh.

COSTELLO: What about the American consulate there? Is it well protected? GEDDES: Well, the consulate is within the sort of diplomatic region, as they call it. It is probably one of the more secure areas than anywhere else. However, again, comparative to the diplomat areas within Riyadh, it, again, has quite some way to go and is a great deal more what we could call a soft target.

COSTELLO: You know, I was talking to a member of the Arab media a short time ago. There's some confusion over how this attack went down. There are some reports a car bomb was involved. There are other reports five gunmen were involved and they have one terrorist cornered, one terrorist dead and then the rest are somewhere. Maybe there's up to five.

Can you kind of sift through us and from the limited pictures that we're showing now, can you give us an idea what might have happened?

GEDDES: Well, I'd say, Carol, that, you know, my money is on it being al Qaeda. I think the modus operandi shows sort of very strong links or evidence that it was them.

This sort of approach, by using sort of proxy and secondary devices and decoys is not untypical. And it will be a way to distract, obviously, the security measures in such a way that it then leaves a particular entry point vulnerable for them to be able to make their incursion by.

I think what is of greatest concern will be what the ultimate objective will be.

COSTELLO: What do you think was the ultimate objective?

GEDDES: Well, the objective in its first instance would be obviously to show that al Qaeda, although some key figures have been detained recently and certain cells have been intercepted by Saudi intelligence, that they are alive and kicking, that they will continue with their actions, particularly against Western interests.

However, by attacking the U.S. consulate, it really is striking at the heart of America and is showing that nothing is potentially going to be impervious to their attacks.

But how this situation plays out, that is really the most worrying aspect at the moment, I think.

COSTELLO: We'll see.

Will Geddes from the ICP Group International, live from London this morning.

Thank you.

DAYBREAK will be right back, after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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 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: Investigators visit Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch and they come away with something very personal.
He's been silent for decades, but now a U.S. Army deserter speaks. We'll get a taste of what he has to say.

And if you're a car enthusiast, that is music to your ears. We'll hit the road in some American classics.

And it's not your parents' living room anymore. Those plastic covered couches are turning into things of the past.

It is Monday, December 6.

You are watching DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

Thank you for waking up with us.

I'm Carol Costello.

There's a lot going on this morning, so let's check the headlines right now, shall we?

We are following a developing story this morning. U.S. officials say the American consulate in Jeddah has come under attack. Witnesses report an explosion and gunfire. So far, no reports of American casualties. We'll have a live report for you straight ahead.

Still in progress, I should say, that intelligence bill. President Bush is working on that and he's also meeting with Iraq's interim president, Ghazi al-Yawer. Both leaders are pushing for Iraq's January election to go on as planned.

The Abu Ghraib Prison scandal is playing out in a series of courts-martials at Fort Hood, Texas. Today's hearing is for Specialist Charles Graner, the soldier at the center of the prisoner abuse charges.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: More now on our top story.

An attack in Saudi Arabia this morning on an American target. Smoke now rising from a U.S. consulate building. Police out in force.

Our Caroline Faraj is following the story from Dubai.

She joins us live now -- hello, Caroline.

CAROLINE FARAJ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol, the operation is in progress and the attack is still in progress. People are confirming to CNN that they can still hear the fire, an exchange of fire taking place from within, from inside the consulate in Jeddah. There are a lot of reports and confirmed reports, as well, coming from both the Saudis as well as the Americans and eyewitnesses that a lot of ambulances were basically taking shuttles to the nearest hospital to the location, which confirms that some people were killed and some people were injured.

We're also getting, Carol, some reports from the U.S. embassy confirming that some casualties actually were basically, between the casualties were also some U.S. citizens. They were not able to confirm how many were they, but there were three also confirmed through other contacts that the diplomats and some of the U.S. nationals were working for the embassy and the consulate were taken to a safe place.

And the reports that are coming from different places not confirmed yet by CNN that there are some hostages, as well, who were taken, but from different nationalities, not Americans -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Were those hostages, as far as you know, taken from the American consulate, though, or from someplace else?

FARAJ: As you are aware, this is a working day, so it is assumed that a lot of people were queuing, you know, in order to get their official papers be prepared, or even applying for visas to the U.S. So we are assuming that different nationalities were taken from inside, inside the consulate, because the reports are coming that those who were injured or killed, some of them were basically from outside the location of the consulate in Jeddah -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Caroline Faraj reporting live from Dubai.

Just to recap for you, the American consulate under attack in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. We understand there has been casualties, American casualties, but we don't know how many and how serious the injuries are. And we did find out from Arab media that four security forces, Saudi Arabia's security forces, have been killed.

When we get more information, we'll pass it along to you.

It is crunch time for President Bush. He's pushing to get the 9/11 reform bill passed before year's end. Congress returns to work today for perhaps one of its last sessions, but there is still that opposition.

More now from CNN's Kareen Wynter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush's attempt to break a political stalemate on the intelligence reform bill is being met by resistance from powerful House Republican law makers who want changes in its current version. Among the sticking points, measures on illegal immigration that some call too loose; also, concerns that creating a new post for national intelligence director would take too much control away from the military.

Opponents pledge to put up a fight.

REP. MIKE PENSE (R), INDIANA: While the Pentagon has to fall in when the president gives an order, the Congress does not have an obligation to fall in when the commander-in-chief gives an order.

WYNTER: Last week, Mr. Bush spoke with two top congressional leaders about trying to get the bill passed. Some Republicans and Democrats describe this impasse as nothing more than a turf war. Under the new bill, Pentagon control over intelligence would slide to the national intelligence director.

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: This legislation has enough votes in the House and the Senate to pass overwhelmingly. The president should intercede, as he, I believe, has an obligation to this country. We have people that want to be safe in America today.

WYNTER (on camera): Two former 9/11 Commission members are expected to meet with Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday in an effort to break this impasse.

Kareen Wynter, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: An important deadline today in the Michael Jackson case. Both sides must turn over their final witness lists for the January 31 trial date. Over the weekend, Jackson's Neverland Ranch was visited twice by Santa Barbara investigators. This time, police collected a DNA sample from the 46-year-old entertainer.

For what it all means, we are joined by our legal analyst Kendall Coffey in Miami -- good morning, Kendall.

KENDALL COFFEY, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Hi, Carol.

COSTELLO: So what does it mean?

COFFEY: Well, it means that either they just kind of goofed early on, because DNA, you'd think, is a pretty standard thing to include in any kind of investigation of sexually related crimes, or there is something new that's developed in the case, maybe -- and this is what the prosecutors would be hoping for -- some other alleged victim coming forward, perhaps with clothes or some other kind of physical articles against which Jackson's DNA might be tested.

COSTELLO: You know what this reminds me of? The blue dress, Kendall. COFFEY: Well, and as we learned from that, some kind of articles can be around a long time and still have DNA. There could be a lot of other explanations, Carol. But normally you would have collected the DNA, if it was the original victim, at the time Jackson was booked and arrested many months ago. The timing of this late search suggests that the police may have found some other alleged victim. And that would be the key here because the accuser himself is going to be portrayed as a helpless pawn with a scheming mother.

If the prosecutor gets a few other witnesses that said yes, Michael Jackson was, in fact, a child molester, all of a sudden this is a very powerful prosecution case.

COSTELLO: Oh, you know, but the prosecution has mountains, mountains of paper.

Do you really think that the trial will get under way on January 31, especially if they keep having to go back to collect evidence?

COFFEY: Well, the judge is going to be wood shedding these guys, especially the prosecutors, for not getting their investigation done. And I think that obviously the deadline today is going to have to get extended, because we just had a search with some new evidence.

But I think this judge is still going to try to keep it on track for January 31, even if it means everyone has got to do a lot of hearings and some work overtime, even during the holiday season.

COSTELLO: We'll see.

Kendall Coffey life from Miami this morning.

Thank you.

Another shakeup in President Bush's cabinet. There is word this morning that Mr. Bush plans to replace his treasury secretary and a trusted White House insider tops the short list of candidates. More details for you at 14 minutes past.

And he escaped after nearly 40 years in North Korea. He defected there. Now this U.S. Army deserter is offering rare details about one of the most secretive and repressive regimes in the world. We'll have more details on this exclusive story at 21 minutes past.

Plus, he's accused of being the ringleader in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal and he faces court martial. He's now trying to get those charges dismissed. More on that story at 33 minutes past.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Time now for a little "Business Buzz."

Eight members of President Bush's cabinet have already announced their resignations. Are you ready for number nine?

Carrie Lee has more on that story live from the NASDAQ market site -- good morning, Carrie.

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

Good morning to you.

The "New York Times" reporting that President Bush has decided to replace John W. Snow as treasury secretary, and he's been looking closely at a number of possible replacements, including White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card. Now Card has been a long time Bush supporter. He was transportation secretary under Bush, Sr., and he was appointed chief of staff four years ago by President George W. Bush.

It was also Mr. Card who famously whispered into President Bush's ear in that Florida classroom on 9/11, 2001, that the nation was under a terrorist attack.

Now, other possible replacements to John Snow include Gerald Parsky -- he's a wealthy lawyer; also, former Texas Senator Phil Gramm.

So we'll see what happens if Mr. Card is actually chosen. If he does become the new treasury secretary, that means he's basically the chief financial officer of the U.S. government.

So number nine in the works here Carol.

That's the latest we have.

COSTELLO: Yes, I was just wondering what that might mean to you and me.

LEE: Well, rife with possibilities, I can say that. We'll leave it at that and see if this does become official.

COSTELLO: All right, Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq market site.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 6:13 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

The intelligence bill will be back up for discussion when the House of Representatives reconvenes today. Republican leaders may offer a compromise that could bring the measure up for a final vote, finally.

An attack was carried out this morning against the U.S. consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Sources tell CNN that there have been some casualties resulting from the firefight. There are also reports that some people have been taken hostage. In money news, it's getting a little easier to fill up at the gas pump. Prices dropped $0.03 over the past two weeks. The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded now stands at $1.93.

In culture, Billy Crystal opened his one man show on Broadway last night. The show is called "700 Sundays." It's a look back at the time he spent with his father before he died when Crystal was just a teenager.

In sports, just as expected, Southern Cal will meet Oklahoma for the college football national championship. The two undefeated teams will meet in the Orange Bowl on January 4. USC and Oklahoma finished first and second in the final BCS standings.

To the forecast center now and Rob.

MARCIANO: Well, it's a great time of the year, Carol, with the NFL playoffs and then the first weekend in January always nice.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.

Now we have some more information on what's happening in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. As we've been telling you all morning long, the American consulate there has come under attack.

On the phone right now we have Khaled al-Maeena from "Arab News."

He is in Jeddah this morning.

What can you tell us?

KHALED AL-MAEENA, EDITOR OF "ARAB NEWS": Well, the latest is that one of the terrorists has been killed, two have been cornered by the Saudi security forces. The crowd has decreased in number around because of the roadblocks. Ambulances are coming in, helicopters hovering about. But the situation seems to be under control.

There were reports of shooting about an hour ago. Right now it's a stand-off situation. There were reports of 18 hostages. The authorities said they have released them. Three guards were injured. When I say guards, these are not security guards, these are more like ushers in a movie house, two Pakistanis and a Filipino who take in people and take them inside when they go for their visas.

Now, it's a working day, so there must have been 30 or 40 people in to get their visas from the United States, and they come from different nationalities, from different countries. So that's the situation at the moment.

COSTELLO: When you say one terrorist has been killed and two cornered, what do you mean by cornered?

AL-MAEENA: Well, cornered in the sense that they may hidden, because this is a very big block. The U.S. consulate is, you know, it's a long, it stands a long, a large territory and it's surrounded by four roads in a busy area. It's a commercial area the same -- there's a major hospital on the left side. There's a main road of six lanes on the west side. So they may have hidden somewhere.

But the reports speak of one of the people, so there may have been five, if there are two who are cornered, two killed and one killed and...

COSTELLO: And the two cornered.

AL-MAEENA: Yes.

COSTELLO: We see the smoke rising from the American consulate building. Of course, that's of great concern.

Do you know what kind of weapons were used?

AL-MAEENA: Well, we -- our three reporters spoke of a blast. Now, nobody could confirm whether it was a car blast, because this is very heavily guarded and there's no way they could have stopped the car without being knocked off before. So they could have used a bomb.

Now, we heard that the west wall was breached and they went in by, you know, blowing part of that wall. I'm trying to confirm that report, but whatever it is, these people were able to get in.

COSTELLO: By that you mean there's a wall surrounding the compound and they've penetrated that wall?

AL-MAEENA: Yes.

COSTELLO: They didn't actually physically go inside the building?

AL-MAEENA: No. This is exactly the initial reports, because this is a heavy wall. It looks like a fort. I mean this is, the whole consulate is surrounded by, or has traditionally been a very high wall, heavy wall. There are cement blocks in front, armed guards, armored personnel, machine guns on all -- on both the entrances. There are two entrances, one on the Palestine Street and on the other. And apparently some kind of decoy was used, maybe a grenade thrown somewhere to attract attention and misdirect the guards.

But hearing that four of the guards have died is a bit of a problem because these people may have been very, very organized.

COSTELLO: We've heard of some American casualties.

Have you heard?

AL-MAEENA: No, the Americans until very recent, a few minutes ago, said there were no American casualties. Now, I will not be surprised if there are because there are many civilian contractors inside. I mean there are people, there's the educational mission inside. There is the USIS organizations, other people, and also there are Americans who come in, too, for their consular work. So there may have been some people inside.

COSTELLO: Khaled al-Maeena, thank you so much, from "Arab News," for filling us in on DAYBREAK this morning.

How safe is our food supply? When Tommy Thompson announced his resignation as secretary of Health and Human Services last week, oh, he said something that set off alarms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOMMY THOMPSON, HHS SECRETARY: I, for the life of me, cannot understand why the terrorists have not, you know, attacked our food supply, because it is so easy to do. And we are importing a lot of food from the Middle East.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: That got you, didn't it? All day on CNN we will be on the security watch, looking into the question is your food safe? Our series of reports begins on AMERICAN MORNING at 7:00 Eastern.

Still ahead on DAYBREAK, after living 40 years in North Korea, after deserting there, Charles Jenkins gives his first interview to "Time" magazine. We have a fascinating preview for you.

Plus, will we get an intelligence overhaul bill out of this lame duck Congress?

Dick Uliano of CNN Radio will join us live, later on DAYBREAK.

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COSTELLO: Are Americans in danger around the world? They certainly are. This morning's U.S. consulate attack in Saudi Arabia is another grim sign that they, indeed, are.

For some analysis on this developing story, we turn now to terrorism expert Will Geddes in London.

He's head of the ICP Group International, a threat management company.

Good morning.

WILL GEDDES, ICP GROUP INTERNATIONAL: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Your initial reaction to this?

GEDDES: Not enormous amounts of surprise, Carol, to be honest. Jeddah has always been a considerably more vulnerable and possibly easier target than Riyadh. And certainly since the bombings back in al-Hamrah in May of last year, Jeddah has had to probably come a long way to improve its security to the sort of parallel levels of Riyadh.

COSTELLO: What about the American consulate there? Is it well protected? GEDDES: Well, the consulate is within the sort of diplomatic region, as they call it. It is probably one of the more secure areas than anywhere else. However, again, comparative to the diplomat areas within Riyadh, it, again, has quite some way to go and is a great deal more what we could call a soft target.

COSTELLO: You know, I was talking to a member of the Arab media a short time ago. There's some confusion over how this attack went down. There are some reports a car bomb was involved. There are other reports five gunmen were involved and they have one terrorist cornered, one terrorist dead and then the rest are somewhere. Maybe there's up to five.

Can you kind of sift through us and from the limited pictures that we're showing now, can you give us an idea what might have happened?

GEDDES: Well, I'd say, Carol, that, you know, my money is on it being al Qaeda. I think the modus operandi shows sort of very strong links or evidence that it was them.

This sort of approach, by using sort of proxy and secondary devices and decoys is not untypical. And it will be a way to distract, obviously, the security measures in such a way that it then leaves a particular entry point vulnerable for them to be able to make their incursion by.

I think what is of greatest concern will be what the ultimate objective will be.

COSTELLO: What do you think was the ultimate objective?

GEDDES: Well, the objective in its first instance would be obviously to show that al Qaeda, although some key figures have been detained recently and certain cells have been intercepted by Saudi intelligence, that they are alive and kicking, that they will continue with their actions, particularly against Western interests.

However, by attacking the U.S. consulate, it really is striking at the heart of America and is showing that nothing is potentially going to be impervious to their attacks.

But how this situation plays out, that is really the most worrying aspect at the moment, I think.

COSTELLO: We'll see.

Will Geddes from the ICP Group International, live from London this morning.

Thank you.

DAYBREAK will be right back, after this.

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