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CNN LIVE SATURDAY

Viktor Yushchenko Poisoned; Couple Strikes Against Housework, Camp In Frontyard

Aired December 11, 2004 - 18:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

COLLINS SPENCER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY. Here's what happening now in the news.
Top man out -- President Bush's nominee for homeland security secretary withdraws his name from consideration. Bernard Kerik talked today about the reasons behind the move. We'll have a full report in just a moment.

Poisoned by dioxin -- Doctors in Austria confirm that Ukraine's popular presidential opposition candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, was poisoned probably by a third party. The discovery is sure to add fuel to the heated election battle.

President Bush gets the clean bill of health. Doctors who conducted the president's annual physical said he's fit for duty and he's expected to remain so for the duration of his presidency.

Hello, everyone. Thanks for joining us. I'm Collins Spencer in for Carol Lin. Welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

Poison has taken this politician from what you see on the left of your screen to the picture of him now on the right. Did someone in the opposition want to eliminate him and if not who did?

Also, the parents on strike. How long will they live in the tent in their front yard and are their kids learning anything? We'll talk to them live from Orlando ahead.

Well, we begin with a bizarre story about an attack on Ukraine's opposition presidential candidate not with bombs or guns, but with poison. Doctors treating Viktor Yushchenko believe someone slimmed him dioxin. You can see in these -- before you, these photographs the dramatic difference in his appearance. The poisoned disfigured him. Moscow bureau chief Jill Dougherty has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): Ukrainian presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko maintained all along he was poisoned by his political enemies in an effort to kill him. Saturday, after an exhaustive battery of medical tests at an Austrian clinic, an international group of doctors agreed. Saying he was poisoned, with the highly toxic chemical dioxin. Most likely administered, they say, by a third party.

DR. MICHAEL ZIMPFER, RUDOPLHINERHAUS HOSPITAL (through translator): After having completed our examinations, which we have conducted in the course of the past 24 hours as well as after having conducted serious blood test, there is no doubt about the fact that Mr. Yushchenko's disease has been caused by a case of poisoning based on dioxin.

DOUGHERTY: Doctors say they found concentrations of dioxin more than one thousand times the norm in samples from Yushchenko's body. His face tells the story. Just a few months ago, a telegenic 50-year- old, he now looks much older. His face pockmarked and disfigured. Yushchenko's staff tells CNN that the candidate attended a dinner September 5 with the leadership of the SBU, Ukraine's National Security Service. They think he could have been poisoned there. The dioxin, which is soluble, could have been put in soup, doctors say.

Yushchenko's wife, Kateryna, an American citizen, told U.S. television she tasted something metallic on his lips that night and the next day he fell ill. A few days later, he flew to the clinic in Vienna but was soon back on the campaign trail.

The U.S. State Department reacting to news of the poisoning diagnosis says it is deeply concerned about the findings and is urging Ukrainian authorities to investigate. Yushchenko is back in Vienna for more tests but he's eager to return to campaigning.

(on camera): A repeat of the runoff election will be held December 26. How this news about poisoning will affect the race is unclear. Supporters of Yushchenko are saying we told you so. His political opponents are saying it's just a bit of last minute campaigning.

Jill Dougherty, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPENCER: Well, what is dioxin and just how might it have been used to poison Yushchenko? We'll hear from a medical expert in about 10 minutes.

New questions today about whether Yasser Arafat was poisoned. His nephew, Nasser al-Kidwa, delivered Arafat's 558-page medical file to Palestinian authorities today. Al-Kidwa says he believes his uncle died from what he calls natural causes. That's renewed speculation among Palestinians that Arafat may have been poisoned, an allegation that Israel has repeatedly and vehemently denied. To date no reason has been given for Arafat's death on November 11 at a French hospital.

Words of regret and apology today from the man President Bush had tapped to be the nation's new homeland security chief. Bernard Kerik is speaking publicly first time since bowing out as Mr. Bush's nominee. Our Mary Snow is in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey with the details.

Hi, Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Collins. And Bernard Kerik spoke to reporters outside his home here in New Jersey saying this was a grueling experience. He called the White House last night requesting that his nomination be withdrawn for homeland security director. He said it was the right thing to do. This after Kerik says the immigration status of a nanny he employed raised a red flag.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW (voice-over): Hours after calling the White House to have his nomination withdrawn as homeland security director, Bernard Kerik emerged from his New Jersey home calling this a grueling time. Kerik says he realized on Wednesday he had a problem.

BERNARD KERIK, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY NOMINEE: I became aware of what I thought may be a problem with some tax filings on a housekeeper, a nanny, that I had working for us in my home.

SNOW: Kerik says in the following 48 hours, he realized there were also questions about the nanny's legal status.

KERIK: It was my mistake. It wasn't a mistake made by the White House. I think during their vetting process, this was something that they had looked at. But in a deeper closer look by me, it was something that I felt was just something I couldn't move forward on.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Congratulations.

SNOW: President Bush nominated Kerik as homeland security chief one week ago. One of Kerik's biggest supporters is former New York City mayor, Rudy Giuliani.

RUDOLPH GIULIANI (R), FORMER MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: He made a mistake. That people -- human beings make mistakes, even the very best of us, including you and me. It's one, unfortunately, that's a mistake that you can't deal with in a process like this where he's going to run the immigration service.

SNOW: Giuliani said he called White House chief of staff Andy Card to apologize. Kerik says if the nomination process had moved forward it would have gotten messy and potentially ugly.

KERIK: And I guess most importantly to me it would have been an embarrassment to the president and his administration and I just couldn't do that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW: Now, Kerik insists that the nanny issue was the only reason why he asked that his nomination be withdrawn and nothing else, including a report in "Newsweek" today saying that there was an arrest warrant issued in 1998, this in a civil proceeding, having to do with lawsuits linked to unpaid bills on a condo that Kerik owned. I asked Kerik about that today. He said there's no arrest warrant and that it did not have anything to do with his decision today -- Collins.

SPENCER: Well, Mary, was Kerik's bowing out -- was this something the White House wanted him to do or this what Kerik wanted to do? SNOW: He insists that he took this action by himself. He did say that in the vetting process the question came up about the nanny. He said only when he started digging -- in his words -- going through papers and having to fill out papers for the process that he discovered there were problems along the way, first on Wednesday and then yesterday. And he says it was his decision to bow out.

SPENCER: All right, we'll see whose name is added to the list now.

Good to see you, Mary. Mary Snow in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey.

Well, there was no pressure from the White House for Kerik to withdraw but his doing so now so late in the game is certainly leaving a number of people in the Bush administration red faced. It's also raising questions about the vetting process. Our Elaine Quijano is at the White House with more.

Hi, Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Collins. That's right. White House officials insist there is a thorough vetting process in place. At the same time, though, they acknowledge the timing of this development was unfortunate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

QUIJANO (voice-over): ...cited personal reasons for withdrawing his name from consideration for homeland security chief, saying moving forward would not be in the best interests of your administration, the Department of Homeland Security, or the American people. Kerik also apologized for not having brought his nanny's questionable immigration status to the White House's attention sooner. Critics say it was the Bush administration that should have been more careful.

JAMES CARAFAND, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: I think this is, you know, clearly a blunder. This is really kind of amateur hour. It's really surprising that something like this would happen quite frankly.

QUIJANO: White House officials continue to insist they have a thorough vetting process for nominees and say they're confident about its effectiveness. Observers suggest while the withdrawal is clearly a misstep for the administration, it's a sign that the system works.

P.J. CROWLEY, CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: Now is the White House embarrassed from this? Of course they are. You know is Mayor Giuliani embarrassed? Of course, he is. So is Bernie Kerik. But obviously this was caught early in the process and the White House will recover quickly.

QUIJANO: And one Democratic critic of the administration suggests that it was the White House's push to get president's second term team in place that might have been a factor.

SEN. BILL NELSON (D), FLORIDA: Their emphasis was a rush to get the new nominees out, and they did not cross all their t's and dot all their i's.

QUIJANO: The president ignored questions on Kerik's withdrawal as he departed the Bethesda Navy Medical Center after his annual physical, which was delayed because of his busy campaign schedule. While there, he visited privately with wounded troops.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUIJANO: Now, the White House points to their extensive vetting process, citing a team of lawyers that carries out the vetting of all nominees. But in the words of one senior administration official, at some point you have to rely on the nominee to give all the relevant information. This official, though, does acknowledge that it is unfortunate this came out after President Bush nominated Kerik for the position -- Collins.

SPENCER: Elaine, let's talk about replacements. I've been hearing former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani's name. Any word about that at the White House?

QUIJANO: No. In fact, we heard Mayor Giuliani himself, I believe; basically dismiss that today when asked about that. That's certainly a natural assumption. But at this point it's really difficult to play this speculation game here in Washington because, as you know, Collins, a lot of the speculation that has been done in the past has simply turned out to be wrong.

Now, that being said, Senator Susan Collins has in fact thrown out a couple of names saying perhaps Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman or Asa Hutchinson. But it's really difficult here at the White House. Obviously, they are making it very clear they don't want to engage in that kind of speculation at this point. So it's still premature yet, early on in the process and as really, as we have seen with other nominees, this speculation game often turns out to be wrong.

SPENCER: Oh, yes. So we'll just wait and see. Elaine Quijano at White House, thank you.

News around the world now. A setback for independents in Taiwan. The country's opposition party retained control of parliament in elections today. This comes as a major upset for the president's Pro Independence Coalition, which wants more freedom from China.

Some much needed disaster aid is heading to the flood ravaged Philippines. U.S. troops loaded transport helicopters today with food and supplies. The Northern Philippines have been devastated by recent typhoons and storms. Hundreds of people have died. Tens of thousands have been left homeless.

Italy's prime minister celebrates after he's cleared in a major corruption trial. Silvio Berlusconi was cheered by hundreds of supporters today after escaping conviction in a four and a half year long trial. Allegations that Berlusconi bribed judges has overshadowed much of his political career.

Well, was he poisoned by political opponents? Straight ahead tonight, a closer look at dioxin, the poison that so dramatically transformed Viktor Yushchenko's appearance.

Plus, the front lines in Falluja. She saw first hand the intense fighting in Iraq. Now she's going to tell us all about it. CNN's senior Baghdad correspondent Jane Arraf will join me live.

Also...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAT BARNARD, PARENT ON STRIKE: I'm quite stiff and sore in the morning but I'm digging in for the long haul. If we have to be out here at Christmas, we have to be out here at Christmas. Whatever it takes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SPENCER: They've had it. They're fed up. Later tonight, two parents on strike against their own children. A live interview is coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SPENCER: And now back to the story of the poisoning of Viktor Yushchenko. What is dioxin? How could it be slipped to him without his knowledge and can it be traced? Dr. Marc Siegel with NYU's medical school is an expert on dioxin and he joins us now live.

Thanks for joining us, Doctor.

DR. MARC SIEGEL, NYU MEDICAL SCHOOL: Good evening, Collins.

SPENCER: Well, for everybody out there, including myself, what is dioxin exactly?

SIEGEL: Well, dioxin is actually a naturally occurring compound. It's a chemical that's found in herbs. But much more importantly for this situation, it's also a byproduct, industrially. When you're making a pesticide or paper, a lot of industry causes the production of dioxin as a byproduct.

SPENCER: Now, we saw that Yushchenko's appearance, his facial appearance changed. He has pockmarks in his face. Is that common and what other effects come from dioxin poisoning?

SIEGEL: Well, you know, Collins, that's actually very telling because that's called chloracting. When you have a poison that has chlorine in it, which dioxin has, it can cause that response to the face. And this blew up almost overnight. You know when you say why does this man suddenly develop a yellow acne -- and it's very telltale for dioxin poisoning. It can affect the pancreas and the liver and he had acute failure of those organs back in September. And he had nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, which you also can get from dioxin and you also can get nerve palsies and that's why he has watering of his eyes, especially on the left. It's a direct result of the chemical toxin.

SPENCER: What about dying? Can you die from dioxin poisoning?

SIEGEL: Absolutely. And the probable reason that he did not die from it is that it's actually impossible to predict how much dioxin you're going to need to kill someone because each person metabolizes it differently. So for some people they can survive what other people can't. They found a thousand times the normal limit of dioxin in his blood now that they've looked back and checked from September's blood results.

SPENCER: Right. Now, is it easy to put dioxin into a drink or into some food?

SIEGEL: Well, this type of dioxin, when you purify it, you can put it in oral form and yes, you can slip it into a drink or a soup, something that's thick where it wouldn't be detected although sometimes you can taste it. It has a metallic taste.

SPENCER: Now, can you trace it to find out who might have poisoned him?

SIEGEL: Well, at this stage of the game, it would be very hard to do that. I think early on it might have been something they could have done. They seem to have figured out maybe when it happened, but actually now going all the way back and figuring out who did it is going to be a lot harder.

SPENCER: Now, how long is the effect once you get dioxin in your system? How long is the effect?

SIEGEL: Well, the initial effects, he should pretty much be getting over now. I -- from what we're hearing from Vienna, his organ function is now returning to normal though as you see from pictures of him, he still has the watering eye and that skin problem can last for months if not years and he's likely to have some scars there, some significant scars. And the fatigue and the pain that he's suffering can also lag on for a long time.

SPENCER: Now, is it unusual to hear about somebody being given dioxin to be poisoned by that?

SIEGEL: This is very unusual. It's not unheard of, but it is very unusual. And it is not a common form of poisoning here in the United States.

SPENCER: All right, we're out of time but it's good that you joined us. Dr. Marc Siegel at NYU's medical school. Thanks again, Doctor.

SIEGEL: Thanks for having me.

SPENCER: You're welcome.

Well, ahead tonight, what is fair or was there fraud? Some say the vote in Ohio was still in question and now they've gone to Washington to protest.

And later, objecting to war, one man's plight to back out of battle in Iraq.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SPENCER: Demonstrators gathered in Washington today to protest President Bush's re-election. The demonstration was sponsored by a political action committee called the Committee to Redefeat President Bush. Its members believe fraud and deception helped President Bush win re-election. Several dozen gathered in the rain today in Lafayette Park across the street from the White House to voice their concerns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID LYTEL, FOUNDER, REDEFEAT BUSH: Between the vote suppression techniques, the fraud and vote casting, the fraud and vote counting, we don't think Bush legitimately won election to the presidency.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SPENCER: In Atlanta today, thousands gathered near the tomb of Martin Luther King Jr. for what was billed as a unity march. It was organized by the predominately African-American New Birth Missionary Baptist Church and its leader, the Bishop Eddie Long. He originally organized the march as a show of support for a national ban on gay marriage but did not directly address the issue today. The marchers were met by protesters who accused church leaders of trying to hijack Dr. King's legacy.

Now news across America, the Coast Guard has called off the search for six missing crew members from a freighter who were rescued by helicopter that later crashed into frigid waters off Alaska. The missing men were part of the crew of the 738 foot long freighter that lost power and broke apart.

Railroad officials are investigating the head on crash of two freight trains in Imperial County in Southern California. The operator of the eastbound train was injured and taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

A traffic camera caught this terrifying crash in Hampton Roads, Virginia. A car slammed into a concrete barrier on Interstate 264, skidded out of control and flipped over. It barely missed a highway worker who ducked for cover.

And Daimler-Chrysler has agreed to recall 600,000 Dodge Dakota pickups and Dodge Durango SUVs from 2000 to 2003. The government requested the recall because of a potentially dangerous problem with the front suspension system.

Up next, acts of terror caught on tape. A chilling new video surfaces showing just how brazen some of Iraq's insurgents are. And no one knows their determination to spread chaos butter than CNN's Jane Arraf. Ahead tonight, her experiences on life on the front lines in Falluja.

And later...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUANN HUGHES, SAD PATIENT: You get out of the shower and it's still dark. You have your cup of coffee and it's still dark.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SPENCER: Battling the winter woes. A treatment could be right before your eyes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SPENCER: Welcome back. Here's a quick look at what's happening now in the news.

Another deadly weekend in Iraq -- insurgents continue their attack on U.S. forces killing one U.S. soldier, two high ranking Interior Ministry officials and an Iraqi National Guard lieutenant. In Mosul, a car bomb targeting a convoy exploded. A military spokesman said there were reports of numerous civilian injuries.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon invited the Labor Party to join a coalition government. Earlier last week Sharon's ruling Likud Party okayed the move, which allows Sharon to form a new government and avoid calling new elections.

President Bush's nominee to fill the top spot at the Department of Homeland security has removed his name from consideration. Bernard Kerik withdrew his nomination after he learned a person he employed as a nanny and housekeeper has an undetermined immigration status.

And in just a few short hours, we'll know who this year's Heisman Trophy winner is. This year's nominees for college football's top honor include USC's Reggie Bush, Matt Leinart also from USC, Oklahoma's Adrian Peterson and Utah's Alex Smith and last year's winner, Jason White of Oklahoma.

A U.S. soldier will spend the next three years in prison for killing an Iraqi teenager. Staff Sergeant Johnny Horne Jr. was sentenced today Baghdad, months after prosecutors say he killed a severely wounded teen to -- quote -- "put him out of his misery." Horne agreed to a plea deal that allowed him to avert a possible death sentence.

Meanwhile, the U.S. death toll is rising in Iraq. A Marine assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force was killed today in the al Anbar Province.

Islamic militants are blamed for much of the recent violence in Iraq. A new video that surfaced on the web is providing us with a frightening and rare inside look at the tactics used by these insurgents to carry out their campaign of terror. CNN's Tim Lister reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TIM LISTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Never before has an insurgent group produced such a comprehensive visual record of its operations. In a 40 minute video, the Islamic Army in Iraq shows a wide range of operations from remotely controlled roadside bombs to shoulder launched rocket attacks and attempts to bring down U.S. aircraft. In this incident, the insurgents claim to have shot down a Chinook helicopter.

One sequence includes a mortar attack on a U.S. base. Expecting return fire, the insurgents leave the area but keep their camera rolling. A graphic appears that says 10 minutes later, and then the camera records incoming fire from coalition forces as they pinpoint the insurgent's position. The video, which was quickly posted on several Islamic websites, specifies that some of the attacks were west of Baghdad and near Falluja.

In one sequence, the insurgents appear to be arming an improvised roadside bomb. The next consequence shows traffic passing along the road and then amid cries of Allah Akbar, God is great, an armored car is blown up.

In another part of the video, a toddler is shown barely managing to hold an automatic weapon. While the Arabic audio relates a poem from his father, which includes the lines "Stand by my son and seek martyrdom. Stand by my son and do your duty."

The final part of the video deals with recent abductions and includes pictures of the Filipino hostage Angelo De La Cruz, who it says was set free because the Philippines pulled out of Iraq. Of the two Frenchmen taken hostage and still unaccounted for, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and Georges Malbrunneaux (ph), the Islamic Army's video states simply, "still under investigation."

The Islamic Army in Iraq is one of the largest and best organized insurgent groups operating in the Sunni Triangle. This video seems designed to show just how audacious it's become.

Tim Lister, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPENCER: For months, we have been bringing you up close and personal accounts of soldiers who are fighting on the front lines in Iraq. Some of the most gripping testaments have come out of Falluja and from our Jane Arraf. Jane spent weeks talking to troops about their mission and morale and obstacles and the dangerous war zone. Jane joins me now from Miami.

Jane, it's good to see you.

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Nice to see you, Collins.

SPENCER: It's also good to see you when you're here in Atlanta at the headquarters. Now you've been an embedded reporter. Can you tell us about your experiences there in Iraq, in Falluja? ARRAF: Sure. Falluja, going into it, the soldiers were told, and we were there from the very start, that this was going to be the most intense battle that they had ever seen, the most intense since Vietnam. And I remember the night before the battle started, they had already started the artillery and they fired the most artillery they had since Vietnam. In fact, it was if -- it sounded as if it were the end of the world. I'd never heard anything so loud. And for the next week, it was the loudest, perhaps most terrifying thing that many of us had ever seen. Impossible to believe that there could be such weapons, that there could be such destruction in a battle like that. But it was an absolutely fascinating process, being right there with the soldiers, experiencing everything that they were experiencing. The terror, the -- all the other range of emotions that go through your mind when you're actually in combat, when you're in the middle of something like that. It was an amazing experience.

SPENCER: Right. Was there ever a moment where you felt like, oh, my goodness this might be it for me? Was there any moment, any time a moment like that?

ARRAF: You know probably one of the most terrifying times is when you're with soldiers who are -- they call them dismounted. It's basically soldiers or Marines on foot. And they have to do that to clear buildings. You get out of these armored vehicles, which at least give you some sort of psychological protection, some feeling of safety, and you're essentially going -- running between buildings with them where there are snipers in the alley ways, snipers on rooftops. There are moments like that when you feel the bullets whizzing around you and you think, gosh, this -- I wonder why in the world I'm doing this crossed my mind a couple of times. But then you remind yourself why you're doing it.

SPENCER: Let's talk about the obstacles that some of the troops have to overcome. Can you talk about that for a little bit?

ARRAF: Sure. It's one of the things that's really difficult to explain to people and soldiers find this as well when they come home, soldiers and Marines. It's really hard to explain to people what your life is like when you're there. And essentially, you wake up very early in the morning. When you're going into battle, obviously, you get very little sleep. You're in a situation where you either have to kill or be killed. You're doing without your family. You're doing without all the comforts. You don't get showers. You don't get hot food. You don't get all those things that we tend to take for granted. And not only do you do this during a battle that lasts a week or two weeks or a month, you do it as the soldiers and the Marines are for eight months or a year. And then when you think you're going to be allowed to go home, you're extended. It is absolutely extraordinary that these people are out there doing this every single day.

SPENCER: Jane, I want to talk briefly about the lack of armored vehicles. Were there any times where you were in vehicles that did not have any armor?

ARRAF: Yes, frequently. I've been embedded with various Army units and with the Marines over the past -- essentially since the war ended. And there have been many times when we've been in vehicles that -- Humvees that have absolutely no armor now not very often. But there have been occasions. And the soldiers basically take it as a matter of force.

There are other situations where we're in Humvees where they've tried to improvise. They put sandbags on the floor so that if they go over a roadside bomb, then the impact will be a little less. They try to basically cobble together armor in some cases. There are a lot of armored vehicles that aren't used outside of the bases, but there are some that are. And it's a problem that soldiers raise frequently.

SPENCER: All right. Jane, good to see you and welcome home.

ARRAF: Thank you so much.

SPENCER: I don't know how long the stay is, but welcome back.

ARRAF: Thanks very much.

SPENCER: CNN's Jane Arraf.

Well, many soldiers are refusing the call to duty. Some are heading north of the border, deserting the military they willingly signed up for to avoid fighting in Iraq. CNN's Sara Dorsey reports on one soldier's fight for freedom.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA DORSEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With his wife and his son by his side, Jeremy Hinzman appeared at a refugee hearing in Toronto. Cameras were not allowed inside as he described why he changed his mind about the U.S. military.

JEREMY HINZMAN, U.S. REFUGEE: We'd be marching around yelling train to kill, kill we will or huha, I want to kills somebody. The training repeatedly stabbing a bayonet into a dummy yelling what makes the grass grow. Blood, blood, bright red blood.

DORSEY: Hinzman says he can't kill and claims the war in Iraq is full of human rights abuses and torture even though he's never been there. Originally, Hinzman said he signed up for the military to get a college education, but now after refusing to go to Iraq, a return home to the U.S. will likely mean jail time.

JEFEREY HOUSE, HINZMAN'S ATTORNEY: He's going to be punished if he goes back to the United States and he's going to be punished because he has become a person who doesn't want to kill others.

DORSEY: Hinzman says he should be considered a political refugee. About a dozen supporters rallied outside of his hearing, but not everyone feels his actions are justified.

RANDY WHITE, CONSERVATIVE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT: t is another case, I think, of evading prosecution and it's not persecution in the United States. DORSEY: Hinzman is not alone in his fight. Two other American deserts also face hearings before Canada's immigration board. Canada has denied similar requests in the past but says anyone who claims to be a refugee at least has a right to be heard.

Sarah Dorsey, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPENCER: Shape up or ship out. Up next, I'll speak to the Florida mother who has a simple message for her two kids -- I am not your maid.

And later, American pride on display, the National Air and Space Museum celebrates its first anniversary.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SPENCER: As you see in those pictures, a Florida couple is going to extreme lengths to get their kids to help out around the house. They've gone on strike and moved into a tent in the driveway until their kids decide it's time to give them a little cooperation and respect. CNN's Wolf Blitzer has the story from Deltona, Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cat Barnard and her husband, Harlan, say they've had it with their kids and the kids' refusal to help out around the house. But instead of sending the kids to their rooms, they've sent themselves to their driveway. Cat and Harlan are living in a tent and they only go inside the house to use the bathroom. These (UNINTELLIGIBLE) parents say they're on strike until the kids sort out doing their fair share of the chores.

C. BARNARD: What we're saying is, you know, you need it look outside yourself. If you see mother struggling or trying to do something, how about lending a hand or if you see anyone who's thirsty, get them a drink of water -- hello.

BLITZER: The Barnards say there are some signs the kids, 17- year-old Ben and 12-year-old Kit are beginning to get the message but not enough yet to call off the strike. How long can it go on?

C. BARNARD: I'm quite stiff and sore in the morning, but I'm digging in for the long haul. If we have to be out here at Christmas, we have to be out here at Christmas, whatever it takes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPENCER: Well, the Barnard strike seems to have struck a nerve around the country. It certainly is getting a lot of attention. Joining us from Orlando are the striking parents themselves, Cat and Harlan Barnard.

Thanks for joining us.

C. BARNARD: Hi.

HARLAN BARNARD, PARENT ON STRIKE: You're quite welcome.

SPENCER: OK, how did you come up with this idea?

C. BARNARD: He saw -- well, he didn't see. He heard of a radio show a couple of years ago back when he lived in Manhattan about this woman who had reached the end of her rope, who wasn't appreciated by her husband or children and she moved into a -- the kids' tree house. So we thought well, we don't have a tree house, but we have a tent and we can make up signs, why not?

SPENCER: Now, it's getting a lot of reaction. How is the reaction in your community?

C. BARNARD: Ninety-nine and nine percent of the time, we are getting a tremendous amount of support, a tremendous amount of people going by, thumbs up. Some of them are a bit irritated by the traffic snarl and the curiosity factor. But the scariest thing happened yesterday when a man drove by in a pickup truck and yelled out the window and he does live in the neighborhood, so he said "Y'all are a bunch of ignorant, poor white trash and somebody should shoot you right now or maybe someone will do us the favor and shoot you in the middle of the night while you're sleeping in your tent."

SPENCER: Oh my goodness. Well, it's been a week now. Tell me how things are right now.

C. BARNARD: Well, our daughter has done a 360. She is -- both the children are being held accountable in the court of the highest regard, a court of their peers because now the discussion lines are open because they're curious about what the heck is going on at our house. So the children are talking amongst themselves and they are getting a tremendous amount of negative flack from their friends. Hey, man, my mom works 14, 16 hours a week to put food on the table and a roof on my head. What do you got to complain about? You got two loving parents, a beautiful home and you got to take out the garbage once a week and you can't handle that?

SPENCER: So you've tried taking away privileges and doing other things and that just hasn't worked?

H. BARNARD: No, we've tried bribery. We've tried giving -- taking privileges away. We've even tried the therapy route and nothing has worked. And we figured we would try this. What's next, I don't know. But we're not looking for them to say they are ready, we're looking for their actions to show that they're ready to become a normal family again.

SPENCER: OK, the next question is how long do you plan to do this?

H. BARNARD: Well, I'm sorry if I anticipated your question, but we're ready to do this -- now that the media seems to be dying down, we want to see an improvement. We want to see them take the initiative and start pulling their weight and doing things that we don't have to do and then we'll say, hey, let's go to the kitchen table to negotiate.

SPENCER: All right. Now, I know you've heard this question time in and time out, why are you on the front yard and they're not on the front yard? They're in the house.

C. BARNARD: I don't think it makes the children as receptive if you're hostile and social services would be on our door. We had the cops over at the house quite frequently as it is for them to come in and make sure that the children's needs are being met. We are not denying the children the comfort of our arms if they need us or emotional or physical support whatsoever. There is food in the house and many TV dinners and everything that they need. But they are not prepared for the world if we don't teach them you've got to stand on your own two feet.

H. BARNARD: And besides, if they were out in driveway and we were in safe, it would look like we were brutalizing them, plus, putting them in harm's way of drive by and neighbors that were discontent.

SPENCER: Right, the reaction of the community would defiantly be worse. Who is tougher? Is it the daughter or the son?

C. BARNARD: Daughter has done a 360. She is definitely motivated. But son, he stayed in the bed until 3:00 this afternoon so we're just not seeing it. We know he's getting tremendous amount of negative feedback from his friends, and he sees that, and he's taking it in, but so far we don't see the body moving just yet.

H. BARNARD: The media has gone so far as to contact one of his friends where his friend worked and asked him for an interview to talk about our son.

SPENCER: OK. Well, we got Christmas right around the corner. We'll be keeping an eye on what's going on there. Thanks for joining us.

C. BARNARD: Thank you so much.

H. BARNARD: It's all play.

SPENCER: Cat and Harlan Barnard...

C. BARNARD: Thank you.

SPENCER: ...from Florida, the striking parents. Thank you, again.

H. BARNARD: Our pleasure.

SPENCER: If you're feeling a little down this holiday season, you're not alone. Up next, battling the winter blues. Is there a simple cure?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) SPENCER: Taking a look at health headlines now. A new genetic test could help thousands of breast cancer patients skip chemotherapy. Scientists say the test identifies which women are more at risk for their cancer to return and would benefit from chemotherapy and which ones wouldn't.

Officials with the World Health Organization say human trials of a bird flu vaccine could begin as early as this month. While the bird flu has been prevalent in Asian countries, scientists are concerned it may eventually mutate into a new virus that could create a pandemic killing millions of people.

Most school-aged children have playmates you can't see. A new study finds that about 65 percent of young kids have imaginary friends and a third of them continue to play with their invisible buddies even up to the age of 7.

Well, thousands of people suffer from SAD, Seasonal Affective Disorder, a type of depression brought on by autumn and winter. Before now, anti-depressants were the only answer for many but as CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen explains; there is a much simpler remedy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You love that shirt.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the winter, Luanne Hughes dresses her three children before the sun comes up. She eats breakfast before the sun comes up.

HUGHES: You get out of the shower and it's still dark. And you have your cup of coffee and it's still dark.

COHEN: In winter's past, all that darkness made her feel depressed and irritable with her children.

HUGHES: Mostly those are the things that really cause me trouble in the winter is not being able to be the effective parent that I wanted to be. Those months were tough.

OK, here you go.

COHEN: At first, Hughes tried an anti-anti-depressant drug, which she says didn't work very well and then, she tried light, fake light for about half an hour a day in the winter.

HUGHES: It took only about two weeks until I really started noticing something's different.

COHEN: Hughes has Seasonal Affective Disorder or winter depression. Her doctor explained to her that the light outside affects so many things inside the body such as hormone levels which in turn affect mood.

DR. MICHAEL TERMAN, NY STATE PSYCHIATRIC INSTITUTE: The clock in our head depends on seeing sun rise every day to keep in sync with local time.

COHEN: Dr. Michael Terman, director of the Winter Depression Program at the New York State Psychiatric Institute says 80 percent of the time light therapy helps patients with winter depression feel better.

TERMAN: It's a rapid turn around. It's a faster effect than you get with anti-depressant drugs.

HUGHES: Can I hold your hand?

COHEN: Fake light and getting as much real light as she can has been the answer for Hughes.

Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPENCER: The symptoms for SAD include a low mood that begins in autumn or winter, also lack of energy, an increase in appetite and weight gain also, and also more sleep and sleepiness during the daytime. Unfortunately, the cause of SAD is unknown but exposure to light is a thought to help.

Still to come, celebrating Americans in air and space. The museum marks its one year anniversary, but first, here's Mark Shields to tell us what's ahead on "THE CAPITAL GANG."

Hello, Mark.

MARK SHIELDS, CO-HOST, "THE CAPITAL GANG": Hello, Collins. Collins, Republican Senator George Allen of Virginia joins the gang to look at a setback in the Bush cabinet shuffle and the secretary of defense being grilled by his own troops. We'll also talk to House Republican power broker Bill Thomas. All that and much more right here next on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SPENCER: Happy birthday to the National Air and Space Museum at the Steven F. Udvar Hazy Center. The facility in Chantilly, Virginia is a year old today and is the most popular museum site in the Old Dominion State.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning. Welcome to the museum. Here is a schedule of today's activities.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's American pride on display here.

CURT OLDHOYO, MUSEUM DOCENT: The unit I flew into Vietnam was the 48th Assault Helicopter Company. It was a very trying time, but I think it also was a time where I learned about, you know, growing up and what was to be a pilot. JACK DAILY, MUSEUM DIRECTOR: Well, I did 36 years in the Marine Corps as a pilot. I know a lot about airplanes and I know a lot about space.

FRED HAISE, ASTRONAUT: I counted 11 vehicles I've flown in that are in the museum here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Five, four...

HAISE: I flew the Apollo 13 mission to the moon. I was a backup crewman on Apollo 8, Apollo 11 and Apollo 16.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you think about the Wright brothers' flight and then 66 years later, we were walking on the moon, it's that excitement of coming in here and seeing these artifacts and to be exposed to what's happened in our country and the first 100 years of flight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's (UNINTELLIGIBLE) so long.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just think it's exciting because I get to see lots of airplanes and things.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a place of inspiration. It's amazing. It's emotional.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think pilots are kind of interesting because they do lots of things.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I do say to all these children that come in here, if you want to do this, you know, reach for the stars. That's really that it's all about.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPENCER: And that's all the time we have for this hour. Coming up next at 7:00 Eastern, "THE CAPITAL GANG." Then at 8:00 Eastern on "CNN PRESENTS: NUCLEAR TERROR," has the threat of nuclear terrorism grown worse since 9/11 and at 9:00 Eastern, "LARRY KING," Larry's guest tonight, Sophia Lauren. And I'll be back at 10:00 Eastern. The jury is deciding Scott Peterson's fate. What's ahead for what could be the final week?

But right now, here's what's happening now in the news.

Hello, I'm Collins Spencer at the CNN Center in Atlanta. "THE CAPITAL GANG" in just a moment, but first here is what's happening now in the news.

Top man out -- President Bush's nominee for homeland security secretary withdraws his name from consideration. Bernard Kerik said he was pulling out because of the questionable status of a housekeeper in his employ. Poisoned by dioxin -- doctors in Austria confirm that Ukraine's popular presidential opposition candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, was poisoned probably by a third party. The discovery is sure to add fuel to the...

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