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CNN Live At Daybreak
Tsunami Relief Efforts in Full Swing; Colin Powell Visits Thailand
Aired January 03, 2005 - 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: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, the deadly tsunamis have left behind a flood of refugees. They are desperate for help, but getting it to them is proving to be a difficult task.
Also, she once said her greatest asset was her mouth. We'll remember pioneering politician Shirley Chisholm.
It's Monday, January 3.
You are watching DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the news, Secretary of State Colin Powell gets a personal glimpse of the tsunami damage. Powell is heading a U.S. delegation that's due to arrive in Thailand later this morning. In the meantime, U.S. flags are being flown at half staff starting today in honor of the tsunami survivors.
Two suicide car bombings in Iraq this morning. One happened at an Iraqi police checkpoint near a key political office in Baghdad. At least three police officers were killed. The other attack targeted an Iraqi National Guard checkpoint north of the capital, killing four islands.
Canadian authorities announced a second case of mad cow disease. Tests confirmed the case in the western province of Alberta. Officials say no part of the animal reached the human food or animal feed systems.
And the first African-American woman elected to Congress has died. Shirley Chisholm died Saturday near Daytona Beach, Florida. She was elected to the U.S. House in 1968 from New York City. Chisholm was 80 years old.
To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The hard hit island nation of Sri Lanka is getting help from its neighbor, India, itself a victim of those killer tsunamis. India has sent 11 ships to Sri Lanka, with relief supplies and military helicopters are ferrying it to survivors.
CNN's Satinder Bindra is aboard the Kirch, an Indian ship off the Sri Lankan coast.
SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A huge naval relief mission is now also under way in northeastern Sri Lanka. I'm in the city of Trincomalee at the moment and once again it's India's Navy which is bringing in supplies to the people of Sri Lanka here in the north.
An Indian ship, the INS Kirch, which you can see just over my shoulder, this is a missile corbet (ph). It has brought in about 15 tons of supplies. These include 50 generators, blankets, bed sheets and fresh fruit and vegetables.
Another large Indian supply ship has been here over the past two to three days and that has dropped off 80 tons of supplies. Also here in the northeast, French and Indian doctors have set up clinics. These doctors are now seeing some skin and respiratory diseases amongst those people living in relief camps. They say they do not have any cases of cholera at the moment, but doctors extremely concerned about the emotional well-being of people.
This is the hardest hit area. The tsunami hit hardest here and thousands of people died. The maximum number of displaced people are also here. Everyone here quite emotionally distraught because hundreds of children have been killed. One Catholic priest telling me just a short while ago that in one neighborhood alone, some 30 orphans were killed when a tsunami swamped their orphanage.
Satinder Bindra, CNN, Trincomalee, northeastern Sri Lanka.
COSTELLO: A U.S. delegation headed by Secretary of State Colin Powell is due to arrive in South Asia today. They'll get a firsthand look at the enormous damage caused by last week's earthquake and tsunamis. They're trying to determine what more the United States can do.
CNN's Suzanne Malveaux has more on the U.S. response.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
(voice-over): American Seahawk helicopters arrived with food, energy drinks and hope. Critical supplies are now getting to tsunami survivors. A U.S. delegation led by Secretary of State Colin Powell and the president's brother, Florida's Governor Jeb Bush, is on the way to the region. Before departing, Powell defended the U.S. response to the tsunami crisis, which critics initially called paltry and slow.
POWELL: $350 million, two carrier groups, thousands of troops. When you look on television this morning, Wolf, what you're seeing are American helicopters landing and delivering assistance.
GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: This devastation, what happened in Florida pales by comparison to what happened in these countries and I think it's appropriate for a delegation of people to make an assessment and also to show that our country really cares.
MALVEAUX: It's the largest American military operation in Southern Asia since the Vietnam War. Relief workers say now, just as important as cash contributions is finding the means to deliver the aid that's pouring in.
JAN EGELAND, U.N. UNDERSECRETARY-GENERAL: Those helicopters that are now ferrying out relief to isolated villages on the Sumatra coast, for example, from the United States and from other partner countries, those helicopters are worth their weight in gold now for us.
MALVEAUX: President Bush returned to wave from his week long vacation at his Texas ranch, vowing that the U.S. would lead an international coalition to help with the immediate humanitarian needs and long-term reconstruction in Southern Asia.
Over the weekend, he issued a proclamation, ordering all U.S. flags at government buildings be lowered to half staff starting Monday to show respect for the tsunami survivors. The U.S. delegation traveling to the region will visit those areas hardest hit by the disaster.
First, in Thailand, to meet with officials in Bangkok and survey the damage in Phuket, the popular tourist destination where thousands of visitors and locals were swept to sea. To Indonesia, Jakarta, where Powell will represent the U.S. at an international conference to coordinate the relief effort. And to the coastal town of Aceh, the epicenter of the disaster, where the wave wiped out whole villages. And possibly Sri Lanka, where the death toll now approaches 50,000.
(on camera): Secretary Powell says this is not just a hmm mission, but a matter of U.S. national security, that the region must be stabilized, that if the masses become desperate or demoralized, they'll fall prey to terrorist organizations who will come in to recruit.
Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: And a new day and a new death toll in the tsunami disaster. Officials now say more than 155,000 people were killed, most of them in Indonesia. The challenge now is getting food and water to the living.
Live to the hard hit Banda Aceh, Indonesia and our senior Asian correspondent Mike Chinoy -- hello, Mike.
MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.
Well, I am standing in what used to be the bustling commercial center of Banda Aceh, a city of several hundred thousand people. And you can see just how much destruction there is here. Those are fishing boats that were tossed onto the bridge and onto the other shore of this river. We are at least two or three miles from the coast, so you can see just how powerful it was.
The smoke that you can see there are from fires, people burning garbage and debris. The building just on the other river here was the main market in Banda Aceh and Sunday morning at 8:30, which is when the tsunami hit, is one of the busiest times of the day. So there would have been big crowds of people in there doing their Sunday shopping.
Let me show you over here, this neighborhood was one, a mixed one of both shops and residential dwellings. A lot of people had their businesses, small businesses on the ground floor and then lived upstairs. I'm actually on the roof of a building that was brought down by the quake. This stretches literally as far as the eye can see. There are bodies, lots of bodies buried in this rubble. We can see one just a few feet away, although we won't show you. And just a few hundred yards down there are hundreds more bodies, sometimes whole families that have been laid out. They're not in body bags. They haven't been collected and there are real concerns about the spread of disease because of the decomposing bodies and about contamination of the water supply.
So this just gives you, I think, some sense of the enormous scale of the challenge. And this is in the middle of the capital city that has an airport and is the headquarters of all the relief operations. It must be much, much worse in the remote areas that aren't getting anything like the attention that Banda Aceh is receiving -- Carol.
COSTELLO: That's just awful.
Tell us about the relief efforts there, Mike, because all of the headlines in today's paper are saying the relief is getting there, but as far as distributing it, well, that's a difficult task.
CHINOY: Right. The relief is beginning to come in and there have been some significant positive steps. The Australian Army has set up a bunch of purification machines and they're tapping into the local water supply, which is contaminated, and they're able to provide a lot of clean drinking water. People were standing in line for hours in the hot sun earlier in the day to get plastic containers of water. So that's one step in the right direction.
The U.S. Navy is continuing to fly helicopter missions, bringing food and medicine and water to the areas that are not accessible by land. Most of the big international aid and relief organizations like the Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, United Nations, they're all here. There are a lot of relief supplies coming in. A lot of money has been pledged.
The big problem is coordination and logistics because there are so many different groups and this is a place where there's -- nothing exists. There's no place to stay, there's no power, there's no electricity, there's no drivers, there's no translators. And all these different organizations are coming in, trying to make a contribution. So coordinating it, making sure that the right group gets the right material and right equipment to the right people is what's tricky. It's slow, it's taking time and, of course, with each day that passes, the more people get sick and the more people may die -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Mike Chinoy reporting live from Banda Aceh, Indonesia.
And I just wanted to point out this picture in the "New York Times." You can see a member of the Navy handing out water to the people in need there. And that's from one of those U.S. Navy helicopters that Mike was talking so much about.
Last week on DAYBREAK, we read some of the appeals posted on cnn.com, loved ones searching for information on survivors. And we're happy to tell you this morning some of those survivors have been reunited with their friends and families. And you can read those updates on cnn.com. We have a special online report on the tsunami disaster. Cnn.com.
In news across America this morning, more than 500 people still are not allowed back in their homes after a hazardous waste disposal plant caught fire in El Dorado, Arkansas. It's not known what caused the fire. The EPA is monitoring the air quality to see when it'll be safe for all residents to return home. Insecticides, waste oils and other hazardous materials were kept at the plant.
A new survey at the Naval Academy found that female midshipmen feel more comfortable than ever before. The women said they feel safer in the cooed dorms and are more at ease with male midshipmen. About 16 percent of the students at the Academy are women.
Instead of being drummed out, Marion Barry was drummed into the Washington City Council. The former mayor was sworn in as a new member of the D.C. City Council before heading to a party in his honor at a local high school. It is the third separate time he's won election to the city council.
New year, new job? Some Americans think so. We'll take a look at the prospects for employment in the new year.
And then, snowed in -- we'll see how one family pawed its way out of the Sierra snow.
And the look at the life and legacy of America's first African- American congresswoman.
You are watching DAYBREAK for a Monday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COSTELLO: Time now for a little "Business Buzz" American style. If your new year's resolution is to look for a new job, you're certainly not alone.
Carrie Lee live at the Nasdaq market site with more -- good morning.
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.
Good morning.
Happy New Year to you.
"USA Today" reporting that the improving economy is expected to cause more people to look for work. A new survey showing that about half of U.S. companies could face an employee exodus. The survey shows that about half of U.S. workers would like to leave their jobs for another opportunity, and nearly half are at least somewhat likely to look for a new job this year.
A couple of key reasons here, the first being dissatisfaction with pay. Raises have been small over the past four years. Salaries rising slower than inflation, and that means we're paying more for goods and not earning more to make up for it. Also, pent up demand. Workers have felt stuck due to a weak job market. And burnout -- a lot of people stressed out as companies have cut jobs and resources to improve productivity.
So it could be a good time for U.S. workers, Carol, not so good for the corporations.
A quick look at futures, things looking like a very strong start so far for today's session. And according to the "Stock Traders Almanac," if you go back to 1950, if the first five trading days of the year are positive, there's an 85 percent chance that we will end the year on a positive note, as well. So we'll see if that happens.
COSTELLO: Yes, we'll see.
Carrie Lee live from the NASDAQ market site.
Thank you.
Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 6:16 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The death toll from South Asia's tsunamis now tops 155,000. Relief aid pouring into the region, but getting the water, food and medicine to many remote areas is made difficult by the damaged roads and lingering floodwaters.
Croatia's presidential election did not produce a winner, instead a runoff will be held in two weeks between the incumbent, who got 49 percent of the vote, and his top challenger, who got just over 20 percent.
In money news, US Airways has managed to avoid the huge problems that plagued their Christmas holiday schedule. The airline says they suffered no serious problems with their new year's weekend flights.
In culture, "The Fockers" were again America's favorite family for the holidays. "Meet the Fockers" was tops at the new year's weekend box office, with nearly $43 million. The film set records for ticket sales on both New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.
And in sports, it took some work, but the St. Louis Rams played their way into the playoffs. The Rams beat the New York Jets 32-29 in overtime, to secure the final wild card spot in the NFC. They'll play the Seahawks Saturday in the first round of the playoffs.
Hello -- Chad.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Well, let's talk about the weather in California, Chad, because in some parts of California, at the lower elevations, they're having problems, too, right?
Chad?
MYERS: Yes, Carol?
A producer was talking to me in my ear. I'm sorry.
You asked me what?
COSTELLO: At the lower elevations, they're having problems, too, in California with snow?
MYERS: Oh, of course. Even like Incline Village and Lake Tahoe, Tahoe On the Lake, areas there, between 36 and 42 inches of snow. And that's before you get into the mountains. Yes.
COSTELLO: You know what they're using to help them out? Dog sleds.
MYERS: Oh, well, that would make sense.
COSTELLO: Dog sleds.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Ted Rowlands explains from Soda Springs, California.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: More than eight feet of snow has fallen in some parts of the Sierra Mountains in northern California. And while they are used to snow in this area, they are not, by any stretch of the imagination, used to this.
(voice-over): It has, as you might imagine, caused a lot of problems on the roadways. A lot of holiday travelers spent hours on the freeways trying to come to and from the mountain regions, celebrating the new year's weekend and trying to get back for the first work week of 2005. The locals are also having trouble with this snow. One family who lives about two miles off the beaten path here had to actually dogsled in for supplies and food. They say they have been snowed in since last Wednesday because of the amount of snow. Their four wheel drive vehicles couldn't get them in. They own a dogsled business and used the sleds to bring the kids into town.
Another problem for the locals, actually getting rid of all of the snow that's accumulating. And you could see some of the problems here, one of them cars actually engulfed by snow. And it is taking a lot of labor to get this snow away, get the cars mobile again.
Still more snow expected. A winter storm warning which was issued last Wednesday is still in effect.
Ted Rowlands, CNN, Soda Springs, California.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: And, Chad, you've got to love that dog sledding idea.
MYERS: Well, you know, if you have enough dogs, I guess, right? I mean obviously if you only have two, they're not going to pull you very hard. You have to have like eight or 12, don't you?
COSTELLO: Yes, I'm thinking back to my dog. I just don't think he'd get out there and pull me on a sled.
MYERS: No.
COSTELLO: But you never know.
MYERS: No, I don't think he would enjoy it, either, really.
COSTELLO: They just look like family pet dogs. They didn't look like the special sled dogs, did they?
MYERS: Well, and they weren't riding the sled, either. They were pushing the sled, letting them help, you know, so they weren't wearing the dogs out. But, boy, I'll tell you what, well, when you get this much snow you have to do something.
COSTELLO: Very clever.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Coming up, bickering like children -- no, not me and Chad. That's how some are describing our elected law makers. What obstacles lie ahead in 2005? We'll find out just in time.
And later, investing in your future -- buying stocks doesn't have to be stressful. Ali Velshi will simplify it for you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Oh, you could call it bickering heights. That's how "Time" magazine describes the upcoming session of Congress. It reconvenes tomorrow and just because the Republicans gained a number of seats, well, that does not mean President Bush gets a honeymoon. He's meeting with newly elected law makers this morning with a clear missing.
"Time" magazine correspondent Viveca Novak joins us live from Washington.
Good morning.
VIVECA NOVAK, "TIME" CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
How are you, Carol?
COSTELLO: I'm fine.
So "Time" is reporting this could be the most partisan session ever.
Do the Democrats really have that much power?
NOVAK: Well, the Democrats have enough power to make it difficult. The president has put some very big things on Congress' plate that he wants Republican leaders Bill Frist and Denny Hastert to push through -- Social Security privatization, limiting how much people can get in medical malpractice lawsuits and other lawsuits and judicial nominations. He's renominating some of his most conservative judge -- would be judges that the Democrats were able to block last time around.
And Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader in the House, and Denny Hastert, the Republican leader, have a relationship that borders on hate. And in the Senate, which is normally the more collegial body, the new Democratic leader, Harry Reid, has revved up his Democratic policy committee, which doesn't have subpoena power, but they can have their own hearings on issues that he feels like the Republicans aren't addressing.
You also have Bill Frist threatening to pull the nuclear option, which would be to ask for a ruling from the presiding leader of the Senate, which is, coincidentally, Dick Cheney, to say that filibusters are not permissible in judicial nominations, which would be a huge change and would really bring the Democrats to want to do something nuclear on their own.
They could really slow things down just holding up things that are normally done by unanimous consent, procedural things, other sorts of, you know, non-controversial things. But the Democrats could really gum up the works.
COSTELLO: Yes, the other thing that's going on there is a change in rules about ethics.
NOVAK: That's right.
COSTELLO: And the Republicans also are at the forefront of that. NOVAK: That's right. The House Ethics Committee, which has rebuked the number two Republican in the House, Tom DeLay a few times recently, Republican leaders in the House are threatening to make it more difficult to file ethics complaints against its members. And this is clearly in retaliation for what happened to Tom DeLay. And they've already taken a number of steps that have protected DeLay. So this is also going to be a very big deal.
COSTELLO: Yes, and a very busy time for reporters.
NOVAK: I think so. Yes.
COSTELLO: Yes.
Viveca Novak live from Washington.
Thanks for joining DAYBREAK this morning.
NOVAK: Good to be with you, Carol.
COSTELLO: "I'd like them to say Shirley Chisholm had guts." That's how the former congresswoman said she would like to be remembered. Chisholm was the first African-American woman elected to Congress. She died on Saturday in Florida at the age of 80.
CNN's Bashkar Naer (ph) looks back at her life.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
BASHKAR NAER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Shirley Chisholm was a passionate, outspoken speaker during her seven terms in the U.S. House. She spoke out for civil rights and women's rights, and against the Vietnam War. She also criticized Congress for being too clubby and unresponsive.
Representative Chisholm once said her greatest political asset, which professional politicians fear, is her mouth.
SHIRLEY CHISHOLM: They won't have me to kick around anymore and you'll have to find someone else.
NAER: Chisholm, a New York educator, child care manager and assemblywoman, became the first African-American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1968. She served until 1982. In 1972, Chisholm announced her candidacy for president. She campaigned extensively, entering primaries in 12 states. She remained in the race until George McGovern won the party nomination at the Democratic national convention.
But Chisholm received 151 delegate votes and paved the way for other women to seek the presidency. They include former Senator Carol Moseley Braun.
CAROL MOSELEY BRAUN (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was able to walk in the footsteps of my hero, former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm. And we qualified for ballot position in more states than any woman has ever done in the history of this country.
NAER: After leaving Congress in 1982, Chisholm was a sought after public speaker. During her career, she also wrote two autobiographies, "Unbought and Unbossed" and "The Good Fight."
(END VIDEO TAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired January 3, 2005 - 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: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, the deadly tsunamis have left behind a flood of refugees. They are desperate for help, but getting it to them is proving to be a difficult task.
Also, she once said her greatest asset was her mouth. We'll remember pioneering politician Shirley Chisholm.
It's Monday, January 3.
You are watching DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the news, Secretary of State Colin Powell gets a personal glimpse of the tsunami damage. Powell is heading a U.S. delegation that's due to arrive in Thailand later this morning. In the meantime, U.S. flags are being flown at half staff starting today in honor of the tsunami survivors.
Two suicide car bombings in Iraq this morning. One happened at an Iraqi police checkpoint near a key political office in Baghdad. At least three police officers were killed. The other attack targeted an Iraqi National Guard checkpoint north of the capital, killing four islands.
Canadian authorities announced a second case of mad cow disease. Tests confirmed the case in the western province of Alberta. Officials say no part of the animal reached the human food or animal feed systems.
And the first African-American woman elected to Congress has died. Shirley Chisholm died Saturday near Daytona Beach, Florida. She was elected to the U.S. House in 1968 from New York City. Chisholm was 80 years old.
To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The hard hit island nation of Sri Lanka is getting help from its neighbor, India, itself a victim of those killer tsunamis. India has sent 11 ships to Sri Lanka, with relief supplies and military helicopters are ferrying it to survivors.
CNN's Satinder Bindra is aboard the Kirch, an Indian ship off the Sri Lankan coast.
SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A huge naval relief mission is now also under way in northeastern Sri Lanka. I'm in the city of Trincomalee at the moment and once again it's India's Navy which is bringing in supplies to the people of Sri Lanka here in the north.
An Indian ship, the INS Kirch, which you can see just over my shoulder, this is a missile corbet (ph). It has brought in about 15 tons of supplies. These include 50 generators, blankets, bed sheets and fresh fruit and vegetables.
Another large Indian supply ship has been here over the past two to three days and that has dropped off 80 tons of supplies. Also here in the northeast, French and Indian doctors have set up clinics. These doctors are now seeing some skin and respiratory diseases amongst those people living in relief camps. They say they do not have any cases of cholera at the moment, but doctors extremely concerned about the emotional well-being of people.
This is the hardest hit area. The tsunami hit hardest here and thousands of people died. The maximum number of displaced people are also here. Everyone here quite emotionally distraught because hundreds of children have been killed. One Catholic priest telling me just a short while ago that in one neighborhood alone, some 30 orphans were killed when a tsunami swamped their orphanage.
Satinder Bindra, CNN, Trincomalee, northeastern Sri Lanka.
COSTELLO: A U.S. delegation headed by Secretary of State Colin Powell is due to arrive in South Asia today. They'll get a firsthand look at the enormous damage caused by last week's earthquake and tsunamis. They're trying to determine what more the United States can do.
CNN's Suzanne Malveaux has more on the U.S. response.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
(voice-over): American Seahawk helicopters arrived with food, energy drinks and hope. Critical supplies are now getting to tsunami survivors. A U.S. delegation led by Secretary of State Colin Powell and the president's brother, Florida's Governor Jeb Bush, is on the way to the region. Before departing, Powell defended the U.S. response to the tsunami crisis, which critics initially called paltry and slow.
POWELL: $350 million, two carrier groups, thousands of troops. When you look on television this morning, Wolf, what you're seeing are American helicopters landing and delivering assistance.
GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: This devastation, what happened in Florida pales by comparison to what happened in these countries and I think it's appropriate for a delegation of people to make an assessment and also to show that our country really cares.
MALVEAUX: It's the largest American military operation in Southern Asia since the Vietnam War. Relief workers say now, just as important as cash contributions is finding the means to deliver the aid that's pouring in.
JAN EGELAND, U.N. UNDERSECRETARY-GENERAL: Those helicopters that are now ferrying out relief to isolated villages on the Sumatra coast, for example, from the United States and from other partner countries, those helicopters are worth their weight in gold now for us.
MALVEAUX: President Bush returned to wave from his week long vacation at his Texas ranch, vowing that the U.S. would lead an international coalition to help with the immediate humanitarian needs and long-term reconstruction in Southern Asia.
Over the weekend, he issued a proclamation, ordering all U.S. flags at government buildings be lowered to half staff starting Monday to show respect for the tsunami survivors. The U.S. delegation traveling to the region will visit those areas hardest hit by the disaster.
First, in Thailand, to meet with officials in Bangkok and survey the damage in Phuket, the popular tourist destination where thousands of visitors and locals were swept to sea. To Indonesia, Jakarta, where Powell will represent the U.S. at an international conference to coordinate the relief effort. And to the coastal town of Aceh, the epicenter of the disaster, where the wave wiped out whole villages. And possibly Sri Lanka, where the death toll now approaches 50,000.
(on camera): Secretary Powell says this is not just a hmm mission, but a matter of U.S. national security, that the region must be stabilized, that if the masses become desperate or demoralized, they'll fall prey to terrorist organizations who will come in to recruit.
Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: And a new day and a new death toll in the tsunami disaster. Officials now say more than 155,000 people were killed, most of them in Indonesia. The challenge now is getting food and water to the living.
Live to the hard hit Banda Aceh, Indonesia and our senior Asian correspondent Mike Chinoy -- hello, Mike.
MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.
Well, I am standing in what used to be the bustling commercial center of Banda Aceh, a city of several hundred thousand people. And you can see just how much destruction there is here. Those are fishing boats that were tossed onto the bridge and onto the other shore of this river. We are at least two or three miles from the coast, so you can see just how powerful it was.
The smoke that you can see there are from fires, people burning garbage and debris. The building just on the other river here was the main market in Banda Aceh and Sunday morning at 8:30, which is when the tsunami hit, is one of the busiest times of the day. So there would have been big crowds of people in there doing their Sunday shopping.
Let me show you over here, this neighborhood was one, a mixed one of both shops and residential dwellings. A lot of people had their businesses, small businesses on the ground floor and then lived upstairs. I'm actually on the roof of a building that was brought down by the quake. This stretches literally as far as the eye can see. There are bodies, lots of bodies buried in this rubble. We can see one just a few feet away, although we won't show you. And just a few hundred yards down there are hundreds more bodies, sometimes whole families that have been laid out. They're not in body bags. They haven't been collected and there are real concerns about the spread of disease because of the decomposing bodies and about contamination of the water supply.
So this just gives you, I think, some sense of the enormous scale of the challenge. And this is in the middle of the capital city that has an airport and is the headquarters of all the relief operations. It must be much, much worse in the remote areas that aren't getting anything like the attention that Banda Aceh is receiving -- Carol.
COSTELLO: That's just awful.
Tell us about the relief efforts there, Mike, because all of the headlines in today's paper are saying the relief is getting there, but as far as distributing it, well, that's a difficult task.
CHINOY: Right. The relief is beginning to come in and there have been some significant positive steps. The Australian Army has set up a bunch of purification machines and they're tapping into the local water supply, which is contaminated, and they're able to provide a lot of clean drinking water. People were standing in line for hours in the hot sun earlier in the day to get plastic containers of water. So that's one step in the right direction.
The U.S. Navy is continuing to fly helicopter missions, bringing food and medicine and water to the areas that are not accessible by land. Most of the big international aid and relief organizations like the Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, United Nations, they're all here. There are a lot of relief supplies coming in. A lot of money has been pledged.
The big problem is coordination and logistics because there are so many different groups and this is a place where there's -- nothing exists. There's no place to stay, there's no power, there's no electricity, there's no drivers, there's no translators. And all these different organizations are coming in, trying to make a contribution. So coordinating it, making sure that the right group gets the right material and right equipment to the right people is what's tricky. It's slow, it's taking time and, of course, with each day that passes, the more people get sick and the more people may die -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Mike Chinoy reporting live from Banda Aceh, Indonesia.
And I just wanted to point out this picture in the "New York Times." You can see a member of the Navy handing out water to the people in need there. And that's from one of those U.S. Navy helicopters that Mike was talking so much about.
Last week on DAYBREAK, we read some of the appeals posted on cnn.com, loved ones searching for information on survivors. And we're happy to tell you this morning some of those survivors have been reunited with their friends and families. And you can read those updates on cnn.com. We have a special online report on the tsunami disaster. Cnn.com.
In news across America this morning, more than 500 people still are not allowed back in their homes after a hazardous waste disposal plant caught fire in El Dorado, Arkansas. It's not known what caused the fire. The EPA is monitoring the air quality to see when it'll be safe for all residents to return home. Insecticides, waste oils and other hazardous materials were kept at the plant.
A new survey at the Naval Academy found that female midshipmen feel more comfortable than ever before. The women said they feel safer in the cooed dorms and are more at ease with male midshipmen. About 16 percent of the students at the Academy are women.
Instead of being drummed out, Marion Barry was drummed into the Washington City Council. The former mayor was sworn in as a new member of the D.C. City Council before heading to a party in his honor at a local high school. It is the third separate time he's won election to the city council.
New year, new job? Some Americans think so. We'll take a look at the prospects for employment in the new year.
And then, snowed in -- we'll see how one family pawed its way out of the Sierra snow.
And the look at the life and legacy of America's first African- American congresswoman.
You are watching DAYBREAK for a Monday morning.
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COSTELLO: Time now for a little "Business Buzz" American style. If your new year's resolution is to look for a new job, you're certainly not alone.
Carrie Lee live at the Nasdaq market site with more -- good morning.
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.
Good morning.
Happy New Year to you.
"USA Today" reporting that the improving economy is expected to cause more people to look for work. A new survey showing that about half of U.S. companies could face an employee exodus. The survey shows that about half of U.S. workers would like to leave their jobs for another opportunity, and nearly half are at least somewhat likely to look for a new job this year.
A couple of key reasons here, the first being dissatisfaction with pay. Raises have been small over the past four years. Salaries rising slower than inflation, and that means we're paying more for goods and not earning more to make up for it. Also, pent up demand. Workers have felt stuck due to a weak job market. And burnout -- a lot of people stressed out as companies have cut jobs and resources to improve productivity.
So it could be a good time for U.S. workers, Carol, not so good for the corporations.
A quick look at futures, things looking like a very strong start so far for today's session. And according to the "Stock Traders Almanac," if you go back to 1950, if the first five trading days of the year are positive, there's an 85 percent chance that we will end the year on a positive note, as well. So we'll see if that happens.
COSTELLO: Yes, we'll see.
Carrie Lee live from the NASDAQ market site.
Thank you.
Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 6:16 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The death toll from South Asia's tsunamis now tops 155,000. Relief aid pouring into the region, but getting the water, food and medicine to many remote areas is made difficult by the damaged roads and lingering floodwaters.
Croatia's presidential election did not produce a winner, instead a runoff will be held in two weeks between the incumbent, who got 49 percent of the vote, and his top challenger, who got just over 20 percent.
In money news, US Airways has managed to avoid the huge problems that plagued their Christmas holiday schedule. The airline says they suffered no serious problems with their new year's weekend flights.
In culture, "The Fockers" were again America's favorite family for the holidays. "Meet the Fockers" was tops at the new year's weekend box office, with nearly $43 million. The film set records for ticket sales on both New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.
And in sports, it took some work, but the St. Louis Rams played their way into the playoffs. The Rams beat the New York Jets 32-29 in overtime, to secure the final wild card spot in the NFC. They'll play the Seahawks Saturday in the first round of the playoffs.
Hello -- Chad.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Well, let's talk about the weather in California, Chad, because in some parts of California, at the lower elevations, they're having problems, too, right?
Chad?
MYERS: Yes, Carol?
A producer was talking to me in my ear. I'm sorry.
You asked me what?
COSTELLO: At the lower elevations, they're having problems, too, in California with snow?
MYERS: Oh, of course. Even like Incline Village and Lake Tahoe, Tahoe On the Lake, areas there, between 36 and 42 inches of snow. And that's before you get into the mountains. Yes.
COSTELLO: You know what they're using to help them out? Dog sleds.
MYERS: Oh, well, that would make sense.
COSTELLO: Dog sleds.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Ted Rowlands explains from Soda Springs, California.
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TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: More than eight feet of snow has fallen in some parts of the Sierra Mountains in northern California. And while they are used to snow in this area, they are not, by any stretch of the imagination, used to this.
(voice-over): It has, as you might imagine, caused a lot of problems on the roadways. A lot of holiday travelers spent hours on the freeways trying to come to and from the mountain regions, celebrating the new year's weekend and trying to get back for the first work week of 2005. The locals are also having trouble with this snow. One family who lives about two miles off the beaten path here had to actually dogsled in for supplies and food. They say they have been snowed in since last Wednesday because of the amount of snow. Their four wheel drive vehicles couldn't get them in. They own a dogsled business and used the sleds to bring the kids into town.
Another problem for the locals, actually getting rid of all of the snow that's accumulating. And you could see some of the problems here, one of them cars actually engulfed by snow. And it is taking a lot of labor to get this snow away, get the cars mobile again.
Still more snow expected. A winter storm warning which was issued last Wednesday is still in effect.
Ted Rowlands, CNN, Soda Springs, California.
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COSTELLO: And, Chad, you've got to love that dog sledding idea.
MYERS: Well, you know, if you have enough dogs, I guess, right? I mean obviously if you only have two, they're not going to pull you very hard. You have to have like eight or 12, don't you?
COSTELLO: Yes, I'm thinking back to my dog. I just don't think he'd get out there and pull me on a sled.
MYERS: No.
COSTELLO: But you never know.
MYERS: No, I don't think he would enjoy it, either, really.
COSTELLO: They just look like family pet dogs. They didn't look like the special sled dogs, did they?
MYERS: Well, and they weren't riding the sled, either. They were pushing the sled, letting them help, you know, so they weren't wearing the dogs out. But, boy, I'll tell you what, well, when you get this much snow you have to do something.
COSTELLO: Very clever.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Coming up, bickering like children -- no, not me and Chad. That's how some are describing our elected law makers. What obstacles lie ahead in 2005? We'll find out just in time.
And later, investing in your future -- buying stocks doesn't have to be stressful. Ali Velshi will simplify it for you.
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COSTELLO: Oh, you could call it bickering heights. That's how "Time" magazine describes the upcoming session of Congress. It reconvenes tomorrow and just because the Republicans gained a number of seats, well, that does not mean President Bush gets a honeymoon. He's meeting with newly elected law makers this morning with a clear missing.
"Time" magazine correspondent Viveca Novak joins us live from Washington.
Good morning.
VIVECA NOVAK, "TIME" CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
How are you, Carol?
COSTELLO: I'm fine.
So "Time" is reporting this could be the most partisan session ever.
Do the Democrats really have that much power?
NOVAK: Well, the Democrats have enough power to make it difficult. The president has put some very big things on Congress' plate that he wants Republican leaders Bill Frist and Denny Hastert to push through -- Social Security privatization, limiting how much people can get in medical malpractice lawsuits and other lawsuits and judicial nominations. He's renominating some of his most conservative judge -- would be judges that the Democrats were able to block last time around.
And Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader in the House, and Denny Hastert, the Republican leader, have a relationship that borders on hate. And in the Senate, which is normally the more collegial body, the new Democratic leader, Harry Reid, has revved up his Democratic policy committee, which doesn't have subpoena power, but they can have their own hearings on issues that he feels like the Republicans aren't addressing.
You also have Bill Frist threatening to pull the nuclear option, which would be to ask for a ruling from the presiding leader of the Senate, which is, coincidentally, Dick Cheney, to say that filibusters are not permissible in judicial nominations, which would be a huge change and would really bring the Democrats to want to do something nuclear on their own.
They could really slow things down just holding up things that are normally done by unanimous consent, procedural things, other sorts of, you know, non-controversial things. But the Democrats could really gum up the works.
COSTELLO: Yes, the other thing that's going on there is a change in rules about ethics.
NOVAK: That's right.
COSTELLO: And the Republicans also are at the forefront of that. NOVAK: That's right. The House Ethics Committee, which has rebuked the number two Republican in the House, Tom DeLay a few times recently, Republican leaders in the House are threatening to make it more difficult to file ethics complaints against its members. And this is clearly in retaliation for what happened to Tom DeLay. And they've already taken a number of steps that have protected DeLay. So this is also going to be a very big deal.
COSTELLO: Yes, and a very busy time for reporters.
NOVAK: I think so. Yes.
COSTELLO: Yes.
Viveca Novak live from Washington.
Thanks for joining DAYBREAK this morning.
NOVAK: Good to be with you, Carol.
COSTELLO: "I'd like them to say Shirley Chisholm had guts." That's how the former congresswoman said she would like to be remembered. Chisholm was the first African-American woman elected to Congress. She died on Saturday in Florida at the age of 80.
CNN's Bashkar Naer (ph) looks back at her life.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
BASHKAR NAER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Shirley Chisholm was a passionate, outspoken speaker during her seven terms in the U.S. House. She spoke out for civil rights and women's rights, and against the Vietnam War. She also criticized Congress for being too clubby and unresponsive.
Representative Chisholm once said her greatest political asset, which professional politicians fear, is her mouth.
SHIRLEY CHISHOLM: They won't have me to kick around anymore and you'll have to find someone else.
NAER: Chisholm, a New York educator, child care manager and assemblywoman, became the first African-American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1968. She served until 1982. In 1972, Chisholm announced her candidacy for president. She campaigned extensively, entering primaries in 12 states. She remained in the race until George McGovern won the party nomination at the Democratic national convention.
But Chisholm received 151 delegate votes and paved the way for other women to seek the presidency. They include former Senator Carol Moseley Braun.
CAROL MOSELEY BRAUN (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was able to walk in the footsteps of my hero, former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm. And we qualified for ballot position in more states than any woman has ever done in the history of this country.
NAER: After leaving Congress in 1982, Chisholm was a sought after public speaker. During her career, she also wrote two autobiographies, "Unbought and Unbossed" and "The Good Fight."
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