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CNN Live At Daybreak
A Violent and Deadly Day in Baghdad; The Horrors in South Asia
Aired January 04, 2005 - 05:00 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, a violent and deadly day in Baghdad. An assassination in the ranks of Baghdad's leadership.
Plus, the horrors in South Asia. Colin Powell and the president's brother get a firsthand account of the ocean's rolling fury.
And in northern Gaza, a rocket attack on Israelis brings a deadly response.
It is Tuesday, January 4.
This is 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, overnight, the governor of Baghdad Province was killed along with six of his bodyguards. The assassination came after an oil tanker exploded near the green zone, killing 10 people and injuring almost 60.
President Bush has named his father and former President Clinton to lead an effort to raise money for the victims of South Asia's tsunami disaster. Later, the three visited the embassies of the four hardest hit countries -- Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand.
It is back to Capitol Hill. The U.S. Congress convenes today at 12:00 Eastern. Among the issues facing this 109th Congress, Social Security reform and an overhaul of the tax system.
And off the coast of California, an incredible sight. Take a look at this. Chad, help me out with it. There's a water spout rising.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
COSTELLO: That is amazing.
MYERS: Actually, it could have been a tornado if it was on land. A lot of water spouts that we hear about are actually caused by the ocean as cold air rolls over. This was actually caused by the thunderstorm itself. That would have been probably an F1 or an F2, called a rope because it is so long. But quite an impressive sight there over California. The day after tomorrow. It sounds like that movie is coming true.
COSTELLO: Oh.
MYERS: No, I'm just kidding. It's not.
COSTELLO: I hope not.
MYERS: Yes.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: It has been a bloody morning in Baghdad. A senior politician has been gunned down. Also, a bombing causes dozens of casualties.
Jeff Koinange in the Iraqi capital.
He brings us the latest now -- hello, Jeff.
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello there, Carol.
And we understand from Iraqi officials that the governor of Baghdad, Ali al-Haidari, has been assassinated. Here's what we know so far, Carol.
The governor was driving in a three car convoy on the highway on his way to work when he was intercepted by unidentified gunmen. They sprayed his vehicle with machine gun fire, killing the governor and a bodyguard, wounding two other bodyguards. The bodyguards were later taken to hospital.
Now, we understand that U.S. military forces are at the scene right now. They've sealed off the entire area. Helicopters are hovering over the scene. But, Carol, this is the highest ranking assassination of this interim government and it's the second assassination attempt on this governor. Three months ago, in September, his car was ambushed by insurgents. Two bodyguards were killed in that incident. He got away unharmed then.
And this is also the second high ranking assassination. The first one about eight months ago, the president of the then Governing Council, Izzadine Saleem, was assassinated by unknown gunmen.
So, Carol, with 26 days to go before the elections, it looks like it's heating up here and the insurgents seem to be stopping at nothing.
COSTELLO: I know there was other violence there, but before we get to that, I wanted to ask you about the protection of this man. He had at least six bodyguards with him.
Is there -- it just seems like there's nothing anyone can do to protect these people.
KOINANGE: Literally, Carol. Imagine, a three car convoy, six bodyguards, all heavily armed. And we've seen these officials. When we go to interview them, we see they are very heavily protected. But it just goes to show, these insurgents are stopping at nothing. They will attack and attack again. If they fail once, they will try again. And this is what worries many Iraqis here. If the officials cannot be protected, who's going to protect the ordinary man on the street -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, tell us about the other violence there this morning -- Jeff.
KOINANGE: That's right, we understand that oil tanker laden with explosives crashed into the Iraqi government, the Iraqi police command post right outside the green zone, exploding and sending charred bodies flying all across the street, Carol. We understand 10 people are dead in that, among them, eight Iraqi commandos. And we understand that as many as 60 people have been wounded, taken to nearby hospitals.
It looks like the insurgency is stepping up each day yet another notch -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, we're getting closer and closer to those elections.
Jeff Koinange live in Baghdad this morning.
Our other top story, the massive worldwide relief effort for tsunami survivors in South Asia. Secretary of State Colin Powell and Florida Governor Jeb Bush are in Thailand this morning. Powell and the president's brother met with that country's prime minister and are getting an up close look at the devastation from the December 26 tsunamis.
Just a short time ago, Powell talked about the thousands of American citizens still missing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: There are somewhere in the neighborhood of 4,000 Americans that we're trying to get track of. I don't know how many of them were in Thailand, how many were elsewhere. And I don't even know if they should be called missing. We're just trying to track them down. They are identified to us as a result of calls that have come in from their family members. And so we hope that that number will be reduced in the days ahead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Jeb Bush was asked about what he'll be telling his brother when he gets back to the States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: What I'll do is I will give him my observations and I, you know, what I'll tell him, I can tell you right now, is that the United States' response has been very impressive. It's been quick and it's been the kind that the American people would want for a tragedy like this. We'll see what happens tomorrow as we go to Indonesia, but I think the -- I think he can be proud of the national government and our embassy and AID workers, as well as the international relief response to this tragedy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: CNN's senior White House correspondent John King spoke with Governor Jeb Bush in Phuket, Thailand. And we'll bring you more of that interview a little later this hour.
Tsunami relief will top the agenda seven hours from now, when the House and Senate convene on Capitol Hill. The president has already pledged $350 million, but Congress must decide if that's enough or too much.
CNN Congressional correspondent Ed Henry has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi praised bringing in two former presidents to boost tsunami relief, she charged President Bush initially failed to grasp the gravity of the disaster. Asked if record budget deficits may complicate efforts to help tsunami survivors, Pelosi attacked.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: The reason that we have a huge deficit is because of the tax cuts. But this is an emergency. This is something that we must act upon. And thank heavens the administration finally saw the light.
HENRY: Secretary of State Colin Powell has said the administration upped the ante as the situation in Asia grew worse.
Republicans leaders on the Hill say they may boost the $350 million package, but they won't write a blank check.
SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: It may well be that the disaster increases in magnitude over time. If it does, the 350 may, indeed, be a floor. But one of the things that we need to do as responsible legislators is respond to what the actual assessment is.
HENRY: Republican leaders want to be responsive to the tragedy, but also know they have a tight budget. Congress has to pass an $80 billion emergency bill to fund the war in Iraq and reforming Social Security could spark a $2 trillion shortfall. As a result, the president is considering cuts to the Pentagon, as well as domestic programs.
But Pelosi said Congress should spare no expense on tsunami relief, using the controversy over the war in Iraq to make her point.
PELOSI: When you think of the billions and billions, on order of a trillion dollars that is being spent in Iraq, on order of a trillion dollars, and we're talking about several hundred million for humanitarian assistance, I think it's not a small but a necessary price to pay.
HENRY (on camera): A spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert said it was sad, but predictable that Democratic leaders are politicizing the debate over tsunami relief.
Ed Henry, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: As if Thailand needed this, the flow of emergency supplies took a strike today when a cargo plane struck a herd of cattle on the only landing strip in Banda Aceh. That has delayed the delivery of supplies by fixed wing aircraft.
Mike Chinoy has been covering the relief effort there.
He joins us live now with a special guest -- good morning, Mike.
MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Well, I'm at Banda Aceh Airport, where a bizarre accident crippled the relief effort for many hours. A cargo plane, a Boeing 737, hit a water buffalo and was damaged, stuck on the only runway here.
Now, after many hours in which all fixed wing relief flights were stopped, that plane has been towed away. And it's been towed away through a remarkable joint effort by the U.S. military, the Australians and Indonesians. And now, as a result, within a matter of a couple of hours, relief flights should begin to flow again.
Captain Matt Klunder, who is a helicopter pilot on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, is one of those who was coordinating the salvage effort.
He joins me now.
Captain, thanks very much for talking to me.
Tell us how you managed to deal with this problem.
CAPT. MATT KLUNDER, U.S. NAVY: Mike, I'm telling you, it's an incredible success story. You told the story about the water buffalo. Today it was very difficult in the early hours to try and get the aircraft cleared. It was a team effort with the Indonesians and some of our other coalition friends. We were able to get our crash and salvage people, our experts, off the carrier. They didn't get here until about 1:15 this afternoon. And now here, four hours later, with a lot of homegrown ingenuity and some great work, they got that aircraft off the runway.
It is a huge task. They had to take some just improvisations, some forklifts. They got balloons underneath the landing gear, some dollies and now that thing is off the runway and this airport is back open for business. And I'm telling you, we couldn't be prouder of these people. This is what these guys work all their life to do. And that is a very hard task and they've done it great. They did a great job.
CHINOY: How potentially disruptive to the aid effort would it have been if the airport had remained closed much longer?
KLUNDER: It would have been huge. Fortunately today, we had enough supplies here at the airfield so our helicopters were still able to run nonstop. It didn't affect us today, but tomorrow it would have been devastating. So now this is a wonderful story, a wonderful success story.
CHINOY: Now, you've been flying some missions to the hardest hit areas on the west coast today. Tell me what you've been seeing.
KLUNDER: Well, and I know you've heard earlier, in earlier reports, it's just devastating. We continue to deliver supplies, food, water, lots of medical supplies and medical teams to the field. There are some established medical areas now. We still continue to have a lot of critically ill, though, and injured that we are still -- we bring back in helicopter here to Banda Aceh Airport for triage. And then they're given out to their local hospitals.
A lot of puncture wounds, still infections, a lot of cuts, some with lost limbs. So it's very devastating. Anything we can do to help in that area, we're trying.
CHINOY: Now, the hospitals here are running out of beds.
Is it going to be a problem to keep bringing people up to Banda Aceh here if you can't put them anywhere?
KLUNDER: That -- we're working there and with, obviously with the Indonesians, this is their relief effort. But we're even attempting to take some of those people and move them down then maybe to Medan and areas like that for further care.
CHINOY: What is to you personally the most important thing about participating in this whole process?
KLUNDER: Well, to me, when you were able to go out that first day, it certainly brought the world's eyes on this situation, how tragic it is and the fact that we're all working so well together here and doing a tremendous job, we hope, with the Indonesian relief effort, working with our friends, and hopefully we're doing some great good every day.
CHINOY: Now, you're in the military. You've seen a lot.
Have you ever seen anything like what you're seeing here?
KLUNDER: No. We trained to do a lot of other things, but I can't tell you how many smiles you see on our people's faces. They're absolutely fatigued at the end of the day, can't even move, and they've got a great smile on their face because they know they've done some good work.
CHINOY: Going forward, what kind of expansion of your role do you foresee?
KLUNDER: I'm afraid I can't really speak to that. We're here with the Lincoln. We're here kind of as an immediate assistance measure. I just, I don't even know how long we're going to be here, honestly. We're just -- every day we'll come here and do our great work, hopefully.
CHINOY: Now, when I went on the first flight, our chopper was almost mobbed by desperate people and it looked to me like it could have been a real security issue.
Have you changed your operating procedures to prevent getting into trouble out there?
KLUNDER: We know that the first few days are always very uncertain. We kind of knew that going in. But we're going to get our job done no matter what.
In the coming days here, and working with our -- the Indonesian friends here -- we have got it more stabilized and those missions are a little bit easier.
But, yes, I remember the first day. It was a little exciting.
CHINOY: OK, thanks very much.
KLUNDER: Thank you.
CHINOY: I've been speaking with Captain Matt Klunder, who's the deputy head of the air wing on the carrier Abraham Lincoln, playing a key role both as a chopper pilot flying relief missions and most recently, just in the last few hours, helping to salvage a real potential crisis here by pulling a crippled 737 cargo plane off the main runway at Banda Aceh Airport.
The upshot is that relief planes will be coming in within a few hours, bringing more desperately needed supplies -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Mike Chinoy, I hear the helicopter nearby.
Is it -- it sounds like it's right next to you.
CHINOY: Well, it's pretty close. If you look, we're maybe 50, 75 yards. I'll have my cameraman zoom in and you can see. Those are the kind of choppers that have been flying these missions. We've been seeing people throughout the day, folks from the carrier helping to load those choppers. And they fly off. The flight is not very far. It's 50, 75, 100 miles at the most, but within five or 10 minutes of here, because I went on one of these choppers on Saturday.
Within just a couple of minutes of here, you see a picture of absolute and total devastation, whole communities quite literally wiped off the face of the Earth. And somehow, in some of those places, or in the forests and the mountains nearby, there still are survivors. They're in desperate shape. It's been, this is now the ninth day since the disaster. These folks who have been brought in here in the last day or two have gone that time with almost no food, almost no water, certainly no medical equipment.
One of the doctors treating them in the emergency tent here told me they look like victims of some terrible famine in Africa, with emaciated, in very, very bad shape.
And we do have a real problem, because the two functioning hospitals in Banda Aceh are no longer accepting any new patients. They've literally run out of room. So there is an effort now, there was a team from the carrier, a two person team that went to a badly damaged hospital, another hospital in Banda Aceh. They're trying to make an assessment of whether that can be repaired so that these critically ill people can find some place where they can receive treatment -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Mike Chinoy, many thanks to you and many thanks to Captain Klunder.
It's nice to see the Americans there helping out.
Be sure to stay with CNN for tonight's prime time special report "Turning the Tide." Our live reports from Asia begin at 7:00 Eastern. That's in the p.m., 4:00 p.m. Pacific time.
Still ahead on DAYBREAK, one of the kings of late night laughs is getting serious about tsunami relief. We'll tell you how Jay Leno plans to lend a hand.
And coming to terms with the disaster. It's tough enough for adults, but what about the children? We'll show you a lesson in tragedy.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning, January 4.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 5:19 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The governor of Baghdad was killed after insurgents opened fire on his convoy as it passed through a north Baghdad neighborhood. He's the highest ranking government official assassinated in the past seven months.
Former Presidents Clinton and Bush are leading an effort to help victims of the tsunami disaster in Southern Asia. Current President Bush asked the two former leaders to help raise private donations for relief operations.
In money news, yes, it is true, the Lingerie Bowl will be back as a Super Bowl half-time alternative. Oh, but this time the scantily clad models will not be playing football. Instead, they will take part in football related challenges. The show's sponsor will remain secret until a week before the event. What are football related challenges, I wonder? I bet it involves tackling.
In culture, even after scores of complaints, only the Fox station in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina decided not to show the reality show "Who's Your Daddy?" last night. The show featured an adopted woman trying to pick her real father out of a group of men, and she did. She won $100,000. There's something wrong in this country, isn't there?
In sports, Friday is the deadline for Randy Johnson to officially become a member of the New York Yankees. His trade from the Diamondbacks was approved by the commissioner's office. But Johnson and the Yanks still have to work out a new contract. And in it, it's going to be the hefty one -- Chad.
MYERS: Carol, that's the story for Friday.
Do you know what today's story is?
COSTELLO: What?
MYERS: Auburn, 13 and 0. They went undefeated and they have a bid for the national championship title. We'll all find out what happens tonight, Oklahoma and obviously Southern Cal.
COSTELLO: You know, you have to help me with something, because, you know, I'm not into college football at all, because I have issues.
MYERS: Yes?
COSTELLO: But Gallup has some interesting numbers as it applies to Bowl games, so you'll have to help me in the 6:00 hour.
MYERS: OK. I'll be right here.
COSTELLO: OK.
MYERS: All right.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.
DAYBREAK will take a short break and we'll be back with much more.
You stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: We all know Jay Leno loves Harleys, right?
MYERS: Many of them.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Lots.
COSTELLO: He has many, many Harleys.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Well, he's revving one of them up for a good cause. "The Tonight Show" host plans to auction off a motorcycle and then send the proceeds to tsunami relief.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: That's nice.
MYERS: Remember he did this back on 9/11? He did this for the 9/11 victims. He had a pickup truck and a motorcycle and he auctioned them off on eBay, $360,200 was the final bid for that one.
COSTELLO: Oh, that's very cool.
MYERS: So we'll see what this...
COSTELLO: Well, this particular Harley that he's going to auction off is a signature bike. As a matter of fact, leno says it'll have quite a few signatures.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
JAY LENO, HOST: We did this once before, after 9/11. Well, thanks a lot. And we raised a lot of money for the families. And the people were great. So for the next three weeks, we're going to ask all our guests and celebrities to come out -- that's why we got white, see? We're going to sign this, all the big stars will sign it. We'll put it up on eBay and we'll donate all the money to the Red Cross to help the victims.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That's really nice.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: You know Sandra Bullock?
MYERS: Yes. A million dollars. Good for her.
COSTELLO: She just signed the check over to the Red Cross. No auction, nothing.
MYERS: Right. COSTELLO: Just a million bucks. Awesome.
MYERS: And she did the same thing after 9/11.
COSTELLO: That's awesome.
MYERS: Great for her.
COSTELLO: Really awesome.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: All right, two men who know something about raising money have been tapped to lead a campaign to solicit private donations for tsunami survivors. President Bush named his father and former President Clinton. All three made sympathy visits to the embassies of countries hardest hit by the tsunamis.
So, let's go beyond the sound bite now to hear their impressions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CNN'S "LARRY KING LIVE")
GEORGE BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I kind of choked up when I saw a little duck, a little bathroom, a little bathtub duck under the greeting wall at one of the embassies. And I thought of the children. And I -- my heart was overflowing with it. And you can't help but be moved. I noticed President Clinton talking to a woman in one of the embassies who'd lost both her mother and her father and a brother, I believe it was, a president.
And, you know, it just breaks you up. And if what we're doing, I'm sure people will say well, this is show business or something like that, but it's not. You feel, Larry, like you're helping. You feel like you can be what I used to call a point of light. But you feel like you can make a difference. And it's very rewarding. It's very rewarding.
We've just gotten started.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
((BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CNN'S "LARRY KING LIVE")
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: First of all, it reminds us that we are not fully in control in this life. It's a humbling experience. You know, when I was governor of Arkansas, we suffered from tornadoes more than any other state in the country. I've seen a lot of people who lost everything, including their loved ones. And then when I was president, we had that 500-year flood in the Mississippi River Valley and terrible hurricanes in Florida. And then, of course, around the world, we've seen these things.
But this is of a magnitude that we haven't seen in decades and it reminds us that we are not in control. You can whatever you want, we should have had a better warning system, this, that or the other thing. There are a lot of things that can be analyzed later. But the truth is that the Earth is a complex organism and it operates in ways that are not entirely predictable. And we should -- it's a manifestation that, for me, at least, that god is still in control of life, ultimately, and that we're not. And there are a lot of things in life we can't understand.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Coming up in the next hour, a political debate on the former president's campaign to raise money for the tsunami relief effort. Yes, there are criticisms out there.
We'll also talk about the criticism the U.S. was slow and stingy in its response initially and so much more.
The administration says it will pay for the $350 million in tsunami relief effort aid with money that's already in the federal budget. Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy says he's worried it could come at the expense of other programs, aid programs, that is, around the world.
Here's what he's quoted as saying in today's "New York Times": "I worry the administration is robbing Peter to pay Paul, helping people dying from disease and dehydration in Indonesia and Sri Lanka, but taking that money from programs to relieve famine and childhood diseases."
That's Senator Patrick Leahy quoted in today's "New York Times."
As I said, we'll be debating this issue in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
And here's what's all new in the next half hour.
We'll meet a Thai hotel owner fighting to rebuild his business and to overcome the guilt he feels for living when so many others died.
Plus, mortar attacks and tank shelling this morning in the Middle East. We take you live to Jerusalem to talk about how this might affect Sunday's Palestinian elections.
You are watching DAYBREAK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired January 4, 2005 - 05:00 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, a violent and deadly day in Baghdad. An assassination in the ranks of Baghdad's leadership.
Plus, the horrors in South Asia. Colin Powell and the president's brother get a firsthand account of the ocean's rolling fury.
And in northern Gaza, a rocket attack on Israelis brings a deadly response.
It is Tuesday, January 4.
This is 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, overnight, the governor of Baghdad Province was killed along with six of his bodyguards. The assassination came after an oil tanker exploded near the green zone, killing 10 people and injuring almost 60.
President Bush has named his father and former President Clinton to lead an effort to raise money for the victims of South Asia's tsunami disaster. Later, the three visited the embassies of the four hardest hit countries -- Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand.
It is back to Capitol Hill. The U.S. Congress convenes today at 12:00 Eastern. Among the issues facing this 109th Congress, Social Security reform and an overhaul of the tax system.
And off the coast of California, an incredible sight. Take a look at this. Chad, help me out with it. There's a water spout rising.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
COSTELLO: That is amazing.
MYERS: Actually, it could have been a tornado if it was on land. A lot of water spouts that we hear about are actually caused by the ocean as cold air rolls over. This was actually caused by the thunderstorm itself. That would have been probably an F1 or an F2, called a rope because it is so long. But quite an impressive sight there over California. The day after tomorrow. It sounds like that movie is coming true.
COSTELLO: Oh.
MYERS: No, I'm just kidding. It's not.
COSTELLO: I hope not.
MYERS: Yes.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: It has been a bloody morning in Baghdad. A senior politician has been gunned down. Also, a bombing causes dozens of casualties.
Jeff Koinange in the Iraqi capital.
He brings us the latest now -- hello, Jeff.
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello there, Carol.
And we understand from Iraqi officials that the governor of Baghdad, Ali al-Haidari, has been assassinated. Here's what we know so far, Carol.
The governor was driving in a three car convoy on the highway on his way to work when he was intercepted by unidentified gunmen. They sprayed his vehicle with machine gun fire, killing the governor and a bodyguard, wounding two other bodyguards. The bodyguards were later taken to hospital.
Now, we understand that U.S. military forces are at the scene right now. They've sealed off the entire area. Helicopters are hovering over the scene. But, Carol, this is the highest ranking assassination of this interim government and it's the second assassination attempt on this governor. Three months ago, in September, his car was ambushed by insurgents. Two bodyguards were killed in that incident. He got away unharmed then.
And this is also the second high ranking assassination. The first one about eight months ago, the president of the then Governing Council, Izzadine Saleem, was assassinated by unknown gunmen.
So, Carol, with 26 days to go before the elections, it looks like it's heating up here and the insurgents seem to be stopping at nothing.
COSTELLO: I know there was other violence there, but before we get to that, I wanted to ask you about the protection of this man. He had at least six bodyguards with him.
Is there -- it just seems like there's nothing anyone can do to protect these people.
KOINANGE: Literally, Carol. Imagine, a three car convoy, six bodyguards, all heavily armed. And we've seen these officials. When we go to interview them, we see they are very heavily protected. But it just goes to show, these insurgents are stopping at nothing. They will attack and attack again. If they fail once, they will try again. And this is what worries many Iraqis here. If the officials cannot be protected, who's going to protect the ordinary man on the street -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, tell us about the other violence there this morning -- Jeff.
KOINANGE: That's right, we understand that oil tanker laden with explosives crashed into the Iraqi government, the Iraqi police command post right outside the green zone, exploding and sending charred bodies flying all across the street, Carol. We understand 10 people are dead in that, among them, eight Iraqi commandos. And we understand that as many as 60 people have been wounded, taken to nearby hospitals.
It looks like the insurgency is stepping up each day yet another notch -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, we're getting closer and closer to those elections.
Jeff Koinange live in Baghdad this morning.
Our other top story, the massive worldwide relief effort for tsunami survivors in South Asia. Secretary of State Colin Powell and Florida Governor Jeb Bush are in Thailand this morning. Powell and the president's brother met with that country's prime minister and are getting an up close look at the devastation from the December 26 tsunamis.
Just a short time ago, Powell talked about the thousands of American citizens still missing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: There are somewhere in the neighborhood of 4,000 Americans that we're trying to get track of. I don't know how many of them were in Thailand, how many were elsewhere. And I don't even know if they should be called missing. We're just trying to track them down. They are identified to us as a result of calls that have come in from their family members. And so we hope that that number will be reduced in the days ahead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Jeb Bush was asked about what he'll be telling his brother when he gets back to the States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: What I'll do is I will give him my observations and I, you know, what I'll tell him, I can tell you right now, is that the United States' response has been very impressive. It's been quick and it's been the kind that the American people would want for a tragedy like this. We'll see what happens tomorrow as we go to Indonesia, but I think the -- I think he can be proud of the national government and our embassy and AID workers, as well as the international relief response to this tragedy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: CNN's senior White House correspondent John King spoke with Governor Jeb Bush in Phuket, Thailand. And we'll bring you more of that interview a little later this hour.
Tsunami relief will top the agenda seven hours from now, when the House and Senate convene on Capitol Hill. The president has already pledged $350 million, but Congress must decide if that's enough or too much.
CNN Congressional correspondent Ed Henry has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi praised bringing in two former presidents to boost tsunami relief, she charged President Bush initially failed to grasp the gravity of the disaster. Asked if record budget deficits may complicate efforts to help tsunami survivors, Pelosi attacked.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: The reason that we have a huge deficit is because of the tax cuts. But this is an emergency. This is something that we must act upon. And thank heavens the administration finally saw the light.
HENRY: Secretary of State Colin Powell has said the administration upped the ante as the situation in Asia grew worse.
Republicans leaders on the Hill say they may boost the $350 million package, but they won't write a blank check.
SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: It may well be that the disaster increases in magnitude over time. If it does, the 350 may, indeed, be a floor. But one of the things that we need to do as responsible legislators is respond to what the actual assessment is.
HENRY: Republican leaders want to be responsive to the tragedy, but also know they have a tight budget. Congress has to pass an $80 billion emergency bill to fund the war in Iraq and reforming Social Security could spark a $2 trillion shortfall. As a result, the president is considering cuts to the Pentagon, as well as domestic programs.
But Pelosi said Congress should spare no expense on tsunami relief, using the controversy over the war in Iraq to make her point.
PELOSI: When you think of the billions and billions, on order of a trillion dollars that is being spent in Iraq, on order of a trillion dollars, and we're talking about several hundred million for humanitarian assistance, I think it's not a small but a necessary price to pay.
HENRY (on camera): A spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert said it was sad, but predictable that Democratic leaders are politicizing the debate over tsunami relief.
Ed Henry, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: As if Thailand needed this, the flow of emergency supplies took a strike today when a cargo plane struck a herd of cattle on the only landing strip in Banda Aceh. That has delayed the delivery of supplies by fixed wing aircraft.
Mike Chinoy has been covering the relief effort there.
He joins us live now with a special guest -- good morning, Mike.
MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Well, I'm at Banda Aceh Airport, where a bizarre accident crippled the relief effort for many hours. A cargo plane, a Boeing 737, hit a water buffalo and was damaged, stuck on the only runway here.
Now, after many hours in which all fixed wing relief flights were stopped, that plane has been towed away. And it's been towed away through a remarkable joint effort by the U.S. military, the Australians and Indonesians. And now, as a result, within a matter of a couple of hours, relief flights should begin to flow again.
Captain Matt Klunder, who is a helicopter pilot on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, is one of those who was coordinating the salvage effort.
He joins me now.
Captain, thanks very much for talking to me.
Tell us how you managed to deal with this problem.
CAPT. MATT KLUNDER, U.S. NAVY: Mike, I'm telling you, it's an incredible success story. You told the story about the water buffalo. Today it was very difficult in the early hours to try and get the aircraft cleared. It was a team effort with the Indonesians and some of our other coalition friends. We were able to get our crash and salvage people, our experts, off the carrier. They didn't get here until about 1:15 this afternoon. And now here, four hours later, with a lot of homegrown ingenuity and some great work, they got that aircraft off the runway.
It is a huge task. They had to take some just improvisations, some forklifts. They got balloons underneath the landing gear, some dollies and now that thing is off the runway and this airport is back open for business. And I'm telling you, we couldn't be prouder of these people. This is what these guys work all their life to do. And that is a very hard task and they've done it great. They did a great job.
CHINOY: How potentially disruptive to the aid effort would it have been if the airport had remained closed much longer?
KLUNDER: It would have been huge. Fortunately today, we had enough supplies here at the airfield so our helicopters were still able to run nonstop. It didn't affect us today, but tomorrow it would have been devastating. So now this is a wonderful story, a wonderful success story.
CHINOY: Now, you've been flying some missions to the hardest hit areas on the west coast today. Tell me what you've been seeing.
KLUNDER: Well, and I know you've heard earlier, in earlier reports, it's just devastating. We continue to deliver supplies, food, water, lots of medical supplies and medical teams to the field. There are some established medical areas now. We still continue to have a lot of critically ill, though, and injured that we are still -- we bring back in helicopter here to Banda Aceh Airport for triage. And then they're given out to their local hospitals.
A lot of puncture wounds, still infections, a lot of cuts, some with lost limbs. So it's very devastating. Anything we can do to help in that area, we're trying.
CHINOY: Now, the hospitals here are running out of beds.
Is it going to be a problem to keep bringing people up to Banda Aceh here if you can't put them anywhere?
KLUNDER: That -- we're working there and with, obviously with the Indonesians, this is their relief effort. But we're even attempting to take some of those people and move them down then maybe to Medan and areas like that for further care.
CHINOY: What is to you personally the most important thing about participating in this whole process?
KLUNDER: Well, to me, when you were able to go out that first day, it certainly brought the world's eyes on this situation, how tragic it is and the fact that we're all working so well together here and doing a tremendous job, we hope, with the Indonesian relief effort, working with our friends, and hopefully we're doing some great good every day.
CHINOY: Now, you're in the military. You've seen a lot.
Have you ever seen anything like what you're seeing here?
KLUNDER: No. We trained to do a lot of other things, but I can't tell you how many smiles you see on our people's faces. They're absolutely fatigued at the end of the day, can't even move, and they've got a great smile on their face because they know they've done some good work.
CHINOY: Going forward, what kind of expansion of your role do you foresee?
KLUNDER: I'm afraid I can't really speak to that. We're here with the Lincoln. We're here kind of as an immediate assistance measure. I just, I don't even know how long we're going to be here, honestly. We're just -- every day we'll come here and do our great work, hopefully.
CHINOY: Now, when I went on the first flight, our chopper was almost mobbed by desperate people and it looked to me like it could have been a real security issue.
Have you changed your operating procedures to prevent getting into trouble out there?
KLUNDER: We know that the first few days are always very uncertain. We kind of knew that going in. But we're going to get our job done no matter what.
In the coming days here, and working with our -- the Indonesian friends here -- we have got it more stabilized and those missions are a little bit easier.
But, yes, I remember the first day. It was a little exciting.
CHINOY: OK, thanks very much.
KLUNDER: Thank you.
CHINOY: I've been speaking with Captain Matt Klunder, who's the deputy head of the air wing on the carrier Abraham Lincoln, playing a key role both as a chopper pilot flying relief missions and most recently, just in the last few hours, helping to salvage a real potential crisis here by pulling a crippled 737 cargo plane off the main runway at Banda Aceh Airport.
The upshot is that relief planes will be coming in within a few hours, bringing more desperately needed supplies -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Mike Chinoy, I hear the helicopter nearby.
Is it -- it sounds like it's right next to you.
CHINOY: Well, it's pretty close. If you look, we're maybe 50, 75 yards. I'll have my cameraman zoom in and you can see. Those are the kind of choppers that have been flying these missions. We've been seeing people throughout the day, folks from the carrier helping to load those choppers. And they fly off. The flight is not very far. It's 50, 75, 100 miles at the most, but within five or 10 minutes of here, because I went on one of these choppers on Saturday.
Within just a couple of minutes of here, you see a picture of absolute and total devastation, whole communities quite literally wiped off the face of the Earth. And somehow, in some of those places, or in the forests and the mountains nearby, there still are survivors. They're in desperate shape. It's been, this is now the ninth day since the disaster. These folks who have been brought in here in the last day or two have gone that time with almost no food, almost no water, certainly no medical equipment.
One of the doctors treating them in the emergency tent here told me they look like victims of some terrible famine in Africa, with emaciated, in very, very bad shape.
And we do have a real problem, because the two functioning hospitals in Banda Aceh are no longer accepting any new patients. They've literally run out of room. So there is an effort now, there was a team from the carrier, a two person team that went to a badly damaged hospital, another hospital in Banda Aceh. They're trying to make an assessment of whether that can be repaired so that these critically ill people can find some place where they can receive treatment -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Mike Chinoy, many thanks to you and many thanks to Captain Klunder.
It's nice to see the Americans there helping out.
Be sure to stay with CNN for tonight's prime time special report "Turning the Tide." Our live reports from Asia begin at 7:00 Eastern. That's in the p.m., 4:00 p.m. Pacific time.
Still ahead on DAYBREAK, one of the kings of late night laughs is getting serious about tsunami relief. We'll tell you how Jay Leno plans to lend a hand.
And coming to terms with the disaster. It's tough enough for adults, but what about the children? We'll show you a lesson in tragedy.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning, January 4.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 5:19 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The governor of Baghdad was killed after insurgents opened fire on his convoy as it passed through a north Baghdad neighborhood. He's the highest ranking government official assassinated in the past seven months.
Former Presidents Clinton and Bush are leading an effort to help victims of the tsunami disaster in Southern Asia. Current President Bush asked the two former leaders to help raise private donations for relief operations.
In money news, yes, it is true, the Lingerie Bowl will be back as a Super Bowl half-time alternative. Oh, but this time the scantily clad models will not be playing football. Instead, they will take part in football related challenges. The show's sponsor will remain secret until a week before the event. What are football related challenges, I wonder? I bet it involves tackling.
In culture, even after scores of complaints, only the Fox station in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina decided not to show the reality show "Who's Your Daddy?" last night. The show featured an adopted woman trying to pick her real father out of a group of men, and she did. She won $100,000. There's something wrong in this country, isn't there?
In sports, Friday is the deadline for Randy Johnson to officially become a member of the New York Yankees. His trade from the Diamondbacks was approved by the commissioner's office. But Johnson and the Yanks still have to work out a new contract. And in it, it's going to be the hefty one -- Chad.
MYERS: Carol, that's the story for Friday.
Do you know what today's story is?
COSTELLO: What?
MYERS: Auburn, 13 and 0. They went undefeated and they have a bid for the national championship title. We'll all find out what happens tonight, Oklahoma and obviously Southern Cal.
COSTELLO: You know, you have to help me with something, because, you know, I'm not into college football at all, because I have issues.
MYERS: Yes?
COSTELLO: But Gallup has some interesting numbers as it applies to Bowl games, so you'll have to help me in the 6:00 hour.
MYERS: OK. I'll be right here.
COSTELLO: OK.
MYERS: All right.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.
DAYBREAK will take a short break and we'll be back with much more.
You stay right there.
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COSTELLO: We all know Jay Leno loves Harleys, right?
MYERS: Many of them.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Lots.
COSTELLO: He has many, many Harleys.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Well, he's revving one of them up for a good cause. "The Tonight Show" host plans to auction off a motorcycle and then send the proceeds to tsunami relief.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: That's nice.
MYERS: Remember he did this back on 9/11? He did this for the 9/11 victims. He had a pickup truck and a motorcycle and he auctioned them off on eBay, $360,200 was the final bid for that one.
COSTELLO: Oh, that's very cool.
MYERS: So we'll see what this...
COSTELLO: Well, this particular Harley that he's going to auction off is a signature bike. As a matter of fact, leno says it'll have quite a few signatures.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
JAY LENO, HOST: We did this once before, after 9/11. Well, thanks a lot. And we raised a lot of money for the families. And the people were great. So for the next three weeks, we're going to ask all our guests and celebrities to come out -- that's why we got white, see? We're going to sign this, all the big stars will sign it. We'll put it up on eBay and we'll donate all the money to the Red Cross to help the victims.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That's really nice.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: You know Sandra Bullock?
MYERS: Yes. A million dollars. Good for her.
COSTELLO: She just signed the check over to the Red Cross. No auction, nothing.
MYERS: Right. COSTELLO: Just a million bucks. Awesome.
MYERS: And she did the same thing after 9/11.
COSTELLO: That's awesome.
MYERS: Great for her.
COSTELLO: Really awesome.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: All right, two men who know something about raising money have been tapped to lead a campaign to solicit private donations for tsunami survivors. President Bush named his father and former President Clinton. All three made sympathy visits to the embassies of countries hardest hit by the tsunamis.
So, let's go beyond the sound bite now to hear their impressions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CNN'S "LARRY KING LIVE")
GEORGE BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I kind of choked up when I saw a little duck, a little bathroom, a little bathtub duck under the greeting wall at one of the embassies. And I thought of the children. And I -- my heart was overflowing with it. And you can't help but be moved. I noticed President Clinton talking to a woman in one of the embassies who'd lost both her mother and her father and a brother, I believe it was, a president.
And, you know, it just breaks you up. And if what we're doing, I'm sure people will say well, this is show business or something like that, but it's not. You feel, Larry, like you're helping. You feel like you can be what I used to call a point of light. But you feel like you can make a difference. And it's very rewarding. It's very rewarding.
We've just gotten started.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
((BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CNN'S "LARRY KING LIVE")
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: First of all, it reminds us that we are not fully in control in this life. It's a humbling experience. You know, when I was governor of Arkansas, we suffered from tornadoes more than any other state in the country. I've seen a lot of people who lost everything, including their loved ones. And then when I was president, we had that 500-year flood in the Mississippi River Valley and terrible hurricanes in Florida. And then, of course, around the world, we've seen these things.
But this is of a magnitude that we haven't seen in decades and it reminds us that we are not in control. You can whatever you want, we should have had a better warning system, this, that or the other thing. There are a lot of things that can be analyzed later. But the truth is that the Earth is a complex organism and it operates in ways that are not entirely predictable. And we should -- it's a manifestation that, for me, at least, that god is still in control of life, ultimately, and that we're not. And there are a lot of things in life we can't understand.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Coming up in the next hour, a political debate on the former president's campaign to raise money for the tsunami relief effort. Yes, there are criticisms out there.
We'll also talk about the criticism the U.S. was slow and stingy in its response initially and so much more.
The administration says it will pay for the $350 million in tsunami relief effort aid with money that's already in the federal budget. Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy says he's worried it could come at the expense of other programs, aid programs, that is, around the world.
Here's what he's quoted as saying in today's "New York Times": "I worry the administration is robbing Peter to pay Paul, helping people dying from disease and dehydration in Indonesia and Sri Lanka, but taking that money from programs to relieve famine and childhood diseases."
That's Senator Patrick Leahy quoted in today's "New York Times."
As I said, we'll be debating this issue in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
And here's what's all new in the next half hour.
We'll meet a Thai hotel owner fighting to rebuild his business and to overcome the guilt he feels for living when so many others died.
Plus, mortar attacks and tank shelling this morning in the Middle East. We take you live to Jerusalem to talk about how this might affect Sunday's Palestinian elections.
You are watching DAYBREAK.
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