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CNN Live At Daybreak

U.N. Asks Tsunami Donors to Make Good on Pledges to Avoid New Wave of Disaster; Pilots Demand More Warnings About Beams Aimed at Their Planes

Aired January 06, 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: In this hour of DAYBREAK, send money soon. The U.N. asks tsunami donors to make good on their pledges to avoid a new wave of disaster. We take you live to Jakarta, site of an emergency meeting this morning.
Plus, tell us about lasers. Pilots demand more warnings about beams aimed at their planes.

And Sirius Satellite Radio gears up for your ride. The company even has plans for mobile video.

It is Thursday, January 6.

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.

Here are the latest details from Asia.

Going on right now in Jakarta, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan says almost $1 billion will be needed through the spring for tsunami victims in South Asia. More immediate needs, funding for water, shelter and food.

The search is on. Sixteen Americans confirmed dead, another 20 presumed dead. But the U.S. State Department says it has about 3,000 queries about Americans who may be victims of the tsunami disaster.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is in the region. Earlier today, he visited a refugee camp in Galle, Sri Lanka. Frist tells CNN it will take a long-term investment for the region to recover.

And the heart tugging images coming out of this disaster are leading some nations to increase their financial pledges. Australia will now provide $764 million. Germany says it will give more than $660 million.

To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT) COSTELLO: When you talk about tsunami relief, one of the first concerns is always for the children. They were especially vulnerable to the killer waves and now child survivors are being preyed upon by human traffickers.

What's being done to protect them?

Let's head live to CNN's Atika Shubert.

She's in Banda Aceh, Indonesia -- hello, Atika.

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.

We spoke today with the United Nations Children's Fund about the issue of child trafficking and they say they're very concerned, because in situations like this, this is where traffickers will often try and take advantage of this situation to exploit it. And they say the best way to deal with this is to take preventive measures by registering all those tens of thousands of children in displacement camps.

So what they've done, together with the government, is they have a program in which they go, send out small teams of officials to these camps and try and register all the children there, try and match them with families, see if they're already staying with extended family members or, if possible, of course, their parents. If not, their extended family members and possibly neighbors who have taken in these children.

If the children are on their own, then UNICEF will take care of them temporarily just to see if they can match them with any of their extended relatives. This is a very important part of the process is registering and identifying those children -- Carol.

COSTELLO: But it must be such a difficult task, since there are so very many of them -- Atika.

SHUBERT: That's part of the problem. There are so many children. And many of them are very far away from their homes. And so there could be cases, for example, of children who believe their parents have been killed by the tsunami wave, but their parents may simply be in another area, another part of town and are desperately trying to find them. And this is why it's so important for UNICEF to try and be the intermediary there, UNICEF and government, I should say, try to be the intermediary, try to match these kids to their parents.

Of course, hopes are not very high. There are still so many people that are still missing. And unfortunately, as you know, many of those victims were children. And one of the things we're finding is that so many parents are flooding into UNICEF looking for their children, but really there's only a handful of children that have been registered as orphans with UNICEF at this point.

COSTELLO: Atika Shubert live in Banda Aceh, Indonesia this morning. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is one of several U.S. leaders traveling in the tsunami zone. Frist visited a refugee camp in Sri Lanka. Frist is a doctor and he praised the relief workers treating thousands of victims. He stressed that no one should be looking for quick fixes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: We will be looking at ways that we can participate in the longer-term to help the people of Sri Lanka who have been hurt, who have -- will have long- term psychological scars. And in terms of that long-term reconstruction, we will be looking at things of economic development, return to jobs and the like.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And British Prime Minister Tony Blair is making new promises of aid for tsunami victims. Blair has been criticized at home for not cutting an Egyptian holiday short to deal with the tsunami disaster. But he made it clear this morning that Britain will do everything and anything possible to help.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The British people have shown that they're not confused about their reaction to the tsunami. They have shown they know exactly what it's about. It's a terrible disaster. It requests an immediate response of solidarity. They have given in the most incredible way. In every region of the country, they have given in the most incredible way.

What do they want their government doing? They want their government not talking, because they know what they feel about it. They want their government alongside them doing absolutely everything we can, sending the equipment out there, making the finances available, ensuring that in every single way, we match their sentiment with our action. That's, in my view, what they want.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Well, let's talk more about the logistical nightmare of trying to get aid to the tsunami survivors in the hardest hit areas. With so many countries offering so much aid, the deliveries are backed up.

Let's head live to CNN's Satinder Bindra.

He's in Colombo, Sri Lanka this morning -- hello, Satinder.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.

Yes, it's a big problem for Sri Lankan authorities because countries are literally falling over each other to deliver supplies. Some relief workers calling this competitive compassion. Supplies are flowing in 24-7. Some 135 flights have already come in and every day about 350 tons of supplies come in here to Colombo's international airport.

This area that I'm showing you is about twice the size of a football field and there you can see it, supplies from every corner of the globe. I can see biscuits or cookies. There's dry food. There's water. There's drugs. There's cereals. There's rice. Just about anything you name is here.

Now, who's leading the pack? The United States, certainly. It has 10 flights in already. France follows second with nine and then the UAE, the United Arab Emirates, with seven. I should add, even tiny countries like Bangladesh have so far managed to send in four flights.

But the Sri Lankans also appealing to all these countries, they must contact their civil aviation ministry before coming here, because a lot of flights are now getting backed up here and there's very little space to accommodate everybody and their compassion -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, you call it competitive compassion.

Who's in charge of coordinating the efforts?

BINDRA: Well, the Sri Lankans are coordinating the effort, but they are getting help. The American Marines have just arrived a few days ago and now they're operating four flights. They're operating, they're starting to operate four Black Hawk helicopter flights from here. These flights are now taking off in the morning.

Also, we are getting independent companies who are helping out. DHL, for instance, the courier service, they've got their representatives here and they're also trying to help the Sri Lankans organize things.

In the warehouse here, things are fairly well organized, but on the tarmac, I can tell you, there's a traffic jam piling up -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Satinder Bindra live in Colombo, Sri Lanka this morning.

Thank you.

The stories of the youngest tsunami victims have touched us all. Tonight, Anderson Cooper and Christiane Amanpour report from Asia in the prime time special, "Saving the Children." Join us at 10:00 p.m. Eastern for that special, "Saving the Children."

Across America now, Elizabeth Smart's father is hoping for a quick resolution to the case against his daughter's alleged kidnapper. Ed Smart said that both he and Elizabeth would support a plea bargain in the case. Brian David Mitchell goes on trial next month for kidnapping and sexual assault.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says he won't raise taxes, but might instead cut some important programs. He made the tax pledge during his state of the state address. Schwarzenegger also called a special session of the state legislature to start latter today.

A lawsuit over the Pledge of Allegiance is being refiled. Oh, you remember that Michael Nudow filed the original complaint in an attempt to keep the phrase "under god" from being recited in public schools. The Supreme Court rejected the case since Nudow didn't have custody of a school aged child.

Well, the new suit includes eight co-plaintiffs that either have children in public schools or are children themselves.

A New Jersey man runs afoul of homeland security officials. We'll tell you why he's facing charges for using what's been called a holiday gadget.

And if you've got any travel plans coming up, we can tell you how to save lots of cash to get where you're going.

And satellite radio is getting more popular. But is it also about to get more raunchy? We'll see if it's worth your money, just ahead on DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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

Airlines back in the news again today, as US Airways and its flight attendants make a deal.

Let's go live to Carrie Lee at the Nasdaq market site for more on this story -- good morning, Carrie.

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hic.

Good morning to you.

US Airways flight attendants union have approved a new labor contract and this is going to cut their pay by about 10 percent. Now, this group had been working under a temporary 21 percent pay cut imposed by a bankruptcy judge. Of course, US Airways is operating in bankruptcy. The carrier says these cuts are necessary to avoid imminent liquidation.

The union represents 5,600 workers. About two thirds voted in favor of this plan and US Airways estimates the new contract will help it save $94 million this year.

So we'll keep an eye on airline stocks today. Yesterday, the group lost a lot of ground because of Delta. Delta announcing big fare cuts. That's good news for consumers.

Meanwhile, futures across-the-board looking up a bit this morning. So we could see some buying, at least in the early going. But remember, that's what we've seen over the past couple of days and stocks have ended the last couple of days in the red. In fact, the Dow has lost ground now for six days in a row, the Nasdaq down about 3 1/2 percent so far this year. So selling has certainly been the name of the game.

Stocks to watch, Starbucks reporting December same store sales up 8 percent. But that is worse than expectations. So Starbucks could potentially lose a little bit of ground today. We'll see.

Carol -- back to you.

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

Thank you.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 6:14 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

Colin Powell says the so-called core group of four nations formed to coordinate tsunami relief is being disbanded. Powell says the core group will join the broader effort led by the United Nations.

William Rehnquist has been returning to his Supreme Court offices part-time. But it's unknown whether he'll take part on oral arguments scheduled for next week. A court spokeswoman says he plans to preside over President Bush's inauguration on January 20.

In money news, Wal-Mart is paying more than $14 million to settle a lawsuit over gun sale violations in California. Part of the settlement includes the development of a system to verify the age of a person buying a gun.

In culture, Willie Nelson plans to play a benefit concert for tsunami relief. The concert will be held in Austin, Texas on Sunday. Several other local acts will take part in the show, with proceeds going to the Red Cross and UNICEF.

In sports, Boston's Fleet Center will have to get another name. Bank of America, which bought Fleet, is giving up its naming rights. The Fleet Center is home to the Boston Celtics and, when they play, the Boston Bruins.

To the forecast center now and Chad.

MYERS: Don't get me started, Carol.

COSTELLO: There you go.

MYERS: You're egging me on with this hockey thing, aren't you?

COSTELLO: Poor Chad.

Good morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

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

The Patriot Act may land a New Jersey man in jail for a long time. He says he was just playing with a gadget. The feds say it was far more serious than that.

And just how good are the new air fares from Delta? We're going to take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALTER UPDEGRAVE, SENIOR EDITOR, "MONEY": When you're planning for retirement at 50, the first thing you want to do is sort of take a step back and assess where you are. At this point, you should have a fairly good idea of how much income you're going to need when you eventually retire. And so what you want to see is how much have I accumulated to this point and how much am I saving? Am I likely to get there?

Now, at 50, you're probably at your prime earnings years, so if you are not quite on track, you really have to ramp up your savings at that point. And it's probably a good time to do it, because chances are that your income is high enough where you can afford to save a little bit more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Airline pilots are demanding a zero tolerance policy when it comes to laser beams aimed at aircraft. Eight times since Christmas, lasers were pointed at cockpits of planes as they were landing. Now a New Jersey man faces federal charges under the Patriot Act for shining a laser at two aircraft. He could be facing up to 25 years in prison.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINA MENDOLA-LONGARZO, DAVID BANACH'S ATTORNEY: We are going to fight these charges. I don't think that the Act was intended to cover this kind of non-purposeful conduct. I think the spirit of the Patriot Act was to cover terrorist activity.

CHRISTOPHER CHRISTIE, U.S. ATTORNEY: This conduct was reckless, in our view. And whether it was an accident or not, one thing we know is that there were a number of incidents involving this person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: David Banach is also charged with lying to investigators after first saying his 7-year-old daughter was the one who pointed the laser at that plane.

So in the end, though, it was a guy in his backyard allegedly irresponsible fooling around.

But what about those terror fears and what about charging a man under the Patriot Act who's not accused of a terrorist act?

Our security expert, Mike Brooks, is in Atlanta to help us sort this out -- good morning, Mike.

MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: So, first off, these series of laser hits, will they likely all prove to be non-terror related?

BROOKS: Well, the FBI has said in this particular case, they do not believe that this was terror related. So in this particular case, no. But there were eight other acts that have happened since Christmas. But even going back before that, you go back to September 22 of 2004, when there was a Delta Airline pilot who was in an approach to Salt Lake City and was hit in the eye with a laser and it actually burned his retina.

Right now they don't think it is terrorist related. You know, it could be someone with just a laser like this guy did, you know, and I don't want to just say just a laser, but right now it doesn't look like it's terrorism.

COSTELLO: All right, so the Patriot Act, let's talk about that.

BROOKS: Sure.

COSTELLO: It's meant to stop terrorists. So how is it when the FBI doesn't suspect an act of terrorism has been committed, why is this guy charged under the Patriot Act?

BROOKS: Well, he's charged under the U.S. code. Let's make that perfectly clear. Now, this particular charge in the U.S. code was one of those that was enhanced by the Patriot Act. But if you read right from the code -- I made a copy of it, Carol. It's under Title XVIII, Section 1993 of the United States Code. And it says, it's, the charge is: "Terrorist acts and other acts of violence against mass transportation."

This particular charge was put in to deal with mass transportation. Let's say you went out on a railroad track and you knocked out a signal light. You would still be charged under this same act, this same charge.

But you had to look at the motive. What was this guy's motive by shining the laser at the aircraft? Was it for -- to influence political or objectives? Probably not. That would make it terrorism. But this was one of those charges that was enhanced under the Patriot Act.

COSTELLO: Well, all right, then, but then why not charge every act that can endanger a plane? And I know you cited the railroad crossing things...

BROOKS: Right.

COSTELLO: ... which I understand. BROOKS: Sure.

COSTELLO: But couldn't they charge anybody with doing anything, then, under the Patriot Act?

BROOKS: Not necessarily. This particular one was there to enhance crimes against mass transportation. Mass transportation is one of the big targets that terrorists could go after and that is one of the reasons they enhanced this particular U.S. code.

It's -- but, as I said, again, it says terrorist acts and other acts of violence. So, again, if it's not terrorism, it's still an act of violence. This guy, this could have brought down this plane. The two pilots, the pilot and the co-pilot of the plane that was coming into Teterboro Airport, that he's charged shining the laser on, had 13 passengers on board. They were both blinded temporarily. They regained their sight and were able to land the plane with no, you know, with no consequence.

But what if they hadn't of? This plane could have crashed. It could have killed these 13 people on board.

COSTELLO: Absolutely.

BROOKS: Very serious.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. You know, but this man's attorney is saying that this guy is being made a scapegoat. As a former cop, and as you said, there's no doubt this guy deserves to be punished if he allegedly did this...

BROOKS: Right.

COSTELLO: But does he deserve 25 years if he's convicted?

BROOKS: Well, that remains to be seen. And, again, the investigators are going to keep working on the case. You know, 25 years, maybe not. But are they trying to send a message? Absolutely. Since this guy got locked up, have we heard of any other incidents involving lasers? Not that I know of. So maybe they did send a missing that these lasers are not toys, they're not to be toyed with and pilots -- I was talking to Denny Dolan from the Airline Pilots Association the other day. He said, number one, it's a safety concern. And number two, is it a security concern? He's still concerned that the FBI said well, no, we don't believe it's terrorism, but they put out a bulletin in the past that said that terrorists may try to use lasers to interrupt aircraft.

So, you know, is it security? Is it safety? It's a little bit of both.

COSTELLO: Mike Brooks live from Atlanta.

Thanks for helping us sort it out this morning.

BROOKS: Good to be with you, Carol. COSTELLO: We asked you if it was time to review the Patriot Act and you've been sending us your e-mails.

And I'm going to quickly go through here to see if I have one or two to read. Let's see. This is from Pete. He says: "The Patriot Act is a post-9/11 knee jerk reaction. The government rushed into the Act without proper debate and discussion. It now needs major revisions. The Patriot Act goes too far and is a backwards step to what privacy we have left in our country."

But I must say, most of the viewers e-mailing in think this guy deserves whatever he gets.

Let's see: "It's not that the Patriot Act is a stupid law. We just have" -- oh, I can't read that one. I'm sorry. This was not vetted very well.

I'll find more later.

Thank you for your e-mails and keep them coming. And it's daybreak@cnn.com.

He promises to uphold the Geneva Conventions, but did attorney general nominee Alberto Gonzales look for a way around them previously? What he faces today on Capitol Hill straight ahead.

And Delta Airlines wants you to fly so that they can keep flying, and they're making some changes that you might like. We'll have more details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Good morning to you.

Welcome to the last half hour of DAYBREAK.

From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.

Now in the news, going on right now in Jakarta, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan says almost a billion dollars will be needed through the spring for the tsunami victims in South Asia. More immediate needs -- funding for water, shelter and food.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is in the region. Earlier today he visited a refugee camp in Galle, Sri Lanka. Frist tells CNN it will take a long-term investment for the region to recover.

The search is on. Sixteen Americans now confirmed dead, another 20 presumed dead. But the State Department says it has about 3,000 queries about Americans who may be victims of the tsunami.

The heart tugging images coming out of this disaster are leading some nations to increase their financial pledges. Australia will now provide $764 million. Germany says it will give more than $660 million. To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.

MYERS: Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired January 6, 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: In this hour of DAYBREAK, send money soon. The U.N. asks tsunami donors to make good on their pledges to avoid a new wave of disaster. We take you live to Jakarta, site of an emergency meeting this morning.
Plus, tell us about lasers. Pilots demand more warnings about beams aimed at their planes.

And Sirius Satellite Radio gears up for your ride. The company even has plans for mobile video.

It is Thursday, January 6.

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.

Here are the latest details from Asia.

Going on right now in Jakarta, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan says almost $1 billion will be needed through the spring for tsunami victims in South Asia. More immediate needs, funding for water, shelter and food.

The search is on. Sixteen Americans confirmed dead, another 20 presumed dead. But the U.S. State Department says it has about 3,000 queries about Americans who may be victims of the tsunami disaster.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is in the region. Earlier today, he visited a refugee camp in Galle, Sri Lanka. Frist tells CNN it will take a long-term investment for the region to recover.

And the heart tugging images coming out of this disaster are leading some nations to increase their financial pledges. Australia will now provide $764 million. Germany says it will give more than $660 million.

To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT) COSTELLO: When you talk about tsunami relief, one of the first concerns is always for the children. They were especially vulnerable to the killer waves and now child survivors are being preyed upon by human traffickers.

What's being done to protect them?

Let's head live to CNN's Atika Shubert.

She's in Banda Aceh, Indonesia -- hello, Atika.

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.

We spoke today with the United Nations Children's Fund about the issue of child trafficking and they say they're very concerned, because in situations like this, this is where traffickers will often try and take advantage of this situation to exploit it. And they say the best way to deal with this is to take preventive measures by registering all those tens of thousands of children in displacement camps.

So what they've done, together with the government, is they have a program in which they go, send out small teams of officials to these camps and try and register all the children there, try and match them with families, see if they're already staying with extended family members or, if possible, of course, their parents. If not, their extended family members and possibly neighbors who have taken in these children.

If the children are on their own, then UNICEF will take care of them temporarily just to see if they can match them with any of their extended relatives. This is a very important part of the process is registering and identifying those children -- Carol.

COSTELLO: But it must be such a difficult task, since there are so very many of them -- Atika.

SHUBERT: That's part of the problem. There are so many children. And many of them are very far away from their homes. And so there could be cases, for example, of children who believe their parents have been killed by the tsunami wave, but their parents may simply be in another area, another part of town and are desperately trying to find them. And this is why it's so important for UNICEF to try and be the intermediary there, UNICEF and government, I should say, try to be the intermediary, try to match these kids to their parents.

Of course, hopes are not very high. There are still so many people that are still missing. And unfortunately, as you know, many of those victims were children. And one of the things we're finding is that so many parents are flooding into UNICEF looking for their children, but really there's only a handful of children that have been registered as orphans with UNICEF at this point.

COSTELLO: Atika Shubert live in Banda Aceh, Indonesia this morning. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is one of several U.S. leaders traveling in the tsunami zone. Frist visited a refugee camp in Sri Lanka. Frist is a doctor and he praised the relief workers treating thousands of victims. He stressed that no one should be looking for quick fixes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: We will be looking at ways that we can participate in the longer-term to help the people of Sri Lanka who have been hurt, who have -- will have long- term psychological scars. And in terms of that long-term reconstruction, we will be looking at things of economic development, return to jobs and the like.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And British Prime Minister Tony Blair is making new promises of aid for tsunami victims. Blair has been criticized at home for not cutting an Egyptian holiday short to deal with the tsunami disaster. But he made it clear this morning that Britain will do everything and anything possible to help.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The British people have shown that they're not confused about their reaction to the tsunami. They have shown they know exactly what it's about. It's a terrible disaster. It requests an immediate response of solidarity. They have given in the most incredible way. In every region of the country, they have given in the most incredible way.

What do they want their government doing? They want their government not talking, because they know what they feel about it. They want their government alongside them doing absolutely everything we can, sending the equipment out there, making the finances available, ensuring that in every single way, we match their sentiment with our action. That's, in my view, what they want.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Well, let's talk more about the logistical nightmare of trying to get aid to the tsunami survivors in the hardest hit areas. With so many countries offering so much aid, the deliveries are backed up.

Let's head live to CNN's Satinder Bindra.

He's in Colombo, Sri Lanka this morning -- hello, Satinder.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.

Yes, it's a big problem for Sri Lankan authorities because countries are literally falling over each other to deliver supplies. Some relief workers calling this competitive compassion. Supplies are flowing in 24-7. Some 135 flights have already come in and every day about 350 tons of supplies come in here to Colombo's international airport.

This area that I'm showing you is about twice the size of a football field and there you can see it, supplies from every corner of the globe. I can see biscuits or cookies. There's dry food. There's water. There's drugs. There's cereals. There's rice. Just about anything you name is here.

Now, who's leading the pack? The United States, certainly. It has 10 flights in already. France follows second with nine and then the UAE, the United Arab Emirates, with seven. I should add, even tiny countries like Bangladesh have so far managed to send in four flights.

But the Sri Lankans also appealing to all these countries, they must contact their civil aviation ministry before coming here, because a lot of flights are now getting backed up here and there's very little space to accommodate everybody and their compassion -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, you call it competitive compassion.

Who's in charge of coordinating the efforts?

BINDRA: Well, the Sri Lankans are coordinating the effort, but they are getting help. The American Marines have just arrived a few days ago and now they're operating four flights. They're operating, they're starting to operate four Black Hawk helicopter flights from here. These flights are now taking off in the morning.

Also, we are getting independent companies who are helping out. DHL, for instance, the courier service, they've got their representatives here and they're also trying to help the Sri Lankans organize things.

In the warehouse here, things are fairly well organized, but on the tarmac, I can tell you, there's a traffic jam piling up -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Satinder Bindra live in Colombo, Sri Lanka this morning.

Thank you.

The stories of the youngest tsunami victims have touched us all. Tonight, Anderson Cooper and Christiane Amanpour report from Asia in the prime time special, "Saving the Children." Join us at 10:00 p.m. Eastern for that special, "Saving the Children."

Across America now, Elizabeth Smart's father is hoping for a quick resolution to the case against his daughter's alleged kidnapper. Ed Smart said that both he and Elizabeth would support a plea bargain in the case. Brian David Mitchell goes on trial next month for kidnapping and sexual assault.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says he won't raise taxes, but might instead cut some important programs. He made the tax pledge during his state of the state address. Schwarzenegger also called a special session of the state legislature to start latter today.

A lawsuit over the Pledge of Allegiance is being refiled. Oh, you remember that Michael Nudow filed the original complaint in an attempt to keep the phrase "under god" from being recited in public schools. The Supreme Court rejected the case since Nudow didn't have custody of a school aged child.

Well, the new suit includes eight co-plaintiffs that either have children in public schools or are children themselves.

A New Jersey man runs afoul of homeland security officials. We'll tell you why he's facing charges for using what's been called a holiday gadget.

And if you've got any travel plans coming up, we can tell you how to save lots of cash to get where you're going.

And satellite radio is getting more popular. But is it also about to get more raunchy? We'll see if it's worth your money, just ahead on DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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

Airlines back in the news again today, as US Airways and its flight attendants make a deal.

Let's go live to Carrie Lee at the Nasdaq market site for more on this story -- good morning, Carrie.

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hic.

Good morning to you.

US Airways flight attendants union have approved a new labor contract and this is going to cut their pay by about 10 percent. Now, this group had been working under a temporary 21 percent pay cut imposed by a bankruptcy judge. Of course, US Airways is operating in bankruptcy. The carrier says these cuts are necessary to avoid imminent liquidation.

The union represents 5,600 workers. About two thirds voted in favor of this plan and US Airways estimates the new contract will help it save $94 million this year.

So we'll keep an eye on airline stocks today. Yesterday, the group lost a lot of ground because of Delta. Delta announcing big fare cuts. That's good news for consumers.

Meanwhile, futures across-the-board looking up a bit this morning. So we could see some buying, at least in the early going. But remember, that's what we've seen over the past couple of days and stocks have ended the last couple of days in the red. In fact, the Dow has lost ground now for six days in a row, the Nasdaq down about 3 1/2 percent so far this year. So selling has certainly been the name of the game.

Stocks to watch, Starbucks reporting December same store sales up 8 percent. But that is worse than expectations. So Starbucks could potentially lose a little bit of ground today. We'll see.

Carol -- back to you.

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

Thank you.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 6:14 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

Colin Powell says the so-called core group of four nations formed to coordinate tsunami relief is being disbanded. Powell says the core group will join the broader effort led by the United Nations.

William Rehnquist has been returning to his Supreme Court offices part-time. But it's unknown whether he'll take part on oral arguments scheduled for next week. A court spokeswoman says he plans to preside over President Bush's inauguration on January 20.

In money news, Wal-Mart is paying more than $14 million to settle a lawsuit over gun sale violations in California. Part of the settlement includes the development of a system to verify the age of a person buying a gun.

In culture, Willie Nelson plans to play a benefit concert for tsunami relief. The concert will be held in Austin, Texas on Sunday. Several other local acts will take part in the show, with proceeds going to the Red Cross and UNICEF.

In sports, Boston's Fleet Center will have to get another name. Bank of America, which bought Fleet, is giving up its naming rights. The Fleet Center is home to the Boston Celtics and, when they play, the Boston Bruins.

To the forecast center now and Chad.

MYERS: Don't get me started, Carol.

COSTELLO: There you go.

MYERS: You're egging me on with this hockey thing, aren't you?

COSTELLO: Poor Chad.

Good morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

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

The Patriot Act may land a New Jersey man in jail for a long time. He says he was just playing with a gadget. The feds say it was far more serious than that.

And just how good are the new air fares from Delta? We're going to take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALTER UPDEGRAVE, SENIOR EDITOR, "MONEY": When you're planning for retirement at 50, the first thing you want to do is sort of take a step back and assess where you are. At this point, you should have a fairly good idea of how much income you're going to need when you eventually retire. And so what you want to see is how much have I accumulated to this point and how much am I saving? Am I likely to get there?

Now, at 50, you're probably at your prime earnings years, so if you are not quite on track, you really have to ramp up your savings at that point. And it's probably a good time to do it, because chances are that your income is high enough where you can afford to save a little bit more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Airline pilots are demanding a zero tolerance policy when it comes to laser beams aimed at aircraft. Eight times since Christmas, lasers were pointed at cockpits of planes as they were landing. Now a New Jersey man faces federal charges under the Patriot Act for shining a laser at two aircraft. He could be facing up to 25 years in prison.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINA MENDOLA-LONGARZO, DAVID BANACH'S ATTORNEY: We are going to fight these charges. I don't think that the Act was intended to cover this kind of non-purposeful conduct. I think the spirit of the Patriot Act was to cover terrorist activity.

CHRISTOPHER CHRISTIE, U.S. ATTORNEY: This conduct was reckless, in our view. And whether it was an accident or not, one thing we know is that there were a number of incidents involving this person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: David Banach is also charged with lying to investigators after first saying his 7-year-old daughter was the one who pointed the laser at that plane.

So in the end, though, it was a guy in his backyard allegedly irresponsible fooling around.

But what about those terror fears and what about charging a man under the Patriot Act who's not accused of a terrorist act?

Our security expert, Mike Brooks, is in Atlanta to help us sort this out -- good morning, Mike.

MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: So, first off, these series of laser hits, will they likely all prove to be non-terror related?

BROOKS: Well, the FBI has said in this particular case, they do not believe that this was terror related. So in this particular case, no. But there were eight other acts that have happened since Christmas. But even going back before that, you go back to September 22 of 2004, when there was a Delta Airline pilot who was in an approach to Salt Lake City and was hit in the eye with a laser and it actually burned his retina.

Right now they don't think it is terrorist related. You know, it could be someone with just a laser like this guy did, you know, and I don't want to just say just a laser, but right now it doesn't look like it's terrorism.

COSTELLO: All right, so the Patriot Act, let's talk about that.

BROOKS: Sure.

COSTELLO: It's meant to stop terrorists. So how is it when the FBI doesn't suspect an act of terrorism has been committed, why is this guy charged under the Patriot Act?

BROOKS: Well, he's charged under the U.S. code. Let's make that perfectly clear. Now, this particular charge in the U.S. code was one of those that was enhanced by the Patriot Act. But if you read right from the code -- I made a copy of it, Carol. It's under Title XVIII, Section 1993 of the United States Code. And it says, it's, the charge is: "Terrorist acts and other acts of violence against mass transportation."

This particular charge was put in to deal with mass transportation. Let's say you went out on a railroad track and you knocked out a signal light. You would still be charged under this same act, this same charge.

But you had to look at the motive. What was this guy's motive by shining the laser at the aircraft? Was it for -- to influence political or objectives? Probably not. That would make it terrorism. But this was one of those charges that was enhanced under the Patriot Act.

COSTELLO: Well, all right, then, but then why not charge every act that can endanger a plane? And I know you cited the railroad crossing things...

BROOKS: Right.

COSTELLO: ... which I understand. BROOKS: Sure.

COSTELLO: But couldn't they charge anybody with doing anything, then, under the Patriot Act?

BROOKS: Not necessarily. This particular one was there to enhance crimes against mass transportation. Mass transportation is one of the big targets that terrorists could go after and that is one of the reasons they enhanced this particular U.S. code.

It's -- but, as I said, again, it says terrorist acts and other acts of violence. So, again, if it's not terrorism, it's still an act of violence. This guy, this could have brought down this plane. The two pilots, the pilot and the co-pilot of the plane that was coming into Teterboro Airport, that he's charged shining the laser on, had 13 passengers on board. They were both blinded temporarily. They regained their sight and were able to land the plane with no, you know, with no consequence.

But what if they hadn't of? This plane could have crashed. It could have killed these 13 people on board.

COSTELLO: Absolutely.

BROOKS: Very serious.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. You know, but this man's attorney is saying that this guy is being made a scapegoat. As a former cop, and as you said, there's no doubt this guy deserves to be punished if he allegedly did this...

BROOKS: Right.

COSTELLO: But does he deserve 25 years if he's convicted?

BROOKS: Well, that remains to be seen. And, again, the investigators are going to keep working on the case. You know, 25 years, maybe not. But are they trying to send a message? Absolutely. Since this guy got locked up, have we heard of any other incidents involving lasers? Not that I know of. So maybe they did send a missing that these lasers are not toys, they're not to be toyed with and pilots -- I was talking to Denny Dolan from the Airline Pilots Association the other day. He said, number one, it's a safety concern. And number two, is it a security concern? He's still concerned that the FBI said well, no, we don't believe it's terrorism, but they put out a bulletin in the past that said that terrorists may try to use lasers to interrupt aircraft.

So, you know, is it security? Is it safety? It's a little bit of both.

COSTELLO: Mike Brooks live from Atlanta.

Thanks for helping us sort it out this morning.

BROOKS: Good to be with you, Carol. COSTELLO: We asked you if it was time to review the Patriot Act and you've been sending us your e-mails.

And I'm going to quickly go through here to see if I have one or two to read. Let's see. This is from Pete. He says: "The Patriot Act is a post-9/11 knee jerk reaction. The government rushed into the Act without proper debate and discussion. It now needs major revisions. The Patriot Act goes too far and is a backwards step to what privacy we have left in our country."

But I must say, most of the viewers e-mailing in think this guy deserves whatever he gets.

Let's see: "It's not that the Patriot Act is a stupid law. We just have" -- oh, I can't read that one. I'm sorry. This was not vetted very well.

I'll find more later.

Thank you for your e-mails and keep them coming. And it's daybreak@cnn.com.

He promises to uphold the Geneva Conventions, but did attorney general nominee Alberto Gonzales look for a way around them previously? What he faces today on Capitol Hill straight ahead.

And Delta Airlines wants you to fly so that they can keep flying, and they're making some changes that you might like. We'll have more details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Good morning to you.

Welcome to the last half hour of DAYBREAK.

From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.

Now in the news, going on right now in Jakarta, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan says almost a billion dollars will be needed through the spring for the tsunami victims in South Asia. More immediate needs -- funding for water, shelter and food.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is in the region. Earlier today he visited a refugee camp in Galle, Sri Lanka. Frist tells CNN it will take a long-term investment for the region to recover.

The search is on. Sixteen Americans now confirmed dead, another 20 presumed dead. But the State Department says it has about 3,000 queries about Americans who may be victims of the tsunami.

The heart tugging images coming out of this disaster are leading some nations to increase their financial pledges. Australia will now provide $764 million. Germany says it will give more than $660 million. To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.

MYERS: Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT)

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