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American Morning

Wal-Mart Employee Abducted in Texas; Rice Confirmation Delayed

Aired January 21, 2005 - 08:00   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.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Searching frame by frame for clues into an abduction caught on videotape. A Wal-Mart cashier apparently kidnapped right in the store's parking lot.
Pistols, knives, even grenades -- thousands of weapons being confiscated in airports. Why are they there are at all?

And a sudden winter storm hitting parts of the South. But Northern states better get ready, too, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody, on a Friday.

Fourteen degrees outside. It's going to get colder than that over the weekend, too, and soon.

Good morning.

Those stories in a moment.

Still a lot of talk today, too, about the inauguration from yesterday and the speech in D.C. The president and the first lady attending the traditional balls last night in Washington. And this morning we'll talk about the address yesterday with speechwriters from both the Bush administration and the Clinton administration. Was the president trying to inspire or was he trying to send a warning? We'll get to that in a moment this hour.

O'BRIEN: Also, confirmation as secretary of state will have to wait for Condoleezza Rice, even though everybody in Washington, D.C. agrees it's going to happen. In just a few minutes, we're going to take a look at what Democrats think they have to gain by holding up a vote on her nomination.

HEMMER: Back to Jack Cafferty -- good morning.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That was pretty lame, that stunt they pulled.

HEMMER: You think so?

CAFFERTY: Yes. Yes, I do.

HEMMER: Tuesday or Wednesday I think they're thinking now.

CAFFERTY: I mean they could, there's, you know, everybody knows that she's going to be confirmed...

O'BRIEN: It's a done deal.

CAFFERTY: It could have been done and, you know, but they're just, they're being petty, I think, might be the word. Petty.

Coming up in the "Cafferty File," we'll tell you about a new book of Osama bin Laden translations perfect for the bottom of your bird cage, a mother who gives new meaning to the phrase multiple births, Soledad...

O'BRIEN: Not me. I've got enough.

CAFFERTY: And mixed signals from the first family during the inauguration.

HEMMER: Good deal.

Thank you, Jack.

Heidi Collins with us also, now, the headlines and the news -- Heidi, good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you.

And good morning once again, everybody.

Now in the news this morning, at least 14 people have been killed in an early morning explosion near a mosque in southern Baghdad. U.S. forces have secured the area now around the blast. Iraqi police are trying to determine if the attack was a suicide bombing. Insurgents have stepped up violence in the country ahead of the January 30th election.

Palestinian security forces have started deploying along the border with Israel. It's part of a two phase plan to stop attacks on Israeli communities. New Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, is also negotiating with militant groups, hoping to win their commitment to a cease-fire. Earlier in the week, Israel approved plans for a major offensive in Gaza if Abbas fails to control the violence.

President Bush is planning to attend a national prayer service at the Washington Cathedral this morning. Yesterday, the president danced at 10 different inaugural parties. On his arm, the first lady, wearing Oscar de la Renta. Their total time on the dance floor, just in case you wanted to know, less than nine minutes. The president was apparently back at the White House by just after 10:00 p.m. Eastern, his normal bedtime there.

And the third annual running of -- I'm sorry, the annual running of the brides. We don't know how long they've been doing this. Underway now in Atlanta, Georgia. Check it out. You're looking at pictures from the scene there at Filene's Basement in Buckhead, coming in to us from WAGA as they show it to their viewers. The doors are now open, in case you're in the area. Dozens of women are right now fighting for their dream dresses, expecting to walk away with a gown and hopefully not too many bruises. The soon to be brides getting those dresses at a heavy, heavy, deep discount.

HEMMER: That's one way to shop, huh?

O'BRIEN: That's a bunch of amped up brides.

COLLINS: Combat shopping, yes.

O'BRIEN: I hope they get a break.

We just heard a little remark there from Shane. Another reason not to get married is what he said.

COLLINS: Good morning, Shane.

O'BRIEN: Wroth repeating, I thought.

Thanks, Shane.

HEMMER: From the single guy.

O'BRIEN: Well, the forecasters are telling us it's going to get very, very nasty in the Northeast. A big winter storm is headed our way. Overnight, parts of North Carolina got pounded with ice and snow and rain.

It's time to check back in on the weather.

Chad Myers is at the CNN Center with the latest forecast for us -- hey, Chad, good morning again.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, after seeing that car, that little Cherokee, man, you need to slow down in that stuff.

Good morning, Soledad.

It is going to be an icy, snowy mess. It depends on where you live or where you're going. The cold air is already in place, the highs today not above the 20s in most spots across the Northeast.

Here comes the storm, an anemic looking thing right now, but it's going to dive down through Chicago. The snow starts in Chicago tonight at about 8:00. There will be eight inches of snow on the ground, anywhere from Oconomowoc right on back up to Milwaukee, and then southeast from there.

It's going to pick up some lake enhancement here, lake effect snow. And that's going to come down in the Alleghenies, from Pittsburgh down through West Virginia and even into the coal fields of Kentucky. Then the storm is going to get very close to the Atlantic Ocean. And you have to think, if it can pick up moisture from Lake Erie, which is fairly small, or Lake Michigan or Lake Huron, think about how much moisture it can pick up from the Atlantic Ocean.

As it does this, as it bombs out, there's going to be a large area of one foot snow plus. And it could be very close to Philadelphia. And that ends by Sunday afternoon. Before the game starts, most of the snow is over, Bill. But they're going to be shoveling out the stadium, a lot like they had to shovel out the stadium out in Foxboro with the storm in the Patriots forecast from last year.

Forty-three in Boise; 70 in Vegas; 70 in San Diego.

So the West is perfect.

But the East is really going to start going downhill. Bill, you could easily get 12 inches in the city. We're just going to have to see where it goes.

HEMMER: When does it start going downhill, Chad?

MYERS: For you, you know, probably 10:00 or 11:00 in the morning tomorrow morning.

HEMMER: Got it.

We've been warned.

MYERS: All right.

HEMMER: Thank you, Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

HEMMER: Talk to you later.

MYERS: All right.

HEMMER: From Texas today, police are investigating the apparent abduction of a young Wal-Mart employee. A surveillance videotape captured the incident in the store's parking lot.

Officer Don Martin of the Tyler Police Department tells us where that investigation now stands 36 hours after the abduction of the 19- year-old woman.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

OFFICER DON MARTIN, TYLER POLICE DEPARTMENT: We are still following up on leads in this investigation. At this point in time, we're still waiting for leads to come in overnight from other newscasts.

HEMMER: We want to run the surveillance videotape. And walk us through it. What do you believe happened right around midnight on Wednesday evening, Officer?

MARTIN: We believe that there was a black male suspect that was loitering around the front of Wal-Mart and we believe that he was targeting a female subject that had a vehicle. It looked like he was approaching several of them and then got scared away and then when the opportunity came up with Megan, he approached her without her being aware of it and got her in her vehicle and then took off in it, as well.

HEMMER: How do you know he was targeting others that evening, sir?

MARTIN: He was, again, observed around the front of the doorway and he would walk out into the parking lot and then turn around and come back. We started reviewing the tapes a little bit closer and we observed a couple females that were walking out to their cars just prior to him walking out, to where we thought possibly he may be going out and targeting them, as well.

HEMMER: Is there any evidence that he knew Megan?

MARTIN: Not at this time, no, there isn't.

HEMMER: How much can this videotape help you in your investigation now, sir?

MARTIN: Quite a bit. We've got a good clothing description on him. We're going to try and enhance the facial parts of the videotape and we had an artist flown in from Houston last night to do a sketch on him. So we're hoping today that through these leads that we might be able to come up with an identification.

HEMMER: And eyewitnesses either working at the store or perhaps shopping at the time, how much information have they been able to give you?

MARTIN: They did talk to the investigators last night, late last night, and told them what they knew. There was a private security that did work for Wal-Mart that actually contacted the suspect. And we're following up on the leads that he gave officers.

HEMMER: Also, if you're looking for more help from the public, what does the public need to know?

MARTIN: The public needs to know that we're really looking for her vehicle at this point in time. It's a 2002 red Ford F150 sport truck. It has a long scratch from the front to the back on the passenger side of the truck and the sport logos have been removed. There are dice hanging from rearview mirror as long as a Hawaiian lei. We are canvassing everywhere, looking for this truck. Hopefully that would lead us to further evidence to determine a possible suspect in this incident.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

HEMMER: Again, Officer Don Martin down in Tyler, Texas.

We're getting now two new pictures of the 19-year-old woman, Megan Holden. These are the new photos just into us here at CNN.

Also, we'll show you the sketch of the suspect. A $10,000 reward has been posted for any information about the location of this man that you see on your screen here -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, Condoleezza Rice will not be secretary of state until at least next Wednesday.

As Andrea Koppel reports, Senate Democrats want more debate before voting on her confirmation.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Condoleezza Rice, the inauguration was supposed to mark the start of her new role as secretary of state. Instead, Senate Democrats forced a delay in her confirmation until next week.

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MINORITY LEADER: We have senators who have been engaged in matters relating to what's going on around the world who, for the confirmation of the secretary of state, wish to be able to speak.

KOPPEL: After two days of often contentious hearings with Rice, most of it over Iraq...

SEN. BARBARA BOXER (D-CF), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: And I also will not shrink from questioning a war that was not built on the truth.

KOPPEL: ... Democrats, led by Barbara Boxer of California, blocked a quick vote in the Senate. The White House suggested it was sour grapes.

ANDREW CARD, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Dr. Rice will be a great secretary of state and she should move into that position quickly and I wish the Senate would confirm her. But, you know, petty politics is playing a role in this, and that's unfortunate.

KOPPEL: For Colin Powell, who'd already had an emotional farewell Wednesday before hundreds at the State Department...

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: And even though I stepped down as your secretary, I will never leave you.

KOPPEL: ... Rice's delayed confirmation means one last diplomatic mission for Powell. This weekend, he'll lead the U.S. delegation to Ukraine to witness the inauguration of opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko, swept into power after weeks of massive street demonstrations forced a new election. Truly a bittersweet moment for Powell, who although he led U.S. efforts to support democratic elections in Ukraine, wasn't supposed to be going.

(on camera): As for Rice, who is still expected to be confirmed by a wide margin, Democrats say she had only one request -- to be sworn in by the time President Bush delivers his State of the Union address next month.

Andrea Koppel, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

O'BRIEN: Some Republican leaders, like Jon Kyl of Arizona, openly criticized the Democrats divisive start to the president's new term -- Bill.

HEMMER: Well, President Bush launching that second term with a vow to bring freedom to the darkest corners of the planet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So it is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Now, the day after, former Bush speechwriter David Frum back with us, down in D.C.

David, good morning, there.

DAVID FRUM, FORMER BUSH SPEECHWRITER: Good morning, Bill.

HEMMER: Also, here in New York, Michael Waldman, a speechwriter in the Clinton administration.

Michael, nice to see you, as well.

MICHAEL WALDMAN, FORMER CLINTON SPEECHWRITER: Good morning.

HEMMER: David, let's start with you.

I've heard ambitious. I've heard tough. I've also heard aggressive and over the top.

Your reaction to what you heard yesterday?

FRUM: Well, Michael was saying on a lot of television shows before the inaugural that it's very difficult to do inaugural speeches well. And I am afraid we may have proven Michael's point. There was a great 14 minute speech inside this 21 minute speech. And those were the tough parts, the parts that were directed to very specific problems that exist in the world -- America's so-called friends, like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and Egypt that are authoritarian regimes in which radicalism is incubated. The president said to them, we want you to reform. We'll help, we're not going to punish you, but we want to see change.

HEMMER: But what I'm hearing you say, David...

FRUM: But then there's a lot of...

HEMMER: ... the speech was too long, right? Had it been shorter, would it have been most effective?

FRUM: It would have been more pointed, that those very direct and specific messages got a little lost inside some of the more flowery rhetoric.

HEMMER: All right, Michael, what adjectives were you reaching for yesterday, right around 12:00 Eastern?

WALDMAN: Well, well written, not so well delivered. And I agree with David that it had some good things to say and I thought it could say them three or four times and that would make them even better.

But it was really striking to me, the language about freedom, the piece we just heard is a direct echo of Harry Truman's Truman Doctrine, where he said we're going to help people who are fighting communist efforts to take over their countries.

This was far more sweeping. And if -- I was thinking Yoko Ono was going to come out on stage and sing "Imagine" with the president. It was almost utopian. And the question is, look, I think that this sense that our country was founded on the idea of freedom and equal opportunity and it's our mission in the world to spread that, I strongly believe that and I think that is what the best inaugural addresses say.

But to set that out as a policy that we're basically going to be advancing that everywhere in the world, how? And where? And with -- what about Saudi Arabia? What about China?

HEMMER: You cite Harry Truman. An hour ago, Senator George Mitchell was citing JFK. He thought it was more a reflection of what we heard in January of 1961.

Pause for a moment.

David, one of your big things is during an inaugural address is trying to engage people and move them to act.

Listen to another part from yesterday and we'll talk about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: The leaders of governments with long habits of control need to know, to serve your people, you must learn to trust them. Start on this journey of progress and justice and America will walk at your side.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Now, both of you gentlemen have mentioned Saudi Arabia.

How do the leaders in that country, and Syria and Iran, across the entire Arab world, interpret this speech?

FRUM: Well, I think, Bill, you just quoted the single most important sentence in the whole speech, and that is the one addressed, as the president just spoke, to the so-called friendly autocracies. And, again, no threats, but you are in danger if you don't take these steps. You are endangering yourselves, you're endangering the United States and the democracies, because you are breeding radicalism inside your borders.

That's where these Islamic terrorists tend to come from -- Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia.

HEMMER: I think you and Michael have the same mind. You said the same thing right before we started here.

WALDMAN: Yes, and what's interesting, of course, though, is we don't have autocracies only in the Middle East. We have autocracies in many countries all around the world. And if the United States is to set off on a mission to spur change in every country in the world, that's a pretty big task to bite.

One of the other things that was very interesting to me was the lack of domestic focus. I watched it and I said they just threw Social Security reform overboard. If he's getting up before the country in this great moment and he's really planning to go and propose, in effect, a phase out of the most popular and successful government program of all time, and he basically doesn't mention it, that says to me that they've already decided it's a political loser and that they're going to try and find a way to back off.

It suggested the kind of typical second term focus on foreign policy, where you don't have to worry about a pesky Congress and pesky domestic concerns.

HEMMER: Quickly here, you worked for Bill Clinton.

Does history remember this speech, yes or no?

WALDMAN: This speech? I think it does because I think, in a way, so many of the challenges that President Bush faces came during his presidency. This has certainly had a lot more to say than his first inaugural speech.

HEMMER: I'll take that as a yes.

David Frum, you worked for President Bush.

Does history remember this speech?

FRUM: If it's backed by actions, yes. Speeches are powerful only when they are joined to actions and to events, not just to beautiful phrases.

HEMMER: Thank you, David.

Thank you, Michael.

WALDMAN: Thank you.

WALDMAN: Thank you.

HEMMER: Here's Soledad again.

O'BRIEN: Well, what you buy, where you shop and the car you drive, the government knows all of it and more. Big Brother is watching you and he's getting some help from a surprising source. Plus, guns and knives and grenades -- all of them confiscated at just one major airport. Is it really safe to fly? That story is ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: You are the subject of an investigation. Everyday bits of information about where you go, who you know, what you buy, you read, do, are being collected.

In his new book called "No Place To Hide," Robert O'Harrow describes how marketing tools have morphed into anti-terrorist measures.

Robert O'Harrow of the "Washington Post" joins us this morning.

Nice to see you.

ROBERT O'HARROW, JR., AUTHOR, "NO PLACE TO HIDE": Good morning.

O'BRIEN: Thanks for being with us.

O'HARROW: Thanks.

O'BRIEN: I think it's no surprise to folks that we're being monitored by our bank records or tracked by our credit card records or tracked when we buy something on the Internet.

But what have you discovered that would really shock, really surprise people?

O'HARROW: Well, with work, with a group called the Center for Investigative Reporting, I found that a whole slew of private companies have collected billions and billions of records. So we all know that the information is out there. But most of us don't -- have no idea of the scale of it and the ability to derive intelligence out of that information.

O'BRIEN: Why are the private companies collecting this information?

O'HARROW: Well, they collect it because they provide lots of conveniences that we take for granted and love -- discounts, the fast pass on the toll roads. It's to grease the wheels of modern society. But then more and more they're using it for, in effect, private intelligence in the war on terror.

O'BRIEN: So give me an example of how when I buy my fast pass -- because I want to be able to speed through the tolls when I'm heading upstate -- how that could be essentially somehow providing a clue about terrorist activity?

O'HARROW: Well, if you think about the fast pass as part of an array of several hundred or even thousands of bits of details that you leave behind, it's easier to understand why it matters. You go through that fast past, in the past, you would leave some coins or some money, because it was a toll booth. Now it's become not only a toll booth, but also a checkpoint where they know that your car was there at a certain time and they know when it left the highway at a certain time. They can track, and do track, that in some cases.

Divorce lawsuits, police use that now. And the information just sits there on computers waiting for someone to ask about it.

O'BRIEN: To what degree do companies that track all this information then work hand in hand with the government? And what kind of information does the government want?

O'HARROW: Well, after 9/11, the government reached out to these private companies and they delivered lots and lots of information for the same reason the rest of us were anxious to help, to make our country safer. But they've forged contracts now and are profiting from the war on terror. And they provide profiles and scoring models about the threat that you might pose.

And the thing is, we don't know how this works and there's no oversight in how they use it. So if we ever get a tyrant in the government and they decide to target certain people because of religious beliefs, gender, sex, race, they're going to have a remarkably powerful tool to do it.

O'BRIEN: At the end of the day, isn't this back to the argument, your civil liberties versus national security?

O'HARROW: It is and that argument distills it to a very fine point. The thing that most people don't understand and which I found in my project is the question looms larger than we can even imagine. And that's why I think we need to come to terms with it and maybe come up with some sort of framework to make sure that we have somebody who's watching the watchers.

O'BRIEN: Oh, it could be a huge problem down the road if it's not checked.

Robert Harrow, nice to see you.

Thanks for being here.

O'HARROW: Oh, thanks for having me.

O'BRIEN: Our pleasure -- Bill.

HEMMER: If Condoleezza Rice is going to be the next secretary of state, she's going to have to wait a few more days. What's the real motivation behind this delay? "Gimme A Minute" has a crack at that, in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everybody.

Here's Jack again, The Question of the Day.

CAFFERTY: Thank you, Bill.

Call it the freedom speech. During his inaugural address, President Bush said the United States will seek the growth of freedom in every nation in the world, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny.

Recent democratic successes include Ukraine; elections in Afghanistan; of course, Iraq going to the polls a week from Sunday. But what about places like Saudi Arabia and China, Russia, Egypt, Pakistan, places where opposition to tyranny is at odds with U.S. security or economic policy?

The question we're asking -- is President Bush's goal of expanding freedom realistic?

Guy in Atlanta writes: "After the speech yesterday, I'm still trying to figure out if Bush wants to be a messiah or a cowboy. Either way, I think he just declared war on half the world."

Patricia in Davis, Illinois: "I think it's pie in the sky attitude. We should be getting things resolved here in the United States. We need to get the trade deficit fixed, not give democracy to a country that's never had it before and doesn't know how to handle it."

Tom in Alma, West Virginia: "President Bush's vision for the world is a noble one, but one that cannot be achieved without the support of the rest of the world. Instead of thumbing our nose at the U.N. and NATO, we must work with and enlist the help of other freedom loving countries."

And John in Birmingham, Alabama writes: "From the battlefields of Gettysburg through the rise and fall of the Iron Curtain, the United States has a long tradition of supporting freedom globally. It is realistic to achieve this goal today? Sure. We've done it before."

Coming up this weekend on "In The Money," there are new poll numbers out that indicate that the support for the war in Iraq has fallen below the level of support in this country during the Tet offensive during the Vietnam War. Just 39 percent now support the war in Iraq. This weekend on "In The Money," we'll talk about why, despite the numbers, Americans aren't hollering to get our troops out of Iraq. "In The Money" airs Saturday at 1:00 and Sunday at 3:00.

HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.

Did you mention, what, freedom was mentioned 27 times?

O'BRIEN: Um-hmm.

CAFFERTY: A lot, yes.

O'BRIEN: Liberty.

HEMMER: Liberty 15 times. O'BRIEN: Fifteen times.

HEMMER: Iraq not once. But you could see that thread being woven through the entire speech regarding Iraq.

CAFFERTY: Sure.

HEMMER: Jack, thank you.

If you're already sick of winter, forget about it. You're in for some trouble this weekend. We'll tell you about a monster storm and where it is headed next.

Back in a moment, after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired January 21, 2005 - 08:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Searching frame by frame for clues into an abduction caught on videotape. A Wal-Mart cashier apparently kidnapped right in the store's parking lot.
Pistols, knives, even grenades -- thousands of weapons being confiscated in airports. Why are they there are at all?

And a sudden winter storm hitting parts of the South. But Northern states better get ready, too, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody, on a Friday.

Fourteen degrees outside. It's going to get colder than that over the weekend, too, and soon.

Good morning.

Those stories in a moment.

Still a lot of talk today, too, about the inauguration from yesterday and the speech in D.C. The president and the first lady attending the traditional balls last night in Washington. And this morning we'll talk about the address yesterday with speechwriters from both the Bush administration and the Clinton administration. Was the president trying to inspire or was he trying to send a warning? We'll get to that in a moment this hour.

O'BRIEN: Also, confirmation as secretary of state will have to wait for Condoleezza Rice, even though everybody in Washington, D.C. agrees it's going to happen. In just a few minutes, we're going to take a look at what Democrats think they have to gain by holding up a vote on her nomination.

HEMMER: Back to Jack Cafferty -- good morning.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That was pretty lame, that stunt they pulled.

HEMMER: You think so?

CAFFERTY: Yes. Yes, I do.

HEMMER: Tuesday or Wednesday I think they're thinking now.

CAFFERTY: I mean they could, there's, you know, everybody knows that she's going to be confirmed...

O'BRIEN: It's a done deal.

CAFFERTY: It could have been done and, you know, but they're just, they're being petty, I think, might be the word. Petty.

Coming up in the "Cafferty File," we'll tell you about a new book of Osama bin Laden translations perfect for the bottom of your bird cage, a mother who gives new meaning to the phrase multiple births, Soledad...

O'BRIEN: Not me. I've got enough.

CAFFERTY: And mixed signals from the first family during the inauguration.

HEMMER: Good deal.

Thank you, Jack.

Heidi Collins with us also, now, the headlines and the news -- Heidi, good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you.

And good morning once again, everybody.

Now in the news this morning, at least 14 people have been killed in an early morning explosion near a mosque in southern Baghdad. U.S. forces have secured the area now around the blast. Iraqi police are trying to determine if the attack was a suicide bombing. Insurgents have stepped up violence in the country ahead of the January 30th election.

Palestinian security forces have started deploying along the border with Israel. It's part of a two phase plan to stop attacks on Israeli communities. New Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, is also negotiating with militant groups, hoping to win their commitment to a cease-fire. Earlier in the week, Israel approved plans for a major offensive in Gaza if Abbas fails to control the violence.

President Bush is planning to attend a national prayer service at the Washington Cathedral this morning. Yesterday, the president danced at 10 different inaugural parties. On his arm, the first lady, wearing Oscar de la Renta. Their total time on the dance floor, just in case you wanted to know, less than nine minutes. The president was apparently back at the White House by just after 10:00 p.m. Eastern, his normal bedtime there.

And the third annual running of -- I'm sorry, the annual running of the brides. We don't know how long they've been doing this. Underway now in Atlanta, Georgia. Check it out. You're looking at pictures from the scene there at Filene's Basement in Buckhead, coming in to us from WAGA as they show it to their viewers. The doors are now open, in case you're in the area. Dozens of women are right now fighting for their dream dresses, expecting to walk away with a gown and hopefully not too many bruises. The soon to be brides getting those dresses at a heavy, heavy, deep discount.

HEMMER: That's one way to shop, huh?

O'BRIEN: That's a bunch of amped up brides.

COLLINS: Combat shopping, yes.

O'BRIEN: I hope they get a break.

We just heard a little remark there from Shane. Another reason not to get married is what he said.

COLLINS: Good morning, Shane.

O'BRIEN: Wroth repeating, I thought.

Thanks, Shane.

HEMMER: From the single guy.

O'BRIEN: Well, the forecasters are telling us it's going to get very, very nasty in the Northeast. A big winter storm is headed our way. Overnight, parts of North Carolina got pounded with ice and snow and rain.

It's time to check back in on the weather.

Chad Myers is at the CNN Center with the latest forecast for us -- hey, Chad, good morning again.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, after seeing that car, that little Cherokee, man, you need to slow down in that stuff.

Good morning, Soledad.

It is going to be an icy, snowy mess. It depends on where you live or where you're going. The cold air is already in place, the highs today not above the 20s in most spots across the Northeast.

Here comes the storm, an anemic looking thing right now, but it's going to dive down through Chicago. The snow starts in Chicago tonight at about 8:00. There will be eight inches of snow on the ground, anywhere from Oconomowoc right on back up to Milwaukee, and then southeast from there.

It's going to pick up some lake enhancement here, lake effect snow. And that's going to come down in the Alleghenies, from Pittsburgh down through West Virginia and even into the coal fields of Kentucky. Then the storm is going to get very close to the Atlantic Ocean. And you have to think, if it can pick up moisture from Lake Erie, which is fairly small, or Lake Michigan or Lake Huron, think about how much moisture it can pick up from the Atlantic Ocean.

As it does this, as it bombs out, there's going to be a large area of one foot snow plus. And it could be very close to Philadelphia. And that ends by Sunday afternoon. Before the game starts, most of the snow is over, Bill. But they're going to be shoveling out the stadium, a lot like they had to shovel out the stadium out in Foxboro with the storm in the Patriots forecast from last year.

Forty-three in Boise; 70 in Vegas; 70 in San Diego.

So the West is perfect.

But the East is really going to start going downhill. Bill, you could easily get 12 inches in the city. We're just going to have to see where it goes.

HEMMER: When does it start going downhill, Chad?

MYERS: For you, you know, probably 10:00 or 11:00 in the morning tomorrow morning.

HEMMER: Got it.

We've been warned.

MYERS: All right.

HEMMER: Thank you, Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

HEMMER: Talk to you later.

MYERS: All right.

HEMMER: From Texas today, police are investigating the apparent abduction of a young Wal-Mart employee. A surveillance videotape captured the incident in the store's parking lot.

Officer Don Martin of the Tyler Police Department tells us where that investigation now stands 36 hours after the abduction of the 19- year-old woman.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

OFFICER DON MARTIN, TYLER POLICE DEPARTMENT: We are still following up on leads in this investigation. At this point in time, we're still waiting for leads to come in overnight from other newscasts.

HEMMER: We want to run the surveillance videotape. And walk us through it. What do you believe happened right around midnight on Wednesday evening, Officer?

MARTIN: We believe that there was a black male suspect that was loitering around the front of Wal-Mart and we believe that he was targeting a female subject that had a vehicle. It looked like he was approaching several of them and then got scared away and then when the opportunity came up with Megan, he approached her without her being aware of it and got her in her vehicle and then took off in it, as well.

HEMMER: How do you know he was targeting others that evening, sir?

MARTIN: He was, again, observed around the front of the doorway and he would walk out into the parking lot and then turn around and come back. We started reviewing the tapes a little bit closer and we observed a couple females that were walking out to their cars just prior to him walking out, to where we thought possibly he may be going out and targeting them, as well.

HEMMER: Is there any evidence that he knew Megan?

MARTIN: Not at this time, no, there isn't.

HEMMER: How much can this videotape help you in your investigation now, sir?

MARTIN: Quite a bit. We've got a good clothing description on him. We're going to try and enhance the facial parts of the videotape and we had an artist flown in from Houston last night to do a sketch on him. So we're hoping today that through these leads that we might be able to come up with an identification.

HEMMER: And eyewitnesses either working at the store or perhaps shopping at the time, how much information have they been able to give you?

MARTIN: They did talk to the investigators last night, late last night, and told them what they knew. There was a private security that did work for Wal-Mart that actually contacted the suspect. And we're following up on the leads that he gave officers.

HEMMER: Also, if you're looking for more help from the public, what does the public need to know?

MARTIN: The public needs to know that we're really looking for her vehicle at this point in time. It's a 2002 red Ford F150 sport truck. It has a long scratch from the front to the back on the passenger side of the truck and the sport logos have been removed. There are dice hanging from rearview mirror as long as a Hawaiian lei. We are canvassing everywhere, looking for this truck. Hopefully that would lead us to further evidence to determine a possible suspect in this incident.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

HEMMER: Again, Officer Don Martin down in Tyler, Texas.

We're getting now two new pictures of the 19-year-old woman, Megan Holden. These are the new photos just into us here at CNN.

Also, we'll show you the sketch of the suspect. A $10,000 reward has been posted for any information about the location of this man that you see on your screen here -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, Condoleezza Rice will not be secretary of state until at least next Wednesday.

As Andrea Koppel reports, Senate Democrats want more debate before voting on her confirmation.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Condoleezza Rice, the inauguration was supposed to mark the start of her new role as secretary of state. Instead, Senate Democrats forced a delay in her confirmation until next week.

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MINORITY LEADER: We have senators who have been engaged in matters relating to what's going on around the world who, for the confirmation of the secretary of state, wish to be able to speak.

KOPPEL: After two days of often contentious hearings with Rice, most of it over Iraq...

SEN. BARBARA BOXER (D-CF), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: And I also will not shrink from questioning a war that was not built on the truth.

KOPPEL: ... Democrats, led by Barbara Boxer of California, blocked a quick vote in the Senate. The White House suggested it was sour grapes.

ANDREW CARD, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Dr. Rice will be a great secretary of state and she should move into that position quickly and I wish the Senate would confirm her. But, you know, petty politics is playing a role in this, and that's unfortunate.

KOPPEL: For Colin Powell, who'd already had an emotional farewell Wednesday before hundreds at the State Department...

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: And even though I stepped down as your secretary, I will never leave you.

KOPPEL: ... Rice's delayed confirmation means one last diplomatic mission for Powell. This weekend, he'll lead the U.S. delegation to Ukraine to witness the inauguration of opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko, swept into power after weeks of massive street demonstrations forced a new election. Truly a bittersweet moment for Powell, who although he led U.S. efforts to support democratic elections in Ukraine, wasn't supposed to be going.

(on camera): As for Rice, who is still expected to be confirmed by a wide margin, Democrats say she had only one request -- to be sworn in by the time President Bush delivers his State of the Union address next month.

Andrea Koppel, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

O'BRIEN: Some Republican leaders, like Jon Kyl of Arizona, openly criticized the Democrats divisive start to the president's new term -- Bill.

HEMMER: Well, President Bush launching that second term with a vow to bring freedom to the darkest corners of the planet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So it is the policy of the United States to seek and support the growth of democratic movements and institutions in every nation and culture with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Now, the day after, former Bush speechwriter David Frum back with us, down in D.C.

David, good morning, there.

DAVID FRUM, FORMER BUSH SPEECHWRITER: Good morning, Bill.

HEMMER: Also, here in New York, Michael Waldman, a speechwriter in the Clinton administration.

Michael, nice to see you, as well.

MICHAEL WALDMAN, FORMER CLINTON SPEECHWRITER: Good morning.

HEMMER: David, let's start with you.

I've heard ambitious. I've heard tough. I've also heard aggressive and over the top.

Your reaction to what you heard yesterday?

FRUM: Well, Michael was saying on a lot of television shows before the inaugural that it's very difficult to do inaugural speeches well. And I am afraid we may have proven Michael's point. There was a great 14 minute speech inside this 21 minute speech. And those were the tough parts, the parts that were directed to very specific problems that exist in the world -- America's so-called friends, like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and Egypt that are authoritarian regimes in which radicalism is incubated. The president said to them, we want you to reform. We'll help, we're not going to punish you, but we want to see change.

HEMMER: But what I'm hearing you say, David...

FRUM: But then there's a lot of...

HEMMER: ... the speech was too long, right? Had it been shorter, would it have been most effective?

FRUM: It would have been more pointed, that those very direct and specific messages got a little lost inside some of the more flowery rhetoric.

HEMMER: All right, Michael, what adjectives were you reaching for yesterday, right around 12:00 Eastern?

WALDMAN: Well, well written, not so well delivered. And I agree with David that it had some good things to say and I thought it could say them three or four times and that would make them even better.

But it was really striking to me, the language about freedom, the piece we just heard is a direct echo of Harry Truman's Truman Doctrine, where he said we're going to help people who are fighting communist efforts to take over their countries.

This was far more sweeping. And if -- I was thinking Yoko Ono was going to come out on stage and sing "Imagine" with the president. It was almost utopian. And the question is, look, I think that this sense that our country was founded on the idea of freedom and equal opportunity and it's our mission in the world to spread that, I strongly believe that and I think that is what the best inaugural addresses say.

But to set that out as a policy that we're basically going to be advancing that everywhere in the world, how? And where? And with -- what about Saudi Arabia? What about China?

HEMMER: You cite Harry Truman. An hour ago, Senator George Mitchell was citing JFK. He thought it was more a reflection of what we heard in January of 1961.

Pause for a moment.

David, one of your big things is during an inaugural address is trying to engage people and move them to act.

Listen to another part from yesterday and we'll talk about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: The leaders of governments with long habits of control need to know, to serve your people, you must learn to trust them. Start on this journey of progress and justice and America will walk at your side.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Now, both of you gentlemen have mentioned Saudi Arabia.

How do the leaders in that country, and Syria and Iran, across the entire Arab world, interpret this speech?

FRUM: Well, I think, Bill, you just quoted the single most important sentence in the whole speech, and that is the one addressed, as the president just spoke, to the so-called friendly autocracies. And, again, no threats, but you are in danger if you don't take these steps. You are endangering yourselves, you're endangering the United States and the democracies, because you are breeding radicalism inside your borders.

That's where these Islamic terrorists tend to come from -- Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia.

HEMMER: I think you and Michael have the same mind. You said the same thing right before we started here.

WALDMAN: Yes, and what's interesting, of course, though, is we don't have autocracies only in the Middle East. We have autocracies in many countries all around the world. And if the United States is to set off on a mission to spur change in every country in the world, that's a pretty big task to bite.

One of the other things that was very interesting to me was the lack of domestic focus. I watched it and I said they just threw Social Security reform overboard. If he's getting up before the country in this great moment and he's really planning to go and propose, in effect, a phase out of the most popular and successful government program of all time, and he basically doesn't mention it, that says to me that they've already decided it's a political loser and that they're going to try and find a way to back off.

It suggested the kind of typical second term focus on foreign policy, where you don't have to worry about a pesky Congress and pesky domestic concerns.

HEMMER: Quickly here, you worked for Bill Clinton.

Does history remember this speech, yes or no?

WALDMAN: This speech? I think it does because I think, in a way, so many of the challenges that President Bush faces came during his presidency. This has certainly had a lot more to say than his first inaugural speech.

HEMMER: I'll take that as a yes.

David Frum, you worked for President Bush.

Does history remember this speech?

FRUM: If it's backed by actions, yes. Speeches are powerful only when they are joined to actions and to events, not just to beautiful phrases.

HEMMER: Thank you, David.

Thank you, Michael.

WALDMAN: Thank you.

WALDMAN: Thank you.

HEMMER: Here's Soledad again.

O'BRIEN: Well, what you buy, where you shop and the car you drive, the government knows all of it and more. Big Brother is watching you and he's getting some help from a surprising source. Plus, guns and knives and grenades -- all of them confiscated at just one major airport. Is it really safe to fly? That story is ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: You are the subject of an investigation. Everyday bits of information about where you go, who you know, what you buy, you read, do, are being collected.

In his new book called "No Place To Hide," Robert O'Harrow describes how marketing tools have morphed into anti-terrorist measures.

Robert O'Harrow of the "Washington Post" joins us this morning.

Nice to see you.

ROBERT O'HARROW, JR., AUTHOR, "NO PLACE TO HIDE": Good morning.

O'BRIEN: Thanks for being with us.

O'HARROW: Thanks.

O'BRIEN: I think it's no surprise to folks that we're being monitored by our bank records or tracked by our credit card records or tracked when we buy something on the Internet.

But what have you discovered that would really shock, really surprise people?

O'HARROW: Well, with work, with a group called the Center for Investigative Reporting, I found that a whole slew of private companies have collected billions and billions of records. So we all know that the information is out there. But most of us don't -- have no idea of the scale of it and the ability to derive intelligence out of that information.

O'BRIEN: Why are the private companies collecting this information?

O'HARROW: Well, they collect it because they provide lots of conveniences that we take for granted and love -- discounts, the fast pass on the toll roads. It's to grease the wheels of modern society. But then more and more they're using it for, in effect, private intelligence in the war on terror.

O'BRIEN: So give me an example of how when I buy my fast pass -- because I want to be able to speed through the tolls when I'm heading upstate -- how that could be essentially somehow providing a clue about terrorist activity?

O'HARROW: Well, if you think about the fast pass as part of an array of several hundred or even thousands of bits of details that you leave behind, it's easier to understand why it matters. You go through that fast past, in the past, you would leave some coins or some money, because it was a toll booth. Now it's become not only a toll booth, but also a checkpoint where they know that your car was there at a certain time and they know when it left the highway at a certain time. They can track, and do track, that in some cases.

Divorce lawsuits, police use that now. And the information just sits there on computers waiting for someone to ask about it.

O'BRIEN: To what degree do companies that track all this information then work hand in hand with the government? And what kind of information does the government want?

O'HARROW: Well, after 9/11, the government reached out to these private companies and they delivered lots and lots of information for the same reason the rest of us were anxious to help, to make our country safer. But they've forged contracts now and are profiting from the war on terror. And they provide profiles and scoring models about the threat that you might pose.

And the thing is, we don't know how this works and there's no oversight in how they use it. So if we ever get a tyrant in the government and they decide to target certain people because of religious beliefs, gender, sex, race, they're going to have a remarkably powerful tool to do it.

O'BRIEN: At the end of the day, isn't this back to the argument, your civil liberties versus national security?

O'HARROW: It is and that argument distills it to a very fine point. The thing that most people don't understand and which I found in my project is the question looms larger than we can even imagine. And that's why I think we need to come to terms with it and maybe come up with some sort of framework to make sure that we have somebody who's watching the watchers.

O'BRIEN: Oh, it could be a huge problem down the road if it's not checked.

Robert Harrow, nice to see you.

Thanks for being here.

O'HARROW: Oh, thanks for having me.

O'BRIEN: Our pleasure -- Bill.

HEMMER: If Condoleezza Rice is going to be the next secretary of state, she's going to have to wait a few more days. What's the real motivation behind this delay? "Gimme A Minute" has a crack at that, in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everybody.

Here's Jack again, The Question of the Day.

CAFFERTY: Thank you, Bill.

Call it the freedom speech. During his inaugural address, President Bush said the United States will seek the growth of freedom in every nation in the world, with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny.

Recent democratic successes include Ukraine; elections in Afghanistan; of course, Iraq going to the polls a week from Sunday. But what about places like Saudi Arabia and China, Russia, Egypt, Pakistan, places where opposition to tyranny is at odds with U.S. security or economic policy?

The question we're asking -- is President Bush's goal of expanding freedom realistic?

Guy in Atlanta writes: "After the speech yesterday, I'm still trying to figure out if Bush wants to be a messiah or a cowboy. Either way, I think he just declared war on half the world."

Patricia in Davis, Illinois: "I think it's pie in the sky attitude. We should be getting things resolved here in the United States. We need to get the trade deficit fixed, not give democracy to a country that's never had it before and doesn't know how to handle it."

Tom in Alma, West Virginia: "President Bush's vision for the world is a noble one, but one that cannot be achieved without the support of the rest of the world. Instead of thumbing our nose at the U.N. and NATO, we must work with and enlist the help of other freedom loving countries."

And John in Birmingham, Alabama writes: "From the battlefields of Gettysburg through the rise and fall of the Iron Curtain, the United States has a long tradition of supporting freedom globally. It is realistic to achieve this goal today? Sure. We've done it before."

Coming up this weekend on "In The Money," there are new poll numbers out that indicate that the support for the war in Iraq has fallen below the level of support in this country during the Tet offensive during the Vietnam War. Just 39 percent now support the war in Iraq. This weekend on "In The Money," we'll talk about why, despite the numbers, Americans aren't hollering to get our troops out of Iraq. "In The Money" airs Saturday at 1:00 and Sunday at 3:00.

HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.

Did you mention, what, freedom was mentioned 27 times?

O'BRIEN: Um-hmm.

CAFFERTY: A lot, yes.

O'BRIEN: Liberty.

HEMMER: Liberty 15 times. O'BRIEN: Fifteen times.

HEMMER: Iraq not once. But you could see that thread being woven through the entire speech regarding Iraq.

CAFFERTY: Sure.

HEMMER: Jack, thank you.

If you're already sick of winter, forget about it. You're in for some trouble this weekend. We'll tell you about a monster storm and where it is headed next.

Back in a moment, after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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