Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Wesley Clark Discusses North Korea Nuclear Standoff; Bomb Blast Kills Former Lebanese Prime Minister; Interview with Alan Keyes' Daughter

Aired February 14, 2005 - 17:00   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.


WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now. Nuclear standoff with North Korea. The stakes are enormous. Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Wesley Clark helped negotiate a nuclear agreement with North Korea 10 years ago and now has ideas on how to resolve this crisis. He'll join me live.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Beirut bombing. He was a billionaire and longtime leader of Lebanon. Who wanted him dead?

Winners and losers. The votes are counted. But can Iraqis count on a brighter future?

Her conservative father has railed against homosexuality. She's a lesbian and a liberal. I'll have an exclusive interview with Maya Keyes.

Matchmaking and moneymaking.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, $20,000 as an initiation fee is a very small price to pay to be happy the rest of your life.

BLITZER: Getting rich on romance.

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Monday, February 14th, 2005.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: As a billionaire businessman turned political leader, he oversaw Beirut's rise from the ruins of civil war. Now, a massive bomb has again left the city strewn with rubble. And it's left at least 10 people dead, among them, the former Lebanese prime minister, Rafik Hariri. We begin our coverage in Beirut with CNN senior international correspondent Brent Sadler.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRENT SADLER, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT: The heart of Beirut, brutally thrown back to the bloodshed of civil war years here, shattering a decade and a half of hard-won success to rebuild the international reputation of this once war-torn Middle East capital.

The blast was so powerful, it sent shockwaves in a radius that were felt for miles around, striking fear and panic in the immediate aftermath of the explosion. At the center of this carnage, the blazing wrecks of vehicles in the motorcade of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The attack so strong, it tore through Hariri's armor-plated convoy, killing the politician instantly, claiming the lives of other victims, both within the convoy and passers-by.

Minutes after the explosion, some of Hariri's most trusted aides stumbled from the wreckage as emergency services fought their way through the debris to extinguish flames that sent up a huge column of black smoke and to evacuate the dead and injured. As the casualty toll rose, allies of Hariri, who was internationally credited with spearheading efforts to reconstruct Lebanon after its 15-year civil war, called his killing a merciless act, a political assassination.

HANI NAMMOUD, HARIRI ADVISER: It's doomsday for Lebanon. What we are witnessing today is not just the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, it is the assassination of Lebanon as a democracy.

SADLER: Hariri supporters took to the streets in anguish and despair. Lebanon in the throes of vicious political infighting revolving around Syria's dominant role over this fractious nation. Political opponents of Syria have called it a crucial battle for Lebanese freedom ahead of a general election, drawing encouragement from strong international pressure on Syria to change policy.

Hariri's killing was claimed by an unheard of extremist group citing his close ties to the ruling family of Saudi Arabia, a claim so far unsubstantiated.

MICHAEL YOUNG, LEBANESE POLITICAL ANALYST: The fact of the matter is that whoever killed Rafik Hariri, the fact of the matter is that I think it is the Syrians who will pay the political price whether they killed him or not.

SADLER: Hariri's allies and opposition leaders held a crisis meeting, blaming both Syria and the Lebanese authority for the assassination, warning that Lebanon could be on the verge of an abyss.

(on camera): The Syrian authorities have strongly denounced the attack, denied involvement and warned that Hariri's killing was aimed at destroying Lebanese unity and an attempt to destabilize the nation at the expense of both Syria and its strategic ally, Lebanon.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And we'll go live to Beirut shortly. Later this hour, much more coming up from the scene. The Beirut bombing brought immediate condemnation from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president was shocked and angered to learn of the terrorist attack in Beirut today that murdered former Prime Minister Hariri and killed and injured several others. Mr. Hariri was a fervent supporter of Lebanese independence and worked tirelessly to rebuild a free, independent and prosperous Lebanon following its brutal civil war and despite its continued foreign occupation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Foreign occupation a clear reference to Syria. Syria still has thousands of military forces in Lebanon. Press Secretary McClellan also said it's too soon to know who's responsible for the attack, but he strongly criticized Syria's ongoing military presence in Lebanon.

There were three explosions in the Philippines today, killing at least 10 people. The most serious blast was caused by a bomb aboard a Manila bus. A caller claimed the explosions were the work of Abu Sayyaf, a militant Muslim group with ties to al Qaeda. The caller sarcastically called the explosions, and I'm quoting now: "a Valentine's Day gift for Philippine President Gloria Arroyo."

BLITZER: Their past is one of oppression, but Iraq's Shiites are now poised to take a large share of the power in Iraq. A clergy- backed coalition won almost half the popular vote, and the biggest block of seats in the new parliament. As winners and losers look to the future, our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson reports from Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And after the results, Valentine's Day. At a flower store, love and peace, even in Baghdad.

"Instead of these explosions," she says, "we want peace between Iraqis."

Too soon to say if the election results delivered over the weekend are bringing peace any closer. Headlines hint at some signs of unity, proclaiming the winning Shia Muslims are starting the political horse trading.

Biggest losers so far, the Sunnis, who largely stayed away from the polls.

"I have no regrets," this Sunni market trader says, "this is not democracy. In a democracy you choose someone you know, someone who is really working for the Iraqi interests."

Post-election optimism on Baghdad's diverse streets not yet dead. "We don't want this sectarian issue between Sunnis and Shias to last," this Shia says. "We hope it will end soon."

(on camera): Some Sunnis are now realizing their loss. The popular Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party is for the first time publicly blaming Sunni clerics for calling for a boycott in keeping people from the polls. Now they are vowing to engage in the political process.

(voice-over): In the north, Kurds were quick to celebrate. They got the votes they were expecting, that they hope will give them the national voice they wanted. Now, the test -- will Iraq's Arabs accept a prominent role for Iraq's Kurds?

And while the political wheeling and dealing begins in earnest, the violence continues. Three police killed in this car bomb 40 miles, 60 kilometers north of Baghdad. Two more officers shot to death earlier in the day in Baghdad. Love and peace, not yet.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: How close an eye is the United States keeping on Iran? Some government sources confirm that unmanned aerial vehicles are being used to spy on Iran's nuclear sites. But other sources are flatly denying it. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr is standing by.

Barbara, explain to our viewers what U.S. capabilities are? In other words, what could these UAVs, these unmanned aerial vehicles do if they're looking for evidence of nuclear ambition in Iran?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, you're exactly right. Some officials saying it is happening. But here at the Pentagon top military officials still today continuing to insist they know nothing about unmanned aerial vehicle flights over Iran.

But if, if the U.S. government was trying to get a full picture of what is going on inside Iran, they would use many different capabilities to do that. It would start at a very high altitude with U.S. intelligence satellites surveying Iran, trying to see what they can learn by taking pictures and gathering intelligence information.

Then go down to the next layer. U-2 spy planes, the old Francis Gary Powers Soviet Union-era aircraft, high altitude as well. A number of sensor packages that could gather a good deal of information about Iran's defenses, about its military structure, even about its nuclear program.

Then you would get to the next level. That would be the RC-135 class airplane. These are a number of different platforms, fixed wing, as you see. They fly about 40,000 feet. They're capable of gathering information in various models and configurations about Iran's nuclear program but also impinging, if you will, Iran's air defenses, trying to get the Iranian military to turn on their air defenses when that airplane flies over. And that helps the U.S., of course, see what the Iranian military capabilities are.

The lowest altitude might be that unmanned aerial vehicle, the Predator or any other model. They would get a closer-up picture, if you will, of a much narrower area, but very risky because they do fly relatively low level, relatively slow. And there's a long history of those UAVs, of course, either crashing or having mechanical failure. And the U.S. would not want to see some U.S. wreckage over Iran for various reasons -- Wolf.

BLITZER: It could be quite embarrassing if that were to happen. Barbara Starr reporting for us over at the Pentagon. Thank you very much.

Growing concerns over Iran and North Korea's nuclear ambitions. How should the United States handle the situation? Former Democratic presidential candidate General Wesley Clark. He's standing by to join me live. Find out also if he's planning to run again in 2008. I'll ask him.

The battle over Baby 81 ends. A court steps in to reunite a tiny tsunami survivor with his true biological parents.

And conservative politician Alan Keyes once called gay activity a sin, a relationship based on what he called selfish hedonism. Now his own daughter speaks out about being a lesbian. Maya Keyes will join me live in a CNN exclusive interview.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The concern over North Korea, Iran and their nuclear weapons programs. Joining us now from Little Rock to talk about that, former Democratic presidential candidate and former NATO supreme allied commander General Wesley Clark. He helped negotiate the 1994 nuclear pact between the U.S. and North Korea during the then-Clinton administration. General, thanks very much for joining us.

GEN. WESLEY CLARK (D), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thanks. It's good to be with you, Wolf.

BLITZER: What should the U.S. be doing now to ease this crisis with North Korea?

CLARK: Well, I would like to see us talk directly to the North Koreans. I think it is great to involve the other people in the region, but the key to the resolution of this really is the United States.

BLITZER: The Bush administration says start the six-party talks again and within that framework there could be bilateral discussions on the sidelines, but it is important to have China and Japan and Russia, South korea, right in the middle of things since they have so much at stake at well.

CLARK: Well, I don't object to that if it works. But the country that has the most at stake really is the United States. And if you look at where we are strategically in 1994, the Clinton administration did draw a red line. And we were prepared to go to war if North Korea reprocessed its nuclear, spent fuel to extract the plutonium to make nuclear weapons. The Bush administration has never drawn a red line. The North Koreans know it. And they view the American response as a weak response. That's why they keep ratcheting it up.

BLITZER: I interviewed the foreign minister of South Korea yesterday on "LATE EDITION." Arguably South Korea has a lot more at stake than the United States does because that country could be obliterated if there were a war with the North even by conventional weapons as you well know. You've been to that part of the world. He said the Bush administration's position is basically right, you go with the six-party talks. You can have the bilateral talks within that framework.

CLARK: Well, I'd be very disappointed if the members of the current governments would disagree with the Bush administration position on this. For one thing, the six-party talks are ongoing. For another, the South Koreans are desperately holding on to the administration's coattails for every bit of advantage that they can get as the U.S. threatens to and prepares to withdraw troops from South Korea. But the truth of the matter is that our position in Korea is an integral part of our position in western Asia. Is it a position of geopolitical strength and it's a position that we're in the process of giving up unilaterally to China and to other powers in the region.

BLITZER: Let's talk briefly about Iran. The nuclear possibility of some sort of standoff with Iran over nuclear weapons, if in fact they ever get that far. Do you think this is a crisis yet, what's happening in Iran?

CLARK: No, I don't think it's a crisis, Wolf. But all of us who knew the situation in the Middle East would have told you that the Iranian threat was a much more real threat than the Iraqi threat was, but we invaded Iraq. Iran took the message from it and realized if it's going to achieve safety, it needs to do as North Korea has done which is go ahead and accelerate its nuclear development program. So if the Bush administration or our allies in the region feel that this is moving to a crisis, it will become a crisis quickly.

BLITZER: What would you do right now as far as Iran is concerned?

CLARK: What I would have done years ago is work with our European allies directly in the discussions with Iran.

BLITZER: But isn't that what they're doing? The Europeans are taking the initiative, they're leading the diplomacy with the Iranians.

CLARK: They are. But the Europeans would be the first to tell you that without U.S. participation, neither the carrots nor the sticks make sense.

BLITZER: So you would have the six-party talks in Iran, but you don't want the six-party talks in North Korea. Am I sensing a little contradiction there?

CLARK: Not really. I think what you're seeing from me is the requirement for American diplomatic leadership. The United States needs to be engaged and leading diplomatically. Is it not China's responsibility to lead in Asia, it is ours. It is not the European's responsibility in Iran. It is ours. We're the major power. We're the power that can confer benefits, we're the power that can really drive sanctions or other efforts against...

BLITZER: But General, doesn't China have the most leverage over North Korea?

CLARK: Well, actually, the issue really is between North Korea and many different nations. China does have leverage over North Korea, but so do many other countries. In fact the North Koreans are looking -- what they're looking for is some, some -- basically assurances of regime stability. And that we're not going to overturn their regime. China's much less likely to do that than the United States is. So they're focused on us. I think it is great if we can involve China in there, but having the Chinese is no excuse for a lack of American leadership in these talks.

BLITZER: Let's talk briefly about politics a little bit, a subject you got to know quite well last year. Do you still want to be president of the United States one day?

CLARK: Well, you know, Wolf, I'm in business right now. And I'm really honored to be on your show and to have opportunities to speak out around the country on the United States, and that's about as far as it goes right now.

BLITZER: I don't hear you saying you don't want to be president.

CLARK: Well, I think that every young person dreams somehow they'll have a chance to help their country. I loved being in uniform, I loved public service. I still hope that I'll have an opportunity. I'm not sure what form that would take.

BLITZER: So you're still leaving that door open a little bit?

CLARK: Well, you know, I think that our party -- and I believe in a strong two-party system. I think the Democrats need to be a full service party. I think we need to be able to address foreign policy issues, national security issues and give the American people the same sense of confidence that the other part does.

BLITZER: So that sounds like a yes to me.

CLARK: Well, what I'm saying is I'm in business and I'm trying to do my part to help the country as well. And none of us know what the future holds, Wolf.

BLITZER: General Clark, as usual, thanks very much.

CLARK: Thank you.

BLITZER: Appreciate it.

The fate of Baby 81 revealed. Several sets of parents tried to claim the infant tsunami survivor. Now DNA results are finally announced.

Speaking out. Accusing her parents of putting her out because of her sexual preference. Maya Keyes, the daughter of conservative commentator Alan Keyes joins me live in a CNN exclusive.

And later...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is not just about here's a phone number, get married. I facilitate the date, I'm a relationship coach.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The business of matchmaking. Modern-day Cupids bringing in big cash. Our Mary Snow shows us how the times are changing in the dating world.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: He's cute as a button and a symbol of both tragedy and hope of the south Asia tsunami disaster. We told you the bittersweet story of how this tiny survivor got the nickname Baby 81 and the desperate fight by several couples who claimed him. That struggle is now over. CNN's (UNINTELLIGIBLE) reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Baby 81 will now formally get his parents and his name back. Sri Lankan court on Monday announced that the 3- month-old tsunami survivor's DNA matched that of Jenetha and Morgapila Jayraja (ph), the couple that fought in court for him. The boy named Abilash (ph) by his parents was found just after the tsunami hit, alone on a pile of debris. He was taken to the local hospital, the 81st tsunami victim to be admitted there.

When they heard of the discovery the Jayrajas say they rushed to the hospital to claim him. But so did at least nine other sets of parents, all saying he was their lost son. The Jayrajas had lost all the baby's documents to the tsunami and hospital authorities decided to keep and care for the boy until they had directions from the district court.

The case went on for weeks and soon became a symbol of the trauma of so many other parents in the tsunami-torn nation who had also lost their children to the waves. Though the Jayrajas were the only couple to officially register a claim for the little boy, the court ordered a DNA test, prolonging their wait and agony. The Jayrajas say their patience was running thin, and were arrested briefly when they tried to force their way into the hospital to take the baby and threatened to commit suicide.

With Monday's pronouncement, they say their anxiety is at an end. The judge has asked now internationally famous Baby 81 to be brought to court on Wednesday where he will be handed over to his overjoyed parents. And the Jayrajas including unwitting Baby Abilash can finally begin to put the tsunami and all that followed behind them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Lebanon's former prime minister murdered. We'll go live to Beirut, scene of the massive explosion for more on our top story.

Also, a CNN exclusive. The first interview with the lesbian daughter of a leading conservative. Maya Keyes will share her story with us.

Plus a who's who of celebrities. Potential witnesses in the Michael Jackson trial. We'll show you which stars may be called to testify.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: From our studios in Washington, once again, Wolf Blitzer.

BLITZER: Welcome back.

Explosion in Lebanon. A terror group claims responsibility for the assassination of the former prime minister. We're live from Beirut in just a moment.

First, though, a quick check of some other stories now in the news.

We're getting a glimpse into what the witness list may look like in the Michael Jackson child molestation trial. Jackson's lawyers say they plan to call a number of celebrities, including actress Elizabeth Taylor, singer Stevie Wonder and basketball player Kobe Bryant. Among the possible prosecution witnesses, a boy who accused of Jackson molesting him 12 years ago. Jury selection in the trial resumed today after a one-week break.

In a deal valued at almost $7 billion, Verizon Communications has agreed to buy MCI. Verizon is the biggest phone company in the United States. The deal comes two weeks after a bell subsidiary, SBC Communications, agreed to pay $16 billion for AT&T.

In Iran, a faulty electric heater is blamed for a deadly fire at a crowded mosque in Tehran. At least 59 deaths are reported. Dozens of other people were injured. The fire broke out during services for a major Shiite Muslim festival.

Back now to our top story. A massive explosion has devastated Beirut's seafront boulevard, killing 10 people, including Lebanon's billionaire former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Let's go live to Beirut and our senior international correspondent Brent Sadler.

You were obviously in Beirut at the time. You really heard this explosion, didn't you, Brent? BRENT SADLER, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I did, Wolf. It was a tremendously loud explosion that sent shockwaves right across the center of Beirut. In fact, I ducked under my bureau desk, having heard the blast. I've heard too many explosions in my career of war reporting, and I knew that this was a big one.

BLITZER: What did you do after you got through the initial shock? Because you not only live there. You have family there as well.

SADLER: Yes, that's right, Wolf. I rushed out of the bureau, saw that there was a large column of smoke rising from behind the prime ministry, where Rafik Hariri spent 10 out of the past 14 years running this country.

I then ran about a mile-plus from the bureau and saw scenes of utter devastation down there. I knew my wife was in that area at the time. I lost contact with within an hour and a half. And I felt the strain, the pure raw emotion of not being able to contact a loved one at the very moment that a blast like this -- I knew she was in that area -- had taken place.

So, I felt what it was like to be here in the middle of the blast and the panic that it sent amongst the Lebanese in that vicinity. This has a seismic affect already on the Lebanese population, the psyche of the Lebanese population. Remember, they went through 15 years of bloody civil war here. Car bombers 10, 20 years ago were really the order of the day. But they'd hoped that they'd been silenced.

BLITZER: So, is there a fear now that this is just the beginning of another civil war? Or are there steps being taken to calm everyone down a little bit?

SADLER: Well, already, we're hearing from the military authorities here that the army has gone under general mobilization. Leave has been canceled. Expect there to be a wide-reaching security clampdown, particularly in so-called areas where there is opposition, much of it Christian opposition to the continuing presence of Syrian troops inside Lebanon, a hot topic here. It's been the center of an escalating political debate here.

And the mood in this country right now, I can tell you, is very bleak indeed. In terms of an eruption, a civil war, I think that's far too much of a stretch of the imagination at this stage. But certainly politicians who are allied with the late Prime Minister Hariri are talking about Lebanon being on the verge of a chasm, of Lebanon having gone beyond the beyond with this attack against Hariri, killing him, and really a great degree of uncertainty and fear, palpable fear in the Lebanese capital right now.

BLITZER: Brent Sadler reporting for us from Beirut.

Brent, please be careful over there -- Brent doing an outstanding job, a courageous journalist, as he always is. This footnote, I knew Rafik Hariri. First and foremost, he was a Lebanese patriot who fully understood the deadly complexities of Lebanese politics going back two decades to that blood civil war. I witnessed some of that brutality when I was in Lebanon in the early 1980s. But, in more recent years, things had dramatically calmed down, I thought, at least until today, for good.

Prime Minister Hariri was here in Washington for talks with President Bush almost four years ago. I interviewed him then. Listen carefully how he danced around the very sensitive issue of Syria's continued military occupation of parts of Lebanon and how he later in the interview expressed hope that Lebanon one day would join the rest of the region in peace.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, 2001)

BLITZER: Do you want the Syrian troops to remain in Lebanon?

RAFIK HARIRI, PRIME MINISTER OF LEBANON: For the time being, yes.

BLITZER: For how long? When would the Syrian troops -- when should they leave?

HARIRI: When we feel that we can -- we can assure the security and stability in our country by our own forces, we'll ask them to leave, and they will leave.

Lebanon will benefit most from the peace, and we encourage the United States to go ahead and conclude an agreement, and help conclude an agreement between the Palestinian, Syrian, the Lebanese and the Israeli, because I don't think that anybody can enjoy stability and security in the region unless all of us, the Israeli, the Palestinian, the Syrian, the Lebanese sign a peace agreement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Rafik Hariri speaking with me almost four years ago. A very sad day for Lebanon, a very sad day for the region.

Now a quick look at some other stories making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Flooding and mudslides have killed at least 24 people in northern Colombia. The floods also forced at least 25,000 people to flee their homes.

Harsh weather. More people have been killed in devastating rain and snow in Pakistan. The death toll stands at more than 380. Military helicopters are dropping food and other relief supplies.

Dresden protests; 5,000 neo-Nazis took to the streets of Dresden on the 60th anniversary of the allied bombing of the German city. Officials say it was one of the biggest far-right demonstrations since World War II. Later, tens of thousands held their own march and denounced the neo-Nazis. Officially an estimated 35,000 people were killed in the two days of bombings in 1945.

On the count of three. More than 700 divers from around the world took the plunge in the Gulf of Thailand, setting a new mark in "The Guinness Book of Records" for the most number of people diving at one time. The old record of 592 divers was set three years ago.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And when we come back, we'll have an exclusive interview with Maya Keyes, the daughter of conservative politician Alan Keyes, on revealing her sexual orientation and the family rift that resulted.

Also this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATE ELLIOTT, JUPITERRESEARCH: This is a half-billion dollar industry and it's an industry that's still growing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Love, incorporated, why the multimillion-dollar matchmaking industry is booming right here in the United States.

Plus the winners, the losers, the Grammys. What you might have missed. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: In one corner, a headstrong daughter, in the other, a just as headstrong father. What sets this apart is that Alan Keyes is an outspoken conservative who has called homosexuality a sin. And his daughter Maya Keyes is now openly gay. We'll speak with her in just a moment.

First, though, let's get some of the background. CNN's Brian Todd standing by with that -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, this is an episode that strikes at the core of the political and social divide across the United States. And it has played out in dramatic fashion within this high-profile family.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): Coming out and speaking out.

MAYA KEYES, DAUGHTER OF ALAN KEYES: Liberal queer, plus conservative Republican just doesn't mesh too well.

TODD: Maya Keyes, 19-year-old daughter of conservative pundit and former GOP senatorial candidate Alan Keyes, claims her parents cut her off for being gay. Alan Keyes would not go on camera with us, but did issue a statement -- quote -- "My daughter is an adult and she is responsible for her own actions. What she chooses to do has nothing to do with my work or political activities."

An aide to Alan Keyes tells CNN Maya worked for an Illinois political group run by Keyes and lived in a Chicago apartment paid for by that group. The aide says Maya and her father mutually agreed she should leave that group and therefore she's no longer eligible to live in the apartment. That was after Maya went to an anti-Bush protest during last month's inauguration.

The aide acknowledges Alan Keyes and his wife have cut her off from tuition for Brown University, where they say Maya has twice deferred enrollment, once to travel, once to work on her father's failed Senate campaign. Last year, during the campaign controversy over Dick Cheney's gay daughter Mary, Alan Keyes told a radio interviewer -- quote -- "If my daughter were a lesbian, I'd look at her and say, that is a relationship that is based on selfish hedonism. I would also tell my daughter that it's a sin and she needs to pray to the lord God to help her deal with that sin."

According to Maya and a source close to the family, Alan Keyes knew at the time his daughter was gay.

RON SCHLITTLER, PFLAG: We see kids that are truly damaged because of the struggle to cope with this -- consistent messages that they're unworthy and that they're sinful.

TODD: The group PFLAG, Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, cites studies that say about a quarter of gay youths are forced to leave home because of their sexual orientation. And gay and lesbian youths are about three times more likely than others their age to attempt suicide.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: A source close to the Keyes family says this whole situation has been devastating for everyone concerned, but the source says, through it all, Maya and her parents are still speaking -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Brian Todd, thanks very much for that report.

Maya Keyes joins us now live from Annapolis, Maryland. As Brian mentioned, we asked Alan Keyes to come on this program, but he declined.

Maya, thanks very much for joining us.

When did you realize, Maya, that you were gay?

KEYES: Back in high school, middle school some time.

BLITZER: You're smiling. Why are you smiling?

KEYES: I'm smiling. It is just -- I don't know. It's just something you realize at the same time -- you realize at the same time everybody else is starting dating, all that kind of thing. And you just aren't interested in the same kind of things they are.

BLITZER: So, how did you tell your parents about this?

KEYES: Well, actually, they found in my room some -- a copy of -- I think it was "The Washington Blade" or some other gay newspaper or magazine, something like that. And so they asked. I didn't decide to tell them.

BLITZER: How did they react?

KEYES: They're very conservative. They weren't very happy about the whole thing.

But, you know, they said -- they talked to me about it a lot. And, at first, they said it was a phase. They were in denial. They didn't think I really was actually queer. But when they came to kind of accept that I was, they just were not too pleased.

BLITZER: Did -- when was this? This was still while you were in high school? How many years ago did this initial conversation happen?

KEYES: Yes. My last year of high school, about two years ago maybe.

BLITZER: So this was about three years ago. So this was before your father's comments about Mary Cheney and her being -- committing a sin by being a lesbian?

KEYES: Long before.

BLITZER: So, how did you react when you were with your father in his campaign? He was running for the Senate from Illinois against Barack Obama. And he said -- I believe he called it selfish hedonism. Did you have a conversation with him about that?

KEYES: Well, not particularly. We would just see that comment all over the news, but it wasn't like it was any surprise to me or anything that I hadn't heard in the house before, so...

BLITZER: So what then happened? Has there been a complete falling-out now between you and your father?

KEYES: No. I love my parents very much. And they love me. And they disagree with what I'm doing at the moment. And, as such, they can't support me in this activity, but they are still always going to love me. I know that.

BLITZER: Is your father reacting the same way as your mother is reacting? Are they both on the same page?

KEYES: Yes, basically.

BLITZER: So, right now, you're basically on your own. You want to go to Brown University. I know you've been admitted to Brown. But you've deferred going there. Are you planning on enrolling?

KEYES: Yes, I'm still planning on enrolling. The Point Foundation is a group that gives scholarships to GLBT kids. And they said that they would help me out. They're looking into helping me -- helping me still follow through on my plans and attend Brown, as I had planned.

BLITZER: What happens -- tell our viewers who are listening, watching right now and listening, what's going on behind you in Annapolis.

KEYES: Oh, I'm at a rally. Equality Maryland is having a lobby day rally today. They -- and there's a rally before all the actual lobbying goes on. So, we have a bunch of speakers. And then people are going to go out and talk to their representatives. Then a reception afterwards. So...

BLITZER: When did you decide that you were going to go public with all this information?

KEYES: Well, back in November or so, Dan Furmansky, the director of Equality Maryland, he talked to me about the possibility of coming and speaking here today. But I didn't make a final decision for another month or so. But I've been planning to speak here for a while now.

BLITZER: And so I understand you always started a blog. You're starting to go public on the Internet. You're talking to others there. What are you doing on that front?

KEYES: No.

Actually -- actually, I have had that blog for about five years now. It wasn't like I decided to go public with it. It just sort of -- people discovered it, more than I decided to go public with it. It's been there. And the information has been out there for anyone who cared to read it for -- since I was 13 or 14. So...

BLITZER: So, you think you'll be able to reconcile with your father and your mother? What would you like to say to them right now if they're watching?

KEYES: That I love them. And I'm just doing this because I have to do what I think is right.

BLITZER: Maya Keyes, good luck to you. Thanks very much for spending a few moments with us. We appreciate it.

KEYES: Thank you.

BLITZER: Once again, Alan Keyes declined our invitation to join us on this program.

Let's take a look at some other stories you may have missed this past weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Police in Ulster, New York, say they've identified the gunman accused of opening fire in a shopping mall and wounding two people. Robert Bonelli faces felony counts, including assault. And police say he could face attempted murder charges as the case progresses.

In Spain's capital, a huge headache for commuters. A fire, said to be the biggest in Madrid's history, gutted a 32-story office tower over the weekend, throwing the transport system in central Madrid into chaos. The cause has not been determined.

As expected, former presidential candidate Howard Dean is top Democrat. He was elected chairman of the party's National Committee. Dean vows to make the Democratic Party stronger by starting at the grassroots level.

And, in Los Angeles, a big night for the late Ray Charles at the Grammy Awards ceremony. His posthumous album "Genius Loves Company," a compilation of duets, won eight Grammy awards, including album of the year. Other multiple winners include Alicia Keys and Usher.

And that's our weekend snapshot.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The growing business of love. From online dating to pricey matchmaking services, our Mary Snow takes a closer look inside this booming industry. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: On this Valentine's Day, business is predictably brisk for florists and confectioners and another industry that trades in romance, matchmakers. You might be surprised to see just how much that business is booming and where.

CNN's Mary Snow is joining us now live from New York. She has details -- Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Wolf.

And, you know, the search for love has turned into a lucrative business. Whether it is a high-tech company or an old-fashioned matchmaker, there's money to be made in the search for a soul mate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANIS SPINDEL, SPINDEL SERIOUS MATCHMAKING: Did you just screen the 24-year-old?

SNOW (voice-over): Playing Cupid can bring in cash. Just ask New York matchmaker Janis Spindel. She charges $20,000 to find a mate.

SPINDEL: It is not just about, here's a phone number; get married. I facilitate the date. I'm a relationship coach. I'm an expert. I play their shrink, their mother.

SNOW: Janis boasts of 716 marriages in 10 years and believes they are all still together. One of them, Fran Heller, who paid $1,500 nine years ago, before the steep hike in price. But she says, it's worth it.

FRAN HELLER, FORMER MATCHMAKING CLIENT: The person that she ultimately introduced me to, my husband, Ron Gartner, is absolutely worth -- would have been worth it for the $20,000. Let's put it that way. He was certainly a bargain at $1,500.

SNOW: Not only have times changed. So have techniques, including dating on demand by Comcast.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My friends would describe me as fun and goofy and energetic.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am a lot of fun.

SNOW: Call it the new frontier in dating. Cable subscribers can view potential dates on TV and pay a feet to meet them online, starting at $14.95 a month.

DAVE WATSON, COMCAST: I think dating is a showcase for how fun television can be.

SNOW: It's the latest twist to an industry that's turned into a moneymaker for online dating sites. Match.com, the largest in the U.S., boasts 15 million users, with a pickup at this time of year.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Valentine's Day is sort of the Super Bowl, if you will, of online relationships and online dating sites.

SNOW: Adding to the money machine, features like paying extra to receive profiles on mobile devices like cell phones. JupiterResearch estimates one in four single adults online in the U.S. browse online personal ads. While it's not growing as quickly...

ELLIOTT: Online dating in the United States continues to grow. This is a half-billion dollar industry and it's an industry that's still growing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW: And to give you an idea of how big this industry is, Hitwise, which is a firm that tracks Internet companies, says, to date, it counts 887 online dating sites -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Why are so many more people doing this now, Mary? I know you've been looking into that.

SNOW: You know, a couple of different reasons were cited, for the online dating services, really, what people describe as a change in culture, that there had been a stigma attached to some of these sites that has been lifted, that it has become more mainstream. We also spoke with a matchmaker here in New York. She felt that, after 9/11, she saw more people coming forward wanting to get married and stepping up and saying, they want to find a mate.

BLITZER: Mary Snow, happy Valentine's Day.

SNOW: Thank you very much. Same to you.

BLITZER: And to our viewers, happy Valentine's Day to you as well.

Also to our viewers, you have a chance to weigh in on this story. Our Web question of the day is this: Would you use a professional matchmaker? You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Here's how you're weighing in our Web question of the day. Remember, we asked you this: Would you use a professional matchmaker? Look at this. A quarter, 23 percent of you said yes; 77 percent of you said no; 42,000 already have voted. But, remember, this is not a scientific poll.

And a reminder: You can always catch us on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern. I'm also here weekdays noon Eastern.

Until tomorrow, thanks very much for joining us.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

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 February 14, 2005 - 17:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now. Nuclear standoff with North Korea. The stakes are enormous. Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Wesley Clark helped negotiate a nuclear agreement with North Korea 10 years ago and now has ideas on how to resolve this crisis. He'll join me live.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Beirut bombing. He was a billionaire and longtime leader of Lebanon. Who wanted him dead?

Winners and losers. The votes are counted. But can Iraqis count on a brighter future?

Her conservative father has railed against homosexuality. She's a lesbian and a liberal. I'll have an exclusive interview with Maya Keyes.

Matchmaking and moneymaking.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, $20,000 as an initiation fee is a very small price to pay to be happy the rest of your life.

BLITZER: Getting rich on romance.

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Monday, February 14th, 2005.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: As a billionaire businessman turned political leader, he oversaw Beirut's rise from the ruins of civil war. Now, a massive bomb has again left the city strewn with rubble. And it's left at least 10 people dead, among them, the former Lebanese prime minister, Rafik Hariri. We begin our coverage in Beirut with CNN senior international correspondent Brent Sadler.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRENT SADLER, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT: The heart of Beirut, brutally thrown back to the bloodshed of civil war years here, shattering a decade and a half of hard-won success to rebuild the international reputation of this once war-torn Middle East capital.

The blast was so powerful, it sent shockwaves in a radius that were felt for miles around, striking fear and panic in the immediate aftermath of the explosion. At the center of this carnage, the blazing wrecks of vehicles in the motorcade of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The attack so strong, it tore through Hariri's armor-plated convoy, killing the politician instantly, claiming the lives of other victims, both within the convoy and passers-by.

Minutes after the explosion, some of Hariri's most trusted aides stumbled from the wreckage as emergency services fought their way through the debris to extinguish flames that sent up a huge column of black smoke and to evacuate the dead and injured. As the casualty toll rose, allies of Hariri, who was internationally credited with spearheading efforts to reconstruct Lebanon after its 15-year civil war, called his killing a merciless act, a political assassination.

HANI NAMMOUD, HARIRI ADVISER: It's doomsday for Lebanon. What we are witnessing today is not just the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, it is the assassination of Lebanon as a democracy.

SADLER: Hariri supporters took to the streets in anguish and despair. Lebanon in the throes of vicious political infighting revolving around Syria's dominant role over this fractious nation. Political opponents of Syria have called it a crucial battle for Lebanese freedom ahead of a general election, drawing encouragement from strong international pressure on Syria to change policy.

Hariri's killing was claimed by an unheard of extremist group citing his close ties to the ruling family of Saudi Arabia, a claim so far unsubstantiated.

MICHAEL YOUNG, LEBANESE POLITICAL ANALYST: The fact of the matter is that whoever killed Rafik Hariri, the fact of the matter is that I think it is the Syrians who will pay the political price whether they killed him or not.

SADLER: Hariri's allies and opposition leaders held a crisis meeting, blaming both Syria and the Lebanese authority for the assassination, warning that Lebanon could be on the verge of an abyss.

(on camera): The Syrian authorities have strongly denounced the attack, denied involvement and warned that Hariri's killing was aimed at destroying Lebanese unity and an attempt to destabilize the nation at the expense of both Syria and its strategic ally, Lebanon.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And we'll go live to Beirut shortly. Later this hour, much more coming up from the scene. The Beirut bombing brought immediate condemnation from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president was shocked and angered to learn of the terrorist attack in Beirut today that murdered former Prime Minister Hariri and killed and injured several others. Mr. Hariri was a fervent supporter of Lebanese independence and worked tirelessly to rebuild a free, independent and prosperous Lebanon following its brutal civil war and despite its continued foreign occupation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Foreign occupation a clear reference to Syria. Syria still has thousands of military forces in Lebanon. Press Secretary McClellan also said it's too soon to know who's responsible for the attack, but he strongly criticized Syria's ongoing military presence in Lebanon.

There were three explosions in the Philippines today, killing at least 10 people. The most serious blast was caused by a bomb aboard a Manila bus. A caller claimed the explosions were the work of Abu Sayyaf, a militant Muslim group with ties to al Qaeda. The caller sarcastically called the explosions, and I'm quoting now: "a Valentine's Day gift for Philippine President Gloria Arroyo."

BLITZER: Their past is one of oppression, but Iraq's Shiites are now poised to take a large share of the power in Iraq. A clergy- backed coalition won almost half the popular vote, and the biggest block of seats in the new parliament. As winners and losers look to the future, our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson reports from Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And after the results, Valentine's Day. At a flower store, love and peace, even in Baghdad.

"Instead of these explosions," she says, "we want peace between Iraqis."

Too soon to say if the election results delivered over the weekend are bringing peace any closer. Headlines hint at some signs of unity, proclaiming the winning Shia Muslims are starting the political horse trading.

Biggest losers so far, the Sunnis, who largely stayed away from the polls.

"I have no regrets," this Sunni market trader says, "this is not democracy. In a democracy you choose someone you know, someone who is really working for the Iraqi interests."

Post-election optimism on Baghdad's diverse streets not yet dead. "We don't want this sectarian issue between Sunnis and Shias to last," this Shia says. "We hope it will end soon."

(on camera): Some Sunnis are now realizing their loss. The popular Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party is for the first time publicly blaming Sunni clerics for calling for a boycott in keeping people from the polls. Now they are vowing to engage in the political process.

(voice-over): In the north, Kurds were quick to celebrate. They got the votes they were expecting, that they hope will give them the national voice they wanted. Now, the test -- will Iraq's Arabs accept a prominent role for Iraq's Kurds?

And while the political wheeling and dealing begins in earnest, the violence continues. Three police killed in this car bomb 40 miles, 60 kilometers north of Baghdad. Two more officers shot to death earlier in the day in Baghdad. Love and peace, not yet.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: How close an eye is the United States keeping on Iran? Some government sources confirm that unmanned aerial vehicles are being used to spy on Iran's nuclear sites. But other sources are flatly denying it. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr is standing by.

Barbara, explain to our viewers what U.S. capabilities are? In other words, what could these UAVs, these unmanned aerial vehicles do if they're looking for evidence of nuclear ambition in Iran?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, you're exactly right. Some officials saying it is happening. But here at the Pentagon top military officials still today continuing to insist they know nothing about unmanned aerial vehicle flights over Iran.

But if, if the U.S. government was trying to get a full picture of what is going on inside Iran, they would use many different capabilities to do that. It would start at a very high altitude with U.S. intelligence satellites surveying Iran, trying to see what they can learn by taking pictures and gathering intelligence information.

Then go down to the next layer. U-2 spy planes, the old Francis Gary Powers Soviet Union-era aircraft, high altitude as well. A number of sensor packages that could gather a good deal of information about Iran's defenses, about its military structure, even about its nuclear program.

Then you would get to the next level. That would be the RC-135 class airplane. These are a number of different platforms, fixed wing, as you see. They fly about 40,000 feet. They're capable of gathering information in various models and configurations about Iran's nuclear program but also impinging, if you will, Iran's air defenses, trying to get the Iranian military to turn on their air defenses when that airplane flies over. And that helps the U.S., of course, see what the Iranian military capabilities are.

The lowest altitude might be that unmanned aerial vehicle, the Predator or any other model. They would get a closer-up picture, if you will, of a much narrower area, but very risky because they do fly relatively low level, relatively slow. And there's a long history of those UAVs, of course, either crashing or having mechanical failure. And the U.S. would not want to see some U.S. wreckage over Iran for various reasons -- Wolf.

BLITZER: It could be quite embarrassing if that were to happen. Barbara Starr reporting for us over at the Pentagon. Thank you very much.

Growing concerns over Iran and North Korea's nuclear ambitions. How should the United States handle the situation? Former Democratic presidential candidate General Wesley Clark. He's standing by to join me live. Find out also if he's planning to run again in 2008. I'll ask him.

The battle over Baby 81 ends. A court steps in to reunite a tiny tsunami survivor with his true biological parents.

And conservative politician Alan Keyes once called gay activity a sin, a relationship based on what he called selfish hedonism. Now his own daughter speaks out about being a lesbian. Maya Keyes will join me live in a CNN exclusive interview.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The concern over North Korea, Iran and their nuclear weapons programs. Joining us now from Little Rock to talk about that, former Democratic presidential candidate and former NATO supreme allied commander General Wesley Clark. He helped negotiate the 1994 nuclear pact between the U.S. and North Korea during the then-Clinton administration. General, thanks very much for joining us.

GEN. WESLEY CLARK (D), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thanks. It's good to be with you, Wolf.

BLITZER: What should the U.S. be doing now to ease this crisis with North Korea?

CLARK: Well, I would like to see us talk directly to the North Koreans. I think it is great to involve the other people in the region, but the key to the resolution of this really is the United States.

BLITZER: The Bush administration says start the six-party talks again and within that framework there could be bilateral discussions on the sidelines, but it is important to have China and Japan and Russia, South korea, right in the middle of things since they have so much at stake at well.

CLARK: Well, I don't object to that if it works. But the country that has the most at stake really is the United States. And if you look at where we are strategically in 1994, the Clinton administration did draw a red line. And we were prepared to go to war if North Korea reprocessed its nuclear, spent fuel to extract the plutonium to make nuclear weapons. The Bush administration has never drawn a red line. The North Koreans know it. And they view the American response as a weak response. That's why they keep ratcheting it up.

BLITZER: I interviewed the foreign minister of South Korea yesterday on "LATE EDITION." Arguably South Korea has a lot more at stake than the United States does because that country could be obliterated if there were a war with the North even by conventional weapons as you well know. You've been to that part of the world. He said the Bush administration's position is basically right, you go with the six-party talks. You can have the bilateral talks within that framework.

CLARK: Well, I'd be very disappointed if the members of the current governments would disagree with the Bush administration position on this. For one thing, the six-party talks are ongoing. For another, the South Koreans are desperately holding on to the administration's coattails for every bit of advantage that they can get as the U.S. threatens to and prepares to withdraw troops from South Korea. But the truth of the matter is that our position in Korea is an integral part of our position in western Asia. Is it a position of geopolitical strength and it's a position that we're in the process of giving up unilaterally to China and to other powers in the region.

BLITZER: Let's talk briefly about Iran. The nuclear possibility of some sort of standoff with Iran over nuclear weapons, if in fact they ever get that far. Do you think this is a crisis yet, what's happening in Iran?

CLARK: No, I don't think it's a crisis, Wolf. But all of us who knew the situation in the Middle East would have told you that the Iranian threat was a much more real threat than the Iraqi threat was, but we invaded Iraq. Iran took the message from it and realized if it's going to achieve safety, it needs to do as North Korea has done which is go ahead and accelerate its nuclear development program. So if the Bush administration or our allies in the region feel that this is moving to a crisis, it will become a crisis quickly.

BLITZER: What would you do right now as far as Iran is concerned?

CLARK: What I would have done years ago is work with our European allies directly in the discussions with Iran.

BLITZER: But isn't that what they're doing? The Europeans are taking the initiative, they're leading the diplomacy with the Iranians.

CLARK: They are. But the Europeans would be the first to tell you that without U.S. participation, neither the carrots nor the sticks make sense.

BLITZER: So you would have the six-party talks in Iran, but you don't want the six-party talks in North Korea. Am I sensing a little contradiction there?

CLARK: Not really. I think what you're seeing from me is the requirement for American diplomatic leadership. The United States needs to be engaged and leading diplomatically. Is it not China's responsibility to lead in Asia, it is ours. It is not the European's responsibility in Iran. It is ours. We're the major power. We're the power that can confer benefits, we're the power that can really drive sanctions or other efforts against...

BLITZER: But General, doesn't China have the most leverage over North Korea?

CLARK: Well, actually, the issue really is between North Korea and many different nations. China does have leverage over North Korea, but so do many other countries. In fact the North Koreans are looking -- what they're looking for is some, some -- basically assurances of regime stability. And that we're not going to overturn their regime. China's much less likely to do that than the United States is. So they're focused on us. I think it is great if we can involve China in there, but having the Chinese is no excuse for a lack of American leadership in these talks.

BLITZER: Let's talk briefly about politics a little bit, a subject you got to know quite well last year. Do you still want to be president of the United States one day?

CLARK: Well, you know, Wolf, I'm in business right now. And I'm really honored to be on your show and to have opportunities to speak out around the country on the United States, and that's about as far as it goes right now.

BLITZER: I don't hear you saying you don't want to be president.

CLARK: Well, I think that every young person dreams somehow they'll have a chance to help their country. I loved being in uniform, I loved public service. I still hope that I'll have an opportunity. I'm not sure what form that would take.

BLITZER: So you're still leaving that door open a little bit?

CLARK: Well, you know, I think that our party -- and I believe in a strong two-party system. I think the Democrats need to be a full service party. I think we need to be able to address foreign policy issues, national security issues and give the American people the same sense of confidence that the other part does.

BLITZER: So that sounds like a yes to me.

CLARK: Well, what I'm saying is I'm in business and I'm trying to do my part to help the country as well. And none of us know what the future holds, Wolf.

BLITZER: General Clark, as usual, thanks very much.

CLARK: Thank you.

BLITZER: Appreciate it.

The fate of Baby 81 revealed. Several sets of parents tried to claim the infant tsunami survivor. Now DNA results are finally announced.

Speaking out. Accusing her parents of putting her out because of her sexual preference. Maya Keyes, the daughter of conservative commentator Alan Keyes joins me live in a CNN exclusive.

And later...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is not just about here's a phone number, get married. I facilitate the date, I'm a relationship coach.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The business of matchmaking. Modern-day Cupids bringing in big cash. Our Mary Snow shows us how the times are changing in the dating world.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: He's cute as a button and a symbol of both tragedy and hope of the south Asia tsunami disaster. We told you the bittersweet story of how this tiny survivor got the nickname Baby 81 and the desperate fight by several couples who claimed him. That struggle is now over. CNN's (UNINTELLIGIBLE) reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Baby 81 will now formally get his parents and his name back. Sri Lankan court on Monday announced that the 3- month-old tsunami survivor's DNA matched that of Jenetha and Morgapila Jayraja (ph), the couple that fought in court for him. The boy named Abilash (ph) by his parents was found just after the tsunami hit, alone on a pile of debris. He was taken to the local hospital, the 81st tsunami victim to be admitted there.

When they heard of the discovery the Jayrajas say they rushed to the hospital to claim him. But so did at least nine other sets of parents, all saying he was their lost son. The Jayrajas had lost all the baby's documents to the tsunami and hospital authorities decided to keep and care for the boy until they had directions from the district court.

The case went on for weeks and soon became a symbol of the trauma of so many other parents in the tsunami-torn nation who had also lost their children to the waves. Though the Jayrajas were the only couple to officially register a claim for the little boy, the court ordered a DNA test, prolonging their wait and agony. The Jayrajas say their patience was running thin, and were arrested briefly when they tried to force their way into the hospital to take the baby and threatened to commit suicide.

With Monday's pronouncement, they say their anxiety is at an end. The judge has asked now internationally famous Baby 81 to be brought to court on Wednesday where he will be handed over to his overjoyed parents. And the Jayrajas including unwitting Baby Abilash can finally begin to put the tsunami and all that followed behind them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Lebanon's former prime minister murdered. We'll go live to Beirut, scene of the massive explosion for more on our top story.

Also, a CNN exclusive. The first interview with the lesbian daughter of a leading conservative. Maya Keyes will share her story with us.

Plus a who's who of celebrities. Potential witnesses in the Michael Jackson trial. We'll show you which stars may be called to testify.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: From our studios in Washington, once again, Wolf Blitzer.

BLITZER: Welcome back.

Explosion in Lebanon. A terror group claims responsibility for the assassination of the former prime minister. We're live from Beirut in just a moment.

First, though, a quick check of some other stories now in the news.

We're getting a glimpse into what the witness list may look like in the Michael Jackson child molestation trial. Jackson's lawyers say they plan to call a number of celebrities, including actress Elizabeth Taylor, singer Stevie Wonder and basketball player Kobe Bryant. Among the possible prosecution witnesses, a boy who accused of Jackson molesting him 12 years ago. Jury selection in the trial resumed today after a one-week break.

In a deal valued at almost $7 billion, Verizon Communications has agreed to buy MCI. Verizon is the biggest phone company in the United States. The deal comes two weeks after a bell subsidiary, SBC Communications, agreed to pay $16 billion for AT&T.

In Iran, a faulty electric heater is blamed for a deadly fire at a crowded mosque in Tehran. At least 59 deaths are reported. Dozens of other people were injured. The fire broke out during services for a major Shiite Muslim festival.

Back now to our top story. A massive explosion has devastated Beirut's seafront boulevard, killing 10 people, including Lebanon's billionaire former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Let's go live to Beirut and our senior international correspondent Brent Sadler.

You were obviously in Beirut at the time. You really heard this explosion, didn't you, Brent? BRENT SADLER, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I did, Wolf. It was a tremendously loud explosion that sent shockwaves right across the center of Beirut. In fact, I ducked under my bureau desk, having heard the blast. I've heard too many explosions in my career of war reporting, and I knew that this was a big one.

BLITZER: What did you do after you got through the initial shock? Because you not only live there. You have family there as well.

SADLER: Yes, that's right, Wolf. I rushed out of the bureau, saw that there was a large column of smoke rising from behind the prime ministry, where Rafik Hariri spent 10 out of the past 14 years running this country.

I then ran about a mile-plus from the bureau and saw scenes of utter devastation down there. I knew my wife was in that area at the time. I lost contact with within an hour and a half. And I felt the strain, the pure raw emotion of not being able to contact a loved one at the very moment that a blast like this -- I knew she was in that area -- had taken place.

So, I felt what it was like to be here in the middle of the blast and the panic that it sent amongst the Lebanese in that vicinity. This has a seismic affect already on the Lebanese population, the psyche of the Lebanese population. Remember, they went through 15 years of bloody civil war here. Car bombers 10, 20 years ago were really the order of the day. But they'd hoped that they'd been silenced.

BLITZER: So, is there a fear now that this is just the beginning of another civil war? Or are there steps being taken to calm everyone down a little bit?

SADLER: Well, already, we're hearing from the military authorities here that the army has gone under general mobilization. Leave has been canceled. Expect there to be a wide-reaching security clampdown, particularly in so-called areas where there is opposition, much of it Christian opposition to the continuing presence of Syrian troops inside Lebanon, a hot topic here. It's been the center of an escalating political debate here.

And the mood in this country right now, I can tell you, is very bleak indeed. In terms of an eruption, a civil war, I think that's far too much of a stretch of the imagination at this stage. But certainly politicians who are allied with the late Prime Minister Hariri are talking about Lebanon being on the verge of a chasm, of Lebanon having gone beyond the beyond with this attack against Hariri, killing him, and really a great degree of uncertainty and fear, palpable fear in the Lebanese capital right now.

BLITZER: Brent Sadler reporting for us from Beirut.

Brent, please be careful over there -- Brent doing an outstanding job, a courageous journalist, as he always is. This footnote, I knew Rafik Hariri. First and foremost, he was a Lebanese patriot who fully understood the deadly complexities of Lebanese politics going back two decades to that blood civil war. I witnessed some of that brutality when I was in Lebanon in the early 1980s. But, in more recent years, things had dramatically calmed down, I thought, at least until today, for good.

Prime Minister Hariri was here in Washington for talks with President Bush almost four years ago. I interviewed him then. Listen carefully how he danced around the very sensitive issue of Syria's continued military occupation of parts of Lebanon and how he later in the interview expressed hope that Lebanon one day would join the rest of the region in peace.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, 2001)

BLITZER: Do you want the Syrian troops to remain in Lebanon?

RAFIK HARIRI, PRIME MINISTER OF LEBANON: For the time being, yes.

BLITZER: For how long? When would the Syrian troops -- when should they leave?

HARIRI: When we feel that we can -- we can assure the security and stability in our country by our own forces, we'll ask them to leave, and they will leave.

Lebanon will benefit most from the peace, and we encourage the United States to go ahead and conclude an agreement, and help conclude an agreement between the Palestinian, Syrian, the Lebanese and the Israeli, because I don't think that anybody can enjoy stability and security in the region unless all of us, the Israeli, the Palestinian, the Syrian, the Lebanese sign a peace agreement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Rafik Hariri speaking with me almost four years ago. A very sad day for Lebanon, a very sad day for the region.

Now a quick look at some other stories making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Flooding and mudslides have killed at least 24 people in northern Colombia. The floods also forced at least 25,000 people to flee their homes.

Harsh weather. More people have been killed in devastating rain and snow in Pakistan. The death toll stands at more than 380. Military helicopters are dropping food and other relief supplies.

Dresden protests; 5,000 neo-Nazis took to the streets of Dresden on the 60th anniversary of the allied bombing of the German city. Officials say it was one of the biggest far-right demonstrations since World War II. Later, tens of thousands held their own march and denounced the neo-Nazis. Officially an estimated 35,000 people were killed in the two days of bombings in 1945.

On the count of three. More than 700 divers from around the world took the plunge in the Gulf of Thailand, setting a new mark in "The Guinness Book of Records" for the most number of people diving at one time. The old record of 592 divers was set three years ago.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And when we come back, we'll have an exclusive interview with Maya Keyes, the daughter of conservative politician Alan Keyes, on revealing her sexual orientation and the family rift that resulted.

Also this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATE ELLIOTT, JUPITERRESEARCH: This is a half-billion dollar industry and it's an industry that's still growing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Love, incorporated, why the multimillion-dollar matchmaking industry is booming right here in the United States.

Plus the winners, the losers, the Grammys. What you might have missed. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: In one corner, a headstrong daughter, in the other, a just as headstrong father. What sets this apart is that Alan Keyes is an outspoken conservative who has called homosexuality a sin. And his daughter Maya Keyes is now openly gay. We'll speak with her in just a moment.

First, though, let's get some of the background. CNN's Brian Todd standing by with that -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, this is an episode that strikes at the core of the political and social divide across the United States. And it has played out in dramatic fashion within this high-profile family.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): Coming out and speaking out.

MAYA KEYES, DAUGHTER OF ALAN KEYES: Liberal queer, plus conservative Republican just doesn't mesh too well.

TODD: Maya Keyes, 19-year-old daughter of conservative pundit and former GOP senatorial candidate Alan Keyes, claims her parents cut her off for being gay. Alan Keyes would not go on camera with us, but did issue a statement -- quote -- "My daughter is an adult and she is responsible for her own actions. What she chooses to do has nothing to do with my work or political activities."

An aide to Alan Keyes tells CNN Maya worked for an Illinois political group run by Keyes and lived in a Chicago apartment paid for by that group. The aide says Maya and her father mutually agreed she should leave that group and therefore she's no longer eligible to live in the apartment. That was after Maya went to an anti-Bush protest during last month's inauguration.

The aide acknowledges Alan Keyes and his wife have cut her off from tuition for Brown University, where they say Maya has twice deferred enrollment, once to travel, once to work on her father's failed Senate campaign. Last year, during the campaign controversy over Dick Cheney's gay daughter Mary, Alan Keyes told a radio interviewer -- quote -- "If my daughter were a lesbian, I'd look at her and say, that is a relationship that is based on selfish hedonism. I would also tell my daughter that it's a sin and she needs to pray to the lord God to help her deal with that sin."

According to Maya and a source close to the family, Alan Keyes knew at the time his daughter was gay.

RON SCHLITTLER, PFLAG: We see kids that are truly damaged because of the struggle to cope with this -- consistent messages that they're unworthy and that they're sinful.

TODD: The group PFLAG, Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, cites studies that say about a quarter of gay youths are forced to leave home because of their sexual orientation. And gay and lesbian youths are about three times more likely than others their age to attempt suicide.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: A source close to the Keyes family says this whole situation has been devastating for everyone concerned, but the source says, through it all, Maya and her parents are still speaking -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Brian Todd, thanks very much for that report.

Maya Keyes joins us now live from Annapolis, Maryland. As Brian mentioned, we asked Alan Keyes to come on this program, but he declined.

Maya, thanks very much for joining us.

When did you realize, Maya, that you were gay?

KEYES: Back in high school, middle school some time.

BLITZER: You're smiling. Why are you smiling?

KEYES: I'm smiling. It is just -- I don't know. It's just something you realize at the same time -- you realize at the same time everybody else is starting dating, all that kind of thing. And you just aren't interested in the same kind of things they are.

BLITZER: So, how did you tell your parents about this?

KEYES: Well, actually, they found in my room some -- a copy of -- I think it was "The Washington Blade" or some other gay newspaper or magazine, something like that. And so they asked. I didn't decide to tell them.

BLITZER: How did they react?

KEYES: They're very conservative. They weren't very happy about the whole thing.

But, you know, they said -- they talked to me about it a lot. And, at first, they said it was a phase. They were in denial. They didn't think I really was actually queer. But when they came to kind of accept that I was, they just were not too pleased.

BLITZER: Did -- when was this? This was still while you were in high school? How many years ago did this initial conversation happen?

KEYES: Yes. My last year of high school, about two years ago maybe.

BLITZER: So this was about three years ago. So this was before your father's comments about Mary Cheney and her being -- committing a sin by being a lesbian?

KEYES: Long before.

BLITZER: So, how did you react when you were with your father in his campaign? He was running for the Senate from Illinois against Barack Obama. And he said -- I believe he called it selfish hedonism. Did you have a conversation with him about that?

KEYES: Well, not particularly. We would just see that comment all over the news, but it wasn't like it was any surprise to me or anything that I hadn't heard in the house before, so...

BLITZER: So what then happened? Has there been a complete falling-out now between you and your father?

KEYES: No. I love my parents very much. And they love me. And they disagree with what I'm doing at the moment. And, as such, they can't support me in this activity, but they are still always going to love me. I know that.

BLITZER: Is your father reacting the same way as your mother is reacting? Are they both on the same page?

KEYES: Yes, basically.

BLITZER: So, right now, you're basically on your own. You want to go to Brown University. I know you've been admitted to Brown. But you've deferred going there. Are you planning on enrolling?

KEYES: Yes, I'm still planning on enrolling. The Point Foundation is a group that gives scholarships to GLBT kids. And they said that they would help me out. They're looking into helping me -- helping me still follow through on my plans and attend Brown, as I had planned.

BLITZER: What happens -- tell our viewers who are listening, watching right now and listening, what's going on behind you in Annapolis.

KEYES: Oh, I'm at a rally. Equality Maryland is having a lobby day rally today. They -- and there's a rally before all the actual lobbying goes on. So, we have a bunch of speakers. And then people are going to go out and talk to their representatives. Then a reception afterwards. So...

BLITZER: When did you decide that you were going to go public with all this information?

KEYES: Well, back in November or so, Dan Furmansky, the director of Equality Maryland, he talked to me about the possibility of coming and speaking here today. But I didn't make a final decision for another month or so. But I've been planning to speak here for a while now.

BLITZER: And so I understand you always started a blog. You're starting to go public on the Internet. You're talking to others there. What are you doing on that front?

KEYES: No.

Actually -- actually, I have had that blog for about five years now. It wasn't like I decided to go public with it. It just sort of -- people discovered it, more than I decided to go public with it. It's been there. And the information has been out there for anyone who cared to read it for -- since I was 13 or 14. So...

BLITZER: So, you think you'll be able to reconcile with your father and your mother? What would you like to say to them right now if they're watching?

KEYES: That I love them. And I'm just doing this because I have to do what I think is right.

BLITZER: Maya Keyes, good luck to you. Thanks very much for spending a few moments with us. We appreciate it.

KEYES: Thank you.

BLITZER: Once again, Alan Keyes declined our invitation to join us on this program.

Let's take a look at some other stories you may have missed this past weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Police in Ulster, New York, say they've identified the gunman accused of opening fire in a shopping mall and wounding two people. Robert Bonelli faces felony counts, including assault. And police say he could face attempted murder charges as the case progresses.

In Spain's capital, a huge headache for commuters. A fire, said to be the biggest in Madrid's history, gutted a 32-story office tower over the weekend, throwing the transport system in central Madrid into chaos. The cause has not been determined.

As expected, former presidential candidate Howard Dean is top Democrat. He was elected chairman of the party's National Committee. Dean vows to make the Democratic Party stronger by starting at the grassroots level.

And, in Los Angeles, a big night for the late Ray Charles at the Grammy Awards ceremony. His posthumous album "Genius Loves Company," a compilation of duets, won eight Grammy awards, including album of the year. Other multiple winners include Alicia Keys and Usher.

And that's our weekend snapshot.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The growing business of love. From online dating to pricey matchmaking services, our Mary Snow takes a closer look inside this booming industry. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: On this Valentine's Day, business is predictably brisk for florists and confectioners and another industry that trades in romance, matchmakers. You might be surprised to see just how much that business is booming and where.

CNN's Mary Snow is joining us now live from New York. She has details -- Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Wolf.

And, you know, the search for love has turned into a lucrative business. Whether it is a high-tech company or an old-fashioned matchmaker, there's money to be made in the search for a soul mate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANIS SPINDEL, SPINDEL SERIOUS MATCHMAKING: Did you just screen the 24-year-old?

SNOW (voice-over): Playing Cupid can bring in cash. Just ask New York matchmaker Janis Spindel. She charges $20,000 to find a mate.

SPINDEL: It is not just about, here's a phone number; get married. I facilitate the date. I'm a relationship coach. I'm an expert. I play their shrink, their mother.

SNOW: Janis boasts of 716 marriages in 10 years and believes they are all still together. One of them, Fran Heller, who paid $1,500 nine years ago, before the steep hike in price. But she says, it's worth it.

FRAN HELLER, FORMER MATCHMAKING CLIENT: The person that she ultimately introduced me to, my husband, Ron Gartner, is absolutely worth -- would have been worth it for the $20,000. Let's put it that way. He was certainly a bargain at $1,500.

SNOW: Not only have times changed. So have techniques, including dating on demand by Comcast.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My friends would describe me as fun and goofy and energetic.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am a lot of fun.

SNOW: Call it the new frontier in dating. Cable subscribers can view potential dates on TV and pay a feet to meet them online, starting at $14.95 a month.

DAVE WATSON, COMCAST: I think dating is a showcase for how fun television can be.

SNOW: It's the latest twist to an industry that's turned into a moneymaker for online dating sites. Match.com, the largest in the U.S., boasts 15 million users, with a pickup at this time of year.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Valentine's Day is sort of the Super Bowl, if you will, of online relationships and online dating sites.

SNOW: Adding to the money machine, features like paying extra to receive profiles on mobile devices like cell phones. JupiterResearch estimates one in four single adults online in the U.S. browse online personal ads. While it's not growing as quickly...

ELLIOTT: Online dating in the United States continues to grow. This is a half-billion dollar industry and it's an industry that's still growing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW: And to give you an idea of how big this industry is, Hitwise, which is a firm that tracks Internet companies, says, to date, it counts 887 online dating sites -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Why are so many more people doing this now, Mary? I know you've been looking into that.

SNOW: You know, a couple of different reasons were cited, for the online dating services, really, what people describe as a change in culture, that there had been a stigma attached to some of these sites that has been lifted, that it has become more mainstream. We also spoke with a matchmaker here in New York. She felt that, after 9/11, she saw more people coming forward wanting to get married and stepping up and saying, they want to find a mate.

BLITZER: Mary Snow, happy Valentine's Day.

SNOW: Thank you very much. Same to you.

BLITZER: And to our viewers, happy Valentine's Day to you as well.

Also to our viewers, you have a chance to weigh in on this story. Our Web question of the day is this: Would you use a professional matchmaker? You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Here's how you're weighing in our Web question of the day. Remember, we asked you this: Would you use a professional matchmaker? Look at this. A quarter, 23 percent of you said yes; 77 percent of you said no; 42,000 already have voted. But, remember, this is not a scientific poll.

And a reminder: You can always catch us on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern. I'm also here weekdays noon Eastern.

Until tomorrow, thanks very much for joining us.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

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