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CNN LIVE SATURDAY

Bomb Blasts In New Delhi; Political Fallout From Federal Indictment For Scooter Libby For Lying During CIA Leak Investigation; Affects On Security That CIA Leaks Can Have; Hurricane Beta Approaching Nicaragua; Hurricane Wilma's Affects On Florida; Debate Over Who Should Rebuild New Orleans; Dealing With Autism; Harriet Miers Gets Made Fun Of

Aired October 29, 2005 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Also, Hurricane Wilma may be long gone but the long lines at the pump in south Florida persist. Welcome CNN LIVE SATURDAY, I'm Fredricka Whitfield. A busy hour straight ahead, but first now in the news:
In Iraq, the U.S. military says three American soldiers were killed earlier today in Iraq two separate incidents. Counting the latest fatalities, the death toll for U.S. troops in Iraq is now 2,014. The military also says enemy fighters killed a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan.

In southern India, at least 90 deaths are reported in a train derailment and that number is expected to climb. Authorities say the passenger train derailed at a spot where the tracks were washed away by a flood and more than a half dozen cars were swept into a reservoir.

In Texas the owner of a home health care company is in custody on charges of I giving fake flu shots. More 1,000 ExxonMobil employees received those shots. The suspect is accused of trying to defraud Medicare and he has a court hearing on Monday. Preliminary tests show the fluid in the syringes was purified water.

Up first this hour, deadly explosions in India's capital. A series of blasts within minutes of each other ripped through New Delhi earlier today. Among the targets, markets packed with shoppers getting ready to celebrate a major holiday. CNN's senior international correspondent, Satinder Bindra is at one of the scenes in New Delhi, he joins us on the .phone -- Satinder.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: ... occurred just a few hours ago and I'm in the central neighborhood of New Delhi called Sarojini Nagar. There were tens of thousands people here, they come to shop just before the Festival of Diwali, it's considered to be very auspicious, very holy by millions of people here.

And this evening, one store owner noticed a bag, there was nobody with this bag. The store owner grew suspicious. He asked people to get away and just as hundreds are people are getting away from that bag, there was a thunderous blast. The force of this explosion was so powerful that several stores were gutted immediately. There was a fire that followed, and after the fire, there was a mad stampede as thousands tried to run away.

Eyewitnesses here, Fredricka, are telling me they pulled out several dead bodies. Also, a majority of the injured were women and children, locals here telling me that these injured people had their limbs torn away from their bodies. They've been rushed to hospitals.

Right now, I'm here in Sarojini, there is, as just described, where fire tenders have been on the scene for several hours, there's bomb disposal experts. There's also forensic experts and everyone trying to assess here, on the scene, what caused this explosion, in the meantime, senior officials at the Indian prime minister's office have described this as a terrorist act.

WHITFIELD: And Satinder, does the government or investigators suspect any one or any one group for what they believe to be a terrorist attack?

BINDRA: No, so far, we have no word on which group could have been responsible, but authorities are remaining tight-lipped. They don't want to speculate. As of this moment no group has also stepped forward to claim responsibility. But Fredricka, what this has done just on the eve of a very major holiday here in India is to spread widespread panic and fear.

There's also a great deal of anger because obviously whoever did this chose a very soft target, tens of thousands people jammed together shopping, they'd all come here, these people, with great merriment, with a sense of enjoyment in their hearts, they were planning to shop for this major holiday and now these bomb blasts, of course, have ruined that atmosphere. Large numbers of parties and fairs, which had been organized in New Delhi, on this holiday weekend, have also been canceled.

WHITFIELD: Satinder Bindra, thank you very much for that report, on the phone from New Delhi, India.

The vice president's chief of staff, Lewis Scooter Libby, could make his first court appearance within days. A federal indictment accuses Libby of lying during investigation into who leaked the name of a CIA covert operative, Valerie Plame.

No one has been charged, so far, with intentionally exposing the operative's name, but President Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, remains under scrutiny. CNN has learned from two sources one sympathetic to Rove, that he is the person identified in the document as "Official A," who discussed the CIA operative with Libby.

Special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald says the investigation isn't over. The indictment of Lewis Scooter Libby comes during a week of challenges for the Bush administration. CNN's Elaine Quijano joins us from the White House with more on that -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Fredricka. And there is no disputing this has been one of the worst weeks for this Bush White House. Officials here expressing a mixture of sadness and also relief, they say. Sadness first of all that Scooter Libby, vice president Dick Cheney's now former chief of staff, former national security adviser, was indicted. At the same time, though, relief that Karl Rove, President Bush's top political adviser, was not indicted.

Nevertheless, there are still open questions. His lawyer says that he remains under investigation. Now today, President Bush in his weekly radio address made no mention of the indictment, of the investigation. Instead, focusing on the Iraq war, but his comments come at a challenging time on that front as well. It was earlier this week that the grim threshold was passed, more than 2,000 Americans dead in the conflict.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The progress we have made so far has involved great sacrifice. The greatest burden has fallen on our military families. We've lost some of our nation's finest men and women in the war on terror. Each of them has left grieving families and loved ones back home. Each loss of life is heart breaking. If these patriots have also left a legacy that will allow generations of their fellow Americans and millions of others who have only known oppression to enjoy the blessings of liberty.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

QUIJANO: So, President Bush clearly determined to move ahead and past the indictments and in fact yesterday the White House chief of staff, Andy Card, sent out a memo to all White House staffers essentially saying just that, but of course, Fredricka, there are many reminders that there is still a legal cloud, if you will, hanging over Karl Rove, over this White House.

In fact, a reminder of that from the White House counsel's office yesterday, a memo was circulated to White House staffers reminding them, essentially, that there is an ongoing legal investigation, and ongoing legal matter, and that staffers are not to have any contact with Scooter Libby about any aspect of the investigation -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And Elaine, meantime another big bump in the road for the White House this week, Harriet Miers withdrawing her name from Supreme Court justice nominee. Any idea whether the White House is any closer to naming another nominee?

QUIJANO: Well, aides are saying that it could come within a matter of days, but you're right, it was certainly a surreal moment to watch yesterday as President Bush, along with his failed Supreme Court nominee who is still his White House counsel, boarded Marine One together, presumably to get into that process, to continue that process of vetting nominees.

Essentially she now is the person who will help the president navigate through that, and we are told that we could hear something, perhaps by the time this weekend is over, they've ruled out that the president would make any announcements from Camp David, but of course, Harriet Miers, as you point out, another challenge for this president. She, of course, withdrew her nomination, amid that fierce opposition, that fierce -- from fierce conservatives who were very adamant that she was not qualified for the job, and so President Bush continuing that work, we could hear an announcement in the next couple of days -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Elaine Quijano at the White House, thank you.

Well, Valerie Plame's husband, former ambassador, Joe Wilson, insists the alleged leak was retaliation for his criticism of the Iraq war. And in a interview to air tomorrow, Wilson told CBS's "60 Minutes" his wife is receiving threats. Wilson refused to elaborate or be specific about the threats. However, Wilson says he and his wife have discussed security for her with several unnamed agencies.

While announcing the indictments yesterday, special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald said a CIA operative's -- officer's identity must be protected not just for the officer, but for national security. CNN's national security correspondent, David Ensor, explains why outing Valerie Plame matters.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Forty-two-year-old Valerie Plame Wilson, whose husband has referred to her as "Jane Bond," is clearly now the most famous female spy in America. Exposing her as a CIA undercover officer did damage to U.S. intelligence, U.S. officials say. They refuse to be more specific.

MICHAEL SCHEUER, FMR. CIA ANALYST: To have someone exposed deliberately and on top of that for a political reason, I think, yes, it probably sent a chill throughout the clandestine service.

ENSOR: What made it worse is that she was not just an undercover officer, she spent part of her 20-year career as a NOC, a spy with nonofficial cover, that is, without the protection of diplomatic status. She was working, officials say, to recruit foreigners who knew about murky international deals involving weapons of mass destruction, but potential foreign agents, potential spies, have now seen a CIA officer apparently betrayed by officials in her own government.

JAMES MARCINKOWSKI, FMR. CIA OFFICER: The issue here is, how are you going to tell that agent that their identity is going to be protected when this government can't even protect the home team?

ENSOR: And if any other CIA officers used the same cover as Plame, their work is in jeopardy, too. That cover was Brewster Jennings Associates an energy consultant firm, a front company that apparently had no real address. NOCs are harder to train, can remain undercover longer than conventional spies and can go places and meet people that other CIA officers cannot.

Some of them, like Plame, use loose cover, a false job. Others, under deep cover, use false names as well. Complete fictional identities with forged documents, even disguises. But NOCs are also much more vulnerable than regular spies. Intelligence sources developed by a CIA undercover officer are immediately in question if that officer is exposed.

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: The consequences for the U.S. government can range from embarrassment to having to pull a source out of an area because they've become jeopardized by this knowledge.

ENSOR: After her name appeared in Robert Novak's column, at lease two foreign governments reportedly assigned their spy catchers to figure out whether Plame had ever worked on their soil and if so, what she'd done there.

(on camera): And that is where the most damage was likely done, other agents tracking down Valerie Plame Wilson's contact and sources and shutting them down.

David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: CNN.com has launched a special report detailing the CIA leak investigation. For a time line of the investigation, a look at key players, a profile of Scooter Libby and the full text of the indictment, log onto cnn.com/cialeak.

Still without power, gas lines are still very long. Is there an end in sight for Hurricane Wilma victims? We'll have a live report straight ahead.

And making peace with autism: One mother's journey to help her son and her advice to others.

Plus Hurricane Beta gains strength. Brad Huffines is monitoring all of that from the Weather Center -- Brad.

BRAD HUFFINES, CNN SEVERE WEATHER METEOROLOGIST: Fredricka, once again another record-breaking hurricane, Hurricane Beta approaching Nicaragua. We'll talk about that in a moment. But check out these 2005 hurricane season records with 13 hurricanes named, records being kept since 1851. A full update on Beta and the nation's weather is coming up in a few minutes on CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Turning now to south Florida where the effects of Hurricane Wilma are still causing a whole lot of headaches five days after the storm slammed ashore. Still, long lines at gas stations, hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses without power. CNN's J.J. Ramberg is keeping track of the situation in Miami. You're there at a gas station, but what's happening there right now?

J.J. RAMBERG, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hi there, Fredricka. You can see some cars parked behind me here at the gas station. But they're not here to get gas. This gas station ran out of gas at 9:30 this morning. It stopped getting in customers for gas, what they started to do, because the owner is smart here, is let people park here because there's a big football game going on two blocks away here, but across Miami, you see scenes like this, either cars parked at gas stations or gas stations with big signs that say "no gas," or gas stations with lines that are hours long.

Things have gotten a little bit better but not that much better yet. And I've talked to a lot of people this morning who were here getting gas who've really had to rearrange their entire lives because they have no gas. This is a kind of city where you're dependent on driving around. I spoke to one woman who's an ICU nurse who says she pretty much hasn't gone anywhere but to work.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I haven't gone anywhere. I've just been home and, you know, if I have to go somewhere, it's work. I have not gone anywhere other than just work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAMBERG: I spoke to another man earlier who says he usually goes to his daughter's house, every single day, she has five kids and needs help with errands and a lot of help taking care of her kids. He's been able to go twice since the storm.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARTHUR ABLES, MIAMI RESIDENT: I just go up, don't have to go no place. I use the telephone to talk to my daughter, where I used to have to go there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAMBERG: Now, the problem here is still power. It's not that there is no gas. There are a lot of gas stations around here that still have gas. There's no power to pump it out. According to Florida Power and Light, they've got power up to about 50 percent of its customers, that's where it was at least last night. Hopefully it'll be more once the power comes on, gas will no longer be an issue -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, J.J., so I know a lot of folks there are hoping for the power to go on for various reasons, including the whole gas issue, but for the gas stations like the one where you are right now that have run out of gas what's the hope that they'll be getting new deliveries of gas?

RAMBERG: We spoke to the owner earlier today. He said that he has no idea when gas is going to come. Usually he checks on an online site to see when it's expected to be delivered. He's not listed on there right now so he's just waiting. He's generally been getting it at the end of every day or the morning after he runs out of gas.

WHITFIELD: All right, what a mess. J.J. Ramberg, thank you so much, from Miami. In hurricane-battered Louisiana, President Bush and other federal leaders are catching some criticism as work to rebuild the area moves forward. This morning in Baton Rouge, AFL-CIO president John Sweeney helped kick off the so-called "People's Rally to Rebuild Louisiana Right." Also at the event, Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco and Civil Rights leader Jesse Jackson.

Some labor leaders, democrats and activists accuse the Bush administration of unofficial treating workers who are helping to rebuild the region. Among other things they're calling on the administration to reinstate affirmative action requirements for contractors, and they're pushing for better health care solutions for storm survivors.

Two months after Hurricane Katrina flooded much of New Orleans, the city's police department has fired 45 police officers and six civilian employees. They're accused of leaving their posts either before or after the hurricane struck.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUPT. WARREN RILEY, NEW ORLEANS POLICE: It was obvious that during the crisis, during the time when we needed police officers the most, when our citizens counted on us and when we counted on our fellow officers to be there, during the most challenging time in the history of New Orleans, in modern time anyway, those officers were not there and not only were they no not there, they have not returned since that time. So, it will be very difficult for them to function in our current operation. We need to be able to count on them and they weren't there, so they were terminated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And more than a dozen other officers who were under investigation for abandonment have resigned, and other cases are still being reviewed.

Civil Rights pioneer Rosa Parks, who died five days ago is being honored this weekend in Alabama and Washington. Public viewing is taking place today in Parks former church in Montgomery. Fifty years ago Parks helped spark the Civil Rights movement when she refused to give up her seat to a white man on a city bus in the Alabama capitol. Tomorrow and Monday morning, Park's body will lie in honor in the U.S. capitol rotunda in the nation's capitol. She's the first woman to receive the honor that's usually reserved for presidents, members of Congress, and military leaders.

Well now, some other stories making news across America now. In California, charges have been dropped against Esther Fielding, she's the mother of a teenager accused of killing a prominent attorney's wife. Fielding was charged with accessory before she agreed to testify against the teenager, her son, 16-year-old Scott Dyleski faced murder charges. Investigators say Dyleski got into a fight with his neighbor, Pamela Vitale, before her death.

Connecticut state officials are up in arms about what maybe a bad marketing approach. A British imported beer called "Seriously Bad Elf," depicts a grouch looking elf and other Christmas symbols. State law band alcohol advertising with images that may appeal to children.

And this clock repairman in Sacramento, California is affectionately called "Dr. Time." During the time changes that occur twice a year, he has to reset 4,000 clocks. He'll be quite busy this weekend. Clocks roll back an hour, Sunday at 2:00 a.m. Eastern. Try to remember to set the clock back before you go to bed tonight.

Well, battle over billions. Are government contractors spending money the right way on Katrina recovery or are undocumented workers getting paid instead?

Plus, overcoming obstacles: Can President Bush put this tough week behind him? CNN LIVE SATURDAY continues right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Nicaragua is preparing for an unwelcome arrival. Hurricane Beta is expected to make a direct hit on the Central American country tomorrow. The Category 1 storm could strengthen before making landfall. For the latest on hurricane information, we go to meteorologist Brad Huffines in the Weather Center.

HUFFINES: I'm getting tired of these, Fredricka, I'm telling you what. Hurricane Beta continues toward the shoreline of Nicaragua. It looks like it will make landfall in the northern part of the coastline near Puerto Cabeza. And to set the stage, Caribbean Sea here, you're looking at Jamaica just north of there, Cuba. Of course, this is Nicaragua and Honduras.

What's going to happen, as this storm continues to move toward the shoreline we're going to see, of course, Hurricane Beta with winds now of 105 gusting, actually 85, gusting to 105, it will make landfall sometime early tomorrow morning with 110-mile-an-hour winds, give or take, then moving inland and dying as a tropical depression over Honduras.

Now, lots of mountains here and lots of flooding is likely, mud slides, these storms are usually devastating for especially rural residents in Honduras and Nicaragua. The good news is most of the population of both countries is on the other side of the country into Guesy Galpa (ph), Honduras and also Managua, Nicaragua which will be virtually unaffected by these -- by this storm, by this hurricane.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Yep, that's good news indeed. All right, thanks a lot, Brad.

HUFFINES: Sure.

WHITFIELD: Well, it has been a tough week for the president. Can he pull himself out of the wreckage? We'll examine the issues straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories, explosions rock India's capital as preparations for the biggest Hindu festival gets underway. Most of the blasts were at a crowded market in New Delhi. Right now at least 33 deaths have been reported. So far, no word on who is responsible for the explosions.

Another horrifying scene in southern India. Officials say at least 90 people were killed today when a passenger train derailed as it tried to cross a reservoir bridge washed away by flood waters. Rescue crews are working to lift seven cars that remain underwater. It's unclear how many people are stuck inside.

In the U.S., President Bush is at Camp David this weekend, reviewing his short list of Supreme Court nominees, but the White House has indicated he won't make any announcements while he is at the presidential retreat. Mr. Bush's last Supreme Court pick, White House counsel, Harriet Miers, withdrew her nomination Thursday after fail to win a strong backing from either republicans or democrats.

President Bush is at Camp David today ending what's been quite a tough week. Mr. Bush campaigned for a president contending his administration would adhere to the highest ethics. Now, lots of Americans are not so sure. Political analyst Bill Schneider looks at the latest opinion polls to see how the CIA leak investigation is impacting the president.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST (voice-over): Ethics played no small part in getting President Bush elected.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So when I put my hand on the Bible, I will swear to not only uphold the laws of our land, I will swear to uphold the honor and dignity to the office of which I had been elected, so help me God.

SCHNEIDER: Message to voters afflicted by scandal fatigue? I'm not Bill Clinton. When President Bush took office in 2001, nearly two-thirds of the Americans considered the new president honest and trustworthy. That number rose to more than three-quarters in the months following 9/11. At the end of 2003, the CIA leak investigation began. President Bush sounded all for it.

BUSH: If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to know it, and we'll take the appropriate action.

SCHNEIDER: Most Americans still considered President Bush honest and trustworthy when he took office for a second term last January. By July, President Bush's language was getting a little more lawyerly.

BUSH: If someone committed a crime, they will no longer work in my administration.

SCHNEIDER: By last month, half the public said President Bush was not honest and trustworthy. The investigation has taken a toll, and not just on the president. Three years ago, nearly three-quarters of the public gave top Bush administration officials high marks for ethical standards.

Now, the public is split. Negative marks have more than doubled, and Americans now believe Democrats would do a better job than Republicans in dealing with corruption in government.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And that was Bill Schneider reporting. The scramble is on, either to maximize or minimize political damage to the White House from the CIA leak probe, and here to outline those views are Democratic strategist Julian Epstein. Good to see you, Julian.

JULIAN EPSTEIN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Good to see you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And Republican strategist Tara Setmayer. Good to see you, Tara.

TARA SETMAYER, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: How are you?

WHITFIELD: Both of you coming from Washington. Tara, let me begin with you. This has been a very tough week to underscore tough and that really may be an understatement. From the U.S. troops' death toll hitting the 2,000 mark to withdrawal of Harriet Miers, to the CIA leak investigation, and now the indictment of a chief of staff, it is difficult to ascertain how in the world the White House will be able to rise above this.

They can't possibly stay the course as we've heard the president say, can they? They have to reestablish some trust among the American people, given what has taken place.

SETMAYER: Well, yes, it's no question, it's been one of the toughest weeks in the president's administration, if not the toughest week, and -- but what we have to understand is that this presidency, this administration, this country is bigger than just one, two or three issues. It's bigger than just one person and one indictment in the government.

The government will continue to run. We're not going to shut the doors down. What the president needs to do -- and he will be able to emerge from this because he has thrived in situations of opposition and adversity before.

He needs to refocus on what got him elected and the Republican party is guilty of this as well. They've lost focus a little bit here, and I think what they need to do is they need to go back and focus on the issues that got the president elected. Immigration, they've remarkably fallen back on immigration.

WHITFIELD: But also what helped get this president elected which was as we saw in Bill Schneider's piece, talking about high ethical standards. And to have a top level aide being indicted for being unethical, for allegedly being a liar for being perjurous, that certainly will undermine any effort the president is trying to make, when comparing it to his campaign initial campaign going back to his Republican base.

SETMAYER: Not necessarily. It's true. And they're going to take a hit but the American people, for the most part -- the CIA leak investigation is not going to resonate in the long-term.

And once the president regains his -- we are saying inside the circles that his second term is going to begin on Monday, when he nominates a new Supreme Court associate justice, when he decides to focus more on the war in Iraq, why we're prosecuting the war on terror, the successes there. There are different things; the domestic agenda is going to become the focus now, particularly when -- the American people aren't going to remember this..

WHITFIELD: Julian, let me bring you in this. What are the potential dangers of the Democrats are trying to seize upon, trying capitalize on what's taking place and swirling around the White House now?

EPSTEIN: Well, the potential dangers is that the Democrats become much more like what the Republicans were in 1998, where all they do is try to scandalize the Republican party rather than putting forward an affirmative agenda of their own. That's where, I think, the Democrats could fall short here.

But the president's problem really is two-fold. First it is that he promised to restore honor and dignity to the White House. This is the first sitting White House official that has been indicted in decades.

Secondly the biggest problem for this president, and this is how this is very different from say the Clinton years, is that this president isn't liked very much by the public. His poll numbers are in the low 40s. During the Monica Lewinsky scandal, president Clinton's poll numbers were in the upper 60s or even into the 70s. The public has basically lost confidence not only in this president's trustworthiness but also in his ability to lead the country.

They've lost confidence in Iraq. They've lost confidence in his ability to handle big things like Katrina. The right -- the political right has gone south on him with things like Harriet Miers.

And the thing that really bothers so many people here is that many people think that this president misled the country into a very important war, and that, when dissent came up about that, about whether or not we should have gone to war, that the president's senior officials attempted to retaliate on people's wives who sought to bring some dissent into the discussion.

WHITFIELD: Is it your point of view that Americans are blaming President Bush or are blaming his senior aides or all of them?

EPSTEIN: I think Bill Schneider's point made it very clear, that the public has now lost faith in this president's trustworthiness. You put that together with the public losing faith in this president's agenda and much of the public doesn't think this president has been agenda, and you've got a political disaster.

And the real question is -- you put your finger on, Fredricka -- is whether the Democrats will take advantage of this, not by attacking and scandalizing the Republicans, but by putting forward a more positive agenda, which is exactly what Newt Gingrich did in '94 and what Clinton did in '92. That's how you win.

WHITFIELD: So, Tara, let's talk about looking forward now. You've got an indictment here, possibly a trial which means possibly the subpoena or subpoenaing many people who are high-ranking officials there in the White House, that potentially bringing yet other problems.

Does the White House -- do you see that other Republicans, perhaps, are entertaining the idea, is it more appropriate for the White House to just come forward and be honest with the public? Tell the public what it knows or might it rather wait and see whether there will be a plea agreement made by Scooter Libby or whether, indeed, there will be trials, there will be potentially subpoenas?

SETMAYER: Well, what we need to understand and I'm not quite sure what you mean by the White House coming forward and being honest the public. The White House has been honest with the public.

WHITFIELD: We heard the president and vice president in a written statement both saying they don't want to comment any further on this ongoing investigation.

SETMAYER: That's right.

WHITFIELD: However, the American people are saying want to hear something. They want to hear some sort of explanation, how far up does this go, if you're talking about the chief of staff of the vice president.

SETMAYER: Sure. Well, what we also need to understand, that this is a grand jury proceeding and that's very one-sided. They are prohibited by certain rules of the grand jury process from commenting on certain sides which is the unfair aspect of this to Scooter Libby.

If what it is alleged here is true, that's unfortunate and I think that he -- that the law should be appropriate concerning his punishment but we need to understand, though, that the original investigation was predicated on whether a CIA operative was outed. We still do not know that.

He's being accused of covering up something that wasn't even a crime to begin with, that the classified information about Valerie Plame is well within the legal parameters of discussion between a vice president and the chief of staff. So there's a lot of questions involved.

WHITFIELD: All right, well Julian, let me give you the last word on this.

EPSTEIN: I can't believe -- I really can't believe what I just heard. First of all, it is illegal to reveal classified information, whether or not it fit under the Identities or the Espionage Act is an open question.

SETMAYER: But that's not what he's accused of. That's not what he's accused of.

EPSTEIN: Secondly -- the investigation isn't over. Secondly, I think, Fredricka, your question is, why didn't the White House do more about this? Tom Davis, a leading Republican, the chairman of the Government Reform Committee, said that he was just outraged that this White House didn't take more steps to conduct an internal investigation and try to put this matter to a rest.

And when you get Republicans starting to go south on the president, on an issue of ethics and during a criminal investigation, then you know that this president is really, really in trouble on this question of honor and integrity.

SETMAYER: Maybe because the president was busy prosecuting a war on terror, that's why they figured the special prosecutor would handle the investigation, which it has.

EPSTEIN: Tara, the problem with that is that dog don't hunt and Republicans don't even believe that.

SETMAYER: Oh, that's not true at all.

WHITFIELD: All right. Julian Epstein, and Tara Setmayer, thank you so much. We're out of time. Good to see both of you from Washington.

EPSTEIN: Thanks for having us.

Rebuilding Katrina, or rebuilding the cities after Katrina, that is, costing billions of dollars. Are government contractors spending money the right way?

And Harriet Miers has returned to her old job, but not without some ridicule. Jeanne Moos takes a look ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. government is in the middle of yet another controversy surrounding Hurricane Katrina. This battle is over who should rebuild the Gulf coast region. Officials in Louisiana say the U.S. government, contractors, in particular, are not giving construction jobs to local residents. Instead, many of those jobs are going to out of state workers and in some cases illegal immigrants. Reporting from New Orleans, CNN's Ed Lavandera.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's 10:00 p.m. And Dozens of illegal immigrants have just been fired from their jobs, and they're quickly moving out of New Orleans. Efrain Sanchez explains what happens. EFRAIN SANCHEZ, ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT: (SPEAKING IN SPANISH).

LAVANDERA: He says they took us out because we didn't have papers. When we started the job, they didn't ask for IDs. We built their houses. I hurt my finger, and they did nothing for me.

Ironically these undocumented workers spent the last few weeks building temporary housing units for the government, on the grounds of a U.S. Naval Air Station. Sanchez says he was paid $8 an hour, slept in a tent, and says he's now leaving New Orleans without much to show for it.

SANCHEZ: (SPEAKING IN SPANISH).

LAVANDERA: He says, we are waiting for our bosses to pay us, but they tell us it's impossible, because the checks are coming from a different company in Florida. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin says most contractors aren't spending government money the right way.

MAYOR RAY NAGIN, NEW ORLEANS: We have been working with the contractors to basically say you must hire local workers.

LAVANDERA: Federal laws requiring proof of identification have been suspended for companies rebuilding the Gulf coast region. Government contractors say that's needed to get the jobs filled and the work done faster.

(on camera): It doesn't take long to see why this problem exists. We're on the main street that brings you into St. Bernard Parish, a place once lined with many businesses. For example, you have a Mardi Gras carnival mart here, a barber shop here, but everything is shut down. The only work available in this area are government-sponsored reconstruction jobs.

(voice-over): There are signs of improvement. This chemical waste site is operated by an Environmental Protection Agency contractor. In just a few days, Adrian Richard will be working here, in the neighborhood he used to call home. He's training for a job that will pay him $22 an hour, plus $39 in per diem and a comfortable hotel room to live in. It's such a good deal that Richard wants to bring his family back.

ADRIAN RICHARD, NEW ORLEANS RESIDENT: I want to get St. Bernard back on its feet so I can bring my family back down and start my life over down here. That's all.

LAVANDERA: While politicians would like to point to the Adrian Richards as a shining example of the reconstruction here, it's the plight of Efrain Sanchez that paints the more realistic picture about the rebuilding process. Ed Lavandera, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Now, headlines around the world. It's the world's largest passenger plane and today, the Airbus A380 superjumbo jet landed in Frankfurt, Germany, to see if that airport, the largest in continental Europe, can handle such a giant plane. The jet can carry 555 passengers. Airbus hopes to deliver the first finished plane to Singapore Airlines next year.

Today will be an unusually quiet day in London. That's because the chimes on the city's famous Big Ben clock have been silenced for retuning and maintenance work. The chimes won't turn on until tomorrow afternoon. That's the longest time Big Ben has been silent in more than two decades.

Move over superman. Now, a real life hero is making his way into the comic books. Former South African President Nelson Mandela has launched a new comic book about his life and campaign against apartheid. Organizers are giving one million copies of the nine-part series to schools and newspapers.

On top of the world, then ridiculed by comedians, it's been quite a roller coaster ride for Harriet Miers. Jeanne Moos takes a look.

And making peace with autism. The struggles and small victories for one mother coping with her son's disorder. CNN LIVE SATURDAY continues in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A real sense of helplessness -- that's what many parents of autistic children say they feel when their children are first diagnosed with the disorder. But there are things parents can do to help their children and themselves.

The book "Making Peace With Autism" deals with that very issue, as it recounts one family's personal struggle with the debilitating condition. Its author, Susan Senator, joins from us now from Watertown, Massachusetts. Good to see you, Susan.

SUSAN SENATOR, AUTHOR: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Your child is 16 now, and at what point did you realize he was autistic?

SENATOR: Well, I think at the very beginning almost I felt that something was a little bit off but we didn't actually get the diagnosis until he was three.

WHITFIELD: And what were some of the first signs? Why did you feel like you had an inkling?

SENATOR: You know, it was kind of just -- at the very beginning of his life, it was really a feeling that I wasn't quite needed, but I couldn't put my finger on it. But then as he hit all the milestones just right, it was more like, when he got to about two, which is the social time for kids, he wasn't interested in his peers.

He didn't play with toys appropriately. He just lined them up and mouthed them, and he wouldn't go to new places without crying a lot, and having tantrums. WHITFIELD: And sometimes, that seems to make some sense of why some people feel that many times autistic children want to be left alone, that because they're not able to socialize, like a lot of other children, that perhaps they want to be left alone, but your discovery, and you spell that out in your book, is that nothing can be more further from the truth.

SENATOR: That's right. I think that, because of all of the stimulation that a lot of people with autism feel, and can't really handle naturally so well, they tend to withdraw. They seem to be withdrawing but I think a lot of that is really about not having the ability to communicate too well and not being able to access the right words necessarily, but they have all the same feelings that we have and it's really just a social and communicative disorder.

WHITFIELD: Was there ever a time that, as we learned more and more about autism, that you thought perhaps as parents to try get him out of it, you could help him be a little bit more social or work through some of these challenges?

SENATOR: In the book I chronicle a lot of times like that. You know, we still continue to try new things to strengthen his speech abilities, to get him around other kids, to organize his day with charts and with calendars so that he's really comfortable, and that does improve his behavior in things, but I don't think he's ever going to be rid of autism. I just think he's going to improve.

WHITFIELD: And what do you suppose has been the biggest hurdle for you as a parent, for you as a family?

SENATOR: The biggest hurdle, at first, was just getting the right information and trying to figure out what approaches to try, because there wasn't a whole lot of guidance 12 or 13 years ago, but once we found some support groups, things really started to fall into place.

WHITFIELD: So what are ...

SENATOR: But there still is ...

WHITFIELD: Go ahead.

SENATOR: I'm sorry.

WHITFIELD: Go ahead.

SENATOR: There's just still a lot of trouble just trying to find the right things for him socially, the right activities and what he's going to do when he's an adult, that kind of thing.

WHITFIELD: So then what are the tools you're hoping every parent of an autistic child might have, and if they don't have, these are the tools they need to have in order to better understand, better nurture their child?

SENATOR: I think, first of all, they need to get the facts about autism, but first, very first of all to know that they are their child's best expert. But once they have the facts on autism, then they can really be a great advocate. And also, the thing is to really get some support, get some help. Join support groups, whether on e- mail or in your local autism society, and they're all over the country, and do some reading on it.

My book gives a lot of tips about how to cope with a lot of things, even strengthening your marriage, but the thing to remember that a happy family might not look the way you originally thought it might, but it's still possible to be one.

WHITFIELD: Susan Senator, the book is "Making Peace with Autism." Thank you so much.

SENATOR: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: And one minute she was on top of the world. The next minute was supreme humiliation for Harriet Miers. Our Jeanne Moos takes a look right after this short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Harriet Miers is back on her job as counsel to President Bush. Miers withdrew her nomination to the Supreme Court this week in the wake of a rebellion among conservatives. It's been a rough week politically for the president. But many observers would argue it's been an even tougher period for Miers. Jeanne Moos reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The president and cartoonists called her a pit bull in size six shoes, but the pit bull got eaten alive. Insulted on the Web, lampooned on late night TV.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you for being here on Jeopardy Miss Miers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just don't ask me any legal questions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At least when Clinton talked about tapping the woman down the hall he was just having sex with her.

MOOS: But the jabs from the right for what knocked her out.

BAY BUCHANAN: The president has made a terrible, terrible mistake.

ANN COULTER: We're talking about the Supreme Court. This is not a reward for, you know, best attendance at office of legal council meetings.

MOOS: Her qualifications or lack thereof were a lightning rod for ridicule. I've never been a judge, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn express last night. As for the mutual admiration she and the president felt, her own words served as a self-inflicted kill two birds with one quote punch.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dear, diary, George W. Bush is the most brilliant man I've ever met.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's the most brilliant man I ever met.

MOOS: And though we laughed t wasn't without a tinge of guilt.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel bad for her, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm sure she's very glad that it's over because I feel pretty much poor Harriet, too.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Capitol Hill is contact sport up there. You float the balloon and sometimes it gets shot at and that's one of the whole problems.

MOOS: She got machine gunned. One minute it was Harriet Miers' dream come true, nominated to the Supreme Court, the next minute supreme humiliation, Harriet Miers look alike contests, pitting her against Darrin's mom from "Bewitched" comedian Lisa (INAUDIBLE) and even Alice Cooper and who among us could withstand a hairstyle retrospective. But not everyone was saying there, but for the grace of God go I, not Nancy Grace, anyway.

NANCY GRACE: No, I don't feel sorry for her. She'll go write a book.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have no pity for her, per se.

MOOS: I feel bad for her.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But he kicks puppies.

MOOS: At least they didn't accuse Harriet Miers of doing that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She likes puppies, too.

MOOS: WIP, withdraw in peace said one Web site. It's better to have been nominated and withdrawn than never to have been nominated at all. Harriet Miers didn't agree, thinking back to her happy nomination.

HARRIET MIERS: I have a special note this morning for my mom. Thank you for your faith.

MOOS: Let's hope her 91-year-old mom wasn't surfing the net or watching TV.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This wasn't a choice based on friendship. We're not even that close.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bushy! Come here!

MOOS: I wonder if she'll ever wear that blue suit again without feeling blue. Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York. (END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And this is enough to make you perhaps want to dust off your skis and your ski boots, because look, some fresh snow there in Vail after finally getting some cooler temperatures.

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