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Lou Dobbs Tonight

Thanksgiving in Iraq; Intelligence Controversy; Antiwar Protesters Near Bush Ranch Again; Two Hurt in Thanksgiving Parade

Aired November 24, 2005 - 18:00   ET

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

KITTY PILGRIM, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening, everybody.
Tonight, as our troops celebrate Thanksgiving, a day of violence in Iraq. We'll have a report from one of the biggest U.S. bases.

And then, an accident at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Two people are injured in New York.

Also, an astonishing reversal for this country. We could soon depend on other countries for our food supply.

And illegal aliens are trying extraordinary new ways to cross our southern border. We'll have a special report.

Tonight, 150,000 troops marked the day by eating turkey dinners at their bases in Iraq. But there was also violence. Two American soldiers were killed when their patrol was hit by a roadside bomb southwest of Baghdad. And at least 30 Iraqis were killed when a car bomb exploded outside a hospital.

Aneesh Raman reports on Thanksgiving Day from Babel province, south of Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a war, when you can't get home for the holidays, the holidays come to you. Which means for Thanksgiving Day, there's plenty of turkey in Iraq, all part of keeping up morale, at a time when U.S. troops miss home the most.

1ST LT. ASHLEY JOHNSON, U.S. ARMY: It is under difficult circumstances. But my platoon here is my family right now. And we're doing things here to keep us upbeat and motivated.

RAMAN: For 1st Lieutenant Johnson, it's the first Thanksgiving away from home. For others, it's the second.

For Staff Sergeant James Singleton, it's number six.

STAFF SGT. JAMES SINGLETON, U.S. ARMY: You just don't think about it day to day. You keep your mind on what you're doing. And you keep in contact with your family members as much as you can back home.

RAMAN (on camera): The biggest part of Thanksgiving of course is the meal. And here they tried to make it as authentic as possible: 1,250 pounds of turkey, 2,500 pounds of prime rib, all to serve some 8,000 meals.

(voice-over): But Thanksgiving is no day off. It's just another Thursday with its routine of patrols, screening vehicles, questioning civilians. And for those out working...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of guys can't come in for Thanksgiving, so we're going to bring Thanksgiving to them.

RAMAN: Out here in combat fatigues, a gun in hand, it's difficult to feel the Thanksgiving spirit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You just can't -- you know the same feeling that you -- you can't replicate it out here. I don't know. I was just thinking about it. You know, the smell of everything cooking.

RAMAN: It's all too easy, though, to remember what you miss the most.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Being home with my wife, sir.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Watching the game.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With my family, sir.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thanksgiving dinner with the rest of the family.

RAMAN: And out here, there's no such thing as down time. On the radio, a call about a car bomb. In combat, holidays can last mere moments.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, northern Babel province, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Army Secretary Francis Harvey visited troops in Iraq today. Harvey spent much of the day in the Tikrit area, northwest of Baghdad. He ate Thanksgiving dinner with the troops. In an interview with CNN, Harvey praised the troops in Iraq and he declared he was impressed with their discipline and professionalism.

Well, 18,000 American troops in Afghanistan also celebrated Thanksgiving today. And like other Americans all over the world, the soldiers ate traditional dinners. But troops also maintained their offensive against Taliban and al Qaeda terrorists. More than 200 Americans have been killed in Afghanistan since 2001.

Nearly three years after the war in Iraq began, there is an escalating controversy over prewar intelligence. Critics say the Bush White House manipulated the intelligence. The administration denies the charge. One of the generals responsible for analyzing the intelligence says the information was incomplete.

Barbara Starr reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) BRIG. GEN. JAMES MARKS (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: The only priority was the intelligence priority...

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Major General James Spider Marks in 2002 first looked at the intelligence on 946 suspected weapons of mass destruction sites in Iraq, he was taken aback. As the chief intelligence officer for ground troops, he wanted the latest information. It wasn't there.

Now a CNN analyst, Marks looks back and says he was worried.

MARKS: Two things struck me. Number one is a lot of that intelligence that supported each one of those sites was dated. It could have been more current.

The second thing that struck me, Barbara, is that there was a dearth of human intelligence.

STARR: That wasn't a surprise. The CIA had been out of Iraq for years. It all was unsettling. WMD intelligence was supposed to be a top priority.

MARKS: Clearly, my understanding as the new guy on the team is that this is the primary reason we're going to war.

STARR: By the time the war started in March 2003, intelligence was updated on fewer than 100 of the 946 sites. Marks believes Saddam got rid of weapons stockpiles.

MARKS: Did they go across the border into Syria? Were they buried in country? Were they clearly dismantled and kind of dissipated in the country?

STARR: But the debate rages on about the quality of the prewar intelligence.

MARKS: Don't think I haven't thought about this every day since we got into Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STARR: And Kitty, General Marks says before the war, he tried to solve the problem of getting fresh intelligence. Now, his lesson learned, military intelligence professionals need to question more and, as he says, poke holes in the conventional thinking early in the game -- Kitty.

PILGRIM: Thanks very much. Barbara Starr.

Thanks, Barbara.

In another intelligence controversy, Spain has found no evidence that secret CIA flights broke any of its laws. Now, the Spanish government has been investigating reports that CIA aircraft carrying terrorist suspects stopped at Spanish airports. U.S. officials also insist the flights did not break any Spanish laws. Well, President Bush spent part of Thanksgiving calling on troops on active duty around the world. The president is at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. He's celebrating the holiday with his family.

And Elaine Quijano reports from Crawford -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And Kitty, it was this morning that President Bush delivered Thanksgiving greetings to about 10 U.S. service members, members of all branches of the United States military. The president delivering that this morning from his ranch here in Texas. Among those people he spoke with, a person serving in Afghanistan, also several people in Iraq, and one person on a ship at sea.

Now, the president, the commander in chief, calling them patriots, thanking them for their service, and asked them to pass along his wishes to fellow service members.

As for the rest of his day, President Bush also went on a bike ride with his chief of staff, Andy Card, and is spending the rest of this Thanksgiving holiday with his family. Of course the first lady, their daughters, his parents, and his mother-in-law.

Now, meantime, down the road from the president's ranch here in Crawford, a group of demonstrators had gathered earlier this afternoon. They held what they said was a protest in observance of Thanksgiving, taking part in what they said was a simple Iraqi meal of rice and lentils, said some prayers as well. But unlike yesterday, there were no arrests. These demonstrators remained on private property where they have permission to be.

Now, tonight, we are expecting to see Cindy Sheehan, the antiwar activist, arrive here in Texas. Sheehan, of course, led the demonstrations back in August that drew people from all over the country. Sheehan's son Casey was killed in Iraq, and she plans to continue demanding answers from President Bush about why her son died. So far, no comment from the White House on these latest protests -- Kitty.

PILGRIM: Thanks very much. Elaine Quijano.

Thanks, Elaine.

Well, tonight, Americans across the country and around the world are giving thanks, even in a year where hope has been pretty hard to come by. Thanksgiving Day 2005 was marked by celebration, family blessing, hopes for a better future. It did have its frightening moments as well.

Christine Romans reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade thrilling children of all ages. Millions turned out for this annual symbol of Thanksgiving. Dora the Explorer debuted to much delight.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dora, Dora!

ROMANS: Chicken Little another crowd favorite.

Ten marching bands and 27 floats. And unfortunately, two sisters injured when a cable from the M&M balloon tangled with a light pole. Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the injuries were minor. A gust of wind may have been to blame.

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (R), NEW YORK: We'll get back to -- Macy's has assured us that the training for the captains was more than adequate, that these are people with lots of experience. And even the handlers, the people that basically just follow instructions and hold the ropes, two-thirds of them have been doing this in other years, or had received training out in the field.

ROMANS: Thirty-one million Americans headed to their Thanksgiving feast by car. Holiday tragedy near Chicago. A freight train crashed this morning. That following a commuter train accident last night that injured at least 10.

Across the country, it was a day with family for most. But some spent their holiday serving the needy.

A white Thanksgiving in Indiana, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and portions of New York.

And in New Orleans, remembering the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Church volunteers from around the country prepared dinner for more than 1,000 people. And the annual New Orleans turkey day race, 600 runners this year. A solid showing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Down from 1,600 runners last year, but considering the devastation in New Orleans, some wonderful signs of community in the Gulf Coast this Thanksgiving -- Kitty.

PILGRIM: Christine, any word on how the two little girls from the parade are doing?

ROMANS: An 11-year-old girl and her 26-year-old sister have both been treated and released from the hospital. The older sister had six stitches, but certainly both of them out of the hospital. And we hope that they can enjoy the rest of their holiday.

PILGRIM: Me too. All right. Thanks very much, Christine.

Still to come, General David Grange. He'll tell us what Thanksgiving will mean to our troops around the world.

Plus, this country could become dependent on foreign food supplies for the first time. We'll have a special report on that.

And how illegal aliens are finding new ways to avoid U.S. Border Patrol and sneak into the United States.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: Thanksgiving is, among many things, a time to feast and to celebrate our nation's bounty. But over the years this bounty has gone -- alarmingly gone bust. And the United States may soon import more food than it exports.

Much of our nation's food supply is controlled by giant multinationals.

Lisa Sylvester reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Since the 1950s, the United States has been running an agricultural trade surplus with the rest of the world. But in recent years that surplus has been gobbled up. Now the country is on track to become a net food importer.

ALAN TONELSON, U.S. BUSINESS & IND. COUNCIL: We've never experienced food insecurity in this nation's history. This has been rather common in most regions in the world for their entire histories. We've always been self-sufficient regarding agriculture. It's going to be a very new experience for us, and it could be a frightening one, too.

SYLVESTER: The growth in imports has come from fruits, vegetables, processed food, and beverages, including wine. Meanwhile, commodities like grain are being sold at rock-bottom prices, pushing down the value of U.S. agricultural exports.

Globalization has also played a role as companies have consolidated. Take, for instance, the Thanksgiving staple, the turkey. Fifty-one percent of the U.S. market is controlled by only four companies.

KATHERINE OZER, NATIONAL FAMILY FARM COALITION: Certainly given the amount of consolidation that's happened in the food industry, there are some major corporations that are owning every piece of the pie.

SYLVESTER: Large agribusinesses are not tied to any one country, as is the family farmer. Multinational food companies are looking for where they can get the cheapest ingredients.

DARRELL RAY, UT AG. POLICY ANALYSIS CENTER: They're interested in buying it as cheaply as they can, selling as many as imports as they can, and they don't care whether it's in Brazil or the U.S.

SYLVESTER: Since the 1960s, the number of small family farms has declined by 75 percent. Today, five percent of landowners own half of all farmland. Multinational corporations are looking after the shareholders' interests.

Farm groups want to make sure someone's protecting the U.S. national interest and safeguarding the family farm as a way of life.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SYLVESTER: The USDA says it's pushing for greater market access for U.S. exports in the World Trade Organization talks. But critics argue that these trade agreements are part of the reason the United States has been running such an enormous overall trade deficit -- Kitty.

PILGRIM: Lisa, agriculture's always been such a bright spot in the U.S. trade balance. Now shouldn't this be a wakeup wall for policymakers?

SYLVESTER: Well, indeed, it is. You know, the overall trade deficit last year was $670 billion. Fed chairman Alan Greenspan has been talking more about this.

And as you mentioned, agriculture has always been one of the bright spots of surplus for the U.S. economy. So losing the agricultural surplus is certainly not a good sign for the U.S. economy -- Kitty.

PILGRIM: Thanks very much. Lisa Sylvester.

Thanks, Lisa.

President Bush heads to the U.S.-Mexican border next week to get a first-hand look at this country's illegal alien crisis. The president will spend two days on the border. He'll be in Tucson and Phoenix, Arizona, on Monday, and El Paso, Texas, on Tuesday.

The president is expected to speak on border security and immigration reform during his trip.

On our nation's broken borders tonight, desperate times, desperate measures. Illegal aliens feeling the heat from our Border Patrol on land, and they're trying their luck by coming into this country by sea. It's a lot easier than you might think.

Casey Wian reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At the western edge of the U.S.-Mexico border there's a fence and a constant Border Patrol presence. But as the barrier ends at the Pacific Ocean, so does any significant border security.

The land border may be heavily guarded, but the Border Patrol has just three boats to cover hundreds of square miles of ocean. On the day we visited, only this one was operational.

Though there is help from the Coast Guard and Customs, marine agents are outnumbered by increasingly desperate illegal aliens with plenty of options for an ocean crossing.

JOHN HENRY LOPEZ, BORDER PATROL MARINE AGENT: Either on surf boards or swimming or on kayaks. You name it. If it can float, if they can go in the water, just they'll be out there. We have folks, we've caught folks swimming with 50 pounds of marijuana in dive bags.

WIAN: And then there are sailboats and power boats disguised as pleasure craft or fishing vessels. They easily blend into the San Diego harbor, a short trip from Mexico.

LOPEZ: What you see on the hillside there, that's Tijuana. That's how close we are to Mexico.

WIAN : The marine unit has seized 14 illegal alien smuggling vessels since May. But there's no telling how many others got through.

LOPEZ: As long as this is a country to come to, and as long as we have this much ocean and this much border to patrol, it's really -- it's really tough to control. I couldn't give you a number or figures of what it would take to actually patrol these borders. It's just too much out here. Too much water.

WIAN: The Border Patrol says ocean crossings have increased because the land border is more secure. But even that's in question. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents last week discovered another drug and people smuggling tunnel near the Otay Mesa commercial truck crossing. It's at least the 16th cross-border tunnel discovered since 2001.

Casey Wian, CNN, San Diego.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PILGRIM: Well, as winter approaches, we thought it appropriate to bring you the story of the singing iceberg. Scientists in Antarctica say they've discovered an iceberg that emits sound waves.

Now, they're too low to be heard by humans. But if you speed up the sound, the iceberg appears to be singing.

It sounds like an orchestra tuning up or a swarm of bees, they say. It happens when the iceberg scrapes an underwater sea bed. And scientists say it sounds like a real song. Maybe even a Christmas carol.

Still ahead, Thanksgiving Day thousands of miles from home. General David Grange on the meaning of this special holiday to our troops in Iraq.

And Thanksgiving in Washington, D.C. Is there anything to be thankful for? I'll be joined by some of the most respected journalists in the country.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: We are joined now by General David Grange.

Thanks very much for being with us, General.

Tell us a little bit about why Thanksgiving is such a psychologically important day for our troops overseas.

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: I would say Thanksgiving may be even more important to many than, let's say, the Christmas holidays because it's -- it's really all one. It's a unity of effort of one day, regardless of religion, regardless of race, ethnic background.

It's just a day to give thanks in a tough time, like in war, where, what are you grateful for? Well, you're grateful for that you have peace in your own country, that maybe you're striving for peace in some other country overseas, some other people.

And it's just to -- for soldiers to say, you know, we're making a difference. And this is a special day, and we're giving thanks for that.

PILGRIM: You know, in recent years, the military, especially in Iraq, has had surprise visits and very special things. Now, has our military always celebrated Thanksgiving for the troops?

GRANGE: Always. Thanksgiving is celebrated in war zones, in just assignments overseas away from the United States of America. Or even on bases within our own country.

And it's very traditional. And the military mess halls, their dining facilities -- but -- mentally I call them still mess halls -- they put on great dinners for the soldiers. And there's a lot of competition with the military cooks to culinary competition to produce the best fare.

And it's just a wonderful thing for commanders and military families to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal together and give thanks. And that happens all over the world.

PILGRIM: Well, they probably have a better meal than the one I can cook. Let me ask you what happens to someone who's in a remote area, say, out in combat.

GRANGE: It doesn't matter where you are. If you're in an area that the higher headquarters can move a Thanksgiving dinner -- quality varies, of course, depending on the area that you're operating in -- by helicopter, by truck, by boat, whatever way of means they can do this, they'll do it for soldiers even in remote areas.

It's that important. It's that sentimental to soldiers.

PILGRIM: General Grange, what was your most memorable Thanksgiving? GRANGE: You know, obviously everybody loves to be home for Thanksgiving with family. But the families also, when you're in the military, that's also your family. And I just think of Vietnam, when they were supposed to fly in, and they tried hard to fly in Thanksgiving dinners to us.

With the monsoons they couldn't get in. And so we actually did it with the old C rations, something called turkey loaf, and other -- other items in people's backpacks that they can put into some kind of a meal and still celebrate Thanksgiving.

Overseas, where you're in places like Bosnia or Kosovo, where, again, the cooks that serve the soldiers put together the best they can with what's on hand. And put together a Thanksgiving dinner. And that -- you just appreciate that so much because of the effort that went into it.

Or when you invite allies, like, for instance, in Germany, when we'd have Thanksgiving there, we would bring in our German friends. And they were fascinated by the fact that Americans celebrate this day. And they just would love to participate with us in giving thanks.

And so it's a very -- it's just very special memory when you have Thanksgiving in the military.

PILGRIM: General Grange, maybe you can help us make it a bit special for our troops overseas. Would you like to send them a message today?

GRANGE: Oh, I'd love to. And I think what's important is that as Americans back at home celebrate Thanksgiving, and give thanks to what these servicemen and women do for our country and others that want freedom overseas, that the special thanks that we're giving to them, it's well-deserved.

They're making a difference. And history will show that that's the case. It won't be immediately. But it will show that's the case in the future. And we'll give thanks for that effort.

So thank you very much.

PILGRIM: General David Grange, happy Thanksgiving.

GRANGE: Thank you. Same to you.

Today in Bogota, Colombia, fire shot from the Galeras volcano in a small eruption. Now, the Colombian government had already started evacuating 9,000 people who live in the Narino province last week. That's when scientists warned of possible volcanic activity.

This volcano had a small gas and ash eruption about a year ago that started forest fires. But there were no injuries at that time. However, the volcano erupted in 1993 and killed at least 10 people.

Still ahead, a surprising shift in strategy in a high-profile terror case. The latest on the case of terror suspect Joseph Padilla.

And some of the most respected journalists in the country join me for a look at the U.S. political scene. Can Washington rise above the partisan politics for the holidays? We'll see.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PILGRIM: New information tonight about the case of U.S. terrorist suspect Jose Padilla. Now, this week he was charged with conspiracy to murder and aiding terrorists overseas. But prosecutors who once accused him of plotting a dirty bomb attack did not charge him with more serious offenses.

David Ensor reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One reason they did not charge Jose Padilla with plotting a dirty bomb or apartment bombings, law enforcement officials have acknowledged, is that the government is unwilling to allow testimony from senior members of al Qaeda now in the hands of the CIA.

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