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CNN Live Today

Security in New York Tight for Parade; U.S. Troops Share Thoughts on Thanksgiving in Iraq; Volcano in Colombia Looks Ready to Erupt; Police Officer Saves Life by Donating Organs

Aired November 24, 2005 - 11:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: "Now in the News," U.S. troops in Iraq can't be home for Thanksgiving, so Thanksgiving has come to them. The taste of home is fleeting, however. There is no holiday from the ongoing military operations across Iraq.
Iraq doesn't get a holiday from the violence either. CNN has confirmed that a car bomb in Hillah has killed at least three people. Earlier today, Iraqi police say as many as 30 people were killed when a car bomb exploded outside a hospital south of Baghdad. Four U.S. soldiers were among about two dozen people wounded in the attack.

Jordan's King Abdullah today called on the nation's new prime minister to launch an all-out war against Islamic militancy. The call follows an attack on three Amman hotels earlier this month attributed to the terror group Al Qaeda in Iraq. Marouf al-Bakheet was appointed today to be Jordan's prime minister.

Antiwar sentiment has followed President Bush to his Texas ranch, where he's spending Thanksgiving with his family. Daniel Ellsberg, who became the leader of the Vietnam War opposition, was among the activists arrested yesterday near the president's property.

Good morning, and Happy Thanksgiving. Welcome to CNN LIVE TODAY.

It is 10:00 a.m. in New Orleans; 11:00 a.m. in New York City; and 7:00 p.m. in Baghdad.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Daryn Kagan.

And while you enjoy the day off, CNN is working to keep you connected to everything that is happening. As you can see, we have live cameras posted along the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade route. And our own Jason Carroll is working the crowds there.

We'll be checking in with him in a moment.

And CNN's Jacqui Jeras is keeping tabs on the holiday weather.

We begin in Manhattan.

While Thanksgiving is being celebrated across the country today, many Americans equate the holiday with the famous parade now under way in New York City. And finally the sun looks to be coming out. The annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade got rolling and floating about two hours ago. And CNN's Jason Carroll is in the thick of it all.

And yeah, we are finally seeing a little sunshine. A little break from the drizzle earlier.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Can you believe this, Fredricka? Looking good.

Fredricka, Fredricka, I have to keep saying that name over and over, because, you know, the last hour I kept calling you Daryn.

WHITFIELD: That's OK.

CARROLL: But I have to defend myself, Fredricka. It was so loud out here.

WHITFIELD: I know.

CARROLL: They told me it was Daryn, it was loud, I went with it. You know.

WHITFIELD: I did, too.

CARROLL: But we are going to be talking to Fredricka later, kids, just so you know.

But as you said, yes, check this out, the sun, blue sky up there. Look at that. Can you believe it? We are going to have to get with these weather folks and find out what the heck happened there.

WHITFIELD: Yeah.

CARROLL: I don't know. But...

WHITFIELD: We're happy.

CARROLL: ... this is where we've been all day. We are very happy about that.

The parade is over at this point. At least from where we are standing.

But the parade is still going on further south down by Columbus Circle, actually, where CNN headquarters are here in New York. The parade is still going by there. It'll be going on down by Herald Square, even further south.

We want to talk about some of the highlights, though.

Dora the Explorer, one of the new balloons, a major highlight of the parade. When she came by, people were screaming "Dora, Dora!"

But I want to talk to what I'm calling the four Js here, my J crew. WHITFIELD: Oh.

CARROLL: I've got Jared, Julia, Jonathan and Jake. These four here.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

CARROLL: So, kids, what did you think? Give us your review of the parade.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought Chicken Little was pretty cool. I didn't see the movie, but after seeing that balloon, I might go see the movie.

CARROLL: Really? I'm sure some movie producers are going to be happy about that one.

How about you, Julia?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I liked Mr. Potato Head. He was really cool.

CARROLL: Really? Mr. Potato Head? Mr. Healthy Mr. Potato Head, right? Because he had his running shoes on and his water bottle.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I liked how they were, like, chanting his name.

CARROLL: You were? OK.

How about you?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like Chicken Little because he's so funny. But he's so big, and he's supposed to be so small.

COSTELLO: You know, that's right, Jonathan. But they've got to make -- they've got to make them really big so everyone can see them, folks like you.

All right. How about you, Jake?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My favorite one was the Humpty-Dumpty.

CARROLL: Humpty -- I liked that, too, because he was way upside down, right?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

CARROLL: What about some of the bands? Did you guys like any of the bands?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I saw Cheetah Girls walking by and everyone chanted.

CARROLL: Of course she likes the cheetah girls. How old are you? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fourteen.

CARROLL: Fourteen. OK. Well, we're going to excuse that one this time around.

Oh, hey. Hey, how's it going?

All right. So, anyway, you've got the review here.

It seems like you guys liked the parade, right?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pretty cool, yes.

CARROLL: Great. I really liked the bands.

There was one from Hawaii, Fredricka. We were trying to figure out how they were going to stay warm, but it looks like it wasn't really needed because the day ended up being warm anyway.

As you know, earlier there were some concerns if there were high winds some of the larger balloons like Dora the Explorer wouldn't be able to explore her way down here. But the parade went off without a hitch. It was beautiful, it was fun.

A great day. Now we can all go home and stuff our faces, right, guys?

We are on our way. Fredricka, back to you.

WHITFIELD: Sounds like a great plan. And I think folks have kind of forgotten about the chill in the air anyway just out of the sheer excitement of it all.

CARROLL: Yes, absolutely.

WHITFIELD: All right. Jason Carroll. All right, thanks so much with the J crew there. Thanks a lot, Jason.

Well, New York police Commissioner Raymond Kelly has a special connection to the Macy's Parade. He was a teenager when he was in it. Now he has the much bigger task of making sure nothing spoils the fun out there.

He spoke about that with CNN's Soledad O'Brien on "AMERICAN MORNING."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Today all of the focus was on the wind because, of course, there were concerns that the balloons might be scuttled because of the wind, although the police really -- not really watching the wind, really watching security measures.

Ray Kelly is the man who's in charge. He of course is the New York City police commissioner.

Nice to see you, as always, sir. Thank you.

COMM. RAY KELLY, NYC POLICE: Good to be with you.

O'BRIEN: What's the strategy when you have 2.5 million people who are essentially lined, you know, down this path down the middle of the city?

KELLY: Lots of police officers, mostly in uniform, some in plain clothes. We put in what we call counterterrorism overlay, a lot of rooftop posts. Our aviation units are in place. All this week we used our Nexus unit to work the stores and the merchants along the route.

O'BRIEN: Describe that in more depth, if you will. Nexus is sort of a strategy to utilize the local merchants.

KELLY: Exactly.

O'BRIEN: And I guess use their intelligence, if you will.

KELLY: Exactly.

O'BRIEN: What do you...

KELLY: It's an outreach program. We ask people to be alert, to be vigilant, to look through the prism of 9/11, we say. If you see anything of a suspicious nature, give us a call. And they're tremendously cooperative. It's worked very well for us.

O'BRIEN: The parade, as you know, is now starting because we can hear the sirens going.

KELLY: Yes.

O'BRIEN: We can actually -- if you kind of peek down, you can get a little look through, you know, one of the buildings, some of the lights as well in just a little bit. I understand that because of concerns about the balloons, which are so big and really can, as we've seen historically, get out of control and can cause some damage, there's now a police sergeant assigned to each balloon? Is that right?

KELLY: Yes. Each balloon has a police sergeant who has gone to school and knows about the navigation of the balloon. Each of the balloons is tethered to a vehicle.

Many years ago, I was an employee of Macy's in high school, and I held a balloon. Believe me, it's much more sophisticated, much more involved now. A lot more management oversight of the process now.

O'BRIEN: It seems like more people, too. Some of these balloons have 80 people who are navigating them down the street.

KELLY: Right, exactly. They practiced. The managers have gotten a lot of training, the managers of each balloon. There are wind meters at each of the balloons. So we're very much concerned about it, and I think it's going to be a safe and very peaceful day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. And of course you are looking at a live picture right now as the parade makes its way down Broadway. Twenty-six floats, 30 balloons and performers from three Broadway shows. All that taking place today in Manhattan.

So far, so good.

And the weather has finally held out, Jacqui. Now they've got a little peak of sunshine. They stuck it out there in the drizzle and the wind, and now it's a glorious day.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, kind of.

WHITFIELD: Oh, come on.

JERAS: It's temporary.

WHITFIELD: Let's be the optimist here.

JERAS: Well, it is now, but it's temporary, Fredricka, I promise you.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: More carnage in Iraq. Iraqi police say a car bomb at a crowded market in Hillah has killed at least three people. Some 13 others wounded. Hillah has been the scene of frequent insurgent attacks.

Earlier, police said as many as 30 people were killed when a car bomb exploded outside a hospital just south of Baghdad. The U.S. military puts the death toll there at 24. Four U.S. soldiers are among the dozens who are wounded.

Also today, the military reported the deaths of two U.S. soldiers southwest of Baghdad. Officials say the soldiers part of Task Force Baghdad were killed by gunfire.

And the military says a U.S. soldier assigned to the Marines was killed in western Iraq. He died of wounds he suffered in a roadside bomb attack.

Even on the front lines some American traditions live on. U.S. forces in Iraq are celebrating Thanksgiving Day with a customary turkey dinner complete with trimmings.

Our Aneesh Raman is embedded with U.S. troops at the forward- operating base in Babil Province near Baghdad. He's on the videophone with us now -- Aneesh.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, good morning.

Thanksgiving Day, as you say, for U.S. troops here not a day off. They were out doing combat operations throughout the day, throughout the country. But as you mentioned, they did get a big Thanksgiving Day meal.

Two soldiers are joining me here right now. Private First Class Riley Hosik and Specialist Matthew Capo, both of them from Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Let's start with you, Specialist Capo. Holidays have got to be difficult to be away from home. I know it's your first Thanksgiving here in a combat situation away from your family back home.

How difficult is it?

SPC. MATTHEW CAPO, COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO: It's way more difficult than I ever could have dreamed it to be. You know, you always -- you always think of what the worst possible feelings you are going to experience, and then when they actually happen, you're like, wow, I'm eating dinner alone. Or, you know, you just don't have that warmth that you normally feel on Thanksgiving Day.

RAMAN: And so how are you dealing with it? Do you find sort of family among your unit?

CAPO: You definitely look to the guys next to you, the guys that you've been serving with for, what, nine months now?

PFC. RILEY HOSIK, COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO : About that.

CAPO: You know? And you look to them because they've been -- they've been your support since day one.

RAMAN: And Private First Class Hosik, this is your second Thanksgiving away from home. So you've been here before. And we're now pretty far into the war in Iraq, and people have been talking about morale back home of the troops, it's up, it's down.

From your viewpoint here on the ground, what is the morale? How is it among the troops?

HOSIK: Well, you can't really have high morale whenever you're always away from your family during the holidays. But overall, I believe morale is relatively high with the current situation that's going on over here.

Like Specialist Capo said, we keep close with each other. And, you know, we keep each other as much family as possible. And I believe that's the key thing that's keeping us going so well over here.

RAMAN: And how often do you keep in touch with your folks, with your family back home? How much of what's happening here do you tell them of it?

HOSIK: We really aren't at liberty to tell them very much about what goes on over here because of the Geneva Convention and things like that. But we do tell them that we are all right, and we tell them as much as we can, tell them how much we love them and we care for them.

RAMAN: Great. Well, we thank you for everything you guys are doing out here. Anyone you want to say Happy Thanksgiving to back home?

CAPO: My mom, dad, Lisa, her parents. I love you guys, and I miss you guys a lot. And I'll be home soon.

HOSIK: I'd like to say to my wife, I love her. And I hope she's doing well with the baby and everything. She's pregnant right now.

To my-in-laws, Julie and Bruce, my brothers-in-law, Conner (ph) and Arthur, I hope you all are doing safe. Hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving.

I love you all and I'll be home soon.

RAMAN: Great. Well, thank you, guys.

And as they were saying, it's just another Thursday, Fredricka. As much as it's Thanksgiving, work has to be done. The fight goes on -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Aneesh Raman. Thanks so much, and best regards to the troops there. And happy holidays.

Well, we are watching two live events around the world.

Top-level talks in London. Only days after being elected Germany's new leader, Angela Merkel -- right there on the left in this live picture -- along with British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The unresolved European Union budget is expected to top the agenda.

In keeping with Germany's close ties to France, Ms. Merkel has already held meetings with French President Jacques Chirac. She's been stressing continuity in German foreign policy.

And at least a half-dozen countries in Europe are investigating this question: Did the CIA stop in or fly over their territory en route to secret prisons? At this hour, Spain is reporting the findings of its government investigation. Officials say they found no relevant evidence of a crime.

"The Washington Post" first disclosed the existence of alleged CIA prisons in eastern Europe. Human rights activists claim the Bush administration uses the offshore facilities for torture. If they exist, the prisons may be illegal under international treaty.

When asked about the alleged prisons on November 7, President Bush said, "Any activity we conduct is within the law." And he stated emphatically, "We do not torture."

Well, it's a holiday for most in the country. But many in New Orleans are working right through it. We'll find out how one aid organization is literally rebuilding itself so it can start helping Katrina victims. And this Thanksgiving is truly special for one woman who is alive today thanks to the generosity of complete strangers. It's a feel- good story you don't want to miss.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Saving lives, it's one of the jobs of a police officer. One officer saved a half a dozen lives in time -- just in time for Thanksgiving. Only he doesn't even know it.

CNN's Elizabeth Cohen has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNETTOR MURPHY, LIVER TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT: Thank you, love.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Annettor Murphy traveled 400 miles to thank the parents of the man who saved her life. She will never be able to thank their son.

Craig McBride, a police officer, died in August. Just two years on the force, he'd been voted rookie of the year at his precinct in Washington, D.C. His parents had never seen him happier. He would have been married soon. He would have turned 26 today.

Now, Annettor Murphy has his liver.

(on camera): There's several others out there like you...

MURPHY: Sure there are.

COHEN: ... who have a part of Craig inside them.

MURPHY: Yes, yes. But I think I got the best part. And I'm so happy.

COHEN (voice over): On August 9, Ken and Jeanne McBride were at home in Massachusetts when their phone rang. Their son was being taken to Washington Hospital Center.

JEANNE MCBRIDE, PARENT OF LIVER DONOR: What I asked the doctor was, is this the kind of situation where we needed to be there yesterday? And he said yes. That's all he needed to say.

COHEN: The next day, with his parents and dozens of police officers by his side, Craig died. The reason so shocking it was hard for them to believe it at first. He drunk too much water on a bike patrol training ride. It led to a lethal sodium imbalance.

When the hospital asked his parents if they'd like to denate Craig's organs, they didn't hesitate.

KEN MCBRIDE, PARENT OF LIVER DONOR: It's consistent with who he was, the way he lived, helping people.

COHEN: Craig's heart saved a life. His lungs two more. And another two people are alive today because of his kidneys and pancreas.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The gift you unselfishly gave to others when you decided to donate Craig's organs was truly heroic.

COHEN: According to the Washington Regional Transplant Consortium, Craig saved six lives. Through tissue donation, he improved countless overs.

(on camera): Without Craig's liver, what would have happened to you?

MURPHY: I would have died. Simply died.

COHEN (voice over): Of the six, only Annettor Murphy knows that she owes her life to Craig. The hospital didn't tell her. For privacy reasons they don't reveal the identity of an organ donor.

Kim Taylor is the reason Annettor can thank Craig's family. She worked with Craig on the D.C. police force and she's Annettor's niece.

Kim put it all together. Her aunt received a liver the day after Craig died, and her family had been told the liver was coming from a young person.

KIMBERLY TAYLOR, NIECE OF LIVER TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT: And I just ran into my commander's office and I'm like, "My auntie, my auntie. Officer McBride!" And that's all I could get out was "My auntie, Officer McBride," and "save my aunt's life."

COHEN: A few weeks ago, Annettor and her family flew from Baltimore to Boston.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How are you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good. How about you?

COHEN: She wanted to learn more about the man who gave her a new lease on life. The McBrides shared family photos and stories.

J. MCBRIDE: Just pictures growing up. He was an entrepreneur very early.

COHEN: And together they celebrated Annettor's 62nd birthday.

J. MCBRIDE (SINGING): Happy birthday to you.

K. MCBRIDE (SINGING): Happy birthday to you.

COHEN: A birthday her doctors never thought she'd reach.

TAYLOR: Craig was a hero. He's allowed life to continue in someone else, and that's my aunt. He's just an awesome guy.

COHEN (on camera): How was it to meet the parents of the man who gave you your liver?

MURPHY: I love them. I love them. They're angels. And he was an angel to give me his liver.

COHEN (voice over): The McBrides gave Annettor this quilt.

J. MCBRIDE: The organ transplant symbol, butterflies. So I put butterfly fabric in each corner.

COHEN: To symbolize that forever...

J. MCBRIDE: Our hearts to your heart.

COHEN: Because of Craig, they're family.

Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Framingham, Massachusetts.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Scientists say a volcano in Colombia looks ready for a major eruption. Galeras volcano has been boiling and belching for weeks. Thousands of villagers who live on or near the mountain are under evacuation orders right now. But some just aren't leaving.

Let's talk to CNN's Karl Penhaul in Bogota.

Karl, what's the situation?

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, in fact, at 2:46 local time this morning, there was a small eruption of the Galeras volcano. Volcano experts that I've been talking to throughout the morning says that's consisted of a series of earth tremors and then a large cloud of ash then belching out from the crater of the volcano and over near -- near villages and the city of Pasto nearby.

What that has led to is for scientists to upgrade the alert to a red alert. The volcano is now on level one alert. That, in practical terms, means an eruption is imminent or under way.

Now, what this has led to in the course of this morning is that emergency teams in the city of Pasto, down near the border with Ecuador, are working away, evacuating 5,300 people at immediate risk of the -- in the eruption path of the volcano. In the previous week, the government had ordered 10,000 people who live around the volcano to move.

Many of those had refused. But this morning, as I say, 5,300 people are being evacuated to 11 hostiles in the region. Two villages and one neighborhood of the city of Pasto are under those evacuation orders right now. And the city of Pasto is a city of about 450,000 people.

It's now incommunicado from the rest of the country, in terms of commercial flights. All commercial flights have been closed for the time being because there is a lot of ash in the air -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And Karl, since you are reporting that the eruption is imminent, why is it that some of those people who are under evacuation orders don't want to evacuate? They are refusing to do so. Why?

PENHAUL: The last eruption of this volcano was in 1993. The casualties then was a small team of volcanologists who were actually in the crater at the time. So that's led to a sense of false security, some say, for villagers who live around the volcano.

And what they've been doing over the last week has been saying to officials, no, we don't want to leave our homes. We can't afford to go and live in another part of Colombia while the risk subsides.

And what they've been doing meanwhile is been taking offerings to the volcano, these kind of Pagan offerings. Also, in some cases, they've taken effigies and statues of the Virgin Mary and placed them on the side of the volcano. They are trying to trust in that rather than in the scientists.

WHITFIELD: Karl Penhaul, thanks so much in Bogota.

On December 18, "TIME" magazine will announce its "Person of the Year." Here's a look at a potential candidate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): More than anyone else this year, J.K. Rowling proved magic is found between the pages of books. Her latest, "Harrry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," sold about nine million copies in Britain and the U.S. in its first 24 hours alone, making J.K. Rowling a candidate for "TIME" magazine's "Person of the Year."

PRISCILLA PAINTON, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, "TIME": After about a decade almost of producing these books, one could ask oneself, you know, has this franchise been exhausted? And what she proved this year was that, no, it's not the case. And in fact, it's stronger than ever.

She published a book in late spring, early summer that was a huge success. Then came the movie. And what this proves is that she not only has been able to convert that first generation of readers, but successive ones after that. Not to mention their parents.

And that her legacy gets stronger. And that legacy is reminding people that in the age of IM-ing, you can not tear a book out of the hands of a young reader in love with the book.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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