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CNN Live Today

Bush to Deliver Fourth Iraq Speech; Reservoir Breach in Missouri; House Committee Investigates Katrina Response

Aired December 14, 2005 - 10:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Happening this hour on CNN LIVE TODAY.
We're gearing up for President Bush's fourth in a series of speeches on the war in Iraq. This is the finale in his plan for victory. Mr. Bush speaking at a critical time for Iraq. Voters there are just hours away from choosing a new parliament. Before the president speaks, Democrats take their turn. Top senators speaking just about 15 minutes from now. Live coverage this hour on CNN LIVE TODAY.

But first, a look at other stories happening right "Now in the News."

We're following a developing story out of Southeastern Missouri. There has been a break in the reservoir of a hydroelectric plant near the town of Lesterville and that's caused the Black River to flood its banks at a state park. A dispatcher with the Reynolds County Sheriff's Department spoke with CNN's "American Morning" a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINGER BELL, REYNOLDS COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: We're not sure if there was any campers in the park at all. There was a family of five that lived in the residence that was destroyed. They are all accounted for at this time and they are at Browns (ph) County Memorial Hospital. There was one individual that lived inside the camp. She has also been accounted for. Up and down the river, it's really -- it's hard to say how many homes, as many as 150, 200 people could have been affected.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Former President Gerald Ford is back at his California home today. He was released from the hospital last night after undergoing what his spokeswoman called routine tests. The 92- year-old Ford had a bad cold but otherwise is said to be in good health for his age.

Louisiana's governor is on Capitol Hill today. Kathleen Blanco testifies before the special House committee on Hurricane Katrina. Blanco's appearance comes after the release of e-mails showing her staff worried about the governor's image during the storm, among other things. The panel will also hear from New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin. The House is expected today to renew The Patriot Act. It's the centerpiece of the Bush administration's anti-terrorism laws. Some of the more controversial provisions involving wiretaps and secret warrants for records are set to expire this year. The Patriot Act faces a tougher fight in the Senate.

Leaders around the world are condemning the latest remarks by Iran's president about Israel and the holocaust. On Iranian television today, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the holocaust a myth used by Europeans to justify a Jewish state. Germany says the comments will affect talks on Iran's nuclear program.

Good morning. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Daryn Kagan this morning.

Tomorrow's election for a permanent Iraqi government may not only be a turning point for Iraqis, but for President Bush as well. And on the eve of the historic vote, the president is wrapping up his series of victory strategy in Iraq speeches. We'll have the president's address live in the next hour and we'll devote much of this hour previewing the speech and checking developments in Iraq. Our correspondents include Suzanne Malveaux at the White House, Barbara Starr at the Pentagon and Christiane Amanpour in Baghdad.

Let's begin with Suzanne.

And, Suzanne, what is the president expected to say?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, really we expect the president not only to set the tone for tomorrow but also for the next year, talking about this being a transition time for the Iraqi people, specifically a political transition, one in which hopefully, as they stand up their government, becomes stronger, that the insurgency will be weakened and therefore U.S. troops will eventually allowed to be -- to come home. Now he's going to tie in the three different elements. The economic, political, as well as military strategy. Arguing that it is in U.S. interests, best interests, that the United States and Americans essentially stay behind the president and his mission.

There's really a twofold strategy here. First of all, short- term, to make sure the message gets out to the American people. And, of course, simply to buy time here. To reassure Republicans that, look, stay the course. You're not going to be hurt if you stick by me, by the president, that is, in the 2006 elections. At the same time, exploiting the divisions within the Democrats. That's the short-term strategy. Long-term strategy, of course, is all about legacy.

Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Suzanne, thanks so much, from the White House.

Now let's go to the Pentagon where we find Barbara Starr.

And, Barbara, what is this about more money being requested?

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, the war currently costs anywhere between $4.5 and $5 billion a month. And, of course, as the money runs out and continues to run out month by month, the administration making plans to ask Congress early next year for even more funds to run the war. Some news reports indicating the next request could be upwards of $100 billion. And the priorities, of course, are eventually now getting to replacing the equipment that has been worn out by the three years of combat in Iraq. Also, more money probably being requested for intelligence gathering. That is going to be the top priority for 2006, tracking down the insurgents wherever they are.

Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Barbara Starr at the Pentagon.

Let's go to Baghdad now and we find Christiane Amanpour.

And, Christiane, already reports of some phony ballots being found. What's that all about?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, police have told CNN that they have intercepted a truck at the border between Iraq and Iran, near that border, that contains, they told us, a lot of fake ballots. They said that the driver of the truck was an Iranian national and that the license plate of the truck was also Iranian. They're investigating it, they say.

However, Iraq's interior ministry denies it. The U.S. here says that they're looking into it and so does the electoral commission. But we really do not have a whole load of certain, hard and fast facts on that.

(AUDIO GAP) it's really election related violence. There have been candidates and political workers killed. And the offices of the candidate Ayad Allawi, who as Americans will remember was the first appointed prime minister of Iraq, another office was burned and torched today. He is also himself been attacked by rival groups.

So things are quite turbulent in the run-up to this election. The Sunnis are calling on their people to come out and vote because they don't want to be marginalized (ph) like they were last time for boycotting. But the question is, will the insurgency die down? And will there be space for the American forces to be able to draw down their forces? We're told that that's unlikely in the next six months, even to a year. They will not be able to completely leave. But perhaps they'll be able to draw down some after the elections. It depends on whether the Iraqi forces are up and running as we discovered yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR, (voice over): Bouncing around in the back of a U.S. Army Bradley fighting vehicle may rattle the bones, but it's still the safest way to travel around Baghdad. Much safer than conditions for the Iraqi soldiers these Americans are training. In the back of an ordinary unarmored truck, they call on God as they head out on mission.

They're saying their prayer in case they die. How safe do they feel in this truck?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We know the situation. We know it's not safe. But we're here to fight the insurgents.

AMANPOUR: Singing and taunting insurgents, there's a lot of boisterous bravado here. But this is deadly serious business. Only the success of Iraqi units like this one would allow U.S. forces to leave. Ahead of Thursday's elections, they're securing Baghdad neighborhoods and polling stations, setting up checkpoints and looking out for suicide car bombs. The repair shops in this street have been known to produce them. This man, an engineer, likes what he sees.

You think they can protect you?

ABDUL AZAL, MECHANICAL ENGINEER: Yes, they can protect us.

AMANPOUR: What do you think about the American forces? Should they stay? Should they go?

AZAL: They are for protecting us. We consider them our friends. OK. And we need them. But when our army is going good, they can go.

AMANPOUR: When will that be? We asked Platoon Sergeant James Wells who's training these Iraqi soldiers.

SGT. JAMES WELLS, U.S. ARMY: Oh, that's -- that's a good question. It's going to depend on more than just my company.

AMANPOUR: Back at his base, there's a wall of photographs. Never forget, it says, over faces of U.S. soldiers who have died.

COL. EDWARD CARDON, U.S. ARMY: Captain Mike McKinnon here was quite involved with training Iraqi forces.

AMANPOUR: Gab (ph) commander, Colonel Edward Cardon, says he feels the growing political pressure from home.

What do you think would happen if America withdrew all its troops within the next year?

CARDON: I'm not sure that would be a good idea. I also get this from the Iraqis themselves. They want us to leave, but they only want us to leave when their own Iraqi security forces are ready.

AMANPOUR: Iraqi forces hold about 40 percent of Baghdad now, with American supervision. Last year, they didn't hold any of this city. But even despite the success, many American commanders tell us that if it wasn't for U.S. logistical support, the Iraqis would do much worse than they're doing now.

In fact, recent Iraqi army actions near the Syrian border were called a big success. But experts say they would not have been without heavy U.S. support. Insurgents have killed more Iraqi soldiers and police this year than last. And these soldiers get regular death threats. This lieutenant says there's still a long road ahead.

LT. AHMED AIDAN, IRAQI ARMY, (through translator): First we need to develop our training, he says, and we need more weapons so that we can face and confront the enemy.

AMANPOUR: But what these Iraqi soldiers lack in arms and armor, they make up for in determination and pride.

Are you ready for the Americans to leave?

MEN: (INAUDIBLE).

AMANPOUR: Really?

MEN: (INAUDIBLE).

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: So, as you can see, the status of the Iraqi forces is a decidedly mixed bag. And not just the forces have to be really up to scratch (ph), but the whole infrastructure as well. We're told by the colonel we spoke to, Colonel Cardon, that the whole ministry of defense here needs to be up and running in a proper way. There are real problems, he says, with the whole issue of training, equipping, paying and recruiting these soldiers and there needs to be a proper ministry of defense in place so that the actual army has a proper support network.

Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Christiane Amanpour, thank you so much for that update out of Baghdad now.

A couple of stories we're following for you. This just in. You're looking at firefighters trying to douse the flames of a building that is fully engulfed there in Woodbridge, New Jersey. We don't know much about the business or the building that is aflame right now, or whether there were any occupants inside. We don't know if any people were in danger. But right now you're looking at a very snowy, icy condition as the firefighters there battle that blaze.

And then out of Lesterville, Missouri, we've been reporting to you all morning that the upper Taum Sauk Lake Dam has failed, sending a lot of water downstream. And along with it, at least one home has been swept away and a number of cars and trucks have been swept away on nearby highways as well. Ginger Bell is with the Reynolds County Sheriff's Department. She's on the telephone with us now.

And, Ginger, how dangerous a situation is this right now?

GINGER BELL, REYNOLDS COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: Right now the danger is kind of at a minimum. The water is actually gone in Taum Sauk Lake and it is coming -- starting to come over the dam but the dam is holding.

WHITFIELD: And I understand a number of officials have posted some warnings to the residents who are living near Lesterville and then south to a point west of Annapolis. Why are they so vulnerable?

BELL: They're vulnerable right now because there was an extreme amount of water that was in the reservoir. The water actually came out of the reservoir into the river. The dam is holding the watt right now but we're not sure how much longer the dam's going to hold. And that there will be flash flooding conditions all along Black River south of Taum Sauk Lake.

WHITFIELD: Why did this happen?

BELL: That we don't know. You would have to talk to the (INAUDIBLE) to find that out. And I'm sure their investigation is pending right now. They're not able to get in and really look things over at this time.

WHITFIELD: And earlier we reported that this took place near a park and there was some concern that campers might be in danger. Is that still a concern?

BELL: Actually, no. It was at Johnson Shut-in State Park. All of the people that were reported missing have been located there. The ones with injuries have been transported to Reynolds County Memorial Hospital to be treated for their injuries and everyone there has been accounted for.

WHITFIELD: What kind of injuries are we talking about?

BELL: Well, the temperatures are cold and we had a lot of people in the water. I did receive word that this actually took place at about 4:30 this morning instead of 5:30. I didn't get the call here at the sheriff's office until 5:30. So we had people in really, really cold water for an hour. so we were dealing with some hypothermia. We had some small children involved in this. And mostly it's hypothermia issues.

WHITFIELD: And now you mentioned, you're not sure how long the dam will hold.

BELL: Correct.

WHITFIELD: Which has to lead me to, will you have any sort of evacuations in any particular communities as a result?

BELL: Right now it is a voluntary evacuation for everyone along Black River south of Taum Sauk Lake. The residents in Lesterville can go to Fellowship Baptist Church or the school. Anyone that lives along the river, for their own precautionary safety, needed to evacuate to higher ground.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ginger Bell of the Reynolds County Sheriff's Department. Thanks so much.

BELL: Oh, you're welcome.

WHITFIELD: And, of course, we want to remind you again of President Bush's speech coming up less than an hour from now. It's the fourth time in recent weeks that he is talking about his strategy for victory in Iraq and it comes just hours before the polls open in Iraq and voters choose a new parliament.

But before the president does speak, Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill have a few things to talk about as well. We're expecting them shortly and you'll hear what they have to say live right here on CNN.

And on patrol in Ramadi. A day in the life of a U.S. Marine. It's a gripping and very intense story.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Keeping a close watch now on a few developments now. You're looking at live pictures right now out of Woodbridge, New Jersey. A very snowy, icy place right now. But firefighters are on the scene of what appears to be a fully engulfed building. We don't know right now whether it's a business or how that building is used in any capacity or whether there were any people inside the building, as the firefighters are now battling that blaze. We only know that it is ongoing and it's a very tenuous situation given the weather, as well.

And then move much further south to Lesterville, Missouri, and there a reservoir has been compromised somehow this morning sending lots of water downstream and now a nearby dam is holding much of the water. But we talked to a sheriff's department representative earlier who says right now it's holding but they do realize that a lot of folks down steam are still in very vulnerable situations. However, right now, no explanation as to why that reservoir had overflowed or why there's been a breach in that reservoir. They don't even believe it's weather related. But more on that as we get it.

Meantime, Chicago, St. Louis, Dayton and Cincinnati, people in those cities and just about everywhere else in the upper Midwest may have another major winter storm to deal with today. If you want to know the current conditions in a specific location, just go online to cnn.com/weather and type in the zip code or the city.

Let's check in with Bonnie Schneider right now. Lots of severe weather all over the place and the folks in New Jersey, you know, don't need that kind of icy snowy conditions in which to fight that blaze, but that's what they've got at hand right now.

Bonnie.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: I want to take you straight to Capitol Hill right now. A preeminent strike, if you will. The Democrats, led by Senator Harry Reid, right now talking about their idea about the state of affairs in Iraq leading up to, just less than an hour from now, the president's expected aggress on the victory in Iraq. Let's listen in.

SEN. HARRY REID, (D) MINORITY LEADER: Just as important, tomorrow's elections must signal a turning point in the relationship between America and Iraq. Just a couple of weeks ago, 79 senators said that we must change course in Iraq. The year 2006 must be a year of significant transition in Iraq. And the next four months, between Thursday's elections and when the constitution is to be finalized, will be an extremely critical period in Iraq. During this time, as Senator Levin will elaborate, Iraq must get its political house in order and get the security force it needs to defend itself.

But the burden does not rest solely on the Iraqis. President Bush has a responsibility as well. Today, 41 members of the United States Senate, all Democrats, sent a letter to the president of the United States -- forty-one Democratic senators -- to show that we need to get things right in Iraq after these elections. The president's had a number of speeches, three in number, and he is still not focused on what needs to be done in convincing the American people and showing the American people what his plan is in Iraq. What we're asking is nothing that's unique. What we're asking is nothing that hasn't been done before.

I have here one example where President Franklin Roosevelt gave a presentation to the American people, the American people. The president said at that time, among other things, that is the reason why I've asked you to take out and spread before you a map of the whole earth. The president has explained what we're doing in the world war. That country was -- in which the country was engaged. He went on to say, this is war. The American people want to know and will be told, and they're entitled to be told what's going on.

That's all we're asking. I regret that the president is zero for three in his last three speeches. He hasn't leveled with the American people or laid out a strategy for success. He continues to say, stay the course. He continues to say, we're winning. But based on his three speeches, if this were a baseball game, he would already be struck out.

In order to support the mission, the American people need to know the remaining political, economic and military benchmarks and maybe a reasonable schedule for achieving them. And that's what we called for in this letter. With his speech today, that's what the president has a chance to do.

I do say this, the focus of the debate in this country, dealing with Iraq has changed because of what has taken place. A closed session of the United States Senate was demanded so that we can have the intelligence committees do what they're entitled to do, what they're obligated to do ethically and legally, and determine how the evidence was manipulated prior to going to the war, the intelligence information. And with the bipartisan vote on the Senate floor, indicating, as I've said before, that we must change course in Iraq. That the year 2006 will be a year of significant transition and then the work of courageous Jack Murtha has focused the Americans' attention on what has not been right and what needs to be done with the war in Iraq.

Again, I congratulate the United States military. I hope that the elections are peaceful and that we are going to be in celebration four months from now with Iraq taking over their own country.

Senator Levin.

SEN. CARL LEVIN, (D) MICHIGAN: This week's election will hopefully be a positive turning point in Iraq. But the reality is, that the election could lead to a change for the better, which is everybody's hope, but it might be a step towards crisis and towards all-out civil war. And which path Iraq takes is going to depend not on the election, but during that four month period following the election when a new assembly comes into office, creates a commission or a committee to recommend changes in the Iraqi constitution.

Those changes are critically necessary. One of our top commanders in Iraq, General Casey, have said that the -- the following in front of the Armed Services Committee. That we look for the constitution to be a national compact, but the perception now is that it's not, particularly among the Sunni.

The election of this assembly, under this constitution, sets the stage. But the fate of Iraq, the fate of our mission, will depend on whether or not there are changes in the constitution which are made during that four-month period which the Iraqis have set for themselves following the assembly taking office, to make changes in that constitution. That is going to be the pivotal issue. Will the Iraqis make the essential changes in their constitution to bring on board the Sunni Arabs so that all three of the major groups sign on to a compact rather than just two of the three groups. What the president said on Monday fell sadly very short of sending a clear message to the Iraqis about the need to change the constitution. Here's what he said. The second key challenge in Iraq is forming an inclusive government that protects the interests of all Iraqis. So far, so good. But then he said, Iraqi leaders will also have to review and possibly amend the constitution and ensure that this historic document earns the broad support of all Iraqi communities.

They don't need to possibly change the constitution. They desperately need to change the constitution. There should be no ifs, no ands, and no buts about what the Iraqis need to do. We can't write that constitution for them. We can't amend it for them. Only they can do it. But they're not going to do it if they get a weak message from the president as to what they need to do.

The president has been strong about our staying the course. Where he's been weak is when it comes to telling the Iraqis that they must put their political house in order or there's going to be consequences in terms of our continuing presence in Iraq.

Our military leaders have said there is no military victory possible unless the Iraqis put their political house in order. That's what our military leaders have said.

The Iraqis must make the political concessions to each other, to share power, to share oil resources, if there's going to be THE political unity which is essential to defeat the insurgency. They have not done that yet.

It is going to be a difficult job for them to do that in that four-month period that the constitution gives them to amend the constitution. But the message must be that they must do that. It is essential that they do that. They need to do that. It is the wrong message to say they possibly will do that.

Our -- the bipartisan amendment, which passed this Senate with 79 votes, which our leader referred to, said the following: "The administration should tell the leaders of all groups and political parties in Iraq that they need to make the compromises necessary to achieve the broad-based and sustainable political settlement that is essential for defeating the insurgency in Iraq within the schedule that they have set for themselves."

That's what 79 senators have urged the president to do. He has not done that yet with the word "possibly." Hopefully he will do that today and send the essential strong message to the Iraqis that they must get their political house in order if they have a chance of unifying to defeat this insurgency.

Jack Reed?

JACK REED (D), RHODE ISLAND: Today the Democratic Caucus is again urging the president to demonstrate leadership and provide a clear plan for victory in Iraq. The success of this week's election will play an important part in defeating the insurgency and hastening the day when the people of Iraq can govern themselves without significant foreign assistance.

But as we have seen with previous elections, this election is a step forward, not the end of our mission and the responsibilities of the Iraqi people. The new Iraqi government will face daunting challenges. They will have four months to craft amendments to the constitution that will neutralize Sunni opposition and begin to make the Sunnis equal partners in the political process.

And this is the fundamental political challenge that the government of Iraq faces. If changes are not made that meet the Sunnis' satisfaction, there is still a great danger that there will be continued violence and even the possibility of the civil war and a fragmentation of the country.

The letter we sent today urges the president to address the concerns of the Senate amendment that stated -- as Senator Levin pointed out -- "the administration should tell the leaders of all groups and political parties in Iraq that they need to make the compromises necessary to achieve the broad-based and sustainable political statement -- settlement -- that is necessary for defeating the insurgency within the schedule they set for themselves."

The letter also urges the president to use his leadership to ensure that we engage the international community and Iraq's neighbors in efforts to produce sustainable political compromise. A democratic Iraq would be a positive development for the security of the United States and for the stability of the Middle East, but much work remains before our involvement in Iraq will end.

Unfortunately, that end remains unclear. The president still has not stated how long his administration believes the process will take and how much it will cost in terms of funding and in terms of the commitment of American military and civilian personnel. I hope that today he will provide that guidance to the American people.

Thank you.

REID: We'll be happy to take some questions if there are some.

QUESTION: Senator...

REID: Yes.

QUESTION: President Bush has spoken of two victories (INAUDIBLE). For you, what would constitute a victory for the U.S. in Iraq and do (INAUDIBLE)?

REID: Well, my personal thing -- and I want my colleagues to comment on this -- victory is, in my mind, consists of doing well militarily, economically and politically. And we, as I think you all know, are approaching 2,200 dead Americans, servicemen. The number of Iraqis who have been killed in Iraq is between 30,000 and 100,000. The war -- there's one report out this morning, is approaching half a trillion dollars. So, you know, this is not scoring another field goal when the game is over. This is dealing with people's lives in a country.

Militarily, we have not achieved success at this stage. Economically, we're certainly far from that. We're producing less oil now than we did before. Politically, as our leader on this issue has been speaking for several months now, the ranking member of our Armed Service Committee, Senator Levin, the Iraqis have to get their political house in order. They don't have that in order. They've got to do that. They have to do that.

So, I think for someone who -- who is looking for a political victory just to put another notch in your gun, it's not that simple. Because the way that I look at it, it's a sphere of military, political, and economic.

Senator Levin, do you care to comment on this?

LEVIN: There's a chance for success in Iraq, providing the Iraqis put their political house in order. That's the key to it. To say total victory is a very open-ended commitment. It is unlimited in terms of our presence. Total victory could take decades. I don't think the American public will accept that kind of an open-ended commitment.

So I would phrase it this way, that we do have a chance for some success in Iraq, providing - it's a big providing -- the Iraqis come together, unify politically, amend their constitution, take on the insurgency first, and then, in a united way, go after the suicide bombers, the fanatics, the religious fanatics who mainly are outsiders. But first they've got to deal with their inside political division before they have any chance of success against these outside suicide bombers, these religious fanatics that are interested in destroying any chance of Iraq becoming a nation.

REID: Jack.

REED: Complete victory is a slogan, not a well-defined objective, and we'd be better served by -- from the president by better defined objective for the use of our forces and also our complementary civilian personnel in Iraq. And also at this juncture, when I read reports from the press of plans by the Department of Defense to reduce our force structure in terms of our army and our both active and National Guard, it seems to contradict this notion that we'll stay indefinitely, we'll stay forever until we have this complete victory.

So I think part of what we've asked, both the caucus, collectively, and many individually, is for a much more clearly defined objective that our military leaders can use to plan not only for the operation in Iraq, but over time, for the force structure of our army and our marine corps.

WHITFIELD: Senators Jack Reed, Harry Reid, Carl Levin, all leading Democrats being critical of the president's series of victory in Iraq speeches that's taking place. Less than 30 minutes now before the president is to deliver his fourth and final of this victory in Iraq package of speeches. And, of course, we'll be carrying that live here on CNN.

These leading Democrats saying that they're among 41 Senate Democrats who have sent letters to show, quote, "we need to get things right after the elections." And he says -- AND they're saying the jargon of victory in Iraq goes well beyond that.

And of course we'll be covering the president's speech, coming up at the top of the hour, about 30 minutes from now right here on CNN. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: You're looking at some of the latest pictures coming in out of Woodbridge, New Jersey, where that fire involving some sort of structure is still ongoing, and the firefighters are trying to put it out. We still don't know if there were any occupants of that building. Of course when we get more information, we'll be bringing that to you. That out of Woodbridge, New Jersey.

And then out of Lesterville, Missouri, a breach in the upper reservoir of a hydroelectric plant sending a lot of water downstream, flooding a state park, and taking along with it at least one residence and a tractor trailer and at least one other vehicle off a highway. We haven't heard of whether there are any injuries, or any serious threats of any persons, but we do know that some voluntary evacuations are under way there in those low-lying areas, made vulnerable now by this reservoir breach.

(NEWSBREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

A special House committee has been looking into what happened in the frantic days and hours following Hurricane Katrina. Today the panel is hearing from some of the prominent state and local leaders in the trenches, namely the governor of Louisiana and the mayor of New Orleans. Let's get a live update from Andrea Koppel on Capitol Hill -- Andrea.

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, last week we heard from evacuees from survivors of Katrina, people from New Orleans, and we also heard from the governor of Mississippi, as you pointed out, this week, in what's perhaps going to be the last hearing not just of this year, but perhaps even of this house select committee on Katrina. We're going to hear from mayor Ray Nagin, and also from Kathleen Blanco, who was the first-term governor of Louisiana. And you may remember that she ruffled a lot of feathers here in Washington when President Bush asked her to cede control over the Louisiana National Guardsmen to the U.S. military, and she refused. Now Blanco is a Democrat. This committee here, every single person on the committee there, is a Republican. Needless to say, you can expect some extremely tough questioning.

Blanco's office earlier this month released 100,000 pages of documents, and, in fact, one of the aides to the chairman of this committee, Tom Davis, released some of the e-mails that they wanted to point out. We're going to put them up on the screen for you. These are e-mails that they felt jumped out at them. In particular, here's one from Denise Bottcher, who is the press secretary to Governor Blanco, on Monday, September 5th. She said, "Why are we leaving the state and why we leaving when he's here. Reinforces the notion that she's not in charge and L.A. needs to be federalized. She's got to be in New Orleans tomorrow morning -- meet with Nagin before he meets the president."

Now, the communications director to Governor Blanco, Bob Mann, responded saying "Denise is right. White House will be thrilled that she left the state. They will eat us for lunch. She cannot snub potus," a reference to the president there.

Now those e-mails speak directly to the political undertones of today's hearing. But there are a couple more e-mails that they released, as well, that have to do with this perception, perhaps that Governor Blanco's aides were more concerned with her image in the media. In particular, one the aides to Tom Davis saying what's good for the goose is good -- what's good for the gander is good for the goose. That's referring to Michael Brown, and remember those e-mails that came out in which he seemed to be overly preoccupied with his image.

Let's put up a couple of these other e-mails. This one also from Denise Bottcher, the press secretary to Governor Blanco saying, on the fourth of September, that's less than a week after Katrina hit, "I'm now a bit concerned that we're doing too many 'first lady' things and not enough John Wayne. Women are easily portrayed as weak which KBB" -- a reference to Governor Blanco -- "has had a hard time overcoming. I'll say again, man cry-compassion; women cry-weak."

Now Kim Fuller, who was a consultant to the James Lee Witt Associates. -- James Lee Witt, of course, the former head of FEMA under President Clinton, who was hired by the governor of Louisiana.

Kim Fuller wrote, "Governor Blanco might dress down a bit and look like she's rolled up her sleeves. I have some great Liz Claiborne sports clothes that look kind of Eddie Bauer, but with class, but would bring her down to level of getting to work. She would look like a woman, but show she is moving mountains."

Now, Louisiana Democratic Congressman Charlie Melancon is going to make a motion at today's hearing. He is not a direct member of the committee, but he was invited by Davis to join sort of on the sidelines. He's going to make a motion to subpoena documents from the White House and from Mississippi and also from Missouri -- Mississippi, and also from Alabama, saying that these states and the White House, have not given this committee enough documents to make a determination as to who was to blame, and what lessons could be learned -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: I think we can all see tenuous moments for a while. Andrea Koppel on Capitol Hill, thanks so much. And while the aftermath of Katrina is certainly on the mind of the president, just a few blocks away, his focus is going to be victory in Iraq when he delivers a speech.

You're looking at a live picture right now of the place in which the president will be talking at the top of the hour in the Woodrow Wilson Center in the Reagan Building, just shy of Capitol Hill there. When the president does deliver his speech, of course CNN will be carrying that live.

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WHITFIELD: Well, this just in. Dupont Company has agreed to pay $10.25 million in fines and $6.25 million for environmental projects in a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency over the company's alleged failure to report the dangers of a toxic chemical used to make Teflon. That just coming in.

President Bush's public campaign on Iraq may be impacting Americans' attitudes. A new CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup finds that just under half of all Americans believe it was a mistake to send U.S. troops to Iraq. That number is down from a month ago before the president began his victory strategy speeches. The poll also asks can the U.S. win the war in Iraq? About two-thirds of the respondents said yes.

Well, what do you think needs to happen for a stable democracy to take hold in Iraq? You can post your comments on our Web site. Go to CNN.com home page then scroll down until you see the box on the left side that says send your comments. Clicking on the at symbol will walk you through the process from there.

And we're just minutes away from President Bush's fourth and final speech on Iraq, at least on victory in Iraq. We'll have that for you live as soon as it begins.

The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY begins right now.

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WHITFIELD: President Bush sets the stage for the historic high- stakes election in Iraq. In just a few minutes, Mr. Bush gives the last in a series of four speeches aimed at shoring up support for his Iraq policies. We'll have live coverage of the speech. It comes on the eve of a vote to establish a permanent democratically-elected government in Iraq. A successful vote is seen as a crucial step in bringing U.S. troops home from Iraq.

We'll bring you the president's speech as soon as it begins. Taking place right there in the Woodrow Wilson Center in the Reagan Building. Afterwards, we'll get some perspective from a diverse panel with varying opinions about the Iraq war. We'll hear from two military fathers; one who supports the mission, one who opposes it; an Iraqi war veteran and an Iraqi-American will also share their views.

Well, we have a team of correspondents providing insight on Mr. Bush's speech, and the Iraq elections. White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux and Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr are with us and we'll hear from senior political analyst Bill Schneider, as well, senior political correspondent Candy Crowley and chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour in Baghdad.

First, let's go to Suzanne at the White House -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Well, Fred, really, President Bush is going to be setting the tone not only for tomorrow, but for next year. When it comes to Iraq, he is going to make the case here that this is an important, critical time for the Iraqis in transition; particularly, politically, that it will help undercut the insurgency and hopefully allow for U.S. troops to be brought home.

He's going to mention the three elements that he has brought out before, tie them together. That is, the economic, political and military elements coming together. All this in a campaign, of course, to try to convince to Americans to continue to support the Iraq mission.

Now, there are really two goals here. There is the short-term strategy and the long-term strategy. Short-term here is that the White House is very clear there are some things they can't control on the ground in Iraq, mainly the violence there.

So what are they going to do? Try to do things that they -- at least handle things they can control. That would be spreading the message to the American people. Also reassuring Republicans that look, this is not going to damage them in the election 2006. And try to exploit the Democrats' differences when it comes to Iraq policy. All of that the short-term strategy.

Long term strategy, Fred, it is all about the president's legacy. He knows, the White House knows, that this is simply based on the success of Iraq.

WHITFIELD: All right. Suzanne Malveaux at the White House. Thanks so much.

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