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The Situation Room
Observations from Iraq Election; Bush Pledges $3.1 Billion to New Orleans
Aired December 15, 2005 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It's 5:00 p.m. here in Washington. And you're in the SITUATION ROOM, where news and information from around the world arrive at one same place at the same time.
Happening now, it's 1:00 a.m. in Baghdad where Iraqis hope the color purple on ink-stained fingers will be a sort of birthmark to Iraq's democracy, a surge of voters turned out for the country's national elections. Now the counting begins.
It's 4:00 p.m. in New Orleans. And the city's mayor says come home to the Big Easy. The Bush administration says it will spend billions to shore up the city's levee system that performed so poorly after Hurricane Katrina. Would the new levees rise up to another powerful storm?
And it's 5:00 p.m. in New York where a woman is thankful for the catch of a lifetime. A raging fire corners mother and child. And to save the baby, she drops him out of the window. You'll hear the tale through her own eyes.
I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in the SITUATION ROOM.
We begin in Iraq, billions of people hope purple fingers dipped in ink will help deserve the stain of tyranny and a stubborn insurgency. There was stronger-than-expected turnout today in Iraq's national elections. Now the vote count is already under way. Let's get the latest. CNN's Aneesh Raman is in Baghdad -- Aneesh.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, good afternoon. Very strong turnout reported across the country today. Millions of Iraqis going to the polls. The polling stations opened at 7:00 a.m. They were to close at 5:00 p.m., but in a number of areas that time was extended because the lines kept on coming in. And also in a number of areas, ballots, they had run out of them. So they needed to keep the polls open.
A strong turnout in the Kurdish north and the Shia south. But perhaps most importantly, Wolf, in Sunni areas, both in Baghdad, also in the western part of the country, bringing the Sunnis of course into this political process, getting them to vote in this election is seen as key to curbing the violence. It could perhaps split the insurgents between the domestic insurgents, Saddam loyalists, and the foreign jihadists led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
So a lot of hope here today but a lot of awareness, Wolf, that this is the first step, this is a long process and many more steps have to come before the country sees true stability. A lot of hope, a lot of faith riding on Iraq's leaders who will take over this government next year -- Wolf.
BLITZER: What do you know about the story, Aneesh, that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, terrorist number one, the Jordanian-born terrorist in Iraq, may actually have been captured by Iraqi security forces but let go because they didn't know who he was? What's going on?
RAMAN: Yes, we had that confirmed. Today we spoke with Hussein Kamal, the deputy interior minister, he said that at some point last year, Iraq security forces had Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in custody, he was released as you say, because they did not know his identity. He gave no other details than that startling revelation.
A U.S. official though did say that while they can't confirm the report, it does seem, quote, "plausible." We're of course efforting (ph) more information on where this took place, when exactly it took place, and how this happened -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Aneesh Raman in Baghdad. Aneesh, thank you very much. And I spoke earlier today with the number two Iraqi military officer. That would be Lieutenant General Nasser Abadi, about this claim and more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: General Abadi, thanks very much for joining us. Before we get to the Iraqi military structure, there's information just coming into CNN that last year, Iraqi security forces actually captured Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the terrorist number one, but didn't know who he was, and he was inadvertently released. Do you know anything about that?
LT. GEN. NASSER ABADI, DEP. COMMANDING GEN., IRAQI JOINT FORCES: I don't think it's true information. He was in the hospital but not captured.
BLITZER: When you say he was in the hospital, what do you mean he was in the hospital?
ABADI: He was taken to a hospital. And when we got the news, we rushed there but he was out of there.
BLITZER: So you never actually arrested him.
ABADI: No, we did not.
BLITZER: All right. Let's move on and talk about the Iraqi military. It seemed to have done well today. When do you think Iraqi military forces will be ready to really take charge, enabling U.S. and coalition forces to come back home?
ABADI: Well, as you know, we are growing our forces. We have about -- our total would be 150,000. Now we're around 100,000. What is missing is the support units. From intelligence to vehicles to water, all those sorts of things. And these are -- will be coming on- line, are already being trained, and hopefully by the end of next year or so, these units will come on-line.
BLITZER: So you think between now and the end of next year, the U.S. and other coalition forces will have to maintain a robust military presence in your country?
ABADI: We will be taking a lot areas of responsibility. They will be in the background. We still will need the fire support because the fire support, you know, like the Air Force, will still be needed. There's still some more time until we are fully operational.
BLITZER: So you're going to depend on the United States for air power for some time to come, is that right?
ABADI: Yes.
BLITZER: Well, General Abadi, thanks for spending a few moments with us. Good luck to you and the Iraqi military, especially in the aftermath of today's elections. We'll continue to stay in touch.
ABADI: Thank you very much. This is a very historic day for us. God bless.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: More now on that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi story. A U.S. official would not confirm the report that Iraqi security forces had Zarqawi in custody last year and released him mistakenly, but that official added, and let me quote now, "it is plausible." He would not dismiss the story out of hand.
Let's get some more on today's historic election in Iraq. We'll go to Falluja, voters turned out in stronger numbers than they did in Iraq's January elections, joining us on the phone is Jonathan Finer. He's a foreign correspondent with The Washington Post.
How did it go today in Falluja, Jonathan?
JONATHAN FINER, THE WASHINGTON POST: Well, from the perspective of turnout I think it went about as well as it possibly could have. They're saying more than 200,000 people voted in Falluja and the surrounding area, and a total of maybe 280,000 in Anbar province, the western province which is considered sort of the heartland of the Iraqi insurgency and where very few people voted in -- back in January.
BLITZER: Is that seen as a sign that the Iraqi Sunnis who largely boycotted the election back in January are now on board on this so-called democratic train?
FINER: Well, in Falluja that's certainly the case, upwards of 90-something percent turnout in this city. In some of the other cities in Anbar, like Ramadi, which is a bigger city than Falluja and also they're much more violent right now, turnout was considerably lower, although still better than it was back in January.
The big question is now, Wolf -- now that the Sunnis have turned out to vote, it's depending on what sort of representation they get in Iraq's next parliament, are they going to be able to achieve some of the demands they have for the U.S. to withdraw, for the security forces to start looking more like a representative force, rather than just representing Iraq's Shiite majority.
And if they don't get some of these demands, are they going to continue to embrace politics or perhaps slip back into the violent resistance that we've seen in the almost three years of the U.S. presence here.
BLITZER: Jonathan Finer of The Washington Post. Stay safe over there in Falluja.
Let's get a little glimpse now of the actual voting activity in Basra. For that we turn to another Washington Post correspondent, Doug Struck. He is joining us on the phone as well.
How did it go in Basra in the south?
DOUG STRUCK, THE WASHINGTON POST: It was pretty smooth, pretty quiet. There wasn't much in the way of violence down here. There were some what we might call irregularities, the Iraqi police in Basra, which are publicly acknowledged to be heavily infiltrated by the militias were actually out campaigning for the religious Shiite list, which is of course a violation.
But aside from that, the turnout was strong, from all we could learn from both exit polls and our own interviews, a great majority of those who voted down here were voting to try to keep the religious Shiite coalition in power to be the largest party in the next parliament and likely to pick the next prime minister.
BLITZER: Doug Struck of The Washington Post, be safe in Basra as well, whipping around the Iraqi scene on this historic day.
Back here in the United States, we're also following a developing story, a torture deal after many months. The White House and Republican Senator John McCain reach an agreement on banning torture of foreign suspects in the war on terror. But the deal is not exactly sealed, at least not yet. Let's get some details. Our congressional correspondent Ed Henry standing by -- Ed.
ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, a major reversal from President Bush that seems to hand his one-time political nemesis, John McCain, a big political victory. As you mentioned, after months of opposition, the president reversing course and saying he now supports John McCain's ban on the use of torture of detainees in the war on terror.
The administration had been opposed for months, saying they needed wide latitude to wage that war. This comes after international pressure on Secretary of State Rice, also a big bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives last night that showed a big surge of support for McCain, even across the Capitol, where they had not voted for it previously. But as you suggest, there is a little bit of a hitch here. House Armed Services Chairman Duncan Hunter coming out a short while and saying he may not sign this deal, because he's concerned it could hamper the U.S. intelligence efforts in the war on terror.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DUNCAN HUNTER (R-CA), CHAIRMAN, ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Until we have an assurance from the White House that the provisions which we have been working on, provides the same high level of effective intelligence-gathering capability that we presently have, I'm not going to sign that deal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: Now, just a few minutes ago Senator McCain told reporters he's confident by the end of the night Duncan Hunter will get those assurances from the White House as well as from fellow Republicans here on the Hill, and will back down. But if Hunter does not, McCain is confident this ban on torture will stay on a separate bill, the defense spending bill, and one way or another it will pass by the end of the year -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Ed, thank you very much. Ed Henry on Capitol Hill.
Staying here in Washington, we're moving to a multibillion dollar fix-it plan, the mayor of New Orleans says is part of the holy trinity of recovery. Almost four months after Hurricane Katrina, the Bush administration announces today it will spend $3 billion to fix and strengthen the levee system in New Orleans.
Asked how safe the newer system might be, Mayor Ray Nagin told our Kyra Phillips today he's comfortable enough to urge residents to come back to the Big Easy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR RAY NAGIN (D), NEW ORLEANS: If another Katrina hit New Orleans, and this system was put in place, we wouldn't have the devastation and amount flooding that we had with this last storm. That makes me feel very -- a lot better.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Let's go to the scene. CNN's Ed Lavandera is in New Orleans. He is joining us now with more on this story -- Ed.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Wolf. Well, you know, many people here in the New Orleans area paying close attention to this announcement today, $3 billion. But what we're hearing repeatedly from people who are not only involved in improving the levee system that exists here already and trying to get it ready for next year is that this is an excellent first step.
You know, of course, many people here very hesitant to balk and criticize $3 billion that will be coming this way to improve the situation, but what many people here in New Orleans are calling for is what they call "total protection," and that means Category 5 storm protection. The strength of Hurricane Katrina here was a Category 3 storm and the levee system wasn't able to handle that. And so many people here are nervous about the future.
And many people here go as far as to say that the very future of this city depends on how much the levee system here is strengthened. And they say that anything short of Category 5 threatens the very possible return of many businesses and residents to this area.
BLITZER: Ed Lavandera reporting for us in New Orleans. Ed, thank you very much.
Let's go up to New York right now, Jack Cafferty is standing by with the "Cafferty File."
Once again, hi, Jack.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Wolf. Big win today for tobacco. The Illinois Supreme Court reversed a $10.1 billion verdict against Phillip Morris today. The company, which is now Altria, had been found guilty of trying to convince smokers that light cigarettes are safer than regular ones.
Well, here's a bulletin. All cigarettes are bad for you. So are booze, guns, cheeseburgers, if you eat enough of them. In fact, the world is full of stuff that can hurt you if you choose to take the risk. If I choose to smoke cigarettes and suffer the consequences, who's fault is that?
Here's the question, if you choose to use a product that may be harmful, should you then be able to turn around and sue the manufacturer? E-mail us your thoughts at caffertyfile@cnn.com.
I mean, if I go into McDonald's there and get me a couple of Whopper sandwiches every day and clog up my arteries and drop dead of a massive heart attack, I mean, is it McDonald's fault? I don't think so.
BLITZER: No, that's Burger King has Whoppers, McDonald's has the Big Macs.
CAFFERTY: Oh, well, thank you. How do you know all that stuff? You're a nice, trim, slim guy.
BLITZER: I have a lot of useless information in my head, Jack.
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: We will check back with you. Thanks very much.
Up ahead, millions of people each day count on it. Will New York subway and bus systems shut down tomorrow? We'll have the latest on a looming transit strike. Also, desperate move and a heroic catch, a baby literally tossed from a burning building, an incredible story, and we're going to show you what happened.
Plus, guarding your money. He might have been the best friend taxpayers ever had in the U.S. Congress. We'll look at the father of the so-called Golden Fleece Awards.
You're in the SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: It's an ugly day in much of the eastern United States with snow and ice making roads very dangerous. Schools were closed today in parts of Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia, as a wintry mix coated highways, trees, and power lines. The storm is moving north and snow, sleet, and ice could hit New York this evening.
That would only compound the misery for millions of people possibly facing a nightmare commute tomorrow morning. New York City's 33,000 transit workers are threatening to go on strike at midnight, midnight when their contract expires. That would effectively shut down the city's bus and subway systems.
Pay raises are the issue. The MTA is offering 6 percent, the union wants 8 percent plus part of this year's unexpected billion dollar surplus. The strike could be a boon to at least one small business owner. Our Ali Velshi is joining us now live from New York with the bottom line.
Hi, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, I found the small segment of New York society that actually might do pretty well off of a strike. You've seen them on the streets. The pedicabs, those little pedal bikes.
Let's hear what one had pedicab owner had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEIDI BENEDICT, PONYCAB.COM: If there's a strike, and people aren't able to get around, I'm sure our business will be very much in demand. We're a practical luxury, so people have a choice of riding in a taxi, they have a choice of riding -- stay in a horse and carriage for a carriage ride. And so we're somewhere in between. We can provide a carriage service and get you to your destination.
But I think because our rates are normally higher on an average day, I think tomorrow it would be looking as if we were price-gouging. We make better time in traffic obviously than the cars. I can remember in the blackout I was making better time than an ambulance.
I see there is never going to be a minute when someone doesn't want to be in this pedicab tomorrow. So I would say there is no ride that I won't do, but I would like to keep them a little bit shorter, if possible.
For my passengers, they'll be totally covered, I have a canopy, and no one will get wet in this cab. Well, I've had a few phone calls from my friends already for tomorrow that have wanted to book me for first thing in the morning. So I assume I'll be starting first thing in the morning and working until my legs can't take it anymore.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Hey, Wolf, you know, we're not at a strike yet, the midnight deadline is coming up, and who knows whether we'll see a strike or an extension of the discussions. And a little later on I'm going to come back and give you the details of what happens if there is a strike.
But people like that who have ways of getting people around will be very busy if there is one -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Cab drivers will be busy as well. Thanks, Ali. We'll get back to you.
Coming up, the voting is done, the ballots are being counted. So what happens next in Iraq? Zain Verjee looking into that. She will show us.
Plus a desperate mother throws her baby from a burning high-rise, and a good Samaritan makes the catch of a lifetime. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back. More now on our top story, Iraq's parliamentary elections. What's next for the country now that the voting is over. Our Zain Verjee is live at the CNN Center. She's got some details -- Zain.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, the election is widely hailed as a success with high turnout and critical participation by many Sunnis. But the voting is only the latest step to establishing a new Iraqi government.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE (voice-over): First, all of those ballots have to be counted. It took 10 days to get final the results from the constitutional referendum in October. This time it could be longer, in part because of the higher Sunni turn out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Final results might take about two weeks or more.
VERJEE: Once that's done, the 275-member parliament will convene and choose a president and two deputies from among their ranks. The strongest political bloc will then form the ruling government, appointing ministers to head the various cabinets within 15 days. And the majority will nominate a prime minister who must be approved by the parliament. As soon as the new government is seated, the constitution, approved in October, takes effect, parliament can make amendments to it. And Sunnis, who have largely boycotted the process until now, are expected to seek changes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE: And special provisions have been made for minority parties, even if they don't pick up enough votes to carry a given district they can still get a proportional number of seats if they get enough votes nationwide.
And, Wolf, experts say that a real crucial test now is going to be the extent to which the Shia Islamists and the Kurds will actually make concessions to the Sunnis in amending and making negotiations over changing the constitution.
BLITZER: All right. Zain, thank you very much.
Iran has been closely watching, many say meddling in Iraq's parliamentary election, not necessarily with Iraqis' best interests in mind. Our national security correspondent David Ensor has more on this part of the story -- David.
DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the voters are of course Iraqis, but the outcome matters deeply not to just Iraq and the United States, but, also, as you've said, to neighboring Iran.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ENSOR (voice-over): Iran wants a Shiite-dominated government. But even more important, says a former senior Bush aid, Teheran is meddling to assure an Iraq that remains weak and chaotic.
ROBERT BLACKWILL, FORMER U.S. ENVOY TO IRAQ: Apparently they've come to the conclusion that success in Iraq is a mortal threat to the continuation of the Iranian regime.
ENSOR: U.S. officials say the meddling has included massive funding for Iraqi parties favored by Teheran, and for radical mosques and schools. Plus, according to the British, supplying more deadly explosives to Shiite insurgents.
Concerned about the Iranian interference, President Bush told Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, to offer direct talks to Teheran.
ZALMAY KHALILZAD, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO IRAQ: There's evidence of direct or indirect provision of arms to certain groups, training. Those are issues of concern, and we'll look forward to having a frank discussion with them on those issues.
ENSOR: That is, if Teheran ever agrees to sit down and talk. So far, Iranian officials have made negative noises about the idea.
BLACKWILL: They don't want to do business with us. They don't want an accommodation with us that makes success more likely.
ENSOR (on camera): In Iraq?
BLACKWILL: In Iraq.
ENSOR (voice-over): Other experts say Blackwill and the Bush administration have too dark a view.
SHIBLEY TELHAMI, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND: The Iranians have been of more help than hindrance to the United States in part they want -- they believe that the empowerment of the Shiite community is a good thing.
ENSOR: Teheran has another reason to like the situation in Iraq, it ties down U.S. forces while Iran moves ahead with programs that could lead to nuclear weapons.
TELHAMI: They believe that the entanglement of the U.S. does not permit the U.S. to engage in another military operation.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ENSOR: If the election should lead to a more stable, competent Iraqi government, Iran's leaders will be glad to see what they call the great Satan's forces leaving, experts say. Yet having once been labeled part of the axis of evil, Iran would also fear a superpower no longer tied down next door -- Wolf.
BLITZER: David, do the Iranians have a favorite in this election?
ENSOR: Well, clearly they favor the Shiite parties, the SCIRI and the other parties that -- the leaders of whom -- many of whom spent many years in exile in Iran and are very well known by the Iranian leadership.
But at the same time, according the Ambassador Blackwill and some of the others I've spoken to in the Bush administration, they believe that Iran would like to continue to see unrest to keep America pinned down in Iraq.
BLITZER: All right, David. Thank you very much. David Ensor, our national security correspondent.
Let's get some more on the Iraqi elections. For that, we're joined by Ambassador Feisal al-Istrabadi, he's Iraq's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations. He is here in Washington. He voted in today's elections.
Show our viewers the finger. That's the purple. What do you...
AMB. FEISAL AL-ISTRABADI, DEP. PERMANENT REP. OF IRAQ TO U.N.: That's the purple.
BLITZER: You actually stick it in ink? AL-ISTRABADI: Yes, well, there's a sort of a sponge full of this purple ink in a bottle, and you vote and stick your finger in the bottle. It's indelible and stays, last time in January it stayed almost a week I think before it finally washed off.
BLITZER: So you -- it will be the source of some conversation. Where do you go, in suburban Washington there's a place?
AL-ISTRABADI: Yes, in McLean, Virginia, today is where the polling station was.
BLITZER: Were there a lot of Iraqi expatriates voting in McLean, Virginia?
AL-ISTRABADI: My impression today was that there were more expatriates voting than there were in January when we voted in a different suburb in Maryland. But I thought there were more people there today, yes.
BLITZER: Could you tell if these were Iraqi Sunnis, Shia, or Kurds, or there is no way of making that distinction?
AL-ISTRABADI: There's one possibility with the Kurds, because their national dress is a bit different. And so you can tell that this is more the Kurdish dress. But as far as the Arabs or the other Iraqis, most of whom were wearing Western clothes, you couldn't. And that's really the story of Iraq. We're a very highly intermixed, intermarried people. We're not Yugoslavia. And I think today has been a very good day for us. I'm very optimistic about our future.
BLITZER: You say that, but it looks like this insurgency is largely Sunni-backed. And they're going after the Shia, to a lesser degree the Kurds. It sounds like potentially it's a Yugoslavia.
AL-ISTRABADI: Well, there are some things that are happening that have occurred since the fall of the previous regime...
BLITZER: Since Saddam Hussein's regime.
AL-ISTRABADI: Since Saddam Hussein's regime -- that have been somewhat unexpected, I think, and unfortunate.
But, on the whole, there's no question that the foreign jihadists, for instance, have been trying to provoke a civil -- a sectarian a civil war, and they have largely failed. I don't regard the -- the Iraqi component of the insurgency, so-called, as being Sunni, because I don't believe it's theologically based.
It's not religiously based. Again, I mean, I have used the -- the example with respect to Saddam Hussein himself. You know, Hitler was, in some sense, one could say, born, I suppose, at least, into a Christian family. But in no way could you use Nazism as a -- as a -- as a Christian belief or say that it was a Christian belief.
BLITZER: Are you among those Iraqis who believe that, if the U.S. would withdraw over a specific time period, the next six months to a year, there could be a civil war?
AL-ISTRABADI: Well, there would at least be chaos, if there were an untimely withdrawal of -- of American forces.
Look, first of all, on a day like today, we Iraqis owe the United States and its coalition allies a tremendous debt of thanks. But for their intervention, we would continue to have been ruled by a -- a man who was terrorizing and butchering us by the hundreds of thousands.
But it is also a fact that Iraqis don't want a long-term foreign presence in Iraq. And I also believe that the American -- the government of the United States does not wish to be in Iraq in -- over the long term.
But, in the short term, until Iraqi forces are able to do the job themselves, we need the presence of the multinational forces in Iraq.
BLITZER: Is it possible -- is it possible to define short-term right now?
AL-ISTRABADI: I think it -- I think it's capacity driven.
When Iraqi forces -- and I think that there's evidence that, in the last six months, they have improved dramatically over the previous six months. We can anticipate they will continue to improve in their capacity. I think it's capacity driven. As the Iraqi forces are able to do more, then the multinational forces will be able to start drawing down.
BLITZER: Who do you think will emerge as the next leaders, the president of the new Iraq, the next president, who will be named by the parliament, and the new prime minister?
AL-ISTRABADI: Well, I think that President Talabani is likely to be a very strong candidate next time.
BLITZER: So, he might be reelected?
AL-ISTRABADI: I -- I think he has a very strong...
BLITZER: He's the Kurdish leader.
AL-ISTRABADI: He's the Iraqi leader. He's the Iraqi president.
BLITZER: But he's a Kurd.
AL-ISTRABADI: He is of Kurdish extraction, yes.
I think he's a strong candidate. There may be other candidates that emerge. The -- there are three or four candidates for prime minister.
Look, the important thing, Mr. Blitzer, is that, for the first time in five decades, we're going to have an elected government operating under a permanent constitution. And we know that, within four years, we are going to have another set of elections. Whoever emerges as the leadership this time around is going to have to earn the trust of the people of Iraq to be reelected next time.
That may sound like a run-of-the-mill thing for an American audience. For us, it's a new day.
BLITZER: It's a new day, potentially, indeed.
Feisal al-Istrabadi, show us our viewers once again that...
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: ... ink-stained finger. You're very proud of that.
AL-ISTRABADI: I'm proud to, indeed.
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: You were with us in January, when you voted at that time, as well.
AL-ISTRABADI: That's right.
BLITZER: You will be -- it will be a badge of honor for the next several days. Thanks very much for joining us.
AL-ISTRABADI: Thank you very much. My pleasure.
BLITZER: Congratulations on these Iraqi elections.
AL-ISTRABADI: Thank you.
BLITZER: And we want to go to our Internet reporter, Abbi Tatton, who is monitoring the Iraqi elections online.
What are you picking up, Abbi?
ABBI TATTON, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, in Iraq, firsthand accounts of people who have voted today, a lot of them at this site, "Iraq the Model," run by two brothers in Baghdad.
They had correspondents in eight different provinces today sending in reports and photos of what was going on, on the ground -- lots of photos of the security situation in Baghdad. They're reporting that the mood on the ground was a lot quieter than it was in the January elections, also saying that there was a noticeable absence of U.S. troops on the ground, though plenty of presence in the skies overhead.
This site has been updated from all around the country all day -- the most recent photo showing the count under way -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Abbi Tatton, thank you very much.
Coming up, driving with a cell phone in one hand and a steering wheel in the other, it's happening more than ever. We will have the percentages. What's going on? And, later, he replaced Joe McCarthy in 1957 and then served 30 distinguished years in the United States Senate. We will look back at the life of William Proxmire of Wisconsin.
You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: It's a position no one would want to be in and a decision no parent would ever want to make.
Trapped in a burning building, a mother decides to save her newborn baby by throwing him out the window -- what an amazing story. Let's get the details.
CNN's Mary Snow has been working on the story all day -- Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it really is amazing.
A Bronx mother says she first went to her apartment window with her infant for air, but when the smoke became too much, she says she thought only one of them would survive.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): One-month-old Eric Guzman is oblivious to the disaster he skirted. But his mother says she is still shaky from the moment she realized her third-floor window was the only way out of their burning apartment. She wasn't sure she would survive.
TRACINDA FOXE, MOTHER: At first, no, but my son was going to survive. That's all I was worried about.
SNOW: A surveillance video captured the scene outside Tracinda Foxe's apartment when men in her Bronx neighborhood saw her waving something white and heard her cries for help.
FELIX VAZQUEZ, CAUGHT BABY: She was kind of panicking. Also, at the same time, she was scared. And there was so much smoke.
SNOW: Felix Vazquez and three others held out a coat to catch the baby's fall, as Foxe held her baby through the window guards 30 feet above the ground.
VAZQUEZ: She just kept going like this with the baby. Next thing you know, she just let the baby go through it.
SNOW: Foxe says she prayed.
FOXE: Please, God, let someone have caught him. Let someone have caught him, because I couldn't see. Once he left my hands, I couldn't see.
VAZQUEZ: So I jumped, and, boom, grabbed -- grabbed the baby, just push him back, push him on my arms, and just went around and give him a quick CPR and took care of the rest. SNOW: Foxe was rescued by firemen and reunited with her baby.
FOXE: Thank you.
SNOW: Now she says she will also have a tie with Vazquez for life. She has asked him to be Erik's godfather.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: Today, there was lots of gratitude all around among the families. And Felix Vazquez says he's also thankful that he was a catcher in his softball league -- Wolf.
BLITZER: What a story. And Mary is going to be back during our 7:00 p.m. Eastern hour with more.
Good work, Mary Snow, in New York.
Still to come, Operation Gear Grinder breaks a major steroid drug smuggling ring. We will tell you how big this bust was -- Brian Todd standing by.
And, then, a sign of the times, talking on a cell phone while speeding down the road -- we will update you on this growing trend.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Lou Dobbs getting ready for the -- for his program that begins right at the top of the hour. And Lou is going to tell us what he's working on.
LOU DOBBS, HOST, "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT": Wolf, thank you very much.
Coming up tonight, at the top of the hour, the latest on Iraq's historic elections. Also tonight, a major reversal by the White House on torture policy -- the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Congressman Duncan Hunter, is furious. He will be here as our guest.
And, then, the first full debate in the House on our immigration crisis, the first full debate in nearly a decade -- and, today, an outrageous attempt by Mexico's President Vicente Fox to interfere in U.S. internal affairs. And I will have a few choice words for the president of Mexico.
And, also tonight, why the president of a leading manufacturers group is criticizing me and my defense of middle-class American workers. The NAM's Jerry Jasinowski is our guest here. We will have a debate, a discussion, perhaps rapprochement, or perhaps more of the same.
Please join us for that and a great deal more coming up at 6:00 Eastern -- now back to you, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Lou, that sounds great -- Lou Dobbs, top of the hour. A major crackdown on illegal steroids. The Drug Enforcement Administration calls it Operation Gear Grinder. And it's announcing some key arrests in a cross-border trafficking ring.
Let's bring in -- bring in Brian Todd. He's watching this story for us -- Brian.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, DEA officials tell us this is the largest steroid bust in U.S. history, a major crackdown on tracking from Mexico, where officials say more than 80 percent of the illegal steroids in the U.S. come from.
In San Diego, federal agents have arrested a man named Albert Saltiel-Cohen, who they say is the owner of three of the largest steroid manufacturing companies based in Mexico. They're looking for the owners of five other companies there.
I spoke with several DEA officials, who said these companies sold $56 million worth of illegal steroids to U.S.-based customers each year, most of it over the Internet.
A DEA special agent gave us some fascinating detail on how the companies would allegedly correspondent with customers and tailor the drugs to them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOUG COLEMAN, SPECIAL AGENT, DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY: They would talk to them over the -- the e-mails. And the consumers would say, hey, I love your product, but I'm looking for something a little bit stronger. And I'm looking for this type of product.
And the actual manufacturers would then manufacture a product if they had enough U.S. customers that were interested. They would manufacture a product to meet that demand. And they would still sell all these things under the guise of being veterinary use.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TODD: That means they would have a horse or cow's picture on the labels to make outsiders think they were for animals.
But DEA officials said they talked to veterinarians, who said the dosages were so high, they would never think of giving them to animals -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Brian, thank you very much -- Brian Todd reporting.
DEA officials announcing the biggest steroid bust, they say, ever.
Zain Verjee is standing by at the CNN Center in Atlanta with a closer look at some other stories making news, and including one that is just coming in -- Zain.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Wolf, this is just in to CNN.
The United Nations has extended the investigation of the assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri by six months. A recent report by the investigation team, led by Detlev Mehlis, said Syria was not cooperating fully with the probe.
But saying says it is cooperating, that it's making every effort to do so. The U.N. is also discussing calls for expanding the investigation to also cover a string of killings of people involved in the case. And that in -- could include Monday's bombing which included Lebanese journalist Gibran Tueni.
Former President George H.W. Bush has a new title. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan has named him the U.N.'s envoy for South Asian earthquake relief. The current president's father will mobilize resources and money for Pakistan, which was devastated by the massive October earthquake. Mr. Bush says he's looking forward to his new duties. Former President Bill Clinton holds a similar U.N. role for tsunami relief.
New York's famous Apollo Theater has a spiffy new look. For the past two years, the Harlem landmark has been undergoing reconstruction. Now, phase one is completed. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg helped unveil the Apollo's newly refurbished facade and marquee today. The theater also has a new box office and shiny stainless steel and glass storefront.
More American drivers really like their cell phones. A new government survey says the number of people who talked on cell phones while driving went up this year. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says 10 percent of cars on the road are driven by someone while using a cell phone. That figure is up from 8 percent last year.
We showed you earlier that really incredible catch by a New York maintenance worker and firefighters to save the life of a baby. Well, a Massachusetts firefighter also engaged in some heroics of his own. Only, his involved a little mouth-to-snout action.
Pixie, a terrier dog, wasn't breathing when firefighters pulled her from a burning house. So, one firefighter gave her -- yes -- mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. So, Pixie is fine now. And a vet says that she should make a full recovery.
(LAUGHTER)
VERJEE: Wolf.
BLITZER: These first-responders are great.
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: I love these guys. They're doing a great job for...
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: ... for humans and animals.
(CROSSTALK)
BLITZER: Zain, thank you very much.
Still ahead, he called himself Prox, because it took up less space on a bumper sticker, making it cheaper. We will remember William Proxmire, father of the Golden Fleece Awards.
And, later, we will talk with Rush Limbaugh's lawyer about the talk show host's legal troubles. That's coming up in our 7:00 p.m. Eastern hour here in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back to THE SITUATION ROOM. You're back in THE SITUATION ROOM, literally.
Jack Cafferty is also in THE SITUATION ROOM, not necessarily literally, but you're on the big wall, Jack.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. But I -- now is the first time I saw him actually come through the door there, like, from outside of THE SITUATION ROOM into THE SITUATION...
BLITZER: That's right.
CAFFERTY: That's...
BLITZER: You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
CAFFERTY: That's pretty tricky stuff.
Hmm?
BLITZER: We only do the best.
CAFFERTY: Well, that's true.
The Illinois -- score one for common sense here, Wolf, from the bench of a high court. Illinois' Supreme Court has reversed a $10 billion verdict against Philip Morris. The company had been found guilty of trying to convince smokers that light cigarettes are safer than regular ones.
Well, all cigarettes are bad for you. And so are booze and guns and cheeseburgers, if you choose to eat enough of them. The question is, if you choose to use a product that can be harmful to you, should you be able to turn around, then, and sue the manufacturer?
Karlton in Winnipeg, Minnesota (sic): "If it is public knowledge the product might be harmful, then, no, you shouldn't be able to sue. Then, again, it's public knowledge that coffee is made with boiling water, and McDonald's still lost. So, what do I know? You prove in court you're stupid and the judge pays you." Jane in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina: "Jack, my beloved father died of lung cancer six months after diagnosis. He had been a lifelong smoker who had tried to stop his habit many, many times. We didn't think of suing anyone, because he knew it was his responsibility."
T. writes: "You have touched on one of the biggest problems with American culture. For some reason, people in this country have come under the impression that they are not responsible for their own actions. I'm glad to see that at least one of America's courts have regained -- regained some of its common sense."
Ken in Marianna, Florida: "Sure, I think I will sue Ford because I drive one, Nokia because I have one, and the justice of the peace who married me."
(LAUGHTER)
CAFFERTY: I...
(LAUGHTER)
CAFFERTY: I like that.
Dawn in Carman, Manitoba: "Jack, I say, if all these people can sue cigarette companies and fast-food places, I ought to be able to sue my parents for making me ugly. It's only fair."
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: All right, Jack. We will see you in an hour.
CAFFERTY: OK.
BLITZER: Jack has got a great question coming up in the next hour of the THE SITUATION ROOM, 7:00 p.m. Eastern. You will want to stick around for that.
Up next, the father of the Golden Fleece Awards, you might have never heard of him, but few did more to protect our tax dollars -- the story when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: You're looking at a live picture. A car is on fire on I-95 in Miami, Florida. Check this out, rescue workers on the scene, firefighters there -- what an ugly picture that is. We're watching this story for you.
Moving on, he was one of the fiercest advocates for taxpayers ever to sit in the United States Senate. Wisconsin's William Proxmire died today at the age of 90.
Our national correspondent, Bruce Morton, explains why anyone who pays taxes owes Proxmire a huge debt of gratitude.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRUCE MORTON, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): William Proxmire, a Democrat, was first elected in 1957 to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Wisconsin's red-baiting Joseph McCarthy and to five full six-year terms after that. He had a novel approach to campaign finance reform. He didn't take any contributions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. WILLIAM PROXMIRE (D), WISCONSIN: I was reelected to the Senate in 1976, spending $177.75, reelected in 1982, spending $145.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORTON: His secret? Meet voters. Shake lots of hands. He defended dairy price supports of big business in Wisconsin, but was otherwise famous for trying to cut government spending. His Golden Fleece Awards went each month to an agency that had fleeced the taxpayers.
Here's one.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PROXMIRE: And then there was an outfit that spent $103,000 to try to find out whether sunfish that drink tequila are more aggressive than sunfish that drink gin -- sunfish.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORTON: He spoke on the Senate floor often and usually knew what he was talking about. He announced his retirement at age 71, saying he was too old to run for one more term. He left with some successes and one big regret.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PROXMIRE: It's a disappointment that we haven't succeeded in preventing these colossal deficits and the huge increase in the national debt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MORTON: Those, of course, have gotten much worse since he left.
Bruce Morton, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: A $2 million patrol car, a sewer museum in New Jersey -- Senator William Proxmire spent a career digging up some of the most outrageous ways the U.S. government is spending our money.
Our Internet reporter, Jacki Schechner, has more now on those very famous Golden Fleece Awards -- Jacki. JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, Senator Proxmire was the honorary chairman of this committee, a nonpartisan group called Taxpayers for Common Sense.
And, on their Web site, taxpayer.net, you can find the full collection of Golden Fleece Awards that Proxmire gave out every month from 1975 to 1988.
There's also a top-10 list of the best Golden Fleece Awards. Some of my favorites, number 10 is the surfing subsidy. Here, they had a $29,000 bill to find out how to spend another quarter-of-a- million dollars finding a good surfing beach in Hawaii. Some local officials there said, we can get volunteers for that.
And, this one, I really like, Wolf. This is number five. This is $219,000 spent in 1978 to develop a college curriculum to teach students how to watch TV. I'm guessing they knew how to do that all by themselves.
BLITZER: He was a good man, William Proxmire..
Thank you very much, Jacki.
We're here in THE SITUATION ROOM weekdays. We will be back in one hour.
Lou Dobbs standing to pick up our coverage -- Lou.
DOBBS: Thank you, Wolf.
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