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Sorting Out Impact of Most Deadly Attack of Entire Iraq War; Holiday Shopping Kickoff

Aired November 24, 2006 - 09:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
HEIDI COLLINS, ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: And I'm Heidi Collins. For the next three hours watch events happen live on this Friday, the 24th of November. Here's what's on the rundown.

Hell with the lid off. Sorting out the impact of the most deadly attack of the entire Iraq war.

HARRIS: In the wake of the attack, a hard-line Shiite cleric has a threat for President Bush and Iraq's prime minister. Will his power play pay off?

Stay here.

COLLINS: Our favorite mall rat, Ali Velshi savors the sights, sounds and surveillance cameras of the holiday shopping kickoff. We're not buying it unless it's at least 30 percent off, today in the NEWSROOM.

A new threat this morning in Iraq from a powerful anti-American cleric. Muqtada al-Sadr's supporters warn the Iraqi prime minister not to go forward with the meeting with President Bush.

For details now we go live to CNN's Arwa Damon in Baghdad. Arwa, good morning.

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT, BAGHDAD: Heidi, good morning.

That meeting is set to take place in Amman sometime next week. The threat came on national television. A spokesman for radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, saying that if Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al- Maliki goes ahead with this meeting with President Bush that the group will suspend its activities within the government.

Now, this really puts the Iraqi prime minister in an incredibly difficult situation. On one hand, he owes his prime ministership largely to the support of Muqtada al-Sadr's bloc. On the other hand, he cannot afford to alienate the United States right now.

Now, this announcement came from Muqtada al-Sadr's spokesman the day after five car bombs exploded in Sadr City. It was the deadliest attack since the war began here in 2003.

That death toll just keeps rising. The latest casualty figures that we have are at least 200 dead, another 250 wounded.

In Sadr City today, residents packed the streets, escorting the coffins, attached to many buses. The procession seemed to last forever, just coffin after coffin after coffin, as more Iraqis buried their dead.

And the violence did not end there. In fact, earlier this morning, an attack on the northern city of Talla'far. There, a suicide bomber parked his vehicle next to a car lot right before Friday prayers, exited his vehicle and then simultaneously detonated the car and himself - Heidi.

COLLINS: Arwa, you already mentioned what a difficult position this puts the prime minister in. I just wonder, can he really play both sides, the United States and Muqtada al-Sadr?

DAMON: Well, Heidi, he has been to a certain degree playing both sides in the sense that he is trying to maintain a working relationship with both sides.

On one hand we're seeing him engage Muqtada al-Sadr politically, something that he has been criticized for, because Muqtada al-Sadr is, of course, the leader of the Mehdi militia, which is blamed for much of the sectarian violence here.

So, the prime minister, through his relationship with Muqtada al- Sadr, to a certain degree is trying to disarm the Mehdi militia politically as opposed to militarily. That is one thing he has been criticized for.

But at the same time, he does have to maintain a certain relationship with this radical cleric. On the other hand, he has the U.S. military and the U.S. government with whom he has to maintain a working, solid relationship.

There are still up to 160,000 U.S. troops here who are conducting missions every day, who are training up the Iraqi security forces, who many are saying cannot leave just yet.

So, he's walking a very delicate line between both sides, Heidi.

COLLINS: Boy, you said it. That's for sure. All right. Arwa Damon live from Baghdad this morning. Thank you, Arwa.

HARRIS: Well, the White House is keeping a close eye on the deteriorating situation in Iraq. Live now the CNN White House correspondent, Suzanne Malveaux. Suzanne, good morning.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, WASHINGTON: Good morning, Tony.

We're actually getting reactions from the White House from that deadly day for the Iraqis yesterday. White House deputy spokesman, Scott Stanzel, this morning told me, he said "We condemn such acts of violence that are clearly aimed at undermining the Iraqi people's hopes for a peaceful and stable Iraq. The U.S. is committed to helping the Iraqis."

He also said President Bush and Prime Minister Maliki will meet next week to discuss the security situation inside of Iraq. And of course, Tony, he also said, as well, this threat regarding al-Sadr, he said, look. These talks will continue between the president and Maliki on Thursday, as planned, in Jordan.

What you are seeing from this administration is really an all-out diplomatic offensive. Vice President Cheney is going to be heading to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, meeting with King Abdullah today. And, of course, Thursday we'll see President Bush with Maliki in Jordan.

There has been a great deal of frustration about whether or not Maliki has the will or even the ability to reunite, to put this government together and to make this work. But publicly, the White House is saying it remains confident in his administration.

So, what are they doing here? The strategy really is very simple. They are trying to meet with neighbors of Iraq and trying to build up, bolster his government from outside, to bring those players in who have a clear and vested interest to get directly involved in Maliki's future.

And then secondly, of course, what you'll see in the next couple of weeks is a plan to emerge how to be more effective from the inside to work with Maliki. And that means training those Iraqi forces, trying to find ways to reconcile those warring groups, to bolster Maliki's regime - Tony.

HARRIS: White House - boy, that is complicated - White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux for us. Suzanne, thank you.

COLLINS: Twenty-three hours after it began, a hostage drama in Chicago ends in a flash of violence. Police say they heard a gunshot inside the apartment and stormed the building.

Inside they found the gunman and his lone hostage, gravely wounded. They both were pronounced dead at the hospital. The victim has not been identified, but police say she was a young neighbor of the gunman.

Police did not find the second hostage that officers had initially reported.

HARRIS: And a desperate search to tell you about. Still no sign of two young brothers missing in northern Minnesota. Police and volunteers are scouring the Red Lake Indian Reservation right now. Details from reporter Jeff Goldberg of affiliate KMSP.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

JEFF GOLDBERG, KMSP-TV REPORTER, MINNESOTA: With two young boys missing in cold weather for nearly two days, there was only one word to describe the feelings of those affected most.

PAUL MCCABE, FBI SPECIAL AGENT: The family is devastated. There's two children that are not at home for Thanksgiving.

GOLDBERG: Searchers began their work shortly after the children went missing Wednesday morning. Four-year-old Tristan White and his two-year-old brother, Avery Stately, were playing in their front yard.

Authorities say their mother was checking on them, but at around 9:50 checked again, and they were gone.

MCCABE: At this time, we do not know any more information than we knew yesterday. We don't know if there's foul play, or whether the children just wandered off into the woods.

GOLDBERG: FBI special agent Paul McCabe says investigators are talking with neighbors and potential witnesses about the possibility of a crime, like an abduction.

MCCABE: There is no evidence at this time that leads us - that there is foul play. We just want to make sure that we're not being narrow-minded, and that we are pursuing that angle, as well.

GOLDBERG: The home is located in the Walking Shield area of the Red Lake Indian reservation, terrain not easy to navigate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wetlands here. It's really woody.

GOLDBERG: More than 100 law enforcement and volunteers from the reservation and surrounding communities are committed to finding the boys. More people, search dogs and mounted patrols are on the way, bringing with them energy and hope.

MCCABE: People want to help. This brings people together, and it's for a good cause. We need to find two young boys that aren't at home.

(END VIDEO)

COLLINS: Long lines, deep discounts. The holiday shopping season, in case you haven't noticed, is here.

But before you hit the mall, take note. Merchants are minding how you shop so they can sell you more.

CNN's Ali Velshi joining us now with a special guest.

All right, Ali - whoa! I was just going to say, how are you going to top running on a treadmill, riding on a carousel. But now you have.

ALI VELSHI, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT, GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK: Hang on one second. Hang on one second. I've waited a long time for this moment. That's why I asked Santa, I would like to be an anchor on CNN.

OK. What? You think that's something you can work out for me?

SANTA CLAUS: Yes, sure. VELSHI: Yes? Do I have to - does my behavior matter?

SANTA CLAUS: Absolutely.

VELSHI: All right.

SANTA CLAUS: Absolutely. Now, do you want me to suggest that your career path will be that?

VELSHI: Yes.

SANTA CLAUS: OK.

VELSHI: All right. There you go.

SANTA CLAUS: I'll do it in (UNINTELLIGIBLE) form (ph).

VELSHI: Now, as you see ...

COLLINS: See, it's just as easy as that.

VELSHI: As you see, Santa is not - you know, we know that Santa is concerned about our behavior, Heidi. And the outcome of what we get in life depends on our behavior.

But Santa's apparently not the only one interested in behavior. You'll notice when you're shopping around on Black Friday or during the holiday season, you'll see these cameras all over the place. They're not just for security.

Retailers actually want to know more about your behavior to make your shopping experience better. Take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

VELSHI: Smile. You're on consumer behavior camera. No surprise that you'll likely be videotaped while holiday shopping, but it's not all for security. Some of it is for market research.

Retailers are tracking you to learn how you shop.

RAJEEV SHARMA, FOUNDER & CEO, VIDEOMINING CORP.: Where shoppers are spending time, what is grabbing their attention. Are they having to wait too long for customer service at different points?

VELSHI: Consumer behavior analysis. It's part observation, part science, part technology and a bit of psychology.

Rajeev Sharma's software turns images of customers working their way through stores into hard data, allowing retailers to take fast action if things aren't working out.

SHARMA: You can move around the merchandise to position products so that it creates the right sequence and right products in front of the right people at the right time.

VELSHI: With the holiday shopping crunch, retailers know their customers have short fuses. And crowd hassles don't help.

SHARMA: And you create these kind of maps, the hot spots and the cold spots. These are extremely important, because there is no number. By just looking at this color-coded map, you can see which portion of the store is receiving more attention.

VELSHI: And that helps retailers decide where to place display units.

SHARMA: After browsing, decided to interact with it, as in read labels or, you know, experience it more. And finally, of course, what every product and retailer - product manufacturer and retailer wants, that you drop into your basket.

VELSHI: But it's not all creative marketing. Traffic jams at checkout are often the biggest problem.

SHARMA: What this shows is a line forming, and something that you are very familiar with this season.

VELSHI: Best Buy is using its own research to try to shorten those lines.

BRIAN DUNN, PRESIDENT & COO, BEST BUY: We now deploy a queuing system in our stores, where all customers, they wait in a queue, and we have somebody there directing traffic so you don't get caught in the wrong line, which drives people crazy.

(END VIDEO)

VELSHI: Talk about lineups and queues, I got booted from Santa's lap. I don't know if you still have a picture of Santa, but the kids were more anxious in getting to talk to him.

Listen, Best Buy - we were just talking about Best Buy. Best Buy's got the system where they give you these little things in the lineup, so that you know by the time - before you get into the store, whether or not you're going to get the product you want.

A lot of stores are trying to do this so that customers don't get frustrated on Black Friday. We'll see how that's going. I mean, this place is packed, and it's - what is it? Just after 9 o'clock?

COLLINS: Yes, it's crazy, isn't it. You know, I have to say, Ali, I've never really seen you upstaged before, but if anybody's going to do it, it's definitely Santa.

Good guy to be upstaged by.

HARRIS: The big man.

COLLINS: Yes. All right, Ali. We'll check back a little bit later on.

HARRIS: Hey, you know, we had so much fun yesterday with the e- mails, what are you thankful for, we figured we'd try the e-mail thing all over again today, Heidi. What do you think?

COLLINS: Yes, I'd love it.

HARRIS: Yes. So, here's the question today. What's on your holiday shopping list? You know, what are you thinking about? A nice new jacket? New toys for the kids? Maybe that P.S. - no, you can't do that one without fisticuffs and everything else.

Here's the address, cnnnewsroom@cnn.com, and we will share some of your shopping lists a little later.

Well, it is a class that students are more than happy to take. A look at learning and laughter ahead in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: And a drug raid takes the life of an elderly woman, 92 years old, killed in an Atlanta police shootout. Her family wants answers. The latest ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: A mysterious death in London causes ripples in Moscow. Former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko died late yesterday. His friends and family accusing Moscow of poisoning him.

Live now with CNN's Jim Boulden in London. Jim what's the latest?

JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, LONDON: Well, Tony, this case gets stranger and stranger by the hour.

The British government has just confirmed what some people had been suspecting all along. They believe that they found the presence of a radioactive substance in his body. As you say, the former Russian spy, Alexander Litvinenko, died at this London hospital yesterday.

He defected to this country six years ago. He has been saying all along that he was probably a target for enemies in the Kremlin. He believes he was poisoned. Before he died he made several claims that Mr. Putin, the president of Russia, was behind that.

The government here, the police here were saying that it was an unexplained death. But now they're talking about a radioactive substance.

And further, they have now brought in an expert who is searching through several properties looking for what they're calling residual radioactive material. And they're asking people here, if they think they've been in contact with any of these locations, that they should be calling health authorities immediately.

So, the investigation is moving apace. It has stepped up a beat. We now know possibly looking for radioactive materials.

Of course, the Kremlin has denied any involvement in this man's death, but his friends aren't buying that. They're saying that he, indeed, was poisoned by an enemy in the Kremlin - Tony.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEXANDER GOLDFARB, FRIEND OF ALEXANDER LITVINENKO: My opinion is that the Russian special service's spies were involved here beyond any reasonable doubt, purely on the basis of sophistication of the poison itself - which is clearly a special agent, which even the British doctors cannot still determine what it was - and from the record of the killings and assassinations and murders of political opponents in Russia.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOULDEN: Now, Tony, there will be, of course, a post mortem. We could learn a lot more then. We'll have to wait to see what happens there. But as I said, the British police looking at the possibility of radioactive material leading to the death of this former Russian KGB agent - Tony.

HARRIS: And Jim, just a little bit more background, if you would, on this. Litvinenko believes he was targeted by the Kremlin, because he was investigating a Russian journalist who was a critic of the Russian government. Is that correct?

BOULDEN: Yes. He was part of a group of Russians who live here in London, who have either defected or have left there, who have become critics.

He said - he wrote two books, Mr. Litvinenko. One, he claimed that the Russian government was behind the bombing of an apartment building in Moscow in 1998 and 1999. The government blamed that on Chechens, and they went into Chechnya because of that - one of the reasons.

He says all along that it was actually the Russian government doing that as an excuse. That's one example of what he was investigating. And he says that he was also told to assassinate other Russians here in London.

HARRIS: OK. CNN's Jim Boulden for us in London. Jim, thank you.

COLLINS: This news coming in here that we would like to share with you now. According to Reuters, gunmen have attacked a Baghdad Sunni neighborhood. They have burned four mosques, houses, and the casualties there unknown at this time.

Just coming from the interior ministry and Reuters, once again, gunmen have attacked a Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad. Four mosques have been burned down, several houses, casualties unknown at this point.

As you well know, it comes on the heels of yesterday's incredible violence - 144 people dead in the worst single attack in Iraq since the war began in March of 2003. The violence continues. We will watch this story and have - correspondents in the area will certainly bring any more information to you as it happens here today.

Meanwhile in Lebanon, tensions are also high and business is at a standstill. Factories, banks and many schools are shut down one day after a massive demonstration at the funeral of a slain political leaders.

Grieving supporters of cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel accuse Damascus of killing the anti-Syrian politician. Syria denies any involvement.

Business leaders ordered today's strike in protest of Lebanon's political infighting and deepening national crisis.

HARRIS: A big, tough, pro football player, huh? Ladainian Tomlinson showing a softer side in reaching out to a young fan. That story ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Want to update this story that we brought you just a few seconds ago here on CNN NEWSROOM. According to Reuters, there has been an attack in a Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad.

Gunmen have come in, burned down four mosques, houses. Casualties are not known at this time. But once again, gunmen attacking a Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad. This is according to Reuters and the interior ministry there.

We have correspondents in the area. Our Arwa Damon is working to confirm this information.

But last we left this story on our show, there were 144 people dead yesterday. Now today, those numbers updated to more than 200 in the worst single attack in the Iraq war since it began back in March of 2003.

So, as we say, the violence continues. Tensions are very, very high, and we will continue to follow this one as it escalates here.

HARRIS: Football players - big, powerful, even mean. But meet one whose heart was melted by a story of loss.

Thirteen-year-old Michael Taylor and his family lost their Southern California home in a recent fire. Among the items burned, a football signed by Chargers running back - the best running back in all of pro football - Ladainian Tomlinson, L.T.

Well, yesterday, Tomlinson signed a new football for Michael and told the youngster he, too, suffered a similar tragedy when he was young.

(BEGIN VIDEO) LADAINIAN TOMLINSON, SAN DIEGO CHARGERS: I hope you, by keeping it, get inspiration from it, because it ain't always easy. You know, when I was young we lost our house in a fire - our whole house, pictures and everything.

How old are you, 12 or 13?

MICHAEL TAYLOR, LOST HOME IN FIRE: Thirteen.

TOMLINSON: Thirteen. I was - I was nine years old when we lost our whole house in a fire.

But the thing about it is, it don't matter what happens, you know, during that period of time of the fire. It's how you come out of it.

(END VIDEO)

COLLINS: Wow. Ready, set ...

HARRIS: Oh!

COLLINS: ... shop. I mean, this is serious aggression.

HARRIS: Oh!

COLLINS: Assertiveness, we should say. The race for holiday sales begins, and we are live - I'll say very live. We can look at what's selling and who's buying.

HARRIS: Someone's on the ground there. We might have a casualty.

COLLINS: It scares me.

All right. You're in the NEWSROOM. We're going to find out all about it, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MARKET REPORT)

COLLINS: More terror and a new threat in Iraq. News just in that gunmen have attacked a Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad. Reuters is reporting four mosques and some houses burned. Unknown casualties at this point. Word of the attack comes after yesterday's terrible bloodbath in Sadr City. More than 200 people were killed. 250 others injured in a string of coordinated explosions, car bombs and mortars. It was the worst single attack in Iraq since the war began.

Meanwhile, followers of anti-American cleric Muqtada Al Sadr blame the U.S. military for creating conditions that led to that attack. Al Sadr's bloc is vowing to boycott the government if Prime Minister Nouri Al Malaki meets with President Bush next week. The threat puts the Iraqi leader in a precarious position. His withdraw would be a severe blow to the already shaky hold on power there. Coalition forces capture 11 suspected terrorists in Afghanistan. Today's raid part of the effort to crack down on the Taliban and al Qaeda. More on that from Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr, traveling with the top U.S. commander in the region.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Winter has already come to these mountains of Afghanistan, and the bitter cold means that in some areas, attacks by the Taliban are dropping off, at least for now. But the top commander is expressing his concerns about al Qaeda activity across the border in Pakistan.

GEN. JOHN ABIZAID, CMDR. U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: The Pakistanis have done a great deal, especially in the areas away from the mountains, to get after al Qaeda, capture their operatives and make it difficult for them to conduct operations. That having been said, there's no doubt that in this region there is a safe haven that needs continued work on the Pakistani side of the border that need continued work in cooperation with NATO forces.

STARR: Here in Afghanistan, commanders expect that 2006 will wind up with more than 100 suicide bomb attacks in this country, a tactic that had not been seen until recent years. Indeed commanders here tell us that in the last three months, they have broken up six suicide bomb cells here in Afghanistan. The bombs that they are seeing here are still fairly rudimentary, though some of them have grown to be larger in size than they have seen in the past.

Still, it's commanders say the attacks are dropping off with the winter weather. They are already preparing to see a spring offensive by the Taliban.

Barbara Starr, CNN, Bagram, Afghanistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Well, you hear it a lot today, it's Black Friday. And shoppers are showing up plenty of green. Today's the official kickoff of the holiday shopping season, and there were plenty of early bird specials.

CNN's Jonathan Freed is at a Best Buy in Skokie, Illinois.

Jonathan, I'm looking at the shelves behind you. You've been cleaned out, my friend.

JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Tony. Good morning to you. We've been here since about 4:00 this morning local time, and the line outside this place just stretched into infinity. There were hundreds and hundreds -- felt like close to a thousand people standing outside. You couldn't tell because the line just wrapped around the block. And it's several hours later, but take a look. I mean, this place is very busy. The stacks of things that were here are disappearing.

I've got to tell you, Tony, though, as we walk over to a gentleman I'm going to introduce you to in a moment, Marty, who is sitting in our satellite truck, there's so much interest in buying anything that isn't nailed down. He's actually selling, taking offers and selling pieces of our satellite truck, component by component. So if we lose the signal, you know we've sold a couple of key components. You'll understand what's going on.

Now, let's go over here and talk to John Mendoza, who is a police officer.

Hi, John.

JOHN MENDOZA: Hi. How're you doing?

FREED: How're you doing? Good to see you again.

Now we first met you, you were sitting out front in your cruiser this morning, 4:00.

MENDOZA: Absolutely.

FREED: And how did it go this today? Did everyone behave themselves?

MENDOZA: Everyone behaved themselves and it looks like it went smoothly today.

FREED: Excellent. So now you're off duty?

MENDOZA: Yes. I'm trying to do some shopping for my kid.

FREED: Normally your wife takes care of this, you said?

MENDOZA: yes. But seeing the crowd over here just makes me feel like, you know, hey, I got to check it out.

FREED: Yes. Were you expecting any trouble today? I know that I was in the store listening to them brief the employees earlier, and they were saying, you know, crowds like this, there could be some shoplifting today. But you haven't had any trouble?

MENDOZA: No reports yet as of right now.

FREED: Now hopefully your kids are not listening. So, what are you looking for?

MENDOZA: Well, I'm looking for his own personal TV.

FREED: Now, kids, if you are listening, you didn't hear him say that. That's code for something else, right?

HARRIS: That was good.

MENDOZA: Yes, code for something else. FREED: All right. OK, thank you very much, John. Pleasure to meet you.

MENDOZA: Thank you.

FREED: All right, Tony, we'll throw it back to you.

HARRIS: Hey, I got a quick question for you. I was watching "AMERICAN MORNING," and you were there when the doors opened and I'm glad to see you're OK. Are you bumped and bruised at all? Because it looked like at one point there you were virtually in the middle of the stampede.

FREED: We were in the middle of the stampede, and right before you saw that, right before we went on the air, a couple of people tried to jump into the line. There were some guys that looked like they were spectators just across from a head of the line and pulling one of these.

HARRIS: Yes, yes.

FREED: Just get into the line, and the security guys here jumped on it. It was just a chorus between the security guys and people who were at the front of the line. Of course, hey, hey, hey, hey. And it was just sort of, OK, fine, sorry.

HARRIS: Well, it's a full contact sport is what it is.

Jonathan, we appreciate it. Keep it together there. Stay safe, all right?

FREED: All right, man. Thanks.

COLLINS: We want to hear from you. What's on your holiday shopping list? Maybe some karate lessons. E-mail us at CNNNEWSROOM@cnn.com. We're going to share some of the shopping list ideas on the air. That's coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: More terror and new threat in Iraq. News just in that gunmen have attacked a Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad. Reuters is reporting four mosques and some houses burned, unknown casualties. Word of this latest attack comes after yesterday's bloodbath in Sadr City. More than 200 people killed, 250 others injured in a string of coordinated car bombs and mortar attacks. It was the worst single attack in Iraq since the war began.

Meanwhile, followers of anti-American cleric Muqtada Al Sadr blame the U.S. military for creating conditions that lead to that attack. Al Sadr's block is vowing to boycott the government if Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki meets with President Bush next week. The threat puts the Iraqi leader in a precarious position. Its withdrawal could be a severe blow to his already shaky hold on power.

A message to Washington: An Atlanta family wants a letter hand- delivered to Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez. They're asking for a federal investigation into a drug raid shootout that left an elderly woman dead.

CNN's Rusty Dornin has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the front lawn, stuffed bears and flowers. Friends, even strangers, stopping to leave gifts in memory of 92-year-old Kathryn Johnston. She was a shut-in, and neighbors said she rarely allowed anyone inside. They knew she had a gun and she was scared about crime.

Nina Robinson bought Johnston groceries. Sometimes says the elderly woman wouldn't even open the door. Food often had to be left on the porch.

(on camera): Do you think, though, she could have been intimidated by drug dealers to allow them in the house?

NINA ROBINSON, NEIGHBOR: No. She wouldn't let me in there unless I called. And we were neighbors. She called me sometimes five times a day we talked.

DORNIN (voice-over): But Atlanta police insist there was no mistake in this case. Officers bought drugs from a man at the house. And Johnston opened fire when police came back with a search warrant. Three officers were wounded before Johnston was shot dead.

(on camera): Atlanta police told us that the same three officers who had search warrant and broke down Johnston's door were the same three that earlier in the day claimed to have bought drugs and were involved surveillance at this house. They claim they know they have the right address.

ASST. CHIEF ALAN DREHER, ATLANTA POLICE: The narcotics were purchased from a male inside that residence. We're still investigating that. He's not arrested yet. We're still investigating the identity of the individual that sold the narcotics.

DORNIN (voice-over): Down the street, Sallie Strickland, suffering from the flu, didn't want to come outside, but she did want to defend her friend. She says she was one of four elderly widows that helped care for Johnston.

SALLIE STRICKLAND, NEIGHBOR: She don't sell no drugs. She stick to herself. She just gets people to go -- she doesn't even go out. She get people to bring her groceries and stuff in. Well, I won't say it. But anyway, they got the wrong house.

DORNIN: Police say they're still looking for the man who allegedly sold drugs from Johnston's house. Police refused to release the search warrant officers used when they raided the house. A police spokesman cited an exception to the Georgia open records law. They say it allows evidence in an ongoing investigation to be withheld.

For Johnston's family, Thanksgiving was spent boarding up the house.

Rusty Dornin, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: A doctor lends a healing hand to a devastated community. How he worked to restore what the hurricanes destroyed. Details on this coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: You already know you can catch us weekday mornings 9:00 a.m. to noon Eastern, but did you know, yes, you can take us with you anywhere you go, on your iPod.

HARRIS: OK.

COLLINS The CNN NEWSROOM podcast available 24/7 right on your iPod. It's pretty cool, I hear.

HARRIS: If you get, you can't delete us ever, ever.

Happiness at Harvard. It is not just beating Yale, it is a course that has students smiling.

Here's CNN's Dan Lothian.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): It's the class Harvard students can't seem to get enough of.

TAL BEN-SHACHAR, HARVARD PROFESSOR: We can learn gratitude as a way of life.

LOTHIAN: It's not a course on philosophy, or law, or engineering.

BEN-SHACHAR: It's a class that focuses on making people happier. And we all want to be happier.

LOTHIAN: Tal Ben-Shachar is part professor, part motivational speaker, delivering spirited lectures in a course called positive psychology. A mix of serious research, pop culture and pop songs.

Every class starts with a tune. Today's theme, change.

BEN-SHACHAR: Do it. Just do it. You can't make a change in theory.

JESSICA GLAZER, TEACHING ASSISTANT: We take our happiness for granted and that's why it's so important that we study it. So I think it just works to help them to apply the class outside of the classroom.

LOTHIAN: Eight hundred and fifty six students pack into this theater twice a week to learn and laugh. With so many pressures in life to achieve, better grades, better jobs, bigger raises, sometimes happiness gets lost in the rat race.

BEN-SHACHAR: What is actually important for sustained happiness is the internal, our perception of the world. For instance, how do we look at failure? Do we see it as a stumbling block or do we see it as a stepping stone?

LOTHIAN: Sam Siner and Tifanny Niver are exploring those very questions.

SAM SINER, STUDENT: He's telling us that it's not a bad thing to try to do what makes us happy because ultimately it will benefit ourselves and everyone around us.

LOTHIAN: Students are encouraged to keep a gratitude journal, to chronicle the positive things in their lives.

TIFANNY NIVER, STUDENT: You come out of this class, I think, with a little bit more idea of how you can apply it every day. Whereas, when I'm learning intermediate macro and economic theory, I don't see directly at this point in my life how I can apply that every day.

LOTHIAN: Some call it self-help. Others call it life changing. Harvard grad Liz Peterson was headed for a career in law until the class opened her eyes with three simple questions.

LIZ PETERSON, STUDENT: What do you find meaning in? What are you good at? And what do you find pleasure in?

LOTHIAN: The answers sent her in a different direction.

PETERSON: Psychology and trying to help people be happier about their lives.

LOTHIAN: Perhaps a sign of the times that students have to be taught happiness in a classroom?

NIVER: I don't think college campuses as environments are less happy. I think it's because we can study something that makes us happy, as well as has huge impacts.

LOTHIAN: After all, where else can you find a course where something other than a good grade makes you really happy?

Dan Lothian, CNN, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: We have people writing in to us today.

COLLINS: Happy people.

HARRIS: Happy people.

Talking about what they'd like for Christmas, for the holidays.

COLLINS: Wait a minute. Is that holiday music?

HARRIS: It's big band. It's swing. It's not bad. It's not bad, though.

COLLINS: I didn't say it was bad.

HARRIS: It's not bad.

So here's the question: What's on your holiday shopping list? there's the address -- CNNnewsroom@cnn.com.

Do we want to read a couple now?

COLLINS: Yes.

HARRIS: OK, let's do that.

COLLINS: First one says, from Patty in Arkansas, "Mistletoe! (hey, it's a gift that encourages giving, right?"

HARRIS: Yes, yes. How about this from Shaun -- "The Hot Firefighter Calendar! (all the money goes to charity)."

COLLINS: I wonder if Shaun is on the firefighter calendar.

And the last one, "A vacation for my in-laws, so I can stay home and have some peace!!!"

HARRIS: Now wait a minute.

COLLINS: Notice here that Jim does not include his last name.

HARRIS: Yes, yes. Not the sentiment we are going after.

COLLINS: No. Come on, let's step it up.

HARRIS: But of course we understand the sentiment.

Here's the question again -- what is on your holiday shopping list? there's the address, CNNnewsroom@cnn.com. We'll be reading some of your e-mails a little later, maybe next hour.

COLLINS: Meanwhile, devastated by storms, left without emergency medical care, a parish in southern Louisiana gets a healing hand from a determined doctor.

The story from senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This acute care center in New Orleans was spared major damage from Hurricane Katrina and one of the few places people can still turn to for urgent and primary care. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Howdy.

GUPTA: Dr. Mike Kottler and two other full-time doctors tend to an average of 80 patients daily. With half the hospitals still closed, they're inundated, to say the least.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where do I go now?

GUPTA: Despite the heavy load, Kottler has also spent the last year making the nearly impossible happen some 65 miles away in Plaquemines Parish. This area was completely devastated by the storm surge, and a year later is still struggling. This, the only emergency medical center, for a 50-mile radius, was completely underwater.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you notice all the clocks stopped at five of 5:00. That's incredible.

GUPTA: Kottler, who is medical director here, felt compelled to do something. The people could not go without health service. So, along with a few local residents, all of whom lost their homes, Kottler and his crew worked for no pay with no offices and through endless layers to get money and resources to rebuild.

DR. MIKE KOTTLER, PELICAN STATE URGENT CARE: Their hearts were in the right place, but if we did not push it and really get cantankerous, it still wouldn't be up.

GUPTA: This July, Plaquemine's Medical Center opened its doors in a temporary building, and has been treating more than 150 patients per week.

KOTTLER: It was a tremendous feeling at the grand opening of this facility. It was with so many different issues. To see it happen was really emotional.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Extreme bloodshed in Iraq yesterday. Today, retaliation. A Sunni neighborhood is attacked. The latest from Arwa Damon in Baghdad. That coming up. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

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