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Winter Weather Watch; Mexico Congress Fight; Shiite Leader In D.C.; Leaving Iraq

Aired December 01, 2006 - 10:00   ET

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

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Heidi Collins.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Tony Harris has a much deserved day off. I'm T.J. Holmes sitting in today. Spend a second hour in the NEWSROOM this morning and stay informed. Here is what we have on the rundown.

December's snowy debut. A winter preview socks the heartland. Roads and airports a mess. The cold air rolling east today.

COLLINS: A disputed election comes to blows. Mexico swearing in a new president today. We've got the political punches.

HOLMES: And African-Americans bearing the brunt of AIDS in the U.S. A new book puts it into focus. We talk live with the editor on this World AIDS Day, Friday, December 1st. You are in the NEWSROOM.

The calendar says autumn. The weather disagrees. A massive snow storm is blasting through the nation's heartland. Hundreds of flights are canceled, even more delayed. On the right side of your screen there, we'll keep you posted on this nasty, unpleasant air travel. First, a view from the ground. CNN's Keith Oppenheim begins our coverage in Chicago.

And, man, it looks worse from the last time we talked to you.

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's not getting any better, T.J. We're standing at the edge of the Michigan Avenue Bridge where there are people walking to work, braving the tough weather. It's not an easy day for walking and it's definitely not an easy day for flying.

Take a look at some video we have of O'Hare Airport, where this morning there was a FedEx cargo plane that went off the runway and got stuck in the mud. That really didn't make that much of a difference because the airport's kind of in a stand-by situation anyway, with hundreds of flights canceled by United and American. We should note that Southwest Airlines has been flying partially out of Midway Airport. So if you are flying to or through Chicago, obviously, you have to check ahead of time. But the general answer is, flights probably won't be back up in the air in this weather until sometime this afternoon.

I'm going to get down and dirty for you, T.J., or perhaps better stated, down and slushy. Take a look at what is on the side of the road here. It's -- you know, it's the perfect slush ball and it's very, very wet. And not only bad for driving, but if this stuff freezes over, it's going to be even more of a nightmare than we have today. And keep in mind, right now, T.J., we've got about 60,000 customers without power in northern Illinois, so already we're having a pretty challenging day.

Back to you.

HOLMES: What a mess. I really hope that coat is holding up for you, sir. We'll see you here in a little bit.

OPPENHEIM: OK.

COLLINS: And now to Missouri. Ice and the power outages there that come with it, the biggest problem this morning. Let's go to St. Louis now where we find CNN's Sean Callebs with an update on the situation there.

Boy, when the power's out, it always makes it so much worse.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It really does. And especially after what people have endured here for the past 36 hours. They knew this storm was coming. First, a lot of ice. A lot of sleet. That froze over. Then they got a little bit of snow here in the St. Louis area. But take a look at the arch. Some good news here. We've had a somewhat dramatic change in conditions in the last, I'd say, 15 or 20 minutes. We can actually see patches of blue sky. I'm sure people are going to be running out in the streets in a moment to look and say, wow, it really is blue.

But actually the power company is telling people, look, if you don't have to go out, stay out. It's not so much the roads that the power company's concerned about. All this ice has brought down power lines throughout the area. Some 450,000 to 500,000 people without power in Missouri, parts of southern Illinois and they don't know when that is going to be restored.

If you just kind of look up at the trees, you get a pretty good idea of exactly what happened. That freezing rain stuck. It is now overburdening the power lines, bringing them down. We're also getting a word of warning from consumer advocates as well. People who may want to use generators. Don't put them too close to your house. There's always a danger of carbon monoxide. And also candles. People who may need to have some light. There's also the concern about fire, especially this time of year if you have any kind of holiday decorations out.

Now about the airport. The St. Louis Airport still closed. We just checked there a short while ago. They canceled legions of flights yesterday because of the freezing rain coming in. They were putting basically antifreeze-type product down on the runways, trying to make those as safe as possible. But in the meantime, icing became a problem with the planes. More than 1,000 people stuck at the airport last night. So they're going to try and get those people out once they get the airport up and running. So, Heidi, just a nightmare here. But the good news is, they're on the tail end of this storm. All these freezing conditions are now going to head Keith's way. So that slush that he's shopping around in in Chicago, he's going to see what we're looking at, ice on the streets, probably in a matter of hours.

COLLINS: Yes, thank goodness, you know, I mean we didn't have great weather for Thanksgiving, but it wasn't as bad as this. My goodness.

CALLEBS: Yes, a week earlier it could have been a real disaster with all those people traveling

COLLINS: No kidding. No kidding. All right, Sean Callebs, coming to us live from St. Louis today.

Thanks, Sean.

HOLMES: And talking about that snow and ice and, of course, the road crews are working pretty hard trying to clear all that stuff away. Jonathan Freed for us now live from Kansas City, Missouri. And are things just as bad there or are they starting to get some relief?

JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, T.J., we've got blue skies here in Kansas City today. We saw our action yesterday when it was snowing so strongly that you couldn't even see the building across the street. Very different story this morning. And let me just show you what it looks like.

We're in an area called the plaza here in downtown Kansas City. A very pretty area. A shopping district. And just take a look at these buildings set against the blue sky. You would not believe what was going on here yesterday when you see what is happening today. And the sun that is out is already starting to melt what's here. You can see what's going down on the road right now. Anything that's in the direct sunlight is starting to melt.

Yesterday, though, and overnight, it was snowing very, very intensely. We had three inches of snow an hour. Now one inch an hour is a lot of snow. Usually snowfall is a little less than that. So three inches an hour, this storm packed a lot of energy. And we saw as much as 11 inches, even a foot of snow in the general Kansas City area.

This part of town didn't get that much, but we were here before dawn and the crews were out here -- there were piles of snow everywhere. You couldn't drive everywhere this morning. But they did a great job clearing it all away. The question now, everybody can get around, are these stores that perhaps had decided to tell their employees to stay home, are they going to open today? We're waiting to see what happens there.

T.J.

HOLMES: Oh, well you've got blue skies, the sun is popping out. You can get rid of that coat. Get rid of those gloves. Come on. FREED: You know my wife already e-mailed me and teased me and asked me if they send sun screen along with the new CNN jackets. So we'll see.

HOLMES: All right. Thank you so much. We'll see you.

COLLINS: Want to head over to Reynolds Wolf now who is going to give us a better picture of the entire country.

So far, Reynolds, we've been to Chicago and St. Louis and Kansas City. My favorite place is Chicago. People think I'm nuts.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Meanwhile, this just in now. Want to get over to Fredricka Whitfield in the newsroom on the very latest with the situation in Mexico, the incoming president there. Having a tough time to say the least, Fred.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they are having a tough time. And police are now having a tough time, too, making sure that this swearing-in takes place in Mexico because in that effort of leftist supporters to keep the swearing-in to happen, involving the president-elect, all of Mexico watched this take place live on television.

Let's take a look at the pictures of this brawl taking place right there in Congress, involving the lawmakers, throwing punches, throwing chairs, all of this in an effort to make sure the swearing-in doesn't take place because these leftist supporters of the defeated presidential candidate, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, are still contending that Felipe Calderon stole the election last July. The conservative, Calderon, is to be sworn in soon. They are hoping that it will still take place, at least the supporters of the president- elect.

Police, security officials, all of them are in place to try to ensure that it does, indeed, happen. This brawl taking place on live television. And views were -- and you're looking at live pictures right now of dignitaries moving in because they do believe that this swearing-in will, indeed, take place. Viewers were watching, that the ruling party lawmakers were chanting, "Mexico wants peace."

They also seized the speaker's platform where Calderon is to be sworn in. The constitution requires that he be sworn in, in Congress, and so these leftist supporters are feeling like if they try to make sure that it doesn't happen, then, indeed, this president-elect won't be sworn in.

But you see the folks are taking their positions. Some clapping taking place. We'll keep you updated as to whether the swearing-in does, indeed, happen.

Heidi and T.J.

COLLINS: All right, Fredricka Whitfield, thanks so much for that.

And, in fact, we want to get a little bit more information and so we are going to go to Washington, D.C., now, where standing by we have Juan Carlos Lopez of CNN International.

And, Juan, I'm not sure if you can look at the pictures that we are looking at now. We were seeing some live shots coming in. What is happening there? It's just a fascinating situation in that specifically what happened last night, at midnight, in this private sort of ceremony where Vicente Fox handed over the sash and secretly swore in, if you will, Felipe Calderon. But now, of course, the big question is, constitutionally, does that really hold?

JUAN CARLOS LOPEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's the big question and that's a question right now, I believe, nobody in Mexico has a definite answer for because it had never happened before. It was always this stage that we're seeing. This is the house of representatives in Mexico. That's where the outgoing president, in this case Vicente Fox, would go and hand over power to the incoming president, Felipe Calderon. They're from the same party.

But now that ceremony might not happen if this keeps going on. And it's not the first time it happened. Ex-President Fox, because he ceased being president at midnight, couldn't give his last state of the union address, the equivalent to the state of the union address in the United States, because the opposition members didn't let him go in to this building. So it could happen again. The question is, if Felipe Calderon, who was sworn in as president, is legitimately the president of Mexico, and it makes things even more complicated because his rival in the elections, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, installed himself as the legitimate president of Mexico, installed a shadow cabinet and it's just getting very, very complicated.

COLLINS: Juan Carlos, again, I'm not sure if you can hear, but I'm so interested -- we're seeing some sort of chant going on right now and, obviously, that will not be in my native tongue, but it is in yours. Is there any way that you can listen and tell us what we are hearing here?

LOPEZ: Well, we can listen to it for a moment. Maybe I can. And try to make out what they're saying. And those are members of Congress from both parties, from Calderon's party and from Lopez Obrador's party of the democratic revolution. Let's see if we can hear some of the chants and I'll try to tell you what they're saying.

COLLINS: Yes, it's certainly difficult to hear, isn't it, Juan Carlos. I'd be so curious . . .

LOPEZ: Well, the signs they've been carrying say that this presidency won't be legitimate. Some are saying that they have a right to work. That they will not be upstaged by the opposition. So, it's back and forth. And you see they're all dressed in dark. They were asked last night by their own party to go home, to change, to come back in dark suits and be ready for this inauguration, although Calderon was already inaugurated. Just a very divided country right now. COLLINS: Yes, indeed. In fact, I'm reading something here about Lopez Obrador refusing to recognize, of course, Calderon's victory. Has set up some sort of parallel government . . .

LOPEZ: Yes.

COLLINS: Declaring himself, you know, the legitimate president. What can that mean?

LOPEZ: Well, it just means that there isn't -- that political stability in Mexico is at a very difficult moment right now. They've been at this since July 2nd when Lopez Obrador refused to recognize the results from the elections. It was a very close victory for Calderon. Lopez Obrador requested a recount. The recount was done according to what the Mexican electoral law says, but he refuses to accept those results and believes that he was robbed of the presidency and that's why he started this whole process.

But for weeks, Mexico City was the site of protests. The main avenues were closed. Business lost billions of dollars because Mexico City, a city of 20 million people, was paralyzed in its most important area and all because of this opposition to this inauguration that's going to -- that should take place in about 15 minutes.

COLLINS: That's right, in about 15 minutes. We will come back to this, I'm sure, and see if it does take place. That is the swearing-in of Mexico's new president, Felipe Calderon. An interesting picture there, for sure, coming out of Mexico City.

Juan Carlos Lopez, certainly appreciate your help on this one.

HOLMES: We now want to turn to another development. Another developing story out of Iraq about word we're just getting about a guest. A special guest who may be coming to the White House. CNN's Arwa Damon live for us in Baghdad.

What do you know?

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, T.J., that guest would be Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of SCIRI, the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq. According to his aide, Hisam al-Husseini (ph), he will be traveling to the United States over the next few days to meet with President Bush.

Now, according to Hisam al-Husseini, again his aide, the U.S. president invited Mr. Hakim over a few months ago. That invitation was reiterated by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on her last visit to Iraq. And now it appears that that meeting is going to take place.

According to his aide, there are a number of issues on their agenda. No specific details disclosed, but that the two leaders would be discussing the big picture. Security, of course, as well as Iraq's relationship with its neighbors.

Now, Mr. Hakim has a fairly, very interesting history. He spent quite some time in Iran in exile. There he formed the Badr Brigade, which is basically a military wing. He joined the Badr Brigade, rather, which was a military wing that was formed in exile in Iran to fight Saddam Hussein's regime. He came back to Iraq in August of 2003. He currently heads, again, SCIRI, the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq.

He is arguably one of the more influential political and, to some degree, religious figures here in Iraq. His support for the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, is crucial to al-Maliki's success as a leader of this country.

T.J.

HOLMES: Arwa, how often does the Bush administration reach out to other leaders like this? We hear the name of the Iraqi president. We hear the name all the time, of course, the prime minister, Nuri al- Maliki. But this name, even though we might see it a lot because we read wire reports and tapped in, but a lot of people just aren't generally familiar with this name, maybe. How often does the Bush administration reach out to other leaders like this around Iraq?

DAMON: Well, T.J., publicly, not that often. But there are back door dealings, communications that are happening all the time with politically influential leaders in this country. It is not unnatural that the administration would be reaching out to Abdul Aziz al-Hakim. Again, he is incredibly influential here.

He has met with some U.S. administration officials in the past. He meets quite frequently with the U.S. ambassador, Zalmay Khalilzad, here. He meets with Iraq's top political leadership all the time. Now, he does not hold a formal seat in the Iraqi government, but he does hold a lot of sway with a lot of the politicians here and with the Iraqi street.

T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Arwa Damon for us in Baghdad.

Arwa, thank you so much.

And, of course, the big question has been when to leave Iraq. The Iraq Study Group reportedly eying a couple of ideas for 2008. We'll talk about that ahead in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: And British pathologists probe for details. An autopsy could reveal clues to the radiation poisoning death of a former Russian spy.

And dozens of people are warned they also could be exposed. How far did the radiation spread? Answers to that question coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Boy, it just doesn't stop, does it? We have more news to report to you. Some breaking news here out of Washington, D.C. Congressional aids are saying the House speaker-to-be, Nancy Pelosi, has made her choice for the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. That person, Representative Sylvester Reyes of Texas. Once again, Sylvester Reyes of Texas will take over as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

He does have quite a background in law enforcement and national security. He served on the House Permanent Select Committee of Intelligence beginning way back in the spring of 2001. Of course, about six months before the September 11th attack. He's got about 26 years of experience in border security and the United States border patrol. He says he's very committed to bringing more diversity to the intelligence community.

Once again, Representative Sylvester Reyes of Texas will become the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

And, meanwhile, the Iraq Study Group trying to solve the riddle of Baghdad. "The Washington Post" reporting today the panel will recommend pulling U.S. combat troops out by early 2008. Live now to CNN's senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre.

Good morning to you, Jamie.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Heidi.

And, of course, the key part of that recommendation is that it's not a mandate. It's sort of a goal. And it would be under the conditions permitting, under the judgment of U.S. military commanders. Interesting today, we got to hear from one of those military commanders on the ground.

Major General Benjamin Mixon is in charge of U.S. troops up in the northern part of Iraq. And when asked about these proposals, he said it sounds a lot like what they're doing now. Listen to what he said about what's going on in his part of Iraq and the plans to transition into a role where U.S. troops would be more in the background.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. BENJAMIN MIXON, U.S. ARMY: The task force "Lightening" is accomplishing its goal of transitioning security to Iraqi security forces. As they develop capacity and accept responsibility for security, we will turn more and more responsibility over to them. From day one, this has been our focus. We will continue to partner with our Iraqi partners and I expect that over the next three to six months they will assume full responsibility for security of Iraq's people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCINTYRE: He said during that time he also sees the definite possibility of significant troop reductions, at least in his part of Iraq.

Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, Jamie, quickly a question for you about this. Is there any danger that the U.S. could be seen as taking sides to this escalating sectarian strife by going ahead and aligning themselves more with Shiites and the Kurds in all of this plan?

MCINTYRE: Well, you know, they're trying very much to avoid that. They're trying to make sure that the Iraqi security forces are reflective of the area and they're trying to, particularly in this training and embedding of U.S. forces, which is going to be the new emphasis, to make sure that they have a security force that operates irrespective of religious sect or ethnic group in Iraq. That's one of the major goals for the transition.

COLLINS: All right. Jamie McIntyre live from the Pentagon.

Jamie, thank you.

Want to get you back to some new video coming in to CNN now. We've been telling you about this situation in Mexico where the incoming president, Felipe Calderon, you see him there, is apparently leaving with looks to be his family, getting into his motorcade and heading out over to the official swearing-in. But the drama that surrounds this, that we've been telling you about, began last night in sort of a private ceremony where the former president, Vicente Fox, secretly, if you will, handed over the sash.

This was a private ceremony. And there are lots of questions now as to whether or not that is constitutionally sound. The law there says this must happen in the building of Congress. Just a few hours before that ceremony was supposed to take place, again, going to be happening in about five minutes or so we believe, there were chairs thrown and lots of people upset inside the congressional building about the way this went down last night.

So we continue to follow this story, the incoming president, Felipe Calderon, out of Mexico City. We'll bring it to you again in about five minutes from now if that ceremony takes place as scheduled.

HOLMES: And we're still talking about that deep freeze. A major snow storm walloping the Midwest and the plains. We'll update travel delays coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: A wintry storm just whipping the Midwest and the plains. The first major snow storm of the season making road conditions dangerous from Texas to Missouri to Michigan. A blizzard warning was posted for parts of Oklahoma and the governor of Kansas declared a disaster emergency for 27 counties.

The storm has grounded hundreds of flights. More than 400 canceled at Chicago's O'Hare Airport today. Flights were also grounded at the St. Louis and Dallas-Ft. Worth airports. We'll update travel delays on the right side of your screen.

COLLINS: Reynolds Wolf is on the job right now, getting ready to tell us all about this weather.

And we know it moves east. Any relief in sight? I mean I'm looking over your shoulder. That is one heck of a big, white, wintry wonderland.

(WEATHER REPORT)

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: We have new developments this morning in the poisoning death of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko. His radiation contaminated body is undergoing an autopsy in London. Our Robin Oakley joins us now outside the London Royal Hospital.

Hello, to you.

ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN LONDON BUREAU CHIEF, CNN NEWSROOM: Hello, T.J.

As you say, the autopsy going on now in the hospital behind me. Being conducted by three pathologists, all of whom are having to wear heavy protective clothing. It's believed space-style helmets to protect them because, as they saw into bones and they take tissue samples from Mr. Litvinenko's vital organs there is, of course, a danger to them.

The whole thing will be monitored very carefully for radiation levels while they're conducting this. One pathologist, for the government, a second pathologist, who will produce an independent report, which could be used by the defense team, if this becomes a murder case, a third pathologist, one there at the request of the Litvinenko family.

This bizarre story, with radiation leaks being traced to 12 sites across London, with airliners being grounded, with radiation being found aboard, took another development in the last half hour. Because we heard from the Health Protection Agency here in London that a second individual has now tested positive for polonium 210, the radioactive substance, which is believed to have poisoned and killed Mr. Litvinenko.

The speculation, inevitably, will be that that second person is Mario Scaramella, who was the Italian investigator of the murder in Moscow of Anna Politkovskaya, the campaigning journalist, who was murdered a little while ago. And he met Mr. Litvinenko. He was one of the last people to have contact with him before he fell ill. And at their meeting, he said to Mr. Litvinenko, that both their names, he believed, were on a hit list from a certain elements in the Russian secret service -- T.J.

HOLMES: Robin Oakley, thank you so much, for us today in London. This story keeps changing. Thank you so much.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: A battle for political power playing out in Lebanon today. A crowd of at least 200,000 gathered in Beirut, calling for the prime minister to step down. Our Beirut Bureau Chief Brent Sadler is joining us live with the very latest -- Brent. BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF, CNN NEWSROOM: Thanks, Heidi.

The protest is now winding down, but at its peak according to Lebanese police, at least 200,000 people have gathered in downtown Beirut. The city, itself, under a very heavy security lockdown, unprecedented in recent times. With 60 armored personnel carriers, hundreds of Lebanese army combat troops, and heavily armed internal security police to protect the Western-backed government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, hold up in his prime ministerial complex, along with many of his ministers, facing down a strong Hezbollah-led challenge to bring that U.S.-backed administration down.

They have been repeated calls from a whole line of speakers, suggesting, commanding that the prime minister leave office to make way for a unity government that would, in effect, give Hezbollah, that fought a 34-day war with Israel, a much stronger say in government.

It does seem that a marathon political tug of war has now ensued, with both political camps refusing to yield any ground, Heidi, amidst concern among most Lebanese that these street protests could sooner or later turn violent.

Why is it important for the United States? Because Lebanon is seen as a key front in the U.S. struggle to rein in Syria and growing Iranian influence in the Middle East -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Our Brent Sadler, live from Beirut. Boy, a very, very busy day there, indeed.

We want to take you back to another interesting situation taking place there in Mexico City. We are awaiting the formal inauguration of the incoming president, Felipe Calderon.

This has been an interesting situation for many reasons, being that we are hoping to see him move ahead, as we watch this picture, donning the presidential sash and delivering his inaugural address before congress. But as you can see, quite a bit of chanting and opposition to that idea; tension running very high where the speech is about to be delivered.

This is Calderon's PAN Party, or the National Action Party. And members of that opposition, the PRD, which is the Party of the Democratic Revolution, they actually traded blows an hour ago. We were able -- hours ago we were able to show you some of that video, throwing chairs at one another and so forth. The opposition saying they do not recognize Calderon's victory. They have vowed for months to prevent the very inaugural address that we are waiting to happen inside that building.

In fact, for days now, both sides have been sleeping in these chambers. Calderon, as we also spoke about, was sworn in and received, in sort of a private ceremony, the presidential sash at midnight, last night, from outgoing President Fox.

This has not happened before. We will continue to watch this, and bring it to you, when that inaugural address -- if it happens -- happens.

HOLMES: A health crisis among African-Americans, the devastating impact of HIV and AIDS. A new book helps break the silence and eliminate the stigma. We will talk with the editor, coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We're going to take you back to these live pictures out of Mexico City. This is what's happening. They are trying to inaugurate the new president. We have been talking about this, the incoming president, Felipe Calderon. This is the congress today.

Of course, many do not feel that he legitimately won this election, and they are expressing that today. The day he is supposed to be inaugurated. We have seen chairs flying, we have seen fists flying, and it's been kind of a mess here and there, in that chamber of congress.

We have also seen some calmer moments -- these aren't some of the calmer moments. But this is what we've been watching for much of the day, a little skirmish breaking out there in congress.

But also we have seen calmer moments, where we have seen the crowd still chants and yelling, still a little more organized, and not as violent as those pictures we just saw. Looks like a calm here, at least for a little bit.

We also saw Felipe Calderon a short time ago, video of him leaving his home, it appeared, with his family, heading there, still hoping to take that official inauguration there. He did go through a ceremony last night, a private ceremony. Not sure if that private ceremony actually constitutionally handed him the power. We will continue to watch that as things continue to develop there, and see if he will, in fact, be inaugurated, take that official oath today.

All right. Well, moving on back now to talk about World AIDS Day. African-Americans make up about 13 percent of the population in the U.S., but they account for half of new HIV and AIDS cases. The devastating epidemic among blacks is the focus of a book of essays and stories called, "Not In My Family: AIDS in the African-American Community." And journalist Gil Robertson is the editor; he joins me now from New York.

Sir, thank you for being with us today.

GIL ROBERTSON, EDITOR, "NOT IN MY FAMILY": Thank you, T.J.

HOLMES: Part of your book, you started off talking about needing a revolution, there was a time, as well, that you talk about the black community. You say, hey, black people, black America, we have a problem. Do we know that yet?

ROBERTSON: I think we're coming to that awareness. Certainly, "Not In My Family" has a wide cross-section of voices, representing every element in the black community, from professionals to students, the religious community, celebrities. So I think that the African- American community is waking up that we are in the midst of a crisis and that we need to become very proactive in developing a blueprint to reach a solution.

HOLMES: Because the numbers are so disproportionate for African-Americans and AIDS in this country, is there a danger that the rest of the country will start to think, you know what, that's a black disease. And what are the consequences if the rest of America and black America starts to think this is a black disease?

ROBERTSON: Well, already we're experiencing problems with funding, making sure that resources are allocated for testing, education. So we need to be, you know, very vigilant in how this disease is handled, and how the direction of -- how funds are being made available. We definitely don't -- AIDS is not an African-American disease.

It's just that right now a higher percentage of African-American people are contracting it. However, according to latest numbers from the CDC, the disease is tracking, spiking high in other minority communities as well.

HOLMES: Talk about the black community for a moment and the impression, I guess, among blacks, among young blacks about why -- or how you end up with the disease. Everybody knows the story. You hear it so often about what they call the down-low brother, a guy leading two lives. Will carry on a relationship with a man and then end up carrying that disease back to a relationship with a woman he's having. Is that the impression and the idea of the way that it's being spread in the black community?

ROBERTSON: Yeah, to some degree denial plays a significant role, presents a very big barrier that we need to overcome in dealing with HIV and AIDS in our community.

What we really need to do is not to point any fingers, not -- to stop the accusations, and to really address the central problems, which are honesty, stressing communication. Parents need to communicate with their children. The community needs to demand that their religious leaders address this disease. We need to demand that our political leaders support funding for research and education.

And we need to talk to our children. We need to make sure that before they engage in physical intimacy that they're asking each other the right types of questions. That they're going in for testing, that they're going in for counseling, and that they are present, that both of them are present when they are getting their HIV status report.

HOLMES: That's what we all should be doing, like you said, talking. But what does it take to get comfortable, to get us all comfortable, just to get it out there and to have that conversation, and not be so ashamed of taking that partner with you? Hey, let's go take this test together. We have to get to that point. How do we get there?

ROBERTSON: T.J., hopefully the essays in "Not In My Family" will inspire that type of dialogue. The intention for this project is to open up communication channels so that we can get past all of the obstacles, and to begin to constructively deal with this disease and combat it.

HOLMES: All right. Want to mention as well that you certainly have a personal connection to this. Your brother, I believe, 20, 25 years he has been dealing with HIV/AIDS, so a very personal connection here for you, as well. Want to mention that.

ROBERTSON: Absolutely.

HOLMES: So, again, Gil Robertson, thank you so much for what you are doing and hopefully this book can help some folks out, right now, get some folks to talk about it.

ROBERTSON: Thank you for the opportunity.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN NEWSROOM: I'm Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange. A billionaire investor has apparently thrown in the towel in his quest to shake up General Motors. I'll have details when NEWSROOM returns. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: And there he is. He has made it. We are looking at live pictures here of the inauguration ceremony for the incoming president of Mexico, Felipe Calderon. We have been watching this chamber for some time. And we have seen punches thrown, we have seen chairs thrown. We didn't know how this would work out, but apparently, he has made it to the chamber, and he will be taking that inauguration -- if he didn't just take it there.

Not sure if that was part of the ceremony, but it looks like -- yes, he's about to receive that from the former president now, Vicente Fox, in this ceremony.

We didn't know how this would all play out after seeing the scuffles in that chamber. But, of course, as you know, the -- his opponent in the election, Lopez Obrador -- Andreas Manuel Obrador -- has said that it essentially was stolen from him, the election.

And we're looking at it live. I believe it is official at this point. He has taken the presidential sash from President Vicente Fox. We hear the cheers. Don't know if we hear any jeers in there as well, but we have been watching pretty much a scuffle in that chamber today. But it appears he has made it, and he has now become the president of Mexico.

We will continue to watch this and keep an eye on it. We have American officials there as well. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, of California, attending that ceremony. Also the former president, Bush 41. We're actually looking at here, Governor Schwarzenegger, who is always trying to improve his relationship with Mexico.

COLLINS: Right. HOLMES: He's mad a couple of trips there in the past month or so.

COLLINS: He has, in fact. Mexico is of course, the largest trading partner for his state.

Now looking at 41, if you will, former President George H.W. Bush, also, attending. We believe Alberto Gonzales, is at this inauguration, that we are watching.

Live pictures of Mexico City. Wish we could hear a little bit better, because it has been really an incredible site. We know that both sides of congress talking about the Party of the Democratic Revolution, and also Felipe Calderon's party, the National Action Party, have been sleeping overnight inside those chambers for days now. The opposition party trying to prevent this very moment that we are, again, watching here live.

HOLMES: Looks like it happened.

COLLINS: We want to move on here now, and go to New York. Susan Lisovicz is standing by. Billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian has apparently put up the white flag, Susan, in his costly campaign now to reshape the world's largest auto maker?

LISOVICZ: Yes, and he still made money doing it, Heidi. I guess that's why he is a billionaire investor.

According to published reports, Kirk Kerkorian abruptly unloaded his entire stake in General Motors yesterday. "The Wall Street Journal" says the billionaire sold his last 28 million shares last night to Bank of America. That's on top of the 14 million shares he sold earlier in the day. Up until last week, Kerkorian held a nearly 10 percent stake in GM. He was the company's largest individual shareholder.

"The Journal" estimates he made nearly $100 million on his GM investment. The sale follows the resignation of Kerkorian's representative from GM's board. That resignation came after GM decided against teaming up with Nissan and Renault, something Kerkorian had been pushing -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Well, is this seen as a positive for GM then, and its leadership?

LISOVICZ: Not necessarily. In the near term, it takes away some of the pressure from GM's chief, Rick Wagoner, but now he has to prove that his plan works better than Kerkorian's more aggressive ideas. GM has some very serious challenges before it. GM, and the other automakers, report November sales this afternoon, so we will get that more insight as to how it's doing. GM shares, right now, not doing much of anything.

But stocks, however, overall deep in the red after report on manufacturing at the top of the hour, showed its weakest read in more than three years. Another report at the top of the hour showed construction spending fell more than expected in October.

So, how is it playing out? Predictably, the Dow industrials down 78 points, or more than half a percent. The Nasdaq is down 1 percent. That's the latest from Wall Street. Heidi, T.J., back to you.

COLLINS: All right, Susan Lisovicz, thank you.

HOLMES: Well Chips, Ahoy! I know you have been waiting on this story today.

COLLINS: I love this picture.

HARRIS: Cool Ranch, rewards, on the beach, our pictures of the day coming up in the NEWSROOM.

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HOLMES: Well, the weekend is coming.

COLLINS: It is, isn't it?

HOLMES: I will be working on the weekend.

COLLINS: I know you are. And we'll be watching.

HOLMES: But I'm here with you right now, so I don't really know what we're going to be talking about this weekend.

COLLINS: Yes, you do.

HOLMES: So, Betty Nguyen, my partner, is going to tell us what's happening this weekend.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR, CNN SATURDAY MORNING: How do you teach AIDS awareness to young black teenagers? Well, try speaking their language.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's what I told my mother when your granddaddy came to pick me up for my prom.

If he's anything like my Herbert, bless his soul, you will be needing these.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: This educational cartoon deals out a dose of reality. But will it work?

Plus, more people than ever will shop online this holiday season, but before you point, click and buy, you want the inside scoop from our net savvy shopper.

And just how much would you pay for a jar of spaghetti sauce? This couple paid -- get this -- $1600. And they weren't even at the grocery store. It is the nightmare before Christmas in our "Watercooler".

All that, plus the day's top stories starting out tomorrow on CNN "Saturday and Sunday Morning."

COLLINS: All right. We won't miss that.

Meanwhile, check this out. Carolina, fish and chips, thousands of bags of Doritos, washed up on the beaches of the Outer Banks. Beach combers delight in the trespassing triangles. They scooped up the snacks like a chip in a dip. Apparently the airtight bags -- this is the best part -- the airtight bags kept the salty water out. The Nacho Cheese and Cool Ranch sensations still savory.

So, where did they all come from? That cargo hold. Apparently, they are a chip off the old container, though, because it apparently fell from a ship, and cracked open. See, so their chips have finally come in. That's good stuff, right?

HOLMES: But still, I just don't pick up chips off the ground.

COLLINS: I went there, and I got these for you.

HOLMES: Yeah, that's what I like.

COLLINS: I go to the Outer Banks a lot.

HOLMES: Really? You just pick up food -- it's trash, really.

COLLINS: Yeah, but it's still good. "Virginia Pilot" capturing these newspaper photos for us.

HOLMES: And we appreciate it.

COLLINS: Good job.

HOLMES: All right. We are still talking, of course, about World AIDS Day and growing up with AIDS. Young people find the courage to confront an uncertain future. From despair to hope, live, in the NEWSROOM.

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