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New Questions On Tragic James Kim Death; Power Returns For Some Illinois Families; Picking Out Christmas Gifts For The Gadget Geek; Task of Iraqi River Patrol Is to Recover Bodies; Bush Praises Iraq Study Group's Work But Remains Vague On Recommendations

Aired December 09, 2006 - 11:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Now in the news, a new theory about a San Francisco-family's ordeal in the Oregon wilderness. Thirty-five- year-old James Kim died of exposure, but his wife and their daughter survived.
Did a vandalized gate cause them to lose their way?

We'll have a full report coming up in about three minutes.

Also, NASA managers meeting this morning to decide whether to go ahead with tonight's scheduled space shuttle launch. There's only a 30 percent chance of acceptable weather. We should have a decision any time now.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: The end of an era on Capitol Hill. This morning's adjournment of the 109th Congress marked the end of Republican control. Despite the partisan rancor of the recent elections, outgoing House Speaker Dennis Hastert hugged incoming speaker, Nancy Pelosi.

Congressman William Jefferson is fighting for his political life today. He is facing challenge Karen Carter in a runoff election in Louisiana. The FBI has been investigating bribery allegations against Jefferson and agents have searched his home and offices.

Actor Wesley Snipes is free after posting a $1 million bond. He entered a not guilty plea to charges he failed to pay tens of millions of dollars in federal income taxes. Snipes is being allowed to return to Africa, where he's been filming a movie.

And the lights in Decatur, Illinois slowly coming back on this morning thanks to CNN.

HOLMES: Also, Iraqi police patrolling the Tigris River on daily grim recovery missions.

NGUYEN: Check this out -- Nintendo gamers getting into the game a little too literally. Miles -- kind of scary there. The news is unfolding live right here on Saturday, the 9th day of December.

We'll talk about Miles and his gaming skills in a moment.

HOLMES: Yes.

NGUYEN: Good morning, everyone.

I'm Betty Nguyen.

HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes.

You are in THE NEWSROOM.

A tragic death in the Oregon wilderness.

Could it have been avoided?

New questions today in the death of James Kim, the California man who died from hypothermia while trying to save his snowbound family. They didn't know it, but their car was only a mile away from a lodge. It was closed for the season, but stocked with food. And authorities are trying to find out who cut the lock on a gate that could have stopped the family from taking a wrong turn.

Here's CNN's Drew Griffin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: We now know just one more thing that went wrong during the Kims' fatal drive into this Rogue River wilderness area. Fifteen miles in, they came to a fork in the road, to go left or right. The right was the wrong way to go.

It should have been locked up tight with this type of Bureau of Land Management gate. But now we are learning that the gate was wide open. Their path was wide open because vandals had broken the lock and left the gate open.

The Kims may have thought they were traveling to safety, but, in fact, that road was leading to a dead end deep inside the Rogue River wilderness area.

They would drive some 20 or so more miles. The road would turn to dirt. It would begin snowing. Finally, they came up to a spot where they just could not travel any longer. And it was here, at this spot, the Kims tried to hold out day after day, remnants of the diapers of the little baby all over the place there; bottled water; and in a corner of this wide open area are the four tires that the Kims took off their car and set ablaze, trying to find rescuers to try to find them. It never happened.

Mr. Kim eventually tried to walk out and walked to his death. A day or so later, the Kims were rescued.

Drew Griffin, CNN, in the Rogue River wilderness, Oregon.

HOLMES: And breaking point -- what would you do if you and your family were stranded in the wilderness?

All the experts say stay focused.

And next hour, we'll ask one of them the best ways to do that. And then, of course, a couple of days from now, a Paula Zahn special takes an emotional look at that California man's heroic sacrifice to save his family. "STRANDED: THE JAMES KIM ORDEAL," that airs Monday at 8:00 Eastern, only on CNN.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

NGUYEN: We have some breaking news to tell you about dealing with NASA and the Shuttle Discovery.

Let's take you straight to Florida and CNN's John Zarrella with the latest on that -- what do you know?

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning.

What we're hearing now is that the Shuttle Discovery mission management team did complete its meeting this morning and has decided that if they can -- and I emphasize if they can -- they're going to proceed with the tanking of the 500 -- the half a million gallons of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. That would have to begin some time around 12:30 Eastern time.

And I say if they can because they're behind schedule in some of the preliminary work that has to be done leading up to that tanking procedure beginning.

So they're racing the clock to see if they can get that preliminary work done so that tanking can begin by about 12:30 this afternoon. If they can't make 12:30, then they will have to, we understand, have to then to stand down on tonight's attempt.

The weather still doesn't look all that good for tonight's launch attempt. It looks still as if it's about a 70 percent chance of no go conditions tonight. The weather does improve slightly tomorrow and then it's even better on Monday.

So, again right now, just kind of waiting. And NASA racing the clock here to see if they can at least get the tank fueled and at least make an attempt tonight at a launch.

NGUYEN: Yes, the weather is not really cooperating today. And let me ask you this. You said tomorrow not so good, either. But say it doesn't make lift-off today.

What time tomorrow could this happen?

ZARRELLA: Well, tomorrow it would be pushed back. It's 8:47 p.m. Eastern time today. And I believe the time for lift-off tomorrow would be around 8:25 p.m. Eastern time. So it drops back every day by several minutes, the launch window time.

NGUYEN: OK. But right now, as we know, NASA is a go for this, weather provided, and also...

ZARRELLA: Well, a go from the standpoint that if they can get the preliminary work done by 12:30, that they can begin the tanking then. So they're still racing the clock to make sure they can get that work done so they can begin tanking by 12:30.

NGUYEN: But, of course...

ZARRELLA: If they can't get that preliminary work done...

NGUYEN: ... I mean they're also waiting on the weather, because it's not looking so great today, either.

ZARRELLA: Oh, no, certainly not, the weather. But they will at least make the attempt. You know, if they can get tanking procedures underway, then they will at least make the attempt and hope for a break in the weather tonight so that they can get the shuttle off the ground.

NGUYEN: And, of course, we'll be watching it, as will you.

Thank you for that report.

We appreciate it, John.

HOLMES: Still huddled against the cold, more than a week after a big snow and ice storm. The power still out in parts of the Midwest. But this morning, power crews putting smiles on the faces of some families in Decatur, Illinois.

Jeff Flock is there, where people -- they see some of those crews and they think it's Santa Claus coming to drop off the presents early -- Jeff, what's going on?

JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Exactly.

It is a very happy sight. You know, there's a lot plenty more to do here. All these branches down everywhere in town. So even after they got all the power on, there's still more cleanup to come. But we talked to the power company just a little bit ago, Ameren. They told us that earlier this morning (INAUDIBLE) power. They have 300 crew men and women on the street this morning. They feel they'll get it all knocked out by the end of business today.

So that's really good news in town. That means no more scenes like the ones we saw overnight. Take a look back at the Rice (ph) family. We've been following their story all morning. We watched them last night as we spent much of the overnight with them, playing Uno, for example. No computers, no television.

So they were playing by candlelight. Cold in that house, with just a kerosene heater. But this morning, about maybe two hours ago, a crew from Ameren showed up on the scene and hooked their electric meter back up. And they now have power again. In can see the light shining on their front porch as we speak here from where we stand.

So generally good news. And, of course, it's been a week and a day since that storm. And, as we said, there's plenty more to come. And when you look at the kind of damage on the trees, for example, I don't know, Bruce, if you're able to see off in the distance there. Maybe you are. The way they were snapped off. I mean this was a -- what they called -- I mean if you live here, it's a catastrophe in some ways, with the loss of the trees and the loss of power for so long.

But still, some people asking why has it taken so long?

At least now we can report that the power, by close of business today, if Ameren tells us correctly, will be back on in Decatur -- T.J.

HOLMES: All right, Jeff.

Well, that is certainly welcome news. And that was fun-to watch your live shot earlier with the crew actually there working to get that power back on. The family pretty happy.

Good to see that.

Thanks so much, Jeff.

FLOCK: Thank you, T.J.

NGUYEN: And so let's find out if the weather outside is going to be improving for a lot of folks who are just dealing with the dead of winter, and it's just the beginning of December -- Reynolds.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Oh, no doubt.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WOLF: You know, with the rough weather we've been dealing with across the country in mind and knowing that tragedies can and often do take place, the best thing you can possibly be is prepared. You've got to be prepared. It doesn't matter if you happen to be dealing with winter like weather or dealing with a tornado outbreak, if you live in hurricane country. Always be prepared.

And one of the best ways you can be prepared is with just some -- a few simple things like this. This is a backpack that you can pick up from Life Gear, get it on lifegear.com. You can actually pick up something similar to this at the American Red Cross or at AAA or at REI Stores.

What we have is this kit that contains three day's worth of drinking water, non-perishable; also, three days worth of food. You've got a first aid kit, you've got a multi-purpose knife. It acts as a pliers. You even have something like this. Take a look at this. It's kind of almost like not really, a strobe light, but certainly almost like a beacon.

Imagine being lost somewhere or a way where you don't have any other way of, say, communication. You happen to have one of these, it makes it a lot easier for you to be seen. And as soon as you can be seen, you can certainly be helped.

Also, things like this. Take a look at this. This is a six-in- one personal safety device, which does a variety of things. It has a compass. This is a strobe light, a flashlight, an emergency radio. A compass comes with it. And it also has the ability to charge a cell phone. It needs no batteries whatsoever. You just simply give it a couple of winds and it's good to go for quite a while.

So, definitely some really neat tools. The neat things about these, these are about just under $100, each of these items, the backpack; of course, the six-in-one tool that you have here; and even some additional supplies.

But they're great gifts that you can actually give someone, something that they can keep in their car, maybe in a closet at their home, at a beach house, that kind of thing. And the thing that's interesting about it, they're gifts that you hope no one will ever have to use. But it's always good and comfort to have this, always needed and always have it there in case you need it, so, those are some ideas.

NGUYEN: You know, it is better to be prepared. But the unfortunate thing is we have to hear stories like James Kim, the father who went in help after his family was stranded in Oregon to just remind us that there are packets out there, there are ways to stay in control of the situation should bad occurrences happen...

WOLF: Absolutely.

NGUYEN: ... especially weather-related.

WOLF: And, say, if you don't have the finances -- the financial ability to pick up some of these things, you can make a packet yourself at home. Just have a box with, obviously, some non- perishable items, some non-perishable food, a can opener, a bottle of water. It can make a world of difference. I mean just...

NGUYEN: Absolutely.

WOLF: ... just enough to last three days can make a tremendous, tremendous difference in someone's life.

NGUYEN: All right, well, thanks for that information.

WOLF: You bet.

NGUYEN: We appreciate it.

Less than $100 right there could save your life.

WOLF: There you go.

HOLMES: All right, thanks, Reynolds.

And we talked about this earlier. It's a nativity outrage.

NGUYEN: Oh, yes.

HOLMES: And I have joined in that outrage. A display has been vandalized. That's bad enough. But somebody stole baby Jesus. NGUYEN: Who would do that?

HOLMES: How are you going to steal baby Jesus?

What happened to peace on Earth, good will toward men, Betty?

NGUYEN: Why would you take baby Jesus?

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: Also, before you plug in and light up, we have some tips to keep your holiday display spectacular and, more importantly, safe.

And this...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Am I hitting you or are you hitting me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's hitting you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Our own Miles O'Brien and -- uh-oh, and thousands of gamers out there get a little wee bit in trouble with Nintendo's hot new gaming system. We have details coming up in 30 minutes right here in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: And I remember being stung by the news of the abuse at Abu Ghraib. And then watching so many determined people spend so many months trying to figure out exactly how in the world something like that could have happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: That is one of the most popular stories on CNN.com. Outgoing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld telling Pentagon workers his worst day on the job was learning of the Abu Ghraib Prison abuse scandal.

Other popular stories on our Web site, Oregon police say a vandalized gate put James Kim in harm's way. He died after being stranded in the Oregon wilderness for more than a week. His wife and two daughters were rescued.

Also, a Utah police chief under investigation after a letter he wrote came to light pledging allegiance to polygamist leader Warren Jeffs.

And in Moscow, arson is suspected in a fire that killed at least 45 women. The fire broke out at a substance abuse rehab hospital. NGUYEN: Well, last month in New York, a groom-to-be was killed after his bachelor party. In Atlanta, an elderly woman was killed in a drug raid. Both shootings controversial. And some civil rights leaders say police are just going too far.

So we wanted to know how many people are killed by police.

Joshua Levs joins us now with this reality check -- where do we get the numbers on this? I mean is there a compilation, a national one?

JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There are. There's only one. And that's what I want to show everyone today. It's really interesting. We went looking into this story this week and here's what we found. You know, in New York and in Atlanta, there are investigations going on into what happened there. But, civil rights leaders and some human rights groups are already pointing to those and saying you know what? This kind of thing happens all the time.

One person who has been pretty outspoken about this, the Reverend Al Sharpton. He says there's a new sense of police recklessness.

He was on "LARRY KING" the other night.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "LARRY KING LIVE")

REV. AL SHARPTON, NATIONAL ACTION NETWORK: Excessive force and deadly force must be looked at both nationally and locally. We cannot continue to see police in these kinds of situations and there'll be no resolve and no solution.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

LEVS: Right. So just as Betty is saying, we wanted to take a look at this the numbers here and see if it's accurate to have any kind of impression out there that this happens a lot.

Here's what we found. Take a look at this. You're seeing right now the only national compiling of how many people are killed by police. And you can see it there, it says at the right, 341 last year. But look at the very top -- we're talking about justifiable homicide. There are no figures anywhere in the federal government for how many people are killed through accidents or through situations that are ultimately determined to be unjustified.

Folks, that figure does not exist.

NGUYEN: So it's not an accurate assessment of how many people are killed by police, then?

LEVS: Well, that's what's so tricky, Betty, is that we don't know, you know, because we don't know how many other killings there might be out there.

NGUYEN: Right.

LEVS: I spoke with an expert this week and she tells me that she believes the vast majority of killings are -- by police -- are determined to be justified. Therefore, that figure would be most of them.

But the only way to know would literally be to look at every single police department in the entire country and try to find out if there were others that were accidents or unjustified.

So, I'll show you one here, since it's in the news. Let's take a look at New York. This is from the NYPD. Nine suspects, they say, killed last year, and they say in every single case it was justified. And, you know, a lot of people are saying the police are getting an unfair rap here, that, you know, from -- from the critics.

Let's take a look, for example, at what Mayor Bloomberg has said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: I think we all owe a great debt of gratitude to the vast bulk of the 37,000, 38,000 police officers who put their lives on the line every day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEVS: Right. But what you can see there is that we still don't ultimately know how many people are killed in these other types of situations in Atlanta and New York, in any city, anyway in the country -- Betty.

NGUYEN: And then there are different communities that are saying, you know, you're targeting folks in my community. So we don't even know the numbers on that, either.

LEVS: Exactly. That's a big concern of some civil rights leaders, does this more often target African-Americans?

But I'll tell you, until there's a figure, there's no way to break it down.

NGUYEN: No way to know.

LEVS: Yes.

NGUYEN: And that's a problem.

LEVS: You've got it.

NGUYEN: Josh, thank you for that.

LEVS: Thanks.

HOLMES: Well, nothing succeeds like excess. Excess certainly works when you're looking to wow your neighborhood.

We'll have more on this dazzling display just ahead. But before you start trying to top this spectacular light show...

NGUYEN: Yes, that's impressive.

HOLMES: It is impressive. You, too, can do this, Betty. But before we get to that, Gerri Willis has some tips to keep your holiday decorations merry, bright, and, yes, safe.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Holiday decorating is fun, but it can also be dangerous. Follow these safety tips to ensure the well being of everyone in your family this season.

If you're in the market for a live tree, check for freshness by looking for dark green needles and a sticky trunk. Once home, keep your tree well hydrated.

If you opt for an artificial tree this year, look for one that bears a fire-resistant label. Check the cables of anything and everything that plugs in for cracked sockets, bare wires or loose connections. Throw out damaged decorations. And make sure you don't overload your extension cords.

For outdoor decorating, check to make sure the lights have been certified for outdoor use.

(on camera): I'm Gerri Willis and that's your "Tip of the Day."

For more, watch "OPEN HOUSE" every Saturday, 9:30 a.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: And that inflatable snow globe at your house doesn't look too good right now, does it?

This is Eric Rodemeyer of Marshalltown, Iowa. He's taken the holiday decorating to a whole new level with this eye-popping display. Ninety-six channels on his home computer control this 14,000 light display that just dazzles that neighborhood. It's cool to watch. Cool to watch.

So that's maybe one guy. He probably doesn't need a whole lot of help picking out a gift for a gadget geek on his list. But if you don't know an iPod from a Peapod, then Jessica Vascellaro is here to help you with that.

She is so tech savvy.

She's with the "Wall Street Journal."

Good morning to you, ma'am.

Tell me, is this Christmas any different from those in the past where, you know, everybody wants the tech gifts and you've got certain staples. You've got the cameras and you've got the players and the phones and the -- is this pretty much the same items year after year people are going to be going after?

JESSICA VASCELLARO, "WALL STREET JOURNAL" REPORTER: Well, we're definitely seeing those same items again this year. But there are a couple of new contenders for hot gifts.

Obviously, the videogame consoles which have been selling like mad over the last couple of weeks are still hot items -- the Wee, the new PlayStation, the Xbox.

And then there are some other gadgets that are creeping up that we're seeing a lot of demand for right now. One that jumps to mind is digital picture frames. These are separate standalone picture frames where you can rotate your digital photo collection on. And they're really -- they're selling really fast. So are GPS personal navigation systems.

So it's not just the iPods, although those are popular, too, but, really, a whole range of tech gifts.

HOLMES: Those frames are pretty cool. I know what you're talking about there.

You reeled off a couple of things. You said iPods, the game consoles.

If you had a must have list, say, a top five, if you will, what are -- go through some of those most popular this year.

VASCELLARO: Game consoles would have to be on the top. They're really selling fast. And there aren't many left right now, so they're must haves.

Also, you know, the iPods. The whole family, from the video ones to the Nano to the Shuffle. They're really hot, as are other MP3 players -- the Zune, Scan Disk players, as well.

HD-TVs, plasma TVs. We've seen the price come down a little bit on those, below $1,000. So that's really driving demand for those.

Digital cameras always hot, always new models there. And, you know, I'd have to put the digital picture frames up there, too. People seem to really like them.

HOLMES: All right, I'm going to ask you the most important question that people need to hear right now, and that is the Wee, the PlayStation 3, where can you find these things if you want them right now?

VASCELLARO: Well, it's going to be tough.

HOLMES: Yes.

VASCELLARO: Going to Amazon or eBay and seeing what people are putting them up for in auction. You know, the Wee is probably around $600, $400 now. The PlayStation well into the thousands. And, again, you know, you're trusting someone that that's the real deal.

So there's a lot of risk there.

One strategy that might work is looking for bundles of these consoles. Some retailers are still selling a bundle with more games and some more controllers. And you can -- there might still be some availability there, although you're going to pay a lot more than you would for the console alone. And I think people have caught onto that trick, too.

So, you know, it's going to be tough to get those right now. But if you're willing to pay the premiums, they are on the online auction sites.

HOLMES: To pay the premium, yes.

But for folks who aren't willing to pay a premium, where -- last minute now and the last thing here -- are there still deals out there you can go to on some of these hot items? Can you still bargain for them or look around and find the best deal?

VASCELLARO: You definitely can. We're seeing a lot of promotions this season, particularly online, which is very competitive. There's still going to be a lot of discounting. A lot of online retailers in particular are changing their prices pretty frequently, matching them to demand.

So check back at these sites often. Look on deal sites. Check comparison shopping engines like Price Grabber, Become.com. These are all sites where you can probably find some deals.

HOLMES: Oh, man, Jessica, that sounds like a lot of work. That's -- that's tough.

All right, I'll get on it and you just have to hunt them down, I guess. Well, OK, Jessica Vascellaro from the "Wall Street Journal."

Thank you so much for spending some time.

We will take your advice.

VASCELLARO: Great.

Thanks, T.J.

NGUYEN: Half past the hour. Now in the news, NASA still making plans this hour to launch the Space Shuttle Discovery tonight. But right now -- and here's a live look -- you can see it's a race against the clock as crews scramble to put the finishing touches on launch preparations. The threat of bad weather could still play a big role in the final decision.

A gate that was supposed to be locked but the lock was cut by vandals, that is the focus of authorities in Oregon as they investigate James Kim's death from hypothermia and exposure. That gate could have stopped Kim and his family from taking a wrong turn, where they ended up snowbound. Kim died while searching for help.

An Illinois man is in custody in an alleged plot to set off grenades in a busy shopping mall. Authorities say Derrick Shareef, a Muslim convert, planned to set off the explosives in garbage cans.

The alleged target?

A mall in Rockford on the Friday before Christmas. The suspect was arrested by agents with the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

All is quiet on Capitol Hill. The 109th Congress now adjourned. That session ended this morning after the House and the Senate wrapped up some lose ends. And among the bills that made it through, a catchall measure that includes $38 billion worth of tax cuts. The new Congress, controlled by Democrats, convenes in January.

There's some tough criticism, but no call for punishment from the House Ethics Committee in the wake of the Mark Foley scandal. The panel found that no rules were broken in the way Republicans handled Foley's sexual come-ons to former male pages.

HOLMES: All right. Of course, one of the super hot tech toys we were just talking about this evening, Nintendo Wii system -- yes, but the runaway success causing some problems.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What Nintendo maybe underestimated was how much people were going to enjoy moving their arms, getting off the couch and really swinging their arms.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Now, Nintendo has issued a warning to its consumers.

NGUYEN: Also, avoiding the breaking point in life and death wilderness situations. We're going to tell you how to stay focused so that you can stay alive.

HOLMES: And then later on this afternoon on our legal segment, the big apple's big move, striking at the heart of doughnut lovers and French fry fans everywhere. Why are we at war with trans-fats and should it be the government's concern?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: In south Iraq, an explosion in Karbala in southern Iraq killed at least five people and wounded dozens. A similar explosion in Mosul in northern Iraq, that killed three people and wounded three. And also today, another U.S. combat death, a Marine died in Anbar province. Military officials also say another Marine was killed there in Thursday. The U.S. military death toll in Iraq now stands at 2,928, 38 of those deaths have occurred this month. HOLMES: Violence is, of course, a grim daily reality in Iraq not just in major explosions and battles. Every day, police find bodies, some in the streets and some in the rivers. CNN senior international correspondent Nic Robertson some Iraqi divers on their daily river patrol in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On Iraq's rivers, a grim duty, searching for bodies. Baghdad's fabled Tigris River has become a dumping ground for the sectarian death squads stalking the city streets.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): One day, we recovered 70 bodies. They had been kidnapped and killed by terrorists.

ROBERTSON: As the killings have escalated, the river police are getting busier.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Most of my job is looking for bodies. Because of the situation, we have no other work now.

ROBERTSON: Each day patrols go out. Each day, they say, they find at least six or seven bodies, although none on this training mission. The police patrol about 100 kilometers, about 60 miles of the river here. They say there are some places it's so dangerous, when they go there, they need to take six patrol boats. Police divers joined the force together 12 years ago. They train for life saving. Now young recruits are taught how to recover the dead.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Most of the bodies, we recover, their hands are tied and they've been riddled with bullets. Most have been killed intentionally.

ROBERTSON: As the daily sectarian killings have grown to 40, 50, sometimes, more than 60 so far this year, it has become routine for relatives missing loved ones to come to the river and search. Fatah (ph) and Akeel (ph) recently returned from training in the U.S. Their patrol the boats and equipment the U.S. supplied part of the beef-up of Iraqi security forces. Both are happy for the support. Both feel powerless to stop the killings.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): My job affects me psychologically because I live other people's grief, people who lost a brother, father. I live moments of tragedy, not happy moments.

ROBERTSON: On the Tigris River, as in the rest of Iraq, there is no doubt, plain sailing is not in their future.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: This week's Iraq study group report is putting increasing pressure on President Bush to strange strategies. CNN White House correspondent Elaine Quijano joins us live from, of course, the White House lawn to talk about this. Good morning.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT : Good morning to you Betty. On the heels of that sobering report by the Iraq study group, President Bush today in his weekly radio address praised the panel's work, but he remained vague about its recommendations. That report, you'll recall, at least on Wednesday, called the situation in Iraq grave and deteriorating.

Today in his radio address, the president said the report was a straight-forward picture of the grave situation in Iraq. He stressed areas of agreement, though, with the Iraq study group including the overall strategic goal of one day seeing an Iraq that can govern itself, sustain itself and defend itself. But as he's done since the report was released earlier this week, the president was very careful not to weigh in in any specific way on any of the 79 recommendations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The Iraq study group understands the urgency of getting it right in Iraq. The group also understands that while the work ahead will not be easy, success in Iraq is important and success in Iraq is possible. The group proposed a number of thoughtful recommendations on a way forward for our country in Iraq. My administration is reviewing the report and we will seriously consider every recommendation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now, of course, the push for a new Iraq strategy comes as Democrats are preparing to take control of Congress next month. Ahead of that, the president engaging in some outreach yesterday, meeting with a bipartisan group of lawmakers here at the White House. Now next week, Iraq will continue to dominate the president's agenda. He's got a number of briefings at the State Department, at the Pentagon, as well as at the White House.

All of it as the president awaits three internal administration reviews of his Iraq policy from the State department, from the National Security Council, as well as the Pentagon and Betty, we're expecting that perhaps we can see an address by the president on his Iraq policy before the end of the year, possibly before Christmas. Betty.

NGUYEN: We'll be waiting. Thank you Elaine. And this program note for you, on "This Week at War" CNN's John Roberts talks to two members of the Iraq study group. That is tonight at 7:00 Eastern only here on CNN. Plus, CNN presents "Combat Hospital." We go beyond the headlines to show you the frantic fight to save the lives of wounded troops. That's tonight and tomorrow night at 8:00 Eastern.

HOLMES: The Christmas spirit, maybe, just maybe Betty, it's in short supply.

NGUYEN: Say it isn't so?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: It could be that the wise men -- the wise men got stolen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Stole the wise men! Baby Jesus bought broke.

NGUYEN: Broken?

HOLMES: Baby Jesus broke! We'll tell you what one Connecticut school is doing to right this horrible wrong.

NGUYEN: It was stolen and broken. But first, duck and cover. That could be the consumer alert going out for owners of the new Nintendo Wii game system. Miles is a little frightening playing that game. We'll talk to you about that. In fact, our own Miles O'Brien explains the story straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right, if you're among the thousands trying to get your hands on Nintendo's NEW Wii video game console, you should know that once you do get it, the hard part might be keeping a grip on it, literally. CNN's Miles O'Brien explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: I can't do the safety strap. That's the problem right there.

(voice-over): Veteran gamers James Ransom-Wiley and Chris Grant strap me in for a Wii bit of fun.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So what do you want to start with, tennis?

O'BRIEN (on camera): Tennis.

(voice-over): The Wii controller is more like a magic wand. Wave it and your on screen avatar mimics your motion. The problem is, it's easy to get caught up in the action. Look what happens when we start boxing.

(on camera): Am I hitting you or is he hitting me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's hitting you.

O'BRIEN (voice-over): The same thing happened to James' mom and this controller bears the scar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And my little cousin kind of bounced forward as my mom stepped forward.

O'BRIEN (on camera): So he goes forward?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And he goes forward and just crashes. The battery cover flips off and the batteries go flying. O'BRIEN (voice-over): In fact, we users are bombarded with a series of warnings to be careful. This one reminds players to tightly secure the wrist straps.

CHRISTOPHER GRANT, JOYSTIQ.COM: What Nintendo maybe underestimated was how much people are going to enjoy moving their arms, getting off the couch and really swinging their arms. So maybe doing it a little too much, a little too hard. And the engineering isn't holding up.

O'BRIEN: Which is to say, the straps are breaking and the controllers are flying into windows, into ceiling fans, stereos, lap stops and even some expensive flat screen TVs. The gory details documented on the Web site wehaveaproblem.com. Chris and James say the real trick is to tone down the body language. You see, the controllers are more sensitive than you think.

(on camera): Is this less fun?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's fun. The game doesn't have a lot of strategy and it's really about getting up and swinging your arms and stuff.

O'BRIEN: Besides the experts disagree. We caught up with chiropractor Karen Erickson at the Toys "R" Us store in Times Square.

KAREN ERICKSON, CHIROPRACTOR: This is my advice. The game is intended to do standing up. Stand up and play the game standing up. Try to use your whole body when you do it rather than just your wrist.

O'BRIEN: She says the Wii is the winner because it will uproot some couch potatoes and get them moving. Just take it easy, take frequent breaks and stretch between rounds. A knockout!

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: He is such a big kid. Well, CNN asked the folks at Nintendo to talk with us about the faulty strap allegations and, well, they've been unable. But their president held a news conference in Japan where he said the company is investigating the problems.

HOLMES: All right. Another big kid, I guess. You like to party and have fun.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: I guess we're all big kids.

HOLMES: "Newsroom" continues at the top of the hour.

WHITFIELD: It does indeed, beginning in the noon hour, of course all this week, all of our hearts broke for James Kim, the family man who died of hypothermia in Oregon. It got a lot of us thinking, too, just what would we do in that very situation? What kind of survival techniques do we all have? Do we know what our mental and physical limits given such extreme conditions?

So we are going to talk with an emergency expert who will give us an idea or two on some of the things you need to consider, some of the things you do and you don't do. I bet a lot of you think maybe eating melting snow would be a survival technique?

NGUYEN: No?

WHITFIELD: Well, apparently, this medical expert says it's not a good idea.

NGUYEN: Really?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

NGUYEN: It's important information, though, because you never know when you're going to be stuck in a situation like that and as long as you have this in the back of your mind, hopefully, you can survive.

WHITFIELD: Right. So this emergency medical expert will be joining us to give us an idea. Then in the 2:00 hour, French fries and all the good stuff, that is also loaded with a lot of trans-fats, not so good. You know what New York is doing?

NGUYEN: They're banning it.

WHITFIELD: Right. Might a lot of other jurisdictions follow suit? And what might be the legal challenges.

NGUYEN: That's true and I wonder, too, if it's going to cause things to cost more since they have to change their oil and whatnot?

WHITFIELD: Good question.

NGUYEN: There you go Fred, we'll be watching. Someone is looking forward to it. Thank you Fred.

HOLMES: We got a wayward reindeer to tell you about now. They're actually grounded. To drive home a point about drinking and driving, that story is straight ahead.

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And it is time to cast your vote. Who are the best? Our report for the month of November. I'll show you some of the finalists next in the "Newsroom."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: All right. Time now to check in on our I-reporters, see what they've been up to.

NGUYEN: And that of course is Veronica de la Cruz, some of these I-reports from the best ones.

DE LA CRUZ: You want to pay close attention. I'm going to show you some of the finalists for the month of November, but first, a couple of I-reports I wanted to show you from the Moore (ph) park fire in California. Our I-reporter Dave Seal pulled off the freeway to capture some pretty remarkable images. Take a look at this. Dave said rabbits would run out of the burning bushes, see people around and turn frantically only to find there was nowhere to go. He says the bunny pictured here just sat watching the fire as if it knew it was losing its home.

NGUYEN: That's so sad.

DE LA CRUZ: This next photo, Seal says he was so focused on getting the shot in front of him, he didn't know that this was happening behind him. Very, very close. He said this one looks like a scene from "Apocalypse Now" as the tanker came from the other direction, he says the plane laid a blanket of red stuff on the hill, pretty dramatic images there. We'd like to thank Dave seal for sending in his I-reports.

Now onto the best I-report for November. There were 20 finalists in all. Here are a few of them. We're going to start with this one. This is from Oregon and it is an alpaca farm. It is...

(CROSSTALK)

DE LA CRUZ: She send us this picture of Ursula, the llama in the snow.

NGUYEN: Ursula.

DE LA CRUZ: Too cute. This next one is from William Wyckcoff of Santa Fe, New Mexico. This is an adobe house.

NGUYEN: It's beautiful.

DE LA CRUZ: ... adobe house.

NGUYEN: Whatever that is, it's beautiful.

DE LA CRUZ: It is, absolutely gorgeous shot. So anyway, you can log on to CNN.com/exchange. They're all there for you to vote on, again 20 finalists in all for this month and there are some great picture there.

NGUYEN: Absolutely. Thank you so much for that.

Speaking of holidays, it kind of gets us in the mood when you see all that snow out there. In Texas, got a little story to tell you about here, just a little too much Christmas cheer for Santa's reindeer, so there will be no up on the rooftop for these furry fellow.

Look what's in his hand. Yep. That's a beer mug right. It's part of a state campaign against drunken driving. The reindeer, they are grounded for having too much to drink on Christmas Eve and Santa, well, he turned a fleet of yellow taxis to pull a sleigh instead of those drunken reindeer.

HOLMES: That's just a funny picture. It shouldn't be funny to see reindeer and Rudolph with a beer this hand. But it's just funny for some reason.

Also, the true meaning of Christmas through the eyes of children. Someone in Waterbury, Connecticut stole part of the city's nativity scene, including baby Jesus.

NGUYEN: We're so upset about this.

HOLMES: Yes. Kindergarten students are using their cupcake fund to help the city replace the missing statue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: It would be the wise men because one of the wise men got stolen. So it could be one of them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: How serious.

HOLMES: That is just wrong. The thieves -- the thieves in Waterbury surfaced last week. But another nativity scene in another town close by was also the target of thieves. But police say they don't believe the two thefts are connected so apparently, everybody is going around stealing baby Jesuses.

NGUYEN: That's not a good thing. Hopefully they will get that cleared up by the time Christmas rolls around. In the meantime though, we are staying on top of the top stories and CNN with NEWSROOM continues with Fredricka Whitfield.

HOLMES: And of course that is coming up right after the break. Thank you so much for hanging out with us today.

NGUYEN: Have a great day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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