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New Note Discovered from Missing Hikers; Rumsfeld Saluted in Farewell Ceremony
Aired December 15, 2006 - 12:54 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Fredricka Whitfield in Atlanta. We want to bring you an update now out of Fort Hood, Oregon on the ongoing search for the three climbers. You're listening to, right now, Captain Chris Bernard of the U.S. Air Force Rescue Battalion.
CAPT. CHRIS BERNARD, U.S. AIR FORCE: ... River Ranger Station where they attempted to log in and do their climb. And I'm going to read this to you. It says, "Hello, we are three climbers, Jerry Cooke, Brian Hall and Kelly James attempting the north face today, Thursday, 12/7. Hiking in with gear, attempt north face Friday. We will descend to timberline." So they're giving us their plan here.
And then they outline what they have: "We have food, fuel, ropes, shovel, bivy sacks, heavy parkas, et cetera. We have experience on Ranier, Denali, South American expedition, et cetera." This offered a pretty good insight, tells rescuers that they are prepared. Just reiterates how prepared they are, so this was a significant find for us.
I just want to reiterate that, you know, that our hopes and prayers are with the family. With that, I'll turn it over to Frank here.
QUESTION: Did they leave that note here?
BERNARD: This note -- yes, this was left at the Hood River Ranger Station...
QUESTION: Which is where we are.
BERNARD: Where we are.
QUESTION: Did it say anything about how much food they had with them?
BERNARD: No, it doesn't. I just read it to you -- and, you know, that's -- probably what you can carry.
QUESTION: Can you quickly elaborate on this day and night reconnaissance on that C-130 and can it get up in these conditions?
BERNARD: You know, I'm not particularly aware of exactly their weather limitations and their capabilities. When they volunteered this system to us, I told them what we had for weather and they told me they can come here and do the mission. QUESTION: Was the note sort of an accidentally discovery or was it on a desk and someone just happened to see it?
BERNARD: As far as I understand, there's a proper form and wherever. And they may come here at 3:00 in the morning -- and you can tell, you know, what they probably couldn't get to the right box or maybe there was a form missing, took it upon themselves to take a form and -- a piece of scratch paper and do what they needed to do and that's register ranger station.
(CROSSTALK)
QUESTION: ...road in from the base camp with the bypass?
BERNARD: No change as far as I know.
QUESTION: Can they still get it and out?
BERNARD: As far as I know. I sent my pararescue men out there today.
QUESTION: What does the note tell you about their ability to survive?
BERNARD: It tells me, you know -- I always knew that they were squared away climbing group here. But it's just one more -- one more piece that, you know, highlights that, that they did all the right things. They're doing all the right things. They took all the right gear.
QUESTION: Was that found today, that note?
BERNARD: Yesterday sometime, early.
QUESTION: Where is that C-130 staging out of?
BERNARD: They're flying in from Reno, Nevada.
QUESTION: When it's going to be here? Do you know when it's going to actually be over mountain?
BERNARD: Approximately 1400 hours.
QUESTION: Are you permanently assigned to the sheriff's office or just for this mission?
BERNARD: No, for this mission, I'm assigned. Hood River County Sheriff requested the 304th Rescue Squadron's assistance and I'm their command and control working in the command post.
QUESTION: Can you explain more the flyover the C-130 is going to do? What capabilities does it have?
BERNARD: Just like I said, it's -- it has both day and night reconnaissance capability. What I imagine -- and I didn't get too many of the details, but forward technology, forward infrared, and maybe some stuff I don't know about. It's not my primary aircraft that I work with, of course.
QUESTION: And you say people have been pulled back. Have they been pulled back from Cloud Cap Inn or is there no one up there anymore?
BERNARD: There's still a few members and climbers up there at Cloud Cap Inn, and, of course, they affect some target or something we needed to go to.
QUESTION: Where are they -- the remainder of the teams, where are they stationed, the staging area?
BERNARD: I know primarily about my guys, and I pulled them off. They're actually all the way back in Portland, back to our home base, 304th Squadron, and reconstituting there.
QUESTION: Chris, can you hold that note up real quick? Is that the actual note you have there?
BERNARD: Yes, this is the actual note right here. One moment. I actually -- these are all the notes, just to talk about -- we had the check-in at the Hood River Ranger Station. We had the check-in -- or the note left in their vehicle in the parking lot. And we even have a log from them at Cloud Cap Inn where the majority of the rescue operation is taking place. No, I believe this is actually Cloud Cap Inn.
QUESTION: There is blue sky right now. I understand tomorrow or maybe even this afternoon could be a huge push?
BERNARD: Yes, talk about -- yes, tomorrow a little bit. Right now, we're coordinating and pushing to -- you know, we have aircraft of the 1042nd. They are continuing on standby, should something break today. But, yes, primarily, we're planning for a big push in the expected weather break tomorrow.
QUESTION: Chris, and then with the things you just read off, what gives you the encouragement that they may not have been packing as lightly as what was first thought because they were anticipating a one-day trip to the top?
BERNARD: The two things that give me, in my personal opinion, shovel and bivy sack.
QUESTION: What's a bivy sack for people who don't...
BERNARD: A bivy sack is an outer shell or the sleeping system, like a sleeping bag, only a bivy sack usually has a waterproof component to it or a water resistance component to it.
QUESTION: Earlier in this week, there had been discussing that based on their past behavior, and some indications that they might stash some of their survival gear at a lower elevation to make a quick ascent, do you think that that's...
(CROSSTALK) BERNARD: That is true. We haven't been able to confirm that stash. And I'm going to hope they have all their gear with them.
I'm not going to say no climbers are on the mountain. I'm saying -- like I said, they're in a standby mode. And where the other groups are operating out of, and performing that, I know there's some at Cloud Cap (ph). And I'm not sure about the south side.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
BERNARD: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
BERNARD: Actually, they have to land and pick up a combat rescuer officer in Portland and then they're going to take off from there. And I'm not sure. I just know around 1400.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sense of how that might operate in weather like this? Can they handle what we have here?
BERNARD: Well, you know, I work out of a C-130 rescue-equipped aircraft, and it can handle this weather. It's not a, you know, complete limp factor there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The other things we've heard up until now don't necessarily apply to C-130...
BERNARD: This is a fixed wing aircraft that can fly, you know, higher altitudes and, you know, they fly cross country. In fact, this guard unit actually participated in Hurricane Katrina efforts and firefighting efforts.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) military personnel here and where are they all from?
BERNARD: The majority of military personnel here, doing the climbing, is from the 304th Rescue Squadron in Portland. And that number is approximately 12 or 13 individuals.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... from Colorado as well?
BERNARD: From?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The 10th Mountain Division in Colorado?
BERNARD: No.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) weather like at the 10,000 foot level (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
BERNARD: You know, you guys see the video, and the news, and it's bad. It's -- you know, it's...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you know how strong the winds are up there right now? BERNARD: No, I don't.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you talk about the cell phone? What's the latest with the signal?
BERNARD: The latest on that is Tuesday was the last cell phone manipulation of the buttons and what not. Other stuff you've heard is -- is erroneous to -- information.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What kind of manipulations were those? Turning it on, turning it off?
BERNARD: Yes, something along those specs. I don't know the particular details but...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Something about a dead battery (UNINTELLIGIBLE) sheriff's office?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some confusion about that because the earlier report was he may have switched it on or of. And then we later heard that that signal may have come from the fact that the battery was dying and the phone was shutting down on its own.
Frank, would you have some comment on that?
BERNARD: Actually, Frank has paid attention to this better, and I'm going to have him step in here and -- go ahead.
FRANK JAMES, BROTHER OF MISSING CLIMBER: You know, the fact of the matter is we just don't know exactly what that means. What it does for us as a family, it gives us hope that something is happening.
So, again, I wish I could clarify. I've asked the sheriff specifically about that, and they can't be any more specific than just what you've suggested. So...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can I ask a quick question: assuming you do get a break in the weather, can you say specifically are people attempting the north face? Are crews going to go by foot or by helicopter to the south face and come up the top?
BERNARD: This is going to be, probably, an assault from all directions, south side, north side, and helicopter.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) issue of avalanche and so forth won't be prohibitive on the north side, people will be able to climb?
BERNARD: We'll have climbing team leaders evaluate that continuously.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in terms of the supplies, along with that note, did that give you renewed faith?
JAMES: Absolutely, when we -- the family gathered this morning. There are probably 15 or 20 of us this morning who met -- actually, the family had planned en masse to go and to meet with the rescuers to express our appreciation.
The family really wants the rescuers to know that we consider them heroes. We know they are risking their lives on behalf of our loved ones. And so the family wanted to do that this morning, but since there is a regrouping today, we're going to postpone that until tomorrow. And if rescuers are going up tomorrow, then the family wants to be there to greet them and to tell them how much they appreciate what they're doing.
The note was very encouraging because it does -- what I've said all along, is that these are three professionals in a sense. They're well prepared, well organized. In fact, as I understand it, this note here -- ordinarily climbers just go on without filling out the registration form. These three guys dotted all their "I's" and crossed all their "T's" and made sure, even when there wasn't a form there, they took the time to write this out in detail, their list of equipment, their plans and so forth. And I think that just, again, reiterates how prepared they were and intentional they were to do all this.
One other item that I think is worth noting is perhaps you saw this morning the story in the "Oregonian", where three teenagers back in the '70s survived on Mt. Hood for 13 days. I've got to tell you, the whole family was jazzed by that. That was a great encouragement to each and every one of us.
And, again, I want to say to all of you how much I appreciate your support. We're holding firm, holding strong. And we're going to be praying a lot today. And wishing well, wishing the rescuers and the staging teams well.
We understand this is risky business for them. And we know they have to rest and regroup. And we do understand that. We don't want them to put their lives unnecessarily at risk.
So the family is very supportive of Captain Bernard. In fact, he's been really wonderful to each of us. And keeping us updated in all the details of the day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Captain, will you talk about the push that you guys are trying to make this weekend. Looks like it might be the biggest push you might make all week?
BERNARD: Yes, I believe so. A lot of it's centered on, you know, the aircraft. And we believe that's going to be our best eyes in the sky there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Note that -- you're saying this is different from the note they reported earlier this week, was left here and given to the county sheriff's department (ph)?
BERNARD: This, as I understand, was found yesterday. So this is new. This is a new note.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And where was it put here physically? Was there a box... BERNARD: You know, I'm not sure. I'm not sure where they put it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How is it that didn't get discovered until now? Was it stuck in a file? Or give us some appreciation of that.
BERNARD: You know, I don't know that.
I'll answer two more questions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If the weather were to clear up, how quickly could the rescue teams be assembled and how long would it take for them to ascend to about this 10,000 foot mark?
BERNARD: It depends. You know, if we get, you know, the proper aircraft and depends on the time of the day, depends on quite a few factors. You know, it might be, best case scenario, they assemble into the helicopter and are able to off-load them right, you know, within hundreds of feet of the site. So the time variance is going to be different.
If they can't get up there, they might get them to 4,000 feet, maybe, and off-load them and save them a few hours' climb there. So it varies greatly.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) yesterday?
BERNARD: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Two drones?
BERNARD: Aircraft still up there flying their drones, and working with the pararescuemen there and checking their data, too.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Today?
BERNARD: As far as I know, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They haven't come back with anything yet?
BERNARD: No. The aircraft they're introducing today has a greater capability and a greater capability against the wind and the weather that's up there right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) while you're doing that, helicopter (ph) the only way to get personnel up by aircraft? You couldn't do it by C-130 or anything like that, could you?
BERNARD: No it would be impractical.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Could you hold that up? And, tomorrow, aside from the C-130, what other air resources do you have available for the big push?
BERNARD: Right now, I'm going back to coordinate additional and see what air assets are available. You know, there's a possible that no assets are available. But you know, we're going to find out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you sum up this rescue effort compared to others in the past? You know, we know that hikers and climbers get stuck on this mountain...
BERNARD: You know what? I know what you're saying. I've been doing this for 19 years here in the Portland area, and this is the largest rescue and the most outpouring of support that I have ever seen in my career.
All right. Thank you very much.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: Got it.
T.J. HOLMES, CO-HOST: All right, there you have it. We've been listening in to this press conference, get an update on those three climbers that, really, everybody's had their eye on. Know those faces, know those names by now.
Been up there stuck for some three days now -- excuse me, it was eight days now, that everybody's been looking for them, hopes that they are still OK, hunkered down possibly. Weather making it a mess, hard to get to those guys. But we're going to have a lot more coming up on that.
But in the meantime, hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes here, sitting in right now for Don Lemon.
PHILLIPS: and I'm Kyra Phillips. You are listening, actually, to Captain Chris Bernard, the U.S. Air Force. His pararescuemen are up there, part of the 304th Rescue Squadron.
One of the things that he said, they're doing everything right. A new note was found.
CNN's Chris Lawrence was also right there at Parksdale, Oregon, just miles from the mountain. He's been listening in, as well.
It's encouraging, Chris, what we heard.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there were two big things that came out of that. One was the fact that the C-130 is able to actually fly and may get a better perspective on that than some of those unmanned drones. We know they had a big problem with the precipitation of blocking what the lenses were able to capture.
The second was the fact that these climbers left a detailed log and note right here at the ranger station. And what we learned from that note, the fact that they had fuel, that they had food, ropes, a shovel and a bibby-sack, which is used to -- almost like a sleeping bag, but with several layers. It's waterproof.
This is a lot more than we initially may have thought they had. They were initially planning a very quick climb, a quick ascent up the mountain. Thought they may have been traveling fairly lightly. This seems to suggest that they may have had more equipment with them than we first believed, which is a very encouraging sign, when you consider they've been up on that mountain now since last weekend. That's a lot of time, very cold, windy temperatures. The more they have with them, the better chance they're going to have to, you know, protect themselves against the elements.
PHILLIPS: Chris, explain to our viewers about this note that was found, because I'm a little bit confused. Where this note was found means that they came to this spot, left the note, and they've still been moving down the mountain, is that how we're supposed to understand it?
LAWRENCE: Exactly. In fact what he said was, the form wasn't actually, I guess, out or in place as it should have been, and they actually took the time to just take a piece of paper on the back and write this note out, sort of a log, so to speak, detailing exactly how they were going to attack the mountain, the route they were going to take, what they had with them, the fact that they were three climbers, the fact that they were experienced. You know, all of this suggests people who are very professional and very prepared.
I think one thing he mentioned is, you know, a lot of times climbers will just, you know, hit the mountain running and they'll get up on mountain and start climbing. These three men took the time to actually sit there and write it out and leave this note, you know, detailing...
PHILLIPS: From the beginning of the climb, Chris?
LAWRENCE: ... what they had with them.
PHILLIPS: Got it. was from the beginning of the climb, not after their buddy had some type of injury and they started to work their way down the mountain?
LAWRENCE: Exactly.
PHILLIPS: OK, this is from the very beginning?
LAWRENCE: Exactly, yes.
PHILLIPS: All right, so they have -- so rescue -- the men from the pararescue unit haven't found any notes since they began coming down the mountain, correct?
LAWRENCE: That's correct, that's correct. Since the two men left the summit and began descending down the mountain to get help, there has been no sign of those two yet.
PHILLIPS: All right, but like you mentioned, the two things that Captain Bernard pointed out, the fact that they have a bivy-sack and shovel. Let's talk a little bit more about why that is of benefit. A bivy-sack, obviously, because that's what keeps you warm, and it's waterproof, right? LAWRENCE: Right, and a shovel is obviously what you're going to use to try to carve out one of those snow caves that we've been hearing so much about, to protect yourself from the elements and try to insulate some of the warmth that you have.
You know, that's a very, very big development. The fact that they had some food with them, had some fuel, ropes. All of this could be used to, you know, make themselves -- protect themselves as much as possible.
Because I can tell you, I mean, being down here and feeling those gusts, how cold it is here, just that driving rain and snow. And then you think, you know, we're pretty much near ground level. When you get up, 4,000, 5,000 feet, how that weather has to change -- they're 4,000 feet beyond that. They're at 9,000, 10,000 feet up there.
PHILLIPS: All right. Chris Lawrence, we'll continue to check in with you there at Parksdale, Oregon. Thanks so much, Chris.
HOLMES: And of course, this latest storm hit the northwest overnight, killing at least three people, knocking out power to more than a million homes and businesses in Oregon and Washington. The winds were so fierce, they even ripped bricks off houses.
And take a peek at this. They almost toppled this plane that was coming into the Seattle airport. The pilot managed to abort that landing before landing safely on a second try. You can imagine a scary time there for folks sitting on that plane. And just scary to watch that video, as well.
Another bit of scary video for you here, coming to us out of Redmond, Washington. A picture here. That's a tree, and that's a home. And it's not supposed to be like that. This is some of those nasty winds, fierce winds, nasty, up to 90, even 100 miles an hour, winds and wind gusts you've been hearing about up in that area. This slammed into somebody's house. That is not a way to start a day.
When will things calm down? Will they calm down soon? Reynolds Wolf in the weather center for us, tracking a monster storm for us.
Hello to you, sir.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: All right, Reynolds good news/bad news.
WOLF REYNOLDS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. You've got to take it where you get it.
HOLMES: All right. Thanks, Reynolds.
PHILLIPS: Live pictures from the Pentagon now. You either love him or hate him. Changing of the guard. A final salute to a man whose business is war. A full honors ceremony for Donald Rumsfeld, live this hour from the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Let's take another live look here at the Pentagon. The ceremony to say good-bye to that man on your right, Donald Rumsfeld, after being in the spot for six years, at the helm of the Pentagon.
Today, a good-bye for them there with the ceremony and a lot of pomp and circumstance. Really being honored today. A lot of criticism, of course, surrounded his six years in that spot. But you see the president and also the vice president there with him, as well.
Again, really long-serving, much criticized defense secretary, affirmly (ph), consistently, repeatedly defended by the White House and those two men you see with him there. Today, he is, in fact, saying good-bye.
We want to go to the White House now and CNN's Elaine Quijano with more about what's happening in Washington today.
Hello, Elaine.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Donald.
You're exactly right: Donald Rumsfeld certainly has been a lightning rod for criticism over the Iraq war. And now just a little over a month after President Bush announced that Secretary Rumsfeld was, indeed, stepping down, the Pentagon is saying farewell to Rumsfeld in that formal military honors ceremony.
Now, both President Bush and Vice President Cheney as you saw on hand there. We're told that the president will actually praise Rumsfeld for his leadership, both in prosecuting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but also praising his efforts to transform the military and the fighting capability of the armed forces.
Now, Secretary Rumsfeld, as you noted, has served since the start of the president's term in 2001. He began saying his public good- byes, actually, a few days ago, including a surprise trip to Iraq.
Technically, he's going to remain defense secretary through the weekend. His successor, Robert Gates, not due to be sworn in until Monday.
But as the president continues his deliberations over Iraq policy and amid intensifying political pressure for the president to change course, certainly what you're seeing today is clearly intended to send a signal that this is a White House that is open to change -- Don.
HOLMES: Hey, there. All right.
QUIJANO: T.J., I'm sorry.
HOLMES: No worries, I was looking for a Don here. I didn't know. Thank you, Elaine. We'll check back with you here in a little bit. Again, we have been monitoring, and we'll continue to take a peek at these live pictures from the Pentagon where the Rumsfeld ceremony is just getting under way. A lot more to come from that, and we'll bring all that to you here in the NEWSROOM. The president, of course, there, the vice president there, and of course, CNN is there. And we will be there live.
PHILLIPS: We continue to follow these live pictures.
Now, you know, Rumsfeld never hid his feelings for the media. You may remember a number of times we've taken those live news conferences at the Pentagon, and he's given us all a hard time.
But he recognized the importance of reporters' jobs. That's for sure. But was quick to call it as he saw it.
Few television journalists had more -- or more revealing access, we should say, to Donald Rumsfeld than our special correspondent, Frank Sesno. You may remember his special that he did on Donald Rumsfeld.
We continue to follow these live pictures, Frank. And within those six years, definitely tumultuous. Started out very strong, finished off with a lot of controversy.
FRANK SESNO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Came in hired by the president of the United States to transform the military. Elaine was talking about that a moment ago. That was his chief job, at least at the outset, to get civilian control back over to the military.
Many thought that under the Clinton administration the generals ran too much of it, because the Clinton administration didn't want to engage. And to alter the way the military was structured to fight, to respond to modern times. But of course, 9/11 happened shortly after Rumsfeld came in, and his mission was really transformed.
But that picture you saw a moment ago -- Rumsfeld, Cheney, Bush -- that is the Iraq war right there, you know. Those who have looked at it very closely see that the three of them are really the troika. Bush and Cheney behind the policy and the big political decisions; Donald Rumsfeld, the implementer, the man who thought the war, who designed the response.
So a very controversial moment, but no budge from the president and vice president, in terms of their support, personal or otherwise, for Don Rumsfeld.
PHILLIPS: And yet, things started getting pretty heated for him. And then there was the memo that was leaked, Frank. It was written on November 6, just before the election.
And in this memo, Rumsfeld had written clearly what U.S. forces are currently doing in Iraq is not working well enough or fast enough. Now this is someone who never came forward and said anything to that regard in Iraq, that it was failing anyway -- in anyway or that it wasn't working. And then comes this memo leaked at an interesting ironic time.
What did you make of that? I mean, it got a lot of criticism. Was he trying to -- a lot of people say -- protect his reputation before the word came out that he was leaving?
SESNO: Well, it's really ironic. You know, some, especially the Rumsfeld critics say too little too late, a little too Machiavellian to prove that he was really asking questions.
When I spoke to Rumsfeld, when I talked to him, you know, he pointed out -- and this was before things really degenerated, my time with him in his office, which was quite extraordinary, was back over the summer, before things -- the bottom really fell out in September and October.
But he said, you know, he's always raised a lot of questions. The -- some of the most famous is this big memo supposedly he wrote of 35 or 36 questions about what could go wrong before the war actually started, one of which was rebellion and insurgency.
But the question is, then and now, if he was raising those questions, why didn't they translate into policy? That's what the historians are going to try to answer. Why wasn't he over at the White House saying, "Folks, this isn't working?" Where was the -- where was the force behind it?
Those are questions, you know, we just are asking now. And I don't think we have answers to them yet.
PHILLIPS: And you know, Frank, you can't help think about the film "Fog of War" that came out and Bob McNamara finally coming forward and talking about all the disasters of Vietnam, when he was in the same shoes of Rumsfeld, but during the Vietnam War.
Some critics wondering, will we see a book, will we see a film, where Rumsfeld finally sits down and says, "All right. Here's what we really knew. Here's what we really should have done"? It's an interesting thought, "Fog of War, Part Two".
SESNO: People who knew Donald Rumsfeld say no way, no how he's going to pull a McNamara and apologize for mistakes he made in office. Who knows?
It's very interesting. In that office of his, he surrounds himself with history. He says he reads history. Most that's all -- mostly, that's all he reads. He's got a piece of the plane that crashed in the building on 9/11. He's got a map of North and South Korea, showing the lights in South Korea and the darkness in the communist north.
He's got three main pictures and statues, Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt and Dwight Eisenhower.
He does judge history, and he does judge the company he keeps. And I have to think that, despite his own protestations that, "Oh, I don't worry about my legacy, and I don't care how history regards me," that he's conscious enough of where he sits and what he's done that he is going to think about this. What he does with that, who knows?
But he's been a pivotal, pivotal character and really represents the face, in many ways, of the conduct of this war.
PHILLIPS: Frank Sesno, we're going to continue to talk to you, follow the live pictures here. We're going to listen into the vice president of the United States, of course, when he talks. The president, too, if he steps to the mic. And Donald Rumsfeld, the outgoing secretary of defense.
More live coverage of this farewell to Secretary Rumsfeld. We're going to listen, obviously, to the main speakers we just mentioned. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Hello, everybody. I'm T.J. Holmes live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. A deadly storm strikes the northwest, fierce winds, pounding rains. More than a million people without power.
Live coverage straight ahead from the CNN NEWSROOM.
HOLMES: Some nasty winds grounded a number of flights. Schools and businesses also shutdown. And local leaders urge anybody who could to stay home.
More now from reporter Chris Daniels of CNN affiliate KING.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS DANIELS, KING REPORTER (on camera): Well I can tell you that this morning here in the Puget Sound region, there are more than a million people without power because of those fierce winds that we had here overnight. 60 to 90 miles per hour guts reported here through the region.
And what that has done, you can see right behind me, all sorts of tress have toppled. There are power lines hanging like spaghetti strings right now. And you can see this tree here, east of Issaquah, is hanging down on those power lines and pulling those power lines closer and closer to the roadway.
Again, this is about a half hour east of Issaquah and this entire area is without power. There are a lot of roads that are impassable at this point. In fact, I was talking to a local firefighter here a short time ago who tells me that he was responding to a call of a tree into a house, but that the firefighters couldn't get to that house because there was a tree down on a roadway.
There are several roadways and highways and byways that are shut down at this point. In fact, a lot of school districts have already canceled school for the day and several freeways were also shut down. The floating bridges in the Seattle area had to be shut down for most of the morning because of the high winds that we had here and the concern about Lake Washington in particular and the stability of the 520 Floating Bridge. Now the cleanup begins and we're hearing that power could be out for several days.
That's the latest, live from Issaquah, I'm Chris Daniels. Now back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(WEATHER REPORT)
PHILLIPS: A full-honors sendoff to the only man to serve twice as the United States secretary of defense. The chair of the joint chiefs speaking now, Peter Pace.
Jamie McIntyre also following this, our senior Pentagon correspondent -- Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, this ceremony just under way here for Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, who's actually being given a warm sendoff here at the Pentagon. And General Pace, his senior military adviser, is one of Rumsfeld's biggest supporters. He has defended him in public on virtually every opportunity he's had to do that.
Rumsfeld leaves of course not exactly the way he wanted to leave, with the cloud of the Iraq war hanging over him. He had hoped by the time he left that things would be well under control in Iraq.
And he's also leaving, as you're seeing, some of his policies being unraveled even as he's exiting the door. For instance, Rumsfeld resisted for years any permanent increase in the size of the U.S. military.
But just yesterday, the chief of staff of the army, General Peter Schoomaker, made it clear that even with the 30,000 additional troops he has temporarily called up and added to the army, he's going to need tens of thousands more.
Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. PETER SCHOOMAKER, ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF: Over the last five years, the sustained strategic demand for deployed combat brigades and other supporting units is placing a strain on the Army's all-volunteer force. At this pace, without current access of Reserve components or remobilization, we will break the active component.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCINTYRE: Pretty strong words from General Schoomaker who was brought in by Rumsfeld to transform the military. You know, Rumsfeld has done quite a bit at the Pentagon in terms of transforming the bureaucracy, changing the way the army is organized, from divisions to much smaller, more combat-ready units.
In fact, the Pentagon has posted on its Web site pages of things that Rumsfeld has done. But the fact of the matter is he's going to be remembered for what happens in Iraq, as well as things like the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal and his efforts and the criticism of him, that he didn't put enough troops into Iraq, that he made critical mistakes by not disbanding the Iraqi army.
Rumsfeld himself has made no admission of any major mistakes. He's said that -- he knows that everything doesn't go perfectly, but that's how life is. And he remains convinced that ultimately in the end history will vindicate him for the judgments that he's made -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: We're going to talk more about that criticism and praise for Donald Rumsfeld.
Jamie McIntyre, thank you so much. Our General Don Shepperd is going to join us, and we're also going to take, of course, the president of the United States and the vice president once they step up to the podium to speak. You're watching live coverage of the farewell of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Live pictures from the grounds at the Pentagon. Donald Rumsfeld leaving a mark on military and American history. That's not likely to fade for a long time.
Let's talk legacy and how the Rumsfeld years will be remembered for good and bad. CNN military analyst and retired Air Force Major General Don Shepperd joining us now. And I think the vice president is stepping up to the mic, Dick Cheney. And we will monitor that, of course, as that happens.
But, Shep, you and I have talked a lot about Rumsfeld, from before the war started, during the war, and now. Just reflecting on the six years. What are you thinking about, as he steps out today?
MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: I tell you, Kyra, I had lunch with him as a part of analysts that had covered the war from the beginning, the day before yesterday. He's a very complex individual, he's a very controversial individual.
When you're with him, like many people, the impressions that you have from what you read are not what you see in public. He's very smart, he's very intense. He has a good sense of humor. I would say he's warm in person. But of course, that's not what you read about him in his relations with the military. So I think he's certainly at the very best controversial figure. PHILLIPS: And Shep, a number of military leaders, retired generals, admirals, came forward and said he just -- he blew it. That he didn't listen to military commanders. He just did his own thing. And, therefore, that's why he's in the position that he's in and why he's leaving.
SHEPPERD: Yes, that's what they say what he would say is, look, I listened all along, I made decisions, I made tough decisions in a tough war against a tough enemy at a very tough time.
My take, Kyra is he will clearly be remembered for the Iraq war and nothing else he's done. So it depends how this Iraq war comes out at the very end. Clearly with the new secretary of defense, we're going to work our way out of this war over time.
But clearly also, he's going to be associated with Abu Ghraib, some have said that he was responsible in some way for Abu Ghraib but certainly it happened on his watch and it's very unfortunate and he feels terrible, terrible about that.
PHILLIPS: And he still won't come forward and say there is or isn't a civil -- well, he has said that it is not a civil war that's taking place in Iraq when questioned about that.
But recently, he hasn't wanted to necessarily go there as a number of media institutions and journalists that are there and embedded say, look if this isn't civil war, I don't know what is.
SHEPPERD: Well, that's my take, too. I mean, it's some type of civil war. It's not the standard civil war as we think of blue and gray and uniformed -- uniformed masses going against each other with weapons and what have you, but it's clearly a civil war based on sectarian violence and the country has to stop this sectarian violence or it won't work, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Now, to his credit, let's go back to 9/11. He was there at the Pentagon and I don't think any of us can forget those images, when he was running across Pentagon grounds actually helping to carry stretchers of those injured from 9/11.
SHEPPERD: Well, let me tell you, this is a tough guy. He rushes to the sounds of the guns. And he did on that day in the Pentagon. He has done many, many things that are important in the Pentagon that have been talked about.
He has transformed in some ways the Army from divisional structure to combat brigade structure. That's an important -- on the other hand, his mannerisms and his way of working with the military have been criticized by some.
And so, again, it's a mixed figure. He's a controversial figure. It's a mixed bag of criticism and praise. But clearly he has been caught up in a very, very difficult war that he did not anticipate.
PHILLIPS: Shep, a CNN poll taken September 22 to 24 on the opinion of Donald Rumsfeld in 2003. 58 percent of those polled were in favor of Don Rumsfeld -- had favorable feelings about him. Now 35 percent.
SHEPPERD: Yes, it goes with what's happening in the war. It was the same feeling for the war. Now we all watched and covered and we were cheering as the forces raced to Baghdad in 30 days.
Donald Rumsfeld was in a good mood in front of the press corps. He was darling of the media at that time because things were going well. And then like a pack of wolves, as we do in this country, when things start going bad, we start eating our young and going after the fallen.
So he is a victim of his own decisions. He's a victim of the way the war's going. And that's just the way it is Kyra. It's a tough business in the Pentagon.
PHILLIPS: Is there a moment, a decision, a time, when he was in Iraq, anything that you can think of where you thought, all right, he hit it right there, that's what I'm talking about, that's what a defense secretary should do in a time like this?
SHEPPERD: Well, I'll take it the other way. I think he made one decision that had a major, major effect. And that was the decision to shake his head and say, OK, at the recommendation of Secretary Bremer, let's basically take down the Iraqi Army.
That is a decision that will live in infamy if you will. It was a bad decision. I think that is a major cause of what's going on right now in Iraq and that's what I remember most of all, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: CNN military analyst and retired Air Force Major General Don Shepperd. Appreciate your time Shep.
SHEPPERD: You bet.
PHILLIPS: We're going to bring you the president of the United States. He's about to step up to the mic as we continue to follow live coverage of this farewell to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Waiting and hoping for a break in the weather. Winds as strong as 100 miles an hour preventing most rescuers from venturing outside, much less up Mt. Hood in search of three missing climbers.
The men set out eight days ago for a two-day climb. The rescue team that went out yesterday is said to be holed up in a remote lodge riding out the storm. And despite the weather, morale still high for the climbers' families -- from siblings to spouses, all are convinced their loved ones will come off that mountain alive.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELA HALL, WIFE OF MISSING CLIMBER BRIAN HALL: They're prepared to do whatever they need to do until the weather passes and until the weather breaks for them. They're prepared to build a snow cave and hunker down and withstand the winds and be protected from the winds and keep themselves warm and keep themselves in high spirits.
KAREN JAMES, WIFE OF MISSING CLIMBER KELLY JAMES: The one thing, you know, that I take so much comfort in is that I know -- these gals do, too -- is that my husband loves me and the kids more than life itself.
We know that these boys are fighting. They're fighting so hard to do everything they can to get down to us. And that's what we take. Because they're not quitters. Kelly has this thing in our house you can't say can't and that's just how they are. And so we know that their number one goal right now is to hunker down, make it through it, and come back to us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And you know who else isn't giving up, an army of rescuers. At the first sign of a break in the weather, you can bet they will be headed up back to that mountain.
PHILLIPS: Back to the Pentagon and that farewell to former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. The president of the United States is about to speak.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
(APPLAUSE)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Secretary and Joyce. Mr. vice president, thank you for your kind words, Lynne and Senator Warner, Deputy Secretary England, Secretary Harvey, Winter, Wynn, General Pace, members of the joint chiefs of staff, distinguished guests, men and women of the Armed Forces.
I'm pleased to join you as we pay tribute to one of America's most skilled, energetic, and dedicated public servants, the secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld.
Don Rumsfeld has been at my side from the moment I took office. We've been through war together. We have shared some of the most challenging moments in our nation's history. Over the past six years, I have come to appreciate Don Rumsfeld's professionalism, his dedication, his strategic vision, his deep devotion to the men and women of our nation who wear the uniform, and his love for the United States of America.
That devotion began at an early age, inspired by a man in uniform he called dad. His father, George, was 37 when America was attacked at Pearl Harbor. Too old to be drafted, he volunteered for service in the United States Navy.
One of Don's earliest memories is of standing on the hangar deck of his dad's aircraft carrier, the USS Hollandia, at the age of 11. He was taking in the sites and sounds of the ship as it prepared to leave for the Pacific war. His father's example stayed with him and after graduating from Princeton, Don Rumsfeld joined the United States Navy, rising to become a pilot, a flight instructor and a member of the Naval Reserve for nearly 20 years.
In the decades since he first put on the uniform, Don Rumsfeld has served with distinction in many important positions: congressman, counselor to the president, ambassador to NATO, White House chief of staff, secretary of defense. Yet to this day, the title that has brought him his greatest pride is dad and now granddad.
And so today as we honor a fine man, we also honor his family, Joyce Rumsfeld and his children. Don is the only man...
(APPLAUSE)
BUSH: Don Rumsfeld is the only man to have served as secretary of defense for two presidents in two different centuries. In 2001, I called him back to the same job he held under President Gerald Ford and I gave him this urgent mission: prepare our nation's armed forces for the threats of a new century.
Donald Rumsfeld brought vision and enthusiasm to this vital task. He understood that the peace of the post-Cold War years was really the calm before the next storm and that America needed to prepare for the day when new enemies would attack our nation in unprecedented ways.
That day came on a clear September morning, and in a moment of crisis, our nation saw Donald Rumsfeld's character and courage. When the Pentagon was hit, Secretary Rumsfeld's first instinct was to run toward danger.
He raced down smoke-filled hallways to the crash site so he could help rescue workers pull the victims from the rubble. And in the weeks that followed, he directed the effort to plan our nation's military response to the deadliest terrorist attack in our nation's history.
Under Secretary Rumsfeld's leadership, U.S. and coalition forces launched one of the most innovative military campaigns in the history of modern warfare, sending special operations forces into Afghanistan to link up with anti-Taliban fighters, to ride with them on horseback and to launch a stunning assault against the enemy.
In Operation Enduring Freedom, we combined the most advanced laser-guided weapons with one of the most oldest tools in the military arsenal, a man with a weapon on a horse. History will record that the first major ground battle in the 21st century involving American forces began with the cavalry charge. I guess that's what you get when you bring together a president from Texas with a secretary of defense who actually remembers when America had a cavalry.
(APPLAUSE)
BUSH: In 2003, on my orders, Secretary Rumsfeld led the planning and execution of another historic, military campaign, Operation Iraqi Freedom. In this operation, coalition forces drove Saddam Hussein from power in 21 days.
And in the years that followed, Don Rumsfeld helped see the Iraqi people through the resumption of sovereignty, two elections, a referendum to approve the most progressive constitution in the Middle East and the seating of a newly elected government.
On his watch, the United States military helped the Iraqi people establish a constitutional democracy in the heart of the Middle East, a watershed event in the story of freedom. As he met the challenges of fighting a new and unfamiliar war, Don Rumsfeld kept his eyes on the horizon and on the threats that still await us as this new century unfolds.
He developed a new defense strategy and a new command structure for our nation's armed forces, with a new Northern Command to protect the homeland, a new Joint Forces Command to focus on transformation, a New Strategic Command to defend against long-range attacks, and a transformed U.S. Special Operations Command, ready to take the lead in the global war on terror. He launched the most significant transformation of the Army in a generation.
He led my administration's efforts to transform the NATO alliance with a new NATO response force ready to deploy quickly anywhere in the world. On his watch, NATO sent its forces to defend a young democracy in Afghanistan, more than 3,000 miles from Europe, the first time NATO has deployed outside the North Atlantic area in the history of the alliance.
He helped launch the Proliferation Security Initiative, an unprecedented coalition of more than 80 nations working together to stop shipments of weapons of mass destruction on land, at sea, and in the air.
He undertook the most sweeping transformation of America's global defense posture since the start of the Cold War, repositioning our forces so they can surge quickly to deal with unexpected threats and setting the stage for our global military presence for the next 50 years.
He took ballistic missile defense from theory to reality and, because of his leadership, America now has an initial capability to track a ballistic missile headed for our country and destroy it before it harms our people.
Most importantly, he worked to establish a culture in the Pentagon that rewards innovation and intelligent risk-taking, and encourages our military and civilian leaders to challenge established ways of thinking.
The record of Don Rumsfeld's tenure is clear. There have been more profound change -- there has been more profound change at the Department of Defense over the past six years than at any time since the department's creation in the late 1940s.
(APPLAUSE) BUSH: And these changes were not easy. But because of Donald Rumsfeld's determination and leadership, America has the best equipped, the best trained and most experienced armed forces in the history of the world. All in all, not bad for a fellow who calls himself a broken down, ex-Navy pilot. This man knows how to lead and he did and the country is better off for it.
(APPLAUSE)
BUSH: Every decision Don Rumsfeld made over the past six years he always put the troops first, and the troops in the field knew it. A few years ago, the editors at "Time" magazine came to his Pentagon office, and Don correctly suspected they were thinking of naming him person of the year. Without hesitation, Don Rumsfeld told them, "Don't give it to me. Give it to our men and women in uniform." And that's exactly what "Time" magazine did.
(APPLAUSE)
BUSH: Donald Rumsfeld's selfless leadership earned him the admiration of our soldiers and sailors and airmen and marines, and we saw how they feel about him this week when he paid a farewell visit to our troops in Iraq.
Donald Rumsfeld's strong leadership has earned him my admiration and deep respect. We stood together in hours of decision that would affect the course of our history. We walked amid the rubble of the broken Pentagon the day after September the 11th, 2001. He was with me when we planned the liberation of Afghanistan. We were in the Oval Office together the day I gave the order to remove Saddam Hussein from power.
In these and countless other moments, I have seen Don Rumsfeld's character and his integrity. He was always ensured I had the best possible advice, the opportunity to hear and weigh conflicting points of view.
He spoke straight. It was easy to understand him. He has a sharp intellect of steady demeanor and boundless energy. He began every day at the Pentagon with a singular mission: to serve his country and the men and women who defend her.
Mr. Secretary, today your country thanks you for six outstanding years at the Department of Defense, and I thank you for your sacrifice and your service and your devotion to the men and women of our armed forces.
I want to thank Joyce for her poise and her grace, and for the example she has set for our nation's military families.
Laura and I will miss you both, and we wish you all the best in the years to come.
And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, I bring to this podium America's 21st secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld.
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