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CNN Saturday Morning News
Children Sickened by Outbreak of Potentially Deadly Bacterium; Evan Bayh Changes Mind About Running; Fierce Storms Hit Northwest
Aired December 16, 2006 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Now in the news, bacteria and babies -- an outbreak of a potentially deadly bacterium has sickened seven children, mostly babies, at an L.A. hospital. The White Memorial Medical Center says one infant actually died, probably as a result of being infected. The hospital has temporarily closed its neonatal and pediatrics intensive care units to new admissions.
Check this out -- changing faces in the 2008 presidential race. Democratic Senator Evan Bayh has changed his mind about running. He filed papers to set up an exploratory committees just two weeks ago. Democratic sources said Bayh decided the timing just wasn't right.
Now, on the Republican side, former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, as expected, he filed papers to set up an exploratory committee.
Ending the bloodshed -- a key conference opens today in Baghdad, including delegates from the country's bitterly divided political factions. It is the latest in a series of meetings designed to foster national reconciliation. For the first time, the talks are expected to include former members of Iraq's military who served under Saddam Hussein.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: An additional space walk is planned today by shuttle astronauts Robert Curbeam and Sunita Williams. One thing they plan to do -- time permitting, is to take a closer look at a solar panel that won't fully retract. Engineers think it's hung up on a guide wire.
And in the Northwest, the worst wind in 14 years has blown through. But behind those winds, still plenty of cold. Six deaths now blamed on Friday's windstorm. Power remains out for hundreds of thousands of people.
Let's head to Reynolds Wolf, who's keeping an eye on all of that mess they've got going on in the Northwest -- hey, Reynolds.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And what a mess it is Betty and T.J. no question about it. Right now we're seeing some scattered showers, snow showers in extreme northwestern Washington. But for Mount Hood, Oregon, conditions are going to be better today. We're expecting plenty of sunshine and the possibility of some blowing snow.
We'll give you the complete forecast for Mount Hood, as well as the rest of the nation, coming up in just a few moments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Winds over 100 miles an hour lash the Oregon coast. Roads are cut off as the storm moves inland. South of Seattle, winds hit 69 miles an hour, the strongest ever recorded in December.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Talk about a storm, a major storm hits the Northwest and leaves hundreds of thousands without power -- no lights, no heat, no way to cook a meal -- you get the idea.
Our Reynolds Wolf has the latest. That is straight ahead.
But in the meantime, good morning, everybody.
From the CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING, December 16th.
Oh, gosh...
HOLMES: We're getting there.
NGUYEN: Less than two weeks away from Christmas.
HOLMES: We're getting there.
NGUYEN: We're betting you're busy.
I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes.
Thank you so much for starting your day here with us.
NGUYEN: Well, fierce winds, biting cold and snapped power lines -- much of the Pacific Northwest is still trying to recover this morning after what is being called the worst wind storm in a decade.
We have two reports this morning, CNN's Rob Marciano.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST (voice-over): This storm brought its full force down to sea level. Huge waves roll in. Winds over 100 miles an hour lash the Oregon coast. Roads are cut off as the storm moves inland.
South of Seattle, winds hit 69 miles an hour, strongest ever recorded in December. Tall Douglas firs were no match for the fierce winds.
Sparks flew as falling trees snapped power lines. Decades old pines fall. Here, trees crashed through rooftops, destroying homes. This woman and her cat survived, but the storm killed four people.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's where my head usually is, over there. MARCIANO: Residents seemed shocked by the strength of the storm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was like a hurricane and a tornado all at once.
MARCIANO: This storm had wind gusts like a major hurricane and the mountains made it worse. Mount Hebo in the Coast Range had winds as strong as 122 miles an hour. And in the Washington Cascades, 135 mile an hour winds ripped across the ridges. Around the Puget Sound, the damage is widespread. Cessnas stacked up on a tarmac at Boeing Field in Seattle. In Tacoma, boats at one marina lay listing. Cars swamped by rising water. Nearby roads completely blocked by fallen trees.
This floating bridge linking Seattle to the suburbs closed by dangerous winds, now open as the waters calm and the storm moves out, the worst this area has seen in more than a decade.
Rob Marciano, CNN, reporting.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HOLMES: And the number of deaths blamed on the storm now up to six. Washington's governor has declared a state of emergency to deal with all the damage left by the storm.
Darren Dedo of Seattle affiliate KCPQ reports.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
DARREN DEDO, KCPQ CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While power companies spent Friday restoring power to a million homes and businesses in western Washington, Dean County road maintenance crews were busy clearing trees to get roads reopened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pretty much the whole thing is blocked and trees are down everywhere.
DEDO: Crews are removing trees from primary roads and then secondary ones. On Capitol Hill today, it was a cleanup of a different kind. Seattle's Department of Transportation had to remove a huge tree that flattened a couple of cars. Luckily, nobody was injured.
No power means navigating roads with no traffic lights, which was tough for drivers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just driving was pretty chaotic. You know, you had to stop at every signal and people were being a little inconsiderate.
DEDO: The 70 mile per hour winds that ripped through western Washington toppled hundreds of trees on power lines. Fifty percent of Seattle's city lights feeder lines were cut, contributing to massive outages, including several area hospitals. Several hundred thousand Puget Sound area customers lost power and nearly half of all Snohomish Public Utilities customers went dark.
No power means no ovens or microwaves to cook with. That's why Larry Turner fired up his grill to feed his family in White Center.
LARRY TURNER: I am barbecuing dinner so we'll have something hot to eat tonight.
DEDO: Now that the winds have moved out of western Washington, the cold is moving in. Turner says he's cooking up an idea to stay warm.
TURNER: Katrina worked out (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the logs up. You use with what you got.
DEDO (on camera): Now, power companies are asking customers to be patient. While some will get their power turned back on within the next 24 hours, others will be sitting in the cold and dark for the next seven to 10 days.
Reporting in White Center, Darren Dedo, Q13.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
NGUYEN: So, let's check out this storm.
Reynolds Wolf joins us from the Weather Center -- boy, you know, Mother Nature really has been causing all kinds of havoc lately. I know, it's December.
WOLF: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. And, thankfully, that storm system is now living the Pacific Northwest.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: In Oregon, the search for three missing climbers is expected to get back on track this morning. As we've been talking about, severe weather kept search crews on the sidelines yesterday. But today, a full scale assault.
The rescuers want to reach the 10,000-foot level of Mount Hood, heading up the south side of that mountain. Now, it is a climb that could take more than six hours.
HOLMES: And the 10,000-foot level is where they believe they may find climber Kelly James holed up in a snow cave.
NGUYEN: Yes.
We do get more on the search and rescue efforts from CNN's Dan Simon.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
CAPT. CHRIS BERNARD, 304TH RESCUE SQUADRON: Right here.
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A small orange piece of paper raised hopes that three climbers are still alive. A note left by the trio at this ranger station one day before their journey up the mountain. It's one of several notes the group left along the way.
BERNARD: They outline what they have: "We have food, fuel, ropes, shovel, bivy sacks, heavy parkas, etc. We have experience on Rainier, Denali, South American expedition, etc."
SIMON: Authorities had known about the note for several days. It wasn't clear why they never mentioned it before. But its revelation reinforced optimism that the climbers have the necessary resources to survive.
BERNARD: I always knew that they were a, you know, 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.
FRANK JAMES, KELLY JAMES' BROTHER: These three guys got -- dotted all their Is and crossed all their Ts.
SIMON: But the search was stymied by this second straight day of blizzard like conditions. The mountain and its surrounding towns took a beating last night and today. It got so bad that most of the rescue teams had to come off the mountain. They had been hunkering down at 6,000 feet, far below the location where they believe one of the climbers, Kelly James, is holding out. That's at the 10,000-foot level, where the situation resembles something like this from a few days ago.
Still, the Nevada Air National Guard was able to put up one of its planes, a C130 with thermal imaging. It was unable to detect anything, but more missions were planned.
CAPT. JOHN PROHEL, 152ND AIRLIFT WING: Darkness is not too much of a factor, because we can still get an infrared capability looking for a heat signature. But, of course, if they're in a snow cave, we probably won't be able to see them.
SIMON: The families have shown remarkable strength while waiting for information about their loved ones' fate. But today, there was visible emotion as Jame's wife talked about his and the other climbers' strength.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CNN'S "AMERICAN MORNING")
KAREN JAMES, KELLY JAMES'S WIFE: 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. I mean, Kelly, this is a 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)
SIMON: And with an expected break in the weather Saturday, rescuers plan an aggressive search to find the missing men.
Dan Simon, CNN, Parkdale, Oregon.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HOLMES: In Florida today, executions on hold.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Governor Bush has ordered an investigation into the execution of Angel Diaz. The governor says he hopes the investigation shows that corrections officials followed the proper procedures.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: A judge says the system is broken, but can be fixed. We've got all the details coming up in about six minutes.
Plus this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at you. Ooh, you look so good.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: That's such a sweet story, and it's a happy, very happy ending, as you can see, for a dog and his owner after -- get this -- two years and some 1,200 miles.
We'll get a chance to meet Sam right here in about four minutes right here on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
HOLMES: And just, you know, less than two weeks shy of the service record set by Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, Donald Rumsfeld's farewell. Some big names in attendance, as you can see a couple of them there, and plenty of praise for the outgoing secretary of defense. That's ahead in about 20 minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: And welcome back, everybody, to CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
Here are a few of the stories making news across America.
A judge orders a paternity test in the case of a woman accusing three Duke lacrosse players of rape. CNN affiliate WRAL reports the woman will give birth in February. Defense attorneys say none of the DNA evidence in the case matches the defendants or any member of the lacrosse team.
NGUYEN: In Ohio, a man sentenced for shooting his dog in the head can reduce his six month jail sentence to just 20 days. That is if he dresses up like this safety pup that you see -- well, you didn't see -- just right there. The judge says the defendant must visit the elementary schools in his community dressed as safety pup. The doggone sentence being appealed.
HOLMES: And we will stick with the dog theme. Talking a real dog this time.
Two years ago, this golden retriever named Sam was reported missing from his Tampa, Florida home. Two nights ago, Sam's family got a call saying he had been found in Illinois. Animal control workers traced his owner through a microchip in the dog's body. No one knows how Sam made the 1,200 mile trip to Chicago. Only Sam knows that and Sam...
NGUYEN: He's not talking.
HOLMES: ... is not talking just yet.
Well, the president once called the report by the Iraq Study Group smart.
NGUYEN: But two weeks after the release of the ISG report, it seems the Bush administration is trying to distance itself from the recommendations.
Why?
Our report in 20 minutes.
HOLMES: Also, a $100 ball falling flat.
Have you seen it?
Up next, why some cut fingers were the final straw for the NBA's synthetic experiment.
And we'll give you a bit of trivia here. I know, Betty, you're always fond of this (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...
NGUYEN: Yes, I am. And I'm pretty good at it, mind you.
HOLMES: You do pretty good at this.
All right, now, when the sport was first introduced, what was used as the ball? Was it a soccer ball? Was it a kick ball, a medicine ball or a ball of twine?
We've got that answer when we go Beyond The Game, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(AUDIO CLIP OF ONYX)
HOLMES: You can always use a little Onyx in the morning to get you going.
Synthetics versus leather -- in the latest round over what type of ball the NBA uses, score one for traditional leather. To explain why, when it comes to multi-million dollar players, the ball just -- it's not just a ball -- we're joined, as always, by the author of "When the Game Is On the Line," Rick Horrow -- sir, good morning to you.
How are you doing?
RICK HORROW, CNN SPORTS BUSINESS ANALYST: Hey, I heard a vicious rumor that played some hoops in your day. You look a little scrawny, but I guess you could shoot...
HOLMES: In my day.
HORROW: ... so that's the answer.
HOLMES: Yes?
HORROW: In your -- whatever day that was, yes, you were playing, too.
So I don't know if you used this one...
HOLMES: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HORROW: ... or the synthetic one or the old new one or the new old one. But we'll talk about that, too.
HOLMES: This is the new one. You know, it didn't matter to me, man. When you've game, it just doesn't matter. But...
HORROW: Oh my god.
HOLMES: This is the new ball.
HORROW: Right.
HOLMES: What is the problem, Rick, with the new ball?
It feels great.
HORROW: Well, yes. But besides the fact that it doesn't bounce straight and it cuts people's fingers when it gets wet and you can't hold onto it and you can't shoot with it, it's marvelous.
But here's the real business issue. The NBA has a partnership with their players and they imposed this new ball, really, without consultation.
They tried it in that developmental minor league around the country. And on December 1, the players filed an unfair labor practice grievance. Lebron James, for example, who seems to be speaking for players now, he says hey, you know, they can tell us about dress codes, they can tell us to make the shorts shorter, but don't mess with our ball.
And so David Stern relented for harmony of the players, as well. HOLMES: All right, but still, what's the point in the first place?
They've been playing with the leather ball forever.
Why would you want to change it in the first place?
Surely they had the good of the game in mind.
HORROW: Well, let me tell you a couple of reasons.
First of all, the argument was that you didn't need to blow it up ever, which is OK; and it's cheaper, which is also OK; and, also, you don't have to break it in. Those are the arguments.
Spalding, though, which manufactures the balls with the NBA and has been in business since 1894 said that we have a partnership, we pay $125 million to the NBA for our equipment, so let's test it. That was the argument.
HOLMES: OK. And help people understand, as well, there are a lot of folks out there who maybe don't play basketball, never have. They know about basketball, maybe even like basketball, but they don't understand why guys making tens of millions of dollars a year would make all the big fuss about a ball that's the same size, it bounces, it's round and the whole deal.
Give people an idea of how crucial this is to these guys playing the game.
HORROW: Well, I guess it's like making Picasso finger-paint. You know, it's -- you've got to have the right equipment if you're making $13 million to do this kind of stuff. And, of course, with the NBA, the shooters and the players, let's say, want all the conditions correct. Some would say they're whiners. But when it comes to their craft and their ball, there are players that are walking around with Band-Aids on their hands because when it gets wet, they cut their fingers.
And, of course, what Spalding did was say this may be one of our biggest disasters since new Coke.
HOLMES: Oh.
HORROW: So we've got a rebate and if you want the rebate, you give it in. But the bottom line is Warren Buffett, the biggest investor in Spalding, may be saying well, we don't need this controversy, by the way. We have had this ball since 1970, we haven't messed with it and this is really a major issue for the NBA.
HOLMES: The biggest mess-up since new Coke, and that's saying a lot.
Now, what's the...
HORROW: (UNINTELLIGIBLE). HOLMES: Are these going to be collector's items now? What are -- what should folks do with them?
HORROW: Well, you know, if you have one, you either give it in for $100 plus or you save it. I have a new Coke can, by the way, and I'm going to put that ball right next to the new Coke can. So if you want your $100, you can do the rebate. But this is one of the messes, as far as the NBA is concerned, and as far as Spalding is concerned.
Now, they'll get out of it. They have a major marketing campaign.
By the way, the NBA is a $6 billion long-term, so they're going to be OK.
But if you want to symbolize one of David Stern's first kind of managerial mistakes in terms of player-owner relations, then you keep that ball.
HOLMES: You know, why correct, also, in the middle of the year?
Guys are just getting used to the old ball. Maybe it's starting to feel good to them and they're starting to get it worked out. Now, mid-season, they're switching back to the other ball, January 1st. And the guys have got to get readjusted to that.
Is that the best way...
HORROW: January 1.
HOLMES: Yes. But, why didn't they just wait until next season?
HORROW: Well, because he didn't want to compound his problem over the next few months. And you know the All Star Game and the play-offs are the time when everybody really starts focusing on the NBA. And the good teams there are going to complain even louder. And those are the ones that may make the play-offs.
But the Boston Celtics get our award of the ball people that have the real issue...
HOLMES: Yes.
HORROW: ... OK, as far as the NBA. They play a New Year's Eve game and a New Year's Day game. So they play with the old new, old new ball on New Year's Eve and the new old, new old ball on New Year's Day.
So you've got to figure out what's going to happen. Maybe they should get more than their $13 million annual salary for that couple of days.
HOLMES: You know, and I think it was the Boston coach who said you know what, do like it was when you were a kid. You played with whatever ball whatever kid showed up with. So that's what they'll do.
HORROW: Yes, the bottom line is -- but we've got that trivia question, too.
So do I weigh in on this or do you get the answer to this because you...
HOLMES: No, by all means. We were telling people -- we'll show them the question again and you can answer it for them.
What was the first type of ball used in basketball -- ball of twine, medicine ball, kickball, a soccer ball?
What was it, sir.
HORROW: A soccer ball. They put it in the peach basket, Spalding, James Naismith. It's a soccer ball, ladies and gentlemen.
Am I correct?
HOLMES: Yes, you are.
HORROW: Yes.
HOLMES: And Betty didn't get this one right.
So, Rick, any time you're down here in Atlanta, by all means, come on by. I have no problem beating up on an old man.
HORROW: We're doing it, man. We're doing it.
HOLMES: All right.
See you, Rick.
HORROW: Talk to you next week.
NGUYEN: Of course I got that right, T.J. I mean, I've got game. New ball, old ball.
HOLMES: Got game.
NGUYEN: Come with it.
HOLMES: Oh.
NGUYEN: I can do this.
HOLMES: Don't break anything back there, Betty.
NGUYEN: I know, everyone is really scared back here. We're breaking equipment.
Hey, all right, we're going to move on to this guy -- his last day, his last remarks. A farewell for Donald Rumsfeld -- defiant and self-confident as usual. Rummy's last day on the job in our report. That is in six minutes.
HOLMES: Plus, why former Congressman Bob Barr quits the GOP. The background and the details in about 15 minutes here on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Now in the news, bacteria and babies -- an outbreak of a potentially deadly bacterium has sickened seven children, mostly babies, at an L.A. hospital. The White Memorial Medical Center says one infant died, probably as a result of being infected. The hospital has temporarily closed its neonatal and pediatrics intensive care units to new admissions.
Changing faces already in the 2008 presidential race. Two weeks after filing papers establishing an exploratory committee, Democratic Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana decides he's not going to run.
And on the Republican side, former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, as expected, has filed papers to set up an exploratory committee, Democratic Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana decides he's not going to run. On the Republican side, former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, as expected, has filed papers to set up an exploratory committee.
Ending the bloodshed is the objective, a key conference open today in Baghdad, including delegates from the country's bitterly divided political factions. It's the latest in a series of meetings designed to foster national reconciliation. For the first time the talks are expected to include former members of Iraq's military who served under Saddam Hussein.
NGUYEN: The president of the Palestinian Authority is calling for new elections. Mahmoud Abbas says he is calling for elections because of the political stalemate with Hamas. Hamas opposes early elections.
Britain's prime minister, Tony Blair, is in Turkey and he's lending support to Turkey's bid to join the European Union. Earlier in the week the E.U. suspended talks with Turkey because of, quote, failure to normalize trade with Cyprus.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Don Rumsfeld is the finest secretary of defense this nation has ever had.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The vice president praises the outgoing defense secretary but some people may disagree with that assessment. Rumsfeld's farewell in just a few minutes.
Welcome back to you all. Hello there. I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Yes. Good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen. We want to thank you for starting your day with us. HOLMES: Yes, that final farewell for Donald Rumsfeld, the outgoing defense secretary given a star-studded going away party. One thing isn't going away any time soon, the war in Iraq and its effect on Rumsfeld's legacy.
We get more from CNN senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There were the requisite full military honors and high accolades.
GEN. PETER PACE, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: He is a man of enormous commitment. He pushed us hard. The only person he pushed harder than us was himself.
CHENEY: I believe the record speaks for itself. Don Rumsfeld is the finest secretary of defense this nation has ever had.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This man knows how to lead, and he did. And the country is better off for it.
MCINTYRE: But for all the warmth on this unusually mild December day, this is not how Donald Rumsfeld hoped to go out, under the cloud of a war his successor says the U.S. is not winning.
DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Leadership is not about doing what's easy. It's about doing what's right, even when it's hard, especially when it's hard.
MCINTYRE (on camera): President Bush ticked off a long list of Rumsfeld's accomplishments over the last six years, but Rumsfeld's legacy will hinge on one event: the Iraq war.
(voice-over): Rumsfeld himself has named the abuses committed by U.S. soldiers at the Abu Ghraib Prison as the low point of his tenure. Crimes that were punished and, Rumsfeld argues, were never authorized by him or anyone at the Pentagon. But his critics point to larger miscalculations, such as the failure to anticipate the tenacious insurgency that now resembles a civil war.
It's been a fiasco, says Washington Post reporter Tom Ricks, whose highly critical book of the same name faults Rumsfeld, President Bush and many of the top generals.
THOMAS RICKS, WASHINGTON POST MILITARY CORRESPONDENT: He's likely to be remembered along with Robert McNamara as an aggressive, hard-charging leader who, unfortunately, presided over a war that seemed to head south pretty steadily.
MCINTYRE: Many analysts have now come to believe the Iraq war was fought on the cheap, with too few troops and too many blunders.
MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: 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.
MCINTYRE: Rumsfeld did make history, the youngest defense secretary under President Ford, he leaves now as the oldest and just shy of McNamara's record as the longest-serving. His parting words were unapologetic and ended with prayers for those he sent into battle who did not return.
RUMSFELD: And I will remember the fallen, and I will particularly remember their families and the -- from whom I have drawn inspiration.
MCINTYRE (on camera): Rumsfeld's critics call him arrogant, his supporters say he is supremely confident. Rumsfeld himself believes that what he calls the great sweep of human history will ultimately provide vindication for his judgments.
Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: More American troops in Iraq, and it has been debated, rejected, sometimes embraced. Now the Associated Press reports the U.S. is planning to move a brigade of some 3,500 troops into Kuwait early next year. The AP quotes a Pentagon official. Now that official says the move could be the first step toward a short term surge of American forces into Iraq to stabilize the violence.
As President Bush considers a new war strategy for Iraq, some critics are concerned that recommendations from the bipartisan Iraq Study Group aren't getting a fair shake.
We get that story from CNN's Brian Todd.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Their stature and commitment equally impressive: a highly esteemed former secretary of state, a hugely respected former Congressman lead nearly a dozen heavyweights from both sides of the political divide to find solutions to a president's most crushing dilemma.
They invest nearly a year of their lives, put forth dozens of highly publicized recommendations for a course of action in Iraq.
But in the week-and-a-half since the Iraq Study Group's report came out, persistent whispers in Washington, the president and his advisers are distancing themselves from James Baker's panel.
The White House denies this on its face, but also says...
TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The touchstone is not the Baker-Hamilton Commission. It's the situation in Iraq. And it's the situation in the region.
TODD: Then, the secretary of state takes what may be this group's most important recommendation and dumps it on its ear.
On the idea of talking directly with Iran and Syria to enlist their help in stabilizing Iraq, Condoleezza Rice tells The Washington Post: "They're looking for compensation to do that, and that's a problem."
(on camera): Neither James Baker nor former Congressman Lee Hamilton would comment for our story. But a Baker aide tells us the panel's leadership does not feel dismissed, citing reports that the president is considering sending more troops to Iraq. That, he says, falls within the parameters of the group's recommendations.
(voice-over): Analysts, including one critic of the report, say its lukewarm reception is the result of too much hype.
FRANK GAFFNEY, CENTER FOR SECURITY POLICY: The conventional wisdom in Washington prior to the release of the Baker Report was that the administration, in the aftermath of the election, would basically have no choice but to accept it.
TODD: And expert who helped put the report together says the group never thought that way.
JONATHAN ALTERMAN, IRAQ STUDY GROUP CONTRIBUTOR: I don't think anybody had the illusion that what was going to happen is people who had been arguing very strongly on one side were going to say hey, yes, we were wrong and you're right.
TODD: Jon Alterman says, at the very least, the Iraq Study Group's report has become what he calls the baseline for all future discussions about Iraq. Alterman and another source close to the panel believe some of the study group's recommendations will survive. And Alterman says despite what Secretary Rice says now, this administration may still open talks with Iran.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And the debate over a new strategy for the Iraq war is on the rundown of CNN's "THIS WEEK AT WAR" hosted by John Roberts. You can catch that tonight at 7:00 Eastern.
NGUYEN: Well, executions are on hold right now in Florida. Investigators there are looking at a possible mistake in the latest execution. Now that execution took an unusually long time for the lethal drugs to take effect. Governor Bush has ordered an investigation into the execution of Angel Diaz. The governor says he hopes the investigation shows that corrections officials followed the proper procedures.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: I'm concerned enough to ask Secretary McDonough to put together a team to review it thoroughly and quickly. But I don't know if anything was done outside of the protocol, which is extensive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: During the lethal injection procedure, Diaz grimaced and shuddered several times and looked toward witnesses. He was pronounced dead at 34 minutes after the first dose. Corrections officials say Diaz suffered from liver disease which caused his body to take longer to metabolize the lethal chemicals. Both Governor Bush and Governor-elect Charlie Crist say they will not halt executions in Florida. But Crist says he does have questions about the execution of Angel Diaz.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHARLIE CRIST (R), FLORIDA GOVERNOR-ELECT: You know, you wonder about the dosage and if there might have been some better medical diagnoses done prior.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Now an attorney for Angel Nieves Diaz has filed a lawsuit asking the Florida Supreme Court to rule Florida's lethal injection procedure unconstitutional. That has already happened in California. A federal judge ruled lethal injections there constitute cruel and unusual punishment. And that decision coming because of problems with the way the state was performing lethal injections. The governor's office is reviewing the procedures.
Want to get you a "Reality Check" this morning. For that we turn to yours truly, Joshua Levs .
Good morning.
JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yours truly. Hey, Betty.
NGUYEN: Well, I say that to all the guys around here.
LEVS: Yes, I know.
NGUYEN: Have you noticed?
LEVS: Oh trust me, I've noticed. I'm honored to be one of them. Thanks a lot.
You know, politicians right now are presenting this huge list of tasks for Congress to take care of as soon as it gets into office in January. We're starting to wonder, is that realistic? We're going to take a look at that coming up, CNN "Reality Check."
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) NGUYEN: Take a look. It is being called the worst windstorm in nearly 14 years. Ouch! And this morning the Pacific Northwest takes a big clean-up job. Yes, hurricane-strength winds toppled trees across Washington and Oregon, hundreds of thousands remain without power, many just aren't going to get it back for many days to come. The winds were so high, several ski resorts in Washington and northern Idaho had to close down.
HOLMES: That's not good. And this stuff is blowing through at least. It's still cold, but a lot of the nasty stuff causing all the problems is getting at least out of there. They're going to start the clean-up. Is that right, Reynolds?
REYNOLDS WOLF, METEOROLOGIST: Oh, absolutely. That big wrecking ball of a storm is now moving into the Central Rockies. Back and in parts of Washington and Oregon it is just utter devastation where they had winds that were up to Category 3 storm -- if this were the equivalent of a hurricane, it would be a Category 3. Now that system is now moving into the Rockies, as I mentioned, possibly a foot, two feet. Some spots in higher elevations could get up to say three feet of snowfall, especially near I-80. So we have improving conditions in the Pacific Northwest. That's great news.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: A former Republican pit bull, now quite simply a former Republican. Bob Barr announcing he's now a Libertarian, a proud card- carrying Libertarian is what he said. You'll remember he was one that spearheaded the impeachment of President Clinton in 1999, but apparently the former four-term Georgia congressman is now unhappy with the direction of the Republican Party.
NGUYEN: Well, the new Congress doesn't begin its session until next month but this week leaders on both sides of the political aisle were issuing calls for action looking for the 110th Congress to do what the 109th did not. And that is, tackle the really tough issues. Is that realistic, though? Joshua Levs joins us with a "Reality Check."
LEVS: Hey, yes, you know, it seems like in the weeks before every new Congress you always have this hope that springs eternal. You know, people are making all of these rosy predictions about how the new Congress is going to come along and is just going to tackle all of these huge issues. So we're wondering if that's realistic. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS (voice-over): The White House wants support on Iraq.
SNOW: Both the houses of Congress know that there is -- and both parties understand that this is time for the political class to deliver.
LEVS: Homeland Security wants new, tougher laws to track down identity thieves. MICHAEL CHERTOFF, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: So we can further protect Americans from identity theft and protect our borders against illegal immigration.
LEVS: It seems like everyone in Washington is looking to Congress to fix what's broken. The same place that just said goodbye to what many Democrats called the...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... :do-nothing Congress."
LEVS: Remember what leaders in that Republican-controlled Congress had vowed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll be working on lobbying an earmark reform.
LEVS: Nothing came of it which Republican Senator John McCain has called unacceptable. What about the immigration issue?
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R), TEXAS: It is one that is enormously urgent from a national security perspective.
LEVS: Congress did pass a bill to build a fence, but nothing comprehensive. And when it came to Social Security...
BUSH: And every year we fail to act, the situation gets worse.
LEVS: More talk, no reform. So who says things will or should change with the Democrats in power? They do.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), MINORITY LEADER: You cannot advance the people's agenda unless you drain the swamp that is Washington, D.C.
LEVS: The Democrats say they'll provide badly needed oversight and slash the power of special interests. Republicans say they'll do that, too.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), MAJORITY LEADER: So we're going to work as a team and we are going to earn our way back into our majorities.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS: But keep in mind now that as the new Congress comes in, those kinds of promises are always flying free. And right now you have got lawmakers on both sides of the aisle saying that because of what did not happen in the last Congress, the Congress that's coming in in January, Betty, is going to face some especially daunting challenges.
NGUYEN: You promise, right?
LEV: Stick around, you'll see.
NGUYEN: Oh yes, I trust you on that one. Thank you, Josh. HOLMES: Forget the stereotypes of the homeless: sleeping under bridges, packed shopping carts, things like that. This weekend we're talking about working class Americans who once had a house, a car, a job, just like you maybe, but now they're homeless for the holidays.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I understand where society has sort of misplaced their values in terms of homeless people. Homeless people are just normal, regular citizens. If afforded the opportunity, would really proliferate in America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: This weekend CNN primetime reveals a different face of homelessness. Americans who are pushed out of the middle class trying to survive. How did they end up like this? And could it happen to you. Tune in Saturday night, that's tonight, at 10:00 Eastern for "A Paycheck Away."
NGUYEN: This is a really good series. Really eye-opening. You would be amazed at how many people are right there on the edge. If that doesn't keep you here, well, this may. "The WaterCooler," that's next, always fun.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This one was made in Israel. This one comes from Venice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Don't really know if you can classify these as knickknacks. We'll explain what makes this collection tops when CNN SATURDAY MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Time for that special edition -- it's a holiday edition of "The WaterCooler" today.
HOLMES: Yes. This is, of course, when we tell you some of the offbeat stories you may have missed.
NGUYEN: Yes. Like this one. As you know, Hanukkah began last night. Many Jewish families will observe the holiday playing the dreidel game.
HOLMES: Don't know if they'll play that song when they're playing the dreidel game.
NGUYEN: Kind of don't think so, but yes.
HOLMES: Well, this woman in Chicago knows all about it. She's put her own spin on Hanukkah with a world-class direction of dreidels. NGUYEN: Yes. These are no ordinary playthings. Oh no, no, no, no. The 400 or so dreidels are serious artworks from all around the world.
HOLMES: And they are also apparently worth some serious bucks. Don't really have an exact number on this collection.
NGUYEN: Of course not, they're priceless.
HOLMES: Yes. Priceless. But valued certainly in the thousands of dollars.
NGUYEN: Yes. I can see you doing that, T.J. And that too. This story out of California is one of the more outrageous examples that political correctness has just run amok.
HOLMES: Yes. A high school choral group in the middle of a public performance of Christmas carols earlier this week when they were suddenly told to stop.
NGUYEN: Yes. Olympic silver medal skater Sasha Cohen was at the event and the official worried she would be offended by the music because she is Jewish.
HOLMES: Now we do need to tell you, and stress here, that she, Cohen, never asked the carolers to stop singing and by all accounts was actually enjoying the music just like everybody else.
NGUYEN: Yes, a little odd there. Folks in Thailand no doubt have a problem with Christmas. The Buddhist nation goes all out with the holiday decor this time of year.
HOLMES: In Bangkok, a luxury hotel created this 20-foot chocolate Christmas tree, made of giant chocolate bars covered with M&Ms, 35,000 of them.
NGUYEN: Yes. Just apparently they don't have a problem, as you can see here, with Christmas. The tree is on display in the air- conditioned lobby to keep it from melting in the tropical heat.
HOLMES: All right. Now we have a Christmas miracle for you, a holiday miracle. Eighty-two-year-old Don Carcos (ph) has been blind in one eye ever since a U-boat torpedoed his ship in 1942.
NGUYEN: Well, recently he was working with a racehorse when that horse gave him a head butt that knocked Carcos off his seat.
HOLMES: Well, that head butt, that jolt jarred something loose. His sight came back in the bad eye after 64 years of blindness.
NGUYEN: That -- you know, if I didn't read it, I wouldn't believe it. Carcos says he says his vision isn't perfect but, hey, it's good enough to feed his new best friend carrots every day.
Can you imagine? Boom, fixed it like that.
HOLMES: I'm not sure. We've got a few shaking their head when they hear this one after 64 years..
NGUYEN: Yes. Hey, we only read it.
HOLMES: Whatever works.
NGUYEN: We only read it. It's about five minutes before 8:00 here on the East Coast. We'll give you the latest on the big stories, that is at the top of the hour.
HOLMES: Including the search for those missing mountain climbers in Oregon. Rescue crews making a big push to find the three men today, hoping the weather is going to clear a bit. Will they get that break? We'll tell you.
NGUYEN: Also hitting the mall for more holiday shopping today? Well, don't let the Grinch steal your Christmas. We will show you how to avoid the newest holiday scam. Watch for this one.
HOLMES: Yes. And that's coming up a little later on CNN SATURDAY MORNING. You are watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: "Now in News" this morning. They are trying to stay warm in the Pacific Northwest. The worst winds in 14 years have blown through the cold weather. And it isn't going anywhere. Six deaths are blamed on Friday's storm. Hundreds of thousands are without power today.
HOLMES: Daybreak expected to bring new hope for rescuers at Mt. Hood in Oregon. Three climbers are still missing there. A break in the weather today could give search crews the time they need to reach a snow cave where one of the climbers may have taken refuge.
An additional space walk planned today by shuttle astronauts Robert Curbeam and Sunita Williams. One thing they hope to do time permitting, is to take a closer look at a solar panel that won't fully retract. Engineers think it is hung up on a guide wire.
NGUYEN: Britain's prime minister, Tony Blair, is in Turkey today. He is lending support to Turkey's bid to join the European Union. And earlier in the week, the E.U. suspended talks with Turkey because of, quote, "failure to normalize trade with Cyprus."
The president of the Palestinian Authority is calling for new elections. Mahmoud Abbas says he wants the elections because of the political stalemate with Hamas. As you know, Hamas opposes early elections.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, deep breath in.
(BOISTEROUS LAUGHING)
HOLMES: Helping your health by having a good -- whoa!
NGUYEN: What's wrong with you T.J.?
HOLMES: Oh, my goodness gracious!
(LAUGHTER)
Coming up at the bottom of the hour, find out just what in the world is going on here. "House Call" is going to investigate the power of happiness. And it appears to be some pretty powerful stuff.
NGUYEN: It just looks like they're trying so hard to laugh, it's not even funny.
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: Anyway, from the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It's December 16th, 8 a.m. in the Southeast, 5 a.m. in the Northwest. Good morning, I'm Betty Nguyen.
Hey, I just call it as I see it.
HOLMES: Thank you for that good laugh. I needed that.
NGUYEN: Was that a good laugh?
HOLMES: Good for my health, yeah.
I'm T.J. Holmes. We thank you so much for being here with us.
Well, plenty of clean-up need in the Northwest, today, following one of the worse windstorms in more than a decade. High winds toppled trees across Oregon and Washington, smashing homes, cars, and toppling power lines. Six deaths blamed on the storm. And at the worst of it more than a million people were without power.
For some, this morning, the power is back on. However, for hundreds of thousands of others, not quiet yet. Reporter Drew Mickelson of our CNN Oregon affiliate KGW shows us the damage left by this quick, but fierce storm.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DREW MICKELSON, REPORTER, KGW TV (voice over): Split in half. It will be months before crews can clean up and rebuild this Aloha (ph) home, after two trees slammed into the house during Thursday's storm.
BRAD HARVEY, NEIGHBOR: They split like butter. It was amazing.
MICKELSON: Brad Harvey took pictures of the damage. He lives next door and is afraid this scene will repeat itself on his property. The storm uprooted two trees, it started to fall toward his home before getting held up. The trees are not stable. That's why the fire department evacuated his family.
HARVEY: We are living out of the car. The kids, and the animals, are quarantined at other people's houses. We just waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak.
MICKELSON: Other Washington County residents may be without power throughout the weekend.
CARMEL MOTSCHENBACHER, TRANSPORTATION WORKER: To 9th and Deline (ph), Barnes Road at 89th.
MICKELSON: Washington County's transportation crews have worked nonstop clearing roads and cleaning up debris.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It packed a powerful punch. It appears to be over for now.
MICHELSON: It's just starting for Brad Harvey. A tree cutter will use a crane to try to safely remove the trees before they do any of this kind of damage.
(on camera): Tonight you sleep easy or nervously?
HARVEY: Or not at all. I'm going to be a little worried about the house.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And that was Drew Mickelson of our Oregon affiliate KGW.
In another story, a break in the severe weather is expected to help searchers looking for three missing climbers on Mt. Hood. It has been more than a week since they started their climb, and search crews hope to climb the south slope today. A six-hour climb could put them at the mouth of a snow cave where one of the hikers is believed to have holed up. Weather kept rescuers at base camp yesterday. Instead they relied on a military C-130, that flew over doing a thermal scans. So far, no luck.
HOLMES: Today is supposed to be the day, we were talking about this story yesterday, and a lot of the rescuers were looking to today to see the big one, they could finally get a break.
NGUYEN: It supposed to clear up.
HARRIS: And get up there and maybe get serious searching going.
Reynolds.
(WEATHER REPORT)
More U.S. troops in Iraq. That is the hot topic on the table as President Bush plots a new strategy for Iraq. Now, the Associated Press reports the U.S. is planning to move a brigade of some 3500 troops into Kuwait early next year. The AP quotes a Pentagon official who says the brigade is based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
The official says the move could be the first step toward a short-term surge in of American forces into Iraq, in an attempt to stabilize the violence.
NGUYEN: Calling on the old troops, a key conference is taking place in Iraq today aimed at curbing the rampant violence. The government is appealing to troops who served under Saddam Hussein. Let's get you live now, to CNN's Nic Robertson in Baghdad with the latest on this conference.
Hi there, Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INT'L. CORRESPONDENT, CNN SATURDAY MORNING: Hi there, Betty.
Well the idea of this conference, that has been called by the Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, is to try and bring the country together to end the sectarian violence. It really recognizes that the true battles in Iraq, at the moment, are not against the U.S. troops here, but internally among the Iraqis, and that is why he is calling a national reconciliation.
He is offering an olive branch, if you will, to the old former Iraqi army, under Saddam Hussein, telling them, telling the officers, that if they want to come back and join the new Iraqi army, that's possible. Even if there isn't a place for them, they can continue to get their pensions.
The recognition that under the Coalition Provisional Authority here a few years ago, under Paul Bremer disbanding the former Iraqi army was a very bad move.
The conference here hoping, and the prime minister hoping, to pull Sunnis back away from the insurgency, and into the political mainstream.
However, having said that, one of the main Sunni television stations here in Baghdad didn't cover this conference live as the main government station did, but carried the prayer service from yesterday. And we're also seeing at this conference, not many Sunnis, or not all the sort of important Sunni leaders that the prime minister would like to see show up. We are not seeing them all showing up at this conference -- Betty.
NGUYEN: That's really interesting. And while this does go on, let's talk about what is actually happening around the capitol to combat the insurgency. Because I am reading here on reports coming out of Iraq, Nic, that 12 bodies have been found in Baquba, including that of a seven-year-old child.
ROBERTSON: And two of the bodies policemen, as well. And police found those in Baquba, which is -- has been a very volatile city, just north of Baghdad. They found those early this morning.
In Baghdad there was an overnight raid. U.S. troops went into Sadr City, the very volatile suburb of Shias, some 2.5 million Shias live there. They went in there to capture somebody they believed was behind kidnapping and bomb making. According to local residents, though, some people were tied up. One person, at least, was killed in that particular raid. This coming at a time when there is this call for national reconciliation. And the main militia group, and the main political party that represents people within that suburb, today announced that they were continuing to suspend their support for the government, suspend their support for Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
So, while on one hand you have national reconciliation, you do have these elements, now becoming on the fringes of the political process here, but nevertheless very powerful elements. The elements that control the guns and a lot of the fighting here, not taking part in the reconciliation process at all, Betty.
NGUYEN: CNN's Nic Robertson, joining us live from Baghdad. Nic, as always, we thank you.
HOLMES: Encouraging progress for South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson. recovering from emergency brain surgery performed earlier this week. Doctors say surgery stopped the bleeding in his brain. Another encouraging sign, according to doctors, he's starting to react to his family.
And a change in the political lineup to tell you about now. We are going to start with Republican Tommy Thompson and his possible run for president; another name jumping in there. He has a former exploratory committee. Thompson was governor of Wisconsin before taking over the Department of Health and Human Services.
We've got one in, and we have one out. Already. Democrat Evan Bayh bowing out before he even got off the ground with his campaign. The Indiana senator formed an exploratory committee two weeks ago. He has now decided the time just not right.
Meanwhile, former Republican Congressman Bob Barr, of Georgia, has a new party. It's not the Democratic Party. He is now a card- carrying Libertarian. Unhappy with the direction of his former Republican colleagues, Barr says he still has no plans to run for office.
NGUYEN: A medical panel, this week, calling for more warnings for anti-depression medication. But is there a way to improve your mood without the pills? Coming up in 20 minutes, Doctor Sanjay Gupta shows you how. That's in today's "House Call".
HOLMES: Also, the growing debt among America's seniors. Coming up in 10 minutes, find out what's causing this troubling trend.
NGUYEN: And next, what happened to this man places Florida's death row policy under the microscope.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His physical actions demonstrated how much pain he was in. And everyone saw this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JEB BUSH, (R-FL): I'm concerned enough to ask Secretary McDonough (ph) to put together a team and review it thoroughly and quickly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Florida Governor Jeb Bush talking about the state's use of lethal injection. And the case of Angel Diaz, the inmate was put to death Wednesday, but the execution did not go smoothly. Diaz took twice as long as normal to die. A full 34 minutes. And it is believed he was conscious for much of it. The governor has put all executions on hold for the time being.
Meanwhile, Diaz's family is asking a judge to rule that lethal injections are unconstitutional, which is what happened in California. A judge ruled the states method of lethal injection execution was unconstitutional. A judge says prison execution teams haven't been following mandated protocol, which may have caused some executed prisoners to suffer pain at levels that violate the ban at cruel and unusual punishment.
HOLMES: An outbreak of a potentially deadly bacterium has sickened seven, mostly babies at an LA hospital. Dwight Medical Memorial Center says one infant died probably as a result of being infected. The hospital temporarily closed its neonatal and pediatrics intensive care unites to new admissions.
An in Indianapolis an Olive Garden restaurant closed after more than 300 people who ate there got sick. A company spokesman says health officials are focusing on an employee who had flu-like symptoms.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT GILIAM, INDIANA DEPT. OF HEALTH: You probably I heard about illnesses on the cruise ships. This is the same type of thing. Possibly, the investigation is still ongoing. It hasn't been confirmed yet. We see these kinds of outbreaks, typically, this time of year around the holidays. It's so easily spread from person to person just from being in the same area, and being in close contact with individuals.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: It's time to talk CNN.com. You've got a lot of things there. You told me -- you said Britney and you said Paris and you got my attention.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, REPORTER, CNN.COM: And the surf's up at CNN.com, because people are surfing the web this morning, right?
HOLMES: They are surfing, yes.
DE LA CRUZ: Right? OK.
HOLMES: You really wanted me to say that, didn't you?
DE LA CRUZ: I really did. I'm kind of upset that you didn't.
HOLMES: I'm sorry, at this point.
DE LA CRUZ: Let's give you a quick rundown of some of the stories that are making that "most popular list" this morning.
Beginning in Japan. Big victories for the country's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, as he works to push Japan's conservative governor to post-war pacifism. School kids will now be required to learn patriotism. The defense agency will be upgraded to a full ministry for the first time since World War II.
Also making that list, "You're fired." Judith Reagan, O.J. Simpson's would-be publisher is out. She was ousted about a month after the controversial project was cancelled. Reagan is best known for producing best-sellers by Jose Canseco, Kathy Griffin and Drew Barrymore.
Finally, no, she didn't write it. But yes, she does agree with it's message. Socialite Paris Hilton has fallen victim to a hacker who posted a message on her Myspace page, defending the partying ethics of new friend Britney Spears.
Apparently the note defended Spears against criticism that the pop star was neglecting her two babies to embark on a round of all- night partying. You might remember the 25-year-old has been recently photographed sometimes without panties under her mini skirts, out on the town with Paris Hilton.
I don't know. I really don't have too much to say about that story.
NGUYEN: Probably best if that we don't say much about that at all. Family program.
DE LA CRUZ: I just don't understand why our culture is so celebrity-obsessed.
HOLMES: I didn't know that's what that story was about. I mean, I just heard the names. I didn't know you would talk about that.
NGUYEN: Bit off a little more than you can chew, there.
DE LA CRUZ: That is what's making the list at CNN.com "most popular".
NGUYEN: But, of course, it was.
DE LA CRUZ: I know. That apparently is what everyone is interested in this morning.
HOLMES: We can't wait for your next segment.
DE LA CRUZ: Well, at 10:00 a.m. this morning, I'll have an update. We will see if that story is still on that list, if people are still clicking on it.
NGUYEN: You know they will be.
(LAUGHTER)
That was a couple of weeks ago when that happened. People are still talking about it.
DE LA CRUZ: People are still talking about. It's just the story that won't go away.
NGUYEN: Thank you, Veronica.
Yes it is, this is true.
HOLMES: Thank you.
NGUYEN: The golden years looking a little less shiny. Seniors struggling to pay rising drug prices and for many, it is part of a rising debt problem. We're going to tell you what is going on.
HOLMES: And then, what these monks do every day could improve your health. Find out what it is, coming up in 10 minutes on today's "House Call".
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is so much happiness and joy and bliss, you don't know what to do with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): So what does bring us happiness?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Yeah, what brings us happiness? Is it age, marriage, money, kids? What is it, Betty?
NGUYEN: All of the above, perhaps? I don't know.
HOLMES: Just figured it out. Doctor Sanjay Gupta --
NGUYEN: I'm not happy. You are not talking to the right person. No, I'm kidding. HOLMES: Oh, she's a happy lady.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta shows us on today's "House Call", just what makes people happy. That's coming up in eight minutes.
NGUYEN: There you go. There are the answers. You just have to wait on them.
In the meantime, dreams of a laid-back, carefree lifestyle after retirement is turning into a nightmare for some folks. Yes, they're not happy. An alarming number of the nation's elderly are buried in debt. It is a story you may have seen first on "Lou Dobbs". CNN's Kitty Pilgrim reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KITTY PILGRIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT, CNN SATURDAY MORNING (voice over): Golden years of retirement, not quite what many had pictured. Seniors were historically the comfortable generation. The house paid, living expenses modest, and debt levels for seniors used to be historically very low, a few hundred dollars.
But now AARP figures found 93 percent of retirees said they had debt. On average $5,000, 30 percent of retirees described their debt as a problem. A recent study by the National Consumer Law Center, found many older consumers are using credit cards for day-to-day expenses. And as a plastic safety net for unforeseen spike in expenses.
TAMARA, DEMO: We're starting to see that retirement is now coming less with lots of leisure time and more and more with lots of financial worries. When you look at the middle class, we are seeing more debt. A lot of that has to do with the out-of-control health care costs that are hitting Americans of all ages.
PILGRIM: One in three seniors has to live almost entirely on their Social Security check, but while Social Security cost of living increases have been 3 percent a year, prescription drug prices have soared 10 percent a year for a decade.
And the housing boom has a hidden cost for retired Americans, even if they have paid off the mortgage.
DAVID CERTNER, AARP: Some people have been in homes for a long period of time. They may be house rich, but it's the same home they always lived in and they may not be able to afford the property taxes anymore.
PILGRIM: Energy and utility costs have put pressure on budgets. One in four of older households spends nearly 20 percent of their income on energy costs. Kitty Pilgrim, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Find out what else "Lou Dobbs" has to say about the issues facing your life, that is tonight at 6:00 Eastern. HOLMES: Just imagine your life turned upside down by something completely out of your control, and you ended up on the streets. What would it take to get back on your feet?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that everybody's interested in building themselves. If you asked a person, if you sat down and said, you know, what's your plans for the next five years? Nobody is going to say I want to sleep on the street corner in the freezing cold. Everybody wants to really come up. But you need a platform in which to do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Coming up tonight on "CNN Newsroom", Americans struggling to get ahead in life after being forced out of the middle class.
This is one you need to check out. "A Paycheck Away" comes up at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, 7 p.m. Pacific, this evening. It is a fascinating look at how you can have it all and what so many of do have. We have homes, we have jobs, we have cars, and you know one day all that can be gone.
NGUYEN: And very easily. And what happens after that? How do you get back on your feet it? Is a fascinating, fascinating series. Don't miss it tonight.
In the meantime the morning's top stories are just three minutes away. Then the power of happiness. We are all seeking it, right? Dr. Sanjay Gupta in "House Call" shows you how to give your mood a natural lift. I don't know how natural that is, but maybe it will get there without doctors or pills.
HOLMES: That's totally natural.
NGUYEN: Yeah.
HOLMES: Still to come at the top of hour, parachutes for planes. You will see some amazing video of how a private pilot went from potential disaster to safe and sound, in just a few minutes.
Then coming up a 10 Eastern, don't get scammed this holiday season. Find out how to protect yourself from those cons and those frauds.
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NGUYEN: "Now in the News": A struggle to stay warm this morning in the Pacific Northwest. This is probably one of the worst wind storms to hit the region in more than a decade.
Power is still out for hundreds of thousands. Temperatures, there are expected to stay very cold. A massive rescue effort ready to launch on Mt. Hood in Oregon. Crews there hoping to finally find three missing climbers. Helicopters will be joining the search teams today. Severe weather kept rescuers grounded yesterday. Let's see what the conditions are like there right now. CNN Reynolds Wolf has been keeping a check on this.
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