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Remembering Gerald Ford; Heartburn Drug Risk; Somalia Back In Headlines Fighting What Can Only Be Described As Confusing War; Bush Administration Wants To Declare Polar Bears A Threatened Species
Aired December 27, 2006 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon at the CNN headquarters in Atlanta.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in today for Kyra Phillips.
Eagle Scout, park ranger, football star, World War II naval officer and the 38th president of the United States -- this hour, we continue to remember Gerald R. Ford and his unexpected trip to the White House.
LEMON: Plus: polar bears on thin ice. Environmentalists and the Bush administration are caught in agreement on this one.
WHITFIELD: And speaking of polar, Denver, are you ready for more of this? A huge winter storm, another one, headed your way -- details straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
He was born in Nebraska, raised in Michigan. He served in Washington, D.C., and died in California. Gerald Ford was a man of America. And now Americans are looking back fondly on his life and contributions. Soon, they will get a chance to pay their final respects.
CNN's Dan Simon is in Palm Desert, California, where funeral plans will be announced there later -- Dan.
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka.
We're at the Palm Desert Civic Center, where, in a few hours, we are expecting a press conference, where specific details will be announced, in terms of how the county will mourn the loss of the 38th president of the United States, although we do have a basic framework, in terms of how things will progress.
We do know that there will be a viewing at the service at the Fords' Episcopalian church here in the Palm Desert area. From here, his body will be flown to Washington, D.C., where he will lie in state. There will also be a service at the National Cathedral.
And, ultimately Mr. Ford will be buried in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at his library. Again, we're waiting on the specific timetable. And that should be announced in the next few hours.
Mr. Ford died at his home surrounded by friends and family at 6:45 last night, his wife at his side. There's been no official cause of death released yet, Fredricka. But this was a challenging year for the former president. He suffered a couple bouts of pneumonia, and he also had two heart procedures.
And, remember, this was a man who was extremely fit, even at his -- in his older years, loved to play golf, loved to swim. As a matter of fact, when I was here last year, I was told he still swam regularly.
Meanwhile, there have been outpourings of support all over the country, including in Michigan and also in Vail, Colorado, where Mr. Ford spent his summers.
Let's listen now to how some people are remembering the former president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I think it's pretty remarkable that a guy with his simple background and his steady hand at the helm took over at a time when the country really need some sobriety and calmness.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel sad, when I saw it earlier. I was up at 5:00. And I went on the computer. And I saw President Ford died at 93. And I felt saddened. It was sad. It's a sad time. But he did live a good life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIMON: Mr. Ford and his wife, of course, beloved here in the Palm Desert community, where Mrs. Ford established the Betty Ford Center.
Again, here at the Palm Desert Center, awaiting a press conference, in terms of the specifics and how the country will mourn his loss -- Fredricka, back to you.
WHITFIELD: And, Dan, what kind of help is the family getting in trying to make all of these arrangements, colossal arrangements?
SIMON: Well, this has been in the works for some time now, Fredricka.
We know that they have been planning this for many months. But they have been getting some assistance from local officials, including the police department and mayor, and as well as the military.
They're going to be assisting the family, in terms of the planning -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Dan Simon, in Palm Desert, California, thanks so much -- Don.
LEMON: Turmoil and division in the nation, integrity and common sense in the White House -- the words of the 34th U.S. president, recalling the 38th.
Brianna Keilar has more for us -- Brianna.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Don.
President Bush is spending this week at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. That's where he was this morning, when he said President Ford reflected the best in America's character. And, of course, long before passing away, President Ford went down in history as the man who filled the void left in the White House when President Richard Nixon resigned because of the Watergate scandal.
President Bush acknowledged that this morning, crediting Ford for his leadership during what he called a period of great division and turmoil.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: During his time in office, the American people came to know President Ford as a man of complete integrity, who led our common with common sense and kind instincts. Americans will always admire Gerald Ford's unflinching performance of duty and the honorable conduct of his administration and the great rectitude of the man himself. We mourn the loss of such...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: President Bush -- or -- pardon me -- President Ford died shortly before 10:00 p.m. Eastern time last night. At about 10:30 p.m., his chief of staff contacted Josh Bolten, President Bush's chief of staff, who, in turn, alerted President Bush. President Bush immediately tried to get a hold of Betty Ford. He wasn't able to.
So, a call was arranged between the two. And they did speak at about midnight last night. Now, when President Ford's body is moved here to Washington, D.C., from California, as is customary, he will lie in state at the Capitol Rotunda. And, then, we understand that flags, U.S. flags, at U.S. government buildings here and abroad will be at half-staff for the next 30 days.
And, also, Don, there's going to be a national day of mourning. However, the White House tells CNN they haven't determined exactly which day that will be.
LEMON: Yes. And you got some activity happening around you there, Brianna. Thank you so much for that report, though.
And if you were with us our last hour, you saw former President Bush pay tribute to the man he used to call boss. He spoke in Florida, with wife Barbara and son Jeb at his side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're all familiar with his healing the wounds of the United States after Watergate, but he was typical Jerry Ford. It never went to his head that he was president and a truly remarkable man. And we send Betty and the kids and the rest of their family our family's love.
The president expressed it very well this morning -- the president -- and I heard that. And he really spoke for a lot of us.
And I would simply add that, God bless the man. He was one of the very best.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: And former President Bush was a diplomat and CIA director in the Ford administration.
WHITFIELD: And get more on the life and the legacy of former President Gerald Ford in a special report at CNN.com. See his life in pictures. Watch what colleagues are saying about him, and interact. Tell us how you remember the former president in a CNN I-Report. Get more at CNN.com.
LEMON: A big chill and mighty winds -- a new winter storm slammed into the Pacific Coast overnight, knocking out power to about 49,000 homes and businesses in and around San Francisco Bay.
The storm is now bearing down on Denver, still digging out from last week's blizzard. That part of the Rockies could get as much as two more feet of snow before the weekend. Yikes.
The big chill is also making its way across the Eastern part of the U.S. Snow fell in the North Carolina mountains overnight, much to the delight of ski resort operators.
And the mood is the same in Vermont, as fresh snow falls on one of the biggest ski weeks of the year.
Here are some frigid new storms in the West.
CNN's Bonnie Schneider tracking it all in our Severe Weather Center there.
Hey, Bonnie.
(WEATHER REPORT)
LEMON: Oh, my gosh.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks a lot.
Just some nutty weather all the way around.
LEMON: Yes. We have got rain. We have got snow. We have got wind and possible...
WHITFIELD: Threats of tornadoes.
LEMON: ... tornadoes. WHITFIELD: Oh, boy.
LEMON: What more do you want?
WHITFIELD: All right.
Well, straight ahead, we have got a lot more...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN AFRICA CORRESPONDENT: Somalia is back in the headlines, fighting what can only be described as a confusing war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: ... including this. CNN's Jeff Koinange explains the latest battle for Somalia -- straight ahead.
LEMON: Also ahead: a new warning about drugs that treat heartburn. Some may get you more than some relief. Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains next.
GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Gary Nurenberg in Alexandria, Virginia, in the kitchen of the home where President Ford lived for 19 years -- a lot of meals served up here.
We will be serving up some neighborhood reaction in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Well, before he lived in the White House, Gerald Ford served in the House of Representatives, and owned a house in Alexandria, Virginia.
CNN's Gary Nurenberg paid a visit to Ford's old neighborhood, even got the keys to the old digs.
How did you manage that, Gary?
GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Fredricka.
We're in the kitchen of the old Ford home. They lived here for 19 years, before he became president. It is now a national historic landmark, in this kitchen, a lot meals.
There is a congressional cookbook from 1961. It has some recipes from Mrs. Ford -- in this thing, a cream cheese roll that she's designed, and later in 1961 congressional cookbook, a recipe for buttermilk pancakes. And we know a lot of them were made here.
In this room, which overlooks the pool -- as you know, President Ford had put in when it he moved here, because he liked to swim so much. Family spent a lot of time. The president was known for swimming. And it's still decorated with some pictures of him in that swimming pool. They lived here until they moved to the White house. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NURENBERG (voice-over): Five hundred and fourteen, Crownview Drive, a new home for a growing family with a 1955 price tag.
BILL SMITH, FORMER FORD NEIGHBOR: Forty thousand, $35,000, $40,000, $45,000 maybe.
NURENBERG: Bill Smith's backyard abutted Gerry Ford's backyard and his appealing swimming pool.
NANCY SMITH, FORMER FORD NEIGHBOR: And I used to hear him hit the water in the morning when I was getting breakfast.
NURENBERG: But one day the splashes came from the Smith's son, Leif.
BILL SMITH, FORMER FORD NEIGHBOR: And Betty Ford called Nancy and said, Leif is throwing some rocks into the pool. Could you ask him to stop?
NURENBERG: So, Mr. Smith marched his son to the Ford home to apologize.
B. SMITH: And they were, of course, very nice to him. They acted as if nothing had happened. But it was a good lesson.
NURENBERG: It's not the only story involving that fence.
N. SMITH: The night that he became vice president, his son, Steve, who is our son's age, came to our door and said, can you please boost me over the back fence? The Secret Service won't let me into my street.
(LAUGHTER)
NURENBERG: While the Secret Service protected the Fords, a rapist struck the community. Neighbors gave police permission to control their backyards at night. And that's where a local cop and his dog met the Smith's cat, right next to the Ford's fence , with the Secret Service on the other side.
B. SMITH: And the dog made a -- jumped at the cat. All the noise was needed was to have two men with probably submachine guns over the top of the fence, an overture. The policeman said I nearly got shot that night.
(LAUGHTER)
NURENBERG: There were shots of a different kind directly across the street from the Fords' front door.
PETER ABBRUZZESE, FORMER NEIGHBOR OF GERALD FORD: Had a table out there with some gin and vermouth out.
NURENBERG: Peter and Louise (ph) Abbruzzese opened their garage to give reporters a way to get out of the rain and quench their thirst. The press responded with a plaque that hangs over the door today, "First press room of President Gerald R. Ford, August 8, 1974."
Peter remembers moving into the neighborhood.
ABBRUZZESE: We had been there only a few days, when Mrs. Ford brought a gift over for my wife.
NURENBERG: Not the first gift from the Fords.
ABBRUZZESE: There were some feet marks on the shower door, which we learned Susan had put on the door.
NURENBERG: Susan baby-sat for neighborhood families. The Fords were an active part of the community.
B. SMITH: They were at home in the neighborhood, so that -- and the neighbors were at home with them.
N. SMITH: They were very normal, natural, down-to-earth, everyday sort of people, the kind you want to have in your neighborhood.
NURENBERG: A neighborhood that, today, still remembers.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NURENBERG: We're standing in what used to be the garage of the Ford home. When he became vice president, the garage was converted into a room where the Secret Service could live. And many of them did live here until, the president moved to the White House in 1974.
The house is now for sale for $999,000, considerably more than the Fords paid for it in 1955, but it was home to them for a very, very long time. It's where the kids grew up. And many of the neighbors here still remember them as great neighbors. There's a sense of fondness for the family here, still, and also a sense of sadness of the news that we're bringing you today.
WHITFIELD: Yes, mixed feelings, indeed.
Heard one of the neighbors talk about pets in the neighborhood, pets related to that house. Meantime, Harry Truman used to say, if you want a friend in Washington, you got to have a dog.
So, what's the dog story that relates to President Ford?
NURENBERG: Well, you know, President Ford loved dogs. It was the dog Sugar that used to swim in that swimming pool just a few feet away with neighborhood kids.
But, when he moved to the White house, he had a dog named Liberty. Ron Nessen, the president's former press secretary, told me a story a couple months ago that he said really pointed to the character of President Ford. He said they were vacationing once at Vail, where they go on skiing vacations at Christmastime. And Liberty soiled the rug during the Christmas vacation.
(LAUGHTER)
NURENBERG: Now, they had Navy stewards who would run around, and they would, you know, cook them dinner and clean up. A Navy steward rushed over to clean up after Liberty. And the president of the United States got up from the dinner table and said, "No man should have to clean up after another man's dog."
He shooed the Navy steward away, cleaned up the mess. Mr. Nessen said that was a great indication of Ford's character.
WHITFIELD: And everyone said he was so down to earth.
All right, Gary Nurenberg, thanks so much for bringing us that piece of history.
And long before he arrived at the White house, Gerald Ford, well, he served in the U.S. Navy. Bet you didn't know that. That's straight ahead in the NEWSROOM -- details on honoring a president and a World War II veteran.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "LARRY KING LIVE")
GERALD FORD, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, that was a distressing circumstance. When I was vice president, it was a narrow path I had to follow -- if I condemned Nixon as vice president, people would have criticized me. On the other hand, if I embraced him too strongly, people would have been highly critical. So, I had to go down a very narrow path.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Let's head to the NEWSROOM now -- Carol Lin with details on a developing story -- Carol.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: That's right, Don.
We were talking about, just a short time ago, the Associated Press reporting that a federal appeals court has ruled that investigators should get the names of the Major League Baseball players who tested positive three years ago. Those federal investigators, the big question is, will they get the name of Barry Bonds? All right? Will they know for sure that Barry Bonds tested positive back in 2003?
Why is this significant? Well, Barry Bonds testified that in a -- to a grand jury back in 2004 that he didn't knowingly use illegal drugs. All right? The government now has a perjury case against Barry Bonds. So far, the background on this is that Greg Anderson, Barry Bonds' personal trainer, currently serving prison time right now for steroid distribution. But he would not name Barry Bonds during his case.
These unidentified samples so far were collected as part of Major League Baseball's survey about the -- the use of steroids. How widely used were steroids or performance-enhancing drugs prior to 2003? So, it appears right now, Don, that these names certainly will be turned over to federal investigators at this point.
We haven't heard from the players union, but I'm sure they're going to have a lot to say about this, and that this is not the end of it. So, not necessarily that those names would be made public, but, of course, all eyes on Barry Bonds and what happens with his perjury case.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: ... when they get this. How many? You said it was a couple hundred names?
LIN: A hundred names.
LEMON: A hundred names.
LIN: Yes.
LEMON: Well, you know how this works. This flows out of that. This flows out of that, and you just start -- the ball just keeps rolling and rolling and rolling.
LIN: There are very few secrets in cases like this.
LEMON: Yes. All right. Carol Lin, thank you so much for that.
WHITFIELD: Well, some health news now: heartburn drugs and your health -- new concerns today after a new study linked some of the more popular drugs to a higher risk of hip fractures.
Here's CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is one of those stories that kind of surprised me when I first heard about it, talking about heartburn medications, a very common used type of medication, and the risk of hip fracture.
This is an unexpected side effect, but something researchers have been looking at for some time, saying that taking a certain class of heartburn medication, typically the type is reserved for the most severe heartburn, can actually increase your risk of hip fracture.
We're talking about a class of medication known as proton pump inhibitors. Fancy name, but that's usually the third line of drugs in someone who has heartburn. You have heard of some of these medications, like Prilosec, Nexium, Prevacid, Protonix, Aciphex.
These are medications that are some of the most popular drugs in the country, second highest selling class of medications in this country as well, right after statin medication.
But, as more and more people have taken them, researchers have noticed that something else started to emerge. For people taking the medication just one pill a day for more than a year, they found that they had a 44 percent increased risk of a hip fracture.
And get this. If you're taking more than that, two pills a day for more than a year, your risk goes up by about 260 percent, pretty -- pretty remarkable numbers there.
There's a lot of reasons they speculate as to why this might be. The mechanism by which these medications work is to prevent the acid from actually being produced in your stomach. What they believe is that same mechanism prevents calcium from being absorbed by the bone, making it more brittle, making you more likely to develop a hip fracture.
There are several things you can do. Don't stop the medication, necessarily, but you might want to increase your calcium intake, possibly lower the doses of your medication, especially if you're taking two pills a day. And remember the basics. There are things you can do, like not smoking, certainly not drinking alcohol close to bedtime. Wait a few hours before lying down for -- after a meal.
And, also, there are other classes of medications to try and treat your heartburn as well. Keep those things in mind, if you're taking these medications -- back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, Sanjay Gupta, thanks so much for that.
'Tis a time for skiing, but the season is not so jolly for many of the nation's ski resorts.
Darby Dunn is at the New York Stock Exchange with all the details for us.
Hi, Darby.
DARBY DUNN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Don. That's right.
For ski resorts in the Northeast, the business is all downhill so far this year. Warm winter weather has left many ski trails barren. There's just no real snow. And it's too warm for the fake snow to stick.
At Pennsylvania's Bear Creek Mountain, just three of 22 trails opened this month. And it's not much better at other resorts. Mountains from Pennsylvania to Massachusetts are suffering from the lack of snowfall.
And some of their workers are calling this the worst season yet. Look how green it is. The situation -- although I don't think that's the Northeast. That looks like the Northeast. The situation has become so desperate that hopeful skiers at Bear Creek will ceremoniously appeal to the weather gods on Friday. They're praying for a cold spell. And, Don and Fred, they're going to toss skis into a bonfire in a mock sacrifice to the snow gods. So, I guess you could say desperate times require desperate measures.
LEMON: All right. Whatever it takes.
DUNN: Right.
LEMON: Darby Dunn knows her mountains, too. She's like, that's not the Northeast.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: There it is right now.
And, you know, Colorado just got dumped on. We all know there's plenty of snow there. So, how are the ski resorts doing there?
DUNN: Well, as you can imagine, last week's blizzard provided a silver lining for many of the resorts in Colorado. In fact, news of that blizzard started its own blizzard of phone calls to ski resorts, as they started to flow in.
It's good news for the airlines, as people hop on airplanes from the Northeast and head out West.
LEMON: Ba-dump-bump. Quite a storm on Wall Street today.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: What's driving the market?
DUNN: Indeed.
While we're continuing to see stocks climb higher, I would say the main factor today is that report showing that the housing market might have hit bottom. New home sales report came in. It showed that sales and prices shot up in November. Median prices are now back at their second highest level on record, nearly $252,000, the median price.
(MARKET REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon at the CNN World headquarters in Atlanta.
WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield in today for Kyra Phillips.
The signs are unmistakable, the prospect unbearable. Is the situation reversible? Polar bears on increasingly thin ice. That story straight ahead in the NEWSROOM. LEMON: We start with the death of Gerald Ford. Funerals of former presidents are no simple affairs. You may not realize the military rehearses every six months and today it's paying tribute to President Ford every half hour.
CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has more details for us.
BARBARA STARR, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, hello to you. For the U.S. military here in the Pentagon, even during this holiday period, they are preparing, of course, for the funeral for the late president.
Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was a close personal friend of President Ford, and within the last several minutes Mr. Rumsfeld has issued a statement on the death of the president saying in part quote, "President Ford was a man of great decency and towering integrity." The secretary goes on to say, "he was a dear friend of four-plus decades and will be greatly missed."
Of course Mr. Rumsfeld was the chief of staff for President Ford and served as his secretary of defense before coming back, of course, for a second round as secretary of defense.
What we have also learned is that Secretary Rumsfeld made a private visit to President Ford shortly after thanksgiving to the late president's home in Rancho Mirage, visited with the president, who was, of course, a great personal friend of the Rumsfelds. And Mr. Rumsfeld now is making plans to be in Washington for the funeral, we are told, and is expected to participate in the ceremonies, possibly even participating in delivering one of the eulogies.
As you said, Don, the military today preparing delivering its remembrances of the late president. This cannon fire is going on every half hour today at Ft. Myer, Virginia, just a few short distance from here in the Pentagon, the military rendering those honors.
They will continue that half hour salute until 5:00 today when they will sound retreat, which is the military ceremony every day around the world when the flag is lowered. And that will conclude today's every half hour tribute to the late president.
The military practices its participation in these types of state funerals every six months. Of course, the last funeral that they did this for was the funeral for the late President Reagan. There was significant military participation. There were full military honors for the late president, the joint chiefs of staff attended. This was the top end of the type of military honors that are rendered.
But what the military reminds us of is they perform these very same types of funeral honors for every member of the U.S. military that falls, especially for those young people that have fallen in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.
So what's worth remembering on this day, of course, is that this is something the U.S. military, sadly, has had an awful lot of practice doing in the last many months -- Don. LEMON: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon. Thank you, Barbara.
WHITFIELD: And flags are at half-staff throughout Washington. More personal tributes now in two other places Gerald Ford called home. CNN I-reporter Lori Talo sent these pictures of a makeshift shrine outside the Ford museum in Grand Rapids Michigan. People added candles, flags, and flowers.
Ford grew up in Grand Rapids and that district sent him to Congress 13 times. This image that you're about to see from Troy Reynolds and Fred Lowndes in California. They lit a candle and laid roses on Gerald Ford's star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars. Ford spent the last years of his life in nearby Rancho Mirage.
And get more on the life and the legacy of former President Gerald Ford in a special report at CNN.com. See his life in pictures, watch what colleagues are saying about him and interact if you want to. Tell us about how you remember the former president in a CNN-i report. Get more at CNN.com.
LEMON: Endorsing peace to a point. The president of Sudan says he's ready to implement a United Nations plan aimed at ending the violence in Darfur. He'll allow U.N. troops into that region but only to help, not replace the African Union troops already there. The AU has been unable on its own to stop the violence, which has killed more than 200,000 people in four years. Two and a half million Sudanese are refugees in their own country.
The Arab league is calling for a cease-fire in Somalia and for all non-Somali troops to get out. Ethiopian troops went in to help Somalia's fragile U.N. supported government fend off Islamic fighters bent on re-creating the Taliban.
CNN Africa correspondent Jeff Koinange takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KOINANGE (voice-over): This may be the most iconic image the world has of Somalia: a U.S. military Black Hawk helicopter shot down in the capital, Mogadishu, followed by scenes of U.S. servicemen being dragged down the streets by angry Somalis.
It led the U.S. to withdraw from the country more than a dozen years ago, and the world pretty much forgot about Somalia until now.
Somalia is back in the headlines fighting what can only be described as a confusing war. Ragtag bandits patrolling the streets of the capital in pickup trucks mounted with anti-aircraft artillery.
The country actually has a government, but it has been holed up in the town of Baidoa in the east, unable to govern and unwelcome in the capital, Mogadishu.
Mogadishu is controlled by the Islamic Courts Union, or ICU. Their goal, to create a Taliban-style government with strict rules on everything from dress to doctrine. Their ultimate objective, establishing strict Islamic law.
Experts say the Islamists are funded from various sources including, perhaps, al Qaeda. They control large swathes of Somalia and succeeded in recent weeks in slowly choking the government into submission.
Enter Ethiopia, home to one of the world's oldest Christian traditions, but also many Muslims. It views the Islamists as a threat.
It stepped into the fight to help the Somalia government drive out the Islamists, and this is where things get complicated. Ethiopia has the full backing of the U.S., part of the war on terror.
Ethiopia right now has the upper hand, with more troops, more experience, and superior air power. But the Islamists vow to fight for as long as it takes.
The last time these two nations fought each other was during the 1970s and '80s over a tiny strip of desert known as the Ogaden. It lasted more than 10 years.
The big fear now, this war could become an all-out regional conflict, not about land but about religion.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Now, with Saddam Hussein set to hang within the next 30 days, his supporters are threatening trouble in that country. On a Baathist Web site today, Hussein loyalists said they'll target U.S. interests anywhere if Hussein is put to death.
A letter supposedly from the toppled Iraqi dictator has just been posted on the same site. It calls for the continued struggle against coalition force, but no ill will toward, quote, "the people of the nations that invaded us," end quote.
The letter reads "Oh, brave, pious Iraqis in the heroic resistance. Oh, sons of the one nation, direct your enmity toward the invaders. Do not let them divide you. Long live jihad and the mujahideen against the invaders." It was apparently written earlier this month.
And now to Iran's nuclear program, under the microscope. A vote today by Iran's parliament urges the government to revise its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency. This just days after the U.N. Security Council levied sanctions over Iran's nuclear program. The U.S. thinks Iran is trying to build a nuclear bomb. Iran insists it wants only to generate electricity.
LEMON: Pope Benedict welcome Iran's foreign minister to the Vatican today. The visitor hand delivered a letter from Iranian President Ahmadinejad, but reports on the contents differ. Italian media say the letter covered religious, not political issues, but Iran's state-run news agency says it focused on the U.N. sanctions. The Vatican statement says merely that the pope reaffirmed his role in efforts to achieve world peace.
WHITFIELD: And their looks are deceiving because they're beautiful. But we also know they're potentially dangerous, and now we're told they're endangered as well. The plight of the polar bears ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: The Bush administration wants to declare polar bears a threatened species. The Interior Department will accept public comment on a proposal to bar government agencies from doing anything that might jeopardize polar bears or their habitat. Environmental groups hope the shift will lead to stronger rules against greenhouse gases.
About 5,000 polar bears migrate within Alaska, Canada and Russia. Environmentalists say their biggest threat, global warming.
CNN's Miles O'Brien reports on one Canadian town that's seeing the impact.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They call it the polar bear capital of the world. Churchill, Manitoba, on the western banks of Hudson Bay, is probably the best place in the world for humans to catch a glimpse of the magnificent mammals that rule the Arctic ice pack.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello, polar bear alert.
O'BRIEN: But the bears are in trouble, big trouble. For them, it's a matter of survival.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've been chasing her since Wednesday. About 10:00 we got the first call.
O'BRIEN: That's Richard Romania (ph), polar bear policeman. He's a very busy man these days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, last night we had four calls, one at 5:00, one at about 1:00, one at about 3:00, and one at about 5:00. Hey, buddy, you hear by yourself?
O'BRIEN: The bears are coming to town with alarming frequency, weak, famished and scavenging for food.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About 176 bears that were captured, about 135 were captured in and around the dump.
O'BRIEN: Polar bears are nature's ultimate binge eaters. During the winter, once the Hudson Bay freezes over, they take to the ice with a voracious appetite for seal. They hunt and eat as much as they can get their paws on, and then when the ice gets thin in the spring, they return to terra firma for a four-month fast.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The amount of time bears in the western Hudson Bay can spend on the sea ice is critical for their survival.
O'BRIEN: Scientist Nick Lunn (ph) has logged two dozen years studying polar bears for the Canadian Wildlife Service.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're seeing bears coming to shore in poorer and poorer condition.
O'BRIEN: Adult males are 15 percent lighter than they were 20 years ago. Adult females with cubs, 20 percent skinnier. The reason? The polar bear buffet is opening later and closing sooner. Over the past three decades, the thermometer has steadily risen and the ice has just as steadily receded. Today, the Hudson Bay returns to its liquid state three weeks earlier than it did in 1970.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's going to be a point in time where the bears are forced ashore so early that they just simply won't be able to survive.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: His funeral is not until Saturday, but the legal wrestling match is already underway over James Brown's estate. Details on both ahead straight in the NEWSROOM.
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LEMON: Congressman, vice president, president: Gerald Ford was all of the above. But Peter Abbruzzese just called him neighbor. The Fords lived just across the street in Alexandria, Virginia before moving on to bigger digs.
Earlier Abbruzzese joined us in the NEWSROOM to reminisce.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: They also brought you a welcome gift to the neighborhood when you first moved in.
ABBRUZZESE: Oh, Mrs. Ford brought us a welcome gift.
LEMON: Yes. Do you remember what was in that?
ABBRUZZESE: She came in -- no. I wasn't even here. I was working or on a trip, and I came home and my wife told us, "Mrs. Ford came over with a gift for the baby."
My son had just been born. And -- in '72. You know, shortly after we moved in. And she brought a gift to us.
And that's how we really got to know them. And then after a while, Susan used to baby-sit, started -- was one of our early baby- sitters. She was terrific, too.
LEMON: It does speak to the kind of people that they were, that they would bring you a warm welcoming present when you moved into the neighborhood. Tell us what -- you know, I know my neighbors growing up. I remember the guy across the street who used to mow our lawn if my dad was out of town, and what have you.
What kind of neighbor was Gerald Ford if you met him on the street, if you met him, you know, on the sidewalk? Tell us about him.
ABBRUZZESE: You could not tell him from another neighbor in that, when he came out, if you saw him, he always said hello. If we passed by each other, we would chat.
He was just a good neighbor. He was also a very good father and husband. I must say, he was a very good father and husband.
LEMON: Yes. Where were you...
ABBRUZZESE: Very popular in the neighborhood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Ford's Alexandria home is now on the Historic Register of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.
And be sure to catch a special edition of "LARRY KING LIVE" tonight on Ford's life and career. That's tonight at 9:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.
WHITFIELD: James brown, a legend in his own right, has one last engagement at the Apollo. The Godfather of Soul will lie in repose tomorrow at New York's Apollo Theater, the same Harlem showplace where he made his debut.
A private funeral will be held on Friday in Brown's hometown of Augusta, Georgia. And then a public celebration of Brown's life will take place in Augusta on Saturday.
The legendary entertainer died in Atlanta on Christmas Day.
In the meantime, James Brown led a turbulent personal life and the turbulence seems to continue. The singer's companion, Tomi Rae Hynie, still insists she and Brown were legally married and Brown's lawyer had no right to lock her out of their South Carolina home.
Hynie is the mother of Brown's five year-old son.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOMI RAE HYNIE, JAMES BROWN'S COMPANION: He would be rolling in his grave right now to know that his wife and child were locked out of their home.
I'm his wife. He calls me his wife. He insists that they call me Mrs. Brown. If they call me Tommie Rae or Miss Rae, they stand to get fired.
Mr. Brown was a very strict man. And it was all about Mr. and Mrs. to him. And I was Mrs. Brown.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Brown's lawyer knows Hynie was legally married to another man when she married Brown. And though that prior marriage has later been annulled, Brown and Hynie would have needed to remarry. But they never did. I know it's confusing.
Well, he also notes the whole matter will eventually be settled by a court.
Well, the closing bell and a wrap-up of the action on Wall Street. All that is straight ahead.
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WHITFIELD: Well, we know this hour is ending, a new one beginning because...
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