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Honoring President Ford; Denver Broncos Cornerback Darrent Williams Killed in Drive-by Shooting; U.S. Deaths in Iraq Reach 3,000

Aired January 01, 2007 - 14:00   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, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

MELISSA LONG, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. I'm Melissa Long, in today for Kyra Phillips.

LEMON: The new year starts with new American deaths in Iraq. The U.S. death toll now surpasses 3,000.

LONG: He was feared and loathed by millions, but was there a softer side of Saddam Hussein? The man charged with keeping the former dictator alive until his execution joins us live in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: And honoring President Ford. Thousands line up to pay respects at the U.S. Capitol.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LONG: President and Mrs. Bush just moments ago returning to Washington, D.C., aboard Air force One, from Crawford, Texas, where they spent the holiday. They are now back in Washington heading to Capitol Hill to pay their respects to former President Ford.

Kathleen Koch joins us now live from the White House with more -- Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Melissa. And it was a very busy working holiday for President Bush at his ranch outside Crawford, Texas, meeting with his national security team, talking about formulating what the president calls a new way forward in Iraq. But right now, the mission for today is a very somber one, and that is for the president and the first lady to come back to the White House, freshen up, and then head up to Capitol Hill, where they will be paying their condolences and paying honor to former President Gerald Ford, whose body is lying in state in the Capitol Rotunda.

The president and first lady obviously were not present Saturday for when President Ford's body arrived for the state funeral. But the president will be delivering the eulogy tomorrow at the National Cathedral at a funeral that takes place there in the morning.

President Bush had certainly a great deal of respect for President Gerald Ford. In a statement after his passing, the president called him "a great man and a true gentleman." And the president also certainly had a lot of respect for those who served under President Ford, drawing from them, making them top key members of his own administration.

Vice President Dick Cheney serving as chief of staff for President Gerald Ford. Former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld played that same role in the Ford administration.

Important to point out, though, as we've all learned over the last week, that the two men did not see eye to eye on every issue. In a series of articles, it was revealed that in a 2004 interview President Ford said he would not have taken the U.S. to war in Iraq, and he certainly disagreed very strongly with using the possibility of the existence of weapons of mass destruction as the primary reason, primary justification for going to war.

But, the men did spend time together. The men were close, to a certain extent. The last time that they visited together was in April of this year, when President Bush was in California, stopped by Mr. Ford and Mrs. Ford's home in Rancho Mirage.

They had occasion to meet, speaking very warmly, shaking hands. And certainly when you do look at these pictures you note the age and frailty of Gerald Ford, and there was the sense at that time -- and it did turn out to be the case -- that this would be the two men's last meeting.

So now President Bush on the ground back in Washington, and very soon to be headed to the Capitol -- Melissa.

LONG: Kathleen, as you mentioned, heading back to Washington, freshening up for a moment before heading to the Capitol Rotunda.

What other dignitaries are expected to pay their respects today?

KOCH: Well, there will be another president, President George Herbert Walker Bush. President Bush's father will be paying his respects to President Gerald Ford in the Capitol Rotunda about a half an hour after President Bush and the first lady, Laura Bush, make their appearance there. Of course, the first President Bush served as CIA director under President Gerald Ford in 1976. He was named to that post, and with the passing of President Ford, George Herbert Walker Bush becomes the oldest living American President, now 82.

LONG: Kathleen Koch live at the White House.

Thank you, Kathleen.

KOCH: You bet.

LEMON: Let's head straight to the newsroom now. Working the details of a developing story, our T.J. Holmes.

What's up, T.J.?

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, Don, this is a sad story coming out of the sporting world today, as we've been hearing about. Star cornerback for the Denver Broncos Darrent Williams, was killed last night, or in the early morning hours, in what police are calling a drive-by shooting. He was with friends in that stretch limo you see there, that Hummer stretch limo.

And another car pulled up, according to police, and just started firing into that limousine that was carrying Darrent Williams and two friends of his. All three people were hit. Two survived, Darrent Williams did not. He died at the hospital.

We've been listening in to a police news conference, a press conference just a short time ago, and here is what the public information officer, Sonny Jackson, had to say about the incident.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SONNY JACKSON, DENVER POLICE DEPT.: If we backtrack a little bit to what happened last night, we understand that there were a group of individuals at the Safari Night Club. There was some type of disagreement between them, and Mr. Williams and some of his friends, they left the scene, left that particular night club, and they were traveling northbound on Spear Boulevard (ph) when a white SUV came alongside -- it looks like probably a GM model, Suburban, or Tahoe- type vehicle, came alongside and fired multiple shots in their vehicle, striking Mr. Williams and two other individuals.

All three were taken to the hospital. And Mr. Williams was taken to Denver Health Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead a little after 2:30 this morning

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: And police are still looking at this point for that other vehicle and for suspects in this case.

And again, 24-year-old Darrent Williams, second round draft pick from 2005 for the Denver Broncos, an Oklahoma State Cowboy, just a star, a standout player for the Broncos. But simply sad news for the sporting world to hear of this young man with such a promising future, 24 years old.

And the case goes on, and the search is on for the suspects. But we're keeping an eye on that, continuing to monitor all the news coming out of Denver -- Don.

LEMON: Yes, 24. Barely has lived a life. Thank you so much for that, T.J.

HOLMES: Yes.

LEMON: A number written boldly in the headlines and marked in blood on the battlefield. More than 3,000 American troops killed in the fight for Iraq.

CNN's Barbara Starr is at the Pentagon for us -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Don, as the new year begins and U.S. troops now begin what will be, of course, their fifth year at war in Iraq, 134,000 U.S. troops on the front lines are facing a grim milestone. They ended the year 2006 with more than 3,000 troops having lost their lives in Iraq, 111 at least for the month of December, making that the deadliest month of the year. And it is the IEDs, those improvised explosive devices, the roadside bombs, that still are the number one killer of U.S. troops in action.

All of this, of course, coming as President Bush is contemplating what the White House calls the new way forward in Iraq. That is, in their words, looking for a new strategy, looking for an answer to try to bring down the violence in Iraq.

A lot of talk about a troop surge, but many commanders on the ground still worry that more troops simply mean more targets. It is a continuing matter of concern to them. And as we mark this 3,000 milestone, many people wondering if there's going to be other milestones equally grim in the months ahead -- Don.

LEMON: And Barbara, also, there's a new poll out that shows a decrease in support for the war among military personnel. Tell us about that.

STARR: It's a pretty interesting poll. It's published by the "Military Times" newspaper.

Now, that is a newspaper that is privately owned and operated, but read very widely by military audiences. This is the fourth year now they have conducted a poll about what military personnel think about the war in Iraq.

Listen to some of the results.

According to the poll now, 35 percent of service members say -- only 35 percent -- say they approve of the way the president is handling the war, 42 percent now for the first time, a majority, disapprove of the way the president is handling the war.

Forty-one percent say the U.S. should have gone to war in Iraq, but that is down from 65 percent in 2003. And now, just about half of the respondents say they believe success will be likely in Iraq. In 2004, 83 percent thought there would be a successful outcome -- Don.

LEMON: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon.

Thank you.

LONG: A dark room, a noose, a simple grave. Saddam Hussein died in stark contrast to the way he lived.

Here's CNN's Aneesh Raman in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In life, Saddam Hussein was obsessed with his own image. And it was everywhere. Towering statues, shadowed streets, overbearing opulence accompanied every appearance. And if Saddam was still in power, surely the same would have defined his burial. But in the end it was, instead, a simple affair.

At a mosque in Saddam's hometown of Awja a coffin lay covered with an Iraqi flag. A sole picture placed close by in memory of the man inside. A man whose final moments speak volumes of where Iraq has been and where it is heading.

Saddam stood, noose around his neck, seconds away from the same sort of death he condemned upon others, and from the witnesses came the following: chants in honor of radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Saddam smiles and asks, "Is this how you show your bravery as men?" "Straight to hell," a voice retorts. And then came one of the final things Saddam Hussein heard in life, the name of a man killed by Saddam's regime, that of Muqtada al-Sadr's father-in-law, founder of Iraq's Shia Dawa party, the same party of Iraq's current prime minister.

The hope by his Shia-dominated government is clearly that Saddam's execution will bring closure, but mired in division and incapable of tackling sectarian violence, there is, as well, a message. That of a government taking action. The first image broadcast on state-run TV before Saddam's execution was Iraq's prime minister signing the former dictator's death sentence.

(on camera): For Nuri al-Maliki, this is a rare success, a rare promise fulfilled. Days after Saddam's sentencing in November, Maliki said Saddam would not live to see the new year. And on the streets of Iraq, there is now praise for a prime minister who, over the past few months, has been blamed for so much by so many.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: To millions he was a dictator. To one man he was a patient. We will speak with the Army sergeant who served as Saddam Hussein's nurse when he was first captured and held in U.S. custody.

That's a little later right here in the NEWSROOM.

And they went off to fight and came home in flag-draped coffins, American troops lost in battle. We'll trace the toll of war in human lives ahead in the NEWSROOM.

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is Gary Nurenberg in Washington...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The well known and unknown alike are filing through the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol. As many as 2,500 an hour. They're paying their respects to Gerald Ford, 38th president of the United States. A little later the 43rd president will join them.

Our Gary Nurenberg is there -- Gary. NURENBERG: Good afternoon, Don.

Washington has been paying a rainy but heartfelt tribute to the former president today. Many Washingtonians and visitors to the city lining up in the rain outside the Capitol waiting for their chance to enter the Capitol Rotunda as President Ford lies in state.

Shortly after 9:25 this morning, two of Mr. Ford's children, Michael and Susan, entered the chamber and had a heartfelt moment of their own as they touched the casket, briefly accompanied by Susan's husband. At that point, they surprised the mourners who were marching by staying in the chamber, shaking hands, and giving family greetings to everyone who had taken the time to be there today.

That left a memorable impression for one man from Catonsville, Maryland, who says seeing Susan Ford and greeting Michael Ford was really the last thing that he expected.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was moved and touched. We've lost a great American. President Ford helped heal our nation, and the family is still helping to heal our nation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NURENBERG: I had a chance to talk to the former press secretary, Gerald TerHorst, who resigned in protest when Mr. Ford pardoned Richard Nixon. And all these years later, Mr. TerHorst, who had covered the president from his earliest days in Congress, retains fond memories. And although they went separate ways on the issue of the Nixon pardon, Mr. TerHorst said what the country needed at that time was a firm and steady hand and a nice guy.

Mr. TerHorst said Mr. Ford was all of that.

Washington will continue to pay tribute. The public is allowed into the rotunda until 6:00 tonight -- Don.

LEMON: All right, Gary. Thank you so much for your report.

LONG: Among other distinctions, Gerald Ford, while president less than two and a half years, survived two assassination attempts in a single month. And both his attackers were women. The month, September of 1975.

CNN's Anderson Cooper looks back.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): History would have been written very differently had these two women had their way, Lynnette "Squeaky" Fromme and Sara Jane Moore. They're currently serving life sentences for trying to kill then President Gerald Ford, becoming the first and then the second woman in history to attempt to assassinate a U.S. president. September 5, 1975, a sunny day in Sacramento as President Ford walked from his hotel to the state capital for a meeting with the governor of California.

GERALD FORD, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And I noticed as I walked along a lady in a red dress following behind the first row of people who were there greeting me, and as I went to shake hands, a hand appeared with a pistol in it. Scared the heck out of me.

COOPER: The woman in the red dress was Lynnette "Squeaky" Fromme, a follower of cult leader Charles Manson, who blamed Richard Nixon and then President Ford for the cult's legal troubles.

Fromme was heard shouting, "The country is a mess. This man is not your president" as she tried to fire her weapon, a .45 Colt automatic. With the holster still on her leg, she exclaimed, "It didn't go off. Can you believe it? It didn't go off."

There were four bullets in the gun, but they weren't loaded properly.

Ford was shaken but undeterred. He still insisted on attending his meeting with the governor and California lawmakers. Without mentioning the incident just moments earlier, he spoke of what he called the truly alarming increase in violent crime throughout the country.

Seventeen days later, back in California, Ford emerged from a hotel in San Francisco after a speech. He stopped to wave hello to the crowd. Two shots were fired, narrowly missing the president. He escaped in his limousine.

The shooter, an unassuming 45-year-old housewife named Sara Jane Moore, an FBI informant with ties to extreme political groups. She told authorities, quote, "There comes a point when the only way you can make a statement is to pick up a gun."

When Betty Ford rendezvoused with her husband on Air Force One later that afternoon, she hadn't yet been told of the second attempt on the president's life. She reportedly greeted him breezily, saying, "How did your day go?"

Anderson Cooper, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: CNN will be there tomorrow for Mr. Ford's funeral at the National Cathedral in Washington. Our live coverage begins at 9:00 a.m. Eastern, with a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM."

LEMON: A holiday weekend of crummy weather.

Rob Marciano checking it all out in the weather center for us. He's tracking the latest winter storms.

We'll check in with him. That's ahead in the NEWSROOM.

And you can bet it won't rain on the parade. Hundreds of storm troopers take to the streets in California, along with some Ewoks and Darth Vader as well. It's a Tournament of Roses Parade, of course.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE LUCAS, DIRECTOR: It's a way of saying, hey, we've been here for 30 years and we're still going strong, and isn't this great?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: We'll hear more from the grand marshal straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Oh, the new year is coming up roses just like always in Pasadena, California. The 118th Tournament of Roses Parade is under way this year, commemorating the 30th anniversary -- can you believe that -- 30 years of "Star Wars." The grand marshal is the film's creator, George Lucas. And we spoke with him this morning before that big event.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: The incredible George Lucas joins us now.

I guess your nickname is Darth Vader's father?

LUCAS: Yes. Well, that's -- whenever you're a writer and you create work, you end up spawning a lot of characters. And people become your children.

LEMON: Yes. Happy New Year to you. How does it feel to be the grand marshal of the Rose Parade -- Parade of Roses?

LUCAS: It's fantastic. I'm a parade person. I love parades. And this is the granddaddy of all parades.

And it started out with us doing a float, and then I got elected grand marshal. It's very exciting.

LEMON: Yes, I imagine it is very exciting. When you think about it, 30 years, 30 years since "Star Wars." Can you believe that? What a milestone.

LUCAS: Yes, it's -- time flies when you're having fun. It's hard to believe that I was just a very young man when I started this, and the years keep passing by, but I don't seem to get any older.

LEMON: Yes. When you think about it, though, seriously, did you think that "Star Wars" would have this sort of impact? I mean, really, it's amazing. You see the folks behind you now even in "Star Wars" costumes.

Did you think it was going to be such a huge, huge success?

LUCAS: Well, in the beginning, absolutely not. And then as it grew and became a big hit, it was a huge surprise. And the fact that it's still going stronger today than it was when it first came out, it was the phenomenon that is very hard to imagine.

LEMON: Tell me about the parade today. I understand you're going to have a whole lot of storm troopers helping you out.

LUCAS: Yes. It started when I was traveling around the world for the -- "Episode 3." And we had this organization that was started by a group of people back 30 years ago completely independent of us that built storm trooper costumes, and then they would go to hospitals and entertain kids, and go to charity events and end up at the premieres of the movies. And they're in about 40 countries and all 50 states, and there's like 3,500 of them.

And they're just a great group of volunteers, fans. And this is a way of thanking them.

And then we got the Grambling band to march with them, and then we had to build some floats around them. But it's going to be very exciting.

I love parades. I love the whole entertainment value of parades. They've been around for thousands of years.

And, you know, a parade doesn't work without an amazingly good marching bond, and that's why I was so keen to have what I considered to be the best. And they're fantastic. I saw them yesterday practicing. And it's going to be amazing.

LEMON: I would imagine you have to appreciate all of the fans of "Star Wars," and you have to at least want to honor them. And this seems like a nice way of honoring them 30 years later with this parade.

LUCAS: Yes. Well, it's a way of kicking off our 30th anniversary. We have lots of fan conventions, some in Los Angeles here, and some in other places. So it's a -- it's a way of saying, hey, we've been here for 30 years and we're still going strong, and isn't this great?

LEMON: Yes. Any more plans for any "Star Wars," more "Star Wars"?

LUCAS: We're working on an animated TV series that will come out in about a year. And then we're going to have a live action TV series which will come out maybe a year or two after that. And so we're moving the whole franchise to television, because I can do more. Instead, of you know, 12 hours, I can do, you know, 26 hours a year.

LEMON: Yes. So you're going to take it away from the big screen and you're moving to the small screen?

LUCAS: Yes. I can do more, tell more stories. And you create this giant universe and you want to sort of explore it a little bit.

LEMON: Darth Vader's father, thank you so much for joining us. Good luck today at the Tournament of Roses Parade. We'll all be watching. And we are so glad that you came up with "Star Wars," you know, probably more than 30 years ago. Thank you so much and good luck to you.

LUCAS: OK. Thank you very much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: Some beautiful weather there in Pasadena for New Year's Day.

And a Happy New Year, I should say, to all of our I-Reporters. Thank you to them. They decided to capture moments from New Year's Eve last night.

Send them in to us here at CNN.com. Let's share some of those images with your right now. And also tell you, don't forget to go to our Web site, CNN.com, and click on "I-Report" to send in your images, as well.

And Happy New Year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello, everyone.

I'm Don Lemon at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

LONG: I'm Melissa Long in today for Kyra Phillips. A closer look at Saddam Hussein's time in custody. An American nurse gives his account of caring for the former dictator. You're in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: And of course we've been watching as the world pays tribute to former President Gerald R. Ford. You're looking at live pictures now from the capitol rotunda. The president and the first lady expected there very shortly some time today and we'll be carrying that for you live right here on CNN. This is a changing of the guard at that ceremony. Want to show you some video just moments ago. Nancy Pelosi, speaker, the new speaker I guess to be sworn in on Thursday when everyone takes session for the first time. She paid her respects today to the former president. This happened just probably less than a minute ago. So there you see Nancy Pelosi at the capitol rotunda. We'll have live coverage of all of today's events right here on CNN.

PHILLIPS: This New Year's Day grainy cell phone footage is transfixing Iraq. It's the final moments of Saddam Hussein, an execution that's prompted celebration and outrage. The latter was on display in Jordan today. CNN senior international correspondent Matthew Chance joins us now live from Amman. Matthew?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Melissa, thanks very much. As you say, a lot of anger, a lot of outrage being expressed across the Arab world with the consequences of -- one of the consequences of this execution of the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. You saw hundreds of people protest in the Jordanian capital here in Amman over the course of this day. Again, they're expressing their anger at what happened to Saddam Hussein, blaming the United States government, President Bush, also blaming Arab governments around the world for turning the other way, not being more critical of what was happening to the man they call a proud Arab leader. Now there was a celebrity turnout of sorts as well at this protest with the eldest daughter of Saddam Hussein, Ragat Hussein, making an appearance at this protest, as well. The first such appearance by a member of the Saddam Hussein family since his execution. She didn't say much. She offered her thanks for the protest and said that she hoped God protected those who were at the protest. But nevertheless, her appearance underlying the very difficult position that Jordan finds itself in, the strong ally of the United States, of course. As we've seen, many of its people are very fiercely opposed to the execution of Saddam Hussein, and Jordan, of course, also offers this safe haven for Saddam's family. Melissa?

LONG: Matthew Chance live from Amman, Jordan. Matthew, thank you.

LEMON: Like to read? Good sense of humor? Polite? How many times have you heard Saddam Hussein described like that? Well, that's how one American remembers him. Master Sergeant Robert Ellis who was the former dictator's nurse during most of 2004. He's now retired from the army and works at a hospital near St. Louis. First things first, thank you for joining us. You got to spend a lot of time with him. What did you think about his execution?

MASTER SGT. ROBERT ELLIS, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Well, I was kind of disappointed. I thought that they would more or less put him in jail for the rest of his life to kind of stem some of the violence that I knew was going to take place. But, yeah.

LEMON: Yeah.

ELLIS: I was hopeful, but that didn't happen.

LEMON: Yeah. You were hopeful but that didn't happen. You describe him as an avid reader. You got to know him pretty well. Did he confide in you at all?

ELLIS: Well, he basically talked about his wife, his children. Things that he did, he said he did for Iraq. And like I say, he was an avid reader, loved to read and write. He had a lot of stories that he had written. He had a pamphlet that he wrote in every day and then when time came to visit him he'd read things to me and then try to explain it to me in English.

LEMON: Yeah. I have to ask you this question, since you did get to know him. Did you think, because we've all heard about the outbursts in court, some of the things that we thought were kind of strange that he was saying, did you think he was of sound mind?

ELLIS: Yeah.

LEMON: You did?

ELLIS: Yeah.

LEMON: Why so? Why did you think so?

ELLIS: That's just how I felt he was.

LEMON: So you don't want to elaborate on that?

ELLIS: Not really because I can't really go into that in too much detail.

LEMON: OK. Have you ever been assigned to work with someone so high profile?

ELLIS: No, I have not. This was my first time with someone this high profile.

LEMON: How did you take that responsibility?

ELLIS: Well, I took it very seriously, because not only was it Saddam, there was some others that I was responsible for. And I had limited resources at the beginning. But being as time went along, things changed because of the support I got from other surrounding units.

LEMON: You said that he asked you, he confided in you that he didn't understand why the U.S. had invaded his country. Talk to me about that.

ELLIS: Yeah. He asked me why soldiers came to Iraq and kind of shot up the place. He said that the laws in Iraq were fair, and they didn't find anything, talking about the WMDs. But I told him that, you know, I was a soldier, and soldiers don't get caught up in politics and basically, it was a political issue there.

LEMON: Did he share -- did he talk to you about the president, or any thoughts about the administration?

ELLIS: No, he did not. You know, he didn't have anything bad to say about anybody.

LEMON: What about his -- did he speak at all about his fear of dying, possibly?

ELLIS: No, not one time. Never talked about death or dying.

LEMON: What about visitors? Any visitors?

ELLIS: No, he didn't get any visitors that I know of.

LEMON: He was in -- you had him from what I think, like January of '04 to August of '05. During that time did he appear to be lonely to you?

ELLIS: No, he didn't. But to go back a little bit, I had him from January 2004 to August 2004.

LEMON: To August 2004, not August 2005.

ELLIS: Right.

LEMON: OK. Didn't seem lonely, why do you say that?

ELLIS: Because he was jovial at times. Had a good sense of humor. You know, made jokes, you know. And he spent most of his time reading and praying.

LEMON: Yeah. We had heard that even towards the end that he had started quoting the bible, and reading from the bible. Did that seem unusual to you?

ELLIS: Not really, because he read from his bible every day. The Koran I'm talking about.

LEMON: Yeah, well, OK. Tell us about, you had another high profile individual that you took care of, Chemical Ali, am I correct?

ELLIS: Chemical Ali was one of the persons that was there. I didn't take care of him personally. I had two other medics that handled Chemical Ali.

LEMON: Any other high profile people you want to tell us about you took care of that you can tell us about at least?

ELLIS: Well, there was Abu Abbas. And that's basically about it.

LEMON: That's basically about it. What did your job entail when it came to the former Iraqi dictator?

ELLIS: Well, I gave him medicine every day. I checked on his general health. Checked his blood pressure. Took his temperature. Talked about any issues that he might have had, you know, in terms of his treatment. General nutrition and hydration status.

LEMON: Is there anything you'd like to share, something I didn't ask you about the former dictator, maybe something that's not coming out in the press since his death or since he was in captivity?

ELLIS: No, not really. That's basically all I have to say about that.

LEMON: I would imagine this was unusual and quite a high responsibility. Did you look at it as an honor?

ELLIS: Yeah. And a lot of responsibility on top of that, too.

LEMON: All right. Master Sergeant Robert Ellis, thank you for joining us today.

ELLIS: You're welcome.

LONG: More than 3,000 American troops have now been killed in the fight for Iraq. The toll is smaller than in some previous wars but the impact is just as great. Here's CNN's Joshua Levs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Crossing the 3,000 mark in the U.S. military death toll adds fuel to the raging debate over U.S. involvement in Iraq. Where casualties are counted one by one. In the wars of decades past, casualty figures were much, much higher. World War II, more than 400,000 U.S. troops killed, 670,000 wounded. In the years of the Korean War, more than 36,000 killed, 100,000 wounded. Vietnam, more than 58,000 killed, 150,000 wounded over a nine-year period. Nearly 30 years later, the relatively short Persian Gulf War marked a new era with new technology, 382 U.S. troops killed, 467 wounded. Operation enduring freedom focused mostly in Afghanistan is still under way, more than 350 U.S. troops have been killed. And that brings us back to Iraq.

(on camera): Different sides in the debate over the Iraq war have at times pointed to the death toll and these previous death tolls to bolster their arguments. But there's a story behind every number. You can see many of the names, faces and stories of U.S. troops who have been killed in Iraq at cnn.com. Joshua Levs, CNN, Atlanta.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: American support for the war in Iraq has been on the slide for months. But just civilians? Apparently not. A new poll in "The Military Times" newspaper finds only 35 percent of service members say they approve of President Bush's handling of the war, 42 percent disapprove. Only 41 percent say the U.S. should have gone to war in the first place. That is down from 65 percent in 2003. And now, only half the respondents say success in Iraq is likely. In 2004, in contrast, 83 percent predicted a successful outcome. Now the "Times" covers military issues but is not affiliated with the armed forces.

As the U.S. military death toll in Iraq tops 3,000, let's put some faces to the numbers. A salute to some of our fallen heroes. Army Staff Sergeant Jacob McMillan, 25 years old from Lafayette, Louisiana. Army Private Evan Bixler, 21 years of age, Racine, Wisconsin. And Army Specialist John Barta, 25 of Corpus Christi, Texas. Three of the 3,002 U.S. forces killed in action in Iraq.

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LEMON: And we're following the observance of the death of former President Gerald R. Ford. This is live pictures at the capitol rotunda. Thousands of people there paying their respects today, walking through the rotunda to visit Mr. Ford's body. Just a short time ago want to show you these pictures. There's a leader from the Sioux nation, his name is Glenn Crooks. He was there visiting, as well. Of course, dressed in traditional regalia there. He visited just a short time ago, not more than probably five minutes ago, and also about 10, 15 minutes ago, Nancy Pelosi also paid her respects to the former president, former President Ford. We're expecting the arrival very shortly of the president and first lady here. They, of course, are coming back from their Christmas holidays at their Crawford ranch. They arrived at Andrews Air Force Base just a short time ago and are probably en route now to the capitol rotunda. Of course we'll have full coverage of all of today's observances and throughout the week, lasting until Wednesday, right here on CNN.

Franklin Roosevelt had his famous 100 days, Nancy Pelosi says 100 hours is all she needs to begin, passing key legislation in the 110th Congress which opens for business on Thursday. Here's a look at her plan.

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LEMON (voice-over): New House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi says 100 hours is enough time to begin in her words draining the swamp of more than a decade of Republican rule. Top of the agenda on day one, break the link between lobbyist and legislation. Day two, make the nation safer by enacting the recommendations of the 9/11 commission. Goals to shoot for in the time remaining, raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25. Cut the interest rate on student loans in half, make health care, especially prescription drugs, more affordable. Expand the types of stem cell research allowed with federal money. Another key goal, end deficit spending by committing to a pay as you go policy. To do that Pelosi says President Bush's tax cuts will have to be rolled back for those above a certain income level. Other targets in the 100 hours, energizing the push to make the nation energy independent. Including rolling back the multiple billion dollar subsidies for big oil companies. And fighting any attempt to privatize social security. One Republican critic, former House Speaker Dennis Hastert says the Dems 100 hour plan would quote devastate economic prosperity for Americans and burden taxpayers at all levels.

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LONG: An NFL player is dead after a drive-by shooting this morning in Denver. Police are now searching for a white SUV, possibly a suburban or Tahoe, in the death of Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams. They say someone in that vehicle opened fire on Williams' Hummer limo, killing him and wounding two other passengers. Just a short time ago police released some more information on the attack.

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SONNY JACKSON, DENVER POLICE DEPARTMENT: We're not sure if it's random or not. We don't believe that it's random. We're looking at all the possibilities. I mean this is a situation where we don't want to narrow our scope and say well this was, you know, because of this altercation at the night club or it was because of something else. So we're just looking at all the possibilities as to what it was.

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LONG: Hours before Williams was a starter in the Broncos season- ending loss to San Francisco. Darrent Williams was just 24 years old.

Now an interstate highway, speeding cars and trucks, and a toddler in the middle of the road?

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TROY CRADY, MOTORIST: I looked over to my right and I seen this little 2-year-old boy running down the middle of the slow lane in the interstate. I just could not believe what I was seeing.

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LONG: He saw Damon Dyer running in a lane of interstate 465 in Indianapolis Saturday morning. It turns out the child had wandered away from his apartment some 200 yards away. Police found his mother sleeping inside the filthy apartment. His little sister apparently eating food off the floor.

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TROOPER CEDRIC MERRITT, INDIANA STATE POLICE: There was another child, 2-year-old female infant that was in the residence herself. Basically had the same conditions as the brother, no clothes on, diaper heavily saturated with feces and bowel, bowel and feces on the walls, trash everywhere in the residence, it was very unsanitary conditions for children to live in.

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LONG: Both children were taken into protective custody by the state. The mother, Nancy Dyer, faces two counts of neglect.

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LEMON: And when the weather becomes the news you can become a CNN correspondent. If you see severe weather happening, send us an i- Report. Go to cnn.com and click on i-Report. Or type in i-Report at cnn.com on your cell phone and share your photos or video.

LONG: At this hour, thousands of Americans are paying their respects to the 38th president. We have a live look at the capitol rotunda where the president and first lady are expected very soon. We will bring you their visit when it happens. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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LEMON: Thanks for joining us today, we want to leave you now with pictures from the capitol. The capitol rotunda, where -- that's the capitol right there. But the ceremony for -- honoring the late president, 38th president of the United States Gerald R. Ford happening today in the rotunda. Thousands of people Melissa have been streaming through here. They came wearing parkas and bearing umbrellas. Throngs and throngs of people have been through.

LONG: Some 2500 people they're saying by the hour passing through. Mr. Ford called Congress my real home, serving in Congress from 1949 to 1973.

LEMON: And the Bush motorcade, we're hearing the president and the first lady, the motorcade is on the way. Not sure if it's going to make it within the hour. But it should be there soon. They're going to pay their respects to the former president. They have just ended their holiday vacation from their ranch in Crawford, and tomorrow, I want you to join us, Mr. Ford's funeral at the National Cathedral. Our live coverage begins at 9:00 a.m. eastern with a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM."

LONG: And up next, a look at the day's top headlines and a special encore presentation of the homecoming celebration for musical legend James Brown.

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LEMON: Good afternoon everyone. I'm Don Lemon at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. You can he this is new video of President Bush and the first lady arriving at the capitol rotunda, they're going to pay their respects there to former President Gerald R. Ford. As we --

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