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The Fords: Ordinary Family Living Extraordinary Life; Hussein Execution Wrangling; Oprah's Promise

Aired January 02, 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 at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
MELISSA LONG, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. I'm Melissa Long, in today for Kyra Phillips.

The long trip home. President Ford and his family are now on their way to Michigan, the president's final resting place.

Live coverage of the ceremonies ahead.

LEMON: The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina plays out in court. Seven officers charged with murder or attempted murder. Victims scream the shootings were unprovoked, and the cops have a very different story.

LONG: And Oprah Winfrey's vision now a reality for hundreds of young girls. Our Jeff Koinange is with Oprah in Africa as she follows her dream.

The story ahead from the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: A final "Hail to the Chief" for the 38th president. It is a national day of mourning for Gerald R. Ford. At his funeral in Washington, his successors remembered him for bringing a small-town mentality to a big-time office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And when he thought that the nation needed to put Watergate behind us, he made the tough and decent decision to pardon President Nixon, even though that decision probably cost him the presidential election.

Gerald Ford assumed the presidency when the nation needed a leader of character and humility. And we found it in the man from Grand Rapids.

GEORGE HERBERT WALKER BUSH, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He had a wonderful sense of humor, and even took it in stride when Chevy Chase had to make the entire world think that this terrific, beautifully coordinated athlete was actually a stumbler. Ford says it was funny. He wrote that in his memoir.

I remember that lesson well, since being able to laugh at yourself is essential in public life. I'd tell you more about that, but as Dana Carvey would say, not going to do it, wouldn't be prudent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Of course, there were some humorous moments in there as well.

Gerald Ford's casket is due to arrive in his hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan, shortly. You're looking at pictures now, the ceremony that happened earlier.

And this is live pictures now from Grand Rapids. You can see all of the limos and the Hearse there for -- getting ready for the arrival of that plane.

And this is where the ceremony will take place a little bit later on. It is the Ford Presidential Library and Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan. There will be a service there to pay tribute to the former president.

We'll be covering it all right here. He'll be brought into the right of the library, where he will be interred.

Continuing coverage there right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LONG: An ordinary family living an extraordinary life. The Fords may have been surrounded by pomp and circumstance, but never let the circumstances change them.

National Correspondent Bob Franken now joins us live from Washington.

Hello, Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello.

And it's so interesting, Melissa, to see the displays of the private emotions that family members are seeing in this all-so-public surrounding. But it really shows a family, and the developments of the last couple of days have shown a family where tradition is to stay close to the common people.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN (voice-over): For the sons and daughters of a president, normal is still a family value, so it should come as no surprise that Gerald Ford's children spent time mingling with the average citizens who came to pay respects. Those who occupied the highest levels with Ford say the down-to-earth approach always set him apart.

RICHARD CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The achievements added all his life, yet he was known to boast only about one. I heard it once or twice myself. He said he was never luckier than when he stepped out of Grace Episcopal church in Grand Rapids with a beautiful girl named Betty as his bride.

FRANKEN: Gerald and Betty Ford were married for 58 years, certainly a solid couple, even though both asserted their own individuality. Betty Ford, outspoken and candid, who turned her own problems into the Betty Ford Clinic, that have helped so many thousands with addictions. Only recently did she turn the day-to-day operations over to her daughter, Susan, is also a photographer. One son is a minister. Another a journalist. The other, an actor. This is a family of extraordinary achievement that doesn't put on airs. Just ask first lady Betty Ford's press secretary about her first job interview.

SHEILA WEIDENFIELD, BETTY FORD'S PRESS SECY.: She came down in her robe, and we talked and she said -- I said to her, well, what would you like me to do as a press secretary? Because I had no idea what she expected of me. So she said to me, well, how should I know? I don't know what I'm supposed to do.

FRANKEN: That informality overshadows these formal ceremonies for President Gerald Ford.

WEIDENFIELD: The Fords considered themselves simple folk, and there was no way they were going to change. The first thing Betty Ford said to me was, you can't teach an old dog new tricks.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN: Well, paradoxically, they brought a new style into the White House when they came in, but it was really the old style, and it was something, Melissa, that the nation really needed.

LONG: Bob Franken in Washington.

Bob, thank you.

And a reminder. You can get more on the life and legacy of Gerald Ford online in a special report at CNN.com. You can see the late president's life in pictures. Watch and find out what colleagues are saying about him.

Also interact. We'd like to hear from you. Tell us how you will remember the former president in a CNN I-Report.

Again, go to CNN.com.

LEMON: In Iraq, Sunni Muslims on the streets, furious over Saddam Hussein's execution. Many are outraged by cell phone video showing executioners and witnesses taunting the former dictator.

Yesterday in Samarra, Sunni demonstrators were allowed into a revered Shiite shrine. Protesters carried a mock coffin and photos of Hussein. The shrine was heavily damaged in a Sunni bombing 10 months ago that unleashed a cycle of bloody sectarian violence.

It was hasty, it was nasty, and now the execution of Saddam Hussein is being investigated by the government that carried it out. A government that reportedly locked horns with the Bush administration over timing and technicalities.

Here's CNN's Brian Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This scene, at the end, was tense. But a top Iraqi official tells CNN the final hours leading to Saddam Hussein's demise were also filled with anxiety. At one point, according to a member of the Iraqi parliament close to Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki, a top U.S. official suggested a delay of about two weeks.

The parliament member says Maliki and his aides rejected that citing security concerns and rumors of possible violence swirling around the capital. During this period last Thursday and Friday, the official says, the Americans asked for written documentation to make sure the execution was legal according to the Iraqi constitution.

Despite his position against the death penalty, this parliament member says Iraqi President Talabani did not object. By Friday morning, the documents were ready. Late Friday night, in Baghdad, the parliament member tells CNN top U.S. officials met with Maliki's deputies to work out when the hand-over should take place, and other logistical arrangements.

At that point, Iraqi officials tell members of the media, the prime minister put his pen to the last crucial document.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Finally signing off on the execution order at midnight on Friday, only about five hours before Mr. Hussein was taken up that miserable passage to the gallows.

TODD: A top Iraqi official tells CNN the execution had to take place before sunrise on Saturday, when the Eid holiday began for Sunnis. By 6:00 local time Saturday morning, Saddam was on the scaffold. Two witnesses have disputing accounts on his bearing. A top judge, part of the court that upheld the death sentence, says this:

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I was very surprised, he wasn't afraid of death.

TODD: But Iraq's national security adviser has this account:

MOWAFFAK AL-RUBAIE, IRAQI NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: He was staring at me. I was sort of looking at him as well, in a forceful way. And then he said -- he was telling me, "don't be afraid". Of course, you know, this is -- he's afraid. He was frightened.

TODD: Not in dispute, these bitter exchanges captured on cell phone video between Saddam and the guards, all of whom were Shia. Saddam was Sunni. After he offers prayers, the guards shout praise for Muqtada al Sadr, the popular Shia cleric whose father is believed to have been murdered by Saddam's regime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Muqtada, Muqtada, Muqtada!

TODD: Saddam defiantly replies. Moments later, Saddam Hussein had dropped to his death.

TODD: Witnesses say his eyes were open. By Sunday morning, the dictator, whose body was transferred by the U.S. military, was laid to rest in his hometown near Tikrit.

(on camera): U.S. military officials would not comment for this story, saying the execution proceedings were matters handled by the Iraqis. When I asked him about the prime minister's mood since the execution, the member of Iraq's parliament told me simply he's relieved.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And the man leading Iraq says he is exhausted and would like to serve his country another way. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki spoke to "The Wall Street Journal" on Christmas Eve. Asked whether he'd serve a second term if offered, al-Maliki said, "Impossible. I wish I could be done with it even before the end of this term. I would like to serve my people from outside the circle of senior officials, maybe through the parliament, or through working directly with the people."

After decades of oppressive Sunni domination, al-Maliki was asked whether Sunnis are beginning to accept a Shiite-led government. He says, "They have not. The problem is that our Sunni brothers have been governing Iraq for centuries. And since the establishment of Iraq as a state, they have been governing because there was no democracy, no elections. Therefore, they feel that a right has been taken away from them."

LONG: Families of passengers aboard a missing plane are told about survivors found at a crash site, and then they're told it was all a mistake. The latest from Indonesia ahead in the NEWSROOM.

And Oprah Winfrey cuts the rib opinion on her state-of-the-art school in South Africa.

Ahead in the NEWSROOM, how education might transform the lives of some of the world's poorest kids.

LEMON: And our coverage continues of the ceremonies for the 38th president, Gerald Ford, as his hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan, awaits the return of his casket to its final resting place. There is a Ford Presidential Library and Museum there. That plane expected to arrive shortly.

We'll have all the details on this throughout the day right here on CNN.

You're watching the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Well, six years ago talk show queen Oprah Winfrey made a $10 million promise to South African president Nelson Mandela. She would design and open a state-of-the-art school for South Africa's least-advantaged, most-deserving girls. Six years and $40 million later, you can say mission accomplished.

Earlier I spoke with CNN's African correspondent, Jeff Koinange, who was at the opening of Winfrey's Leadership Academy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Jeff Koinange, how you doing?

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN AFRICA CORRESPONDENT: Pretty good, Don. Nice to talk to you.

LEMON: Nice to talk to you.

Six years in the making. And boy, what does it look like?

KOINANGE: I tell you, unbelievable. If you just look behind me, this is 52 acres, a 28-building campus housing everything from dormitories, an audio-visual center, a gym, tennis courts. You name it, it's here on the school. And it's only for 152 selected girls. These are the lucky few, the best and the brightest, according to Oprah.

LEMON: Lots of people there who can possibly donate many more millions of dollars. Lots of famous faces and very wealthy people.

KOINANGE: We're talking the who's who of Hollywood. You name it, they're on the ground. Mariah Carey, Chris Tucker, Chris Rock, Quincy Jones, Tina Turner, Sidney Poitier, Mary J. Blige -- I can go on and on, but they're here to celebrate with Oprah.

And I asked Oprah, "How were you able to fly in all these stars 10,000 miles away to this little part of Africa?" She says, "I just wanted them to celebrate with us. If they want to donate something, that's up to them. If they want to leave a legacy, that's also up to them. But today I want them to celebrate with these chosen few."

LEMON: I understand when the kids met Oprah, they were very emotional. What about today during the ceremony? Any of the celebrities, Oprah, kids? Do you see any moments that you might remember from this?

KOINANGE: No doubt about it, Don. There was one moment in particular.

Oprah just walked out of the building, accompanied by about half a dozen of the girls in their green uniform that Oprah hand-picked, and she went and she cut the ribbon with some scissors. And then after that, there was a flag-raising ceremony where they raised the school flag and the South African flag simultaneously.

And in that moment, there was a tear running down Oprah's cheek. And I asked her about it afterwards. I said, "What happened back there? What were you feeling? What were you thinking? "

She turned to me and said, "I just had a moment. This has been a dream six years in the making. A lot of people didn't think I'd be able to do it. Today we have done it, that dream has come true, and this is a combination literally of my life."

It was an amazing moment right there.

LEMON: And, you know, Jeff you cover these stories there in Africa. And we unfortunately, you know, cover a lot of the horrors happening in Africa.

What about for you? You ever see anything like it? Did you get emotional about it?

KOINANGE: This was -- this was an amazing day, I've got to say this. And you're right, we cover a lot of the breaking-news stories, hard-news stories, a lot of wars and famines and civil wars, you name it. That's what we cover a lot.

But when moments like these, a story like this that comes together, bringing people together, and building for the future, as Oprah says, it's such a moment. We feel so proud to be here on the ground.

As an African, not just as a correspondent, but just as an African, to see those girls, the future of this country and this continent coming together, smiling -- I asked one of the girls, "How do you feel today?" She told me, "It's like a fairytale come true."

So, at the end of the day, fairytales do come true.

LEMON: Yes. Oprah Winfrey sent about 3,500 applications around the country. The criticism is that everybody can't live up to this, and that this is maybe possibly an elitist sort of school.

Your reaction to that? I'm sure there may be some envy and -- from other people in the community. And then other folks saying, you know what? This is something that most of the country, if not the continent, cannot live up to.

KOINANGE: But you know what, Don? That question was actually asked in the presser earlier on. And a journalist actually asked Oprah, he said, "Is this only open to blacks? Is it open to everyone? And what do you say to the people who are left out?"

Oprah turned to the reporter and says, "This is open to everyone who's qualified. If you have the grades, if you have the leadership qualities, if you come from underprivileged homes."

That's the bottom line. She's trying to give those who would never have gotten this chance of a lifetime this opportunity. And when she personally interviewed all of the girls, these are the qualities she was looking out for.

And there are black girls here, there are white girls, there are Asian girls. And Oprah said there are Hindus, Muslims, Christians. This school, she says, is going to cater to everybody.

LEMON: Jeff Koinange. A small town south of Johannesburg called Henley-On-Klip.

Thank you so much today for your report.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: And still to come, more of our continuing coverage as the casket carrying the nation's 38th president is taken to its final resting place.

We'll be live from Grand Rapids, Michigan, ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: Its motto is "Honor First, Coffee Second." And now the company that serves those who serve is taking care of civilians, too. Susan Lisovicz joins us now from New York to explain.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

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

Now, before he was a president or a congressman or even a football star, Gerald Ford was a hometown boy from Michigan.

LEMON: Now he's back. The last leg of Ford's journey as the nation remembers its 38th president.

You're live right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We were showing you live pictures earlier of the Ford Presidential Library, and it is where we said he grew up. It is where he will be laid to rest after a long journey and numerous tributes. Former President Gerald ford is finally, finally heading home to Grand Rapids, Michigan.

And there on the ground is our very own Jeanne Meserve.

Hello, Jeanne.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Don.

The crowds are waiting out of the Grand Rapids airport, where we are expecting the plane carrying President Ford's remains and his family to land in about a half hour's time.

We are told that before it lands it will be doing a flyover of the University of Michigan stadium where President Ford played football and a good game of football. He was offered two contracts with professional teams when he finished up there, but chose instead to go to law school.

Also the University of Michigan band on hand to greet the family and friends and the body when it returns to the airport, that band having appeared at the Rose Bowl yesterday and flown in overnight.

Grand Rapids, we have heard, over and over again in the last few days, very much made this man. This is where he was raised. This is where he became an Eagle Scout. This is where he was elected to Congress 13 times, never with less than 60 percent of the vote. And this is where he has decided he wants to be buried. And so the body will be brought here.

There will be a brief ceremony here inside the the museum involving the family, also the president of the University of Michigan, the president of Yale, the governor of the state of Michigan. And then the body will be left here to lie in repose and the public will be able to come by and pay its respects.

They're expecting a large crowd. There has been a condolence book here in the museum since Ford died. As of last night, 50,000 people had signed it or thereabouts, an indication that not only did Gerald Ford love Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids very much loved Gerald Ford -- Don.

LEMON: And you mentioned the governor, who else might be attending this event tonight, Jeanne?

MESERVE: Well, people great and people small. President Jimmy Carter and his wife are on that plane carrying President Ford's remains. They will be here for the ceremonies today. As I mentioned, the governor will. But there will also be common folk.

Many years ago, 1930, President Ford was on the south high football team here in Grand Rapids. They won the state championship. There were 30 guys on the team. They called themselves the 30/30 club. They have gotten together every year at Thanksgiving, including at the White House when President Ford was president. And the surviving members of that team will be here today. One of them is Leon Joslin. I spoke with him earlier today about his reminiscences of Gerald Ford.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEON JOSLIN, FORD'S FRIEND: Oh, gosh. I can't say enough about Gerry. Just a down to earth sort of guy. From high school on. And if you were a friend of his, you stayed a friend of his for a long -- for life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MESERVE: Leon Joslin now 94 years old, one of three surviving members of the 30/30 club. They will all be here for these ceremonies this afternoon. Back to you, Don.

LEMON: All right, Jeanne, thank you very much. And as Jeanne mentioned, the Michigan band will be there. Of course, they will be playing as the president arrives the fight song from Michigan. We want to alert you that as soon as that plane arrives, as soon as it's about to get on the ground there, we will bring it to you live.

You're looking at what will be the procession there once that plane arrives. The hearse and the limos. Beautiful ceremony this morning at the National Cathedral and another beautiful ceremony planned for later on today in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at the Ford presidential library and museum. All of that live right here on CNN.

LONG: It was a year ago today the nation focused on a small patch of rural West Virginia, the community of Tallmansville where an underground explosion led to what we now know as the Sago mine tragedy.

Today the owner closed the the mine in honor of the 12 miners who were killed. Autopsies show one victim died in the initial blast, the rest from carbon monoxide poisoning. Only one miner, Randy McCloy, survived to see the changes made to the nation's mine safety laws. He offered no comment on today's anniversary.

Indonesia is retracting a report that people from a missing plane have been found alive in the wreckage. In fact, no one has found any sign of the Adam Air jet which disappeared from radar yesterday in stormy weather.

CNN's Andrew Stevens reports it's an agonizing wait for the families of the 102 people aboard.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDREW STEVENS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They waited with pictures of loved ones. Emotions ranging from hope to anger. Hope that relatives and friends may have miraculously survived the crash of an Adam Air Boeing 737 in dense jungle in Indonesia. And anger that a full 24 hours after the plane went down, they're still waiting for news.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): There's still no information about my family, my relatives were coming to celebrate the new year.

STEVENS: More than a day after the crash, rescuers battling bad weather and rugged terrain have still not found the crash site. According to the transport ministry.

102 passengers and crew including three Americans were on the flight between Subrarbaya and Makassa (ph) on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. Indonesian officials say the plane's captain sent out two distress signals about one hour before it was due to land Monday afternoon in what was described as very bad weather.

ICHSAN TATANG, INDONESIAN NATL. AVIATION CHIEF (through translator): We are still not sure what happened with the plane. But what is clear is the weather all over the region was very bad. We had relayed the bad weather situation to all operators and asked them to be extra careful. STEVENS: The 737 similar to the one shown here was a 17-year-old aircraft, which had flown more than 45,000 hours. Adam Air is one of several low-cost carriers operating in Indonesia. They provide Indonesians with the sort of cheap air travel they've never had before. But with safety concerns about flying older planes, some are asking at what cost?

Andrew Stevens, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: What a winner, so far, and we're not even that far into it. For some it's time to dig out, for others, time to dive in. Can you imagine? We'll take a closer look at the climate contrasts coming up in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LONG: And our continuing coverage as the casket carrying the nation's 38th president is taken to its final resting place. We'll take you live to Grand Rapids, Michigan, ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The funeral for Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams will be held Saturday in his hometown of Ft. Worth, Texas. Williams was killed early yesterday in a drive-by shooting after attending a New Year's Eve party. He was 24.

Denver police are still looking for a white SUV, possibly a GMC Suburban or Tahoe from which, according to witnesses, the shots were fired. Two other passengers in Williams' Hummer limo were wounded. Broncos' teammate Javon Walker was there, too. He wasn't hurt.

LONG: The legal process is beginning in Canada for an American accused of kidnapping her children. Allison Lee Quets was in court briefly today and ordered back Thursday for a bail hearing. She and her 17-month-old twins were discovered in Ottawa Friday. Days earlier, she failed to return them to their adoptive parents in North Carolina. She gave up the children in 2005 shortly after they were born and has been fighting to regain custody ever since then.

The world's largest aquarium is mourning one of its -- the loss of one of its biggest attractions. Gasper, a Beluga whale at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta was put down after months of declining health. That 17-year-old whale was ill when it was rescued from an amusement park in Mexico in the fall of '05. Veterinarians later discovered a serious bone disease. Now, the aquarium said it made today's difficult decision to spare Gasper any more pain.

LEMON: Digging out out west. Hanging out back east. Wondering what in the world is going on with the weather and with winter? Well CNN's John Roberts looks at nature going to extremes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN SR. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): On New Year's Day, people in La Junta, Colorado, were still digging out from under 30 inches of snow.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People can't get out of their homes. They can't get to the stores. Stores can't get employees out to work. It's a mess.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've seen drifts this big, but this much snow this deep everywhere, I've never seen it.

ROBERTS: The blizzard that started last week in the Rockies swept through the plains and all the way to Texas, dumping three to four feet of snow along the way.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Personally, I love this weather. Professionally, it's been a nightmare.

ROBERTS: New Mexico's major arteries are now cleared. But over the New Year's weekend, ice and heavy snow brought traffic on long stretches of Interstate 40 to a screeching halt.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two trucks stopped on 287.

ROBERTS: A fleet of small planes are flying over southeastern Colorado searching for any motorists who remain snowbound. Officials are also trying to get food to stranded livestock in the area. In Kansas, tens of thousands of homes and businesses are still without power.

While the nation's midsection is snowed under, the weather in the eastern United States is the polar opposite, unseasonably warm. Cherry blossoms are blooming in the nation's capital, four months too soon. In upstate Rochester, New York, 2007 road in on water-skis rather than snow skis. And for polar bears at New York's Coney Island, their annual New Year's Day swim didn't make a big splash. These people who have ice water in their veins were positively lukewarm about it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been in the water when you've had to kick the ice out of the poll (ph) to get into the water. It's a piece of cake this time. I mean, I should have brought my lounge chair out here. All I'm missing is a hot tub and some suntan lotion.

ROBERTS: John Roberts, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: You can't really go water skiing this time of year in Rochester, New York. Anywhere in the northeast is normally a lot chillier. Rob Marciano keeping an eye on the weather forecast. It's really a mixed bag. Kind of hard to predict, I imagine, as well.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LONG: And when the weather becomes news, you can become a CNN correspondent. If you happen to see severe weather happening, send us an I-report. If you have to perhaps have a cute picture of your cat walking down the front yard, too, send that in as well as. Go to CNN.com, click on I-report, type in I-report as well as at CNN.com on your cell phone and share your photos or video as well.

LEMON: The nation and the world paying tribute to the former president, the 38th president of the United States, we saw these -- this is a live picture of Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Mr. Ford's body is expected to arrive shortly.

We saw these lines in California last week. Over the weekend in Washington, D.C. Now we're seeing it in Grand Rapids, Michigan. This is the Ford Presidential Library and Museum where that ceremony will be taking place very shortly. CNN will have all the live updates on this ceremony today. So don't go anywhere. The news just keeps coming. We'll keep bringing it to you. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: Grim figures on Iraqis killed in the war in 2006. Iraq's interior ministry puts the number of dead civilians, last year alone, at more than 12,000. Earlier the United Nations estimated more than 14,000 just between January and July.

Today's report also says more than 1,200 police officers and more than 600 soldiers were killed last year, along with more than 2,100 insurgents or members of other armed groups.

LEMON: And the toll of war, much more than a number. More than 3,000 U.S. troops have been killed in Iraq. Behind each death mothers, fathers, spouses, children whose lives are forever changed.

Here's our Baghdad bureau chief Cal Perry.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAL PERRY, CNN BUREAU DIRECTOR, BAGHDAD: This is one story out of 3,000, the story of a soldier far from home, fighting in Iraq, taking pictures, as all soldiers do. This one, published in "Stars and Stripes," shows a search for roadside bombs - an eerie foreshadowing of what would happen to the photographer.

Caleb arrived at the 10th Combat Support Hospital on May 4th, as thousands before him, a wounded soldier brought to his knees by war.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Access guys, get the I.O. out. All right. Clear them off, guys. What's your name?

PFC. CALEB A. LUFKIN, 5TH ENGINEER BATTALION, U.S. ARMY, DIED FROM INJURIES SUFFERED IN IRAQ WAR: Caleb.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, Caleb.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All the clothes are going to come off, OK? We've got to ...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Breath deep for me, Caleb.

LUFKIN: Am I (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you having trouble breathing over there?

LUFKIN: A little bit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A big breath.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't you dare try to die on me, OK? I didn't give you permission to die.

LUFKIN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), don't let me die.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I won't let you die. I promise.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I give you - I promise. I give you my word, OK?

PERRY: These were the images transmitted by news agencies that day showing smoke rising in the distance from a string of roadside bombs, detonated in Baghdad.

And this - the brutal result of one of those bombs. Caleb's flack jacket torn apart, his boots filled with blood.

There's no reason for telling who lives and who dies in Iraq, brought in at the same time with Caleb, a soldier that medics cannot resuscitate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) here. A pretty bad injury on the right there.

PERRY: But Caleb hung on through emergency surgeries in Baghdad and Germany.

Sometimes there's only so much a body can take. He died three weeks later during surgery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington. His heart simply gave out.

And so, Caleb returned home to Galesburg, Illinois, a fallen hero. He'd earned four medals serving his country.

Caleb's mother was too upset to speak. She wrote her eldest son a letter to say goodbye.

"You were still smiling your first day of kindergarten," the letter said. "when I found it so hard to let go of your hand.

"'I'll be OK, Mom,' you said over your shoulder at me as you trotted alone into the school with your new school backpack. It was almost more than I could bare, letting go of that little hand and releasing you into the world.

"And you said the same thing again when you went to Iraq, 'I'll be OK, Mom,' with your Army pack on your back."

She ended the letter as any mother would. Simply, "You are forever in my heart."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: Live picture from Grand Rapids, live picture from the Gerald R. Ford International Airport. The aircraft just touching down moments ago. This aircraft, carrying the casket of the 38th president of the United States. This is aircraft referred to as Special Air Mission 29,000, also carrying family and friends of the late president.

We're going to stay with this for a moment now.

LEMON: Yes, we are. And as they say, wheels down. And you were talking about the name of this, usually we're talking about the president flying on Air Force One. This one is called Special Mission, I think, 29,000. It's called, 29,000 -- Special Air Mission 29,000. It's carrying the body of the late president.

Of course, we have folks on the ground there. And let's -- why don't we head out to Jeanne Meserve, who is standing by at the Ford Presidential Library and Museum.

Big plans today, lots more pomp and circumstance tonight, Jeanne, right?

MESERVE: That's right.

Here at the Grand Rapids Airport, we're going to see a ceremony that's going to bear a little resemblance to what we saw Saturday evening at Andrews Air Force Base when this aircraft arrived there carrying the body. There will be a brief ceremony at the airport, playing of "Ruffles and Flourishes", the firing of a 21-gun salute. The casket will then be loaded onto a hearse and motorcaded here to the Gerald R. Ford Museum.

Once it comes here, again, a lot of ceremony, as it befitting the occasion. There are going to be veterans present. There are going to be Boy Scouts present, people who represent periods in Gerald Ford's life.

The casket is going to be taken into the museum, put on a catafalque inside. It's a triangular-shaped room, quite small, actually, only invited guests there. They include, of course, the families, some very close friends.

There will be wreaths laid by the presidents of the University of Michigan and Yale, the two higher education institutions that President Ford attended.

There will be some brief remarks by -- including --- by various people including the emeritus head of the Gerald R. Ford Foundation and by the governor of the state of Michigan.

A very brief ceremony, only expected to last about 45 minutes. Then the participants in the ceremony will leave, but the body will remain. And this museum will remain open and the public will be able to come and pay their respects. Tomorrow, of course, the body being taken out of here, taken to a church where there will be a brief, private ceremony featuring the Fords' pastor from California. Then the body will be brought back here to the museum.

There's a patch of ground behind me, behind some trees, a wall there. It was part of the original design of this museum to build a place where president and Mrs. Ford will be buried. He, of course, will be interred here tomorrow.

Back to you, Don.

LEMON: And Jeanne, as we're watching this, you know, three homes, California, and we talked about Palm Desert, Washington, D.C., where he spent so many years.

But these folks here in Grand Rapids really, feel a connection to this president and this family.

MESERVE: Well, so many of them knew him. I was talking to the curator of the Ford Museum last night. And he was saying, you know, it seems everybody he talks to says, "Oh, you know, I got a letter from him or he wrote me a letter that helped get me a job." Or, you know, "I went to school with him."

It isn't that large a community, and a lot of people had contact with him during his many years in Congress, elected 16 times to represent this district, never with less than 60 percent of the vote. A pretty incredible record.

And you've seen it here out in front of the museum, a makeshift memorial has sprung up. I've driven by it several times, both night and day, and there's always a crowd of people out there lighting candles, leaving flowers, leaving written messages, telling the world exactly what they thought of this man, that they're very proud of. And a couple of billboards around town, a play on his name instead of Gerald R. -- as in "Rudolph" -- Ford, it says Gerald Our -- O-U-R -- Ford. They do view him as their own -- Don.

LEMON: Jeanne, thanks.

LONG: Still to come, we'll be remembering the legacy of the president in the NEWSROOM in just two minutes.

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