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Grainy Video Stirring Outrage and Investigation; President Bush Sitting Down With Cabinet

Aired January 03, 2007 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone.
You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm Tony Harris.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Heidi Collins.

For the next three hours, watch events happen live on this Wednesday, the 3rd of January, 2007.

Here's what's on the rundown.

A grainy video stirring outrage and an investigation, as well. Saddam Hussein taunted on the gallows. Today, a guard facing questions.

HARRIS: President Bush sitting down with his cabinet this hour. Live remarks this morning target Democrats, as they take the wheel in Congress.

COLLINS: The military dropping hundreds of bales of hay. Livestock stranded after back to back blizzards in Colorado. Cattle call this hour in THE NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: And breaking news to start off this hour.

We just got word that Iraqi officials are questioning a guard about the cell phone video of Saddam Hussein's execution.

Live now to our Arwa Damon, who has details from Baghdad -- Arwa, good morning.

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony.

And that announcement came from Sami al-Askari. He is one of the advisers to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, telling CNN that the Iraqi government has detained one of the guards whom they believe is the person responsible for filming that highly controversial cell phone footage and distributing it via the Internet and to television stations. He has only been identified by the Iraqi government as being one of the guards on site.

Now, this comes after a day of many accusations flying around as to who was specifically responsible for filming and distributing that footage that has tarnished the execution of Saddam Hussein and allowed it to go down in history as being an act of Shia revenge.

The Iraqi government was, of course, hoping that the execution of Iraq's former dictator would unite the country. In fact, we are seeing just the opposite. It appears to be dividing Iraqis.

Now, more details to tell you about, as well. The prosecutor who was present there, who we have been reporting insisted that two Iraqi officials were also filming with their cell phones. However, he said that he could not confirm if a guard was also filming.

But the bottom line really is the outcome of this cell phone footage, the Iraqi government, of course, ended their official broadcast of the footage when the noose was placed around Saddam Hussein's neck. Their footage that they released had no audio on it.

This cell phone footage clearly depicted the final moments of Saddam Hussein and we could clearly hear the audio and the Shia chants, the taunts coming from the guards and other members who were present there, taunting Saddam Hussein right before he fell to his death -- Tony.

HARRIS: So, Arwa, what does this tell us about the leadership of Nouri Al-Maliki, the prime minister of that country, that, on this occasion, being viewed by the world, people could walk in with cell phones and record this execution?

DAMON: Well, Tony, this is possibly one of the worst possible outcomes that could have taken place following the execution of Saddam Hussein.

We do know that the Iraqi prime minister, right after the verdict and the sentence came out back in early November, made a promise to the Iraqi people that he would bring Saddam Hussein, their former dictator, to death before the end of the year.

By all counts, that is what he was trying to accomplish, despite warnings from the United States.

Now, the execution of Saddam Hussein, rather than turning into this act that was meant to unite Iraqis, allow them to move forward as the Iraqi government was hoping, bring an end to an era, bring this chapter of Saddam Hussein to a close -- in fact, the Iraqi government was hoping that this execution would decrease the violence.

What we are seeing as an outcome, just specifically, especially because of this cell phone footage, is just the opposite.

HARRIS: Yes.

DAMON: We are seeing a divided Iraq and a very angry Iraqi Sunni population here at having the execution of Saddam Hussein now basically being an act of Shia revenge.

HARRIS: And on the Internet for anyone to see.

Arwa, we will talk more about all of these issues next hour, including the statements from Nouri Al-Maliki in the "Wall Street Journal," where he says, "I didn't want this job."

More with Arwa Damon next hour -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Strategy session at the White House. President Bush meeting with his cabinet this hour. On the agenda, working with Congress as Democrats take control.

The meeting comes as the president prepares to announce his new plan for Iraq.

More on all of this now from CNN's Kathleen Koch at the White House -- good morning to you, Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.

And, yes, certainly here in Washington, a new day does dawn tomorrow, as Democrats take control of Congress. And President Bush is really bending over backwards today to show that he gets it, to, first of all, in a guest column, a rare form for the president to use, in the "Wall Street Journal," which is essentially an open letter to members of Congress.

The president lists what he'd like to accomplish and he calls for bipartisanship, saying: "Together, we have a chance to serve the American people by solving the complex problems that many don't expect us to tackle, let alone solve, in the partisan environment of today's Washington. To do that, however, we can't play politics as usual."

President Bush will be making that pitch in person then this evening at a White House reception that he's holding for top members of Congress and their spouses. The White House says it's largely a social occasion, but there will certainly be ample opportunity for those members of Congress to talk about what is on everyone's mind, and that is the president's new strategy for Iraq that he's promised to give to the nation very early this month. We're hearing early next week.

Many in Congress, though, are very uncomfortable, Democrats and Republicans, with one of the options on the table, and that's this reported surge on as many as 20,000 troops, U.S. troops, into the Baghdad area in particular. But a spokesman for the National Security Council, Gordon Johndroe says, "The president has not made any decisions."

And then finally, on the president's official schedule this morning is a meeting with his cabinet and then a statement in the Rose Garden. And spokesperson Emily Lawrimore says it will have very much the same tone -- the president's comments there -- as the "Wall Street Journal" article. The president will talk about his priorities for the year, how he hopes to accomplish them, focus on the new Congress.

And the president, in that article in the "Wall Street Journal," did say he'd be making an announcement on a new way to end pork barrel spending, those pesky Congressional earmarks.

So that's what we're looking forward to later this morning. COLLINS: That's right.

And, Kathleen Koch, we will have that for our viewers here on CNN NEWSROOM just as soon as the president goes to the Rose Garden.

Thanks so much.

Kathleen Koch live from the White House.

KOCH: You bet.

HARRIS: Slammed by a monster snowstorm on New Year's weekend, several states in the nation's heartland are still trying to dig their way out. Clearing roads a big priority in Kansas. Parts of the state got socked with up to three feet of snow. Thousands of homes and businesses still in the dark. In some areas, National Guard troops and police are actually going door-to-door to check on those without power.

In Nebraska, much of the same homes and businesses are still waiting for the lights to come back on. Portable generators are helping keep water service running and shelters open. Nebraska's governor says damage is worse than he imagined.

Double blizzards putting a major U.S. industry in a race against time. Snow and ice threaten to wipe out thousands of beef cattle in the west. Right now, a big hay lift is underway in Colorado. National Guard helicopters are dropping hundreds of bales in the southeastern corner of the state. Some snowdrifts there 10 feet high. A similar storm in 1997 killed 30,000 cattle in Colorado.

Parts of New Mexico also snowbound. Ranchers there are frantically trying to save their herds. They, too, are getting help from the National Guard.

Let's check in with Chad Myers in the Severe Weather Center -- and, Chad, you've got your eyes on a storm up there in the Pacific Northwest.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: A farewell befitting a favorite son. A live shot now coming to you from Grand Rapids, Michigan and the long, long line waiting to pay their respects to the 38th president of the country, saying their final good-byes in his home city.

Jeanne Meserve is live in Grand Rapids, Michigan now to give us the very latest on this.

And it is a very long line -- Jeanne.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is very long. Estimates earlier this morning were that about 50,000 people had been to the Gerald R. Ford Museum to view the casket. That number has certainly gone up. The people just keep coming.

They want to show their gratitude. They want to play a part in history and they want to show their pride in this city's most famous son.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MESERVE (voice-over): Gerald Ford has come home at last to the state and city that shaped him, embraced him and is showing it loves him still.

MARTIN ALLEN, GERALD R. FORD FOUNDATION: Wherever he journeyed, the values forged in Grand Rapids never left him. And that's why he never left Grand Rapids.

MESERVE: This trip home was a sentimental journey, with a fly- over of the stadium where Ford played football for the University of Michigan. "Hail To The Victors," the school's fight song, was even played at the arrival common.

(VIDEOTAPE OF BAND PLAYING "HAIL TO THE VICTORS")

MESERVE: Along the motorcade route, Boy Scouts saluted to honor Gerald Ford the Eagle Scout. And among those invited to the private service at the Ford Museum, the surviving members of Ford's championship high school football team, including 94-year-old Leon Joslin.

A high school photos shows Joslin in front of team captain Ford. Years later, it was re-shot when President Ford hosted the team at the White House.

LEON JOSLIN, HIGH SCHOOL TEAMMATE: Oh, gosh, I can't say enough about Gerry. He was 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 the life of him.

MESERVE: In his later years, Ford told a journalist that when he had trouble sleeping at night, all he had to do was think of Grand Rapids.

THOMAS DEFRANK, "NEW YORK DAILY NEWS": It meant that that's where his heart and his soul were and that's where he wanted to be buried, because that's where his heart was. It always was and it always will be.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

MESERVE: And this is where he will be buried later today, after another service, this one featuring eulogies from the former Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, and former President Jimmy Carter -- Heidi, back to you.

COLLINS: And, Jeanne, what about Grace Episcopal Church?

I understand there is a special significance there for the former president.

MESERVE: There was -- there's a long association with the Ford family. They have been worshipping there since the '40s. According to the church, Gerald Ford's mother died there during a service. Funerals for both his parents were conducted there. He was confirmed there. He and Betty Ford were married there. Their three oldest children were baptized there. So a church of great significance to the family.

COLLINS: Yes, I thought that was where they were married.

All right, Jeanne Meserve, thank you.

HARRIS: A call to communicate -- a new homeland security report sends out a troubling signal.

Is your city prepared for disaster?

That's straight ahead in THE NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: Pat Robertson says god has spoken directly to him. We'll tell you about Robertson's dire predictions for the new year.

HARRIS: And fighting back against cancer and watching the clock -- a new study figures out how much time cancer treatments steal from patients.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta will be in THE NEWSROOM.

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Fighting cancer -- you can't put a price on the pain. But there is a high price people pay in terms of time.

CNN chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, joining us now with the hidden costs of cancer.

It gets to something that we don't think about all too often. If loved ones have cancer, we just want them to get better at almost any cost.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And it's probably something that the average person does not have to pay as much attention to. Certainly, there's a lot of costs associated with the direct medical costs of taking care of cancer. It's in the billions -- $72 billion to take care of cancer in terms of medical costs.

What hasn't had as much attention paid to it, though, is the time, the time for a patient. You know, there's all sorts of different things. The time for the hospitals, the time for society in general, for losing those patients out of the population for a while.

So this study out of the National Cancer Institutes tried to put a price tag on that, looking specifically at things like how much time are they spending as they're waiting for appointments; getting to and from appointments, for example; waiting for treatment; waiting during the treatment; tests; check-ups.

I mean, Heidi, anybody who has ever waited in a waiting room, a doctor's waiting room, knows what I'm talking about here. You lose time at work. You lose time from society.

COLLINS: Right.

GUPTA: So they decided to actually try and put some numbers on this, looking at how much some of the most expensive cancers were in the first 12 months of treatment, specifically gastric and ovarian cancer, some of the more expensive ones.

You can see the price tag there...

COLLINS: Now, why is that? Why are they so different?

GUPTA: Well, so these are the ones that probably, based on those other criteria, you spend a lot of time actually getting to and from appointments, waiting for treatment and waiting in between treatments, as well.

So gastric and ovarian were some of the highest, $5,300 and $5,600. And it goes up even higher, Heidi, in the last 12 months of treatment, the last 12 months of someone's overall treatment. Melanoma, $1,500. That's reasonably cheap. Gastric cancer goes up to almost $7,800 per patient per year.

To put it all in perspective, about $2.3 billion in these sorts of costs, indirect costs of treating cancer.

COLLINS: But is there a reason why or does this study point to a reason why gastric is so much more costly than -- well, I mean, I guess melanoma isn't a great comparison, because we know that that's...

GUPTA: Well, you know, I mean some of these...

COLLINS: ... regular...

GUPTA: ... require longer, a longer time actually in the hospital.

COLLINS: OK.

GUPTA: Which also means time away from work.

COLLINS: Right.

GUPTA: It requires more treatments, more time in between treatments. Sometimes it could be a more ominous thing because some of these cancers move so fast, you just have no time to be in the hospital even. COLLINS: Right.

So why are the numbers so important?

It seems like it would be really hard to measure and keep track of all of those chunks of time.

GUPTA: Yes, it was an interesting study. They actually did this by looking back at data. The National Cancer Institutes looked at about 730,000 patients and tried to measure these costs. So it's not a perfect study by any means.

But it's important because there's all sorts of different ways to make a difference in the system...

COLLINS: Yes.

GUPTA: ... streamline the system for patients. So, for example, if you have a cancer diagnosis, you don't have to go to the neurologist, the neurosurgeon, the radiologist. You see them all at one center, one visit...

COLLINS: Right.

GUPTA: ... and that saves you time and it saves money, as the study shows, as well.

But also, you know, if you're trying to cut down on the cost of cancer, $72 billion a year, where do you start making big differences?

And this is one place, as well.

COLLINS: Yes. Wow! I've never seen a study like that.

Now, you also have a special coming up about cancer?

GUPTA: Yes, we've been very focused on this for some time. I work with Lance Armstrong and the Live Strong Foundation, which has done a lot of work in areas trying to figure out how to save lives with things that we already know and learning how to make a difference, as well, by basically doing some things that we already have learned about.

You know, you could save hundreds of thousands of lives doing that. Our special is "How To Save A Life." Lance, obviously, very focused on this for years.

So I think it's going to be very interesting. Over the next few weeks, we'll put that out for you.

COLLINS: Excellent.

We will be watching for it very closely.

GUPTA: All right.

COLLINS: Sanjay Gupta, thank you.

GUPTA: Thank you.

HARRIS: Communication breakdown -- the Department of Homeland Security reporting tonight just six cities and regions out of 75 get the highest grades for disaster readiness. Those top grades go to Washington, San Diego and Minneapolis, St. Paul. Also in the top six, Columbus, Ohio; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; and Laramie County, Wyoming, which includes the state capital of Cheyenne.

The new report, which comes out in detail today, looks at emergency communications systems. Now plenty of cities and counties failing to implement changes recommended after 9/11.

With the good comes the bad. The lowest scores go to Chicago, Cleveland and Baton Rouge; also, Mandan, North Dakota; and American Samoa, a U.S. territory about 2,200 miles southwest of Hawaii.

COLLINS: Lost and found in Houston -- arrests in the case of the mishandled airline bags.

Remember this?

Plus, new questions in THE NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: And we are Minding Your Business this morning.

Ali Velshi here with a preview -- good morning, Ali.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony.

Scandal at the top finally brings down the head of Home Depot. A CEO has resigned. I'll tell you what that means to you and your investment.

Stay in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: A home improvement retailer tries to improve itself by getting rid of its CEO.

Ali Velshi is Minding Your Business this morning -- Ali, good morning.

This is Bob Nardelli we're talking about?

VELSHI: Bob Nardelli of Home Depot, a hometown boy in Atlanta, at least. You know, Home Depot really has been the poster child for corporate lack of responsibility in the last year or so.

Bob Nardelli, who is there right in the middle, you know, was sort of an example of excessive pay. He got a guaranteed bonus in his pay package. I never quite understood what a guaranteed bonus is. It's not a bonus if you don't have to do anything for it. Absolute arrogance on the part of the board at their annual meeting this year. The board didn't show up for the annual meeting. Bob Nardelli did show up, but he refused to take questions from stockholders about his pay package in particular. And even leaving he gets a $20 million cash payout, acceleration of some stockholders that weren't vested of $77 million.

And the company wouldn't speak to us about that. We had asked to speak to Bob Nardelli many times in the last few months and even the company would tell us we think this story is over.

Well, clearly, it's not over. The company, by the way, having admitted that it is -- have -- being looked at for it stock options practices, something that is hitting many, many companies.

So, really, I think they got mired in some stuff at Home Depot and couldn't get out of it until Nardelli left. It was something that a number of people had suggested happen for some time and it's finally happened.

HARRIS: So was he ultimately forced out?

VELSHI: You know, the working that under -- that Home Depot is using is that he resigned. But they did say he resigned as a result of a mutual agreement with the board of directors.

So who knows?

HARRIS: Got you.

VELSHI: He gets a nice paycheck to leave. You know, it never really -- the gravy train doesn't end for some people.

HARRIS: Right.

What is the -- what do you think part of the larger story is here, Ali? Is this, in part, a story about the competition getting better, smarter?

VELSHI: No, I don't think it is. I don't think anybody buys less lumber at Home Depot as a result. I don't think most people will drive any further if they weren't otherwise going to a Loews. And I think it's the same story, as we discussed, with Apple and its options situation.

I think what this is, is that in the post-Enron era, people want to know that their companies look after their interests. Because all we have in order to retire, Tony, is the money that we invest in our IRAs or our 401Ks.

HARRIS: Yes.

VELSHI: That money is in the stock market. We have to believe that that money is being taken care of and those boards are actually answerable to the shareholders, who are Americans who own -- who own retirement plans. So I think this is not...

HARRIS: Good point.

VELSHI: This is not a story about Home Depot as much as it is about these instances of corporate irresponsibility do come home to roost.

HARRIS: And what's your guess? Do you believe the stock price will respond favorably to this news?

VELSHI: Yes. The stock price is actually up in pre-market trading already. It was up as much as about 6 percent. The markets are going to go open in a few minutes.

But, yes, I absolutely think so because Home Depot is otherwise a good store, a good company. This was holding it back, because it -- people just weren't trusting that it was making the right decisions.

HARRIS: Yes.

VELSHI: Now I think Home Depot can really push off.

HARRIS: There he is, Ali Velshi Minding Your Business this morning.

Ali, thank you.

VELSHI: OK.

COLLINS: Buried in the West -- but what's this?

The Northeastern slopes nearly naked. Skiers looking for a cover-up, coming up in THE NEWSROOM.

Also, Saddam Hussein unauthorized -- the Iraqis questioning a guard about these cell phone images. Execution outrage across the Arab world coming soon in THE NEWSROOM.

And a family tragedy stuns a nation. A 5-year-old girl killed by her uncle's dog. That's ahead in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Good morning, everybody.

Once again, just before 9:30 Eastern time.

I'm Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: Happy New Year.

COLLINS: Happy New Year to you.

HARRIS: Where have you been?

Where have you been?

COLLINS: I've been slacking off.

HARRIS: What have you been doing?

You been having fun?

COLLINS: Yes, slacking off.

HARRIS: A good '07 to you.

COLLINS: The first day of work in 2007.

HARRIS: There you go.

Hey, Heidi, I know you love this. Time to ring the bell.

COLLINS: Yes.

HARRIS: Time to get the business day going.

COLLINS: That's right.

HARRIS: And look, this is the start, really, of the new year for the New York Stock Exchange.

COLLINS: They couldn't do it without me.

HARRIS: They couldn't do it without you.

The folks from Spectra Energy -- I know you like to know who's ringing the bell. A fine company there ringing the bell.

When was Wall Street last open for business? Was that Friday?

COLLINS: Yes.

HARRIS: OK. And the Dow closed -- oh, boy, OK, down 38 points. The Nasdaq down as well. We will follow the business day right here in the NEWSROOM for you.

COLLINS: Witness to the execution. Now a guard who was there when Saddam Hussein was hanged is being questioned about cell phone video that showed the whole thing. An adviser to the prime minister says the man is suspected of recording the execution and getting it on the Internet.

The images are controversial because they show the former dictator actually hanging in death. And there's audio, including voices taunting Hussein just before he died. The official Iraqi government tape of the execution ends as the noose is placed around Hussein's neck and has no audio.

A show of support for Saddam Hussein across Jordan; small demonstrations in support of the former leader have been playing out. Saddam's oldest daughter appearing at one of them on Monday and she may show up at another rally today. She and her sister have been living under political asylum in Jordan since 2003.

HARRIS: The president's new Iraq strategy taking shape according to sources with knowledge of the process. The president also taking steps toward announcing his plans for Iraq. He's meeting with his Cabinet today. We're told his announcement could come early next week. Details now from White House Correspondent Suzanne Malveaux.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, CNN NEWSROOM: You may recall President Bush on Thursday said a number of things have to happen. Before he announces change in tactics to his Iraq policy, consultations with members of Congress, consultations with the Iraqi government.

We're learning now that the president is going to take some of those steps in the days to come. The president, of course, meeting with his Cabinet this morning and then later is when the president will hold a reception for the incoming House, the Senate, the leadership, Democrats and Republicans alike, here at the White House to talk about the year ahead, as well as his deliberations on Iraq.

One senior administration official saying that, in fact, members of Congress will get courtesy calls, about the president's plan, a couple of days prior to the president making his national announcement to the American people. Secondly, we have also been told that while the president, the Bush administration officials continue to reach out to Iraqi officials that the president will go ahead and reach out to Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to tell them about the plan before he makes this national address. That hasn't happened yet.

And then finally, sources are telling us not to expect an announcement or a national address this week, but it is very likely that the president will make that announcement early next week. Again, officials stressing there have been no decisions that have made yet that the president has not signed off on anything yet, including possible troop surge.

But, according to one source, the president is driving toward a conclusion. Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: President Bush pushing his agenda is calling for cooperation in a guest column in "The Wall Street Journal." The president reaches out to Democrats as they take control of Congress tomorrow.

The president writes, quote, "If the Congress chooses to pass bills that are simply political statements, they will have chosen stalemate. If a different approach is taken, the next two years can be fruitful ones for our nation. We can show the American people that Republicans and Democrats can come together to find ways to help make America more secure, prosperous and hopeful society."

The president will expand on those comments for "The Wall Street Journal" in that editorial, this morning, 10:25 a.m. Eastern time from the Rose Garden. We will carry those comments, of course, for you live here in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: January in New England. So, where is the snow? Check this out. Lots of bare ground at Butternut Ski Resort in Massachusetts. See a little bit of the slick ice there. Right now, only three of 21 ski trails are open. And snowmaking machines are working around the clock. It's a problem all across the Northeast this season.

Chad Myers joining us now to tell us more about it.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: A year ago, we were all watching 13 men trapped; only one would get out alive.

COLLINS: It was the tragedy at Sago Mine. Are mines any safer now, though? CNN's Randi Kaye takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT, CNN NEWSROOM (voice over): Six months after 12 miners suffocated to death deep in the Sago Mine, we were told this:

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm going to sign into law the most sweeping overhaul of federal mine safety law in nearly three decades.

KAYE: But what has really changed since Sago? Last year, 47 coal miners died, twice as many as the year before. Have improvements outlined in the Miner Act of 2006 made mines safer?

DENNIS O'DELL, UNITED MINE WORKERS: They haven't moved any closer to giving better technology to miners to give them better protection for their health and safety than what we have. It's just appalling when you stop and think about it.

KAYE: United Mine Workers' Dennis O'Dell says today thousands of miners are still using the same self-rescue air packs he did back in 1977. Many at Sago didn't even work. The new Miner Act requires improved air packs with an extra hour of oxygen. So why haven't they been delivered yet? And why do federal mine regulators accept this?

O'DELL: What operators are doing is they are showing a slip to the agency saying, here's a purchase order, and the agency is looking at the purchase order, and they are considering that to be in compliance with the Miner Act. When in reality, it's nothing more than a piece of paper.

KAYE: The new act also requires wireless tracking systems within three years so rescuers can find trapped miners underground. Inside Sago, miners had no way to contact rescuers. But mine owners say tracking systems are not easy to install. BRUCE WATZMAN, NATIONAL MINING ASSOCIATION: I think people expected too much in terms it of how quickly we could get new technology underground to increase the chances of survivability for miners, in the event of an emergency.

KAYE: And remember the so-called safe room the Sago miners used to seal themselves off after the explosion? The Miner Act also recommends more rescue chambers like that one. Mine operators have asked the government to study the idea first.

WATZMAN: We have to make sure that they are designed properly in the event that there's a secondary explosion.

KAYE (on camera): And after all this time, where are the newly required two-man rescue crews that are supposed to be able to respond within an hour? Watzman says don't expect those until 2008. And the new mine safety inspectors, why are they getting just eight months training, if safety is to be improved, instead of the usual 18 months.

O'DELL: They haven't even received the instructions on ventilation.

KAYE (voice over): No one from the Federal Mining Safety and Health Administration, which enforces mining regulations, was available for comment.

U.S. Mines produced a record amount of coal in 2006 as prices on world markets rose. Former officials say that as pressure grows to get the black stuff out of the ground, years of neglect continue to endanger the lives of miners. Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Pat Robertson says God has spoken directly to him. We'll tell you about his dire predictions for the New Year.

HARRIS: Also, a lesson in hope. Oprah Winfrey opens a girls school in South Africa. A closer look ahead in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: And gone fishing, but he's sure to know when a storm is coming. The forecast for Max Mayfield's retirement. His legacy coming up, in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: An update on a story we told you about last week. Five men now under arrest in Houston; they are accused of stealing more than 150 bags from Bush Intercontinental Airport, and rifling through them for valuables; 68 of the bags were dumped in a trash bin behind a pet store.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPT. RICK BOWNDS, HOUSTON POLICE: In addition to these five suspects, who have been arrested and charged, we have also recovered, at two different locations, over 90 additional pieces of luggage. All the luggage, so far, has been stolen, as it has been transferred from one connecting flight. These were not stolen from the terminals, but were stolen as they were making connections through the secure sections of the airport.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Kind of your worst nightmare, isn't it?

HARRIS: Yeah.

COLLINS: Someone rifling through your stuff. The bags were taken from the transfer area, as you heard him say, which links connecting passengers from every airline. The five suspects all worked for a British company, sub-contracted to work on baggage handling.

HARRIS: Fulfilling a promise in South Africa, Oprah Winfrey opens her school surrounded by students, Hollywood stars, and an extra helping of hope. CNN's Jeff Koinange reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: Hi, everybody. These are my girls.

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT, CNN NEWSROOM (voice over): A dream come true for 152 very lucky girls and also for one very famous talk show host.

Oprah Winfrey cut the ribbon and helped raise the flag of her very own Leadership Academy for girls just outside Johannesburg. And she brought with her a host of Hollywood's finest in both the movie and music industries. From Mariah Carey to Tina Turner, from Chris rock to Chris tucker. And from Spike Lee to Sidney Poitier.

Originally, Oprah committed $10 million. But as her vision grew, so did her contribution to $40 million. And there's no school like it here; a library with a fireplace; a dining room with marble tabletops; an audio/video center, a gym, a wellness center, dormitories and tennis courts. And just 15 girls to a classroom.

That, in a country in which more than one-third of the children don't get a chance even to go to high school. And those who do, often go to schools with few books, facilities, or even bathrooms.

Winfrey aimed to help the poorest here. Only children from homes that earn less than $800 a month are eligible. Winfrey has worked to improve education in the U.S. She says she decided to build in South Africa because she found children here hungrier to learn.

"I became so frustrated with visiting inner-city schools," she said, "that I just stopped going. The sense that you need to learn just isn't there. If you ask the kids what they want or need, they will say an iPod or some sneakers. In South Africa, they don't ask for money or toys. They ask for uniforms so they can go to school.

Oprah promised former President Nelson Mandela that she would build the academy six years ago, after she visited some of South Africa's poorest schools.

NELSON MANDELA, FMR. PRESIDENT OF SOUTH AFRICA: This is unprecedented in South Africa. And we should thank her for providing these young girls with not only specialized education, but life skills that will ensure that they become the best.

KOINANGE: In this once racially divided country, it's not surprising that most of the students are black. But Oprah insists her school is open to everyone, as long as they qualify.

WINFREY: This school is open to all girls who are disadvantaged. All girls, all races, who are disadvantaged.

KOINANGE: And from the girls themselves:

ZAIDA LAWRENCE, STUDENT: I feel excited and happy and --

WINFREY: A little nervous?

LAWRENCE: A bit nervous.

WINFREY: A bit nervous.

MICHELLE CONRADIE, STUDENT: I feel happy and I feel like crying, but crying of happiness. I'm a bit nervous, but not that much.

NOXOLO BUTHELEZI, STUDENT: More than a dream come true, I don't know. It's like a fairy tale.

KOINANGE: Jeff Koinange, CNN, Henley-on-Klip, South Africa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: A family tragedy stuns a nation. A five-year-old girl killed by her uncle's dog. The story ahead in the NEWSROOM.

And this story:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You saved that man's life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It ain't about being a hero, just about being able to be here to help the next person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: A selfless act saves a life. A hero emerges from a New York subway. That story ahead in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: And gone fishin'? But he's sure to know when a storm is coming. That's for sure, the forecast for Max Mayfield is -- retirement. We'll tell you about his legacy. Coming up next, here in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: Heidi, have we talked about the Podcast this morning?

COLLINS: I don't think we have. I think you'd better get on that.

HARRIS: OK.

(LAUGHTER)

Workflow.

(LAUGHTER)

HARRIS: You already know to catch us weekday mornings from 9:00 a.m. until noon Eastern, right here in the NEWSROOM.

There's a look at everyone. Did you know you can take us with you anywhere on your iPod? The CNN NEWSROOM Podcast. That's available 24/7 on your iPod.

COLLINS: When it comes to hurricanes, he's been the voice of authority for more than 30 years. But today, Max Mayfield steps down as director of the National Hurricane Center. As our Jacqui Jeras reports, he leaves quite a legacy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAX MAYFIELD, NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER: Get into that inner room, with no windows.

Prepare, prepare, prepare.

You need to board up your windows.

Get out. Baton down the hatches.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST (voice over): Katrina, Andrew, Hugo, not the names of colleagues he will miss, but of the most notorious storms Max Mayfield warned us about in his three-decade career.

JERAS: Is Katrina going to be one of the things you remember most about your time at the Hurricane Center?

MAYFIELD: If you were to ask which season is the most memorable one, that would certainly be the 2005 hurricane season, with all the records that were broken. The one storm that I'll remember more than anything else, obviously, would be Katrina.

JERAS: Katrina was a defining moment for Mayfield. He had the ear of the president during a time of national crises. And says his team's forecast was right on, amid controversy over the federal response.

MAYFIELD: I think it's admitted by all that there were some failures, and failures at all levels of government. You don't want the federal government to come in and be a first responder. The locals know the local area better than anybody.

JERAS: In 30 years, Mayfield worked more than 900 named storms; 500 hurricanes, and 200 major hurricanes, one for each line on this map.

(On camera): What do you love about your job?

MAYFIELD: You feel like you do some good every now and then, with a land-falling hurricane. It's all about saving lives and getting people to respond. And it's not just about the forecasting. You really -- you want to change the outcome, and in the hurricane program that means cut down on the loss of life.

JERAS (voice over): Growing up in stormy Oklahoma, Mayfield was fascinated with the weather. His forecasting career began in 1970 when he joined the Air Force. Two years later, Mayfield took a job at the Hurricane Center, and met the other love of his life, wife Linda was his mentor's daughter.

LINDA MAYFIELD, WIFE: He was just kind of a friend of my dad's, but we went fishing -- I was in college -- and we went fishing one spring break, and that's when he kind of, you know, became more than just a friend.

If it weren't for my dad, I don't think we'd be together.

MAYFIELD: She embarrassed me, she caught a lot more fish than I did that day.

(LAUGHTER)

JERAS: Mayfield says he plans to spend more time fishing after he leaves his post. But quitting his job won't silence his message.

MAYFIELD: We want every individual, every family, every business, and every community to have a hurricane plan that you can execute, and have that plan in place before the hurricane season even gets here. We're just going to have to learn to live with hurricanes. They're not going to stop coming.

JERAS: And while Mayfield's stormiest days are behind him, he warns the worst hurricane in history is yet to be named. Jacqui Jeras, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And how about this story today. A quick thinking New Yorker, the talk of a town today. The scene, a busy subway station in Manhattan. Wesley Autrey dove onto the tracks to help a teenager, who had fallen. Autrey rolled the teen into a trench between the rails, as the rain roared over them. Neither Autrey nor the teen was hit.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) WESLEY AUTREY, SUBWAY HERO: This train is coming. I was trying to pull him up, but you know, his weight, plus he was fighting against me. He didn't know who I was.

The only thing that popped in my mind was like, OK, well, go for the gutter. So I dove in, I pinned him down once the first car ran over us, my first thing then was just keep him still.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Man! Authorities say a medical problem apparently caused the teen to fall on to the tracks. He is hospitalized in stable condition.

Still to come -- Saddam Hussein, unauthorized. The Iraqis questioning a guard about these cell phone images. Execution outrage across the Arab world, coming soon in the NEWSROOM.

Livestock looking for a blizzard bail-out. Choppers dropping hay again today for stranded cattle in Colorado, in the NEWSROOM.

And here come the Dems. Congress prepares for a power shift. What can we expect as Democrats take control. NPR's Political junkie joins us straight ahead, Ken Rudin, joins us, straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Delicate separation surgery today. Five-month-old conjoined twins Abygail and Madysen Fitterer (ph) are connected at the chest. Doctors at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, will try to separate the girls, and reconstruct their chest walls. The surgical team, and the girls parents, say they are hopeful.

HARRIS: A message from God? That's what religious broadcaster Pat Robertson is calling it. He says God has told him a terrorist attack on the United States would result in mass killing late in 2007. Robertson tells his TV talk show "The 700 Club" that, quote, "The Lord didn't say nuclear, but I do believe it will be something like that."

Robertson's predictions have become something of a New Year tradition. He says he has a pretty good track record, but also points out he's had a few misses.

COLLINS: Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris. Spend a second hour in the NEWSROOM this morning and stay informed. Here's what's on the run down.

The president, charting strategy with his Cabinet, a day before the Democrats charge Capitol Hill. We'll hear from President Bush live this hour.

COLLINS: A security guard facing questions about these cell phone images. Saddam Hussein taunted on the gallows, anger and disgust in Iraq. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com