Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Bush Iraq Plan; Hussein's Execution; Who is Harry Reid?
Aired January 03, 2007 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody, Wednesday, January 3rd.
I'm Soledad O'Brien.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm John Roberts, in for Miles O'Brien.
Thanks for joining us on this Wednesday morning. Good to see you around.
O'BRIEN: Let's begin with President Bush's New Year push. And here's what's new this morning.
The president is out with his own op-ed in "The Wall Street Journal" outlining his priorities before Democrats take control of Congress tomorrow. And he says he's going to address the nation in the days ahead about a new strategy in Iraq.
In Iraq, the U.S. Army is announcing the death of a soldier killed by a roadside bomb. The American death toll now stands at 3,004.
And new this morning, two Iraqi officials convicted alongside Saddam Hussein will be executed early tomorrow. That's according to Iraqi media.
Complete coverage this morning of all those stories.
We're going to begin with Kathleen Koch. She's at the White House.
We've got Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon, and Arwa Damon is in Baghdad.
Kathleen, good morning.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
And you mentioned that very interesting forum that the president has chosen to reach out to Congress, to this now Democratically- controlled Congress. And what the president does is basically runs down a laundry list of issues that he would like to see addressed.
And he reminds Democrats that if nothing is accomplished, they, indeed, will bear some of the responsibility, saying, "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 make America a more secure, prosperous and hopeful society."
As for coming together, the president will be doing just that this evening when he hosts top members of Congress and their spouses at a White House reception. The White House says it is primarily a social occasion, but there is expected to be plenty of time to discuss the president's new strategy in Iraq that he's still putting the finishing touches on.
Many members of Congress very concerned about this talk about the possibility of a surge of as many as 20,000 troops into the Baghdad area in particular, but National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe says, "The president has not made any decisions."
Now, on the president's schedule today, he's meeting with his cabinet, followed by a statement in the Rose Garden. And that is expected to focus on the president's hope to rein in congressional spending by obtaining the line item veto power and ending those congressional earmarks, that pork barrel spending -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Kathleen Koch for us this morning.
Thanks, Kathleen -- John.
KOCH: You bet.
ROBERTS: The mystery is intensifying about just who took that cell phone video of Saddam Hussein's final moments. The name of Iraq's national security adviser has been floated as a possible suspect. He was at the execution. But earlier, he told AMERICAN MORNING that he did not take that video. In fact, didn't even have a cell phone in his possession.
CNN's Arwa Damon is in Baghdad, joins us now live.
Arwa, the government is launching an investigation about what happened at the execution now?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, that's right. It is. And let us not underestimate the significance of this grainy cell phone video that came out showing uncensored Saddam Hussein's final moments, including Shia chants that took place in the seconds before he tumbled to his death, that have angered moderate Sunnis, as well as other Iraqis and people across the entire nation here.
Now, Mowaffak al-Rubaie, as you just mentioned, Iraq's national security adviser, was one of the senior Iraq officials present. He has denied that any Iraq officials were, in fact, carrying cell phones at the execution, saying that as far as he was aware, it was only the guards that were carrying cell phones, and adding that he did not know who had shot that cell phone footage.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MOWAFFAK AL-RUBAIE, IRAQI NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: I did not see anyone who was doing this video, but when we arrived to the scene, we had seen quite a few people who we cannot account for. And other than the execution team that were present there, and there may -- I mean, I had seen at least three or four people who were doing this still camera and video camera that were recording.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAMON: Now, contradicting Dr. al-Rubaie's report is the prosecutor, Mokat Faron (ph), who was also present at the execution. He is standing by his earlier comments that it was, in fact, two Iraqi officials -- he is not sure of their identities -- who were carrying those cell phones and not the guards who took the footage of Saddam Hussein's final moments -- John.
ROBERTS: Arwa, what Rubaie said there, that there were some people who had come into the execution chamber, nobody knew who they were. An event this important, with that much security, is it likely that somebody could have infiltrated?
DAMON: Well, John, the Iraqi government would like to say that it is not likely. They would like to say that they had the situation under control. The U.S. military at that point in time had handed Saddam Hussein over to Iraqi custody.
If, in fact, the execution of Saddam Hussein was infiltrated by outsiders, that is an issue of huge embarrassment to the Iraqi government. This is arguably one of the more significant events to take place under Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's watch.
Regardless of who shot this footage, though, John, the implications and how it's playing out on the Iraqi streets are undeniable. The execution of Saddam Hussein will forever be viewed now, because of the that footage, because of the audio that we heard on it, as an act of Shia revenge.
ROBERTS: Arwa Damon for us live from Baghdad this morning.
Arwa, thanks, as always -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Stark predictions coming from a U.S. general in Baghdad. In a briefing just this morning, Major General William Caldwell told reporters that 2007 is going to be a tough year in Iraq.
CNN's Jamie McIntyre is at the Pentagon with more on this story.
Jamie, good morning.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
Well, you know, among those anxiously awaiting what decision President Bush will make about a new strategy in Iraq are U.S. commanders in Iraq, particularly lower level commanders. But one thing that those commanders seem to agree on is, whatever the strategy is, whether it involves a surge of troops or something else, it has to be a strategy that enables the Iraqis to take over in 2007.
Here's Major General Bill Caldwell.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAJ. GEN. WILLIAM CALDWELL, SPOKESMAN, MULTINATIONAL FORCE, IRAQ: We open 2007 facing significant challenges. Iraq's security forces must not only continue to improve their capabilities, but must also work to gain the confidence of all Iraqi people. The government of Iraq and the council of representatives will have to rise above past divisions and work to realize the people's desire for unity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCINTYRE: The other thing that U.S. commanders told me on my recent trip to Baghdad late last year was that, whatever the strategy is, it needs to involve Iraqi troops. If there's a surge of troops, perhaps as many as five U.S. brigades -- that would be somewhat over 20,000 troops -- they need to be coupled with Iraqi troops as well. And perhaps, they think most importantly, it also has to be linked to reconstruction and, importantly, jobs for Iraqis. Many U.S. commanders feel that's the key to success in Iraq in 2007 -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Jamie McIntyre for us this morning.
Thanks, Jamie, for the update.
Happening this morning, former President Gerald Ford, the body will be laid to rest on the grounds of his presidential museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It's going to happen, actually, later today. The museum was kept open though through the night so that mourners could pay their final respects.
In Indonesia, the search is shifting to sea for that airliner that disappeared on Monday in stormy weather. Three Americans were among the 102 people on board that short flight from Java to a nearby island.
Now, early reports claimed that the plane's wreckage had been found, that 12 people had survived the crash. It turns out that those reports were false.
And Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is expected to join the 2008 presidential race today. He's going to file papers with the Federal Election Commission that allows him to start fund-raising. He'll join Arizona senator John McCain and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani in their bids to be Republican nominee -- John.
ROBERTS: When the new Congress convenes tomorrow, the 110th Congress, Democratic senator Harry Reid of Nevada will assume his post as the most powerful man in the Senate.
Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash is live now on Capitol Hill.
And Dana, you went back with Reid in his hometown in Searchlight, Nevada.
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. You know, since the election, John, much of the attention has been on the House, where the first woman is going to be speaker. But for Democrats to turn their agenda into law, that's going to depend largely on the man who will run the Senate.
And as you said, Harry Reid invited us to his home in Nevada. And what you'll learn about him may surprise you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH (voice over): Searchlight, Nevada, a dried-up mining town, a relic of the Wild West. A truck stop 55 miles from Las Vegas. Most of the 800 residents live in trailers.
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), INCOMING MAJORITY LEADER: Welcome to Searchlight.
BASH (on camera): Thank you.
(voice over): The one house belongs to new Senate majority leader Harry Reid, shaped and scarred in Searchlight.
REID: I'm a pessimist in everything in life. That way I have fewer disappointments.
BASH: In the distance of this vast property, a mine where his father worked. Pinky, young Harry's nickname, would keep dad company.
REID: It was hard to making a living. And the man that my dad worked for a lot of times wouldn't pay him or would give him bad checks that would bounce.
BASH: The memories can hurt.
REID: My parents both drank a lot, and I was always so glad when they were broke because they couldn't afford stuff then.
BASH: School ended in eighth grade, so Reid hitchhiked 42 miles for high school, went to college with a collection from the locals.
REID: Even though I was raised here, my mother always was able to instill in me that I was as good as anybody else.
BASH: To tour Searchlight is to find scars, like where his 58- year-old father shot himself to death.
REID: This house right here, that last room is a bedroom. That's where he killed himself.
BASH: The senator from Nevada fights for Sin City but doesn't gamble or drink. A square-looking guy who listens to hip songs on his iPod.
(on camera): Cowboy Junkies. REID: You know the Cowboy Junkies?
BASH (voice over): And how does he keep up with music? Get this...
(on camera): Did I read that you're a "People" magazine reader?
REID: Yes. I love "People" magazine.
BASH (voice over): Harry Reid sums himself up this way...
REID: Isn't Kris Kristofferson -- his song, "He's a walking contradiction?"
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: A walking contradiction. And another thing many people don't realize about Harry Reid is that he's a Mormon. He and his Jewish-born wife converted to that religion after they got married right out of -- right out of high school. And he will be the highest- ranking Mormon in U.S. political history.
He told us, John, that he's well aware of how controversial his religion is. He says people just need to understand it better.
ROBERTS: Right. And a "People" magazine reader as well.
BASH: Can you believe it? He says he gets five magazines. The first magazine he reads is "People."
ROBERTS: Well, you know, as a Time Warner property, I guess we've got to salute that.
Thanks very much, Dana.
BASH: Absolutely.
ROBERTS: All right -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, we've got some big breaking news from Home Depot, business news for you straight ahead. Ali is going to update that for us.
Also. the chief justice of the Supreme Court out with an unusual ruling, trying to get a pay raise for federal judges. We'll tell you why he thinks a constitutional crisis is looming.
And Botox, it's not just for wrinkles anymore. Dr. Sanjay Gupta says it's also helping stroke victims. We'll update that story as well.
We're back in a moment. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Welcome back. We've got some breaking business news to tell you about coming out of Home Depot. Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business."
Good morning, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
We're just getting this confirmed by Home Depot. Bob Nardelli has resigned as chairman, CEO and president of the company by mutual agreement, according to the press release from the company. It is effective immediately.
Bob Nardelli, as you know, has had a very rough year. He is one of the most highly compensated CEOs, including -- including a provision in his contract which allows for a guaranteed bonus, something I've been puzzling over for some time.
He's been the company's CEO since 2002. They had a disastrous annual meeting earlier this year where they did not take questions from shareholders about the company and none of the board members showed up. They subsequently apologized for that. There's been some stock option investigation going on in the company.
Generally speaking, there's been a lot of criticism of the management of Home Depot. A gentleman named Frank Blake, who's been the vice chair, will take over immediately as president and chairman of the company.
There's something to be worked out here, however. There's an immediate cash payment of $20 million going to Bob Nardelli, and something that the company refers to as acceleration of unvested stock awards of $77 million.
So he's not going out with a whimper, one way or the other. But Bob Nardelli resigning from Home Depot. The stock is up over 6 percent in pre-market trading on this news -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Wow, and he walks out the door with $20 million.
VELSHI: That's the least of it, yes.
O'BRIEN: Yes, wow. All right. Thanks, Ali, for the update.
VELSHI: OK.
O'BRIEN: If you're about to walk out the door -- maybe not with $20 million -- but if you want to know the traveler's forecast, Chad Myers has got that. It's a quarter past the hour.
Hey, Chad. Good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I've got -- I've got a $20.
(LAUGHTER)
O'BRIEN: I can come up with $5 somewhere. Twenty million dollars?
MYERS: It's the rest of the $40 my wife gave me for the whole week.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: All right. Thanks, Chad.
U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts is sounding the alarm that federal judges must be paid more. Roberts says Congress' failure to raise their salaries has become, in his words, "A constitutional crisis that threatens to undermine the strength and independence of the federal judiciary."
It sounds like serious stuff.
Our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, is weighing in.
Jeffrey...
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Excuse me, his title is "The Other John Roberts." This is the real John Roberts. We refer to him at CNN as "The Other John Roberts." OK.
ROBERTS: I stopped doing that a long time ago.
But what's he talking about here? How poorly are they paid? I mean, are they in poverty?
TOOBIN: We're talking about, in terms of the legal profession, it's federal trial judges -- and that's what this is really about -- make about $165,000 a year. And appeals court judges make $175,000. Supreme Court justices make about $200,000.
The -- what's become...
ROBERTS: There's the stats right there.
TOOBIN: There are the stats right there.
ROBERTS: And Roberts himself makes $212,000.
TOOBIN: $212,000.
There's no shortage of Supreme Court justices. There will always be plenty of applicants for those jobs.
What's really been the big issue is trial court judges. There are about 400 of them. And in terms of the legal profession, most law clerks, or many law clerks, when they leave their judges chambers -- these are like 26-year-old kids -- wind up making more than their judges almost immediately.
That's what's happened in the legal profession. And what's been particularly interesting, the results of that, is it leads to the kind of people who become federal judges, which has really transformed.
ROBERTS: Yes. So what's the danger here that he's -- that he's wondering about?
TOOBIN: Well, what he's really concerned about is not so much judges leaving. It's the kind of people who will become judges.
It used to be that people left private practice and became federal judges. What's happened now is it's been -- a shift has gone on that many more -- a greater percentage -- I think we have a graphic about this -- says -- come out of the public sector.
ROBERTS: 1950s...
TOOBIN: Sixty percent of judges become -- come from the public sector.
ROBERTS: Yes. And look at how that's changed from the 1950s.
TOOBIN: The '50s. I mean, it's a dramatic change. And it just shows their salaries are commensurate with public sector salaries. They're just not -- not anything like private sector salaries. And so the talent pool that federal judges are drawing on is just much smaller.
ROBERTS: Now, in this year-end brief that he wrote, he says 38 judges have left, I think, in the last six years, 17 in the last two. But he doesn't say they all left because of the poor pay.
TOOBIN: He doesn't. And no one can really say exactly why any judge left, but the interesting thing is what he left out of his report, is that Republicans in Congress over the last 12 years have tied judicial salaries to congressional salaries.
Republicans generally don't like federal judges very much. So what they have done essentially is hold the judges hostage to their own pay raises.
ROBERTS: Right.
TOOBIN: Their own pay raises -- it's very hard for Congress to vote its own salary out. That's always controversial. But the judges now can't move. What -- what Roberts is trying to do quietly and what several Supreme Court justices are trying to do quietly is to try to uncouple federal judicial salaries and congressional salaries.
ROBERTS: And obviously this is a big, big signal to the 110th Congress, Democratically-controlled Congress, which may be more amenable for raising salaries?
TOOBIN: They have been more amenable. John Conyers, the new chairman of the Judiciary Committee in the House, Pat Leahy, the new chairman of the Judiciary Committee in the Senate, have been much more amenable to this. But it's going to be a negotiation both with the Republicans and with the White House. But it does seem like this very high-profile statement by the chief justice may have an impact. ROBERTS: Well, we'll see what happens. And there will be a little something extra in your packet at the end of the week for that great report.
(CROSSTALK)
TOOBIN: Maybe Bob Nardelli is going to share some of that $20 million with me.
ROBERTS: Thanks very much. I think Chad is going to share some of his $20.
(LAUGHTER)
O'BRIEN: That's much more likely, guys.
TOOBIN: That's much more likely.
O'BRIEN: Election bombshell to tell you about, from a few decades ago, anyway. A former Democratic powerhouse is revealing a secret just about how much he trusted President Ford.
And a popular televangelist makes a dire prediction. Pat Robertson says God has warned him of an attack that's coming.
We'll tell you about that straight ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Evangelist Pat Robertson making headlines with a dire prediction for the new year. On Tuesday's edition of his show, "The 700 Club," Robertson told viewers that God spoke to him at a recent prayer retreat and gave him an ominous warning.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAT ROBERTSON, HOST, "THE 700 CLUB": Evil men, evil people, are going to try to do evil things to us and to others during the last part of this year. I don't know whether it will be in the fall or September or later on, but it will be the second half somehow of 2007. There will be some very serious terrorist attacks.
I'm not saying necessarily nuclear. The lord didn't say nuclear, but I do believe it will be something like that, that will be mass killing, possibly millions of people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: He said that will happen in the U.S.
ROBERTS: Let's hope not.
O'BRIEN: Now, as you may know, he has made predictions before. Back in 2004, he predicted that President Bush would easily win re- election. Well, it depends on what your definition of easily is, because the president won 51 percent of the vote.
ROBERTS: That was pretty easy these days.
O'BRIEN: He predicted that Social Security reform would be approved -- would be approved back in 2005. That was his prediction. Not. It didn't happen.
ROBERTS: OK. One and one.
O'BRIEN: He predicted that President Bush would nominate conservative judges to the federal courts.
I could make that prediction for you.
ROBERTS: Well, yes.
O'BRIEN: Not exactly going out on a limb, but he was right about that. Alito and John Roberts, the other John Roberts, were nominated to the Supreme Court.
So -- so I'm not sure that counts as a good track record or a bad track record.
ROBERTS: Well, he's two and one so far. Let's hope he doesn't go -- let's hope he doesn't go three and one.
VELSHI: Well, if you believe him, then my next story is, you know, something you've got to think about.
ROBERTS: And what is the next story, million-dollar apartments and million-dollar trailers?
VELSHI: Yes.
ROBERTS: Twenty-five after the hour, and Ali Velshi is here.
What's that all about.
VELSHI: Well, you won't want to overinvest in property if you think, you know, bad things are going to happen, but right now the average price for an apartment in New York -- and we all live in apartments here -- is a million dollars. That is new.
The median price, the price -- you know, half the apartments sell for more and half sell for less -- is $760,000. Both of those are up from last year.
The average price per square foot in Manhattan is now $1050. And these recent Wall Street bonuses we've been talking about are probably going to do nothing but bolster that for those of you here in Manhattan.
Now, trailers for a million bucks. Down in Florida, there's a place called Briny Breezes. We probably have a map that has a picture of this. Briny Breezes is an old...
ROBERTS: Briny Breezes?
VELSHI: Briny Breezes.
O'BRIEN: Briny Breezes?
VELSHI: There it is.
ROBERTS: They'll be changing the name of that.
VELSHI: Old waterfront trailer park. You know, people used to go down there in the '50s and then in the '60s. And they bought up these trailer parks and it became a bit of a community, but it's still a trailer park.
Four hundred and eighty-eight people live there, and there's a development company that wants to -- wants to do something on it. It's got 600 feet of ocean property, 1,000 feet of intercoastal waterway.
ROBERTS: Ooh.
VELSHI: And they want to build 900 units, low-rise condominiums, a high-end marina, and a 300-room luxury hotel. And basically, everybody there is going to get about a million bucks or more for their trailers.
Two-thirds of the folks on the property have to agree to this by January the 10th. Some people are holding out, but I suspect most of them will go for it.
ROBERTS: Wow, that's a big piece of change for a trailer.
VELSHI: Yes. I mean, we've only seen reports of people who have paid sort of up to a couple hundred thousand dollars for their property there. So...
ROBERTS: It's a whole new meaning to the old Dan Ratherism of betting the doublewide.
VELSHI: You can sell -- if you can sell the doublewide, you can move to a Manhattan apartment.
ROBERTS: Thanks, Ali.
Top stories of the morning coming up, including a surprising benefit of Botox. Dr. Sanjay Gupta tells us all about that.
Plus, the only state in America that allows same-sex marriage moves a step closer to possibly reversing course.
We'll have a live report ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Breaking news out of Iraq this morning. A man's in custody in connection to the unauthorized cell phone videotape that was taken at Saddam Hussein's execution.
ROBERTS: A new benefit from Botox, how the wrinkle reducer is now helping some stroke victims live fuller lives.
O'BRIEN: And all the right moves. She was cheering for him. Now we're cheering for both of them, as the football hero has popped the question moments after he won the big game. The happy couple is going to join us on this AMERICAN MORNING.
Welcome back, everybody.
That's so sweet. They're sweet. He's sweet.
ROBERTS: One of those great moments.
O'BRIEN: It's a really great moment. We're going to talk to them, sit down and find out how it all transpired in just a little bit.
First though, it's January 3rd, Wednesday morning. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
ROBERTS: And I'm John Roberts in for Miles O'Brien this week. Thanks very much for joining us.
Let's get right now to the breaking news just in from Iraq, a guard at Saddam Hussein's execution has been detained in connection with the video showing the execution. Let's get right to CNN's Arwa Damon in Baghdad. Arwar, what's the latest on this?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, according to (INAUDIBLE) one of the advisers to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al- Maliki, the Iraqi government has arrested the individual whom they believe shot that highly controversial cell phone footage and distributed it both on websites and across television stations.
The Iraqi government has only identified him as being one of the guards who was at the site. That means that he was not one of the individuals who was brought specifically for this execution, but one of the usual guards that secures the facility where Saddam Hussein was hanged by the Iraqi government.
Now, there has been much controversy surrounding the cell phone footage. If you remember, the footage that the Iraqi government released ended with the noose being placed around Saddam Hussein's neck and had no audio.
Then we saw the release of the cell phone footage that was uncensored and had audio, showing Saddam Hussein being taunted by Shia chants in the final moments before he tumbled to his death.
There has been much controversy surrounding, a, how this could have happened, as well as who was able to film this footage and distribute it.
Still details emerging, but we do now know from the Iraqi government is that one individual has been detained. It is believed that he is the man who took that footage and distributed it -- John.
ROBERTS: All right. Arwa Damon for us live from Baghdad with the latest on that case. Arwa, thanks very much -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: President Bush is preparing to address the American people about his new plan for Iraq. Formal announcement coming in the next few days. He's going to have a statement from the Rose Garden this morning, though, at 10:25 a.m. Eastern time.
CNN's Kathleen Koch is following the latest developments for us. Kathleen, good morning. She is at the White House.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad. The president is taking a three-pronged approach today really focusing on reaching out to Congress.
First of all, with a op-ed piece in the "Wall Street Journal," he lists the issues he'd like to accomplish. And then really draws a line in the sand saying, 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 people that Republicans and Democrats can come together to find ways to help make America a secure, prosperous, and hopeful society."
Then this morning, after a Cabinet meeting, president Bush goes to the Rose Garden for a statement. Spokesperson Emily (INAUDIBLE) Moore says it will have along the same tone as the "Wall Street Journal" article.
The president will talk about his priorities, how he hopes to accomplish them. He'll talk also about the new Congress. And the president in that article said that he was going to announce today a new plan to end pork barrel spending, eliminate those pesky congressional earmarks.
And finally tonight, the president will have a reception here at the White House for top members of Congress and their spouses. It's expected he'll spend quite a bit of time talking about the president's much-anticipated plan for Iraq. That new strategy expected to come next week, though the White House insists this is supposed to be largely a social occasion tonight -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Kathleen Koch for us at the White House. Thanks Kathleen -- John.
ROBERTS: They turned themselves in, but they say there is much more to their side of the story. Seven police officers in New Orleans face charges of murder and attempted murder from that deadly shooting on the Danziger Bridge in the chaotic days after Hurricane Katrina.
AMERICAN MORNING's Sean Callebs is live in New Orleans. He's on the Danziger Bridge with the very latest for us. And Sean, a real show of support for the Danziger Seven from their fellow officers yesterday. SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, without question. These are officers who involved in a shooting that happened 16 months ago. They were just indicted this past week.
Now, yesterday they made their way to a facility to be photographed, fingerprinted and jailed. But as they made their way to that site, they were greeted by scores of New Orleans police officers and supporters who cheered them as heroes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CALLEBS (voice-over): A wall of blue support as the Danziger Seven surrendered to authorities. An indication of how this highly charged case is playing out more than 16 months after Katrina devastated New Orleans.
Six current New Orleans officers and one former policeman turned themselves in, charged with murder or attempted murder in the shooting deaths of two men on the Danziger Bridge in the chaotic aftermath of the hurricane. Four other citizens were wounded. Many who wear a badge think the accused officers are being railroaded.
OFFICER BILLY MIMMS, CITY PARK POLICE: I'm with another department, but I'm glad to support these officers because it can happen to one of us, it could happen to me.
CALLEBS: Others contend the cops are cold-blooded killers.
It was September 4, 2005, just days after the levees gave way unleashing a wave of looting and lawlessness. Police, responding to a call that an officer was down near Danziger Bridge, shot and killed Ronald Madison, a 40-year-old mentally retarded man.
The coroner says he was hit seven times, five in the back. 19- year-old James Purcet (ph) was also killed. Police say they fired when Madison reached into his waistband, they also arrested his 50- year-old brother Lance, alleging he he tossed a gun into the canal. The case against him were dropped and he was released. Lance Madison contends the killings were unprovoked.
LANCE MADISON, BROTHER KILLED BY POLICE: The story they made up, alibis to cover theirself. I didn't have no weapon at all. My brother didn't have no weapon. We were trying to get rescued.
CALLEBS: Both shooting victims were black and the Reverend Al Sharpton claims race is an issue. Attorneys for the defendants say that's ridiculous.
FRANK DESALVO, POLICE ATTORNEY: Four of the seven officers are black. I think the Reverend Sharpton can't count or he can't see color.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CALLEBS: Lance Madison has filed a civil lawsuit against the officers and the city in connection with the death of his brother. And Madison's attorney says in no way is race a factor in this case. And in his words, he wants outside influences to stay out of this issue and as he went on to say, let justice run its course -- John.
ROBERTS: Sean, are some of these officers making bail?
CALLEBS: Yes, at least one we know of has made bail. It was $100,000 bail for the attempted murder charge. The other two have indicated they're going to try to make bail today. The problem yesterday, the banks were closed. The others four charged with first- degree murder are set to be arraigned on Friday and right now they have no bond set.
ROBERTS: Sean Callebs from New Orleans for us this morning. Sean thanks very much.
In this morning's "House Call," millions of Americans use botox to help reduce wrinkles. Now it's being used to help stroke victims. Chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta joins us from the CNN Center in Atlanta with details. What's up, Sanjay?
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning John. I've been fascinated by this story. A lot of people know of botox obviously for cosmetic reasons, but that wasn't the first use for botox actually.
And now they're finding increasing uses for botox, specifically to try and help people who have been paralyzed or very weakened by a stroke, to try and get them moving again.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA (voice-over): In a matter of minutes you go from healthy to disabled, a life of canes and wheelchairs.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you have a stroke like I did, you have have half a body. I didn't want to spend my life in a wheelchair.
GUPTA: It's called disabling spazticity, affecting as many as four in ten stoke survivors. It can mean a life of constant discomfort, pain, a loss of independence.
EDWARD ROSA, STROKE SURVIVOR: Lots of stroke patients have fists clenched so tight that their nails dig into their palm, for instance, and that causes them a great deal of pain.
GUPTA: As you see here, in a stroke, blood flow to the brain is disrupted, brain cells die, and the connections between the brain and the muscles malfunction.
A clenched fist or foot often means that neurons are constantly firing and muscles cannot stop clenching. Since his stroke in 2000, Rosa tried everything to get moving again -- medications, acupuncture, bio feedback. Nothing worked, until he tried botox.
ROSA: Most people think botox is a cosmetic thing, and they don't realize that it's a muscle relaxer. DR. ELIE ELOVIC, KESSLER MED. REHAB RESEARCH: For, you know, a period of months, it will cut the connection between the muscle in the area you injected.
GUPTA: Today it's best known for its cosmetic uses to reduce wrinkles. But Botox was originally used to treat disabling neurological diseases. Botox temporarily blocks nerve cells from sending impulses to the muscles, basically smoothing out the muscle under your skin.
ROSA: It's a tool. I can't stress that enough. Botox is a tool. It enables you to exercise, to function.
GUPTA: A very effective tool. In a study of 279 patients, almost half saw improvement.
ELOVIC: The real functional improvement has already been demonstrated with botox.
GUPTA: Older oral muscle relaxing medications often brought on uncomfortable side effects all over the body. So far, botox has few drawbacks -- possible muscle weakness, flu-like symptoms, headaches, possible allergic response. Typically patients are given doses every three months to avoid resistance.
A simple task like taking off the cap on this pen and writing, previously impossible. In fact, Ed Rosa now drives himself to work every day and has even thrown out his wheelchair. He still undergoes therapy for four hours every week and exercises on his own.
ROSA: You don't have to be a burden to your family. It enables you to do things like dress yourself, shower yourself.
GUPTA: It's not a miracle treatment, but it is a world of difference for patients with limited options.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: It is really amazing to see Edward Rosa walking around like that as well. Limited options as well. You have to use botox with other treatments such as physical therapy. It's not going to be a panacea, but, again, a new sort of treatment for people who didn't have much hope before, John.
ROBERTS: Sanjay, is there a window of opportunity where the botox works best if you get to it sooner, you have a better outcome?
GUPTA: Yes, it does appear to work better if it's actually given earlier. They don't know how far out it might work, but you do see improvements in people who have had strokes up to 18 months afterwards, so you do have a window of time to use botox and other therapies as well.
ROBERTS: And how many people do you think this could benefit?
GUPTA: It could potentially be for millions of people. As Edward sort of talked about, the fact that half of his body was essentially paralyzed. That's unfortunately what it's like for a lot of stroke victims out there. This is an option to try and get some of the muscles moving again.
There are millions of people like that in this country and certainly around the world as well John.
ROBERTS: Now, botox treatments for cosmetic purposes are pretty expensive, anywhere between $400 and $800 for a single course. Is this the sort of thing that would be covered by insurance?
GUPTA: It looks like it is. We did investigating on that, and it looks like it would cover for insurance for this particular indication -- for strokes. And keep in mind, it's probably cheaper, although expensive, it's probably cheaper than some of the other options people have in terms of extended therapy as well, you know, to try to get them moving. So, I think it's going to be covered, at least for most, most insurance plans.
ROBERTS: Interesting stuff. Sanjay Gupta, thanks very much.
GUPTA: Thanks John.
ROBERTS: Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Well, here's a story of a guy who had all the right moves both on and off the field, a Boise State player gets a big hand from the crowd and also gets a more important hand, a hand of the girl he loves. I love this story.
ROBERTS: Did he get the game ball though, that's the question.
O'BRIEN: You know what, I bet he did. We're going to meet the engaged couple that everybody is now cheering for, coming up next.
Jeanne Moos is ringing in some old favorites. The brick, remember that? The brick cell phone? She's going to bring back the brick. When AMERICAN MORNING returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: It's only January 3rd, but sports fans may have already seen the game of the year. Monday night's Fiesta Bowl was an instant classic. Underdog Boise State used a couple of dramatic trick plays to defeat Oklahoma in overtime. Final score was 43-42. And then the team's star running back Ian Johnson made one of his very best moves after the game actually.
Look at this, on his knees proposing to his girlfriend, the cheerleading captain Chrissy Popadics on national television. The big hug followed, so we're going to assume she said yes.
The couple joins us this morning. Nice to see you both. Congratulations to you. We've just been watching this videotape over and over and over. Is it a little strange?
IAN JOHNSON, BOISE ST. RUNNING BACK: Yes, I mean, it's the first time I've actually heard it because we were so close to the fans, I couldn't even hear myself speak, so I hoped I got it all out right.
O'BRIEN: It sounds like you got it all out right.
CHRISSY POPADICS: I didn't hear it, so.
O'BRIEN: You didn't hear a thing he was saying. Tell me what happened first. You do this conversion play, which I don't know anything about football, but the bottom line is you won the game. Big play, everybody is cheering, in front of 70,000 fans and a couple of million people watching on TV, you decide to get down on your knees and propose. What was going through your mind, why then?
JOHNSON: I had actually talked to one of the liaisons for our team. He was just like, hey, you know, we're at the (INAUDIBLE) why don't you become an MVP, do something cool, get national TV and then do it on national TV for everybody.
I said, well, everything would have to work out perfectly, but next thing you know, the guy is like, hey we're national in five seconds. I was like, did you say national because if you said national, I got something big to do.
O'BRIEN: And?
JOHNSON: The next thing you know, I'm on a knee as uncomfortable as I've ever been.
O'BRIEN: Really? So, what were the words can you share them?
JOHNSON: I believe I said ...
POPADICS: Let me hear it.
JOHNSON: Christine, w-will you marry me.
O'BRIEN: You were shaking, you were so nervous. Did you hear any of that?
POPADICS: I saw his lips move. I saw marry me. I was in shock.
O'BRIEN: And he was on his knees, so you were like, what are you doing, honey? Did you hesitate at all just from being you know, freaked out?
POPADICS: Of course. And the guy (INAUDIBLE) put the mic up and said, so what's your answer? I'm, like, yes, of course.
O'BRIEN: You weren't concerned at that moment that few seconds lag, that she was, like, hmm, let me think about this.
JOHNSON: I was more worried that they were going to turn away and be, like, well, we didn't get an answer, so. Because she's, like, uh, uh, uh. Please say something.
O'BRIEN: But all turned out perfectly. You said yes. Now, you're both sophomores, is that right?
JOHNSON: I'm a sophomore. She's actually a junior.
O'BRIEN: You're a junior, so what's the plan now?
JOHNSON: Well we both, sit both families down, I've already talked to both of them. They're both 100 percent with us, so whenever we can get both families together. I've got a huge family, so we want all of them there. Whenever money is going to be best for both families.
O'BRIEN: So in the future some time.
JOHNSON: Hopefully soon, the sooner, the better, but we want to do it right.
O'BRIEN: Now, he had said that he didn't have the ring. He was proposing without the ring. You now have the ring. Can you show it off. Excuse us for just a moment while we take a look. Will you look at this gorgeous ring. Can we get a shot of this you guys? That is a gorgeous ring. Any girl would say yes to that.
JOHNSON: I Designed that myself.
O'BRIEN: You did?
JOHNSON: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Wow, you are a man of many talents. Congratulations to both of you.
POPADICS: Thank you very much.
JOHNSON: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: It was a very fabulous way to be proposed to and a great story for the kids down the road.
JOHNSON: Great way to start the year.
O'BRIEN: And also, by the way, good game, huh?
JOHNSON: Yes.
O'BRIEN: That was all right too. Nice to see you both. Thanks for coming in.
JOHNSON: Thank you.
POPADICS: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: John. ROBERTS: Ian had a plan and well executed too. "CNN NEWSROOM" just minutes away now. Tony Harris at the CNN center with a look at what's ahead. Hey, Tony.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Hey John, good morning to you. We have got these stories on the NEWSROOM rundown for you.
Iraq strategy sources tell CNN, President Bush now expected to reveal his new plan in days. We will hear from the president live this morning.
In the NEWSROOM, the cost of cancer. A study puts a price tag on the time people lose to treatment. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will be here.
And meet this man, the subway samaritan. He dives onto the tracks, listen to this, to save a man from an oncoming train.
Heidi Collins is with me in the NEWSROOM -- top of the hour right here on CNN -- John.
ROBERTS: Thanks Tony, see you soon.
HARRIS: Sure thing.
ROBERTS: Coming up cell phones keep getting smaller and smaller, at the same time packing in more and more features. A long way from how it used to be. Remember the brick cell phone? CNN's Jeanne Moos does some reminiscing ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: They might be called cell phones, but it was a cell phone camera that became a factor in 2006, chronicling everything from an execution to celebrity meltdowns. And as this new years dawns, it has Jeanne Moos taking a look back to a time when the cell phone was as big as a brick.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If "Time Magazine" can nominate you as Person of the Year, then we can nominate the cell phone as Gadget of the Decade. It was probably a cell phone camera that let us walk up the stairs to the gallows, let us listen to the taunts of Saddam Hussein's hanging.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN ARABIC)
MOOS: It was a cell phone that recorded the "n-word" rant.
MICHAEL RICHARDS, ACTOR: It's inappropriate for you to interrupt my (CENSORED), you cheap (CENSORED).
MOOS: It was a cell phone that captured Mel Gibson partying before his rant.
(on camera): True, most of what most of us shoot with our cell phones is less than momentous.
(voice-over): A dip in the tub, a friend scaling fish, but the cell is celebrated with cell phone film festivals and cell phones dancing to their own vibrations on the web. And as they got smaller and smaller, size became...
WILL FERRELL, ACTOR: Hold on.
MOOS: A "Saturday Night Live" joke, which makes us all the more nostalgic for these old dinosaurs from Wall Street...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Astonishing, pal.
MOOS: ... to "Lethal Weapon"...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Terrific.
MOOS: They now look like lethal weapons. The Motorola researcher credited with making the first cell phone call in 1973 looks as if it took all his strength just to lift it. But there's something comforting about these old clunkers, especially when you notice them in documentaries like the "War Room"...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've had it your way...
MOOS: ... or see them in films. Julia Roberts' phone must have taken up every inch of her tiny purse.
JULIA ROBERTS, ACTRESS: George, I didn't tell you my dress is lavender.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is your wake up call, pal.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we did. We won.
MOOS: They don't call them bricks for nothing. And on websites like retrobrick, you can buy second-hand or pre-loved cell phones for a hundred bucks or so. A new boxed set will set you back about three hundred.
Some, like the brains behind phonebashing.com seem to hate all cell phones.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kill mobile phones! Kill mobile phones!
MOOS: They apparently dressed up as cell phones, grabbed other people's cells and trashed them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Run! Keep running!
MOOS: The New Year is a time for nostalgia.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm too old for this (CENSORED).
MOOS: So are these.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: It all seems like so long ago. Here's a quick look now at what CNN's NEWSROOM is working on for the top of the hour.
HARRIS (voice-over): See these stories in the NEWSROOM.
Grainy cell phone video triggering an investigation and outrage over Saddam Hussein's execution.
Bailout -- helicopters drop hay for cattle stranded by back back- to-back blizzards in Colorado.
New year, new strategies to hold onto your cash. Gerri Willis stops by with financial resolutions you should make in 2007.
You're in the NEWSROOM, 9:00 eastern, 6:00 Pacific.
O'BRIEN: And that is it, we're out of time on this AMERICAN MORNING. Thank you for today and for the whole week by the way.
ROBERTS: Good to be with you as always. We'll be in Washington tomorrow right?
O'BRIEN: Yes.
ROBERTS: To bring in the opening of the 110th Congress.
CNN NEWSROOM with Tony Harris and Heidi Collins begins right now. We'll see you tomorrow.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
