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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Heaviest Fighting in Baghdad in Months; Terror Hunt in Somalia; President Bush Making Final Preparations For Speech To Nation About Iraq War; American Farmers Claim Unfair Burden From Laws Requiring Verification Of Workers' Legal Status; Ike Skelton Interview; Americans Highways Being Sold To Highest Bidder
Aired January 09, 2007 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LOU DOBBS, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight, U.S. troops, helicopters and aircraft are battling insurgents in the heaviest fighting in Baghdad in months. Tonight, we'll have a special report from Baghdad. The chairman of the House Armed Services committee, who will be a key, important vote in the decision to escalate fighting in Iraq joins us, Congressman Ike Skelton, the chairman of the Armed Services Committee in the House.
Venezuela's leftist leader, Hugo Chavez, is intensifying his socialist revolution in a dangerous new threat to U.S. economic and security interests in the hemisphere.
We'll have that special report, all of the day's news and a great deal more straight ahead here tonight.
ANNOUNCER: This is LOU DOBBS TONIGHT, news, debate and opinion for Tuesday, January 9th.
Live in New York, Lou Dobbs.
DOBBS: Good evening, everybody.
U.S. troops today killed at least 50 insurgents in heavy fighting in the center of Baghdad. The battle lasted more than 10 hours. The fighting comes one day before President Bush is to announce his new strategy for the conduct the war in Iraq.
U.S. troops also launching a new offensive against radical Islamist terrorists in East Africa. An AC-130 gunship killing a number of unknown al Qaeda operatives in southern Somalia. Pentagon sources say the United States could launch more air strikes over the coming days.
Michael Holmes tonight reports from Baghdad on the sharp escalation of fighting in the Iraqi capital.
Jamie McIntyre reporting from the Pentagon tonight on the secret war against al Qaeda terrorists in Somalia.
Suzanne Malveaux reports from the White House on the president's final preparations for his Iraq speech to the nation tomorrow evening.
But first, Michael Holmes reports from Baghdad. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): U.S. jets screamed overhead. Apache strike helicopters fired missiles. All in the heart of Baghdad.
The battlefield was the Haifa Street area of the capital, the scene of previous battles with insurgents. But this was a torrid and bloody affair.
U.S. and Iraqi military officials said dozens of insurgents had been killed or wounded. Many others detained, including what were described as some foreign nationals. No reports yet on U.S. or Iraqi casualties.
Haifa Street is in predominantly Sunni district and home to Baathist loyalists. It's also one of the city's main arteries linking north and south. There have been numerous skirmishes in the area, summary executions, too. This battle took place two years ago.
U.S. officials told CNN this time the fighters were a combination of foreigners, former regime elements, and members of Al Qaeda in Iraq. The Iraqi government said the area had always been problematic. A spokesman said it contained what he called "dens of terror." He also said the fighting would continue.
(on camera): But as darkness fell over Baghdad, the shooting died down. What the dawn will bring, uncertain. Iraqi officials say failure, however, in the battle for Baghdad is not an option. One reason why they welcome the prospect of additional U.S. troops.
Michael Holmes, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DOBBS: Our troops have also been striking al Qaeda terrorists in East Africa. The Pentagon says an AC-130 gunship today targeted al Qaeda terrorists in southern Somalia. This is the first known U.S. attack in Somalia since U.S. troops withdrew from the country 13 years ago.
Jamie McIntyre reports from the Pentagon.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Warplanes from the U.S. aircraft carrier Eisenhower, now off the coast of the southern tip of Somalia, are flying daily missions with two objectives -- to use their high-tech targeting systems to look for the movement of al Qaeda suspects, and to be on call for quick strikes against bleeding (ph) targets.
Overnight Sunday, a U.S. special operations AC-130 gunship raked a suspected al Qaeda target in a remote area near Somalia's southern tip with devastating cannon fire. A U.S. official says as many as 10 people were killed in the nighttime attack, but no one in the U.S. government will say officially who was targeted and if any high-valued targets were killed.
The U.S. is waging a shadowing proxy war in Somalia, aligned with the Ethiopian military. In late December, Ethiopian troops intervened in Somalia, toppling Islamic militants with ties to al Qaeda who had seized control of the capital, Mogadishu, last year. Now the U.S. seized the chance to finish offer some of the most wanted al Qaeda leaders, including several suspected in the 1998 bombing of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania who have been hiding in Somalia for years.
Sources say the hunt is intensifying along the Somalia border with Kenya, where the U.S. believes the al Qaeda terrorists are essentially trapped in the southernmost corner of the country.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCINTYRE: The U.S. refuses to say if any American troops are on the ground in Somalia for the first time since the 1994 pullout, but a senior military official tells CNN, it is "highly likely that special operations commandos from the secretive Task Force 88 would be working on the ground alongside Ethiopian troops to coordinate the search and call in air strikes." And that official says he expects more air strikes in the day to come, because he says the search for targets is actively under way -- Lou.
DOBBS: Jamie, thank you very much.
Jamie McIntyre from the Pentagon.
At the United Nations, the new secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, today strongly criticized the U.S. air strike in Somalia. The secretary-general said the attack may lead to a new wave of fighting, in his view, in Somalia that could harm civilians. His comments come only nine days after Ban replaced another U.S. critic, Kofi Annan, as U.N. secretary-general.
The White House today declared the United States will continue hunting al Qaeda terrorists wherever they are. President Bush tonight is focusing on Iraq.
He's making final preparations for his speech to the nation tomorrow evening on a new strategy for that war. The first wave of any U.S. reinforcements could arrive in Baghdad before the end of this month.
Suzanne Malveaux reports now from the White House -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lou, we're getting very important aspects of the president's speech confirmed. One U.S. official saying that part of the goal of the administration, the president will say, is for the Iraqi troops to have operational control over the security of their own country by November. That, perhaps, is the administration's position going as far as possible when it comes to a timetable for U.S. troops.
Now, U.S. officials also confirm that there will be U.S. troops, additional ones, brought in to Baghdad, as well as Anbar province, by the end of this month. So we've got a pretty clear indication -- some already standing by in Kuwait -- of a short-term strategy, as well as long term.
Now, what makes this any different than any of the past efforts, failed efforts, really, to try to secure Baghdad? Well, officials say two things.
They say that, first, the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, has reassured President Bush that he will redeploy a large number of Iraqi forces from other parts of the country to join in with the American international coalition to patrol and secure Baghdad within weeks. Secondly, Maliki has personally reassured President Bush that what he calls the rules of engagement for Iraqi troops have changed. That is a commitment that they will go after the Shiite militia that is associated with the powerful leader Muqtada al-Sadr. That is something that Maliki has been loath to do in the past.
Now I have to say, Lou, while people say the president is confident and optimistic, there certainly are mixed reviews here, mixed feelings within this administration. One source saying that there was a great deal of concern within the office of the Joint Chiefs that this strategy, perhaps, was not -- not adequate, is one way of putting it.
There was also a source from inside the Pentagon who described it as saying, "This is taking a deep breath before you take that roller- coaster ride." That there are some people inside of the Pentagon who are very anxious and nervous -- Lou.
DOBBS: Are those people presumably inclusive of one Bob Gates, the new secretary of defense?
MALVEAUX: Well, no, I don't think so. I think that there are certainly -- everybody has signed on board. One person put this way. They said, "Look, there's a political guidance. There's a decision that has been made." So they are saluting that.
DOBBS: Is there a sense amongst the staff there at the White House that the president, based on the performance of the civilian and general leadership at the Pentagon, lack considerable credibility on any strategy going forward, having wasted all those many months in attempting to achieve a significant success or victory?
MALVEAUX: Well, Lou, that's precisely the point here. We asked that, whether or not the president has a credibility problem.
In light of the fact that much has changed, he's made these promises before, the way White House officials explain it is that you have this -- this whole uproar, if you will, this uptick of sectarian violence within the last year. So they try to explain it here, or at least explain it away. But they are very clear here that they've got a really tough sell to the American people.
They know that. And that is why President Bush, tomorrow, is going to say this is a matter of Iraq's future, but it's also a matter of American security.
We'll see -- we'll see if -- we'll see if the people buy it.
DOBBS: Thank you very much.
Suzanne Malveaux from the White House.
A new opinion poll shows most voters in this country oppose any buildup of our troops to Iraq. The "USA Today"-Gallup poll shows more than 60 percent of Americans surveyed do not support the idea of temporarily increasing the number of our troops in Iraq. The poll also shows only 28 percent of voters believe the war in Iraq is going well.
Democrats are doing everything possible to use that pessimism about the direction of this war and its conduct to challenge President Bush on the issue of Iraq. Senate Majority Leader Senator Harry Reid is now demanding a vote on any escalation of the war, as he put it. Senator Edward Kennedy says the Congress must have the final say on any troop increase in Iraq.
Dana Bash reports from capital Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If the president wants to send more troops to Iraq and spend billions more dollars to support them, Democrat Ted Kennedy says Congress must first vote on it.
SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: Let the American people hear, yes or no, where their elected representatives stand on one of the greatest challenges of our time. Iraq is George Bush's Vietnam.
BASH: The liberal Senate veteran is not just challenging the president, but also fellow Democrats scrambling behind the scenes to figure out how far they can and should go with their new majority power to oppose the war.
KENNEDY: We cannot simply speak out against an escalation of troops in Iraq. We must act to prevent it.
BASH: But instead of Kennedy's hard-hitting approach, the majority leader announced the Senate would vote on a symbolic resolution opposing more troops in Iraq.
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: If there is a bipartisan resolution saying we don't support this escalation of the war, then the president's going to have to take vote of that. I think that's the beginning or the end, as far as I'm concerned.
BASH: Republican leaders are urging caution.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MINORITY LEADER: I think it is inappropriate for the Congress to try to micromanage, in effect, the tactics in a military conflict. BASH: But the president can no longer rely on a GOP firewall of support. Republican senator Gordon Smith, who recently soured on the war, tells CNN he thinks Kennedy's idea for a new congressional authorization is a good one.
SEN. GORDON SMITH (R), OREGON: The more the Congress can be involved in the decision-making, the better. And that's what the American people are asking for. They're going to hold us accountable, then let's have the tools of accountability so we can be held responsible.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: For now, Democrats say their main focus will be to scrutinize the president's Iraq plan in committee hearings. There is still a healthy internal debate about whether or not Democrats should try to block additional funding for more troops in Iraq.
What Senator Kennedy is trying to convince his colleagues is, by the time Congress even gets a request for more money -- they expect a $100 billion request -- it will be too late, that the troops will already be in the field. And Lou, Democrats, at that point, will be in the untenable position of withholding funding for troops who are already in combat -- Lou.
DOBBS: Not only untenable, but I would imagine unimaginable for most -- most senators and congressmen, whether Democrats or -- whether Democrats or Republicans.
Dana, as you reported, Republican senator Gordon Smith, now in opposition to the president's conduct of this war, did the senator suggest to you how much support there is within the Republican Party for his point of view?
BASH: He did. He said, actually, he thinks that there are about a dozen Republican senators who are with him on the idea that what the president is planning, more troops in Iraq, is the wrong idea.
So it will be certainly interesting and quite a different dynamic if he's right and the vote is put to a test either next week or the week after on the Senate floor. So far, since the war has begun, we have really seen pretty much unanimous support when it came to a vote among Republicans for the war. It could be quite different if Senator Gordon Smith is right.
DOBBS: And, of course, there is the issue of how many Democratic senators would support Senator Reid.
Is there much discussion there on Capitol Hill amongst Democrats and Republicans as to what the result of either policy choice might be?
BASH: Yes. Oh, sure. I mean, that is really -- you know, we're talking about tactics right now, but once we -- especially once we hear from the president, once we hear his speech, what we're going to see starting on Thursday, the day after the president's speech, are pretty intense hearings in the Senate and in the House.
Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state, will be here. The defense secretary will be here as well. And it is there that we hope to hear some pretty substantive debate about what the implications of his policy will be -- Lou.
DOBBS: Thank you very much.
Dana Bash.
Still ahead here, America's farmers protesting U.S. government efforts to actually enforce immigration laws and efforts to secure our borders. We'll be telling you all about that.
And also, why one of the biggest railroad companies in the United States wants to outsource safety inspections to Mexico because they fear for their very lives should they have to go to Mexico.
We'll have that story.
Foreigners could take over some of our busiest highways with the Bush administration's blessing -- foreign companies. Those roads, by the way, were built by the taxpayers.
We'll have that special report, a great deal more.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Despite some considerable opposition, California's governor, Schwarzenegger, is going ahead with his plan to provide healthcare coverage for more than six million uninsured Californians, including illegal aliens. Governor Schwarzenegger estimates the cost at $12 billion. The plan calling for many of that state's employers that don't provide health insurance to contribute to a fund to pay for covering the uninsured. Also requiring physicians to pay 2 percent of their revenue, hospitals to pay 4 percent of their revenue into the fund.
Some members of the governor's party, doctors, small business owners, and union leaders, are among those in strong opposition to his proposal.
American farmers tonight are complaining that they are being unfairly burdened by laws that require them to verify the legal status of their workers, and they claim the farming industry would collapse without illegal alien workers. But the evidence clearly suggests otherwise.
Casey Wian reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nine out of 10 farmers attending the American Farm Bureau Convention in Salt Lake City this week say they have an unfair burden to ensure their workers are legal, according to a Reuters survey. Now that federal immigration authorities are beginning to crack down on employers of illegal aliens and improve border security, many farmers are complaining they can't find enough workers.
KEVIN ROGERS, PRESIDENT, ARIZONA FARM BUREAU: In Arizona and California, in the areas of the country that are trying to harvest lettuce right now, trying to harvest broccoli right now, there are crops in the field that are not being harvested because there is no one here that wants to come out and do the job. Whether it's at $10 an hour or whether it's at $20 an hour.
WIAN: But a 2006 Congressional Research Service report reached a dramatically different conclusion. It found a significant surplus, not a shortage, of agricultural workers.
Since 2001, the annual farm worker unemployment rate has averaged 12 percent, more than double the jobless rate for other U.S. workers. And farm workers earn about 50 cents for every $1 earned by other non- supervisory private sector employees.
Still, farmers are pressuring Congress for a guest worker program to legalize the same illegal labor critics say has driven down wages and destroyed American farming jobs.
REP. STEVE KING (R), IOWA: I've gone to ag hearings all around this country, and I see people in the agriculture business that have premised their business on hiring illegal labor, and then they come to the hearing and ask us to legalize those illegal employees.
WIAN: Fifty-two percent of U.S. agricultural workers are illegal aliens, up from 37 percent 12 years ago. The Congressional Research Report says it can't determine if the farm industry's addiction to illegal alien labor could be cured by raising wages or relying on mechanization because farmers have never had to operate without illegal aliens.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIAN: Farmers say they don't want amnesty, only temporary guest workers who can help them compete against cheaper foreign imports. But a bill scheduled to be introduced in the Senate tomorrow would grant amnesty to 1.5 million farm workers over five years. That, Lou, despite the fact that about 100,000 farm workers are already unemployed each year in the United States.
DOBBS: The facts certainly are not often considered in this debate over illegal immigration and the sense of entitlement that the agricultural industry in this country has when it comes to the employment of illegal aliens. There was a time 30, 40 years ago when those -- those farmers and those now what are principally agriculture businesses provided care for their workers, their migrant workers, also shelter and housing. No longer the case, of course, since they can rely on the taxpayer.
Casey, thank you very much. WIAN: Absolutely.
DOBBS: The Rhode Island State Police are being sued for enforcing the law. It's becoming a typical pattern.
A lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union charging that the police were using racial profiling when an officer stopped a van for a traffic violation last July. The passengers in the van were found to be Guatemalan nationals and in this country illegally. They were turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A state police official said the officer involved acted appropriately, but there would be no further comment until this case is resolved.
The Union Pacific Railway wants only Mexican railway workers to inspect its trains entering the United States from Mexico. Currently, those trains are checked in Mexico and then by U.S. inspectors when they cross the Mexico-U.S. border. The company says doing the work only in Mexico will save it time and money. And they say the Mexican workers will be tested to make sure they understand the U.S. rules and regulations.
Bill Tucker reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are the streets of Nuevo Laredo. This is where Union Pacific railroad executives want to outsource the inspection of its trains coming out of Mexico. They filed a request for a waiver from federal regulations allowing them to save money by moving cargo more quickly from the south and eliminating the inspection on the U.S. side of the border.
As for those who would do the inspection, a spokesman for the company says that the workers will be agents of Kansas City Southern de Mexico, certified in federal railroad administration regulations and tested to be sure that they understand the rules and regulations of the United States. If they're successful in winning the waiver, workers say it will only be the beginning.
EDWARD WYTKIND, TRANSPORT, TRADES, AFL-CIO: The next step they're going to want to do is to create this -- again, this -- this through train from Mexico, NAFTA on the rails, that will essentially performing its transportation function in the U.S. without ever touching the hands of an American workers.
TUCKER: There have been more than 1,400 train accidents since 2003. This one in South Carolina last year killed 11 people and injured 250 in a hazmat spill.
Texas has suffered the most accidents of any state since 2003, 107. And that is what is driving the opposition of the congressman whose district includes San Antonio.
REP. CHARLES GONZALEZ (D), TEXAS: Having a Mexican corporation and Mexican personnel supervised, obviously, by foreigners, inspecting the train cars and the locomotives before they come into the United States I think is a terrible mistake.
TUCKER: Gonzalez led the opposition the last time Union Pacific applied for the same waiver two years ago. That request was denied.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TUCKER: A public hearing on Union Pacific's request this time will be held on February 7th in Laredo. We contacted the Association of the American Railroads, who was quick to say, Lou, that this is an individual company request. And they insist and claim this is not the direction the industry is headed.
DOBBS: Well, this is something I think would be embraced by Michael Chertoff, the secretary of Homeland Security. You know, by the reasoning that Union Pacific is implying here, and we know commerce is far more important than citizenship. The markets are more important than nations.
Maybe we could just get rid of all those border patrol and put that in the hands of the federales (ph) from Mexico. Get rid of all those Customs people at those ports of entry at the southern border with Mexico. Let the Mexican customs people and immigration people just handle both sides.
TUCKER: It certainly follows the logic that's being used. Absolutely.
DOBBS: Absolutely. I know this has got to be reassuring to every single American.
Thank you very much, Bill Tucker.
TUCKER: You're welcome.
DOBBS: Coming up next, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Congressman Ike Skelton, will be here to talk about the president's new strategy for the war in Iraq and what he sees as the likely pitfalls and prospects.
Also, your state may be planning to sell the highways that you paid for and over which you drive and ride. And your federal government thinks that's just a super idea.
We'll have that special report.
And Venezuela's Hugo Chavez pushing his country closer to outright socialism and escalating his anti-American rhetoric.
We'll have that story.
And California wildfires hit the homes of Hollywood's rich and famous.
We'll have that story and a great deal more still ahead.
Stay with us. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Congressional Democrats are stepping up their opposition to the idea of a troop increase in Iraq. But the new House Armed Services Committee chairman, Congressman Ike Skelton, says he won't be cutting off funding for our troops overseas.
Congressman Ike Skelton joins us tonight from Capitol Hill.
Congressman, good to have you with us. I know that you've got a vote upcoming, that time is dear.
You met with the president today. How did that go?
REP. IKE SKELTON (D), ARMED SERVICES CHAIRMAN: Well, several of us Democrats met with the president today. I had the opportunity to visit with him at length before Christmas on the subject of Iraq.
As you know, he will be making a speech Wednesday evening regarding the upcoming proposed troop increase and other parts of a plan in Iraq. I must tell you, Lou, I have some serious concern about increasing the troop level in Iraq. And the main reason is that you're just continuing the dependence of the Iraqi government and the Iraqi military on America.
DOBBS: Mr. Chairman, did the president have more or less credibility with you today after nearly four years of war in Iraq than in your previous meetings?
SKELTON: Well, it's not a matter of credibility. It's a matter of -- you know, everybody saw Tony Romo football the other day, and you can't go back and redo that play. But we've had a series of, frankly, strategic mistakes through the years that you can't undo.
And it's not a matter of credibility. It's just a matter we've made so many mistakes, it's put us in a bad position right now.
DOBBS: Well, I won't belabor though -- even though I'm tempted, the metaphor, but let me ask you, with all of the mistakes that have been made in Iraq....
SKELTON: Yes.
DOBBS: ...with all the outright statements -- I will say it this way. Statements that did not turn out to be either accurate or true.
SKELTON: Yes.
DOBBS: At what point do you think credibility on the part of the president, and frankly, sir, your own credibility and that of the Democratic leadership of both Houses, how much credibility do you think there will be from the American people to hear one more time, one more surge, one more effort at obfuscation rather than talking about escalation, using language like surge -- how much credibility do you think either this Congress or this president will have with the American people on this issue if there is not bona fide certainty of success?
SKELTON: Well, there is no certainty of success. That of course is what concerns me.
We had an increase in troops last summer. And we see very well that that did no good. What's the difference this time? There is a plan for Baghdad, which he spelled out. Would that make a difference? I seriously doubt it, whether additional troops make any difference now as it did last summer.
DOBBS: Mr. Chairman, what are the results that you see? If there is an escalation and an increase, reinforcements of 20,000 sent. That is the generally accepted number that the president will put forward. Or the result of not, maintaining the status quo if you will. What is the result both on the United States and Iraq and the region?
SKELTON: I think it's a very serious situation. The best we can do is come out of there with some sort of stable government, but I have concerns that they're so dependent upon us that they can't glue it together the way they should.
DOBBS: Right. And right now -- and this is my final question.
SKELTON: You bet.
DOBBS: Talking with military leaders, telling us on this broadcast, that our troops are still inadequately equipped, being inadequately supported in terms of resources, materiel, whether it be everything from armor to helmets. Shortages. The idea that both the head of the Marine Corps and the United States Army have said that they need more troops, that we are nearing a breaking point on the military. What do the next months and this year hold for the United States and for the U.S. military?
SKELTON: Well, since 1995, Lou, I've been saying the United States Army is 40,000 people short. And finally, the administration's going to agree with what I've been saying.
It's stretched thin. I think the Marine Corps' stretched thin. We're going to have to have -- they call it in-strength -- that is additional troops in both the Army and the Marine Corps. Of course, that doesn't alleviate the immediate problem in Iraq, but you know, you just can't stretch them. And it's not just the troops that are being stretched and sent back the second, third, fourth time. It's their families that concern me so much.
DOBBS: Absolutely. Ike Skelton, Congressman, we thank you very much for being with us. Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.
SKELTON: Thank you, Lou.
DOBBS: Coming up next, critically important parts of our national infrastructure are being sold. And this administration wants those roads and highways and throughways and tollways to be sold. The Bush administration's very exciting -- very excited about the state selling away taxpayer bought and paid for infrastructure. We'll have that report.
And Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez escalating a socialist revolution, tightening his grip on Venezuela. Not everybody is pleased about that. And we'll also be reporting on California wildfires, burning some of the homes of some of Hollywood's rich and famous. All of that and more still ahead. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Now our top stories. U.S. troops in Iraq today killed at least 50 insurgents in the heaviest fighting in Baghdad for months. Separately, another of our troops has been killed in Iraq. 3,014 of our troops have been killed since the beginning of this war.
The White House says the United States will continue to hunt al Qaeda terrorists after a U.S. gunship attacked terrorists in southern Somalia. U.S. official saying as many as 10 people were killed in that attack.
U.S. farmers complaining about federal efforts to enforce immigration laws and efforts to tighten security at our borders, when that does happen. One reason for the company's complaints could be the farming industry's increasing addiction to cheap illegal alien labor, which reports show is not at all in deficit, but rather surplus.
In other news tonight: Five multimillion dollar homes were destroyed, six others heavily damaged, in a wildfire in an exclusive Southern California neighborhood. The fire broke out last night in the coastal park in Malibu. Wind gusts up to 55 miles an hour quickly spreading those flames, which jumped over to seaside mansions and some of which were destroyed in less than 20 minutes. Arson investigators are on the case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF MICHAEL FREEMAN, L.A. COUNTY FIRE: It is still under investigation. And as soon as they have established a cause, they will make that available to everyone. At this point, nothing is being ruled out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DOBBS: Damage estimates have already reached as high as $60 million. One of the homes destroyed belonging to actress Suzanne Somers. She was not at home at the time.
2006, the warmest year on record in the United States. The National Climactic Data Center reports the average temperature for the 48 contiguous states, 55 degrees; 2.2 degrees higher than normal; 7/100th of a degree warmer than 1998, which had been previously the record year. Scientists are not certain how much of the warming is the result of greenhouse gas induced climate change, and how much is the result of the El Nino warming cycle in the Pacific Ocean. Texas health officials have ruled out bird flu and are awaiting more tests to find out what killed dozens of birds and closed down town Austin. Officials ruled out a terrorist attack or chemical leak before reopening the streets. They really don't know what in the world killed those birds.
Portions of interstate highway systems built with your tax dollars are now being sold to the highest bidder. And incredibly, it's being done with the federal government's encouragement. The Bush administration likes this idea. Some of the leading bidders: Foreign investors. Lisa Sylvester reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Wall Street is paving the road to highway privatization, with help from the Bush administration. Nearly 50 investors submitted bids to buy or lease the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Indiana and Illinois have already signed over its toll roads to a group of foreign investors. And other states are eyeing privatization as a quick fix.
ROBERT POOLE, REASON FOUNDATION: People are frustrated, both public sector people and citizens are frustrated that their roads are very congested, they are overcrowded with trucks. There's not enough capacity. And yet nobody really wants to raise gas taxes.
SYLVESTER: Transportation Secretary Mary Peters offered model legislation, encouraging states to tap into the billions of dollars that the private sector and lenders have amassed to invest in transportation.
But Congressman Peter DeFazio says it is a deal for corporations and investors, no deal for taxpayers.
REP. PETER DEFAZIO (D), OREGON: These private interests would have the power of eminent domain, and they basically would have unlimited authority over the term of the contract to raise tolls. A private entity beyond the reach of any future state legislature, governor, or Congress under contract.
SYLVESTER: Critics also call it fiscally irresponsible. States receive a lump sum up front. Future generations receive no toll revenues. And public sentiment is solidly against selling off taxpayer-owned assets. especially to foreign companies.
In Indiana, more than twice as many people were against the deal than were for it. The transportation groups are dismayed the Bush administration has officially backed these private-public arrangements.
TODD SPENCER, INDEPENDENT DRIVERS ASSN.: We were stunned. We were amazed, but I'd have to say, unfortunately, we were not shocked. They have been shopping this idea, this draft legislation, this proposal to states for over a year now and, you know, to them, rather than responsible transportation policy, their answer is to sell-off our highways. (END VIDEOTAPE)
SYLVESTER: Despite the many concerns, privatizing highways is gaining momentum across the country. Legislation is expected to be introduced in Pennsylvania in the coming weeks that will call for a long-term lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
Right now, Lou, the leading bidders are from Australia and Spain -- Lou.
DOBBS: It -- I mean, this is just -- it's incredible. The ideas that are being put forward to avoid public responsibility, the idea that a state government or an authority of any kind could sell infrastructure, highways, it just boggles the imagination.
SYLVESTER: This, if there's ever been an example of where private corporate interests and the Bush administration are sort of working hand-in-hand, this is a perfect example of that, Lou. And, unfortunately, the average person, the average consumer, may not be a winner out of all of this, Lou.
DOBBS: Well, if they're not aware, we're going to do our best to make them aware. The idea that whether it's Indiana where it's 2-1 opposition and yet they went ahead and sold that highway in Indiana, the fact that people haven't got the energy and the commitment to stop these kinds of -- I mean, this is public treasure infrastructure, national assets, that are being given away, sold away to interest, private interests.
It's, as I say, mind-boggling. Lisa, thank you very much. Lisa Sylvester from Washington. Lisa will be following this story throughout.
That brings us to the subject of our poll question tonight. Do you believe U.S. highways and roads should be owned by private companies? Yes or no? Cast your vote at LouDobbs.com. We'll have the results for you later. I may add something for the suggestion box tonight. What do you think should be done with the public officials who approve and encourage such things? But we'll save that for a later time.
Up next, Venezuela's Hugo Chavez intensifying his socialist revolution. We'll have a special report on the threat Chavez poses to the United States' economic and security interests in the hemisphere.
And the Democrats' first 100 hours are underway, depending on how you count. Three of the country's talk radio show hosts joining us to talk about the Democratic agenda in national policy and whether or not any of it matches up. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Coming up at the top of the hour, "THE SITUATION ROOM" with Wolf Blitzer -- Wolf.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks very much, Lou. We're learning new details tonight of President Bush's plan to increase the number of U.S. troops in Iraq. It includes a timetable for when Iraqi troops should be able to take control of their country. We'll get the latest from the White House.
Also, Senator Ted Kennedy calls the president's plan an immense mistake and demands that Congress have a say in any troop increase. My one-on-one interview, the full interview with Senator Kennedy coming up.
And new details of U.S. military action against al Qaeda operatives in Somalia. Our Barbara Starr is in the region, working her sources there. She'll have some new information for us.
Plus, your iPod, cell phone, Web connection, all in one. We're going to show you what Apple has unveiled today.
All of that, Lou, coming right up here in "THE SITUATION ROOM."
DOBBS: Thank you, Wolf.
Venezuela's leftist president, Hugo Chavez, takes a major step toward socialism with his plans to nationalize two key industries in his country. Chavez, who will be sworn in for a third term tomorrow, also has his eye on oil industry assets.
Kitty Pilgrim reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KITTY PILGRIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez swore in his cabinet and then swore to nationalize Venezuela's electrical and telecommunications company. U.S. company Verizon has a 28 percent stake in the Venezuelan telecommunication company, and reacted to the surprised announcement. "We're not aware of the details of the government's plans and can, therefore, not comment at that time."
Chavez also said certain assets in the oil industry, quote, "ought to be the property of the Venezuelan nation."
SHANNON O'NEIL, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY: He's chosen these two industries because he deems them to be in the national interest. And so if there are other industries that would be, as he calls them, in the natural interest, one could think about that as well.
PILGRIM: Oil money has made Chavez powerful. Since he first took office, oil prices have soared from $15 a barrel to $60 a barrel last year. And Venezuela has the largest oil reserves outside the Middle East.
PETER BROOKS, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: The more money he has in his pockets, the more he'll be able to cause trouble in the Western Hemisphere for American interests. He really wants to replace Castro as the leader of the Socialist movement in Latin American. PILGRIM: The Venezuela strong man purchased $3 billion worth of armaments and used oil revenues to buy popularity through social programs through the poor. Still, nearly 40 percent of the country lives in poverty.
Nationalizing the oil industry might affect U.S. companies, such as Exxon and Chevron, and ConocoPhillips, who have interests there. The United States is the largest consumer of Venezuelan oil, with about 14 percent of U.S. oil supply imported from Venezuela.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PILGRIM: Now, Chavez won the election with more than 60 percent of the vote. He's already using that landslide to consolidate power, and that could well include nationalizing more industries in his plan to socialize the economy. More announcements are expected tomorrow when he is sworn in -- Lou.
DOBBS: Thank you very much, Kitty Pilgrim.
Coming up next, how the radio nation is reacting to the president's new war plan, as we now understand it, for Iraq. I'll be joined by three of the country's leading talk show hosts. All of that and more. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Joining me now, three of the country's top radio talk show hosts and three guys I like a lot. From New York, John Gambling, WABC; Bob Pickett, KISS-FM; from Chicago, Steve Cochran, WGN.
Gentlemen, good to you have here.
John, let me ask you, the president's calling for a surge, an escalation.
JOHN GAMBLING, WABC IN NEW YORK: Escalation, exactly...
DOBBS: ... encouraged not to use.
STEVE COCHRAN, WGN IN CHICAGO: That's operative word.
DOBBS: What do you think? What do your listeners think?
GAMBLING: The listeners, I think at least my listeners, think that we need to continue what we're doing. I think that there are a lot of them that are, again, hesitant and is there a positive end of whatever the end of road happens to be, whenever it happens to be?
I personally think that it's a good idea, but with one caveat. If we are not given the opportunity to do what soldiers do -- and that is really go in and take care of the insurgents -- and if the Iraqi army doesn't do what they've been doing -- and that's ignoring the insurgents -- if we're not allowed to do that, then we shouldn't send them there. BOB PICKETT, KISS-FM IN NEW YORK: On the contrary, Lou, my listeners think that the president needs to be forthcoming and tell the truth. This is a war that's not winnable. He has not gotten that big message that came in November that the American public want out of this war. And they want out sooner rather than later.
DOBBS: Do you think they want out? Or do they want to succeed?
PICKETT: They want out of this war, no question. They want out of war. But I think the American public is willing to accept a reasonable phased withdraw. They're not suggesting that he should be out right away, but they want out of this war.
The president has -- and I use the word kindly -- has not been forthcoming over the last three, four years about this war...
DOBBS: I'd say that's kindly.
PICKETT: .. and now it's time for him to be truthful.
COCHRAN: Well, you know what gets me?
DOBBS: Steve Cochran, what are folks in Chicago saying to you?
COCHRAN: Well, the political -- the American political argument here is pointless because it doesn't matter what president says about this war. Now people are sick of it. They've had enough. They're done. They want some action. They want some positive action. And they just want to stop the bleeding, literally and figuratively at this point.
I'm telling you, I think the key is what Prime Minister Maliki does at this point because you have to be willing -- and supposedly the president's going to address this -- you have to hold Iraq's feet to the fire, that he is going to be just as tough on the Shia militias and those death squads as he is on the Sunni death squads. And that's where you may see some positive political change.
PICKETT: Steve, would you concede, though, that President Bush has, for the most part, made a bad situation worse?
Three years ago when we went into Iraq, it was a situation -- it was a volatile situation. But because of the lies and the untruths that have been told here, the situation is much more chaotic, much more volatile. And we've left the Middle East, quite frankly, in a much more dangerous posture than we had it when we arrived in March of 2003.
COCHRAN: But, Lou, if you...
DOBBS: Well, you know...
GAMBLING: If we pull out of Iraq, you're going to have Iran in there, a nuclearized Iran. And you get a situation that is totally unstable, and we're going to have a bigger issue to deal with. I think that we need to -- I think we need to go in. I think we need to continue what we're doing, but push harder and not let Maliki say, "You can't go into Sadr City."
(CROSSTALK)
DOBBS: Let me turn...
COCHRAN: Listen...
DOBBS: Go ahead, Steve.
COCHRAN: Well, I was going to say bad management is bad management. There's plenty to go around on both sides. And now today you have the Democrats talking about not paying for additional troops, or only paying for the troops that are already there. Well, what does that do for the troops on the ground who -- we're losing this war. You can't have it both ways. You either have to pay to make a change. You're telling the president you want a change. He's suggesting a change. If you have a better idea, this is the time say it.
DOBBS: Let's turn to some other developments. First of all, let's turn to the idea that there is a growing trend encouraged by this administration, Bob Picket, to sell-off highways and super- byways.
PICKETT: You know, Lou, I saw that piece that ran a little earlier. It boggles my mind that the American public would allow their major assets, their infrastructural assets to be sold off to foreign interests. I mean...
DOBBS: How about sold to anybody?
PICKETT: Am I drinking bad water here? What are the folks in these states drinking?
GAMBLING: Well, you know Jon Corzine, the New Jersey governor? He wants to do the same thing to the New Jersey Turnpike. It's outrageous. It's idiotic.
DOBBS: Tell me the heartland, Steve Cochran, is going to rise up and rebel against these fools.
COCHRAN: We're going rise up. We're going to rise up and we're going to identify the fools and give them the spanking that they need.
DOBBS: Because the coasts apparently are lost.
COCHRAN: Yes, the coasts have been lost for a long time.
PICKET: You know, next thing they're going to be doing is selling off the White House maybe.
DOBBS: Well, we don't want to start a strong...
GAMBLING: The tolls are already big enough on the George Washington Bridge. Can you imagine is some private corporation owned it?
DOBBS: It just -- it boggles the mind.
GAMBLING: It does boggle the mind.
DOBBS: And the idea -- by the way, U.S. -- the United States National Guard at the border? All right. How do the folks in Chicago, Steve, feel about the U.S. National Guard -- our National Guard in retreat from foreign, shotgun-wielding Mexican nationals crossing the border illegally into the United States?
COCHRAN: Well, it's a complete joke. And then the Schwarzenegger thing this week with free health care for everybody, green cards optional.
Look, common sense, do your job. When are we going to get back to that? The whole thing gives me a horrible headache. Just look at my head. I have a horrible headache.
DOBBS: Bob Pickett?
PICKETT: You know, I think Steve's right on the money on this one. I think that we need to wake up. We have to stop the infiltration of illegal immigrants into this country. They can come, but they have to do the right way. And for the governor of California to suggest that universal health care is appropriate for everybody, including immigrants...
DOBBS: Immigrants. Is appropriate for immigrants. It's illegal aliens.
PICKETT: Excuse me, yes. Illegal aliens.
GAMBLING: You and I have talked on my show about this. And the fact that they are illegal is unacceptable.
DOBBS: That's right. Except to this administration and his good friends...
GAMBLING: That's bottom line.
DOBBS: ... in the government of Mexico.
GAMBLING: Absolutely.
DOBBS: John Gambling, thank you very much.
Bob Pickett, Steve Cochran.
Gentlemen, have fun. Have a great year. Thank you. Come back soon.
Still ahead, the results of our poll.
Stay with us, please.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) DOBBS: Ninety-seven percent of you in our poll tonight say U.S. highways and roads should not be sold to private companies, as is now being proposed and encouraged by the Bush administration.
Time now for one last e-mail.
Connie in Florida: "We can't retreat in Iraq because we want to fight terrorists there and not here. But the National Guard has to retreat when armed men cross Arizona-Mexico border. I feel much safer now, Mr. Bush."
Thanks for being with us.
Send us your thoughts at LouDobbs.com.
For all of us here, thanks for watching. Good night from New York.
"THE SITUATION ROOM" with Wolf Blitzer begins now -- Wolf.
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