Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Defense Secretary Clarifies Iraq Plan; U.S. Embassy in Greece Attacked; Snow Piles Up in Oklahoma; Congress Debates Lower Drug Costs for Seniors; Is Cancer Preventable?

Aired January 12, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: I'm Kyra Phillips, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
DON LEMON, CO-HOST: And I'm Don Lemon.

Good-bye, warm weather. An Arctic blasts, icy mess in parts of the plains. How far south will it go? Reynolds Wolf is tracking all the severe weather for you.

PHILLIPS: An attack on the U.S. embassy in Greece. Was it a terrorist group? Are Americans safe to travel over there?

LEMON: Oh, and this is the talk of the town. This hour, you'll meet half of Hollywood's newest power couple. That's right. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching CNN, your severe weather headquarters.

PHILLIPS: A winter wallop, snow, sleet and ice, from the Great Plains to Great Lakes. Oklahoma could get the worst of it. Already one death reported from the icy roads you're seeing here in Oklahoma City. Trees and power lines also getting caked in ice. By Monday morning, a million people could be without power.

And wouldn't you know? It's snowing again in Colorado, the fourth time in a month. No blizzard this time, though. Still, bundle up. It's likely to get icy cold where you live.

Reynolds Wolf in our severe weather center, keeping up with all the warnings. What have you found?

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Reynolds, we'll be talking a lot today.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No question.

LEMON: The top brass back on Capitol Hill. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and joint chiefs chairman Peter Pace defending the president's new Iraq war plan to the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, has been listening -- Jamie. JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, you know, a lot of people describe this strategy as a surge. But as it was described before the Senate Armed Services Committee today by Secretary Gates and General Pace, it will unfold very methodically.

In fact, it won't really get under way until early next month. The first U.S. brigade is scheduled to arrive shortly. But the first Iraqi brigade, additional brigade, is not scheduled to be there until the beginning of February.

Here's how Secretary Gates said the flow of U.S. forces would go into Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT GATES, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: One brigade will go in the middle of this month. A second brigade won't go until the middle of next month. And then they will flow at roughly monthly intervals.

So that after we have sent in just two or three of the brigades, I think, as I've said in response to Senator McCain's question, we will have -- before we have sent in very many American -- additional American troops, we will have a pretty good idea, whether at least on the military side, the Iraqis have stepped up to the plate in terms of fulfilling their commitments.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCINTYRE: So they're looking to see whether the plan is actually working. Of course, one obvious measure of success would be if the level of violence went down in Baghdad. But that might not happen immediately.

So Secretary Gates said he'll be looking at three things. One, to see whether these additional Iraqi troops that the Iraqi government promised, actually show up. You know, in the past, they promised troops, and then they haven't come.

The second one is to ensure that there is, in fact, no political interference, that they don't arrest people and then they use political connections to get sprung.

And then that those Iraqi troops and American troops have access to every part of Baghdad, that no parts are off-limits. If that is happening in the first month or two, then they will say they think this strategy is on the road to succeeding.

Now the other thing that was revealed at today's meeting was initially, U.S. commanders really only recommended two additional American brigades and three Iraqi brigades be sent to Baghdad, but those -- up to five brigades are going to be sent, because the decision was they ought to have those additional forces in the pipeline in case they are needed, in case they need to build on the success.

But Secretary Gates said today if the plan were to succeed, then he said he could foresee not sending those additional troops so perhaps not sending all five brigades, and what he said possibly even withdrawing some U.S. troops.

But, again, the big "if" here is the performance of the Iraqi government and the Iraqi troops. Everything hinges on that -- Don.

LEMON: And Jamie, the president, both the president and the secretary of defense have said that sometimes in war strategies don't always work out. So what did the secretary -- did he give any indication on what would happen next if the Iraqis did not fulfill these benchmarks in the time frame the president has set?

MCINTYRE: Yes, the big thing is, what is Plan B? What if this doesn't work? And some of the Democrats suggesting this should be the last ditch effort. If this doesn't work, they ought to just start that phased withdrawal they're talking about.

But Gates said no, he didn't think that would be a very good idea. He said what they would have to do, if this didn't work, and while he expressed confidence it would, would be to reassess what would be in the best U.S. national interest. And he asked the question and answered it himself. Would leaving be in the best U.S. interest? He said, no, he didn't think so.

But he also conceded that the options available at that time would be not very good either. But he indicated that he did not think the U.S. should pull out of Iraq, even if the strategy doesn't work.

LEMON: Senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre, thank you.

From the secretary of defense to the secretary of state. It doesn't seem to get any easier for the secretary of state. Yesterday, Condoleezza Rice was grilled on Capitol Hill. And today, she starts a week-long trip to the Middle East: Jerusalem, Ramallah, Sharm el- Sheikh, Amman, Kuwait City and Riyadh. She's expected to talk about the U.S. troop increase in Iraq and the Israeli/Palestinian stalemate.

PHILLIPS: Well, they weren't even on speaking terms a few weeks back. Now Iraq and Syria are summit partners. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani heads to Damascus this weekend for a meeting with Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. Talabani is expected to ask al-Assad to stop the infiltration of terrorists into Iraq.

The two nations were diplomatically estranged when Syria sided with Iran during the Iran-Iraq war. They made up just last month. Talabani knows his way around the Syrian capital; he lived there for years as an exile during the Saddam Hussein area (sic).

More symbolic than sadistic. A rocket propelled grenade attack on the U.S. embassy in Greece. It happened overnight. No one was hurt. Damage was light. But who did it and why?

CNN's Alessio Vinci is in Athens. He's been working the story.

Alessio, what can you tell us?

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kyra.

Greek investigators at this time are trying to verify the authenticity of a phone call that was made about an hour and a half after the attack. And it was a phone call made to a private security firm hired by the U.S. embassy to protect the embassy compound.

And in that phone call, the caller, who did not get his name, said that a group called the Revolutionary Struggle carried out the attack.

Now this leftist militant group is a known quantity here in Greece. Last year, it claimed the assassination attempt of a Greek minister here and in December 2005 also carried out an attack against a minister of the economy here. So there is certainly some history behind this group.

However, the way this claim was made is leading investigators to perhaps to believe that this call was not a real one, was a hoax, because usually this group made this claim after attacking these targets by making a phone call and leaving a pamphlet, if you want, at a newspaper or through the media, not through a security firm. So they're trying to figure out whether this phone call was true or was real or not.

Meantime, the embassy, as you can probably see behind me, traffic is back to normal. This entire area was cordoned off this morning for several hours as investigators tried to sift through the debris, trying to find some clues perhaps as to the original, the origin of the weapon used. We understand from Greek officials here that it was a Russian-made rocket, which is available, however in many countries, but certainly not a weapon used by the Greek military.

Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: Alessio, so what's your take? And is the embassy saying anything about is it safe for Americans to travel there right now?

VINCI: Well, they have not issued any new warnings against American citizens traveling to this part of the world, to this city.

Of course, there is a history in this city and in this country of attacks against American and American interests. There was a group called November 17 who -- which over 30 years managed to kill five embassy staffers here. That group has now been disbanded.

And the question, by the way, is whether this new or this sort of fairly new Revolutionary Struggle wants to succeed November 17 in carrying out attacks against both the U.S. and western interests here in -- here in Greece -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS; Alessio Vinci live from Athens, thanks.

LEMON: Let's get back to our top story. We're talking about severe weather hitting big parts of the country.

Let's go to Rosa Flores. She's in Boise City, Oklahoma, with the very latest for us.

Hello, Rosa. What can you tell us?

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, well, it's very, very cold here. I'm on the east side of Boise City, and that's in the panhandle of the state of Oklahoma.

Now if you look behind me there are still patches and piles of snow. Now, it's pretty deceiving. Because under this, you'll see also patches of ice.

Now, we -- as we were traveling west to get here, the wind chill just kept on getting colder. The visibility started getting denser. Now if you look at some of the video we took, a lot of the power lines are still down. I did speak to the Tri-county Electric Cooperative here in the state of Oklahoma, and they tell me that all residents do have power, but about 400 to 500 work barns and irrigation systems are still down.

Now, Oklahoma City is also being hit very severely. We're getting snow flurries. But they're getting patches and patches of ice. So the city is pretty much down in that area.

Here, we're very, very fortunate only to have snow flurries. And people I talked to here say that they feel very fortunate that they're getting snow and not ice like they got hit about two weeks ago.

Back to you.

LEMON: All right, Rosa Flores in Boise City, Oklahoma. Thank you so much for your report.

PHILLIPS: In Iraq, a street curb may not really be a curb.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They would make false curbs and have an IED built into the curb, so as you're going down the street you had to find that difference in the curb. Otherwise, it may explode.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Iraq war vets talk about the hidden dangers of urban warfare. That's straight ahead from the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: And you may prefer American football, but U.S. will soon learn to bend it like Beckham. We're standing by for a live news conference with a special appearance from Europe's most famous soccer player. We'll bring that to you when it happens right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Three down, three to go for newly empowered House Democrats. Live pictures right now. The House has just passed half of the six bills that Speaker Nancy Pelosi promised to push through in the first 100 hours of this 110th Congress. In the bag already, a hike in the minimum wage, expanded stem cell research, and a bill to enact the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.

Being debated now, a plan to lower Medicare drug costs.

CNN's Lisa Sylvester has more on that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Name-brand drugs like Fosomax, Celebrex and Zocor cost roughly 60 percent more in the Medicare drug program than those provided to veterans. The difference? The Department of Veterans Affairs negotiates directly with drug companies. The Department of Health and Human Services does not.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The seniors are paying much too much and, for many, it's unaffordable. And the taxpayer, who covers three quarters of the cost of this program, is being fleeced.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to fill these two generically...

SYLVESTER: Legislation in Congress would require Medicare to bargain down prices, giving relief to struggling middle class seniors. The House is expected to easily pass a bill Friday.

But similar legislation is likely to get bogged down in the Senate, where Republicans are threatening a filibuster. PHRMA, representing the mega drug companies, has launched a lobbying blitz, saying it will restrict consumer choices. Other health experts point to a congressional budget office report that says under current proposals there would be little or no savings.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If Medicare tries to negotiate with the industry and doesn't restrict the list of drugs, the formulary, then they have no -- no bargaining power, and so drug prices can't be lowered.

SYLVESTER: But supporters say the budget office is missing the mark, and common sense says the bargaining power of 40 million seniors will drive down prices.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Economics 101. Just take a look at what's happened in Canada, where you have the whole market through negotiated price. Forty million is a huge share of the market, particularly when you're dealing with the people that use the most medicines.

SYLVESTER: Senate supporters remain confident that the bill will eventually pass because of public support. Four out of five seniors favor having the government negotiate for lower prices.

(on camera) This is setting up a showdown between Democrats on the Hill and the Republican White House. President Bush has said he would veto any bill that compels the federal government to negotiate directly with the drug companies.

Lisa Sylvester, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And we're going to follow the vote there on the Hill. About 1:30 Eastern Time we're expecting an outcome. We'll bring it to you live as soon as it happens.

LEMON: Also, something that could happen live. We're standing by for a live news conference with a special appearance from Europe's most famous soccer player. That's not him. If you saw him, you'd probably recognize him. That's the press conference right there. But there he is. Do you know who that is?

PHILLIPS: Yes.

LEMON: We'll bring that to you when it happens. Don't go anywhere. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: And are you afraid of cancer? Well, you're not alone. But knowing the enemy is a whole lot better than ignoring the risk. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta has all the facts you need to know.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: "You have cancer." No one wants to hear those words, but you may never have to. There are things you can do to help prevent a disease that some people won't even say out loud.

CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just how much control do we have over whether we get cancer?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Honestly, I don't think I have much control. I just hope I don't get it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: None at all.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think I have control.

GUPTA: A new poll commissioned by the American Cancer Society found more than a third of those surveyed, 36 percent, believe they have little or no control over reducing their risk of getting cancer.

Genes do play a role. But diet and lifestyle account for more than half the cases of cancer in this country. That's according to the American Cancer Society. That's more than 250,000 preventable cancer deaths every year.

Smoking, of course, is at the top of the list of cancer risks. And America's 45 million smokers are certainly raising their chances of getting many types of cancer.

Unhealthy diet and lack of exercise contribute to a third of cancer deaths.

COLLEN DOYLE, AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY: Largely, many cancers are preventive through these healthy behaviors like not smoking, like getting exercise, like maintaining a healthy weight, and people really aren't aware that they do have some control over their cancer risk.

GUPTA: Doctors say Americans also need to do a better job of getting screened for cancer. Catch it early, and the chances of surviving the dreaded disease improves dramatically.

Doctor Jim Hotz, an expert on rural health care, says lack of insurance or transportation are two reasons people don't get screened. Human nature is another.

DR. JIM HOTZ, ALBANY PRIMARY HEALTH CARE CENTERS: It's kind of like a terrorist, you know, the fear that there's a cell that's become an alien within your body that can kill you. And people don't want to know about that. They want to put their head in the sand about it.

GUPTA: With cancer, knowledge can be a lifesaver.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And to find cancer screening sites in your area, go to CNN.com/SavingYourLife and click on "web extras."

Also, be sure to turn in to CNN this weekend. Sanjay Gupta teams up with Tour De France winner and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong for a CNN special. It's called "Saving Your Life". That's Saturday and Sunday at 8 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

PHILLIPS: A couple of well-known brands are getting big makeovers. Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange to tell us about those changes.

Hey, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.

Some high-tech and low-tech names.

Many Cingular customers will soon be getting a blast from the past. AT&T says it will start rebranding its Cingular Wireless unit as AT&T, beginning next week. This comes just two weeks after AT&T gained full ownership of the Cingular brand through its purchase of Bellsouth.

The change will come in stages. At first, both logos will appear in ads and on customer bills, so that familiar orange jack, you'll continue to see. But AT&T says the Cingular name will likely disappear altogether by midyear. The change a bit ironic. Just three years ago, AT&T Wireless customers found their cell provider morphed into Cingular after Cingular bought that wireless carrier. A lot of mergers and acquisitions in the telecom sector -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Pepsi is making a big change to its look, right?

LISOVICZ: Yes, there's our low-tech brand. Pepsi says it's going to unleash a series of new designs for its cans and bottles starting next month. Pepsi products will have backgrounds with sports, music and fashion-related images as the company tries to attract more teens and young adults.

This is actually a big change in strategy, believe it or not. It's more than a century-long existence, Pepsi has fiercely guarded the packaging to its iconic cola, changes its look only ten times. But this year alone it will change more than 35 times, I guess to suit the very fickle taste of that young generation, Kyra.

LISOVICZ: Oh, yes, the young generation. All right, how's the market looking today?

(STOCK REPORT)

LISOVICZ: That's the latest from Wall Street. Coming up, federal regulators may have their eyes on Apple chief Steve Jobs, and it has nothing to do with the new iPhone. I'll explain in the next hour of NEWSROOM.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Hello everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

LEMON: I'm Don Lemon. Beckham and Spice, or Posh and Becks as they call them in the U.K. And things couldn't be nicer as far as paparazzi are concerned. Just ahead, one-half of Hollywood's incoming it couple talks about making the right move to the Left Coast.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: He is probably the most famous soccer player in the world, announcing a $250 million deal with the Los Angeles Galaxy to play soccer right here in the U.S., holding a press conference now via satellite from Madrid.

Let's take a listen to David Beckham.

DAVID BECKHAM, SOCCER PLAYER: could create something that, you know, we've all never seen before, you know, by taking it to a different level.

QUESTION: What's the buzz over there? Have you talked to other players? Do you think by your coming here more European players will come to MLS?

BECKHAM: That's possible, you know. But my move to the MLS is not, you know, so it creates several opportunities for other players to follow me right away; my reasoning behind me coming over there is to create, you know, the opportunity and also to give my advice to young players. Of course, you know, there's going to be times when some of my teammates might ask me about my experiences in European football and the different teams and different players that I've played with.

But I think that, you know, the thing that I can give out to children, you know -- Tim's seen me work with kids before. That's one of my biggest passions in life, despite obviously my own three sons. I love working with kids. That's the reason why I started up my academy. It's the reason why, you know, I spend every day trying to do something different to work with kids and to see how happy you know, we can actually make kids, And that's the difference, that's one of the differences I want to make in the U.S., and I think that there's huge potential for that.

QUESTION: How familiar are you with Los Angeles, coming to L.A., Hollywood basically, and did that play a part in your decision?

BECKHAM: I think it's always nice to live in an amazing city. And I think living in L.A. is going to be a great experience for my family. I think when we're making the decisions, of course I'm married with three children and we're a very close family, so it was obviously a big decision for us as well. But you know, it's a decision, and it's going to be a great experience for us, because we're going to move as a family. We're always together as a family.

You know, we've been to L.A. a few times, my wife more than myself. But a few years back, you know, I came to L.a., about four years ago, I think it was, and you know, I was walking around, and I got a few people coming up to me and recognizing me, but then I went back about a year ago. And I think I looked out the window in the house I was actually staying in and there was 45 paparazzi cars outside, so that was slightly different. But I realize, you know, I'm not as recognized in the U.S. as I am around, you know, around Europe, around other parts of the world. But, you know, hopefully playing for the Galaxy will change that. But if doesn't then I'm there to play football; I'm there to make a difference for the kids.

LEMON: All right, there's David Beckham, holding a press conference there, via satellite, talking about his new move to the U.S., particularly -- specifically with the Los Angeles Galaxy, a $250 million deal. You know what that works out to? One million bucks a week. We could all use that money.

He's also talking about he's not as popular here as he is across the pond, as they say. Maybe his wife is actually more famous than he is. He has long been a superstar, though. Now he is a Galaxy, part of it, anyway. And if you don't know the name David Beckham, the women in your life probably do.

Here's CNN's Chris Lawrence. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And then Beckham with the service in.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He is a European soccer star, his wife a former Spice Girl. They're ready to take on America together. David Beckham has reportedly signed a 250 million dollar contract to play for the L.A. Galaxy.

LEIGH STEINBERG, SPORTS AGENT: Everyone in America will be talking about this signing at water coolers and schools.

LAWRENCE: Everyone in America talking about a man hardly anyone can even recognize?

DAVID BECKHAM, SOCCER STAR: I love it here. It's cool.

LAWRENCE (on camera): Do people even know who David Beckham is here?

KEN BAKER, "US WEEKLY": They do, but it's like one in 10.

LAWRENCE: "US Weekly" editor Ken Baker says that will change quickly. Not due to Beckham alone, because his wife is more famous here than he is. With the former Posh Spice, there are paparazzi's dream.

BAKER: There is no Hollywood power couple left. They've all either broken up or gotten old and went to raise babies. They have an opportunity to fill the void and become the next big Hollywood power couple.

LAWRENCE: Beckham is betting his popularity in Europe will follow him across the pond to a sport still watched by few Americans.

BECKHAM: I have never had any regrets, for in my life and in my career, and I never want to.

LAWRENCE: But mentioning him in the same breath as Britney Spears or Brad Pitt?

BAKER: There's a lot of agents in town right now frothing at the mouth about the idea of, wow, he is in Hollywood now. Let's book him for movies, let's get a TV show.

LAWRENCE: Beckham was an instant celebrity among American soccer fans when he visited in 2005. This time he is after a whole different level of fame.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right. If you want to get one more look at him -- well, he just went off the satellite there. But if you want to continue the press conference, him and a bunch of other officials talking about this big deal, you can go to CNN.com/pipeline.

PHILLIPS: If the goal was to win hearts and mind, the president's long-waited primetime speech on Iraq appears to have fallen short. In fact a new CNN Opinion Research Corporation poll shows the speech may not have made any difference at all.

Let's bring in our CNN senior political analyst Bill Schneider -- Bill.

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POL. ANALYST: Kyra, how did President Bush's speech on Iraq go over? Well, we have the answer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good evening.

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST (voice-over): Wednesday night, President Bush spoke dramatically about the high stakes in Iraq.

BUSH: It is the decisive, ideological struggle of our time.

SCHNEIDER: And his new plan for dealing with it.

BUSH: So, I've committed more than 20,000 additional American troops to Iraq.

SCHNEIDER: The public's response, 2-1 negative. In fact, half the public say they strongly oppose the troop build-up, leaving Democrats to denounce the president's proposal.

SEN RICHARD DURBIN (D), MAJORITY WHIP: The president's plan moves the American commitment to Iraq in the wrong direction.

SCHNEIDER: Democratic voters are virtually united in their opposition -- 88 percent oppose the build-up. And the president's base -- two-thirds of Republican voters support President Bush on Iraq. But we're beginning to hear criticism from Republican politicians.

SEN CHUCK HAGEL (R), NEBRASKA: I think this speech, given last night, by this president, represents the most dangerous foreign policy blunder in this country since Vietnam.

SCHNEIDER: He speaks for the 30 percent of republican voters who oppose Mr. Bush's plan.

BUSH: Our troops will have a well-defined mission...

SCHNEIDER: The public does not agree. Only 35 percent believe President Bush has a clear plan for Iraq, that's up a bit from the 25 percent who felt that way before he spoke, but 63 percent of Americans still don't see a clear plan.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SCHNEIDER: Maybe the speech didn't work because only 43 percent of Americans watched it. But even among those who saw it, only 27 percent said it made them more likely to support the president's policies. Half said it made no difference -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Bill, why didn't the president's speech work?

SCHNEIDER: I think a number of reasons. One is a lot of people's minds were made up about Iraq long ago.

Second of all, they didn't hear a lot that was new in the speech, particularly since most of what the president said had gotten out in advance, about the troop buildup.

And third, a lot of what he calls the new strategy in Iraq really depends on not what American troops do, but on what the Iraqi government does. And our poll shows Americans don't have a lot of confidence in the government of Iraq.

PHILLIPS: Bill Schneider, thanks.

Well, that poll is from our new partnership with Opinion Research Corporation. Together we're going to bring you the most accurate, most insightful public opinion polling anywhere.

LEMON: Punching the clock on Capitol Hill. The Democrats are focused on first 100 hours, and so is the NEWSROOM. A status report from Washington just ahead.

SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi. I'm Sibila Vargas.

In Hollywood, a very windy Hollywood. I'll give you the 411 on this year's Golden Globes. Jennifer Hudson being touted a Cinderella story. That's next in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: I like that music.

First big movie awards of 2007, now just a weekend away. The Golden Globes are handed out on Monday. I'm guessing that means a long weekend of nail-biting for Jennifer Hudson, a Golden Globe nominee for "Dreamgirls." Am I right about that, Sibila Vargas?

SIBILA VARGAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: I don't know about the nail-biting part, because I'll tell you, everyone's been talking about her.

LEMON: She's awesome.

VARGAS: She is the fairy tale story. And we love them. You know how much we love them. She's the one everybody's been talking about in the supporting category. They're even talking about possible Oscar for her. We don't know. But I got to tell you, you know, this is a girl who came from American Idol. She was considered a reject by Simon Cowell, but, boy, has time changed everything. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENNIFER HUDSON, ACTRESS: Just being a nominee is like, I'm going to live in the moment. I'm a Golden Globe nominee. Don't even call me Jennifer, call me Golden Globe nominee.

(SINGING)

HUDSON: I always wanted to be a singer. Singing for 17 years. I never thought of myself anywhere near acting or an actress. So that's a huge surprise. And then once I came up to going for the part, all I wanted was the part.

(SINGING)

BILL CONDON, DIRECTOR: She came in and tested three times. But finally she came and I worked with her for three days, did a real proper screen test, old-fashioned hollywood one with makeup and rehearsal and things like that and she just killed it.

HUDSON: Zena's beautiful and she's always been beautiful. But I've got the voice, Curtis, I've got the voice! You can't put me in back! You just can't!

JAMIE FOXX, ACTOR: Feel she was singing not just from the character but what she probably went through in life and this is her shot. And she laid it on the line and gave it to you.

CONDON: It's very hard to get Jamie Foxx to be quiet. So, the first time she sings the song, she sings it to him and we called cut.

FOXX: As she's singing, I'm sitting there, and the camera's on me. And I'm -- cut, Jamie, you all right? Yes, I'm fine, just run it. And I just really wasn't all right, because she was really putting her whole heart in it.

(SINGING)

CONDON: A diva is born and star is born. Yes, it's amazing.

HUDSON: It's so exciting, so overwhelming. Like, just caught up in the moment.

(SINGING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VARGAS: And if a budding acting career weren't enough, she's also working on a new album. So expect to be seeing a lot from Jennifer Hudson, back to you.

LEMON: Wow, she was great in that movie. And, you know, when I went to see it, it was just like we were in a Broadway theater or something. Every time she sang, people would applaud, sometimes people even stood up. VARGAS: It is amazing that this is her first acting role. I mean, she was just -- she owned the part. And she really -- I mean, gave Jamie Foxx, Beyonce Knowles, I got to tell you, and Eddie Murphy, all of these veteran actors, a run for their money.

LEMON: All right. Sibila Vargas, thank you so much.

VARGAS: By the way, Don, make sure you watch me on Monday. I'm going to be out there all day on the red carpet. I'll be getting you some celebrity interviews as well. I know you love them.

LEMON: We look forward to that. And we have a celebrity interview. Thank you, Sibila Vargas. We have a celebrity interview, another Golden Globe nominee to talk about -- that you sat down with yesterday. Hilarious.

PHILLIPS: Jeremy Piven. Boy, he is -- I loved him in "Entourage." But he's in this new movie Smoking Aces." We talked about that and also his nomination for "Entourage." I tried to talk him into taking me. But he refuses, has to take his mom, Joyce.

LEMON: Did he do the hug it out?

PHILLIPS: He also said some things we really can't say on television.

LEMON: My favorite is Lloyd! That's a great show.

PHILLIPS: Give that poor guy a hard time.

LEMON: Look forward to that.

PHILLIPS: Yeah, he's great. He's pretty funny.

Well, Reynolds Wolf is in our severe weather center. He's keeping up with all the warnings. Reynolds, what's latest?

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Reynolds.

LEMON: When weather becomes the news, you too, can become a CNN correspondent, right?

PHILLIPS: You are such a company guy.

LEMON: Thank you, Reynolds Wolf.

In Iraq, a street curb might not really be a curb.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The would make false curbs, have an IED built into the curb. Since you're going down the street, you have to find that difference in the curb otherwise it may explode.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Iraq war vets talk about the hidden dangers of urban warfare. That's ahead in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Clearing is one thing. Holding is something else entirely. That's a challenge for U.S. forces in or headed to Baghdad, as two Iraq war veterans are very well aware of. CNN's Brian Todd has their story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From the top, the new mission is to clear.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The new mission is to help Iraqis clear and secure neighborhoods.

TODD: John Powers and Garrett Reppenhagen (ph) know something about clearing and securing neighborhoods. For a year in Baghdad, Powers patrolled the streets looking for insurgents, his Army unit depicted in the film "Gunner Palace."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down now.

TODD: Reppenhagen, a former Army scout and sniper, has a descriptive phase for the year he spent in Baquba going house to house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What we call it is it's an ass puckering experience. That doorway, that open doorway, we call it the funnel of death because if you get in that doorway and you're inside a darkened room looking out, all you see is silhouettes of people coming in.

You don't know what you're going to get, and you could get the bad guy, you could get, you know, innocent women and children.

TODD: And that's only if you get to a house. Try getting past the roadside bombs first.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sometimes they're in trash. They'll hide them in animal carcasses. They'll hide them in trees or on light posts.

TODD (on camera): Tell me something pretty mind blowing about just the curbs in Iraq.

What do they do?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure. One of the things we learned to identify is that they would make false curbs and have an IED built into the curb. So as you were going down the street, you had to find that difference in the curb, otherwise it may explode.

TODD (voice-over): Best to avoid using any vehicles, they say, too easy to get trapped. Intersections have their own perils.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Instead of just two areas of crossfire, you have a whole vicinity you've got to check out.

TODD: When attacked from a building, Reppenhagen says, soldiers have to counter with overwhelming fire, take out the target, then clear the entire building. It can take hours.

In one chaotic exchange, he describes firing back against a sniper in a building, having to take out another man who is rushing in and out to deliver him ammunition. At one point, that man took cover behind a car. His unit, he says, lit up the car then looked inside.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There were three innocent kids that were hiding in the car, not aware that, you know, there was going to be a battle in Baquba that day and all three of them were killed.

TODD: When I asked Powers and Reppenhagen if 21,000 more U.S. troops plus Iraqis are enough for those urban operations, they said there really is no right amount for that kind of fighting.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Know your enemy. In Iraq, the enemy is often described by the catch-all term insurgents. But the insurgency constitutes an odd mix of sometimes competing interests. Here's a CNN "Fact Check."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Dozens, if not hundreds of groups comprise the insurgency, which began soon after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. According to Human Rights Watch International, the insurgency is classified in three broad categories: Islamic extremists, Sunni nationalists and Baathists.

Islamic extremists have claimed responsibility for dozens of car and suicide bombings targeting large gathering of Iraqi civilians. Formed by the Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the al Qaeda-backed groups are also behind kidnapping, often distributing grisly video of captives. Rebels from Saudi Arabia, Syria, Yemen, Kuwait and Jordan make up the group, which say they're engaged in Jihad or holy war against the West.

Next are the Sunni nationalists, made up of Sunni Arabs who want to expel foreign forces. They claim to limit their attacks to military targets and have condemned attacks on civilians. But some of these groups have also targeted and kidnapped Iraqi civilians.

The third group is linked to Saddam Hussein's ousted Baathist party, and is apparently funded by former members of his regime. They primarily target multinational forces and Iraqi government troops and police. But they're also responsible for many of the ubiquitous roadside bombs that don't distinguish between civilian and military targets.

Each group utilizes different strategies which sometimes overlap. They're united by two common goals: expelling coalition forces and overthrowing the new Iraqi government.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Well, as chaos grows in Somalia, thousands aim to escape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The situation of the border action is very tense, because there's a lot of displaced people who came from very far distance, up to Somalia, Mogadishu. Even they're hesitant (ph) of doubling the border, they want to cross because there's a lot, you know -- what do you call it -- disaster.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Up next in the CNN NEWSROOM, reports from a troubled border and Kenya's growing nightmare.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com