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Interview With Donald Trump; Deadliest Attack In Baghdad In More Than A Month; Race Playing Role in Duke Sex Scandal?; Heidi Kraft Discusses Corporal Jason Dunham
Aired January 16, 2007 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: And thanks for staying us. I'm Kyra Phillips, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Don Lemon.
This newborn will sure have the -- a story to tell his grandkids and beyond that. He survived Hurricane Katrina -- get this -- in a test tube, and made his official debut today.
PHILLIPS: From California to Maine, winter is making its presence felt -- details on conditions across the country ahead from the Severe Weather Center.
LEMON: And a dying Marine is forever in her heart. Dr. Heidi Kraft joins us to tell the story of meeting Medal of Honor recipient Jason Dunham in a Fallujah hospital -- that story, live, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
PHILLIPS: You have come a long way, baby. Noah by name, he hasn't built an ark, but he's already faced a flood before he was even born. He was one of Hurricane Katrina's youngest -- and we mean youngest -- evacuees. He came into the world just this morning in Covington, Louisiana.
And our Susan Roesgen is there -- Susan.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra.
You know, they say all babies are miracles, but this baby really is special. This baby was born the result of an unusual rescue, a baby that wasn't even born when Hurricane Katrina hit, eight pounds, six-and-a-half ounces, 19 inches long, healthy, and the apple of his parents' eyes.
What happened was, there were 1,400 frozen embryos stored in four nitrogen tanks, super-cold nitrogen tanks, in a fertility clinic in a part of New Orleans that flooded quite badly. So, the doctors at the fertility clinic were worried, because that fertility clinic lost power. There was no air-conditioning, temperature was above 100 degrees.
And the call went on to the Louisiana State Police and the Illinois conservation officers to come and try to rescue those nitrogen tanks with the embryos inside. They did. And the result was this new baby boy, born to Glen and Rebekah Markham. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REBEKAH MARKHAM, MOTHER OF NOAH: It's scary to think that, you know, he was in the storm, and he survived the storm. And I was so far away, and he was there. And people went in and -- and risked so many different things, and orchestrated it so precisely -- be real careful -- that -- and everything worked. I mean, it's just a miracle.
And I'm so blessed. I can't even describe how blessed I feel to have this family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: And, Kyra, as you mentioned, because this was a baby saved from the flood, they have named him Noah.
PHILLIPS: A story doesn't get much better than that -- perfect time.
Susan Roesgen, thanks so much.
PHILLIPS: Well, you saw it right here, Donald Trump, owner of some of the swankiest real estate in New York City.
LEMON: Oh, yes. And now he has a piece of Hollywood, a star, right there on the Walk of Fame.
And joining us with that, and a lot more, to be sure, the Donald, Donald Trump himself.
Good afternoon to you.
DONALD TRUMP, CHAIRMAN & CEO, TRUMP HOTELS & CASINO RESORTS: Thank you. Good afternoon.
LEMON: Last time we talked to you, you were -- you know, you were pimping your new vodka. And we certainly enjoyed...
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: ... enjoyed that.
How does it feel? This is this your most favorite piece of real estate so far?
TRUMP: Well, this probably is.
I mean, who would have thought this was going to happen? I have gotten a lot of awards for the building business, but never for the entertainment business. And "The Apprentice" has just become this great success. And I'm really honored by it. And to be honored on the Walk of Fame has been terrific, as far as I'm concerned.
PHILLIPS: So, how did you find out about it, Donald? How did you get the word? And what went into this? TRUMP: Well, really, the great Johnny Grant, who runs it, called. And he said: You have been nominated, and you have been accepted. And, if you would like, we want to give you a star on the Walk of Fame.
So, everybody knows the name Johnny Grant, because he is synonymous with the Walk of Fame. And it was my great honor.
LEMON: Yes. So, how long ago was that did he call you up?
TRUMP: Well, that was about almost a year ago.
LEMON: Yes?
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: It was almost a year ago. And it takes a long time, the preparation and everything. But this has been a great day. We have perfect weather, beautiful, not too warm, not too cold, a little breeze to mess up my hair.
LEMON: Yes, we were noticing...
TRUMP: People at least see my hair is real.
LEMON: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: We were noticing that earlier.
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: ... it's real. They're saying...
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: Everyone is saying it's real. They can't even believe it.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: You know what? We noticed your son. What is his name again?
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIPS: Barron.
LEMON: Barron.
PHILLIPS: Barron.
LEMON: His hair looked a lot like yours. Does he have the same comb-over or that same hairdo that you have?
TRUMP: No, Barron has a comb-over. But I have another son here. Don, he doesn't have to comb it over.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: He doesn't have to...
TRUMP: He is lucky.
PHILLIPS: He doesn't have to worry about the -- the comb-over yet. It is looking pretty good there.
Now...
TRUMP: He's got no problem. So, who did Barron's comb-over?
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: Well, Melania did Barron's little comb-over. She loves that. She goes like this, a little flick of her wrist.
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: And Barron has a comb-over. And she loves it. So, I guess that's the way it's going to be, right?
PHILLIPS: Like father, like son.
So, I'm curious. Did you call Rosie to tell her that you have a star on the Walk of Fame now?
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: No. I thought we would keep her out of this, to be honest with you.
LEMON: I...
PHILLIPS: You didn't invite her, huh?
TRUMP: No. She wasn't invited.
LEMON: Yes, I thought -- I was going to ask you, was there an agreement that you -- you know, your star couldn't be as close to Rosie?
Is there anything that you want to add to that? Because much has been made of that, and it seems like much ado about nothing.
TRUMP: Well, I think it really is.
And it just got blown totally out of proportion. And it is unfortunate. But, you know, no matter where I go, even if it's a star, they will ask me a question. And then people criticize me if I talk about it. So, I never talk about it. But everyone seems to ask me that as one of the questions. But I don't.
PHILLIPS: How about your rising star Tara Conner? What is going on with Miss USA?
TRUMP: Well, she is a rising star. And she's doing very well. She is in rehab. She comes out in a very short period of time. And I hear she is just absolutely going to be fine.
And I'm very happy that I gave her a second chance. I think she's going to be an inspiration to a lot of people that need a second chance.
PHILLIPS: Well, speaking about inspiration, the rumor is, she might be posing for "Playboy." Is that true?
TRUMP: No, no, that's not Tara. That's somebody else. And "Playboy" has asked about Tara. We're going to make a decision on that. But we will see what happens. That's a little bit into the future.
LEMON: We saw a lot of people at the ceremony today, a couple of your good friends -- among them, Larry King. How did you decide who to -- who could come? And tell us a little bit more about Larry King -- you know, he is one of our colleagues -- and your friendship.
TRUMP: Well, Larry is a great man, and really an iconic figure.
And, when I had the chance to get Larry, I was really thrilled. I have done his show many times. It's a great show.
I will say this. When I do Larry's show, everybody sees me. When I do a lot of other shows, I never hear about it. So, Larry is a very unusual guy. And there's really nobody like him. And having Jay Leno and Mark Burnett and everybody else, all the folks from NBC, is really an honor for me.
PHILLIPS: So, talk to me about Condoleezza Rice. Stepping up, talking politics now -- you're not a big fans of hers. Why not?
TRUMP: Well, it's not a question of not being a fan. I think she's a very nice person. I think she's a really wonderful woman.
I would like to see somebody that is a negotiator. We need a negotiator. We don't need sound bites. We don't need people walking off planes, waving sitting with a dictator, waving, getting back on the plane, waving, and nothing happens. We need negotiators.
PHILLIPS: So, you think you could get in there and negotiate world politics?
TRUMP: Well, it doesn't have to be me. The answer is, yes, I could do a very good job. But I know 20 people that would be fantastic at it.
LEMON: Yes. Now that you have a Hollywood -- a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, what is next for Donald Trump, I mean, ruler of the world? What is next for you?
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: Well, this has just been amazing.
I mean, having this honor is something totally unexpected. And I have received so many honors in real estate, but to get it for the entertainment business and for the success of "The Apprentice," who would have thought this was going to happen? So, I'm just honored by it.
LEMON: Yes. Does this sort of cap off every -- you know, you have gotten a lot criticism, one, from people like Rosie, what have you, but does this sort of add a special cap, and go, huh, so here?
TRUMP: Well, I think it does.
It's been very special. I have a lot of great friends. I have Bob Kraft and Tom Brady, great friends of mine, the New England Patriots, they are watching right now, as a matter of fact.
And I have so many great friends that are watching CNN and everyone else that is live. And I'm just honored by it. But this has really been a lot of fun for me.
PHILLIPS: Donald Trump, congratulations on the star. I'm sure we will be talking about all kinds of projects this year. It's going to be an interesting 2007.
TRUMP: I think it will be. Thank you very much.
PHILLIPS: Thank you.
Well, no doubt about it anymore: Winter is here -- much of the country, of course, in the grips of an arctic blast -- among the worst today, central Texas, where sheets of ice have basically shut down everything in and around Austin. Even the governor's inaugural parade had to be canceled.
Both Oklahoma and Missouri, slammed over the weekend, have been declared federal disaster areas. The ice is four inches thick in places, and likely to stay that way, with temperatures well below freezing. California's citrus crop is also feeling the chill. Farmers say, about $1 billion worth of oranges, lemons, tangerines and other fruit could be lost.
About half-a-million people don't have power from Missouri to Maine. At least 42 deaths in seven states are blamed on the ice and cold.
And there's more to come, maybe even here in Atlanta.
Bonnie Schneider in our Weather Center -- Bonnie. BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I think, in Atlanta, we will see some wintry weather late Wednesday, into Thursday.
But, right now, the big news is Austin, Texas. It's snowing there. That doesn't happen very often. The average annual snowfall for Austin is zero.
But let's show you a live picture of Austin, Texas, and you will see overcast skies. But take my word for it. We have snow falling. We could see a half-an-inch accumulate. Actually, you can see a little bit of it on the roof there near the Capitol's area. But it's really unusual to see it. Temperatures are certainly cold enough. The winter storm warning continues for Austin and San Antonio straight through tomorrow morning.
Let's take a closer look now at the area. We will show you the snow that is falling. You can see, it's not going to last too long, like I said, about a half-an-inch. But there's areas to the north, in Round Rock, where we have had some accumulation.
Temperatures have to be cold enough at the earth's surface, the mid-levels up above below freezing, in order to get snow. That is what we're seeing in Austin. We're not quite seeing it in San Antonio. Temperatures have fluctuated a little bit above freezing. But don't rule out freezing rain. We're seeing that now, maybe mixing with sleet at times. So, that will be tough to deal with, if you have to travel.
If you have to travel, I would say stay indoors until the storm passes, because, really, we're looking at a very icy situation for much of central Texas and south Texas as well.
Let's talk about Houston now, as we travel a little bit further to the south. What we're looking at is kind of freezing rain just working its way across I-10. But keep in mind, temperatures, for the most part, are above freezing in Houston right now, also, in Lafayette, Louisiana; Lake Charles; Vidor; into Beaumont, all above freezing.
But, later on tonight, after 6:00 this evening -- so, for the evening rush -- an ice storm warning will take effect, as these temperatures drop down below freezing. So, we are also looking at icy conditions straight through central Louisiana, straight into the evening hours, and -- and into Wednesday morning as well.
Here is the big picture now. You can see some of the flurries working their way towards the Dallas/Fort Worth area. And, really, this batch of moisture coming in right above the shallow arctic air mass that is in place, that is the culprit to bring us this wintry weather.
As we take a closer look at the map, I will zoom into the Texas area, so you can see what is happening. We have high pressure that has brought about that cool arctic air mass, but, then, look at this -- all the way from the Pacific, that warm, moist air coming in right above the arctic air. So, when you have that warmer air just above the earth's surface, where the temperatures are freezing, any moisture that falls will fall in the form of ice, except where it's cold enough to be all snow. And, really, depending on where you are in Texas, that rain-snow line will waver throughout much of the day, and then turn to really an icy mess later on tonight -- windy conditions across the Southeast.
And we were talking about Atlanta. This wintry weather will push further off towards Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi in the days to come. So, Thursday morning, we could be talking about freezing rain here in north Georgia. That's something we will be watching as well -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, Bonnie Schneider, thanks so much.
SCHNEIDER: Sure.
LEMON: The deadliest attack in Baghdad in more than a month, and it wasn't the only one today -- far from it.
CNN's Arwa Damon has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two bombs in one place, aimed at causing maximum casualties -- a car bomb parked under a pedestrian bridge at the main entrance to Mustansiriya University, blending in with other vehicles, waiting to pick up students and employees.
At the same time, a suicide bomber with an explosive vest mixed with students at the university's back entrance, waiting for the evening rush home -- they exploded near simultaneously. Dozens were killed, over 160 wounded. And officials expect the number of dead to rise.
The university is in a predominantly Shia part of Baghdad on the edge of Sadr City. A CNN producer at the scene said, heavily armed militiamen loyal to radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr arrived soon after the attack.
It was not the first of the day. Hours earlier, a bomb exploded close to al-Sadr's main office. At least four people were killed in that attack. Elsewhere in Baghdad, a roadside bomb exploded, killing two policemen and two civilians. Ten others were wounded, the explosion coming just as police had successfully diffused a car bomb.
Two hours later, also in the heart of the capital, a roadside bomb exploded, targeting a police patrol. Again, as emergency forces responded and a crowd gathered, another bomb exploded. It was hidden under a motorcycle. The explosions killed at least 15 and wounded 70.
Whatever optimism may have been generated by the announcement of a new joint U.S.-Iraqi plan to secure the capital, it has been quickly overshadowed by reality. (on camera): Altogether, more than 100 people were killed in Baghdad alone on Tuesday. Over twice that number were wounded -- and that on the same day that the United Nations estimated that over 34,000 civilians were killed last year.
Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: A lousy year for Iraq -- that's a quote from President Bush. And few would dispute it.
But, no matter how bad it gets, Mr. Bush says, the U.S. will stay committed. He told Jim Lehrer of PBS he's going to keep pushing his plan to send more troops, despite strong bipartisan protests in Congress.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "THE NEWSHOUR WITH JIM LEHRER")
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm frustrated at times about Iraq, because I understand the consequences of failure. And I -- you know, I want the Iraqis to succeed, for our own sake.
This is a war, part of a broader war, and that -- if we fail in Iraq, there's a better likelihood that the enemy comes and hurts us here. And, so, I'm frustrated with the progress. I'm -- if you were to take an -- put me in an opinion poll and said, do I approve of Iraq, I would be one of those who said, no, I don't approve of what is taking place in Iraq.
On the other hand, I do believe we can succeed. Look, I had a choice to make, Jim. And that is, one, do what we're doing. And one could define that maybe as slow failure. Secondly, withdraw out of Baghdad and hope for the best. I would think that would be expedited failure.
And thirdly is to help this Iraqi government with additional forces, help them do what they need to do, which is to provide security in Baghdad. And I chose the latter, because I think it is going to more likely be successful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: The president gives his State of the Union speech next Tuesday to the first Democratic-controlled Congress in a dozen years.
LEMON: Tracing a twisted trail -- as new details emerge about alleged kidnapper Michael Devlin, we're checking out the possible charges -- details straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.
PHILLIPS: A troubling case complicated by race? Ahead in the NEWSROOM, Paula Zahn previews her hour-long special on the Duke lacrosse rape case.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Left alone, free to come and go. But was Shawn Hornbeck mentally shackled by his alleged kidnapper, Michael Devlin? We are learning more about violent threats that Devlin allegedly made to keep Shawn where he wanted him.
CNN's Jonathan Freed has the latest now from Kirkwood, Missouri.
What are you learning, Jon?
JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.
I can tell you that the next major legal milestone in this process that began with the arrest of Michael Devlin last week is going to be on Thursday morning at 8:30. That is when the arraignment is going to happen in Franklin County.
Now, we are told by the sheriff, for the sake of security and safety, the suspect will not be paraded about for us. It's going to be a video appearance. That is not uncommon in these cases. It does not have to be a high-profile case to merit a video appearance for an arraignment or for a court appearance. It's often done just to facilitate things.
The other thing that we have learned here is that, in a couple of hours from now, the sheriff is expected to speak to the media again, some type of news conference or briefing. I was just on the phone right before we went on the air with the sheriff's department, trying to get a sense of whether Gary Toelke is just trying to keep us updated, because, having worked with him and this department before, he likes to be very available.
So, sometimes, you can get the impression that a major announcement is coming, when it's just that he wants to come out. It was a holiday weekend. He hasn't been that available because of that, and to give reporters a chance to get at him and at his department again.
But we also know that, in a couple of hours from now, the Ownby family -- that's Ben Ownby's family, the child that went missing only a week ago -- that they are planning to speak to the media as well today. So, we are standing by to see what the family has got to say and whether the sheriff is going to have anything significant as well.
We're waiting, Kyra, to see if there might be more charges that might come down, that kind of thing.
PHILLIPS: Jon, the discussion, a lot of us wondering this -- and nothing has come to light about sexual assault. And through your sources and the digging that you have been doing, has that issue even been raised, if, indeed, either one of these boys were sexually assaulted by this man?
FREED: When you talk to people who are part of this, globally speaking -- I have to choose my words very carefully now -- clearly, those types of questions are on the public's mind, as you look at a case like this. And they are on the minds of the people that are investigating as well.
But there has been nothing official that's been said about that yet, but they keep referring to the broad scope that an investigation like this takes at the beginning. And, then, it begins to narrow down and narrow down, and really rivet on the specific aspects that they feel are really going to yield something, as they move the case forward towards the prosecution phase.
When you talk to people, Kyra, who had a connection to Devlin and to Shawn, people who lived in the building -- I spoke to neighbors who lived upstairs -- you get a sense -- they told us that they heard noises. They went as far as to say they heard some abusive language that was being used downstairs. But that's about as far as it goes for now.
PHILLIPS: All right. I know you will keep investigating.
Jonathan Freed, thanks.
LEMON: Let's talk about a story that has been in the headlines for quite a while now.
We're talking about the Duke University sexual assault case. Is race playing a role in that case? The accuser is African-American. The defendants are white.
The controversial case gets in-depth coverage tonight in a Paula Zahn special.
And Paula joins us now from Durham, North Carolina.
Paula, just last week -- it looks like a very cold Durham, North Carolina -- just last week, though, state prosecutors took over the case, at the request of the district attorney.
Is this raising questions about the legitimacy of the case there in very cold Durham, as I said?
PAULA ZAHN, HOST, "PAULA ZAHN NOW": Oh, absolutely.
And it -- and it's going to be really cold by the time we go on the air tonight, probably below 30 degrees. But we're prepared, with all of our kind of subzero gear out here.
There are a lot of pointed questions, Don, being asked about this case. A lot of critics of the district attorney, who has to recuse himself from this case, believe that these charges never should have been filed in the first place, that he made a rush to judgment, that -- in fact, there are people in this community who feel quite strongly that it was the white players themselves that were victimized, not necessarily the black woman accusing them of rape.
It's hard to ignore the issue of race in this case. And , as you will hear from many different guests tonight, who have many points of view, they all think it was a critical factor. LEMON: Let me get to the guests and to the reporters in a little bit. But I got a question for. This case certainly raised a lot of questions nationally when it exploded in the headlines. That as last spring. Are the questions about race even more intense there where you are?
ZAHN: I think so, because Durham, in particular, is a community that has always had a racial divide.
And I spoke with a woman where we picked out -- picked up a quick takeout lunch today who was saying: You know, you don't understand how much this place has changed economically. There are great opportunities here. And just at a time when we thought we were building bridges between these two communities, this happens and, you know, brings out the worst of opinions in both communities.
But there are some very thoughtful people that will weigh in on -- as I mentioned before, on drastically different sides of this issue. But I would say that the criticism of the district attorney is pretty consistent. A lot of people feel that he just never had the evidence, nor had he interviewed the accuser before he brought these charges.
And that is deeply upsetting to them. And there is much speculation that, once the attorney general gets his hands on this, not only will it be months for him to plow through this, but this may not result in any case going forward.
LEMON: And, Paula, let's talk about your guests and also about the reporters. CNN reporters have been doing a lot of digging for this special tonight.
What can we expect to learn from this?
ZAHN: Well, Jeffrey Toobin, our senior legal analyst, will be joining us tonight. And he has some very interesting thoughts on the disposition of this case.
You know, it's pretty easy for all of us to second-guess the district attorney now, but, obviously, he got in a lot of trouble for allegedly leaking information to reporters. We now know that some exculpatory evidence was not given to the defense team, which would have made clear that the DNA of the -- the three accused men was not found on the victim.
That was -- information was withheld. Even as we speak, some very important meetings are being held about whether to -- any way punish District Attorney Nifong. So, Jeffrey Toobin will weigh in on that.
We have Howard Kurtz of "The Washington Post," who also hosts "RELIABLE SOURCES" here at CNN, who will take a look at how the media covered this story. We often, Don, threw out the question how different would the coverage have been had this been three black athletes accused of raping a white woman. And he has some very interesting perspectives on the amount of coverage this story generated and why.
LEMON: Yes.
And, Paula, you know what? We're running out of time, but it would be very interesting -- I know you have been covering this -- to find out exactly if anything has changed for you, if it opened your eyes to anything, covering these stories about racism, intolerance. And maybe we will talk to you about that later.
But we don't have time for an answer now. You understand the time thing. You do exactly what I do.
ZAHN: Give me an hour some other afternoon, and I will...
LEMON: All right, Paula.
ZAHN: ... share some of my thoughts with you.
LEMON: We will be watching.
ZAHN: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: And thank you for joining us today.
And we want to remind our viewers that Paula's special is called "Out in the Open: The Duke Case, A Question of Race." It airs live from Durham, North Carolina, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.
PHILLIPS: Straight ahead: He may not take kindly to criticism of his hair, but Donald Trump is perfectly willing to let people walk all over him. We have got the proof coming up in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, his name is on everything from skyscrapers and golf courses, to television shows, even a beauty pageant. Now it's on a sidewalk -- and not just any sidewalk.
CNN's Brooke Anderson on the scene, right there in Hollywood, she watched at all.
Hey, Brooke.
(LAUGHTER)
BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN CULTURE AND ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Kyra.
Yes, Donald Trump received the 2,327th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame just moments ago, right down from the Kodak Theater, across the street from the El Capitan, so one of the most coveted areas, actually, to have a star on the Walk of Fame.
It's been one of the more chaotic star unveiling that I've seen. About 200 fans and passersby were here to watch. Some have posters, many have cameras, yelling for Trump. Trump's son, Donald Jr., even was gracious enough to sign some autographs.
But Donald Trump -- the theme here was friendship. Mark Burnett, who created "The Apprentice," works with Donald on "The Apprentice," stood up at the podium, gave him a great introduction and talked about what a great friend Donald Trump was. Then our own Larry King basically said some of the same things, echoed those sentiments, said if you want a friend, you have got a friend in Donald Trump.
Donald's wife Melania is here, also their 9-month-old son Barron, who personally, I think little Barron stole the show. He's absolutely adorable, and Melania was helping him walk. He was kind of toddling around earlier and just grinning from ear to ear.
So Donald Trump, as we know, you know, very, very successful real estate mogul and also he is getting this star in the TV category for the Walk of Fame, being a producer and star on "The Apprentice." The sixth season of "The Apprentice" debuted earlier this month.
Also "Business Week" magazine recently reported that Trump's net worth, as of June, was over $4 billion. So despite the war of words with Rosie O'Donnell and Barbara Walters which began, in large part, due to Rosie's criticism of Donald's financial status, "Business Week" magazine reports his net worth over $4 billion.
Jay Leno was also here to say a few kind words and to introduce him and he joked, Kyra, that on this star, pretty soon, there is going to be a 70-story high-rise so we will see if that happens.
PHILLIPS: That wouldn't surprise me. Now, Brooke, you missed the best point and that was little Barron. Didn't you notice the comb-over? Exactly like his father's.
ANDERSON: The little comb-over is precious at that age, 9 months old! Now, I don't know if Barron should continue to wear the comb- over as he gets older but the child really stole the show. He is just sweet.
PHILLIPS: Brooke Anderson, live from Hollywood, thanks.
LEMON: A new report slams oil giant BP over a deadly explosion at one of its plants. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange with all the details for us.
Hi, Susan.
(MARKET REPORT)
PHILLIPS: Thanks, Susan.
Holding the hand of a dying marine. Heidi Kraft says it was the worst part and also the best part of her experience in Iraq. She tells the incredibly moving story straight ahead from the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Emotional ceremony for a marine who made the ultimate sacrifice. Last week, President Bush presented the Medal of Honor to the family of Marine Corporal Jason Dunham. That's the nation's highest military honor.
CNN's Gary Nurenberg has the fallen marine's story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jason Dunham made an immediate impression from his childhood in the little western New York town of Scio...
DAN FLEMING, DURHAM FAMILY FRIEND: Jason was a wonderful part of this community. He was my son's best friend.
NURENBERG: ... to firefights in Iraq.
SGT. MARK EDWARD DEAN, U.S. MARINE CORPS: This was the type -- the kind of guy that you want to be your best friend. This is the guy that you want fighting next to you.
NURENBERG: When he was a kid, Jason wanted to grow up, get muscles! And he did. He joined the Marines, becoming a role model for the men in his platoon.
MAJ. TRENT GIBSON, U.S. MARINE CORPS: He believed in setting the proper example for his men to follow. And that made them want to be like him and want to follow him.
NURENBERG: In April of 2004, Corporal Dunham threw himself on a grenade seconds before it exploded, saving the live of fellow marines. It was the ultimate sacrifice. Dunham was killed. This was all that was left of his Kevlar helmet and vest.
LT. BRIAN ROBINSON, U.S. MARINE CORPS: If he hadn't done that, the blast radius would have been a lot greater.
NURENBERG: Friends from his platoon say he treated his men as family.
DEAN: That's exactly what he did. He jumped on a grenade to protect his family.
NURENBERG: His real family understands the heroic and selfless act.
DAN DUNHAM, MARINE'S FATHER: There is no greater thing than what Jason did, to be willing to give up his life so that other people can go on and have lives.
NURENBERG: Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Well, a Navy psychologist held Dunham's hand as he lay in a military hospital in Iraq. She has since returned to civilian life. Dr. Heidi Kraft joins us now from Washington.
Heidi, it's so nice to have you with us.
HEIDI KRAFT, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: I know you were there at the Medal of Honor ceremony with the family and you've become good friends with them for very good reason. I want to talk about that in a minute, but just to give our viewers an understanding, some would say why would they send a psychologist to Iraq? Explain the importance of what your tasking was.
KRAFT: Psychologists in the Navy take care of the Marines, as well as our sailors. And it is Marine Corps and Navy policy now to have psychologists and psychiatrists as close to the front as we possibly can. The idea is to integrate with the troops such that they talk to us and are able to hopefully debrief stressful things as they happen. The idea is to eventually mitigate the effects of that stress down the line.
PHILLIPS: And I don't think a lot of people realize, but when this war really intensified and it's carried on that way, there is actually a room and tell me if I'm saying it right, it's called the expectant room, where the men and women who are dying go to this room and that is where you come in. You are there to try and be that last bit of support, right?
KRAFT: That's correct. The expectant ward in any surgical company is the place where a warrior who is not expected to survive is sent to receive medication and fluid, as well as support at that time.
So my team rotated through that ward, as well as some of our dental personnel. It sort of just depends on the units, mass casualty plan, who is there. But yes, the idea is to not leave the person alone.
PHILLIPS: All right Heidi. Well, then I want you to take me back to that day. You walked into the expectant ward. How did you, how were you assigned to Jason Dunham?
KRAFT: The dental technicians and dentists about the surgical company were already with Corporal Dunham at the time, providing him with fluid and morphine and talking with him.
And I just came in to support them and to support him and was asked by one of the dental techs, Chris Graham, to help by holding Corporal Dunham's hand as he got up to change an IV bag and I never left.
I stayed there after that, sat on the floor and all of us, it was a team effort. We were all talking with him. We had no idea, of course, at the time what he had done. We just knew he had a head injury.
But we told him we were proud of him, that the Marine Corps was proud of him. And we tried to use comforting words and let him know that we were there.
PHILLIPS: And Heidi, you were holding his hand.
KRAFT: Uh-huh.
PHILLIPS: And you were saying these things to him, but then something amazing happened?
KRAFT: That's right. He squeezed my hand and being a mental health professional, I know something about brain injuries, so I sort of let myself go down the road of, well this is probably a reflexive response to the injury.
Probably knew enough to let myself believe that for a moment and then he squeezed again. And so I got right in his ear and said, marine, if can you hear me, I need you to squeeze right now and he did.
PHILLIPS: So, he was still conscious?
KRAFT: What probably happened is that he was moving in and out of consciousness. When he first came into alpha surgical company, he showed no meaningful signs of consciousness, but he regained them in the expectant ward.
So at that moment, our personnel moved into motion, he put them in the ICU, and an urgent surgical medevac was called to take him to Baghdad.
PHILLIPS: So, you're holding on to his hand and you're thinking to yourself, OK, he may not die. So, did you tell him hold on, stay with me?
KRAFT: Oh, yes.
PHILLIPS: Tell me, give me a feel, Heidi. Tell me what you said to him?
KRAFT: Well then at that point of course, everything we were doing changed. The chaplain came back in and he had already sort of spoken last rights and I said, hey, father, we need a different prayer and everyone was really, really excited about the possibility that, in fact, he was fighting, which he was doing, of course.
So we, yes, we were telling him to hold on, that we were here, we weren't going to leave, and I stayed with him in the ICU. The personnel let me stay right with him and I think I talked his ear off. I talked and talked and talked.
PHILLIPS: I can just imagine.
KRAFT: I talked all the way out to the helicopter.
PHILLIPS: You didn't want to let him go.
KRAFT: That is for sure. PHILLIPS: When did you find out that this young man put his entire body on a grenade to save all of the other guys around him?
KRAFT: My XO of my surgical company was a marine. And she came in, it was about a week later I guess. There was a reporter embedded with Corporal Dunham's unit -- Michael Phillips from the "Wall Street Journal" and he had reported a story on what had happened.
And Lieutenant Kessler, our XO, had seen it on "Marine Times" online and brought me a copy of the story, so it was a pretty amazing moment. But, our whole unit sort of rallied around that, of course.
PHILLIPS: Now Heidi, I know you're a psychologist. I also know you really struggled with a lot of this, especially when you came back home.
KRAFT: Yes.
PHILLIPS: Tell me how this changed your life.
KRAFT: I think that -- how could it not? I think it gave me such a great appreciation for the things that we can't help but take for granted. Our friends and our families and the things that matter every single day.
It also changed my life, I think, in my appreciation of -- of the people that matter through all of this. I have some comrades from alpha surgical company that will probably be my best friends forever and I have a new appreciation for the U.S. Marines, that is for sure.
PHILLIPS: When you first looked into the eyes of Jason's mom, Jason's dad, what did they say to you and what did you say to them?
KRAFT: We met up in Florida after I returned from the war, they brought their family down to Orlando for Christmas and I met them in a hotel and she ran into my arms and whispered in my ear, thank you. and we both started crying. It's still really emotional from last week, sorry. I didn't expect it to be.
PHILLIPS: It's OK, it's all right. No. And you told me that. You told me you were extremely moved. You didn't realize that it was going to last with you for so long.
But that's amazing. I mean, that -- you're putting it into perspective of how powerful of an experience this is. You're hugging his mom. What do you remember that she said to you?
KRAFT: We had a wonderful chance to have lunch with the whole family. And one of the things I remember the most about what Dan Dunham, his father, said to me was, this is just the way we raised him, it was just the kind of boy he was.
I said, OK, fair enough, but it's still not something the majority of people would do in that split second and that is why he was nominated for the medal.
PHILLIPS: You left behind twins, 15 months old when you had to go over to Iraq.
KRAFT: Uh-huh.
PHILLIPS: How did you process that when you were dealing with Jason Dunham and the expectant ward? And how did you process the fact that you were a mom and you had these two kids and you were watching young kids die in Iraq?
KRAFT: It was probably even the second week that we were there when we started taking incoming artillery and I realized that in order to be an effective provider, I was going to need to stop being a mother so I put all their pictures away and I -- what we call in the Navy, compartmentalization. I compartmentalize, so that I allowed myself very brief times when I thought like a mom and spoke like a mom and that was on the phone to my folks or to my husband.
PHILLIPS: Do you look forward to the day that you get to tell your kids about Jason Dunham?
KRAFT: I've recorded it all. I've written it as much as I can and as well as I can and it was written for them so that someday they will be able to appreciate the incredible sacrifice of this young man.
And I have Michael Phillips' book as well. He wrote a book about Jason's life which is called "The Gift of Valor," which is wonderful. And I have that and that is for them as well.
PHILLIPS: Well, we honor Jason Dunham and we honor you, Dr. Heidi Kraft. Thanks so much for telling us your story. It's amazing.
KRAFT: Thank you, thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. We're going to take a quick break. More from the CNN NEWSROOM straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Filing the papers, ending the suspense, first-term Democratic Senator Barack Obama takes the first step toward a presidential bid in 2008.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), ILLINOIS: And I'll be filing papers today to create a presidential exploratory committee. For the next several weeks, I'm going to talk with people from around the country, listening and learning more about the challenges we face as a nation, the opportunities that lie before us and the role that a presidential campaign might play in bringing our country together.
And on February 10th at the end of these discussions, in my home state of Illinois, I'll share my plans with my friends, neighbors and fellow Americans.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: That was from the senator's Web site. Again, Obama's final decision, expected on February 10th.
PHILLIPS: Obama's got the buzz but Tom Tancredo's got, well, a bit more national attention than he otherwise might. Tancredo is a Republican Congressman from Colorado who says he, too, will form a presidential exploratory committee. He says the current array of presidential hopefuls don't reflect -- and we quote -- "the grassroots majority belief of Americans that illegal immigration must end." Tancredo is also known for his strong opposition to abortion.
LEMON: Stuck in the Hamptons? Otherwise, might not be so bad but not this time. Details on a special rescue when we come right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Well, getting stuck in the Hamptons doesn't sound that bad. Well, but for these out-of-towners, it's a dangerous situation. Some 20 dolphins were stranded in a shallow cove on Long Island where rescuers have been trying to herd them back out to sea.
Finally, some success with at least three steered to safe waters. At least five have died, though. Scientists think it may be hunger or stress. They're hoping a blast of cold weather will provide both incentive to leave and deeper tides to help them do it.
PHILLIPS: Closing bell and a wrap of the action on Wall Street straight ahead.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, the closing bell is about to ring on Wall Street.
LEMON: Susan Lisovicz, standing by with a final look at the trading day.
Hi, Susan.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra and Don.
You know, it's been a quiet day on Wall Street; no major economic reports, no major earnings to speak of as of today. But, you know, that's why I wanted to tell about a headline that caught my attention out of Milan, Italy, home of fashion house Prada, which confirmed reports, according to , that is may go public next year. That means we could buy -- you and I could buy shares of this luxury designer. No word yet on whether its share prices would be expensive -- as expensive its clothes...
PHILLIPS: Susan?
LISOVICZ: Yes, Kyra?
PHILLIPS: You know who would buy some of that? LISOVICZ: I would love to.
PHILLIPS: No. Well, the pope. I mean, hello, remember the red Prada shoes that he wore? That's what happened...
LISOVICZ: Good point.
PHILLIPS: ... that's what led to this.
LISOVICZ: The problem is those vestments are too long. You can't really admire the Prada shoe. It needs to be shortened, perhaps.
PHILLIPS: There you go.
LEMON: I should probably stay away "The Devil Wears Prada" sort of thing. That's the name of the movie. I should say not only the devil wears Prada, but the also the pope wears Prada, as well.
LISOVICZ: That's right and many sinners probably worldwide, right?
LEMON: The prices are certainly high enough. My goodness, when you go in that store, I can't afford anything in there.
LISOVICZ: That's exactly right. You know, the company says it has no plans to open restaurants or bars. And that's kind of interesting, too, because if you can afford Prada clothes and then you put them on, you can't really eat in them, right? I mean, they're pretty tight.
PHILLIPS: You just bring a Tide stick, then you're good to go.
LISOVICZ: Exactly. Just pose. You just pose.
LEMON: No, tight because you can't fit anything in there once you wear them, right?
Have a great day.
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