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Senate Committee in New Orleans for Hearing on Government's Response to Hurricane Katrina; Iraq's Defense Ministry: At Least 200 Insurgents Killed; Finding the Troops

Aired January 29, 2007 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You're with CNN. You're informed.
I'm Tony Harris.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Betty Nguyen, in for Heidi Collins today.

Developments, they keep coming in to the NEWSROOM on this Monday, January 29th.

Here's what's on the rundown.

HARRIS: Making his voice heard, a protester briefly disrupts the Senate panel's hearing on Katrina recovery.

NGUYEN: Parties off campus and out of bounds -- when college students having a good time go over the line.

HARRIS: And New Orleans native Harry Connick Jr. is helping his hometown musicians. He joins us this hour -- wow -- in the NEWSROOM.

And at the top this hour, recovery from Hurricane Katrina, still agonizingly slow in much of New Orleans and parts of the Mississippi Gulf Coast. This hour a Senate committee is holding a field hearing on the government's response.

Our Gulf Coast correspondent, Susan Roesgen, with us now from New Orleans.

And Susan, this time last hour there was a bit of an interruption in that hearing, and I understand you had a moment to talk to the young man who was clearly frustrated.

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT: I did, Tony. They hustled him outside, and we'll get to that in just a minute. But right now what's going on is, the witnesses who have been called to testify at this hearing, the heads of the various federal agencies who have been called to testify before the senators, are giving their opening statements, and really giving a defense of their federal agency's response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

But the tone of this hearing was set right from the beginning by one of the new committee members and a possible presidential candidate, Senator Barack Obama. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), ILLINOIS: We heard not a single word, not one word in the president's State of the Union Address about New Orleans. Not a single word. And so I have one more set of questions to ask today, and that is, were we being honest when we said we'd do whatever it takes, that we'd stay as long as it takes?

I think it made a lot of people in New Orleans and Louisiana and those of us who are concerned all across the country wonder whether we're in danger of actually forgetting New Orleans. And that's shameful. We should be ashamed if we forget.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: Senator Obama also said that we rebuilt Chicago after the great fire, this nation rebuilt San Francisco after the earthquake. And he said it shouldn't be any different here in New Orleans.

And then there was that excitement that you mentioned, Tony. A protester, a well-dressed young man -- he was wearing a white dress shirt and a tie. No one suspected anything was amiss.

He stood up. He was holding a hand-lettered piece of cloth that said, "Probe the White House." He was shouting, shouting at the senators, as you see here. And right away court officers hustled him out of the courtroom, and then the state police took over, and they hustled him on out into an elevator.

I did follow him. I followed him right out. They did not handcuff him. They didn't treat him badly. They just grabbed him and they got him out of there pretty quickly.

They didn't expect that. They don't want that kind of thing there in the courtroom.

But what this person was protesting was he said that Senator Lieberman needs to do more and should do more to lead a federal investigation of the White House response to Hurricane Katrina similar to the 9/11 Commission hearings. He said that has not been done, he wants that to be done. But really, Tony, what's happening right now in this Senate committee field hearing is that very thing.

HARRIS: Yes.

ROESGEN: The senators are probing, they're looking for answers from these big guns, from these federal agencies that are supposed to be leading the recovery that as you mentioned has been so very slow here.

HARRIS: Susan, will they get out of -- these senators, will they get out of the hearing room today and actually take a tour of some of these still devastated areas?

ROESGEN: That's the plan. Right after this, at about 11:30 local time, they're going to get on a bus and go through really all of the devastated areas -- the Lower Ninth Ward here, Gentilly, Lakeview, all of the areas that we've mentioned so many times on CNN...

HARRIS: Yes.

ROESGEN: ... that were just devastated. And one of the stops is going to be at one of the big breaches in the levees. They're going to be talking to the Army Corps of Engineers to see how far along the levee repair has come.

Tony, I've got to tell you that there are some people who have rebuilt right up against the side of that levee. But one person told me she's not doing it because she's confident it will hold, she's doing it, she says, because nobody else will buy her house. And she's got to pay the mortgage on it.

So, the senators may get an earful if they talk to more than just officials along their route on this bus tour.

HARRIS: Let's hope they do get out and talk to New Orleanians. Let's hope that happens today.

Susan Roesgen for us in New Orleans.

Susan, great to see you. Thank you.

Another wait for thousands of Mississippi homeowners trying to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina. A federal judge has refused to endorse a State Farm settlement deal. The proposed agreement between Mississippi's attorney general and the insurance company would impact about 35,000 homeowners, but the judge says he doesn't have enough information to know how many of them would benefit from this deal or how much each would be paid. And he left open the door for a new proposal. State Farm says it will address the judge's concerns.

NGUYEN: Let's get you to the fight for Iraq and flash points across the country. A series of bombings sweep across Baghdad this morning, and a ferocious gun battle slowly ebbs in Najaf. Hundreds reported dead and wounded. Almost all insurgents.

Let's get the latest from Arwa Damon in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A senior Iraq police official telling CNN that U.S. forces had taken the lead in that intense battle happening just north of the holy Shia city of Najaf. The fighting began early dawn on Sunday after Iraqi police received a number of tips that gunmen were amassing just north of the city with the intent of storming Najaf, killing pilgrims, clerics, including Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the most reveered Shia cleric in Iraq, as well as amongst the Shia population throughout the entire world.

The fighting killed, according to initial estimates by Iraqi authorities, at least 300 armed gunmen. They are basing that estimate on the intensity on the bombardment and the fighting. Meanwhile, some details emerging as to who these gunmen may be. We are hearing from a number of sources within the Iraqi security forces and Iraqi authorities that they are members of a Shia messianic cult that is trying to increase the chaos here to accelerate the appearance of the Mehdi, whom they believe is their savior. We are also hearing reports, though, of sunni extremist groups being involved in the fighting, including fighters from Falluja and Ramadi, as well as foreign fighters, criminals and thugs.

U.S. and Iraqi force are conducting intense sweeps and searches throughout that entire area and remain on the lookout for other plots targeting Shia pilgrims, clerics and religious shrines. Had this plot succeeded, should any plot succeed against these targets, it would most certainly catapult the already violent sectarian attacks to an entirely unimaginable new level.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Let's talk now about the future in Iraq and an alliance that's sure to rattle nerves at the White House. Iran's ambassador to Baghdad tells "The New York Times" that his country plans to greatly increase military and economic ties with Iraq. The newspaper says Tehran plans to offer military training, advisers, and equipment in what it calls Iraq's security fight. The U.S. has long accused Iran of aiding the insurgency inside Iraq, and just Friday the White House took a tougher stand against Iran in its suspected meddling.

HARRIS: The president wants to bulk up the Army and the Marines by adding almost 100,000 more troops within five years. Can it be done?

CNN's Gary Nurenberg looks at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush thought it important enough to include in the State of the Union.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I would ask the Congress to authorize an increase in the size of our active army and marine corps by 92,000 in the next five years.

NURENBERG: But some in Congress are skeptical that can be easily done as American casualty figures in Iraq continue to climb.

SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD (D), CONNECTICUT: How do you get people to do it when you're asking people to serve three and four tours in Iraq?

NURENBERG: One Senate colleague has an optimistic answer.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: I'm sure there's enough patriotic Americans who will join the military.

NURENBERG: Take Roger O'Brien of Falls Church, Virginia. ROGER O'BRIEN, MILITARY RECRUIT: I'm going to be an infantry soldier and I'm going to become an infantry officer after completion of college.

NURENBERG: The 18-year-old high school senior has enlisted in the marines and he is far from alone.

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: All active branches of the United States military exceeded their recruiting goals for the month of December, with particularly strong showings by the army and the marine corps.

NURENBERG: One military scholar is worried the military to meet the new goals will have to rethink recruiting standards for education, health and misdemeanor criminal records.

WINSLOW WHEELER, CTR. FOR DEFENSE INFORMATION: They're going to have to relax all those standards, hire more recruiters and so on. They're going to have a very tough time doing it.

GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: The pay has risen dramatically, the benefits are very good.

NURENBERG: Retired General Don Shepperd is a CNN analyst who believes the administration can reach its recruitment goals by emphasizing pay and benefits, benefits O'Brien finds appealing.

O'BRIEN: It's the career I want to choose. You can always be promoted and it's job security. It has an allowance.

NURENBERG: O'Brien's recruitment is a success story for the military, one it has to repeat 92,000 times to meet the president's goal.

Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Ireland's nationalist Sinn Fein party approving a major shift in policy. An overwhelming vote to begin cooperating with police in northern Ireland. Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams calls it historic.

The police force is now dominated by Protestants. Sinn Fein has traditionally viewed it as an agent of British rule in northern Ireland. Sunday's vote could lead to a revival of the 1998 Good Friday peace pact that called for power-sharing between Protestants and Catholics.

NGUYEN: Well, it started, Tony, as just a casual walk in the woods. Almost the last for one hiker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NELL HAMM, HUSBAND ATTACKED BY MOUNTAIN LION: His life was in jeopardy, and we were fighting for his life. (END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Attacked by a mountain lion but saved by his wife. We have this incredible story ahead in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: A blinding snowstorm and a mangled mess. Man. Details ahead in the NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: Making music and making a difference -- Harry Connick Jr.'s latest effort to aid his hometown's home sounds. He's going to join us live right here in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: OK, a California man is receiving special treatment after an unusual attack. Seventy-year-old Jim Hamm was jumped by a mountain lion, of all things. With his head in the lion's mouth, Hamm struggled while his wife fought off this animal.

CNN's Chris Lawrence has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bandages can't begin to cover the puncture wounds and torn scalp, but Jim Hamm is only alive because of his wife, Nell.

N. HAMM: His life was in jeopardy. And we were fighting for his life.

LAWRENCE: Nell is 65 years old. Jim is 70. They go hiking two, three times a week but have never seen a mountain lion before last week, when a lion like this one pounced on Jim.

JIM HAMM, SURVIVED MOUNTAIN LION ATTACK: So he just wants to pin me down and start eating. He doesn't care.

LAWRENCE: It knocked Jim flat on his face.

J. HAMM: Then he got me in the mouth, and I got my thumb in his eye. And I jammed my thumb into his eye up to my knuckle.

LAWRENCE: Nell grabbed the biggest log she could lift and hit the animal's head as hard as she could.

J. HAMM: She was beating him the whole time. She was worn out from beating him. She said she didn't think she could beat him anymore. She was exhausted.

LAWRENCE: Finally, the jaws loosened and let Jim go.

So did she do the right thing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She did exactly the right thing. That was to fight back. Not give up.

LAWRENCE (voice-over): Park ranger Maury Morningstar says you can't outrun a mountain lion.

Sightings like this one in residential areas are increasing. Attacks are still extremely rare. But three years ago a lion killed a biker who may have been kneeling down to fix a flat tire.

(on camera) We're more of a target...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

LAWRENCE: Because we're smaller.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right. We're smaller. We look about the type of size of their type of prey. So that's the idea of we want you to stand up. Put your hands above your head and start yelling and screaming at it.

LAWRENCE (voice-over): The cat that attacked Jim was shot and killed. On examination, it looks like it hadn't eaten in weeks.

N. HAMM: I feel very blessed that Jim is alive, and I'm so very thankful for that.

LAWRENCE: Nell says they fought side by side, the same way they've done everything for the 50 years they've been together.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Eureka, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: In Tampa, imagine the owner of a bright red Mustang trying to explain this to the...

NGUYEN: Is that what that was, a Mustang?

HARRIS: Well, that's what it used to be.

A chunk of ice about half the size of a shoebox slammed into the car over the weekend. Now, a neighbor told police he heard a whistling sound and looked up as the ice hit the vehicle. Now, experts are trying to figure out where it came from.

In the past, Betty, airborne blue tinted ice has been linked to airplane restrooms.

NGUYEN: Yes, let's not go there.

HARRIS: Let's not go there.

In this case, the ice is whitish, a whitish tint. Now, the car's owner is keeping a piece of the ice chunk in the freezer. We presume it will make a good conversation piece and ultimate proof for the insurance adjuster.

NGUYEN: But just looking that the video Chad, half the size of a shoebox made that much damage?

HARRIS: Yes.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Oh, yes. They said it was a hundred pounds. Did you not read that?

HARRIS: Yes.

MYERS: Yes. So that had to have been bigger than a shoebox.

NGUYEN: Yes, it had to have been.

MYERS: Yes. That was just one of the pieces that actually broke off.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Well, there are some serious concerns and questions now being asked about scores of levees across the United States. According to "USA Today," the Army Corps of Engineers has identified almost 150 levees it says could fail in a major flood.

Now, much of the problem is poor maintenance. And communities are having to spend millions on repairs. The report says if these levees are not fixed, FEMA could decide that they're no longer adequate and property owners who live near those structures, they would have to buy costly flood insurance.

HARRIS: A home away from home for military families. This is the newest Fisher House. Two of them will be dedicated in Texas in a few hours.

The homes allow military families to be close to their loved ones who are being treated at nearby medical centers, including the brand new center for the Intrepid. The center is a state-of-the-art rehabilitation facility that also is being dedicated today. CNN's Anderson Cooper is there, and tonight, "ANDERSON COOPER 360" reports on "The Toughest Battle: Healing Heroes."

You can catch that at 10:00 Eastern.

NGUYEN: Well, one student's fun, another student's pain. Charges that some college theme parties are just going way too far. That is ahead here in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Wild parties part of college life, right? Well, now charges of racism are flying at college campuses around the country. The concern? A series of off-campus theme parties.

Allan Chernoff filed this report for CNN's "PAULA ZAHN NOW."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Last Saturday night, dozens of white law students at the University of Connecticut dressed up hip-hop style for what they called the "Bullets and Bubbly" party off-campus at a private house. When these pictures were posted on Facebook.com, black students were outraged.

LAHNY SILVA, UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT LAW STUDENT: All we ask, as minority students on this campus, is to be recognized as equals. And the fact that they were mocking us makes us feel as though they don't see us as equals.

CHERNOFF: Many white students say that was not the intent.

RYAN GRECO, UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT LAW STUDENT: I don't think that people got together and said, let's mock a certain subculture of our community on Saturday night. That doesn't change the fact of how that was perceived and how it was received by members of our community.

CHERNOFF: Some white students from Texas' Tarleton State University celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day with demeaning parodies, chugging bottles of malt liquor. One wore a shirt saying, "I love chicken." Another dressed as Aunt Jemima.

DONALD ELDER, TARLETON STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I was hurt, because I thought there was only a few people like that, the stereotypes. But these are just regular students.

CHERNOFF: One of those students at the party was Jeremy Pelz, who posted the pictures on his Facebook.com page.

JEREMY PELZ, TARLETON STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENT: We didn't mean -- you know, we weren't trying to discriminate against anybody.

CHERNOFF: It is happening across the country, themed events that brush up against and sometimes go over the bounds of what might be racially offensive.

At this Halloween party, a white student from Trinity College in Connecticut colored his entire body. Even high school students have posted pictures on the Internet of what they call ghetto days at their schools in Minnesota and New Hampshire.

There's irony here. Hip-hop has huge influence on young white Americans, who, according to industry data, are the primary buyers of the music. As seen on VH-1's "The White Rapper Show," young whites across the nation emulate black performers.

(on camera): Black students here at the University of Connecticut Law School say there's a big difference between enjoying hip-hop music and engaging in a parody of the culture behind that music, even if there's no racial intent. It amounts, they say, to unconscious racism.

SILVA: Just because there's no intent to be racist doesn't necessarily mean that their actions are not.

CHERNOFF: It's been a wakeup call for students and administrators.

KURT STRASSER, DEAN, UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT LAW SCHOOL: This incident shows us that we have a lot of work to do in that regard. We have done work. I think, in some areas, we have made progress.

CHERNOFF: Some of that work started Thursday, when UConn Law held a forum closed to cameras to help enlighten students.

At Tarleton State, a similar discussion helped change Jeremy Pelz's perspective.

PELZ: We have to look at what we do and how we do it, how something in our eyes may not be bad or discriminatory, but, in others', it's very much so.

CHERNOFF: Parties that had been planned simply for a good time are now becoming lessons in respect for other cultures, as valuable as any time spent in the classroom.

Allan Chernoff, CNN, Hartford, Connecticut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: You definitely want to check this out. A street battle rages, a sinister plot is revealed. Iraqi officials say hundreds are dead and even more lives hung in the balance.

We have hose details in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: A Senate committee in New Orleans right now to get a first-hand look at how the city is recovering from hurricanes Katrina and Rita. And they have already gotten an earful this morning.

The story in the NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: No doubt his heart is in his hometown. Harry Connick Jr. doing a lot to help New Orleans recover from Hurricane Katrina. Ahead in the NEWSROOM, he's going to join us live to talk about a project to benefit New Orleans' musicians.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Let's talk now about recovery from Hurricane Katrina, still agonizingly slow in much of New Orleans and parts of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

The storm struck a year and a half ago, and this morning a Senate committee is holding a field hearing in New Orleans. There's a live look. The topic, the government's response to that storm, and Hurricane Rita, and that stirred the anger of one young man.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I never realized --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Help the victims of Hurricane Katrina why you won't probe the White House.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll be glad to -- UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have a hundred signatures of victims of Hurricane Katrina, why don't you tell them why you won't probe the White House. Probe the White House! We want justice! We want somebody to stand up for justice! Probe the White House!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We will be happy to accept those petitions and glad to deal with that question as this hearing goes on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: The frustration is clearly evident and that hearing continues just for a little while longer. And then committee members will head out to a tour of the devastated areas around New Orleans, including the Ninth Ward and Lakeview neighbors.

Our coverage continues at 1 p.m. Eastern in the NEWSROOM. I do want to let you know coming up in minutes, Harry Connick, Jr., from the area, has two new albums out and all it benefits New Orleanians. We'll talk about that, and why he's wanting musicians come back. Stay tuned for that.

HARRIS: Iraq, the death toll grows and the religious divisions deepen. We begin with the bloody battle in Najaf. Iraqi officials say militants were planning to attack Shiite pilgrims and kill their top leaders. Iraq says at least 200 insurgents were killed including the leader of their cult.

A U.S. military official says machine gunfire is most likely to blame for Sunday's crash of a U.S. military helicopter in Najaf. This is cell phone video showing smoke rising from the crash. Both U.S. soldiers aboard the helicopter were killed. Civilians also among the insurgent targets as a wave of bombings erupt across Baghdad. At least 21 people are dead, another 67 wounded.

The fight for Iraq, the battle for power within that battle- scarred country. The latest flash point, the pictures we were showing you sweeping the day-long battle in Najaf. Iraqi officials say they thwarted a plot by militants. Their goal, seize the city and kill Shiite pilgrims and top religious leaders. Among their target, the Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani.

How pivotal would that have been? Here's Middle East expert Ken Pollack, who appeared earlier in the NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEN POLLACK, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: He's extremely important. He is one of the leading religious leaders in Shia Islam. He is a figure of most Iraqi Shia revere. He's also been one of the most important voices of restraint in Iraq. It was Ayatollah Sistani consistently saying to the Shia do not fight the Americans, do not fight the reconstruction, this is what we want. This is how we will have a better future.

That has been critical in whatever success we've had in Iraq so far. Without Ayatollah Sistani things might have fallen apart even sooner than they already are.

HARRIS: Ken, this is such a basic question, but I have to keep asking it until, I get somewhere close perfect clarity on it. How do you stop these factions, these sects in Iraq from fighting and killing one another? How do you do it if they don't want to do it, if they're fighting rivalries that date back anywhere from 1,200 to 1,400 years? How do you stop that?

POLLACK: Well, there's actually a pretty simple answer, and it's a pretty good answer, it's just hard to do. And that is you control the streets. What you need to recognize, Tony is that April of 2003, when the United States invaded, we created a security vacuum in Iraq. We took Saddam Hussein's totalitarian police state, and we've never successfully filled the security vacuum we created.

And Iraq is like so many other places around the world, like Somalia, like Afghanistan, was. Like Bosnia and the former Yugoslavia were, there just is no control over the streets. And that allows these armed extremist groups, to take the streets and actually develop power, and influence because of their control over the streets. So the first thing you've got to do -- and this is what the Baghdad security plan is supposed to be about -- is you take back the streets, and then negotiations can follow.

HARRIS: With 21,000 troops and up?

POLLACK: Well, it will certainly help. There's no question that our commanders over in Iraq have not had enough troops since the get- go. General Shinseki was right. More and more people now realize that. More troops can definitely help, but it's not just about the troop numbers. It's also about using the forces that we have properly.

Over the last three and a half years, we've used a lot of those troops to conduct these insurgent hunts in the Anbar Province, where they're playing a game of whack them all. And that has left Baghdad and Iraq's other cities unprotected, and basically fair game for the militias.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Two Palestinian groups now claiming responsibility for a deadly suicide bombing in Israel. Israeli police say at least three people were killed when a suicide bomber attacked a bakery in a resort town on the Red Sea. Israel is still investigating this attack. It is the first such incident in Israel since April, when a suicide bomber killed 11 people in Tel Aviv.

The White House is condemning today's attack calling it a terrorist bombing.

More Palestinian infighting this weekend, to tell you about, with violent spreading from Gaza into the West Bank. In Nablus, a brazen abduction in broad daylight. You have to see this, right in front of the media. A local Hamas leader hauled away by a squad of gunmen allied with the Fatah movement. Sunday Saudi King Abdullah implored Hamas and Fatah officials to travel Mecca for peace talks. Both sides accepted the offer, but they've not set a date for any talks.

HARRIS: Look at all of this. A lot of sliding, crunching. And just out and out misery along Interstate 69 east of Flint, Michigan. Police blame white-out snow conditions for this twisted metal horror, probably one of those lake-effect snow events there. With 24 vehicles in all, involved; 12 people treated for injuries, cleanup kept the interstate closed for hours on Sunday.

Chad Myers joins us to help us understand. When you've got a condition like this does it come so fast that you can't get off the road and get home in time?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST, CNN NEWSROOM: Literally does, actually, this is -- you're driving into a situation that you didn't know existed. You're driving, let's say, from Niagara Falls over to the Niagara on the lake. All of a sudden you run in from nothing. Sometimes sunshine into a blinding snow event that only takes half a mile to get into, and all of a sudden you don't know if the cars ahead of you are stopped or not. And then you can't see them if they are stopped. And you just run right through this thing.

That's a typical lake-effect event called banding. When we get the bands that come through. Not so much this. This is widespread snow. You see this coming, but when you get these bands of very skinny snow, that what we'll get up in Buffalo again tonight. It's already beginning to come through around Sandusky and on up into Buffalo, New York, later on today.

That snow will be focused in one or two little bands and sometimes it goes back and forth, north and south. For today we will see snow across the Northeast, tomorrow as well. There's a developing potential for a big ice storm here in Atlanta on Thursday afternoon, after we come to work. So bring some extra clothes for Friday in case we can't leave.

NGUYEN: We'll be calling in sick on Friday.

MYERS: No, you'll be at the hotel.

NGUYEN: Oh, did I say that out loud?

HARRIS: (COUGH, COUGH)

NGUYEN: Yes, I'm feeling it now. Thank you, Chad.

MEYERS: You're welcome.

NGUYEN: In today's daily dose of health news it is a small area of your brain no bigger than a silver dollar, but scientists believe it could play a big role in helping smokers kick the habit. John Lawrence reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT, CNN NEWSROOM (voice over): For years, millions of smokers have struggled to kick the habit. Now researchers say they've found a region of the brain that may hold the secret to getting people nicotine-free.

BILL LLOYD, UNIV. OF CALIF.-DAVIS MEDICAL CTR.: They found out that a group of smokers that had suffered a stroke that involved specifically that small area deep inside the brain called the insula. When people recovered from their stroke they didn't want a cigarette. They had no trouble quitting. They had no cravings.

LAWRENCE: The insula oversees urges and addictions. Stroke victims whose strokes did not damage the insula had a different result.

LLOYD: They found out another large group of stroke victims, all of whom were smokers, and their strokes did not involve the insula. And when they recovered from their strokes, most of them just went right back smoking and when tried to quit they had the urge.

LAWRENCE: The findings were first reported in the latest edition in the journal "Science." Scientists are hoping that the discovery will lead to new treatments that focus in on the insula. They also think it may help people who are addicted to other substances as well. I'm John Lawrence reporting from Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: To get your daily dose of health news online, all you have to do is log on to our website to find the latest medical news, a health library, and information on diet and fitness. The address, cnn.com/health.

HARRIS: His heart is in his hometown, Harry Connick, Jr., doing a lot to help New Orleans recover from Hurricane Katrina.

When are we going to talk to him?

NGUYEN: We'll talk to him next, you have to stay tuned for this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Coming up at the top of the hour, in about 15 minutes from now, here on CNN, Hala Gorani is standing by with a preview.

Hala, good morning.

HALA GORANI, CNN INT'L. ANCHOR, YOUR WORLD TODAY: Good morning, Tony. Good morning, Betty.

At the top of the hour Jim Clancy and myself, of course, will have the latest on Iraq, and also a suicide bombing in the Israeli resort town of Alat. We'll tell you who claimed responsibility, why it's significant, and why the timing, as well, ahead of peace talks may have an impact.

Also "Celebrity Big Brother" -- I think there was a version in the U.S. -- well, for being the target of alleged racist taunts in the "Celebrity Big Brother" house, you see her there an Indian Ballywood star wins the reality show contest. We'll have that as well.

And China's economy, it may be booming, but it's having painful side effects. We take you to Beijing. That and more on "Your World Today." Hope you can join us at the top of the hour.

HARRIS: Absolutely. We'll be there. Thank you, Hala.

You know to catch us weekday mornings from 9 a.m. until noon, Eastern, right here in the NEWSROOM. But did you know -- sound affects everything -- you can take us with you anywhere on your iPod. The CNN NEWSROOM podcast available 24/7 right on your iPod.

NGUYEN: That man right there, you know him well, he's making music and making a difference. Harry Connick, Jr.'s, latest effort to aid his hometown's home sound. He'll join us live right here in the NEWSROOM.

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NGUYEN: He knows what it means to miss New Orleans. Singer and actor Harry Connick, Jr., doing a lot to help his hometown get its heart and soul back after Hurricane Katrina.

And tomorrow Connick's new album "Oh, My NOLA" will be released. Also hitting record stores, a companion album of instrumentals by Connick's band. Royalties go to the Habitat Musicians Village. It's a project to help displaced musicians return to New Orleans. And Harry Connick, jr., himself joining us live from New York.

Thanks for being with us.

HARRY CONNICK, JR., SINGER, MUSICIAN: Thanks for having me, Betty. It's good to be here.

NGUYEN: We want to talk about these albums because they're going to a good cause. Two albums, they drop tomorrow, why these albums? And what kind of message are you sending?

CONNICK: First and foremost, I just wanted to go in the studio and make some music. One of them, "Oh, My NOLA" is a collection of songs that mean something to me that are about New Orleans. Some of them are original, and but there are a lot of songs on there that are standards. Everything from R&B to gospel to funk, to jazz, to traditional jazz.

And the other CD, "Chanson Du Vieux Carre" is a collection of old New Orleans traditional numbers, with a few originals mixed in. So the first thing I want to do is just make some music. And considering what happened with Hurricane Katrina we're donating a percentage of the proceeds to our Musicians Village in New Orleans, that we're working on with them.

NGUYEN: Let's talk about that for a minute because this is up and running. You've built some homes, as well, with Habitat for Humanity. How successful has this been so far because some families have already moved in?

CONNICK: It's been a tremendous success. In 2006 we bought about eight acres which is about five city blocks and the core site of Musicians Village will contain about 70 houses, and about ten duplex elderly apartments, along with a school, called the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music, which will have a recording facility and performance base, and teaching facilities. And out of about 50 applicants that have applied for one of the homes, about 30 of them are musicians. And it's going really well. And over the next five years we hope to have 1500 houses in the surrounding area.

So Branford and I are delighted to be associated with Habitat for Humanity and Jim Payton, the wonderful crew down there that are helping to make it such a success.

NGUYEN: Yes, trying to bring the music back. As you work so hard to do that, today we've been watching these hearings down in New Orleans, these field hearings so congressional leaders can figure out exactly what has happened and what has not happened.

We saw a little bit earlier a man walk into this hearing really protesting the fact that he doesn't feel enough has been done. He wants Washington probed. What do you feel about this situation? Do you think enough has been done? Or is there so much to do? And why is it taking so long?

CONNICK: I don't know why it's taken so long. I prefer to stay out of those kinds of debates. There's only one thing I know how to do, and that's put my mind to something and try to make a change for the better. And I think I can speak for Branford Marsalis as well. Our Musicians Village Project is to solely to sort of entice people to come back to New Orleans; people who are interested in low-income housing.

We're not interested in faulting people, and government probes, and all that. We just want to make the situation better. And hopefully, if this ever happens again to our beloved city, it can be prevented. As for now we're just trying to rebuild and people seem to be in good spirits about it. And I think over time the city will recapture its glory.

NGUYEN: As you try to make the situation better as you call it, the information has to be out there. Words have to be spoken and it has to stay out there on the forefront. Were you disappointed at all that Katrina, and its aftermath, all of the cities hit by this storm were not mentioned at all in the State of the Union Address, by the president last week.

CONNICK: Well, again, it's not -- was I upset? No, not really. All I can do is what I can do. And that's what I'm interested in. And we're doing our part to keep the word out there. I'm about to go on tour. And I'm talking to you right now.

And I'll do everything I can to remind people that although New Orleans is on the rebound the residential areas have a very, very long way to go and we need help. We need people to go down and spend money, and support the local economy and we need people who are displaced to come back home. That's really all I'm spending my time thinking about, to be perfectly frank.

NGUYEN: We applaud your efforts. In fact, you're going to be there for Jazzfest.

CONNICK: Yes.

NGUYEN: Part of your mission to get those musicians back in town. Harry Connick, Jr., we appreciate your time today.

CONNICK: Thanks, Betty. Good to talk to you.

NGUYEN: You, too.

HARRIS: Well, hoards of people post videos YouTube for the gratification of sharing your stuff online. Now there could be a paycheck attached? Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange with details on this story.

Well, now, now I'm interested. I'm listening, Susan. Good day.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN NEWSROOM: This is big news, Tony.

I mean, YouTube has just exploded. Lots of people happy to do it for free, but perhaps even happier to get some additional dough as a result.

When YouTube launched just a few years ago its founders said sharing revenue with users would cause people to be driven by making money instead of their love of videos. But now one of the YouTube's founders, Chad Hurley (ph), is changing its tune.

He says the company is working on a way to pay users for uploading video content. Hurley giving no details on how much people would receive. But he maintains the move will foster creativity and improve content.

YouTube, which was bought by Google for more than $1.5 billion last year is an ad-supported site, where 70 million videos are viewed each day. This will not be the first site to pay users for content. In 2005, Revver (ph), a site similar to YouTube announced it would give its users a cut of the profits.

Turning quickly to the markets, well, we're seeing green arrows, a modest rally underway. Shares of US Airways helping out. They're up nearly 5 percent. The "Wall Street Journal" says the carrier is offering to increase its bid to Delta Air Lines by $2 billion to nearly $12 billion. U.S. But that is only if Delta postpones a restructuring hearing set for next week. US Airways has been trying to take over Delta since November.

Checking the number, the Dow is up 20 points, the Nasdaq up 4 points, and the S&P 500 is flat. And that is the latest from Wall Street. HARRIS: Very nice.

LISOVICZ: Tony and Betty, back to you.

HARRIS: Susan, see you in the afternoon NEWSROOM.

LISOVICZ: You got it.

HARRIS: All right.

NGUYEN: Speaking of which, Kyra Phillips is here.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: That is right. We are talking about to live and die in LA. For black and Latino gang members sometimes it comes down to crossing the wrong street.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you do, you have a death wish, because they're going to take you out. They're going kill you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: LA cops say it's gotten so out of hand they're declaring war on gangs. We'll talk about two former gang members about how easily kids get drawn into this violent life and how hard it is to get out.

Then we're going to shift gears just a bit. After three decades in the business Eddie Murphy warms up to the press?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EDDIE MURPHY, ACTOR: I've done all different types of movies and do something, step outside of what you do and try to do something a little different and for it to be well received. That's a really great feeling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: You think that shiny new SAG award helped bring Eddie out of his usual media shell?

HARRIS: No.

NGUYEN: Yes, a little bit.

PHILLIPS: We'll have more from backstage at the SAG awards, and all the days top news straight ahead, in the CNN NEWSROOM, all coming up at 1:00 Eastern.

No, I don't have him live.

HARRIS: Oh, man.

NGUYEN: Ah! PHILLIPS: I know. How fun would that be?

HARRIS: I know how you work things. Not until you said you didn't, I'm thinking you did. Because you work it.

PHILLIPS: You know he'd be going at it. Don't you agree.

HARRIS: I know that.

PHILLIPS: It would have been non-stop comedy.

NGUYEN: He'd have done that for a whole hour.

HARRIS: Eddie, if you're listening, give Kyra a call.

PHILLIPS: Call in, Eddie. I need to talk to you, Murph.

(LAUGHTER)

HARRIS: There you go.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys.

NGUYEN: Thank you.

And CNN NEWSROOM does continue one hour from now.

HARRIS: "Your World Today" is next, though, with news happening across the globe and here at home. I'm Tony Harris.

NGUYEN: And I'm Betty Nguyen.

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