Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Spasm of Violence Rocking Baghdad; President Bush's Budget; Picking up the Pieces in Florida
Aired February 05, 2007 - 09:00 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 are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Heidi Collins.
For the next three hours, watch events as they come in to the NEWSROOM live on Monday, February 5th.
Here's what's on the rundown.
A new spasm of violence rocking Baghdad.
At home, the Senate setting up a vote on the president's war strategy.
HARRIS: More for the war, less for Medicare. President Bush unwrapping a multi-trillion-dollar budget today. Another Washington episode of "As the Money Turns.,"
COLLINS: Reality setting in today for central Florida, cleaning up and starting live over. We follow up on Friday's killer storms this hour in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: And at the top this hour, bullets, bombs and mortars. Violence in Iraq explodes by the hour. A quick timeline this morning.
7:30: a roadside bomb.
7:45: another roadside bomb.
8:00 a.m.: a mortar attack.
8:30: another mortar attack. Also 8:30: a car bombing.
Dozens dead and wounded. The violence continuing unabated.
CNN's Arwa Damon from the capital.
Arwa, we understand, in the face of all this new violence and what happened over the weekend, which was horrible, that there is a new plan, a new security plan about to be implemented for Baghdad.
Tell us what you can about that. ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, it's not so much a new plan as a modification of the old Baghdad security plan that was known as Operation Together Forward that was launched over the fall and was pretty much unsuccessful. What the U.S. and Iraqi administrations have done was go back to that plan that was based on the premise of clear, hold and rebuild, and try to pinpoint what went wrong. And what the conclusion that they came to was that during the hold phase, there were not enough U.S. forces, nor enough adequately trained and capable Iraqi security forces to ensure that that hold phase that is one of the centerpieces here was able to succeed.
Hence, this new edition of U.S. forces that we are seeing beginning to arrive in the capital, moving forward with this modification of the old plan. What we are expecting over the next few days -- and this plan, in fact, already began about a month ago, but just in a handful of Baghdad neighborhoods -- again, what we are expecting to see over the next few days is this plan intensifying. Increasing pressure being put on militias and insurgent groups as U.S. and Iraqi security forces begin clearing more Baghdad neighborhoods. And as these additional U.S. troops come in, they will be the ones that will be holding those areas -- Tony.
HARRIS: Arwa, with the violence in Iraq over the weekend just -- man, just horrible, what do we know about who was behind the horrific attack on Saturday morning that killed at least 128 people?
DAMON: Well, Tony, there really has been no claim of responsibility for that attack. And just to recap it, a suicide truck bomber plowed into a crowded central Baghdad marketplace, and it was the single deadliest bombing of this war. But again, no claim of responsibility.
However, there is much speculation amongst Iraqis here in the capital that it was yet another attack aimed at Baghdad's Shia population, with the pure intention of further escalating the sectarian violence and the sectarian tensions here. And there are constant attacks of that nature.
For example, overnight, there was mortars that landed in a predominantly Sunni neighborhood that killed at least 15 Iraqis. We have seen this mortar war going on between Sunni and Shia neighborhoods for quite some time, as well as other than the attacks that you were mentioning earlier, an increased number of car bombs happened in the capital actually thereafter, all together killing at least another 20 Iraqis. And there was an incredibly disturbing attack when a car bomb exploded just outside of a children's hospital, and that attack killed four people -- Tony.
HARRIS: Arwa, one other issue, if we could. Insurgents -- four U.S. helicopters downed in just two weeks. What do we know about what caused these crashes?
DAMON: Well, the U.S. military -- in fact, it was Major General William Caldwell, the spokesman for multinational forces here in Iraq, who came out at a press conference yesterday, saying that while the investigation was still ongoing, those choppers crashed due to some sort of ground fire, meaning some sort of insurgent activity. And this is of some concern to the U.S. military operating here, but this is also a trend that we have seen in the sense that, as the insurgents modify their methods of operation, the U.S. responds in turn -- Tony.
HARRIS: Arwa Damon for us in Baghdad.
Arwa, thank you.
COLLINS: The fight for Iraq and the political battle in the Senate at issue, a non-binding resolution opposing the president's plan to increase troops in Iraq. The measure is co-sponsored by two key Senate leaders, Republican John Warner, the influential former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and the panel's current chairman, Democrat Carl Levin.
A test vote scheduled for this afternoon, but that may not happen. Republicans in the Democratic-controlled Senate are moving to block the measure.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D), CALIFORNIA: It's obstructionism. And I would really urge the Republicans to reconsider. I think it's a terrible mistake to prevent this debate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. RICHARD LUGAR (R), INDIANA: Action on the Senate floor on a non-binding resolution means that you are simply having a debate for the sake of it. Now, some may find that edifying, but it seems to me we probably ought to proceed on to the budget.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Republicans want to vote on alternative measures, one that would express support for the president's strategy and another that would pledge the Senate would keep funding the U.S. presence.
Let the budget battle begin. President Bush sending his plan to Congress this morning, asking for $2.9 trillion. A big chunk going toward the war in Iraq.
Let's go ahead and bring in CNN White House Correspondent Ed Henry now.
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
COLLINS: Ed, how much of this budget, then, is going to both wars in Iraq and Afghanistan?
HENRY: Well, interesting -- good morning, Heidi. The president wants another $100 billion for this year alone for both of those wars, then he's requesting another $140 billion for next year. The budget, as you noted, officially arriving this morning on Capitol Hill. It was welcomed by the House budget chairman, Democrat John Spratt. Now that Democrats are in charge on the Hill, there's a whole new political dynamic for this president.
He used to have Republicans overseeing all this. Now Democrats promising to take a close look, scrubbing it down.
The Democrats have particularly criticized the president for low- balling these early numbers on the war at the beginning of the year, then coming back with emergency spending bills in the summer, almost a shadow budget, according to Democrats. So, these big numbers up front a chance for the president to try to preempt the critics, but Democrats like Speaker Nancy Pelosi already saying they're going through this budget with a fine tooth comb.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: Whatever is in the budget, defense or otherwise, will have to be justified. The days of the blank check, for example, for the Iraq war are over. Certainly, let me say over and over again, any opportunity I get, that Democrats will support our troops. We will not cut off funds to our troops.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: So you hear right there the political balancing act that Democrats are still going through. They're talking about scrutinizing these funding requests for Iraq and Afghanistan, but not going so far as to cut off funding for those wars. Despite all these non-binding resolutions going around the Hill, Democrats do not want to take that step of cutting off the money -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Well, then, Ed, let's put this in perspective for the people at home. The total tab for both wars right now?
HENRY: Well, when you put together $240 billion more over the next two years, so the total tab has now creeped past $600 billion, into the range of $700 billion for both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Obviously, the price tag rising -- Heidi.
COLLINS: No question about that.
All right. Ed Henry, outside the White House for us this morning.
Thank you, Ed.
HENRY: Thank you.
HARRIS: And quickly, let's get you to T.J. Holmes in the NEWSROOM.
T.J., you're following a fire in downtown Los Angeles.
Good morning, T.J. T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. Good morning to you there, sir.
Let's show you these live pictures we do have now. This is in downtown Los Angeles. And this is a fire -- a pretty big building, it appears to be here.
This is at Broadway and 4th Street in downtown Los Angeles. And we're told about 150 firefighters are now on the scene of this fire.
They're in what's been called a defensive surround and drown mode because this is a pretty huge fire here they're trying to -- trying to tackle. If we can get that live picture back up here, you can see them.
They have surrounded this thing. They say this is a defensive posture, and just trying to drown this thing out.
This -- they got the call about this just before 5:00 Pacific Time, 8:00 here on the East Coast. It's believed to be some kind of garment warehouse.
Don't know how this thing exactly started, but a pretty big fire in downtown L.A. right now. We're trying to get more information on exactly how this thing might have started and if they're going to be able to get this thing under control. It certainly appears you can still see those flames shooting out of the top of this -- top of this building here, whatever it is, believed to be a garment warehouse, like we said.
But trying to get this one out. We're keeping an eye on this in downtown Los Angeles. So we'll keep an eye on it, see how things go there, Tony, and we'll get back with you.
HARRIS: OK. T.J., appreciate it. Thank you.
Tough times in central Florida. Hundreds of people across four counties now trying to put storm-shattered lives back together. The toll from Friday's outbreak of severe weather, 20 people killed, at least 1,300 homes, churches, and businesses damaged or destroyed.
CNN's Rob Marciano with us now from Lady Lake, Florida, the hard- hit area of Lady Lake there.
Rob, good morning to you.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Tony.
Some progress made over the weekend, actually pretty impressive progress, to see neighbors helping neighbors, and, you know, a fairly rural community in spots, heavy equipment brought in, and quite a bit of debris cleared or at least moved aside so that people can at least get around and start to organize the damage, so to speak. But the task is so huge, it will be days, weeks, months before this community really gets itself back on its feet.
Lake County, they're telling me this is the worst natural disaster in the county's history. I certainly believe that having toured the area for several days now. And as far as tornadoes are concerned in Florida, this is the second worst outbreak they've ever seen, with 20 fatalities. Forty-two fatalities back in 1998, in February. So this certainly is the time of year for this to happen.
Just up the road about 50 miles from here, in DeLand, in the eastern part of the country (sic), towards Volusia County, the community of DeLand got hit probably the hardest. And yesterday we went out with a storm surveyor, a meteorologist from the National Weather Service whose specialty is to go out and kind of pick apart this storm on the ground, kind of forensic science kind of work to see what the tornado looked like, judging from the debris field, and also, you know, how -- how wide it was, how strong those winds were, judging on how badly those homes were torn apart.
And that meteorologist told me, Tony, that in that particular spot, because the homes weren't built that well, he can't really -- couldn't really tell if it was even stronger than what they think, which is an F-3 or 160-mile-an-hour winds. But that area even hit harder than this area here in Lady Lake, where there were seven fatalities, Tony.
HARRIS: Yes.
MARCIANO: Definitely -- you know, it's tough to put a camera lens to this and really show you the scope of it. When you're on the ground, you see it for your own eyes and you really -- it really starts to settle in. But the human spirit, as we see in many of these cases, is resilient, and that's always impressive.
HARRIS: What are people saying to you, Rob? Is the determination -- first of all, acknowledging the devastation, what has happened to their lives? But is there a sense there that folks are willing to get at the job of rebuilding, picking up the pieces and moving forward with their lives?
MARCIANO: They were on it the day it happened, Tony.
HARRIS: Yes.
MARCIANO: I mean, Friday morning, the sun came up, and, you know, certainly the shock was there. But those who did survive were thankful to have their lives, and those who didn't have their homes damaged too badly and their lives turned upside down, they were happy to help their neighbors. So, yes, I think that part of it is pretty strong and we see it on a day-by-day basis.
Today, though, Tony, what will hamper the effects probably is a little bit of rainfall in the area. So that will make picking through the pieces and getting the damage...
HARRIS: A little more difficult.
MARCIANO: ... and decide and organized a little bit more difficult.
HARRIS: OK.
MARCIANO: And then you know that the cold weather, obviously, a big story nationwide -- story nationwide. Want to talk about that briefly.
We've got wind-chill advisories and wind-chill warnings up for the upper Midwest, which means basically this is dangerously cold air that's moving down. The coldest air of the season. And so you're going to want to definitely dress appropriately, aside from the usual stuff, for you and your loved ones.
HARRIS: Rob Marciano, in Lady Lake, Florida, for us.
Rob, appreciate it. Thank you.
COLLINS: Inside an Iranian nuclear facility. CNN's Christine Amanpour is among those given a tour. Her report ahead in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Putting his own style into play. A look at the president's new man on defense.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: It says nothing about the past. It's just about my style.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: And just what is Robert Gates' style? You can bet it's different from his predecessor's.
That's ahead in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: A woman makes a chilling discovery while going through her late mother's possessions. We'll tell you about it coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: We want to go ahead and show you some more of these pictures here. This is a fire that we've been telling you about coming to us from our affiliate, KTLA, in Los Angeles.
A hundred and fifty firefighters battling this. A major warehouse blaze, again happening in downtown Los Angeles.
At this point, no injuries are reported, so that's a very good thing. But, boy, when you have that many firefighters out there, you know that it's certainly serious and trying to preventatively keep everybody safe from anything that could continue.
Those hot spots, you know, you just never know in a building when they could come up and fire up again. But still, you see quite a few flames continuing to burn as those firefighters battle ahead.
So we'll watch this one for you and certainly keep you apprised of what's going on.
HARRIS: In the meantime, nothing to hide? What's behind Iran's decision to grant a tour of a nuclear facility? CNN's chief international correspondent, Christine Amanpour, was among those invited.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The Iranian government has invited hundreds of journalists, as well as six ambassadors from the so-called nonaligned movement. They are ambassadors from Malaysia, Egypt, Sudan, Bolivia, Cuba. Slovenia -- countries which are not in the Security Council, and there are no Western countries represented here.
Nonetheless, the Iranian government is saying that this is a transparency visit designed to show the world what it claims to be its peaceful nuclear program.
ALI ASHGAR SOLTANIEH, CHIEF IRANIAN DELEGATE, IAEA: As you noticed, the whole system is a closed system. It means the import is calculated by IAEA. Every gram of (INAUDIBLE) checked inside when input is measured, and outside it could be measured. Therefore, they can have accountancy very easily.
They agreed to put two additional cameras so that we are sure that these capsules are not moved during this process when the inspectors are not here. Four hundred fifty tons of UF6 have been produced here. And everything is under the IAEA.
AMANPOUR: This uranium conversion facility at Esfahan is not the current showpiece in Iran's nuclear program. That's at Natanz, about an hour away from here, where Iran has already conducted some experimental uranium enrichment.
The Iranian officials have been saying that sometime in the next 10 days, while they are celebrating the anniversary of the Islamic revolution, they may have a major new announcement on their nuclear program. Some have speculated that they may announce a 3,000- centrifuge cascade which could dramatically increase their ability to enrich uranium, move the experimental enrichment of uranium up to a more industrial scale.
Iran, however, says that it has not started that. It also insists that IAEA surveillance cameras remain at Natanz.
Christiane Amanpour, CNN, at the uranium conversion facility in Esfahan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: On the job now barely a month, and already Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is doing it his way.
CNN's Jamie McIntyre reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It may strike some as rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic, but Robert Gates wants Pentagon briefings better suited to his more low- key style.
GATES: Well, what you see is a compromise between your needs and my desire for a greater informality in all of this.
MCINTYRE: So, out went the American flag and the podium that his predecessor, Donald Rumsfeld, used as a bully pulpit to eviscerate the press. And in came a sedate desk with a background featuring a subtle map motif.
(on camera): When I look at you two up here sitting behind the desk, I can't help but think that you look like the anchor team for the evening news on the Pentagon Channel.
(LAUGHTER)
(voice over): Gates insists it's no knock on Rumsfeld, who's free-for-all briefings were must-see TV a few years back.
DONALD RUMSFELD, FMR. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Just a minute, just a minute, just a minute. I was asked a question and I'm going to take all the time I want.
MCINTYRE: Gates says he wants more conversation, less confrontation.
GATES: And it says nothing about the past. It's just about -- about my style.
MCINTYRE: Gates style couldn't be less Rumsfeldian. In his 70s, Rumsfeld insisted working all day at his stand-up desk. Gates, a decade younger, says he'd rather sit down, thank you.
GATES: Frankly, I get tired when I stand up too long.
MCINTYRE: The whole briefing thing is kind of a culture shock for the normally reserved Gates, who, after all, in his last job, as spymaster prided himself on not talking to reporters.
GATES: I didn't do it much in my last job as director of Central Intelligence. And it may have changed, but we didn't have a press room at CIA.
MCINTYRE: He first tried inviting reporters to his office dining room, but that was too cramped and made some of the reporters cranky. So the Pentagon set designers got their orders to remake the briefing room into something more Gates-friendly. The format is still a work in progress.
(on camera): We could just drop by your office in the morning.
GATES: Actually, that thought occurred -- that thought occurred, but then we couldn't accommodate the cable networks.
MCINTYRE (voice over): On second thought -- Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And quickly, just want to keep this on your radar. Take a look at these pictures, first thing in the morning out in Los Angeles.
And look at these pictures of this blaze. A two-story building in downtown Los Angeles, fully engulfed, it looks. A fire department spokesman says that a merchant in a nearby central market called in reports of this fire, heavy smoke at about 5:00 a.m. local time. About 160 firefighters on the scene, pouring water on it, trying to control it as best as possible.
We will keep an eye on this and bring you updates throughout the morning here.
COLLINS: We are "Minding Your Business." And Ali Velshi is here now with a preview.
Good morning to you, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.
You know, it is 14 years since the Family Medical Leave Act took -- took -- came into being. And America still has some of the most worker-unfriendly policies in the world.
I'll tell you more about that when we get back.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Fourteen years after it was passed, some say the Family and Medical Leave Act is in need of an upgrade.
Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business."
Can we jump on board with that, Ali?
VELSHI: Yes, absolutely.
COLLINS: Is that right?
VELSHI: Heidi, it was 14 years ago President Clinton signed the Family Medical Leave Act in to effect. It was his first piece of legislation, and it guaranteed 12 weeks of leave for, you know, maternity, or caring for a family members member or being sick, but it didn't guarantee paid leave. It guaranteed that you'd have your job and your seniority and your benefits while you were away.
Now, what's happened since then is that when -- in a survey by Harvard and McGill University in Canada, they found -- they found that of the 170 countries that they surveyed, only five don't have any paid medical leave. The U.S. is one of them. And four African countries are on that list otherwise. So that's not very good.
Senator Chris Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut, wants to introduce a new act which will guaranteed several weeks of paid leave for people who want to have a child, adopt a child, take care of a sick family member, or are sick themselves. And he expects there will be some resistance from this, obviously, between the minimum wage provisions that are coming in to place and the family leave.
A lot of businesses are saying it costs them too much money. But America really is down near the bottom of the heap in terms of how -- you know, family-friendly workplace policies -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Well, how does something like that change? And you may not have the answer, Ali. But, you know, we do talk about this a lot. I mean, a lot of comparisons to European countries and other countries around the world.
VELSHI: Yes.
COLLINS: And we are so low. I mean, isn't it about production -- happy workers equals better production, right?
VELSHI: Yes. This is what the debate is.
A lot -- it's clear that doing this -- Dodd's proposal, for instance, would have the worker, the employee -- the employer, the employee and the federal government share the cost of this. And, of course, the employer says, but this is just going to cost more money. And the other side of the argument is, yes, but if your employees like where they work, they're happy, they are more productive and they get you a better bottom line.
COLLINS: Sure.
VELSHI: Remember, a lot of American companies do provide paid leave for this sort of thing. But, Heidi, when you read any magazine or survey at the end of every year about the best places to work, that typically is way up at the top of the list, worker friendly policies about leave.
COLLINS: Do Americans -- the American worker, I should say, just not understand how much it costs? Because sometimes these types of things are built in with your job. You know, there are people who can back you up when you're gone, and sort of rotating.
VELSHI: Right. And now everybody...
COLLINS: Is it really that expensive?
VELSHI: We run a lot more leanly. And remember, one thing that's changed over the last 15 years in America is the shift from pension benefits, unionized jobs, into jobs where, you know, we think about it as only taking care of our own retirement with 401(k)s and IRAs. But, fundamentally, those are a lot of the shifts (ph) that were lost. And in unionized jobs, those were protections you had.
In non-unionized jobs, they're cheaper for the employee. We don't have those protections.
So, you know, in a -- in a tight labor market like we are now, where we've got less than 5 percent unemployment, employees have choices. And they will make those choices based on workplace policy. So this is probably the best time to try and get legislation like this upgraded, or updated, as it were.
COLLINS: Interesting. I'm jumping on board for the more vaca.
VELSHI: Yes, absolutely.
COLLINS: All right.
VELSHI: If you need to take some time off, I'll be happy to fill in.
COLLINS: Terrific. I think you guys would be great together.
HARRIS: Come on, Ali. Come on.
COLLINS: I really do.
VELSHI: We'd look great. We've got similar hairstyles.
HARRIS: Come on.
COLLINS: I was going to say it, but I'm glad you did.
All right, Ali. We'll check in a little later. Thanks.
VELSHI: See you.
HARRIS: And still to come, high finance on Capitol Hill. The president's budget presented to Congress. Landing -- look at the weight of that thing -- with a thud. But how will the nearly $3 trillion be divvied up? That is ahead in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Hundreds of billions of dollars spent on the Iraq war. Where else could it have been used? We'll show you the money in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Picking up the pieces, a daunting task in central Florida, cleaning up after a severe storms -- in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: Want to quickly take you back to Los Angeles this morning where we are continuing to watch a big warehouse fire, several firefighters on the scene. Last time we check, about 150 or so, very early out there, about 6:30 or so, in the morning. So not a fun thing to wake up to.
No injuries reported so far. We want to check in with T.J. Holmes, now, who has been watching it very closely for us, from our NEWSROOM.
T.J., any new information at this point?
T.J. HOLMES, CNN NEWS ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: Keeping an eye on this thing, about 160 plus firefighters now on the scene. We have new pictures here to show you. We had a wider shot as well of this. These are still live pictures. You can see these flames shooting up in several spots, we've been keeping an eye on, this two-story building, a commercial building here. I believe, to be a garment warehouse.
It pretty much takes up a city block there in Downtown Los Angeles. This is in the area of Broadway and 4th Street, if you are familiar with this area. But these are some of the newest pictures we are getting in. The firefighters are in what they call a defensive "surround and drown" mode.
You can see the water shooting in from the side of the screen, there. They're surrounding this thing and trying to get this fire out. We've been watching this at least a half hour now. The firefighters got the call about 5:00 a.m. local time. They haven't been on the scene that long themselves.
The wider shot we saw a little earlier, just a fascinating shot, kind of the whole area there. You can just see the smoke shooting up, and starting to shoot across the downtown area. No injuries reported at this time, no one is being evacuated from the area. You could at least, it was 5 o'clock in the morning, maybe no body this building at the time, nobody working. That's a good thing.
No word on the cause what may have started this fire. Right now, firefighters just surrounding this thing, and trying to get these flames out. At least, from my eye, look like they haven't made much ground. The flames keep coming there. They're still on it. We're trying to get more information exactly what the building is and what may have started it. We're keeping an eye on it for you, Heidi.
COLLINS: All right, T.J. Holmes, thanks.
HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: To the New York Stock Exchange, now. You've had your first cup of coffee, Heidi.
COLLINS: Still working on it.
HARRIS: Yeah, checking in with CNN for the overnight developments. Let's get the business day started. Let's build on something. Reverse some things from Friday. The Dow closed down 20 points on Friday ending at 12,653. Nasdaq pick up 7 points, we're off -- well, we're down, immediately out of the gate. But, OK, we're optimistic we'll turn that around.
In business news today, everyone is talking about the "Super Bowl" commercials.
COLLINS: Are they?
HARRIS: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. COLLINS: I don't know. I think people were kind of disappointed.
HARRIS: That's what they're talking about, though, because they were so disappointed. They thought they would be better.
COLLINS: Good game, good commercials, though, right?
HARRIS: Sloppy game, but that made it a great game.
COLLINS: I thought it was great game. That's what I'm saying.
HARRIS: Yeah, yeah.
COLLINS: But people want to get the good commercials in there, too, I guess. They're fun to watch.
HARRIS: We're putting together a little segment, later this morning. We're going to talk about all the "Super Bowl" ads. And why, for many folks they were a little disappointing.
COLLINS: That beer company appears to have done the best job, according to some reports this morning. We'll talk more about that a little later on.
Now to the looming budget battle in Washington. Congress getting a look at the president's budget proposal for 2008, the big book arrived on Capitol Hill just a short time ago, took two hands to carry that.
Here's how the budget proposal breaks down. Money for Iraq and Afghanistan make up a major chunk of that spending, $100 billion, or more, for this year. That's on top of the $70 billion already allocated? Add to that, nearly $6 billion tied to the president's recent call for 20,000 more troops in Iraq.
President Bush also looking for $145 billion to pay for Iraq and Afghanistan in 2008. Lawmakers have promised close scrutiny for the new spending.
Meanwhile, Medicare and Medicaid get less to the tune of around $80 billion over the next five years.
HARRIS: War costs rising, President Bush asking Congress for another $245 billion to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. CNN's Joshua Levs puts that number into perspective.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Fighting, responding to terrorism, rebuilding, it's added up to about $400 billion so far some studies say the price tag could ultimately top a trillion.
SEN. JAMES WEBB (D-VA): The war's costs to our nation have been staggering. LEVS: The costs aren't just financial, but let's look at the money and where it's not being spent. Every year the president vows to push alternative energy sources
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Innovation to make our air significantly cleaner and country much less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
LEVS: But funding requests for energy renewal programs have remained the same, about $1.2 billion each year. How about?
BUSH: Reforming our health care system.
LEVS: But 44 million Americans are uninsured. A major study found covering them would take $44 billion in additional medical spending each year.
Let's hit one more topic, the nation's public schools. The administration gives grants to help improve them, the total in 2006, about $30 billion.
President Bush says all these domestic priorities are well funded and that progress is being made. As for Iraq, he said imagine the costs if Saddam Hussein had let terrorists use Iraq as a base to plot attacks on U.S. soil and says the funds he's requesting are needed.
BUSH: My number one priority is to protect this country and we're going to make sure our troops have all the equipment they need to do the job we sent them to do.
LEVS (on camera): It's also important to keep in mind that not all the money simply stops in Iraq. For example, people who get paid to create the war machinery spend their money here in the United States and pay taxes. That's a fact. However, no one is putting a smiley face on all the money that has been spent in Iraq.
As we reported in recent days, the government's inspector general for Iraq has found that $10s of millions were wasted and $10 millions in equipment now can't be found. Joshua Levs, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Cleaning up and rebuilding, hundreds of people in four Florida counties, now trying to put their storm shattered lives back together. The toll from Friday's outbreak of severe weather, 20 people killed, at least 1,500 homes and churches damaged or destroyed. CNN's Rob Marciano with us now from Lady Lake, Florida.
Good morning to you, Rob. How do things look to you today?
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, they have made a tremendous amount of progress over the weekend, Heidi. There's a lot more to be done as you can imagine, with as wide an area that has affected by these twisters that touched down early Friday morning. It will be a long road for sure. They had some warning but the problem is they came in the middle of the night. For forecasters and for public officials and for residents, that warning certainly is important. But for meteorologists who specialize in going out and surveying the damage so they can work with engineers to make saver and stronger homes, after the fact, is even more important.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO (voice over): The debris fields that litter a tornado's path may look chaotic, but to the trained eye each piece tells the true story of the storm.
(on camera): Are we in the center of the vortex, right now?
JIM LEDUE, NOAA METEOROLOGIST: Literally in the center of the vortex at this point.
MARCIANO: Jim Ledue works in weather forensics, surveying damage to determine what happened, and how.
LEDUE: I see confluence coming in and debris coming into the northeast on the south side of the track, coming in from the northwest, to the southeast here, on the north side of the track.
MARCIANO: Wedging in.
LEDUE: That literal confluence.
There's about 28 different damage indicators that we look at.
MARCIANO: And what do those indicators tell you about this twister?
LEDUE: This one here was basically at least an EF-3.
MARCIANO (voice over): A strong one with winds over 160 miles an hour.
(On camera): It isn't so much the wind that's dangerous. It's the debris flying through the wind. Researchers at Texas Tech are replicating events like this, where 2X4s are literally launched like a missile through the air.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three, two, one.
MARCIANO: The front side here completely -- almost surgical impact, but the back side just completely demolished.
LARRY TANNER, TEXAS TECH: And even if you had brick veneer instead of the siding, the missile would behave exactly the same. It goes straight through.
MARCIANO (voice over): Investigators like Ledue put the data to the test, analyzing the integrity of all sorts of structures. LEDUE: This has a weak link right here. Notice the nails are sticking straight up, out of there. That says to me that this was a straight nailed from the bottom in a prefab.
MARCIANO: Nailing studs diagonally is better, using L-braces would be best.
(On camera): How much more money does it cost to put those straps on, to put those braces on?
LEDUE: It would probably cost on the order of maybe 150 bucks.
MARCIANO: That's it?
LEDUE: Yes.
MARCIANO (voice over): When the ultimate cost could be your life, it's a small price to pay.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Deland is about an hour northeast of here. It's the are that got hit kind of with the second twister and really the stronger one. What Jim told me was that area, because the structures were so poorly built, and completely wiped out because of that, it was hard for him to determine, really, the exact strength of the storm.
It could have been a lot stronger, Heidi, because if there was some well-built homes there taking on some damage, it could have done a -- kind of fine tuned that assessment. From what I saw, not the trained eye that guy is, it just looked like a bomb went off. It is amazing what these guys can do when they know what they're looking at.
COLLINS: That is a fascinating job that Jim has, too, weather forensics, an explosive power we saw inside your package, with the wood going through the other piece of wood, it really makes it all make sense, how dangerous mother nature can really be in a situation like this.
MARCIANO: You know, that home I showed you, that had the 2X4 through the wall, there was a woman asleep on the other side of that wall, in her bed.
COLLINS: Unbelievable.
MARCIANO: And that piece of wood came within feet of striking her in the head. There are literally missiles that fly through the air when these tornadoes tear apart structures.
COLLINS: You have to wonder about some regulations, too, with the home building, I don't know if that's a possibility. If they're talking about that yet, but an L brace, 150 bucks, it makes you think, let's have everybody get one.
Quickly though, Rob, before we let you go, what's the deal with the Youngstown, Ohio? I know you're doing the rest of the country for us, too, from Florida. It's going to be ridiculously cold there, for them.
MARCIANO: They set a record low this morning. I forget what it was, it was minus 2, or minus 3.
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: Definitely chilly. Your hometown in Minneapolis had wind chills earlier that were close to minus 30. Dangerous wind chills today across the Upper Midwest. There are wind chill warnings out.
When that happens, that means it could be 30 or 40 degrees below zero, as far as the windchills are concerned. So, it's not a matter of saying, you know, bundle up the kids. That's dangerously cold, there.
COLLINS: It is.
MARCIANO: You can get frostbite in a matter of minutes. So, it's a serious weather situation. If you have to go outside, make sure you have a good sprint to your car and dress appropriately.
COLLINS: Cover your mouth. Breathing that in is very frightening.
As we have been saying all last week -- purple, bad. When we look at those temperatures there. Ouch!
MARCIANO: That's for sure.
COLLINS: All right, Rob. We'll check with you a little bit later on. Thanks so much, live from Lady Lake, Florida, for us today, Rob Marciano.
HARRIS: Traumatized -- and now she's asking to be left alone. A woman makes a chilling discovery while going through her late mother's possessions. That story in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: The man who will lead the new plan for the president, in Iraq, we understand is actually on his way, at this time, to the country. General Petraeus, we understand, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq is on his way to the country now. We will be talking to CNN's Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr about this, in just a couple minutes.
And this story, a woman makes -- well, you have to call it a chilling discovery.
COLLINS: Now, police are trying to solve a disturbing mystery, a half a century in this making. More now from CNN's Susan Candiotti.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It was January, 1957. Eisenhower was president. Elvis was getting ready to enter the Army. Hollywood legend Humphrey Bogart died. The New York "Daily News" cost a nickel and featured an actresses alleged affair, and a plane crash.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): It's almost shredded, torn apart?
DET. GENE SAPINO, DELRAY BEACH POLICE: Correct. Correct, that's why.
CANDIOTTI: Because of decay?
SAPINO: Correct.
CANDIOTTI (voice over): And inside a now decaying newspaper from that very same day, a dark secret apparently was just beginning. A mystery police are trying to unravel. The newspaper was dated January 9th, 1957.
Fast forward 50 years to January 2007, just last month. This self-storage warehouse in Delray Beach, Florida. A woman was cleaning outs her mother's storage bay. Her parents, both dead had never mentioned their rented space. Among the old dusty chairs, rotary phones and bicycles, these two suitcases, the larger holding the smaller one, it was decorated with decals from trips to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, New Jersey's Palisades Park, North Carolina. Inside the suitcase, that disturbing secret.
(On camera): This is where the baby was found?
SAPINO: That's correct.
CANDIOTTI (voice over): A baby boy, with light curly hair, umbilical cord still attached, mummified, tightly wrapped inside this newspaper.
SAPINO: You can see the actual facial features. You can see eyes, you can see a nose, and you can see the slit for the mouth. You can actually make out that, and also portions of the fingers and toes.
CANDIOTTI: Try to imagine the woman's horror when she unwrapped the newspaper bundle. Police say she fell apart.
SAPINO: She dealt with the emotions of finding this and the second emotion of it possibly being a relative of hers, or a family member.
CANDIOTTI: Police found much more inside the larger suitcase, calling it a burial chamber, they also discovered religious items.
(On camera): Is there a rosary in here?
SAPINO: There's a rosary inside here.
CANDIOTTI: Really, for a child?
SAPINO: Correct. CANDIOTTI (voice over): A tiny rosary inside a thimble-sized silver container and two religious cards. One with a prayer, "If ye have as much faith as a grain of mustard seed, nothing shall be impossible unto you."
Also intriguing police, this black and white photograph of an unidentified little girl. What does it all mean?
SAPINO: If it was simple abortion and they didn't want the child, why would they go to such extreme means, not only to create a religious gravesite for him, and actually maintain it for so many years?
CANDIOTTI: But who is the remarkably preserved mystery child, and why were the remains hidden in a suitcase for more than 50 years?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The bone sample is the humorous bone here. It's the bigger bone, the top portion of the arm.
CANDIOTTI: The Palm Beach County, Florida, medical examiner's office has sent a bone sample to a lab in Texas, attempting a DNA match. Is it the baby the brother of the woman who found him?
(On camera): Do you feel this is -- one of life's mysteries? This is a mystery and all of you are detectives trying to solve it?
ANTHONY FALSETTI, UNIV. OF FLA. FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST: Sure, yeah. This is basically where all the theory, all we understand about human growth and development, it's where the science hits the road.
CANDIOTTI (voice over): University forensic anthropologist Anthony Falsetti is examining the boy's remains to try to pinpoint his age and cause of death. He used skeletons donated to science to explain.
FALSETTI: This is an adult, has approximately 206 bones.
CANDIOTTI: He says a near-term baby could have four times as many bones to X-ray, count and examine. The umbilical cord may also hold clues.
FALSETTI: How it was cut, was it cut? And that will lead to more information about the circumstances surrounding the death, whether it was an attended birth or unattended. Did it occur in a hospital?
CANDIOTTI: Given the lack of organ, finding the boy's cause of death may be tricky, relying more on family history than science.
FALSETTI: They were obviously transported from one state, down here to Florida. They were wrapped. They were inside one container, and then another. This is -- these remains represent someone who was cared for, even after death.
CANDIOTTI: The New Jersey woman, who found the baby's remains in a suitcase is helping police. She released a family statement, asking the public to leave them alone. It reads in part, "No earthly benefit can be gained from further scrutiny of this tragedy. This situation rests only in the hands of God. This one should be left to his understanding and wisdom."
Yet police are looking for answers in hopes of identifying the boy's remains, before they are buried. Susan Candiotti, Delray Beach, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Home from Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trying to figure out how this goes here. My nerves are definitely kicking.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: This soldier becomes a real knight in shining armor, in search of love. It's a great story, and it's ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Home from Iraq, a U.S. soldier sets out to prove fairytales can come true. It's a love story, complete with a knight in shining armor. Here's Dan Weaver from CNN affiliate KUSA in Denver.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SGYNMAN GIBBS, KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR: I'm trying to figure out how this thing goes here. My nerves are definitely kicking.
DAN WEAVER, REPORTER, WUSA TV (voice over): As a bodyguard in Iraq, Sgynman Gibbs saw some tough situations.
SYGNMAN: Although I was nervous over there, I think I'm just about as nervous here.
WEAVER: This costume, complete with tights, will either be a laugh or a dream come true.
SYGNMAN: This girl that I'm dating, Stephanie Gonzalez, figured that I was her soldier, I was her knight in shining armor.
WEAVER: So today, he's proving it, complete with the horse.
SGYNMAN: I'm going to keep it open until I get around. OK. I'm ready to go! Better now than never.
WEAVER: Even after practicing his horsemanship, both Sgynman, and the horse, have butterflies.
SGYNMAN: Whoa! Something's got her spooked.
WEAVER: As the knight rides towards his family and friends, his mind is on his girlfriend. SGYNMAN: She's a very special lady, and I'm ready to spend the rest of my life with her.
I love you more than anything else in this world.
WEAVER: And today, this soldier lets his guard down.
SGYNMAN: Will you marry me?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes!
(CHEERS)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're so cute!
WEAVER: Finally, relief for the nerves.
SGYNMAN: My heart's going about 2,000 miles an hour right now. I was a little nervous.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A total surprise.
WEAVER: In Green Valley Ranch.
SGYNMAN: Now, we'll begin to start planning our lives together.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: That's how they do it in Colorado. He said he was cute.
HARRIS: Heidi.
COLLINS: High finance on Capitol Hill, the president's budget presented to Congress. But how will the nearly $3 trillion be divided up.
HARRIS: He spoke out, and refused to ship out to Iraq, now an Army officer is at the center of a legal fight. Details in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Are there new clues in a 26-year-old murder case?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then the smile run off his face and he had this like look of anger. I was just like, looking at him, I didn't know what this guy was up to. All of a sudden, that look went to like rage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The death of Adam Walsh and why some believe there's a link to serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Tell you about it ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
HARRIS: I'm Tony Harris. Spend a second hour in the NEWSROOM this morning and stay informed. Here's what's on the rundown.
Violence rocks Baghdad and a vote that may rattle Capitol Hill. The Senate setting up for a politically risky showdown on the president's war plan.
COLLINS: Show them the money, President Bush's sends Congress a budget plan with a whole lot of zeros, more war spending, less for Medicare and Medicaid.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
