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U.S. And Iraqi Military Mount Major Offensive Against Al Qaeda Throughout Baghdad, Diyala Province; Report on Civilians in Baghdad

Aired June 23, 2007 - 17:00   ET

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

SANCHEZ: In the month of June. North and east of Baghdad American forces are stalking Al Qaeda with this story now we take you to Hala Gorani.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HALA GORANI, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Operation Arrowhead Ripper continues in Diyala Province east and north of Baghdad and in and around the capital of that province, Baqubah; 10,000 U.S. troops still involved in that operation designed to neutralize insurgent bases. And find and dismantle factories that manufacture car bombs as well as IEDs, IEDs are the biggest killer of U.S. troops.

Now, Brigadier General Mick Bednarek, who is in the Baqubah area right now, had this to say about the operation.

BRIG. GEN. MICK BEDNAREK: This is a tough fight. It is house to house, block to block, street to street, tunnel to tunnel, utility location, basements, rooftops; any structure that's in these built up areas will be cleared. And, again, not only with the coalition forces, but the Iraqi security force of partners, Iraqi army and the police side by side.

GORANI: The question is have some of the insurgents fled the Diyala Province and Baqubah area in anticipation of this operation. General Odiarno (ph) who is the number two commander of U.S. forces in this country told reporters that that may be the case.

On the political front, the parliament here in Iraq has extended its session until the end of July. The aim of that move is to work on draft legislation that's designed to promote reconciliation among the sects in Iraq. One of those crucial laws is the oil revenue sharing law. However, no draft proposals have been presented to legislators. So whether or not this move will make any difference on the political front is an open question at this time.

Hala Gorani, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: There's another side of the Iraq story that we have been focusing on that really is a serious problem down the line in this country. Best and the brightest in Iraq are bolting by the thousands, the doctors, the professionals. Every one who had a degree or was prepared in his country is now leaving. We'll look at this brain drain and how it could effect the future for Iraq. How it could make it a more dangerous place as college graduates stake their futures elsewhere, as well.

Optimism is the U.S. buzzword over North Korea's nuclear program. This hour U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, speaking to reporters. This is in Tokyo, by the way. He says the North could shut down the reactor at the center of its atomic arms development within weeks.

Hill just wrapped up a rare visit to the country. He also says that North Korea appears ready to return to six-party disarmament talks at some point. We don't know when, but when we do, we'll let you know.

Success, the military used a sea-based missile to shoot down a high flying warhead. Yesterday's test off of Hawaii was the ninth successful shoot down against two missiles. These tests are part of the sea-based leg of an emerging missile defense. The target missile was launched from Kauai. Now about four minutes later, we understand, the Navy destroyer, USS Decatur, fired the kill missile. It knocked out the warhead, 100 miles above the earth.

As we reported just a short time ago, law enforcement authorities are now telling us that there will be a major development in the case of that missing woman in Ohio -- the missing pregnant woman, since that's the way most people have known her since this story unfolded 10 days ago, or so.

Now, what they say or what they're telling us is that they're going to make an announcement at this news briefing. It's scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Eastern, we'll pick up the very latest.

Here is what we know at this point. She has been missing now, 26-year-old Jessie Davis, she was nine months pregnant. Police have been questioning her boyfriend who they believe is the father of her child; they have been questioning him for quite some time, police officer, by the way. And they say that their investigation with him continues.

We don't know, at this point, whether there is any linkage between him and this news conference that we'll be hearing. Police have been intimating that they have something very important to say.

Stand by, we'll have that for you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM, as you look at pictures of all of the people in the Canton area who have been gathering, trying to show their support and trying to search for her, for Jessie Davis, as well.

Federal fire investigators are saying they have traced the source but not the cause of the sofa store inferno that we have been showing you in that Charleston, South Carolina. This is such a sad story. They say that the first spark came on a loading dock and that also was used for garbage disposal, temporary storage, and smoke breaks by some of the employees. Authorities say it will take some time to learn the cause of the blaze that killed those nine Charleston fire fighters. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR JOE RILEY, CHARLESTON, S.C.: We have the responsibility to make sure we know everything about the fire and every aspect of it; for our benefit, but for the benefit of the fire departments, and towns and community, states across the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Monday's nine deaths by the way were the worst collective loss of American firefighters since, of course, September 11th.

If you would like to help these firefighters and their families, and members of the community who are really still hurting, you can log on to cnn.com/impact. We'll help you. With a click, you get all of the information you need to be able to take some action to help some of these folks, who really need it at this point in their lives.

Let me show you something now. You remember these? Let's see these pictures if we can. These are thousands of mobile homes that are meant for Hurricane Katrina victims, but never sent to them. They never got them. Well, now, nearly two years later, some of these people-less homes, will get owners. Residents of Indian reservations, who also desperately need them. It's an interesting story. Here's CNN Gulf Coast Correspondent Susan Roesgen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT: Since Hurricane Katrina this is the scene that has amazed and angered people and politicians across the country. Even President Bush has demanded to know why thousands of unused mobile homes have been sitting empty in an Arkansas field.

Your tax dollars, more than $300 million paid for these mobile homes, intended to help ease the burden on those hit hardest by Katrina. But because of various federal rules, only a few hundred of these actually reached hurricane victims on the Gulf Coast.

SEN. TIM JOHNSON (D), SOUTH DAKOTA: This was a huge investment. All of them are sitting out in the mud in Hope, Arkansas, right now. It seems to me that they ought to be able to be able to part with at least some of them for some of the housing crises problems we have in Indian country.

ROESGEN: South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson has been trying for the last year to get FEMA to send some of the mobile homes to Indian reservations, where decent housing is in short supply. Now, after months of negotiations, Johnson's office says the federal government has agreed to release 2,000 mobile homes by calling them surplus inventory. Freeing them up to be sent to Indian reservations in South Dakota and other states out West. The rest of these mobile homes will remain unused for now, still on stand by, awaiting the next disaster. Susan Roesgen, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: Also this, he promised the most important speech of his entire career, words that he says can change a nation. Next, in the CNN NEWSROOM. Did this tertiary candidate actually deliver? I love that word, "tertiary".

Also, this man, often blamed for stealing just enough votes to keep Al Gore out of the White House in 2000. When we come back, Ralph Nader. Is he thinking about doing it again?

And then, remember the U.S. plot to kill Cuban leader Fidel Castro? Remember the cigar trick? The secret and just about any other CIA stuff -- good stuff -- they are coming clean. How clean? Like, squeaky, we're told. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: America votes 2008 and we're watching the politicians for you. Presidential candidates are fanning out all over the country this weekend. Here is the GOP's stomping grounds -- or is it stumping grounds? Actually it's both. John McCain attends a fundraiser at a private home in South Hampton, New York tonight. Mitt Romney, is appearing at several events in Utah and Mike Huckabee in giving a speech in South Carolina.

As for the Democrats, Hillary Clinton in familiar territory, campaigning in her former home state of Arkansas. Barack Obama is speaking at a church in Connecticut. And John Edwards holding a town hall meeting in Nevada. Bill Richardson is focusing on voters in Tennessee today; and then campaigning in New Hampshire, Christopher Dodd.

By the way, Senator Dodd's appearance in Nashua wasn't your run of the mile campaign stop. He'll be here with me in just a little bit, but today, there, he announced a plan to encourage and in some cases require Americans, especially the young ones to do more to help others, not just themselves.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As president, I will ask all Americans to share in the responsibility and sacrifice of bringing our nation together again. And I will provide the ways for all Americans to participate. Today, I'm announcing my American Community Initiative. To create the first generation in history in which every American serves their country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: You know, he's a Northeasterner; he's a fan of JFK. JFK introduced the Peace Corps, which by the way he actually stole that from Hubert H. Humphrey -- H stands for Horatio, in case are you wondering --

So, what he wants to do is something very similar. And he's serious about it and he thinks it could change the way we're viewed all over the world. How far does Chris Dodd plan to go with this community service plan? He's quite serious about it. Find out. I'll put the presidential hopeful on the "Sunday Spotlight." He's our guest this weekend. Every weekend we have a different person running for the presidency, join us here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Now, Ralph Nader -- there's another one -- the mere mention of the name sends chills down the spines of many Democrats, who say it's his fault that their party lost the 2004 presidential election. Not all Democrats, mind you, but many. Mention his name, we must, though, because this former independent candidate just may enter the race again. Here is CNN's Mary Snow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Ralph Nader's chances of every ever winning a presidential election are slim, but he tells the political web site, The Politico", he is seriously considered running yet again, because the current crop of eight Democrats, 10 Republicans, and a list of maybes that could include Mike Bloomberg as an Independent, offer little real choice.

His staunchest criticism aimed at Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Hillary Clinton, calling her a political coward. It's a theme he's been hammering away at for months. Here is Nader in February.

RALPH NADER, FMR. GREEN PARTY CANDIDATE: She is pandering and flattering her way around the country as if she is moving to a coronation.

SNOW: The Clinton camp declined to comment, but a former campaign staffer for Al Gore says it's vanity behind Nader's possible run.

CHRIS LEHANE, FMR. GORE CAMPAIGN SPOKESMAN: Nader, by campaigning against her, and trying to make her his target is only trying to create a dynamic or a system where he could indeed play the spoiler role.

SNOW: He was dubbed the spoiler in 2000, when Nader won nearly 3 percent of the vote. Many Democrats blame him for taking votes away from Al Gore, causing him to lose key states to George Bush. By 2004 support for the long-time consumer advocate dwindled to .4 of 1 percent. Though his numbers may be small, political observers say candidates such as Nader add substance.

LARRY SABATO, UNIV. OF VA. CENTER FOR POLITICS: They contribute to the debate; they force some of the major party candidate to discuss issues they would prefer to ignore entirely.

SNOW: But when it comes to votes some Democrats worry in a tight race even small numbers can make a big impact.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: By the way, Nader believes that one independent politician will have an impact. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Nader predicts that Bloomberg will run and immediately gain the support of about 15 percent of American voters. Just a prediction, mind you.

And 16 activists protesting detainees treatment at Guantanamo were arrested right in front White House today. There are some of the pictures. U.S. Park Police say the demonstrators refused direct orders to leave the area. The protestors feel that President Bush signing of the Military Commissions Act, last year, effectively legalized torture at the military prison. A White House spokesperson says Mr. Bush himself wants Guantanamo closed.

We're seeing more apparent fallout now from last year's firings of eight U.S. Attorneys. Acting Associate Attorney General William Mercer has withdrawn himself from consideration for the number three post at the Justice Department. In his letter to the Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Mercer noted the current controversy would make his confirmation, quote, "highly unlikely, if ever."

Spokesperson for Kansas Senator Pat Roberts says that a fractured wrist will not keep the Republican lawmaker from work. Roberts suffered this break yesterday, he was in a traffic accident near his Virginia home.

And 94-year-old Lady Bird Johnson is reportedly doing well in an Austin, Texas, hospital today. The former first lady was admitted Thursday for a slight fever. Family spokesperson says Mrs. Johnson is expected to be released in the next couple of days.

Well, it's hot, it's muggy, and in some places very, very wet as well. How do you get those together? Next, in the NEWSROOM, flooding in the Midwest. Meteorologist Bonnie Schneider joins us with some of those details, and a lot more of these pictures, because we know you love the pictures.

And then later, there are some of the best and some of the brightest students in Iraq and their goal is for graduation, to get out of the country alive. Iraq's brain drain. How big of a problem will this be, even if we win and pull out?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Heavy rains, big worry in parts of the Midwest today. Take a look at this video sent in by an I-Reporter. His name is Wally Macleod, we're proud to say. Floodwaters forced the closure of Highway 6 near West Liberty, Iowa. The Hawkeye state hit by some of the hardest rain in -- yesterday afternoon -- sometime yesterday afternoon we're told.

Here's video out of Norwalk now. One two of central Iowa towns, a tornado nailed yesterday. Twister blew out windows, took down some power lines, as well and trees. One home was destroyed there in Cumming. Luckily no major injuries were reported, just a whole lot of damage.

And Bonnie Schneider following this thing for us.

(WEATHER REPORT)

SANCHEZ: Here's some real water cooler talk for you. The City by the Bay has banned its municipal departments from buying bottled water. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom cited environmental concerns and also says that the move will save taxpayer money. The ban begins July 1st and will be extended to all city and county water coolers by year's end. A spokesperson for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission says this decision will also combat global warming. There you go.

Time for a hero: One man taking a stand trying to try and save lives in Africa. The lives of a rare mountain guerilla. This work makes him a "CNN Hero". Here is his story in his own words.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EUGENE RUTAGARAMA, PARK RANGER: When you approach a group of gorillas, the first feeling that you are approaching a relative, a human being.

In this region we have been able to bring conservationists from the three governments together to sign an agreement to protect these mountain gorillas.

Having rangers to cover the park with the patrol means that we keep the poaching at the lowest level, but the poaching is still there.

My name is Eugene Rutagarama. My work is to protect mountain gorillas in their habitat.

When I came back from Burundi, Rwanda was devastated by the genocide. You would see the bodies of dead people, thousands of people.

The whole country had to resume from scratch.

My attention went to the national parks. If these parks were not protected it means that we have lost the mountain gorillas which is a hobby for many tourists. They bring foreign currency for this country, which has to conserve these parks.

Gorillas can't really do much if a human being has decided to decimate or to kill the gorillas. They need to be defended, they need to be protected by human beings.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: By the way, if you would like to protect the mountain gorillas and help in his us cause, you can find all the information at CNN.com/heroes.

You know, one of the casualties of war in Iraq? Brain power, or brain drain is what a lot of people call it. They are losing professors, they are losing doctors, losing intellectuals. What else are they losing? We're going to tell you. And you'll find out if you stand by.

Also, gays and religion. How sensitive of a topic is this? Are people losing their jobs because of it. How are different religions dealing with it, and how much strife is it causing? We're looking into this. The nitty gritty of it. We'll be back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: And we welcome you back to the NEWSROOM. Here is what is happening right now. Authorities are telling us that there is a major development in the case of this missing pregnant woman in Ohio. They are planning to hold a news conference. They say it will take place at 6:00 p.m. Eastern.

They are not saying what they will announce at this point. Jessie Davis hasn't been heard from since June 9th. Search teams have been scouring the area around her home, on foot. They have been using sonar, they have been going from the air as well. She is due to give birth to a baby girl July 3rd.

CNN will bring you coverage. We do know this, we heard from police today that they have been questioning the man who is said to be the father of their child. His name, Bobby Cutts. He is a police officer. This is an ongoing story. As soon as we get the details, we'll share details with you vis-a-vis this news conference at 6p.

Investigators in Charleston, South Carolina, are saying this week's deadly furniture store fire there Charleston began on the store's loading dock. They are looking into the cause of the blaze which killed nine firefighters.

Now remember 2,000 FEMA trailers that went unused in the botched response to Hurricane Katrina? You remember, right? Well, they are soon going to be home on American Indian reservations. South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson has pushed through legislation after watching the trailers just sit empty even as thousands of Native Americans live in substandard housing. So he is getting them to (INAUDIBLE).

Possible positive movement in the North Korea nuclear standoff. U.S. envoy Christopher Hill says that he believes the north could shut down the reactors at the heart of the dispute in about three weeks. Hill just concluded a surprise visit to the communist country. Today, he held talks with Japanese leaders in Tokyo about this issue.

And seven U.S. troops have been killed in combat in Iraq today. Four soldiers died when a roadside bomb exploded near their vehicle in Baghdad. Another two were killed when a bomb and a small arms fire hit their unit and the U.S. airman died in an IED blast, that was in Tikrit.

Meantime, U.S. troops have been tightening the cordon around al Qaeda fighters in Baquba in Iraq's Diyala province. This is amazing video we're about to show you. The city is an al Qaeda stronghold. I mean, listen to this. It's rigged with roadside bombs and booby- trapped homes as well. U.S. commanders say that scores of militants have been killed in Diyala province over the past few days, including 17 targeted by U.S. attack helicopters today. We've been getting a lot of this video in throughout the day. As we get it, we are going to be sharing more with you, by the way.

Faced with daily violence and the threat of kidnapping, many of Iraq's medical students now have an urgent goal, finish their studies and then just get the heck out of dodge. CNN's Hala Gorani has their story from Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HALA GORANI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These students are the future doctors of Iraq. They are in the middle of final exams at Baghdad's Mustansariya (ph) Medical College. But in this city, doctors are kidnapped, killed, universities are attacked by suicide bombers like here at a nearby Baghdad university earlier this year.

So many of the educated and middle class are fleeing to safety, away from the bloodshed. It is ironic, in a war zone, doctors are need more than ever. But many of them say they have only one goal when they graduate, to leave Iraq, 21-year-old Mohammed Ibrahim wants to be a cardiologist.

(on camera): Tell me about what you want to do after you graduate, after you are finished with your studies. Do you want to leave Iraq?

MOHAMMED IBRAHIM, THIRD-YEAR MEDICAL STUDENT: Do you want the real?

GORANI: Yes.

IBRAHIM: Yes. But if you want the dramatic story, I will tell you no, this is my home. I will stay, I will change the future, I will change the situation. But it's not realistic.

GORANI (voice-over): At the medical college, Dr. Saeed Al- Hashimi, who teaches fifth-year psychiatry, says it's the brightest of his students who are leaving, at least 40 percent of all medical graduates according to the heath ministry.

DR. SAEED AL-HASHIMI, PSYCHIARTRY PROFESSOR: We definitely need some kind of (INAUDIBLE) here to work. But this is not available, even our hospitals. There are terrorists (ph) everywhere.

GORANI: The brain drain among doctors has gotten so bad that the universities are withholding graduation certificates, preventing new doctors leaving Iraq and working abroad.

Aspiring surgeon Ali Ghanem says he wants to join his family in Abu Dhabi, but that he's afraid he won't be given his diploma when he graduates.

ALI GHANEM, THIRD-YEAR MEDICAL STUDENT: So I want to go there. They said they are not giving out certificates me my certificate so that I can get out of Iraq.

GORANI: The minister of higher education tells me he is aware of the problem, but says it's the health ministry that's behind the move.

ABD DHIYAB AL-AJILI, IRAQ MIN. OF HIGHER EDUCATION: I'm arguing with the prime minister, with the health minister, with everybody. Because I believe really that it's a belief, it is not a matter because a minister of higher education. I believe the certificates are the right of the students.

GORANI (on camera): Are you winning the argument?

AL-AJILI: I will win, definitely.

GORANI (voice-over): An argument between ministries, coupled with the violence, means the students wrapping up classes this have a lot more than final exams on their mind.

Hala Gorani, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: Let us check news "Across America" for you now. A suburban Chicago man has been arrested in the shooting death of his wife and three children, 32-year-old Christopher Vaughan, picked up just before their funerals nine days after the bodies were found in the family's SUV.

A Wisconsin sheriff's deputy is recovering from a frightening ordeal. The incident captured by the officer's dashboard camera, Deputy Jennifer Mueller had stopped a motorist suspected of assaulting his girlfriend. After he refused to get out of the car, she tried to remove him. The suspect then hit the gas and drove off, dragging Mueller along. The man was finally later arrested.

Getty Oil Company is promising to pay the repair costs for some drivers in New Hampshire. Here's what happened, 30 people filled up with diesel fuel, uh-oh, they thought they were putting unleaded gasoline in their tank. It was a delivery error. They put the wrong gas in the tank. Police say they started receiving reports of cars suddenly going out on the fritz soon after they visited that particular Getty station. They put two and two together, lo and behold, they came up with (INAUDIBLE).

A subject that is dividing churches everywhere.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYNN BUNTING, WORSHIPS AT CHRIST THE KING: That I think is the part that breaks my heart the most, that people leaving over this issue.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Still ahead, gays and religion. Tough topic. But it's our topic this month in "Uncovering America," our series.

Also, the real story behind some of the most explosive headlines in the '60s and '70s. CIA documents, about to become public. Details, coming up right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: If you are just too darned busy and you never have time to work out, imagine going to work and still getting your 30 minutes of exercise in. Well, here is Dr. Sanjay Gupta in today's "Fit Nation."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Imagine an office that's more like a gym. Dr. James Levine would like every workplace to trade monotony for movement. Levine, who is an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic believes workers can keep moving and still be productive. He created a special platform designed to fit around a treadmill.

It only goes a mile an hour, but the effect is noticeable.

DR. JAMES LEVINE, MAYO CLINIC: You burn an extra 100 to 150 calories an hour.

GUPTA: Add that up, eight hours a day, that's close to 1,000 calories. Skeptics say it's almost impossible to concentrate on a treadmill for long periods.

DENISE FEELEY, MEDSTAR RESEARCH INSTITUTE: It would seem a better use of your time to actually take a break and go out and have a 20-minute walk -- fast walk. You would probably expend more calories than you would standing on -- walking on this treadmill for a couple of hours.

GUPTA: Dr. Jeff Fidler, a radiologist at the Mayo Clinic, sits at his desk looking at 16,000 images a day. Accuracy is crucial as he tries to pinpoint abnormalities. In a research study, Fidler and a colleague used the treadmill every day while studying films. Fidler lost 25 pounds and made no mistakes.

DR. JEFF FIDLER, RADIOLOGIST, MAYO CLINIC: And in fact it improved our detection rate up to 99 percent.

GUPTA: They cost anywhere from $300 to $1,500, depending on the type of treadmill that comes with it. Levin says using the equipment for just a couple of hours a day will produce significant health benefits.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. We're expecting, as I have been telling you, a news conference at any moment now on this case of the missing pregnant woman, Jessie Davis, 26 years old. See this setup here? This is the news conference or the room where the news conference is going to be coming from.

It's essentially a briefing that officials who have been investigating the story are going to be giving to reporters on the disappearance of 26-year-old Jessie Davis, also and on perhaps the interviews that they have been doing with the man suspected of being her -- or maybe suspected is not the right word, but the man who is supposedly the father of her child.

She's nine months pregnant, has not been seen in quite some time. They have been interviewing him and there may be a very important development they say that they are going to announce at 6:00. That's all we know. We'll let the police speak for themselves. That should happen, once again, if you stand by, we'll cover it for you live right here at the top of the hour in about 19 minutes.

All this month now, CNN has been focusing on the gay and lesbian issues in our day. This is our series that we've been putting together. It's called "Uncovering America." Well, today we look at a growing rift in the Episcopal Church over the question of gay ministers and gay marriage.

Here is CNN's Kara Finnstrom with the tale of two churches.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Anglican Church, steeped in history, now bearing the blows of the latest culture war over gay and lesbian rights.

REV. MARK ASMAN, TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH: Gay and lesbian people are full human beings. They should be entitled to all of the sacramental rights.

REV. BRIAN COX, CHRIST THE KING EPISCOPAL CHURCH: We have to find some way to be inclusive of gays and lesbians, but I think that the manner that we're going about it is inconsistent with what the scripture teaches.

FINNSTROM: Father Mark Asman and Father Brian Cox both lead American Episcopal congregations on opposite sides of town with opposite points of view. Decades ago, father Asman was tortured by his own sexuality.

ASMAN: And I did not believe I could be an openly gay priest, and felt that I had to deny my sexuality, discipline it. I even tried to heal it. And sadly enough, and I'm embarrassed to say, that even at one point I sought out exorcism.

FINNSTROM: Father Asman says he now accepts his sexuality, and openly blesses same-sex unions, like that between Carola Pisani and Shawn Carey.

CAROLA PISANI, WORSHIPS AT TRINITY: More and more we feel comfortable and have a sense of belonging.

FINNSTROM: Pisani and Carey both grew up in the Catholic Church, but wanted to be openly blessed and supported as a couple.

SHAWN CAREY, WORSHIPS AT TRINITY: For me, it's just the example of Jesus, what his idea and philosophy and treatment of people who are more marginalized in the society of his time.

FINNSTROM: Much of Trinity's congregation is proud of what they see as their church's march towards equality, citing full rights for homosexuals as evidence of progress.

Many at Christ the King Church disagree.

COX: The interpretation that some liberal leaders are drawing at this time is inconsistent with how scripture has been interpreted throughout the time of history.

DOROTHEA PHELAN, WORSHIPS AT CHRIST THE KING: I don't wish anything bad for them. I just don't want them to be married with the blessings of the church, and I don't want them as spiritual leaders in my life. Anybody who has read the scriptures in St. Paul and in the Old Testament believe that the lord feels that the practice is an abomination.

FINNSTROM: The two rectors call themselves friends. Friends with differences based on sincerely-held, very different interpretations of scripture.

(on camera): But this isn't just a struggle between two churches in the coastal city of Santa Barbara. In the 150-church diocese of Los Angeles, four churches have felt so polarized that they've completely broken away from the American Episcopal Church.

BISHOP JON BRUNO, LOS ANGELES DIOCESE: We're an evolutionary church in the sense that we need to grow with the times.

FINNSTROM (voice-over): Bishop Jon Bruno oversees the L.A. diocese. He says he's saddened by the loss of the four churches which joined more conservative branches in other countries, essentially ending the dialogue.

BUNTING: That, I think, is the part that gets -- breaks my heart the most, is that people leaving over this issue.

FINNSTROM: Kara Finnstrom for CNN, Santa Barbara.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: We should let you know that tonight at 10:00, we are going to hit this issue of "Uncovering America," the gay perspective, really big. We're going to talk with an evangelical preacher who used to denounce gays.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The people who were gay were disfigured and dysfunctional and confused, and those are the only explanations we had, and that God would not be pleased with that. (END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Today, this evangelical preacher has had a serious change of heart. However, because he's having a change of heart, it's costing him seriously. In fact, it has cost him just about everything. You are going to hear his story tonight at 10:00. The repercussions against him because of that change. It is at 10:00 p.m. Eastern right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. We'll bring it to you.

Also, rumors have always been there, but now comes possible proof. Was the CIA spying on private citizens? Soon to be released documents just might pose more questions than answers. But it's the CIA that's asking the questions of themselves. That's what makes this different dishing, next.

And then later, a few faces perhaps only canine lovers or maybe Steven King could appreciate. The winner of the ugly dog contest. Look at that. It's coming up. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez here in B Control (ph). This is an intriguing story. One of the most notoriously secretive organizations in the entire world is about to spill its collective beans, big time. The CIA is set to release its long-standing list of dirty laundry. They are coming clean.

CNN's Brian Todd has the pick-up.

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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Wiretapping, surveillance, break-ins. Opening mail, infiltrating dissident groups. The CIA is prohibited from those operations domestically, but did so anyway in the 1960s. CIA Director Michael Hayden says next week he will declassify and make public more than 700 pages of old internal documents called the "family jewels."

TOM BLANTON, NATIONAL SECURITY ARCHIVES: This is the CIA's internal assessment, written by the senior CIA officers of what might have been illegal, what crossed the line, what was over the edge, what was outside the charter.

TODD: Among the activities they found, wiretapping and surveillance of several journalists, including Brit Hume in 1972, when he was a researcher for investigative reporter Jack Anderson.

PETER EARNEST, INTERNATIONAL SPY MUSEUM: They used the phone, they see people, they travel about, they drive their cars, so at any given time, they are exposed to circumstances in which their phones could be tapped, their movements monitored.

TODD: Other illegal activities exposed in the documents, the infiltration of anti-war groups, opening mail to Americans from the Soviet Union and China, including four letters to Jane Fonda. EARNEST: It was doing what it believed to be what it was being directed to do by the executive office, and by that, I mean the White House.

TODD: A front page story in 1974 on eavesdropping prompted an internal review by the CIA director at the time. But the agency kept the lid on the family jewels for 30 years, then National Security Adviser and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger argued in a 1975 meeting: "If they come out, blood will flow."

For example, Robert Kennedy personally managed the operation on the assassination of Castro. The plot never came to fruition and political assassinations are now counter to U.S. policy.

(on camera): Current CIA Director Michael Hayden says he is working to make the agency as open as possible. Today there is far more oversight from Congress and the debate over privacy versus intelligence is more public. But as these documents show, it is just as controversial as it was decades ago.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

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SANCHEZ: Up next, we know that you are hooked on this story. It's one of the most popular hits on cnn.com.

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DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Whoa! Oh, ouch.

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SANCHEZ: Had to see that coming, didn't he? Well, but you certainly don't see that every day. Look at that, that's my pal, David Mattingly. The big one that hit him in the head, almost. Four more minutes. We'll have it. Be here.

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SANCHEZ: We welcome you back. I want you to meet somebody. Look at that. Cute, huh? This is Elwood. He is the ugliest dog in the world. Hey, it's not me saying that, by the way. This guy earned the title at this year's Marin-Sonoma County Fair, beating out a bunch of other ugly mugs, and in case you were wondering, Elwood is a Chinese crested-Chihuahua mix. What do you think he looks like? More like his mom the Chihuahua, or his dad, the Chinese crested? Tough to tell, huh? By the way, his owner says he's beautiful. What would you expect?

Never going to really happen. That's what it means when you say things like pigs fly or when pigs fly. Something you just don't expect, right? What about fish flying out of the water? Big ones.

Here is our Jeanne Moos with the story.

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JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRSPONDENT (voice-over): 'Tis the season for flying fish. Trouble is, they don't just fly, they land.

MATTINGLY: Whoa!

MOOS: And they landed on CNN's David Mattingly repeatedly. Grazed once on the leg, whacked on the arm, and slammed in the chest. The chest hit left a bruise the size of a tennis ball. And all of this fish smacking was caught from several angles. You didn't have to be an angler to appreciate it.

MATTINGLY: That hurt. It knocked the breath of out of me.

MOOS: It seems like flying fish are getting a lot of coverage. Sure, getting smacked by a fish is funny. Take Monty Python's fish- slapping dance. But getting smacked can also be serious. This Florida woman lost one finger and had three reattached after she got hit by a flying sturgeon while on a jet ski.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A Mack truck hit me.

MOOS: Flying fish, flying anything can be dangerous. Remember when Fabio got hit in the face by a bird while riding a roller coaster? Well, it cuts both ways. It was no feather in his cap. But pitcher Randy Johnson struck a bird instead of throwing a strike. And birds can drop a bomb, even on the president. Watch the sleeve screen-right. But bird droppings are expected. Fish aren't supposed to fly.

This guy doubled over after getting hit by a fish in the privates.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right in the mommy-daddy button.

MOOS: Boat engine vibrations tend to get them jumping.

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SANCHEZ: Here's the update now on the story that we were telling about. Brianna is standing by to cover it for us. Brianna, what have you got?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, there, Rick. We're going to go straight to a news conference in Canton, Ohio. This is about missing woman Jessie Davis there.

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