Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

North Korea Threatens New Attacks; Tiger Woods: One Year Later; Housing Pricing May Continue to Drop in First Half of 2011; Colonel in Afghanistan Says Prospects For American Victory Improving

Aired November 25, 2010 - 08:00   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOE JOHNS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. It is Thursday, November 25th. Happy Thanksgiving. We have a lot to be thankful for.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, we do. Happy turkey day to you. I'm Carol Costello, in for Kiran.

Lots to talk about this morning, so let's get to it, shall we?

The tension building this morning after that deadly attack by North Korea. The South Koreans are angry. The North is threatening new attacks. This morning, video from the only western journalist to set foot on that South Korean island that came under attack.

JOHNS: The stories of the last decade that left an imprint in your mind, the sights and sounds of war in the Middle East, the elections that changed the course of history. And this hour, we will take you back to some of those moments and tell you how the future of this country is forever changed.

COSTELLO: The excitement building right now in New York City. And boy, so is the crowd. You're looking live outside New York Central Park, where the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade steps off in just about an hour, huge balloons, festive floats, marching bands, they're all there, and lots of happy people. Three million of them will line the parade route.

JOHNS: That's huge.

COSTELLO: Ain't that huge?

JOHNS: Yes.

COSTELLO: Holiday tradition probably, as you know, goes back to 1924.

JOHNS: But first, we're getting our first glimpse of the damage after a hail of artillery from North Korea pounded an island in the South and the threat of more violence is very real.

COSTELLO: Right now, North Korea showing no signs of backing down, warning of more attacks if South Korea engages in what it called reckless military provocations.

Our Stan Grant is in South Korea. He just got back from the island where the attack took place.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STAN GRANT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Carol, this island is now completely deserted. It is, in fact, a ghost town. When you're arrived there, you'd be used to a bustling little fishing village, normally about 1,500, 1,600 people. Well, most of them have now fled. We met maybe one or two people who have stayed behind.

Now, what you do see is pretty widespread destruction. There are a lot of houses still standing but many houses that have been destroyed by the shelling by North Korea earlier in the week.

If you walk through there, there's still a very strong smell of smoke. There's ash across the ground, shattered glass. You often see dogs that are roaming around there that once would have had families and now sort of stray and looking for food, a fairly large military presence, strong coast guard presence. We actually traveled across with the coast guard and spent a couple of hours on the ground there.

The people that we did speak to said they don't just feel secure there anymore. They don't feel safe. One person is saying what is he to do? He's a fisherman. He has built his life in that village and he has nowhere else to go.

You know, these people are really caught in the crossfire here, Carol, with North and South Korea squaring off. And now, with these joint U.S.-Korean military exercises, the fear it could escalate -- Carol.

COSTELLO: I was talking about escalation -- you wonder what the next step is, especially for the United States and its good ally, South Korea. So, this island is deserted. South Korea is taken a hard line against North Korea. But right now, it's not doing anything.

So, what do you think the next step might be?

GRANT: I think the thing to watch really closely of these joint exercises with the U.S. and South Korea, you know, earlier on, North Korea was pointing the finger of blame at South Korea, saying that it was South Korea's shelling in the region, its own exercises that prompted North Korea to take the action and fire upon the island itself.

Now, they're switching tack and they're actually saying that the United States needs to take responsibility for this, that the United States is to blame for this. You know, they have long called South Korea a puppet regime, saying it is a puppet of the United States. Well, now, they're saying the U.S. is to blame for the situation.

They're also warning -- North Korea warning of retaliation earlier in the week. They spoke of a merciless military confrontation. A lot of this is rhetoric. But as we saw the other day, these words are now being backed up by fire power and it is a very unpredictable situation -- Carol.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Stan Grant from South Korea this morning.

That color-coded terror threat system in place for the past eight years, it could soon be headed for the scrap heap. It becomes sort of a joke anyway, right?

JOHNS: Good riddance.

COSTELLO: Yes. "The New York Times" reporting that the Department of Homeland Security is considering recommendation for a new system that would actually provide you more information about exactly what's going on.

JOHNS: Right. And all that talk of protesting the new security measures at airports was apparently just that. Talk. No surprise. The TSA says screenings really went pretty smoothly yesterday with few people joining that so-called national opt-out protest by refusing the new high-tech scans in favor of lower tech pat downs.

COSTELLO: I knew people would be much more willing to get to their families, get on the flight and get to their families --

JOHNS: Sure.

COSTELLO: -- than saying, no, I'm not going through security. I'm going home.

JOHNS: It's safer, I guess. Or sometimes, it's safer, or so they say.

COSTELLO: I was going to let you dig your hole.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Two things top the list when you think Thanksgiving. There's turkey and then there's the Thanksgiving Day parade with Santa finishing the show.

COSTELLO: The fleet of massive balloons all pumped up. The crowd out there is pumped up, too. Jason Carroll's live with a firsthand look.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And good morning to you. And I was so cold out there I decided to come inside here. I'm taking Maggie's chair here and her family. They're from New Jersey.

They've really got the hook-up here because they have the seats. They've got the food. They've got the coffee.

Frank, just pull out. You can see the crowd here that's around me. I've got some folks here from North Carolina.

And I got to show you something. I want you to stand up here. This guy's name is Cowboy. Yes. He's 6'8" tall! And so, he won't need a bench or anything for the parade. He's got it all sort of worked out here, right, Cowboy?

"COWBOY": Yes.

CARROLL: Well said.

Frank, I want you to pull out so we can take a look at the top of the parade route, so people can see how things are getting there. We're just now about an hour away from the start of the parade.

Frank, come back to me here. Just want to say thanks again to Maggie down here from Jersey.

The rest of you guys -- Maggie, what are you looking forward to seeing in the parade this year? It's a 24-hour network but we don't have all day, baby. What are you looking forward to? Any particular one?

MAGGIE: "Sesame Street."

CARROLL: Very good, "Sesame Street."

Two of the balloons that are making debuts this year. Anyone know? Guess? Guess?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wimpy kid.

CARROLL: Diary of a Wimpy Kid. There's one. How about another one?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kim Kardashian.

CARROLL: Kim Kardashian?

You know, there's always one in every crowd. Always one.

Any other guesses, guys? Kung Fu panda. Someone said it back there. There you go.

So, they're two of the balloons that are going to be debuting in the parade. Just about to get under way about 40 minutes from now. I want to thank everyone here for letting me get warm. This is the way to do it.

Back to you.

JOHNS: Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Is Cow -- is 6'8" Cowboy holding a skateboard? Was that a skateboard in his hands?

CARROLL: Yes. He's holding a skateboard.

JOHNS: Got it.

CARROLL: That's a skateboard. You got any means of transportation in terms of getting down here.

JOHNS: That would be pretty remarkable to see a 6'8" guy skateboarding across Central Park.

COSTELLO: Or anywhere for that matter. I'm just wondering, that 6'8'' guy, he should be in the back.

JOHNS: Yes. All right. Stop picking on tall guys.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: I'd be mad if I was sitting by him.

Let's go to the extreme weather center and check in with Reynolds Wolf, because there's some nasty weather across the country, unfortunately.

Hey, Reynolds.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey, guys. It looks like they're just going to be dodging a few rain drops and snowflakes in parts of the Northeast. We do have a storm system that is approaching. It looks like they're going to be able to get the parade in right before it strikes parts of the Northeast.

Let's check out the maps behind me. As we do so, you're going to see a lot of green, a lot of blue on the maps. That's going to indicate your rainfall. A few reds here and there, too.

But where you see, it's turning pink, that indicates something altogether different. That is some freezing precipitation. And white obviously is snow. Some of it forming just south of Buffalo at this point. Buffalo may get into a foot of snow in the next 24 to 36 hours.

Now, the reason why we're seeing this? Very simple. That big potent storm system affecting half the nation, get to the nation's mid section. Chilly conditions obviously, and then when you get out towards the West, things will improve.

But it is the Northeast that's really going to bear the brunt of this over the next several days. In fact, we're expecting a light ice/snow mix through noon tomorrow in the parts of the Northeast. Also, when you get back into the mid-Mississippi Valley, more of the same, too.

That is a quick look at your forecast. We've got so much more coming up on this holiday. Let's send it back to you in studio.

COSTELLO: So, I guess the best advice would be eat lots of turkey and stay home with the family and keep warm.

WOLF: That's always good advice. Absolutely, yes.

COSTELLO: Thank you.

JOHNS: Can't beat it.

COSTELLO: Can you believe it's already 2010, about to be 2011? Crazy, isn't it?

JOHNS: Time flies.

COSTELLO: The decade began with a presidential election, decided by the Supreme Court. Who could forget that? And those fears over Y2K.

JOHNS: Yes. Wasn't the world supposed to end? All the computers turned.

COSTELLO: Crash exactly.

JOHNS: Yes.

COSTELLO: You remember we struggled, is the 2000s?

JOHNS: Yes. It was tough, wasn't it?

COSTELLO: It was tough, darn it. How has the world changed over the last 10 years? Up next, from politics to pop culture, the most extraordinary stories of the decade.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SPC. CHRISTINE LEE-GREEN, U.S. ARMY: Specialist Lee-Green from Baghdad, Iraq. Wishing my grandmother, sister and father, happy holidays. Love you!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Oh, happy Thanksgiving.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, political fights, the economic nosedive, the last decade has been chockfull of challenges. And as we come to the end of what's known as the naughts, we are taking a look at some of the game changers in the last 10 years.

JOHNS: And here to give us some perspective is "TIME" magazine's Michael Elliott.

This week's issue, "Time Frames," reflects a back on the decade's biggest stories and I guess where we'd really want to start is year 2000, and that would be Bush versus Gore. The contest for the White House that was so controversial ended up in Florida.

Did this sort of set the tone as far as the polarization of the nation at least politically?

MICHAEL ELLIOTT, TIME MAGAZINE: Exactly 10 years ago as we said, right? Exactly 10 years ago, this period, end of November, beginning of December.

JOHNS: Right.

ELLIOTT: Well, I think in an important way, it did set the tone, because it was as David Von Drehle argues in his piece on the 2000 election in this special issue, we've done, it was a moment when people started to look with skepticism and doubt at institutions, at things that we had regarded as bedrock institutions of our democracy -- the very idea that you could count votes properly, that the Supreme Court would come to a decision that didn't involve a split between ideological whims of the court and so on and so forth.

David argues in the piece that maybe you ask a little too much of our institutions, but it was certainly a moment when I think, collectively, Americans scratched their heads and wondered whether our institutions could really deliver. Plus, of course, the whole controversy injected a very bitter note of partnership into the debate that's still with us.

JOHNS: Have we turned it around? Or has -- it'd been more of the same now as we --

COSTELLO: I'm laughing (ph) at that.

(LAUGHTER)

JOHNS: And sort of all the points, more of the same.

ELLIOTT: The bitter note of partnership that I -- hey, look. It's Thanksgiving morning. So, you know, we got -- we got to look optimistically, right?

But no, I think -- I think it is quite easy to argue, let's put it that way, that the debate's over. The contested election, 10,000 years ago is still with us, and in ways that I suspect many of us regret.

COSTELLO: I suspect you're right about that.

Talk about the Iraq War, seven years ago when we first entered the pray, we're starting to drawdown right now. What do you think the legacy will be?

ELLIOTT: I think the big legacy of Iraq is that we should never assume that things are simple. Bobby Gosh, who is our bureau chief in Baghdad for five years and did a lot of stuff for CNN during the time that he was over there, just did this wonderful story of the describing American soldiers who had a wonderfully, in some ways uplifting, but very naive view of what they're going to find when they get to Iraq, and the kind of slow, painful and in some ways bloody process of learning during that period that things were not nearly simple as they expected it to be.

I remember when, you know, we went in, we thought it was just going to be sort of a technical war. We wouldn't have to get our hands dirty. We'd be quick. We'd be out of there. Nobody would die, but we have 4,000 dead. ELLIOTT: No, exactly. I mean the real legacy of Iraq, we should say, is those who died and the -- we should on Thanksgiving Day, in particular. I give thanks for their sacrifice and remember their families and loved ones who've lost so much, but there are lessons, I think, to take from that, and the key one is never to assume that things are going to be simpler or easy because they rarely are.

COSTELLO: Talking about things never being simple or easy, let's talk about the Middle East because there's been no changes there in the past ten years essentially, right?

ELLIOTT: We've got very, very close to peace deals on a number of occasions. There have been proposals made by the Israeli government, various times. We've kind of walked forward and then walked back, and here we are again, ten years on with the peace process in which many of the same issues that were being discussed ten years ago, the precise size of the settlement blocks, what happens to Jerusalem and so on and so forth are still on the table.

COSTELLO: The only difference with that is I don't think anybody's surprised by that.

ELLIOTT: Maybe not, maybe not.

JOHNS: The financial crisis, obviously, a huge story over the last several years. Did this do long-term damage to the U.S. place in the world?

ELLIOTT: Well, I'm going to be a contrarian on the financial crisis because although the financial crisis was obviously enormously damaging, and we still live in the shadow of it, 9.6 percent unemployment. Many families on Thanksgiving Day today looking forward in a pretty miserable economic times, if you raise your head a little and look at the whole world, the last decade was not that bad.

You know, this was a decade in which hundreds of millions of people were lifted out of poverty in India, in China, or in Brazil. In Africa, I always make that point, because everyone always forgets that Africa economically had a terrific decade. So, I think, you know, one does need to hope, at least, that in a generation's time, we can look back at things like the types of Lehman Brothers and think that it was interesting.

But there was a bigger story going on here, a story when literally hundreds of millions of people started to live lives at the sort of we, ourselves, in the west have been used to for many years. So, I'm a little bit more optimistic on the economy than many are.

COSTELLO: Oh, I'd like to continue on that optimistic theme and let's look at the next decade.

ELLIOTT: Right.

COSTELLO: The next ten years. Give us some hope here, some lessons learned that we can take -- you know? We have learned from some of these things, right? That we will take into the next decade and things probably will be better, right?

ELLIOTT: There's no hope.

COSTELLO: No hope!

ELLIOTT: Well, I'm always -- I'm always every time I bump into scientists and technologists anywhere in the world, I'm always uplifted by their creativity, by their imagination and by determination as they pursue scientific and technological programs to actually make a better world for all of us.

So, I always get a tremendous sense of optimism whenever I'm with those who are doing the sort of stuff that I suspect the three of us can only dream of because I think, you know, in their skills and in their brains, are developments that are going to benefit all of us.

So, I always take something from that. And, you know, maybe, maybe on Thanksgiving Day, we should be grateful for that, right?

COSTELLO: Yes. Definitely so. Grateful for a lot of things, actually.

ELLIOTT: Absolutely.

COSTELLO: We have pretty good in this country despite all the bad things that have happened. We're very lucky.

ELLIOTT: A lot of people are going to be having wonderful days today with their families and their loved ones. And you know, I suspect all of us will be thinking, too, of those who are less fortunate who may have lost loved ones over the past year or over the past ten years in the wars that we've been fighting and who are having economic hard times, but a lot of people are going to have a lovely day today.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. Especially those Detroit Lions.

JOHNS: Yes, we'll see. Michael Elliot and the special issue time frame, thanks so much.

COSTELLO: Thanks for coming in. Happy Thanksgiving!

John King has much more on time frames. Make sure to watch the one-hour special. That's today at 2:00 p.m. eastern right here on CNN. And once again, Michael Elliot, thanks for joining us on Thanksgiving Day.

JOHNS: All right. So, forget about turkey this time. Last year, many of us were talking about tiger and that strange car accident involving the world's most famous golfer. One year later, has Tiger's scandal done him in for good?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Can you believe it? It has been one whole year since Tiger Woods first crashed his car -- JOHNS: I bet he can believe it.

COSTELLO: Yes. I bet he can believe it, too. And crashed his car and wrecked his life before scandal struck, Tiger was on top of the world with the laser focus on breaking Jack Nicklaus' record for golf's major titles.

JOHNS: Now, one year later, Tiger Woods is depending on the kindness of strangers, his fans, to redeem himself. CNN's Richard Roth now on the very un-Tiger-like charm offensive.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tiger Woods, once the best golfer in the world, hasn't won a tournament since the accident a year ago, but now, he is trying to win more public support on the anniversary of his life imploding on a global scale. He has written an introspective column in "Newsweek" saying he is not the same man he was a year ago. Woods has also opened A twitter account and appeared on a sports talk radio program, actions very un-Tiger-like when he was at his prime.

VOICE OF TIGER WOODS, GOLFER: I think it's about time that I kind of basically made a connection to the fans who have been absolutely incredible to me over the past year. There are some pretty rough times and pretty low moments. But just want to say thank you to them and basically reconnect with them.

ROBERT TUCHMAN, EXEC VP, PREMIER GLOBAL SPORTS: It's planned. It's obviously extremely, you know, thought out and he wants that image. He's not a public guy, but he's trying to change that image.

ROTH: Tiger's image still hangs above the amateurs of the New York golf shop. One fan remembered an encounter with the old Tiger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I went up to him and said, hey, Tiger, can I please get an autograph or a photo or something? And he did not even look me in the face. He just kind of turned over. Bodyguard came to me and was like, hey buddy, you got to go.

ROTH: Wood's public apology in February after allegations that he was unfaithful to his wife was more directed at friends.

WOODS: I'm deeply sorry for my irresponsible and selfish behavior I engaged in.

ROTH: Wooing back fans may be harder. Woods is credited with attracting millions of viewers to watch golf, even those who didn't like the sport.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just lost respect for him, so I don't care about him at all anymore.

ROTH: Or golf?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Or golf. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I still like Tiger Woods no matter what. I'm not going to say nothing negative about Tiger Woods because I don't like judging people.

ROTH: Would you like to reconnect with Tiger Woods?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I really have -- don't care for him. So, I don't want to reconnect with him.

ROTH: Analysts estimate Woods admitted mistakes cost him hundreds of millions of dollars in sponsorship money.

TUCHMAN: He has to start winning a game. You know, his image has been shattered.

ROTH: Tiger Woods now writes that he can never repair the damage he's done, especially to his family, but he vows to keep trying. How many people keep watching may be based more on his success on the greens.

Richard Roth, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Yes, maybe he shouldn't have started playing golf so soon.

JOHNS: Yes. Just taken a longer break and gotten his life together.

COSTELLO: Because I don't know how you could focus after a huge scandal like that. You know, the loss of your wife and your kids.

JOHNS: Well, I mean, it's his job, you know? What else are you going to do, I guess?

COSTELLO: I guess.

JOHNS: It's a tough situation.

COSTELLO: Poor Tiger. All that money to keep him warm. So bad, isn't it?

(LAUGHTER)

JOHNS: I really don't feel the sympathy right now.

COSTELLO: I'm trying.

Going on with other news of the day, some of our troops in Afghanistan will sit down to a turkey dinner today, but many are dreaming, of course, of a holiday back home. We'll Spend thanksgiving with the troops, at least part of it. That's coming your way next.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Sorry.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Twenty-eight minutes past the hour. Time to check on this morning's top stories.

North Korea showing no signs of backing down this morning. Pyongyang now warning of more attacks if it's provoked. This weekend, South Korea and the United States plan to hold joint military exercises.

JOHNS: Bad weather could throw a monkey wrench into your holiday travel plans. A satellite picture tells the story. Stormy and wet today from the Pacific Northwest to New Jersey. Freezing rain, snow and sleet coated highways in the Midwest. There were dozens of crashes in the Des Moines area. I-35 was a big mess up on the Minnesota border.

COSTELLO: So be careful today. They come from all over the country to New York City this morning.

An 84-year-old tradition set (ph) off right here in just about a half hour. The Annual Thanksgiving Day Parade. People are pretty happy out there. Three million people will line the streets to see it in person. Fifty million more will watch at home.

JOHNS: And if you're thinking about making a New Year's resolution, why not focus on making more money?

COSTELLO: Isn't that the American way?

JOHNS: Yes, absolutely.

COSTELLO: Today, the second part of our series "Making Money in 2011" with Money Magazine writer, Amanda Gengler. We want to focus on your biggest investment, which is still your home believe it or not. I asked Amanda what we can expect to see when it comes to housing prices in 2011.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANDA GENGLER, WRITER, "MONEY" MAGAZINE: Unfortunately, almost everywhere in the country prices are going to drop again, even those places that stabilize, even gained in the past couple of months. The national median price is expected to go down another five percent or 10 percent.

Blame it on the still-soft economy, the high unemployment rate, foreclosure crisis. And there aren't any incentives today like that home buyers' tax credit driving the market there.

But one thing is come mid-2011 by the summer we'll start to see some areas diverging from the down trend. By the end of the year the nation's 384 metro areas are actually supposed to have gained and end the year up. The majority of the country will be down a percentage point or two, and then there are those areas that are really hit hard and still going to see double digit drop. So there will be a split or more variety of what's going on around the country.

COSTELLO: If I'm in the market to buy a home, should I wait for things to bottom out? What should I do?

GENGLER: Well, of course, you can never shrill perfectly time the bottom of the market. It's, of course, easier said than done.

COSTELLO: We would love to do that.

GENGLER: But when you're thinking about buying, you have to balance two factors. Sure, the price. You should know how much more prices are forecasted to drop in the area. You can get that information on our Web site CNNMoney.com.

But then also look at mortgage rates. They're unbelievably low today, and they could rise at any time. And definitely in the later part of 2011 there's a good chance they might start to rise. Even if, say, at this point you can get the home for slightly less, if rates rise then that could offset some of the price drop anyway.

COSTELLO: I feel my head hurting. What if you're in the market to sell your home?

GENGLER: This sounds scary but just let -- hear me out for a second. Under-price your home. Realtor after realtor said it's the best strategy because there are buyers out there, and they're circling and looking for deals.

So if you come on to the market with a lower price than your home's fair value, you will attract more than one buyer. They're going to bid up the price of your home. You more often than not are going to end up getting its fair value and you will have done it in much less time.

COSTELLO: OK. That's so hard to wrap your mind around, undervaluing your home. But I get it. I do get it. What if you own your own home?

GENGLER: One word, and that's refinance. Even if you did it, you know, a year ago because rates have come down so low. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaging about 4.4 percent right now. So generally we say if you can shave at least one percentage point off the mortgage, and you plan to stay in the home flee to four years, then it's absolutely worth it.

Another option to throw out there is to refinance into a 15-year loan. That can be an even better bet because those rates are about 3.8 percent right now. So you may see your monthly payment rise maybe $100, $200, but you can pay off the loan 15 years earlier, and that can save you thousands and thousands of dollars in interest.

COSTELLO: Amanda Gengler, thank you very much. And for more tips, CNNMoney.com.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: A little depressing.

JOHNS: I know.

COSTELLO: Tomorrow your investments and savings, key to the financial success in the coming year. We'll have more tips to make them work for you in 2011.

JOHNS: I hope better than 2010.

Some of our troops in Afghanistan will sit down to a turkey dinner today, but many are dreaming of the holiday back home. We'll spend Thanksgiving with the troops next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My name is Specialist Hamline, hometown, Orlando, Florida. And I would like to give a happy Thanksgiving to my family, Xavier Hamline and Christina Hamline, and my mother and father.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: One of the many things to be thankful for this morning. The service of the military men and women, American soldiers, a world away in Iraq and Afghanistan are getting a taste of Thanksgiving and sending their best to their loved ones here at home.

COSTELLO: Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is embedded with a unit on a remote base near Kandahar, and Nic joins us live. Happy Thanksgiving, Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Carol, Happy Thanksgiving to you, as well. We have had an interesting day here in the valley with the Iron Knights task force 166. They have one of the toughest pieces of terrain in Afghanistan to deal with.

When they moved in here in August, there were a lot of Taliban attacks, IEDs, engaged by gunfire, as well. The situation has changed, and I want to turn to now to Colonel Rodger Lemons who commands this area to find out exactly how it's changed and why it's changed. Colonel, what's changed?

LT. COL. RODGER LEMONS, BATTALION COMMANDER, TASK FORCE 1-66: Well, what we have seen now in the last three months of combat is the people are pushing the Taliban away. When we first arrived, we saw a valley filled with Taliban. We saw a valley that the people were intimidated.

And with consistent operations over the last three months and a lot of work by U.S. coalition forces as well as our Afghan security partners, they have pushed a lot of the Taliban out of the area. The sanctuary they had in the valley is no longer apparent to us and they've gone away from this area.

So we are continuing to work to hold those gains that we have achieved over the last three months.

ROBERTSON: We've been on a battlefield circulation with you today. You have been giving soldiers awards for valor, other awards. Can you tell us about that?

LEMONS: Yes. That's one of the fantastic things of being a commander in a great organization like this, you get to reward the troops for the great acts of heroism and other things they do every day out there.

We have a fantastic group of soldiers. We got to see all of them today. We had a great time with them. They had a Thanksgiving celebration that was fantastic at every one of the nine outposts today. I can tell you these soldiers are high spirits and I'm very proud of all their efforts.

ROBERTSON: I could see that today. What are the challenges ahead for the soldiers? You were told about this before, the winter. You've taken the initiative from the Taliban. What do you do now?

LEMONS: Well, we have to fight complacency. Now that soldiers don't see combat every day like we saw in the late summertime, we have to fight complacency and work with them and the population to provide support to their government and their government supporting them so that we send good conditions throughout the winter. We develop this area and make it better for the population here in the valley.

ROBERTSON: A question everyone has back home, when are the Afghan security forces you are working with, the NAF and national police, when are they going to be ready to step up and take over from you here?

LEMONS: I can tell you what I see every day, they their capability grows. Here in the valley, here in other parts of Afghanistan I have seen that. They're out in front, leading patrols, leading the effort. The way ahead through the winter is continued training, get them better and better so in the springtime they'll take more and more of ownership of this area.

ROBERTSON: Colonel, anybody you want to say hi to back home?

LEMON: I'd like to say hi to my family, Limberly and Colt Lemons. And I'd just like to say everybody out there, thank you for the support. The soldiers of the Iron Knights battalion, thank you very much.

ROBERTSON: Carol, that it from the battlefield here. But as Colonel Lemons says, they have to fight complacency here. The Taliban are still out there and it's still a long way to go. Carol?

JOHNS: Hey, Nic. This is Joe Johns back in New York. One of the things we saw last week was a report that came out questioning sort of the Afghan people's confidence in the outcome on the ground there, suggesting that there are a lot of people when polled in Afghanistan who thought the Taliban were still going to come out victorious.

Would you ask the colonel what he is seeing on the ground as far as the local confidence that, you know, the Americans and others will prevail?

ROBERTSON: Yes, Joe. That's a great question. Let me ask Colonel Lemons that. There was a report last week that talked about how Afghan people are still fearful that the Taliban are going to come out on top, that U.S. forces will go away. What are you seeing on the ground here?

LEMONS: What I'm seeing is we have pulled that initiative from the Taliban. They don't have that initiative here in the valley, and people are excited. They're excited about what they're seeing here. They're excited about the level of security.

When I'm out with the people here and with the district governor, the people don't talk about security anymore, increasing security. What they talk about is development. How do we make our lives better? So I think we're on a good road ahead here.

ROBERTSON: One of the concerns of the people is that if and when you leave that they'll have to face the Taliban by themselves.

LEMONS: Yes. Well, that's one reason why we train so hard with the afghan security forces, so we continue to grow their capability, make them more and more self-sufficient, which we see every day. And we'll see that and they'll continue to get better.

ROBERTSON: Joe, that's the picture from the battlefield. Back to you.

JOHNS: Nic and Colonel Lemons, thanks so much, and happy Thanksgiving.

COSTELLO: Yes.

JOHNS: Absolutely.

COSTELLO: Bummer they have to spend it away from home.

JOHNS: Yes.

COSTELLO: But at least some of them said happy Thanksgiving to their family.

JOHNS: That's for sure.

A big Thanksgiving storm is soaking the Midwest here back in the United States. A wintry mix heading into the northeast. Reynolds Wolf has the holiday travel forecast coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: What is this footage?

JOHNS: I have no idea, it sounds disgusting.

COSTELLO: It really does. I'm sure none of these people are going to eat that along the parade route. They're waiting for the big --

JOHNS: I don't like mincemeat either.

COSTELLO: I don't even like mincemeat either.

All of these people waiting for the nation's Thanksgiving Day parade to begin. It's about 40 degrees. But it doesn't matter. People are very excited as you can see.

Happy Thanksgiving anyone, I mean everyone.

JOHNS: Everyone. All you guys.

COSTELLO: Yes. I'm beginning to get punch drunk.

JOHNS: All right, I'm totally punch drunk.

Reynolds Wolf in the Extreme Weather Center -- he's not punch drunk. He's always cool, calm and collected.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: The day is still early.

COSTELLO: Yes.

WOLF: We've got a lot of time. It is a holiday. You know, guys, a lot of people are not where they have to be just yet. They still have a few steps to take before they're able to get to the Thanksgiving table.

Now, if they're traveling from other parts around the country, they may have a few obstacles in their way due to Mother Nature.

If you happen to be in Philadelphia, Atlanta, maybe even Charlotte, you're going to have some delays possibly up to an hour. In Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit, you might have a few waits, same story for you in Chicago, Memphis even into Seattle.

Now, you'll notice though, something kind of interesting. Most of the delays are taking place in the eastern half of the country and there is a reason for that.

Take a look at this -- that's your reason. A big storm system that's bringing in some snowfall to parts of the northeast; also some scattered showers, some storms even some thunderstorm activity in parts of the Midwest.

But it is the snow event that's really beginning to get under way in parts of Buffalo. In the next 24 to 36 hours, Buffalo, some areas in that area might have up to a foot of snow. Have fun with that.

Something else we're going to be having fun with. You're seeing the map beginning to get covered with purple. Those are your winter storm advisories in effect anywhere from I'd say about a quarter of an inch or less in terms of ice and snow which is good.

However, even that little bit can cause some damage, possibly some widespread power outages. Not just to some parts of the northeast but possibly into the Midwest and into mid-Mississippi Valley, back in Springfield, Missouri, even in the Memphis Paducah might get in on some of that ice snow mix before the day is out.

That's your big weather maker.

Out towards the west, things are better and as we wrap things up things will also be cool out to the west. Billings, 18 your high; 21 in Salt Lake City and 34 in Denver, 43 in New York and 72 in Atlanta. For everyone along the parade route in New York, it looks like rain is going to coming to you around 3:00 in the afternoon. The parade will be long over by that point. Back to you.

JOHNS: You can't beat that.

WOLF: No. Good timing.

JOHNS: Absolutely. I brought my raincoat just in case.

WOLF: There you go.

COSTELLO: Always prepared. Thank you, Reynolds.

WOLF: You bet.

COSTELLO: Can't get enough of those Chilean miners? Well, we have more. They're in Los Angeles with Anderson Cooper for tonight's star studded "CNN HEROES" award show. A look at the big event coming your way next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GUNNERY SGT. SHEVORNMI MCCLOUD, U.S. MARINE CORPS: My name is Shevornmi McCloud from Marine Wing from Port Squadron 373, Camp (INAUDIBLE) Afghanistan. I'm giving a shout out to my home town Tampa, Florida. I love you, mom, I love you dad. I love you my four sisters and my three brothers, all my cousins and big upper land city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: That's awesome.

COSTELLO: That was the best ever, wasn't it?

JOHNS: Yes. Today is the day to give thanks and CNN is helping you do that tonight. "CNN HEROES AN ALL STAR TRIBUTE" airs at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

COSTELLO: Fourth time we've done it; the fourth year. It's taped before an audience of nearly 5,000 people at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The show will open with a salute to the 33 Chilean miners and the five people who rescued them last month after those miners spent 69 days trapped underground.

JOHNS: Becoming CNN Hero of the Year can be an altering, a life- altering experience. Let's see what's happened to Efren Penaflorida since he won the award last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, AC360: The CNN Hero of the Year is Efren Penaflorida.

(voice-over): From the slums of the Philippines to the stage of the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, Efren Penaflorida has come a long way.

EFREN PENAFLORIDA, CNN HERO OF THE YEAR 2009: We are the change that this world needs to be. Mabuhay.

COOPER: For 12 years, Efren and his team of volunteers have pushed their mobile classrooms through the streets of their neighborhoods teaching kids who never make it to school. But after being named 2009's CNN Hero of the Year, Efren became a national hero.

PENAFLORIDA: This is really overwhelming.

COOPER: Upon his return, Philippine President Gloria Arroyo presented him with one of the country's highest honors. One year later, the push cart classroom model has been replicated more than 50 times across the Philippines and inspired the construction of an education center funded in part by the CNN Heroes grant.

PENAFLORIDA: Before push carts, they see it as a symbol of poverty but now they see a push cart as a symbol of hope and education.

COOPER: Recently Efren has had his story told in six countries and languages and can be seen weekly in his own search for heroes on Philippine television.

The young man from the slums has turned the attention of a nation toward a common dream.

PENAFLORIDA: My fellow Filipino, there unleashing that hero inside them.

Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, who will be the CNN hero of the year for 2010? Watch "CNN HEROES: AN ALL STAR TRIBUTE" hosted by Anderson Cooper. That's at 8:00 Eastern tonight so gather around the TV after your turkey day dinner and be inspired.

It's 53 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHNS: Columbus Circle, New York City; Fair today, at least right now, 40 degrees. We're expecting some showers. We'll get up to about 44 but the big thing today is the parade that's just outside the back window or the front window of where we are. Pretty fantastic.

COSTELLO: It is -- we're right on Central Park in the Time Warner Center; lots of people looking out our windows to see the parade. Jason Carroll is right in the thick of it. He's been talking to people who've been lined up since 4:30 Eastern this morning. Hello, Jason.

CARROLL: Hello to you.

I'm looking at my watch because I only have a few minutes before the parade starts. We're right at the tip of the parade route. The crowd is ready. Three of my new best friends from Tampa, Florida; they're all here and ready to go.

Take a look at this, Joe. Take a look at this, Carol. This is actually the very front of the parade. This band that you're seeing here, they're all lined up and ready to go. They are from Purdue. They're the Purdue Twirlers from West Lafayette, Indiana.

This is Sarah and Shelly. This is your first time in the parade?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is.

CARROLL: Just a few minutes away. How do you feel?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are beyond excited. This is going to be a trip of a lifetime.

CARROLL: Now, I want to give you a quick look at what they can do. You girls go for it. Do one of your little twirls, one of your tricks for us. You can see there as they go, in the background there, you have snoopy. He is getting ready to go.

Check this out. Think you can do this, Carol? Think you can do it? Well done, right?

JOHNS: Bring it on.

CARROLL: Think you could do that?

COSTELLO: Hey, I used to twirl back in the day, Jason.

CARROLL: Did you twirl like that back in the day, Carol? Did you twirl like that?

COSTELLO: No. Okay. I dropped the baton a lot.

JOHNS: That's hilarious.

CARROLL: That's pretty good.

JOHNS: I think all the kids in the --

CARROLL: And will you check this out. Wait.

JOHNS: Oh, go ahead.

CARROLL: I'm listening to you, Joe. Go ahead.

JOHNS: I was just saying I think all of the kids in this parade are staying in my hotel. I heard them last night.

CARROLL: They're excited. Right?

JOHNS: Yes.

CARROLL: And this is the reason why they're excited. You can see, take a look. You can see Snoopy up there, one of the giant balloons in the parade. Also looking forward to "Diary of a Wimpy Kid", also "Kung Fu Panda"; some of the giant balloons that you'll be seeing. And these guys here from West Lafayette, Indiana are excited; they're ready to go.

And what's exciting for us is this is actually the first time I have taken the risk. I would only do this for AMERICAN MORNING. But taking the risk of actually standing here with the first band to take off for the parade so you can see we're now just -- what? Three minutes away.

JOHNS: You should march with them.

CARROLL: And they're lined up, ready to go. They have their escort. It is really going to be a lot of fun for everyone who's out here. Wish you could be here.

COSTELLO: We will be, we're going to pop out the door in just a couple of minutes.

JOHNS: Easy enough. Thanks Jason.

COSTELLO: A lot of fun this morning.

CARROLL: All right guys.

COSTELLO: Happy Thanksgiving to everyone and to you Jason.

JOHNS: All right. So, looking forward to that. And you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving.

COSTELLO: That's right. Let's send it to Atlanta and Fredericka Whitfield.

Happy Thanksgiving, Fred.

JOHNS: Hey, Fred.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Happy Thanksgiving to both of you. Have a great day and have fun at the parade.

JOHNS: You got it.