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Chaos in Cairo, Second Week of Protests; Americans Stranded in Egypt; White House Calls for Political Reform in Egypt; Egypt Unrest Pushes Oil Higher; U.S. Military's Ties to Egypt; Diplomatic Dilemma; Shipping Pizzas to Soldiers for Super Bowl Sunday

Aired January 31, 2011 - 07:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN GUEST ANCHOR (voice-over): Good Monday morning. Chaos in Cairo as protest enter a second week today. Thousands of Americans stranded at the airport, waiting for a flight, any flight to safety on this AMERICAN MORNING.

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BOLDUAN (on-camera): Good morning, everybody. It is Monday, January 31st. We're almost into February and welcome to this AMERICAN MORNING. I'm Kate Bolduan. Kiran Chetry is off this morning.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: And hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. We do want to begin with what we've been watching in Egypt for the past week now. Days and days of protests. We're expecting more protests on this day. And then tomorrow they're organizing what is being called a "million man march," trying to get a million people out into the streets across Egypt tomorrow.

Over the weekend what we saw a lot of people in the streets and ignoring the curfews, and they rallied anyway. Many of those rallies happened around what is starting to become the face of the opposition, and that is Mohammed ElBaradei, the former Nobel laureate and also the former IAEA inspector.

But also we have new pictures we want to share with you now. The new video has been uploaded to YouTube. Take a look here, one of these water cannon tanks that appears to be backing up over a group of protesters who have collected there. Again, we have seen updated photos and new pictures of so much of what's happening around the country right now.

BOLDUAN: That is not the only show of force, fighter jets buzzing the streets, the military firing warning shots. The protesters actually walked toward the gunfire. And help is on the way for at least thousands of stranded Americans. Charter flights will begin taking them out of Cairo today.

HOLMES: All right, our Frederik Pleitgen is in Cairo for us today. Frederik, hello to you once again. We have been seeing these protests for several days. Now the weekend is over. It's Monday.

Are we still seeing people collecting in the streets once again?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We certainly are. I mean, what's been going on here in the streets of Cairo is that people have been gathering since the early morning hours. Some of them stayed on the streets the whole night, of course, defy that curfew. Right now I would say there are several thousands of people in Tahrir square, marching back and forth between our offices.

There is also, T.J., a very, very heavy military presence here in the city. It appears as though there's more and more tanks being brought in here. The tanks are setting up more and more checkpoints. Looks like the military is clamping down. I can tell you that we did see a lot of gun battles going on here in the night. So we did hear a lot of shooting and also seemed like it was sort of heavier caliber weapons that we were hearing during the night, T.J.

HOLMES: Frederik, we know that 52,000 Americans are registered at the embassy there in Egypt, many of them trying to get out. But are of these opting to stay as well? Give us the update about the Americans.

HOLMES: Well, we certainly spoke to some people who said that they are opting to stay, that they want to stay for this point in time. A lot of them also at this point believe it will just be too much of a hassle to try and get out. They say as long as they don't feel too threatened they will do that.

What the embassy of course is saying, advising people not to leave their houses, try and stay inside. Also, keep I away from the demonstrations as the situation can get quite volatile as some of our crews have noticed over the past up couple of days.

But you're absolutely right, the embassy are trying to get people who are registered and said they want to get out, they're trying to get them out with charter flights to turkey, Greece and Cypress as well. One thing they're saying that is important.

The embassy is saying if you do try to go to the airport and get out make sure to take enough food and water because you're probably in for a very long wait. We spoke to one person who actually brought his family to the airport to get out. They waited for 36 hours and did not manage to get on a flight. It can take quite a while. If you try to go to the airport, it's a very decision there.

HOLMES: Frederik Pleitgen for us in Cairo, we appreciate you once again. As you mentioned there, the U.S. State Department is organizing these charter flights. We heard from our Jason Carroll just a short time ray go that in fact the first flight we know of has left Egypt and did land in Cyprus carrying some Americans. We're not sure how many, and we'll get an update for you on that.

The U.S. not the only country trying to get citizens out of Egypt, many others sending planes as well. You see the countries there. Turkey, Iraq, Australia, japan, Philippines, Belgium, Israel, Canada, China, and Britain. This is a huge challenge, as you can imagine, thousands of people trying to. Janice Jacobs will be joining us in a few minutes. She is the Deputy assistant secretary of state for consular affairs. She'll be joining us live with an update about getting Americans out.

BOLDUAN: As you heard from Fred Pleitgen, the streets of Cairo are filling up again this morning. At least 1,000 protestors are gathered in Tahrir Square as military choppers fly overhead. Some of the demonstrators said they had spent the night and that they won't go until President Hosni Mubarak does. They have an hour now until a new curfew kicks in.

Ivan Watson joins us on the phone. He is on the phone from the streets of Cairo. Ivan, what are you seeing down there?

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, most of the city has been shut down. Most of the businesses in town have been closed. The military presence has increased dramatically. There are far more tanks, foot patrols, soldiers out on the streets protecting checkpoints.

We just came from the great pyramids of Giza where tanks and armored personnel carriers have set up a perimeter outside and the soldiers are guarding that ancient wonder of the world.

And we're also now about an hour from the curfew, when it's supposed to begin, and we're starting to see these volunteer citizen militias coming out, starting to establish their protective perimeters as well around their streets, starting to check cars as well as passersby. And they are putting couches and furniture to block off their roads to protect them, pieces of concrete and wreckage, all in an effort to try to secure their areas.

BOLDUAN: Ivan, real quick, in your view, what does the increased police presence tell you? What does it say about the situation and how it's unfolding?

WATSON: Well, we spoke with one officer who really wanted to get the point across that the army is helping restore order after the days of unrest. If you drive around you do see signs of burned out hotels, for example, and looted shops. And they're eager to try to show that they're restoring order. And seem to be working very closely with these citizen volunteer self-protection units that are operating.

An interesting thing to add to this is that there was a statement read out on state TV last Saturday that said, that President Hosni Mubarak apparently to the recently appointed prime minister and he admitted that, quote, "The country was going through difficult times." He claimed that the demonstrations that we have been seeing have been infiltrated by what he described by people who are using the name of religion to spread fear through society.

I think the demonstrators we have seen would argue that that is not the case. You have a wide mix and variety of people on the streets and they're not trying to spread fear, they're trying to get a greater say in the appointment of their own government after 30 years. And Hosni Mubarak also went on to say, according to the statement on state television, he casts the prime minister to work with the military to try to restore order throughout the country.

BOLDUAN: All right, Ivan Watson on the ground for news Cairo. Stay safe, Ivan. Thanks so much.

HOLMES: We want to turn now to the fine line that the Obama administration now has to walk. Ed Henry is with us at the White House. Ed, good morning to you. This is tricky. You can't come out too strong in support of the protesters because that looks like you're in support of regime change. You can't come out too strongly in favor of Mubarak because that look like you're not really supporting the protesters. What do you do?

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, it looks like you're on the wrong side of history. That's why it has been a delicate balancing act, T.J., for this White House.

But it certainly seems that over the weekend the White House was edging ever so slightly towards the protesters, away from President Mubarak, which is a dramatic development, because obviously it's an article of the faith for some 30 years that this White House and previous White Houses, Democratic and Republican administrations alike, have been solidly with President Mubarak because of his help on issues like Iran, as well as the Mideast peace process.

But it was very clear from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton yesterday when she was talking about an orderly transition that that suggests the U.S. is edging away from President Mubarak while still not actually calling for his ouster, as you say, a very delicate balancing act. Take a listen to how she put it.

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HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We do not want to send any message about backing forward or backing back. What we're trying to do is to help clear the air so that those who remain in power, starting with president Mubarak, with his new vice president, with the new prime minister, will begin a process of reaching out, of creating a dialogue that will bring in peaceful activists and representatives of civil society, to, you know, plan a way forward that will meet the legitimate grievances of the Egyptian people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: So pushing President Mubarak towards reforms at least. But what's interesting is that the feeling from top officials here is that they cannot just run away from President Mubarak without having a clear sense of who would fill the leadership vacuum.

You've heard, as you've been noting, the opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei, suggesting, look, the U.S. has been too timid here. They need to be stronger to push President Mubarak out. They basically say, here, it's easy for an opposition leader to say but it's unclear whether ElBaradei could be the person who steps up and actually runs this country, holds it together, or would it be somebody like Muslim Brotherhood, some Islamic extremist group that steps up to run this country and all of a sudden dramatically changes the stability in the region.

HOLMES: Ed Henry for us in the White House. Ed, we appreciate you this morning. Thanks so much.

HENRY: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: It's 10 minutes after the hour.

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BOLDUAN: So evacuating Egypt, more than 50,000 Americans are there right now, and a lot of them want to come home, understandably. The State Department is sending planes to get them today. Ahead, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Janice Jacobs live from the State Department briefing room to talk to us about that.

Also, what's happening in Egypt could have an impact or is having an impact on oil prices. That could translate to an impact on the price you pay for gas. It's 12 minutes past the hour.

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HOLMES: Fifteen minutes past the hour. The effort is under way right now to get Americans out of Egypt. About 52,000 Americans are there and the State Department has this huge effort under way right now. They're starting to fly charter planes out of Egypt. And what we've gotten so far is that 42 Americans have gotten out so far. Another 2,400 are requesting evacuation.

Janice Jacobs, the assistant secretary of state for consular affairs, she joins me live this morning from the State Department briefing room

Ma'am, thank you so much for being with us. First thing here, have we gotten any reports yet of any Americans being injured or killed in the unrest in Egypt?

JANICE JACOBS, ASST. SECRETARY OF STATE FOR CONSULAR AFFAIRS, STATE DEPARTMENT: Good morning. No, at this point we do not have any information at all about any American citizens who have been either injured or who have died in the protests that have taken place in Egypt.

HOLMES: All right. Well, we know that 42, we just got these updated numbers from you all. The first plane has left. What is the schedule for the rest of the day as far as charter planes leaving that the State Department organized?

JACOBS: Well, we are making a huge effort to line up charter flights to take out American citizens who don't have other means for leaving the country. And we did have our first flight that went out this morning with about 42 Americans. And we have several hundred at the airport right now. About 2,400 Americans have asked us for help to leave on these charter flights. And so we are going to be basically ferrying people from Cairo to destinations in Europe over the next few days, until we have been able to take out all American citizens who are seeking our assistance. That's always our top priority in one of these crisis situations, as to make sure that we're taking good care of our American citizens.

HOLMES: And, ma'am, you said 2,400 have requested. Did you anticipate that number going up, and maybe even how high?

JACOBS: It could easily go up. As you mentioned, we have several thousand Americans who either live in Egypt or who are visiting there right now. So we want to make sure that anyone who needs our help is getting that. And so, yes, I do expect those numbers to go up over the next few days.

HOLMES: And we know that 52,000 Americans are registered at the embassy there in Egypt. But how many others, do you all have an estimate of how many other Americans might be there, whether they're tourists or just didn't register at the embassy?

JACOBS: Well, that's a very good point. We always encourage American citizens to register their presence with us and to the extent that they do that, we know where they are and who is in country. So really the numbers that we give when you mention the 52,000 number is more or less an estimate. And in any case, not all of those people would want to leave. So we're really going to concentrate on the people who contact us and tell us they need our help. And those are the people that we are going to help.

And if I could add, we are encouraging Americans who want to take advantage of these charter flights to go to the airport. But I should say that people should be prepared for a very long wait. We are going to do our very best to have these planes coming in and out during the non-curfew hours. And so we have a few constraints on what we're able to do. But we definitely are going to help everyone who needs help.

HOLMES: Will the charters run until all Americans who want to get out are out?

JACOBS: Yes, they will.

HOLMES: All right. And you talked about the one Cyprus flight. If you can help us with the schedule, and other people might be curious as well. When did that one take off? When did it land? And I guess, what is the schedule for the flight after that and the flight after that?

JACOBS: Well, I think we're coming right up on curfew now in Egypt. And so we probably will not be able to do another flight today. Tomorrow we will have additional flights. And the whole idea, of course, is to take them to nearby destination points in Europe so that we can fly back and pick up other people.

HOLMES: And when did the Cyprus plane take off and when did it land this morning.

JACOBS: It took off this morning and has landed in Cyprus.

HOLMES: The last thing here I want to ask, ma'am. We have seen some of the protesters have a little anger directed towards the United States, saying that the government of the United States does too much to support Mubarak. Is there a fear that right now maybe Americans just we get caught up in some of the protests or do you fear that possibly they could become a target of some of the angry protests?

JACOBS: We really don't see that happening. It certainly has not happened so far. But we are encouraging Americans to limit their movements to certainly avoid any demonstrations and to remain safe, to take care of themselves, and then, of course, for the ones who are wanting to leave with our help, we are asking that they head out to the airport.

HOLMES: All right. Ms. Jacobs, Janice Jacobs, we appreciate you this morning from the State Department. You all have a heck of a task. We will continue to be in touch with you all and get updates. But thank you so much for your time this morning.

JACOBS: Thank you.

HOLMES: All right, Kate.

BOLDUAN: The upheaval in Egypt is spreading. Coming up, Nic Robertson with an amazing firsthand account from Alexandria where demonstrators are not just angry at Mubarak, they're also upset with America.

Also coming up, the U.S. military's strategic alliance with Egypt. How much influence do billions of dollars' worth of weapons, military and economic aid, buy us?

It's 20 minutes after the hour.

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BOLDUAN: Back to our coverage now on the uprising in Egypt. Egypt is not a major oil producer but does control the Suez Canal, a vital artery for the region's oil. Our Stephanie Elam is "Minding Your Business." Sorry, Stephanie.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: That's OK. You actually did know how to say it.

BOLDUAN: I do.

ELAM: Thank you. Thank you very much.

BOLDUAN: What does this unrest mean for oil prices? What's the connection?

ELAM: There's a few things that you need to understand. I've done a little study here of canals. That's what I've been doing over the weekend. And I've learned a lot about the Suez Canal which is really important not just the region but the entire world.

And take a look at this. If you take a look at the Suez Canal which basically connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. So you see that little area down there that's passing through Saudi Arabia over there on the right on this map. Well, look at that. 1.8 million barrels a day flowed through the canal in 2009. That's the most recent numbers that we have.

Well, there's not just the canal though. There's also the Sumed pipeline which, as you see, goes from the Red Sea and it goes up to the Mediterranean Sea. But it has 1.1 million barrels of oil that flowed through the pipeline in 2009. So these are two major arteries that are in Egypt. And if they were to go away, well, then, you'd have to just ship it all the way around Africa to make it back. That would add 6,000 miles to the transport of oil. And that would cause a huge problem. There would be delays. There would be shortages. Things would not be there in the time that they should be there. So that's part of the issue here.

We've been watching how this has affected the markets. On Friday, we saw the markets sell off because of this unrest. The markets do not like uncertainty and unrest at its core is uncertainty.

Now, nothing has happened with either of these two vital arteries. I should point that out. They are still both operating fine. But oil prices did see a bit of a spike today. They're actually looking a little bit down, a little bit flat today. So it looks like in an odd sort of way, while there is still a lot of unrest and there's a lot of lack of certainty there --

BOLDUAN: Right.

ELAM: There seems to be a little bit of calming in this uncertainty for now in the sense that we're not seeing more of a sell-off right now in oil prices. But we're keeping our eyes on it. The market is supposed to open up flat but obviously it could change on a dime really of what's going on in the region there. But there are two hugely vital organs as far as getting that oil passed on to the rest of the world.

BOLDUAN: And the markets in Egypt are not opening as well.

ELAM: Right, they're not opening. Which, I mean, granted that's not going to play as big of a part in the story as far as all the other markets. Markets, but, you know, when you look at the entire region and what's going on, what does it mean to the Middle East, that whole region and the fact that they produce most of the oil's -- the world's oil, that is the concern. If they shut down, it could be really wreak havoc on the rest of the world markets. We need our oil.

BOLDUAN: Right now, we definitely do.

ELAM: Yes.

BOLDUAN: It underlines how connected we really are.

ELAM: Yes.

BOLDUAN: All right. Stephanie, thank you.

HOLMES: Thanks, Stephanie.

ELAM: Sure. HOLMES: Well, we've been watching what's happening in Egypt but it's not just happening in Cairo. Not just happening in cities in Egypt or the city in Cairo. You've been seeing so many of the protests coming out of there but there's another second largest city in Egypt actually where massive protests have been taking place. We'll take you there.

BOLDUAN: And country and chaos, we'll talk with a former U.S. diplomat who's been trying to focus attention on the problems in Egypt for the past year.

Twenty-six minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Good morning. And welcome back to this AMERICAN MORNING on this Monday. A live look at Chicago today. Don't let the calm fool you. Something is brewing. There's a storm on the way that's going to wreak havoc in so many places across the country, including Chicago. Could be one of the worst we had seen in quite some time. Rob Marciano will be along in just a moment with the very latest on the forecast. You definitely need to see.

But hello to you all once again. I'm T.J. Holmes.

BOLDUAN: I'm Kate Bolduan. Kiran Chetry is off this morning. And here are this morning's top stories that we want to tell you about.

Updating you on the crisis in Egypt right now. New protests in Cairo this morning. Looting and chaos has terrorized the city. Many families say they are now quickly running out of food. Some simply too afraid to shop. Citizens armed with things like clubs, sawed off pipes and even samurai swords are protecting Cairo neighborhoods from looters.

HOLMES: And they are celebrating in Sudan. The vote is now in. And according to the numbers by the voting commission, 99 percent of the voters there in Sudan south have vote to the split the country in two. So essentially they have voted to create their own country in the south, according to the numbers. 3.7 million people voted for separation. Just 16,000 voted against it. This is a historic vote, a historic move that could help to end decades of civil war.

BOLDUAN: And a deadly fire at an Arizona senior center. Firefighters say they found the body of an elderly woman in her room within minutes of arriving on the scene. Many other residents were rescued from their balconies. It's not clear yet what caused that blaze.

HOLMES: Let's turn back to the uprising we've been watching in Egypt. So much of the coverage, so many of the protests you've been seeing come out of Cairo. But that's not the only point where this is happening. A massive protest have been seen in the second largest city in Egypt, Alexandria, as well. Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Long after curfew right now. And if the government was controlling the situation, these people - trace of fire flying in the air. These people wouldn't be out on the streets if the government was in control. But right now, they're continuing their that demand for Hosni Mubarak to step down.

And the demand we've seen earlier in the day as well. This one, foreign governments, stop the hypocrisy, and stand for Egyptian's freedom. What people are saying, they've been telling us this all day, they're frustrated with the United States, frustrated with Britain. They've said they will demonstrate and continue their demonstrations through the night. This is exactly what we can see happening.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: That's our Nic Robertson, on the ground there, for us in Egypt. Egypt's military could hold all the cards. It's likely - it likely has the power to topple President Mubarak or put down the protesters. A big part of that power comes from American-made tanks, rifles and helicopters. That puts the Pentagon in quite a tight spot.

Barbara Starr is live for us at the Pentagon this morning. Good morning, Barbara. Although no one clearly expected to direct U.S. military involvement, it's certainly, it's probably causing anxiety at the Pentagon. What's the latest there?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Kate, all weekend long officials have been looking at the situation. Right now as we've been reporting all morning it's the State Department that's helping Americans get out of Egypt, but - but if the situation deteriorates and there is violence directed against Americans, the U.S. military is ready to step in and get involved in helping Americans get out.

We have a statement now from a very senior U.S. defense official who tells us the following, saying, "the U.S. is prepared to conduct non- combatant evacuation operations, if necessary. Although at this time it appears there is no violence directed against U.S. personnel National authorities, the U.S. European command and U.S. Central Command are all reviewing options to be prepared if there are threats against U.S. citizens."

So that will be the trip wire, if you will. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the joint chiefs already this weekend talking to their military counterparts in Egypt, urging calm and very much working behind the scenes on that relationship with the Egyptian military, using the influence they have to try and ensure that the Egyptian military does not overreact but provides that crucial stability. Kate?

BOLDUAN: And the U.S. has sold billions of weapons, billions of dollars in weapons to Egyptian - the Egyptian military. Are there concerns now about how all that might be used? Can the U.S. really do anything about it? STARR: Well, right, that's one of the - the crucial point here. As they - as that relationship with the Egyptian military continues to be worked in this crisis situation, it is worth remembering. The U.S. has sold billions of dollars, fighter jets, missiles, weapons, tanks, armored personnel carriers, all of it to the Egyptian military.

They also have Russian made weapons, French made weapons. All of this is sold by the U.S., at least, certainly for Egypt's legitimate self- defense, if you will. Not for the military to use against its own people in these street demonstrations. So that part of this also being watched very carefully, as you see Egyptian military tanks in the streets trying to ensure that the Egyptian military continues to act in a really responsible fashion, not turning against the people on the streets.

It really is now believed that it is the Egyptian military that will be critical to try to maintain some order, some security, and that's why the Pentagon is working so closely with them behind the scenes as this crisis moves on. Kate?

BOLDUAN: All right. Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us. Thanks so much, Barbara.

STARR: Sure.

HOLMES: Also coming up this morning, a lot of people are questioning whether or not the U.S. is doing enough in response to the unrest in Egypt. We'll talk to one former U.S. diplomat who says no.

BOLDUAN: Who says no. A nighttime curfew approaching. The Army on the streets. Angry protesters though not budging. What will happen at the top of the hour. We'll be live in Cairo, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: The streets of Cairo are still in chaos this morning with the anti-protest now in the seventh day. The U.S. has been walking a sort of diplomatic tightrope in response to the crisis. Many in Egypt are wondering why the Obama administration isn't doing more to support their cause.

Michelle Dunne is a former U.S. diplomat who worked in Egypt. She is now part of the working group on Egypt which has been promoting democratic reforms there for some time. She's joining me live from Washington this morning.

Thanks so much for joining me.

So you are part of this working group and you've been trying to get the U.S. government to focus more on the problems there for quite some time. This seems to present a good opportunity for real change. Are you confident? Are you optimistic that democracy will actually take hold in that the government, the resulting government will be a strong U.S. ally?

MICHELLE DUNNE, FMR. U.S. DIPLOMAT: Well, Kate, this is a very risky situation, but I think that we have to keep in mind at least with the protesters are asking for is democracy. This is not a radical revolution, an Islamist revolution of some kind. And I think the United States has to support this. I think the U.S. administration is right to look for orderly change, peaceful change, but there has to be change at this point.

BOLDUAN: The administration, as we talked about, is in a very delicate position at this point.

Let's listen to a little bit from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaking on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" and then we'll talk about it afterwards.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN "STATE OF THE UNION" HOST: What side is the U.S. on? Mubarak or the people on the streets?

HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, there's another choice. It's the Egyptian people. We are on the side, as we have been for more than 30 years, of a democratic Egypt that provides both political and economic rights to its people that respects the universal human rights of all Egyptians.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BOLDUAN: You really can't get more diplomatic than that. Is this position, the position that Secretary Clinton is voicing right there, is this the right position for the U.S. to be taking at this time, do you think?

DUNNE: Look, the United States does not want to be seen as pushing Mubarak out of office. A long-time ally, and the United States doesn't want to have sort of its fingerprints all over change. If there's going to be change in Egypt, it wants Egyptians to bring this out. That being said, I think it's very risky for the United States, if it is seen as propping up Mubarak, and I hope the United States won't be seen that way.

It is true that the United States has been very inconsistent, frankly, in supporting democratization and human rights in Egypt for a long time. Now is the time to take a clear stand on behalf of those principles that we stand for.

BOLDUAN: And you really lay out the dilemma that they're facing at this point. From your perspective of being really knowing Egypt far better than many people do, Mubarak is standing strong. Protesters are standing strong. Is there really anything that the U.S. can do that would be productive to help the situation at this point?

DUNNE: No, Egyptians are waiting to see where the United States stands on this. And I do think that's going to be an important factor. It's not the only factor. Clearly President Mubarak is facing a tremendous amount of opposition from his people. So in this kind of situation, international support becomes key. Does he enjoy international support or not? So it's important, I think, for the United States to show that it's in favor of democratic change and that it's saying to President Mubarak, it's time for you to negotiate, negotiate with the opposition, kind of a transition to real democracy in Egypt. And that's probably going to involve President Mubarak leaving office.

BOLDUAN: And real quickly, Ms. Dunne, do you think that - are you saying that the administration needs to come out stronger, needs to do a little less walking the tightrope and come out more forcefully in support of the protesters at this point?

DUNNE: Yes, I think the United States does need to do that. And I think the U.S. administration has been doing that. It has been gradually shifting its rhetoric over the last few days. Even ever during the day yesterday I saw the rhetoric gradually getting stronger and now they're saying clearly that they're in favor of an orderly transition to real democracy.

BOLDUAN: All right. Michelle Dunne joining us in Washington. Thank you so much for your perspective this morning.

DUNNE: You're welcome.

BOLDUAN: Next hour, we're going to be talking to a former U.S. ambassador to Egypt, Daniel Kurtzer. What if the government fails, what about Israel, and could it spread further?

HOLMES: Also coming up this morning, it is a pizza delivery order that's placed halfway around the world. They had to place this one early to get there in time for the Super Bowl. We'll explain Operation Pizza Bowl coming up next.

And also Chicago, hold on, you have a historic storm that could be on the way. Rob Marciano has the latest forecast. It's 43 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Quarter of the top of the hour. Welcome back to this AMERICAN MORNING. Want to turn now to Rob Marciano in Atlanta for us, this morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

BOLDUAN: It is award season, everyone. "The King's Speech" is getting a leg up in the Oscar race. The film's star Colin Firth grabbed a Best Actor trophy at last night's Screen Actors Guild Awards. Congratulations, to you. The cast also won the Best Movie Ensemble. And Natalie Portman won best actress for her role as a ballet dancer in "Black Swan," making her the favorite at the Academy Awards less than four weeks away.

And Betty White won Best Actress in a TV Comedy Series for TV Land's "Hot in Cleveland." The 89-year-old called it the biggest surprise in her career. She's had a lot of biggest surprises of her career. (CROSSTALK)

HOLMES: We'll turn now to Chicago and what has been an interesting race so far. And it hasn't really started. But they are getting underway with the early voting in the Chicago mayoral race. The polls show the former chief of staff of the White House, Rahm Emanuel, has a pretty big lead. But, man, he had to work to get it.

Just last week, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that he did meet the residency requirement and did put him back on the ballot which overturned a lower court ruling that said he did not meet the residency requirement. Election Day is February the 22nd.

BOLDUAN: And coming up at the top of the hour, our continuing coverage from Cairo. They are running out of food, they are too afraid to go outside. Reports of mob rule and people living in fear as Egypt spirals into chaos. We are live in Cairo, with a look at what it's like to be living there right now.

HOLMES: Also, what's happening in the region, what is happening in Egypt directly impacts what is happening to Israel. We'll be talking to the former U.S. ambassador Egypt and Israel coming up just ahead. It's 10 minutes to the top the hour.

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HOLMES: About seven minutes to the top of the hour. On Super Bowl Sunday, a whole lot of you are going to pick up the phone, call the closest Domino's, Pizza Hut, whatever it may be, and have a pizza delivered to your house. Well, they're doing that, as well, for the Military. Except, the pizzas are going to have to travel halfway around the world. We're talking about 7,000 pizzas going to service men and women for the Super Bowl. This all comes from the Uno's Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizzas are going to go on a heck of a trip. And the pizza delivery guy himself is here with me.

Mark Evans is with Pizza for Patriots. That's been around for how long, now?

MARK EVANS, PIZZA FOR PATRIOTS: Yes, sir, T.J., three years.

HOLMES: Three years. Now, help us understand how many pizzas are going to be going out, first of all.

EVANS: We're shipping 6,000 to Iraq and Afghanistan, and 1,000 to Korea and the Philippines.

HOLMES: OK. Help me understand the flight path pizzas have to take.

EVANS: They have to go from Chicago to New York to Bahrain and then into Iraq and Afghanistan. Then the Military takes them and they send them out to the further forward operating bases. There's over 40 of them.

HOLMES: How many hours are we talking about for the trip for a pizza? Most of them, you know, just drive to somebody's house. It only takes a couple minutes.

EVANS: We like a five to seven day window.

HOLMES: Wow.

EVANS: They get them there and you have to keep them frozen. So it's really a hard process. But we've have been very fortunate, thank God.

HOLMES: All right. We're going to talk about more about Pizza for Patriots and why you all do this. But, a lot of people are just curious, how do you get a pizza to be fresh on a five to seven day trip? And then for them to get it? And then they come out looking like this? You heated these up for us this morning

EVANS: You know, it's the handling. The miracle is DHL. They're the best in international transport. They're the only ones that ship into war zones. So we were so fortunate. When I contacted them, within 12 hours, they said, we can get your pizza there fresh. So we're -- they handle it so well.

HOLMES: How do you do them? You freeze them? The process itself.

EVANS: We -- they make them, then they par-bake them, so it's a super-heated baking. And then they CryoFreeze them. So they're ready to go. It's a chemical reaction that has to be -- and it's all fresh cheese and everything. It's all natural -- Uno's.

HOLMES: How much does it mean to a U.S. service member, something as simple as a pizza on Super Bowl Sunday?

EVANS: Oh, you know, when you have it -- it's amazing. When you meet a guy that's had it in the desert and their eyes light up and they said, I've had it. And I've tried to figure it out and I have it figured out. When you raise you kids and they do well in sports or their grades, you say, hey, let's go celebrate. It's always pizza. So it's a subliminal message. My company AT&T, they help us out tremendously. They're really great about this. And Uno's, DHL. But it's an amazing thing when you talk to these soldiers.

HOLMES: You've been doing this three years now. In total, how many pizzas have gone out?

EVANS: Over 50,000 pizzas.

HOLMES: How expensive of a proposition is this for you? I know you have sponsors and what not. But how difficult is it to collect the funds needed for this?

EVANS: We really need -- we raise money. All the money goes towards the project, because I work for AT&T. I was a Master Sergeant in the Military and now God made me a pizza delivery guy. So, people can go to PizzasForPatriots.com, our web site. And we're looking for corporate sponsors or anything. Because all the money goes -- such a simple process. You can go on our web site. It's funny. You can see the soldiers eating pizza. It's amazing.

HOLMES: But again, how expensive is this?

EVANS: This project?

HOLMES: Yes.

EVANS: Oh, this project with DHL and everything is quite a bit of money. Quite a bit of money.

HOLMES: Quite a bit of money.

EVANS: You know, it's worth it for the soldiers.

HOLMES: When are they heading out -- these pizzas?

EVANS: We need a five to seven day window.

HOLMES: Five to seven days.

EVANS: Yes. And tomorrow we are doing a launching out of Uno's downtown Manhattan. So it's our celebratory shipment.

HOLMES: Well, Mark, a lot of people appreciate this. Something as simple as a pizza can mean the world for a soldier on Super Bowl Sunday. You'll do it for the Fourth of July, as well. Veteran's Day, you're trying to do it as well.

EVANS: And we do Fourth of July. We did a world record pizza delivery two years ago -- 28,000 pizzas.

T.J., all the way at the top I've met General Petraeus, I've talked to him several times. His mark, tell the whole country in the world. We take care of our guys. Doesn't matter what it takes. And look at what we can deliver -- the best pizza in the world.

HOLMES: This is a part of it and it's coming from a retired military guy who is now a pizza delivery guy delivering halfway around the world.

EVANS: Which do you like? New York or Chicago?

HOLMES: I am not going to say at all? I don't want to offend some people in the Midwest (ph).

EVANS: T.J., we have a new thing. It's called Push-Ups for Patriots and you're the first to do it. You want to try it?

HOLMES: Push-Ups for Patriots. When are we doing this?

EVANS: We do push-ups.

(CROSSTALK)

HOLMES: We're going to commercial right now.

Top stories. We'll be back.

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