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Troops to Redeploy to Afghanistan; Hurricane Ike Hits Cuba; Gulf Coast Copes with Hurricane Aftermath; Where is Kim Jong-Il? Baby Boomers: The Hidden Drug Addicts

Aired September 09, 2008 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: So, Michael Phelps.
TONY HARRIS, CO-HOST: A little shout-out?

PHILLIPS: Let's take a listen.

HARRIS: Oh, wow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL PHELPS, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: Hi. I'm Michael Phelps. I'm in the NEWSROOM with my northwest Baltimore friend, Tony Harris.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Oh!

HARRIS: Catch up from northwest Baltimore. Highland town, that's where all of our peeps from Baltimore are.

PHILLIPS: Were you a swimmer? Were you a swimmer?

HARRIS: I was a diver.

PHILLIPS: You were a diver?

HARRIS: Yes. I wasn't a swimmer.

PHILLIPS: Really?

HARRIS: There's a joke there. I just can't figure it out.

PHILLIPS: I was waiting for that. I was thinking it was the breast stroke.

HARRIS: Were you really? OK. And good-night, everyone.

PHILLIPS: Yes. Next hour of the NEWSROOM starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I announce a step forward in our policy of return on success.

(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: President Bush says he can spare a few thousand troops from the war in Iraq, but it's time for a surge in Afghanistan. We've got he latest from Baghdad and the Pentagon this hour.

And a new intrigue from North Korea. The ultimate VIP is MIA on a major anniversary. Where's the Dear Leader, Kim Jong-Il?

Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips, live in world headquarters in Atlanta, and you're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

A Marine battalion and Army combat brigade, combat support teams, all among the forces that President Bush plans to remove from the war in Iraq, and in some cases after he leaves office.

In a major speech you may have seen here live on CNN, Mr. Bush announced a draw down of roughly 8,000 troops between now and next February. That includes a Marine battalion, now in Anbar province, once the heart of the Sunni uprising. But security gains in Iraq come at a time of worsening violence in Afghanistan, so more U.S. troops are being sent there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: As we learned in Iraq, the best way to restore the confidence of the people is to restore basic security. And that requires more troops. I'm announcing today additional American troop deployment to Afghanistan. The November Marine battalion that was scheduled to deploy to Iraq will instead deploy to Afghanistan, will be followed in January by an Army combat brigade.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: The troop increase for Afghanistan amounts to 4,500, give or take. Almost 31,000 U.S. troops are there now, compared to 146,000 in Iraq.

Well, we're following the story all over the world. Arwa Damon is gauging reaction in Baghdad. Jamie McIntyre digs into the decision-making at the Pentagon.

Let's go ahead and start in Baghdad. Arwa, what do Iraqis think about the smaller U.S. footprint that's being talked about?

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, Iraqis are frankly quite pleased to be hearing that U.S. troops are beginning to draw down, but at the same time, they're very wary of it, as well.

I mean, most Iraqis, when you ask them whether or not troops should stay, go, withdraw, when, will tell you that, of course, they don't want Americans to stay in Iraq forever, but at the same time they're so scared of what Iraq is going to look like without U.S. troops.

If we look at the factors that have contributed to the current security gains that we're seeing, it is the surge. It is those extra American troops on the ground that have lent to what we're seeing right now.

It's also, of course, the awakening councils, made up largely of former Sunni insurgents that decided to turn their back on al Qaeda and fight alongside the Americans and then, of course, the cease-fire that was declared by the Mehdi militia, that radical militia loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. If you move any one of those factors, no one really knows what it's going to happen to Iraq. And that uncertainty is still very much out there amongst the people.

PHILLIPS: All right. Now, Arwa, obviously you have been working the Baghdad beat for a number of years now, and you've actually said you can go into areas where you couldn't have gone a year ago, two years ago, three years ago. Can you give me an example of where you've been able to go recently, and why do you think that's changed?

DAMON: Well, Kyra, it's actually quite exciting to be able to drive through and essentially rediscover these parts of Baghdad. So we haven't been able to go to before because of the security. I mean, how many times have we stood up here and talked about the number of unidentified bodies found in the capital bearing signs of torture? But we haven't really known what it was like for Iraqis.

And essentially, we still don't know but what we're able to get now a better picture and understanding of the horrors that they actually live through.

One example is when we went into a neighborhood in southwestern Baghdad that was once controlled by the Mehdi militia. They were taken to a mosque that the militia essentially used as a torture chamber. And there we met families that had to dig up the bodies of their kidnapped loved ones from the courtyard. They were telling us of the horror. They were talking about hearing the victims' screams and how that still haunts them.

And then they were also talking about how the militia, although it's not as out there on the streets as it used to be, is still able to continue to intimidate them at night.

Traveling with CNN producer Muhammad (ph) at one point, and we went north of Baghdad to a refugee camp just outside of Taja (ph). And we were both sitting there, commenting on how we hadn't driven through Baghdad's gate, essentially, since 2004.

But Iraqis will tell you from their perspective, at least, this war is far from being over. And the U.S. will also say that, you know, the insurgency is getting weaker, but it still is not defeated. And everyone's afraid that, if Americans leave, Iraq could go back to what it was before -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Arwa Damon, live from Baghdad, thanks so much.

And as I mentioned, President Bush won't be president when these Iraq war troop cuts are completed. The Democrat who may be isn't impressed. Here's what Barack Obama told reporters in Ohio last hour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: President Bush announced a very modest troop redeployment from Iraq. Meanwhile, we will continue to keep nearly 140,000 troops in Iraq, while the military is overstretched, which is still at or even above pre-surge levels.

We will continue to spend $10 billion a month in Iraq, while the Iraqi government sits on a $79 billion surplus.

The absence of a timetable to move our combat brigades will continue to give Iraq's leaders a blank check instead of pressing them to reconcile their differences.

The president's talk of return on success is a new name for continuing the same strategic mistakes that dominated our foreign policy for over five years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And Obama said that he's glad to see more troops over -- for Afghanistan, rather. He only wishes that more were being sent sooner.

Now, we'll be coming back to this a little later in the hour. CNN senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre tells us how these war plans came about, and retired it Army General David Grange will tell us what they all mean.

Now, Bob Woodward has his own ideas about the drop in violence in Iraq. In his new book, Woodward cites a top-secret program, targeting Iraq's most dangerous terrorists. We're going to hear what he told our Larry King in the next half hour.

And it looks like Hurricane Ike may have its eyes on Texas now. Folks there already getting ready. That storm, now a Category 1, is expected to soon move away from Cuba and into the Gulf of Mexico. Its projected path right now would take it into the central or southern Texas coast by the end of the week. And with evacuations likely, buses are already rolling that way.

Today, this morning, from the mayor of Galveston.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR LYDA ANN THOMAS, GALVESTON, TEXAS: This is tiring, certainly to the people in Louisiana, Mississippi and now Texas, to keep having to be confronted by these hurricanes. So what I am doing is asking people to not become complacent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And people along the Texas coast can look to the east to see why Ike is such a concern. That storm isn't hitting Florida, but it's still unleashed high winds, flooding rains and heavy surf on Key West and other areas of the Keys. In Louisiana this week, after Hurricane Gustav, thousands of people still without power and in need of disaster aid. Right here at this Baton Rouge church, hundreds of people right now lined up to sign up for emergency food stamps.

Doesn't look like Louisiana is going to take a direct hit from Ike right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. BOBBY JINDAL (R), LOUISIANA: At this point, we're not anticipating based on the current tracks, current projections, we're not anticipating the kind of mass evacuation of the entire Louisiana coast as had to happen with Gustav, based on Gustav's path. But if this storm were to come our way, it is possible we could have to evacuate a part of Louisiana's coast.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Hurricane Ike has pounded Cuba for three days. At least four deaths on the island are blamed on that storm and at least 79 across the Caribbean. Now, in Cuba, more than one million people have fled their homes.

Our Havana bureau chief, Morgan Neill, getting pounded right now by the rain in Havana.

Morgan, it looks pretty bad there right now.

MORGAN NEILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. Yes, this is essentially what we've been getting throughout the night and into this morning: alternately very heavy winds and torrential downpour. That's what -- that's what this storm has been for Havana, at least, getting a taste now of what the rest of country has been going through since Monday.

We've seen these winds pick up on and off, very irregular. But we're on very high ground here, and we can already see the streets are flooding. And that means there is flooding throughout Havana and going westward.

The storm has just made its second landfall to the west of us, near the town of Pina del Rio, where it's passing back and forth the island. And that is just horrible news for the people in that part of the country, because it was only ten days ago when they had Hurricane Gustav rip through there, bringing all kinds of destruction when it came through as a Category 4, nearly 5, storm -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll continue to monitor what's happening there in Havana with you, Morgan. Sure appreciate it.

Well, South Louisiana is still reeling from Hurricane Gustav. Trying to live without power or water, well, that's enough to deal with. Now they're dealing with not having food for more than a week. In Baton Rouge, hundreds are lining up for emergency food-stamp relief, and the lines are long. Reporter Jim Shannon with our affiliate WAFD joins us now, live, to tell us what the scene is like there.

Jim, give us an update.

JIM SHANNON, WAFD REPORTER: Thank you, Kyra.

The people have been waiting in line out here literally since 8 p.m. last night to get the food stamps, the benefits that they're entitled to since the Hurricane Gustav came through.

But let me just briefly walk you through this. This line here, I talked to some of the folks that were just now getting into the pre- processing area. They've been standing in line since 6 a.m. this morning. So it takes that long to get to this line. You go inside the tent right there, fill out some paperwork. You walk right past me, and you're going to get into this line.

Now, this line stretches all the way around behind the tent, around another building and into a small room where you actually get your electronic benefit card.

This line is the second line that people have to get into. And as you can see, it stretches on back almost past that light right there. It's a long wait. The people that you're looking at in this line behind me have been here since the early part of the morning, and they've been here to get this Louisiana purchase debit card. Depending on your income, it tells you how much you're going to get as far as food stamps are concerned.

Now let's take a look at the big picture. We'll take a look at our sky cam and tell you, really, this says a lot. You can see people lined up on the street behind the church. Earlier today we went behind that church. The line extends down that street, approximately three quarters of a mile, and those folks are still waiting.

We're told by the Department of Social Services here that they will continue to process these folks until about 6 p.m. tonight. At some point they will to have cut them off. There are two locations in Baton Rouge, and there are several other locations all over south Louisiana that people can go to -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And that was my question, Jim. So there are two churches right there in Baton Rouge that are offering up the food stamps and then other churches throughout the state?

SHANNON: That's correct. Some -- some small parishes have one location. Others with, obviously, with more population have two or three locations. And we're told that at all of these locations, pretty much people are packed.

Now, the heat index on this particular parking lot, our meteorologist said is at 98 degrees. About an hour ago police just started passing out water and some ice. There is a contingent here from the Kansas National Guard that are guarding this area. There's a lot of local police here, too. But I was asked earlier if the crowd control, how that was going. You take one look at these Kansas National Guardsmen and their automatic weapons, and that pretty much settles any crowd control issues...

PHILLIPS: Yes.

SHANNON: ... here in Baton Rouge.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's hope it stays calm and they get what they need. Jim Shannon, we appreciate you giving us the latest from there.

Meteorologist Chad Myers also tracking this big storm for us in the severe weather center.

Chad, what's it doing right now?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, it's tracking over Pina del Rio, as our Morgan Neill was talking about. Havana about here, the western tip of Cuba here.

Affecting the Keys a little now and also even affecting Miami with these little storms that have been rolling onshore. And every time a storm comes by, the winds pick up to about 40 or 50.

Here's a live shot from Miami. You haven't had a wind come through there in a while. I just had a wind bounce there at one of the recording stations of about 35 miles per hour. And that will sure take your hat away, no question about it. But obviously, not the 80 miles per hour they're feeling right now in Cuba and, obviously, not as much as you're feeling in Key West, either, because you're closer to the center of storm.

The storm continues to move over this very warm water for the next couple of days. It will gain strength, and it will get back to a Category 3, maybe a 4. I'm not really sure. Many of the computer models are right up to 3, but not much farther than that: about 115 miles per hour.

And then making landfall somewhere between Galveston -- you saw the Galveston city manager and the mayor -- all the way back down to possibly north Mexico.

And there are a lot of areas in here that you could hit and it really wouldn't hurt very much. Those Category 3s are going to hurt something. I mean, you've got King Ranch right through here, where there are more cows than people, for sure. Only about 500 people in the entire county. That's always a place you want it to hit, but never for those 500 people, because they take the brunt of so many storms so many times. I mean, King Ranch is, literally the size of Rhode Island and, in some spots, bigger -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We'll keep tracking it. Thanks, Chad.

MYERS: Sure.

PHILLIPS: Bruised and battered. The Dominican Republic, Haiti and now Cuba get slammed by Hurricane Ike. We're going to show you what some of our iReporters witnessed.

Question No. 1 for North Korea watchers: where is Kim Jong-Il? We'll tell what you some experts think may have happened to the communist leader.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: President Bush and other world leaders are probably asking the same question today: where is Kim Jong-Il, the man who rules North Korea with an iron fist? Kim was a no-show today at a parade marking the 60th anniversary of the country's founding.

A U.S. intelligence officials says that Kim may have had a stroke. Kim has denied previous reports that he suffers from heart disease and diabetes.

Joining us now for more on this intriguing issue, Jim Walsh, an international security analyst at MIT.

Jim, great to see you.

JIM WALSH, INTERNATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Good to see you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Intriguing to say the least. What's your take? What are you hearing? Is there any truth to this possible stroke?

WALSH: Well, two things I would say. One, deja vu all over again. We've had these rumors before, so we shouldn't jump off a cliff just yet. But the fact that he didn't show up to the parade -- this is their independence day, if you will, their July 4 -- it is significant.

So I think it's -- it's fair for us to speculate. I hope the government's involved, don't engage in any loose talk. Because if he's not incapacitated and we're talking him as if he's dead, he's probably going to be pretty ticked off. But I do think it's a legitimate question.

PHILLIPS: That's the last thing we want, is to tick off Kim Jong-Il.

WALSH: Exactly.

PHILLIPS: All right. If he is incapacitated, who takes over?

WALSH: Well, you know, this is a country with very unusual rules here. In most countries you elect someone, you appoint someone. But the leader in North Korea is the political leader. He is also a god, a deity, and so it's not your normal sort of process.

Traditionally, what has happened, obviously, is that it's been passed on to family members. It was Kim's father, Kim Il-Sung, who prepared him to take over, and the expectation is that Kim Jong-Il is going to anoint one of his three sons to take over, most likely the second oldest son, Kim Jong Cheol, but we don't knows. Because none of those sorts of preparations that you would expect to see has been taken. And so there's some uncertainty here.

PHILLIPS: So if, indeed, that is the case and, let's say, one of the sons is put into the position to take over, what would this mean for the nuclear situation, the nuclear threat?

WALSH: Well, I think -- first of all, I don't think just because there's a change in the presidency, if there were to be one, it suddenly means that nuclear policy is going to become more dangerous. I do think things will slow down. Remember, the new person will have to come in, have to be selected, and there might be about internal political fight over that. Then once that new person is selected, they'll have to consolidate their grip on the government.

So I think what that means is we're probably not going to see a lot of big decisions coming out of Pyongyang as a new person gets a feel for their position. Again, if this is the case.

PHILLIPS: Sure. And you keep emphasizing if.

WALSH: So it will likely slow things down, I would think. And of course, the outside governments are going to be loathe to put additional pressure on with Korea at a very sensitive time, a very delicate time. So I suspect things are going to slow down.

PHILLIPS: U.S. relations with North Korea. Military relationships. Any kind of interesting dynamic we can see?

WALSH: Well, unfortunately, mostly what I see is the potential for trouble. In other words, if we say the wrong thing, do the wrong thing, if we become part of their internal debate about what happens next, because we mishandle it, then that's a danger.

If there's some sort of crisis. Let's say someone boards a ship and some people get shot up. And suddenly we have an international crisis at the very same time these other issues are in play. That could be dangerous.

Remember, the North Koreans are going to be a little nervous here. They're doing to wonder is someone going take advantage of us. They're going to be on the defensive. So it's going to require finesse, a delicacy, stability and a prudent hand during this next period.

PHILLIPS: Well, we're on top of the story, trying to figure where exactly he is and if indeed, he's suffered a stroke. Jim Walsh, always great to see you.

WALSH: Good to see you. Thank you.

PHILLIPS: A little bit more background now on Kim Jong-Il, known to his people as the Dear Leader.

Kim Jong-Il became the de facto leader of North Korea in 1994 after the death of his father. Jim mentioned that. He also is the Koreans Workers' Party chairman. Prior to that position, he as the party secretary in charge of what was called the organization propaganda and agitation.

Kim withdrew North Korea from the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty back in 2003. But in 2007, after six-party talks in Geneva, he made a pledge to dismantle the country's nuclear weapons program. He rarely makes public speeches, by the way.

A retired general and current military analyst weighs in on the announced draw down of troops in Iraq.

Plus, there was a big stink when Congress bolted the beltway without passing an energy bill. We're going to hear what they're saying today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi should be coming out any minute now to talk energy. She's expected to announce the House Democrats' energy package. Of course, there was a big stink recently when Congress went on break without passing energy legislation.

John McCain has been calling lawmakers out on that during his stump speeches, by the way. So when she comes out, we're going to listen and see what they has to say.

Now Uncle Sam needs some fiscal restraint. That would be one conclusion after looking at the latest numbers on the federal deficit.

Susan Lisovicz on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with the latest to tell you on the red ink.

Haven't seen you in a few weeks, Susan. Great to see you.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's great to have you back, Kyra. That is for sure.

Yes, we're talking about red ink and Uncle Sam and, boy, some fiscal restraint might be needed here, because we're talking about a budget deficit that's projected to more than double this year.

Four hundred seven billion is the estimate from the Congressional Budget Office. Last year -- consider this -- was $160 billion. And by the way, Kyra, these estimates don't include the federal bailout that we ere talking about all day yesterday, regarding Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So what's going on? Is it a case of spending more than the government had planned?

LISOVICZ: It is that. It is also a slowing economy.

Spending more than the government planned? Well, let's see. We could talk about maybe all those stimulus checks that went into the mail. We can also talk about the additional spending in Iraq.

We can also talk about the fact that companies aren't reporting the kind of hefty profits that we had seen in previous years. And so -- so what their -- their revenues are diminishing. And it's all transferring to less profits, less revenue for Uncle Sam.

Also, we should talk about the government covering insolvent banks. There are 11 banks who have gone belly-up this year, and they are concerned about more. Lehman Brothers in particular, under particular pressure right now, losing about a third of its value. There are reports that I was just hearing in the last few minutes, that it may preannounce its earnings. There are fears that it will have another quarter of massive red ink. Needs to raise capital and shed assets. There were reports that its talks to raise capital with Korean Development Bank have failed. So Lehman Brothers under pressure.

And stocks overall under (AUDIO GAP) back with some of the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) yesterday. Right now the blue chips are down 87 points. The NASDAQ is off 22 points. Oil is down $2.

Michael Phelps was here earlier. That didn't seem to help things, Kyra. And we'll be talking about Apple in the next hour. Back to you.

PHILLIPS: Yes, I love how you got Michael to give a little shout-out to Tony Harris. Hometown Baltimore boy.

LISOVICZ: He's going to help me with my -- with my backstroke. Whatever.

PHILLIPS: All the strokes. All the strokes. I'd jump in the pool with him any day.

All right. Susan Lisovicz, I'll talk to you later.

Massachusetts and mud just don't mix. At least they don't in this parking lot. Imagine how much Armor All it will take to fix this. This is one tropical storm, Hanna's, calling card.

And Texas isn't going to mess with Hurricane Ike. The buses roll in, ready to get people out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, hello everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. And you're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

And it's 1:31 Eastern time. Here are some of the stories we're working on for you right now. It's the second day of jury selection in O.J. Simpson's armed robbery trial in Vegas. The goal of defense lawyers, finding jurors not biased by Simpson's murder trial 13 years ago.

Barack Obama and John McCain starting their day in a key battleground state. They appeared just 32 miles apart in Ohio. Obama now heads to Virginia. McCain and running mate Sarah Palin, are headed to Pennsylvania.

For tree sitters at California Berkeley, may soon lose their perch soon. University officials say they're getting ready to remove the activists in the coming days in what they hope will be a safe process. Those sitters are protesting that the trees will have to come down for a planned sports centers.

A draw down in Iraq, buildup in Afghanistan. The U.S. war strategy is shifting to reflect declining violence in one war zone and growing violence in another. In a Washington speech you might have seen live here on CNN, President Bush announced that up to 8,000 U.S. troops will leave Iraq through early next year and around 4,500 others will head to Afghanistan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Reduced levels of violence in Iraq have been sustained for several months. While the progress in Iraq is still fragile and reversible, General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker report that there now appears to be a degree of durability to the gains we have made.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So will the changing troop numbers have real impact, negative or positive, in either war zone? Let's get straight to the Pentagon with some reaction from our Jamie McIntyre.

Jamie, what do you think?

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well you know, Kyra, by any measure, these are modest troop reductions in Iraq. And seemed to follow the very cautious approach of General David Petraeus, whose recommendation by the way, we're told, President Bush pretty much took at it was and approved it.

You know, there will be some reductions of troops this year, as troops rotate out, including 1, 200 Marines from Anbar Province. And that's certainly nothing to sneeze at. But, what this does is push into next year really, any significant increase of troops in Afghanistan, where commanders are desperate for more troops there to especially launch a sort of more aggressive action against the Taliban, over the winter season to prevent another big spring offensive.

And I think what it shows is that even though those marines, by the way -- President Bush announced we'll be going to Afghanistan this year in November -- they're actually just replacing Marines who are coming out. So, it's not until that Army brigade, about 3,500 soldiers from the 3rd Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division, arrives in Afghanistan early next year, that commanders on the ground there will have some significant more resources to work with.

PHILLIPS: And Jamie, you and I both have interviewed Petraeus a number of times. And correct me if I'm work. I was trying to figure out, isn't this the first time he's really come forward and given a specific number, a specific timeline on when to bring troops out?

MCINTYRE: Well, you know and again, it's very cautious. I mean, one of the things to remember is, obviously, what this means is the next president is going to inherit this situation in Iraq, where essentially we've had a status quo troop levels in Iraq, and very small (INAUDIBLE) in Afghanistan.

But, not only will they inherit this situation, they're also going inherit General Petraeus. And a General Odierno in Iraq. Two commander who have become very cautious over time. Because they've seen how what appears to be success, can slip away very quickly.

So, if the next president, whoever it is, is in inclination to quickly draw down troops, they're going to run up against military advice that says, wait, we need to be very careful about drawing down troop numbers in Iraq. And I think that's what you saw in this recommendation from General Petraeus.

PHILLIPS: Got it. Jamie, thanks a lot.

And here's a quick look at the bigger picture. Right now, there are about 146,000 American troops in Iraq. There are nearly 31,000 in Afghanistan.

Now, the president made the decision, but the details, the timeline, the nitty-gritty on the Iraq troop draw down all came from David Petraeus, you just heard from our Jamie McIntyre. And he's about to wrap up a pretty exhausting term as the senior U.S. General in Iraq to take on an even bigger job at the U.S. central command.

So, why 8,000 troops and why now.? Let's get some more insight from retired Army General and CNN Military analyst David Grange.

David, great to see you.

What do you think? Is this a meaningful reduction or, is this just a token gesture? I mean, Petraeus is not one to make very many token gestures, if any at all.

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Well, it is a small number of troops, when you look at number already in Iraq. Also in that entire region, actually. But, I think it's a calculated risk assessment and it was approved by central command. It was approved by Secretary of Defense Gates and then went to the president.

And so I think that those that are leaving are very happy about it. Those that are staying, I'm sure that the parents of those soldiers are still concerned. But I don't think anybody wants to lose this thing and they want to maintain momentum.

PHILLIPS: And you know, when we talked about the surge and all the troops going in there and that's what General Petraeus prays is that look, the surge is working and I can tell you why and where.

So, here you go where we're actually seeing numbers of troops being pulled out. Does that mean that the enemy is sitting back going, OK, here we go. They're starting to pull out troops. We can fire up again. GRANGE: Well, the enemy does have an advantage on their understanding of the temporal dimension. They use time to their advantage much better than we do. We're not that patient. You know, we have a little bit of a drive through mentality. We like things to go a little faster.

However, I think that there's always a plan in place to respond if they have to readjust forces within Iraq itself, within a theater, or from the United States of America.

PHILLIPS: Well, you'd sure hope so when there wasn't a good plan in place after the beginning of the war and that's what led to so much of the chaos that we're seeing now.

I want to get your reaction to Bob Woodward's book. I don't know if you saw "LARRY KING LIVE" last night, or not, Dave. But he was talking about his book, "The War Within." And he talked about these secret operations that are taking place. He said he couldn't go into detail about these, but that that really was -- is what's helping to bring down the violence there in Iraq. And he made the comparison that it's like the Manhattan Project, you know, a.k.a. the atomic bomb in WWII.

Take a listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB WOODWARD, INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST: There's this ski slope right down, in a matter of months, of cutting the violence in half. This isn't going to happen with a bunch of joint security stations or the surge. These top secrets operations, which someday in history will be described to peoples' amazement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Does Woodward know what he's talking about? Do you believe what he's saying?

GRANGE: I believe there are numerous covert operation ongoing as there should be. And they have been in every war that we've fought to include the adversary's use of covert forces. And they are the force of choice to take out high-valued targets or extremist organizations, especially the leadership. And I applaud the fact that if we're doing them, that they're that successful, which I believe that they are.

PHILLIPS: Well, you were one of them. You took part in those missions.

General David Grange, great to see you.

GRANGE: My pleasure.

PHILLIPS: A place of reflection, marking an unspeakable tragedy. A memorial honoring 9/11 victims has been dedicated at Boston's Logan Airport. The two planes that terrorists crashed into the World Trade Center, came from Logan, 147 people on board. The two and a half acre memorial features a green glass cube with all of their names. We remember them today.

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PHILLIPS: Well, the image of drug addicts has a new face and it's one of the age spots and crow's feet. Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen here with the details on the new study about illicit drug use among baby boomers. Kind of some sad news, actually.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is sad news. And it's kind of surprising because often we think of drug addicts as being sort of young, crazy kids, just sort of being stupid. But, new federal government statistics show that image is not necessarily true.

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COHEN (voice-over): Stephen Glaude had it all. He achieved status, money and power. Working under Jack Kemp in the first Bush administration.

STEPHEN GLAUDE, RECOVERING DRUG ADDICT: I had a wonderfully national reputation. I had a career that was built on great job after great job.

COHEN: And he had a loving wife and children. But then, at a party celebrating one of his many professional achievements --

GLAUDE: Someone said, try this. It was crack cocaine. I tried it. Didn't think initially that it had a hold on me. Found out in the weeks and months and years to come that it did.

COHEN: Glaude says that after eight years of using, from age 42 to age 50, he lost it all.

GLAUDE: I lost the respect of my children, I lost the respect of my parents. I lost my marriage. But, I also lost home and cars and you know, good credit.

COHEN: And he's far from alone. From 2002 to 2007, illicit drug use among Americans in their 50's more than doubled. That's right. Today's aging boomers are becoming addicts in record numbers.

DR. HARRIS STRAYNER, PSYCHOLOGIST, CARON TREATMENT CTR.: When you're treating a baby boomer, the level of denial may be even stronger because it's been around that much longer.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right. So, why don't we hear more about this?

COHEN: You know why. Because the smarter we get -- the older we get, the smarter we get. So, these older drug addicts are more savvy, they know how to hide it. They don't tend to have run-ins with the law. So, they're flying under the radar.

PHILLIPS: Why is it happening? COHEN: Well, there are a lot of theories. One of them is that, if you're in your 50's, you kind of grew up in the flower child generation. So, drugs are kind of a part of the fabric of your life, so to speak. So that's one theory.

PHILLIPS: All right. Well, what about today's tough economy? I mean, it's expensive to be a drug addict.

COHEN: Well, but it also -- people turn to drugs during tough times to get them through. And think, if you're in your 50's, you probably have a mortgage, you probably have kids that you're sending to college. I mean, the tough times hit people in their 50's, kind of like no other age group. I mean, it can be really tough.

PHILLIPS: Now, Stephen, the man that you featured there in your piece, how is he doing now?

COHEN: He is doing great. He says he's been clean for almost five years now. And the reason why he did the story with us is that he wants to spread the word that addiction can happen when you're in your 50's, when you're smart, when you're achieved, when you're successful. That anyone can get addicted to drugs.

PHILLIPS: All right. Well, he's a strong man to pull through. Five years, that's pretty awesome.

Elizabeth, thanks.

Well, to get your daily dose of health news online, you can log on to our web site. You'll find the latest medical news, a health library and information on diet and fitness. The address, CNN.com/health.

And Elizabeth Cohen, by the way, one of the most read ones on CNN.com.

All right. Who's ahead and who's behind and who's supporting who? We're going to take you on the presidential campaign trail and crunch the latest numbers. By the way, you might be surprised at where most of Sarah Palin's backing is coming from.

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PHILLIPS: And topping our political ticker, Barack Obama and John McCain began their day just 32 miles apart in Ohio, a key toss up state in the presidential race. Obama now heads to Virginia, this afternoon. While McCain and his running mate, Sarah Palin, are headed to Pennsylvania. Democratic VP candidate Joe Biden, well, he's doing his own thing in Missourri.

John McCain inched ahead of Barack Obama in the latest CNN Poll of Polls. An average of five national surveys, McCain leads with 47 percent, to Obama's 45 percent. 8 percent are undecided. Yesterday, McCain had a one point lead. This was the first Poll of Polls by the way, taken entirely after the Republican convention. Another new poll indicates that much of Sarah Palin's support is coming from men. In a CNN Opinion Research Corporation Survey, 57 percent of men say the GOP vice presidential candidate is qualified to serve as president, compared to only 43 percent of women. Overall, 50 percent of people surveyed think Palin is qualified. 70 percent think Joe Biden is qualified.

Check out our political ticker for all the latest campaign news. Just log on to CNNpoliltics.com, your source for all things political.

All eyes along the Gulf Coast are on Hurricane Ike this hour. Ike, now a Category 1, is expected to soon move away from Cuba and into the Gulf of Mexico. It's projected path right now would take it into central or southern Texas by the end of the week. And with evacuations likely, buses are already rolling that way. Louisiana appears to be getting a bit of a break. But, the storm's path is still not certain. Thousands of people in Louisiana are still lining up for emergency aid, more than a week after Hurricane Gustav.

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PHILLIPS: Well, CNN iReporters are getting up close and personal also with Ike. And here are two different views. Here's what Neil (INAUDIBLE) saw through the windshield Sunday, in the Dominican Republic. He tells us that the rain and wind were so bad that he had to stop about every five minutes because it was just impossible to see.

Then, here's a bird's eye view from Ike, from Joe Greene (ph). These pictures were taken from a hurricane hunter plane. That plane was flying through the eye of the storm, just east of Cuba.

Now, when the weather becomes the news, remember to send us your iReports. Just go to iReport.com, or type in iReport@CNN.com, right into your cell phone. And remember, please to stay safe.

Parts of western Massachusetts won't soon forget Tropical Storm Hanna. It dumped torrential rain there over the weekend, triggering this mud slide. Several cars were buried in that muck.

And in Wisconsin, too much water has taken a toll on fish if you can believe that. Hundreds, maybe thousands of fish have died in a like near the Illinois state line. Experts believe that a heavy rain last Thursday, actually impacted the lake's oxygen supply.

And in Denver, Colorado, there will be a pumpkin shortage this Halloween. The crop took on too much rain and got pounded by hail over the summer.

Well, forget about horse power. Think goat power. Which big city is relying on some four legged weed whackers to clear brush-prone areas? We're going to show you.

And later, for decades, their leader was branded as a terrorist. But now, what Libya's doing that could affect your pocketbook.

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PHILLIPS: Well, forget about grabbing the weed eater. Los Angeles is using about 100 goats to clear a brush-prone areas. We don't know how many horse power that is, by the way, compared to those big lawn mowers. But, they're sure-footed on hills and cost a fraction of what a gardener charges. So, you can bleep the bank for the buck. One more benefit, these guys don't run out of gas, either.

Well, retirement just isn't what it used to be. Lance Armstrong is the latest retiree, who might be making a comeback. CNN's Alina Cho reports.

(VIDEO GAP)

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I woke up yesterday morning and we were poor, as usual. And she came home from work and we were rich.

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PHILLIPS: Well, what does the 99 cents only store chain do when the economy forces them to raise prices? It's easy. The chain will now charge 99.99 cents for it's stuff. This way, they're still true to their name and they don't cross into dollar territory. Just don't round up. The company claims that the extra fraction will mean an extra $12 million per year.