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CNN Newsnight Aaron Brown

Intelligence Points to Possibility of Another 9/11 Style Attack; USDA Says Infected Cow Came From Canada; 25,000 Confirmed Dead at Bam

Aired December 29, 2003 - 22:00   ET

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

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


AARON BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening again everyone.
Somehow it feels like we're all back to where we were two years ago, back before Afghanistan, back way before Iraq, back when it seemed like the war on terror was all defense and we didn't even understand the rules.

Two years after it began, after the war in Afghanistan we were told most of the top al Qaeda leadership killed or captured, the organization disrupted. A week's worth of terror warnings makes us wonder how far we've come and more importantly how far we still must go.

Terror warnings again top the program and begin the whip and the whip begins in Washington, CNN's Kelli Arena is there covering the terror story, Kelli a headline from you tonight.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Aaron, with intelligence pointing to the possibility of another September 11 type attack, Secretary Tom Ridge wants armed marshals on international flights deemed a terrorist target. Now if the airlines don't comply they won't be allowed to land here.

BROWN: Kelli, thank you. We'll get back to you at the top tonight.

More known today about a sick cow, a mad cow, and how much you should or should not worry. Holly Firfer has the story. Holly, a headline.

HOLLY FIRFER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the USDA says that infected cow came from Canada, just one more piece to puzzle of how she was infected and where that meat might be -- Aaron.

BROWN: Holly, thank you.

On to Iran where the death toll from Friday's earthquake continues to rise, Matthew Chance fighting laryngitis joins us, Matthew a headline.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Aaron, thank you. I hope you can hear me. About 25,000 people confirmed as dead here in Iran. They're still pulling the bodies out of the rubble and burying them in mass grave sites outside of the city. BROWN: A good time to stop. Matthew, we'll get back to you.

And finally, Satinder Bindra in Baghdad where the U.S. government went into the news business, Satinder a headline from you.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Aaron. Amongst all the violence here some signs of nation building. Recently as part of its hearts and minds campaign the United States set up a television station here but many Iraqis complaining rather than being about hearts and minds the station is more about mind control -- Aaron, back to you.

BROWN: Thank you. We'll get back to you and the rest coming up shortly.

Also coming up on the program tonight another body recovered at the California mudslide, this one an 8-month-old baby boy, the victim totally now 13. We'll update the story for you tonight.

Plus a look back at the year with just a hint of sarcasm, maybe even a smirk. The "Detroit Free Press" helps out by loaning us their political cartoons for the year.

And one of the last morning paper segments of 2003, my goodness, all that and more in the hour ahead.

We begin tonight with heightened security in the air, literally, as preparations for the New Year celebrations begin across the country and around the world. The Bush administration took center stage with some very concrete proposals affecting airlines, international airlines, and airline security.

The government says it will begin ordering foreign airlines to place armed marshals on some flights both leaving from and heading into the United States, this as the United States remains on a high terror alert, reporting the story again CNN's Kelli Arena.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA (voice-over): The U.S. now wants armed air marshals on international flights that may pose a terror threat. If airlines do not comply they could be denied U.S. landing rights.

TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: It's pretty clear that it is understood by our international aviation partners that the threat to passenger aircraft is a national challenge.

ARENA: Officials say intelligence continues to suggest al Qaeda and related groups are planning another 9/11 type attack against the United States. Such information led to the cancellation of six Air France flights just last week and a general concern about flights out of Mexico.

RAFI RON, NEW AGE SECURITY SOLUTIONS: It's only on the background of the specific intelligence that was received a few weeks ago concerning such a flight or flights that suddenly everybody realized that this is critical.

ARENA: The threat information is not limited to aviation. There is still concern about possible suicide bombings or the use of a weapon of mass destruction. Officials say their most immediate challenge deciphering intelligence regarding New Year's Eve.

RIDGE: We are as concerned today as we were yesterday. We'll be concerned as much this week as we were last week.

ARENA: Sources say there is information suggesting there could be an attack but they do not have any specifics. In New York which hosts one of the biggest New Year's Eve celebrations the planning goes on as usual.

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: You can rest assured the police department has done an enormous amount of planning. You're going to see a lot of cops there.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA: The airspace over Times Square will be closed on New Year's Eve. So will the airspace over the Las Vegas Strip. Now homeland security says these are not extraordinary measures. In fact, it's been done in the past but still it underscores the concern and both cities, by the way, have come up as potential terror targets -- Aaron.

BROWN: At the Ridge press conference today was there any discussion about some middle ground, that is to say the decision to ground those airplanes from France was an extraordinary step. Anything short of that considered, hand searching every passenger or putting dogs on the plane to sniff for bombs, any of the other possible things they might have done but chose not to?

ARENA: Well, Ridge wouldn't go there. He was asked that question today and what he said was that the French authorities thought that this was the best route to take and so they took it and the U.S. agreed. But he was asked that question and said is there any other way, this is very disruptive? On the one hand you're telling people go and live your lives.

BROWN: Right.

ARENA: Go about business as usual and yet you're grounding airplanes right before the holidays and so a bit of a contradiction there but he said, look, this was the decision that we made. We thought it was a good one. Let's move on.

BROWN: And do they talk at all about either, I don't mean the chatter that precipitated this, is there an event that has precipitated this increase in alert? Is it something that the terrorists are reacting to or is it just a holiday and a good time for terror if that's your business?

ARENA: Well, Aaron, we've heard increased chatter before, before major U.S. holidays so it's not unusual to get an increase in the volume before Christmas, New Year's. The volume is what is causing a great deal of concern and the consistency in some of the threat reporting.

We know that some of this information is coming from an informant who has, according to sources, provided very credible information in the past. New Year's Eve, for example, that date has come up rather consistently over the weeks and so it's something that you can't just sort of chalk up to well more holiday talk.

I mean this is something they cannot discount and, after all, we did have a millennium threat a few years ago that was thwarted by law enforcement so it's not like al Qaeda has not tried to strike on New Year's before either.

This is just, it is more an art than a science, Aaron. We've talked about that before. Nothing specific, again, just a great deal of information coming in suggesting something could be up, no method, no target, no city. That's the problem.

BROWN: Yes, it is Kelli. Thank you, Kelli Arena in Washington tonight.

Later in the program we'll return to this latest threat information and the dangers it poses and how the government has responded to it. There's been some criticism of that and we'll take a look.

But first that other threat that arrived just in time for the holidays, the threat of mad cow, a trace of what's called the index cow continues, where it came from and where after it was slaughtered it ended up.

Today officials again reassured Americans that U.S. beef is safe that the risk of getting the human form of the disease is as close to zero as it can be, which is comforting except for the fact they also continue to recall meat and track cows from the herd that produced the sick one. They also learned something important about that cow.

Here's CNN's Holly Firfer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FIRFER (voice-over): Agriculture officials say the infected cow from this Washington farm was born four months before the U.S. and Canada banned the use of brain and spinal cord tissue in feed, the primary cause of mad cow disease.

DR. DON DEHAVEN, USDA CHIEF VETERINARIAN: The age of the animal is especially important in that it is a likely explanation as to how this animal would have become infected.

FIRFER: Investigators now seem to know how the Alberta, Canada born cow contracted the disease but they want to know where she might have eaten the contaminated feed before it was banned seven years ago.

DEHAVEN: Research evidence suggests that this is the primary if not in fact the only means by which BSE is spread from animal to animal.

FIRFER: Alberta's premier says they are cooperating with U.S. officials but warns let cooler heads prevail.

RALPH KLEIN, ALBERTA PREMIER: I don't want to get into the situation of the Americans fighting Canada or Canada fighting the Americans over this issue. As I said, the industries are so intertwined and integrated.

FIRFER: Although officials from both sides of the border say the meat is perfectly safe for consumers the USDA has expanded a beef recall from eight states and Guam where the meat from the infected cow may have gone as a precaution.

While following the paper trail, USDA officials also learned an additional eight cattle were brought into the U.S. from Canada, along with the infected cow bringing the number of cows they are now tracking to 81.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FIRFER: And DNA tests are underway to make a confirmatory match. They want to be sure, the USDA officials, that this is -- that they're 100 percent sure that this is the cow that came from Canada and, Aaron, those DNA test results should be back sometime this week.

BROWN: OK. I want to go back to what to me remains the central question. I have no reason not to believe that when they say the chances of contracting this in humans is close to zero as imaginable yet they are pulling that meat off the shelves, why?

FIRFER: As they put it, USDA officials say in abundance of precaution. Basically the muscle cuts, the meat that you and I eat, the steaks, the hamburgers, BSE does not reside there.

BSE is found in the central nervous system, the brain and the spinal cord. Those are discarded and not used for human consumption. They're pulling that meat off just as a precaution and I think also to reassure consumers that they're doing all they can to protect them.

BROWN: Holly, thank you, good to have you with us tonight.

The dust hasn't entirely settled on this. Obviously there are plenty of questions. One thing we've been hearing a lot all week from many experts is that the risk of two humans from mad cow is very low. We just talked about this some more.

So how should we see all of this? Eric Schlosser is the author of "Fast Food Nation." We're glad to have him with us tonight.

ERIC SCHLOSSER, AUTHOR, "FAST FOOD NATION": Thanks for having me.

BROWN: So, would you be out buying hamburger in those eight states or would you buy something else? SCHLOSSER: You know I don't think it's -- I don't think it's a good idea to eat meat from that cow and they're talking about it being an abundance of caution that they're recalling the meat.

BROWN: Right.

SCHLOSSER: I don't think anyone should eat ground beef.

BROWN: Why should I believe it's just one cow by the way? That's another thing that to me stretches.

SCHLOSSER: I think -- it's unlikely that it is one cow and I don't want to panic people.

BROWN: Right.

SCHLOSSER: You just did the report on al Qaeda. I'm much more concerned about al Qaeda. We were both in New York on 9/11. I think that's a rational fear. Only 150 people have ever come down with a human form of mad cow disease but the reality is we don't know very much about this disease.

It may have a very long incubation period. It's a terrible disease if you get it and I think our government has done a very poor job at protecting the American people from mad cow.

BROWN: Well, OK. I want to talk about that.

SCHLOSSER: Yes.

BROWN: That's an interesting one to me because on the one hand it may be true. I've read a lot in the last four or five days that suggests it is. On the other hand there's one cow out there.

SCHLOSSER: Yes.

BROWN: The millions or hundreds of thousands, I don't know how many cows are slaughtered every year, just one cow.

SCHLOSSER: Well, one of the things that food safety experts have been pushing for for years is more testing.

BROWN: Yes.

SCHLOSSER: There's only one cow because relatively speaking we're testing a very, very small proportion of the cattle. There are about 35 million cattle slaughtered every year and we test about 20,000.

BROWN: And is it true that the industry has opposed that kind of testing and the tracking of individual cows and what herd they came from and so on?

SCHLOSSER: Yes. The industry and it's interesting that the industry is making such a big deal out of this ban on certain feed containing cattle that was enacted in 1997 because the industry fought tooth and nail against any limits on what it could feed cattle.

And, as a matter of fact, in 2001 a congressional investigation found that that feed ban that was enacted in 1997 wasn't even being obeyed by many, many rendering companies and feed manufacturers.

So, I'm not trying to, you know, scare people or create a panic but I think what we need is very simple. We need to be testing the cattle before they enter the food chain. You need a system to trace meat once it's into our markets and you need a power to recall the meat.

I mean this recall in eight states right now is a voluntary recall because the USDA doesn't have the power, literally does not have the power to order this meat off the shelves.

BROWN: On the other hand, I mean... SCHLOSSER: Please.

BROWN: As a practical matter who is going to go in and buy that meat if they found out that the store refused a recall notice? I mean you know you're not likely to drive a car let alone...

SCHLOSSER: Well, as a practical matter there is enormous difficulty even learning where that meat has been shipped.

BROWN: That's different.

SCHLOSSER: And while they don't know where it is people are eating it. Now in Western Europe where they've had mad cow disease people are still eating beef but the government has the ability literally to find out where a steer wound up in what package of sausage. If FedEx can track millions and millions of small little packages I think we should be able to trace big 1,200 pound steers.

BROWN: Well, except that it's not a question of whether we can.

SCHLOSSER: Yes.

BROWN: It's whether we want to, whether we have either the -- whether we have the political willingness in the end to do it because this becomes a political problem. The industry is opposed to it.

SCHLOSSER: There is a basic problem and I am a meat eater and I think this is something that meat eaters should be upset about. The USDA has as its mandate to promote the sale of American beef, which is a good thing, but they also have as their mandate to make sure that beef is safe. There's often a contradiction between the two. I think too often they err on the side of promoting the beef and saying everything's OK when it may not be.

BROWN: Just quickly if you're sitting in South Carolina tonight and you were planning to have a rib roast tomorrow, any reason not to?

SCHLOSSER: No.

BROWN: If you're out in Guam tonight and you're planning on eating a rib roast any reason not to?

SCHLOSSER: I'd be concerned about inexpensive cuts of ground beef and heavily processed meat.

BROWN: Ground beef is sort of everything that's lying around.

SCHLOSSER: Yes. I mean in your earlier report they talked about spinal cord material.

BROWN: Right.

SCHLOSSER: I mean there was a study done last year that showed that 75 percent of the plants using this advanced meat recovery system that scrapes the extra little bit of meat off the bone was introducing spinal cord material into meat like ground beef. So, don't panic but I think people should be angry at the lack of government oversight of this industry.

BROWN: Nice to meet you. The book's done well hasn't it?

SCHLOSSER: It has. Thank you.

BROWN: Good for you. Nice to meet you.

SCHLOSSER: Nice to meet you.

BROWN: Thanks for coming in. Have a good holiday.

On to Iran next where the death toll from Friday's earthquake has climbed to at least 25,000, 25,000. It's one of those numbers that is too big to comprehend. Twenty-five thousand dead, little hope of finding any of the missing still alive, tens of thousands of people homeless and help pouring in from all over the world.

The U.S. military has flown a dozen aid missions so far, remarkable when you consider there has been no military contact between Iran and the United States in two decades. Disaster sometimes transcends politics, sometimes.

Here's CNN's Matthew Chance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHANCE (voice-over): This is the human cost of the catastrophe that's befallen Bam. With thousands of bodies already recovered, mass graves are being filled as fast as they can be dug. This is burial on an industrial scale. Few here have been spared death or grief.

Local clerics supervising the funeral rites are overwhelmed by the sheer numbers. "We're preparing the ground for 70,000 graves" one told me. "We're trying to give them all respect and an Islamic funeral but it's becoming very hard for us. There are so many" he says. Exact numbers of dead in this disaster zone have still to be reckoned.

(on camera): This is a grave site of enormous proportions because it has to be. The bodies are being buried 100 at a time. Most will never be identified here. The authorities say quite simply there is nobody left in Bam who knows who they are.

(voice-over): In the ruins of the town efforts continue to dig for survivors but this is an increasingly desperate search and there's debate about whether the time has now come to stop.

"There is slim hopes" says one man "that someone could be found alive." "No" says another "people need air and there is none under all this rubble."

Time may well have run out for anyone still trapped but it's clear the cost of this catastrophe may yet exceed this country's worst fears.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Bam in southeastern Iran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: By comparison the mudslides in California probably seem insignificant. They aren't of course, not to the families of the 13 people who have perished and the news was no better today. Another body was found and more rain is on the way; reporting for us tonight CNN's Charles Feldman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHARLES FELDMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Father John Bocus (ph) blessed the grounds of what was the St. Sophia Church camp. At least 12 people who gathered there for a Christmas Day celebration that was not sanctioned by the church died after a 12-foot high wall of mud swept down the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains following heavy rainfall.

With one more person still missing and believed dead, country crews continued the search racing against predictions of more heavy rain expected early Thursday morning.

CHIP PATTERSON, SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: Periodically in the next coming days and weeks our plan is to bring the cadaver dogs back into the areas that we feel have high probability.

FELDMAN: Two previous months of fires left the foothills devoid of most trees and vegetation making conditions ripe for mudslides. Susan Snead (ph) has lived in these parts for nearly 40 years and is gearing up for what is supposed to be another winter storm.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have a canyon in the side of our home and it's just wearing away the hillside so we brought somebody in to hopefully push up the rocks to help save our home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FELDMAN: Now forecasters say that the storm tomorrow could dump as much as three more inches of rain but officials say they are going to take a wait and see attitude and not determine until they see how much rain there really is whether or not to ask for any evacuations -- Aaron.

BROWN: There was, I think this was in the northern part of the state but I saw reports earlier tonight of the interstate having been closed, I-5 having been closed up north. Is that the same weather system that's been causing the problems in Southern California?

FELDMAN: Yes, it is Aaron. It's moving in from the north and it is expected in Southern California around midnight with the heaviest rainfall expected around 4:00 or 5:00 a.m. Pacific Time.

BROWN: It has been a tough couple of months down there. Thank you, Charles, Charles Feldman in Southern California tonight.

Ahead on NEWSNIGHT, more air marshals on more flights. Will it make any difference? We'll take a look at that.

Later, it just gets uglier and uglier, at least so it seems, why the Democratic candidates are saying such nasty things about Howard Dean.

This is NEWSNIGHT on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Back now to the beginning and the latest terrorist threat information and the order for more air marshals in the sky. We still don't know precisely the nature of this information that triggered the concern among security people, which makes it harder to assess how worried we all should be.

We turn tonight to Larry Johnson, a former CIA analyst. He joins us now from Washington. Larry, it's good to see you.

LARRY JOHNSON, FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF COUNTER TERRORISM: Good to be with you.

BROWN: Let's pick up on this idea we were talking about earlier, the decision made either by the French or the Americans or the French and the Americans to ground those airplanes as opposed to any of the other intermediate steps they could have taken short of that.

JOHNSON: Sure.

BROWN: What do you think of that?

JOHNSON: We surrendered to terrorists last week, pure and simple, because the irony here is when you have specific information and, as it was described by Secretary Ridge credible, then you actually can take a variety of steps to deter and defeat the terrorists.

In this case, for example, if the information was that the flight crews had been infiltrated change the flight crews. If the concern was that some of the passengers were al Qaeda members and were going to try to hijack the plane make sure the door is locked. Put an armed marshal inside the cockpit with the pilots and subject the passengers to additional screening and put more air marshals onboard.

You know there are a variety of things that can be done but in this case we surrendered. And I talked to several friends who are long time aviation security guys in the industry. They're scratching their heads. This is -- they're viewing this almost as amateur hour.

BROWN: I want to come back to that but why not better safe than sorry? I mean it's easy for us I suppose to sit here and second guess.

JOHNSON: Right.

BROWN: But ultimately we're not responsible for the lives of the 250 people on those airplanes or the buildings that they might have hit or any of the rest.

JOHNSON: Well, I'm not trying to play Monday morning quarterback but I've been in that position before and I'll give you an example. Today when Secretary Ridge announced for the first time in public that there are no air marshals on all these foreign flights coming into the country we have now done the intelligence work for al Qaeda.

Before today they didn't know for sure. Now they know and, in fact, we've told them that unless we have specific information about a particular flight we're not going to require these other countries to have air marshals.

I don't see how that makes us safer. That gives the bad guys information that they shouldn't have. That's something that Secretary Ridge frankly should have kept to himself. It should have been kept within the confines of TSA. They could talk to the airlines privately but putting that out publicly does not make us safer.

BROWN: But there's an interesting balance here it seems to me that is one of the things you're trying to do is to convince people that it is safe to fly.

JOHNSON: Right.

BROWN: And if people feel safer, as they may well, because there's an air marshal onboard I guess that would be motivation to tell them there's an air marshal onboard.

JOHNSON: Well, you got a couple of problems. If -- let's say that you can afford to put air marshals on every plane and you're going to need more than one then people would be assuming that that's the case and what I think we ought to leave the American public and the world believing is that there's an air marshal on every flight. Whether there is or not the government shouldn't be in the business of confirming that.

But I've seen even security professionals make some assumptions about what was being done with security, such as several years ago people that were in the counter terrorism shop where I worked believed that all bags were being x-rayed for explosives and when I informed them that that wasn't the case they were shocked.

BROWN: In the two years that we have all lived with this, two years and a little bit of change, do you see that we are better at it or we are just quicker to announce what we knew before but just didn't talk about?

JOHNSON: Aaron, I think it's more of the latter. Well, let me put it this way. I think the Bush administration has done a very good job of making us safer from the threats posed by al Qaeda domestically.

On the other hand, the politicians within are so fearful that if something happens and they haven't warned people that they'll get blamed. So by issuing the warnings it's a win-win for them because if something happens they'll say well we told you so.

BROWN: Yes.

JOHNSON: And if nothing happens they'll say well see we deterred it and I know it makes them feel better in terms of well we've gone public but the reality is with some of the security information it needs to be kept quiet.

It needs to be handled behind the scenes and then unless you've got something that you really need people's cooperation on where you can't guarantee that nothing is going to happen then go public. But right now we're going public and people are left with what do I do and the answer is be careful.

BROWN: Larry, it's good to see you again. Have a good New Year. Thank you.

JOHNSON: You do the same.

BROWN: Thank you, Larry Johnson with us tonight.

On to another facet of the war on terror, we learned today the U.S. military will appoint four American civilians to a review panel, a review panel which will examine verdicts reached by the military tribunals planned for prisoners at Guantanamo Bay. They are, of course, being held as suspected terrorists at a U.S. military prison there.

The appointees will be called to active duty to the military. They'll be given the rank of major general. Short of the president it will be the only appeal rights these men have and it is still not clear what rules will be used to try them or if any civilian defense attorneys will agree to participate.

A few more items making news around the country, just outside of Cleveland, rain is complicating the battle against a fire at a magnesium recycling plant. The fire broke out today causing a series of explosions. Magnesium reacts chemically with water and it was raining there today, hence the worsening problem. Nobody injured but this fire could burn on for days. On to Florida now and the sad case of Lionel Tate, the teenager's family is still considering a plea deal offered late last week by prosecutors. The deal came after an appeals court threw out young Lionel Tate's conviction for killing a 6-year-old neighbor. Lionel Tate was 12 at the time.

Today, Florida's attorney general filed for a rehearing before the appeals court in the case just in case the Tate family rejects the plea offer. A little bit of pressure there.

Another twist in the Michael Jackson case, the pop star's spokesman Stuart Backerman (ph) said today he is resigning. He says there are strategic differences in the direction that things are going. Mr. Backerman had been issuing statements on behalf of the singer who, as you know, is charged with multiple counts of child molestation involving one young boy.

Still ahead on the program tonight wood, not so scary right? Everything else in the program is scary why not wood? We'll tell you about that.

This is NEWSNIGHT from New York.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Back now to Iran, where the situation tonight is dire for the survivors of the earthquake that leveled the city of Bam.

Ed Pearn is the U.N. disaster assessment coordinator. He is also there with Halvor Lauritzsen, who is with the Federation of International Red Crosses and Red Crescents. And they join us from Bam. I guess it's morning there.

It's good to have you both with us.

Mr. Lauritzsen, what's the thing you need most? What's the biggest problem you face right now?

HALVOR LAURITZSEN, RED CROSS/RED CRESCENT: Well, first of all, the real emergency phase is slowly coming to an end. But, still, we have a lot of challenges when it comes to relief, to provide all the families with tents, blankets, warm clothes, clean water and medical services.

BROWN: So it's the whole range. It's everything from water to drink to food to eat, a place to sleep?

LAURITZSEN: Yes. It's a complete eruption of the infrastructure here in Bam.

BROWN: Mr. Pearn, is disease a problem at this point?

EDWARD PEARN, U.N. DISASTER ASSESSMENT AND COORDINATION: We're not aware that that is a problem. But, of course, if things aren't controlled, then it could become a problem. But, at the moment, we have no reports of disease. BROWN: Do you, either or both of you, worry that, right now -- we're a few days since this terrible tragedy -- the world is focused on this and there is an enormous amount of attention, that, in short order, a few days, a week, two weeks, that everyone will leave and it will be left for the people there to put their city back together?

PEARN: Well, that's always a possibility. But our concern is that the relief work continues.

As has already been said, my concern was more centered around the rescue -- search-and-rescue part of it. And my colleague is now taking over on the other phase, which is kicking in, which is the needs assessments for humanitarian items. But I think our controls and programs are such that it allows us to plan for the future, so that things continue after the initial incident.

(CROSSTALK)

LAURITZSEN: Yes, and I have just -- of course, it's a worry that we -- we have to bridge the gap when the organizations are leaving now.

And that's why the Red Cross and Red Crescent are here to support the Iranian Red Crescent in this respect. And we have to look ahead on the midterm, long-term needs here as well, to look at the infrastructural needs, to look at the schools, hospitals, water lines, all the things that can get a society up and going again.

PEARN: And, of course, in the long term, we hope to help the government in their preparations for any future event, which they've been very forthright in doing before this event.

BROWN: Mr. Lauritzsen, as I've watched, it's seemed that, for days, people there have been in a state of shock. Is it your sense that this horrible reality has now set in?

LAURITZSEN: Well, it's two kind of reaction that we can see.

It's a kind of fatigue among the beneficiaries. And it's also -- people are running for supplies. And the other thing is that people are clearly in shock. And we will have to do something to restore this population mentally as well. I think that's important.

BROWN: It's an awful scene to look at. Gentlemen, thank you for your good work. I think everyone appreciates the work you're doing. Thank you very much; 25,000 people have died there.

Other news to report tonight.

Some dangers, mudslides and earthquakes included, are shaped by geography. Others are not. This one is close to home, literally. In tens of millions of backyards across the United States, swing sets and porches and decks that could, we're told, cause cancer. The problem is the wood and the chemicals used to preserve that wood, a danger known for years. This week, the producers of the wood will stop making it for residential use. But that won't keep the wood out of circulation and won't solve the problem either.

Here's CNN's Brian Cabell.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For decades playground equipment and decks have been built with a preservative known as chromated copper arsenic, or CCA. It contains arsenic, a carcinogen.

The Environmental Protection Agency, according to a spokesman, has not determined that CCA treated wood poses significant risk to people, but there is evidence that there may be some elevated risks to children from long-term use.

The lumber industry has agreed to the ban but downplays the danger. A spokesman says, "Enough studies have been done by the EPA and others that show the arsenic exposure from wood treated with CCA is very small."

David Seitz, vice president of Play Nation, a playground equipment builder, says they stopped using CCA treated wood a couple of years ago.

(on camera): Was your company concerned about the possible health threats?

JOHN SEITZ, PLAY NATION VICE PRESIDENT: We're a consumer products company, so what we do is we listen to our customers.

CABELL: The EPA has advice for homeowners with CCA treated wood: Keep food out of contact with the wood, such as picnic tables. Children playing on the wood should wash their hands before eating. Don't burn the wood. And wear a dust mask, goggles and gloves when working with it.

The ban on CCA treated wood applies only to homes. It will still be allowed for commercial use. And while production of CCA wood for residential use stops at year's end, it will still be sold in stores until supplies run out. It will be replaced by arsenic-free alternatives.

Brian Cabell, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: A few business stories before we go to break.

And judging from what we have here, it has within been a slow day in the world of high finance. I guess it's the holiday. In a move that's one part product tampering and one part product gimmick -- imagine that -- M&Ms are losing their color and will only be available in black and white for the next couple of months. I think they did this to see if they could get it on television. And, in fact, they did. They plans to run a contest later in the year before reintroducing its candies of color. Can't say you didn't know. Maybe it's a reality TV show. Maybe it's the tape on the Internet. But Paris Hilton has a lot of pizza-eating fans out there. Domino's said the hotel heiress' name was the No. 1 fake name used by people ordering pizza. Well, there you have that.

Finally, something more serious, the stock market doing a little early New Year's celebrating. The Dow, the Nasdaq, the S&P all ended the day higher. I think it's the first time in 20 months the Nasdaq has been over 2000.

Still to come on NEWSNIGHT, a freedom we here at NEWSNIGHT take for granted. We don't take any for granted, do we? And the one the Iraqis are just learning about, freedom of the press.

Around the world, this is NEWSNIGHT.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: All in all, a very quiet day this day in Iraq, no Americans reported killed today.

But that doesn't mean there wasn't any news. And reporting it to Iraqi citizens has become a very high priority for the Pentagon. Among its many other responsibilities in Iraq, the Defense Department has started its own television station. There's no telling yet how many Iraqis it reaches.

But, as CNN's Satinder Bindra reports, the mere fact it is in existence gives some Iraqi journalists hope.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This Iraqi network called Al-Iraqiya is available to all Iraqis who own a TV set. Set up and funded by the Pentagon, it aims to win over Iraqi hearts and minds. But many Iraqis complain, Al-Iraqiya is not so much about hearts and minds as it is about mind control.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It doesn't reflect the true Iraqi situation. It just reflects the occupation point of view.

BINDRA: Al-Iraqiya's general manager, Shameem Rassam, says such criticism is unfounded.

SHAMEEM RASSAM, GENERAL MANAGER, AL-IRAQIYA: Let them keep that presumption. It's fine. Let us do our work. Let's build up something new for Iraq. It's a new media.

BINDRA: Rassam and many of the 350 other Iraqis working for Al- Iraqiya say they have complete independence, a far cry, they say, from Saddam Hussein's times, when news was either manipulated or censored and editors just too scared to question the regime.

Newspaper editor Fakhri Karim was so scared of Saddam Hussein, he fled the country. He's returned now to run a newspaper and is relishing Iraq's new press freedom. FAKHRI KARIM, NEWSPAPER EDITOR (through translator): Learning how to write freely is not that difficult. Even if a bird is caged for 50 years, it will still fly the moment you open its cage.

BINDRA: Also opening up in Iraq for the first time ever, satellite television.

(on camera): Satellite TV was banned by Saddam Hussein. Now it's fast becoming a lifeline for Iraqis who want to be more connected to the rest of the world. In the past few months, these store owners say they've sold tens of thousands of satellite dishes.

(voice-over): Many Iraqis get their news from Arab satellite channels Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya. They're tough competitors for the new network on the block, Al-Iraqiya. But Al-Iraqiya journalist Shameem Rassam says she just wants to take one step at a time.

RASSAM: I felt that the people are breathing freedom and I am breathing freedom also as a journalist.

BINDRA: Al-Iraqiya journalists here say it's too early to worry about the competition. What's important, they say, is, they have a new life and they get on with telling the truth to and about their people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BINDRA: And, Aaron, a quick word about the print media here. Shortly after the war, dozens and dozens of Iraqi newspapers came into circulation. And they're quite feisty when it comes to competing amongst each other. Shortly after the capture of Saddam Hussein, they were all fighting to get the most unusual and the most interesting picture of Saddam Hussein on their front page -- Aaron.

BROWN: Well, those front pages are near and dear to our hearts.

Let's go back to the television for a second. What is it they're putting on TV? Is it just news? And is that what they're doing?

BINDRA: Well, they have a wide range of programming. And then they have what they call news cut-ins. So, for example, at 12:00 noontime, 2:00, 4:00 and then at 8:00, they have newscasts. And these newscasts are indeed being watched by Iraqis.

In fact, when Saddam Hussein was captured, many Iraqis in the street, I saw, turned into Al-Iraqiya to watch the first pictures of Saddam in captivity coming in -- Aaron.

BROWN: Satinder, thank you. Good to see you again -- Satinder Bindra in Baghdad this morning.

It is hard -- onto politics -- not to marvel at the resiliency of the Howard Dean campaign. The harsher the attacks, the more the money flows, $14 million last quarter, a nice chunk of cash, though it pales to the $50 million the Bush campaign raised in the same period. And if it were possible, Dean would probably give up a good chunk if he could get his Democratic opponents to pull back a bit, not be quite so harsh, which they hardly seem inclined to do.

Here's CNN's Candy Crowley.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(APPLAUSE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The season to be jolly rarely ever is when it's also election season. So, when Howard Dean seemed to question the guilt of Osama bin Laden in connection with 9/11, John Kerry said Dean's thinking is muddled. Joe Lieberman called him a "foreign policy rookie." Dick Gephardt wondered if Dean is electable, and Dean blamed the head of the Democratic Party for allowing his rivals to say such things."If we had strong leadership in the Democratic Party," he told "The New York Times," "they would be calling those other candidates and saying, 'hey, look, somebody's going to have to win here."

Dean also implied if he's not nominated, millions of new to politics supporters might stay home. Rival campaigns went into orbit. John Kerry called it "a divisive, threatening statement." Gephardt suggested Dean wants a coronation. Dean, they said, can't take it, but sure can dish it out.

HOWARD DEAN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We cannot beat George Bush by being Bush-light.

CROWLEY: Dean may be the front-runner, but he will never be elected Ms. Congeniality by rivals.

DEAN: What Joe and others are doing on Israel is despicable.

CROWLEY: Doth he protest too much? Dean is virtually bulletproof among his true believers. In fact, nothing fills his coffers like an incoming missile.

Here with the latest fund-raising pitch, courtesy Al Gore."Howard Dean," Gore said, "needs the resources to respond to these attacks and get his message to the American people."

In the end, it may be that Howard Dean is getting not what he deserves, but exactly what he wants.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: And, as we go to break, a look at where some of the candidates will be tomorrow, as 2003 winds to a close.

This is NEWSNIGHT.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Well, what can I tell you? It's that time of year again, no, not a look back at the past year in music. The accordion guy is tied up for the holidays. And, no, not our look back at some of the wonderful talents we lost in 2003. That's on tomorrow night's program.

Tonight, as perhaps only as NEWSNIGHT can bring you, the year in political cartoons, courtesy of Mike Thompson and "The Detroit Free Press."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE THOMPSON, "THE DETROIT FREE PRESS": I'm the political cartoonist for "The Detroit Free Press." My job is basically that of a columnist, to record my thoughts and opinions on the issues of the day.

Editorial cartooning is almost more an extension of who you are than anything else. It requires a sort of weird combination of talents. You have to have a nose for news. You have to have an ability to draw. And you also have to have a very warped sense of humor. And I seem to fall into all three of those categories.

Being in Detroit, it's such a huge news town. And, in 2003, there were so many events that were local, but also national. You look at the affirmative action debate, the whole "What Would Jesus Drive?" debate over SUVs. So there are a whole lot of issues that are local, but, at the same time, also have national and international implications.

The challenge isn't coming up with one cartoon on Iraq. The challenge is coming up with a hundred or so cartoons about the war in Iraq, each being different, each having a distinct opinion and, hopefully, something clever to say.

Michigan is facing a pretty severe budget shortfall. And I figured out that, if we took the money that we were spending in Iraq in one month, not only would we erase our budget shortfall, but we would have about $100 million to spend on things like education and schools and health care.

I think the official word that they had got Uday and Qusay came at 4:30. I have a 6:00 deadline. And this is what I came up with. It uses the image of the two playing cards, having been thrown in the trash. And the two rats that are along with them in the garbage are saying, there goes the neighborhood.

The blackout here in Detroit, 30 blissful hours without a single update on the California recall election. It was great. Unfortunately, we came crashing back to earth. That particular cartoon, I used the analogy of the circus freak show. And so I've got Arnold as the strongman, Arianna Huffington as the two-headed woman who is both liberal and conservative. And then there's Larry Flynt as toad boy and Angelyne as the silicone woman, Gary Coleman as the human gnat. And then there's Governor Gray Davis as velcro man, who gets blamed for everything.

I try to steer clear, usually, of the whole celebrity-as-news phenomenon. But if I do a cartoon on a certain celebrity, it's generally going to be about a related topic. In this case, the notion of being able to get a fair trial under the glare of the media spotlight.

Michael Jackson, I drew that cartoon after seeing his arrest photo, which was kind of like an automobile accident. You're horrified, but you can't stop looking. And this was my take on it; 2004 is going to be the year of the trial, I mean, with Saddam going on trial, Michael Jackson going on trial and Kobe Bryant going on trial.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Mike Thompson, the political cartoonist for "The Detroit Free Press."

We'll take a look at other newspapers in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(ROOSTER CROWING)

BROWN: All righty, time to check morning papers from around the country and around the world. And they will be from around the world and around the country today.

We begin -- this is a first. This may be a cable television exclusive. I think it is. "The Iran Daily." This would be the English-language paper in Iran. I didn't know there was much of a market for it, but apparently so. It's a terrific picture, a sad one, on the front page: "2,000 Bam Victims Buried. Finding Survivors Would be a Miracle." That's the lead. As you would imagine, it will be the lead in "The Iran Daily" and all the other papers in that country for some years, or months, to come.

"The International Herald Tribune," also, at least in their photo, leads with the earthquake. "Iran Quake Survivors Bury Their Dead." And they put the U.S. terror alert on the front page, too. "U.S. Orders Guards on Foreign Carriers." But this, they did just to annoy me. "Vikings Blow Playoff Place With Painful Late Collapse." If you've been a Vikings fan as long as I have been, which is pretty much my whole life, you were not even surprised by what happened yesterday. It's what happens.

"The Guardian" doesn't lead with the earthquake. It doesn't lead with terror. It leads with "Sex Laws Gets Major Overhaul," because, in Britain, I guess that is what they're thinking about this time of year, or any time of year.

"The Philadelphia Inquirer" leads local, kind of. I like this story. "New Battle at Gettysburg. Central PA Site is Leading the Way in Reclaiming Historic Battlefields From the Crush of Development." We wish them nothing but good luck there, not that we have an opinion on any story we do. But we do wish them good luck.

"The Sun," that's the newspaper in -- how are we doing on time, David? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 1:02.

BROWN: 1:02. OK, probably a minute now.

"The Sun," the newspaper in -- thank you, David. Thank you. "Residents Prepare For Massive Flood." I mean, they've had fires. They've had -- the locusts are coming next. "Rain Will Overflow Debris-Filled Channels." Sounds unpleasant. Anyway, that's the lead in "The Sun" in San Bernardino.

I just like this paper, "The Oregonian" in Portland, Oregon. They lead with mad cow, a lot of different ways to lead. It's a front-page story. "Sick Cow Was Born Before Feed Ban. Others Are Sought From Same Herd Imported From the United States and Canada." That's a Western story. And so they put it on the front page. I would, too, if I was out there.

How much?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twenty.

BROWN: Twenty. OK, let's go to "The Chicago Sun-Times," then. They lead sports. "Jauron " -- is that how it's pronounced. Dick Jauron? Or Jauron? -- "Fired." He's the Chicago Bears coach. Simply put. "Expectations Weren't Met." "U.S. Orders Marshals on Foreign Airlines."

And the weather tomorrow in Chicago is "confusing."

We'll take a look at the day's top story and preview tomorrow after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Before we leave you tonight, a recap of our top story.

Heading into the new year, U.S. officials say intelligence they're collecting continues to suggest al Qaeda and other groups are planning another 9/11-type attack against the United States. The Office of Homeland Security has now begun ordering overseas airlines, foreign air carriers, to place armed sky marshals on certain flights to thwart terror attacks if they want to land in the United States.

Homeland Security Chief Tom Ridge said today he is just as concerned about the possibility of a terror attack this week as he was last. That is how the year is ending.

Tomorrow night on this program, the lives we lost in 2003. People will miss Bob Hope and others, David Brinkley. That's tomorrow night here on NEWSNIGHT.

For most of you, "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" is next. We'll see you all tomorrow, we hope.

Good night for all of us at NEWSNIGHT.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





Attack; USDA Says Infected Cow Came From Canada; 25,000 Confirmed Dead at Bam>


Aired December 29, 2003 - 22:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
AARON BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening again everyone.
Somehow it feels like we're all back to where we were two years ago, back before Afghanistan, back way before Iraq, back when it seemed like the war on terror was all defense and we didn't even understand the rules.

Two years after it began, after the war in Afghanistan we were told most of the top al Qaeda leadership killed or captured, the organization disrupted. A week's worth of terror warnings makes us wonder how far we've come and more importantly how far we still must go.

Terror warnings again top the program and begin the whip and the whip begins in Washington, CNN's Kelli Arena is there covering the terror story, Kelli a headline from you tonight.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Aaron, with intelligence pointing to the possibility of another September 11 type attack, Secretary Tom Ridge wants armed marshals on international flights deemed a terrorist target. Now if the airlines don't comply they won't be allowed to land here.

BROWN: Kelli, thank you. We'll get back to you at the top tonight.

More known today about a sick cow, a mad cow, and how much you should or should not worry. Holly Firfer has the story. Holly, a headline.

HOLLY FIRFER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the USDA says that infected cow came from Canada, just one more piece to puzzle of how she was infected and where that meat might be -- Aaron.

BROWN: Holly, thank you.

On to Iran where the death toll from Friday's earthquake continues to rise, Matthew Chance fighting laryngitis joins us, Matthew a headline.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Aaron, thank you. I hope you can hear me. About 25,000 people confirmed as dead here in Iran. They're still pulling the bodies out of the rubble and burying them in mass grave sites outside of the city. BROWN: A good time to stop. Matthew, we'll get back to you.

And finally, Satinder Bindra in Baghdad where the U.S. government went into the news business, Satinder a headline from you.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Aaron. Amongst all the violence here some signs of nation building. Recently as part of its hearts and minds campaign the United States set up a television station here but many Iraqis complaining rather than being about hearts and minds the station is more about mind control -- Aaron, back to you.

BROWN: Thank you. We'll get back to you and the rest coming up shortly.

Also coming up on the program tonight another body recovered at the California mudslide, this one an 8-month-old baby boy, the victim totally now 13. We'll update the story for you tonight.

Plus a look back at the year with just a hint of sarcasm, maybe even a smirk. The "Detroit Free Press" helps out by loaning us their political cartoons for the year.

And one of the last morning paper segments of 2003, my goodness, all that and more in the hour ahead.

We begin tonight with heightened security in the air, literally, as preparations for the New Year celebrations begin across the country and around the world. The Bush administration took center stage with some very concrete proposals affecting airlines, international airlines, and airline security.

The government says it will begin ordering foreign airlines to place armed marshals on some flights both leaving from and heading into the United States, this as the United States remains on a high terror alert, reporting the story again CNN's Kelli Arena.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA (voice-over): The U.S. now wants armed air marshals on international flights that may pose a terror threat. If airlines do not comply they could be denied U.S. landing rights.

TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: It's pretty clear that it is understood by our international aviation partners that the threat to passenger aircraft is a national challenge.

ARENA: Officials say intelligence continues to suggest al Qaeda and related groups are planning another 9/11 type attack against the United States. Such information led to the cancellation of six Air France flights just last week and a general concern about flights out of Mexico.

RAFI RON, NEW AGE SECURITY SOLUTIONS: It's only on the background of the specific intelligence that was received a few weeks ago concerning such a flight or flights that suddenly everybody realized that this is critical.

ARENA: The threat information is not limited to aviation. There is still concern about possible suicide bombings or the use of a weapon of mass destruction. Officials say their most immediate challenge deciphering intelligence regarding New Year's Eve.

RIDGE: We are as concerned today as we were yesterday. We'll be concerned as much this week as we were last week.

ARENA: Sources say there is information suggesting there could be an attack but they do not have any specifics. In New York which hosts one of the biggest New Year's Eve celebrations the planning goes on as usual.

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: You can rest assured the police department has done an enormous amount of planning. You're going to see a lot of cops there.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA: The airspace over Times Square will be closed on New Year's Eve. So will the airspace over the Las Vegas Strip. Now homeland security says these are not extraordinary measures. In fact, it's been done in the past but still it underscores the concern and both cities, by the way, have come up as potential terror targets -- Aaron.

BROWN: At the Ridge press conference today was there any discussion about some middle ground, that is to say the decision to ground those airplanes from France was an extraordinary step. Anything short of that considered, hand searching every passenger or putting dogs on the plane to sniff for bombs, any of the other possible things they might have done but chose not to?

ARENA: Well, Ridge wouldn't go there. He was asked that question today and what he said was that the French authorities thought that this was the best route to take and so they took it and the U.S. agreed. But he was asked that question and said is there any other way, this is very disruptive? On the one hand you're telling people go and live your lives.

BROWN: Right.

ARENA: Go about business as usual and yet you're grounding airplanes right before the holidays and so a bit of a contradiction there but he said, look, this was the decision that we made. We thought it was a good one. Let's move on.

BROWN: And do they talk at all about either, I don't mean the chatter that precipitated this, is there an event that has precipitated this increase in alert? Is it something that the terrorists are reacting to or is it just a holiday and a good time for terror if that's your business?

ARENA: Well, Aaron, we've heard increased chatter before, before major U.S. holidays so it's not unusual to get an increase in the volume before Christmas, New Year's. The volume is what is causing a great deal of concern and the consistency in some of the threat reporting.

We know that some of this information is coming from an informant who has, according to sources, provided very credible information in the past. New Year's Eve, for example, that date has come up rather consistently over the weeks and so it's something that you can't just sort of chalk up to well more holiday talk.

I mean this is something they cannot discount and, after all, we did have a millennium threat a few years ago that was thwarted by law enforcement so it's not like al Qaeda has not tried to strike on New Year's before either.

This is just, it is more an art than a science, Aaron. We've talked about that before. Nothing specific, again, just a great deal of information coming in suggesting something could be up, no method, no target, no city. That's the problem.

BROWN: Yes, it is Kelli. Thank you, Kelli Arena in Washington tonight.

Later in the program we'll return to this latest threat information and the dangers it poses and how the government has responded to it. There's been some criticism of that and we'll take a look.

But first that other threat that arrived just in time for the holidays, the threat of mad cow, a trace of what's called the index cow continues, where it came from and where after it was slaughtered it ended up.

Today officials again reassured Americans that U.S. beef is safe that the risk of getting the human form of the disease is as close to zero as it can be, which is comforting except for the fact they also continue to recall meat and track cows from the herd that produced the sick one. They also learned something important about that cow.

Here's CNN's Holly Firfer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FIRFER (voice-over): Agriculture officials say the infected cow from this Washington farm was born four months before the U.S. and Canada banned the use of brain and spinal cord tissue in feed, the primary cause of mad cow disease.

DR. DON DEHAVEN, USDA CHIEF VETERINARIAN: The age of the animal is especially important in that it is a likely explanation as to how this animal would have become infected.

FIRFER: Investigators now seem to know how the Alberta, Canada born cow contracted the disease but they want to know where she might have eaten the contaminated feed before it was banned seven years ago.

DEHAVEN: Research evidence suggests that this is the primary if not in fact the only means by which BSE is spread from animal to animal.

FIRFER: Alberta's premier says they are cooperating with U.S. officials but warns let cooler heads prevail.

RALPH KLEIN, ALBERTA PREMIER: I don't want to get into the situation of the Americans fighting Canada or Canada fighting the Americans over this issue. As I said, the industries are so intertwined and integrated.

FIRFER: Although officials from both sides of the border say the meat is perfectly safe for consumers the USDA has expanded a beef recall from eight states and Guam where the meat from the infected cow may have gone as a precaution.

While following the paper trail, USDA officials also learned an additional eight cattle were brought into the U.S. from Canada, along with the infected cow bringing the number of cows they are now tracking to 81.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FIRFER: And DNA tests are underway to make a confirmatory match. They want to be sure, the USDA officials, that this is -- that they're 100 percent sure that this is the cow that came from Canada and, Aaron, those DNA test results should be back sometime this week.

BROWN: OK. I want to go back to what to me remains the central question. I have no reason not to believe that when they say the chances of contracting this in humans is close to zero as imaginable yet they are pulling that meat off the shelves, why?

FIRFER: As they put it, USDA officials say in abundance of precaution. Basically the muscle cuts, the meat that you and I eat, the steaks, the hamburgers, BSE does not reside there.

BSE is found in the central nervous system, the brain and the spinal cord. Those are discarded and not used for human consumption. They're pulling that meat off just as a precaution and I think also to reassure consumers that they're doing all they can to protect them.

BROWN: Holly, thank you, good to have you with us tonight.

The dust hasn't entirely settled on this. Obviously there are plenty of questions. One thing we've been hearing a lot all week from many experts is that the risk of two humans from mad cow is very low. We just talked about this some more.

So how should we see all of this? Eric Schlosser is the author of "Fast Food Nation." We're glad to have him with us tonight.

ERIC SCHLOSSER, AUTHOR, "FAST FOOD NATION": Thanks for having me.

BROWN: So, would you be out buying hamburger in those eight states or would you buy something else? SCHLOSSER: You know I don't think it's -- I don't think it's a good idea to eat meat from that cow and they're talking about it being an abundance of caution that they're recalling the meat.

BROWN: Right.

SCHLOSSER: I don't think anyone should eat ground beef.

BROWN: Why should I believe it's just one cow by the way? That's another thing that to me stretches.

SCHLOSSER: I think -- it's unlikely that it is one cow and I don't want to panic people.

BROWN: Right.

SCHLOSSER: You just did the report on al Qaeda. I'm much more concerned about al Qaeda. We were both in New York on 9/11. I think that's a rational fear. Only 150 people have ever come down with a human form of mad cow disease but the reality is we don't know very much about this disease.

It may have a very long incubation period. It's a terrible disease if you get it and I think our government has done a very poor job at protecting the American people from mad cow.

BROWN: Well, OK. I want to talk about that.

SCHLOSSER: Yes.

BROWN: That's an interesting one to me because on the one hand it may be true. I've read a lot in the last four or five days that suggests it is. On the other hand there's one cow out there.

SCHLOSSER: Yes.

BROWN: The millions or hundreds of thousands, I don't know how many cows are slaughtered every year, just one cow.

SCHLOSSER: Well, one of the things that food safety experts have been pushing for for years is more testing.

BROWN: Yes.

SCHLOSSER: There's only one cow because relatively speaking we're testing a very, very small proportion of the cattle. There are about 35 million cattle slaughtered every year and we test about 20,000.

BROWN: And is it true that the industry has opposed that kind of testing and the tracking of individual cows and what herd they came from and so on?

SCHLOSSER: Yes. The industry and it's interesting that the industry is making such a big deal out of this ban on certain feed containing cattle that was enacted in 1997 because the industry fought tooth and nail against any limits on what it could feed cattle.

And, as a matter of fact, in 2001 a congressional investigation found that that feed ban that was enacted in 1997 wasn't even being obeyed by many, many rendering companies and feed manufacturers.

So, I'm not trying to, you know, scare people or create a panic but I think what we need is very simple. We need to be testing the cattle before they enter the food chain. You need a system to trace meat once it's into our markets and you need a power to recall the meat.

I mean this recall in eight states right now is a voluntary recall because the USDA doesn't have the power, literally does not have the power to order this meat off the shelves.

BROWN: On the other hand, I mean... SCHLOSSER: Please.

BROWN: As a practical matter who is going to go in and buy that meat if they found out that the store refused a recall notice? I mean you know you're not likely to drive a car let alone...

SCHLOSSER: Well, as a practical matter there is enormous difficulty even learning where that meat has been shipped.

BROWN: That's different.

SCHLOSSER: And while they don't know where it is people are eating it. Now in Western Europe where they've had mad cow disease people are still eating beef but the government has the ability literally to find out where a steer wound up in what package of sausage. If FedEx can track millions and millions of small little packages I think we should be able to trace big 1,200 pound steers.

BROWN: Well, except that it's not a question of whether we can.

SCHLOSSER: Yes.

BROWN: It's whether we want to, whether we have either the -- whether we have the political willingness in the end to do it because this becomes a political problem. The industry is opposed to it.

SCHLOSSER: There is a basic problem and I am a meat eater and I think this is something that meat eaters should be upset about. The USDA has as its mandate to promote the sale of American beef, which is a good thing, but they also have as their mandate to make sure that beef is safe. There's often a contradiction between the two. I think too often they err on the side of promoting the beef and saying everything's OK when it may not be.

BROWN: Just quickly if you're sitting in South Carolina tonight and you were planning to have a rib roast tomorrow, any reason not to?

SCHLOSSER: No.

BROWN: If you're out in Guam tonight and you're planning on eating a rib roast any reason not to?

SCHLOSSER: I'd be concerned about inexpensive cuts of ground beef and heavily processed meat.

BROWN: Ground beef is sort of everything that's lying around.

SCHLOSSER: Yes. I mean in your earlier report they talked about spinal cord material.

BROWN: Right.

SCHLOSSER: I mean there was a study done last year that showed that 75 percent of the plants using this advanced meat recovery system that scrapes the extra little bit of meat off the bone was introducing spinal cord material into meat like ground beef. So, don't panic but I think people should be angry at the lack of government oversight of this industry.

BROWN: Nice to meet you. The book's done well hasn't it?

SCHLOSSER: It has. Thank you.

BROWN: Good for you. Nice to meet you.

SCHLOSSER: Nice to meet you.

BROWN: Thanks for coming in. Have a good holiday.

On to Iran next where the death toll from Friday's earthquake has climbed to at least 25,000, 25,000. It's one of those numbers that is too big to comprehend. Twenty-five thousand dead, little hope of finding any of the missing still alive, tens of thousands of people homeless and help pouring in from all over the world.

The U.S. military has flown a dozen aid missions so far, remarkable when you consider there has been no military contact between Iran and the United States in two decades. Disaster sometimes transcends politics, sometimes.

Here's CNN's Matthew Chance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHANCE (voice-over): This is the human cost of the catastrophe that's befallen Bam. With thousands of bodies already recovered, mass graves are being filled as fast as they can be dug. This is burial on an industrial scale. Few here have been spared death or grief.

Local clerics supervising the funeral rites are overwhelmed by the sheer numbers. "We're preparing the ground for 70,000 graves" one told me. "We're trying to give them all respect and an Islamic funeral but it's becoming very hard for us. There are so many" he says. Exact numbers of dead in this disaster zone have still to be reckoned.

(on camera): This is a grave site of enormous proportions because it has to be. The bodies are being buried 100 at a time. Most will never be identified here. The authorities say quite simply there is nobody left in Bam who knows who they are.

(voice-over): In the ruins of the town efforts continue to dig for survivors but this is an increasingly desperate search and there's debate about whether the time has now come to stop.

"There is slim hopes" says one man "that someone could be found alive." "No" says another "people need air and there is none under all this rubble."

Time may well have run out for anyone still trapped but it's clear the cost of this catastrophe may yet exceed this country's worst fears.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Bam in southeastern Iran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: By comparison the mudslides in California probably seem insignificant. They aren't of course, not to the families of the 13 people who have perished and the news was no better today. Another body was found and more rain is on the way; reporting for us tonight CNN's Charles Feldman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHARLES FELDMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Father John Bocus (ph) blessed the grounds of what was the St. Sophia Church camp. At least 12 people who gathered there for a Christmas Day celebration that was not sanctioned by the church died after a 12-foot high wall of mud swept down the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains following heavy rainfall.

With one more person still missing and believed dead, country crews continued the search racing against predictions of more heavy rain expected early Thursday morning.

CHIP PATTERSON, SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: Periodically in the next coming days and weeks our plan is to bring the cadaver dogs back into the areas that we feel have high probability.

FELDMAN: Two previous months of fires left the foothills devoid of most trees and vegetation making conditions ripe for mudslides. Susan Snead (ph) has lived in these parts for nearly 40 years and is gearing up for what is supposed to be another winter storm.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have a canyon in the side of our home and it's just wearing away the hillside so we brought somebody in to hopefully push up the rocks to help save our home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FELDMAN: Now forecasters say that the storm tomorrow could dump as much as three more inches of rain but officials say they are going to take a wait and see attitude and not determine until they see how much rain there really is whether or not to ask for any evacuations -- Aaron.

BROWN: There was, I think this was in the northern part of the state but I saw reports earlier tonight of the interstate having been closed, I-5 having been closed up north. Is that the same weather system that's been causing the problems in Southern California?

FELDMAN: Yes, it is Aaron. It's moving in from the north and it is expected in Southern California around midnight with the heaviest rainfall expected around 4:00 or 5:00 a.m. Pacific Time.

BROWN: It has been a tough couple of months down there. Thank you, Charles, Charles Feldman in Southern California tonight.

Ahead on NEWSNIGHT, more air marshals on more flights. Will it make any difference? We'll take a look at that.

Later, it just gets uglier and uglier, at least so it seems, why the Democratic candidates are saying such nasty things about Howard Dean.

This is NEWSNIGHT on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Back now to the beginning and the latest terrorist threat information and the order for more air marshals in the sky. We still don't know precisely the nature of this information that triggered the concern among security people, which makes it harder to assess how worried we all should be.

We turn tonight to Larry Johnson, a former CIA analyst. He joins us now from Washington. Larry, it's good to see you.

LARRY JOHNSON, FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF COUNTER TERRORISM: Good to be with you.

BROWN: Let's pick up on this idea we were talking about earlier, the decision made either by the French or the Americans or the French and the Americans to ground those airplanes as opposed to any of the other intermediate steps they could have taken short of that.

JOHNSON: Sure.

BROWN: What do you think of that?

JOHNSON: We surrendered to terrorists last week, pure and simple, because the irony here is when you have specific information and, as it was described by Secretary Ridge credible, then you actually can take a variety of steps to deter and defeat the terrorists.

In this case, for example, if the information was that the flight crews had been infiltrated change the flight crews. If the concern was that some of the passengers were al Qaeda members and were going to try to hijack the plane make sure the door is locked. Put an armed marshal inside the cockpit with the pilots and subject the passengers to additional screening and put more air marshals onboard.

You know there are a variety of things that can be done but in this case we surrendered. And I talked to several friends who are long time aviation security guys in the industry. They're scratching their heads. This is -- they're viewing this almost as amateur hour.

BROWN: I want to come back to that but why not better safe than sorry? I mean it's easy for us I suppose to sit here and second guess.

JOHNSON: Right.

BROWN: But ultimately we're not responsible for the lives of the 250 people on those airplanes or the buildings that they might have hit or any of the rest.

JOHNSON: Well, I'm not trying to play Monday morning quarterback but I've been in that position before and I'll give you an example. Today when Secretary Ridge announced for the first time in public that there are no air marshals on all these foreign flights coming into the country we have now done the intelligence work for al Qaeda.

Before today they didn't know for sure. Now they know and, in fact, we've told them that unless we have specific information about a particular flight we're not going to require these other countries to have air marshals.

I don't see how that makes us safer. That gives the bad guys information that they shouldn't have. That's something that Secretary Ridge frankly should have kept to himself. It should have been kept within the confines of TSA. They could talk to the airlines privately but putting that out publicly does not make us safer.

BROWN: But there's an interesting balance here it seems to me that is one of the things you're trying to do is to convince people that it is safe to fly.

JOHNSON: Right.

BROWN: And if people feel safer, as they may well, because there's an air marshal onboard I guess that would be motivation to tell them there's an air marshal onboard.

JOHNSON: Well, you got a couple of problems. If -- let's say that you can afford to put air marshals on every plane and you're going to need more than one then people would be assuming that that's the case and what I think we ought to leave the American public and the world believing is that there's an air marshal on every flight. Whether there is or not the government shouldn't be in the business of confirming that.

But I've seen even security professionals make some assumptions about what was being done with security, such as several years ago people that were in the counter terrorism shop where I worked believed that all bags were being x-rayed for explosives and when I informed them that that wasn't the case they were shocked.

BROWN: In the two years that we have all lived with this, two years and a little bit of change, do you see that we are better at it or we are just quicker to announce what we knew before but just didn't talk about?

JOHNSON: Aaron, I think it's more of the latter. Well, let me put it this way. I think the Bush administration has done a very good job of making us safer from the threats posed by al Qaeda domestically.

On the other hand, the politicians within are so fearful that if something happens and they haven't warned people that they'll get blamed. So by issuing the warnings it's a win-win for them because if something happens they'll say well we told you so.

BROWN: Yes.

JOHNSON: And if nothing happens they'll say well see we deterred it and I know it makes them feel better in terms of well we've gone public but the reality is with some of the security information it needs to be kept quiet.

It needs to be handled behind the scenes and then unless you've got something that you really need people's cooperation on where you can't guarantee that nothing is going to happen then go public. But right now we're going public and people are left with what do I do and the answer is be careful.

BROWN: Larry, it's good to see you again. Have a good New Year. Thank you.

JOHNSON: You do the same.

BROWN: Thank you, Larry Johnson with us tonight.

On to another facet of the war on terror, we learned today the U.S. military will appoint four American civilians to a review panel, a review panel which will examine verdicts reached by the military tribunals planned for prisoners at Guantanamo Bay. They are, of course, being held as suspected terrorists at a U.S. military prison there.

The appointees will be called to active duty to the military. They'll be given the rank of major general. Short of the president it will be the only appeal rights these men have and it is still not clear what rules will be used to try them or if any civilian defense attorneys will agree to participate.

A few more items making news around the country, just outside of Cleveland, rain is complicating the battle against a fire at a magnesium recycling plant. The fire broke out today causing a series of explosions. Magnesium reacts chemically with water and it was raining there today, hence the worsening problem. Nobody injured but this fire could burn on for days. On to Florida now and the sad case of Lionel Tate, the teenager's family is still considering a plea deal offered late last week by prosecutors. The deal came after an appeals court threw out young Lionel Tate's conviction for killing a 6-year-old neighbor. Lionel Tate was 12 at the time.

Today, Florida's attorney general filed for a rehearing before the appeals court in the case just in case the Tate family rejects the plea offer. A little bit of pressure there.

Another twist in the Michael Jackson case, the pop star's spokesman Stuart Backerman (ph) said today he is resigning. He says there are strategic differences in the direction that things are going. Mr. Backerman had been issuing statements on behalf of the singer who, as you know, is charged with multiple counts of child molestation involving one young boy.

Still ahead on the program tonight wood, not so scary right? Everything else in the program is scary why not wood? We'll tell you about that.

This is NEWSNIGHT from New York.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Back now to Iran, where the situation tonight is dire for the survivors of the earthquake that leveled the city of Bam.

Ed Pearn is the U.N. disaster assessment coordinator. He is also there with Halvor Lauritzsen, who is with the Federation of International Red Crosses and Red Crescents. And they join us from Bam. I guess it's morning there.

It's good to have you both with us.

Mr. Lauritzsen, what's the thing you need most? What's the biggest problem you face right now?

HALVOR LAURITZSEN, RED CROSS/RED CRESCENT: Well, first of all, the real emergency phase is slowly coming to an end. But, still, we have a lot of challenges when it comes to relief, to provide all the families with tents, blankets, warm clothes, clean water and medical services.

BROWN: So it's the whole range. It's everything from water to drink to food to eat, a place to sleep?

LAURITZSEN: Yes. It's a complete eruption of the infrastructure here in Bam.

BROWN: Mr. Pearn, is disease a problem at this point?

EDWARD PEARN, U.N. DISASTER ASSESSMENT AND COORDINATION: We're not aware that that is a problem. But, of course, if things aren't controlled, then it could become a problem. But, at the moment, we have no reports of disease. BROWN: Do you, either or both of you, worry that, right now -- we're a few days since this terrible tragedy -- the world is focused on this and there is an enormous amount of attention, that, in short order, a few days, a week, two weeks, that everyone will leave and it will be left for the people there to put their city back together?

PEARN: Well, that's always a possibility. But our concern is that the relief work continues.

As has already been said, my concern was more centered around the rescue -- search-and-rescue part of it. And my colleague is now taking over on the other phase, which is kicking in, which is the needs assessments for humanitarian items. But I think our controls and programs are such that it allows us to plan for the future, so that things continue after the initial incident.

(CROSSTALK)

LAURITZSEN: Yes, and I have just -- of course, it's a worry that we -- we have to bridge the gap when the organizations are leaving now.

And that's why the Red Cross and Red Crescent are here to support the Iranian Red Crescent in this respect. And we have to look ahead on the midterm, long-term needs here as well, to look at the infrastructural needs, to look at the schools, hospitals, water lines, all the things that can get a society up and going again.

PEARN: And, of course, in the long term, we hope to help the government in their preparations for any future event, which they've been very forthright in doing before this event.

BROWN: Mr. Lauritzsen, as I've watched, it's seemed that, for days, people there have been in a state of shock. Is it your sense that this horrible reality has now set in?

LAURITZSEN: Well, it's two kind of reaction that we can see.

It's a kind of fatigue among the beneficiaries. And it's also -- people are running for supplies. And the other thing is that people are clearly in shock. And we will have to do something to restore this population mentally as well. I think that's important.

BROWN: It's an awful scene to look at. Gentlemen, thank you for your good work. I think everyone appreciates the work you're doing. Thank you very much; 25,000 people have died there.

Other news to report tonight.

Some dangers, mudslides and earthquakes included, are shaped by geography. Others are not. This one is close to home, literally. In tens of millions of backyards across the United States, swing sets and porches and decks that could, we're told, cause cancer. The problem is the wood and the chemicals used to preserve that wood, a danger known for years. This week, the producers of the wood will stop making it for residential use. But that won't keep the wood out of circulation and won't solve the problem either.

Here's CNN's Brian Cabell.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For decades playground equipment and decks have been built with a preservative known as chromated copper arsenic, or CCA. It contains arsenic, a carcinogen.

The Environmental Protection Agency, according to a spokesman, has not determined that CCA treated wood poses significant risk to people, but there is evidence that there may be some elevated risks to children from long-term use.

The lumber industry has agreed to the ban but downplays the danger. A spokesman says, "Enough studies have been done by the EPA and others that show the arsenic exposure from wood treated with CCA is very small."

David Seitz, vice president of Play Nation, a playground equipment builder, says they stopped using CCA treated wood a couple of years ago.

(on camera): Was your company concerned about the possible health threats?

JOHN SEITZ, PLAY NATION VICE PRESIDENT: We're a consumer products company, so what we do is we listen to our customers.

CABELL: The EPA has advice for homeowners with CCA treated wood: Keep food out of contact with the wood, such as picnic tables. Children playing on the wood should wash their hands before eating. Don't burn the wood. And wear a dust mask, goggles and gloves when working with it.

The ban on CCA treated wood applies only to homes. It will still be allowed for commercial use. And while production of CCA wood for residential use stops at year's end, it will still be sold in stores until supplies run out. It will be replaced by arsenic-free alternatives.

Brian Cabell, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: A few business stories before we go to break.

And judging from what we have here, it has within been a slow day in the world of high finance. I guess it's the holiday. In a move that's one part product tampering and one part product gimmick -- imagine that -- M&Ms are losing their color and will only be available in black and white for the next couple of months. I think they did this to see if they could get it on television. And, in fact, they did. They plans to run a contest later in the year before reintroducing its candies of color. Can't say you didn't know. Maybe it's a reality TV show. Maybe it's the tape on the Internet. But Paris Hilton has a lot of pizza-eating fans out there. Domino's said the hotel heiress' name was the No. 1 fake name used by people ordering pizza. Well, there you have that.

Finally, something more serious, the stock market doing a little early New Year's celebrating. The Dow, the Nasdaq, the S&P all ended the day higher. I think it's the first time in 20 months the Nasdaq has been over 2000.

Still to come on NEWSNIGHT, a freedom we here at NEWSNIGHT take for granted. We don't take any for granted, do we? And the one the Iraqis are just learning about, freedom of the press.

Around the world, this is NEWSNIGHT.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: All in all, a very quiet day this day in Iraq, no Americans reported killed today.

But that doesn't mean there wasn't any news. And reporting it to Iraqi citizens has become a very high priority for the Pentagon. Among its many other responsibilities in Iraq, the Defense Department has started its own television station. There's no telling yet how many Iraqis it reaches.

But, as CNN's Satinder Bindra reports, the mere fact it is in existence gives some Iraqi journalists hope.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This Iraqi network called Al-Iraqiya is available to all Iraqis who own a TV set. Set up and funded by the Pentagon, it aims to win over Iraqi hearts and minds. But many Iraqis complain, Al-Iraqiya is not so much about hearts and minds as it is about mind control.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It doesn't reflect the true Iraqi situation. It just reflects the occupation point of view.

BINDRA: Al-Iraqiya's general manager, Shameem Rassam, says such criticism is unfounded.

SHAMEEM RASSAM, GENERAL MANAGER, AL-IRAQIYA: Let them keep that presumption. It's fine. Let us do our work. Let's build up something new for Iraq. It's a new media.

BINDRA: Rassam and many of the 350 other Iraqis working for Al- Iraqiya say they have complete independence, a far cry, they say, from Saddam Hussein's times, when news was either manipulated or censored and editors just too scared to question the regime.

Newspaper editor Fakhri Karim was so scared of Saddam Hussein, he fled the country. He's returned now to run a newspaper and is relishing Iraq's new press freedom. FAKHRI KARIM, NEWSPAPER EDITOR (through translator): Learning how to write freely is not that difficult. Even if a bird is caged for 50 years, it will still fly the moment you open its cage.

BINDRA: Also opening up in Iraq for the first time ever, satellite television.

(on camera): Satellite TV was banned by Saddam Hussein. Now it's fast becoming a lifeline for Iraqis who want to be more connected to the rest of the world. In the past few months, these store owners say they've sold tens of thousands of satellite dishes.

(voice-over): Many Iraqis get their news from Arab satellite channels Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya. They're tough competitors for the new network on the block, Al-Iraqiya. But Al-Iraqiya journalist Shameem Rassam says she just wants to take one step at a time.

RASSAM: I felt that the people are breathing freedom and I am breathing freedom also as a journalist.

BINDRA: Al-Iraqiya journalists here say it's too early to worry about the competition. What's important, they say, is, they have a new life and they get on with telling the truth to and about their people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BINDRA: And, Aaron, a quick word about the print media here. Shortly after the war, dozens and dozens of Iraqi newspapers came into circulation. And they're quite feisty when it comes to competing amongst each other. Shortly after the capture of Saddam Hussein, they were all fighting to get the most unusual and the most interesting picture of Saddam Hussein on their front page -- Aaron.

BROWN: Well, those front pages are near and dear to our hearts.

Let's go back to the television for a second. What is it they're putting on TV? Is it just news? And is that what they're doing?

BINDRA: Well, they have a wide range of programming. And then they have what they call news cut-ins. So, for example, at 12:00 noontime, 2:00, 4:00 and then at 8:00, they have newscasts. And these newscasts are indeed being watched by Iraqis.

In fact, when Saddam Hussein was captured, many Iraqis in the street, I saw, turned into Al-Iraqiya to watch the first pictures of Saddam in captivity coming in -- Aaron.

BROWN: Satinder, thank you. Good to see you again -- Satinder Bindra in Baghdad this morning.

It is hard -- onto politics -- not to marvel at the resiliency of the Howard Dean campaign. The harsher the attacks, the more the money flows, $14 million last quarter, a nice chunk of cash, though it pales to the $50 million the Bush campaign raised in the same period. And if it were possible, Dean would probably give up a good chunk if he could get his Democratic opponents to pull back a bit, not be quite so harsh, which they hardly seem inclined to do.

Here's CNN's Candy Crowley.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(APPLAUSE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The season to be jolly rarely ever is when it's also election season. So, when Howard Dean seemed to question the guilt of Osama bin Laden in connection with 9/11, John Kerry said Dean's thinking is muddled. Joe Lieberman called him a "foreign policy rookie." Dick Gephardt wondered if Dean is electable, and Dean blamed the head of the Democratic Party for allowing his rivals to say such things."If we had strong leadership in the Democratic Party," he told "The New York Times," "they would be calling those other candidates and saying, 'hey, look, somebody's going to have to win here."

Dean also implied if he's not nominated, millions of new to politics supporters might stay home. Rival campaigns went into orbit. John Kerry called it "a divisive, threatening statement." Gephardt suggested Dean wants a coronation. Dean, they said, can't take it, but sure can dish it out.

HOWARD DEAN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We cannot beat George Bush by being Bush-light.

CROWLEY: Dean may be the front-runner, but he will never be elected Ms. Congeniality by rivals.

DEAN: What Joe and others are doing on Israel is despicable.

CROWLEY: Doth he protest too much? Dean is virtually bulletproof among his true believers. In fact, nothing fills his coffers like an incoming missile.

Here with the latest fund-raising pitch, courtesy Al Gore."Howard Dean," Gore said, "needs the resources to respond to these attacks and get his message to the American people."

In the end, it may be that Howard Dean is getting not what he deserves, but exactly what he wants.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: And, as we go to break, a look at where some of the candidates will be tomorrow, as 2003 winds to a close.

This is NEWSNIGHT.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Well, what can I tell you? It's that time of year again, no, not a look back at the past year in music. The accordion guy is tied up for the holidays. And, no, not our look back at some of the wonderful talents we lost in 2003. That's on tomorrow night's program.

Tonight, as perhaps only as NEWSNIGHT can bring you, the year in political cartoons, courtesy of Mike Thompson and "The Detroit Free Press."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE THOMPSON, "THE DETROIT FREE PRESS": I'm the political cartoonist for "The Detroit Free Press." My job is basically that of a columnist, to record my thoughts and opinions on the issues of the day.

Editorial cartooning is almost more an extension of who you are than anything else. It requires a sort of weird combination of talents. You have to have a nose for news. You have to have an ability to draw. And you also have to have a very warped sense of humor. And I seem to fall into all three of those categories.

Being in Detroit, it's such a huge news town. And, in 2003, there were so many events that were local, but also national. You look at the affirmative action debate, the whole "What Would Jesus Drive?" debate over SUVs. So there are a whole lot of issues that are local, but, at the same time, also have national and international implications.

The challenge isn't coming up with one cartoon on Iraq. The challenge is coming up with a hundred or so cartoons about the war in Iraq, each being different, each having a distinct opinion and, hopefully, something clever to say.

Michigan is facing a pretty severe budget shortfall. And I figured out that, if we took the money that we were spending in Iraq in one month, not only would we erase our budget shortfall, but we would have about $100 million to spend on things like education and schools and health care.

I think the official word that they had got Uday and Qusay came at 4:30. I have a 6:00 deadline. And this is what I came up with. It uses the image of the two playing cards, having been thrown in the trash. And the two rats that are along with them in the garbage are saying, there goes the neighborhood.

The blackout here in Detroit, 30 blissful hours without a single update on the California recall election. It was great. Unfortunately, we came crashing back to earth. That particular cartoon, I used the analogy of the circus freak show. And so I've got Arnold as the strongman, Arianna Huffington as the two-headed woman who is both liberal and conservative. And then there's Larry Flynt as toad boy and Angelyne as the silicone woman, Gary Coleman as the human gnat. And then there's Governor Gray Davis as velcro man, who gets blamed for everything.

I try to steer clear, usually, of the whole celebrity-as-news phenomenon. But if I do a cartoon on a certain celebrity, it's generally going to be about a related topic. In this case, the notion of being able to get a fair trial under the glare of the media spotlight.

Michael Jackson, I drew that cartoon after seeing his arrest photo, which was kind of like an automobile accident. You're horrified, but you can't stop looking. And this was my take on it; 2004 is going to be the year of the trial, I mean, with Saddam going on trial, Michael Jackson going on trial and Kobe Bryant going on trial.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Mike Thompson, the political cartoonist for "The Detroit Free Press."

We'll take a look at other newspapers in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(ROOSTER CROWING)

BROWN: All righty, time to check morning papers from around the country and around the world. And they will be from around the world and around the country today.

We begin -- this is a first. This may be a cable television exclusive. I think it is. "The Iran Daily." This would be the English-language paper in Iran. I didn't know there was much of a market for it, but apparently so. It's a terrific picture, a sad one, on the front page: "2,000 Bam Victims Buried. Finding Survivors Would be a Miracle." That's the lead. As you would imagine, it will be the lead in "The Iran Daily" and all the other papers in that country for some years, or months, to come.

"The International Herald Tribune," also, at least in their photo, leads with the earthquake. "Iran Quake Survivors Bury Their Dead." And they put the U.S. terror alert on the front page, too. "U.S. Orders Guards on Foreign Carriers." But this, they did just to annoy me. "Vikings Blow Playoff Place With Painful Late Collapse." If you've been a Vikings fan as long as I have been, which is pretty much my whole life, you were not even surprised by what happened yesterday. It's what happens.

"The Guardian" doesn't lead with the earthquake. It doesn't lead with terror. It leads with "Sex Laws Gets Major Overhaul," because, in Britain, I guess that is what they're thinking about this time of year, or any time of year.

"The Philadelphia Inquirer" leads local, kind of. I like this story. "New Battle at Gettysburg. Central PA Site is Leading the Way in Reclaiming Historic Battlefields From the Crush of Development." We wish them nothing but good luck there, not that we have an opinion on any story we do. But we do wish them good luck.

"The Sun," that's the newspaper in -- how are we doing on time, David? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 1:02.

BROWN: 1:02. OK, probably a minute now.

"The Sun," the newspaper in -- thank you, David. Thank you. "Residents Prepare For Massive Flood." I mean, they've had fires. They've had -- the locusts are coming next. "Rain Will Overflow Debris-Filled Channels." Sounds unpleasant. Anyway, that's the lead in "The Sun" in San Bernardino.

I just like this paper, "The Oregonian" in Portland, Oregon. They lead with mad cow, a lot of different ways to lead. It's a front-page story. "Sick Cow Was Born Before Feed Ban. Others Are Sought From Same Herd Imported From the United States and Canada." That's a Western story. And so they put it on the front page. I would, too, if I was out there.

How much?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twenty.

BROWN: Twenty. OK, let's go to "The Chicago Sun-Times," then. They lead sports. "Jauron " -- is that how it's pronounced. Dick Jauron? Or Jauron? -- "Fired." He's the Chicago Bears coach. Simply put. "Expectations Weren't Met." "U.S. Orders Marshals on Foreign Airlines."

And the weather tomorrow in Chicago is "confusing."

We'll take a look at the day's top story and preview tomorrow after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Before we leave you tonight, a recap of our top story.

Heading into the new year, U.S. officials say intelligence they're collecting continues to suggest al Qaeda and other groups are planning another 9/11-type attack against the United States. The Office of Homeland Security has now begun ordering overseas airlines, foreign air carriers, to place armed sky marshals on certain flights to thwart terror attacks if they want to land in the United States.

Homeland Security Chief Tom Ridge said today he is just as concerned about the possibility of a terror attack this week as he was last. That is how the year is ending.

Tomorrow night on this program, the lives we lost in 2003. People will miss Bob Hope and others, David Brinkley. That's tomorrow night here on NEWSNIGHT.

For most of you, "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" is next. We'll see you all tomorrow, we hope.

Good night for all of us at NEWSNIGHT.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





Attack; USDA Says Infected Cow Came From Canada; 25,000 Confirmed Dead at Bam>