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Senator George Allen to Concede Virginia Senate Race; '"60 Minutes"' Correspondent Ed Bradley Dead at 65; President Bush Appears To Bury Campaign Hatchets With Victorious Democrats; Walter Cronkite Interview

Aired November 09, 2006 - 14:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Concession or not? Just in, Virginia race.
Let's go straight to Dana Bash. She's on the phone now from Capitol Hill -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.

Well, CNN has just confirmed that Senator George Allen in one hour will formally end his bid for the Senate. He will concede the Virginia Senate race, and what that will mean is it will officially put the control of the United States Senate in Democratic hands when the Senate returns to work in January.

So, this has certainly over the past 24, 48 hours been a painstaking process for Senator Allen and for everybody involved in the state of Virginia. Essentially what has been going on, of course, is there has been canvassing, or sort of a reviewing of the votes because the margin was so close, less than one percent.

But our understanding from sources inside the Allen campaign is that it is abundantly clear to them that the votes are not going their way, that it is clear that Jim Webb, the Democratic candidate, and apparently now the senator-elect from Virginia does have the votes.

So, Senator Allen, again, in one hour in Virginia, we are told by a source close to Senator Allen, will formally concede the race in Virginia. Again, that means a seismic shift, a seismic shift in the balance of power in Washington, D.C.

Democrats will take control of the United States Senate. Of course, now control of both houses of Congress -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We'll take it live, 3:00 p.m. Eastern, as soon as it happens. We'll talk to you some more.

Dana Bash, thank you.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And why don't we go to Virginia?

CNN's Jeanne Meserve is there, and she joins us now with the very latest.

Jeanne, reaction? JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Don, no reaction yet from the Webb campaign. Certainly this is something that has been widely anticipated by them and by virtually everybody else who has been watching this race.

As Dana said, the numbers simply didn't appear to be there for George Allen. The canvass is under way in Virginia right now. And if anything, Jim Webb was picking up votes as a result of that canvass. And according to sources, Allen has been advised by Republican sources in the party and in the Senate that this was the time for him to concede.

Of course, James Webb said on election night he thought he'd won. I can tell you, having visited both headquarters for Webb and Allen yesterday, although the candidates weren't there, there were distinctly different moods.

Here at Webb campaign headquarters, he was always being -- already being referred to as "senator-elect". Over at the Allen headquarters in northern Virginia, a dejected staff, and a small staff at that.

So, no surprise here. One, because of that canvass. Two, because when there have been recounts in the state of Virginia, they have not reversed the results of the elections. There have been a couple in recent years involving other races.

And thirdly, there was this question of George Allen and his political future and did he want to risk alienating the people of Virginia by protracting the process, by stretching it out when there was no real evidence that the result was going to be any different than as it appears to be right now.

So, as Dana reports, it appears now George Allen is facing the music and is going to shortly face the cameras and concede this race.

Back to you.

LEMON: All right. Jeanne Meserve in Arlington, Virginia.

Thank you so much for that.

And don't forget, Senator George Allen plans a news conference in Alexandria, Virginia, at 3:00 p.m. Eastern. We'll have live coverage right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: A developing story, and that's the death of journalism giant Ed Bradley of CBS News. Bradley died of leukemia at New York -- New York's Mount Sinai Hospital, rather.

CNN's Mary Snow joins us once again from CBS headquarters in New York where, of course, all his colleagues are honoring his life and legacy today.

Hi, Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Kyra.

And certainly CBS staffers here very saddened by the news that Ed Bradley died this morning here at a hospital in New York.

Katie Couric delivered the news earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATIE COURIC, HOST, "CBS EVENING NEWS": We have some sad news to tell you this afternoon that has left many here in the CBS family completely grief-stricken. Ed Bradley, longtime CBS News and "60 Minutes" correspondent, died this morning at Mount Sinai Hospital here in New York from complications related to leukemia. Ed Bradley was 65 years old.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW: Bradley had been with "60 Minutes" since 1981. He had spent his entire career here at -- practically his entire career here at CBS.

We just spoke with his colleague, Steve Kroft, from "60 Minutes". He was teary-eyed, saying that he last saw Ed Bradley about a month ago when they went to a baseball game together.

Many people we talked to today said that they knew that Ed Bradley was sick but they did not know just how ill he had become. And we are here at CBS, where we expect to talk to some of his other colleagues later today -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And we'll do that right now. Mary Snow, thanks so much.

We want to talk more on the death of Ed Bradley. His friend, colleague and fellow "60 Minutes" correspondent Mike Wallace joining us on the phone now.

Mike, were you surprised or did you know that Ed had been suffering from leukemia?

MIKE WALLACE, CBS CORRESPONDENT: I had no idea that he was suffering from leukemia. Pardon. I know that he had been having some physical difficulty, but I didn't know exactly what it was, and I didn't want to pry.

PHILLIPS: Wow. So you got the call. You found out today.

Talk to me about, Mike, what kind of colleague he was. Tell me about his reputation. Tell me about your friendship with him.

WALLACE: He was, of all things, I suppose, the best of both for a reporter, in that he was a strong and gentle man simultaneously. He was a first-rate reporter.

He'd been around the world. He'd done all kind of things down the years. And he was just as good at doing -- I'll never forget -- oh, my, there goes the phone. Hold -- can you hold a second?

PHILLIPS: Go ahead and get that call. Hey, Mike?

WALLACE: Yes?

PHILLIPS: Do you know who it is? I mean, we're live on CNN. Can you stay with me, or do you have to take this call?

WALLACE: I just want to -- otherwise, the phone will keep on ringing. I'll tell them to stop.

PHILLIPS: Grab it and I'll talk a little bit about Ed for a minute. Go ahead and grab that phone and tell me when you're back.

That's Mike Wallace for you. You've got to love him.

He has worked side by side with Ed Bradley, as you know, for a number of years there at "60 Minutes". Mike just recently retired from "60 Minutes". He comes back and does special reports for the network.

As you heard, he had just found out this morning about Ed Bradley, his death, and that he was suffering from leukemia. Mike was starting to tell us just about how humble Ed was. Didn't want anybody to know that he was this sick.

If you might have seen "60 Minutes" just a couple weeks ago, Lesley Stahl had introduced Ed Bradley's piece. He had done an investigation on BP, and a family -- actually, a young gal that had lost her father and her mother working at a BP plant, and Ed Bradley had dug tremendously on that story, and it had triggered a massive lawsuit.

Let's go ahead and listen to a few moments from Ed Bradley and his life as we work to get Mike Wallace back on the phone.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CBS NEWS (voice-over): Only a few fishermen helped the boat people ashore. We joined Ed.

ED BRADLEY, CBS NEWS: I saw panic in Vietnam. Those people were fleeing and were afraid and wanted to get out. I've never seen that kind of panic before, that kind of fear. Within two days, it was all over, Saigon. We left on a helicopter.

The hearings are viewed as a forum for the presentation of all allegations against Lance and an opportunity for him to respond. When one aide was asked if the Lance affair was not becoming a drain on the president, he said, "It's not a question of this thing being a drain. It's a question of this man getting a fair hearing."

Ed Bradley, CBS News, the White House.

I think people realize that what we do every week is tell a good story. We try to tell three good stories every week. And I don't think that you need a lot of movement and graphics to tell a good story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Mike Wallace, Ed Bradley definitely knew how to tell a good story.

WALLACE: The -- look, Bradley knew indeed how to tell a good story. The qualities that drew me to him was the fact that he was such a, as I say, a strong and gentle man simultaneously. And -- and integrity, forget about anything but that. He was dead honest, straightforward.

I didn't want to pry about -- I knew that he was not the same guy physically that he had been. I remember there was a time when every day, every day regularly at noon he'd come past my office and wave. And where was he on his way to? The gym.

He was constantly taking care of himself physically. And so, to know that during all of that time apparently something different was going on -- and apparently it was -- it was stunning to me.

PHILLIPS: Mike, something that we haven't talked about -- and you probably will be the perfect person to talk about this -- and that is, Ed did all types of interviews, all types of stories. But I remember reading about him as a young black journalist, his first gig in Philly, and he had to cover one of Martin Luther King Jr.'s speeches in Philadelphia.

And there were other riots and protests breaking out in the city, and he was there, and as a young reporter initially he struggled with that desire to take part in some of the protests that he covered, but then he quickly learned, hey, I've got to be objective, I want to give fair and objective representation...

WALLACE: That's right.

PHILLIPS: ... to this subject matter. And as I watched his career, all the way up to when he covered the Emmett Till story for you guys not long ago, just how he chased it and he wanted to find justice and he wanted to find balance. He was amazing with stories with regard to civil rights.

WALLACE: He sure was. He sure was. And you knew that you were going to get it straight from him, no matter -- no matter where it led.

The fact of the matter is that we -- that Bradley could cover any kind of a story from a profile of Lena Horne, which was one of the most entertaining profiles I've ever seen ever done...

PHILLIPS: Yes.

WALLACE: And I saw him rescue people, some of the boat people off Vietnam at a time when he was over there.

He traveled the world. He was in the White House. Bradley was just a damn good reporter.

PHILLIPS: You know, a lot of people have learned how to be a good journalist by knowing you and watching you. As you knew Ed Bradley, watched him grow, watched everything that he did you ever feel that you sat back and -- did you ever sit back for a moment and think, wow, that just -- that hit me, that inspired me, I just learned something from Ed Bradley?

WALLACE: I would love to be able to say yes. I...

PHILLIPS: Did he inspire you? Did he make you look at things differently?

WALLACE: It never occurred to me. He's -- I mean, he was just where he belonged doing the job that he was -- that he deserved to do, and worked so damned hard at it, and was responsible and reliable and accurate and everything that a good reporter should be.

PHILLIPS: It's not easy to make people feel comfortable in an interview. But he was always very relaxed. He could ask those hard questions, but at the same time he could get people to laugh when they were extremely uncomfortable.

WALLACE: Right. You know something? That's true, he could. He could.

He was comfortable with people. He was comfortable in his own skin. And he was comfortable with people.

It was -- they don't -- they don't come any better. I mean, he was simply superb at what he did.

PHILLIPS: Mike Wallace, thanks for helping us remember Ed Bradley.

WALLACE: Let me just tell you one last thing.

PHILLIPS: Absolutely.

WALLACE: And that is, he had the most beautiful mother I have ever seen. If he died at the age of 65, she must have been then when -- oh, she was in her 70s, middle 70s, undoubtedly, when she came.

She was tall like him, same color like him. A kind of a light brown, with a dead white, perfect pure white head of hair. She was -- I mean, it was stunning to look at this woman. And she was obviously so proud and happy about her boy.

PHILLIPS: Well, he definitely lived a life for her to be extremely proud of.

WALLACE: Yes, he sure did.

PHILLIPS: Mike Wallace, thank you.

WALLACE: Kyra, bless (ph). PHILLIPS: Talk to you soon.

We're going to take a quick break.

More from the NEWSROOM straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All eyes on Virginia. Sources tell our Dana Bash that incumbent Republican senator George Allen plans to concede to his Democratic challenger, Jim Webb, next hour. That means the Democrats will take control of the Senate, as well as the House.

With a surplus of 7,200 votes, Webb has are already declared victory, but Virginia election officials continue to canvass votes to determine whether a runoff was needed. Again, we're told that George Allen will concede the race during his 3:00 p.m. news conference in Alexandria, Virginia.

Our Jeanne Meserve is there, and of course we'll go there live once that happens.

Showing off his team spirit. Well, the president was a cheerleader back in the day. Now Mr. Bush appears to be trying to bury campaign hatchets and move forward with victorious Democrats.

CNN's Elaine Quijano is the at the White House for us -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Don.

That's exactly right. After a campaign season filled with partisan rancor, President Bush met today with the woman who is set to become the next House speaker, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi. The president trying to strike a conciliatory tone with the Democratic leader despite some harsh rhetoric on the campaign trail. Both the congresswoman and the president said that they are moving forward in a bipartisan fashion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was pleased with a wide-ranging discussion about important issues facing America. And the elections are now behind us and the congresswoman's party won. But the challenges still remain. And therefore, we're going to work together to address those challenges in a constructive way.

We won't agree on every issue, but we do agree that we love America equally, that we're concerned about the future of this country, and that we will do our very best to address big problems.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now, in the interim, before the Democrats take control of the House -- and it's looking very likely now the Senate as well -- President Bush has made clear he would like to see some things pushed through during this lame-duck session of Congress.

In fact, this afternoon, the president resubmitting the nomination of George (sic) Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Also, the president hopeful that he can get another confirmation through. His choice to succeed the outgoing defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, his choice announced yesterday, of course, former CIA director Bob Gates.

Now, we are also hearing from our congressional producer, Ted Barrett, that already the confirmation hearings have a tentative date for Robert Gates. Tentatively set now, according to a senior aide, to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist for the week of December 4th.

Now, this aide says that the hope is to get Gates confirmed by the time Congress ends its work in December. The date though right now tentative because of the fact that background checks and things of the like need to be taken care of. So that date could certainly slide.

But again, this president wanting to push through those confirmation. It was a topic of discussion, we should mention, at the outset of the day when the president sat down with the outgoing GOP leadership for breakfast -- Don.

LEMON: Elaine Quijano at the White House.

Thank you, Elaine.

PHILLIPS: He's heading into the thick of it, President Bush's pick for defense secretary. Who is Robert Gates? A closer look straight ahead from the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The president of CBS news holding a press conference now outside the headquarters in New York regarding Ed Bradley.

Let's listen in.

SEAN MCMANUS, CBS NEWS PRESIDENT: You know, dealing with the sadness and the sense of loss, quite frankly.

Sir?

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE).

MCMANUS: Yes.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE).

MCMANUS: I think just the overall body of work and the amount of stories that people remember so vividly when you think about Ed Bradley. And again, whether it's the Lena Horne story that he did that I remember vividly, whether it was George Burns, whether it was Timothy McVeigh, which just tore your heart out when you saw Ed talking to him, whether it's the story of the boat people, where these boat people in Vietnam were scrambling off the boats, and Ed, not as a journalist, but as a human being went off on the beach and started helping these poor people onto the dry land.

It's just -- it's so many things that you remember. A lot of them stand out individually, but if you think about the overall body of work that he did, it's hard to imagine that anybody could ever duplicate that in the same way that Ed accomplished what he accomplished.

And again, if you go back to Vietnam, and you think of all the great reporting that's being done today by all the news organizations over in Iraq, and if you look at some of the reporting that Ed and his team did back then, without all the sophisticated equipment that we have today, you look at some of the film that I've looked at and we've all looked at, you know, it's remarkable, the quality of that reporting, under the toughest, toughest circumstances in Saigon and around Saigon and other parts of Vietnam.

So, to have someone who has had that kind of breadth, of that kind of reporting is unusual, to say the least.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE).

MCMANUS: Not directly, except that I know he liked it.

The thing about Ed, I had lunch with Ed during the summer, and he knew I was a sports guy. Ed loved sports. He loved skiing. He loved the New York Knicks.

And I walked away from that luncheon having talked to Ed Bradley, you know, more about sports than I did -- than I did about news.

He talked about jazz a lot. He talked about music a lot also. And you realize when you spend time with Ed Bradley, that as outstanding journalist as he was, and as dedicated as he was to his profession as a reporter, a correspondent, and a journalist, Ed had so many other parts of his life.

You brought up jazz, a very important part of his life. Sports, a very important part of his life. The time that he spent with his wife and the time that he spent skiing, a very important part of his life.

Here's a man that was very, very multifaceted and was able to pour himself into everything he did journalistically, whether it was traveling all over the world to do stories, or whether it was writing up in his office at "60 Minutes". Do all that, but still have an outstanding life outside of CBS News, which is, again, a tribute to much more Ed Bradley the man than it is Ed Bradley the great journalist who we came to know.

QUESTION: Can you talk a little bit more about his illness? QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE).

MCMANUS: Ed was a very -- as you all know, a very, very private person. Didn't share the details of what he was going through, really, with anybody except probably his boss, Jeff Fager (ph), at "60 Minutes".

So I think -- I think he would probably prefer that I not go into details. And, quite frankly, I don't know a lot of them, because Ed -- the last think Ed ever wanted to do is talk about his problems.

I think we all know that over the course of the last number of years, Ed had some pretty serious health concerns. Never talked about it, never complained about it, showed up at work when he was physically able to, and wanted to get the story done. And the last thing he would have wanted me to do is to talk about his illnesses.

If he had any requests at all or any desire, I think he'd want to talk about -- he'd want me to talk about his story, his body of work, and him as a man.

LEMON: And of course that is CBS News president Sean McManus holding a press conference outside of CBS headquarters, West 57th Street, in New York City. Talking about the health recently of Ed Bradley and that he was a very private person.

Also, talking about his reporting. We were listening while we were on commercial break. He came out to the podium and said, "This is a sad day at CBS."

And he said that Ed Bradley interviewed everyone from Bill Clinton to Muhammad Ali, to George Burns, to Lena Horne. And just his level of professionalism and reporting are unsurpassed by many journalists, and saying that he is a legend in this business.

Of course, earlier, my colleague here spoke with Mike Wallace, who gave a fantastic interview about -- about Ed Bradley. And Katie Couric sending in a statement to us, talking about -- sharing her concerns. And also some of the producers and people who worked with him sharing their thoughts with us, saying what a wonderful person he is.

Ed Bradley, dead at the age of 65.

Of course, that was the CBS News president holding a press conference talking about him -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, no matter who Ed Bradley interviewed, his storytelling was unforgettable.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRADLEY: I have some questions I'd like to ask you about Emmett Till.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're kidding? BRADLEY: Will she come out and talk to us?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why did I just tell you?

BRADLEY: Tell me again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

BRADLEY: She won't?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. Goodbye.

BRADLEY: I'm back?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I said goodbye.

BRADLEY: Goodbye. You're leaving?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, you are.

BRADLEY: Timothy McVeigh's trial included hours of wrenching testimony from victims describing the carnage after the explosion. Through it all, McVeigh sat impassively.

You realize that most people in this country think you're responsible for the bombing, correct?

MCVEIGH: Correct.

BRADLEY: So if you -- your perception is that you didn't get a fair trial, they are saying, so what?

BRADLEY: So he's not putting on anything?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. This actually happened. And the doctor told us not to release or try to wake him if that does happen because he might end up with a heart attack because it might frighten him, so I don't, I just get up and move. That's -- that's -- that's the hard part. You have to sort of...

(LAUGHTER)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Back to Virginia, sources tell our Dana Bash that incumbent Senator George Allen plans to concede to his Democratic challenger Jim Webb next hour. That mean the Democrats will take control of the Senate as well as the House with a surplus of 7,200 votes.

Webb has already declared victory, but Virginia election officials continue to canvass votes to determine whether a runoff was need. Again, we're told that George Allen will concede the race during his 3:00 p.m. news conference in Alexandria, Virginia. Of course we'll be there live when it happens. LEMON: Bill Gates is a lot better known than Bob, no relation, and that may not change even after Robert Gates succeeds Donald Rumsfeld as secretary of defense, assuming he's confirmed by the Senate. But the latter Gates is no stranger to Washington or national security issues or the Bush family as a matter of fact. As CNN's Barbara Starr reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bob Gates is new to the Pentagon, but a new secretary of Defense does not end the problems in Iraq.

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY NOMINEE: Because our long-term strategic interests and our national and homeland security are at risk; because so many of America's sons and daughters in our armed forces are in harm's way, I did not hesitate when the president asked me to return to duty.

STARR: Gates, who served as CIA director, and national security adviser, for the first President Bush, is regarded as someone who understands both politics and policy.

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: He's very well known to Democrats, and I think is seen across the aisle as a non- ideological person who would bring a realist's perspective to this job.

STARR: If confirmed, Gates is expected to have a smoother relationship with his generals than Secretary Rumsfeld had, at least for now.

MCLAUGHLIN: I think they will welcome Bob because he's generally well-known in the military. They'll welcome his style.

STARR: Gates is an old Washington hand from the Reagan/Bush years. He's currently part of the Iraq study group, co-chaired by former Secretary of State James Baker, one of the first President Bush's closest friends. That group is working on options for a new Iraq policy.

GATES: If confirmed by the Senate...

STARR: Gates is not without controversy. In 1991, he was investigated but cleared of any wrongdoing in the Iran-Contra scandal. Several political analysts tell CNN they do not expect that to hinder his confirmation, but Democrats are getting ready.

SEN. DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D), CALIFORNIA: I don't see this as being an easy confirmation unless there is a change in strategy and unless he's willing to come forward with that change in strategy.

STARR: He has not always agreed with the current administration. In 2004, he co-authored a study on Iran for the Council on Foreign Relations, which said in part, "the United States should not defer a political dialogue with Iran until differences over its nuclear programs have been resolved."

STARR (on camera): Gates' essential challenge will be to provide the fresh look at Iraq that President Bush now says he wants. But the problem remains unchanged. Finding a way to end the violence and bringing the troops home.

Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And Paul Kinsinger, once worked side by side with Robert Gates at the CIA. He's now a managing consultant with the Thunderbird Learning Consulting Network near Phoenix. And reading some reports this morning, here's what the gist of them are: soft-spoken, but tough minded Gates, 63 is in many ways the antithesis of Donald Rumsfeld, the brash leader he will succeed. Do you find that so?

PAUL KINSINGER, FORMER GATES COLLEAGUE: Yes. Bob is a far more reserved personality than someone like Don Rumsfeld. I agree with my former colleague John McLaughlin that he'll bring a realist approach to foreign policy and national security and to rolling up his shirtsleeves and doing the hard work to figure out how to get us out of Iraq.

LEMON: And Mr. Gates is part of the group -- the James -- the Baker group and the Hamilton group, who are, that group is investigating the war and studying the war to try to come up with some sort of better plan for it. How much do you think that played into this?

KINSINGER: Well, probably some, no question. The -- Bob is a part of the group that advised former President Bush, Brent Scowcroft, and James Baker, Colin Powell, and others, so he's connected to these folks directly. But I think more broadly, Bob is a professional national security intelligence officer with policy experience. And he brings an awful lot of hands-on experience in that realm that obviously appealed to an administration that needs to move away from a lightning-rod kind of secretary of defense.

LEMON: Yes, so you've worked with him. Tell us about his demeanor, his so-called bedside manner, if you will.

KINSINGER: Bob is a reserved person, compared to, say, Don Rumsfeld. Not as outsized personality. He's very much a matter of fact guy, strong Midwest roots. Anybody who knows him knows that that's a strong part of his personality and character.

LEMON: But still an effective leader?

KINSINGER: Yes. He's very a effective leader. I think in a traditional kind of command-and-control, top-down structure like the Pentagon, Bob's very attuned to that, and that will work very well for him.

LEMON: And we -- our Barbara Starr reported he doesn't come without controversy. Tell us about his sentiment and what he went through during the Iran-Contra scandal. Of course, he was investigated and later wrote about in it a book. Does he ever talk about that?

KINSINGER: Well, I don't know if he's talked about it much since. I do remember that during that time, you know, like a lot of people at the top of the national security apparatus then, everybody was questioned and investigated as to their role in this. My sense of that time was that Bill Casey was the major driver within CIA of activities involving Iran-Contra, and that Bob was largely kept out of that loop, I think on purpose by former director Casey.

You know, I think Bob has acknowledged that, you know, he maybe could have said a little more in personal counsel to Bill Casey during that time, but Bill Casey -- I think we all pretty much can acknowledge kind of ran a lot of this out of his own back pocket on purpose.

LEMON: This will be the second time that he has actually held some sort of post with the Bush family.

KINSINGER: Yes.

LEMON: Does he at all talk about his relationship when that family? What do you make of his relationship with them?

KINSINGER: Well, I think he grew to have a close relationship with former President Bush, both because of Bush Sr.'s turn as DCI in the mid-'70s and his intimate connection with the intelligence community as a result, and the fact that Bob Gates worked in the White House under several presidents starting with Nixon, Ford, Carter and then again with the Reagan/Bush era.

So he's been connected with several presidents and has, as John McLaughlin said earlier, some good, bipartisan ties on Capitol Hill. So I think, you know, part of the connection that Bob has with the Bush family is strongly through people like Brent Scowcroft and others who have been his mentors in the past.

LEMON: All right, Paul Kinsinger has worked side by side with our new nominee, or he will be our new secretary of defense, of course, if confirmed by the Senate. Thank you so much, sir, for joining us today.

KINSINGER: Thank you, my pleasure.

PHILLIPS: Hanging in the balance, the race in Virginia determines who controls the Senate. Senator George Allen plans a news conference in Alexandria, Virginia, 3:00 p.m. Eastern time. We'll have live coverage in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: A big settlement in the worst U.S. industrial accident in more than a decade. Susan Lisovicz live from the New York Stock Exchange with all the details.

Hey, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Kyra.

BP has settled a lawsuit brought by the daughter of two victims of last year's Texas City refinery explosion. The accident, as many of us remember, killed 15 people, and injured 170 more. Eva Rowe had previously insisted she would not settle. She said she wanted to go to court so that she could make BP's negligence public.

The terms of the settlement are confidential, but BP had set aside $1.6 billion to resolve those types of cases. A government agency found that budget cuts caused a deterioration of safety at the plant.

Critics say the BP disaster, one of many examples of scandalous corporate behavior, but there is a money trail to document the good deeds from corporate America as well. The most dramatic example, the private sector's response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina. For the first time ever, American businesses contributed more than $1 billion to a disaster response -- a single disaster response.

Over 250 companies gave more than $1 million each and thousands of companies provided volunteers, products and services. Last night, some of those companies were honored in Washington for their community service by the Business Civic Leadership Center, a not-for-profit group that encourages companies that do well to also do good.

Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez was among those who spoke, and I served as emcee, Kyra, for the third year. That's where I was yesterday.

PHILLIPS: All right.

LISOVICZ: I was working.

PHILLIPS: Yes, talk some more about that. You're always working it, Susan Lisovicz. You had a good time?

LISOVICZ: I had a very good time. It's pretty meaningful, you know, after you do countless stories about backdated stock options and executive pay and, you know, and questionable accounting, it's quite meaningful, I have to say, and I really enjoy -- I enjoyed being invited back.

PHILLIPS: Well, were the awards focused specifically on Gulf Coast relief efforts?

LISOVICZ: No, they weren't. The center did give a special award to Office Depot, which is one of many companies who was so generous. It contributed $1 million even before Katrina came ashore, but the awards are not focused on disaster relief per se. Some of the winners included Morgan Stanley, which loans out a top performing analyst for the year to New York Presbyterian Hospital.

Another winner, Intel, for its efforts on reducing the company's impact on local environment. The chipmaker trying to cut its greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2010 by using only recycled water at its major sites and minimizing waste in production, packaging and disposal.

And, of course, there are self-serving benefits to these good deeds. A good reputation is, to quote a popular marketing campaign, "priceless."

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LEMON: All right, Susan Lisovicz, thank you very much.

Power is everything in Washington, and right now, Virginia holds the key to control of the Senate. Republican Senator George Allen plans a news conference in Alexandria, Virginia. That's at 3:00 p.m. We'll have live coverage right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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PHILLIPS: All eyes on Virginia. Sources tell our Dana Bash that incumbent Republican Senator George Allen plans to concede to his Democratic challenged, Jim Webb, next hour. That means the Democrats will take control of the Senate as well as the House.

With a surplus of 7,200 votes, Webb has already declared victory, but an official vote canvass continued to see whether a runoff was needed.

Again, we're told George Allen will concede the race, right here at his 3:00 p.m. news conference in Alexandria, Virginia. Of course, we'll get you there live as soon as it happens.

LEMON: And we're also taking stock of the death of Ed Bradley. The CBS news correspondent and broadcasting giant died of leukemia today at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. He was 65 years old.

Bradley's legendary career began in the streets of Philadelphia, covering riots in the 1960s for a local radio station. His hard work and talent led him to CBS and to the network's pinnacle, and that pinnacle, of course, "60 Minutes".

More on Bradley's life and times now from former "CBS Evening News" anchor and broadcast legend Walter Cronkite. He joins us now by phone from New York.

Mr. Cronkite, where were you when you heard the news?

WALTER CRONKITE, FORMER CBS ANCHOR: I was at home, just about to come to work here at my office in New York.

And it was a terrible blow. I had no idea that he was that seriously ill. And he's -- I've lost, as have so many, many people, a real close friend and one who I admired so greatly in his personality, his preparation and broadcasting and his -- his talent as an interviewer. LEMON: And you said you had no idea. And everyone we've been speaking to, many of your counterparts, are saying they had no idea as well. Apparently Ed Bradley, extremely private person, Mr. Cronkite.

CRONKITE: Well, he was an extremely private person, apparently in preventing us from knowing -- his friends -- knowing that he was this critically ill -- fatally ill.

But he -- he was a -- he could be quite an open speaker and friend and highly talented, of course, in his work, which required a great deal of conversation. And this secrecy that he held to this illness was clearly kind of a final step of his in proving his ability to try to hide the uncomfortable from his friend while he suffered last pangs of life.

LEMON: Mr. Cronkite, CBS News president Sean McManus held a press conference just a short time ago, pointed out Ed Bradley's reporting career and his accomplishments, specifically pointing to Vietnam and Saigon and sort of equating it to what's happening in Iraq and Afghanistan today.

But he's saying that level of professionalism was unsurpassed and what people may not know is that Mr. Bradley was injured in Saigon and had to be sent back to the United States.

CRONKITE: He was quite seriously injured, but typical of Bradley, he came back to the States for the final recuperation, but turned around and went back to the battle when he recovered.

LEMON: And, you know, we are running out of time now, but I just want you to touch on this. He was actually thought to -- might take the chair for the "CBS Evening News" and, of course, that didn't happen.

CRONKITE: No. I don't have any comment on that.

LEMON: No comment on that.

All right.

Well, how are you doing, sir?

CRONKITE: I'm doing all right. But mourning over the loss of a good friend and a great talent that we have all -- will miss terribly.

LEMON: All right. Of course, a legend, of course, in his own right, joining us now.

Walter Cronkite, thank you very much, sir, for joining us today.

And we just want to tell you a legendary career is over, a legend we have lost. CBS news correspondent Ed Bradley died from complications from leukemia at the age of 65.

More ahead, right here, on the CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ED BRADLEY, FORMER CBS ANCHOR: If I arrived at the Pearly Gates and St. Peter said, what are you done to deserve entry? I'd just say, did you seen my Lena Horne story?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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