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Astronaut Accused of Strange Kidnap Plot; Senate Armed Services Committee Reviews War Funding; Rebuilding Iraq

Aired February 06, 2007 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You're with CNN. You're informed.
I'm Tony Harris.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Heidi Collins.

Developments keep coming in to the NEWSROOM on this Tuesday, the 6th of February.

Here's what's on the rundown.

A NASA astronaut in court accused in a strange kidnap plot. A court session you saw only on CNN. Police say a BB -- a BB gun, mace, and adult diapers part of her alleged arsenal against a romantic rival.

HARRIS: Feel the chills of zero cold making the Midwest an ice box today. It will be days before some cities even see the freezing mark.

COLLINS: The hottest read in Washington. Our Jeanne Moos budgets some time for all those zeros. Could you do it?

HARRIS: No.

COLLINS: We've got zillions of them coming up in the NEWSROOM.

A wig, a BB gun, and pepper spray, not exactly tools of the trade for space shuttle astronauts. But police say they were all part of a bizarre kidnapping plot in Orlando, Florida. Police say astronaut Lisa Nowak, who you see there, went on a 900-mile drive from Texas to Florida wearing adult diapers, all to confront a woman she considered a rival for another astronaut's affections.

Nowak in court this morning. She faced charges of battery and attempted kidnapping and attempted burglary. She did post bond for $15,500.

And now for more on this strange story, we turn to CNN's John Zarrella in Orlando.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A very bizarre story unfolding here in Orlando and a very sad story for astronaut Lisa Marie Nowak. Nowak and another woman, Colleen Shipman, apparently, according to police, involved in some sort of a love triangle with a shuttle pilot, Bill Oefelein.

Now, Nowak came to Orlando. In fact, drove across country. And they report, police, that she wore a diaper so she wouldn't have to stop.

She wanted to confront Shipman, and apparently did when Shipman got off a flight at Orlando airport. During that confrontation, she pepper-sprayed Shipman. Shipman took off, police were called, and eventually Nowak was arrested while she was trying to dispose of some disguises.

She had her first appearance here in court in Orlando, and among those who attended was the chief of the astronaut corps, Steve Lindsey, who flew in from Houston to lend support.

COL. STEVE LINDSEY, NASA: Our primary concern is Lisa's health and well-being, make sure that she's safe, make sure we get her through this and we get her back to a safe place with her family. This is a private, it's a personal matter. It's a legal matter that she and her family have to deal with.

ZARRELLA: Nowak has been released on bond, but before she can leave to go back to Houston, she has to be given a GPS tracking device, a monitor, which is going to be placed on her ankle. The judge said that she cannot go anywhere near the Kennedy Space center, can't go anywhere near Patrick Air Force Base, which is where Colleen Shipman works. And, in fact, the judge instructed her, he said, "You cannot even send Colleen Shipman flowers to say you're sorry."

John Zarrella, reporting from Orlando, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Bullets, bombs, and budget. The issue of war funding the topic on Capitol Hill this morning. The administration's top defense officials in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee. A live picture for you right now.

Here to explain, CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr.

Barbara, good morning to you. What are you hearing from the secretary and the nation's top general?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning to you, Tony.

This is the annual budget hearing. A lot of talk, a lot of numbers, a lot of statistics. But what is the bottom line? Well, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said just a few moments ago, under questioning, that he now hopes that he can bringing some of the U.S. troops home from Iraq later this year. Of course, depending on conditions on the ground.

But this will be a statement that reporters and politicians alike are likely to follow throughout the rest of the year, with Gates now having laid down that marker that he hopes to begin to bring some of the troops home. But there are caveats, of course, because the secretary went on to talk about some of the delays already in the security operation under way in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Actually, yesterday was to be the start of the Baghdad operation, and it's probably going to slip a few days, and it's probably going to be a rolling implementation. What we have asked for, what I've asked for and have learned is already being addressed, is, frankly, to put together a more sophisticated checklist or matrix of these benchmarks and what our expectations are and what the performance is so that in the weeks to come, we can evaluate this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: So, to avoid further delays in bringing that security to Baghdad, the secretary wants to see, as you see there, more specific benchmarks, more specific ways to measure Iraqi progress in this new security operation. And we'll see how it goes. General David Petraeus, the new commander for U.S. troops in Iraq, is scheduled to be on the ground there in the next couple of days -- Tony.

HARRIS: Hey, Barbara, just a quick question to you. The secretary also made a little bit of news in announcing a new military command for operations in Africa. I know you were in Africa recently. Did you see this coming?

STARR: Oh, absolutely. This is something that people who follow security and other issues in Africa have known.

The military has actually been working on this behind the scenes, Tony, for some time, a new four-star command, Africa Command, just like the Pacific Command, the European Command, Central Command, the things that we have seen now for decades operating in the U.S. military. A real reflection of the U.S. military and the United States' effort to begin to deal with Africa as a fundamental security concern -- everything from Somalia, to Darfur, to the energy issues in Nigeria.

It's really a significant issue for the U.S. military. They're reorganizing themselves to begin to get a better handle on all of it -- Tony.

HARRIS: Of course you saw this coming. That's your beat.

CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Star.

Barbara, thank you.

STARR: Sure.

COLLINS: The former civilian boss in Iraq returning to Capitol Hill today. Paul Bremer answering tough questions about his early decision on rebuilding the country.

CNN's congressional correspondent, Andrea Koppel, live on Capitol Hill. Lots of discussion, Andrea, about whether or not Paul Bremer is being seen as a scapegoat or if there were really troubles in the decision- making progress.

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Heidi. And, you know, this is the first time that lawmakers are going to have a chance to question Mr. Bremer, who was the guy who was basically running the show for the U.S. over in Iraq from the time that Saddam fell in 2003, until June of 2004.

And the chairman of this committee, the Democratic chair, said he has a couple of goals. One of them is to see whether or not there was any political cronyism involved in which Americans got jobs over in Iraq. And also to find out what happened to $12 billion -- that's with a "B" -- billion dollars in cash that as sent from the U.S. Federal Reserve over to Iraq during the time that Bremer was in charge.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. HENRY WAXMAN (D), OVERSIGHT & GOVT. REFORM CHAIRMAN: The cash weighed more than 363 tons and was loaded on to C-130 cargo planes to be flown into Baghdad. The numbers are so large, that it doesn't seem possible that they're true.

Who in their right mind would send 360 tons of cash into a war zone? But that's exactly what our government did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOPPEL: That's not all the U.S. government did, according to Chairman Waxman. In a memo that he circulated today, Heidi, he said that back one week before the interim government was set to take over -- this was back in June 2004 -- there was one contractor, one official, who was given $6.75 million in cash and told to spend it in the course of a week.

Now, this hearing is also -- we're going to be hearing from the special inspector general of Iraq, Stuart Bowen, who has alleged that basically there was no accounting for $8.8 billion that the CPA was dispersing in Iraq. As you said, lots of pointed questions for Mr. Bremer and Mr. Bowen -- Heidi.

COLLINS: A couple of things here, Andrea, quickly. According to some reports, back in the summer of 2003, those who are supporting Bremer say that, you know, wait a minute now, he did very much have concerns about the number of troops in Iraq. He also apparently wanted to capture Muqtada al-Sadr long before al-Sadr had the following that he has now.

KOPPEL: Absolutely. And I can tell you that there may be some questions about that today. And we know that Paul Bremer has laid all of this out in a book that he wrote about a year or so ago. But this committee really today wants to get to the bottom of, what happened to the money? What happened to taxpayer dollars, billions of it, that was sent to Iraq from the U.S. federal Reserve -- Heidi. COLLINS: Interesting, too, he was the only American, was he not, that ever had full dictatorial powers -- when you talk about an occupational administrator, everybody else who held this position has been sort of acting as an adviser to a sovereign Iraqi government.

KOPPEL: That's right. He probably would dispute using the word "dictator," but you're absolutely right. He was the one who was in charge of everything in Iraq before the U.S. government turned over authority back to the Iraqi government. And that's been the case ever since.

COLLINS: So that's the way it was set up?

KOPPEL: Yes, it was. That's right.

COLLINS: All right.

Andrea Koppel on Capitol Hill for us today with all the very latest on what's happening with Paul Bremer today.

Thank you, Andrea.

HARRIS: And caught on tape, friendly fire in the first weeks of the Iraq war. The British newspaper "The Sun" has released this cockpit video from a U.S. fighter jet. It captures two American pilots opening fire on what they thought was an enemy convoy.

It turned out to be British troops. One allied soldier was killed and several others wounded. British authorities are still investigating the incident. The U.S. military conducted its own investigation. The findings not made public.

COLLINS: Biting cold putting fire crews on ice. Daily life complicated by unbelievable temperatures.

Bone-chiller in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: Needing help to remember his own face.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of the reasons that I grew a beard and one of the reasons that I walk around with my hat so much is to hopefully prevent me from walking into mirrors.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Face blindness. A report from our Dr. Sanjay Gupta in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: All right, go ahead. See if you can add it up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's $29 quad -- $2,900 quadmillion (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: I love that.

COLLINS: Quadmillion (ph). I've never heard that.

HARRIS: Yes, yes, yes. He's trying.

COLLINS: Our Jeanne Moss hands out the budget quiz. See it next in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Water pipes frozen solid, cars that won't start, homeless shelters packed. From the Dakotas to New England, a deadly blast of arctic air is causing a whole lot of problems. In some places, it's not just below zero, it is way below zero. Right now, at least seven deaths are blamed on the frigid weather.

CNN's Keith Oppenheim is braving the cold in Chicago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Freezing! Way too cold!

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): From the Midwest to the Northeast, the weather has been so cold, it's dangerous to go outside.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just stepped out here maybe 10, 15 minutes ago and I'm already half frozen.

OPPENHEIM: And treacherous to drive.

In central Ohio, motorists got stuck in deep snow. Winds whipped up chills that felt as cold as 25 below zero.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've really got to keep your hands and your extremities covered up because they feel like they could freeze off out here.

OPPENHEIM: In Michigan, whiteout conditions closed many schools. Similar story in northern Indiana, where icy roads caused accidents and injuries.

Farther south, the Indianapolis Colts, returning from the Super Bowl in Miami, got a warm reception from fans, who braved temperatures in the single digits as the players and cheerleaders took part in an outdoor victory parade.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it cold?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's freezing!

OPPENHEIM: In Minnesota, where cold weather is part of the culture, firefighters were worried about exposure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Crews get wet with the water, then they come outside. You know, they're exposed to the elements.

OPPENHEIM: In Chicago, some tourists got a lot more winter than they bargained for.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm from San Diego. So this is hell.

OPPENHEIM: But at least some of the locals took the frigid conditions in stride, knowing that it can always get worse.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was minus 11 when I got out of the train this morning. So -- and it's been -- in 11 years of working down here, it's been a lot colder.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: You know, he just shrugs it off. It's Chicago. It's winter. That's what happens.

HARRIS: A Midwesterner. Come on, come one, this is what we do. We can handle cold.

Chad Myers in the weather center.

Good morning, Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: They know living there.

COLLINS: Yes.

MYERS: This is not their first rodeo.

HARRIS: That's right.

MYERS: There you go.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Still to come this morning, needing help to remember his own face.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of the reasons that I grew a beard and one of the reasons that I walk around with my hat so much is to hopefully prevent me from walking into mirrors.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Face blindness. Ever heard of such a thing? A report from our Dr. Sanjay Gupta, in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Want to quickly take to you Capitol Hill. This is Paul Bremer appearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. His opening statement now. (JOINED IN PROGRESS)

AMB. PAUL BREMER, FMR. HEAD OF CPA: ... dangerous conditions. I also want to pay tribute to the courage of the men and women in our armed forces, more than 3,000 of whom, as we've heard this morning, have given their lives in Iraq. We Americans and the Iraqi people are in their debt.

Mr. Chairman, let me say at the outset that I understand and share the frustration Americans and members of this committee feel about the violence we see every day in Iraq. It has certainly proven to be a much more difficult task than we anticipated.

Let me begin by noting that the subject of today's hearing is the CPA's use and accounting for funds which belonged to the Iraqi people held in the so-called development fund of Iraq or DFI. These are not appropriated American funds available for use in the United States. They were Iraqi funds. And despite the chaotic situation we found on the ground in Iraq, Mr. Chairman, I believe the CPA discharged its responsibilities to manage these Iraqi funds on behalf of the Iraqi people.

Now, I acknowledge that I made mistakes, and that with the benefit of hindsight, I would have made some decisions differently. But on the whole, I think we made great progress under some of the most difficult conditions imaginable, including putting Iraq on the path to democracy. And as you consider the actions of the CPA, I respectfully request that you keep this in mind -- I'm proud of what we achieved and I hope that after today's hearing, members will understand what we faced and what we accomplished.

It is difficult, Mr. Chairman, to give a full picture of the desperate situation in Iraq in May of 2003. The country was in chaos, socially, politically and economically. The deep crisis had been brought about not by war, not by sanctions, but by decades-long corruption and incompetence of the Saddam regime.

Among many shocking data, for example, during the 1990s Saddam Hussein cut healthcare spending by 90 percent, 9-0 percent. No new hospitals had been built for 20 years. Half of the country's public health clinics were closed.

Even before the war, unemployment was running at 50 percent. Iraq's primitive banking system was shut down. The banks had no system for electronic transfer of funds. This was a cash-based economy.

At the end of 2002, inflation was running at 115,000 percent.

In mid-2003, two reports, one by the GAO and the other by President Clinton's former deputy of defense, Dr. John Hamre, each compared the CPA's tasks to those faced by the allies at the end of the second world war. The special inspector-general for Iraq added, "There is no known precedent for an effort to manage the reconstruction of a nation on such a vast scale in the midst of danger and violence."

To deal with this crisis, Mr. Chairman, the CPA had the services of over 3,000 volunteers from 25 countries. Contrary to some reports, this was a remarkable and experienced group of men and women, as I show an attachment to my full statement. It was an honor to serve with them.

Our top priority was to get the economy moving again. The reconstruction job proved to be harder than anticipated, because, as some members have pointed out, prewar planning had not anticipated the difficulty of the task we faced.

The first step was to get money into the hands of the Iraqi people as quickly as possible. Under Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi government had been, by far, the country's largest employer, providing about four out of five of all jobs. But for several months, since before the war, millions of Iraqi families had not received money owed them for civil service, salaries or pensions.

We used the Iraqi funds that are the subject of today's hearing to pay the Iraqis quickly. This was exceptionally difficult, first, because the Iraqi ministries lacked good payroll records.

Ideally, we would have liked to put those records straight before paying the salaries and pensions, but as often in Iraq, the ideal collided with the harsh realities on the ground. We simply could not delay paying salaries and pensions. Delay would have been demoralizing and unfair to the millions of Iraqi families and it might well have exacerbated danger to the American soldiers on the ground.

Using the Iraqi funds to pay the Iraqi families was further complicated by the lack of an effective banking system. As I mentioned, the banks were closed and, in any event, were unable to transfer funds electronically.

So we had to pay Iraqis in cash wherever in Iraq they lived. We also immediately put these Iraqi funds to work on large public works programs to create jobs. And we continued to pay the Iraqis who had been employed in the state-owned enterprises even after those enterprises were closed down. Due to a shortage of Iraqi currency, many of these expenses were paid in American dollars, drawn from the Iraqi fund account.

Let me turn to the question of the CPA's management of these Iraqi government funds.

My colleagues and I, Mr. Chairman, fully understood and accepted our responsibility for the temporary stewardship of these Iraqi moneys. We took seriously our charge to operate in an open and transparent fashion and to use these Iraqi funds in the best interests of the Iraqi people.

We always strive to meet those objectives, and where we may have fallen short, I accept responsibility. I understand the committee's concern about the manner in which contracts were awarded using Iraqi funds. But it's important to remember that although as administrator I accept full responsibility for the missions assigned to the CPA, I did not have authority over the awarding of contracts. This rested with the Department of the Army. Let's be clear about what we're talking about here today before we start. Some press stories and some of the statements by the members imply that the special inspector-general's January 2005 report found that the CPA wasted or stole Iraqi funds. Yet, when he appeared before this very committee in June of 2005 to discuss his audit report, the special inspector-general stated -- and I quote -- "There have been some misinterpretations about exactly what we said, so let me be clear about what the audit did not say. It did not say the money was lost. It did not say the money was stolen. It did not say the money was fraudulently disbursed by U.S. authorities," end of quote.

Indeed, the special inspector general and the United States -- United Nations, each concluded that the CPA had properly disbursed Iraqi funds from the development fund to the Iraqi ministries. The core difference between the inspector general and the CPA turns largely on how the Iraqis handled the money, their money, after we dispersed it to those ministries.

For the special inspector general's report implies we should have gone much further, seeking to impose modern or in some cases, as some members have suggested, American financial control systems on the disbursement of these Iraqi funds by Iraqi ministers themselves.

And this, in less than a year, on a failed state, in the middle of a war. Mr. Chairman, I know of no person who spent meaningful time in Baghdad working with the Iraqi ministries who thought this was possible in the condition under which we worked.

Here to, as so often in Iraq, the ideal clashed with the reality we faced. We had to find a way to get the Iraqi people's money working quickly for them, rebuilding their country. As was the case with salaries and pensions, we could not wait to install modern financial systems in the ministries.

A team of experts from the international monetary fund came and found that the existing Iraqi systems were adequate and recommended we use them while beginning the longer term process of modernizing those systems. We agreed.

And so, disbursements from the Iraqi development fund were made to the Iraqi ministries according to the procedures and controls spelled out in CPA regulations. The ministries used the existing Iraqi systems to carry out their responsibilities for the proper use of those funds. It was not a perfect solution.

But, Mr. Chairman, there are no perfect solutions in Iraq. And let me say, in addition, Mr. Chairman, that during my time in Baghdad, I regularly visited these ministries, the ministry of finance, the ministry of planning, the Central Bank. I saw it, firsthand, the primitive systems which Iraqi civil servants were struggling with.

Most ministries did not even have computers, but kept their records on handwritten spreadsheets. And while I am certainly not a financial expert, my personal observations convinced me that the experts from the international monetary fund were correct in judging that we could not expect rapidly to modernize those systems in the middle of a war.

But there was also a political dimension to our decision to use these existing Iraqi financial systems for the control of Iraqi funds once they were dispersed. The coalition's strategy and indeed the intent of the international community expressed in several U.N. resolutions was to give the Iraqis responsibility quickly.

This was, after all, their money to be used for the benefit of the Iraqi people. When Iraqi ministers were appointed by the Iraqis, on September 3rd, 2003, I made clear to the ministers that it was their responsibility to develop and execute their ministry budgets.

My colleagues and I were, of course, acutely aware of the risks of corruption. Corruption had been encouraged, one could say, even institutionalized under Saddam Hussein, particularly in the Oil for Food Program which has already been touched on.

So we took efforts to combat corruption. We established the independence of the Iraqi judiciary. We appointed inspectors general in every Iraqi ministry, revitalized an old respected Iraqi audit agency and set up a national commission to which any Iraqi can bring charges of fraud or waste.

Of course, these institutions alone in a short time cannot abolish corruption. But a start has been made. Mr. Chairman, I commend the committee's intention to see what lessons can be learned from these experience. And I would offer several briefly for your consideration before we turn to questions.

First, there is no substitute for good planning. We heard how the planning before the war was inadequate. I agree. The executive branch has taken steps in the last couple of years to improve its ability to cope with post-conflict situations and I hope Congress will support these, where appropriate. Secondly...

COLLINS: So we have been listening in to the opening statements of Paul Bremer, the former head of the Coalition Provisional Authority. The last time he sat before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was back in September of 2003. A little bit different scenario here today.

You see him coming out of the gate answering questions before they ever even really come to him. That is usually the case when we hear an opening statement. So we will continue to monitor this as they move to the question and answer session. If you are interested in watching it now, you can always go to CNN.com/Pipeline. But we will keep it live for you.

HARRIS: The president's first line of defense on Capitol Hill. The administration top guns are appearing this morning before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Their focus, President Bush's funding request for the Iraq war. Live picture now. Defense Secretary Robert Gates testifying along with the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Peter Pace. In fact, Gates opened his comments with an announcement the Pentagon will create a new military hub on the African continent. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: This command will enable us to have a more effective and integrated approach than the current arrangement of dividing Africa between Central Command and European Command, an outdated arrangement left over from the Cold War. This department will consult closely with the Congress and work with our European and African allies to implement this effort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: A wig, a BB gun and pepper spray. Not exactly standard equipment for space shuttle astronauts. But police say that was part of a bizarre kidnapping plot in Orlando, Florida. Astronaut Lisa Nowak made her first court appearance in Florida this morning. She is charged with battery, attempted kidnapping and attempted vehicle burglary with battery.

Police say Nowak drove 900 miles from Houston to Orlando. There she allegedly confronted a woman she considered a rival for another astronaut's affections. The court set bond and ordered the married mother of three to wear a GPS tracking device. She is expected to be released from court this hour.

HARRIS: So you go ahead. You try to add it up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some 29 quad -- 2,900 quad million.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Oh, man. Our Jeanne Moos hands out a budget quiz. How do you think you'd do in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: A mayor seeking to amend. Last week, San Francisco's Gavin Newsom confessed to an affair with his campaign manager's wife. Now Newsom has a new disclosure. Lillian Kim of our affiliate KFO has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GAVIN NEWSOM, MAYOR, SAN FRANCISCO: I appreciate you guys have to do a job and I respect you'll give me the opportunity to do my job. Thank you, guys.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How are you doing?

NEWSOM: I'm doing actually, OK.

LILLIAN KIM, KFO CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And that was all the mayor said as he left his office at city hall. But in a written statement released earlier, Gavin Newsom went into more detail. He wrote, "Upon reflection with friends and family this weekend, I have come to the conclusion I will be a better person without alcohol in my life. I take full responsibility for my personal mistakes and my problems with alcohol are not an excuse for my personal lapses in judgment."

Newsom's announcement that he'll be seeking treatment comes less than a week after he publicly apologized for his affair with Ruby Rippey-Tourk, his former appointment secretary and the wife of his campaign manager, Alex Tourk, who has since resigned.

AARON PESKIN, PRESIDENT, SF BOARD OF SUPERVISORS: There has been an absence of leadership at the top of city and county of San Francisco. And I think we now at least have a partial explanation as to why.

KIM: Aaron Peskin, the president of the board of supervisors says he wishes the mayor well during his recovery and wants to reassure the public that the city will be well taken care of during this time.

PESKIN: As president of the board of supervisors, I want San Franciscoens to know the board of supervisors will continue to safeguard the city and lead the city, rehab or no rehab.

KIM: Rumors of possible alcohol abuse have donned the mayor since late last year, when he reportedly showed up visibly drunk at a hospital vigil for a mortally wounded police officer.

His announcement now puts those rumors to rest and Mayor Newsom wants San Franciscoens that he'll be seeking treatment at the Delancey Street Foundation. Founded in 1971, the center does not rely on the 12-step philosophy of AA, but does address the underlying reasons for excessive drinking.

As for the people of San Francisco, they, for the most part, seem to be understanding. They just don't want any of this to affect how the city is run.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It concerns me because I live in the city. It affects everything. That he does his job well is really important.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think people have had the same problem and have been able to work through it. I think it's a challenge, and hopefully he'll be up for that challenge.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: It breaks your heart, doesn't it? You just can't help it. Saving Duchess, trapped in an icy lake, left to die by her owner. How she survived, coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Let's get to -- T.J., what is going on here with this kangaroo? Where is this? COLLINS: Why are they pulling his tail?

HARRIS: They are catching it -- Heidi.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: I've been watching this kangaroo, poor little guy. I mean, he was hanging out -- what are they doing to the poor guy?

COLLINS: Oh, they have to, right?

HARRIS: What else are you going to do? People in the NEWSROOM are moaning. What else are you going to do? You've got to capture the kangaroo.

HOLMES: You just don't like to see it though Tony, that's all.

COLLINS: He can kick, too.

HOLMES: We don't know where the kangaroo came from. But it was walking around a neighborhood in Fontana, California. That officer there, he's doing the right -- kind of just crept up on the little guy, just hanging out, snatched him by the tail. And now this is the result. This is what we saw just a minute ago as they were trying to get it out of there.

COLLINS: You've got to look out for the feet, really.

HARRIS: So T.J., is this someone's idea of a pet? Whoa!

HOLMES: I certainly hope it's not somebody's idea of a pet.

HARRIS: You know, folks, sort of collect these exotic pets sometimes and maybe this is, I don't know.

HOLMES: We do not know where this kangaroo came from. Pretty sure it's not native to California.

HARRIS: Yes, exactly.

HOLMES: But we do not know where it came from. But all this going down, and that's why people are oohing and aahing, because it's just a little kangaroo. It's a little guy and you hate to see it upset.

HARRIS: We love the animal control officer breaking out the Hefty bag.

HOLMES: Just bring that picture to you, Tony.

COLLINS: It was a pillow case.

HARRIS: Was it a pillow case?

COLLINS: I think so.

HARRIS: It was not, Heidi. It was? OK. All right, T.J. COLLINS: Thank you, T.J. This is what you went to journalism school for.

HOLMES: Precisely it, the professor is proud right now.

COLLINS: T.J. Holmes on the kangaroo beat today. Thanks, T.J.

A rescue story with a twist out of Colorado this morning. Meet Duchess. She's at the center of the rescue. It put a good samaritan in a very odd position, though. Laura Main of CNN affiliate KWGN explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAURA MAIN, KWGN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You'll have to forgive duchess for whining. She's been through a lot. She fell through the ice at Golden Ponds on Friday and has been here in a strange place since then. And she probably owes her life to a good samaritan who just happened to be walking by.

JANICE BAILEY, GOOD SAMARITAN: Our dog's in the water and we can't get her out.

MAIN: Janice Bailey was stunned at what was happening.

BAILEY: I was just in shock. All I saw her head out there and she was swimming, trying to survive. And I turned to the dad and I said, have you called the police? He said, no, I'm not calling the police. I'm not risking anybody's life for this dog. We called her and she didn't come back.

MAIN: Janice knew she couldn't jump in to save Duchess, but she also knew she couldn't just stand there and do nothing. As she ran to the car...

BAILEY: ... he was saluting the dog as she was struggling in the water and I thought, he's just letting her die.

MAIN: She called 911 and firefighters quickly saved Duchess. Janice has visited her twice, even bringing a quilt to comfort her.

BAILEY: This is symbolic. I want this dog to be safe and warm for the rest of her life. It's just symbolic. She was freezing on the water. She was in the water probably half an hour. I don't know how she survived but she did.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Do we have a live picture? There it is, Orlando, Florida, you see all the reporters there, the camera personnel there camping out outside of the courthouse waiting for astronaut Lisa Nowak to actually leave the courthouse this morning. Bond set in this bizarre case at $15,000. Nowak charged with attempted kidnapping, attempted vehicle burglary with battery, destruction of evidence and battery. Well, here's the story, briefly. Police say she drove 900 miles for a confrontation with a love rival, this bizarre love triangle. We'll bring you those pictures of Lisa Nowak in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: Live breaking news, unfolding developments, see for yourself in the CNN NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: Let's put him on the screen. There's John Zarrella on the phone. Hey, John, wave. We can see you.

Hey, John, you know, we're expecting pictures any moment now of Lisa Nowak leaving the courthouse in Orlando, her first court appearance today. Last night we understand she spent the night in jail, a far cry from traveling, what, 220 miles above the Earth, huh?

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And actually, you know, the jail is right here. So she didn't have to leave. She spent the night here in this detention facility, which has courtrooms in it. And the judge actually comes here to hear these first appearance cases, these bond cases, and that's what happened this morning at 9:00.

And we're all waiting here, tony. And there are, as you can see, dozens of members of the media, newspapers, TV, all waiting for Lisa Nowak to come out of the courtroom, the jail facility here.

Her attorney left earlier, refused to comment, would not say anything, other than no comment. The chief astronaut, Steve Lindsey (ph), who is here and actually testified on her behalf in court this morning, is inside as well, and our understanding is that she will be allowed to leave here with an ankle bracelet; a monitoring device is being placed on her ankle. She may well have it when she leaves the courtroom now, and she is going to be allowed to go back to Houston. But she cannot go anywhere near the Kennedy Space Center or anywhere near the Patrick air Force Base, which is where Colleen Shipman is, and that is the other woman who is involved in this alleged love triangle of some sort with shuttle pilot, Bill Ofelein -- Tony.

HARRIS: All right. And as we sort of look back on some of the details on this, John, just hard to overstate how bizarre this is, some of the allegations here. Police say she drove 900 miles for this confrontation.

ZARRELLA: Yes, not only did she drive 900 miles, but according to the police affidavit, the statement from police, she drove here and she wore a diaper as she crossed the country so she wouldn't have to stop. She was in a rush to make it to Orlando, to get to the airport to catch up with the flight that Colleen Shipman was on. And she wore a disguises and waited at the airport for Shipman's flight to arrive which came in at 1:00 in the morning, and then it was somewhere around 3:00 before Shipman left the airport because her luggage had been lost. So a very bizarre behavior. and circumstances involving this.

But the astronaut, chief astronaut, you know, Steve Lindsey had said and maintained when he was asked in court today about her, that she was a fine person, always had been, et cetera, et cetera. And of course he flew with her on their July mission -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. All right, John, appreciate that.

We've got some breaking news we want to get to, but I know you'll be following that throughout the afternoon for us. Thanks, John.

COLLINS: Quickly now to Pakistan and the Islamabad Airport. Apparently, we are learning here at CNN, a suicide bomber detonated his explosive devices in a parking area outside of the airport in Islamabad. This was after this individual was stopped by security.

Once again, those explosives going off in the parking lot, the Islamabad Airport. Ambulances took people to the hospital, but at this point not exactly clear on how many casualties there could have been. Airport's obviously closed now, and the whole area is blocked off.

We will continue to follow this story, a suicide bomber detonating explosives, several injuries. But we will continue to follow it and make sure we have all those details for you as soon as possible.

We'll take a quick break and come back here.

You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And once again, we are expecting new pictures of astronaut Lisa Nowak leaving a courthouse in Orlando any moment now after her first court appearance. Bond set this morning at $15,500.

In this bizarre case, police say she drove 900 miles for a confrontation with a love rival, Navy Captain Colleen Shipman. Shipman, Nowak and shuttle astronaut William Ofelein allegedly involved in a love triangle. We will continue to follow developments in this case throughout the afternoon in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: In fact, in just an hour or so, that coverage will certainly continue. Don Lemon joining us now.

You guys are going to be talking about this, I bet?

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Unbelievable story, right? If you had pitched it as a movie script, nobody would buy it. Nobody in fact would believe it,.

COLLINS: Maybe you should do that.

LEMON: I'm sure it's going to be one now. But it's a story everyone is talking about as Tony and Heidi just said. Of course we will be following this alleged NASA love triangle, looking at pictures now of her leaving her first court appearance.

Heidi, you and Tony want to jump in here since you've been covering this?

COLLINS: Yes, three charges were held up. This is a bond hearing that we have been covering.

HARRIS: But we can't see her. Look at this.

COLLINS: The bond was set for $15, 500. Apparently as she comes out, that would mean she has posted that bond. She's also going to be asked to wear this GPS tracking device so that she may not travel anywhere near the alleged victim in all of this, Caroline Shipman. That's down south beyond, I believe, it is Orlando County or so.

So once again, the story all began yesterday when Lisa Nowak apparently drove from Houston to the Orlando Airport...

HARRIS: How many miles, Heidi?

COLLINS: Nine-hundred miles.

HARRIS: Nine-hundred miles.

LEMON: You know what's amazing, we also use -- when we do stories about astronauts and aeronautics and that kind of thing, Miles O'Brien, we've got some people here who were trying to book her for something recently, and it's just amazing, because she has been on news programs talking about this space program, and she was considered possibly to go up on this last time.

COLLINS: Yes, her first flight was in July. She flew on the Shuttle Discovery.

LEMON: Yes, it's just amazing.

COLLINS: So as Miles said, it might have been her first and last, depending upon all of this turns out. Again, you know, of course just charges against her now, no trial, as if it just happened yesterday, but we'll see. Those charges -- battery, attempted kidnapping burglary to a vehicle, as she went up to the alleged victim Caroline Shipman, and sprayed pepper spray in through the windows. And there were all kinds of things found in her vehicle that may have sort of led police to think that she was trying to kidnap her.

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