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The Fight For Iraq; Congress Debates Iraq; Winter Wallop; Dissed From Down Under; Top Tips
Aired February 12, 2007 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Iraq sectarian violence. Today's anniversary underlined with fresh bloodshed and carnage. Three massive bombs ripped through central Baghdad this morning. The latest toll now, at least 90 people dead and more than 170 wounded. The blast so massive, smoke enshrouded much of the city's skyline. The bombs erupted around a ceremony marking the anniversary of a mosque attack. That 2006 bombing of the revered Shiite Golden Mosque is seen by some as a turning point in the sectarian violence.
Fighting the battle for Baritz (ph). U.S. and Iraqi forces trying to retake the town from insurgents. CNN's Arwa Damon is with the 3rd Brigade 1st Cavalry Division.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): A fierce battle for Baritz. A Sunni stronghold on the outskirts of Baqubah. Al Qaeda in Iraq claimed control of this area in December, driving out Iraqi security forces. But now, with American support, Iraqi forces are here to claim it back. Insurgents gunfire intensifies. The soldiers can't move. Their route is lined with roadside bombs, real and fake.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we've been here an hour now and trying to clear this. And if they're going to be waiting for us, then we've heard reports of RPGs teams moving in.
DAMON: The sense of urgency increases. American Bradleys fire at suspicious objects. An Iraqi army soldier launches a rocket propelled grenade at the alley where troops believe the gunfire is coming from.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, captain, finally, let's go get them.
DAMON: Movement is rapid but cautious. Troops taking cover behind their vehicles. Right now, the biggest threat besides the roadside bombs, snipers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ten to 20 insurgents about 100 meters slightly south but mainly east of us, all armed. The arrow weapons team said they went into a house.
DAMON: Baritz has seen this before. Caught in a vicious cycle of coming under coalition and Iraq control, only to eventually fall to the insurgent. We see few civilian. Many appeared to have left in a hurry. But in this house we find a petrified family, too afraid to appear on camera, quivering with each explosion outside. But they tell us they have nowhere else to go.
Apache helicopters pick off insurgent gunmen on the ground. But in eight tough hours, these troops advance less than half a mile. They promise the battle will go on until the fear in these people's eyes goes away.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: A U.S. troop build-up in Iraq. President Bush has put the wheels in motion. Now some in Congress are trying to put the brakes on the plan. The House begins debate today on a resolution opposing the president's plan. CNN's Andrea Koppel, part of the best political coverage team on television, reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): It's expected to be the most intense debate on the war since it began, the House devoting at least three days to Iraq. Democrats say their resolution will send a simple, straightforward and unambiguous message to President Bush to rethink his policy.
REP. TOM LANTOS, (D) CALIFORNIA: You would have thought that the election would have been sufficient to make him feel the need to modify and reverse course, but apparently it wasn't.
KOPPEL: According to California's Tom Lantos and Missouri's Ike Skelton, the resolution's co-sponsors, this non-binding, mostly symbolic measure will have two main points -- an expression of support for U.S. troops, but at the same time disapproval of the troop increase the president wants. Language designed to appeal to almost all Democrats and some Republicans.
REP. IKE SKELTON, (D) MISSOURI: I'm sure we will have some substantial Republican support. It will be a very simple, easy to understand message.
KOPPEL: Republican leaders, who may be allowed to offer an alternative resolution, disagreed.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER, (R) MINORITY LEADER: It's a meaningless, political step. If they want to do something real, well then bring a resolution out onto the floor that either supports the president, stops funding . . .
KOPPEL: Cutting off funds to U.S. troops now in Iraq is a move Democrats do not support, but some, like Pennsylvania's John Murtha, who oversees defense spending, wants to force Bush to begin a withdrawal and Murtha has vowed to tie the Pentagon's latest request for additional money to a guarantee military readiness at home won't suffer.
REP. JOHN MURTHA, (D) PENNSYLVANIA: We would hope we will affect the surge. That's exactly the point.
(END VIDEOTAPE) HARRIS: OK. Let's bring in Andrea Koppel. She is live now on Capitol Hill.
Andrea, good morning to you.
If Republicans are allowed to offer an alternative measure on Iraq, any idea of what they might say?
KOPPEL: Yes. I mean, Tony, Republicans are very careful to couch their response this way. They say, at the moment, it appears that the Democratic leadership has closed the door to that possibility. But if they were allowed to offer some kind of alternative, it would likely move to basically ban cutting off funds for the war effort. There's also another possibility that would involve a bipartisan panel to oversee both President Bush's strategy and the Iraqi government's strategy moving towards handing over full control to the Iraqi government.
HARRIS: And, Andrea, just curious. When can we expect this debate to finally begin in the Senate?
KOPPEL: That is the question. What we've heard so far is that the soonest that it could begin would be the week after next. That would be the week, I believe, of the 26th. In the meantime, Harry Reid, the Democratic leader, has said that he needs to move to make sure that funding for the federal government doesn't get cut off. And that is said to expire on Thursday.
HARRIS: Got you. Congressional correspondent Andrea Koppel for us.
Andrea, thank you.
And a new salvo in the war of words between Iran and the United States. U.S. military officials say there's proof Iran is supplying weapons to Iraqi insurgents who are targeting American troops. They've displayed these pictures as evidence, powerful roadside bombs that can punch through heavy American armor. They're known as EFPs. The military officials say the weapons can be traced to Iran. Iran says it's all lies. Some Democrats on The Hill say they're concerned the Bush administration may be laying the groundwork for an attack on Iran. The Pentagon quick to react and repeat what the administration has said before.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: We have no intention of attacking Iran. The president's said that. The secretary of state's said it. I've said it before.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Snow that swallows your doors and blocks your windows. That's what parts of upstate New York are dealing with today after more than a week of snow. Some places have 11 feet on the ground. And right now the region is getting a little bit of a break. But another winter blast is on the way.
And it's not just New York. Parts of the Midwest also coping with snow and cold. This scene in Cincinnati, Ohio. Indianapolis also bracing for more winter weather. Storm watches and warnings now in place across the state of Indiana. Meteorologist Chad Myers in with us from the CNN Weather Center.
Chad, we'll get to you in just a moment.
And Reggie Aqui in the snow walloped town of Mexico, New York.
And, Reggie, this is my favorite part of the whole day. I get to say that you are a guy who's originally from Hawaii. How did you get this assignment?
REGGIE AQUI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hawaii. Yes. And I have brothers and sisters who live on the big island (INAUDIBLE) and right now they're watching this and saying, that's why we don't live on the mainland and we're never moving there ever.
COLLINS: Yes. They're saying, what is all that white stuff? My goodness.
AQUI: Well, it's 100 inches is what we've seen here in Mexico. And this is the tunnel, Heidi. This is what they've been able to sort of burrow out so people can finally sort of get back to normal. They're trying to get to work today. Schools are now back open.
But this is what they're facing outside of their businesses and outside of their homes. The plows had to put the snows somewhere, right, and so what you end up having are these huge mounds that -- and I'm 6'4" and I'm basically in it up to my waist here.
The other concern. You see these big icicles behind me? Well, that's going to fall down at some point. And the mayor here is telling us that he's very concerned about the safety of his citizens, especially when you're talking about theses roofs that are now under so much snow. And so a lot of the people here are having to go up on their roof, take the shovels that they've just used to shovel off the sidewalks and now shovel off their roof. Which is, of course, another danger. The fear that people would fall off of those roofs. So far, though, no major injuries. People are really doing well here in upstate New York. I have a feeling if this would have happened anywhere else in the United States, it may have been really a mass panic. But these folks are used to a lot of snow, just not this much snow this quickly.
COLLINS: Well, unfortunately, even though they're getting used to it up there in upstate New York, our audio seems to have a little bit of trouble with all that snow. It is 11 feet. We will get back to Reggie just as soon as possible and find out the latest that's happening there.
Chad Myers, can you hear me?
(WEATHER REPORT) HARRIS: Slap back. Have you heard this? The slap back after a slam from down under?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I would suggest that he calls up another 20,000 Australians and sends them to Iraq. Otherwise, it's just a bunch of empty rhetoric.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Democrats to Australia's prime minister, butt out of American politics, Mr. Howard. Details in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: On defense. The second half of the Scooter Libby trial getting underway now. What's the defense strategy? We'll talk about that ahead in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: And he is a brainiac on a roll. A fifth grader's acing the math portion of a college entrance exam.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
: Because it didn't -- the section didn't seem that hard really.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Didn't seem that hard.
COLLINS: There you go.
HARRIS: All right. A knack for numbers. Add in a little modesty, perfect score in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: It's the defense's turn today in the Scooter Lewis Libby trial. Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff faces perjury and obstruction charges in connection with the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity. Among the witnesses who could testify today is Robert Novak. His newspaper column first outed Plame as an agent. Vice President Cheney may also be called to testify at some time, but CNN has learned White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove not expected to be called. Prosecutors wrapped up their case last week.
HARRIS: Democratic Senator Barack Obama telling Australian Prime Minister John Howard what he can do with his criticism shortly after Obama announced his candidacy for president over the weekend. Howard said Obama in the White House would be a victory for terrorists. Our Ed Henry, part of the best political team on television, has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Just one day after Democrat Barack Obama launched his bid for president of the United States, a blast from down under.
JOHN HOWARD, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: If I were running al Qaeda in Iraq, I would put a circle around March 2008 and pray as many times as possible for a victory not only for Obama but also for the Democrats.
HENRY: A fierce ally of President Bush, conservative Australian Prime Minister John Howard was firing away at Obama's call for pulling all U.S. combat troops out of Iraq by the end of March 2008. The senator quickly fired back.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: So if he's ginned up to fight the good fight in Iraq, I would suggest that he calls up another 20,000 Australians and sends them to Iraq.
HENRY: A two-fer. A shot at the fact that about 1,000 Australian troops are in Iraq, and a poke at the plan to send more U.S. troops being pushed by the president, who is tight with Howard.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Somebody said, you and John Howard appear to be so close, don't you have any differences? And I said, yes, he doesn't have any hair.
HENRY: White House aides expressed surprise over Howard's criticism of Obama. But one official weighed in with support for the Australian, saying "Prime Minister Howard knows that setting a timeline for a withdrawal sends the wrong signal to our enemy." Democrats, however, told the Aussie to butt out of the U.S. debate.
SEN. RON WYDEN, (D) OREGON: The most charitable thing you can say about Mr. Howard's comment is bizarre. You know, we'll make our own judgments in this country with respect to elections.
HENRY: But a Republican presidential candidate declared that given their own sacrifice in Iraq, the Australians have a right to speak out.
REP. DUNCAN HUNTER, (R) CALIFORNIA: I think that John Howard, while it wasn't a very complementary statement, he is basically stating the truth. And that is, that what we say on the Senate floor or on the House floor goes to a world audience and it has an impact on not only our allies but also our adversaries.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: OK. Our White House correspondent, Ed Henry, joins us now from Washington.
Good to see you, Ed.
OK, John Howard is up for re-election. Hmm, could that be behind some of these remarks, Ed?
HENRY: I think you put your finger on it. He is facing a tough re-election because of the war in Iraq, because John Howard has stood so closely to President Bush and the broader war on terror. And it's very interesting as well because Mr. Howard is behind in some polls right now in Australia.
And, in fact, Vice President Cheney, in an interesting bit of timing, coincidental, is heading to Australia later this month, give a speech, maybe try to help Mr. Howard a little bit. The bottom line is that the White House has already seen Tony Blair take a real hit. He'll be leaving office shortly, in part because of unpopularity of standing with Mr. Bush. And the White House right now cannot afford to lose another ally like John Howard. So they're going to do everything they can to help him out.
Tony.
HARRIS: And Heidi mentioned just a moment ago that Karl Rove is not testifying at the Libby trial. Do we know why?
HENRY: Well, the sense is that right now that's really up to the defense, of Scooter Libby's defense team. They've made the calculation privately, we're told, that basically they're not going to call Rove. But it's important to point out as well, that could always change. Based on the testimony over the next couple of days, they could change their mind and decide to call Rove in.
As you've learned throughout this trial, expect the unexpected. There have been all kinds of developments. But the bottom line is, right now the White House breathing easier that Rove is not expected to testify. But if Vice President Cheney testifies, that could get quite interesting.
Tony.
HARRIS: Yes, that's for sure. OK. Our White House correspondent Ed Henry for us.
Ed, thank you.
HENRY: Thanks, Tony.
HARRIS: War, politics and the presidential elections. Bill Bennett and Donna Brazile hash it all out later this morning in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Gerri Willis, our personal finance editor, is here today, going to be giving us some terrific tips about tax deductions. There's stuff that we can deduct that we might forget about.
WILLIS: That's right, Heidi.
Are you taking all the tax deductions you can? Coming up, I'll tell you about some easy money that millions of Americans are missing out on. "Top Tips" is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: What do you say we get a check of the big board. New York Stock Exchange inside, oh, the first hour of the trading day. The Dow, boy, we were off to such a good start, too. You remember that, right out of the gate, up 22, 23 points. Now we have reversed course a bit. The Dow down six, almost seven and the Nasdaq down six as well. We will check the morning headlines with Susan Lisovicz a little later this hour in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Knowledge is power. It can also put more money in your wallet come tax time and that's good news, right? That is if you know some often overlooked deductions. That's what we're talking about today with CNN personal finance editor Gerri Willis joining us now from New York with her "Top Tips."
Good morning, Gerri.
WILLIS: Hey, Heidi, good to see you.
COLLINS: This could be great news. We always love to hear about ways that we could be saving money.
WILLIS: That's right. It's always great to know about the ones you might have missed or gotten away.
First tip, don't forget about education expenses. You won't find this one on your tax form, but may qualify to deduct up to $4,000 you paid in college tuition in 2006 for yourself, your spouse or a dependent, read (ph) the kids. This break in payoffs if your income is too high to qualify to claim the over (ph) lifetime learning credit. You also get to claim this deduction regardless of whether you itemize.
And teachers and aids can deduct up to $250 they spent last year for books and classroom supplies. Now this one doesn't appear on the tax form either, so you just make sure you put your deduction on line 23 of your 1040.
COLLINS: Yes, and another one, too, that is interesting, because I know how expensive it is to be looking for a new job and even if you have to move, these are some expenses that you can also deduct.
WILLIS: Well, while you can't deduct job hunting expenses for your first job, you can deduct moving expenses to get that first job. And this could be significant savings. If you moved at least 50 miles from your home, you can deduct the cost of getting yourself and your stuff to the new area. Now this includes 18 cents a mile, plus parking fees and tolls for driving your own car. Remember, even if you don't itemize, you can get this tax writeoff. And if it's not your first job you're looking for, you can get a deduction for your job seeking expenses within your present field of employment. So good deals for people out there who are changing jobs.
COLLINS: Terrific. Yes, definitely. It's not all bad.
And what about some free cash that you might be able to get depending on your phone deduction?
WILLIS: Doesn't everybody love free cash, Heidi? I love this one. This is free stuff. The federal government is making a one time refund this year of a telephone excise tax. But so far, at least a third of people have not taken this claim. Now you can deduct a standard amount from $30 to $60 based on the number of exemptions you claim on your return. Or you could dig through your old phone records from March 2003 to see how much you're owed. Hmm, probably not.
COLLINS: Yes, that's not going to get you anything.
WILLIS: People who don't need to file a regular income tax return are still eligible for this refund. So get the free money. Why not?
COLLINS: Yes, no kidding.
All right, Gerri Willis and her "Top Tips" today. Love it.
WILLIS: Good to see you.
And just to remind people, if you have any questions, e-mail us at the address on the bottom of your screen. We'd love to hear from you. We answer those questions right here every Friday.
COLLINS: Terrific. We'll be looking forward to that.
All right, Gerri Willis, thank you.
WILLIS: Thank you, Heidi.
ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins and Tony Harris.
HARRIS: And good morning again everyone.
New developments and a staggering death toll in Iraq. A string of deadly bombings erupts in central Baghdad. More than 250 people dead or wounded. Timing, the trigger. CNN's Arwa Damon is in Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In just 20 minutes, triple explosions in then capital killed nearly 90 Iraqis and wounded close to 200. All of them targeting busy commercial areas. In central Baghdad, a road bomb at a very busy marketplace, followed shortly thereafter by twin car bombings. Those targeting Baghdad's main wholesale marketplace, ripping through the clothing and perfume section. The flames from the explosions rose above the capital. Thick plumes of black smoke lasting for hours as Iraqi firefighters rushed to the scene, trying desperately to put out the flames that had been burning inside a number of buildings in that area. Iraqi medical services rushing wounded to hospitals already stretched thin by the ever increasing cycle of violence here. Today's attacks coming at exactly the same time that Iraq was commemorating the anniversary of the bombing of the Al-Askari Mosque that took place exactly a year ago, according to the Islamic lunar calendar. That bombing, a grim marker in Iraq's history, viewed by many as being the point that catapulted Iraq's sectarian violence to entirely new levels.
Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Iraq's former vice president headed to the gallows. A source says the Iraqi high tribunal today handed down the death sentence to Taha Yassin Ramadan. He has denied any involvement in the Dujail massacre -- 148 Shiite men and boys killed in the 1982 assault. That's the same case that led to the execution of Saddam Hussein in late December.
New allegations from the U.S. military -- is Iran arming enemy fighters in Iraq. That story ahead in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Outnumbered in the war against gangs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't have enough cops. You we don't have enough police officers. We never have.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: The LAPD is getting aggressive in marketing. See the story in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Snowed in, and bracing for another round. It is almost unbelievable what parts of Upstate New York are dealing with after more than a week of snow, around 11 feet in some places. There you go.
The reach is getting a bit of a break today. But another winter blast is on the way. And it is not just New York. Parts of the Midwest also coping with snow and cold. This scene in Cincinnati, Ohio. Indianapolis Also bracing for more winter weather. Storm watches, warnings are now place across the state of Indiana.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: New claims on Iran's involvement in Iraq, allegations of deadly weapons used against coalition troops.
CNN's Michael Ware has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a war meant to confront al Qaeda, the American military says its troops are being killed by Iran.
In a background briefing in Baghdad that could not be taped, by three officials who cannot be named, the U.S. escalated its campaign of accusation against Tehran. The U.S. officials laid out what they call "a growing body of evidence" that a largely covert Iranian special forces unit arms, trains and advises Shia insurgents attacking coalition soldiers.
That unit is an element of the Iranian Revolution Guard corps. Its elite Quds force which the U.S. officials claim it takes orders directly from Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei himself.
Insisting the Quds force is funneling insurgents a range of arms from mortars to sniper rifles, grenades to machine guns. The American officials highlighted one weapon in particular they blame the Quds force for supplying. A roadside bomb, pioneered by Lebanese Hezbollah, so powerful it punches through the heaviest American armor with ease. Called an explosively formed penetrator or EFP.
The officials say the device has killed at least 170 American soldiers since it first emerged on the Iraqi battlefield in 2004.
But like much of the declassified information released during the briefing, it's a claim U.S. officials have made many times before. Insisting one of the bomb's key components needs fine machine tooling that can be traced back to Iran.
As can markings on mortars and explosives found inside Iraq, which show they were manufactured by Tehran. All part, the U.S. officials claim, of a wide-ranging Iranian program to target Americans, being carried out by Quds force officers of the kind American troops detained in Baghdad and the northern city of Irbil. Including one, a senior as the Quds force's operations chief.
While admitting there is no smoking gun of Iranian complicity, a Defense Department intelligence analyst says this is a sophisticated Iranian campaign being fought through a host of surrogate groups, maximizing Iran's deniability. If so, it's the same kind of proxy war techniques America's CIA used so successfully with Islamic allies against the Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s.
Though the much anticipated briefing was full of old allegations, there was a sprinkling of the new. Including this. According to the U.S. military, the Iraqi government has confirmed a political faction within its ranks has indeed received arms from Iran. But only for its own protection.
Something the military rejects, stating mortars and sniper rifles are weapons used for attack, not defense. Either way, outlining Iranian involvement is one thing. Stopping it is another.
Michael Ware, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: The SATs, challenge or child play?
The section didn't seem that hard, really.
Head of the class, ahead of his time, in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BUSINESS HEADLINES)
COLLINS: A health system, broken and in need of repair.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This seems to be a different country here, it really does.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's sad.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it is. It's quite sad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The uninsured and poor are getting a little bit of help in the Big Easy, ahead in the NEWSROOM.
Smoke rises and death toll soars in central Baghdad, the latest numbers and fears what might happen next, ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: You already know to catch us weekday mornings from 9:00 until noon Eastern. But did you know you can take us anywhere with you anywhere on your iPod -- cool music and Collins and Harris. The CNN NEWSROOM podcast available 24/7 right on your iPod.
HARRIS: What more could you ask for? Come on, what do you need here?
Mystery flumes send shoppers fleeing. The fumes lead to an evacuation of a mall in Spokane, Washington. It happened yesterday afternoon. Nearly 40 people sought treatment, complaining of itchy, watery eyes and trouble breathing. The source of the fumes not known. Police suspect some type of a chemical irritant.
COLLINS: Fighting gang crime and more -- the LAPD is also fighting its own image, as well as competition from Iraq, but the battle for recruits has been joined.
CNN's Randi Kaye now explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We first met Tarik Hawkins in this quiet middle class neighborhood just blocks from one of the most dangerous areas of L.A., where a year and a half ago he nearly lost his life.
HAWKINS: I was terrified once they drove off they were going to many could back and kill us.
KAYE: Seven thirty in the evening, Tarik, a college student, and two friends were getting into his car when another car drove by and opened fire. Tarik was hit four times in the legs. It would be months before he'd walk again. HAWKINS: There's no police presence anywhere. A lot of young people and gang-bangers and people are doing negative things, feeling comfortable doing something like that at 7 p.m. at night where it's not even dark -- really dark yet.
KAYE (on camera): Because they know they're not going to get caught.
HAWKINS: Because they know they're not going to get caught.
KAYE: The person who shot Tarik Hawkins was never caught. Random shootings like his and growing gang violence are part of daily life here, simply because there's little police can do to stop it.
In Los Angeles, the police department says it has 9,400 officers, only about 500 on patrol at any given time. That, police say, is no match for the 39,000 gang members who call Los Angeles home.
(voice-over) So it's no wonder the LAPD says gang violence jumped 15 percent in L.A. last year, and more than half the city's 477 homicides were gang related.
COMMANDER KEN GARNER, LAPD: We don't have enough cops. You know, we don't have enough police officers. We never have.
The benefits are incredible.
KAYE: Commander Ken Garner has the money to hire about 700 recruits. So, where are they?
GARNER: The best candidates have options, have lots of options.
KAYE: Like the military. Garner says the war in Iraq is one reason LAPD's pool of recruits is running dry.
GARNER: We can't offer you a trip to Hawaii or to Paris, or live in Germany, those kind of things. And that's what the military offers for a young man or women, is a chance to really travel.
KAYE: The LAPD's image problem, especially among minorities, doesn't help. Videotaped police beatings like this one. And in July 2005, questions about the shooting death of a 19-month-old girl during a SWAT standoff are a turnoff to many.
GARNER: Part of my job is changing that one at a time.
KAYE: But that isn't easy. last year the LAPD had 603 recruits, but the majority of them dropped out, leaving the department with just 130 new officers. That's about what it's been gaining each year. But Garner said the force needs 15,000 to make a dent in gang crime.
GARNER: Basically, we're caught in a place where we're reactive. With more officers, we can be proactive.
KAYE: So the LAPD is getting aggressive. Billboard campaigns. New TV adds. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I decided I can make a difference in our community by becoming a member of the LAPD, and you can, too.
KAYE: The ad campaign seems to be working. Garner says recruiting classes are more crowded than they've been in seven years.
Tarik Hawkins had once wanted to be a police officer, but after he was shot, he joined an outreach program focused on keeping at-risk kids from joining gangs.
(on camera) Do you feel like you can't wait for the police to get enough recruits and enough officers on the street and you need to sort of take some steps yourself?
HAWKINS: No, we can't wait at all. If we wait, we're going to lose a lot more of our youth and a lot more of the community to the violence that is going on. This is the aftermath.
KAYE (voice-over): Tarik has the scars to prove it. The LAPD needs all the help it can get.
Randi Kaye, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Iraq's neighbors accused of building bombs for Shiite insurgents: the U.S. military pointing a finger at Iran, in the NEWSROOM.
They're over their heads in Upstate New York, smothered, snow four yards deep, inches towards a record, do you think? In the NEWSROOM.
Not ready to make nice, but ready for Grammy gold. Highlights from the awards show coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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