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Big Three Bailout to White House; Jobs Forecast; Illinois Governor in Federal Custody; Guantanamo Bay Detainees Want to Plead Guilty
Aired December 09, 2008 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Auto bailout now parked at the White House. What could drive the plan back to Capitol Hill for a vote? We'll talk about that.
And jobs forecast. What employers are saying about hirings and layoffs in the New Year.
It's Tuesday, December 9th. I'm Heidi Collins. And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM/
Moving closer to a new deal for Detroit. It means big bucks for the big three automakers. But not as much as they want it. The rescue plan being negotiated calls for $15 billion in emergency loans. The companies, though, had asked for $34 billion.
If approved they could see the money as soon as Monday. A so- called car czar would oversee restructuring of the industry and that means some tough concessions from everybody.
Tracking the deal making now Kathleen Koch at the White House and Gerri Willis in New York.
Let's go ahead and begin with you, Kathleen. So obviously, even by what we have just said already this morning, this is, by no means, a done deal yet?
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, it certainly isn't, Heidi. And the White House is very carefully tapping the breaks on this plan as it speeds through Congress because they simply do not want this thing to spiral out of control and put literally billions of taxpayer dollars at risk.
The White House received the plans from Capitol Hill yesterday afternoon. This morning I talked to senior administration officials who said that White House staffers and Hill staffers were up past midnight trying to hammer out language on this.
And what this official told me is, quote, "it's not buttoned yet. We're still working through a number of issues." He said discussion continue this morning. And the point that this official made is that we want to move quickly, but it's most important that we get the policy right.
And the word that we're hearing from the administration over and over again is the V word, viability. Press Secretary Dana Perino saying yesterday, quote, "Long-term financing must conditioned on the principle that taxpayers should only assist automakers executing a credible plan for long-term viability."
And we're also hearing from Congress that it does seem intent on holding Detroit to some major reforms.
House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D), HOUSE SPEAKER: There's not going to be an endless flow of money to this industry to continue left to their own devices, the practices they've -- had been engaged in. So while they reevaluate their relationship, so we call this the barbershop. Everybody is getting a hair cut.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOCH: Now this new car czar would be the enforcer here. If these automakers do not come up with acceptable restructuring plans by March 31st, basically, the car czar would do it for them, come up with his own plan. That would be submitted to Congress.
So, the White House working with the Hill, trying to hammer out an agreement, still disagreement on some issues that they are trying to work through the -- the White House, though, was very pleased that they did. Win one victory here.
And that's what this $15 billion is going to come from, an existing plan that was meant to help Detroit retool to build more fuel efficient vehicles. It's not going to come from the $700 larger financial rescue plan -- Heidi.
COLLINS: I'm curious where the car czar is going to come from, Kathleen. Is there any word on who this mastermind of this whole entire auto industry is going to be?
KOCH: There are some names floating out there, Heidi, but right now nothing that the White House will confirm. But this person will indeed have a great deal of responsibility, a great deal of power, and obviously, it'll be interesting to see if they will continue beyond January 20th or if then President-elect Barack Obama would bring in his own car czar.
COLLINS: Wow. It's fascinating. Lot more questions to be asked, obviously.
KOCH: A lot.
COLLINS: Kathleen Koch, thanks so much. Live from the White House this morning.
KOCH: You bet.
COLLINS: To paraphrase, of course, as usual, it is all into the details. CNN's Gerri Willis have been looking into the auto rescue and restructuring plan.
All right. So, Gerri, what strikes you?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Well, I think what's interesting here are the dollars and cents, as usual. I'm looking at the money.
We're talking about $15 billion as of December 15th. That's the -- the earliest it could be paid. Now you remember that the industry had asked for $34 billions. They're getting less than half of that. The money would come from the Energy Act, not from the $700 billion bailout plan.
And of course, we talked about the car czar.
COLLINS: Yes.
WILLIS: How would that work as a practical matter? He would operate as a trustee in a bankruptcy, something similar to that, with wide-ranging powers, negotiate with unions, debt holders, suppliers, to get the best deals for these companies. Really, structure a plan for emerging from this as a successful company.
This is a lot of responsibility, the really operational responsibility that these auto companies are really signing over to the federal government at the end of the day. I think it's fascinating the amount of power they're turning over to the federal government for this money.
And they -- he -- this person will be responsible for really measuring the progress of these companies, making sure they do. But one big question out there, what are you going to do if they are not holding up to your standards?
You know the suggestion is that the stick is the money. They would take it back. But I have to tell you, that -- they'll probably run through that money pretty quickly. As a matter of fact, just this morning, Bob Lutz, General Motors' vice chairman, said on "AMERICAN MORNING," we're not done asking for money yet. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB LUTZ, VICE CHAIRMAN, GENERAL MOTORS: I don't think anybody in Congress or the president-elect assumes that this is all the money that -- is going to be required to bridge this liquidity crisis that the American automobile industry is facing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIS: So there you have it. Bob Lutz himself saying that, you know, in fact, the industry will probably ask for more money. And we'll see that play out over the months ahead.
You know, clearly, this is tough because you got a transition between two administrations.
COLLINS: Yes.
WILLIS: And how that works is very much up in question. At the end of the day, the American public could end up owning a part of these companies. Apparently, part of this deal is that the government would get warrants for a portion of the companies and that means the opportunity to own a piece of the action.
So I don't know if we're interested in doing that, but...
COLLINS: I was going to say...
WILLIS: ... at the end of the day...
COLLINS: ... if you, if you want to do that.
WILLIS: Yes.
COLLINS: Yes, all right.
WILLIS: Well, I think what, you know, that's best-case scenario, we'll own a piece of this company in exchange for what? Our tax dollars.
COLLINS: Yes. Exactly. All right, well, Gerri, we're trying to get through all of it here. Thanks so much. Appreciate that.
WILLIS: My pleasure.
COLLINS: Gerri Willis live from New York this morning.
For the most part, investors seem to welcome a government rescue of the auto industry. European stock exchanges are rallying for a second day in a row now. It was much more of a mixed bag in the Asian and Pacific market.
Let's see another sign of the troubled global economy, electronics giant Sony is slimming down. Now the company plan to cut 8,000 jobs by March of 2010 and that's about 4 percent of its workforce.
New census work figure show it's bad all over. Especially hard hit in the U.S. small and medium sized cities in the Midwest. Coming up next hour, we're going to talk a little bit more about those latest job figures.
We'll also be keeping an eye on the New York Stock Exchange, of course. The Dow briefly topped 9,000 yesterday. That's the first time in about a month.
The opening bell, of course, coming your way at the bottom of the hour.
No resolution. A group of laid-off workers staging a sit-in in Chicago. They met last night with representatives of the failed company and the Bank of America, but nobody could agree on a fix, so they'll try again today.
And CNN's Gary Tuchman has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Margerita Cabrera is expecting her third child on Christmas Eve, but she says her future has never been more frightening. It all has something to do with something very unexpected happening to her husband.
(on camera): What are you going to do if he's arrested and taken away?
MARGERITA CABRERA, WIFE OF LAID-OFF WORKER: I don't know.
TUCHMAN (voice over): This is her husband, Apolinar. He's one of nearly 300 factory workers in Chicago who have taken over the Republic Windows & Doors factory after the owners abruptly shut it down. And in the process, they've become a national symbol of this recession.
APOLINAR CABRERA, LAID-OFF WORKER: I'm scared because my baby is coming soon, but I need to do something. I need to fight for my rights.
TUCHMAN: Under federal law companies are required to give workers 60 days notice if there are plant closings or massive layoffs, instead these workers got three days. Now no more salary, no vacation pay, no insurance. But the salary of $400 a week, Cabrera is owed more than $5,000 in severance and vacation pay.
It's 2:00 in the morning in this quiet frigid Chicago street, but inside the window and door factory, it's active and loud. The vigil is around the clock, the worker occupation is taking place in shifts.
(on camera): These workers know the police can come in here at any time. Also water and electricity can be turned off, but they say they are not leaving without a fight.
(voice over): The family-owned business has not talked to reporters but told employees its financing was canceled by Bank of America. The bank, however, does not accept blame, saying the company should honor its obligations to its employs and minimize the impact of failure on those employees.
A well-known Chicago resident has spoken out about the laid-off workers.
BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: I think they're absolutely right, and -- understand that what's happening to them is reflective of what's happening across this economy.
TUCHMAN: These workers and their families don't necessarily expect the factory to reopen, but many of them, like the Cabreras, say they are desperate for the money they are owed and their medical insurance that is gone. M. CABRERA: We're just hoping. At this time we're crossing our fingers and hoping.
TUCHMAN: Gary Tuchman, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: An exclusive look inside the factory. This video sent to us now by Susan Hurley. She was in the window and door factory on Sunday night, and one of the protesting workers took her through the now quiet plant.
The machines normally run around the clock. Workers are still there 24 hours a day protesting in shifts.
You can be part of breaking news, just send your i-Reports to ireport.com, and make sure that you stay safe in doing that. You never know what kind of situation that we're going to be looking for those i-Reports to come from.
Good and bad numbers all in the same survey. Manpower Employment surveyed employers finding more than two-thirds plan to hold steady during the first part of 2009. So that's good for people worried about their jobs, of course.
The bad news for job seekers. The survey, of more than, 31,000 employers found only 16 percent plan to add staff in the first quarter. 13 percent plan to let some employees go.
We do have some severe weather to talk about this morning. Rob Marciano is standing by now to tell us a little bit more about that.
So are we talking winter stuff? Are we talking of possible tornadic activity here.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: OK. Very good. We'll check back later on.
Rob Marciano, thank you.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You bet.
COLLINS: Barack Obama having a happier honeymoon than his two predecessors. The transition poll numbers. Plus will there be a place at Obama's table for a former vice president?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
COLLINS: Quickly want to get some information out to you. Just as it comes into the CNN NEWSROOM now. Again, all of this coming to us from the "Chicago Tribune" regarding Governor Rod Blagojevich. Apparently, he was taken into federal custody at his home this morning. And here's what we know at this point, again, coming to us from the "Chicago Tribune." You may know that there's been a three-year federal corruption investigation going on into Governor Rod Blagojevich and his administration regarding the selection of the new U.S. senator, of course, to succeed President-elect Barack Obama.
The federal authorities did get approval from a judge back in November, of course -- excuse me, before the November general election to go ahead and secretly record the governor. And among those concerns was whether or not the selection process, again, for the new senator in Illinois was tainted. Whatever that means.
It should be very clear here that at this point the governor has not been accused of any wrongdoing and the specific contents of those recent recordings haven't been disclosed yet, but as you may or may not know, Blagojevich is going to be appointing the Senate successor completely on his own and has said in the past that that could come in a matter of weeks.
So, now, again, the news here coming to us from the "Chicago Tribune," is that the governor of Illinois has been taken into federal custody. And it all happened at his home this morning. So we, of course, will stay very close to that situation and give you any more that we find out here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
President-elect Barack Obama sitting down today with Al Gore. And that's got some people speculating the former vice president could have a role in the Obama administration.
CNN's Elaine Quijano is joining us now from Chicago with more on the meeting.
Really? It's really a possibility, Elaine?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, anything is a possibility, Heidi, but Democratic officials are insisting that President-elect Barack Obama is not looking to tap the former vice president Al Gore for a Cabinet level job or any other position inside the Obama administration.
In fact, transition officials here in Chicago say, look, this is a meeting that is going to be focusing on talking about energy issues and climate change, and of course that makes sense.
Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to raise awareness about global warming. His documentary, as you know, "An Inconvenient Truth," won two Oscar awards. So certainly this is an issue that makes sense.
However, it is a fact the president-elect has yet to name his EPA administrator, his energy secretary, and at the same time, something interesting that a friend of Al Gore has told our own John King, saying, quote, "the Gore trip is for more than just a chat. He wouldn't burn that much carbon flying to Chicago just to talk." Heidi? COLLINS: Very interesting. This mean, though, coming out the heels of the president-elect talking about using green jobs to boost the economy. Another interesting sidebar to all of this.
QUIJANO: Yes, that's right. And so certainly that would be on the agenda, very likely. The president-elect, as you know, has promised to deliver some 2.5 million jobs to help boost the U.S.'s ailing economy.
He talked about that over the weekend saying that the plan would include doing things like modernizing schools, upgrading federal buildings, so that they are more green technology friendly, if you will. Installing things like energy efficient lights, for instance, doing things like getting old heating systems out of there.
The president-elect believes, Heidi, that doing that will not only save taxpayer dollars but also help get Americans back to work -- Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. CNN's Elaine Quijano, staying on top of it for us in Chicago.
Thank you, Elaine.
"Planet in Peril," a special CNN investigation takes you deep into the jungles of Africa, hunting a deadly disease.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Dozens of dead chickens found in Hong Kong. Now authorities are destroying tens of thousands of them. Tests showed 60 chickens died from bird flu at just one farm. So authorities are destroying all chickens in a two-mile radius of that farm. That's about 80,000 of the birds.
"Planet in Peril: Battlelines." As part of CNN's worldwide investigation, Anderson Cooper and CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, track into the jungles of central Africa, trying to track down an outbreak of monkeypox.
Here's a preview now of their investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): In Central Africa, monkeypox continues to kill. Dr. Wolfe takes Sanjay and they had a long journey from Cameroon to the Democratic Republic of Congo where 20 people have just died from a monkeypox outbreak.
We fly to a remote town called (INAUDIBLE), where in a walled compound we find Coy, alone in a small hut.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Now we're standing out here and she is inside there. Why, why is that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So the first thing we need to do is to isolate the patient.
COOPER: (INAUDIBLE) is a local scientist working with Dr. Wolfe's team.
GUPTA: Are we at risk? I mean how -- contagious is this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just looking at the patient, you have no risk. But when you are in contact -- direct contact with the patient, at that time you are in danger.
COOPER: Coy is the latest victim. All of these people are slowly recovering and are still quarantined in the makeshift clinic. Painful sores cover their bodies and they say they feel tired all the time.
GUPTA: If she hadn't made it to you to this place, what would have happened to her?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some patients, but not all, they die.
COOPER: Coy probably got monkeypox through contact with bush meat, which she says she handled over the past few weeks. Or she came in contact with an infected person. Its exact origins are still unknown.
(on camera): How can it be that in this day and age we don't know something as simple as where this virus comes from?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, believe it or not, our knowledge in viruses is very minimal. By studying these kind of places where we see these outbreaks of zoonotic diseases like monkeypox, we may also be able to find viruses which may end up sort of being the next major pandemic.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Boy, some of those pictures very tough to watch.
Sanjay Gupta is here now with us to talk a little bit more about it.
So, you mentioned in the piece that this woman may have gotten monkeypox. From bush meet, of course, coming from animals that live in the bush, if you will. What does that say about this disease? I mean how do we really know, because it could come from anywhere.
GUPTA: Right.
COLLINS: I know you had to follow the hunters to actually sort of try and track this down, right?
GUPTA: That's right. And, if you look at any infectious agent, you know things that cause infections in human beings, most of those things start in animals. So part of the goal here is to find those interfaces between animals and humans and find out how this low-level of swapping, if you will, back and fourth from infection agents, is happening.
Mostly these things are totally harmless. You never hear about them. They don't cause sickness, but every now and then you get something like Ebola, (INAUDIBLE), as Dr. Cameroon or Congo.
So it's a question, how do you stop those things...
COLLINS: Right.
GUPTA: ... from catching hold and transmitting themselves all over the world?
COLLINS: Because this is -- I mean this is what they have to eat?
GUPTA: That's right. And so you're hitting upon the exact dilemma. I mean the food is more scarce. There are food problems all over the world. Bush meat is becoming more desirable by these bush meat hunters. They have to find them.
So the question is, how do you make it safer? I mean you have pictures now of bush meat hunters wearing gloves when they're slaughtering their animals. Even wearing masks at certain points during the whole process.
So it's going to happen. That's how they get their sources of protein. How do you make it as safe as possible?
COLLINS: And that's what it could come down to? Is possibly just gloves and other small protections like that?
GUPTA: Yes, I mean, you know, the -- the way that these things are swapping back and fourth is becoming more easily recognizable. So it -- sort of developing simple strategies that they can actually do. You don't wanted to make it too complicated...
COLLINS: Yes.
GUPTA: ... for the bush meat hunters, or too resource intense. Can make a huge difference possible.
And yet we don't know. You know, everyone that we talked to said there probably will be some sort of pandemic within the next 10 years, and it may originate in the way that you just saw.
COLLINS: Boy. All right. Well, we are looking forward to seeing more of this.
In fact, want to remind everybody that you can...
GUPTA: Thanks.
COLLINS: ... tune into Sanjay, Anderson Cooper and Lisa Ling for "PLANET IN PERIL, BATTLE LINES." This is going to be coming your way, Thursday night, 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
Neighborhood in flames. A military jet crashes in San Diego. The very latest on the investigation coming up in a live report.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Quickly now, the opening bell just rang. You heard there the last few dings, if you will. Investors, obviously, hoping that major averages can post a third straight day of gains. It sounds pretty good, too. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange now with more on how the trading day is shaping up.
Boy, three whole days. OK, all of them.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We've had -- you know, we have had a 500-point run in the last two sessions. The Dow actually got over 9,000 at one point before retreating just a little bit. Yesterday's rally, of course, came on the heels of heightened bailout -- hopes with the big three, car makers and comments from President- elect Barack Obama concerning a second stimulus package. That stimulus plan of course is all about job creation. Some fresh examples of why the market wants it.
Sony is slashing 8,000 positions from its global work force in an effort to cut cost by more than $1 billion per year. Sony, of course, makes the popular play station gaming console, plans to complete the cuts by the end of 2010. And Wyndham Worldwide, a hospitality company that franchises Days Inn and Ramada will cut 4,000 jobs and restructure its time share business.
And the bell-weather of the U.S. economy talking about the toll of recession. FedEx joining the slew of big companies to issue profit warnings, the package delivery company lowering its forecast for next year saying the slumping economy has trumped those falling fuel prices. Texas Instruments also lowering its earnings outlook at the global market for semiconductors continues to weaken.
And of course, we continue to wait on word of a rescue of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, which the government would take a large ownership stake in the industry. GM and Ford shares surged yesterday but they are down slightly in the first minute of trading. And so are the overall averages of what the market give it. They'd also take it away. The Dow is down 136 points or 1.5 percent. The Nasdaq is down 1.75 percent. Later this morning, we will hear, get the latest grade on pending home sales. It's expected to show a decline of three percent in October.
Heidi, we are seeing declines.
COLLINS: Yes.
LISOVICZ: Across the board, early going. Back to you.
COLLINS: Early going. You never know, it might end up in positive, maybe.
All right, Susan, thanks. We'll check in a little bit later on.
I want to get back to this story that we told you about just a few moments ago here on CNN. According to the "Chicago Tribune," we have word that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was taken into federal custody at his home this morning. Apparently, this is all because of a three-year federal corruption investigation that's been going on regarding his selection process to replace President-elect Barack Obama. Obviously, that Senate seat needs to be filled now.
The U.S. Attorneys office has not confirmed any of this information. But, again, a little bit more to tell you about federal authorities did get approval from a judge before the general election in November to go ahead and secretly record the governor.
They were very concerned about whether these selection processes, if you will, might be tainted. So, again, the governor at this point has not been accused of any wrong doing. The specific contents of these recordings in fact have not been disclosed. But, again, as you know, in this process, the governor will be choosing who takes over the Senate seat on his own. That is something that is his, obviously, responsibility.
He had said all along that this could come in a matter of weeks. And now, again, according to the "Chicago Tribune" and CNN is now confirming as well, the Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was taken into federal custody this morning. He was taken from his home. So, again, we are continuing to follow this very closely. We want to try and get further information to you just as soon as we get it here at CNN.
Meanwhile, Washington, finally confirmed what most of us have known for sometime now. We are in a recession. The question now, when will it end? Here now Tom Foreman with some hopeful signs.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): If you are unemployed or cutting back on Christmas shopping or just worried about holding on to what you have, there is one question you really need answered right now.
(voice-over): When will this economy start getting better? Amid growing layoffs, the continuing mortgage mess and all that stock market mayhem, political leaders have been throwing around numbers like one to three years. But keeping them honest, increasingly some financial forecasters are making far rosier predictions. At "Money" magazine Janice Revell keeps tabs on them all, and says the new consensus is --
JANICE REVELL, MONEY MAGAZINE: Believe it or not, we could actually be turning a corner as early as the end of the first quarter in 2009.
FOREMAN: Hold on, when did she say?
REVELL: As early as the end of the first quarter in 2009.
FOREMAN: Revell says the most optimistic views about a turn around are driven by three simple arguments. One, the government programs to help the economy are working. Buoyed by government bailout money, banks are already showing more willingness to lend to each other, which should gradually make more credit available to businesses and consumers.
Two, consumer confidence will rise again. Many millions of people are scared for their jobs and cutting back now. But in the New Year, with the new president, some economists expect a psychological boost as most folks realize they still have jobs, homes, and things they want to buy. And three, the housing market is ready to revive. Sure, home values have plunged; scads of bad mortgages are still expected to default. Acclaimed financial forecaster Joel Naroff knows it all too well.
JOEL NAROFF, NAROFF ECONOMIC ADVISERS: An interesting thing happening in a lot of parts of the country, where there is a lot of foreclosures, sales are picking up. The foreclosure prices that we're seeing are really the bottom of the market. And I would not be surprised that if a year from now, the economy is going pretty solidly.
FOREMAN (on camera): Anyone of those three legs of these financial recovery could collapse if the new administration makes an early mistake, or if the global markets remain chaotic, or if, if, if. But for the moment at least in some financial circles, there is real hope that maybe this is the darkness before the dawn.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: New census data shows no region of the country has been spared either. Especially hard hit, small and medium sized cities in the Midwest. They have seen unemployment rates double, even triple, over the past three years.
Now to this story. A mother, a grandmother and a baby are dead. Another young child still missing. All victims of a tragic accident. An F-18 Jet crashed in their San Diego neighborhood, killing them and destroying two homes. CNN's Chris Lawrence is joining us now with more on the story.
Boy, it is really an unfortunate, to say the least, story, Chris. What is happening now?
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, it's just amazing how normal everything else seems around this. The homes, the neighborhood, everything looks completely intact until you get right there where that jet hit. Now that the sun is out, the search teams will be going back in through that debris, trying to account for that one child that is still missing. And investigators will be trying to figure out what went wrong.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't breathe this stuff. It's an F-18 that will kill you.
LAWRENCE (voice-over): All this started with a young Marine on a routine training mission, practicing landings on an aircraft carrier. But as the pilot headed back to base, something went wrong with his plane. He radioed for help and officials ordered an emergency landing at Miramar Air Station.
As the pilot crossed over this neighborhood, the plane failed. And Marine officials say he tried to aim it at a deserted canyon.
CAPT. STEPHEN PAAP, U.S. MARINE CORPS: He did whatever he could to try to prevent the actual crash. But he had to eject, and once the pilot ejects, the plane kind of just takes it course.
LAWRENCE: Neighbors heard the engines screeching and looked up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think I saw the pilot eject, and I heard some funny noises and then I heard it hit and exploded.
LAWRENCE: The massive impact ignited a fireball and destroyed two homes. One was empty, and the other is where a grandmother, a mother and two children lived. Three of them were found dead within hours of the crash. Some residents say an accident like this is just a matter of time.
JOHN JAMES, NEIGHBORING RESIDENT: They always have training missions and sooner or later the equipment is going to fail. You know, this isn't the first and it's not going to be the last.
LAWRENCE (on-camera): In addition to the two homes that were leveled, pieces of jet broke off and hit three others as well.
(voice-over): Burning debris scorched the surface of two of those homes.
MAURICE LUQUE, SAN DIEGO FIRE RESCUE: And a third had a big piece of jet part fly into the garage and caused a big slice.
LAWRENCE: But in those homes, no one was hurt. It was the high school nearby, investigators say this could have been much worse.
LUQUE: Theoretically, this could have wiped out you know over half a dozen homes depending how it landed.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: Now the F-18 is one of the more reliable jets flying today. It is designed to fly with just one of its engine, but if the second engine were to fail, it could not just glide into a landing. It would probably more like drop like a rock. Investigators will be looking at exactly when the pilot first experienced the problems, how long those problems lasted and examining the final decision to direct that pilot to try to return to the airbase -- Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. CNN's Chris Lawrence for us on the story, coming out of San Diego.
We sure do appreciate it. Thank you, Chris. Also, we want to let everybody know, CNN i-Reporters were also there at the scene in San Diego after the jet crash. Our Josh Levs has been looking through some of those images.
Hi, there, Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hi, Heidi.
You know, in this case we're getting images from people who are eyewitnesses to really what is a tragedy. I want to start off showing these images that came to us from Jeremy Gimbel. He tells us he works at a synagogue. He is a youth director in that area. He just stepped outside and was able to see this. Obviously, people in the area heard this sound. We got a couple of images from him.
Also, let's go to these from Ali Lai, who took these pictures with his cell phone. He was home, studying, when this happened. He's a student at USC. And he says they could obviously hear it, and they felt the house shake, and they could sense that there was a huge crash outside. I'm also going to emphasize as we look at this. These pictures were taken safely. We always check that before we put them on the air.
Also, we're getting a lot of video, Heidi. Check this out Chris Morrow, who says he was just a couple of doors down from that scene when it happened. And he was able to go out there and see a lot of the first responders who were there. And also a lot of the witnesses and people who live in the area. He says we're facing just tremendous damage and in some cases, you know, serious, personal losses, their homes and cars.
And while he was out there, he spoke with some eyewitness who had been right there, including this man, Nick Rizzo.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NICK RIZZO, CRASH WITNESS: Right when I arrived, I saw about four or five cars that were completely involved in flames and everything. And then, just a tremendous amount of black smoke. There's a whole bunch of neighbors that were just getting out their garden hoses and spraying it on their roof, to try and prevent the flames from getting to their structures and they were doing that for as long as they could.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: Nick Rizzo says he lives just a couple of blocks away. And I'll tell you, this person who sent us this video right here, Chris Morrow says you hear about the possibility this kind of thing happening. You know you live near military base. However, you never expect something like this to happen, almost literally in your backyard. So send us your stories, your videos, whatever news you may have, you see news happening and you can take videos or pictures safely, ireport.com -- Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. CNN Josh Levs for us. Thanks so much, Josh.
Raging gas fires fueled by heavy winds and burning across the Oklahoma County line are now under control. Interstate 35 back open again, but officials are still caution, and on the look out for new flare-ups. The National Weather Service says because of high winds, the potential for wildfires in Oklahoma still pretty high.
Rob Marciano standing by now to talk a little bit more about this, and also the rest of the weather across the country. Because we have some severe weather to be talking about.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: Five defendants in the 9/11 trial, now say they want to plead guilty, but the case could still drag on for years. We have a report coming from Guantanamo Bay.
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COLLINS: Again, we want to get back to the story that we have been telling you about happening in Chicago. CNN has been able to confirm that Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich was actually taken into federal custody this morning. It happened at his home. And we now have some more information coming by way of our Chicago Bureau Chief who is now on the line with me.
Fuzz Hogan, joining us from actually New York this morning.
Hi, there, Fuzz. What more do we know at this point, specifically regarding what happened, and what information we have about these apparently secretly recorded conversations?
VOICE OF FUZZ HOGAN, CHICAGO BUREAU CHIEF: Good morning, Heidi.
What is interesting is that we have been expecting our government to go under investigation for sometime for what's, you know, old style politics (INAUDIBLE). But this indictment this morning is new territory that none of us really knew about. He was, as you may know, he had the sole responsibility to appoint the person to replace Barack Obama, who is now going to be the president.
COLLINS: Right.
HOGAN: And he is alleged to have offered that seat in exchange for a salary, job for his wife or a cabinet post for himself, sort of an obvious attempt, according to the indictment, that he would trade that appointment for favors.
COLLINS: So what happens next? I mean, we have been able to confirm that he is in fact in federal custody now?
HOGAN: Yes. He appears to court. That will start today at noon Eastern Time. We'll cover that live. What's also interesting is that his chief of staff John Harris is also been taken into custody, and according to the indictment, alleged to have been involved in this efforts to trade the Senate seat for favors of money.
COLLINS: Yes, but this began three years ago? Did it not, Fuzz? I mean, what was the concern three years ago.
HOGAN: That he had been -- and you remember the name Tony Rezko. He expressed (INAUDIBLE) connection to Obama. He really had much closer connection to Governor Blagojevich. He's been on board and Rezko was convicted of things associated with state politics, hospital boards and things like that. And the Rezko testimony -- the governor didn't came up as public official aid in the Rezko trial alleged to have been wire tapped to. Again, trading favors, trading state business in exchange for money.
COLLINS: OK. So we are going to hear more and see more as you said coming up at noon on all of this. It sounds like, because, you know, and I don't want to jump forward too much, but it sounds like it has been a three-year investigation. As it moves forward now, it could be a very, very long time before any result is found here, correct?
HOGAN: Right. Although, what's interesting is the three investigation was one set of facts. This indictment today is a whole new set of facts within the past few months, since the election essentially. Since he was under his power to find a senator, and he is alleged to have misused that in exchange for favors. We'll see.
What also draws them to question is if he is in fact under indictment or whether he is in jail or not, or just out on bail, does he retain the right to appoint the new senator? Or do that fall to Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn. That's a whole another line of (INAUDIBLE) at this point.
COLLINS: Yes, yes. All right. Well, Fuzz, I know that you are on top of it. You have a lot of work to do now to help us through all of this. Again, coming our way at noon, it looks like we're going to have more information regarding exactly what's been going on here because the governor of Illinois will be appearing in court, Rod Blagojevich. So we will stay on top of that for you, as well as the whole other side to this story which centers around the selection process.
How does that work? When a senator vacates the sit and goes on to be the President of the United States. Obviously, that sit has to be filled. So we bring in now Paul Steinhauser from Washington to talk a little bit more about that. First and foremost, we should remind everybody as we've said a couple of times here, now this would have been the governor's sole responsibility. It would have been completely up to him to who would have taken over that sit.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Exactly. Constituency of one, I guess you could say. It was up to the governor of Illinois to decide that. And as Fuzz was just mentioning, if Blagojevich is not able to do that, it would fall to Pat Quinn, the lieutenant governor who was elected in 2002 and again in '06 as lieutenant governor of Illinois. He is a Democrat as well. But Blagojevich was running for re- election two years from now. And that may have been a factor in who he would pick for the senate seat. Maybe somebody to take, you know, out of contention against the Blagojevich. Pat Quinn may not have those problems. I don't know. But this is fascinating.
The seat has been vacant since Barack Obama stepped down, Heidi, back in November, about a month ago. And Blagojevich would have -- you would assume until about the 20th -- until the 6th of January, that's when the new Senate is sworn in, the new Congress. So you would assume that his pick would have come in the next few weeks. Now --
COLLINS: Who knows?
STEINHAUSER: Who knows? Yes.
COLLINS: Exactly. I mean, I wanted to talk to you a little bit about, you know, who some of the contenders might be. Is that even appropriate at this point?
STEINHAUSER: Well, yes. We had a list we put out, CNN and a lot of other organizations, as well as the possible contenders. One name that comes up quite often and not the only name but the name that comes up quite often is Jesse Jackson Jr., the congressman from the Chicago area. You heard a lot about him. And he has a lot of interest in this seat.
But he's not the only one. There's a whole list. Another couple of congressman, Congressman Danny Davis, Representative Luis Gutierrez, there is Tammy Duckworth, who is the Illinois Department of Veterans Affair Director. She ran for Congress a couple years back, wounded vet from the Iraq war.
Neal Jones Jr. who is the Illinois State president and who is somebody that Barack Obama knew quite well when he was down there in Springfield, Illinois, as a state lawmaker. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, and another congresswoman Jan Schakowsky. So, there's a lot of them out there who would love to have the seat. This person, whoever it is, will serve for two years, and then there's an election in 2010 because Barack Obama's term would be up anyway November 10th.
COLLINS: Yes. What does all this do with the balance of power? Anything that we need to talk about there, Paul?
STEINHAUSER: Probably, it will stay Democrat. Because if, a, Blagojevich was a Democrat and the lieutenant governor if he is the one -- if, is a Democrat as well. So I think the seat will stay in Democratic hands.
COLLINS: OK. Very good. All right, Paul, I know you're working this story as well. We sure do appreciate it. Paul Steinhauser this morning. And we want to let you know that we are going to stay on top of it as well. I just printed out the indictment here. I don't know. It's about 75 pages or so. We have a lot to go through. Again, the news this morning according to CNN and also "The Chicago Tribune." We are learning that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is now in federal custody. We'll stay on top of it and bring you the very latest coming up after a quick break.
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COLLINS: Five Guantanamo Bay detainees now say they want to plead guilty to the 9/11 attack. The defendants announced their decision in front of relatives of the victims. Tim Ewart, from Britain's ITN now reports.
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TIM EWART, ITN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The guilty pleas came as mothers of two of those who died arrived at Guantanamo Bay. Alice Hoglund's (ph) son Mark was on the highjack jet which crashed after passengers fought back. She said she wants the defendants to be spared the death penalty so they can live out their miserable lives in prison.
Maureen Santore (ph), his son Christopher was a New York fight fighter killed when the Twin Towers collapsed. She said she wanted to look the defendants in the eye. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is the self- styled mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. He and his four co-accused today handed the judge a note saying they wanted to announce their confessions. They're being detain in these holding cells awaiting trial. But what will happen to an already controversial judicial process now isn't clear. The judge said he would question the men to ensure they did want to plead guilty.
They've charge, but a count of murder for every one of those killed in the 9/11 attacks, a total of nearly 3,000. But all five face the death penalty. Any trial is unlikely to be held at Guantanamo Bay itself which still holds 250 prisons. President-elect Barack Obama has said he'll shut it down and try detainees in normal civilian or military courts in America. Whatever happens, today's case could drag on for years, even if the guilty pleas are accepted, there will be several automatic appeals.
Tim Ewart, ITV, News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: The news here today, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich in federal custody. Breaking news in fact.
We're going to bring you the very latest at the top of the hour.
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