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NTSB Takes Denver Flight Recorders; New Toy Wagon; Creating New Jobs

Aired December 21, 2008 - 18:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Randi Kaye in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Don Lemon is off tonight. Let get right to it.

We begin if Denver where 117 people are lucky to be alive. Just minutes ago the NTSB said flight data recorders from a fiery plane accident last night are now on their way back to Washington for analysis. This is an aerial map of Denver International Airport. A plane left the runway on takeoff and came to rest in the area that you see highlighted right there on your screen. What we know is this, Continental Flight 1404 was about a quarter of the way down the runway when it veered off. You can see the tracks there in the snow. The wheels sheared off and one of the engines actually ripped off. The fuselage nearly broke if half. By the time firefighters arrived, passengers were scrambling out of the burning wreckage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF PATRICK HYNES, DENVER FIRE DEPARTMENT: They did find it north of firehouse number four, north of taxi way Whiskey Charlie. They described a surreal scene when they pulled up. Heavy fire on the right side of the aircraft. All chutes deployed from both sides of the aircraft. People evacuating and walking up the hillside towards them. They had to drive off road to get to the aircraft. But were able to extinguish the fire rather quickly. It was described as a heck of a firefight from the commanding officer on scene.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Now, incredibly, no one died in this accident. And most of the injuries do not appear life threatening. Our Susan Roesgen live at Denver International Airport. Susan, a lot of people counting their blessings this holiday for sure.

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No kidding, Randi. You know, I heard the story of two University of Ohio skiers, one was on the plane, the other didn't make it, and he was so glad that he didn't make that plane. And it turns out that his buddy is OK, had smoke inhalation, but was otherwise OK. So you're on this airplane, it's about 6:15 in the evening, you've basically just taken off and you don't expect this kind of thing to happen.

The plane as you can see from the aerial pictures, Randi, was basically cracked in half. The fuselage cracked in half like an eggshell. The plane skidded, landed on its belly. The good things for the investigators, the National Transportation Safety Board investigators are as you the voice recorder and the data recorder, both intact.

They're actually going to listen to them tonight and they'll learn a little bit more tonight and then tomorrow, they're going to be out here in this brutally cold weather trying to gather all the evidence the can. Here's more on what the NTSB plans to do.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT SUMWALT, NTSB MEMBER: There is extensive fire damage to the right side of the aircraft and the interior is quite burned. The left engine is separated from the aircraft. The right engine is still attached to the pylon and the wing. The flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder, they were located last night. They were secured. And they were intact. They appear to be in good condition, however, they are sooted.

Those recorders have -- are being flown back to Washington right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: You heard him say those recorders are sooted. That means there's so much smoke, in fact, the fire crews, the first emergency responders actually drove right past the accident, couldn't see it with all the smoke. And they'd been given wrong directions and they had to turn around and come back.

So there are two main things that the National Transportation Safety Board will look at. First is the mechanical performance of the plane. What caused this to happen. But secondly, they're also going to look at the response by the fire crew, but also the performance of the flight crew. You know, Randi, we fly quite a bit, of course, at CNN, lots of people to. This is just one of those little diagrams that they give you, the proper way to get off of an airplane. This is actually a manual from a Boeing 737 about how you're supposed to follow crew instructions and follow the lighted pathway and make an orderly exit down those emergency chutes. That did not happen. We have passengers telling us there was pushing, shoving, people even yelling there's -- the plane is going to blow up, the plane is going to blow up. A very chaotic scene. And we talked to one couple who were very concerned about themselves and their one-year-old child.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We hit the ground and the plane kind of buckled towards the middle. And I saw the seats kind of buckling in towards each other. And I braced my knees up in front of me because the chairs were kind of closing in. And I didn't want him to get crushed, you know, by the seat in front of me. And it just seemed like it took forever for the plane to stop.

MARIA TREJOS, PASSENGER: I was just worried about my son, just making sure that he was OK. We -- I looked to the side and I saw my husband and there was this big fireball out the window. And it was for real. I didn't know what to do, you know. And then somebody said get out of the plane, so I took my seat belt off and I grabbed my son from my husband because I was the first one out and I can remember we were in the aisle, and i didn't want to leave without my husband. But I knew I needed to get the baby out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: And now add to go all of that, Randi, inside that plane, the fire was so intense that it was starting to melt the luggage bins, the luggage racks above the seats. And part of those bins were actually melting on to the passenger seats. So it is remarkable that there were no reported burn injuries. No reports of anybody burned. Those many people with broken bones and bruised and probably terribly traumatized by what happened on that plane, Randi.

KAYE: Absolutely, Susan, I'm sure. What is the status of the passengers? You mentioned some had gone to the hospital. Where are those that are injured at this point?

ROESGEN: Well, we know there were about half a dozen that were taken to hospitals with some serious injuries. Two in critical condition last night, but today one is in fair condition and the other is in serious condition. We don't know what sorts of injuries they have, but, again, people were falling on each other, shoving each other. And, in fact, that couple that you just heard from also said that the seats were starting to collapse on to each other on that plane. So it's amazing that nobody was killed in that.

KAYE: Certainly those of us who have never been in that situation can only imagine what it must be like. Susan Roesgen for us in Denver, thank you so much.

Federal investigators are now on the scene to figure out what went wrong. Joining me on the phone is Mary Schiavo, former inspector general at the U.S. Transportation Department and. She's now in private practice as an aviation attorney. And represents flight accident victims. Mary, thanks so much for your time this evening.

MARY SCHIAVO, FORMER TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Thank you. My pleasure.

KAYE: Tell me first, what is the most important bit of information that you have heard come out about this accident so far?

SCHIAVO: I've worked at a great number of plane crashes, but here there was one report from a passenger that said that before they board the plane and before takeoff, they were told that there was a problem or the engine or the turbine. That coupled with what we saw what happened, there was obviously plenty of runway left, this is the longest public used runway in America, and they went off the runway at about 2,000 feet.

These clues suggest that perhaps the pilot was actually trying to abort the takeoff and with the crosswinds, 36 to 41-mile-per-hour crosswind, the tail of the plane acts like a big weather vane. And if there was any problem breaking that plane and trying to abort the takeoff, that would explain why they went off the left side of the runway. There are, of course, other possibilities.

KAYE: Now we understand obviously just listening to Susan Roesgen's report, there was a little bit of chaos on board and understandably. But there were definitely some quick thinking flight attendants and crew members there to get these people off the plane with no deaths reported. What did they do right?

SCHIAVO: Well, they did in this and many other accidents where people have survived, for example, the Toronto one a couple years ago, they have the orders down quick and they know what they're supposed to do. United States flight crews are the best in the world at evacuations because it's the law and they train for this. They get those doors open, open all the doors, here most of them were usable except of course where the fire was. And we have to be able to evacuate our planes in the United States on U.S. carriers in about a minute and a half. You have a little bit longer under the law book, but that is done. But they can do it and they did it again in this case.

KAYE: And we learned just a short time ago that the first full on- scene investigation by the NTSB will take place beginning at daybreak. Beginning at daybreak tomorrow. You can tell us what they'll be looking for in.

SCHIAVO: Well, they'll be looking at the mechanical parts of the plane to backup what they already know. They have already interviewed the pilot, the air traffic controllers, other pilots in the area. And I'm sure the pilots have already told them what they experienced. And we still haven't heard from them so I expect the pilots either told them A, they were trying to abort the takeoff or B, they hit a cross wind, they couldn't brake and control the plane, or it's possible uncontained engine failure on takeoff roll or a tire blow out. But with those interviews of the pilot, the pilots have a pretty good idea what wept wrong about that that will be the best evidence, pilot one and pilot two.

KAYE: All right. That is certainly some key information coming from those pilots. Mary Schiavo, thank you very much. Good to talk with you tonight.

SCHIAVO: Thanks.

KAYE: Winter weather apparently not a factor in that Denver mishap, but much of the country is facing bitter conditions on this first official day of the season. A Massachusetts man has died after he was struck by a falling tree branch loaded down with days of heavy snow. Farther north, blizzard warnings are posted for northern and eastern Maine where up to two feet of snow could fall. Temperatures well below zero there.

It's a similar story in Wisconsin where the icy roads are making travel extremely difficult. Multiple crashes are reported on interstates across the region. And in Washington State, the main east/west highway remains closed with no sign of when it might reopen. Seattle is expecting up to four more inches of snow.

And Bonnie Schneider is in the weather center for us. And Bonnie I read today that in Minnesota where you know there used to be cold there, they actually pulled the plows off the road because of visibility, poor visibility. They couldn't even follow the roads. (WEATHER REPORT)

KAYE: All right, Bonnie, it sure is cold out there. Thanks so much.

Barack Obama's job creation goal. It was lofty to begin with. Now it's getting even lot loftier. That's because the unemployment lines are getting even longer.

Plus, they're not related to her, they didn't even know her. But they were touched by her too short life and all too tragic death. Remembering Caylee Anthony.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Faced with more bad news on the economy, President-Elect Barack Obama is expanding his economic recovery plan. Advisors say he will try to create or save 3 million jobs in the next two years. Obama is on a working holiday in his home state of Hawaii. CNN's Ed Henry is there and he joins me now from Honolulu.

Hi there, Ed.

ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Randi.

As you know, the goal had been to create 2.5 million new jobs during the first two years in office. Now it has increased to 3 million as you noted because aides say the various advisers to the president warned him that this recession could be much worse than expected.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HENRY (voice-over): Home to Hawaii for President-Elect Barack Obama and his family. Twelve days of relaxation to ring in the new year. But there is no rest for his economic team which has been ordered to think bolder after the president-elect received dire private forecasts suggesting the nation could lose 4 million jobs next year without drastic action.

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT: What we've learned is that the economy was in much worse shape than we thought it was in and this is a spiraling effect about. There is no short run other than keeping the economy from absolutely tanking.

HENRY: So transition aides are now huddling with Democratic leaders in Congress to craft a stimulus plan of up to $775 billion to try and jolt the economy. Republicans are wary about the tag on top of Friday's rescue of automakers, the latest in a string of taxpayer bailouts.

REP. ERIC CANTOR, (R) VA: What I'm concerned about, when we hear these staggering numbers, close to a trillion dollars right now, in spending, where is that going to take us over the long run?

HENRY: Team Obama argues the short term spending will reap dividends long term. The emerging plan includes billions for backlogged transportation projects to beef up construction jobs and improve the nation's infrastructure, modernizing crumbling public schools to create jobs while also investing in education. And weatherizing 1 million homes, money to upgrade furnaces, fix windows, and seal leaky air ducts to boost the industry while also cutting energy usage.

REP. BARNEY FRANK, (D) MA: If we don't do this, it will cost us even more. This economy is now in the worst shape since the Great Depression. And if we do not respond in a very firm way, it gets worse and worse.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HENRY (on camera): Now, this time in Hawaii is meant to give the president-elect a chance to get a respite after a long grueling presidential campaign, but also give him a chance to recharge his battery, get ready for these challenges ahead especially over the financial crisis.

Randi?

KAYE: And Ed, I'm sure he's getting toward answer just a few more questions about the situation with Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich.

HENRY: That's right. In fact, we're expecting either on Monday or Tuesday according to transition aides that the president-elect's staff will lay out exactly what those contacts with Rod Blagojevich were. We're expecting this report obviously an internal investigation of the transition team. It's not going to suggest obviously any criminal wrong doing by Rahm Emanuel or any other Obama aides, but just likely to layout what exact they did have. They are obviously hoping it will exonerate them. This likely will not be the final word. We still have to hear from the prosecutor in this case as it unfolds, obviously, Randi.

KAYE: And Ed, just judging from the scene there behind you, on a lighter note, I hope this is a bit of a working holiday for you, too. Get some time in the surf.

HENRY: I've had some really tough assignments over the years, but this is not one of them.

KAYE: Yeah, I'd have to agree with you there. All right, Ed Henry for us in Honolulu. Thank you so much.

HENRY: Thanks, Randi.

KAYE: Well, we've got less than a month before Barack Obama's inauguration and he's taking heat for asking Pastor Rick Warren to deliver the invocation, especially from the gay community, because Warren opposes same-sex marriage. But who says he doesn't like gays? Not him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK WARREN, SADDELBACK CHURCH: Now, this one will shock you. I happen to love Democrats and Republicans. And for the media's purpose, I happen to love gays and straights. (END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Obama has defended his choosing Warren saying it's impossible for all Americans to agree on everything.

Well, there's much more coming up in the NEWSROOM. This recession has left more men than women out of work, but in a lot of ways, women are worse off. I'll tell you why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. I'm Randi Kaye in for Don Lemon today.

The Canadian government is making good on a pledge, their own automotive industry bailout. The Canadians agreed to provide 20 percent of the money automakers are getting from the U.S. government. That now comes tout roughly $4 billion in aid to Canadian subsidiaries of U.S. automakers. Hundreds of thousands of Canadian makers rely on the auto industry for income.

Here in the U.S., our economic woes are exposing disparities between men and women and guess who is it getting the short end of the stick?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE (voice-over): This mother of two is home with her kids. Not by choice. Lie hundreds of thousands of women, Donna Kelly was laid off.

DONNA KELLY, LAID OFF: I thought my world was coming to an end.

KAYE: How hard has this been for you emotionally?

KELLY: I feel like I've failed and I just feel like I can't get one foot forward without falling back. And it's just heart wrenching.

KAYE: Donna has a college degree but hasn't been able to find a job in seven months. She's done some temporary work and is expecting unemployment, but the bills are stacking up. Her electricity may soon be shut off.

KELLY: You feel like you want to where he down and cry, like there have been times that I just go in the bathroom and pretend that I'm in the shower and I'm just sitting down crying because I can't support my family like I want to.

KAYE: Donna's husband was laid off, too. He found another job as a substitute teacher without benefits. So the family has no health insurance.

TERRY SAVAGE, "CHICAGO SUN-TIMES": Many families are two income families, they've created a lifestyle that depends on both those incomes. And when a woman loses a job, it really can undermine the entire family.

KAYE: In fact, studies show about 43 percent of all working women earn at least half of their family's income. While the recession has left more men out of work, women in many ways are worse off. Here's why.

SAVAGE: Many women are still paid only 75 cents on the dollar. That means they don't have enough money in savings, they haven't put enough money in a retirement fund, and they don't have the resources to fall back on if they lose a job.

KAYE: The family savings is wiped out. Donna's had to move her daughter from private school to public. Cancel her ice skating, cancel dance lessons. Even cut back on food at home. To bring in cash, she cooks for others.

KELLY: A neighbor and I, we cook dinners on the weekend and we just try sell it to bring in extra money.

KAYE (on camera): No surprise, it's even worse for single moms. Their unemployment rate is above the national average. Four out of 10 of all bankruptcy filings are for single women. Both single and married women have been hit hard by the mortgage crisis, far more often than men, they lose their homes.

(voice-over): Donna worries most about her kids. Her daughter is old enough to understand things aren't the same.

KELLY: I said well, Santa may not be able to come here this year. And she's like why. And I said because the gas too high and he will not be able to fill up.

KAYE: Her daughter's response, mommy, I didn't ask for very much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE (on camera): Kim Gandy is president of the National Organization for Women or NOW. She's joining us tonight from Washington. And, Kim, a lot of women tell me it's not like the federal government and the states didn't see this coming. Why wasn't there something in place for them, more programs to help them through this?

KIM GANDY, NATIONAL ORGANIZATION OF WOMEN: Well, there's no question that we've gone through eight years of an administration that, frankly, did not pay attention very much to low income and lower middle income people. And I think we're moving into a different era. But we want for make sure that women are included in the economic bailout right along with men.

KAYE: And from what I understand, folks from NOW, your team actually met with some members of Obama's transition team to try and help these women and find some programs for them. What have you been able to find out from them?

GANDY: Well, many of us, we requested the meeting along with Feminist Majority and met with them along with the YWCA, the National Council of Negro Women, the economists, a number of organizations to say that while we're rebuilding the physical infrastructure with a jobs program, the roads and buildings and tunnels, we need to rebuild the human infrastructure of the country with jobs like teachers and teachers aids and nurses and librarian, the infrastructure that women carry.

We need to make sure, because women are nearly half the workforce and nearly half the unemployed. We need to have a fair share of those rebuilding jobs that go to women, as well, and they're jobs that we need. We need to rebuild that human infrastructure in our country.

KAYE: What is your concern in terms of how this might set women back? Women have worked so hard to become a major force in the workforce. Now they're losing their jobs. What will the road back look like for them?

GANDY: It's had an enormous impact on women. Women have had the majority of the foreclosures, we were disproportionately targeted for those subprime mortgages even when we qualified for a fixed rate mortgage we were disproportionately targeted and taken advantage of. So a lot of women are losing their homes, they are losing their jobs and there aren't jobs for them to go to.

So we need to not only make sure that we create jobs that women can fill, but we also need to repair the safety net and make sure that our kids don't get left out in the cold this winter.

KAYE: And just quickly before we let you go, is there anything that women can do to protect themselves in this horrible economy?

GANDY: To the extent that women can set something aside, it's difficult when the wage gap means that we have lower incomes and, frankly, less of a cushion in hard economic times. But setting something aside is going to be awfully important.

KAYE: All right, Kim Gandy for us tonight. President of NOW. Thank you very much.

GANDY: My pleasure.

KAYE: A holiday flight turns in to a fiery nightmare. Dozens of passengers lucky to be alive tonight. We will revisit our top story. And the tragic story of Caylee Anthony brings out mourners and investigators. We'll bring you the very latest.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Updating you now on our top story, federal investigators have recovered the flight data recorders from Continental Flight 1404. Those recorders are now on their way back to Washington, DC for analysis. The NTSB hopes those boxes plus some other evidence will reveal just what caused that accident.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE (voice-over): Continental Flight 1404 was streaking down the runway bound for Houston when something went wrong.

GABRIE TREJOS, PASSENGER: The plane buckled towards the middle. That's what I saw. And I saw the seats kind of buckling in towards each other on my side. I could see the engine. I noticed it was on fire. I could feel the heat coming from the window.

KAYE: Fire. One passenger says the nose lifted up, then suddenly came back down. She said the 737 veered off the runway coming to rest in a small ravine. The accident was near one of the airport's fire departments and emergency crews were on the scene almost immediately. The scene could have been catastrophic.

CHIEF PATRICK HYNES, DENVER FIRE DEPARTMENT: They described a surreal scene when they pulled up, heavy fire on the right side of the aircraft. All chutes deployed from both sides of the aircraft, people evacuating. And walking up the hillside towards them. They had to drive off road to get to the aircraft. But were able to extinguish the fire rather quickly. It was described as a heck of a firefight from the commanding officer on scene.

KAYE: All 107 passengers and five crew were safely evacuated. At least 38 people were transported to local hospitals.

MARIA TERJOS, PASSENGER: I was just worried about my son, making sure he was okay. We saw the - I looked to the side and I saw my husband and there was this big like fireball out the window. And it was surreal. I didn't know what to do, you know. And then somebody said get out of the plane, so I took my seat belt off and I grabbed my son from my husband because I was the first one out. And I can remember we were in the aisle and I didn't want to leave without my husband, you know. But I knew I needed to get the baby out.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE (on camera): And be sure to join us tonight at 10:00 for much more on this story out of Denver. We will be speaking again with Mary, formerly with the Transportation Department appreciate hearing her insights on what happened in Denver.

It has been a somber day of remembrance in Lockerbie, Scotland. Today is the 20th anniversary of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.

All 259 people onboard the plane were killed when it exploded over Lockerbie. Eleven more people died on the ground. Memorial events were also held today in the U.S. and London's Heathrow Airport where the flight took off bound for New York. A former Libyan intelligence officer was convicted of the bombing back in 2001. He is serving life in a Scottish prison.

Crime scene investigators have come to the former home of little Caylee Anthony for a third time in 10 days. They spent a couple hours at the home just yesterday, a day after the medical examiner identified Caylee's remains. Her mother, Casey, has been charged in her death, but Casey Anthony's attorney cautions against a rush to judgment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRAD CONWAY, ANTHONY FAMILY ATTORNEY: We as Americans enjoy a presumption of innocence and I think to a large degree that's been forgotten in this case. And a jury of Casey Anthony's peers need make a decision about whether the state has proven her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: As investigators probe, sympathizers gather. They set up a memorial close to where Caylee's remains were found. People affected by the little girl's tragic story left flowers, notes, stuffed animals and some prayers. Erik Von Ancken from CNN affiliate WKMG in Orlando has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIK VON ANCKEN, WKMG (voice-over): A note for a little girl Catharine Cubano never new. But wished she had.

CATHARINE CUBANO, MOTHER: I'm a 45-year-old woman who could not bear a child. I would have been extremely blessed with a beautiful little girl like you. I want you to know that I'm very sad and hurt with how your life was abruptly ended without even yet beginning.

VON ANCKEN: Her note is neatly nestled among hundreds of other mementos where the hope has now left Hope Spring Drive. Never before has this corner seen so much grief, so many people all day with so much hurt. This little girl couldn't help from being drawn in. The resemblance is heart wrenching.

THERESA DAVIDSON, MOTHER: She would see the pictures of Caylee on the news and would scream that's me. I guess just because of her age and how she looks similar. And a lot of the things that she would do at home was similar to Caylee, playing house, watching sponge bob square pants. I just couldn't see where somebody could take a child like this and harm it. When I got to the corner and it's just emotional.

VON ANCKEN: Caylee's memory lives on in so many others' memories.

CUBANO: Although we never met, I love you and I will miss you and your sweet smile and your big precious brown eyes of innocence. I'm very sorry in a it happened to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: After 10 days of searching the site where Caylee's remains were discovered, investigators have removed the crime scene tape and that is what is allowing people to finally pay their respects.

Parents of another little girl are ramping up their efforts to find their daughter. Three-year-old Madeleine McCann disappeared from a Portuguese beach resort back in 2007 while her parents Kate and Gerry were dining. A number of leads turned up absolutely nothing. And Portuguese police closed their investigation in July. Today the parents launched findmadeliene.com to appeal for any new information. The site features previously unseen footage at home with her family in England. A little Iraqi boy victim of an unspeakable crime, his story captivated so many of you when we first reported it. Now we're checking back on little Youssef. He's come a very long way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back. More fiery protests on the streets of Athens, Greece.

That is where a two week old demonstration against police is wreaking havoc in parts of the city. Protestors are angry about the fatal shooting after 15-year-old boy that took place by police earlier this month before riot others attacked the city's second Christmas Tree display. They burned the first one just days after the fatal police shooting. The government's inability to contain the violence is sparking calls for a change in leadership.

Well, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Baghdad. And for the first time, as a matter of fact. This is video of the first ever public Christmas celebration in Baghdad sponsored by the Iraqi Interior Ministry. It was true Christmas fare as you can see with a Christmas tree and Santa Claus waving to the crowd. The event was held in a public park with heavy security posted near by.

We brought you another story out Iraq just a while back, one that got an overwhelming response from all of you. Here's Arwa Damon with an update on a young Iraqi boy whose face was society fire in Baghdad two years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Youssif loved going to school. And for good reason. The little guy already had a very serious goal in mind.

(on camera): Do you remember when we were talking and I asked you what you want to be when you grow up? What did you say you want to be?

YOUSSIF, IRAQI CHILD: Doctor.

DAMON: A doctor. Why do you want to be a doctor?

YOUISSIF: So I can help people.

DAMON: So you can help?

(voice-over): Nearly two years ago, masked men in Baghdad doused Youssif with gasoline and set him on fire. He was just four years old at the time. Slowly, he's putting that behind him and inspiring everyone in the process.

IMARIO DALEY, YOUSSIF'S TEACHER: I've worked with children of all levels of ability, and for Youssif with what he's gone through, his motivation, his -- what he produces is fantastic.

DAMON: He's loving the first grade, making friends like Brandon.

Yousiff has gone through more than a dozen surgeries.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of things that we've moved forward and done.

DAMON: And there's still a lot more to be done. The bulge in Youssif's cheek is a tissue expander, meant to stretch out his healthy skin so the Dr. Peter Grossman can use it to replace the scar tissue.

DR. PETER GROSSMAN, YOUSSIF'S DOCTOR: The problem that we have with Yousiff is that every operation we do tends to heal well after surgery, but then a month after, he starts forming these really thick scars. And it's probably best at this time to let him, his body, relax, let these scars mature over a period of a year or two years.

DAMON: It hasn't just been a physical transformation.

WISSAM, YOUSSIF'S FATHER: He talks to people. He plays. He does ordinary things. Before ...

DAMON (on camera): It was very different.

WISSAM: Yeah, he wouldn't talk to anybody.

DAMON (voice-over): Now Youssif is definitely doing most of the talking.

(on camera): What do you want me to do for your?

DAMON (voice-over): And I'll to anything for this kid who has touched all of us. Keely Quinn of the Children's Burn Foundation stops by for extra reading lessons.

What's the biggest change that you've seen in him in the last year?

KEELY QUINN, CHILDREN'S BURN FOUNDATION: Aside from reading and learning English, I think the change in confidence and his ability to handle himself in social situations.

DAMON: And from the looks of it, that ability is only going to be getting better.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Arwa Damon joins us live now from New York. She's done extensive reporting for us Iraq. Arwa, I have so many questions for you. But just tell me, what was it like for you to see Yousiff again and he's grown so much and he seems so happy and he has friends and he's going to school. What is that like for you?

DAMON (on camera): To be honest I really don't know how to future into words. I'm not one who is prone to tears or being overly emotional or anything, but afterwards, after we were done filming, we went to see Yousiff in the Christmas passenger event and he was standing with all the other six-year-olds waving his little hands sinking "Jingle Bell Rock" and I just felt these tears stings my eyes and I looked over to his mother, she was holding his baby sister and she was crying and she just gave me this huge hug. And she says, you know, thank you and thank everybody so much because seeing Yousiff up there on that stage again reminds me of what he was like before the attack when he used to sing in his kindergarten in Iraq. To be honest, I can't put it into words. Saying good-bye to them just yesterday broke my heart.

KAYE: I'm sure. It's like getting her son back for his mom. How aware is he of everything that's happened to him?

DAMON: Very aware. He's very much, you know, more mature, more worldly than any of his other peers. He knows exactly what happened to him. He remembers the circumstances. He'll tell you, you know, four masked men doused me gasoline and set me on fire. And he can explain all the medical procedures that he's going through and he knows that he might be taking a break for a while, but that it's going to take a very long time for him to actually recover.

And sometimes he'll act like a normal little kid, but then in the middle of, say, for example, playing Playstation, he'll pipe out with a statement that you really wouldn't expect to hear from a six-year- old.

KAYE: And it seems certainly that the other children are accepting him and that he's doing really well.

DAMON: He is. He is.

KAYE: That's great. Arwa, thanks so much and thanks for bringing us that story. Just an adorable little boy.

DAMON: Yes.

KAYE: OK. So who knew what and when? The Donald sounds off on the Bernard Madoff scandal and, of course, he didn't hold back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Time now for a new twist on an old favorite. Gary Tuchman has the story of a classic toy maker on the edge of discovery.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The little red wagon, an iconic American toy that represents a simpler time. But times they are a changing.

TOM SCHLEGEL, RADIO FLYER: This wagon we really kind of push the boundaries.

TUCHMAN: This is not your father's wagon. It's called the Cloud9. It features a slick design, padded seats, a strollometer and of course an iPod connection.

SCHLEGEL: We really approach the Cloud9 wagon like an automotive company might approach a concept car. TUCHMAN: So why would this small family-based company fix something that's not broken?

SCHLEGER: Much of our companies are much larger. To compete we really have to be innovate.

TUCHMAN: Designed with cutting edge tools, Radio Flyer is taking this once simple toy into the 21st century.

SCHLEGER: We can take a product from a sketch pad all the way through to a finished prototype to be able to show our customers what we are going to come out with next.

TUCHMAN: This version of the Cloud9 would probably sell for around $1,000 if it were available in stores. It's not. Radio Flyer is just toying with the idea for now. Gary Tuchman, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Now to one of the biggest con jobs in history. The unbelievable $50 billion alleged scam by Bernard Madoff. Here's what real estate mogul Donald Trump told CNN's AMERICAN MORNING.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, CELEBRITY: The word is very simple. It's a word called greed. Greed. That's all it is. People were greedy. They thought he was going to get him a little more return or a lot more return. They believed his svengali -- He was a svengali for rich people. You have svengalis for women. This was one for rich people. When you think a person putting up 100 percent of their net worth and even mortgaging their house, even though he had had a lot of cash, mortgaging their house to get more cash to this guy. And now they're going to be -- Literally they are going to have to go out and maybe work in a drug store. I don't know what they are going to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Throughout the Madoff saga, we have been hearing the term Ponzi scheme. It's a classic scam and our Josh Levs is here for us to break it all down.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We are going to do this Schoolhouse Rock style.

KAYE: Great.

LEVS: You like when we do that? We've got the graphics folks involved. They've made us ...

KAYE: I mean, the (inaudible).

LEVS: Oh no, sorry. That's one of my cardinal rules. But you can if you want to. KAYE: No. This is your show. You do it.

LEVS: Take a look. Here it is. See the Pac Man face on this guy? Let's step out of the way so you can see the picture.

This in fact is what we're going to be showing you. A little hard to see. Let's bring it full so everybody can see it that way. This is how we're going to represent the beginning of a Ponzi scheme.

You've got a guy who's yelling invest one dollar, make a thousand bucks. In truth, the Ponzi scheme may be like invest $1,000, make $10,000. But still it is a big offer and all these people are lining up, oh, I'm interested.

Let's go to the next one now. This is the next step. You get a couple people who are interested and that is the beginning of the pyramid. They start to say you know what this sound promising. I want to do it. Let's jump in. Now let's go to the third one. This pyramid, this is when the problem starts. A few more people hear about it. And they say I want to get in on this too. They start giving their money to Mr. Pacman, Mr. Ponzi on the top. He then uses it to to pay the second rung of people.

KAYE: He's using the people on the bottom to pay the people on top.

LEVS: To pay the people that are closer to him.

Let's go to one more. This is how we are going to show you. Yet another rung of people come along. They get their money and all give it to the guy on top. He just uses it to pay people on the higher rungs. At some point you run out of investors. You can't keep all of the people in the country involved. It all collapses and look at our picture of the Ponzi scheme collapsing. The next picture is the sad people who are at the bottom are left with nothing.

KAYE: This is very easy to understand. This is good.

LEVS: I'm loving it. See, this is Schoolhouse Rock. Everybody runs away with their money. This picture behind us right here ...

KAYE: This is who started it all.

LEVS: That's the mug shot. That is Mr. Charles Ponzi himself. Started in the 1920s, got away with it and ever since it's been named by him.

KAYE: He started that little pyramid.

LEVS: Really financial (inaudible).

KAYE: Thanks for that.

LEVS: Thanks.

KAYE: Thanks, Josh.

LEVS: Maybe we should make a song. I'll think about it.

KAYE: Next time. Next time. Santa Claus is coming to town, speaking of singing, and he is coming in style. Our I-Reporters send us some of our special moments with the jolly old elf.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Christmas is days away but Hanukkah begins at sundown. People across the U.S. are bringing out their menorahs but they're probably not as big as this one. The National Hanukkah Menorah in Washington. It was couple a couple hours ago. It will mark the start of the eight-day Jewish holiday. He's making a list and checking it twice. You know the rest.

And do some of CNN's I-Reporters. They sent us a close encounter of the Claus kind.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you one of my elves?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't remember you.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible)

CHILDREN: Wow!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why is your tummy big?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, because Mrs. Claus makes me a lot of sweet foods that I like. They all say that I eat too much. All the candy and cookies and pies and cakes that you make for me, they are so good, I just can't resist. I've never been able to go on a diet.

(MUSIC)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Love life. Enjoy it. Treat everybody the way you want to be treated and merry Christmas. Because Christmas is a beautiful time of year.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Be sure to keep those I-Reports coming. I'm Randi Kaye in for Don Lemon. I will see you back here at 10:00 p.m. Eastern in THE CNN NEWSROOM.