Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Fourth Day of Air Strikes in the Middle East; Clue to the Fate of a Missing Cruise Ship Passenger; Women Swap Clothes; Essay Contest Offers Inaugural Tickets as Prizes

Aired December 30, 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: Now the fourth day of air strikes. But just the first stage of the operation. Israel pursues it's all- out war to stop Hamas rocket attacks.
Plus pushing the presidential term. Russia's leader adds years to what could be a return engagement.

It is Tuesday, December 30th. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

The first phase of an all-out war. Israel launching new air strikes this morning, aimed at Hamas's position in Gaza. The air strikes mark another day of back and forth attacks between Israeli forces and Hamas. Israel is now amassing more armor at the border.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is live near the Israel-Gaza border this morning.

Paula, to you now, tell us what you're seeing.

PAUL HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, hello there. I'm on the Israeli-Gaza border. We're just having confirmations of further Hamas and militant rocket attacks into Israel.

Now, these rockets are reaching further than they have reached before. Towns which are further away from Gaza, we know one hit near the city of Beersheba. That's about 22 miles away.

So at this point Israel has not managed with the many air strikes that we've been witnesses -- witnessing from our vantage point here. They haven't managed to dent the ability of Hamas to carry out these attacks. And certainly we know that some of these attacks have been using longer range missiles so the militants are also able to prove that they can hit further into Israel.

But Israel says this is why they are doing the air strikes. They have to continue these air strikes to try and stop the rockets. We've been seeing these air strikes over the past couple of hours. They have increased somewhat. This morning it was slightly quieter.

But they're hitting north, south and west, all the Hamas installation that they can find. They are going after Hamas military leaders, targeted assassinations, say they're trying to stop the rocket attacks. But it is incredibly densely populated in there and civilians are getting killed. We know that the U.N., 24 hours ago, said that they saw around 62 civilians have been killed, among them more than 360 or 370 according to Hamas.

They said that was a conservative figure.

COLLINS: Right.

HANCOCKS: So civilians on both sides of the border are getting caught up in the air assault going both ways -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes. And would probably be important, too, to point out, Paula, if you can, in talking about those missiles a little bit, is it not true that Israel -- the type of weaponry that they have is a bit more exact, if you will, than anything that Hamas has in shooting in the opposite direction, i.e., you know, more civilians potentially being injured?

HANCOCKS: Absolutely. Hamas is targeting civilians. And Israel is not targeting civilians. And Israel has smart bombs. Israel has pinpoint air strikes and Hamas has rockets that are not even guided. They're very random. They'll -- land anywhere. So, yes, that is important to point out.

And Israel had said that it's trying not to target civilians. We heard from Israeli security sources, that part of the security branches are trying to communicate with the civilians on the ground in Gaza to try and limit the number of civilian deaths.

But the fact is, we are seeing funerals of young children. We're seeing funerals of civilians. It is so crowded in Gaza that any bomb, no matter how pinpointed it is, no matter how precise an air strike is, and Israel knows this and so does the rest of the world, it will result in civilian casualties.

Now we've heard from the Israeli prime minister, this is only the first stage. What's the second stage? We've seen tanks amassing on the border. We know two-sized reservists have been called up.

A little earlier we saw tanks, armored personnel carriers, bulldozers, all in a line facing in the direction of Gaza with the soldiers cleaning their equipment, cleaning their guns, waiting for the order.

COLLINS: Well, it certainly doesn't sound like we're anywhere near seeing the end of this. We will continue to come to you. Doing a great job for us.

CNN's Paula Hancocks, thanks so much.

Meanwhile, a controversy over a ship carrying medical volunteers and supplies to Gaza. The Dignity landed a short time ago in Lebanon. An Israeli patrol boat collided with the vessel off the coast.

The relief boats crew says it was intentional but Israel denies the claim. They say the boat was trying to outmaneuver the Israeli blockade.

CNN's Karl Penhaul was aboard that relief boat when it was actually hit. He's joining us now from Lebanon with the very latest.

So, Karl, tell us what you know at this point.

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was the black of night and out there in the Mediterranean the seas were very heavy, very rough. The 16 passengers and crew on board, at least half of those were sick and have been sick for several hours at that stage.

And then about 5:00 local time, at least two Israeli patrol boats came into the vicinity very fast of where the Dignity was sailing. The Dignity at that point was in international waters, very firmly in international waters, on a course set for Gaza.

Those patrol boats were shadowing the movements of the Dignity for about half an hour, moving in front, behind and to both sides of the vessel and then after about half an hour, one of those Israeli boats fixed a search light on the Dignity, the Dignity itself was traveling with full lights and then from the front left side, one of the patrol boats came in very fast and rammed the Dignity.

That caused the windows around the wheelhouse to shatter. It caused part of the roof to peel back. And it also punctured the hull.

At that point, the captain says he had his first communication with the Israeli patrol boats. They said that they had carried out the action because they believed the Dignity was involved in terrorist actions.

The captain said there was no prior warning of this attack. The Israeli patrol boat then said that if the Dignity continued its course then the patrol boat would open fire.

At that point, also, one of the crew members came back into the passenger area. We were all issued with life vests, and the crew member began to start the procedure to float the life raft off the top of the boat.

She said she was just seconds away from doing so when the captain came back through and said he believed he had solved, partially at least, the problem of the boat taking on water. He put into action some (INAUDIBLE) pumps and that kept the hull from -- filling up with water.

If he hadn't managed to do that, of course, we would have had to have taken two of those life rafts and the, and the boat almost certainly would have gone down according to the captain.

Now subsequently we know that the Israeli defense forces have come out and said this incident was ...

(INAUDIBLE)

COLLINS: Unfortunately -- there you are, Karl. PENHAUL: ... my personal perception was not that it was not an accident, that it was a very definite action, on purpose. That is also the view of the captain and the passengers that this was a ramming not an accident.

COLLINS: All right. CNN's Karl Penhaul there for us, right on the dock where the Dignity came in.

So we do sure appreciate that, Karl. We'll stay in touch with you and try to get more information as we hear, certainly, both sides to that story.

I want to give you a closer look now at the region that we're talking about.

Gaza is on the west coast of Israel, across the country from Jerusalem and the West Bank. The Gaza region, though, is small. You may not know, just 146 square miles. But it is home to about 1.5 million Palestinians.

Our iReporters are helping us tell this story, too. This photo sent in to us by Alexander Lifman in Ashkelon, Israel. That's about seven miles from Gaza. He circled his home where he says he saw rockets flying overhead. You see it there.

We would like to hear from you, too. Send us your photos and your thoughts on the escalating violence in the Middle East. But please, of course, stay safe if you choose to do so.

And coming up next hour, our Josh Levs is going to show us a little bit more of the iReports that are coming in.

Also on CNN.com you can get much more on the conflict and the history behind it, very important in this story, including a looking at the important players and the latest video and photos.

All that you will find at CNN.com.

An important change in Russia now to talk about. The president, Dmitri Medvedev, signing a new term limits law this morning that extends the presidential term from four years to six. But the change does not affect the current president. He still is in his first term.

There is speculation former president and current -- prime minister, that is, Vladmir Putin, will run for president once again. He served two four-year terms before giving away the office to Medvedev.

Now to the severe weather that a lot of you are dealing with this morning.

In Washington state, look at that, people digging out from record breaking levels of snow. It got so heavy in Spokane, a supermarket roof collapsed forcing fire officials to evacuate the area.

Parts of the Midwest also got slammed. A snowstorm last night blanketed most of Minneapolis. Cleanup crews had to work through the night to clear those roads.

And scuba divers had to be called in to pull out that tractor after it crashed through the ice. An official says the driver may have made a quick detour to clear a path of his ice house. He's facing disciplinary actions.

Never mind (INAUDIBLE), there must have been two.

Jacqui Jeras in the weather center now to give us a bit more of the scoop there in the Midwest, Minnesota to be exact. Yes?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that cracks me up a little bit. You know what I want? Follow this road. I think I'm just going to clear out my ice house while I'm at it.

COLLINS: Why not?

JERAS: Yes, not so good with such a heavy machine there.

COLLINS: True.

JERAS: That thing cost $200,000 by the way.

COLLINS: Yes.

JERAS: Yes.

(CROSSTALK)

JERAS: (INAUDIBLE) a little bit of trouble this morning.

COLLINS: Yes.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: All right. Very good. Folks in Minneapolis just want to truck on down to Houston, I'm sure.

JERAS: I'm thinking I-35 on down sounds good.

(LAUGHTER)

COLLINS: You can do that.

All right, Jacqui. Thank you.

You know all about the bailout loan for GM. But what about your money going to GMAC? We'll show you the fine print on the deal.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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

COLLINS: Impeachment on hold. Members of a special Illinois House committee are waiting for their own chance to hear the tapes. Those tapes supposedly implicating Governor Rod Blagojevich in a scheme to sell Barack Obama's Senate seat.

CNN's Ed Lavandera has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Verbal swords slash away in Illinois.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Perhaps we have different sets of ears.

LAVANDERA: Between the committee of state lawmakers deciding whether Rod Blagojevich should be impeached and the governor's attorney.

ED GENSON, ROD BLAGOJEVICH'S ATTORNEY: The fact of the matter is, and I said this to Mr. Lang, offering is a crime? Where does it say he offered any?

ROGER EDDY (R), ILLINOIS STATE REPRESENTATIVE: I just respectfully would suggest that any reading comprehension classes I took are much different than the ones you had. Thank you.

LAVANDERA: The impeachment committee is one step closer to hearing selected portions of the wiretap recordings now that federal prosecutors are asking the judge to release four of the taped conversations. But until that happens both sides are arguing over what the tapes will reveal.

GENSON: There's nothing in that tape that shows that people were asked -- to give money or campaign contributions or anything. It's just talk. That's what it is. Unfortunate talk, talk that -- was shouldn't have been made perhaps, but not -- not actions.

LOU LANG (D), ILLINOIS STATE REPRESENTATIVE: Well, the fact is, that it's a crime in the state of Illinois to offer, to do a public act for value. Whether somebody takes you up on that offer is irrelevant.

LAVANDERA: Ed Genson says the impeachment hearings are unfair to the governor and that there's not enough evidence to justify pushing Blagojevich out of office.

GENSON: The fact is we're fighting shadows here. We're fighting unnamed people. We're fighting witnesses that aren't available. We're fighting people that haven't been indicted.

LAVANDERA: But the governor is facing an unconvinced audience, skeptical of his claims that he did not seek to profit from appointing someone to fill Barack Obama's Senate seat.

The committee is also considering unrelated allegations regarding his administration and fundraising practices.

GENSON: Is anyone here going to stick up for the governor?

LAVANDERA: It's clear Blagojevich is digging in for a long fight. But Illinois' lieutenant governor predicts Blagojevich will be out of office by mid-February.

(On camera): Governor Blagojevich insists he has done nothing wrong and in fact continues on business as usual, showing up to work every day at his Chicago office.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Can it get any worse for some retailers? Unfortunately, yes. Parent Company, the operator of EToys.com, reportedly has filed for bankruptcy protection. Executives are quoted as saying they may sell some or all of their operations.

It's the latest company hit by dismal sales.

One economic expert points out about 160,000 stores have close this year, another 200,000 could do so next year.

Investors also have about had it with 2008. The major Asia and Pacific markets are mixed on their final trading day of a dismal year. Tokyo, Seoul and Sidney gained a bit today, but Hong Kong lost more ground. And European markets are moving higher for a second straight day.

So what will Wall Street do?

The opening bell sounding, of course, at the bottom of the hour. We don't have to tell you all three major indices took quite a hit this year. The Dow is off nearly 36 percent. The S&P 500 tumbled 41 percent and the NASDAQ off 42 percent.

The Treasury throws GMAC a $6 billion lifeline. It's agreed to help the financing arm of auto giant General Motors but it's not a blank check. The automakers have to meet certain conditions with this.

So Stephanie Elam is live now in New York with more.

So, Stephanie, tell us a little bit about what some of these conditions are?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Heidi, you know, there's always strings attached.

COLLINS: Yes.

ELAM: So let's break down exactly how GMAC -- why it's important. It is the largest lenders to General Motors. 6500 dealers nationwide and some say it actually may be key to the survival of GM.

GMAC says it will use the money to broaden its lending and it will relax its lending standards to make more potential car buyers eligible for loans. So the rescue package that we've heard about, it has two parts. First, the Treasury Department will inject $5 billion directly into GMAC in an effort to jump start lending again. Last week the Treasury approved GMAC's request to become a bank holding company. But to do that, GMAC needs money and it's also a necessary part of getting a slice of the bailout money.

Now for the second part, the government will lend $1 billion to GM so that it can invest in GMAC. In return the government will get a stake in GMAC and dividend payments, the idea here is, as GMAC recovers the government will be able to recover taxpayers' money, and if anything else perhaps turn a profit -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Really? Turn a profit. Other beneficiaries, though, of these bailout funds have had rules about executive compensation. It was certainly something that a lot of people in the public had questions about.

Is that the case now with GMAC?

ELAM: Yes, for sure. GMAC executives will have limited compensation and top officials will not be eligible for severance packages.

Also, the bonus pool for the top executives has to be 40 percent less than 2007 levels, so in some ways the conditions GMAC faces are more strict than those for the banks using the bailout funds.

Now, of course, the idea of them being able to turn a profit from these dividends and their stakes, the government being able to turn a profit, right now that does seem very, very far away.

COLLINS: Yes.

ELAM: But that's the idea.

COLLINS: Yes. All right. Well, we are going to be talking with you again come opening bell in about 10 minutes or so.

Stephanie Elam, sure do appreciate it. Thanks.

ELAM: Thanks.

COLLINS: Eat up, but hold the calories. Sounds too good to be true? Well, Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is going to tell you how to do it in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Bristol Palin has reportedly given birth to a son. Her pregnancy became big news when it was revealed shortly after her mother, Sarah Palin, was chosen to be John McCain's running mate.

Bristol was 17 years old at the time. "People" magazine reports that Bristol and fiancee Levi Johnston welcome the birth of their son, Trip Easton Mitchell Johnston, on Saturday.

The Palin family has not officially confirmed the birth saying it is a private matter.

Eating more food but consuming fewer calories. It's no trick but part of our special series on ways to live longer. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here now to explain it.

And just in time because we are in the throes of the holiday feasting, so to speak.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: But everyone is starting to make their New Year's resolutions as well.

COLLINS: Yes.

GUPTA: There's no gimmicks on your show, as you know, Heidi.

COLLINS: Of course not.

GUPTA: And diets no fun either.

COLLINS: No.

GUPTA: So what if I could tell you that you could eat more, weigh less, be more healthy. Two terms I want you to pay attention to as you watch this next piece, water dense and calorie dense.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA (voice over): Okinawans tend to eat more food than Americans, but are often thinner and living longer. In fact, Okinawa has more centenarians per capita than anywhere else on the planet.

You know, despite eating a greater volume of food, they are consuming fewer calories. That's because much of their diet consists of fruits, vegetables, tofu and soup. And all these foods contain a lot of water.

They also follow a tradition called hara hachi bu, pushing away from the table when they're only 80 percent full.

BARBARA ROLLS, AUTHOR, "THE VOLUMETRICS EATING PLAN": So you're starting the day on the run and you get a typical breakfast and for 400 calories you're going to get three quarters of a cinnamon bun.

GUPTA: Half a world away, Penn State professor, Barbara Rolls, studies the way Americans eat. She says Americans are eating too much fast food. It's food she calls calorie dense.

ROLLS: And they're sold very cheaply and very conveniently and they're very easy to overeat.

GUPTA: A burger and a fries, for example, is mostly fat, protein and carbohydrates. Fat is 255 calories per ounce. Carbohydrates and proteins are each 113 calories per ounce. Fruits and vegetables, on the other hand, are mostly water and fiber. Fiber averages 57 calories per ounce. Water, zero calories.

Rolls thinks we should eat less calorie dense foods, in other words, more fruits and vegetables, as well as soup. She calls this volumetric eating.

ROLLS: Volumetric helps you to feel full on fewer calories. And we know that eating foods that are low in calorie density helps to fill you up.

GUPTA: So what about Americans following hara hachi bu?

ROLLS: How do people know if they're 80 percent full if they don't know when they're 200 percent full?

GUPTA: Instead, Rolls says we should make sure we get full on less.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: You know, so hara hachi bu, that's a term that you can tuck away there...

COLLINS: Wow.

GUPTA: ... meaning eating until you're only 80 percent full. But I want to give this whole volumetrics thing a little bit -- make it a little bit more tangible for you.

Take a look at what an average western volumetrics diet might look like. Half a hamburger, a few fries, a little bit of soda. That's 500 calories.

The important thing is to compare it to a -- a water dense diet. And again, what I was talking about here, you get a big bowl of vegetable soup, you get a whole chicken sandwich...

COLLINS: That looks terrific.

GUPTA: ... and you get as much diet soda as you'd like. Both 500 calories. A lot more foods just as I promised.

COLLINS: Right.

GUPTA: The same number of calories. You could actually lose weight.

COLLINS: All right. So, there's 80 percent full thing. How come we don't just stop eating when we're full?

GUPTA: You know, it's interesting, and I -- I researched this quite a bit when I was writing this book, "Chasing Life." I was fascinated by this idea that it takes about 15 minutes for our brains to catch up with the fact that our stomachs is feeling full.

COLLINS: That's not fair.

GUPTA: The problem is that we can eat a four-course meal in 15 minutes.

(LAUGHTER)

COLLINS: That's right.

GUPTA: And there in lies part of the problem, is that we eat too fast. We end up eating faster than we should and as a result we stuff ourselves. So this hara hachi bu idea is that you don't know when you're 80 percent full but push the plate way before you're completely full.

The likelihood is your brain is going to catch up in 15 minutes or so and feel full.

COLLINS: Yes.

GUPTA: Just takes a little bit of time.

COLLINS: Yes. So there really is something to the whole idea of eating slowly, too.

GUPTA: That's right.

COLLINS: All right.

GUPTA: Chewing your food.

COLLINS: I'm chewing it. All right. I hope my dad is listening.

(LAUGHTER)

COLLINS: All right. Sanjay, thanks so much. Sure do appreciate it.

We have the latest now on the Israeli military operation in Gaza and the Hamas attacks into southern Israel. Plus what the president and president-elect here are saying.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: The opening bell just about to ring any second now. There you go. And investors are hoping stocks will have a better showing than they did on Monday's relatively tame session.

Want to go back now to Stephanie Elam at the New York Stock Exchange with a little bit more on this.

What -- what are investors going to be looking at today, Stephanie?

ELAM: Well, we've got a few things going on. The major averages are supposedly slightly higher. Now I see a couple of numbers and they are right now. The first two minutes on this second to last trading day of the year. The last few sessions have been pretty tamed. The Dow taking down just 31 points yesterday. And we may be looking at much of the same hesitation today as most mutual funds and other big traders have already closed their books on 2008.

So many people are ready to get over 2008. Wall Street is feeling some relief, thanks to the government's decision to pump $6 billion into the financing arms of General Motors. GMAC's ability to stay afloat is seen as crucial to the survival of GM. Meanwhile, investors are also awaiting word on the faith of failed lender IndyMac Bank Corp. IndyMac was taken over by the FDIC. That was back in Jury, and it's reportedly said to be bought by a group of private equity and hedge fund firms.

We'll be keeping a close watch on housing stocks today as well. The S&P Case-Shiller Home price index shows prices fell more than two percent in 20 of the nation's major metropolitan areas in October compared to the month before. Cities in the Sun Belt continue to take the brunt of the impact, not a big surprise there. So with all of that in mind, let's take a look at the numbers just out of the starting gate.

The Dow up 58 points, 8543. Nasdaq up by nine at 1520. So right now, we've got some green. At the top of the hour, we're going to get the latest reading on consumer confidence. It will give us an idea of just how willing consumers are to spend some money. The holiday shopping season was a dismal one for many retailers, which is troubling for Wall Street since consumer spending accounts for two- thirds of the U.S. economy. So get out there if you have it, got a couple of dollars, spread the wealth, you know.

COLLINS: Yes, go spend it, I guess, huh?

ELAM: Yes, if you can. If you can.

COLLINS: All right. My little boy is doing that, every chance he get. All that Christmas money, boom, gone.

ELAM: Gone, right.

COLLINS: All right, Stephanie, we sure do appreciate it.

ELAM: Thanks.

COLLINS: Back to our main story of the day and certainly has been for several days in fact. More missiles zinging across the Israel-Gaza border from both sides. For four days now, Israel has launched airstrikes at what it considers Hamas targets in Gaza.

The Palestinian militant group took over the territory a year and a half ago. Palestinians say the constant barrage has killed more than 375 people in Gaza. Most of them Hamas militants. About 60 civilians. At least six Israelis are dead as Hamas continues to launch rockets at southern Israeli towns. Each side blames the other for violating a ceasefire, which formally expired 11 days ago. Watching every move, the U.S. president and president-elect. First to Crawford, Texas where the First Family is spending part of the week. CNN White House correspondent Elaine Quijano is there.

So Elaine, what is President Bush doing and saying about all of this?

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, it's interesting, Heidi. The president is closely monitoring the events from his ranch nearby here in Crawford. But he is leaving it to a spokesman to lay out the U.S.'s position. The U.S. says that it is up to Hamas to put an end to the violence by halting the rocket attacks against Israel. And the United States notably is not urging restraint even as Israel moves tanks and troops near the border with Gaza.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORDON JOHNDROE, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: I can't speak to any potential ground operation. I think that any ground operation according to the Israelis would be part and parcel of the overall operation, given their statements saying that they don't want to retake Gaza, that they simply want to protect their people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been in touch with senior Palestinian and Israeli officials trying to push through what the United States is calling a sustainable and durable ceasefire. As for President Bush, again, he continues to monitor events from his ranch. He is getting updates by phone and by secure video from his top advisors.

Heidi?

COLLINS: All right. Understood. Elaine Quijano for us in Crawford, Texas. Thank you, Elaine.

President-elect Barack Obama on vacation in Hawaii, but keeping a keen eye on the crisis in Gaza. CNN senior White House correspondent Ed Henry reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As his aides continue the mantra, "there is only one president at a time," the crisis in Gaza is not stopping President-elect Barack Obama from working on his golf game.

But Mr. Obama has been staying in the loop. A telephone briefing from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over the weekend and phone calls with his own top advisers, retired Marine General Jim Jones and Senator Hillary Clinton. During a July visit to Jerusalem as a candidate, he had high hopes of a peace deal.

BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: It's my hope that I can serve as an effective partner, whether as a United States senator or as a president in bringing about a more lasting peace in the region.

HENRY: Now, Mid-East experts say the best Mr. Obama can hope for is managing the conflict rather than actually resolving it.

AARON DAVID MILLER, WOODROW WILSON CENTER: He will inherit the 100-year headache that many of his predecessors have been inherited except with a much weaker American hand because at the end of this, Israel and Hamas will still be at war.

HENRY: Mr. Obama is deferring to President Bush who's also on vacation in Texas, and through a spokesman is blaming Hamas for the spiraling situation without urging restraint from Israel.

GORDON JOHNDROE, WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY SPOKESMAN: In order for the violence to stop, Hamas must stop firing rockets into Israel and agree to respect a sustainable and durable ceasefire.

HENRY: There's not a lot of daylight between the Bush approach and what Mr. Obama said this summer during another round of violence.

OBAMA: If somebody was sending rockets into my house where my two daughters sleep at night, I'm going to do everything in my power to stop that. And I would expect Israelis to do the same thing.

HENRY: That statement was made in the heat of the campaign, when Republicans were charging that Mr. Obama was not a strong defender of Israel.

MILLER: When we don't call the Israelis out on actions that they take that undermine and hurt American interests, when we have to run everything in negotiations through the Israelis first, then you have a problem because then America loses its credibility and effectiveness as an independent mediator.

HENRY (on camera): A major challenge for Mr. Obama if he doesn't want to follow in the foot steps of a string of predecessors who all found a peace deal elusive. Ed Henry, CNN, Honolulu.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Throughout this morning, we've been hearing about new missile attacks into Gaza and rocket attacks into Israel. Israeli authorities are now saying the threat from those rockets is growing. Our Josh Levs is here now to talk us through, what we are seeing from both sides. And it's important to mention that, obviously, Josh, it's coming from both sides.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, absolutely. It is coming from both sides. We're going to take a look at some of these maps now. I want to give everyone the best picture.

You all know that here at CNN we have a lot of fancy graphics. Sometimes the simpler stuff, though, is what's going to give you the best picture. I want to start off with this. It's on the board behind me. That some in the Israeli government is now sending out. And what they're saying is that this is their map of where Hamas rockets are able to hit. Let's zoom it now. Basically, what you're seeing, if you're able to see here, this section right here is Gaza.

And then what they have done is they've drawn out for you in different colors what they say are the sections that Hamas rockets can reach. Let me just show it to you, when you make it really big like that, they say yellow and red, then everything can reach out that far. And what they are saying on this map is that 267,000 Israelis could now be in the path of these Hamas rockets. This here, this is the map I like, because this is the simplest. Helps you to understand what some of these major cities are. Let's zoom back and I'll talk to you about it.

This section right down here, Gaza strip. This is about twice the size of Washington, D.C. And that's inside there that Hamas has been firing these rockets for a long time. Now, as you know, some have gone east, some have gone forward. It had hit Ashqelon before. Now what we're hearing today from our folks on the ground is that they are reaching further than they have before.

Some rockets have gone farther to a city called Ashdod. They're also getting closer to a city called Beersheba. A major city in the south. A big university there. One of Israel's concerns is, Heidi, because of these rockets reaching further, they're saying that it does appear that Hamas is getting these more powerful rockets and if it keeps going even further than that, who knows, it could reach up to Tel Aviv, which isn't that much further past Ashdod from what we just saw.

COLLINS: Yes. And Josh, we've heard an awful lot about the population density of Gaza, of course, because it is such a small area. We are mentioning earlier in the show with 146 square miles or something, right?

LEVS: Yes. I guess. Heidi, 1.5 million people packed in there. Let's zoom in on the board again. I'm going to show you one more map here. I'll tell you about some of the key locations inside Gaza itself, because I want you to see what we're seeing here. These are the major places to know about in Gaza. You got Gaza City up here. You have Khan Yunis and Rafah. Rafah is the area in the south, down near Egypt, where Israel says there are these tunnels that Hamas militants have use to smuggle in these weapons.

So what our folks on the ground there says that basically these rockets or these missiles from Israel have been in each section of Gaza. You can see them throughout the strip of Gaza. That doesn't mean they are targeting civilian targets. What it does mean is that they are spread out throughout these areas. And it is -- it does have a lot of population density. And what that means is if you're going to target an area, even focusing on Hamas sites, since there's so many people right there, it's quite possible you will find some civilians in the way.

COLLINS: Yes, no question about it. All right, we continue to follow the story very closely. Thanks so much. Josh Levs for us this morning.

LEVS: You got it. Thanks a lot. COLLINS: Meanwhile, Pakistani security forces go after the Taliban along the border with Afghanistan. And in the process military commanders said they've had to shut down some NATO supply routes, and that includes the Khyber Pass. Both NATO and the U.S. use it to move supplies from Pakistan to Afghanistan. No word on when it will reopen.

A mystery on the high seas. Now, a family may have a clue to the fate of a missing cruise ship passenger.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Jacqui Jeras standing by in the severe weather center now to talk more about some of this winter weather that we had seen all across the country, and now talking specifically about the northeast, too.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: All right. We're bracing for it. Jacqui, we sure do appreciate that. Thank you.

An emotional community meeting in Covina, California last night. Police spoke with residents still in shock over last week's killings of nine people at a Christmas Eve party. Police say Bruce Pardo dressed as Santa Claus in the attack on his ex-wife and her family. Police also say Pardo's mother and his ex-wife's attorney were on his hit list, but he killed himself before getting to them.

One of the Jena 6 teenagers is in the hospital with a gunshot wound. Mychal Bell's attorney says Bell was cleaning a gun when it accidentally discharged hitting him in the shoulder. Bell and five others face felony charges in the 2006 beating of a white classmate in Louisiana. The case gained nationwide attention with critics arguing that charges were excessive. Bell ultimately pleaded guilty in a juvenile court to battery.

The family of a missing cruise ship passenger thinks she may have committed suicide by jumping overboard. But the FBI is still investigating the case. CNN's Sean Callebs is in New Orleans now with the very latest.

Good morning to you there, Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN GENERAL ASSIGNMENT CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi. Indeed, a lot of layers are to this case. We do know that surveillance cameras aboard the cruise ship were rolling on Christmas night and got images of someone going over the railing. Now authorities clearly believe that someone is Jennifer Seitz. She has been reported missing. The search for her was called off. The FBI is trying to determine if a crime was committed, but at the same time the family believes this could be the final desperate act of a very despondent woman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CALLEBS (voice-over): It's a high seas mystery. One that had the FBI meeting the Norwegian Pearl when it arrived back in Miami on Sunday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was crazy. I mean I'm sitting in my room and I see CNN come on and we're on the news.

CALLEBS: 36-year-old Jennifer Ellis Seitz seen in this video taken back in 2003 apparently went over the ship's railing on Christmas into the water, about 15 miles off the coast of Cancun, Mexico. After searching for days, the Coast Guard and Mexican Navy called the search off Monday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's so many different crazy stories on the ship.

CALLEBS: The FBI has seen surveillance tape taken aboard the massive cruise liner that shows someone going overboard. The agency is trying to determine if a crime has been committed. The FBI says it's standard when an American apparently dies on the high seas. Seitz's husband Raymond reported his wife missing around 3:30 in the morning, at least seven hours after she apparently went over the rail.

The Seitzes took the cruise to celebrate their wedding anniversary and took Jennifer's mother as well. A joint Ellis-Seitz family statement says "Jennifer was in a very happy uplifted mood, but went on, Jennifer however has had previous emotional issues. The family suspects that Jennifer chose an unfortunate ending to her life. She was a beautiful and caring person and will truly be missed by all who love her."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CALLEBS: And we're learning a little bit more about Seitz husband Raymond. You're looking at a mugshot of him that was taken back in April, when Polk County sheriff's authorities charged him with domestic violence. Now, the victim's name in the affidavit has been redacted, it has been blacked out, but we know he was married to Jennifer Seitz at the time. He basically admitted head butting his spouse at that time, saying he struck her forehead with his forehead in that report. But later on the charges were dropped when Raymond Seitz agreed to go into a diversionary program.

Heidi, we really want to stress right, the FBI saying look, we're just trying to determine if a crime was committed out on the high seas, and at this point, Raymond Seitz is not a suspect at all.

COLLINS: All right. Well, they will continue their investigation. Obviously, we will follow it closely. Sean Callebs, sure do appreciate that. Thanks.

Maybe one step closer now to having a winner in the Minnesota Senate race. The state canvassing board meets next hour to review the recount totals. Most accounts have Democratic challenger Al Franken leading Republican incumbent Norm Coleman by a slim margin. That's Franken of course on the left. There are still about 1500 unopened absentee ballots that haven't been counted. It may be Monday before they are counted or thrown out.

We're going back to the border. A live report from the Israeli- Gaza line for the latest on the air war.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Quickly now, we want to take a look at the big board for you today. We are up double digits at least by 50 points or so. Dow Jones Industrial Averages also. Nasdaq is up about 12 points or so. Oil down again though. So we are watching all the numbers once again on a Tuesday morning.

Good for the ecology and in this economy. CNN's Sasha Herriman looks at a kind of clothes shopping taking London by storm.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SASHA HERRIMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Swishing, the art of swapping your clothes. It's being tried out at London's Victoria & Albert Museum dreamt up by this woman.

ELERI LYNN, VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM: Welcome to Swishing, which is where we bring women together to have a party, detox their wardrobe and walk away with fabulous new clothes and shoes. It's the perfect anecdote to the credit crunch.

HERRIMAN: Why? Because you don't need to spend any money. So how does it work? Simple. First, you take along something you don't want any more, some bring more than others.

(on camera): Oh yes, I brought something along with me, a one jumper, a blue jumper. What do I do?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We give you this ticket, and come on back at 12:00. And (INAUDIBLE), and then 12:30 you can grab anything you want.

HERRIMAN (voice-over): So half an hour to browse the rails of clothes everyone else has brought, then it's a free-for-all.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The swish is open.

HERRIMAN: And that's when things can get messy. With a lot of women in the room with free clothes, and it's a case of grab what you can.

(on camera): So this is a swishing event in full progress. Everyone is looking for the thing that they've had their eye on since this morning. I've managed to get myself one bargain. Here we go. It's a very nice purple T-shirt. And someone like my old jumper.

LYNN: Swishing is quite a big thing at the moment, particularly, with ethical issues, and also I suppose the economic issues that make sense for people to be able to come along and recycle their goods.

CARYN FRANKLIN, FASHION EXPERT: I think it's actually crucial that we get everybody thinking about the life of their clothes so that there is no more throwing away, but just reinventing so that we pass on a garment again and again and again.

HERRIMAN: Ultimately, it seems to work.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got two black jackets, one just like plain one. And then I got another one with like embellishment and embroidery put on it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just this. I don't even know if I like it, though. I'm not sure if I like it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sequin dress, (INAUDIBLE) to wear my hair on top of hats. And I got two belts and cardigan something tees.

HERRIMAN: But this sultry man who came along, a different story.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought it would work. I thought I'd be able to come get something good, but there wasn't much for us guys, I'm afraid.

HERRIMAN: Not for the guys, then. But his girlfriend is pleased.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love the chiffon. It's like (INAUDIBLE).

HERRIMAN: Empty rails, full bags, plenty of fashion to customize if you can thread a needle, and best of all, no money has changed hands. It really is guilt-free shopping.

Sasha Herriman, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Good news on tap for laid off workers looking to get ahead in St. Louis. A local bar owner offers a free pint for anyone coming in to polish up their resumes. The royal bar brought in an employment coach to help, too. And yesterday, coaching tips were free-flowing as fast as the beer. The owner came up with the idea after a European company bought the St. Louis original Budweiser.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVEN FITZPATRICK SMITH, BAR OWNER: We need to remember who we are. Our city was built as a brewery city. People came here from all over the world, especially the Germans. They came here to build breweries.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The owner says he would like to do more to help, maybe provide a think tank or coffee house where people can get together and share stories and job leads.

Boy, I'd love to get a look at those resumes after all that beer. Get tickets to the inauguration, plus air fare and a hotel room? Just win an essay contest. And can you also spare some money for the inauguration itself?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: You can write your way into the hottest ticket in town. A chance to witness the nation swear in the first black president. The Presidential Inaugural Committee has announced an essay contest now. And ten lucky winners get tickets to the swearing in on January 20th. The winners also get tickets to watch the parade and can party at one of the official inaugural balls. In exchange, participants will be encouraged to donate to the inauguration. But organizers say that is not required.

Mid-East in flames. New Israeli airstrikes on Gaza and Hamas. Rocket attacks on Israel. A live report just ahead.

Plus, it's the engine that drives the economy, and it's been sputtering for months. This hour new numbers on consumer confidence. It is Tuesday, December 30th. I'm Heidi Collins, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.