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Day Four of Attacks in Gaza; Controversial Collision; President Bush Blames Hamas; Retailers at Risk

Aired December 30, 2008 - 12:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Hello everyone. I'm Tony Harris in the CNN NEWSROOM, and here are the headlines from CNN for this Tuesday, the 30th day of December.
Israel bombards Gaza for a fourth day. Its leaders signal the attacks against Hamas targets will go on for some time.

A cruise ship passenger overboard. Did she jump or was she pushed? The FBI says it still doesn't know if a crime was committed.

A tear in your beer and a reboot for your resume. A St. Louis tavern comes up with a way to help the jobless and his own business.

Fast-moving developments in the line of fire between Israel and Hamas. Israel's prime minister now describing the massive bombing blitz in Gaza as merely the first stage of a wider military campaign.

The Palestinian death toll from the Israeli assault jumping to more than 375, most of them militants, but several children also killed. Hamas militants still able to fire off rockets into Israel despite the ferocity of the Israeli airstrikes. The Palestinian rockets killing six Israelis, five of them civilians.

Let's get you right to the region. Our Ben Wedeman live in the Israeli city of Ashkelon, about seven miles north of Gaza.

And Ben, if you would, how would you describe the rockets from Hamas positions on southern Israel today?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: It's certainly been less, Tony, today than it was yesterday. Yesterday, there were approximately 70 missiles landing in southern Israel. Today, we're looking at more like 30.

But about half an hour ago here in Ashkelon, we did hear the rocket alarm go off, and moments later heard a distant thud when a rocket impacted. But despite that, it's been relatively quieter today than the previous days.

The crew that was here yesterday from CNN said especially in the evening, it was quite hairy, with the rocket alarm going off very frequently. And they said it was reminiscent of when they covered the war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006, when they were up in the north, when there were rockets coming down by the dozen every day -- Tony. HARRIS: Just a quick note here, Ben. I'm starting to get a lot of traffic, wire traffic now, suggesting that there are efforts under way to bring about -- and I have to be careful with the wording here -- either a ceasefire, a truce. Are you hearing anything along these lines?

WEDEMAN: Yes. What we've heard is Israeli media reports suggesting that third parties have intervened to propose a 48-hour truce to allow humanitarian goods into Gaza, and -- but what we've heard from both of the Israeli army, as well as the spokesman for the prime minister, that they have vehemently denied that such a truce or ceasefire of 48 hours is in the offing.

Now, these Israeli media reports, Tony, are also suggesting that this would simply be to allow humanitarian goods into Gaza before the much-awaited ground offensive. So this doesn't necessarily mean, whether this is true or not, confirmed or unconfirmed, that this is the end of this operation in any sense -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. Ben Wedeman for us in the Israeli city of Ashkelon.

Ben, appreciate it. Thank you.

Controversial accounts about why an Israeli warship hit a boat taking medical volunteers and supplies to Gaza.

Our Karl Penhaul was aboard the Dignity at the time of the incident. Here's his account of what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARL PENHAUL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the Dignity. It's a 60-foot motor yacht, and it was in this vessel that the Free Gaza Movement, both its members and also a group of doctors, surgeons, a former U.S. congresswoman, Cynthia McKinney, and a member of the separate (ph) parliament were trying to head from Cyprus to reach Gaza to take three tons of much-needed medical aid to the people of Gaza and help them in the humanitarian crisis that has come as a result of the Israeli bombardments there.

But then in the black of night, it was probably still three hours before dawn, the Dignity was in international waters, the seas were very heavy. Very stormy seas. And at least two Israeli patrol boats then came in very fast pursuit of the Dignity, they approached it very easily, and then for the next half hour, moved and maneuvered around the vessel, in front, behind, and on both sides.

At least one of those Israeli patrol boats had a powerful searchlight lighting up the Dignity. The Dignity itself was sailing with full light.

After half an hour -- and there was no previous radio communication, according to the Dignity's captain -- one of those Israeli patrol boats with no lights on rammed the front left side of the Dignity very hard. Now, that shattered the glass windows around the wheelhouse. It also caused part of the roof to peel back and punctured the hull.

At that stage, the captain sent out a Mayday distress signal. Another crew member came back to the passenger area, issued us all with life jackets and said that we should be prepared in the next few minutes to take to the life rafts. The fear, the very real fear at that stage, was that the vessel was going to sink.

But in those intervening few moments, the captain went down below deck and he said that he managed to activate some of the bilge pumps, and that started to pump the water out of the hull. That really is what saved the vessel. Those actions are what saved the vessel and prevented us from having to abandon ship.

Subsequently, the Israeli defense forces have issued a statement. They claim that the incident was an accident. They say that the Dignity was trying to outmaneuver the Israeli patrol boats.

The captain and also members of the Free Gaza Movement who were organizing this trip say that they do not accept that version of events. They say the incident took place in international waters, that the Israelis had no right at that stage, they say, to try and intercept them, and they also say that it was a very definite ramming.

They say that the lights were on the vessel, there was no question the vessel was in the position that it was. And those boats had been moving and maneuvering very efficiently for the previous half an hour, and they see no reason why at that point the patrol boat would collide with the Dignity unless it was a deliberate ramming.

Fortunately, though, no casualties. The boat has now docked in Tyre, Lebanon, and members of the Free Gaza Movement will now look at other options to see how that much-needed humanitarian aid can be delivered to the people of Gaza.

Karl Penhaul, CNN, Tyre, Lebanon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: The Bush administration puts blame for the violence squarely on Hamas. We are awaiting a statement from the White House later this hour.

Right now, live to our Elaine Quijano in Crawford, Texas -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, President Bush is remaining out of public view, monitoring events very closely, though, from his ranch nearby here in Crawford, but leaving it to a spokesman to lay out the U.S.' position. Now, the United States believes that in order for the violence to stop, Hamas must stop firing rockets into Israel. That has been the White House's position all along.

At the same time, the United States is notably not urging restraint, even as Israel amasses tanks and troops along the border with Gaza. I should say Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been in touch with regional leaders trying to push through what the United States is calling a durable and sustainable ceasefire. So far, though, no word on any progress on that front.

And the president, meantime, again, continuing to watch the events unfold in Israel and Gaza very closely getting updates, Tony, by phone and by secure video from his top aides -- Tony.

HARRIS: All right. Elaine Quijano in Crawford, Texas, with the president.

And that news conference scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

The incoming president keeping close tabs on the situation in Gaza while keeping a low profile on the conflict. But in just three weeks, Barack Obama inherits this problem in the Middle East.

Senior White House Correspondent Ed Henry traveling with the president-elect. Live now from Honolulu.

Ed, good to see you again.

You know, I'm getting -- I'm just sort of curious -- I'm hearing it from a lot of people that I talk to on day-to-day basis, particularly in a crisis situation like this, the Middle East. We know that it is a top priority for the president-elect, but many wonder how the Obama administration will deal with the situation like the one that is unfolding before our eyes right now in Gaza differently than the way the Bush administration has dealt with it.

ED HENRY, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good question, and it's hard to answer right now, because as you know, the president-elect is here on this vacation and is not speaking out, really, at all about the situation. Continuing this mantra of there's only one president at a time.

So all we can do is take a look at what he has said in recent months, take a close look at it. And for example, this past summer, in July, as a candidate, he went to Jerusalem. He was being -- Republicans were charging he was not a strong enough defender of Israel, so he went there and really spoke out.

And at one point, sort of emotionally said, look, if Hamas was sending rockets into the home where my two daughters sleep -- he made it that personal...

HARRIS: Yes.

HENRY: ... I can understand why Israel needs to defend itself.

What's fascinating is, yesterday, as you know, Ehud Barak, the Israeli defense minister, basically -- in the Knesset -- used Obama's remarks to say, look, the president-elect of the United States is sort of behind us, you know, to sort of justify Israel's actions. And that's what happens when you have a vacuum like this and the president-elect is not speaking out. People start picking and parsing what he has said in the past. And if you look at that closely, what he said last summer in Israel, that sounds very similar to President Bush's approach to Israel -- they have a right to defend themselves, Hamas has to stop sending the rockets. Pretty much exactly what Elaine Quijano was just saying about what President Bush has said and his aides are saying now.

And so, frankly, on the surface, you don't really see very much that would be different in terms of the approach from the president- elect than we've seen from President Bush. And as you know, over the last eight years, President Bush has not been able to get a peace deal -- Tony.

HARRIS: Al right. Well, let's see if we can drill down on -- to one specific question here. Has the president-elect taken negotiating with Hamas off the table?

HENRY: No. But what's interesting there as well, you'll remember in the campaign, again, Republicans were attacking Barack Obama...

HARRIS: That's right.

HENRY: ... as a candidate when he said, you know, maybe you need to talk to folks like Hamas. And they were saying, look, he's soft on terror, and they were really hammering in.

And so what he did in response was say, look, my suspicion is the same at John McCain's. You only talk too Hamas if they renounce terror, number one, and if they finally recognize the state of Israel.

That's really not different, again, from what President Bush has said. So, over time, we've seen Barack Obama move closer to the Bush administration's position on a lot of these things.

Again, we've got to give him the benefit of the doubt. He's not speaking now. Maybe on January 20th, January 21st he'll have some whole new idea we haven't heard yet.

But with him being silent right now here in Hawaii, and we look closely at what he has said, his approach is not much different than President Bush. And President Bush's approach has not yielded very many results.

Now, as you know, this morning, Anthony Zinni, the retired general, said that it's time for Barack Obama to negotiate with Hamas, once he becomes president. But again, you've got to remember, it was with those conditions...

HARRIS: That's right.

HENRY: ... not just willy-nilly talk to terrorists, but that they renounce terror and they recognize Israel. Those are the same conditions that Barack Obama has had in his position. So if he were to talk to Hamas, it would be under those very strict conditions. So, frankly, I don't see a lot of daylight between the Obama and Bush positions -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK.

Ed Henry for us in Honolulu.

Ed, appreciate it. Thank you.

More demonstrations here in the United States against the Israeli strikes on Gaza. About 250 protesters marched down Fifth Avenue in New York late yesterday. They waved Palestinian flags and called for an end to the attacks. Some protesters handed out leaflets urging a boycott of Israel.

Demonstrators shouting "Free Palestine!" marched through the streets of New Orleans yesterday. Protests are planned in several cities today.

We will keep you updated as developments unfold throughout the day right here in the NEWSROOM.

And be sure to log on to our Web site for more on the conflict, the international response, and the history behind it, including a look at the important players and the latest pictures and video. Check it on out at CNN.com.

A little political tinkering in Russia today. President Dmitry Medvedev has signed a law extending presidential terms from four to six years. Many say the move may be a way for Vladimir Putin to regain the office.

There is rampant speculation Medvedev could actually resign, opening the door for his mentor to step in. The Russian constitution barred Putin from a third consecutive term. He is currently prime minister and continues to hold great power.

Does anyone see a real solution to the Mideast problem? Thoughts from a Mideast expert, that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: The battle between Hamas and Israeli forces is the worst fighting in years. That's to be sure. But what can really be done to make both sides happy and stop all the bloodshed?

Joining me from Washington is Jon Alterman, director of the Mideast Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Jon, great to see you. Thanks for your time.

JON ALTERMAN, DIRECTOR, CSIS'S MIDDLE EAST PROGRAM: Good to see you again, Tony.

HARRIS: You know, it looks to many, at least, like the international community is allowing Israel to do essentially what it wants or feels it needs to do in Gaza to root out Hamas militants. What, if anything, do you believe is going on behind the scenes right now on the diplomatic front, particularly with Arab nations, to try to end the violence and to bring about this sustainable peace that everyone says they want?

ALTERMAN: Well, the Arab governments are quietly very hostile to Hamas. They have a general problem with non-state movements that want to displace secular governments. And I think in many ways they see their interests aligned with Israel's interests. The problem is that their people don't agree at all.

I think they're trying to hold back the calls that they have to take action. They are hoping the Israelis will do something quickly, effectively.

There is talk now in Israel of moving toward a ceasefire. They're going to try to help Israel get the ceasefire it wants, disadvantaging Hamas. And if Israel takes action after a ceasefire fails, I think the sense is they will try to hold back as much as they can and try to push for some sort of solution where Hamas is either pushed from power or certainly in a much weaker position than it was a week ago.

HARRIS: Jon, why not just a -- this has been going on for so long. So long now. Why not a clear statement, unequivocal statement from Arab nations that Hamas is just not the way?

Why all back door trying to maneuver? Why not a clear statement sent broad and wide to Palestinians in particular that Hamas is not the way forward, Hamas is not your future? Maybe linking Arab aid to new negotiations? Why not that kind of paradigm shift?

ALTERMAN: You've seen some of that, but there is a deep sense in the Arab world, and it goes both to governments -- and more broadly, there's a sense of legitimacy of Hamas, legitimacy of resistance, as they see it. The sense that Hamas has religious sanction, and the people who are killed fighting for Hamas are martyrs. And it's hard to walk away from that in the view of governments without exposing themselves to cries that they are illegitimate.

So what they try to do is split the difference, and quietly not take the actions they might, giving Hamas a call to the street.

HARRIS: Is this -- firing rockets into southern Israel, that doesn't feel like a strategy. Do the Palestinians -- do the people who want nothing more than to raise their kids, do they see Hamas as an ally? Do they see the rocket attacks into southern Israel as a real strategy?

ALTERMAN: Well, I think there are some people who do and some people who don't. Mahmoud Abbas -- I heard Mahmoud Abbas speaking Arabic to an audience in Kuwait several years ago saying militarization of the intifada is a mistake, there's no arms solution to this conflict.

Certainly, ,there are many Palestinians who say we're not going to fight our way out of this. There are other Palestinians who say the only way to get a deal on any sort of respectable terms is to remind Israelis that there is a Palestinian military option, that Palestinians can't be ignored, that Palestinians won't surrender, because their sense is surrender will not only be humiliating, but also a deal on exceedingly bad terms.

One of the problems any country has or any group has when you fight, is at what point do you make a deal and at what point do you say, you know, we're going to get the best deal we can at the negotiating table rather than on the battlefield? And quite frankly, there are very big differences in the Palestinian community, and the percentages of who support more armed action or more negotiations keep changing depending on what's happening in the environment.

HARRIS: And Jon, one more quick question for you. What's the real opportunity here as you see and evaluate it through your analysis for the Obama administration moving forward?

ALTERMAN: Look, when the Obama administration comes in, in four weeks' time, they're not going to be in the fighting phase, they're going to be in the negotiation and the resolution phase. I think what they are hoping for is some sort of longer-term solution where Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian -- the Fatah-led government gets control again of Gaza. You have a unified Palestinian population which is moving toward negotiations with the Israelis to finally resolve that conflict. That's the best thing that can happen.

I think that's what the Israelis want. It's not clear at all that's where things are going to be when the dust settles in a few weeks.

HARRIS: Jon Alterman is the director of the Mideast Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Jon, thanks for your time again. Appreciate it.

ALTERMAN: Thank you, Tony.

HARRIS: Just a reminder, later today Israel's ambassador to the U.S. will discuss the escalating conflict. You can see the statement live at 2:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: You know, we are tracking developments today in the still undecided Minnesota Senate race. Democrat Al Franken and Republican Norm Coleman unable to agree on which unopened absentee ballots should be counted. The series of regional meetings that begin today will determine which ballots make the cut. Franken leads Coleman by just 50 votes after a recount of more than 2.9 million ballots.

Cruise ship crime or suicide? New developments in the search for a missing passenger.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: You know, her family thinks she may have jumped overboard, but authorities are still investigating whether someone pushed a woman off a cruise ship into the Gulf of Mexico. The Coast Guard has suspended its search.

CNN's Sean Callebs has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (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: Thirty-six-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 going 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."

(on camera): We're learning a bit more about Jennifer Seitz' husband Raymond. This is a mug shot taken back in April by the Polk County Sheriff's Office after he was charged with domestic violence. In the affidavit, which has the victim's name blacked out, he basically admitted head butting, saying he struck her forehead with his. However, later on, charges were dropped when Raymond Seitz agreed to go into a diversionary program.

We should point out that right now, the FBI says it's simply investigating to see if a crime was committed on the high seas, saying that right now, Raymond Seitz is not a suspect at all.

Sean Callebs, CNN, in New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE) HARRIS: We are waiting on a White House briefing that is expected to address the situation in Gaza. We will bring that to you live when it happens.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Address the situation in Gaza. We will bring that to you live when it happens.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: The death toll rising. Day four of the violence between Israel and Hamas. Here's what we know. Three hundred and seventy-five Palestinians now reported killed in the Israeli assault. Most of the dead are militants, but several children also killed. Hamas rockets still slamming into Israel despite the veracity of the Israeli air strikes. The death toll on the Israelis side stands at six. Five of them civilians.

Israeli media reporting efforts underway to begin a two-day truce to see if Hamas can abide by a ceasefire. However, the Israeli military denies the report. The prime minister says the mass of bombs blitz in Gaza is merely the first stage of a wider military campaign.

For a third straight day, noisy and angry protests outside the Israeli embassy in London. CNN's Lonzo Cook is there.

And, Lonzo, yesterday's scene was pretty intense at times. If you would, describing the scene for us today now outside that embassy.

LONZO COOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, only a couple of hundred protesters earlier this afternoon. And they managed to burn the Israeli flag and chant their disgust at the Israeli's actions in Gaza, chanting Israeli terrorists and end the siege now.

We managed to speak to a couple of the protesters. And here's what they told us were their reason for being here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People do not accept what is going on. We are not part of the crime. And the war has to stop immediately. The siege has to finish immediately. The Palestinian people have the right to survive, have the right to resist.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have largely a non (INAUDIBLE) family and I found that people across the border are outraged. Outraged. Absolutely outraged by it. I think, in fact, if you look around at the demonstration today, certainly they might not be the faces in the papers, but there are many British, non-Muslim, non-Arab, non-Palestinians here today protesting also. And there are many, many people who are just extremely saddened by what's going on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOK: Tony, there were a few of the scuffles that we've seen in recent days. I was here on Sunday and there was considerable scuffling with the police and several arrests were made, but none made today.

Tony.

HARRIS: Lonzo Cook for us outside of the Israeli embassy in London.

Lonzo, appreciate it. Thank you.

Our iReporters are weighing in on all sides of this conflict. Our Josh Levs joins us now with some of those responses.

And, Josh, good to see you.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hey, good to see you too, Tony.

We're getting a lot of them, as you were just saying. I want to get right to one of these. We have some photos here. This comes to us from Alexander Lifman (ph). He's actually in Ashkelon (ph) in Israel. That's about seven miles from Gaza. What he did was, in red there, he circled his home on these pictures. He says he could see rockets flying overhead.

Now we don't have any iReports from Gaza that I can show you, but a lot of people here in the U.S. are writing us their opinions about what's going on. Let's go to this quote here from David White. He says, "I am appalled at the amount of overkill that is being used in Gaza. Rocket-propelled grenades against unstoppable air strikes? Who is terrorizing whom?"

But on the other side we've got this video from Bob Joseph, who said Hamas militants set up some of their operations in civilian areas in Gaza endangering people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB JOSEPH: They have created an environment where they ensure that some civilians can get hurt. And what they target themselves is, they target children and schools and hospitals. That is what makes Hamas the most evil entity -- one of the most evil entities on this planet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEVS: So as you can see there, we are getting some very different views.

David Cronmiller (ph) wrote us this. He's asking, take a look at this. He's asking, "where -- Gaza peace? Where are you, Mr. President?" And that's his angle there. He's saying, where is President Bush in all of this?

This is our main page here, "Violence Erupts in Gaza." Go ahead and send us your videos, your photos, your views on all this. Obviously, if you're anywhere in the war zone, don't go to any danger. But whatever you do, have it (ph) safe, send it to ireport.com.

And, Tony, we'll keep bringing you some of them right here on the air.

HARRIS: Got just a touch of breaking news here. Pretty important story. Just want to get you a quick update, get it on your radar, and then we'll do some more work on the story. "The Chicago Tribune" is reporting that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is set to nominate Roland Burris to take over the vacated Senate seat of Barack Obama. There's the picture. I believe it's from the web site. Roland Burris is the former Illinois attorney general.

So a bit of breaking news here. "The Chicago Tribune" reporting that Governor Rod Blagojevich, and I guess I should add embattled Governor Rod Blagojevich, is set to nominate Roland Burris to the vacated Senate seat of Barack Obama. And Roland Burris is the former Illinois attorney general. We obviously don't know much about him at this point. But our team, our national desk, is working on additional information, details on this story, and we will get that to you as soon as we have it.

Other news now. A crucial supply line to U.S. troops in Afghanistan was cut today. Pakistan closed the main road over the Khyber Pass, linking the two countries. Pakistani troops took the step when they mounted a fresh offensive against Taliban fighters today. Western troops get about three quarters of their food, fuel and other supplies via the Khyber Road. Pakistan says it doesn't know when the road will actually reopen.

Still in the region, Pakistan is offering to pull its troops back if India does the same. Pakistan shifted 20,000 soldiers to the border last week fearing India would retaliate for the Mumbai attacks. Pakistan claims India beefed up its border presence as well. India denies it and says there is nothing to de-escalate. At least 10 gunmen, you'll recall, seized several landmarks sites in Mumbai in November. Only one survived. The three day siege left more than 160 people dead.

Let's take you to the New York Stock Exchange now and give you a look at the big board. Just passed three hours into the trade day. And as you can see, we have been in positive territory for most of the day. The Dow up in positive territory, 115 points. And the tech-heavy Nasdaq up 16 points.

All right, sales down. Returns, up. Not exactly what retailers were hoping for this holiday season. And that could mean your favorite store may not be around much longer. Here's CNN's Debra Feyerick.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBRA FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): With markdowns as high as 70 percent in many stores, you'd think people would be buying like crazy. So why aren't they?

People are still edgy?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, absolutely. People are just very worried about what's going to happen to their job, what the future outlook's going to be. You know, if you're that next percentage point on the unemployment rolls, you don't want to spend right now.

FEYERICK: Malls were packed after Christmas. But the . . .

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: All right. Let's take you to Crawford, Texas, now and the White House briefing from Deputy White House Spokesman Gordon Johndrone.

GORDON JOHNDRONE, DEPUTY WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: Also this morning, President Bush called Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to thank him for his leadership and for the positive role that Egypt is playing in the current crisis. The president also called Palestinian Authority President Abbas and Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Fayed. President Bush and the two Palestinian leaders discussed their efforts for a sustainable ceasefire. They agreed that for any ceasefire to be effective, it must be respected, particularly by Hamas. President Bush reiterated his concern about the citizens of Gaza, as well as the United States' desire to help with the humanitarian situation there.

Prime Minister Fayed thanked President Bush for the recent U.S. contribution to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency to assist the Palestinian people.

With that, I will be happy to take your questions.

Deb.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) sustainable and durable. What's the difference between an immediate ceasefire and one that is stainable and durable? Semantics?

JOHNDRONE: No. I think a ceasefire that is stainable and durable, what we've been calling for, is one that is exactly that. It's lasting. We don't just want a ceasefire for the sake of a ceasefire, only for violence to start up immediately or within the next few weeks. That serves no one's interest as President Bush discussed with Prime Minister Fayed.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE).

JOHNDRONE: We have got to get a commitment from Hamas that they would respect any ceasefire and make it lasting and durable. And so until we can get that assurance, not the United States, but until Israel can get that assurance from Hamas, then we're not going to have a ceasefire that is worth the paper that it's written on.

Toby.

QUESTION: How do you propose to get Hamas onboard with ceasefires if you guys aren't actually talking to them?

JOHNDRONE: Well, you know, Egypt brokered the last ceasefire. The one that was in place for six months, that expired last week, that Hamas failed to renew. And not only did they fail to renew the ceasefire, then they, you know, substantially increased their rocket and mortar attacks into Israel within the last few days. The other governments in the region, such as Egypt, the officials in the Palestinian authority, Jordanians, others who are in touch with the various Hamas factions, will make it clear that this is in no one's interests. Certainly not the Palestinian people. Certainly not the people of Gaza. And definitely not the people of the entire Middle East region. This sort of violence is in no one's interest. So all of those governments, as they have been in the past, are committed to assisting with the current situation.

Go ahead.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) President Bush prepared to have this violence in Gaza continue through the end of his presidency? Do you think it will last that long?

JOHNDRONE: You know, that's 21 days from now and I'm not going to speculate about this. I think we all want to see an end to the violence. But that first starts with Hamas ceasing its rocket attacks into Israel.

Mark.

QUESTION: Gordon, when Ban Ki-Moon calls for an immediate ceasefire, and end to the violence by all sides, since he doesn't use the word sustainable and durable, if that's not enough for the U.S., right?

JOHNDRONE: As I've said, we think, one, we want to see an end to the violence. But, two, we want to see an end to the violence for the long term. Not just the immediate. So, again, we don't want a ceasefire agreement that isn't worth the piece of paper it's written on. We want something that's lasting. And, most importantly, respected by Hamas.

HARRIS: Once again, Deputy White House Spokesman Gordon Johndroe there outlining the president's conversation, as he was giving us an update on the situation from the White House's perspective on the crisis right now in Gaza. The White House's position, as you heard him say just a moment ago, is that any ceasefire, in order for it to be successful, it must be honored by Hamas. And it looks like the Bush administration is looking to the neighbors, Egypt and Jordan, to bring Hamas to the table for any kind of a conversation about a ceasefire.

We're going to take a quick break and update you on the breaking news of just moments ago right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. We're back in a moment.

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HARRIS: Just want to give you a quick update on the breaks news we brought you just moments ago. Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich expected today to name former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris to replace President-elect Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate. Much to talk about on this development. Lynn Sweet is on the line with us. She is, of course, a columnist for the "Chicago Sun-Times."

Lynn, good to talk to you.

LYNN SWEET, "CHICAGO SUN-TIMES": Good to talk to you.

HARRIS: Lynn, if you would, this seems to me to be exactly the thing that the federal prosecutor tried to prevent, was this naming of someone to replace Barack Obama in the Senate. It seemed to be the reason that Patrick Fitzgerald moved forward -- to move forward with the charges against the Illinois governor?

SWEET: Well, what he tried to prevent was a crime in progress. And I guess right now, since this is -- I think this is not a crime in progress anymore. So, you know, this is kind of besides the point. But he is somebody (INAUDIBLE) somebody who is a former attorney general and a former controller of Illinois who was not at all involved in any of this pay to play scandal.

HARRIS: OK. The other thought on this is that anyone that was appointed by the Illinois governor would carry a particular taint because of the charges now facing the Illinois governor. What can you tell us again about Burris and his integrity? Is he unimpeachable?

SWEET: Right. He just wasn't a part of the pay to play scheme and that's the kind of cunning of what Rod Blagojevich is up to in this. He's trying to pick somebody who is fairly unassailable, a senior statesman who comes out of more or less the machine side of Illinois Democratic politics. And it's being done in the open. And it's a defiant move that will be controversial. Burris will be seen as a caretaker and we'll have to see if Harry Reid, the Senate leader, is going to do what he said he was going to do and try to reject any appointment made by the embattled Blagojevich.

HARRIS: Yes. Lynn, one more question. Is this an appointment that Burris sought?

SWEET: No. I mean, I'm going to find out more. I'm in the midst of reporting that right now.

HARRIS: OK. Lynn Sweet with the "Chicago Sun-Times."

Lynn, appreciate it. Thanks for your time. You knew it -- you knew maybe it could fly -- or fry with it. But did you know you could fly with it? OK. Vegetable oil as the new jet fuel. I made a hash of that.

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HARRIS: You know, airlines have been trying everything, making fliers pay for extra leg room, for food, and to check their bags. Now some carriers are looking at vegetable oil as a fuel of the future. Are you kidding me? CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow has our Energy Fix from New York.

Poppy, is this -- is vegetable oil, really?

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: We're not kidding you. It's not exactly pouring Canola oil right into the jet. But listen, seriously, a test flight today, Tony, already took off and landed successfully. It was Air New Zealand. They flew a jet powered by a 50/50 blend of standard jet fuel and vegetable oil that comes from a plant called a Jatropha plant that grows in a lot of tropical countries.

Now what makes this an attractive alternative, unlike some other biofuels, like ethanol which relies on corn, Jatropha would not take away from the food supply -- that was a big problem with ethanol -- because it grows on land that's not really suitable for farming anyway. Of course, Tony, it is also much cleaner than regular jet fuel.

HARRIS: Yes, no doubt. So what do you think here? Will airlines start using biofuel on commercial flights?

HARLOW: They certainly will if it will save them money and if they can really produce it in the masses. Air New Zealand says it could be up to five years before it can really do that. But more tests still have to be done until that happens. Large quantities of this really have to be produced, the idea of biofuel for a plane.

So it's getting some serious attention. Next week, Continental hopes to become the first U.S. carrier to complete a test flight powered in part by fuel coming from Jatropha and also algae. Last February, Virgin Atlantic, Tony, carrying out a biofuel test flight as well. So a lot of carriers are trying this out.

HARRIS: What about the cost of this? How does biofuel compare to regular jet fuel?

HARLOW: That's the kicker. It has to be cost efficient or the airlines -- just they won't use it. So far there's no specific price tag. Continental and Air New Zealand, though, both say biofuel will be competitive with petroleum fuels, especially if the prices spike again like they did this summer.

HARRIS: That's right.

HARLOW: It's one energy fix. Don't hop onboard just yet, but pretty interesting what we could see in just a few years.

HARRIS: Hey, keep us posted on this.

HARLOW: We will.

HARRIS: Yes, there's some real potential here.

All right, Poppy, thank you.

HARLOW: You're welcome.

HARRIS: The bar getting people in the door with an unusual hitch, free beer and resume advice.

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HARRIS: Good news on tap. For laid off workers looking for a job in St. Louis, a bar owner offering a free beer to anyone coming in to get free advice on polishing up their resume. I like your line, Kyra. The Royale Bar served up that classic combo and coaching tips were flowing yesterday as fast as the beer. The owner came up with the idea after a European company recently bought the St. Louis original Budweiser.

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

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HARRIS: Well, a list of other helpful programs the Royale is offering can be found on the web. Oh, we're pitching the web site, at royale.com.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Why not? Wonder if Blagojevich had a few of those beers? HARRIS: Oh, and here she is, CNN NEWSROOM . . .

PHILLIPS: Let's see. I'll get caught on tape allegedly trying to sell Obama's Senate seat. And, oh, I'm going appoint my guy to the Senate seat. Interesting.

HARRIS: And you're talking to Lynn Sweet later (ph).

PHILLIPS: We sure are.

HARRIS: All right.

PHILLIPS: "The Chicago Tribune" just broke this story. We're going to talk about it right now at the top of the hour.

HARRIS: Beautiful. Enjoy.