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Six Days of Death in Gaza; Israeli Strike Kills Hamas Leader; SEC Won't Release List of Madoff Assets; Small Diet Changes to Keep Weight Off; D.C. Home Owners Downsize Rental Hopes; Congenital Amputee Excels at Athletics

Aired January 01, 2009 - 13:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Smoke in the air, rubble and bodies in the streets. Israel pounds Gaza for a sixth straight day with no letup in sight. The latest target, a top Hamas commander.

The band is Iraqi, transition is the tune. Baghdad's Green Zone ruled by Saddam, then occupied by the U.S., now back in Iraqi hands.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wonderful to live another day, live another year. It's wonderful to make it alive.

WHITFIELD: His condition was grim. His outlook was bleak, but his hope never wavered. A snowboarder escapes an icy tune.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Hello, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta and you're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Straight to our top story, it is just after 8 p.m. in Gaza right now, but nightfall won't bring an end to Israel's massive air assault. This is just a taste of what's been going on all day long there.

The Israeli air offensive targeting Hamas militants has been going on for six straight days. Today, Palestinian sources say a missile struck the home of a top Hamas military commander near a northern Gaza refugee camp, killing him and nine other people. At least 400 people have been killed in Gaza since Saturday and another 2,000 wounded. Israeli sources say at least four Israelis have been killed by Palestinian rocket fire and another 56 wounded.

Meantime, Israeli's foreign minister says the air strikes have "achieved changes" but wouldn't be more specific than that. Israeli troops have been massing along the Gaza border, as a possible prelude to a ground war. Our Ben Wedeman is near that explosive line in the sand right now and joins us. Ben?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fredricka. Certainly today seemed to be the most intense Israeli bombing of Gaza since the first day, last Saturday, of this offensive.

We were about two miles from the Gaza border and watched plane after plane dropping bombs and missiles on various targets inside Gaza and, of course, the most dramatic was when a four-story building, the home of Nizar Rayyan, a senior military leader in the Hamas movement was hit. That caused huge damage.

We saw a gigantic plume of smoke after seeing repeated large orange flashes as the bombs went off. According to Palestinian medical and security sources, at least 10 people killed, in addition to Nizar Rayyan. We understand some of his children and one of his wives -- he apparently had two, were killed in that attack.

But that was just one of many air strikes on Gaza, according to the Israeli army. They were targeting buildings that were used to store weapons in. But despite this intense bombing of the past six days, rockets continued to be fired from Gaza into Israel, raising questions about the actual effectiveness of these Israeli raids.

We also saw Israeli planes destroyed, the Palestinian ministries of education and transportation and also the Palestinian parliament. So it does appear that the air war is, in fact, ratcheting up. Many people expect, as you've said, that this could be a prelude to the ground offensive. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right, Ben Wedeman, thanks so much for that live report.

Meantime, it's a far different scene in Iraq. No missiles, just marching bands as the U.S. formally hands over the Green Zone to the Iraqis. Our Jill Dougherty is in the zone right now. Jill?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well you know, it is a switch, isn't it, Fredricka? Marching bands. And you think of what was going on about a year ago. And New Year's really is a time of new beginnings. And this is the beginning of a new beginning, you might say as Iraq slowly begins to reassert control over its destiny.

Part of it was symbolism and we saw that at that ceremony of the handover of security control in the Green Zone today. And then part of it is actually legal, because after all, the new agreement between the United States and Iraq governing U.S. forces begins today, January 1st. And fittingly, all of this began in the Green Zone.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DOUGHERTY (voice-over): It's known as the Green Zone. Its official name is the international zone. Four square miles, 10 square kilometers carved out of the heart of Baghdad, surrounded by massive concrete blast walls and razor wire, guarded by a maze of checkpoints and armored vehicles. An American-run mini city that gives new meaning to the expression "gated community."

It's the scene of the Iraqi government, and of the international coalition. Until January 1st, it was under coalition control. Now that control shifts to Iraqi hands. Before the invasion in 2003, there was no such thing as the Green Zone. The area contained Saddam Hussein's presidential complex, a series of palaces for him, his family and his top officials. When U.S. forces captured Baghdad, Jay Garner, the first U.S. administrator for Iraqi reconstruction, set up offices in Saddam Hussein's Republican palace. Soon, American soldiers were relaxing in Saddam Hussein's swimming pool.

But it didn't take long before the Green Zone was under attack. The al-Rashid Hotel in 2003, the Iraqi parliament cafeteria bombed in 2007. Last year in the Green Zone, U.N. Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon was startled by a mortar exploding nearby.

Despite ramped up security, the Green Zone became even more of a target. It was very much a fortress, a no-go zone for most Iraqis. Even Iraqis who lived or worked there had to stand in endless security cues. For Americans and other international employees, it became a hermetically sealed bubble, cutting them off from most Iraqi citizens and the reality of life in Baghdad.

Now Americans have moved out of the Republican palace and into the new American embassy about a mile away. For Baghdad residents turning the Green Zone over to Iraqi control could mean fewer traffic jams with more and more roads through the Green Zone expected to open up.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DOUGHERTY: So for Iraqis themselves, this is really a physical symbol, but it's also a psychological symbol of their increasing sovereignty. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Jill Dougherty in Baghdad, thanks so much for that update.

Milestones such as that handover of the Green Zone has come at a pretty heavy price. Tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians and soldiers are dead. Since "Operation Iraqi Freedom" began nearly six years ago, 4,221 U.S. troops have died. However, the number of U.S. casualties has dropped dramatically just this past year. Commanders credit the U.S.-led surge, a decrease in insurgent attacks and improved Iraqi security for that. President-elect Barack Obama says he plans to shift the military focus to Afghanistan, where attacks on troops are growing.

In our nation's capital, a tragic start to 2009. A house fire in Northeast Washington has claimed at least five lives, three adults and two children. An 11-year-old boy was pulled from that home. He's in extremely critical condition. A teenager and an adult also hospitalized. Their injuries not believed to be life threatening. No word yet on the cause of the blaze which apparently started in the basement. It took more than 100 firefighters to bring it under control.

A New Year's Eve bomb plot in Aspen, Colorado, comes to a safe but pretty strange ending. After evacuating a big chunk of town and detonating several devices, police found their suspects dead of a self-inflicted gunshot. James Blanning's picture was captured by a surveillance camera yesterday. He was very well-known to authorities. Back in 1994, he staged a demonstration atop the county courthouse, and actually threatened suicide. And in '96, he was convicted of racketeering, forgeries and fraud, and went to prison. And just last hour, police revealed some details of Blanning's bomb plot, and the devices that he left at two Aspen banks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASST. CHIEF BILL LINN, ASPEN POLICE: Those packages contained notes threatening detonation of devices contained in those tubs, and, "mass death" if his demands were not met. He claimed that the devices each contained what he called a big firecracker made of unique chemicals and electronics. The notes, which are exactly the same at both banks, seemed to indicate that four banks in Aspen were targeted, though he did not name the banks in the notes. The notes also indicated the author had a problem with the Bush administration and wars in the Middle East, and he declared this to be "a suicide mission."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Blanning apparently hoped to extort $240,000 from the bank. The bombs contained explosives, gasoline and cell phone detonators.

All right. Winter is definitely not taking a holiday right now. A weather drama could be unfolding in the Pacific Northwest. We'll check in with meteorologist Chad Myers.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: One family in Canada has reason to celebrate today, but it has nothing to do with New Year's. A snowboarder who was missing for three days on a cold remote mountain was found alive. And he's talking about his experience from his hospital bed. Jon Woodward from CTV British Columbia reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMES MARTIN, RESCUED SNOWBOARDER: Wonderful to live another day. Live another year. Wonderful to make it alive.

JON WOODWARD, CTV: He's now in the emergency room at Vancouver General Hospital. For days on Seymour Mountain, Jamie Martin never gave up hope.

MARTIN: Thought I was going get out every single night I was in there. I thought, as I'm getting closer to dark, you know, just it's just around the corner. Never once.

WOODWARD: Martin doesn't realize how close he came to death. The 21-year-old's SUV was sitting in a parking lot since Sunday. His wallet and cell phone were left inside. The abandoned vehicle wasn't reported to staff until Tuesday. His friends came out to help with the search.

GLEN WILLIAMS, MARTIN'S FRIEND: Hopefully staying on the move, and -- keeping warm. You know?

WOODWARD: By then, he already been out for days. And time was running out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This particular subject would have succumbed to the cold. His limbs, lower limbs had frozen on him. He couldn't get out to flag the helicopter. So he was done for.

MARTIN: Another day, I would have just ventured further along, I would have just died in the bush. No one would have known.

WOOODWARD: Rescuers found Martin's tracks at an area near Suicide Gulley and followed them to find him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Camped out at night. He actually had the presence of mind to make bows to sleep on.

WOODWARD: His mother couldn't believe it.

DEBBIE MARTIN, MOTHER OF SNOWBOARDER: my gosh. Such a miracle. It's just -- it's the best news that can ever happen.

WOODWARD: What did it feel like to talk to your mom again tonight?

J. MARTIN: Just wonderful. Very good to talk to someone close.

WOODWARD: Jamie had severe frostbite, but feeling is coming back.

You would have been dead tonight if you aren't been found tonight. How did that make you feel?

J. MARTIN: Be a little more prepared next time I go. Can't look back on times. Thoughts, you just learn from mistakes and keep going out.

WOODWARD: After all this, Jamie says he might even snowboard again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Wow. All right, that was John Woodward reporting. Jamie's brother used Facebook to get the word out the search and rescue, in fact, was a success. Good news all the way around.

Well his Hawaii vacation coming to a close now. A slumping economy awaits the president-elect. We'll tell you how his team is already preparing to sell his stimulus plan to Congress.

And new year, new laws. See if your state's added anything you need to know about.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Here today, gone tomorrow? Several companies you've definitely heard of are on death watch. One group has picked 10 businesses that they think won't survive 2009.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Quite the saga surrounding the successor to Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate is headed to the Illinois Supreme Court. Roland Burris was appointed by Governor Rod Blagojevich to succeed Obama. Well now Burris is asking the state's high court to confirm his selection. The Illinois secretary of state is refusing to sign off on Burris because the governor has recently been arrested and accused of trying to sell that Senate seat. Well Burris tells CNN that the governor's problems should not affect his appointment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROLAND BURRIS (D), FORMER ILLINOIS ATTORNEY GENERAL: The governor of Illinois has made a legal appointment, and that I am currently the junior senator from the state of Illinois, and we are hoping and praying that they'll see the reason in -- his appointing me, a very qualified, capable, able and ready to serve individual to carry on the business of the 13 million people of our great state and, of course, the business of people in the great United States of America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Senate Democratic leaders maintain in Washington that they will not seat Burris. Aides say Democrats have been working on a plan to prevent Blagojevich from deciding who actually fills that seat.

President-elect Obama and President Bush are wrapping up their perspective holiday vacations. President Bush is leaving Crawford, Texas, today for the last time as the nation's president. He'll be a private citizen when he returns to Texas on inauguration day. President-elect Obama leaves Hawaii for Chicago in just a few hours. From there, the Obama family is heading to Washington this weekend, where they will remain until they move into the White House on January 20th.

President-elect Obama has a lot on his plate as he returns from his Hawaii vacation. Starting, of course, with the economy. Our Ed Henry reports the Obama team has been busy preparing to sell the new president's plan to Congress.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While keeping one eye on the crisis in Gaza, President-elect Barack Obama is now returning to the mainland to focus on the issue that propelled him to office -- the economy. Which is why the transition team is kicking off the new year by sending Congress a recovery plan in the neighborhood of $775 billion.

SEN. JOE BIDEN, (D) VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT: Economists rarely agree. But on this score, there's overwhelming agreement that we need a robust and sustained economic recovery package. The greater threat to our economy lies in doing too little rather than not doing enough.

HENRY: Transition aides say the goal is to get the bill signed into law as quickly after the inaugural as possible. To get the new president a quick victory, while also giving the economy a shot in the arm.

The emerging plan includes billions for backlogged transportation projects to beef up construction jobs and improve the nation's infrastructure. As well as modernizing crumbling public schools, to create jobs while also investing in education.

REP. BARNEY FRANK, (D) MASSACHUSETTS: 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 and feeds on itself.

HENRY: But Republicans are making noise about slowing the stimulus plan down, because they're wary about the price tag. Especially on top of a series of government bailouts.

REP. ERIC CANTOR, (R) VIRGINIA: I think most American taxpayers now are sort of scratching their head wondering when all this bailout stuff is going to end and probably thinking, you know, when is my bailout coming?

HENRY: To overcome the opposition, aides say Mr. Obama is considering plans to travel the country, to sell the economic plan quickly after being sworn into office.

Mr. Obama needs to move quickly to sell his plan because there's no time to waste. This is the first real test of the new president's clout.

Ed Henry, CNN, Honolulu.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: The alleged $50 billion Wall Street ripoff? Well, how do you track down that kind of money? We'll look at what kind of task the feds have ahead of them, the traffic, and find out why one expert doesn't think Bernard Madoff will actually spend one day in jail.

And some of you might find this image quite disturbing, especially after the holidays. But don't worry, we're not going to dish out the usual weight loss advice that you hear year after year. We'll teach you how to get smaller by thinking smaller.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Today's the first day of 2009. Or do you think 20- 09. Just how do you refer to the year? A new CNN/Opinion Research poll shows that a vast majority of people, 93 percent, say 2009. But what about next year? Well that could be even more confusing. The poll shows most of us will go with 2010, but for 28 percent of the people, 20-10 is the way to say it. OK, so the ball has fallen, the crowds are gone, even Anderson and Kathy are now off the clock. Nothing left to do but clean up in New York's Times Square of course. Last night's New Year's Eve party drew hundreds of thousands of people and a lot of stuff was left behind then. And then there's all of that confetti to deal with. Typically city workers end up with 42 tons of New Year's trash.

And in case you couldn't make it until midnight, here are some of the sights and sounds from New York and a peek at New Year's celebrations all around the globe.

All right. Quite spectacular there around the globe. So of course here in this country, the New Year also brings a whole lot of new laws. Here are just a few. Florida has a new law to help people without health insurance. Hospitals are required to give patients the good-faith estimate on health care costs before treatment.

In Tennessee, doctors and lawyers are no longer exempt from jury duty. Disabled veterans get a tax break in Oklahoma. The new law there says that they don't have to pay property taxes. That goes for surviving spouses as well.

And sex offenders being tracked a little bit more carefully in Georgia. A new law says they have to provide the state with their Internet screen names and more importantly their password.

And then in Seattle, doggy bags. You know, the to-go bags restaurants now have to be really be bags. The city's ban on styrofoam food containers is now in effect. And North Carolina has taken its smoking ban one step further. Smoking in state-owned buildings has already been banned, but now you can't smoke in state- owned vehicles either.

California's ban on texting while driving is in effect. That includes while you're stopped in a traffic stop, or a stoplight. You also cannot surf the Web while you're at that traffic light. A first offense carries a $20 fine.

So did you resolve to lose weight and perhaps get in shape in 2009? A determined young man born without arms or legs is accepting no excuses for you staying out of his gym. You'll meet him in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, 31 minutes after the hour here. Some of the stories we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM -- a man suspected of delivering bombs wrapped as Christmas presents to a pair of Colorado banks has been found dead of an apparent suicide. The packages caused police to evacuate a 16-block area of Aspen on New Year's Eve. No one was injured.

In Washington, three adults and two children died this morning in a house fire. Three others in the house were injured, including an 11-year-old boy in critical condition. And in Baghdad, the U.S. military has handed over authority for the so-called "Green Zone" to the Iraqi government. Iraqi forces now handle checkpoints around the district, which includes government offices, as well as the U.S. embassy.

And this is what it's like on the streets of Gaza for six straight days now. You're seeing a refugee camp in northern Gaza, one of hundreds of sites hit by an ever-escalating series of Israeli air strikes on alleged militant targets. Palestinian sources say a nearby strike killed a top Hamas military commander in his home today. And Israel now says it has bombed the home of a second senior Hamas operative, but it's not known if he was there.

At least 400 people have been killed since Saturday, another 2,000 have been wounded. Israel says at least four Israelis have been killed by Palestinian rocket fire and nearly 60 wounded. Meantime, thousands of Israeli troops are still massed on the Gaza border as a possible prelude to a ground war.

So why didn't the targeted Hamas commander get out of his house sooner? We asked a "New York Times" correspondent who is in Gaza. The answer just might surprise you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TAGHREED EL-KHODARY, "NEW YORK TIMES": He's very, very young, 48. He's very important in Hamas, especially in the military wing of Hamas. For him, he wanted to stay home. He knew he is a target, a big target, a big number in Israel to -- and Israel will be delighted now that they killed him. But he decided to die.

And when I asked many Qassam guys today, What do you think, that he risked his life, he knew he was wanted, why did he stay with his family, with his, you know, wife and kids? Why did he do that? And they said that he always wanted to die as a martyr. Last time I interviewed him, he showed me his dissertation. He did his Ph.D. in Sudan (ph), and it was about martyrdom. And he collected all the Prophet Mohammed sayings in regards to this topic.

The thing is, he is very important for the Qassam, especially in the north area, and it will be a loss. But the question is, Israel killed a leader, Qassam leader, during the second Intifadah, but it was not the end of Hamas. After the second Intifadah, Hamas won the election. And for many Qassam guys, this guy decided to die as a martyr. He didn't want to evacuate...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I see.

EL-KHODARY: ... his house out of fear. You can hear the bombing right now. Israel is striking again. We don't know when, but just now I heard an explosion...

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: That's "New York times" reporter who's coming to us there from Gaza. And it looks like those explosions will keep on coming. Here's what Israel's foreign minister said just hours ago, after meeting with France's president in Paris.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TZIPI LIVNI, ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER: We want to weaken Hamas in Gaza street. At the end of the day, Hamas is a problem not only to Israel but to entire Palestinian people. They are a problem to those who understand what is the nature of Hamas. They are the problem to all the Arab states that understands that they have -- they have their own radical elements become (ph), including Muslim Brotherhoods in different places. So what we are doing now is changing the equation, making a better reality to our citizens, stopping the rockets on Israel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Neither side is backing down. Hamas is vowing to defend Gaza in the face of what it calls Israeli aggression.

All right, in this country, the Securities and Exchange Commission will not release a list of assets of accused financier Bernard Madoff, at least not immediately. The people Madoff allegedly ripped off want to see that list, of course, in hopes that they might get some of their $50 billion back, but the assets could be spread so far across the globe that there's fear that foreign governments could seize them.

Harold Copus is with us now. He's a security consultant and a former FBI special agent. Good to see you. All right, so there's this list. But then the feds -- don't they have to look at it with a wary eye? Are they really certain that Madoff is telling them the truth about his assets, for starters?

HAROLD COPUS, FORMER FBI AGENT, SECURITY CONSULTANT: I don't think so. And remember, this is the guy who said, I have a fund that's worth $50 billion. He made up that list also. So if I had received a list, my reaction is, No, back off, I don't trust your list.

WHITFIELD: So there are allegedly some people who say they remember him saying specifically, I have somewhere between $200,000 to $300,000 in cash left. What do the feds do with that information? What do they do with interviewing or getting any more -- extrapolating more information from these witnesses or people?

COPUS: Well, what you do is you interview those witnesses, and then you start putting subpoenas out. You want to find every bank account, every business, every associate that he has. Are you holding money for this guy? And if so, we want to put our hands back on it. We've got a bunch of folks back here that need this money.

WHITFIELD: So what if there are some offshore banks -- likely, there are -- that he may have used to store, handle some of his money? What kind of allegiance do these offshore banks have to the U.S. to cooperate, to hand over funds, et cetera, participate in the investigation?

COPUS: Well -- right. They may not have a lot of allegiance based on really two things. Do we have a subpoena -- not a subpoena, but do we have a treaty? And if we do, then, yes, we'll have an opportunity to look at that. And the second thing, if we can show to those governments this money was illegally obtained, then we have a chance of getting that money back. It'll take years.

WHITFIELD: How difficult is this going to be to prosecute Madoff?

COPUS: Oh, I think it's going to be horrible. It'll take forever, just like taking a bowl of spaghetti and trying to unravel it. It just will not happen quick and easy.

WHITFIELD: Why is it so difficult?

COPUS: This guy is a past master of hiding money underneath a shell. It's a giant shell game. Where's the pea? In this case, where's the $50 billion?

WHITFIELD: And if the prosecutors are successful in trying to nail down a case and actually convict him, is it in your view that he'd ever serve any time in jail, ever pay a fine? What ultimately could happen, if found guilty?

COPUS: Well, he should go to jail. Me, you, they probably couldn't find a jail with a basement deep enough to put us in. This guy is sitting in a penthouse right now looking down on, quote, "the little people." I doubt seriously he'll do jail time. I think his lawyers will come up with something, from, you know, heart to an ingrown toenail, but he'll have some problem he won't be able to serve time.

WHITFIELD: Where does this case go from here?

COPUS: Well, what's going to happen is that you're not going to stop with this guy. He's not going to give anything up. If I were having to run this case, I'd be working on all of his associates and relatives, squeezing them, What happened to the money, because you know they got some of it.

WHITFIELD: If we know already publicly it's been revealed some of his properties, whether it be abroad or even Stateside -- federal regulators know about that. Those are some of the assets. Is that enough to seize those, sell those, return whatever profits from the selling of those properties to the alleged victims?

COPUS: Well, that's what you'd want to do, but you got to remember he has to be found guilty first, so we have to go through a trial. His lawyers will drag this out as long as they can.

WHITFIELD: All right. Harold Copus, thanks so much, former FBI agent. Appreciate your time and expertise. And happy new year.

COPUS: Thank you. Same to you. WHITFIELD: What a way to begin the new year! I know this is just the tip of the iceberg for this case.

COPUS: It is.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much.

All right, well, today is January 1, as I say, and 2009 may be all downhill from here for 10 well-known companies. That's according to the financial news publisher 24/7 Wall St. It puts 10 firms on death watch -- Chrysler, Sirius XM, AIG, Fannie Mae, Rite-Aid, "The New York Times," Nortel, Pier 1, Charter Communications and the home building firm Hovnanian. They are all predicted to be gone by this time next year. The Wall Street Web site says the brand names might still be around, but the companies behind them will be gone or radically different.

All right, tipping the scales, an often painful post-holiday ritual for all of us, but you're not going to hear the usual diet do's and don'ts on this newscast. We'll tell you five small steps that you really can live by.

And hey, Russia, where's the love? A bizarre theory about the United States breaking apart falls on eager ears. Matthew Chance reports next hour in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A surprise arrival at Boston's Logan airport. A baby girl was born on a flight from Amsterdam. Two doctors on board helped with the delivery. Coincidentally, they were there. Both mother and baby are said to be doing just great. The baby was born in Canadian airspace, so to get through Customs, she was considered a Canadian citizen.

All right, taking small steps to reach your new year's goals. Losing weight may be easier than you think, actually. CNN senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has a plan for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: With the new year upon us, many of you might have new year's resolutions to lose weight. You might have big plans to get fit, but many experts say you should actually have small plans, that small changes in your diet could actually be changes that you can keep. The big plans might go away by February or March or April, but small changes you might actually be able to stick to.

So what can small changes get you? They won't get you dramatic weight loss, but what they can do is that they can keep you from putting on the pound or two per year that many of us put on as we age. So to prevent that weight gain as you get older, if you can just change your diet so that you're taking in 100 fewer calories than you were before, you can really see some results. So let's take a look at what that means. For example, if you like lattes, get a skim milk matte instead of a whole milk latte. That'll save you 100 calories. You can also walk 20 minutes. For most people, that'll burn around 100 calories. And also, when you sit down for that bowl of ice cream, instead you can have a popsicle. That'll save you nearly 100 calories.

For other ideas for small changes that can make a big difference, go to CNNhealth.com. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, a great way to make easy cash, Washington home owners renting out for the inauguration, but some residents now have to down size their dream.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A week after a cruise ship passenger disappeared, a cruise ship employee is now missing at sea. The Carnival Sensation returned to port this morning hours after the crew saw the man go overboard. According to those witnesses, this was a clear accident, not a deliberate jump. Coast Guard boats and aircraft immediately responded to the scene about 20 miles off Vero Beach, Florida. Their search continues this afternoon.

All right, it sounded good at the time, residents in the nation's capital renting out their homes for the inauguration for big money. But for many people, these best laid plans are now being down sized just a bit. Here now is CNN's Samantha Hayes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAMANTHA HAYES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An historic inauguration, plus unprecedented crowds predicted by the mayor of D.C. himself...

MAYOR ADRIAN FENTY (D), WASHINGTON, D.C.: We should be prepared as a city for, you know, in the range of three million to five million.

HAYES: ... equalled a golden opportunity for those living in and around the nation's capital.

KARA SNESKO, RENTING HOME FOR INAUGURATION: Initially, we thought we could get $1,500 a night, based on all the other people on Capitol Hill and what they were asking and how many bedrooms.

HAYES (on camera): And?

SNESKO: And no takers.

(LAUGHTER)

SNESKO: No takers. HAYES (voice-over): So to finally seal the deal, she worked through Inauguralhomes.com, a Web site started by Andre Butters to bring owners and renters together.

ANDRE BUTTERS, CREATOR, INAUGURALHOMES.COM: I think a lot of people will be disappointed unless they price their property appropriately. We're seeing things as high as $5,000 to $6,000 a night. I don't believe that there's a market for that.

HAYES: Real estate agent Hill Slowinski has seen even higher than that, $65,000 a week. But most of the homes he has listed, 165 total, are going for much less, and they aren't being rented.

HILL SLOWINSKI, REAL ESTATE AGENT: We have one completed transaction. And by completed transaction, it's not just a contract. We require payment up front in full. I think people are waiting to see what happens after the holidays, when activity at home is dying down, whether or not they're really interested in doing something. And also, we have to prepare our owners for things that they may not have foreseen when they go into a transaction like this.

HAYES: And if they can make a deal, some property owners are happy to start off the new year with a little extra cash, even if it's less than expected. Kara Snesko settled for $600 a night.

SNESKO: Yes, I feel good about it. You know, I hope that they enjoy our house as much as we do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Well, the D.C. tourism office says there are still hotel rooms available for the inauguration, about 500 in the city for an average of $800 a night.

A quick update now on Alaska governor Sarah Palin. She says her family is over the moon excited about the birth of her new grandson last Saturday. Palin also used her first public statements to clarify something about the future son-in-law's education status. She says Levi Johnston, the baby's father, is taking high school correspondence courses. Palin says some media reports that Johnston is a high school dropout are simply incorrect. The baby's mother is Sarah Palin's 18- year-old daughter, Bristol.

A little boy born without arms or legs now all grown up, and wait until you see what he has accomplished. He'll tell you his story in the NEWSROOM.

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WHITFIELD: All right, if you needed some inspiration to get in shape in 2009, well, we have found it for you. Earlier this week, our Kyra Phillips talked with a man who has overcome some pretty tough obstacles.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: So have you made your new year's resolution, maybe a vow to shed some extra pounds, or have you already come up with all the excuses to stay out of the gym?

Well, my next guest is not going to accept any of your lame excuses. Kyle Maynard was actually born a congenital amputee, yet he can lift 400 pounds. He played football. He was on the high school wrestling team. He even types 50 words a minute. He's written a best-selling book -- it's won national awards -- and is now opening opened his own gym called, of course, No Excuses Athletics. Kyle joins me now live to give us a little new year's inspiration.

Great to have you with us.

KYLE MAYNARD, FOUNDER, NO EXCUSES ATHLETICS: I appreciate it. Thank you for the opportunity.

PHILLIPS: OK, so how young were you when your dad said, OK, we're going to start building your muscles, we're not going to, you know, look at you any differently, and he sort of actually strapped weights to your arms, right?

MAYNARD: He brought me in a weight room when I was in 6th grade. I was 11 years old, going in to play football. And I had ropes around my arms originally and then ended up getting stronger and stronger. By the time I was in high school, I broke the ropes and got chains after that and got stronger. So it was actually two-and-a-half pounds that I used to start lifting with. And what I try to teach people is, is that there's always a place to start because I was always kind of self-conscious with people looking at me in the weight room...

PHILLIPS: Right.

MAYNARD: ... with two-and-a-half pounds on my arms. I didn't know what they thought about it. And then all of a sudden, like you said, being able to lift over 400 pounds by the time I was 19 years old, you know...

PHILLIPS: OK, interesting. You were self-conscious about a little weight but not about your condition.

MAYNARD: No, that's kind of -- my parents...

PHILLIPS: Yes.

MAYNARD: ... had raised me to always believe that I was normal, and you know, that I didn't have any type of disability. And that's my, you know, career and passion has been in motivational speaking. When I speak, I try to teach people that, you know, really, we're all disabled in some way or another. We all make excuses.

PHILLIPS: Yes.

MAYNARD: It's just about, you know, our perspective and how we look at those things, you know, and how we can overcome them that really matters, you know? PHILLIPS: And from what I understand, back when you were wrestling, that you were losing, like, every match, right?

MAYNARD: Right.

PHILLIPS: And then you thought, OK, forget this, I got to figure out a different technique. And then you started winning all your matches. Tell me what happened.

MAYNARD: It was just a turnaround in confidence. When I was in 6th grade, I lost every match I competed in. And my goal was to not be pinned, and I wasn't, so I stuck with it. My dad convinced me to come out, Mom and Dad together. In 7th grade, came out and the same thing happened again. After (INAUDIBLE) season, I hadn't won a match. And it got until about halfway through that year where I finally realized it was just the fear that was built up inside me that I had to let go.

PHILLIPS: How do the kids respond to you, whether it's your classmates or kids you're speaking to now? You know, what do they come up and ask you? What's, like, the most common question?

MAYNARD: You know, I think probably the most common question that I get from any group is just, you know, if I had the opportunity to go, and you know, meet God and change the way that I was made, would I? And I think the honest answer is no.

PHILLIPS: Really?

MAYNARD: I feel like I've been blessed, you know, to be able to go impact people that I have (ph). After I released my book, "No Excuses," you know, there were people e-mailing me, telling me that the story stopped them from committing suicide.

PHILLIPS: Wow.

MAYNARD: You know, and so I kind of want to go and have the same impact that I have had with the gym now, you know, that I've been led to with, you know, the speaking in the past.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Wow. Pretty extraordinary. So if you want to know more about Kyle's story, he has written that book, perfectly titled "No Excuses." Pick it up.

And here's at least one place where everything is coming up roses, Pasadena, California. That's where the annual Tournament of Roses parade has wrapped up, and now all eyes turn to this afternoon's Rose Bowl. Thousands of people turned out, and there were plenty of floats, of course, going down Colorado Boulevard there. That's partly because the companies that paid for them had to commit their money more than a year ago. Cloris Leachman was this year's grand marshal, and you may have seen her recently on "Dancing With the Stars."

Right now, the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM begins.