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Chances for Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Seem Slim; Senate Showdown Slated Over Illinois Seat; Man with Cerebral Palsy Left on School Bus Over New Year's; Muslim Family Booted from Flight
Aired January 02, 2009 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Leaving you in the capable hands of an excellent driver. CNN NEWSROOM continues right now...
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, HOST: Can you drive?
HARRIS: ... with Fredricka Whitfield.
WHITFIELD: OK. Thanks very much, Tony.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD (voice-over): New explosions in Gaza. Explosive protests worldwide. Another day of Israeli air attacks. Could a ground assault be far off?
ATIF IRFAN, ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, RESIDENT: The airline told us that we can't fly their airline. That, basically, what they're saying to us is that they wouldn't book us on any flights.
WHITFIELD: Grounded. An entire Muslim family booted off a flight. They were talking about safety, but fellow passengers sensed danger.
Floss more, live more. Taking care of your teeth can prolong your life, and that's not all. We'll show you six simple ways to add ten years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Hello everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. Let's get straight to it.
Smoke in the air, flames and chaos in the streets. Israel's aerial assault on Hamas militants in Gaza is only heating up in its seventh day now.
One of the latest sites hit, a fuel facility in northern Gaza. Palestinian sources say more than 420 people have been killed in Gaza over the past seven days, and 2,200 wounded. The Israelis say four people have been killed by militant rocket fire and nearly 60 wounded.
Israel says an air strike today struck the central Gaza home of a Hamas military leader, who allegedly helped develop rockets to shoot at southern Israeli towns. He is one of several senior Hamas members Israel has targeted.
Meantime, Israeli troops and tanks are poised on the Gaza border for a possible ground attack. And Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is heading to New York today to address the U.N. Security Council, which is calling for an immediate ceasefire. But the chances for a ceasefire any time soon appears to be very slim.
Our Ben Wedeman is near the Gaza-Israeli border right now -- Ben.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fredricka. Talking about these air strikes against senior leaders of Hamas, one of those strikes happened in Khan Yunis, which is at the southern end of the Gaza Strip, but one of the consequences of that attack was that there were three boys who were playing in an adjacent empty lot. They were killed, the latest additions to this mounting death toll in Gaza.
Now, just a little while ago, I spoke to somebody in Gaza itself, who told me that this -- this new tactic of striking and hitting Hamas leaders has people very worried, because you have to keep in mind, there are many Hamas leaders who live all over Gaza.
Anybody who lives in the general neighborhood now that has these images that we saw yesterday, for instance, when Nizzar Rayyan, the senior Hamas leader, was hit. His house completely destroyed, in addition to many of the houses around it. So the worry is that, if you live anywhere near these people, that you could also fall victim to the attacks.
Now, in addition to that, there was this massive hit on a fuel depot storage facility in Bedlahir (ph), which is at the northern end of the Gaza Strip, you'll recall yesterday that area came under intense bombardment by Israeli airplanes. We were just on the other side of the border, witnessing that.
Now, as far as rockets being fired from Gaza into Israel, the number is somewhat down today. Our latest tally is 32 rockets fired from Gaza. That compared to an average of about 70 over the previous days of the Israeli offensive.
And of course, everybody is wondering, asking when or even if Israel is going to launch this ground offensive into Gaza. Many people well aware that Hamas has been preparing for exactly this kind of eventuality for quite some time. The Israeli army worried that Hamas has placed booby traps, that it's got tunnel -- a tunnel system. And we've heard from Hamas itself that they are well prepared, they say, for an Israeli ground offensive -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And so, Ben, there was a huge concern, also, that there may be violence in Jerusalem related to Muslim prayer services. What, if anything, happened?
WEDEMAN: Well, that turned out to be something of an over -- well, expectations were much higher than what actually happened. We were on a building overlooking the old city and waiting for some sort of violence, some sort of disturbances, but, in fact, there were very few. We did hear stun grenades and tear gas being fired at the Al-Aqsa mosque where those prayers take place, but those clashes were fairly small. The biggest clashes actually took place north of Jerusalem at the Kalandia (ph) checkpoint, which is the border, essentially, effective border between Jerusalem and the Palestinian-controlled areas north of the city, but it wasn't the day of rage that Hamas was hoping for -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much. Ben Wedeman there, right there on the border. Appreciate it.
Well, we heard earlier today from U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is putting much of the blame for the Middle-East fighting on Hamas. After meeting with President Bush at the White House, the secretary didn't mince words.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: Hamas has held the people of Gaza hostage ever since their illegal coup against the forces of President Mahmoud Abbas, the legitimate president of the Palestinian people.
The Hamas has used Gaza as a launching pad for rockets against Israeli cities, and has contributed deeply to a very bad daily life for the Palestinian people in Gaza and to a humanitarian situation that we have all been trying to address, but frankly, Hamas has made it very difficult for the people of Gaza to have a reasonable life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Rice says she has no plans currently to head to the Middle East, but she says the U.S. is seeking a durable and sustainable ceasefire, one that won't simply reestablish the status quo.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you hear me, Mr. Bush? If your mother and father are the victims...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Angry questions and angry protests across the world sparked by the Israeli offensive in Gaza. This in Jakarta, Indonesia, where some 5,000 protesters hit the streets.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CHANTING)
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WHITFIELD: Large and loud protests are also taking place across the Arab world, including Kabul, Afghanistan. Protesters also came out in Jordan, Iran and India. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(PRAYING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And in Sydney, Australia today, protesters staged a symbolic funeral procession for those killed in Gaza. Plus, there's a large rally planned tomorrow in London's Trafalgar Square, and rallies have taken place across the U.S., as well.
This is a quickly developing story, and CNN is covering it from all angles. You're seeing our international desk right now, working diligently to bring us the very latest news from the Middle East. We're on the story, watching all kinds of feeds that are coming in around the clock.
So he's been appointed by the governor, and he's already calling himself the junior senator from Illinois, but Democratic leaders are planning to keep Roland Burris off the Senate floor next week when the new Congress convenes.
So what happens if Burris tries to enter the Senate chamber? On what grounds will the Senate not let him in? Let's ask our congressional correspondent, Brianna Keilar, who is in Chicago.
Tuesday's the big day. He says he is a senator. He plans to show up, but what could happen?
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, according to Senate Democratic leaders, and aides who tell us about their thinking, it really could come down, Fredricka, to some incomplete paperwork.
I think one of the best ways you can think about this, especially you as a parent, you know, you have a 4-year-old son. Here in a couple of years, when he's in school, and let's say he wants to go on a field trip. He needs a permission slip. And that permission slip needs to be signed by both of his parents.
Well, if he's missing a signature, he doesn't get to go on the field trip. That's what Senate Democratic leaders see this, because they say, according to an aide familiar with their thinking, Senate rules say that a certificate of appointment, which is what Roland Burris should be showing up with to Congress, that it should be certified, signed by the governor of Illinois, but also by the secretary of state here in Illinois, Jesse White, and White has refused to sign it. So basically, according to this aide, Senate Democratic leaders say, "No signature; we're not letting him in."
Now, some constitutional law experts that we've spoken with have said, actually, they really should seat Burris, but senior Democratic leaders say that they're not going to, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: So what would be the grounds that the Secretary White would say, "I'm not going to sign it, and I'm maintaining that position"? Even though the governor has not been convicted and, by all accounts, many legal experts and political experts say that he had a legal right to do so, to make this appointment?
KEILAR: Well, it's the same one that Senate Democrats are saying that they believe this whole process is tainted, because Governor Blagojevich here in Illinois has been indicted.
Now, at the same time Burris has challenged that, as you know, Fredricka, in the courts here in Illinois, trying to force White's hand and making him sign this.
Even if his hand is forced and he does sign this, Senate Democratic leaders, according to this aide that I've been speaking with, say that they'll delay it further, that they're still not going to seat Burris. They'll launch an investigation into his appointment, and so they'll still delay it.
WHITFIELD: OK. And when we say forced, we mean forced by the courts?
KEILAR: Yes. If the secretary of state here in Illinois is forced by a court to actually certify that certificate.
WHITFIELD: OK. Brianna Keilar in Chicago. Thanks so much. And we're going to be talking to you again about the next step in this process, as well. Thanks so much.
All right. Well, nothing but "no comments" from the two main players, but there is a report from New York today that Governor David Paterson will likely choose Caroline Kennedy to fill New York's open Senate seat. The Associated Press says Paterson is leaning towards Kennedy to fill this seat, formerly held by Hillary Clinton.
We contacted spokespeople for both the governor and Caroline Kennedy. No comment from either.
The one Senate election still up in the air is close to being resolved. That is, if there is no court challenge. Today's the day Minnesota counties much finish sorting absentee ballots and report their results to the secretary of state there. Democrat Al Franken leads incumbent Republican Norm Coleman by 49 votes. Those absentee ballots, hundreds of them, will be counted tomorrow.
And Congressman Rahm Emanuel is expected to give up his House seat today. Emanuel has already started working at Barack Obama's chief of staff. The Illinois Democrat was just re-elected to his fourth term in the House. Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has five days to announce his plans for a special election to fill that vacant seat.
All right. Northern Oregon just can't take much more from Mother Nature in Oregon. Look at this. Heavy rain combined with melting snow causing all kinds of flooding problems in the Portland area.
Rivers are coming out of their banks, flooding roads, forcing some evacuations. And take a look at the Willamette River just outside Portland. Some serious rapids there, and river debris is piling up. And then there are the mudslides. Scenes like this in Tillamook, closer to coast, have closed so many roads there. And one mudslide, actually, hit a house and injured five people.
The Pacific Northwest is looking at trouble both high and low. Avalanche issues up above and flooding dangers below. Chad Myers is keeping an eye on all of it. Boy, what a mess. On both fronts.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: A foot and a half to two feet of snow in some of the mountains north of Sand Point and then all the way up to about the northern sections of Minnesota. Six to eight inches of snow. They like it, because they go out and play in it. That's why they live there.
WHITFIELD: They live and they endure.
MYERS: You know what? I have never met more hearty people that enjoy snow...
WHITFIELD: "Hearty" is the best word.
MYERS: ... as the people in Minnesota. They go, "Bring it on. Let's go play."
WHITFIELD: They like it. More power to them!
MYERS: That's right.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks a lot, Chad.
MYERS: Sure.
WHITFIELD: OK. We all do it: thinking aloud. Well, sometimes it's a bad idea, especially if you're on an airplane.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IRFAN: We generally like to sit in the middle of the plane, because I've always been told it's the safest place to sit. And my sister-in-law mentioned maybe that it's actually the back of the plane. So we were discussing this, where the safest place to sit in an airplane is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right. Seems innocent enough. Well, it was all downhill from there. Speaking aloud gets a whole family actually tossed off the jet, but they think their appearance spoke louder than their words, actually.
While people were celebrating the new year, he was strapped in a bus seat and shivering. We'll tell you about a man with cerebral palsy, left in the cold for 19 hours
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. It's not the Fountain of Youth, but our Dr. Sanjay Gupta will share some simple lifestyle changes that can add years to your life.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. A 22-year-old New York man with cerebral palsy spent a frigid New Year's Eve night stuck on a school bus. Well, apparently, the man was not found until the morning.
So how could something like this actually happen? Let's bring in CNN's Randi Kaye in New York -- Randi.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there, Fredricka.
While thousands were out celebrating the beginning of the new year in Times Square, one New York City family spent a sleepless night wondering if their missing son was a live.
Twenty-two-year-old Edwin Rivera has cerebral palsy and the mental capacity of a 2-year-old. He should have been home with his family New Year's Eve, but instead, he was left strapped to his seat on a bus for more than 19 hours in freezing temperatures.
His family feared the worst until he was finally found in a bus depot miles from his home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LINDA RIVERA, SISTER: He was very cold. His fingertips were blue. His feet were blue. His nose was just -- it was very, very pale. He was shivering.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Rivera attends a special-needs school in downtown Manhattan, and normally his bus drops him off at his home in East Harlem. He did board the bus on Wednesday. But when he didn't come home, his family walked to the local police precinct and reported him missing at about 9:30 p.m. That was five hours after he should have been home.
Police missed Rivera in their initial search of the bus depot because there are two areas, actually, where the buses are parked. It is only when they went back a second time the following day that they found him.
Now, the bus attendant, 51-year-old Linda Hockaday, was arrested last night, charged with reckless endangerment. The complaint filed by the D.A.'s office says that Hockaday actually knew. She knew Rivera was on the bus, but didn't want to go back and drop him off at his home or alert the driver, because it would make her late for an appointment.
But his family is furious, and they want some answers. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CRISTINA RIVERA, SISTER: Negligence, and stupidity, and just because he is the way he is doesn't mean that he's less of a person. He just needs extra help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: We did reach out to Edwin Rivera's school and the privately-owned bus company, and neither, Fredricka, has returned our calls.
WHITFIELD: Oh, this is terrible. So how is Edwin doing after all this?
KAYE: Well, he's actually in stable condition after being treated for hypothermia and dehydration at a local hospital. But there are still so many questions left unanswered in such a disturbing story.
In fact, we checked with the bus attendant, being charged now with reckless endangerment. We double checked and have confirmed that she could get two to seven years in prison.
But what's interesting is the driver in this case has not been charged.
WHITFIELD: Goodness. All right. Something tells me we're far off from a resolution on this. Randi Kaye, thanks so much in New York.
All right. Well, this Muslim family now clear to fly on AirTran Airways, but you have to think they'll pass on that after the airline showed them the cabin door. They think they're victims of paranoia. The airline says it did exactly what it was supposed to do.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The siren's just gone off. Everyone's getting out of their cars, getting down in the room, waiting to see what happens.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And you'll see what, too, as we hit the pavement with our correspondents in the Middle East. Chaos along the Israeli-Gaza border from a street-level view.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Well, the airline says it was just following the rules, but the Muslim family kicked off a domestic flight says it was a sad ordeal. Rebecca Cooper from affiliate WJLA explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) REBECCA COOPER, WJLA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Alexandria lawyer Atif Irfan and his brother, a Virginia anesthesiologist, were seated on an AirTran flight to Orlando with their wives, children, family and a friend.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to go to Disneyland, and I want to go swimming. And I want to go on an airboat.
COOPER: But then all the plane's 104 passengers were ordered off after passengers reported to air marshals hearing the Irfans discuss flight safety.
IRFAN: We generally like to sit in the middle of the plane, because I've always been told it's the safest place to sit. And my sister-in-law had mentioned maybe that it's actually the back of the plane. So we were discussing this, where the safest place to sit in an airplane is.
COOPER: But an AirTran officials says they were discussing what would happen if the plane blew up. After two hours, once all the flight's luggage passed reinspection, the flight and its passengers took off, but the Irfans were not allowed back on.
These Indian-American brothers, born in Detroit and now raising their Muslim families here in Virginia, say they feel this wouldn't have happened if it weren't for their Muslim appearance.
IRFAN: Absolutely not. I mean, we're not going to stand there in the airplane and say, "Oh, you know, bomb this, terrorist that, threat this." I mean, we're smarter than that. We don't do those kinds of things. We know better than that. So I think that, to a certain extent, you know, people listen to whatever words we have and, unfortunately, hear what they want to hear.
COOPER: The families point out the basis tenet of the Muslim faith is to live in peace, but these Americans, whose rode in their high-school homecoming parade, studied at the University of Virginia, work at the Library of Congress, and helped deliver New Year's babies at a Venice hospital, say it's been harder since 9/11, with sometimes subtle and sometimes not-so-subtle signs of racism against Muslims.
Instead of giving up their faith, they say they embrace it all the more.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And that was Rebecca Cooper reporting from Washington, affiliate WJLA.
AirTran Airways released this statement about that incident: "AirTran Airways complied with all TSA, law enforcement, and homeland security directives and had no discretion in the matter. The nine passengers involved were all offered full refunds and may fly with AirTran Airways again," end quote.
All right. A baby girl in Memphis is doing just fine after a stray bullet came through the ceiling and landed right in her diaper. It happened at a midnight church service on New Year's Eve. Churchgoers say they heard a popping sound. Jewell Anderson says her 7-month-old baby started screaming. Well, she took the baby to the bathroom to see what's was wrong, and this is what happened next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEWELL ANDERSON, MOTHER: When I saw that bullet, all I could do is just scream.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Wow. Church members say they believe the shot was fired by a New Year's Eve reveler in a nearby neighborhood. Thankfully, the baby was not hurt.
Executive compensation. If golden parachutes for fired corporate executives make you mad, you're not going to believe who often pays the taxes on their fat executive compensation packages.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Twenty-nine minutes after the hour. Here are some of the stories we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Israel air assaults in Gaza remain intense. Targets struck today include a fuel facility and the home of a Hamas military leader. Israeli troops remain poised for a possible ground attack.
And rough weather in the northwestern portion of this country. Heavy snow is making life very difficult in Washington state, closing roads and highways across that state.
Next door in Oregon, the problem is mud, wind and rain. Mudslides have damaged houses, forced evacuations and closed the roads. No serious injuries have been reported.
And a 22-year-old special needs student spent a frigid New Year's Eve night stuck on a New York school bus. He is been treated for hyperthermia and dehydration. The bus attendant who was responsible for looking after him has been charged with reckless endangerment.
All right. Well, back to the ever-growing crisis in the Middle East. Israeli warplanes are again targeting senior Hamas leaders today. But that's not stopping Hamas militants from targeting Israel. CNN's Nic Robertson is near the Israeli/Gaza border where he got a close, perhaps too close, view of the chaos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): A huge crater where only minutes earlier the house of top Hamas leader Nizar Rayyan once stood. Like the house, Rayyan is gone. The first upper-echelon Hamas leader confirmed killed in the past six days of Israeli attacks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
ROBERTSON: Less than 24 hours earlier, he'd been on the Hamas TV channel telling Palestinians they will win the fight against Israel and kill and imprison their men. According to Israel's defense forces, Rayyan's house, used to store weapons. According to Hamas, some of Rayyan's family also killed.
Hours later, another Hamas leader the target. Unclear if he survived. Gaza's parliament also hit. And in the city's hospitals, children rushed in for urgent treatment, caught in the strike Israel says target Hamas leaders' infrastructure and resupply tunnels in the battle to stop them firing missiles into Israel. Israeli officials won't specify how effective their attacks are.
HAIM RAMON, VICE PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL: We are urging severely Hamas on all those fields.
ROBERTSON (on camera): How much of their infrastructure has been destroyed? How many of those tunnels have been destroyed?
RAMON: Substantially. I'm not going into detail, but substantially.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Driving around Ashkelon in Israel, six miles from Gaza, we are learning firsthand Hamas is far from defeated.
(on camera) The siren's just gone off. Everyone's getting out of their cars, getting down in the road, waiting to see what happens. That was the explosion. We just heard one explosion going off. I think it came from that direction over there.
(voice-over) A few minutes later, another rocket is detected.
(on camera) Well, that's another siren going off. That's another siren just going off. We're getting down behind the car again. All the cars are stopping at the moment. I did hear a boom. It came from that direction over there.
(voice-over) At the town's hospital, emergency room staff wait for casualties, anxiously watching the television for news of rocket attacks. None arrived while we there.
Outside of Israel, international pressure is mounting for both sides to reach a ceasefire and end the suffering. In Paris, Israel's foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, met the French president, discussed what it would take.
TZIPI LIVNI, FOREIGN MINISTER OF ISRAEL: In order to stop it completely, there's the ability and the willingness, or the ability and the understanding of Hamas that enough is enough.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): But neither side seems to have had enough yet, with just more missiles on Gaza.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And we're right by the --
ROBERTSON: Is that the siren?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the siren.
ROBERTSON: And in Ashkelon, yet more rockets.
ROBERTSON (on camera): That's a siren going off again. I'm beginning to lose count of how many times I've heard the sirens going off. OK, the siren stopped now. We just wait, maybe 20 seconds or so.
But having just come from where we've been a few miles away where a missile literally went over our heads and landed close by -- OK, there was a thump. There's the bang. There's the bang. It's down there. I'm just very wary, that's all.
Nic Robertson, CNN, Ashkelon, Israel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Well, obviously, the already shaky Middle East peace process just got a whole lot shakier with all of this. The U.N.'s top official in the region is Robert Serry. He is a special envoy for the Middle East peace process, and he joins us now from Jerusalem.
Good to see you. You've been in this position for about a year now. What's your best guess on how in the world this could be resolved?
ROBERT SERRY, U.N. ENVOY: Well, first of all, it must stop. We are now in the seventh day of almost uninterrupted Israeli aerial bombardments. They're going into the new year.
At the same time, we have seen Hamas rockets even reaching deeper into Israel than before, with a range of some 40 kilometers now. I think my secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, has been one of the first from the outset to call for an end of this violence and for a ceasefire that must be respected in full.
A few days ago, the security council again was seized with the matter, and the secretary-general again has called for this to happen. He also called for a meeting of the quartet. It's been meeting in a telephone conference, and it looks now that Arab ministers will be heading this weekend to New York for further consultations in New York about a resolution. In fact, the secretary-general --
WHITFIELD: What's a realistic hope out of a meeting that could take place this weekend involving the Arab leaders?
SERRY: Well, the Arab leaders have decided in Cairo that they will come to New York and request action by the security council. The secretary-general has also asked me to join him. So, I will be actually heading in your direction.
I am personally convinced that this must indeed stop, and that the security council and the U.N. can play an important role in this conflict. But, of course, it needs also the parties to end this conflict. It is very clear what Hamas must do. In fact, the population of Gaza, as the secretary-general said in his address to the security council, is actually caught in between this utter irresponsibility of Hamas to continue the rocket fire, and also the excessive nature of the Israeli air bombardments.
WHITFIELD: And there always seems to be expectations that the U.N. could do something, just as there are expectations that the U.S. would be directly involved. The secretary of state came out today. She talked about imploring both sides to respect some sort of ceasefire.
Have you reached out directly to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice or perhaps the secretary-designate, Hillary Clinton, to get a feel for what kind of decisions (ph) the U.S. would make?
SERRY: Both me myself and of course the secretary-general have been in contact with both leaders and of course also with Secretary Rice. I already said earlier that it was at our initiative that we had a conference call a few days ago of the quartet. We are in constant contact with each other.
What we need now is first of all a cessation of hostilities. But that will not be enough. We also cannot go back to the status quo ante, to the previous situation. That means that once there is an end to hostilities, we then have also to work on arrangements which will make sure that this ceasefire will be respected in full.
I think, then, also about an international monitoring mechanism, maybe. We didn't have that with the first of the year. We have also to make sure that the crossings will be reopened, and will be then reopened for an uninterrupted and continuous flow of the many emergency needs in Gaza at the moment.
WHITFIELD: All seemingly --
SERRY: Because I can tell you one thing, the situation is very dire.
WHITFIELD: Yes, and all the more why this seems like very tall orders in which to make, given the dire situations right now. Robert Serry, thanks so much, with the U.N., joining us from Jerusalem. And hopefully we'll get a chance to talk with you as you make your way to New York this weekend for those meetings as well for a little debriefing on how that went. Thanks so much.
All right, 2008, now in the books as one of the worst years in Wall Street history. And while the new year typically brings with it renewed hope, most investors remain pretty guarded. Stephanie Elam is at the New York Stock Exchange with more on the sentiment from many of us.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Oh, that's so true, Fred. So many people feel that way, especially about 2008 finally being over. And so, investors say that was a brutal year, but it's time for us to look at '09. But many are still feeling some combination of anger and confusion. The Dow lost more than a third of its value last year, and the other major indices fared even worse. Although many people are certainly hoping for a turnaround, if not everyone, "The Wall Street Journal" points out that most of them are reluctant to actually bet on one.
With forecasts that job losses will continue to mount and corporate earnings will continue to fall, many investors aren't quite ready to follow that "it's a great time to buy" tip. That hesitation towards stocks explains why demand for bonds is surging. U.S. treasury bonds are generally seen as the world's safest investment, and investors have been parking their money there, even though returns are at or near record lows.
Now, for what it's worth, stocks are kicking off this year with a bang. Let's take a look at the numbers right now. The Dow Jones Industrials up 193 points at 8970. Nasdaq went up by 39 at 1616. So, that means all three of the major indices are actually on the upside by more than 2 percent.
Now, these gains come despite another worrisome economic report. The latest reading on manufacturing fell in December to a 28-year low, a level that indicates a severe recession. And those numbers were also worse than expected, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. So, should investors have a little bit more faith, given -- after what happened last year. The market's due to balance itself out eventually, maybe?
ELAM: Yes, well, you know, that would be normal logic. But, you know, there's really no way to predict how these things are going to happen. Historically, there's no pattern. So, after a down year, it doesn't necessarily mean the next year is going to be up.
Now, one of the few years that was worse for the Dow than 2008 was 1931, during the throes of the Depression, when the blue chips lost more than half of their value. However, the next year, 1932, they fell another 20 percent and didn't recover until the year after that, which I would point out that's when Roosevelt took office. And then you had the New Deal, which was a whole bunch of economic stimulus plans that helped out in 1933.
So there's really no way of saying for sure when stocks will make a comeback. We're certainly hoping it will be sooner rather than later, but this is kind of a parallel universe we're living in now, where we have a new president coming in on such a weak time in the markets, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. Stephanie Elam in New York. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.
All right, well, you already know about those golden parachutes for executives fired after a corporate takeover. Well, now a backlash is growing over a little-known policy that allows them to avoid paying taxes on their severance packages. CNN's Randi Kaye reports. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They are at the top of their game. Rolling in dough. So why are some top executives getting their personal taxes paid for them?
CAROL BOWIE, RISKMETRICS GROUP: The feeling is, gee, these are the highest-paid people at company. Now they're getting a lot of extra perks and benefits and so on. They really ought to be able to pay their own taxes on it.
KAYE: But they're not. Carol Bowie and her team at RiskMetrics Group, which advises shareholders, analyzed compensation from the S&P 500 and found two-thirds of those companies willing to cover millions of dollars in taxes for their top managers' severance packages.
Why? The Tax Reform Act of 1984 imposed a stiff penalty, an additional 20 percent tax, on multimillion-dollar golden parachutes for executives who were fired in a merger or takeover. The companies believe offering to pay this tax helps them attract top talent. But it's the shareholders left holding the bill for executives as they're being shown the door.
BOWIE: Instead of the executive paying the tax on these excessive parachute payments, the companies end up paying it, and which means essentially that shareholders are paying it. So, it's really become, in a way, a tax on shareholders.
KAYE: The penalty tax was design to limit huge severance payments, but it backfired when companies started to cover the taxes so the executives didn't have to. The payment is called a tax gross- up.
BOWIE: The tax gross-ups definitely can exceed the amount of executive salaries. In our study, according to the numbers that we saw, the average gross-up was over $13 million, just for the gross-up alone.
KAYE: When Circuit City's CEO lost his job last year, the company agreed to pay $1.6 million in taxes on his $3.6 million severance package. So, the CEO didn't have to pay any taxes at all. That cost investors a bundle.
KAYE (on camera): Some shareholders are so fed up, they've petitioned companies to do away with the gross-up taxes. Keeping them honest, we wanted to know if any phased them out. Metlife decided to eliminate it, and Colgate has confirmed it has capped severance and done away with the gross-up provision, too. In fact, RiskMetrics says at least ten companies in the S&P 500 have revised their severance agreements.
KAYE (voice-over): But that means the great majority of companies you probably own in your 401(k), hundreds ever companies, still plan to pay millions to executives when they're fired after a takeover. But President-elect Barack Obama has been critical of golden parachutes and executive pay. In 2007, he introduced a bill that would allow shareholders to vote on CEO pay. With Obama in the White House, top executives may need to dust off their checkbooks.
Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. From stress to coffee to the hours you work, How the way you live can actually add or maybe even subtract years from your life.
And new laws for the new year and lighter penalties for getting caught with a joint. That applies in one state. We'll talk about this and other laws in THE NEWSROOM.
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WHITFIELD: All right, listen up. Free antibiotics if you live in some mid-Atlantic states. That's the offer from Giant Food stores. Starting today, you can get a two-week supply of some generic antibiotics for free, with a doctor's prescription, of course. The offer runs through March. Giant has stores in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and Washington, D.C. Other grocery stores like Target -- other companies like Target, Wal-Mart already offer generic prescriptions for as little as $4.
All right, he hasn't recovered -- or rather, discovered the fountain of youth, but our Dr. Sanjay Gupta has been looking at ways to live longer. Today he has a few easy things that you can do that could add years to your life.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Well, as the saying goes, no one wants to live forever, but no one wants to die tomorrow, either. And herein lies part of the problem. So, what are some simple things that can add years to your life, up to ten years to your life?
Well, flossing, as you mentioned. The idea here is that it can add a year to your life because it decreases inflammation in the body. Inflammation can be such a killer because it can actually increase the amount of likelihood of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, all sorts of things that area related to inflammation overall. Simply flossing, add a year.
Thomas Perls, who's an aging expert, gave me a bunch more as well. For example, low-dose aspirin. Check with your doctor on this, but taking that can also decrease inflammation and add two years to your life. Limiting coffee intake. It's tough for us in the news business, but if do you that, add a year to your life as well.
Checking your vital signs, things like blood pressure, heart rate, finding diseases early, that can help, add a year and a half there. Exercising three time a week can add three years, and simply cutting down on the amount of work to 40 to 50 hours, for example, that can add a year and a half as well. You know, this idea that there's a relationship between the amount you work, stress and physical ailments, there's a lot of evidence for that. For example, take a look at this animation. What does stress do to your body? Starting off in the jaw, it can trigger your jaw to tighten. That can cause headaches.
Go down to your heart now. That can affect your nervous system in a way that hinders normal blood pressure, heart rate. If you go down to your digestive system, it can cause things like stomach cramps, nausea, G.I. irritation. Overall, stress has a significant impact on the body and it can cause you to depress your immune system making you more susceptible to infection.
So, I don't know if you can cut down on the number of hours you work, but try and relax a little bit every day. Try and meditate even for 20 minutes a day, if you can find the time.
Look, no one has died of old age in this country since 1951. That's when they took it off the books. It's all these other things that are big killers. You can do something about it today.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Well, the Obamas, they're moving to Washington this weekend. No, not to the White House. We'll tell you where exactly.
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WHITFIELD: All right. From Green Bay, Wisconsin a tale of ice fishing and the one that almost got away. Eight people stranded on huge chunks of ice that were cut loose by a passing barge.
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GERRY HOLBACH, RESCUED FISHERMAN: No, I didn't know it opened up until we were getting ready to quit. We were done fishing, but the current still passed underneath and we started heading toward shore. We saw the open water. I seen it happen before but it was never me on the ice (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Do you feel a little silly now?
HOLBACH: I will when I see myself on television.
CHIEF CURT VANDERTIE, BRUSSELS-UNION-GARDNER FIRE DEPT.: This is probably one of the most complex difficult ice rescues that we have had to perform in quite some time. Whenever you have multiple groups spanning miles of shoreline, that's when you need additional resources. The ice conditions really deteriorated very quickly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Well, that was some scary stuff. Not all the stranded people were fishing. Some were simply joyriding on snowmobiles. Others simply out taking a walk on the ice. All said they were shocked though to look up and see that they were surrounded by open water.
All right. The U.S. Coast Guard has more helicopters and another boat searching the Atlantic Ocean off of Central Florida today.
They are looking for a cruise ship crew member who fell overboard on New Year's Eve. The man fell over a railing when he was taking a picture. The Coast Guard is already covered about 1,500 nautical miles.
President-elect Barack Obama and his family are moving to Washington this weekend. The White House still isn't available of course, but for the time being, they will be staying at one of Washington's A-list hotels. One with a storied past and a great view.
Here is Samantha Hayes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAMANTHA HAYES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He won the most exclusive address in the country, but first President-elect Barack Obama will be staying across the street in a hotel that claims to be the most prestigious.
GARRETT GRAFF, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, WASHINGTONIAN: Hay Adams' motto is actually the only thing overlooked here is the White House.
HAYES: And it's where other presidents have looked for top notch accommodations. President Bill Clinton stayed at the Hay Adams which also happened to be conveniently located near one of his favorite restaurants.
The hotel also has a storied past. It was named for John Hay, assistant to President Lincoln and later secretary of state, and Henry Adams, an acclaimed author and descendent of John Adams and John Quincy Adams. The hotel is thought to be haunted by Henry Adams' wife, Clover.
GRAFF: And it's said that Henry Adams' wife Clover who committed suicide in 1885 still haunts the hotel grounds today, especially and I don't know why this is, in the month of December.
HAYES: The Obamas first choice was the official White House guest quarters called the Blair House, but President Bush says it is booked until the 15th.
GRAFF: There was certainly a lot of whispers when that came out that it was a little bit rude to tell the President-elect that he couldn't move into Blair House early, but on the other hand, there are legitimate needs for that space for the outgoing administration.
HAYES: So for now, the new president will enjoy the spectacular views of the White House from the Hay-Adams as he prepares to see it from a different angle on the inside. HAYES (on-camera): If the Obamas stay in one of the suites at the Hay-Adams the price could range from $2,900 to $5,000 a night. And who is staying at the Blair House? Well, no one is saying for sure, but the house is also booked for receptions and parties by outgoing administration officials and VIPs.
Samantha Hayes, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Well, here is something that you don't see every day, pair after pair of shoes and not a foot in sight.
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WHITFIELD: All right. Any of these shoes look familiar? Are you missing any?
Well, somehow, someone spilled pair after pair of footwear on to the Palmetto Expressway near Miami this morning. No one knows whose shoes these are, but they sure did trip up traffic.
Drivers were told to use the Don Shula Expressway, no kidding. The Shula Expressway to side step the problem.
(LAUGHTER)
