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Richardson Withdraws as Commerce Nominee; Obama Returns to Washington; Israeli Troops in Gaza; Franken to be Declared Winner of Minnesota Recount

Aired January 04, 2009 - 17:00   ET

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

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Richardson goes on to say the investigation will show he has not acted improperly but that it would also force what he calls "an untenable delay" in his confirmation process.
President-elect Obama also is putting out a statement. It says, "Governor Richardson is an outstanding public servant and would have brought to the job of commerce secretary and our economic team great insights accumulated through an extraordinary career in federal and state office. It is a measure of his willingness to put the nation first that he has removed himself as a candidate for the cabinet in order to avoid any delay in filling this important economic post at this critical time."

And, remember, Richardson's endorsement of Obama back during the primaries was a very big deal for the then-junior senator from Illinois. Richardson had served in Bill Clinton's administration. And we saw both Hillary Clinton and Obama lobbying for Richardson's endorsement. It was noteworthy, of course, then, when Richardson threw his weight behind Obama despite his close ties to the Clintons.

Now, the question remains, Fred: Who is going to be Obama's new pick for commerce secretary? Well, Obama did not elaborate today, only saying that this is a decision that will be made quickly.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, we all remember that endorsement. It had a lot of pomp and it was quite celebratory.

KEILAR: Yes.

WHITFIELD: So, this has to be just -- I don't know, a big deflating kind of moment for team Obama. All right, thanks so much, Brianna Keilar. Appreciate it.

All right. Bill Richardson was the first high-profile Latino named to Barack Obama's cabinet. He has a long and very distinguished career in public service. Richardson was re-elected as New Mexico's governor back in 2006. He was energy secretary during the Clinton administration. Richardson was also U.N. ambassador during the Clinton presidency, and he served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 1997.

And after his unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, Richardson endorsed Barack Obama in March, as you heard Brianna describing. All right. Well, one day after thousands of Israeli troops surged into Gaza, they appear to be meeting relatively little resistance there.

Here's what we know right now. Reports say Gaza City is effectively surrounded. Palestinian security sources acknowledge that Israeli troops are in control of parts of northern Gaza. Palestinian medical sources say at least 37 Palestinians have died since the incursion began. Israeli reports one -- Israel rather reports that one Israeli troop member has died.

Along with a ground attack, the air strikes continue, Israeli military leaders say their missiles targeted 45 Hamas locations overnight. And Israel says its offensive is a response to Hamas militants who have been firing rockets into Israel.

The European Union called for a ceasefire today, declaring the Israeli operation is not justified.

CNN correspondents across the Middle East are watching the developments. We begin our coverage with live report from chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour and then Nic Robertson.

Let's begin with you, Christiane.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Fredericka, well, it does continue, and a briefing with the senior Israeli military official today said that their aim is to stop the Hamas rocket fire, and not just to kill off its capability, but also its motivation -- in other words -- its will to actually fire rockets in the future into Israel.

I spoke to the Israeli foreign minister, Tzipi Livni. She says that they are fairly pleased with progress so far. They feel that this is going to continue. It's not going to be short, although there is a huge amount of diplomatic activity now trying to find actually some diplomatic way to end this and also have some kind of monitoring to prevent any further smuggling of weapons into Gaza.

I asked Tzipi Livni about a similar encounter which they had, the Israelis had, back in 2006.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR: You have sounded quite upbeat. Other Israeli officials sound quite upbeat. But I remember this same atmosphere at beginning of your war with Hezbollah in 2006. It's widely believed that that war was very badly handled and, in fact, you, yourself, criticized the prime minister for his handling of the Hezbollah war. Why should this one be any different?

TZIPI LIVNI, ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER: Because Israel is a state in which we learn from our own experience. I know that.

AMANPOUR: You say it will help the peace process, but every time Israel goes to war against whether it's Hezbollah or even whether it's against Hamas, it does in fact end up helping those who are the victims or the targets of your war, particularly given how many civilians are being killed by your forces in Gaza.

LIVNI: I can understand that the reality, not only pictures coming from Gaza but the reality, can provoke and can make demonstrations or provoke demonstrations in different parts of the world, especially in the Arab world. I can understand the empathy that the public and the public opinion in different parts towards the Palestinians.

We are not fighting the Palestinians. We are fighting Hamas, a terrorist organization, which controls the Gaza Strip. Now, it is true, and you asked me, there are also civilian casualties. But we're trying to avoid civilian casualties even though it's not easy, while Hamas is targeting our civilians as a target.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR: Then Tzipi Livni went on to say that she regrets the civilian loss of life, but, of course, that is a big player in this drama. Palestinian medical officials have said that more than 500 Palestinians have been killed in the nine-day air and ground assault. And, a Norwegian doctor at the main Gaza hospital, a volunteer there, has told CNN that today 30 percent of the patients who came in were children.

So, this is beginning to have a huge effect and Tzipi Livni admitting that this would start to put an enormous amount of pressure on Israel from around the world, and this is coming as diplomatic activity is intensifying -- Fredericka?

WHITFIELD: All right. Christiane Amanpour -- thanks so much -- from Jerusalem.

Well, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is scheduled to meet in Ramallah tomorrow with French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saab Erakat says Israel is undermining the peace process and strengthening extremists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAAB ERAKAT, CHIEF PALESTINIAN NEGOTIATOR: I think the main job is to view the consequences of this military campaign and military attack against the people, the Gaza. This is undermining the peace process. This is burying the peace process. This is undermining moderates. This is strengthening extremists, not here but also throughout the region.

We don't need more military solutions. It had been proven wrong, and what you need to do now is to begin a process of de-confliction, de- escalation. This begins by, number one, stopping the attacks immediately. Number two, reinstating the ceasefire brokered by Egypt in June. Number three, to deal with the humanitarian catastrophe engulfing 1.5 million people in Gaza.

And then, we can move, you know, in the Security Council resolution, to take care of the passages, the agreements, smuggling and all these issues that are required in the Security Council resolution. We're not undermining any of these things but what I'm saying now, there are three points that are -- that need to be taken care of immediately: Stopping the attacks, the humanitarian suffering in Gaza, and a process of supplying Gaza with the needs of 1.5 million people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is live at the Gaza-Israeli border.

Nic, from where you are, what can you tell us?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the intensity and intensification of the fight really seems to have eased off. And listening to what sounds like a surveillance aircraft flying over the area where the battlefield is right now, we are hearing sporadic gunfire. We have been hearing some very heavy explosions. There was one another one but not the intensity that we heard in the opening hours of the ground incursion.

Israeli defense forces now have effectively cut Gaza in half just south of Gaza City. This will make it much harder for Hamas leaders to communicate and control the territory. It also makes it harder for emergency services to get people to the main hospital in Gaza; people in the south will find it much harder to move to the north.

According to a Norwegian doctor operating at that hospital from the center of Gaza, he said that since the ground offensive had begun, he'd seen a tripling of casualties coming in. He said about 30 percent of those casualties were children.

We've heard from people in Gaza today saying that the bombing is making everyone live in fear. Another woman who has said that although they have food, they've run out of water, they don't have water. But what we can see from here is that electricity has been cut.

Dozens of Hamas to many areas -- dozens of Hamas fighters have been injured. According to Israeli defense sources, three Hamas leaders are killed, and several Israeli soldiers also wounded in the fighting and more than 30 wounded so far, and one of those Israeli soldiers killed when a mortar landed near him.

And we understand from Israeli defense forces Hamas is using tactics similar to that used by insurgents in Iraq. They are using improvised explosive devices planted in the roads that are detonating when the troops move through the area. But according to Israel's deputy defense minister whom I talked to a little while ago, he said operations were going very well, that he was happy with the way the military side of operations was going -- Fredericka?

WHITFIELD: All right. Nic Robertson -- thank you so much -- on the Gaza-Israeli border there. Appreciate it.

Meantime, trying to get the assistance into the many who have been injured, aid organizations are trying to get medical supplies into Gaza, but they are having trouble getting through.

CNN's Karl Penhaul reports from the Egypt-Gaza border.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm here at the Rafah border crossing in Egypt. And right now, there's about 20 trucks and containers piled high with vital medical supplies. They are trying to get through the border crossing here and head on into Gaza to the hospitals that are running out of supplies, to treat the wounded and dying, but it's not getting through. I want to take for a walk around here and show you just how absurd this situation is.

At best, this border crossing is only open for a few hours a day. At worst, it doesn't open at all, and today is one of those days. Over the past few days where medical supplies have arrived, they have been cross-loaded on to Palestinian trucks and taken through the Gaza border. But right now, we're told that there's no authorities on the Gazan side. That's leaving all the responsibility to the Egyptians.

That said, having talked to some of these drivers and some of these aid workers, they say that they have been more than happy to drive right through to Gaza city if need be, to ensure that those supplies get through but the Egyptians are simply saying that they can't -- they can't do that.

Not only do you have these tons of medical supplies, but you also have Palestinians like this man, Ataman Mahmoud (ph), now in his bags here. He's saying that he's taking food and also these gallons of oil and he says he's taking that through to his family because he had a phone call last night. He was in Egypt. But he got the phone call last night saying that his brother's house had been bombed and his own son is now in hospital. He's been wounded to the leg after an Israeli air strike, but not even he can go through.

It's about two hours till nightfall and though the Egyptians say they will allow this truck to go through the first checkpoint, it seems very little prospect of any of this vital medical aid getting into Gaza before dark, and after that, it's anybody's guess as to what the situation will be again tomorrow.

Karl Penhaul, CNN, at the Rafah border crossing, Egypt.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. And this information just in on politics in this country involving that Minnesota Senate race - now, a month and a half after the election, Democrat Al Franken, according to the state election board -- this being confirmed to CNN -- will tomorrow announce that Democrat Al Franken is the winner of that Minnesota race against Republican incumbent Norm Coleman. Again, this is a month and a half or so after that election, but because of so many holdups involving recounts and absentee ballots, now finally, a resolution, according to the state election board.

However, according to our CNN wires reporting: Norm Coleman's campaign manager, Cullen Sheehan, had said that his team believes that the recount process was broken and that, quote, "the numbers being reported will not be accurate or valid." So, it's unclear whether or not Norm Coleman will contest this.

And we understand that New York Senator Chuck Schumer had been very clear in saying that it is crucial that Minnesota's second seat in the Senate not go empty, implying that Franken, now according to the state election board of Minnesota, should be seated when the rest of the Senate convenes to be sworn in on Tuesday. However, we understand that the Republican Governor Pawlenty has yet to sign off on all of this.

But this information just coming in: The Minnesota state election board says that it's Al Franken, the Democrat, who then gets the Senate seat, taking it away from the incumbent Republican Norm Coleman.

All right. Standing with Israel -- back to our top story in a moment. A show of support from New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARNONA WAYLA, JERUSALEM RESIDENT: Israel cannot hold themselves a sitting duck for the Hamas, and I fervently hope that we wipe them out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The prevailing opinion of many Israelis. They say their nation's incursion into Gaza is justified.

Tomorrow could be a contentious day at the United Nations as Arab leaders press for a ceasefire resolution on the conflict in Gaza. The Security Council failed to come up with a new statement last night during an emergency session. Arab leaders were blaming that lack of consensus on the U.S.

CNN's Richard Roth reports from the U.N.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD ROTH, CNN UNITED NATIONS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Many diplomats expected this ground assault by Israel, but that didn't make it easier to reach agreement on how to react. After four hours of closed door debate, no consensus among the 15 countries, not even to call for an immediate ceasefire. A tight-lipped president of the Security Council could only state...

JEAN-MAURICE RIPERT, PRESIDENT, U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL: We had extensive talks and consultation about the current situation on the grounds in Gaza and in the south of Israel. I must tell you that there was no formal agreement.

ROTH: Last weekend, the Security Council did issue a statement to the press calling on both Hamas and Israel to stop fighting. At this emergency session, the United States objected to any kind of U.N. response, blaming Hamas and supporting the Israeli ground war.

ALEJANDRO WOLFF, DEPUTY U.S. AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: Issuing another statement that it will be violated or simply consolidates their ability to maintain rockets and continue smuggling is not an answer and is not going to bring peace.

ROTH: The U.S.' refusal to sign on to a statement just increased Arab frustration as the Israeli ground offensive continues.

RIYAD MANSOUR, PALESTINIAN ENVOY TO THE U.N.: It is the business of the Security Council to deal with the situation threatening international peace and security. We have war. We have aggression against the Palestinian people, and it is a sad and tragic moment when the Security Council cannot address this issue.

ROTH: The Security Council president said there were converging views on concerns of the escalation and the need for a ceasefire, but the good thoughts were not enough to overcome United States' opposition to put these concerns on the official U.N. record.

(on camera): There will be more discussions and debate with visiting Arab ministers in the days ahead, but the fastest solution to this latest Middle East cycle of violence is not likely to be produced here.

Richard Roth, CNN, United Nations.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And right now, New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, is returning from Israel after making a show of solidarity for fellow Jews fighting Hamas militants.

CNN's Susan Candiotti is in our New York studio with more on Bloomberg's trip to the Middle East -- Susan?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI: Hi, Fredericka.

It was Michael Bloomberg's fifth trip to Israel as New York's mayor. He pays his own way, and each time he says he does it, to show solidarity with the Israeli people. The mayor blamed Hamas, not the Palestinian people, he says, for rocket attacks that led to Israel's massive response.

Mr. Bloomberg visited a home in Sderot slammed by a rocket today and no one was hurt. He also visited a couple of hospitals, including one moved underground. The mayor defended Israel from critics who called the aerial and ground attacks pounding Gaza disproportional to Hamas' rockets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, (I) NEW YORK: The concept of proportional response is one of the stupider things I've heard in my life. If it was your family, would you want a proportional response? No, you'd want every single resource to be brought to bear to stop those who are killing innocent people.

A bunch of radar along the border.

(INAUDIBLE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Now, after a briefing, there was a moment of chaos when rocket sirens sounded. No one in the mayor's group was harmed. Bloomberg said New Yorkers stand behind Israel's right to defend itself against terrorism no matter how long it takes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLOOMBERG: We have to stop this carnage. And the ways to stop it is to have Hamas stop trying to kill innocents. And if they won't stop, then the Israelis have no choice but to use their -- all of the resources at their command to protect their citizens. We would do exactly the same thing in New York City.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Now, Mayor Bloomberg made the one-day trip with New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and New York City Congressman Gary Ackerman. The mayor called for a durable, enforceable peace -- Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right. Susan Candiotti in New York, thanks so much.

All right. What's really going on in Gaza? We'll talk with a former adviser to six U.S. secretaries of state.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, CBS/ "FACE THE NATION")

VICE PRESIDENT DICK CHENEY, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: It's important to remember who the enemy is here. The enemy is not the Palestinians from the perspective of the Israelis, it's Hamas. You haven't had a conflict between two U.N. charter member states, you've got U.N. member state being attacked by a terrorist organization, and to go after that terrorist organization, I think they probably decided that an air campaign wasn't enough, that they had to go in on the ground if they were going to take down the sites from which the rockets have been launched against Israel. Again, now, I'm speculating based on maybe informed speculation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Vice President Dick Cheney speaking out on the conflict in Gaza and who is to blame.

So, joining us now with his take on the conflict in Gaza: Aaron David Miller, a scholar at Woodrow Wilson Center and author of the book "The Much Too Promised Land." He's also a former adviser to six U.S. secretaries of state and now joining us from Washington.

We spoke with you last hour, Aaron, and you talked about this conflict being an enormous headache, especially to the President-elect Obama and how he is inheriting a real problem here. So, the U.N. is also criticizing the U.S. at this point. At their emergency meeting last night, they said it's the U.S. that has held up any progress to try and broker some sort of deal, some sort of ceasefire between Israel and Gaza. So, what exactly is at stake here for the U.S.?

AARON DAVID MILLER, WOODROW WILSON CENTER: Well, first of all, let me say that the outgoing administration neither has the will nor the capacity or frankly the incentive right now to try to defuse this. And I'm not sure even if they wanted to they could.

WHITFIELD: Why not? Even in two weeks, the leading diplomat for the U.S., Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, wouldn't be able to use all of her, I guess, connections and the dialogue that she's had over the last four years, at least, in order to help broker something to help the U.S. representative to the U.N. even?

MILLER: No. I mean, I think if the will was there, even under very difficult and complicated circumstances, we might be able to make a run at it, but the issue, Fredericka, is that I don't think the will is there. In July and August of 2006, the administration made it unmistakably clear that they wanted Israel to take a giant whack at Hezbollah, probably well deserved, by the way, and thought that through the use of Israeli military power they could cut Hezbollah down to size and indirectly also undermine the Iranians.

Here, I think, the administration still believes that the Israelis can inflict a political and military defeat on Hamas, and I'm not so sure there is any interest at least right now in seeing this thing defused. The real problem, in 15 days, the 44th president of the United States is going to inherit this 100-year headache, and it's happening at precisely the wrong time.

First of all, he is coming in with a new message presumably, to the Arab and Muslim world, that America will be more balanced. It will be more sensitive to Arab and Muslim needs as well as, I might add, remaining Israel's best friend -- which we will. But at the same time, and it's so ironic, Obama's efforts are going to be shackled by a tremendous tsunami of anger, resentment and bitterness against the United States which will not be fixed, I suspect, by kind or warm words.

WHITFIELD: Sure.

MILLER: The issue here is going to be in the doing. And yet, at a time when he confronts the worst economic and financial crisis since the Great Depression, he's going to be asked to get involved in brokering one of the most complicated problems in the international system.

WHITFIELD: And some of that doing then is going to fall square on the lap of the top diplomat of his choice, who is going to be Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton. Let's talk about her history with Israel, or even her relations with the Middle East. It says that she's had very good relations with Israel and particularly brokered great relations with Jews, when -- nine years ago, when she was running for the U.S. Senate seat, and she and her husband have, I guess, endeared themselves in many ways to the Arab community, to the Middle East as a whole.

So, how can she use that? How does that bode well for her as she now makes her way into that position, if indeed confirmed?

MILLER: It's really the key point. If empowered by the president of the United States to get serious about Arab-Israeli peacemaking, and with enough will and determination, this is one smart, tough lady, and she doesn't have to prove any credentials with respect to her support, deep political and emotional support for the state of Israel.

The real question and the real test for the Obama administration and for the Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton is whether or not she can be tough and fair enough -- smart enough she is -- whether she can be tough and fair enough in an effort to not only help defuse this crisis, because she's going to be in the middle of it.

WHITFIELD: But neither side ever sees things the same. So, it's going to be disputable what's fair.

MILLER: Well, yes and no. I mean, there are a set of needs and requirements which both sides have, and when America has succeeded in playing a role as an effective, credible broker, it's been able to understand the needs and requirements of both sides, and to do what's necessary to find the middle ground, even while being sensitive and supportive of each side. Now (ph), it can be done. There's no question it can be done. It takes an enormous amount of will and a lot of nerve.

WHITFIELD: And time.

MILLER: But that's what secretaries of state are paid the big bucks for.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

MILLER: And she's America's 67th. Let's give her a chance.

WHITFIELD: And when we say, you know, how, I guess, long this road may be, are you seeing months, are you seeing years, are you seeing an entire first term before any real progress can be made?

MILLER: No. I think in the next several weeks and months.

WHITFIELD: Really?

MILLER: This particular piece of it, the Israeli-Palestinian confrontation can be diffused. The longer problem with the Arab- Israeli, Israeli-Palestinian, Israeli-Syrian conflicts, it's going to take time, but by the end of Obama's first administration, we can get a handle on this and begin, I think, to look for creative solutions. WHITFIELD: All right, very hopeful. Aaron David Miller, thanks so much -- a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center and author of "The Much Too Promised Land." Thanks so much.

MILLER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: And, of course, we continue to keep a close watch on the Middle East where Israeli troops are in the second day of their incursion into Gaza. And here's what we know right now: Palestinian security sources acknowledge that Israeli troops are in control of parts of northern Gaza today. Hamas sources say three senior Hamas military commanders have been killed. Medical sources say at least 37 Palestinians have died since the incursion began yesterday. And more than 500 have died since Israeli air strikes began more than a week ago.

A European Union delegation is on its way to the Middle East in a bid to negotiate a cease-fire. The E.U. says Israel has the right to defend itself from Hamas rocket attacks, but that does not justify military actions that largely affect civilians, they say.

All right. Caught in the crossfire, civilians on both sides of the border. How do they view the conflict? We asked them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DOV HARTUV, ISRAELI RESIDENT: I'm standing on my back porch, and I can hear the firing from outside and from time to time we have the radio alert which tells us we can expect the kassam to come in either direction. It's been a sleepless night and hopefully all of this will end as soon as possible.

SAMI ABDEL SHAFI, GAZA CITY RESIDENT: We are 500 meters approximately from the scene. We've been hearing almost a constant bombardment from the sea, that's in addition to the almost constant air raids which have been continuing since yesterday. We are in the ninth day now, and we have had almost no sleep throughout all of these days.

HARTUV: We don't aim to take over Gaza or to topple the government or the ruling forces there. What we want is just what every ordinary citizen would want, to live in peace and to be able to live with our neighbors. I have been a neighbor of Gaza for the last almost 50 years, and it's about time that my children and grandchildren would be able to live in peace.

SHAFI: Almost everyone in the Gaza Strip was very short on the basic supplies they needed because of the long imposed blockade. And as of the beginning of the war no one really is daring to step out of their houses to buy anything assuming they can find it in the market and assuming they find a place that is open.

HARTUV: No one will get 100 percent of what they want, neither us nor they, and we must be able to accept that and find some way to live together, even though we are different people with different beliefs, different cultures, different languages. But we are neighbors, and neighbors have to learn to live together. They don't have to love one another, but they have to learn to live together. And that's what we must aim for.

SHAFI: The ordinary people of Gaza are losing all of their political colors if they had an affiliation or sympathy of any kind. They are losing their political color in the face of such a massive attack leveled by Israel's military. What is unfolding here is really of extraordinary magnitude. And one wonders what -- whether the world is actually seeking of the aftermath of all of this.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: So much going on. War in the Middle East, and politics in this country. The new senator from Minnesota is -- it looks like this man right here. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. After weeks of recounting, the Minnesota Election Board is finally ready to announce a winner in last year's senate election. Secretary of State Mark Richie says the board will certify Democrat Al Franken as the winner by just 225 votes. Election officials finished counting ballots just yesterday.

Incumbent Republican Norm Coleman is expected to contest the findings. He has seven days to do it. Coleman attorneys are expected to argue that local officials had no uniform standard for identifying improperly rejected ballots. They also say that some ballots may have been counted twice.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is withdrawing his nomination to the Obama cabinet. His decision means the president-elect will have to pick a new commerce secretary nominee. Richardson says he didn't want a federal probe to hamper the confirmation process.

A federal grand jury is investigating possible pay-to-play dealings of the California company that contributed to Richardson's campaign. The company was later awarded a lucrative New Mexico state contract. Barack Obama says he has accepted Richardson's withdrawal but with deep regret.

The timing of Richardson's withdrawal isn't great. The president- elect is on his way to Washington. Tomorrow to meet with congressional leaders to talk about the economy. And then there's the crisis in Gaza -- a lot on his plate.

Alan Lichtman is a presidential historian and is with American University in Washington.

Good to see you.

ALAN LICHTMAN, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN, AMERICAN UNIVERSITY: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: OK. The start of a presidency really can be as cementing perhaps for a president just as the middle or ending could be. And so now, with president-elect thinking that in two weeks once he's sworn in he's going to be dealing with the economy first, now maybe in addition to seating a void in his cabinet, it's also the Middle East. So how risky is all of this for him?

LICHTMAN: It's tremendously risky. I've got to say this. No president in the long history of our democratic republic has ever taken office with such a fearsome combination of domestic and international crises.

WHTIFIELD: And all of them are real top priority issues, too.

LICHTMAN: Absolutely top priority issues, so he has to very strongly prioritize, and here are his first three priorities, economy, economy, economy. Look, if you don't fix the economy, you're going to be a failed, one-term president, and you're not going to be able to do any of the other big things you have on your plate for your administration.

WHITFIELD: So interesting. So you're saying the Middle East really should not be -- he should not be sweating the Middle East quite as much as he should the economy?

LICHTMAN: Absolutely not, as tragic and as awful as the situation is in the Middle East, a solution in the Middle East -- and you heard it from previous guest -- has defied, you know, generation after generation of American presidents. That's not going to be solved overnight. and right now, his choice of Hillary Clinton as secretary of state looks absolutely brilliant because she has the stature, the reputation and the savvy to take the lead in foreign policy and in the Middle East, while Obama attends to the very difficult task of forging the stimulus package, which is not easy because, as you know, every special interest is going to descend like a herd of locusts on Washington, D.C. when they hear about a $700 billion aid package.

WHITFIELD: Well, you know, President-elect Obama has been kind of dubbed Mr. Cool. And here he is moving to Washington, moving early, and that's why they are staying at the Hay-Adams Hotel, not necessary Blair House, because it's not quite ready for them, but to move their kids into school starting tomorrow, and to meet with Congress. and now all of this is kind of descending upon him at once. How important is it that we still see a Mr. Cool in this president-elect, even with this confluence of events?

LICHTMAN: You know, he's come to Washington early. He may wish he's back in Hawaii, but he can't do that.

WHITFIELD: Right.

LICHTMAN: He has been extraordinary throughout the past year and a half and two years in terms of preserving his cool, in the face of, you know, some pretty nasty scandals and allegations that hit him close to home. He's avoided them all. He's kept his cool. He's got to continue to do that and take a leaf from the page of Franklin Roosevelt.

Remember what Franklin Roosevelt said in his inauguration, the midst of the Great Depression, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." That is the kind of image that Barack Obama has got to portray. And he's very good at that. And, like Franklin Roosevelt, he's got to strike early and strike hard. He can't wait, and he's got to bring the American people with him. That is the genius of our great presidents, like Franklin Roosevelt or more recently Ronald Reagan. If you get the people behind you, Congress will go along because Congress is like Wall Street. They operate on fear and greed. And we've been hearing a lot about greed lately too.

WHITFIELD: Haven't we. Under statements.

All right. American University's Allan Lichtman, thanks so much, appreciate it.

LILCHTMAN: My pleasure.

WHITFIELD: And thanks for your insight as well.

Well, certainly plenty of challenges, let's underscore that, waiting for Congress when it returns to work this week -- Senate seat cliffhangers and an economy only a Grinch could love.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Casualties are mounting in Gaza. Palestinian civilians are being killed, along with Hamas militants. And on the Israeli side of the border, the ever present danger of Hamas rocket attacks.

Embattled Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was the target today of stinging criticism from the Senate majority leader. At issue, Blagojevich's controversial appointment to fill the senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.

Here's part of what Senator Harry Reid had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HARRY REID, (D), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: Blagojevich should step down, should do it today. If not, he'll be impeached, and that's prior to us being...

DAVID GREGORY, MODERATOR, "MEET THE PRESS": Are you willing to go to the mat on this, to deny Roland Burris, if it requires going to the Supreme Court. Is it worth that effort?

REID: The state of Illinois deserves a vote in the United States Senate. And the people of the state of Illinois, the fifth most populist state in the union, deserves that vote. It's too bad Blagojevich has diverted attention away from that issue. And we'll -- as I've indicated, we're going to come and I'll meet with Senator McConnell, my Republican counterpart -- I hope to do that Monday evening. I think it's around 6:00 or something like that. We'll talk about this. I hope we can solve this issue on a bipartisan basis.

GREGORY: There sounds to me like there may be some room here to negotiate and actually seat Burris. REID: Listen, David, I'm an old trial lawyer. There's always room to negotiate.

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WHITFIELD: New Senators are expected to be sworn in on Tuesday. And when lawmakers officially get back to work this week after that swearing in, they will have more than a vacant seat in the senate to worry about.

CNN's Kate Bolduan reports the economy will be "Issue Number One."

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KATE BOLDUAN, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Out with the old, in with the new. The next Congress hoping to hit the ground running with a visit from the president-elect Monday. Priority one, an economic stimulus package.

REID: We must recognize the economy is in deep trouble.

BOLDUAN: But even before they start, lawmakers are lowering expectations. That goal of getting a stimulus bill to the new president's desk on day one.

REP. STENY HOYER, (D), MARYLAND: I doubt that frankly. It's going to be very difficult to get the package put together that early so that it can have sufficient time to be reviewed and then sufficient time to be debated and passed.

BOLDUAN: President-elect Obama is meeting with congressional leaders to make his pitch, win over support and try to put his recovery plan to paper.

BARACK OBAMA, (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: We need an American recovery and reinvestment plan that not only creates jobs in the short term but spurs economic growth and competiveness in the long term.

BOLDUAN: Obama's plan could cost in the neighborhood of $775 billion and proposes doubling renewable energy production, infrastructure spending like rebuilding roads, bridges and schools as well as offering tax breaks.

OBAMA: Create three million new jobs, more than 80 percent of them in the private sector.

BOLDUAN: But Republicans are already voicing concerns over the potentially eye-popping price tag and the time line.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL, (R), MINORITY LEADER: What I worry about is the haste with which this may be done. This is an enormous bill. It could be close to a $1 trillion spending bill. Do we want to do it with essentially in hearings and no input from Republican senators who represent half of the American population? BOLDUAN (on camera): Both sides appear to be calling for bipartisan support of whatever the final package looks like. Republicans want their say in the process. and the Democratic majority may not want to be solely responsible for such massive spending on the heels of a string of government bailouts.

Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.

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WHITFIELD: The conflict in Gaza is heated and fierce but the amount of land involved is tiny. We'll take a look at the urban warfare.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN NEWS METEOROLOGIST: I'm CNN meteorologist with the latest on our weather forecast.

(WEATHER REPORT)

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ALI HASSAN AHMAD ABU SHADA, GAZA RESIDENT (Through Translation): There is fear. All night there's boom-boom sounds one after the other, one after the other. The child puts his head in his father's or mother's lap from the fear and says to her, "Hide me and cover my face." It is fear.

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WHITFIELD: That's just one of the voices from Gaza after more than a week of Israeli air strikes and a day after the Israeli ground attack began.

Two populations, in harm's way. A look at the map shows just how little geography is involved.

Here now is Josh Levs.

JOSH LEVS, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: We know Israeli ground troops are inside Gaza. I want to talk to you about what we know about their positions. I'm going to start off on the simpler map. A lot of times they make it easier to tell the story. This is Gaza. 1.5 million people live inside, twice of size of Washington.

Look here, this is where I want to you focus. This here that says Gaza, that's Gaza city. It's the largest population center in the northern half of Gaza. What we know is that Israeli troops did very much want to take this area and this area because these are major areas that Hamas militants used to fire rockets northward into Israel and eastward into Israel. And Israel is now saying this morning that it controls the northeast section of Gaza. We have also heard about fighting inside Gaza city. So we know that that is part of what has been going on. We don't know if troops have stayed or go in and out. We know Israel is saying it controls this section. Let's go to a Google Earth video I want to show you, which gives you a sense of the lay of the land there. It's going to show you some of the borders. And I want you to get a sense of how small that area is. If you look on the right side of your screen, where the border is, the entire border with Israel is just 32 miles. A lot of people in America have a longer commute than that. So we're talking about a very small area. That's how it gets impacted.

Now, we have one more video I want to show you because I want to you see both sides. Let's go to this next Google Earth video. You'll see how close one Israeli city is. We're zooming in on Gaza. Then I'm going to show you Ashkelon, one of the Israeli cities that's been hit repeatedly by rockets from Hamas. It's only seven miles up there. So if you look at how incredibly tight everything is, you can think about the Israeli troops operating in this area. And that Ashkelon, as you're seeing is one of many cities that's there.

Let's zoom in on one more map. Check this out. This down here is Gaza, this tiny little thing right here. Everything in light beige is Israel. The city I was just showing you is Ashkelon, seven miles up there. Now, Israel says that Hamas rockets can reach up to here. They have hit this city, Ashdod. They also east over to Beersheba. We're hearing hundreds of thousands, up to one million Israelis are in the range of Hamas rocket fire.

Guys, that's as much as we know about where the Israeli troops are and what they're fighting to do right now. There's no live satellites. And we can't get straight up -- I know everything announced, the Israeli government isn't saying at all. But every time we get new positions, new word on skirmishes or clashes, we'll bring it to you right here.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, Josh.

OK. So despite the turmoil in the Middle East and the cabinet position now vacancy, what's it like to be the president-elect, Obama, right now? We understand he had a little taste of it getting on board an Air Force jet on his way to Washington where he and his family will be living, of course. And, of course, the crew apparently greeted him with their emblems on their uniforms saying "Air Force One."

Don Lemon is up next in the "NEWSROOM." He'll tell us a little bit more about how the president-elect said he actually got very emotional about it and actually, he says, I got choked up.

Much more straight ahead in the "NEWSROOM."

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DON LEMON, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: Breaking news here at home and overseas. In the Mideast, the death toll climbs on both sides as Israeli troops move farther into Gaza.

In the US, a political shocker. A big-time player in the Obama transition team drops out.

All this, as President-elect Barack Obama moves to his new home, Washington, D.C. He's arriving live this hour.