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Obama and the Middle East; Sullenberger Gets a Hero's Welcome
Aired January 25, 2009 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight -- deadly wildfires destroying homes and lives. Searching for survivors after a sports complex collapses, killing four boys.
And a mystery disease kills an up-and-coming supermodel.
Good evening, everyone. I'm Don Lemon.
We start tonight with developing news. It is out of Miami, where the sun is going down and a violent killer with an assault rifle is still on the loose. It happened in a small crowd, killing those people -- many of them current or former high school students. They had gathered on a street corner when suddenly, a man with an AK-47 opened fire.
Police are combing the neighborhood now, searching for the killer of those nine people and who were fatally shot. The mayor, of course, outraged here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MANNY DIAZ, MIAMI: These are weapons of war. And they don't belong in the streets of Miami or any other street in America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Two people fatally shot in here. Nine of them, two people shot -- two of them -- nine of them were shot, two of them fatally, I should say.
Joining us now, Richard Jordan of our affiliate WSVN. He visited the crime scene where the evidence and the carnage was everywhere. Take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE, WSVN)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have no idea why.
RICHARD JORDAN, WSVN REPORTER (voice-over): A 23-year-old woman is recovering, shot in the backside after she says she was ordered to the ground.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A bunch of people were just playing crabs, this guy comes, says and tells everyone, "Get on the floor."
JOAN WITHERFORD, RESIDENT: It was like a war zone, as if I had enrolled in the service or something. JORDAN: Northwest 71st Street and 15th Avenue sprayed with bullets.
WITHERFORD: Even I heard the kaboom, kaboom, kaboom, boom, boom, boom!
JORDAN: Evidence markers scattered like confetti. Police believe a gunman used an AK-47 to shoot nine people, leaving two of them fighting to stay alive in the middle of the street.
Joan Rutherford tried to help a dying teen.
RUTHERFORD: I witnessed this guy laying there with his face, looked like it was completely torn off and his eyes was all I could see. He had a grip on some money and he was gasping and trying to lift his head up to say something.
JORDAN: Concerned family members are praying for survival.
Police kicked off an all-out manhunt throughout the night, but tracking down the killer proving difficult.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He had a mask on or something, or what, a ski mask? Yes.
CHIEF JOHN TIMONEY, MIAMI: We are convinced because of the amount of people who were out here last night that there is somebody who knows the individual or the individuals involved and we need them to come forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Information on this story is coming in and just not to confuse our viewers, we're told two people are dead, one critically, two released from the hospital. No one is in custody yet. There is no motive. Six of the nine shot were either students or currently Northwestern senior high school students.
Joining us now: Kenia Alphonso of the Miami Police Department, a spokesperson.
What is the very latest? Those numbers I just gave, are they accurate?
VOICE OF OFC. KENIA ALPHONSO, MIAMI POLICE: They're absolutely accurate. We've just released the names of the two youngsters that were fatally wounded yesterday evening. The names are Brandon Mills, he was 18 years old, and Derek Glouster (ph), 16 years old. It's unfortunate, they're juveniles.
LEMON: Yes, an 18-year-old and a 16-year-old.
So, as we understand, at this hour, because the sun is starting to set in Miami, police have fanned out throughout this entire Liberty neighborhood looking for these people. Do you believe the killer or the killers are still in this neighborhood now? ALPHONSO: Well, we did an enormous manhunt into the wee hours of the morning and we're still searching. Our homicide detectives are still up and about. It's crucial time, because as time progresses, we need the community to come together, someone come forward and give us a tip. It's extremely important. We had nine shot and two of them lost their lives there at the scene.
LEMON: No motive on this. So, do you know what's behind it? Was it just a random shooting? There was no fighting, an argument going on or anything?
ALPHONSO: Well, we don't have a motive. We have a couple of leads. Unfortunately, we need more. They're tidbits of information of what we've gotten, but we need more.
It's a community that has an enormous outpouring, as you probably saw in the images. There are a lot of people in that area. Someone must have been seen something. Someone must know who could have done this horrific crime.
LEMON: All right. Real quickly because I want to get to one of our people here who can speak about crime and about guns, the problem these assault weapons pose for police officers in your city.
ALPHONSO: Most definitely. We're seeing that more and more. And that is one of the cases that we saw here last night. The case was an assault weapon.
LEMON: Thank you very much, Officer Kenia Alphonso, Miami Police Department's spokesperson.
I want to get to now to our security analyst here at CNN, Mike Brooks. He joins us by telephone.
Mike, listen, AK-47 or an assault weapon used in this case. And now, two people have lost their lives. A total of nine people shot in this. Bring us up-to-date on the problem with these guns.
VOICE OF MIKE BROOKS, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Well, you know, Don, it's ironic. Just a number of months ago, I was in Philadelphia, the national conference of mayors, a symposium on violent crime and then Chief John Timoney along with Mayor Diaz, were talking about assault rifles and how readily available that they are, and then how many more crimes you're seeing now using assault rifles.
You know, in this particular case, if you look at that crime scene, when you show -- we were looking at that video, Don, each one of those little placards, each one of those little things you saw on the street, the shell casings. So, that kind of give you an idea how many shots were fired at the scene. But again, we don't the motive. You know, was it gang-related -- we don't know.
LEMON: That's what I want to ask you, you don't know the motive, but in your expertise in law enforcement, what do you say might be behind this, Mike Brooks? BROOKS: Well, you know, there was a dice game, you know, about 9:45 when this shooting occurred. You know, I'm thinking, Don, that the victims, they probably knew the people who were the shooters. That's -- I mean, why would you just roll up on a dice game ...
LEMON: Right.
BROOKS: ... in front of an apartment building and open fire with an assault weapon? They had to know who these people are.
And as we just heard from the spokesperson, the community needs to come together. None of this, you know, don't rat out somebody or don't tell who somebody. If you know something, tell some information because two lives were lost and many more could have been lost.
LEMON: Yes, just before we came on the air, the new information came out from the police department and they joined us, Mike. And I would imagine, as I said at the top of this broadcast, it's getting dark in Miami. This people -- or person or people -- are still out there with an assault rifle. The people in this neighborhood are frightened to even leave their homes.
BROOKS: Absolutely. I mean, Liberty City, you know, they've had their -- they've had their problems and issues over the years. But when you lose two lives, 16 and 18, to this senseless kind of killing that you have in some of these inner city neighborhoods like Liberty City, it's just, you know, you don't know what to do. But the neighbors, there's somebody out there, Don ...
LEMON: That knows something, yes.
BROOKS: ... that who was involved. Absolutely. And they need to come forward. And they can come forward anonymously.
LEMON: Yes, and help, at least, the families know why their loved one was killed. And to get a killer off the street or killers.
BROOKS: Yes, absolutely.
LEMON: Mike Brooks is our security analyst here at CNN. We appreciate you joining us on this developing news.
We also appreciate the Miami Police Department, Kenia Alphonso, the officer there, giving us the very latest there.
We're going to follow this story throughout this broadcast. If there are any new developments, we'll bring it to you.
Also, other cities no stranger to violence as well, to street violence, right here in Atlanta. It happened early this morning. The 19-year-old son of a record producer was gunned down outside his father's studio. It happened not far from the Georgia Tech campus.
Adair Stevens (ph) was at the Hot Beach Recording Studio with his father about 2:00 a.m. when he went next door for a bag of ice. Well, Atlanta police believe it may have been a robbery attempt and no one has been arrested in this case as well.
We take you now to Brockton, Massachusetts. The issue isn't just violence, it's violence motivated by hate. Jack Harper of affiliate WCVB has the disturbing details.
Take a look at this story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAP, WCVB)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's very smart, and she came to this country for a better life.
JACK HARPER, WCVB REPORTER (voice-over): Selma Goncalves was taking English courses, so was her sister. Both were shot. Selma died. Prosecutors say Keith Luke has confessed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To point (ph) to his statement at this point, he shot her a few times in the back.
HARPER: Claiming he was fighting for a dying race, Luke told police he wanted to kill nonwhites, Hispanics, and Jews, saying he even planned to hit bingo night at this synagogue near his home.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm sad about that because she never do nothing to nobody.
HARPER: Her uncle, Arlindo Goncalves, homeless, gunned down, pushing a carriage of bottles and cans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He got out of his van with his handgun, walked up at point-blank range and shot this man in the head.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's so hard for me. It's so hard for me.
HARPER: The father of the young women targeted. Keith Luke had lived in an apartment above them until a few months ago. He was sometimes agitated, grouchy about having to move his van for them, but he never threatened them until he came back yesterday.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kill one, didn't kill the other one because (INAUDIBLE).
HARPER (on camera): How's she doing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's doing very well. She's recovering.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. That was Jack Harper from WCVB with our report there.
We're going to have some developing news here in the CNN NEWSROOM. We're going to update you on that story in Miami.
Also, we're going to tell you about this -- a top young model. Take a look at her beautiful face. She dies from a bizarre bacterial infection and no one seems to know why. What is this new mysterious disease?
And this -- she crossed the country to see the inauguration and we'll check in with our CNN iReporter, her name Krupali Tejura. We're going to find out how things are gone for her in the last week.
Also, we want to know what's on your mind tonight. Make sure you log on to Twitter, to Facebook, MySpace, or iReport.com. Tell us what you're thinking. One viewer told me to straighten my collar, I appreciate it. Live on the air, we'll get your responses on as well.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: A Brazilian fashion model is dead from a little-known disease. Her name is Mariana Bridi. She was a healthy young woman just weeks ago, seemingly on her way to fame and fortune. What apparently started as a common urinary tract infection developed into something far worse, something resistant to drug. Now, Bridi's health declined rapidly and doctors amputated her hands and feet and removed both kidneys and part of her stomach, in a desperate bid to save her life. She died, sadly, though, at the age of 20.
This is another sad story. This is coming from Spain and it was a wind-blown tragedy there. People tried to comfort one another amid piles of rubble today after hurricane force winds destroyed a sports arena outside Barcelona. Four boys, ages nine to 12 years old were killed and at least nine other people were injured.
The boys were playing baseball when the winds hit the stadium. Storms have reportedly killed at least eight other people across Spain and four in France, where more than a million homes are without power tonight. We wish them well.
Back here in the U.S., it looks like the sky is on fire in parts of Texas and neighboring Oklahoma. This is Hawley in north central Texas, just one of several spots where wildfires are charred thousands of acres. Look at those flames. The flames have destroyed at least six homes and at least one person was killed in a grass fire near some homeless camps just outside of Austin, Texas.
And look at this smoky blaze in the Oklahoma City area. The wildfire inched close to a neighborhood, but firefighters were able to put it out. Parts of Oklahoma remain under a wildfire alert tonight because of the high winds and dry weather.
Our Jacqui Jeras joins us now in the CNN severe weather center to talk to us about the severe cold weather going on in parts of our country.
But the dry weather that's causing that as well, Jacqui.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, we've got a lot of elements that are going to be coming together here, Don. The good news for those of you dealing with those wildfires in places like Texas and Oklahoma is that moisture is on the way. Still a little dry today, but we're going to start to see the humidity increase dramatically, especially by tomorrow. The cold air is coming down the pike. But unfortunately, when you put those two things together, we're going to be seeing some very icy conditions here.
And we're very concerned that the ice could accumulate enough that we'll see very hazardous travel. Accumulations that will cause power outages and tree damage all over the place. We're particularly concerned right along the I-44 corridor and northward.
The National Weather Service just in the last half hour has issued a winter storm watch for this area for the threat of freezing rain and sleet. We think this will start developing and take place Monday and continue through your Wednesday. Oklahoma City, you're not in it yet, and neither are places to the north and east of there. But we think that everybody else is going to be getting on board and we're going to watch those watches expand.
Here's the moisture that we're dealing with out to the west. We're seeing plenty of snow into the higher elevations, the Wasatch, the Uinta, also, into the Rocky Mountains. We're talking about one to two feet of snow between now and Monday morning. So, a great weekend for you skiers, but very difficult for you who's trying to travel, especially along that I-70.
Here's that arctic air up to the north. That's going to meet up with that moisture. Check out your current temperatures, seven below in Fargo. And while it's cold up north, it's feeling pretty mild across parts of the Southeast -- Don?
LEMON: All right, Jacqui Jeras, thank you very much for that. Well, we know it is cold in Chicago, in Illinois.
JERAS: Oh, yes.
LEMON: That's where Rod Blagojevich lives, right?
Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is launching a PR offensive. Blagojevich was arrested last month on charges that he tried to sell President Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat. His impeachment trial gets started Monday in the Illinois State Senate. He has now hired a PR firm and he has scheduled Monday appearances on several network shows, including CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE" at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
Well, yesterday, the embattled governor, Rod Blagojevich, lashed out at the entire impeachment process.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ROD BLAGOJEVICH, (D) ILLINOIS: And when they hang me around these rules that prevent due process, they're hanging the 12 million people of Illinois who've twice elected a governor. Now, they may be for or against me, they may like me or not, but the people of Illinois have every right to expect that the decision they've made when they've chosen a governor, if he or she is going to be removed from office, that the process ought to at least have fundamental fairness and have all the safeguards that our Constitution guarantees to all of our citizens.
(END VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: Well, you know what, meantime, the governor's defense lawyer, Ed Genson, says he is quitting. Jensen says he never requires a client to do what he says, but, quote, "I do require them to at least listen to what I say." And by the way, he wishes the governor, quote, "good luck and Godspeed."
What is going on in Chicago with the governor?
Columnist Deborah Douglas joins us now. She has written about Blagojevich and many things in Chicago -- John Birch, a whole lot of things.
What's happening there? Is this the least of Chicago's trouble, the last thing they need right now?
DEBORAH DOUGLAS, CHICAGO SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST: Well, this is definitely the last thing we need right now, but this is not the end of everything that we will face this year, especially on top of the economic downturn and the job losses that are gripping Chicago, as well as the rest of the country.
LEMON: The rest of Illinois, and then the rest of the country, you're right.
DOUGLAS: Absolutely.
LEMON: OK. So, listen -- why is he doing this? That's what no one understands. Why is Rod Blagojevich doing this?
DOUGLAS: The governor is doing what the governor does. To put it nicely, he does have an independent streak, but to put it not so nicely, his ego is off the chart. The average Illinois's politician's ego is off the charts, but he takes the cake.
And acting independently has worked for him in the past.
LEMON: Yes.
DOUGLAS: And so, it's his life that's on the line and I feel that he thinks that he needs to jump ahead and catch up, let the ...
LEMON: Hey, Deborah?
DOUGLAS: Yes.
LEMON: You know, there is so much of this. I mean, he's saying he's being railroaded. One thing he says because -- I didn't understand -- someone wants to raise taxes, so this is happening to him. Back in September, Governor Daly required to a question about Blagojevich as "cuckoo."
DOUGLAS: Right.
LEMON: So, is anyone there, really -- I know he's been talking to the media -- able to make some sense of his motivation about why he is protesting, he says, this impeachment trial hearing? DOUGLAS: No, we can't make any sense out of it. And he's always operated in his own best interests. And to the point that this is just a ploy to raise taxes, it sounds nonsensical. It doesn't even sound right.
LEMON: Yes.
DOUGLAS: It doesn't past the sniff test. And he has alienated his fellow legislators to the point where we can't get anything done in the state, if we could actually get work done. If he actually talked to House Speaker Madigan, if he actually talked to Republicans on the other side, if he actually talked to the lieutenant governor, because the world knows he doesn't talk to him now ...
LEMON: Something -- they might be able to get something done.
DOUGLAS: Get something done.
LEMON: Hey, I've got about 10 seconds here. The word on the street -- what's the temperature in Chicago when it comes to the governor?
DOUGLAS: Oh, it's as cold as it is outside for real. It is really cold. We are tired of this nonsense.
LEMON: And you said -- what -- it's like two degree there and I know the windchill is probably lower than that. So ...
DOUGLAS: Yes, but I'm not complaining. I chose to live here.
LEMON: Well, I'm just saying -- you know, when you're talking about taking the temperature when it comes to Rod Blagojevich, if there's anyone's polling numbers can be in a negative territory, it might just be Rod Blagojevich.
DOUGLAS: Oh, yes. It's zero, total eggs.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Thank you, Ms. Douglas. Always good to see you -- Chicago Sun-Times columnist.
DOUGLAS: OK, Don. Thank you.
LEMON: All right.
Well, welcome to your new world. President Obama -- he is working on the weekend on the economic stimulus package and he probably won't have a weekend off for a very long time.
Also, we'll tell you about a brutal attack on young Afghan girls. Boy, look at their faces. They only wanted an education. This is a story, though, that you will see only here on CNN. And it will shock you, but guess what? It's going to inspire you as well.
Plus, we'll have an update on those shootings, the killings in Miami.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Look at that picture behind me, a live picture of the White House. It appears to be a beautiful evening in Washington, D.C.
And at the White House today, that's where the president was meeting with a group of his advisers to focus on the economy. The economy has been issue number one for him, less than one week in office.
Our Elaine Quijano is at the White House and she has the very latest.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Don, on his first weekend at office, President Barack Obama met with top economic advisers to discuss that massive $825 billion economic recovery plan. Now, that plan was also the focus of the president's first weekly address. Now, on the heels of that meeting on Friday with congressional leaders here at the White House, the president said that if the U.S. doesn't act boldly or swiftly, the bad economic situation could, in his words, get dramatically worse.
But some Republicans are still skeptical, including House Republican leader, John Boehner. He is concerned about the price tag and whether some of the costly projects are actually going to stimulate the economy.
Here's what the president had to say about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, WWW.WHITEHOUSE.GOV)
PRES. BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I understand that skepticism, which is why this recovery plan must and will include unprecedented measures that will allow the American people to hold my administration accountable for these results. We won't just throw money at our problems, we'll invest in what works. Instead of politicians doling out money behind a veil of secrecy, decisions about where we invest will be made public and informed by independent experts whenever possible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUIJANO: In addition, the White House insists the plan will create or save up to 4 million jobs over the next few years. The president himself is scheduled to head to Capitol Hill in the coming days to try to press his case with skeptical Republicans -- Don?
LEMON: All right. Elaine Quijano at the White House, we appreciate that.
And tonight at 11:00 p.m. Eastern, we will go in depth on President Obama's inauguration speech. Well, what did he mean by that, by everything that he said in the speech? What are the policy implications? What are the timetables, if there are any?
We'll break it down for you with a panel of experts that you don't want to miss. Presidential historian Thomas Whalen, also, CNN political contributor Amy Holmes, author and radio host Michael Eric Dyson -- they will be live in the NEWSROOM tonight to talk about President Barack Obama's speech.
Well, the manhunt continues in Miami after a deadly shooting that leaves two dead. It is a story we will be following throughout the evening for you. There are breaking developments in this case. Also, a hero's welcome for the man who steered dozens of lives to safety in the icy waters of the Hudson River.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: In case you're just joining us, we're following developing news that's happening in Miami where an attempted massacre of teenagers last night in Liberty City section of Miami left two people dead and seven wounded. And right now, police are hunting for the gunman. A small crowd had gathered on a street corner there when someone with an assault rifle just opened fire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOAN WITHERFORD, RESIDENT: It was like a war zone, as if I had enrolled in the service or something. Even I heard the kaboom, kaboom, kaboom, boom, boom, boom!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, police believe the weapon was an AK-47, a high-powered gun designed for killing on the battlefield. Well, that fact has Miami's leaders very concerned.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MANNY DIAZ, MIAMI: These are weapons of war. And they don't belong in the streets of Miami or any other street in America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: We have since learned that two victims have been released from the hospital. We'll bring you any of the new developments just as soon as we get them right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
But we're going to continue on with this topic of assault weapons. Shootings like this, always revive the debate over a legal ban on assault weapons. Now supporters of a ban believe they have a new ally in the White House.
Here's WSBN's Dave Kartunen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVE KARTUNEN, WSBN REPORTER: Even before Miami police chief John Timoney and Mayor Manny Diaz could finish updating the case for a killer --
JOHN TIMONEY, MIAMI POLICE CHIEF: We've talked about these AK-47s --
KARTUNEN: Both the chief and the mayor exerted political pressure on the new administration of Barack Obama over the murder weapon in Friday night's shooting spree.
TIMONEY: The amount of AK-47s that are in this city and this region are just out of control. This is not a local problem. This is not a Miami problem, this is a national problem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is absolutely criminal, in quotes, that we refuse to take action to ban, create some kind of effective ban on assault weapons in America.
KARTUNEN: The strong statement somewhat surprising by two men who attended Barack Obama's nomination at the Democratic National Convention. The political allies urging action over a weapon they say plagues American cities.
KARTUNEN (on-camera): Back in 1994, the Clinton administration passed a crime bill that included an assault weapons ban. But the ban had a provision in it that unless the ban was renewed after 10 years, assault weapons would again be legal. It was not renewed, and every year since, Chief Timoney says assault weapon crimes have increased exponentially.
KARTUNEN (voice-over): In the year after the ban lifted, Chief Timoney said only three percent of homicide in the city of Miami were by assault weapons, that figure tripled in 2006, and doubled over again in 2007 and continued its surge upward to 29 percent of all homicides last year.
Some prominent cases including the September 2007 murder of Miami-Dade police officer Jose Somohano in south Miami Dade and in January of 2006, just blocks away from Friday's shooting spree, the murder of Grace Armstrong and Adrian Johnson in front of their two small children. Each tragedy evoking the same political argument.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are weapons of war. And they don't belong in the streets of Miami or any other street in America.
KARTUNEN: And with a new administration, the mayor and the chief see opportunity. They say they even got assurances that a new ban would go into effect.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joe Biden assured us, he's a friend of mine, this is not about the right to bear arms. This is about whether or not we're going to take assault weapons off of our streets.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: We'll continue to follow that story. That was WSBN's Dave Kartunen. Any developments, we'll bring them to you.
Let's talk now about that pilot that saved all those lives on the Hudson River. He is now famous, thanks to his quick thinking, his superior skills, and the support of his crew, including the co-pilot. Today U.S. Airways pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger got a warm hometown welcome, just days after he was forced to land his jet in the Hudson River. And as you know by now, all 155 people on board survived. It is really a miracle story, Dan Simon, who's covering this for us in Dansville, California. And he deserves a hero's welcome.
DAN RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed he did, Don. This was the first time we've heard from Captain Sullenberger since the January 15th crash in New York. He did not say a whole lot, but I don't think anybody was too disappointed. They were just excited to see him and sing his praises.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sully, Sully, Sully!
RIVERS (voice-over): The crowd cheered for several minutes the moment Captain Sullenberger came on stage. His wife, Lorrie, nearly broke down, thanking the thousands who came to honor their hometown hero.
LORRIE SULLENBERGER, WIFE: I knew when I married Sully the one thing for sure was that he was the most honorable man I knew. I have always known him to be an exemplary pilot. I knew what the outcome would be that day, because I knew my husband. But mostly for me, he's the man that makes my cup of tea every morning. I would like you to meet my husband, Sully.
RIVERS: And with that, we heard the U.S. Airways pilot speak for the first time since ditching his plane in the icy Hudson River.
CAPT. CHESLEY "SULLY" SULLENBERGER, U.S. AIRWAYS PILOT: Lorrie and I are grateful for your incredible outpouring of support. It's great to be home in Danville with our neighbors and our friends.
Circumstance determined that it was this experienced crew that was scheduled to fly that particular flight on that particular day. But I know I can speak for the entire crew when I tell you, we were simply doing the jobs we were trained to do.
RIVERS: And that was it. But as brief, humble, and soft-spoken remarks served as a punctuation point for a cold, rainy day. He was presented with multiple gifts, including a first of its kind from the town's police chief.
CHIEF CHRIS WENZEL, DANVILLE, CALIFORNIA POLICE: It is with great honor and admiration that I made Captain Sullenberger an honorary town of Danville police officer, badge number one for his bravery, commitment, and leadership.
RIVERS: The fire chief gave him a medal of valor, the district congressman gave him a flag that has flown over the U.S. capitol.
For Sully's neighbors and friends, it was their chance to say thank you.
DAVID NEARON, DANSVILLE RESIDENT: What he did there on the Hudson was absolutely amazing. It's a great story. A lot of negative energy out there with the economy and everything else. It's just great to have finally a great story we can all celebrate.
DIANA RUNDQUIST, DANSVILLE RESIDENT: I think it's kind of exciting. We have our own little hometown hero, who would have thought. And I think what he did was extraordinary and impressive and I just want to see him and be here and honor him.
RIVERS: As one local official said, there were 155 reasons to honor Captain Sullenberger, a reference to all the lives saved.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIVERS: Now, Captain Sullenberger initially did not want to participate in this event, but he reluctantly agreed to it, as long as the town did not throw a parade. Originally, the town leaders wanted to have a parade in his honor and he nixed that idea.
Obviously, he came here today, the crowds were enormous. And we should tell you, Don, that in his brief remarks, he was quick to say that this was a team effort and that they simply just did the jobs that they were trained to do. Back to you, Don.
LEMON: Talking about all the folks on the plane, including Jeffrey Skiles, who is the co-pilot, who also helped to bring that plane down safely. Dan, we appreciate it.
RIVERS: You bet. Thanks.
LEMON: A brutal attack on Afghan girls who only wanted an education. This is a story you will only see right here on CNN. We have it for you moments away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: The Obama administration is wasting no time getting involved in Middle East politics. Two administration sources tell CNN that U.S. special envoy, George Mitchell, could travel to the Middle East as early as next week, including stops in Israel, the Palestinian territories, and Egypt. The administration has not officially confirmed Mitchell's trip. The diplomacy comes amid renewed hostilities between Israeli forces and militants in Gaza.
The U.S. military says 15 Afghan militants were killed Friday in a battle with coalition forces. It happened in eastern Afghanistan in the Laghman province. The military says coalition forces came under fire from automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades as they approached a compound on suspected militants. No coalition casualties were reported and local government sources report at least 10 civilian deaths there.
This next story is just terrible. It's a terrible, brutal attack. They were targeted because they are girls, living in Afghanistan and they dared to want an education. CNN's Atia Abawi has the story from Kabul.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ATIA ABAWI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Shemzya shivers in pain. Her eyes swollen shut. Her punishment for wanting an education. Not so long ago, she was a bubbly 19-year-old full of hope. One morning last November, Shemzya and her sister Atifah were walking to school along this street, in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar. Then they saw two men. One was holding what looked like a water pistol. As we got closer, he got down from his motorbike and threw acid on us, Atifah says. She was burned so badly that her red scarf melted into her air. Other girls and teachers were also attacked that morning.
So frightened were parents that many students were kept at home for weeks afterwards. It's not the first time girls in Afghanistan have been targeted for attending school. The Taliban have been responsible for dozens of attacks on girls' schools and female teachers. But they quickly condemned this attack. The case gained national and international attention.
PRES. HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN (through a translator): A real man would never throw acid on the face of a little girl. A real man wouldn't even want to make a little girl unhappy. Besides being a cowardly act, it is an un-Islamic act.
ABAWI: Two weeks later, the government of Kandahar announced 10 men had been arrested. Some had contested the attack he said but none of those detained were seen until this video recording was released by the Interior Ministry. And that's where the story takes a strange turn.
One of the men called Jalil says he was approached by a major in the Pakistani Intelligence Service. Looking frightened under interrogation, Jalil says he was offered the equivalent of $2,000 for every girl he attacked and that he was paid at the Pakistani consulate in Kandahar. The video has been played on Afghan television, but President Hamid Karzai, who's also accused Pakistan of being involved in terrorism in Afghanistan says that in this case, there was real cooperation to find the culprit.
KARZAI: For the first time, we had a very sincere and brotherly approach to the issue, which is of satisfaction to us. And I hope that we can succeed together.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So we can say that it wasn't paid by the Pakistani consulate?
KARZAI: No, not by the Pakistani consulate, I can definitely tell that. By an individual that was mentioned, but not by the consulate.
ABAWI: Pakistani officials tell CNN that the claims of the consulate's involvement are "hogwash." So far, none of the men accused have appeared in court. Maybe the full story will never be known. But for the first time, the attacks have not caused tit for tat accusations by the Afghan and Pakistani government.
That's not much comfort to the victims. Just as they threw acid on my face, she says, throw it in their eyes, in their mouth, do this in front of me. Despite the pain and terror of that November morning, Shemzya is determined to stay at school.
SHEMZYA (through translator): Why wouldn't I want to come to school, Shemzya says. I want our country to succeed. I have to do something for my our country. I must go to school. Her revenge, an education.
ABAWI: Atia Abawi, CNN, Kabul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Best of luck to them.
Our next story, she traveled all the way from California on pure adrenaline. A lot of people on pure adrenaline. And now she is back on her home turf. Her name is Krupali Tejura. She joins us to tell us all about her inaugural experience, how it was. Krupali.
KRUPALI TEJURA, IREPORTER: Hey, Don, how are you?
LEMON: We're talking a little bit. This is just a tease, but I know I look tired. You look like you're rested though.
We'll talk you on the other side of the break.
TEJURA: Fantastic.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. When I was in Washington this week for the inauguration of Barack Obama, President Barack Obama, I met a lot of people who were very excited to be a part of this historic moment.
We need to start putting president in the script in front of Barack Obama, thank you. But no one was more thrilled to be there than i- reporter Krupali Tejura. She had traveled all the way from California with her mother and I finally caught up with her on the Amtrak train headed towards D.C..
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Look, the sun is starting to come up as we make our way to Philly.
Right here! There she is! Krupali! Hey!
TEJURA: There you are!
LEMON: You made it! You made it!
TEJURA: Oh, my god!
LEMON: How are you?
TEJURA: I am fabulous. Oh, my gosh, we just danced on the train with people on the train.
LEMON: All right. We've got to get on.
TEJURA: Here's my mom!
LEMON: Hi, Mom. It's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for coming to do this. How's your journey so far?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was fantastic.
LEMON: Are you tired?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I'm excited.
LEMON: Finally, we're here.
TEJURA: Finally. Yes.
LEMON: What are you thinking?
TEJURA: To be honest, I just think this is a surreal experience. I don't think it's hit me yet. It's too amazing for words. When I first saw him at the Democratic National Convention speaking in June of 2004, I saw something that I'd never seen before and it was just inspiration.
LEMON: You got official tickets from - how'd you do that, Krupali? What'd you say, mom?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She had luck.
LEMON: She had luck and persistence, right?
TEJURA: Luck. No, on November 5th, I booked a flight to D.C. by myself because I knew I was going to be in D.C. no matter what, with or without an official ticket. It's an experience of a lifetime. I don't think we'll ever feel like this again ever. It's a moment of history not only for America but for the world.
Welcome to Washington, D.C.
LEMON: Excited? We're here.
TEJURA: We are here. We are here in the land - the capital of our nation ready to celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama. We're excited. We had a wonderful train ride. We met so many people on there.
LEMON: Let's go. Come on, mom.
TEJURA: Let's go.
LEMON: My god, I was leading - I was kind of bossy that day, Krupali. Krupali and her mother are back at home in Chicago. How is your mom doing?
TEJURA: We are doing well. Thank you so much. We just got back two days ago.
LEMON: You had an amazing experience when it comes to the inauguration. I mean, it all started a while back - I think when you sent in an essay or something to Oprah? TEJURA: Right. Oprah had a thing on her website if you like Barack Obama, let us know why. I wrote a letter and the very next day she called me with tickets to the show that he was to appear on January 12th, 2005.
LEMON: You appeared on her show and I think - did you say your little poem or whatever it was and she kind of -
TEJURA: I sang a jingle for him to run for president way back then.
LEMON: OK. So then, you know, it all comes around to this. Then you're trying to get inauguration tickets and what happened?
TEJURA: I got inauguration tickets via the lottery system.
LEMON: You kept calling and you were persistent.
TEJURA: Right. Well, no, I sent an e-mail and I got a call December 16th and I got two tickets. But I had booked a flight to go there anyway.
LEMON: So, anyway, we got there and we met you in Philadelphia because your brother lives in Philadelphia. You were there visiting him. You took a train to Washington, D.C., the same path President Obama took, president-elect then. So listen, show us your pictures and tell us about your experience.
TEJURA: Well, I had an amazing experience. My mother and I, we got there at 4:30 in the morning, even with the tickets. There we are in front of the Capitol Building. We took a picture when Barack was taking his oath. We made so many friends. There was a sense of camaraderie and spirit like no other. It was a moment of humanity coming together, black, white, yellow, red, whatever color, whatever race, whatever religion. It was a sense of community and the world coming together.
LEMON: I have to call you on this. I don't want to put you on the spot. But you said, you know, when Barack was taking the oath. A lot of people have been saying that. The radios have been going crazy, people calling in saying you've got to call him President Obama or you know, Mr. President instead of calling him that by his first name. Do you think it's just because people are so familiar with him or why do you think they say just Barack?
TEJURA: He is familiar to me. And you know I've seen him at the Oprah show. And he just seems like one of us. It's really hard to distinguish him as the president although you know -
LEMON: He is the president.
TEJURA: He is the president, Barack Obama.
LEMON: OK. So real quickly, he talks about inclusion a lot. And you as an Indian-American, you want to share something?
TEJURA: Yes. When he spoke about the world religion including Christian, Muslims, Jews, Hindus and the nonbelievers. I'm a Hindu and for him to include Hinduism in his speech for the first time an American president has recognized us in one of the most important addresses, the inaugural address. For me it was so touching, I started crying as well as my mother. And it was important not only to me but people around the world and the nation who practices religion.
LEMON: OK. Krupali, best of luck to you and your mom and your entire family. And just so you know, when we say we want you to join the community here on CNN, we mean it. Because Krupali joined us on Facebook, then she became an i-reporter, then she got to meet me. We did a story on her. So we really mean it when we say logon to the sites and we will get your responses on the air and you'll be a part of the show. Thank you.
TEJURA: Thanks so much, Don. Take care.
LEMON: Well, you know, the inauguration is over. So what are all those Obama volunteers going to do right now? Well, we're going to tell you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. You know what, they spent months, maybe years campaigning for President Barack Obama. Now the election is over, and Senator Obama is President Obama. So what's the next mission for his volunteer army? Our Kara Finnstrom found out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JUNE SOBEL, OBAMA VOLUNTEER: I have not been politically engaged for, what, 35 years. He is the man led me to become engaged again.
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): June Sobel is the member of a very large club, the volunteers who the president says got him elected.
PRES. BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES: This is your victory.
FINNSTROM: Obama's grassroots army here in Thousands Oaks, California, and across the countries mobilize voters going door to door, through phone banks and in an unprecedented way with the internet. So now that they've celebrated victory, what's next?
MARTY KAPALN, POLITICAL ANALYST: it becomes a kind of standing militia to be deployed for all kinds of reasons. Imagine if the high command mobilized the people in a particular state or congressional district and said, hey, do you remember that stuff you campaigned so hard for? Well, your member of Congress is going to vote against it unless they hear from you.
FINNSTROM: Political analyst Marty Kaplan says this framework of volunteers mobilized neighbors for everything from fund-raising to service.
OBAMA: Help renew America at usaservice.org. FINNSTROM (on-camera): Just days before the swearing-in and we found the same volunteers giving their time and energy in a much different way. Here at the Kanayhoe(ph) free medical clinic.
CATHY COLE, OBAMA VOLUNTEER: Well this was a wonderful opportunity for us to come and clean the clinic, look at their supplies, see what their wish list was and take the energy we had during the campaign and push it into something that was great for the community.
FINNSTROM (voice-over): On Martin Luther King Jr. day, Obama volunteers took part in thousands of service projects nationwide. Inspirational, passionate activism. But will it fade along with victory's buzz?
EARL OFARI HUTCHINSON, AUTHOR "HOW OBAMA WON": At the smaller level, it worked. The bigger level, in terms of getting the people involved to do the same things on big ticket issues - health care, jobs, community, improvements - all of these kinds of things, it's going to be much more difficult.
FINNSTROM: Big campaign promises to keep, not just for the man in charge.
SOBEL: I have to be one small part of the big change.
FINNSTROM: But for the army. Kara Finnstrom for CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All those people out on the mall there.
Meanwhile I want to ask you on twitter if because of the Miami shootings whether you feel safe where you live, here's what one person writes in. "It is not the guns. It is the lack of real checks on the gun buyer. It is easier to get AK-47 than a driver's license for an 18-wheeler."
Another viewer writes "this week the generation with the best chance to finish Dr. King's dream and add to America's changing legacy gunned down." Another writes, "this is precisely why there needs to be more stringent restrictions on guns. A sad day when our children are gunned down in youth."
And, also, someone says it's not the safe - it's not safe where I live. Meth addicts live next door and there was a hostage situation there recently. Met is a scourge."
We want to know what's on your mind tonight. Make sure you logon on to twitter, Facebook, ireport or myspace and we'll get your responses on the air.
I'm Don Lemon, live for you from the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. I'll see you right back here at 11:00 p.m. Eastern tonight. CAMPBELL BROWN: "NO BIAS, NO BULL" starts right now.
