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Coast Guard Causes Potomac Security Scare; Health-Care Issues Collide for Gang of Six; Group Urges Support for Obama's Health-Care Plan; Michael Jordan to be Inducted into Basketball Hall of Fame

Aired September 11, 2009 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Tony, thanks so much.

Making waves on 9/11. We're pushing forward on a Coast Guard drill that caught the nation's capital, the White House, homeland security and the FBI off-guard.

Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

So, what have we learned in the wake of what appeared to be a security breach in the Potomac River on 9/11 right outside the Pentagon? Well, the Coast Guard says its reviewing a scary few minutes of confusion. And here's where things stand right now.

The Coast Guard is calling this a routine training evolution, not a major all-out exercise. And no shots were fired, as originally thought, because this wasn't considered an out-of-the-ordinary event. Neither the White House, homeland security, nor the Secret Service were given a heads-up.

When word got out of an apparent confrontation with the supposedly hostile boat, the FBI reportedly scrambled agents, and nearby Reagan National Airport halted takeoffs for more than 20 minutes. Keep in mind: this all was taking place near a bridge that President Obama had just crossed after 9/11 ceremonies at the Pentagon.

As you may have seen live here on CNN, the Coast Guard chief of staff briefed reporters just a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICE ADMIRAL JOHN CURRIER, U.S. COAST GUARD: Our people have to train. They do it on a routine and normal basis. We coordinate our training with the other federal agencies. We have very, very well- developed protocols for protection of the national capital region.

This being a normal training exercise, preplanned, the coordination was minimal with other federal agencies. I want to re- emphasize that no shots were fired. There was no suspect vessel. There was no criminal activity. This was a preplanned, normal training exercise.

(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: Former Coast Guard assistant commandant calls the decision to hold a drill in that place on this day, quote, "felony stupidity." Her name is Fran Townsend, and she also served as homeland security adviser to President Bush. She's now a national security contributor to CNN.

So, Fran, how do you carry out a training exercise in this post- 9/11 world, when you have to keep some people in the dark in order for this to be a true test?

FRAN TOWNSEND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTOR: Well, look, let's start with the premise, the training exercises are critically important. We want -- we want security officials to do them. But there are -- there's a process by which most -- most of the time -- other agencies and other local -- state and local officials and first responders are notified so they know not -- not to react what's going on.

Now, we understand more now that this was a unit level, a very junior-level exercise on the Potomac. It doesn't -- it doesn't change the fact that to have done an operational exercise, even at the unit level, on the Potomac River, during the memorial, even though we understand the president had left at that point, was not a good idea.

And so what it underscores is we still need to strengthen the process and procedures by which we plan exercises, we execute the exercise, and we notify our colleagues. I mean, there was no notification, as well, to the media, and so it was understandable, when all of a sudden there was operational activity on the Potomac next to the Pentagon, there was going to be news coverage of it. I don't think anybody should have been surprised by that.

PHILLIPS: So, bottom line, if this training session would have happened on another day, say yesterday, the day before, do you think any of this would have happened?

TOWNSEND: Well, I think because -- just because of the proximity of where it is. It's between the 14th Street Bridge and the Memorial Bridge. It's in an incredibly sensitive area. It was likely to be noticed by people.

It probably wouldn't have gotten the level of attention it got because, after all, people are very focused on, one, the anniversary. The Pentagon did get hit. And the president was moving to and from the Pentagon, so it got heightened attention because it happened today.

TOWNSEND: So, you know how we all are as journalists. You're listening to the scanners. You're listening to what's going on. Something is heard on the scanner, and you're hearing certain phrases, certain words, and you're thinking, "That's funny. That doesn't sound right. This could be something serious."

It seems pretty crucial to me that at that point, when calls are made to whatever agency that is taking on a training evolution like this, that immediately that the public relations folks, public affairs, should say, "No, this is training. Don't worry. I mean, everything's OK. Let's move forward."

TOWNSEND: Kyra, you're absolutely right. And, you know, I think what we're going to see -- I've spoken to senior officials at the Coast Guard. I think what you're going to see, there's going to be a complete after-action report and lessons learned. And I expect one of the lessons -- they're going to take a couple of lessons, one not to be doing operational exercises on 9/11 near memorial sites. But also the notion of notifying sister federal agencies, state and local, and the media.

PHILLIPS: Fran Townsend, good talking to you. Thanks so much.

TOWNSEND: Sure. Thank you.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's not forget what's really important here: the events of eight years ago today. The reading of names, the laying of wreaths and moments of silence for the victims and heroes of 9/11.

President Obama took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Pentagon. He said that we are not only united in our grief, but also in our determination to stand together and stand up for the country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Let us renew our resolve against those who perpetrated this barbaric act and who plot against us still. In defense of our nation, we will never waver. In pursuit of al Qaeda and its extremist allies, we will never falter.

Let us renew our commitment to all who serve in our defense, our courageous men and women in uniform and their families and all those who protect us here at home. Mindful that the work that protecting America is never finished, we will do everything in our power to keep America safe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: One hundred and eighty-four people were killed in the attack on the Pentagon.

In New York City, a reading of names and a moment of silence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Edelmiro Abad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maria Rose Abad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Andrew Anthony Abate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Vincent Abate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Laurence Christopher Abel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Alona Abraham. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: William...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Relatives and friends recited the names of the 2,751 people killed in the attack on the World Trade Center.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(BELL RINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: The ceremony paused for four moments of silence, marking the exact time the hijacked planes crashed into the Twin Towers and when those towers collapsed.

And in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, bagpipes, bells, and a memorial service for the victims of United Airlines Flight 93.

Fear of another terrorist attack on U.S. soil has fallen as 9/11 moves further into the past, and that's the headline in our latest CNN/Opinion Research poll.

Just more than a third of Americans surveyed now believe acts of terrorism are likely in the U.S. over the next few weeks. That's down 20 points from the fifth anniversary and more than 30 points from 2001.

Sixty-three percent of those polled are confident in the Obama administration's ability to protect the U.S. from terrorism. Twenty- six percent are not.

Happening right now: the CDC, the FDA, and the National Institutes of Health are updating us on the H1N1 virus, better known as swine flu. The briefing comes on the heels of reports that the new swine flu vaccine may be strong enough to protect adults with just one shot. We're watching. If we get any new info, we'll let you know.

And it got President Obama heckled in the big speech to congress this week, and it's keeping the so-called Gang of Six busy on Capitol Hill. CNN's Brianna Keilar has the latest on the attempts to keep illegal immigrants from getting federal health-care benefits.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This was this bipartisan group's last meeting this week. They'll pick things up again on Monday, and the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Max Baucus, who is leading these discussions, said his plan is to put the finishing touches on a bill by the middle of next week, end of next week at the latest, a bill that the entire Senate Finance Committee would begin voting on the week of September 21.

And he said that the window for Democrats and Republicans in the so-called Gang of Six to reach a compromise, he said that window is closing.

Shortly after Senator Baucus said that, I ran into Senator Olympia Snowe in the hallway. She is a key Republican in these negotiations. And she stressed that there is still so much work to be done. She said they are waiting for numbers from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office to know exactly where the proposal stands, and if it's going to be acceptable to Republicans.

And she also said there's the issue of Medicaid that needs to be worked out. This proposal, Senator Baucus' proposal, would expand Medicaid. And not only does Medicaid require federal funding, it requires state funding. And so this group will be talking with governors on Monday to figure out exactly where states stand, cash- strapped states stand, on how much they can contribute.

Brianna Keilar, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, this ain't your grandma's tea party. After crisscrossing the country, the Tea Party Express bus tour has rolled into Connecticut for two rallies today. Then it's on to New Jersey before wrapping up tomorrow with a big rally in Washington.

The conservative group says it's trying to bring real change to the federal government, and it's calling for Americans to oppose higher taxes, bailouts, and what it sees as out-of-control government spending.

You might call it a dueling bus tour. The group Organizing for America has also taken its message on the road, calling for Americans to support President Obama and his plans for the country.

Here's CNN White House correspondent, Dan Lothian.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They came to life selling a candidate. Now they're selling his message.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi. We're looking for people who support Obama's health-care policies.

LOTHIAN: Organizing for America is trying to recapture the glory days of the Obama campaign. Once a grassroots operation, the network now has the muscle of the Democratic National Committee, with staff in 46 states.

Volunteers are back on the road, and at a farmers' market near you, pushing the administration's signature domestic priority, health- care reform.

ADISSU DEMISSE, POLITICAL DIRECTOR, ORGANIZING FOR AMERICA: We have leaders that we're training, educating on health insurance reform issues. They're educating their neighbors, and their neighbors are, in turn, educating their neighbors and family. LOTHIAN: The group's national political director, Adissu Demisse, says enthusiasm and loyalty remain high, despite critics who argue their left-leaning volunteers have been deflated, turned off by Mr. Obama's sometimes centrist approach.

DEMISSE: Our folks are behind him. They want to support him. They are supporting him with not just their words but their actions.

LOTHIAN: But selling a dream of the first African-American president was easier than selling a basket of complex health-care proposals.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, ma'am, we're looking for people who support Obama's health-care policies.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, no.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think that...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I really -- I want to know what's in his bill.

LOTHIAN: And the public option that liberals are clinging to appears to be hanging in the balance.

DEMISSE: It's an important part of the debate. Nobody is disputing that, but it is a part, that there is a -- there's more to it than just the public option.

LOTHIAN (on camera): Organizing for America now hopes to do for health-care reform what the group did for then-candidate Obama: create a movement and win.

Dan Lothian, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Eight years later, the fight goes on, and these are a few of the Americans doing the heavy lifting. What does 9/11 mean to them?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The 9/11 attacks we commemorate today are why the U.S. sent servicemen and women into Afghanistan in 2001. It's why they're over there right now, and why they likely won't be coming home anytime soon.

CNN's Anderson Cooper is in the battle zone, and he talked with Marines trying to finish what they started eight years ago today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think for a lot of us, it's just a reminder of why we're here in the first place. Why we joined, not necessarily why we're here now, but it's a good thing to think about in the back of your head, you're living day to day out here.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of people probably don't understand the mission here very well, a lot of people in the United States. It's not just about hunting Taliban. You're really -- it's all about the local population.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, absolutely. It's -- there's more to this war than just shooting guns. It is the people. It's the people that matter here, and without them, we're not going to win this. And the government of Afghanistan's not going to be successful.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Something I wanted to do. Obviously I wasn't around the Marine Corps around 9/11, but, I mean, glad to be here. It's something I've always wanted to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: That was Anderson Cooper in Afghanistan. He, Michael Ware, and Dr. Sanjay Gupta are bringing stories from the battle zone right to you. More of their stories tonight at 10 p.m. Eastern on "AC360." Live from the battle zone, right here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Security scare on the 9/11 anniversary, but don't worry. It was just a test. Radio transmissions about the Coast Guard opening fire on a boat near the Pentagon touched off a scare this morning. It turns out no shots were fired. It was just what the Coast Guard calls a run-of-the-mill training drill. The president, 9/11 survivors and victims' families were gathered at the Pentagon memorial just moments before.

Moments of silence, tolling bells, somber ceremonies. Today the nation is uniting to remember the September 11 attacks. At Ground Zero in New York, the victims' names are being read aloud. Hundreds bowed their heads at the Pennsylvania crash site, and President Obama laid a wreath at the Pentagon memorial.

Turkey is bracing for another round of torrential downpours, and there's barely any time to grieve. Flash flooding killed 31 people and dragged away nine others. Rescue crews have been put on alert to prepare for a second round after waves of muddy water battered neighborhoods and pulled away cars, trees, and pieces of homes.

Well, storm clouds over Florida, not a welcome sight for NASA as it tries to bring the Space Shuttle Discovery home to earth, right, Chad?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. We tried to get -- last night, even tried to get them on the ground, and they waited until the very last second, trying to get these guys to do the burn and, obviously, the re-burn. It comes in and it de-orbits and then it flies in.

The problem yesterday, and I think it will be a problem today, there can be no shower activity within 30 miles of Cape Canaveral. Tell me any day in the summer at 5 p.m. in the afternoon that there's not a shower somewhere in that circle.

They're going to go for it again today. They will try to get this thing back on the ground. If -- they have two opportunities today, a little after 5 and a little bit after 7. If they don't do that, they may have to resort to sending it over to Edwards Air Force base in California. They hate to do that, because it costs so much money to piggyback it on the back of that 747 and drive it back over, fly it back over into Florida.

Showers and even a flood watch into parts of Florida today, into places -- in Texas. Places where it has been so very dry. Texas, you could really use the rain, but you don't want it all at one point in time.

And the U.S. Open a little bit wet today. We saw the showers delay some things yesterday. Showers all the way back into Scranton and also into about State College. Showers are going to be coming onshore most of the day today.

Onshore, coming onshore in the northeast. Also coming onshore here into parts of Florida for the rest of the afternoon.

So, what do we have going on for you today? Well, there's still Fred. Eighty-mile-per-hour storm. There's Africa. It's still out here in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, but, Kyra, I don't know if you knew this or not, but yesterday was the peak of hurricane season. This is the map, little graphic here, of how many storms have been in the water in 100 years.

So, we go here. This red is tropical storms. Draw a line all the way over to here, that's about 94 -- 94 tropical storms have been in the water on September the 10th for the last 100 years. That's almost one storm a year. And this storm -- this year we have one, too, obviously its name is Fred.

We begin to go down quite rapidly as the waters cool off. It's not all the way over, though, until just about the beginning of December.

Look at this ramp, how quickly it ramps up, and then when that water gets so very warm, that's the peak. I'm pretty sure we're not done with hurricane season just yet. We'll probably have a couple more to worry about.

And also on this getaway Friday, if you're getting somewhere, things are slow at JFK and Philadelphia, 45 minutes at JFK. Newark, now, you're really slow, almost two hours. And Teterboro has been having a problem the past couple of days. A one-hour delay for you -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. So running a question. Do you know what the weather is like in Springfield, Mass.?

MYERS: Springfield, Massachusetts?

PHILLIPS: Yes. MYERS: I probably have some graphic that can tell you.

PHILLIPS: You have something that might be able to tell me?

MYERS: Give me a minute and I'll be back with you. It's probably going to be raining, though.

PHILLIPS: Oh, really? Are you a Michael Jordan fan?

MYERS: Sure.

PHILLIPS: OK. Well, apparently, according to Ash, one of our fabulous members of our team here, this is the birthplace of basketball, that is, Springfield, Mass., so Chad will check on the weather there.

And M.J. is being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. The former NBA superstar, obviously, one of the most recognizable athletes in the world, and one of the richest, is going to be there. And CNN Sports' Larry Smith is taking a look now at Jordan's impact not only on the NBA but also on sports marketing, as well.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's the best that's ever played his sport.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he changed everything.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There will never be another Michael Jordan.

LARRY SMITH, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The achievements are well documented. Six NBA titles, five league MVPs, one NCAA championship and a pair of Olympic gold medals. But other players have done as much, so what made Michael Jordan different?

SPIKE LEE, FILMMAKER: Is it the shoes?

MICHAEL JORDAN, BASKETBALL STAR: No, man.

L. SMITH: Movie director Spike Lee met Jordan when the two were paired up for a Nike ad campaign.

LEE: Money's got to be the shoes! Shoes, shoes. You sure it's not the shoes?

Mike just had all the greens. He's a nice guy, personable, smile. People just knew he has a good heart, and they know that he's a winner.

L. SMITH: The will to win. More than any other quality, it's Jordan's competitiveness that's most often mentioned. Sam Smith, who covered the Bulls in Chicago, had a front-row seat.

SAM SMITH, COVERED CHICAGO BULLS: He didn't accept fools well, you know, the kind of -- he didn't put up with that. If you didn't perform, he was in your face and letting you know about it. It doesn't necessarily get you liked, but Michael wasn't looking to be liked by those guys. He just wanted them to perform.

L. SMITH: Smith experienced that fire in 1989 when Jordan approached him and two other reporters who had picked the Bulls to lose a play-off series against Cleveland.

S. SMITH: He walks up to the first reporter, the guy who picked the sweep, and he goes, "We took care of you." And he walks over to the next guy who picked the Cavs in four. He said, "We took care of you." And then he stops in front of me, and he says, "Today we take care of you."

L. SMITH: Jordan's desire for competition didn't end when the buzzer sounded. Golf, cards, video games, ping-pong, anything to satisfy the beast.

S. SMITH: He has the metabolism of a hummingbird. He never slept. He would be up late after a game. He'd get up in the morning at 6 a.m., play 18 holes of golf and go score 56 points.

L. SMITH: Jordan's gambling habits were also well known and sometimes criticized.

S. SMITH: I thought what his father said was most appropriate: Michael's got a competition problem. He seeks out competition all the time, and gambling's one way of competing.

L. SMITH: While it's easy to see Jordan's ascent now, that trajectory wasn't a slam dunk when he was drafted by Chicago in 1984 as a junior from North Carolina.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No one had an inkling that he would be as good as he turned out to be. People thought he would be exciting because he was very athletic and he has great jumping ability, but nobody realized that he'd be the dominant player, perhaps the greatest player of all time.

And it was a marriage made in heaven. He loved Chicago. The people were great. And the fact that they hadn't won. It wasn't like the Lakers or the Celtics, where they were used to winning. And he almost single-handedly put the franchise on his shoulders.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Most guys don't want the last shot. Most guys don't want to be up in the ninth inning with the bases loaded for the last out. He relished that kind of stuff.

LEE: I was just happy I was alive to witness the greatest basketball player ever.

SMITH: Larry Smith, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, is it greater vigilance or just plain luck that we haven't been hit with another serious terror attack? We take a hard look at America's security on this eight-year anniversary of 9/11. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, it sounded bad. It looked alarming, and the timing, well, you be the judge. What appeared to be a major security breach on the Potomac River in Washington on September 11 was only a low-level drill.

As you know, if you've been watching CNN, the Coast Guard says no shots were fired, and because it wasn't considered a major exercise, other federal agencies were not given a heads up. That only added to the confusion, and the Coast Guard says it's taken a good hard look at how it was all handled.

Now for eight years, it's the prediction that hasn't come true: the expected sequel to the 9/11 attacks. But why? Is it luck or better preparation and prevention? Or are terrorists finding more enticing targets elsewhere?

CNN's Jason Carroll goes looking for possible answers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the months and years following 9/11 came the warnings.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thousands of dangerous killers are now spread throughout the world like ticking time bombs set to go off.

CARROLL: President Obama weighing in this year.

OBAMA: Al Qaeda is actively planning attacks on the United States homeland.

CARROLL: Security experts say while Osama bin Laden's whereabouts are unknown, al Qaeda is still plotting and planning.

TOM RIDGE, FORMER HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Strategic thinkers. They're patient. They don't set their wristwatches like you and I do.

CARROLL: Tom Ridge, the first head of the Department of Homeland Security, says the department's creation in 2002 by President Bush was key to better securing the country.

RIDGE: Remember right after 9/11 everybody said nobody connected the dots? Well, today I'm here to tell you there are a lot more dots, because there's a lot more intelligence coming in.

CARROLL: Ridge says the department has improved communication between agencies. He points to the case of Ra'ed Mansour Al-Banna. In 2003 Al-Banna was stopped entering the country at Chicago's O'Hare Airport.

A customs agent, armed with guidelines from Homeland Security, deported Al-Banna for a visa violation. A year and a half later, he blew himself up outside Baghdad, killing 166 people. Ridge says their hard work had paid off.

CARROLL (on camera): Some also say it's been a bit of luck.

RIDGE: I think that's fair. I mean, look, I think it's really fair. I'm convinced that the threat is real.

CARROLL (voice-over): Terrorism expert Ryan Jenkins says al Qaeda really hasn't taken hold in the United States to date partly due to improved intelligence, but also because American Muslims seem resistant to al Qaeda's radical ideology.

Jenkins warns a significant threat comes from smaller, homegrown groups.

BRIAN JENKINS, TERRORISM EXPERT: The difference between a band of amateurs being able to do nothing and a small group being able to carry out a dangerous terrorist attack is having one determined, technically competent leader.

CARROLL: A point New York City's police commissioner, Ray Kelly, knows well.

RAY KELLY, NEW YORK POLICE COMMISSIONER: It's important to remember that we've had eight plots against this city since September 11th.

CARROLL: Those plots centered on places like the Brooklyn Bridge and subway system, so-called soft targets, considered more vulnerable because typically they have less security.

Last year, New York City spent $300 million on its joint terrorism task force, receiving only $10 million from the federal government.

KELLY: We need money to help us continue the significant efforts that we've made in this city to protect it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: What's the key to fighting terror? New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg believe it's prevention. Random bag searches on the city's subways to the police department's 1,000-person-strong Counterterrorism Bureau deployed across the world.

Earlier on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," Bloomberg offered this game plan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: We have to invest our money in a good police department and a good Army and technology and intelligence operations and stop sitting around and trying to strategize but actually do something. It's easy to have a bunch of talking heads saying we have a threat here and a threat there, but I come back to you've got to really go out, see where the threats are and do something about it. And the threats are on the streets of this city. Those are the soft targets that most people have to worry about.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: A new global intelligence report suggests that those so-called soft targets like hotels have become more prone to attacks.

U.S. special forces, they deliver death out of nowhere and disappear, but for one little boy, they're the angels who saved his life.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: You may not need a two-fer when it comes to protecting yourself against H1N1. Researchers say one shot may be enough to fend off swine flu instead of two. The revised opinion means enough vaccine may be available to inoculate high-risk groups. We're talking about health care workers, pregnant women, children and young adults.

Special Forces in Afghanistan, ghosts, fighting the fight that pretty much began eight years ago. But sometimes the mission isn't about the bad guys. When a 2-year-old Afghan boy was critically hurt, these mysterious warriors became his angels.

Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, has been following little Malik's journey from the battle zone.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: Well, we have a lot more details about what exactly happened to Malik and how all the events unfolded. One of the details that's quite remarkable, his parents walked over 50 kilometers -- by foot -- to bring their son to a hospital to get him care. Here's what happened.

(voice-over): This was going to end well, but when we met Malik, he looked like this. Bandaged and broken and desperate, a toddler from a remote high mountain village, Malik had fallen down a cliff like this when a U.S. Special Forces unit found him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He ended up falling off the roof and landed on his head, causing a fracture. And he started to get a hematoma, which was causing the problems he was seriously having.

GUPTA: Army Special Forces -- this is them at work. These guys are the elite, the invisible warriors, and this exclusive video shows how they got Malik out of the mountains. By cover of night, they would chopper him to a military surgical hospital. It was the boy's only hope.

These guys are Special Forces, hard core. They've never been filmed before. They wouldn't even tell me their real names. But they made saving Malik part of their mission.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He didn't appear to see anything. He wouldn't track with his eyes. Couldn't get much of a response from his pupils. So, it was a pretty simple case when we first came on him. It was obviously needed.

GUPTA (on camera): We just learned that Army Special Forces brought Malik here several days ago. He was brain injured. He was paralyzed on the left side of his body. He was in dire straits. We have seen him improve over the last couple of days, but now the mission is to get him home.

These Special Forces have invited us along for a special ride.

(voice-over): Here at this Kandahar military surgical hospital, a neurosurgeon and his team operated to relieve pressure on the boy's injured brain. In time, they knew, the swelling would go down and his senses could return. I visited every day as he slowly recovered. He was paralyzed on his left side, but he was gradually coming back.

And finally, with a little aid from his father, he was on his feet, again. Now, after a week of treatment, he is well enough for the journey back to his village.

(on camera): Malik is now in the back of a Chinook helicopter. This is the way patients are transported near the war zone, and his father...

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta. And tonight, you can see more of his reporting as he and Anderson Cooper report "Live from the Battle Zone." Don't miss the special "AC360" tonight at 10:00 Eastern.

The White House says it won't second-guess the U.S. Coast Guard after the Guard decided not to communicate a planned exercise this morning on the Potomac River. It sparked a security scare on this eight-year anniversary of 9/11.

President Obama missed all the confusion on the Potomac as he traveled to 9/11 ceremonies just minutes away. Mr. Obama met with families of 9/11 victims at the Pentagon, where he laid a wreath. And earlier, he and the first lady observed a moment of silence outside the White House.

Police in central Michigan say two people are dead in separate shootings miles apart, and one suspect in custody may have pulled the trigger in both incidents. One victim, described as an anti-abortion activist, was shot and killed in front of a high school. The other victim was a gravel pit owner killed at his business. Police will only describe the suspect as a 33-year-old (INAUDIBLE) man.

And leave the showroom in your new GM ride and the clock starts ticking. You only have 60 days to take it back for a refund with no questions asked. It's almost like the longest test drive ever.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Striking teachers in Washington state's fourth biggest school district have until Monday to get back to the classroom or face some big fines. Seventeen hundred teachers in the Kent school district walked off the job two weeks ago. The strike is delaying classes for more than 26,000 students. A judge says if the teachers aren't back on the job Monday, they'll face fines of $200 a day. Right now the teachers are standing firm.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LISA JOHNSON, PRESIDENT, TEACHERS UNION: They are drunk with their own power, and they need to let it go.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, at the heart of the strike, the issue of class sizes.

The president is heading to Wall Street for a speech on the meltdown and Washington's response. He'll speak on Monday, the one- year anniversary of the infamous collapse of Lehman Brothers. And while the recession started many months earlier, some date the financial sector crisis to last September. The administration says things greatly improved since then.

Now, these days many people associate the American auto industry with words like bankruptcy, bailout and layoffs, but GM is now launching a new campaign with the goal of turning around its image. And for you, that means a money-back guarantee.

Right, Susan Lisovicz?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Like you said, Kyra, this is some test drive! If you don't like your GM car, you can return it within 60 days with a full refund.

Now, we've seen plenty of money-back guarantees for things like cell phones or TV sets. For a $25,000 vehicle, that is extraordinary. But these are extraordinary times, you know? Cash for Clunkers is gone. All automakers need to get people into the showrooms again.

So, GM is launching this "May the Best Car Win" program starting Monday. It goes until the end of november.

There are some caveats. You have to start paying for the car, and you must not have driven more than 4,000 miles. But it's a whole lot of miles, Kyra. I could pick up the car, drive down, pick you up. We could go down to Miami, spend -- you know, have some fun, drive back -- yes.

PHILLIPS: Ooh, I like that idea. I could use a little spa weekend with you in Miami, hanging out on the beach. All right!

(LAUGHTER) LISOVICZ: That's what I'm talking about, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, we'll talk about that later. It sounds like GM is confident in itself, but the big question, you know, can it restore confidence in the buyers? Because as you and I well know, that's what we need. We need the deals made.

LISOVICZ: We need the deals made. And even Toyota is having problems selling cars right now. And, let's face it, GM's got some baggage on top of the recession. So, even GM says, you know, there's a monumental chasm between the public's perception of GM's vehicles and those in its current lineup.

So, new ads will compare the Chevy Equinox, say, against the Honda CRV. The Cadillacs will be put up against German luxury vehicles to show these individual brands. What they won't show is the fact that GM has a $50 billion bailout or the fact that the government holds a 60 percent stake in the company.

But this is the new GM. And certainly wish them well -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Susan.

LISOVICZ: You're welcome.

PHILLIPS: Religious statues dunked in India's rivers, lakes and oceans. Is it a toxic tradition or just an idol threat? We're diving into the backstory.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: And this just coming in to CNN. According to the Associated Press, and we've actually been able to get more information and confirm it with our Phil Black, who's going to be joining us from London in just a second, just to set the scene on this September 11, apparently riot police have gathered outside a mosque.

There appear to be some clashes that are taking place, Phil Black, from what I understand, between the Muslims and the anti- Islamic extremists. They're protesting outside this London mosque? Can you kind of set the scene for us and tell us how rowdy it's become?

PHILL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's been getting a little bit tense here, Kyra, just in the last half hour or so. There's been a crowd here building through the day.

But let me put this in some context to you -- for you. Everything that you see here -- strong police presence, several hundred people here -- these people have all gathered because of a protest by anti-Muslim protesters that was called to take place here on this day outside that large building there, which is the Harrow mosque. It's one of London's biggest.

It was called by extreme -- an extreme -- a coalition of extreme right-wing groups to protest what they say is the increasing Islamization of Britain and Europe. Now, that protest group hasn't shown up, but what you do see is several hundred fairly passionate Muslim people who came here -- they, in their words, defend their mosque and to prevent this other group from holding that protest.

It was feared that if you had these two big opposing protest groups gathering here in this one location on this very passionate day, you would see some fairly violent scenes. Now, that hasn't happened so far, as I say, because that other group hasn't shown up.

But there have been some surges. As the crowd has surged backwards and forwards, running around, there have been small outbreaks of violence, some of these groups challenging those police lines. When they felt they were being provoked by small groups of individuals in the area, they would then chase -- run off after those individuals in big numbers.

But, again, it's calmed down for the moment. But it's been ebbing and flowing over the last half hour or so -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, it's good news to hear calm. Phil Black, we'll continue to monitor those live pictures and information coming from you and check in with you throughout the course of the next hour. Phil, thanks.

All right, every Friday, we bring you the story behind the story. It's a behind-the-scenes look at how reporters bring a new story from the field right to your TV. And Michael Holmes hosts "Backstory" on CNN International. And he is here once again today.

What do you have for us?

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: I thought I knew everything about you, but now I find out you're a Ganesh fan.

PHILLIPS: I am a Ganesh fan. They're all over my house. I have a Ganesh necklace. I have a -- yes, I have lots...

HOLMES: And of course, Ganesh is a Hindu deity, a much-loved god by Hindus. Sort of a protector of knowledge and all things good.

PHILLIPS: They keep all the obstacles out, all bad things away.

HOLMES: Exactly, obstacles. That's right.

And it was Ganesh's birthday recently. And in India, Liz Neisloss was there, and she went and covered this. Because they had the big statues that they make to revere Ganesh.

But there's actually a serious side to this. There's an ecological problem going on. Let's just roll her story, and then we'll show you the backstory.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LIZ NEISLOSS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're here on India's southeast coast to watch a celebration of one of Hinduism's most popular gods, Ganesha. Ganesha, half elephant, half man, representing knowledge, representing overcoming obstacles. Recently Indians celebrated the birthday of Ganesha. Now the closing of the Hindu ceremony, taking the statue to the water and immersing it.

These ceremonies have become so popular that the police have had to schedule times that people can come and immerse their idols. So, why immerse the statue? This is part of the Hindu ceremony where the materials that made the statue have to be returned to the earth.

So, what's the problem here? The problem is pollution. When you take a look at the statue, what makes it so appealing? The brightly colored paints.

(voice-over): They usually contain toxic metals like mercury and lead. These statues are mostly made from plaster, cement and plastic. And so in ceremonies like this all over India, toxins are being dumped into seas, rivers and lakes.

But the problem isn't just Ganesha idols. In different parts of India, there are festivals like this for many other Hindu gods. So, you can imagine the scale of this environmental disaster.

(on camera): Experts say the only solution to this problem would be a symbolic immersion. But in a country where religion and culture are so closely joined, change will come slowly, and the pollution will continue for many years to come.

Liz Neisloss, CNN, Chennai, India.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: OK, here's what I love about Liz Neisloss. That is the finished story.

HOLMES: Exactly.

PHILLIPS: But as we know, she -- sometimes she has a tough time getting these stories put together, and the behind the scenes is a little more hairy than that.

HOLMES: Oh, yes. It was. It was. Classic case. You know, I mean, viewers only really should see the finished product that all looks great.

And this is just one of the things we do on "Backstory." But every now and then, we like to show you how a day like that wasn't really a day at the beach at all. I mean, this is Liz's day for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NEISLOSS: Ganesha, half elephant, half man. This -- blah, blah, blah. It's too hot. I can't think. Is it good?

It actually -- actually, this part feels very good.

(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE) Thousands of Ganesha statues are immersed in India's waterways every year. But the problem isn't just Ganesha. The problem is your microphone wire.

It's estimated that there are hundreds of thousands of -- watch out! Watch out! Watch out. You've got statues coming at you!

So, all over India in these ceremonies, these statues are being dumped in the water, poisoning waterways, killing fish and destroying irrigation. OK.

The immersion ceremony has become so popular that the police have had to schedule times -- I don't even think you can hear me. Maybe you can.

Experts say the only solution might be a symbolic immersion, but in a country where -- children are talking...

We're here on India's southeast coast to watch -- (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE).

And the pollution will continue for many years to come.

Liz Neisloss, CNN -- (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: You know what? OK, this is too obvious. She needed a Ganesha around her neck because she had far too many obstacles putting that story together.

HOLMES: I mean, can you say "take 4,000"? I mean, what a day. I would have killed someone.

PHILLIPS: And it was hot as hell, too, wasn't it?

HOLMES: It was 98 degrees, 90 percent humidity. I admire her staying power. I probably would have gone home.

PHILLIPS: But you know, you know, you've been to India. The Indian people are so energetic, and they embrace you, and they want to be in on everything.

HOLMES: (INAUDIBLE). Yes.

PHILLIPS: Exactly. And when it comes to Ganesh, this is a big celebration.

HOLMES: And I tell you, I was in New Delhi once in midsummer, too. It is really hot. I mean, I just felt so bad for her. And, you know, we do a lot of other stuff on "Backstory," but every now and then it's good to have a look at, you know -- you see the clean product. Have a look at how it came together, you know, the sausage making, if you like. PHILLIPS: Well, and the whole story, too, behind the Ganesh, you know...

HOLMES: Yes.

PHILLIPS: You know, about the little boy protecting the mom, and dad's goes off, I think it is to fight the war, and comes back, and he says, who's this little boy? He's beheaded. And the first thing to replace the head with is an elephant's head. And, boom, there's your god, right?

HOLMES: That's the god. And I actually did a story once on a little boy who actually had a facial deformity that the people in the village thought that made him look like Ganesh. And they wouldn't let him be fixed.

PHILLIPS: Oh, wow.

HOLMES: And it was big -- yes, it was a big cultural sort of discussion going on.

PHILLIPS: So, was he looked at as sort of a special spiritual being?

HOLMES: Yes. He was, like, revered. They ended up doing plastic surgery on him, because it was affecting his, you know, breathing and all of this other stuff. It was a growth, but they thought he looked like Ganesh, yes.

PHILLIPS: We need to air that story.

HOLMES: There's a backstory for you.

PHILLIPS: There's a backstory for a great story. OK, well, bring that...

HOLMES: Yes, should have brought that along, yes. I probably did that about 30 years ago because I am very old. www.CNN.com/backstory. You can see a bunch of our other stories that we've been running as well, so we'd like to give that a little push.

PHILLIPS: Sounds great. Have a great weekend. It's always great to have you.

HOLMES: I will. Good to see you.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Michael.

HOLMES: All right, bye.

PHILLIPS: OK.