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President Obama to Visit Ground Zero; White House: No Photo Release; Osama Bin Laden Killing; Bin Laden's Wives and Children; Who Will Play Bin Laden?; Kentucky Woman Loses Home to Floods; Six Arrested in School Board Meeting; Thieves Break Into 36 Police Cars; President Obama Visits Engine 54

Aired May 05, 2011 - 10:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. I'm Carol Costello, sitting in for Kyra Phillips.

Solidarity, support and closure, today President Obama visits Ground Zero. He's heading to New York's emotional epicenter of the 9/11 attacks.

In the meantime, there are new details on the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. "The New York Times" is reporting that the Navy SEALs came under fire only when they first stormed the compound.

Secretary Hillary Clinton says the United States must continue working with Pakistan in the fight against terrorism. Clinton is responding to widespread doubts about Pakistan's reliability after Bin Laden was discovered living in a military town there.

Right now, President Obama is on his way to New York and Ground Zero. We all remember those haunting images of the gaping hole. The president will lay a wreath there, reflect on the losses of 9/11 and mark the death of the man who plotted those attacks.

CNN's Deborah Fereyick is at Ground Zero with more. The president's plane is just taking off so the president should be there very soon, Deb.

But I wanted to ask you, how do people feel about the president's visit today? I mean, are they celebrating? Do they think he should even go?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, it's very unlikely that huge crowds will be here to greet the president. That's not really what this trip is all about. It is a solemn trip to meet with family members, to also go to a firehouse and greet some of the firefighters who survived this terrible tragedy.

Remember this is such a monumental event that defined the psyche of New York City not to mention defining global politics for the last decade. Let me just tell you where we're standing here, you can see a little bit of the Ground Zero site behind me.

This is an area of the financial center, where people just began to run when those towers were hit. This is one of the roots of escape for that event. So again, when the president gets here, unlikely to be very large crowds. Clearly security in this area is very, very tight.

We're walking over to Liberty Street, again, we are west of Ground Zero. The second tower was -- really would have been right behind us. A lot of security, a lot of police officers. We've seen secret service members as well. You can imagine it's going to be very, very tight.

When he gets here though, it will be very solemn. He's going to lay a wreath. There are ways into the Ground Zero area, the whole area fenced off now. But, Carol, you know, when you look at it and you think how much has been built or in some respects, how little has been built.

The good news is that is being resurrected so that's kind of mood here, the feeling solemn and sombre. He's coming to pay his respect, to put a final mark on this, almost a closing chapter. It started at ground zero and now this event is going to end at Ground Zero, Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Deb Fereyick reporting live fromn New York City. Waiting the president's arrival, it should be soon because the president as I said just took off on Air Force One from Andrews Air Force Base.

So he'll be in New York very soon. Be sure to join us next hour for our special coverage of President Obama's visit to Ground Zero. Anderson Cooper takes the reins at 11:00 a.m. Eastern, 8:00 Pacific Time.

Let's head to Washington now and check in with Wolf Blitzer because there are some people who don't think the president ought to go to Ground Zero today. They see it as sort of unsightly victory lap and a campaign commercial. Wolf, what are you hearing?

WOLF BLITZER, THE SITUATION ROOM: Well, I'm hearing a very different perspective here in Washington. It's totally appropriate for the president of the United States to go to Ground Zero, pay his respects.

Remember, the American people have been waiting almost 10 years for Bin Laden's death and no one has been waiting more anxiously for this moment than a lot of the first responders, the families, those who survived in New York City. This is where so many people were killed, nearly 3,000 people.

So the president is trying to balance a dignified laying of the wreath, a dignified meeting with some family members, going to this fire station and not being overly politicized. He's not giving a major speech or anything like that. He doesn't want to take political advantage of it.

But the symbolism and the image will be powerful. It may be one of the most powerful images of his presidency once he shows up in Ground Zero. This will be the first time he's there as a sitting president of the United States. So he's a very, very sensitive president to history.

He realizes that the statement that he made from the east room of the White House Sunday night announcing that Bin Laden was dead and his presence in New York City today, those will be iconic moments of his presidency, whether it's a one-term presidency or two-term presidency.

He's very sensitive to that. He's trying to strike that proper balance and that proper tone. So you won't see a lot of political spin out of this although you don't have to speak about it, don't have to do anything about it, the power will be there.

You know, it's interesting. Some of the Republican presidential candidates are going to have their first debate tonight in South Carolina, including some of the second or third tier Republican presidential candidates.

So it will be a contrast here a sitting president, having authorized a mission to go ahead and kill Bin Laden succeeds and now he is going to lay a wreath at Ground Zero and the Republicans are beginning their primary battle to see who will be the challenger to President Obama.

So politics is not going to be very far away we're heavy into this political season already, as you know, Carol. So we can't escape it, but he's trying strike that proper balance.

COSTELLO: I know he invited President Bush and President Clinton, both men declined. The president was trying to kind of send a symbol of unity out to the nation. What do you make of that? That those two former presidents will not be at Ground Zero today?

BLITZER: I think they will be there on September 11th, the 10th anniversary. I don't know if he invited former President Jimmy Carter to come. I don't think he did on this day. President Clinton has a previously scheduled event he can't break.

President Bush put out a statement praising President Obama on his decision to go ahead and kill Bin Laden, but, you know, he's been trying to lay back. He doesn't want to do anything to step on the current president. He's very sensitive having been a two-term president eight years. He served as president so he doesn't want to step on the current president in this moment.

As you know, with the exception when he went out and gave a lot of interviews surrounding the release of his book, he's been low-key. He's spending most of his time in Texas going to baseball games and enjoying life to a large degree, a very different life he had as president of the United States.

So he didn't think it was appropriate and this current president thought that was fine. He made the gesture, would have liked President Bush to walk around Ground Zero with him and would have like President Clinton to do the same.

I don't think President Clinton, by the way, thought it would be appropriate for him to simply go with President Obama if President Bush didn't attend.

So, you know, when one president declines, one former president declines, another former president sort of declines at the same time. They have a scheduling issue, as they say, but --

COSTELLO: Got you.

BLITZER: You know, this was President Bush's decision. I think President Obama would have been very, very pleased if President Bush and President Clinton could have joined him on this day.

COSTELLO: Wolf Blitzer, we'll see you again at 5:00 p.m. Eastern. We appreciate it.

BLITZER: Thank you.

COSTELLO: The president's visit comes after his decision not to release photos of Osama Bin Laden's body. He tells "60 Minutes" that little would be gained by publicly showing that gruesome image.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: It is important for us to make sure that very graphic photos of somebody who was shot in the head are not floating around as an incitement to additional violence, as a propaganda tool. That's not who we are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Brianna Keilar is at the White House. So, Brianna, it's not just the photos the White House is trying to keep under wraps, right? There's other stuff as well, as information.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. We just learned yesterday from White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, he said that there isn't going to be any more release of details about the operation, Carol.

That's due to security concerns and hiding sort of the details of the procedures in these operations, in case they have to do something like that again in the future for some other reason. Now keep in mind, though, this is happening as some questions have been raised about whether the Obama administration has perhaps undermined its success.

Obviously capturing the most wanted man in the world with what we have seen as some changing details about the operation. There are still a lot of outstanding questions about those details and exactly how things went down. We talked about this, Carol, the fact at first we were led to belief by government officials that Osama Bin Laden was probably armed.

As it turned out, he wasn't and also that we were initially told he used women or a woman as a shield and then later, we realized that wasn't the case that a woman was killed in the crossfire.

And that another woman was one shot resisting the Navy SEALs or a Navy SEAL, but indeed, he didn't use women as shields, Carol.

COSTELLO: Brianna Keilar, many thanks live from the White House today. Despite what Brianna said, we are getting new details about the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. We're going to have a live report for you from Pakistan with those new details. That's coming your way next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the death of Osama Bin Laden sends a warning signal to other terrorists. Netanyahu spoke with CNN's Zain Verjee as short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: It weakens extremists when the world's number one terrorist, a man who was responsible for the death of thousands of innocent people, is brought to justice and is eliminated. It tells terrorists everywhere, there's a price, and you will pay.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Netanyahu says the biggest threat to world peace now is the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini.

Back to that raid in Pakistan, Navy SEALs left Osama Bin Laden's wife and daughter behind when they stormed his compound. Right now, those women are in Pakistani custody. CNN's Brian Todd tells us more about them and what their future looks like.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Among the children left behind by U.S. SEALs who killed Osama Bin Laden, a daughter of the terrorist leader. That's according to a senior Pakistani intelligence source who tells CNN the daughter could be 12 or 13 years old. The source says she told investigators she saw her father being shot. I asked CNN terrorism analyst, Paul Cruickshank about the daughter's identity.

PAUL CRUICKSHANK, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: It's possible but not certain this could be a daughter called Safia who's believed to be the daughter of Amoral Saddar, Bin Laden's Yemeni wife.

TODD: Information which seems to fit with CNN sourcing on the raid. Our Pakistani source says among the two or three women left behind at the compound, one, believed to be Bin Laden's wife is a 29- year-old Yemeni citizen.

GO TV has shown a passport of a Yemeni woman was found in the compound, but it's not clear if that belongs to the wife whom Bin Laden married in the year 2000, when she was a teenager.

CRUICKSHANK: She traveled from Yemen all the way to Afghanistan with Bin Laden's chief bodyguard and married him in a ceremony in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

TODD: Why wouldn't U.S. forces have taken Bin Laden's wife and daughter with them to gather crucial information? CNN was told the mission was to get Bin Laden, take any relevant materials and get out. Paul Cruickshank says this about the information the wife and daughter might have.

CRUICKSHANK: Bin Laden kept his family life very separate from his work life, his life as an international terrorist. He did not share details about his terrorist career with certainly the wives in his family, the daughters.

TODD: Bin Laden, experts say, married at least five times, starting when he was about 17 and had at least four wives at the time of his death. The wife and daughter apparently left behind are now in Pakistani custody.

Murad Kahn, a former Pakistani government spokesman says they'll likely be repatriated to the mother's country of origin.

(on camera): Could the wife and daughter be put in any danger, any kind of vulnerability by being repatriated?

MURAD KHAN, FORMER PAKISTANI GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN: It depends which country they're from. They tell you that how they deal with people involved in terrorism. I think they should be, you know, dealt humanely and because they were dependent on Bin Laden. They are not the terrorists.

TODD: That country of repatriation could be Yemen. Contacted by CNN, a Yemeni official says his government has not gotten any request to repatriate anyone from the raid yet.

As for how they would be treated, the official said it was too early to say. He did acknowledge they would have to go through security procedures, but he said this is a unique case and his government may take some time to figure out how to handle them. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And coming up, it looks like Hollywood, wouldn't know? It is considering putting Osama Bin Laden's story up on the big screen, a couple of potential casting candidates next. That's in our showbiz update.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Now that Osama Bin Laden is dead, attention now turns as to who might play him in a feature film. I'm not kidding. "Showbiz Tonight" host, A.J. Hammer is live in New York. Boy, it didn't take long.

A.J. HAMMER, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, I should be very clear, Carol. This is something a lot of people are buzzing about right now, but this is not a discussion about a real film that's going on, just a lot of people out there speculating about who would star in a film adaptation of the hunt for Bin Laden because as we know, it is inevitable.

Now, I'm not sure who's going to play Bin Laden himself. A couple of names have been coming up there, the first, Emmy-winner Tony Shalout, of course, we know him as TV Detective Adrian Monk.

The other possibility, character actor, Alfred Molina who might best known as the villain in the second "Spiderman" movie. He was Dr. Octopus in that.

The rest of the cast, I think it would fill out pretty predictably by most accounts like "Vanity Fair" has some good ideas, suggesting Denzel Washington would be a good fit as President Obama and Hilda Sweetness as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and as first lady Michelle Obama, they have Angela Bassett.

Now the Navy SEALs who took out Bin Laden, you want to cast these guys very carefully. This is what "Vanity Fair" is saying Ryan Phillipy, Jessica Alba and Jake Gillan Hall as great actors in those roles.

And at "Showbiz Tonight," we've been talking about these too of course, Carol. Our top choices for the SEALs, Jeremy Renner from "The Hurt Locker" of course. We like Mark Walberg a lot and Matt Damon although he really is Jason Born to so many people, but here's my favorite casting idea coming from "Vanity Fair." Are you ready for this?

COSTELLO: I'm ready.

HAMMER: Cate Blanchett, who would play the role of inconsequential momentary distraction Donald Trump, those are the words of "Vanity Fair," Carol not mine.

COSTELLO: I think for Osama Bin Laden, it should be Sasha Baron Cohen. I think his take on Osama Bin Laden would be priceless.

HAMMER: He can be pretty creepy.

COSTELLO: Yes, pretty creepy and funny in a creepy way and sort of resembles him in a weird way, but that would be my brilliant casting idea. How are real people in Hollywood reacting to these ideas?

HAMMER: Well, I don't know about most of them, but one person reportedly wants an Oscar winner to play their part if this does all come together. We can thank Congressman Billy Long for this information after a tour of the CIA.

Here's something he tweeted, Panetta, watching it unfold live, I thought this is like watching a Harrison Ford movie. When asked who should play him? He said Al Pacino. That's CIA Director, Leon Panetta who could be our next Secretary of Defense.

And speaking of watching it unfold live, we don't know who Hillary Clinton would want to play her, but we do know she doesn't love the way she looked as she was watching everything unfold.

I want to listen to the secretary of state try to explain exactly why she's got her mouth covered in that now infamous photo from the "SITUATION ROOM."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: Those were the 38 of the most intense minutes. I have no idea what any of us were looking at, at that particular milliseconds when the picture was taken.

I'm somewhat sheepishly concerned that it was my preventing one of my early spring allergic coughs so it may have no great meaning whatsoever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAMMER: You know, you look at that photo, Carol, who knows what was going on in those people's minds? I mean, truly as she said, one of the most intense moments of her life and everybody in that room. I mean, I don't think you have to make up any excuses for any expression you have on your face or hand holding over your mouth.

COSTELLO: No, I would certainly have my hand over my mouth in that instance, because boy, would that be a tense situation. A.J. Hammer, many thanks to you. We appreciate it as always.

If you want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world, A.J. has it tonight on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" at 11:00 p.m. on HLN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO (voice-over): Checking stories cross country now, rising floodwaters are shattering lives in parts of Kentucky. Rebecca Martin of Calvert City said she woke up two days ago and she was surrounded by water. Now she is struggling to save what she treasures most, her family memories.

REBECCA MARTIN, FLOOD VICTIM: I want to get the things above my closet, which is old pictures of the family and stuff. That means a lot to me. It's hard. I feel sorry for anybody is in this situation, because I know how you feel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Sadly, Rebecca Martin has bigger problems, too. She has no insurance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO (voice-over): In Tucson, Arizona, six people were arrested at a school board meeting following heated protests over ethnic studies. Police moved in when protesters refused to allow board members to table discussions about changes in the Mexican- American studies program. And finally at suburban Atlanta, brazing thieves target three dozen police cars. They were parked in a maintenance yard. Police say the thieves got away with a few radios, one police jacket, a laptop, GPS and a camera.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Four days after he told the world of Osama Bin Laden's death, President Obama travels to Ground Zero returning to focus to the thousands of lives Bin Laden stole.

And that find in Lower Manhattan is a tomb, a scar, and a place that's constantly changing. We'll talk to a filmmaker who's documenting Ground Zero's rebirth. That's just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The latest on the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden, President Obama decided not to release photos of Bin Laden's corpse and now White House officials are clamping down on information too.

They say no new details about the raid will be disclosed citing the need to protect secret operations in the future. Still, new details are emerging. The "New York Times" reports the firefight was one-sided. According "The Times," administration officials said the Navy SEALs came under fire only when they first stormed the Pakistani compound.

And experts believe the U.S. helicopter that crash landed during the operation was the top secret stealth helicopter. It's designed to fly undetected by radar.

President Obama will meet personally with some heroes of 9/11 today. He will stop by Manhattan's Engine 54, the so-called pride of Midtown. It lost 15 firefighters on that terrible day. Mary Snow is outside the fire station. So will they make lunch for the president?

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol, they are expecting to serve the president lunch when he gets here. It's anticipated that the president will arrive here at Engine 54, Ladder 4 within the hour.

As you can imagine, security has been stepped up throughout the morning. When the president gets closer, of course, the streets behind me will be sealed off. The president we're told is going to be meeting with 15 firefighters inside this firehouse, which is really so well-known because it is one of the busiest fire houses in New York City.

As you mentioned, it suffered such huge loss on September 11th. There was really a sombre tone here Monday after the news Osama Bin Laden had been captured and killed.

One of the firemen we spoke with said he was relieved that Obama -- that Osama Bin Laden had been killed, but he said his thoughts really were with the men and women who served in the nation's military. Take a listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN FILA, NEW YORK FIRE DEPARTMENT: We have a pretty strong relationship with all the military people that come to our doors here. We support the wounded warriors in this country.

These guys that come in here are the biggest inspiration for us because immediately after September 11th, they all came in and said we joined the military because of this. We want to serve our country. Those guys are heroes to us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW: Carol, as you know, this firehouse, in the heart of Times Square, tourists are constantly stopping by. You know, there's a memorial on the outside and inside of this firehouse, to the firefighters who were lost here.

Some of the firemen were saying that they were very relieved that this mission was over, but they call it not any sign of closure. They say it is just the end of a chapter in a very long story. Carol --

COSTELLO: Mary Snow reporting live from New York. The president's plane is in the air. He should be there shortly. Thank you, Mary.

As we said, there are new details emerging about the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. We want to take you to Pakistan now. CNN Nick Payton Walsh is in Abbotabad. So what can you tell us that's new, Nick?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As you said earlier on, the "New York Times" is reporting this was a pretty one- sided fight. Just to point you through the house behind me, according to the report this morning in that newspaper, there was one gunman in the first floor down below.

Bin Laden was all the way up on the third floor and I think the debate really now rages exactly what level of resistance was there. We know it from senior Pakistani officials conquering with Americans that there are three to four dead males found inside the compound suggesting there were perhaps a number of gun men.

But it's not exactly clear really who put up the firefight. We have heard from one senior Pakistani official, too, that bin Laden was definitely unarmed, as far as they are aware.

So, yes, details of this raid constantly shifting. I think it's fair to say in the past few days, when American officials have been releasing details, the Pakistanis have been quite ready to put up conflicting information many times and that may suggest why the White House is kind of clamping down on those details.

COSTELLO: I know, Nick, the Pakistanis authorities -

(COUGH AND SNEEZE) COSTELLO: Are you OK? Were inside the house behind you. Is there any visible evidence left that this raid went down?

WALSH: Absolutely, yes. We are speaking to a number of the locals around here who have actually got bits of the American helicopter which crash landed here. They simply had in their hands small parts of this helicopter, which they brandish as being kind of trophies almost of the American raids here.

COSTELLO: And this was a stealth helicopter. I mean, nobody even knew this thing existed. Are there clues?

Are you okay? Can you go on?

WALSH: Yes, I'm fine. Sorry. Forgive me, my --

COSTELLO: OK. I just wanted to make sure. I just wanted to ask you, like, the Pakistanis had bits and parts of this secret helicopter of the United States. Is that enough to gain information that the Pakistanis can use to develop their own helicopter?

WALSH: The bits they have -- the bits they have are small fragments, they're heavily damaged. They wouldn't really -- I'm not an expert, but I can't tell the things they've got will really provide them any significant technological, but are sort of here -- indications of the scale of the American raid and also does prove that there was an American presence on the ground. Carol

COSTELLO: Nick Paton Walsh reporting live from Pakistan. Thank you.

And stay with CNN for special coverage of the president's visit to ground zero. Anderson Cooper takes the reins at 11:00 a.m. Eastern, 8:00 Pacific time.

The place President Obama is visiting today, it's changed a lot in the last nine-and-a-half years. And 14 time lapsed cameras have captured it all. Straight ahead, I'll talk with the founder of Project Rebirth about the evolution of ground zero.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Every year since 9/11, we have gotten different glimpses of ground zero. First, the pile of debris and then the big empty pit. And then construction cranes at work. In 2002, 14 time lapse camera started recording all of the changes. Jim Whitaker is responsible for this living history. He's the founder and director of Project Rebirth. Welcome.

JIM WHITAKER, FOUNDER, PROJECT REBIRTH: Thank you. Thank you for having me.

COSTELLO: So why did you decide to set up these cameras to record this history?

WHITAKER: I visited ground zero a month after September 11. And that debris was so immense and large. As I looked at it, I began to kind of imagine one day it wouldn't be that way. And I had an upswell of hope that came to me and it made me realize someone needed to capture the evolution of the site over time.

And so we began just simply training cameras on ground zero in order to capture the really minute-by-minute evolution of the site over time, knowing at a certain point when it was very different, it might bring about a kind of feeling of hope and even resilience in seeing that.

COSTELLO: I can remember the debate about what should go at the site. I remember right after the towers came down thatpeople were saying, we are going to build new towers, they will be the tallest buildings in all of New York. We'll show you. Of course, that didn't happen, and then there were many arguments what the memorial should look like. And in some sense, those arguments go on today.

WHITAKER: Absolutely. My point of view from the very beginning was whatever would happen there would happen. I wanted to kind of hold a mirror up to the site and allow what was there to exist and evolve as the site evolved. The debate about what was going to be there was not as interesting to me as the long-term evolution in whatever form it was of the site.

So, it really was more important in a sense to be capturing history moving forward. And at the same time, it would be really a record of our -- the evolution that we went through. One could say even emotionally as we got to a place where we are today. Where the Freedom Tower is now coming out of the ground and the memorial is quite well on its way to being in place. It was the idea of putting a mirror up to the site.

COSTELLO: I know your documentary also includes some emotional stories about the journey some of the victims of 9/11 had taken over the years. Can you share with us a story?

WHITAKER: I think one particular story that comes to mind is the story of a woman named Ling Young, who was on the impact floor when the planes hit. She sustained a fair amount of burns over her body. And her story is one of really watching someone deal with the physical challenges of needing to recover and going through recovery.

Recovery is a very complex process. And grief is a very complex process. So, the film shows how she, in particular has been able to kind of move to a place of -- I wouldn't say healing - is maybe a strong word, a physical healing, but a great spirit that came out of her way of passing through and moving through these surgeries she went through to the place she is now.

The movie, the film, is extremely hopeful. It shows five people going through grief and emerging to a very, very hopeful place. And that's what I was really trying to capture with both the site and the people, which is why I was doing both things at once.

COSTELLO: Jim Whitaker, thank you for joining us this morning and sharing some of your documentary with us. We appreciate it. We'll have more from ground zero in just a few moments. First, we're hearing details for the first time about Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords ambulance ride after being shot. Dr. Sanjay Gupta speaks with the paramedics who helped save her life. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Looking at stories making news later today. At 1:30 Eastern, the vice president, Joe Biden, takes part in a week-length ceremony at the 9/11 memorial -- at the Pentagon, rather. And a few minutes after that, Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi holds a news conference in Washington in advance of his proposed anti-abortion bill.

We're hearing now for the first time about the moment immediately after Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in Tucson. CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, spoke exclusively with the rookie paramedics who helped save her life. It's part of the CNN special, "DR. SANJAY GUPTA REPORTS: SAVING GABBY GIFFORDS."

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Carol, you know, one of the first things that struck me about these medics, just how young they look. Maybe I'm getting older, but just two years of experience between the three of them. And this arguably the biggest call of their lives. They arrived within 10 minutes, they had the congresswoman on the ambulance. Thirteen minutes to the hospital. Here's a little bit of what unfolded on that ambulance ride.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(voice-over): Amazing as it might seem for someone shot point- blank in the head, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords was giving the medics a glimmer of hope. They just needed her to hang on, a few more minutes until they could get her to the hospital.

(on camera): Are you trying to inform her, like, what's going on. Are you keeping her abreast --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Definitely. That's something we always try to do, not matter what the situation is. We just try to let the patient know. "All right, I'm going to get ready to stick you with an IV. We're going to take your blood pressure. You know, that's what we're doing here." So the patient's aware what we're doing, it's not a shock to them.

GUPTA: The entire time she was going to the hospital, was she awake and alert?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, her eyes were closed but as far as alert, we're saying she was responsive to pain or responsive to verbal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She would flinch if we poked her or if we pinched her, and she would squeeze our hands if we asked her to. She - you know, her eyes - she had some swelling in her eyes. Her eyes were closed. We couldn't assess that level of responsiveness. But for the most part, we could see her kind of wincing in pain and kind of moving.

I don't know if anybody had told her she had been shot. So, I don't know if she knew the circumstances she was involved in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUPTA: Another thing I want to point out as well, Carol, and this may be obvious, when they first arrived on the scene, they couldn't immediately start doing their work because there were concerns. Was there a second shooter, for example? Was the area completely safe?

They had to make some critical decisions, including how to transport the congresswoman to the hospital, critical decisions also made by doctors when she arrived there. I talked to them. And then finally, reall evaluate her rehabilitation in Houston, which is ongoing now.

Just some really fascinating conversations. I learned a lot. Put it all together in this documentary. Hope you get a chance to watch it, Carol. Back to you.

COSTELLO: I will indeed be watching. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thanks.

Sanjay's hour-long special, "SAVING GABBY GIFFORDS," airs Sunday night, 7:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.

We're talking about the post-Osama bin Laden world next. Remember this scene? President Bush getting word of the attacks. He was visiting an elementary school in Florida, reading to a group of seven-year-old. The children suddenly became witnesses to history.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's still really meaningful because I was there that day and I did see -- I was kind of there for a part of history. So obviously, I'm always going to remember it.

(END VIDE CLIP)

COSTELLO: Those grade schoolers are upper classmen now. Next, some talk about that day and about bin Laden's killing and the years in between.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Let's take a look at our world after Osama bin Laden. Remember, President Bush was not at the White House or even in Washington when he got word of the attacks. He was at an elementary school in Florida reading to children. Those children saw history unfold right before their eyes. What did they remember about that day?

CNN's Martin Savidge went to Sarasota to find out. MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, this is a story about a story that begins at a school in Florida and ends in a compound in Pakistan. About 10 years ago, a group of mostly seven-year-old students gathered in this elementary story in Sarasota to read a story to the president of the United States, George W. Bush.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAVIDGE (voice-over): The event was famously interrupted, as now high school junior Lenard Rivers remembers.

LENARD RIVERS, STUDENT: Someone came in, and then all of a sudden we just had to stop reading to him. Then he told us he had to leave.

SAVIDGE: Mariah Williams, now on the high school track team, was also there.

MARIAH WILLIAMS: It was like a bunch of confusion and people scared and stuff.

SAVIDGE: It was the moment the president was told the news of 9/11. Ever since, these students have had a unique connection to the life and death of Osama bin Laden. For Chantal Guererro, that front seat to history had a profound effect.

(SINGING)

CHANTAL GUERRERO, SARASOTA MILITARY ACADEMY: It helped me realize and be a little bit more serious and learn how to deal with certain things more firsthand at a younger age.

SAVIDGE: Her mother noticed the change almost immediately. a daughter growing up faster than most.

ANGELINE GUERRERO, MOTHER: She's an achiever. And I really think it has to do because of the impact on those kids that they were there. I think they just see the world differently.

SAVIDGE: Today, Chantal is an honor student at Sarasota Military Academy and a regular visitor to ground zero. For all three students, the news of Saturday night came as another complete surprise.

WILLIAMS: I was just really shocked because I didn't expect them to catch him at all because it's already been 10 years. Who would think they would catch him after 10 years?

SAVIDGE: Rivers says both events have taught him something about life.

RIVERS: Anything can happen at any moment. And things can change real quick.

SAVIDGE: Guerrero says the end of Bin Laden does nothing to change her connection to that terrible day. GUERRERO: It's still really meaningful because I was there that day and I did see -- I was kind of there for a part of history, so obviously I'm always going to remember it.

SAVIDGE (on camera): The students say the death of bin Laden doesn't really end the story, more like closes a chapter. Instead, they say the story will continue to be written through the rest of their lives. Carol.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Great story. Thank you, Martin.

A man who became part of the 9/11 story is still trying to heal from the role he played in history, a role he didn't know about until it was to late. Rudi Dekkers trained two of the hijackers, including Mohammed Atta, at his flight school in Florida. He says Osama Bin Laden destroyed his business and passion for flying. News of his death, well, it is not bringing him any closure.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDI DEKKERS, FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR: I have said to the media on September 12th, if I were to see Mohammed Atta and (INAUDIBLE) here in front of me, I would cut him in pieces myself. I have the same feeling about this guy.

They say time heals all wounds, and it took me a long time. It's not healed yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And the ticket agent from Portland, Maine who let Atta and another hijacker board a plane to Boston has spent nearly 10 years wishing he said something. He had a feeling about those two men and he still gets flashbacks. So, when he learned bin Laden was killed, how did he react?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL TUOHEY, FORMER TICKET AGENT: Yes! Yes! I mean, a fist pumping moment at 5:00 in the morning. You know, it was -- brought me great joy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The FBI's most wanted terrorist list has been updated to reflect the death of Osama bin Laden. We'll show you who's left next.

And stay with us, CNN, for our special coverage of President Obama's visit to ground zero. Anderson Cooper takes the reins at 11:00 a.m. Eastern, 8:00 Pacific time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: Nic Robertson is in Pakistan and he just found out a bit of breaking news to share with you. He said Pakistan's military has ordered an investigation into the handling of intelligence regarding Osama bin Laden. But it also warned that cooperation with the U.S. military was in jeopardy over the American raid that killed the al Qaeda leader.

Nic is still gathering information in Pakistan. When he has more, he'll bring it to you. Probably live in the 11:00 a.m. Eastern hour of CNN NEWSROOM.

Hearing the news of Osama bin Laden's death stirred up a lot of emotions in people who had relatives killed in Afghanistan. The first American to die in Operation Enduring Freedom was CIA operative Mike Spann. As CNN's David Mattingly reports, Span's father now feels a sense of justice.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When boots first hit the ground in Afghanistan, Mike Span's goal was to catch Osama bin Laden. Instead, he became the first American to die fighting. Ten years later, Spann's father, Johnny, takes the news of bin Laden's death with a sense of justice and loss.

JOHNNY SPANN, MIKE SPANN'S FATHER: There's not a doubt in my mind that this wouldn't have been a day of victory for Mike to know Osama bin Laden was caught and killed and some form of justice was served on him.

MATTINGLY: Mike Span was a young father of three, an ex-Marine and CIA officer who was killed in November 2001 in a prison uprising near Masari Sharif (ph). Not long before, he could be seen on video interrogating John Walker Linn, the so-called American Taliban. Span was looking for any bit of information in those critical early days to get closer to bin Laden.

SPANN: I really feel like Mike always thought Osama bin Laden was the cause, and he was the cause. He was the leader of al Qaeda. He's the one that recruited the people to kill Americans.

MATTINGLY: But Johnny Spann says when he heard about bin Laden's death, he didn't celebrate. Everything he had to say about bin Laden was summed up on Facebook. "It's a great day. That SOB is dead."

The next morning, he placed fresh flowers at his son's memorial at his hometown city hall in Winfield, Alabama.

MATTINGLY: Over the last 10 years, Spann says his concern wasn't over whether or not one day bin Laden might one day be out of the picture. It's that people here might someday forget. Forget the sacrifices people like his son had to make.

(voice-over): And perhaps worse, Spann worries Americans may forget to be vigilant. SPANN: For us to just say, OK, the fight's over and throw up our hands and have a big party, That's not the way we feel because Mike is still gone. There's still an empty seat at the table.

MATTINGLY: David Mattingly, CNN, Winfield, Alabama.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: With the killing of Osama bin Laden, you can now cross him off the FBI's most wanted list. CNN's Christine Romans looks at the updated list.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, Osama bin Laden has topped the FBI's most wanted terrorist list for more than ten years now. Now that he is listed as deceased on this list, we want to take a look who might become the FBI's new number one most wanted terrorist.

Number two currently on the list is Adam Gadahn. He's an American. He was born in California and moved to Pakistan in 1998 at the age of 20. He is charged with treason and providing material support to al Qaeda. The FBI, Carol, offering $1 million for information leading to his arrest.

Number 3, Daniel Andreas, San Diego. Also an American. He's wanted for his alleged involvement with the bombing of two office buildings in California back in 2003.

Number 4 on the list, Ayman al Zawahiri. He has been al Qaeda's second in command. He's said to be the intellectual and ideological force behind the terror group. He's a trained physician and was bin Laden's personal doctor. Zawahiri is wanted in connection to both the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Africa and the 9/11 attacks. He is charged with murder. And for him, there's a $25 million reward for information leading to his arrest.

Number 5 on this list, Fahd Mohammed Ahmed al-Quso. He's wanted in connection with the bombing of the USS Cole. Carol?

COSTELLO: Thanks very much, Christine.

As you know, CNN is going to provide special coverage at ground zero. Anderson Cooper is going to be there. He's undergoing the security sweeps, so he's not in place just yet. But this is a picture of ground zero. President Obama took off in Air Force One from Andrews Air Force base just about an hour ago, which means he'll be landing very soon in New York City. He'll be laying a wreath at ground zero. Some dignitaries will be joining him. Also so families of 9/11 victims, firefighters who were there that terrible day will also be with the president.

We don't expect him to make any remarks but we'll provide you full coverage. Wolf Blitzer is also part of our special coverage. Let's go to him in Washington right now. Take it away, Wolf.