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Campbell Brown

Obama Announces National Security Team; Dow Plummets

Aired December 01, 2008 - 20:00   ET

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

CAMPBELL BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everybody.
At this moment, we have got late-breaking details and many new questions in the aftermath of the bold and bloody terrorist attack in India. It, of course, comes on the day president-elect Obama formally announces his national security team. These are the people charged now with protecting all of us and now a complex new challenge, not Iraq, not Afghanistan, but India and Pakistan, the home of the Mumbai terrorists, two nuclear powers now perhaps even closer to the brink.

No one anticipated this extraordinary challenge when Obama began to assemble his national security team. And at the center of it, as secretary of state, is the woman who might have been president-elect herself, Senator Hillary Clinton, a long-anticipated appointment now official. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D-NY), SECRETARY OF STATE NOMINEE: Mr. President-elect, thank you for this honor. If confirmed I will give this assignment, your administration and our country my all.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT-ELECT: These men and women represent all of the those elements of American power and the very best of the American example. they have served in you uniform and as diplomats. They have worked as legislators, law enforcement officials, and executives. They share my pragmatism about the use of power and my sense of purpose about America's role as a leader in the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: And now they also share responsibility for anticipating and reacting to the kind of chaos the world has been watching in India.

We are going to have the very latest from Nic Robertson in Mumbai in just a moment.

And here at home, another bad day on Wall Street. We're going to talk about it. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 680 points, nearly 8 percent of its value.

Tonight, we will take a closer look also at Black Friday, how much we all really have to spend, and today's pretty jaw-dropping decline in the market, what it all means together.

And do you know what President Bush said when ABC's Charlie Gibson asked what he was most unprepared for when he first took over the reins of power? It was a pretty astonishing admission. We are going to have more on that coming up as well.

First tonight, though, as always, we are cutting through the bull.

No one here needs to be reminded of how heated things got between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton during the campaign. She trashed him, saying he wasn't ready to be commander in chief. He trashed her, mocking her foreign policy experience as first lady.

Well, now, of course, they have put all of that behind them, so that she can become his secretary of state. Naturally, given all that was said, this issue came up during an exchange with reporters today. This is worth listening to.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: You've talked about the importance just now of having different voices and robust debate within your administration. But, again, going back to the campaign, you were asked and talked about the qualifications of the -- your now, your nominee for secretary of state. And you belittled her travels around the word, equating it to having teas with foreign leaders. And your new White House council said that her resume was grossly exaggerated when it came to foreign policy.

I'm wondering whether you can talk about the evolution of your views of her credentials since the spring.

OBAMA: Well, I mean, I think -- this is fun for the press to try to stir up whatever quotes were generated during the course of the campaign. No, I understand. And you're having fun.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: There we go again. The pesky media, all we want to do is have a little fun, stir things up for our own amusement.

I mean, really, how silly of that reporter to dare ask you, Mr. President-elect, how it is that you completely mocked Hillary Clinton's foreign policy experience just a few months ago and yet today you think there is no one more qualified than she to lead your foreign policy team?

It's a clever device, treating a question so dismissively in an attempt to delegitimize it, but it is a legitimate question. As annoying how you may have found it, it is a fair question.

It was only in March of this year that Greg Craig, your new White House counsel, put out a memo over four pages long outlining point by point Hillary Clinton's foreign policy claims, calling them all exaggerated, just words, not supported by her record.

Now, look, maybe you regret what you said about Hillary Clinton. Maybe it was, as you suggested today, all just said in the heat of the campaign.

If that is the case, and you are both now rising above it, then you deserve to be commended for that. And you could have been explicit in saying all of that today. You could have explained the evolution of your thinking, instead of belittling a question you didn't like.

Mr. President-elect, reporters, we hope, are going to ask you a lot of annoying questions over the next four years. Get used to it. That is the job of the media, to hold you accountable.

But this isn't just about the media. It's about the American people, many of whom voted for you because of what you said during the campaign. And they have a right to know which of those things you meant and which you didn't. Apparently, as you made clear today, you didn't mean what you said about Hillary Clinton.

So, what else didn't you mean? The media is going to be asking. And you were wrong today. Annoying questions are about more than just the press having fun. Annoying questions are about the press doing its job and the people's right to know.

So, now let's turn back to our headline today, to those terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Tonight, an American counterintelligence official telling CNN's Kelli Arena that India was warned by the U.S. a month ago, down to the detail, that the attacks might come by water.

Now, given India's apparent lack of preparation, it's a pretty astonishing piece of news, as we try to sort out the who, the why and the how all of this happened.

Nic Robertson is in Mumbai with the latest on the investigation from there.

And, Nic, you just heard us talk about this new reporting; the United States passed information to India a month before the attacks.

What more exactly do we know?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we know that Indian security sources here have been telling us the same thing over the past couple of days.

Not only were they told once. They say that they were told twice by U.S. security officials that there was a threat of a waterborne attack in Mumbai. They had gone on a higher state of alert. The hotels had higher had security measures over the past couple of months. And then they de-escalated those security measures.

But not only are we hearing that from security officials here. They also say that they arrested late last year a member of the same Pakistan-based terror group whom they say is behind this current attack, arrested him in December last year -- he had been in the country since December last year, arrested in February early this year, and they say that he was pacing Mumbai for attacks. So, putting the two things together, it's little surprise that on the streets here today -- and we were down outside the Taj Mahal Hotel -- that people down there are getting angry with their politicians. There are notices springing up from people there, saying, politicians, are you listening? What are you doing?

They want to know why their politicians failed to have a stronger readiness and response to that information -- Campbell.

BROWN: And, Nic, you have also got new details about how these 10 men carried out the assault. Tell us.

ROBERTSON: They came ashore in boats. They appear, according to Indian officials here, to have come from Pakistan in those boats, that there was tracking -- satellite tracking systems in the boats. There were phones that were used during the operations that the police say to call back to Pakistan.

The men split into four different groups, one group going to the Taj Mahal Hotel, one going to the Oberoi hotel, one going to the Jewish center, and another going on a shooting spree that started in a hospital -- started in a train station, went to a hospital, and ended up with the one gunman being captured who is now providing the police with all their information -- Campbell.

BROWN: And we're going to be talking a little bit more later in the show about who this group was, what they may have wanted. Nic Robertson for us from Mumbai with the latest details, Nic, thanks so much. We appreciate it.

We know how the terror ended, with 179 people dead, a city and a country and indeed frankly the world shaken by this, but how exactly did it begin?

David Mattingly tracks the terrorists back to their very first landfall and the first shots that they fired. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a seemingly impossible invasion. Wednesday night, two small boatloads of young men hit the shores of Mumbai, India's financial center and home to 18 million people. They fanned out across the city. At 9:30, the first shots rang out at a restaurant filled with tourists. Not far away, gunmen also fired into a train station. Dozens died in minutes. And the attacks had just begun.

JAMIE BENSON, SURVIVOR: I go up to the 14th floor and there was blood everywhere all over the stairway.

MATTINGLY: Terrorists targeted luxury hotels, killing guests and staff.

SAJJAD KARIM, BRITISH MEMBER OF EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: At the time that he actually started to fire his gun, I saw him smile.

MATTINGLY: The killers went room to room. Some took hostages.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were using hand grenades to try and blow in doors. We could hear people it seemed like being dragged up to the roof of the hotel.

MATTINGLY: Among the first to die were two Americans, Alan Scherr and his 13-year-old daughter, Naomi. They were at the end of a two-week spiritual retreat and were eating dinner when the attack began.

Terrorists also attacked hospitals and the Chabad House Jewish center.

(on camera): In that first night, the gunmen killed freely. Hundreds were injured., scores were taken hostage before Indian forces could respond. Those lucky enough to find a place to hide prayed for rescue.

MAXINE ALLEN, SURVIVOR: I can still hear this woman screaming. And then we heard a man yelling, "No, no, no," and then shots sounded out.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): Outside, on the streets, it was open warfare. Thursday morning, commandos began retaking hotels going room by room. Some hostages were freed, but the death toll continued to rise.

Friday morning, troops drop on to the Chabad Jewish center. Inside, they found walls and beds sprayed with bullets and blood, among the dead here, an American rabbi and his wife, their baby son saved by their Indian nanny.

(on camera): The fighting didn't stop until Saturday, when the last militants were shot dead. In three days, nearly 200 people were killed, leaving behind grief, anger, and questions about how such a small, but well-armed group could do so much harm.

David Mattingly, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: The harm that David mentioned of course has an impact for president-elect Obama, India and Pakistan both nuclear powers, both with longtime and bloody conflicts. These attacks are one more challenge Obama has to deal with -- some advice for the president- elect ahead.

And, then, later, a nanny confronts a terrorist and challenges them not to kill her and the child she's caring for, a stunning act of bravery just moments after the terrorists killed the toddler's parents, a story we're all talking about. We will tell you about it.

And, also, tonight, what Barack gave, what Hillary gave and what Bill gave -- the inside story of the complex wheeling and dealing that made it possible for Senator Hillary Clinton to be nominated for secretary of state. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: As president-elect Obama today named the people he's entrusting with the security of this country, he made a point of mentioning the most recent lapse in security in the world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Our thoughts and our prayers go out to the people of India, the families that have been affected, and, obviously, we're heartbroken by the deaths of the six Americans that were caught up in this tragedy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: A little earlier, I asked Fareed Zakaria, host of CNN's "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS," and CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen about India's possible next step and what the U.S. might do to help India.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Fareed, let me start with you.

I know you think that the India government is going to face enormous pressure to strike back at Pakistan. You look at a potential conflict between these two nuclear powers in what is already a very troubled region.

Let's say you're advising Barack Obama. We heard him today, that there should be one president. But he's going to take office January 20. What do you tell him to do? It's not like this problem, generally, is going away.

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN WORLD AFFAIRS ANALYST: I think the United States actually could play a very important role here, because the United States has good relations with India and with Pakistan and with Afghanistan.

We're the only country actually that has good relations with all three of these countries. And the key here is to make them understand that they have to take a regional approach to this. That is to say, if each of them pursue their narrow parochial and national interests, if the Indians become anti-Pakistani because of this, the Pakistanis say, no, we didn't do it, you are not going to get anywhere. You're not going to find these people. You're not going to be able to deal with the problem of these terrorist groups, which are after all operating now in all three countries.

This is a perfect example of where the United States could play a crucial facilitating role in getting three countries to work together.

BROWN: And, Peter, the group that's the top suspect in this attack, the LET, you believe they're linked to al Qaeda. Where do they fit in, in terms of the overall picture on global terrorism right now? PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Well, an al Qaeda leader was arrested in Pakistan in an LET safe house, so there are some links.

The main point to make about Lashkar-e-Taiba, to give its full name, is that this is a very large organization. Hundreds of thousands of people turn up to its annual gathering. Sort of like Hezbollah, it has a terrorist wing, but also it has a sort of social welfare wing,schools.

So, this is not a small, minor terrorist group. And it's very -- going to be hard for the Pakistanis to claim that we didn't really know. But, you know, if it becomes clear that somehow Pakistan's military intelligence or even rogue elements were somehow involved in this attack, even if the Indian politicians are somewhat responsible and mature, they are going to have a huge amount of pressure from their public to do something.

Quite what that -- what exactly that will be remains to be seen. So, that's really the problem.

BROWN: So, how do you adjust? I mean, it's still -- even if they are a large organization, what we saw was a small group of people, low-tech weapons essentially involved in the attack. How do you adjust if you're fighting the war on terror and you're the Obama administration, and you're looking at this in terms of the big picture? How do you adjust your strategy?

BERGEN: Well, the big picture is, the United States, for historical reasons, has not put a lot of energy into trying to resolve the Kashmir dispute, which at the end of the day is what this is all about.

And both Obama and Hillary Clinton talked about perhaps a special envoy to the region. You could imagine somebody like Dick Holbrooke, who did such a good job bringing peace to the Balkans, being that special envoy, to put some real diplomatic energy. We put a lot of diplomatic energy into the Israeli/Palestinian dispute. We have done very little on the Kashmir dispute. So, that is, to me, the way forward.

BROWN: Do you agree with that? A special enjoy for the region, would that be a...

ZAKARIA: A special envoy for the region might be a very good idea, because there is a regional effort here that we need to coordinate. If you could just try to get some working agreement on the idea that none of these countries should be providing safe houses, should be providing training, should be providing funding for any of these terror groups, and try to work from there, from the ground up.

BROWN: And we have got to leave it there.

Many thanks to Fareed Zakaria and of course, Peter Bergen. Appreciate it, guys.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: And a reminder: Fareed covers the world every Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Eastern on "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS."

To look at Senator Hillary Clinton standing beside president- elect Obama today, you would think naming her to be secretary of state had been a piece of cake. But, to make a cake, you have got to break a few eggs. And we're going to explain.

And, then, later, Black Friday on the so-called blitz line at Wal-Mart, a stampede of bargain hunters and then tragedy. What really happened there? We have got new details.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Well, absolutely no one was surprised today when Hillary Clinton walked out onto that stage with Barack Obama as his pick for secretary of state. It was, after all, the biggest open secret in town.

But just because we knew it was coming doesn't mean it was all smooth sailing behind the scenes, in fact, far from it. It took negotiations like we have never seen before in American politics.

And Joe Johns is here with more on the give-and-take that put Obama's former rival into the top position at the State Department.

What happened?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, Campbell, if you're a political junkie, like I am, and you love to hear about old-fashioned wheeling and dealing, this story has it all, the story of how former rivals and a former president brokered an agreement to put Hillary Clinton on the world stage.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHNS (voice-over): We have known it was headed this way.

OBAMA: My dear friend, Hillary Clinton.

JOHNS: After all, for the last couple weeks, we have seen a weirdly public/private dance between the two Democratic rivals.

But how they got here is an exercise in diplomacy that can only be described as remarkable. It was managed by some of the most trusted advisers to the president-elect and the Clintons. The most extraordinary part of the negotiation involved former President Bill Clinton, whose complex web of business deals, fund-raising and charitable donations had to be untangled.

Bill Clinton agreed to nine conditions, and most for more than the law requires, including saying he would publish the names of more than 200,000 donors to his presidential library and foundation, saying he would distance himself from his Clinton Global Initiative, agreeing that the initiative, set up to battle things like poverty and global warming, will refuse money from foreign governments and stop holding meetings outside the U.S.

Bill Clinton also said he would allow the Obama administration to review his speeches, for which he's gotten as much as $425,000 an hour.

What he got was assurance that his wife would finally get her turn on the world stage. And, for both of them, it means the Clinton power couple is back.

STEPHEN HESS, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: I think in some ways this is a marvelous thing for Bill Clinton, as well, as well as for Obama. Bill Clinton is a major force in the world.

JOHNS: And so what did Barack Obama have to give up to get Hillary Clinton as secretary of state? Well, he had to agree to share the domestic and international spotlight with America's reigning king and queen of political drama.

He even agreed to allow Hillary Clinton to bring in her own people, which is a significant departure from the way presidents generally handle their appointments. For her part, Hillary Clinton gave up a safe seat in the Senate, no small concession. But what she got is much bigger, a place in the inner circle at a critical time, a place in history.

HESS: She can do things there that she couldn't do as one of 100 people in the United States Senate. That's the bargaining in her own that she must have gone through.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHNS: Now, a lot has been made about Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton constituting a team of rivals, but there is another way of looking in that.

Stephen Hess points out that, after the convention and the primaries, Senator Clinton really went to bat for Barack Obama, which may have helped put away any hard feelings. So, maybe, just maybe we're making too much of the rivalry.

BROWN: We shall see.

JOHNS: You bet.

BROWN: Joe Johns, for us tonight -- Joe, thanks. Appreciate it.

Coming up, now the fun starts. Will Hillary Clinton be a true team player in Barack Obama's Cabinet? Or is no-drama Obama in for some fireworks? We will talk about that, our panel standing by right now.

And, later, Sarah Palin back on the campaign trail. Is it a dress rehearsal for 2012?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GOV. SARAH PALIN (R), ALASKA: We are rebuilding the party. We recognize that there was frustration, there was some disappointment in the party. We're rebuilding the party.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I'm going to be welcoming a vigorous debate inside the White House.

But understand I will be setting policy as president. I will be responsible for the vision that this team carries out, and I expect them to implement that vision once decisions are made. So as Harry Truman said, the buck will stop with me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Yes. No, I'm not going to say it. Given the stunning overuse of the phrase by those of us in the media, "team of rivals" will henceforth be banned from this program, no more comparisons to Abe Lincoln during this hour, at least for the rest of the evening.

But let's do take a look at the full roster of Barack Obama's national security team, as we mentioned, announced today. The all- star, of course, is Hillary Clinton as secretary of state. Current Secretary of Defense Robert Gates was asked to stay on and remain in that role.

The next attorney general, Eric Holder, senior legal adviser to the Obama campaign and former deputy attorney general under Bill Clinton. Retired General James Jones, a former NATO supreme allied commander and Marine Corps commandant, gets the nod as national security adviser.

Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano will be the secretary of homeland security. And Obama senior foreign policy adviser Susan Rice was tapped as ambassador to the U.N.. So, team players all, even the secretary-of-state-to-be?

Well, our own political all-stars here to dig into that, Roland Martin, CNN political analyst and syndicated columnist and national radio commentator, Steve Hayes, CNN contributor and senior writer for "The Weekly Standard," and senior political correspondent Candy Crowley, who's covering the transition for us from windy, freezing Chicago, snowy Chicago, also.

(LAUGHTER)

BROWN: Candy, let me start with you.

Hillary Clinton now, of course, the face of Barack Obama's foreign policy. Publicly, at least, they always have to be in synch. How are they going to work together privately to make sure that happens? What kind of ground rules are they setting for this new relationship?

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Look, this is an evolving relationship. This isn't the end of the story: They have made up, and now they move on.

They're going to have to figure out how they work together. But, more than that, this is a whole team. She's the face of diplomacy, but the person with Obama's ear, the person inside the White House is his national security adviser, and that's retired General Jones. So you have him sort of trying to manage all these people with Gates and, you know, even at the U.N. and, of course, Hillary Clinton.

They clearly have gone into this with an understanding. First, Hillary Clinton got some of what she wanted, which is to bring on some staff, not all that unusual, but nonetheless something she wanted. We are told at least by those on the Clinton side of this equation that she will be able to talk to the president directly, as opposed to going through people. So that's a semblance of power there.

But honestly, when you look back at administrations, Campbell, over time, they've all kind of worked this out differently. Sometimes the secretary of state has the power, sometimes it's the national security adviser. So we'll watch this as it unfolds, and of course a big part of that equation is what is going to be their working relationship? But right now, both sides seem very happy with it, seem to at least respect one another if they haven't, you know, totally become cozy with one another.

CAMPBELL BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: And, Steve, a big part of this, though, is how it plays also to the rest of the world. "New York Times" columnist Tom Friedman very skeptical of the partnership, and he writes, "Every word that is said between them in public, every leak will be scrutinized for what it means politically and whether there's daylight between the two."

I mean, part of the concern, I think, and the point he's making is, you know, when leaders around the world, when she comes to see them, if they don't think that she and Obama are completely simpatico, then they're not going to take her seriously, diminishes her credibility abroad. I mean, does the baggage they have in this relationship doom it in a way from the start?

STEPHEN HAYES, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I'm not sure it dooms it, but I think it certainly complicates it. I mean, as Candy points out, when you look at the relationship there, there are still Clinton people. There are Hillary Clinton people, and you see this reported throughout the news media, you know, in the past two weeks.

Hillary Clinton's people are saying this. Barack Obama's people are saying this. I mean, Hillary Clinton's people have to all become Barack Obama's people, and I think a lot of the people that she is likely to bring with her have tremendous loyalty to Senator Clinton, and, you know, feel that loyalty to her first. The question will be whether she can sort of set that aside and work with him as it seemed like they were doing, at least in public, today. BROWN: Roland, you know, way back in the dark days of the campaign, Obama said that Hillary Clinton's foreign policy experience amounted basically to having tea parties with heads of state. I mean, does he really expect everybody to sort of forget that and pretend it never happened?

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Of course, just like she expects everyone to forget the comments that she said that all he simply did was give a speech that comes from the Iraq war. I mean, look, I think what is happening here, let's just be perfectly honest, we're putting so much attention on the role that she is going to play. I think the one person who is the most critical person he chose, a part of his national security team is Bob Gates, in terms of the personalities between those two.

I've talked to both these individuals. I know them well when Bob Gates was president of Texas A&M University. Trust me, I think Gates is going to be the most important player here, not Hillary Clinton in terms of the ability to talk about this whole foreign policy issue. I asked (ph) the general himself.

Sure, it's sexy and wonderful, and the whole drama between those two, but I don't necessarily think she is the linchpin to this entire national security team.

BROWN: Well, and there's one person we're not talking about here, but the fact is he was chosen in large part for his foreign policy experience, Candy, and that's Joe Biden.

CROWLEY: Absolutely, and this will be interesting to watch, because Joe Biden also came aboard because of his foreign policy experience. I mean, it's one of the things that they talked about before he accepted this position. So he is going to be a player in this.

This is not a man who sits around the table and is quiet. So there are all kinds of dynamics going on. If I could just pick up one thing that Roland just said, I actually think again the proximity is all here. And I think right now in the catbird seat in terms of, again, having the president-elect's ear, having the president's ear when they move in is retired General Jim Jones. So I think there are a lot of power plays here. I think Obama set this up exactly like this because he does want Biden and Clinton and Jones and Gates to mix it up, but he also made it very clear...

MARTIN: He's involved. Yes.

CROWLEY: ... and he's very confident in these choices, because, of course, he says, look, I'm the boss. I'll listen to him, but in the end this is my decision so he is extremely confident putting this team together.

BROWN: All right.

HAYES: But, Campbell -- Campbell, if I can make a quick point.

BROWN: Quickly, Steve. Go ahead.

HAYES: Yes. Remember George W. Bush said the same thing coming in when he had a roomful of big egos as well.

BROWN: Yes, a fair point.

To end on there, Steve, Roland and Candy, appreciate it, guys. Thanks very much.

You may have heard today, few analysts out there on television saying that holiday sales were better than expected on Black Friday. Well, not so fast, according to our Ali Velshi, anyway. When we come back, he's going to explain why all that shopping may not be jumpstarting the economy the way we thought, we had hoped it would.

And then a little bit later, the PDB. President Bush admits he wasn't prepared for war when he became president. So now he tells us.

Plus, a toddler who survived the Mumbai terror attacks arrived safely in Israel. His amazing rescue story in our "Bull's-Eye" tonight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: You may have heard that Black Friday, the start of the holiday shopping season, wasn't really so bad. Well, it wasn't that great either. And today, investors who had been hoping for better news sent Wall Street into an early tailspin. By the time it was over, the Dow industrials had lost nearly 700 points. It's breaking news tonight.

Chief business correspondent Ali Velshi here to explain why everybody is feeling so down. Ali, OK. So the other news, we should probably mention, the government finally realizes we're in a recession today or recognizes it. I shouldn't say realize it, what all of us have probably known for a while now.

ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Right.

BROWN: And then on top of that, we see this tumble in the Dow.

VELSHI: Yes.

BROWN: What's going on? Were they related or is this --

VELSHI: No. I don't think anybody sold the stock today because they heard it was a recession. I mean, really you should have known that going into this. We've lost jobs.

BROWN: Right.

VELSHI: We've seen a bad economy. What happens here is that so many people are having tough trouble getting credit, even companies are, investors rich and poor. So what happens is last week we saw such a strong rally in the market, the best in 75 years over the course of the week. Some people need their money out of the market because they can't get it elsewhere. So they wait for those rallies, and then they sell into them. That's sort of what we started seeing today. And then we were topped off with bad news, bad manufacturing news, bad economic news. Not a great surprise but when you have a market that's this skittish and this volatile, it's going to react to these things.

Last week we had announcements from President-elect Obama about his economic team. Well, they can't keep on announcing new people on his economic team. There wasn't any good news to offset the bad news today.

BROWN: And to that point, the holiday shopping figures came out and you heard...

VELSHI: Yes.

BROWN: ... I heard on television a couple of times mentioned today, that the numbers seemed positive.

VELSHI: Yes.

BROWN: But you said, wait a minute, reality check here. Maybe not so great.

VELSHI: It's a little naive to look at it as positive. Let me show you the numbers here.

We had an increase, probably about three percent over last year. I know we got them somewhere here. But we have a three percent increase over last year. If this doesn't work, walk. If I don't actually walk (INAUDIBLE).

BROWN: No, no, no. The wall won't change unless you're there making it change.

VELSHI: We had an increase, about three percent over last year. Now, last year's increase over the previous year was eight percent. So first of all, it was much smaller. This is just Black Friday weekend.

The average shopper actually spent more, $372 versus $347 last year. But here is the trick. The number of days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, only 27 days this year. Last year was 32 days and there's one full weekend less for shopping. So there's a sense that there was such an overwhelming sort of pent-up need to shop.

There were great big discounts. We're not sure those discounts can repeat themselves later in the year, later in the season. So it might be that you saw this front end loaded. You saw a lot of people spending now.

Remember, it's not just that people are caught up and not wanting to spend. As we discussed, people can't get credit. So I don't think you're going to see this -- this sort of follow through at the end of the year, Campbell. BROWN: All right. Ali, keep an eye on that wall, OK?

VELSHI: Yes.

BROWN: Ali Velshi for us tonight, as always.

BROWN: There is an important story related to all of this that hasn't gotten as much attention as it deserves because of so much other news.

Up next, we're going to tell you about the shoppers trample a man to death while rushing to pick up a bargain. New details on what is just an outrageous tragedy. That's when we come back.

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BROWN: So hands down, this is probably the worst story from the start of this year's holiday shopping season. It's the one of this Wal-Mart worker trampled to death by shoppers who literally broke down the front doors as the store opened. It happened on Black Friday in Valley Stream, Long Island, that's right outside of New York City.

And today, Wal-Mart is faced with one big question. How do they make sure something like this never happens again? And Randi Kaye is here with all the details on this horrible incident.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Horrible, horrible tragic story, Campbell.

Late this afternoon, investigators confirmed that the employees suffocated to death from pressure on his chest that came from shoppers stepping on him. Just imagine the force that took. The victim was 6'5", 270 pounds, a big guy, but even his size wasn't enough to fight back those holiday shoppers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE (voice-over): Nothing was going to get in the way of their bargains, not even this Wal-Mart worker, trampled to death by a mob of crazed shoppers before dawn Friday, as he tried to unlock the doors.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought everybody said it was fun to come on Black Friday and shop. I was looking for fun, not for this.

KAYE: 34-year-old Jdi Mytai D'Amour (ph) was a temporary worker at this Wal-Mart store on Long Island. This cell phone video shows emergency responders trying to save his life. But even with a man dying on the floor, shoppers just kept bargain hunting.

LT. MICHAEL FLEMING, NASSAU COUNTY, N.Y. POLICE DEPT: And it was several minutes before they were able to get the crowd pushed back enough to be able to render some aid.

KAYE (on camera): Police say hundreds of shoppers stepped on the victim. A dozen others were knocked down, including a woman eight months pregnant. It got so out of control workers jumped to safety on top of vending machines.

(voice-over): And even when shoppers were told someone was dead, they refused to go.

KIMBERLY GIBBS, SHOPPER: When they were saying that they had to leave, that somebody, an employee that killed, people were saying, I've been on line since yesterday morning.

KAYE: Psychiatrist Gail Saltz says even if shoppers knew they plowed someone down, they can convince themselves otherwise.

GAIL SALTZ, PSYCHIATRIST: We have great defense mechanisms in our mind. So when we don't want to believe something, we can use denial. We can, you know, we can kind of fudge it, have blinders on. You could potentially say to yourself I think I felt something, but no, probably I didn't. Mentally, a person could pretend it didn't happen.

KAYE: Police are examining the store's surveillance tape and considering charges against those who stepped on the employee. Investigators say they can make out faces on the tape.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Police now first have to establish recklessness. And if they do, the shoppers can be charged with anything from homicide to disorderly conduct or maybe even inciting a riot. And Wal-Mart could be charged, too, possibly.

Police say they had security inside the store, but Wal-Mart did not have security outside the store, Campbell. And that is where the crowd was gathering. That is where the control should have been.

BROWN: This is pretty unbelievable. We'll see what happens. Randi Kaye for us tonight. Randi, thanks.

Tonight, a rare instance of President Bush having second thoughts. With the end of his term in sight, the president opens up when asked, what were you most unprepared for? His answers coming up in our PDB.

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BROWN: "LARRY KING LIVE" just minutes away with tough talk in the economy and Hillary Clinton's new job in the Cabinet. Larry, what have you got tonight?

LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": Well, we know, Campbell, that the economy is bad. Is it getting worse? Are we headed for a depression?

What about Senator Hillary Clinton? President-elect Obama wants her as his secretary of state. What does she bring to the table? And can two former foes succeed on the same team? We're going to get into all of that with great guests next on "LARRY KING LIVE" -- Campbell.

BROWN: All right. Larry, we'll be watching. We'll see you in a few.

President Bush sent out invitations to a holiday party the other day. So what could possibly go wrong? Well, plenty.

Dana Milbank here with the 411 in our PDB, the "Political Daily Briefing." We're going to get to those holiday cards in a minute, Dana, but Barack Obama's transition under way. Throughout President Bush has been lying low, not saying a lot. He did sit down for a very rare interview with ABC News' Charlie Gibson. And I want to play an exchange from that interview. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, FROM ABC WORLD NEWS)

CHARLIE GIBSON, ABC WORLD NEWS ANCHOR: Let's talk a little bit about eight years as being president. What were you most unprepared for?

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I think I was unprepared for war. In other words, I didn't campaign and said, please vote for me, I'll be able to handle an attack. In other words, I didn't anticipate war. Presidents -- one of the things about the modern presidency is that the unexpected will happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So, Dana, there you have it. What do you think?

DANA MILBANK, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes. I think, Campbell, we can put this down in the "now he tells us" category. Remember a few years ago, he was asked any mistakes, any regrets. He was completely stumped, couldn't come up with one.

Well, in this interview, we had a veritable laundry list of them. He should have done something early on, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, wished he got that immigration legislation through, wished he'd changed the tone, wished he got the budget cuts through, real problem with the pre-war intelligence and some doubts about the war itself. But fortunately, this point east still sticking by his choice in the first lady.

BROWN: I will think, yes, a fair point there. I will say an interesting interview though, because he is being far more forthcoming than I think he has been certainly in previous interviews. Anyway, the Bushes still, of course, in the White House, planning for the holidays. And a bit of kerfuffle about the White House's Hanukkah party invitation this year.

MILBANK: Yes. It was for their annual Hanukkah party and it came out. Perhaps it wasn't exactly the Christian thing to do or it's too much of the Christian thing to do. But at any rate, people received their invitations to the Hanukkah party, and on the cover was a Clydesdale carrying a Christmas tree through the snow.

The White House said this was a staff mistake, sent out new ones that arrived today with an actual Menorah on it. I think they should go even further though. Send out the actual Christmas invitations with the picture on the front of Judah Maccabee fighting the Syrians, and I think that would set everything even.

BROWN: There you go. Perfect. You're right. Equalize all things.

All right. Dana Milbank for us tonight. Dana, thanks.

MILBANK: Thanks, Campbell.

BROWN: Coming up, Sarah Palin has Georgia on her mind. Officially, she is campaigning for Saxby Chambliss in his Senate runoff vote. Unofficially, could it be a rehearsal for the White House run in 2012?

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BROWN: It must be pretty darn cold right now up in Alaska, but I don't think that's why Sarah Palin was back in the Lower 48 today. The Alaska governor was down in Georgia. She was stumping for the Republican incumbent in tomorrow's special Senate election, and trailing her, our very own Gary Tuchman. He's also in Georgia for us tonight.

And, Gary, I'll bet you didn't think you'd be back covering Sarah Palin quite so soon. But there she was in Georgia campaigning for Saxby Chambliss, still, of course, drawing huge crowds.

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Campbell, there are four rallies across the state of Georgia today, and Saxby Chambliss was literally the warm-up act for his own rally. He spoke probably two to four minutes in each of the four rallies.

Sarah Palin spoke for much longer. She electrified the crowd. Lots of people chanting "Palin 2012, Palin 2012." And the crowds were large, much larger than a normal Senate rally. Now we should mention that John McCain and Rudy Giuliani have campaigned also for Saxby Chambliss, but it's notable that Sarah Palin was the big gun brought in the day before the runoff election.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. SARAH PALIN (R), ALASKA: I have had Georgia on my mind. And I am not the only one. Believe me, the rest of America is watching Georgia.

They're looking to see what direction our nation will take, and tomorrow what happens in Georgia, it's going to be absolutely instrumental the vote that's taken tomorrow in determining the direction that our nation takes. We need checks and balances in Washington, D.C. Reelecting Saxby will provide the checks and balances that are needed for our democracy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TUCHMAN: Sarah Palin talked about Georgia a lot on the vice presidential campaign trail, but that was the Georgia with Tbilisi as its capital. Today, it was all Georgia with Atlanta as its capital -- Campbell.

BROWN: And, Gary, you know, Democrats in Alaska have been pretty critical of her for spending too much time out on the road campaigning, arguing she needs to get back to Alaska and back to work. How is she responding to that?

TUCHMAN: That's right. Today, Alaska's Democratic party chairwoman said that Sarah Palin has been away too long and that she's not doing her business, because she's gone away from Alaska so much. However, her press spokesperson says Sarah Palin has only been away five days since Election Day. All the work is being done.

I will tell you, Campbell, that one thing we heard a lot from people today at these rallies is if Sarah Palin decided to move to the state of Georgia, they'd vote for her for U.S. senator from the state.

BROWN: All right. Gary Tuchman tonight. Gary, thanks.

Still to come, a bittersweet "Bull's-Eye," the tale of one very young life.

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BROWN: Finally tonight, our "Bull's-Eye." We have seen and heard dozens of stories from survivors of the Mumbai terror attacks. They're all compelling. Some are harrowing, but the one topping them all is the story of a nanny who saved a 2-year-old's life. And we asked Drew Griffin to tell us this incredible story tonight.

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DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIVE UNIT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This scene came just moments after the attack Wednesday. An Indian nanny named Sandra Samuel is clutching a baby boy whose parents had just been murdered.

2-year-old Moshe Holtzberg crying, but unhurt. The terrorists killed his parents, Rabbi Gabriel Holtzberg and his mother Rivka, and four others. According to a family spokesman, it was the quick- thinking nanny in the moments of the attack who acted to save herself, then the child.

ROBERT KATZ, EXECUTIVE DIR. & V.P. MIGDAL OHR: The siege upon the Chabad House began. The nanny locked all the doors when she heard the commotion and went to hide. They broke into the house, and she heard them running upstairs. And she heard Mrs. Holtzberg, Rivka, screaming Sandra, Sandra, help. Sandra.

GRIFFIN: The gunmen reportedly were going room to room searching for targets. Samuel unlocked her door, and according to Katz, dared the terrorists to stop her.

KATZ: Sandra, the nanny, came out of her hiding place, ran upstairs right away to where rabbi and Mrs. Holtzberg were, and found them shot dead in cold blood. The baby was standing there, screaming hysterical, crying, and she literally picked him up and made a dash for the exits, almost daring the terrorists to shoot her while carrying a baby.

GRIFFIN: With both parents gone, his grandparents are now caring for the toddler, but eventually his great-uncle is expected to take over. He is Rabbi Yitzchak Grossman, and he founded the Migdal Ohr orphanage. It is said to be the largest Jewish orphanage in the world. Seven thousand children live at the orphanage's 100-acre compound in northern Israel. And soon, one more.

Drew Griffin, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: And that is all from us tonight.

"LARRY KING LIVE" starts right now.