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U.S. Troops in Iraq to Increase for Elections; Bush Thanks Canadians for 9/11 Help; Shots Fired While Powell Makes Haiti Visit
Aired December 01, 2004 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: More American troops being sent to Iraq. New information coming out of the Pentagon. We'll have a live report.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you for your kindness to America in an hour of need.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CO-HOST: A belated thank you for post-9/11 help in Canada and a plea for more help in the worldwide fight against terror. We're LIVE FROM Halifax, Nova Scotia.
PHILLIPS: Securing the homeland. With Tom Ridge on the way out, what challenges will his replacement have in protecting America from terror?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. DON MEREDITH, GLENDALE POLICE: The bus driver apparently doesn't see that her hand is stuck and pulls away from the bus stop, dragging the female for a few feet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: A bus passenger's wild ride caught on tape. Wait until you hear what happened next.
WHITFIELD: From the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Miles O'Brien.
PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.
WHITFIELD: Up first this hour, more troops to Iraq, and longer tours for many troops already there. We get the latest of these breaking details from CNN Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre, at the Pentagon -- Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, an announcement is scheduled for later this afternoon, but CNN has confirmed that 1,500 soldiers from the Army's 82rd Airborne Division in Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, will be dispatched to Iraq over the next couple of weeks. The intent, to shore up security for the upcoming January 30 elections in Iraq. These deployments of fresh troops, along with the extension of several thousand troops that are already in Iraq, will bring U.S. troop levels in Iraq from what they are now, approximately 140,000, up to 150,000, by January.
Troops that will be extended include soldiers from the Army's 1st Cavalry Division and Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit.
The goal of these extensions is to still keep the deployments to less than one year on the ground in Iraq, and the intention is to begin to draw down troops again after the elections in January. But that will entirely depend on the security situation on the ground.
The orders for these 82rd Airborne troop call for their deployment to last no longer than 120 days, about four months. So it should be a short deployment for them.
These are the same troops, by the way, or troops from the same unit that were also sent to Afghanistan during their elections, in order to beef up security for them.
So again, a temporary plus-up of troops to coincide with the elections will bring U.S. troop levels up about 10,000 troops over the next months -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Well, Jamie, this is being called temporary deployment for many of these troops. Does this speak of the administration's confidence that the elections will take place as scheduled on January 30?
MCINTYRE: Well, they are counting on those elections taking place. I think to some extent it also reflects the concerns about the level of training capabilities and the numbers of Iraqi forces.
Remember, the deployment of additional U.S. forces was contingent on how many Iraqi troops. The Pentagon still believes the long-term solution to the security problem in Iraq is for Iraqi troops to take over.
And although they performed well in the operation in Falluja, there are still questions about their overall capability. The belief, the decision at the Pentagon, is that they need more, well-trained, well-equipped U.S. troops to help with the security.
WHITFIELD: All right. Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon, thanks so much -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, thanks, neighbor. Three years and almost three months after more than 200 airliners were diverted north of the border when U.S. airspace was suddenly closed, President Bush is thanking Canada for its hospitality.
As you may have seen live here on CNN, Mr. Bush went to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to remember the flip side of 9/11: the kindness of strangers who opened their homes to stranded Americans.
His first official Canadian visit comes at a turning point in U.S. homeland security efforts.
We get all that and more from CNN's John King. He's in the chilly Maritimes.
Hi, John.
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Kyra.
That thank-you comes as part of a fence-mending effort by President Bush heading into his second term, trying to repair relations with Canada and other countries who opposed him when it came to the war in Iraq and on many other issues.
The president here in Halifax today, delivering a speech to the Canadian people, in part to say thank you for their kindness, their gestures of kindness after 9/11. Also to make clear that, yes, there are sometimes disagreements in what the president called the family, but that he believes Canada and the United States must continue to have a very close and strong economic and security alliance.
Now in promising a more conciliatory tone, the president said a new term, for example, offers new opportunities to reach out and restore relations with friends.
The president sounded conciliatory, but also not backing down at all on his decision to go to war in Iraq and on other foreign policy moves, that many around the world have opposed.
The president for example, saying that yes, he's always willing to first go to the United Nations and to other international organizations. But he says if other countries think he needs to have more multilaterals -- multilateral diplomacy, then they must make sure that those organizations, when they make a decision, that you have results, not just meetings.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: The success of multilateralism is measured not merely by following a process, but by achieving results. The objective of the U.N. and other institutions must be collective security, not endless debate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Now in trying to mend relations with Canada, the president, as I noted, also saying thank you. Some 33,000 Americans were stranded here in Canada in the hours after 9/11, because U.S. air space, of course, was closed after the terrorist attacks.
Mr. Bush saying Canadians fed those Americans, offered them the use of their telephones to call their loved ones, opened their churches and their homes and asked for nothing in return. The president saying that proof of the ties that bind the two countries, despite their occasional disagreements over things like Iraq and trade dispute. And as the president tries to sound a new note in this relationship, he's saying thank you on the one hand, also trying a little humor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: I look forward to a successful working partnership between our two countries. Paul and I share a great vision for the future: two prosperous, independent nations, joined together by the return of NHL hockey.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Laughter there from the president's audience. His reference there to the Canadian prime minister, Paul Martin. One reason the White House is optimist this relationship is already on a better footing, is that Mr. Bush has a much better personal relationship with the new prime minister, Paul Martin, than he did with his predecessor, Jean Chretien -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Yes, quite a difference. John King, thank you so much.
And as he has many times post-September 11, the president today called homeland security the No. 1 duty of his office or that of any nation's leader. The stakes, then, couldn't be higher as he contemplates a new secretary for the vast and complex Homeland Security Department.
We get some thoughts on that from CNN military analyst Ken Robinson. He's in Washington.
Ken, good to see you.
KEN ROBINSON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Hi, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. So we look at the Department of Homeland Security. It's brand-new, since 9/11. People want things to happen quickly and for it to get moving and to be perfect.
But if you look at the Department of Defense, I mean it took decades to get that running in a way that was organized, and making a difference, militarily.
ROBINSON: It took 50 years. And the Defense Reorganization Act, which was -- had in 1987, really was the first time that they were able to organize effectively with a joint staff system, with a powerful chairman, who was able to convey and control forces at sea and at land.
The issue that Governor Ridge faced was similar to taking, I think, 22 cats, putting leashes on them, and trying to walk them through a dog pound. Because these 22 departments and agencies at many times have not played well together. And so he did a Herculean task, in at least reorganizing for the first time, one of the largest reorganizations since World War II. PHILLIPS: But can we afford to take our time in perfecting this department, considering the threat of terror in our homeland now?
ROBINSON: Well, we have to. We've got no choice. The issue for the country right now, and for the next head of homeland security, is one of budget and one of authority and one of access to the president.
One of the things that's occurred is there's been many mandates which have been put out for homeland security, but many of these are unfunded. In that in the out years, we don't know yet where that money's going to come from.
Another issue is that the critical infrastructure in this country, much of it is in the private sector. And so you can't rule by decree with the private sector. Sometimes you have to cajole. Sometimes you have to work in concert with them, and that's proven difficult so far in the last four years.
PHILLIPS: Well, talking about proving difficult, you talk about where's the money going to come from, budget-wise, but how about where is the money going to go?
There was so much controversy about the grants that Tom Ridge granted to certain states, certain cities, fire departments, police departments, some getting more than others, other area -- why did a small city get more money when it wasn't necessarily a dangerous area or a threat of terrorists, versus another area? I mean, this is going to be a tough thing for the new secretary to tackle.
ROBINSON: Well, this goes to the heart of the relationship issue that I made, and that is, he's also going to have to have -- he or she is going to have to have a strong relationship with Congress, because a lot of those grant issues that go to the state and local governments need to be validated.
Like you say, there's 120 large cities which are considered the highest threat, and then there are smaller cities. And it does not make sense to treat each of them as equals, when there's a city out in the middle of the heartland that does not have large populations that are at risk.
So the relationship with Congress and how that money is allocated is going to be crucial in the next four years.
PHILLIPS: All right. Now, let's hit on intelligence. You've got this national intelligence director. And then you have the Department of Homeland Security. Will those two come together? Will they be separate entities? I'm guessing that intelligence is going to be a tough issue for the new secretary to tackle.
ROBINSON: Well, everyone is holding their breath right now, trying to see what is going to happen in the Congress in the next week in regards to the national intelligence director and having some legislation that the president is willing to sign. Because the issue plays into one of the critical players in homeland defense, is the Department of Defense. The Department of Defense is a second tier player in the homeland because it has force projection. It has the ability to take the chemical, biological incident response force in case of a chem/bio attack. It has the ability to project power with its aircraft to be able to get to an area that's affected by an attack to help first responders.
And the intelligence requirements of the Department of Defense is now impacted by the national intelligence director decision, where billions of dollars in budget are going to be moved to -- allegedly to this new director, and there's unintended consequences that may occur with that.
And so the devil is really in the detail of how that's done. And right now, this rubber-stamping of the 9/11 Commission's recommendations is not a good thing. There needs to be a slowdown. Most professionals agree that there needs to be change. But they need to slow it down a bit.
PHILLIPS: Military analyst Ken Robinson, thanks so much.
ROBINSON: Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Fred.
WHITFIELD: Well, the outgoing U.S. secretary of state is spending a few hours in Haiti, where a brief burst of gunfire prompted a sudden change of venue.
CNN's Andrea Koppel has the latest on that.
And do we know yet, Andrea, who the shooters, or what the shooters may have been targeting?
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We've spoken with one administration official, Fredricka, who has been fully briefed on what happened in Port-au-Prince, in Haiti's capital.
And this is what this official has told CNN, that the U.S. believes that there were anywhere from two to five gunmen who were ringing the national palace that you see right there, in the Haitian capital, and that they were exchanging gunfire at various locations around the palace.
The U.S. believes that these individuals may have been supporters of the now deposed president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, and that it was an attempt not really to try to hurt Secretary of State Powell, who was inside the national palace at the time meeting with Haiti's interim leaders, but rather to try to grab the media spotlight, which is focused on Haiti right now, now that Powell is in the capital, and to try to show the world -- they want to show the world that things are not better in Haiti now that Aristide has left, that the situation on the ground is still unstable.
The last time Secretary Powell was in Haiti's capital -- you're looking at it right there -- was back in April, about five weeks after Aristide was, he claims, removed forcibly from power. What the U.S. says is that he voluntarily left the country.
But the bottom line is things in Haiti, some U.S. officials say, have been getting a little better in recent weeks. But it's still an incredibly poor, an incredibly difficult country for the millions of Haitians who are trying to get by on $1 a day.
There are supposed to be elections that will be held about a year from now, Fredricka. And the purpose of Secretary Powell's visit was to try to lend support to the democratic process, to also be there on World AIDS Day.
But the U.S. was very concerned about security. Powell was supposed to travel there in October. The visit was canceled, because they felt the situation on the ground was unstable.
And this trip, Fredricka, was just slipped in, really, at the last minute, out of fears of security on the ground in Haiti. But we can tell you everything is fine and Secretary Powell's meetings have been moved to another location and they say that they're going to proceed as planned -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Andrea Koppel, thanks so much, from the State Department in Washington -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: A New York firehouse is a makeshift shrine today for a hero of 9/11 who was killed this week in Iraq. Thirty-nine-year-old Christian Engledrum was a member of Ladder Company 61 in the Bronx and a sergeant with the Army National Guard. In his younger days, he spent five years as a full-time soldier and was a cop before he joined FDNY.
His comrades call him a rock.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was like the core of the house. He was a person who you could rely upon, who you could gather around and feel strength, get strength from.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The thing that made him a good soldier also made him a good firefighter. He was very outgoing, very brave, always thought of everybody else. He was just an all-around great guy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: The department says that Engledrum helped raise the first flag over Ground Zero and spent months digging through the rubble. He's the first New York firefighter to die in the war in Iraq.
WHITFIELD: Private First Class Lynndie England is back in the military court at Fort Bragg today, disowning some of her own remarks about prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib.
Among the motions being heard ahead of the court-martial proceedings next month is a bid to throw out England's initial answers to investigator's questions. Among them, her belief that reservists who abused and humiliated Iraqis were, quote, "joking around, having some fun."
The M.P. and new mother could face 38 years in prison if convicted.
PHILLIPS: A passenger tries to get off the bus but doesn't quite make it when her arm gets stuck in the door. Scary moments caught on tape, just ahead on LIVE FROM.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rusty Dornin in Redwood City, California. Big surprise in the courtroom as Mark Geragos takes a back seat. The defense begins the penalty phase. More coming up.
PHILLIPS: And later on LIVE FROM, if you're feeling stressed out, there's now medical proof you could be taking years off your life. Relax and stick around for that story, a little later on LIVE FROM.
ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: The appearances were brief, but powerful, as four of Laci Peterson's family members took to the stand yesterday in the penalty phase of the Scott Peterson trial.
Today, it's the defense team's turn to present their case as they try to persuade jurors to spare Scott Peterson from the death penalty.
CNN's Rusty Dornin is in Redwood City with more on the hurtles of the defense team.
And Rusty, it is certainly going to be difficult for the defense to proceed, especially after hearing the tearful words from Laci's mother yesterday on the stand.
DORNIN: Absolutely. The battle has begun, however, to try and save Scott Peterson's life.
And leading the charge is not defense attorney Mark Geragos, but his co-counsel, Pat Harris, who stood up and in a very soft voice talked to jurors about the Scott Peterson they didn't know.
He says, "You might have heard all the bad things about this man over the past five months, but what you haven't heard are the 30 years proceeding that, that he was a kind and generous person, someone who always thought of others before himself."
He told the jury they're going to be hearing from many witnesses, including family and friends, former employers, college roommates, a golf coach, one of the college professors who said Scott Peterson truly stood out among his students at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.
And he said this is a life worth saving, that the decision they were going to make in terms of Scott Peterson's life was a decision they were going to have to live with for the rest of their lives.
Wrapping that up, Lee Peterson, Scott's father, on the stand right now. The defense said they will start with Peterson's father and then wrap up with his mother, Jackie Peterson.
And these are not going to be short interviews. Lee Peterson's been on the stand for about a half hour. And they've strictly been talking about his own history, when he was born, where he was born, what his parents were like, just trying to get the idea that a life is very complex, a life is worth saving.
So we're looking at least a couple of days. Sources tell CNN that Geragos expects to go into at least Friday with apparently numerous witnesses -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And Rusty, if you look at just California history, doesn't it already establish that even if Scott Peterson were to get the death penalty, it's almost tantamount to getting life, because so few people are put to death?
DORNIN: So few -- well, there's still people who are put to death and also, it means 10 to 20 years of appeals and appeals. And every time those things are appealed there is the possibility that the conviction can be overturned. And of course, appeals are mandatory in California if he is sentenced to death. Immediately it would go to the Supreme Court.
WHITFIELD: All right. Rusty Dornin in Redwood City, thanks so much --Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Heart wrenching details are emerging in the crash of a corporate jet that killed three people, including the 14-year-old son of NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol. Ebersol suffered serious chest fractures. Another son, Charles, was also hurt.
The jet veered off the runway while taking off in snowy weather.
Now, in "USA Today," NBC chairman Bob Wright praised Charles' courageous attempts to rescue both his father and his little brother. Wright says that Charles dragged Dick out of the snow and tried to go back to look for his brother. And as it turns out, his brother was not on the plane. He was in the area of the plane that collapsed, and he was under it.
Wright goes on to say that, "Charlie was very heroic. His father is a big man, and he was pinned down in that aircraft. Charlie was able to get him up and out of that plane as it was burning. It's a very incredible story."
WHITFIELD: Well, now to the horrifying moments aboard a Los Angeles area bus captured on video. For the first time, we're seeing what happened when an 83-year-old woman was caught in the door as she tried to exit and then she was dragged.
Reporter Paul Dandridge from CNN affiliate KCAL with an update on the victim's condition and charges fro the bus driver. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL DANDRIDGE, KCAL REPORTER (voice-over): Eighty-three-year- old Kyung Ja Oh of Glendale, in the checkered jacket, is getting off the bus, the B Line service, getting off at Glendale Avenue, south of Broadway.
The driver checks the rearview mirror, does not look over at the front door. The woman's hand is clearly trapped. The driver takes off.
The on-board cameras capture the accident. The second camera catches her being dragged. She disappeared. She is hit by the bus. It's the passengers who first realize there's been an accident.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was that? Oh, my God!
MEREDITH: She steps off the bus. Her hand gets stuck in the door as the door closes. The bus driver apparently doesn't see that her hand's stuck and pulls away from the bus stop, dragging the female for a few feet before the female falls under the wheels of the bus and gets run over.
DANDRIDGE (on camera): The bus driver's view is not obstructed. If she looks over, she could have seen the hand of that woman?
MEREDITH: Correct. She checks her rear view mirrors, but she does not check the door. Had she checked the door, she may have seen the hand in the door. Because the hand is clearly visible.
DANDRIDGE (voice-over): Kyung Ja Oh is still hospitalized. Initially in critical condition, she is now expected to recover.
The bus company says the driver, 51-year-old Deborah York, has been put on unpaid leave. Her union says she has been fired and has no desire to ever drive a bus again.
Police say York was checked out for drugs and alcohol. She was not under the influence. She now faces the equivalent of a traffic ticket.
MEREDITH: The original charge would be unsafe start, which would be an infraction of the vehicle code. In the event the passenger were to pass away, then it would be a possible charge of manslaughter. But at this time, the passenger is stable and recovering, so we're optimistic she'll make a recovery.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And the victim suffered broken legs and cuts from that accident.
In other news across America, they said it wouldn't last and they were right. The princess and the Marine whose romantic tale spawned a TV movie have called it quits after five years. Former U.S. Marine Jason Johnson and the woman from Bahrain's royal family are getting a divorce.
Did celebrity snapper Annie Liebowitz have an ancestor in Abe Lincoln's day? Well, this photo of the former president is considered unique, because it caught him in a casual, seated pose. That may account for the record high price it fetched at action, 85,000 bucks.
And finally, talk amongst yourselves for a moment. Some very verklempt moments on "The Today Show" this morning as retiring anchor Tom Brokaw choked back a sob while bidding farewell. He spent more than two decades in that NBC anchor chair.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Next on LIVE FROM...
ALEX TREBEK, HOST, "JEOPARDY": He winds up in second place with...
PHILLIPS: ... the "Jeopardy" king dethroned. And these people are thrilled.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm ecstatic.
PHILLIPS: Find out why his loss is their gain.
Later on LIVE FROM, it's America's first English language television channel by and for Muslims. We'll talk with the founder of Bridges TV.
Tomorrow on LIVE FROM, does the boss have a right to spy on you? What you can and can't do to keep the prying eyes off your e-mail and out of your computer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired December 1, 2004 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: More American troops being sent to Iraq. New information coming out of the Pentagon. We'll have a live report.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you for your kindness to America in an hour of need.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CO-HOST: A belated thank you for post-9/11 help in Canada and a plea for more help in the worldwide fight against terror. We're LIVE FROM Halifax, Nova Scotia.
PHILLIPS: Securing the homeland. With Tom Ridge on the way out, what challenges will his replacement have in protecting America from terror?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. DON MEREDITH, GLENDALE POLICE: The bus driver apparently doesn't see that her hand is stuck and pulls away from the bus stop, dragging the female for a few feet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: A bus passenger's wild ride caught on tape. Wait until you hear what happened next.
WHITFIELD: From the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Miles O'Brien.
PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.
WHITFIELD: Up first this hour, more troops to Iraq, and longer tours for many troops already there. We get the latest of these breaking details from CNN Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre, at the Pentagon -- Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, an announcement is scheduled for later this afternoon, but CNN has confirmed that 1,500 soldiers from the Army's 82rd Airborne Division in Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, will be dispatched to Iraq over the next couple of weeks. The intent, to shore up security for the upcoming January 30 elections in Iraq. These deployments of fresh troops, along with the extension of several thousand troops that are already in Iraq, will bring U.S. troop levels in Iraq from what they are now, approximately 140,000, up to 150,000, by January.
Troops that will be extended include soldiers from the Army's 1st Cavalry Division and Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit.
The goal of these extensions is to still keep the deployments to less than one year on the ground in Iraq, and the intention is to begin to draw down troops again after the elections in January. But that will entirely depend on the security situation on the ground.
The orders for these 82rd Airborne troop call for their deployment to last no longer than 120 days, about four months. So it should be a short deployment for them.
These are the same troops, by the way, or troops from the same unit that were also sent to Afghanistan during their elections, in order to beef up security for them.
So again, a temporary plus-up of troops to coincide with the elections will bring U.S. troop levels up about 10,000 troops over the next months -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Well, Jamie, this is being called temporary deployment for many of these troops. Does this speak of the administration's confidence that the elections will take place as scheduled on January 30?
MCINTYRE: Well, they are counting on those elections taking place. I think to some extent it also reflects the concerns about the level of training capabilities and the numbers of Iraqi forces.
Remember, the deployment of additional U.S. forces was contingent on how many Iraqi troops. The Pentagon still believes the long-term solution to the security problem in Iraq is for Iraqi troops to take over.
And although they performed well in the operation in Falluja, there are still questions about their overall capability. The belief, the decision at the Pentagon, is that they need more, well-trained, well-equipped U.S. troops to help with the security.
WHITFIELD: All right. Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon, thanks so much -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, thanks, neighbor. Three years and almost three months after more than 200 airliners were diverted north of the border when U.S. airspace was suddenly closed, President Bush is thanking Canada for its hospitality.
As you may have seen live here on CNN, Mr. Bush went to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to remember the flip side of 9/11: the kindness of strangers who opened their homes to stranded Americans.
His first official Canadian visit comes at a turning point in U.S. homeland security efforts.
We get all that and more from CNN's John King. He's in the chilly Maritimes.
Hi, John.
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Kyra.
That thank-you comes as part of a fence-mending effort by President Bush heading into his second term, trying to repair relations with Canada and other countries who opposed him when it came to the war in Iraq and on many other issues.
The president here in Halifax today, delivering a speech to the Canadian people, in part to say thank you for their kindness, their gestures of kindness after 9/11. Also to make clear that, yes, there are sometimes disagreements in what the president called the family, but that he believes Canada and the United States must continue to have a very close and strong economic and security alliance.
Now in promising a more conciliatory tone, the president said a new term, for example, offers new opportunities to reach out and restore relations with friends.
The president sounded conciliatory, but also not backing down at all on his decision to go to war in Iraq and on other foreign policy moves, that many around the world have opposed.
The president for example, saying that yes, he's always willing to first go to the United Nations and to other international organizations. But he says if other countries think he needs to have more multilaterals -- multilateral diplomacy, then they must make sure that those organizations, when they make a decision, that you have results, not just meetings.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: The success of multilateralism is measured not merely by following a process, but by achieving results. The objective of the U.N. and other institutions must be collective security, not endless debate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Now in trying to mend relations with Canada, the president, as I noted, also saying thank you. Some 33,000 Americans were stranded here in Canada in the hours after 9/11, because U.S. air space, of course, was closed after the terrorist attacks.
Mr. Bush saying Canadians fed those Americans, offered them the use of their telephones to call their loved ones, opened their churches and their homes and asked for nothing in return. The president saying that proof of the ties that bind the two countries, despite their occasional disagreements over things like Iraq and trade dispute. And as the president tries to sound a new note in this relationship, he's saying thank you on the one hand, also trying a little humor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: I look forward to a successful working partnership between our two countries. Paul and I share a great vision for the future: two prosperous, independent nations, joined together by the return of NHL hockey.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Laughter there from the president's audience. His reference there to the Canadian prime minister, Paul Martin. One reason the White House is optimist this relationship is already on a better footing, is that Mr. Bush has a much better personal relationship with the new prime minister, Paul Martin, than he did with his predecessor, Jean Chretien -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Yes, quite a difference. John King, thank you so much.
And as he has many times post-September 11, the president today called homeland security the No. 1 duty of his office or that of any nation's leader. The stakes, then, couldn't be higher as he contemplates a new secretary for the vast and complex Homeland Security Department.
We get some thoughts on that from CNN military analyst Ken Robinson. He's in Washington.
Ken, good to see you.
KEN ROBINSON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Hi, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. So we look at the Department of Homeland Security. It's brand-new, since 9/11. People want things to happen quickly and for it to get moving and to be perfect.
But if you look at the Department of Defense, I mean it took decades to get that running in a way that was organized, and making a difference, militarily.
ROBINSON: It took 50 years. And the Defense Reorganization Act, which was -- had in 1987, really was the first time that they were able to organize effectively with a joint staff system, with a powerful chairman, who was able to convey and control forces at sea and at land.
The issue that Governor Ridge faced was similar to taking, I think, 22 cats, putting leashes on them, and trying to walk them through a dog pound. Because these 22 departments and agencies at many times have not played well together. And so he did a Herculean task, in at least reorganizing for the first time, one of the largest reorganizations since World War II. PHILLIPS: But can we afford to take our time in perfecting this department, considering the threat of terror in our homeland now?
ROBINSON: Well, we have to. We've got no choice. The issue for the country right now, and for the next head of homeland security, is one of budget and one of authority and one of access to the president.
One of the things that's occurred is there's been many mandates which have been put out for homeland security, but many of these are unfunded. In that in the out years, we don't know yet where that money's going to come from.
Another issue is that the critical infrastructure in this country, much of it is in the private sector. And so you can't rule by decree with the private sector. Sometimes you have to cajole. Sometimes you have to work in concert with them, and that's proven difficult so far in the last four years.
PHILLIPS: Well, talking about proving difficult, you talk about where's the money going to come from, budget-wise, but how about where is the money going to go?
There was so much controversy about the grants that Tom Ridge granted to certain states, certain cities, fire departments, police departments, some getting more than others, other area -- why did a small city get more money when it wasn't necessarily a dangerous area or a threat of terrorists, versus another area? I mean, this is going to be a tough thing for the new secretary to tackle.
ROBINSON: Well, this goes to the heart of the relationship issue that I made, and that is, he's also going to have to have -- he or she is going to have to have a strong relationship with Congress, because a lot of those grant issues that go to the state and local governments need to be validated.
Like you say, there's 120 large cities which are considered the highest threat, and then there are smaller cities. And it does not make sense to treat each of them as equals, when there's a city out in the middle of the heartland that does not have large populations that are at risk.
So the relationship with Congress and how that money is allocated is going to be crucial in the next four years.
PHILLIPS: All right. Now, let's hit on intelligence. You've got this national intelligence director. And then you have the Department of Homeland Security. Will those two come together? Will they be separate entities? I'm guessing that intelligence is going to be a tough issue for the new secretary to tackle.
ROBINSON: Well, everyone is holding their breath right now, trying to see what is going to happen in the Congress in the next week in regards to the national intelligence director and having some legislation that the president is willing to sign. Because the issue plays into one of the critical players in homeland defense, is the Department of Defense. The Department of Defense is a second tier player in the homeland because it has force projection. It has the ability to take the chemical, biological incident response force in case of a chem/bio attack. It has the ability to project power with its aircraft to be able to get to an area that's affected by an attack to help first responders.
And the intelligence requirements of the Department of Defense is now impacted by the national intelligence director decision, where billions of dollars in budget are going to be moved to -- allegedly to this new director, and there's unintended consequences that may occur with that.
And so the devil is really in the detail of how that's done. And right now, this rubber-stamping of the 9/11 Commission's recommendations is not a good thing. There needs to be a slowdown. Most professionals agree that there needs to be change. But they need to slow it down a bit.
PHILLIPS: Military analyst Ken Robinson, thanks so much.
ROBINSON: Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Fred.
WHITFIELD: Well, the outgoing U.S. secretary of state is spending a few hours in Haiti, where a brief burst of gunfire prompted a sudden change of venue.
CNN's Andrea Koppel has the latest on that.
And do we know yet, Andrea, who the shooters, or what the shooters may have been targeting?
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We've spoken with one administration official, Fredricka, who has been fully briefed on what happened in Port-au-Prince, in Haiti's capital.
And this is what this official has told CNN, that the U.S. believes that there were anywhere from two to five gunmen who were ringing the national palace that you see right there, in the Haitian capital, and that they were exchanging gunfire at various locations around the palace.
The U.S. believes that these individuals may have been supporters of the now deposed president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, and that it was an attempt not really to try to hurt Secretary of State Powell, who was inside the national palace at the time meeting with Haiti's interim leaders, but rather to try to grab the media spotlight, which is focused on Haiti right now, now that Powell is in the capital, and to try to show the world -- they want to show the world that things are not better in Haiti now that Aristide has left, that the situation on the ground is still unstable.
The last time Secretary Powell was in Haiti's capital -- you're looking at it right there -- was back in April, about five weeks after Aristide was, he claims, removed forcibly from power. What the U.S. says is that he voluntarily left the country.
But the bottom line is things in Haiti, some U.S. officials say, have been getting a little better in recent weeks. But it's still an incredibly poor, an incredibly difficult country for the millions of Haitians who are trying to get by on $1 a day.
There are supposed to be elections that will be held about a year from now, Fredricka. And the purpose of Secretary Powell's visit was to try to lend support to the democratic process, to also be there on World AIDS Day.
But the U.S. was very concerned about security. Powell was supposed to travel there in October. The visit was canceled, because they felt the situation on the ground was unstable.
And this trip, Fredricka, was just slipped in, really, at the last minute, out of fears of security on the ground in Haiti. But we can tell you everything is fine and Secretary Powell's meetings have been moved to another location and they say that they're going to proceed as planned -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Andrea Koppel, thanks so much, from the State Department in Washington -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: A New York firehouse is a makeshift shrine today for a hero of 9/11 who was killed this week in Iraq. Thirty-nine-year-old Christian Engledrum was a member of Ladder Company 61 in the Bronx and a sergeant with the Army National Guard. In his younger days, he spent five years as a full-time soldier and was a cop before he joined FDNY.
His comrades call him a rock.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was like the core of the house. He was a person who you could rely upon, who you could gather around and feel strength, get strength from.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The thing that made him a good soldier also made him a good firefighter. He was very outgoing, very brave, always thought of everybody else. He was just an all-around great guy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: The department says that Engledrum helped raise the first flag over Ground Zero and spent months digging through the rubble. He's the first New York firefighter to die in the war in Iraq.
WHITFIELD: Private First Class Lynndie England is back in the military court at Fort Bragg today, disowning some of her own remarks about prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib.
Among the motions being heard ahead of the court-martial proceedings next month is a bid to throw out England's initial answers to investigator's questions. Among them, her belief that reservists who abused and humiliated Iraqis were, quote, "joking around, having some fun."
The M.P. and new mother could face 38 years in prison if convicted.
PHILLIPS: A passenger tries to get off the bus but doesn't quite make it when her arm gets stuck in the door. Scary moments caught on tape, just ahead on LIVE FROM.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rusty Dornin in Redwood City, California. Big surprise in the courtroom as Mark Geragos takes a back seat. The defense begins the penalty phase. More coming up.
PHILLIPS: And later on LIVE FROM, if you're feeling stressed out, there's now medical proof you could be taking years off your life. Relax and stick around for that story, a little later on LIVE FROM.
ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.
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WHITFIELD: The appearances were brief, but powerful, as four of Laci Peterson's family members took to the stand yesterday in the penalty phase of the Scott Peterson trial.
Today, it's the defense team's turn to present their case as they try to persuade jurors to spare Scott Peterson from the death penalty.
CNN's Rusty Dornin is in Redwood City with more on the hurtles of the defense team.
And Rusty, it is certainly going to be difficult for the defense to proceed, especially after hearing the tearful words from Laci's mother yesterday on the stand.
DORNIN: Absolutely. The battle has begun, however, to try and save Scott Peterson's life.
And leading the charge is not defense attorney Mark Geragos, but his co-counsel, Pat Harris, who stood up and in a very soft voice talked to jurors about the Scott Peterson they didn't know.
He says, "You might have heard all the bad things about this man over the past five months, but what you haven't heard are the 30 years proceeding that, that he was a kind and generous person, someone who always thought of others before himself."
He told the jury they're going to be hearing from many witnesses, including family and friends, former employers, college roommates, a golf coach, one of the college professors who said Scott Peterson truly stood out among his students at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.
And he said this is a life worth saving, that the decision they were going to make in terms of Scott Peterson's life was a decision they were going to have to live with for the rest of their lives.
Wrapping that up, Lee Peterson, Scott's father, on the stand right now. The defense said they will start with Peterson's father and then wrap up with his mother, Jackie Peterson.
And these are not going to be short interviews. Lee Peterson's been on the stand for about a half hour. And they've strictly been talking about his own history, when he was born, where he was born, what his parents were like, just trying to get the idea that a life is very complex, a life is worth saving.
So we're looking at least a couple of days. Sources tell CNN that Geragos expects to go into at least Friday with apparently numerous witnesses -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And Rusty, if you look at just California history, doesn't it already establish that even if Scott Peterson were to get the death penalty, it's almost tantamount to getting life, because so few people are put to death?
DORNIN: So few -- well, there's still people who are put to death and also, it means 10 to 20 years of appeals and appeals. And every time those things are appealed there is the possibility that the conviction can be overturned. And of course, appeals are mandatory in California if he is sentenced to death. Immediately it would go to the Supreme Court.
WHITFIELD: All right. Rusty Dornin in Redwood City, thanks so much --Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Heart wrenching details are emerging in the crash of a corporate jet that killed three people, including the 14-year-old son of NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol. Ebersol suffered serious chest fractures. Another son, Charles, was also hurt.
The jet veered off the runway while taking off in snowy weather.
Now, in "USA Today," NBC chairman Bob Wright praised Charles' courageous attempts to rescue both his father and his little brother. Wright says that Charles dragged Dick out of the snow and tried to go back to look for his brother. And as it turns out, his brother was not on the plane. He was in the area of the plane that collapsed, and he was under it.
Wright goes on to say that, "Charlie was very heroic. His father is a big man, and he was pinned down in that aircraft. Charlie was able to get him up and out of that plane as it was burning. It's a very incredible story."
WHITFIELD: Well, now to the horrifying moments aboard a Los Angeles area bus captured on video. For the first time, we're seeing what happened when an 83-year-old woman was caught in the door as she tried to exit and then she was dragged.
Reporter Paul Dandridge from CNN affiliate KCAL with an update on the victim's condition and charges fro the bus driver. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL DANDRIDGE, KCAL REPORTER (voice-over): Eighty-three-year- old Kyung Ja Oh of Glendale, in the checkered jacket, is getting off the bus, the B Line service, getting off at Glendale Avenue, south of Broadway.
The driver checks the rearview mirror, does not look over at the front door. The woman's hand is clearly trapped. The driver takes off.
The on-board cameras capture the accident. The second camera catches her being dragged. She disappeared. She is hit by the bus. It's the passengers who first realize there's been an accident.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was that? Oh, my God!
MEREDITH: She steps off the bus. Her hand gets stuck in the door as the door closes. The bus driver apparently doesn't see that her hand's stuck and pulls away from the bus stop, dragging the female for a few feet before the female falls under the wheels of the bus and gets run over.
DANDRIDGE (on camera): The bus driver's view is not obstructed. If she looks over, she could have seen the hand of that woman?
MEREDITH: Correct. She checks her rear view mirrors, but she does not check the door. Had she checked the door, she may have seen the hand in the door. Because the hand is clearly visible.
DANDRIDGE (voice-over): Kyung Ja Oh is still hospitalized. Initially in critical condition, she is now expected to recover.
The bus company says the driver, 51-year-old Deborah York, has been put on unpaid leave. Her union says she has been fired and has no desire to ever drive a bus again.
Police say York was checked out for drugs and alcohol. She was not under the influence. She now faces the equivalent of a traffic ticket.
MEREDITH: The original charge would be unsafe start, which would be an infraction of the vehicle code. In the event the passenger were to pass away, then it would be a possible charge of manslaughter. But at this time, the passenger is stable and recovering, so we're optimistic she'll make a recovery.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And the victim suffered broken legs and cuts from that accident.
In other news across America, they said it wouldn't last and they were right. The princess and the Marine whose romantic tale spawned a TV movie have called it quits after five years. Former U.S. Marine Jason Johnson and the woman from Bahrain's royal family are getting a divorce.
Did celebrity snapper Annie Liebowitz have an ancestor in Abe Lincoln's day? Well, this photo of the former president is considered unique, because it caught him in a casual, seated pose. That may account for the record high price it fetched at action, 85,000 bucks.
And finally, talk amongst yourselves for a moment. Some very verklempt moments on "The Today Show" this morning as retiring anchor Tom Brokaw choked back a sob while bidding farewell. He spent more than two decades in that NBC anchor chair.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Next on LIVE FROM...
ALEX TREBEK, HOST, "JEOPARDY": He winds up in second place with...
PHILLIPS: ... the "Jeopardy" king dethroned. And these people are thrilled.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm ecstatic.
PHILLIPS: Find out why his loss is their gain.
Later on LIVE FROM, it's America's first English language television channel by and for Muslims. We'll talk with the founder of Bridges TV.
Tomorrow on LIVE FROM, does the boss have a right to spy on you? What you can and can't do to keep the prying eyes off your e-mail and out of your computer.
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