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Samuel Alito Faces Second Day of Hearings; Bank Robbers Hold Hostages in Florida; 'Christian Science Monitor' Reporter Kidnapped
Aired January 10, 2006 - 13:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, ANCHOR: The chairman, Arlen Specter, calling this recess. This is day two of the confirmation hearings, Samuel Alito to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.
The hearings have been moving along. The -- each senator has 30 minutes to ask questions. We've heard from several Democrats and Republicans so far.
Jeff Greenfield and Jeff Toobin are here in THE SITUATION ROOM with us. Rachel Brand is an assistant attorney general, helping Samuel Alito get through this process. She's joining us now from the hearing room.
Rachel Brand, thank you very much for joining us.
RACHEL BRAND, ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL: My pleasure.
BLITZER: When the nominee today says he has an open mind, looking down the road, if confirmed to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, when it comes to abortion rights for women, this seems to be pretty much 180 degrees different than what he wrote back in 1985 when he was applying for a job during the Reagan Justice Department, when he says that the Constitution does not protect a right to an abortion.
What exactly, from your perspective, as someone who supports his nomination and has been helping him prepare for these hearings, what exactly does he mean?
BRAND: Well, it's very important to remember, and Judge Alito has made this point now several times, yesterday and today, that the role of a judge is very different than the role of a lawyer, whether he's in private practice or whether he's working for the solicitor general's office.
The role of the judge is to look at every Case individually, to apply precedent fairly, to look at the facts of the Case, to look at the particularly legal arguments there. And the judge has to keep an open mind in every Case, whether it be on abortion or anything else. I think that's what he's talking about.
BLITZER: So when the chairman of the committee, Arlen Specter, was asking him several questions on this very sensitive issue of abortion rights, and he then went and made the point that -- involving stare decisis, which is this -- the importance that precedence has in guiding a justice of the Supreme Court, is it fair to conclude, as a lot of viewers presumably might conclude, that abortion rights for women are not -- is now the law of the land and that will guide him down the road?
BRAND: Well, the precedence Judge Alito was talking about, including Casey, the Casey case, which Senator Specter asked him about, those are the law of the land. They are precedent of the Supreme Court, and as Judge Alito, I think, has explained, he would look at those precedents and he would entitle those precedents with the same weight that all other precedents of the Supreme Court are entitled to.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Ms. Brand, Jeff Toobin here. You've spent a great deal of time with Judge Alito preparing for these hearings. You also spent a year as a law clerk to Justice Anthony Kennedy. Wonder if you might speculate about how they will be similar and how they will be different, if Judge Alito is confirmed?
BRAND: Well, I think both of them are judges who approach the law as judges should. They look at the facts in the law in every particular case, and they come to the outcome based on the law as they see it.
TOOBIN: Boy, that's -- it's pretty vague. Can you be any more specific?
BRAND: You know, I wouldn't want to characterize how Judge Alito would come out on any particular issue because, you know, he can't answer -- he can't prejudge cases either. And certainly senator -- or rather, Justice Kennedy's opinions speak for themselves, as well.
BLITZER: Rachel Brand, hold on for one moment, if you can. Senator Kennedy is making a statement outside the hearing. I just want to briefly listen to what he says and then we'll bring you back.
BRAND: Sure.
SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: ... a lot of good contacts. There's not part of the government, would they be able to get a fair shake. And this is what people are looking at and wondering about it.
And that is, as a result of the -- several hours this morning, the Americans have no better answers than we had at the outset of the hearings. And I think we have to, as we are prepared, to go on through the afternoon, and additional kinds of questions.
But this nominee, has to speak out on terms of the kinds of core commitments that he has to constitutional values and to constitutional liberties. At the present time, we have all -- all Americans are concerned about the eavesdropping that is being done by the NSA and, with the strong support of the president of the United States, the fishing expeditions which are taking place in the libraries and across the country...
BLITZER: All right, I'm going to go back to Rachel Brand. She's been listening to Senator Kennedy with us. You want to briefly respond to what Senator Kennedy is saying, that so far, at least, he's not very happy with the answers he's getting from the nominee? BRAND: I think you've seen Judge Alito show his mastery of constitutional law, his deep regard for our constitutional values, that Senator Kennedy just referred to.
He has -- he has talked about the value of democracy, the importance of democracy. And part of our democratic structure of government is that judges play a very limited role. And so Judge Alito has shown his respect for that important constitutional value.
He's also talked about the importance of individual rights, such as the right against unreasonable search or seizure that's protected by the Fourth Amendment, and his cases will bear that out. He's ruled for Fourth Amendment challengers in many cases, and he's shown that he really takes those individual rights seriously.
JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Ms. Brand, it's Jeff Greenfield. There's a certain disconnect with reality, I think, in general about these proceedings.
Look, everybody knew going way back that Hugo Black was going to vote to uphold New Deal laws. Everybody knew that Justice Scalia was going to vote to overturn Roe v. Wade and, frankly, everyone knew that of Justice Thomas.
What is wrong with a prospective nominee saying, "Look, I have a particular judicial philosophy. I expressed it very clearly as a 35- year-old person. The court has overreached in a lot of area, and as a justice I'm going to reflect that philosophy?"
Why shouldn't the senators and the public have a broader sense of how these folks think than they're apparently willing to tell us?
BRAND: In the 1995 job application that you refer to, Judge Alito is not expressing a judicial philosophy. He was acting as a lawyer. He was speaking in his personal capacity there. If you want to see what kind of judicial philosophy he has, look at his 15 years on the Third Circuit, where he has heard three abortion cases, and frankly, that's more abortion cases than most appellate court judges have heard...
GREENFIELD: But he's bound by the Supreme Court.
BRAND: That's right, but they show his abiding respect for precedent. They also show his lack of an agenda. I mean, if he had wanted to strike down -- or rather uphold all regulations of abortion in those cases, he could have found a way to do it, but he was outcome oriented. He was interested in applying the law and the facts as he saw them.
BLITZER: Rachel Brand, we have to leave it right there. Rachel Brand is an assistant attorney general serving in this administration. She's been helping Samuel Alito prepare and get through this process. Rachel, we'll have you back. Thanks very much for joining us.
BRAND: Thank you. BLITZER: We're going to take a quick break. We're going to continue our special coverage of the Samuel Alito hearings. They're in recess right now. They're taking a break.
We're going to check all the day's other news, important news coming from Israel on the condition the prime minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back. We're in THE SITUATION ROOM. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.
Our special coverage of the Senate confirmation hearings, Samuel Alito for the U.S. Supreme Court, they continue. The -- the committee is now in recess, a lunch break. We're going to go back there as soon as the chairman, Arlen Specter, reconvenes this session.
Our Ed Henry, our congressional correspondent, is on the Hill. He's been watching all of this together with all of us. Ed, what are you picking up so far?
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's interesting, Wolf. Viewers obviously can see the fight that's been playing out behind me in the hearing room, but they have a very limited view of what's happening just a few feet outside those doors. And there's a battle that's every bit as intense. It's the spin war.
Basically, liberal interest groups, conservative interest groups down there, buttonholing reporters, giving us packets of information, either saying that Alito's the worst thing in the world or the best thing in the world. You just heard the interview with a supporter of his.
And there are also television cameras out there, so naturally there will be senators attracted to those cameras. You just had Senator Kennedy on a minute ago with some Democrats.
And we're seeing completely different views, obviously, of what's happening, the same events happening in this room. A short while, a couple of hours ago, we saw a stream of Republican senators come out of the hearing room, go to that television camera. And four Republican senators basically all but said they're going to vote for Judge Alito, including Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who said he thinks there's a, quote, "air of inevitability" that this nominee is going to be confirmed.
Democrat Chuck Schumer came to the cameras and said he thinks the complete opposite, that he's learned very little in the last three hours of questions and answers.
But I think neither side is really listening to Chairman Arlen Specter, who last night complained to reporters that he thinks there are too many senators on this committee who are dug in and have already made up their minds. Clearly, some Republican senators already suggesting they're going to vote for this nominee after just a couple hours, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. Thanks very much, Ed Henry. We'll check back with you. We'll check back with all the members as they continue to speak to reporter outside of the hearing room. Remember, they're in a lunch break right now. About one hour from now, the hearings will actually resume.
Let's get a little discussion of the strategy that's unfolding. Joining us here in THE SITUATION ROOM, our guests, Bill Press -- thanks, Bill, for joining us -- and Torie Clarke. Good to have both of you.
TORIE CLARK, FORMER PENTAGON SPOKESWOMAN: You were about to say "get a little spin," weren't you? I think you were about to say it.
BLITZER: No. No, no, no. This is not spin. This is important strategy, and neither one of you are spinners in that regard. Plenty of spinners up on the Hill.
Torie, give us your sense right now from the perspective of this nominee, who wants to be confirmed to serve on the Supreme Court, to succeed Sandra Day O'Connor. The Republicans are going to support him, by and large, barring some major blunder on his part over the next few days.
CLARKE: Right.
BLITZER: But he wants to win over some Democrats, as John Roberts managed to do. Is he doing that?
CLARKE: I think so. And I'll tell you, so far, I think it's pretty predictable. And a little bit surprising. Predictable in the sense that the Democrats are going to try to get him to say something provocative. The Republicans are going to help build his defenses.
A little surprising that I don't think the Democrats have a coherent strategy here. I mean, from the simplest of things: Senator Kennedy going over again and again ground that Senator Leahy just covered very thoroughly.
Or Senator Biden, God bless him, spent most of his 10 minutes talking about himself. I'm sorry. The American people don't really care about his views about Princeton. They want to see this nominee.
But to the nominee, I think he is going to wear very well as the days go on. Articulate, thoughtful, quiet, very respectful of the process. I think he's going to wear very well on people, many of whom are just coming to know about him.
BLITZER: What about that?
BILL PRESS, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Well, I think his strategy really today -- and he succeeded so far, in making sure that he did himself no harm. That's the way I saw today.
I mean, look, he certainly showed himself a very skillful lawyer, I believe. He's got a wry sense of humor, which we've never seen before, which is good for him. But I think he's no John Roberts, but he showed himself very, very skillful at not answering the questions. I don't think we know any more, Wolf, about this man than we knew before the hearings -- the hearings began.
BLITZER: Does -- do the responses he provided on this issue of this controversial club, this alumni club at Princeton. He went to Princeton University and there was a club, Concerned Alumni, who supposedly were opposed to coeducation, if you will, African-Americans and minorities coming in to Princeton. And he says he doesn't remember anything at all about it, certainly doesn't remember being a member of it, even though, on a job application, he listed it and said he was a member of this group.
Does that -- does that ring credible to you?
PRESS: Not to me. I don't think there's any blood on the floor, but I think there are four areas where he is very vulnerable, and that is certainly one of them. For him to say, "I put on my job application when I was 35 years old I'm a member of the Concerned Alumni of Princeton," and then to say, "I don't even remember doing that. I don't remember being a member. I don't remember every going to a meeting," I don't think it rings true.
BLITZER: What about that?
CLARKE: I think his answer is credible. I think a lot of people have had similar circumstances. More interesting is what Senator Biden did with it. Senator Biden was going often about himself and his views of Princeton and Brown and marching bands and all these things. If anybody's watching this, they're going, "I'm sorry, what is this about again?"
They're just not capitalizing on the areas where they're trying to capitalize.
BLITZER: Well, Torie, what about the other sensitive issue, this not recusing himself from a case that came before him as a judge involving his -- involving Vanguard...
CLARKE: Right.
BLITZER: ... this mutual fund for which he had investments and for which he had specifically promised the Senate Judiciary Committee when he was confirmed back in 1990 that if any case involving Vanguard were to come before him, he would recuse himself?
CLARKE: Again, I think it's a very credible answer. He has precedent in his defense, that he had been recused before. And if that is what the Democrats are going to hang their hat on, it's just -- it's not going to get them much traction.
BLITZER: Is that a big deal?
PRESS: To me, personally, it's not. I think the big issue is presidential power. And that's why you saw so many questions on it today.
And I think Alito is try to have it both ways. He says, and he affirmed again when he was working for President Reagan, this superior power of the presidency.
And now -- but now he's say, well, on the other hand, the president's obeying the law, but at the same time there are times he seems to be saying when the president doesn't have to obey the law. So I think he came down on both side of the issue. I think he also came down on both side of the right of privacy, Roe v. Wade choice issue. I think in both area, you'll see this is just the first round of questioning. You'll see a lot more hammering probing and he could be in trouble on those two issues.
BLITZER: He did say he has an open mind when it comes to a woman's right to have an abortion.
PRESS: Go ahead.
CLARKE: Again, it's the opening rounds. I think the questions will probably be better articulated and much tougher as the time goes on. But again, I think he's going to wear very well and I think he will be quite consistent in his answers and will do just fine at the end of the day.
I'm with Senator Specter. People should actually try to learn things from these nomination hearings and should keep an open mind...
PRESS: I -- I'm sorry.
CLARKE: Go ahead.
PRESS: I just have to say he would not -- let's be honest with ourselves. He would not be there if he had not assured somebody at the White House that he is for overturning Roe v. Wade...
CLARKE: I disagree.
PRESS: I agree with what -- I agree with Jeff Greenfield said. I don't think there's anything wrong -- and I will say that if it's a democratically nominated nominee up there, in asking a specific question on this issue, how will you vote? I think this is a job application for the American people. And I think we have a right to know.
It's a simple "yes" or "no" answer. Roe v. Wade 38 times has been upheld by the court. Are you going to uphold it when you get a chance? Yes or no? We want to know.
BLITZER: Well, we probably won't find out right now, because he's not going to answer that question. Thanks very much...
CLARKE: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: Bill Press, Torie Clarke, appreciate it very much. On this very sensitive issue of this Concerned Alumni club at Princeton, our Internet reporter, Abbi Tatton, has been going online, getting some more information.
What are you picking up, Abbi?
ABBI TATTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you can actually go online and read these documents and see some of the discrepancy here that Samuel Alito has been questioned about today.
The Concerned Alumni of Princeton group was mentioned in a 1985 job application that Samuel Alito put forward when he was a lawyer for the Justice Department in the President Ronald Reagan administration.
In that one, he was touting his conservative credentials, trying to move up in the Justice Department. He mentions this membership of the Concerned Alumni -- Concerned Alumni of Princeton conservative group.
And 20 years later, when he's filling out a questionnaire for the judiciary committee, a long questionnaire about his entire resume, he says he has no recollection of being a member of that group there. He says, however, he has reviewed the documents seized from that earlier document THAT he did say he was a MEMBER of thus group, but 20 years on, has no recollection, Wolf.
BLITZER: Abbi, thank you very much.
And specifically in that job application he wrote these words: "I am a member of the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy, which is a conservative judicial group here in Washington. And a regular participant of its luncheon meetings and a member of the Concerned Alumni of Princeton University, a conservative alumni group."
Words that he wrote 20 years ago, coming back to haunt him to a certain degree right now, even though he says he has no recollection of this organization at all, has no recollection of ever participating in any meetings, doesn't know anything about it.
We're going to continue our coverage of the confirmation hearings of Samuel Alito. We're also going to check all the day other news right after a short break, including what's going on with the condition of the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: The Senate Judiciary Committee is in a lunch break right now. The confirmation hearings of Samuel Alito for the U.S. Supreme Court will resume at the top of the hour. We'll come back into THE SITUATION ROOM when those hearings resume.
In the meantime, let's hand things over to CNN's Kyra Phillips and LIVE FROM, from the CNN Center in Atlanta.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Wolf. Busy day for Florida authorities right now. We're following two stories that are happening this moment.
First, we want to tell you about at least one bank employee that has been taken hostage. We were told this happened in an attempted robbery at a bank in was Kissimmee, Florida. Police have surrounded this bank, and neighboring businesses are on lockdown. It's not clear how many robbers are inside this building.
The SWAT team is on the scene, in addition to a hostage negotiator that is a part of that SWAT team. We're not showing you live pictures for the purpose of just in case this hostage taker may be watching television. We don't want to give exactly away where the SWAT team is and how they're handling this situation.
We do have more now from Cynthia Demos at WFTV.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CYNTHIA DEMOS, WFTV CORRESPONDENT: Well, the latest is, as you said, one hostage has been released. The hostage negotiator obviously did a very good job.
We do know there are two suspects right now still inside the Mercantile Bank building here in Osceola County, which by the way, is right near where Disney World is, a huge tourist area down here.
It's unclear how many other hostages are inside that bank right now. We're in kind of a wait and see mode. Let me show you the scene out here right now.
You see the SWAT team is out here. There are dozens of sheriff's deputies out here, as well. We have the robot, which has been going up to the bank and coming back. Obviously checking the information up there.
The hostage negotiator on the scene still working, we understand, and obviously successful with getting one hostage released so far. This has been the scene out here since 9:30 this morning.
In fact this is a very big tourist area here. The entire area has been evacuated, shut down. As a matter of fact, we're so close to the tourist area, you can see there in the distance, not too far distance, actually, that's a ride there at Animal Kingdom, just to give you an idea of how close we are to the tourist area.
So a lot of people here relieved that one hostage has been released. As I said, it's unclear how many other hostages may or may not be in there. We do know the negotiator is still speaking with the suspect at this hour. So a little bit of good news to pass along.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILIPS: Our CNN affiliate. We'll continue to follow that standoff at that bank there in Kissimmee, Florida. The other story happening out of Miami, a double whammy for this jail. You may remember the story we told you about not long ago. We're told now another inmate apparently scaled a razor wire fence and escaped today from the same Miami jail complex where an accused serial rapist used tied up bed sheets to flee last month. You'll remember Reynaldo Rapalo had fled that same jail but was later captured.
This is what we know. Police say that Rodney Buckles was being held at a building here at the Turner Gilford Knight Correctional Center on a misdemeanor battery charge when he escaped. Police haven't released many details of how he allegedly got out of his cell.
We are told that those that were running the jail had been put on temporary leave, possibly may lose their jobs. We're continuing to get more information out of Miami. We are following both of those stories out of Florida.
Once again, a journalist in the story, in Baghdad. Jill Carroll, a freelance reporter for the "Christian Science Monitor," grabbed out of a car by gunmen who shot and killed her translator but spared her driver. Well, it's now been three days since that ambush in the neighborhood well known for violence.
CNN's Michael Holmes brings up to date on the situation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jill Carroll has been in Iraq since 2003, working for a variety of media organization, most recently the "Christian Science Monitor" newspaper, based in Boston.
She always said she felt safe in Iraq. She has now become the first female American journalist kidnapped in the country she loves.
It happened Saturday in the same Baghdad neighborhood where aide official Margaret Hassan was kidnapped and believed killed in 2004. She had gone through to interview this man, Adnan al-Delaimi, a prominent Sunni politician. He wasn't there, claims there was no appointment.
Jill Carroll left his office after waiting up to 25 minutes. Her abduction was completed, according to her driver, in mere seconds, and without a shot fired. At least until a short time later, when Carroll's translator found dead, shot twice in the head.
The driver said half a dozen well dressed men with pistols blocked Carroll's car, pulled him from the driver's seat and drove off with Carroll and her translator inside.
Later, a controversial act connected, says the U.S. military, to the kidnapping. U.S. and Iraqi troops raiding the Umm al-Qura mosque a few kilometers west of the abduction site. Within the Sunni community, outrage that foreigners raided that mosque and, they claim, did substantial damage, something U.S. military denies. Tuesday, protests in the streets and condemnation from the mosque. U.S. military spokesmen defended the raid, saying they had received a tip-off from an Iraqi informer that there was evidence in the mosque directly related to Jill Carroll's abduction. Several men were taken into custody and still are being held.
(on camera): Thirty-six journalists have been kidnapped in Iraq since April 2004. That's when insurgents started targeting foreigners for abduction. Now six of those journalists have been killed, an American, an Italian and four Iraqis. In all, 400 foreigners have been kidnapped in Iraq and thousands of Iraqis, sometimes as many as a couple of dozen in a single day.
(voice-over): Jill Carol has a good understanding of the Iraqi people according to friend and colleagues. And when out reporting among local would dress as they dress, complete with a buyer (ph) and head scarf. She would travel in soft skin, or unarmored cars and without the security men many other media employed. So far no word of Jill Carol, no claim of responsibility, no demands, nothing.
Michael Holmes, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: And from Baghdad to the United States, she's cooing and smiling a day after a big operation, but baby Noor may be facing more surgery tomorrow. The Iraqi infant undergoing lifesaving treatment in Atlanta is in good condition after the first procedure. Doctors say it went extremely well. They realigned and enclosed the girl's spinal column, a major step in correcting her spina bifida, a severe birth defect. Today a brain scan will show whether fluid is building up in baby Noor's brain. If so, doctors may perform more surgery tomorrow. Despite the treatment, baby Noor likely will not be able to walk.
Five yards from the edge of the cliff, an Israeli doctor's metaphorical assessment of Ariel Sharon five and a half days into the turmoil triggered by Israeli leaders major cerebral hemorrhage.
Today, as the metaphor suggests, Sharon is not believed to be in immediate danger of dying. In fact, doctors say he moved his right hand and leg for the second straight day. And for the first time since he was stricken, moved his left hand as well. That's important because the left side the body answered to the right side of the brain, where the hemorrhage and three separate operations occurred.
Another first today, public comments from one of Sharon's sons. This was Omri Sharon about 7:00 p.m. Israeli time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OMRI SHARON, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER'S SON (through translator): ... of the medical team who are treating my father, everyone who has so devoted themselves around the clock to caring for my father, we wish to thank you for the very warm and supportive attitude and professionalism. Thank you very much. This really helped us a great deal and strengthens us greatly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Doctors say the prime minister's blood pressure rose today. Omri and his brother, Jila (ph), came into his room and their father heard their voices, but they point out again that cognitive abilities can't be assessed until Sharon is completely off the anesthesia.
Now I mentioned turmoil surrounding Sharon's health. Medical progress aside, the political scenario will only grow murkier as Israeli and Palestinian elections grow nearer.
Here's CNN's Paula Hancocks.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The state of Israel has been in limbo since Ariel Sharon's hospitalization last Wednesday. Politicians have shied away from politics. But acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert recognizes the daily running of Israel has to continue.
He says if he had been able to speak to the prime minister, "Sharon would have said thank you for worrying about me, now keep working." Whoever becomes Israeli prime minister after March 28th election will face considerable challenges. Palestinian parliamentary elections are due at the end of this month, determining who Israel may have to negotiate with. The ruling Fatah Party is expected to come under considerable pressure from the Hamas militant group. Hamas is well known for its attacks on Israel. But it is also popular among many Palestinians, particularly in Gaza, for providing good local services.
SHIMON PERES, FMR. ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: If Hamas will not change its ideology and its practice, there will be an armed group that will come to the negotiating table with rifles, with bombs and rifles; we shall not come with smiles and happiness. So they have to give up the terror.
HANCOCKS: Israelis see Iran as an imminent threat. Last October, President Ahmadinejad caused an outcry, calling for Israel to be, quote, "wiped off the map." He has since said the Israeli state should be moved to Europe.
Meantime, European efforts to restrict Iran's nuclear energy program have been largely unsuccessful.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, FMR. ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons is something that is dangerous to Israel and dangerous, in fact, to the world, and I think we have to find the ways, which could include diplomatic and other ways, to prevent that from happening. Iran has clearly put Israel on its sights.
HANCOCKS: As for Israeli elections in less than three months' time, opinion polls since Sharon's hospitalization has shown his centrist Kadima party as current favorite. But whoever wins both Israeli and Palestinian elections, some analysts are doubtful that Israel will find a negotiating partner on the Palestinian side to discuss the issue of borders.
YOSSI KLEIN HALEVI, SHALEM CENTER: The only option left for Israel, aside from continuing the status quo, which is untenable for most Israelis, as it is for the Palestinian, the only option available to the next prime minister of Israel is to unilaterally determine our minimal security borders.
HANCOCKS (on camera): Mr. Sharon unilaterally pulled all settlers out of Gaza and a small number out of the West Bank last year. If, as widely expected, he does not return to post of prime minister, his successor will have to decide whether to build on the momentum of that pullout, and tackle the more sensitive of taking more settlers out of the West Bank.
Paula Hancock, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: He's in a come, he has a fever and he's on dialysis, but Randal McCloy is alive, and his doctors still believe that he's going to pull through. The only survivor of the Sago mine accident remains in a West Virginia hospital. McClain still hasn't woken up from a medically induced coma, even though doctors have stopped giving him sedatives. But they're cautiously optimistic about his outlook.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. LARRY ROBERTS, WEST VIRGINIA HOSPITAL: Randy's condition continues to be what we consider critical, but he's stable. There has been no significant change in his overall condition as far as I'm concerned. And the fevers that we talked about yesterday persist.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Now one good sign, doctors say that McCloy's muscles appear to be responding to that stimulation. The accident killed 12 of McCloy's fellow coal miners.
Well, reliving a tragedy over and over again. That's what coal mining communities in West Virginia have been doing this week, as they bury the victims of the Sago mine accident. Today, last two funerals for the 12 victims were held. One of them took place at the small Baptist church where families were mistakenly told that most of those miners had survived.
More now on the story that we've been telling you about, at least one bank employee that has been taken hostage, possibly more, in Kissimmee, Florida. Police have surrounded this bank and neighboring businesses here are on lockdown right now. What's interesting, is this bank is not far from Walt Disney World, Sea World and MGM Studios, a popular tourist area right now. You can see the SWAT team has responded, also police negotiators on the scene, evidently able to get at least one of those employees released from the bank.
On the phone now, Twis Lizasuane from Osceola County Sheriff's Department joins me now by beeper.
If you could just bring us up to date on the number of bank employees you believe are still inside that are being held hostage? Do we have an exact number yet?
TWIS LIZASUANE, OSCEOLA CO. SHERIFF'S DEPT.: We do not have an exact number at this time. We believe there are approximately two suspect that are inside the bank.
PHILLIPS: And at what time did police respond to the bank? Was a 911 call made? Tell us how it started from the very beginning.
LIZASUANE: We received information at approximately 9:30 this morning that there was possibly an armed robbery at the Mercantile Bank on West 192 in Osceola County. And at that time, we did evacuate the area, the bank is in an area with other businesses. Those businesses were evacuated as well. And we do have the area secure at this time.
PHILLIPS: This is your county sheriff's SWAT team that's responded, or is it a different SWAT team?
LIZASUANE: That is correct. We have assistant from other agencies, but it is the Osceola SWAT team that is in place, and it is our negotiators that have had communications with the suspects that are inside the bank.
PHILLIPS: So there's more than one suspect?
LIZASUANE: At this time, there are possibly two suspects inside the bank.
PHILLIPS: Possibly two.
And how are negotiators able to talk them into letting one employee go?
LIZASUANE: I don't want to give the specifics of what they discussed with the suspects. But about 30 minutes ago, they did successfully talk with the suspect, and they did release -- we have not confirmed if it is a customer or it is an employee in the bank. But there was a white male that exited the bank successfully.
PHILLIPS: And, Twis, we want to also mention that we're showing taped turnaround; we're not showing live pictures, because of course we don't want to give away exactly where the SWAT team is, how they've set up their perimeter. But as negotiators continue to talk to these suspect, do you -- have there -- are there any know injuries. Do you know if anybody has been hurt thus far?
LIZASUANE: No, at this time, no one has been injured, and it does appear the suspects have not indicated that they want to injure anyone that is inside the bank. So that is good. PHILLIPS: And are there any customers inside that bank, or only bank employees at this time?
LIZASUANE: We cannot confirm at this time if there are customers or employees. We do feel that there are other individuals inside the bank with the suspects.
PHILLIPS: And do negotiators feel good they're going to be able to come to a good resolution here? Do the demands seem too out of range for what all of you can provide right now?
LIZASUANE: I don't want to give away any specifics of what they're talking to them about but I can tell you they have had open communications with individuals inside the bank at this point of time and we are hoping it comes to a positive resolution.
Twisley Lizasuane with the Osceola County Sheriff's Department there in Florida, Kissimmee, Florida, actually, thank you so much. We'll continue to follow how those fee negotiations go. One, possibly two suspects inside that bank. Do not know the number of bank employees still being held hostage.
The good news is negotiators have been able to get one hostage released. We'll continue to follow what's happening in Kissimmee, Florida.
Straight ahead bird flu jitters in Turkey. More people are getting sick. Is it more widespread than we know? The news keeps coming, we'll keep bringing it to you. More LIVE FROM... after a quick break.
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PHILLIPS: A secret briefing about a classified program. The judges who oversees the government's handling of espionage and terror probes are learning more about a domestic spying operation.
That operation, set up by the Bush administration, allows the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on suspected terrorists without approval from those judges. General Michael Hayden, the deputy director of national intelligence briefed the judges on the controversial operation yesterday. He's not commenting right now, but a U.S. intelligence official confirms that Hayden and two government lawyers made that presentation.
Who was behind the bomb scare at a San Francisco Starbucks? About 100 people were evacuated yesterday from the coffee house and surrounding buildings after some type of explosive device was found in the bathroom. The bomb squad safely detonated that device, which police say was powerful enough to cause injuries or damage. San Francisco Police say they have some pretty good leads, but aren't giving any details at the moment.
A crisis center set up in Turkey now prompted by an outbreak of bird flu. Sixteen human cases of the avian flu virus are now confirmed in that country, including three children who died from the disease last week.
Scientists believe none of the cases were caused by human to human transmission, but were the result of contact with infected chickens. They're taking precaution, spraying vehicles with disinfectant along the border there.
This has happened as a new study finds that bird flu may be more widespread than originally thought. The study suggests there may be more human cases of that disease but with milder symptoms that are not being reported.
Italy is watching the bird flu outbreak as well. In Turkey -- or what's happening in Turkey, rather. The Italian health minister now supporting -- issuing special instructions to travelers and is creating a monitoring unit to be on watch for an outbreak within its borders. CNN Rome Bureau Chief Alessio Vinci spoke with Italy's health minister.
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ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF (voice over): The bird flu knocks on Europe's doorsteps and Italy is considering a ban on travel to high-risk areas, including Turkey.
FRANCESCO STORACE, ITALIAN MINISTER OF HEALTH (through translator): My biggest concern is guaranteeing that my country is able to prevent the possibility of an illness linked to bird flu spreading in Italy.
VINCI: Acting alone would have limited effects. And in an interview with CNN, the Italian health minister called for a European- wide initiative to help Turkey.
STORACE: Do we want to help Turkey once and for all instead of simply waiting for the sickness to reach our countries? I'd like to intervene over there, to eradicate the virus, fight it on the spot. We need coordinated action, which, in my view, should be headed by the EU.
If Europe doesn't do it, we will.
VINCI: If necessary, the minister said, Italy is ready to go at it alone.
STORACE: We offer to help Turkey with pharmaceutical and biological aid in order for them to acquire additional know-how. But, it will be up to the Turkish Health Ministry to decide whether to accept our offer or not.
VINCI: The health minister also said the European Union should play a bigger role in helping member states deal with preventive measures.
STORACE: I'd like to see a European central office charged with buying pharmaceutical, negotiating with the drug companies, so they can allow prediction of generic drugs. Let's help the industry produce generic drugs, maybe even by reimbursing the companies which own the patents. But we have to act. We can't just sit around and wait for the pandemic.
VINCI: Meanwhile, though, Italy is stockpiling four million doses of anti-viral drugs, which will be available in a matter of months. News the virus spreading closer to this country has revamped concerns.
Some people have started asking questions, again about bird flu, says this pharmacist. They have started asking about the anti-viral medicines.
The shopping habits of Italians have also changed. This lady says she hasn't bought chicken ever since the first reports of bird flu.
(on camera): But there is no panic in Italy. Although those suffering the most are the poultry farmers. Chicken sales have dropped between 20 and 50 percent in recent month. That is no small matter for industry with estimated annual sales of four billion euros. Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.
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PHILLIPS: Billions of Americans reach for them every year. But those over-the-counter cough medicines apparently don't offer relief.
The American College of Chest Physicians says that they're not worth the billions of dollars the public shells out for them mainly because they contain too low a dose of the drugs needed to be effective, or they're made with drugs that don't really relieve coughs. A trade group for over-the-counter medicines disputes those findings. But the physicians group says when in doubt, let a doctor check your cough out.
C-minus, that's the grade on a new report card on emergency care in this country. The task force behind that report says no state got an 'A' and only three state, California, Massachusetts, and Connecticut and the District of Columbia earned B's.
Utah, Idaho and Arkansas got the lowest grades, D's. The American College of Emergency Physicians says that the public expects life-saving emergency care when they need it, but increasingly they're not getting it.
Coming up, words of warning about Iran's nuclear capability. CNN's Christiane Amanpour is in Iran with an exclusive report for us. Stay with us.
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PHILLIPS: If you listen closely enough, you may hear a sigh of relief on Capitol Hill. Lawyers for ex-Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham say he did not wear a wire while talking with other public officials. Cunningham left Congress after pleading guilty in November to taking more than $2 million in bribes from defense contractors. Sources say that as part of a deal with prosecutors, he wore an eavesdropping device during the final days of the investigation.
Now Cunningham's lawyers have issued a statement saying, quote, "Duke has never worn a body wire during any conversations with his former congressional colleagues or any other public official." While that denial may be -- or may reassure, rather, Cunningham's former colleagues, it does not appear to rule out the possibility he may have worn a wire while talking with contractors.
A big apology from the world's biggest retailer. Wal-Mart says it's sorry that its Web site made a racially offensive grouping of DVDs. Customers who went to walmart.com to purchase "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" or "Planet of the Apes" were directed to what the site labeled similar titles. Those titles included DVDs about Martin Luther King, Jr. and the boxer Jack Johnson. In a statement, the retailer said it was heartsick over the incident and said it planned to shut down its cross-selling system.
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PHILLIPS: President Bush predicting more tough fighting and sacrifice in Iraq this year, but he also has a message for Iraqis. He's urging them to put aside their differences to form a government of national unity. Mr. Bush made his comments in a speech today to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. It's the latest in a series of addresses about the situation in Iraq. The president says the current turmoil will give way to peace and stability.
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GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Democracies are sometimes messy and seemingly chaotic, as different parties advance competing agendas and seek their share of political power. We've seen this throughout our own history. We've seen this in other democracies around the world. Yet out of the turmoil in Iraq, a free government will emerge that represents the will of the Iraqi people instead of the will of one cruel dictator.
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PHILLIPS: Violence in Iraq has surged in recent days, but President Bush again vowed to stay the course in that region.
Still no communications from or about the young American reporter who was ambushed and kidnapped Saturday in Baghdad. Jill Carroll was on assignment for "The Christian Science Monitor" when she, a translator and a driver set out to interview a Sunni politician who never showed up. The translator was killed. The driver now believes the whole thing was a set-up.
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