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CNN Live Today
Armed Gunmen Hijack Bus, Hold Hostages in Greece; Allawi Announced Pretrial Hearing for 'Chemical Ali' and His Presidential Candidacy
Aired December 15, 2004 - 10:00 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.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR: Speaking of being on time, we better get going here.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: OK. We have a lot to do.
SANCHEZ: Yes. As a matter of fact, there is a lot happening in the news today. And here we go.
The government has released three more hostages in that intense standoff that we're following for you in Greece. Hijackers strapped with explosives and armed with guns have taken over a bus. This has happened outside an Athens suburb this morning. They are demanding to be flown to Russia. We are making this a priority story. We're going to have a live update from the scene in just a moment.
Also, a look now at some of the other stories in the news.
Sprint and Nextel announced they will come together. They will merge. The estimated $35 billion merger is going to give the new company close to 40 million wireless customers and make it the third largest wireless company in the United States.
In just about an hour, President Bush is going to meet with his Italian counterpart at the White House. Silvio Berlusconi is in Washington to attend the White House Economic Summit. Berlusconi was recently cleared of a corruption charge by a court of Milan. He has been an ally of Mr. Bush throughout the Iraq policy.
Also, an earthquake rattled the Cayman Islands last night. This quake measured 6.7 and was centered about 20 miles offshore from Georgetown in Grand Cayman Islands. No immediate reports of any major damage or injuries.
And hi, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez.
KAGAN: And I'm Daryn Kagan.
We want to get right to breaking news that we have coming out of Greece and go to our correspondent who is on the scene. Anthee Carassavas is on the phone from Athens with the latest on that bus hijacking.
ANTHEE CARASSAVAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Daryn -- can -- hello? Are you there?
KAGAN: Yes. Go ahead. You are on the air with us, Anthee.
CARASSAVAS: We are now into the 11-hour of this hostage crisis and hijackers have freed yet three more hostages bringing the total of those released to 10. Now, authorities tell thus on and off flow of hostage releases, this is a positive sign signaling that negotiations with the hijackers are producing positive results.
Unknown, however, remains the motives of the hijackers, and their identities and nationalities have yet to be publicly disclosed. Senior officials, however, tell us that they are convinced they are both Albanians. Now, their demands -- the demands they have set include a driver that will take them to the airport and then a plane to fly them to Russia.
Now, the prime minister has also been watching this case unfold from the crack of dawn. He is very hands-on. In fact he has canceled -- or postponed better, a trip to Brussels for a crucial E.U. summit. He will be flying there tomorrow morning -- Daryn.
KAGAN: OK. A couple questions for you, Anthee. We are showing our viewers here in the U.S. a live picture of the scene. You see the bus there in the background as we watch this unfold. For those viewers who are just joining us, how did these hijackers manage to commandeer this bus in the first place?
CARASSAVAS: What happened was that this bus was traveling into Athens; it's a commuter bus servicing people and workers outside the Athens metropolitan region. The bus was on its way from the region of Marathon into Athens, a few miles down into its course. These two hijackers boarded on to the bus. They flashed out rifles and threatened to take out explosives from a tote bag.
The driver eventually brought the bus to a screeching halt. He opened the doors in order for some passengers to flee. He managed to flee. A ticket controller and another passenger, female passenger managed to free. The driver also took the keys of the bus with him. Therefore leaving this blue commuter bus immobilized for 11 hours now.
The -- and it was only in the last four to five hours that we have actually seen hijackers starting to release or free some of the passengers.
KAGAN: Which show there is movement in the story. We're going to continue to follow it. Anthee Carassavas on the scene there in Athens, thank you.
With more now on this developing story, here is Rick.
SANCHEZ: Yes. Mike Brooks is our CNN analyst who handles this type of story for us. Why? Because he's worked hostage situations.
You were a hostage negotiator, as a matter of fact.
MIKE BROOKS, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: I was an FBI-trained hostage negotiator with the metropolitan police, and then also assigned to the FBI for six years on their Joint Terrorism Task Force. SANCHEZ: Start with the good news, they released seven and now they've three more. I imagine that tells you that they're willing to what? Negotiate, that you can work with these guys.
BROOKS: Absolutely. There's been 10 so far released. That's a good sign. As long as they keep releasing hostages, keep the dialogue going. That's also fantastic. I've also heard the hostage takers are also feeding the hostages on board croissants and water. That also personalizes things quite a bit. If you provide food to the people on board, that develops kind of a relationship between the hostage taker and the hostage, which is always good. Because then if things go bad, it makes it harder for the hostage takers to harm the hostages on board.
SANCHEZ: So essentially, what you are saying is there are open lines of communication. If they are willing to work with people on bus, they're also going to be willing to work with the cops when they show up and talk to them as well.
BROOKS: Absolutely. One of the things the police are going to try not to do, they don't want that bus to go mobile. That's why you see a white bus in front of it and you see a police car pulled in right behind it. They try not to -- they don't want to have an open- air assault.
SANCHEZ: Uh-huh.
BROOKS: They want everything to be solved through negotiation and not a tactical resolution. But I say you can never say never when it comes to hostage situations.
SANCHEZ: Let me ask you this real quick and the producer is giving me a wrap here. But they have got explosives strapped to them. That makes things real difficult. You don't know what they have.
BROOKS: No, you don't. They have -- they apparently have seen one shotgun that they were firing out the window early on in the hostage taking. But they have not seen any explosives. Many times people come on board and say they have explosives, they'll show a gun, you don't know what they have.
SANCHEZ: They may be bluffing.
BROOKS: They may be bluffing. The negotiations are ongoing, that's a good thing.
SANCHEZ: Mike Brooks, we thank you. We will be checking back with you as this story continues to unfold here on CNN.
BROOKS: Absolutely. Thank you.
SANCHEZ: Daryn.
KAGAN: Meanwhile, we want to Iraq for the other developing story of the day. A pretrial hearing for two senior members of the former Iraqi regime may be imminent. Today we are hearing who might exactly be going on trial.
For that let's bring in CNN's Chris Lawrence who is live in Baghdad.
Chris, hello.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Good morning, Daryn. We have learned from a well-informed observer of this legal process that what's going to happen in the next week or in the next couple weeks is not a trial, but an investigative hearing. The judge will be asking questions trying to determine if there's enough evidence to go forward with the trial. The defendants will be represented by a lawyer and they will enjoy a lot of the same rights that we enjoy in the United States.
Now, CNN has also learned that at least this stage of the process will be confidential. It will not be held in public. And it will involve two defendants, a former commander in the Iraqi army, and Ali Hassan al Majid, otherwise known as "Chemical Ali."
Chemical Ali" is accused of committing some of the worst crimes committed during Saddam Hussein's rule, including gassing up to 5,000 Kurds in northern Iraq during the late 1980s.
Now, a lot of people here in Iraq are saying that this is going to generate a lot of publicity and that some of it is politically motivated. Today was the first day in Iraq's election process where people could begin campaigning. It was also the day that interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi announced his candidacy by putting his name on top of a 200-member alliance called the Iraqi List.
It was Allawi who just yesterday surprised a lot of people by making this big announcement about the trial. Now a lot of people are trying to say here in Iraq, suggesting that perhaps the trials, the timing of the trials and election is no coincidence -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Chris Lawrence reporting live from Baghdad, thank you.
Also this in, Paul Bremer, the former U.S. administrator in Iraq says bringing democracy to Iraq is a difficult task. Kind of an obvious statement there. Earlier today on CNN he cautioned against expecting too much too soon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL BREMER, FMR. ADMINISTRATOR, IRAQ: I think what's important to bear in mind about Iraq is that the process is ongoing. I think we'll have these elections in January, and that will be another step towards representative government there.
I think we need to keep perspective here about things. It takes time to change a society that has been under a brutal dictatorship for 25 years. It's not going to happen overnight. It will be -- there will be ups and downs but the trend line is the right direction.
(END VIDEO CLIP) KAGAN: Bremer in the news. He and General Tommy Franks and former CIA director George Tenet were honored in a White House ceremony yesterday with Presidential Medals of Freedom.
SANCHEZ: There is evidence today that the abuse of Iraqi prisoners extended beyond the Abu Ghraib prison. Navy documents, obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union, details at least 24 instances of U.S. Marines mistreating prisoners. So far the abuses have led to 11 court-martials.
The documents revealed that in one instance, for example, a detainee's hands were severely burned, after they were doused with a cleanser and then set on fire. In yet another case, a Marine staged a stock -- a mock execution of teenage looters who were forced to kneel while a pistol was fired. The Navy also documented a case in which a detainee also received a severe electric shock from a transformer.
KAGAN: Past international news, there is economic news as well. That is what the White House is focusing on today. They are holding an economic conference, trying to map out economic strategy for the next four years. We will go live to see what the White House has planned.
Also ahead, tips for giving a New Year's toast to remember. Our Gerri Willis will give us the X's and O's on that one.
KAGAN: And later on, poison and politics. We will look back on the use of lethal techniques used to shape history.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NARRATOR: Li Donsheng's ambition of turning China's electronics maker TCL into a global brand is becoming a reality. Leader since 1997, he's formed joint ventures with consumer's giant Thompson and telecommunications firm Alcatel over the past year.
Merging TCL's TV production facilities with those of Thompson's created the world's largest TV maker. And by combining the struggle mobile phone businesses of Alcatel and TCL, Li not only gains access to international customers but hopes to ring in profits.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: The future of the American economy. About 45 minutes ago, the White House began an economic conference. Both President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are going to be attending.
And for more, we turn now to CNN's Kathleen Hays joining us from Washington.
What are they going to be doing?
KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're going to be talking a lot, Rick. Talking about the economy and trying to start this process of selling an ambitious second term economic agenda for President George Bush. Which includes, of course, Social Security reform, it used to be called the third rail of American politics; labor skills for the 21-Century, health care reform. You name it; it will be on the agenda.
Vice President Dick Cheney kicking off the event this morning with some remarks. You know, a lot people worried about the budget deficit, worried about paying for Social Security without raising taxes or reversing tax cuts on the wealthiest. Well, Vice President Cheney made it clear this morning that those tax cuts must be made permanent, must stay in place, because in otherwise it would cause damage to the American economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK CHENEY (R), UNITED STATES VICE PRESIDENT: Key components of the president's tax relief are set to expire over the next few years. Should they lapse, the small business expense deduction would shrink from $100,000 to $25,000. Taxes on dividends and capital gains would increase, marriage penalty relief would sunset and the death tax would rise from the dead.
This would impede capital investment by small business owners and raise the tax burden on retirees and families investing for their future. It would also result in tax increases for every American who pays income taxes. So we are committed to keeping the Bush tax cuts in place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAYS: So, John Snow, Treasury secretary who almost did not keep his cabinet post it looked like, will oversee that tax reform panel at 11:00. At 1:30, President Bush will join outgoing Commerce Secretary Don Evans to talk about tort reform, and the costs those legal costs are putting on the economy.
So a very ambitious agenda as I said. We will be here all day and look forward to talking about it later on. Back to you.
SANCHEZ: Yes. A lot of issues to be discussed, a lot of problems as well. One wonders whether this is going be a give and take or just a give? We thank you for that -- in fact, those questions may be best answered by someone who is going to be chairing this thing. And we're going to have him here.
Steve Freedman, who is going to be the forum moderator, we're going to get some insight on proposed Social Security changes and other economic issues as well, that could impact our futures right here when we do that interview in a bit.
Daryn, over to you.
KAGAN: All right. Well, it's not too early to start thinking about your New Year's toast. Have you been doing that?
SANCHEZ: No, I haven't.
(LAUGHTER)
KAGAN: Well, it's time to start.
SANCHEZ: So many other things going on.
KAGAN: Here's how we're going to help you. We are here to help.
SANCHEZ: OK.
KAGAN: You might not be thinking about what you're going to say, but what you're going to say it with. Gerri Willis will be talking about how you pick out beautiful bubbly.
SANCHEZ: Beautiful bubbly, a little alliteration no less.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN-FN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hey, guys. We're also going to talk about the words, too, writing it's hard, it's tough, it's tricky. We will tell you how to do it when CNN LIVE TODAY continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: A number of developing stories to bring you up to date on.
First, this is from Athens, Greece. Bus hostage situation. The two hostage takers on this bus have released two more hostages. So it started with 24 passengers on board. Now a total of 10 passengers have been released, 14 are still being held captive as night falls on Athens, Greece. We continue to develop that story and we'll more from the scene in Athens.
We're also tracking and looking for how Sprint and Nextel stocks are doing with news that those two cellular phone companies will be merging. A lot more on that that cell phone merger will mean for you as a consumer, ahead.
SANCHEZ: Now we switch gears here a little bit. With the holidays approaching, we would like to propose a toast, shall we? Actually, we'd try and help you master the technique if we possibly can.
Here with her "Top Five Tips" on how to deliver the right toast with the most is our own Gerri Willis. She's live in New York.
I guess we start with the timing right? It's all about timing when do you this.
WILLIS: Right. Like everything in life, Rick, it's all about the timing. You have got to make sure that if there are a lot of people in the room, and you want to give that toast but you're not the host, you wait for the host to go first. Then you can go. One tip here, if you're tempted to get everybody's attention by hitting your glass -- your water glass with a spoon or a knife, forget it. You could break it. Bad idea.
Be sure before you start to give guests time to refill their glass. That's always a good idea.
And don't go on too long. Two to four minutes is tops after that people start falling asleep.
SANCHEZ: Yes. Good idea for speeches, too, in any occasion.
Delivery, right? Form is important.
WILLIS: Absolutely. You have got to think about who am I talking to? Maybe you know everybody in the room, maybe you don't. But it's always a good idea to understand who the audience is. And what a lot of people do that's just a bad idea, is they apologize at the top. If you say I normally don't speak in public, I'm a little embarrassed; look, the audience is with you. Just roll with it and don't make any apologies. And be prepared because you will feel more relaxed and less nervous, if you know what you're going to say before you say it.
SANCHEZ: Humor is good, but humiliation is not, right?
WILLIS: How many times, Rick, have you seen these things go over the top? They mention some kind of embarrassing story about, you know, some former girlfriend or something. Always a bad idea.
Don't talk about anybody's appearance. That's another no-no. But cute stories, that's a good thing.
SANCHEZ: Are there options or is there only one way to do this as far as selection of champagne, for example?
WILLIS: You know, there's a lot to pick from. And the really good news here is that you don't have to pay a lot of money. At "Five Tips" we are about not paying top price. If you want to pay under $20, you definitely can. Check out these sparkling values.
Something else I want to mention while you've got that screen up. Ariel, Brut, Coubert, nonalcoholic alternatives for people who don't want alcohol. It's about $9 a bottle.
SANCHEZ: We talked about the toaster. What about the toasted?
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: And I don't mean the guy who drank too much, the person who is being toasted.
WILLIS: Well, there's an art to that, too, Rick. If you are actually getting the toast, if everybody in the room stands up while, you know, you are being toasted, don't get up. It looks like you are kind of grandstanding. Sit down. Don't even raise your glass. You should just sit there, smile, listen to the toast. Then get up and say thank you very much and maybe tell a little story on the person who was toasting you.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
KAGAN: Hmm.
SANCHEZ: How about the beauty pageant wave? Can you do some of that?
(LAUGHTER)
WILLIS: Yes. Absolutely. You bet.
SANCHEZ: Gerri Willis, you look like you have experience with it. Thank you.
WILLIS: You're welcome.
SANCHEZ: Appreciate it.
KAGAN: It's elbow, elbow, wrist, wrist. Not like I would know.
(LAUGHTER)
KAGAN: But somebody showed me once.
Speaking of beauty, we have one here.
SANCHEZ: Formidable.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, last year we had a champagne tasting for...
KAGAN: We did?
JERAS: Well, not you. Some friends and I. And my husband and I, we bought literally a $3 bottle of champagne and we bought, like a $100 bottle; and then everybody else brought whatever they brought. And guess what won?
KAGAN: The $3 one.
JERAS: The $3 bottle.
SANCHEZ: Couldn't tell the difference.
JERAS: Couldn't tell the difference.
SANCHEZ: Wow. See, I wouldn't have been able to tell.
JERAS: Amazing!
KAGAN: But how many other bottles of champagne had they had at that point?
(LAUGHTER)
JERAS: That's true.
KAGAN: Yes.
JERAS: That's something to keep in mind.
(WEATHER REPORT)
SANCHEZ: It's the No. 1 family tourist destination, but it is security Mickey Mouse operation? We're going to put those two stories together for you and make it make sense.
KAGAN: And later on, "Time" magazine for kids picks its person of the year. We will talk to one of the kid reporters coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired December 15, 2004 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR: Speaking of being on time, we better get going here.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: OK. We have a lot to do.
SANCHEZ: Yes. As a matter of fact, there is a lot happening in the news today. And here we go.
The government has released three more hostages in that intense standoff that we're following for you in Greece. Hijackers strapped with explosives and armed with guns have taken over a bus. This has happened outside an Athens suburb this morning. They are demanding to be flown to Russia. We are making this a priority story. We're going to have a live update from the scene in just a moment.
Also, a look now at some of the other stories in the news.
Sprint and Nextel announced they will come together. They will merge. The estimated $35 billion merger is going to give the new company close to 40 million wireless customers and make it the third largest wireless company in the United States.
In just about an hour, President Bush is going to meet with his Italian counterpart at the White House. Silvio Berlusconi is in Washington to attend the White House Economic Summit. Berlusconi was recently cleared of a corruption charge by a court of Milan. He has been an ally of Mr. Bush throughout the Iraq policy.
Also, an earthquake rattled the Cayman Islands last night. This quake measured 6.7 and was centered about 20 miles offshore from Georgetown in Grand Cayman Islands. No immediate reports of any major damage or injuries.
And hi, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez.
KAGAN: And I'm Daryn Kagan.
We want to get right to breaking news that we have coming out of Greece and go to our correspondent who is on the scene. Anthee Carassavas is on the phone from Athens with the latest on that bus hijacking.
ANTHEE CARASSAVAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Daryn -- can -- hello? Are you there?
KAGAN: Yes. Go ahead. You are on the air with us, Anthee.
CARASSAVAS: We are now into the 11-hour of this hostage crisis and hijackers have freed yet three more hostages bringing the total of those released to 10. Now, authorities tell thus on and off flow of hostage releases, this is a positive sign signaling that negotiations with the hijackers are producing positive results.
Unknown, however, remains the motives of the hijackers, and their identities and nationalities have yet to be publicly disclosed. Senior officials, however, tell us that they are convinced they are both Albanians. Now, their demands -- the demands they have set include a driver that will take them to the airport and then a plane to fly them to Russia.
Now, the prime minister has also been watching this case unfold from the crack of dawn. He is very hands-on. In fact he has canceled -- or postponed better, a trip to Brussels for a crucial E.U. summit. He will be flying there tomorrow morning -- Daryn.
KAGAN: OK. A couple questions for you, Anthee. We are showing our viewers here in the U.S. a live picture of the scene. You see the bus there in the background as we watch this unfold. For those viewers who are just joining us, how did these hijackers manage to commandeer this bus in the first place?
CARASSAVAS: What happened was that this bus was traveling into Athens; it's a commuter bus servicing people and workers outside the Athens metropolitan region. The bus was on its way from the region of Marathon into Athens, a few miles down into its course. These two hijackers boarded on to the bus. They flashed out rifles and threatened to take out explosives from a tote bag.
The driver eventually brought the bus to a screeching halt. He opened the doors in order for some passengers to flee. He managed to flee. A ticket controller and another passenger, female passenger managed to free. The driver also took the keys of the bus with him. Therefore leaving this blue commuter bus immobilized for 11 hours now.
The -- and it was only in the last four to five hours that we have actually seen hijackers starting to release or free some of the passengers.
KAGAN: Which show there is movement in the story. We're going to continue to follow it. Anthee Carassavas on the scene there in Athens, thank you.
With more now on this developing story, here is Rick.
SANCHEZ: Yes. Mike Brooks is our CNN analyst who handles this type of story for us. Why? Because he's worked hostage situations.
You were a hostage negotiator, as a matter of fact.
MIKE BROOKS, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: I was an FBI-trained hostage negotiator with the metropolitan police, and then also assigned to the FBI for six years on their Joint Terrorism Task Force. SANCHEZ: Start with the good news, they released seven and now they've three more. I imagine that tells you that they're willing to what? Negotiate, that you can work with these guys.
BROOKS: Absolutely. There's been 10 so far released. That's a good sign. As long as they keep releasing hostages, keep the dialogue going. That's also fantastic. I've also heard the hostage takers are also feeding the hostages on board croissants and water. That also personalizes things quite a bit. If you provide food to the people on board, that develops kind of a relationship between the hostage taker and the hostage, which is always good. Because then if things go bad, it makes it harder for the hostage takers to harm the hostages on board.
SANCHEZ: So essentially, what you are saying is there are open lines of communication. If they are willing to work with people on bus, they're also going to be willing to work with the cops when they show up and talk to them as well.
BROOKS: Absolutely. One of the things the police are going to try not to do, they don't want that bus to go mobile. That's why you see a white bus in front of it and you see a police car pulled in right behind it. They try not to -- they don't want to have an open- air assault.
SANCHEZ: Uh-huh.
BROOKS: They want everything to be solved through negotiation and not a tactical resolution. But I say you can never say never when it comes to hostage situations.
SANCHEZ: Let me ask you this real quick and the producer is giving me a wrap here. But they have got explosives strapped to them. That makes things real difficult. You don't know what they have.
BROOKS: No, you don't. They have -- they apparently have seen one shotgun that they were firing out the window early on in the hostage taking. But they have not seen any explosives. Many times people come on board and say they have explosives, they'll show a gun, you don't know what they have.
SANCHEZ: They may be bluffing.
BROOKS: They may be bluffing. The negotiations are ongoing, that's a good thing.
SANCHEZ: Mike Brooks, we thank you. We will be checking back with you as this story continues to unfold here on CNN.
BROOKS: Absolutely. Thank you.
SANCHEZ: Daryn.
KAGAN: Meanwhile, we want to Iraq for the other developing story of the day. A pretrial hearing for two senior members of the former Iraqi regime may be imminent. Today we are hearing who might exactly be going on trial.
For that let's bring in CNN's Chris Lawrence who is live in Baghdad.
Chris, hello.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Good morning, Daryn. We have learned from a well-informed observer of this legal process that what's going to happen in the next week or in the next couple weeks is not a trial, but an investigative hearing. The judge will be asking questions trying to determine if there's enough evidence to go forward with the trial. The defendants will be represented by a lawyer and they will enjoy a lot of the same rights that we enjoy in the United States.
Now, CNN has also learned that at least this stage of the process will be confidential. It will not be held in public. And it will involve two defendants, a former commander in the Iraqi army, and Ali Hassan al Majid, otherwise known as "Chemical Ali."
Chemical Ali" is accused of committing some of the worst crimes committed during Saddam Hussein's rule, including gassing up to 5,000 Kurds in northern Iraq during the late 1980s.
Now, a lot of people here in Iraq are saying that this is going to generate a lot of publicity and that some of it is politically motivated. Today was the first day in Iraq's election process where people could begin campaigning. It was also the day that interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi announced his candidacy by putting his name on top of a 200-member alliance called the Iraqi List.
It was Allawi who just yesterday surprised a lot of people by making this big announcement about the trial. Now a lot of people are trying to say here in Iraq, suggesting that perhaps the trials, the timing of the trials and election is no coincidence -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Chris Lawrence reporting live from Baghdad, thank you.
Also this in, Paul Bremer, the former U.S. administrator in Iraq says bringing democracy to Iraq is a difficult task. Kind of an obvious statement there. Earlier today on CNN he cautioned against expecting too much too soon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL BREMER, FMR. ADMINISTRATOR, IRAQ: I think what's important to bear in mind about Iraq is that the process is ongoing. I think we'll have these elections in January, and that will be another step towards representative government there.
I think we need to keep perspective here about things. It takes time to change a society that has been under a brutal dictatorship for 25 years. It's not going to happen overnight. It will be -- there will be ups and downs but the trend line is the right direction.
(END VIDEO CLIP) KAGAN: Bremer in the news. He and General Tommy Franks and former CIA director George Tenet were honored in a White House ceremony yesterday with Presidential Medals of Freedom.
SANCHEZ: There is evidence today that the abuse of Iraqi prisoners extended beyond the Abu Ghraib prison. Navy documents, obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union, details at least 24 instances of U.S. Marines mistreating prisoners. So far the abuses have led to 11 court-martials.
The documents revealed that in one instance, for example, a detainee's hands were severely burned, after they were doused with a cleanser and then set on fire. In yet another case, a Marine staged a stock -- a mock execution of teenage looters who were forced to kneel while a pistol was fired. The Navy also documented a case in which a detainee also received a severe electric shock from a transformer.
KAGAN: Past international news, there is economic news as well. That is what the White House is focusing on today. They are holding an economic conference, trying to map out economic strategy for the next four years. We will go live to see what the White House has planned.
Also ahead, tips for giving a New Year's toast to remember. Our Gerri Willis will give us the X's and O's on that one.
KAGAN: And later on, poison and politics. We will look back on the use of lethal techniques used to shape history.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NARRATOR: Li Donsheng's ambition of turning China's electronics maker TCL into a global brand is becoming a reality. Leader since 1997, he's formed joint ventures with consumer's giant Thompson and telecommunications firm Alcatel over the past year.
Merging TCL's TV production facilities with those of Thompson's created the world's largest TV maker. And by combining the struggle mobile phone businesses of Alcatel and TCL, Li not only gains access to international customers but hopes to ring in profits.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: The future of the American economy. About 45 minutes ago, the White House began an economic conference. Both President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are going to be attending.
And for more, we turn now to CNN's Kathleen Hays joining us from Washington.
What are they going to be doing?
KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're going to be talking a lot, Rick. Talking about the economy and trying to start this process of selling an ambitious second term economic agenda for President George Bush. Which includes, of course, Social Security reform, it used to be called the third rail of American politics; labor skills for the 21-Century, health care reform. You name it; it will be on the agenda.
Vice President Dick Cheney kicking off the event this morning with some remarks. You know, a lot people worried about the budget deficit, worried about paying for Social Security without raising taxes or reversing tax cuts on the wealthiest. Well, Vice President Cheney made it clear this morning that those tax cuts must be made permanent, must stay in place, because in otherwise it would cause damage to the American economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK CHENEY (R), UNITED STATES VICE PRESIDENT: Key components of the president's tax relief are set to expire over the next few years. Should they lapse, the small business expense deduction would shrink from $100,000 to $25,000. Taxes on dividends and capital gains would increase, marriage penalty relief would sunset and the death tax would rise from the dead.
This would impede capital investment by small business owners and raise the tax burden on retirees and families investing for their future. It would also result in tax increases for every American who pays income taxes. So we are committed to keeping the Bush tax cuts in place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAYS: So, John Snow, Treasury secretary who almost did not keep his cabinet post it looked like, will oversee that tax reform panel at 11:00. At 1:30, President Bush will join outgoing Commerce Secretary Don Evans to talk about tort reform, and the costs those legal costs are putting on the economy.
So a very ambitious agenda as I said. We will be here all day and look forward to talking about it later on. Back to you.
SANCHEZ: Yes. A lot of issues to be discussed, a lot of problems as well. One wonders whether this is going be a give and take or just a give? We thank you for that -- in fact, those questions may be best answered by someone who is going to be chairing this thing. And we're going to have him here.
Steve Freedman, who is going to be the forum moderator, we're going to get some insight on proposed Social Security changes and other economic issues as well, that could impact our futures right here when we do that interview in a bit.
Daryn, over to you.
KAGAN: All right. Well, it's not too early to start thinking about your New Year's toast. Have you been doing that?
SANCHEZ: No, I haven't.
(LAUGHTER)
KAGAN: Well, it's time to start.
SANCHEZ: So many other things going on.
KAGAN: Here's how we're going to help you. We are here to help.
SANCHEZ: OK.
KAGAN: You might not be thinking about what you're going to say, but what you're going to say it with. Gerri Willis will be talking about how you pick out beautiful bubbly.
SANCHEZ: Beautiful bubbly, a little alliteration no less.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN-FN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hey, guys. We're also going to talk about the words, too, writing it's hard, it's tough, it's tricky. We will tell you how to do it when CNN LIVE TODAY continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: A number of developing stories to bring you up to date on.
First, this is from Athens, Greece. Bus hostage situation. The two hostage takers on this bus have released two more hostages. So it started with 24 passengers on board. Now a total of 10 passengers have been released, 14 are still being held captive as night falls on Athens, Greece. We continue to develop that story and we'll more from the scene in Athens.
We're also tracking and looking for how Sprint and Nextel stocks are doing with news that those two cellular phone companies will be merging. A lot more on that that cell phone merger will mean for you as a consumer, ahead.
SANCHEZ: Now we switch gears here a little bit. With the holidays approaching, we would like to propose a toast, shall we? Actually, we'd try and help you master the technique if we possibly can.
Here with her "Top Five Tips" on how to deliver the right toast with the most is our own Gerri Willis. She's live in New York.
I guess we start with the timing right? It's all about timing when do you this.
WILLIS: Right. Like everything in life, Rick, it's all about the timing. You have got to make sure that if there are a lot of people in the room, and you want to give that toast but you're not the host, you wait for the host to go first. Then you can go. One tip here, if you're tempted to get everybody's attention by hitting your glass -- your water glass with a spoon or a knife, forget it. You could break it. Bad idea.
Be sure before you start to give guests time to refill their glass. That's always a good idea.
And don't go on too long. Two to four minutes is tops after that people start falling asleep.
SANCHEZ: Yes. Good idea for speeches, too, in any occasion.
Delivery, right? Form is important.
WILLIS: Absolutely. You have got to think about who am I talking to? Maybe you know everybody in the room, maybe you don't. But it's always a good idea to understand who the audience is. And what a lot of people do that's just a bad idea, is they apologize at the top. If you say I normally don't speak in public, I'm a little embarrassed; look, the audience is with you. Just roll with it and don't make any apologies. And be prepared because you will feel more relaxed and less nervous, if you know what you're going to say before you say it.
SANCHEZ: Humor is good, but humiliation is not, right?
WILLIS: How many times, Rick, have you seen these things go over the top? They mention some kind of embarrassing story about, you know, some former girlfriend or something. Always a bad idea.
Don't talk about anybody's appearance. That's another no-no. But cute stories, that's a good thing.
SANCHEZ: Are there options or is there only one way to do this as far as selection of champagne, for example?
WILLIS: You know, there's a lot to pick from. And the really good news here is that you don't have to pay a lot of money. At "Five Tips" we are about not paying top price. If you want to pay under $20, you definitely can. Check out these sparkling values.
Something else I want to mention while you've got that screen up. Ariel, Brut, Coubert, nonalcoholic alternatives for people who don't want alcohol. It's about $9 a bottle.
SANCHEZ: We talked about the toaster. What about the toasted?
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: And I don't mean the guy who drank too much, the person who is being toasted.
WILLIS: Well, there's an art to that, too, Rick. If you are actually getting the toast, if everybody in the room stands up while, you know, you are being toasted, don't get up. It looks like you are kind of grandstanding. Sit down. Don't even raise your glass. You should just sit there, smile, listen to the toast. Then get up and say thank you very much and maybe tell a little story on the person who was toasting you.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
KAGAN: Hmm.
SANCHEZ: How about the beauty pageant wave? Can you do some of that?
(LAUGHTER)
WILLIS: Yes. Absolutely. You bet.
SANCHEZ: Gerri Willis, you look like you have experience with it. Thank you.
WILLIS: You're welcome.
SANCHEZ: Appreciate it.
KAGAN: It's elbow, elbow, wrist, wrist. Not like I would know.
(LAUGHTER)
KAGAN: But somebody showed me once.
Speaking of beauty, we have one here.
SANCHEZ: Formidable.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, last year we had a champagne tasting for...
KAGAN: We did?
JERAS: Well, not you. Some friends and I. And my husband and I, we bought literally a $3 bottle of champagne and we bought, like a $100 bottle; and then everybody else brought whatever they brought. And guess what won?
KAGAN: The $3 one.
JERAS: The $3 bottle.
SANCHEZ: Couldn't tell the difference.
JERAS: Couldn't tell the difference.
SANCHEZ: Wow. See, I wouldn't have been able to tell.
JERAS: Amazing!
KAGAN: But how many other bottles of champagne had they had at that point?
(LAUGHTER)
JERAS: That's true.
KAGAN: Yes.
JERAS: That's something to keep in mind.
(WEATHER REPORT)
SANCHEZ: It's the No. 1 family tourist destination, but it is security Mickey Mouse operation? We're going to put those two stories together for you and make it make sense.
KAGAN: And later on, "Time" magazine for kids picks its person of the year. We will talk to one of the kid reporters coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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