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The Situation Room
Resistance to Israeli Pullout; Early bin Laden Warnings; New Hendrix Biography; Iraq Attacks; 82nd Airborne Troops Going to Iraq; Judge Lets Loose; Bob Costas Interview
Aired August 17, 2005 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It's 5:00 p.m. here in Washington. And you're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where news and information from around the world arrive at one place simultaneously.
Behind me, we have international newscasts coming in right now. NTV, that would be in Germany. ITV coming in from Britain, Channel Two, big story in Gaza today, Israel TV. Lots coming up on this program on that. CCTV, not closed circuit television. That would be the official communist television network in China.
Also happening right now, 5:00 p.m., as I said, in Washington, we're learning about some newly declassified U.S. documents that actually warned about Osama bin Laden five years before 9/11. What happened? What didn't happen?
And it's midnight in Gaza. Emotions are flaring amid the historic Israeli pullout. Some Jewish settlers are resisting orders to leave.
And it's 2:00 p.m. in Seattle, hometown of a rock music legend. Now some shocking new revelations about Jimi Hendrix. We'll take a closer look at a surprising new biography.
I'm Wolf Blitzer, and you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
Did the U.S. government miss a chance to derail Osama bin Laden's terror operations long before he became America's biggest enemy?
Our State Department correspondent Andrea Koppel is joining us with new word on that. Andrea?
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, that warning came almost 10 years ago, about three months after bin Laden was kicked out of Sudan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KOPPEL (voice-over): Today his name and face are instantly recognized by millions around the world. But in 1996, Osama bin Laden was still relatively unknown.
However, according to newly declassified documents, in July 1996, State Department intelligence analysts warned the Clinton administration that if bin Laden moved his base from Sudan to Afghanistan, where hundreds of Arab Mujahedeen received terrorist training, he could prove more dangerous to U.S. interests in the long run.
Two years later, in August 1998, bin Laden's al Qaeda network attacked the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. And three years after that came 9/11.
TOM FITTON, PRESIDENT, JUDICIAL WATCH: The Clinton administration needs to answer some tough questions.
KOPPEL: Tom Fitton is the president of Judicial Watch, a conservative legal advocacy group which first obtained the declassified documents.
FITTON: Why didn't it take stronger action against bin Laden?
KOPPEL: But following the '98 East Africa bombings, President Clinton did retaliate, ordering the U.S. military to launch cruise missiles at suspected al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan and stepping up diplomatic efforts to force bin Laden out.
The CIA, for its part, had already established a special unit focused exclusively on bin Laden.
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Bear in mind, the context here was that we were at war with many other terrorist groups at that moment, including Hezbollah, for example, which, until bin Laden's treachery, had killed more Americans than any other terrorist unit in the world.
KOPPEL: John McLaughlin is the former deputy director of the CIA.
MCLAUGHLIN: Bin Laden was a rising star, if you will, in the terrorist world. But our counterterrorism forces were deployed then across a very wide front.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KOPPEL: State Department analysts also offered a rather prophetic assessment. They said that, while keeping bin Laden on the run might inconvenience him, in the end, they said, that his al Qaeda network would remain resilient -- Wolf?
BLITZER: All right, Andrea Koppel, with that at the State Department. Thank you.
And stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
Some shouted, some sobbed. Families pulled from their homes, worshipers removed from their synagogues. One by one, Gaza's Jewish settlers are being forced to evacuate. Some are still putting up a fight.
CNN's John Vause is joining us now from Neve Dekalim. That's the largest Jewish settlement in Gaza, or at least what was the largest Jewish settlement in Gaza. What's the latest there, John? JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Wolf. Just after midnight here now in Neve Dekalim, entering into the second official day of this forced evacuation of not just Neve Dekalim, but all 21 Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli police and army saying this now moving well ahead of schedule. So far they've evacuated 11 of the 21 settlements. A twelfth settlement made a deal with the Israeli army. They wanted extra time to pack. In return, they've agreed to leave peacefully sometime today Israeli time.
Now, here in Neve Dekalim, the forced evacuation will continue about eight hours from now. The procedure is expected to be very, very similar. Police, women, rabbis, counselors going door-to-door talking with the settlers, working it out, trying to help them pack, pleading with them to leave, being very sensitive, treating them with a great deal of delicacy.
And then, after that, if they refuse to leave, that is when the police and soldiers will move in and carry them out one-by-one, as we've seen over the last 24 hours here in Neve Dekalim.
Now, also one of the big issues here is not the settlers but the infiltrators, the young Jewish teenagers, predominantly, who made their way into the Gaza Strip from around Israel and also the West Bank. Many of them are now in the synagogue behind me.
There are hundreds in there. It's difficult to know precisely how many. Settler leaders say there could be as many as 2,000. Police are saying they need to be out by morning. Otherwise, they will be taken out and could face criminal charges.
Wolf?
BLITZER: Very briefly, John, have most of these settlers -- do they have places where they're going? Do they have homes inside Israel proper?
VAUSE: This is one of the big complaints that we've been hearing over the last couple of days, not just here in Neve Dekalim, but at a lot of the other settlements. They say there are no hotel rooms for them. There's no temporary housing, which is being made available to them.
The government says that's because they waited until the last minute to contact the government to make these arrangements. So now they don't have anywhere really to go. So one of the big complaints is that they're not staying together as a group.
Wolf?
BLITZER: All right. John Vause in Neve Dekalim in Gaza for us. Thank you, John, very much.
History is being made in Gaza and recorded in some extraordinary images. Here are some of the sights and sounds and the raw emotions of the Gaza pullout.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(GROUP SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING HEBREW)
MAJ. GEN. DAN HAREL, ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES (through translator): Very hard not to identify yourself with the grief of the settlers. They are losing their homes, their families, their work, their communities.
This is one of the evacuators. I hugged them, and I strengthen my soldiers (INAUDIBLE) very proud of their behavior during the whole process.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope for them a happy and peaceful life, but not in Palestine. Outside of Palestine. This is our land.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: At the same time this was happening in Gaza, there was a bloody rampage today over on the West Bank. The prime minister, Ariel Sharon, is calling it an act -- and I'm quoting now -- "of Jewish terror."
Police say a Jewish settler grabbed a gun from a guard and shot dead two Palestinians at the settlement of Shilo. Police say he then fired at Palestinian workers at a nearby industrial area, killing one and wounding two others. There are fears of escalating violence as the Palestinian group Hamas vows revenge.
Time now for the "Cafferty File" and our "Question of the Hour." CNN's Jack Cafferty standing by in New York -- Jack?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Wolf.
We're less than a month away now from the fourth anniversary of September 11. And movie studios and TV networks have no less than five major projects in the works about that awful day.
The Discovery Channel is airing the first of these productions. It's called "The Flight that Fought Back on September 11th." It will be a dramatization of the hijacking of United Airlines Flight 93, which eventually crashed in Pennsylvania.
Until now, Hollywood has stayed away from dramatizing 9/11. And critics wonder if it's too soon for these movies.
Studio executives, though, say that, by using the 9/11 Commission Report, they can make productions that are both based in fact and respectful of victims' families.
So here's the question for this hour. Are Americans ready for films about September 11? CaffertyFile@CNN.com.
BLITZER: Good and fair question. Thanks very much, Jack. We'll look forward to the e-mail that will be coming in.
Coming up, another bloody wave of bombings in Iraq. We'll take you live to Baghdad, scene of yet the latest attacks and tell you who was targeted.
And more American troops are heading over toward Iraq. We'll have details on the latest deployment.
And true rock stories. Jimi Hendrix still surprising us more than three decades after his death.
You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: It was cold, calculated slaughter, simply put. Three car bombs blew up in Baghdad today, the first two at a bus station, the third at a hospital just as the casualties were arriving.
As Iraq struggles to find some measure of security, our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, is standing by with word of a new troop deployment to Iraq.
But let's begin in Baghdad. CNN's Aneesh Raman standing by with all the late-breaking developments. Aneesh?
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the Iraqi capital waking up today to the worst attack this country has seen in weeks. As you said, a trio of car bombs detonating within minutes of each other. Forty-three people were killed, upwards of 90 others wounded.
As you mentioned, Wolf, the first two bombs taking place at one of Baghdad's busiest bus terminals at one of its busiest moments in the day. As those casualties from that attack were being taken to hospitals, another car bomb at one of those hospitals.
A disastrous scene, one that begged the question for the Iraqi civilians as to when this would end. It comes, as you say, amidst political turmoil in the capital. But it is this balance, Wolf, of violence and progress within which the Iraqi civilians reside.
Wolf?
BLITZER: And amidst all of this, they're trying to draft the constitution. Aneesh, thank you very much for that.
More U.S. troops have received deployment orders for Iraq. Let's get the specifics. Our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, standing by. Barbara?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, 700 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division out of Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, will be on the ground in Iraq within the next few weeks. They've received deployment orders, but they're going to be doing something they normally don't do. These are highly trained combat troops. They this time will be conducting security for prisoners. The prison at Abu Ghraib near Baghdad, other prisons now filling up with detainees as the violence continues. More detainees expected. So next month, a new prison is opening northeast of Baghdad. And these troops, these paratroopers, will be assisting with the security to move those troops.
Now, sources tell us they are not the troops that are going for election security this coming fall. That is likely to be other troops. Our sources are telling us that this week, indeed, military commanders are reviewing the options to possibly put more troops in Iraq for the election season later this year.
That, Wolf, could be accomplished by either leaving some troops there longer, sending troops early, or sending troops into Iraq that might not even have been expected to go.
Wolf?
BLITZER: All right, Barbara Starr with those specifics. Thanks, Barbara, very much.
An innocent man killed in a terror investigation. What went wrong in London? We're getting brand new details right now.
Also, an irate judge goes off on a defendant. We'll show you what he's accused of and what the judge said.
Plus, Bob Costas here in THE SITUATION ROOM. He'll weigh in on some of the big stories. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: In Kansas, a judge considers the proper punishment to fit the crimes. A sentencing hearing for confessed BTK killer Dennis Rader started today with graphic tales of terror, as the victims' families tearfully and angrily looked on.
Authorities revealed more of what they've learned from the notorious killer. Prosecutors are pushing for the strongest possible punishment, a minimum of 175 years without the chance of parole.
One detective graphically detailed a story Rader told him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KELLY OTIS, HOMICIDE DETECTIVE: He reaches inside the briefcase and pulls out his strangler rig, at which point she begins a prayer. He then begins trying to strangle her, but the cord breaks on his strangler rig and then she begins to fight him.
He documents in here how she has scratched him on the neck and raked his neck with her fingernails, but he's able to get her down with the pantyhose and kill her.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BLITZER: What a horrible story that is. We'll monitor that story for you, our viewers. We're expecting to hear tomorrow from this man, Dennis Rader.
These are live pictures you're seeing right now from the courtroom, the sentencing process continuing. Dennis Rader, the BTK killer. We expect he will make a statement before the judge tomorrow. We'll watch for that.
A Florida judge threw more than the book at one defendant. He lobbed a few verbal bombshells, as well.
Brian Todd is joining us now with this pretty amazing story. Brian, what happened?
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right, Judge -- excuse me. Judge? Wolf. That's a Freudian slip there.
A judge in Broward County, Florida, today got very annoyed at one defendant and let him know it in front of court cameras. Now, when a 78-year-old man appeared before him accused of telling a postal clerk in Deerfield Beach, Florida, that he was mailing a bomb and then grabbing his package and leaving the post office when the clerk got alarmed, here's what Broward County Judge Steven Shutter had to say to that defendant.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE STEVEN SHUTTER, BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA: You're charged with a false report about planting a bomb or explosive. At the moment, you have a state charge. You'd better hope the feds don't come in.
If you did this, you're really stupid. I think the answer to him is, "Duh!" This criminal is stupid, and there's stupid criminals.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TODD: Now, we got wind of this story late this afternoon and we were unable to reach the defendant's attorney or Judge Shutter for some clarification. But according to our Miami affiliate, WPLG, this man's attorney, a public defender, later on in that session implied to the judge that the comment about the bomb was a joke and the postal worker was partly to blame for taking that joke too seriously.
Now, again, Judge Shutter got very irritated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHUTTER: Oh, blame it on the postal workers now. Yes, yes, you see? Defense attorneys always think this way.
Here's this poor, overworked postal worker just trying to get through their shift. And he's after them. I'm telling the postal people, next time -- wait until you get no mail for the next six months.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TODD: That defendant, according to our affiliate, his name is George Gray (ph). He faces a second-degree felony charge for the alleged comment at the post office, which led to a bomb squad being called and the building evacuated.
Now, according to our affiliate, the package actually contained prescription medication. This man reportedly worked as a courier for a medical supply company. Not clear if he'll appear again before Judge Shutter, but, of course, he and his attorney, Wolf, are likely hoping they will not.
BLITZER: Judge Shutter, a man who speaks his mind. Thanks very much, Brian Todd.
Coming up, we already knew it was a horrible shooting that went terribly wrong. Now, a new report of shocking details on the Brazilian man mistakenly killed by police in London. We'll have those details for you.
And a special conversation with Bob Costas. He's in a new chair right here on CNN. Surely, we all know he knows sports, but he's also vastly familiar with lots of other items in the news. We're going to chat with Bob. That's coming up.
And it's said to be a real page-turner, a new biography of Jimi Hendrix. It has new details on his already colorful life. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Check out some of these hot shots coming in from the Associated Press, pictures likely to be in some of your hometown newspapers tomorrow.
Pope Benedict XVI, we see him here getting ready for a conference he's going to be attending in Germany.
Ted Turner, our former boss, the creator of this network. He's along the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. He's got some ideas for peace. He's always got some ideas.
And check this out. Terrell Owens of the Philadelphia Eagles getting some practice after a week's suspension.
We're watching these pictures. We're watching that other picture up in Gaza, as well.
At the same time, there are some disturbing new details about that London bombing investigation and the shooting of a man who turned out to be completely innocent.
Our senior international correspondent Walter Rodgers has the story from London.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) WALTER RODGERS, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): It now appears the London police operation that led to the wrongful killing last month of this innocent Brazilian, Jean Charles de Menezes, was badly bungled, according to leaked documents from the investigation.
De Menezes' killing by plain-clothed cops on this subway car took place in an atmosphere of terror and fear, just one day after a second Islamist bombing campaign misfired.
Believing at the time they had cornered a bombing suspect, Scotland Yard's chief, Sir Ian Blair, then reported...
COMMISSIONER IAN BLAIR, METROPOLITAN POLICE: The information I have available is that this shooting is directly linked to the ongoing and expanding anti-terrorist operation.
RODGERS: Police now admit de Menezes died because officers misidentified him. They were looking for this man, Ethiopian-born Osman Hussain. Instead, they followed and killed de Menezes, a Brazilian electrician.
Police had staked out this south London apartment thinking one of the suspected bombers lived here. Right address, wrong man. The first mistake, according to documents leaked to Britain's Independent Television News, the officer assigned to surveillance was uncertain.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "I should point out that, as I observed this male exited the block, I was in the process of relieving myself."
RODGERS: Shortly afterwards, as the innocent man approached this subway station, someone in the police by now wrongfully identified him as the bombing suspect.
BLAIR: As I understand the situation, the man was challenged and refused to obey the police instructions.
RODGERS: But according to information given to Britain's Independent Television News, there was no challenge nor instructions. Much of the early information -- that de Menezes leapt over a ticket gate, that he wore a suspicious bulky jacket, and that he stumbled into a subway car -- was simply wrong, according to the closed circuit TV images cited in the ITV documents.
De Menezes was seen to behavior normally. He did run to catch the train, like other commuters, but he took a seat like a normal passenger. Indeed, the initial investigation findings obtained by ITV now show that at least one officer said he had already restrained de Menezes before he was killed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "I grabbed the male in the denim jacket by wrapping both my arms around his torso, pinning his arms to his side. I then pushed him back onto the seat where he had been previously sitting."
RODGERS: Still, other officers shot him seven times in the head. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "I then heard a gun shot very close to my left ear, and was dragged away onto the floor of the carriage."
RODGERS: After these revelations, calls for the resignation of the chief of Scotland Yard from de Menezes' attorney.
HARRIET WISTRIC, DE MENEZES FAMILY ATTORNEY: Certainly, I think we need to look at the whole chain of command.
RODGERS: De Menezes' family released a statement, lamenting -- quote -- "Jean was an innocent man shot in cold blood."
(on-screen): Determining how that happened is now the responsibility of the Independent Police Complaints Commission. But ITV has also reported that metropolitan police originally tried to keep control of the investigation, an effort that was rejected by the British government.
That Independent Police Complaints Commission said it would not speculate on or release partial information on its investigations, adding, others should not do so, either.
(voice-over): Still, at the heart of this case, questions about the police inclination to shoot to kill a terrorist suspect.
BLAIR: You have to consider what would have happened if these officers had not shot and that man had been a suicide bomber.
RODGERS: For police, a terrible choice. But in the end, the officers became judge, jury and executioner. Walter Rodgers, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: What a sad story that is, too. Our Zain Verjee joining us now from the CNN Center in Atlanta with a quick look at some other stories making news.
Hi, Zain.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Wolf.
A Muslim cleric and his son who were arrested in California on visa violations have been returned to Pakistan. That word today from U.S. immigration officials. The two had agreed to deportation in June after they were picked up during a federal terror investigation. Mohammed Adil Khan was the imam of a mosque in Lodi, California.
A new endorsement of Supreme Court nominee John Roberts. The American Bar Association is giving Roberts a well-qualified rating. The leading lawyers' group routinely evaluates the credentials of federal judicial nominees and has given Roberts a well-qualified rating before. But this clears a potential hurdle for the nominee even as some Democrats are stepping up their criticism of him.
Prosecutors say they expect the governor of Ohio to appear at a court hearing tomorrow morning. Republican Bob Taft is facing criminal charges for failing to report gifts, including 47 golf outings, on state ethics forms. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up two years in jail but it is considered unlikely he'll spend time behind bars.
Wolf?
BLITZER: Zain, quickly, this -- the Lodi cleric and his son, what more do we know about the accusations against them?
VERJEE: Well, federal immigration officials say that the elder Khan essentially was planning to set up a madrassas similar to those in Pakistan. That is a religious Islamic school. And officials say that they have evidence that they presented at recent hearings that they had planned to use the madrassas as a cover to recruit jihadis. Khan's lawyer says that's just not true, that's not the case. Both the elder Khan and his 19-year-old son are back in Pakistan now.
Wolf?
BLITZER: All right. Zain Verjee, thanks very much. Zain's at the CNN Center in Atlanta, as she is each day here in THE SITUATION ROOM.
It's Wednesday, August 17. Coming up, chatting up Bob Costas. The broadcaster talks about some items in the news. He's guest hosting for some big, big -- he's filling some big shoes, shall we say. That would be Larry King's shoes. Bob Costas standing by to be my guest.
And art often imitates life. But is America ready to see films about the 9/11 attacks? We've asked, you've answered. Jack Cafferty will be along with your e-mail messages.
And it's Jimi Hendrix like you've never seen him before. We've got some shocking new claims found in a new book, a real page-turner. We'll share it with you here in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: The genius who made the Gap a household name is set to offer the public a piece of his next empire. Our Ali Velshi is in New York with the "Bottom Line" on this developing story. What's going on, Ali?
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: It's like a really interesting deal. It's not a big money deal. The news crossing the wire now is that J. Crew is going public. It's only a $200 million IPO. That's nothing historically.
But the interesting thing is it's run by Mickey Drexler. Now, back in the '90s, Drexler ran Tthe Gap. It was a pokey little place that he made into casual chic. He's been called the merchant prince. This guy was a dream. And then he had more than two years of a bad string at the Gap and they threw him out unceremoniously.
Before long, J. Crew picked him up, also another sleepy little operation, and he has been reenergizing the place for the last few years.
Well, the announcement now is that J. Crew is going to sell an IPO. And a lot of people have been eager to see what Mickey Drexler is going to get them back to. He took the logos off the clothes at J. Crew. He upscaled the thing. He said that no names on the clothes. He wanted it to have a different feel.
Now people are saying he's ready to get out there and make some money off of this. It's going to be interesting for people to watch what happens with J. Crew and how it succeeds in a tough retail environment.
Wolf?
BLITZER: So the assumption is that because he's a genius, investors are standing in line to get some piece of the action.
VELSHI: That's exactly it. It's time for the redemption of Mickey Drexler.
BLITZER: All right. We'll watch. Ali Velshi, thanks very much. Always has the "Bottom Line".
We've been bringing you some dramatic pictures into THE SITUATION ROOM of sobbing and screaming Jewish settlers being forced out of their homes, being forced out of their synagogues, scuffling with police as Israel continues its withdrawal from Gaza. The pullout is one of the top stories on CNN.com.
Our Internet reporters, Jacki Schechner and Abbi Tatton are standing by. They're checking the situation online. Jacki, Abbi, what's going on?
JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Well, Wolf, we're going to give you some more information about online resources in regard to the pullout of Gaza.
But we did want to show you what was our Top 10 or "Most Popular" on CNN.com. And it happens to be Bond, James Bond. A much lighter story, but Pierce Brosnan is no longer going to be James Bond.
Also, the best car to buy for your kid if he's going to college. I don't know how many of you got a car when you went to college. But they'll tell you what the best ones are in the CNN "Money" section.
And then also the Polish researchers who were rescued right before polar bears were ready to attack.
So some lighter stories.
But the one we did want to tell you about in depth, much more serious, is how the pullout from Gaza is going. And we have some online resources to tell you about with regard to that.
ABBI TATTON, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: There are some incredible online accounts that we're finding in blogs from Gaza, some very different accounts. We wanted to bring you two from two female bloggers at opposite ends of Gaza giving us very different stories.
First of all, an Israeli 26-year-old girl, Bala Gan (ph), she's blogging today. She's been in what was the largest settlement there in the south of Gaza, near the synagogue recording her thoughts, saying she was keeping it together for the last few days, but she doesn't know if it was the tension, the heat, or just the sheer emotion, but now she said there was shouting and many, many tears today. And she admits that she herself cried. Very emotional post there.
For a very different story from the Palestinian side, we've been following this blog that's been looking at life for Palestinians in Gaza and Gaza City for the last few days. This is Laila El-Haddad who is posting at Raising Yousuf.
What she's saying today, in Gaza City there are political factions who are jockeying for credit for the Israeli withdrawal. She's also saying that there are some positive signs that citywide cleanup for a free, clean Gaza. And she's also saying there's a great deal of uncertainty, uncertain times for Gazans who don't really know, Wolf, what's going to happen next.
BLITZER: All right. A lot of information out there. If our viewers have the time, the inclination, they certainly can go there. Thanks very much for that.
Lou Dobbs getting ready for his program. That starts right at the top of the hour. Lou, tell our viewers what you're working on right now.
LOU DOBBS, HOST, LOU DOBBS TONIGHT: Wolf, I'll do that. Maybe you can comfort Jacki Schechner though. She seems pretty upset about not having that car in college.
Coming up tonight at 6:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN, we'll be reporting on shocking new evidence of critical intelligence and policy failures some of which hidden from the 9/11 Commission, some that might have possibly prevented the September 11 attacks. We'll have the full report.
Also, our public education system in this country is completely failing millions of our high school graduates. Only half those applying for college have the skills necessary to succeed. I'll be talking with the head of the largest college testing organization, ACT tonight.
And if you have any doubt the United States must resolve its broken borders and failed immigration system, we'll dispel those doubts for you tonight. Nearly half of Mexico's 100 million people want to move to the United States. Some of them are willing to move illegally, as you might expect. We'll have a special report for you.
All of that and more coming up at the top of the hour right here on CNN. Please join us. Now back to you, Wolf.
BLITZER: We certainly will, Lou. And thanks very much for coming into THE SITUATION ROOM earlier today. We hope you will be a frequent visitor here. Thanks.
DOBBS: Your welcome, Wolf. Any time.
BLITZER: Lou's program coming up at the top of the hour.
When we come back, a man who knows sports, but he knows a lot more than that. Bob Costas weighing in on a variety of topics, sharing his unique insight, his sense of humor. He's here with us. He'll be in the SITUATION ROOM.
Plus, 9/11 revisited. What did U.S. officials know about the threat from Osama bin Laden before the Twin Towers and the Pentagon were hit?
And more. Jimi Hendrix. Unusual moments from his personal life. Mary Snow is standing by. She has some new revelations.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: They're all in the news, a mourning mother becoming a household name. Other household names feeling the cult of celebrity and some famous faces fronting for big name institutions: All topics my next guest will weigh in. And Bob Costas is an esteemed sportscaster. But he also has a vast knowledge of a lot of other subjects. He's guest hosting all this week for LARRY KING LIVE.
Bob is joining us from the set of LARRY KING LIVE in New York. Thanks, Bob, very much for joining us.
BOB COSTAS, SPORTS CASTER: How are you today, Wolf?
BLITZER: I'm happy that you're on the program. Happy you're filling in for Larry King. We'll get to that a little bit later.
But let's talk a little bit. I know you have some thoughts about Cindy Sheehan, Iraq and Vietnam. What goes through your mind when you hear those words?
COSTAS: Well, I'm certainly not the first person to make this observation. But those of us who lived through the Vietnam era are aware that regardless of the arguments, pro and con, there came a point where the country was lost, where not enough of the country believed in the mission, believed in the goals, believed in the feasibility of achieving those goals. There was always a portion of the country that thought the conflict itself was mistaken from the start. And there was a certain portion that felt that way about Iraq.
But where it shifted was when those who might have supported it either wholeheartedly or tentatively moved to the other side. Their political views didn't necessarily line up with the anti-war movement in every respect, but they began to doubt the validity of the policy itself. And I think that increasingly, we're moving toward that place in Iraq.
That -- we're not talking about the Michael Moore wing of the Democratic Party. They always had their position against the war. We're talking about an increasing number of Americans -- 34 percent now, is all that say they believe that President Bush's policy in Iraq is turning out well, or that they support what he's doing at this point. So we're talking about an increasing number of Americans that have begun to believe that either the policy is mistaken or they can not achieve their objectives.
BLITZER: And that number very similar to the LBJ number in the late 1960s when the American public dramatically began to turn against the war in Vietnam. Henry Kissinger himself told me this past Sunday -- and he certainly remembers that era very vividly -- that on the home front, he's also seeing some of those same parallels emerge. And potentially for the Bush administration's policy in Iraq, that's very, very dangerous.
COSTAS: Yeah. There appears to be a parallel there.
Again without commenting -- it's not our place -- certainly not mine -- to comment on each particular policy, but it is clear in the overview that fewer and fewer Americans believe -- not only fewer believe we can achieve our objective, but fewer believe that it was worth it to begin with. A majority now believe it was a mistake to go there at all. And a clear majority believe that we cannot achieve our objective at this point.
BLITZER: Let's shift gears, talk about celebrity. The fascination that the American public has with celebrity. We spoke earlier today.
COSTAS: Yes.
BLITZER: I know you have some strong views on this.
COSTAS: Well, you know, there was always a kind of a side street you could go down. There was always a Hollywood press. There was always talk about Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor and that kind of thing. But it was kept to a certain slice of the media, a certain slice of the public discussion.
Now it's taken over the mainstream. And I'm struck by the expectation -- it's almost perverse -- the expectation that if someone is a public figure, they will address their private life.
I can honestly tell you -- and this doesn't come from an elitist position, because I like a lot of silly and inane things for entertainment value -- I have never read a story about any of this sort of -- about Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise or about Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt. What I know about it, I only know by osmosis. But I was in the airport the other day and the cover of Vanity Fair had Jennifer Aniston's picture on the cover and it said Jen -- well, there it is, "Jen Finally Talks."
That implies an expectation that it's a given in this culture that it's almost an obligation and an expectation that you will address your private life if you are a public figure. I think there's something profoundly perverse and vulgar about that.
Now, some public figures -- I don't know Jennifer Aniston at all. I enjoyed "Friends," and that's the extent of my interest. And I enjoy Tom Cruise's movies, and that's the extent of my interest. I plunk down my money to see Brad Pitt. I don't care very much about him beyond the performance itself.
Maybe some of these public figures feel they have to do something, sort of as a preemptive move, otherwise so much is going to be said and written about them. So they may as well get their own version out there.
But this idea that you owe it to the public, that there is sort of this exhibitionist thing going on and that your life is not validated unless you share it with millions of strangers, I think is perverse and vulgar actually.
BLITZER: Tonight, you're going to host the LARRY KING LIVE program. And you're going to focus in on the BTK killer. Talk a little bit about what you have in store.
COSTAS: Well, I have ambivalent feelings about it. And the only reason why I'm willing to do the program tonight, I'm filling in for the week, and it is, I guess, pegged to a specific news event because the sentencing hearing is ongoing. If it was a case of let's talk about the BTK killer again, then I would be extremely reluctant to do it.
I imagine that there is a news story here. There is also just an element of morbid curiosity. And I guess that's one of the questions that I'll want to ask the panel that we've assembled.
But it is a news story, as grotesque as it may be. And we have the television reporter who's covered it from the outset. The gentleman who wrote a book about it, the book that may have prompted the killer himself to take the chances that eventually led to his capture. We have the sole known survivor, a man who happened upon the scene while his sister was being killed and was able to escape. So they're part of the panel tonight.
And hopefully we can do it with some element of dignity and keep the ghoulish aspect to a minimum.
BLITZER: If anyone can, I know you can. Bob Costas, thanks for joining us in THE SITUATION ROOM. We hope you, too, will be a familiar face here. Bob will be hosting LARRY KING LIVE tonight, 9:00 pm Eastern.
When we come back, an icon in the sixties and seventies revealed. We'll take a closer look at a new biography of Jimi Hendrix and some things you probably never knew about him.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Jack Cafferty has been reading your e-mail. Let's check in, see what's happening in the "Cafferty File". Jack?
CAFFERTY: Less than a month now until the fourth anniversary of 9/11. And the movie studios and TV networks have five major projects under way about that horrible day.
The question this hour is, are Americans ready for films about 9/11?
Bernie in Lowell, Massachusetts writes, "Are Americans ready for films by 9/11? No. There's still too much anger unfortunately directed at any Muslim or person of dark skin. It could cause major riots."
Bernie, I don't think that's going to happen.
Laura in Woodstock, New York. "Hollywood is full of executives who are concerned about the bottom line and not about the well-being of people." Now, there's a revelation. "Movies about 9/11 should never be made."
Dan in Green Bay, Wisconsin. "Absolutely, we're ready for movies about 9/11. Many people seem to have forgotten why we have a war on terror. A good movie will remind them."
Neil in West Palm Beach, Florida. "Yes, if right and wrong are sharply drawn. Yes, if the hijackers are sleazy murderous lunatics, unshaven, nitwit (ph) fanatics. But no, definitely no, if P.C. takes over and in a "let's all be friends" scenario, both hijackers and victims are portrayed as morally equal."
And Richard in Cumberland, Maryland writes, "I like the show but please stop telling me I'm in THE SITUATION ROOM." It's creeping me out."
BLITZER: Tell him to relax. We're not going to creep him out. He is in THE SITUATION ROOM. You are, too. All of us are. I'll see you in THE SITUATION ROOM tomorrow, Jack.
CAFFERTY: I can't wait.
BLITZER: Thanks very much.
Our viewers have to lighten up a little bit.
His music and his rise to fame are well-known, but there are some things you probably never knew about Jimi Hendrix including that he once claimed to be gay. It's all revealed in a surprising new biography.
Let's bring in CNN's Mary Snow from New York. She's got some details. Mary?
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Wolf. Well, what hadn't been really widely known is that the military was standing in the way of Jimi Hendrix's passion for music and what he had to do to change that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): When Jimi Hendrix played his version of "The Star- Spangled Banner" at Woodstock in 1969, many thought it was a surprising choice for an anti-war crowd. Perhaps more surprising, though, is that Hendrix link to the red, white and blue may have been very different if he hadn't gotten out of the Army in 1962.
In the Hendrix biography "Room Full of Mirrors," author Charles Cross says Hendrix joined up after he was arrested for riding in stolen cars and the judge ordered him jail time or the Army. Hendrix, the book says, got out by claiming to be in love with a fellow serviceman. Cross says he learned about the discharge through recently released Army papers.
CHARLES CROSS, AUTHOR, "ROOM FULL OF MIRRORS": He was trying everything he could to get out of the service. And it was only when he went in and said he was a homosexual that the Army psychiatrist dismissed him.
SNOW: Cross says Hendrix always told friends he was dismissed because he broke his ankle. And with friends who were against the Vietnam War at the time, Hendrix broke ranks.
CROSS: His views were not that different than Richard Nixon's at the time, which is really remarkable.
SNOW: But it was music that became Hendrix's life and obsession. He jetted through an odyssey of drugs. And songs like "Purple Haze" spoke to his mindset. When he first experimented with acid, the book says, he looked in the mirror and thought he was Marilyn Monroe.
While he gained fame instantly in England, his reception in the U.S. wasn't always so warm. In 1967, Cross writes, Hendrix was once mistaken for a bellhop in New York.
And music industry observers say the African-American community in Harlem didn't embrace Hendrix's music, even after he made rock history at Woodstock.
CROSS: Here's a guy who plays the biggest music of his generation, headlining and a week later he's playing to an empty street in Harlem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (on camera): Hendrix's step-sister, Janie says the family didn't authorize this biography and that the family didn't want to comment on it since they're coming out with a book of their own.
Wolf?
BLITZER: You also spoke with some other family members. What are they saying about all this, Mary?
SNOW: Well, his sister says that there are still things that people don't know about Jimi Hendrix that will come out including some of his music. She claims that there's a vault of unheard music that will be coming out. And his brother calls him the Beethoven of the 20th century. BLITZER: Beethoven of the 20th century. OK. That's cool. Thanks very much, Mary Snow. We'll check back with you tomorrow. Mary snow is our reporter in New York.
We're here in THE SITUATION ROOM every weekday afternoon 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern. I'll be back tomorrow. I'm Wolf Blitzer.
LOU DOBBS TONIGHT starting right now. Lou standing by in New York. Lou?
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