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The Situation Room
U.S. Military Commanders Summoned to White House; Will President Bush Change Course in Iraq?
Aired October 20, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, very much, Lou. And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Standing by CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you tonight's top stories.
Happening now, urgent new talks about the killing and the chaos in Iraq. A top U.S. military commander summoned to the White House and the Pentagon assessing a bloody upheaval. It's 7:00 p.m. here in Washington where the president is under intense pressure to change course.
Also this hour is North Korea's leader backing down from his nuclear defiance? There are new statements from Kim Jong Il and from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in China. Our Zain Verjee has an exclusive interview with America's top diplomat.
And Senator Hillary Clinton on the debate stage this hour. Is her performance worthy of a possible White House contender?
I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
First tonight, Iraq in crisis, and the Bush administration struggling over it -- military strategy just a short while ago. The president met at the White House with the head of the U.S. military Central Command, General John Abizaid. And more high-level talks are planned tomorrow -- adding to the urgency tonight, deadly new fighting and failures by Iraqi military forces unable to stop the bloodshed or even to maintain control.
CNN's John Roberts is standing by in Baghdad; Brian Todd is watching this story as well from here in Washington. Let's go to the Pentagon first. Our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre -- Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, despite evidence that the U.S strategy of standing up Iraqi forces to get U.S. forces to stand down is having problems in another Iraqi city. No evidence from the Pentagon tonight of a major course correction.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MCINTYRE (voice-over): While it appears Iraqi police may have retaken control of Amara, for a time Thursday and Friday it was overrun by hundreds of Shia militiamen from anti-American clerk Muqtada al-Sadr's Mehdi Army. The Iraqi police station was destroyed, black smoke billowing from three buildings flattened by explosives.
British troops, which turned the area over to Iraq months ago, were ready to go back in, but Iraq's government insisted they weren't needed. Still Amara now joins Ramadi and Balad as cities where Iraqi forces are supposed to be standing up but instead have fallen down in their ability to contain sectarian fighting.
At the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld argued those setbacks are temporary and may be a result of a deliberate challenge to the U.S. plan to gradually seed areas to Iraqi control.
DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: ... judgment. It might be because the enemy said well, fair enough. They've passed that over to the Iraqi forces. Let's focus on that, increase the effort against them and see if we can't take it away from them so that the press of the world will notice that we've taken it away. They're smart, the enemy. They've got brains and they use them.
MCINTYRE: Rumsfeld's conference with top Generals John Abizaid and George Casey by video hookup hours before Abizaid was summoned to Washington for more meetings with President Bush and his national security team. Rumsfeld described the hastily called session as a regular meeting insisting it was nothing unusual and he carefully carried questions about whether the overall strategy is under review.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Secretary, can you just say plainly whether you believe a course correction is needed in Iraq or not?
RUMSFELD: I think the way I'll leave it is I prefer to give my advice to the president, rather than you, Jamie. I'm old-fashioned.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think the American public deserves to know whether you're considering making major adjustments rather than just refining tactics?
RUMSFELD: I mean no one on the National Security Council or a commander in the field makes a decision and sets a course and then puts their brain at rest.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCINTYRE: And Defense Secretary Rumsfeld continues to counsel patience arguing that given enough time, the Iraqi government will come together and Iraqi forces will rise to the challenge, even though he can't say how long that will take. Wolf?
BLITZER: You've been watching his nuances, his statements now for six years, almost six years, Jamie. Do you sense there's a change in the way the defense secretary is responding to reporters' questions?
MCINTYRE: I don't think so, Wolf. I think he is very confident that in the long view of history, he's going to be vindicated. I think the real question, though, is how much others around him still are convinced that he's as right as he believes he is.
BLITZER: Jamie, thanks very much, Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon.
The situation in Amara underscoring the influence of one very anti-America Shiite cleric seen as a kingmaker who can make or break the Iraqi government.
Let's bring in CNN's Brian Todd. He's watching this part of the story -- Brian.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Muqtada al-Sadr may or may not have started the fighting in Amara today. He was certainly instrumental in ending it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(SOUNDS)
TODD (voice-over): Sources tell CNN the trouble in Amara began with a fight between local police and a militia within Muqtada al- Sadr's Mehdi Army. It's not clear if al-Sadr knew that faction would temporarily take over the city. But during Friday prayers, al-Sadr called for the fighting to stop and within hours relative calm had been restored in Amara.
(SOUNDS)
TODD: Despite occasionally losing control of portions of his army, one analyst dubbed them street gangs who often go their own way, Muqtada al-Sadr remains one of the most powerful figures in Iraq controlling at least 30 seats in parliament, four government ministries and his own army that's proven to be a very dangerous enemy to U.S. and Iraqi forces, similar to another well-known militant group, says the author of "The Shia Revival."
VALI NASR, AUTHOR, "THE SHIA REVIVAL": Muqtada al-Sadr is building his organization on the model Hezbollah. Militia plus political control, state within a state.
TODD: But the reach of this anti-American Shiite cleric still in his early 30's extends even further. It's wildly held that Nouri al-Maliki would never have ascended to the top of Iraq's government last spring without the support of Muqtada al-Sadr, a bond that goes back generations.
MARK PERRY, CONFLICTS FORUM: The party of Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister of Iraq is -- was started by al-Sadr.
TODD: Analysts say that link wouldn't necessarily have prevented al-Sadr from supporting someone else as prime minister if it was in his interests, but if al-Sadr were to turn away from al-Maliki.
LOUAY BAHRY, MIDDLE EAST INSTITUTE: And you draw support (INAUDIBLE) would result in fallout of the cabinet.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: Muqtada al-Sadr is not unchallenged. There's another powerful Shiite faction in southern Iraq led by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who al-Sadr's had to broker deals with. But as an example of the power he does have one observer in Baghdad told me today if al- Sadr wanted this fight in Amara to continue it would have gone on for days -- Wolf.
BLITZER: I remember when General Ricardo Sanchez, one of the early U.S. military commanders in Iraq simply said that the U.S. wanted to arrest Muqtada al-Sadr for ordering his militia to kill American troops, yet he remains a free man in Iraq right now. Brian Todd, thanks very much for that.
So might this relationship between Muqtada al-Sadr and the prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, be beneficial to one party involved but poisonous to the other?
Joining us now, our correspondent John Roberts. He's in Baghdad. John, it looks like the prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, a couple days ago meets with this radical Shiite cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr and then guess what? Muqtada al-Sadr's militia go ahead and they start beating up on the Iraqi military. What is going on?
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN SR. NAT'L CORRESPONDENT: Beating up on the Iraqi police, in fact, Wolf. There were some people who believed initially that this was Muqtada al-Sadr really thumbing his nose and Nouri al-Maliki after al-Maliki went to him saying I need help here to try to rein in these militias.
Increasingly it's looking like this was a local action, perhaps the local Mehdi militia in Amara got out of control all by itself. There was some tit-for-tat violence, a police intelligence official was killed by a bomb, then the police went and they kidnapped a high ranking member of the Mehdi militia. The Mehdi militia reacted after that.
Muqtada al-Sadr got involved today when it looked like the violence was spinning out of control and a couple of police stations were torched. It looks like he put his foot down to say wait a minute. What are you doing here? You're not supposed to be in control of Amara. It's supposed to be Iraqi officials who are in control of Amara.
Put down your weapons, stop the fighting, cease fire immediately. He even sent a delegation there from (INAUDIBLE) to Amara to try to quell this violence, Wolf. So it may be that Muqtada al-Sadr was not directly involved in this. It was just the local militias that got out of control and what appears increasingly to have been a feud.
BLITZER: Is there, though, any evidence that the prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, is about to clamp down significantly on these militia, these death squads? Because it looks, at least from this distance and we're pretty far away. You're right in the thick of things over there, like this situation could be falling apart?
ROBERTS: Well he appears to be trying to do whatever he can, but his hands are really tied here. Don't forget he took one of those police brigades out of commission. He suspended a couple of top police officials who were believed to be involved with a allowing people from these -- members of these death cells in to the police forces, but his hands, as I said, are really tied here because a great deal of his support -- one of the reasons why he continues to be prime minister is because he has the support of Muqtada al-Sadr.
Muqtada al-Sadr's Mehdi militia is one of the most powerful military forces in this country. And if al-Maliki was to suddenly crack down on the Mehdi militia he may lose the support from Sadr. And he loses that support, Wolf, I would say that his political future would be in dire jeopardy.
BLITZER: You went in with U.S. troops. You were embedded with U.S. troops in April 2003 when Saddam went down. You're back now. Give us a little personal flavor from your reporter's notebook how this situation there has changed so dramatically over these past three and a half years.
ROBERTS: It has been three and a half years, Wolf. It was a war zone when I left in April of 2003. It's a war zone now in October of 2006. And there's no indication that things are about to get better. There were some heady days there right after the fall of Saddam and when Saddam's statue went down there in the square in downtown Baghdad.
People thought that there might be a better future in store for Iraq and there may yet be, but, Wolf, from the very get-go, the Marine unit that I was traveling with and other Marines and soldiers that I talked to said you know we just don't have enough people here. We have enough people to win the war but we don't have enough people to win the peace.
And that really seems to be coming to fruition now. I mean it's been this way for a long time but it just keeps getting worse and worse. I don't think there's any nice way to say it, Wolf. This place is an absolute mess. Whether it's going to continue to be a mess, that's the question that everybody wants to have answered, and that's a question that no one has the answer to.
BLITZER: John Roberts is going to be in Baghdad in Iraq over the next few weeks. John, be careful over there. Thanks very much.
ROBERTS: Will do, thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: We're going to have much more on Iraq coming up this hour. Jack Cafferty has the day off.
Coming up next a CNN exclusive -- Condoleezza Rice feeling the heat over a nuclear North Korea. Our own Zain Verjee sat down with the secretary of state one-on-one and asked her some of the tough questions. They met in Beijing.
Also, Hillary Clinton live on the stage tonight in a debate. It's happening right now -- a run for the Senate, but an eye for the White House?
And Arnold goes Hollywood. The stars align for the world's most famous Republican governor.
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: New developments in the North Korean nuclear crisis tonight. A South Korean news agency reporting that the leader Kim Jong Il has expressed regret over the nuclear test that sparked the current crisis with the U.S. and its Asian allies. The report also says that Kim indicated North Korea has no plans to conduct a second test, but there are conflicting reports from North Korea's state-run news agency. Stand by for that.
South Korea is a key issue for the secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, who was in South Korea but now she's in Beijing meeting with top officials in China. Our Zain Verjee is the only television correspondent traveling with the secretary. She sat down with Condoleezza Rice in Beijing for an exclusive interview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: Do you think that this crisis can be resolved with Kim Jong Il in power?
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, the entire logic of the six-party talks and of the September statement of 2005 is that, in fact it can be resolved with this regime in power. We will see. The North has said that it wants to denuclearize. There are benefits on the table if they do. We will see if they are prepared to do it, but they have to make a strategic choice to do it and this time they have to actually begin to dismantle. It doesn't make sense just to continue to talk.
VERJEE: President Bush has said that we're not going to live with a nuclear North Korea, but as the days and as the weeks will go by, it may seem as though the world and the United States may have to accept that.
RICE: Well, we will not accept a nuclear North Korea and I think our goal and our job and that of all the countries I'm visiting here is to show the North Koreans that they're not going to achieve what they want through a nuclear program. If they're looking for respect, they've gotten isolation and a Chapter Seven resolution. If they're looking for access to the international financial system, they're being cut off from it. They're not going to achieve anything through this nuclear program.
VERJEE: Have you considered going to Pyongyang yourself?
RICE: Well I don't see that there's a reason to do so. The North Koreans would like nothing better than to have an isolated negotiation between the United States and North Korea so that they can violate agreements the way that they did in the 1990's.
VERJEE: What do you have to lose? RICE: Well, what we have to lose is the power of five countries telling the North Koreans there that the program is unacceptable. The North Koreans would like nothing better than to divide us so that they can negotiate with each separately and they don't have to face the collective power of the five parties. I just want to note, though, you know one of the great myths out there is that we don't talk to the North Koreans. In fact, in the context of the six-party talks we've had many discussions with the North Koreans, dinners between Chris Hill, our chief negotiator...
(CROSSTALK)
VERJEE: ... perception too by the North Koreans...
(CROSSTALK)
VERJEE: ... that they feel that six-party talks, even though it's one-on-one on the side, it's still a gauge of the level of hostility toward the U.S. versus...
(CROSSTALK)
VERJEE: ... direct talks...
RICE: No, this is a North Korean excuse, come now. If they have anything that they want to say to us, if they really do want to talk to us, they're doing it. Chris Hill has had multiple discussions with his North Korean counterpart, one-on-one with no other countries at the table. He's had dinner with them, all in the context of the six-party talks. This is just an excuse.
What the North wants is to have a negotiation with the United States so that when they ignore the terms of the agreement they can say, well, after all, that was with the United States. What is troubling to the North is that for the first time they're having to face the collective will of China, Russia, Japan, South Korea and now with Resolution 1718, the entire international system. The North also knows that President Bush has said many times that we have no plans to invade or attack North Korea. And so the idea that somehow this is about security assurances is also an excuse. There is...
(CROSSTALK)
RICE: Yes...
(CROSSTALK)
VERJEE: I mean why not give them the security...
RICE: There is an offer of security assurances in the September statement, the September agreement that was signed in 2005. All they have to do is take up that agreement, fully implement it...
VERJEE: They want you to lift financial sanctions they say before...
(CROSSTALK)
RICE: We'd like them to stop counterfeiting our money. And if they stop engaging in illegal activities, I can be certain -- you can be certain that the United States has no reason to engage in financial measures, but the president is going to defend our currency. These are legal matters, and, again, the North Koreans have any number of excuses for why they can't take up the agreement that they signed in September of 2005. But what this behavior has gotten them now is the collective voice of the international system that a North Korean nuclear weapon is unacceptable, that the only path to gain that that they wish to gain is through denuclearization.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: The secretary of state speaking with Zain Verjee in Beijing.
Still to come tonight here in THE SITUATION ROOM, terror politics -- is the GOP playing on fear to turn out the vote?
Plus, President Bush summons a top general for an urgent White House meeting. Will he change course in Iraq?
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Tonight, in these final days before the midterm election the president's party is to trying to shift the public's focus back to the war on terror. A potentially frightening new ad is due to hit the air waves this weekend.
Let's bring in our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider -- Bill.
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Wolf, a new Republican ad evokes fear. Should Democrats be fearful?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
SCHNEIDER (voice-over): Republicans won the 2002 and 2004 elections on the terrorism issue. Now the Republican National Committee has made an ad which they say will run on national cable TV including CNN Sunday and Monday. The ad has sound effects but no spoken words.
(SOUNDS)
SCHNEIDER: And this phrase used in the final frame -- "these are the stakes", the same words used in one of the most famous political ads in American history.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... eight, nine...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... four, three, two, one, zero...
(SOUNDS)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are the stakes -- to make a world in which all of God's children can live or to go in to the dark.
SCHNEIDER: The 1964 ad aired only once, but it was highly controversial. So is the new Republican ad. The Democratic National Committee calls it quote, "A shameful ad invoking the image of despicable terrorists to scare the American people." Ads that evoke fear always attract attention and controversy. Like this ad from the 1984 Ronald Reagan campaign.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is a bear in the woods. For some people, the bear is easy to see. Others don't see it at all.
SCHNEIDER: And this one from the 2004 Bush campaign.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And weakness attracts those who are waiting to do America harm.
SCHNEIDER: We asked an advertising professional does fear work? With some people it does.
ROBBIE VORHAUS, PRES. VORHAUS COMMUNICATIONS: They're trying to reach people who continue to believe that this war is about terrorism, and that there are people lurking in the shadows ready to take our lives. Then it's effective. If you're a person who believes, as many do, that we've got better things to do than worry about this type of fear, it's going to backfire.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER: Now we're in the fourth year of the war in Iraq. Voters say it has not made them feel more secure. That's what makes this election different from the last two -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Bill Schneider reporting for us. Thank you.
And this note -- please be sure to tune in to a CNN election special tonight. Jack Cafferty hosts "BROKEN GOVERNMENT." It airs 11:00 p.m. Eastern, 8:00 p.m. on the West Coast. You'll want to see that.
Just ahead, with the situation deteriorating by the day, is the Bush administration now quietly plotting a change of plan for Iraq? We're going to go live to the White House for the latest.
Plus, happening now -- Senator Hillary Clinton debating a Republican challenger right now. We'll have an update for you. Mary Snow is in Rochester with the latest.
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLITZER: To our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Happening now -- it terrified millions but officials say he thought it was just a joke. A Wisconsin man faces a federal charge for allegedly posting fake Internet messages threatening to set off dirty bombs at NFL football games this weekend. Officials tell CNN he and one other man had some sort of bet as to who could come up with the scariest terror hoax.
Campaign threats and controversy in California -- a Republican congressional candidate is refusing to quit his race against Democratic incumbent Loretta Sanchez. Local GOP leaders want Tan Nguyen to bow out after he acknowledged his campaign sent intimidating letters to thousands of Hispanic immigrant voters. State law enforcement agents investigating the matter began searching Nguyen's campaign offices today.
And the Supreme Court rules Arizona can require voters to show photo identification in next month's elections. A federal lawsuit over the state voter ID law remains pending.
I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
Back now to our top story. The Bush administration holding urgent talks on Iraq amid rampant violence and growing calls for the president to rethink, revise his overall strategy. Let's go to the White House. Our correspondent Suzanne Malveaux is standing by with latest -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, a series of discussions here at the White House, one of them between President Bush and General Abizaid. He the U.S. commander for the Middle East, about 30 minutes in length.
The White House has already said they're dismissing any ideas of a phased withdrawal of troops or even a partitioning of Iraq. But clearly these urgent talks really indicate that the president is reaching out for guidance at the highest levels to try to turn things around.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX (voice-over): With October likely to become the deadliest month for U.S. forces in nearly two years, President Bush held urgent White House talks with his top U.S. commander in the Middle East, General John Abizaid.
TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: He is eager to hear about other ideas, but leaving is not going to work.
MALVEAUX: Publicly, Mr. Bush remains resolute that his Iraq strategy will not change.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: One of the key issues in this election is who best sees the future and who best has the plan to deal with it. I firmly see the threats we face and the best way for America to protect ourselves is to go on the offense and to stay on the offense.
MALVEAUX: The president is under intense political pressure from critics, now including some prominent Republicans, to change course in Iraq. Saturday, Mr. Bush will hold a video conference call with his secretary of defense and his Iraq point man, General George Casey.
Mr. Bush maintains he will not pull out U.S. troops before Iraqis can govern and protect themselves. But he says he is open to changing military tactics to get the job done.
Skeptical journalists engaged White House Press Secretary Tony Snow in a war of words over the difference between change in strategy and change in tactics.
SNOW: Well, I think what they're talking about ...
MARTHA RADDATZ, ABC NEWS CORRESPONDENT: ...strategy in your definition?
SNOW: I think -- I think they will agree with what I have described as strategy, which is...
RADDATZ: How come you're not going to -- you're not even considering a change in strategy -- no, Tony, sorry.
SNOW: No, Martha, no. But ...
MALVEAUX: Frustration over language in the briefing room. But the question about what is to be done on the ground in Iraq remains unanswered.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: And, Wolf, tomorrow is really going to be the important videoconference call that takes place here at the White House, 8:00 in the Roosevelt Room. We're told the president, the vice president, the secretary of defense, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the top generals in Iraq, the United States and the national security adviser, all of them going to be on that call. They're going to be talking about tactics.
I should also let you know as well the president met with those leaders of the independent commission, the Iraq Study Group, Lee Hamilton and the former Secretary of State James Baker here at the White House to express his support for their independent investigation -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Is there a real sense that the White House, Suzanne, right now, that there is sort of a major change about to unfold, whether or not it's announced before or after the election?
MALVEAUX: There certainly is a sense there is something afoot here, that they are looking in some way to change the tactics. They tried to make the distinction between the broader strategy here, of course, the U.S. policy, and the tactics to carry out that strategy but they really are looking at all of those options. They've already ruled out several of those options, but there is a sense that there is something coming.
BLITZER: Suzanne, we'll be watching together with you over the weekend. Thanks very much, Suzanne Malveaux, at the White House.
And joining us now to talk a little bit more about the president's strategy in Iraq and if it could be radically revamped, the author Ron Suskind. His latest best-seller is entitled "The One Percent Doctrine."
Ron, thanks very much for coming in.
RON SUSKIND, AUTHOR, "THE ONE PERCENT DOCTRINE": Sure, Wolf.
BLITZER: You've been around Washington, you've researched this presidency a lot in the course of these past few years. What's your sense right now? What is going on?
SUSKIND: Well, the president has used the playbook for several elections quite successfully that my confidence, my resolve is in a way, U.S. power, the essence of U.S. power. I think he's going to stick with that in large measure.
You know, I think what we're going to see now is the president upping the rhetoric. I think he upped it today at that speech at the Mayflower Hotel, at the same time trying to show she's reasonable, meeting with Casey, meeting with Abizaid, having discussions that may or may not lead to a change of direction.
I think, though, that you're not going to see anything dramatic, certainly not in the next week-and-a-half, until this election, unless the Republicans look at the state of play around the country in terms of these races and say, something dramatic is needed to save our candidates.
BLITZER: Because Iraq, by all accounts, all the polls, show that Iraq is the dominant issue going in to this November 7th election. First of all, there were some retired U.S. military officers who were openly complaining about the strategy, calling on Rumsfeld to resign.
Then there were some British generals active duty saying the strategy is not working. Now there are some top Republican senators even suggesting, you know what? There needs to be a major change. This president is under enormous pressure right now.
SUSKIND: You know, it's interesting. They're rolling out these terror ads. I think that's interesting, you know. It was a good month, September, for them, when it was all about terror. But, of course, the focus switched to Iraq, and at this point, they're in a tailspin in terms of what the numbers are showing.
Can they reorient it to the broader war on terror? People are saying they're not really related. And can the president show he's being reasonable? In a way, that will be seen as progress if the president is digging in, scratching his head, thinking hard and staying up late and saying we might need something new. That will be seen as progress by some people. BLITZER: Even one of the top generals in Iraq right now, General Caldwell, William Caldwell, suggesting yesterdays things are not turning out the way they hoped. Things are going in the opposite direction. Is it -- I get the sense, though that what he said publicly, a lot of other active duty commanders in Iraq are now saying privately, and no doubt that's going to have an impact as it filters up to the top.
SUSKIND: I think the generals are essentially saying to the president, bring down the rhetoric here. Some sort of stability, that's a worthwhile goal. You know? And try to think about some sort of coherent plan which we don't really have right now that Americans can sign on to, to say this leads to something we can accept.
Frankly, the president is still in a kind of political push and shove to say the Democrats will be the one whose declare defeat here. It won't be me, and it certainly won't be me in the next two weeks.
BLITZER: After this election, November 7th, there's still two years left of the Bush presidency. Is it your sense that Donald Rumsfeld will remain those final two years as the secretary of defense in the midst of this enormous pressure and in the midst of a clearly deteriorating situation in Iraq?
SUSKIND: I think it depends on the president's view of his legacy. Now, presidents often in their last two years have done that sort of reappraisal -- what will history say -- and moved in improbable directions. Lots of Republican say it's time for a Nixon to China for this president, and if he does that Rumsfeld is gone.
If the president, however, sticks with more or less his rhythms up to now, which is dig in, and say my word, my resolve is U.S. power, sort of like, I am France, then I think you're not going to see many changes in terms of the course this man has set.
BLITZER: He says even if it's only his wife, Laura Bush and Barney, their dog, he's not going to revise his strategy. He's committed to sort of staying the course in Iraq.
SUSKIND: Absolutely. You know, with all my reporting over years, all the books, essentially affirm what Bob has -- that's a quote from Bob's new book ...
BLITZER: Bob Woodward.
SUSKIND: Bob Woodward. That's what the president's basic position is. I am right, and my will, my confidence -- he believes in the mystical power of confidence, his own confidence, to bend reality, to bend the way the world is.
BLITZER: Very quickly, is this shaping up as another Vietnam?
SUSKIND: You know, I think it's different from Vietnam in a variety of ways, but the fact is, is that some of the responses we're seeing now from the president show the signs of what got us into so much trouble in Vietnam, that's it's personal. It's me versus the enemy and I'm not going to budge.
BLITZER: Ron Suskind is the author of "The One Percent Doctrine," still a major best-seller out there.
SUSKIND: It's doing great.
BLITZER: Thanks for coming in.
And still ahead tonight, they're known for their liberal politics, so why are some major movie stars embracing Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger? Is it a sign that Hollywood's turning right or is Schwarzenegger turning left?
And she's viewed by many as potential White House candidate in 2008. Why Hillary Clinton's star could burn even brighter after tonight or maybe -- maybe -- face a sudden setback. We're watching a live story unfold in Rochester. She's on the stage. We'll tell you what's going on. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back. Senator Hillary Clinton is facing off with her Republican challenger tonight in the first of two debates. It's not likely to be a make or break moment for the New York Democrat because she's considered a shoo-in for reelection. But Senator Clinton's performance is likely it add more fuel to speculation about her presidential prospects. CNN's Mary Snow is covering the debate.
She's joining us now live from Rochester -- Rochester, New York, that is -- Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf.
And the debate is going on as we speak, and that speculation about presidential ambitions, the first question asked here in tonight's debate. Senator Clinton saying she is flattered by all the talk about her potentially running for president. She said she has not made a decision, and that her job in the Senate is very important to her.
She also said, though, that if it is a concern for New Yorkers that is something they need to take into consideration. And she was specifically asked why she wasn't going to be signing a pledge to stay in the Senate for six years. Here's her answer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: I said I haven't made any decisions. You know, it's hard ...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you have thought about it?
CLINTON: Dominic (ph), it is hard not to think about it, because people talk to me about it all the time, but I have not engaged in any planning or serious thought about it, and I've certainly made no decisions. (END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN SPENCER (R), NEW YORK SENATE CANDIDATE: Every newspaper story I read on the way up to Rochester today was about this debate basically being practice for her presidential election. Come on, folks. We all know it. And if you're running for president, by the way, go ahead and run for president. I commend her for running with president, but be honest with the people of New York for this election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SNOW: And that is John Spencer, her Republican opponent you just heard. He has been making Senator Clinton -- the talk about her potentially running for the White House, he's made that an issue right out of the gate in his opening statement. And he was just asked whether or not the United States was ready for a woman president to which he said, yes -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Mary, I remember it wasn't that long ago when she ran the first time, she did made a flat out commitment she would serve for six years. This time she's refusing to make that commitment, but she says she's made no plans.
She's raised an enormous amount of money, $15 million, something like that, given the fact that she's ahead by 20 or 30 or 40 points in various polls in New York state against the Republican, Mr. Spencer. Clearly she's going to have a ton of money getting ready for 2008 if, in fact, she wants to go down that road.
SNOW: Yes, Wolf, and that certainly was question brought up here tonight. Currently, she has $15 million in cash on hand from her campaign. And that money can be used -- if she does not use that it can be transferred over to a White House run. The current polls show her leading by at least 30 points. Some polls show her running even more.
That is one of the things that she was asked about with this huge amount of money, and the fact that her opponent is virtually unknown. Is she really running just for the Senate or does she have other ambitions? But she is sticking to what she has said before, that right now she is only focused on this election.
BLITZER: Mary Snow is on the beautiful campus of the University of Rochester in upstate New York. Mary, thank you very much. Mary, we'll continue to watch this debate.
If there are some fireworks that come up, you'll see it right here on CNN.
In the meantime, in the land where the movies and the dreams are made, it certainly helps to have some powerful friends. Right now the movie star turned Republican governor of California is finding support from some surprising allies. CNN entertainment correspondent Brooke Anderson has more -- Brooke.
BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf. In the race for governor of California, Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger is finding support in unlikely quarters.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: Please welcome George Clooney.
ANDERSON: Bill signings with George Clooney by day ...
SCHWARZENEGGER: I'm having a great time.
ANDERSON: ...hobnobbing with Jay Leno by night. As he runs for reelection, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is finding a warm reception in Hollywood, a town that's supposed to be hostile to Republicans.
JON FAVREAU, ACTOR/DIRECTOR: I like Arnold. I don't know. I like Arnold.
ROBIN WILLIAMS, ACTOR: I think he's done some interesting things, I think he's taken a few chances.
ANDERSON (on camera): Has a place famous for its liberal values suddenly gone conservative? Not exactly.
RAPHAEL SONENSHEIN, CAL. STATE FULLERTON UNIV.: The notion that by supporting Schwarzenegger they're moving to the right I think is just incorrect. They're not moving anywhere.
ANDERSON: In fact, political science professor Raphael Sonenshein says the governor has endeared himself to Hollywood by shifting to the left.
SONENSHEIN: Supporting stem cell research, fighting against global warming, raising the minimum wage.
ANDERSON: Three years ago many Hollywood Democrats opposed the recall election that put Schwarzenegger into office and they were alarmed last year when he pushed a highly partisan series of ballot measures.
SONENSHEIN: That made him radioactive.
ANDERSON: When voters rejected those ballot propositions, Schwarzenegger saw the writing on the wall and became a centrist again.
JOHN LITHGOW, ACTOR: He's embraced a lot of Democratic issues and I think everyone across the board is very relieved to see a major politician bucking the Republican tide. ANDERSON: Schwarzenegger's opponent, state treasurer Phil Angelides, says people like Steven Spielberg and Danny Devito are supporting the governor simply because of long-standing friendships. Angelides meanwhile can count on some Hollywood support of his own.
PHIL ANGELIDES (D), CALIF. GOV. CANDIDATE: You know from Larry and Lory David to Barbara Streisand.
ROB REINER, ACTOR/DIRECTOR: I'm a Democrat and Phil is my guy.
ANDERSON: But in Hollywood, as in statewide polls, Schwarzenegger is finding the stars are mostly aligning in his favor.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: The latest "Los Angeles Times" poll puts Schwarzenegger's lead over Angelides at 50 to 33 percent -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Pretty significantly. Thank you, Brooke, for that.
Up ahead, we're going to get more on what's going on, and as we head in to the crucial midterm elections, this note. Stay up to date with the CNN Political Ticker. The daily news service on CNN.com gives you an inside view of the day's political stories. Check it out, CNN.com/ticker.
Fashion that goes too far. Clothes that make you look like a suicide bomber? Jeanne Moos on this story, as only Jeanne Moos, our video columnist, can do. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Here's a look at some of the hot shots coming in from our friend over at the Associated Press: Pictures likely to be in your home town newspapers tomorrow.
We'll start in the Philippines. Leftist protesters destroy an effigy of -- a wrap they say represents the president, Gloria Arroyo.
In Tehran, Iran, the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, marches in an anti-Israel rally.
In South Korea, an attack helicopter takes part in a demonstration of military might.
Check this out. In Zurich, Switzerland, the tennis star Maria "I Feel Pretty" Sharapova serves during the Zurich Open tournament. She won in two sets. Not a surprise.
Some of today's hot shots, pictures often worth a thousand words.
Is it topical humor or terrible taste? One t-shirt is stirring up ready-to-wear controversy. Our video columnist Jeanne Moos takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's ironic that the creator of a suicide bomber t-shirt would end up getting death threats.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, wow. Why do you have that on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh. That's bad taste.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wouldn't be funny if it was real.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So if you push the button, what happens?
MOOS: Not this. The only blast the terror t-shirt causes is an explosion of laughter or outrage.
BRIAN: Someone yelled at me to take it off immediately. Take that off right now, that's offensive. You know, who the hell do you think you are?
MOOS: He is Brian. He asked that we not use his last name. Real suicide bombings gave him the idea to make a t-shirt modelled after the old tuxedo t-shirt.
BRIAN: I'm just a big believer in humor. I'm not trying to make a political statement, I am not trying to hurt anybody's feelings.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ah -- I don't like it. It's like killing puppies or seals or something.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's all right. I like it.
MOOS: Brian says he sold almost 4,000 t-shirt in a couple of weeks, sold him on his terror t-shirt Web site, which features only one product that comes in only one color.
BRIAN: Looking for a graphic designer was a nightmare. They didn't want to touch it with a 10-foot pole.
MOOS: But this guy did.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right now. I'm going to put it on right now.
BRIAN: Do you like it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Would you wear one?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I certainly would not. I'll leave it all up to him.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would wear it. I really don't care what people say.
MOOS (on camera): Obviously.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I like to be stirred up.
MOOS (voice-over): After all, she's wearing a "Do I Look Like a (EXPLETIVE DELETED) People Person?" t-shirt.
Brian says he wanted his shirt to look cartoonish, not like a real suicide bomber.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's (inaudible).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First I thought it was real from a distance.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think it's funny and I think it's disturbing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It looked a little real.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She just said, look, that guy has dynamite strapped on (inaudible).
MOOS: Where not to wear the terror t-shirt? The airport, for one. At JFK, this anti-war activist had to cover up his t-shirt just because it said in Arabic, "we will not be silent."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was told by one of the officials that wearing a t-shirt with Arabic script in an airport now is like going to a bank with a t-shirt that reads, "I am a robber."
MOOS: That spawned the "I Am Not a Terrorist" t-shirt. And now for $20, this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Might be a little tasteless. As long as you don't run into plates screaming, it's not that bad.
MOOS: This isn't just a t-shirt. It's a TNT-shirt.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: A little sick, if you ask me.
Let's check in with Paula Zahn to see what's coming up at the top of the hour -- Paula.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Wolf. Thanks so much. We're going to bring you the very latest on the war in Iraq as the president brings together his top generals. A lot of questions being raised about what kind of change in tactics we might see as the government has now admitted what they've been doing hasn't been working as well as they'd like it to.
We're also going to give you an eye-opening look at a brand new ad the GOP is running. Some say it amounts to nothing more than fear mongering. It combines images of Osama bin Laden and other pictures that a lot of people are pretty upset about. We're going to show you the whole ad, so you can decide what you think.
Also, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is debating her Republican opponent as I speak right now. We will give you a preview of what the 2008 campaign might look like if she ends up running, but more importantly, we'll handicap how she did tonight and what it reveals to us -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Thanks very much, Paula. We'll be watching.
Still ahead, a growing number of countries have done it, but is the U.S. ready for a woman president? Our "Welcome to the Future" report is next. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Is America ready for a woman president? Here's CNN's Miles O'Brien with our "Welcome to the Future" report -- Miles.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, our system of free enterprise and democracy is supposed to be a meritocracy. If that is the case, why have so few women risen to the top in politics? Is there a glass ceiling keeping them from the Oval Office?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN (voice-over): Stephen Hess is a senior fellow of the non-profit think tank the Brookings Institution. He says the time is right for a woman president.
STEPHEN HESS, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: I think it's very likely that we're going to get a woman president relatively soon, that there are enough women now in the on-deck circle ready to contend for that office.
O'BRIEN: Senator Hillary Clinton is in that circle, but Hess says her husband Bill is unlikely to take a back seat like the spouses of other international leaders.
Republican Condoleezza Rice is also on deck. However, Hess says her chances are slim because she's never run for office.
Either way, Hess believes the long-term impact will be minimal.
HESS: After we get our first woman president, people will be shocked about many things for about 30 seconds, and then they'll just go about their business until there is another election, in which they'll either return them to office or throw them out.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: The first woman to run for president in this country was Victoria Woodhull, in 1872. That's before American women could vote -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Miles, thanks very much. That's it for me. Let's go to Paula in New York -- Paula.
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