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The Situation Room

Interview With Mississippi Senator Trent Lott; FDA Gives Green Light to Silicone Breast Implants; Iraq Another Vietnam?; Tom Vilsack Interview

Aired November 17, 2006 - 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: 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 today's top stories.
Happening now, more U.S. troops facing battle -- the Pentagon will send tens of thousands of fresh troops to the Iraq war, a conflict growing more urgent, as killings and kidnappings continue. Right now, four abducted Americans are missing, and forces are desperately searching for them.

Also, minority opinion -- if Donald Rumsfeld was let go long ago, would Republicans still be in the -- still be the majority in Congress? Republican Senator Trent Lott has a surprising answer. I will speak with him one on one. That's coming up.

And tasty treats literally to die for -- how someone cooked up a plot to actually try to kill all nine United States Supreme Court justices with some killer cookies.

I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

There's a lot of talk in the soon-to-be-Democratic-controlled Congress of drawing down U.S. troops in Iraq. But the Pentagon is moving right now to maintain troop levels for the immediate future. The outgoing defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, has signed deployment orders for 57,000 troops, including five combat brigades, for early next year. They will replace a roughly equal number of troops rotating out of Iraq.

Meanwhile, there are determined efforts under way to try to find five Western contractors kidnapped in southern Iraq, and, on a diplomatic level, a way to turn around the failing war.

CNN's Brian Todd is standing by.

But let's begin our coverage this hour with our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre -- Jamie.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, five American security contractors and one Austrian, as well, still missing, despite earlier reports that some may have been freed, and even an erroneous report that one might have been killed.

That was put down as confusion over multiple incidents that happened in the same area of southern Iraq. Meanwhile, the search is on.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCINTYRE (voice-over): In southeastern Iraq, British troops, backed by U.S. helicopters, battled gunmen in the area where the convoy was hijacked, as they hunted for the missing contractors, including four Americans. Two gunmen were killed, but it's not clear they were connected to the abduction.

The hijacking happened Thursday on a main road from Kuwait into Iraq, where a civilian supply convoy, guarded by a Kuwaiti-based Crescent security company, was apparently stopped by people posing as Iraqi police, what appears to have been a fake checkpoint.

The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad provided only sketchy details. The convoy was made up of 43 heavy trucks and six security vehicles. Of the 14 people taken, nine truck drivers were released up the road, while five security personnel were abducted. Four of the five correctors taken were Americans, the fifth, a former Austrian soldier. Only one of the Americans has been identified public, 39-year-old Paul Reuben, a former police officer from the suburban Minneapolis town of Saint Louis Park.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCINTYRE: Wolf, the latest information we have is from a police official in nearby Basra, who claims that this was the act of a criminal gang, and that there has been a ransom requested. CNN has been unable to confirm that independently -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre reporting for us -- Jamie, thanks very much.

We're going to have a lot more on this story coming up.

But a major announcement from the FDA is now being released. It has to deal with silicone breast implants, a controversial issue.

Let's bring in our medical correspondent, Christy Feig.

What is going on, Christy?

CHRISTY FEIG, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Wolf.

Well, you remember, it was about 14 years ago that silicone gel breast implants were removed from the market by the FDA. We're hearing today that they're giving two companies, one called Allergan, which used to be called Inamed, the other Mentor -- they're allowing them to sell these silicone gel breast implants again.

Now, you remember, about 14 years ago, they were removed, over concerns of safety. Now the FDA says that they are safe enough to be allowed to be sold again. Still, we have concerns over long-term effects. There haven't been a lot of long-term studies done here.

So, these companies are now being required, while they're -- people are getting their breast implants, to follow 40,000 women each for a 10-year period to try to gather some medical information. But they are allowing silicone gel breast implants back on the market again.

BLITZER: And that starts right away, Christy? Is there any delay? What is the latest on that?

FEIG: Well, these companies already make them and sell them internationally, so they are ready to go and start selling them domestically. It's something they have been looking to quite some time. And it's been quite a battle with the FDA to try to get that permission.

So, they say they're ready to go, as soon as they get the green right.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: So, let me just be precise. The FDA is now saying that women who get these silicone breast implants need no longer be concerned, or is there still some possibility of danger?

FEIG: It -- it's a good question.

There's still a lot of unanswered questions about the long-term effects here. These two products, neither one of them had one long- term data longer than 10 years. One only had three-year data. Those questions still need to be answered.

Part of the FDA here is saying that women who want them for augmentation, just because they want breast implants, have to be 22 years old or older, in order to get these. Women who need them for reconstruction, say for breast cancer surgery, can have them.

BLITZER: All right. We will continue to watch this story.

Christy, thanks very much -- Christy Feig reporting.

Let's get back to our top story, Iraq. An independent panel is now making concerted efforts to try to find a way to turn the war around. And that's taken it right to the heart of what President Bush has called the axis of evil.

Our Brian Todd is watching this story for us. He is joining us live -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, in the coming weeks, the bipartisan Iraq Study Group is expected to push for big changes in America's involvement in Iraq.

And, already, we're told the group has done what the Bush administration has, for years, refused to do, meet with America's biggest antagonist in the region.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TODD (voice-over): Syrian officials tell CNN, the Iraq Study Group, led my former Secretary of state James Baker, met with them in the past several weeks.

IMAD MOUSTAPHA, SYRIAN AMBASSADOR TO UNITED STATES: Myself, Mr. Secretary Baker, Lee Hamilton, and the (INAUDIBLE).

TODD: Syria's ambassador to the U.S. tells us his side made it clear to Baker how Syria can help stabilize Iraq.

MOUSTAPHA: We have very good relations with all Iraqi factions across the political spectrum.

TODD: Including, he says, the anti-American Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

Syria is mostly Sunni, but Moustapha says al-Sadr travels frequently to Damascus -- the implication, Syria could convince al- Sadr to rein in his lethal militia, and could do the same with some Sunni insurgents.

An Iranian official tells CNN, Iran's ambassador to the U.N. had a three-hour dinner meeting with Baker and his group during the height of Ramadan in October. He says a message was relayed to Baker that Iran would consider helping the United States control Shia militias in Iraq, if the Bush administration started treating Tehran like a strategic partner in the region.

A spokesman for Baker confirms he met with the Iranian and Syrian diplomats, but will not give details. He says Baker made it clear he does not represent the U.S. government. If Baker recommends reaching out to Iran and Syria, would the president listen?

ROBERT MALLEY, MIDDLE EAST PROGRAM DIRECTOR, INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP: It gives some space, some political space, for those in the administration who are in agreement with that view. And they may be able to sway the president.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: (INAUDIBLE) caution from analysts. Even if the administration does start talking to Syria and Iran, don't expect it to be a silver-bullet solution.

Both countries will still want something in return, but James Baker has said he's a firm believer in talking to your enemies, and that these two nations are big players in Iraq -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Lee Hamilton has said very similar things as well. And they're the two co-chairmen.

Thanks very much, Brian, for that.

Let's check in with Jack Cafferty. He's got "The Cafferty File."

These commissioners, 10 of them, five Republicans, five Democrats, led by Baker and Hamilton, they're already meeting with the Iranians and the Syrians. So, I assume, Jack, they're going to recommend that the Bush administration start talking to them as well.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Well, either that, or they will come back with a deal in their pocket that they can give Bush, and he can march out in the Rose Garden, say, look what I did.

You don't suppose they would do something like that, do you?

BLITZER: No.

CAFFERTY: OK.

The United States is moving ahead with plans to trade nuclear fuel and technology to India, in exchange for mangoes. Yesterday, the Senate approved a nuclear cooperation deal with India on a vote of 85- 12. The House approved a similar measure in July.

This legislation gives India access to American fuel and nuclear technology. They will send us mangoes. India already has nuclear weapons. They have also failed to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Apparently, Washington feels it's more important to cultivate India as an ally than to worry about their nuclear weapons arsenal.

Translation: India is not Iran.

The legislation now goes to a House-Senate conference, and eventually is expected to be signed by President Bush.

Here's the question: Should the United States provide nuclear fuel and technology to India? E-mail your thoughts to CaffertyFile at CNN.com, or go to CNN.com/CaffertyFile.

I guess the upside is, Wolf, we will get some mangoes.

(LAUGHTER)

BLITZER: I like mangoes. Do you like mangoes?

CAFFERTY: I like mangoes.

BLITZER: Nothing wrong with mangoes.

(CROSSTALK)

(LAUGHTER)

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Jack...

(LAUGHTER)

CAFFERTY: OK.

BLITZER: ... for that.

Up ahead: a dire warning from a former Iraqi leader. He's now calling the situation in his own country alarming and dangerous, and he's laying blame and naming names. You're going to want to hear this.

Stay with us.

And Senator Trent Lott wins a place back in the Republican leadership. Will he stand by the White House, when the White House, four years ago, did not stand by him? We will ask him.

And the man behind Barack goes public, speaking out all about the controversy over his hit film, and why all its prejudice is there for a reason.

Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Out of the wilderness, back into the fold. His party lost its majority status in Congress, but a senator haunted by words from his past winds up a big winner and able to exorcise his political ghosts.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And joining us now, the incoming Senate minority whip, Trent Lott -- once was the majority leader.

Congratulations, Senator. Thanks very much for coming in.

SEN. TRENT LOTT (R), MISSISSIPPI: Thank you, Wolf. It's always a pleasure to be back with you.

BLITZER: They're calling you the comeback kid.

Four years ago, there was a dark spot. You were effectively pushed out by the then Majority -- Bill Frist, who wanted your job as majority leader. He's going to be gone. But the president of the United States weighed in as well. He needs your help, now. Are you ready to work with him?

LOTT: Absolutely.

I mean, he is president of the United States. We still have a substantial number of Republicans in the Senate, 49 out of 100. We've got a lot of work to do.

We are in position to block really bad initiatives. But I've always been one that believed we should try to produce for the American people. President Reagan will be -- President Bush will be in that position for two more years, and I'm delighted to be back in a position where I can use the experience I had in the House in the '80s and in the Senate in the '90s, hopefully in a positive way.

BLITZER: There's got to be a little bitterness still lingering from the way they pushed you out at the White House.

LOTT: Actually not, Wolf.

You know, a lot of people predict that that's the case, or project it's the case, but others know that, when you go through what I've been through the last four years, which has been a series of very difficult events, including losing my mother last July, losing my house in August, and dealing with some health problems, even after that, you learn that you can't get up and move forward if you're looking back, and if you're mad and if you're seeking revenge.

And I -- I haven't done that.

Now, I have been a little bit of a free spirit. I have been liberated to express my views, as I saw them, and I will continue to do that. But I will also be in a position where maybe I can express those views privately, in a way that would be helpful.

You know, look, there were disappointments back there, no question about it. But I have been given another chance. You know, I have been able to seek and, I think, receive, redemption, and I want to build on that.

BLITZER: I remember in the book "Herding Cats," the book you wrote -- I have a copy here in front of me -- "A Life in Politics," the words that were, I'm sure, painful for you to write about Bill Frist -- you saw, what you wrote, his power grab, as a personal betrayal.

LOTT: It was a hurtful experience. It was one that I precipitated. I gave an opening for the events that followed.

But I came through that. And, with the help of my wife, I was able to get it in the proper perspective, and just come on back. And I didn't go off, you know, leave the Congress, and sulk. I came back. I went to work. I took over a chairmanship. I was involved in the legislative process.

And, even after I got knocked down on my knees again, after Hurricane Katrina, I just felt like you can't just lay around and whine. And the only way you get through difficult things like that is to have a strong faith, and try to see if you can turn a challenge into an opportunity.

That's what I'm experiencing, and it's really been a very heartwarming experience, difficult though it has been.

BLITZER: I'm sure nice to get the vote of confidence from your colleagues...

LOTT: Well, I was...

BLITZER: ... in the Republican Caucus.

LOTT: It really was.

And I -- I must confess, Wolf, I guess men are not supposed to really show their emotions too much, but I was pretty emotional. And I thanked my colleagues for a second chance. I pledged my friendship and continue to work with Lamar Alexander, and my support of Mitch McConnell, but also my support of principles and ideals that I really believe in, and I believe the American people believe in, and, you know, the desire to maybe change our conduct in some areas in a more positive way.

BLITZER: Is there anything you want to say -- because there was a lot of focus on the past few days on those words you uttered at Strom Thurmond's birthday -- that you would like to tell the American people right now, the African-American community in particular?

LOTT: I'm honored to be in a position where hopefully I can help all Americans. I learned again, after Hurricane Katrina, that race, religion, sex, ethnicity, when you're all hurting, makes no difference.

You try to help each other. And that's the way we ought to approach life. And that's the way, certainly, I ought to do this job. I made a mistake, terribly chosen words. They were, you know, well- intentioned at the time, just to make a 100-year-old senator at his birthday party feel good. But I got too carried away and exuberant on the occasion.

I have learned from that. And I'm hoping to build on that.

BLITZER: How -- you know, a lot of Republicans firmly believe, including Newt Gingrich, the former Speaker, if the president would have asked Rumsfeld to resign a few weeks earlier, and set in motion a notion that there could be some changes, announce that Robert Gates was going to be his nominee to be Defense secretary, you right now wouldn't be the minority whip; you would be the majority whip in the United State Senate.

Are you among those Republicans that feels that way?

LOTT: Well, first of all, I don't know if that would have been the case. I think one of the reasons I was able to get elected, frankly, was because we are in the minority, and there were a lot of people that felt, well, maybe we need our most experienced hands in place here.

But having said that, I did think that Secretary Rumsfeld should have been replaced earlier. Actually, I thought certainly right after the last election. I thought it was a mistake not to allow that to happen. I think the president had a point in that, at some time, if you did it, it would look like it was just pure, blatant politics. And, if you did it, you know, two weeks before or even a month before, it would have been severely criticized. If it had been six months earlier or whatever, yeah, it could have made a difference.

BLITZER: Is there a stance that you would like to see emerge on the Iraq war right now?

We're almost out of time, but are you among those who would like to see some benchmarks, a timetable put forward?

LOTT: Yes. Yes.

BLITZER: The Iraqi government's got to do X, Y and Z in order to allow the United States to stay in place?

LOTT: Yes, yes, and yes.

You know, we've got to make some changes. Things have got to improve. The Iraqis have got to do better. They've got to understand that we can't stay there forever. It's their government, their people, their country. We don't want to run it for them. But we have got to have milestones and we have got to meet them. We have not been doing that. So, we have got to make some changes.

But, just last night...

BLITZER: So, on that point, it sounds like you disagree with General Abizaid, the commander for U.S. forces in the Middle East, who says, a timetable would not necessarily be helpful.

LOTT: No, no, no. I'm not advocating a timetable. Milestones, benchmarks are not timetables. These are things that have to be achieved before you can go to the next step.

I do think, an artificial timetable, not based on the situation or, the needs and facts, is not a good idea, not an immediate withdrawal, not even a phased withdrawal. It should be based on other things, I think.

I don't know exactly what all the answers are. I'm not on the Armed Services Committee. But I -- believe it or not, last night -- late last night -- I was speaking to Senator John McCain and Senator Hillary Clinton on the floor of the Senate, talking about the hearings they had just had.

And we were talking about, you know, how are we going to move forward in Iraq in a positive way? We don't have the answer, but we have some ideas. And I know the Pentagon, I know the president probably has some ideas, and is working on that.

There's just one thing we do know: The current situation is not acceptable. If it's not, we have got to change it some way.

BLITZER: We have got to leave it right there, Senator Lott. Thanks very much.

Once again, I will end the interview the way I started it, by saying congratulations.

LOTT: Thank you very much, Wolf.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And coming up: How would a relatively little known governor fare against a very well-known senator in a widely watched race? Talking about Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack. I will ask him if a potential run by Hillary Clinton could dim his presidential prospects. And cookies sealed with a kiss of death. We're learning of a plot to try to kill all nine United States Supreme Court justices.

Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Let's check back with Carol Lin for a closer look at some other important stories making news -- Carol.

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey there once again, Wolf.

President Bush's pick to replace outgoing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was on Capitol Hill today. Robert Gates met with Republican and Democratic senators. Confirmation hearings by the Senate Armed Services Committee are slated to begin December 5. Now, Gates says one of his highest priorities, if he's confirmed, will be the situation in Iraq.

Meantime, House Republicans are turning to some familiar faces, after last week's midterm election defeat. They have overwhelmingly picked current Majority Leader John Boehner to be their minority leader starting in January. He beat out Indiana Congressman Mike Pence. And Majority Whip Roy Blunt will be House minority whip. Now, both Boehner and Blunt are promising to return Republicans to majority status.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is appealing to President Bush to help an illegal immigrant. The woman has taken refuge in a Chicago church since August to avoid being deported to Mexico. She's been convicted of using a false Social Security number.

But, in a letter to the president, Governor Richardson says deporting her would create a terrible dilemma for her 7-year-old son, who was born and lives in the U.S., Wolf. So, he's trying to prevent a family from being torn apart.

BLITZER: (INAUDIBLE) Governor Richardson can do.

Thanks very much for that, Carol. We will be back with you shortly.

And coming up, right here in THE SITUATION ROOM: What does the war in Iraq have in common with the war in Vietnam? It's a comparison critics are trying to make right now, but one that President Bush has long avoided -- until now. We will tell you what's going on.

And "Borat," sweeping U.S. box offices, and creating huge controversy -- now, in a rare move, the actor, Sacha Baron Cohen, is speaking out as himself.

Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: You're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time.

Happening now: an aggressive search in Iraq for five kidnapped contractors, four of them Americans. Officials now confirm they were abducted at what appeared to be a police checkpoint by people militiamen disguised as Iraqi police.

Also, the Food and Drug Administration giving the green light to silicone breast implants, 14 years after the agency ordered them off the market because of safety questions. Two companies are being approved to sell them, but both will have to conduct long-term health studies of recipients.

And, in the Netherlands, once seen as among the friendliest of nations for Muslim immigrants, a sign of changing times -- the Dutch government now says it will move to ban burqas and other face-covering veils in public. Proponents say it's a matter of security. Amsterdam's mayor warns, the move could backfire.

I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

President Bush has long avoided comparing the Iraq war to Vietnam. Yet, now, he says there are lessons from Vietnam for the U.S. mission in Iraq.

Our White House correspondent Ed Henry is traveling with the president. He's joining us now live from Hanoi with the latest -- Ed.

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, plenty of pomp and circumstance here in Hanoi upon the president's arrival, along with the first lady.

White House aides say, the president is not looking back at the Vietnam War; he's looking forward at the new friendship being forged here, as well as the raging Vietnamese economy.

But it is still an awkward time for the president to be visiting, just as he's trying to turn the corner, chart a new course in Iraq -- critics charging, he has gotten the United States locked in another quagmire -- the White House insisting, there are sharp differences between these two wars, especially the fact that the Iraqi people have formed their own government while Vietnam is still under communist rule.

There are symbols of the war everywhere and the president himself noted he thought it was poignant when he drove by the spot where Senator John McCain's navy plane was shot down before he became a prisoner of war. As for comparisons to Vietnam, the president did see one comparison between Vietnam and Iraq when he was appearing with the Australian Prime Minister John Howard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: We will get the job done. We will continue to help this Maliki government meet the aspirations of the Iraqi people. We're not leaving until this job is done, until Iraq's government sustains and defends itself. (END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: There's a lot riding on the summit for the president coming out of the midterm elections, his first chance on the world stage to show he still has clout. He'll be talking up the issue of trade as well as the North Korean Nuclear crisis -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Thirty years after the war in Vietnam, the president is there right now. Ed, thanks very much for that.

So is Iraq steadily slipping into all-out chaos? That's a complaint made by many people frustrated with the war. Now one of Iraq's former top officials is echoing that alarming charge. Let's turn to our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr. Barbara?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, there was a very dire warning from that Iraqi official.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STARR (voice-over): Ayad Allawi, the former Ba'athist, who was Iraq's prime minister in 2004, is sounding a grim note.

AYAD ALLAWI, FORMER IRAQI INTERIM PRIME MINISTER: And it's really quite alarming and dangerous where Iraq is in now. It's quite frightening.

STARR: Allawi continues to largely blame the debathification process ordered by Ambassador Paul Bremmer in the weeks after Saddam fell, for much of Iraq's current problems. It was an effort to get rid of high-level bath party officials, who had run Iraq for years under Saddam.

ALLAWI: A complex number of mistakes have been committed, starting from dismantling institutions in Iraq, security, judicial, government institutions, and so on, to debathification.

STARR: Allawi's views may have more to do with domestic Iraqi politics than security.

ALLAWI: Iraq is slipping continuously into a chaotic level of violence. To be honest, this is not something that I would have imagined when we fought Saddam's regime for over 30 years.

STARR: Allawi some say is clearly taking a swipe at Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki's struggle to control the sectarian violence.

BRIG. GEN. JAMES MARKS, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: I think it's probably he views himself at this point, being an (INAUDIBLE) and he wants to make it difficult as he can on the leadership that exists because it's an easy target. I would say in Lehman's terms, he's piling on.

STARR: But as the violence has shifted to being largely sectarian, many say debathification is now a tired argument. DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: The solution is not military. The solution to that obviously is what Prime Minister Maliki is trying to do and that is a reach out to the Sunni community to attempt to fashion a reconciliation process that will bring together the elements of this country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STARR: Wolf, the Bush administration official tells CNN that they view the former prime minister's remarks as something that is more Iraqi politics, something for the Iraqis to deal with -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Whatever Ayad Allawi's remarks are very, very alarming. Thank you very much for that, Barbara.

Let's get to the race of the next election that is only two years away but many are certainly already getting ready for it. One man already eyeing the 2008 presidential race is Iowa's Democratic Governor Tom Vilsack. He's a two-term governor, the first Democrat to file for, run for the White House. Governor Vilsack is joining us. You filed those exploratory papers in recent days, governor. Why do you want to run for president? Why do you want to be president?

GOV. TOM VILSACK (D), IOWA: Well, first of all, Wolf, we didn't file exploratory papers, we actually filed the papers to begin the run.

BLITZER: So you've gone beyond the exploratory process? You're not an explorer like John McCain, you're beyond?

VILSACK: Well, the bottom line is, you make a decision and you go with it. That's the kind of person I am and that's the kind of leader I want to be. Once you've made the decision, there's no reason to explore. You jump in with both feet.

BLITZER: The first contest is in your home state of Iowa. So you presumably have a real advantage there. You've been elected twice, everybody in Iowa knows you. Are you hoping to scare off other Democrats from even running in Iowa?

VILSACK: Not at all, Wolf. I think every candidate for president who's interested in being the president of the United States needs to come to Iowa and we need to campaign together. We need to debate the issues. We need to have fun. We need to make sure that the field is wide open. And so I have, in specific conversations with many people who are thinking about this, invited them to come to Iowa and I hope that they do come.

BLITZER: Because as you remember back in 1992, and I remember it very vividly, Tom Harkin, the Democratic senator from Iowa, was running for president. He ran effective as a favorite son in Iowa and he scared off Bill Clinton and a whole bunch of other people from even running in Iowa.

VILSACK: Well this is a much different situation and much different time. BLITZER: So you think you're going to get Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and other potential Democrats to challenge you in your own home state?

VILSACK: Well I don't think it's about challenging me, Wolf. I think it's about talking about the future of this country and whether or not we're going to have a government, unlike the government that we have today that really cares about tomorrow and really acts as if tomorrow matters.

You can't have deficits, you can't have a lack of discussion about healthcare and energy security and a national and foreign policy that has essentially alienated most of our friends and somehow united most of our enemies. We need to have a debate about that in the state of Iowa and across the country and I welcome that debate, I look forward to that debate.

BLITZER: You must be heartened by this fact that of the Democratic president who have been recently elected, Jimmy Carter was a little known governor from Georgia, Bill Clinton was a little known governor from Arkansas, both managed to get to the White House. You're a relatively little known, at least nationally known governor from Iowa. Is that what you're basing your hope on?

VILSACK: No I'm basing it on the fact that I think I have better ideas in terms of the direction of this country. And the reality is I look forward to learning more from America and having America learn more about me. I think it's going to be a great journey and I look forward to it.

BLITZER: Well help us understand a little bit more about you. I remember meeting you several times when I covered earlier races in the Iowa caucuses. But tell our viewers what you bring for example to the table that the front-runner, Senator Clinton, would not bring.

VILSACK: Well I'm not going to compare myself to any particular candidate. But let me talk about what I do bring. And that is as a governor, I have focused for example on one issue that I think is very important to the fate of this country and the future of this country and that's energy security. I don't believe there's anybody else in the country that's done more.

The state of Iowa is now the leader of renewable fuel production. We're one of the leaders of wind production. We have really been on the front lines of creating a more secure Iowa and I think we can take that message across the country to make America more energy secure. So I'm happy to talk about these issues as a governor.

We've helped create jobs, we've improved education, we've expanded access to healthcare, we've improved the economy of this state and these are all going to respond to the anxieties that so many Americans today feel. We are an anxious nation and on election night we began to change the direction of this nation, we just have to get the job done in 2008.

BLITZER: A big issue hovering over the last election and maybe the next election will be Iraq. Are you among those Democrats who want to see the U.S. start pulling out troops within the next four to six months?

VILSACK: I wouldn't put a specific timetable on it Wolf, but I do think that we need to be strategic about where the troops are located. If I were president today, I would sit down with my military advisors and talk about how we could remove troops from the southern part of the country and from Baghdad and the central part of the country.

I think what we have done is we've created a culture of dependency there and we have basically put ourselves in a position where the Iraqis are not making the decisions that only they can make. I would still maintain for a period of time, troops in the northern part of the country to make sure that Turkey did not interfere, to make sure that we could send a very specific message to Iran that we do in fact have a military option, which clearly we don't have today, as we discuss diplomatically the nuclear issue with that country.

And if in fact chaos continues to reign, we would be in a position to respond to it. I think it's more than just military. I think we have to look at the reconstruction plan, encourage countries from the region to get involved and I think we also have to build local governing capacity, something that there's been very little discussion about but the reality is if you want basic services to folks, it's local government that provides it.

BLITZER: Should the U.S., if you were president, be talking directly to Syria and Iran to try to help out the situation in Iraq?

VILSACK: Well not only to help out the situation in Iraq but to basically engage a discussion about the Middle East as a whole. The fact that we're not talking to Iran, to Syria, to North Korea, I think has made it a much more dangerous world than it needed to be. We need to aggressively engage, aggressively engage in discussions and conversations to figure out diplomatically how we can avert very serious problems with a nuclear bomb in Iran and with the current situation in North Korea.

BLITZER: The outgoing governor of Iowa. He's not messing around, he's running for president already and making no bones about it. Governor Vilsack, we hope you'll be a frequent guest here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

VILSACK: Thanks Wolf.

BLITZER: Thanks to you as well. And still to come, we're learning of a plot to try to kill off the United States Supreme Court Justices with poison treats. We're going to tell you what's going on. And are the U.S. and India swapping nuclear technology for mangos? Jack Cafferty wants to know how you feel about this deal. Stay with us, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: They were tasty treats literally to die for. It may sound like a plot from a fictional thriller, but today we're learning of a very, very real attempt to try to kill all nine United States Supreme Court Justices and other government and military officials. Our Mary Snow is in New York, she's watching this horrific story. Mary?

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, had she not mentioned it in public, a poison attempt against Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and her fellow justices, would have remained little known.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW (voice-over): It might have been just another legal conference in Dallas until retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor mentioned in her words a wonderful package of home baked cookies sent to all the justices. The "Ft. Worth Star Telegram" quotes O'Connor saying, "Each one contained enough poison to kill the entire membership of the court."

Prosecutors say those baked goods and candy were laced with rat poison and sent not only to the nine Supreme Court Justices but to two FBI officials and offices in the army, navy and air force. It happened in April of 2005. Just last month, 60 year old Barbara Joan Marsh of Bridgeport, Connecticut was sentenced to 15 years in prison for sending those packages. Court watchers were surprised that they're only hearing about this now.

EDWARD LAZARUS, SUPREME COURT LEGAL ANALYST: Quite clearly, the court did not want to publicize this incident. It's very different from the other branches of government. I think they just don't want the idea that this is even thinkable.

SNOW: A Supreme Court spokeswoman says the packages never reached the justices due to increased security following a 2001 anthrax scare at the Supreme Court. Another red flag, prosecutors cite typewritten letters accompanying the packages saying I am or we are going to kill you. This is poisoned. March's lawyer says her motive is unclear, but says she's had a history of mental illness.

While this incident may be a rarity, court observers say one reason O'Connor has been speaking publicly is to bring further attention to political attacks on judges, which she believes may encourage more serious threats of violence. In September, she gave a rare interview to CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin.

SANDRA DAY O'CONNOR, RETIRED U.S. SUPREME COURT JUSTICE: As I went through the last few years from service here at the court, I saw increasing indicators of unhappiness with judges. And it was erupting all over the country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW: And last March Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg acknowledged a specific death threat made against her and retired Justice O'Connor -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Thank you, Mary for that. Mary Snow in New York. UCLA students protested today after an Iranian American undergrad was repeatedly stunned with a taser by campus police on Tuesday at the university library. Video capturing part of the incident is spreading with lightning speed online. Let's bring back our internet reporter Jacki Schechner. Jacki?

JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, this is the video that's been posted several times on YouTube.com and at our last count it's been viewed in total more than 800,000 times. Take a quick listen.

Stand up!

SCHECHNER: Now this video captures part of an incident in which 23-year-old Mostafa Tabatabainejad, a student at UCLA wanted to stay in the library after 11:00 p.m. and due to university policy, students have to show identification if they're asked in order to do so. The student allegedly refused to show identification and refused to leave.

So the student monitor called university police who came in and asked the student to leave and then eventually restrained him. Over the course of the incident, the student says he was tasered a total of five times. He's yelling the entire time. He yells also about the patriot act and abuse of power. Now he was eventually arrested for resisting or obstructing a police officer and he's gone ahead and hired a civil rights attorney.

That attorney says that the student refused to show identification because he felt like he was being racially profiled. He says he plans to file a lawsuit against the police for brutality and he says this video that's making the rounds is strong evidence of police brutality. Now, UCLA officials and the UCLA police department both say that they are conducting a full investigation into this incident in totality.

As to the video, the police department tells us there are some questions circulating as to the circumstances of the video, whether the student who took the video in any way knew the student who was captured on video and Ivo Covey, the student who took the video, said he didn't put it on YouTube, didn't know the student involved. He's actually selling it to news stations, including CNN, saying Wolf he is raising money in part for the student who was tasered.

BLITZER: What a story Jacki. Thanks for doing that excellent reporting, our entire internet team worked on that for some time.

Up ahead, should the United States provide nuclear fuel and technology to India? Jack is standing by with your email. Plus, it's racist, sexist, homophobic, and anti-Semitic, and it's supposed to be. Comedian Sacha Barren Cohen speaking out now about the controversy over his hit movie Borat. Speaking out not as Borat but as Sacha Barren Cohen. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Let's check in with Lou Dobbs to see what's coming up right at the top of the hour. Lou?

LOU DOBBS, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf thank you. Coming up at 6:00 p.m. eastern, New Mexico's governor Bill Richardson sending a letter to President Bush asking him to stop the deportation of an illegal alien who has taken refuge in a Chicago church for the past three months. The woman's 7-year-old son sent on a lobbying mission to Mexico trying to prevent her deportation. That's right, I said Mexico. We'll have that story.

And the filmmakers of "Fast Food Nation" which opens nationwide tonight, join us. We'll be talking with them about the principle issues in that movie, about big companies and the meat packing industry, destroying middle class jobs.

And Cisco Systems is in trouble with its shareholders. Those shareholders holding the company accountable for alleged actions that aid China's suppression of its citizens. We'll have that story all of the days and a great deal more in just a few moments at the top of the hour, right here on CNN. We hope you'll be with us. Wolf, back to you.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Lou. We certainly will. Let's check in with Jack Cafferty for "The Cafferty File." Jack?

CAFFERTY: The question is should the United States provide nuclear fuel and technology to India? Both Houses of Congress have voted to do just that. The president is eventually expected to sign that legislation. India, in exchange, will send us mangos.

Abdul writes, "Recognizing India as a global player in terms of nuclear weapons is long overdue. India has shown its responsible enough as a nation to possess and develop nuclear weapons unlike unstable countries like Iran and North Korea."

John in Illinois, "Great, now we're doing the Kerry flip-flop on nuclear proliferation. We're opposed to nuclear proliferation, except for when we are for it. Is it any wonder the world views the U.S. as a bunch of hypocrites? I just want to know which senators are making the money in this nuclear mango tango."

Steve in Orem, Utah, "And you thought the "Oil for Food" program was a disaster. Here comes "Nukes for Mangoes!" Am I in a coma?"

Marc in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, "Only if we want to further antagonize Pakistan, one of our allies in the war on terror and India's archrival. Another brilliant move on the part of the Bush administration."

Amy in Holmdel, New Jersey, "You can't apply the same set of rules to all countries. India is the largest democracy in the world and is a secular nation as a result. We should woo them as allies because of this fact and because they are a nuclear nation. Democracies are few in the world, especially in Asia so we should partner with them."

Terry writes from North Carolina, "No, Jack. If we should be attacked by Norway, Bush and his cronies might invade India. Then both the fuel and the mangos will be wasted."

If you didn't see your e-mail here, you can go to CNN.com/CaffertyFile where we post some more of these online -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jack, see you back here in an hour. Thank you. And up next, Borat, the man behind the number one movie in the country breaks character to talk about the controversy. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It's the number one film at the box office but not everyone is finding Borat funny. Some say it's downright offensive. Now the star is speaking out on the controversy. Here's CNN entertainment correspondent Sibila Vargas. Sibila?

SIBILA VARGAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Sacha Barren Cohen has been a star in Britain for some time now. But he's new to many Americans and some are finding his humor off putting to say the least.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VARGAS (voice-over): He's serious, he's clueless, and he's also number one at the box office. In his first two weeks, Borat has taken in more than $67 million and generated quite a bit of controversy. The film blatantly presents prejudice and has something to offend just about everyone. Not only is it anti-Semitic and homophobic, it's also racist and sexist.

BORAT: But is it not a problem that the woman have a smaller brain than the man.

VARGAS: Sacha Barren Cohen is notorious for staying in character and rarely goes public as himself. But the controversy has prompted him to do just that. Given a cover interview to "Rolling Stone." The furor caught him off guard with Cohen saying quote, "I was surprised because I always had faith in the audience, that they would realize that this was a fictitious country and that the mere purpose of it was to allow people to bring out their own prejudices."

Cohen says he chose to have Borat be from Kazakhstan because few people know anything about the country, making it a blank plate. The joke is not on Kazakhstan he says, I think the joke is on people who believe that the Kazakhstan I describe can exist. And he goes onto say I think part of the movie shows the absurdity of holding any form of racial prejudice, whether it's hatred of African-Americans or Jews.

Cohen himself is an observant Jew, born and raised in Britain and educated at Cambridge. He speaks Hebrew. In fact, that's what he's speaking in the film, every time he's supposedly speaking Kazak it's Hebrew. Even in the most anti-Semitic dialogue and the translation is perfect.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VARGAS: Borat isn't only generating controversy, it's also producing legal action. An etiquette consultant who appears in the film says she thought she was appearing in a documentary and she's asking California's attorney general to investigate for possible violations of state law. That's on top of a lawsuit already filed by two South Carolina fraternity brothers who say they were plied with alcohol and told that the movie would not be seen in the U.S. All of them did however sign consent forms -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Fascinating material, Sibila, thank you very much for that. We're back in one hour, 7:00 p.m. eastern tonight. One hour from now. In the meantime, let's check in with Lou, he's standing by in New York. Lou?

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