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The Situation Room
Saddam's Hanging Days Away; Does Castro Have Cancer?
Aired December 26, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Standing by CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you tonight's top stories.
HENRY: Happening now -- Saddam Hussein's death by hanging, just days away. An Iraqi appeals court has sealed his fate, but tonight there are sensitive questions about how the execution will play out.
MALVEAUX: Also this hour -- are predictions of Fidel Castro's death premature? A doctor makes a house call on the Cuban leader and reports his prognosis to the world.
And James Brown's heart and soul -- he rocked the music world and the life of a political figure who saw him as a father figure. Tonight the Reverend Al Sharpton remembers Brown, the showman and the friend.
Wolf Blitzer is off tonight. I'm Ed Henry.
MALVEAUX: And I'm Suzanne Malveaux and you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
First tonight, death-watch for Saddam Hussein.
HENRY: The ousted Iraqi leader now is scheduled to hang by January 27, but it could happen any day after an Iraqi appeals court upheld his execution.
CNN's Ryan Chilcote is in Baghdad with that story. Ryan?
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What we heard today was from the appellate chamber, the appellate chamber deciding to uphold the earlier verdict and the earlier sentence, sentencing Saddam Hussein to death. This effectively is the end of the appeals process for Saddam Hussein and it clears the way for him to be put to death.
According to Iraqi law, he now has to be put to death as someone who has been condemned to death within 30 days. Now the Iraqi judge said that the window for the hanging begins tomorrow and ends on January 27. According to international law, the Iraqi government could grant a stay of the execution. However, that appears to be highly unlikely. The Iraqi prime minister has already gone on the record saying he thinks that Saddam Hussein should be hanged by the end of the year -- Ed and Suzanne.
HENRY: Ryan, do you also have a sense -- is there any sense on the ground about how Iraqis, average Iraqis feel about whether or not this will increase anger towards the United States mission?
CHILCOTE: A little too early to say. The decision was announced just a few hours ago, but what we have seen is early indications that this will definitely upset some people. There are -- there is a portion of the insurgency, for example, that is still loyal to Saddam Hussein. They are expected to carry out acts of violence in the Iraqi capital.
There is talk that there might be a curfew to try and quell that kind of violence. On the other hand, you might see some acts of celebration, maybe some celebratory gunfire by people celebrating this verdict, the upholding of the verdict and the sentencing to death.
MALVEAUX: Ryan, how public is this going to be? Do we expect that it's going to be televised? Do we know those details yet?
CHILCOTE: We just don't know. According to Iraqi law, it is supposed to be a public execution, but that could mean that it is just attended by several witnesses, people from the Iraqi government, from the Iraqi judiciary, perhaps his defense team, maybe some other people brought in, perhaps journalists. But it could be very public in the sense that it may be videotaped, we understand, and that video could be disseminated.
As far as we understand, the Iraqi government really is of two minds on this. On the one hand, it wants to show the execution to, (A), confirm that it is indeed executing Saddam, and (B), provide some historical justice, if you will, for the people that suffered under Saddam. On the other hand, it would like to do this perhaps secretly, the argument there that it doesn't want to appear barbaric and it doesn't want to incite any violence that it doesn't need to -- Ed and Suzanne.
HENRY: Ryan Chilcote in Baghdad, thanks for that. The hanging of Saddam Hussein may be a relief to many Iraqis and to others an outrage. The reaction could depend in part on how the execution is actually handled. With that part of the story, we have our own Carol Costello live in New York.
Hello, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Ed. You know Iraq has carried out executions before, but nothing like this. A former dictator with those still loyal to him causing violence in the middle of a war.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO (voice-over): It will be a noose for Hussein. There will be no pardon for Iraq's president or prime minister. According to scholars, Iraqi law forbids any pardon. If guilty, Saddam Hussein must die. SIMONE MONASEBIAN, FORMER WAR CRIMES PROSECUTOR: This statute was written with what you just said now, Saddam has to die and die quickly.
COSTELLO: But a quick execution means simple questions have very difficult answers. Questions like where would the execution take place?
MONASEBIAN: Very good question. With all the security issues one might not be able to tell us until after it occurred, and that's troubling, isn't it?
COSTELLO: Troubling because the Iraqi justice system made sure Hussein's trial was very public to demonstrate to the world it was very fair. To accomplish that, the trial was televised nationally. If Hussein's execution date is kept secret, that would seem to fly in the face of open justice, unless there was an answer to this next simple question.
MONASEBIAN: Would they televise his execution? Some Iraqis will not believe he's dead until they see that he is photographed or videotaped dead.
COSTELLO: It is possible, pictures of Hussein's dead sons were widely shown on television and the Internet to prove they were dead. Uday and Qusay were buried in Saddam's hometown of Tikrit near where American troops pulled Saddam Hussein from his hiding place in 2003.
And that fact brings us to another question -- where would Iraqis bury Saddam? According to Iraqi law, a relative has the right to witness Hussein's hanging and claim his body. At last check, two of Hussein's daughters were at Jordan.
(on camera): Can you see one of his daughters coming in from Jordan to witness his execution?
MONASEBIAN: Certainly coming to Iraq for one of them without any grant of immunity or even with a grant of immunity is a far-flung idea.
COSTELL: So the Iraqi government will decide what to do with Hussein's body -- bury him and risk a martyr's grave or something else -- again, questions that really aren't so simple.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And they have to come up with all the answers within 30 days. Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: Thanks, Carol.
The Bush administration is eager to see Saddam Hussein's death sentence carried out and it could happen during a critical time for President Bush who is now moving toward an announcement about his next moves in Iraq. Our White House correspondent Elaine Quijano is with the president in Crawford, Texas. Elaine? ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, as you might expect, the White House certainly is pleased with this decision today, and it comes at a time when President Bush is of course continuing his deliberations over what to do next about his Iraq policy. Now, the president will continue that deliberations process from his ranch in Crawford, Texas, where he arrived earlier today, both he as well as the first lady and her mother arriving.
Now White House deputy press secretary Scott Stanzel told reporters aboard Air Force One that the Iraqis deserve praise for using the institutions of democracy to pursue justice, and he went on to say quote, "today marks an important milestone in the Iraqi people's effort to replace the rule of a tyrant with the rule of law. Saddam Hussein has received due process and legal rights that he denied the Iraqi people for so long, so this is an important day for the Iraqi people."
Now despite acknowledging missteps in the course of the Iraq war, President Bush throughout has steadfastly maintained he believes it was the right thing to do to remove Saddam Hussein from power. Nevertheless, with Democrats set to take control of Congress, the political pressure on President Bush to change course is certainly intensifying. For now, though, the consultations do continue.
In fact, over the weekend, the president huddled with his new defense secretary, Robert Gates, at Camp David. Gates has just returned from a three-day trip to Iraq. Meantime, on Thursday the president here in Texas at his ranch will be convening a meeting of the National Security Council to discuss various Iraq options. And of course, Suzanne, we are expecting the president to announce changes to his Iraq policy in the early part of the new year -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: And Elaine, do we have a sense of what's going to come out of the Thursday meeting with his top national security advisers?
QUIJANO: Well, certainly senior aides are trying to downplay any expectations. In fact, for days now what they've been describing this meeting as is quote, unquote, "non-decisional," saying that it's really part of the on-going consultations, but you know that recently in the past few weeks we had heard that perhaps an announcement might be coming before the Christmas holiday. That didn't happen. So right now what we're seeing is the senior aides really trying to keep their cards very close to the vest and not revealing much about where President Bush might be in the decision-making process -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: Thanks, Elaine. We know you will be on top of that. Thanks again, Elaine Quijano.
The incoming chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee is taking aim today at the idea of increasing troop levels in Iraq. Senate Democrat and likely White House candidate Joe Biden says the troop surge option President Bush is considering won't work. Biden opens hearings on Iraq strategies on January 9. He told reporters today that he's invited Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to testify during the hearings that are expected to last three weeks. Still more killing and chaos in Iraq today, at least 46 people were killed in various attacks across the nation. At least 20 of them died in a car bombing near a Sunni mosque in northern Baghdad.
HENRY: There are some other new developments regarding the Middle East tonight, where U.S. troops may soon be on the move. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr all over that story. Barbara, what's the scoop?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ed, the question is when troops are moving, is it really a surge or is it something else? It now appears that the Defense Department is about to announce 3,500 additional U.S. troops, mainly from the 82nd Airborne Brigade out of Fort Bragg, are going to go to the region. They're going to go to Kuwait, but they are not the surge, we are told. These are troops that are in fact replacement troops for certain troops that had moved from Kuwait into Iraq some time back. They are now being replaced.
They are the emergency backup force, if you will, so about 3,500 troops from Fort Bragg aiming to go to Kuwait to be on standby for Iraq, but not the surge -- that surge still being discussed by top U.S. military commanders. Meetings here in the Pentagon even today during the holiday week, and still a lot of discussion about the pluses and minuses.
A lot of concern that just sending more troops without additional economical, political, or diplomatic progress and real commitments from the Iraqis on all of those fronts simply may provide more targets for attack. The month of December is shaping up to be an absolutely dreadful month for U.S. troops. We are just past Christmas and already 88 U.S. troops have lost their lives in Iraq this month. Ed?
HENRY: Barbara, thanks for that, obviously a grim 2006. Everyone hopes for the better in 2007. Thank you, Barbara.
MALVEAUX: And coming up, Democrats make their wish list for the next presidential race. Is it Hillary Clinton still their favorite? We have a revealing poll number that will give that for you.
HENRY: Also, is Iran in danger of running out of oil? We'll have details of one key factor that could lie behind the country's nuclear standoff.
MALVEAUX: And remembering the "Godfather of Soul", James Brown, with the man who says he was more like a father to him -- the Reverend Al Sharpton joining us in just a few minutes.
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Iran is showing no signs it intends to back down in its nuclear standoff with the West, even in the face of United Nations sanctions approved over the weekend. HENRY: But there may be a good reason for Iran's nuclear defiance. Experts say there are signs the country's oil industry is in serious trouble. All over that story is CNN's Brian Todd.
Hello, Brian.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Ed, Suzanne. This is a regime that is sitting on huge reserves of oil and natural gas. Analysts say their mismanagement at the hands of a state-run oil company has weakened the hand of this regional power.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TODD (voice-over): He said it repeatedly to justify his nuclear ambitions.
PRES. MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD, IRAN (through translator): All our nuclear activities are transparent, peaceful.
TODD: And repeatedly, Western leaders say Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is bluffing, stalling for time for Iran to build a nuclear bomb. But one expert believes Ahmadinejad does need nuclear power for energy.
ROGER STERN, JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: It looks from the way that the trends are running now that their oil exports could go to zero in 2015.
TODD: Zero revenue from oil exports for a country with the world's third largest oil reserves and second largest supply of natural gas? According to Roger Stern, an analyst from Johns Hopkins University who's just published a study for the National Academy of Sciences, Iran has so mismanaged its oil industry that it may not recover.
Stern and other analysts tell us the regime has let its engineering expertise slide, to the point where they're unable to effectively get oil out of the ground or refine it. They say Iran has hurt itself by subsidizing gasoline, importing much of it from abroad, then selling it to its increasingly car-dependent public for about 30 cents a gallon.
And they say Ahmadinejad has scared away important foreign investors who have wanted to help Iran upgrade technology and buy its oil. What's Stern's advice to President Bush's national security team on the idea of confronting Iran?
STERN: We'd be much better off doing nothing than stirring the pot right now.
TODD: Others agree Iran's oil industry is in shambles, but think that might bring change.
KARIM SADJADPOUR, INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP: It comes down to a question of maintaining the radical politics and going into bankruptcy or changing their policies and increasing foreign investment in order to strengthen what is very much a more abundant economy, I think they will definitely take the more pragmatic approach.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: Most analysts agree while Iran may be vulnerable on oil, it's not a paper tiger. The regime still may be pursuing a nuclear weapon, it's got a huge standing army and it's giving a lot of support to Shia militants in Iraq, Lebanon and throughout the Middle East -- Ed, Suzanne?
HENRY: Thanks, Brian, for that report.
In Iran today there's new anger at the United States after American forces detained Iranian officials during a recent visit to Iraq.
CNN's Aneesh Raman is reporting for us from Tehran.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ed and Suzanne, Iran says the U.S. now faces quote, "uncomfortable consequences" after Iranians were arrested in Iraq last week. They have called these arrests not justified. Two of those arrested were Iranian diplomats. They've been released. The other two, Iranian security personnel part of the country's Revolutionary Guard are still in custody.
Now coalition forces have long said that Iran continues to arm, fund, and train militia groups in Iraq. If evidence they have seized on the security personnel uphold that link, Iran will undoubtedly face increased pressure to try and fix the situation in Iraq. But if no evidence exists, expect Iran to ratchet up its defiant statements against the United States and its defiance against the international community.
This is a very sensitive issue at a very sensitive time. Keep in mind Iran has spent this past year rising as a dominant political force in the Middle East with its influence in Lebanon, the Palestinian areas and Iraq. Iran is eager to see the U.S. out of the Middle East as a dominant player and replaced by Tehran -- Ed and Suzanne.
HENRY: Thanks, Aneesh Raman in Tehran.
Up ahead tonight in THE SITUATION ROOM, is Hillary Clinton still the favorite among Democrats for the '08 presidential nomination? We'll show you some new poll numbers that just might surprise you.
MALVEAUX: Plus, a doctor raising new questions about Fidel Castro's health. Is the Cuban leader as sick as some think?
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: And this just in, some dramatic pictures that we are now getting from KPTV Portland, Oregon. We are seeing a truck, incredible picture of this truck head-first into a sinkhole. Carol, what can you tell us about these dramatic pictures that are just coming in?
COSTELLO: Well, Suzanne, this is an incredible picture. This is from KPTV, our affiliate in Portland, Oregon. Apparently there was some sort of sewer backup and the crews were looking for a manhole cover that they could safely take off to find out what the sewage backup was, when all of a sudden, the street simply gave way and that large hole opened up. We don't know if the transportation crews were inside the truck or not or whether they were outside.
We do know that they had to be taken to the hospital. This is going to be a massive cleanup, because first they have to figure out how to get that truck out of that big hole. And to complicate the problem, the gas line underneath the street ruptured because of it. So now they have a natural gas leak under here, and you can imagine how dangerous that would be. Again, these two -- the two crewmembers inside that truck, I don't know if they were standing outside or inside, but they were taken to the emergency room. So I'm going to keep following this, Ed.
HENRY: OK, thanks, Carol...
COSTELLO: Keep you updated as to what happens.
HENRY: Absolutely, a very dangerous situation in Portland. We'll stay on top of it this hour. If we get new pictures, new information, we'll bring it right to you.
In the race to 2008, there is new evidence of a surge by Senator Barack Obama in the early presidential battlegrounds -- Obama running just a point behind Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in a new research 2000 poll of likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire. And in Iowa, Obama is dead even with John Edwards among likely Democratic caucus goers.
Edwards has been leading the Democratic pack in Iowa in other recent polls. Now on the Republican side, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Senator John McCain are running neck and neck in both Iowa and New Hampshire polls. McCain, a one-point edge in Iowa, Giuliani just a tick ahead in New Hampshire.
MALVEAUX: In early 2008, Democratic presidential contenders are going to new distances to compete for their party's nomination, all the way out to the west to Nevada.
Our congressional correspondent Dana Bash was recently there to get a first-hand look at the state's growing political clout.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the valley beneath Nevada's Mormon mountains it's no surprise to find a cowboy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are roping cow. These are rodeo cows.
BASH: But this cowboy may surprise you. TOM COLLINS, NEVADA DEMOCRATIC CHAIRMAN: I'm the state chairman of the Democratic Party. I'm a lifetime union member. I'm a journeyman lineman by trade and I'm also a cowboy. I'm a life member of the National Rifle Association and I raise cattle.
BASH: There are actually a lot of Democrats like Collins in Nevada and across the increasingly competitive mountain west.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I grow a few cows and some sheep.
BASH: And forcing presidential candidates to appeal to them is one reason Democrats moved up Nevada's 2008 caucus, wedging it between the traditional kickoff states of Iowa and New Hampshire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If the candidates running for president can come to Nevada and learn the issues in Nevada, they will know the issues of eight or nine of the western states.
BASH: Things like public land use and water conservation. Most people don't think of this as Nevada. They think of this, Las Vegas. And Democrats from Iowa and New Hampshire furious at the party for disrupting what they call their sacred tradition, worn presidential candidates will get sidetracked by local issues like gaming. But State Senator Maggie Carlton, who's also a waitress on the strip, says an earlier Nevada caucus will highlight issues vital to organized labor and struggling workers.
MAGGIE CARLTON (D), NEVADA STATE SENATE: We don't do 9:00 to 5:00 in Las Vegas, but the working class type thing, the shift worker, those types of questions, the more basic kitchen table type politics.
BASH: And put simply, Nevada looks different than Iowa and New Hampshire.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BASH: These hotel trainees represent a huge untapped Hispanic population Democrats are wrestling Republicans for nationally. Iowa's Hispanic population is just 3.5 percent, New Hampshire's, 2.1 percent, Nevada's, 22.8 percent.
STEVEN HORSFORD (D), NEVADA STATE SENATE: We have diversity in Nevada and working people should have more of a stake in how our presidential nominee is selected.
BASH (on camera): This is a place known for its high stakes and extraordinary shows, but there are some doubts Nevada is up to the challenge of organizing and administering a caucus. In 2004 it had just 17 sites and now plans 1,000. An Iowa veteran said that's like pulling off 1,000 weddings all at the same time.
(voice-over): And not the Vegas "I-do" drive-thru kind of wedding either. Party Chairman Collins insists they've hired experienced caucus hands and says in the end Democratic presidential candidates will benefit from learning more about this long-ignored region and will even find a familiar symbol.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let them come and pet Jezeboro (ph)...
BASH: In an unfamiliar place.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's a sweetheart.
BASH: Dana Bash, CNN, Logandale, Nevada.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: And just ahead, his influence on music is famous, but what about James Brown's influence on politics? Details of a legacy you might not know about.
MALVEAUX: Plus, we'll update you on Arnold Schwarzenegger's conditions as he recovers from surgery in a California hospital.
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: To our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time.
HENRY: Happening now in Iraq -- every passing minute brings Saddam Hussein closer to death. The former dictator has just days to live after a court gives the green light for his hanging.
MALVEAUX: Somalia's weak government is under attack by powerful Islamic rebels. Ethiopian forces are coming to the rescue of the Somalian government, but it might be too late. Somalia's top envoy at the United Nations is urging the Security Council to declare an immediate cease-fire.
HENRY: And remembering a devastating disaster two years later. Today many mark the second anniversary of the tsunami in south Asia. Hundreds of thousands died and thousands more made homeless.
Wolf Blitzer has the day off. I'm Ed Henry.
MALVEAUX: And I'm Suzanne Malveaux, and you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
The hardest working man in show business is now at rest. After James Brown's death on Christmas day, many are remembering his incredible energy, unique outfits and unforgettable dance steps.
HENRY: Not to mention his political footwork, and that's why we turn to the man with all the moves, our senior political analyst Bill Schneider in Los Angeles.
Hello, Bill.
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Hi, Ed. He made us all feel good, but there was more to James Brown's life than just music.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER (voice-over): The "Godfather of Soul" had political soul, too. We all know James Brown's funky musical moves. How about his funky political moves like his 1972 White House meeting with President Richard Nixon?
Eat your heart out, Elvis. The meeting with Brown was preserved on the White House audiotapes. The president and the "Godfather of Soul" discussed the memorial to Martin Luther King Jr.
RICHARD NIXON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: ...a project in Atlanta to make his birthplace a monument ...
SCHNEIDER: James Brown was proud of his political connections.
FRANK COPSIDAS, JAMES BROWN'S AGENT: He performed for every president from Richard Nixon through our president today. And he was very proud of that, as well.
SCHNEIDER: Brown and Al Sharpton visited President Ronald Reagan in 1982. President Clinton identified with the rock star at this 1997 Congressional Black Caucus dinner.
WILLIAM CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am profoundly grateful to the Congressional Black Caucus for making a dream of a lifetime come true. I am the opening act for James Brown.
SCHNEIDER: He identified with Brown's politics, too.
CLINTON: One of James Brown's songs, he says, "I don't want nobody to give me nothing. Just open up the door. I'll get it myself."
SCHNEIDER: In the 1960s, James Brown had a powerful influence on black consciousness. He didn't act white. He was black and proud. In fact, he invented that phrase in his 1968 song, "Say it loud, I'm black and I'm proud."
That year, Brown went to Vietnam to perform for the troops.
In 2003, when Colin Powell presented Brown with a Kennedy Center Honor, the secretary of state recalled Brown's soul music pouring out of army hooches in Vietnam.
In 1968, a "Look" magazine cover story asked, "Is he the most important black man in America?" That was after the King assassination when Brown gave a concert in Boston and spoke out against rioting. He's credited for helping prevent violence that night.
At the Kennedy Center three years ago, Brown offered this advice.
JAMES BROWN, MUSICIAN: I've been all over town, there's one thing I found. If you want to get down, find James Brown. (END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER: Good advice for politicians as well as music lovers. Do you feel good, Ed?
HENRY: Oh, I do, especially after that report, Bill. You always bring it in. I've been trying to show Suzanne my moves, but it's not working.
MALVEAUX: You know, it's not working yet, but we're working on it. But thanks, Bill, for showing us a political as well as musical heavyweight. Appreciate that.
HENRY: That's true.
MALVEAUX: And, of course, James Brown may have been the godfather to his fans, but one man says he was like a father.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Reverend Al Sharpton, thank you so much for joining us here in THE SITUATION ROOM. I know this is a very difficult and painful day for you. You say you were very close, of course, to James Brown, like he was a father figure to you. You saw something in that man that many of us didn't get a chance to see on a day-to-day basis. Tell us something we don't know about.
REV. AL SHARPTON, PRES., NATIONAL ACTION NETWORK: You know, James Brown was very sensitive. He was very, very caring of people, and I don't think that a lot of people, because of his obvious flamboyance and showmanship, understood that he was very tough and determined, but he was very soft-hearted.
I guess that's why he kind of adopted me when I was 16, but I mean, I never saw him walk past somebody in the street begging and not stop and give money. I've seen him one night -- he was playing what was the Lonestar Theater in New York, and we left at around 3:30 in the morning, and he was driving in the limousine -- riding in the limousine up Sixth Avenue and saw a guy on a skateboard that was begging cars, and he got out of the limousine, gave the guy $100.
I mean, James Brown was that kind of guy. You'd go to the board room, he'd be the toughest negotiator, but he really cared about people, and he always insisted that people around him did. And I think that that was one of his most redeeming qualities, is that he really cared about people. He cared about the fans. He really wanted to see people do well.
MALVEAUX: When was the last time that you spoke to him?
SHARPTON: About a week ago. It's funny, we used to talk probably once or twice a week, and sometimes I would be negligent in calling right back, and he called -- he had Ms. Hogan who worked for him call on my cellphone and say Reverend Sharpton, Mr. Brown is trying to reach you. And I didn't call back, and he had Charles Bobbit, who was managing him, who ended up being the one talking to him when he died, call and say, he really wants to talk to you.
So I called him and he had seen me, ironically, on CNN, on Larry King's show, talking about a shooting in New York with the fiancee. He said I thought you did a good job. He said I always wanted you to take the high road and fight for justice, but make sure you advocate non-violence. I'm real proud of you, son.
And he started talking about how he met me when I was a little kid. I mean, it's eerie now, but I wasn't thinking about it then. And we talked about old times. And then when he was getting off the phone, he said Reverend, always remember, preach love. If people tell you anything about James Brown, they'll tell you I believe in love. And that was the last conversation we ever had.
HENRY: And, Reverend Sharpton, talk about when you first met him. And a lot of people, obviously, know James Brown as an entertainer. You knew him as somebody who fought for civil rights. Talk about when you first met him, and some people may not know some of his political work.
SHARPTON: You know, his son -- he had a son named Teddy who had come to New York to go to law school. He was 16, I was 16, and his son some kind of how got involved in my youth group, National Youth Movement. His son was killed tragically in a car accident.
So James Brown came to New York and, through some local radio personalities, Hank Spann and Bob Law, he found out his son had worked with me, so he wanted to meet this young teenage preacher his son was working with.
So we met and he said I want to help you. I want to help build your youth group. And, I mean, he was the number one entertainer in the world there. There was nothing he needed from us. We were nobodies.
And he really put his weight behind it. Not only did he do shows and give us the money, he took me and put me on "Soul Train," which is about as big as you can get at 16 years old. And he started -- I mean, I went from the middle of Brownsville in the hood in Brooklyn to flying around in a private jet with James Brown.
But he always insisted you stay in civil rights, you keep fighting for them kids, don't get tainted with show business. So if I would go on the road with him, I had to stay with him, I couldn't go to clubs and drink. He was very strict. We used to say we were in jail with him because he was a very strict disciplinarian, and he'd get on the stage and he'd do whatever it took to entertain a crowd, but he believed in what he believed in. He believed in causes.
He also would disagree. He would support Republicans. He and I would argue about -- he supported Ronald Reagan, and I remember that when Reagan was elected, which I thought was the worst thing that happened, I said to him, well why don't you go to Reagan and tell him we need to get Martin Luther King's national holiday, because many were campaigning for that.
And he called the White House and he got an appointment to see Ronald Reagan in '82 on Dr. King's birthday, and he said guess what? I said what? He said I'm taking you with me.
And when we were getting ready to go, I had come down to Georgia to leave with him. He took me by his hairstylist and he said I want you to style Rev's hair -- he always called me Rev.
MALVEAUX: The famous hairstyle.
SHARPTON: He said style Rev's hair like mine, and that's where the hairstyle came from. And he made me promise to wear it like this until he died. That's where the hairstyle came from.
HENRY: We're getting a scoop right here about where your hairstyle came from. A lot of people will be fascinated with that.
Also, obviously, there is an emotional connection you had with James Brown that comes across, and we saw that as well during your presidential campaign. I think a lot of our viewers will remember NBC, "Saturday Night Live." You sang a little song with the actor Tracy Morgan. I want to play that for everyone right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: So obviously having a little fun there, Reverend Sharpton, but this was somebody who obviously had a lot of fun.
SHARPTON: He had a lot of fun. He was fun to be around, but he was serious. And I think that one of the things that people are just beginning to realize is he was a cultural icon, unmatched. I mean, he changed music. James brown did what no one else has done, and that is, he changed the beat of American music.
He used to talk about most music was on a 2-4, he made it a 1-3, and out of that came funk and hip-hop and rap. And I don't think that we'll see a figure like James Brown for many, many years. Classical music had Brahms. We had Brown, and James Brown was all of that and more.
MALVEAUX: And, Reverend Sharpton, I know the song "I'm Black And Proud" was something that was playing in many of our households back then. You were the last serious African-American candidate up for presidential bid and now we're seeing Senator Barack Obama really gain in popularity. Do you think that America, this country, is ready for a black president?
SHARPTON: I think America gets ready when we get ready to make America ready. I don't know if America was ready to have blacks come from the back of the bus. It happened when we got ready. I don't know if they were ready for us to get voter rights. It happened when we got ready, and I don't know if they were ready for James Brown. He was ready.
And I think that when we -- and I don't mean just blacks, but whites and Latinos and others are ready to start dealing with people's talent and not their color, it will happen. It will happen for women, it will happen for blacks, and I don't think it will be a magic wand.
I think it will be like everything else, it will be a struggle and it will be hard, but once you get there, everyone will say, why were we fighting that stuff? So we'll see. It could happen this time, it could happen next time, but I believe it will happen.
MALVEAUX: Reverend Al Sharpton, thank you so much for joining us in THE SITUATION ROOM.
SHARPTON: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: And up ahead tonight, could Fidel Castro recover and take charge of Cuba again? One doctor is making a surprising diagnosis.
HENRY: Plus, we're following a developing story in Portland, Oregon, a sinkhole swallowing an entire truck. Stay with us, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: There are new questions tonight about the health of Fidel Castro.
HENRY: The Spanish doctor who met him now says the Cuban president is not as sick as many people believe. CNN's Karl Penhaul is in Havana. He has details. Hello, Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ed and Suzanne, the latest clues emerging today about the state of Fidel Castro's health. Now, although Spanish surgeon Jose Luis Garcia Sabrido didn't say what illness Castro had, he was explaining what he was not suffering from.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PENHAUL (voice-over): Back from his house call in Havana, Spanish surgeon Jose Luis Garcias Sabrido gave his diagnosis on Fidel Castro's health.
DR. JOSE LUIS GARCIA SABRIDO (through translator): Within the limits of confidentiality, I can tell you that President Castro does not have any malignant illness. It's a benign process in which there have been some complications.
PENHAUL: The intestinal specialist traveled to Cuba last Thursday at the request of Cuban authorities. He says Castro's in good shape.
SABRIDO (through translator): The discussions with the medical team did not reveal a need for any surgical intervention because the condition of the president, I can assure you, is excellent. He has a great intellectual activity.
PENHAUL: That's not exactly the news U.S. intelligence chief John Negroponte expected. In an interview with the "Washington Post" earlier this month, he suggested the Cuban leader was at death's door. "Everything we see indicates it will not be much longer, months, not years," he said.
So far there's been no word from the Cuban government on the Spanish consultant's visit. The state of Castro's health is treated here as a state secret, though he was shown on Cuban state media in these videos in September and October.
The latest diagnosis matches what Castro ally Hugo Chavez said mid-month, and what Cuban officials told a visiting delegation of U.S. lawmakers.
REP. JANE HARMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: They deny that Fidel isn't coming back. They say he doesn't have cancer. He'll be back.
PENHAUL: And while Garcia Sabrido said Castro was recovering, he gave no details about what the Cuban president was suffering from.
When Castro went under the surgeon's knife in July, he temporarily ceded presidential powers to brother Raul. And when he failed to attend the December 2nd military parade, speculation was rife that his condition was worsening. But at his news conference in Madrid, Garcia Sabrido said Castro was eager to make his comeback.
SABRIDO (through translator): He wants to return to work every day, but doctors advise him to be cautious.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PENHAUL: But the doctor's diagnosis leaves some of the political questions unanswered about when Castro may make his political comeback and also what kind of day-to-day government role he may be fit enough to play.
Ed and Suzanne, back to you.
MALVEAUX: Thank you, Karl. And doctors say California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is doing well tonight. He's recovering from surgery to fix his broken leg, the latest in a series of injuries he suffered in recent years. CNN's Ted Rowlands is live for us in Santa Monica, California, with all the details -- Ted?
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, Governor Schwarzenegger was admitted into the hospital Christmas night. He had surgery this morning, which lasted an hour and a half and tonight he is doing well this morning, according to the physician that conducted the surgery. He says the X-rays look perfect. Schwarzenegger will be hospitalized for a few days as he recovers from breaking his leg.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROWLANDS (voice-over): This is where California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is believed to have undergone surgery this morning, Saint John's Medical Center, near Los Angeles. Doctors fixing his right thigh bone, which was broken in a skiing accident Saturday in Sun Valley, Idaho, where Schwarzenegger and his family are regulars each winter.
The operation, described as relatively common, according to the surgeon, involved attaching orthopedic cables and screws to the femur. The governor is expected to stay in the hospital three days for observation. Doctors say he will be on crutches for a while. Full recovery is expected to take about eight weeks.
Schwarzenegger was put under general anesthesia for the operation. During that time, California Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante assumed the role of acting governor.
Schwarzenegger is no stranger at Saint John's Medical Center. He was treated here this past January, after a motorcycle accident, getting 15 stitches in his upper lip. He also had surgery here in 2003 to repair a rotator cuff he injured while filming "Terminator 3."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROWLANDS: Now an inauguration ceremony is set for January 5th. And according to Schwarzenegger's people, they are going to go forward with it as planned. But Ed and Suzanne, you may see the "Terminator" being sworn in for his second term as California governor, on crutches.
HENRY: Thanks Ted, appreciate the update. Carol Costello joins us now with a closer look at that developing story out of Oregon, the sinkhole. Carol, what do you have?
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, let's go back to southeast Oak Street in Portland, Oregon, because it's an incredible picture. A maintenance truck was looking for a backed-up sewer line when this street just swallowed the truck right up. Look at that. That truck is in the hole. We now know that the two workers were inside the truck when the sinkhole opened and the truck fell inside. They are now in the emergency room with non life-threatening injuries. Now workers are just trying to figure out how to get the truck out of the hole.
A note to travelers: all you have to do is read the National Weather Service message. Urgent, another major winter storm will blast Colorado. Denver just now digging out from last week's crippling blizzard. Now a new storm packed with heavy snow and gusty winds rolling in from the west. It's expected to hit Denver and surrounding areas Thursday and Friday, just in time for New Years.
And talk about new developments. They are bracing for a baby boom at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Officials at the base expect it to hit its peak in June. That will be nine months after the 101st airborne division returned from its year-long deployment in Iraq. Base doctors currently deliver about a dozen babies a day. Well, they expect that number to jump to -- get this -- 250 newborns a day, which is easily a new base record. Crews are trying to contain an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico near Galveston, Texas. Tens of thousands of gallons of crude oil spewed into the gulf from a ruptured pipeline owned by Plains All American Pipeline. The coast guard says the Houston-based company detected a loss of pressure early Sunday. They shut down the line. Divers will look at the extent of the damage tomorrow. That's a look at the headlines right now. Back to you, Suzanne and Ed.
MALVEAUX: Thanks, Carol.
And up ahead, understanding the hodge. A multitude of Muslims descend on Mecca. CNN's Zain Verjee will walk us through the holy right of passage.
HENRY: And later, memories of the godfather of soul. Online tributes to the late, great James Brown. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HENRY: For Muslims, it's a holy right of passage. Millions are gathering in Saudi Arabia for an important annual pilgrimage. Our Zain Verjee is following along and has more from Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Zain?
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ed, I'm outside the grand mosque in the heart of Mecca. There is a real sense of anticipation here ahead of the Hajj. Almost three million people have gathered here in the city to perform a set of holy rituals that's so diverse. You see people from different cultures, you hear different languages all the time as well. They come from different histories. The key for security officials though is crowd control and pilgrim safety -- 50,000 security personnel have been deployed all around the city. Checkpoints have been set up with roads coming into Mecca. And there is a very vast and intricate network of cameras that have been set up to monitor pilgrims and places. Now the Hajj stops on Thursday -- Ed?
HENRY: Thanks -- Zain. Zain will be reporting on the Hajj as it continues over the next few days. Be sure to stay tuned to CNN for her reports.
Here's a look at some of the hot shots coming in from our friends at "Associated Press" right now, pictures likely in your newspaper tomorrow.
In Baghdad, a young Iraqi girl watches soldiers search a home for weapons. In Augusta, Georgia, a statue of James Brown has become a memorial site for the late godfather of soul. And in the Middle East, Israeli soldiers engage in an impromptu snowball fight. And in Tokyo, an 11-year-old Siberian Husky relaxes in a spa with his personal trainer. Andy suffers from lower back pain.
And that's this hour's hot shots, pictures often worth a thousand words.
MALVEAUX: And today's fans are paying tribute to the godfather of soul, sharing their memories of James Brown and filing reports with CNN. Our Internet reporter Jacki Schechner has the latest. Jacki, what do you see?
JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Well Suzanne, we get this I-report all the way from Bob Zix in Tokyo, Japan. He took this photograph, he says, in the early '90s. He was doing a radio show called Kawasami Kong (ph). And James Brown recorded a station I.D. for him. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES BROWN, DECEASED SINGER: I feel good! Kawasami Kong (ph). Hit the button and you've got to get some. Hit it, Kong, hit it, hit it, ow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHECHNER: Bob has wonderful memories of Mr. Brown and he says that they met four times over the years. This photograph also taken in 2002. And he said he specifically remembers teaching him how to say "you feel good" in Japanese.
We also have this i-Report coming to us from Canada. This is Canadian musician Pierre Perpall. He says that he met James Brown at the Montreal Airport in 1969. He and his colleagues were all playing small clubs at the time and they asked a reporter to introduce him to James Brown. He says he was incredibly influential on his music. Ed, Suzanne?
HENRY: Thanks very much, Jacki.
This just into CNN. According to an airport spokesman at Miami International Airport, a 747 jet just skidded off the runway. That coming from an airport spokesman. We have tape from our affiliate WSVN. It was a British Airways flight 209 from London Heathrow. The good news is that nobody was hurt. It just overshot the runway and knocked out some lights.
MALVEAUX: And according to the "Miami Herald," they are reporting here that one of those passengers was British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Again, nobody was injured in this accident here, overshooting the runway here, but Blair as well as his family, his immediate family, were aboard this plane.
That confirmed by the U.S. Secret Service. According to the "Miami Herald," the Blairs were flying first class, coming for a vacation in the Miami area. That according to an agency spokesman. But again, have to stress that British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his immediate family, passengers aboard this plane, and none of those passengers that we are told have been injured from that incident.
HENRY: OK, we will stay on top of that story throughout the evening, obviously. Thanks for joining us, I'm Ed Henry.
MALVEAUX: And I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Up next after a quick break, a special edition of "PAULA ZAHN NOW," Skin Deep: Racism in America.
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