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CNN Sunday Morning

Holiday Travelers Head Home; Protesters Demonstrate Near Bush's Ranch; Saddam Hussein Trial Resumes Monday

Aired November 27, 2005 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: A fairly strong earthquake struck the southern tip of Iran today. 10 people were killed and four towns destroyed. The magnitude 6.1 quake jolted the major port of Bandar Abbas, home to half a million people. It was centered 35 miles southwest of the Persian Gulf port.
As the 30 million or so who went someplace for Thanksgiving return home, you can expect possible flight delays or even traffic jams and lots of them. Forecasts call for potentially dangerous travel weather out there. And we're going to have a look at the nation's weather. That's coming up in just a minute.

It is back in federal bankruptcy court tomorrow for Delta Airlines. Delta wants out of is contracts with pilots. The airline is demanding $325 million in pilot concessions. Pilots already agreed last year to $1 billion back.

Good morning, everybody. It's 9 a.m. in the nation's capitol, 8 a.m. in Crawford, Texas, on this Sunday, November 27. Good morning from the CNN Center in Atlanta. I'm Betty Nguyen. Tony Harris will be in just a little bit later today. Thanks for starting your day with us, though.

Ahead this hour, he is shoring up support for the war, but will President Bush's big push pay off?

Plus, it started, then it was delayed, now it might be moving. A tyrant goes on trial. Saddam Hussein's lawyers want a change of scenery.

And bonded by blood, but separated by circumstance. Remarkable stories of donor siblings reunited.

We begin now with holiday travelers heading home. You could be in for some messy weather, gridlock and even delays depending on where you are and where you're going today.

Let me give you some live pictures right now from sunny Miami. Yes, looks beautiful there. Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson airport, one of the busiest airports in the nation. Then down to Boston on your bottom left. You can see people are on the roadways. Even in Chicago where it's still dark, folks are headed out and headed home today. The windy city will get drenched, though. It's just one of many Midwest cities where rain could disrupt travel plans. Lindsey Arent is live at Reagan National Airport just outside Washington, where she's got a check of how things are going there. Earlier, not so bad but I would imagine as we get closer to the noon rush hour, shall we say, it's going to really pick up.

LINDSEY ARENT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's what I'm hearing. It's true, Betty. You know, we've got millions of travelers going through the country today. Here at Reagan National Airport, things are actually incredibly calm.

I've talked to baggage handlers, personnel, flight attendants. Everybody seems to be surprised. There is a decided lack of anxiety here at the airport. Virtually no line at the security check-in, no lines for boarding passes. And there are a lot of reasons why.

Experts are saying people are printing out their boarding passes at home. They are using the kiosks to print out their e-tickets. People are traveling a lot smarter these days.

I spoke to several travelers today, including Victoria Clark. She said she had come early, she was so concerned about this being one of busiest travel days of the year, but she got here and had no problem. Let's hear what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTORIA CLARK, TRAVELER: I'm really not that worried about it. The only thing I was worried about, especially being in Washington, was the security lines. I mean, it's just, you know, when you're in any city, I know just going through security can take a long time. So I allowed two hours.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARENT: Now preparation could be one of the reasons why things are running so smoothly here. This airport has tons of personnel. They are at the ready for a very busy day today. Although the morning has been very slow and calm, they do -- expecting things to key up toward the afternoon.

In fact, Ronald Reagan airport is expecting double the number of passengers it normally has flowing through its doors. Normally it's 25,000. Today they expect some 50,000 passengers to be coming through here.

Bit of advice for travelers out there if you're traveling this afternoon. They say try to come to the airport 2 1/2 hours early, before your flight. Even if you don't have much activity or much wait, you're going to find that you'll be happy if you did. You'll have not that much problem when you get to the airport -- Betty.

NGUYEN: That's very good advice, especially because bad weather in some parts of the nation could cause backups in airports all across the U.S. Lindsey, thank you.

We're going to have another weather and travel update in just 30 minutes from now. So you definitely want to stick around for that.

Also, holiday shopping. Shoppers, as you know, have been packing the malls. They're doing it again today. But it looks like the traditional holiday shopping season got off to a lukewarm start on Black Friday, even with all the fights and chaos that broke out.

A national research group that tracks retail sales nationwide says overall sales Friday totaled $8 billion. That's relatively unchanged, down less than 1 percent from last year.

The bright spot is Wal-Mart. It looks like big discounts paid off for the retail giant. It led the pack in holiday sales.

In other news, just two escapees are still at large from Friday's jail break in Yakima, Washington. Police tell CNN two inmates were found in the attic of a house about four miles from the jail on Saturday. Police credit an anonymous tip.

One of the men still at large had access to weapons, and both are considered dangerous. Here's a picture of the two.

In all nine inmates escaped Friday using knotted bed sheets to slide off the roof. Five were quickly recaptured on the jail grounds.

And we'll get a live update from the Yakima County sheriff. That's coming up at the bottom of the hour.

Other news across America this morning, in Seattle, Washington, firefighters carry out one of the youngest passengers. You see that? Little bitty thing after the city's two monorail trains collide. The trains sideswiped one another on a curve, ripping off a sliding door on one car and breaking a window. Two passengers were slightly hurt.

A small plane carrying White House staffers had to make an emergency landing. Smoke began pouring into the cockpit and the twin engine plane landed safely in Nashville, Tennessee. Thirteen people were returning to Washington from the Bush Texas ranch.

Well, the crowds are smaller outside President Bush's Texas ranch, but last summer's debate about the Iraq war is back on his doorstep. The president is spending his last day at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Tomorrow he leaves for Arizona.

In his weekly radio address Saturday, Mr. Bush mourned the growing number of fallen troops in Iraq but vowed to keep fighting for the cause of freedom.

Outside the president's ranch, the battle over U.S. involvement in Iraq continues with demonstrations from both sides. The mother who first brought her grief to Crawford in August, she is back. Cindy Sheehan is among some 100 protesters braving autumn's uncertain conditions to turn up the heat on Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CINDY SHEEHAN, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: This is George Bush's exit strategy from Iraq. And we want our kids to walk off planes, not come -- not be loaded on to the back of a hearse from a loading dock. And that's why we're doing what we do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: CNN's Elaine Quijano is with the president. She joins us now from Crawford.

Elaine, what's the latest from Texas? Are these two opposing camps still going at it?

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not really. It's a much more subdued kind of atmosphere, Betty.

First of all, we want to correct something. We saw it just said 200 protesters in Crawford. That's actually only about 100 protesters who have turned out here for the holiday weekend protests that have been scheduled here.

Cindy Sheehan continues to try to deliver the message that she wants President Bush to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq immediately. That, of course, is an idea that the Bush administration has said repeatedly it opposes, that it feels it would be a mistake to do.

Now that is the same message though, Cindy Sheehan's message, the same one that she did bring back here in August. Her son Casey was killed in Iraq last year, and she says she wants answers from President Bush about why her son died.

She and other demonstrators say they're going to hold a prayer service today before wrapping up their demonstration here. But her visit comes at a time when President Bush is facing falling public support for his Iraq policy.

Now mindful of that, the past couple of weeks the White House has been engaged in a campaign-style effort to counter the president's critics. This week in fact, Mr. Bush, as he has in past weeks, is set to deliver a deliver on the war on terror. The speech will be taking place in Annapolis. And he's expected to again defend his Iraq policy and, ahead of Iraq's December elections, also emphasize political progress being made.

Another point on the military front. We can expect President Bush to talk about the training of Iraqi forces as U.S. forces continue their efforts in Iraq.

Now the training of Iraq security forces has been a point of contention. Yesterday, Democratic Senator Joe Biden said President Bush needs to set a schedule for that training. In a statement in response, White House press secretary Scott McClellan said the White House welcomes Senator Biden's voice in the debate but no direct response to the idea of a timetable for training those forces.

Now I should talk about Monday and Tuesday, as well. The president, before he talks about Iraq, will be focusing his attention on border security and immigration issues. And he'll be doing that, Betty, making stops in Tucson, Arizona, and El Paso, Texas, before he returns to Washington -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Headed for Arizona tomorrow. Elaine Quijano, thank you.

And for more on Iraq war sentiments, be sure to join Soledad O'Brien and Miles O'Brien for "AMERICAN MORNING" tomorrow. CNN correspondent Kelly Wallace goes to Hallstead, Pennsylvania, an area that has had six of its soldiers die in the conflict. And not surprisingly, support for the war there is waning, even from folks who previously approved of invading Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CATHY ESTABROOK, IRAQ WAR CRITIC: Everything you read is we can't pull out, we can't pull out. How can we would be my question. Then if we can't, I understand that. But how can we get there?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And you can see that report and much more tomorrow on "AMERICAN MORNING." It begins an hour earlier than before, so wake up with Soledad and miles for "AMERICAN MORNING" with a new start time of 6 a.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

Is a bad situation getting even worse? A former Iraqi leader says conditions there are as bad now as they were under Saddam Hussein. The scathing assessment is up next.

Also, bonded by blood with you but they were never meant to know it. Now sperm donor siblings are meeting for the first time. The woman who's making it happen talks to CNN.

MONICA MCNEAL, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And good morning. I'm meteorologist Monica McNeal. Yes, we're looking at a lot of rain for your travel, especially in parts of St. Louis. Let's take a live look outside, show you what's going on in St. Louis. It is very foggy, temperatures are in the upper 30s and just a messy, messy commute for you this morning. We'll take a look at your rest of your forecast and tell you what's going on across the rest of the nation coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: If you're just joining us, these are the top stories this morning.

Water supplies are being restored to the Chinese city of Harbin. Residents had no water for four days after a toxic benzene spill in a nearby river, the main source of water. The Chinese government has promised a full investigation into the cause of that spill.

At least 10 people have been killed and dozens injured in an earthquake in southern Iran. The 6.1 magnitude quake destroyed several villages. Rescue efforts are under way to free people still trapped in the rubble.

And California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will hear appeals for clemency for convicted killer Stanley "Tookie" Williams. He will meet with Williams' lawyers. The former leader of the Crips street gang is set to be executed on December 13.

The trial of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein resumes tomorrow after a five-week break. But, if his attorneys get their way, it won't last long. They're asking for a delay, citing security, and legal and logistical concerns.

CNN's Nic Robertson has this preview.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Lawyer Aqil Al- Kanani remembers his two brothers he says were killed by Saddam Hussein's security forces in 1979. Last month Kanani and his family watched the opening day of Hussein's trial on TV. Now he wants the trial over so he can get answers about why his brothers, Yassin and Taha, were killed.

AQIL AL-KANANI, IRAQI LAWYER (through translator): I really care to hear his answer, no matter if he would go on a trial for my case or another case.

ROBERTSON: Beset by technical glitches last time, the trial faltered in its opening hours. Hussein grandstanded, wasting time. Then his lawyers got a 41-day adjournment to study the charges that accuse Hussein and seven former regime allies of brutally repressing a 1982 assassination attempt.

AL-KANANI (through translator): Speaking to me as an Iraqi and not as a lawyer, I would denounce the delays of the trial, and I would demand the court to execute him immediately. But as a lawyer I see it as a legitimate process.

ROBERTSON: For awhile even the return to court next Monday seemed to be in doubt. Since appearing at the trial, two defense lawyers were killed and another wounded in targeted assassinations. Only U.S. assurances to help investigate and offers of protection appear to have convinced them to come back.

Still in jail awaiting trial are other regime loyalists like Hussein's former deputy prime minister, Tariq Aziz. His lawyer is worrying about when his client will see trial.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When I saw him the last time, he was very sick.

ROBERTSON: Aref (ph) has had death threats. His concern now is that the trial is unjust. Not just because defense lawyers are being killed but because they lack training in cases like crimes against humanity.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They must also send their lawyers also to England, to America, to learn them about this -- this case.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And that was CNN senior international correspondent Nic Robertson reporting.

When you have a bleak assessment of human rights in Iraq. That is according to former prime minister, Ayad Allawi. He says human rights abuses are now as bad as they were under Saddam Hussein, and in danger of getting worse.

In an interview with Britain's "Observer" newspaper, Allawi said, "People are doing the same as in Saddam's time, and worse. These were the precise reasons that we fought Saddam and now we are seeing the same things."

Those comments come two weeks before parliamentary elections. Analysts say Allawi could be trying to attract Sunni votes.

And all of this brings us to our e-mail question this morning: would a conviction of Saddam Hussein improve President Bush's ratings? What do you think? We want responses on both sides of this question. There's a lot of responses out there. So send them to us, Weekends@CNN.com. We'll read some of them a little bit later in the show.

Want to give you a live look now over Detroit this morning. Check that out! Rain in the area as commuters try to head back home on this, the busiest travel day of the holiday season. Meteorologist Monica McNeal has your holiday forecast. That's coming up.

And, he lost his temper and landed in court. Now Russell Crowe has a little fun at his own expense. We're going to explain that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Here's a check of the weather. That looks like fun. Doesn't it? Wouldn't you want to be right there?

A quick-moving storm, though, brought up to four inches of snow to the Sierra Nevada mountains, causing widespread fun among skiers and snowboarders. The snowfall also, though, caused some travel delays in the mountain passes.

Now in the mountains of Colorado, a travel warning. Following a big snowfall there -- up to 20 inches have fallen so far. It is pure heaven for skiers. But holiday travelers have had to endure closed highways and multiple accidents.

I'll give you a live picture now out of Detroit, where you can see, in just a moment -- we're going to pop it up, Monica McNeal. And there it is! Is that rain or is that sleet?

MCNEAL: That is definitely rain right now. It's 39 degrees there.

NGUYEN: Is it expected to turn to sleet and snow any time?

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: I know, I'm already just tired thinking about it and I don't have to travel anywhere. Thank you, Monica.

You want to stay with CNN throughout the day as we bring you weather and travel updates every 30 minutes.

Going to check on some headlines around the globe today. A deadly earthquake shakes Iran. CNN's Shanon Cook is following the aftermath.

Shanon, what can you tell us now? Has the death toll risen? We were hearing five to 10 a little bit earlier.

SHANON COOK, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, it looks like it's hovering around 10 at the moment. Thanks, Betty. We're told rescue efforts are under way to help three people trapped in the rubble. As I said, so far at least 10 people are reported killed after an earthquake struck along the southern Iranian coast. Dozens were injured. And we've learned five villages were heavily damaged in the island of Qeshm. A 6.2 quake was centered off the island. It's a popular weekend destination for Iranian tourists.

To China now. Officials in the city of Harbin have restored the city's water supply after carrying out tests to assure it was safe. Millions of residents have been without water for four days after a toxic spill polluted the Songhua River. Also Beijing issued a public apology to Moscow, as the river flows north into Russia.

And in Vietnam's capital, authorities are gearing up for the possibility of a bird flu pandemic. About 1,000 emergency workers took part in a mock exercise to test their readiness. They took this drill pretty seriously. They isolated contagious households, built make-shift clinics and set up field hospitals to treat victims. Some 68 people have, of course, died in Asia from bird flu -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes. It's a desperate situation over there. A lot of people trying to keep it from becoming a pandemic. Thank you for that.

I do have to ask you, though. This is a totally different topic, actor Russell Crowe. You remember the telephone incident...

COOK: Of course.

NGUYEN: ... where he was seen throwing it at a person working at a hotel? Is he making fun of that now? I mean, is he turning this into something that he can actually laugh about, because it was no laughing matter when it started?

COOK: No, of course, it was serious. The guy got hurt. But Crowe hosted the Australian Film Awards in Melbourne this weekend. It's kind of Australia's equivalent to the Oscars. And he brought a prop with him on the stage. It was a chunky old-style telephone. And he said to nominees in the audience that they were to keep their acceptance speeches short, or, and kind of gesturing to the phone, he said, "Or say hello to my little friend." Very nice.

Crowe, of course, pleaded guilty earlier this month to third degree assault for admittedly throwing a phone at a hotel concierge in New York. The judge conditionally discharged Crowe and urged him to avoid rearrest for a year.

And Betty, you know, he could have faced prison time or lost his right to work in the U.S. I bet if that happened, I bet if he was cut off from Hollywood, I don't think he would have been poking fun.

NGUYEN: No, not at all. But you know, at this point he's turning lemons into lemonade. He's trying to make fun of the situation. Hopefully, he won't get into any more trouble. But then again, it is Russell Crowe.

All right, Shanon.

COOK: He's a pretty unpredictable guy.

NGUYEN: Isn't he, though? But fun to watch. Shanon, thank you.

COOK: Thanks, Betty.

NGUYEN: Behind bars. Two inmates who broke out of jail are captured. But two more remain at large. How did they get away? How were some captured, and where are the other two now? The answers to some of the questions surrounding the Yakima, Washington, jail break, that's coming up.

You're watching CNN SUNDAY MORNING. We're back in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Now in the news, at least 10 people were killed after a 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck the southern tip of Iran today. That quake caused a landslide trapping people underneath rubble and debris. Rescue workers are now working to get people out, and several villages are in ruins so far. Officials say local hospitals are overrun with injured people.

A former U.S. attorney general is in Baghdad to help the defense in the Saddam Hussein trial. Ramsey Clark, now a civil rights attorney and activist, will be a consultant and legal adviser to the deposed leader's defense team. Hussein's trial is set to resume tomorrow. And CNN has learned defense attorneys will request a three- month delay.

With American public support for the Iraq war dropping, President Bush goes on a P.R. offensive this week. In a speech scheduled for Wednesday the president is expected to highlight the Iraqi troops' capability. The president has said before that U.S. troops will only be withdrawn once Iraqi forces can take over security duties.

In Seattle, Washington, two monorail trains collided on its tracks above a city street. One witness says he and his family were showered in glass when the train cars slid off -- the doors on those cars and then they ripped off. Two people were taken to the hospital from minor injuries. Well, it is two down and two to go from Friday's jailbreak in Yakima, Washington. Police tell CNN two inmates were found in the attic of a house about four miles from the jail on Saturday, and police credit an anonymous tip. One of the men still at large had access to weapons and both are considered dangerous. Yakima County Sheriff Ken Erwin (ph) joins now us live from the latest on the manhunt.

Sheriff, first thing I want to talk about is the anonymous tip. Have you learned anymore from this person? Were these escapes aided in any way once they broke out?

KEN RINK, YAKIMA DEPT. OF CORRECTIONS: No, the information we have is that they spent the night in a vehicle -- an abandoned vehicle and then made their way to that relative's house after that.

NGUYEN: I gotcha. OK, so two down, two more to go. Any progress in the search for the remaining escapees?

RINK: We're still knocking on a lot of doors, talking to a lot of people. We ask that the public -- some people out there know where these folks are, and we'd like them to call in.

NGUYEN: Is there a particular area where you think they may be?

RINK: We believe one of them is still in the lower valley area, the (INAUDIBLE), but the other one we're not certain.

NGUYEN: So, you think they split off perhaps?

RINK: Yes.

NGUYEN: All right. And we were hearing word a little bit earlier that they could be armed and dangerous.

RINK: There is that possibility. They were doing a lot of big talk when they were in custody of what they were going to do, where they were going to get money, some drugs, weapons, that sort of thing. So we're being very cautious.

NGUYEN: So far, seven of the nine -- nine total escapees who have left that prison are -- are the seven who have been caught providing information as to where remain two might be?

RINK: No, very little information on that from them.

NGUYEN: All right and let me ask you this, nine escaped, but of course five were caught on the jail grounds. But, still, nine escaped and this had to have been an elaborate plan. How did it go unknown to the prison guards and the prison personnel?

RINK: Well, it was a very quick operation, as it turns out. That part of the jail there is -- wasn't as secure as thought by department of corrections, and they're working to fix that now.

NGUYEN: What are you doing to fix that is it? RINK: Oh, well, they're adding more material to that area.

NGUYEN: And as the search continues, what are you telling people in the areas where you're searching? Should they stay inside? Should they be very cautious? Because as you mentioned, they could be arm and dangerous.

RINK: No, we don't look at these people's background, they aren't one to prey on someone else, necessarily. So we're asking the public to go about their normal business, but please call in if they see anyone suspicious or if they know where this person is, please give us a call.

NGUYEN: Well, apparently that plea has helped out because you did get an anonymous tip that helped in the capture of two yesterday. Are you getting lots of calls?

RINK: There are a few calls that were coming in, but mostly it's us knocking on doors and asking for help.

NGUYEN: Well, best of luck in your search, Sheriff Ken Erwin (ph) in Yakima, Washington. Thank you for that, in the search for two escapees that are still on the run. We'll keep you posted on developments in that story.

It's heading home day for millions of holiday travelers. An estimated 37 million people went someplace else for Thanksgiving. Now they'll be jamming airports and highways to get back home. Today is traditionally one of the busiest travel days of the year. Takes a lot of patience and some extra time with you if you go to Atlanta's Hartsfield Jackson Airport. Officials there are bracing for some 300,000 travelers today. Can you imagine? Atlanta looks all clear, but to your right there in Chicago, it's a little wet outside. Drivers are reminded to "click it or ticket," because whether it's rain or snow, slick highways, whatnot, you need to be safe out there on the roadways.

In your bottom left corner, look at that, Detroit, an estimated one million Michigan residents drove somewhere for Thanksgiving, so the return home could be dicey depending on the weather out there.

Let's get the 411 from meteorologist Monica McNeal in CNN's weather center with the travel forecast. You are a busy lady today.

MONICA MCNEAL, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Girl, if you can only see my sneakers. You'd know that I'm busy running around in here.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: OK, can you just give us some good news already, Monica?

MCNEAL: I'm trying. I'm working hard in here.

NGUYEN: I know you are. And we'll check back with you shortly.

We do have another weather and travel update in less than 30 minutes, right here on CNN.

One Web site and more than 1,000 siblings. Up next, sperm donor children meeting their blood relatives for the first time. I'll speak to the woman who is making it all happen, stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Now back to our top story on children conceived by sperm donors. Earlier this morning we told you how some of them are using the Internet to track down their biological siblings. Wendy and Ryan Kramer, a mother-son team, are the founders of donorsiblingregistry.com, they join us this morning from Denver, Colorado.

Good morning.

WENDY KRAMER, FOUNDER, DONOR SIBLING REGISTRY: Good morning.

RYAN KRAMER, FOUNDER, DONOR SIBLING REGISTRY: Good morning.

NGUYEN: Wendy, I want to start with you. Did you always plan on the day when Ryan would say, mom I want to know about my biological father?

W. KRAMER: No! I didn't. So it's very surprising and also surprising that as he got older he was curious about his half-siblings as well.

NGUYEN: Now Ryan, when did you start to begin to ask questions about your biological father?

R. KRAMER: Well, the first time I really felt curious about it was when I was 2 years old, at which point I came up to my mother and said, basically, "did my dad die or what?" At that point she sort of explained to me in very simplistic terms that a 2-year-old can understand about the sperm and the egg and a nice man that we didn't know helped and every year or every time I would get curious about it and ask about it, she'd go deeper and deeper until I understood, you know, the full meaning of it.

NGUYEN: Right. And then of course, Wendy, this caused you to think, hey, maybe we should find his biological father so that we can answer some of these questions. How difficult of a search has that been?

W. KRAMER: Well, we were -- we're not trying to track down Ryan's biological father. What we figured was that siblings would be more accessible and we thought that if Ryan was curious that perhaps other people might be curious as well about finding their half brothers and sisters and that's why we started the Web site.

NGUYEN: So, even with his questions you still didn't want to track down his biological father to try to answer some of those?

W. KRAMER: Well, we created the Web site, it's a mutual consent Web site so people basically left their information there to be found, so no one is invading anyone's privacy and so Ryan waits on site just as the other kids do, or donor conceived adults, waiting to be found and then that way it's not an invasion of anyone's privacy.

NGUYEN: Ryan, what made you want to help others find their siblings? Because you also searched for your siblings as well?

R. KRAMER: I do, yes. I know that I have somewhere in the area of 10 or possibly a lot more half-siblings out there. And I know that there are literally hundreds of thousands of children born through donor insemination living in the world today. So, essentially when I started feeling that curiosity about my paternal side of the family and any other half-siblings I might have, it was apparent there could be many, many more people out there, as well, with that same curiosity. So, we started the Web site, to date we've had, I believe it's something like more than 6,000 members, we have, and over 1,200 people on our Web site have matched with either their half-siblings or their donors.

NGUYEN: That's got to be remarkable.

R. KRAMER: It is.

NGUYEN: Have you been able to attend any of these or at least meet some of the people who found their siblings from the site?

R. KRAMER: We have, yeah. Actually, one particular case in the Denver area, it was two 18-year-old twins, one boy my age from one mother, and then an 18-year-old boy and his 12-year-old sister, all five children from the same donor from three separate families. So they all were within an hour drive of each other, and had the opportunity to meet each other this year. And we actually had them over to our house for dinner a couple weeks ago.

NGUYEN: Really!

R. KRAMER: And it's really inspiring to see the goodness that our Web site has created, because these people just have -- you know, for knowing each other for such a short amount of time, they really do share that sort of sibling-type bond. And it's really inspiring to see.

NGUYEN: And we saw a piece earlier, Deborah Feyerick spoke with you an some others, children of sperm donors, they all had those genetic similarity where you can see that they're definitely related. They may come from different families now, but you can see that there is that bond in the similarity in the way that they look.

Wendy, let me ask you about the Web site. We're talking about siblings, but are sperm donors themselves actually signing up to find their children?

W. KRAMER: It's been really surprising, we've got about 270- something donors on the site, and there have been quite a few matches lately of donors matching up with their offspring. And I've heard the most wonderful stories. So that was kind of a byproduct. You know, we figured we could connect half-siblings, but now that donors are starting to come to the site, it's really fantastic. These are donors, of course, wanting to be known, and they're just as curious as these children are, or adult donor-conceived people.

NGUYEN: Yes and this is one way to try to make those links. Donorsiblingregistry.com that's your Web site. Wendy and Ryan, we appreciate your time this morning.

R. KRAMER: Sure, thank you for having us.

W. KRAMER: Sure.

NGUYEN: And if you're just joining us, we do want to give you and update on the top stories in the news today.

Rescue efforts are going on now in Iran. People are trapped underneath rubble and debris from this morning's 6.1 magnitude earthquake. It happened 35 miles southwest of the Persian Gulf, port of Bandar Abbas. Ten people so far have died.

Ayad Allawi the man who served as Iraq' first prime minister is comparing the human rights abuses in the new Iraqi government to those under Saddam Hussein. Allawi is heading a political movement vying for power in the new government which will be elected next month.

War protester and mom, Cindy Sheehan, is back at it. She spoke Saturday outside President Bush's Crawford ranch. Sheehan continues to insist troops should be brought home.

A handful of counter protesters staged a rally nearby accusing Sheehan of misrepresenting military families.

Well is your flight in jeopardy? Meteorologist Monica McNeal has your travel forecast and some warnings, that's coming up.

Also, do you think Saddam's conviction, if there is one -- if Saddam is convicted in Iraq, would that help President Bush back here at home? Some of your responses to this morning's e-mail question, that's coming up next.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

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NGUYEN: Now it's time to check in with Howard Kurtz in Washington to see what is ahead on CNN's "Reliable Sources."

Good morning, Howard.

HOWARD KURTZ, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Good morning, Betty. Coming up, are the media lagging behind the public in a growing disillusionment with the war in Iraq? We'll look at whether the Vietnam War offers any lessons in the press. New York Times columnist Paul Krugman joins our discussion.

Ted Koppel bows out at "Night Line" after a quarter century. We'll talk about how the program changed television news and whether the show can remain relevant in today's lightning-quick media age.

Plus our blogger buzz on Bob Woodward and his latest secret source. All ahead 10:00 Eastern, on "RELIABLE SOURCES."

NGUYEN: Sounds good, looking forward to it. Thank you.

KURTZ: Thank you.

NGUYEN: Today a lot of people are going to talk about the weather outside. You know, this is one of the busiest holiday travel days of the year and severe weather just wants to settle at just in time for it -- Monica.

MCNEAL: You are absolutely right.

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NGUYEN: Oh, my goodness, what a mixed bag. Rain, hail, possible tornadoes. Not a good day to travel. So, I guess if you are, which many people are, just stay safe out there. Thank you, Monica.

And you want to stay with CNN for your weather and travel forecast every 30 minutes throughout the day.

Want to get you caught up on the e-mails because all morning long we've been asking for your thoughts on this question, right there: Would a conviction of Saddam Hussein improve President Bush's ratings?

Well, Angie in Columbus, Ohio, says, "Unfortunately, a conviction would only boost Bush's ego -- which is what led us into this mess in the first place. The only way, at this point, to boost his ratings is to come clean to the American people. We're too smart."

And this viewer from Fort Lauderdale says, "The value of the president's rating is overrated, as many people will continue to take for granted what he has done for us. Had Gore been elected, Osama would be running Afghanistan and Saddam would have supplied renegade terrorists with all the fire power they needed to attack the USA at least two more times since 9/11."

And Steve writes, "Bush bit off more than he could chew and the American people are footing the bill. His ratings will only improve when he is no longer in office."

Well, well, well, both sides of the aisle right there. We appreciate your e-mail responses this weekend. Of course we're going to have another question for you next weekend, so definitely stay tuned for that.

"RELIABLE SOURCES" with Howard Kurtz is up next. And you want to stay with CNN for all your news, weather, especially weather and travel today. It's a busy, busy day. That is coming up. Have a good day.

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