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CNN Saturday Morning News
Taliban Reports Spy Plane Shot Down
Aired September 22, 2001 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The search, the removal, the grim work continues 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This as President Bush gets ready to plot strategy, and the Pentagon gets ready for a second deployment order. America's war machinery now kicking into high gear.
And good morning from New York City. It is Saturday, September 22. Good to have you along with us on this Saturday morning. The fog is quite thick this morning in Manhattan, our view behind us looking downtown toward the former World Trade Center facility a bit shrouded at this time. We expect it to clear and lift a bit later today.
In the meantime, though, to John King in Washington, along with us as well. John, good morning to you.
JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Bill. Foggy here in Washington as well.
The president away at the Camp David presidential retreat, but the military planning intensifying as the president approves deployments overseas. He's also debating more and more, Bill, what the government needs to do to try to help the struggling U.S. economy.
HEMMER: All right, John, thanks. We'll be checking in shortly.
Also Donna Kelley is with us this morning in Atlanta. We will check in with Donna momentarily here.
First, though, the latest developments now in America's new war. Taliban officials say a plane has been shot down in Afghanistan. There are conflicting reports, though, about what kind of aircraft it is and from which country it comes. The Pentagon refusing to talk about the reported shoot-down as of this morning.
President Bush at Camp David as well this weekend. Aides say he plans to convene video conferences as he continues to plot strategy in the war on terrorism.
And the Pentagon has a second deployment order now in the works. It will add more support aircraft to war planes already being moved to forward bases in the Persian Gulf and other parts in central Asia. The second deployment order has not yet been signed, and the Pentagon not disclosing how many planes are involved or where they are going.
The world's biggest stars doing their part to help victims of last week's attacks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN: This is a prayer for our fallen brothers and sisters.
(singing): There's a blood-red circle on the cold, dark ground, and the rain is falling down...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Bruce Springsteen kicked things off last night. Top entertainers, including Tom Hanks and many, many more taking part in an unprecedented telethon. The show appeared on more than 30 TV networks and some 8,000 radio stations across the U.S., Neil Young, Willie Nelson, and so many more, 156 countries around the world heard it. Organizers say it'll be a couple of days before they know how much money was raised there.
And a bit later this morning, we'll talk with someone who watched this quite closely last night from "TV Guide" to get her reflections on the cause last night and the money that was raised.
In the meantime, though, more from Manhattan shortly, but to Washington and John King again -- John.
KING: Bill, on the surface a very quiet morning here in Washington, a Saturday morning. But behind the scenes, intense deliberations on a number of fronts. Secretary of State Colin Powell trying to bring Saudi Arabia around, some problems there in building the international coalition. President Bush, as you noted, up at Camp David presidential retreat, national security meetings on his agenda.
And increasingly, we are told, the team the president calls, quote, "the domestic consequences team" being urged to hurry up. A very bad week on Wall Street. The president and the Congress in the week ahead to debate options, what can the federal government do to try to help the U.S. economy in the wake of these terrorist strikes?
Obviously, though, the deliberations most are watching most closely over at the Pentagon. The nation's military planners trying to decide where to put troops and equipment that may be needed to fight this war.
Our Jean Meserve is there at the Pentagon. She joins us this morning with the latest -- Jeanne.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, first, a bit of news this morning. Taliban officials say that they have shot down an unmanned spy plane northwest of Kabul. The Taliban ambassador to Pakistan confirms this, says, however, it's not clear what country that drone was from, says it was shot down with antiaircraft guns seized from the Soviets during their Afghan war.
Muddying the situation are reports from the Reuters news agency that the Taliban shot down a helicopter belonging to the Northern Alliance, the Northern Alliance being the main opposition group in Afghanistan.
Little to illuminate this situation from the Pentagon. There was a statement from Lieutenant Colonel Mike Miether -- Milord (ph), rather. He says, "As secretary of defense said, we will not discuss any operational issues. We will not respond to each and every statement of the Taliban."
Meanwhile, more indications that the U.S. is continuing to prepare and position for any possible military action. Overnight, B- 52 bombers took off from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. Officials at the base would not say where those B-52s are headed. Senator Mary Landrieu says that 373 Air Force reservists have been called to that base.
The Pentagon does have a second deployment order in the works at this point. It is unclear what aircraft might be involved, where they would come from, or where they might be heading. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has yet to sign that deployment order. And, of course, President Bush today meeting with his national security advisers via teleconference to further discuss next steps.
John, back to you.
KING: Jeanne, as you noted, the Pentagon not wanting to say much about reports this pilotless plane shot down, not wanting to say much about the B-52 deployments. This is something we as reporters and our viewers are going to have to get used to, isn't it? This is a Pentagon team that puts a premium on secrecy.
MESERVE: Absolutely. And with good reason, of course. They don't want to show their hand to whoever this enemy might be, to let them know exactly where they are positioning their forces, and exactly what those forces are. So, yes, they will be very tight-lipped about what they're doing -- John.
KING: Jeanne Meserve at the Pentagon, thank you very much this morning.
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