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CNN Live Sunday

Allawi Survives Assassination Attempt; Louisiana Governor Releases Katrina Documents; Defining Victory in Iraq; Horse Racing's Future in New York; Tax Dollars Paying for Katrina Recovery

Aired December 04, 2005 - 16:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Gunfire, screaming and a quick getaway. The latest on how an Iraqi candidate had a close call while praying.
President Bush said he has a plan to win the war in Iraq. What do the soldiers and what do the Iraqi citizens have to say about that?

And Louisiana's Governor Blanco releases thousands of documents having to do with the Katrina aftermath. We'll tell you about the political aftershock. Hello and welcome to CNN LIVE SUNDAY. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. All that and more after this check of the headlines.

Epsilon has regained hurricane strength. It's the remainder of a record-breaking hurricane season that isn't ready to fade away just yet. Forecasters say Epsilon is no threat to land and will weaken later today. It's only the fifth time a hurricane has formed in the month of December.

Get ready for a double wallop of winter weather. A fast-moving storm is dumping snow from New England to Pennsylvania today. Tomorrow a second storm is expected to drop more of the white stuff further south, maybe even on the White House.

A bit of drama at the White House today. An intruder scaled a fence and was arrested on the front lawn. President Bush was home, but apparently never in any danger. Secret Service officers arrested the Arkansas man as soon as his feet hit the ground.

The patient is perfect: the words from a French doctor who conducted the world's first partial-face transplant on a woman who was disfigured by a dog mauling. You're looking at the first picture released of her. Her doctor says she's in good shape, both psychologically and medically.

Up first, political instability in Iraq escalates just days before key elections. Iraq's former prime minister survived what he called an assassination attempt today. CNN's Nic Robertson was there and caught the chaos and confusion on tape. Here's his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well Ayad Allawi had gone to this holy shrine in the holy city of Najaf to meet with clerics to try and build political support. (voice-over): He'd barely been inside for about 10 minutes when chanting began. And as I watched, I could see him being chased out of the mosque by an angry crowd throwing shoes, which is a very derogatory thing to do in the Middle East. Ayad Allawi's security team sort of broke down barriers, bundled him into his armored vehicle. And as that happened, his whole convoy entourage of Iraqi army, Iraqi police, and Ayad Allawi's own private security contractors, began to quite literally burn rubber in the road, turn the convoy around and screech out of town.

That's when the gunfire began, firing it appeared, warning shots towards that very angry crowd. As they drove out of the town, leaving gunshots were still being fired back in the direction of that crowd. I talked to Ayad Allawi's -- one of Ayad Allawi's team a little later. They told me that they believe this was an assassination attempt.

I talked to an independent witness who had been inside the shrine praying right next to Ayad Allawi. He told me that this was organized, the chanting began. He said it was anti-Allawi chanting. It rapidly escalated. He believed that this was organized by the Mehdi militia, the militia belonging to firebrand cleric Muqtada al- Sadr.

(on camera): Later on, Allawi said although he wouldn't blame Muqtada al-Sadr on camera, effectively he said the same thing, that this was organized by a Shia religious militia, organized because they knew he was coming to the mosque at that time, to the holy shrine. And that they had planned to do this to try and undermine his efforts to build political support. Other politicians have said that this was almost to be expected. The tensions building up now to elections in just less than two weeks, politicians here say are growing. Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Iraqi authorities say they have foiled a plot to attack the courthouse where Saddam Hussein's trial resumes tomorrow. Security forces say they found positioning and long-range mortars aimed at the building. They say the attack was planned by a Sunni insurgent group calling itself the 1920 Revolution Brigades.

Meantime, former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark says he will ask for better protection for Hussein's defense attorneys at the trial tomorrow. Clark says he chose to join Hussein's defense team to ensure the topple dictator is tried fairly.

Elsewhere in Iraq, a roadside bomb struck a U.S. patrol in Baghdad today. The attack destroyed two humvees. Two American soldiers were killed, several others wounded. Iraqi troops detained 55 people in connection with this bloody attack on Iraqi soldiers. Saturday's attack killed 19 Iraqi troops near a dane. Hours later, Iraqi forces raided some nearby homes. The suspects were found inside. Two gunmen were killed during that operation.

The war in Iraq will be the focus again this week in a speech by President Bush. Remember, the president gave what was billed as a "victory in Iraq speech" last week at the U.S. Naval Academy. In it, Mr. Bush used the word victory 15 times. So how is victory being defined, both in the U.S. and in Iraq? Later this hour, we'll explore that with two people who know a great deal about Iraq and its future.

U.S. officials meantime have yet to confirm reports that one of al Qaeda's top leaders has been killed. Pakistan went on the record yesterday saying al Qaeda's operations chief Abu Hamza Rabia was killed in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday. Here's what President Bush's national security advisor told CNN's Wolf Blitzer earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN HADLEY, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: We've seen the reports out of Pakistan. We are looking at it. We are not in a position at this point to publicly declare that he has been killed. If he has been killed, it's a very good development. He was the chief operational planner for al Qaeda after the capture of Abu Farraj al- Libbi.

He was involved in planning assassination attempts against Musharraf. We believe he was involved in planning attacks against the United States. If he is indeed dead, it's a very good thing for Pakistan and for the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Witnesses say Rabia died in a missile attack, a claim Pakistan denies. Yet a former intelligence analyst says shrapnel found at the scene appears to be from a U.S. weapon.

One-hundred thousand pages of e-mail, phone logs and other documents, all released by Louisiana's governor. And all involving Hurricane Katrina. What do they reveal? That there was a whole lot of miscommunication and confusion between the governor's office and the White House before, during, and after the storm hit.

CNN's Gary Nurenberg has been looking over the documents and joins us now from Washington. And Gary, what are we learning?

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Fredricka, as you know, both the House and the Senate have committees looking into the botched response to the hurricane. And these documents were submitted to them. They're accompanied on Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco's Web site by a narrative that points to the confusion and frustration that plagued officials, as they tried to deal with the unexpected devastation.

The narrative shows repeated phone calls and letters from Blanco to President Bush asking for help. On Monday after the storm hit, Blanco called the president and said, quote, "we need your help, we need everything you've got."

But one letter to the president from the governor got lost. It asked for a variety of aid, including troops, generators, medical supplies and personnel, mortuary help and more. Blanco expressed frustration that the help wasn't coming and five days later, a White House staffer wrote the president never got the letter, quote, "we found it on the governor's Web site," the White House aide set. "But we need an original for our staff secretary to formally process the request she's making.

Blanco's narrative says she's always believed President Bush desired to be as helpful as he could, but she also writes, "I believe my biggest mistake was believing FEMA officials who told me that the necessary federal resources would be available in a timely fashion." There's also some politics in the newly-released memos. Worried about Republican criticism of the Democratic Governor Blanco, one Blanco aide wrote, quote, "Rove is on the prowl," end quote, a reference to the president's political advisor. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Gary Nurenberg in Washington, thanks so much.

Well, as officials continue to reel from Katrina's aftermath, its victims are still in dire need. So FEMA has gone to the airwaves. But is the information the agency is sending, helping the victims or just the bureaucrats? Plus, we'll have more news out of Iraq. Who decides when the war has been won?

And a piece of history unlike any other, and it's on sale. How much to own a part of Ludwig van Beethoven?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN MURTHA (D), PENNSYLVANIA: I think this administration's coming around. I see the signals that they're starting to realize that the military is not everything it can do. The military's accomplished its mission. And it has to be turned over to the Iraqis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Democratic Congressman John Murtha of Pennsylvania speaking this morning on the war in Iraq.

Well on Wednesday, President Bush will pick up where he left off at the Naval Academy last week, talking about his plan for victory in Iraq. Critics say while long on words, the president was short on specifics. Here's CNN's White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: American will not run in the face of car bombers and assassins, so long as I am your commander in chief.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Battling growing criticism of the Iraq war and calls for U.S. troops to come home, Mr. Bush also signaled an eventual withdrawal. BUSH: We will increasingly move out of Iraqi cities, reduce the number of bases from which we operate, and conduct fewer patrols and convoys.

MALVEAUX: But keeping with his strategy, he refused to say when.

BUSH: These decisions about troop levels will be driven by the conditions on the ground in Iraq and the good judgment of our commanders, not by artificial timetables set by politicians in Washington.

MALVEAUX: The president's speech before the U.S. Naval Academy was billed by the White House as the first a series of four, aimed at better explaining the U.S. in addition Iraq. But some dismissed it as little more than administration spin.

SEN. JACK REED (D), RHODE ISLAND: I was disappointed. The president relied too much upon rhetoric, upon a laundry list of tasks accomplished, but not a coherent view of where we are realistically, and where we must go to succeed.

DAVID GERGEN, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: Well, his speech was like the Sherlock Holmes dog that didn't bark. It didn't say a lot of new things. He did not lay out an aggressive or bold new plan for Iraq.

MALVEAUX: But the president did give new details about the state of Iraqi security forces, and acknowledged shortcomings in their initial training.

BUSH: The civil defense forces did not have sufficient firepower or training. They proved to be no match for an enemy armed with machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars, so the approach was adjusted.

MALVEAUX: Ahead of the president's speech, the White House released a 38-page declassified document on its Web site, entitled "National Strategy for Victory in Iraq," to show Americans the administration has a plan. The administration's hope is that that plan will generate some successes before the U.S. congressional midterm elections.

GERGEN: The window is closing on him already and it's going to come slamming shut pretty hard on the eve of the elections in 2006.

MALVEAUX (on camera): Some moderate Republicans have already been calling for a clearer exit strategy from Mr. Bush, while others have noted his 36 percent approval rating, have been distancing themselves from the president all together. Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: So ultimately, how will victory be defined? Depends on who you ask. Joining us from Dubai, Jane Arraf, CNN's former Baghdad bureau chief and war correspondent. Good to see you, Jane.

And in New York, Peter Khalil, who spent nine months in Iraq as the coalition provisional authority's national security policy director. Good to see you, as well.

PETER KHALIL, THE EURASIA GROUP: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jane, let me begin with you. You've spent an awful lot of time in Iraq with the citizens there, as well as forces. How would the citizens of Iraq want to define victory?

JANE ARRAF, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Well, I think one of the things is, they would define victory as a stable Iraq without U.S. troops. And that's the key, isn't it?

Victory for Iraqis is a goal that seems to be getting pushed further and further back. And they're very patient. They were patient under Saddam, they endured a lot. They've endured a lot so far. But that timeframe, and they are still optimistic, a lot of them. But that timeframe for when they think victory, a peaceful stable Iraq where people have jobs will be there, is getting further and further away.

WHITFIELD: And when you hear words from former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi say things like: the state of affairs now is worse currently than it was when Saddam Hussein is in power. Does he have a lot of support in that notion, when you talk about the Iraqi citizens or is he speaking out of turn?

ARRAF: You know, a lot of Iraqis say that all the time. And when I first started hearing that, I would say hold on, do you really mean that? And then you scratch the surface and they don't really mean that things were better.

But a lot of them mean that things were more predictable. That they knew how to stay out of danger. Now they don't. The terror is so random and could strike at any time, in so many places, that there's a level of fear there that perhaps it was almost the same as it was under Saddam.

But a lot of Iraqis still believe that it is going to get better, that it's going to be very painful. There are going to be more deaths. There's going to be more attacks. But they eventually believe for the most part, I've found, that in five years or 10 years, it will be a better place.

WHITFIELD: And now Peter, you know the point of view of the coalition provisional authority. How might they and Iraqi forces define victory? Is it completely different from what we heard Jane saying, the Iraqi citizens' point of view would be?

KHALIL: Well from the U.S. and coalition perspectives, I think it's changed quite dramatically from two years ago. Back then, victory really also meant Iraq being a beacon of democracy for the rest of the Middle East. I think that's been completely downgraded. Right now we're looking at victory really being able to hand over security responsibility to the Iraqi security forces as they stand up.

WHITFIELD: And do you have much confidence that that could happen in the short term?

KHALIL: Well, no. I think what will happen is a shift from U.S. forces conducting combat operations to providing logistics and combat support services to the greater number of Iraqi forces. The president himself made the admission that only one Iraqi battalion could operate completely independently.

The majority of them need at least U.S. and coalition logistic support. So, what they hope to do is hand over frontline responsibility for combat operations against the insurgency and then back them up with logistics and supply.

WHITFIELD: So Peter, are you concerned or do you fear in any way that with all of these conflicting definitions of what victory is, in the end, there just might be a bigger problem at hand, because not everyone's going to be happy with the end result.

KHALIL: Well you know, one of the problems, Fredricka, with that formulation of we will -- once the Iraqis stand up, we will stand down, is the fact that for the Iraqis to stand up, they really require the crutch of U.S. and coalition support, in many ways.

As I was saying, the Iraqi force themselves can't really operate on their own, no matter how well they fight the insurgents, they need a lot of equipment and a lot of supplies. So that's going to be consistent for the next couple of years. Now I'm worried that domestic pressures here would lead to pressure to withdraw U.S. troops before they can really hand over security responsibility to Iraqi forces in a responsible way.

WHITFIELD: And Jane, depending on what statistics you go by, it seems as though the Iraqi civilian death toll is esclataing by leaps and bounds. The civilian death toll, as well as the U.S. troop death roll, all rising. And so, with that, is there a point of view that the insurgency is rising along with it, and that in the end, it's the insurgency that would be most victorious?

ARRAF: It's so hard to comment on Iraq these days, because anything anyone says about it is seen as supporting or defying what the U.S. administration believes. But I think it's indisputable, Fredricka, that the insurgency is actually doing pretty well.

Now it wasn't so long ago we had U.S. officials telling us that they had turned the corner, the insurgency was about to be defeated. That has not been the case. That does not mean that they're not making progress. They are making progress in many ways.

WHITFIELD: Who do the Iraqis blame.

ARRAF: I've been in places in Iraq...

WHITFIELD: ... for that? ARRAF: The Iraqis blame pretty well everybody. First of all, they blame the Americans because it's the Americans who started this. But they also blame, and I started seeing this after the last elections, they blame their own leaders. They don't see anybody who's really able to do anything to stop it. And that's going to be why the elections are going to be particularly interesting, because people will vote for security.

WHITFIELD: And so, Peter, is there a feeling that Iraq can take care of itself, or is the feeling among Iraqis that the U.S. is interfering?

KHALIL: No, I think the Iraqi forces, as Jane was saying, there's been great progress. They've taken up Haifa Street, 87 square miles of Baghdad is under Iraqi army security. Najaf and Kabul in the south have been taken over by security forces. That's going to continue to happen into next year.

And I think -- look, there's something like 80 percent of Iraqis or so, according to Iraqi polling, want the U.S. and coalition forces out. But they certainly don't support a lot of the insurgent and terrorist activity, particularly the attacks on Iraqi civilians. So it's a very complicated picture.

But they do want to take over responsibility, they do want to take over control for their own destiny. And I think the U.S. wants to hand over that control. The problem is, handing over too quickly would allow some forces within their different militia and so forth to start to raise that secretarian strife to a civil war level, between the different factions and ethnic groups.

WHITFIELD: Peter Khalil in New York and our Jane Arraf in Dubai. Thanks so much to both of you.

KHALIL: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: And when we come back, how U.S. forces are struggling to define victory.

Meantime, a classic crooner and a movie legend and a rocker. Those are just some of the famous recipients of this year's Kennedy Center Honors. More on the honorees in tonight's big event, right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: In Los Angeles, a rally to save the life of Stanley "Tookie" Williams, the co-founder of the Crips gang is scheduled to be executed on December 13th. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will consider a clemency request this week. Williams was convicted of four murders, a quarter of a century ago. Since then, he's renounced gangs, written children's books, and preaches against violence.

Checking other news across America now, honoring a lifetime of achievement at the White House this afternoon. Robert Redford, Tina Turner and Tony Bennett are among a handful of celebrities at a special reception. Each headliner is among the newest class of Kennedy Center honorees. They'll be honored again tonight for their contributions to the arts and culture.

Freewheeling drama on the streets of Los Angeles. Two suspected carjackers led police on a chase across town. Police used a spike strip to damage the car's tires, eventually forcing it to stop. Both suspects surrendered to police.

Relief and sadness for a New Hampshire mother today. Authorities have confirmed that two bodies found in northern Ohio are those of her children. Police say Manuel Gehring, their father, admitted killing Sarah Gehring and Philip Gehringin 2003. But until now, their mother was never able to lay them to rest.

Old man winter's cold calling card, snow falling in the Midwest and Northeast today. Cities like Chicago and New York are seeing their first significant snowfalls of the season. Hundreds of minor accidents are being reported, as well. In New Jersey, slick roads are blamed for at least three deaths. And more snow is on the way. Let's check in with Monica McNeal, and winter is certainly here now.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks a lot, Monica. We'll all stay bundled up, unless you're in south Florida.

Well, victory in Iraq. Earlier we explored how victory is being measured there and in this country. Well how do U.S. troops fighting battles every day in Iraq see it? We'll hear from a "TIME Magazine" reporter who has spent a lot of time on the front lines with them.

And how would you like to have a piece of history from one of the world's greatest composers? The hefty price tag for Beethoven, coming up.

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm CNN meteorogolist Bonnie Schneider with a look at your cold and flu report for Sunday. As we check out the maps, we can show you where we've had some sporadic outbreaks of the flu so far this season. You'll find that in Texas, in Florida, up to the north in Pennsylvania, New York state, as well. And through Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Back to the West, sporadic activity also reported into California and down to the south, in Texas and Florida. And also the northern tier of the country getting some sporadic outbreaks. But a good portion of the country, including Tennessee, Missouri, Illinois, and down to the Carolinas, are reporting no activity so far, this flu season. I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their weekend and stays healthy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories.

An Arkansas man who scaled a fence outside the White House will be charged with unlawful entry. The Secret Service said 29-year-old Shawn Cox remains in custody after scaling the fence and jumping onto the north lawn of the White House shortly after noon today.

Explosives didn't work, just barely. Now crews will use a crane and wrecking ball to tear down what has been the South Dakota's tallest building. The planned to implode the Zip Mills Tower in Sioux Falls failed yesterday leaving the 200-foot structure leaning a lot.

Angry Iraqis threw shoes at former Interim Prime Minister Ayah Allawi today and chased him from the Allawi Mosque in the holy city of Najaf. Allawi is running for a seat in Iraq's parliament in the December 15th scheduled elections.

The White House has big hopes for those elections. The thinking? Stabilize the political situation there and you're one step closer to victory. Well how do the troops on the ground see it? And what's their definition of victory? I just spoke with "TIME" Magazine's Baghdad bureau chief Michael Ware who has spent months embedded with the U.S. troops and was with them as recently as two weeks ago.

When we hear the president talk about victory and you reflect back on your conversations and observations with these troops, do they feel victorious?

MICHAEL WARE, BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF, "TIME" MAGAZINE: Well, for the soldiers here in the field, victory remains a very elusive and very abstract concept. It's not something that is real to them. It's not something that they're experiencing day to day. On the whole, these are professional soldiers. They are trained to fight and kill to defend U.S. interests. But at the end of the day, what it boils down to, all these guys care about as the bullets are flying, what they're fighting for is the guy next to them. Now, what I can tell you is that while these kids don't take time out to stop and think about the grander purpose of the war to any great deal, they can't afford to, I do see a marked difference -- I'm watching my back for their second, sometimes third trip to Iraq. They have changed.

WHITFIELD: In what way?

WARE: Their enemy has changed. In 2003, they were fighting a rebel that was nothing. We could easily walk here without this kind of bombers. They come now to a real enemy. This is an enemy. (INAUDIBLE) They've seen villages they've been trying to help back in 2003 now blowing them up that they're not making a great deal of head way. Anything they're achieving is only on the surface. The soldiers know that when you scratch the surface here, there's nothing that you can hold in your hands.

WHITFIELD: So while victory is elusive to them as you put it, it seems as though the enemy is elusive too because of the evolution of the enemy there and the type of war that these soldiers are fighting.

WARE: For a start, simple things. Insurgent's primary weapon is the most common weapon that's inflicting almost half of the deaths of U.S. soldiers here is the IED, improvised explosive device. This is a roadside bomb hidden and camouflaged which they detonate with a cell phone or a garage door opener or some other device. So they don't have to be there, yet they can hurt a lot of people. The other thing is, I have been in an enormous amount of combat here in Iraq with U.S. troops. I've been here almost three years now. I've seen a lot of fighting with U.S. soldiers. I can tell you, I know a lot of boys after a year of fighting in Iraq, some of them going home after two years of fighting in Iraq, they've been in combat, they've been blown up, they have been shot at. They've never once laid eyes on an enemy.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

WARE: The men shooting at them from the buildings but they never see the man. That's how elusive this enemy is.

WHITFIELD: It's a frustrating fight. Sorry, it's a very frustrating fight then it sounds like you're describing for these troops. So in a lot of ways, they don't really know how to measure victory because they're not really sure what victory is or what it would be?

WARE: That's right. And it comes down to the street level. How the troops are received on the street level. Every day, you get people chasing you. But Ramadi is one of the worst of the worst places right now. What's true in Ramadi isn't necessarily true in the rest of the country. The principle does remain. In Ramadi, what U.S. commanders will tell you is that the same people, see, during the day when you bump into them on a patrol and they offer you a glass of tea and some bread, they're the same people that night who are blowing you up and killing your soldiers.

WHITFIELD: So how much does it sound that victory may depend on whether Iraq can or whether ever be able to protect itself? Do you see that potentially happening anywhere between the next six months to a year?

WARE: You have to be joking. I mean, it's pretty widely conceded in private among senior U.S. commanders that the Iraqis are never ever going to be able to defend themselves. That's not really an issue. I mean, put it this way. I was in Ramadi two weeks ago with U.S. soldiers. Five American bases were hit by Al Qaeda all at once. It was a mini tet-offensive. They hit in multiple waves. The American troops repelled them and cut them down. Iraqi troops could not have withstood that kind of thing. They're blowing up American Abrams tanks. What do you think they're going to do to Iraqi vehicles? Senior high-ranking U.S. military intelligence officer said to me these guys are never going to be able to crush the insurgency.

WHITFIELD: So it sounds like --

WARE: People like Allawi the former prime minister and an American ally says you need to find other solutions. You're not going to win this on the battlefield.

WHITFIELD: Based on the picture that you are painting, the only group or individuals that can potentially in any way be victorious would be the insurgency?

WARE: Well, the insurgency has certainly been winning the public information campaign, the propaganda campaign. I mean, that's where insurgencies are fought and lost. Don't forget, there's two wars here. There's an insurgency, local Iraqis trying to free themselves of a fallen occupation. There is also a terrorist war by Al Qaeda. Both of these fights are not won and lost or decided on the battlefield. They're won and lost on the television. This is what the insurgents told me two and a half years ago that it's about perception. They say we read Ho Chi Minh, we saw what happened in the Vietnam War. The Vietnamese could never defend your military but they could suck the life out of it. That's what they're trying to do here.

WHITFIELD: Michael Ware, of "Time" Magazine, Baghdad Bureau Chief. Thank so much for being with us. Continue to be safe there.

WARE: Thank you, my pleasure.

WHITFIELD: Grim depressing picture there.

All right. Now some other stories making news around the world. One of the French doctors who conducted the world's first partial face transplant says the patient is doing well. "The Daily Telegraph" published the first photograph of the 38-year-old woman; she received the transplant from a brain dead woman a week ago. The patients face was partially disfigured in May when a dog mauled her.

A new law takes effect in Britain tomorrow it allows civil partnership, the law gives gay and lesbian couples the same legal rights as heterosexual couples.

And an unfinished manuscript written by Beethoven sold at an auction in London for more than $1.7 million; it went to an anonymous buyer, of course. The 80 page manuscript was written in 1826, a year before the German composer's death. It was discovered in a filing cabinet of all places at a Philadelphia religious school back in July.

The Belmont stakes in New York is one of three horse races that make up the Triple Crown. But the association that runs it is now under a shadow. Next, we'll go over the problems plaguing the New York State Racing Association and see what's being done.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Is horse racing in New York closing in on its final lap? The nonprofit agency that controls it is in trouble facing charges of corruption and mismanagement. Could this spell bankruptcy? J.J Ramburg reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JJ RAMBURG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): A typical day of betting at the Aqueduct Racetrack in New York.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And they're off.

RAMBURG: There are winners. And there are losers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That sucks. RAMBURG: But the crowds are small. A sign of the financial difficulties of the New York Racing Association. Known as NIRA. After 50 years of managing horse racing in New York State, including the famed Belmont Stakes and the Saratoga summer races, NIRA says it's on verge of bankruptcy.

CHARLIE HEYWARD, PRESIDENT, NYRA: NIRA has no ability to retain earnings.

RAMBURG: NIRA's president blames the rise of off-track betting and the dwindling numbers of racing fans who come out to the track. He says the system can't pay off as long as it's running under the same laws as when it was founded in 1955.

HEYWARD: An important point is that at that time, there was no off-track betting. If you wanted to come -- if you wanted to bet legally, the only thing you could bet on were horses and you had to come to track to do that.

RAMBURG: But NIRA has faced its share of scandal and corruption and critics say the former leadership grossly mismanaged the business. Horses have been running at this race track, at the Aqueduct since 1984 but with the New York Racing Association possibly losing control of this track and New York's other two big race tracks at the end of 2007, the future of all these properties is up in the air.

NIRA's contract with the state is almost up and the franchise is expected to be put up for bid. Some say four profit companies could also be an obstacle fearing they would be more concerned with the bottom line than the sport itself.

HEYWARD: Not today. Not today.

RAMBURG: Gary Contessa has been training racehorses for 24 years.

GARY CONTESSA, HORSE TRAINER: The people who are here now really love racing and want to see it keep going. So do we. If they stop racing and just make this a casino or whatever, it's going to be a real negative for all of us.

RAMBURG: Most agree New York horse race is not going to disappear for good, no matter what happens with NIRA's contract. But nobody knows what the winner's circle might look like two years down the road.

J.J Ramburg, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Since hurricane Katrina, FEMA has been trying to get its message to the public out. How to do that. FEMA's answer is FEMA TV. But instead of getting information out, has the network become a propaganda machine?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: Not rebuild the crescent city? New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin shrugged off that idea and defends the use of federal funds in an interview with ABC this week, Nagin said New Orleans is kind of the soul of the U.S. Nagin said if it's OK to use U.S. money to rebuild Iraq, then spending it to rebuild an American city is justified.

And just in case you don't believe what you've already seen on TV or read about the aftermath of Katrina, there's the recovery channel. As CNN's Tom Foreman explains, your tax dollars are paying for it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Far from the cleanup, the debris and the angry public meetings.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I need some answers.

FOREMAN: Seventy miles from Washington in the Maryland countryside, it's Showtime for FEMA.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In times of crisis, the best help is often just a source of reliable information.

FOREMAN: This is the recovery channel. Produced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and airing around the clock via satellite and the Internet.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It could be the best day and the worst day. The day you finally get to go back to your storm-damaged home.

FOREMAN: FEMA conceived the channel years ago to spread important information after disasters. Following Katrina, it was on in shelters, a plain display about rebuilding, financial aid, help and more. But now, with FEMA accusing the mainstream media of failing to provide enough of that info, the recovery channel has undergone a makeover.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stay with us. Together, we can build a brighter future.

FOREMAN: And at the Annenberg School of Communication, professor Joe Turow says it's turned into propaganda.

JOE TUROW, ANNENBERG SCHOOL COMMUNICATION: Most of the information was really not the specific kind of factual information one might think, but rather feature and fluff pieces that seem designed to aggrandize FEMA and actually the Bush administration too.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just want to thank FEMA for all that he be done for us.

FOREMAN: Certainly the channel conveys no public frustration with FEMA. When the channel was airing this --

JAMILAH FRASER, RECOVERY CHANNEL ANCHOR: The massive effort to clean up Louisiana is still topping coverage. Our commander in chief steps in with additional assistance.

FOREMAN: CNN was airing this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's wrong with you Uncle Sam, you drunk, huh? What you doing with our tax money. You need to go to rehab brother.

FOREMAN: Consider this focus on education report.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But one New Orleans school refused to let the doors of education close on them. They just rolled in the wheels of knowledge.

FOREMAN: This segment this week was about FEMA bringing trailers to a school where a tree destroyed several classrooms.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And all of us without FEMA would not be able to be standing here today.

FOREMAN: But this school is not in New Orleans, it's two hours north. And there is no information about more than 100 devastated schools actually in the city. Where, by the way, almost 8,000 school employees have just been told they've officially lost their jobs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good information for good decisions.

FOREMAN: Another concern, the FEMA logo appears often but much of the language on the channel suggests it is independent of the very government agency that is running it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today, our lead story is FEMA's top priority, housing. A two-week extension for those evacuees in hotels. That is what FEMA is saying today.

FOREMAN: Critics on Capitol Hill have repeatedly suggested the administration is misusing public funds for domestic propaganda. Senator Frank Lautenberg is one of them and he watched the channel at our request.

SENATOR FRANK LAUTENBERG: The way this is being done, it's fakery, and it should be identified as a government product.

FOREMAN: When we contacted FEMA, a spokesperson defended the channel, but after reviewing the questions CNN raised sent this statement, "The agency it says is taking immediate measures to ensure that all programming is unmistakably labeled as an official FEMA resource, and it's eliminating any editorial content." Even as FEMA continues trying to help millions recover on and off TV.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And just in case you doubted the calendar, take a look at this. Snow in New York City. Monica McNeal is in the Weather Center. I have a feeling Monica you're going to tell us a whole lot more is to come.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Piece of cake. Thanks so much, Monica.

And Monica, would you not agree these are not the cutest and the cuddliest? Take a look at these pandas. But guess what all this cuteness comes with a big fat price. In the next hour, I'll tell you about the very pricey day-to-day job of housing a panda. Stay with CNN the top stories and more straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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