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Sharon's Health Impacts Fragile Peace Process; Excerpts of President Bush's Speech Focus on Iraq; Lawmakers Hammering Out Issues Before Year's End; Vice President Cheney's Makes Secret Trip to Iraq; New York City Transit could Strike on Tuesday; Nerve Transplant Gives Young Man Hope

Aired December 18, 2005 - 18:00   ET

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

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Making news this hour. U.S. credibility will suffer if there's an immediate pullout from Iraq. That's expected to be the thrust of President Bush's address to the nation tonight. CNN will carry it live at 9:00 Eastern.
And Germany's foreign minister says a German hostage has been set free in Iraq. Officials are not giving out any details about her release. They're only saying she's safe in a German embassy in Baghdad.

And in pro-football, the Indianapolis Colts hoped they would be undefeated this season. Well, they lost, 26-17 to San Diego. The last team to go undefeated was the 1972 Miami Dolphins.

Those are the headlines and this is our top story. Israel's prime minister will spend the night in the hospital. That is the latest news regarding Ariel Sharon, who suffered a mild stroke. Doctors say the 77-year-old leader is awake and talking. CNN's Guy Raz is in Jerusalem right now.

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, just about six hours ago, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was admitted to this hospital behind me, Hadassah Ein Karem. He was on his way to Tel Aviv when he began to complain about some pain.

Paramedics inside of his convoy, who always travel with him, brought him to this hospital immediately, where doctors say he suffered a mild stroke. Now at the beginning, there were reports that Mr. Sharon lost consciousness. But, in fact, it turned out that he had never lost consciousness. Temporarily, though, he did lose his motor function skills.

Now we do understand that as we speak, the prime minister is in stable condition. He has been speaking throughout the evening. He has been moving. Most of his close advisers were here at the hospital this evening.

Most of them have now left, which gives you an indication of the confidence they have in the fact that the prime minister, they believe, will make a very speedy recovery. Now, he has been given anti-coagulation medicine, blood thinning medicine essentially, which is not uncommon for patients who suffer from stroke. And his advisers say he's already been briefed by his military staff, his military and strategic advisers on the situation in Gaza, on the security situation. Something that he receives almost every day. Really, the advisers trying to underline that all is normal, all is stable and that, ultimately, they do believe that Ariel Sharon will be released from this hospital in the next 24, perhaps 48 hours. Carol?

LIN: All right, thanks very much for the latest, Guy. Right outside of the hospital where Ariel Sharon is hospitalized tonight.

Now any development in the Middle East has some impact on the fragile peace process. And news of Sharon's health care, of course, is making major waves in the region and around the world. CNN's Wolf Blitzer spent years covering the Middle East. He's manning "THE SITUATION ROOM" tonight. Good evening, Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Carol.

LIN: What if he is incapacitated? What happens to the peace process with the Palestinians?

BLITZER: A lot will depend on who emerges as Israel's next prime minister in their March 28th elections. If it's Benjamin Netanyahu, who potentially could be the new leader of the Likud Party, it would be one thing.

If it's a representative, a leader of the Labor Party, a more dubbish party in Israel, it could be a very different kind of thing. What U.S. officials have liked, Carol, about Ariel Sharon, especially over the past year or two, is his willingness to move to the center of the Israeli political spectrum, to move away as some of his more hawkish positions.

He was, for many years, one of the major architects of Israel's settlement plan in the West Bank and in Gaza. And in recent months, we saw the Israelis pull out of Gaza and abolish those settlements in Gaza. What U.S. officials would like to see is the start of something along those lines happening in the West Bank.

So they're sort of hoping that Ariel Sharon will emerge from this mild stroke in good shape to continue the peace process with the Palestinians.

LIN: So, Wolf, what does this mean for U.S. policy then in the region?

BLITZER: In the region, the United States has enormous interest in the region and that clearly we're hoping -- Condoleezza Rice has spent quite a bit of time since becoming coming secretary of state to see this Gaza withdrawal followed up by an Israeli withdrawal from at least parts of the West Bank.

And they were counting on Sharon to do that and interestingly, he did emerge with a relatively good relationship, at least over the past year or so with the new Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Very interesting, Carol, that in the aftermath of the reports, the initial reports today, that Sharon had suffered a stroke, was in the hospital, he got a word from the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, through Saeb Erekat, one of his lieutenants.

That they were hoping for a speedy and quick recovery, even though there were many hardline extreme Palestinians in Gaza who were having their celebratory fire shots in the air. They were passing along cakes and pastries.

They were clearly overjoyed that Sharon was in the hospital and could be very, very sick. So, it has a lot, the U.S. has a great deal invested in that part of the world and they'd like to see that peace process continue.

LIN: Wolf, I was going to ask you, what do you make of those pictures of Palestinians in Gaza passing out candy and celebrating the news that he might be very ill? But at the same time, there were also some Israelis who were celebrating and even as I've read, praying for his death. What does this say about the man?

BLITZER: It shows how extreme the moot -- both the Palestinian elements and the Palestinian community can be and even those elements in the Israeli community.

Sharon was hated by some Israeli Jews in recent months because of the his willingness to uproot those Jewish settlers from Gaza, to remove those Israeli citizens, to get the Israeli army in there and demolish those homes, and to get them into Israel proper.

And they hated that and they hate Ariel Sharon right now. They think he's a traitor. On the other side a lot of Palestinians hate Ariel Sharon because of his policies over the years. His hardline against the Palestinians, his involvement in what used to be called the Sabra and Shatila massacre outside of Beirut in the early 1980s.

So there's a lot of hatred all around. What the U.S. would like to see, what moderate Arabs would like to see -- the Europeans, the Russians, the so-called leaders of the road map -- would like to see a continuation of the peace process and that's certainly a lot easier said than done.

LIN: You bet. We'll see what happens. Wolf, thank you very much. Wolf Blitzer in tonight for a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM" at 8:00 Eastern, so stay tuned for that.

Other news right now. It is not a quiet weekend in Washington either. President Bush addresses the nation in less than three hours. And he is expected to defend his plan to keep American troops in Iraq for the time being, at least.

Now, also today words from administration officials both past and present, that don't exactly match in optimism and tone. The vice president, for example, in Iraq, and the former Secretary of State Colin Powell, each appears to have a different outlook on the deployment of U.S. troops in Iraq. Plenty to talk about with our Washington correspondent tonight, Kathleen Koch and Ed Henry. Kathleen, let's start with you right now at the White House, please.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, some short excerpts of the president's speech were released not long ago by the White House. And in them, the president does say that he understands that Americans have, quote, "Questions about the cost and direction of the war."

He takes on his critics saying, quote, "Some look at the challenges in Iraq and conclude that the war is lost, and not worth another dime or another day. I don't believe that. Our military commanders do not believe that. Our troops in the field who bear the burden and make the sacrifice do not believe that America has lost. And not even the terrorists believe that. We know from their own communications that they feel a tightening noose and fear the rise of a Democratic Iraq."

The president will go on to talk about the cause to pulling out of Iraq too soon, saying, quote, "We would abandon our Iraqi friends and signal to the world that America cannot be trusted to keep its word. We would hand Iraq over to enemies who have pledged to attack us and the global terrorist movement would be emboldened and more dangerous than ever before."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KOCH (voice-over): And Mr. Bush will also tout, as his secretary of state did today, last week's successful elections in Iraq.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: This a remarkable couple of days for the Iraqi people. They went out and they voted in huge numbers. There were pictures of little children dipping their fingers in ink and blind people going to vote. They understood what the vote meant. The vote meant a Democratic future and a chance to control their lives.

KOCH: U.S. ambassador to Iraq predicts the elections could eventually calm the ongoing violence that has claimed so many lives.

ZALMAY KHALILZAD, US AMBASSADOR TO IRAQ: If a good government is formed, if Sunnis feel that their concerns are dealt with, I think violence will decrease over time, significantly, and the terrorists and Saddamists will be increasingly isolated.

KOCH: This is the first Oval Office speech Mr. Bush has made on Iraq since he announced the invasion in March 2003. Aides say the event caps four recent speeches outlining his strategy in Iraq, designed to boost lagging public support.

Though poll numbers have tipped up slightly in recent weeks, more than half of those surveyed still don't approve of the way President Bush is handling Iraq, while 68 percent don't think he has a clear plan for victory.

Mr. Bush's message on Iraq was overshadowed this week by the revelation that after 9/11, he authorized government eavesdropping on the international communications of people inside the United States. The secretary of state insists the president broke no laws. RICE: The president has an obligation. He took an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. That means both to protect and defend Americans physically, from the kind of attack that we experienced on September 11th and to protect the civil rights and civil liberties and he is doing both.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOCH: So no breakthrough announcements in these excerpts that we were provided earlier this evening. But these are only excerpts. The speech tonight, expected to last 15 or 16 minutes. Carol?

LIN: All right, Kathleen Koch. Kathleen Koch, live at the White House.

Now CNN's congressional correspondent Ed Henry is on Capitol Hill this evening, where lawmakers are working through the weekend. Ed, what are congressmen and senators hoping to hear from the president tonight? What are some of their questions?

ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Democrats in particular have been on offense in recent weeks. They feel that it's been their pressure that has really forced this slide in the president's poll ratings.

They feel most notably the pressure point came from Democratic Congressman John Murtha, his call for the quick withdrawal of U.S. troops. And Democrats are not about to let up tonight. They say they'll keep the heat up, basically focusing in on two points.

They say that after all of these speeches, after all of this P.R. effort, the American people still do not have a clear plan for victory and they're expecting to hear that tonight from the president.

And secondly, the Democrats now trying to broaden their argument a little bit and broaden it out to say an allege that the president has been abusing his war powers in the broader war on terror, not just the war on Iraq. Saying the Patriot Act has gone too far, saying as well the government eavesdropping that Kathleen was talking about has gone too far.

Republicans up here say the Democrats are playing with fire. That this may backfire on them politically, by filibustering the Patriot Act. And also raising these questions about the domestic spying in the United States.

It's going to make the Democrats look soft on national security. The problem, though, for the White House, for Republicans here on the Hill, is that some Republicans, prominent Republicans, are raising questions about the domestic spying. Take a listen today on CNN to a Democrat Russ Feingold and Republican Arlen Specter had to say about this government eavesdropping.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R-PA), JUDICIARY CHAIRMAN: Whether it was legal, I think is a matter that has to be examined. I believe there ought to be oversight hearings. When you deal with issues as to legality, what advice the president got from the attorney general and others in the Department of Justice. That's a matter within the traditional purview of the Judiciary Committee. We need to see, to have an expansion.

SEN. RUSSELL FEINGOLD (D), WISCONSIN: I believe that what we're seeing today with the announcement about the national security activities and the efforts that were made with regard to wiretapping gives me every reason to believe that this administration is exploiting all the laws that it can, and now making up its own laws.

I believe that this is an abusive situation. And we don't know the extent of it, Wolf, because so much of this is in secret. So I think this is dangerous.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: In the White House case, the Democrats are blocking the renewal of the Patriot Act is also complicated by the fact that you have four Republicans join that filibuster on Friday. Carol?

LIN: Ed, a lot to look forward to tonight. Thank you very much, Ed Henry. We've got a team of correspondents covering the president's speech. And at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, Wolf Blitzer is going to have a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM," previewing the presidential address.

At 9:00, "LARRY KING LIVE" with live coverage of the president's speech. And be sure to join "THE SITUATION ROOM" again at 10:00 tonight for reaction to what the president had to say.

But while the president is shoring up support on the home front, the vice president today was showing his support for the war in a very different way. Up next, Cheney's surprise visit to Baghdad.

Plus, the decision is announced. "Time" magazine named its person of the year. I'm going to tell you who they are and why they were picked.

And later, the devastation captured the world's attention, but is it tacky to put it on display? A controversial new tour in New Orleans. You're watching CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: A surprise visit to Iraq. Vice President Dick Cheney arrives in the war zone. Security is heavy. He reviews troops and gets a briefing from commanders. The visit is yet another effort to reverse sagging support for the war at home. CNN's Dana Bash is traveling with the vice president.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He was the key architect of the Bush policy that led to war. Yet, this is the vice president's first visit to Iraq since the American invasion. And though it was Dick Cheney's pre-war prediction that Americans would be greeted as liberators, violence is still a major concern and this trip was cloaked in secrecy.

(on camera): Reporters were not officially told about this trip to Iraq until a refueling stop on the way to the Middle East. It was not on the vice president's official schedule and at that stop the vice president and all of his entourage traveling with him switched from his regular 757 to a C-17 to come into this country.

At the U.S. ambassador's residence, safe inside the fortified Green Zone, a post-election military briefing and meetings with the Iraq's prime minister and president. Both came without knowing the vice president was in their country, but worked quickly on message.

JALAL TABANI, PRIME MINISTER, IRAQ: We are proud to have our dear friend, Mr. Cheney, here. He is an hero of liberating Iraq.

BASH (voice-over): This trip was part of the administration's ongoing campaign to reverse sagging American support for the war. The vice president talked up turnout in last week's election, especially among Sunnis who sat out before.

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There are places like the Al Anbar Province, which maybe a 10 percent turnout last January, had as much as 75 percent turnout this time around.

BASH: And later at Taji airbase, outside Baghdad, Iraqi troops demonstrated their force with tanks they built out of scrap metal. During a carefully choreographed tour from an Iraqi general, who told Mr. Cheney about strides they're making, but want U.S. General Marty Dempsey in charge of Iraqi training, hit hard.

MARTY DEMPSEY, LIEUTENANT GENERAL, U.S. ARMY: People say when will Iraq take control of its own security. The answer is truly, it already has.

BASH: Iraqi control is the ticket for U.S. forces to start coming home. And the more that happens, Mr. Cheney told Marines at a rally in Al Anbar Province, they will decrease troop levels. But took a thinly-veiled whack at Democrats back home, questioning their mission.

CHENEY: Some have suggested this war is not winnable. And a few seem almost eager to conclude that the struggle is already over. But they are wrong.

BASH: Just before he left Iraq, in his session with troops away from cameras, the vice president did hear skepticism within the ranks. A Marine asking for perspective because he doesn't see gains. Mr. Cheney uncharacteristically admitted it's a, quote, "problem." And called Iraq the most important thing he has to deal with every day. Dana Bash, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE) LIN: Now you know that Colin Powell played a key role in the run up to the war. But when he was secretary of state, he publicly supported the president. But in an interview with the BBC's David Frost, he talked plainly about his frustrations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN POWELL, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: There were people within the administration with strong views on every issue that came before us. More often than not, we agreed on a particular approach, but you don't hear about where we all agree. It's more fun to write about where we didn't agree. And Secretary Rumsfeld and Vice President Cheney and I occasionally would have strong, differing views on matters. And when that was the case, we argued them out. We fought them out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Powell said that he believes the U.S. will start withdrawing troops next year, but there will be some American presence in Iraq for years to come.

Well today is the day the world learns the identity of "Time" magazine's most influential newsmakers. It's person of the year -- well, make that persons of the year.

Departing again from its singular recognition, the magazine picked three: Bill and Melinda Gates and U2 frontman and activist Bono. "Time" cited the trio's philanthropy and activism in the name of the world's poor and underprivileged. Bill Gates says the best thing he can do is to keep the third world's plight in the news.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL GATES, TIME'S PERSON OF THE YEAR: Well it has been a great year for global health to get more visibility. And I think it is part of an upswelling of interest and seeing more equity. It's sort of the greatest inequity left and the more people know about it, the more they want to act.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Well, coming up next at 7:00 p.m., a special edition of "CNN PRESENTS." You're going to learn more about "Time" magazine's persons of the year. Why they were chosen and who else were the top contenders.

Well, he wanted to spread the love by spreading his mother's ashes. But you might say he was called for illegal procedure. What this man did at a Philadelphia Eagles game and what could happen to him now.

But up next, could the city that never sleeps soon stop moving? The deadline looms for a New York Transit strike. We're live at Penn Station, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: It could be an ugly commute for New Yorkers this week. New York Transit workers are threatening to strike and now the fight is heading back to court. Our Jen Rogers is at Penn Station right now live. Jen, what does this mean?

JEN ROGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, as if New Yorkers and tourists didn't have enough to do this busy holiday weekend, they are now adding one more item to their to-do list: monitor transit talks.

The very latest is that it was another day of waiting as both sides headed back to the bargaining table at a mid-town hotel around 3:45. Now neither side has come out characterizing the negotiations so far, but the union says that it is going ahead with plans to deliver a complaint to a state labor board in Albany.

They say they will deliver that complaint within the next hour. They are trying to win a court order barring the transportation authority from making any pension demands during these contract negotiations. Now, the transportation authority has come out and said that they believe this complaint has no merit.

Now, if the two sides are not able to reach an agreement by tonight, phase one of the strike, a very limited strike, could start as early as tomorrow morning. And this would affect two buslines in Queens. But that could just be a taste of more to come because if no agreement is reached by Monday evening, a system-wide strike could come by 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday morning. And for those of you out there counting, that is less than 30 hours away. Carol?

LIN: All right, Jen, we'll see what happens tonight. Jen Rogers live at Penn Station.

Now here's a story for you. A devoted son, a mother's ashes, and a Philadelphia Eagles football game. Well, the trio made for high drama on the field and now the son is heading to court. The story from Yetta Gibson with CNN affiliate KSAZ.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have no regrets.

YETTA GIBSON, REPORTER, KSAZ (voice-over): If you don't know Chip Noteboom, chances are you've probably seen this video of him.

(on camera): So, Chip, this is what mama would have wanted, huh?

CHIP NOTEBOOM, SCATTERED ASHES: Well, I don't know if she would have wanted it this way, but I think she's pretty happy.

GIBSON (voice-over): Sunday afternoon, the Eagles and Packers game in Philly. Chip was there.

(on camera): What was your seat and how the did you get down there? NOTEBOOM: I can't give you that information, on the grounds it's going to incriminate somebody because I just worked my way down.

GIBSON (voice-over): And here he is, running letting mom's ashes go. His mom Charlotte died back in January from emphysema.

NOTEBOOM: She grew up an Eagles fan and she passed an Eagles fame. I thought it would be kind of nice if we could leave a little bit of her there somewhere, somehow.

GIBSON: Chip was arrested.

NOTEBOOM: I did a little Hail Mary for her and then gave up.

GIBSON: His charge, defiant trespassing.

NOTEBOOM: They were concerned about with the terrorist activities in the past few years, that it could have been something else other than my mom's ashes. I didn't even think about that until they told me.

GIBSON: Regulars at his Cave Creek bar are giving him a hard time. And his mom would have done the same thing.

(on camera): If she could, what would she say to you about this?

NOTEBOOM: You'd have to bleep it out. You big dummy, why did you get arrested.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Well, let's hope mom is with her son in court. Noteboom is expected in a Philadelphia court on December 27th to face those charges.

Well up next, you won't believe what one tour company in New Orleans is charging people $35 to see.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The bottom number is usually -- well, hopefully it's a zero most of the time, but that's the number of people that they found dead.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: That's right, it's a disaster tour and people are outraged.

Plus, a high-profile senator pays a visit to the devastated region. Hillary Clinton in St. Louis today. You're watching CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Welcome back and here's a quick look at what's happening right now in the news. President Bush will, once again, make his case on the Iraq war in an Oval Office address to the nation. It's his first national address from the Oval Office on the topic since he announced the invasion in 2003.

And Vice President Dick Cheney says the only way to lose the fight in Iraq is to quit. He says that is not an option. He was talking to military personnel in Iraq during a surprise visit today.

And "Time" magazine has named Bill and Melinda Gates and rock star Bono as "Persons of the Year". The magazine praised them for working to reduce global poverty and improve world health.

And boxing has a new WBA heavyweight champion. Do you want to tell him he's not? Look at that face. He's Russia's Nikolai Valuyev, and he's the biggest, heaviest champ ever to wear the belt. Seven feet tall, 324 pounds. He took the belt from American John Ruiz last night in Berlin.

Welcome back. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is in a Jerusalem hospital tonight. Israeli doctors say he suffered a mild stroke. Israeli media says Mr. Sharon was conscious, but confused when he was admitted to the hospital.

Sharon's two sons rushed to that hospital and Israeli government spokesman says tonight Mr. Sharon is fully conscious and lucid and conducting the affairs of the country from his bed.

Now Prime Minister Sharon suffered what his doctors are calling a mild CVA or cerebral vascular accident. We want to understand what that is and what potential complications are involved, so we invited Dr. Marc Siegel of New York University Medical School. He teaches there and he's trained in internal medicine. Doctor, good to have you.

DR. MARC SIEGEL, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL: Hello, Carol, how are you?

LIN: How serious is this?

SIEGEL: Well, you know, a stroke ranges. But what a stroke is basically a small part of the brain dies and that occurs because there isn't enough blood flow to the brain and not enough oxygen. Either a vessel in the neck is blocked or a blood clot comes up from the heart and causes a stroke.

Now, in Mr. Sharon's case it sounds like it's pretty small because even though he had an altered level of consciousness now he is reportedly joking and talking to people and he's lucid and moving his extremities. This is a sign that it's a mild stroke. In the first 24-to-48 hours you look for prognostic indicators like this and these are very good signs.

LIN: All right, but for a time, though, he temporarily lost motor function. SIEGEL: Right. That's very common with a stroke and that's characteristic of part of the brain being affected or, again, dying. And what we have to see over the next several days is he's going to need to have a rehabilitation phase to see whether he can regain full use of all of his extremities.

LIN: So you're saying that he lost some function.

SIEGEL: Well, he's lost some strength, no doubt. And in terms of his lucidity, you know, that can be very temporary. But the confusion is very characteristic of a stroke. But again, probably over the next 48 hours we'll be able to determine whether there's any permanent damage here. It sounds like it's mild at this point.

LIN: Because there's the risk he could have another stroke.

SIEGEL: Well, the thing is, he's got to alter something to really prevent that. And usually doctors give medications at this point, like aspirin or blood thinners. That helps enormously.

But he's way too overweight. He obviously has to lose weight. Exercise, diet, blood pressure control and something that's really important, his cholesterol has to be low. There's several studies that show that lowering cholesterol decreases the risk of follow-up strokes.

LIN: So, have leaders had mild strokes and continue to run a country?

SIEGEL: Well, yes, they have. And I think that in this case he can continue to run a country. I think what's questionable is can he do it now, an hour or two after this occurred. I think some period of observation and really seeing how he's doing is wise.

But people can have a mild stroke and absolutely return to normal function after that. Stroke is the number one cause of disability in the world and it's the number three cause of death in the world. This is a very serious matter. Mr. Sharon has to really look at his health very carefully after this and to be very closely followed by his doctors.

LIN: Now, do you believe -- do you believe the report that he was actually meeting with military commanders and conducting business from his bedside shortly after?

SIEGEL: Well, yes, I do believe. You know, we know from all of our reports on Mr. Sharon, he's a very intense person. I'm not surprised to hear he went right back to it, especially with all the things on his plate. But again, stress is a real problem and it's related to blood pressure and future strokes.

So, I -- you know, personally, think he should have decreased level of stress and especially over the next few days as we see about his recovery. You know, if he continues to have a high level of stress, then the risk of another stroke is greater. LIN: Well, Dr. Siegel, this is a man who's trying to forge a new political party and perhaps a peace deal with the Palestinians. So, I would say there's a lot of stress involved in that job.

SIEGEL: I think that may be one of the reasons this happened, but you know, again, watching diet, low cholesterol, watching his blood pressure and taking preventative medications, these could help prevent another stroke.

LIN: All right, Dr. Marc Siegel. We wish him the best. Thank you very much.

SIEGEL: We do. Thank you.

LIN: New York Senator Hillary Clinton toured hurricane and flood-ravaged New Orleans today. We have some pictures to share with you. She joined Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu to get a first-hand look at the damage. It's Senator Clinton's first visit to the area since Katrina struck.

Now before Hurricane Katrina, the number one industry in New Orleans was tourism. But now a tour bus company hopes to lure visitors back by offering a tour of destruction. The company calls it educational, while critics are calling it exploitation. CNN's Susan Roesgen has the story you first saw on CNN's "PAULA ZAHN NOW."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before the hurricane, this is the New Orleans that millions of tourists came to see. Gray Line Tours showed New Orleans at its best, but now the same visitors who used to ooh and ahh over the city's stately mansions can see the ghostly neighborhoods left in Katrina's wake.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The bottom number is usually -- well hopefully it's a zero most of the time. But that's the number of people that they found dead.

ROESGEN: It's called "Hurricane Katrina, America's Greatest Disaster Tour." It won't start until January, but CNN got the first preview on a trial run.

It's a three hour bus excursion past landmarks now notorious because of the hurricane. The Superdome, a sweltering shelter for 30,000 people. Lakeview, a neighborhood swamped by flood waters for weeks.

And New Orleans' own version of Ground Zero, the break in the levy at the 17th Street Canal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So think about this, as they when they storm in the Gulf of Mexico, here in New Orleans we're below sea level to start off with, we're going to get water slammed into the city from the river, of course, coming up. But also, from the lake.

ROESGEN: Gray Line hopes to tap into the national curiosity about what happened here. But people who own homes along the tour, people like Artie Folse, have a message for gawkers. Keep out.

ARTIE FOLSE, HOMEOWNER: I think it's ridiculous. I mean, they're making -- they're doing tours on other peoples' misery. I wished they'd stay out the neighborhood.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you can see, this was -- and it's kind of hard to say -- this was a really pretty neighborhood.

ROESGEN: The company says the tours will be educational, but Larry Maynard, fixing up his mother's house in Lakeview, doesn't buy it.

LARRY MAYNARD, HOMEOWNER: Exploitation of peoples' tragedies for profit, though, is definitely not the way to go. They really shouldn't do it. I hope somebody in Baton Rouge or somebody puts a foot down and really, you know, realize what's going on here with this.

ROESGEN: Other Lakeview homeowners say they welcome the tour.

JERRY KREIDER, HOMEOWNER: And I think more people that know about it, maybe the more help we'll get.

ROESGEN: The company says the tours will cost $35 with $3 of each ticket earmarked for Katrina relief. To the city's tourism industry, all but knocked out by Katrina, any tourism is welcome. Yet Gray Line Company owner Greg Hoffman, who lost his own home in Lakeview, is taking some heat from the mayor.

You know, the mayor today on the radio, I don't know if you heard his comments, but he calls what you're doing as starting the tour "odd and opportunistic." What do you say to that?

GREG HOFFMAN, GRAY LINE TOURS OWNER: Well, I'd wish he'd read the press release. And I hope he'll come on the tour before we get started on January 4th, because people that initially hear about the tour, they have that general reaction. But the tour, like I say, is an educational process. It was just like after 9/11. You know, people wanted to go to the site. They wanted to see the devastation at the Twin Towers.

It's the same mind-set. People are going to want to come down here and see what the devastation is like.

ROESGEN: A new kind of attraction for a new, New Orleans.

Susan Roesgen, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: You can catch "PAULA ZAHN NOW" every weeknight at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

Now, ahead tonight, a desperate situation turns deadly. We're going to tell you what caused a stampede in India and tell you about some other stories making news around the world. That's up next.

Bill in Connecticut says, "The rival factions need to agree to disagree without violence. They should have a common goal and rid their country of outsiders bent only on destroying what they may achieve".

Ramon in New Jersey writes, "Iraqi oil generates more money than what some people can imagine. Give back around $250 per month to each Iraqi citizen. Once they have tasted the bounty, then they will, as their right, fight and help in the restoration of their country."

And from Edward in Michigan, "There will be no peace until we leave, just like Vietnam. There was no peace there until we left and they seem to be doing just fine without us".

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LIN: A little more than two hours from now President Bush goes before the nation to calm American anxiety over the Iraq war. Now, top White House officials say he'll talk about what has been accomplished and where the U.S. is headed. Tonight's speech comes just days after the Iraq's parliament vote. And insiders say the president will insist that is a sign of progress. This address follows a series of four speeches he made in the run to the Iraqi elections.

Now at 8:00 Eastern, Wolf Blitzer will have a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM" with the preview of the president's address. At 9:00 "LARRY KING LIVE" with live coverage of the president's speech. And be sure to join "THE SITUATION ROOM" again at 10:00 tonight for reaction to what the president has to say.

In the meantime, inside Iraq. There have been some major developments. Anand Naidoo is covering the world for us at the CNN International Desk. An?

ANAND NAIDOO, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Carol and hello from me. One of the big developments in Iraq today, a German woman held hostage in the country is free. German's foreign minister confirmed that Susanne Osthoff is safe at the German embassy in Baghdad. She was kidnapped with her driver. That was about three weeks ago.

The 43-year-old woman converted to Islam and has lived in Iraq for the last 10 years. She's worked as an archaeologist and served in various aid projects there.

Indications from the German foreign minister, that Osthoff's Iraqi driver was not freed, although we have heard that in the last few minutes that he will be freed soon.

Now, the latest on the world trade talks in Hong Kong. Ministers from the 149 states have reached an interim deal to end farm export subsidies by 2013. Part of that deal would open markets in rich countries, a little more to poor nations. The agreement was reached after six round the clock days of talks and those talks took placed on widespread devastations. Moving to southern India, 42 killed and 13 injured in a stampede at a flood relief center in the city of Chennai. Police say when people standing in a relief line ran for shelter when it started raining. The Indian government, we're hearing, Carol, is going to compensate the families of those who were killed and injured.

LIN: All right. Anand, we've have been working on the Ariel Sharon situation. He'll be hospitalized. Is there any fresh information coming into the international desk?

NAIDOO: Carol, there is information coming in all the time. What we're hearing right now is that the Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is in, quote "good condition", unquote. That is what his office is saying.

Just to recap, he was rushed to a hospital in Jerusalem earlier today after suffering a mild stroke. Doctors say his condition improved while they were carrying out tests and he remained conscious throughout all the procedures. Now, he's been undergoing more tests at the hospital and he is talking with family members and no doubt as the evening progresses and of course we'll bring you the latest as we get it. Carol?

LIN: All right, did you hear he was actually conducting meetings with his military commanders at his bedside?

NAIDOO: That's right. I mean, he doesn't stop working.

LIN: Hard working, indeed. Thank you very much, Anand. Fresh information from the international desk.

Now, in your "Health Watch" tonight. Hope for the paralyzed. A teenager loses a leg in a terrible accident and the feeling in one of his arms. But, after a rare transplant surgery, he could finally feel again, thanks his mother and a pioneering doctor. They're my guests.

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LIN: It is a medical achievement that can only be described as remarkable. Surgeons at John Hopkins Hospital transplanted nerves from a mother to her son. Nicolas Anderson lost a leg, crushed the other and lost feeling in his left hand in a car accident last year.

Well, surgeons took four feet of nerves from Anderson's mother and placed them into his damaged arm. The operation took place about a month ago, so let's talk about how it went. Let's talk to Nicolas Anderson, his mom, Frankie Anderson-Harris. And Anderson's surgeon, Dr. Allan Belzberg. Good to see all three of you, and congratulations.

Nicolas, do you gave any movement at all?

NICOLAS ANDERSON, NERVE TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT: I have some movement just from before the surgery, though. So far I haven't really gotten any movement back from the surgery. In the past day or so I started to get some tingling, which the Dr. Belzberg told me is a good sign. It means that the nerves are starting to connect.

LIN: I'm looking at your arm right now. Can you show me where the transplant took place?

ANDERSON: Right here they went through my skin graphs and they opened from here to here and it was two six-inch segments that they had to do the nerve graph to.

LIN: And your mom, Mrs. Anderson-Harris, how are you feeling?

FRANKIE ANDERSON-HARRIS, NERVE TRANSPLANT DONOR: I'm feeling pretty well now. The swelling has started to go away and now I just have a little bit of phantom nerve pain and some tingling and nothing too bad.

LIN: I know, I know you want to see a bright future for your son and for him to regain the full use of his arm. Dr. Belzberg, four doctors had recommended that Nicolas have his arm amputated. What made you believe that you could restore sensation and movement to his arm?

ALLAN BELZBERG, DOCTOR WHO PERFORMED NERVE TRANSPLANT: Well, there really are three components to this that made us confident we can do this.

The first was the groundbreaking work done by Dr. McKinnon at Barnes-Jewish in St. Louis, who laid the scientific foundation for this. The second was the ability to bring together a team of medical experts, including Dr. Doone (ph) from plastic surgery, Dr. Krause (ph) from the medical transplant team. And the third component really is Nic himself, who -- you have to have a patient who has the right attitude. Backed up by his family, this was the perfect patient to do this on.

LIN: There was an initial operation and is it true in the middle of this operation you had determined perhaps there could be a donor and a phone call was made to the family?

BELZBERG: Well, the family was there during the surgery; the family is Nic's family. During that first operation we realized there was simply not enough nerve in Nic's body for me to do the repair that was need.

So, I went out to the waiting area where Nic's family was and discussed it with his mother and his grandparents and it took them about five seconds at most to decide they would love to be a donor, if possible. I also contacted Dr. McKinnon in St. Louis to make sure that, indeed, this was an appropriate case to have this done.

LIN: Mrs. Anderson-Harris, though, when the doctors came out and spoke with you, what was going through your mind, what was your reaction at this possibility?

ANDERSON-HARRIS: It was wonderful to hear there was some hope that something could be done and there was no question, whatsoever, to give the nerve. It was what was needed and it is just wonderful to be able to help.

LIN: So, Nicolas, how much sensation and movement in your arm are you hoping to recover?

ANDERSON: Well, so far, they've said probably about 80 percent is what I'll get back. Most of my main muscles will be able to be used. Some of the smaller muscles will probably never come back. But, for the most part, I should be able to grip a steering wheel, hold a soda can and pretty much anything that I really need to do.

LIN: And you, your attitude and actually your body itself needs to do some work, as well. Right? You're taking anti-rejection drugs, right?

ANDERSON: Yes, I am on the anti-rejection drugs. Plus I'm in occupational therapy three days a week to work out my hand, keep my muscles loose so that they don't tighten up too much and make sure that when my nerves do start working again the rest of my arm will work, as well.

LIN: Nicolas, can you show me what you can do with your arm right now and where you actually have sensation?

ANDERSON: Well, right now I have sensation mostly on the inside. I have it pretty much down to here, all on the inside. On the outside I don't have any sensation at all. And right now I can move my wrist and my fingers just a little bit up. I can't move anything down, but I can move them up. Which that started, I guess, about a month and half before this past surgery.

LIN: Nicolas, what does this mean to you that your mother made this sacrifice for you?

ANDERSON: Well, I mean, on one hand I'm very happy about it. And then on the other hand it was kind of one of those things that I expected because before we even knew the surgery was going to happen.

It was something we talked about a lot because we had talked to so many doctors about it and every doctor said it wasn't possible, but, we had already talked about if it was possible that she would do it and we would work our hardest to get it to work.

LIN: Dr. Belzberg, what does this mean for other people who have paralysis? What does this offer to them? What kind of hope?

BELZBERG: Well, for those people who very severe nerve injuries, we hoping this is another technique, it's one more tool in our tool belt to be able to provide a nerve repair.

This turns up in, for example, infants who, during the birthing process get a very severe nerve injury where they shoulder distotion (ph) and then get paralysis. This is one more tool we can use to help children like that if there's insufficient nerve in their own body to do the repair.

LIN: Are you pretty positive about Nicolas's outcome? Do you think he's going to get 80 percent of the use of his arm back?

BELZBERG: I'm very hopeful that he'll get back good function and anything is better than what he has now. That's the winning attitude Nicolas has. I know he wants to get back to being a Nascar racecar driver. I'm not sure how realistic it is but that attitude of his will take him through this.

LIN: You bet. And I know so many doctors have been surprised by their patients, Dr. Belzberg. Thanks so much for joining us today. Dr. Allan Belzberg from Johns Hopkins, Frankie Anderson-Harris, the terrific mom who donated her nerves and Nicolas Anderson, we'll be following up with you, OK?

ANDERSON: OK.

LIN: You let us know when you're going to be behind the steering wheel and we're real happy for you.

ANDERSON: All right, see you.

LIN: Well, there's lots more ahead on CNN this evening. Coming up at 7:00 Eastern, "CNN PRESENTS" tonight, "Time" person of the year. At 8:00, a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM." Join Wolf Blitzer for a preview of tonight's presidential address.

And at 9:00, "LARRY KING LIVE." Tonight, live coverage of President Bush's address to the nation. And be sure to join "THE SITUATION ROOM" again at 10:00 tonight for reaction to the speech. The hour's headlines when I come back and then "CNN PRESENTS."

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