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Military Relies on Reservists; Weapons Inspectors Begin Work in Iraq; Consumer Spending on the Rise

Aired November 30, 2002 - 10:00   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.


KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Welcome to CNN's SATURDAY EDITION, where our journalists have the inside scoop on the stories they covered this week. I'm Kelli Arena.
The president says huge government reorganization will deliver a comprehensive effort against terrorism.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I'm Barbara Starr. The military prepares for possible war with heavy reliance on part- time warriors.

RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rym Brahimi in Baghdad, reading the mood here as Iraqis follow the first inspections in their country in four years.

MARIA HINOJOSA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Maria Hinojosa in New York. I'll be back later in the hour to talk about hate crimes and civil liberties when a nation is apprehensive about terrorism.

KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Kathleen Hays. The markets surged before Thanksgiving, and shoppers voted with their dollars and credit cards yesterday.

We'll talk about all these stories, and we'll listen to the president's weekly radio address at the end of the hour. But first, this news alert from CNN headquarters in Atlanta.

(NEWSBREAK)

BRAHIMI: Well, it's a very interesting time to be here in Baghdad as inspectors resume the first inspections, as I said, in four years.

What's interesting, also, is among ordinary Iraqis, there seems to be some hope for the first time that a war with the U.S. may still be averted. And I think that has something to do with the fact that there is seemingly a "softly, softly" approach on both sides -- on the U.N. inspectors' side and also on the Iraqi side, keen -- or at least keen to be seen, at least, as cooperating.

STARR: Rym, it's Barbara. What are you hearing out there in Baghdad, in Iraq, about whether these inspections so far are really going to be aggressive? In other words, are the inspectors going to sites first just sort of testing the waters? How soon are they going to get to the site that are the most controversial, those presidential palaces, those high-security compounds? When is that real work going to start happening?

BRAHIMI: Well, that's not clear yet. Obviously because it's on the basis of no-notice inspections, Barbara, we're obviously being kept in the dark as to when they plan to go and visit these sites.

What's clear so far is that they're going into all the obvious sites, the sites that have been cited in various reports as being suspected of still producing some form of weapons of mass destruction, if you will. So they've been going into these various sites for now.

We do know that they have repeated to us in their various news conferences, Barbara, that they do intend to make full use of their prerogatives that were given to them in that resolution, 1441. And so they will go into those sites as surprise inspections.

What we're hearing from Iraqi officials is something else. They think that having inspectors back is tough enough. They think also that -- they're still a bit suspicious. There is some sort of hope that this cooperation might work out, but there's still a lot of suspicion, Barbara, because Iraqis always have complained of the previous inspectors, saying that there were allegations of spying and things like that.

So there seems to be a moment now where everybody is sort of gorging the other.

HAYS: Rym, this is Kathleen here. And I'm curious, you mentioned how there's a sense of hope among the Iraqi people that maybe these inspections, what are going to work, that they'll avert war. Why this sense of hope now?

BRAHIMI: Well, it's interesting. You know, when we spoke to people here before the Iraqi government accepted the resolution, well, a lot of people were saying, "Well, whatever we do, if we accept it or not, it won't make a difference, the U.S. intends to bomb us, they're after our oil, and that's what's going to happen anyway."

And for the first time now, in the past couple of days, since we've been having, and Iraqis have been having, regular reports through their own media on how the inspections have proceeded, well, we're talking to people who are actually now saying something different. Not everybody, there is still a lot of skepticism, but some people are now saying, "Well, maybe it will work. Maybe they will lift the sanctions. Maybe they will see that there's nothing." They all say, "Well, this is what our president is telling us. Our leadership tells us we have nothing, and they'll have to see that at one point." So this is why I'm saying there seems to be now some hope, and that's quite new.

ARENA: Rym, what do you think -- I mean, we hear what the Iraqi government is saying, but what is anyone else saying in terms of what happens if they don't actually find anything, if these inspectors go to these places where they suspect that there may be weapons of mass destruction and nothing turns up? Do we just go away?

BRAHIMI: Well, what people are hoping here is, they say, well, they're pretty sure that they're not going to find anything. And then the opinions are divided as to, "Well, they're not going to find anything, therefore we might actually be off the hook and maybe we'll get the sanctions lifted."

You know, there have been sanctions put in place here since Iraq invaded Kuwait. It's been 12 years, and it's hurt a lot of the people here.

And then there's the other school of thought, the people that say, "Well, they won't find anything because we have nothing to hide. But they will bomb all the same, because that's what the U.S. has planned to do from the very beginning."

STARR: Rym, it's also interesting, here in the United States of course on television, we saw some very interesting pictures this week as these inspections began. We saw convoys of news media vehicles following the inspectors out to the site.

I suspect that's something very new in Iraq that has not been seen before. Are the people noticing it? What's the government reaction to all of this news coverage?

BRAHIMI: Well, absolutely, that's a very interesting part of it. You see, we set off in the morning. We all go and wait at the U.N. headquarters, and then the minute the inspectors cars, you know, leave the compound, well, we all jump into our cars and we just follow them. It actually gives a place to high-speed chases...

(LAUGHTER)

... quite dangerous in a way, but the government is welcoming that.

The government, actually when they accepted the inspectors back, said that they wanted the international media here. Now, of course, people here in Iraq are not quite used to seeing this, so we get a lot of comments from, you know, bystanders who wonder what on Earth is going on.

(LAUGHTER)

One person even asked us if this was a wedding delegation. They just had no idea what this was all about.

HAYS: I'm curious too, what is the mood among the people toward Saddam Hussein? So many things we read here, cruel dictator, many Americans portray him as someone who will topple instantly because the people will turn on him instantly if the U.S. does attack Iraq.

Do you get any sense that how he's handling the inspections now has that changed that view at all? What, again, is the mood toward Saddam among the people?

BRAHIMI: Well, that's a very good question, but it's also probably the most difficult to answer for us reporters here in Baghdad. One of the reasons is people don't really talk about that in those terms.

What we do know, what they do say is that whatever happens -- and they don't really specify; you kind of guess that they're talking about you know, the U.S. overthrowing the regime -- they say, "Well, whatever happens, we're still worried that it will come with a war." They don't really go into anything else. But they are worried at the prospect of war.

Now in terms of what the inspections' effect on how people view their regime, I think they're very relieved because they feel that no matter what -- well, the fact that the Iraqi regime has accepted the inspectors back at least gets them off the hook for the time being, even among those who think that the Americans do intend to bomb anyway. They think that at least they have gained a few months of reprieve. And so I think everybody is pretty much happy with that.

Now, that doesn't really say much about what they think of their own leadership, and that's really probably the most difficult thing to tell here because people don't really talk openly about that.

STARR: So, Rym, people there -- I mean, the bottom line is, do they believe -- are they still preparing for war? Do they have real belief, real hope that maybe there will not be a war? What do the people in Baghdad think?

BRAHIMI: OK, well, here's what I've been able to find out. I have a feeling from the conversations I've had with people in the streets, in different areas, at universities, with different people from all walks of life really, you have the officials who feel that the Americans are really, really trying to find any excuse. And a lot of intellectuals, a lot of university professors that I've spoken to, well, they have the same problem, they have the same fears in a way. They often ask me, "Well, do you really think this is going to work? Don't you see that the Americans are intent on bombing anyway?"

Among the ordinary people, I'm talking about your regular taxi driver, well, I've noticed that there is some hope among these people. There is a little less skepticism and a little bit of hope. Maybe that's because they have less access to international media than other people. They listen to what they're being told in the newspapers and the media here. And they think, "Well, hey, it might just work, and we might actually get the sanctions lifted."

But on the whole, of course, it's very difficult for people here. And I think there is still an underlying fear that, no matter what, there is a lot of preparation for war going on. Certainly the government has been making that point that, no matter what, they're still getting ready. They're distributing rations to people, two months' worth of rations actually, which is more than what they do usually.

So there's preparations on the one hand, you know, preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.

STARR: Well, indeed, from arms inspections in Iraq to arms preparation by the U.S. military in the region surrounding Iraq. More on that as SATURDAY EDITION continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COL. PATRICK LANG (RET.), U.S. ARMY: We're going to have a force in the area that will so outclass the Iraqis in every way, who are in fact a third-world army, that even hostilities start, if they do, as a result of the failure of the inspection regime, that the -- in Patton's famous phrase, that the U.S. Army and Marine Corps will go through the Iraqis like a red-hot poker through a pat of butter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: That was retired Army Colonel Patrick Lang, former chief Middle East intelligence analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency.

The U.S. military pushes ahead with its trainings and preparations for possible war with Iraq. And indeed, in the next couple of weeks we are going to see a major development. The U.S. Central Command, which will run any war, will be moving its headquarters to the Persian Gulf, about 600 troops. They will practice command and control communications, all of the essential tasks for running a war directly in the Persian Gulf. This is going to be a major development on the road to preparations for possible war.

But so far, it's all just preparations. And as we learned earlier this week, even the reserve forces are getting very involved. There are preparations for call-up of hundreds of thousands of reserve forces.

And they're going to be doing something very interesting. Of course, not only filling some essential jobs in the military, but providing security possibly here at home as the terrorist threat grows, something we saw earlier this week in Kenya.

Kelli, do you...

BRAHIMI: Let...

STARR: I'm sorry, Rym?

BRAHIMI: Yes, I'm wondering, Barbara, you know, what I was saying earlier on is a lot of people here are convinced that, no matter what happens, these inspections are really just for show and that the U.S. is preparing this build-up because precisely it intends to attack Iraq no matter what.

What's the view in the Pentagon? Do they view these inspections as just something they have to go through for, you know, just to satisfy the U.N. and that they intend to continue their military pressure no matter what?

STARR: Well, it's hard to say. I mean, the Pentagon is doing what the president has asked, and that is preparing for war, preparing for any contingency the president asks them to fulfill.

What the Bush administration is clearly doing is watching inspections very closely, watching Hans Blix, really making an effort to press them to be as aggressive as possible. I think there's probably no question from the Bush administration's point of view, they want very aggressive inspections. They want to get this resolved very quickly. Hans Blix, the inspectors, they probably want to carry it on a bit further.

But what I was going to ask Kelli a minute ago is, as we saw this terrorist attack unfold in Kenya, it sort of brings all of these pieces together. It causes a lot of sort of unrest in what was a relatively straightforward planning scenario for Iraq. And it seems pretty clear this latest terrorist attack in Kenya may unsettle things just a bit more.

I don't know what Kelli is hearing from her sources at the FBI and Justice Department.

ARENA: Well, this -- first of all, this wasn't a surprise. I mean, there had been some intelligence about some activity in the region, although it was not, according to our sources, either specific or credible. But we'd been hearing all along that obviously there were expected to be more terrorist attacks.

What's different about this, though, is that it is against an Israeli target outside of Israel, which doesn't fit the al Qaeda M.O. Fits more the Hezbollah M.O. However, no one has -- no one group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

And, Barbara, I don't know about you, but was it a surprise from your end of the world?

STARR: Absolutely not. From the intelligence and military sources we have spoken to this week, perhaps the only question they had is what took so long, as awkward as that sounds.

There had been a lot of concern about the Horn of Africa, about East Africa, a great and growing belief that al Qaeda was operating throughout that region.

And or course a lot of concern about this surface-to-air missile threat against commercial aviation around the world, raising a lot of questions about whether or not there's anything they can really do about it if someone wants to shoot down a commercial airliner with a shoulder-fired missile. It seems to be a pretty difficult threat to try and really confront.

ARENA: And for that to happen, Barbara, right when you have one of the busiest holiday traveling seasons under way -- of course, starting with Thanksgiving, heading into the Christmas holiday -- can surely put a damper, which will be Kathleen's deal later on, for the economy.

HAYS: I'm just -- what I have found fascinating recently in this run-up to a possible war is all the discussion about the kind of war we're going to wage there, Barbara, and this whole thing about effects operations, where you're going to come in and just razzle-dazzle, blast the enemy so much you can come in with the ground troops very quickly, and this whole scenario of winning the war so quickly.

Inside the Pentagon, is everyone now on board? Are there any doubters in the Army or the Marine Corps who would suffer if intelligence isn't what it should be, if this quick strike doesn't quite work and they have people on the ground? Is everybody now lined up to fight the war this way that seems to be the way we're heading?

STARR: Well, of course, there is that sort of old saying, "No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy." There is a lot of concern in the Pentagon this may not be a cakewalk, that the Iraqis may, you know, put up a credible fight, that Saddam Hussein may stay in power.

And, Rym, that's a question that one here doesn't really get a great answer to. Will Saddam absolutely hang on until the bitter end? Does he believe he can communicate with his military and control his people even once the U.S. bombing starts?

BRAHIMI: Yes, that's right, Barbara, that is a question that's extremely hard to answer, and even for us on the ground here because, as I said, people don't really respond to that directly. It's just really difficult to answer to the question, well, is there too much resentment with regard to the Americans for anyone to actually be happy for the Americans to show up and maybe do something about the regime. So this is, I think, how people should look at it.

Now, one question I wanted to ask you is, we're hearing reports that the U.S. are dropping leaflets in the no-fly zones, trying to convince the Iraqi military to precisely do that, to not respond to their raids, to their air flights -- sorry -- to not respond to any threats and to just not do anything and maybe cooperate with the Americans if they do come over.

But the funny thing is, we're not hearing that through the local media of course. We don't know anything about that. Is there a sense at the Pentagon that these leaflets are getting any kind of response?

STARR: That's a really interesting question because we have asked that. They've done five leaflet drops in the last couple of months, and so far there is no indication they're getting a response. On day in the last couple of weeks, the Iraqis fired 50 times in one day at U.S. warplanes. So the leaflets are falling. The question is, is anybody picking them up and reading them?

ARENA: Well, Rym, we want to thank you for sharing your experiences on SATURDAY EDITION.

That's Rym Brahimi in Baghdad.

From the U.S. policy on guard against Iraq to the domestic policy on guard against terrorism. SATURDAY EDITION is back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: America has been engaged in an unprecedented effort to defend our freedom and our security. We're fighting a war against terror with all our resources, and we're determined to win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARENA: President Bush signing the homeland security bill and launching the largest reorganization of the federal government in 50 years.

Welcome back to SATURDAY EDITION.

And welcome to our CNN colleague in New York, Maria Hinojosa. Hello, Maria.

HINOJOSA: Hi, Kelli.

ARENA: Well, public opinion is ho-hum about what the change will mean. Only 11 percent of Americans polled at the end of last week expect the new Department of Homeland Security to be very effective. More than half say somewhat effective, and 31 percent say not effective.

And one thing that I want to remind everyone of is that the FBI and the CIA, those that gather the intelligence, are not under this homeland security umbrella. They will feed information to the Homeland Security Department to be analyzed, so that everybody is aware and able to, you know, infamously connect the dots, which is a cause for some concern. It's one more stop that all this information has to make it to.

And you are looking at a reorganization when the threat to the homeland is probably the most serious that it's has ever been. I mean, you saw what the FBI went through in trying to reorganize while dealing with an investigation of the September 11th attacks.

So those in law enforcement and intelligence are queasy about how this is all going to come together.

HINOJOSA: Kelli?

ARENA: Yes, Maria?

HINOJOSA: You know, there are a lot of people who I hear and speak to on the street, and they just say, how is it possible that we can continue -- or that the U.S. government and all of these institutions can try to focus on terrorism when there's all of this reorganization happening? I mean, this is big stuff, to take the greatest change in the U.S. government in 50 years.

How do they reorganize and don't skip a beat in the process of trying to track these terrorists down? ARENA: That is the question. And, you know, those officials will tell you, well, obviously, you know, those that are gathering intelligence are not affected by this. The FBI and the CIA remain just as they are right now.

But there is that concern, there is the concern about putting this all together. You saw the heavy criticism that the FBI has come under in trying to reorganize itself since September 11th and in changing its focus from law enforcement to counterterrorism and the bumps along the way that it's hit. And then this talk about possibly creating a new agency. Well, that is just what they expect in bringing together the -- and plus, you know, Tom Ridge, who will be heading it up, some say, just not very patient in dealing with bureaucracy, wants things done.

(CROSSTALK)

HAYS: ... bureaucracy is the thing though. One-hundred-and- seventy-thousand people. There's already been a lot of question and criticism. There's going to be a new task force to see -- look again at the FBI and the CIA...

ARENA: Led by Henry Kissinger.

HAYS: ... going into September 11th. But I think that's one reason why a lot of Americans are worried and skeptical. A new government bureaucracy, 170,000 people, why are we going to have any more faith now that that is going to fight against these little cells of the organized people?

ARENA: Well, officials will tell you part of the problem before was that, you know, the right hand didn't know what the left hand was doing. And so, you needed to bring all of this information together. You needed to have one central clearinghouse to be able to get names on the watchlist that make it to the aviation industry and the trucking industry.

STARR: But, of course, this really doesn't get to what many analysts will tell you is the fundamental problem in security and intelligence issues. It's not what information you're getting in the front door, it's the mountains and mountains and volumes of information -- prioritizing it, figuring out what eavesdropping intercepts to listen to, what to translate, what to put in front of decision-makers...

ARENA: And having all the translators in place, which is still a problem.

STARR: ... and having the right people on board.

And it's just fascinating, to me at least, that they're addressing this with a bureaucratic solution, which Kathleen pointed out, a new commission, before they really have the bottom line on what went wrong on 9/11.

HINOJOSA: And also, are they going to increase, are we going to see a hiring increase? We've just heard that Bush is not going to give any increase in wages to the federal workers. So is there new staffing that's going to happen? And what happens when -- I mean, my God, add new staffing to all of that and then what do you do?

(LAUGHTER)

ARENA: Well, it is. I mean, we are in the midst of -- you know, this is the exact discussion that they're having behind closed doors, is exactly how to tackle all of this.

And there was -- I mean, there was a big public cry for a solution. The government needed to do something because there was such frustration.

But the bottom line is, and this is very sobering and I'm sorry to say it, but the bottom line is that every expert -- Barbara, you can back me up here -- every expect that we have spoken to says, "Hello, this is the new reality. The United States will again be affected by a terrorist attack. There is no way to completely prohibit every single terrorist from being successful and that they will eventually be successful."

(CROSSTALK)

HAYS: I want to ask you, what about all of the reservists being called up? How will this Department of Homeland Defense coordinate with the reservists who are being called up to protect, you know, water, air ports, et cetera?

STARR: Well, all of that coordination is done with state governors very much between the federal and the state authorities when the reserves or the National Guard is called up.

But, you know, only more of that to come, as far as anybody can see. It's going to really start happening more and more.

HAYS: I guess so.

Well, from the terror fight to public confidence in the economy, that's coming up, as well as a news alert.

Also, hate crimes, a big jump in crimes against Muslims in America. And we'll have the president's radio address at the end of the hour.

All just ahead on CNN's SATURDAY EDITION, but first, a news alert from Atlanta.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: I'll work with Democrats and Republicans in the next Congress to pass a growth and jobs package early next year. My administration is determined to make America safer, to make our economy stronger. And we're making progress on both fronts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAYS: President Bush pledging to make the U.S. economy stronger. Wall Street continuing to nudge upwards, consumer confidence on the upswing.

But results are still out on the start of the important holiday shopping season, and it still seems that people are braced for something that's going to be a little disappointing. You know, a lot of worries about the job market still, questions about the war, what's going to happen there.

But early indications are that this is not going to be a disaster, that maybe we're not going to have the best holiday shopping season we ever had -- and of course, Wall Street, just rallying and rallying and rallying. DOW almost at 9,000 now. There's obviously a lot of confidence among investors that we've seen the worst, and even if we're not in terrific shape, we can look somewhat of a brighter future.

STARR: What do people think is causing this upswing in the last several days, the rallying in the market?

HAYS: I think that people are looking at some news on the economy that surprised them that it wasn't weaker. Our third-quarter growth rate, 4 percent at an annual rate.

Now, of course, the fourth quarter is supposed to be much weaker. Consumer spending is -- again, it's not strong. It's kind of modest. And so we're going to have a bit of a pull-back.

But I think also the absence now -- we haven't had any big awful corporate surprises. I think people feel a lot of the accounting is behind us.

(CROSSTALK)

HAYS: Maybe so.

And again, the market got so beaten up. It was one of the most oversold markets in decades. So after such a big move down, you have to get to a point where some kind of bottom is in. And I just think more and more people thought, "I might as well stop (ph) buying." Their shorts got covered. The shorts have kind of powered the rally forward.

People say now though, "OK, you've gotten to this point. For the stock market to move ahead, you will now require some good news."

HINOJOSA: You know, let me tell you something...

HAYS: So you've gotten past the bad news. It just has to get better.

Yes, Maria? HINOJOSA: Let me tell you about this strange experience that I had though on Wednesday, which is of course the big travel day. And I was out at LaGuardia starting at, oh, I don't know, starting at 5:30, 5 o'clock in the morning. And there was a big push there at about 6:00 in the morning. And actually the longest line that I saw, which was about one New York City-block long, was not to get your tickets but to go through security.

But then after that, it was pretty empty. And I spoke to a lot of workers, and they said, "Well, yes, there's definitely -- you're seeing more people here now than we've seen before." But then I spoke to one flight attendant, and she said, "My God, I just came from D.C., and it was as empty as it was here. And if this is what it's like on the busiest travel day, we are in trouble. The air-travel business industry is in trouble."

So what are you hearing about that? I mean, is it that people decided to travel on Tuesday and not on Wednesday? Or is it that we have just gotten used to this idea that it's going to be a big travel day, but maybe in fact it wasn't?

HAYS: Well, that's maybe part of it. I think people are still a little bit concerned about the whole issue of terror, and if they can drive to see their relatives, they're going to do that. A lot of families probably are economizing to a certain extent. So even with great deals -- and at Thanksgiving, you know, that's a holiday time. If the airlines can get some money out of you, they will.

The airlines, though, such an interesting story right now, because as of Wednesday night, United Airlines thought that they had a deal. We interviewed Captain Herb Hunter, one of the Pilots Association's spokesmen, very passionately saying how they have the made sacrifices, they've agreed to the concessions. And then the next thing you know, the machinists union, the mechanics are saying, "We're not on board for this deal."

Now, if they get this deal, United Airlines will be in bankruptcy. There is no doubt about it.

STARR: And did the market blip? Was there a blip because of this United Airlines crisis, or did it just go right on by?

HAYS: Well, generally speaking, airline stocks are pretty beaten up because they've faced such tough times. I mean, what is it, United Airlines looses $5 million to $7 million a day. It's one of the worst examples of a money-losing airline.

The decision from the machinists occurred during the Thanksgiving holiday when they markets were closed...

STARR: So we don't know...

HAYS: ... and yesterday was kind of an abbreviated trading day.

I think -- I don't think people have high hopes in terms of buying the stock. I think, in terms of what this means, I think it has a kind of broader question about the airline industry, how important it is to have this many carriers. And if we do end up going to war, and if oil prices spike, and if we have another terror attack, you can only assume that it's going to get that much worse for the airlines.

And long term, as consumers, if airlines go under, we won't have all of this excess capacity, and maybe it's going to cost us more to fly. So I think it's a pretty important story, but not just from an investment angle.

HINOJOSA: Well, from the economic aftershocks of the terror attacks on September 11th to the social and civil liberties impact and the disturbing rise of hate crimes.

That's coming up on CNN's SATURDAY EDITION.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YUSRA AWAWDEH, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: Because I have the colors, because I have the flag, they told me to put it away.

HINOJOSA: And they said, "You can carry any flag. You can't carry this flag."

AWAWDEH: No, they said, "any flag." And then the dean goes, "Honey, the only flag you could represent in this school is the American flag."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HINOJOSA: New York high school student Yusra Awawdeh describing how school officials prohibited her from wearing the colors of the Palestinian flag.

Does public sentiment over the war on terrorism bend tolerance and civil liberties beyond the breaking point?

And another disturbing report from the FBI. Hate crimes against Muslim Americans and Middle Eastern Americans in the year following September 11 have shot up 1,600 percent. And Muslims used to be the least targeted religious group before that.

But I think for me what's interesting is that I spent some time with Yusra's family, and there they are living in Brooklyn. They're Brooklynites. They're Americans. And they're going to -- this young girl is going to her high school, and she's being told, "Don't you bring any other colors in here unless they're the American colors."

And, you know, we ended up getting this story through a series of e-mails, it ended up. But I wonder how often this is happening, that we just don't even hear about it and don't end up talking about it. It's a real concern.

HAYS: Well, Maria, what I was interested in is, in covering the hate crimes statistics story and speaking to criminologists, I mean, is this a group that just was underreported before? Or are these crimes that are now being classified as hate crimes that before would not have qualified as hate crimes?

That's what -- I just wanted to know what was behind those statistics. It sounds like a startling jump to me. I mean, is it really a startling jump, or is it just how those were put together?

HINOJOSA: No, what the FBI is saying that they -- and they used this word -- "presume" that this was tied to post-September 11th sentiment. So they're not saying that this was underreported before and now all of a sudden -- they really are saying that they -- again, choosing this word "presume" that it's tied to September 11th.

And another disturbing story that -- it was just so sad. And it raises a question about how broad is the impact of September 11th and the coverage for the victims of September 11th. On September 15th of 2001, a man who worked in Dallas but has his four girls and wife in New Jersey was making a hamburger at his convenience store outside of Dallas, and he is shot and killed my a man who is saying that he is doing this in the name of the good of the United States of America.

HAYS: Maria, that was terrible. But, you know, this was covered in a story in The Weekly Standard. And I think they took a -- they said there were three murders that were directly linked to that, that 1,600 percent jump still is a total of 481 incidents...

HINOJOSA: That's right.

HAYS: ... most of them not even violent. So I think that's what we're kind of getting at, like how big is -- is it really such a serious problem?

To me, the larger question really is the surveillance now of people of Middle Eastern descent, of Muslims in this country, and how the government now has the go-ahead to do things that many of us find somewhat disturbing, because, you know, if they can start surveilling you because they think you might be or know something about terrorists, they could do it to anyone.

HINOJOSA: Well, the point is, is that it's how these communities feel. And if they feel that they are here, that they are part of this country, that they are Americans, and one -- they feel the issue of surveillance. Yusra, this teenage girl, was taken to the dean's office, and they asked her to pull her pants up so that they could see inside her belly. I mean, we all know now in this new America that that basically means that they were checking for bombs, as if she was a kind of terrorist bomber.

So it's the issue of a community feeling like they're open to surveillance and then feeling that, who do they turn to when they're Americans and they're being treated in this way?

And I think for us, you know, as journalists, it's going into these communities and really getting a sense how they live these two lives. Yes, they're Arab Americans, yes, they're Palestinian, yes, they're Muslim, but they're fully Americans.

I mean, this family from Dallas, or this from New Jersey that lost their father, they now face deportation because when the father was killed, his immigration case was closed. So not only was their father a victim, but now they may all be deported back to Pakistan.

STARR: Maria, it's Barbara. Is there any sense that the Muslim American community now is going to find more of an organized voice to be heard on this subject, to not be silent about it?

HINOJOSA: Well, you know what, there are a lot of organizations that represent Arab Americans and Muslim Americans. And they're out there and they're watching this.

So I don't think it's a question of, you know, having a more unified voice. I think the issue is, are we, the media, picking up on these stories? They're happening all of the time. When we hear them, are we going with them, or is there a sense of, "Well, that's happening all of the time. It's a difficult time in America," and kind of suck it up. And I think that, from what I'm hearing from these communities, that's kind of how they feel.

HAYS: Maria, have they been in touch -- I mean, how much -- the ACLU is involved in this, the American Civil Liberties Union, to a certain extent, one would suppose. Is there any larger effort being organized among communities like that, on college campuses where more than one professor feels maybe they're a bit targeted as an Arab American for maybe speaking out against the war, for example?

HINOJOSA: Right, but you have to understand that, for example, when Yusra's family was asked, "Are you thinking about a lawsuit here," their family was like, "A lawsuit? What?" You know, this is not -- at least when you're talking at family levels, it's not immediately how they think. They don't think, "Let me call up the ACLU." I mean, the ACLU will be calling them, and there are lot of Arab American organizations.

But this family was still kind of in a state of shock, like "Oh my God, we were just told that we can't carry any other colors." So there's this kind of disjunctive between the grassroots and then what's happening on an organized level.

But, I mean, obviously, at this level, this family is not thinking about bringing on a lawsuit. They're thinking about, "How does my little girl finish high school and get good grades and go on to college and be safe?"

STARR: Well, coming up next, one of us was outside at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

CNN's SATURDAY EDITION is back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) HINOJOSA: We just say Charlie Brown pass, which got a big round of applause. And over here, well, we've got Big Bird coming up, a lot of kids really excited about that.

Whoa, a little bit of music behind us.

It's really also for New Yorkers a way of taking back their streets and saying, "We feel safe. We want everybody to know it. We feel good about coming out and being together as a community."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HINOJOSA: So New York City puts on a show and tens of -- million people take notice. 2.5 million people out there when it's 30 degrees. My God.

But it was -- I had never been to a parade up until three year ago. I had watched it television. But what makes it special is that, on that day, in New York City, that morning, that parade, everybody is just like, "We love each other, we love each other...

(LAUGHTER)

... it's so great to be here." Were smiling. And since 9/11, it's even more so that way. It really is. I mean, people have been told, "Look expect your bags to be checked. Expect your backpacks to be checked. There's going to be extra security." And people are still out at there at 6:00 in the morning with their kids and blankets.

ARENA: That's great.

And there was a big deal this year, Little Bill.

HINOJOSA: Little Bill, a big deal. First time in 76 years that they have an African-American balloon. So there were a lot of people who were particularly taking notice about that.

And one thing that I found really interesting, Macy's -- get this -- Macy's is the second-largest consumer of helium, second only to the U.S. government.

(LAUGHTER)

Who knew?

And Kermit did make his way back, but what's interesting about Kermit was that when he passed he was one of the biggest. And when he passed, they held him really, really low because they were so afraid...

ARENA: Well, that's right. They had that accident, right, like a year or two ago?

HAYS: Well, I was lucky. I got to watch it from someone's apartment where we were sort of at eye level with the balloons... HINOJOSA: Oh, wait a second, that's where I want...

HAYS: ... on Second Park West.

HINOJOSA: ... that's where I want to be next year.

(LAUGHTER)

ARENA: ... freezing out there. Cute hat, Maria.

(LAUGHTER)

HINOJOSA: Everybody was like, "What's up with the hat?" I was like, "Well, it was warm."

HAYS: A different topic but, I think, nonetheless interesting for people around the country is Henry Kissinger back with a new job, heading up this 9/11 commission.

And what are you guys picking up about the reaction to Henry as the one who is supposedly going to ferret out now the real truth behind whatever failure may have existed?

HINOJOSA: Well, I'll tell you, what I'm hearing on the street is a lot of people saying, "Henry Kissinger? Wait a second, Watergate, commercial interests, the ultimate insider. How is he going to be so independent to be actually able to ask these difficult questions?"

And you wonder then what that does with a time when the country is supposed to be pulling together and we're all in this, to suddenly be naming someone like this.

I mean, even the "New York Times" had it on its editorial page, "Is he really the most independent voice?" And so I think there's a lot of people wondering, wondering hard about that.

STARR: I think there's a lot of frustration about what -- we were talking about this earlier, of course, that it just seems like the Bush administration, many critics believe, is throwing bureaucracy at the problem, as opposed to action.

And I can only tell you that, you know, walking the hallways of the Pentagon, what you hear about all of this is growing unease that there will be another terrorist attack, possibly in the United States, while all of these commissions are going on, all of this bureaucracy.

ARENA: And this does take time. I mean, you know, you have to -- I mean, there have been lots of inquiries into what went wrong on September 11. And you have to make your FBI director available and your CIA director, the new head of counterterrorism, and agents in the field. There are a lot of -- there's a lot of time that gets into preparation and work.

And, you know, we just saw, you know, last week -- no, the week before, you know, this memo that went out to FBI field offices saying, "Hey, hey, hey, remember, priority number one is going out in the field and making contacts and gathering intelligence for counterterrorism purposes, not pushing paper."

HAYS: Well, you know, it kind of makes you wonder if they are sort of -- I mean, if you want to be cynical, if they're hoping that something else will happen. Henry can get his commission going, and maybe the war starts with Iraq and diverts attention there. Maybe something else happens so this is just isn't a front burner issue.

HINOJOSA: God, that's just -- my God, if we're talking at that level, that level of cynicism, that's a real problem at this point in this country in this moment of history to be -- that people could actually conceive that.

I will tell you something, I was at a -- on Broadway, a new show -- it's called the Deaf Poetry Jam, and it's kind of big because they're brining a lot of urban poets with different voices. And at one point, one of the poets said something like, "And 9/11, you know, some questions about the government involvement." And there were people in the audience that started applauding, which means there are a lot of people who are still -- you know, they're still raising questions about 9/11 and who was behind it within this country. And you just add this stuff, and the divisions just start feeling really deep.

STARR: I think there is a lot of cynicism, and it's the military's biggest concern. They could be at war in Iraq, there could be another terrorist attack, and what is the public reaction going to be to some awful eventuality like that?

HAYS: Well, and it's certainly a concern, to be very mundane, for the markets, because right now we seem to be in a spot where a lot of things could happen. We're going into the holidays. The market typically does well in the holiday season. It's a kind of a seasonal...

STARR: To me, that's a critical, critical question here. Has the market discounted the notion of war? Or if we start dropping bombs, will the market collapse? What's going to happen?

HAYS: Well, Barbara, I think what the market has discounted, I think they believe, the optimistic view that the people in the Pentagon who want the short, fast, heavy technology and bring in the troops and you're done, and Saddam Hussein crumbles -- I think the market, that is what they are counting on.

And I think most people figure, if that doesn't happen, that's when you see oil prices moving higher, that's when the stock market has to really reevaluate what this war is going to mean for the economy and for the market. But right now, people have their fingers crossed.

STARR: Well, that's fascinating, because at the Pentagon, the military will tell you they have no idea if the Iraqis will welcome U.S. troops.

ARENA: You know what, let's continue another time.

That's all for this SATURDAY EDITION. Thanks to me colleagues and all of you for watching.

Coming up, a news alert and "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" with singers Ozzy Osbourne and Alanis Morrisette. But first, the president's weekly radio address.

BUSH: Good morning.

This week, all across America, we gather with the people we love to give thanks for the blessings in our lives. Each family has its own traditions, yet we are united as a nation in setting aside a day of gratitude. We are grateful for the freedoms we enjoy, grateful for the loved ones who give meaning to our lives, and grateful for the many gifts of this prosperous land.

On Thanksgiving, we acknowledge that all of these things, and life itself, come not from the hand of man, but from Almighty God.

The blessings we have received take on special meaning in this time of challenge for our country. Over the last year, millions of Americans have found renewed appreciation for our liberty and for the men and women who serve in its defense. We have held our family and our friends closer, spending more time together and letting them know we love them.

Taking time to count our own blessings reminds us that many people struggle every day -- men, women and children facing hunger, homelessness, illness, addiction or despair. These are not strangers. They are fellow Americans needing comfort, love and compassion.

I ask all Americans to consider how you can give someone in need a reason to be thankful in this holiday season and throughout the year. It's easy to get started and to have an immediate impact. Volunteering your time at a soup kitchen, teaching a child to read, visiting a patient in the hospital or taking a meal to an elderly neighbor or a shut-in are all simple acts of compassion that can brighten someone's life.

Every act of love and generosity, however small it may seem, is significant. Every time you reach out to a neighbor in need, you touch a life, you improve your community, and you strengthen our nation.

Earlier this year, I created the USA Freedom Corps office in the White House to harness the power of millions of acts of charity, compassion and love to make America a better place. I hope you'll consider joining the armies of compassion in dedicating time and energy and service to others.

I'm so proud of the millions of Americans who have answered the call to service, enriching the lives of others with acts of kindness. It is a testament to the good heart and the giving spirit of the American people.

There's no better time than this season of Thanksgiving to renew our commitment to helping those in need. The USA Freedom Corps website, usafreedomcorps.gov, is a wonderful place to get started. This resource offers valuable information about service opportunities in your hometown, across America and around the world. You can also get information by calling 1-877-USA-CORPS.

Take the time to find out how you can help your fellow Americans and make this holiday season a season of service.

Happy Thanksgiving, and thank you for listening.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Work in Iraq; Consumer Spending on the Rise>


Aired November 30, 2002 - 10:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Welcome to CNN's SATURDAY EDITION, where our journalists have the inside scoop on the stories they covered this week. I'm Kelli Arena.
The president says huge government reorganization will deliver a comprehensive effort against terrorism.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I'm Barbara Starr. The military prepares for possible war with heavy reliance on part- time warriors.

RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rym Brahimi in Baghdad, reading the mood here as Iraqis follow the first inspections in their country in four years.

MARIA HINOJOSA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Maria Hinojosa in New York. I'll be back later in the hour to talk about hate crimes and civil liberties when a nation is apprehensive about terrorism.

KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Kathleen Hays. The markets surged before Thanksgiving, and shoppers voted with their dollars and credit cards yesterday.

We'll talk about all these stories, and we'll listen to the president's weekly radio address at the end of the hour. But first, this news alert from CNN headquarters in Atlanta.

(NEWSBREAK)

BRAHIMI: Well, it's a very interesting time to be here in Baghdad as inspectors resume the first inspections, as I said, in four years.

What's interesting, also, is among ordinary Iraqis, there seems to be some hope for the first time that a war with the U.S. may still be averted. And I think that has something to do with the fact that there is seemingly a "softly, softly" approach on both sides -- on the U.N. inspectors' side and also on the Iraqi side, keen -- or at least keen to be seen, at least, as cooperating.

STARR: Rym, it's Barbara. What are you hearing out there in Baghdad, in Iraq, about whether these inspections so far are really going to be aggressive? In other words, are the inspectors going to sites first just sort of testing the waters? How soon are they going to get to the site that are the most controversial, those presidential palaces, those high-security compounds? When is that real work going to start happening?

BRAHIMI: Well, that's not clear yet. Obviously because it's on the basis of no-notice inspections, Barbara, we're obviously being kept in the dark as to when they plan to go and visit these sites.

What's clear so far is that they're going into all the obvious sites, the sites that have been cited in various reports as being suspected of still producing some form of weapons of mass destruction, if you will. So they've been going into these various sites for now.

We do know that they have repeated to us in their various news conferences, Barbara, that they do intend to make full use of their prerogatives that were given to them in that resolution, 1441. And so they will go into those sites as surprise inspections.

What we're hearing from Iraqi officials is something else. They think that having inspectors back is tough enough. They think also that -- they're still a bit suspicious. There is some sort of hope that this cooperation might work out, but there's still a lot of suspicion, Barbara, because Iraqis always have complained of the previous inspectors, saying that there were allegations of spying and things like that.

So there seems to be a moment now where everybody is sort of gorging the other.

HAYS: Rym, this is Kathleen here. And I'm curious, you mentioned how there's a sense of hope among the Iraqi people that maybe these inspections, what are going to work, that they'll avert war. Why this sense of hope now?

BRAHIMI: Well, it's interesting. You know, when we spoke to people here before the Iraqi government accepted the resolution, well, a lot of people were saying, "Well, whatever we do, if we accept it or not, it won't make a difference, the U.S. intends to bomb us, they're after our oil, and that's what's going to happen anyway."

And for the first time now, in the past couple of days, since we've been having, and Iraqis have been having, regular reports through their own media on how the inspections have proceeded, well, we're talking to people who are actually now saying something different. Not everybody, there is still a lot of skepticism, but some people are now saying, "Well, maybe it will work. Maybe they will lift the sanctions. Maybe they will see that there's nothing." They all say, "Well, this is what our president is telling us. Our leadership tells us we have nothing, and they'll have to see that at one point." So this is why I'm saying there seems to be now some hope, and that's quite new.

ARENA: Rym, what do you think -- I mean, we hear what the Iraqi government is saying, but what is anyone else saying in terms of what happens if they don't actually find anything, if these inspectors go to these places where they suspect that there may be weapons of mass destruction and nothing turns up? Do we just go away?

BRAHIMI: Well, what people are hoping here is, they say, well, they're pretty sure that they're not going to find anything. And then the opinions are divided as to, "Well, they're not going to find anything, therefore we might actually be off the hook and maybe we'll get the sanctions lifted."

You know, there have been sanctions put in place here since Iraq invaded Kuwait. It's been 12 years, and it's hurt a lot of the people here.

And then there's the other school of thought, the people that say, "Well, they won't find anything because we have nothing to hide. But they will bomb all the same, because that's what the U.S. has planned to do from the very beginning."

STARR: Rym, it's also interesting, here in the United States of course on television, we saw some very interesting pictures this week as these inspections began. We saw convoys of news media vehicles following the inspectors out to the site.

I suspect that's something very new in Iraq that has not been seen before. Are the people noticing it? What's the government reaction to all of this news coverage?

BRAHIMI: Well, absolutely, that's a very interesting part of it. You see, we set off in the morning. We all go and wait at the U.N. headquarters, and then the minute the inspectors cars, you know, leave the compound, well, we all jump into our cars and we just follow them. It actually gives a place to high-speed chases...

(LAUGHTER)

... quite dangerous in a way, but the government is welcoming that.

The government, actually when they accepted the inspectors back, said that they wanted the international media here. Now, of course, people here in Iraq are not quite used to seeing this, so we get a lot of comments from, you know, bystanders who wonder what on Earth is going on.

(LAUGHTER)

One person even asked us if this was a wedding delegation. They just had no idea what this was all about.

HAYS: I'm curious too, what is the mood among the people toward Saddam Hussein? So many things we read here, cruel dictator, many Americans portray him as someone who will topple instantly because the people will turn on him instantly if the U.S. does attack Iraq.

Do you get any sense that how he's handling the inspections now has that changed that view at all? What, again, is the mood toward Saddam among the people?

BRAHIMI: Well, that's a very good question, but it's also probably the most difficult to answer for us reporters here in Baghdad. One of the reasons is people don't really talk about that in those terms.

What we do know, what they do say is that whatever happens -- and they don't really specify; you kind of guess that they're talking about you know, the U.S. overthrowing the regime -- they say, "Well, whatever happens, we're still worried that it will come with a war." They don't really go into anything else. But they are worried at the prospect of war.

Now in terms of what the inspections' effect on how people view their regime, I think they're very relieved because they feel that no matter what -- well, the fact that the Iraqi regime has accepted the inspectors back at least gets them off the hook for the time being, even among those who think that the Americans do intend to bomb anyway. They think that at least they have gained a few months of reprieve. And so I think everybody is pretty much happy with that.

Now, that doesn't really say much about what they think of their own leadership, and that's really probably the most difficult thing to tell here because people don't really talk openly about that.

STARR: So, Rym, people there -- I mean, the bottom line is, do they believe -- are they still preparing for war? Do they have real belief, real hope that maybe there will not be a war? What do the people in Baghdad think?

BRAHIMI: OK, well, here's what I've been able to find out. I have a feeling from the conversations I've had with people in the streets, in different areas, at universities, with different people from all walks of life really, you have the officials who feel that the Americans are really, really trying to find any excuse. And a lot of intellectuals, a lot of university professors that I've spoken to, well, they have the same problem, they have the same fears in a way. They often ask me, "Well, do you really think this is going to work? Don't you see that the Americans are intent on bombing anyway?"

Among the ordinary people, I'm talking about your regular taxi driver, well, I've noticed that there is some hope among these people. There is a little less skepticism and a little bit of hope. Maybe that's because they have less access to international media than other people. They listen to what they're being told in the newspapers and the media here. And they think, "Well, hey, it might just work, and we might actually get the sanctions lifted."

But on the whole, of course, it's very difficult for people here. And I think there is still an underlying fear that, no matter what, there is a lot of preparation for war going on. Certainly the government has been making that point that, no matter what, they're still getting ready. They're distributing rations to people, two months' worth of rations actually, which is more than what they do usually.

So there's preparations on the one hand, you know, preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.

STARR: Well, indeed, from arms inspections in Iraq to arms preparation by the U.S. military in the region surrounding Iraq. More on that as SATURDAY EDITION continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COL. PATRICK LANG (RET.), U.S. ARMY: We're going to have a force in the area that will so outclass the Iraqis in every way, who are in fact a third-world army, that even hostilities start, if they do, as a result of the failure of the inspection regime, that the -- in Patton's famous phrase, that the U.S. Army and Marine Corps will go through the Iraqis like a red-hot poker through a pat of butter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: That was retired Army Colonel Patrick Lang, former chief Middle East intelligence analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency.

The U.S. military pushes ahead with its trainings and preparations for possible war with Iraq. And indeed, in the next couple of weeks we are going to see a major development. The U.S. Central Command, which will run any war, will be moving its headquarters to the Persian Gulf, about 600 troops. They will practice command and control communications, all of the essential tasks for running a war directly in the Persian Gulf. This is going to be a major development on the road to preparations for possible war.

But so far, it's all just preparations. And as we learned earlier this week, even the reserve forces are getting very involved. There are preparations for call-up of hundreds of thousands of reserve forces.

And they're going to be doing something very interesting. Of course, not only filling some essential jobs in the military, but providing security possibly here at home as the terrorist threat grows, something we saw earlier this week in Kenya.

Kelli, do you...

BRAHIMI: Let...

STARR: I'm sorry, Rym?

BRAHIMI: Yes, I'm wondering, Barbara, you know, what I was saying earlier on is a lot of people here are convinced that, no matter what happens, these inspections are really just for show and that the U.S. is preparing this build-up because precisely it intends to attack Iraq no matter what.

What's the view in the Pentagon? Do they view these inspections as just something they have to go through for, you know, just to satisfy the U.N. and that they intend to continue their military pressure no matter what?

STARR: Well, it's hard to say. I mean, the Pentagon is doing what the president has asked, and that is preparing for war, preparing for any contingency the president asks them to fulfill.

What the Bush administration is clearly doing is watching inspections very closely, watching Hans Blix, really making an effort to press them to be as aggressive as possible. I think there's probably no question from the Bush administration's point of view, they want very aggressive inspections. They want to get this resolved very quickly. Hans Blix, the inspectors, they probably want to carry it on a bit further.

But what I was going to ask Kelli a minute ago is, as we saw this terrorist attack unfold in Kenya, it sort of brings all of these pieces together. It causes a lot of sort of unrest in what was a relatively straightforward planning scenario for Iraq. And it seems pretty clear this latest terrorist attack in Kenya may unsettle things just a bit more.

I don't know what Kelli is hearing from her sources at the FBI and Justice Department.

ARENA: Well, this -- first of all, this wasn't a surprise. I mean, there had been some intelligence about some activity in the region, although it was not, according to our sources, either specific or credible. But we'd been hearing all along that obviously there were expected to be more terrorist attacks.

What's different about this, though, is that it is against an Israeli target outside of Israel, which doesn't fit the al Qaeda M.O. Fits more the Hezbollah M.O. However, no one has -- no one group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

And, Barbara, I don't know about you, but was it a surprise from your end of the world?

STARR: Absolutely not. From the intelligence and military sources we have spoken to this week, perhaps the only question they had is what took so long, as awkward as that sounds.

There had been a lot of concern about the Horn of Africa, about East Africa, a great and growing belief that al Qaeda was operating throughout that region.

And or course a lot of concern about this surface-to-air missile threat against commercial aviation around the world, raising a lot of questions about whether or not there's anything they can really do about it if someone wants to shoot down a commercial airliner with a shoulder-fired missile. It seems to be a pretty difficult threat to try and really confront.

ARENA: And for that to happen, Barbara, right when you have one of the busiest holiday traveling seasons under way -- of course, starting with Thanksgiving, heading into the Christmas holiday -- can surely put a damper, which will be Kathleen's deal later on, for the economy.

HAYS: I'm just -- what I have found fascinating recently in this run-up to a possible war is all the discussion about the kind of war we're going to wage there, Barbara, and this whole thing about effects operations, where you're going to come in and just razzle-dazzle, blast the enemy so much you can come in with the ground troops very quickly, and this whole scenario of winning the war so quickly.

Inside the Pentagon, is everyone now on board? Are there any doubters in the Army or the Marine Corps who would suffer if intelligence isn't what it should be, if this quick strike doesn't quite work and they have people on the ground? Is everybody now lined up to fight the war this way that seems to be the way we're heading?

STARR: Well, of course, there is that sort of old saying, "No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy." There is a lot of concern in the Pentagon this may not be a cakewalk, that the Iraqis may, you know, put up a credible fight, that Saddam Hussein may stay in power.

And, Rym, that's a question that one here doesn't really get a great answer to. Will Saddam absolutely hang on until the bitter end? Does he believe he can communicate with his military and control his people even once the U.S. bombing starts?

BRAHIMI: Yes, that's right, Barbara, that is a question that's extremely hard to answer, and even for us on the ground here because, as I said, people don't really respond to that directly. It's just really difficult to answer to the question, well, is there too much resentment with regard to the Americans for anyone to actually be happy for the Americans to show up and maybe do something about the regime. So this is, I think, how people should look at it.

Now, one question I wanted to ask you is, we're hearing reports that the U.S. are dropping leaflets in the no-fly zones, trying to convince the Iraqi military to precisely do that, to not respond to their raids, to their air flights -- sorry -- to not respond to any threats and to just not do anything and maybe cooperate with the Americans if they do come over.

But the funny thing is, we're not hearing that through the local media of course. We don't know anything about that. Is there a sense at the Pentagon that these leaflets are getting any kind of response?

STARR: That's a really interesting question because we have asked that. They've done five leaflet drops in the last couple of months, and so far there is no indication they're getting a response. On day in the last couple of weeks, the Iraqis fired 50 times in one day at U.S. warplanes. So the leaflets are falling. The question is, is anybody picking them up and reading them?

ARENA: Well, Rym, we want to thank you for sharing your experiences on SATURDAY EDITION.

That's Rym Brahimi in Baghdad.

From the U.S. policy on guard against Iraq to the domestic policy on guard against terrorism. SATURDAY EDITION is back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: America has been engaged in an unprecedented effort to defend our freedom and our security. We're fighting a war against terror with all our resources, and we're determined to win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARENA: President Bush signing the homeland security bill and launching the largest reorganization of the federal government in 50 years.

Welcome back to SATURDAY EDITION.

And welcome to our CNN colleague in New York, Maria Hinojosa. Hello, Maria.

HINOJOSA: Hi, Kelli.

ARENA: Well, public opinion is ho-hum about what the change will mean. Only 11 percent of Americans polled at the end of last week expect the new Department of Homeland Security to be very effective. More than half say somewhat effective, and 31 percent say not effective.

And one thing that I want to remind everyone of is that the FBI and the CIA, those that gather the intelligence, are not under this homeland security umbrella. They will feed information to the Homeland Security Department to be analyzed, so that everybody is aware and able to, you know, infamously connect the dots, which is a cause for some concern. It's one more stop that all this information has to make it to.

And you are looking at a reorganization when the threat to the homeland is probably the most serious that it's has ever been. I mean, you saw what the FBI went through in trying to reorganize while dealing with an investigation of the September 11th attacks.

So those in law enforcement and intelligence are queasy about how this is all going to come together.

HINOJOSA: Kelli?

ARENA: Yes, Maria?

HINOJOSA: You know, there are a lot of people who I hear and speak to on the street, and they just say, how is it possible that we can continue -- or that the U.S. government and all of these institutions can try to focus on terrorism when there's all of this reorganization happening? I mean, this is big stuff, to take the greatest change in the U.S. government in 50 years.

How do they reorganize and don't skip a beat in the process of trying to track these terrorists down? ARENA: That is the question. And, you know, those officials will tell you, well, obviously, you know, those that are gathering intelligence are not affected by this. The FBI and the CIA remain just as they are right now.

But there is that concern, there is the concern about putting this all together. You saw the heavy criticism that the FBI has come under in trying to reorganize itself since September 11th and in changing its focus from law enforcement to counterterrorism and the bumps along the way that it's hit. And then this talk about possibly creating a new agency. Well, that is just what they expect in bringing together the -- and plus, you know, Tom Ridge, who will be heading it up, some say, just not very patient in dealing with bureaucracy, wants things done.

(CROSSTALK)

HAYS: ... bureaucracy is the thing though. One-hundred-and- seventy-thousand people. There's already been a lot of question and criticism. There's going to be a new task force to see -- look again at the FBI and the CIA...

ARENA: Led by Henry Kissinger.

HAYS: ... going into September 11th. But I think that's one reason why a lot of Americans are worried and skeptical. A new government bureaucracy, 170,000 people, why are we going to have any more faith now that that is going to fight against these little cells of the organized people?

ARENA: Well, officials will tell you part of the problem before was that, you know, the right hand didn't know what the left hand was doing. And so, you needed to bring all of this information together. You needed to have one central clearinghouse to be able to get names on the watchlist that make it to the aviation industry and the trucking industry.

STARR: But, of course, this really doesn't get to what many analysts will tell you is the fundamental problem in security and intelligence issues. It's not what information you're getting in the front door, it's the mountains and mountains and volumes of information -- prioritizing it, figuring out what eavesdropping intercepts to listen to, what to translate, what to put in front of decision-makers...

ARENA: And having all the translators in place, which is still a problem.

STARR: ... and having the right people on board.

And it's just fascinating, to me at least, that they're addressing this with a bureaucratic solution, which Kathleen pointed out, a new commission, before they really have the bottom line on what went wrong on 9/11.

HINOJOSA: And also, are they going to increase, are we going to see a hiring increase? We've just heard that Bush is not going to give any increase in wages to the federal workers. So is there new staffing that's going to happen? And what happens when -- I mean, my God, add new staffing to all of that and then what do you do?

(LAUGHTER)

ARENA: Well, it is. I mean, we are in the midst of -- you know, this is the exact discussion that they're having behind closed doors, is exactly how to tackle all of this.

And there was -- I mean, there was a big public cry for a solution. The government needed to do something because there was such frustration.

But the bottom line is, and this is very sobering and I'm sorry to say it, but the bottom line is that every expert -- Barbara, you can back me up here -- every expect that we have spoken to says, "Hello, this is the new reality. The United States will again be affected by a terrorist attack. There is no way to completely prohibit every single terrorist from being successful and that they will eventually be successful."

(CROSSTALK)

HAYS: I want to ask you, what about all of the reservists being called up? How will this Department of Homeland Defense coordinate with the reservists who are being called up to protect, you know, water, air ports, et cetera?

STARR: Well, all of that coordination is done with state governors very much between the federal and the state authorities when the reserves or the National Guard is called up.

But, you know, only more of that to come, as far as anybody can see. It's going to really start happening more and more.

HAYS: I guess so.

Well, from the terror fight to public confidence in the economy, that's coming up, as well as a news alert.

Also, hate crimes, a big jump in crimes against Muslims in America. And we'll have the president's radio address at the end of the hour.

All just ahead on CNN's SATURDAY EDITION, but first, a news alert from Atlanta.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: I'll work with Democrats and Republicans in the next Congress to pass a growth and jobs package early next year. My administration is determined to make America safer, to make our economy stronger. And we're making progress on both fronts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAYS: President Bush pledging to make the U.S. economy stronger. Wall Street continuing to nudge upwards, consumer confidence on the upswing.

But results are still out on the start of the important holiday shopping season, and it still seems that people are braced for something that's going to be a little disappointing. You know, a lot of worries about the job market still, questions about the war, what's going to happen there.

But early indications are that this is not going to be a disaster, that maybe we're not going to have the best holiday shopping season we ever had -- and of course, Wall Street, just rallying and rallying and rallying. DOW almost at 9,000 now. There's obviously a lot of confidence among investors that we've seen the worst, and even if we're not in terrific shape, we can look somewhat of a brighter future.

STARR: What do people think is causing this upswing in the last several days, the rallying in the market?

HAYS: I think that people are looking at some news on the economy that surprised them that it wasn't weaker. Our third-quarter growth rate, 4 percent at an annual rate.

Now, of course, the fourth quarter is supposed to be much weaker. Consumer spending is -- again, it's not strong. It's kind of modest. And so we're going to have a bit of a pull-back.

But I think also the absence now -- we haven't had any big awful corporate surprises. I think people feel a lot of the accounting is behind us.

(CROSSTALK)

HAYS: Maybe so.

And again, the market got so beaten up. It was one of the most oversold markets in decades. So after such a big move down, you have to get to a point where some kind of bottom is in. And I just think more and more people thought, "I might as well stop (ph) buying." Their shorts got covered. The shorts have kind of powered the rally forward.

People say now though, "OK, you've gotten to this point. For the stock market to move ahead, you will now require some good news."

HINOJOSA: You know, let me tell you something...

HAYS: So you've gotten past the bad news. It just has to get better.

Yes, Maria? HINOJOSA: Let me tell you about this strange experience that I had though on Wednesday, which is of course the big travel day. And I was out at LaGuardia starting at, oh, I don't know, starting at 5:30, 5 o'clock in the morning. And there was a big push there at about 6:00 in the morning. And actually the longest line that I saw, which was about one New York City-block long, was not to get your tickets but to go through security.

But then after that, it was pretty empty. And I spoke to a lot of workers, and they said, "Well, yes, there's definitely -- you're seeing more people here now than we've seen before." But then I spoke to one flight attendant, and she said, "My God, I just came from D.C., and it was as empty as it was here. And if this is what it's like on the busiest travel day, we are in trouble. The air-travel business industry is in trouble."

So what are you hearing about that? I mean, is it that people decided to travel on Tuesday and not on Wednesday? Or is it that we have just gotten used to this idea that it's going to be a big travel day, but maybe in fact it wasn't?

HAYS: Well, that's maybe part of it. I think people are still a little bit concerned about the whole issue of terror, and if they can drive to see their relatives, they're going to do that. A lot of families probably are economizing to a certain extent. So even with great deals -- and at Thanksgiving, you know, that's a holiday time. If the airlines can get some money out of you, they will.

The airlines, though, such an interesting story right now, because as of Wednesday night, United Airlines thought that they had a deal. We interviewed Captain Herb Hunter, one of the Pilots Association's spokesmen, very passionately saying how they have the made sacrifices, they've agreed to the concessions. And then the next thing you know, the machinists union, the mechanics are saying, "We're not on board for this deal."

Now, if they get this deal, United Airlines will be in bankruptcy. There is no doubt about it.

STARR: And did the market blip? Was there a blip because of this United Airlines crisis, or did it just go right on by?

HAYS: Well, generally speaking, airline stocks are pretty beaten up because they've faced such tough times. I mean, what is it, United Airlines looses $5 million to $7 million a day. It's one of the worst examples of a money-losing airline.

The decision from the machinists occurred during the Thanksgiving holiday when they markets were closed...

STARR: So we don't know...

HAYS: ... and yesterday was kind of an abbreviated trading day.

I think -- I don't think people have high hopes in terms of buying the stock. I think, in terms of what this means, I think it has a kind of broader question about the airline industry, how important it is to have this many carriers. And if we do end up going to war, and if oil prices spike, and if we have another terror attack, you can only assume that it's going to get that much worse for the airlines.

And long term, as consumers, if airlines go under, we won't have all of this excess capacity, and maybe it's going to cost us more to fly. So I think it's a pretty important story, but not just from an investment angle.

HINOJOSA: Well, from the economic aftershocks of the terror attacks on September 11th to the social and civil liberties impact and the disturbing rise of hate crimes.

That's coming up on CNN's SATURDAY EDITION.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YUSRA AWAWDEH, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: Because I have the colors, because I have the flag, they told me to put it away.

HINOJOSA: And they said, "You can carry any flag. You can't carry this flag."

AWAWDEH: No, they said, "any flag." And then the dean goes, "Honey, the only flag you could represent in this school is the American flag."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HINOJOSA: New York high school student Yusra Awawdeh describing how school officials prohibited her from wearing the colors of the Palestinian flag.

Does public sentiment over the war on terrorism bend tolerance and civil liberties beyond the breaking point?

And another disturbing report from the FBI. Hate crimes against Muslim Americans and Middle Eastern Americans in the year following September 11 have shot up 1,600 percent. And Muslims used to be the least targeted religious group before that.

But I think for me what's interesting is that I spent some time with Yusra's family, and there they are living in Brooklyn. They're Brooklynites. They're Americans. And they're going to -- this young girl is going to her high school, and she's being told, "Don't you bring any other colors in here unless they're the American colors."

And, you know, we ended up getting this story through a series of e-mails, it ended up. But I wonder how often this is happening, that we just don't even hear about it and don't end up talking about it. It's a real concern.

HAYS: Well, Maria, what I was interested in is, in covering the hate crimes statistics story and speaking to criminologists, I mean, is this a group that just was underreported before? Or are these crimes that are now being classified as hate crimes that before would not have qualified as hate crimes?

That's what -- I just wanted to know what was behind those statistics. It sounds like a startling jump to me. I mean, is it really a startling jump, or is it just how those were put together?

HINOJOSA: No, what the FBI is saying that they -- and they used this word -- "presume" that this was tied to post-September 11th sentiment. So they're not saying that this was underreported before and now all of a sudden -- they really are saying that they -- again, choosing this word "presume" that it's tied to September 11th.

And another disturbing story that -- it was just so sad. And it raises a question about how broad is the impact of September 11th and the coverage for the victims of September 11th. On September 15th of 2001, a man who worked in Dallas but has his four girls and wife in New Jersey was making a hamburger at his convenience store outside of Dallas, and he is shot and killed my a man who is saying that he is doing this in the name of the good of the United States of America.

HAYS: Maria, that was terrible. But, you know, this was covered in a story in The Weekly Standard. And I think they took a -- they said there were three murders that were directly linked to that, that 1,600 percent jump still is a total of 481 incidents...

HINOJOSA: That's right.

HAYS: ... most of them not even violent. So I think that's what we're kind of getting at, like how big is -- is it really such a serious problem?

To me, the larger question really is the surveillance now of people of Middle Eastern descent, of Muslims in this country, and how the government now has the go-ahead to do things that many of us find somewhat disturbing, because, you know, if they can start surveilling you because they think you might be or know something about terrorists, they could do it to anyone.

HINOJOSA: Well, the point is, is that it's how these communities feel. And if they feel that they are here, that they are part of this country, that they are Americans, and one -- they feel the issue of surveillance. Yusra, this teenage girl, was taken to the dean's office, and they asked her to pull her pants up so that they could see inside her belly. I mean, we all know now in this new America that that basically means that they were checking for bombs, as if she was a kind of terrorist bomber.

So it's the issue of a community feeling like they're open to surveillance and then feeling that, who do they turn to when they're Americans and they're being treated in this way?

And I think for us, you know, as journalists, it's going into these communities and really getting a sense how they live these two lives. Yes, they're Arab Americans, yes, they're Palestinian, yes, they're Muslim, but they're fully Americans.

I mean, this family from Dallas, or this from New Jersey that lost their father, they now face deportation because when the father was killed, his immigration case was closed. So not only was their father a victim, but now they may all be deported back to Pakistan.

STARR: Maria, it's Barbara. Is there any sense that the Muslim American community now is going to find more of an organized voice to be heard on this subject, to not be silent about it?

HINOJOSA: Well, you know what, there are a lot of organizations that represent Arab Americans and Muslim Americans. And they're out there and they're watching this.

So I don't think it's a question of, you know, having a more unified voice. I think the issue is, are we, the media, picking up on these stories? They're happening all of the time. When we hear them, are we going with them, or is there a sense of, "Well, that's happening all of the time. It's a difficult time in America," and kind of suck it up. And I think that, from what I'm hearing from these communities, that's kind of how they feel.

HAYS: Maria, have they been in touch -- I mean, how much -- the ACLU is involved in this, the American Civil Liberties Union, to a certain extent, one would suppose. Is there any larger effort being organized among communities like that, on college campuses where more than one professor feels maybe they're a bit targeted as an Arab American for maybe speaking out against the war, for example?

HINOJOSA: Right, but you have to understand that, for example, when Yusra's family was asked, "Are you thinking about a lawsuit here," their family was like, "A lawsuit? What?" You know, this is not -- at least when you're talking at family levels, it's not immediately how they think. They don't think, "Let me call up the ACLU." I mean, the ACLU will be calling them, and there are lot of Arab American organizations.

But this family was still kind of in a state of shock, like "Oh my God, we were just told that we can't carry any other colors." So there's this kind of disjunctive between the grassroots and then what's happening on an organized level.

But, I mean, obviously, at this level, this family is not thinking about bringing on a lawsuit. They're thinking about, "How does my little girl finish high school and get good grades and go on to college and be safe?"

STARR: Well, coming up next, one of us was outside at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

CNN's SATURDAY EDITION is back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) HINOJOSA: We just say Charlie Brown pass, which got a big round of applause. And over here, well, we've got Big Bird coming up, a lot of kids really excited about that.

Whoa, a little bit of music behind us.

It's really also for New Yorkers a way of taking back their streets and saying, "We feel safe. We want everybody to know it. We feel good about coming out and being together as a community."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HINOJOSA: So New York City puts on a show and tens of -- million people take notice. 2.5 million people out there when it's 30 degrees. My God.

But it was -- I had never been to a parade up until three year ago. I had watched it television. But what makes it special is that, on that day, in New York City, that morning, that parade, everybody is just like, "We love each other, we love each other...

(LAUGHTER)

... it's so great to be here." Were smiling. And since 9/11, it's even more so that way. It really is. I mean, people have been told, "Look expect your bags to be checked. Expect your backpacks to be checked. There's going to be extra security." And people are still out at there at 6:00 in the morning with their kids and blankets.

ARENA: That's great.

And there was a big deal this year, Little Bill.

HINOJOSA: Little Bill, a big deal. First time in 76 years that they have an African-American balloon. So there were a lot of people who were particularly taking notice about that.

And one thing that I found really interesting, Macy's -- get this -- Macy's is the second-largest consumer of helium, second only to the U.S. government.

(LAUGHTER)

Who knew?

And Kermit did make his way back, but what's interesting about Kermit was that when he passed he was one of the biggest. And when he passed, they held him really, really low because they were so afraid...

ARENA: Well, that's right. They had that accident, right, like a year or two ago?

HAYS: Well, I was lucky. I got to watch it from someone's apartment where we were sort of at eye level with the balloons... HINOJOSA: Oh, wait a second, that's where I want...

HAYS: ... on Second Park West.

HINOJOSA: ... that's where I want to be next year.

(LAUGHTER)

ARENA: ... freezing out there. Cute hat, Maria.

(LAUGHTER)

HINOJOSA: Everybody was like, "What's up with the hat?" I was like, "Well, it was warm."

HAYS: A different topic but, I think, nonetheless interesting for people around the country is Henry Kissinger back with a new job, heading up this 9/11 commission.

And what are you guys picking up about the reaction to Henry as the one who is supposedly going to ferret out now the real truth behind whatever failure may have existed?

HINOJOSA: Well, I'll tell you, what I'm hearing on the street is a lot of people saying, "Henry Kissinger? Wait a second, Watergate, commercial interests, the ultimate insider. How is he going to be so independent to be actually able to ask these difficult questions?"

And you wonder then what that does with a time when the country is supposed to be pulling together and we're all in this, to suddenly be naming someone like this.

I mean, even the "New York Times" had it on its editorial page, "Is he really the most independent voice?" And so I think there's a lot of people wondering, wondering hard about that.

STARR: I think there's a lot of frustration about what -- we were talking about this earlier, of course, that it just seems like the Bush administration, many critics believe, is throwing bureaucracy at the problem, as opposed to action.

And I can only tell you that, you know, walking the hallways of the Pentagon, what you hear about all of this is growing unease that there will be another terrorist attack, possibly in the United States, while all of these commissions are going on, all of this bureaucracy.

ARENA: And this does take time. I mean, you know, you have to -- I mean, there have been lots of inquiries into what went wrong on September 11. And you have to make your FBI director available and your CIA director, the new head of counterterrorism, and agents in the field. There are a lot of -- there's a lot of time that gets into preparation and work.

And, you know, we just saw, you know, last week -- no, the week before, you know, this memo that went out to FBI field offices saying, "Hey, hey, hey, remember, priority number one is going out in the field and making contacts and gathering intelligence for counterterrorism purposes, not pushing paper."

HAYS: Well, you know, it kind of makes you wonder if they are sort of -- I mean, if you want to be cynical, if they're hoping that something else will happen. Henry can get his commission going, and maybe the war starts with Iraq and diverts attention there. Maybe something else happens so this is just isn't a front burner issue.

HINOJOSA: God, that's just -- my God, if we're talking at that level, that level of cynicism, that's a real problem at this point in this country in this moment of history to be -- that people could actually conceive that.

I will tell you something, I was at a -- on Broadway, a new show -- it's called the Deaf Poetry Jam, and it's kind of big because they're brining a lot of urban poets with different voices. And at one point, one of the poets said something like, "And 9/11, you know, some questions about the government involvement." And there were people in the audience that started applauding, which means there are a lot of people who are still -- you know, they're still raising questions about 9/11 and who was behind it within this country. And you just add this stuff, and the divisions just start feeling really deep.

STARR: I think there is a lot of cynicism, and it's the military's biggest concern. They could be at war in Iraq, there could be another terrorist attack, and what is the public reaction going to be to some awful eventuality like that?

HAYS: Well, and it's certainly a concern, to be very mundane, for the markets, because right now we seem to be in a spot where a lot of things could happen. We're going into the holidays. The market typically does well in the holiday season. It's a kind of a seasonal...

STARR: To me, that's a critical, critical question here. Has the market discounted the notion of war? Or if we start dropping bombs, will the market collapse? What's going to happen?

HAYS: Well, Barbara, I think what the market has discounted, I think they believe, the optimistic view that the people in the Pentagon who want the short, fast, heavy technology and bring in the troops and you're done, and Saddam Hussein crumbles -- I think the market, that is what they are counting on.

And I think most people figure, if that doesn't happen, that's when you see oil prices moving higher, that's when the stock market has to really reevaluate what this war is going to mean for the economy and for the market. But right now, people have their fingers crossed.

STARR: Well, that's fascinating, because at the Pentagon, the military will tell you they have no idea if the Iraqis will welcome U.S. troops.

ARENA: You know what, let's continue another time.

That's all for this SATURDAY EDITION. Thanks to me colleagues and all of you for watching.

Coming up, a news alert and "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" with singers Ozzy Osbourne and Alanis Morrisette. But first, the president's weekly radio address.

BUSH: Good morning.

This week, all across America, we gather with the people we love to give thanks for the blessings in our lives. Each family has its own traditions, yet we are united as a nation in setting aside a day of gratitude. We are grateful for the freedoms we enjoy, grateful for the loved ones who give meaning to our lives, and grateful for the many gifts of this prosperous land.

On Thanksgiving, we acknowledge that all of these things, and life itself, come not from the hand of man, but from Almighty God.

The blessings we have received take on special meaning in this time of challenge for our country. Over the last year, millions of Americans have found renewed appreciation for our liberty and for the men and women who serve in its defense. We have held our family and our friends closer, spending more time together and letting them know we love them.

Taking time to count our own blessings reminds us that many people struggle every day -- men, women and children facing hunger, homelessness, illness, addiction or despair. These are not strangers. They are fellow Americans needing comfort, love and compassion.

I ask all Americans to consider how you can give someone in need a reason to be thankful in this holiday season and throughout the year. It's easy to get started and to have an immediate impact. Volunteering your time at a soup kitchen, teaching a child to read, visiting a patient in the hospital or taking a meal to an elderly neighbor or a shut-in are all simple acts of compassion that can brighten someone's life.

Every act of love and generosity, however small it may seem, is significant. Every time you reach out to a neighbor in need, you touch a life, you improve your community, and you strengthen our nation.

Earlier this year, I created the USA Freedom Corps office in the White House to harness the power of millions of acts of charity, compassion and love to make America a better place. I hope you'll consider joining the armies of compassion in dedicating time and energy and service to others.

I'm so proud of the millions of Americans who have answered the call to service, enriching the lives of others with acts of kindness. It is a testament to the good heart and the giving spirit of the American people.

There's no better time than this season of Thanksgiving to renew our commitment to helping those in need. The USA Freedom Corps website, usafreedomcorps.gov, is a wonderful place to get started. This resource offers valuable information about service opportunities in your hometown, across America and around the world. You can also get information by calling 1-877-USA-CORPS.

Take the time to find out how you can help your fellow Americans and make this holiday season a season of service.

Happy Thanksgiving, and thank you for listening.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Work in Iraq; Consumer Spending on the Rise>