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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
America's New War: U.S. Targets Sources of Terrorism Money
Aired November 07, 2001 - 17:00 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.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Today on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS: "America Strikes Back." As President Bush holds a strategy session with his closest ally, Britain's Tony Blair, agents fan out across the U.S. and Europe, targeting the financial resources of Osama bin Laden's terror network.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We put the world's financial institutions on notice. If you do business with terrorists, if you support them or sponsor them, you will not do business with the United States of America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Can a billionaire bring his city the rest of the way back from tragedy?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK CITY MAYOR ELECT: New York is alive and well, and open for business.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: We'll look at the challenges facing mayor-elect, Michael Bloomberg.
Pakistan pulls the plug on a Taliban spokesman. And U.S. aircraft launch one of the heaviest attacks on a Taliban stronghold, as "America Strikes Back."
Hello. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting from Washington. We're standing by for a joint news conference at the White House this hour, involving President Bush and visiting British Prime Minister Tony Blair. They're still meeting right now, plotting their next moves, in the war against terrorism.
When they emerge from their meeting, we expect that to be in about 15 minutes, we'll go to the White House live for their appearance. We'll also have details of President Bush's latest efforts today to shut down the flow of cash for terrorists. But first here's Kyra Phillips in Atlanta, with a quick check of the latest developments -- Kyra.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Wolf.
Well, President Bush says today the United States and its allies have shut down two financial networks linked to Osama bin Laden. At an afternoon news conference, Mr. Bush said the networks have helped bin Laden raise tens of millions of dollars. He said raids were carried out in four United States cities, including Boston, where two were taken into custody. We'll have more on this in just a moment.
One month into the Afghan raids, the Defense Department said today the United States has mounted more than 2,000 combat nights. After dark, CNN sources in Kandahar reported the heaviest strikes in more than a week. And the Pentagon says that in the months since the air raids started, the United States has taken down Taliban air defenses, disrupted communications, attacked Taliban ground forces and assisted the opposition.
Tajikistan says today the United States can have its pick of three airfields for staging attacks against Afghanistan. But in announcing the offer, Tajikistan's president expressed doubt about conditions at the former Soviet air strips. Up to now, Tajikistan has been reluctant to offer military help to be used against its neighbor.
Pakistan's leader has repeated his plea for a timely end to the bombing campaign. Speaking today in Turkey, President Pervez Musharraf also called for a halt to the bombing during the holy month of Ramadan, which begins in less than two weeks. Considered a key U.S. ally, General Musharraf said bombing during Ramadan would cause problems in the Muslim world.
Also today, Pakistan is putting the clamps on Taliban officials like the Taliban ambassador. Pakistan's foreign minister says the ambassador has been instructed to cease holding news conferences condemning another country. Taliban sources in Pakistan say the Pakistani government now has forbidden them to speak with the media.
Head back to Wolf in Washington.
BLITZER: Thanks, Kyra.
At this hour, President Bush is hosting British Prime Minister Tony Blair, his staunchest overseas ally in the war on terror. Sometime soon, Mr. Bush and Mr. Blair are expected to take questions from reporters. We'll of course go live to the White House for that.
Already today, the president has made some news, by announcing the elimination of some of Osama bin Laden's many sources of money. CNN White House correspondent Kelly Wallace is standing by. She's over at the White House, which has is already claiming some degree of victory.
Kelly, tell us about it. KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, President Bush saying this is a major step in the fight against evil, targeting two financial networks, as you noted, and really spearheading almost a day-long crackdown on these terrorist networks.
We saw federal agents out in four states earlier on this day, trying to shut down businesses linked to one of the networks, known as Al-Baraka -- really, sort of a worldwide network of informal money exchanges. Two individuals charged in Massachusetts, in connection with that crackdown.
The second group, known as Al Taqua -- Mr. Bush describing this as a coalition of offshore banks and financial management firms. This organization led to some crackdowns today in countries such as Italy, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
Mr. Bush announcing that 62 names of individuals and groups, believed to be linked to these two groups, would be added to a list. Any of their assets in the U.S. would be frozen. Mr. Bush calling on international allies to do the same. The president, saying his actions today should put anyone who helps terrorists on notice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: Today's action interrupts Al Qaeda's communications. It blocks an important source of funds. It provides us with valuable information, and sends a clear message to global financial institutions: You are with us, or you're with the terrorists.
And if you are with the terrorists, you will face the consequences.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: And, Wolf, as you noted, at this hour, President Bush meeting with Prime Minister Tony Blair. You see the prime minister arriving at the White House just about an hour ago. This meeting, coming at an important time.
Of course, Great Britain, the United States's closest ally in the military campaign against Afghanistan, but there is some skepticism, even in some European nations, about the progress of this military campaign. Also some concerns, as we heard, from Pakistan, and of course, from other Muslim nations about military action proceeding during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Wolf, in an interview with "LARRY KING LIVE" last night, indicated he understands some people are growing impatient, but he said it is important for leaders to stress, this will take time. This is necessary, and it must continue, until the U.S. and the international allies' objectives are met.
Wolf, back to you.
BLITZER: All right, Kelly, stand by. When the president and the prime minister emerge from their meeting, we'll be going back to White House to take that news conference live.
As of today, the attacks in Afghanistan are into a second month. After four and a half weeks, whether the military strategy is working or not, depends upon whom you ask. If you ask the Pentagon, things are going according to plan.
So while we await Mr. Bush and Mr. Blair, we want to check in with our CNN military affairs correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, for the latest -- Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN MILITARY AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, you are right. The Pentagon is giving an upbeat assessment at the one- month mark, even though it can't say exactly how or when it will accomplish its goals. At today's Pentagon briefing, there was a study in contrast. First we saw a cockpit video from one of the airstrikes, which demonstrated the high-tech wizardry of American targeting.
You could see two vehicles moving, that were tracked by American war planes, you could see them meet up with another vehicle. You actually can see a person get out of one vehicle and walk around to the other, on the ground. And then as they're sitting there, those vehicles, side by side, a laser-guided smart bomb comes, following an invisible laser beam, and wipes them both out.
Juxtapose that with the 19th century tactics, that the Pentagon says some of its special forces on the ground are observing being conducted by the Northern Alliance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. PETER PACE, JOINT CHIEFS VICE CHAIRMAN: I've had one or more of your American service members, who are in harm's way over there, reporting back about cavalry charges. And this is opposition forces riding horseback into combat against tanks and armored personnel carriers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCINTYRE: Now, Pentagon officials say there are some factions of the Northern Alliance that are better equipped, with Russian tanks, armor of its own. But one of the problems, they say, is getting this disparate group of various tribes in the north to work together, to coordinate their battle plans. They're still not doing that very well.
And even though the rebels have occupied some territory, some of the villages around the strategic town of Mazar-e-Sharif, the Pentagon says it's not clear if they actually took those towns, or whether they were abandoned by the Taliban in the face of withering U.S. air assaults over the last several days -- and whether they'll be able to advance from there, or whether they'll even be able to hold on to that territory.
But nevertheless, the Pentagon says at this point they're devoting about 2/3 of their strikes to front line Taliban forces in the north, the other third to caves around the country, where Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda network are suspected of hiding.
And again, at the one-month mark, Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clark said today that the U.S. is making progress, and that the war is, in her words, on track -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Do you get the sense, Jamie, that the Northern Alliance up in the north has the means within days, perhaps, to go into Mazar- e-Sharif and take that strategic town?
MCINTYRE: Well, I think that remains highly questionable at this point. It's hard to figure out exactly on what basis they would move. As they're watching the U.S. planes bomb those forces, they see the Taliban being weakened somewhat, day by day. And you have to wonder if they're really in a big hurry to get in there and start the dirty, close-up fighting that's going to have to go on for those cities to be taken.
It's entirely possible they may want to wait it out, get better equipped, better prepared, let those U.S. warplanes do their work. But again, the U.S. says that will be a decision that the Northern Alliance commanders will have to make.
BLITZER: All right, Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon, thank you very much. Let's check the situation on the home front right now. He knew he was sick. He thought he had been exposed to anthrax when he called 911 last month. But postal worker Thomas Morris Jr. didn't know he was just hours away from death.
CNN national correspondent Eileen O'Connor joins us now to tell us about this remarkable story -- Eileen.
EILEEN O'CONNOR, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is remarkable. We obtained the tapes, actually, through the Freedom of Information Act. A Prince George's county executive turned over the tape, in which Thomas Morris Jr. says he and coworkers came across a letter with a powdery substance on it, October 13th.
Now, that's four days after the letter to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle was postmarked in Trenton, New Jersey, on the 9th. Now, it's two days before it was opened at Daschle's office on Capitol Hill. That would have been October 15th.
But staffers in Daschle's office say they remember getting the letter on the 12th, that it sat on their desk for a couple days. But still, Mr. Morris indicates to the operator, he thought he was exposed to anthrax. Let's listen.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
THOMAS MORRIS JR., ANTHRAX VICTIM: There was -- a woman found the envelope, and I was in the vicinity. It had powder in it. They never let us know whether the thing had -- was anthrax or not. They never treated the people who were around this particular individual, and the supervisor who handled the envelope. So I don't know if it is or not. I'm just -- I haven't been able to find out. I've been calling. But the symptoms that I've had are what was described to me in a letter that they put out. Almost to the T.
The doctor thought that it was just a virus or something.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mm-hmm.
MORRIS: So we went with that, and I was taking Tylenol for the achiness. But the shortness of breath, now, I don't know. That's consistent with the anthrax.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You weren't the one that handled the envelope? It was somebody else?
MORRIS: No, I didn't handle it. But I was in the vicinity.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. And do you know what they did with the envelope?
MORRIS: I don't know. I don't know anything. I couldn't even find out if the stuff was or wasn't. I was told that it wasn't. But I have a tendency not to believe these people.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
O'CONNOR: Now, Mr. Morris made that call October 21st. While he was asking authorities if he was exposed, Capitol Hill staffers were already getting treated. Postal workers were not, that entire week after the letter was discovered at Daschle's office.
The postal authorities say that they were working off the advice of the CDC, who said the anthrax couldn't leak through the letter. But that doesn't explain why they didn't treat workers like Mr. Morris, who, he claims, was exposed through a leakage of the substance. And in fact, a few hours after that phone call was made, Mr. Morris died that day.
BLITZER: That's very chilling. Eileen O'Connor, thanks for joining us. Thanks for that.
When we come back we're going to go right to the White House conference. There's a news conference that's about to begin. When we get -- right back from this break, we'll go listen to the president, and the prime minister of Britain. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: We're watching a live picture of President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair, about to answer reporters' questions. They'll make opening statements first.
BUSH: Last time we were standing here, I was getting ready to give an address to the United States Congress. And I knew then that the prime minister and the people you represent were going to be great friends of the United States. in our mutual struggle against terrorism. And he has certainly proven that over the last weeks.
We've got no better friend in the world than Great Britain. I've got no better person that I like to talk to about our mutual concerns than Tony Blair. He brings a lot of wisdom and judgment as we fight evil.
He also is, like me, determined. Nothing will deter us in this all-important goal. We both recognize that we wage a fight to save civilization and that we must prevail, and not only must prevail, will prevail.
We had a great discussion about progress in Afghanistan. I fully believe we're making great progress. I've told the American people many times and I've told the press corps many times that this is a struggle that's going to take a while; that it's not one of these Kodak moments. There's no "moment" to this. This is a long struggle and a different kind of war. But we're patient, and our close friends are patient, which is bad news for the Taliban and the people they harbor.
Secondly, we talked a lot about making sure that our great compassion for the innocents in Afghanistan is fulfilled. We must feed the people, and the prime minister has -- every time I've talked to him, which is a lot, is constantly talking about how to make sure that we fulfill the mission not only militarily, but fulfill the mission of helping people in need.
And also, we continue to discuss the vision of a post- Taliban Afghanistan and how we make sure that all parties involved in that part of the world have a stake in the future.
He's got a clear vision. He's a strong friend. And I welcome him back to the White House.
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: First of all, can I say how pleased I am to be back at the White House in the company of President Bush, and to have continued the discussions we've been having over these past weeks and continue them face-to-face? And can I thank him once again for his leadership and his strength at this time? And can I say to him on behalf of the people of my country, but I believe people right across the world, that the determination to see that justice is done is every bit as strong today as it was on September the 11th?
The cause is just, the strategy is there, the determination is there, and there is a complete and total commitment to making sure that this is a battle in which we will prevail.
And we will. I have no doubt about that at all.
What we've discussed already, and we'll carry on discussing, is obviously the military strategy in Afghanistan. We have discussed the humanitarian issues to make sure that we're doing everything we possibly can to help the plight of people in Afghanistan. And we should never forget that some 4.5 million of them were refugees before the 11th of September. We've discussed also the reconstruction of Afghanistan. How we make sure that after the present Taliban regime, led by Mullah Omar, is out of the way, that we construct a broad-based regime that is representative of all the different groupings in Afghanistan, and offer some hope and stability and prosperity for that part of the world.
And we've obviously also discussed how important it is that at this moment in time we carry on building on that strong coalition against international terrorism in all its forms. And I believe that that coalition, if anything, is even stronger today.
Certainly, from the discussions I had with European leaders just a few days ago, their commitment is real and their determination is also absolute to see this thing done.
So can I once again thank President Bush very much for his kindness in welcoming me here?
BUSH: The prime minister has consented to take a couple of questions, as will I. We're going to enforce the one-question rule, however, and that is you get to ask me or him a question.
QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)
(LAUGHTER)
BLAIR: Looks like it.
QUESTION: It's been eight weeks since the September 11 attack, and we don't know where Osama bin Laden is. It's been several weeks since the anthrax attacks, but we don't know who sent the letters. What do you say to Americans who might be frustrated and impatient despite your admonition about a Kodak moment?
BUSH: Yes. I will say to them, we fight a new kind of war. Never would we dream that someone would use our own airplanes to attack us and/or the mail to attack us.
I will tell them that we've got a sound strategy in place that has got Osama bin Laden and the Al Qaeda thugs on the run.
And I will tell them that we will bring them to justice. I can't tell them exactly when, but I will tell them that we will prevail. There's no question in my mind.
We know he hides in caves and we are shutting down caves. We know he moves around at night and we're looking for him. We know that slowly but surely the Taliban is crumbling. Its defenses are crumbling. Its folks are defecting. We know that if you're on the front line and if you're a Taliban soldier, you're likely to get injured because we're relentless in our pursuit of the mission.
In terms of the anthrax, we don't know who did it yet. We do know it's a terrorist. Anybody who would use the mail to try to kill an America is a terrorist. But we do know this: that we've responded rapidly; that our health officials are performing really fine work. And I truly believe -- as I have said many times, I believe they have saved a lot of lives. We know how to treat anthrax, and we now know we need sanitation machines in our post offices -- machines to sanitize the mail.
And we're putting those in.
We know that we're fighting evil. And the American people are patient. They've heard the call.
And tomorrow night I'm going to put out an address that reminds the nation that we're truly a great nation, that we responded in ways that the enemy could never have imagined. And I'm so proud of the patience and steadfast nature of our people.
Mr. Prime Minister?
QUESTION: Can I ask you whether you think you can win this struggle against terrorism without a settlement in the Middle East? And in view of the rather strident note struck by both (OFF-MIKE) during the prime minister's tour of the Middle East last week, what do you think the United States can do to bring out (OFF-MIKE)
BUSH: Of course, we can win the war against Al Qaeda.
QUESTION: Without the Middle East settlement?
BUSH: I believe we can. I believe we're going to -- we're hunting them down as we speak. And we will bring them to justice.
BUSH: But, remember, the war is beyond just Afghanistan. There are over 60 Al Qaeda organizations around the world. And today we struck a blow for freedom by cutting off their money, one of their money sources.
And I'm absolutely convinced, having said that, however, we're both working hard to try to bring peace to the Middle East. My secretary of state, who is here, spends enormous amounts of time on the phone with both parties, urging for there to be calm so that we can get into the Mitchell process.
There is a process in place that will lead to peace called Mitchell. It's been embraced by all nations -- or most of the nations of the world. And we're working hard to get us into the Mitchell process.
But there's no doubt in my mind, no doubt in my mind, we'll bring Al Qaeda to justice, peace or no peace in the Middle East.
BLAIR: Can I just say a word on that? I mean, there is no way whatever in which our action in Afghanistan is conditional on progress in the Middle East. And indeed one of the things that bin Laden wants to do is to try and hijack the Palestinian cause for his own purposes. Now, we are taking the action in Afghanistan, and I believe, incidentally, people are patient about this. I think they understand this is not a conventional conflict.
It's not fought in a conventional way. It takes a lot of strategy and planning and determination over a period of time to be successful. But be under no doubt at all, our objectives, which is to close down that terrorist network in Afghanistan -- those objectives will be achieved.
Now, even though it is not conditional in any sense, of course we want to see progress in the Middle East. That's why we're devoting enormous amounts of time to it. And I believe it is possible to see how we can make progress in the Middle East. And I described some of the ways that that could happen when I was in the Middle East last week.
So be under no doubt either that, irrespective of the action in Afghanistan, it is in everybody's interest that we make progress in the Middle East and we will strain every sinew we possibly can to do so.
QUESTION: Mr. President, have you decided on a figure for how far you can cut the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile? And do you agree with President Putin who said that a common approach can be devised for interpreting the ABM Treaty to allow for missile defense without abandoning the treaty?
And if Mr. Blair could address the issue of would a failure to reach an arms agreement undermine the momentum of the...
BUSH: So much for executive orders.
(LAUGHTER)
QUESTION: It was an umbrella question.
BUSH: It was an umbrella question.
I think it's best that I share with Mr. Putin the acceptable level of offensive weapons with him before I do with you. And so I'm going to reserve -- I'm not going to tell you until I tell him.
(LAUGHTER)
BLAIR: And then I guess I better not either.
BUSH: I have reached a decision, and I've spent time thinking about the issue. I've told the American people that the United States will move to reduce our offensive weapons to a level commensurate with being able to keep the people and at the same time much lower levels than have been negotiated in previous arms control agreements.
We don't need an arms control agreement to convince us to reduce our nuclear weapons down substantially, and I'm going to do it. And I can't wait to share that information with the president. I will do so.
Listen, the ABM Treaty is outmoded and outdated, and we need to move beyond it. That's exactly what I've been telling the president ever since I've been meeting with him, and my position has not changed. And if he's got some interesting suggestions on how to make the ABM Treaty not outdated and not outmoded, I'm more than willing to listen.
BUSH: But our nation -- and this terrorist war says to me more than ever that we need to develop defenses to protect ourselves against weapons of mass destruction that might fall in the hands of terrorist nations.
If Afghanistan or if the Taliban had a weapon that was able to deliver a weapon of mass destruction, we might be talking a little different tune about our progress against Al Qaeda than we are today. And so it's important for us to be able to develop defenses that work, and the ABM Treaty prevents us from doing that.
QUESTION: To divert your attention a little bit away from the military conflict to the economic side of things, I'd like to ask you if you've had a chance at all to ask the president if they were to formally launch open skies agreements? And if not, does that mean that the U.K.'s position is now that the EU is going to be handling this matter?
BLAIR: No. I mean, no doubt we will discuss these issues, but we haven't yet.
BUSH: We haven't had dinner yet.
QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)
BLAIR: It doesn't mean that all.
QUESTION: Mr. President, could I ask a question for your guest, but feel free to jump in if you so desire?
BUSH: Depends on what the question is.
QUESTION: Well, sir, it's a multiple-part question for which I'm famous.
Prime Minister, as you know, the air war in Afghanistan is one month old today. There are many experts on both sides of the Atlantic who believe that the air war is limited in its ability to really inflict a decisive blow against the Taliban. Many say the only way you can defeat the Taliban is to put boots on the ground.
One, do you agree? And two, are you willing to commit large numbers of British troops beyond the SAS and the Royal Marines into the effort to defeat the Taliban?
BLAIR: Well, first of all, let me say something to you I often say to our own media when I'm asked a question about the precise nature of our military operations, and that is that I've learned in these situations it's not a sensible thing to discuss in detail they types of military operation you may undertake, for very obvious reasons.
But we are completely committed to seeing this thing through. I think people know that the strategy has to encompass more than air strikes alone. Although do not underestimate the enormous damage that is now being done to Taliban front-line troops because that is where the air power is being concentrated.
But of course, there are other operations that we will mount as well.
And there are obviously the support and the assistance that we are giving to the Northern Alliance. There are the measures that we're taking of a political and diplomatic nature as well.
And when you said a moment ago that the airstrikes were just -- and the conflict was a month old, I think it's probably just as well to reflect upon that for a moment. It is simply a month old, and we have begun this action. We have taken it at a number of different levels. I think it is already having a huge impact.
Some of the information that I've seen, I think sometimes people don't always reflect on maybe enough when we state it to people, but literally we have destroyed virtually all the terrorist training camps of Al Qaeda. We've destroyed an enormous amount of the military infrastructure of the Taliban. Their air power, so far as it existed, is completely taken out.
We therefore have a very, very strong situation from which to move forward.
And I think what is different about this conflict is that every part of it has to come together. In other words, not just the military part, but also the support for those parties in opposition to the Taliban, and the political and diplomatic aspects that help build a strong coalition that can secure the objectives we want to see.
And I have absolutely no doubt at all that we will achieve the objectives that we want.
And those objectives are very simple. Sometimes people say to me, "Well, you know, clarify the military objectives." There's no difficulty about doing that at all. It's Al Qaeda and the terrorist network shut down; it's the Taliban regime out; it's a new regime in that is broad-based; and it's a decent future for the people of Afghanistan based on some stability and progress, not based on a regime that oppresses its people, treats it people appallingly, is a threat to regional stability, and basically thrives on the drugs trade.
Now, I think those are pretty clear objectives, and I have absolutely no doubt at all that we will achieve them in full, and we will not let up until we do.
BUSH: Thank you all.
BLAIR: Thank you. BLITZER: President Bush and Prime Minister Blair wrapping up about a 15-minute question-and-answer session with reporters, answering questions on the conduct of the war -- both the president and the prime minister offering a very, very upbeat, optimistic assessment -- Prime Minister Blair saying that the air strikes in this first month of air strikes, in his words, have had a huge impact.
"We have destroyed virtually all of the terrorist training camps," he told reporters -- President Bush saying -- echoing a very, very similar thought, saying the United States is doing great damage -- also insisting that the U.S. will prevail together with its coalition partners -- both sides determined to continue to take the necessary steps, they say, until, in the president's words, "justice is done." He also says there is a complete and total commitment to get the job done.
I want to bring in our White House correspondent Kelly Wallace, who is standing by over at the White House.
Actually, I want to go to Robin Oakley, who is in London, our reporter there who has been covering the British side of what is happening.
Robin, give us a sense of the mood in Britain right now, as well as in Europe, on how they are holding up after this one-month period in the air strikes.
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think there's been a feeling in Europe -- more so perhaps on the continent of Europe than in Britain -- that, over the last week or 10 days, there has been something of a wobble in the propaganda war, whatever has been happening in terms of the military action.
And I think President Bush and Mr. Blair are setting out to address that, because there has been some sense of public feeling that there is an uncertainty of objectives in the military action. People don't know quite what the timing is. People are impatient for some kind of results, some evidence of crumbling Taliban morale, some evidence of people getting closer to Osama bin Laden.
That hasn't been there as yet. There have been some worries in Europe, too, I think, about whether the action, military action should continue through Ramadan. And there have been worries, I think, about not enough of the humanitarian aid getting through that is designed to balance the military action by showing concern for the people of Afghanistan.
All those kind of fears have come to the surface a little in the last week or 10 days. Mr. Blair himself had a rather unsuccessful visit to the Middle East. The last time he went to Syria and Israel and Saudi Arabia, he got attacked by the Syrian president over what the Syrian president called state-sponsored terrorism in Israel. And it was felt to be a little bit of a public-relations failure.
Now they are clearly wanting to pull the thing together to show that they do have a certainty of objectives. It was interesting how Mr. Blair and Mr. Bush both said there how this was a war unlike all others, that people had to be patient, that it was going to take a long time. But there was absolute certainty and determination about where they were going.
And I think it is getting some certainty back into the allied cause is the essential message that will out of this particular trip -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Robin, stand by.
Our senior White House correspondent, John King, who was inside the White House for that brief news conference, is now back on the North Lawn of the White House. That was in the state floor location.
Give us a little flavor, John, what you heard and what you saw inside.
JOHN KING, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, the two leaders obviously showing, in the pictures as well as in their words, Wolf, their solidarity in the campaign, as Robin was just noting.
Mr. Blair has been here before. As the president noted, he was here for a very important moment at the beginning of this campaign, the night President Bush gave his speech to a joint session of the United States Congress, promising then to win this war against terrorism -- both leaders, as Robin noted, promising that they were determined to keep this going on, and both also claiming progress and voicing some frustration, if you will, largely with the news media -- the president saying he believes the American people have patience; they understand that this will take time.
And you heard the president say there is no "Kodak moment" here. Yet he did claim progress on the military front. Prime Minister Blair was much more aggressive and assertive in doing so on that front -- and the president noting the developments on the financial front here: a crackdown on two organizations believed by the United States government to provide millions of dollars in support to the al Qaeda network -- the president claiming progress there as well.
And these two leaders obviously get along. They will have dinner tonight. And, as the president noted, when it comes to the military strikes, there is no more important ally for the United States right now than Great Britain.
BLITZER: All right, John, stand by.
Our senior political analyst Bill Schneider was listening to the news conference as well. He is joining me here in our studio.
There is a new poll that just came out, Bill, a poll in Germany, which asks the public in Germany: Should Germany help the United States militarily? And let's put up these numbers: yes 56 percent, no 38 percent on the first question. The second question: Should Germany provide special-oppose ground troops?" No 67 percent, yes 31 percent -- that doesn't sound to me as -- in Europe, Bill, as if it's an overwhelming endorsement of what the U.S. and Britain are doing. WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: That's exactly what the prime minister and the president are worried about, Wolf.
The prime minister just said a minute ago the determination to see that justice done is every bit as strong as it was on September 11. Well, those are brave words, but there is not a lot of evidence in many countries that that is true.
There is evidence that support, while considerable, has been dropping since September 11. And the president and the prime minister are trying to do something about it. What are they trying to do? Well, the president is trying to remind the world of the nature of the enemy, of the evil acts that they have perpetrated, the threat of acquiring weapons of mass destruction, the repression in Afghanistan by the Taliban government.
They've also tried to -- and this is the prime minister's special mission here in Washington -- tried to press the United States to accept more cooperation, more contributions from our allies so that they will feel a greater stake in this conflict. There has been some resistance on the part of members -- people in the Pentagon and in the administration, because they don't want to share a lot of decision- making with other countries.
Take a look at this poll that was just asked about support in the American public for taking allied interests into account rather than basing policy mostly on U.S. national interests. Before the attacks, 48 percent said the U.S. should take allied interests into account. Afterwards, it has actually gone up to 59 percent.
There is a lot of support in this country for a multilateral effort, for including other countries. And Mr. Blair and many Europeans believe, if we give our countries a greater stake, public support will rise.
BLITZER: Bill Schneider, thank you very much.
I want to go back to Robin Oakley. He is in London.
Is there a sense over in London, Robin, that what the president -- what the prime minister said, that, in addition to completing the military campaign against the terrorist targets in Afghanistan, the U.S., Britain, other members of the coalition will then have to put together, in his words, a broad-based regime that is representative of all the different groupings, ethnic groupings of Afghanistan -- is there a sense that that is feasible right now?
OAKLEY: Yes.
I think that was one of the issues that was addressed when Mr. Blair invited various other European leaders to dinner at his Downing Street residence on Sunday night. They did talk about getting progress towards a broad-based administration to succeed the Taliban in Afghanistan.
That has become a concern of some of the European leaders. They do feel that they are making progress on that. And that of course was a subject that was addressed by Mr. Blair sometime before President Bush began to turn his attention to it. Quite early on after September 11, this was something that Mr. Blair was pressing for. He was certainly joined in that by people like President Chirac of France. They see that very much as a key to the future.
This is not just a military action which takes place and then everybody decamps. The emphasis from Mr. Blair and other European leaders all along has been: We are not going to walk away. We are going to stay there and we are going to give the Afghanistan people a civilized life after this war is over and after the Taliban have been eliminated -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, stand by.
John King, over at White House, the president and the prime minister insisting that everything is going just right, as they expected, but behind the scenes, is there any sense of frustration whatsoever that you detect from your sources over there?
KING: Well, there is always some frustration when there is a military campaign, when you have the domestic anthrax scares. That was a surprise. And that has frustrated the administration -- the president saying once again there is no clue to that, to just how that happened.
One frustrating point that both leaders did discuss is the ongoing tension between the Israelis and the Palestinians. There had been a hope among Arab leaders that President Bush, in exchange for their cooperation in the war on terrorism, would exert more pressure. The Arab leaders want that put on the Israelis. The Israelis, of course, blame the Palestinians. But there had been some hope that perhaps there would be at least a detente in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute as part of this overall coalition against terrorism.
You heard president flatly say there is no connection. That is a reflection of his own frustration that he has been unable, and the British prime minister unable, in his recent trip to the Middle East, to get the Israelis and the Palestinians to step back from their tensions and agree to enter into at least a dialogue about security issues -- both leaders saying they are still committed to that, but both saying there can be absolutely no connection at all to a resolution or even a calming of that dispute with the fighting in Afghanistan.
That is simply because they are not confident at all they can strike such an agreement.
BLITZER: John King at the White House, thank you very much. Robin Oakley in London, thanks to you as well, as well as to Bill Schneider, our senior political analyst, here in Washington.
And when come back, we will make a turn to the Big Apple. An underdog politician faces overwhelming challenges. What will be the toughest task for New York's mayor-elect? Find out when we return.
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BLITZER: Ground zero, New York City, which has been through a lot, of course, these past several weeks. And it has another more ordinary change in store. Republican Michael Bloomberg defeated Democrat Mark Green yesterday in the city's mayoral election.
CNN's Jason Carroll looks at the unique challenges facing the mayor-elect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Michael Bloomberg's victory lap said much about why this Republican awoke today as the mayor-elect of heavily Democratic New York City and about the hurdles he faces -- his first priority: meeting with Latino Democrat Fernando Ferrer. His lack of support for Bloomberg's opponent, Democrat Mark Green, proved decisive in a close election charged by racial politics.
MAYOR RUDOLPH GIULIANI (R), NEW YORK: Our new mayor, Michael Bloomberg.
(APPLAUSE)
CARROLL: Next, a press conference with incumbent Mayor Rudy Giuliani, whose soaring popularity before and after the terror attacks made his endorsement critical.
(on camera): But the same issues that helped elect Bloomberg mayor -- namely race and concerns about rebuilding the city -- are also enormous challenges facing a man with no government experience in a time of multiple government crises.
(voice-over): Bloomberg lured away many minority voters from Democrats, but he still needs to reach out to them.
MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK CITY MAYOR-ELECT: No party should take their constituents for granted. And the fact of the matter is, the electorate gets smarter, better educated, more experienced every year.
CARROLL: Bloomberg had little to say immediately about how he will rebuild the city.
BLOOMBERG: I'm obviously going to have a situation where we are not going to have as much revenue as we need to do the things that we would like to do.
CARROLL: Bloomberg's own millions -- he spent about $50 million to become mayor -- can't fix the city's deficit, which is projected to be at least $4 billion.
CIRO SCOTTI, "BUSINESS WEEK": His experience will help a lot. I mean, the rub is that, in the public sector, you have to deal with very powerful interest groups.
CARROLL: Bloomberg says he has been preparing for that task all his life.
BLOOMBERG: Providing leadership to 8,00 employees and 200,000 customers is -- makes me qualified to lead the city forward for this period in time.
CARROLL: A period in time when Bloomberg will need the qualifications that voters saw in him to become a successful mayor.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: For more on Michael Bloomberg's victory and what awaits him as New York's mayor, we are joined now by Joel Siegel. He's the senior political correspondent for the "New York Daily News."
Joel, thank you for joining us. And what is your take? What was the single biggest reason why Bloomberg won and Green lost?
JOEL SIEGEL, "NEW YORK DAILY NEWS": Well, I think $60 million to start.
It was an unprecedented advertising blitz that he was able to fund. And this broke through to people's attention. We were preoccupied here, of course, by the World Trade Center attacks, anthrax, Afghanistan, and of course the Yankees. And his ads reached people.
Plus, there was a lot of dissension in the Democratic Party because of Mark Green's primary win over Fernando Ferrer. A lot of Latinos were upset. And 41 percent of Freddie's Ferrer's voters in the primary went for Michael Bloomberg. That is an amazing number.
BLITZER: Had there been no terrorist attacks on September 11, would the outcome have been different, do you think?
SIEGEL: Well, it's tough to say, but certainly a lot of things broke Michael Bloomberg's way.
With the terrorist attacks, the issue became: Who can manage the city? Who can rebuild it? And here in our midst was this businessman who said he had built a billion-dollar financial data empire. So it sort of jibed with what his message -- he was able to mold his message to the crisis of the moment.
And the things that Mark Green had been talking about all year -- education, housing, public safety -- those issues just plunged in the polls as far as importance to voters. So he was sort of left holding the bag there.
BLITZER: How important a factor was Rudy Giuliani in this race? As our viewers of course know, he endorsed Bloomberg.
SIEGEL: Well, there were a lot of important factors here.
Certainly, you can't dismiss Mayor Giuliani's endorsement. He had never really been able to put any candidate into the winner's circle until this campaign. Until he endorsed Mr. Bloomberg, Bloomberg was languishing in the polls. And Mike Bloomberg began taking off once he got that endorsement.
More importantly, it was hammered home in a very effective advertisement that was crafted by Bloomberg's ad team. And he had a very first-rate ad team in this campaign.
BLITZER: New York faces incredible challenges. Will the mayor- elect ask the outgoing mayor to help him in dealing in the immediate, in the short term with some of these challenges?
SIEGEL: Well, certainly he will. The question is: Will he really want Mayor Giuliani's help? And does Mayor Giuliani want to get involved? I think there will be some advisory stuff going on, but, you know, it's the new mayor's responsibility, so to speak. And I don't know if Rudy Giuliani wants to overshadow him.
As it is, with the mayor, Mayor Giuliani's growing popularity since September 11, Mike Bloomberg has a pretty big pair of shoes to fill. And to have mayor Giuliani continuing on the stage with him would make it all that much more tougher.
BLITZER: Joel Siegel, of the "New York Daily News," thanks for your insight.
And you can find out more about Michael Bloomberg. Our Web site has more on who Bloomberg is and what's in store for him. Check out that story and much more at CNN.com.
Bringing terrorists to justice, the battle fought by relatives of Pan Am 103: how it parallels today's situation -- when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back.
Until September 11, the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in the skies above Lockerbie, Scotland was the deadliest terror attack on American civilians. Joining us now to talk about how the families of that December 1988 tragedy came together: the author of a new book, "The Price of Terror," Allan Gerson.
Allan, thanks for joining us.
And I know you tell an incredible story, as an international attorney, how you represented many of those families in their struggle against Libya for some compensation. But what advice specifically would you have for some of the family members of those who were killed on September 11 right now, based on the experience of -- that your clients had in dealing with the aftermath of Pan Am 103?
ALLAN GERSON, AUTHOR, "THE PRICE OF TERROR": I would tell them to listen very carefully to what President Bush just said. He said that one of our aims is to bring the perpetrators to justice. And in attempting to bring the perpetrators to justice, individuals have also been empowered.
What the Pan Am families found is that there was a way to have accountability through a civil action. So I would tell them to do nothing for a while, to deal with their grief. But at some point, they will try to take their grief and to find ways to hold the perpetrators accountable.
BLITZER: And how do they do that, specifically? As you know, there is a lot of money out there that is being donated to help them. In certain specific cases, though, they have to sign some of their rights away as far as future litigation is concerned.
GERSON: Well, the best thing is to sign nothing away right now. But they should know what the legislation is that is out there. They should know their rights. And they should know that, under the 1996 Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, which was the product of the joint efforts of the Pan Am 103 families and the Oklahoma bombing families, that it is now possible to sue foreign states that are accused of having engaged or harbored terrorism, with the proviso that those states be on the State Department's anti-terrorism list.
There also may be other ways. The Pan Am 103 families had to overcome tremendous obstacles. And they found ways to deal with the issue of accountability.
BLITZER: There is a unique situation right now, though, Allan, as you know. The State Department's official list of states that sponsor terrorist does not include Afghanistan. And, as a result, the opportunity to perhaps sue Afghanistan, the Taliban regime, may not be there.
GERSON: Well, that's a technicality. I think in time, that will probably be remedied. That's why I said, Wolf, it's really a question of time.
There is a trend that is going on in international law and in U.S. domestic law. And it's certainly a trend that the president articulated today. We want to bring the perpetrators of this terrible atrocity to justice. And there are other means that compliment the military strategy and the criminal justice strategy. And is that the empowerment of individuals, because there will be no closure to their grief unless they find a way of achieving accountability.
BLITZER: Very briefly, tell us why -- and this is an incredible part of your book -- why the U.S. government, the Justice Department, the State Department, fought you and your clients when you tried to sue Libya.
GERSON: Yes, Wolf, that was really quite remarkable, because when we initially sued Libya on the theory that if you blow up an airplane, you forfeit your right to sovereign immunity, the Justice Department intervened, but not on our side, but on the side of Libya in the district court, the court of appeals, and the United States Supreme Court, because the doctrine of sovereign immunity was so important to them -- that is, the idea that governments are not accountable to ordinary citizens. Fortunately, we were able to have passage of the 1996 Anti- Terrorism Act. And after that, the United States Justice Department came in on our side to defend the constitutionality of that act. And now it is possible to proceed with such lawsuits.
BLITZER: Allan Gerson -- the name of the book is "The Price of Terror: One Bomb, One Plane, 270 Lives, the History-Making Struggle for Justice After Pan Am Flight 103."
Thanks again for joining us. Good luck with the book.
GERSON: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: And now these other stories hitting today's news wire: We've seen car chases, but never anything quite like this: blazing big red being chased by police. For more than 90 minutes today, Texas police chased this stolen 18-wheeler loaded with lumber. It ended after the truck came to a stop in Dallas and the driver was taken into custody. No one was hurt.
There is a report of a $41.5 million settlement for Bridgestone/Firestone to head off lawsuits by states over defective tires; 6.5 million tires were recalled by the company more than a year ago. The Associated Press reports the settlement and says Bridgestone/Firestone will also spend $5 million on a consumer education campaign.
We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: The world's only supersonic jetliner returns to the skies after 15 months. The Concorde made three flights today -- the first, a British Airways Concorde from Paris to New York. A special charter flight landed in Washington a short time ago with Prime Minister Tony Blair on board it. Air France, of course, made a similar flight today.
I'll be back in one hour with a "War Room" discussion of Pakistan's role in the war. Is it a reliable partner?
CNN's coverage of America's new war continues with "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE," which begins right now.
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