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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Operation Anaconda Eases Up; Are Israelis, Palestinians Past the Point of No Return?; Rosie O'Donnell Comes Out of Closet

Aired March 08, 2002 - 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, HOST: Now on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS: One-on-one with the Pentagon's top man.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

You still don't have a clue where Osama bin Laden is?

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I didn't say that.

BLITZER: You do have a clue?

RUMSFELD: No, I didn't say that either.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: A weather-bound Operation Anaconda eases up, but there is no sign the enemy is giving up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUMSFELD: These are dead-enders. These are hard-line types.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: In a rare show of emotion, President Bush lets his guard down. What touched him in Florida?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Your son and your brother died for a noble and just cause.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: An all-out escalation in the Middle East. With dozens more dead, are Israelis and Palestinians past the brink of no return? I'll ask a Saudi insider about the Kingdom's peace initiative.

And her show may be closing down, but she's starting to open up. We'll look behind "People"'s cover story on Rosie O'Donnell.

Hello, I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. Topping our news alert: al Qaeda fights to the death, and more of them are dying.

This latest Defense Department video shows U.S. warplanes strike against al Qaeda targets in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan. According to Pentagon officials, Operation Anaconda has wiped out all but some 200 al Qaeda fighters. We'll have much more on this in a moment.

Six American soldiers wounded in action in Afghanistan were awarded the purple heart today. The men were wounded in an assault on al Qaeda stronghold on the second day of Operation Anaconda. Five of the soldiers are with the 10th mountain division, the sixth with the 101st airborne division.

A close call today for two Navy crewmembers of an F-14 warplane. The attack jet crashed into the Arabian Sea while trying to land on the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis. Both aviators were rescued and neither was seriously injured. The plane was returning from a bombing mission over Afghanistan.

In the Middle East, dozens of Palestinians and Israelis are killed in the deadliest day of violence in 18 months. In a major policy shift, the Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon now says he is willing to discuss a cease-fire. He had been demanding at least seven days of calm before the two sides implement a truce.

Now back to our top story, Operation Anaconda, the week-long ground battle in eastern Afghanistan. Earlier today I went to the Pentagon to interview the Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. He showed some grudging respect for the al Qaeda fighters holed up in those caves, although he insisted it was only a matter of time before they would be crushed. He refused to speculate how much longer it will take.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUMSFELD: They are not predictable, really. There are still any number of al Qaeda and probably Taliban located in those caves and tunnels, and in very well-entrenched positions, dug in. They've got a lot of ammunition. The weather is terrible.

BLITZER (voice-over): That bad weather has seriously complicated the military campaign. For one thing, U.S. combat forces on the ground can't automatically assume they'll be able to call in low- flying protective air cover. At the same time though, the weather complicates what the al Qaeda fighters can do.

RUMSFELD: To the extent people try to get in or out of that area where they're contained, we're dealing with them. And we're still continuing to bomb, and there's some groundfire coming out from the al Qaeda, but it's relatively modest at the moment.

BLITZER: Still, Rumsfeld says the al Qaeda fighters have plenty of food, water and ammunition.

RUMSFELD: They're well-supplied and well-disciplined. These are very well trained fighters. These are hard, dead-enders. These are hard-line types.

BLITZER: "Dead-enders" is military speak for troops prepared to fight to the death.

RUMSFELD: We'd be happy to have them to surrender, but we haven't seen anyone coming in and surrendering.

BLITZER: Rumsfeld refuses to speculate whether Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenant, Ayman al-Zawahiri, may be among those holed up in the caves and tunnels of eastern Afghanistan, where Operation Anaconda is unfolding.

BLITZER (on camera): You still don't have a clue where Osama bin Laden is?

RUMSFELD: I didn't say that.

BLITZER: You do have a clue?

RUMSFELD: No, I didn't say that either. I'm not going to talk about whether we have good intelligence or bad intelligence on that subject. We're looking for him. We're ultimately going to find him. Wherever he is, he is not happy

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And the defense secretary went on to insist that bin Laden can no longer effectively run a safe haven in Afghanistan. And that, Rumsfeld says, suggests the initial U.S. goal in the war against terrorism has been accomplished.

Meanwhile, Pentagon officials say that while about 200 of the enemy are still dug into those caves, at least 450 have been killed during Operation Anaconda. CNN's Martin Savidge is near the front lines with more details now on the battle.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, weather has been a problem for coalition forces battling in eastern Afghanistan, part of Operation Anaconda today. However, that weather forecast now expected to improve, and improve faster than they originally thought. Already they're trying to see if helicopters can get back in the region. Air support, obviously vital to that operation, despite the large number of troops on the ground.

Military officials here say that they hold a lot of high country there, and they also say that they believe they have now destroyed over 50 percent of the Taliban and al Qaeda forces they were up against. They do note that they, however, have seen the infiltration of small numbers of al Qaeda and Taliban forces coming up from the south, to try to get involved in the fight. Small numbers, they say, obviously because if they came in large numbers, they would clearly be identified and then targeted by U.S. aircraft in the region.

Something else that should be pointed out. Colonel Joe Smith, he is the chief of staff. He was talking this morning about this pocket of resistance. It is now clear to military officials here that this was the pocket they were looking for, the so-called "hard core of hard core." I asked him why he was pleased that they were found, and this was his response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COL. JOE SMITH, CHIEF OF STAFF: This hardened enemy are the same type of people that executed the events of 11 September. It's obviously, from the documentation that we're getting, they're not just peasants. Again, these are highly-trained military soldiers. And I couldn't imagine how long it would take if we tried to track them down one at a time. And so here we didn't have to. They came together, and I think they underestimated us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: Coalition forces report that there has only been light fighting in the northern part of the battle area, or the box, as they refer to it, and heavier fighting in the south. And that's pretty much the way it has gone. They say that they hope to have things wrapped up soon. They don't give a specific timetable -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Marty Savidge, thank you very much. He's on the front lines in Afghanistan.

Joining us with some assessment of the latest developments, our military analyst, Retired Brigadier General David Grange. From your vantage point, General Grange, where is Operation Anaconda right now, and where is it heading?

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, MILITARY ANALYST, U.S. ARMY (RET): Well, I think we have a little bit more time left. I'm glad the secretary of defense did not put a time limit on the operation. There's a little fighting in the northern part of the box that may well be because we don't know exactly what's there yet.

And you may have enemy units that are hiding, you may have reinforcements that slip in. There's infiltration routes that probably are still successful, although I know that the coalition's watching them carefully. So it's hard to tell. The situation will continue to be developed every day.

BLITZER: We spoke, when I interviewed the defense secretary, we spoke at length about the bad weather that's having an impact on both sides in this battle. But there's another factor other military officials citing now: land mines. When special operations forces, whether members of the 101st airborne division or the 10th mountain division, they go in there. How serious of a problem would land mines be for them right now?

GRANGE: Well, a land mine is one of the weapons of choice -- land mines and booby trap -- of this enemy force. I'm actually surprised that we haven't had any casualties from land mines. But psychologically, they have great impact on your operations, the force. I personally have been wounded by a land mine once -- don't like them at all. And I'm really surprised that we haven't seen more of it. I'm sure they're in certain locations, but I haven't heard of any being found yet.

BLITZER: In the early parts of this war, as you well remember, General Grange, the division of labor was, the U.S. did the airstrikes, the Afghan forces allied with the United States did the heavy lifting. They went in on the ground and cleared out some of those areas, including Kabul, Mazar-i-Sharif and elsewhere. But most of the ground action is not with U.S. military personnel. That's changed now, at least with Operation Anaconda -- why?

GRANGE: I think we learned that a lot of the enemy did slip away. Either they broke out from an encirclement, or deals were cut because of different tribal loyalties. This area right here is very Taliban supportive, as you know. It's also not really in line with Karzai, the governmental head of Afghanistan. So, it's very easy for the locals to support this enemy force.

So it's advantageous to us to put a coalition force in there so we don't have a breakout, we don't have any deals made. And we can ensure the destruction of this enemy's area, here in the 60 square- mile objective area.

BLITZER: General Grange, thanks for that insight. Appreciate it very much.

Meanwhile, in Florida, President Bush was momentarily overcome with emotion today. It happened when he met with the families of two American soldiers killed in action Monday in Afghanistan. Our White House correspondent, Major Garrett, joins us with more -- Major.

MAJOR GARRETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the two soldiers are Army specialists Marc Anderson and Army Sergeant Brad Crose. And both of their fathers served in the U.S. military. And as the president talked to an audience in St. Petersburg, Florida, about the ongoing mission in Afghanistan, the emotional impact of meeting with these soldiers' families was there for all to see.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: We found a bunch of al Qaeda killers recently, bunched up in Afghanistan. And our military went after them. And we're making good progress.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: It is a sign of what's going to happen for a while. And my fellow Americans must understand that, that we'll be relentless and determined to do what is right. And we will take loss of life, and I'm sad for loss of life. And today we've got the mom and dad of a brave soldier who lost his life. And a brother -- God bless you.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Thank you all for coming.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Thank you. I know your heart aches and we ache for you, but your son and your brother died for a noble and just cause.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GARRETT: Wolf, White House officials say not only the anniversary, the six-month anniversary of 9-11 is weighing on the president's mind -- there will be a very big ceremony here at the White House Monday to mark that very depressing and sad day in American history. But as the president deals with casualties in the Afghan theater, his emotions get away from him there, as well -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Unfortunately, Major, that probably won't be the last time we'll see the president choked up like that. Thanks, Major Garrett, at the White House.

You can see my full interview with the Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld at 7:00 Eastern tonight in the "CNN WAR ROOM." Join me then. You can also read about my interview with him on-line. Go to cnn.com/wolf and find my daily on-line column.

Turning now to the Middle East. This has been the deadliest day since the Palestinian uprising began 18 months ago. At least 50 Palestinians were killed. And since yesterday, at least six Israelis have died. All this, as President Bush's special envoy, Anthony Zinni, prepares to go back to the region next week. CNN senior international correspondent, Sheila MacVicar, is in Jerusalem with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If General Zinni were here on his peace mission today, this is what he would find: Israeli tanks in the West Bank, heading for Bethlehem. Helicopter gunships searching for targets.

(GUNFIRE)

MACVICAR: A firefight in a Palestinian refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. Israeli commanders say they can, and will, go anywhere. Palestinian militants say they will continue their attacks, even if negotiations resume. As Israel's prime minister pursues this war with increasing ferocity, the toll of dead and wounded mounts by the hour.

On Thursday night, Israeli forces killed a senior Palestinian security chief. He bled to death after being shot in his car. The Palestinians say this death was an assassination. The Israelis claim they had not intended to hit the general.

Israel's military strategy is costing civilian lives, too. In the West Bank city of Tulkarem, Israeli forces have used their tanks to surround the city, trapping gunmen and civilians. A 10-year-old boy died in this town, hit by an Israeli tank shell. The fighting is reported to be fierce.

And the violence and death caused by Palestinians during the past 24 hours includes this: a lone gunman, a Hamas militant, cut a hole in the fence of a Jewish settlement in Gaza on Thursday night, walked to a brightly-lit study hall and opened fire. He had an automatic weapon and grenades. Five young Israeli settlers died, more than 20 were wounded.

Ten others were wounded by a suicide bomber in a settlement on the West Bank. And there could have been more deaths, this time in Jerusalem, had a waiter not noticed a would-be suicide bomber wearing a heavy jacket on a hot day.

(on camera): Another night, another day. No place, no people need a peacemaker more than these. But General Zinni has been frustrated before, and that was before people here talked about a war. Sheila MacVicar, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Joining us with their take on this crisis in the Middle East, Nasser al-Kidwa. He's the Palestinian representative to the United Nations and Alon Pinkas. He's the Israeli consul general in New York.

Gentlemen, thanks for joining us. Ambassador Pinkas, first to you. We are now hearing overt public criticism from the Bush administration on the prime minister. The Secretary of State Colin Powell saying that Prime Minister Sharon must stop this heavy retaliation.

ALON PINKAS, CONSUL GENERAL OF ISRAEL IN NEW YORK: All right. Look, the retaliation, Wolf, is not an escalation. It's not a conscious escalation, but a message that needs to be made unequivocably clear. And that is, that a level of terrorism is not an immutable law of nature that we have to live with. That we have to accept, that we have to tolerate.

Now, American criticism for fear of escalation is something that we live with. It's something that we understand, it's something we are attentive to. But today my understanding is that Prime Minister Sharon spoke with President Bush, and perhaps with other senior administration officials, and told them that he had decided to unilaterally agree to a cease-fire on the eve of General Zinni's -- envoy General Zinni's mission to the Middle East. And by thus, proclaiming, basically waived the condition that we had said before, for seven days of total peace and quiet.

BLITZER: What about that, Ambassador Al-Kidwa, the gesture from Sharon, no longer demanding seven days of peace and quiet before accepting a cease-fire. Will the Palestinians respond to that?

NASSER AL-KIDWA, PALESTINIAN REP. TO THE U.N.: Let me say first say that what the Israelis are doing is not a retaliation. It's actually a campaign, a vicious campaign, against the Palestinian people. And the prime minister made it public that he wants to beat the Palestinians, kill the Palestinians, until he drives them into submission.

Now, with regard to the change referred to dropping a condition which was impossible to meet, that is something positive. And I believe that it will facilitate the job of General Zinni, because that condition meant, effectively, a block against any implementation of Mitchell Report, and the plan of Mr. Tenet as well.

BLITZER: Ambassador Pinkas, a lot of Americans simply don't understand this deteriorating violence between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Why not have Prime Minister Sharon sit down with the Palestinian Authority president, Yasser Arafat, and try to end this once and for all?

PINKAS: Well, first of all, Wolf, he is sitting down with other representatives of the Palestinian leadership. But apparently this bankruptcy of leadership that characterizes the Palestinian Authority permeates down from Arafat and then bottoms up again. We have sat down with Arafat, most remarkably at Camp David a year and a half ago. And we laid down the plan, and President Clinton laid down the plan.

And he refused. And he initiated -- first he condoned, then he actively initiated a wave of violence in a campaign.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Ambassador, the situation has clearly deteriorated. Look how many people are dying over these past few days. Why not make that kind of gesture and take a dramatic gesture, and meet with Arafat and try to end it?

PINKAS: Look, the president of Israel, who is visiting the U.S. at the time, right now, Foreign Minister Peres, the chief of military intelligence, and many other politicians, have met repeatedly with Palestinian leaders, including Mr. Arafat. Peres met with Arafat twice or three times in the last year -- to no avail.

This man is becoming a burden on the entire Middle East. He is inflicting, or self-inflicting, tragedies on his people and the entire region. It is time for us to look straight in the mirror at ourselves, straight at you, and to admit that whatever it is that we are trying to accomplish with this man may, unfortunately, tragically, may not succeed. He's not up to the challenge.

BLITZER: Let me bring Ambassador al-Kidwa back in. You've heard the criticism, not only from the Israelis, but from the Bush administration, Ambassador al-Kidwa, as well -- that Chairman Arafat is not doing enough to stop the suicide attacks, the bombers against Israel.

AL-KIDWA: Well, simply, it's not being done because of the continuation of the Israeli aggression, that's No. 1. And No. 2, because of lack of any political dimension. Mr. Pinkas referred to some meetings which took place. I can refer to many meetings which were prevented by Mr. Sharon. And I think the real problem is Mr. Sharon himself, and the bankruptcy of his policy, as it's being declared by the U.S. administration, and by all leaders all over the world.

Anyway, we are ready to begin seriously at any moment. Now I think there is a proposal before the Security Council to invite both Mr. Sharon and Mr. Arafat to come to the Security Council and address the Council. And we think that this is a positive idea that could represent a way out of the current deadlock. So let's get serious, and let's sit down and negotiate, on the basis of the implementation of Mitchell Report, and on the basis of dealing with the political dimension, including finding a final settlement of the conflict.

BLITZER: Very briefly, Ambassador Pinkas, are they ready to come to the U.N. Security Council, Sharon and Arafat, and work this out?

PINKAS: I don't know if the Security Council is the forum. I don't know if the meeting is going to solve it. Look, Sharon is the problem. And Barak was a problem. And Netanyahu was a problem. And Peres was a problem, otherwise we wouldn't have had a wave of terrorism in 1996.

And Rabin was a problem. And Bill Clinton...

(CROSSTALK)

PINKAS: Excuse me, Mr. al-Kidwa...

AL-KIDWA: That is not true.

PINKAS: And Bill Clinton was the problem.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: All right.

PINKAS: Everyone is a problem, except for this great, liberal Democrat called Yasser Arafat.

BLITZER: Unfortunately, gentlemen, we have to leave it right there. Thanks to both of you for joining us today.

AL-KIDWA: Thank you.

PINKAS: Thank you.

BLITZER: Thank you. And a country that had sat on the sidelines in the Middle East crisis is hoping to broker a peace agreement. I'll talk with a man critical to that compromise later in this program.

But now, our question of the day. Who is in the best position to bring the Israelis and the Palestinians to the negotiating table? Is Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Nations or the United States? You can weigh in. Go to my Web page, cnn.com/wolf. I'll have the results for you later in the show.

When we come back, a Catholic bishop has a stunning confession. His crime, and the consequence.

And later: Rosie's coming out. But those close to her say she never had anything to hide.

And, Anna Nicole Smith wins some of her late husband's money. Why the judge thinks she deserved it.

First, our news quiz. Besides Anna Nicole Smith's court victory of $88 million, what else has a similar price tag? Is it Bill Gates' house? A Denver radio station? The Boston Red Sox or the British royal art collection? The answer, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: A Roman Catholic bishop has resigned after admitting he sexually abused a teenage student at a seminary more than a quarter- century ago. Anthony O'Connell, from the diocese of Palm Beach in Florida, is the highest-ranking clergyman brought down in the priest abuse scandal that began in Boston. Today, he spoke out at a news conference.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BISHOP ANTHONY O'CONNELL, PALM BEACH, FLORIDA: It always hung over me. I don't think I've ever preached without being conscious of it,and especially in these recent times. I certainly have been powerfully motivated in my preaching and in my spirituality, for having been so stupid and so foolish at the time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Joining us now from New York is John Leo. He's a columnist for "U.S. News & World Report." And from San Diego, Richard Sipe. He's a former priest and a psychotherapist. Gentlemen, thanks for joining us.

First to you, John. What is going on in the Catholic Church right now? Give us some perspective on this problem.

JOHN LEO, "U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT": Well, I think they have a very grave and broad problem. The main problem is how did they let it fester for so long? They really knew, from the mid-'80s, that they had a sizable problem, and that pedophilia among priests was really untreatable. And yet nothing substantially was done.

So you're going to see weeks, I think, of headlines and spreading stories, as more and more victims and perpetrators hit the newspapers.

BLITZER: Richard Sipe, give us your perspective on this problem, because there seems to be a case like this springing up almost every week.

RICHARD SIPE, FORMER PRIEST: Well, what's happened since the Boston deluge is absolutely monumental. There are waves all over the country -- tidal waves. And I agree with John Leo, that this is not the last. And this is probably not the highest-rank person who is going to be caught in this. It's reached a new phase.

Actually, this is the third phase. The first phase was the focus on the perpetrator. This bad man has done all these bad things. The "Boston Globe" brought it to a second phase, and that is there's a system that supports this. And the third phase is now that this travels very high, that this doesn't stop with the priests.

BLITZER: Let me interrupt for a second. Mr. Sipe, how high do you believe this will go?

SIPE: Well, I said in 1991 -- I had finished a 25-year study of celibacy. I published it in 1990, and I said that pedophilia was the tip of the iceberg, and if we followed along, it would lead to the highest corridors of the Vatican.

BLITZER: That's pretty high. John Leo, what should the Catholic Church be doing right now to deal with this problem? You've written they've sort of swept it under the carpet over recent years.

LEO: I think they just couldn't bring themselves to face it. I think they have to now. I think they have to make a clean breast of it, and take it to the American people and say, here's the scope of the problem. Their moral authority is shot now. It's going to be years before they get anything like the amount they had before.

And I agree with Richard Sipe, that we're going to see more and more high-ranking people. I think it's very unlikely this is the last bishop who's going to be involved in this. So they need a response. The only response so far from the Vatican is maybe we shouldn't be ordaining homosexuals -- which is a wholly different issue, it has nothing to do with pedophilia. And it's a way of deflecting, or talking about something else, than this problem at hand.

BLITZER: Mr. Sipe, how do you specifically take the steps, though, to deal with what's emerging as a crisis in the Catholic Church?

SIPE: Well, the code of secrecy has been broken. You cannot have accountability and secrecy. I gave all my data, my 25-year study, to the bishops in 1986. I sent a summary of it. And before I published my book, I laid it out before the -- in Washington, D.C., before this group of bishops and lawyers and so on, from the Catholic conference.

They have not done anything, and I think that they've been afraid. They have to now come forward. This is a reformation. This is as profound as the Protestant reformation. When the Council of Trent, in 1546, was called by the pope to reform the church, that pope was living with a 15-year-old boy as a companion.

BLITZER: Let me bring back John Leo, and ask him this question, in fairness to the Catholic Church. The Catholic religious leaders are not the only ones who have been engaged in these kinds of abuses, sexual abuses. What is different, if anything, from the Catholic Church, as opposed to Protestants or Jews or Muslims in that particular case?

LEO: I think the answer, Wolf, is, we don't know yet. We don't know the scope of this. Obviously, as Richard Sipe says, there's a culture of secrecy. But, also, there is a culture of authority, where the person in charge will defend the troops against charges. And I think the fear of scandal has dominated everything else. Honesty has gone by the board. It's, "Let's protect the image of the church." And I don't think that's particularly cynical. I think that's the way that generation of leaders was brought up: to think that the image of the church is all important, forgetting that the image is dependent on the behavior of the people who represent the church.

BLITZER: All right, John Leo and Richard Sipe, a difficult, painful subject to discuss, but one that obviously we must address.

Thanks to both of you for joining us.

SIPE: You're welcome.

LEO: Thank you.

BLITZER: And time now to check our "Justice Files": A key witness for the prosecution in the Andrea Yates trial today returned to the stand. Psychiatrist Park Dietz responded to defense witnesses who said mental illness led Yates to believe she was saving her children by killing them. Dietz said that, if that were the case, you would expect her to comfort the children by telling them they would be with God. He said she did not do that.

The Texas woman accused of hitting a homeless man with her car and leaving him stuck in the windshield to die has been charged with murder. Police say Chante Mallard has admitted hitting Gregory Biggs last year, then going home instead of getting help. Authorities say Biggs, who was still alive, pleaded for help, but was ignored. He bled to death over the next two or three days in Mallard's garage. Mallard's attorney says she is not the animal or monster police are portraying her to be.

In just a moment: Will Saudi Arabia support the U.S. in the war against Iraq? I will ask a man in the country's inner circle. Also, a famous politician not seeking reelection. And later: Why is Jesse Ventura shutting down the governor's mansion? And Rosie's secret is out. But friends tell "People" magazine she never really kept quiet.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back.

The crisis between the Israelis and the Palestinians seems to be intensifying with each passing day. Earlier today, I spoke with the defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, about the situation and how it may tie into possible U.S. action against Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: My whole adult lifetime there has been problems between Israel and the Arabs and the Palestinians in that region. It is something that has gone on decade after decade after decade. In the intervening period, we've had a number of wars, and I don't know that that is the determinant.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Earlier today, I also spoke with Adel Al-Jubeir. He's the chief foreign policy adviser to Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Adel Al-Jubeir, welcome back to our program.

You heard what Secretary Rumsfeld said about not necessarily allowing the tension between the Israelis and the Palestinians to dictate what the U.S. can do, should do against Iraq.

Will Saudi Arabia work with the United States, support the United States if it goes after Saddam Hussein?

ADEL AL-JUBEIR, SAUDI FOREIGN POLICY ADVISER: I think there has been a lot of speculation in the media about the Iraq situation. I think that the policy is still being put together. It's still being finalized. I think that we are still looking at United Nations. I think we are still looking at trying to get the inspectors back into Iraq. I don't know that it as developed as you read about in the press. And so let's see what happens as we move forward on this.

BLITZER: What happens if Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi government refuse to allow those U.N. weapons inspectors back in?

AL-JUBEIR: I think we would have to cross that bridge when we get to it. The U.N. resolutions are very clear. There are negotiations currently under way at the United Nations to bring the inspectors back in and to lift the economic sanctions on Iraq in exchange for an inspections regime that is effective and credible.

Those are ongoing. And we will see how far they progress. I wouldn't want to speculate before we reach that point.

BLITZER: Do you see a linkage between what's happening between the Israelis and the Palestinians and how far Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, other moderate Arab states, might be willing to go in cooperating with the U.S. in the war on terror?

AL-JUBEIR: I think we already are fully cooperating with the U.S. in the war on terror. I don't see -- I think that you can deal with multiple issues and problems at the same time. I do not believe that the Iraq situation is linked to the war on terror. Iraq is an arms-control matter, not a terrorism matter.

BLITZER: But the United States regards the Iraqis as a regime that supports international terrorism.

AL-JUBEIR: What I believe the American policy has been, as I understand it, is that Saddam Hussein is not in compliance with the U.N. resolutions with regards to the weapons of mass destruction. Nor is he in compliance with the agreements he signed at the end of Gulf War. And the issue is an issue of bringing him into compliance with those resolutions and with those agreements.

BLITZER: Since we spoke the last time, President Bush has decided to change his policy and dispatch General Anthony Zinni, his special Middle East envoy, back to the region. What do you anticipate that Zinni can do right now that obviously has not yet been done to stop the fighting?

AL-JUBEIR: I believe that, to begin with, the administration should receive a lot of credit for getting involved at this time. I believe that, historically, when you look at the peace process, it has only moved forward when there was a lot of intervention from outside and particularly by the United States.

There are always risks involved with stepping into the situation between the Israelis and Palestinians. The U.S. administration has shown that it is willing to take that risk. It is a very brave and very daring move. And I believe that, hopefully, it will lead to success.

BLITZER: And it comes on the heels of Crown Prince Abdullah's peace initiative: an Israeli withdrawal to the '67 lines in exchange for full normalization of relations.

When I interviewed President Mubarak of Egypt earlier this week, he reported that he had a conversation with Prime Minister Sharon. Sharon asked him to call the crown prince and seek a secret meeting between Sharon and Abdullah. And Crown Prince Abdullah said, presumably, not until after there is peace in the region.

If Crown Prince Abdullah could meet with Sharon, what would he tell him?

AL-JUBEIR: Well, that would be hypothetical.

But I can tell you for a fact that the proper address for Sharon would be President Arafat in Ramallah and the president of Syria in Damascus, and Beirut, Lebanon. Those are the parties that he should be negotiating with directly.

I believe that his attempt to divert the issue by saying, "I want to meet with Saudis" shows that he is not credible and that he is not serious. It is interesting that, of all the major leaders who have supported this initiative, the one that is glaring by not supporting it -- in fact opposing it -- is Prime Minister Sharon.

BLITZER: On that note, I've got to leave it. Thank you very much, Adel Al-Jubeir.

AL-JUBEIR: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And she married an 89-year-old when she was 26. Now a judge makes it worth more than $88 million: the Playmate vs. the millionaire's heirs. Plus, one of Hollywood's worst kept secrets becomes official: Rosie O'Donnell admits she is gay. And she has a new book. The talk show host takes on the best-seller list -- coming up.

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BLITZER: Earlier we asked: "Besides Anna Nicole Smith's court victory of $88 million, what else has a similar price tag?" Is it: Bill Gate's house, a Denver radio station, the Boston Red Sox, or the British Royal Art Collection? Denver radio station KALC is being sold to Entercom Communications for $88 million.

Now checking these stories on today's "Newswire": Anna Nicole Smith just won the most recent court battle with her late husband's heirs. A judge said she is entitled to $88 million of Howard Marshall's estate because his son, E. Pierce Marshall, took malicious and fraudulent steps to deny Smith the money she was promised. Marshall says he will appeal.

Another Republican senator is announcing plans to step down at the end of his term. Fred Thompson of Tennessee released a statement today that said -- quote -- "I simply don't have the heart for another six-year term." Aides say Thompson has been deeply affected by his daughter's recent death. Incidentally, Al Gore says he is not, repeat, not interested in running for Thompson's seat.

A fiscal battle between Minnesota lawmakers and Governor Jesse Ventura is starting to hit home. After seeing his budget cut by 15 percent, Ventura surprised lawmakers by announcing he will close the governor's mansion. Unlike his predecessors, Ventura does not live there, but the mansion is used for entertainment purposes.

She has a television show, a magazine and is a mother of three adopted children. And now Rosie O'Donnell admits she is gay. Is it a newfound honesty or a publicity stunt to sell books?

Plus:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE. It took trees and cows away. I never thought I would see a cow get picked up in the air, spun around.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You saw that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, and spun the cow around and flipped him down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: And a suspected twister touchdown with a twist -- that's all coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back. A star of daytime talk is taking a new tack when it comes to her professional and personal life. Rosie O'Donnell is putting her homosexuality out in the open for the first time publicly. Her decision and what prompted it is explained in the next edition of "People" magazine.

Adam Buckman is a TV columnist for "The New York Post." He joins us now from New York to talk a little bit more about Rosie O'Donnell's decision to come out.

What do you make of this decision, Adam?

ADAM BUCKMAN, TV COLUMNIST, "NEW YORK POST": Well, let's remember that it was Ellen DeGeneres who is the true Jackie Robinson of lesbians. And she came out six years ago. And it had certain effects on her career, on her then ABC sitcom. And she came out in a big way on the cover of "TIME" magazine and in an ABC interview, which is what Rosie will be doing next week with Diane Sawyer.

It looks -- cynically, I want to say, well, it looks like Rosie is at the time of her life where she wants to kind of be more honest with the public, but also sell a book about her private life. And this particular tidbit, this particular aspect of her private life is being kind of offered as the bait to come and buy the book.

On the other hand, she is very honorably framing this coming-out in the context of an adoption fight in Florida. It is going to be reported on the ABC News show that Rosie is gay because -- and she is getting involved in a situation in Florida which does not allow gays to adopt children. And she would like to do that in the state of Florida. So, that's the context for this right now.

BLITZER: And, as we put up a picture of Rosie O'Donnell and her longtime partner, I want to ask you how you think this is going to impact on her TV career.

BUCKMAN: It is an interesting question. And I have pondered that a lot lately. And it has been difficult for me, unusually so, to come up with some sort of judgment on that.

After all, I live in New York City. In fact, I live in Greenwich Village. You know, lesbians are no big deal to me. I have a hard time judging how the rest of the country reacts to lesbians. Certainly they are not unacquainted with lesbians. There are lesbians, I assume, in every neighborhood and in every small town and city.

So it could be that, nowadays, people are somewhat sophisticated. They have been raised for the last half-a-dozen years on a diet of daytime television shows where all kinds of homosexuality and other behaviors are talked about openly. So, I don't know if it is that shocking. Rosie has a great deal of goodwill with her fans. They like her. She could be like the sort of the heavyset women who lives down the street who maybe some people privately suspect was a lesbian, but maybe they don't really care. BLITZER: Adam, Rosie O'Donnell, Ellen DeGeneres, will this decision by Rosie O'Donnell, do you think, convince other lesbians, prominent lesbians out there, and gay men, to come out of the closet openly?

BUCKMAN: I think there is no question that that's an ongoing dilemma for, particularly, performers and entertainers who are, I guess, what they call still closeted.

I think they ponder this all the time. What will be the effect on the business that they are in? I mean, you know, there is a risk for it. I think they have to judge whether the majority of the country cares whether or not a very good-looking, handsome, leading- man-type of movie star who plays viral heterosexual roles in movies would be acceptable in those roles if he came out as a homosexual? I think it is really up to the individual.

And Rosie is leaving television soon. Perhaps she felt that this would really have no effect on her future career. And she can continue to play various character roles in movies and run her magazines and live happily with her adopted children.

BLITZER: Adam Buckman of "The New York Post" in New York, thanks, as always, for joining us.

BUCKMAN: Thank you.

BLITZER: I appreciate it very much. Sorry we had to interrupt the interview the other day, but we had some breaking news with the president of the United States and the president of Egypt.

Adam Buckman, thanks again.

And we have heard a lot about ABC's decision to court David Letterman at the expense of Ted Koppel. Ironically, the newsman outpolled the popular comic in a new Gallup Poll. The respondents were asked this: "If you personally were watching television late at night after the local news, which would you prefer to watch?" Thirty- five percent said Letterman's "Late Show," compared to 50 percent who preferred Koppel's "Nightline."

And, true to form, March has come in like a lion: some dramatic damage in the wake of a suspected tornado touchdown in California. And at the beach, some beachcombers are taking off their sandals and putting on their snowshoes. We will explain when we come back.

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BLITZER: Body shops in the Seattle area should have plenty of work in the near future. A rare snowstorm caused so many car accidents, police say they couldn't keep track of them all. There were no reports of serious injuries, but at least one baby was born on Interstate 405 because his mother couldn't make it to the hospital.

Further south, the snow made for quite a surreal setting along the beaches of Oregon. Residents in the Portland area woke up seeing white as well. Like Seattle, this storm also affected traffic. Schools were delayed and buses had to be rerouted.

And, in California, residents of a small town south of Sacramento are recovering from a storm that may have produced a tornado. People in Lockeford described a funnel cloud that picked up a cow, knocked over oak trees and downed power lines. No injuries are reported.

Let's go to New York now and get a preview of "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE." That, of course, begins right at the top of the hour -- Lou.

LOU DOBBS, "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE": Wolf, thank you very much.

Dozens of people have been killed today in the latest Middle East fighting, the bloodiest day of the intifada to date. Former U.S. ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk will be here to tell us what the United States can do to stop the carnage. And the United States continues to step up its attacks in Afghanistan. CNN military analyst General David Grange will be with us. And the Senate today passes a bill to stimulate the economy a day after Fed Chairman Greenspan says we are in recovery. And a falling unemployment rate lifts stock prices today.

We will have all of that and a lot more for you at the top of the hour. Please join us -- now back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Thank you very much, Lou.

And who is in the best position to bring the Israelis and the Palestinians to the negotiating table? The results of our "Question of the day" next. And a viewer has a complaint about my online column. That's coming up as well.

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BLITZER: Now the results of our "Question of the Day": "Who is in the best position to bring the Israelis and the Palestinians to the negotiating table?" So far -- look at these results -- 45 percent of you say the U.S. The United Nations came in second. A reminder: This poll is not scientific.

Time now to hear from you. Ken writes this: "Iraq seeks weapons of mass destruction. I suspect most states are seeking nuclear weapons. I think it is a folly to assume we can stop their proliferation."

Jane criticizes the column I wrote yesterday: "You've lost your mind completely. An article on the brave reporters? How about an article on the brave soldiers? As hard as it may be for you to believe, you're not the story."

But Catherine writes this: "The danger these reporters face is very real. I, for one, am eternally grateful for their work. My boyfriend is a specialist in the 101st Airborne Division. These reporters provide information without which I could never begin to understand what he is going through."

And I will be back in one hour here in the CNN "War Room" with more of my interview with the defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld.

Until then, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE" begins right now.

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