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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Uncertainty on Who's Backing the War; What was a Senior Al Qaeda Leader Doing in Baghdad?

Aired January 23, 2003 - 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.


(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Tug of war over war.

ARI FLEISCHER, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: It is entirely conceivable that at the end of the day when Europe answers the call, France won't be on the line.

BLITZER: Never mind the allies, is Congress on board? I'll ask Senator Patrick Leahy.

Where he goes trouble follows. Is this al Qaeda leader the missing link between the terror group and Iraq. A "CNN Exclusive."

Deep freeze even in the Deep South.

And these robbers get more than they bargained for when a ticked off store owner tees off in Toronto.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: It's Thursday, January 23, 2003. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.

Within the last hour, Iraq's neighbors have issued an urgent call on Baghdad to cooperate with U.N. inspectors before it's too late. But as the clock runs down, the White House is adding up the list of those it can count on if push comes to shove in the Persian Gulf.

The Bush administration's public relations offensive for a possible war against Iraq is building dramatically even in the face of escalating opposition from some close allies, including France and Germany.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I have made it clear on Germany's behalf that we can not agree to a legitimization of war.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): That is exactly what I meant when referring to joint foreign policy.

BLITZER (voice-over): To back that up, France and Germany, members of NATO, have prevented the alliance from taking the steps necessary to prepare for war. The secretary general is playing down the rift.

LORD ROBERTSON, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: There is a disagreement over timing at the moment by a small number of nations but no disagreement on substance at all.

BLITZER: Secretary of State Colin Powell, along with his British counterpart, Jack Straw, insists that before going to war they will assemble a strong coalition.

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: I don't think we'll have to worry about going it alone. I think that the case is clear.

JACK STRAW, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY: What's at stake is the authority of the whole of the U.N.

BLITZER: The president has started a new round of personal diplomacy to generate support beginning with a phone call to Russia's President Vladimir Putin. Other calls to world leaders are expected in the coming days.

FLEISCHER: President Bush is confident that Europe will answer the call. It remains possible that France won't be on the line.

BLITZER: As part of the new U.S. offensive, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz went public with a new charge.

PAUL WOLFOWITZ, DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY: Today we know from multiple sources that Saddam has ordered that any scientist who cooperates during interviews will be killed as well as their families.

BLITZER: Iraq claims it is cooperating and has denied ordering its scientists not to talk.

President Bush's National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice went to the pages of the New York Times. "By both its actions and its inactions, Iraq is proving not that it is a nation bent on disarmament but that it is a nation with something to hide. Iraq is still treating inspections as a game. It should know that time is running out."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Slow down. That's the message on Iraq from the Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry. The Massachusetts Senator lashed out at President Bush today accusing him, and I'm quoting, of "belligerent and myopic unilateralism" and calling on him to work with other nations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: I say to the president, show respect for the process of international diplomacy because it is not only right, it can make American stronger, and show the world some appropriate patience to building a genuine coalition. Mr. President do not rush to war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The U.S. Congress voted back in October to authorize the president to use force against Iraq. In the U.S. Senate the vote was 77-23, among those 23 voting no, the Vermont Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy. He said the measure gave the president a "blank check" and he's voiced concern that the United States would end up going it alone.

Senator Leahy is joining me now live from Capitol Hill. Senator thanks so much for joining us. I take it you're pretty much on the same page as John Kerry when it comes to Iraq.

SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: It's interesting because, of course, Senator Kerry and I voted differently on the Iraq resolution, but what he said is absolutely right. What he just said at Georgetown is absolutely right.

I think the worst thing we could do is to have the United States go over there and appear to be alone or just virtually alone. This is something if we're going to take actions against Saddam Hussein, and nobody questions that Saddam Hussein is a bad man, but there are a lot of bad leaders around the world, if we're going to be taking action against one of them, we better have it with a broad coalition and we better show where not only is it in our interest but the world's interest.

I remember when I was a student at Georgetown. It was at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis. President Kennedy sent him ambassador to the United Nations with indisputable proof of what the Soviets were doing with their missiles in Cuba. The world rallied behind him. What I think the world is saying now, let's give the inspectors time to show where that proof is.

BLITZER: Senator the administration, the secretary of state, the secretary of defense, they say they won't go it alone even if France and Germany may not necessarily be in the U.S. corner. They'll have other European countries, especially the Eastern European countries, the former Eastern Block, NATO members now aligned with the U.S., they'll have Spain, they'll have Turkey that this will be a broad based coalition.

LEAHY: We're still looking for efforts in Turkey to get their bases where we want them. Perhaps they'll be there. Perhaps they will not but that is still not the issue. The issue is showing the rest of the world why it is essential that we go there, not the question of just containing Saddam Hussein. We've done that very, very well. He has been contained.

The questions that are going to be asked by the rest of the world, why is this suddenly more important than the much greater threat that we face in North Korea? Why are we going on this? And I think that is a case that is yet to be made. I believe it's a case that may well be made but it's not going to be made the way this is done.

It's not going to be made by posturing and it's not going to be made by threats. It's going to be made by allowing the inspectors to go forward, give them the help that they need to go forward and show the world, especially the Arab world, why it's not just the United States deciding to take on part of the Arab world.

If we don't do that, we could win a win with Saddam Hussein, of course. Our military is far, far stronger. We could win it alone. The question we have to ask what do we gain by doing that and will one of the things we'll gain be far, far more terrorist attacks here in the United States?

BLITZER: Senator Leahy the administration argues the burden of proof is not on the U.S. or the U.N. The burden of proof is on the Iraqis to prove they destroyed the weapons of mass destruction, the chemical, the biological weapons, the ballistic missiles that the U.N. itself said they had at the end of '98 when the inspectors left, and that over these four years and since the inspections started they have not proven that those liters of anthrax or whatever have been destroyed.

LEAHY: Well, I'm one who has a particular interest in where anthrax might be after receiving one of the two anthrax letters here in the capital. But, the inspectors are trying to show that. The inspectors, I believe, will be able to show the answer to that but let's give them the time to do it.

I think they just got their first helicopter in country on January 5. Give them the help. I would strongly urge that we let them get their full team in there. We give them help and I think we can with intelligence. Again, I use the example of President Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He sent indisputable proof to the United Nations. The rest of the world rallied behind us.

Think of the way the world rallied behind us right after September 11. Throughout the world they did. Let's not squander that support we had then. Let's build on it because the threat we'll face next year won't be Saddam Hussein. The threat we'll face will be terrorists right here in the United States.

BLITZER: An ominous thought. Senator Leahy, always good to speak with you, thanks very much for spending a few moments with us.

LEAHY: You're welcome.

BLITZER: As we noted at the top of this program, Iraq's neighbors have now wrapped up an extraordinary meeting in Istanbul. Saying they do not want to live through yet another devastating war, the foreign ministers of six nations, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, have urged Iraq to cooperate with U.N. inspectors. There was no call on Saddam Hussein to step down.

So far mixed results from President Bush's attempts to sell a possible war with Iraq to Washington's Arab friends. CNN crews are spread out throughout the Middle East and you're going to get a chance to hear firsthand right now to the criticism and concern on the so- called Arab street. We begin in Beirut.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rula Amin in Beirut. Here among students at the American University ambitions are high. Expectations are low. Like almost everywhere else in the Arab world most students we spoke to opposed any military action against Iraq.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First they should united and take a strong stand against the war.

AMIN: Do you think they will?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's unofficial. Usually they talk a lot and there's no action.

AMIN: Do you think they can say no to the United States?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope yes but I don't think so. I hope it.

SANDY PETRIKOWSKI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sandy Petrikowski here in Cairo where people feel that war is inevitable.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As a Muslim, as Arabic, there is no process in USA and in Mr. Bush, war for Iraq, no war for Korea, why? Why, Mr. Bush (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Chris Burns in Qatar, the oil rich kingdom that's the base for the U.S. Central Command where the fears of war are growing.

(voice over): At seaside Qataris shop for the day's harvest and fret over what war could reap. A headline predicts a conflict in three weeks.

"Inshala, God willing, there will be a solution" says Ya Hyab (ph), an oil company executive. Pressure Saddam to cooperate with the U.N. weapons inspectors" says Ya Hyab who supports his government's decision to host U.S. forces. "With a lot of pressure on Iraq" he says, "nothing will happen and things will be different if there is pressure on America not to wage war."

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Martin Savidge here in Kuwait. This is the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) market, located in the center of Kuwait City. Kuwait is probably by far the most pro-U.S. country to be found in the entire Arab world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Concerning the American policy, I think it's the right one. The decision (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I think we support America in this situation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I can see all resolutions are fair and just because of what the Iraqi regime had done to us. They killed, forced others to refuge. Resolutions are made because of the Iraqis' actions. SAVIDGE: So, the Kuwaitis we talked to say they like the way the U.S. is handling Iraq but this is the same country where just two days ago an American was murdered, a clear indication not everyone in Kuwait agrees with the policy -- Wolf.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Marty Savidge and other reporters, thanks very much.

Here's our "Web Question of the Day", your chance to weigh in on this story. Would you support a war with Iraq if the U.N. Security Council authorized the use of force? We'll have the results later in this broadcast. Vote at cnn.com/wolf.

While you're there, I'd like to hear from you. Send me your comments. I'll try to read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also, of course, where you can read my daily online column, cnn.com/wolf.

An icy blast from the north down to the south the deep freeze that even has Florida beachcombers pulling out the scarves.

Also, fighting back with a golf club, a store owner determined rises up against some would-be robbers.

And, east meets west in the Super Bowl, the mayors of Oakland and Tampa join me to make a bet on their home teams. You'll hear what they're ready to wage.

But first, today's "News Quiz."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER (voice-over): What player has scored the most touchdowns in Super Bowl history? Terrell Davis, Jerry Rice, Tim Brown, Art Monk, the answer coming up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It's cold out there. A winter wonderland it isn't, at least for many of us. Bone cold air barreling down from Canada made most of the country east of the Rockies feel like a deep freezer.

Boston Harbor is like a giant ice-making machine. Down south, North Carolina's Outer Banks were blanketed by the first significant snowfall in 13 years.

We have three live reports on this big, some would say huge chill. CNN's Jeff Flock is in Baudette, Minnesota. Ross Cavitt of our affiliate WSB is in Cartersville, Georgia. That's just north of Atlanta. And, Kirk Hogan of our affiliate WCBD is in St. George, South Carolina. That's outside Charleston.

Let's begin with Jeff. Jeff, how cold is it there? JEFF FLOCK, CNN CHICAGO BUREAU CHIEF: Well, funny you should as, Wolf. I've got a little thermometer we've been keeping our eye on. I'm at, I don't know if you can see that, minus 5.4 is what you got there in Baudette.

This is just to the west of International Falls. It is so cold in this part of the country, this is where they test all manner of equipment, and we're out here now on a torture track, Bosch Corporation testing. What are we testing out here?

JIM GLUTTING, BOSCH CORPORATION: Anti-lock brakes.

FLOCK: And how are they doing in this?

GLUTTING: The equipment is performing quite well as the cars are testing out here.

FLOCK: What are we looking at right now?

GLUTTING: We're looking at these guys making a left right here about 50 miles an hour and they're looking at stability control and direction on the vehicles.

FLOCK: And on day like this when we're minus five, that's not even counting the wind chill, this is what you're looking for believe it or not.

GLUTTING: This is for sure. We try and test in the most harshest conditions that we can find and this is definitely out here, I'll tell you.

FLOCK: Right, and you've had some mild winters but we're back to it now. This is pretty serious stuff.

GLUTTING: This is a good old-fashioned Minnesota winter by all -- by no stretch of the imagination that's for sure.

FLOCK: OK, good deal. Well, Jim I appreciate it. I know this is what you guys want. Other folks not as thrilled about it but there you go. And as we see Wolf, these cars being put to the test out here just as we are and so far so good, back to you.

BLITZER: Jeff Flock that looks like a mighty good driver over there. Thanks Jeff very much. Let's go down south to Georgia where much of the state is freezing from some of the lowest temperatures in many years.

Joining us live with that in Cartersville, just north of Atlanta, is Ross Cavitt of our affiliate WSBD, Ross tell us about what's happening in Georgia.

ROSS CAVITT, WSBD CORRESPONDENT: Well, I want to give you an idea what the temperature is right now here. We're on an interstate overpass near Cartersville, Georgia. It's been in the low 20s all afternoon long and one click here I can show you what the wind chill is. The wind is really whipping here. I know these temperatures don't mean much up in Minneapolis but down here by Metro Atlanta this is life and death stuff. The interstate behind me is clear now but this morning what a mess that caught everyone by surprise.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just driving and creeping by, you know. Tractors were stopping on the road and I slid and slid into the ditch to try to get out but I couldn't.

CAVITT (voice-over): Lamont Zan's (ph) morning run ended early like many others in a ditch along I-75. As he waits for help he wonders why he hadn't seen a DOT truck all morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There shouldn't be no reason why it shouldn't have been salted down last night or prepared early this morning, I mean because that's how people get hurt when they're not prepared for it.

CAVITT: Even more dangerous than the interstates were the off ramps. As Trooper Wal Lardston (ph) worked an accident off Georgia 20, two others happened right around him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just ice. It's just been packed down after vehicles traveled over it and all that. It just basically turned into ice and folks aren't paying really paying attention to it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't be out here if you don't need to be and drive slow.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) sure did. I wasn't expecting it.

CAVITT: Like everyone else, garage owner Ricky Matthews (ph) says he was expecting the cold but not the ice and the mayhem.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trucks off in a ditch, cars off in a ditch, all the hills are iced over. The interstate is just about a solid sheet of ice from Grant Parkway to I don't know how far north.

CAVITT: But drivers like (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who by the way was wearing sandals one look at someone sliding into a ditch was enough to convince him to call a time out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I saw something slide already and I'm just scared to drive now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAVITT: The guy was wearing sandals. It was driving me crazy just looking at him out there on the interstate.

Here's the concern for tomorrow around Metro Atlanta, still a lot of snow and ice on some of the highways around here, so schools have already called off school and classes for tomorrow and everybody else is clenching their teeth waiting on what may come down the road tomorrow. We're live near Cartersville, now back to you.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Ross, better to be safe than sorry. Ross Cavitt of our affiliate WSB thanks very much.

Let's stay down south. South Carolina is not only freezing but also dealing with snow that forced the closing of state offices and many schools. Live with details is Kurt Hogan of our affiliate WCBD in St. George. Tell us what's happening where you are.

KURT HOGAN, WCBD CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, I'll tell you what, it's freezing down here. When I moved to South Carolina, I thought I was moving to the Deep South. I fell like I've moved to the Arctic.

You may notice that the shot is very staticky because of the Arctic wind that's been blowing through here. Schools in the area have also been closed. As you can see behind me, I don't know if you can get a shot of Harleyville-Ridgeville (ph) Elementary School. They actually closed earlier today because of threats of snow.

In this area, this part of the country, they don't have the manpower or the equipment to clean up the snow once it falls down, so they closed school early. Whether or not schools are going to be closed tomorrow is still up to Mother Nature. We don't know yet -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, Kurt Hogan you better get warm over there. Thanks very much for joining us. You guys are simply not used to a little cold weather. Those of us who grew up in Buffalo, New York know all about cold weather. For much more on the big chill go to cnn.com/weather. That's a good place to go. We'll get you more details there.

Looking down the barrel of a shotgun a store owner battles back with a golf club, what should you do if you were to face a similar circumstance? We'll ask an expert.

Also, a "CNN Exclusive." What was a senior al Qaeda leader doing in Baghdad?

Plus...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FLEISCHER: That remark is far removed from what the president believes and for the president to stand for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The president distances himself from a candidate for his AIDS Council. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're told that the Secretary of State Colin Powell and the Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld have been briefing members of the U.S. Senate behind closed doors. If they emerge and come to our cameras, come to our microphones, we'll go there live, tell you what the secretary of state and the secretary of defense have been saying behind closed doors, clearly trying to make the case for the possibility of going to war against Iraq. We'll get to that once it happens.

In the meantime, we have some very dramatic pictures coming in from Canada. Paul Bliss of CNN affiliate KFTO has the story of a Toronto convenience store owner who wouldn't surrender to thieves.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL BLISS, KFTO CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even veteran police officers are marveling at the shopkeeper's tenacious resistance. It was 11:00 Monday night when three masked men burst into the Grace (ph) Convenience Store on Pharmacy Avenue near Steels (ph).

One man pointed a pump action shotgun at the clerk's head. Instead of surrendering, the store owner grabbed a golf club and fought back breaking the club over the bandit's head, but the unwelcome customers made the clerk pay the price as he tried to take on all three. The Hold Up Squad's Wilf Townley says the courageous combatant was taking a chance.

DET. SGT. WILF TOWNLEY, TORONTO POLICE: The store owner is as brave as a lion and it's only whenever he goes down to the grind that they all decide to come in and put their licks in like hyenas and they go after him then.

BLISS: At one point all three men joined in the beating. Two are seen splitting off and pounding the cash register in frustration. They can't figure out how to get it open.

Meanwhile, the victim continues to try to escape the clutches of his much larger attacker, still clinging to the broken golf club. Then, the men dash and in one last act of defiance the store owner gives chase and uses the golf club to smash the rear window of the white car used in the getaway. His injuries were minor.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: At last report, the three robbers remained at large. That report from Paul Bliss of our affiliate, CNN affiliate KFTO. As the police sergeant noted though in that report the store owner took a big risk by fighting back. Was the risk worth it? What should you do in similar circumstances?

We're going to put that question to Gary Hankins, the former president of the Fraternal Order of Police here in the Washington, D.C. area. He's joining us now live. Well, did the store owner do the right thing, Gary?

GARY HANKINS, FORMER PRESIDENT, FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE: I think he does something that all of us would like to do and think we could do in similar circumstances. But unfortunately that's exactly the wrong thing to do. There is nothing that we own that we can't turn over and recover except our lives and to take that kind of action while maybe meting out frustration is not good. We have unfortunately seen in evidence here he is in our attention because he didn't die.

Unfortunately, thousands of people die each year. If he had been shot, if that shotgun had been loaded, and I suspect it wasn't, and he died, he'd have been an unremarkable addition to a very large statistic.

BLITZER: So, what should these store owners of these convenience stores or other kinds of stores, whether drugs stores, hardware stores, what should they do if robbers come in and say give us your money?

HANKINS: Give them whatever they would like to have. There's nothing that we own that we can't earn back or recover that's more valuable than your life. And, as I said, thousands of people die in this country.

BLITZER: So you're not recommending that they themselves have guns, armed guns, in the store ready to fight on if somebody points a gun at them?

HANKINS: No, I wouldn't recommend that. I think that it's laudable. We all feel the justification but too many people die at the hands of criminals, and having a gun in your hand may give you an opportunity to exercise some kind of revenge or justice there on the scene.

But we have officers, police officers who are armed killed every year, unfortunately many of them, because we've discovered you can not act or react as fast as someone who is armed can act. So, we have officers who are killed who are trained to use those weapons because they can't use the weapon fast enough to defend themselves against someone who's already got a gun pointed at them.

BLITZER: All right thanks very much, Gary Hankins.

I want to go to Capitol Hill right now. The Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is speaking. He's flanked by the secretary of state and the secretary of defense.

SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), MAJORITY LEADER: And it really was not a briefing of which we were notified in any way by any of the discussions or the two secretaries with me of the determination of the president to use military action.

That was not the purpose of the meeting and that was not what the briefing was about as we look at the disarming of Iraq, is which clearly the objective that we all have before us. The situation itself is obviously grave. Saddam Hussein has had 12 years to accomplish what we are asking him really as an international community to accomplish, to accomplish and that is to disarm.

The discussion of this being a grave concern because of the nexus between what we all know is there, that is the peps of mass destruction and the importance of disarming that nexus of the issue of weapons of mass destruction with terrorism. A very useful briefing, one that the senators will benefit from and once again we'd like to thank both secretaries for being with us.

POWELL: Thank you, sir.

FRIST: Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Thank you, sir.

RUMSFELD: Thank you. Good to see you.

BLITZER: Describing the situation, in his words, as obviously grave the new Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist emerges from a closed door briefing from the Secretary of State Colin Powell and the Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, saying the Iraqis must comply, move on. We don't know the kind of details that the secretary of state and secretary of defense provided.

Presumably they're anxious to make their case that the Iraqis are not in compliance, are not cooperating with those U.N. weapons inspectors looking for the kind of support in the U.S. Senate that they hope they'll have. All of this, of course, this latest public relations offensive by the Bush administration building up to next Tuesday night for the president's State of the Union Address before a joint session of the U.S. Congress when the president will make that case in great detail.

Who's really running al Qaeda?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The names are irrelevant. I say bin Laden could die today and it would make no difference to the organization.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: When we return a "CNN Exclusive." A top al Qaeda leader's travels traced to Iraq. What does it mean?

Also, Super Bowl showdown. Oakland's mayor challenges Tampa's mayor to a football bet. I'll talk to both of them. I'll try to up the ante.

Also, Jerry Springer in 2004? The outrageous talk show host considers, a run for the U.S. Senate.

And Ozzy Osbourne downs one for Pepsi. We'll have a sneak preview of a Super Bowl ad.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. I'm Wolf Blitzer. Coming up a "CNN Exclusive": part two, the global hunt for a potential al Qaeda ring leader. Did he visit Iraq? But first let's look at other stories making news right now in our CNN "News Alert."

(NEWS ALERT)

BLITZER: Now a "CNN Exclusive": The search for a top al Qaeda leader. There's evidence he may have been in Iraq.

Here's CNN national correspondent Mike Boettcher with an exclusive report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE BOETTCHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Abu Mussab al Zarqawi, a senior al Qaeda leader, already accused by Jordan of master minding the plot to assassinate Lawrence Foley there in late October. A man already singled out by President Bush last October before the Foley assassination as a possible link between al Qaeda and Iraq.

BUSH: Some al Qaeda leaders who fled Afghanistan went to Iraq. These include one very senior al Qaeda leader who received medical treatment in Baghdad this year. And who has been associated with planning for chemical and biological attacks.

BOETTCHER: Now U.S. Sources have linked al Zarqawi to the arrest of several men no London. Those men accused of making ricin, a deadly poison.

(on camera): But it is his travels that have attracted attention. Not only from President Bush but from intelligence officials in a variety of countries.

(voice-over): Zarqawi is originally from Jordan and was convicted there of planting to bomb tourist hotels during millennium celebrations as part of series of al Qaeda an attack world wide. He escaped to Afghanistan, where he stayed until the Taliban was ousted from power.

Coalition intelligence sources say his travels then took him through Iran to Baghdad and into Kurdish controlled Northern Iraq where a group linked to al Qaeda is known to operate. Sources say he all has been in Syria and in Lebanon. Seemingly moving with ease between these countries and many places, say the sources, he was organizing terror cells. Former CIA operative Bob Baer says he is a very serious threat who manages to bring together very different terrorists.

BOB BAER, FORMER CIA OFFICER: The names are irrelevant. I say bin Laden could die today and it would make no difference to the organization, because somebody's going to carry on. Zarqawi will. I don't know if he's a charismatic leader like bin laden, apparently is, but he could carry on. He could operate independently. He knows where to get money.

BOETTCHER: There are some in U.S. intelligence who question whether Iraq or any of these countries was aware of Zarqawi's presence because he might have been using aliases.

Bob Baer who spent years in the region disagrees.

BAER: Absolutely not. Somebody at some level had to know he was there. Obviously I can't tell you whether Saddam knew, but somebody in the official line of responsibility for customs and immigrations knew he came into the country. Palestinians, Arabs, other Arabs, non- Iraqis and even Iraqis go through a very tight screen when they come into that country. Their documents are looked at. They want to know who they are. They want to know who their families are. You just can't do it. It's a policed state.

BOETTCHER: Coalition intelligence sources say Zarqawi primary focus seems to have been planning attacks in Jordan. These two men, Sa'ed Salem bin Suweid a Libyan national and Yasser Fathi Ibraheem were arrested and have confessed to carrying out the Foley assassination at Zarqawi's direction according to Jordanian authorities. They say they got money and weapons from Zarqawi, who was reportedly planning more attacks.

(on camera): The trial of those two men is expect to begin in the next few weeks. When it does there could be even more important clues about Abu Mussab al Zarqawi and his connections to other countries, including Iraq.

Mike Boettcher, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Two good reports from Mike Boettcher.

Thanks, Mike, for those excellent reports.

When we come back, anger from Christian conservatives and AIDS activists. Find out why this Bush administration candidate became a lightning bolt for controversy.

And the bets are on. Oakland's mayor challenges Tampa's mayor for a Super Bowl bet. They both join me to throw down their stakes for the home teams. First, though, a look at news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Grim search. Authorities still are assessing the damage from Tuesday's Mexican earthquake. The tremor, estimated at 7.8 in magnitude, killed dozens, injured scores and left thousands homeless.

Jungle hunt. Panamanian authorities are promising to step up the search along the Colombian border for three Americans who disappeared last week. It's believed the three, including journalist Robert Pelten, are being held by paramilitary forces.

Cheers for Chavez. Tens of thousands of supporters of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez staged a demonstration in Caracas aimed at undercutting a strike against Mr. Chavez.

Cable's out. The Afghan government says a ban on cable television will be lifted soon as the cabinet approves a new law regulating programming. Afghanistan's chief justice shut down the country's fledgling cable TV operations Monday, saying the programs offend Islamic sensibilities.

Royal wedding. They were celebrating in Nepal, where the king's daughter, Princess Prearana, married a commoner. It was an arranged marriage, like most in the Himalayan kingdom, but it still had its untraditional touches. The bride studied business at a British university. The groom has a masters in computer science from the University of California.

And that's our look "Around The World."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: A sneak peek at those Super Bowl commercials that will have you in stitches. Also, a Super Bowl challenge off the field. I'll speak with the mayors of Tampa and Oakland. It's all coming up. We're back in one minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The Bush administration's choice to serve on the Presidential Advisory Commission on AIDS is withdrawing just days before his swearing in ceremony. Jerry Thacker's move was triggered by his controversial writings and speeches on the disease. CNN's Patty Davis has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After a firestorm ignited over his selection to be on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV and AIDS, Jerry Thacker abruptly pulled his name.

"I feel I must withdraw my name from consideration," Thacker said in a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, saying given the controversy, he was concerned he might not be effective.

That controversy over Thacker's comments in September 2001 on the Bob Jones University Web site when he referred to the gay life lifestyle as a "deathstyle." In other comments he also called AIDS "the gay plague."

The White House calling his selection a cabinet level decision quickly distanced itself.

FLEISCHER: That remark is far removed from what the president believes and for the president to stand for.

DAVIS: Thacker's comments were removed recently from the Web site, he said, at his demand because they misrepresented his views. Thacker said he is not anti-gay but he is anti-HIV/AIDS.

Thacker, a religious conservative, who says he and his daughter got HIV from his wife after she received a blood transfusion, preaches abstinence to avoid AIDS. Gay advocacy groups say that is exactly what's wrong with the Bush administration's approach to AIDS policy.

DAVIS SMITH, HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN: Their single-minded obsessive focused on abstinence as a primary mechanism for preventing the transmission of HIV is harmful. It's not scientifically based.

DAVIS: One Democratic presidential hopeful said the choice of Thacker was all about politics.

KERRY: They have photo opportunities about tolerance, but they run a stealth campaign to put people in places where they really do the damage.

DAVIS (on camera): A spokesman for Secretary Tommy Thompson said the AIDS activist was chosen for his proven ability to reach out to the conservative religious community on the issue of AIDS. But he had no answer on why Thacker's comments raised no red flags until now.

Patty Davis, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: All week, nothing but talk in San Diego and wherever else football fans are gathering. But come Sunday, the talking ends when the Oakland Raiders and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clash in the Super Bowl.

Right now two men are still talking and they're also betting this afternoon. I spoke with the Super Bowl mayors.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And joining me now, the two mayors -- the two mayors of the Super Bowl cities. Let's get right to it.

Mayor Brown, what do you say? What's your bet? You're predicting, of course, that Oakland will win.

MAYOR JERRY BROWN, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: I predict, yes, the Raider nation is going to win, as they have so often in the past. But in the completely unlikely event that they don't, course, we have a bet. I'm betting some local products, our best. Soul food, Everett and Jones Ribs, fantastic food right from downtown Oakland; and also, we have our own brewing company, the Brothers Brewing Company, and I'm going to be willing to send two cases of beer in the unlikely event that we don't win.

And then, of course, one more thing: We have a beautiful Lake Merritt and we have gondolas on there. So I want to provide a gondola ride for the mayor when he gets out to Oakland. And I'll even go farther -- further than that -- that I'll cook him a meal in my executive warehouse the next time he's out in the Bay Area. BLITZER: All that if Oakland loses.

What do you say, Mayor Greco? What happens if Tampa Bay loses?

MAYOR DICK GRECO, TAMPA, FLORIDA: Well, I think that's great and actually, he must know I'm Italian. That's why he's furnishing the gondolas. So that sounds great.

And we're furnishing the mayor to come down here and spend some time. And actually, we'd love him. He's such a nice guy, we'd like to have him, win or lose. But, if we were to lose, we've got a weekend down here planned at the Marriott Hotel. We've got a number of the finest restaurants in the country offering him food. We've got some Spanish going, we've got a box of humidor cigars, which we're famous for, Spanish cookbook, yellow rice coming to him, all sorts of stuff I think he'll enjoy.

As a matter of fact, I'm probably going to send him some of those things anyway.

BLITZER: All right. Mayors, that all sounds fascinating; that all sounds wonderful. But let's see if we can up the ante a little, get up the stakes.

Mayor Brown, what else have you got to -- what else are you ready to bid?

BROWN: Hey, if we don't win I'm sending the Raider nation to Tampa to kind of clean up things.

GRECO: We could take him out to Mcdill (ph) Mayor World, the 44 allied countries are when the war's being fought.

BROWN: Well, it would take all of that, because this is a pretty tough crowd, let me tell you.

BLITZER: It still doesn't sound really exciting to me. I'd like to hear a little bit more passion.

If you really believe, Mayor Brown and Mayor Greco, your teams are going to win, let's see you put something on the table over there.

BROWN: Hey, you got to remember, Wolf: we're running out of money in California. The governor's cutting all our state aid. We're in hard times. You're lucky that I have offered as much as I have.

BLTIZER: What about that, Mayor Greco?

GRECO: It's really not a matter of money. I think what it is is that California and Florida are two of the finest states, I think, in the whole United States. We're people that just have fun. Sun shines most of the time here. It's not that we're not ferocious and that kind of thing. We're very loyal behind our time, but we take things in stride. Everybody here is just on fire about this game.

We'd love to have him come visit. We've got Busch Gardens to give him a behind the scenes tour. A little giraffe was born this week out there. They named it Buccaneer. We've got Buccaneer mania in this town right now.

BLITZER: All right, how about this? Let me throw a proposal on the table and we'll wrap it up.

Mayor Brown, if Oakland loses will you walk around with a Tampa Bay hat on and vice versa to you, Mayor Greco?

BROWN: No way. I'm not wearing anything but a Raiders hat if I wear a hat.

BLITZER:: Are you afraid that Oakland's going to lose?

BROWN: No, I'm not afraid at all.

BLITZER: Well then, what's the big deal if you make that -- you'll get Mayor Greco to walk around with an Oakland Raiders hat.

BROWN: Because I remember Jack Kennedy saying, Never put on a hat if you're a politician.

BLITZER: All right. What about that, Mayor Greco? Are you ready to go that far?

GRECO: Oh, absolutely. I'm almost on my way out. I got a couple months to go after a 21-year break. I've been in politics 18- and-a-half years. I'd wear a hat.

The only one I probably wouldn't wear is one when I got in another bet and that's one of those cheesehead things. That looks pretty dumb.

But an Oakland Raiders hat, that would be fine.

BLITZER: I'd like to see you both wearing those cheesehead hats.

Never mind.

GRECO: Actually I got mine. I never wore it.

BROWN: I don't even know what those things are.

BLITZER:: The Green Bay Packers.

Mayors, good luck to both of your teams. We're looking forward for an exciting game. I'm sure it will be. The Oakland Raiders the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Two excellent mayors joining us live today.

Thanks very much, mayors.

(CROSSTALK)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Thanks to the mayors. I'm predicting 24-10 final score. Tomorrow I'll tell you who's going win.

In a moment, a sneak peek of a comical Super Bowl commercial.

And time's running out for your turn to weigh in on our Web question of the day. "Would you support a war with Iraq if the U.N. Security Council authorized the use of force?" Log on to cnn.com/wolf to cast your vote. We'll have the results immediately when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: (voice-over): Earlier we asked, "What player has scored the most touchdowns in Super Bowl history?" The answer: Jerry Rice. The 40-year-old scored seven touchdowns to help the San Francisco 49ers win three Super Bowls. The 49ers let him go and now he plays for the Oakland Raiders across the Bay. He'll try to make Super Bowl history again Sunday.

(on camera): Now to our "Picture of the Day," a part of the Super Bowl that you can see right no: A Pepsi commercial that may lift your spirits.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE, AD)

OZZY OSBOURNE, SINGER: Dag nag it.

KELLY OSBOURNE, DAUGHTER: Hey, dad.

O. OSBOURNE: Not now. Not now.

K. OSBOURNE: We really want to show you something.

O.OSBOURNE: I've got something to do.

JACK OSBOURNE, SON: You really should see this.

O. OSBOURNE: What is it then? What is it?

J. OSBOURNE: These aren't Pepsis. They're Pepsi Twists.

O. OSBOURNE: You're a bunch of bloody magicians.

K. OSBOURNE: And we're not the Osbournes.

O. OSBOURNE: You're not?

DONNIE AND MARIE OSMOND, SINGERS: We're the Osmonds.

(SINGING)

O. OSBOURNE: Sharon! Sharon, the kids have turned into the Osmonds.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There there, dear. Go back to sleep.

ANNOUNCER: Like twists? Pepsi Twist and Diet Pepsi Twist. A twist on a great thing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: That was great. I like to watch all those commercials at the Super Bowl. That was terrific. I don't understand a word that he says, but that's all right.

Let's get to our "Web Question of the Day." We have the results for you. Remember, we've been asking you this question: "Would you support a war with Iraq if the U.N. Security Council authorized the use of force?"

Look at this: 51 percent of you say yes; 49 percent of you say no. Pretty evenly divided. You can find the exact vote tally and, by the way, continue to vote all the time on our Web site, cnn.com/wolf. One note: this, of course is not, not a scientific poll.

We have some e-mails I'd like to read to you.

Harry is writing us this: "The U.S. should pull out of the United Nations and stop spending taxpayers money on such a dysfunctional organization. Same goes for NATO. let France and Germany defend themselves."

This is coming into us from Brad: "I've heard that the Bush administration is trying to change the face of the Middle East. But the Middle East isn't downtown L.A. It's an entire region of sovereign states. What makes Bush and the other warmongers think they have the right to use force to change other nations."

We'll read some more e-mails. Remember, you can e-mail us at cnn.com/wolf. That's also, of course, where you can read my daily online column.

That's all the time we have today. Please join me tomorrow, 5:00 p.m. Eastern. I'll talk about what to watch -- what to look out for in the Super Bowl telecast. We'll speak with Pat O'Brien of "Access Hollywood."

I'll also have a special interview with John Walsh of "America's Most Wanted." He's speaking to all sides -- both sides of the family in the Laci Peterson mystery. We'll speak with John Walsh tomorrow as well.

Don't forget "SHOWDOWN: IRAQ"'s weekdays noon Eastern.

Until then, thanks very much for watching.

I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE" is up next.

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





Qaeda Leader Doing in Baghdad?>


Aired January 23, 2003 - 17:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Tug of war over war.

ARI FLEISCHER, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: It is entirely conceivable that at the end of the day when Europe answers the call, France won't be on the line.

BLITZER: Never mind the allies, is Congress on board? I'll ask Senator Patrick Leahy.

Where he goes trouble follows. Is this al Qaeda leader the missing link between the terror group and Iraq. A "CNN Exclusive."

Deep freeze even in the Deep South.

And these robbers get more than they bargained for when a ticked off store owner tees off in Toronto.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: It's Thursday, January 23, 2003. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.

Within the last hour, Iraq's neighbors have issued an urgent call on Baghdad to cooperate with U.N. inspectors before it's too late. But as the clock runs down, the White House is adding up the list of those it can count on if push comes to shove in the Persian Gulf.

The Bush administration's public relations offensive for a possible war against Iraq is building dramatically even in the face of escalating opposition from some close allies, including France and Germany.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I have made it clear on Germany's behalf that we can not agree to a legitimization of war.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): That is exactly what I meant when referring to joint foreign policy.

BLITZER (voice-over): To back that up, France and Germany, members of NATO, have prevented the alliance from taking the steps necessary to prepare for war. The secretary general is playing down the rift.

LORD ROBERTSON, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: There is a disagreement over timing at the moment by a small number of nations but no disagreement on substance at all.

BLITZER: Secretary of State Colin Powell, along with his British counterpart, Jack Straw, insists that before going to war they will assemble a strong coalition.

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: I don't think we'll have to worry about going it alone. I think that the case is clear.

JACK STRAW, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY: What's at stake is the authority of the whole of the U.N.

BLITZER: The president has started a new round of personal diplomacy to generate support beginning with a phone call to Russia's President Vladimir Putin. Other calls to world leaders are expected in the coming days.

FLEISCHER: President Bush is confident that Europe will answer the call. It remains possible that France won't be on the line.

BLITZER: As part of the new U.S. offensive, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz went public with a new charge.

PAUL WOLFOWITZ, DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY: Today we know from multiple sources that Saddam has ordered that any scientist who cooperates during interviews will be killed as well as their families.

BLITZER: Iraq claims it is cooperating and has denied ordering its scientists not to talk.

President Bush's National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice went to the pages of the New York Times. "By both its actions and its inactions, Iraq is proving not that it is a nation bent on disarmament but that it is a nation with something to hide. Iraq is still treating inspections as a game. It should know that time is running out."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Slow down. That's the message on Iraq from the Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry. The Massachusetts Senator lashed out at President Bush today accusing him, and I'm quoting, of "belligerent and myopic unilateralism" and calling on him to work with other nations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: I say to the president, show respect for the process of international diplomacy because it is not only right, it can make American stronger, and show the world some appropriate patience to building a genuine coalition. Mr. President do not rush to war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The U.S. Congress voted back in October to authorize the president to use force against Iraq. In the U.S. Senate the vote was 77-23, among those 23 voting no, the Vermont Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy. He said the measure gave the president a "blank check" and he's voiced concern that the United States would end up going it alone.

Senator Leahy is joining me now live from Capitol Hill. Senator thanks so much for joining us. I take it you're pretty much on the same page as John Kerry when it comes to Iraq.

SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: It's interesting because, of course, Senator Kerry and I voted differently on the Iraq resolution, but what he said is absolutely right. What he just said at Georgetown is absolutely right.

I think the worst thing we could do is to have the United States go over there and appear to be alone or just virtually alone. This is something if we're going to take actions against Saddam Hussein, and nobody questions that Saddam Hussein is a bad man, but there are a lot of bad leaders around the world, if we're going to be taking action against one of them, we better have it with a broad coalition and we better show where not only is it in our interest but the world's interest.

I remember when I was a student at Georgetown. It was at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis. President Kennedy sent him ambassador to the United Nations with indisputable proof of what the Soviets were doing with their missiles in Cuba. The world rallied behind him. What I think the world is saying now, let's give the inspectors time to show where that proof is.

BLITZER: Senator the administration, the secretary of state, the secretary of defense, they say they won't go it alone even if France and Germany may not necessarily be in the U.S. corner. They'll have other European countries, especially the Eastern European countries, the former Eastern Block, NATO members now aligned with the U.S., they'll have Spain, they'll have Turkey that this will be a broad based coalition.

LEAHY: We're still looking for efforts in Turkey to get their bases where we want them. Perhaps they'll be there. Perhaps they will not but that is still not the issue. The issue is showing the rest of the world why it is essential that we go there, not the question of just containing Saddam Hussein. We've done that very, very well. He has been contained.

The questions that are going to be asked by the rest of the world, why is this suddenly more important than the much greater threat that we face in North Korea? Why are we going on this? And I think that is a case that is yet to be made. I believe it's a case that may well be made but it's not going to be made the way this is done.

It's not going to be made by posturing and it's not going to be made by threats. It's going to be made by allowing the inspectors to go forward, give them the help that they need to go forward and show the world, especially the Arab world, why it's not just the United States deciding to take on part of the Arab world.

If we don't do that, we could win a win with Saddam Hussein, of course. Our military is far, far stronger. We could win it alone. The question we have to ask what do we gain by doing that and will one of the things we'll gain be far, far more terrorist attacks here in the United States?

BLITZER: Senator Leahy the administration argues the burden of proof is not on the U.S. or the U.N. The burden of proof is on the Iraqis to prove they destroyed the weapons of mass destruction, the chemical, the biological weapons, the ballistic missiles that the U.N. itself said they had at the end of '98 when the inspectors left, and that over these four years and since the inspections started they have not proven that those liters of anthrax or whatever have been destroyed.

LEAHY: Well, I'm one who has a particular interest in where anthrax might be after receiving one of the two anthrax letters here in the capital. But, the inspectors are trying to show that. The inspectors, I believe, will be able to show the answer to that but let's give them the time to do it.

I think they just got their first helicopter in country on January 5. Give them the help. I would strongly urge that we let them get their full team in there. We give them help and I think we can with intelligence. Again, I use the example of President Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He sent indisputable proof to the United Nations. The rest of the world rallied behind us.

Think of the way the world rallied behind us right after September 11. Throughout the world they did. Let's not squander that support we had then. Let's build on it because the threat we'll face next year won't be Saddam Hussein. The threat we'll face will be terrorists right here in the United States.

BLITZER: An ominous thought. Senator Leahy, always good to speak with you, thanks very much for spending a few moments with us.

LEAHY: You're welcome.

BLITZER: As we noted at the top of this program, Iraq's neighbors have now wrapped up an extraordinary meeting in Istanbul. Saying they do not want to live through yet another devastating war, the foreign ministers of six nations, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, have urged Iraq to cooperate with U.N. inspectors. There was no call on Saddam Hussein to step down.

So far mixed results from President Bush's attempts to sell a possible war with Iraq to Washington's Arab friends. CNN crews are spread out throughout the Middle East and you're going to get a chance to hear firsthand right now to the criticism and concern on the so- called Arab street. We begin in Beirut.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rula Amin in Beirut. Here among students at the American University ambitions are high. Expectations are low. Like almost everywhere else in the Arab world most students we spoke to opposed any military action against Iraq.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First they should united and take a strong stand against the war.

AMIN: Do you think they will?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's unofficial. Usually they talk a lot and there's no action.

AMIN: Do you think they can say no to the United States?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope yes but I don't think so. I hope it.

SANDY PETRIKOWSKI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sandy Petrikowski here in Cairo where people feel that war is inevitable.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As a Muslim, as Arabic, there is no process in USA and in Mr. Bush, war for Iraq, no war for Korea, why? Why, Mr. Bush (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Chris Burns in Qatar, the oil rich kingdom that's the base for the U.S. Central Command where the fears of war are growing.

(voice over): At seaside Qataris shop for the day's harvest and fret over what war could reap. A headline predicts a conflict in three weeks.

"Inshala, God willing, there will be a solution" says Ya Hyab (ph), an oil company executive. Pressure Saddam to cooperate with the U.N. weapons inspectors" says Ya Hyab who supports his government's decision to host U.S. forces. "With a lot of pressure on Iraq" he says, "nothing will happen and things will be different if there is pressure on America not to wage war."

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Martin Savidge here in Kuwait. This is the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) market, located in the center of Kuwait City. Kuwait is probably by far the most pro-U.S. country to be found in the entire Arab world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Concerning the American policy, I think it's the right one. The decision (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I think we support America in this situation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I can see all resolutions are fair and just because of what the Iraqi regime had done to us. They killed, forced others to refuge. Resolutions are made because of the Iraqis' actions. SAVIDGE: So, the Kuwaitis we talked to say they like the way the U.S. is handling Iraq but this is the same country where just two days ago an American was murdered, a clear indication not everyone in Kuwait agrees with the policy -- Wolf.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Marty Savidge and other reporters, thanks very much.

Here's our "Web Question of the Day", your chance to weigh in on this story. Would you support a war with Iraq if the U.N. Security Council authorized the use of force? We'll have the results later in this broadcast. Vote at cnn.com/wolf.

While you're there, I'd like to hear from you. Send me your comments. I'll try to read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also, of course, where you can read my daily online column, cnn.com/wolf.

An icy blast from the north down to the south the deep freeze that even has Florida beachcombers pulling out the scarves.

Also, fighting back with a golf club, a store owner determined rises up against some would-be robbers.

And, east meets west in the Super Bowl, the mayors of Oakland and Tampa join me to make a bet on their home teams. You'll hear what they're ready to wage.

But first, today's "News Quiz."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER (voice-over): What player has scored the most touchdowns in Super Bowl history? Terrell Davis, Jerry Rice, Tim Brown, Art Monk, the answer coming up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It's cold out there. A winter wonderland it isn't, at least for many of us. Bone cold air barreling down from Canada made most of the country east of the Rockies feel like a deep freezer.

Boston Harbor is like a giant ice-making machine. Down south, North Carolina's Outer Banks were blanketed by the first significant snowfall in 13 years.

We have three live reports on this big, some would say huge chill. CNN's Jeff Flock is in Baudette, Minnesota. Ross Cavitt of our affiliate WSB is in Cartersville, Georgia. That's just north of Atlanta. And, Kirk Hogan of our affiliate WCBD is in St. George, South Carolina. That's outside Charleston.

Let's begin with Jeff. Jeff, how cold is it there? JEFF FLOCK, CNN CHICAGO BUREAU CHIEF: Well, funny you should as, Wolf. I've got a little thermometer we've been keeping our eye on. I'm at, I don't know if you can see that, minus 5.4 is what you got there in Baudette.

This is just to the west of International Falls. It is so cold in this part of the country, this is where they test all manner of equipment, and we're out here now on a torture track, Bosch Corporation testing. What are we testing out here?

JIM GLUTTING, BOSCH CORPORATION: Anti-lock brakes.

FLOCK: And how are they doing in this?

GLUTTING: The equipment is performing quite well as the cars are testing out here.

FLOCK: What are we looking at right now?

GLUTTING: We're looking at these guys making a left right here about 50 miles an hour and they're looking at stability control and direction on the vehicles.

FLOCK: And on day like this when we're minus five, that's not even counting the wind chill, this is what you're looking for believe it or not.

GLUTTING: This is for sure. We try and test in the most harshest conditions that we can find and this is definitely out here, I'll tell you.

FLOCK: Right, and you've had some mild winters but we're back to it now. This is pretty serious stuff.

GLUTTING: This is a good old-fashioned Minnesota winter by all -- by no stretch of the imagination that's for sure.

FLOCK: OK, good deal. Well, Jim I appreciate it. I know this is what you guys want. Other folks not as thrilled about it but there you go. And as we see Wolf, these cars being put to the test out here just as we are and so far so good, back to you.

BLITZER: Jeff Flock that looks like a mighty good driver over there. Thanks Jeff very much. Let's go down south to Georgia where much of the state is freezing from some of the lowest temperatures in many years.

Joining us live with that in Cartersville, just north of Atlanta, is Ross Cavitt of our affiliate WSBD, Ross tell us about what's happening in Georgia.

ROSS CAVITT, WSBD CORRESPONDENT: Well, I want to give you an idea what the temperature is right now here. We're on an interstate overpass near Cartersville, Georgia. It's been in the low 20s all afternoon long and one click here I can show you what the wind chill is. The wind is really whipping here. I know these temperatures don't mean much up in Minneapolis but down here by Metro Atlanta this is life and death stuff. The interstate behind me is clear now but this morning what a mess that caught everyone by surprise.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just driving and creeping by, you know. Tractors were stopping on the road and I slid and slid into the ditch to try to get out but I couldn't.

CAVITT (voice-over): Lamont Zan's (ph) morning run ended early like many others in a ditch along I-75. As he waits for help he wonders why he hadn't seen a DOT truck all morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There shouldn't be no reason why it shouldn't have been salted down last night or prepared early this morning, I mean because that's how people get hurt when they're not prepared for it.

CAVITT: Even more dangerous than the interstates were the off ramps. As Trooper Wal Lardston (ph) worked an accident off Georgia 20, two others happened right around him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just ice. It's just been packed down after vehicles traveled over it and all that. It just basically turned into ice and folks aren't paying really paying attention to it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't be out here if you don't need to be and drive slow.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) sure did. I wasn't expecting it.

CAVITT: Like everyone else, garage owner Ricky Matthews (ph) says he was expecting the cold but not the ice and the mayhem.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trucks off in a ditch, cars off in a ditch, all the hills are iced over. The interstate is just about a solid sheet of ice from Grant Parkway to I don't know how far north.

CAVITT: But drivers like (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who by the way was wearing sandals one look at someone sliding into a ditch was enough to convince him to call a time out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I saw something slide already and I'm just scared to drive now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAVITT: The guy was wearing sandals. It was driving me crazy just looking at him out there on the interstate.

Here's the concern for tomorrow around Metro Atlanta, still a lot of snow and ice on some of the highways around here, so schools have already called off school and classes for tomorrow and everybody else is clenching their teeth waiting on what may come down the road tomorrow. We're live near Cartersville, now back to you.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Ross, better to be safe than sorry. Ross Cavitt of our affiliate WSB thanks very much.

Let's stay down south. South Carolina is not only freezing but also dealing with snow that forced the closing of state offices and many schools. Live with details is Kurt Hogan of our affiliate WCBD in St. George. Tell us what's happening where you are.

KURT HOGAN, WCBD CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, I'll tell you what, it's freezing down here. When I moved to South Carolina, I thought I was moving to the Deep South. I fell like I've moved to the Arctic.

You may notice that the shot is very staticky because of the Arctic wind that's been blowing through here. Schools in the area have also been closed. As you can see behind me, I don't know if you can get a shot of Harleyville-Ridgeville (ph) Elementary School. They actually closed earlier today because of threats of snow.

In this area, this part of the country, they don't have the manpower or the equipment to clean up the snow once it falls down, so they closed school early. Whether or not schools are going to be closed tomorrow is still up to Mother Nature. We don't know yet -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, Kurt Hogan you better get warm over there. Thanks very much for joining us. You guys are simply not used to a little cold weather. Those of us who grew up in Buffalo, New York know all about cold weather. For much more on the big chill go to cnn.com/weather. That's a good place to go. We'll get you more details there.

Looking down the barrel of a shotgun a store owner battles back with a golf club, what should you do if you were to face a similar circumstance? We'll ask an expert.

Also, a "CNN Exclusive." What was a senior al Qaeda leader doing in Baghdad?

Plus...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FLEISCHER: That remark is far removed from what the president believes and for the president to stand for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The president distances himself from a candidate for his AIDS Council. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're told that the Secretary of State Colin Powell and the Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld have been briefing members of the U.S. Senate behind closed doors. If they emerge and come to our cameras, come to our microphones, we'll go there live, tell you what the secretary of state and the secretary of defense have been saying behind closed doors, clearly trying to make the case for the possibility of going to war against Iraq. We'll get to that once it happens.

In the meantime, we have some very dramatic pictures coming in from Canada. Paul Bliss of CNN affiliate KFTO has the story of a Toronto convenience store owner who wouldn't surrender to thieves.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL BLISS, KFTO CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even veteran police officers are marveling at the shopkeeper's tenacious resistance. It was 11:00 Monday night when three masked men burst into the Grace (ph) Convenience Store on Pharmacy Avenue near Steels (ph).

One man pointed a pump action shotgun at the clerk's head. Instead of surrendering, the store owner grabbed a golf club and fought back breaking the club over the bandit's head, but the unwelcome customers made the clerk pay the price as he tried to take on all three. The Hold Up Squad's Wilf Townley says the courageous combatant was taking a chance.

DET. SGT. WILF TOWNLEY, TORONTO POLICE: The store owner is as brave as a lion and it's only whenever he goes down to the grind that they all decide to come in and put their licks in like hyenas and they go after him then.

BLISS: At one point all three men joined in the beating. Two are seen splitting off and pounding the cash register in frustration. They can't figure out how to get it open.

Meanwhile, the victim continues to try to escape the clutches of his much larger attacker, still clinging to the broken golf club. Then, the men dash and in one last act of defiance the store owner gives chase and uses the golf club to smash the rear window of the white car used in the getaway. His injuries were minor.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: At last report, the three robbers remained at large. That report from Paul Bliss of our affiliate, CNN affiliate KFTO. As the police sergeant noted though in that report the store owner took a big risk by fighting back. Was the risk worth it? What should you do in similar circumstances?

We're going to put that question to Gary Hankins, the former president of the Fraternal Order of Police here in the Washington, D.C. area. He's joining us now live. Well, did the store owner do the right thing, Gary?

GARY HANKINS, FORMER PRESIDENT, FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE: I think he does something that all of us would like to do and think we could do in similar circumstances. But unfortunately that's exactly the wrong thing to do. There is nothing that we own that we can't turn over and recover except our lives and to take that kind of action while maybe meting out frustration is not good. We have unfortunately seen in evidence here he is in our attention because he didn't die.

Unfortunately, thousands of people die each year. If he had been shot, if that shotgun had been loaded, and I suspect it wasn't, and he died, he'd have been an unremarkable addition to a very large statistic.

BLITZER: So, what should these store owners of these convenience stores or other kinds of stores, whether drugs stores, hardware stores, what should they do if robbers come in and say give us your money?

HANKINS: Give them whatever they would like to have. There's nothing that we own that we can't earn back or recover that's more valuable than your life. And, as I said, thousands of people die in this country.

BLITZER: So you're not recommending that they themselves have guns, armed guns, in the store ready to fight on if somebody points a gun at them?

HANKINS: No, I wouldn't recommend that. I think that it's laudable. We all feel the justification but too many people die at the hands of criminals, and having a gun in your hand may give you an opportunity to exercise some kind of revenge or justice there on the scene.

But we have officers, police officers who are armed killed every year, unfortunately many of them, because we've discovered you can not act or react as fast as someone who is armed can act. So, we have officers who are killed who are trained to use those weapons because they can't use the weapon fast enough to defend themselves against someone who's already got a gun pointed at them.

BLITZER: All right thanks very much, Gary Hankins.

I want to go to Capitol Hill right now. The Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is speaking. He's flanked by the secretary of state and the secretary of defense.

SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), MAJORITY LEADER: And it really was not a briefing of which we were notified in any way by any of the discussions or the two secretaries with me of the determination of the president to use military action.

That was not the purpose of the meeting and that was not what the briefing was about as we look at the disarming of Iraq, is which clearly the objective that we all have before us. The situation itself is obviously grave. Saddam Hussein has had 12 years to accomplish what we are asking him really as an international community to accomplish, to accomplish and that is to disarm.

The discussion of this being a grave concern because of the nexus between what we all know is there, that is the peps of mass destruction and the importance of disarming that nexus of the issue of weapons of mass destruction with terrorism. A very useful briefing, one that the senators will benefit from and once again we'd like to thank both secretaries for being with us.

POWELL: Thank you, sir.

FRIST: Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Thank you, sir.

RUMSFELD: Thank you. Good to see you.

BLITZER: Describing the situation, in his words, as obviously grave the new Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist emerges from a closed door briefing from the Secretary of State Colin Powell and the Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, saying the Iraqis must comply, move on. We don't know the kind of details that the secretary of state and secretary of defense provided.

Presumably they're anxious to make their case that the Iraqis are not in compliance, are not cooperating with those U.N. weapons inspectors looking for the kind of support in the U.S. Senate that they hope they'll have. All of this, of course, this latest public relations offensive by the Bush administration building up to next Tuesday night for the president's State of the Union Address before a joint session of the U.S. Congress when the president will make that case in great detail.

Who's really running al Qaeda?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The names are irrelevant. I say bin Laden could die today and it would make no difference to the organization.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: When we return a "CNN Exclusive." A top al Qaeda leader's travels traced to Iraq. What does it mean?

Also, Super Bowl showdown. Oakland's mayor challenges Tampa's mayor to a football bet. I'll talk to both of them. I'll try to up the ante.

Also, Jerry Springer in 2004? The outrageous talk show host considers, a run for the U.S. Senate.

And Ozzy Osbourne downs one for Pepsi. We'll have a sneak preview of a Super Bowl ad.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. I'm Wolf Blitzer. Coming up a "CNN Exclusive": part two, the global hunt for a potential al Qaeda ring leader. Did he visit Iraq? But first let's look at other stories making news right now in our CNN "News Alert."

(NEWS ALERT)

BLITZER: Now a "CNN Exclusive": The search for a top al Qaeda leader. There's evidence he may have been in Iraq.

Here's CNN national correspondent Mike Boettcher with an exclusive report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE BOETTCHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Abu Mussab al Zarqawi, a senior al Qaeda leader, already accused by Jordan of master minding the plot to assassinate Lawrence Foley there in late October. A man already singled out by President Bush last October before the Foley assassination as a possible link between al Qaeda and Iraq.

BUSH: Some al Qaeda leaders who fled Afghanistan went to Iraq. These include one very senior al Qaeda leader who received medical treatment in Baghdad this year. And who has been associated with planning for chemical and biological attacks.

BOETTCHER: Now U.S. Sources have linked al Zarqawi to the arrest of several men no London. Those men accused of making ricin, a deadly poison.

(on camera): But it is his travels that have attracted attention. Not only from President Bush but from intelligence officials in a variety of countries.

(voice-over): Zarqawi is originally from Jordan and was convicted there of planting to bomb tourist hotels during millennium celebrations as part of series of al Qaeda an attack world wide. He escaped to Afghanistan, where he stayed until the Taliban was ousted from power.

Coalition intelligence sources say his travels then took him through Iran to Baghdad and into Kurdish controlled Northern Iraq where a group linked to al Qaeda is known to operate. Sources say he all has been in Syria and in Lebanon. Seemingly moving with ease between these countries and many places, say the sources, he was organizing terror cells. Former CIA operative Bob Baer says he is a very serious threat who manages to bring together very different terrorists.

BOB BAER, FORMER CIA OFFICER: The names are irrelevant. I say bin Laden could die today and it would make no difference to the organization, because somebody's going to carry on. Zarqawi will. I don't know if he's a charismatic leader like bin laden, apparently is, but he could carry on. He could operate independently. He knows where to get money.

BOETTCHER: There are some in U.S. intelligence who question whether Iraq or any of these countries was aware of Zarqawi's presence because he might have been using aliases.

Bob Baer who spent years in the region disagrees.

BAER: Absolutely not. Somebody at some level had to know he was there. Obviously I can't tell you whether Saddam knew, but somebody in the official line of responsibility for customs and immigrations knew he came into the country. Palestinians, Arabs, other Arabs, non- Iraqis and even Iraqis go through a very tight screen when they come into that country. Their documents are looked at. They want to know who they are. They want to know who their families are. You just can't do it. It's a policed state.

BOETTCHER: Coalition intelligence sources say Zarqawi primary focus seems to have been planning attacks in Jordan. These two men, Sa'ed Salem bin Suweid a Libyan national and Yasser Fathi Ibraheem were arrested and have confessed to carrying out the Foley assassination at Zarqawi's direction according to Jordanian authorities. They say they got money and weapons from Zarqawi, who was reportedly planning more attacks.

(on camera): The trial of those two men is expect to begin in the next few weeks. When it does there could be even more important clues about Abu Mussab al Zarqawi and his connections to other countries, including Iraq.

Mike Boettcher, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Two good reports from Mike Boettcher.

Thanks, Mike, for those excellent reports.

When we come back, anger from Christian conservatives and AIDS activists. Find out why this Bush administration candidate became a lightning bolt for controversy.

And the bets are on. Oakland's mayor challenges Tampa's mayor for a Super Bowl bet. They both join me to throw down their stakes for the home teams. First, though, a look at news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Grim search. Authorities still are assessing the damage from Tuesday's Mexican earthquake. The tremor, estimated at 7.8 in magnitude, killed dozens, injured scores and left thousands homeless.

Jungle hunt. Panamanian authorities are promising to step up the search along the Colombian border for three Americans who disappeared last week. It's believed the three, including journalist Robert Pelten, are being held by paramilitary forces.

Cheers for Chavez. Tens of thousands of supporters of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez staged a demonstration in Caracas aimed at undercutting a strike against Mr. Chavez.

Cable's out. The Afghan government says a ban on cable television will be lifted soon as the cabinet approves a new law regulating programming. Afghanistan's chief justice shut down the country's fledgling cable TV operations Monday, saying the programs offend Islamic sensibilities.

Royal wedding. They were celebrating in Nepal, where the king's daughter, Princess Prearana, married a commoner. It was an arranged marriage, like most in the Himalayan kingdom, but it still had its untraditional touches. The bride studied business at a British university. The groom has a masters in computer science from the University of California.

And that's our look "Around The World."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: A sneak peek at those Super Bowl commercials that will have you in stitches. Also, a Super Bowl challenge off the field. I'll speak with the mayors of Tampa and Oakland. It's all coming up. We're back in one minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The Bush administration's choice to serve on the Presidential Advisory Commission on AIDS is withdrawing just days before his swearing in ceremony. Jerry Thacker's move was triggered by his controversial writings and speeches on the disease. CNN's Patty Davis has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After a firestorm ignited over his selection to be on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV and AIDS, Jerry Thacker abruptly pulled his name.

"I feel I must withdraw my name from consideration," Thacker said in a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, saying given the controversy, he was concerned he might not be effective.

That controversy over Thacker's comments in September 2001 on the Bob Jones University Web site when he referred to the gay life lifestyle as a "deathstyle." In other comments he also called AIDS "the gay plague."

The White House calling his selection a cabinet level decision quickly distanced itself.

FLEISCHER: That remark is far removed from what the president believes and for the president to stand for.

DAVIS: Thacker's comments were removed recently from the Web site, he said, at his demand because they misrepresented his views. Thacker said he is not anti-gay but he is anti-HIV/AIDS.

Thacker, a religious conservative, who says he and his daughter got HIV from his wife after she received a blood transfusion, preaches abstinence to avoid AIDS. Gay advocacy groups say that is exactly what's wrong with the Bush administration's approach to AIDS policy.

DAVIS SMITH, HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN: Their single-minded obsessive focused on abstinence as a primary mechanism for preventing the transmission of HIV is harmful. It's not scientifically based.

DAVIS: One Democratic presidential hopeful said the choice of Thacker was all about politics.

KERRY: They have photo opportunities about tolerance, but they run a stealth campaign to put people in places where they really do the damage.

DAVIS (on camera): A spokesman for Secretary Tommy Thompson said the AIDS activist was chosen for his proven ability to reach out to the conservative religious community on the issue of AIDS. But he had no answer on why Thacker's comments raised no red flags until now.

Patty Davis, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: All week, nothing but talk in San Diego and wherever else football fans are gathering. But come Sunday, the talking ends when the Oakland Raiders and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clash in the Super Bowl.

Right now two men are still talking and they're also betting this afternoon. I spoke with the Super Bowl mayors.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And joining me now, the two mayors -- the two mayors of the Super Bowl cities. Let's get right to it.

Mayor Brown, what do you say? What's your bet? You're predicting, of course, that Oakland will win.

MAYOR JERRY BROWN, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: I predict, yes, the Raider nation is going to win, as they have so often in the past. But in the completely unlikely event that they don't, course, we have a bet. I'm betting some local products, our best. Soul food, Everett and Jones Ribs, fantastic food right from downtown Oakland; and also, we have our own brewing company, the Brothers Brewing Company, and I'm going to be willing to send two cases of beer in the unlikely event that we don't win.

And then, of course, one more thing: We have a beautiful Lake Merritt and we have gondolas on there. So I want to provide a gondola ride for the mayor when he gets out to Oakland. And I'll even go farther -- further than that -- that I'll cook him a meal in my executive warehouse the next time he's out in the Bay Area. BLITZER: All that if Oakland loses.

What do you say, Mayor Greco? What happens if Tampa Bay loses?

MAYOR DICK GRECO, TAMPA, FLORIDA: Well, I think that's great and actually, he must know I'm Italian. That's why he's furnishing the gondolas. So that sounds great.

And we're furnishing the mayor to come down here and spend some time. And actually, we'd love him. He's such a nice guy, we'd like to have him, win or lose. But, if we were to lose, we've got a weekend down here planned at the Marriott Hotel. We've got a number of the finest restaurants in the country offering him food. We've got some Spanish going, we've got a box of humidor cigars, which we're famous for, Spanish cookbook, yellow rice coming to him, all sorts of stuff I think he'll enjoy.

As a matter of fact, I'm probably going to send him some of those things anyway.

BLITZER: All right. Mayors, that all sounds fascinating; that all sounds wonderful. But let's see if we can up the ante a little, get up the stakes.

Mayor Brown, what else have you got to -- what else are you ready to bid?

BROWN: Hey, if we don't win I'm sending the Raider nation to Tampa to kind of clean up things.

GRECO: We could take him out to Mcdill (ph) Mayor World, the 44 allied countries are when the war's being fought.

BROWN: Well, it would take all of that, because this is a pretty tough crowd, let me tell you.

BLITZER: It still doesn't sound really exciting to me. I'd like to hear a little bit more passion.

If you really believe, Mayor Brown and Mayor Greco, your teams are going to win, let's see you put something on the table over there.

BROWN: Hey, you got to remember, Wolf: we're running out of money in California. The governor's cutting all our state aid. We're in hard times. You're lucky that I have offered as much as I have.

BLTIZER: What about that, Mayor Greco?

GRECO: It's really not a matter of money. I think what it is is that California and Florida are two of the finest states, I think, in the whole United States. We're people that just have fun. Sun shines most of the time here. It's not that we're not ferocious and that kind of thing. We're very loyal behind our time, but we take things in stride. Everybody here is just on fire about this game.

We'd love to have him come visit. We've got Busch Gardens to give him a behind the scenes tour. A little giraffe was born this week out there. They named it Buccaneer. We've got Buccaneer mania in this town right now.

BLITZER: All right, how about this? Let me throw a proposal on the table and we'll wrap it up.

Mayor Brown, if Oakland loses will you walk around with a Tampa Bay hat on and vice versa to you, Mayor Greco?

BROWN: No way. I'm not wearing anything but a Raiders hat if I wear a hat.

BLITZER:: Are you afraid that Oakland's going to lose?

BROWN: No, I'm not afraid at all.

BLITZER: Well then, what's the big deal if you make that -- you'll get Mayor Greco to walk around with an Oakland Raiders hat.

BROWN: Because I remember Jack Kennedy saying, Never put on a hat if you're a politician.

BLITZER: All right. What about that, Mayor Greco? Are you ready to go that far?

GRECO: Oh, absolutely. I'm almost on my way out. I got a couple months to go after a 21-year break. I've been in politics 18- and-a-half years. I'd wear a hat.

The only one I probably wouldn't wear is one when I got in another bet and that's one of those cheesehead things. That looks pretty dumb.

But an Oakland Raiders hat, that would be fine.

BLITZER: I'd like to see you both wearing those cheesehead hats.

Never mind.

GRECO: Actually I got mine. I never wore it.

BROWN: I don't even know what those things are.

BLITZER:: The Green Bay Packers.

Mayors, good luck to both of your teams. We're looking forward for an exciting game. I'm sure it will be. The Oakland Raiders the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Two excellent mayors joining us live today.

Thanks very much, mayors.

(CROSSTALK)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Thanks to the mayors. I'm predicting 24-10 final score. Tomorrow I'll tell you who's going win.

In a moment, a sneak peek of a comical Super Bowl commercial.

And time's running out for your turn to weigh in on our Web question of the day. "Would you support a war with Iraq if the U.N. Security Council authorized the use of force?" Log on to cnn.com/wolf to cast your vote. We'll have the results immediately when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: (voice-over): Earlier we asked, "What player has scored the most touchdowns in Super Bowl history?" The answer: Jerry Rice. The 40-year-old scored seven touchdowns to help the San Francisco 49ers win three Super Bowls. The 49ers let him go and now he plays for the Oakland Raiders across the Bay. He'll try to make Super Bowl history again Sunday.

(on camera): Now to our "Picture of the Day," a part of the Super Bowl that you can see right no: A Pepsi commercial that may lift your spirits.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE, AD)

OZZY OSBOURNE, SINGER: Dag nag it.

KELLY OSBOURNE, DAUGHTER: Hey, dad.

O. OSBOURNE: Not now. Not now.

K. OSBOURNE: We really want to show you something.

O.OSBOURNE: I've got something to do.

JACK OSBOURNE, SON: You really should see this.

O. OSBOURNE: What is it then? What is it?

J. OSBOURNE: These aren't Pepsis. They're Pepsi Twists.

O. OSBOURNE: You're a bunch of bloody magicians.

K. OSBOURNE: And we're not the Osbournes.

O. OSBOURNE: You're not?

DONNIE AND MARIE OSMOND, SINGERS: We're the Osmonds.

(SINGING)

O. OSBOURNE: Sharon! Sharon, the kids have turned into the Osmonds.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There there, dear. Go back to sleep.

ANNOUNCER: Like twists? Pepsi Twist and Diet Pepsi Twist. A twist on a great thing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: That was great. I like to watch all those commercials at the Super Bowl. That was terrific. I don't understand a word that he says, but that's all right.

Let's get to our "Web Question of the Day." We have the results for you. Remember, we've been asking you this question: "Would you support a war with Iraq if the U.N. Security Council authorized the use of force?"

Look at this: 51 percent of you say yes; 49 percent of you say no. Pretty evenly divided. You can find the exact vote tally and, by the way, continue to vote all the time on our Web site, cnn.com/wolf. One note: this, of course is not, not a scientific poll.

We have some e-mails I'd like to read to you.

Harry is writing us this: "The U.S. should pull out of the United Nations and stop spending taxpayers money on such a dysfunctional organization. Same goes for NATO. let France and Germany defend themselves."

This is coming into us from Brad: "I've heard that the Bush administration is trying to change the face of the Middle East. But the Middle East isn't downtown L.A. It's an entire region of sovereign states. What makes Bush and the other warmongers think they have the right to use force to change other nations."

We'll read some more e-mails. Remember, you can e-mail us at cnn.com/wolf. That's also, of course, where you can read my daily online column.

That's all the time we have today. Please join me tomorrow, 5:00 p.m. Eastern. I'll talk about what to watch -- what to look out for in the Super Bowl telecast. We'll speak with Pat O'Brien of "Access Hollywood."

I'll also have a special interview with John Walsh of "America's Most Wanted." He's speaking to all sides -- both sides of the family in the Laci Peterson mystery. We'll speak with John Walsh tomorrow as well.

Don't forget "SHOWDOWN: IRAQ"'s weekdays noon Eastern.

Until then, thanks very much for watching.

I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE" is up next.

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Qaeda Leader Doing in Baghdad?>