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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Congressmen Duncan Hunter, Harold Ford Debate War In Iraq; U.S. Soldier Shown In Captor's Video; Tony Blair Supports Bush

Aired April 16, 2004 - 17:00   ET

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

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


WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now a breaking story we're following. An American soldier held hostage in Iraq.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Surrounded by U.S. troops, but Shiite radicals are in no mood to lay down their arms.

Fallujah face-off: Americans and Iraqis are also talking, for now.

BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. ARMY: If these discussions do not bear fruit than we are prepared to conduct offensive operations.

BLITZER: Allies united.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will not waiver from the face of fear and intimidation.

BLITZER: But will Bush and Blair let the United Nations call the shots?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When he left, I had my 11-day-old infant and my 3-year-old son and I was 11 days out of a c-section.

BLITZER: A year later, a family is still waiting for a part-time soldier to return.

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Friday, April 16, 2004.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: We begin with breaking news and chilling images. A week after an attack on a U.S. military convoy left two American soldiers unaccounted for, the al Jazeera network has aired a videotape showing a man in a U.S. military uniform apparently held by Iraqi insurgents. U.S. military officials have already notified the soldiers' families about the videotape. Let's go straight to our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre -- Jaime.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, the U.S. Central Command says it received the tape from the U.S. embassy in Doha, Qatar, which apparently where it was dropped off originally. A central command spokesman says they still haven't verified the authenticity of the tape, which appears to show private first class Keith Maupin 20 years old from Batavia, Ohio, one of two soldiers missing after an April 9 convoy attack in which their fuel convoy was attacked by people with rocket propelled grenades. The only part of the tape we've been able to hear is where the young soldier identifies himself as Private Maupin.

PVT. KEITH MAUPIN, HELD HOSTAGE IN IRAQ: My name is Keith Matthew Maupin.

MCINTYRE: While the Pentagon is continuing to try to verify the authenticity of the tape, the soldier does bear an a resemblance we have to Maupin, apparently from his high school yearbook. But, again, they haven't confirmed 100 percent the identification there.

On the tape, the people -- the hostage takers say that they are treating the hostage well, in accordance with what they say are the tenets of Islamic law for the treatment of soldiers. They say, quote, "we will keep him until we trade him for our prisoners in the custody of the U.S. enemy.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon and the U.S. military have reaffirmed that they will not negotiating with hostage-takers. Instead, they said they will devote their energies to finding people that take hostages and, to the extent they can, freeing hostages -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre, with word of this disturbing development. Jamie, thanks very much.

What would a hostage situation mean for the U.S. military in Iraq. Joining us on the phone our military analyst, retired U.S. Army Brigadier General David Grange. How much of a complicated factor, militarily, is this, general?

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, (RET) CNN MILITARY ANALYST (via telephone): The thing is when there is a hostage taken, all -- 100 percent of effort goes after anybody that may be grabbed by the enemy forces. A full-court press. And it won't affect the ongoing operations, but those that specifically focus on hostage rescue immediately start on that particular information that they gain to try to rescue or get the individual back.

BLITZER: What do they train -- how do the U.S. soldiers, regular soldiers -- are they trained, are they prepared for this kind of contingency, being taken hostage?

GRANGE: Wolf, there are levels of training. And because -- I don't want to get into the level of training this particular soldier or others may have received. I don't want to get into what I believe what level he has. But all soldiers get some level of training, that's correct.

BLITZER: When soldiers out in the field -- and they'll be seeing these images, the marines, the soldiers serving in Iraq right now -- it obviously is going to have an impact on them as well. You've been in that kind of a situation. What is the impact? GRANGE: Well, I'll tell you, it mobilizes the entire organization where that soldier came from, as well as other military units in the area. But especially the brotherhood of that particular transportation unit. And so what's going to happen is it will be a -- it will actually increase the drive, the motivation of the soldiers to complete their mission.

It doesn't cause them to -- it doesn't break their morale not to want to continue to fight or the mission at hand, whether they're thinking about going home, they support the United States of America over there or not, they just focus now on accomplishing the mission. So, in fact, I would say it strengthens a unit, it does not weaken it.

BLITZER: General Grange, in the last couple of weeks, we've now seen hostages, people kidnapped from a variety of countries. It's a relatively new development in this overall situation in Iraq. How do you prevent this from happening, if you can?

GRANGE: Well, it's very difficult to have 100 percent prevention. No one can move around by themselves. You increase the size of the units. Where a unit maybe is four to six soldiers moving around, maybe you double or triple that size. You increase emergency or readiness forces to respond to any kind of situation. You may disseminate more communications equipment so everybody can report things immediately.

But if you're in an ambush, and let's say there are a certain number of trucks, so many drivers, maybe a security person in each truck and then you may have some security vehicles with it, it still, if it's a large force attacking you, you don't defeat the enemy or at least be able defend yourself until help arrives, then that situation can happen.

But no U.S. soldier wants to become a prisoner. It's usually a situation where in evaluation it's truly hopeless or they were wounded or knocked out or something happened where they were captured. So I think a lot of efforts have probably been put in place to double the size of forces and those type of things to make the targets hard for any hostage-takers.

BLITZER: General Grange, one final question. Al Jazeera getting this videotape, deciding to air it, and then us and a lot of other television networks around the world replaying, airing this videotape as well. From the military perspective -- and you've been a commander -- is this a useful, a good idea for the world to see these kinds of images.

GRANGE: Well, two things the world sees. One, is that they see that actual the insurgents in this case are really desperate. They have to do something that they can -- or at least they feel they can leverage the coalition. And hostages is one example, whether it be for one nation to split the alliance or to try to weaken the resolve of U.S. forces. They will not weaken U.S. resolve, so they're a little bit wrong on that.

The rest of the world sees that this is something internationally, hostage taking, that is just not accepted worldwide. So I think it hurts their cause. And lastly, now we see the condition of this G.I. So if anything -- if he does not come back, as good as he looks right now, I think there will be a fair price to pay.

BLITZER: General David Grange, our military analyst. General, thanks very much for that assessment.

Meanwhile, several other hostages have been released in Iraq and two critical standoffs continue with U.S. forces indicating they won't hold back much longer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Fallujah, new efforts to end fierce fighting between insurgents and U.S. Marines.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe we'll have more news after the talks.

BLITZER: A high level coalition provisional authority delegation met with city leaders. Their mission fueled by a sense of urgency.

AMB. RICHARD JONES, COALITION PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY: We will continue to work with them. We will continue to give them some time. But I must be candid and say that time is limited.

BLITZER: U.S. military officials were more blunt.

KIMMITT: If these discussions do not bear fruit, then we are prepared to conduct offensive operations.

BLITZER: A similar situation in Najaf. U.S. soldiers are surrounding the city, now base of an uprising led by Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr. His supporters demonstrated in the streets of the city, while members of his outlawed Mehdi militia clashed with U.S. forces in the nearby town of Kufa.

Sadr said he's willing to be martyred for Iraq, something U.S. forces hope to avoid. And he issued this warning to his followers.

MUQTADA AL-SADR, MUSLIM CLERIC (through translator): I tell you that America will never leave Iraq.

BLITZER: Harsh words, too, from the Shia spiritual leader, the Grand Ayatollah, Ali al Sistani. In a statement, he condemned what he called the coalition's horrible tactics and said the situation is going from bad to worse. In Baghdad, three kidnapped Czech citizens were released by their abductors.

MICHAEL KUBAL, FORMER HOSTAGE: The worst moment was when it was clear that it won't be solved in one day. And the best moment was today when we were stepped inside of Czech embassy.

BLITZER: And seen here, also released from captivity, a Syrian born Canadian citizen.

(END VIDEOTAPE) BLITZER: When they went to war with Iraq, they stood almost alone, now with war raging anew, they say they're standing firm. But at the White House today, President Bush and Britain's Tony Blair admitted they would welcome some assistance from a sometimes surprising quarter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): The president and the prime minister, the closest of allies during the war in Iraq, are now turning directly to the United Nations for help in restoring Iraqi sovereignty in the face of escalating violence and mounting casualties.

BUSH: We welcome the proposals presented by the U.N. Special Envoy Brahimi. He's identified a way forward to establishing an interim government that is broadly acceptable to the Iraqi people.

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: And we will seek a new U.N. Security Council resolution to embody the political and security way forward.

BLITZER: U.N. officials concede getting a new resolution passed won't be easy. Much will depend on the final recommendation of Lakhdar Brahimi, the special U.N. Envoy. Both Bush and Blair are clearly hoping Brahimi can come one an acceptable transition plan before June 30, with a still to be defined Iraqi government immediately taking over.

BUSH: No citizen of America or Britain would want the government of their nation in the hands of others, and neither do the Iraqis. And this is why the June 30 date for the transfer of sovereignty will be kept.

BLAIR: And what you're hearing from myself and the president of the United States is we will stay there and we will get the job done, because that's what we promised to do. And we will continue until it's finished.

BLITZER: At the same time, the president and the prime minister acknowledged the dangers ahead.

BUSH: The past few weeks have been hard and the days ahead will surely bring their own challenges. What we're seeing in Iraq is an attempt at power grab by extremists and terrorists. They will fail.

BLITZER: Mr. Blair summed up the situation this way.

BLAIR: It was never going to be easy. And it isn't now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And the prime minister also joined the president in endorsing Israel's proposed withdrawal from Gaza and parts of the West Bank. While many Palestinians strongly object to the plan, the two leaders urged them to take advantage of what the president calls a fantastic opportunity. And here's your chance to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this, "does British Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for President Bush's Iraq policy help make Bush's case?" You can vote right now, go to CNN.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

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

We'll continue to monitor reaction to that new videotape set to show a captured United States soldier.

Also ahead, what Bob Woodward's new book says about President Bush's decision to go to war in Iraq.

And a military family's ordeal as it awaits word on whether a loved one is going to return home.

Also, another side to the fighting in Iraq. A little boy's agony and his fight for life.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: This week's announcement that 20,000 U.S. troops will be staying in Iraq 90 days longer than scheduled is hitting some families very hard. But a family in North Carolina has received unexpected good news, after originally fearing her husband would be among those staying on in Iraq, one woman learned he'll be coming home after all. CNN's Eric Phillips reports on her emotional ordeal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Real faster.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hold on.

ERIC PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Lee Lillard enjoys spending family time with her children, 3-year-old Drew and 1-year-old Hannah. But someone has been missing from play time for more than a year, her husband, their father, Steve Lillard. He's in Iraq with the National Guard's 210th Military Police Unit. He was first sent away from their home in Sylvan, North Carolina to training at Fort Dix, New Jersey last month, 11 days after Hannah was born. Then in June came orders for this unit to head to Baghdad.

LEE LILLARD, HUSBAND STATIONED IN IRAQ: So we said, okay, six months from June is December. He'll be home for Christmas, you know. Just based on what the Guard normally does.

PHILLIPS: But this would not be a normal deployment. Lee soon learned that her husband's tour of duty would be extended until this June, tough for this working mother and her children, especially Drew. LILLARD: Three months ago when he had the flu, he would wake up in the middle of the night throwing up and he was like daddy, help me, daddy, help me and Steve hasn't been here forever.

PHILLIPS: Then his unit heard they would be extended another four months, rocking this community where ribbons and banners hang proudly. It prompted Lee to start a petition drive to bring the part- time soldiers home in June as scheduled.

LILLARD: 15 months away from home for someone who is not doing this full-time, who has a job waiting on them, that's long enough.

PHILLIPS: More than 80 signatures had been added to the petition and signs of protest had been prepared before official word came from the Pentagon Thursday, the 210th had in fact not been extended.

LILLARD: It is Christmas on April 15 for me.

PHILLIPS: Lee is optimistic, but the petition drive continues just in case the situation does change. Eric Phillips, CNN, Sylvan, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And while it appears that Steve Lillard will be returning home in a little over a month, other troops will be facing extended tours in Iraq. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says he regrets the extensions but adds, and I'm quoting now, "the country is at war and we need to do what is necessary to succeed."

We continue to watch developments surrounding that new videotape that appears to show a captured U.S. soldier being held hostage.

Also, coming up, a new book and new questions. When did the Bush White House start to plan the Iraq war? And what's really going in Iraq? What should the United States be doing about it? We'll have a debate.

And Carlos Watson has the inside edge on the presidential campaign. All that straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The journalist who helped break the Watergate scandal is now turning his eye to the war in Iraq and what critics say was the president's obsession with regime change there. Here's CNN's Bryan Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRYAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just when did the Bush administration first have the idea to take the fight to Saddam Hussein? A hotly debated question in this election season, an issue taken on directly by Washington post assistant managing editor Bob Woodward. According to the Associated Press, which obtained a copy of Woodward's new book "Plan of Attack" the book says the pulled Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld aside on November of 2001, less than two months into the war in Afghanistan and asked him what kind of plan they had for Iraq.

AP's account of the book says Rumsfeld told the president the plan was outdated and Mr. Bush responded that Rumsfeld should get started on a new plan and that CIA Director George Tenet and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice were not briefed on the plan immediately.

Bob Woodward has yet to comment on his soon-to-be released book. In the book, reported by AP, Bush is quoted as saying, "I knew what would happen if people thought we were developing a potential war plan for Iraq. It was such a high stakes moment and it would look like that I was anxious to go to war and I'm not anxious to go to war.

Senior administration officials say Mr. Bush did talk to Secretary Rumsfeld about Iraq in November 2001. Top officials were concerned Saddam Hussein might pick a fight while U.S. forces were focused on Afghanistan perhaps by shooting down a U.S. pilot in the Iraqi no-fly zones. Officials say the president asked Secretary Rumsfeld what the military would do in such a scenario and when Rumsfeld said he didn't like the existing plans, the president asked him to draw up new ones. That account reaffirmed in today's White House briefing with this comment on the book from the press secretary.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECY: I don't have any reason to dispute any of the quotes in the book. But beyond that, I cannot get into commenting about some of the characterizations that may be in there at this point.

TODD: President Bush was pressed today about that meeting in November of 2001 with Rumsfeld. He said the subject of Iraq actually first came up in a meeting on September 15 of 2001. But he had other priorities.

BUSH: I don't remember in terms of what was being developed or not being developed. But I do know that it was Afghanistan that was on my mind. And I didn't really start focusing on Iraq till later on, particularly about the time I started going to the United Nations.

TODD: "The Washington Post" Web site says Woodward's book describes Vice President Dick Cheney as, quote, "a powerful, steam rolling force behind the idea of an Iraq war." And describes the relationship between Cheney and Secretary of State Colin Powell becoming so strained over the war that they're barely on speaking terms.

Contacted by CNN, an official in Cheney's office said the vice president and his spokesman are traveling back from Asia and would not be in a position to respond to our question before our deadline. The State Department spokesman had this to say.

RICHARD BOUCHER, STATE DEPT. SPOKESMAN: I think that's not true. TODD: Was the president himself convinced that Iraq had stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction? According to "The Post's" Web site, Woodward's book says at a White House meeting in November of 2002, CIA deputy director John McLaughlin presented Mr. Bush with evidence based on satellite photos, communications intercepts and other intelligence, adding this quote from the president, "nice try. I don't this is quite -- it's not something that Joe Public would understand or would gain a lot of confidence from." Then Bush turns to CIA Director George Tenet and says, "I've been told all this intelligence about having WMD and this is the best we've got?" Tenet quoted, "It's a slam dunk case."

Bush: "George, how confident are you?"

Tenet: "Don't worry, it's a slam dunk case."

According to "The Post" reporting of the book, the president had made up his mind to take military action in Iraq by early January 2003. Quoting the president, "I am prepared to risk my presidency to do what I think is right. I was going to act. And if it could cost the presidency, I fully realized that."

Bush was reportedly asked by Woodward how history would judge the war and replied, "history? We don't know. We'll all be dead." Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And this note, Bob Woodward will join LARRY KING LIVE Monday night, 9:00 p.m. Eastern. He'll join me here on this program next Friday, one week from today 5:00 p.m. Eastern.

We'll continue to follow a developing story out of Iraq: insurgents holding an American soldier hostage.

Also ahead, I'll be joined by Congressman Harold Ford of Tennessee and Duncan Hunter of California. They'll debate what's happening right now in Iraq.

A little boy's agony. Recent fighting in Iraq robbed him of two of his limbs. Now, as he copes with his wounds, his family questions the war.

Plus this...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLOS WATSON, POLITICAL ANALYST: I'm Carlos Watson. Stay tuned for more of the inside edge. I'll tell you about the issue that may rock the Kerry campaign.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: From our studios in Washington, once again, Wolf Blitzer.

BLITZER: Welcome back.

In just a couple minutes, I'll speak with two members of the United States Congress about the developing story, our top story out of Iraq. Republican Duncan Hunter and Democrat Harold Ford will join me live to talk about that new videotape.

In the meantime, let's check some headlines unfolding.

The U.S. military is trying to authenticate a videotape showing a man in an American uniform identifying himself as a soldier who has been missing in Iraq since April 9. The tape aired by Al-Jazeera shows him flanked by six armed men whose faces are concealed. The man identifies himself as Private 1st Class Keith Matthew Maupin of Ohio, who vanished last Friday with another soldier.

The U.S. Army says soldiers whose tours of duty in Iraq are being extended beyond a year will be getting extra combat pay. The Army says it will offer them $1,000 for each additional month. The bonuses will not be taxed.

Next Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear two appeals challenging the near secret detention of terrorist suspects at the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. This will be the court's first review of the constitutionality of that part of the U.S. war on terror. The cases involve more than 600 men from about 40 countries.

Democrat John Kerry continues to court the nation's young voters in his bid to unseat President Bush. Kerry called in a crowd of students at the University of Pittsburgh today to bring back some of the spirit that fueled political activism, he said, in the 1960s.

The daily news from Iraq is peppered with troop movements, battle reports and casualty counts. It can be easy to forget that civilians, people trying to live ordinary lives in extraordinary circumstances sometimes get caught in the Crossfire. Some of them are far too young to understand why.

Here is CNN's Karl Penhaul.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This isn't the story of the firefight for Fallujah, but the tale of what was left behind once the dust had settled. Now imagine the future for little Ali. He's four. Dwarfed by the bed in Baghdad's Italian Hospital.

It was a week ago Tuesday, an hour before sundown. Toddling down his street in Fallujah hand in hand with grandpa. Ali's dad Nasa Abital Hamne (ph) said the nearest shooting was more than a mile away. Until he says a rocket whooshed in.

ALI'S FATHER (through translator): I heard the hit, thunderous a rocket. I had no idea his grandfather had taken him for a walk. I ran out. People were shouting everywhere. I got to the spot there was flesh, and bits of skull everywhere. I had no idea. We started looking for Ali and I see him blown up over there and his grandpa is dead. He is dead. Smashed up against a wall.

PENHAUL: Ali is making a brave effort to grab the balloon doctors have given him. But his left hand was blown off. His leg was blown away, too. His dad says Ali was always such a bundle of energy. Now --

ALI'S FATHER, (through translator): He does not understand it. He turns over on himself, he keeps trying to walk. He tries to get up and falls back down.

PENHAUL: It's been impossible to get independent casualty figures since fighting in Fallujah flared 10 days ago. The total estimate of deaths is in the hundreds. Civilians with no part in that fight have fallen in the crossfire. The shots continue to ring out on Fallujah's battlefield this week despite a shaky cease-fire. The echo of the rocket that hit Ali still rings in Abital (ph) head.

ALI'S FATHER, (through translator): Let us die. Dying like a martyr is better than living like this.

PENHAUL: He's lost his hope.

Karl Penhaul, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: What a tragedy that is.

Taken hostage. Now a U.S. soldier is held by Iraqi insurgents. It's a story we continue to monitor here on CNN.

Also ahead, we'll debate what's happening right now in Iraq. Two members of the United States Congress, Harold Ford of Tennessee and Duncan Hunter of California, will join me live.

And from the questions about 9/11 to the violence in Iraq, it's been a tough time for President Bush in the past week or two. But is John Kerry being too quiet right now? Our political analyst, Carlos Watson, he'll join me live for his "Inside Edge."

First, though, a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Vice President Dick Cheney addressed U.S. troops in South Korea, the last stop on his Asian tour. He called the boundary between North and South Korea the border between freedom and tyranny and vowed -- quote -- "We will destroy the remnants of violent, oppressive regimes."

Partition plan. Israeli newspapers published detailed reports today on Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to pull Israeli settlements and military installations out of many Palestinian areas. According to today's reports, Mr. Sharon wants to complete the withdrawals from most of Gaza and the northern part of the West Bank by next year.

Spain bomb probe. Spanish police have arrested three new suspects in the Madrid train bombings, but six suspects who were arrested earlier have been released for lack of evidence. The March 11 attack, blamed on Islamic terrorists, killed 190 people.

The people's choice. As expected, South Africa's ruling political party, the African National Congress, has scored an overwhelming victory in this week's parliamentary elections. The results clear the way for a second term for South African president Thabo Mbeki.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The battle for Iraq now at a critical juncture.

Here to talk about the latest developments, two U.S. congressmen, Democrat Harold Ford of Tennessee. He's joining us from Memphis. And from San Diego, Republican Duncan Hunter of California. He's the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.

Thanks to both of you for joining us.

Mr. Chairman, first to you.

I assume you've seen this videotape of this American soldier who has been taken prisoner by these Iraqi insurgents. So what goes through your mind as you see these awful images?

REP. DUNCAN HUNTER (R), CALIFORNIA: Well, obviously, Wolf, this is part of the war.

And I hark back to the images that were taken by Al-Jazeera early in the war, when they had some of our POWs and also some of our KIA that they were displaying to the world. And that's -- invariably, we lose people to capture. And, of course, the enemy takes all the advantage they can. I think it's pretty outrageous to be displaying them. But that's -- Al-Jazeera did that with our dead and wounded and POWs last time.

And it's in accord with their standard operating procedure to do it this time.

BLITZER: What about that, Congressman Ford? What goes through your mind?

REP. HAROLD FORD (D), TENNESSEE: Naturally, I know the chairman and I, both our hearts and prayers go out to the soldiers and their families.

I think that at another level or equal to what Chairman Hunter has stated, I think that the American people, the longer this goes on -- and I hear it from many across my district who voted for President Bush three years ago. They're eager to hear how we get beyond this stage. And I think there is an acceptance that these kinds of things and this is the nature of war.

But, as you know, so many were led to believe that this would not be occurring after Saddam Hussein had been captured. So I think there is a real appetite and hunger amongst many people, at least here in Tennessee, for what the plan will be after June 30, even leading up to June 30, but certainly after June 30.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Let me bring Chairman Hunter back into this.

Now that the president and Tony Blair at the White House today basically said they're ready for a new U.N. Security Council resolution, they're ready to let the United Nations basically take charge in trying to come up with some sort of interim Iraqi government, I don't see a whole lot of difference -- maybe you do -- between what John Kerry's position on Iraq is and what the president's position on Iraq. Maybe you see some significant differences there.

HUNTER: Well, John Kerry has been more muted in recent weeks. And I think that's been good.

I think that this is a very difficult time, because we're in the middle of an election season. Both our parties want to win. On the other hand, we stand squarely behind people that are in actual combat and weapon contact right now. Clearly, I think it's a good thing that we're making this handoff.

If we had put this handoff down the road a year or two years, I think you would have seen an upswell of violence just before the handoff. And so, if we put it off this time, that will show to the terrorists, show those who don't want to see it occur that they can stop it by bringing about an upswell in violence just before the handoff.

So I think it's good that we're sticking with the date. That's an important thing. These things don't come wrapped in good packages. And Harold is right. Americans want to see a plan that's carried through. But the handoff, very clearly, of political power is a first step in that exit.

BLITZER: What about that, Congressman Ford? Do you see a lot of difference, daylight, between Kerry's position and Bush's position now that the president says let the United Nations basically come up with a handoff formula?

FORD: I'm delighted the president has come around to this position. I mean, John Kerry is not proposing ideas for them to be rejected. He's proposing them for them to be enacted.

And to see the president and Prime Minister Blair do as they did today and to announce what they have announced, I hope they're prepared to follow through. And John Kerry will keep offering ideas. And we hope that the president will continue to adopt them.

BLITZER: Do you see any reason, Mr. Chairman, Chairman Hunter, why the number of troops in Iraq right now has become such a contentious issue within the administration itself? I'm sure the Congress ready to go along with whatever the military commanders want.

HUNTER: Well, actually, there is a lot of misunderstanding, Wolf, because what you have now is as much firepower as when we took Baghdad. You had a rotation in the country, the biggest rotation since World War II.

And that was that the 1st Marine Division came into the west of the Sunni Triangle and took over for the 82nd Airborne. The 1st Infantry Division went up to the north of the triangle and took over for the 4th Infantry Division. The 1st Cav into the center of Baghdad and they were taking over for the 1st Armored Division. But the 1st Armored Division has stayed.

They have sent one brigade back to Germany, but both of the heavy brigades of the United States have stayed. So instead of having one division in the center of Baghdad, you actually have two. You have the 1st Cav and the 1st Armored. So we have lots of firepower. That's 135,000 people in country.

If you want to have an additional 25,000 people, all you do is extend. And I recommended to Secretary Rumsfeld a couple of weeks ago that you simply extend the 1st Armored in place. Keep them there. They've got lots of firepower, lots of steel.

The other thing we ought to do is probably bring more heavy armored equipment into the 1st Cav. They came over lighter than they should have, in my estimation. I think you bring in more of that. I think you bring some of the Striker down from the northern part of Iraq, because part of our big problem now is protecting these convoys. And we bring some heavy stuff and we protect the convoys.

But that's the troop rotation. We don't need to generate another 20,000 or 40,000 people and bring them over. We've already got them there.

BLITZER: Do you agree with that assessment, Congressman Ford?

FORD: Chairman Hunter is far more experienced than many of us in the Congress on these issues. And I would even be so bold as to say that our commanders on the ground probably know even more than a few more of us in the Congress, including Chairman Hunter, who obviously is knowledgeable.

Whatever Abizaid and his crew wants, I think we should provide them with it. Chairman Hunter is certainly closer to those issues than many of us are in the Congress.

BLITZER: Congressman Ford, are you at all upbeat that this handover on June 30 will succeed?

FORD: Naturally, I'm optimistic. But I'm realistic as well. There are some fundamental questions I wish the president had addressed more squarely and pointedly the other evening, one being who exactly are we turning it over to and what exactly will be the interplay between the U.S. military and this new Iraqi government, and, three, I guess, how will the U.N., the United States military and the new Iraqi government, how will they all kind of work together? What is the theory or the paradigm that we're looking for?

I think that's up to the president to lay those things out. Now, I might add, John Kerry has some ideas on this. And at the rate we're going, President Bush has endorsed also the idea of perhaps a central director of intelligence who would be responsible for all of intelligence, something John Kerry has proposed as well. So we will see.

BLITZER: All right, we will see indeed. Two members of the U.S. Congress, Harold Ford, thanks very much for joining us.

FORD: Thank you.

BLITZER: Duncan Hunter, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, thanks to you as well.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: This note: We're staying on top of that hostage taking of a U.S. soldier in Iraq and we'll keep you up to date on any developments.

Also, on the stump, but hardly. In the week's headlines, coming up, John Kerry's low-key college tour vs. President Bush's very busy week. Can a low profile play well against an in-your-face incumbent? Our political analyst Carlos Watson, he'll join me live immediately when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It's been a rather intense week with President Bush's prime-time news conference and the continuing investigation by the 9/11 Commission.

As he does each Friday at this time, our political analyst Carlos Watson joins us now to talk about how current events are playing politically for both the Bush campaign and the Democratic challenger campaign of John Kerry.

Well, with the 9/11 Commission, the news conference, how is it all playing politically?

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I think it's too early to see.

But I think what's big about this week is, actually, there's been a major policy shift. And many people haven't paid attention to that. You heard the president at the press conference say that he was going to stand strong. He was going to stick with June 30. And many people thought that was the whole story.

But underneath it all, Wolf, two big changes. On the 9/11 Commission, you've seen them essentially embrace the Democratic position and say that we want to see an intelligence czar, something that they didn't support before. They didn't support even the 9/11 Commission, that being the Bush administration.

On Iraq, you notice more troops, which is something that had been called for earlier. And, No. 2, you are hearing more talk about internationalizing the effort, meaning bring in the NATO, bring in potentially the U.N. So I would say it's a major policy shift. It's unclear how that will play out. We still see a situation on the ground that could be devolving.

BLITZER: We also see this past week the president clearly dominating the headlines, for good or for bad, with John Kerry not necessarily dominating the headlines. How does that cut?

WATSON: Well, Kerry hopes that the headline will read, "Run Silent, Run Deep." There's some question as to whether or not he is succeeding.

He was silent largely in March after wrapping up the nomination and actually lost the lead. He was silent in April, and given that the president has had a tough time, has kind of regained at least a tie and maybe a lead. I think a couple of things are going to happen in the weeks ahead. Not only will Iraq remain center, but I think the agenda will shift.

I you'll also begin to hear more about the economy once again and a couple new issues. One of them, I think, frankly, will be, how diverse is Kerry's inner circle? It sounds like an esoteric argument. But when you look at a major senior campaign team, all nine members are white, I think there are going to be some questions for a Democratic Party that usually claims to be a party of inclusiveness, especially since President Bush has shown that there are lots of people of color who have the qualifications to contribute.

BLITZER: All right, now, let's talk about media, the role of media, old media vs. new media. First of all, what's old media and what's new media?

WATSON: Old media are books, newspapers, etcetera, even television maybe.

New media, remember, a couple of weeks ago we said blogs were becoming kind of the liberals' answer to conservative radio. Got a new one for you, Wolf; 2004 is not only showing the ascendancy of the Internet, but also, believe it or not, books. Remember a couple of years ago, Oprah got us reading again, if you will?

Well, books are now playing a major role in political campaigns. We saw earlier Paul O'Neill, the former treasury secretary. His book had an impact. We saw Richard Clarke's book have an impact. And now get ready for a troika of books, three of them, which will make a difference. You will hear Bob Woodward's book, which we talked about earlier.

You'll also see a book coming out by Joe Wilson, whose wife was outed as a CIA spy. You'll also see another book President Clinton perhaps this summer. So books are actually impacting the race in the way that the Internet surprised us and impacted the race and actually may move the polls this way and that.

BLITZER: Joe Wilson, the former acting U.S. ambassador in Iraq, his book coming out in the next few weeks. We'll all be waiting for that as well.

Carlos, as usual, thanks very much.

WATSON: Good to see you.

BLITZER: And if our viewers want to learn more about what you think, what should they do?

WATSON: I love it when they go to CNN.com/Carlos.

BLITZER: And they can read your weekly column?

WATSON: Yes, every Wednesday.

BLITZER: And they can write you back, too.

WATSON: Actually, a lot of them have, so it's good.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Thanks very much.

WATSON: Good to see you.

BLITZER: Our hot "Web Question of the Day" is this: Does Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for President Bush's Iraq policy help make Bush's case? You can still vote. Vote right now at CNN.com/Wolf. That's the place. The results when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Once again, our top story, chilling images of an American soldier apparently held hostage in Iraq. A videotape first aired by the Arabic Al-Jazeera network shows a man in a military uniform. He gives his name as Keith Matthew Maupin. Maupin is of Batavia, Iowa.

And another soldier has been listed as unaccounted for since an attack on a fuel convoy near Baghdad a week ago. The videotape shows several masked men holding weapons. The Arabic narration says they will keep their hostage until he can be traded for prisoners in the custody of the United States Army.

Here is how you're weighing in for our "Question of the Day": Does Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for President Bush's Iraq policy help make Bush's case? Fifteen percent of you said no effect; 36 percent of you said yes; 45 percent of you said no. Remember, this, of course, is not a scientific poll.

Let's hear directly from you. Here's some of your e-mail.

Hess writes this: "Blair and Bush are just like two peas in a pod. They both evade reporters' questions and just start talking about anything but what the questions asked."

Ralph sends us this: "After listening to Bush and Blair's rhetoric on freeing the Iraqi people from tyranny, I wonder, if these two are so keen on getting rid of dictators, why aren't they doing something in Africa, Cuba and other countries around the world?"

A reminder, you can always catch us on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern. I'll see you this Sunday noon eastern for "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests, the presidential independent candidate Ralph Nader. He'll join us live. And I'll sit down with the chairman of the U.S. military's Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers.

Until then, thanks very much for joining us.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

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


Aired April 16, 2004 - 17:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now a breaking story we're following. An American soldier held hostage in Iraq.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Surrounded by U.S. troops, but Shiite radicals are in no mood to lay down their arms.

Fallujah face-off: Americans and Iraqis are also talking, for now.

BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. ARMY: If these discussions do not bear fruit than we are prepared to conduct offensive operations.

BLITZER: Allies united.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will not waiver from the face of fear and intimidation.

BLITZER: But will Bush and Blair let the United Nations call the shots?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When he left, I had my 11-day-old infant and my 3-year-old son and I was 11 days out of a c-section.

BLITZER: A year later, a family is still waiting for a part-time soldier to return.

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Friday, April 16, 2004.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: We begin with breaking news and chilling images. A week after an attack on a U.S. military convoy left two American soldiers unaccounted for, the al Jazeera network has aired a videotape showing a man in a U.S. military uniform apparently held by Iraqi insurgents. U.S. military officials have already notified the soldiers' families about the videotape. Let's go straight to our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre -- Jaime.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, the U.S. Central Command says it received the tape from the U.S. embassy in Doha, Qatar, which apparently where it was dropped off originally. A central command spokesman says they still haven't verified the authenticity of the tape, which appears to show private first class Keith Maupin 20 years old from Batavia, Ohio, one of two soldiers missing after an April 9 convoy attack in which their fuel convoy was attacked by people with rocket propelled grenades. The only part of the tape we've been able to hear is where the young soldier identifies himself as Private Maupin.

PVT. KEITH MAUPIN, HELD HOSTAGE IN IRAQ: My name is Keith Matthew Maupin.

MCINTYRE: While the Pentagon is continuing to try to verify the authenticity of the tape, the soldier does bear an a resemblance we have to Maupin, apparently from his high school yearbook. But, again, they haven't confirmed 100 percent the identification there.

On the tape, the people -- the hostage takers say that they are treating the hostage well, in accordance with what they say are the tenets of Islamic law for the treatment of soldiers. They say, quote, "we will keep him until we trade him for our prisoners in the custody of the U.S. enemy.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon and the U.S. military have reaffirmed that they will not negotiating with hostage-takers. Instead, they said they will devote their energies to finding people that take hostages and, to the extent they can, freeing hostages -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre, with word of this disturbing development. Jamie, thanks very much.

What would a hostage situation mean for the U.S. military in Iraq. Joining us on the phone our military analyst, retired U.S. Army Brigadier General David Grange. How much of a complicated factor, militarily, is this, general?

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, (RET) CNN MILITARY ANALYST (via telephone): The thing is when there is a hostage taken, all -- 100 percent of effort goes after anybody that may be grabbed by the enemy forces. A full-court press. And it won't affect the ongoing operations, but those that specifically focus on hostage rescue immediately start on that particular information that they gain to try to rescue or get the individual back.

BLITZER: What do they train -- how do the U.S. soldiers, regular soldiers -- are they trained, are they prepared for this kind of contingency, being taken hostage?

GRANGE: Wolf, there are levels of training. And because -- I don't want to get into the level of training this particular soldier or others may have received. I don't want to get into what I believe what level he has. But all soldiers get some level of training, that's correct.

BLITZER: When soldiers out in the field -- and they'll be seeing these images, the marines, the soldiers serving in Iraq right now -- it obviously is going to have an impact on them as well. You've been in that kind of a situation. What is the impact? GRANGE: Well, I'll tell you, it mobilizes the entire organization where that soldier came from, as well as other military units in the area. But especially the brotherhood of that particular transportation unit. And so what's going to happen is it will be a -- it will actually increase the drive, the motivation of the soldiers to complete their mission.

It doesn't cause them to -- it doesn't break their morale not to want to continue to fight or the mission at hand, whether they're thinking about going home, they support the United States of America over there or not, they just focus now on accomplishing the mission. So, in fact, I would say it strengthens a unit, it does not weaken it.

BLITZER: General Grange, in the last couple of weeks, we've now seen hostages, people kidnapped from a variety of countries. It's a relatively new development in this overall situation in Iraq. How do you prevent this from happening, if you can?

GRANGE: Well, it's very difficult to have 100 percent prevention. No one can move around by themselves. You increase the size of the units. Where a unit maybe is four to six soldiers moving around, maybe you double or triple that size. You increase emergency or readiness forces to respond to any kind of situation. You may disseminate more communications equipment so everybody can report things immediately.

But if you're in an ambush, and let's say there are a certain number of trucks, so many drivers, maybe a security person in each truck and then you may have some security vehicles with it, it still, if it's a large force attacking you, you don't defeat the enemy or at least be able defend yourself until help arrives, then that situation can happen.

But no U.S. soldier wants to become a prisoner. It's usually a situation where in evaluation it's truly hopeless or they were wounded or knocked out or something happened where they were captured. So I think a lot of efforts have probably been put in place to double the size of forces and those type of things to make the targets hard for any hostage-takers.

BLITZER: General Grange, one final question. Al Jazeera getting this videotape, deciding to air it, and then us and a lot of other television networks around the world replaying, airing this videotape as well. From the military perspective -- and you've been a commander -- is this a useful, a good idea for the world to see these kinds of images.

GRANGE: Well, two things the world sees. One, is that they see that actual the insurgents in this case are really desperate. They have to do something that they can -- or at least they feel they can leverage the coalition. And hostages is one example, whether it be for one nation to split the alliance or to try to weaken the resolve of U.S. forces. They will not weaken U.S. resolve, so they're a little bit wrong on that.

The rest of the world sees that this is something internationally, hostage taking, that is just not accepted worldwide. So I think it hurts their cause. And lastly, now we see the condition of this G.I. So if anything -- if he does not come back, as good as he looks right now, I think there will be a fair price to pay.

BLITZER: General David Grange, our military analyst. General, thanks very much for that assessment.

Meanwhile, several other hostages have been released in Iraq and two critical standoffs continue with U.S. forces indicating they won't hold back much longer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Fallujah, new efforts to end fierce fighting between insurgents and U.S. Marines.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe we'll have more news after the talks.

BLITZER: A high level coalition provisional authority delegation met with city leaders. Their mission fueled by a sense of urgency.

AMB. RICHARD JONES, COALITION PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY: We will continue to work with them. We will continue to give them some time. But I must be candid and say that time is limited.

BLITZER: U.S. military officials were more blunt.

KIMMITT: If these discussions do not bear fruit, then we are prepared to conduct offensive operations.

BLITZER: A similar situation in Najaf. U.S. soldiers are surrounding the city, now base of an uprising led by Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr. His supporters demonstrated in the streets of the city, while members of his outlawed Mehdi militia clashed with U.S. forces in the nearby town of Kufa.

Sadr said he's willing to be martyred for Iraq, something U.S. forces hope to avoid. And he issued this warning to his followers.

MUQTADA AL-SADR, MUSLIM CLERIC (through translator): I tell you that America will never leave Iraq.

BLITZER: Harsh words, too, from the Shia spiritual leader, the Grand Ayatollah, Ali al Sistani. In a statement, he condemned what he called the coalition's horrible tactics and said the situation is going from bad to worse. In Baghdad, three kidnapped Czech citizens were released by their abductors.

MICHAEL KUBAL, FORMER HOSTAGE: The worst moment was when it was clear that it won't be solved in one day. And the best moment was today when we were stepped inside of Czech embassy.

BLITZER: And seen here, also released from captivity, a Syrian born Canadian citizen.

(END VIDEOTAPE) BLITZER: When they went to war with Iraq, they stood almost alone, now with war raging anew, they say they're standing firm. But at the White House today, President Bush and Britain's Tony Blair admitted they would welcome some assistance from a sometimes surprising quarter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): The president and the prime minister, the closest of allies during the war in Iraq, are now turning directly to the United Nations for help in restoring Iraqi sovereignty in the face of escalating violence and mounting casualties.

BUSH: We welcome the proposals presented by the U.N. Special Envoy Brahimi. He's identified a way forward to establishing an interim government that is broadly acceptable to the Iraqi people.

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: And we will seek a new U.N. Security Council resolution to embody the political and security way forward.

BLITZER: U.N. officials concede getting a new resolution passed won't be easy. Much will depend on the final recommendation of Lakhdar Brahimi, the special U.N. Envoy. Both Bush and Blair are clearly hoping Brahimi can come one an acceptable transition plan before June 30, with a still to be defined Iraqi government immediately taking over.

BUSH: No citizen of America or Britain would want the government of their nation in the hands of others, and neither do the Iraqis. And this is why the June 30 date for the transfer of sovereignty will be kept.

BLAIR: And what you're hearing from myself and the president of the United States is we will stay there and we will get the job done, because that's what we promised to do. And we will continue until it's finished.

BLITZER: At the same time, the president and the prime minister acknowledged the dangers ahead.

BUSH: The past few weeks have been hard and the days ahead will surely bring their own challenges. What we're seeing in Iraq is an attempt at power grab by extremists and terrorists. They will fail.

BLITZER: Mr. Blair summed up the situation this way.

BLAIR: It was never going to be easy. And it isn't now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And the prime minister also joined the president in endorsing Israel's proposed withdrawal from Gaza and parts of the West Bank. While many Palestinians strongly object to the plan, the two leaders urged them to take advantage of what the president calls a fantastic opportunity. And here's your chance to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this, "does British Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for President Bush's Iraq policy help make Bush's case?" You can vote right now, go to CNN.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

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

We'll continue to monitor reaction to that new videotape set to show a captured United States soldier.

Also ahead, what Bob Woodward's new book says about President Bush's decision to go to war in Iraq.

And a military family's ordeal as it awaits word on whether a loved one is going to return home.

Also, another side to the fighting in Iraq. A little boy's agony and his fight for life.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: This week's announcement that 20,000 U.S. troops will be staying in Iraq 90 days longer than scheduled is hitting some families very hard. But a family in North Carolina has received unexpected good news, after originally fearing her husband would be among those staying on in Iraq, one woman learned he'll be coming home after all. CNN's Eric Phillips reports on her emotional ordeal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Real faster.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hold on.

ERIC PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Lee Lillard enjoys spending family time with her children, 3-year-old Drew and 1-year-old Hannah. But someone has been missing from play time for more than a year, her husband, their father, Steve Lillard. He's in Iraq with the National Guard's 210th Military Police Unit. He was first sent away from their home in Sylvan, North Carolina to training at Fort Dix, New Jersey last month, 11 days after Hannah was born. Then in June came orders for this unit to head to Baghdad.

LEE LILLARD, HUSBAND STATIONED IN IRAQ: So we said, okay, six months from June is December. He'll be home for Christmas, you know. Just based on what the Guard normally does.

PHILLIPS: But this would not be a normal deployment. Lee soon learned that her husband's tour of duty would be extended until this June, tough for this working mother and her children, especially Drew. LILLARD: Three months ago when he had the flu, he would wake up in the middle of the night throwing up and he was like daddy, help me, daddy, help me and Steve hasn't been here forever.

PHILLIPS: Then his unit heard they would be extended another four months, rocking this community where ribbons and banners hang proudly. It prompted Lee to start a petition drive to bring the part- time soldiers home in June as scheduled.

LILLARD: 15 months away from home for someone who is not doing this full-time, who has a job waiting on them, that's long enough.

PHILLIPS: More than 80 signatures had been added to the petition and signs of protest had been prepared before official word came from the Pentagon Thursday, the 210th had in fact not been extended.

LILLARD: It is Christmas on April 15 for me.

PHILLIPS: Lee is optimistic, but the petition drive continues just in case the situation does change. Eric Phillips, CNN, Sylvan, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And while it appears that Steve Lillard will be returning home in a little over a month, other troops will be facing extended tours in Iraq. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says he regrets the extensions but adds, and I'm quoting now, "the country is at war and we need to do what is necessary to succeed."

We continue to watch developments surrounding that new videotape that appears to show a captured U.S. soldier being held hostage.

Also, coming up, a new book and new questions. When did the Bush White House start to plan the Iraq war? And what's really going in Iraq? What should the United States be doing about it? We'll have a debate.

And Carlos Watson has the inside edge on the presidential campaign. All that straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The journalist who helped break the Watergate scandal is now turning his eye to the war in Iraq and what critics say was the president's obsession with regime change there. Here's CNN's Bryan Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRYAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just when did the Bush administration first have the idea to take the fight to Saddam Hussein? A hotly debated question in this election season, an issue taken on directly by Washington post assistant managing editor Bob Woodward. According to the Associated Press, which obtained a copy of Woodward's new book "Plan of Attack" the book says the pulled Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld aside on November of 2001, less than two months into the war in Afghanistan and asked him what kind of plan they had for Iraq.

AP's account of the book says Rumsfeld told the president the plan was outdated and Mr. Bush responded that Rumsfeld should get started on a new plan and that CIA Director George Tenet and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice were not briefed on the plan immediately.

Bob Woodward has yet to comment on his soon-to-be released book. In the book, reported by AP, Bush is quoted as saying, "I knew what would happen if people thought we were developing a potential war plan for Iraq. It was such a high stakes moment and it would look like that I was anxious to go to war and I'm not anxious to go to war.

Senior administration officials say Mr. Bush did talk to Secretary Rumsfeld about Iraq in November 2001. Top officials were concerned Saddam Hussein might pick a fight while U.S. forces were focused on Afghanistan perhaps by shooting down a U.S. pilot in the Iraqi no-fly zones. Officials say the president asked Secretary Rumsfeld what the military would do in such a scenario and when Rumsfeld said he didn't like the existing plans, the president asked him to draw up new ones. That account reaffirmed in today's White House briefing with this comment on the book from the press secretary.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECY: I don't have any reason to dispute any of the quotes in the book. But beyond that, I cannot get into commenting about some of the characterizations that may be in there at this point.

TODD: President Bush was pressed today about that meeting in November of 2001 with Rumsfeld. He said the subject of Iraq actually first came up in a meeting on September 15 of 2001. But he had other priorities.

BUSH: I don't remember in terms of what was being developed or not being developed. But I do know that it was Afghanistan that was on my mind. And I didn't really start focusing on Iraq till later on, particularly about the time I started going to the United Nations.

TODD: "The Washington Post" Web site says Woodward's book describes Vice President Dick Cheney as, quote, "a powerful, steam rolling force behind the idea of an Iraq war." And describes the relationship between Cheney and Secretary of State Colin Powell becoming so strained over the war that they're barely on speaking terms.

Contacted by CNN, an official in Cheney's office said the vice president and his spokesman are traveling back from Asia and would not be in a position to respond to our question before our deadline. The State Department spokesman had this to say.

RICHARD BOUCHER, STATE DEPT. SPOKESMAN: I think that's not true. TODD: Was the president himself convinced that Iraq had stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction? According to "The Post's" Web site, Woodward's book says at a White House meeting in November of 2002, CIA deputy director John McLaughlin presented Mr. Bush with evidence based on satellite photos, communications intercepts and other intelligence, adding this quote from the president, "nice try. I don't this is quite -- it's not something that Joe Public would understand or would gain a lot of confidence from." Then Bush turns to CIA Director George Tenet and says, "I've been told all this intelligence about having WMD and this is the best we've got?" Tenet quoted, "It's a slam dunk case."

Bush: "George, how confident are you?"

Tenet: "Don't worry, it's a slam dunk case."

According to "The Post" reporting of the book, the president had made up his mind to take military action in Iraq by early January 2003. Quoting the president, "I am prepared to risk my presidency to do what I think is right. I was going to act. And if it could cost the presidency, I fully realized that."

Bush was reportedly asked by Woodward how history would judge the war and replied, "history? We don't know. We'll all be dead." Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And this note, Bob Woodward will join LARRY KING LIVE Monday night, 9:00 p.m. Eastern. He'll join me here on this program next Friday, one week from today 5:00 p.m. Eastern.

We'll continue to follow a developing story out of Iraq: insurgents holding an American soldier hostage.

Also ahead, I'll be joined by Congressman Harold Ford of Tennessee and Duncan Hunter of California. They'll debate what's happening right now in Iraq.

A little boy's agony. Recent fighting in Iraq robbed him of two of his limbs. Now, as he copes with his wounds, his family questions the war.

Plus this...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLOS WATSON, POLITICAL ANALYST: I'm Carlos Watson. Stay tuned for more of the inside edge. I'll tell you about the issue that may rock the Kerry campaign.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: From our studios in Washington, once again, Wolf Blitzer.

BLITZER: Welcome back.

In just a couple minutes, I'll speak with two members of the United States Congress about the developing story, our top story out of Iraq. Republican Duncan Hunter and Democrat Harold Ford will join me live to talk about that new videotape.

In the meantime, let's check some headlines unfolding.

The U.S. military is trying to authenticate a videotape showing a man in an American uniform identifying himself as a soldier who has been missing in Iraq since April 9. The tape aired by Al-Jazeera shows him flanked by six armed men whose faces are concealed. The man identifies himself as Private 1st Class Keith Matthew Maupin of Ohio, who vanished last Friday with another soldier.

The U.S. Army says soldiers whose tours of duty in Iraq are being extended beyond a year will be getting extra combat pay. The Army says it will offer them $1,000 for each additional month. The bonuses will not be taxed.

Next Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear two appeals challenging the near secret detention of terrorist suspects at the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. This will be the court's first review of the constitutionality of that part of the U.S. war on terror. The cases involve more than 600 men from about 40 countries.

Democrat John Kerry continues to court the nation's young voters in his bid to unseat President Bush. Kerry called in a crowd of students at the University of Pittsburgh today to bring back some of the spirit that fueled political activism, he said, in the 1960s.

The daily news from Iraq is peppered with troop movements, battle reports and casualty counts. It can be easy to forget that civilians, people trying to live ordinary lives in extraordinary circumstances sometimes get caught in the Crossfire. Some of them are far too young to understand why.

Here is CNN's Karl Penhaul.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This isn't the story of the firefight for Fallujah, but the tale of what was left behind once the dust had settled. Now imagine the future for little Ali. He's four. Dwarfed by the bed in Baghdad's Italian Hospital.

It was a week ago Tuesday, an hour before sundown. Toddling down his street in Fallujah hand in hand with grandpa. Ali's dad Nasa Abital Hamne (ph) said the nearest shooting was more than a mile away. Until he says a rocket whooshed in.

ALI'S FATHER (through translator): I heard the hit, thunderous a rocket. I had no idea his grandfather had taken him for a walk. I ran out. People were shouting everywhere. I got to the spot there was flesh, and bits of skull everywhere. I had no idea. We started looking for Ali and I see him blown up over there and his grandpa is dead. He is dead. Smashed up against a wall.

PENHAUL: Ali is making a brave effort to grab the balloon doctors have given him. But his left hand was blown off. His leg was blown away, too. His dad says Ali was always such a bundle of energy. Now --

ALI'S FATHER, (through translator): He does not understand it. He turns over on himself, he keeps trying to walk. He tries to get up and falls back down.

PENHAUL: It's been impossible to get independent casualty figures since fighting in Fallujah flared 10 days ago. The total estimate of deaths is in the hundreds. Civilians with no part in that fight have fallen in the crossfire. The shots continue to ring out on Fallujah's battlefield this week despite a shaky cease-fire. The echo of the rocket that hit Ali still rings in Abital (ph) head.

ALI'S FATHER, (through translator): Let us die. Dying like a martyr is better than living like this.

PENHAUL: He's lost his hope.

Karl Penhaul, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: What a tragedy that is.

Taken hostage. Now a U.S. soldier is held by Iraqi insurgents. It's a story we continue to monitor here on CNN.

Also ahead, we'll debate what's happening right now in Iraq. Two members of the United States Congress, Harold Ford of Tennessee and Duncan Hunter of California, will join me live.

And from the questions about 9/11 to the violence in Iraq, it's been a tough time for President Bush in the past week or two. But is John Kerry being too quiet right now? Our political analyst, Carlos Watson, he'll join me live for his "Inside Edge."

First, though, a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Vice President Dick Cheney addressed U.S. troops in South Korea, the last stop on his Asian tour. He called the boundary between North and South Korea the border between freedom and tyranny and vowed -- quote -- "We will destroy the remnants of violent, oppressive regimes."

Partition plan. Israeli newspapers published detailed reports today on Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to pull Israeli settlements and military installations out of many Palestinian areas. According to today's reports, Mr. Sharon wants to complete the withdrawals from most of Gaza and the northern part of the West Bank by next year.

Spain bomb probe. Spanish police have arrested three new suspects in the Madrid train bombings, but six suspects who were arrested earlier have been released for lack of evidence. The March 11 attack, blamed on Islamic terrorists, killed 190 people.

The people's choice. As expected, South Africa's ruling political party, the African National Congress, has scored an overwhelming victory in this week's parliamentary elections. The results clear the way for a second term for South African president Thabo Mbeki.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The battle for Iraq now at a critical juncture.

Here to talk about the latest developments, two U.S. congressmen, Democrat Harold Ford of Tennessee. He's joining us from Memphis. And from San Diego, Republican Duncan Hunter of California. He's the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.

Thanks to both of you for joining us.

Mr. Chairman, first to you.

I assume you've seen this videotape of this American soldier who has been taken prisoner by these Iraqi insurgents. So what goes through your mind as you see these awful images?

REP. DUNCAN HUNTER (R), CALIFORNIA: Well, obviously, Wolf, this is part of the war.

And I hark back to the images that were taken by Al-Jazeera early in the war, when they had some of our POWs and also some of our KIA that they were displaying to the world. And that's -- invariably, we lose people to capture. And, of course, the enemy takes all the advantage they can. I think it's pretty outrageous to be displaying them. But that's -- Al-Jazeera did that with our dead and wounded and POWs last time.

And it's in accord with their standard operating procedure to do it this time.

BLITZER: What about that, Congressman Ford? What goes through your mind?

REP. HAROLD FORD (D), TENNESSEE: Naturally, I know the chairman and I, both our hearts and prayers go out to the soldiers and their families.

I think that at another level or equal to what Chairman Hunter has stated, I think that the American people, the longer this goes on -- and I hear it from many across my district who voted for President Bush three years ago. They're eager to hear how we get beyond this stage. And I think there is an acceptance that these kinds of things and this is the nature of war.

But, as you know, so many were led to believe that this would not be occurring after Saddam Hussein had been captured. So I think there is a real appetite and hunger amongst many people, at least here in Tennessee, for what the plan will be after June 30, even leading up to June 30, but certainly after June 30.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Let me bring Chairman Hunter back into this.

Now that the president and Tony Blair at the White House today basically said they're ready for a new U.N. Security Council resolution, they're ready to let the United Nations basically take charge in trying to come up with some sort of interim Iraqi government, I don't see a whole lot of difference -- maybe you do -- between what John Kerry's position on Iraq is and what the president's position on Iraq. Maybe you see some significant differences there.

HUNTER: Well, John Kerry has been more muted in recent weeks. And I think that's been good.

I think that this is a very difficult time, because we're in the middle of an election season. Both our parties want to win. On the other hand, we stand squarely behind people that are in actual combat and weapon contact right now. Clearly, I think it's a good thing that we're making this handoff.

If we had put this handoff down the road a year or two years, I think you would have seen an upswell of violence just before the handoff. And so, if we put it off this time, that will show to the terrorists, show those who don't want to see it occur that they can stop it by bringing about an upswell in violence just before the handoff.

So I think it's good that we're sticking with the date. That's an important thing. These things don't come wrapped in good packages. And Harold is right. Americans want to see a plan that's carried through. But the handoff, very clearly, of political power is a first step in that exit.

BLITZER: What about that, Congressman Ford? Do you see a lot of difference, daylight, between Kerry's position and Bush's position now that the president says let the United Nations basically come up with a handoff formula?

FORD: I'm delighted the president has come around to this position. I mean, John Kerry is not proposing ideas for them to be rejected. He's proposing them for them to be enacted.

And to see the president and Prime Minister Blair do as they did today and to announce what they have announced, I hope they're prepared to follow through. And John Kerry will keep offering ideas. And we hope that the president will continue to adopt them.

BLITZER: Do you see any reason, Mr. Chairman, Chairman Hunter, why the number of troops in Iraq right now has become such a contentious issue within the administration itself? I'm sure the Congress ready to go along with whatever the military commanders want.

HUNTER: Well, actually, there is a lot of misunderstanding, Wolf, because what you have now is as much firepower as when we took Baghdad. You had a rotation in the country, the biggest rotation since World War II.

And that was that the 1st Marine Division came into the west of the Sunni Triangle and took over for the 82nd Airborne. The 1st Infantry Division went up to the north of the triangle and took over for the 4th Infantry Division. The 1st Cav into the center of Baghdad and they were taking over for the 1st Armored Division. But the 1st Armored Division has stayed.

They have sent one brigade back to Germany, but both of the heavy brigades of the United States have stayed. So instead of having one division in the center of Baghdad, you actually have two. You have the 1st Cav and the 1st Armored. So we have lots of firepower. That's 135,000 people in country.

If you want to have an additional 25,000 people, all you do is extend. And I recommended to Secretary Rumsfeld a couple of weeks ago that you simply extend the 1st Armored in place. Keep them there. They've got lots of firepower, lots of steel.

The other thing we ought to do is probably bring more heavy armored equipment into the 1st Cav. They came over lighter than they should have, in my estimation. I think you bring in more of that. I think you bring some of the Striker down from the northern part of Iraq, because part of our big problem now is protecting these convoys. And we bring some heavy stuff and we protect the convoys.

But that's the troop rotation. We don't need to generate another 20,000 or 40,000 people and bring them over. We've already got them there.

BLITZER: Do you agree with that assessment, Congressman Ford?

FORD: Chairman Hunter is far more experienced than many of us in the Congress on these issues. And I would even be so bold as to say that our commanders on the ground probably know even more than a few more of us in the Congress, including Chairman Hunter, who obviously is knowledgeable.

Whatever Abizaid and his crew wants, I think we should provide them with it. Chairman Hunter is certainly closer to those issues than many of us are in the Congress.

BLITZER: Congressman Ford, are you at all upbeat that this handover on June 30 will succeed?

FORD: Naturally, I'm optimistic. But I'm realistic as well. There are some fundamental questions I wish the president had addressed more squarely and pointedly the other evening, one being who exactly are we turning it over to and what exactly will be the interplay between the U.S. military and this new Iraqi government, and, three, I guess, how will the U.N., the United States military and the new Iraqi government, how will they all kind of work together? What is the theory or the paradigm that we're looking for?

I think that's up to the president to lay those things out. Now, I might add, John Kerry has some ideas on this. And at the rate we're going, President Bush has endorsed also the idea of perhaps a central director of intelligence who would be responsible for all of intelligence, something John Kerry has proposed as well. So we will see.

BLITZER: All right, we will see indeed. Two members of the U.S. Congress, Harold Ford, thanks very much for joining us.

FORD: Thank you.

BLITZER: Duncan Hunter, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, thanks to you as well.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: This note: We're staying on top of that hostage taking of a U.S. soldier in Iraq and we'll keep you up to date on any developments.

Also, on the stump, but hardly. In the week's headlines, coming up, John Kerry's low-key college tour vs. President Bush's very busy week. Can a low profile play well against an in-your-face incumbent? Our political analyst Carlos Watson, he'll join me live immediately when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It's been a rather intense week with President Bush's prime-time news conference and the continuing investigation by the 9/11 Commission.

As he does each Friday at this time, our political analyst Carlos Watson joins us now to talk about how current events are playing politically for both the Bush campaign and the Democratic challenger campaign of John Kerry.

Well, with the 9/11 Commission, the news conference, how is it all playing politically?

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I think it's too early to see.

But I think what's big about this week is, actually, there's been a major policy shift. And many people haven't paid attention to that. You heard the president at the press conference say that he was going to stand strong. He was going to stick with June 30. And many people thought that was the whole story.

But underneath it all, Wolf, two big changes. On the 9/11 Commission, you've seen them essentially embrace the Democratic position and say that we want to see an intelligence czar, something that they didn't support before. They didn't support even the 9/11 Commission, that being the Bush administration.

On Iraq, you notice more troops, which is something that had been called for earlier. And, No. 2, you are hearing more talk about internationalizing the effort, meaning bring in the NATO, bring in potentially the U.N. So I would say it's a major policy shift. It's unclear how that will play out. We still see a situation on the ground that could be devolving.

BLITZER: We also see this past week the president clearly dominating the headlines, for good or for bad, with John Kerry not necessarily dominating the headlines. How does that cut?

WATSON: Well, Kerry hopes that the headline will read, "Run Silent, Run Deep." There's some question as to whether or not he is succeeding.

He was silent largely in March after wrapping up the nomination and actually lost the lead. He was silent in April, and given that the president has had a tough time, has kind of regained at least a tie and maybe a lead. I think a couple of things are going to happen in the weeks ahead. Not only will Iraq remain center, but I think the agenda will shift.

I you'll also begin to hear more about the economy once again and a couple new issues. One of them, I think, frankly, will be, how diverse is Kerry's inner circle? It sounds like an esoteric argument. But when you look at a major senior campaign team, all nine members are white, I think there are going to be some questions for a Democratic Party that usually claims to be a party of inclusiveness, especially since President Bush has shown that there are lots of people of color who have the qualifications to contribute.

BLITZER: All right, now, let's talk about media, the role of media, old media vs. new media. First of all, what's old media and what's new media?

WATSON: Old media are books, newspapers, etcetera, even television maybe.

New media, remember, a couple of weeks ago we said blogs were becoming kind of the liberals' answer to conservative radio. Got a new one for you, Wolf; 2004 is not only showing the ascendancy of the Internet, but also, believe it or not, books. Remember a couple of years ago, Oprah got us reading again, if you will?

Well, books are now playing a major role in political campaigns. We saw earlier Paul O'Neill, the former treasury secretary. His book had an impact. We saw Richard Clarke's book have an impact. And now get ready for a troika of books, three of them, which will make a difference. You will hear Bob Woodward's book, which we talked about earlier.

You'll also see a book coming out by Joe Wilson, whose wife was outed as a CIA spy. You'll also see another book President Clinton perhaps this summer. So books are actually impacting the race in the way that the Internet surprised us and impacted the race and actually may move the polls this way and that.

BLITZER: Joe Wilson, the former acting U.S. ambassador in Iraq, his book coming out in the next few weeks. We'll all be waiting for that as well.

Carlos, as usual, thanks very much.

WATSON: Good to see you.

BLITZER: And if our viewers want to learn more about what you think, what should they do?

WATSON: I love it when they go to CNN.com/Carlos.

BLITZER: And they can read your weekly column?

WATSON: Yes, every Wednesday.

BLITZER: And they can write you back, too.

WATSON: Actually, a lot of them have, so it's good.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Thanks very much.

WATSON: Good to see you.

BLITZER: Our hot "Web Question of the Day" is this: Does Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for President Bush's Iraq policy help make Bush's case? You can still vote. Vote right now at CNN.com/Wolf. That's the place. The results when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Once again, our top story, chilling images of an American soldier apparently held hostage in Iraq. A videotape first aired by the Arabic Al-Jazeera network shows a man in a military uniform. He gives his name as Keith Matthew Maupin. Maupin is of Batavia, Iowa.

And another soldier has been listed as unaccounted for since an attack on a fuel convoy near Baghdad a week ago. The videotape shows several masked men holding weapons. The Arabic narration says they will keep their hostage until he can be traded for prisoners in the custody of the United States Army.

Here is how you're weighing in for our "Question of the Day": Does Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for President Bush's Iraq policy help make Bush's case? Fifteen percent of you said no effect; 36 percent of you said yes; 45 percent of you said no. Remember, this, of course, is not a scientific poll.

Let's hear directly from you. Here's some of your e-mail.

Hess writes this: "Blair and Bush are just like two peas in a pod. They both evade reporters' questions and just start talking about anything but what the questions asked."

Ralph sends us this: "After listening to Bush and Blair's rhetoric on freeing the Iraqi people from tyranny, I wonder, if these two are so keen on getting rid of dictators, why aren't they doing something in Africa, Cuba and other countries around the world?"

A reminder, you can always catch us on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern. I'll see you this Sunday noon eastern for "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests, the presidential independent candidate Ralph Nader. He'll join us live. And I'll sit down with the chairman of the U.S. military's Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers.

Until then, thanks very much for joining us.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

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