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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

President Bush Meets With Pope John Paul II; Interview With Walter Cronkite; A Look At D-Day

Aired June 04, 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.


(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): The president and the pope. The man who led the war in Iraq meets the pontiff who opposed it.

Strained relations. Protests mark the arrival of George W. Bush in Italy. We'll get the European view from chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour.

Remembering D-Day. An interview with veteran journalist Walter Cronkite, who was there.

WALTER CRONKITE, WWII CORRESPONDENT: I think anybody that goes on a mission like that not scared has got something wrong with him.

BLITZER: And a soldier's story.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shrapnel caught me here. Ripped the cheek off, ripped the roof of my mouth out.

BLITZER: A D-Day veteran recalls the largest day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The great crusade, that's what Allied Supreme Commander General Dwight Eisenhower called the D-Day invasion of France. Sixty years ago this Sunday, tens of thousands of American, British and Canadian troops stormed the shore here at the beaches of Normandy. Twenty-five hundred were killed on the first day of the liberation of Europe and the defeat of Nazi Germany.

Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world for this special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

Along with scores of World War II veterans, President Bush is here in Europe to march the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion and rally support for his plans for a new Iraq. First stop, Rome, where he was greeted by tens of thousands of anti-war demonstrators and by one of the harshest critics of the Iraq war. Joining us now live from Rome, our senior White House correspondent John King -- John.

JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And, Wolf, the president hoping to use this brief European trip to turn attention to post-war Iraq, to put the bitterness aside, to work with traditional allies including opponents of the war like France and Germany on a new plan to put Iraq on a path to democracy.

But as he was in Rome here today reminders of how much opposition that war stirred in Italy and across Europe at the Vatican and on the streets of Rome.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KING (voice-over): At the Vatican, the aging pope's speech was halting, at times slurred. But his message to the president clear. John Paul II spoke of grave unrest in Iraq, called the Vatican's opposition to the war unequivocal and labeled the abuse of Iraqi prisoners deplorable.

"Neither war nor terrorism will ever be overcome," the pope told Mr. Bush, "without an end to such abuses and a universal commitment to human rights."

But there were words the president and his delegation found encouraging. The holy father called for the speedy return of Iraq's sovereignty and said this week's appointment of an interim government is an encouraging step.

At this public session Mr. Bush presented the pope with the presidential medal of freedom and steered clear of controversy.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We appreciate the strong symbol of freedom that you have stood for. And we recognize the power of freedom to change societies and to change the world.

KING: In a private meeting in the pope's study, aides say Mr. Bush defended the war and promised a vigorous investigation of the prisoner abuses.

Opposition to the Iraq war runs deep here in Italy and across Europe. And the president's visit generated boisterous protests. And a massive deployment of police in central Rome. But the demonstrations were overwhelmingly peaceful.

France is the president's next stop, and strained would be an understatement in describing recent relations between Mr. Bush and President Jacques Chirac, an outspoken Iraq War critic.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KING: But Mr. Bush says he considers Mr. Chirac to be a friend and Mr. Bush also says he's confident now that he can work with Mr. Chirac on the new resolution, a United Nations Security Council resolution endorsing the political transition in Iraq.

And, Wolf, Mr. Bush hoping dinner tonight with the Italian prime minister, a staunch ally, meetings tomorrow with President Chirac, of course, an Iraq War foe.

Mr. Bush hoping, though, that by the time he returns home from this trip, he can make the case to the American people and on the world stage that the bitterness has been put behind, all those countries, whether they be opponents or proponents of the war in Iraq, are working together now on the political transition -- Wolf.

BLITZER: John, as you know, the United Nations becoming increasingly more important for the Bush administration. Word that the president has selected a new U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

KING: And in this pick Mr. Bush believes he has found someone who will be overwhelmingly and quickly confirmed by the United States Senate and greeted warmly by veteran diplomats at the United Nations.

The president turning to a former Republican member of the United States Senate, John Danforth, known as Jack Danforth in Washington. Popular among Democrats, popular among Republicans. Known to some on the world stage as the work for the president's special envoy to Sudan these past few years.

It's an election year back in the United States, of course. The president does not want any contentious confirmation fights. Senator Danforth very popular, Wolf. The White House believes he will be quickly confirmed, overwhelmingly supported in the United States Senate.

He of course would replace John Negroponte, the former ambassador to the United Nations who very soon will take up his new duties as the U.S. ambassador to Iraq -- Wolf.

BLITZER: John King traveling with the president in Rome. Thanks very much, John.

In Baghdad today five U.S. soldiers were killed and five wounded when an explosion ripped through their vehicle. Also, U.S. military officials announce the capture of a suspected lieutenant of al Qaeda operative Abu Musab al-Zaqawi. These development come as Iraq's newly appointed prime minister delivers his first nationally televised address. CNN's Harris Whitbeck is in Baghdad with the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another first in Iraq, an Iraqi leader other than Saddam Hussein addressed the nation on television asking for the people's support. And he reaffirmed Saddam would be tried in an Iraqi court.

IYAD ALLAWI, IRAQI PRIME MINISTER-DESIGNATE (through translator): I will meet in the next week with the special court that the Iraqis will accept after transferring sovereignty. This court will be in charge of the crimes that were committed at the time of Saddam.

WHITBECK: While promising he will fight to insure full sovereignty, Iyad Allawi told his countrymen he needed their help, moral support for the new leaders and practical support in standing up to the insurgency whose attacks are destabilizing the country.

Iraqis gathered at a Baghdad teahouse were generally supportive. UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): He called for the stability Iraq, for security to prevail and for the rebuilding of the country. And we the Iraqi people will support him in order for him to do so.

WHITBECK: But the interim prime minister also said foreign troops will have to stay in Iraq a while longer. And many who heard him were skeptical.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Let the U.S. forces remain in Iraq. But it continues with its present provocation, they will have to be changed. The resistance is the result of the American provocations.

WHITBECK: Provoked or not, there was another attack on U.S. troops on Friday. A military Humvee was hit by a Rocket-Propelled Grenade. Five soldiers were killed and five wounded.

(on camera): Allawi said continued attacks will delay return to civility and an improvement in the economy. He asked for patience but said ultimately the solution is in Iraqis hands.

Harris Whitbeck, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: In the latest bid to end weeks of fighting in two Iraqi holy cities, the provincial governor of Najaf says Iraqi police will begin patrolling the central parts of that city and its twin holy city of Kufa. Under the plan, American forces will pull back to the outskirts and fighters loyal to the radical Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al- Sadr pledge to observe a cease-fire.

Joining me here in Normandy now with more on President Bush's trip to Europe, our chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour. Christiane, how strained is the relationship right now let's say between the U.S. and France?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it's strained. And no amount of shaking hands and good wishes on the 60th anniversary of D-Day is going to change that.

However, the leaders are trying to make an effort to move beyond what happened over the last couple of years and what happened over the Iraq war to discuss business for the future and to try to move forward in a positive vein.

And they will be having meetings as you know. Of course, Silvio Berlusconi was pro the war and they has troops there. But here in France there will have bilateral meetings, not just joint celebrations and commemorations, but tomorrow, bilateral meetings between President Chirac and President Bush. And in the evening a small dinner for the two presidents and their wives at the Elysee Palace.

They want to move forward, say the French. They want to put a positive look forward to what happens in the future for Iraq. And they want to try and get this behind them.

That doesn't mean to say that the difference are being papered over. It doesn't mean to say that the French are going to spend troops to Iraq. They hope that this new resolution will be voted on the French will be able to vote yes for the new U.N. Resolution. But there are changes that need to be made in it, according to the French.

So there's still a lot of work to be done.

BLITZER: Are France and Germany basically on the same page? Schroeder and Chirac?

AMANPOUR: To an extent, to an extent. They both want to, as I say, move forward. They know that the bitterness over the last couple of years has been very, not just divisive but destructive as well.

They have very, very profound differences over the Iraq struggle. They do not buy into the rhetoric of the Bush administration that the war against Saddam is equivalent to the great war against the Nazis 60 years ago. They don't think that this has been a positive war with a positive effect.

Remember, even if the leaders want to move forward in a positive way the populations of these countries are overwhelmingly against the war. I mean, 70 and 80 percentage points against and against this administration.

BLITZER: How significant is the fact that France has invited Germany, Schroeder, to participate for the first time ever in a D-Day anniversary on the 60th anniversary?

AMANPOUR: It is very significant. As you say, the first time ever that a sitting, serving German chancellor will be invited to D- Day. The French President Mitterand tried to invite Helmut Kohl ten years ago on the 50th anniversary but it was considered unpalatable both for the French and the Allied veterans and for the German veterans who to do this day, some of say, if only the 21st Panzer division had bust through to the beaches, if only the Luftwaffe had been in operation properly, the things might have been different. Of course, the overwhelming majority of Germans believe that this was -- now in retrospect, that this was the beginning of their liberation and the beginning of their democracy. So it's very significant in that historic way as well, of course, in trying to harmonize relations between the allied leaders today.

BLITZER: Christiane and I will be here throughout the weekend. We'll be covering all the ceremonies together Sunday. Thanks.

Here to our viewers is your chance to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this, "will President Bush's trip to Europe help mend U.S. and European relations?" You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

With George Tenet leaving the CIA, where does the company go from here? And then reflections on D-Day. My special conversation with veteran journalist Walter Cronkite who covered that day even though he couldn't see it. We'll tell you why.

And this...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Did you realize that that day you were saving the world?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hell no!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: My conversation with one of the veterans. He was only 19 years old when he landed on the beaches here in Normandy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to Normandy and CNN's special coverage of the 60th anniversary of the invasion of the beaches right here in France. We'll continue with that special coverage shortly. But for some of the other day's big stories, let's turn to my colleague Judy Woodruff in Washington -- Judy.

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": The CIA is confirming that it's deputy director of operations, James Pavitt is retiring. This announcement comes just one day after CIA director George Tenet announced his resignation. Officials say Pavitt's retirement is unrelated but the two departures are raising questions about the CIA's future direction. CNN national security correspondent David Ensor has been looking into that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For the intelligence community for now, change comes in the form of John McLaughlin, George Tenet's deputy who will move up as acting director in July. A professorial brainy CIA veteran who does magic tricks as a hobby, McLaughlin is regarded by professionals as a safe pair of hands who will mostly follow the Tenet line.

JOHN GANNON, FMR. CIA OFFICIAL: I think he's phenomenal talent and I think we can be confident that in the interim period the CIA and the intelligence community is in very good hands.

ENSOR: But over the summer, the reports and recommendations will start to stream in from the 9/11 commission and intelligence committees on the Hill, proposals to change the CIA and U.S. intelligence, to make it less likely to miss the next 9/11 attack and make it more likely to get estimates of weapons of mass destruction in a place like Iraq, get them right next time.

SEN. CHUCK HAGEL (R), INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: We are going to have to completely restructure our community of intelligence networks, our focus, bring it into the 21th century so that in fact it is relevant to the threats of the 21th century. ENSOR: The most prominent proposal thus far is to give whoever is the next intelligence chief more power over the 15 other intelligence agencies besides the CIA. The agencies that eavesdrop, crack codes and watch from outer space what rivals and potential enemies are up to. Old hands worry about changes decided in haste in an election year.

GANNON: The danger of moving too fast is that you actually can do damage to what is working well.

ENSOR: But with reports emerging in coming weeks expected to be scathing about intelligence mistakes and the run-up to the Iraq war, change is in the air. The question is how much? The time is likely to be 2005. David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WOODRUFF: Meanwhile, the Senate intelligence committee has finished its report on failures ahead of the war in Iraq. Among the findings, according to committee sources, weapons of mass destruction claims were based on unfounded assumptions, multiple names were used for the same source to make evidence look stronger, and stories of mobile biological weapons labs may have been made up. The CIA is not commenting. Now let's go right back to Wolf in Normandy.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Judy.

A high-profile visit amid strange relations. Will it help or hurt President Bush's reelection campaign? We'll ask CNN's political analyst, Carlos Watson.

Also ahead...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was crying mad, at that point, mad meaning you get to the point where you go psycho more or less.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Memories of war, a D-Day soldier relives the longest day.

And a different perspective from veteran journalist Walter Cronkite who was with American forces here on D-Day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The Germans were heavily entrenched in the underground bunkers overlooking all of the beaches including Omaha Beach here in Normandy. From these positions they could easily dominate what was going on as the landings occurred along this vast, vast beach. They did rain destruction down but eventually they lost.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Of the five invasion beaches at Normandy the deadliest was the one code-named Omaha. That's where the U.S. army's 1st army division landed and immediately encountered the incredible firepower of the best of the German coastal units. 1,000 of those Americans were killed. One who survived was Hal Baumgarten (ph). He was a 19- year-old private when he landed in the first wave at Omaha.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was mostly a fight for survival. Most guys never fired a shot. I fired one shot. Most guys never did. In fact, they were killed in the water or they were hiding -- they were hiding behind the tanks. They were hiding behind dead bodies in the water. They were hiding behind smashed pieces of wood from the assault boats and they were trying to take cover in the water. But going across the beach, machine gun spray came from right to left, from the bluff.

I heard a loud thud on my right front and my rifle vibrated. I turned it over. There was a clean hole in its receiver which is right in front of the trigger. My seven bullets in the magazine section had saved my life because there was another loud thud behind me on the left. And that soldier was gone. I looked over to my left and staggering by me without his helmet was Sergeant Clarence Roberson (ph) from my boat. A gaping hole in the left side of his forehead. His blonde hair was full of blood. He was out of it.

Anyway, he staggered all the way behind me to the left. Knelt down facing the wall, took out his rosary beads and started praying and the machine gun up on the bluff to our right cut him in half. A shell went off in front of me, and I'm about 110 yards from the sea wall. Went off in front of me, shrapnel caught me here, ripped this cheek off. Ripped the roof of my mouth out. I had teeth and gums laying on my tongue.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How Baumgarten made it to the sea wall at the end of Omaha Beach, his run lasted 20 minutes and covered the length of six football fields. While pulling another wounded soldier to the sea wall's relative safety, a second shell fragment gashed the young private's head. Shortly after a medic bandaged his wounds, Baumgarten stumbled across his best friend's lifeless body.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I started to cry when I saw my buddy. I used to tell my officers, I'll never be able to kill anybody. And I -- I never went hunting. I never killed an animal. I'll never be able to kill a human. The officers used to tell me, don't worry, when you get into combat, you'll kill. And they were right. You get -- you get -- I was crying mad, I call it. Mad, meaning really you get to the point where you go psycho, more or less. You want to kill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: What an incredible story and viewers in north America can hear more dramatic accounts from veterans on a special "People in the News, D-Day, A Call To Courage." That airs Sunday 7 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

The beaches of Normandy, 60 years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We aren't the heroes.

BLITZER: Well, you are a hero.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I doubt it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: I'll speak with an American veteran of D-Day who is here right now and this...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALTER CRONKITE, JOURNALIST: We were flying some 20 planes in tight formation, the bombs were armed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Journalist Walter Cronkite recalls what he was doing on June 6, 1944.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to this special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS marking the 60th anniversary of D-Day. We're live from Normandy, France. This D-Day anniversary falls against the backdrop of another war, one that has strained the Euro-American alliance born in the aftermath of World War II. While it's unclear how history will regard the war in Iraq, the Normandy invasion stands as one of the epic battles of all times.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): It was the beginning of the end of the greatest conflict the world had ever seen. Operation Overlord, the code name for D-Day, remains the largest seaborne invasion in history and the turning point of the Second World War. Sunday marks 60 years since that bloody and pivotal day two years in the making and one day late, postponed because of rough seas in the English Channel.

Overnight, 176,000 troops steamed toward the Normandy coast on some 2,700 ships. At dawn, they stormed ashore and began a push that would eventually take the allies all the way to Berlin. In the air, 31,000 airmen took part in more than 7,000 sorties between midnight and 8:00 a.m., dropping thousands of paratroopers behind enemy lines.

It all came at a tremendous cost; 2,500 allied soldiers died in the invasion, most of them buried not far from where they fell. Those graveyards are a regular stop for U.S. presidents, who gather with other leaders every 10 years to commemorate D-Day. This year, for the first time, the Germans and Russians will be there. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, born just two months before D-Day, says his invitation shows the postwar period is over.

Ronald Reagan was on the verge of winning the Cold War when he attended the 40th anniversary ceremonies in 1984. He called Normandy the place where the West held together.

RONALD REAGAN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: For all who fought here, we celebrate the triumph of democracy. We reaffirm the unity of Democratic peoples who fought a war and then joined with the vanquished in a firm resolve to keep the peace. We will always remember.

BLITZER: Ten years later, Bill Clinton was marshaling those ties again, pushing NATO into Bosnia for its first military action ever.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So many people who fought as our partners in this war, the Russians, the Poles and others, now stand again as our partners in peace and democracy. Our work is far from done.

BLITZER: Both Reagan and Clinton basked in the warmth of the trans-Atlantic alliance.

But it's a much more difficult trip for George W. Bush, who now compares his war on terror to World War II. Sharp disagreement over the war in Iraq has seriously strained U.S. relations with France and Germany. Both countries refuse to send troops to Iraq. And Mr. Bush is strongly disliked by many European, whose resent what they perceive as his arrogance in international matters.

Look for some fence-mending efforts when the president meets privately Saturday with French President Jacques Chirac in Paris. Sunday, the D-Day anniversary, Mr. Bush travels to the American Cemetery in Normandy, and following that speech, a ceremony and luncheon with world leaders.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Scores of D-Day veterans are returning to the beaches of Normandy to mark the 60th anniversary of the invasion earlier.

I met up with one of them. Raymond Letourneau is 79 years old and lives in Burlington, Vermont. On D-Day, he was a private in the 5th Engineers, Special Brigade.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Let's go back 60 years, June 6, 1944. You're 19 years old. What was your job?

RAYMOND LETOURNEAU, WORLD WAR II VETERAN: We were in the amphibious engineers. Our job was, after the infantry went by, to bring in the material for the troops, guns, ammunition, food, everything. That was our primary job.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: These trenches here, these bunkers that the Germans had, they overlook the whole beach.

LETOURNEAU: Yes.

BLITZER: They could just easily dominate what was going on.

LETOURNEAU: Oh, yes. They did, too, for a while.

BLITZER: You remember vividly what happened that day?

LETOURNEAU: Well, to a certain extent. You know, we started coming in the 8th hour, plus three. The units started landing. Yes.

BLITZER: And you come back here often?

LETOURNEAU: I came -- I came back after 30 years. And I came back a couple times after and then the 50th. And I was here three years ago.

BLITZER: And you come here...

LETOURNEAU: And I just discovered this monument then.

BLITZER: The monument to the 5th Engineers Special Brigade.

LETOURNEAU: To the 5th, yes. It was two brigades here.

BLITZER: Those were your guys.

LETOURNEAU: Yes.

BLITZER: How many did you lose? Do you remember?

LETOURNEAU: No, I don't. We didn't lose too many in our company, because like -- we were in the third wave. We weren't the heroes in here, you know.

BLITZER: Oh, you were a hero.

LETOURNEAU: I doubt it.

BLITZER: You were a 19-year-old kid. You must have been scared out of your mind.

LETOURNEAU: I was too dumb to be that scared, yes. But I was scared, yes. And, of course, once we got here and got busy, we were too busy.

BLITZER: Do you remember, looking back, did you realize that that day, you were saving the world?

LETOURNEAU: Hell no. We tried to forget it for 50 years.

BLITZER: You did?

LETOURNEAU: Yes.

BLITZER: It was just too painful for remember?

LETOURNEAU: I don't know if you would call it painful, you know. Some things, you don't want to remember.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Raymond Letourneau, one of the American heroes from D- Day 60 years ago. One of the American journalists who experienced D- Day on June 6, 1944, was the former CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite; 60 years ago, he was a reporter for United Press.

Earlier, he told me what he did and what he saw on D-Day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WALTER CRONKITE, FORMER CBS ANCHORMAN: I was overhead with the 8th Air Force in a special mission that was mounted just a few hours, actually, before H-hour, before the landing hour. It was unexpected. The people on the ground decided that they needed some help in trying to knock out some huge German armaments that they didn't know were up on the bluff of Pointe du Hoc.

And they needed heavy bombs to try to eliminate them. They commanded the landing area, so they had to get at them. The flying fortresses had never practiced a run of that kind, a low-level run, trying to pinpoint a target with a squadron of big bombers. So it was kind of a shaky mission. We were flying some 20 planes in tight formation.

The bombs were armed. And any collision between two of our airplanes would have spread that bomb -- the bomb blasting out over the whole entire fleet and we would have been lost.

BLITZER: Did that at all enter your mind, that you might be scared and this was not a good idea for you to be this pool reporter?

CRONKITE: I think anybody that goes along on a mission like that who is not scared has got something wrong with him. I was excited about it and pleased that I was going to have this exclusive story.

The promise was that we would be back on the ground in Molesworth before any of the first dispatches were cleared from the beaches and I would have the first eyewitness story of what it looked like on the beaches of Normandy as this great invasion began.

BLITZER: Give us that, 60 years later, that eyewitness account. When you first landed on the beaches at Normandy, what did you see?

CRONKITE: Well, the trouble was, I didn't land on the beaches at Normandy. I wasn't supposed to. This mission was going to be overhead, but it promised a great view at low level, which the B-17 didn't normally fly.

At low level, we were to go in right across the coast. I was to see all of the landing activity taking place. I would probably see, although I didn't know it was taking place, I would gather later I would have seen areas where the airborne had landed and I would see the German resistance.

Well, it didn't work out that way either. As you know, and we all know from history, that the weather was terrible. Eisenhower decided to go the night before, taking a great chance on the weather, figuring if they didn't go then, the jig would be up, the Germans would learn about their mission and the whole mission would be compromised.

By about halfway across, we ran into the heavy weather. The fog banks, the rain. And that was -- like, the curtain came down on D-Day for me at that point.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Walter Cronkite speaking with me earlier.

And this programming note. Viewers in North America can see my entire interview with Walter Cronkite on our special "LATE EDITION." That will be live from Normandy this Sunday, Sunday noon Eastern, "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk.

As we continue our special coverage of the 60th anniversary of D- Day, a survivor's story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATHAN REED, WORLD WAR II VETERAN: We had an awful lot of soldiers that was killed outright.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: We'll hear a dramatic first-person account of the Omaha Beach landing.

Also ahead, will President Bush's trip to Europe help him back in the United States? We'll see what our political analyst Carlos Watson thinks. We'll get to all of that.

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): A bomb exploded in a crowded marketplace in central Russia, killing at least eight people and injuring dozens more. Authorities have opened a criminal investigation.

Cabinet shuffle. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is dismissing two Cabinet members who oppose his plan to withdraw from Gaza and some sections of the West Bank. Mr. Sharon hopes to get his Cabinet to endorse the withdrawal plan Sunday.

Keeping it quiet. Security was tight in China's Tiananmen Square on the 15th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Reporters saw security forces detain several people in an apparent attempt to head off any demonstration. On June 4, 1989, Chinese troops killed hundreds and possibly thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators gathered in the square.

Carrying a torch. The Olympic flame is on its long way back to Greece for this year's Summer Games. The flame was carried off a plane in Sydney, Australia, the site of the 2000 Summer Olympics. Later, it was turned over to the first of thousands of relay runners who will carry it through 27 countries on its way to Athens.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Alberto Garcia Rodriguez (ph), Private, 116th Infantry, 29th Division, California, July 16, 1944. Stanley Makowitz (ph), Sergeant, 120th Infantry, 30th Division, New Jersey, August 22, 1944.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Many of the men involved in the first wave of the D-Day assault died during the operation. Of the survivors, only a handful can talk about it today.

CNN's Brian Todd spoke with one of them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This man, 86 years old and frail, who wears gloves to protect his hands from hot coffee cups, may just be one of the bravest souls you will ever meet.

REED: How about a coffee?

TODD: This man, who wheels around the armed forces retirement home, situates himself by the elevators and calls them out.

REED: No. 3.

TODD: He's one of so few remaining who can recall that day, tell you what it was really like, that first wave at Omaha Beach, June 6, 1944, Nathan Reed and his Army Rangers given perhaps the most daunting orders ever issued to an invasion force: Scale those cliffs, take them, hold them, as you are raked by German artillery and machine gunfire.

REED: We had an awful lot of soldiers that was killed outright.

TODD: Private Reed comes ever so close. At the foot of a cliff, holding a rope, as his sergeant climbs, a grenade drops down, goes off at his knees.

REED: Punctured my eardrum and broke this knee up.

TODD: The Rangers keep coming, get up the cliffs, not Nathan Reed.

REED: I laid there on the beach two days and nights without food or water. An aid man came by and looked me over for bleeding and so forth. And after late in the evening of the second day, well, they -- some German, young German prisoners carried me down and put me on the boat and we went to the Battleship Texas.

TODD: Reed gets his Purple Heart and distinguished unit badge, but spends three years in military hospitals, is discharged and still carries those wounds from 60 years ago. But he's the one who thinks of others who can't see so well now, calls out their elevators for them.

REED: No. 2.

TODD: And counts himself among the lucky ones who at least made it off that beach outside a body bag, luckier than some 2,500 other allied soldiers who died.

REED: Just glad to be alive. So many that got killed around near me, it gets to you.

TODD: Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Allies alienated by the war in Iraq. What impact will President Bush's weekend in Europe have on his reelection? Our political analyst Carlos Watson has "The Inside Edge."

Plus, this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEX KERSHAW, AUTHOR, "THE REDFORD BOYS": I think it's very hard for people who don't belong to that generation to understand how horrific that war was.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The tremendous costs of the Normandy invasion, a debt that can never be repaid. We'll get to all of that.

First, today's news quiz: The D in D-Day refers to which word, day, death, decision, duty? The answer coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WOODRUFF: We'll be going right back to Wolf in Normandy shortly.

But, in the meantime, it is Friday and that means it's time to check in with CNN political analyst Carlos Watson. He's joining us this week from Mountain View, California.

So, Carlos, President Bush over in Europe meeting with world leaders, with the pope. Is this a chance for him to look presidential?

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I think it is.

I think, while there will be a lot of criticism from Democrats who will say there's more hype here than there is substance, I think the reality is that a picture is worth a thousand words. And for lots of people, particularly seniors who remember World War II and who vote in disproportionate numbers, I think a lot of people will see the president looking presidential.

Do I think that will change the politics of the presidential race substantially? No, but actually what I think could come out of this is maybe some important policy. As you will recall, when we think about Normandy and we think about D-Day, we often think about the military victory.

But maybe just as important were some of the new international institutions that came out of that time, mainly the United Nations. And I think it would be interesting, as the president travels to that meeting and to the G8 meeting and the European Union meeting if you ultimately see the president maybe make some bold statement in terms of what the U.N. should be going forward, perhaps saying that the permanent Security Council should expand, add Japan, add Germany, add India.

I think for a guy who has been criticized pretty heavily for not being internationalist enough, I think that would be a pretty major move. So, as much as we talk about politics, I would also think about the possible policy implications here.

WOODRUFF: It would be an interesting shift on the part of the president.

WOODRUFF: Carlos, where is John Kerry on the international front, given all this focus on the trip overseas, the allies, Iraq and so forth?

WATSON: You know, very quietly, he may be making some real progress, Judy, because he's saying things that you wouldn't normally expect perhaps a Democrat to say in foreign policy circles.

As opposed to calling for fewer troops, you heard him this week call for 40,000 more troops. As opposed to, for example, for saying that he would spend less, he's actually saying, I'm going to double special forces and I want to spend more on technology. And opposed to saying, as some criticized him six to eight months ago, that he would ask for a permission slip, you now hear him saying, if it came to it, I would lead first.

So I think John Kerry is doing a lot to put himself in the shoes, if you will, of Bill Clinton, another new Democrat. And I think, as people start to pay more attention to the election closer to June 30 and closer to July 4, I think John Kerry may have made some real policy progress that will help him politically.

WOODRUFF: It's interesting. They called it, what, like a 10- or 11-day-long tour talking about national security. I guess you have to do that to make any sort of impact.

All right, Carlos Watson, thanks very much. We appreciate it.

WATSON: Very good to see you.

WOODRUFF: You can always catch Carlos' column, "The Inside Edge," on CNN.com and on CNN.com/Wolf.

So, now let's go right back to Wolf Blitzer. He's live in Normandy -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Judy.

And we'll have the results of our "Web Question of the Day." That's coming up.

Plus, the tremendous price of freedom, what we owe the brave men who fought and died here on the beaches of Normandy.

Our live coverage will continue.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Earlier, we asked, the D in D-Day refers to which word? The answer, day in military jargon. The U.S. Army traced the first use of D-Day to a single field order issued in 1918. So it's actually day-day. D-Day sounds better.

And here's your chance -- here's how you're weighing in, actually, on our "Web Question of the Day." Remember we've been asking you this question: Will President Bush's trip to Europe help mend U.S. relations? Look at this, 20 -- excuse me, 22 percent of you said yes; 78 percent of you say no. Remember, this not a scientific poll.

And as we come to the end of this special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS, some final thoughts on D-Day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): At a time when we look back at a glorious military achievement, a world-altering historical event, perspective is so valuable, perspective on the dedication of the allied soldier.

KERSHAW: Not one of those troops on those ships out in the channel that morning, not one of them doubted the importance of what they were about to do.

BLITZER: Perspective on how close this dangerous, risk-laden mission came to failure right there on Omaha Beach.

KERSHAW: By midday on the 6th of June, General Bradley seriously considered pulling the troops off the beach. It was that a close-cut thing. Now, imagine what would have happened if he had done that. D- Day would have been a very different story. It possibly could have failed. BLITZER: They stayed and endured a kind of hell most of us cannot imagine. Alex Kershaw, author of the book "The Bedford Boys" about the small Virginia town that suffered the greatest proportional loss on D-Day of any allied community during the war. It strikes at the very cord of this sacrifice and what we owe these men.

KERSHAW: It's very hard for people who don't belong to that generation to understand how horrific that war was. One thing that we should pause to think about is, imagine the lives that those boys would have led had they lived. Imagine what they could have given to this country, great, great Americans who died so, so young. I think it's the last time we can say to America's greatest warriors, thank you for what you did to free the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And thank you, once again, to all those heroes of D- Day. They changed the world.

A reminder: Our North American audience can always catch WOLF BLITZER REPORTS weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern.

Please stay tuned to CNN throughout the weekend for special live coverage of all the D-Day 60th anniversary ceremonies, including our special "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests this Sunday, the secretary of state, Colin Powell. "LATE EDITION" airs Sunday noon Eastern.

Until then, thanks very much for joining us. Good night from Normandy.

For many of you, "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 June 4, 2004 - 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): The president and the pope. The man who led the war in Iraq meets the pontiff who opposed it.

Strained relations. Protests mark the arrival of George W. Bush in Italy. We'll get the European view from chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour.

Remembering D-Day. An interview with veteran journalist Walter Cronkite, who was there.

WALTER CRONKITE, WWII CORRESPONDENT: I think anybody that goes on a mission like that not scared has got something wrong with him.

BLITZER: And a soldier's story.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shrapnel caught me here. Ripped the cheek off, ripped the roof of my mouth out.

BLITZER: A D-Day veteran recalls the largest day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The great crusade, that's what Allied Supreme Commander General Dwight Eisenhower called the D-Day invasion of France. Sixty years ago this Sunday, tens of thousands of American, British and Canadian troops stormed the shore here at the beaches of Normandy. Twenty-five hundred were killed on the first day of the liberation of Europe and the defeat of Nazi Germany.

Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world for this special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

Along with scores of World War II veterans, President Bush is here in Europe to march the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion and rally support for his plans for a new Iraq. First stop, Rome, where he was greeted by tens of thousands of anti-war demonstrators and by one of the harshest critics of the Iraq war. Joining us now live from Rome, our senior White House correspondent John King -- John.

JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And, Wolf, the president hoping to use this brief European trip to turn attention to post-war Iraq, to put the bitterness aside, to work with traditional allies including opponents of the war like France and Germany on a new plan to put Iraq on a path to democracy.

But as he was in Rome here today reminders of how much opposition that war stirred in Italy and across Europe at the Vatican and on the streets of Rome.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KING (voice-over): At the Vatican, the aging pope's speech was halting, at times slurred. But his message to the president clear. John Paul II spoke of grave unrest in Iraq, called the Vatican's opposition to the war unequivocal and labeled the abuse of Iraqi prisoners deplorable.

"Neither war nor terrorism will ever be overcome," the pope told Mr. Bush, "without an end to such abuses and a universal commitment to human rights."

But there were words the president and his delegation found encouraging. The holy father called for the speedy return of Iraq's sovereignty and said this week's appointment of an interim government is an encouraging step.

At this public session Mr. Bush presented the pope with the presidential medal of freedom and steered clear of controversy.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We appreciate the strong symbol of freedom that you have stood for. And we recognize the power of freedom to change societies and to change the world.

KING: In a private meeting in the pope's study, aides say Mr. Bush defended the war and promised a vigorous investigation of the prisoner abuses.

Opposition to the Iraq war runs deep here in Italy and across Europe. And the president's visit generated boisterous protests. And a massive deployment of police in central Rome. But the demonstrations were overwhelmingly peaceful.

France is the president's next stop, and strained would be an understatement in describing recent relations between Mr. Bush and President Jacques Chirac, an outspoken Iraq War critic.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KING: But Mr. Bush says he considers Mr. Chirac to be a friend and Mr. Bush also says he's confident now that he can work with Mr. Chirac on the new resolution, a United Nations Security Council resolution endorsing the political transition in Iraq.

And, Wolf, Mr. Bush hoping dinner tonight with the Italian prime minister, a staunch ally, meetings tomorrow with President Chirac, of course, an Iraq War foe.

Mr. Bush hoping, though, that by the time he returns home from this trip, he can make the case to the American people and on the world stage that the bitterness has been put behind, all those countries, whether they be opponents or proponents of the war in Iraq, are working together now on the political transition -- Wolf.

BLITZER: John, as you know, the United Nations becoming increasingly more important for the Bush administration. Word that the president has selected a new U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

KING: And in this pick Mr. Bush believes he has found someone who will be overwhelmingly and quickly confirmed by the United States Senate and greeted warmly by veteran diplomats at the United Nations.

The president turning to a former Republican member of the United States Senate, John Danforth, known as Jack Danforth in Washington. Popular among Democrats, popular among Republicans. Known to some on the world stage as the work for the president's special envoy to Sudan these past few years.

It's an election year back in the United States, of course. The president does not want any contentious confirmation fights. Senator Danforth very popular, Wolf. The White House believes he will be quickly confirmed, overwhelmingly supported in the United States Senate.

He of course would replace John Negroponte, the former ambassador to the United Nations who very soon will take up his new duties as the U.S. ambassador to Iraq -- Wolf.

BLITZER: John King traveling with the president in Rome. Thanks very much, John.

In Baghdad today five U.S. soldiers were killed and five wounded when an explosion ripped through their vehicle. Also, U.S. military officials announce the capture of a suspected lieutenant of al Qaeda operative Abu Musab al-Zaqawi. These development come as Iraq's newly appointed prime minister delivers his first nationally televised address. CNN's Harris Whitbeck is in Baghdad with the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another first in Iraq, an Iraqi leader other than Saddam Hussein addressed the nation on television asking for the people's support. And he reaffirmed Saddam would be tried in an Iraqi court.

IYAD ALLAWI, IRAQI PRIME MINISTER-DESIGNATE (through translator): I will meet in the next week with the special court that the Iraqis will accept after transferring sovereignty. This court will be in charge of the crimes that were committed at the time of Saddam.

WHITBECK: While promising he will fight to insure full sovereignty, Iyad Allawi told his countrymen he needed their help, moral support for the new leaders and practical support in standing up to the insurgency whose attacks are destabilizing the country.

Iraqis gathered at a Baghdad teahouse were generally supportive. UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): He called for the stability Iraq, for security to prevail and for the rebuilding of the country. And we the Iraqi people will support him in order for him to do so.

WHITBECK: But the interim prime minister also said foreign troops will have to stay in Iraq a while longer. And many who heard him were skeptical.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Let the U.S. forces remain in Iraq. But it continues with its present provocation, they will have to be changed. The resistance is the result of the American provocations.

WHITBECK: Provoked or not, there was another attack on U.S. troops on Friday. A military Humvee was hit by a Rocket-Propelled Grenade. Five soldiers were killed and five wounded.

(on camera): Allawi said continued attacks will delay return to civility and an improvement in the economy. He asked for patience but said ultimately the solution is in Iraqis hands.

Harris Whitbeck, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: In the latest bid to end weeks of fighting in two Iraqi holy cities, the provincial governor of Najaf says Iraqi police will begin patrolling the central parts of that city and its twin holy city of Kufa. Under the plan, American forces will pull back to the outskirts and fighters loyal to the radical Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al- Sadr pledge to observe a cease-fire.

Joining me here in Normandy now with more on President Bush's trip to Europe, our chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour. Christiane, how strained is the relationship right now let's say between the U.S. and France?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it's strained. And no amount of shaking hands and good wishes on the 60th anniversary of D-Day is going to change that.

However, the leaders are trying to make an effort to move beyond what happened over the last couple of years and what happened over the Iraq war to discuss business for the future and to try to move forward in a positive vein.

And they will be having meetings as you know. Of course, Silvio Berlusconi was pro the war and they has troops there. But here in France there will have bilateral meetings, not just joint celebrations and commemorations, but tomorrow, bilateral meetings between President Chirac and President Bush. And in the evening a small dinner for the two presidents and their wives at the Elysee Palace.

They want to move forward, say the French. They want to put a positive look forward to what happens in the future for Iraq. And they want to try and get this behind them.

That doesn't mean to say that the difference are being papered over. It doesn't mean to say that the French are going to spend troops to Iraq. They hope that this new resolution will be voted on the French will be able to vote yes for the new U.N. Resolution. But there are changes that need to be made in it, according to the French.

So there's still a lot of work to be done.

BLITZER: Are France and Germany basically on the same page? Schroeder and Chirac?

AMANPOUR: To an extent, to an extent. They both want to, as I say, move forward. They know that the bitterness over the last couple of years has been very, not just divisive but destructive as well.

They have very, very profound differences over the Iraq struggle. They do not buy into the rhetoric of the Bush administration that the war against Saddam is equivalent to the great war against the Nazis 60 years ago. They don't think that this has been a positive war with a positive effect.

Remember, even if the leaders want to move forward in a positive way the populations of these countries are overwhelmingly against the war. I mean, 70 and 80 percentage points against and against this administration.

BLITZER: How significant is the fact that France has invited Germany, Schroeder, to participate for the first time ever in a D-Day anniversary on the 60th anniversary?

AMANPOUR: It is very significant. As you say, the first time ever that a sitting, serving German chancellor will be invited to D- Day. The French President Mitterand tried to invite Helmut Kohl ten years ago on the 50th anniversary but it was considered unpalatable both for the French and the Allied veterans and for the German veterans who to do this day, some of say, if only the 21st Panzer division had bust through to the beaches, if only the Luftwaffe had been in operation properly, the things might have been different. Of course, the overwhelming majority of Germans believe that this was -- now in retrospect, that this was the beginning of their liberation and the beginning of their democracy. So it's very significant in that historic way as well, of course, in trying to harmonize relations between the allied leaders today.

BLITZER: Christiane and I will be here throughout the weekend. We'll be covering all the ceremonies together Sunday. Thanks.

Here to our viewers is your chance to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this, "will President Bush's trip to Europe help mend U.S. and European relations?" You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

With George Tenet leaving the CIA, where does the company go from here? And then reflections on D-Day. My special conversation with veteran journalist Walter Cronkite who covered that day even though he couldn't see it. We'll tell you why.

And this...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Did you realize that that day you were saving the world?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hell no!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: My conversation with one of the veterans. He was only 19 years old when he landed on the beaches here in Normandy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to Normandy and CNN's special coverage of the 60th anniversary of the invasion of the beaches right here in France. We'll continue with that special coverage shortly. But for some of the other day's big stories, let's turn to my colleague Judy Woodruff in Washington -- Judy.

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": The CIA is confirming that it's deputy director of operations, James Pavitt is retiring. This announcement comes just one day after CIA director George Tenet announced his resignation. Officials say Pavitt's retirement is unrelated but the two departures are raising questions about the CIA's future direction. CNN national security correspondent David Ensor has been looking into that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For the intelligence community for now, change comes in the form of John McLaughlin, George Tenet's deputy who will move up as acting director in July. A professorial brainy CIA veteran who does magic tricks as a hobby, McLaughlin is regarded by professionals as a safe pair of hands who will mostly follow the Tenet line.

JOHN GANNON, FMR. CIA OFFICIAL: I think he's phenomenal talent and I think we can be confident that in the interim period the CIA and the intelligence community is in very good hands.

ENSOR: But over the summer, the reports and recommendations will start to stream in from the 9/11 commission and intelligence committees on the Hill, proposals to change the CIA and U.S. intelligence, to make it less likely to miss the next 9/11 attack and make it more likely to get estimates of weapons of mass destruction in a place like Iraq, get them right next time.

SEN. CHUCK HAGEL (R), INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: We are going to have to completely restructure our community of intelligence networks, our focus, bring it into the 21th century so that in fact it is relevant to the threats of the 21th century. ENSOR: The most prominent proposal thus far is to give whoever is the next intelligence chief more power over the 15 other intelligence agencies besides the CIA. The agencies that eavesdrop, crack codes and watch from outer space what rivals and potential enemies are up to. Old hands worry about changes decided in haste in an election year.

GANNON: The danger of moving too fast is that you actually can do damage to what is working well.

ENSOR: But with reports emerging in coming weeks expected to be scathing about intelligence mistakes and the run-up to the Iraq war, change is in the air. The question is how much? The time is likely to be 2005. David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WOODRUFF: Meanwhile, the Senate intelligence committee has finished its report on failures ahead of the war in Iraq. Among the findings, according to committee sources, weapons of mass destruction claims were based on unfounded assumptions, multiple names were used for the same source to make evidence look stronger, and stories of mobile biological weapons labs may have been made up. The CIA is not commenting. Now let's go right back to Wolf in Normandy.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Judy.

A high-profile visit amid strange relations. Will it help or hurt President Bush's reelection campaign? We'll ask CNN's political analyst, Carlos Watson.

Also ahead...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was crying mad, at that point, mad meaning you get to the point where you go psycho more or less.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Memories of war, a D-Day soldier relives the longest day.

And a different perspective from veteran journalist Walter Cronkite who was with American forces here on D-Day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The Germans were heavily entrenched in the underground bunkers overlooking all of the beaches including Omaha Beach here in Normandy. From these positions they could easily dominate what was going on as the landings occurred along this vast, vast beach. They did rain destruction down but eventually they lost.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Of the five invasion beaches at Normandy the deadliest was the one code-named Omaha. That's where the U.S. army's 1st army division landed and immediately encountered the incredible firepower of the best of the German coastal units. 1,000 of those Americans were killed. One who survived was Hal Baumgarten (ph). He was a 19- year-old private when he landed in the first wave at Omaha.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was mostly a fight for survival. Most guys never fired a shot. I fired one shot. Most guys never did. In fact, they were killed in the water or they were hiding -- they were hiding behind the tanks. They were hiding behind dead bodies in the water. They were hiding behind smashed pieces of wood from the assault boats and they were trying to take cover in the water. But going across the beach, machine gun spray came from right to left, from the bluff.

I heard a loud thud on my right front and my rifle vibrated. I turned it over. There was a clean hole in its receiver which is right in front of the trigger. My seven bullets in the magazine section had saved my life because there was another loud thud behind me on the left. And that soldier was gone. I looked over to my left and staggering by me without his helmet was Sergeant Clarence Roberson (ph) from my boat. A gaping hole in the left side of his forehead. His blonde hair was full of blood. He was out of it.

Anyway, he staggered all the way behind me to the left. Knelt down facing the wall, took out his rosary beads and started praying and the machine gun up on the bluff to our right cut him in half. A shell went off in front of me, and I'm about 110 yards from the sea wall. Went off in front of me, shrapnel caught me here, ripped this cheek off. Ripped the roof of my mouth out. I had teeth and gums laying on my tongue.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How Baumgarten made it to the sea wall at the end of Omaha Beach, his run lasted 20 minutes and covered the length of six football fields. While pulling another wounded soldier to the sea wall's relative safety, a second shell fragment gashed the young private's head. Shortly after a medic bandaged his wounds, Baumgarten stumbled across his best friend's lifeless body.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I started to cry when I saw my buddy. I used to tell my officers, I'll never be able to kill anybody. And I -- I never went hunting. I never killed an animal. I'll never be able to kill a human. The officers used to tell me, don't worry, when you get into combat, you'll kill. And they were right. You get -- you get -- I was crying mad, I call it. Mad, meaning really you get to the point where you go psycho, more or less. You want to kill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: What an incredible story and viewers in north America can hear more dramatic accounts from veterans on a special "People in the News, D-Day, A Call To Courage." That airs Sunday 7 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

The beaches of Normandy, 60 years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We aren't the heroes.

BLITZER: Well, you are a hero.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I doubt it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: I'll speak with an American veteran of D-Day who is here right now and this...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALTER CRONKITE, JOURNALIST: We were flying some 20 planes in tight formation, the bombs were armed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Journalist Walter Cronkite recalls what he was doing on June 6, 1944.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to this special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS marking the 60th anniversary of D-Day. We're live from Normandy, France. This D-Day anniversary falls against the backdrop of another war, one that has strained the Euro-American alliance born in the aftermath of World War II. While it's unclear how history will regard the war in Iraq, the Normandy invasion stands as one of the epic battles of all times.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): It was the beginning of the end of the greatest conflict the world had ever seen. Operation Overlord, the code name for D-Day, remains the largest seaborne invasion in history and the turning point of the Second World War. Sunday marks 60 years since that bloody and pivotal day two years in the making and one day late, postponed because of rough seas in the English Channel.

Overnight, 176,000 troops steamed toward the Normandy coast on some 2,700 ships. At dawn, they stormed ashore and began a push that would eventually take the allies all the way to Berlin. In the air, 31,000 airmen took part in more than 7,000 sorties between midnight and 8:00 a.m., dropping thousands of paratroopers behind enemy lines.

It all came at a tremendous cost; 2,500 allied soldiers died in the invasion, most of them buried not far from where they fell. Those graveyards are a regular stop for U.S. presidents, who gather with other leaders every 10 years to commemorate D-Day. This year, for the first time, the Germans and Russians will be there. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, born just two months before D-Day, says his invitation shows the postwar period is over.

Ronald Reagan was on the verge of winning the Cold War when he attended the 40th anniversary ceremonies in 1984. He called Normandy the place where the West held together.

RONALD REAGAN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: For all who fought here, we celebrate the triumph of democracy. We reaffirm the unity of Democratic peoples who fought a war and then joined with the vanquished in a firm resolve to keep the peace. We will always remember.

BLITZER: Ten years later, Bill Clinton was marshaling those ties again, pushing NATO into Bosnia for its first military action ever.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So many people who fought as our partners in this war, the Russians, the Poles and others, now stand again as our partners in peace and democracy. Our work is far from done.

BLITZER: Both Reagan and Clinton basked in the warmth of the trans-Atlantic alliance.

But it's a much more difficult trip for George W. Bush, who now compares his war on terror to World War II. Sharp disagreement over the war in Iraq has seriously strained U.S. relations with France and Germany. Both countries refuse to send troops to Iraq. And Mr. Bush is strongly disliked by many European, whose resent what they perceive as his arrogance in international matters.

Look for some fence-mending efforts when the president meets privately Saturday with French President Jacques Chirac in Paris. Sunday, the D-Day anniversary, Mr. Bush travels to the American Cemetery in Normandy, and following that speech, a ceremony and luncheon with world leaders.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Scores of D-Day veterans are returning to the beaches of Normandy to mark the 60th anniversary of the invasion earlier.

I met up with one of them. Raymond Letourneau is 79 years old and lives in Burlington, Vermont. On D-Day, he was a private in the 5th Engineers, Special Brigade.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Let's go back 60 years, June 6, 1944. You're 19 years old. What was your job?

RAYMOND LETOURNEAU, WORLD WAR II VETERAN: We were in the amphibious engineers. Our job was, after the infantry went by, to bring in the material for the troops, guns, ammunition, food, everything. That was our primary job.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: These trenches here, these bunkers that the Germans had, they overlook the whole beach.

LETOURNEAU: Yes.

BLITZER: They could just easily dominate what was going on.

LETOURNEAU: Oh, yes. They did, too, for a while.

BLITZER: You remember vividly what happened that day?

LETOURNEAU: Well, to a certain extent. You know, we started coming in the 8th hour, plus three. The units started landing. Yes.

BLITZER: And you come back here often?

LETOURNEAU: I came -- I came back after 30 years. And I came back a couple times after and then the 50th. And I was here three years ago.

BLITZER: And you come here...

LETOURNEAU: And I just discovered this monument then.

BLITZER: The monument to the 5th Engineers Special Brigade.

LETOURNEAU: To the 5th, yes. It was two brigades here.

BLITZER: Those were your guys.

LETOURNEAU: Yes.

BLITZER: How many did you lose? Do you remember?

LETOURNEAU: No, I don't. We didn't lose too many in our company, because like -- we were in the third wave. We weren't the heroes in here, you know.

BLITZER: Oh, you were a hero.

LETOURNEAU: I doubt it.

BLITZER: You were a 19-year-old kid. You must have been scared out of your mind.

LETOURNEAU: I was too dumb to be that scared, yes. But I was scared, yes. And, of course, once we got here and got busy, we were too busy.

BLITZER: Do you remember, looking back, did you realize that that day, you were saving the world?

LETOURNEAU: Hell no. We tried to forget it for 50 years.

BLITZER: You did?

LETOURNEAU: Yes.

BLITZER: It was just too painful for remember?

LETOURNEAU: I don't know if you would call it painful, you know. Some things, you don't want to remember.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Raymond Letourneau, one of the American heroes from D- Day 60 years ago. One of the American journalists who experienced D- Day on June 6, 1944, was the former CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite; 60 years ago, he was a reporter for United Press.

Earlier, he told me what he did and what he saw on D-Day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WALTER CRONKITE, FORMER CBS ANCHORMAN: I was overhead with the 8th Air Force in a special mission that was mounted just a few hours, actually, before H-hour, before the landing hour. It was unexpected. The people on the ground decided that they needed some help in trying to knock out some huge German armaments that they didn't know were up on the bluff of Pointe du Hoc.

And they needed heavy bombs to try to eliminate them. They commanded the landing area, so they had to get at them. The flying fortresses had never practiced a run of that kind, a low-level run, trying to pinpoint a target with a squadron of big bombers. So it was kind of a shaky mission. We were flying some 20 planes in tight formation.

The bombs were armed. And any collision between two of our airplanes would have spread that bomb -- the bomb blasting out over the whole entire fleet and we would have been lost.

BLITZER: Did that at all enter your mind, that you might be scared and this was not a good idea for you to be this pool reporter?

CRONKITE: I think anybody that goes along on a mission like that who is not scared has got something wrong with him. I was excited about it and pleased that I was going to have this exclusive story.

The promise was that we would be back on the ground in Molesworth before any of the first dispatches were cleared from the beaches and I would have the first eyewitness story of what it looked like on the beaches of Normandy as this great invasion began.

BLITZER: Give us that, 60 years later, that eyewitness account. When you first landed on the beaches at Normandy, what did you see?

CRONKITE: Well, the trouble was, I didn't land on the beaches at Normandy. I wasn't supposed to. This mission was going to be overhead, but it promised a great view at low level, which the B-17 didn't normally fly.

At low level, we were to go in right across the coast. I was to see all of the landing activity taking place. I would probably see, although I didn't know it was taking place, I would gather later I would have seen areas where the airborne had landed and I would see the German resistance.

Well, it didn't work out that way either. As you know, and we all know from history, that the weather was terrible. Eisenhower decided to go the night before, taking a great chance on the weather, figuring if they didn't go then, the jig would be up, the Germans would learn about their mission and the whole mission would be compromised.

By about halfway across, we ran into the heavy weather. The fog banks, the rain. And that was -- like, the curtain came down on D-Day for me at that point.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Walter Cronkite speaking with me earlier.

And this programming note. Viewers in North America can see my entire interview with Walter Cronkite on our special "LATE EDITION." That will be live from Normandy this Sunday, Sunday noon Eastern, "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk.

As we continue our special coverage of the 60th anniversary of D- Day, a survivor's story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATHAN REED, WORLD WAR II VETERAN: We had an awful lot of soldiers that was killed outright.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: We'll hear a dramatic first-person account of the Omaha Beach landing.

Also ahead, will President Bush's trip to Europe help him back in the United States? We'll see what our political analyst Carlos Watson thinks. We'll get to all of that.

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): A bomb exploded in a crowded marketplace in central Russia, killing at least eight people and injuring dozens more. Authorities have opened a criminal investigation.

Cabinet shuffle. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is dismissing two Cabinet members who oppose his plan to withdraw from Gaza and some sections of the West Bank. Mr. Sharon hopes to get his Cabinet to endorse the withdrawal plan Sunday.

Keeping it quiet. Security was tight in China's Tiananmen Square on the 15th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Reporters saw security forces detain several people in an apparent attempt to head off any demonstration. On June 4, 1989, Chinese troops killed hundreds and possibly thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators gathered in the square.

Carrying a torch. The Olympic flame is on its long way back to Greece for this year's Summer Games. The flame was carried off a plane in Sydney, Australia, the site of the 2000 Summer Olympics. Later, it was turned over to the first of thousands of relay runners who will carry it through 27 countries on its way to Athens.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Alberto Garcia Rodriguez (ph), Private, 116th Infantry, 29th Division, California, July 16, 1944. Stanley Makowitz (ph), Sergeant, 120th Infantry, 30th Division, New Jersey, August 22, 1944.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Many of the men involved in the first wave of the D-Day assault died during the operation. Of the survivors, only a handful can talk about it today.

CNN's Brian Todd spoke with one of them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This man, 86 years old and frail, who wears gloves to protect his hands from hot coffee cups, may just be one of the bravest souls you will ever meet.

REED: How about a coffee?

TODD: This man, who wheels around the armed forces retirement home, situates himself by the elevators and calls them out.

REED: No. 3.

TODD: He's one of so few remaining who can recall that day, tell you what it was really like, that first wave at Omaha Beach, June 6, 1944, Nathan Reed and his Army Rangers given perhaps the most daunting orders ever issued to an invasion force: Scale those cliffs, take them, hold them, as you are raked by German artillery and machine gunfire.

REED: We had an awful lot of soldiers that was killed outright.

TODD: Private Reed comes ever so close. At the foot of a cliff, holding a rope, as his sergeant climbs, a grenade drops down, goes off at his knees.

REED: Punctured my eardrum and broke this knee up.

TODD: The Rangers keep coming, get up the cliffs, not Nathan Reed.

REED: I laid there on the beach two days and nights without food or water. An aid man came by and looked me over for bleeding and so forth. And after late in the evening of the second day, well, they -- some German, young German prisoners carried me down and put me on the boat and we went to the Battleship Texas.

TODD: Reed gets his Purple Heart and distinguished unit badge, but spends three years in military hospitals, is discharged and still carries those wounds from 60 years ago. But he's the one who thinks of others who can't see so well now, calls out their elevators for them.

REED: No. 2.

TODD: And counts himself among the lucky ones who at least made it off that beach outside a body bag, luckier than some 2,500 other allied soldiers who died.

REED: Just glad to be alive. So many that got killed around near me, it gets to you.

TODD: Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Allies alienated by the war in Iraq. What impact will President Bush's weekend in Europe have on his reelection? Our political analyst Carlos Watson has "The Inside Edge."

Plus, this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEX KERSHAW, AUTHOR, "THE REDFORD BOYS": I think it's very hard for people who don't belong to that generation to understand how horrific that war was.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The tremendous costs of the Normandy invasion, a debt that can never be repaid. We'll get to all of that.

First, today's news quiz: The D in D-Day refers to which word, day, death, decision, duty? The answer coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WOODRUFF: We'll be going right back to Wolf in Normandy shortly.

But, in the meantime, it is Friday and that means it's time to check in with CNN political analyst Carlos Watson. He's joining us this week from Mountain View, California.

So, Carlos, President Bush over in Europe meeting with world leaders, with the pope. Is this a chance for him to look presidential?

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I think it is.

I think, while there will be a lot of criticism from Democrats who will say there's more hype here than there is substance, I think the reality is that a picture is worth a thousand words. And for lots of people, particularly seniors who remember World War II and who vote in disproportionate numbers, I think a lot of people will see the president looking presidential.

Do I think that will change the politics of the presidential race substantially? No, but actually what I think could come out of this is maybe some important policy. As you will recall, when we think about Normandy and we think about D-Day, we often think about the military victory.

But maybe just as important were some of the new international institutions that came out of that time, mainly the United Nations. And I think it would be interesting, as the president travels to that meeting and to the G8 meeting and the European Union meeting if you ultimately see the president maybe make some bold statement in terms of what the U.N. should be going forward, perhaps saying that the permanent Security Council should expand, add Japan, add Germany, add India.

I think for a guy who has been criticized pretty heavily for not being internationalist enough, I think that would be a pretty major move. So, as much as we talk about politics, I would also think about the possible policy implications here.

WOODRUFF: It would be an interesting shift on the part of the president.

WOODRUFF: Carlos, where is John Kerry on the international front, given all this focus on the trip overseas, the allies, Iraq and so forth?

WATSON: You know, very quietly, he may be making some real progress, Judy, because he's saying things that you wouldn't normally expect perhaps a Democrat to say in foreign policy circles.

As opposed to calling for fewer troops, you heard him this week call for 40,000 more troops. As opposed to, for example, for saying that he would spend less, he's actually saying, I'm going to double special forces and I want to spend more on technology. And opposed to saying, as some criticized him six to eight months ago, that he would ask for a permission slip, you now hear him saying, if it came to it, I would lead first.

So I think John Kerry is doing a lot to put himself in the shoes, if you will, of Bill Clinton, another new Democrat. And I think, as people start to pay more attention to the election closer to June 30 and closer to July 4, I think John Kerry may have made some real policy progress that will help him politically.

WOODRUFF: It's interesting. They called it, what, like a 10- or 11-day-long tour talking about national security. I guess you have to do that to make any sort of impact.

All right, Carlos Watson, thanks very much. We appreciate it.

WATSON: Very good to see you.

WOODRUFF: You can always catch Carlos' column, "The Inside Edge," on CNN.com and on CNN.com/Wolf.

So, now let's go right back to Wolf Blitzer. He's live in Normandy -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Judy.

And we'll have the results of our "Web Question of the Day." That's coming up.

Plus, the tremendous price of freedom, what we owe the brave men who fought and died here on the beaches of Normandy.

Our live coverage will continue.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Earlier, we asked, the D in D-Day refers to which word? The answer, day in military jargon. The U.S. Army traced the first use of D-Day to a single field order issued in 1918. So it's actually day-day. D-Day sounds better.

And here's your chance -- here's how you're weighing in, actually, on our "Web Question of the Day." Remember we've been asking you this question: Will President Bush's trip to Europe help mend U.S. relations? Look at this, 20 -- excuse me, 22 percent of you said yes; 78 percent of you say no. Remember, this not a scientific poll.

And as we come to the end of this special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS, some final thoughts on D-Day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): At a time when we look back at a glorious military achievement, a world-altering historical event, perspective is so valuable, perspective on the dedication of the allied soldier.

KERSHAW: Not one of those troops on those ships out in the channel that morning, not one of them doubted the importance of what they were about to do.

BLITZER: Perspective on how close this dangerous, risk-laden mission came to failure right there on Omaha Beach.

KERSHAW: By midday on the 6th of June, General Bradley seriously considered pulling the troops off the beach. It was that a close-cut thing. Now, imagine what would have happened if he had done that. D- Day would have been a very different story. It possibly could have failed. BLITZER: They stayed and endured a kind of hell most of us cannot imagine. Alex Kershaw, author of the book "The Bedford Boys" about the small Virginia town that suffered the greatest proportional loss on D-Day of any allied community during the war. It strikes at the very cord of this sacrifice and what we owe these men.

KERSHAW: It's very hard for people who don't belong to that generation to understand how horrific that war was. One thing that we should pause to think about is, imagine the lives that those boys would have led had they lived. Imagine what they could have given to this country, great, great Americans who died so, so young. I think it's the last time we can say to America's greatest warriors, thank you for what you did to free the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And thank you, once again, to all those heroes of D- Day. They changed the world.

A reminder: Our North American audience can always catch WOLF BLITZER REPORTS weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern.

Please stay tuned to CNN throughout the weekend for special live coverage of all the D-Day 60th anniversary ceremonies, including our special "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests this Sunday, the secretary of state, Colin Powell. "LATE EDITION" airs Sunday noon Eastern.

Until then, thanks very much for joining us. Good night from Normandy.

For many of you, "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

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