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The Situation: Wednesday, November 30Editor's Note: The Situation Report is a running log of dispatches, quotes, links and behind-the-scenes notes filed by the correspondents and producers of CNN's Washington Bureau. Watch "The Situation Room" with Wolf Blitzer on CNN 4 p.m. ET to 6 p.m. ET and 7 p.m. ET to 8 p.m. ET weekdays. Updated drug bust numbers On CNN TV
RelatedSEND YOUR COMMENTSYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSPosted 1:44 p.m. ET The Drug Enforcement Administration has updated to 78 the number of arrests made as part of that Colombian heroin ring investigation. It also noted Wednesday that a total of 78 kilos of heroin were seized in the operation. Drug bust and dancing shoesPosted 12:01 p.m. ET The Drug Enforcement Administration Wednesday announced the results of a major drug operation aimed at a Colombian heroin ring that used artwork, furniture, and clothing to smuggle drugs into the United States. The year-long effort was called Operation High Step because some drugs were found in dancing shoes. According to the DEA more than 50 people have been arrested in the United States and in Colombia and more than 75 kilos of heroin have been seized. A DEA press release said the alleged traffickers employed sophisticated means to get their heroin into the United States. Heroin bricks were hidden inside the frames of paintings, secreted in furniture, and sewn into clothing and shoes. One official said the ring sometimes put a heroin-laced coating on furniture and paintings. Once the items arrived in the United States, others in the ring would retrieve the heroin from that coating. "Behind the allure of artwork lurked the poison of heroin," DEA Deputy Administrator Michele Leonhart said in the press release. "Heroin promises anything but beauty--forcing addiction, pain, and devastation on its users." Library of Congress evacuatedPosted 11:59 p.m. ET About 100 people were evacuated Wednesday from the Jefferson building of the Library of Congress as fire crews check the source of an unusual odor. "Two people complained of feeling faint," said U.S. Capitol Police spokeswoman Kimberly O'Brien. She added "one was treated at the scene, the other was transported to a local hospital." Authorities evacuated the building, which is located next to the U.S. Supreme Court, after a worker on the north side nearest the court reported a "chlorine-like smell," said police spokesman Paul Agner. The call came in shortly before 10 a.m. and the evacuation was ordered soon after. Padilla transfer delayPosted 11:54 p.m. ET The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., Wednesday declined to approve the immediate transfer of accused terrorist Jose Padilla from military to civilian custody to face trial in Miami. In a development that surprised top Justice Department officials, the Court of Appeals said it needs more information from both the government and Padilla's lawyers within two weeks before making a decision on the government's motion for a transfer. In a two-page order, a three-judge appeals panel said it needs to know whether it should vacate its September opinion that upheld Padilla's military detention before deciding whether to turn him over to civilian authorities for trial. The 4th Circuit must rule on the transfer to clear the way for U.S. marshals to take custody of Padilla from the Naval Brig in Charleston, South Carolina, and transfer him to Miami, where he will face trial. Last week a federal grand jury indicted Padilla on charges of conspiracy to murder, kidnap and maim people in a foreign country, conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and providing material support to terrorists. Prior to that, Padilla had been designated an enemy combatant and held in military custody without charges. Padilla, a U.S. citizen, was arrested in Chicago in May 2002 by the FBI and shortly thereafter was designated an enemy combatant for allegedly plotting to blow up a radioactive dirty bomb in the United States. In the indictment brought last week, the Justice Department did not include any allegations of the dirty bomb plot. The Morning GrindPosted: 9:25 a.m. ET Selling the war President Bush will seek to turn public opinion on the Iraq War today, when he delivers what is being billed by the White House as a "major" speech on the issue before a friendly audience at the U.S. Naval Academy. Bush is expected to talk about specific accomplishments over the past two-plus years such as the training of Iraqi police and military forces to assume more defense and security responsibilities. Bush will also argue the U.S. needs to ensure Iraq does not become a safe haven for terrorists. "The whole objective is to achieve victory against the terrorists," Bush told reporters yesterday. Bush also noted that he would leave any decisions about U.S. troop levels to military commanders, but added "victory is the primary objective." In anticipation of the speech, the White House released a 35-page document this morning titled "National Strategy for Victory In Iraq." Bush will deliver his speech at 9:45 am ET. Democrats and Republicans are preparing to launch full public relations blitzes immediately following Bush's remarks, with Members of Congress appearing on both national and local television and radio programs. Sens. Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island) and John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) will deliver the official Democratic response at an 11 am ET Capitol Hill news conference. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-New York) has already weighed in on Bush's speech, telling supporters yesterday that Bush needs to "present us with a plan for finishing this war with success and honor." "America has a big job to do know," Clinton wrote in an e-mail letter to supporters. "We must set reasonable goals to finish what we started and successfully turn over Iraqi security to Iraqis. We must deny terrorists the prize they are now seeking in Iraq. We must repair the damage done to our reputation." Clinton, who is seeking reelection to the Senate in 2006 and is the frontrunner for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, also defended her October 2002 vote to give Bush the authority to invade Iraq. But Clinton added that if Congress was privy to information it knows today, the House and Senate "never would have been asked to give the President authority to use force against Iraq." "I take responsibility for my vote, and I, along with a majority of Americans, expect the President and his administration to take responsibility for the false assurances, faulty evidence and mismanagement of the war," Clinton stated. Congressional Republicans and conservative academics said they are looking at today's speech as the beginning of a concerted effort by the White House to try and turn public opinion around on the war. Several Republicans told the Grind that it is imperative for Bush to directly speak to the American people about the positive developments in Iraq as well as explain his strategy for victory. "One thing he most needs to do is convince people he has got a plan to win," said Thomas Donnelly, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. "More than just citing statistics (such as) how many trained Iraqi army and police folks there are you just need to present a larger picture of how the pieces are supposed to come together in Iraq." A senior Congressional GOP aide said there has been some frustration among Republicans that the White House has failed so far to articulate its plan for Iraq. Republicans are now being asked directly by constituents about what is the next step in Iraq, as they tour their districts and states during the Congressional recess. "He needs to be very direct and concise," said the aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "(He) needs to be more upfront about the progress being made against the war on terror ... but it cannot be a repackaging of it. It has to be a new way of talking about it, a better way." While most of Capitol Hill will be focusing on the Bush speech, Republicans and Democrats are anticipating the arrival of Judge Samuel Alito's questionnaire, CNN's Ted Barrett reports. Alitos' answers to this in-depth survey should shed more light on his judicial philosophy as the Senate continues to consider his nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. Outside the Beltway today, Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) will begin distributing to Democratic governors and Democratic gubernatorial candidates a dossier on how to improve the nation's educational system. Vilsack, a potential 2008 presidential candidate, sought out the ideas through his Heartland political action committee. His newest "discussion" is "explain what the Democratic Party stands for in 10 words or less." And congratulations to CNN's Ed Henry for winning the 2005 Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished coverage of Congress. Political Hot TopicsPosted 9:25 a.m. ET WH RELEASES IRAQ STRATEGY DOC: President Bush confronted doubts about his war policy Wednesday, asserting that more Iraqi security forces are taking the lead in battle but saying it's still uncertain when U.S. forces can be withdrawn. "No war has ever been won on a timetable," according to a new White House strategy document. Facing criticism and impatience about the conflict, Bush went on the offensive with the release of a 35-page plan titled "Our National Strategy for Victory in Iraq." The plan says increasing numbers of Iraqi troops have been equipped and trained, a democratic government is being forged, Iraq's economy is being rebuilt and U.S. military and civilian presence will change as conditions improve. AP via Yahoo! News: Bush Unveils New Iraq Strategy Document Click here for a pdf of the doc. NOT REALLY "INSURGENTS": Last weekend, while other Americans were watching football and eating leftover turkey, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld ended the Iraqi insurgency. It was easy, really: He declared that the insurgents would, henceforth, no longer be called insurgents. "Over the weekend, I thought to myself, 'You know, that gives them a greater legitimacy than they seem to merit,' " Rumsfeld, at a Pentagon briefing yesterday, said of his ban on the I-word. "It was an epiphany," he added, throwing his hands in the air. " 'Enemies of the legitimate Iraqi government' -- how's that?" Rumsfeld proposed. Washington Post: Rumsfeld's War On 'Insurgents' "I TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR MY VOTE": Sen. Hillary Clinton yesterday ripped President Bush's conduct of the Iraq war but stopped short of admitting her vote to authorize the invasion was a mistake. "I take responsibility for my vote," she said, "and I, along with a majority of Americans, expect the President and his administration to take responsibility for the false assurances, faulty evidence and mismanagement of the war." Clinton (D-N.Y.) called on Bush to use his speech at the Naval Academy today to outline a strategy for stabilizing the Iraqi government that would allow for a gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops. New York Daily News: I'm 'responsible' for my war vote, Hil sez SCOTUS TO HEAR FIRST ABORTION CASE IN FIVE YEARS: The Supreme Court Wednesday will hear its first abortion case in five years, a New Hampshire dispute that could be an early test of whether a reshaped court will change its views on how much states can restrict the procedure. At issue is whether states may bar doctors from performing an abortion on a girl younger than 18 unless one of her parents has been notified - even when the girl has a health emergency. Forty-three states have passed laws requiring parental notification or consent before a minor can have an abortion, but most states have exceptions for when a doctor believes a girl's health could suffer if the procedure were delayed. It will be the first abortion case the court has heard under Chief Justice John Roberts, who joined the court last month. USA Today: Abortion-notification case could test changing court NH DEMS WANT TO KEEP FIRST-IN-NATION CLOUT: New Hampshire Democrats launched a public campaign yesterday to preserve their first-in-the-nation presidential primary against intrusions from rival states and the work of a Democratic Party commission. Granite State partisans said the quadrennial presidential spotlight is as vital to the identity of their state as the Derby is to Kentucky and the Statute of Liberty is to New York. The action came less than two weeks before a Democratic National Committee commission studying the presidential nominating process is scheduled to recommend changes to the calendar for 2008. Party officials said the commission will probably propose inserting two to four caucus contests ahead of the New Hampshire primary but after Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucuses. Washington Post: For N.H. Democrats, Timing Is Everything SECY OF STATE WOULD SKED PRIMARY FIRST ANYWAY: New Hampshire's top election official says he will schedule the 2008 first-in-the-nation primary ahead of any new caucuses or primaries that will dilute its traditional key role in picking Presidential nominees. A national Democratic commission appears poised to recommend at a meeting next week that at least two caucuses be placed between Iowa's leadoff caucus and New Hampshire's primary eight days later. If the Democratic National Committee ultimately adopts such a plan, Secretary of State William Gardner said he is authorized by New Hampshire law to jump the primary ahead of the newly placed events. "The intent of our law is to preserve our tradition," Gardner told the New Hampshire Union Leader. "The intent is to preserve what we have had, and nothing less." Manchester Union Leader: Official: Primary poised to jump to front of line A SAMPLE OF CUNNINGHAM'S GIFTS: The scale of Cunningham's admitted crimes $2.4 million in bribes and more than $1 million in evaded taxes - caught nearly everyone off guard. The dollar figures make Cunningham's the biggest bribery case involving a federal official in more than two decades. Constituents and others marveled at the list of luxury items that the four unnamed co-conspirators lavished on Cunningham since 2000 in exchange for his support in landing lucrative government contracts - things at odds with Cunningham's preferred image as an American hero and a man of simple tastes. They include: Los Angeles Times: Bribery's Scope a Surprise 
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