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CNN LIVE AT DAYBREAK

Rice Says There Will Be Reduction Of Troops In Iraq, But Doesn't Say How Many Or When; Iraqi Troops In Training; Possible Travel Delays; Black Friday

Aired November 23, 2005 - 06:00   ET

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


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It is Wednesday, November 23rd and millions of you are about to find out if over the river and through the woods is as easy as it sounds. Whether you're flying or driving, we'll help you get there and tell you what to do if your trip takes a bad turn.
Plus, you've heard of Black Friday. Now there's a little bit of competition. How about Cyber Monday?

And this woman lost her job, but has she lost her faith? Fired from a Catholic school, I'll talk to the lawyer for this pregnant teacher in the next half hour.

And good morning to you.

We'll have more your holiday travel forecast in just a moment.

Also ahead, cheap oil for winter? Venezuela has it. Massachusetts wants it. They're playing let's make a deal.

And we'll introduce you to Ralph and North, two celebrity residents of the new Georgia Aquarium.

But first, now in the news, more bloodshed in Baghdad. The sheikh of a Sunni tribe was shot to death along with his three sons and a son-in-law. Neighbors say the shooters were dressed like Iraqi troops and arrived in Iraqi Army vehicles. The sheikh was a candidate for parliament in next month's elections.

A federal jury has found a Virginia man guilty of joining al Qaeda and conspiring to assassinate President Bush. Ahmed Abu Ali had claimed Saudi authorities tortured him into confessing. He faces a sentence of 20 years to life.

The government has charged so-called dirty bomb suspect Jose Padilla with training as a terrorist and intending to carry out a holy war. Padilla has been held in U.S. military custody for three-and-a- half years as an enemy combatant despite being a U.S. citizen.

The Vatican is banning actively gay men from becoming priests. But a document detailing the ban says seminaries can't admit men whose homosexual tendencies have been clearly overcome for at least three years. That document is expected to be released next week.

To the Forecast Center now and Jacqui Jeras -- good morning. (WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Amid the raging political battle over the Iraq war, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is the latest administration official to weigh in. She tells CNN there will, indeed, be a reduction of U.S. troops in Iraq. But she does not answer the critical questions of when and how many.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: I think what the president will want to assess is when can we safely bring down our level of forces so that Iraqis are really capable of achieving the results and the effects that you want, rather than having some artificial timetable. I suspect that the -- that American forces are not going to be needed in the numbers that they're there for all that much longer because Iraqis are continuing to make progress in function, not just in numbers, but in their capabilities to do certain functions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Despite those assurances about Iraqi progress, the officers in charge of training the Iraqis say the chance to turn the country over to them may not come any time soon.

Our Nic Robertson gives us a look at the members of the Iraqi Army in training. And it's not very promising.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LT. COL. ROSS BROWN, U.S. ARMY: When did he last clean his weapon?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): A revealing look inside the Iraqi army.

BROWN: That's the answer. But look at that weapon. What did he clean it with?

ROBERTSON: Inside, Lieutenant Colonel Ross Brown's daily battle -- getting an Iraqi army unit ready to fight alongside U.S. soldiers.

BROWN: Yes, tell him -- tell him -- look.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes?

BROWN: The reason I ask the questions, the reason I'm hard on these things is because I want these soldiers to survive.

ROBERTSON: Brown's mission is not easy. The Iraqi officers he's mentoring are not shaping up fast.

BROWN: They didn't do too much work yesterday. They didn't do too much work the day before. They haven't done too much work since they've been here.

ROBERTSON: Sixty miles north, this Iraqi Army officer, Colonel Thear, is about as close to a hero for U.S. troops as an Iraqi can become.

COL. STEVEN SALAZAR, U.S. ARMY: He is an outstanding leader and he is just simply a patriot.

ROBERTSON: So which is the real face of the Iraqi Army -- under- prepared and underperforming or dedicated and on the verge of breaking through?

GEN. MARTIN DEMPSEY, MULTINATIONAL SECURITY COMMAND: Progress is uneven. And it's uneven across the country. It's uneven in units. It's uneven between the Army and the police.

ROBERTSON: Of the 212,000 men and women in the security forces, almost 100,000 are in the Army. Of those, only about 23,000 are battle-ready. That's 30 out of a total of 130 battalions.

According to Dempsey, getting the rebuilding right, making the Iraqi Army strong and cohesive, is more important than rushing training.

DEMPSEY: What we're looking to produce is something that will actually be fully capable and last, and will be something that is an institution of national cohesion as opposed to, you know, 212,000 men and women running around with rifles.

ROBERTSON: Colonel Thear is one of the battle ready battalion commanders. He has taken over from U.S. troops in his area, but lacks even an up-armored Humvee. He is at level two readiness.

COL. ISMAEL THEAR, IRAQI ARMY: We told coalition forces just, we need like support. Still, you know, Iraq Army soldiers don't have helicopter.

ROBERTSON: Level one readiness means no support from U.S. forces required, and that's still hard to find.

DEMPSEY: And I don't know what the particular number today is on level one. But...

ROBERTSON: In the latest offensive, Operation Steel Curtain, close to the Syrian border, 3,000 U.S. Marines led the way, with 550 Iraqi troops mostly bringing up the rear.

Developing the Iraqi Army to this point has been hampered by Iraq's changing political leadership, according to Dempsey. Despite that, he's confident they are on track, as planned.

DEMPSEY: And I am going to get it done in the way that -- that we have agreed is right, and I'm not going to be pressured by the -- what is necessarily a, at the end of the day, probably a healthy debate back in Washington. ROBERTSON (on camera): Ready or not, the Iraqi Army is coming under increasing pressure to take control. The current recruitment plan expires in the summer of 2007. Likely by then, the Iraqi Army will be standing more alone than it is today.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: There's been rumblings about this for quite some time. Italy is about to start planning the withdrawal of its troops from Iraq. Italy's defense secretary met with Donald Rumsfeld at the Pentagon. The Italians later released a statement saying they bill begin planning the exit in January. The troops will start withdrawing in groups of 300. Italy has sent about 2,900 troops to Iraq.

A Republican congresswoman is backpedaling after declaring on the House floor that crowds cut and run, Marines never do. Jean Schmidt of Ohio was booed for those comments. She was criticizing fellow Congressman Jack Murtha's call for the immediate pullout U.S. troops from Iraq. Murtha is a decorated Vietnam veteran. Schmidt says she should have rephrased her comments.

Did President Bush want to bomb Al-Jazeera's broadcast headquarters in Qatar? It depends on who you ask. Britain's "Daily Mirror" newspaper quotes two sources that say it was discussed last year during a meeting between the president and the British prime minister, Tony Blair. One account says it was a joke, while the other says President Bush was serious. The paper is now under a gag order from Britain's attorney general. White House Spokesman Scott McClellan says the allegation is outlandish and inconceivable.

Still to come this hour on DAYBREAK, a Catholic schoolteacher loses her job because she's pregnant. You've heard her story. She's vowing to fight what she says is unfair treatment. We're going to talk to her lawyer live.

Then, 'tis the sopping season. But before you go to the mall, you can check out what's going on online.

And we can't get enough of this place. We go live to Georgia's new super cool aquarium.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RONALD REAGAN, FORMER PRESIDENT: Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST (voice-over): That sound bite defined Ronald Reagan as a man of firm conviction. He believed what he believed. But when he said that, a lot of people around the world said what a foolish man. He believes such strange things. He thanks he can just say "tear down this wall" and we know it can't possibly happen.

Amazingly, within a couple of years, the cold war ended and the Berlin Wall came down.

It seemed miraculous. No one alive at that time thought the cold war would ever be over. So after that, people looked back and they re-listened to what Ronald Reagan said and thought, you know, it really made a difference.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: In the news this morning, we just got these pictures in. Those are from Maryland. Firefighters are now on the scene of a tanker truck fire in suburban Washington. And, as you might imagine, that's causing a traffic nightmare. Maryland State Police say the southbound lanes of I-95 are closed at the Capitol Beltway. Oh, that's a bad spot. Some drivers near the burning truck were told to evacuate the area. That's from our affiliate, WTTG. We'll keep you informed on what's going on here.

Let's head to the Weather Center now to check in with Jacqui Jeras, because there's some nasty weather in the Midwest.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: That sounds so nasty.

Let's talk about those possible travel delays. Actually, they're probably a certainty with the snow coming down in the Midwest and along the lakes.

"USA Today" travel expert Ben Mutzabaugh joins us live now.

And, Ben, we have so many questions for you.

BEN MUTZABAUGH, "USA TODAY": It's that time of year. It's a busy travel day, so let's get to the questions.

COSTELLO: Let's get right to the questions.

So let's say that your flight is delayed or canceled.

What should you do?

MUTZABAUGH: Well, you have a couple of options. If your flight is cancelled, make sure that you ask for your options. Don't assume that the ticket agent is going to tell you what all of your options are. Ask. Is there another flight that can get me to my destination? Say -- ask them if there's another airline that can accommodate you. That's one you really have to ask for. They typically won't tell you that yes, we can fly you on a different airline.

And, especially, try to know your airline's partners. Let's say you're flying Delta. Your Delta flight gets canceled. Ask them, is there a flight on Northwest that can get me to where I'm going? Is there a flight on Continental that can get me where I'm going? Both are partners of Delta.

Most airlines in the U.S. have a relationship like that.

So don't be afraid to ask. In short, ask them anything that they can do, what can I do that will get me to where I'm going.

COSTELLO: And ask politely because you catch more flies with honey, especially when you're in the airport.

MUTZABAUGH: That is definitely true.

COSTELLO: You should definitely ask the cause of a canceled flight, because sometimes you can get your money back, right?

MUTZABAUGH: That's correct. You know, one of the things that really surprises travelers is that the airlines are not on the hook to provide you any compensation for delays. Now, the one area that might -- you might get some compensation is if the delay is caused by a mechanical issue or a staffing issue. If it's a weather delay, you can pretty much forget about any kind of compensation. But if the delay is the fault of the airline, again, not weather, they're likely going to cough up and give you some kind of at least a credit for a future flight, let's say a $300 voucher or something that was equal to the initial cost of your ticket.

COSTELLO: You said likely. I mean is there some contract -- I know there's this big long contract you can look at, right?

MUTZABAUGH: Right.

COSTELLO: Should you?

MUTZABAUGH: Right. And it sounds so intimidating, but it's really -- it can be your best friend if you feel like you're not getting a fair deal from the airlines. It's called the contract of carriage. Now all of the airlines are obligated to show this to you when -- if you -- upon request. So if you think there's something that they're not ponying up for, ask. Can I see the contract of carriage?

Now, you're probably going to have a very busy flight attendant -- or not a flight attendant, a ticket agent. So they might give you a little bit of a runaround. But make sure you ask to see that. And if you can read through it, it/'s going to spell out exactly what the airline is entitled to provide to you.

Sometimes you might be surprised it's not much. But there are other times you'll be able to say look, right here it says you're provided -- you're obligated to provide me this. What can you do to make it happen?

COSTELLO: OK, contract of carriage.

Ben Mutzabaugh, many thanks to you for some very helpful travel tips this morning.

MUTZABAUGH: My pleasure.

COSTELLO: Let's talk more about travel.

CNN's Alina Cho is at LaGuardia Airport here in New York. What's hap -- oh, actually, she's going to join us at the bottom of the hour, right? Or is she here now? She's going to join as at the bottom of the hour. So we'll get to her in about 10 minutes.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, I will talk to the lawyer for that pregnant Catholic schoolteacher who lost her job. Is she really a victim in all of this?

Plus, the cyber rush to find bargains after Thanksgiving. We've got a checklist you'll want to keep on the computer when you go shopping online.

That's ahead on DAYBREAK.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: As the world kicked off 2005, memories of a massive tsunami still lingered in our minds -- memories swept away by additional epic natural disasters. From hurricanes to earthquakes, Mother Nature made us recognize her power. And for this, we recognize her as a candidate for "Time" magazine's person of the year.

NANCY GIBBS, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, "TIME": In the first weeks of the year, our attention was still completely riveted to this astonishing, unfolding story of loss and shock and aid and rescue. And that certainly was the defining story at the beginning of the year.

Then the hurricane season here that was like none other we'd ever had. And then finally the earthquakes in Pakistan.

From beginning to end, the year seemed to be a year of disaster.

JAN SIMPSON, ASSISTANT MANAGING EDITOR, "TIME": Well, I think a lot of people have said that because of the way Mother Nature has affected the year, people have stepped back and reflected on what's important. I think it's given us, all of us, a lot to think about in how we're living in this world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Time now for a little "Business Buzz."

South Korea is investigating possible price fixing between Samsung Electronics and Apple Computer. Samsung is accused of supply Apple with flash memory chips at unfairly low prices.

The Justice Department says it will not retry accounting firm Arthur Anderson in connection with the Enron collapse. The company was convicted in June of 2002 for obstructing justice for destroying Enron related documents. But the Supreme Court overturned that convicted last May, saying the judge gave faulty jury instructions.

We do not have to tell you savvy shoppers that Black Friday is the busiest shopping day of the year. But that dubious record may soon fall, or perhaps already has, to Cyber Monday.

Sam Grobart is the senior editor for "Money" magazine.

Good morning, Sam.

SAM GROBART, SENIOR EDITOR, "MONEY": Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: So Cyber Monday?

GROBART: Cyber Monday.

COSTELLO: How many people will be online shopping on Monday?

GROBART: Estimates are saying well, it'll be up about 24 percent this year.

COSTELLO: Wow!

GROBART: Nineteen billion dollars is the estimate for online sales this holiday season.

COSTELLO: Nineteen billion dollars.

GROBART: Yes.

COSTELLO: That's something, isn't it? And some people were saying years ago that it wouldn't catch on because people would be afraid to shop online, but that has not proved true.

GROBART: I think people are pretty comfortable, you know, shopping in their pajamas and not having to go to the store or anything like that.

COSTELLO: Yes. It's so much better, isn't it?

GROBART: Yes, a lot easier.

COSTELLO: OK, well, let's talk about some tips to make things easier if you want to shop online on Monday.

GROBART: Sure.

COSTELLO: So, the first tip we have is pay be credit card.

GROBART: Yes, I mean this is pretty commonsensical advice. I mean if you're going to pay, be sure to use a credit card. Paying by cash or by, you know, checking account means that the money is already gone. And if you have any problems, there's little recourse. I mean there might be a policy with your debit card. But with a credit card, you're guaranteed that you can challenge the charge if it wasn't yours and you can suspended payment and you have somewhere to go besides the retailer, who probably isn't going to want even to deal with that.

COSTELLO: Yes, because you're right, there's always a little doubt in my mind that I'm going to order something and it will never come.

GROBART: Right.

COSTELLO: That's always there.

GROBART: Yes. That's a little bit of an act of faith. I mean you're online and here's this Web sites and you're hoping you're going to get it on time, what you ordered, in the condition that you wanted it. There are lots of reasons that something could go wrong. And with a credit card company, most of them have a policy that allow you to challenge the charge or, you know, have some sort of recourse.

COSTELLO: Right. Right. OK, you say you should keep a paper trail.

GROBART: You should. If you are placing an order, you're going to get probably an online statement or a recipient. You should print that out. Hold onto it until you get the product that you've ordered. These things have a way of sometimes disappearing out of your hard drive and if you're trusting the company to hold onto all of your records, well, good luck.

COSTELLO: Yes. Never do that.

GROBART: Yes.

COSTELLO: Know the terms of the deal.

GROBART: Absolutely. Know the return policy. Know how long do you have to return something. Know who's paying the shipping if you do have to return it. If you're giving it as a gift, can the person return it without a receipt? Do they need a certain kind of gift receipt? What are some of the shipping options? How long will it take for you to get your gift.

COSTELLO: Calculate the cost.

GROBART: You'll go online and if you're comparing prices, you might see Retailer X offering something for $10 and Retailer Y offering it for five. But Retailer Y has an $8 shipping charge and Retailer X has a $2 shipping charge. So, really, make sure that everything -- the total costs are equal or better.

COSTELLO: OK, this is an important one. Don't e-mail private information. And by that you mean?

GROBART: Credit card information, checking account, any sort of, you know, Social Security numbers, any sort of personal information that you'd want to hold onto. You want to make sure that if you're doing anything along those lines that the Internet site you're using has a secure server.

The way you can tell is in the address of that site, it'll say https.

COSTELLO: S?

GROBART: S is for secure. Most Web sites don't have the S. But if you go into a billing site, the S should popup. That means the data has been encrypted and people can't see it from the outside.

COSTELLO: Sam Grobart from "Money" magazine.

Thanks for making it easier for us.

GROBART: Thank you.

COSTELLO: We appreciate it.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, before you load the trunk and buckle the kids in, check out where the holiday headaches are most likely to hit.

Plus, it's the week of feast for alls. But that huge holiday dinner doesn't have to be a dieter's pitfall. Lisa Drayer has suggestions for cutting the calories, from hor'dourves to dessert.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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