CBS Evening News (A block) - 2006-11-29

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:02] I'm Katie Kurrick and Aman Jordan site

[0:04] of a lastditch effort by President Bush

[0:06] and Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki to bring

[0:09] the unrelenting violence engulfing Iraq

[0:11] [music] under control. On the eve of the

[0:14] summit, Jim Axelrod traveling with the

[0:16] president reports [music] the Bush

[0:18] administration is having doubts about

[0:20] Malake. Elizabeth Palmer in Baghdad says

[0:23] one of the most powerful men in Iraq has

[0:25] withdrawn his support of Malake, AT

[0:27] LEAST FOR NOW.

[0:32] AT THE PENTAGON, DAVID MARTIN TELLS US,

[0:34] "Forget a troop withdrawal. The US is

[0:36] sending more soldiers into Baghdad to

[0:39] try to restore order."

[0:44] >> That was supposed to be the job of Iraqi

[0:46] police trained here in Jordan. Mark

[0:49] Phillips reports why it isn't working.

[0:52] and all talked to Iraqi refugees [music]

[0:54] who have fled here as promises of

[0:56] freedom and democracy have all but

[0:59] vanished. [music]

[1:00] >> We are waiting for our death in Baghdad.

[1:04] [music]

[1:09] [music]

[1:09] >> This is the CBS Evening News with Katie

[1:12] Curring reporting tonight from Aman,

[1:15] Jordan.

[1:17] >> Good evening everyone. Can Iraq and its

[1:20] fledgling democracy be saved from the

[1:22] violence that's tearing it apart? And if

[1:24] so, how? That's the question President

[1:27] Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Malakei

[1:29] will try to answer here, 500 miles from

[1:32] Baghdad at a summit tomorrow hosted by

[1:34] Jordan's King Abdullah. But their

[1:36] meeting is already getting off to a very

[1:38] shaky start. In fact, it didn't start,

[1:41] not when it was supposed to. Anyway, we

[1:43] have a team of CBS News correspondents

[1:45] deployed to cover this very important

[1:47] story. And we begin with chief White

[1:49] House correspondent Jim Axelrod. Jim

[1:52] >> Katie, a summit is supposed to be a

[1:54] discussion, but so far President Bush

[1:56] and Prime Minister Maliki haven't had

[1:58] one. The president received word as he

[2:00] was on Air Force One traveling to Jordan

[2:02] that his meeting with Maliki was off

[2:04] tonight. The White House insists this

[2:05] has nothing to do with a story that

[2:07] appeared in the New York Times this

[2:08] morning citing a confidential White

[2:10] House memo with deep concerns about

[2:13] whether Maliki is up to the job.

[2:18] Maliki arrived in Aman first under a

[2:20] cloud of doubt. The memo written by

[2:22] national security adviser Steven Hadley

[2:24] three weeks ago today doesn't question

[2:27] Maliki's desire but his capability. His

[2:30] intentions seem good when he talks with

[2:32] Americans, but the reality on the

[2:34] streets of Baghdad suggests Maliki is

[2:36] either ignorant of what is going on,

[2:38] misrepresenting his intentions, or that

[2:41] his capabilities are not yet sufficient

[2:43] to turn his good intentions into

[2:45] actions.

[2:47] President Bush had boarded Air Force One

[2:49] expecting discussions with Maliki and

[2:51] King Abdullah. Instead, he was left to

[2:54] visit just with the host, Jordan's king.

[2:56] The White House insisted Mr. Bush was

[2:58] not snubbed and that he'll meet with

[3:00] Maliki tomorrow. Expected on the agenda,

[3:03] the repositioning of US troops inside

[3:05] Iraq, engaging Iran and Syria, and

[3:08] dealing with the militias. Maliki's

[3:10] relationship with the militia's leader,

[3:12] anti-American cleric Makta al-Sadder was

[3:15] today's other headline. 30 members of

[3:17] the Iraqi parliament and six cabinet

[3:19] ministers loyal to Solder made good on a

[3:21] threat and walked out on the government

[3:24] today to protest Maliki's meetings with

[3:26] Mr. Bush. And to further throw things

[3:29] off balance here, today President Bush's

[3:31] former Secretary of State Coen Powell

[3:33] added his name to the list of those who

[3:35] say Iraq is in a state of civil war.

[3:37] Powell says he uses that term because

[3:39] quote, "I like to face reality." Katie

[3:43] >> Jim, any more insight as to why this

[3:45] first scheduled meeting didn't happen?

[3:48] >> Apparently, Prime Minister Malake was

[3:50] not happy when King Abdullah tried to

[3:52] widen and broaden the agenda to include

[3:54] a discussion about the Israeli

[3:56] Palestinian conflict. He's under enough

[3:58] pressure not to be here to begin with at

[4:00] home. When they tried to add that to the

[4:01] agenda, he said, "No way."

[4:03] >> Jim Axelro traveling with the president

[4:05] tonight. The goal for both the United

[4:08] States and Iraq is to get US troops out

[4:11] as soon as possible. But with the

[4:13] violence in Iraq only getting worse, the

[4:15] Pentagon is getting ready to send more

[4:17] troops in. Here's David Martin with the

[4:20] latest.

[4:21] >> With conditions in Baghdad too dire to

[4:24] wait for the outcome of either the

[4:25] summit or the administration's strategy

[4:27] review, commanders in Iraq have ordered

[4:30] reinforcements into the capital. About

[4:33] 3,500 US combat troops are being moved

[4:35] from other parts of the country into the

[4:38] city where a combined force of 40,000

[4:40] Americans and Iraqis have so far been

[4:42] unable to stop the spiral of violence.

[4:46] The American reinforcements will take

[4:47] the place of Iraqi troops which the

[4:49] government had promised but never

[4:51] delivered. But as Democratic Senator

[4:54] Jack Reid said, numbers alone are not

[4:56] likely to determine the outcome. I think

[4:58] that the the number of US forces is not

[5:01] the critical issue. The critical issue

[5:04] is what the Iraqi government is going to

[5:05] do to keep their government together,

[5:08] quell the violence, and provide the

[5:10] services the people that a government

[5:11] should and must provide.

[5:13] >> Members of the Iraq Study Group, headed

[5:14] by former Secretary of State Baker, have

[5:16] now reached agreement on their

[5:18] recommendations for a new war strategy,

[5:20] which will be delivered to the president

[5:22] and released publicly a week from today.

[5:25] Sources close to the group expected to

[5:27] recommend a restructuring of US military

[5:30] forces, putting in more trainers and

[5:32] fewer combat troops, setting a timetable

[5:34] for the Iraqi government to take

[5:36] responsibility for its own security, and

[5:39] holding talks with Iran and Syria. The

[5:42] White House says the group's report will

[5:44] be a factor, but not a blueprint for the

[5:46] president in deciding on changes in his

[5:48] war strategy. David Martin, CBS News,

[5:51] the Pentagon.

[5:53] Now, let's bring in our correspondent in

[5:54] Baghdad, Elizabeth Palmer. Elizabeth

[5:56] David Martin just reported that

[5:58] thousands more US troops will be

[6:00] deployed in Baghdad. What is the

[6:02] reaction on the street there?

[6:05] >> Well, I have to say it's going to be

[6:06] skepticism on the part of most Iraqis

[6:09] because they've been promised two big

[6:11] troop initiatives, US troop initiatives

[6:13] in the past six months that were

[6:15] designed to uh quell the violence here

[6:17] and neither has worked out that way. So

[6:19] although they recognize they need help

[6:21] with security, they're not at all

[6:23] convinced that more US soldiers is the

[6:25] answer. Now, as for Mktar Alsad's

[6:27] followers, they're going to regard this

[6:29] as a deliberate provocation. They have

[6:31] said from the beginning they want US

[6:33] troops out and quickly. Uh so the idea

[6:36] that the troop strength is going to be

[6:38] beefed up has made them very angry. In

[6:40] fact, when we talked to them a couple of

[6:41] hours ago, they said this might not only

[6:44] make them boycott the government

[6:45] indefinitely, but they may even uh

[6:48] decide to quit altogether. Elizabeth

[6:50] Palmer in Baghdad tonight. Zme Khalil

[6:54] Zad is the US ambassador to Iraq. He's

[6:56] here in Jordan for the summit. I spoke

[6:59] with him earlier tonight and asked him

[7:01] if he fears Prime Minister Maliki is too

[7:04] weak to restore order and govern his

[7:06] country.

[7:08] Uh Prime Minister Maliki faces a huge

[7:10] challenge. Uh

[7:12] there is a sectarian conflict that's

[7:15] going on there. Uh there are terrorists

[7:17] who are seeking to uh undermine his

[7:20] government. Uh there are other uh armed

[7:23] groups uh who are also outside the

[7:26] control of the government. There are

[7:27] some neighbors who are seeking to uh

[7:29] undermine uh his government. So he's got

[7:33] uh a lot on his plate. I feel his pain.

[7:36] I I'm as the ambassador there. I can see

[7:38] the huge challenges that he faces.

[7:40] >> Does he have your confidence?

[7:42] >> He has my confidence. Uh I believe that

[7:45] he he he wants uh Iraq to succeed and he

[7:49] is a prime minister. Uh Iraq's failure

[7:52] will be his failure. His success will be

[7:54] Iraq's success.

[7:55] >> What do you think the big news of this

[7:58] summit meeting will be? Will more

[8:00] authority be transferred in terms of

[8:02] overseeing the Iraqi security forces to

[8:05] Prime Minister Maliki?

[8:07] >> There will be an agreement on transfer

[8:10] uh of uh capabilities, Iraqi

[8:12] capabilities at a faster rate uh to the

[8:16] Iraqis and to the prime minister. Yes,

[8:18] >> many people will be disappointed and

[8:21] upset to hear that additional troops are

[8:23] being sent right now. I think uh an

[8:26] adjustment uh in our strategy that has

[8:30] prospects increased prospects for

[8:32] success that would involve even some

[8:35] additional troops I I believe will have

[8:38] the will have support.

[8:39] >> What would you say to Americans who feel

[8:41] this is a lost cause? It's just an abyss

[8:44] of violence. I I can understand uh that

[8:48] uh looking from far away from the United

[8:50] States that this looks uh a very

[8:54] difficult situation uh that we're not uh

[8:57] making as much progress as the American

[8:59] people would like that a lot of lives

[9:01] are being lost. But the goal of success

[9:05] in Iraq, for the sake of the

[9:09] future of this region, which is the

[9:11] defining challenge of our time, uh we

[9:14] need to do all that we can uh to help

[9:17] Iraq succeed.

[9:19] >> There's much more CBS news straight

[9:21] ahead. And still to come from Aman, the

[9:24] plan was to train the next generation of

[9:26] Iraqi police officers right here in

[9:29] Jordan. Why that [music] plan failed

[9:31] next.

[9:36] >> [music]