[Daryn Kagan, Cnn Anchor:] There are a lot of issues riding on the question of Arafat's health, and those implications ripple across the region. Earlier this morning, I discussed the situation with CNN's chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour.
[Christiane Amanpour, Cnn Chief Intl. Correspondent:] Well, my sources have been consistently telling me since last week and these are sources with close ties to the Palestinian leadership that his situation is extremely grave, very serious, and rapidly deteriorating. And now they're saying that it is being described by Palestinians, very few of them who have access to the hospital in Paris, that Yasser Arafat is, quote, "very critical." We're told he was rushed to the ICU at the Paris hospital unconscious, and that, as early as this morning, he was still unconscious. That's according to my sources. He certainly has a very grave situation, but most particularly, I'm being told and I have been told this for the past week that he is not in control of his mental faculties. He's unable to focus on any substantive matters. He's unable to issue orders or make any kind of sort of decorations that would be decorations of government or any such thing. And yet, people in Paris around him are putting out statements that this is precisely what he's doing. So, there seems to be a bit of a power play, a power struggle underway, and at same time, we've heard no definitive medical diagnosis yet from the doctors there.
[Kagan:] Well, let's talk about the power situation right now, in terms of who's leading the Palestinian people now, and once Yasser Arafat does go because at a certain point he will who comes next?
[Amanpour:] Well, there are provisions in the Palestinian basic law which say that if the president of the Palestinian Authority dies or is medically incapacitated, he has to be deemed incapacitated by doctors. And in either case, those powers would be transferred for a period of 60 days to the speaker of their council, their legislative council. Now, Palestinian leaders who are right now continuing what business of government there is in the Palestinian territories, want that clarity. They want the doctors to pronounce so that they can proceed with clarity and transparency. And at the moment, business is being conducted by Abu Ala and Abu Mazen, the current and the former prime ministers, who both have divided the PLO portfolio and the Palestinian Authority portfolio. So, things are proceeding politically in that way. But Arafat loyalists, we're told some of whom are around him in Paris want to keep issuing orders and communiques, for the moment, in his name, talking to, you know, ministries. And also crucially, there apparently is a very huge bank account, according to my sources, which could have anywhere from a couple hundred million to $1 billion in it and which Arafat solely, we're told, controls. So, there's a political power struggle, there's this financial situation, and there's no PalestinianIsraeli peace process. So, that's going to be a big challenge for the American government as whether Arafat wins or rather, dies, or he;s incapacitated to get some kind of peace process back on track.
[Kagan:] A lot of questions still to be answered and a lot of events to unfold. Christiane, thank you.
[Rick Sanchez, Cnn Anchor:] In Afghanistan just moments ago, Hamid Karzai delivered a speech as his country's first president chosen by popular election. Yesterday, a joint AfghanUnited Nations panel dismissed allegations of voter fraud and formally declared the U.S.- backed candidate the winner of this historic election. President Karzai's speech included a renewed a pledge to fight drug trafficking in his country. We'll follow that. Here's another big story we're following on this day on this morning after formally winning reelection, President Bush is meeting right now, in fact, with his cabinet. Many observers expect his second term to usher in major changes in this inner circle, part of what you're looking at right now. At the top of the hour, he's due to hold a news conference when he leaves the White House for some R&R; at Camp David presidential retreat. Of course, we will bring you that news conference as it happens here straight up at 11:00. Now, despite months of bitterly partisan campaigning"USA Today"Gallup poll, 51 percent of Americans surveyed are pleased with the outcome of Tuesday's election, 38 percent describe themselves as upset, nine percent say it simply doesn't matter.
[Kagan:] So, how is the reelection viewed around the world? We're going to take a global sampling from Britain to Baghdad. Let's begin in London with CNN's Diana Muriel. Diana, hello.
[Diana Muriel, Cnn Correspondent:] Hello, Daryn. Well, the idea of four more years of a Bush administration sinking in here in Britain with British newspapers this morning for the most part going with this headline: "Four more years." "The Guardian" newspaper, "The Daily Telegraph" which is seen as a right-wing-leaning newspaper "The Times," and indeed "The Financial Times" all have this phrase, "Four more years," on their front page. But "The Guardian" supplement perhaps is more indicative of what this newspaper editorially, at least, believes. Let me show you what they have here. It's an entirely black page with, in very small type, the words, "Oh God," written right in the center of the page. "The Guardian," you have to remember, is the newspaper that urged its readership to write to voters in Ohio in the United States and ask them to vote for the Democratic challenger, John Kerry. This was met with very mixed reactions and some very strong reactions in the United States. Many people writing e-mails, writing to the newspaper, accusing the newspaper of urging its readers to interfere with another country's election, and that wasn't going down very well. "The Independent" newspaper also comes out with the phrase "Four more years," but on the front page they print a series of photographs of issues that they identify very closely with George Bush namely, Guantanamo Bay, the war in Iraq, Abu Ghraib, Christian fundamentalism, and of course oil, with oil still at around $50 a barrel. And perhaps one of the most contentious of the front pages that we have here in Britain this Thursday is that of the "Daily Mirror," which has, "How can 59 million people be so DUMB?" And inside, its editorial, "The Mirror" saying that if people of other nations had voted, then George Bush would likely to have lost by a landslide. A selection of what the newspapers here in Britain are saying this morning, the first day after George Bush was elected for a second term as the president of the United States Daryn?
[Kagan:] All right. A look at what others are thinking. Diana, thank you.
[Sanchez:] Well now, to Baghdad and the reaction there or perhaps the lack thereof. CNN Baghdad Bureau Chief Jane Arraf is joining us now from the Iraqi capital. Hello, Jane.
[Jane Arraf, Cnn Baghdad Bureau Chief:] Hi, Rick. Well, compared to the British reaction that Diana Muriel was pointing out in those headlines, it's pretty sedate here. In fact, the election reaction and the election results weren't even the main headline in most of the newspapers. And those it was said that whoever wins will work with Iraqis, and Iraqis will work with him. Now, we were talking to the people out in the streets, and essentially the reaction was, compared to when we were asking them before the election, when a lot of them said they didn't want Bush to win, they said they're essentially glad he won. They don't particularly like him. Some of them really don't like him. But at least they know where he's coming from. And as for the troops out there, still 130,000 American troops in Iraq, the Marines in Falluja, a lot of them that we talked to, that others talked to there, saying that they were glad that Bush had won. He supports the military. And others were more philosophical. One Army sergeant told us that he voted for Kerry, but it appeared for some reason that God wanted Bush to win Rick?
[Sanchez:] Jane Arraf, following that story out of Baghdad. We thank you, Jane.
[Kagan:] Well, you can imagine there must be a lot of soul- searching going on among the Democrats this morning.
[Sanchez:] To say the very least. After losing the battle for the White House, along with seats in both Houses of Congress, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi says, and we quote here, "We have lost just about everything that we can lose." Joining us in Washington is Democratic strategist Jenny Backus. She's the former head of communications for the Democratic National Committee. Jenny, thanks so much for joining us. I'd like to split this into two parts: themes and people. Which would you like to do first?
[Jenny Backus, Democratic Strategist:] You choose.
[Sanchez:] All right, let's do themes. Gay marriage.
[Backus:] OK.
[Sanchez:] On the issue of gay marriage, do you think it's possible that Gavin Newsom, the mayor of San Francisco, had as much to do with the defeat of Senator Kerry than anything or anyone else?
[Backus:] No, I disagree on that. I think that some of that theme and some of the other themes that you saw a lot of in the Republican mail and in some of the sort of under the radar screen rhetoric, I think that that I think that was sort of distracting noise. And I think it was sort of an attempt to keep people's eye off the ball.
[Sanchez:] But don't the polls but Jenny, don't the polls show that people went out and voted on social issues just about more than anything else, and that they feared or were told that this was going to become a Sodom and Gomorrah?
[Backus:] No, I don't think that at all. I think I think that that's what the Republicans wanted people to do. I think this election was extremely close. I mean, probably 115, 116 million people came out to vote. I think that you saw an extremely tight electoral college. It came down to one state.
[Sanchez:] Let me ask you this then.
[Backus:] Sure.
[Sanchez:] If you took that issue off the table, do you think John Kerry would have won?
[Backus:] No, actually, I think look, I think John Kerry should have won, and I think we came really close and we didn't. But the bottom line is that that issue is I mean, you're playing into what the Republicans trap is. That's a made-up issue to by the Republicans. It's a made up issue to divide this country. It's a made-up issue to take people's focus off whether or not their kids are going to go and fight in Iraq, whether or not they're going to get a job.
[Sanchez:] Let's turn that let's turn that into theme two, then...
[Backus:] Sure.
[Sanchez:] ... whether their kids are going to go and fight in Iraq. Does the Democratic party now become the anti-war party, or should they, in your estimation?
[Backus:] I think a really interesting thing happened, Rick, in this election, and it's something that I hope the Democrats stay with and I know I'm going to be working on it which is, the Democratic party, and under John Kerry, became a party of strong foreign policy and strongly supporting the military. And I think that that's something that you will see continuing forward. George Bush and his political people wanted to sort of paint the Democrats into these old labels that people saw. And I think one of the most important and powerful and significant things you saw the Democrats doing was to talk strongly about how they've served this country and to be...
[Sanchez:] So, it sounds like the answer to your question the answer to you question is that, no, they're not going to be...
[Backus:] Well, no. We're going to be the party that holds this president accountable. This president is conducting a war in the wrong way. We don't want our kids sent overseas to fight and die in a war that this president doesn't have a plan to end.
[Sanchez:] Point well taken.
[Backus:] But we're not going to let the Republicans turn us into you know, into these scary stereotypes that you saw in their mail pieces and in some of their advertising.
[Sanchez:] Point well take, Jenny. But let's move on, because I'm running out of time.
[Backus:] Sure.
[Sanchez:] And let's try and get to the people. I've got four here that...
[Backus:] OK.
[Sanchez:] Try to give me a brief comment on what you think their role is and what they're going to be able to accomplish in the next four years. And we're going to start with Senator Kerry.
[Backus:] Senator John Kerry, he's going to stay in the Senate. I think you're going to see him move into a role that you saw John McCain move into I mean, senators who run for president, who put down markers in the sand about what this country can do and not do better...
[Sanchez:] Hillary Clinton?
[Backus:] ... see him Hillary Clinton is going to do a great job in the Senate. She's someone that the party looks to. She has a very strong policy, especially on military issues. I think you're going to see a lot from her in the coming days.
[Sanchez:] Bill Clinton?
[Backus:] Bill Clinton is always a strong force in our party. He's also all of these people that you're describing are people that can hold this president accountable for unfortunately think some of the mistakes that we will probably be making.
[Sanchez:] Barack Obama?
[Backus:] Oh, Barack Obama Barack Obama is someone who inspires millions of Americans. I mean, I don't know if you remember his speech at that convention. I think he's going to come into the Senate, and you're going to see both he and Ken Salazar from Colorado. They are some of the luminaries of the party.
[Sanchez:] Quintessential question, $60,000 question as they say, of those four people I mentioned, or perhaps someone I failed to mention, who will come out as the leader of this party either now or four years from now?
[Backus:] I think that's going to be a process that's going to hopefully keep you guys at CNN very interested.
[Sanchez:] Is that a cop-out, Jenny?
[Backus:] Never. Never.
[Sanchez:] Thanks, Jenny. We certainly appreciate you being with us.
[Backus:] Thanks for having me.
[Sanchez:] All right.
[Kagan:] It's a process.
[Sanchez:] A process?
[Kagan:] A process, yes.
[Sanchez:] In other words, I'm not willing to say?
[Kagan:] Yes, there you go. An interpretation at the bottom of the screen. Well, they were asked and told and urged to homes, in clubs, and on their campuses, so did they deliver?
[Unidentified Male:] It's my first year of voting, so they got me in here.
[Sanchez:] Still to come, young Americans at the polls.
[Kagan:] Plus, he was on the run for days when it was time to give up. When it was time give up, he was determined to make the evening news.
[Sanchez:] And then coming up, lecturing in the lion's dens. Not a good idea. They get mad at stuff like that, don't they? We'll see. We'll explain. We'll be back.