[Wolf Blitzer:] To our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM. Happening now, a plot to kill Americans with powerful explosives. Under arrest, alleged Islamic militants with ties to Al Qaeda. The targets said to include discos, airports and U.S. facilities in Germany. Loose nukes over America a B-52 flies across the country loaded with nuclear warheads. The crew had no clue. How did this happen? And word that Larry Craig may cancel his resignation from the Senate if he can get his bathroom bust dismissed. Senator Craig was a big critic of Bill Clinton during his scandal. Now CNN gives the former president a chance to fire back. You're going to want to hear what Bill Clinton had to say to Larry Craig. I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM. The target Americans. The motivation hatred. The weapon powerful explosives. German authorities say they've arrested three suspected Islamic militants who allegedly were planning "massive and imminent attacks." Those words from the authorities. The suspects are said to have eyed facilities frequented by Americans over there, including discos, pubs and airports. U.S. officials say the targets may have included the huge U.S. air base at Ramstein and the nearby Frankfurt international Frankfurt International Airport. Let's go straight to CNN's international security correspondent, Paula Newton. She's on the scene for us Paula, how well equipped and trained were these three suspects?
[Paula Newton, International Security Correspondent:] German officials describe them as highly professional. They were categorical about saying they had had training in Pakistan. Their weapon of choice hydrogen peroxide, relatively easy to get, difficult to detect. What they have to do is concentrate it to a certain level, which authorities say they were well on their way to doing. Wolf, you're talking about explosions that would have been bigger than what happened in London and Madrid. Certainly, hydrogen peroxide mixed that way becoming the stock in trade of these kinds of Al Qaeda cells.
[Blitzer:] They're said to have received some training in Pakistan. Was it extensive? What are German authorities alleging on this front?
[Newton:] They're alleging, in fact, that it was definitely that deep hatred of Americans that drove them to try and come up with these kinds of targets. What is so interesting here, Wolf, is how categorical they actually were. These guys were under surveillance for more than five months. Authorities believe they were given a lot of evidence about how Al Qaeda operates right now.
[Blitzer:] Paula Newton on the scene for us. Thanks, Paula, very much. Let's take a closer look now at the possible targets described by U.S. and German authorities. Tom Foreman is here in THE SITUATION ROOM. A lot of Americans in Germany, tourists and civilian a lot of American tourists, as well.
[Tom Foreman, Cnn Correspondent:] Yes, a tremendous number of targets, if you look at it that way. This is where these guys were arrested, up here to the north. This is Berlin down here, the red dots up there there it was. This is Berlin down here. But look down here at Ramstein, the air base down there. This is part of the cornerstone of the military complex throughout Germany and there are a tremendous number of people here. Not only is this the base where many of the soldiers who come out of Iraq and Afghanistan who are wounded come to get treatment treated. But, also, you've got 12,000 military people based here, 7,000 Department of Defense people here, and along with their families and everyone, else 53,000 Americans gather around this base, in one way or another, and spread out through the country in the military community. That's one big potential target. Then, when you look at Frankfurt airport over here, again, a huge connecting hub. When you fly in and out of Europe, many times you're going to pass through Frankfurt. This is an airport that sees 50 million people pass through it every year. It's one of the top 10 airports in the world and the single biggest employer in Germany. So a tremendous amount of targets there and here. Fortunately, those guys were caught up north. But that's the kind of concern we've been talking about over and over again the targets not just here at home, but overseas.
[Blitzer:] German intelligence German law enforcement security generally pretty good on this front. All right, we're going to watch this together with you, Tom. Thanks very much. A plot with the potential to kill a lot of Americans abroad. Here at home, the homeland security boss may be saying I told you so. Let's go to our justice correspondent, Kelli Arena Kelli, the details are shocking. But should we have expected something like this sooner or later?
[Kelli Arena, Cnn Justice Correspondent:] Well, Wolf, unfortunately, yes. And we all heard Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff's warning that he had a gut feeling that the U.S. was in a particularly vulnerable period. Just last month, Al Qaeda member Adam Gadahn threatened new attacks. So, Wolf, we were definitely warned.
[Arena:] U.S. officials have been worried for months. Terrorists have been threatening and now it's happened again.
[Michael Chertoff, Homeland Security Secretary:] It is a sobering reminder of the fact that six years after 911, the intent of Al Qaeda and its allies to wage war on the West remains very much unabated.
[Arena:] Since 911, Islamic extremists have been caught plotting or carrying out attacks against several U.S. overseas targets, including U.S.-bound airplanes, diplomatic posts, even housing complexes. Terrorism experts say the overall jihadist movement is growing and the fact that there are more extremists abroad makes the threat against overseas U.S. targets that much greater.
[Daniel Benjamin, Former White House Official:] There is a much larger pool of people who seem to have bought into the bin Laden world view and who have joined up with the global jihadist movement. So, as a result, those installations are going to be at greater risk.
[Arena:] But experts are quick to point out that does not mean we can let our guard down against attacks on the homeland.
[John Mclaughlin, Cnn National Security Adviser:] Europe is an easier target. But the United States is still the brass ring for these folks.
[Arena:] McLaughlin says this latest case in Germany raises some new concerns on that front, even though officials say there is no intelligence suggesting a threat against the homeland is imminent. This is the first time that we've heard of Germans allegedly attending training camps in Pakistan, and the plot included Muslim converts who don't necessarily fit the physical profile that law enforcement has become used to looking for.
[Mclaughlin:] The potential here is for a group of terrorists who don't match the most common profile that people use for detecting them being able to come easily into the United States.
[Arena:] It makes for a lethal combination because the better they blend in, Wolf, the worse off we are.
[Blitzer:] And two of these suspects were Germans who converted to Islam.
[Arena:] Yes.
[Blitzer:] Next Tuesday is the sixth anniversary of 911. Are law enforcement what are you hearing from your sources over at the Department of Homeland Security about increasing threat levels or anything along those lines, given the anniversary, if you will11 coming next week?
[Arena:] Well, the FBI did send out an alert to its law enforcement partners around the country saying, look, you know, the anniversary is coming up. We have no specific intelligence. But be on guard. We know that this is this is an event that may spur somebody to act. But as far as we know, Wolf, there's nothing specific being done on the security front. I mean we've heard from many major cities who say look, we're doing all we can already and without something specific to act on, we're just going to keep doing what we're doing.
[Blitzer:] And we know New York City is always on a high state of alert.
[Arena:] That's right.
[Blitzer:] Understandably so. All right. Thanks very much for that. Kelli Arena, our justice correspondent. Let's check in with Jack Cafferty. He's in New York for The Cafferty File Jack.
[Jack Cafferty, The Cafferty File:] He's back. That's Senator Larry Craig. We thought he was gone away, but we couldn't be that lucky. You may remember, he pleaded guilty to a unless you've been in a coma he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct, which stemmed from an encounter with a police officer in the men's room of the Minneapolis airport. The cop was involved in a undercover sex sting operation. The senator pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. Then he said he didn't do anything wrong. So why did you plead guilty, Senator? Then over the weekend, the senator announced that he intended to resign by the end of September. Now we're hearing he might reconsider his resignation and fight to remain in the Senate. Won't the country be lucky if he succeeds at that? Craig's lawyers are asking the Senate Ethics Committee to reject a complaint, saying the events were "wholly unrelated to official duties." You can't even read this stuff with a straight face. They say there's no precedent for the Senate considering a lawmaker's private conduct. That's right and that's a big part of what's wrong with the federal government, that statement right there no precedent for considering the lawmaker's private conduct. Now, the GOP leadership Craig says he won't resign if he can get the disorderly conduct case dismissed by the end of this month. That's a tall order. In a few weeks, he would need to have his guilty plea overturned. That is very difficult to come by. Meanwhile, this can all put the Republican leadership in a tough position. Remember, they're the ones who complained to the Ethics Committee last week. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says now that he still believes that Craig made the "difficult but correct decision to resign." Apparently, Craig's change of heart stemmed from a phone call from Senator Arlen Specter, who urged Craig to consider fighting the guilty plea and trying to hold on to his seat in the Senate. Thank you, Senator Specter. So here's the question should Senator Larry Craig reconsider his resignation? E-mail your thoughts to caffertyfile@CNN.com or go to CNN.comcaffertyfile. Fiction writers the best ones in Hollywood couldn't duplicate this stuff.
[Blitzer:] Yes, you can't make this kind of stuff up. And later, we're going to be playing the excerpt from Larry King's interview with Bill Clinton when Larry asked him about the whole Larry Craig sex scandal. You're going to be anxious we're going to be you're going to be you and our viewers will like to hear what Bill Clinton has to say about this, as well. We'll play that clip. That's coming up this hour here in
[The Situation Room. Cafferty:] All right.
[Blitzer:] Still ahead, though, a massive search for the missing aviation adventurer, Steve Fossett. We're on the scene right now in Nevada and we're going to take you up in a similar plane to the one that vanished. Plus, there has been a major security breach over the skies above the United States. A B-52 flies across the country with nuclear warheads that nobody knew about. How could this happen? And vet versus vet they fought in Iraq. Now they're lining up on opposite sides in the battle line over the fight involving the war in Iraq. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.