Obama Touts Economic Stimulus Plan
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Anderson Cooper, coming to you live from the Israeli-Gaza border, where, on this, the third night of the Israeli ground operation in Gaza, the battle seems to be intensifying. Gaza City itself surrounding. The breaking news tonight, three Israeli soldiers have now been killed through friendly-fire, according to the Israeli Defense Forces -- more than 20 soldiers also wounded in that incident involving an Israeli tank, which inadvertently fired a shell into a position, into a building where Israeli soldiers were. Israel -- Israel says they have captured dozens of Hamas militants, as the fighting seems to be intensifying, and no sign of letting up.</s>COOPER (voice-over): And incendiary glow over Gaza, as one of the bloodiest conflicts in the region in decades enters an even more dangerous phase. On this, the third night of the Israeli ground assault, Israeli tanks and troops have pushed deeper into Gaza, slitting it in two, surrounding Gaza City by late Monday. Heavy combat is being reported. Israel now says they have killed or captured dozens of Hamas fighters. One Israeli soldier was killed on Sunday. His funeral has already taken place. In Gaza, Palestinian medical sources say more than 530 people have been killed, including scores of women and children. Even with Israel's bid to crush Hamas with overpowering air, sea and land might, their rockets continue to rain across the border. At least 87 have been launched since Sunday. The terror threat from above is constant. (on camera): A Hamas rocket landed in this marketplace a short time ago. Now, you can see the damaged roof. The -- the dangers from these rockets are several fold. There's not just the -- the initial impact, which is what happened right here. This is where the rocket most likely landed. But, then a lot of times, these rockets are filled with shrapnel, with pieces of metal, ball bearings. And they spray out in all directions. You can see here pockmarks on the ground, where the shrapnel handed. (voice-over): Hamas rockets have killed four Israelis so far. On Monday, Hamas vowed to shower missiles on Israel for months to come. Its leaders warned, no one will be spared.</s>MAHMOUD AL-ZAHAR, HAMAS LEADER (through translator): The Zionists have legitimized the killing of their children when they killed our children. They legitimized the killing of their people all over the world when they killed our people.</s>COOPER: For its part, Israel is digging in, prepares, it appears, for a prolonged military operation.</s>TZIPI LIVNI, ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER: When Israel is being targeted, Israel is going to retaliate. Israel is going to give an answer to it, because this is an ongoing, long battle, war against terror.</s>COOPER: The conflict is sparking worldwide protests. There are also calls for Israel to allow more humanitarian aid to Gaza, although, today, some 80 trucks carrying food and medical supplies were allowed in. Both Israel and Hamas face increasing pressure for an immediate cease-fire. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair are in the Mideast, trying to broker a peace deal. But, in a strong show of support for Israel, President Bush says a truce has to be accepted by the group the U.S. considers a terrorist organization.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Any cease-fire must have the conditions in it, so that Hamas does not use Gaza as a place from which to launch rockets.</s>COOPER: For now, as Hamas rockets continue, and as Israeli forces intensify their fighting in Gaza, any talk of peace will be just that -- talk.</s>COOPER: We're going to have a lot more from Gaza throughout this hour. We are going to talk to someone on the ground inside Gaza City itself, find out what life is like for Palestinians on the ground. We are also going to talk to CNN's Nic Robertson, Christiane Amanpour, and Ben Wedeman about -- about the battle which is now raging, on this, the third day of the Israeli ground operation. Barack Obama made brief comments today about the situation in Gaza. But he has remained largely silent, as he -- as he has much throughout the past week or so of this conflict. He has tried to stay as focused as possible on the economy, talking about tax cuts, which pleased many Republicans today. But now Gaza is just the latest of one of the many things that is now on Barack Obama's plate when he assumes office some two weeks from now. Ed Henry takes a look.</s>ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On his first full day back in Washington, president-elect Barack Obama immediately jumped into the fray, a series of congressional meetings to show he's all over the economy.</s>SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENT-ELECT: The most important message today is that the situation is getting worse. We have got to act boldly, and we have got to act swiftly.</s>HENRY: At a fourth meeting with just his economic team, the president-elect brushed off a reporter's question about whether the crisis in Gaza will distract him from his focus on the financial crisis.</s>OBAMA: I strongly believe that a president or a president-elect or his team should be able to do more than one thing at a time.</s>HENRY: Specifically, Mr. Obama vowed he would break the momentum of the recession with a massive $300 billion tax cut. The president- elect campaigned on a tax cut for people earning less than $200,000 a year, $500 for individuals and $1,000 for families. Aides say some form of that plan will be included in the overall $775 billion economic stimulus package, though Republicans are raising sharp concerns about the price tag.</s>REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: It's being paid for by our kids and grandkids. And, so, while we want to get the economy moving again, the overall size and how we craft this is going to be very important.</s>HENRY: That's why the president-elect is sweetening the package with business tax breaks aimed at winning over Republicans, and made a big show of reaching out to the other side.</s>OBAMA: We are in one of those periods in American history where we don't have Republican or Democratic problems. We have got American problems.</s>HENRY: And then there are political problems, starting with an abrupt Cabinet shakeup. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is denying any wrongdoing, but says a grand jury probe would have been a distraction. While team Obama is downplaying the exit, the president-elect vowed just last month Richardson would be key to selling the economic plan.</s>OBAMA: I think the notion that, somehow, the commerce secretary is not going to be central to everything we do is fundamentally mistaken.</s>HENRY (on camera): Then, there's the timetable for the economic package. Obama advisers had originally hoped the new president could sign it as early as inaugural week and score a quick victory. Now they're saying it may be February, a sign they're already scaling back expectations. Ed Henry, CNN, Washington.</s>COOPER: Christiane Amanpour has been monitoring the situation today from the border. She is in Jerusalem right now, looking both at the diplomatic efforts and also at the timing of this Israel -- this Israeli incursion. Let's go to her live -- Christiane.</s>CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, indeed, this will also be landing right on president-elect Obama's plate, because this is not ending any time soon. The Israeli government has said that it won't be swift and it won't be easy. And, indeed, they are continuing to push their fight against Hamas, despite the growing calls for a cease-fire and an end to this around the world. Of course, the pictures, the reality that the civilian casualties in Gaza are mounting is causing a great deal of pressure on Israel. The foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, told me that she understood that that would be bringing pressure on Israel in the next few days. And, to that end, there has been a huge flurry of diplomatic activity here in Israel and around, as they try to figure out a way to end this, but not just in a cease-fire, but one with a political framework. We're told that they're trying to figure out a way to have monitors to make sure that there is no further incursion of weapons or smuggling of weapons from the Egypt side of the Gaza Strip into the Gaza Strip, and that they want to really take this fight to Hamas to end its capability, or at least severely weaken the capability of it firing rockets into Israel, but, also, most importantly, to end its motivation and the will to fire those rockets. Now, how exactly to get to an end, interesting, because, of course, Israel will not be engaging with Hamas at all. So, it looks like Egypt is going to resume its role as the mediator between Mahmoud Abbas, who is the elected president of the Palestinians, of the Palestinian Authority, mediate between Palestinian Authority and Hamas, and then have the Palestinian Authority negotiate with Israel. Of course, the United States heavily involved in this, along with Egypt and the parties. The French president was here. The former British prime minister is here. And we will be talking to him tomorrow to find the very latest on the diplomatic efforts -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: Christiane, we will talk to you later throughout this broadcast, as well as CNN's Nic Robertson and Ben Wedeman, for the latest on the -- on the fighting that is happening right now, just over my shoulders, a few miles there into Gaza. Also tonight, big news. Bill Richardson, who was supposed to the commerce secretary, today officially withdrew his name from the nomination. We are going to talk about that with our panel coming and have the latest details on that. Also, the latest on the -- the tragic death of John Travolta's son, what we now know about what may have killed him and what the family is saying about the -- the autopsy that will be conducted. We will also have more on the ground in Gaza City. We will talk to a resident to show you what life is like for civilians there. And, also, Ben Wedeman takes a look at the military capabilities of Hamas on the ground right now in Gaza. Our coverage continues live from the Israeli-Gaza border in a moment.