Chavez Announces His Cancer Is Back; Cowboys Player Killed In Crash
SUSAN HENDRICKS, CNN ANCHOR: From CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, this is EARLY START WEEKEND. Great to see you. The cancer is back. Venezuela's president says he is sick again, but this time Hugo Chavez makes a shocking admission. Plus this.</s>OFFICER JOHN ARGUMANIX, IRVING, TEXAS, POLICE DEPARTMENT: Our officers on scene felt as if alcohol was a contributing factor.</s>HENDRICKS: A Dallas Cowboy is dead, his teammate under arrest after a late night of drinking and driving. Also this.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: God can't stop blessing us, so why can't, you know, continue blessing other people.</s>HENDRICKS: He returned from the battlefield broken, homeless, but things have changed for this Iraq War vet. Now he is giving back one blessing at a time. You've got to see that. It is Sunday, December 9. Good morning to you. I'm Susan Hendricks, in today for Randi Kaye. We begin with a developing story. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announcing that his cancer is back.</s>PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ, VENEZUELA (through translator): Unfortunately, this is how I am telling the country, that in that overall checkup, malignant cells show up in the same effected area. We have had to review the diagnostic, the evolution of the treatment, and we have had to check with experts and we have decided that it is absolutely necessary and it is absolutely essential to undergo another surgery.</s>HENDRICKS: Chavez also spoke publicly about a successor for the first time, saying his vice president should replace him if his health worsens. He now plans to undergo surgery in Cuba where CNN's Patrick Oppmann is joining me now by phone this morning. Patrick, good to talk to you.</s>PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Good morning. And it was a stunning announcement that was shown not only in Venezuela but also here in Cuba, where Chavez's health could have a major impact on this country as well. And, Susan, since really October, when Chavez was re-elected, he had been saying consistently that he'd been cured of his cancer. At that point, he had suffered two bouts with cancer. And then he'd said that he'd been cured during months and months of treatment here in Cuba. And he was again here last week, he said, for more treatment, but said that he was cancer free. Last night that was not the case as he came before the cameras to announce that the cancer had come back. That he will require, as he said, immediate surgery. But he also seeming to be preparing the country, and perhaps the world, for life after Hugo Chavez. He said that his vice president, Nicolas Maduro, to be his successor, ending months of speculation about who would replace him. And then really sort of as Hugo Chavez only can, addressed directly to the Venezuelan people and in many respects was sort of saying good-bye. If I don't make it, this is what my wishes are. So we're waiting today for the Venezuelan parliament to approve Hugo Chavez travel, as is required by the tradition there, so that he can leave his country and come immediately here to Cuba. We would expect he would undergo surgery shortly after he arrives.</s>HENDRICKS: And, Patrick, you mentioned he was announcing his possible successor. Why would he even have to bring that up? Wouldn't it be a given that it would be the VP?</s>OPPMANN: You know, it's really more for his party than just the line of succession. There's been so much speculation over who would follow him because if he were to be, as he said, incapacitated, there would need to be another election to -- it's not like perhaps in the United States where the vice president immediately just takes the role. There would need to be an election to determine who would be the next president of Venezuela. And Hugo Chavez said last night, in no uncertain terms, that person will be Nicolas Maduro, ending months of speculation and some jockeying behind the scenes between a number of figures who perhaps wanted to replace Hugo Chavez if he were sidelined.</s>HENDRICKS: All right, Patrick Oppmann, thank you. Appreciate it. From Havana, live on the phone for us. Shifting gears now to sports, where we're getting details of a second NFL tragedy in as many weeks. Dallas Cowboy linebacker Jerry Brown has been killed in car accident. Brown was apparently riding in a car driven by his teammate, Josh Brent, the Cowboy's starting nose tackle. Now this news comes as we get surveillance video of Kansas City Chiefs player Jovan Belcher. The Kansas city Chiefs linebacker who made headlines last week after killing his girlfriend and then himself. The video is from the night before that incident when police found Belcher asleep in his car. Want to bring in Joe Carter from HLN Sports. And, Joe, let's start with the Dallas Cowboys. What more do we know about the tragic accident?</s>JOE CARTER, HLN SPORTS: Well, it obviously happened early Saturday morning around 2:21 a.m. And Josh Brent was driving the vehicle, as you said, and his teammate, his friend, his roommate, Jerry Brown, was in the passenger seat. The car was traveling down an industrial road somewhere in the Dallas area when he was traveling well above the posted speed limit, which was 45 miles an hour. And the car ended up hitting a curb, flipped over on its top and the police say that it slid about 900 feet. They arrived on the scene. They arrested 24-year-old Josh Brent. One count of intoxicated manslaughter. And then they obviously pronounced Jerry Brown Jr. dead at the hospital a little bit later. And we have a statement -- or actually we have some more from Irving Police, what they're saying about this.</s>HENDRICKS: OK. And do we have sound of that?</s>CARTER: Are we going to run that sound? OK. Apparently --</s>OFFICER JOHN ARGUMANIX, IRVING, TEXAS, POLICE DEPARTMENT: Was on scene felt as if alcohol was a contributing factor in the accident. So Mr. Price-Brent was asked to perform some field sobriety test. After he performed those field sobriety tests, or based on his performance of those tests, along with our officers' observations and the conversations that they had with him, he was placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated.</s>CARTER: OK. So obviously, like they said, they're going to charge him with intoxicated manslaughter. This is a second-degree felony. This carries a sentence of two to 20 years in prison. Now this is his -- well, this will be his second involvement in alcohol and driving incidents. Back in 2009, when he played for the University of Illinois, he was charged with a DUI. And, actually, when he started his career in the NFL, players and teammates had to actually drive him because he wasn't allowed to drive.</s>HENDRICKS: This is so tragic and so sad. The Cowboys are scheduled to play today. Any word on if they are playing? Any statements about it?</s>CARTER: Well, they got news of this incident yesterday when they arrived. Actually when they were getting on the plane to travel to Cincinnati. They play the Bengals today at 1:00. But the team says they're going to continue as scheduled. They are not going to speak to the media, the teammates, his teammates, or coaches are not going to speak to the media about the incident or the death. There was a statement that was released by Jerry Jones. He said he was deeply saddened by the news. There was also a statement released on behalf of Brent's -- Brent, was released by his agent. You see it here. Its saying that "I am devastated and filled with grief. Filled with grief for the loss of my close friend and teammate Jerry Brown. I'm also grief stricken for his family, friends, all who were blessed enough to have known him. I will live with this horrific and tragic loss every day for the rest of my life. My prayers are with his family, our teammates and his friends at this time."</s>HENDRICKS: Joe, do you think this will hurt, in any way, the fan friendly image of the NFL, of course, one of the most popular sports in the U.S.?</s>CARTER: No, no, I don't think it hurts it at all because these are incidences that we're seeing -- I mean obviously this is the second tragic incident in one week involving NFL players, but these are incidences that are happening off the field. I think it hurts the game, obviously, if it happens within it. But since these are separate incidences that happened away from the game, no, I don't think it's hurt the fan-friendly image that the NFL has created and spent a lot of money to protect.</s>HENDRICKS: So sad all around. It makes you wonder if they'll mention it at the beginning of the Cowboys game today.</s>CARTER: I'm sure. I'm sure they'll do some sort of mention of it, yes.</s>HENDRICKS: All right. Joe, appreciate it. Thanks. Good to see you.</s>CARTER: Uh-huh.</s>HENDRICKS: I want to go to Afghanistan now where an American doctor has been rescued by NATO forces near Kabul. U.S. officials say Dr. Dilip Joseph was kidnapped by Taliban insurgents on Wednesday, but locals Afghan officials say he was abducted by smugglers, not the Taliban. An Afghan doctor was also abducted but was released after his family paid a $12,000 ransom. Two men suspected of working with the kidnappers were arrested. And in London, the hospital where a nurse committed suicide after taking a prank call about the duchess of Cambridge has issued an angry statement slamming the Australian radio station that employed the DJs behind that hoax. It read this, in part, "the immediate consequence of these premeditated and ill-considered actions was the humiliation of two dedicated and caring nurses. The longer term consequence has been reported around the world and is frankly tragic beyond words." That nurse, Jacintha Saldanha, is survived by her husband and two children. When you hear the term "fiscal cliff," you probably think about higher taxes, right? But it could also have an impact, believe it or not, on what you eat. The details in a report from Washington just ahead.