Missing Soldiers in Iraq; U.S. Troops Dead in Iraq; Rebuilding Iraq; Vice President Address to West Point; Hero Mile; High Gas Prices
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: Straight ahead this hour -- rebuilding Iraq. We'll take you to the battle-scarred streets of Ramadi, the former center of Iraq's insurgency and show how U.S. forces are turning rubble into construction -- reconstruction. And coming up in 30 minutes, Warrior One for All: the story behind the overhaul and auction of CNN's Hummer. This Memorial Day weekend we're focusing on pride, sacrifice, and service, honoring those who gave their all for this nation. It is Saturday May 26th, I'm Fredricka Whitfield and you're in the NEWSROOM. The search for two missing U.S. soldiers in Iraq enters week three this weekend. Thousands of American troops are hunting for the missing soldier south of Baghdad. In a so-called triangle of death, they detained nearly two dozen people yesterday for questioning. Specialist Alex Jimenez and Byron Fouty were believed to have been capture in an ambush. Four others U.S. soldiers were found dead at the scene. The body of a third missing soldier was discovered later. Meanwhile three more U.S. troops are dead in Iraq. The military says a soldier was killed by an improvised bomb south of Baghdad. Another solar died from small arms fire during an operation in Baghdad province. And a marine was killed in a noncombat related incident in Anbar province. A big part of the battle is to rebuild Iraq. That's the challenge now for U.S. Forces in Ramadi. CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson takes us on a tour with troops in the battle-scarred city.</s>CAPT IAN BROOKS, U.S. MARINE CORPS: You can see where they're starting to clear out right now. This is actually the sewer.</s>BROOKS: Yes sir.</s>NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Raw sewage, putrefies in the road, Ramadi's battle-scarred streets have become a graveyard for the city's services.</s>BROOKS: This was all sewage but we also swept and got as much of this up as possible.</s>ROBERTSON: Marine Captain Ian Brook says these few blocks are typical.</s>BROOKS: When have you neglect for four year, this is what happens.</s>ROBERTSON: Sewage, electricity, water, all took a pounding as troops and insurgents slugged it out for control of the city. When the fighting stopped several weeks ago, more than 90 percent of Ramadi was without water and electricity. (on camera): This is what's left of the high power electricity cable feeding Ramadi it connected to the national grid. And if you look up there, you can see where the power lines were broken down by the insurgents. The effort is now on to get the lines connected again. Contractors have already been in to assess what's needed. (voice-over): U.S. forces have already earmarked more than $10 million to fix the city. No project is too small.</s>CWO ERIC STRAUSE, U.S. MARINE CORPS: Right now,</s>ROBERTSON: Officers across Ramadi are spending fast.</s>LT JOHN HOOD, U.S. ARMY: This clinic that you're looking at right here, painted blue, didn't even exist two months ago. So, the locals have clinic of their own they can go to now.</s>ROBERTSON: Hood also pays local laborers $10 a day to clear trash. Across the city, trucks paid for by the U.S. haul away rubble. Sewage contractors turned in these photographs to prove their job well done. Speed is key, get the city back to normal, keep al Qaeda from returning.</s>HOOD: The reason it fits right in with the counterinsurgency mindset, win the heart and minds of the people and they will follow you.</s>ROBERTSON: But the task is huge. Bigger projects take week, if not longer to get approved. Some sectors of the city, like others, have had no clean-up, no electricity repairs. In his neighborhood, Marine Captain Brooks is flushed with success, even though he was shot his first day, he still says he's achieved more in his first month than he expected during his entire deployment.</s>BROOKS: In the long run, I'm looking at getting 189 marines back home alive and safe and hopefully with all of this going this way we can do that.</s>ROBERTSON: Spend now, short on the war, save later. It's a lesson hard learned after the failures in the early days of the war. Nic Robertson, CNN, Ramadi, Iraq.</s>WHITFIELD: Money for Iraq will continue to flow. President Bush signed a $120 billion war funding bill last night. No strings attached. All but about $25 billion is earmarked for the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the rest for domestic spending. Democrats dropped their insistence on withdrawal timetables for troops to avoid another presidential veto. Iraq war a major scene in Vice President Dick Cheney's address today to West Point graduates, many of whom will likely serve in Iraq. Cheney assured the crowd the U.S. Army will have all the equipment, training and support essential for victory. Nine-hundred seventy-eight cadets graduated from the U.S. military academy in New York. They are now second lieutenants in the U.S. Army. Hats off to them. Like many Americans, this Memorial Day weekend, Bonnie Schneider is away from home, she's helping us raise money for wounded veterans at the Blossom Time Festival in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, where CNN's Warrior One is also on display, right there, proudly behind her. Bonnie, so how is the weather and what's the turnout like?</s>BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, the turnout's incredible, Fredericka, lots of people. You know, we got here this morning, we didn't know what to expect and boy the people are just coming in and enjoying the festival. It goes straight through the weekend. It's put on by the Chagrin Valley Jaycees. They're doing a wonderful job. Behind me, of course, is our CNN Hummer. We've been showing you war we are one throughout the morning. And I tell you, it's one thing to see it on TV, but it's another to see it up close and personal and think about where this vehicle has been and how badly it was damaged in 2003 when it was actually shuttling around the CNN crews in Iraq. Overhauled and a great work done there, so some really great work done there by the overhauling crew at TLC.</s>AMY: I think it's really creative that they put all the people in there. And I really think it's really good.</s>SCHNEIDER: Great, we're so glad that you had a chance to take look at it. Now, Mitch I understand that you're concerned about the gas mileage.</s>MITCH: Well, yeah because gas mileage has gone up, the prices, and really needs to lower because a lot of people are going to smaller vehicles and so not a lot of Hummers on the road lately.</s>SCHNEIDER: What grade are you in?</s>MITCH: Seventh.</s>SCHNEIDER: So are you smarter than a seventh grader?</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And fourth.</s>SCHNEIDER: And fourth. OK, McKenzie what do you think about it?</s>MCKENZIE: Well, I think they're really good at when they made this, all the bullet holes are gone and they put TVs in it.</s>SCHNEIDER: Yeah they did. There's four LCD-TVs in there playing the same loop of the overhaul, and showing everything that the Hummer has been through. So, even the kids like it. And we're so glad you're out here today not getting wet and enjoying the beautiful festival here Chagrin Falls, Ohio -- Fredricka.</s>WHITFIELD: All right, clever kids enjoying Warrior One as it makes its way across the country showing off its goods. All right, Bonnie Schneider, thanks so much.</s>SCHNEIDER: Thank you.</s>WHITFIELD: Well, this Memorial Day weekend, turn your frequent flyer miles into Hero Miles. Fisher House will use those miles to transport service men and women wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan and their families to treatment centers around the country. It's so simple, you just go fisherhouse.org, donate your frequent flyer miles this weekend and participating airlines will match your contribution. Are you complaining about high gas prices? Straight ahead for the first time in two weeks, some good news about how much it's costing you to fill up at the pump.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At this time of year, normally, what I would find would be at least half a foot of water over this area and we would be surrounded by wading birds.</s>WHITFIELD: But there are no birds and no water. A look at the dangerous drought conditions in south Florida. Plus -- those two lost whales are still wandering aimlessly near San Francisco. How marine scientists are trying to lure them back to sea now.