JIM LEHRER: A U.S. Airways plane crashed into the frigid Hudson River today, just off Midtown Manhattan in New York City -- 155 people were on board. The Federal Aviation Administration said everyone made it to safety.
Ferry boats circled the sinking plane shortly after impact, using rubber dinghies to rescue people. Firefighters helped passengers to safety, some wearing yellow life vests from the plane.
The FAA said it had eyewitness accounts the plane hit a flock of birds just after takeoff from La Guardia Airport.
CYNTHIA CARDONA, eyewitness: Looking out the window of my sister-in-law's house, it was coming low, too low, and, all of a sudden, it just hit the water. And just started dialing 911 like crazy. We don't know how many people are on that -- that airplane.
QUESTION: Was it scary?
CYNTHIA CARDONA: It is scary. You didn't see -- ever since 9/11, you don't see things coming that close.
JIM LEHRER: The plane was bound for Charlotte, North Carolina.
The same bitter cold that gripped New York put much of the country on ice today. Pollock, South Dakota, had a record-low reading of 47 degrees below zero. To the east, the deep freeze spread from Georgia through Maine, where subzero cold even forced a ski resort to close.
This was a day for political farewells. President Bush planned to address the nation tonight for one last time. Aides said he would reflect on his time in office and the challenges of the future. Mr. Bush said he will urge Americans to engage the world with confidence.
We will have complete coverage of the address, starting at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time, on most of these PBS stations.
Congress moved today to release the remaining financial rescue funds, $350 billion. A Senate vote made it official. President-elect Obama promised up to $100 billion of that money would go to fight home foreclosures. Senators disagreed on whether they needed even greater assurances.
SEN. TOM COBURN, R-Okla.: If the incoming administration won't commit on paper and publicly with how they're going to use this money, I'm disinclined to vote to give it to them. And that pains me, because I want our new administration to be tremendously successful, in the face of all the problems we have.
SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD, D-Conn.: When you have an outgoing Republican president and administration and an incoming Democratic administration with very different views about how our economy ought to be managed, ask us jointly to step up and make this decision, I think it's important we listen and we act. And that's what I am urging my colleagues to do. This is not going to win you any parades. You're not going to get a plaque or a medal for doing this.
JIM LEHRER: The House debated new restrictions on the funds today. And it was widely reported Bank of America will need more help from the rescue program. The company already received $25 billion.
There were also questions about the health of Citigroup. It's expected to report more losses tomorrow.
Hopes for more federal rescue money helped Wall Street today. The Dow Jones industrial average rallied, after being down 200 points. It ended with a gain of 12 points, to close at 8212. The Nasdaq rose 22 points to close above 1511.
House Democrats unveiled an economic stimulus plan today worth $825 billion. About $550 billion will be new spending over two years. The rest would involve tax cuts.
House Speaker Pelosi said the package will guarantee the biggest bang for the buck. Minority Leader John Boehner called it questionable new government spending. Parts of the package could come to a vote next week.
The fighting in Gaza claimed two major casualties today. Israeli guns blasted U.N. headquarters in the territory, and an Israeli airstrike killed one of the top five Hamas figures in Gaza.
Margaret Warner has our report.
MARGARET WARNER: The Israeli shells that hit the U.N. compound in Gaza today set it ablaze, injuring three and destroying humanitarian supplies intended for Palestinian refugees.
Local U.N. staff were shocked and angry.
JUDY CLARK, United Nations Relief And Works Agency: We have lost all our food and all our medicine to this fire.
MARGARET WARNER: U.N. Chief Ban Ki-Moon, who was in Israel meeting with Israeli leaders, voiced his outrage. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert insisted, Hamas militants were firing from inside the compound. But he expressed regret.
EHUD BARAK, Israeli defense minister: It is absolutely true that we were attacked from that place, but the consequences were very sad, and I apologize for that.
MARGARET WARNER: Israel's stepped-up bombardment in Gaza today also took out the most senior Hamas leader yet to be killed in the current conflict, Interior Minister Saeed Seyyam. The strike also killed Seyyam's son and brother.
Seyyam was in charge of 13,000 Hamas police and security forces, and was the Hamas political leadership's liaison to its military wing.
Mr. Seyyam, I'm Margaret Warner.
The "NewsHour" met Seyyam in January 2006, just three days after Hamas won its surprise victory over the ruling Fatah Party in the Palestinian elections. Seyyam indicated Hamas was surprised at having actually won, and was figuring out how to move forward.
He said Hamas, with no previous governing experience, wanted to share power with Fatah. But Seyyam later was said to have pushed Hamas to drive Fatah out of Gaza in mid-2007.
Asked if Hamas was ready to recognize Israel and renounce violence in return for continued international aid to the Palestinians, Seyyam was defiant.
SAEED SEYYAM, Hamas interior minister (through translator): There are pressures, and I can even say blackmail, political blackmail, from the international community, which is threatening to stop the aid. And this is unacceptable. The international community should be morally committed to helping the Palestinian people. If they cut off the aid, we have deep relations with countries in the Arab and Islamic world.
MARGARET WARNER: And Seyyam made clear that Hamas was not ready to join Fatah in seeking accommodation with Israel.
SAEED SEYYAM (through translator): The basic element in our victory was Hamas' commitment to resistance and the success of its program in liberating this part of our homeland.
MARGARET WARNER: The fierce Israeli bombardment today also hit a major hospital in Gaza and a downtown office building used by media agencies, including Reuters and Abu Dhabi Television.
JIM LEHRER: Hamas said today it's willing to agree to a yearlong, renewable cease-fire in Gaza. That's if Israel withdraws its troops within a week and reopens all Gaza border crossings. Israel had no immediate response.
There were more farewells in the U.S. Senate today. The first came from vice president-elect Biden. He had represented Delaware in the Senate since 1973, when he was 30 years old.
U.S. VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN: I have been a United States senator considerably longer than I was alive before I was a United States senator.
And I may be resigning from the Senate today, but I will always be a Senate man. Except for the title "father," there is no title, including "vice president," that I am more proud to wear than that of United States senator.
JIM LEHRER: Sen. Hillary Clinton also said her goodbyes today. The Foreign Relations Committee approved her nomination to become secretary of state. A confirmation vote in the full Senate is expected next week.
Today, she thanked New Yorkers for taking a chance and electing her in 2000. And she recalled how the Senate rallied to help after 9/11.
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, Secretary of State-designate: Senators sent staff members to help answer the ringing phones in our office, as New Yorkers struggled to track down family members or to seek aid.
I will never forget Sen. Robert Byrd telling me at my state's hour of need, "Think of me as the third senator from New York."
JIM LEHRER: Also today, Sen. Ken Salazar of Colorado gave his final address to the Senate today, after serving for four years. He's been nominated to head the Interior Department.
The Senate also welcomed a new member today. Democrat Roland Burris of Illinois took the seat vacated by president-elect Obama. Vice President Cheney administered the oath of office today. Burris became the lone African-American in the 100-member body.
The new senator was appointed by impeached Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich. He allegedly tried to sell the appointment earlier.
The Senate held more Cabinet confirmation hearings today. Attorney general nominee Eric Holder signaled a new course on fighting terror. He said water-boarding is torture.
The nominee for Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, defended her security record as governor of Arizona.
And Mary Shapiro promised to bolster investor confidence if she becomes head of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
