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Cutting it close

4 p.m. and we have just arrived at JFK. Flying across the Atlantic made it difficult to attend the afternoon editorial meeting, so we have only the broad strokes of the broadcast to go on, until I get linked by phone to the producers. That we landed at all is something of a miracle, as this storm has caused white caps on the water and flags are stiff in the winds. Weather will be a component in our reporting tonight.

Let's leave it at this: We hope you can join us for our Friday night broadcast, at the end of this very long week.

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Somewhere over Syria

A few departure notes from Jordan: first, our traveling party referenced the recent Muslim cleric incident on that commercial plane in Minneapolis -- when we looked up at the moving video map on our Royal Jordanian Airlines flight -- and saw the constant orienting arrow to Mecca. Sure enough, a man was praying in the back of the aircraft prior to takeoff. Prayer is often part of the flying experience on RJ, and I've now flown this airline so much over the past few years (they do, after all, fly to or close enough to all the best "hot spots" in our business of late), I've found myself regretting that I'm not a part of their frequent flyer program.

This flight, on a brand new Airbus A320, is mostly Jordanians. There are about half a dozen American security contractors -- instantly recognizable and now ubiquitous in any airport in the region. As is the case on board many airlines based in the Middle East, there is a man standing in the front galley hallway, facing the First Class cabin, wearing a leather jacket with his back to the cockpit door. He stood there during takeoff and will stay there for the rest of the flight. He is armed. An in-flight security guard. Very effective. The only hint that we're on a non-U.S. carrier (aside from the guy in the leather jacket, the guy praying in the rear of the aircraft and the little "moving Mecca" icon) is the smell of cigarette smoke. I asked about it, and was told that both pilots smoke. It's now wafting through the passenger compartment after the cockpit door was opened to serve meals to the pilot and first officer. You'd think they'd open the window a crack, but apparently not.

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Dead Sea diarist

As I write this post, we are about to depart the Dead Sea Marriott (where three networks, NBC News, Fox and CBS, have gathered to interview Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice) for our headquarters in Amman. Our conversation with the Secretary went well -- though she has the most disciplined command of "message" of anyone I've encountered in public life. In plain English, the Secretary is not about to break news unless her intent is to break news. She preferred the word "challenge" over "crisis" to describe the current state of things in Iraq, and she scoffed at any mention of the "s" word (snub) to describe yesterday's cancellation of the meeting between the President and the Iraqi Prime Minister.

We will air much of the conversation tonight, along with our review of the news in this region, capped off by the President's meeting and press conference. David Gregory will have that story, while Richard Engel will catch the Iraqi angle, having talked to al-Maliki here today. Andrea Mitchell has a crucial role tonight: reporting on what is known about the so-called Baker Group, and what it will recommend.

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AMMAN JOURNAL

This city has taken on a different feel this week -- more roadblocks at the airport, more sudden traffic stoppages on the streets, more troops and military vehicles on patrol. There are obvious security concerns here because of the number of dignitaries visiting. We changed planes in Paris and were stunned to read news of the Hadley memorandum on our BlackBerries. I've just discussed it with David Gregory (who is across town from me at the President's hotel) and Richard Engel, who is here alongside me on his laptop at a converted dining room table at the hotel we are using in Amman. Richard just gave our small team his latest briefing on Iraq, and it was sobering.

We'll begin with the news from here: not just the leaked administration memo, but the decision to put off the talks between President Bush and the Iraqi Prime Minister until tomorrow morning. As Engel warned us: don't be surprised to see some manifestation of the famous Iraqi pride. We are already seeing that in part, in what aides to al-Maliki are saying about why they canceled tonight's session.

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En route to Amman

This will have to be quick today, as my office floor is strewn with the detritus of a trip to Amman, Jordan, which starts the minute tonight's broadcast is over. We are hoping New York City traffic cooperates, allowing us to get to JFK in time for our departure. It will be tight. Much of the top of tonight's newscast has to do with the subject we'll encounter once we arrive: Iraq. The President's meeting is tomorrow, and the outcome is uncertain. Richard Engel has pre-positioned in Amman, and is among those we will talk to tonight, including David Gregory and Jim Miklaszewski. Additionally, Keith Miller is covering the Pope's trip to Turkey, and Robert Bazell has an interesting story tonight about a common piece of heart hardware that may actually pose a kind of danger: medicated stents. And we have a piece that we believe is unique to us tonight: could YOU pass the new citizenship test? It's brand new... no one has seen it, and yet there are protests about the effect it MIGHT have on who we allow into the United States. We'll have it all on tonight's broadcast.

We hope you can join us tonight from New York, and tomorrow night from Amman.

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Monday outlook

I am posting today from a black van on the Jersey Turnpike, heading back from a memorial service for a member of the extended NBC News family. Some viewers may have noticed a small graphic at the conclusion of Friday's broadcast, marking the death of Jean Capus, the mother of NBC News President Steve Capus. We had a large delegation there today, in support of our friend and his family.
                                                   
We have just concluded our afternoon editorial meeting, which our traveling delegation monitored by speakerphone from the road. The top of the broadcast is in a bit of flux, and some of it will depend on the readout we will get from David Gregory, who has spent much of the day on board Air Force One with the President. The aircraft has landed in Estonia, and the "en route" reporting is trickling out right now.

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What Holiday weekend?

I've worked the Friday after Thanksgiving as long as I can remember. And as long as I can remember, it has always been a struggle to fill the half hour with news. Not tonight.
                                                                                       
First, there's the news from Iraq and the ongoing, deplorable violence there. I found it interesting to learn that in an attempt to restore calm after yesterday's awful massacre, it was reported that Iraqi television aired some of the favorite shows from the past -- dating back to the Saddam era -- in hopes that they would have a "soothing" effect and help to assist in the mourning process and restore the peace. Sadly, this new day brought new violence almost too deplorable to report. We will have two reports tonight.

We will also report on the spy story from London which has ended in mystery. Domestically, it's Black Friday for retailers (even though it's no longer the biggest retailing day). We will also cover a Congressional election in Florida that is far from settled. And with the movie "Bobby" now in theaters, we have a great story about the legendary Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

And we have a great MAKING A DIFFERENCE segment this Friday night.

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Thanksgiving Eve

In my experience, I've found that our viewers are very savvy, and any veteran viewer could easily tell me at least one story they will see on tonight's broadcast: the Thanksgiving Eve Getaway! We're covering it a bit differently this year, but have no fear -- it will be there! We're also following two Iraq story lines (and will add our Thanksgiving mention of those fighting overseas), one of which involves the Marine Corps.

Also tonight, we will continue our reporting on the US Airways incident involving those Muslim passengers this week [Editor's note: this item was dropped from the broadcast lineup at 5:30 p.m.], and we have an interesting surveillance story from our own Lisa Myers. We will continue our week-long series "What Works" tonight with an aggressive and constructive anti-drunk driving effort.

And attention to all fellow parents of college students: We'll have a special item tonight of significance during Thanksgiving break.

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The world is a bit more dangerous

That seemed to be the sub-theme of our afternoon editorial meeting, in light of the assassination in Lebanon and the talks this coming weekend between three powers in the Middle East... not including the United States. Richard Engel and Andrea Mitchell will team up to tell this story for us. The story of the Muslim imams and the US Airways commercial jet (which I note stirred so much comment following Pete Williams' posting here) will be covered by him tonight. Also on the topic of aviation, we'll air our previously-planned piece on the skyrocketing number of lost bags in this era of "restricted liquids" allowed on planes. Also tonight, we continue our series called "What Works." 

There has also been an incident involving the President's motorcade in Hawaii -- sadly, these are more common than people might think. I recall a similar incident in a motorcade I was in, back when I covered President Clinton. For the local police and volunteer motorcade drivers, it's always a jittery assignment to drive anywhere near the President -- and there are special risks to members of law enforcement when tensions are high and drivers get spooked. The early tape pictures show a motorcycle officer down. Also, a fourth student has died from the bus accident in Alabama, when the vehicle plunged off the highway ramp. What a horrible story -- our hearts go out to those families.

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The Monday outlook

The topic of Iraq policy will be at or near the top of our broadcast tonight, specifically, the fact-finding and deliberations of the Iraq Study Group, and the potential effect it will have on U.S. policy. The comments of Congressman Rangel yesterday seem to have done exactly what they were intended to do -- stir up debate -- which we will cover tonight.  Additionally, we will talk with Richard Engel, who happens to be here in New York, on leave from Baghdad, about the reality on the ground over there. Also tonight, we're proud to begin a week-long series called "WHAT WORKS" -- based on our collective search to find life's minor victories: the functioning portions of our sometimes-broken daily lives. Tonight, we will tackle the awful problem of emergency room waiting time, and see how some are trying to fix it... and have succeeded.

VICTORY FOR VIEWERS?
Fox has canceled the O.J. Simpson book and TV show. That certainly frees up a weeknight for all of us.

CONVERSATIONS WITH CHARLIE
I spent a good bit of the middle of the day seated at the famous round wooden table of my friend Charlie Rose. You will get to see the conversation tonight on PBS. As they say: check local listings.

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