Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Market Meltdown: Overseas Stock Tumble; Fighting Words: Clinton/Obama Trade Attacks; Deep Freeze; Fighting for Florida: Romney Pushes Economy; South Carolina Voters Break Down Debate
Aired January 22, 2008 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome. Thanks for being with us on this Tuesday, January 22nd. It's a special edition of AMERICAN MORNING. I'm Kiran Chetry in New York.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. I'm John Roberts in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Kiran, look at that snow. Oh, my goodness. I don't feel so bad about yesterday's cold temperatures. And happy to say this morning, Kiran, it's a lot milder here today than it was yesterday.
CHETRY: You don't feel bad about it. I don't feel bad about it, but I'm sure Rob Marciano does because he's up there in Fulton, New York today to give us a firsthand look. I mean, they're used to getting this type of snow. But they got 36 inches in just one lake- effect event and a little bit more scheduled for today as well.
ROBERTS: Pretty amazing. Hey, they're still doing some cleaning up here this morning. They're sweeping up all the fur that was flying last night. A rough and tumble debate here at the Palace Theater in Myrtle Beach. We'll go over it all with you this morning. Who won, and who lost? Who made the best points? Did they talk enough about the issues? Or is this all just boiling down to a squabble between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton? All of that ahead for you this morning live from Myrtle Beach.
But we begin this morning with news that could affect your money. Overseas stock markets continued to plunge overnight. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell nearly nine percent. Its biggest one-day drop ever. Japan's Nikkei had its biggest percentage drop in 10 years. Markets in South Korea, Australia, Singapore, India, all down, as are Europe's three main indices right now.
What's ahead for the Dow and the other markets here in the United States. We have a full slate of correspondents on your financial security watch today. Our senior business correspondent Ali Velshi is here with me in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Personal finance editor Gerri Willis is in New York, and Eunice Yoon is in Hong Kong for us this morning. Let's begin with Ali. And what are we expecting today?
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, fasten your seat belts, John. Right now, Dow futures are indicating an unprecedented drop of 500 points, more than 500 points. Now, this is the kind of thing that changes a lot as the course of the morning goes on. You talk about those Asian markets. Take a look at that. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng had its biggest drop ever. That nine percent, close to nine percent. Shanghai had a massive drop. Australia, Japan, South Korea. Now, here's the interesting thing. As we move into Europe, we actually have -- Paris has just turned into positive territory. London is just about there. Frankfurt is still off, but that's a good sign because at some point, this wave has to stop.
It started in New York. The Dow was off sharply on Friday. It sort of came back at the end of the day, and then the surprise drop yesterday on worldwide markets. The fear here is that the stimulus package that is offered by President Bush or suggested by President Bush isn't enough. And those words from Ben Bernanke about how he doesn't see we're headed to a recession are not being believed.
The world thinks America is headed for a recession, and if the American consumer weakens, it will weaken world economies which are all much stronger than the U.S. economy. So right now while Dow futures are indicating a sharply lower open, that could change over the course of the morning, and we're going to keep a very tight eye on that.
ROBERTS: Big question. A lot of people asking as we go down here, where's the bottom?
VELSHI: Well, when you come off your highs by about 20 percent, the highs on these markets were all set in October. When you come off about 20 percent, you have what's called a bear market, which gets some investors in to say that might be close to a bottom. We're not there yet, but we're probably off close to 15 percent from those highs on the Dow.
Year to date, by the way on the Dow, down almost nine percent. And what are we? In the second week or the third week of January, almost the end of January. So this is rough markets.
ROBERTS: A lot of people are hoping we're close to the bottom.
VELSHI: That's right.
ROBERTS: They're already. Ali, thanks. Now, let's go back up to New York because Kiran's got a lot more on this -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Yes. And when you ask -- when you say things like you could possibly see the market drop 500 points today, I mean, it certainly does have people worried and a lot of people wondering, what can you do to protect your investments?
Well, we're getting some answers right now. Gerri Willis, a CNN personal finance editor, joins me now on "Financial Security Watch." Again, you know, if you're invested in the market, your 401k, what do you do?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: I'm going to tell you. This is not the time to be pulling your money out, right? You don't want to try to catch a falling knife. That's an old saying for the stock market which means you don't want to be selling stocks when they're falling.
CHETRY: Right.
WILLIS: You don't know how far they're going to go down. So you want to hang on. Have some confidence here. Look. At the end of the day, Wal-Mart is Wal-Mart. We're still going to Starbucks. Yes, there's likely a recession that's going to happen or is already happening now. But there's not much you can do by moving your money out of the markets.
Now, another key thing here -- this is a time to buy. This is like a great big sale. This is a big shoe sale. What would you do? Go buy stocks now as they go down because you're going to get a lot of great deals.
CHETRY: You know, I think there are concerns for people based on where they are in their work and retirement, you know, curve. And for people that are getting closer to retirement, they're probably wondering what we can do to protect, you know, minimize the loss and protect what we have.
WILLIS: Right.
CHETRY: What do you recommend there?
WILLIS: Well, I'm going to tell you. The one thing that everybody should be doing today is looking at their asset allocation. Are you allocated the way that you should be? You got to have the right mix of investments as it will determine your success, even more than what you do on a day like today. Diversify your portfolio. Make sure you have holdings across the globe, not just in U.S. markets.
So you're investing in bonds. You can great information on this at CNNmoney.com. There are great ways at looking at this to make sure you're allocated correctly. And ask a financial advisor. If you're really worried that you've got things all the wrong in your portfolio, get a financial advisor to give you a health check on your retirement savings to make sure you're doing the right thing.
CHETRY: I think a lot of people are going to be making those calls today for sure.
WILLIS: Right.
CHETRY: Gerri Willis, thank you.
WILLIS: My pleasure.
CHETRY: John?
ROBERTS: Coming up now to 6 minutes after the hour, Kiran. And turning to the race for the White House, the Democrats hitting the campaign trail again today after a brutal debate last night here in Myrtle Beach. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama launching into a verbal brawl. The critical South Carolina primary just four days away, this coming Saturday, and both candidates are pressing the issues in fighting the win over black voters. Our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley tells us, with the stakes this high, the action is getting rough.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Wait, you know, Hillary, you just spoke.
(CROSSTALK)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I did not say anything about Ronald Reagan.
OBAMA: You just spoke for two minutes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You think this race isn't personal? Then, you didn't watch.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: While I was working on those streets, watching those folks see their jobs shipped overseas, you were a corporate lawyer silting on the board of Wal- Mart.
CROWLEY: They read their Apple (ph) Research, used it frequently and never gave an inch.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was fighting against those ideas when you were practicing law and representing your contributor, Resco, in his slum landlord business in inner city Chicago.
CROWLEY: Also, John Edwards was there.
JOHN EDWARDS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I also want to know in behalf of voters here in South Carolina, this kind of squabbling -- how many children is this going to get health care?
CROWLEY: So, first victim -- that high-minded campaign on the issues. And even when they did get down to it, hostilities simmered, each accusing the other of distorting the truth. An economic stimulus plan. Obama said Clinton changed hers to match his. She said it wasn't so. Fiscal responsibility. She said he can't pay for his plans. He said it wasn't the truth. On health care --
EDWARDS: There's nothing wrong with us arguing about this. But -- but I believe that there is not a single man, woman and child in America who's not worthy of help.
CROWLEY: It was two on one. Edwards and Clinton have health care plans that mandate insurance for everyone, with government subsidies for those who can't afford it. Obama's plan pivots on offering the same subsidies but driving down costs so people can afford health insurance.
OBAMA: You mandate on families to buy health insurance that they can't afford. And if you don't buy it, you fine them or in some other way, take money from them.
CROWLEY: The Clinton campaign thinks this is a winner. It's one of her favorite subjects.
CLINTON: I think that the whole idea of universal health care is such a core Democratic principle that I am willing to go to the mat for it.
CROWLEY: But mostly, this was a debate dominated by the dynamics of a tight race with big stakes.
CLINTON: Senator Obama, it is very difficult having a straight- up debate with you because you never take responsibility for any vote.
CROWLEY: And two candidates with row nerve ending.
OBAMA: These are the kinds of political games that we are accustomed to.
CLINTON: Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Just a minute.
CROWLEY: Candy Crowley, CNN, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Rough and tumble last night. Coming up at the next half hour, I asked Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean if all this in-fighting is hurting his party's shot at winning back the White House.
As Democratic presidential frontrunners Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton got personal in last night's debate, John Edwards said he tried to stay away from what he called petty bickering. And it seemed to work, at least with a group of panelists who watched the debate while taking a dial test. They turned the dial to the right when they like something. They turned it to the left when they didn't. Take a look at how it played out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN EDWARDS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This kind of squabbling -- how many children is this going to get health care? How many people are going to get an education from this? How many kids are going to be able to go to college because of this?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Well, looking at the way that the line was tracking, people obviously liked that. I caught up with John Edwards after the debate. We're going to have more of my interview with the former senator from North Carolina coming up later on this hour. Republican frontrunners John McCain and Mitt Romney are pushing hard for votes in Florida now. The state holds the largest amount of delegates so far. Yesterday, Romney began a state-wide bus tour. He attacked McCain on the economy saying the Arizona senator voted against President Bush's tax cuts. McCain campaigned in Little Havana where he spoke out against the trade embargo with Cuba. Cubans make up 10 percent of Florida's Republican vote.
And another better day online for Ron Paul. The campaign spokesman says the Texas congressman pulled in $1.8 million in donations yesterday. It was another of their so-called money bombs. Spokesman Jesse Benton also says that they brought in 5,200 new donors -- Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Making the money online. Still not translating as much as he'd like it to, of course, though, with the voters in these early states at least.
ROBERTS: No, certainly not. And he doesn't expect that it will either. But he's trying to create a movement as opposed to a real bonafide candidacy for the nomination.
CHETRY: Well, we're taking you now with Alina Cho. She's going to look at some of the other stories this morning, including the latest out of Washington. Hey, Alina.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Kiran. Good morning. Good morning, everybody. New this morning.
Some key White House e-mails maybe missing by the millions. The "Washington Post" is reporting the Bush administration scrapped an archiving system early on in the first term and did not replace it. E-mails from the run-up to the Iraq war and the investigation into who outed former CIA officer Valerie Plame Wilson may be among the missing. The paper also says the White House recorded over backup tapes that could have provided a last line of defense, even though a similar practice thought the Clinton administration in legal trouble. A congressional hearing on this issue is scheduled for next month.
Top world leaders are meeting in Berlin for talks on possible new U.N. sanctions against Iran. The U.S., Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany are trying to keep the pressure on Tehran to come clean about its nuclear activities. A finalized agreement is expected to be announced soon. Tehran insists it's nuclear activities are peaceful and has repeatedly said U.N. penalties will not stop it from enriching uranium.
A bizarre twist in a hate crimes case in New York City. Police say a Brooklyn man admitted to targeting more than a dozen Jewish sites, including synagogues in the area. And get this. His lawyer said the suspect, Ivan Ivanov, is Jewish. Police say he admitted he was behind the spree during a videotaped confession.
Investigators say he had a sizable weapons collection including pipe bombs and a sawed-off shotgun inside of his apartment. Ivanov was arrested on Sunday after he called 911. He told police someone had shot him in the finger, but he later told authorities he accidentally shot himself.
Well, how many calories are in that glass of wine? We may soon find out. Thanks to a new plan that would require beer, wine and liquor bottles to put nutrition and alcohol content labels on their containers. Great. Something else to be obsessed about -- calorie counting. Critics say the labels take up too much space on the wine bottle, leaving little room for artistic displays.
And in sports news this morning. The defending champion is out at the Australian Open. Serena Williams lost this morning to Jelena Yankovic in the quarterfinals. Serena's sister, Venus, still alive in the tournament. She's going to play her quarterfinal match tomorrow.
Serena won last year. She was unseeded, ranked 81. But this is Jelena Yankovic's first time in the quarterfinals at the Australian. So, good for her.
CHETRY: So back to the wine labeling. You know, in the city of New York, they're also talking about making fast food restaurants post the calorie count as well.
(CROSSTALK)
CHO: That's right. In fact, I think, they're talking about that this week. So, anyway, not good. Not good for people like me.
CHETRY: More to obsess about.
CHO: Exactly.
CHETRY: Thanks a lot, Alina.
CHO: You bet.
CHETRY: Well, much of the country right now weathering bone- chilling cold. Temperatures and windchills dipping into the single digits or lower. An arctic blast dumping heavy snow as well on parts of Central New York. In fact, more than three feet of snow on the ground in the town of Fulton, near Lake Ontario. The area under a state of emergency. And Rob Marciano is in the middle of all of it tracking extreme weather for us. Hey, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Kiran. This time yesterday I was in the warm studio kind of having a good time. But you were outside, and Reynolds was outside, and I guess it's my turn.
Three feet of snow as you mentioned in about a 24-hour period. Some people are saying that's as much as they've ever had in 40 years, and it has done some damage. Check this out behind me. This is a roof collapse of the Public Works building. So all this weight coming down and collapsing this roof.
And here's the ironic thing. We've got salters. We've got plows. We've got heavy equipment. These huge rotary snow throwers, they're in there. So this town has had a hard time digging out. We got into town last night. We called the town hall, the mayor picked up the phone. We chatted with him. That's the kind of town it is. So he's got friends from other towns and around the county that are chipping in to help out, bringing in near heavy equipment and help plow these roads. So big time issues here.
This has been the first real big snow event of the season. Last year you may remember, some of these areas got over 10 feet of snow in an eight-day period. So certainly, snow country for sure. As you mentioned, we're definitely cold. It's cold around the country. Let's take a look at the weather maps and show you what we can expect because there's another system that's coming to town.
Right now, it's not snowing. Temperatures around 15 degrees. The radar showing there is lake effect snow mostly to the north of us. But you go to the west towards Chicago and that's where most of the action is. A little bit of snowfall expected there. It turns to rain a little bit farther to the south. This is a fairly weak system, but it will shift the winds and probably develop another lake-effect snow event as we go through Wednesday night into Thursday.
Freezing rain advisory for north Georgia into the Carolinas, at least to start this morning. The winter weather advisory with light sleet and freezing rain and a little bit of snow right up to the D.C. area. The winter weather continues and for the first time in a little while, it's not snowing here in Fulton, New York. Kiran, back up to you.
CHETRY: In a bit of a break, Rob, between the lake-effect bands. How did you guys get in town, though, if they're under a state of emergency and they're having trouble with their equipment?
MARCIANO: Well, you know, the thing about these lake-effect snow bands is they're so narrow, just a targeted punch. So Syracuse just down the road about half an hour, they barely got an inch of snow. So the roads are all right. Once we got closer to town, the roads did get a little bit more messy. But the other surrounding towns have really helped out and they're doing a good job of getting at least the main roads cleared. The secondary roadways in some cases are still buried.
And insurance adjusters still got to come out and, you know, take a look at this. They're not going to get this equipment out here today or any time soon. So they're going to rely on the help of their neighbors for sure.
CHETRY: Wow. All right, Rob. See you later. Check in with you throughout the morning. Thanks.
MARCIANO: All right.
CHETRY: John?
ROBERTS: Almost 16 minutes after the hour. Kiran, you're watching the most news in the morning here on CNN. The Republicans are taking the fight to Florida. But while Mitt Romney pushes his economic plan, critics are asking some tough questions about his time as Massachusetts governor. We're live from the Florida battleground. That's coming up.
And are you having trouble getting a good night's sleep? Well, your cell phone may be to blame. We'll tell you why that bedside chatter could be endangering your health. Ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Right now, Florida is the hot spot for the Republican presidential candidates. And Mitt Romney is embarking on a whirlwind bus tour. He's fresh off his victory in Nevada, and he wants the state's treasure chest of delegate votes. He's pushing his economic plan to get it. Mary Snow is live for us this morning in Orlando with more on that. Hi, Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Kiran, good morning. And, you know, as Mitt Romney is touting his record back in his former home state, Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, it's a nonpartisan group, is questioning his economic record while he was governor in that state, saying that when he was governor, Massachusetts was only doing better than a handful of other states. But the Romney camp says that Romney helped pull Massachusetts' economy out of a ditch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): As the economy moves to the forefront, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is touting his experience in business.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I spent my life in the private sector. I spent my life helping create jobs.
SNOW: But as he highlights his economic experience, Romney is being forced to answer questions about why more jobs weren't created in Massachusetts while he was governor. Romney says jobs were created, but points out that Massachusetts isn't growing as fast as other states. Romney has a lot riding on his economic message. It helped him win in Michigan, where the auto industry is suffering. That followed two big setbacks in New Hampshire and Iowa, but he won in Nevada where voters said the economy was key. That issue was expected to take center stage in Florida.
LANCE DEHAVEN-SMITH, FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY: Maybe, the economy would be the major issue. Florida has got a struggling economy now. And we have a population that is somewhat cost- sensitive.
SNOW: A large population of seniors live in Florida, many on fixed incomes, and worry about taxes and inflation. Romney is tailoring his message to them.
ROMNEY: Anybody in the workforce, who's 65 years of age and older, they have no payroll tax, either by their employer or by themselves. SNOW: Among other things, Romney is proposing tax rebates for people in the lowest tax bracket and incentives for corporations.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: And Kiran, you know, as the markets worsen and the conditions are getting hard hit in the market, obviously, the economy becoming such a big issue. All of the Republican candidates are really touting proposals to help boost the economy. And this state is going to be so crucial because recent polls show that it's a very tight race -- Kiran.
CHETRY: That's right. And it's a winner-take-all situation with 57 delegates at stake. So a lot of time and money being spent there. Mary Snow, thank you.
SNOW: Sure.
CHETRY: John?
ROBERTS: Kiran, it's every Patriot fan's worst nightmare. Tom Brady is sporting something that is fueling a lot of rumors. What is it? We'll show you the picture coming up.
And race, class, gender and venom overshadowing the issues big time in last night's debate. Have the voters had enough? We'll ask the undecideds who are joining us this morning live from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Well, in this day and age, your cell phone is probably your lifeline. There's a new study though that says if you use your cell phone right before bed, it can actually disrupt your sleep and your sleep patterns. American and European researchers saying that cell phone radiation has been shown to cause insomnia, to trigger mood swings and impair concentration. Also, reduces the amount of deep sleep that your body gets.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta will have more on this study coming up in the next hour of AMERICAN MORNING. Bad news for many people who sleep with their cell phones under their pillow, John.
ROBERTS: Yes, like all of us seem to do. Can't miss those phone calls.
Hey, health care, the war, and, of course, the economy all key issues at the Myrtle Beach debate last night. But did all of the mudslinging drag them out? Let's ask a couple of undecided South Carolina voters who are here with us this morning. Stephen Green is a marketing executive, also a father of four. Tiffany Andrews works in sales, and they join us early this morning. Thanks both of you for coming out. That was a late night last night.
TIFFANY ANDREWS, UNDECIDED S.C. VOTER: Yes, it was. Thank you. ROBERTS: You both had the good fortune of attending the Republican debate and the Democratic debate last night. Stephen, how were you struck by each debate?
STEPHEN GREEN, UNDECIDED S.C. VOTER: Well, one of the first things, as I was looking at the Republican debate, you still have six candidates still up for president. It's harder at times to kind of get a clear definition of not only Republican Party lines and policies for the future, where the Democratic debate, you really kind of saw more into the individual entities and what their policies would be as a president of the United States.
ROBERTS: Tiffany, how about you?
ANDREWS: Actually, it's very interesting. One of the things I noticed most that was different from the Democratic debate as opposed to the Republican debate, one of the major things that they talked about across the board was obviously foreign policy. I wanted to hear more about economic stimulus. I wanted to hear more about health care, and we heard none of that. So the agendas were very different. The Democratic Party, they really had -- it appeared that they had a very defined agenda. So this debate was really good for us.
ROBERTS: Yes, I talked to Congressman Jim Clyburn about this yesterday, who was with us. It's inevitable when you see Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama running in this campaign. That gender and race are going to creep their way into the discussion. Here's what Barack Obama had to say about that last night, the debate about moving past those issues.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As I travel around South Carolina, I am absolutely convinced that -- white, black, Latino, Asian -- people want to move beyond our divisions, and they want to join together in order to create a movement for change in this country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So, Tiffany, when you go to the polls on Saturday, will the issues of race or gender even enter into your decision as to who you'll vote for?
ANDREWS: No, it won't. It's all about who is going to be the candidate that really speaks to my issues. I never once considered because I was female that I should vote for Hillary, or because I was an African-American, that I should vote for Obama. That was never an issue. It's about health care. It's about reforms. It's about the economy. That's what's most important for me.
ROBERTS: On the subject of health care, let's take a quick listen at what Hillary Clinton said about that last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am willing to go to the mat for it. I've been there before, I will be there again. I am not giving in. I am not giving up, and I'm not going to start out leaving 15 million Americans out of health care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Stephen, you have four children at home. How important an issue is health care? And are you hearing what you need to hear from any of these candidates?
GREEN: It's very important with four children. Rising costs are really taking a chunk out of my paycheck every month. The biggest issue, though, there was I heard about universal health care. I heard the platform for the Democratic Party, but I still don't hear how are we going pay for it, how does the average American pay for it. How do these rising costs get slowed down? And I was looking for some more definitive answers to that question.
ROBERTS: Did you hear anything on that front from the GOP side during their debate?
GREEN: No, I think, again, watching that debate, that was not a key issue and not something that they were on point with in relation to the debate.
ROBERTS: Right. And we have one more little sound that I want to play for you here because as we all know, it got a little bit ugly last night. Take a quick listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Senator Obama, it is very difficult having a straight-up debate with you because you never take responsibility for any vote. And that has been a pattern.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Oh --
CLINTON: You know in the Illinois -- now, wait a minute -- in the Illinois state legislature -- just a minute.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Yes, I spoke with Senator Clinton about all of this in New Hampshire. She says it's important at this stage in the game to really compare and contrast your record with your opponent's record. But is this all just getting a little too much in the realm of mudslinging for your taste?
ANDREWS: Well, it was. But I think it's really important for us to have a candidate that stands firm. I think we all want a president that's going to be able to lead our country effectively, that they mean what they say and they say what they mean, and it is what it is. So I think it was relevant first to hear some of that, but it was a little bit too prolonged.
ROBERTS: Just one word answer. Any closer to making up your minds?
ANDREWS: Yes.
GREEN: Still undecided.
ROBERTS: All right. Well, you've got a couple more days to go.
GREEN: All right.
ANDREWS: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Tiffany Andrews, Stephen Green, thanks for being with us this morning.
ANDREWS: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Appreciate it. Now, let's take it back up to New York. And here's Kiran.
CHETRY: Another question on the campaign trail -- is Bill Clinton taking his role in his wife's campaign too far? Well, we sat down with Howard Dean, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, to get his take on it. We're going to hear what he had to say about it next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Look at the Palace Theater in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina this morning. The scene of last night's Democratic smack down debate. Wow, that was quite an adventure last night. And there's the CNN Express Bus. Soon we'll be traveling across the country to our next series of debates out in California.
Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. It's Tuesday, January the 22nd. The special edition of AMERICAN MORNING. I'm John Roberts in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: And Kiran Chetry here in New York. Wow, we both had a chance to watch the debate last night. I felt -- I thought it was maybe perhaps the most personal, nasty one we've seen yet.
ROBERTS: Oh, absolutely. They were really going at each other last night. Right almost from the opening bell. It was Barack Obama who launched the first fusillade against Hillary Clinton. But she wasn't rocked back on her heels at all. She just gave it as good as she got. Not necessarily to the liking at all of the people who are in the hall. Either one of them wanted to hear about the issues. But, I guess, they've got to figure that they got to compare and contrast each other's records and try to say they're the better candidate to win the nomination, Kiran.
CHETRY: Yes. It was a fascinating display last night. We're going to be talking a little bit more about that. In fact, in just about 30 minutes we're going to be talking to Lou Dobbs about that. Did they touch on some of the issues that people wanted to hear about, especially as it relates to the economy? And boy, it couldn't be more timely today.
Happening right now, investors in Asia are reeling after stock markets close with major losses. China's Shanghai Composite about 7 percent. Japan's Nikkei average falling nearly 6 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng is falling more than 8 percent.
We're tracking it all in the "Financial Security Watch" this morning. Eunice Yoon is in Hong Kong with a look at the Asian markets. Ali Velshi in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. And we begin with Eunice.
Eunice is it fair to say investors in Asia and other markets are in a panic because of fears of a U.S. recession?
EUNICE YOON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. That's very fair. A lot of people here are quite panicked and investors are really not taking very little comfort in President George W. Bush's economic stimulus plan.
A lot of people have said that it is a shot in the arm but not enough to stave off a recession. A lot of people over here saying it's coming too little, too late.
In fact, we've been hearing that a lot of American financial institutions as well as European financial institutions have been pulling their money out of this part of the world instead preferring to put it into cash, bonds, or some soft commodities such as sugar or wheat or some of the out more agricultural products.
A lot of people over here now are starting to say, in terms of the recession or a possibility of a recession, it's not a matter of if or when, but now more of a matter of for how long and how deep, Kiran.
CHETRY: The question is how much of this market activity has to do with the current housing crisis that's happening here in the U.S.
YOON: Well, in terms of the housing crisis, it really is having a lot of -- a very huge effect. On the one hand, a lot of people are worried about the wealth effect. People over in the United States are feeling as though they don't have a house anymore or that they can't afford a house anymore. They might not shop as much.
And of course, consumer shopping is -- consumer spending is very important for a lot of these Asian companies, because if you go to your local Wal-Mart, a lot of those products are coming from Asia. Toyota cars as well. Sony electronics, a lot of these Asian companies depend; rely very heavily on the health of the U.S. Market. So that is one key point.
The second key point is that there's concerns now that the problems in the US Financial Sector are spreading to the global financial system. And by that I mean, there's one bank out here, the bank of China, which is a very huge Chinese lender which a lot of analysts are now quite worried that it's going to actually have to make a write-down itself because of its exposure to the subprime loans in the United States. CHETRY: Eunice Yoon for us at Hong Kong this morning with a look at how, what's going on here is affecting what's happening around the world. Thanks a lot.
John?
ROBERTS: Volatility in the markets in Europe this morning, Kiran. Why are overseas investors selling and what can we expect when U.S. Markets open this morning. Our senior business correspondent Ali Velshi continues our "Financial Security Watch" now.
How is it looking at the Dow?
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right now we're looking at a Dow that is still likely to open close to 500 points lower. At this point, the calculation is still more than 400. There is a silver lining here. And that is, as you mentioned, European markets are starting to trade higher despite how bad these Asian markets were.
Eunice pointed out what some of those were. Let's take a look at this. In Hong Kong, the worst day ever. The biggest percentage drop ever in Hong Kong, down almost 9 percent. Shanghai 7.2 percent, Australia 7 percent. Take it over to Taiwan, 6.5 percent. Japan losing 5.7 percent and South Korea, more than 4 percent.
Eunice also pointed out that what this is about is last week we had Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke saying their calculations show an economic slowdown in the United States but not a recession. Guess what? Investors all around the world don't believe him. They also don't believe the President Bush's suggestion for an economic stimulus package is going to be enough.
So while the rest of the world is strong economically or stronger, there's some sense that if the American consumer weakened, the rest of the world can't make up for it. And just this morning, we heard from Germany. It is lowering its expectations for economic growth down to lower than 2 percent. So the world is starting to catch this cold that America has got.
The good news is America is still the engine -- the economic engine of the world. The bad news is if that engine starts to sputter, the world will still sputter. There was a lot of hope that the world will keep America out of a recession. These market indications are that people if the U.S. goes down for a little while everybody will suffer.
ROBERTS: We've got the CNN Election Express behind you. We should mention, this is going to be your home for the next five days.
VELSHI: I'm going to be traveling across the southern states to talk to people about what in the economy actually bothers them. We know it's the number one concern. But is it housing, is it jobs, is it interest rates, is it gas prices. We want to find out exactly what they want to hear from their candidates.
ROBERTS: All right. Looking forward to that. Ali, thanks. And back up to New York and here's Kiran.
CHETRY: And yes, you want to stay with CNN for the latest on the overseas sell off. We're on the "Financial Security Watch" all morning long.
Coming up the next hour, Lou Dobbs joins our team coverage with a closer look at the state of the U.S. economy. That's coming up at 7:15 Eastern Time.
Also new this morning, authorities were now saying that a missing marine wanted for murder has left the country. Investigators saying there is strong evidence that Cesar Laurean is in Mexico and has been for at least a week. He was born there. Prosecutors have asked the Mexican government to issue an arrest warrant but they had to take the death penalty off of the table because Mexico is opposed to it.
Laurean is charge with killing a fellow marine, Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach, who is 8-months-pregnant. She had accused him of raping her and was going to testify against him.
Perspective drivers need more documentation now to get behind the wheel in Michigan. There is a new state policy taking effect today that will prevent illegal immigrants from getting driver's licenses. A legal opinion issued last month by the state's attorney general says that granting licenses to illegals is inconsistent with federal law. That leaves just seven states that don't require people to prove their legal status before getting a license.
Most Americans are now saying the country is ready for an African-American or female president. A new CNN Opinion Research Corporation poll shows that 72 percent of white Americans and 61 percent of black Americans agreed that a black candidate could be elected. As for a female president, 64 percent of men and 65 percent of women says the country is ready for a woman in the White House.
John?
ROBERTS: Fireworks last night, Kiran, at the Democratic debate here in South Carolina. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama had some of the most heated exchanges yet. Each accusing the other of twisting the truth while John Edwards sat back and watched. Some of the fighting even drew boos from the crowed.
Our Suzanne Malveaux at a ring side seat. She joins me now. You are right there front center asking questions last night. What was it like in the room while all that was going on?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, it was really amazing. I mean, the energy level inside of that room, the enthusiasm, the excitement, the tension. The crowd was pretty much evenly split between Barack Obama supporters, Hillary Clinton supporters. But things had been just boiling, bubbling just beneath the surface.
So it didn't take much just to throw out a question, throw out an issue and have it explode. I mean, this was something -- there were so many issues that they were dealing with. Both of these campaigns have been accusing each other of distorting their records. There was accusation of voter intimidation, which didn't even come up in this debate. And of course, there was the role of Bill Clinton as well getting in the middle of all of this.
ROBERTS: Well, let's take a listen to just a little bit of it. It was Barack Obama who threw the firsthand grenade. Hillary Clinton threw one back. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: While I was working on those streets watching those folks see their jobs shift overseas, you were a corporate lawyer sitting on the board at Wal-Mart.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: I was fighting these fights. I was fighting these fights.
HILLARY CLINTON, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was fighting against those ideas when you were practicing law and representing your contributor, Resco in his slum landlord business in Inner City, Chicago.
CROWD: No, no, no, no, no.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So after all that happened, John Edwards said, look, I've had enough of this. Let's listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN EDWARDS, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What I want to say first is -- are there three people in this debate, not two.
(APPLAUSE)
EDWARDS: And I also want to know -- I also want to know on behalf of voters here in South Carolina -- this kind of squabbling -- how many children is this going to get health care? How many people are going to get an education from this?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So, the squabbling back and forth. Did it help the voters decide who they want to vote for? And John Edwards seemed to be the lone voice of reason in the wilderness out there. How did he do last night?
MALVEAUX: Well, you know, it's interesting because a lot of the audience members, they really thought he scored some good points. He made some very good points, John Edwards. But you know, it's very difficult to say because he is registered so low on this scale when it comes to voters. A lot of the issues he talked about really resonate with the African-American community in particular. But he's not doing well at single digits here.
ROBERTS: So what about the other two? Did they in their style of debating last night help people make up their minds?
MALVEAUX: You know, it's hard to say. I mean, they've got four days here. But a lot of people were looking at Hillary Clinton. If you were a supporter, you believe her tough stand and really going after Barack Obama prove that she was going to be a leader that had already been tested would be ready on day one as she says.
The Barack Obama folks really felt that he was positioned in the middle and that was a good position to be in. Even it was just the seating alone, that was a political decision that it look like he was getting it from both sides but that he handles himself very well. That he tries to be above the fray.
But you can tell, I mean, there were so many things that they wanted to get out in the open. We'll see if maybe that kind of tones him down -- at least tones him down for a little bit the next couple of days. And we'll find out if it had any effects here in South Carolina, just four days time.
Suzanne Malveaux, great job last night, by the way. You did really well. Thanks for joining us this morning.
MALVEAUX: Thank you, thank you.
ROBERTS: Just before the debate, I had the chance to talk with the Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean. I asked him about Bill Clinton's tough words for Barack Obama and whether it's proper for a former president to go on the attack like that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Is it seemly for an ex-president with the weight that he carries to get involved in a fight like -- to be acting like a Howard Wilson or a James Carville?
HOWARD DEAN, DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: That is their call. I mean -- you know, I'm not going to get involve in campaign tactics. If stuff gets really ugly, we will make private phone calls to talk to the candidates themselves. But I'm not going to get into that because that's all of the moment. It's all of the here and now. Here today, gone next week. I'm focusing on the 30,000 foot picture. We got to win this election, and the economy and Iraq if we're going to win the election for us.
ROBERTS: When do you think this contest is going to be over? Will it end on Super Tuesday or will it go beyond that.
DEAN: I'd be surprised if it ended at Super Tuesday. I think, it would go beyond and how far depends on large part of who wins on Saturday in South Carolina.
ROBERTS: Could it go all the way to the convention.
DEAN: I think that's unlikely.
ROBERTS: A lot of people would like to see that.
DEAN: I would not. I would like to nominate well before the convention because we got an election to win. And I don't think its not going to be a lot of fun to try to do it in eight weeks.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Yes. He certainly doesn't want it to be uncertainty all the way up until the end of August. Dean also says he's very pleased with how the primary season is going so far. According to record, Democratic turnouts in New Hampshire and Nevada.
Kiran?
CHETRY: Thanks so much, John. Well, you know, there is a scary picture, by the way, in the -- for the New England Patriot fans here in New York City this morning.
Picture and some video as you see it there. It's Tom Brady. The Patriots' quarterback walking with what appears to be a cast there on his right foot. He was bringing flowers to his model girlfriend, Gisele Bundchen. Brady does say it's nothing serious and that he will be ready for the Super Bowl in two weeks. Brady had started in 124 consecutive games, the third longest streak by a quarterback in NFL history.
Our Rob Marciano joins us now. Do you think these are mind games on the part of the Patriots? He's just walking around with a walking cast?
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Oh, absolutely. Gamesmanship at its finest. He's always walking around in cast to show him -- you know, bringing flowers to his girlfriend like he's going soft before the big game. A big bunch of you know what.
CHETRY: The "New York Post" said girly man limps home. So they are buying into it if it's a fake.
MARCIANO: If there is one thing that Tom Brady is not is a girly man. World class quarterback and I'm looking forward to the big game in a week and half.
Hey listen, Kiran, I want to show you what's going on the cold and flu. You know, we're out here in 15 degree weather. I know, according to Sanjay, it shouldn't make you sick but in some places like Texas, and Colorado, and New York State, wide spread outbreak now of the cold and flu.
So we certainly hope you're feeling better. We're in Fulton, New York in snow country. Lake-effect snow machine in full force. And we had a roof collapsed behind me. Problem is in this town, that's where they keep the snow clearing equipment. So how did this town dig out? We'll have a full report coming up live when AMERICAN MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Boy, it was unbelievable winter blast in Upstate New York. The scene this morning where they are still trying to clean up after getting slammed with three feet of snow all in just a single day. It's been plowed and bulldozed into mountains, 5, 10, even 20 feet high.
In fact, up in the City of Fulton, that's near Lake Ontario, it was particularly hard and in more ways than one. Because unfortunately, the building where they house a lot of this snow cleanup equipment also got socked. Rob Marciano takes a look.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome to Fulton.
MARCIANO (voice-over): Shovels hardly make a dent.
It's all about the heavy equipment here in Fulton, New York. Digging out under three feet of snow is no easy job. And with streets and cars covered or walled in, some people just gave up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got the front of it. It was too heavy to take down with a broom for me. So -- that's my excuse.
MARCIANO: Driving around with a foot or more on top, the mounds of snow somehow defy highway speeds. But here at the public works building, the roof just couldn't handle the load.
The weight collapsed part of the 50-year-old building crushing plows, snow blowers, and other critical snow-clearing equipment. Four people inside managed to escape unharmed.
BILL BROWN, FULTON CITY TRAFFIC DIVISION: The crews have got the roads to clear. They've got the downtown sections to take care of. You know, so -- and there's not much anybody can do about this so, you just keep on pushing.
MARCIANO: The mayor has declared a state of emergency. And neighboring towns are pitching in to help out. The city's garbage trucks weren't were here too, so trash pickup has been suspended for the time being. But for folks who couldn't find their curbs if they tried, that's the least of their worries.
BROWN: I'll be glad when it's over. Is it springtime yet?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Yes -- no, it's not springtime just yet, as long as that lake is not frozen and we get these cold outbreaks of winter weather. The lake-effect snow machine will continue to blow. So several weeks before this winter season is over.
Here's a setup behind me. Roof collapsed. So they're not going -- mayor told me last night, they're going to the insurance adjusters out here. They're not going to be able to dig this heavy equipment out to clear the roadways anytime soon.
So if they get another batch of lake-effect snow, it could very easily happen tomorrow night until Thursday, then they'll once again have to rely on the help of their neighbors here. But if there's one thing that folks who live in the snow belt of Upstate New York are, Kiran, and that they are a hearty and ever helpful bunch. That's for sure.
CHETRY: That's right and a bit of snowstorm irony there that all of the equipment is also snowed in unfortunately.
MARCIANO: Isn't that crazy? I mentioned this to the mayor last night, he just howled. He did find a little bit of humor in that as well.
CHETRY: Well, that's the one thing you got to keep right through all that and through all that snowfall. You got to laugh about it. All right, Rob. Thanks.
ROBERTS: He stayed above the fray last night and he may have scored big in the Democrat debate, at least according to our dial testers. My post-debate talk with John Edwards ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: The gloves definitely came off in last night's Democratic debate here in South Carolina. Well, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama exchanged some sharp verbal blows. John Edwards was pretty much in a neutral corner staying on message.
After the debate, I asked Edwards, if it is hard in this increasingly personal campaign to see the dueling frontrunners grabbing all the attention.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Did you find it frustrating that you were often the first to propose some of these new policies and yet you don't seem to get the credit that they do when they propose? (INAUDIBLE).
EDWARDS: It's been part of the campaign. You know, we've got $200 million candidates who get a lot of coverage and it's harder to get hurt. But I've been driving this substantive debate on health care, on energy, on all of the things that really matter in this country and I'm proud of that.
ROBERTS: You said that after in Las Vegas, in Nevada you got your butt kicked. What are you going to do to ensure that you don't get your butt kicked on Saturday?
EDWARDS: I've already picked myself up and I'm out here fighting. And as you saw it tonight, you know, this is the goals of my life. I mean, what I'm trying to do for families like the one I grew up in, give them a real chance of job, health care, all the things that matter. That's what I will fight for.
ROBERTS: You might not necessarily win here in South Carolina, but how important is it to you to finish well here and stay relevant in this campaign?
EDWARDS: Well, I think, I'm completely relevant and I think I'll be relevant after South Carolina. Because people -- anybody who watched the debate will know that there is a passion and drive inside of me for what I'm doing for other people. Just help.
ROBERTS: You have some delegates in hand. Even if you don't win the nomination, you'll have those delegates. What do you plan to do with them?
EDWARDS: I plan to use them to be the nominee. That's what I'm planning. That's what I'm going to use it for.
ROBERTS: But if you can't use them to become the nominee, how will you use them?
EDWARDS: Who knows what's going to happen? I mean, it's unpredictable. We could easily get the blaze toward the end of this where nobody has enough delegates and we go to a convention where we have to figure out who the nominee is going to be.
ROBERTS: All right, senator, good luck to you this coming Saturday.
EDWARDS: Thank you, John.
ROBERTS: It was a pleasure to talk to you.
EDWARDS: Great to see you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: You heard what he said -- may have to use those delegates in the convention to figure out who the nominee is. That's something Howard Dean, the party chairman does not want to see happen. He wants more certainty than that.
Many people say Edwards actually won last night's debate by staying above the fray and focusing on the issues. The critical South Carolina primary just four days away now. Which brings us to this morning's "Quick Vote" question.
Last night, who do you think won last night's Democratic presidential debate? Was it Hillary Clinton? Barack Obama? John Edwards? Or no one. Cast your vote at cnn.com/am. We will have our first tally of votes coming up in our next hour here.
An MLK day jabs at President Clinton. What Atlanta's mayor had to say about a different kind of dream? Ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
