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American Morning
Inaugural Ticket Mania; Circuit City Files Chapter 11 Bankruptcy; DHL to Cut Jobs; Dramatic Reaction to Historic Election From the Pulpits & Pews
Aired November 10, 2008 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: With the "Most Politics in the Morning" now. 71 days until the transfer of power and President-elect Obama's issue number one, the economy. John Podesta, Obama's transition team co-chair, told CNN's John King that Obama is pushing Congress for at least part of an economic stimulus package before taking office. Podesta also says there will be an extensive review of President Bush's executive orders and that there is a lot that the president can do without waiting for Congress.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN PODESTA, CO-CHAIR, OBAMA TRANSITION TEAM: Well, we're facing a transition like no other in probably modern history, where we've got two wars going on and we've got an economic crisis, the likes of which we haven't seen since the Great Depression. So, moving forward, putting a team in place, having a full White House staff in place, getting Cabinet members identified, sent to the Hill and confirmed will be a critical job during the course of this transition.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: The Obamas are traveling from Chicago to Washington today. They will meet with President Bush and the First Lady. A historic meeting of the incoming and outgoing first families. Jessica Yellin is in Chicago this morning. Elaine Quijano at the White House.
Elaine, let's begin with you. The president-elect is going to get his first look at the Oval Office today. He's never been inside the Oval Office. What else can we expect from this meeting?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, as we heard from John Podesta there a moment ago, the economy, of course, is a top priority. That's going to be the immediate focus. But also on the agenda for this meeting as well, of course, national security and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Now, to give you a picture of what this will look like later today, after the Bushes greet the Obamas this afternoon at the South Portico of the White House, the President and the President-elect will take the traditional walk down the colonnade of the White House before sitting down for their talks in the Oval Office.
Their meeting, we are told, is slated to last at least an hour, could go longer, of course. But for both men, especially as this financial crisis continues, the next few weeks are going to be a delicate balance between decision-making and consultation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: I've spoken to President Bush. I appreciate his commitment to ensuring that his economic policy team keeps us fully informed as developments unfold. And I'm also thankful for his invitation to the White House. Immediately after I become president, I'm going to confront this economic crisis head-on by taking all necessary steps to ease the credit crisis, help hardworking families and restore growth and prosperity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUIJANO: Now, also today, of course, Laura Bush and Michelle Obama will have a chance to meet. They will meet privately, tour the residence, and it will be an opportunity for Mrs. Obama to get a closer look at the place that will become home for the Obama family.
John, one more thing, the White House saying that daughters Sasha and Malia will not be here for today's visit. But of course, officials here say they look forward to welcoming them soon -- John.
ROBERTS: And the Parks Service employees out there early with the leaf blower, making sure that everything is ship-shape this morning.
QUIJANO: Right. Absolutely.
ROBERTS: Elaine, thanks so much -- Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: That's good to see.
The economy, of course, is job one for the Obama team. But right at the top of his to-do list is reversing some of President Bush's executive orders. CNN's Jessica Yellin is following that. She's live in Chicago.
So, Jessica, what's at the top of Obama's list?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. There's a lot Barack Obama can do on his own, even without Congress' input, and those include those executive orders the President signed on his own, including stem cell research. Barack Obama as a new president can sign an order making stem cell research federally funded again.
And also offshore -- sorry, oil drilling in certain sensitive lands. The Bush administration has indicated they'd like to begin that and Barack Obama's administration is likely to put a stop to anything the Bush administration might do on that front in the closing days of its administration.
There's also a lot, Carol, an incoming Obama can do with Congress very quickly without much controversy, specifically overturning some of Bush's vetoes. Bush vetoed stem cell research bill that went through Congress, SCHIP, that children's health insurance bill, and the torture legislation.
Those are three things that you can expect to see an Obama White House encourage Congress to re-pass so that he can sign them into law. Some quick action, you could see him take right after he takes office.
COSTELLO: OK. I have to ask you, too, about new Cabinet members. Any names on the agenda? Will he make any surprise announcements?
YELLIN: I know we all want to know when it comes. We're told -- I've been told that Barack Obama's not going to announce any Cabinet positions this week. We could possibly expect to see that next week. What we could get from him this week are more members of his actual White House staff. So, we will keep posted, try to find out those names and let you know as soon we can.
COSTELLO: We will try to keep the excitement level down. Jessica Yellin, live in Chicago. Of course, CNN will have complete coverage of the meeting between President Bush and President-elect Obama. That happens this afternoon at 2:00 p.m. Eastern time.
ROBERTS: Well, how much would you pay to witness history, even though they are supposed to be free? Our Brianna Keilar found out tickets to Barack Obama's inauguration are going for big bucks.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN GENERAL ASSIGNMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): It's the hottest ticket in town -- the 2009 presidential inauguration. And it's free. At least, it's supposed to be.
(on camera): How much would one of the VIP seats be? $13,000?
(voice-over): Huge demand has turned what's traditionally a give-away into a thriving online marketplace. Our quick search of the Internet found site after site, many of them legitimate ticket brokers, promising a view of Barack Obama being sworn in as the next president, for a precious price.
(on camera): I'm looking at reserved VIP -- $20,377?
(voice-over): Howard Gantman is the Senate staffer tasked with pulling off Washington's biggest event.
(on camera): Isn't it against the spirit of the event for these tickets to be sold?
HOWARD GANTMAN, JOINT CONG. CMTE ON INAUGURAL CEREMONIES: Well, we think it's absolutely insane to be selling those tickets. We understand some people want to try to make a buck. But for those people thinking of buying tickets, it's buyer beware.
KEILAR (voice-over): Ticket brokers are middle men, selling tickets they say they buy from Hill staffers or people who get them free of charge through their members of Congress. But because those tickets are only given out at the last minute, Gantman says brokers can't be sure they will get as many as they've sold.
(on camera): You can end up in a hotel room with nothing more than a refund.
GANTMAN: Quite possibly. There are no tickets available now. The tickets will be distributed less than a week before the event.
KEILAR (voice-over): Congressional staffers caught selling theirs could be fired.
GANTMAN: We are going to be alerting all members of Congress that it is against the Code of Ethics for staff or for members to sell these tickets to the public.
KEILAR (voice-over): But ultimately, Gantman says it's inevitable some will be sold. And some people will pay cutthroat prices to witness history.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: But if you want to go to the inauguration as you're supposed to, for free, you can check out inaugural.senate.gov for a link to your member of Congress or senator and other helpful information about getting tickets -- John.
ROBERTS: So right now, Brianna, these brokers are selling only the promise of tickets. Is there any way to track these tickets so they know who -- they'll be able to find out who actually gave theirs away to these brokers to be sold?
KEILAR: You know, I'm not sure that there is. I asked that question of Howard Gantman, who is in charge of the committee that's pulling this whole thing off. And it looks like, you know, even he admits some tickets are going to be sold this way. They're trying to discourage people from doing that. But these tickets, they don't have your name on them. Sort of like a concert ticket. So, once they leave your hands, there's really no way of checking if it's you going to the inauguration or someone else.
ROBERTS: Brianna Keilar for us this morning. Everybody wants to make a buck. Thanks, Brianna.
COSTELLO: And probably will, yes.
ROBERTS: Maybe a few bucks.
COSTELLO: Got that right. I know. $13,000. That's just insane. Barack Obama is also getting support on the bestseller list. Here's more in our "AM Extra."
This past weekend, Obama's books, "The Audacity of Hope" and "Dreams from My Father," both hit numbers one and two on amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. Each has already sold millions of copies. Sales for other books about the President-elect have also surged.
ROBERTS: The first Sunday of a new era. We will take a look at how Barack Obama's election played in black churches.
COSTELLO: And legendary talk show host Phil Donahue has a new project, a new documentary, telling the story of the Iraq war through the eyes of a young soldier, who was paralyzed just one week into battle. Donahue joins us to talk about that and what Obama's victory could mean for U.S. troops fighting overseas. It's nine minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: And breaking news. Just moments ago, the country's second largest electronics company, Circuit City, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The move comes a week after the company said it would close 20 percent of its stores. Chapter 11 protection typically allows a company to hold off creditors and operate as normal while it develops financial reorganization plan.
Oh, it just keeps -- it's so bad all the time.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, this is all about the consumer, right? And the consumer has been under stress and the consumer hasn't been buying as much. And so, you've got layoffs and you've got jobs closings at places like Circuit City. Now, Circuit City has been after bankruptcy protection so that they can try to get things organized. There's already been a lot of jobs lost at Circuit City.
And DHL announcing some news just a few minutes ago as well. This is the package delivery company which is owned by a German company. They've said because of the challenging United States environment, the challenging economy, they are exiting their domestic air and ground service. They will be cutting thousands of jobs -- some 9500 jobs. They've already cut 5400 year.
They're going to reduce the number of stations in the U.S. and end this domestic only service. So, the jobs that are based in the U.S. will be to cater to their international service. So, they're getting out of the business in the U.S. altogether. And they're saying, you know, to minimize the risk of what is the challenging U.S. environment, they're going to make those changes.
This is going to affect drivers, shipping clerks, warehouse workers, anybody who is in this country catching those domestic and air and ground cargo shipments. So, we're going to see how this economy is playing out in a lot of different ways, from your corner retailer in terms of, you know, high electronics, you know, high quality electronics to shipping and lots of different things.
But this is a time for people, I guess, yes, I mean, there's a lot of bad news happening every morning. People have to know that it's happening so that they can be aware of what's happening.
ROBERTS: So, those DHL losses spread out across the country. Is there any one place that will get hit worse than another?
ROMANS: There's this place in Wilmington, Ohio which is going to get hit pretty hard and some other places we've been looking at, too.
COSTELLO: Yes. Just in relation to the population, a number of job cuts there is pretty devastating.
ROMANS: Yes, I think there's some 8,000 jobs there and then that whole population is, I think, 12,000 or 13,000. I mean, some of the places -- these are company towns around the country. So, we're facing a tough 2009 in terms of jobs. And we're going to continue to see this.
ROBERTS: All right. Christine, thanks so much for that.
Arnold Schwarzenegger answers the question -- will he serve in Obama's Cabinet. An exclusive interview with the California governor and his thoughts on the new commander-in-chief, straight ahead. 13 minutes now after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Good morning, Washington.
Some wake-up music for you there where the sun is just starting to come out. A little bit cloudy there. 45 degrees, going up to a high of 51. And it will be sunny today. Rob Marciano here with us this morning.
And we've got an early opening out in the mountain. This is looking like a good season all together.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, if we could just get half of what we had last year.
COSTELLO: And I'm so excited about this.
MARCIANO: Last year was completely, totally epic. We're hoping this year will be the same.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: All right. We'll bring out the snow machine in Wisconsin.
MARCIANO: Yes.
COSTELLO: I love that.
ROBERTS: Thanks, Rob.
COSTELLO: They're hard workers, those snowplow operators.
MARCIANO: They are. It's good money, though. You can get it.
COSTELLO: Really?
MARCIANO: That's what I'm told. COSTELLO: Some larger-than-life characters were on display in Queens, New York this weekend. Hundreds watched as Macy's tested three new balloons for its upcoming Thanksgiving Day parade, including a 67-foot long Buzz Lightyear of "Toy Story" fame, of course. They also saw Horton the Elephant from Dr. Seuss' "Horton Sees a Who." And what would a Macy's parade be without a giant Smurf? And Smurf is there. I don't know what Smurf -- do you know which Smurf that is?
ROBERTS: It's a blue one.
COSTELLO: OK. Who is it? Papa Smurf. You should have known that, John.
MARCIANO: That's not Papa Smurf. Papa Smurf's got a beard.
COSTELLO: Yes.
ROBERTS: Who's giving you that information? Bad information.
COSTELLO: We got bad intelligence on the Smurf.
ROBERTS: It's our executive producer Janelle (ph). What does she know about Smurfs?
The economy, health care, education are early targets for Barack Obama's presidency. But is he trying to do too much too soon? We'll look into it.
COSTELLO: Sunday celebration.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: President-elect Barack Obama. Thank you, America!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Dramatic reaction to the historic election from the pulpits and pews.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Doesn't mean that yes, we can is now yes, we did.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MINISTER LOUIS FARRAKHAN, NATION OF ISLAM: I believe President- elect Obama is going to have to get everyone involved because the job of helping him is not just with his cabinet or Congress, the job of helping this nation out of its condition is a responsibility that everyone has something to do about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Reverend Louis Farrakhan speaking yesterday. The controversial Muslim leader was among the early supporters of Barack Obama's presidential campaign. But he admits that he stayed quiet for fear that his support could hurt the senator's campaign.
Farrakhan wasn't the only minister urging his congregation to get involved. Across the country, black church leaders were urging their congregations to do their part and to not expect miracles. CNN's Chris Lawrence has got that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): What we're hearing from the black churches is a real message to the community on what to do now that the election is over.
(voice-over): Across the country, black churches are celebrating.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: President-elect Barack Obama, thank you, America!
LAWRENCE: From the pulpit and pews, there's a renewed sense of patriotism.
But between the songs and sermons, pastors are challenging their churches.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Doesn't mean that yes, we can is now yes, we did.
LAWRENCE: After a record number of African-Americans voted, the question is what now?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) our participation.
LAWRENCE: Pastor John Hunter lowered expectation for Obama's first 100 days. He told his congregation not to expect economic miracles or special treatment.
PASTOR JOHN HUNTER, FIRST AME CHURCH: We need to be reminded within the African-American community that Barack Obama is going to be everybody's president.
LAWRENCE: Hunter told black voters to find their place within the diverse coalition that Obama assembled, and on Sunday, pastor singled out one such group for praise.
HUNTER: That were it not for the support of Hispanics and Latinos, Nevada, New Mexico, Florida and even parts of California could not have been carried.
LAWRENCE: The sermons focused on personal responsibility. Some say while discrimination still exists, it can't be blamed for not succeeding.
BENNY REEMS, PARISHIONER: I don't think that's apropos now. We've got to say "I can".
RUBY BROWN, WORSHIPPER: We have to do away with all the excuses that if you can ascend to the presidency, you can ascend to anything.
LAWRENCE: That was always the hope as Martin Luther King's sister explained in Atlanta.
CHRISTINE KING-FARRIS, MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.'S SISTER: He said, I may not get there with you, but we as a people will see the Promised Land. This is symbolic of the Promised Land for us.
LAWRENCE (on camera): One of the pastors seemed to sum it all up when he told the congregation, inspiration is nothing if it's not followed up by greater aspirations. Chris Lawrence, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Phil Donahue live. The legendary talk show host reacts to the historic election and gives us a sneak peek at his powerful new documentary, "Body of War."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This makes him dead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to the "Most News in the Morning."
Legendary talk show host Phil Donahue changed the face of daytime television back in 1967. But Donahue's most recent passion is his independent film "Body of War," which profiles a soldier wounded in Iraq.
Phil Donahue -- he was joining us live to talk about war and politics. Welcome.
PHIL DONAHUE, FORMER TALK SHOW HOST: Thank you, Carol.
COSTELLO: It's so nice to see you this morning. So, let's start with some election fun. Tell me what your favorite moment of the election?
DONAHUE: There's a photograph from behind that you -- and you see Barack Obama. You know it is him, just the silhouette. And he's leaning over. And this little kid is looking, black male child. He's looking up and the eyes, it's like -- you're the president. I mean, it was --
COSTELLO: Brought tears to your eyes.
DONAHUE: Oh, I mean, it wants to make you cry. And I just feel very good about this.
COSTELLO: OK. So, I have to ask you what the most bizarre moment of this election. And I know there were many, so you can only choose one.
DONAHUE: Yes. Well, mine isn't that surprising. You know, when I think of all those men who strove for this high mighty place in our country, vice president, president, Joe Biden, 36 years in the Senate. Boy, all that money, all that work, all that -- all of a sudden a woman comes out from behind a tree --
COSTELLO: Dog sled.
DONAHUE: With a gun.
COSTELLO: Oh, Phil.
DONAHUE: And she's one 72-year-old heartbeat away from the president. I mean, what's a story to you. I mean, the guys in the press bar must be going crazy. This is fabulous. I never have seen a story like this in a presidential race. I mean, they're going to be going crazy for the rest of the year on this.
COSTELLO: I know. Until all the way until 2012. Boy, I'm sure.
DONAHUE: Absolutely so, yes.
COSTELLO: OK. I have to ask you about your independent film. I watched it last night. It was very touching. It's called "Body of War." It's about an Iraqi soldier who was wounded, what, in the first week -- Tomas Young.
DONAHUE: Yes. He was there five days.
COSTELLO: And he's paralyzed from the chest down. And this is his story about finding his voice.
DONAHUE: Right.
COSTELLO: What did you hope to prove by doing this?
DONAHUE: Well, this work by Elaine -- by Ellen Spiro and Phil Donahue is -- our attempt to show the harm in harm's way. In the middle of the most sanitized war of my lifetime. Nobody sees this pain. These people are all below the radar. What you see in our film is a drama taking place behind the closed doors of thousands of homes in this country. I'm telling you. Less than 5 percent of us have sacrificed and the American people are not seeing this. I think this is a shame.
COSTELLO: Well, let's see some of that. We're going to show a clip right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOMAS YOUNG, PARALYZED VETERAN: When I made the phone call in September 13, it was because I saw the pictures of him standing on top of the pile, saying that we were going to smoke the evil doers out that did this to us. All that had to happen so I could fly 10,000 miles away to not shoot around because all I saw were women and children running away from gunfire, before I took a bullet myself.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Got a lot of wonderful reviews already. I just want to ask you what your hope is for when Barack Obama takes office for veterans of the Iraq war.
DONAHUE: Well, he will stop the pretense. He will stop it immediately. All the troops, the troops, we love the troops, the -- you know. The troops come home and the VA doesn't call them back. We have to stop all this. We think if we say it, it's true.
So, I see Barack Obama as -- first of all, the smile alone is going to restore this nation to the world's family of nations. And I think he's going to be a big hit, you know, at the G-8 and all those big (INAUDIBLE), Air Force One. They're going to be fascinated with the guy. And he is going to exploit this special attention to the benefit of this nation. I am pumped.
COSTELLO: The bar is high for him.
DONAHUE: Yes.
COSTELLO: He's got the weight of the world on his shoulders.
Phil Donahue, thank you for joining us.
DONAHUE: Tomorrow night on Sunday, "Body of War," airs at 7:00. Tomorrow night, Veterans Day, 7:00 Sunday. I know you will be watching.
Thank you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Phil. Enjoyed it.
ROBERTS: By the way on Phil's last point there, we're going to be checking in with Becky Anderson live in London in seconds. So we'll see what actually is happening around the world.
30 1/2 minutes after the hour. And here's this morning's top stories. Barack Obama returns to Washington today. For the first time as President-elect. He will meet with President Bush at the White House this afternoon. It's going to be the first time that Obama has set foot inside the Oval Office. Michelle Obama will also meet privately with Laura Bush and the Obamas will get a tour of their future home.
How low can they go? AAA reporting today the national average price for regular unleaded gasoline is now $2.24 a gallon. And that's down to almost two cents from yesterday. Gas prices have declined now for 54 straight days. The current national average, 46 percent off of the record high price of $4.11 set back on July 17.
Listen up because this is really important news about your health. We have to tell you about this morning. Dramatic new evidence today that you may be able to slash your risk of heart attack or stroke by half if you take cholesterol lowering drugs even if you're healthy and don't really have a risk for heart attack or stroke.
A study of almost 18,000 people found those who were given the cholesterol lowering statin cut their risk of cardiovascular disease even if their cholesterol was normal. Experts say prescribing statins could provide 50,000 deaths a year. But critics argue that it would cost the U.S. more than $9 billion a year.
71 days until the transfer of power of President-elect Barack Obama. Not only taking on America's troubles head on but he also faces a variety of global challenges and high expectations. CNN's Becky Anderson is live for us in London this morning.
Becky, what is this about Obama's win ending racism in one European country? What is that about?
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well this is an interesting point. Inspired by Obama's win. The French First Lady Carla Bruni has signed up with a bunch of others in France to end racism. Their manifesto is called (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE). I know you understand French. That means, yes, we can. Of course, following from Obama's great chant. She says and I quote "our prejudices are insidious. And she says we must - affirmative action like policies and others to turn French ideals of equality into reality for blacks and hundreds of thousands of Arabs." It's an interesting point.
Incidentally, Carla Bruni who as we know or is was Italian says this weekend that she's happy no longer to be an Italian citizen after the Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berluscon joked about U.S. President-elect Obama last week being suntanned. You remember that he said that he is handsome, young, and also suntanned. Berluscon with reference to the new President-elect. So there's some interesting points coming out of France this morning. Particularly that on this manifesto suggesting that racism should be stamped out. As I say, inspired by the win by Barack Obama -- John.
ROBERTS: I'm surprised that Carla Bruni wasn't offended by his treatment of the meter maid a little while ago. What about the U.K. and Obama's image there. If you want to know more about the meter maid, get it on YouTube.
ANDERSON: Yes, please do. I won't go into that. Yes. I swept the papers this weekend and it's really interesting, the reaction. You know and I know that we've been talking about this for weeks and weeks. Britain like much of the rest of the world in complete Obama- land. It's got to be said. I mean, you're looking at a 70-30 landslide right here. Now interestingly enough, the columnists and the opinions writers in the Sunday this weekend. And I sort of expected them to be a little harder on Obama now that we got a result from him. But they really won't.
Everybody is incredibly enthusiastic and certainly the majority of writers and spokespeople here in the U.K. Very encouraged by what we see to date from Obama as well. Certainly from his aides suggesting that we just may get a little bit of top talk with Bush even before the end of this 11-week period. So people overwhelmingly encouraged by what they see at the moment. Will come good on his promises of course. I got the feeling that many people internationally are going to try to help out with money, with infusion from leaders around the world.
Yes, we are looking at a good picture going forward -- John.
ROBERTS: All right. We'll see you. I tell you his first trip abroad is going to be an interesting one as well. Becky Anderson for us in London today.
Becky, thanks so much for that.
COSTELLO: Looking for the meter maid on YouTube. Got to know.
Another Republican has reemerged after last week thumping at the polls. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger - he sat down with our John King for another exclusive and talked about what it's like living with his wife Maria Shriver, an Obama supporter. And expect to say, this is a bizarre segment, isn't. It's fair to say that John was not exactly ready for what the governor had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Thank you for your time to begin with.
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGER (R), CALIFORNIA: You're welcome.
KING: Does Maria have bragging rights in the house right now? Is that a fair statement?
SCHWARZENEGER: I would say so. I think that Maria is gloating now for the last few days. It has been very tough for me. She's running around the house with a cutout, life-sized cutout of Obama. We won, we won. Obama won. All those kind of things. Luckily can get back into the bedroom. So that's the big advantage.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: He's so refreshing, isn't he? I guess we can say there is at least one thing Governor Schwarzenegger is happy about. Also, when asked about joining a Barack Obama cabinet, Schwarzenegger said he wanted to stay in California until he finishes his term. It's 36 minutes past the hour.
ROBERTS: The big bang theory.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are in crisis mode.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Package deals. How Obama plans to take on the economy, health care, energy and education.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He'll have a program and a strategy to move aggressively across all those fronts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: You are watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to the "Most News in the Morning."
And President-elect Barack Obama is gearing up for the White House with a very ambitious agenda. But some on Capitol Hill are worried about him doing too much at one time. CNN's Jim Acosta joins us now live from Washington.
Jim, tell us more.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
We heard a lot about going slow. Take your time, President-elect Obama. But there is a buzz phrase starting to make its way around Washington. The big bang. Referring to the Obama's transition team's plans to move aggressively on what could be big changes for the country.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): Buckle up. Barack Obama's new team is dropping hints it will move fast on what would be an historically massive agenda with plans to take on the economy, health care, energy, and education. Those issues all links says Obama's transition co-chair John Podesta.
JOHN PODESTA, CO-CHAIR OBAMA'S TRANSITION TEAM: These are all core, if will you, economic questions and they need to be tackled together. And I think he will have a program and a strategy to move aggressively across all those fronts.
ACOSTA: Nearly the same message is coming from Obama's chief allies in the Congress.
REP. JAMES CLYBURN (D), MAJORITY WHIP: We are in crisis mode. We've got educational crisis. We got health care crisis. We got financial crises. We got consumer protection problems. These things must be managed. ACOSTA: That has some in Washington sounding a familiar alarm bell. Overreach.
DAVID BROOKS, "NEW YORK TIMES": You're going to tell me you are going to solve an incredibly difficult economic crisis at the same time you are going to raise reorganize 14 percent of the American economy health care? I think that's a gigantic overreach.
ACOSTA: But one Democratic leader, the number two in the House, Steny Hoyer is downplaying expectations. Saying, "obviously, we are not going to do health care in the first month or two." Democrats have seen this movie before. Bill Clinton got elected on pocketbook issues only to get mired in a noneconomic controversy over gays in the military. Republicans say that they are determined to stop Democrats from overplaying their hand. This time.
REP. ERIC CANTOR (R), VIRGINIA: There is going to be, I think, a willingness to try and get things done but at the end of the day I think you will see a Republican Party in Congress serving as a check and a balance against Mr. Obama's power and Speaker Pelosi's power.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: Now, Obama's new team features top insiders from the Clinton administration who remember the perils of overreach well. So unless they are suffering from presidential amnesia Democrats are confident they've learned their lesson. Carol.
COSTELLO: I like that. Presidential amnesia. Speaking of that, I know that some Democrats in Congress who want the president to act fast. Before he leaves office on some economic issues. What might that be?
ACOSTA: Right. We heard over the weekend Harry Reid, the Senate Majority Leader, the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, would like to see the president, the current president, President Bush, and the Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, use some of that $700 billions in the bailout to aid the big three automakers. We heard Barack Obama's transition team say that might not be a bad idea.
Treasury secretary says he's open to the idea but that has not been resolved yet. But it goes once again to this historic challenges which is why the transition team was making the rounds yesterday talking over and over again about aggressively moving on many fronts, on a lot of these domestic issues, Carol.
COSTELLO: Barack Obama will chat with President Bush about that this afternoon. Who knows?
ACOSTA: We'll see.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Jim. John.
ROBERTS: With plenty of cabinet positions open, the movers and shakers in Washington are updating those resumes. Who is likely to take over the Department of Justice? We'll have a look at the contenders just ahead. Sunny Hostin joins us. It's 42 1/2 minutes now after the hour.
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ROBERTS: 45 minutes now after the hour. Like anyone in a position of power, every president needs a good set of legal minds. For President-elect Obama, the top person on that team will be the next attorney general. Who is it going to be? AMERICAN MORNING legal analyst Sunny Hostin is here this morning to check their names. They are likely to be on the short list.
Good morning.
SUNNY HOSTIN, AMERICAN MORNING'S LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, John.
ROBERTS: Top of everybody's list.
HOSTIN: Well, we know that at the top of everybody's list, everyone that I have spoken to so far is Eric Holder. And this is a huge job, John. I mean this is an appointed cabinet post, appointed by the president, confirmed by the Senate. Attorney general not only has the Department of Justice but also in that head, FBI, DEA, U.S. Attorney's office, thousands of lawyers, you know, are there.
ROBERTS: And he's got plenty of experience at the DOJ as well.
HOSTIN: He's got plenty of experience. Eric Holder was the first American, African-American deputy attorney general. Former U.S. attorney for D.C., my old office that I joined in 1998. He's a Columbia law school graduate. Has been around as a Washington insider. I think very important is he not only appeals to Democrats but has a lot of Republican friends. He is everyone's top pick right now. A no-brainer as one person puts it.
ROBERTS: So at least one issue that may come up in confirmation hearings. We all remember that at the end of President Clinton's term, literally the morning of January 20, he dumped out all of these pardons. Among them was Mark Rich, the Swiss financier, a very controversial pardon. Holder had something to do with that going through.
HOSTIN: He has something to do with it. He was deputy attorney general, of course. And he testified about this and he said that had he to do it over again, he would have reacted differently. But he was neutral in that position. And so I think certainly it came up when he was picked to head up the vice presidential campaign for search team for Obama. It came up, but I don't think that's a deal breaker for Eric Holder.
ROBERTS: Who else is on the list?
HOSTIN: Janet Napolitano is on the list as well. Governor of Arizona. She would sort of lend some gender balance to Obama's cabinet. A former U.S. attorney. You need federal prosecutorial experience to be the attorney general. University of Virginia School of Law graduate. She has been mentioned often. Not as often as Eric Holder -
ROBERTS: Knows an awful lot about immigration laws.
HOSTIN: An awful lot. That would be of course a big positive for her.
ROBERTS: Third on the list?
HOSTIN: Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick. And he is supposedly pretty far up there. He is Obama's very, very close friend. Another former assistant attorney general, John, for civil rights. Former GC, General Counsel at Texaco and Coca Cola. So big business experience and a Harvard Law graduate, just like Obama. People are really bandying about this name as well, another African- American candidate, a first.
ROBERTS: But all the money is going right now to Eric Holder, right?
HOSTIN: Eric Holder. Eric Holder.
ROBERTS: Thanks, Sunny. Appreciate it.
HOSTIN: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Carol?
COSTELLO: I'm going to make a bet in Vegas.
CNN NEWSROOM just minutes away. Betty Nguyen is at the CNN Center with a look at what's ahead.
Hi, Betty.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there. Good morning.
OK. Here is a list of what we are working on in the "CNN NEWSROOM." Bracing for big losses in a small town. Thousands of jobs lost at DHL Express in Ohio and we are there. Also, checking out the new digs. The Obamas welcomed to the White House today by President and Mrs. Bush. Plus, red ribbons for veterans. Volunteers thank those who gave their all.
We get started at the top of the hour right here on CNN.
COSTELLO: And we'll be there. Thank you, Betty. We need to make a quick correction. DHL Express is shutting down its U.S. operations this morning. Earlier one of our banners on the bottom of the screen said DHL was closing shop. The company, however will continue part of its overall business here, employing 25,000 people. Just wanted to make that clear.
Hope and change, a message that inspires 53 percent of America to vote for Barack Obama. And the President-elect's example now inspiring a group of Chicago high school boys as well. A loser look at the little Obamas. It's 48 minutes past the hour. ROBERTS: Wired White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are seeing a conversion of the 20th century politics to the 21st.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: What to expect in the age of Obama. How Facebook and YouTube could change the way government is run.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is going to be the most open and transparent presidency of our history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: You are watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: You know you don't see this every day. We'll see about that. News around the world. Yes, a knockdown, drag out fight between monks. Armenian and Greek Orthodox monks got into it Sunday in one of Jerusalem's holiest churches. Israeli riot police were called in. Two clergy men were arrested. Tensions often run high among the various religious groups responsible for maintaining this site but it has never resulted in arrests as far as I know.
In Haiti, crews are searching for survivors trapped in the rubble of a three-story school building. Officials say at least 93 people died in the collapse on Friday. About 700 people were on the school grounds when the disaster occurred.
Russian navy officials say a faulty fire system was the cause of an accident that killed 20 people on board a nuclear submarine being tested in the sea of Japan. Officials say the submarine itself was not damaged. The accident did not pose any radiation danger.
ROBERTS: Well we just had the first election of the YouTube generation. And now there's talk that YouTube and social networking sites in general could actually change this presidency. Our Alina Cho has been looking into this for us and she joins us now this morning.
Hello, there.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there. Good morning, John.
It's the here and now. Good morning, everybody.
It is called change.gov. And it's the official Web site of the Obama transition team. And it was up and running, guess it, within 24 hours of the election. And right now it is a little spin on content. It is new. But there is a form you can fill out. If you want to share your story about what the election meant to you, you can even share your vision for an Obama presidency. And looking for work, well, you can even apply for a job on this Web site. So how might all of this help Obama? We went to the experts behind techpresident.com, that's a Web site that tracks the online operations of the campaigns.
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ANDREW RASEIJ, FOUNDER, TECHPRESIDENT.COM: He now has his own special interest. He has a group of people that he can go to and ask them to participate in helping him pass his legislative agenda. I think the days of an - just a Saturday morning radio address and an occasional press conference as the way the president speaks to the American public are over. And I wouldn't be surprised if Barack Obama starts doing a weekly YouTube video and also fire side chats for the 21st century by allowing people to filter up questions to him that he might answer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Certainly would make sense. He posted some 2,000 videos on Barack Obama during the election process. In fact, President-elect Obama says he have a five-day online comment period before he signs any nonemergency legislation so you can be part of the process. He is also planning to appoint a chief technology officer. So why is he doing all of this?
Well Obama has a huge online network. Four times as many friends as John McCain on MySpace. Nearly three million supporters on Facebook and he also put together a massive database of e-mail addresses, some 10 million people and counting.
The reason he was so successful was simply put, more people are using the web. It certainly makes sense, doesn't. A pew poll found that 46 percent of Americans use the Internet, e-mail or text to get information and compare that to 39 percent who watch cable news uh-oh, guys. 34 percent that read newspapers daily. And just 29 percent who watched the network news. And finally, if you go to change.gov and look under upcoming events, only one lists so far, the inauguration on January 20th.
ROBERTS: Well as they've said repeatedly there's only a single administration and right now it is the Bush administration.
CHO: That's right. And we are looking at this transition as part of the reason why they launched this Web site, change.gov. To just give you an idea of the scope of it, you know, this expert we talked to said that a hit on YouTube is only noted if you watch the entire video. So take the Obama speech on race. It was viewed some six million times. That means at least six million people watch the entire 37-minute speech. How do you ignore that? You can't.
ROBERTS: Alina, thanks so much for that.
CHO: You bet.
COSTELLO: Somehow that makes me feel better about America, too. At least they listened to the whole thing. President-elect Barack Obama has already made history before stepping foot in the Oval Office. But his election is inspiring a new generation to follow in his footsteps. We just heard from Alina well now we will look at Chicago's little Obamas. It is 55 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: 57 1/2 minutes after the hour now. Barack Obama's message of change inspired many over the past two years. As Don Lemon shows us, his election, has students at one Chicago school looking at their own future and saying yes, we can.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The morning after the election. The music plays at Urban Prep Academy on Chicago's south side. But no one pays attention until - an Obama rap song comes on. 450 boys go crazy.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
LEMON: Elation on their faces as they break into a victory dance. Just listen to the enthusiasm that they recite their daily school creed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We choose to live honestly.
LEMON: When you guys said that creed, did it mean something different? Did you say it with more force and more --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Louder.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Loudest ever.
LEMON: They are calling you little Obamas. What do you think of that? Little Obama . Are you a little Obama?
MARLON MARSHALL, URBAN PREP ACADEMY STUDENT: Me, personally, I think we are little Obamas because just like he made change, we are making change. We are going to an all boys school and we are trying to get to the places where he has been. That's college.
LEMON: College is now attainable for 57 percent of the students here. In 2006, when the school opened, only four percent could even read at grade level. Founder Tim King said much of it can be attributed to Barack Obama.
TIM KING, URBAN PREP ACADEMY FOUNDER: The whole time when we went down to watch him announce that he was running all the way through to him winning last night, there has just been an incredible amount of enthusiasm and energy.
LEMON: And according to King, in many ways, these students are now becoming the teachers. Literally writing their own future. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: History in the making.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is a beginning. The dream fulfilled.
LEMON: Believe it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe in ourselves. We believe in each other. We believe in our prep. We believe.
LEMON: Don Lemon, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Inspiring moment for an awful lot of people and will be going forward too.
COSTELLO: Really nice.
ROBERTS: Carol, it's great having you here this morning.
COSTELLO: Kiran will be back tomorrow. And of course, I'll be here, too, doing something. I don't know what yet.
ROBERTS: We always have work for you to do.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
ROBERTS: Thanks so much for joining us on this AMERICAN MORNING. We will be back bright and early again tomorrow.
COSTELLO: Right now here's "CNN NEWSROOM" with Betty Nguyen.
