Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Daschle Named Obama HHS Secretary And White House Healthcare Czar; Al Qaeda Leader Takes Pains To Hurl Racial Insults At Obama; Indian Army Fires Back at Pirates in the Guld of Aden

Aired November 19, 2008 - 14:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): In the Middle East, no middle of the road views on Barack Obama. From optimistic overtures to terrorist taunting, they are reaching out to the the U.S. president-elect.

Pirates push their luck and get blown out of the water by the Indian Navy. But other raiders are still holding a loaded oil tanker and its 25 crew members.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They spent $0.42 to ask for a penny.

PHILLIPS: A penny billed is a penny owed, even if it does not make sense. An elderly woman's sensibilities offended by her town's hard line.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

And hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live in the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Well, president-elect's Cabinet is filling up a little more. Sources tell CNN that Barack Obama has picked former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle to be the secretary of Health and Human Services. Daschle would have a big voice in the health care plan that Obama submits to Congress next year.

And a totally different matter involving the president-elect; a new message, supposedly from Al Qaeda's second in command rips Obama for his support of Israel, his stands on Afghanistan, his Christian faith, and even calls him a "house negro". That is a term Malcolm X used, by the way, to describe blacks who were subservient to white people.

CNN White House Correspondent Ed Henry, in Chicago, following the transition.

Ed, we've already seen the words "health czar" used to describe Daschle, so he won't be you're father's HHS secretary.

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, that right, Kyra.

That's significant. It is sort of one of those bureaucratic behind the scenes maneuvers, but Tom Daschle, very shrewd Washington power player. And what I'm told, he did was he negotiated with the president-elect and his advisers that he will be sort of an unofficial White House health czar, in addition to being secretary of Health and Human Services. Significance is a lot of secretaries before him have sort or wound up sort of in a backwater agency, if you will. Not really controlling health policy. And instead what happens is that the White House staff or Republican or Democrat president ends up really running the health policy through the White House.

Tom Daschle has negotiated a deal, according to three officials close to the transition, in which he will wear both hats. He will be the Health and Human secretary and have vast power over big federal programs like Medicare and Medicaid. But also have direct line to the president as the White House health care czar, the point person on all health-related matters. He will be the one dealing directly, for example, with other power players on the Hill, like Edward Kennedy, the chairman of the Senate Health Committee, next year. So a direct pipeline to the president.

Another significant part of this is Barack Obama has been talking a lot about how there will be big restrictions on the lobbyists coming into his administration. Republican National Committee, just in the last bit, since CNN broke the news, has put out a release saying - noting that Tom Daschle, while not technically a federally registered lobbyists is a big adviser at a lobby firm in Washington firm. And his wife, Linda, is a federal lobbyists.

I'm told now that basically the deal with the restrictions the Obama administration wants him to deal with the conflicts. Linda Daschle is going to be leaving Baker-Donaldson, a big D.C. lobbying firm, which has a lot of health clients. And she's opening her own firm at the end of the year that will focus on transportation issues. So that there will not be any conflicts of interest.

Similar to what we are sort of seeing play out with the Clintons, because of the possibility that Senator Hillary Clinton will be secretary of State, potentially, while Bill Clinton is not a lobbyist, he has a lot of international work, obviously, that could conflict with her being secretary of State. So, he's going through all the channels to deal with that. Separately, the Daschles are also trying to get their affairs in order so that they can sort of clear the way for him to be Health secretary, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Now let's get to this message today from Al Qaeda, Al Zawahiri calling Obama house Negro. And we'll, of course, go more in-depth in a minute about where that comes from. But if Barack Obama was not saying anything last hour, has he changed his mind?

HENRY: No, they have decided to keep the same tact, which is to not comment on this. Essentially not to dignify, which as you noted is really inflammatory, racist talk. They just don't want to go there frankly, from that standpoint. But secondly, from a national security standpoint, they do not want -- the Obama transition team does not want to get into a tit-for-tat with a terrorist group. It is not completely unexpected for the Obama team. They have known that Al Qaeda at some point after the American election would try to weigh in and have some sort of message like this. Frankly, both Obama transition team and the Bush White House, as you know, have been preparing for the weeks for the possibility of a tape like this and for the much more serious possibility of a terror attack on U.S. soil. Maybe Al Qaeda or another terror group trying to take advantage of this transfer of power. And that is why both the Obama folks, and the people back at the White House in Washington, have been working together behind the scenes to make sure that both sides are in the loop to prevent a terror attack like that, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Ed Henry, thanks so much.

HENRY: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Now let's talk about this term house Negro.

The racial insult used in that message is not just some random racial talk, it actually borrows a term that black Muslim activist Malcolm X used back in the 1960s, and turns it on Obama. Here is Malcolm X.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MALCOLM X: You have to read the history of slavery to understand it there. Were two kinds of Negroes. There's that old house Negro and the field Negro. And the house Negro always looked out for his master, when the field Negroes got too much out of line, he held them back in check.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, let's get to the senior editor of Arab affairs Octavia Nasr. She joins us now live from Madrid.

Octavia, what are Arab web sites saying right now, with regard to reactions to Ayman al Zawahiri calling Obama a house Negro, quoting Malcolm X?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SR. EDITOR, ARAB AFFAIRS: You know, this is a very interesting development. In the Arab world Malcolm X is a celebrity. His movie was widely watched and people know much about the things that he said. So, basically, they're paying attention right now to the fact that al Zawahiri pointed out, the fact that Obama was born to a Muslim father, but instead, he chose to be a Christian. And then, of course, Zawahiri also said that Obama chose to pray with the Jews. So basically the bottom line is that Zawahiri does not approve of Obama. People are saying, so what?

The more important part here is that we did hear from Ayman al Zawahiri. Remember, this is a message that many experts have been waiting for relating to elections. We thought we would receive something before the elections or during. Well, here it is, we heard from al Qaeda about what they think of the U.S.'s choice for the next president.

PHILLIPS: All right. So what are the web sites saying on Obama's acceptance there in the Middle East? Why is he accepted more than Bush?

NASR: And you know, this is a very important question, Kyra. You know, we have talked so many times on your show, on CNN about the Bush administration not being popular in the Arab world. People blame the Bush administration for many of the woes in the region. Take a look at this cartoon, for example. This political cartoon that we got from AlJazeera.net. You can see President-Elect Obama basically swimming, sinking in a swamp. Those alligators, one says, Afghanistan, another one says Iraq, and one says, economic crises. And you can see Bush, there, waving bye-bye and moving away while Obama is left to basically deal with the problems at hand. This is how they are seen.

They are seen as basically any change from the Bush administration was going to be welcomed in the Arab world. We heard this in commentaries. We saw this on television. If you talked to ordinary Arabs on the street or if you talked to political experts. Almost everybody agreed that it was time to move on, and any change is good change.

But, also, Kyra, let's take a look at some of the editorials that we were able to pick up today from Arab media. This first one comes from Jahadl Kazum (ph), he is an op-ed writer for a Al Hayat (ph) newspaper based in London. He writes, "The new president has no unique, magic wand. It will take him years to put the U.S. economy back on track and embellish the reputation of the U.S. abroad."

So basically, the same opinion is being echoed that Obama has his work cut out for him. That this is going to be an uphill battle to change the image of the U.S. abroad, but especially in the Middle East. Not to mention all of the different challenges he will be facing, not just in the Middle East region, but in the world as a whole.

Another quote that I am going to pick for you comes from Hamad Sabrine (ph) of Al Haram (ph), in Egypt. This is a long quote, but basically, the idea is that the U.S. is burdened with historical heritage of doubts. It is a comment about the Middle East, basically, being known for a heritage of trouble. And Now, Obama, basically takes over from Bush and has to deal with all of that.

PHILLIPS: Well, it is interesting to see the whole world -- and in particular the Middle East - talking about Barack Obama and how all eyes are definitely on him.

Octavia Nasr, thank so much.

A call for peace, that was the topic when President-Elect Obama placed a call to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. According to a Palestinian negotiator, Obama said that he'll do everything he can to help Palestine and Israel come together on a peace agreement.

And the United States and Iran, sworn enemies for three decades, but things might be changing under a Barack Obama administration. The president-elect has said he is all for trying to solve the two nation's differences diplomatically and now Iran's leader is now offering Obama congratulations on his win. Here is CNN's Chief International Correspondent Christiane Amanpour with a memo to the president.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: To restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INT'L. CORRESPONDENT: Mr. President, you have already broken the mold by saying that you want to start unconditional talks with adversaries such as Iran. With that country's nuclear program and stability in the wider Middle East region a top priority, European allies are encouraging you to start that dialogue.

Is there an alternative? If you want to talk about Afghanistan, you have to talk with Iran. If you want to Middle East, Iraq, Middle East, Syria - you have to talk with Iran. So let's be realistic. Let's talk with these people.

AMANPOUR: Just what five former Republican and Democratic secretaries of State recommended even before the election. Now, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has broken with the past himself by sending an unprecedented letter of congratulations on your election. His letter reads, "The great nation of Iran welcomes basic and fair changes in U.S. policies and conduct, especially in the region."

OBAMA: I will be reviewing the letter from President Ahmadinejad, and we will respond appropriately.

AMANPOUR: Iranian officials noted that at least you called him president, and didn't dismiss the overture as President Bush had done, previously. Fellow Democrat and former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, who also brokered a peace deal in Northern Ireland, believes that U.S. policy toward Iran will change.

GEORGE MITCHELL, FMR. SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: It is quite clear that the Bush administration's policy of not talking to those with whom we disagree has been a dismal failure, both in the case of Iran and in the case of North Korea.

AMANPOUR (On camera): Iranian officials are discussing the U.S. election and what it might mean for relations that were ruptured 30 years ago. Iran is expected to conclude that fences should be mended, but only if it is based on shared interest and mutual respect.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, the United States broke off diplomatic relations with Iran after the country's 1979 revolution and the seizure of the American embassy in Teheran after the embassy takeover; 52 American diplomats were held hostage, as you'll remember, for 444 days.

What will it be? A road to ruin or road to rescue? Top suits at the Big Three telling members of Congress the future is in their hands.

And firefighters gained ground on wildfires out west, and they're also finding out who may have started at least one of them.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Bill Clinton is reportedly ready to open up the books to give his wife a better shot at the secretary of State in the Obama administration. "The Wall Street Journal" reports the former president has offered to release information related to any future business or charitable activities. His financial ties overseas became an issue during Senator Hillary Clinton's presidential run.

In less than two hours from now, here in Atlanta, Bill Clinton turns on the star power for Senate candidate Jim Martin. The former president will headline a rally for the Democratic candidate who hopes to unseat Republican Senator Saxby Chambliss in a run off election. CNN's Rusty Dornin joins us with more.

Hey, Rusty.

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, you might call it the battle of the headliners. Jim Martin scoring former President Clinton today. Last week it was Saxby Chambliss it was John McCain. Two big names still out there, and they are invited, but no one knows if they will show.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DORNIN (voice over): A fierce fight for the U.S. Senate seat in Georgia has Republican Saxby Chambliss and Jim Martin campaigning with the stars to tip voters in their favor for the runoff December 2nd. Today, former President Bill Clinton will deliver for the Democrat and Al Gore will be here this weekend. Republican Saxby Chambliss scored Senator John McCain last week in his first post-election political speech.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You will see that Saxby Chambliss is doing what we Republicans should have done for eight years.

DORNIN: And Mike Huckabee came to hawk his tax plan and Chambliss for Senate.

ANNOUNCER: Barack Obama's new taxes would be a disaster and yet Jim Martin supports them.

DORNIN: Chambliss is using Obama's policies to attack his opponent. But Jim Martin is banking on Obama's popularity to stir up voters.

ANNOUNCER: Jim Martin will help Barack Obama cut taxes for middle class and get our economy moving again.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Welcome to Atlanta!

DORNIN: Martin's campaign has invited Obama to appear, but so far, no word.

BILL CLINTON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Your next senator, Wyche Fowler!

DORNIN: When President-Elect Bill Clinton stumped here in 1992 for the Senate candidate in a runoff campaign, the candidate lost. And some say it was embarrassing to the new president. Political analysts say that might be the reason it is too risky for Obama to come to Georgia. Because it is a run off, CNN 's Bill Schneider says it is tough for the Democrats to win the seat.

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Turnout is likely to drop sharply and if only the hardcore Georgia voters come out December 2nd, that would be good for the Republicans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DORNIN: What's at stake here is a filibuster-proof Senate. If the Democrats can get these two more seats, that would make it impossible for the Republicans to filibuster, so that is why the national spotlight is here, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We will follow it with you. Rusty Dornin, thank you so much.

Georgia is one of three Senate races to determine whether Democrats get a filibuster-proof majority and one looks like it has now been decided. Unofficial results show that Democrat Mark Begich apparently beating Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens by less than 4,000 votes. An official announcement is expected in two weeks. Then Stevens would be able to request a recount. Stevens was convicted in October of filing false statements on his Senate financial disclosure forms.

And in Minnesota a recount underway in the Senate battle between Republican incumbent Norm Coleman and his Democratic challenger, Al Franken. Almost 3 million ballots have to be counted. The recount was automatically triggered with Coleman only 215 votes ahead in that official count. It is expected to be completed by December 5th.

Well, a group of college kids tried to put a bonfire out, but were they responsible for sparking a ferocious wildfire?

Hurricane Ike is being blamed - or credited-for a little baby boom. Stormy weather bringing people together.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: This isn't a Hollywood movie. Real live pirates on the rampage hijacking ships and taking hostages. Is walking the plank next?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, new information now on one of the three wildfires in Southern California. College students who lit a bonfire being blamed for the Santa Barbara blaze known as the Tea Fire; it destroyed 210 homes, some of them mansions. The sheriff calls it carelessness, saying 10 students thought they had put the bonfire out before leaving. But still, the case has been turned over to prosecutors to see if criminal charges should be filed In all, the wildfires have destroyed about 1,000 homes.

Well, you have a month before we can officially call it a winter wonderland, but check out the Norman Rockwell-ish snowscape in Chesterton, Indiana, yesterday. Other parts of the Great Lakes Region, are getting pelted with more snow today. Some areas could see up to 10 inches. And that is not the only place feeling the big chill right now. Let's check in with meteorologist Chad Myers right now.

(WEATHER FORECAST)

PHILLIPS: Well, when Hurricane Ike hit Ohio in September more than 2 million people lost power, some for a week. No TV, no Internet, no lights, but couples apparently kept pretty busy. Doctors have seen a bunch of new pregnancies with June due dates, and sure enough, nine months after the storm.

And an indoor Main Street, with movies, hair salon, and even more. The new look of retirement living for some very lucky seniors.

The dreaded B word, bankruptcy. But could it be a solution for homeowners facing foreclosure? Our personal finance editor joins us with some good advice.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: It's 2:28 Eastern Time. Here are some of the stories we are working on right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Nebraska lawmakers voted today to scrap the state's safe have law, which doesn't have an age limit. The new stricter version allows parents to abandon children only if they are 30 days old or less. A final vote is expected on Friday.

An FBI special agent killed in the line of duty near Pittsburgh today. Authorities say he was serving a warrant in connection with a drug ring.

Another hearing is scheduled this afternoon, in Arizona, for an eight-year-old charged with killing his father and another man. Critics are complaining that the boy isn't getting justice. Newly released video shows him being questioned by police without a lawyer or a parent in the room.

Well, bail them out or let them go bankrupt? That is the $25 billion question before a House committee. The CEOs of GM, Ford and Chrysler are asking for a financial lift. So far, the ride has been pretty rough. Let's get straight to CNN's Kate Bolduan; she is in Washington.

Hey, Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CAPITOL HILL CORRESPONDENT: I think that is a perfect description. A very rough ride here on Capitol Hill for the executives. They are now on the House side today. They were on the Senate side yesterday, pleading their case, asking for help. And they have received a very similar welcome on the House side, as they did on the Senate side, not a very warm one.

The executives of the Big Three saying they need what they're calling a bridge loan to make it through and to stay afloat. At the same time they are getting a grilling; have been, all day getting a grilling from the House members who are asking some very tough questions.

Why do you deserve this loan? What are you going to do if you do get these funds? What are you going to do to restructure in order to be competitive and viable in the long term? And also asking the simple question of how much money do you need and will it help?

Listen here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PAUL KANJORSKI (D), PENNSYLVANIA: Can you just tell me in absolute terms how much money do you need to survive, General Motors, from today until March 30th?

RICK WAGONER, CEO, GENERAL MOTORS: Congressman, it's going to depend on what happens with suppliers and markets.

KANJORSKI: I understand. And give me your worst case scenario.

WAGONER: The worst case scenario, the amount of money would be significant. I mean, we have suppliers --

KANJORSKI: What is significant?

WAGONER: $5 billion every month.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Well, where do things stand while those talks are going on? On the House side, where do things stand in terms of an auto industry bailout. Well, Kyra, they do appear to be stalled.

Lawmakers really dug in and divided on where these funds should come from. Democrats in general, still supporting money being carved out of the $750 billion financial industry bailout. While the Republicans and the Bush administration very much standing against that saying they want to take the money from an existing loan program that's already tooled for automakers that the money is meant to be to help them to produce more fuel-efficient vehicles.

I should say that there is some talk of compromise. There's a compromise proposal bouncing around the Senate right now that would use that existing loan program. But the key, is that is along with the funds the automakers would promise that the first thing that would happen is they would put money back into that pot so they could put the money toward more fuel-efficient vehicles. But I have to say, that it doesn't appear to be -- it's unclear if there really is any traction for that compromise proposal. So right now, things are pretty stuck. PHILLIPS: Well, you talked about one thing that is definitely not unclear. And that is a bit of an irony here. We're talking about fuel efficient vehicles, yet, hmmm, these guys come flying in, in their private jets.

Take a listen to what representative Brad Sherman had to say to these CEO's.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. BRAD SHERMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: I'm going to ask three executives here to raise their hand if they flew here commercial. Let the record show no hands went up. Second, going to ask you to raise your hand if you're planning to sell you jet in place now, and fly back commercial. Let the record show, no hands went up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So, here they are. It's actually kind of funny, talking about fuel efficient vehicles, bailing out the auto industry. They could have bought a $500 round trip ticket. Yet, no, they took the $20,000 private jet. No big whoop.

BOLDUAN: Well, no big whoop is right. No, I think the point is, is no matter what, it definitely was a PR mishap we could say. And if definitely took the big three off message in the sense that they say, we really need help.

While at the same time, you said it. It's quite ironic. They're here on Capitol Hill, hat in hand. But, they did arrive in private jets. I mean, for the automakers part, they did issue statements saying, in general, that it's for security reason that they do fly private. But, I can tell you, I'm sure those statements would not appease lawmakers today.

PHILLIPS: And of course, you fly around by private jet, right, Kate?

BOLDUAN: How did you know?

PHILLIPS: Yes. You zip right in there to the Hill.

Kate, thanks.

BOLDUAN: Thanks.

PHILLIPS: Well, the leaders of the Big Three back in the hot seat on Capitol Hill, seeking billions of dollars in a federal bailout. Should they get it, or take their changes in bankruptcy? And we've heard from two lawmakers who carry different opinions last hour. First Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RICHARD SHELBY (R), ALABAMA: Going into bankruptcy, the chapter 11, the company will slim down, come out. A lot of our airlines have done that and they survived.

Most economists believe that's the best way to go. I believe it's the the best way to go,. Otherwise, we're going to give them a blood transfusion and next year you're going to give them another one, and another one. And they're going to be on life support. And they're going to be on the taxpayers' dole. That's not the way to run a corporate company.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And then Democratic Congressman Maxine Waters favors a bailout, but with conditions. Here's what she told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MAXINE WATERS (D), CALIFORNIA: Evidently, we're in an economic crisis. We've already agreed to $700 billion, which has been given to Wall Street and the biggest banks. And so the automobile industry is here.

And I believe that in the final analysis, they're going the vote for them to get support. If they get support, we should set some criteria and make some demands of them in relationship to showing us how they plan to use the money, how they're going to spend the money. We should also make them show us and tell us how they're going to help the dealerships who are on the front line. We have lots of employees, too.

PHILLIPS: Well, the heated debate is far from over and whether bankruptcy might be the best medicine for the big three. But it got us thinking, is bankruptcy a solution for for all of those people facing foreclosure on the homes. Joining us with some advice on this, CNN personal finance editor, Gerri Willis.

Well, Gerri, what do you think? Is bankruptcy a smart move for those facing foreclosure right now?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: No.

PHILLIPS: OK. Bottom line, no. OK. Let's move on.

WILLIS: It doesn't save you from bankruptcy. There are only couple of few states where you can really protect your home by filing bankruptcy/ Texas and Florida, it's really unusual.

Remember that they changed the bankruptcy law and they made it harder to get your debts just wiped away. chapter 13, chapter 7. Well, you can't save your house. Now, the bottom line here is that you really want to -- as it stands now, bankruptcy can only delay foreclosure, still on the hook for payments. And in a chapter 13, you'll still be allowed to stretch out your past due payments.

At the end of the day, what you need to know is that it's not a saving grace. Richard Durbin held a hearing in the Senate today. He wants to get a law put into place that would essentially allow bankruptcy judges to do what is called a cram down, that is forgive mortgage debt. But, that sure as heck isn't law yet. And there's no expectations it will be law before the end of the year certainly.

PHILLIPS: OK. So what's the solution for people going into foreclosure.

WILLIS: Well, there are solutions our there. But there are a lot more works than filing for bankruptcy. You can negotiate a short sell. This is where you go out and find your own buyer for the house. They agree to pay less than what you owe. You have to have the bank sign onto this.

Then there's Jingle Mail. This is essentially where you mail your keys into the lender. Again, somebody's got to forgive some debt there. And the other thing is, if you aren't very far into the process, let's say you owe, you're or late on maybe one payment or maybe two. Then what you want to think about is contacting HUD directly, asking for a counselor in your city or state. Dial 800-255- 3542. You can get direct help there. The National Foundation for Credit Counseling also has a special division set up to help homeowners in distress -- 866-845-2227. You've got to get it on your own. Go out there, get the that help you need.

If you have questions, gerri@CNN.com.

PHILLIPS: Gerri, thanks so much.

WILLIS: My pleasuer.

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

PHILLIPS: Well, how can we all help the U.S. stock market recover from its big slump? Warren Buffett's advice, buy American. The world's richest man write in the "New York Times" that he's buying American stock for his personal portfolio. And he says now 's the time to buy. Buffett's words, quote, "As simple rule dictates my buying, be fearful when others are greedy and be greedy when others are fearful."

He says the nation's major companies will always suffer earning pick ups. But, most of them will be setting new profit records as soon as five years from now.

Well, an elderly blind woman threatened with legal action if she didn't pay the city's bill. The amount past due, one penny. And boy. is she is fired up about it.

Also, danger on the high seas. Pirates hijacking ships, taking hostages. Well, the Indian Navy fires back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: This is the 21st century, right? Better tell Somali pirates that. They've been seizing ships with (INAUDIBLE) in the Gulf Aden for months. That is, until the Indian Navy took action returning fire on a pirate mother ship and setting it on fire.

CNN's David McKenzie has more. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pirates posing on a captured vessel their weapons proudly displayed. These are the ragged buccaneers bringing in millions of loot. It's so compelling, because it's so unlikely.

Let's put it into perspective. Pirates nabbed the gigantic super tanker the Sirius Star. It's longer than three football fields and captured it with a skiff as big as this. It's about as long as your car. So, how did they do it? Will Geddes has 20 years of experience as a security expert and tracks pirate tactics closely. He says it's often a matter of deception, rather than force.

WILLIAM GEDDES, SECURITY EXPERT: The problems that many tankers have when they are actually approached by pirates is that they will present threat on a number of levels. They can either pretend to be officials that are seeking to board the actual ship for inspections. They can masquerade as the Coast Guard.

MCKENZIE: And even without the mask, they can always rely on scare tactics. They use fast skiffs with RBT's and assault rifles. A well placed shot with one of these could puncture the hull of boats that can carry dangerous cargo, like chemicals, oil and weapons. So, the crew is usually happy to send it out on a hijack, waiting for ransom, rather than risk blowing up their vessel and themselves. And wherever the crew goes in this entire million square mile region, they are at risk. Because pirates have advanced.

(on camera): What we are seeing with these Somali pirates is their ability to use some of the ships that they've captured already to enable them to reach further afield and into deeper nautical miles to actually capture the larger ships.

(voice-over): They're called mother ships. And maritime agencies warn that their use is expanding the pirate reach and the pirate threat. And though the warships in the area patrolling for pirates have the guns and the technology to thwart the pirates, there are just not enough boats in the water to patrol this giant expansive ocean.

So until they can be reigned in, these unlikely ocean hijackers may still have the tactics and the territorial reach to take on as many Goliaths as they can get their hands on.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, David now joining us live from Nairobi.

David, if pirates have such effective tactics and piracy is up, explain what's going on.

MCKENZIE: Well, what's going on is right now we have 14 vessels at least, that are sitting off of the coast of Somalia, Kyra, and they are being captured by pirates and trying to get ransom. So the problem is, is that the companies have been paying ransom over the past few months that's running into the hundreds of thousands to the millions of dollars. And that's just encouraging pirates to go out and try to get more vessels, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll follow it. That's for sure.

David McKenzie, thanks so much.

Planes, trains or automobiles. When it comes to holiday travel, how do you decide which way would be the most cost effective? In today's Energy Fix, a look at your options and which could help save you time and money.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're from phase two for the implementation in Rwanda, right?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CHIEF TECHNOLOGY AND SPACE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It is rocket science for these guys, usually. They are Houston-based NASA engineers. And they had become a tiger team focused on a complicated problem a little closer to home. Getting decent drinking water to people in the third world.

EVAN THOMAS, NASA ENGINEER: You're in a pretty harsh environment where you don't have a lot of resources and you have to install systems that take really badly contaminated water and turn it into drinking water.

O'BRIEN: Evan Thomas' day job at NASA is to designing water filtration systems for the space station. Working with a nonprofit called Engineers Without Borders, he and the team are designing simple, inexpensive systems that filter water with gravel and sand.

DAN GARGUILO, NASA ENGINEER: Once you get the dirt out that you can see, though, there can still be small viruses and bacteria, little organisms. And so to kill those, we use an ultraviolet light and it just heats up those small bacteria and viruses and kills them basically.

O'BRIEN: The engineers set up this system at a hospital and orphanage in Rwanda. And they have adapted the system for people in Mexico.

GARGUILO: It doesn't take NASA engineers. We just happen to be NASA engineers that wanted to do something about it.

O'BRIEN: It isn't rocket science. But it doesn't hurt to have the kind of guys who can get you to the moon, working on our planet's most pressing problem.

Miles O'Brien, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: There is Team Sanchez back there working on the next hour of NEWSROOM.

Are you ignoring me, or are you just in deep thought?

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: No, I was listening --

PHILLIPS: Or are you meditating?

SANCHEZ: No, Robin Schwartz (ph) here saying, "Rick, if the world ever runs out of ignorant, insane, racist, xenophobic, hateful people, what would you do?"

It's interesting. A lot of our topics have to a little bit to do with that kind of stuff. It is interesting, two examples, as a matter of fact. Al Qaeda is officially calling Barack Obama a "house Negro" -- "house Negro." I mean, think about that for a minute and think about what they are saying, and why they are trying to say that. But you know, Obama is getting it from both ends.

He's getting it from al Qaeda, saying that he's a "house Negro" and that he basically has been disloyal to Muslims by giving up his faith and turning into a Christian. And then you have people in this country putting up signs saying things like -- that "our president is a Muslim, he's sinning against our lord." This is actually a sign that we found that a pastor had put up in Kansas.

And we're going to be talking to that pastor. He is gracious enough to come on and explain to us, or defend, what he means by that sign. We will have him live.

PHILLIPS: You know what? Al Qaeda doesn't even know what to do with Barack Obama because they are so ignorant and they're so shallow- minded and they're so stupid, Rick. You have this black president, bi-racial president, he's got all this heritage, all this culture. He is a complete threat to these -- to these idiots, you know.

SANCHEZ: You make a good point, but the problem with stupidity is it's not only confined to one particular part of the world.

PHILLIPS: That is a good point. A lot of people are talked into that stupidity, and then we see things like 9/11 and yes -- you are absolutely right.

Well I look forward to the hour of power, Rick Sanchez.

SANCHEZ: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Planes, trains and automobiles and even buses. So many options for holiday travel, let's figure out which ones are best with those gas prices dropping, thank goodness. CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow has our Energy Fix from New York.

Hey, Poppy.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Hey there, Kyra.

Thank goodness, yes, for cheaper gas. But we're going to talk about the best way to get where you want to go this Thanksgiving. To help us do that, we're going to use a real-life example, my producer Ross and his fiance Tracy. They are heading from here in New York down to Baltimore. Take a look there, so cute that picture. They had a lot of options to get there.

The first one was a new kind of bus. That's where you buy the tickets online -- there you see it, Megabus. You pick it up on the curb. It was the cheapest option really. There are a lot of companies like this. The prices start at about $1 a ticket. For them, they priced it out and it was about 72 bucks round trip for both tickets, the cheapest option by far. Best of all, they won't need to pay for gas or for tolls.

Their next option, a little bit faster. An hour flight on Continental out of Newark. It is expensive, though. It's $660 for two tickets round trip. That doesn't include those transfers to and from the airport. And of course, there is the hassle of the security checks and the delays.

No security checks, though, on trains, so he checked out Amtrak. That ticket, though -- still, it's a quick trip, it's comfortable, but it is expensive -- $368 round trip for two tickets on Amtrak. That's for a 5:00 a.m. departure. If they want to leave in the middle of the day, the price is much higher, it's more than $500.

Finally, there is the option of renting the car. He checked out Avis, they were sold out of cars over Thanksgiving in New York. He went to a Web site. You might want to write this one down. It was a really good deal he found. Easycar.com -- four days for a rental car, total cost, $171. He will need to pay for gas and for tolls though.

So let's bring in Ross. This is his trip.

What did you choose, Ross?

ROSS LEVITT, ENERGY FIX PRODUCER: Well I went with the rental car company.

I love to save money, so my instinct was to go with the Megabus, and plus I wouldn't have to drive. But then I needed a little flexibility, because I want to make a few stops on the way, plus I get to go door-to- door. So that makes a big difference.

HARLOW: And you don't have to pay for parking at the in-laws, right?

LEVITT: Well not yet. They haven't started charging me yet.

HARLOW: Well, you are not married yet. We'll see.

All right. So that was Ross's choice. And you know, Kyra, when it comes to travelling, we know that gas is cheaper, but still you can save a lot of money if you do a bit of research. That is what Ross did. More options are on our Web site -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Just enterprise. All right, Poppy, thanks.

Well, bill collectors always want every last penny. A point hammered home to a elderly blind widow, threatened with a lien on her home after 50 years.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, a retirement community near Cincinnati rolling the dice on an expansion that looks as glamorous as the inside of a Las Vegas hotel. The new Sin City, without the sin of course, boasts a pub that serves root beer. There's no Guinness? That changes the whole story. Well, there is also a movie theater, hair salon, ice cream parlor. The upgrade at Chesterwood Village cost $10 million by the way. The owners say they wanted to give the grandkids an unforgettable experience whenever they came to see grandma and grandpa. That is not a root beer. Come on.

Well, it is one of those stories where you just have to shake your head. A 74-year-old blind widow threatened with a lien on her home because she owed the city one penny. Eileen Wilbur says that she could not believe the Attleboro, Massachusetts collectors paid $0.42 to mail a letter demanding one cent. Well, a lot of other people couldn't believe it either, and one of them came to Wilbur's rescue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EILEEN WILBUR, HOMEOWNER: When I seen the word lien your my property, that made my stomach boil. I think that if they said, you owe $100, I would pay $100. But don't touch my property.

TONY VIVEIROS, FORMER CITY COUNCILOR: I went to City Hall as soon as it opened and I wrote out a check for a cent to make a point to them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, city collectors say the bill was computer generated and went out with all the other outstanding balance notices.

Well, you have a lot of balance now with Rick Sanchez in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM.

Take it away, Rick.