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President Obama Removes Stem-Cell Research Restriction; Hollywood Producer Spearheads Mobile Shelter for Homeless; Number of Iraq Troops to Drop by 12,000; Church Gunman Might Be Charged Today
Aired March 09, 2009 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Science first. President Obama removing a stem-cell research restriction. Who could be helped? They've survived the war. Can they survive in this economy? Veterans on the job front. Today a snapshot across America.
And shelter when the shelters are full.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody calls it the hobo condo.
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COLLINS: A roof over the heads of the homeless. It is Monday, March 9th. Hi, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Up first this morning, it is a political mine field almost as volatile as abortion. And President Obama is about to wade into it. Next hour, he'll lift federal limits on stem cell research. It reverses a ban first put in place more than seven years ago by then President Bush. Some democrats want to carve this new policy into stone.
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REP. DIANA DEGETTE (D), COLORADO: We don't want the issue of embryonic stem-cell research to become a pingpong ball because we need to have some certainty for researchers so they that can get the money for grants and so that they can go in and find the cures. So when Congress put this into law, then the next president whoever he or she may be will not be able to put the restrictions back in place.
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COLLINS: The debate crosses party lines too and stirs up a whole lot of passion. We do have team coverage on the story. CNN White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joining us from the White House with the president's decision and CNN senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen with more on the controversial side of things. Let's get the latest now from Suzanne.
Suzanne, we know that the president is obviously signing this executive order and not taking this to Congress. Why is he going about it that way? SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, one thing to note is that really Congress can go ahead and try to codify this into law and to legislation if they'd like to. But the reason why President Obama's issuing this executive order is essentially it takes 120 days. He's going to ask for the National Institutes of Health to take a look at the guidelines, reestablish the guidelines so the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research.
Four months is relatively a faster time when you take a look at how things get done in Washington. It also does allow Congress to make its way through this issue. But the other thing is that, Heidi, they really want to put the stamp on this issue. President Obama is going to say, look, that they are not putting policy or politics above science. It's something that they have accused the Bush administration of doing for the last eight years.
This is a very controversial step. As you know, I want you to take a listen to one of the lawmakers over the weekend who spoke out against this.
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REP. ERIC CANTOR (R), MINORITY WHIP: Frankly, a thorough funding of stem-cell research can bring on embryo harvesting, perhaps even human cloning that occurs. We don't want that, that shouldn't be done. That's wrong. Let's put the federal dollars with the stem-cell research that has produced results, which is the adult stem-cell research. And let's get on with business here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: And Heidi, you should note that one thing that this executive order does not do. It does not touch the congressional ban on actually using federal dollars to create embryos for the sole purpose of destroying them to extract those stem-cell lines. That is something the administration even his domestic policy adviser Melody Barnes said over the weekend is not touching. Very, very controversial, Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. Very good. Suzanne Malveaux outside the White House for us this morning. Thank you, Suzanne.
Let's take a moment to look at the science of embryonic stem cell research. For that we turn to our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen. So scientifically, tell us gain why stem cells are so important.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Stem cells you can think of them as blank cells. Blank cells that are sitting in a lab. And if you treat them right, you can possibly turn them into any kind of tissue in the human body. So you have a heart attack, you got some cardiac muscle that's damaged, you can treat those stem cells right, turn them into cardiac muscle cells and use them to repair the damage. That is the hope. That is the theory.
COLLINS: Yes. Well, I mean, obviously, it would be great. If we knew that was really going to happen and knew it was going to be happening soon, I think I don't know who could really argue with that side of it. However, there are major ethical concerns, obviously, with Suzanne tapped on this morning already.
COHEN: I tell you who can argue with it. In order to make an embryonic stem cell by definition, you have got to destroy a human embryo.
COLLINS: Right.
COHEN: And for some people, that is a non-starter. They just can't go with that. So let me tell you where these cells come from. Mom and dad are having fertility issues, they go to one of the many IVF clinics in this country and they create sperm and egg meet in a petri dish and they create an embryo that sits in a lab. Often they create more embryos than they need to start their own family.
So those embryos are there in the lab. Do you use those embryos to make stem cell lines? If you do, you're destroying the embryo. Some people say, forget it, you shouldn't do it. You shouldn't even go in that direction.
COLLINS: Maybe we should talk about too, to sort of a reminder where does stem cell research stand at this point?
COHEN: It is really in many ways in the infant stages. There is only one clinical trial that is underway to use embryonic stem cells on humans and they haven't even really started up yet. This study is going to look at people who have had spinal cord injuries and to see if embryonic stem cells can help them since they haven't started yet, we don't know if it works.
COLLINS: All right. We'll be watching closely.
COHEN: We will.
COLLINS: Elizabeth Cohen, thanks for that.
And all around the world, policies on stem cells do vary tremendously. And of course, change over time. Less than a dozen countries have reached the stage where scientists are actually creating embryos specifically for a research. According to the International Society for Stem Cell Research, those countries include Belgium, Sweden, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Israel, Russia, China, Japan, Singapore, and Turkey.
So next hour, President Obama will talk about his decision on stem-cell research. We're going to bring those remarks to you live. Expected to speak 11:45 Eastern, 8:45 Pacific.
Get a look at the Big Board. About 35 minutes into the trading day. Dow Jones industrial average is up, double digits there, just under 20 points, resting at 6,645. We know that the outlook for the day had been not so good. So we're watching closely.
Across the United States, gas prices continue their roller coaster ride. According to AAA, the Auto Club, the national average for regular dropped 2/10 of a cent. The new price, just over $1.94. That's more than 52 percent off its record high back in July.
The car industry, up close and personal today, the White House's automotive task force is in Detroit. They'll take a tour of a Chrysler factory and take a test drive of GM's electric car, the Chevrolet volt. Those two companies have received more than $17 billion in bailout money, and they want $39 billion more. The job that the task force is to study whether they can survive with or without that taxpayer cash.
On Capitol Hill, the clock is running, and the cash is running out. With a massive $410 billion spending bill stalled in Congress, lawmakers rushed to a stop gap measure to keep government running. Well, the problem, that measure pays for five days of funding. And this is day three. A new vote on the so-called omnibus bill won't happen until tomorrow at the earliest. We'll watch that one for you.
Tax problems likely to be the focus of a hearing today for Ron Kirk. He is President Obama's choice for the U.S. Trade Representative. This afternoon, he faces the Senate Finance committee. Kirk is a former mayor of Dallas. And is the fourth Obama nominee to run into tax problems.
The U.S. military making its move to reduce the number of troops in Iraq. Right now, there are 142,000 troops in the region. Now that number will go down by 12,000 over the next six months. We're going to be talking about it more too today as some soldiers coming home will soon have to fight for a job in this economy. Helping veterans on the home front is today's snapshot across America. Coming your way in about 15 minutes.
The faithful, forced to bear witness to murder. This morning, we're learning more about the man accused of shooting and killing a pastor just minutes before his sermon.
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ANNOUNCER: News as it develops as only CNN can bring it to you. See for yourself in the CNN NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: A man who approached the altar during Sunday service and then opened fire may be charged today with the pastor's killing. As CNN's Carol Costello reports, churchgoers first believed the scene was part of a skit.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And at first, we thought that it was confetti, but later, we found that he shot through his Bible and disintegrated his Bible.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The relative quiet among the congregants inside the First Baptist Church in Maryville, Illinois quickly turned to chaos Sunday morning. Police say an unidentified gunman calmly walked down the aisle during the Reverend Fred Winters sermon, exchanged a few words with the well- liked pastor then pulled out a gun and opened fire.
LARRY TRENT, DIRECTOR, ILLINOIS STATE POLICE: The suspect said something to the pastor and the pastor said something back to him. We don't know what that was. It was almost as if the pastor may have recognized him but we're not sure about that at all.
COSTELLO: After the shots rang out, the Reverend Winters ran down the aisle before collapsing. Parishioners dropped for cover, praying and fearing they might be next.
CLAUDIA BOHLEY, WITNESS: They were down on their knees, and on the floor, screaming, praying and underneath on the floor screaming and praying. It was - it was - it was a terrible thing. Just terrible.
COSTELLO: Police say the killer pulled a knife after his gun finally jammed. That's when two parishioners tackled him to the floor. In the struggle all three men were stabbed. Both the gunman and one of those heroic churchgoers seriously injured.
Besides his wife and two children, Pastor Winters leaves behind his flock, which had grown to some 1,000 members since he took over the church more than 20 years ago.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He knew your name the minute you walked in the door.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Even with over a thousand members?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He knew your name.
COSTELLO (on camera): As for the two men who tackled the gunmen, one of them, Terry Bulllard, remains in the hospital in serious condition, the other man, Keith Melton, is at home recovering. The gunman is in serious condition with knife wounds to his neck. Police will spend the day listening to audiotapes from inside the church to figure out what words were exchanged between the pastor and his killer before the gunfire broke out.
Carol Costello, CNN, Washington.
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COLLINS: Police have not yet released the shooter's name. The "St. Louis Dispatch" has identified him as a man who spoke of his battle with Lyme Disease in an article last year. Doctors diagnosed him as mentally ill before discovering the disease.
Some cleaning up going on in parts of the Midwest after this nasty weekend weather. In Illinois, strong storms from severe thunderstorms leveled seven homes, seriously damaged 30 others. Many barns blown over, two horses lost on one of the farms.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I did see on TV the band was coming. (END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Lots of damage to this mobile home park in Indiana. Trees littered with rubble are split. Three homes destroyed, nearly 20 damaged in the tornado. Same situation in northwest Ohio, strong storms and three confirmed tornadoes in just one county. Barns blown over, trees knocked down, lots of people without power this morning.
Rob Marciano standing by in the severe weather now. Talk a little bit more about this. So it sounded like from that person who was talking that they at least knew that it was coming. It's always the first question I have.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, not only from the national weather service local office is sending out those warnings.
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: But also the storm prediction center sent out a moderate to severe weather as early as around noontime yesterday.
COLLINS: Good.
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COLLINS: Rob, thanks so much. We'll check back later.
The cold reality of a crumbling economy. One person's heartbreak can mean opportunity for somebody else. That's especially true for the mortgage crisis. And people still chasing the American dream of home ownership. CNN's Susan Candiotti follows one family to a foreclosure auction.
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SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At any foreclosure auction, grab your ear plugs, your wallet, and prepare for a mad house. Victor Guevares's family is preparing for much more.
VICTOR GUEVARES, PROSPECTIVE HOMEOWNER: This is my dream.
CANDIOTTI: After 12 years of renting and saving, the Brooklyn native's ready to buy his first home in the foreclosure market.
GUEVARES: I just have a feeling that within six to nine months, we're going to start to see a resurgence in the market. I think now is the time for us to get into it if we could.
CANDIOTTI: He would like to get his family into this three- bedroom, 1,300 square foot home in Queens that once was valued at more than $500,000.
GUEVARES: Now asking $90,000.
CANDIOTTI: So the opening bid is -- how much do you hope to get it for? GUEVARES: $90,000.
CANDIOTTI: Don't laugh, U.S. home auction says places are going for 50 percent to 60 percent off their highest values.
ROB FRIEDMAN, CHAIRMAN, USHOMEAUCTION.COM: I hate to say it but take advantage of the marketplace. Get in there and buy. Get, you know, help us turn these houses back into homes for the communities.
CANDIOTTI: Eight-year-old Davon Guevares has his eye on his own bedroom and privacy.
DEVON GUEVARES, VICTOR'S SON: It's like I'm by myself. It's not like there's people living downstairs.
GUEVARES: I fell this is all of happening to me is now someone - this is the time, Victor, this is your property. You're going to get it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you say now?
CANDIOTTI: Will he get it? Hold on, Guevares is at the auction with a required good faith $5,000 cashier's check, but he's competing against, who knows, 375 properties in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania are on the block. After more than four hours, Guevares's dream home comes up. Opening bid blows by. At least two others are challenging him. He wins at $230,000, but he has to bring it up to code before he'll get a loan. He's almost too tired to celebrate.
GUEVARES: The first part of my journey I've competed in, now I'm on my second final stretch.
CANDIOTTI: For winning bidders who need a loan, auctioneers predict a far better chance of avoiding foreclosure again because banks are getting stingier. But will these properties hold on to their value? Well, that's another issue. Susan Candiotti, CNN, New York.
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COLLINS: Too old to be covered under Mom and Dad's policy? Too broke to afford private insurance? Big bummer, the young and uninsured. What can they do?
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COLLINS: Tough times for many twentysomethings. They're caught in an insurance bind. Too old, making too much money or not enough. CNN's Kate Bolduan looks at what these young people can do.
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KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Maryland resident Bree Honey says all she can do for her chronic back pain is exercise at the gym where she works and take Tylenol P.M. instead of other medicines she needs. Why? She has to put all of her money toward expensive drugs for her depression.
BREE HONEY, UNINSURED YOUNG ADULT: I'm buying my own prescription drugs by myself and I have to pay for that out of pocket every single month.
BOLDUAN: Honey doesn't have health insurance. At 20, she's too old to be covered by her parents' policy since she's no longer in school. She makes too much to qualify for public health care, but can't afford private insurance, and doesn't yet qualify for coverage at this new job.
HONEY: I'm just a struggling student right out of college, trying to make my way and I can't - I don't have the money right now for insurance.
BOLDUAN: Many other twentysomethings early in their careers don't have jobs that offer health benefits.
SARA COLLINS, COMMONWEALTH FUND: Only about half of young adults who are working get coverage, are offered coverage through an employer compared to about 75 percent of adults who are offered coverage through an employer over age 30.
BOLDUAN: It's a common problem. More than 13 million young adults are uninsured in the U.S. It's the fastest growing group of the estimated 46 million uninsured Americans today. And reducing those numbers is a top priority for President Obama.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Health care reform is no longer just a moral imperative, it's a fiscal imperative.
BOLDUAN: But what right now can young people do? Sarah Collins of a nonpartisan health care research group says, first, check with your state, about 25 have increased the age of dependency.
COLLINS: New Jersey extended their age of eligibility to age 30. Most states are clustered around increasing that age to about 24, 25, 26. So this is a big help to many young adults who had coverage through their parents' employer plan and lose that coverage.
BOLDUAN: As for Bree Honey, she'll just keep working and hope for the best, but it's never far from her mind.
HONEY: What about me? What about my health? What if I get hurt? I don't have that insurance. I'm stuck. I feel like I'm almost like a prisoner in my apartment right now.
BOLDUAN: Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.
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COLLINS: A new mission for troops. They've gone from combat duty to fighting for jobs. Looking at ways to help veterans on the home front.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins.
COLLINS: The U.S. military says about 12,000 American troops will be out of Iraq by September. But will they be coming home to jobs? Some reservists coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan find their jobs have been eliminated. Others returning troops are getting into the workforce now for the very first time as civilians. But there is help for some of these veterans, and we're taking a look at our snapshot across America.
Joining us this morning, we have two veterans looking for work. Brandon Wilson (ph) in Chicago, and Marcia Hawkins (ph) is in Baltimore. From the organization, Hire a Hero, we have Rob Barr (ph) in San Francisco, and in Austin, Texas, Chris (INAUDIBLE) is also actively looking to put veterans to work.
Let's go ahead and start, though, with Brandon in Chicago this morning. Brandon, do us a favor. Tell us your story quickly. You have been out of the service since 2005, still kind of trying to find the job that you want.
BRANDON WILSON (ph), UNEMPLOYED VETERAN: Correct. Correct. 2005 I came out of the military after doing about 2 1/2 years of deployment.
COLLINS: And you haven't found the job that you want. You've been looking for a solid four years?
WILSON: I've been looking. I mean, I've had some opportunities, but it's hard out here, you know, trying to find the job that meets what your family needs and what you're trying to accomplish in life, you know, after being serving in the combat for 2 1/2 years.
COLLINS: Why is that? What's the biggest challenge?
WILSON: Well, when you're serving in combat and you're over there fighting a good fight, you have, you know, there's a certain environment environments you come used to. You look for that team work and that esprit de corps and that unity that's in the workplace that you can feel comfortable with and transition from such a different environment. And it's tough finding that a lot of times.
COLLINS: Well, if you've been looking for these past four years or almost four years, and now you're hearing about 12,000 more troops coming back. Obviously some of them will not be getting out of the service just yet, but many of them will. Does that worry you? Because really, that's even more competition, right?
WILSON: It's very much more competition. What you have out here is you have a lot more qualified people trying to get the same jobs. And it just makes it that much more difficult in finding the right opportunity for yourself.
COLLINS: Well, we certainly appreciate your service and wish you the very best of luck. Brandon, appreciate it. We want to get you to one of these other people helping in the situation. There are a few people out there that are very aware of this. One of the organizations, Hire a Hero, brings together job seekers with military-friendly employers. Rob Barr (ph) is the COO of the Armed Services Support Foundation's Hire a Hero program.
Rob, nice to see you. When you are a person who is trying to bring together military job seekers and the companies like Brandon, how does that work? I mean, do you call people up and say, hey, I have this great guy. I mean, how do you learn about them? How is that connection made?
ROB BARR (ph), COO, HIRE A HERO: Well, what we've actually done is, we've created a Web site that's more like a professional networking site to really help these people transition. As you heard Brandon say, it's kind of hard to get into that workplace.
So, what we have done is created a network so they can come in and talk to their peers, people who have actually served in Vietnam and previous wars that are hiring professionals right now that are looking to take these people on.
COLLINS: Are you ready for this potential influx of new people coming back and getting out of the service and transitioning into civilian life?
BARR (ph): What we're actually doing this year is we're bringing on a few more people that we're going to call social networkers...
COLLINS: OK.
BARR (ph): ... that are actually going to help these people walk through the Web site, teach them how to network. We'll give them to the career coach volunteers that are registered to our site for questions for the resume, et cetera...
COLLINS: A lot of how-tos, right?
BARR (ph): ... connections and mentors. Exactly. So, we're going to have people on the phones talking to these young men and women and helping them out as much as possible.
COLLINS: Very good. So, you're hoping that you're ready. Hire a Hero is the name of the organization. Rob, thanks for that.
Now I want to bring in Marcia Hawkins (ph) because she has actually been out of the Marine Corps for 16 years. And she is still -- had a job but is now going back to one of those military resource centers to try and find a new job. Tell us your story quickly, Marcia.
MARCIA HAWKINS (ph), LOOKING FOR JOB: Hi. My background is in human resources as a strategic business partner. And very recently in January, my company, due to the economy woes, has deleted -- eliminated some positions, and my position got eliminated. As a Marine Corps veteran, I realized there are some opportunities out here in networks for veterans such as recruitmilitary.com and usa.gov, so I've gone back to those resources in order to obtain new employment.
COLLINS: Are you hopeful?
HAWKINS (ph): Yes, very hopeful. Very hopeful. The economy is very frightening right now. It's almost three times as many people applying for the same position. And that is very, very scary.
COLLINS: All coming from that military pool? Or are we talking about general competition for these jobs?
HAWKINS (ph): We're talking about the military pool along with the civilian pool.
COLLINS: OK. All right. Well, it's more, that's for sure. We know you also have a son on his way to Iraq, so we thank you and your son for your service.
HAWKINS (ph): Thank you.
COLLINS: Another option for vets, going into business for themselves. So, Chris Lowdermilk (ph) is a franchise distributor from Austin, Texas, with an eye on veterans as entrepreneurs. So, I wonder, your company actually looks for vets to fill these specific openings for these franchises. Why do veterans make such good employees, in your opinion?
CHRIS LOWDERMILK (ph), FRANCHISE DISTRIBUTOR: Well, the training that they've received while they're in the military, the integrity, the honor. I think the gentleman mentioned before, they're team players. The military's one of the best training organizations in the U.S.
COLLINS: Do you think companies in private industry know this or are aware of that or are really reaching out to this specific type of employee?
LOWDERMILK (ph): There are. You know, recruitmilitary.com is who we've chosen to team up with. And according to all of the events I go to, it's always jam-packed with employers.
COLLINS: OK. So what is your prognosis here when we hear about all of these troops coming back? And again, some of them will either re-enlist or be deployed to Afghanistan or other parts of the world. But many of them will become civilians soon.
LOWDERMILK (ph): Absolutely. And one in every seven small businesses in America is owned by a veteran.
COLLINS: I didn't know that.
LOWDERMILK (ph): Absolutely. About 3.3 million the last that I saw. So it's good news for us. You know, over 200,000 people transition out of the military every year. And a lot of them want to go into business for themselves, and that's what I'm reaching out trying to help them to do. COLLINS: All right, well, excellent. We sure do appreciate that. Thank you Chris Lowdermilk (ph). I also want to thank our other guests, Brandon Wilson (ph) in Chicago, Marcia Hawkins (ph) in Baltimore, and from the organization Hire a Hero, Rob Barr in San Francisco. Thanks, guys, our "Snapshot across America" today.
Well, somebody who deals with these concerns day in and day out is Paul Rieckhoff. He helps the veterans make the shift from the war front to the homefront. He is executive director and founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for America and a veteran himself. He's joining me now from New York.
So, Paul, nice to see you. I don't know if we have a number on this. But I am curious as to how many of these troops, the 12,000 that we're talking about, will actually be getting out and become civilians or at least are reservists trying to go back to their jobs. Because they're the ones, at least today that we're talking about, that really are going to have this challenge of the economy among many other challenges that they will be preparing for when they come home.
PAUL RIECKHOFF, FOUNDER, IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN VETS OF AMERICA: Yes, good morning, Heidi. I think that we know that right now, about 75 percent of our troops get out after their first enlistment. So that's a huge number of folks who aren't going to make the military their career.
But they still are extremely employable. They have great job skills, they're focused, they're disciplined, they're great team players. And there are almost 2 million of them served in Iraq and Afghanistan since 9/11. This is a huge surge of folks that are going to be coming home. As Obama talks about the drawdown, we've got to think about the surge of veterans coming home.
COLLINS: Yes, and that's what you've been calling it as we've spoken offline, as sort of this reverse surge of people coming back. So, 75 percent won't re-enlist, but some of them have not completed their commitment. So, I'm still trying to figure out exactly how many people we're going to be talking about that will go into the workforce.
What do you guys offer them? I mean, have you been talking to these veteran who will be coming back and learned about what their concerns are?
RIECKHOFF: We do. We talk to them on a regular basis, and we've got a great Web site to help them transition home called communityofveterans.org. There they can find jobs resources. They can learn about the GI Bill for those that want to go back to college. And I think most importantly, they can connect with other veterans.
When you're deployed for a year or 18 months, you're really out of the loop. So, you need that networking opportunity. And veterans in general take care of their own. There are about 25 million veterans in America of all generations. So, veterans generally can reach out to other veterans, provide mentorship, maybe to get them an interview, help them with their resume. And that can be a critical way to help them transition home successfully.
COLLINS: I think we talk a lot about PTSD and some of the other mental-health issues that many of them will face, the family issues. But I think one of the things that we haven't really talked about is just basic, you know, how do you get that job when you get out? So, we sure do appreciate that, and we will keep our eye on all of the help that you are also able to offer. Paul Rieckhoff of the Iran and Afghanistan Veterans for America. Thank you, Paul.
RIECKHOFF: Thank you, Heidi as always.
COLLINS: Four hundred pairs of shoes, 300,000 in designer clothes. How did one woman afford it, all on a bookkeeper's salary? Police say the answer is, she didn't.
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The current recession really affecting the lives of millions of Americans. But it's not just a U.S. problem, of course. The World Bank sees the entire world as falling into a global recession for the first time since World War II. Susan Lisovicz on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange now with more details on this. Hi there, Susan.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi. Well, there's this old expression that when the U.S. sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold. And that certainly is evident of what we're seeing in the world today because we are the biggest single consumer. Consumption declining dramatically, and you're seeing the effects all across the board. Not only industrialized nations, but of course in developing nations, as well.
The World Bank over the weekend, Heidi, said that the U.S. is leading the world into the first global recession since the 1940s. And in particular, now, of particular concern is developing nations that get so much of their trade and credit from industrialized nations and of course, the United States. It says 46 million people will fall into poverty this year, falling demand in the West leading to the sharpest drop in trade in 80 years.
And when you see sales drop, you see job loss. And you see, obviously -- one of the big concerns is that you can see political and social unrest. And that is one of the reasons why the World Bank is so concerned, Heidi.
COLLINS: Oh, yes, absolutely. Is there any way out, though, if you are a developing nation?
LISOVICZ: Well, they don't have the same obvious capital base that we do, and that is one of the reasons why the World Bank had some ideas. Only 25 percent of developing countries can launch their own stimulus. So, the World Bank, for instance, is tripling its spending on developing nations. It's planning to hand out $35 billion. That's a lot of money, right, but it's only about 5 percent of, for instance, what the United States is spending on its own stimulus.
So, it's calling on developing -- developed nations, industrialized nations to up their spending by 0.7 percent. That's 0.7 of 1 percent.
But, of course, you see it, you see it happening here in the United States. You see it in England, for instance, in other countries in Europe where they're bailing out their financial companies, where there's a sense that, well, charity begins at home. So, it is a political debate. It has certainly something that's not going to be solved overnight, but yet one of the -- it's one of the layers of this recession, how interconnected we all are.
Right now, just checking the board real quickly, the Dow industrials are up. Started weaker, Heidi, but right now, we've got a little bit of traction. Blue chips up 16 points. The Nasdaq, meanwhile, is up three.
COLLINS: Little tiny bit. All right, Susan Lisovicz, thank you.
LISOVICZ: We've got a while to go.
COLLINS: Yes, definitely.
Well, Circuit City is pulling the plug. At one time, it was actually the second-biggest electronics retailer in the nation. Now, all of its 567 stores are closed for good. That leaves more than 34,000 employees without jobs. The chain filed for bankruptcy protection in November, but it couldn't swing a deal to stay in business.
A lot of people who lose their jobs can point their fingers at the economy. But, employees at a California woodworking company say they can blame just one woman. Bookkeeper Annette Houmans (ph) is charged with embezzling nearly $10 million. The loss is forcing her company to lay off workers and cancel raises.
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GARY JOHNSON, QUALITY WOODWORKS EMPLOYEE: We trusted her like our sister. And she did this to us. If our company had the money that she took, we would be fine right now. For everybody that she's hurt in this company, I just hope she rots.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Whoa. Houmans (ph) allegedly used the money for spending sprees and home remodeling.
Human trafficking has become a big city's dark and dirty secret. But enough is enough. One city is making a massive effort to keep women and children from becoming victims of sexual exploitation. CNN's Don Lemon has the story. But first, a word of caution. Some of the stories and images can be disturbing.
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DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Around the globe in hotel rooms, along alleys, on street corners and in beach bars, women and children are bought and sold for sex. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you pay the price you can get what you want. I can get it for you.
LEMON: Child sex trafficking is both a global and a national issue. Kaffie McCullough, director of a non-profit organization dedicated to ending child prostitution, says the numbers in metro Atlanta are staggering.
KAFFIE MCCULLOUGH, DIRECTOR, A FUTURE, NOT A PAST: More girls prostituted and harmed by prostitution in one month than are killed in car accidents in an entire year.
LEMON: McCullough and her volunteers teamed up with advocates around the state of Georgia to stand up for the victims of sex trafficking, women and children under 18 years old.
CARLYN JACKSON, VOLUNTEER: We're here to give out 300 roses for the 300 girls that are trafficked every month in Georgia. Sex traffic. And we wrote a note to each senator.
LEMON: These volunteers are asking their state representatives to pass a package of new laws, which contain a $5 per person surcharge on patrons of strip clubs. The money raised from this fee would directly benefit victims escaping the sex trade.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I always feel like a criminal. I never feel like a victim at all. Victims don't do time in jail. They work on the healing process.
LEMON: Georgia State Senator Renee Unterman feels strongly about the rehabilitation of sex-trafficked children. And is a key supporter of the state Senate bill.
RENEE UNTERMAN, GEORGIA STATE SENATE: It's not just girls, it's young boys. We found out that they want boys who are prepubescent before they develop hair. But, unfortunately, after they develop their hair they're no longer wanted. So, basically, they're ruined for the rest of their lives. They have to deal with what happened to them when they were 12 years old.
LEMON: Experts estimate there are more than 10,000 child victims of sex trafficking in the United States.
ERNIE ALLEN, NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN: This is a problem that numbers in the tens of thousands, and that these kids are hidden victims. In most communities, people don't see it.
JACKSON: And when I found out that Atlanta was one of the top cities for child sex trafficking, it just made me sick. And so we're here today to say that we won't put up with it.
LEMON: Delivering notes and white roses and saving children, one volunteer at a time.
Don Lemon, CNN, Atlanta. (END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: A Hollywood producer teaching the homeless to think out of the box. And a mess in the Midwest after a weekend of tornadoes and severe storms.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Quickly, some breaking news to get right out to you now. We're hearing from the Pentagon that there are apparently five Chinese ships that are being accused of harassing a U.S. ocean surveillance ship. Apparently it happened on Sunday.
And Pentagon reporter Chris Lawrence is joining us now with a little bit more on this. Bear with me too, Chris, because I'm just looking at the Pentagon notes here. Apparently they were five vessels -- I don't know if they were ships or smaller boats -- getting within 50 feet or so of the USS Impeccable.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Yes, in fact, one of those ships got within 25 feet of the Impeccable. You know, this story has equal parts seriousness and a little bit of the absurd, Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, I saw that.
LAWRENCE: At one point, you know, the Chinese crew started taking off their clothes. I don't know if there was -- it might have been some sort of mooning gesture to the U.S. crew. But at the same time, a Pentagon spokesman tells us this is one of the most aggressive actions that the U.S. has seen in some time.
Here's what happened. Yesterday in the South China Sea, the USS Impeccable was conducting what the Pentagon calls routine measures. It is a crew, primarily an oceanographic vessel, primarily a civilian crew. It is not armed. It conducts sonar operations under water.
And these five vessels, basically, from the Pentagon's description, surrounded the Impeccable. The Impeccable didn't know its intentions. It started firing its water hoses at it because again, it's not armed. The Chinese, some of the Chinese sailors then apparently started taking off their clothes, waving Chinese flags.
When the Impeccable asked for a safe route to navigate out of the water, the Pentagon says that the Chinese blocked them. It even dropped pieces of wood in the water to try to block the Impeccable's path.
COLLINS: Yes, they actually had to come to a screaming halt, as best you can do that with a ship that large.
LAWRENCE: Exactly. And again...
COLLINS: So it wouldn't hit them.
LAWRENCE: ... one of those ships getting within 25 feet. That is extremely close in open waters. And a Pentagon spokesman says that they will certainly let the Chinese officials know of their displeasure at what they're calling a reckless and dangerous maneuver.
COLLINS: Yes, because clearly this is not the first time. I mean, I'm looking at some of these notes. I think there were several other instances that led up to this. But it's international waters, right? I mean, there isn't a question about being in the wrong space, if you will.
LAWRENCE: No. They were, what, I think a good, you know, 75 miles south of Hainan Island. So again, it's something that the Pentagon says, you know, they've been in this area the South China Sea. They were conducting what they felt were routine measures...
COLLINS: Weird.
LAWRENCE: ... in doing this exercise.
COLLINS: All the way down, those crew members, the Chinese ones, disrobed to their underwear. Very odd. All right, Chris, look into that for us, would you? We'll get back to you. Once again, our Pentagon correspondent, Chris Lawrence. Appreciate that.
Some cleaning up to do in parts of Illinois. A tornado and severe storms left behind this damage. Seven homes leveled, 30 others seriously damaged in just one area. In Chicago, lots of flooding from all of the rain. Roads are just filled with water, as you can see there. More than a dozen counties in Illinois, in fact, are under a flood watch now. Rob Marciano is standing by in the severe weather center. Talk a little bit more about this. Yes, water, water everywhere.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, not just Chicago, but a lot of spots in northern Illinois, Heidi, back through Kansas City. We saw record amounts of rainfall over the weekend in spots of the Iroquois, Illinois River, the Des Plaines River, the Wabash River, the Auglaize River in northwestern Ohio, everybody affected by this onslaught of moisture, which has at least for now come to an end.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: OK. Very good. Rob, thank you.
MARCIANO: You got it.
COLLINS: A Hollywood producer using his creativity to help the homeless. How he's changing the picture of the streets of Los Angeles.
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COLLINS: One man's vision to help the homeless has a moving effect on the streets of L.A. He's helping them get out of those cardboard boxes and into more humane sleeping conditions. CNN's Ted Rowlands has the story.
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TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's called an EDAR, which stands for Everybody Deserves a Roof. It's sort of a mini mobile home for the homeless. It has plenty of waterproof storage space and can be push along the street. Park it, and it can expand into a tent that's raised off the ground.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody calls it the hobo condo.
ROWLANDS: Fifty-year-old Jose Fot (ph), who says he's been homeless on and off since 1979, is one of 60 people testing the EDAR on the streets of Los Angeles. Jose says it's already made a difference in his life.
JOSE FOT (ph), HOMELESS: I had the EDAR for about three weeks now, and it makes me feel like I've got something to come to.
ROWLANDS: The EDAR is also being used in shelters.
BARBARA GARDENHIRE, HOMELESS: It's very comfortable.
ROWLANDS: For the past year, 60-year-old Barbara Gardenhire has been sleeping on the ground.
GARDENHIRE: You have your own little space. Read, eat, sleep, whatever, this is yours.
ROWLANDS: The EDAR was an epiphany that "Revenge of the Nerds" movie producer Peter Samuelson (ph) says he had after meeting some local homeless people.
PETER SAMUELSON, HOLLYWOOD PRODUCER: And I asked them, how do you get money, and where do you sleep? I thought they all went to shelters or whatever. There's only a shelter bed for about a fifth of our urban homeless in this country. Four-fifths are sleeping somewhere that we wouldn't want to sleep.
ROWLANDS: Samuelson sponsored a design contest to develop the protype, then used his own money and donations to build the first batch of EDARs.
SAMUELSON: And we'll build shelters, and then we won't need EDARS. And we'll gather them all up, put them in a big bonfire, set fire to them. I'll light the first match.
ROWLANDS: But for now, at $500 a pop, Samuelson says the EDAR is an affordable way to give the homeless a less horrible place to sleep.
Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: I'm Heidi Collins. Join us again tomorrow morning beginning at 9:00 a.m. Eastern. For now, CNN NEWSROOM continues with Tony Harris.
