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Amtrak to Get Boost from Government; Tough Economy Offers Some Opportunities; G-20 Meets to Discuss Global Economy; U.S. Teens Working as Hit Men for Drug Cartels; Obama Meets with Economic Advisers; Obama Plans Town Hall Meeting in California
Aired March 13, 2009 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you. Enjoy your lunch, sir.
Pushing forward with the money train. Amtrak trying to get back on track with a slice of the stimulus pie. What does it mean for you, for me, for anyone trying to cut their travel bill? We'll explain to you.
Plus, a middle schooler pushes forward straight to the president himself. She just wants to fix her school. So why is it crumbling around here? Why is it crumbling her school? Anyway, that's a good question. We'll take a walk through the corridor of shame.
Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon live here at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
You can call him a confidence builder in chief. President Barack Obama is speaking in the Oval Office right now with his economic team huddled around him. No doubt, he is striking an optimistic tone, trying to soothe our fears about where the economy and the stimulus plan might be heading.
We're expecting the words and pictures to be released at any moment now. So when we get them we'll bring them to you. As soon as we get Barack Obama's words and what happened in that meeting we will bring it to you.
But first, Amtrak gets more money. You want to save more money? Well, so will more cash for the rail company translates into cheaper tickets. That's what everyone is saying.
The man known as Amtrak Joe -- that's the vice president, Vice President Joe Biden, just announced a boost in funding for Amtrak as part of the stimulus plan. Our Brianna Keilar is here to break it down for us.
What is this money going for and is it going to help create jobs, Brianna? That's the question.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, it's $1.3 billion going to Amtrak for things like fixing railroad lines, fixing tunnels, replacing or repairing rail cars, some of it to improve security.
And Amtrak moves 228 million passengers each year on all of its rail lines across the U.S., which you can see right here. But the busiest corridor and the region that's going to see mayor benefit from some of these projects from the stimulus is the Northeast Corridor, which of course moves from Boston to New York to Washington.
Senator Arlen Specter, who is for this plan, because Amtrak does travel through his state of Pennsylvania, he says that just one of these many projects paid for with the stimulus money will create at least 500 jobs per year in his state. But Don, unclear how many jobs overall.
LEMON: Will this ripple effect into, you know, higher ticket prices, or will it change the cost of tickets for busy -- for the busy travel season ahead?
KEILAR: And I think people want to know if maybe it will mean cheaper ticket prices, too.
LEMON: Yes.
KEILAR: Well, it is not expected to. The thing it could do, though, as these improvements are made, could save you some time. For instance, if you travel on the Acela, that high-speed rail system of Amtrak's in the northeast, moves along this line, could shave your commute down from about 3 hours to 2 1/2, Don.
LEMON: Yes, I've been doing a lot of reading on this as it's been -- we're getting more information. A lot of people are opposed to it. Some major critics here. What are you hearing about them?
KEILAR: Yes, critics and mainly Republicans. They point out Amtrak is already subsidized by the federal government to the tune of about $1.3 billion each year. And Don, without that money, Amtrak would go belly-up.
Critics say, though, it's because it's a poorly run company. They don't believe the government should be propping it up in the first place. And then they say giving this stimulus money to Amtrak really just throwing good money after bad.
But proponents say that Amtrak is essential; it should be subsidized. They say without Amtrak you would actually need to add seven lanes to Interstate 95, the north-south highway that connects Boston, New York and Washington, to accommodate all of these people who take Amtrak. And they say that would be impossible to do, Don.
LEMON: All right. Brianna Keilar, we appreciate it. Thank you very much.
Want to make a deal? Of course, who doesn't? Well, hotels, cruise lines and resorts slashing rates and offering bargains to reel in cash-strapped travelers. And that could mean you, could mean me, as well.
"USA Today" says this spring break families and college students are waiting longer to book their vacations, so the vacation destinations are seeking them out. Here's what Orbitz.com tells the newspaper, that average rates for three-star hotels can be one-third to one-half less than what they were last year. That's a big savings.
And western ski resorts are cutting rates, and major cruise lines are offering more bargains, as well. Plus, you can find lower rates in popular spots like Vegas, Orlando, New York, San Diego. Those are all good spots.
And get this -- Palm Springs, which is also a good spot. The tourism bureau there has actually sent some Californians text messages urging them to come there for spring break.
Well, if you have no money at all, just follow in the footsteps of this iReporter, Jeffrey Root from Springville, Utah. After quitting his job and going back to school, Jeffrey and his wife, well, they found a cheap vacation alternative: the great outdoors. He says camping is one of the cheapest ways to see the world. I bet it is, looks fun.
OK, time now to check the Dow on this Friday the 13th. And there you go: down 13 points. Our Susan Lisovicz watching it all from the New York Stock Exchange. Maybe Friday the 13th will be a lucky number. Here's hoping for a fourth straight day of gains here.
So the big economic picture isn't so hot, but don't stuff your money under the mattress, not just yet. There are some opportunities out there, if you know where to look. You have to know where to find them. And the person who knows where to find them is Gerri Willis. Of course, she's our personal finance editor.
So Gerri, where can you find them?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Well, hey there, Don Lemon. You know, the news relentlessly bad. Household net worth down 18 percent. You want to turn off the TV and stop listening. But the experts, the people who know about your money, they're saying you have to look past today's bad news.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GREG MCBRIDE, SENIOR FINANCIAL ANALYST, BANKRATE.COM: Even though we're bombarded by bad news regarding the economy and financial markets seemingly at every turn, for a long-term perspective, the reality is, we're going to get out of this. Now when and how long it takes, that's anybody's guess. But you have to position yourself for the inevitable rebound, whenever that may come.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIS: All right, so markets are cyclical; real estate is cyclical; the economy is certainly cyclical. And two to three years from now you may well look back and say, "Hey, why didn't I see this as a real opportunity?"
Listen to this: a real estate friend of mine was able to help a client buy a foreclosed condo along Miami's South Beach. It once cost $700,000. They got it for $20,000.
LEMON: What?
WILLIS: That's astonishing. Twenty thousand dollars, Don. Yes.
LEMON: Can you have your real estate friend call me? That's amazing.
WILLIS: Can I tell you how many people today have said, who was that?
LEMON: Yes, I'm not very good at math but it sounds to me like 90-something percent of the value.
WILLIS: That's fantastic.
LEMON: You know, the big question for everyone, many Americans put their stocks, so to speak, their retirement stock in 401(k)s. And are there any opportunities here with all of these low prices going on?
WILLIS: You bet. Look, the problem is that so many Americans just wait for the stock market to get better. That's absolutely the wrong thing to do. What you need to understand is that stock market rallies, they occur in incredibly tight time frames.
Check it out. In 2006, it took the market 18 weeks to achieve its annual gain of 13.6 percent. So these moves come quickly; they come in really short bursts. And if you get out of the market because you're scared, you simply miss it. So you want to be there.
And just to follow up on real estate, Don, I want to mention to you, mortgage rates right now are under 5 percent. That is a big opportunity.
LEMON: It is a big opportunity. But, you know, not a lot of people have money now.
WILLIS: That's true.
LEMON: And maybe real estate is the best investment. If you can afford to buy some, maybe you should right now.
I got to ask you, just the average consumer, what are the opportunities? Not everybody invests.
WILLIS: Right. You know, OK, so you don't have cash.
LEMON: Yes.
WILLIS: Maybe you've got a big tax bill; you're worried about it. Listen, the IRS this year said it will become more lenient with struggling taxpayers. How often can you say that the IRS has gotten nicer?
IRS employees will have greater authority to temporarily suspend collection in certain hardship cases like when you've lost your job; maybe you're facing a severe illness; you've got big medical bills. If you can't pay, pick up the telephone, call the IRS: 1-800-829-1040. Go to IRS.gov -- dot gov, that is, and click on that tab "What if?"
Travel is getting cheaper, too. You just said this. You know, travel prices are down. It's out there for you if you seek it out. There's good news for you. It's not all relentlessly negative.
LEMON: Yes. Funny how the IRS number is 1049 -- 1040.
WILLIS: Isn't that cool?
LEMON: 1-800-829-1040.
WILLIS: It makes it easy to remember.
LEMON: That is cool. But you know what? A lot of people are figuring out you can stay home and stay in your own city. We've been calling them staycations. I hate to call them that, but it's fun to discover your own city right now.
WILLIS: Well, I just did it last year. It was easy, easy-peasy. And I saw things I'd never seen before.
LEMON: Well, you're in a good city to do it.
WILLIS: That's true, New York. Yes.
LEMON: Thank you, personal finance editor Gerri Willis.
WILLIS: My pleasure.
LEMON: We want to be your guide. We want to help you through this troubled economy, of course. And next week we bring all of our resources together for you. Make sure you join us for "Road to Rescue: The CNN Survival Guide." That's all next week beginning at Monday, both here on CNN and online at CNN.com, of course.
Back now to politics. President -- Vice President Joe Biden presides today at the public swearing-in ceremony for the new labor secretary, Hilda Solis. The former California congresswoman faces a challenging time. Unemployment is at a 25-year high. And Solis will be in charge of enforcing U.S. labor laws and managing the unemployment insurance program there.
Right now President Barack Obama has two vacant cabinet posts, more than any of his recent predecessors at this point in a new administration. There's still one heading the department -- no one heading the departments of commerce, and health and human services. The president has nominated former Washington Governor Gary Locke for commerce and Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius for HHS secretary, but the Senate has not yet confirmed either of them.
More spending to prime the pump. Or more regulation to clean up the system. That's the key question for world finance ministers gathering in London. We'll look at how -- what gets decided there affects all of us right here in the United States.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: This school's gym leaks when it rains. Its auditorium is condemned. Trains interrupt classes all day. So why is the governor rejecting money that could help?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: You know, when it comes to your money, what happens overseas can have a huge impact here at home. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner is in suburban London today, joining his counterparts who are together overseas, 20 of them, of the world's biggest economies. The so-called G-20 we're talking about here.
And our Jim Boulden is standing by for us.
Jim, first off, I have to ask you. The U.S. is pushing for more spending, and Europe is pushing for more regulatory reforms. I guess that's the right way of putting it. Can they reach an agreement anywhere on this?
JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is the key here. This is why this summit is so important. You know, these G-20 meetings come and go. And usually we don't see much out of them, but there really is a sense of urgency here. Will others follow the U.S. lead? Will they stimulate their economies as much as the U.S. has? In other words pump money into the system and then let people spend that money.
Well, governments like France and Germany say, "Look, we don't want more debt. We don't want to spend our way out of this. We want more regulation to make sure this doesn't happen again. They want more clamp-downs on banks.
LEMON: Yes. Well, you know, China's premier, Jim, said that -- today that he's worried about his country's trillion-dollar -- trillion-dollar -- investment in U.S. government debt. What's the message there? Of course, if you have a trillion dollars, he should be concerned about it. But what does this message mean?
BOULDEN: Yes. China has loaned so much money to the U.S. And they've really been the people giving the money to the U.S. to have these huge deficits.
To say worried is actually, you know, a new development. But you know, the U.S. has still got the safest economy, believe it or not. They still have the most safest treasury bonds. And a lot of people really want to invest in those. So I think it's a bit of a warning.
But we did hear Larry Summers moments ago saying, "Look, we are going to be safe stewards of this economy. Watch us, watch our actions, because it's going to make things better."
LEMON: You know what I'm thinking about here? We're talking about all these people meeting at the G-20, what have you. And when President Obama, then-candidate Obama went to Europe, huge crowds. Hundreds -- hundreds of thousands of people showing up. But might this be the end of his love affair with Europe, or Europe's end of the love affair with him?
BOULDEN: Yes, you know, we have this meeting tomorrow with the finance ministers. And then President Obama and the other heads of the G-20 actually meet in London on April 2.
And there is this idea here that he's going to come in and be so different from the previous president that he's going to be able to smooth over the cracks. He's going to be able to convince Germany and France how to fix the world's economies.
And if they can't come to an agreement, then they're going to say, well, look, Mr. Obama, maybe he isn't going to be the guy we thought he was going to be. Maybe he isn't going to be able to get together with the European countries and make a new deal. And that's what people are looking for, him to come in and say, "Look, let's do this differently. Let's fix this economy."
LEMON: Jim Boulden in London, appreciate it.
The U.S. isn't quite ready to send troops down to Mexico, down to the border yet, but the military option is on the table if the carnage from Mexico's drug war doesn't die down and die down soon.
For now the Department of Homeland Security is sending more agents to the border to search more cars and gather more intelligence. Homeland security says violence from makes can drug cartels is the biggest organized crime threat to the United States. But a plan to militarize the border would take effect only if government agencies become overwhelmed.
Here's just an example of how Mexico's problem is the U.S.'s problem, as well. Authorities in Texas say the drug cartels have hired hit men in the states to do their work. Here's the catch: the hit men are barely men. They are teenagers, armed and waiting for the phone to ring.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVENDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Moises (ph) Garcia had just finished a family lunch in Texas. Garcia helped his pregnant wife and 3-year-old boy into their white Lexus.
LORI GARCIA, SON KILLED: This guy just came out of the car, just started shooting.
LAVENDERA: Garcia was a wanted man. He had a $10,000 bounty on his head. Garcia's wife was shot in the chest. She and her son survived, but her husband was dead.
GARCIA: Happen so fast, he didn't have a chance of anything. LAVENDERA: Garcia's murder, at first, looked like an isolated gangland-style killing, but there were more. Seven murder in a year long stretch. There was something more sinister brewing. Then Noe Flores was killed, an innocent victim in a case of mistaken identity. Investigators found fingerprints on this cigarette box in the shooter's get-away car. The chilling truth unraveled, the clue led police to Gabrielle Cardona and Rosalio Reta, American teenagers working as Mexican drug cartel hit men in the United States.
ROBERT GARCIA, LOREDO, TEXAS POLICE: They were very good at what they did, they were professional at what they did.
LAVENDERA: Assassins is what they were. How Gabriel Cardona and Rosalio Reta evolved from average teenagers into hit men is laid out in court records and these police interrogation videos obtained by CNN.
In this tape, Reta happily details how he carried out his first cartel assassination at the age of 13.
"I loved doing it, killing that first person. I loved it, I thought I was Superman," said Reta.
Detective Robert Garcia is the man sitting across the table from Reta.
R. GARCIA: One thing you wonder all the time, what made him be this way.
LAVENDERA (on camera): Like many Americans, these teenagers started hitting the cantinas and bars just across the border in Mexico. And that's where investigators say the cartel was waiting to recruit them.
(voice-over): These kids were easy targets for the cartel. The two started living the high life. They got tattoos honoring "Santa Muerte," the Grim Reaper-like saint honored by drug traffickers. Cardona had eyeballs tattooed on his eyelids and markings covered Reta's face.
(on camera): Cardona and Reta should have been in school here, but instead, investigators say they dropped out and joined the cartel's payroll. They drove around town in a $70,000 Mercedes. They were paid $500 a week as a retainer to sit and wait for the call to kill. Then, they could make up to $50,000 for a hit.
(voice-over): Prosecutors say they were hit men for the Zetas, a group of former Mexican special military forces that do the dirty work for the notorious Gulf Cartel.
URIEL DRUKER, ASSISTANT D.A., WEBB COUNTY, TEXAS: They actually, you know, enjoy it and laugh about it and compete, you know, discussing their exploits about conducting these activities.
R. GARCIA: It told us that they're already here. They're already - they're sleeper cells. They're already here in the U.S. Not just in Loredo. I mean, they're out throughout the U.S.
LAVENDERA: In Cardona's interrogation, he tells detectives the Zetas are moving their operations deeper into the U.S. Cardona says he knows of hits carried out in Houston and Dallas.
Cardona and Reta are in prison serving long terms for murder. But before they were arrested, federal authorities recorded a phone call between the two young men. Cardona brags about killing 14-year- old Inez Villareal, the innocent cousin of a Cardona enemy who is also murdered. Cardona laughs about torturing both. Making "guiso" or stew out of their bodies in large metal drums. Villareal and his cousin have never been found.
Before the call ends, Cardona says...
GABRIEL CARDONA, CARTEL HITMAN: (SPEAKING SPANISH)
LAVANDERA: "There are three left to kill, there are three left."
It's a reminder the cartel's work never ends as they recruit the next generation of killers.
Ed Lavendera, CNN, Laredo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Unbelievable.
It is expected to be days before parts of a waterlogged Midwest dry out. Flooding is so serious in Michigan, a state of emergency is now in place near Detroit. We'll check in with Jacqui Jeras for the very latest.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Well, search crews have been looking for a while now, and they are still on the scene, looking for 16 oil-rig workers on-board a helicopter that went down off Canada's Atlantic coast. One survivor and one body were pulled from the sea shortly after yesterday's crash. The chopper went down in frigid and windy conditions off Newfoundland in what's described as a controlled emergency crash.
Well, the rains have stopped in parts of the Midwest. The flooding threat is expected to last through the weekend.
Check out Monroe County, Michigan, near Detroit. A state of emergency is in place there. One of the rivers there is more than a foot above flood stage. That's pretty high.
Another hard-hit area: Northern Indiana. In the city of Warsaw, rescue crews are using boats to evacuate people from their homes. Roads are also closed in parts of that region, as well.
You know, we had too much rain in the Midwest, too little in Texas. That state really needs some good downpours to bust the drought, Jacqui. Too bad we can't take all the water from one place and put it in another, eh?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I know. But you know, it's starting to balance itself out a little bit, Don. Our weather pattern early this week just brought storm after storm after storm across the Midwest and the Great Lakes. So...
LEMON: Yes. Calming down a bit.
JERAS: Yes. But you know, it takes days to kind of recover from that.
LEMON: Yes.
JERAS: For the rivers to get back into their banks. And that's why we're still seeing so much water there.
Where we want the rain is across parts of the Deep South and the Southeast, where we've had extreme drought conditions. And the good news is, is that our weather pattern has done that nice little flip- flop and is bringing in some rain to some much-needed places like Texas on through, you know, Georgia, even into the Carolinas.
Let's talk a little bit about the drought monitor. And this takes into account the long-term conditions of dry weather, and what kind of impact it has on things like business and agriculture and, you know, overall growth.
And Texas is one of the states we're most concerned about, because pretty much the entire state is in some type of abnormally dry condition. And the worst of it right here between San Antonio and into the Austin area is where you're going to need as much as a foot of rain to help recover from this drought.
So the one to three inches you got, that helps and certainly makes the soil wet and helps everything grow a little bit. But if we're going to reduce fire danger and all that kind of stuff, we need a lot more rain to help fill up reservoirs, as well.
Now something else that we're talking about is the long-term pattern in terms of how much rain we've been getting. I've been talking about the flood risk and concerns here across the Ohio Valley and lower Great Lakes. Well, today NOAA has issued a new flood outlook for the spring months. And they're concerned about additional flooding in the coming months here.
Another area that they're very concerned is the river valley up into the Dakotas and into Minnesota because of wet conditions there. A huge winter storm just blew through there earlier this week. And then much warmer temperatures on the way. They're saying there's likely going to be some major flooding in this area, Don, come this spring.
And FEMA warns people they need to prepare now and get their plans in action, where you're going to go, how are you going to communicate with people, because those waters are going to be going on up. LEMON: Yes. They're -- can you -- where is Sheboygan? You know where Sheboygan, Wisconsin, is?
JERAS: Sheboygan is in -- kind of in the mitten. It's a little bit north, kind of between Milwaukee and Green Bay.
LEMON: Because I'm just getting information, Jacqui, about a tractor-trailer that spilled its load of meat. That's what we're being told. Check it out. It went down an embankment.
It was tube meat. Seriously, this is a totally serious story. It rear-ended another rig on Interstate 43. That's in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. And then it hit a guardrail, rolled down an embankment and landed on the road below. You can see the pictures there, meat.
JERAS: Look at that meat! Tubes of meat!
LEMON: I know. All over the place.
JERAS: Did anybody get hurt?
LEMON: Both drivers were hurt: the one that was rear-ended, the one that was in the trunk. Both were hurt, but they don't think it's life threatening. But look at all those -- that tubed meat.
JERAS: What a stinky mess.
LEMON: Yes.
JERAS: That doesn't take long to get rotten.
LEMON: It's in the town of Holland. We wish the drivers the best.
JERAS: Yes.
LEMON: But boy, kind of odd.
JERAS: Surprised it wasn't cheese or milk. Right? In Wisconsin. Hey, I was born there. I can say that.
LEMON: There you go. Thank you, Jacqui Jeras.
Hard times at a junior high school. Run-down South Carolina schools in desperate need of help, but the governor there wants to use that stimulus money, he wants to use it to pay down the state's debt instead of using it for the schools. We'll explain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, well, where are we heading? That's a question. And when will we get there? And what kind of results will we see once we do get there, if we do get there? Questions we all have about the economy and about President Barack Obama's plan to stimulate it, questions that have become a constant cloud over the administration's first 53 days in office. President Obama is speaking from the White House this afternoon with his economic team huddled around him. We're expecting the sound and pictures from that event at any moment. And as soon as that happens we'll bring it to you.
Meantime, we want to take a look at what's happening on Wall Street right now. You can see the Dow is up about 13 points. Investors are trying to extend gains on Wall Street for a fourth straight day. They've been encouraged by a number of reports. Citigroup says it doesn't need more government bailout money after getting three rounds of funding. Plus, the government says the nation's trade gap, it narrowed to a six-year low in January.
The NAACP is taking two big banks to court, accusing them of forcing black borrowers into bad loans. The group is filing class- action lawsuits against Wells Fargo and HSBC. It says black homebuyers have been 3 1/2 times more likely to get a subprime loan than whites. Those loans carry higher interest rates and usually go to borrowers with lower credit ratings.
The NAACP says many black homebuyers got those loans even though their credit scores and income matched their white counterparts. The group is demanding for transparency in the loan process, especially since Wells Fargo is getting federal bailout money. HSBC tells us it stands by its lending practices but does not comment on litigation. Wells Fargo calls the allegations unfounded and reckless.
Well, some of our country's schools are in seriously, seriously bad shape. I got to see it firsthand when I covered an Obama campaign stop in South Carolina. This junior high school was shocking. And, well, now it's become a symbol of the stimulus tug-of-war, thanks to one smart student and one stubborn governor.
Here's CNN's Jessica Yellin.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TY'SHEOMA BETHEA, STUDENT: The second floor has been condemned.
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Ty'sheoma Bethea felt she had to speak up. Her school was crumbling, and Congress was not going to approve money that could be used to rebuild it. She wrote a letter to lawmakers begging for help.
BETHEA: I said that we're not quitters, and we as students from Dillon can make a change and that we're just students trying to become lawyers, doctors, congressmen and also presidents.
YELLIN: The letter made its way to the Oval Office and brought an extraordinary invitation -- the White House sat Ty'sheoma right next to Michelle Obama at the president's address to Congress. It seemed help was on the way. New stimulus money was coming from Washington, and she thought her school, J.V. Martin, would finally be rebuilt.
Now, she doesn't know what to think. Her governor, Mark Sanford, just announced he won't use his share of the stimulus money on projects like rebuilding Ty'sheoma's school.
GOV. MARK SANFORD (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: It is easy to fall into the trap of we need to fix this one school. The hat that I wear is to look at best I can -- and it will be imperfect -- at the state in its entirety.
YELLIN: Taking a stand against government spending, Sanford says he'd only be willing to use the $700 million to pay down the state debt. That means Ty'sheoma's community is left with a crumbling school. She gave us a tour. It's astonishing. The auditorium has been condemned. They use the stage for storage.
BETHEA: It has been condemned for a while and the walls are starting to peel off, and stuff is starting to fall out the ceiling.
YELLIN: She says the coach cancels basketball games when it rains.
BETHEA: The roof leaks water through the small crack on the top of the roof.
YELLIN: And the old trailers have walls so thin, the teacher has to pause whenever a train rolls by.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, the train is coming, so I'll have to stop.
YELLIN: That happens about five times a day.
(on camera): The school is in an area that's been called the corridor of shame, a stretch of highway with neighborhoods that are enormously poor and largely African-American. Some critics say that quite simply, the state does not want to spend money educating black kids.
(voice-over): South Carolina Congressman James Clyburn is outraged the governor won't spend stimulus money in this community.
REP. JAMES CLYBURN (D), SOUTH CAROLINA: It is a slap in the face of the people who live in those counties. Now, if a majority of the people who live in those counties happen to be African-American, it's a slap in their faces as well.
YELLIN: Sanford flatly rejects the charge.
SANFORD: Spending money that you don't have I think is a horrible idea.
YELLIN: His office points out stay lawmakers could rebuild that school with their own funds. Ty'sheoma says she just wants the squabbling to end.
BETHEA: I think that the politician should be giving advice to me as a student instead of me giving it back to a politician as just a little girl from Dillon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, Mark Sanford is just one GOP governor vowing to reject some stimulus money. Over in Louisiana, Governor Bobby Jindal doesn't want $100 million meant to widen unemployment benefits. He says too many strings are attached to it. Same story with Texas Governor Rick Perry, only he's turning down $555 million. And this week Nevada's Jim Gibbons informed the president that he may not -- he may want more portions of some of the money. May not want $1.5 billion that's part of his package.
If you want to see what your states are doing with this, I want you to log on to recovery.gov. I'm going to show you some of the places here. You can see the lighter areas of the states either don't have this particular thing I'm going to tell you about or have decide not to take some of the stimulus money. I was just telling you about South Carolina and Louisiana, and then also we're telling you about Nevada as well.
But you can click on some of the states. Let's just say we clicked on Georgia, since we're in Georgia here. If you click on Georgia, if you touch it or click on it on your computer, it will bring up and it will tell you what Georgia's expecting, how much money, what it's planning to do with that $339 billion that it's going to get, so -- $339 million, I should say, that Georgia's going to get.
So, you can do that on any state. That's in the dark area, one of the dark states, when you pull it up on your computer, it will tell you. Just to tell you some of the things that I looked under, Wisconsin is getting $300 million. There's Wisconsin right there. If you click on it, it will tell you that as well. They're going to get $300 million.
State of Washington says you can find out where their projects will go and qualify for grants in that area. That's good if you need some grants. And here's something interesting about the state of Illinois, my former state, right here. It says it has a form asking residents to suggest ways to spend the recovery money. So, If you have an idea for Illinois to spend the money, go on to that Web site and put it in there, and they might take your ideas into consideration. So, a good site there, recovery.gov.
It is a huge health problem that affects millions, but most people have never even heard of it. How to prevent the most common form of blood clots and the silent symptoms you need to know about.
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JIMMY DEOL, IREPORTER: Remember something here, just from my experience, the accessibility of health care for everyone does not necessarily mean everyone can actually have health care. What that means is a scarcity of resources. That is one of the problems with socialized medicine. Especially in Canada, it's true. Eighty-six percent of Canadians have a family doctor, 14 percent don't.
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LEMON: President Barack Obama's plans to reform the nation's health care system are bringing in lots of iReports from CNN viewers. You can share your thoughts at ireport.com. We'll get it on the air.
It's hard to believe that just sitting still, just for a long time, can cause health problems. But it happens a lot, probably more than you think. And what can you do to prevent these silent killers?
Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, has some answers for you.
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DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Many Americans don't even know they have it. The symptoms, often silent. Deep vein thrombosis, or DVT. It's the most common form of blood clot. It will happen to 2 million Americans this year alone.
DR. SEAN O'DONNELL, VASCULAR SURGEON: It's a huge problem in this country. Probably more people die from thrombembolic problems or blood clots than they do from car accidents yearly.
GUPTA: DVT is essentially a blood clot that builds up in a vein in your leg. In some cases, that clot begins to flake apart and travel through the circulatory system. And it can end up in your lungs. Not everyone will have symptoms, so it's critical to know the red flags: unusual leg cramps, swelling, redness, skin warm to the touch.
DVT often shows up after operations, during pregnancy, in smokers, but it can happen to anyone. Take 16-year-old Margaret Smith (ph), for example. Her parents and doctors say she's been healthy her entire life, but she recently noticed a sharp pain in her leg after sitting for four hours during a school exam. Her parents thought it was a past soccer injury, but doctors discovered a blood clot. She had DVT.
Regardless of age, people who sit still for long periods of time, most commonly during air travel, are at risk. Experts say it is a lack of movement combined with being in a cramped position that makes you vulnerable.
O'DONNELL: The reasonable prudent thing to do when you're on a long trip about every two hours is to get up and walk around, exercise your legs.
GUPTA: And drink plenty of water. Dehydration can cause your blood vessels to narrow and your blood to thicken. Wearing compression stockings and taking a blood thinner can also be useful to prevent those clots from forming.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, New York.
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LEMON: Very interesting stuff there, Dr. Gupta. Thank you.
We're being told that the president is about to -- they're about to release that tape. Of course, he is meeting with economic advisers today, which includes Paul Volcker. We've been calling him, you know, the confidence builder in chief because he's been trying to re-assure the American people for months now that the economy will get better.
He's trying to strike an optimistic tone and really soothe the fears over the economy. And he has been meeting today, as I said, with his economic advisers, one which includes Paul Volcker. Both of the men spoke, met moments ago. We're going to listen in now.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I just had a meeting with Paul Volcker and our business advisory board to discuss a wide range of issues, but with some particular focus on the financial markets. And the thing I want to emphasize is that we are spending every day working through how to get credit flowing again so that businesses, large and small, as well as consumers, are able to obtain credit, and we can get this economy moving again.
As I've said before, that's one of the legs of the stool in rebuilding the economy. The first one, a stimulus package that is going to be hitting the ground and putting people back to work. The second part of this is making sure that not just the banking system, but also the credit system as a whole is functioning and that we fix some of the plumbing there.
We're going to have to do some long-term financial regulatory work. And Mr. Volcker has a range of ideas on that, but that's something that we have to do very carefully. How do we eliminate systemic risks so that this kind of problem never happens again? And, finally, we've got to do some coordination with other countries in order to assure that what we do here in the United States corresponds with strong efforts overseas.
The last point that I'd make -- and I made this point to the Business Roundtable yesterday -- it is very important, even as we're focused on the financial system and the credit markets, that we are laying the foundation for what I'm calling a post-bubble economic growth model.
The days when we are going to be able to grow this economy just on an overheated housing market or people spending -- maxing out on their credit cards, those days are over.
What we need to do is go back to fundamentals. And that means driving our health care costs down. It means improving our education system so our children are prepared and we're innovating in science and technology. And it means that we're making this transition to the clean energy economy.
Those are the priorities reflected in our budget, and that is part and parcel, with the short-term steps that we're taking to make sure that the economy gets back on its feet.
So, I am very grateful to Paul for his ongoing advice and counsel, the other members of the business community who participated. And we're going to be doing a lot of outreach and working with them consistently in the weeks and months to come.
Paul, anything to add?
PAUL VOLCKER, OBAMA ECONOMIC ADVISER: Well, let me just say, as you all know, this is a very complicated matter, just in the financial system. And you've been talking with us, talking with others and concentrating on that, and I'm sure some program will be developed.
But there are big economic problems behind the financial system, too, that are going to take longer to work out. And you can't neglect those problems while we're working on this immediate crisis, continuing crisis in the financial system.
OBAMA: Thanks.
OK, guys. Thank you. Have a great weekend.
QUESTION: Mr. President (OFF-MIKE)
STAFF: Thank you, guys.
QUESTION: Could you elaborate on that?
OBAMA: Well, I think, as I said to the Business Roundtable, our capacity is undiminished. We have the most productive workers on Earth. We've got some of the most innovative businesses on Earth. We've got the greatest universities and incredible infrastructure, and we've got the most dynamic free-market economy on Earth.
We've got some significant problems that have been building -- built up over a long period of time. There was a lot of overleveraging that was taking place in the financial system.
But the bottom line is, is that those businesses that were creating outstanding products and services two years ago, they are still creating outstanding products and services. And those workers who were getting up every day and doing outstanding work, they've still got an incredible desire to work hard and grow this economy and do right by their families.
So, what we need to do is to make sure that we're putting in the pillars economically to deal with the short-term emergency, to stabilize the economy and to put in the foundation for long-term economic growth.
That's a overarching package that I think the American people are hungry for. They feel confident about America. The business executives I met with yesterday are confident about our ability to grow long term. We've got to get through this difficult period.
And, look, there are a lot of individual families who are experiencing incredible pain and hardship right now. If you've been laid off at your job, if you've lost your home, then, you know, right now is very tough. But we're providing help along the way. That's why we put a housing program in place. That's why we're going to be announcing additional steps to help small businesses.
But if we are keeping focused on all the fundamentally sound aspects of our economy, all the outstanding companies, workers, all the innovation and dynamism in this economy, then we're going to get through this. And I'm very confident about that.
All right? Thank you, guys. Appreciate it.
LEMON: President Barack Obama in the Oval Office just moments ago, meeting with Paul Volcker, one of his economic advisers, really trying to reassure and give confidence to the American people. What he said is that we certainly have the capacity, and it's undiminished, but we do have some problems here that we need to take care of. And he mentioned putting pillars into place to get the economy jump- started and then a foundation in place to keep it stable for the long term.
Speaking directly to the American people, saying he knows that there are problems right now and that they are dealing with issues, but to give him time and he will get them out of there. Also saying at the beginning of that press conference, the president saying the banking system needs to be overhauled, but not just that. The credit system as well needs to be taken care of, and they are working to coordinate with that, other countries. Also put more regulations as well into place and to make sure that we're maximizing on our ability to create green jobs, and our children's future when it comes to education, as well.
We are also keeping an eye on the White House briefing room, where a briefing will take place in just a little bit. We will take you there live as well to see if news will be made out of that.
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ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: As President Obama said on February...
LEMON: All right, back now to the White House, this time the briefing room and Robert Gibbs, a spokesperson, speaking now.
GIBBS: The president is looking forward to discussions with the leaders at the summit and to promoting a partnership based on mutual respect that will be beneficial to the people of the Americas.
In addition, the president made some phone calls today with some foreign leaders that we'll have a readout on in a little bit: King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, President Yudhoyono of Indonesia, and President Arroyo of the Philippines. So, we'll have a little bit on that.
QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) GIBBS: That's why the readout is coming soon. I was not in there for the calls.
Let me quickly do the week ahead.
On Saturday, President Obama will meet with President Lula of Brazil at the White House. They will discuss a number of things, including the upcoming G-20 meeting and the Summit of the Americas, as well as issues such as the global financial crisis, environment and energy.
On Monday, the president will be in Washington, have an event here at the White House, and then travel later to mark the anniversary of the V.A.
As you know, on Tuesday, it is St. Patrick's Day, so we will have officials from Ireland here for a St. Patrick's Day event, as well as travel to Capitol Hill for Speaker Pelosi's St. Patrick's Day lunch.
On Wednesday afternoon, the president will travel to southern California and hold a town hall meeting in Santa Ana. He will then travel to Los Angeles, will spend the night in L.A., holding a couple of events in Los Angeles on Thursday, before returning quite late that evening to Washington.
On -- next Friday, the president will be at the White House. And then, later in the afternoon, the president and the first family will travel to Camp David for the beginning of -- I believe the beginning of the girls' spring break.
And...
QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)
GIBBS: No.
QUESTION: What's the coverage for Saturday (INAUDIBLE)
GIBBS: I think there's a -- we're doing -- I think we will do a pool spray on that, but we'll have something on that, and we'll get you some information on a radio address a little bit later on today.
So, I assume Chuck's watching the ACC tournament. And fire away.
QUESTION: Not anymore.
QUESTION: Chris Hill to Baghdad, there's some significant opposition from some Republicans, which could prevent you guys from getting 60 votes in the Senate for him. How serious do you think the problem is? And are you committed no matter what to standing behind him?
GIBBS: Well, let's talk a little bit about Chris Hill. Obviously, he is a very seasoned, accomplished -- seasoned and accomplished diplomat, somebody who has dealt with extraordinary challenges and is uniquely qualified in a very tough political environment that remains in Iraq to seek an end to some of the political disputes that are vexing to the Shia, the Sunni and the Kurds.
The president has an extraordinary respect for his ability. I think he's proven his ability to understand very complex political situations, to resolve those political situations.
Obviously, Iraq is a very unique situation. And the president believes that Chris Hill is uniquely qualified to meet those challenges. And I think that that will be true going forward, and the president is fully confident.
QUESTION: He does have a very lengthy background in, as you said, complex situations, but he doesn't have background in the Middle East. And that is the main reason for some of this opposition to his nomination.
GIBBS: Right. Well, again, I would say that -- I mean, obviously, there are -- and the president has many people working on issues in order to resolve issues throughout the Middle East and the region.
But I think the president believes quite strongly that the political disputes that stand in the way of continued progress in Iraq, many that have been outlined for years, call for somebody who has the unique ability to both understand and solve those challenges, and that we believe that Chris Hill possesses the skills to do exactly that.
QUESTION: Why didn't he go to bat for Charles Freeman, who had great experience in the Middle East? He stood mute on the whole controversy.
GIBBS: Well, I think we talked about Mr. Freeman a couple of days ago. He's somebody who served the country greatly, but asked that his nomination not proceed, and the director of national intelligence accepted that.
QUESTION: Was it the Israeli lobby that (INAUDIBLE)?
GIBBS: I don't have a whole lot to add. I think that I've watched with great interest how people perceive different things about our policy and during the campaign about whether we were too close to one group or too close to the other. So, I don't give a lot of thought to those.
QUESTION: You think it's a false perception?
GIBBS: I don't think a lot about it.
Yes, sir?
QUESTION: I don't ask you to think about them. I asked for straight answers.
GIBBS: I -- and I gave you as straight as one as I can get. QUESTION: China's premier said today that China is ready to expand its economic stimulus spending, but he also expressed concern about the safety of China's massive holdings of U.S. treasuries. Does having China on board for more economic stimulus give the administration any greater confidence in getting the Europeans in line behind that plan?
And, also, those -- what, if anything, can the U.S. do to ease Chinese concerns about the safety of their investments in the U.S.?
GIBBS: Well, I think the -- let me deal with the second part first. I think this president would say that he took office at a time of extraordinary economic crisis and asked that we come together and pass into law a recovery and reinvestment plan to stimulate and grow the economy, because the severe downturn that we would see would cause great job loss and great productivity loss. So, money was certainly used to -- for that recovery act to stimulate the economy.
I think the best thing we can do to assure anybody in Washington, America, or throughout the world that we're serious is to pass the president's budget and put ourselves back on the path towards fiscal sustainability and fiscal responsibility.
The president's budget will cut the deficit in half in four years, because the president understands that we cannot continue to do what we've been doing for years and years and spending money that we don't have. Instead, we need to put ourselves back on that path in order to give everybody confidence that we're serious about not only dealing with those challenges, but not wasting taxpayer money.
In terms of the first part, obviously, the president's pleased that the Chinese are making a commitment to the same sort of recovery and reinvestment plan. Obviously, it's an enormous economy.
The president has -- and I think will talk to leaders, other leaders in the G-20 about continuing to observe what is happening to the world economy and to individual economies in the G-20 and continually make those observations and see what...
LEMON: Robert Gibbs in the White House briefing room talking about confidence, not just here in the United States, but also foreign investors and what his economic people, the president's economic people, will talk about with the folks at the G-20 about being confident about the investments that they have here in the U.S.
Also making mention there, they were talking about investments -- or strategy in Iraq and talking about the new ambassador to Iraq, Chris Hill, whether or not there was confidence in him and why the president picked Chris Hill. Also, big news coming out of this. The president will hold a town hall meeting on Wednesday, next week, Santa Ana, California. They're putting the president back out among the people, as they did during the campaign, instead of keeping him in Washington, to try to build confidence in Americans and also to drum up support for stimulus packages, spending bill and what have you.
