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W.H.O. Warns of Imminent Pandemic; NYC Building Collapsed; GOP Response to Obama 100 Days News Conference Remarks; The China Factor: How Much Do We Owe?; Obama Lays Out Challenges Ahead

Aired April 30, 2009 - 06:00   ET

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

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, thanks for being with us on this Thursday, April 30th. I'm Kiran Chetry.

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, I'm John Roberts.

A lot to cover this morning. Here are the big stories that we'll be breaking down for you in the next 15 minutes on the Most News in the Morning.

We're entering a dangerous new phase in the swine flu outbreak this morning. Government officials under pressure from the pork lobby, now referring to it with its technical name, the H1N1 flu virus. Even the president now saying if your kids are sick, keep them home.

A growing number of public schools are shutting their doors as well. Fort Worth, Texas has closed its entire school district affecting 80,000 students.

The World Health Organization saying we are now at the brink of an all-out pandemic raising the alert level to five on a scale of six. The virus now baffling many researchers because of the way it's easily spreading from person to person and by the way it's affecting the young and relatively healthy.

Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta will join us live just ahead.

A good start says the president, but it's only a start and much more remains to be done. President Obama offering that assessment of his first 100 days during a wide ranging primetime news conference. So how did he do? We'll have reaction from politicians and pundits on both sides of the aisle today.

CHETRY: And the president's primetime news conference is where we begin this morning. The president used it to address many of the critical issues now facing the country and his administration. From the swine flu outbreak to instability in Pakistan to the government stake in banks and automakers, the president is saying that the administration has made progress in the economy but there's still a lot of work to be done.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think we're off to a good start. But it's just a start. I'm proud of what we've achieved but I'm not content. I'm pleased with our progress, but I'm not satisfied.

Millions of Americans are still without jobs and homes. And more will be lost before this recession is over. Credit is still not flowing nearly as freely as it should. Countless families and communities touched by our auto industries still face tough times ahead. Our projected long-term deficits are still too high and government is still not as efficient as it needs to be.

We still confront threats ranging from terrorism to nuclear proliferation as well as pandemic flu. And all this means you can expect an unrelenting, unyielding effort from this administration to strengthen our prosperity and our security in the second 100 days and the third 100 days and all the days after that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: The president also saying he's been sobered by how slow change happens in Washington. We're bringing you a lot more from the president's news conference throughout the morning.

We begin with White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux. You were noting how this primetime news conference was a little different than the ones he's had before.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: It really was very different. It was striking in a way, because this is something that we really haven't seen in the past. President Bush liked to say he was a gut guy. He went on his gut, much of his decision-making. Whether you agree or disagree with him, it was his job to lead the country in the direction that he saw fit. A little navel-gazing.

But President Obama almost seemed to relish in this moment when he was asked to reflect on his first 100 days.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX (voice-over): A reflective President Barack Obama on his first 100 days. Governing the United States is a lot harder than he thought.

OBAMA: I am surprised compared to where I started when we first announced for this race by the number of critical issues that appear to be coming to a head all at the same time. The typical president, I think, has two or three big problems. We've got seven or eight big problems.

MALVEAUX: The most pressing one, the swine flu outbreak.

OBAMA: I consulted with our public health officials extensively on a day-to-day basis. In some cases, an hour-to-hour basis. At this point, they have not recommended a border closing.

MALVEAUX: Despite the fact Mr. Obama has greatly increased the government's role in dealing with the nation's problems, including bailing out big banks and managing car companies, the president said he had little appetite for either. OBAMA: I think our first role should be shareholders that are looking to get out. I - you know, I don't want to run auto companies. I don't want to run banks. I've got two wars I've got to run already. I've got more than enough to do.

MALVEAUX: He alternately pleaded and thanked the American people for their patience while recognizing his own limitations.

OBAMA: I can't just press a button and suddenly have the bankers do exactly what I want, or, you know, turn on a switch and suddenly Congress falls in line.

MALVEAUX: But he still pledged to try to fulfill his promise to bring bipartisanship to Washington.

OBAMA: To my Republican friends, I want them to realize that me reaching out to them has been genuine.

MALVEAUX: But the president stood firm on his position to abandon some interrogation techniques used under President Bush considered by many to be torture.

OBAMA: We could have gotten this information in other ways. I believe that waterboarding was torture. And I think that whatever legal rationales were used, it was a mistake. It corrodes the character of a country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: And President Obama reiterated that he believed his election victory was a mandate for change. He is confident in undoing many of President Bush's policies because of that, whether it's over torture or stem cell research, or the Iraq war that he believes that that is the direction that he's moving. He's in the last 100 days. He's going to do it the next 100 days.

CHETRY: It's interesting because he was also asked, is immigration reform, you know, going to go through in your first administration? He said, we're definitely going to still stay on target to get the ball rolling with immigration.

MALVEAUX: Very ambitious goals here. And obviously he has to deal with the swine flu outbreak as well. So there's just a lot on his plate.

CHETRY: All right. Suzanne Malveaux, thanks.

MALVEAUX: Thanks.

ROBERTS: And on that topic, new developments in a no-nonsense warning this morning in the mysterious swine flu outbreak. It's spreading from person to person at an alarming rate. The microscopic killer has even some of the sharpest minds in the world scratching their heads today because of the way that it's attacking people with the strongest immune systems. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today confirming 91 cases in 10 states, and health officials in nine other states now confirming cases of the swine strain of the H1N1 flu virus.

Overseas, the epidemic is picking up speed, is now confirmed or suspected in at least 12 other countries. The latest, Switzerland, hitting the home base of the World Health Organization which has now raised its threat level to five out of six, meaning that a worldwide pandemic is imminent. Health officials now urging all countries to take action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MARGARET CHAN, DIRECTOR GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: No matter what the situation is, the international community should treat this as a window of opportunity to ramp up preparedness and response. Above all, this is an opportunity for global solidarity. It really is all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: The uncertainty about this flu affecting tens of thousands of students this morning, 80,000 in Texas alone. That's where CNN's Ed Lavandera is live.

Also, our Dr. Sanjay Gupta standing by in Mexico City on the raised alert level and what it means for you.

Let's start with Ed. He's in Fort Worth this morning.

What drove the decision to close down an entire school district, Ed?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you mentioned, John, a major move here in Fort Worth, by far the largest school district in the state of Texas to announce that it is closing all of its schools. One student is a confirmed case, and that's really what's driving a lot of that. But also the fact that there are two other students that are suspected cases.

The worry here is that so many students related or friends and intermingled between all of these different schools, they really fear that this could become a much wider spread problem. So they want to, they say, get ahead of that. So they have announced that schools are closing today.

They announced this late last night. That schools would effectively close today at least until May 11. So a little more than a week of school closures here that the people of Fort Worth will be dealing with.

And in fact, officials here in Fort Worth are also urging parents to keep their kids away from movie theaters and day care centers. So as parents wake up this morning, many of them heading to work as well.

As you might imagine, that's going to create a deal of uncertainty as parents try to figure out what to do with their kids that are just now at home instead of going to day care if that was going to be the case - John.

ROBERTS: Ed, what other precautions are they taking there in Texas? Governor Rick Perry suggested that, you know, maybe border closing might be an option but one that he didn't think was presently necessary.

LAVANDERA: Well, the governor declared the situation a disaster in Texas. We've seen school closings across the state, some entire districts in smaller portions of the state.

But also, there seems to be a sense of trying to get ahead of this a little bit. An organization that kind of controls athletic events and academic events across the state announced that all of its activities for the next couple of weeks have also been postponed and that's causing a lot of heartache across the state as well - John.

ROBERTS: Ed Lavandera for us in Fort Worth, Texas this morning. Ed, thanks so much.

CHETRY: Well, the virus has nearly shut down the entire country where it started. The Mexican government says all nonessential public and private businesses must temporarily close tomorrow. CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is live in Mexico City this morning.

And Sanjay, from closing businesses in Mexico to schools here in the United States, will that really help?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it seems to me one of the mainstays of trying to isolate people and trying to prevent this from becoming less contained. You know, everyone has talked about this. President Calderon has talked about this, President Obama talked about this last night in the United States. This idea that if you start containing people sort of on the individual or community level, they might be able to stem the tide of this growing even more.

Now one thing about the border closings overall, Kiran, you remember we looked at the modeling the other day of how much border closings make a difference after there are already cases of confirmed human-to-human transmission in both countries. And if you remember that modeling and remember what people are talking about now, it hardly makes a difference.

The cat is out of the bag so to speak as some of the infectious disease experts have put it to me. So that may be driving some of the discussions, some of the thinking on whether or not to close the borders.

CHETRY: We also reported that tragic news yesterday. A 23- month-old baby, Mexican baby, dying from the flu in a Texas hospital. Any idea as well who seems to succumb to it and who is able to recover? GUPTA: Well, you know, there does seem to be some inconsistencies between where I am here in Mexico and where you are in the United States. You know, we've talked about this a little bit, this idea here in Mexico.

The people who are the most vulnerable are not the very young and the very elderly, but people sort of in the prime of their lives. And the idea is that it's their robust immune systems that are actually the culprit here. The virus causes an inflammatory response that is so profound that they eventually die from that. Whereas typically when you think of flu, it is the young and the elderly whose immune systems are weakened.

It's just too early to tell how this is going to behave. In the United States, obviously, the one death here in Mexico, over 150 deaths. I think time will tell just who is going to be the most vulnerable. Hopefully, and this is what a lot of the doctors are telling me, it will stay sort of at the mild illness level in lots of different countries.

CHETRY: That's certainly a glimmer of hope there as well. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thanks so much.

Sanjay's, by the way, also on Twitter this morning from Mexico City. He's taking your questions about swine flu. So to join the conversation, go to twitter.com/AMFix. You can also e-mail us, CNN.com/AMFix. And you can give a call to our show hotline, weigh in, ask a question, 877-MY-AMFIX.

ROBERTS: Also new this morning, Chrysler appears headed for bankruptcy court. Government talks with the automakers top creditors to forgive nearly $7 billion in debt broke off late last night. Sources say it's all but certain that Chrysler will file for Chapter 11 protection today. The United Auto Workers did ratify a revamp contract yesterday that could pave the way for an eventual Chrysler partnership with Fiat.

A new hate crimes bill passing the House protecting gay victims of violent crimes. The vote mostly along party lines with conservatives strongly against it. Some saying it could violate free speech. Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts has introduced the Senate's version of the legislation, but no vote is scheduled yet.

President Obama offering a glass half full assessment of his first 100 days in office. We'll ask two of the sharpest political minds in the country for their take on the president's primetime performance.

It's 12 minutes now after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.

President Obama cautiously optimistic about the State of the Union after his first 100 days in office. He delivered a primetime progress report of sorts last night. In a news conference, he touched on many of the critical issues our country is now facing.

So joining us with some morning-after analysis, John Avlon, contributor to thedailybeast.com and author of "Independent Nation," And also "Daily News" columnist Errol Louis. He's live from WWRL in New York where this interview is being simulcast on the radio as well.

Welcome to both of you. Thanks for being with us.

JOHN AVLON, AUTHOR, "INDEPENDENT NATION": Good morning.

ERROL LOUIS, COLUMNIST, "NY DAILY NEWS": Good morning.

CHETRY: So, John, let me start with you.

This was his third, President Obama's third primetime news conference marking his 100th day in office. What do you think his strongest moment was last night?

AVLON: I think his strongest moment is where he answered Beltway critics who say that he hasn't been sufficiently bipartisan. And he said, look, you know, he offered very specific places where he could reach out going forward, policy agendas on immigration, health care, things like procurement (ph) reform. That's real substance to the bipartisan rhetoric we've seen and I think he needs to move further in that direction in the next 100 days.

CHETRY: Errol, what about you? What do you think his strongest moment was?

LOUIS: Oh, I thought when he tried to answer that kind of crazy four-part question, when were you most disappointed and enchanted, and so forth. It was just an honest and clearly unscripted moment. It's not the kind of thing you have talking points prepared in advance for. And he was really speaking from the heart. I thought it was very affecting. It was very emotional, very real.

CHETRY: And you know what, you alluded to that. It was a question that he was asked by Jeff Zeleny of "The New York Times" to reflect on what surprised, troubled, enchanted and humbled him in his first 100 days. It was interesting, it's like, hold on, let me write that down. And he actually wrote down every single thing.

Let's listen to a little bit of what he said. He said I would say more sobered than troubled, but let's listen to part of his answer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OBAMA: Sobered by the fact that change in Washington comes slow. That there is still a certain quotient of political posturing and bickering that takes place even when we're in the middle of really big crises.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: And, John, here he almost seemed to be answering back to hey, what happened to change we can believe in? And what happened to coming to Washington and not having partisan bickering?

AVLON: Right. Well, I mean, he inherited a culture in Washington of hyper-partisanship. And he acknowledged that you can't change a culture in a day. But he also said he's added some perspective to this.

You know, when you have partisan bickering and then the surprises, it really shows what a Kabuki theater a lot of this politics is. And by taking on that hyper-partisanship and trying to change the culture by showing that a president doesn't have to be held hostage by hyper-partisan politics, that's where the change begins. It's a process.

CHETRY: Right.

AVLON: It's only just begun.

CHETRY: And, Errol, where do you think he stumbled last night?

LOUIS: Well, I think on the question of the release of the torture memos and how he really feels about what's going to happen as far as prosecuting the preceding administration around some of these questions of torture. I mean, he's simply stuck. And, you know, there's no amount of grace which he clearly has when he's at the podium but nothing's going to really erase that. He's got a very, very difficult job ahead of him.

He has said that if he think it's torture, he's going to prosecute it but he's also said he doesn't want to start a witch hunt and set a bad precedent of one administration trying to criminally prosecute his predecessors. So he's going to have to let this play out. It's probably time for a special prosecutor.

CHETRY: And, John, I want to - you seem to be agreeing in some ways.

AVLON: Yes.

CHETRY: But I really want to get to this with you because, of course, the news yesterday, Republican Arlen Specter, senator for 28 years, 29 years deciding that he was going to go to the Democrats. And he said, you know, the Republican Party basically left me.

Some historians are suggesting that no president has had such power since 1937 when large Democratic majorities in Congress gave President Franklin Roosevelt tremendous leverage. As an independent, what's your take on the potential for one-party rule in Washington?

AVLON: Well, as an independent, we like checks and balances. And whenever one party reaches its 60-seat filibuster-proof majority, it's cause for trouble. But this really should be a wake-up call for Republicans. They have hounded their centrists out of their party and simultaneously they find themselves a diminished party, more marginalized as a result.

The dynamic comes from the same thing. They hunt down their heretics. He felt unwelcome in the party. And that's not a party growing, it's a party that's shrinking. They need to reach out to independents. And in the space, President Obama is setting the stage for realigning election, where he's building a durable center left coalition winning over people like Senator Specter. That is a sign of a powerful president.

CHETRY: All right. Well, we have to leave it there. I want to thank both of you, John Avlon and Errol Louis, for being with us this morning. Thanks.

AVLON: Thank you.

CHETRY: John.

ROBERTS: This morning, the report card on President Obama's 100 days is out of recession, two wars and now a flu outbreak. So how has the president done? We'll tell you.

And the World Health Organization raises the alert level warning that a pandemic is imminent. So just how prepared is the United States? We'll get some answers for you.

It's 19 minutes now after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Twenty-two minutes after the hour. Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Let's fast forward now to the stories that will be making news later on today.

This afternoon at 1:30 Eastern, President Obama kicks off day 101 in office with a bipartisan meeting, including Senator John McCain. The group is expected to discuss defense issues.

This morning at 10:00 a.m. Eastern, Congress will hold another hearing on the swine flu outbreak. A House subcommittee will focus on whether public health agencies are properly coordinating.

And at 2:30 Eastern this afternoon, Captain Richard Phillips from the hijacked cargo ship Maersk Alabama tells his story to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Phillips, you recall, was held hostage for days by pirates and later rescued by Navy SEALs who shot and killed his three captors. Congress is now addressing piracy and its effect on global commerce.

And that's what will be making news throughout the day today, Kiran.

CHETRY: It's interesting because one of the crew members mounting (ph) a lawsuit saying they're going to sue the Maersk company saying that they didn't take enough steps to keep them safe.

ROBERTS: Yes, I mean the debate goes on with all of this.

CHETRY: Absolutely. All right. Well, this morning, it is day 101 for President Obama. He wrapped up his first 100 days with a primetime news conference last night. We've been listening to some of the highlights this morning.

In his opening remarks, the president said that we're off to a good start, but how is the public grading the new administration? Here's CNN's senior political analyst Bill Schneider.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OBAMA: Please be seated.

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST (voice-over): Uh-oh, the report card is out. How's the president doing?

Here's what he says.

OBAMA: I'm proud of what we've achieved but I'm not content. I'm pleased with our progress but I'm not satisfied.

SCHNEIDER: That's what the American people say too. The average grade they give the president after 100 days, B-minus, pretty good. Keep working on that A.

Democrats and Republicans differ in their grades, but not by that much. Democrats give their president a B-plus.

OBAMA: I've got Democrats who don't agree with me on everything. And that's how it should be.

SCHNEIDER: The president says he's trying to be bipartisan.

OBAMA: I do think that to my Republican friends, I want them to realize that me reaching out to them has been genuine.

SCHNEIDER: The Republican response - wary. Republicans give President Obama a C-minus.

Is there a racial divide? Yes, but not because whites are particularly harsh on the nation's first African-American president. Whites give him a C-plus. The president has not shown any particular favoritism toward African-Americans.

OBAMA: I'm confident that that will help the African-American community live out the American dream at the same time as it's helping communities all across the country.

SCHNEIDER: Blacks give President Obama an A minus. That's pride. How does the bad economy affect the president's grades?

Suppose someone in your household has lost a job. How do you grade President Obama? B-minus.

Suppose you're worried that someone in your household will lose their job? B-minus.

And if you're not worried, B-minus?

What does that prove? That people do not hold a president who's been in office only 100 days accountable for their economic woes.

OBAMA: Obviously, I didn't anticipate the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

SCHNEIDER (on camera): President Obama's overall grade of B- minus is higher than the grades Americans give him on economic policy and on foreign policy. He gets C's on both subjects.

Bottom line, the president is more popular than his policies.

Bill Schneider, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTS: Well, President Obama is still reaching out to Republicans as he begins his second 100 days in office. We'll have GOP reaction to the president's latest message.

And the world moving closer to a full scale pandemic. The World Health Organization urging all nations to make emergency plans. So what does this mean for you and how concerned should you be? We've got expert advice just ahead.

It's 26 minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: Wow, look at that tower cam from Boston. It's a little windy there this morning.

Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. A live look at the state house there in Boston. Forty-six degrees right now, going up to 66 where it should be mostly sunny today. So that's not bad.

Checking our top stories now at 29 minutes after the hour.

The swine flu forcing public schools in Fort Worth, Texas to make the call to close their doors this morning. That decision affects about 80,000 students and their families. They'll be home until at least May 11.

The drastic move coming just hours after the World Health Organization raised its alert level from four to five, meaning a global swine flu pandemic is imminent. Right now, in the U.S., there are at least 91 confirmed cases in ten states.

The head of one of the country's biggest banks getting the boot. Bank of America shareholders have stripped Ken Lewis of his chairman title. They did keep him on though as CEO. The company has accepted $45 billion in government bailout money. Many shareholders blame Lewis for mismanaging the Merrill Lynch takeover.

And a story anyone struggling to pay their mortgage should hear. The Senate appears ready to vote down legislation that would let bankruptcy judges rewrite mortgages to lower monthly payments for struggling homeowners. This would be a major setback for the president who has backed this bill. Democrats are trying to get more votes by restricting eligibility to people whose homes are already in foreclosure - John.

ROBERTS: All humanity is under threat. That serious warning coming from the World Health Organization which has now raised its pandemic level to five out of a maximum six. The swine flu, otherwise known as H1N1 flu virus, is spreading faster and appears to be targeting the healthy.

Joining me now to talk about how serious this really is Dr. Martin Blaser. He's the chairman of the NYU Department of Medicine who is also president of the Infectious Disease Society of America.

So when Dr. Margaret Chan of the WHO says all humanity is under threat, put this in perspective for us, what really, Dr. Blaser, is the risk here in this country?

DR. MARTIN BLASER, CHAIRMAN, NYU DEPARTMENT OF MEDICINE: She's right. This is a pandemic. It's all over the world. Right now, it's early and it's mild. So everybody is at risk. But right now, the risk is low.

ROBERTS: But her warning that this could be serious, serious trouble - is that more to the developing world or to the developed world, or is it really into everybody?

BLASER: It's really everybody. Because in this one, we're all combined. It's traveling from person-to-person. All people at risk.

ROBERTS: People are trying to game out what this virus is going to do.

And John Barry, who wrote a fabulous book in the 1918 flu pandemic called "The Great Influenza," thinks that this is just the opening act of a very long play. That this virus is probably going to go away for a little while, go to ground, hide in the background. And then maybe next winter or early next year, come back with a vengeance.

What do you think?

BLASER: I think that's the most likely scenario. Because influenza is very influenced by the seasons.

And in 1918, it came - there was a little - a little bump in the early summer. It went underground. And then it did come back with a vengeance. And that would be predictable here. And I think we have to think of this more as one of our secretaries said as a marathon and not as a sprint.

ROBERTS: The fact that this virus is spreading the way it is, given the fact that it's in the mid to high 80s in Mexico City. In Texas, it's about the same temperature. You know, we are heading into the summer season here, and this virus is still very much alive.

BLASER: It's alive, but it's - you know, in the whole United States, we only have 91 confirmed cases. So it's not on epidemic scale. And it's building. And epidemics build. That's how you have to think about it.

They build, they peak, they go down. We're in the early phase. I'm hoping, just like John Barry, that the summer will bring it down, and then it will come back sometime in the fall. And hopefully, we will be prepared for that.

ROBERTS: Yes. Maybe a vaccine by that point.

BLASER: I hope so.

ROBERTS: Fast tracking the vaccine as the CDC has decided to do now, how long will it take to get a vaccine?

BLASER: That's a really good question. I hope that they can fast track it as much as possible. With any luck, we can have one in four or five months which will be very well-timed.

ROBERTS: Typically, the seasonal flu, when it hits, it affects the very young and the very old, proportionately than it does people in the middle. But this is really affecting healthy people. And a lot of people wondering why is that?

What is it about the way that this flu interacts with the healthy person's immune system that makes that much more dangerous for somebody who's, you know, got a better robust immune system and is very healthy.

BLASER: Right. I just want to correct, John, one point. When seasonal flu comes, it affects everybody. But the people who get sickest are the people at the extremes of life.

ROBERTS: That's the point I was trying to make. Just to make it clearer.

BLASER: But everybody gets sick with seasonal flu of all ages. And this one, everyone is likely to get sick, too. But if it's like some of the other pandemics that people in the mid frame of life are the people at highest risk for illness. And that may be as was said, because they have very healthy immune systems. So they're fighting it. It's a pitch battle.

ROBERTS: So what is this? The immune system - the reaction of the immune system actually makes the effect of the disease worse?

BLASER: Yes.

ROBERTS: Interesting. Something to pursue in the future.

Dr. Blaser, it's good to see you this morning. Thanks for dropping by.

BLASER: Thank you.

ROBERTS: Kiran.

CHETRY: Just in to CNN: These were live pictures right now coming to us from our affiliate WABC here in New York. This is the site of a building collapse in Lower Manhattan. Not too far away actually from city hall. We're told the cross streets are Reed and Broadway. Reed Street just east of Broadway.

All we know right now is this is described as a five-story building on Reed Street. It's not known right now if this building was occupied or if it was under construction at the time. But they are describing significant structural damage, and also cars that appear to be buried in the rubble.

Right now, we're getting word that - and you see firefighters and rescue crews there. We're getting word that what they're trying to do right now as a precaution, figure out whether or not, it was occupied. See if there are any victims inside.

But, again, this news is just coming to us. We actually have pictures before we have more information. According to ABC-7 or WABC, which is our ABC affiliate here in New York, initial reports from them indicate that this building was not occupied at the time. And it was possibly undergoing renovation when it collapsed.

But again, the fire department looking as a precaution. And as we said, there were also some cars that appear to be buried in the rubble down there.

It's interesting, John, we were just talking yesterday about when we heard that dispatcher call from that low-flying plane. And we said this is the type of thing that you have to be ready for in Manhattan each and every day. There's a potential for something to happen. And today, we're showing you the pictures of this building collapse.

ROBERTS: Yes, it happens from time to time.

And you can see there, the fence that are going through - that's a construction fence. So there's a vacant lot there beside this building. And this happens not with the tremendous frequency, but it does happen from time to time in New York City when, you know, these buildings are all butted up against each other.

When you take down a building that's in between two, it weakens the structure of the other buildings and sometimes they're prone to collapse. And when you do a gut renovation, you're always taking a chance when you take out that flooring and everything that ties the structure together that you're going to weaken it to the point where it may collapse. So it does look just now photographic evidence here as though there was construction going on in that particular area, and maybe the structure was weakened enough that it collapsed.

The car there that's buried is out in the street. So it's not like it was in a basement garage or something.

CHETRY: Yes. And, you know, when it happens in New York City, it also brings in a whole host of other issues. I mean, that's a very busy area. Not far - just a few streets from city hall. It's a place where a lot of people go. There are subway lines in the area, bus routes. And, obviously, they're going to have to shut down parts of that area.

There's another vehicle there on the left that you can see as well that looks to be covered in that rubble. So we'll keep following it for you.

ROBERTS: Yes. But it is ironic when you listen to the 911 call, the guy says there's a jet fighter following an aircraft. And the 911 dispatcher says, there's a building falling down, where?

(CROSSTALK)

CHETRY: Falling, where? Right.

ROBERTS: It's like - you know, unfortunately, people are kind of used to that here in New York City.

CHETRY: All right.

Well, still ahead, President Obama says that he's off to a good start. Republicans, of course, beg to differ. We're going to get a GOP assessment of the president's first 100 days. And also, some introspection from the GOP party itself on what their future is. We're going to talk about it at 36 minutes after the hour.0

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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.

From the beginning, President Obama promised to reach across the aisle, but his first 100 days were spent mostly at odds with Republicans. Yesterday's budget vote just another reminder of that. The president delivering another bipartisan appeal during his news conference last night. But what kind of reaction is he getting from the GOP?

Joining us from Washington, Republican Congressman Kevin McCarthy from California. He's a deputy minority whip in the House.

Thanks for being with us this morning.

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), DEPUTY MINORITY WHIP: Thanks for having me.

CHETRY: So he talked again, the president, about saying that his bipartisan efforts had been genuine. Do you think that he's lived up to his bipartisan pledge over the past 100 days?

MCCARTHY: Unfortunately, no. And one thing that I've seen from a personal belief, we invited this president early on, when he first got elected, to our conference to have a bipartisan talk and work on the stimulus bill where Republicans actually put together a working group, gave him a list of ideas, even scored and measured it based upon his economic drivers, which had created twice as many jobs with half the money. And not one idea was taken.

So, I think... CHETRY: Is that - is that more the fault of the president or do you think it's more the fault of the - of the congressional leadership in the House?

MCCARTHY: Oh, I fault more the congressional leadership in the House. Because as the president was speaking to our conference, the speaker, Nancy Pelosi, was introducing the stimulus bill to deny the ability for bipartisanship to even work within the House. And I think - I think that's detrimental in the long run.

CHETRY: Actually, let's listen to what Nancy Pelosi said. She actually gave some advice in the wake of Senator Arlen Specter's party switch to the GOP. Let's hear it and I'd like to get your reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: Yes, there is a - shall we say a radical right wing element with whom they identify. But, by in large, I say to Republicans in America, take back your party.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: What do you make of getting advice from the House speaker, the Democrat, of what you guys should do?

MCCARTHY: Look, I look to a lot of people to get advice, but that's not one of the first people I look to.

I think this party has a lot of places to grow. And that's one reason why we're unveiling today the National Council for a New America, where we're going on a tour across America, getting out of Washington, listening to Americans, to devise, to be able to solve this economic recovery, to define a 21st century patient-centered health care, to prepare our children for the 21st century as well.

And that's the way what you're going to see this party grow, and listening and build, and it's going to be finding solutions to our problems. I think that brings this Republican Party back more than anything.

CHETRY: Well, there seems to be some sort of internal debate. "The New York Times" has an interesting article today saying, "Is it a broader party or a purer one?"

And Lindsey Graham said, "We're not losing blue states and shrinking as a party because we're not conservative enough, which some are pushing, to become more conservative, more pure." He said that, "If we pursue a party that has no place for someone who agrees with me 70 percent of the time, that's based on an ideological purity test rather than a coalition test, then we're going to keep losing."

Do you agree with him? And if so, how do you change that?

MCCARTHY: I agree that this party needs to grow. This party needs to be open and welcome new people into it. We can maintain our philosophy and be able to grow and add people to it as much as Ronald Reagan was able to do.

I think what you see - and remember, six years ago, this is exactly where the Democratic Party was. This president ran for Congress and lost in the primary by 30 percent where his own party wouldn't even elect him to Congress and now he's president of the United States.

We've got an opportunity here. People may think the cup is empty, I think it's half full. This is a time that new leaders rise up, that new ideas form, that solutions are able to grow. I think this is a time when you're going to look back and say this is where the party shifted and this is where the party was able to grow. And the new Council for a New America is, I think, one of the first starts where we listen to the American people to find solutions.

CHETRY: All right. Congressman Kevin McCarthy, thanks so much for joining us this morning.

MCCARTHY: Thank you.

CHETRY: John.

ROBERTS: China, some experts say, could flush the U.S. economy down the toilet if it wanted to. Now it appears to be throwing its weight around.

So how much leverage does the president have in dealing with China?

It's today's "Memo to the President."

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ROBERTS: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.

A live look at Centennial Park there in Atlanta. 63 degrees right now going up to a high of 81. Going to be partly cloudy today. And our Rob Marciano in the weather center where that shot was taken from, just outside the building there.

With a look at all of the extreme weather across the country today and looks like you've got some thunderstorms there in the midsection of the country.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHETRY: Some say China is actually America's banker these days. The country loaned Washington more than $700 billion. How did that happen? And how do we get ourselves out of it?

It's our "Memo to the President."

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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. President Obama entering the White House with an economy teetering on the edge. And in his first 100 days in office, he spent a great deal of time focusing on the financial crisis.

This morning, in our series "Memo to the President," we're looking at the important but complicated relationship with China. CNN's Christine Romans is "Minding Your Business."

You know, we asked this all the time in the NEWSROOM, what if China wanted all its money back? What would we do?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It would be tough for us and for them. But hopefully that won't happen any time soon.

Kiran and John, our government is spending so much more money than it has. The Treasury Department yesterday said it's going to now be selling bonds more frequently. And who are we counting on to buy all that debt?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS (voice-over): Mr. President, meet America's biggest foreign banker - China. It's the most complicated and important economic relationship in the world. And here's how it works.

PETER MORICI, ECONOMIST: Essentially, we buy more from China than they buy from us. So that leaves China with a lot of dollars. China wants that to happen. In fact, it undervalues its currency to make that happen, because it wants to grow through exports. That does create problems for the United States in two dimensions. One, is it diminishes our manufacturing more than trade should, and it also makes China our banker.

ROMANS: China is awash in the dollars Americans spend on Chinese toys, electronics, clothes, shoes, appliances and more. What do they do with the dollars? They invest in Treasury bonds, essentially loaning the money back to us so we can spend more on consumer products and now on bank bailouts and stimulus.

China has been a ready source of loans for years, today holding $739.6 billion worth of these American IOUs.

GORDON CHANG, AUTHOR, COMING COLLAPSE OF CHINA: The relationship is unsustainable. And the reason why the global downturn is so severe is that you have two very large imbalances right now. You have the U.S. current account deficit, you have the Chinese current account surplus. Together these two countries account for about 31 percent of global output. Their economies are out of whack. And that's why this is so serious.

ROMANS: Out of whack made more serious, critics say, by recent suggestions from Chinese officials that Americans need to save more, and by calls for a new currency to replace the dollar as the global reserve currency. Everything today is backed in dollars.

SCOTT ULLY, CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: They feel like they've got some weight to throw around. But I think they need to be very careful about the way they throw it around. And right now in some respects they are damaging their own interests.

ROMANS: After all, the Chinese are huge investors in U.S. assets, and the U.S. is its biggest market.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: The challenge for the president's team, China has its own national strategy, its own goals. It is a communist country, does not a democracy like the United States. And it has hundreds of millions of its own citizens to put to work to preserve stability there.

The irony - the United States has long urged China to get its government out of its economy, and now the U.S. government is faced with the same criticisms here. Doing exactly what we have been telling the Chinese not to do, putting the government in charge of the economy, looking up the banks, the auto sector.

So, clearly, some of America's moral authority on this front has been diminished.

CHETRY: Christine, thank you.

ROBERTS: We're hearing grave warnings from the World Health Organization this morning about this deadly flu virus. They've said a pandemic is imminent.

The doctor who broke the news about the first death in the United States tells us the real risk now. He's coming up.