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House Votes to Cut ACORN'S Funding; More U.S. Troops in Afghanistan; High Suicide Rates

Aired September 18, 2009 - 10:00   ET

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


HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get to some of the stories we're watching right now here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

North Korea's President Kim Jong-Il says he's open to multinational talks on his country's nuclear program. He met with a special envoy from China today. North Korea pulled out of earlier six-nation talks in protest of United Nations sanctions.

A summit sponsored by a leading conservative group gets underway today in Washington. Speakers at the 2009 Values Voter Summit includes Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Majority Leader John Boehner, Mike Huckabee and former Miss California U.S.A. Kerry Prejean.

We're waiting for new state jobless numbers this morning. The Labor Department is ready to release the stats for August. National unemployment for August was 9.7 percent. We'll get to new numbers just as soon as they come out.

ACORN may soon be taking a huge financial hit. Yesterday, the House approved an amendment to pull all federal funding from the community organization. The vote follows the release of several undercover videos of ACORN workers. The videos were made by conservative activists posing as a pimp and a prostitute.

Let's get more now from Abbie Boudreau of CNN special investigations unit.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Vote of yays of 345 and nays 75.

ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It wasn't even close. By a 345 to 75 vote, the House of Representatives voted to kill all federal funding for the community organizing group, ACORN.

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), MINORITY LEADER: ACORN is trying to claim that they're cleaning up their act, but I think it's too little, too late.

BOUDREAU: It wasn't just Republicans. 172 Democrats also voted to de-fund ACORN. An indication of deep wounds inflicted by hidden camera videos.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your business is a performing artist. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Performing arts.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Which you are. OK. So you're not lying.

BOUDREAU: Videos that show ACORN workers offering help and advice to a couple of conservative activists posing as a pimp and a prostitute. ACORN damage control effort has included saying the tapes were doctored, threatened to sue the filmmakers and ordered an independent investigation.

BERTHA LEWIS, CEO, ACORN: I immediately took swift action. And I said you know what? We're going to look at this. We're going to make a review from top to bottom so that this thing never happens again. We worked too hard to have some trumped up thing like this happen.

BOUDREAU: The newest tape reportedly shows an ACORN worker in National City near San Diego advising the undercover filmmakers on how to get under aged sex workers from El Salvador over the border from Mexico.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is confidential right?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.

BOUDREAU: But A.C.O.R.N. tells CNN, the worker was just trying to deal with a, "bizarre and challenging situation," and that he was laying along with O'Keefe and Giles to get information, which according to A.C.O.R.N., he passed on to his cousin, who is a detective with the National City Police Department. And now this video released by an A.C.O.R.N. worker in Philadelphia. She says she reported the couple to the police.

KATHERINE CONWAY RUSSELL, ACORN EMPLOYEE: It appears Mr. O'Keefe lied to get his appointment. He was to dressed like he is on the Internet, and when we got suspicious about the questions he was asking at the Philadelphia A.C.O.R.N. housing office, we called the police and filed this report.

BOUDREAU: And there are other cases where A.C.O.R.N. workers said the videos didn't show the full story. This A.C.O.R.N. worker seen on one video claiming to have killed her ex-husband in self- defense.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And then I just picked up the gun and said (EXPLETIVE DELETED) you and I shot him and he died, right there.

BOUDREAU: But Teresa Kaelke (ph) tells CNN, she was just playing games. Her ex-husband's just fine.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's alive and well.

BOUDREAU: And local police confirmed that. (on camera): But coming on top of earlier tapes, which clearly show A.C.O.R.N. workers bending over backwards to help O'Keefe and Giles, questions about whether the tapes were taken legally, doctored, or even deliberately misleading seem to have been drowned out in the clamor.

Abbi Boudreau, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: And some more information now for you about ACORN. The group says it's the nation's largest community organization representing low and moderate income people. ACORN says it has more than 400,000 members across the United States and 1,200 neighborhood chapters. The non-profit group is funded through donations. It has also received $53 million in taxpayer money since 1994 according to a California Congressman Daryl Isaac.

The series of scandals sent critics calling for an investigation now. The brother of ACORN's former chief organizer was charged with embezzlement. In addition to the recent undercover tapes featuring ACORN workers, other employees in several states are accused of voter registration fraud. As we mentioned, the undercover videos prompted Congress to vote on millions of dollars in government funding cuts for ACORN. Last week the Census Bureau ended its deal with ACORN to help out with the 2010 head count.

A Yale University technician is being held at a high security facility on $3 million bail after being charged with the grad student's murder. New Haven, Connecticut Police are describing the case as one of workplace violence. Raymond Clark was arrested yesterday even though he had been under surveillance for several days. The body of Annie Le was found in the lab building Sunday where she and Clark worked.

To another investigation across the country now. Authorities plan to dig on part of Phillip Garrido's California property after two cadaver dogs found scents in the same place. Garrido is behind bars charged in the Jaycee Dugard kidnapping but he's also being investigated in connection with the disappearance of two other girls in the 1980s. Costa County inspectors have condemned his home as unsafe to occupy and released these pictures of it.

We are learning more this morning about a possible terror plot in the United States. Sources tell CNN there was planning and preparation for an attack and that mass transportation may have been targeted. The investigation led to raids by federal agents in New York and Colorado.

CNN Homeland Security correspondent Jeanne Meserve is joining us now live by telephone in Denver.

So, Jeanne, your sources are giving you some more details here of these plans.

VOICE OF JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, they don't exactly have details of the plan yet, Heidi. What they're doing is trying to get a better sense of what these individuals may have been up to and they don't think they have the full picture yet. The investigation is ongoing.

Now two sources have told CNN that investigators did turn up instructions on how to make bombs. One law enforcement source tells us they were found on a computer that Najibullah Zazi carried to New York. Now, Najibullah Zazi is the 24-year-old Afghan national who has been at the center of this investigation. His lawyer says it isn't true. He emerged from the FBI yesterday and said that if the FBI had found evidence of that sort, he didn't suspect that Mr. Zazi would be walking free.

In addition, sources have told CNN that they have found backpacks during searches of New York. Now, backpacks were used, of course, in the 2004 subway bombings in Madrid and according to sources, this has led law enforcement to theorize that perhaps this alleged plot had to do with mass transit, that they might have wanted to hit some place where there would be a lot of people and not much screening of baggage, something like a subway station or a train station. But that's the theoretical premise that they're working on right now.

At this point in time the investigation is continuing. We've been told by sources that additional resources have been put into New York and Denver to continue with this investigation but at this point in time, Heidi, there have been no arrests in this investigation.

COLLINS: All right. Understood. CNN's Homeland Security correspondent Jeanne Meserve following the story for us from Denver this morning. Thank you, Jeanne.

Let's head over to the severe weather center where we find Rob Marciano. He has been watching all of this flooding across the southeast that we've seen particularly we saw some pretty unbelievable video out of Tennessee and there is he is. Hi, Rob.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I'm going without -- I got up from my seat and boom, there it goes out of my ear. I apologize for that, Heidi, let's take a look at what's happening across the country. Look at this low which is not really moving all that much. Hasn't moved in several days. And with that you got flood watches that have been posted for a good chunk of real estate for the southeast.

Put me in play I can do that as well. With rainfall totals in some cases exceeding 12 inches of rain, you're talking about soggy air mass with soggy ground in places like Atlanta where you are looking at right now with buildings of downtown are shrouded in low cloud cover and fog. This is an area that's under a flash flood watch for the next - through tonight at least if not through tomorrow because things are just going to go downhill from there.

All right. As far as what we got going on around this part of the world, flash flood watches have expanded to include parts of Georgia in through western parts of Tennessee and that's where we have had most of the problem. Tennessee southeast of Nashville especially where yesterday they had to do some evacuations and even some rescues and with this moisture field expanding all the way now into parts of the Tennessee Valley. It's encompassing a larger array of people.

As far as what you can expect around the rest of the country - the northeast looking fairly dry today and pretty dry over the weekend also. And back to the west we go with warm temperatures across parts of Montana and Wyoming. Again and dry weather expected across parts of southern California. That's the latest from here, Heidi. With delays in Philadelphia and Atlanta. Send it back over to you.

COLLINS: Well, I know you can't hear me so I'm going say a bunch of bad stuff about you. (INAUDIBLE) All right. We'll check in with Rob a little bit later on and continue to follow all of that rain.

For now though, let's get to Iran. Because there are some street protests there that we need to tell you about and new anger directed at President Ahmadinejad who has been accused of rigging his own re- election.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: What you hear is chants of death to the dictator. This is amateur video posted on YouTube and believed to have been shot today in Tehran. The (INAUDIBLE) rallies are an annual event but this year as you can see there's new cause for tension.

Witnesses tell CNN there were several times opposition protesters exchanged words with hardliners but there are no reports of violence. We'll stay on top of that story for you as well.

She's been talking about the importance of a healthy lifestyle, and now is Michelle Obama about to get in front of her husband on his number one domestic issue? We'll look at her role in the battle for health care reform.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: President Obama is hitting the road and the airwaves in a campaign blitz for health care reform. Yesterday he spoke to about 15,000 college students at the University of Maryland. What a great school, by the way. He told them reform is a defining struggle of this generation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We've all got a stake in getting this right. That's why I said I will embrace good ideas wherever they come from. We already have. But too often during this important debate we've also seen the same kind of partisan spectacle that has left so many people disappointed about Washington. Too many engage in scare tactics instead of honest debates. Too many use this as an opportunity to score short-term political points instead of working together to solve a long-term challenge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: This weekend, the president turns to TV. He's scheduled to appear on five Sunday talk shows and next week he'll be David Letterman's guest on "Late Night" television.

But not even a president can be in two places at once. Enter his better half. Could first lady Michelle Obama become his next weapon in the campaign for health care reform? Let's take a closer look this now.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux joins us from the White House. So Suzanne, what is the first lady doing now to help her husband's cause on health care?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: She's here to help obviously. About 45 minutes or so, she's going to be speaking about health care reform. She is jumping into this debate, both feet forward. And she is not just talking about the need to eat your vegetables per se. We've spoken to the first lady's office and they're going to talk about ways that American families, particularly young girls, women, families, are going to be impacted by health care reform.

And why it's necessary to change the system. She's not necessarily going to get into weeds per se about what kind of bill they favor but certainly going to talk about, you know, the kinds of every day concerns that families have about pre-existing conditions, about their own coverage, their own situations with their families, taking care of the kids, and things like that.

And Heidi, this is really a different audience. This is about every day folks but it's also about folks that we just haven't seen before. This is sponsored by the White House Council on Women and Girls. Among those who are going to be in the audience, YWCA, National Congress of American Indians. This is essentially a forum show people and tell people this is about everybody. All Americans need to pay attention and to really kind of put a friendly face on this very controversial debate, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. We'll be watching. Sounds like a very busy weekend for everybody indeed. Suzanne Malveaux, thank you.

MALVEAUX: Sure.

COLLINS: Out in front of the White House today.

Signs and posters depicting President Obama as Hitler really struck a nerve in one man near Seattle, Washington. So much so he now faces assault charges. Reporter Rob Piercy of our affiliate KING TV tells us how a conflict over the posters got out of hand.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROB PIERCY, REPORTER, KING TV (voice-over): They say every man has his breaking point. Henry Gasparian reached his at Fifth and Main.

HENRY GASPARIAN, ASSAULT SUSPECT: I said it never came up to me with that kind of stupid things. PIERCY: Henry was walking through downtown Edmonds where two people had signs and literature like this depicting President Obama as Adolf Hitler. It struck a nerve at Henry and he lashed out.

GASPARIAN: I don't want to see the picture of a killer, a demon, in the street to be used for somebody's political career.

PIERCY: During World War II, Gasparian was a young boy living in Armenia as Hitler began his campaign of extermination.

GASPARIAN: I have some relatives who were killed. My other uncle came home without a leg.

PIERCY: Henry says he tried by grabbing some of the people's pamphlet. They shoved. He shoved. And then he walked away. A couple hours later, he returned and stopped to ask a police officer if what they were doing was legal and the next thing he knows he's sitting on this bench in handcuffs.

GASPARIAN: Whatever you say will be used against you. Blah, blah, blah.

PIERCY: The people with the signs accused Henry of attacking them. He's now charged with fourth-degree assault in Edmonds Municipal Court. But several people have applauded Henry for what he did.

TASHA FITZIMMONS, GASPARIAN SUPPORTER: People can voice their opinions however they want to but I still think the whole thing is wrong.

LARRY WEEKS, GASPARIAN SUPPORTER: I think that was excellent of him, you know. Especially for what his family as gone through and what he's obviously gone through.

PIERCY: For his part, Henry hopes others will stand p against what he calls stupidity.

GASPARIAN: We can argue about that. That's freedom of speech. But what that has to do with Hitler and swastika?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: The people with the signs and pamphlets were apparently supporters of Lyndon LaRouche, a strong opponent of President Obama. They apparently could not be reached for comment.

A deadly suicide blast in Pakistan. At least 25 people are dead and 36 others hurt. The car bomb exploded near a crowded market at the Kohat District of Pakistan's northwest frontier province. Police say the target was a Shia neighborhood. The residents have received Taliban threats in the past. The blast collapsed buildings and shops and trapped people inside.

Military veterans are being warned to watch out for an ongoing phone scam. Callers say they are with the VA and need credit card information to update prescription medication records. But the VA says it doesn't ask for personal information over the phone. Watch out for that one.

And in Wisconsin, the investigation into the case of a suspected serial killer has turned up a huge gap in Wisconsin's DNA data base. Officials say DNA samples from some 12,000 convicted felons were never taken or recorded. Authorities say they could now get DNA samples from people already in prison, processing them will be a burden on the crime lab that's already backed up with other cases.

Thoughts of suicide. They are more common than you might think. Wait until you hear the shocking statistics.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Disturbing new statistics on suicide. A government mental health agency reports more than eight million Americans seriously considered killing themselves last week. More than two million made a suicide plan. And just over a million others actually tried to kill themselves. So what's behind these numbers? We want to talk about that a little bit more now.

And joining us is someone with answers to all of this. Dr. Melva Green. She's a psychiatrist from Baltimore, Maryland. Doctor, thank you for being here. We should point out, of course, that this is the first year they've actually done this study. So we don't have a whole lot to compare to by way of saying these numbers are up significantly.

But I guess when you hear that number, eight million, and you think about the population of this country, for that many people to be contemplating seriously thoughts of suicide, what's your reaction?

DR. MELVA GREEN, PSYCHIATRIST: Well I think these numbers are very accurate. I think over the years we've grossly underestimated people's thoughts of suicide or hopelessness. But I think they're a direct reflection of what's going on in our country right now. There's a significant amount of hopelessness. There's a significant amount of stress and depression. And people are contemplating taking their lives. They're contemplating ending it all.

COLLINS: So what you're saying and obviously you work with mental health patients every day. People are talking to you, your patients are talking to you about what issues in particular?

GREEN: Well, people are talking about stress. They're talking about a tremendous amount of financial stress. Family stress. Relationship stress. People are coming forward more with discussions about depressive symptoms. And I'm actually seeing an increase in the number of people who actually have major depression.

COLLINS: Understood and we should let people know a little bit more about the study, too and let you know who has done it here. It's the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services, that's the organization who conducted the report. They talked to something like nearly 47,000 people age between 18 years and older. I guess I just wonder how many people are going out and getting help? Because if we at least are able to gather numbers like this that say there are eight million people who have seriously contemplated the idea, at least those eight million people are talking about it?

GREEN: Well, I wish more were talking about it. There's a tremendous amount of stigma around suicide and around depression. More often than not people are trying to grin and bear it or they're suffering in silence. So I'm really hoping that more and more people now that we're having this dialogue and now that we're uncovering some serious truths about a major public health problem, my hope is that people will actually come forward more.

COLLINS: Yes, it sounds to me actually like this number could even be under reported when you put it that way certainly. One of the things we do have from the study that we can share though by way of quantifying is this. Adults who seriously contemplate suicide in the year 2008, it is broken down by age group.

And what we see here is the age group of 18 to 25, America's young people, are the highest demographic there. 6.7 percent of that age group has seriously considered suicide. Why is the rate so much higher among younger adults?

GREEN: Well, I think that's a particularly vulnerable time. You know, the thoughts of suicide or the thoughts of ending it all or the significant amount of hopelessness is largely correlated to one's coping strategies. One's coping skills. So in youth, in our young lives, we're less apt to be able to have life experiences that have led to a sense of self-confidence or a sense of hope that things are going to get better. We have less experiences to support that.

Whereas in the older populations, many have experienced life, have had some letdowns and some setbacks but they may have many successes that they can recall on that can be rather protective.

COLLINS: Yes. This is also the age group typically where many men and women have decided to go into the military. We've talked here on this program quite a bit about PTSD and some of the suicide rates in the military as well a very important issue.

Listen, I don't think we should leave the segment without talking about how you can get help. There could be a lot of people out there who have these thoughts and just really don't know what to do with them.

GREEN: Well, I think the help is absolutely critical. Educating ourselves. Being aware. It's about awareness. It's about support. It's about prevention. I want to make sure I point out that suicide is a preventable situation. We want to talk more about it. We want to be more open about it. We want to engage people in accessing help.

There's the 1-800-suicide hotline that people should certainly access. There are other Web sites like suicide.org. That's a 24/7 web site that is rich with resources. And is available to the public to get all of the information and access to help that they need. But the most important thing is to get help. Suicide is preventable.

COLLINS: Yes. All right. Well, thank you for the point. Appreciate your time as well. Psychiatrist Dr. Melva Green from Maryland. Thank you so much, doctor.

GREEN: Thank you.

COLLINS: The World Health Organization says global production of the H1N1 flu vaccines will fall nearly five billion doses short of what it hoped would be available. So what's the problem? "Associated Press" reporting there have been production problems and some manufacturers are still turning out vaccines for seasonal flu.

The war in Afghanistan, the debate heats up. Should more troops be sent there? Depends on who you ask.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A roadside bomb kills a U.S. service member. It happened in southern Afghanistan. The bombing is the latest in a wave of Taliban attacks. 21 people have now been killed this month.

And those numbers are fueling the debate over future troop increases. Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Latest suicide car bomb attack in the heart of Kabul. Another day when insurgents made clear the capital city is not safe. But suddenly, the Obama administration and the president's top military advisers are split on the urgency to fix Afghanistan's security problems. Just days after the top military officer said...

ADM. MIKE MULLEN, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: A properly resourced counterinsurgency probably means more forces.

STARR: The vice president said, not so fast.

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: A decision on additional resources is premature and it's a distance off.

STARR: In an exclusive interview, Vice President Joe Biden told CNN's Chris Lawrence no more troops will be sent until the current 21,000 troop increase is in place and the Afghan election results are finalized -- all still weeks away.

But a senior U.S. military official tells CNN, General Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. commander, has now decided how many more troops he needs, but he has been told by Washington, "Don't send that request until you're asked for it."

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: There's been a lot of talk this week and in the last two or three weeks about Afghanistan. And frankly, from my standpoint, everybody ought to take a deep breath.

STARR: The reason may be, the White House is not ready to hear what the general has to say. All indications are McChrystal now believes he needs 30,000 to 40,000 additional troops -- military sources tell us they worry it's a huge decision the White House does not want to get in the way of other issues like health care.

But senior military officers have long signaled they can't wait too long, given Afghanistan's collapsing security.

MULLEN: I think it is serious and it is deteriorating, and I've said that over the last couple of years -- that the Taliban insurgency has gotten better, more sophisticated.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Barbara Starr joins us live from the Pentagon.

So, Barbara, how long will General McChrystal and also Mike Mullen, who we heard from there, put up with this? I mean, don't- call-us, we'll-call-you sort of attitude from the White House. I understand that they have to, of course, get permission to have more troops sent over, but if they're saying they need it, how is this happening?

STARR: I got to tell you, Heidi, in all of the years I've covered the Pentagon, this one is a first for me. I never actually heard of this notion, you know. General McChrystal went to Afghanistan with the orders, "tell us what you need, we'll get it for you..."

COLLINS: Exactly.

STARR: And now he's being told, not so fast. Hang on. Hold that thought. It doesn't really usually work this way. All of the thinking that I have heard behind the scenes is General McChrystal will give it a few weeks. You know, he knows the president wants to take his time. People want to look at all of this.

But at some point, General Stanley McChrystal really is not a shrinking violet. He'll probably let it be known exactly what he thinks, and as one source said, he may just put the troop request in the mail addressed to the Pentagon...

COLLINS: Wow.

STARR: ... and let the chips fall where they may. 30,000 to 40,000 is a big number. That's going take some doing. A lot of generals, a lot of commanders, think if that's what they're going to do, they need to get started. Heidi.

COLLINS: If in fact that happens, and again I know that's not what we're saying is going on right now -- if there's an actual letter that gets sent to the White House, who then immediately deals with that? Is that the secretary of defense? Obviously, the Pentagon. But -- White House liaison, if you will. Or does that go to the president? STARR: Well, let me not be too flip about this. In today's world, all of these things are done, of course, via secure classified cables -- you know, video teleconference, all of that. But the process is this: General McChrystal will at some point will send a request to the Pentagon, a request for forces. It will have to be discussed with President Obama because right now the plan, the official U.S. plan, is 68,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Anything beyond that will go to the president for a decision. The president is indicating he wants to take his time. And there's one more very serious wrinkle in this, and that's the Afghan elections. There is still no certified winner of the Afghan elections. They are facing a situation where it could be weeks, if not months, before they know who the president of that country is, and that's complicating it either further.

COLLINS: Certainly. Boy oh boy. We'll stay on top of this one, absolutely. Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us this morning. Thank you.

STARR:

COLLINS: Options for Afghanistan are likely to be a hot topic when the United Nations general assembly opens next week. Looking at some live pictures now of the Brookings Institute in Washington. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is there this hour to talk about the U.S. agenda at the U.N. That includes Afghanistan and of course, other security issues in the Middle East and Asia.

The U.S. made a major change on missile defense. The president deciding to drop Bush administration plans for sites in eastern Europe. The new plan drew raves from Russia and from NATO, but criticism on Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our new missile defense architecture in Europe will provide stronger, smarter and swifter defenses on American forces and America's allies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN BOENER (R-OH), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: This ill-advised decision does little more than power Russia and Iran at the expense of our European allies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Powerful Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin called the decision by President Obama, quote, "brave." The president is expected to talk about security in the region and Russia's role when he meets with Russian president Dmitry Medvedev next week in New York.

A reassessment of the threat from Iran is one of the reasons president Obama gave for the change in course on missile defense. CNN's Brian Todd takes a look at the new plan.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: (voice-over): The top brass insists America is not scrapping missile defense in Europe. Instead, they say, the new plan would give them more flexible defenses sooner against what they say is the biggest threat from Iran right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, COURTESY DEFENSE DEPARTMENT)

ROBERT GATES, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: The threat from Iran's short and medium range ballistic missiles, such as the Shahab-3, is developing more rapidly than previously projected.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: We mapped out the Iranian missile threat and the first phase of the Obama team's new plan to counter it with weapons expert, John Pike of the analysis firm, GlobalSecurity.org.

(on camera): Iran currently has the Shahab missiles, which can reach Israel, it can reach U.S. bases in the Middle East. The Ashura missile, under development, could conceivably go into Eastern Europe in the not too distant future.

JOHN PIKE, GLOBALSECURITY.ORG: That's right.

TODD: The current plan, by 2011, the U.S. wants to have long- range-3 interceptors on aegis Cruisers in the Eastern Mediterranean, possibly in the Black Sea...

PIKE: Right.

TODD: -- and possibly in the North Sea, way up there...

PIKE: Right.

TODD: -- with transportable radars in and around Turkey.

PIKE: Right.

TODD: Is that going to be enough to stop these Shahab and Ashura missiles?

PIKE: It depends on how many of these ships are deployed. If there are only a few ships, the problem is that the missile might be able to fly between the ships, that they can't fire the interceptors very far side to side and that the Iranian missiles would just fly between them.

TODD: (voice-over): U.S. military officials say between now and 2011, they only plan to send three Aegis cruisers with those interceptors to patrol the seas at a time, but could add more. And, they say, right now there are Patriot missile batteries to fill some gaps and they'll later have land-based interceptors.

How does it compare to the now scrapheaped Bush missile defense plan that would have been deployed later in the decade?

(on camera): Under the old Bush plan, you'd have fixed, much bigger interceptors in Poland; you'd have radar systems in the Czech Republic.

Is that as effective, less effective than the Obama plan in countering these missiles?

PIKE: They're completely different threats. The Bush plan was to deal with long-range missiles aimed at the United States. The Obama plan was to deal with medium-range missiles that might be able to hit Western Europe.

TODD (voice-over): That's a threat the U.S. now takes more seriously than Iran's long range threat with ballistic missiles possibly capable of hitting America. U.S. officials say Iran's capabilities there are much moving more slowly than they expected.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Time is running out for first-time home buyers who want to cash in on that $8,000 tax credit. But now there's talk of making the windfall bigger and for more people. We'll give you some details in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A former high school football coach has been acquitted in the death of a player. A Kentucky jury found David Stinson not guilty of reckless homicide in the death of 15-year-old Max Gilpin. Gilpin collapsed during a practice in hot weather last August, his body temperature reaching 107 degrees. He died three days later. His parents spoke outside the courtroom after the verdict.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We knew that it was going to be a tough -- beyond a reasonable doubt. That's tough. We knew that. But there again, like I said, our objective is that this doesn't happen to another child or to another family. And I know we've reached that goal. But we are going to continue to reach out to people throughout the United States, and we're going to continue to fight for the safety of these children. Of all student athletes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just want to thank everybody that supported us and know that we're happy that -- we know Max didn't die in vain. People are becoming aware of this. We'll keep on doing what we're doing, and making people aware and just watch your kids.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The defense argued that nonheat-related factors, including the use of a dietary supplement and prescription drug led to Gilpin's death. Pakistani police say they are ready to arrest a leading cleric for helping a group believed to be behind the deadly attacks in Mumbai, India last year. The cleric is accused of raising money for the banned group. He says it's a charity. 166 people died in the Mumbai attacks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: First-time homebuyers, take heart. You may still have time to take advantage of that $8,000 tax credit. Sounds good, right? Well, the government may extend the program, and it could put money in your pocket, too.

Personal finance editor Gerri Willis joins us with details on this. What's the scoop?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hi there, Heidi. Yes, that's right. Georgia senator Johnny Isaacson is calling on Congress to extend and expand the current first-time homebuyer tax credit.

Let's dig down into his proposal. He says the tax credit should be raised to $15,000, up above the $8,000 it currently is and should be available for any homebuyer, not just first-time homebuyers. And he would remove income caps.

The senator says that doing this will stabilize home values and improve the jobless rate and even prevent a second dip in terms of recession. Now, critics have said an extension of the credit is too expensive and would help people who would be buying homes anyway, Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, I'm sure there are people who are wondering which pile of money this would come out of, as well. But then, you have to talk about the impact here. What has this tax credit meant to the housing market?

WILLIS: Yes, OK. Let's take a look at the actual impact of what we've seen so far.

Some 1.4 million people have actually claimed the tax credit. That's according to the IRS. There have been 350,000 more sales than there would have been. That's according to the industry. They say that there would have been some -- there have been some 350,000 additional sales they did not expect without the credit. They say home sales year to year would have been 6 percent below -- or lower than the previous year.

Now, the National association of Realtors says that a real estate recovery will help the economy because homebuyers spend on average $63,000 in months after they buy the house in furnishings, finishings, and they say of course, that helps the economy.

However, there's still some formidable headwinds for real estate. Inventories were May (ph) high. There's some 8.6 million homes and condos on the market. Heidi, that's a 9.4-month supply. Foreclosures are still rising, pushing inventories higher. Some of the upbeat numbers we've been talking about in housing is based on people buying foreclosures, distressed properties.

And some of the people who take advantage of the tax are simply buying foreclosed homes, and that doesn't help homeowners trying to unload their homes and move on sell their house.

COLLINS: Yes. Very true. Somebody bought Madoff's house, though. So, we'll talk more about that a little bit later on.

WILLIS: Good idea, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. Personal finance editor, Gerri Willis. Thank you.

WILLIS: My pleasure.

COLLINS: Wow. Did you see that?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: That's new.

COLLINS: I'm so glad. Rob Marciano is joining me now for today's "Hot Shot." Because he was really mean to me earlier...

MARCIANO: Well, no, it was miscommunication. I'm a little more than 20 yards away, and this ear piece is my lifeline to...

COLLINS: They don't care!

MARCIANO: ... you and the set and the rest of the world, and when it's gone, it's very frustrating. So, it's nice to be here.

COLLINS: Anyway.

MARCIANO: So, we're going to talk about some stuff ...

COLLINS: Yes. This is good. This is something that has been out there that you may have seen earlier in the day. In case you missed it, look at this. A how-to video on the best way to help stop spread the germs. We've been talking about swine flu, obviously. This one delivered by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to NBC reporter Chuck Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senior administration official...

(SOUND OF SNEEZE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bless you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... a possible impediment to give you a deal...

(SEBELIUS GESTURES TO COVER THE FACE)

(LAUGHTER)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I see you're learning.

KATHLEEN SEBELIUS, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: I mean, what is that about? Geez!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to point out, Margaret sneezed a few minutes ago, very correctly, in the sleeve. I mean, it would be one thing if it was...

SEBELIUS: I don't know. Who's got some Purell? Give that to Mr. Todd right away. A little hand sanitizer. Good. Good. We'll have Elmo give Chuck a special briefing.

(LAUGHTER)

SEBELIUS: We'll get Elmo over. Elmo knows how to sneeze.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARCIANO: I didn't realize there was a proper way to sneeze.

COLLINS: Really?

MARCIANO: Yes. Well, I just figured you cover your mouth...

COLLINS: They've been demonstrating it. You have been over there hiding out in the severe weather center on an island of some kind. Yes. It's this.

MARCIANO: OK.

COLLINS: Sneeze into your sleeve. He probably sneezed like this. Then you get to take your hands...

MARCIANO: Yes, but this is much easier to clean up. Not always a clean environment.

COLLINS: Teach the children this.

MARCIANO: Anyway, it was kind of a neat moment. Now I know how to sneeze. No more excuses.

COLLINS: Really neat for Chuck Todd, I'm sure to be taught by Elmo. Love that.

MARCIANO: I didn't realize Elmo was the grand teacher.

COLLINS: Yes, yes, yes. He's teaching the kids.

MARCIANO: I should come up here more often. I learn so much more.

COLLINS: It's fun. And we're really very nice. So, we're kicking you out now.

(LAUGHTER)

Thank you, Rob.

As you know, times are hard for a lot of people. But it's not all bad news. Some people are actually getting richer.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: In this recession, Americans have been losing jobs and homes and our retirement nest eggs have certainly taken a hit. But now, we have a little bit of good news. A study from the Federal Reserve shows that we're all a little bit richer these days. What?

Susan Lisovicz is on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange to explain this one. Hi there, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a good Friday story, Heidi. Listen to this. We all got richer by $2 trillion in the second quarter. That's collectively, all 300 million Americans.

COLLINS: Are we going to talk about inflation, too, in this story?

LISOVICZ: No. I'll talk about a trend that we have just started to see. We haven't seen this trend in a quarter for two years. Why is that? Our two biggest investments saw increases finally. Housing and stocks.

Let's start with real estate. Rose in the second quarter by two percent. Oh, you say, that's not much. Well, it's the first time we've seen an improvement there in three years. Stock market, well, meanwhile, between April and June, we saw 22 percent increase there.

Remember, we saw the lower the bear market in March. Stocks have been on a rally since then, and guess what? Right now we're seeing the Dow up 36 points at 9820, Heidi. And NASDAQ is up a couple points as well. Heidi.

COLLINS: Seriously, I'm expecting the hat, the cowbell, all kinds of stuff if we actually get to 10,000.

LISOVICZ: You not even going to have champagne in a paper cup. You'll have the real thing.

COLLINS: Oh, I'm going to have the big bag glass of it. That's right. It's interesting, this story. Apparently, we're all a little richer, but I would imagine not a lot of people are feeling richer.

LISOVICZ: No. That's true. We have to put it in perspective.

Remember, if you take that 2 trillion divided by 300 millions of Americans, you're looking at $7,000 per person. But the fact is, it's an increase. And we're not back to where we were just as we went into the recession. We would need another $12 trillion for that. Some economists say it may take a few years because the recovery may be very slow.

One thing that we have to say that also came out of this report from the Federal Reserve is we're living within our means. The savings rate went up for the fourth straight quarter, Heidi. You have to remember, at one point, the savings rate was negative.

There are a lot of reasons why we got into this mess. But one of the reasons why is we weren't living within our means, and that's something we see very clear these days. Heidi. Lesson learned.

COLLINS: No question. All right. Susan Lisovicz, thank you. Have a great weekend.

The Medal of Honor awarded to an Army sergeant who walked into a hail of bullets to save his fellow soldiers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: The father of Army Sergeant Jared Monti says his son always had the instinct to help others. That instinct led to Monti's ultimate sacrifice in Afghanistan. Today, his family cherishes his memory and his Medal of Honor. Here now, CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Obama awards the Medal of Honor to the family of Sergeant First Class Jared Monti, who died trying to save others in a brutal firefight in Afghanistan.

OBAMA: Jared said, "No, he is my soldier. I'm going to get him."

STARR: Monti is the sixth man to receive the Medal for actions above and beyond the call of duty in today's wars. All of them awarded posthumously.

It's the type of heroism these men know. Living recipients gathered this week as they do every year. But there's no one wearing the blue ribbon from Iraq or Afghanistan. In fact, there's been no living recipient for any military action since Vietnam.

The defense secretary believes there are unrecognized acts of courage among the living.

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY OF THE UNITED STATES: This has been a source of real concern to me. and I will tell you it was one of President Bush's real regrets that he did not have the opportunity to honor a living Medal of Honor winner.

STARR: There are still 95 living recipients, aging heroes from past battles. World war II, Korea and Vietnam.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Before I was in the Army, I didn't know what the medal of honor was.

STARR: Gary Littrel was recognized for his actions against the North Vietnamese in 1970. He wonders why so few of today's warriors have been recognized.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been asked this question numerous times. 240 medals of honor in Vietnam. There have been four in Iraq and two in Afghanistan and two in Somalia.

STARR: General James Conway, the nation's top Marine, says one reason there may be fewer Medal recipients these days, counterinsurgency wars don't have the big battles of the past. We asked this combat veteran if he wants a living service member to be honored.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I do and I don't . I mean, anytime a soldier or Marine wins the Medal, his unit's (INAUDIBLE), then he's doing heroic things to make that situation better. I don't want to wish that on anybody.

STARR: Defense Secretary Gates says current files are being reviewed, and the next ceremony may be for a living Medal of Honor recipient to join these men in history.

Barbara Starr, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Again, we thank all of the service men and women for their service defending the country.

I'm Heidi Collins. Have a great weekend, everybody. CNN NEWSROOM continues with Tony Harris.