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Healthcare Plan Nears Vote; Bodies in Cleveland; USAA Offering for Troops and Families; Kerik in Court
Aired November 05, 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: Here are some of the other stories we're watching right now. The United Nations is moving about 600 workers out of Afghanistan. They say it's part of their new security plan in the wake of last week's deadly attack by Taliban militants. Five U.N. workers died in the attack on a guest house in Kabul.
A couple accused of spying for Cuba appears in court today. Prosecutors believe Kendall Myers, a former State Department analyst and his wife Gwendolyn, were by Cuba as potential spies in 1978. Today's hearing is a review of preparations for both legal teams. The couple pleaded not guilty in June to a five-count indictment.
The road to health care reform at a new point as one plan near the final vote. Here is what's happening today. The Associated Press reports the AARP is expected to endorse a House Democratic plan, but House Republicans are not giving up the fight. They're offering their version of a health care bill that includes a series of proposals pushed in recent months.
House conservatives and members of the Tea Party Express are taking part in a rally on Capitol Hill today. We'll get to that in a moment. Meanwhile, the Democratic plan is being reviewed ahead of an expected debate by the full House Friday and the final vote possibly on Saturday. So let's take you to Capitol Hill right now.
Our congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar is standing by where pressure is certainly building on both sides of the aisle. Brianna, we've actually just learned that the president will be on Capitol Hill tomorrow, right?
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. We're expecting -- we've learned from congressional sources as well as a White House source that the president is expected to be here tomorrow to meet with Democrats. Obviously, trying to throw his weight behind this, Heidi.
But you know, the sense you get here on Capitol Hill is this is the land stand two days ahead of this vote. Just for instance, take a look at all of these folks here. These are opponents of the Democrats' efforts to reform health care. A lot of them have returned from that protest that was here in September. A lot of them feel like Democrats efforts really amount to a government takeover of health care.
And then on the other hand, you know, here on the capital complex Democrats are really trying to rally the votes that they need. Two hundred and eighteen votes not expected to get Republican support and these people here, Heidi, they really want too be heard. As soon as we came on air, they really ratcheted up their volume. They're trying to make sure that the people inside here hear what they're saying.
But again, Democrats trying to get the votes they need and really the issue continues to be abortion. Some opponents of abortion rights, Democrats, have not come to terms with Democratic leaders about making sure to their satisfaction that federal dollars in this health care reform effort will not go to funding abortions, Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, obviously a lot of issues to be addressing. I know it's getting loud there. They're doing some chanting. I'm hearing "USA." It's hard to hear, but we do know the Tea Party Express is going to be traveling around the country yet again talking about health care reform and also their thoughts on government intervention in a variety of things.
But for today's purposes, Brianna, we know that pushing for this Saturday vote that we're hearing a little bit about, does the Speaker of the House Pelosi feel like she's going to have enough votes?
KEILAR: I mean, I think -- we've asked if they have the votes. And they're still continuing to work on it. And it's obviously, you know this abortion issue as some other Democrats, you get the sense that they wouldn't schedule a vote if they didn't think that they could get those votes and you know, what they have on their side at this point is according to the AP reporting that the AARP is going to throw its support behind it.
We also understand the American Medical Association, which represents many of the nation's doctors will announce where it stands today and obviously that could be an endorsement. President Obama coming to the Hill tomorrow. So, there's momentum on both sides here. It's really the last stand, and obviously, Democrats are hoping that those efforts from their allies, from President Obama, that's going to help them get those 218 votes they need, Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. We'll, of course, continue to follow that and any developments that take place as we push towards this possible Saturday vote. Brianna Keilar, we sure do appreciate that. Our congressional correspondent there in front of the Tea Party Express making their voices held on Capitol Hill.
Meanwhile, the Tea Party Express bus tour is making two stops in Texas as well today. It's rolling into Amarillo and Lubbock for rallies. Organizers say the coast to coast tours are designed to put the spotlight on lawmakers who have voted for excessive spending and government intervention in health care.
Trying to identify the victims. Investigators in Cleveland now know the identity of one of the women found in the home of a registered sex offender. Investigators are using DNA to try to identify the other 10. A judge ordered Anthony Sowell held without bail.
CNN's Susan Candiotti has been following the story for us. She's joining us now from Cleveland. Susan, good morning to you. The more and more that we hear about this story, the more unbelievable it becomes. And the community outraged understandably seems to be growing.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on the phone): That's right. As a matter of fact, there is a city councilman that we interviewed yesterday who is calling for an independent look at this as he puts it. This is a councilman whose mother lives in the very same neighborhood who said that two years ago that he received a phone call from a constituent reporting a foul smell in that area.
And he said it wasn't an animal smell that the constituent reported. It was the smell of human remains. And he wants to know why didn't anyone seem to get down to the bottom of it. Did that investigation -- did that tip to the Health Department wind up simply blaming that smell on that sausage and cheese factory which incredibly is located next to the house where this man lives.
Some criminal profilers have said that the suspect in this case must have been an incredibly lucky man in a sounds terrible to say in a way given what was allegedly going on in that house and perhaps being able to mask that smell by the factory being located right next door.
COLLINS: Yes, incredible. I just wonder, Susan, are they going to be looking for more bodies now or authorities actually said they're finished searching the house?
CANDIOTTI: Well, Heidi, as you know, as we reported yesterday, originally they were intending, the police, to go back into the house armed with a search warrant to continue looking through the house for anymore evidence. They did not do that yesterday.
There is a plan in place they may go back in there but they said, you know, the house isn't going anywhere. We'll be going back in there. They hope that they have found all of the victims. At this point they are concentrating on trying to identify those victims.
And to that end they've been asking family members who have family or relatives who were reported missing to come forward with DNA evidence so that they can try to compare that with the victims that they have.
COLLINS: Boy, that is going to be obviously very difficult. Quickly, before we let you go, Susan, anymore information on Anthony Sowell's background? We know that he was in prison for 15 years prior to this. Obviously not a short sentence. That was for attempted rape I think I understand the charge to have been. Did he serve that full sentence or did he get out early? What do we know?
CANDIOTTI: He did. Well, the police originally said that he was convicted of rape and had served 15 years in prison. And yesterday, the police said actually what we meant to say was that he was -- that there was a plea deal involved when he was convicted of attempted rape but of a very violent nature and for that reason he spent a full 15 years in prison. And then when he got out and this is what they're going to retrace every step back in 2005, he went to live in the home that was owned by his family. His father had died. Mother no longer living there. So he had the place to himself. And the question of course is as a registered sex offender...
COLLINS: Yes.
CANDIOTTI: Did the police properly follow up on him? Did they look beyond the obvious to see whether there was something odd going on there? And what about all of these missing persons reports that people want to know might the police have done more, could they have done more, tracked down information to catch what had happened there much earlier.
COLLINS: Yes. And that's the story that we, of course, will be following very, very closely. Susan Candiotti, sure do appreciate the update. Thanks.
CNN meteorologist Reynolds Wolf standing by now because we are talking about Ida.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Ida. I-D-A. Three letters. Big storm. And it is making its way into parts of Central America. Right now, the storm is moving fairly slowly. Six miles an hour to the northwest about to make its way into Nicaragua and Honduras. Now, short term, it's going to mean is possibly anywhere a foot of rainfall, possibly up to three feet of rain in the highest elevations and with that there's going to be some mudslides. There could be some widespread flooding. That's going to be a big issue.
The storm at category 1 winds of 75, gusting to 90 but as the center moves over land and away from its primary power source, that warm water, it's going to weaken. Now, that's short-term. Long-term what can we expect? Well, that's where it gets a little bit tricky. We're going to move this side of the way and show you the latest path we have at the National Hurricane Center.
And the latest storm path brings the storm still on that northwest trajectory moving from Nicaragua to Honduras and then moving back over the far western half of the Caribbean Sea and strengthening a bit back to tropical storm status as we go into Sunday and into Monday.
By Tuesday, right now if you follow that one line it looks like it would be right between Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula, just due east of Cancun and then moving into the Gulf of Mexico. Keep in mind though these storms do not really move from point to point. They wobble quite a bit.
COLLINS: Yes.
WOLF: So there's a chance the storm, Heidi, could move a bit more on land and just die out or it could move deeper into the Caribbean Sea and strengthen quite a bit more. What we're looking at again is potential of it possibly moving into the Gulf of Mexico as we get into Tuesday and then into Wednesday but that's a long way off. We'll keep a very sharp eye on that for you.
Meanwhile, very quickly, we're seeing a great day in Dallas, Texas. Plenty of blue skies. Beautiful conditions that you're going to experience much of the great plains. The reason why is because of this big "H" you see. Not really the "H" itself but rather what it represents. An area of high pressure, that compressing effect that it's going to have on the atmosphere is going to be great for the southeast part of Atlanta to.
And then when you get to the Pacific northwest different story. Frontal boundary moves in. Scattered showers from San Francisco northward into Portland and Seattle and could see snow and rain in upstate New York. That is the latest on your forecast. Heidi, let's kick it back to you.
COLLINS: I could have sworn that "H" was for Heidi. You know, bring the sunshine.
WOLF: In our world, it always does. H for Heidi. Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
COLLINS: Reynolds Wolf, we'll check back later. Thank you.
If you are in the military or a veteran or have someone in your family who is either of those, we're about to share some news that could have a big impact on your wallet.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Troops on the front lines, of course, have enough to worry about. Now the Pentagon is trying to take worries about the H1N1 flu off the table. Thousands of doses of the vaccine are on the way to troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. But is there enough to go around? CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has more now on the vaccination plan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As Americans wait in lines across the country to get the H1N1 vaccine, the Pentagon this week finally began shipping limited vaccine supplies to troops fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Under Pentagon guidelines, tens of thousands of troops on the front line and those headed to war are the top military priority to receive the vaccine. Even so, supplies are severely limited. Only half of what is needed is now on the way.
GEOFF MORRELL, PENTAGON SPOKESMAN: Right now we don't have enough to even take care of all of them.
STARR: The Pentagon is defending plans to offer the vaccine to detainees at Guantanamo Bay as well as those in Iraq and Afghanistan. Prisoners are considered to be high risk but a lower military priority than troops, health care workers and civilian personnel. (on camera): I haven't heard an assurance that the detainees will get it after civilians in this country.
MORRELL: Barbara, Barbara, you're presuming that I have the knowledge or the wherewithal to tell you the protocols that are being used for the general population here. All I can do is speak to what the priorities are in this department.
STARR (voice-over): Troops at home also a priority because they will be called upon to help in towns across the country if the crisis grows. The military's top homeland defense commander has teams that could move into action.
GEN. GENE RENUART, COMMANDER, U.S. NORTHERN COMMAND: And it would be to provide things like potentially logistics, movement of supplies, maybe additional health care providers that could assist in immunization.
STARR (on camera): The Pentagon stopped counting the number of troops that have come down with H1N1 back in July when world health authorities declared a global pandemic but privately military officials say the number of cases continues to grow and recently Defense Secretary Robert Gates received his vaccine.
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Taking care of our troops, our veterans and their families isn't just about providing health care or access to education as you know. USAA provides financial, banking and insurance services to the military community. It started as an officer-only association back in 1922. Then it opened up to enlisted personnel in 1996, and now served more than 7.3 million current and former members of the military and their families.
And today that number will grow even larger. We want to tell you about it, and joining us now from San Antonio is June Walbert. She's a certified financial planner with USAA and a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve. Thanks for your service, June.
We're going to get to the preparations for Veterans Day behind you that we can see in the shot in a moment but first tell us what the big news is. What's happening?
JUNE WALBERT, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER WITH USAA FINANCIAL PLANNING DIVISION: Well, today in conjunction with our Veterans Day ceremony we're announcing that we're opening our association doors to all folks who have served in the military in the past. Whether they served just a few years or for decades, we believe that USAA that these folks deserve the competitively priced products and services that we offer to our members through our association.
COLLINS: Yes, just in case -- I should -- full disclosure here, I have a policy, as my husband is a veteran. How many people are we talking about here? WALBERT: Well, potentially 35 million people could join our association as a result of this new rule that we have for eligibility. That includes both the military members themselves as well as their family members.
COLLINS: So, what sort of reaction have you gotten to this?
WALBERT: Everything has been positive. You know, those who have served deserve this kind of treatment from an association who knows what it means to serve. I've served. I've been deployed. And I know the kind of legendary service that USAA provides as well as our competitively priced products.
Heidi, it is our mission to facilitate the financial security of the military and their families. We are the only organization that does that and we report to our members, not Wall Street.
COLLINS: Yes, a lot of people out there though that as they hear this are probably wondering, hey, do I qualify, my uncle was in but does that mean that I'm family or not? So how is that set up?
WALBERT: Well, what we have to do is go through an eligibility questionnaire. They can go to usaa.com or they can call 1-800-531- USAA to check on their eligibility. Actually, what it does, Heidi, is it travels downward. So my father was in the service during World War II, so by virtue of his service, I would now be qualified for membership although I am qualified for membership based on my own service as well.
COLLINS: Right. Understood. All right. Quickly, let's get to the celebrations behind you that I know you guys are getting ready for on the 11th. Wednesday next week is Veterans Day.
WALBERT: Well, actually our ceremony is going to be today. We're doing it a week in advance...
COLLINS: Really?
WALBERT: So that we can package it and put it on usaa.com for our membership to see as well as send it to the Pentagon channel where the ceremony will be beamed worldwide to members regardless of where they're stationed. So we're putting the finishing touches on the show today. We have quite a lineup.
Our CEO, who is Retired Major General Joe Robles, will address the group.
COLLINS: Great.
WALBERT: We've brought in the 82nd Airborne All-American chorus. They're going to sing some great songs. A cappella. Very entertaining. I've heard them before.
COLLINS: Terrific.
WALBERT: And our keynote speaker, Heidi, is the first female space shuttle commander. Her name is Retired Colonel Eileen Collins.
COLLINS: I know exactly who she is. She has a fabulous last name. We follow them pretty closely here.
All right. June Walbert, she's a financial planner, a certified financial planner for USAA. Thanks so much, June. Appreciate it. Good luck with the celebrations today.
WALBERT: Thank you very much.
COLLINS: A high profile former police commissioner entering his plea this morning accused of misusing his office and lying to the White House.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Checking our top stories now. Former New York Police commissioner Bernard Kerik is expected to plead guilty this morning. His hearing is scheduled to start this hour. A plea deal could put Kerik in prison for two-and-a-half years. His corruption trial was supposed to start next Monday.
Kerik also faced trials on tax charges and for lying to the White House when he was being considered for Homeland Security secretary. Today's plea would resolve all three trials.
New security measures are being put in place for United Nations personnel in Afghanistan. Around 600 U.N. workers will now be moved out of the country. The U.N. has about 1,100 workers in Afghanistan with most of them living in Kabul. The idea is in response to a Taliban attack last week that killed five U.N. workers at a guest house in the capital of Kabul.
On the campaign trail, Barack Obama the candidate promised to address issues impacting Native Americans. This morning the president kept that promise. He's hosting an interactive discussion with leaders from 564 federally recognized tribes. Today's agenda will focus on sticky issues like treaty obligations, sovereignty and education. It's the first meeting of its kind since President Clinton hosted a similar event 15 years ago.
With the holiday season coming fast, a lot of us will find ourselves in planes, trains and automobiles, of course, and that could mean close contact with people who might have H1N1 flu or some other virus that's floating around because there are a lot of them.
CNN's Elizabeth Cohen is here to talk about that now. so let me first ask you, how close do you actually have to be to someone to catch an illness? Is it different for different illnesses? I mean, of course, right?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is different but if you look at something like the flu, it's six feet which is a pretty big difference. You and I are about two feet apart right now. So at three times this distance one of us could get sick from the other if one of us had the flu. So it's three times this distance.
COLLINS: That's why everybody was laughing at me the other day. You were coughing and I knew full well that I needed to be farther away.
COHEN: And you were very smart. That's actually -- you couldn't get more than six feet but you tried.
COLLINS: And I got sick by the way, too. But anyway...
COHEN: I'm sorry.
COLLINS: So, what exactly can you do then to avoid other people's germs? I mean, it's nearly impossible to be that far away from everyone else in the world basically all the time.
COHEN: It is impossible. As a matter of fact, take a look at this video. I was on an escalator and we had a photographer with us. And you can see, there I am sort of you can my back there with the brown jacket. I'm probably within six feet once these people catch up to me of like five or six people there. So sometimes you really are trapped and there's not much you can do.
But once I got to the top of the escalator, I should be vigilant and look around. And if someone is sick, move away. I mean, I know it sounds very rude. But if you're sitting there waiting for subway and you see someone who doesn't look good, just move away. And if you touch something like that escalator handrail that you saw like how...
COLLINS: No, no, no.
COHEN: ... with zillions of people touch that, but you know, sometimes you have to stabilize yourself, just sanitize your hands whenever you can.
COLLINS: Yes, exactly.
Now, I guess we should talk about airline travel because it's a good point. I mean, holiday travel the season is coming up. And there's going to be a lot of people on the planes, the trains, the automobiles. What can you do when you're on an airplane?
No matter what anyone says, they're not canceling their flight if they don't feel good. They're going home for the holidays. They're going to the business meeting whatever it is.
COHEN: I sat on a plane across the country with this woman who could not stop sneezing. I was like, oh boy, I'm really in trouble here. But let's take a look. There's an interesting animation that shows what happens to germs on planes.
So, there's the red guy who is sneezing.
COLLINS: The sneezing goo. It's everywhere.
COHEN: And look at how it flies everywhere. What we see in a second is that some of these people are going to turn pink and if they're pink, that means that they are in the hot zone. That means that they are most at risk for getting one of those germs. See that, it's in the seats next to that red person and behind that red person. That's where sort of the danger area is.
So let's take a look at what you can do if you sit next to or even several seats away from Mr. or Miss Sneezy. First of all, you can asked to be moved to an empty seat.
COLLINS: Not happening.
COHEN: Not happening. You wouldn't ask that.
COLLINS: No. I have a medical condition, and I can't even get the seat that I need.
COHEN: But if it's an empty seat, you can say...
(CROSSTALK)
COHEN: And also turn your body away from the sick person especially easier if you're sitting in the aisle. And also turn the air vent above you towards the sick person. It's not going to do a whole lot but at least will get the flow of air towards them. This is recommended by the former director of the Centers for Disease Control although I see you laugh.
Also here's my last one. Then you can laugh more. Also ask the flight attendant for a mask for the sick person. It sounds so rude but you can quietly go up to a flight attendant and say the person sitting next to me is clearly distressed with some kind of illness. I think you have a mask on board, can you offer it to this person. Hopefully they'll take you up on it.
COLLINS: Don't tell them that I asked for it.
COHEN: Exactly. You might want to add that.
COLLINS: All right. Well, there are ideas out there. But we hope everybody gets through this season without getting the flu.
COHEN: That's right.
COLLINS: It does seem it's unavoidable.
COHEN: It does seem that way. The chances of getting through without any kind of virus whatsoever this holiday season doesn't seem high.
COLLINS: Yes. All right. Thank you, Elizabeth. Sure do appreciate that.
COHEN: Thank you.
COLLINS: Millions of Americans are out of work. As you know, many of them also running out of time. Congress though may be close to offering some new hope.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins.
COLLINS: We've had not one, not two, but three upbeat jobs reports this week. Wall Street is cheering that news. Susan Lisovicz in the New York Stock Exchange -- oh, sorry, New York bureau with the latest on the numbers. Yes, look at that. Dow's up about 145. NASDAQ up pretty big, too.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: We're seeing green. It's not just because of this turtleneck, Heidi. We got two "good" reports on jobs yesterday. That's we put the "good" in quotes because things are getting better. We got one today. Hopefully, the jobs report from the government tomorrow -- what we've seen so far, layoffs are slowing.
New jobless claims fell last week to 512,000. Yes. That's a big number, but it is the lowest level since January. Some folks are suggesting that the peak for unemployment may be closer than we originally thought.
Continuing claims, which really. is a good gauge of the difficulty of finding work also fell. Still a really big number. 5.7 million. And it's even bigger when you factor in people on extended benefits. 9.8 million. But this number has fallen eight of the past nine weeks. And so, stocks are not falling. They are rising.
We also got some encouraging retail sales numbers. Check it out. Triple-digit gains. Dow and NASDAQ, S&P 500 up about one-and-a-half percent or more. Heidi?
COLLINS: Yes. It's been so brutal, though. I'm sure there's a lot of people out there wondering if a lot of these jobs are ever going to come back.
LISOVICZ: Well, in some cases, they won't. Especially in manufacturing as we've seen the trend companies outsourcing for cheaper labor overseas.
And, you know, there is a lot of concern about what will happen when the stimulus runs out. That may dampen job growth. Finally, you know, what we're seeing is sort of the make-do factor. Employers are squeezing the rank and file. That's not a gripe. That's a fact, Heidi.
Check out this morning's productivity report. Productivity surged nearly 10 percent in the last quarter. Biggest jump in six years. It means companies are producing more without hiring. In the simplest terms, Heidi, it means we're working harder.
COLLINS: All right. Very good. We'll continue to watch the numbers, as usual. Susan Lisovicz, thank you.
The road to health care reform at a new point today as one plan nears a final vote. Here's what we know. The AARP will endorse a House Democratic plan today, but House Republicans are not giving up the fight. They're offering their version of health care bill that includes a series of proposals pushed in recent months.
House conservatives and members of the Tea Party Express are taking part in a rally on Capitol Hill today. Meanwhile, the Democratic plan is being reviewed ahead of an expected debate by the full House on Friday and final vote possibly on Saturday.
If you work for a large company, it's time for open enrollment. That's when you sign up for health coverage and other benefits you want for next year. It happens every November, but our personal finance editor, Gerri Willis, says it's more important than ever this year.
Gerri, good morning to you. Why is that? Why more important this year?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: That's right, Heidi. I'm having a little trouble hearing you, and I'm hearing everything I say, so I'm going to pull this out.
Look, in the past, if you didn't sign up for health coverage during open enrollment, your employer would just give you whatever plan you had the previous year. Open enrollment is mandatory this year, and at some companies, they reserve the right to drop your coverage if you don't participate in the annual benefits program. Others will default you to a plan you may not like. Bottom line, you can't afford to ignore the process.
Another big change you'll see, higher employee costs. Check out these numbers. PriceWaterhouseCoopers reports 42 percent of employers plan to reduce their contributions to health insurance premiums. That means employers will pay -- or, that is, employees will pay more up front out of each paycheck.
Hewitt Associates says your premiums and out-of-pocket costs for health care will rise 10 percent next year, and many employers are offering consumer-driven health plans. These are plans with high deductibles. You might have to pay up to $10,000 out of your own pocket before coverage kicks in. Now, these plans make your monthly premiums cheaper to be sure, but you'll pay more for every doctor visit.
Now, you may be wondering will these new health insurance plans cover your family? What we're finding is more and more, employers are auditing who you cover under your health insurance. (INAUDIBLE) employers want to make sure your plan covers only people who are eligible. Some companies are requiring spouses to complete health risk assessments, and others are charging higher premiums for spouses who have access to care coverage through their own jobs.
There is some good news. Many employers are offering wellness incentives, things like gift cards or cash or discounted premiums if you take a health risk assessment or participate in smoking cessation or fitness programs. A few employers are providing access to health coaching, either on site or over the Internet.
And I want to remind viewers, "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" will be live this Saturday at 9:30 a.m. with a call-in show on open enrollment. We'll be answering your questions on the show with a panel of experts. Join me, and to get in line with your question now, e-mail me at gerri@CNN.com. That's gerri@CNN.com. Heidi?
COLLINS: Whew! It's a lot to think about. All right, Gerri. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.
More than a million people who are already out of work could get a new lifeline from Washington. Today, the House is expected to approve a measure that would extend benefits for those running out of time. Want to get details on this for you. Christine Romans is joining us from New York. Hey there, Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there. They're moving quickly on this. The reason why is because tomorrow we'll have a jobs report, of course, that's probably going to show just how severe the labor market problems are in this country.
And these Congress members are hearing from you that just recently you lost unemployment benefits, you think you're going to lose unemployment benefits, and there are no jobs out there. So, this is what the Senate has passed, and the House is expected to take it up very quickly. An extension, another 14-week extension nationwide of unemployment benefits.
And Heidi, another 20 weeks where the unemployment rate is over 8.5 percent. That's a lot of states. That's about 25 or 26, 27 states on both coasts, mostly. And this would be paid for by a two- year extension of a tax on employers, so wouldn't come out of my pocket or your pocket, directly at least, but it is paid for by employers. A two-year extension of that.
This would be the third extension now that we've seen, Heidi, and the Democrats are saying that it's absolutely necessary. Some Republicans are saying, OK, one more and then we're done.
COLLINS: Well, yes. Because everybody wonders where the money is going to come from in order to fund it. Homebuyers also...
ROMANS: Yes. And when you have people out of work for so long, six months or longer on unemployment checks for six months or longer, it makes people very concerned about re-entry back into the workforce. It makes people concerned just -- the dynamism of the labor market.
COLLINS: Yes. Absolutely. Homebuyers are getting more help. We know that. Talking more about that. What about the "Romans' Numeral" today?
ROMANS: Homebuyers getting more help, and 10 percent is "Romans' Numeral."
Ten percent is the "Romans' Numeral" because this goes right to this jobs story, Heidi. Ten percent -- we could see the unemployment rate hit 10 percent tomorrow. If not tomorrow, Heidi, it will be the -- we're close. Robert Gibbs, president's press secretary...
COLLINS: 9.9, I think, right.
ROMANS: ... Yes. We're close. And 10 percent is one of those numbers that it's just the sign of a broken labor market. And that's why you have so many people in Congress rushing to try to figure out how to sort of blunt the pain and get people to -- give people through until the economy turns around down the road. We'll see when the House picks this up. All indications I get is this is moving quickly.
COLLINS: Yes. Yes. So interesting. As you say that, we're looking at the Dow -- you know, goes up by 177 points as we speak. But leading indicator, always reminding everybody, it takes a while for things like the jobs market to catch up, clearly.
Christine Romans, appreciate that. Thank you.
A brutal chimp attack. The victim still in serious condition nine months later. Now her family wants to sue, but they aren't going after the chimpanzee's owner.
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COLLINS: Time to check some of the top stories we're watching this morning.
Police in Cleveland, Ohio, are working on identifying more victims found at the home of a registered sex offender. This is a picture of Tanya Carmichael. She is the only one of the 11 victims identified so far. Carmichael had been missing for a year. A Cleveland City Council member is now calling for an investigation into why police didn't notice the scene sooner.
A missing baby is found alive under her babysitter's bed. It happened near the rural Florida Panhandle town of Chiplee. Investigators found seven-month-old Shannon Dedrick in a box beneath the home of the babysitter Susan Baker. The baby had been missing for five days. She was checked at a hospital and then put into protective custody. Investigators are questioning the babysitter, her husband, and the child's mother.
Trying to sue the state of Connecticut over an animal attack. The family of a woman attacked by a chimpanzee is trying to get permission to sue the state for $150 million in damages. They say state officials should have done more to prevent the attack. A state biologist warned that the chimp could seriously hurt someone if he felt threatened.
Charla Nash was mauled by a friend's 200-pound chimp in February. She suffered severe injuries, losing both hands, her nose, lips and eyelids. In fact, she's still in the hospital. Travis the chimp was put down.
As we've been telling you, we're unveiling a brand-new Web site this morning, calling it CNNchallenge.com. It's where news junkies can test their knowledge of what's making news. Our Josh Levs has all details. Hey, Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Heidi. It's getting a lot of attention online today. In fact, it's one of the top topics on Google. We just saw that -- one of the top topics on Google Trends.
Let's zoom right in . I'll give you the basics here for the new CNNchallenge.com. Take a look.
So, what it's doing is giving you the intro, and it's giving you the basic idea of how it will work. The way it works is when you get through the beginning, you're able to choose one of these CNN personalities who will guide you through the game.
So, for example, let's click on Christiane. She'll give us the reason that we should choose her.
VOICE OF CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, HOST, "AMANPOUR": These are dangerous times, and this is a dangerous quiz. You're going to need someone like me to guide you through the next few minutes.
LEVS: All right. You can take your pick. There's a whole bunch of our personalities up there.
Now, take a look over here. We have all sorts of levels to the questions. This is where questions get more complicated. Now, what you're doing is, you are testing your knowledge of the news. News stories that we have brought you here on CNN.
So, we're up in the lightning round now. I brought you to this because I want you to see some of the more complicated questions and some of the more fun ways to answer them. Take a look here.
For example, which head of state recently addressed a joint meeting of Congress? Well, to answer this kind of question, we reported last week it was Angela Merkel. So, you drag her down, and the faster you answer, the more points you get. Boom, submit the answer. That's how it works.
Now, there are also some simpler questions earlier on. I'll take you over to that section over here. This is the beginning of it. At the very beginning, we're giving you some -- maybe you can say some of the softer questions that you're more likely to remember the answers to. And this one, for example, starts off with "Who did the Southern Christian Leadership Conference elect as its first female president?" The answer is Bernice King.
Again, the faster you answer the more points you get. Now, we go to the second question. Instead of me answering it, we'll toss it to you. Let's open up that graphic. This is the question for you. "What company filed for the fifth-largest bankruptcy in U.S. history?" You are lucky because usually there is just 30 seconds, but you have the break to go jump online, check out CNNmoney.com, get us the answer, and we'll be back with the answer right after this, Heidi.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEVS: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. I'm Josh Levs. We're premiering the new CNNchallenge.com today. And just before the break, we gave you this question from CNNchallenge.com. "What company filed for the fifth largest bankruptcy in U.S. history?" I know for a fact that some of you got it right. We'll show you the answer on the next screen. Here you go. Anyone? There you go. CIT.
The way it works at the new CNNchallenge.com, you only have 30 seconds to answer. I got to say, we had good responses. In fact, while we were gone during break, look, someone actually wrote me the answer. Steven Lambert. CIT. He added "bro." But he's telling me what the answer is. CIT.
If you go up a bit, we'll hear a little bit from Sharonda, who's telling us, "Wolf wouldn't even give me a hint." I thought we were better than that.
Lots of people responding to this today. As I mentioned, it's one of the top topics on Google. When you go to CNNchallenge.com, it gets tougher and tougher. You'll see some of these questions will give you a hard time.
But that's kind of the idea here. Test your news knowledge, and then at the end of all this, you know what you get? Zoom way up here, if you could. This right here -- it says "News Bin," and what we get you at the end is a bunch of news stories that will show you the articles that answer all these questions. So, you get to get a lot of information while you're having a lot of fun.
As you saw, I have a Facebook response. We want to know what you think about this and how it's working out for you. That's how you can get in touch. CNN.com/josh. Also Facebook or Twitter. JoshLevsCNN. Tell us what you think. What the next question should be, and if you're one of the people out there who gets a perfect score -- and we have to trust you that you won't play three times until you do it -- if you get a perfect score, I want you to hit Control, Print Screen on your computer. Just hold the screen grab for me, send it to me, and I'll share some on the air this afternoon.
So, Heidi, kind of an exciting new day at dot.com. New game. Hopefully, a lot of people learning along the way.
COLLINS: Yes. All right. Josh, thank you.
So, if you think you know the news, you can try to prove it. Play the CNNchallenge. Challenge your friends, challenge yourself. Go to CNNchallenge.com now to play.
The D.C. sniper's real target? His ex-wife, now speaking out about his upcoming execution.
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COLLINS: All right. This morning, we asked on our blog today whether you think Congress should actually be passing a bill that would mandate employers to actually grant their employees some sort of mandatory sick time if you get ill with H1N1. Kind of an interesting idea. A lot of people writing into us today. CNN.com/heidi is the address.
Here's the first one now from Jared. He says this. "I think it is inappropriate for Congress to pass such a measure that targets such a specific condition. If sick leave legislation is passed, it should not discriminate on condition."
Then Kevin writes this: "It is a great idea in principle, but it will end up being an abused system that employees can take advantage of to still get their pay. Companies need to offer their employees sick leave."
Amanda writes, "Ridiculous. You either suck it up or stay home. The government needs to stop babying the population; this type of support is contributing to the weak nature of society."
Once again, always love to hear from you on our blog. CNN.com/heidi. That's the address. We'll be back in a moment right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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COLLINS: Quickly want to go ahead and take you to Washington D.C. where we've been getting in some live pictures of the TEA Party Express. We were talking with our congressional correspondent a little while ago, Brianna Keilar. As we get closer and closer to one step into the health care reform bill and what is going on there today.
Obviously, there are quite a number of people that have gathered and have something to say about their thoughts on health care reform and what they call government intervention. Just to give you an idea, House conservatives and members of the TEA Party Express are taking part in all of this. So, we will continue to bring these pictures to you. This rally on Capitol Hill today.
Also want to let you know the TEA Party Express tour making a couple of stops in Texas today as well. Rolling into Amarillo and Lubbock for their rallies. That's coast-to-coast tour that we've been telling you about here, designed to put the spotlight on lawmakers who they say have voted for excessive spending and government intervention into health care. We'll keep our eye on those pictures for you throughout the day on CNN.
Meanwhile, John Allen Muhammad is scheduled to die next week. Families of the D.C.'s sniper victims will there for Tuesday's execution, but his ex-wife will not. CNN's Jeanne Meserve asked her why.
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JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDEMT (voice-over): The sniper's victims were young and old, male and female with diverse ethnic backgrounds. Many believe John Muhammad targeted this group as a smokescreen to obscure his real mission, to murder his ex-wife, Mildred, and gain custody of their children.
Mildred Muhammad has no question John intended to kill her, but she has no interest in watching him die. Even if given the chance, she will not attend his scheduled execution.
MILDRED MUHAMMAD, EX-WIFE OF CONVICTED SNIPER: I don't want to take my children to see their father die. And I don't need to see John expire like that. I'm done with John. I'm done.
MESERVE: There is absolutely nothing Mildred Muhammad wants to say to her ex-husband as he faces his death.
MUHAMMAD: My feelings detached from John when I asked him for a divorce. They were severed when he told me he was going to kill me.
MESERVE: As this old home video shows, John Muhammad was at times a good father to his three children. His ex-wife's concern right now is only for them.
MUHAMMAD: My children have had a difficult journey in understanding what their father has done. But even through all of that, they still love him. They understand what he did was wrong. They don't condone it.
MESERVE: And that, only that, is when she says makes the execution difficult.
MUHAMMAD: I feel sad for my children, you know. I really do. Because regardless, he's still their father. And they want him to be a part of their life. And that's something they won't be able to have. They have accepted it on one level. But they haven't completely accepted it yet.
They are really OK for now. I know internally they probably are going through their own little struggle. But they haven't expressed it yet. And I don't bring it up unless they do.
MESERVE (on camera): John Muhammad, Jr. is now in college studying computer information systems, but his mother has temporarily taken him out of school. Brought him home to be with her and his younger sisters so they can support one another in what she suspects will be a most difficult time for her children.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
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COLLINS: I'm Heidi Collins. Thanks for watching, everybody. CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Tony Harris.
