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American Morning
Florida Suffering From Effects of Cold Freeze; Fish Farmer's Business Affected by Florida's Frigid Temperatures; Obama Sticking up for Reid Over Controversial Comments; A Home Run King's Confession; Time for New Bank Tax?; "My Son is not Bin Laden"
Aired January 12, 2010 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Well, hello and welcome to AMERICAN MORNING on this Tuesday, January 12th. Glad you're with us. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. I'm John Roberts. Thanks for being with us. Here are the big stories we'll be breaking down for you in the next 15 minutes.
A slugger breaks his silence. Mark McGwire admits that he did take steroids when he broke the single-season home run record, but he insists it was not the performance-enhancing drugs that led to all those accomplishments.
CHETRY: Another night in the deep freeze for much of Florida. The steady, bitter cold taking a toll on the state's crops and those who tried to grow them. One Florida industry has nearly been wiped out. We are live with that story just ahead.
ROBERTS: How was an alleged double agent able to outsmart our spies? We're taking a closer look at the suicide bomber who killed seven CIA operatives. Why the information he was feeding us about Al Qaeda may have been too good to be true.
CHETRY: Meantime, we're going to start off with a quick check of today's weather headlines. Rob Marciano in the extreme weather for us this morning. We've been talking about Florida just having devastating effects. The cold will not let up.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: No, it won't. You know, I think back to the hurricane season of '04 and '05 which did its number on the citrus crops down there then, not really recovered, and now this batch of cold air. Still some subfreezing temperatures today, although not as bad as yesterday.
Take a look at some of the numbers right now. Below freezing in Orlando. Just west of Orlando is where a lot of the citrus crops are. Of course, we have other issues down there. Tropical fish and other berry plants are affected by all of this.
Temps in the 40s in Miami and 40s in Tampa. So it is a little bit warmer than it was at this time yesterday but still cold. And there actually is a reinforcing shot of colder air but not necessarily arctic air. Notice the 25 in Memphis as opposed to being in the single numbers or teens with that.
No real winter precipitation on the way for the eastern two- thirds of the country but the warm up has been agonizingly slow for just about everywhere east of the front range of the Rockies. And that will be the main focus today, not necessarily warming up today but as we go through tomorrow and towards the end of the week, we'll start to see temperatures at least getting closer to normal which would be the saving grace for just about everybody, including those folks down in Florida.
John and Kiran, back up to you.
ROBERTS: It sure would. Rob, thanks.
Now to the record setting cold snap that is threatening Florida's citrus and vegetable industry and others as well, likely to take a toll on your food budget the next couple of months. While farmers and growers try to estimate the impact of the frigid winter, one major industry may be beyond saving.
Our Martin Savidge is live in Loxahatchee, Florida, this morning with that part of the story. And, Martin, this is a real tough one that you've got to tell today.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, indeed, John. This is a fish farm. It's a tropical fish farm. And if you've ever had a fresh water tropical aquarium in your life and there's pretty good chance that the fish in it came from Florida.
There are about 150 farms like this spread all across the state and they generate an annual revenue of about $43 million a year. But this fish story isn't about an industry. It's about one man, his life-long passion and how it ran up against a very cold reality.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL BREEN, FISH FARMER: This is a devastating loss. This is a total loss.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): 43-year-old Michael Breen surveys his farm. Seventy-six ponds of 26 varieties of Central and South American fish with names most kids would know from the pet store, Sicklids, silver dollars, Tetris and barbs. 125,000 of them.
BREEN: We bought the farm because I love fish. And in this day in age, how many people can honestly say they raised their children on a farm.
SAVIDGE: Fourteen years ago, Breen left a six-figure salary in alcohol sales to pursue a dream. That dream died in just four frigid nights, wiping out almost his entire stock valued at over half a million dollars.
VOICE OF BREEN: To walk by these ponds now and not see anything or hear anything, it's just kind of an eerie silence. SAVIDGE: Breen says there was nothing he could do. He had no way to move so many fish and no place to put them out of the cold, even if he could. Insurance?
BREEN: Not this year I couldn't afford it.
SAVIDGE: Breen's seen cold before. One snap last year forced him to use all of his savings. But he and the industry have never seen anything like this.
BREEN: It's just been a slow death out here.
SAVIDGE: Now, he has nothing left in the ponds or the bank.
BREEN: I've given everything. My 401(k) from the liquor industry, my retirements over there. Yes, I've put everything into this farm.
SAVIDGE: Including your heart.
BREEN: Oh, yes. A lot of blood, sweat and tears.
SAVIDGE: Breen has not yet explained to his children what the cold has done to their lives, but that conversation is coming.
BREEN: They realize that things are going to be very hard, very hard. They're fantastic. I'm blessed.
SAVIDGE: And that is the realization he has found in the midst of everything he has lost.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SAVIDGE: And the estimates are that the tropical fish industry in the state of Florida has lost perhaps 70 percent, maybe more of its stock. The impact is going to be felt nationwide, and it will take a long time to recover. As for Michael Breen, he's going to go out and get another job. He's not about to lose the farm -- John.
ROBERTS: So, no insurance and as you said no money in the bank. He'd get another job. Is he just going to try to slowly rebuild? Does he have any other options, Martin?
SAVIDGE: No, he's got a few fish that he hopes he can turn into breeding stock but that, he says, will take six months, a year, maybe longer than that. The problem is, in the meantime, you have to have an income. The bills keep coming in.
He's not alone. There are a lot of people who are suffering, and it just gives you an impact of how the cold really had a devastating effect and continues to ripple through society down here in Florida.
ROBERTS: Absolutely. As we said at the top, real tough story.
Martin Savidge for us this morning in Loxahatchee. Martin, thanks. Last week, we introduced you to Jacqueline Mosley (ph). She's a Memphis resident who braving the brutal cold without heat or hot water. The city was actually able to cut a deal to get her power back on, but now she doesn't have any after a water pipe burst. We're going to find out how she's doing when we talk to her in less than 30 minutes' time.
Other stories new this morning, New Jersey about to become the 14th state in the nation to legalize marijuana for medicinal use. Both Houses of the state legislature approved the bill Monday, and Governor Jon Corzine plans to sign it next week before he leaves office. Patients with illnesses such as cancer, AIDS and multiple sclerosis will be allowed to buy up to two ounces of marijuana a month from registered alternative treatment centers.
CHETRY: Well, just how many jobs will be created or saved by the $787 billion stimulus program? We may never know exactly. The White House says it is changing the way the stimulus-funded jobs are counted and instead of keeping a running tally, officials now say they will count jobs each quarter and not total them up. The Obama administration has said the stimulus is on track to save or create 3.5 million jobs.
ROBERTS: And Simon says goodbye. Simon Cowell announcing this will be his last season on "American Idol" as the judge America love to hate. Simon helped "Idol" become the most popular television show. He is leaving to focus on his popular British talent show "The X- Factor" which is coming to American television in 2011. The new season of "American Idol" begins tonight.
CHETRY: Wow. Poor Idol, because they lost Paula and now they're losing Simon.
ROBERTS: Yes, poor "Idol." It only makes -- what? A billion dollars a year?
CHETRY: Well, we'll see if it still does after they lose the two biggest characters. And he also said that he's bringing Paula to the "X-Factor." So we'll see what happens there.
ROBERTS: Yes. He said they'll work together again in some way shape or form.
CHETRY: There you go.
All right. Well, still ahead, calls for Harry Reid to step down after some of the controversial comments he made about then candidate for president Obama. Now the president is coming to his defense.
We're going to play some of that exclusive interview with Roland Martin coming up. Seven minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Nine minutes past the hour and a quick check of other stories new this morning. The Obama administration may be close to imposing sanctions on Iran. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says that sanctions targeting the country's ruling elite may be the best way to get Tehran to come clean about its nuclear ambition. Meantime, the U.S. and five other countries will reportedly hold high-level talks this weekend in New York on Iran's nuclear program.
ROBERTS: President Obama hosting some of the most powerful labor union leaders at the White House last night. The tense meeting was over the president's plan to tax high-cost insurance plans which some labor contracts provide for. The president has said the tax is necessary to help pay for health care reform.
CHETRY: And Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid trying to move past this morning the controversy, but more and more people are weighing in over remarks he made about the president. In a new book called "Game Change" about the 2008 presidential election, that's where those comments were disclosed, that Reid is quoted as privately saying that then-Senator Obama would be a good candidate because he's, quote, "light-skinned with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one."
Now Reid has since apologized and the president defended the majority leader in an interview with CNN's political analyst Roland Martin. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a good man who has always been on the right side of history. For him to have used some inartful language in trying to praise me and for people to try to make hay out of that makes absolutely no sense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: And Roland joins us live from our D.C. bureau this morning with the "A.M. breakdown.
Roland, good to see you this morning.
ROLAND MARTIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.
CHETRY: So the president says it makes absolutely no sense. He appears to not be upset at what Senator Harry Reid said. What did you get when you talked to him?
MARTIN: Well, first of all, I think what he was most upset with and the folks will see the remainder of that when we air the special on TV on cable network on Monday, MLK's anniversary, was that these kinds of stories lead to all kinds of rancor in the back and forth and there never truly is a real conversation about what someone said.
He said it's always a question of Republican versus Democrat, left versus right, as opposed to people actually learning from these kind of particular issues. And so we often talk about can there be actually a dialogue on race and oftentimes all the drama of the yelling and screaming back and forth always muddies that actual potential conversation.
CHETRY: Yes. And as you said, there is a big political element to this. In fact, some are saying a double standard, in fact.
There's an op-ed by Ward Connerly in "The Wall Street Journal" today. He talks about a double standard when it comes to forgiveness, harkening back to what then Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott said when he praised Strom Thurmond, who was at one time a segregationist.
Let me just read you real quick what he said and then you can weigh in.
MARTIN: Sure.
CHETRY: This is what Ward Connerly said. He said that Lott apologized repeatedly and sincerely to no avail. Black leaders were unforgiving and persisted in demanding that he either resign from his position or be removed. In the end, they got what they wanted.
He said these are the same people who quickly forgave Reid for his comments. What do you think?
MARTIN: First of all, look, is there a double standard? Yes, there is. But it's also a question of what have you done or what is your record?
I talked to Hilary Shelton yesterday who is the head of the NAACP's Washington bureau and he said on their report card. He said for instance, Trent Lott "F" in terms of the issues the NAACP lays out.
Harry Reid, "A." He said in the case of Lott, here you had someone who was praising Senator Strom Thurmond saying if he would have been president, this country would be better. Frankly, it is apples and oranges trying to compare Trent Lott to a Harry Reid had to say. It's a question of context and what someone said.
His comments -- Reid's comment were ridiculous in the sense you're talking about a Negro dialect, this whole notion of -- but he also was laying out why folks would have voted for Obama.
Now, General Colin Powell, in 1995 made the exact same comment that, why would people potentially vote for him for president and he said because he was light-skinned and, frankly, he talked white. In essence, that's how people actually perceive it. And so we have to -- I think as journalists, what we have to say is, wait a minute, let's compare what people say. Let's compare in contrast and say what is the context, what is the difference between the two.
And so, look, Republicans I understand why they're jumping up and down. But look, their history when it comes to African-Americans and the issues are not the same and, frankly, that's one of the reason why Democrats are able to get that pass because of that particular history in terms of what they support, what they don't support, where their voting record is. That, to me, I think is a difference that has to be acknowledged. CHETRY: Obama also said to you in this interview, the president saying that he said I can guarantee you the average person is less concerned about what Harry Reid said in a quote in a book years ago than moving the country forward. Is he missing a teachable moment to talk more about race by saying that this should sort of be dismissed and we should move on?
MARTIN: No, because again, though -- see, here's the difference. The question is, should the president be talking more about it as opposed to us? Here's what I find to be interesting.
You had more black people probably on the air on cable networks and broadcast television and the radio talking about this very issue in the past 48 hours than you've probably seen in the last six months. And so, now, that says something about us that we can't find black people to talk about other issues as well except this type of stories. But it's our job and others to have the actual conversation.
And so that's really -- everybody has a particular role here. And so the question is, how do we begin to have some real conversations in dialogue amongst ourselves on air, off air, in homes, in churches and communities?
And so, we should be sitting here saying, hey, what did Harry Reid have to say? Is that correct? Is he saying something that maybe we don't want to acknowledge? That's the real issue.
The problem, Kiran, I have is whenever these issue comes up, we say, oh, suppress it. Knock it down. Don't say anything, and then we don't learn anything from it. And so, when the next racial brush fire comes, we have the exact same conversation, the back and forth -- the yelling back and forth, but no actual learning, no talking, no understanding.
CHETRY: All right. Well, Roland, we look forward to seeing more of that interview with the president. Thanks so much for joining us this morning.
MARTIN: Thanks so much. I appreciate it.
ROBERTS: Now to another big story that everyone is talking about this morning, the home run king's confession.
CHETRY: Yes. Mark McGwire, the slugger who wouldn't discuss his past finally confirming what many fans had already suspected, that he did, indeed, use steroids, he says for 10 years.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK MCGWIRE, FORMER MLB SLUGGER: I apologize to everybody in Major League Baseball, my family, the Marises, Bud Selig.
Today was the hardest day of my life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, Jason Carroll joins us now.
And, Jason -- so a humbling moment there, you see it, for someone who is one of the most admired athletes in America in his playing days. Why come clean now?
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's because of a gig that he's just now about to partake, and we're going to talk a little about that in a moment. But, you know, what's interesting about this, another iconic player coming forward. It really makes you wonder how many others are out there.
You know, McGwire racked up huge numbers, 70 home runs in one record-breaking season, a super human performance that left a lot of people wondering if he was getting a boost from banned substances. Now, the former all-star says it's time to set the record straight -- sort of.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MCGWIRE: I've let a lot of people down. It doesn't feel good.
CARROLL (voice-over): During an emotional interview, the former slugger finally admitting what many had suspected -- he used steroids.
MCGWIRE: That was the era that we played in. I wish I never played in that era. I wish we had drug testing.
CARROLL: That era included an epic battle with Sammy Sosa, a home run race during the 1998 season that captivated the country and ended with McGwire breaking the single season record set by Roger Maris.
MCGWIRE: It's absolutely amazing. It's -- you know, it's just -- it blows me away.
CARROLL: McGwire made his way to the stands for an emotional moment with Maris' children, a bond that came full circle this week when McGwire picked up a phone and broker the news to Maris' widow.
MCGWIRE: She was disappointed, and she has every right to be. And I -- and I couldn't tell her how much sorry I -- how so sorry I was.
CARROLL: But it's what McGwire isn't saying that's causing another controversy. While McGwire admitted to taking the illegal drugs, he says he did it to overcome injuries from the game but would not say the drugs improved his game.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Could you have done those things? Could you have hit 70 home runs without using steroids?
MCGWIRE: Absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think so?
MCGWIRE: I believe so. I was given this gift by the Man upstairs.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is a word for taking performance enhancing drugs to get better from injury, and that word is it's cheating.
CARROLL: Questions have swirled around McGwire for a decade. At least one broadcaster admits he and his colleagues were suspicious at the time, but had no proof.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We covered the story as best as we could. Here are these guys breaking the home run record and they were very large.
CARROLL: In his 2005 tell-all book, "Juiced", Jose Conseco says he injected McGwire with steroids. McGwire now says not true.
But that same year, McGwire was famously silent on the topic when testifying to Congress.
MCGWIRE: I'm not here to discuss the past. I'm here to be positive about this.
CARROLL: In terms of what's next, McGwire says he's hoping for a chance to focus on the future and his new job with the St. Louis Cardinals.
MCGWIRE: I just want to be a -- a really good hitting coach. I have a lot to offer.
I'm asking for a second chance. I hope they give it to me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL: Well, we'll see if he gets it. McGwire says he's speaking out so he can move forward with that job as the Cardinals' batting coach, and so far the Cardinals are standing by him.
You know, he also said during that interview he did not want to be a distraction. That remains to be seen.
ROBERTS: So what he said goes way beyond the androstenedione that he had already admitted to taking?
CARROLL: Absolutely. And -- but I think the thing that is going to hit with people most about this is the fact that he was unable to admit that the steroids gave him a boost in terms of his physical ability.
CHETRY: Right. He said it was to -- to sort of counter the injuries, not that it made him hit better.
CARROLL: And maybe that's what he truly believes. We don't know. I mean, I'm not inside the man's head.
CHETRY: All right. Well, we'll see. We'll be talking a little bit more about that a little later. Jason, thanks so much. We want to know also what you think of Mark McGwire and his steroid confession. Join the conversation at cnn.com/amfix.
ROBERTS: New tax on banks to help offset all the money that the government poured into the financial industry. Stephanie Elam, "Minding Your Business" this morning.
It's 20 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Twenty-three and a half minutes after the hour. That means it's time for "Minding Your Business", Stephanie Elam here this morning and the government trying to get back some more of its money.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Looking at a way they can potentially get back some of their money here, and it's an interesting thing we're hearing about now, White House looking to actually tax the banks in an effort to get more money back from this.
This is a multi-pronged plan here, and the reason why they're doing this is they want to make sure that taxpayers who bailed out the banks in the first place get that money back, but they also want to reduce the budget deficit. And then, on top of it, they want to discourage this excessive risk taking that we saw the banks doing for years and years but led to the debacle of 2008. That's one thing they want to look at.
And they also know that there a lot of people out there who are angry over the bonuses that are coming out over the next month or so. So they want to address anger over that as well.
This would not target AIG or the auto companies right now. Obviously, they're still in a rougher situation than the banks. Some of the banks are reporting record numbers. That will be really useful (ph) for them. So they're taking a look at a way to do this.
But one thing that we should point out is that the $700 billion TARP plan, when it was passed, one of the things it had, it gives the president the OK to go to Congress to ask for different ways to get the money back if the money is not paid back by these financial institutions. Obviously, there's a lot of people out there who think this is not a good idea, mainly the banks.
But, overall, when you take a look at this one, it's really likely that there could be another fee imposed on banks, and some banks are saying, that's going to actually keep us from being able to lend more if you're taxing us. But a lot of people, like, you have a lot of money. You can handle this.
So we'll see. The budget will come out next month for 2011 and we'll see it then.
ROBERTS: All right. Steph, thanks so much.
ELAM: Sure. CHETRY: All right. Still ahead, we're going to take a quick break and we'll be back.
Twenty-five minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Twenty- seven minutes past the hour right now. That means it's time for an "AM Original."
An American-born radical Muslim cleric is believed to be hiding in the hills of Yemen right now, and he has ties to the accused Christmas Day bomber, as well as the Fort Hood shooting suspect, Nidal Hasan.
ROBERTS: Officials believe that he is hardcore al Qaeda, but our Paula Newton caught up with his father who says he's still an all- American boy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): This man, Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born Muslim cleric, is one of the world's most wanted fugitives. Counter-terror forces in Yemen are training to track him down, though he's hiding somewhere up there, in the rugged mountains of Southern Yemen.
In the capital, Sanaa, we went looking for his family to learn more about the man who praised the alleged Fort Hood shooter and may have encouraged the bombing attempt on the Christmas flight to Detroit. His father, a former government minister here, says the West is mistaken, that his son is not the new Osama Bin Laden.
NEWTON (on camera): So al-Awlaki's father, Nasser al-Awlaki, has agreed to an interview, but he said this is only a courtesy visit. He doesn't want any cameras. But we're about to go to a neutral location just around the corner from here, in the capital, Sanaa, and see what he has to say.
NEWTON (voice-over): Al-Awlaki's father told me his son is not a member of al Qaeda. He says, "He has been wrongly accused, it's unbelievable. He lived his life in America. He's an all-American boy. My son would love to go back to America, he used to have a good life in America."
NEWTON (on camera): And yet an American security official tells CNN that al-Awlaki did meet with the man accused of trying to blow up that airliner to Detroit on Christmas Day. This official believes that al-Awlaki is one of the top leaders here of al Qaeda in Yemen, one of only five, and that he some time last year transformed himself from an internet preacher to a hands-on operative who not only recruits but also helps plan attacks on the United States.
NEWTON (voice-over): All of that, of course, is not what his father wants to believe. He told me, "What do you expect my son to do? There are missiles raining down on the village. He has to hide. But he is not hiding with al Qaeda, our tribe is protecting him now."
This man is a journalist from Yemen. He is the last reporter to speak with al-Awlaki before he went into hiding with his tribe.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The tribe issued a statement saying if anybody touches one hair on al-Awlaki's head, the tribe will respond with force.
NEWTON: And that means even with the most aggressive manhunt, Awlaki may be as well protected right now as Osama bin Laden.
(on camera): No matter how effective the counterterrorism forces, no matter how good the training, much of this really won't matter in the tribal regions, which the government has little or no control over.
(voice-over): His father holds out hope that he can convince his son to surrender without more bloodshed, but he needs time, he says. He claims he hasn't spoken to him in weeks, the son, who he says, has always loved America.
Paula Newton, CNN, Sanaa, Yemen.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: And that brings us to half past the hour. And that means it's time for this morning's top stories. The man who refused to talk about the past, finally did. Ex-slugger Mark McGwire finally coming clean admitting that he was using steroids when he broke Major League Baseball single season homerun record. But McGwire claims he only did it because of his injuries. He credited his God-given talent for the power to hit all those home runs.
CHETRY: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid trying to move on from his racial remarks about then candidate Barack Obama and to save his job in the process. Reid said he has apologized to the president for describing him as a light-skinned, African-American with no-Negro dialect. And that the president accepted that apology. In an interview with CNN political analyst Roland Martin, the president said Harry Reid is a good man who has always been on the right side of history.
ROBERTS: Icicles on palm trees, frozen fish and temperatures plunging to historic lows across Florida. It was 36 degrees in Miami, shattering a record that went back 82 years. Forecasters say the Sunshine State could thaw out by Friday. Our Rob Marciano will be with us in just a few minutes with the details.
CHETRY: Well, this morning we have an "AM" follow-up for you on a story that touched so many of us. Last week, our Rob Marciano was in Memphis when he met Jacqueline Mosley freezing, because she couldn't pay her $3,000 power bill. She had been without heat and lights for more than a year. We were there when the city cut a deal to get her power back on.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JACQUELINE MOSLEY, UNABLE TO PAY POWER BILL, NOW OVER $3,000: Listen to that. Heat. Heat. Oh, my God.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: She got the heat back on, but on Friday, unfortunately, a pipe burst in her kitchen. She's now without water. Jacqueline Mosley joins us now live from her home in Memphis, Tennessee.
Jacqui, it's great to see you this morning. You know, we looked at that -- the pictures of you and Rob there when the heat came back on, and the steam coming out of your mouth because it was so cold, and we all wondered how were you getting by before they turned the lights back on.
MOSLEY: I have propane heat. I had portable propane heater that is meant for camping. You can't use it inside. I would crack a window, so that means there was more cold air coming in, but at least I wouldn't worry about carbon monoxide.
ROBERTS: Right. And you had been without power since, what, like a year, wasn't it?
MOSLEY: Oh, almost a year -- yes, 11 months.
ROBERTS: Oh my goodness.
CHETRY: Yes. And just reading some of the details of what you have to go through, really, it's mind boggling for many people to even think of it. You say that you wait until the library opens in the morning, you go there, obviously, because it's heated, it's warm and it's something to do. And also, you have not been able to find work. You've been at times, sometimes just sitting in the parking lot of a grocery store, waiting to see if anybody needs a ride home and getting a little bit of money.
What's it been like for you trying to get ahead of this situation, and trying to get employment?
MOSLEY: It's been real challenging. I've been -- everyday I'm out looking for a job. I'm trying to find anything. I'm trying to find things that I don't know how to do but I'm willing to learn. I'm trying to find things that I do now how to do. And it's just hard. It's just -- the economy is so bad, and it's not just me. So I do feel like it's me, but I know that it's not. But I have to keep trying. I cannot give up.
I have to keep my home. I have to have a place to live. And whatever it takes to do that, I'm learning how to do it. I'm learning that I am a survivor. That I've gone through things that I never thought that I would go through. I never thought that I would be without power. I never thought that I would be without a job and not be able to pay for lights, gas and water. Never thought it, but I've done it. I won it over, but somehow I'm glad that I did. I think it humbled me more. I think I'm more humble and I'm more appreciative of others that are going through the same thing that I'm going through, and to know that there are people out there that really care that you are going through something that horrendous.
ROBERTS: Yes. We should mention, Jacqui, that you moved to Memphis from Maryland, where you're living because you wanted to take care of your mommy. You moved back into your childhood home. Your mom has since passed.
MOSLEY: Yes.
ROBERTS: Tell us a little bit about yourself just in terms of finding work. What have you done in the past? What can you do? I mean, maybe there's somebody out there who's watching this morning who might be able to say, hey, I'm looking for a person just like Jacqui Mosley.
MOSLEY: I'm great administrative assistant, executive administrative assistant. I'm diligent. I'm loyal. I can do it. I know all kinds of software packages. Anything on the computer, I can do it. Anything in the office. Any office procedures, any policies I'm able to do it. I'm great. I have over 30 years experience as administrative assistant, and I just need that break.
CHETRY: Right. Absolutely. Well, you know, you did get a little bit of a break. You got some good news, right, from the City of Memphis. What did they tell you?
MOSLEY: Yes, they did. Someone called me today and asked me about my plumbing, and they're going to have someone out here today to fix my pipe in the kitchen. I think that is so wonderful. The City of Memphis has been so great to come home to be discouraged as I have been, and for the city to give me that hope.
Why I move back home? Why I love my hometown, to give it to me, to say that this city has not changed that much, and there are still people here that care. That means a lot to me.
CHETRY: Right. In fact, it was the mayor that ordered them.
(CROSSTALK)
MOSLEY: And especially from our politician. Yes, yes.
CHETRY: He ordered that as long as this cold snap is going on, put the power back on for people who were not able to pay their bill. But what happens when it warms up?
MOSLEY: When it warms up, if I can't pay my bill, it's going to go off again. But, hopefully, I will have a job and I can do that. I'm not without power because I don't want to pay, it's because I can't pay.
ROBERTS: Right. Why do you think it's been so tough to find work? You were telling one of our assistants who just spoke with you yesterday, you think it might be because of your age?
MOSLEY: I think that is very much a factor. They can't tell you that, of course. They can't tell you that you're too old and you got too much experience. They don't want to pay you for your 30 years experience when they can get someone with ten years experience and pay them less. They don't want to tell you that. They don't want to tell you that, we don't want to pay for your retirement. You're going to be retiring, within what, maybe ten years or less. They don't want to do that. That's a waste of money, I can understand.
But in the meantime, what are we that are not there ready for social security? What are we going to do? I'm stuck in the middle. They told me when I was 55 that I was a senior citizen. Am I senior? Where am I? Am I senior? Am I junior? Where am I?
CHETRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: Yes. It's tough. It's a terrible, terrible thing when that happens.
CHETRY: It is. It is. And your positive attitude is certainly inspiring to so many people. I mean, we had people here in the studio wiping away tears listening to your story. We want to let you know that we're going to put your e-mail address up just in case, you know, there's anybody that wants to contact you for various reasons. Maybe for -- possibly for employment or to help out with the situation, or just to, you know, provide some sort of inspiration to you, as well. Jacquimosley@aol.com. We're also going to link it up with our show blog.
But it's wonderful to talk to you. And we are certainly here hoping for the best for you. And thanks so much for sharing your story.
MOSLEY: Thank you so much. I appreciate all that you've done. CNN has been wonderful to me. Thank you so much.
ROBERTS: Good to see you this morning, Jacqui. Good luck. And maybe there's somebody out there who can use somebody of your caliber. Certainly hope there is. By the way, it's spelled, Jacquimosley@aol.com. Or just go to our show page, CNN.com/AMFIX, and click on the contact to send us an e-mail if you got something you can help out Jacqui with.
It's 38 minutes after the hour.
Coming up next, New York's latest health battle. They took on transfats, now they're taking on salt. Stay with us.
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ROBERTS: Forty-two minutes after the hour, "Minding Your Business" this morning. 2009 was a good year for the Federal Reserve. Efforts to prop up the sagging economy left the government with a profit, profit -- do you understand that -- profit of $45 billion. "The Washington Post" crunched those numbers. As for the cash, it's going to go back to the Treasury Department. And that is good news for the federal budget. Though it kind of feels like a bit of a drop in a bucket, when you look at the size of the deficit.
CHETRY: There you go.
ROBERTS: Anything helps, though, right?
CHETRY: Absolutely. Well, New York City is shaking up the food industry, yet again. You remember first the city banned transfats in restaurants.
ROBERTS: Right, the calorie counts were put on menus, and now there's the war on salt. Here's Mary Snow with that.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John and Kiran, New York City's message, hold the salt. The city's health department launched an initiative stretching far beyond New York aimed at reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes link would high-sodium intake, but not everyone is welcoming it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): Pastrami is the main draw at New York's Katz's Deli. Salt is a key ingredient in that specialty and the city's plans for restaurants and food makers to cut down on salt is leaving a bad taste with owner Alan Dell.
ALAN DELL, OWNER, KATZ'S DELI: Maybe it's good for the health of people, but I think we should decide how to eat and cook ourselves.
SNOW: That's because New York city's health department says it's encouraging restaurants to voluntarily cut salt content in their foods. It's that targets aim of cutting sodium by 25 percent over five years, and the debarment will monitor top chain restaurants and packaged foods to see if they meet the new guidelines.
The city's health commissioner says Americans already consume twice the daily recommended limit of salt. He stresses these initiatives are all voluntary.
DR. THOMAS FARLEY, NYC HEALTH COMMISSIONER: We will put out those targets. If the food companies agree to meet those targets and follow through, we will have a great health impact. We could be saving tens of thousands of lives from heart disease and stroke.
SNOW: And if they don't.
FARLEY: We don't want to speculate on that at this point. We are very optimistic. We've come a long way in working with the food companies and setting out those targets.
SNOW: New York is borrowing a page from the United Kingdom.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This pizza, full of it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not full of it.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SNOW: Ads like this ran in the U.K., where some companies now put traffic light labels on packages, indicating food low in salt. Some companies in the U.S. have already taken steps to cut salt on their own. A food industry group says it's working with public health officials, but points out there is no substitute for salt.
ROBERT EARL, GROCERY MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION: Our preferred approach is to approach this gradually and incrementally, and not to move too fast, where we lose the consumer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: And monitoring sodium amounts may prove more challenging than some of the city's other health initiative like counting calories on menus. So far health departments from roughly 20 cities and states have pledged support for the plan. John and Kiran?
ROBERTS: Mary snow this morning with that. Mary, thanks so much.
And as we cross 45 minutes after the hour, Rob Marciano has got this morning's travel forecast right after the break. Stay with us.
CHETRY: Also coming up in just 10 minutes, its Jeanne Moos trying to make sense of the shake-up in NBC's late-night lineup.
Forty-five minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Forty- eight minutes past the hour now. It is time for your AM House Call, stories about your health this morning. Research shows the popular robotic surgery for prostate cancer needs more information from patients postop to determine whether or not it's effective. A study showed that many times the robot did not work correctly, and in some cases, the procedure led to higher instances of incontinence and impotence.
Get off the couch. Too much TV increases your risk of dying from cancer and cardiovascular disease. According to a new study out of Australia, people who watch TV for more than four hours a day had nearly 50 percent higher chance of death than those who tuned in for less than two hours. Researchers say that sitting around for too long is very unhealthy, and it doesn't matter if you have a healthy diet and are not overweight.
The movie Avatar is creating an unexpected problem. Fans who were lost in the mystical world Pandora now say they're depressed. That's right. An online forum has received more than 1,000 posts from fans who are trying to cope, some even report being suicidal. Psychiatrists say that the virtual world can make real life seem more imperfect. There you go, but why wouldn't that be a phenomenon with most movies? I mean, in most movies it's not reality.
ROBERTS: No, but I guess it's the way that the characters are depicted he interplay between real and, you know, the motion- controlled folks, but, you know, this time of year too when seasonal effective disorder kicks in and depression and suicide is a serious, serious problem, and it has to be taken seriously. It's a shame that that's happening, and you know, people should seek help for it as well. No question about that.
CHETRY: Yes, absolutely.
ROBERTS: It's 49-and-a-half minutes after the hour. Rob Marciano is tracking the weather across the country. He got the weather headlines in the Extreme Weather Center. Good morning to you, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, guys.
CHETRY: We quickly talked to Jacqueline again, right?
MARCIANO: Yes, yes. I got it. She's a rock star. She looked great, too. Just amazing person in spirit and glad you guys gave her that time on the air and looks like things are turning around for her. Boy, she was quite a find.
CHETRY: Yes, we're glad you found her, for sure.
MARCIANO: Yes, really exemplifies some of the spirit of Memphis, Tennessee, there. All right guys. Thirty degrees right now in D.C., 24 in Memphis, so certainly a little warmer than it was when we were there late last week but still below average. We're trying to get temperatures to at least average, and I think we'll do that by the time tomorrow, but more so Thursday and Friday rolls around. Twenty- four right now in Chicago, three degrees in Minneapolis. I see one last of reinforcing cool air that wants to drive south.
It's 25 in Jacksonville, 35 in Tampa, 34 in Orlando, and 43 in Miami, so those numbers are also a handful of degrees warmer than they were yesterday. Not a whole lot of moisture with this next front but maybe some breezy conditions will be the call as this thing drives down to the south. This is the last batch of cool air and then will start to moderate things. Pretty heavy rain event. Some storms lining up out west, so we're seeing a dramatic shift in the weather pattern.
Finally, big trough out east with all that cold air. Now, the ridge out west wants to kind of push to the east, and we'll see warmer temperatures return actually above normal temperatures for some of the northern Tuesdays (ph), but most of our action will get a little bit more intense as we go towards California and more typical El Nino winter weather pattern shaping up with more rain across the south and storminess across the west, and it looks like it wants to keep ongoing maybe until the beginning of next week, so California maybe our next focal point as far as where the weather news begins to break. That's the latest from here. John and Kiran, back up to you.
CHETRY: All right, Rob, thanks so much. This morning's top stories are just a few minutes away. First, he dodged rumors for years about steroid use. Now, slugger Mark McGwire admits he did use them during the very season that he shattered baseball's home run record, so why confess now?
ROBERTS: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid facing a growing storm of controversy over remarks about President Obama, but is this a chance for a real discussion about race in America? We're live at the White House today.
CHETRY: Also, stars giving back. Our in depth one-on-one interview with one of the biggest superstars on the planet, Madonna. All that coming up at the top of the hour right here on the Most News in the Morning. It's 52 minutes past the hour.
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ROBERTS: It's 55 minutes after the hour and that means it's time for the Most News in the Morning. It looks like NBC has created a hot new drama at 10:00 p.m.
CHETRY: Yes, not on purpose, though. Everyone is talking about the late shift shuffle between Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien, and who is going to win? Is it the hair or the chin? Here's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a little over seven months, we've come full circle.
Sorry, Donald. Here's NBC's latest plan.
MOOS (on-camera): So, Leno would move from 10:00 to 11:30, and Conan would move from 11:30 to midnight.
MOOS (voice-over): 12:05 to be exact.
UNKNOWN MALE: It's a little weird to start the tonight show at a time when it's no longer tonight.
MOOS: Conan, himself, has been making plenty of jokes about all the rumors.
UNKNOWN MALE: Both of our shows will be on 11:30 when simultaneously in split screen.
MOOS: Hey, they're both already a game. TMZ lets you use your mouse to make Conan catches ever changing contract.
Until Leno's big head gets in the way.
UNKNOWN MALE: Jay and I will be joining the cast of "Jersey Shore." A new character called the Awkward Situation.
MOOS: But what is the situation TMZ asks?
UNKNOWN MALE: Are you happy about the switch, jay? JAY LENO, HOST: We'll see what happens. Welcome to show business.
NBC is working on a solution they say in which all parties will be screwed equally.
MOOS: Maybe not so equally.
MOOS (on-camera): You know how Leno was always doing those jaywalking bits...
LENO: What separates your inner ear from your outer ear?
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Your brain, right?
MOOS: Yes, instead of jaywalking, now, it's Conan who can walk.
MOOS (voice-over): Walk into the arms of another network like Fox. The musical chairs have tongues wagging on YouTube.
UNKNOWN MALE: Give Jay Leno his 11:35 slot back now.
MOOS: Multiple choice was he (a) scratching his tongue (b) looking for a mustache hair or (c) trying to make himself gag because all this programming movement is making him queasy.
LENO: What does NBC stand for?
UNKNOWN MALE: What's that?
LENO: Never believe your contract, but you know.
MOOS (on-camera): That sounds vaguely familiar.
LENO: Welcome to NBC that stands for never believe your contract. Thank you very much.
MOOS: That was back when Leno was finally awarded The Tonight Show over Letterman. Oh, what a difference 17 years doesn't make.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: How do you think it's going to play out?
ROBERTS: I don't know, but can you imagine over the last 17 years, whichever way it plays out. How much money all of those people involved have made?
CHETRY: There you go. That's something to be happy about.
ROBERTS: It feels too bad, though.
CHETRY: And the other thing, too, it's all taped, right? So, whatever slot you're on, you're not staying up that late. ROBERTS: I guess, lots of prestige...
CHETRY: Of course, of course.
ROBERTS: Still, they all made a lot of money.
CHETRY: They're filthy rich.
(LAUGHING)
CHETRY: All right. Your top stories coming your way in just 90 seconds. Right now, we're two minutes to the top of the hour.
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