Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Obama Town Hall in Pennsylvania; McCain Campaigns in Wisconsin; Unemployment Jumps; Hanna Heads for U.S.; Rice in Libya
Aired September 05, 2008 - 11:55 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Quickly, we are getting closer to these live events. In fact, it looks as though Senator Barack Obama has taken the microphone in Pennsylvania. And I think we should go ahead and listen in for just a moment and see what he's saying. We'll get to the McCain event just as soon as it happens.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: ... and I couldn't have a better friend, and Pennsylvania could not have a better senator, than Bob Casey --
(APPLAUSE)
-- and the whole Casey clan who have done such great work on behalf of the state of Pennsylvania. And Bob's wife Theresa is here somewhere. Where did she go? There she is back here. So I just wanted to make sure -- give her a round of applause because she has to put up with Bob.
(APPLAUSE)
There are a couple of other thank yous that I've got to make. First of all, a couple of commissioners who were on my team early and I'm very grateful to them. Mike Washo and Corey O'Brien, thank you so much. Right over there.
(APPLAUSE)
I want to thank state senator Robert Mellow who was just a huge supporter and I'm so grateful to him.
(APPLAUSE)
We've got Congressman Paul Kanjorski. Give Paul a big round of applause.
(APPLAUSE)
And Wendell Young (ph) and the whole USCW. Seeing these yellow shirts everywhere I go always makes me feel good. Thank you for your great support.
(APPLAUSE)
And finally, let me thank Gerald Fine (ph) and Steven Crinzinski (ph) -- I want to make sure I got that right -- for welcoming us to shop (ph) and for giving me this wonderful tour of this terrific facility.
This is the second day in a row where we've taken a look at manufacturing here in Pennsylvania. Yesterday, we were in York and we were looking at hydroturbines that are being manufactured there today, specialty glass. And when you hear about some of the work that's being done, making the glass that's required for night vision goggles, developing photovoltaics as part of this company -- this is really cutting edge stuff. It's the kind of research and development and then transferring that technology into critical applications. That is what has built America. And when you meet the workers here, many of whom have been here 30 years, it gives you a sense of pride to know that great manufacturing work is still being done in the United States of America.
Now, unfortunately, we just got a jobs report today that showed we had lost another 80,000 jobs -- 80,000 jobs lost. We've now lost 605,000 jobs since the beginning of this year -- 605,000 jobs have been lost. The unemployment rate just jumped up to 6.1 percent. It's the highest that it's been in five years. We've had eight consecutive months of job loss. And so part of what I want to talk about is how do we create more shotglass operations all across America? How do we create jobs in America at a time when it seems like plants are closing all across the country and jobs are being shipped overseas?
I've been traveling now and campaigning for 19 months. And people ask me, you know, what have you learned about America? I say, well No. 1, America's big. And I've been to 49 of the 50 states, you know, the one I haven't been to is Alaska, which tells me, you know, I'm going to have to go up there -- I've got to go up there and check it out. But we've got just an incredible land that takes us from mountain to desert to coastlines. We are lucky to have this amazing land we call America.
The other thing I've learned is how decent and hardworking the American people are, and how we share a set of common values: family, neighborhood, community, love of country. And it doesn't matter what race you are, what faith, what part of the country you come from. People share those common values.
But the other thing I've learned is people are anxious because of the kinds of statistics that you're seeing today released today. Everywhere you go, people are working harder and harder just to get by.
It's harder to save, it's harder to retire. Incomes and wages have not gone up since George Bush took office in any substantial way.
When Bill Clinton was president, the average family income went up $7,500. Since George Bush has been in office, the average family income has gone down $2,000. And so, people just don't have as much money at the same time as the cost for everything from gas to food to health care have all skyrocketed.
And for a while, people were borrowing against their home because home equity looked like it was doing pretty good, except nobody was minding the store on Wall Street. And now you've got more home foreclosures than any time since the Great Depression. And if you're staying in your home, you've seen your home values plummet.
Now, you would think that George Bush and his potential Republican successor, John McCain, would be spending a lot of time worrying about the economy and all these jobs that are being lost on their watch. But if you watched the Republican National Convention over the last three days, you wouldn't know that we have the highest unemployment rate in five years, because they didn't say a thing about what is going on with the middle class?
They spent a lot of time talking about John McCain's biography, which we all honor. I mean, he has gone through extraordinary things in service of his country, and we respect that.
They talked about me a lot in less than respectful terms. So they spent a lot of time trying to run me down and not necessarily telling the truth.
But what they didn't talk about is you and what you're seeing in your lives, and what you're going through or your friends or your neighbors are going through. If you work here, you know, you've got a good job. But everybody here knows at least somebody in your family or your neighbor, in your neighborhood that's been laid off, plants shut down, they've lost their health care, they've lost their pension.
And not only that, but a lot of them, they've lost a sense of dignity and respect because people's identifies are tied up with their work and being able to look after their family. That's part of what the American dream's all about, and being able to pass on that dream, that promise to the next generation.
These guys spent three days, and you wouldn't know what people are going through in the neighborhoods because they didn't talk about it. And look, this is not unique to this convention. George Bush said, I see the economy improving. He just said that last week.
John McCain says that under George Bush, the economy made great progress. That's what he said. Said the economy made great progress.
And then John McCain the other day said that he thought that the economy was fundamentally sound. The fundamentals of the economy were sound.
Now, what's more fundamental than having a job? What's more fundamental than seeing your incomes keep pace with inflation so that you can save a little bit and watch your child walk off a stage with a college diploma in their hand? What's more fundamental than that?
(APPLAUSE)
So I don't think this is because John McCain is a bad person, I just think he doesn't get it. I don't think they have a sense of what people are going through, because otherwise, why would you be -- well, let me take that back. There may be another reason why you're not talking about it, and that is if you've got the kind of record they've got over the last eight years, then of course you don't want to spend a lot of time talking about issues. Right?
(APPLAUSE)
I mean, John McCain's campaign manager said just two days ago -- he said this campaign's not going to be about issues, it's going to be about personalities. Personalities?
I mean, I think I've got a pretty good personality. But that's not -- that's not why I'm running for president. I'm running for president to put people back to work, to give them health care, to make them have college that's affordable. This is not a personality contest. And I think it's because they don't think it's about issues, or they don't get what's going on, that you've seen some of the proposals they've been making.
Look, John McCain, the centerpiece of his economic policy is $200 billion in additional tax breaks to some of the wealthiest corporations out there -- $200 billion, $4 billion of that would go to ExxonMobil. ExxonMobil. And 100 million of you middle class folks would not get a dime of tax relief, not a dime under John McCain's plan.
And he's got the nerve to be running TV ads saying I'd be raising taxes. Let me tell you my plan.
Ninety-five percent of Americans would get a tax cut under my proposal. Ninety-five percent. Ninety-five percent.
(APPLAUSE)
Nobody disputes this. Nobody disputes it. Under my plan, the middle class would get three times the amount of relief as under John McCain's plan, because I'm not giving those tax breaks to folks who don't need it. I'm giving it to -- some tax relief to ordinary families that are struggling filling up the gas tank or paying home heating costs.
So that's part one of this plan. And by the way, in terms of changing our tax code, we're going to stop giving tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas, and we're going to give them to companies that are investing right here in the United States of America. That's just common sense.
Number two, we're going to finally fix this health care system. You know, here's a sense of how out of touch these folks are.
One of John McCain's top health care advisers the other day said, "You know, I don't know why everybody always talks about the uninsured, because you can always go to the emergency room and get care. So we should stop calling them uninsured."
Serious as a heart attack. This is what he said.
I mean, that's one way to solve these problems, is you could just stop calling people uninsured. Or you can stop calling them poor. Or you can stop calling them unemployed. Instead of giving them a job, you just re-categorize them. You're part of the leisure class.
You know, so here's what we're going to do, because I know that actually people are struggling. And I know that it's not just employees who are struggling, employers are struggling having to keep with rising health care costs. They need relief too.
It makes us less competitive. So what we're going to do is we're going to say to employers, if you're doing the right thing by your employees and providing health care for your employees, then we're going to work with you to lower your premiums by providing a catastrophic reinsurance fund. And we can lower potentially premiums by $1,000, $2,000 per family per year.
And if you don't have health insurance, then what we're going to do is we're going to set up a plan so that you can get the same kind of health care that I have as a member of Congress. Because you pay my salary with your taxes, I don't know why I should have better health care than you. That's a pretty straightforward principle.
(APPLAUSE)
All right?
Number three, I want to revitalize manufacturing, and I want to rebuild America and put people back to work. And let me tell you how we can do it.
Number one, we can start focusing on energy independence in a serious way and create clean energy jobs here in the United States. Now, John McCain will talk about the same stuff. He's got TV ads with a bunch of windmills, you know, and he's looking out in the distance or, you know, talking about energy independence, and it's the whole vision thing. You know?
Here's the truth, though. John McCain's been in Washington for 26 years. And during those 26 years, John McCain kept on voting against tax credits for wind energy, tax credits for solar energy. He consistently opposed biofuels. He said no.
So if -- you know, if he had has his way in the United States Senate, that windmill he's standing in front of...
COLLINS: All right. We put what we call a two-box up there on the screen because we have the other side of the fence, if you will, beginning in Cedarsburg, Wisconsin.
There you have the vice presidential candidate for the Republican side of things. Sarah Palin getting ready to introduce John McCain.
And guys, do we want to go ahead and listen in?
All right. Let's listen for one moment.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS) GOV. SARAH PALIN (R-AK), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: ... of John and Cindy McCain.
(APPLAUSE)
How about that speech last night? Didn't you get to feel it?
(APPLAUSE)
I hope you felt too like you were seeing and hearing from the next president of the United States of America!
(APPLAUSE)
So it fits that we came right from that convention in Minneapolis to small-town America.
(APPLAUSE)
Before I was governor, I was mayor of a small town. And since our opponents seem to look down on that experience, I've tried to explain what that job is all about. I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, only you have actual responsibilities.
(APPLAUSE)
Back when Harry Truman of Independence, Missouri, when he became president, a writer said back then that we grow good people in our small towns, people with honesty and sincerity and dignity. And I know just the kind of people he was talking about, because I grew up with those people. And I know that you did too here in the beautiful city of Cedarburg.
(APPLAUSE)
These are the people who do some of the hardest work in America. They grow our food, then they run our factories, and they fight our wars. And they love their country in good times and in bad, and they are always proud to be an American!
(APPLAUSE)
AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
PALIN: And John McCain has also loved and served his country in good times and in bad. And maybe you remember just about a year ago when matters abroad looked very bad, and some in Washington declared that his campaign was doomed, that there was just no hope because he refused to hedge his commitment to the security of our country. And they told us that all was lost, there was no hope for this candidate who said he would rather lose an election than see his country lose a war.
But the pollsters and the pundits, they forgot one thing when they wrote him off. They forgot the caliber of the man himself -- the determination, the resolve, and the sheer guts of Senator John McCain.
(APPLAUSE)
But the voters knew better. And maybe that's because they realized that there's a time for politics and a time for leadership. A time to campaign, and a time to put our country first. And John McCain is a man who wore the uniform of his country for 22 years and refused...
(APPLAUSE)
He refused to break faith with our troops in Iraq who have now brought victory within sight. And as the mother of one of those troops, that's exactly the kind of man I want as commander in chief.
(APPLAUSE)
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
Good judgment in the commander in chief can make the difference between victory and defeat, between avoiding a crisis and inviting a catastrophe. And the best case point is the surge in Iraq, which Barack Obama opposed because he said it was doomed to fail. But just last night -- just last night, Senator Obama finally broke and brought himself to admit what all the rest of us have known for quite some time, and that's thanks to the skill and valor of our troops, the surge in Iraq has succeeded.
(APPLAUSE)
Senator Obama said that the surge, "succeeded beyond our wildest dreams." I think that, Senator Obama, that the surge has succeeded in ways that nobody anticipated. I guess when you turn out to be profoundly wrong on a vital national security issue, maybe it's comforting to pretend that everyone else was wrong too.
But I remember it a little differently. It seems to me there was one leader in Washington who did predict success, who refused to call retreat, and risked his own career for the sake of the surge and victory in Iraq.
And Ladies and Gentlemen, that man is standing right next to me, Senator John McCain.
(APPLAUSE)
AUDIENCE: John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain!
PALIN: Now, had American failed in Iraq, the consequences would have been terrible and far reaching. If the United States military had suffered defeat at the hands of al Qaeda in Iraq, our nation would be less safe today and millions of innocent people would have been left to a violent fate.
That tragedy would have happened if Barack Obama would have got his way and Congress had cut off funding for the surge. It did not happen because John McCain was right, he had the vision and the will to see the surge through to victory.
(APPLAUSE)
So here's how I look at the choice that we face in this election. In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers, and then there are those like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change.
(APPLAUSE)
Among politicians, there is the idealism of high-flown speechmaking with endless talk about great things. And then there is the idealism of leaders like John McCain, who actually do great things.
Now, Senator McCain has shown these qualities so clearly. And that's why he presents such a threat to politics as usual in Washington. And this is a moment when principles and political independence and all those good attributes that John McCain brings to this, they matter a lot more than just the party line.
And this is a man who has always been there to serve his country and not just his party. A leader who's not looking for a fight, but he certainly isn't afraid of one.
(APPLAUSE)
John McCain doesn't run with the Washington herd, and that is only one more reason to take the maverick of the Senate and put him in the White House! We're going to do that. We're going to do that.
This is a moment that requires resolve and toughness and strength of heart in the American president, and my running mate is a man who has shown those qualities in the darkest of places and in the service to his country.
Our opponents have been going on lately about how they always are "fighting for you." But since Senator McCain won't say this on his own behalf, I want to tell you squarely, plainly, there is only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you in places where winning means survival and defeat means death, and that man is Senator John McCain!
(APPLAUSE)
And it is a long way from the fear and the pain and the squalor of that 4 x 6 cell in Hanoi to the Oval Office. But if Senator McCain is elected president, that is the journey he will have taken. It's the journey of an upright and honorable man, the kind of fellow whose name you'll find on war memorials in small towns all across this great country, only he was among those who came home. To the most powerful office on earth, this man would bring the compassion that comes from having once been powerless, the wisdom that comes even to the captives by the grace of God, and the special confidence of those who have seen evil and have seen how evil is overcome.
I love the story of his fellow prisoner of war, a man named Tom Moe (ph) of Lancaster, Ohio. He recalls looking through a pinhole in his cell door as Lieutenant Commander John McCain was led down the hallway by the guards day after day.
As the story goes, when McCain shuffled back from torturous interrogations, he would turn towards Moe's door. He'd flash a grin and a thumb's up, as if to say, we're going to pull through this.
My fellow Americans, that is exactly the kind of man America needs to see us through the next four years.
(APPLAUSE)
For a season, a gifted speaker can inspire with his words. For a lifetime, John McCain has inspired with his deeds. He is the only great man in this race, the only man in this election ready to serve as our 44th president.
And I am honored to introduce to you my running mate and my friend, Senator John McCain.
(APPLAUSE)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you, Sarah. Thank you, Governor Palin.
Thank you.
Isn't this the most marvelous running mate in the history of this nation?
(APPLAUSE)
Sarah Palin is magnificent, and I'm so proud! And I am so proud, my friends. And I'm happy to be introduced by her today, but I can't wait to introduce her to Washington, D.C., and the pork barrelers and the lobbyists and all the special interests whose day is done, my friends.
It's over. It's over. It's over for the special interests.
We're going to start working for the people of this country. And that, that is the record of this great governor of the state of Alaska.
I'm sure you saw her speech. How many saw her speech a couple of nights ago?
(APPLAUSE)
Wasn't it fabulous? You know what I enjoyed the most? She took the luxury jet that was acquired by her predecessor and sold it on eBay. And made a profit!
Have you had that chance to meet her wonderful family? Aren't they incredible? Aren't they incredible?
And could I mention her husband, Todd? That guy is crazy. Every year for 2,000 miles, in 40-degree below weather -- they call them snow machines in Alaska, we know them as snowmobiles -- he goes across Alaska, and he's a four-time world champion. Remarkable. Remarkable. Remarkable.
(APPLAUSE)
And I'm telling you, he's crazy. You'd have to be crazy to do that. But what a guy, a commercial fisherman, a union member, and a devoted father.
What a family.
(APPLAUSE)
And I'm proud of the job that Cindy did last night and all the work she's done on our behalf.
So thank you, Cindy.
(APPLAUSE)
I reiterated last night my admiration for Senator Obama. But let me tell you again, we're going to win this election, we're going to be the ones that win this election. And this turnout -- and this turnout in Cedarburg is what our campaign is all about.
We're going to go across the small towns of America and we're going to give them hope and we're going to give them confidence, and we will bring about change in Washington, D.C. And we will not talk about it, but we'll do something about it.
You know, I've been called a maverick. That's somebody who marches to the beat of his own drum. And sometimes it's meant as a compliment, and sometimes it's not.
My friends, I was not elected Miss Congeniality in the United States Congress again this year. I'm sorry to tell you.
I've fought corruption, and it didn't matter -- it didn't matter if they were Democrats or Republicans. I fought the big spenders, I fought the pork barrelers.
My friends, when I'm president, the first earmark pork barrel bill that comes across my desk, I will veto it. You will know their names. We will make them famous, and we will stop this corruption.
(APPLAUSE)
And my friends, I'm not talking about just bad things. I'm talking about corruption. We have former members of Congress residing in federal prison because of a system of earmarking and pork barrel spending that has corrupted what used to be good people.
And my friends, it's going to stop. We're not going to spend -- we're not going to spend again $3 million of your tax dollars to study the DNA of bears in Montana.
Now, I don't know -- I don't know if that was a paternity issue or a criminal issue, but we're not going to do it anymore. We're not going to do it anymore. We're going to stop it.
(APPLAUSE)
And as governor of Alaska, Governor Sarah Palin said we don't need a Bridge to Nowhere, and if we do, we'll build it ourselves. That's the kind of person, leader we have.
Let me just talk to you about energy, my friends.
We're going to stop sending $700 billion a year to countries that don't like us very much. We're going to achieve energy independence. We're going to stop it.
(APPLAUSE)
My friends, and some of that money ends up in the hands of terrorist organizations. This is a national security issue, it's an economic issue.
Who is hurting the most when they go to the gas station today? The lowest income Americans that drive the oldest cars. It's unfair and it's got to stop. And it will stop, and we'll achieve energy independence.
(APPLAUSE)
We'll produce more energy at home. And we will drink offshore, and we will drill now. We will drill now.
My friends, we'll build more nuclear power plants, we'll develop clean coal technology. We'll increase the use of wind, tide, solar, and natural gas. We'll make everything happen. It's all of the above, my friends.
Senator Obama thinks that we can achieve energy independence without more drilling and without more nuclear power. You can't do that, my friends. We've got to drill, and we've got to have nuclear power.
(APPLAUSE)
And by the way -- by the way, just -- my friends, the French. The French generate -- we also want to imitate the French. Eighty percent of the French electricity is generated by nuclear power, and they reprocess the spent nuclear fuel. That's what we can do. And by the way, in case you haven't noticed it, we now have a pro-American president in France, which shows you if you live long enough, anything can happen in this world. (APPLAUSE)
But we're going to create millions of new jobs, many in industries that will be the engine of future prosperity and jobs that will be there for your children.
My friends, Americans are ambitious by nature. It's tough and it's hard. We've faced challenges before. We can do this and we will do this, and don't believe those who tell you that we can't. That's not America, and that's not the American people.
(APPLAUSE)
My friends, a little straight talk. A little straight talk.
These are tough times. Today the jobs report is another reminder these are tough times. They're tough times in Wisconsin, they're tough times in Ohio, tough times all over America.
You're worried about keeping your jobs and finding a new one, struggling to put food on the table and stay in your home. All you ever asked of government is to stand on your side, not in your way. And that's what I intend to do, stand on your side and fight for your future.
I'll keep taxes low and cut them where I can. My opponent will raise your taxes. I'll open new markets to our goods and services. My opponent will close them. I'll cut government spending. He wants to increase. Look at his record.
My tax cuts will create jobs. His tax increases -- increases. He wants to increase your taxes and he'll eliminate them. His health care plan will result in a government-run health care system that puts a bureaucrat between you and your doctors. We won't do that. We won't do that.
I've worked across the aisle again and again. I've reached out my hand to those on the other side of the aisle to work for a common good. Senator Obama never has. And that's why this ticket is the ticket to shake up Washington and get things done for you and for our people.
My friends, again, I want to tell you how honored I am to have Governor Sarah Palin as my running mate, who has done so much already to lift the spirits and morale of people all over this country because change is coming and change is coming. And with her there, we will restore our strength and vitality and prosperity of this great nation. And you can count on us.
And, my friends, I have always put my country first. And I promise you, as president of the United States, I will put my country first. Thank you for being here.
God bless you. And God bless America. Thank you.
COLLINS: Well, there you have the Republican presidential nominee, John McCain. Pardon me, presidential candidate on the Republican side, obviously, Senator John McCain and his vice presidential nominee. Sarah Palin there. They were coming to us from Cedarburg, Wisconsin. And earlier, before we tossed out to that event, we had Senator Barack Obama in Pennsylvania today.
Also want to let you know, a little bit later on today, Senator Joe Biden, the vice presidential candidate for the Democratic Party, will be coming up again, 2:00 in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. So if you would like to catch that, that will be coming your way in about an hour and a half or so. Also coming up here on the program, we want to check in with Ali Velshi. He's going to be talking about the stock market, which has sort of rebounded a little bit. So we'll talk about that. And also these new jobless claims. A report that came out today. We'll have more on that coming up after a quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Issue number one, the nation's unemployment rate soaring to a five-year high. And also, the Dow has been down pretty much all morning. Even though the numbers are up a bit from where they were when everything opened up in the trading day. CNN's money team, Ali Velshi and Christine Romans, are tracking all of it.
There's a lot to track, guys. I'll let you just take it from here because I know we are talking about an awful lot.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SR. BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, the unemployment rate, as you said -- let's start with that -- is up to 6.1 percent. That's the highest it's been since September of 2003. But, you know, that's a bit of a head fake. You really want to know whether jobs are being created or jobs are being lost. Eighty-four thousand jobs lost in August. And, so far, the U.S. has lost 605,000 jobs since January.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Anybody who's out there trying to get a job or trying to hold on to a job in an industry that's contracting knows that this is happening.
The job losses this most recent month were pretty widespread. We know that housing and manufacturing, construction have been troubled sectors. Those saw more job losses. Manufacturing job losses for many, many months in a row now. But all kinds of other industries were losing jobs too.
You only saw jobs growth in government jobs and in some education jobs. And we know that economists on "Your Money" often tell us that if you've got jobs growth only in government jobs, that's not the sign of a very healthy economy.
VELSHI: The other thing is, look at the trend. I don't know, Heidi, if we've got a picture of this.
ROMANS: I think we do.
VELSHI: We had started from the beginning of the year. And you're looking at those job losses. I mean they're pretty significant. And that's one of the things we have to worry about. Those jobs have been -- the trend is not on our side. So a lot of economists say we've got more jobs to lose.
Now the bottom line here, Heidi, as we've discussed before, is when people lose jobs or know people who have lost jobs or are fearful of losing their own jobs, they don't spend. And this economy, more so than any other in the world, is dependent upon consumers actually spending money, buying things. Those retailers then hiring people. Manufacturers hiring people.
COLLINS: Right.
ROMANS: And, Heidi, there's another number in here that a lot of people don't talk about, the underemployed, 10.7 percent. That means those people who don't have a job right now or they want to work full- time and they're only working part-time. Or they have been looking for a job for so long and haven't found one, they've simply dropped out of the market. So 10.7 percent of this nation's population aren't working the way they want to be working.
COLLINS: Well, I'm wondering, is there not any job creation by way of -- I'm thinking of the energy industry. You know, there's coal, obviously. There's natural gas. Even alternative fuels.
VELSHI: Yes.
COLLINS: There's got to be some growth or opportunity there.
VELSHI: Yes, the biggest -- look, the biggest gains are in the government sector and in education and health care. There is -- there are gains in the energy sector. It's one of the best industries, actually, to work in right now. But they are so offset by the losses in the manufacturing sector and the construction industry that that's why you see these numbers that we report, 84,000, that's a net. There are some jobs lost and some jobs gained. So, yes, there are education, nursing, energy, accounting, truck driving. These are still jobs that are growing.
ROMANS: But these are -- there are some of these jobs that are in dynamic industries that are showing jobs growth. But the economy is more dynamic than maybe the workforce. Meaning, you can't suddenly say, you know what, I want to be a technician on a rig in, you know, in the Gulf of Mexico, if I don't have the training to do that and all that.
VELSHI: Christine always points out with me, Heidi, when I say, you know, here are the parts of the country that are growing in jobs. And she's like, you know, that's a great notion that you can just up and leave. What about people with families and people with homes and things like that? We don't have that same mobility.
COLLINS: Of course, you can't just walk into these jobs, as Christine said, without the proper training.
VELSHI: Right. COLLINS: So, hey, quickly, guys, what about this weekend? What are we going to be seeing on "Your Money"?
ROMANS: We're going to be talking about college costs, Heidi. We're going to talk about which candidate has the best plan to keep rising college costs under control. You know, your income after inflation is up only 1.7 percent or something over the past year.
VELSHI: But your costs are a lot higher at college.
ROMANS: Double digit gains for college. So you've got to go to college. You've got to get training to succeed in this economy. Yet, you know, it costs a lot of money. So we're going to talk about what the candidates have to say about that.
COLLINS: OK. Very good. Guys, we'll be watching, Saturday at 1:00, Sunday at 3:00.
Thank you.
ROMANS: See you then.
VELSHI: See you, Heidi.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Tropical storm on a collision course for the Carolinas. Hanna heading for an expected landfall overnight. Waves kicking up along the beach in advance of the storm. A voluntary evacuation in place. For low-lying areas of South Carolina, North Carolina, is under a state of emergency. But many coastal residents taking the approaching storm in stride.
Hanna has been a big rain-maker for the Caribbean. Most recently blowing past the Bahamas. No major damage there, but the storm is being blamed for 137 flooding deaths in Haiti.
And our Rob Marciano is in the weather center. He is tracking Hanna for us and also keeping an eye on a bigger storm. We're talking about Ike.
Good to see you, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good to see you, Tony, Heidi.
Ike is a nasty-looking storm. Actually, it's a stronger storm, but Hanna is a really big storm. It's really stretched out its circulation. The outer banks of North Carolina already getting the effects of it in the form of some feeder bands and squally weather coming in through here. We've already had a couple of tornado warnings out for near Morehead City and through Carteret County, Onslow County, near Salter Path. We had a report of a funnel cloud by a police officer. Also a water spout just offshore there.
And now just in through South Carolina, Myrtle Beach, Charleston, back through Buford. We're looking at thunderstorms and a band of feeder lines that are coming in through the South Carolina shoreline as well. And these will bring not only gusty winds and some brief heavy rain, but also the waves are going to start to pick up.
There is a couple of buoys that we've been tapping into. And some of them just off of -- one of them just off of Cape Canaveral is reporting waves upwards of 27 feet. So those waves will be rolling into Florida. They'll also be rolling up toward the Carolina and Georgia coastline as well.
So if you're heading to the beach, well, this might be not your best time to do that. And you'll certainly want to stay out of the water. You need to be doing some storm watching.
Winds right now, 65 miles an hour with this storm. Here's the forecast track from the National Hurricane Center. Landfall tonight or overnight tonight into early tomorrow morning. Figure midnight through 6:00 a.m. time frame. Charleston to Wilmington, somewhere in there. And it actually scoots back through Long Island. Maybe eastern parts of New England.
Quickly on Ike. Category three storm. Here's the latest forecast track. Folks in southern Florida certainly on guard for this. Somewhere in that cone, give or take 300 miles, come Monday or Tuesday. Potentially a major hurricane. Bad.
HARRIS: Boy. OK, Rob, appreciate it. Thank you, sir.
COLLINS: Hanna's arrival coming as Carolina beach towns are nearing the end of their summer vacation season. Our Kathleen Koch is in one of the most popular tourist spots, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
We have been admiring the scenery all morning long, Kathleen, with your shot that we're looking at right now.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is beautiful here, Heidi.
But up and down the Carolina, South Carolina coast, we started actually down in Charleston Wednesday. Beautiful city, on a peninsula, surrounded by rivers on either side. And already on Wednesday, they were boarding up in Charleston. Boarding up the city hall, the city buildings, vulnerable buildings right there on that beautiful, beautiful water front in the Strand (ph) area.
And they had a press conference not long ago. Officials there -- there's no mandatory evacuation, but they're urging anyone who wants to go to shelters to get to them by 1:00 this afternoon before the tropical storm-force winds start to be felt.
Now we here in Myrtle Beach are expecting to feel them around 3:00 this afternoon. The worst of it, of course, is going to come later tonight, well after midnight, when the storm begins to roll in. They're expecting 70 miles an hour, sustained winds. Also talking about two to four inches of rain, scattered. Possibility of some tornadoes. That's a real big concern here.
But certainly one of the main issues is going to be storm surge. They're saying they could have a nine to 10 foot storm surge here in the Myrtle Beach area. And the hurricane -- if it is a hurricane, or, indeed, a severe tropical storm, it's coming in at 12 -- well, it will be coming in just after high tide, which is 12:30 p.m. tonight, just after midnight. So there is some concern about flooding in low-lying areas.
Now that's why the governor has a voluntary evacuation order out for people in trailers, in campers, and in the low-lying areas. They've opened up a couple of shelters for them in some local elementary schools, places where people can go. But what we're seeing largely is people staying in place and a lot of tourists getting out. They would normally have 100,000 to 150,000 visitors here this weekend, but I think it's safe to say roughly half of them have gone. Certainly at least half of the occupants of our hotel -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, all right. Well, CNN's Kathleen Koch watching the situation for us in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Kathleen, thank you.
Evacuees returning to the Gulf states after Gustav, but life is still far from normal in most places hit by the storm. Power remains out for hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arkansas. Tens of thousands of people remain in shelters across several states. The government is offering help for families out of their homes for an extended period of time. FEMA says it will pay for hotel rooms through October 3rd.
There are ways you can help victims of Hurricane Gustav. Find out at CNN.com's Impact Your World page. There you will find links to some organizations offering assistance. CNN.com/impact.
HARRIS: A budding friendship with a former enemy. The U.S. secretary of state calls on Libya's leader today.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Condoleezza Rice calling it a historic moment. She sits down today with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. The first secretary of state to visit Libya in more than 50 years. CNN's State Department correspondent, Zain Verjee, is in Tripoli for us now.
Zain, give us the background on this. How did this all come about today?
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice got here just a short while ago. She's meeting with the foreign minister and she's going to be meeting with Moammar Gadhafi in just over an hours. Many Americans watching this historic day may be thinking to themselves, what on earth is Secretary Rice doing in Libya meeting Gadhafi? Isn't he a bad guy. Wasn't he the terrorist back in the 1980s. The mad dog of the Middle East, as President Ronald Reagan called him?
Well, Heidi, the United States has said that Libya, over the years, has proved that it's out of the terrorism business and now it's going to be rewarded with political recognition, a big embrace, and a lot of money that U.S. taxpayers will give to build Libya and U.S. business companies, oil companies will be able to invest and operate without hassle in Libya.
We had a chance to talk to quite a few ordinary Libyans who also expect a lot out of the U.S.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE (voice-over): Ahmed Diaf is learning the words to a Bob Marley tune as we set out for a ride in his Tripoli cab. He says Libya's day has come. For the first time in 55 years, a U.S. secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, flies in to meet with Libya's leaders. This time, the once shunned Moammar Gadhafi.
AHMED DIAF, TRIPOLI CAB DRIVER: You know in the past, the relationship, it was not good. But I would like to visit America. I would like to immigrate (ph) to America. I listen about America's freedom.
VERJEE: Libya is coming out of the cold. Better relations, Ahmed hopes, will be good for business.
DIAF: We hope the American come (ph) and see Libya. There's no problem here, not a reason.
VERJEE: Libyans are plugged into what's going on in the U.S. Many homes have satellite dishes. People tell us that they're tuning into the American political campaign. The capital, Tripoli, is sleepy during these long days of Ramadan, but happening at night. People stay out till the small hours of the morning.
We meet Hamida and Hajir out shopping with friends in the old city. Hajir is a student at Tripoli College, where her professors are all American.
HAJIR, TRIPOLI STUDENT: Our relationship with Americans is good and I hope it will come more good with Americans.
VERJEE: Hamida agrees. But adds, "the U.S. needs to understand the whole Arab world more and help it make peace.
At a nearby cafe, young men relax over a shisha (ph) pipe and card games. Jalal has lived abroad and tells us Libyans need American technology and help with education. More U.S.-Libya contact, he says, will benefit young people who want to study in America.
JALAL OMRAN, TRIPOLI RESIDENT: I think I see a bright future for Libya. I mean, today's Libya and tomorrow's Libya, it's going to be a bright future.
VERJEE: A future these young Libyans say has the world at its feet and America at its sights.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE: Heidi, the Libyans that we spoke to here were pretty open about anything. They talked to us about any questions that we asked them. But we did notice that they wouldn't dare to criticize openly and directly the leading heir (ph), Moammar Gadhafi. They're fearful that they could be overheard by the secret police. That's something that you see throughout the Arab world. No one wants to criticize or make fun of the leader. So no Jon Stuarts or Jay Lenos here. It's mum's the word when it comes to the leader.
COLLINS: Yes, all right. Well, I guess better safe than sorry on that. All right. Zain Verjee, sure do appreciate it, live from Tripoli today. Thank you.
HARRIS: So how about this? After a steep early sell-off, stocks are rallying. The market's ignoring the jobs report? We will check in with Susan Lisovicz in just a couple of minutes right here in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Another dismal jobs report is raising new concerns about recession. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange with a look at some pretty grim numbers.
Susan, good day to you.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good day to you.
We can all relate to jobs, right? Yesterday we got a troubling weekly employment report. Today it's the more important monthly jobs report. Eighty-four thousand jobs lost last month. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, soaring to a five-year high, 6.1 percent. Analysts say the losses are still mild by recession standards, but they're likely to get worse. And for the economy to start growing again, the U.S. should be adding 100,000 jobs a month.
Worries about the economy, well, they rattled Wall Street right at the open. But, you know, certainly we're off the lows of the session. And this is really not too bad at all. The blue chips coming off more than a 300 point decline yesterday, down 12 points. The Nasdaq's taking it more on the chin. It's down 0.5 percent -- Tony.
HARRIS: And, Susan, what's it going to take, in your view, to turn things around with the economy?
LISOVICZ: Well, you know, we talk about it all the time, Tony. Prices. There's a lot of upward pressure on prices and the housing market is still in the tank. So we need some improvements in both of those areas. But we've got more troubling news on the housing market today. A record 1.2 million homes in foreclosure in the second quarter. The number keeps rising because more and more people are falling behind on their payments. Nearly -- and, you know, the job market not helping the situation, obviously, nor high gas prices.
Nearly 3 million mortgages delinquent in the three-month period. That's also a record high. It doesn't even include those who are already in foreclosure. This is some improvement in states like Texas and Massachusetts and Maryland, but the problem is that the number of foreclosures in California and Florida continue to increase. And just lots of problems in those two states. There was a lot of speculation there, Tony, and now it's coming back to haunt them big time.
Back to you.
HARRIS: All right, Susan, have a great day. Thanks.
LISOVICZ: You too.
COLLINS: And you guys have a great day and a great weekend. The CNN NEWSROOM continues with Fredricka Whitfield and Don Lemon.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
