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Other Uses for Bailout Cash; The First Presidential Debate in Doubt; New CNN Poll Numbers Out This Morning; President Bush's Statement Regarding the Bailout Plan; Paul McCartney Finally Plays Israel
Aired September 26, 2008 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Political uncertainty this hour. Both in doubt, preparing for a presidential debate that may be postponed. For now, John McCain saying the financial crisis trumped tonight's show.
And where does that rescue plan stand now? Congress trying again today to reach consensus. Well, one key group may not be in the mix.
It's Friday, September 26th. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Bailout in peril. High stakes, high drama. Critical meetings resume this morning. President Bush tries to lead members of his own party, refusing to follow.
The financial crisis deepens with the largest ever failure of a U.S. bank. Washington Mutual implodes under the weight of its own bad debts.
One of these men will inherit this potential meltdown. Can they lead a nation when they can't agree on tonight's scheduled debate?
And a quick note, I want to let you know about President Bush, we are just now learning, will be making some type of a statement today. We expect it at 9:35. It will happen right here in the NEWSROOM.
So we will bring it to you when it happens. Meanwhile, of course, we are on top of this story for you once again today. Our NEWSROOM team, Suzanne Malveaux has debate press in Oxford, Mississippi, Kate Bolduan following the bickering in Washington, and Ali Velshi tracking the latest Wall Street crisis.
Let's begin with Suzanne Malveaux now in Oxford.
So, Suzanne, same question I had yesterday. Going to happen, not going to happen?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, so far we don't know whether or not it's going to happen, but everybody here on university campus is acting as if it will happen, go according to plan.
This is a local paper here, "The Show Must Go On." That really is kind of the mood here on the campus. And fortunately, we have a chancellor of the university, Robert Hike, who's -- Khayat -- who's joining us here.
ROBERT KHAYAT, CHANCELLOR, UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: I know that there is a meeting that is taking place at this moment, at this hour, with the debate commission, university officials, as well as the campaigns.
What is the latest information? What do you know? What are they telling you?
KHAYAT: We don't have any new information from last night, but we are having a meeting this morning with the commission. We're assuming that Senator McCain will be here and that Senator Obama will be here and that the debate will be at 8:00.
We'll have a conversation in a few minutes about that and where we stand and whether or not there'll be a need for meetings later in the day.
MALVEAUX: And what are you basing that conversation on, that assumption on? Is that from the commission saying, we want you to go forward as planned?
KHAYAT: Yes, there's a sense among the commission, people and the university people that -- and really the campaign -- excuse me, the party representatives that we should keep moving forward, expecting the debate, and get it -- we're prepared. We're ready to do it.
MALVEAUX: Have they given you a cutoff or a deadline here?
KHAYAT: No, they have not. No, they have not.
MALVEAUX: Say, we're going to make a decision at this point in the day.
KHAYAT: No.
MALVEAUX: And you and I had spoken a little bit about if McCain does not show up and Obama is here for 90 minutes, that your preference would be for the audience to allow to submit questions to the moderator, to Jim Lehrer, who would then submit questions to Obama. Is that right?
KHAYAT: I would suggest some program and then have the -- if Senator Obama does come and Senator McCain doesn't, then we put Senator Obama on the stage and allow Mr. Lehrer to have a conversation with him and then I would hope give our students an opportunity to raise some questions, either through Mr. Lehrer or to Senator Obama.
However, that's none of my business. I -- you know, we're really just the hosts.
MALVEAUX: OK.
KHAYAT: But we've been prepared. You can see we -- you know -- we're getting ready for a long time. It would be a great disappointment to the country, I think, if we didn't have a program tonight.
MALVEAUX: Chancellor, thank you very much.
KHAYAT: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: Appreciate your time.
And, Heidi, once again, it really is up to the debate commission to make that final call, that decision, whether or not there would be some sort of contingency plan. But you heard from the chancellor and there are many people here on this campus who say, look, let's come up with something.
If John McCain doesn't show up, obviously, that provides even more pressure for him, perhaps, to show up to the debate tonight -- Heidi?
COLLINS: All right, CNN's Suzanne Malveaux for us, Oxford, Mississippi. Thank you, Suzanne.
Our iRreporters are weighing in on that debate as well. Here's one now from Joshua in Yonkers, New York.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSHUA WATERS, IREPORTER: I am a first-time voter and I wanted to put this up because I feel as though that both candidates do need to be at the debate come tomorrow, because with the current crisis going on within this country dealing with our economical system, we need to be hearing from the next person who's going to be president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: So tell us what you think. Should the debate still happen? Send your iReport to iReport.com. We'll be watching those.
Meanwhile, crisis on Capitol Hill, the White House sees its rescue plan fall apart and its own party members walking away.
CNN's Kate Bolduan is watching it all play out.
Good morning to you, Kate.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. Well, it's been a roller coaster ride, not only over the past week, but just in the last day and it doesn't seem like that ride is going to come to an end quite yet.
Another round of negotiations is set to begin this morning, but, really, who's going to be at the table, that's still kind of unclear at this point. But we can only guess they're going to be trying to kick start these negotiations and get these talks going.
But what we saw from yesterday, starting with that meeting yesterday morning here on Capitol Hill, where we heard about the fundamental agreement on principal, and then to the meeting at the White House, which -- they came out and they seemed to be clear, that that the idea of nearing an agreement has since left or has since disappeared.
And what we really see now is that there are deep divisions within Congress, especially with Democrats and specifically with House Republicans. Yesterday, House Republicans coming out to say, we do not agree with this plan. They vehemently oppose the principle of this plan, which is using taxpayer dollars to fund this bailout and to buy up these bad mortgage assets.
Listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ERIC CANTOR (R), VIRGINIA: Most House Republicans do not want to go home and face their constituents, saying that we have stuck you with a $700 billion bill and a bailout bill when you can do it by allowing the folks on Wall Street to pay premiums and to fund this bailout.
REP. BARNEY FRANK (D), MASSACHUSETTS: To wait until a day before, you know, the weekend to give us -- and not even a full plan -- just an outline isn't serious. We had a negotiating session yesterday morning. House and Senate, Democrats, Senate Republicans, we were seriously working on it.
The House Republicans were there, they said, well, we're not -- they weren't represented, we can't fully participate. During that three-hour session, the House Republican who was there never mentioned that they had an alternative plan.
This is a kind of an ambush plan that doesn't come out until yesterday afternoon. And I says, it's not a serious effort. We can't get Senator McCain to say whether he's for it or against it.
The Republican Party is in such a complete shambles that it's hard to do anything serious.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: Right there, Democratic Congressman Barney Frank, one of the lead negotiators in this deal for the Democratic part. So as we say, you can see -- you can clearly sense his frustration there, and that was just from this morning.
Negotiations set to try to start back up this morning. We'll see where they go, Heidi. But the big question is, after all of this, they're back at the negotiating table, is this also back at square one?
But we'll have to see.
COLLINS: Yes, we certainly will. All right, Kate, thanks for that. And a quick reminder, too. We just learned a few minutes ago that President Bush will be making a statement. It's going to come to us from the south lawn and will happen just a few minutes from now right here in the NEWSROOM. We're expecting it at 9:35.
Again, President Bush to make a statement 9:35 a.m. Eastern time.
The financial crisis coming to your neighborhood. Washington Mutual, one of the largest banks in the nation has collapsed.
CNN's senior business correspondent Ali Velshi has the alarming headline, along with the reassuring news behind it.
So, Ali, maybe people don't know that there is...
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
COLLINS: ... a bit of reassurance here.
VELSHI: There is. First of all, you're right. It is the largest savings and loan in the nation. It's the biggest financial collapse of a bank in American history. And it had $188 billion in deposits.
Now what happened is the Office of Thrift Supervision closed the bank yesterday, handed it over to the FDIC, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. That's how it works. Immediately, FDIC sold it to JPMorgan Chase, or at least the deposits.
So there's no interruption to service. Your bank account will not change, your ATM card will work.
COLLINS: Right.
VELSHI: Here's what is likely to happen. Over the course of the next couple of years, Washington Mutual will fully evolve into JPMorgan Chase. Your credit card will change, your accounts will change, they will close about 10 percent of the Washington Mutual branches, they say.
But there's no issue here about FDIC insurance. If you had a deposit or business with Washington Mutual, it continues now under JPMorgan Chase. That's the good news.
COLLINS: And a good sign also that JPMorgan Chase was able to purchase this.
VELSHI: Yes. And this is -- you know, Washington Mutual was in trouble. They were trying to sell themselves, it wasn't working, no one was buying it and there was some fear that this was going to evolve into one of those weekend sessions with Henry Paulson, and try to negotiate a sale for this bank.
Clearly...
COLLINS: Yes. VELSHI: ... Henry Paulson is busy right now. So the FDIC did this ahead of time. They got a few bids on it and they sold it.
So, on one hand, you should be very alarmed that a major bank has failed. On the other hand, you should probably be a little bit relieved that this was the biggest bank that was on the brink. So we may have seen the worst of that side of things for now.
COLLINS: Ali, quickly, give me a headline to this entire story. As we end the week now...
VELSHI: Yes.
COLLINS: ... and we are on our third day on Capitol Hill listening, anyway...
VELSHI: Yes.
COLLINS: ... listening to the Fed chairman and also to the treasury secretary, and all of the questions that surround it, do people understand this crisis?
VELSHI: I think they're more puzzled than they were when this thing started, because what they're trying to understand is what is the connection between what appears to be a Wall Street bailout of fat cat suits and my life.
Well, the reality is that all of this money that is not going anywhere in the financial system -- think about it as squirrels hoarding their acorns, you know? Nobody is lending anybody money.
The money still exists, but nobody's doing anything with it because nobody trusts that they'll get paid back. Now until that money starts flowing again, businesses can't get loans and as a result, they can't sometimes make operating payments and we might start to see that happen.
But that money isn't going all the way down to you, for your car loan...
COLLINS: Right.
VELSHI: ... for your home loan, for your student loan. You have to have perfect credit and the asset that you're buying has to be perfect and you better have a job for 10 years that's only been going up in salary.
For everybody else, it's going to get a little bit tough to do business.
COLLINS: So you basically could get a home loan, a school loan, a car loan, any loan?
VELSHI: There are lots of instances we're hearing where people are trying to sell their homes. They have offers on it but the offers can't be fulfilled because the buys can't get financing. COLLINS: Yes.
VELSHI: And that affects the price of your house.
COLLINS: Got it. All right, so much to talk about, Ali.
VELSHI: Yes.
COLLINS: I know you know that I know you're getting tons of e- mails and phone calls.
VELSHI: We are. And -- but a lot of the same questions so we have to keep on tackling here on CNN.
COLLINS: All right. Appreciate it so much.
VELSHI: OK.
COLLINS: Senior business correspondent, Ali Velshi -- thank you, Ali.
VELSHI: OK.
COLLINS: On to this story now, terror suspects arrested at an airport in Cologne, Germany. Police say officers boarded a flight shortly before takeoff to Amsterdam and took two suspects into custody.
They are identified as a 23-year-old Somali man and a 24-year-old German man born in Somalia. Investigators say the men were suspected of wanting to take part in holy war and possible terror attacks.
A storm with no name, but heavy rain and gusting winds. Flooding concerns along the Atlantic coasts.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: You see the debate countdown there, 11:45 to go, that's hours before this debate actually could or could not take place. So just want to let you know where we stand with all of that.
You can watch that countdown clock right there on your screen throughout the program today.
Much of the eastern seaboard could be in for a very stormy weekend. Heavy rain and fierce winds from the Carolinas to Maine. We are seeing flooding, beach erosion, and flight delays, too, but some happy moments as well.
Like this bride determined to enjoy her day. She's doing a bit of fishing in Ocean City, New Jersey, after reeling in husband Joe at the altar.
I have bad, bad news for her, Reynolds. It just doesn't appear that there's going to be a whole lot of fish in surf that looks like that. REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: But she's a really sport, though.
COLLINS: She is. It's a great shot.
WOLF: I mean, who in their right mind on their wedding day would not want to go out to the coast and try to pull in, you know, a big blue fin, a big tuna or something like that.
That's what she's doing.
COLLINS: Yes.
WOLF: What a great thing to see. Hopefully she doesn't pull in a hammerhead shark, because that would be a mess trying to get a shark on shore with a, you know, a wedding dress. It happens. Trust me.
All right, guys, let me show you. We have two big weather stories we're going to talk about. One is going to be Tropical Storm Kyle that you see spinning right now just north of Puerto Rico and San Juan.
But the second one already on shore moving up pass Myrtle Beach into Wilmington.
Let's switch gears a little bit and focus on the one that is closer to shore at this time. The one I'm talking about as we take a look at a live tower cam in Charlotte. Take a look -- Charlotte, North Carolina.
Conditions there pretty wet, to say the least. That's some of the rainfall continues to come down. It's going to be kind of sporadic on and off for a good part of the day. But as we go back to the weather computer, I want you to notice the heaviest rainfall actually falling way far to the north, back up towards New York and Long Island south.
In Danbury, Connecticut, back to Bridgeport, the rain has just been coming down quite a bit. It's going to continue through downtown New York. We're talking Midtown, Manhattan, of course, in Central Park.
But I will show you that not only do we have some flood watches that are in effect for much of New York and back into New Jersey and Long Island, but as we pull away a bit, it's also going to include parts of Massachusetts and back into Vermont, even into New Hampshire.
Keep in mind, that is part of that one system we showed you near the Carolinas. The second system that's going to keep calling is going to be Tropical Storm Kyle. And the latest path we have from the National Hurricane Center brings this storm due north, increasing in intensity.
Right now winds are at 60, but maximum sustained winds expected to increase to about 75 miles as we get into Saturday. Then by Sunday, a category 1 storm off the seaboard. But you'll notice, if you look at that cone of uncertainty, there is a chance this storm could make its way right into the Massachusetts coastline, perhaps even into Maine.
So we're going to see enhanced surf. Surf could be very rough. We're talking about rip currents, rip tides and, of course, more rain fall possible to the northeast, precisely where they don't know it.
When all is said and done, Heidi, they could see anywhere from, say, three to eight inches of rainfall through the weekend and into early next week.
Back to you.
COLLINS: All right, Reynolds, we'll be watching it closely. Sure do thank you.
WOLF: You bet.
COLLINS: More shelters are opening in Galveston, Texas now. Tens of thousands of hurricane evacuees are back home trying to salvage what they can. We showed you some of those pictures. That big, huge traffic jam just yesterday in the NEWSROOM.
Some of them are moving on, too. Others, though, determined to carry on. More from KTRK reporter Andy Serotta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDY SEROTTA, KTRK REPORTER (voice over): Marisol Martinez is packing up and moving out of Galveston, leaving behind 14 years of memories.
MARISOL MARTINEZ, LEAVING GALVESTON: It seems like, well, there's hurricane season every year, so I don't have -- I don't want to be throw all of this every year.
SEROTTA: Ike's aftermath may have taken its toll on the island and its inhabitants, yet for some, the future has never been brighter.
CHRISTINE HOPKINS, HOTEL GALVEZ: Opening the Hotel Galvez again is going to be wonderful for Galveston Island.
SEROTTA: Built in 1911, the island's oldest historical hotel sustained minimum damage during Hurricane Ike and is set to reopen for business in one month.
HOPKINS: It's significant, because it was -- showed our resilience after the 1900 storm and, again, here. 97 years later, and it's still standing strong.
SEROTTA: The Hotel Galvez, which has electricity and water, is already housing its employees and is booked solid for the Lone Star Biker Rally planned for late October. City leaders hope the event will once again set the island's tourism industry in motion.
STEVE LEBLANC, GALVESTON CITY MANAGER: We're working on that. And we're working -- I know that the hotel/motel association is working on keeping as many of the conventions and tourist-related events here.
SEROTTA: As confident as city leaders are about the island's future, it's a future Marisol Martinez says she can't afford to wait for.
MARTINEZ: It doesn't seem to be any improvement in here as far as the (INAUDIBLE), so we're just going to get out.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Tomorrow marks two weeks now since Ike slammed ashore.
Houston has lifted its overnight curfew, but it is still working to restore power to all residents.
Well, he doesn't need his own plane, apparently. This guy's got a jet pack. Taking off in one country, landing in another.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: As we wait to hear more word on the debate, 11 hours, 37 minutes or so, up until that debate is supposed to take place in Mississippi, as you know, we are also waiting word from the president. He will give some type of statement.
Of course, we assume it will be regarding the bailout and the latest progress there at 9:35 Eastern Time. So about 20 minutes or so -- 15 minutes or so from now. So make sure you watch for that.
Meanwhile, a thick, white fog blanketing a road in central Illinois. But this mist had nothing to do with the weather. It was an ammonia cloud leaking from a nearby fertilizer plant.
A hazmat team rushed to the scene, closed off the road, and evacuated everyone at the plant. No one was hurt.
Channeling the spirit of innovation and adventure. That's exactly what this man did today as he crossed the English Channel on a homemade jet-propelled wing.
CNN's Atika Shubert is at his landing site in Dover, England.
You know, I've always wanted one of those, Atika.
ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was -- it was an incredible thing to see. He's actually right behind me now, talking to the press. We had got to ask him a question. We said, you know, how did this feel? And he said, it's like a dream.
It's the closest thing you can get to feeling like you yourself are flying through the air. And that's what makes this such an incredible thing. It's really a fusion between a jet and a man.
He's got wings strapped to his back. His body is the fuselage. So when he wants to turn, he simply turns his head, turns this way. And this is the furthest he's ever flown. That's what -- that's another thing that makes it so incredible.
He actually ran out of fuel as he flew over Dover, England, cut the engines and parachuted down, made it here safely and made aviation history -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Any idea how fastly -- we're looking at a shot right now where he's pretty much completely horizontal there. How fast did he get going?
SHUBERT: He's going about 125 miles an hour. He can get up to speeds of about 190 miles an hour. It's incredibly fast and you can just imagine how ecstatic he must be feeling while he's flying.
COLLINS: Yes, or something like that.
All right, well, we love the pictures and it is really a great story, I think, talking about innovation and the spirit of it. Excellent. Something that we need to be hearing about on this very day, definitely.
Atika Shubert, sure do appreciate that. Thank you.
Debate questions before the debaters are questioned, like will it even happen tonight? Where the candidates stand on that issue.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins.
COLLINS: Quickly, a reminder for you. We are waiting for President Bush. We are now being told from the oval office, going to be making comments about the bailout and we believe the progress in -- coming to some sort of agreement there in Washington.
It's going to be happening in, we think, about five to ten minutes. We, of course, will bring it to you just as soon as it happens.
Meanwhile, the opening bell is about to ring on Wall Street and it doesn't look like yesterday's bailout-inspired rally is really going to hold up very much.
Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange now with factors in play today.
Susan, we did end the day up about, what, 200 points?
SUSAN LISOVICZ CNN CORRESPONDENT: Nearly 200 points. And Heidi, you know, this came in spite of terrible news on the economy. We got initial jobless claims that were at levels that we hadn't seen since the immediate aftermath of September 11th.
New home sales plunged 11-something percent. Orders for big- ticket items were down like three times worse than Wall Street expected. Yet, the market soared. And why was that? Hope.
There was all this talk coming from Washington, we're going to get this deal done, we're going to come together. That's how important Wall Street thinks this deal is done.
We are seeing signs every single day of how frozen the credit markets are. We're not talking about some obscure kind of fat cat loans here. We're talking about everyday business expenses being met, whether it's payroll, expansion, that kind of thing.
And that is why Bernanke and Paulson, the treasury secretary and the Federal Reserve chairman, are so nervous about this affecting the greater economy.
COLLINS: Right.
LISOVICZ: So we are expecting a big drop at the open. And we're going into a weekend. That's when traders tend to be -- investors tend to be very nervous. So, yes, we're expecting that. Nervous, afraid here.
Oh, and by the way, oh, the largest bank failure in U.S. banking history came after the close of trading yesterday. You could say it's going to be a very nervous open -- Heidi.
COLLINS: All right, and there it is. Coming to us live, the opening bell today on this Friday. We will wait to see how things look straight out of the gate here. And...
LISOVICZ: And yes, Heidi, we're going to be watching financial shares, obviously. I mean financial shares are what really drove the market higher yesterday.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, and by the way, the largest bank failure in U.S. banking history came after the close of trading yesterday. You can say it's going to be a very nervous open, Heidi.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, and there it is. Coming to us live, the opening bell today on this Friday. We will wait and see how things look straight out of the gate here.
LISOVICZ: And yes, Heidi, we're going to be watching financial shares, obviously. I mean, financial shares are what really drove the market higher yesterday. And I'm just looking at the initial stock moves here. Fannie Mae is down 27 percent. Freddie Mac is down 22 percent. Goldman Sachs down a couple percent. Morgan Stanley down 13 percent. And we're seeing the Dow down 50 points in the first few seconds of trading, but we're expecting a broad-based decline, at least in the early going. And you know, Wall Street is really being held hostage by Washington at this point.
COLLINS: All right, Susan. We have so much to talk about. Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
LISOVICZ: Let's put it in (INAUDIBLE).
COLLINS: Yes. We're going to listen to the president when he comes up about five minutes from now as well on this. So, sure do appreciate that. Susan Lisovicz.
LISOVICZ: You're welcome.
COLLINS: New York Stock Exchange this morning. The financial rescue plan, 700 billion reasons for some people to hit the streets and protest. Rallies held yesterday in about 130 cities and towns across the country. Here you see demonstrations in New York, Chicago, Pasadena, and Portland, Oregon.
It's your money, but it's not your choice. How would you choose to spend that $700 billion? CNN's Christine Romans takes a look at some of the things that spending spree could buy.
Good morning to you, Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. You know, many Americans, you just showed some of them, outraged with the size of this bailout proposal. And they're worrying that the taxpayers' money is going to reward bad behavior on Wall Street. And frankly, they say they can find the whole lot of things they'd like to daydream spending that kind of money on.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (voice-over): It's a little like dreaming about winning the lottery. How to better spend $700 billion? It would build a lot of roads and bridges, ageing infrastructure, something that can't wait. $700 billion is almost half the money the American Society of Civil Engineers says is needed over the next five years to get our infrastructure in good working condition. It would put almost 9 million college students through the state university and build roughly 35,000 new schools.
ANDREW JAKABOVICS, CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: It would fund ten years of universal health care under Obama's health care plan. It would more than be ten years worth of the current funding levels of the Department of Education. I mean, if you want to be frivolous about it, you could buy every NFL team 20 times over.
ROMANS: But there is nothing frivolous about the bailout backlash.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The lending institutions are getting bailouts, but there is no bailouts for homeowners.
ROMANS: Divide $700 billion by the median price of a home in this country and the government could buy almost 3.5 million homes outright.
JAKABOVICS: To put that number in perspective, that's more homes that are currently in default.
ROMANS: Perhaps the most dramatic comparison, the Wall Street bailout will cost almost as much as the U.S.-led war on terror since September 11th.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: Of course, it's an academic argument, Heidi. The administration says the cost of not bailing out Wall Street would be devastating to the economy, and the government is borrowing this money anyway. It's not like there would suddenly be $700 billion to spend if this bailout never happened.
Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. CNN's Christine Romans. We sure do appreciate that. We'll be continuing to watch all of this, of course, right here on CNN.
Also wondering, what do people around the world think about America's financial crisis? We asked our correspondents in China, Argentina, and Kenya to find out. Let's start in China.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KYUNG LAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Kyung Lah in the heart of the Beijing's financial district where they are feasting on a spoonful of "I told you so." Here at the People's Bank of China where they set monetary policy, they've resisted calls for deregulation and for mirroring the U.S. financial system. Because of that, a direct hit to China's markets is unlikely. Now, it doesn't mean that there is no impact. The stock markets have fallen somewhat, investors are worried, but the government has stepped in with small measures, trying to bring those investors back in.
BRYAN BYRNES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Bryan Byrnes in the Nunez neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It's lined with lots of fashionable cafes and bars. Argentinians are used to economic instability. In fact, in 2001, they had the largest debt default in modern history, $100 billion. So you can bet that the people here are paying close attention to what's happening in the U.S. during its financial crisis. Inflation is the main problem here right now.
In restaurants like this, the prices of food fluctuate all the time. Argentinians remain afraid that if the crisis in the U.S. is not resolved, the fallout here could be much worse than their financial crisis seven years ago.
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm David McKenzie outside the Nairobi Stock Exchange here in Kenya. Kenyans are very jittery about the financial crisis in the U.S. This exchange has lost over a quarter of its value this year because of political instability here in Kenya and the financial crisis in America. Kenyans are hoping for politicians on the Capitol to sort out some kind of bailout for the financial system, because the economy here is very much tied to the economy in the U.S.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Next hour, we'll hear what some of you have to say. Veronica De La Cruz is joining us with your iReports right here in the NEWSROOM.
Tonight's first presidential debate in doubt. We're still not sure if John McCain will be there. He says he hopes Congress will reach an agreement on the financial bailout plan so that he can head to Oxford, Mississippi, for the event. You see the countdown clock there in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen.
Barack Obama says he will stick to his word and show up for the debate. He says he and Senator McCain should be able to handle the 90-minute forum and the financial crisis at the same time. So while people in Mississippi are getting ready, nobody knows for sure right now how it's all going to play out. So, of course, we are watching it for you. Keep it here and we'll keep you updated.
We have new CNN poll numbers to look at this morning, showing the candidates and how they might perform in tonight's presidential debate. Our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider, is at the debate site at the University of Mississippi.
So, Bill, how do the candidates stack up according to this poll?
BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I'm here at the debate site or the non-debate site as it may be. And we asked people just this week, who do you think will do a better job in this debate? John McCain or Barack Obama? And the answer is, Barack Obama, by a good margin. 59 percent believe Barack Obama will do a better job in the debate. 34 percent say John McCain.
Now, that may be an advantage for McCain, because he goes into the debate with lower expectations than those for Obama. And therefore, any good performance that McCain is able to carry off will impress viewers. They try to usually lower expectations going into debate. So if he shows up, the expectations for McCain will definitely be lower than those for Obama.
COLLINS: What about the issues, Bill? I think if I'm looking at this correctly, there was actually another question in this poll that talked about specifically the issues and who might score better than the other.
SCHNEIDER: Well, we are seeing a very sharp division between domestic and international issues. The topic scheduled for this debate is foreign affairs. Now, if that's the case, people expect McCain to do better. He rates higher on handling foreign affairs. You can see here, on the two domestic issues. Health care, people give Obama a big lead, 16 points. And the economy, which, of course, is the big issue in this campaign, Obama is also in the lead by ten points.
But on Iraq, McCain has the advantage and on terrorism, McCain has an even bigger advantage. So if this debate is about foreign policy, McCain is expected to be the stronger candidate. That was the original topic. But if they discuss the economy and other domestic issues, then Obama is expected to do the better job.
COLLINS: Yes. As we are just now getting, Bill, I should let you know, the two-minute warning for the president who will be speaking from the White House today regarding the financial bailout. Just want to let everybody know. It's just a few minutes away.
Bill, I wonder, we know that this debate is supposed to be on foreign policy, as you mentioned. Any chance that could lead into, I don't know, another topic like the economy?
SCHNEIDER: I think there's a very good chance of that. The moderator, Jim Lehrer, of course, is well aware of what is happening in the news. I don't think there's any way they can avoid starting the debate with the discussion of topic "A," the negotiations over a bailout. They will, eventually, I think get to foreign policy, but you can be certain that the financial bailout will be on the table.
COLLINS: All right. What about the electoral map? Did this poll point to states in particular? Of course, battleground states, everybody wants to know about that.
SCHNEIDER: Yes. Well, in our battleground state map, we just made an important change this morning. The State of Michigan where the polls indicate overall that Obama has now an average of a seven- point lead. We have shifted the crucial State of Michigan from a toss-up state in yellow to a state that is leaning to Barack Obama. As you can see, it's light blue there in the top center of the map. That is a big gain, that 17 electoral votes now leaning to Barack Obama. Obama's total in all the blue states is now 240 electoral votes, just shy of the 270 he would need to win the election.
COLLINS: All right. Perfect timing. Bill Schneider, sure do appreciate that. Here now, the president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Continues to work with the Congress on a rescue plan. And we need a rescue plan. This is -- it's hard work. Our proposal is a big proposal. And the reason it's big and substantial is because we got a big problem. We also need to move quickly.
Now, any time you have a plan this big that is moving this quickly, that requires legislative approval, it creates challenges. Members want to be heard. They want to be able to express their opinions, and they should be allowed to express their opinions. There are disagreements over aspects of the rescue plan, but there is no disagreement that something substantial must be done.
The legislative process is sometimes not very pretty, but we are going to get a package passed. We will rise to the occasion. Republicans and Democrats will come together and pass a substantial rescue plan.
Thank you very much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: There you have it. A very short statement coming from the President at the White House there regarding the bailout plan. He says that we are having a big problem, obviously. Everyone talking about this.
Elaine Quijano is standing by now along with Kate Bolduan covering this story for us today.
And Kate Bolduan, I want to start with you. We thought maybe this was going to be a pretty quick statement. We don't know if we really expect it to be that quick.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, (INAUDIBLE), one thing that I think everyone can agree with, and is really seeing here right now, Heidi. He said, the legislative process sometimes is not pretty and we are definitely seeing that here today. After that meeting at the White House, it began to reveal some very deep divisions between members of Congress, specifically the Democrats and House Republicans.
The Democrats embracing, at least, the proposal -- the basis of the proposal that the Treasury secretary offered to them, and now we heard from the House Republicans last night and we're continuing to hear this morning that they very much disagree with the basis of the plan, which is using taxpayer dollars to bail out, bail out financial firms. They want to do a different type of bailout, which would use private dollars rather than taxpayers' dollars. More of an insurance plan to get -- to rescue outside of the financial crisis.
But you heard right there that President Bush say that there are some disagreements. Lawmakers should be able to voice their opinions. We clearly know they're doing that. But he did -- is trying to reassure the American public and the markets right there that we are going to get a package passed. But we also know that lawmakers are going to be working into the weekend to do just that, Heidi.
COLLINS: So, from where you are, Kate, just to clarify, that is the general understanding of everyone in Washington, and everyone is such a big word, so forgive me -- but most of the people that you talked to, that this money, this original $700 billion plan would go directly to Wall Street?
BOLDUAN: No, that is not the understanding, but that is the back and forth that we're hearing on Capitol Hill. Of course, they're trying to simplify it for the purpose of sound bites. What the House Republicans disagree with is using taxpayer money, the $700 billion in order to inject into the financial markets.
COLLINS: Right.
BOLDUAN: And we always talk about that trickle down, then to help taxpayers. Democrats defend the plan by saying that the American people will also get money back because the government will be selling these assets after they buy them and hold on to them, once they gain in value.
COLLINS: Correct. OK.
BOLDUAN: Then we talk about the House Republicans, and there's the difference.
COLLINS: OK, very good. Thanks so much. Kate Bolduan from Capitol Hill. Appreciate that.
Elaine Quijano also standing by from the White House to talk a little bit more about this for us.
Elaine, give us some perspective from where you are. What are people talking about now? Is there anyone saying, it's Friday, we have got to get this deal done? This is the third day that we have been talking about it on Capitol Hill?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, you know, they've been talking about this sense of urgency since last week. That's when we first saw President Bush come out the day after Secretary Paulson had that meeting, you remember on Capitol Hill where he laid it out for congressional leaders.
Look, things are bad financially speaking and something big must be done. President Bush tried to impress that sense of urgency upon the American people. On Friday, we saw that again. Then just this past week with President Bush's primetime address to the nation. He doesn't do that very often, but what he was trying to do is to prod congressional leaders into getting an agreement hammered out. Well then take us to yesterday afternoon. That much-touted meeting between President Bush, congressional leaders, but also the two men who are vying for President Bush's job, Senator Barack Obama, Senator John McCain, in the cabinet room, that by all accounts disintegrated really, into at one point, a shouting match according to one account.
What happened? Well, as we heard, Republicans in the House very unhappy with this proposal, offering up their own idea, something that was a bit of a monkey wrench, quite frankly, thrown into this whole process. All of this of course having an impact on the markets. So there you saw as Kate noted, President Bush trying to strike a reassuring tone just ten minutes after the opening bell there.
Trying to assure not only the markets here, but for the purposes globally as well that lawmakers, while it might be a messy thing that's happening, there's some ugly language, perhaps, sometimes that's thrown about, that it's messy, that things, he is saying, will eventually work themselves out. And just one other thing I wanted to mention, talking about how this is taking on global imports. COLLINS: Right.
QUIJANO: President Bush is going to be meeting with Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Great Britain, and they are going to be talking about this global financial crisis.
Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. A very good point. Elaine Quijano, sure do appreciate that in the rain in Washington, D.C. today.
So should the show go on? Tonight's presidential debate may be preempted by the financial crisis. Your thoughts coming up in our iReports.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Blowing ashore. A storm that didn't quite make it to tropical strength. It still, though, has plenty of punch, tearing the siding off of homes in the Carolinas, knocking down power lines and dumping up to four inches of rain along the coast. And it's not done yet. We're going to be checking in with Reynolds Wolf coming up in the next hour.
Meanwhile, police chase. They catch up to the escapee, draw their weapons, and taser an emu.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: About 11 hours away now debating the debate. John McCain still deciding whether or not he will come tonight to Mississippi for the first presidential debate. Veronica De La Cruz has been watching your iReports on this.
Veronica, what are people saying?
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN INTERNET CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, a lot of people not too happy that John McCain's decision to skip out on this one. Let's go and start with Trevor Dougherty. He believes that the show, Heidi, must go on.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TREVOR DOUGHERTY, IREPORTER: There is a crisis going on, but no, that doesn't meet that voters should be denied access to one of only four crucial presidential debates just because John McCain has found a clever way to run away from Barack Obama's slick rhetoric.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DE LA CRUZ: All right. Let's get you now to Pennsylvania. Rhonda Reid says that she can't even believe that we are having this discussion. She says of course the debate should happen. It's called multitasking and handling multiple problems and issues at once. If Sen. McCain is elected president, what would he do? Tell us he can't handle the gas crisis because he needs to handle a problem with Georgia this week? He'll get to the second problem next week? It's ludicrous.
And then, Heidi, on the flip side of things, Aris Ramos in Tampa, Florida, believes that McCain's actions shows that he has his priorities in order.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ARIS RAMOS, IREPORTER: I can see yesterday's decision from McCain that he is really a man of action. And on this economy, on this -- what's going on in our country, foreign policy and everything, we don't need a person who just good talker, who can just talk, who can do more things at the same time just by talking. We need a man who is doing actions, like McCain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DE LA CRUZ: So we are asking you, should the debate take place tonight as scheduled? Go ahead and put yourself on tape. Send us an iReport. Logon to ireport.com.
Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. Sure do appreciate that. Veronica De La Cruz, thank you.
Two big questions we are following all day right here on CNN. Will the presidential debate happen? And will the big bailout actually pass in some way, shape or form? We are watching all of it for you very closely right here. Also, a concert 40 years in the making. The Beatles were banned there. But one member can now play.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: We are following two very big questions here on CNN all day long. Will there be a bailout plan? And will there be a debate? Hopefully we'll get some answers very, very soon on both.
Banned as a mop top. Welcomed as a senior citizen. Paul McCartney finally plays Israel. CNN's Paula Hancocks was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL MCCARTNEY, SINGER: Shalom, Tel-Aviv.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Better late than never. Paul McCartney says hello to Israel for the first time. The Beatles may have been banned in the '60s by one of the fab four is enjoying the belated Beatle mania. Fans of all ages came to the Tel-Aviv concert named Friendship First.
HANCOCKS (on camera): This is unfinished business for Paul McCartney and also for some of the 50,000 people in this crowd. Dedicated fans who have waited 43 years to see him live.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Beatles. HANCOCKS (voice-over): 1965, the height of Beatle mania, screaming teenagers fainting with excitement at the foot of the stage. Images like these helped convince Israel's powers that be that this band was a corrupted influence and should be banned. Paul McCartney says they were amused rather than insulted and he is delighted to be here now.
MCCARTNEY: I think Israel is a special place, and with the Palestinian aspect, I think, you know, that makes it different from other places. That is why I went yesterday to Palestine to sort of show people symbolically that I wasn't coming here just to support Israel, I was kind of interested in the region and what was going on.
HANCOCKS: Once McCartney stepped on stage, there was little thought of politics in this crowd, a historic concert, but not a cheap one. Tickets ranging from $150 to $1500. But for these fans, it was worth it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He hasn't lost the beat. I mean, the man -- he could be 66, he could be 76, this guy is just like he was when he was in his 20s or his 30s. He's still vivacious. He's still energetic. He's a creative artist. He's an amazing person. We're very lucky that he came here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the original. This is the best and this is a dream come true.
MCCARTNEY: All we are saying is give peace a chance.
HANCOCKS: One of the many songs that has the entire crowd singing.
MCCARTNEY: All we are saying is give peace a chance.
HANCOCKS: The Beatles peace anthem and what Paul McCartney says this concert was all about.
Paul Hancocks, CNN, Tel-Aviv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
