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Winds Slow in SoCal Wildfires; Auto Workers Explore Options as Big 3 Wobble; The Ripple Effect; Grim Numbers; Big Cities in Trouble; Open the Hatch
Aired November 16, 2008 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, thanks for being in the NEWSROOM with me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Don Lemon is in the NEWSROOM now.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And good evening, everyone. Thank you for joining us. I'm Don Lemon. We're following breaking news out of California. So let's get right to it. The fight against the ferocious wildfires in California, far from over. The winds had died down, though, today in Southern California. And that is a big boost for the weary crews trying to contain fires that have charred more than 30 square miles. The blazes have destroyed at least 800 homes and apartments and there have been more than a dozen injuries. But so far, no one has been reported killed.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency in three counties.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: I think that the important thing is through these emergency evacuations, we want to let the people know that the state is with you. We're going to help to get your homes back and your structures back, to get your lives back, and also the federal government is going to work with you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, the first of this week's three major fires, the Tea Fire north of Los Angeles is now mostly contaminated (ph). Take a look at those live pictures from Diamond Bar, California, courtesy of our affiliate KCAL. It's amazing to see the smoke. But in that smoke you can see backhoes and tractors in there trying to get a handle on those fires.
Investigators today announced that it did not start by accident, did not start by accident. They're asking for the public's help in identifying any suspicious activity in the area on Thursday afternoon. We have these fires covered from every angle for you. Our Jacqui Jeras, you see her there, she is in the CNN Severe Weather Center.
Kara Finnstrom has been following this from the very beginning. She joins us from Sylmar, which is north of Los Angeles. And Thelma Gutierrez is in Chino Hills. We'll start with Thelma.
Thelma, tell us what the situation is where you are. THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, I can tell you that when you consider that there are three major fires burning in Southern California, and that 1,000 families are now left homeless as a result of their homes burning, the people here in Chino Hills are breathing a big sigh of relief right now.
Their area has been spared. And I want you to take a look behind me. This is one of the reasons why. The strategy of fighting fire with fire. Firefighters all day today have been lighting backfires in the fuel that leads right up to this very large subdivision, about 1,000 homes right up here on these hills.
And all around the area, they've been lighting those back burns to try to get rid of the fuel in the event that the wind would pick up so that it wouldn't sweep those flames into this area. People here are very, very thankful to those firefighters right now.
Many of them told us that at one point those flames were about 30 feet high. They came very close to this area. Now, all day today, we have also been noticing that they've been making water drops, very, very aggressive air attack on this fire.
They've been making trips to the nearby dam, picking up water and then going into the hot spots that you see right behind me and making some of those water drops. Now the fire that is referred to as the Triangle Fire is actually four fires that merged together in four different counties, including Los Angeles County.
And right now the most active part of that fire is a community called Diamond Bar, which is just behind the hills behind me. That's the area that many of the fire crews have been deployed to. That's what they're trying to get a handle on right now. And they're actually flying a DC-10 supertanker in the area, very impressive sight, to watch that tanker go and drop 20,000 gallons of fire retardant on those fire lines. And they're trying to hold that line to make sure they're able to protect that community -- Don.
LEMON: CNN's Thelma Gutierrez in Chino Hills. Thank you, Thelma.
Our Kara Finnstrom is in Sylmar, about 20 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. That's where the largest blaze erupted late Friday night and it's also where devastating flames swept through a huge mobile home park.
It's good to hear, Kara, yesterday we thought that they might kind some bodies there. So far they have not.
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So far they have not. But right now, Don, the search for possible victims is under way just behind me. And this area has been sealed off to everyone. But still, homeowners here have been coming back, gathering on the sidewalks just outside, trying to get whatever information they can.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you live right here and then see your own place not there anymore, going on fire and everything burning, it's devastating.
FINNSTROM (voice-over): Emma and Michael Iniquez (ph), and about a hundred of their neighbors know they can't get near what were their homes. They came back first to find and embrace each other. And then to peer over the wall for a glimpse of what the fire left.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can see it from here that it's gone. Everything is gone. But we have each other and we have family and we just wanted to come here to have closure.
FINNSTROM: Closure after a terrifying evacuation Friday night, with some homeowners escaping moments before a firestorm barreled through the park. There were about 600 mobile homes here. The fire destroyed nearly 500. Emergency crews fear not everyone may have gotten out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And if you are a resident of this park, we want to talk with you. We want to know that you're safe. We want to know where you're at.
FINNSTROM: Outside the park, a sign made by one man still trying to connect with loved ones who lived here. Inside, crews with cadaver dogs are searching lot by lot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It looks like a war zone.
FINNSTROM: Judith Napolitano's home was on one of the few blocks somehow spared, but she's still not sure she'll ever come back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right now I don't want to stay. I really don't think I will ever feel safe here.
FINNSTROM: Emma and Michael say they got away with the only things that really matter.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a blessing in a strange way, you know? When you have everything just taken from you, but you still have faith and you have each other, it's the most amazing thing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FINNSTROM: And firefighters here are still working to keep others safe. Right now the winds have died down significantly. The fire is considered 30 percent contained. But, Don, I just want to pan up. We have got blue skies behind us all day long and just a short while ago that smoke started collecting in the sky coming up from just behind that ridge there. Firefighters saying we're not out of the woods here yet.
LEMON: Kara Finnstrom joining us from Sylmar where she will join us tonight at 11:00 p.m. Eastern. We appreciate your reporting. And she'll update us on whether or not they found any bodies in that area. Thank you, Kara.
We turn now to CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras. Jacqui, at the top of this newscast, I said that the winds have died down, but still not out of the woods yet. JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. The winds are down, but we're talking down from 70- to 80-mile-per-hour gusts. We have about half that today, and we still have been seeing gusts maybe in the range of 30 to 40 miles per hour. And there you can see, you know, look at how horizontal that is right there.
So that's a good indication that those winds are continuing to blow, they're continuing to gust and that can be a little erratic at times. So even though the winds are down a notch, we are by no means out of the woods. Red flag warnings though are set to expire at the top of the hour and we do think that the winds will gradually diminish over the next couple of days. So hopefully we'll halve them once again by tomorrow.
These are just some recent wind gust reports in the last couple of hours. Check out Wiley Ridge at 50 miles per hour. Warm Springs still up there at 41. Thirty-four miles per hour, that's near the Sylmar Fire, by the way, up Camp Nine there. And Malibu Hills, still looking at gusts around 26 miles per hour. So we would like to see those numbers maybe down in the teens before we really start to see any of those significant improvements.
We do think that by the middle of the week, the winds will be much calmer. We'll start to see what we call that onshore flow where the winds come in from the ocean and bring in some of that moisture across the area. In the meantime, those winds still looking very strong at this time.
We're going to talk a little bit more about some of the conditions that these firefighters are having to deal with, and also what it's doing to people's health. That's coming up around the bottom of the hour -- Don.
LEMON: Yes, been seeing lots of people out there, even our own reporters, rubbing their eyes and coughing as well. And I'm sure not good.
JERAS: Not pleasant.
LEMON: All right. Jacqui Jeras, our meteorologist here. Jacqui, we appreciate that.
We're getting a ton of iReports from people affected by the Southern California fires. This photo was taken by Josh Greir. He is in Yorba Linda. Look at that, he is on the top of his roof. It would be a beautiful picture otherwise if we didn't know what was going on there. He's trying to fight this with a water hose from his own yard.
He said the worst of all days is when he decided to go up on the roof and look at the water there. The sky was mostly clear when he climbed on top of the house. But 20 minutes later he said he couldn't even see the sun.
And then Danny Pardon (ph), he will join us by phone later on tonight in the NEWSROOM starting at 11:00 p.m. Eastern. I cannot wait to hear his story in person. And if you are in the fire zone, of course, we want to hear from you. Make sure you send us an iReport at ireport.com and then log on to tell us what you're thinking as well here, and we'll get your responses on the air.
We want to turn now to the economy. Make sure you stay with CNN. Before we get to that, stay with CNN throughout the evening and we'll have the California fires covered from every angle for you. We will be updating them throughout the evening here. And if anything warrants, we'll break into our taped programming for that.
We turn now to the economy and that proposed bailout of the U.S. auto industry. Congress this week will take a long hard look at whether to give a truckload of your money to Chrysler, to GM, and to Ford.
CNN's Kate Bolduan explains it could be a very tough road.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One final round for Congress and President Bush in a lame duck session set to be a showdown centered on the hemorrhaging auto industry.
SEN. CARL LEVIN (D), MICHIGAN: One out of 10 jobs in this country are auto-related, 20 percent of our retail sales are auto-related or automobiles. So this is a national problem.
BOLDUAN: Michigan Democrat Senator Carl Levin is drafting the Senate's version of the auto industry lifeline. The bill could see a key vote as early as Wednesday and it could conclude $25 billion in loans to the big three.
The money would be carved out of the $700 billion bailout package. And attempting to win more support for the plan, the bill is also expected to include an extension of unemployment benefits. But this will be no easy sell to Senate Republicans or the Bush administration.
CARLOS GUTIERREZ, COMMERCE SECRETARY: There's a line of companies, of industries, waiting at Treasury just to see if they can get their hands on those $700 billion. That is for the financial system. It's to stabilize the financial system. That should not be used.
BOLDUAN: Senator Richard Shelby is the top Republican on the Senate Banking Committee. He says the Democratic plan would reward poor management at GM, Ford, and Chrysler and calls it money wasted.
SEN. RICHARD SHELBY (R-AL), RANKING MEMBER, BANKING COMMITTEE: They would be, in a lot of people's judgment, a lot better off to go through Chapter 11 where they could reorganize, get rid of the management, get rid of the boards, the people who brought them to where they are today.
BOLDUAN: Republican leaders, along with the Bush administration, are pushing an alternative plan, one that would pull money from an existing $25 billion loan program meant to help automakers produce more fuel efficient vehicles.
GUTIERREZ: If we don't take care of the short term, there is no green future.
BOLDUAN (on camera): Now Democrats argue automakers need those fuel- efficiency funds as well as a bridge loan to survive the year. But Democrats also need Republican support because right now they maintain a slim voting majority, one getting even leaner with President-Elect Barack Obama's resignation from the Senate.
Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, bailout or not, some Detroit auto workers are still sitting idle. We'll tell you what they're doing now in case their plants close. And coming up at the bottom of the hour, we'll also talk about cities in trouble. We'll hear from Atlanta's mayor, Shirley Franklin, one of several big city mayors concerned about massive layoffs. And she has some very interesting things to say about it. She calls it a crisis.
There's Mayor Franklin, live in the CNN NEWSROOM right now. We'll hear from her in just minutes.
We get another look at the still developing Obama administration today. Who is in now? We'll tell you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. This is why this is breaking news on CNN today. Take a look at these flames coming from Diamond Bar, California, spreading all across that region. There are a number of fires that are still raging. The winds may have died down a little today but it has not stopped the fire and the firefighters still aren't able to get these flames under control.
They have destroyed many homes and are threatening many, many more and lives as well. We'll continue to update you on CNN on this breaking news coming up out of Southern California.
In the meantime, we want to talk about the transition to power now. President-elect Barack Obama is making progress on assembling his key people, those who will accompany him to Washington. Today his transition team announced more appointments to his administration. They include Pete Rouse, a senior adviser. Rouse is currently Obama's chief of staff in his Senate office. Also, Mona Sutphen and Jim Messina as deputy chiefs of staff, both are currently serving on Obama's transition team.
And while assembling a new administration, President-elect Obama paused to thank his old one, in a letter The Chicago Sun-Times, Obama says he's formally stepping down as Illinois' senator. He also took the time to thank the people of Illinois, saying they taught him lessons he will draw on during his presidency.
And remember election night? If you're like me, you wanted to be a fly on the wall at the Chicago Hilton where the Obamas awaited the election results. Well, during an interview with "60 Minutes," first lady-elect Michelle Obama shared her reaction from that night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHELLE OBAMA, BARACK OBAMA'S WIFE: You know, the night we were watching the returns, I guess I'm sort of like him, I'm not sure if it has really sunk in, but I remember we were watching the returns and on one of the stations, Barack's picture came up and it said, President- elect Barack Obama.
And I looked at him and I said, you are the 44th president of the United States of America. Wow, what a country we live in.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT-ELECT: How about that?
M. OBAMA: Yes.
B. OBAMA: Yes. And then she said, are you going to take the girls to school in the morning?
(LAUGHTER)
M. OBAMA: I did not. I didn't say that.
B. OBAMA: It wasn't that moment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. Well, a couple of political heavy hitters are making appearances in Georgia to help seal the deal in the hotly contested Senate race here, heavy hitters like former GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. Huckabee is campaigning for Republican Senator Saxby Chambliss, who is fighting to keep his seat against Democratic challenger Jim Martin. Now meanwhile, Martin is calling in former President Clinton to help him take the seat. The runoff election is scheduled for December 2nd, less than two weeks away from today.
We want to know what's on your mind tonight. Make sure you log on to twitter.com/donlemoncnn, facebook.com, myspace.com/donlemoncnn, or iReports. We've been getting some great iReports from the fires and also from Proposition 8. If you send them to us, we will make every effort to get them on the air.
LEMON: Meantime, grisly discoveries in south Louisiana. They now have police talking about a possible serial killer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Breaking news here today on CNN. The wildfires in Southern California, man, firefighters are up against it there, as are homeowners in the area, wondering if their belongings will be there once they get back and if the fires will reach them as well. You can see the heavy equipment there trying to draw lines so that the fires don't cross them.
This is all happening today and it has been happening really since later on -- late in the week and will continue to happen unless those fires die down and they get some moisture in the air. We're going to talk to our Jacqui Jeras about that coming up in this broadcast and also tonight at 11:00 p.m. Eastern.
Meantime, southern Louisiana police are investigating the possibility of a serial killer in their area. The remains of a woman found back in September have finally been identified. She's one of six women found dead in Jefferson Davis Parish since 2005. Now some investigators believe the killings are tied to a serial killer or killers. According to investigators, all of the victims had "risky lifestyles." Sheriff's deputies are also searching for a missing teen.
Well, U.S. troops could be out of Iraqi cities and towns by the end of next June and out of Iraq entirely by the end of 2011. Those are the tentative dates approved by the Iraqi cabinet and sent to the Iraqi parliament for consideration. No date has been set on when the parliament might take up the proposal. This new agreement will replace a current U.N. mandate that U.S. troops now operate under in Iraq. It expires at the end of this year.
Pakistan has temporarily halted some aid shipments to U.S. forces inside Afghanistan. The closure of the Khyber Pass comes after militants on Tuesday seized a convoy of trucks hauling wheat and other supplies through the mountain route. The Khyber Pass is just one of several routes to bring supplies to American forces in Afghanistan. NATO says closing the pass will not significantly affect troop operations.
The Indian Ocean off the coast of Somalia remains one of the most dangerous waterways in the world. Somali pirates using speedboats today seized a Japanese freighter and its 23-member crew. In another incident, a Russian patrol boat was able to prevent pirates from seizing a Saudi Arabian ship. The International Maritime Bureau reports more than 80 pirate attacks so far this year with 33 of them resulting in the ships being hijacked.
While the debate over whether to bail out the auto industry rages on, it's the people working on the assembly lines who are left to wait and to wonder. You'll hear from a few right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
JERAS: Plus, breaking weather news at this hour. The National Weather Service in Los Angeles has decided to extend some of those red flag warnings. We'll tell you where after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Breaking news here on CNN. The flames, the fire out in Southern California. Live pictures now from Diamond Bar, California. You can see as they make these water drops here in the Southern California area, they are working very feverishly to try to get this under control. But they have their work cut out. Jacqui Jeras joins us now to talk about that.
Jacqui, you said the winds died down but still the effort goes on.
JERAS: Yes. Absolutely. You know, the winds have died down, but we've got to put that in perspective. You know, they've died down from 70- to 85-mile-per-hour gusts, but we're still at some 40- and 50-mile-per-hour gusts, and because of that, the National Weather Service out of Los Angeles has decided to extend the red flag warnings in the Los Angeles and Ventura counties in the mountains and valleys until 10:00 tonight.
Now they're going to allow the red flag warnings to expire into the coastal areas because the winds have weakened enough there and they're starting to get a little bit of moisture even trying to make its way on shore.
So a little bit of good news, a little bit of bad news kind of coupled together going along there. You know, we talked a lot about these winds and about the smoke and the fires and the destruction that happens to people's homes. But we haven't talked a lot about some of the health impacts, the smoke out there is so thick, it is just incredible and really overwhelming.
This picture that you can see is from NASA, and that is the smoke that you can see from space. And look at those plumes as they extend out over the ocean miles and miles away from the origin.
This is a map from air now and this is showing us the air quality. And take a look at that big cluster of red all across the Los Angeles area. That is code red, meaning the air is unhealthy for everybody.
It gets in your lungs, it can hurt your chest, it makes your eyes burn. Don't go outside today if you don't have to. And a great picture showing you that smoke, by the way, extending over the ocean from our iReporter. Cameron Holbert took this picture, just kind of a strange orange glow he said he noticed as he came out of his house yesterday afternoon. And about an hour after he took these pictures, he said that ash started to fall from the skies.
Look at that, it just looks like a thick blanket of clouds. But that would be smoke -- Don.
LEMON: My goodness. All right. Jacqui Jeras, we certainly wish them the very best. Thank you very much for that.
Let's talk about the economy now. Specifically the big three: Chrysler, Ford, and GM, all facing financial bailouts. And begging for a government bailout, and, well, that will come with layoffs as well. But some longtime auto workers don't want to go out like that.
CNN's Brook Baldwin reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BROOK BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Michael Candela is a third generation Ford employee.
MICHAEL CANDELA, FORMER FORD EMPLOYEE: Yes, there is life outside the big three.
BALDWIN: But after 10 years of service at one of the car company's plants in Michigan, Candela called it quits.
CANDELA: I just knew that things were changing in the industry and that it wasn't necessarily the company that my grandfather moved here from Italy to work for and my dad worked for.
BALDWIN: Candela settled for a buyout, opting to pack up his previous profession to run his own business instead. And as Detroit's big three teeter on collapse, other auto workers are considering shuffling careers as well.
RICHARD DUPREE, FORD EMPLOYEE: I work on an assembly line.
BALDWIN: With layoffs looming, Richard Dupree, along with dozens of other auto workers, is pulling double duty, dealing cards at night at this local casino.
DUPREE: If full-time is offered to me at the casino, that's something I would have to consider.
BALDWIN: Three million Americans would be forced to consider a career change as they would lose their jobs if one of the big three were to fail. That is according to a recent study conducted by the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor. Dr. David Cole served as the study's lead author.
DR. DAVID COLE, CENTER FOR AUTOMOTIVE RESEARCH: I don't like the idea of government involvement. But when you consider the size of this industry, the importance in the economy, and the fact that the cost of prevention here is much lower than the cost of a calamity, it is the right thing to do in terms of what's best for this country.
BALDWIN: Not everyone agrees it's the right thing. Critics say the big three burned through billions backing gas-guzzling vehicles and as politicians point fingers at auto executives and the industry blames the economy, this former Ford employee has advice for American autoworkers.
MICHAEL CANDELA, FORMER FORD EMPLOYEE: If you're going to leave, you have to have a plan. Don't just take the money and think you're going to live forever off of it.
BALDWIN: Now Don, it's important to keep in mind so much of the story about the people, the auto workers themselves. But we need to talk numbers here too. One in ten American jobs is tied to the American auto industry, just in some way.
General Motors is the nation's largest auto maker. GM said it had about $16 billion in cash at the end of this past September. And many, Don, are very worried if Congress does not give them this quick cash injection that they're asking for, GM will not have enough liquidity of cash to sustain itself by the end of the year.
DON LEMON, CNN NEWSROOM ANCHOR: And we can only imagine the ripple effect. Ok, thank you very much for that report, Brooke.
BALDWIN: Sure. LEMON: Now, if it were just the auto industry in trouble that would be bad enough. But our Poppy Harlow is here to explain why the grim news hits far beyond Detroit.
Poppy, give us a reality check here, what is the impact on the rest of the country? I think she just said one in ten jobs in America tied to the auto industry.
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Yes, Don you heard the numbers. That's one thing; seeing the story is another thing, one in ten jobs. I spoke with the Governor of Michigan, Jennifer Granholm this week. She said, "Listen Poppy, it's three million jobs in the first year that will be lost if just one of the big three goes bankrupt."
I want to give you some perspective from a man I talked to this week. He's the CEO of Auto Nation, and they own the most car dealership in the country, actually in the world. And he said, and I quote here, if we see a failure of one of the big three, it quote, "Will make what happened with Lehman Brothers and all the consequences look like a nice day."
Don, we know what happened, the fall out from Lehman Brothers. That should give people a perspective of just what we're dealing with and what lawmakers are talking about this week. And they're going to meet and we're going to see if they're going to vote on the bailout. But this is in the extremely contentious issue; millions of jobs are certainly on the line.
LEMON: Ok, and this begs a question, you have AIG, you have Lehman Brothers, all of these big companies, and now the auto industry, they're all being bailed out. How much more can the government bail out without the government being in trouble? It seems like it's a Catch-22 here.
HARLOW: It's a Catch-22. The $700 billion isn't money that we have. It's essentially borrowed money. We have a national debt of over $10 trillion.
So I don't think there's a limit Don, on to what the government can do. That's why law makers are so concerned because TARP and that $700 billion was set aside for financial firms.
If you use some of that money for the automakers, you open up "Pandora's Box." You open up a door and we see, and I know you have the Mayor of Atlanta there that's going to talk to our viewers soon, there are cities saying, hey, we're in trouble too. We need your help, too. We need billions of dollars or hundreds of millions to help with our budget through our faults.
So then I think if you waive the automakers, then where does it end? Cities need help too and companies across the sector need help.
LEMON: Yes, it's amazing and I know we don't want to say the "R" word, but one wonders why more people aren't saying that word, Poppy.
HARLOW: We already see Europe. The Euro Zone already in a recession officially, we'll see when it's announced here in the U.S.
LEMON: Yes, CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow, we appreciate your reporting. Thank you very much.
And Poppy mentioned the Mayor of Atlanta. We want to say that we've seen effects from layoffs in small-town USA, but the trickle down is starting to hit big cities and several mayors are certainly concerned.
Joining me here in Atlanta, Atlanta Mayor, Shirley Franklin, and she is one of them, she is concerned about this. You sent letters -- thank you, first of all, your honor, for joining us here.
You sent a letter to Charlie Rangel, I am correct? And then also to the Secretary Paulson and others to try to help get money because you say this is a crisis situation now.
MAYOR SHIRLEY FRANKLIN, (D) ATLANTA, GEORGIA: No, it is a crisis, and the letter to Chairman Rangel, really was to be added to the testimony that -- for hearings that were held in Congress a few weeks ago about an infrastructure investment that would come through the Congress. And some mayors actually believe, as I do, that Secretary Paulson could set up an urban infrastructure, a fund with some of the top money and then allow us to use that money to rebuild infrastructure.
And we say, why do you need that? We believe in Atlanta, in 120 to 160 days, we could put 5,000; 6,000 people to work and maintain jobs if we had $30 million to invest. Sidewalks, infrastructure related to bridges, roads. So that it is part of how you get people back to work.
LEMON: All right, before we get to why you say it's a crisis and what might happen if you don't get the money, people are sitting at home wondering why do I care what happens in Atlanta or why do I care about what happens in Phoenix, Chicago or any other city? Why should the person watching care?
FRANKLIN: Well, the economy of the United States, it's well- documented, much of the economy is driven by what happens in cities, small towns and cities really are driving the economy. Most people in America now live in cities.
So when you have a cutback of services, when you have a rise in crime rate, when you have a rise in unemployment; that affects the national economy. Our part of it is the Atlanta economy.
LEMON: Right.
FRANKLIN: But you add that to Detroit, you add that to Michigan, you add Georgia to California, and all of a sudden you have an economy that is in crisis, which is what we're seeing.
LEMON: And now if you don't get this money, if you don't get help, tell us what can happen? We're talking about layoffs and we're talking about a ripple effect here.
FRANKLIN: Well, there's no question. Atlanta started, and some people think, well you should take care of your own business. Well, indeed we did. We cut back in our cost of government in May and June. We had layoffs of 350 people. We cut back 30 percent of non-public safety personnel so that we could balance the budget and move forward.
Now we're having to have layoffs and -- not layoffs but furloughs in city government, including police and fire. We've asked everyone in city government, police, fire, parks, folks to take a 10 percent pay cut.
And that 10 percent pay cut is a cut in hours as well. So there will be fewer people to provide the services.
LEMON: Yes.
FRANKLIN: When people have less money, our employees, you, me and others, we stop spending money. So we exacerbate the problems in the economy. It's cyclical, --
LEMON: Yes.
FRANKLIN: I mean, it's all tied together.
LEMON: Yes, and Atlanta's not alone. I mean, there are cities all over the country, and if they're not feeling it now, you told me earlier that they are going to start feeling it and that people should be, you know, obviously concerned about this.
FRANLIN: Well, I don't know that there are any cities that are not feeling it. We're all dipping into our reserves. How long can we do that? Our revenues are spiraling down. They're going down in our case 12 percent in the first quarter. We can't sustain even an increase even in the downturn.
LEMON: Mayor Shirley Franklin, ok, that is some sobering news but we appreciate you joining us and we hope that some way that they're able to work all of these out and I'm sure you hope as well.
FRANKLIN: Thank you.
LEMON: Thank you, it good seeing you.
FRANKLIN: It's good to see you. Thank you.
LEMON: All right, we want to know what's on your mind. We've been talking about this economic crisis. You hear what's happening in cities and in small towns and really all over, the auto industry, the loans, everything.
Send us your information, what you want to hear about your comments on any of those platforms right there and we will make sure we get them on the air for you.
All right, let's talk about going into space, the shuttle "Endeavor" has docked with the space station and it's time to get to work. That means our own space cowboy Miles O'Brien is on the case, live, next.
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DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It's 7:00 a.m. at Zenergy Yoga Studio, in California's wine country. But inside, you're not going to find your typical yoga students.
SCOTT STEPHENSON, UPS DRIVER: It really balances my life a little bit better, my body's balanced more, it centers myself a lot.
GUPTA: This class is full of UPS drivers. For Scott Stephenson and many of his fellow drivers staying fit was part of the job. He climbs up these steps about 400 times a day, making more than 150 deliveries.
So the thought of doing more exercises, especially in a yoga studio never ever even crossed his mind.
STEPHENSON: Last year was the first time I've ever done it and I've been doing it twice a week for over a year now.
GUPTA: This twice weekly pilgrimage of UPS drivers from Napa Valley to the yoga studio started more than a year ago, when health and safety manager, Mike Yates, real concerned over the number of on-the- job injuries.
MIKE YATES, UPS HEALTH & SAFETY MANAGER: Being a UPS driver is a physical job, you have to keep yourself in top physical condition in order to perform the job safely day in day out.
GUPTA: So he began introducing the drivers to things like yoga, nutrition classes, stretching, walking. The results have been spectacular.
YATES: It affected us so positively, it was amazing, we have a little tag phrase, "Safe by choice and not by chance" it's all the little decisions that I watch people make, that make a change.
GUPTA: For Scott, picking up yoga has helped them find more balance in his life, giving him more energy and helped him quit smoking.
STEPHENSON: It's probably one of the best things that I've ever done.
GUPTA: And he says that sure beats going to a gym.
STEPHENSON: I lift boxes all day and the last thing I want to do is go lift weights.
GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.
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LEMON: It is so smoky in some areas because of all these fires happening in southern California that you can barely make out what is going on. Imagine now being a firefighter or a homeowner in the middle of all of this.
That is the latest of what's happening now in southern California. It is tragic and firefighters still don't have a handle on this. They're working hard to do it, and we'll be following every turn; live pictures, Diamond Bar, California, courtesy of our affiliate, KCAL.
Meantime, more than one million people turned out at this weekend's mass rallies in support of same-sex marriage, that's according to a group that organized the nationwide event.
Join the impact.com. The rallies took place yesterday in dozens of U.S. cities large and small to demand the right of gay couples to marry. The movement erupted after voters in California approved a ballot initiative known as Proposition 8, to ban same-sex marriage.
Arizona and Florida passed similar measures.
It was chilly and windy in downtown Atlanta, but that didn't stop hundreds from showing up this Saturday, yesterday at the Georgia state capital to demand the right to marry a person of the same gender. Many of them stop to share their thoughts at our iReport kiosk.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everyone has the right to marry. Everyone, ok.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not asking for special rights, we're just asking for equal rights.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm a straight married woman and mom as a hero.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I think that maybe America isn't ready for gay marriage yet, so with time and with continued patience on our side, I think things will change.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really important; but sometimes it takes a while.
PUBLIC: We love each other.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's pretty impressive that this is the city where the civil rights movement first started and it's sad that this is still a problem today.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We pay taxes. Yes, we do.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have the right to deny a certain minority their civil rights is basically, fundamentally unconstitutional.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We vote, yes, we do.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe in the free rights of every person. I believe in separation of church and state.
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LEMON: Our iReporters outside the Georgia state capital yesterday. Go to IReport.com and send us your IReport as well.
They're called flash-bang grenades and are used to disorient. But the company behind them is now subject of a federal criminal case alleging defective flash-bangs were sold to the FBI and other agencies, although the company denies any wrong doing.
Here CNN's Special Investigations Correspondent Abbie Boudreau with a preview of her report.
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ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS CORRESPONDENT: The explosion happened without warning.
DONALD BAIN, FBI SPECIAL AGENT: My last memory, I was laying out on the pavement here.
VODROW: It was around 4:00 a.m. in a small town outside of Philadelphia. FBI Agent, Donald Bain was sitting in his car in this parking lot with two other agents. He was armed, ready for anything. He wore a Kevlar vest and carried what's called a flash-bang grenade, a type of non-lethal weapon that, when deployed, -- emits a bright flash and deafening bang. Used to shock and disorient, often used on assignments just like this; a kidnapping that had turned into a hostage takeout.
BAIN: There were still three bad guys that were holding the hostage and negotiations were going on.
VODROW: And the next thing he remembers, the flash-bang grenade in his vest just blew up.
BAIN: The car is on fire. I was told later I was on fire. Smoke billowing in the car. It was obviously chaos.
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LEMON: Be sure to catch Abbie Boudreau exclusive report on flash-bang grenades tonight, 11:00 p.m. eastern only here on CNN. It is a CNN Special Investigation.
Reaching out to kids in need on the other side of the border. We'll introduce you to our CNN Hero.
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LEMON: Crossing the border to make a difference in the lives of Mexican children. Tonight's CNN Hero, is proving one person can make a difference, meet Maria Ruiz, one of our top ten CNN Heroes.
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MARIA RUIZ, FINALIST, CNN HERO OF THE YEAR: I'm Maria Ruiz, and I cross the border to help people in Juarez. I decided to start the food program. I fed approximately 1,200 kids on a daily basis for three and a half years. Now, we collect the donations, we take furniture, food, toys, almost about anything.
We're ready to go. Crossing the border involves a lot of work and time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you have any food items?
RUIZ: I crossed, oh, thousands of times.
We give out whatever we have.
Buenos Dias.
It's like a distribution center. All of the work we do is part of a family's ministry. But regardless of whether they're Christians, it's equal for everybody.
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LEMON: And recently I spoke with Maria about what motivates her.
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LEMON: So Maria, are you driving in your car, you are on the outskirts of the city. Most of people and not that it's a bad thing would notice it, thinks something's terrible and then, go about their business. But you decided to take action and what touched your heart to make you do that?
RUIZ: The children were the ones who touched my heart. You know, as I saw the children, you know, walking down the streets, and the houses made out of pallets and wood, you know, that touched my heart. That just dramatically, you know -- I was drawn to help out.
LEMON: Yes, drawn and, of course, it tugs at your heartstrings to see that you found the time just to do that. Do you -- this -- you have been doing this for what, over ten years now. Some of the children that you've helped out have grown up. When you see them grown up, how does that make you feel? What goes through your head?
RUIZ: I'm happy, and I feel, good inside my heart because I was able to help them grow. And not just to help them grow, but see them growing and develop into older children.
And that I am able -- I was able to be part of their life. And I am still part of their life.
LEMON: Well, that's great. Do you look at it and do you feel like you're their mom or they're aunt or something?
RUIZ: Yes, sometimes, you know. Sometimes, you know. They call me Hermana, like sister. They call me Hermana. And I say yes Amigo.
LEMON: How do you feel being a hero?
RUIZ: I'm honored, Don, to be given such a title. But I know I'm not a hero. I -- I know I can do much more. I wish I could do much more. Yes. But I'm honored to be given the title. That's a big honor for me.
LEMON: Well, let me tell you. I know you don't think that you're a hero, but we here at CNN and people all over the world think that you are. So you're a hero to us and congratulations on being a hero at this point and good luck with the winning and God bless you, ok Maria.
RUIZ: Thank you, Don, thank you and God bless you too.
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LEMON: Her laugh is infectious, isn't it? All right, well, congratulations to her. I really enjoyed that interview.
You can go online right now and chose a hero who inspires you the most. We look forward to honoring all of this amazing people during CNN Heroes, it's an all-star tribute hosted by our very own Anderson Cooper, right here on CNN. And that's on Thanksgiving night.
Ok, look at that, that's where space stuff happens. And on top of all of it -- look, he's laughing. A person who could be in that room and knows how to work everything in there's Miles O'Brian, just go in there and start pushing buttons.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: Start pushing buttons and see what happens.
LEMON: Ok, Miles hang on, we know you're excited.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
LEMON: After the break.
O'BRIEN: Oh, okay.
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LEMON: All right, from earth to the international space station. There he is, Miles O'Brien, our space correspondent, big happenings in space today my friend.
O'BRIEN: You know, Don, I made it sound like I was on the international space station, but not quite.
LEMON: I knew you'd like to be.
O'BRIEN: I'm here in New York City, which some people might say it's a little like space, but that's a very subjective thing.
Things went well today in space so far. They are in the midst -- first of all, take a look at some pictures.
We've got a nice live picture. Look at that, there is the space shuttle "Endeavor." This is a shot from the International Space Station, one of the fixed cameras on the outside, there you see the tail. And then, I want to show you, right here, Don, is kind of a shipping container dilly. I guess you don't have the telestrator going but look at that, that thing that looks like a can there. A can of soup, or whatever.
Inside that is the main event for this mission. We've got a new galley coming in. We've got a refrigerator. They haven't had cold drinks up there the whole time.
LEMON: Oh, my God.
O'BRIEN: I would miss a cold drink, wouldn't -- adult beverages not allowed, but nonetheless, cold drinks would be good.
LEMON: You stole my term adult beverages, I love that.
O'BRIEN: And then, there's a new bathroom, and then, there's that water purifier that turns all of the waste, and I mean all of the waste, into pure drinking water.
This is the scene a little while ago as "Endeavor" was approaching; Commander Chris Ferguson at the controls there of "Endeavor" inching up. When you see this, you think it's like a movie or something they are traveling 17,500 miles an hour. Of course, the relative speed is the key, and there, you see the docking which occurred smoothly. And very soon, they're going to open up the hatch and the combined crew of ten is going to get to work pretty quickly trying to outfit the station.
The goal here Don, is to turn the station from a three-person operation to a six-person operation.
LEMON: Ok.
O'BRIEN: And so basically the ISS guys have called their contractor, and the contractor is finally at the door and they are going to come in and hopefully they'll do their work on time and clean up the mess when they leave and hopefully not charge them any extra for those things that weren't part of the bid.
LEMON: I got to ask you, though, wasn't there some damage, though, that happened during the launch? Are they talking about that?
O'BRIEN: Yes. I don't think that's a big deal. Let's take a look at the picture and we're going to track it of course for you just like NASA is tracking it. And of course, post "Columbia" they have a lot of cameras and imagery and capability to look for falling debris.
There was a little bit of debris that hit in that section inside that little circle there. It's not an area that's a big concern area because on re-entry, although obviously, it looks like a lot of things is going on there now with the main entrance falling. But on the re- entry when the engines are not firing, it only gets to a temperature of about 700 degrees which to the shuttle is nothing. The hotspots get to about 3,000 degrees.
So I'm going to guess that this turns out to be a non-issue but we'll watch it for you of course.
LEMON: All right, space cowboy Miles O'Brien, we appreciate it so we hope you get aboard the International Space station some day.
O'BRIEN: I'm on the list. But you got $30 million?
LEMON: Ok, well no I don't. Have a good rest of the weekend. All right, thank you very much.
O'BRIEN: Thank you.
LEMON: Hey, listen we want to get some of your responses on today from our twitter and Facebook. Let's see what I have here just real quick.
Someone said, thank you finally please keep the story on rotation more often, it is very important. They were talking about the city story that were doing with Mayor Franklin and also getting strong responses from automakers and also from Prop 8.
I'm Don Lemon, I'll see you 11:00 p.m. Eastern.
Thanks for joining me.
