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New Economic Team Takes Shape; Unemployed Father Begs With Sons; "Sustainable Dave" Recycles Everything
Aired November 23, 2008 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live here at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
Barack Obama takes office on January 20, but already, his every move related to the economy is certainly making headlines and spurring lots of speculation. What are his plans? Who's on the team? And how soon can he deliver results? Well, tomorrow at noon Eastern, we'll get some of those answers. That's when Obama is expected to name New York Federal Reserve chief Timothy Geithner to be his Treasury secretary and former Treasury secretary Larry Summers to be his top economic adviser. Also, it may not be official by tomorrow, but sources tell CNN that New Mexico Bill Richardson remains the frontrunner for commerce secretary.
We have Barack Obama's economic plans covered from every angle. Our Ed Henry is in Chicago, Poppy Harlow from CNNMoney.com is in New York, and our political editor, Mark Preston, joins us from Washington.
But let's start in Chicago, where tomorrow, the president-elect will hold his news conference. But already tonight, the Obama team is rethinking the size and scope of its planned economic stimulus package. Here's CNN's Ed Henry.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With the financial crisis deepening, aides to President-elect Barack Obama are now signalling his economic stimulus plan will be much larger than the $175 billion package he campaigned on.
DAVID AXELROD, INCOMING WHITE HOUSE SENIOR ADVISER: The economic recovery plan we are going to bring in January has to be big enough to deal with the huge problem we face.
HENRY: How big is the question facing Mr. Obama as he unveils his economic team Monday with New York Fed chief Timothy Geithner the pick for Treasury secretary. The chief of the National Economic Council at the White House will be Lawrence Summers, who's pushed for an enormous stimulus package of $500 billion to $700 billion.
While Obama advisers will not be pinned down on a specific number yet, they're suggesting drastic action is needed to prevent millions more jobs from being lost. AUSTAN GOOLSBEE, OBAMA ECONOMIC ADVISER: It's going to be a number big enough that when they spell it out, it looks like, Oh, you know, with that many zeros on it.
HENRY: But Republicans are already warning the price tag may be too high in terms of government debt on the heels of a string of taxpayer bail-outs.
MITT ROMNEY (R-MA), FMR PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to be facing a trillion-dollar deficit in his first year. And I know he's going to want to stimulate the economy at the same time, but you know, we're going to have to cut back on some of the excesses of government, or the massive borrowing could cause some secondary effects that would hurt us long-term.
HENRY: While team Obama is still open to the idea of an auto bail-out, they're echoing congressional leaders by warning the big three will not get an infusion of cash without dramatic changes.
AXELROD: What we can't give is a blank check for an industry that isn't prepared to reform itself, to rationalize itself and to retool for the markets of today and tomorrow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: The Obama economic plan is also expected to have tax cuts for the lower and middle class. They were supposed to be paid for by tax increases on the wealthy, but team Obama is now signalling they'll wait on tax hikes until 2011, raising questions on how they'll actually pay for all of this.
Ed Henry, CNN, Chicago.
LEMON: All right, Ed. Well, while the Obama team hammers out its plan, CitiGroup is trying to work out a rescue strategy of its own. Our Poppy Harlow is following big troubles at the financial giant. OK, we're hearing that there are talks right now. Do we know how those talks are going, Poppy?
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Yes, Don, this news really all coming in just in the last hour, "The Wall Street Journal" reporting, and now the Associated Press has reports out, as well, saying that the U.S. government, the Treasury and the Federal Reserve are working together, have been working with executives at CitiGroup over the weekend to form some sort of rescue plan for the beleaguered bank.
What "The Wall Street Journal" is talking about is a "bad bank, good bank" scenario. What that would mean is all those bad mortgage- related sour assets that are sitting on CitiBank's balance sheet -- and I mean zillions of dollars worth here -- the possibility of taking those off, putting them into another book, if you will, a whole 'nother institution, so that investors want to put their money into CitiBank.
The reason this matters and why you should care, CitiGroup stock fell more than 60 percent last week alone. And why you should care is because $25 billion of taxpayer money, as you well know, Don, is now invested through TARP, through that government program in CitiGroup, so no one wants to see it fail. And we are hearing multiple reports that we could hear some kind of announcement from the government as soon as tonight.
LEMON: OK, so CitiGroup, Lehman, AIG, all these, I mean, really, really big...
HARLOW: Bear Stearns.
LEMON: ... financial institutions. And then we're hearing about the big three. And then also, you know, very interesting that I haven't read a lot about, there's also GE, which is one of the staples of the market, being bailed out -- it's called a soft or a silent bail-out -- about this paper...
HARLOW: Yes.
LEMON: ... commercial paper. So what happens with all these other big companies?
HENRY: You know, what's going on with General Electric, the stock is down some 62 percent this year, but it's a much bigger story than that. You know GE because they make your refrigerator or your light bulbs, but they also have a huge financial services arm. That's called GE Capital. And it amounts for about half of the company's profit. And what it does is it issues something called commercial paper. It's really short-term debt so that the company can finance itself, can even assist in its payroll. And what happened is when the credit market froze up, that really hurt that side of its business.
But the question is, this company operates in more than 100 countries. It does everything from, I said, building those jet turbines to wind turbines, and also this financial unit that is in a lot of jeopardy, a lot of people say now. And Don, what you're talking about, they have had two forms of government intervention already this year, the Federal Reserve coming in and backing up that commercial paper, that debt so that they can continue to run as a company, and they had $139 billion of their debt guaranteed by the government earlier this month.
So a lot of people haven't heard that much about it, but Don, you're smart to bring this up because, again, a lot of people are saying this could be another big bail-out.
LEMON: Yes, and if a company like GE is having trouble, then, you know, none of us, no one is safe and no company is safe in this environment.
HARLOW: Yes.
LEMON: Let's talk about -- there have been protests all around the country as it comes to these bail-outs. People are not happy about this. This one on Wall Street, was it yesterday?
HENRY: Yes. I went down with some friends just to Wall Street to show them around, and look what we ran into, that protest. We snapped some pictures, "End the Fed," crossing out -- big cross there over a "bail-out." I want to read you, if we can pull this up there, a piece of paper that they handed to me. I said, Listen, who are you guys? They said, We are a group of Libertarian-minded people who decided to meet up.
The question there is, "What is the Federal Reserve?" This is what they handed me. It said, "A government-controlled central bank that causes the boom and bust business cycle by creating money out of thin air." This is what these people think the Federal Reserve is, and they're protesting on their Saturday afternoon. There was about 50 or 75 of them down there and they were surely angry, cop cars and everything, right outside there in front of the New York Stock Exchange. People are being vocal about this in New York and across the country, Don.
LEMON: Yes. As I understand, there was one very similar to that at the capitol here in Atlanta today. OK, thank you very much for that, CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow.
So what about the politics behind all of this? Let's bring in political editor Mark Preston. Mark, this new administration has to act really fast. And we always hear that cliche about being ready to go at day one. They really do have to be ready to go.
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Yes. Absolutely. No question about that right now, Don. And that's what we're seeing, why these names are being rolled out right now on an expedited timeline. Of course, tomorrow, we will find out who Barack Obama's Treasury secretary is. We already do know who that's going to be. It's going to be Geithner. And we do know that Larry Summers will be coming back and working in the White House right next to Barack Obama.
And I will tell you, Don, what I've been hearing on Capitol Hill right now is that the transition team for the Obama folks are getting together with Senate Democrats. They've already had this discussion. And they want to see these nominees confirmed as quickly as possible.
I've spoken to Senate Republicans about this, and one senior leadership aide told me that if they can start holding hearings, Don, in the first week of January, the day of Barack Obama's swearing-in, on January 20, you might actually see some of these big names confirmed. They will walk right off of that porch right out there on the west front. They will go into the Senate, and they will confirm the likes of Geithner, perhaps even Hillary Clinton, who we expect to be secretary of state. So you're right, time is of the essence right now. There is a problem all across the globe, not just here in the United States.
LEMON: So we know about Geithner. We know about Summers. You mentioned Hillary Clinton, so let's talk more about Hillary Clinton and Bill Richardson. Interesting that the two people who ran against him, maybe three because the third is his vice president, may actually be in his administration.
PRESTON: Yes, and I think Barack Obama, Don, really has decided that he's going to bring his rivals in very close to himself. He talks a lot about this. But I think Barack Obama, at this point, Don, is saying to himself, Look, I need the most experienced people right by my side. And when Hillary Clinton, assuming that she is nominated, assuming she's confirmed -- when she goes across the seas, when she meets with foreign leaders, those leaders will know that she is carrying Barack Obama's word, no question about that.
And Bill Richardson -- you're seeing somebody who has tremendous experience in Congress, but also has tremendous experience in the cabinet. And of course, Joe Biden, who's been in Congress since the '70s right now, will be right by his side for Barack Obama, trying to help him make some big decisions, certainly on policy. So Barack Obama is reaching out to those he ran against, and he's bringing them into his cabinet.
LEMON: All three of those people, Mark Preston, power players and very well respected overseas. Mark Preston, our political editor here at CNN, we appreciate it.
And a quick reminder for you. President-elect Barack Obama will introduce members of his economic team tomorrow in Chicago. CNN, of course, plans live coverage starting at noon Eastern time.
Also, we want to know what's on your mind, as always. Please check into those platforms that you see there, Twitter.com/donlemoncnn, Facebook.com, Myspace, as well, and iReport. We'll try to get some of your responses on the air. Tell us what you're thinking about this economy.
Signs of the times, hard times, across the country. A local farm is picked clean when it offers up leftover produce to the public.
Plus this...
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PETER BUSH, KPHO: It must be difficult asking your boys to come out here with you.
ROBERT BOSSON, UNEMPLOYED FATHER: Yes, it is. Yes, it is very hard. I hate to see my kids suffer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: We played this story last night, and it got lots of attention from our viewers. You don't want to miss it, a father-son outing that no father would ever want to take his kids on.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: We have a visible sign of the times. In Colorado, a farm that grows potatoes, onions and other produce invited the public to help themselves to the fields after the harvest. Now, the response was greater than the farmers ever imagined. New video from this now. Thousands of people showed up to pick the fields clean.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS MILLER, FARMER: There's a lot of needy people out there, and the economy's bad, so we decided to open it up and let people come out and pick up some produce while it lasts.
MICHAEL HIGGINS, FARM VISITOR: I can't say nothing but take off your hats to him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Times is just really bad. You know, I tell you, I can live on potatoes. I ain't going to worry about the meat, but I can live on potatoes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, the "pick your own" event was so successful that the second day was canceled because everything was gone.
It can only be described as one family's nightmare. A Phoenix man says he's had no choice but to start asking for handouts with his children in tow. From Phoenix, here's Peter Bush from affiliate KPHO.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PETER BUSH, KPHO (voice-over): If you pulled up next to Robert Bosson today, the first thing you notice probably wasn't the 47-year- old man with a cardboard sign.
ROBERT BOSSON, UNEMPLOYED FATHER: Primarily, when people see by yourself, people think that you're just going to buy drugs or liquor.
BUSH: So to put food on the table, Robert swallowed his pride...
BOSSON: So people will help us out.
BUSH: ... and brought his two sons to the street corner with him.
BOSSON: Thank you very much.
BUSH: James (ph) is 12. Matthew (ph) is only 8. Instead of learning in school...
BOSSON: God bless you guys. Thank you.
BUSH: ... they're begging for money in the middle of Phoenix.
(on camera): It must be difficult asking your boys to come out here with you.
BOSSON: Yes. Yes, it is. Yes, it is very hard. I hate to see my kids suffer.
BUSH (voice-over): Robert lost his truck driving job two weeks ago. Next week, he could lose his apartment. At the Phoenix rescue mission, the dining hall is bursting at the seams, filled with new faces. NICOLE PENA, PHOENIX RESCUE MISSING: We're dealing with people that have never come to a shelter, to a congregate feeding site. They've never needed a food box before.
BUSH: Speaking of food, the boys were treated to McDonald's for dinner. It was the first thing they'd eaten since yesterday. Dad mostly sat and cried because he knows they'll probably be back tomorrow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, here's another father who is fighting to protect his children, and that means making some devastating decisions.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a humbling experience being a man going in there, you know, saying, I really need help, my family can't stand right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: And he's not alone. Food banks around the nation are seeing record crowds this holiday season. We'll give you some food for thought.
Plus, as always, we want to know what's on your mind here at CNN. Make sure you log on to Twitter, Facebook, Myspace or iReport.com and tell us what you're thinking. We'll try to get your response on the air.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SGT. GLENNIE BURKS, BASRA, IRAQ: I'm Staff Sergeant Glennie Burs here in Basra, Iraq. This is for my wife, Eden (ph), and Jessica (ph). I just want to say happy Thanksgiving. I love you guys, and I miss you. And I just want to come home to you and love you and just -- all that. And that's it. I love you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LT. COL. CHRIS ENGEN, CAMP ECHO, IRAQ: Hi. My name is Lieutenant Colonel Chris Engen. I'm with the 2nd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Camp Echo, Iraq. I'd like to wish my family back in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, a happy Thanksgiving. Go Packers.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Happy Thanksgiving to all our men and women in uniform and their families, as well.
President Bush is on his way back to the U.S. this hour after wrapping up an international economic summit in Peru. Here he is with other world leaders in some traditional Peruvian garb. They ended their meeting with a very bold prediction, saying the global financial crisis can be resolved within 18 months. The leaders agreed to an action plan aimed at overhauling global financial rules and boosting free trade.
It is definitely warmer in Peru than it is back here in the States. The president's going to have to bundle up. He can probably use that traditional Peruvian garb to keep warm here, Jacqui.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Keep him warm. Well, it's certainly warmer there than it is in D.C., but Peru's more like a subtropical climate, so think like Tampa-ish.
LEMON: Oh, OK. It's still warmer than it is, as I said...
JERAS: Most of the U.S.
LEMON: Most of...
JERAS: So look at that. We got some 70s out there.
LEMON: Oh, yes, look...
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: ... look like "The Price Is Right" girl. Do that again? Let's see that?
JERAS: It's my Vanna.
LEMON: Very nice, Jacqui Jeras!
JERAS: Thank you very much.
(LAUGHTER)
JERAS: Anyway, enough on Peru and the temperatures because, you know, it's just really all about the travel and what's going on in terms of your travel weather. If you're going just down the street to your neighbor's house, or if you're heading across the country, for the most part, the weather is quiet today.
The big focus really in the nation's midsection here. Now that the lake-effect snows are starting to wind down, we're looking at a new system coming in, bringing in a little bit of moisture here, so just some light rain showers, more of a nuisance probably than anything else, and a little bit of a rain-snow mix here across parts of the upper Midwest.
Now, travel problems in the airways nonexistent due to the weather, but we've had some big volume problems at Newark. This ground stop has been extended about four times already, so now you're not taking off to arrive in Newark until 7:40. So you don't have to be in that area to be impacted by this particular ground delay.
All right. Tomorrow, things are looking pretty good across parts of the West, but as you can see, our storm system begins to push eastward, so expecting to see some more rain in the southeast by late in the day. And you're going to see some snow in places like Chicago, Detroit, and also into Milwaukee. And of course, Wednesday is the big travel day. The Southwest and the Northeast will be your biggest travel trouble spots.
All right, let's check out some iReporters. Speaking of snow, we've got some great pictures to show you, this one coming from Josh Malone from Mishawaka, Indiana. You're, like, Where? It's near South Bend. So they've been dealing with some lake effect snow. He said he took this picture out of his living room window this morning. And it's a really lovely picture. Thank you very much, Josh.
And Leslee McCarty from Beard, West Virginia, said the deers are coming up and eating her shrubs and she's not happy about it. She says there's probably more deer than people in this Pocahontas County. They've had about four inches of snow, but much more snow into higher elevations over near the Snowshoe area.
A lot of people may be thinking about that ski trip...
LEMON: Yes.
JERAS: ... of course, unless the economy is (INAUDIBLE) their pocketbooks and maybe not doing that this year.
LEMON: Couple of Bambis, just hanging out there.
JERAS: Aren't they pretty?
LEMON: Keeping chilled, yes.
JERAS: She also mentions it's deer season tomorrow. But you know...
LEMON: Yes. We don't -- kids are watching. All right. Thank you, Jacqui Jeras.
Well, the holidays typically signal a season of excessive consumption, but there are simple things you can do to help reduce the amount of waste we all generate, up to five pounds a day per person. Five pounds. There's a lot of people on this earth, too.
Our guest knows a thing or two about it. He has been saving his family's trash for an entire year -- yes, an entire year -- in the basement. And believe it or not, once all the recyclable stuff is gone, only a small fraction will go into the landfill.
Dave Chameides is also known as Sustainable Dave. He is documenting the whole process on his Web site 365daysoftrash.com. Dave joins us from Los Angeles with some tips to make your holidays a bit greener. My first question is, I want to know how it's going, of course, but doesn't it smell at least down there, Dave?
DAVE CHAMEIDES, 365DAYSOFTRASH.COM: Don, that's always the first question that everybody asks. Or it's usually right after, Are you crazy? (LAUGHTER)
CHAMEIDES: But yes, it doesn't actually smell down there because...
(CROSSTALK)
CHAMEIDES: Let me pass that one. It doesn't actually smell down there because, really, what smells in your garbage is your food, and all the food scraps go to the worms and they eat them. And it's actually pretty shocking how clean it is down there.
LEMON: OK, yes, because I saw you had some worms there, but that was -- was that a composting that you had made to go through there? OK.
CHAMEIDES: Exactly. It's a compost unit or...
LEMON: OK. Let's go through these tips because you are -- you're saying that if you buy holiday food locally, like at local markets, that that can help. Well, how so?
CHAMEIDES: Well, basically, the average food on an average American's plate comes from about 1,500 miles away. And if you buy locally from a farmer's market, you're talking within about 100 miles, give or take. And you're going to get fresher stuff. You're going to save on the amount of money you spend. You're going to save on packaging. It's just going to be better for you all the way around. And also, you're keeping money in your local community, so you're building up your local community.
LEMON: A lot of people buy, like, you know, poinsettias and things like that, bring flowers to dinners for the holidays. Do you have tips for that?
CHAMEIDES: Yes. Definitely. I mean, if you're going to bring flowers, that's great, but why bring something that's cut that basically is something that's going to die in a week? Why not bring a flower that's going to bloom again, bring them something from a local florist and they're going to enjoy it all year and think about you. You know, it's going to be better than just cut flowers.
LEMON: It's very interesting because I just went through my cabinet from just doing a little cleaning, and I saw, like, all of these gift bags, a lot of them from Christmas last year, birthday parties, all those things. And they just pile up and you've got to throw some of them away. Not a good idea, you say.
CHAMEIDES: Absolutely. I mean, let's say you're getting a bottle of wine, right? You can -- I got one here. You can actually bring one of these things, like, two, three bucks. And you know, basically, at best, it's going to be used for a bottle of wine some of the time, but it may even be thrown out, which is not great. Or if you head to my Web site, you can actually learn about the furoshiki, which is the art of Japanese scarf tying, and you can tie up a bottle of wine and give them something else. Grab one of these from your wife's drawer, don't tell her, and give it to them.
LEMON: All right. If I tried to do that, the wine would be all over my shoes because it would break on the cement. All right, so...
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Here's a pet peeve of mine, and I didn't even know I was green. I don't really like eating or drinking out of plastic or paper. I just -- I think it's kind of, you know, low rent, whatever. So you say don't do that.
CHAMEIDES: Yes. Absolutely. If you're having people over, come on, break out the fine china. And if you don't have the fine china, at least use the plates you're using every day. Why? Because just ask yourself, does it make sense to use something that's disposable that you're going to use for five minutes, it's going to stay in a landfill for 5,000 years? It just doesn't make any sense.
LEMON: All right, you have a couple here that -- I want to get to the last one. You said compost table scraps, which is -- you know, that's an obvious one. You can take all the food...
CHAMEIDES: Absolutely.
LEMON: ... and compost it.
CHAMEIDES: Sure.
LEMON: But donate frying oil as biodiesel?
CHAMEIDES: Yes. If -- a lot of people like to deep fry their tofu, turkucken, whatever they're deep frying this year, and at the end of it, you know, they've used it once. They've got what, 10 gallons of peanut oil. What are they going to do with it? And a lot of people actually ask me, What do I do with this?
Well, the great thing is, is you put it on Craigslist, say you've got 10 gallons of peanut oil lightly used. Some greaser like myself is going to come over with their car that runs on used vegetable oil, and suddenly, you've made a new friend. They're driving for free down the street. You've gotten rid of something you didn't want. And you know, everybody wins.
LEMON: OK. Real quickly, what do you have in your bag there? This is a dangerous question, but I'm being told to ask you.
CHAMEIDES: Oh, OK. What do I have in my bag her? Well, I've got basically my...
LEMON: There's some sort of plate or something or a box?
CHAMEIDES: Yes, steel water bottle. I've got all sorts of things. And yes, this is a big favorite. I'm sorry. I should have had it out. I like to carry things around with me so that I don't have to use disposable stuff, like we were talking about.
LEMON: Yes.
CHAMEIDES: And this is actually a foldable bowl. I think it cost me, like, three bucks. Carry it around, never have to use another bowl. You can eat soup out of this. You can eat cereal out of it. I mean, basically, let's face it, everything you want to eat, you can eat out of a bowl. And when you're done with this, you can just open it up.
LEMON: All right. Sustainable Dave...
CHAMEIDES: Clean it off and you're done.
LEMON: I'll let you open that up, clean it off, and be done. But thank you. I mean, you've taken this to the extreme, but there are at least one or two, a couple of tips in here that everyone can use.
CHAMEIDES: There's more on the Web site. Thank you very much.
LEMON: Thank you. Have a great holiday, OK?
CHAMEIDES: Be good.
LEMON: All right. We've been asking you what you think, you, the viewer, and we want to share some of it from our platforms, from iReport and from Facebook and Myspace, and what have you, and Twitter.
icampbell444 -- icampbell444 gets on a lot -- "Things just seem to be getting worse. I am normally an optimistic person, but all these bail-outs are giving me serious chills."
wallstreeter says, "Not specifically worried about those things. More worried about the coming increase in crime and violence."
Very good -- that's a very good -- very good response. Thank you for that one.
And msproverbs says, "While big three fly high wanting bail-out, many families have lost their homes and now homeless. Where is the bail-out from them?"
Make sure you keep your comments coming. Log onto, like I said, Twitter, Facebook, Myspace or iReport.com and tell us what you're thinking.
Life lessons taught by a dying boy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WENDY FOSTER, BRENDEN'S MOTHER: He's left a legacy, and he's 11. He's done more than most people ever even dream of doing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Brenden's last wish touched people across the country. We'll look back on his life and look ahead at his legacy. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Brenden Foster did something few people can claim. He left the world better than he found it. He was only 11, but he dreamed very large.
Here's Alyssa Jaffe from our Seattle affiliate, KOMO.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRENDEN FOSTER, LEUKEMIA VICTIM: I should be gone in a week or so.
ALYSSA JAFFE, SEATTLE AFFILIATE KOMO-4 NEWS REPORTER: The day I met Brenden Foster I met an old soul in an 11-year-old's body.
JAFFE: What are the best things about life?
B. FOSTER: Just happy.
JAFFE (voice-over): I didn't understand how this child, a year younger than my own son, could be so courageous facing death.
B. FOSTER: It happens. It's special.
JAFFE: Three years earlier, doctors diagnosed Brenden with leukemia. The boy who once rushed through homework so he could play outside is now confined to a bed.
B. FOSTER: I had a great time. And until its time -- my time has come, I will keep having a good time.
JAFFE: Brenden's selfless dying wish, helping the homeless. But he was too ill to feed them on his own, so volunteers from Emerald City Lights passed out sandwiches in Seattle.
People in Los Angeles held a food drive. School kids in Ohio collected cans. They gathered goods to feed the hungry in Pensacola, Florida and here in his Brenden's hometown.
WENDY FOSTER, BRENDEN'S MOTHER: He has lived a legacy, and he's 11. He's done more than most people ever even dream of doing just by making a wish.
JAFFE: Brenden's wish came true, and he lived to see it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has had the joy of seeing all of the beautiful response to his last wish. It gives him great peace, and he knows that his life has meaning.
JAFFE: Days before dying, Brenden surprised us all with a sudden burst of energy. He wanted off oxygen and out of bed to buy a video game. Wise beyond his years, but still a kid.
W. FOSTER: I have been so blessed to have this child. A mother couldn't ask for a better son. JAFFE: Bee man (ph) as his family calls him had another wish, to save the bees by sprinkling wild flower seeds. Packet of seeds will be passed out at his funeral. Before dying in his mother's arms, Brenden said he's amazed that a young boy could make such a big difference.
W. FOSTER: Don't get too sad, sweetie.
FOSTER: Until one gives up.
JAFFE: Brenden Foster never gave up.
W. FOSTER: Thank you, Brenden.
JAFFE: Even at the end, Brenden kept giving.
B. FOSTER: Follow your dreams. Don't let anything stop you.
JAFFE: Alyssa Jaffe, KOMO-4 NEWS.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, if you want to find out how you can help the hungry or get involved in a number of other worthy causes, just log on to CNN.com/impact.
And CNN's 2008 Hero of the Year, we have a winner. And it's a winner among winners. It's Liz McCartney. She was selected from among the top ten CNN heroes after six weeks of online voting and a million votes on CNN.com.
McCartney has been helping survivors of Hurricane Katrina pick up the pieces and rebuild their homes. She received her award last night at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. The gala event was hosted by our very own Anderson Cooper.
And someone else was honored at CNN's Heroes of the Year at that awards last night. And you probably recognize her. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: You know, they are so wonderful because they're just ordinary people just like you and me. But what they've done is found a niche. They found something that's really wrong with the world, and they have decided to go out there and do something about it.
They haven't been scared by the fact that it's either far away or it's going to take a lot of time and effort. They know that in order to make positive changes in the world, they have to invest in themselves and that's what they've done. And in doing so, they have done so much good work in the world.
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LEMON: That's my colleague, Betty Nguyen, and she's the winner of the internal CNN initiative called "My Heroes." She was chosen for her Help the Hungry Program. It provides humanitarian aid for families in Vietnam.
Congratulations, Betty, and you see her mom there behind her. You see where Betty gets her beauty and both inside and out. So, congratulations again to Betty Nguyen and all of our CNN heroes.
More than one million of you voted for CNN's Hero of the Year. And you can see the special moment with Liz McCartney when she wins during the all-star tribute hosted by Anderson Cooper. That's on Thanksgiving night this Thursday, 9:00 Eastern, only here on CNN.
Hard choices for a woman drowning in debt.
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JEN PALUMBO, FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY: Lot of soul-searching during that process of, you know, how much in debt am I and how much do I have in my account, and have I depleted my savings. And it's ugly.
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LEMON: She never thought she'd be in this spot, and she is not alone.
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STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Panic on the street, the Dow was on free fall most of last week plummeting to its lowest level in nearly six years Thursday. The S&P 500 plunged to an 11 1/2 year low.
U.S. officials have avoided using the "r" word so far. Next week, the debate about recession could rev up when we get a revived look at the nation's third quarter GDP. The Flash (ph) estimated last month showed the economy declined by three cents of a percent, and most economists expect the revised number to be even worse.
In the coming days, we'll get a sense of the mood among holiday shoppers. Updated consumer confidence and consumer sentiment indexes are expected to increase slightly.
Both reports will arrive just days ahead of Black Friday. The day-long shopping frenzy that follows Thanksgiving when retailers in the red hope to put their books in the black.
The National Retail Association says shoppers have been holding out for Black Friday deals. Seventy-two percent of those recently surveyed said they've done less than 10 percent of their shopping. But most retailers expect shopping this holiday season to be very weak with surveys showing most households will spend less this year than they did last year.
Next week, the market will be closed on Thanksgiving Day. Investors return Friday for a shorter trading session.
That's this week's getting down to business. Stephanie Elam, CNN, New York.
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LEMON: A massive manhunt going on right now in the Seattle area. Police are searching for a gunman after a deadly shooting last night at a mall in suburban Tukwila. Well, a 16-year-old boy was killed and a 15-year-old boy wounded. Police say a possible gang-related fight sparked the shooting which sent people running for the exits.
Police in New Jersey are also searching for a gunman right now after a shooting in a North Jersey church. Three people were shot and wounded, one critically, when the gunman opened fire this morning. Police believe a domestic dispute may have sparked the shooting and that the gunman is the spouse of a boyfriend of one of the victims. The congregation is mostly made of Asian immigrants.
It's one of the scariest words in the English language -- bankruptcy. You play by the rules, you pay your bills, and after doing everything right, you still have no other choice.
If this scenario sounds familiar, CNN's Kate Bolduan says you have lots of company.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEN PALUMBO, FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY: You are a good little baby, aren't you?
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jennifer Palumbo is smiling now, but the last few years for her have been anything but joyful.
PALUMBO: There is a lot of soul-searching during that process of, you know, how much in debt am I and how much do I have in my account, and have I depleted my savings. And it's ugly. It's ugly when you get to that point.
BOLDUAN: That point was the snowball effect of losing her health insurance, getting hit with more than $10,000 in medical bills and being temporarily out of work in this floundering economy. She downsized her car, moved in with a friend, and found a job. But it all eventually led to bankruptcy.
PALUMBO: I was in a situation where it was either, you know, keep paying minimum and continue to drive my credit down each month because I wasn't paying the full bills on anything or consider doing a bankruptcy.
BOLDUAN (on camera): More and more people are facing the same harsh reality. The American Bankruptcy Institute says last month personal bankruptcy filings nationwide jumped 40 percent from the same time a year ago.
SAMUEL GERDANO, AMERICAN BANKRUPTCY INSTITUTE: That reflects hand and glove the kind of economic crisis that households are facing. And we expect that number to continue to rise. BOLDUAN (voice-over): So much so analysts project the number of new filings this year will exceed one million. Experts, including Jen Palumbo's bankruptcy attorney, say the initial uptick in cases resulted from the foreclosure crisis. But now --
NANCY O. RYAN, BANKRUPTCY ATTORNEY: Now I'm seeing more people who are more, probably higher income who have gone through their savings, who have gone through, you know, they're starting to cash in their retirement. They're doing everything they can, and they just can't hold on.
BOLDUAN: Palumbo says filing bankruptcy is still difficult to talk about. But now with a clean slate, she'll tell you things are looking up as she can finally start looking long term.
PALUMBO: I think ultimately that's how I would like the story to end would be to have my own farm. That's always been my dream.
I love you (ph). You're a sweetheart.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN Lovettsville, Virginia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Tell us what's on your mind tonight. Make sure you log on to Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com and tell us what you're thinking, please.
You probably remember this from election night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta.
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LEMON: I was there when she cast her ballot and I went back to see how she's doing. My dinner with Mrs. Ann Nixon Cooper, and you're invited.
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LEMON: Well, an update now on probably the most famous voter in the world currently, 106-year-old Mrs. Ann Nixon Cooper. She said she wanted to stay alive long enough to vote for Barack Obama and she did. After our interview, President-elect Obama mentioned her in his victory speech.
Earlier this week, Mrs. Cooper invited a few of her friends, me and one of my colleagues, Audrey Irvine, to dinner, and she kept us in stitches the whole night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: Do you like your blanket? Oh, what does that mean? Dinnertime?
ANN NIXON COOPER, 106-YEAR-OLD VOTER: Oh, sorry but right now, we're busy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: A CNN viewer sent a blanket to us to give to Mrs. Cooper and it has every picture of every single president in U.S. history with her guy, Barack Obama, right there in the middle.
And thanks, Mrs. Cooper, for dinner. May you have a much longer and happier life. We really, really enjoyed it. Appreciate it.
An update for you now on a person once touted as a potential Obama appointee, Chicago businesswoman and billionaire, Penny Pritzker. Earlier this week, it had been reported that Pritzker was a top contender for commerce secretary but then backed out because of the vetting process.
Well, Pritzker told me in a phone call on Thursday that none of it was true and that her business and family obligations prevented her from even considering the job. Well, just days after the election when I sat down with her in Chicago, she said she had the same concerns before taking on the role of Obama's campaign finance chair.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PENNY PRITZKER, CHICAGO BUSINESSWOMAN: When Barack asked me if I would take on this role as his national finance chair, I was really uncertain. I had a lot of things going on in my life, business obligations, you know, civic obligations, being a wife and mother. And I went home and I talked to my husband, and my husband started knocking on the door.
He was knocking on the door in our kitchen. I said what are you doing? And he said to me, "I am knocking on the door because this is destiny knocking on our door, and you have to find a way to help Barack Obama become president of the United States."
And we sat down that night to dinner with our children and my husband said to them, "Barack has asked your mom to be his national finance chair, and it means she won't be home 50 more nights a year than she's already not home for her business obligations. Are we willing to make the sacrifice to help this man become president?"
And my family was unanimously supportive of that. So while this has been a challenge, it's been a blessing, it's been a pleasure, and I've had the support of my family. What more could I ask for?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: As national finance chair, Penny Pritzker helped Obama raise more money than any other candidate in history.
Here's some food for thought for this holiday season.
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SHERYL GUTHRIE, FOOD BANK CLIENT: I never thought I'd be in this position that we're in now. I never thought that things would get this bad.
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LEMON: Food banks are seeing record requests for help. It is a bleak sign of the times.
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LEMON: Some cutting edge science to replace a breast lost to cancer. Japanese doctors are using stem cells in reconstructive surgeries. CNN's Kyung Lah takes a closer look in this week's "Edge of Discovery."
But first, a warning for you. Please be aware this story includes pictures of surgery that you might find disturbing.
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KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Japanese doctors at work, what they call cutting edge stem cell surgery. Not to regenerate organs or nerves, but to enlarge breasts. This woman lost her left breast to cancer.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): "I hope women are able to choose this type of surgery," she says. It is controversial.
LAH: Doctors remove fat from a woman's body and separate fat and stem cells in a lab. Fat contains stem cells similar to ones found in bone marrow. The patient's own fat stem cell mixture is injected into her left breast. The doctor describes the result as a natural soft and augmented breast.
(on camera): While still experimental, they hope it will give women another option to the silicone implant. Right now, are you convinced that it is safe?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
LAH (voice-over): Dr. Kotaro Yoshimura (ph) has performed cell- assisted lipo transfer more than 250 times. He says while it can't promise the grafts will always take, short-term studies show promise. Clinical trials are moving forward in the U.S., but many plastic surgeons aren't sold on the technique.
DR. JOAN LIPA, UCLA PLASTIC SURGEON: So the idea here for the breast augmentation fat transfer is that they're hopefully going to turn into fat cells. But how do we know that they aren't going to turn into something else?
LAH: After the surgery, our patient says she looks forward to her future, one that will be watched by doctors around the world.
Kyung Lah, CNN, Yokohama, Japan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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LEMON: All right. This is a long shot. OK, maybe a long slapshot.
The St. Louis Blues hockey team, well, get this, pay up to $4,000 in mortgage or rent for a few lucky fans. One winner will be chosen at each Saturday home match for the rest of the season, and the team says it's a way of thanking fans for boosting attendance despite this tough economy. Very nice.
No spare change for the Salvation Army's red kettle? Well, no problem. The bell ringers have gone high tech. Some kettles have been tricked out to take plastic. Just swipe your card and be right on your merry way.
Nobody wants to rely on charity to support a family, but for many Americans handouts have become a necessity. It's a necessary part of life. And places like food banks are feeling the pinch of higher demand and fewer donations. Here is CNN's Thelma Gutierrez.
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THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Early morning at the Meno food bank in Pacoima, California.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Only one line, OK?
GUTIERREZ: The lines begin to form before the doors even open.
MARIANNE HAVER HILL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MENO: Every week, we seem to be breaking new records as far as the number of people served.
GUTIERREZ: It's the same concern at food banks across the country.
DARYL BROCK, 2ND HARVEST FOOD BANK: Yes, there will be a hard time coming.
GUTIERREZ: You don't have to look far to find people who recently had to turn to charity to feed their families.
SHERYL GUTHRIE, FOOD BANK CLIENT: I never thought I'd be in this position that we're in now. I never thought that things would get this bad.
GUTIERREZ: The downslide happened fast for Greg and Sheryl Guthrie and their three kids. Six months ago, Greg was laid off as a forklift operator. When his unemployment benefits ran out, the Guthries had to live off of Sheryl's disability checks. The math tells the whole story. She gets $1,600 a month. Their rent is $1,350. That leaves the family $250 for fuel, food and everything else.
GREG GUTHRIE, FOOD BANK CLIENT: It's a humbling experience being a man going in there, you know, saying I really need help. My family can't stand right now.
GUTIERREZ: Judy (ph) Cox had to leave her job working in a prison kitchen to care for her sick mother. Now the family's finances are collapsing and it's taking a toll on her daughter.
DIAMOND MCCLAIN, 15 YEARS OLD: This is really, really hard. I've shed so many tears. It's just crazy. It's unbelievable.
GUTIERREZ: Stacy Ortiz is also new to the food bank system. She lost her job as a county worker and is now cleaning homes. But that work isn't steady enough to help her get back on her feet.
STACY ORTIZ, FOOD BANK CLIENT: We rent a room and the utilities are included but we're a little behind on the rent, you know. So we're making it but it's real tight. Everything's real tight.
GUTIERREZ: With more than 10 million Americans now out of work and companies struggling in the economy, experts say food banks may have a tougher time finding donors.
GEORGE RUOTOLO, NON-PROFIT CONSULTANT: And given what has happened with our economy over the past eight to ten weeks, there are some challenges ahead.
GUTIERREZ: Regional food banks like 2nd Harvest in San Bernardino say corporate donations haven't stopped yet. They now feed 250,000 people a month, but that number is going up so there may be less food to go around. For now, Greg Guthrie gives thanks for the help he's receiving.
Thelma Gutierrez, CNN, San Bernardino, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, we've been asking you what's on your mind tonight. Sonya Charie says children begging for food in the USA? This is not a new phenomenon. It's just more obvious. And yet, AFDC continues to suffer cuts.
iSwitched, this season, she says, we are asking others in our circle of family and friends to join us in donating money or food to the less fortunate.
Make sure you log on to Twitter, to Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com and tell us what you're thinking. We always appreciate it here at CNN, and we'll get your responses on the air.
I'm Don Lemon. I'll see you right back here midnight Eastern time tonight. KITTY PILGRIM, CNN HOST, LOU DOBBS THIS WEEK: Tonight, President-elect Obama chooses more cabinet members. Now, will his cabinet be a team of rivals? And can Obama overcome political partisanship? We'll have complete coverage.
And the Republican Party is in disarray after its sweeping election losses. One of this country's most influential conservatives, Tony Perkins, will join me. We'll have all that, much more straight ahead tonight.
ANNOUNCER: This is LOU DOBBS THIS WEEK, news, debate and opinion. Here now, Kitty Pilgrim.
