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Israeli Troops Move in Gaza; John Travolta's Son Dies

Aired January 03, 2009 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Get out before you get hurt. Israel warning residents that its assault on Gaza is not over.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN ANCHOR: As fighting continues, thousands take to the streets around the world both in defiance and in support of Israel's actions.

And a parent's worst fear comes true, the son of actors John Travolta and Kelly Preston dies suddenly.

NGUYEN: Well, it's a new year, a new hope on the job front, is that the case? Well, that's what we're hoping for. But will it get worse before it gets better? We'll delve into that.

Hello, everybody, I am Betty Nguyen.

MARCIANO: And I'm Rob Marciano in today for T.J. Holmes. And the news is unfolding live on this Saturday morning. It is the 3rd of January and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: Heightened tensions in the Mideast. Leaflets signed by the commander of Israel Defense Forces were dropped over northern Gaza today warning residents to leave the area immediately to ensure their safety. Israeli tanks and troops have moved to the Gaza border. A spokeswoman for the IDF says ground forces are prepared to enter Gaza as soon as they receive orders.

Two thousand reservists have been called up. Israel says air strikes killed the commander of Gaza City's rocket-launching squads today. Palestinian sources, well, they say at least 435 people have been killed in Gaza since the fighting began. Hamas' exiled leader warns of house-to-house fighting if Israel invades.

Well, European leaders, they are seeking a cease-fire in Gaza, and they are heading to the Mideast to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday. The European Union delegation will meet in the West Bank. It will be led by the Czech Republic which recently took over the E.U. presidency from France.

The Czech presidency says the delegation plans to look for ways to reestablish armistice in Gaza and to provide humanitarian aid to the people. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat says the Palestinian president then plans to head to New York for meetings at the United Nations.

MARCIANO: Well, with calls for a cease-fire growing louder, President Bush sounded a note of caution during his radio address this morning. Kate Bolduan joins us now live from the White House with more on his message.

Good morning, again, Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Rob.

In his first comment since this latest conflict began, President Bush, in his weekly radio address, said another one-way cease-fire that leads to rocket attacks on Israel is not acceptable. And promises from Hamas will not suffice. Bush also says the U.S. is leading diplomatic efforts. But the question is, how much traction is the administration's approach having while the fighting continues?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Another one-way cease-fire that leads to rocket attacks on Israel is not acceptable. And promises from Hamas will not suffice. There must be monitoring mechanisms in place to help ensure the smuggling of weapons to terrorist groups in Gaza comes to an end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Now on the possible escalation of the conflict on the ground, an Israeli ground assault, the White House is not taking a position. A White House spokesperson declining to comment on whether it would be justified. A White House spokesperson saying Friday those decisions would be made by the Israelis -- Rob.

MARCIANO: Certainly Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been busy. Is she expected to travel over to the Middle East?

BOLDUAN: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at this point says she has no plans to head to the Middle East to broker a cease-fire. A White House spokesperson is saying they don't see a particular need for her to travel to the region when she is doing the work working the phones from Washington.

In her first public appearance on the situation yesterday, Rice repeated the administration's diplomatic stance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: We are working toward a cease- fire that would not allow a reestablishment of the status quo ante where Hamas can continue to launch rockets out of Gaza. It is obvious that that cease-fire should take place as soon as possible. But we need a cease-fire that is durable and sustainable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Rice says she has been working the phones constantly since the violence erupted and is in close contact with European allies as well as key Arab states pushing for a truce -- Rob.

MARCIANO: Kate Bolduan reporting live for us from Washington, D.C., thank you, Kate. NGUYEN: All right. Now, we want to take you live straight to the Israel-Gaza border there and CNN's Paula Hancocks. She joins us with the latest.

Paula, what are you seeing at this moment? I see little flashes behind you. Obviously, the strikes are continuing.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Betty. I'm afraid I've just lost sound with you. But just to keep you up to date with what has happened here on the Israeli-Gaza border. In the last hour or so -- couple of hours or so, I should say, as dusk was starting to fall, we saw a tremendous amount of Israeli shelling and also of Israeli air strikes onto the Gaza Strip.

So certainly the Israeli military and the air force is not letting up at all. Now we understand there has been at least 40 targets hit according to the Israeli Defense Forces today, and also have been at least 20 rockets coming into Israel.

Now that's significant, because that is much lower than we have seen over the previous days, since Monday, really, we have seen about 70, at least, a day, hitting Israeli cities. So certainly that looks like it is calming down somewhat.

NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Paula Hancocks joining us live. Thank you, Paula.

MARCIANO: Meanwhile, several thousand people have marched in the streets of London today against the Israeli offensive. They chanted slogans like "free Palestine" and "end the genocide in Gaza." On Friday in Chicago, hundreds of protesters called for an end to the offensive and for President-elect Barack Obama to get involved. They ended their demonstration in front of the Israeli consulate.

And in California on Friday, demonstrators waved flags and carried signs outside Israel's consulate in Los Angeles. The demonstration ended after protesters obeyed police orders to disburse.

And counter demonstrators in support of the Israeli offensive were also held in Los Angeles and other parts of California. In Los Angeles, they protested on the opposite side of the Wilshire Boulevard.

Police closed part of the street, but there were no arrests. And in Chicago on Friday, a smaller group of pro-Israeli demonstrators stood in front of the consulate, waving Israeli flags.

NGUYEN: Well, police are investigating two cases of mosques being vandalized in Florida and Pennsylvania. Mosque leaders say three dozen bullets were sprayed across the outside of The Islamic School of Miami sometime between Wednesday night and Thursday. Windows were shattered. Bullet holes splattered portions of the building. But no one was hurt.

Now to Pennsylvania, the Council on American Islamic Relations says red paint was splashed across the steps leading to The Islamic Center of Pittsburgh.

President-elect Barack Obama is expected to meet with congressional leaders on Monday to press his ideas for jump-starting the U.S. economy. And this weekend, he is revealing details of his much- anticipated new stimulus plan. Our Brianna Keilar is live in Chicago this morning, checking it out.

Good morning there, Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Rob. Well, the president-elect distilling down his plan for the economic recovery of the U.S. economy, spelling it out in his weekly radio address today, doubling renewable energy production, rebuilding crumbling roads, bridges, and schools, and tax breaks for American workers among other things that we have heard him say before. This is the plan that he will be selling to Congress this week after he leaves for Washington tomorrow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR (voice-over): President-elect Obama has promised that saving the failing American economy won't be a one-party effort.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT-ELECT: I know we will succeed if we put aside partisanship and politics and work together as one nation.

KEILAR: After a campaign built on a pledge to bring post-partisan politics to Washington, the question remains, can he deliver?

KEN VOGEL, SENIOR REPORTER, POLITICO: I think the stimulus plan is going to be the first real test of his ability to sort of reach across the aisle.

KEILAR: Mr. Obama is coming to Capitol Hill Monday to discuss his proposal to jumpstart the economy with top Democrats, but also Republicans in the House and Senate. As Democrats plan to push a stimulus package through the House in as little as two weeks, Republicans want to slow down, worried about the price tag on the plan, which could hit $775 billion.

Republicans, calling for oversight of how the money is spent, are trying to hold the president-elect to his word. In a statement, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said Friday: "We believe that Obama's admonition to go through the federal budget page by page, line by line, eliminating those programs we don't need and insisting that those we do operate in a sensible cost-effective way should apply to this."

As they push for broad support, political analyst Ken Vogel says Mr. Obama and congressional Democrats must play nice.

VOGEL: As long as Obama is appearing not to be catering to the left base of the Democratic Party and is making at least token efforts to involve Republicans and to not alienate them, I think he will be able to claim that he is taking a post-partisan approach.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: And, Rob, I asked a Senate Republican aide if Republicans are satisfied with what appears to be an effort on the part of Mr. Obama to bring them into the discussion about this new economic stimulus package. He said it really depends on how this meeting on Monday goes, if it's just a photo op, or if Republicans really feel that Mr. Obama and Senate Democrats and Democrats in general are really bringing them into the loop on this and looking for their input -- Rob.

MARCIANO: Brianna Keilar, covering the president-elect, live in Chicago. Thanks, Brianna.

NGUYEN: And we have new video just coming in to CNN. Take a look at this, it's raw video coming in to CNN. So we apologize for the graphic nature. But this is a result of what we understand from Palestinian medical officials of an Israeli air strike on a mosque in the Gaza Strip. That air strike, according to those medical officials, say it killed nine people and injured 60 others. This happened in the northern town of Beit Lahiya.

Again, this information coming from Palestinian medical officials who say an Israeli air strike on a mosque in the Gaza Strip has killed nine people and injured 60.

Of course, we're going to continue to follow this story and bring you the latest information. We'll also try to get information on the Israeli side of this, to find out if those numbers hold true from what they understand as well.

In the meantime, you can't come in. Senate Democrats vowing to lock the door on Rod Blagojevich's Senate choice. The battle for Barack Obama's seat, it is far from over.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Again, new video coming in to CNN. We are hearing from Palestinian medical officials that an Israeli air strike on a mosque in the Gaza Strip has killed nine people, injured 60. We're obviously looking at video of people coming into the medical centers there. And we understand that it is not clear whether the dead were Hamas militants -- the dead in this air strike.

But this did happen in the northern town of Beit Lahiya. Nine people killed, 60 injured. Again, we apologize for the graphic nature of this video. But it is coming into us raw and you are taking a look at it just as soon as we are getting it as well. But the latest in the incursions taking place in the Middle East.

MARCIANO: To Illinois politics, access denied for the governor there after the Department of Homeland Security revokes his privileges to classified federal security information. A Homeland Security official confirms the action which the governor's office calls "standard procedure."

Rod Blagojevich faces corruption charges for the alleged auctioning of President-elect Barack Obama's former seat in the U.S. Senate. The embattled governor denies the accusations.

NGUYEN: Well, the man Blagojevich appointed for the post is getting some major pushback from his would-be peers. Former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris says he expects to be seated Tuesday as the junior senator from his state, but not without a Capitol Hill-size battle.

Here's CNN's Louise Schiavone.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LOUISE SCHIAVONE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's one of the rockiest transitions of power in Senate history, intensifying early next week on Capitol Hill, a clash over the Senate seat vacated by the next president.

ROLAND BURRIS, FMR. ILLINOIS ATTORNEY GENERAL: We are certainly going to make contact with the leadership of the Senate to let them know that the governor of Illinois has made a legal appointment and that I am currently the junior senator from the state of Illinois.

SCHIAVONE: But two high level Senate Democratic sources say the differences between former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris and Senate leaders are "irreconcilable." At issue, federal prosecutors charge that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich had hoped to barter the next president's Senate seat for either money or influence.

NORM ORNSTEIN, AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE: If you had a corruption Olympics, we now have a new gold medal winner.

SCHIAVONE: Senate leaders cite Article I Section V of the Constitution: "Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members."

A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid tells CNN: "To be clear, this is not about Mr. Burris or the color of his skin, it's about the man who appointed him. We're not going to seat anyone that he appointed."

GOV. ROD BLAGOJEVICH (D), ILLINOIS: This is about Roland Burris as a United States Senator.

SCHIAVONE: But some legal analysts say as long as Blagojevich remains in office, the case against seating Burris, who is not accused of any wrongdoing himself, will be difficult and the governor knows it.

MELANIE SLOAN, CITIZENS FOR RESPONSIBILITY AND ETHICS IN WASHINGTON: I think Mr. Blagojevich has clearly played the race card here. He appointed Mr. Burris knowing that it would be that much harder for the Senate to turn away a well-respected African-American in Illinois.

SCHIAVONE: A Senate leadership aide tells CNN that Mr. Burris has briefly spoken with the number two Senate Democrat Dick Durbin, but nothing has been resolved.

(on camera): Meanwhile, a long-time friend and confidant of Mr. Burris has told me that the "senator" will be in Washington Monday night and hopes to be seated in the U.S. Senate the next day.

Louise Schiavone, for CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARCIANO: Senate-designate Roland Burris does have his supporters. A dozen of Chicago's black activists rallied in his behalf yesterday, saying not only he is legally appointed, but he is also highly qualified.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM DOCK WALLS, COMMITTEE FOR A BETTER CHICAGO: We do not want a situation where disappointment is held hostage by the Democrats of the United States of America who represent us in the Senate, who have threatened to send this appointment to the Rules Committee which can take two to three months.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARCIANO: That same activist threatened state officials that if they don't support Burris, they won't support him -- or them in the next election.

NGUYEN: All right. So from politics to your money. You know, a rally on Wall Street was Friday's good news, a sign of things to come. Well, our Ali Velshi takes a look at what we can expect in the New Year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Well, Chrysler is breathing a sigh of relief today. The troubled automaker has finally received the first installment of its bailout loan from the Treasury Department. Chrysler officials had expected the initial $4 billion on Monday. But the company's CEO, Bob Nardelli, said they received it yesterday. Nardelli says the infusion of cash will allow Chrysler to operate while it continues to restructure.

And some good news for the stock market too, the Dow closed yesterday up more than 250 points. That is the first time it has closed above 9,000 since November. Experts say that is a promising sign. I don't know if you need an expert to see that. But investors seem to take a disappointing report on manufacturing in stride and waded into the market with fresh optimism.

MARCIANO: Well, a change in investor sentiment yesterday wasn't enough to erase the dismal performance of the markets last year. Are better days ahead? Our Ali Velshi brings out his crystal ball.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Despite a strong first day of trade in 2009, nothing could help U.S. markets recover from the battering that they have taken in 2008. The Dow ended the year down more than 33 percent. The S&P 500 down almost 39 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq down more than 40 percent. There is very little investors could have done even if they followed all of the rules to have escaped that sort of battering in the markets.

Now, what does that hold? What does it mean for 2009? Well, there are lots of opinions on that. But fundamentally, we are going into 2009 with very, very uncertain markets. Many experts predict that the second half of 2009 on the markets will recover some of the losses, mainly because of the amount of stimulus that has been put into the system.

And we are talking about the $700 billion bailout program, the repeated interest rate cuts, the direct infusion of cash, the ability for governments around the world to lend money or commercial paper directly to companies. That may result in better earnings and more availability of cash for U.S. companies.

Then there remains a second problem, and that of continued job losses. The biggest issue here is that everyone who loses their job no longer contributes to the economy, and in a consumer-driven society like the United States, isn't buying. We had known for some time how dependent on the consumer the U.S. economy is, but what this recession has taught us is how dependent on the U.S. consumer entire world economies are.

And finally the issue of home prices in the United States, which is where this recession started in the first place. We continue to see home price declines in the United States. Now there are some thinking that as those prices remain low or go lower, it provides a buying opportunity to many people had who had been priced out of the housing market for the last few years.

Interest rates, particularly for fixed-term loans, remain relatively low. The issue, of course, is that so many people, even with good credit ratings, are having trouble securing loans, they're actually having trouble getting credit. But if they can get credit, that could spur some buying and it could give us some degree of recovery in the housing market in 2009.

So at this point, it's anybody's guess. But most experts are suggesting that prices are so low that 2009 could present some stock opportunities in the market -- the stock market and the housing market.

Ali Velshi, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARCIANO: You can catch more of Ali Velshi's economic advice later today, join him and Christine Romans for all the news that affects your wallet. Watch "YOUR $$$$$" right here on CNN.

NGUYEN: Well, an escalation in air strikes, Israel turning up the heat in Gaza. But troops standing by for a possible ground assault.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) MARCIANO: You're looking at new video coming into the CNN NEWSROOM this morning out of Gaza where reports from Palestinian medical officials that an Israeli air strike struck a mosque there, killing nine people, injuring 60. Not clear whether the dead were Hamas militants, but the mosque is named after the founder of the militant group who was killed by Israel in 2004.

Well, the crisis in the Middle East continues to unfold on this eighth straight day. Here is what we know this hour. Israeli tanks mass along the Gaza border, awaiting orders to advance. An escalation of military action seems imminent as residents in northern Gaza are being warned by Israel to leave the area immediately in order to ensure their safety, this as volleys of rocket fire pepper the border on both sides.

And diplomats from the European Union are on their way to the region with hopes of brokering a new cease-fire agreement.

NGUYEN: Waiting for the other shoe to drop, violence between Palestinians and Israelis nothing new, especially in Gaza. The front line of the conflict, well, CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson has the latest on the situation there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Around Gaza Israeli forces continued a slow but steady buildup of armored vehicles, raising speculation here a ground offensive may be imminent. It is impossible to know if the buildup is designed to be psychological pressure on Hamas or the beginning of an actual ground attack.

A Hamas leader in exile in Damascus threatened Israeli soldiers with what awaits them.

KHALED MESHAL, HAMAS LEADER (through translator): As for you, the soldiers of the enemy whose leadership are getting you ready to enter Gaza in a ground attack, you need to know that doom will await you and you will be killed, injured, and captured.

ROBERTSON: Israeli air strikes dwindled to about 30 sorties a day from more than 100 earlier in the week. This one shown by Israeli Defense Forces targeting a mosque, where the Israelis say secondary explosions prove it was used to store weapons.

The homes of Hamas leaders are increasingly targets too. Three small Palestinian children among the latest innocent victims, killed while playing close to their homes in the south of Gaza. Unintended collateral damage of Israeli missiles targeting a nearby Hamas leader's house. What began a week ago was deadly strikes killing far more Hamas security forces than civilians, is steadily taking an increasingly civilian toll. Journalists are barred from entering Gaza by the Israeli military. The reports, independent and otherwise emerging from the slender, coastal strip indicate Hamas' grip is as firm as ever. A Hamas spokesman toured one of Gaza's main hospitals. FAWZI BARHOUM, HAMAS SPOKESMAN (through translator): Hamas is still here. We didn't fall. We are still servicing our citizens despite this barbaric aggression.

ROBERSTON: But in other Palestinian areas, the West Bank and East Jerusalem where Palestinians are freer to accept or reject Hamas' Islamic doctrine, relatively few heated calls for a day of rage intended to take on the Israeli army and show anger for the killings in Gaza. In Ashkelon, Israel, just north of Gaza, a family had a narrow escape when one of Hamas' most destructive rockets slammed through the roof of their house.

Seconds earlier, their son tells me, they rushed to the shelter after hearing the warning siren go off. He is shaken, he says, no one in their neighborhood expected this. According to the Israeli government, Hamas fired 30 rockets into Israel Friday. Almost one million Israelis, the government says, are now in range of the deadly missiles.

Even though it is several hours after the attack, a lot of people gathered around to look at the damage. For them, the grim reality that it is not just small towns around Gaza but them as well that are on the front lines of this war. Nic Robertson, CNN, Ashkelon, Israel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And this programming note, Anderson Cooper will have special coverage from Israel Monday at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.

MARCIANO: Time to check in with CNN meteorologist Reynolds Wolf, who has been tracking all the storminess across the U.S. Hey, Reynolds.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MARCIANO: I want to talk now about John Travolta and the tragedy that unfolded over the weekend with his family. His wife, Kelly Preston. An autopsy is now planned for the couple's late 16-year-old son. Jett Travolta seen here with his dad last month in Paris was found unconscious Friday by a caretaker at the Bahamas resort where the family was vacationing.

According to the police in the Bahamas, Jett was found in a bathtub after apparently striking his head. He was dead on arrival at a nearby hospital in Freeport. The 16-year-old had been suffering from a developmental disability, his parents attribute to Kawasaki Syndrome. His father spoke about the condition with Larry King back in 2001.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN TRAVOLTA, ACTOR: With my son, it was, again, about seven years ago. I was obsessive about cleaning, his space being clean. So we constantly had the carpets cleaned. I think between the fumes and walking around, maybe picking up pieces or something, he got what is rarely a thing to deal with, but it's called Kawasaki Syndrome. It's very easily handled if you identify it. And we did. And it was handled within 48 hours but that 48 hours was not to be believed.

LARRY KING, CNN HOST: What happened to him? Is he knocked out?

TRAVOLTA: No, he wasn't knocked out. It is where the immune system overreacts because they have almost the equivalent of metallic chemicals.

KING: You knew that right away?

TRAVOLTA: No, no, the doctor knew that right away. We didn't know.

KING: He was what, how old?

TRAVOLTA: He is nine now. So he was probably two or two and a half.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: After the autopsy, Jett Travolta is set to be buried in Ocala, Florida.

NGUYEN: So, where are the jobs? Many of you are asking that. Well the new administration is facing an uphill battle, job loss and falling stocks, feeding the fears of the unemployed. So who is looking for better times in 2009? I think a lot of people are. We'll have the latest on the economy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right, so here is how one expert describes the job market in 2009. The first six months will be very painful. The second six, just painful. 2010, uncomfortable.

MARCIANO: I can deal with uncomfortable, I guess. Economists now predict that the unemployment rate will actually shoot past 8 percent and maybe even hit 10 percent. Here's CNN's Susan Candiotti.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's hard to be happy when you're starting off the New Year without a job.

JEN KWOK, UNEMPLOYED: It's scary not knowing like, when your next paycheck is coming.

CANDIOTTI: Jen Kwok was let go last fall as a Web site writer and despite accounting skills, still can't find a job.

KWOK: I think it might be another year or so. I mean, I'm not really -- I'm not that optimistic that it's going to happen very soon.

CANDIOTTI: Kwok is among a staggering two million Americans who lost their jobs in 2008. That's far more than the 1.6 million jobs lost in the last recession in 2001. And the worse the job outlook gets, the harder it is to break out of a vicious cycle. No factories, no jobs, no spending.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It certainly got much worse, much quicker in 2008.

CANDIOTTI: Bleak is putting it mildly.

ED YARDENI, YARDENI RESEARCH, INC.: The problem is companies are having a very difficult time getting credit and they can't roll over their credits, they're desperate for cash. There's a dash for cash, and the fastest way to do that is to cut back on payroll employment.

CANDIOTTI: Economist Ed Yardeni, says a key to stabilizing the job market is reviving the housing industry by lowering interest rates.

Until then what can job hunters like Jen Kwok do right now?

JOHN CHALLENGER, CEO, CHALLENGER, GRAY AND CHRISTMAS: Be open to changing industries, but stay in your field. So, if you've been an accountant or a human resources professional, or an administrative worker, you can take the skills and move them say, out of automotive or banking if things are too tight there and go into health care, or energy or some of the other areas of the economy.

CANDIOTTI: Tips that job-seeker Jen Kwok takes to heart.

KWOK: I think I'll find something. However, I don't think that I'm going to get the job that I want.

CANDIOTTI (on camera): And job experts say expect the job hunt to be even more competitive in 2009.

Susan Candiotti, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARCIANO: And with so many folks looking for work, it is pretty competitive out there. CNN's Tony Harris asked a leading job finding expert, his name is John Challenger, how folks can increase their chances of landing their next job. He is the CEO of the global outplacement consultancy group, Challenger Gray & Christmas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN CHALLENGER, CHALLENGER GRAY & CHRISTMAS: Good resolution to make this year, join some of these social networking sites like -- especially the business oriented ones, like Linkedin and Facebook, which is becoming more popular, and Plaxo and ExecuNet. Make sure that what you have up there is strong. Don't have it be your personal life. Go in and edit that. And then get involved.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Got you. You also say, speaking of getting involved, get involved with community service groups. Describe those and the benefits of getting involved with that kind of an organization.

CHALLENGER: It's so important during a time out of work. You've got a lot of time on your hands to be out there, engaged in your community. So it's a great time to pick a charity or a community organization you care about, has a lot of people stay involved, so you meet a lot of people, to go out and do something good, but also it will help your job search.

HARRIS: And the benefits of joining professional and trade groups and organizations. I think that's pretty obvious.

CHALLENGER: Yes. And this is a must for both people who are in work and out of work. Join those organizations now. In many ways you identify more today with your professional colleagues or your industry colleagues than even your particular company, because you move companies throughout your life. So get involved in these now and start going to the meetings, going to the programs. Very important.

HARRIS: Talk to us about this strategy of meeting 10 new people in your field. I like it.

CHALLENGER: Well, yes, here's a great way to say, all right, I'm going to spend the next month or two, I'm going to identify 10 interesting people that I can get to in my field, especially those who are wired and connected, and certainly if you can figure that out even better, and then go out and have coffee with then. Call them up. Ask them if you can get together. Get their advice. Most people are going to say yes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARCIANO: By the way, if you have a job and hope to keep it, his biggest tip is become an expert in one facet in your field. That way, you become invaluable.

NGUYEN: Well, a new owner for Indymac, that be would the federal government announcing a multibillion dollar deal to unload the failed mortgage lender for around $14 billion. Indymac's failure was the second biggest bank bust in 2008. That collapse is costing the federal government around $9 billion. The FDIC has agreed to share the losses with new owners. That deal is expected to close in a few months.

More on the mortgage mess next hour because we are going to talk to a former mortgage lender who got out of the business, now offering advice on your home loans. And to get advice on the money crisis, you can always click on CNNMoney.com. Check out our special report, America's money crisis. That's at CNNMoney.com.

Preparing for the big earthquake. Scientists looking at the Los Angeles skyline with some worry.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MARCIANO: Talk about the skyscrapers of Los Angeles. Are they at risk from the unseen dangers of earthquakes?

NGUYEN: Well, scientists now worry that a powerful force of nature can send some buildings just toppling to the ground. CNN's Kara Finnstrom has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The largest earthquake drill in U.S. history is now causing its own shakeup with engineers debating one of it's troubling conclusions. Scientists predict during a massive quake in Southern California, about five high-rise steel buildings could collapse. Doctor Swami Krishnan describes the worst case scenario.

SWAMI KRISHNAN, ASST. PROFESSOR: Damage gets localized in a few stories. And those few stories give way and then stories up above come pancaking down.

FINNSTROM: Scientists use computer models and analyses of past earthquakes to project what would happen during a 7.8 quake. Part of their research showed some steel-framed skyscrapers may be vulnerable.

LUCY JONES, SEISMOLOGIST, USGS: Because of a weakness that was discovered after the 1994 earthquake and how welding was done and there are cracks in some of these buildings, it raises the possibility that some of them could collapse.

FINNSTROM: But the principal inspector for L.A.'s building and safety department says building codes won't change based on predictions, telling CNN "it's basically a hypothetical theorem that civil engineers and some geologists say is a possibility. We're not just convinced that five steel high-rise buildings collapsing in an earthquake, that this is going to happen."

Cal Tech scientists point out Louisiana engineers were warned about the potential for levees to overtop in New Orleans before Katrina hit. They want Southern Californians forewarned.

KRISHNAN: We know that this big earthquake on the San Andreas Fault is waiting to happen. It happens every one in 50 years and the last big earthquake was 1857 and we are due for a big one at some point in time. And so we really need to be prepared.

FINNSTROM: I spoke with a city fire official who says their department and other emergency officials have also been looking at the projections of these scientists. This huge drill took place in November and it touched on much more than just high-rises. It covered every aspect of a massive earthquake from the fires that might follow to problems with water and electricity. Kara Finnstrom for CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Well the NEWSROOM does continue at the top of the hour with Fredricka Whitfield.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, Happy New Year.

MARCIANO: Happy New Year on you. What do you have working for us here?

WHITFIELD: Oh boy, well lots going on. Of course a lot of folks want to take advantage of the plummeting home prices. That's not a good thing that the home prices are plummeting, but a lot of folks want to take advantage of that.

How do you get a loan? How do you get a mortgage loan? We're going to be met by an expert this mid day to tell us exactly what you need to do, how to do you get your finances in check, how do you take advantage of some of these plummeting prices.

And Roland Burris, former attorney general for Illinois and he says right now he's the junior senator for Illinois and he wants to head to Washington. So will he be sworn in on Tuesday like other members of Congress? We will see, our Avery Friedman, our legal expert will talk us to about the legal hoops that Roland Burris may be going through and the legal hoops that perhaps other Democratic Congressional leaders who want to block him.

NGUYEN: Could be a show down.

WHITFIELD: Yes, or perhaps even the state. Is he going to go to the state level or federal level? We'll see.

NGUYEN: This continues.

MARCIANO: Less than 10 minutes, we'll see you then, Fred.

NGUYEN: Yes, literally, it does.

All right, well, let's talk about this for a second because corporations, they have placards or names all over different ball games, right?

MARCIANO: Yes, it may sound typical, but we're seeing companies to get taxpayer money to bail them out of the financial crisis. Well Bill Tucker sets his eyes on Citi.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Since Citi won the naming right to the home of the New York Mets back in 2006 and agreed to pay $400 million times have changed. Citi stock has tumbled nearly 87 percent and the company has received $45 billion from taxpayers to bail out the bank and keep it from bankruptcy. The stadium naming deal appears to be backfiring.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean with all those people losing their jobs you know, such as Citibank and then they're giving all of this money to stadiums and stuff when people are unemployed and can't you know find work, then it's not the best thing to put out there in the public.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's a bit of a waste. They should keep the money and put it back into their own business.

TUCKER: Citi is hardly the first to pay big bucks for tie-in to sports. It's also not Citi's only sports sponsorship deal.

ANNOUNCER: The Rose Bowl game presented by Citi on ABC. TUCKER: Nor is Citi the only company bailed out by taxpayers to be dropping hundreds of millions of dollars on a sports team. AIG paid $125 million to the English Premier League Soccer Club Manchester United to have its name plastered across players' chests.

MARK HUGHES, BUZZMARKETING: You and me and every American own AIG so shouldn't we have a shot at having our face on the Manchester United shirt.

TUCKER: Mark Hughes is the marketing man who cooked up the deal that renamed the town Halfway Oregon Half.com after its own Web site. That was a successful deal. A rare deal, Hughes says.

HUGHES: It's a complete ego stroke. I mean, you either see the revenue or you don't. It's plain and simple and I've done those deals and I've looked at the numbers and they don't produce revenue.

TUCKER: Some call it an edifice complex.

STEVE ELLIS, TAXPAYERS FOR COMMON SENSE: These are politically tone deaf maneuvers that really offend the public and offend the taxpayers who are putting billions of dollars into their companies.

TUCKER: And not every corporate sponsorship has a happy ending like the third year $100 million deal Enron signed with the Houston Astros. Bill Tucker, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Well, keeping promises, Barack Obama moving to Washington this weekend, leaving behind a daily vigil near his home in Chicago.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right. So Barack Obama doesn't take the oath of office for more than, what, two weeks from now? But he is already getting a taste of how some Americans will try to get his attention.

MARCIANO: Yes, protestors are braving the frigid cold near his Chicago home to remind him to keep his campaign promises. Our Susan Roesgen spoke with them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is about as close as you can get to Barack Obama's Chicago home these days. There's a cop car on every corner. So anyone who wants to make a political statement is pretty much pushed off to the side. Like this group, small in number, big in spirit.

DR. LORA CHAMBERLAIN, ACTIVIST: I'm sure he knows we're here. He can talk to us.

ROESGEN: These activists represent various local and national groups like Veterans for Peace and Democracy Now. And they've joined forces to promote a list of campaign promises they want Obama to remember, promises to bring the troops home to, stop foreclosures to, make a plan for universal health care.

DAN PEARSON, ACTIVIST: This campaign was to build bridges across the issues. We're working both on the domestic issues as well as globally.

ROESGEN: Except for his trip to Hawaii, it's been go, go, go for the president-elect since his historic victory in November, building his cabinet, choosing advisers, ramping up to become commander-in-chief. But right up until January 20th, inauguration day, this group plans to stay here in eight-hour shifts to send the president-elect a message. "Don't forget about many of the people who helped elect you." You know, it's really cold.

KATHY KELLY, ACTIVIST: You know, one of the people who said that me that it would be pretty cold out here had also said, you know, that will help you identify with people who have been displaced from their homes because of foreclosures.

ROESGEN: And who knows? Perhaps the president-elect will drop by before he sets off for Washington.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Barack could come out and talk us to. Come on, Barack, talk us to!

ROESGEN: Mr. Obama, are you watching? Susan Roesgen, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: That looked like a formal invitation to me.

MARCIANO: I think she called him out on it. Well, the CNN NEWSROOM continues with Fredricka Whitfield.

NGUYEN: Hi, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Well something tells me that he probably notices them. It would be hard to miss.

NGUYEN: He's watching.

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much. You all have a great day.

NGUYEN: You, too.