Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Stimulus or Pork?; Tougher Emission Standards?; Message to Muslims

Aired January 27, 2009 - 14:00   ET

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

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: In red states and blue states, pink slips are going out. The economic problems bipartisan. Can the president find a bipartisan solution, and quick?

Plus:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA , (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:: All too often the United States starts by dictating in the past on some of these issues, and we don't always know all the factors that are involved. So, let's listen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: The president takes to the Arab airwaves looking to network with Muslims all around the world.

(On camera): Hello, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen. In for Kyra Phillips, live at CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

The layoffs, they keep climbing. Consumer confidence keeps falling. But believe it or not, there are job openings out there, and places that are actually hiring. We'll tell you where the help wanted signs are up.

Plus, State Farm Florida pulling out of the property insurance business there. What will that mean in a state that is a real punching bag for bad weather?

Up first, this hour, political capital and economic stimulus. The first is hard to quantify. The second, hard to fathom. One week after taking office, President Obama is back on Capitol Hill on a mission to win Republican support for his $825-billion economic rescue plan. In the past few minutes, he's wrapped up a closed-door meeting with the Republicans in the House and entered a closed-door meeting with Republicans in the Senate. In both cases, the sticking points are tax cuts. Republicans want a lot more. And new government spending, Republicans want a lot less. We'll hear a whole lot more about all of these in the White House media briefing at 3:45 Eastern.

Meanwhile, though, the president has a message for the Muslim World. Americans are not your enemy. In his first formal sit-down interview, as president Mr. Obama tells Al Arabia Television that he'll strive for mutual understanding and mutual respect with the Arabs, Muslims and Palestinians, and that includes potential adversaries.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Iran has acted in ways that's not conducive to peace and prosperity in the region; their threats against Israel; their pursuit of a nuclear weapon which could potentially set off an arms race in the region that would make everybody less safe; their support of terrorist organizations in the past. None of these things have been helpful.

But I do think that it is important for us to be willing to talk to Iran, to express very clearly where our differences are, but where there are potential avenues for progress. And we will, over the next several months, be laying out our general framework and approach, and as I said during my inauguration speech, if countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fists, they will find an extended hand from us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And in just a few minutes, our Foreign Affairs Correspondent Jill Dougherty will show us how the State Department is putting the Obama doctrine into practice.

I want to talk about this right now. A surprise announcement by State Farm Florida today, hitting more than 1 million people. The company says it will pull out of the property insurance market because it's swamped by hurricane losses and the state won't allow a big rate hike. The decision affects home, business and renters' policies, boats and so much more. It does still have to be approved by Florida regulators. CNN's Susan Lisovicz joins us shortly with the details and developments on that front.

Meantime, too worried to spend? Consumer confidence in the economy fell to an all-time low this month. The index measuring consumer sentiment dropped to 37.7 percent in January. That's according to figures today from the Conference Board, which is a business research group. That represents an all-time low going back to 1967 when the index began. Consumers are worried about their jobs, incomes and dwindling retirement accounts.

It is good news, though, if you're in the market for a new home. But not such good news for the overall economy. Home prices fell at a record rate in December. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange with more on these troubling figures.

Hi, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Betty.

You know, we just have had a litany of bad news, as you know, because we're in the midst of the earning season. And we've had many, many job cuts, 70,000 yesterday. We have more that we can talk about today. One of them is Corning, which is cutting about 3,500 jobs. Corning makes LCDs, the liquid crystal display screens, that are not seeing a whole lot of demand. So Corning taking some action there. We're also seeing Texas Instruments. Texas Instruments makes microchips that are used in cell phones. Texas Instruments cutting jobs by about the same amount. And also, something that we hadn't seen until recently. And that is in the energy area. As you know, commodity prices have plummeted recently. And we have an oil field services company, Baker Hughes, cutting about 1,500 jobs. This happening, I think you were talking, Betty, about the drop in consumer confidence. That was something that really sort of affected the market early on when that report came out.

But right now we seem to have a little bit of a rally going on. Kind of a nervous marketplace that we're seeing. Also I just want to mention one other thing we got today. And that is a report from the federal government which shows just how prevalent job cuts were in December. We're not even into the month of January. December we saw a plunge in all 50 states, and the District of Columbia. Not only a drop from November, but from the -- from a year earlier, the same period, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says it's never really seen that before. So it just goes to show you the depths of the recession and what's happening as it concerns job cuts.

Right now we have a little bit of a rally. As I mentioned, a little bit of a rally. I'll be talking to you later, Betty.

NGUYEN: All right, Susan.

Speaking of cuts that you were just talking about, State Farm is deciding to cut out of the business in Florida when it comes to home insurance and other things of the like. This is a big shock for the people there, getting this news, as it was for us when we read it on the wires today.

LISOVICZ: It is a big shock. And, you know, when you think about what's happened in Florida in recent years, just I mean, with the weather, you know, insurance companies have taken huge hits, whether it's storm damage from hurricanes, from flooding, and it's a terrible time as it is. Insurance companies, need I mention, AIG. So they're trying to, how shall I say, stem their risks as well. And what's happening is, it's leaving customers high and dry, literally, in some cases, Betty.

NGUYEN: Yeah, all right. Susan Lisovicz joining us live. Thank you for that, Susan.

LISOVICZ: You're welcome.

NGUYEN: A day after the economy lost some 71,000 jobs, let's add to it, a couple more companies on that list. Corning, the glassmaker, announced today that it will slash 3,500 jobs. Baker Hughes, the world's third largest oil field services company, cutting 1,500 jobs. Talk to Chief Business Correspondent Ali Velshi, right now, about this worsening job situation.

Ali, the president wants to create or save 3 million to 4 million jobs. How and where? ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Create or save? That's the interesting language that the administration is now using. Because there's some sense we're going to continue to lose jobs. So this administration would like to lose fewer jobs and then hopefully create.

Let me give a little background. In a healthy economy, the U.S. economy, we should be adding about 100,000 jobs a month just to stay level. That's because there's an increase in the working age population. More people come into the work force than retire. As a result, if you're not gaining about 1.2 million jobs a year, you're actually going backward.

In 2008, we didn't gain the 1.2, we lost 2.6. We're actually down sort of 3 million from where we are now. We continue to shed jobs. We've seen in the last, well, the last month we've lost over 150,000 jobs. At least we've had announcements of that.

Betty, the administration says that part of the stimulus plan will be to directly create jobs. Let me show you how they say that will break down. They say they can create 3 million to 4 million jobs, adding 678,000 jobs in construction. That's from the stimulus program, the actual infrastructure building program.

But look at the other ones: 408,000 in manufacturing. That's where we've lost jobs over the last decade. Almost every month for the last several years we've lost manufacturing jobs. 604,000 in retail, how do you add jobs to retail in an environment where people aren't spending? Well, you give them money to spend, maybe that's where people get the $500 back.

Education and health care, 240,000 jobs. That's not a tough one. Because we've actually been seeing growth in both of those areas over the last year. Two of the rare areas that there is growth. Tourism, hospitality and leisure, 499,000 jobs. Again, that's an easy one, if people have money to spend and they think there's a future, they'll start booking those vacations again. And with the U.S. dollar where it is, they'll probably still enjoying traveling within the United States. Others will come to the U.S., as well. And government jobs, about 244,000.

So, Betty, this is what the administration says will result from its stimulus package, if it's passed. And it will work toward stemming the job losses that we've seen so far.

NGUYEN: All right. Ali, we do appreciate it. Thank you for that.

As we told you just a few minutes ago, there are companies out there hiring. KFC, AT&T, AIMCO, United Health Care Group, and AFLAC, to name just a few. Good places to look, if you're looking. We're going to put more companies that are hiring up on your screen between now and the bottom of the hour. So stay tuned for that.

And brace yourself. All the way from Texas to the East Coast, because a powerful winter storm is dumping snow and ice on a big swath of the country this hour. Every county in Oklahoma is under a state of emergency right now. The situation is pretty much the same in Missouri and Arkansas. All three states have reported a rash of highway crashes and traffic deaths.

In all, nearly two dozen states are under winter storm warnings. Parts of New England are expecting up to a foot of snow. Watching all of this for us is Chad Myers. He's been tracking this big storm from the CNN Severe Weather Center.

Chad, any chance this thing is going to be done anytime soon?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: For Oklahoma and Texas, yes, because it's already been there. For everybody else, absolutely not, Betty.

No, this is on its way for you. Albany, Schenectady, Capital District, all the way back into Vermont and New Hampshire. Great skiing, if you can get there. Maybe you need to leave now to get to the snow.

Because it is, in some places, south of there, I mean, south of Sugarbush, you might get ice mixed in, too, and that's never good to ski in. But at least you're getting something natural, rather than the manmade stuff. But it is now snowing in D.C. It will snow all night tonight, a couple inches, even ice on the ground tomorrow. Maybe they'll cancel school, or whatever. The problem is, it will be 38, almost 40 degrees by tomorrow afternoon. There you see snow on the capitol there for you for today. You need to be careful tonight.

The big story, I think, I've been looking at Traffic.com. It's a fabulous web site. You can go on there and see traffic from all over the country. But if you notice, traffic's doing OK right now. I believe at sunset tonight, that the temperatures on the ground will get below 32 everywhere where it's raining or sleeting or snowing right now, the roads are going to get bad all at one time. Literally in 15 to 20 minutes, the roads are going to go from wet to white and that's going to be ice. And it could be black ice as well.

The storm does track to the west of New York City. How is that important? New York, Philadelphia and D.C., you do get some snow to start. But because the storm tracks to your west, that is actually going to allow southerly winds to come in, warm it up, and turn everything to rain for awhile. Washing away your mess that will still be there tomorrow morning. New York City, you'll don't even get rid of the ice until 10:00 tomorrow morning. And then by 2 o'clock its all rain. But tomorrow morning is going to be a nightmare of a rush hour in New York City.

Tomorrow, what they call that? A train day. Don't try to drive into the city. It's 41 right now for a high in Nashville. You can see the line between the warm and the cold. This is the warm air pumping up over the cold air. Kansas City, Chicago and Columbus. Cincinnati, you're in for a lot of snow as well, and changing to ice. At least you have the snow under it, maybe a little bit of traction, Betty.

NGUYEN: Always finding the silver lining for us.

MYERS: Maybe.

NGUYEN: Thank you, Chad.

MYERS: Sure.

NGUYEN: We do appreciate it.

Well, our iReporters are sending us a lot of great pictures and videos of this big winter storm. We'll check them out with Jacqui Jeras later in this hour in the NEWSROOM.

In the meantime, the war in Afghanistan, is it another Iraq? Defense Secretary Gates says in many ways it's something much worse.

And the president's new stimulus plan, is it more pork than beef? We'll get to the meat of the issue.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Republicans in the House were closing ranks against the president's plan, even before he showed up today. CNN's Brianna Keilar is following the back-and-forth.

Brianna, any sign of a breakthrough?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: No sign of a breakthrough, Betty.

I want to tell you, at this very moment, President Obama is meeting with Senate Republicans. This, a meeting that comes after he met with House Republicans, and basically did a Q&A session with them, where Republicans got up, fired questions at him to get answers. And after this meeting, House Republican leaders came out and they said, they're very grateful for this time. And that they have the president's ear. But as I said, no breakthrough, even ahead of this vote tomorrow in the House, with a lot of Republicans not onboard.

Listen to what President Obama said after the meeting. And after that we're also going to show you what John Boehner, the top Republican in the House, said after the meeting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: We had a very constructive meeting with the House members, members of the Republican Caucus. I'm a little bit late for my Senate colleagues, former Senate colleagues. And the main message I have is the statistics every day underscore the urgency of the economic situation. The American people expect action.

They want us to put together a recovery package that puts people back to work, that creates investments that assure our long-term energy independence, an effective health care system, an education system that works. They want our infrastructure rebuilt, and they want it done wisely so that we're not wasting taxpayer money.

REP. JOHN BOEHNER, HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: Agreement over some of the tax cuts that are in the package, we're clearly in agreement with that. It's just that we don't think the tax package is large enough. And secondly, you know, the concern over spending. The president did say he has some concerns over some of the spending proposals that he sees in this bill.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: So you heard, there, John Boehner saying there is agreement over some of the tax cuts in the plan. But make no mistake about it, this is a big sticking point. There is huge disagreements between Republicans , especially in the House, and the Obama team, the Democrats about how to structure the biggest tax cut.

In fact, one Republican aide, and keep in mind this is a Republican aide, who was in the meeting, we didn't get this obviously from a Democrat. And he said that when President Obama was asked about finding common ground on tax cuts, he said still free to whack me over the head because I probably will not compromise on that part.

I think, Betty, that shows you no breakthrough. There's still a lot to go here. There's a vote tomorrow. What I just heard from John Boehner, who I ran into and was talking with, he said there's going to be more dialog over the next week or two. Obviously Republicans are looking into the future and not expecting a breakthrough here in the next day. Make no mistake about that, Betty.

NGUYEN: But meetings are still taking place right now. And let me ask you this before that vote tomorrow, we heard the president say, when it comes to tax cuts, I may not budge on that. But what about government spending? Any room there?

KEILAR: Well, see that's the really interesting point is, there's quite a bit of spending. I mean, $575 billion of this $825 billion is spending. We've heard the Democrats, for instance, are going to pull away, like $200 million for -- it was basically family planning, contraception for low-income families. This was something that Republicans really seized upon. And so some sign that they're maybe kind throwing some small carrots at Republicans. But Republicans say that's $200 million out of $825 billion. It's not really a lot. And it's unclear exactly what each side will give on this spending issue. It's a big sticking point. It was the big sticking point last week, Betty. And it will continue to be. You don't see Democrats saying, OK, we're going to really reduce the size of the spending here.

NGUYEN: Obviously we're going to be talking much more about it. It will probably be the big sticking point as the president meets with Senate Republicans at this hour. We'll hear from them a little bit later.

Thank you, Brianna.

KEILAR: You bet.

NGUYEN: You know a stark warning today from Defense Secretary Robert Gates. The war in Afghanistan is going to be long, tough, and in many ways, more difficult than the war in Iraq.

In his first comments to Congress, as President Obama's Defense chief, Gates said it's going to be a costly mistake to get bogged down in the unrealistic goal of turning Afghanistan into a prosperous nation. He also said three more brigades of troops could be sent to Afghanistan by late summer. He said President Obama will continue missile strikes against Al Qaeda targets in Pakistan.

I want to take you back now to President Obama's outreach to the Muslim world. The same day his newly hired Middle East envoy set out on a listening tour of the region, Mr. Obama gave his first formal interview as president to Al Arabiya Television. He made it clear it's a new day on the diplomatic front. And that brings us to CNN's Jill Dougherty, at the State Department.

So, Jill, tell us what this change really means?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Betty, first of all, there's been positive reaction, the State Department says, to that interview on Al Arabiya. The message, as you mentioned, is really a new one. It became very clear as the president was discussing the role of George Mitchell, who was a special envoy to the Middle East, who is on his trip right now. That message is, they are in listening mode, and the United States is not going to tell the world what to do.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I think the most important thing is for the United States to get engaged right away. And George Mitchell is somebody of enormous stature. He is one of the few people who have international experience brokering peace deals. And so what I've told him is start by listening, because all too often the United States starts by dictating, in the past, on some of these issues. And we don't always know all the factors that are involved. So let's listen. He's going to be speaking to all the major parties involved. And he will then report back to me. From there, we will formulate a specific response.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOUGHERTY: So in terms of what Mitchell realistically can do, essentially he has two jobs, one short term and one long term. Short term he's going to try to work on that tenuous ceasefire in Gaza between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Try to solidify that. One way would be to stop some of the arms going into Gaza that could rearm Hamas.

Long term, he's going to try to work with the partners in the Middle East, and other places, to solidify and bring back on track, actually, the long-term prospects for peace between Israel and Palestine. And, of course, not inconsequential is, they want to make sure that the image of the United States internationally is improved. And that means that the United States is back using diplomacy to try to help to improve the situation, Betty.

NGUYEN: All right. Jill Dougherty, thank you so much for that report.

Well, New York has a new junior senator today. Kirsten Gillibrand was sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden about 90 minutes ago. The Democratic congresswoman was tapped by New York Governor David Paterson to fill Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's old Senate seat. Gillibrand has served two years as a congresswoman from upstate New York. But is still a fresh face on Capitol Hill. At age 42, she is the youngest U.S. senator.

There's a new treasurer in town, in Washington, D.C., that is. And with him, come new rules about lobbyists and your money.

And is this the right place, the right time, for an annual event known for its glitz and A-list stars as well as top economic czars and CEOs? We'll take you to the World Economic Forum at a Swiss ski resort.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: OK, so it is the inner sanctum of the Obama presidency, the maze of rooms which make up the West Wing of the White House. So, does proximity to the president mean power? You decide as CNN's John Roberts takes us on a virtual tour.

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Betty, in the world of the West Wing, access is everything and proximity is power. Let's take a look at the way President Obama has set up the West Wing in his administration.

Just to orient you here, we've got the Oval Office up here, in the top left. In the lower left we've got the Cabinet room. The Roosevelt Room in the center. This is the main West Wing entrance here, where the dignitaries and visitors would come in.

So, let's take a look at who is just outside of the Oval Office. That would be the president's secretary, Katie Johnson and personal assistant Reggie Love. Reggie Love you are going to see a lot of, because every time President Obama speaks publicly, they have a podium there, Reggie Love will be the one who, two minutes before the president speaks, will walk out there to put the notes on the podium, and will say to the press two minutes now, until the president speaks.

Down here, at the bottom of the screen, in one of the most spacious offices is the press secretary's office. That's Robert Gibbs. It's big enough to, in a pre-9/11 world allow about 15 or 20 reporters to come, for what is called "The Daily Gaggle". Where the press secretary, whether it be Joe Lockhart, or in the early days Ari Fleischer, of the Bush administration, to run through the agenda for the day. Let some reporters ask a few questions. That gaggle now takes place in the larger press room with more seating.

There also is a lovely fireplace in that office. That's a prime piece of real estate there that Robert Gibbs occupies.

Over here in the lower right-hand side, that's the National Security Adviser, General James Jones' office. Of course, his deputy is over here to the left. Just above General Jones, as we get closer to the Oval Office, the vice president's office. The upper right-hand corner, that's where Rahm Emanuel lives. And his two deputies occupy two offices here in the center. And then as we get even closer to the Oval Office, getting closer to the nexus of power, Pete Rouse, who is the senior advisor to President Obama. He was Tom Daschle's former chief of staff. And then right next door to the president's study, that's where the senior strategist, David Axelrod, lives. This is a small office. But believe me, it is a powerful one. It actually has a door that leads into the president's study.

So when you look at the hierarchy here, David Axelrod, right now is the guy. Even though Rahm Emanuel will run the day to day operations in the White House, he's a little further down the hall than David Axelrod. So, he's got the position of power in this White House right next to the president. He's the one that will have a tremendous amount of access. As you can see, that's the way this administration lines up.

NGUYEN: Well, there is a new secretary of treasury in town. Timothy Geithner has been confirmed, sworn in, and he's already making some changes at the Treasury. He's got billions, your billions in his hands. And today he announced steps that would take President Obama's reforms to the bailout program a few steps further.

Now, Geithner's plan would protect you, the taxpayer. For starters, it keeps lobbyists away from the people who are doling out bailout money, and it requires regular reports to Congress showing that the bailout money was handed out using objective standards.

And the plan would track banks' lending practices. Now, that would make sure they're using taxpayer money for consumer borrowing.

The big goal here? More accountability, transparency, and oversight.

Well, there is surely a lot to grasp as the president and lawmakers work on a financial rescue plan. Starting tonight, our own Lou Dobbs will go through these recovery proposals line by line, item by item, working to separate the pork from the truly helpful. Lou's "Line Item Veto" beginning tonight at 7:00 Eastern.

And states may have to do without more federal funding for family planning services. House Democrats are talking about eliminating the provision from the stimulus package to attract more Republican support.

CNN's Ines Ferre looks at what else the GOP considers wasteful.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

INES FERRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Obama says the economic stimulus bill has no earmarks. But it's filled with spending for projects that critics say won't stimulate the economy.

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), MINORITY LEADER: It has an awful lot of wasteful spending and slow moving spending that won't create jobs and won't help preserve jobs in America.

FERRE: House Minority Leader John Boehner, for example, has attacked a provision that helps states expand family planning services, other spending receiving scrutiny, $50 million for the national endowment for the arts to help arts groups and 140 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for climate data modeling, $6 billion to construct, renovate and improve energy efficiency at federal buildings, and 200 million to renovate the National Mall. Most of the money is geared towards government agencies who in turn will use it to create jobs, but taxpayer groups say the bill lacks specifics to ensure that lasting jobs are created.

THOMAS SCHATZ, CITIZENS AGAINST GOVT. WASTE: There's no setting of priorities. There's no clear evidence which programs will work better than others. And members of Congress will be calling federal agencies directing them where to spend the money, and that's when all of the pork will appear on the back end of this legislation.

FERRE: The legislation states that none of the money can be used for building casinos, aquariums, zoos, golf courses or swimming pools. But critics are quick to point out that many provisions give federal agencies plenty of flexibility in how they spend the money.

Ines Ferre, CNN, New York

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And as we have told you, there are companies out there hiring. Here's a look at some of them.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right. So with the world in what seems more and more like an economic quagmire, why are some of the world's biggest movers and shakers at a ski resort in Davos, Switzerland?

Well, CNN's Richard Quest is at the World Economic Forum to find out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Registration at Davos, it's the perfect place to ask, "Why did you bother coming?"

MICHAEL GRANOFF, PARTICIPANT: There is probably no other time or no other place in the world that gets all of the decision-makers, policymakers together in one place at one time.

QUEST: In good times that may be true, but surely today people should be staying at home, tending their business.

MI-HYUNG KIM, EXEC. VP, KUMHO ASIANA: You have a point there. But still, it's great to hear what other people have to say about how this crisis came about and to see what their vision for the solutions are.

QUEST: The search for solutions tells me my question is off the mark. You can be here and tend to your business.

RICK GOINGS, CEO, TUPPERWARE: They're not mutually exclusive. Absolutely not. I'd be better off here. As a matter of fact, I've been this week in Moscow, Warsaw, Zurich. Our business is out here.

QUEST: And just being here means you get to learn what everyone else is thinking.

BENJAMIN ZANDER, CONDUCTOR: Tending (ph) to business is working in the mud. That's working. We've got to stand back, take a look, take a long view, take the mountaintop view, and we'll see something beyond which we can't see now.

QUEST: Obviously having made the decision to come here, no one's going to say it's a waste of time yet.

(on camera): So, for the delegates, Davos is still relevant, bringing together the practical and the philosophical, melding the problems of today with solutions tomorrow.

Richard Quest, CNN, Davos.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Well, you may want to call it tailpipe politics. The president is pushing his going green plan. Stricter vehicle emissions standards should protect the planet, but will your wallet take a hit?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: President Obama moved aggressively yesterday to put his green action plan in motion. He ordered the EPA to reconsider whether individual states may set their own vehicle emission standards. Would that lead to higher gas prices or big savings at the gas pump?

Well, CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow has our "Energy Fix" from New York.

And Poppy, it's a big question that they've been debating.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: It's a big question, and really a significant announcement from President Obama yesterday. And if he gets his way, California and about a dozen other states, Betty, will adopt their own emission guidelines. They'll be tougher than the federal standards currently are.

The National Auto Dealers Association says, well, this is just going to create problems, because it's going to mean a patchwork of regulations spread across the country. They say meeting each state's individual requirements is going to take money; some estimate billions and billions of dollars. They also -- critics say this could lead to fewer car choices, coupled with higher prices. No one wants to see that right now.

Just how much this could cost you and me, that's anyone's guess. There are some estimates ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 that we could see taxed onto the price of a vehicle, Betty. But this is all really just guessing at this point.

NGUYEN: Yes, OK. So, better emissions, higher fuel efficiency.

I mean, wouldn't people save money because they're buying less gas? So wouldn't that kind of equal out in the end? HARLOW: That's what people that support this say. One environmentalist that we spoke to says, listen, the up-front car costs would be at least partially offset by the savings in gas prices, especially if we see a spike in prices like we did this summer.

Take a listen to what he told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID YARNOLD, ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND: The automakers have consistently highballed their estimates of what innovation costs. And they're capable just as the rest of the economy is capable of producing fabulous new innovations, creating new jobs, and putting money in Americans' pockets. They will ultimately cause American taxpayers to save hundreds of dollars at the pump. This is a win-win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: He thinks it's a win-win, that's for sure.

Even more important, really, though, than the gas savings, Betty, President Obama says, listen, this is going to help the U.S. automakers prepare for the future, make viable U.S. automakers. You hear that word so much. Says it's going to force them to put smaller cars, more hybrids, more new technologies on showroom floors and, of course, lessen our dependence on foreign oil.

And what you want to keep in mind here is that if this does go through, it's likely that California, along with a group of other states, will agree on one standard rather than a lot of different states setting their own standard. That's a big concern right now -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes, that may avoid some of the confusion, too.

HARLOW: Yes.

NGUYEN: All right, Poppy. Thank you for that.

HARLOW: You're welcome.

NGUYEN: Listen to this story. A drum major drummed out after he's punished for his parade protocol. So what did he do to President Obama that earned him a six-month suspension?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: As always, team Sanchez is back there working hard on the next hour of NEWSROOM.

Rick, what do you have cooking?

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to be cutting to the change, as we usually do. And the change today involves a couple of things.

The stimulus package, obviously that's extremely important, especially today, because today we have a brand-new secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Geithner. And it's going to have an impact on exactly how the job situation in the United States, which I don't know if you've heard, but you've probably been looking at your own e-mails and some of the wires. Just, in the last couple of hours, it's even got even worse -- 71,000 lost yesterday -- 71,000 jobs.

NGUYEN: That's incredible.

SANCHEZ: I mean, that's incredible. But, you know, when you really speak of change, you know what the big change was? You know what the big change was? Think about a president of the United States reaching out to Muslims around the world, almost competing with Osama bin Laden, saying, you shouldn't see us as your enemy to Muslims.

That's change when you consider the message that was sent over the last eight years in this country. I mean, that's change in this case. Saying to his envoy who's going to the Middle East, George Mitchell, saying to him, I want you to go over there and tell them that you're willing to listen to them, as opposed to tell them what to do, that's change.

So those are probably two of the biggest themes that we're going to be talking about today -- Betty.

NGUYEN: All right. We'll be talking about it as well, getting some reaction from the Muslim world on that interview.

SANCHEZ: All right.

NGUYEN: Thank you, Rick.

SANCHEZ: Sure.

NGUYEN: Now to Los Angeles for a family tragedy. And police are treating the case as a murder/suicide.

Authorities found the bodies of five children and two adults in a home where they had been shot to death. All of the children under 10 years old. Police tell the "Los Angeles Times" the children and their mother apparently were shot by the father, who then apparently killed himself.

All right. Listen to this story. A drum major has been drummed out of his marching band for six months, punishment for his behavior at the inaugural parade last week. And wait until you see what firefighter John Coleman did that got him banned.

Details from Duane Pohlman of our Cleveland affiliate WEWS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DUANE POHLMAN, REPORTER, WEWS (voice-over): During the inaugural parade in Washington, Coleman, the drum major, proudly marched the Cleveland Firefighters Memorial Pipes and Drum Corps past the president. And that's when it happened. Coleman says he looked over at the reviewing stand and saw the president waving. JOHN COLEMAN, FIREFIGHTER/DRUM MAJOR: Cold, but I just had to glance over. Made eye contact with the president, and just gave a nod of a -- you know, that -- acknowledging him. And then just a slight wave. With the president, you know, I could not just ignore him.

POHLMAN: But the corps, which insisted on military protocol, says Coleman went too far. Some even say he winked at the president.

(on camera): Did you wink?

COLEMAN: No. I was told -- everybody kept telling me, "You winked at the president. You winked at the president." But if you play the tape slowly, it shows me giving the nod. And as I gave the nod, both of my eyes are closed.

POHLMAN (voice-over): Wink or not, the bandleader suspended Coleman for six months for conduct unbecoming the corps. Coleman was told on the bus as the corps arrived back in Cleveland.

COLEMAN: Six months is pretty harsh, I think.

POHLMAN: Coleman, the fire inspector for Cleveland Heights who has been with the band for 17 years, worries more about the corps' image than his own.

COLEMAN: And I don't want to see any negativity coming to the pipe band.

POHLMAN: But that doesn't mean he agrees with the suspension. He doesn't. And when it comes to that moment, that nod, that wave...

(on camera): Would you do it again?

COLEMAN: Sure.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: All right then.

Well, city commissioners, they just voted to raise electric rates in Bay City, Michigan. But listen to this -- less than two weeks after an elderly man froze to death in his unheated home. The 93-year-old had gotten several months behind on his electric bill, so the utility restricted power flow to the house. They put a notice on his door, which was still there when neighbors found his body and money set aside to pay those bills.

City officials call this a tragedy. And indeed, it is. They say they are reevaluating how they handle delinquent accounts.

Look at this. A FedEx cargo plane crashed on landing and caught fire in Lubbock, Texas, early this morning. Both crewmembers walked away from the plane and have been released from the hospital.

The ATR twin turboprop plane landed in the grass just short of the runway in freezing mist. But an airport official wouldn't say if weather was a factor in that crash.

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK H. OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My job is to communicate the fact that the United States has a stake in the well being of the Muslim world, that the language we use has to be language of respect. You know, I have Muslim members of my family.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure.

OBAMA: I have lived in Muslim countries.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The largest one.

OBAMA: In the largest one, Indonesia. And so what I want to communicate is the fact that in all my travels throughout the Muslim world, what I've come to understand is, is that regardless of your faith -- and America's a country of Muslim, Jews, Christians, nonbelievers -- regardless of your faith, people all have certain common hopes and common dreams. And my job is to communicate to the American people that the Muslim world is filled with extraordinary people who simply want to live their lives and see their children live better lives.

My job for the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy. We sometimes make mistakes. We have not been perfect. But if you look at the track record -- as you say, America was not born as a colonial power, and that the same respect and partnership that America had with the Muslim world as recently as 20 or 30 years ago, there's no reason why we can't restore that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And that is President Obama's message to the Muslim world via Al-Arabiya Television yesterday.

So how is the Muslim world reacting to this?

For that, I'm here in the international section of the CNN NEWSROOM.

Octavia Nasr, our international affairs editor, joins me now.

You've been monitoring this since this interview was granted. How is the Muslim world reacting to it?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS EDITOR: Very positively, I must say. This is very interesting, especially that bite that you picked there.

President Obama is naming himself basically ambassador both ways. He's saying I'm going to teach the American people about the Muslim world, I'm going to teach the Muslim world about the American people. A very interesting role.

NGUYEN: And he said, "We are not your enemy."

NASR: "We are not your enemy." He's talking about peace. He's talking about open hands. Talking about listening, not dictating.

The Arab world, the Muslim world is picking up on all these and they're dissecting them as we speak. And so far, the reaction is positive.

You know, you have those who are very cautious, saying, look, this is dreamovision (ph), we don't know where this is going to go, this is just talk, we're going to see the actions. But the majority of people are positive about it. They feel that President Obama has chosen Al- Arabiya as a vehicle...

NGUYEN: Why did he choose Al-Arabiya?

NASR: That is a good question. We don't know, of course. We didn't hear from him why he chose them.

But when you look at the Arab world, for example, you have Al-Arabiya, you have Al-Jazeera. By the way, Al-Jazeera did not touch this story. They're not reporting anything.

NGUYEN: They're not reporting it at all?

NASR: At all. Of course, competition is fierce there, and they wouldn't want to give any attention to a competitor. But at the same time, they're not even reporting on the information that was said, which is interesting.

We asked them, of course, for reaction. We asked them why they made that decision. We still haven't heard from them.

But going back to how people are reacting to all this, this is a big deal. They're looking at this as a big deal, and basically seeing President Obama as someone who started well. And they feel that he's going to end it well as well.

NGUYEN: Yes, less than a week in office, he's already sending a message out to the Muslim world.

Thank you for that, Octavia. We do appreciate it.

And of course we're going to be delving much more into this with CNN's Rick Sanchez right now in the NEWSROOM.

President Obama is making a concerted effort to repair U.S. relations with the Muslim world.>