Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Kentucky Severe Weather; Obama Stimulus Plan; Peanut Butter Recall Prompts Criminal Investigation; Inside a Bank Failure; D.C. Restaurant Business Looking Up

Aired January 31, 2009 - 15:00   ET

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

Days after a crippling ice storm, the numbers are staggering. Almost a million people from the southern plains to the east coast are still without power. In Kentucky, it's the worst power outage in that state's history. Now the governor has ordered an unprecedented total call-up of the National Guard.

CNNs Susan Candiotti reports now from Louisville.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kentucky's governor says there's a lot of work to be done throughout the state, but at least some progress is being made. At its height, more than 700,000 people were without power as of Friday. But as of today, that number has been whittled down to less than 500,000.

The hardest-hit part of the state are the western counties where we understand that people there are still without water and obviously a lot of people still without electricity as well. The governor's emergency management office tells me this afternoon that FEMA teams are hard at work, generators are on their way, especially to critical care facilities, including hospitals and nursing homes and places where emergency officials are working as well. Those are the first priorities for those generators so that those people can be taken care of.

And fuel that's coming into the state also servicing those generators first. They're also being used to get water treatment facilities back online. But one of the early lessons that is already being learned, according to emergency management officials, is how badly their communications systems were working when all of the telephones went out. Cell phones went out. Phones went out. And so they found themselves relying on only satellite phones.

And they found that so many places did not have access to ham radios because those, of course, were still working. So they said in the future, they're going to start equipping more emergency offices with those ham radios to get them through all of this.

Now, the temperatures are expected to warm up tomorrow. And so that could help certainly the utility crews that are working here around the clock to restore electricity to so many homes.

This is Susan Candiotti, CNN, in Louisville, Kentucky.

LONG: We are waiting for a live update from the mayor of Louisville. He is expected to step to the podium at any time. As soon as we see Jerry Abramson today, we'll let you hear what he has to say.

In the meantime let's bring in Jacqui Jeras from the CNN Weather Center. Jacqui, Susan was just saying we're expecting a warm-up tomorrow in Kentucky?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGSIT: Yes, in fact temperatures are warming as we speak. We might get above that freezing mark today for the first time in places like Louisville and Paducah since the power went out. So it's good some of that is taking place. Temperatures in the upper 20s, pushing into the lower 30s and tomorrow will be warmer still.

Here you can see the forecast for Louisville in particular over the next five days. We could be well into the middle and upper 40s by tomorrow. But a cold front is approaching bringing a chance of snow showers and then cooler temperatures again as we start the middle of the week. We have a lot of I-reports in. I want to show you -- it kind of helps to explain the impact of some of these areas. Take a look at that tree that just fell on the car. The sheer weight of the ice as it accumulates on the branches on the power lines is what brings it down.

We get these I-reports from Mike Watt; he is from Mayfield, Kentucky. And that's just south of the Paducah area, if you're not familiar with it. Mike says it's the worst storm that he's ever seen. He doesn't have power. Most of the city doesn't have power. He's hearing it's going to take three weeks to get them. This picture in particular I just love because it shows those tree branches bending over. As the temperatures warm up now, all that ice is going to be cracking off, falling down. That's a big hazard because that can land on your head and it can hurt you. In addition to that when it breaks off of the tree branches, those branches are going to snap right back up. You don't want to stand next to it when it happens because that will be a rain shower of ice as well.

All right. Here is our southerly flow ahead of our next clipper. That clipper is going to drop on through tomorrow through your Monday and Tuesday brings a light chance of snow showers, maybe 50 percent. Not anticipating much for accumulating snow, but it will change our wind direction back to the northwest and pull in some of that cooler air.

The good news is that as the storm moves southward and develops and moves up to the north and east, we don't think it's going to be a major impact for you folks. So that's the good news is that the storm will move through. Try to talk more good news when I see you in a little bit. Try to sneak in a super bowl forecast.

LONG: Looking forward to that. That's one of the most important forecasts for the weekend.

President Obama making an urgent appeal for his economic stimulus plan today. Senators are expected to vote on the recovery package next week. In his weekly address, the president says it will get the economy moving again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE U.S: This week, the house passed the American recovery and reinvestment plan, which will save or create more than 3 million jobs over the next few years. It puts a tax cut into the pockets of working families and places a down payment on America's future by investing in energy independence and education, affordable health care and American infrastructure. Now this recovery plan moves to the Senate. I will continue working with both parties so that the strongest possible bill gets to my desk. With the stakes so high, we simply cannot afford the same old gridlock and partisan posturing in Washington.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LONG: Many Republicans oppose this recovery plan as it stands. They say it's filled with spending programs that won't stimulate the economy in the short run.

And now, whether you're an executive, an average employee, we want to hear from you today. What are you doing to keep your job or maybe you're looking for work right now. E-mail us your thoughts, your perspective to CNN.com. That's WEEKENDS@CNN.com. Or send us an I- report. You can go to the I-report main page of ireport.com.

The reason I'm saying this is because during the 4:00 p.m. Eastern hour today of CNN NEWSROOM we're going to dedicate it to people seeking employment. We're going to focus on finding new job, coping with the loss of a job, learning how to reinvent yourself as well in the marketplace. That and so much more in the 4:00 p.m. Eastern hour of CNN NEWSROOM.

A luncheon with foreign policy and a dinner with elite politicians and the president, two highlights of Sarah Palin's Saturday schedule in D.C. The Alaska governor is there in Washington just a week after taking a critical step to making a national comeback? Joining us now is CNN's deputy political director Paul Steinhauser. Paul nice to see you again. That possible political comeback comes after the formation of a political action committee, some saying this is laying the ground work for 20e 12.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Yes, some say that because it's a traditional way for people thinking maybe down the road running for president. It kind of puts them in the game. This is called Sarah Pac, a political action committee. What Sara Pac does is it raises money and it will give money to fellow Republican candidates. It's a way of kind of quietly establishing the ground work for a presidential run if that's what they want to do.

Sarah Palin said, the Alaska governor said the start-up of this Pac doesn't mean she's running for president in 2012 but it's interesting to note the two other people that may want to run in '12, Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee who ran this past time, they have their own Pacs.

So kind of puts her in the game Melissa.

LONG: Reading her schedule for today I understand that she had dinner last night, meetings today and the alfalfa dinner tonight, a raucous event?

STEINHAUSER: Yes the Alfalfa Club is a very elite; I guess you could call it a Washington a-listers club from top people in the business and political world. She will be at the dinner tonight and so will President Obama. President George W. Bush went to the Alfalfa dinner every year and now President Obama looks like he's keeping that tradition alive. They do a lot of humorous acts and skits there. No cameras allowed. No pictures of Obama and Palin if they meet.

It is one of the things she's doing in her jaunt to D.C. for the weekend as you mentioned she had a dinner last night with other top politicians on both sides of the aisle and top business leaders. She also today is going to the bipartisan think tank that deals with foreign policy. She's also meeting with members of her Alaska office that work here and worked for the state of Alaska here in D.C. So a busy schedule for her.

LONG: The dinner tonight technically off the record. What are we hearing from the governor on the record today?

STEINHAUSER: This is interesting. Nothing. She's not doing interviews. Sarah Palin, since the election has been quite busy. We've seen a lot of Sarah Palin. Of course she was John McCain's running mate during the 2008 campaign. She's done a lot of interviews in the last couple of months, the last three months since the election but she is not doing any this weekend as of now unless she surprises us.

And her communications director from up in Alaska says that's part of the plan that she wanted to come to Washington to lobby Senators and other lawmakers to help out with Alaska and their tough times with their economy rather than talking to the media.

LONG: Interesting. From Washington, D.C., our deputy political director Paul Steinhauser. Paul a pleasure. Thank you.

STEINHAUSER: Thank you.

LONG: Have a nice Saturday.

The Republican National Committee has elected its first African- American chairman. That's former Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele. Chosen as the new face of the GOP. It took six heavily contended rounds of voting. The party chose Steele over four other candidates including former President Bush's hand picked GOP chief.

Another of President Obama's cabinet picks is having tax problems. Former Senator Tom Daschle the nominee for health and human services secretary. Recently paid $150,000 in back taxes and interest. The tax trouble stems from his consulting work, some non qualifying charitable contributions and the use of a borrowed car and driver. Daschle told the Senate Finance Committee about it himself. The panel will meet on Monday to talk about it.

Today for the first time in four years, Iraqis went to the polls. But in this election and the one in 2005 couldn't be any more different. From the security and the mood and the makeup of the voters. Let's go to CNN international correspondent Arwa Damon who joins us live from Baghdad. Arwa.

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Melissa. Those elections by and large are being called very successful. Officials are saying that their assessment of turnout is quite good. But even more importantly, there were no significant acts of violence. And these elections are critical for a number of reasons, even though they are on the provincial level. First and foremost, those that are going to be elected into power are going to have regional control over essentials, like basic services and jobs.

There are many differences between the elections that we saw taking place today and those that took place back in 2005. First and foremost is Sunni participation. Remember the Sunnis boycotted in 2005 and many analysts are saying that that led to imbalances within the governing powers that served as being one of the key factors in the sectarian blood shed that we saw afterward. So Sunni participation very key.

Also many Iraqis saying they're now much more aware of what they're voting for, what their vote really means, what the Democratic process is all about. All the Iraqis we met out there by and large saying they were very happy, very proud of Iraq today, and very proud to be taking part in this process. But as well as everything did go today, there are still very critical times ahead as the votes are being tallied.

And this is because, as the United Nations has been pointing out, these results have to be widely accepted. They have to be credible as one Iraqi official put it; this goes not exactly the kind of nation where the losers simply congratulate the winners. And there are concerns that perhaps those losers could end up resorting to violence.

LONG: 14,000 people interested in political office. What type of a time line are we looking at right now to see real final results?

DAMON: Well, we're expecting some sort of preliminary results over the next few days. We won't be seeing official results, though. At best maybe at the end of this month. More likely to be in the beginning of March. And as we were saying, this is a very critical process, because the United Nations especially and the Iraqi government wants to make sure that these votes are credible in the eyes of Iraqis as well as in the eyes of the international community.

We are already hearing some reports, allegations of fraud, allegations of some voters trying to get to the polling stations, not being able to vote because their names weren't on certain lists. These parts of anti-fraud measures. But, again, we're hearing a number of complaints. These are all issues that the United Nations is going to help the Iraqi electoral commission try to address, because transparency here is key. This process has to be transparent because the results have to be credible.

LONG: Arwa Damon live for us from Baghdad. Arwa thank you.

I know you've heard of padding the resume. How about this new trend. Down-playing your skills so you can get a job.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LONG: More than 500,000 people today in Kentucky are in the dark, no power. We're learning the latest on the efforts to get the utility crews working, of course. They're trying to do so around the clock. We are streaming live news conference for you from Kentucky. We're waiting to hear from the mayor of Louisville, Kentucky.

In the meantime, you can see we're streaming it for you on your desk top. That's an officer conducting a news conference in Spanish. If you'd like to listen in go to CNN.com/live.

Here are some of the other stories making news right now. Four more suspicious fires in eastern Pennsylvania have been ruled arson. They were set overnight in Coatesville all caught early. None of the homes completely lost. There have been at least 30 arson fires in the area in the past 13 months. People are told keep your porches clear and keep the outdoor lights on.

A tour bus accident in northern Arizona kills seven tourists from China. The bus flipped over yesterday in Dolan Spring (ph), that group was returning from the Hoover Dam. Ten others were injured.

A small plane crashes in West Virginia. All six people onboard dead. Federal investigators say the pilot struggled to stay on course in the snowy weather. He was low on fuel. It went down yesterday about two miles from the nearby airport.

Maybe you're looking for work. You're not alone. The number of people getting unemployment benefits reaches an all-time high. The government reports 4.78 million laid-off workers continue to claim unemployment benefits. And more Americans are filing new claims. The seasonally adjusted figure for last week, 588,000. That is up 3,000 from the previous week.

Of course it's never a good idea to lie on a resume. But with competition for jobs so fierce now, some people are finding they have to play down their skills just to get an interview. Here's Kiersten Throndsen from our CNN affiliate KBCITV.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIERSTEN THRONDSEN, KBCITV: Online, in the newspaper or down at the Department of Labor, whatever source you use to find a job, applying is usually always the same starting with your resume.

LYNN COMPTON: It's frightening. It's frightening.

THRONDSEN: Lynn Compton owned her own business for years in Boise but she recently had to close up shop. Now she's looking for a job at a time when more than 50,000 other Idahoans are doing the same.

COMPTON: I have sent out my resume to a lot of people. And it has never even been looked at.

THRONDSEN: The Idaho Department of Labor admits more job seekers have to dumb down their resumes in order to even be considered for a job they most likely are overqualified for. JOHN RUSS, IDAHO DEPARTMENT OF LABOR: Sometimes we have to do that just to get our foot in the door.

THRONDSEN: Russ tells me lying on your resume is never good, but learning to tailor your qualifications to fit a job can be helpful, even if it means you have to change a previous job title or leave out skills that job may not require.

RUSS: A lot of times if we do dumb it down, the employer is willing to give us a shot to prove our worth.

THRONDSEN: The Idaho Department of Labor says once you get an interview those skills you may not have included in your resume may come out. But to get there, you have to start here. That's something this job seeker says she's learning fast.

COMPTON: Work it around to where you fit more of what their expectations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LONG: Another piece of advice from the experts, it's important to have more than one just standard resume ready to go just in case.

Our 4:00 p.m. hour we hope you'll join us. We're dedicating it to job seekers today. Tune in for tips on finding a new home, coping with the loss of a job, learning to reinvent yourself. It may be necessary. That and so much more at 4:00 pm Eastern Time, the CNN NEWSROOM.

And now a five star palate, two-star budget. How price-conscious foodies still manage to indulge.

Throughout the day we're going to show you how the companies are out there that are still looking for workers. You might want to get your resume ready right now. One of these spots could have the perfect job for you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: Some companies are hiring. Here's another tough economic story, though. Restaurant workers taking one for the team. Employees at Mrs. B.'s Pancake House in Muskegon, Michigan, worked an entire day for tips only. Business has been soft and they wanted to give the owner a break.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): It's been giving back to a boss who has -- he's very private about it, but he has dipped into his own pocket to make sure that we have a job.

DAVE BARHAM, OWNER: I knew what we were doing and allowing the -- not only the customers but the employees to give, I knew good things would come out of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LONG: And good things in so many ways. The customers knew what was going on and they tipped a little more than usual.

Many people who like to go to the fancier restaurants are having a difficult time affording it in this economy. But there are ways to keep having that gourmet food on the cheap. CNN's Josh Levs got guidance on that from a chef. I guess this is reporter involvement because you actually got to sample while researching?

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, I guess I did. I guess I stepped across the boundary but it was worth it because that was some good food. You might have seen this. There was this great story from Time.com, in partnership with CNN, recession dining and they talked about how to get these great meals to feed a family of four for under $10. We called a chef and he showed us this.

This is Curt Bohling, an executive chef. You run your own catering company, right. And there's someone who works at CNN very well known for her sense of taste. We ask her where to go to eat. Erin McLaughlin. She'll tell us how good it is. Everyone is asking us what is this food. You'll show us dishes you can make family of four $10 or less. Start off with this.

CURT BOHLING, EXECUTIVE CHEF: This is red beans and andouille sausage. It's something -- its $6 right there for four people.

LEVS: So everything in here combined will feed a family of four?

BOHLING: Exactly.

LEVS: Even if you have a pretty big appetite?

BOHLING: Sure. Soak the beans overnight. In the morning or afternoon when you get home from work, just put them on.

LEVS: Hold on. Thumbs up, thumbs down?

BOHLING: It's amazing. It's really good.

LEVS: Let's go to this next one. Cranberry chicken piccata. What else?

BOHLING: A little linguini. Regular piccata is made with capers. This will serve four people.

LEVS: Everything is takes, family of four, to make a whole meal out of this. How much, $9, $10?

BOHLING: Almost $10.

LEVS: That's amazing to me. How are we doing?

ERIN MCLAUGHLIN: I'm doing very well.

LEVS: Making her talk with her mouth full. Is your mom watching? We're doing good? 2 for 2? MCLAUGHLIN: Amazing.

LEVS: The third one. This is one I can eat. This is vegetarian. What is going on?

BOHLING: Linguini, a little pesto. You've got vegetables.

LEVS: Lots and lots of vegetables.

BOHLING: Have yourself a nice piece of cheese. Get a nice, good piece of cheese and it will go a long ways.

LEVS: And you can make this whole thing, again, a family of four. Not talking a family of four mice but human beings with appetites even potentially as big as mine.

BOHLING: Spend $3 on a nice loaf of bread.

LEVS: This is good. Are we 3 for 3? Chef Curt Bohling.

Erin, thank you for your expert taste test.

MCLAUGHLIN: Any time.

LEVS: She meant that at any time. After that, everyone did come attack us and grab all that food. You probably want to know how to make all this. Masterpiececatering.com set up a whole thing for us as featured on CNN. Click on it and it will take you to how to make everything you saw.

One more thing. The folks at I-report got excited, so now we have an I-report assignment about this, recession recipes. We already got more than 100 ideas from people. Great meals to feed a family of four for $10 or less.

LONG: You presented us with a story that was obviously taped earlier and we're all famished now. Not fair.

LEVS: I'm hungry again.

LONG: We continue to talk about food, food and politics; not an obvious connection but the new administration is a boon for Washington's restaurants.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: It's 3:30 Eastern Time. Here are some of the stories we're working on for you right now in the CNN NEWSROOM. Days after a big winter storm slammed almost a dozen states, the death toll is still climbing, at least 42 deaths are now blamed on the storm. In Kentucky, a 4-year-old West Virginia boy was killed when he was thrown from a pickup truck that overturned on a snow-covered highway. Police say the boy's mom lost control of that vehicle.

Another serious problem in the storm zone, carbon monoxide poisoning, among the apparent victims, three members of a Louisville family. Authorities say they had been using a generator that wasn't ventilated properly.

No heat, no hot water, and still iced over. That's what hundreds of thousands of people are facing across large patches of the southeast, today. We're really seeing the worst of it in Kentucky. Shayla Reaves of our CNN affiliate WAVE Television reports now from Grayson County.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is cold. I have took a head cold over this.

SHAYLA REAVES, WAVE TELEVISION REPORTER (voice-over): Nearly all of Grayson County is still in the dark after Tuesday's winter storm.

DAVID CANTRELL, USPS LETTER CARRIER: It's been disastrous. Trees down, power -- electric poles, lines, all of them are down.

REAVES: Downed trees and power lines created situations too dangerous for emergency crews to reach and 95 percent of the county is still without power.

RANDALL SMITH, GRAYSON COUNTY EMERGENCY MGMT: We have people on our lakefronts and so on that we don't know if they're alive or dead. We haven't even got to clear the roads in to them.

REAVES: And with more than 600 power lines down, it will be a long time before power is restored.

SMITH: It will possibly be four to six weeks.

REAVES: local shelters are filling up.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When I arrived here, there was already like 500 people here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We had 150 cots for 500 people the first night.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Didn't know y'all weren't open.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're not open, but if you need something, what do you need?

Then National Guard kind of picked all of it up and they're on their way to pick up the milk.

REAVES: This convenience store victim arrived the day of the storm, but can't be sold because of the outage.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's probably going to be households that probably lose more than that. At least we didn't really lose it, you know, people get to use it.

CANTRTELL: Two trays up front and a full tray here.

REAVES: Still workers like this letter carrier are determined to bring Leitchfield back to life. CANTRTELL: We'er crawling, ducking under trees. Our postmaster told us yesterday that when you go out into the community, people expect to see you, it gives them a sense that things are coming back to normal.

REAVES: Shayla Reaves, WAVE-3 news.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: Thousands of people in Kentucky are in shelters, today. Among them Jamie Gunnels, a single mom with an 18-month-old son. She's joining us live on the line right now from Louisville.

Jamie, thanks so much for your time. We understand this is the first time in your shelter and you're also in a wheelchair. This must be quite a challenge.

JANIE GUNNELS, ICE STORM EVACUEE: Yeah. But, there's lots of nice people here that are helping out and they're kind of all taking a liking my little boy and everybody is pitching in, oh, I'll hold him while you go to the bathroom or change clothes. And he's having a ball just running around, soaking up all the attention.

LONG: Tell us what the situation was like at home and why you felt that you had to get to the shelter.

GUNNELS: Oh, well, we were sitting there being thankful we still had power because we heard of all the people that had already lost it and it was about 9:00 at night and getting ready to eat a bite and go to bed and about -- just a few minutes after we said that we were thankful we had power, it went out. And it was just entirely too cold to stay, cause my little boy has had a little bit of a cold and runny nose, so I didn't want to, so we got right out.

LONG: We're looking at pictures right now, I believe, with you and your young son. I understand that you may be there for a week or even more?

GUNNELS: Yeah. They're -- I mean, they're saying an estimation of seven to 10 days, so we're making the best of it.

LONG: Making the best of it. And what is it like right now inside the shelter at this very moment?

GUNNELS: Well, there's just a lot of people, you know, just everybody -- people playing cards and talking and some people have computers plugged up. It's just -- everybody is just trying to, you know, make it best home as they can.

LONG: You know, make the best of this bad situation. But it sound like you found obviously some warm shelter, some food and a real nice community that has developed there in that shelter. Jamie Gunnels evacuee from the Kentucky ice storm. Thanks so much for joining us. Please take good care and obviously take good care with your son, as well. We appreciate it.

GUNNELS: Thank you. LONG: A direct appeal from President Obama to the Senate. Today in his weekly address, Mr. Obama called on senators to do what the House did this week, quickly pass his economic stimulus plan. Now, the president says it will get the economy moving again by creating jobs, cutting taxes and investing in the nation's infrastructure.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA (D), UNITED STATES PRESIDENT: It's time to move in a new direction. Americans know that our economic recovery will take years, not months, but they will have little patience if we allow politics to get in the way of action and our economy continues to slide. That's why I'm calling on the Senate to pass this plan so that we can put people back to work and begin the long, hard work of lifting our economy out of this crisis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LONG: The president says that's where the rescue plan for the financial industry comes in. Administrative officials are expected to unveil how they want to spend the remaining $350 billion from last year's bailout the week after next.

Now, as for the stimulus plan, some investors are at work right you in trying to make it acceptable on both sides of the aisle. With this story, here's CNN's Dana Bash.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN SR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Senate Republicans rushed to the cameras and vowed to oppose Barack Obama's economic plan, just like Republicans did unanimously in the House.

SEN ROBERT BENNETT (R), UTAH: I'm going to vote against this package because it's not going to work.

BASH: But for some GOP senators, that hard-line approach is unacceptable.

SEN SUSAN COLLINS (R), MAINE: I think it's important that the bill be bipartisan to show the American people that we can work together on the biggest challenge facing our country.

BASH: In fact, behind the scenes, Republican Susan Collins and Democrat Ben Nelson are now working across party lines on a proposal to stimulate the economy. Collins actually likes a lot of what's in the Democrats' bill, but agrees with fellow Republicans that the $888 billion measure includes too much spending that won't stimulate the economy.

COLLINS: There is funding to help improve our preparedness for a pandemic flu. There is funding to help improve cyber-security. What does that have to do with an economic stimulus package?

BASH: Democrat Ben Nelson feels the same way and disagrees with his party's approach. SEN BEN NELSON (D), NEBRASKA: It's a mistake I think to mix many good programs that aren't necessarily -- that are only marginally stimulative in a stimulus package. I think you give people reasons not to vote for the package.

BASH: This bipartisan team plans to spend all weekend writing a new economic measure, scrubbing what they call "excess spending," things like $1.1 billion for comparative health research, $75 million for anti-smoking programs, or $248 million to consolidate the Department of Homeland Security headquarters.

NELSON: "Jobs" is the critical word. And so stimulus has to be about jobs, jobs, jobs.

BASH: So, their bipartisan alternative would limit the spending to things like infrastructure, education, and training, and extending unemployment insurance and benefits to jobless Americans.

(on camera): Senators Nelson and Collins hope to have their bipartisan economic plan ready to go to shop to other Democrats and Republicans as the Senate starts debates early next week and there may be a handful of senators on both sides of the aisle open to this kind of compromise.

Dana Bash, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: We may see charges filed in connection with a nationwide peanut butter recall. The government opened a criminal investigation into Peanut Corporation of America. The company has been linked to a salmonella outbreak. More than 500 people have been sickened and eight have died. For a list of recalled peanut products, go to our Web site, CNN.com.

The following statement has been released by the company, "We at Peanut Corporation of America, express our deepest and most sincere empathy for those sickened in the salmonella outbreak and their families. Our top priority has been and will continue to be to insure the public safety and to work promptly to remove all potentially contaminated products out of the marketplace."

Well, he picked a running mate. He picked a cabinet. And now President Obama makes his pick for the Super Bowl.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: Paychex, Mattel, NuStar, they are hiring. Our 4:00 p.m. hour, we are dedicating it to job seekers. We hope you will watch because we're going to talk about finding a new job, coping with a job loss and also learning how to reinvent yourself in the current marketplace. That's coming up at 4:00 p.m., top of the hour.

Let's find out more about the weather forecast all this hour and all for the last several hours, Jacqui, we've been talking about the nasty situation in Kentucky. Many other states are dealing with the deep freeze, too.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Oh, yeah, absolutely and so many people, not just in Kentucky without power, you know, still people in places like Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, also in Ohio, even into West Virginia. So we have this big swathe right in here, where people are still suffering and unfortunately we're getting word that it might be up to six weeks for some people.

OK, the good news is that we got a nice southerly wind pulling in today, so that's bringing temperatures up a little bit. But we have a clipper approaching.

This is going to bring increasing cloudiness for tomorrow, brining a chance of snow showers, not too heavy. It'll bring in a change this the wind direction, it'll cool you back down. So, the warm-up that you're getting is going to be a little bit brief. And something to think about as we get above that freezing mark, we think, today and tomorrow is that that ice is going to be melting, it's going to be cracking, it's going to be breaking off. And it falls down in big chunks and can hurt you.

In addition to that, everything that melts on to the roadways is going to refreeze back up a little bit in the overnight hours.

OK, I promise a little bit of fun here, Super Bowl Sunday of course tomorrow, the big game and it's actually at an outdoor stadium, everybody, so the weather actually matters. Clear skies, temperatures will be in the upper 50s. But something to keep in mind, Melissa, for these partygoers out there, is that we've got red flag warnings today. So, if you're barbecuing or if you're a smoker, use a lot of caution, because we could get some grass fires started.

LONG: OK, you've been warned. All right, Jacqui thanks.

Bank in Missouri saying no to the bailout funds. Bank Liberty was approved for $8.5 until in federal bailout funds, but the CEOI says the bank is not in dire straits and the money comes with strings attached. So, right now the answer, thanks, but no thanks.

The economic downturn has triggered a rash of bank failures all across the country. The FDIC insures some savings, but not all. Drew Griffin takes an in depth look at one Las Vegas bank and one group of investors left high and dry.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: It's a rare look and admission, really, from one of the bank's officers on how the quest for profits and the belief that the housing boom, the building boom, just couldn't end despite multiple warnings.

Are you sad about what happened?

DOUG FRENCH, FMR OFFICER, SILVER STATE BANK: I'm very sad. I'm very sad. It's very humbling. GRIFFIN (voice-over): Doug French is now in Alabama, but the failure of Silver State Bank could be just the beginning of many small to midlevel banks that will fail because they made some bad gambles.

The real losers, though, are depositors, who have lost their uninsured savings. And in Nevada, that includes a group of deaf seniors who are having a hard time understanding why.

WILLIAM MORGAN, DEAF SENIORS ASSOCIATION (though translator): I received a phone call, a friend of mine, who is our treasurer. It was like at 11:30 at night. He had -- he was -- he was -- he had alerted me and said, hey, do you know, watch the news, watch the news, something's happened. I said, what are we going to do? I couldn't sleep for two days.

GRIFFIN: The Deaf Seniors Association of Las Vegas was saving the money to host a national convention when Silver State Bank closed, they lost $170,000, money not covered by the FDIC because it exceeded the $100,000 limit.

(on camera): You guys had been earning money all sorts of ways, ingenious ways for a long time for this. I wonder if there's a collective feeling of sadness, madness?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.

GRIFFIN: What?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, yes, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Absolutely.

GRIFFIN: just can't believe it happened?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's right. Cannot believe it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (Through translator): I think it's awful that this happened. This money belongs to the deaf senior citizens. It's just terrible.

GRIFFIN (on camera): The FDIC covered more than half a billion dollars in investments deposited at Silver State Bank. But $20 million in unsecured deposits, like those held by the deaf seniors, are simply gone.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: And Drew Griffin continues with a look at who made what now appeared to be stupid loans, gambles that we're all paying for. The collapse of Silver State Bank.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: It is rare that the public is allowed to see what causes a bank to fail, especially to hear from the people who caused it to happen. Drew griffin teamed up with investigative Web site, "Publica" for this anatomy of a bank failure.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Far from the strip, far on the edge of North Las Vegas is this piece of dirt. How much would you pay for it? At one time a little-known Vegas bank bet the house on it. Now, the house, the bank, and those bankers are gone. So is the boomtown era of this gambling Mecca where former Bank President Tod Little said anyone with some capital could call himself a banker.

TOD LITTLE, FORMER CEO, SILVER STATE BANK: It didn't take a rocket scientist to run a bank in this town in the last 10 years and do well.

GRIFFIN (on camera): You said a monkey could do it.

LITTLE: A trained monkey.

(LAUGHTER)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): This is a rare, very rare, inside look behind the collapse of a big regional bank, Silver State Bank, whose name has been scraped away with the bust of the housing boom. When you hear what Silver State was doing, you may wonder if the trained monkeys running the bank Tod Little referred to were trained at all. Current banker Bill Martin says the warnings were ignored.

BILL MARTIN, CEO NEVADA 1ST BANK: It had all worked last year and the year before and the year before, so, they just kept doing it.

GRIFFIN: Want an example? Take a look at this "project," a proposed casino far off the Las Vegas strip, a strip of dirt where one of Silver State's big loan customers was investing heavily.

(on camera): Silver State was financing a boomtown in Las Vegas, with no town and certainly no boom. This vacant piece of property was collateral for a $24 million personal loan. All of it now just remains a big pile of dirt.

I mean to me, a layman right, I'm not in the bank business. It's just -- it's made-up money. That land is not making anything.

LITTLE: Yep. And you're not missing the mark on that. You're absolutely correct.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Doug French is the person who made that loan as Silver State Bank's vice president of commercial real estate lending. He's not in Nevada anymore. He's now in Alabama teaching finance. We sat down with him so he could explain why he made such bad loans, including the loan on that strip of dirt near the Las Vegas speedway.

DOUG FRENCH, FORMER CHIEF LOAN OFFICER: At the time when the loan was conceived and made, that was very valuable land.

GRIFFIN (on camera): Are you sad for what happened? FRENCH: What's that?

GRIFFIN: Are you sad about what happened?

FRENCH: I'm very sad. I'm very sad. It's very humbling.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): In September 2008, Silver State Bank was seized by the federal government.

(on camera): Do you look back and say, oh, we made some really bad mistakes, preventable mistakes.

FRENCH: Sure. Absolutely.

GRIFFIN: Who should pay for that?

FRENCH: Well, I think the shareholders of Silver State Bank, of which I was one, have paid, have paid dearly.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Actually Securities and Exchange Commission records show French sold $1.8 million of Silver State stock before he left, on top of his salary and bonus. Now, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is left covering $550 million. Another 20 million in unsecured deposits have simply vanished. Silver State is one of 25 banks that failed in 2008. Many bankers believe 2009 will be worse.

Drew griffin, CNN, Las Vegas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: We have a new administration, and new business for Washington's eatery.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I wish the best to the Cardinals. They've been long suffering. It's a great Cinderella story, but other than the Bears, the Steelers are probably the team that's closest to my heart.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LONG: President Obama making his pick for Super Bowl XLIII. He counts Pittsburgh Steelers' owner, Dan Rooney, among his supporters. Pennsylvania went for Mr. Obama in November. Arizona, of course, for John McCain.

The Obama's are settling in at the White House and businesses in the nation's capitol have great expectations. They're looking for a boost from the first family. Kate Bolduan reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Coming and going. It's become a similar scene with the new first family. Known for eating out on the campaign trail, the Obama's are continuing that trend in D.C., one of the first stops, D.C.'s staple, Ben's Chili Bowl. And they celebrated Michelle Obama's birthday at Todd Gray's restaurant, Equinox, just days before the inauguration.

TODD GRAY, CO-OWNER & CHEF, EQUINOX RESTAURANT: Phones are ringing like crazy, not only for reservations, but also for congratulations.

BOLDUAN: A visit, Gray says, couldn't have come at a better time for the city's restaurant industry.

GRAY: The new administration is going to help our restaurant economy. It cannot do anything but help it. All the new people in town, they're out frequenting restaurants and our president and the first ladies are foodies. What more could we ask for?

BOLDUAN (on camera): Local businesses are already reaping benefits of the new administration. Estimates for inaugural business but the economic gains as high as $1 billion for the city. Many are hoping that's just the beginning.

BARBARA LANG, DC CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: This past Saturday or Sunday, the line getting into Ben's Chili Bowl was five blocks long because Mr. Obama ate there. Everybody wanted to go see Ben's Chili Bowl. We expect the same kind of impact around the city.

BOLDUAN (voice-over): Presidential patrons are something D.C. restaurant owners haven't seen in a while. President Clinton was known to eat out, but president bush was known as more of a homebody.

SHELDON SCOTT, MARVIN RESTAURANT: I think the Obama family brings back this kind of Kennedy era style of like, having a youthful family in the White House. People actually plan on living in the city, not just necessarily living at the city.

BOLDUAN: And Sheldon Scott of restaurant, Marvin, in the trendy "U" Street neighborhood says put politics aside, this president's eating habits is change he can believe in.

SHELDON: Yeah, any table that he likes, he could have even if someone else is sitting in there at that time.

BOLDUAN: Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)