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Continental Crash Investigation; Love Recession; Reduced Military Spending; Chocolate Shop Business Booming

Aired February 14, 2009 - 15:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CENTER: What happened to Flight 3407? What caused the nose dive that killed 50 people, six miles from the Buffalo Airport? We're waiting for the latest update from investigators.

The check also soon be in the mail, hundreds of billions of dollars in stimulus spending, who gets what?

And love in the time of recession? How can you keep the bad economy from putting a crimp into your love life?

Hello again everyone, I'm Fredricka Whitfield. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

President Obama is applauding Congress for passing the $787 billion economic stimulus bill. In his Saturday radio and Internet address, the president called the legislation a major milestone on the road to recovery. But he warns it won't be a cure all.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE U.S: This historic step won't be the end of what we do to turn our economy around, but rather the beginning. The problems that led us into this crisis are deep and widespread. And our response must be equal to the task.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Final approval of the stimulus package came in the Senate last night the vote was 60-38. Only three Republicans crossed party lines to support it, most Republicans argued that was too much spending and not enough job creation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN BOEHNER, (R) MINORITY LEADER: I have just got to stay the president made clear when we started this process that this was about jobs. Jobs, jobs, jobs. And what it's turned into is nothing more than spending, spending and more spending. American families, small businesses, deserve better from their Congress. I said on opening day we wouldn't be the party of no and we haven't been. We offered an alternative that would have created twice as many jobs as their bill at half the price.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: President Obama has said he wants to sign the bill by Monday which is Presidents Day. Stuffed inside the 1,000 pages of the stimulus bill, a little something for just about everyone. Workers will see an extra $13 a week in their paychecks from a payroll tax break, college students or their parents can get a $2,500 tuition credit. There is an $8,000 credit for first-time home buyers if you buy by December 1. The new law will spend $120 billion for roads and infrastructure, roads, bridges and electric grid. $100 billion for schools and $19 billion to digitize health care records.

Other odds and ends, Pell Grants for colleges would increase to a maximum of $5,500. Buy a car by the end of the year and deduct the sales tax. There's a back story to the stimulus vote. It was a bipartisan bust split down party lines. Joining us from Washington, CNN's senior political analyst Bill Schneider, Bill how big a role does politics in the end end up playing in this vote?

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: President Obama said people should put aside politics as a national crises and certainly Americans feel that way but put aside politics not so easy here in Washington. Republicans ended up opposing this plan, not one voted for it in the House of Representatives, only three of the Republican Senators voted for it in the Senate. So it ended up being a pretty partisan vote.

Republicans said it violated their principles, you heard the Republican leader in the house John Behner saying there's not enough spending, not enough job creation. Republicans think the bill is too expensive, too big. A lot in Congress wonder if the bill is big enough. The question is there a lot more to be done down the line almost certainly to deal with the credit crisis.

WHITFIELD: So the Republicans in all say it's just too expensive and we're thinking about the America's pocket books and that's why we made this decision. But in the end, when you look at the popularity already of the president and what some recent polls say about how Americans in general wanted something to give, are people in general in support of what the Republicans have said about not voting for the stimulus plan?

SCHNEIDER: No, the public supports the stimulus plan, a clear majority has consistently said they want it done, they want government to pass something and this plan is about 54, 55 percent approval popular. It's not overwhelming. But one reason for that is I believe the unpopularity of the financial bailout, the Wall Street bailout that was passed not under President Obama but under President Bush last fall when the financial system started to collapse and it did collapse.

People thought this was outrageous; the federal government was shoveling money into Wall Street, rewarding institutions that created the problem in the first place. A lot of members of Congress heard from the constituents, where's my bailout. So the idea was all this money was being spent, we haven't seen any results; we hear stories every single day about huge bonuses to Wall Street executives. So people say are we going to now spend more money? The president, President Obama is still very popular. The plan does get majority support but not overwhelming. WHITFIELD: The economy clearly top of mind for the president and for all Americans but also top of mind or what has become top of mind for the Obama administration is also been the Middle East peace process since the most recent conflict between Gaza and Israel. Now you've got this election, sounds familiar, a little Florida if you will, but then not really, you spent a little time, a lot of time in the past couple of weeks there in Israel. How significant is this battle for leadership as it pertains to the Obama administration?

SCHNEIDER: Well, clearly moved to the right in its vote. I was there; Israelis feel that the peace process hasn't really worked very well. They have tried everything in their view; they tried negotiations under Bill Clinton. It didn't work. They tried unilateral disengagement from Gaza, and what happened? Hamas took over Gaza and they ended up in a military conflict. So the Israelis are now saying security first. That's really what they said in this election, it doesn't look like a real way forward in the peace process, unless something is done about Iran.

Iran is at the top of the agenda. President Obama wants to have a dialogue with Iran. Israeli's say they support that idea but they want a timeline. If America starts talking to Iran, they want to know how long they give that process of negotiation before we discover or before we decide it really isn't going anywhere and perhaps tougher measures are needed.

WHITFIELD: All right. Bill Schneider, thanks so much as we're watching a collage of images. The first family coming off Air Force One there, most recently Friday. Thanks so much Bill, appreciate it.

So if you're wondering what the economic stimulus plan will do for you directly, then you want to keep watching, a breakdown of where the money is headed just ten minutes away.

And we want to hear how you're coping with this economy, beginning in the 4:00 Eastern hour; we'll focus the full hour on your short and long-term money issues. How are you spending? How are you saving? How are you making ends meet and perhaps you've got some questions that you can extend to you are experts as well. Josh Lev will be taking your emails and shifting through all of it and trying to get as much as we can on the air. Weekends@CNN.com is where you can send your e- mail.

All right. Like an arrow in a bull's-eye, that's how authorities are describing Thursday's crash of a commuter airliner near Buffalo, New York. They say Continental connection flight 3407 pitched violently and then made a nose dive before slamming into a house. All 49 people aboard the aircraft and a man in the house was killed. Investigators believe icing may have played a major role in the crash. Today they're at the scene piecing together the clues.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVE BISSONETTE, EMERGENCY COORDINATOR: The scene has been made safe by the fire department; the fire department has completed fire operations there. They did a great job; it was a stubborn fire in the latter part of yesterday afternoon that was finally accomplished. So the NTSB is now going through their investigative process, the MEs are all working through the rubble to identify the various parts and pieces and the remains have been extricated and are being processed accordingly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Mary Snow joins us now from Clarence Center, New York where the plane went down in. Mary, what's happening right now?

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Fredricka, there are teams of investigators at the scene; the scene is closed off from the public, the press. Investigators are combing through the charred wreckage of the plane. Also medical examiners are at the scene, they have the very grim job of recovering remains of the victims. We are expecting to hear more about what investigators are learning within the hour, there's going to be a briefing and CNN will be taking that live.

As we learn more about what happened Thursday night, we're also learning more about the victims. Continental Airlines has not released a full list of the people that were on board that plane. But we are learning about 50 people from all walks of life, some were mothers, some were grandmothers, some were well known, others were just beginning to make their mark.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW (voice over): In an instant 50 lives were lost when flight 3407 crashed. First officer Rebecca Shaw seen here in face book page was just 25 years old. Her mother said she had been flying for about a year and a half.

LYNN MORRIS, REBECCA SHAW'S MOTHER: She was light, she loved to fly, and it was her passion. She just loved flying. Any time she could be in the air. She was just an amazing woman; she came very, very far. You know, she's full of energy, she would try anything, do anything was up for any new experience and she just loved life.

SNOW: Beverly Eckert had become a well known advocate for 9/11 families after losing her husband Shaun Rooney in the tragedy. She was slated to attend a ceremony in Kinna (ph) High School where a scholarship had been set up in her husband's memory.

Fifty five year old Susan Wehle was a cantor at Temple Beth Am, she was returning from a Costa Rica vacation. Her friend, Rick Ellis was going to pick her up at the airport and last heard from her at 8:29 Thursday night. She sent him a text to say her plane was delayed and that she would take a taxi if it was too late.

RICHARD ELLIS, SUSAN WEHLE'S FRIEND: She has gone to places that I could only dream of and every time she would go, she would do things spiritually to bring her closer to the earth, to bring her closer to god.

SNOW: Also going home to Buffalo 66-year-old Allison Des Forges, recognized as one of the world's leading experts on Rwanda. She is remembered as role model and a human rights activist. Friends and colleagues say she may have been barely 5 feet tall, but she was a lion of a force, fighting to stop the genocide in Rwanda.

KENNETH ROTH, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: Somebody who spent the last 20 years flying all over the world for the people of Rwanda, it's that irony that she met her faith on an airplane.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW: Also on board two musicians who played with jazz musician Chuck Mangione.

Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Mary Snow thanks so much. All right. A little bit more on that NTSB will be holding a press conference at 4:00 Eastern hour. We'll bring you that when it comes.

All right. Mean time flight has resumed but there are major delays at London's City Airport after a British Airways jetliner's front wheel gear collapsed while landing. All 71 people on board last night's flight from Amsterdam escaped by emergency slide. Authorities say four people were treated for injuries and one was taken to a hospital. One passenger says things were calm at first on board the flight. But then after the cabin filled with smoke, the situation got quite tense.

$787 billion, the price to get the economy moving again. So what does stimulus mean for you? We crunch the numbers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. The stimulus bill, $787 billion of government spending and that's after it was tweaked and trimmed in the house and senate. So now it's a done deal. So what does it mean for you? Our Josh Levs is here with the CNN Money breakdown, done deal meaning its way to the president, and then it becomes a done deal with his signature. But how does it impact you?

JOSH LEVS, CNN MONEY: It's amazing with all these different revisions that we're still not sure exactly how it's going to affect every American out there.

WHITFIELD: You have a better understanding than everybody else.

LEVS: Are you guys hearing me clearly? OK, cool. The good folks over here at CNNMONEY.com, check this out, are reporting on this right now, they have a breakdown right here how it may affect your wallet. I have a couple of graphics for you. Start off with this one, we're going to tell you two major things, the first is about taxes, you have a $400 credit per worker. And then -- check this out too, for those people who are not at work, maybe somebody is retired or not able to work, they get a one-time payment of $250.

Two more things to show you here. This is about the efforts to stimulate the economy, to get people shopping again. If you buy a car, you'll be able to deduct your state and local sales taxes and then for only first-time home buyers, during that period, the credit to a first-time home buyer would go up from $8,000 to $7,500. One more thing to show you here. I want to show you two things that people ask me about the most, when it comes to the economy, paying for college and a lot of questions about health insurance. The credit for paying for college will go up now to $2,500, that's up from $1,800. So $700 higher than it was.

And then we have talked a lot about this before, including on this show, for cobra, people lose their jobs, they want to have health insurance, and all they're left with is cobra. And its crazy expensive. A lot of people can't afford it. If you're laid off within a certain block of time, the government will cover 65 percent of your cobra for a block of time. That's something to help you there.

WHITFIELD: That's a lot. That would be great help for a lot of people. Thanks so much Josh and I now you're going to be joining us again next hour, responding to people who are e-mailing how they're stretching a dollar. Or maybe you have some questions. Josh along with our experts are going to be here to talk about short and long-term goals, send your e-mails to Weekends@CNN.com.

All right. Crunch time for two of the big three General Motors, Chrysler, will share their long run turnaround plans with Congress on Tuesday. If the government isn't convinced, it could take back more than $17 billion in loans.

And another disturbing side of these troubling economic times, the overwhelming number of people who are competing for a dwindling number of jobs. Many times just one job is available. Here's the latest example. A meter reader job opens in Tacoma, Washington. Guess what, 1,500 people actually applied; a Tacoma official says typically they have received only 300 to 400 applications for that job description.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AARON MOE, HR ANALYST, CITY OF TACOMA: I think it's tough times out there and if you're working for a government agency is pretty secure. It's a good job, starting salary is $17.76 an hour with full benefits and it tops out at $49,000.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: There was also a position open for an electrical trainee at the utility department, 300 applications showed up in just three days for that job.

Tough times for small businesses as well. But one owner has a sweet recipe for success.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Other stories making news across America now, searchers looking for a missing girl in Florida say they have found several items of interest. 5-year-old Haleigh Cummings disappeared from her home in Putnam County, Florida Tuesday. Investigators say they believe the girl was abducted and is still alive. Philadelphia is mourning the death of another police officer. Officer John Velowski is the cities seventh active duty officer killed in the line of duty in the last two years. He was shot and killed last night while responding to a street fight.

And northern Illinois University is remembering the victims of last year's shooting rampage. Gunmen Stephen Kazmierczak shot and killed five students before taking his own life. A memorial service was held this morning to mark the first anniversary and tonight don't miss our special report on the NIU killer. That's at 11:00 p.m. Eastern, 8:00 p.m. Pacific.

To Australia now a painful peek at a town transformed. For the first time since a raging wildfire devastated the town of Marysville, surviving residents were allowed in to see the damage. They were taken there by bus and not allowed off the bus because the area is still considered a crime scene. Arson is expected that fire and many as 180 people one week ago in other fires.

Let's check in with our Bonnie Schneider in the Weather Center. Some rough weather in some parts of the country here.

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That is right Fredricka. In California, it's really the beginning of a big storm that will come through Sunday into Monday. But wind advisories are posted to start tonight around 10:00 and go until morning. You can see all the moisture coming up from the Pacific; it's just now coming onshore. I want to show you a closer look at this extreme weather, what we're looking at in and around California. As we zoom in to the west coast, you will find that we have got some strong wind and also heavy snow expected in and around the southwest. One to two feet in the Sierras, Nevada that's a lot of snow right around the Lake Tahoe area and we'll see more snow further to the north in northern California.

The wind gusts are going to be the main thing. Tonight you can expect them to climb up to about 30 to 35 miles an hour, but tomorrow afternoon into Monday, up to 65-mile-per-hour that's below hurricane force strength. But that's still some very intense winds. Right now the rain is just give beginning, just some scattered showers for the San Francisco Bay area, but the low clouds are enough to slow things down at the airports. We have lengthy delays up to an hour already in San Francisco, Ft. Myers reporting some delays.

Your forecast for the next few days in the Bay area does call for precipitation, quite a bit as we go through Monday, very heavy at times and watch out for that windy weather to start off your week. It's a wet Valentine's Day in northern sections of Florida. We have a lot of rain coming down right around I-10, if you're heading to Gainesville, in and around the Tallahassee area or Jacksonville, but to the north, it's more of a snow event where temperatures are colder up in Erie, Pennsylvania, only 25 degrees, and Hancock, New York and right here in the Pocono's about 38, 39. Definitely some chilly conditions there, but the entire better to stay inside, right, Fred and have a nice, cozy Valentines.

WHITFIELD: That is right cozy up on Valentines. Thanks so much Bonnie.

Keeping tabs on your money, who gets what? We'll track the hundreds of millions the government is about to dump into the economy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Twenty nine minutes after the hour, here's what's happening right now. President Obama is savoring a huge victory less than a month after taking the oath of office. His economic stimulus plan cleared Congress last night and it might be on the president's desk as early as Monday, the $787 billion plan calls for spending and tax breaks, among other things, it provides aid to victims of the recession through unemployment benefits, food stamps, medical care and job retraining. Cash strapped states will get tens of billions of dollars to help schools and local governments and there's more than $48 billion for transportation projects as well.

So if everything is up and running, you'll be able to follow stimulus spending on the web. The site is recovery.gov. Right now here is CNN Joe Johns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the biggest one- time spending bill ever, which means the potential is enormous to screw it up and lose track of billions.

DAVID WALKER, FMR US COMPTROLLER GENERAL: It's going to be a real challenge to be able to get all that money out and to have appropriate accountability for it.

JOHNS: The politicians who wrote the stimulus knew that. They give $180 million to beef up the federal inspectors general, according to the House Appropriations Committee.

Another $25 million to the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office, which does some heavy duty auditing. They create a new accountability board to oversee this money, and they require people who get the money to file reports on how they spend it.

A good start, but the guy who used to run the GAO says that's not enough.

WALKER: And it's not just a matter of having, you know, additional transparency through the Web. It's not just a matter of having additional people looking at it after the money's gone out. You need have appropriate objectives, conditions and criteria that have to be met before the money goes out the door, because once it goes out the door, it 's too late.

JOHNS: Speaking of going out the door, when will taxpayers see that money? Some of it pretty quickly; some road maintenance projects could start in 30 days, because local jurisdictions can use existing crews with no heavy lifting, but that doesn't necessarily create new jobs.

The $400 a person tax break will start kicking in before the end of the year, says Bill Beach of the conservative Heritage Foundation.

BILL BEACH, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: Because you get the money out of Washington very fast. People can adjust the IRS -- adjust the IRS holding tables.

JOHNS (on camera): But the tax cut works out to just about $13 a week on the average paycheck. Most of the money will kick in next year, and will that translate into jobs?

A few weeks ago the Congressional Budget Office was saying it means 800,000 to 2.3 million jobs by the end of this year. But economist Bill Beach says it will create less than a million.

(voice-over): Back when the Reagan administration infused billions for jobs, few jobs were created when the economy needed it most. The GAO said so, too.

BEACH: You know, the surprising thing was, despite the emergency, it still took a full five years for the federal government to get all of the money into play...

JOHNS: This time around, much of the money will be spent by states, which will have their own rules and timetable. So, promises out of Washington don't always come true, at least not right away.

Joe Johns, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And on the short end of the spending stick, big bucks originally slated for the military slashed from the president's stimulus plan. Well, what was cut and why? And is it that big of a deal? We'll have the latest for you in about 15 minutes from now.

Meantime, we want to hear from you about how you're coping in this economy. Next hour we'll focus on your short and long-term money issues, with two experts to answer some of your questions, send your e-mails to weekends@CNN.com, Josh Levs will be fielding all of them and hopefully we can get through as many as possible.

A somber scene in western New York; a two-square-mile area has been sealed off where Continental Connection Flight 3407 crashed into a suburban Buffalo home. We're hearing a lot about just before the plane went down. CNN's Jason Carroll walks us through the timeline.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Early Friday, investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board recovered two clues that could help them answer the question of what caused the crash of Continental Flight 3407.

The plane's cockpit voice recorder and flight-data recorder were found in excellent condition, both discovered in the tail section of the turboprop, the only section of the plane remaining intact after it crashed into a home in Clarence Center, just outside Buffalo, New York.

The voice recorder shows, at 16,000 feet, the crew discussed problems with weather.

STEVE CHEALANDER, NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD: They noticed that it was rather hazy and they requested air-traffic control to allow them to descend to 12,000 feet.

CARROLL: The plane then descended to 11,000 feet on approach to Buffalo Niagara International Airport, when the crew noticed another problem: ice.

CHEALANDER: The crew discussed significant ice buildup, ice on the windshield and leading edge of the wings.

CARROLL: According to the flight-data recorder, the pilot activated the plane's de-icing mechanism. The plane then lowered the landing gear. That was about one minute before the end of the recording.

Despite the weather, no sign of distress on the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 on approach, according to transmission from air-traffic control.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Colgan 3407, approach.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Colgan 3407, Buffalo.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Colgan 3407 now approaching.

CARROLL: The plane disappeared from radar as traffic controllers call another plane to see if there's any sign of Flight 3407.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Delta 1998, look off your right side about five miles for a Dash 8. Should be 2,300. Do you see anything there?

CARROLL: The flight-data recorder indicates the plane went through a series of severe pitches and rolled from side to side. The crew tried to raise the gear and wing flaps before crashing around 10:20 p.m. into this house, killing a man inside and all 49 people on board.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As I had gotten closer, you could start to smell the fire. It was -- it was really raging. It was a huge fire, and I could see nothing but the silhouettes of, like, 10-plus firefighters around it all trying to extinguish it, trying to get crowd control. And it was scary.

CARROLL: The plane was operated by Colgan Air and had been in service for just about a year.

PHILIP TRENARY, CEO, PINNACLE AIRLINES CORPORATION: The aircraft is a new airplane. It's what we call a next-generation turboprop, very, very modern. It's an aircraft that has had quality service. So, no, there are no indications of any problems with the aircraft.

CARROLL: As for what caused the crash, the NTSB says it's still too early in the investigation to know for sure.

Jason Carroll, CNN, Clarence Center, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Just some of the faces here of the victims of that horrific plane crash, 50 people killed when Flight 3407 went down.

And this is a photo of Captain Marvin Renslow, that's him on the left with his family. His sister provided this picture. She set it on her porch so reporters a look at the brother she called her "best friend." Renslow was apparently at the controls when the plane Thursday night.

No job, no insurance, what you need to know to stay covered.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, are you feeling romantic this Valentine's Day? Or has the economy turned cupid into a Grinch? A recent survey indicates that Americans are feeling a little less romantic this year than we were feeling five years ago. In 2003, 44 percent of the women polled said they are romantic in 2008. That number fell two points. For men, it went from 38 to 36 percent, also falling two points. We don't like that.

Marian Salzman is a partner and watches trends for the P.R. firm, Porter Novelli that actually conducted that survey.

All right, Maryann, we got to get the sparks flying here, get folks I guess, a little less depressed about the economy. How do you make sure that the economy is not killing the romance?

MARIAN SALZMAN, PORTER NOVELLI WORLDWIDE: Well, what's really going on right now, I think, is people are totally burned out and they don't know exactly what to do first, they don't know where to turn.

On one hand, common sales were up for the fourth quarter, "USA Today" reported that yesterday. But, the "Daily Beast," this morning, reports the same kind of results we have, that both romance is down and sexual activity is down. I think there's a lot of confusion out there about, you know, even though it's free, is there a lot of satisfaction when you're not feeling very good about yourself?

WHITFIELD: Oh, OK, so people are feeling depressed, a little withdrawn, I mean, if you lose your job and you have no money and you're losing your house, yeah, of course you're going to feel those things. But does it also mean that perhaps a lot of couples are finding out that, you know what? Maybe we have to try and appreciate one another a little bit more to kind of keep, you know, the flame burning bright as opposed to relying on kind of the other artificial things, such as going out to dinner, going to a movie, et cetera.

SALZMAN: I mean, that's certainly what a lot of counselors and other analysts are advocating, I think that is where it's going to end up is that people are going to re-embrace romantic relationships. For single people, they are going to go through all new forms of kind of activity to hookup than ever before. But, people are also just more pragmatic, it's thoroughly impossible for single people to be living on their own. Divorce is really unaffordable, today, so I think people are going to make the best of what they have. So, I do think they're going to remembrance romance any which way they can.

Perhaps, not necessarily with consumers. I mean, I see a lot less interest in sort of buying flowers, buying chocolates, buying cards this is year and a lot of interest in trying to, you know, reignite some kind of passion.

WHITFIELD: You mentioned the single folks, so I understand they're getting a little bit more creative in terms of just meeting each other, more so online. We already know that that has definitely been a route that more people are taking, but even more so because it's cheaper.

SALZMAN: It's cheaper, it's downright free and it's completely accessible. You could be almost anybody looking for any permutation or combination and you can find a date in the next five or seven minutes. It's really only a matter of you, your mouse and what you're looking for and you'll find that person, whether you're looking for a farmer or, you know, a gay partner in Washington, D.C., or whatever it is you're looking for, you're going to find them there and they're going to be accessible to you.

WHITFIELD: So, are you hoping that this kind of love recession is kind of just temporary or do you think it really is going to ebb and flow with the overall nation's economy?

SALZMAN: I do think that we're going to be a little bit less romantic coming out of it. I think we're going to be more pragmatic, love is going to be good for us because it's going to be good for figuring out how to pay that mortgage and pay that rent. I don't know that we're going to be as idealistic as perhaps we were five or 10 years ago.

WHITFIELD: Oh darn, all right. Bummer. Marian Salzman, I was hoping we could like end it on a high note, but I don't know, I guess the reality is, it's kind of down in the dumps for all of us for a while.

SALZMAN: For long time, I'm afraid.

WHITFIELD: All right. Bummer. All right, thanks so much. Well, happy Valentine's anyway.

SALZMAN: You too.

WHITFIELD: All right, Marian, appreciate it.

SAZMAN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, being laid off, certainly is bad enough, but when you lose your job, you can also lose your health insurance, that in addition to what Marian was telling us, your love life. So, then what? CNN's senior medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, has some answers on the medical front. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: If you're a healthy person, you may have a relatively easy time finding health insurance. Start at a Web site called eHealthInsurance.com where you can go and you can compare different prices.

If you are not lucky enough to be healthy, you are going to have likely a very hard time finding health insurance, you may have to go to a state high-risk pool which are designed for people like you.

If you have children, it is very much worth checking out SCHIP. You don't have to spend down, you don't have to get rid of all your savings and everything the way you did in Medicaid. So, definitely check SCHIP. Now, for more hints on what to do when you're looking for new health insurance, go to CNN.com, all of the tips are there.

WHITFIELD: And besides going to CNN.com/health? If you've ruled out all these things, you tried them all, then what?

COHEN: What you need to then is that you need to find some free services and on my column, CNNHealth.com, you will see lots of free services to help people out when they don't have insurance.

WHITFIELD: All right, Elizabeth Cohen, thanks very much, appreciate it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Part of my conversation with Elizabeth earlier in the week. We thought you needed to learn a little bit more about all of your options.

So, how are you coping with this economy in other ways? Beginning at 4:00 Eastern, we'll focus a full hour on your short and long-term money issues, we have two experts on board to answer some of your questions. Perhaps you want to know how to stretch the dollar, but we also want to hear from you, how have you been able to stretch that dollar or penny? Josh Levs has been taking your e-mails at weekend@cnn.com. Keep the coming.

I understand that we are getting a whole lot. We're trying to get as many on the air as possible.

All right, it was checked and changed, time and time again, that meant big cuts in the stimulus bill. See what all that trimming will actually mean for the U.S. military.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, you can add your two cents to the price of stamps. The cost of a first class stamp goes up on May 11 by two pennies. Well, it doesn't exactly break the bank, the increase will cost the average family $3 more dollars a year. The Postal Service blames rising production costs. So, from stamps going up to mailboxes going down, the U.S. Postal Service says it's removing a lot of its blue collection boxes across Indiana.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIM YATES, U.S. POSTAL SERVICE: We can't continue to drive to empty boxes and send personnel and use fuel when nothing is there when you get there.

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WHITFIELD: The Postal Service more pupeople are sending out their mail online these days.

All right, Congress trimmed billions of dollars in military spending from the final stimulus plan. That means the army will have to rethink some of its planned construction projects. Our Pentagon correspondent, Chris Lawrence, looks at what's in and what's out.

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CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The military and veterans are getting billions less than what the stimulus package first proposed.

SEN JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: The conference report provides more funding for grants to provide high speed Internet to Americans, $7.2 billion, than it does for military and V.A. and Veterans Affairs construction.

LAWRENCE: It wasn't always that way. The House initially allocated $7 billion to those projects, the Senate about the same. But the compromise cut it down to $4 billion.

Senator James Inhofe says, "It's unfathomable that only 1 percent of this bill goes toward defense spending."

Pentagon officials say they're not disappointed because the stimulus money is separate from their budget.

GEOFF MORRELL, PENTAGON SPOKESMAN: For us, anything helps.

LAWRENCE: Democrats argue the package has billions for military hospitals, new homes and child care centers, and $150 million to hire more people to process veterans disability claims.

SEN DICK DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Money that otherwise would not have been spent on V.A. will be because of this stimulus bill.

LAWRENCE: But, some say with two expensive wars, it doesn't make sense to push project that aren't even required to be the most needed.

WINSLOW WHEELER, CENTER FOR DEFENSE INFORMATION: When you start talking about rushing to the front, daycare centers and chapels and that kind of thing, you're not spending defense money very smartly. LAWRENCE: Some Republicans say the stimulus should have just accelerated the construction plan the Pentagon already had scheduled.

SEN KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON (R), TEXAS: We know it is money that we're going to spend any way. It would be stimulative and it would be the right kind of spending.

LAWRENCE (on camera): So, why was so much money cut out of the V.A.? Remember, the main goal of the stimulus is speed. In a source close to the negotiation tells us that with so much money already invested in veterans programs, money in the pipeline, so to speak, there was a concern that the V.A. couldn't spend that much more money quickly.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, the Pentagon.

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WHITFIELD: Cutting corner without cutting back on some sweet essentials. While the economic tanks, chocolate soars.

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WHITFIELD: All right, some pretty nasty weather heading the way of folks in California, northern and southern California. Bonnie Schneider is in the Weather Center.

Has it already hit?

(WEATHER REPORT)

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, back to snow in northern California. We have a great iReport and a very interesting weather watcher, it's on all four legs. Take a look at this. That's right, this is the weather cat. Well, the snow cat. That's what Michael Suddes calls this iReporter.

Well, he's the iReporter and the cat's an assistant. He says that his cat is usually an outdoor cat, likes to hunt, likes to hop around, but he says that the cat wasn't really that impressed with the snow. His name is Charlie Brown. That's a good name for a cat.

But, here's what's interesting. They've got about four to five inches on the ground, as of yesterday. This again is taken by Michael Suddes in California. He is in the middle of relocating to Hawaii. So, I have the feeling that the cat that's not impressed by the snow, maybe the cat, Charlie Brown, will be more impressed with the beautiful weather of Hawaii. Pretty funny.

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WHITFIELD: That cat will soon be saying "mahalo."

SCHNEIDER: And surfing.

WHITFIELD: That's right. All right, appreciate it, Bonnie.

SCHNEIDER: Sure.

WHITFIELD: All right, well the recession has hit California state government especially hard. The state is running dangerously low on cash and has already halted road projects and delayed some payments. Today, both houses of the California legislature are expected to vote on a plan to close the state's $42 billion budget shortfall.

The compromise calls for a mix of tax increases, funding cuts and $11 million in new borrowing.

All right, it's a sweet oasis in a sea of empty store windows. Yum! And despite the economy, business is hopping at a chocolate shop in the Los Angeles area. Here's a a little Valentine's Day treat from KCAL reporter, Amy Johnson.

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AMY JOHNSON, KCAL9 REPORTER (voice-over): Empty store fronts. Tough economic times have taken a toll on many Ventura businesses on Main Street, but sweet success is still found at Trufflehound's Fine Chocolates.

CLAUDIA GILMAN, TRUFFLEHOUND'S FINE CHOCOLATES: You feel really bad. And there's a little bit of guilt in that I am doing well. You do feel kind of bad, sad, especially for local businesses.

JOHNSON: Claudia Gilman, co-owner of Trufflehound's Fine Chocolates, says business is good. She's expecting a 10 percent to 15 percent increase this week alone, despite other luxury store struggles.

GILMAN: You can buy just a little bit and have that pleasure, and you're not spending a lot of money, but you are treating yourself to something special.

JOHNSON: She's not alone, experts say chocolate sales are up around the country.

KRYSTI KRANZLER, CUSTOMER: I think it's because it's almost like an addiction. You know, it's so good. I have to have chocolate.

JOHNSON: Krysti Kranzler and her two young daughters enjoy a sweet treat. She understands why in the midst of a down economy chocolate still sells.

KRANZLER: Like, it relaxes you. You know, something that you need to kind of settle down if you have a stressful day or whatever.

JOHNSON (on camera): And while Valentine's Day is good business for any chocolate store, Gilman says not just the holiday that seems to be helping.

GILMAN: From a lot of my customers, they made a point of saying they wanted to come to us so that we stayed in business. I've been here 13 years, so I have really loyal customers and I really appreciate that.

JOHNSON (voice-over): Your sweetheart may appreciate a sweet treat this Valentine's Day.

In Ventura, Amy Johnson, KCAL9 News.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, hello, everyone. We're going to delve right into money matters. Yes, we've got a stimulus plan that's heading to the White House for a signature after late night voting, but at the same time, we want to answer some questions that you all have been sending us all afternoon long. We want to know how inventive you have become with your spending.

And this trio, right here, well, I guess the four of us, we're going to be answering some of your questions.

Dave Kansas, the editor of "FiLife," an online personal finance Web site. Jordan Goodman, the author of several bestselling books on personal finance. And Josh Levs is also here taking your e-mails. So, we want to know what you're doing now to help your family cope, to save, to reduce your budget, even if it's just a few dollars a week.

And Josh Levs will get to your questions, getting those questions to our experts, and somehow, by way of the four of us, you're going to be able to feel a little bit more, I guess, at ease about your personal economic situation.