Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Stimulus Passes Congress; Reviewing the Commuter Airliner Crash in Buffalo
Aired February 14, 2009 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pursuant to that order, the conference report to accompany HO1 is agreed to and a motion to consider that vote is considered made up on the table.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN, ANCHOR: And with that, it is passed. Next on the CNN NEWSROOM, with a bang of a gavel, Congress promises help the struggling economy.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN, ANCHOR: Also the investigation continue with that crash of flight 3407, a lot of attention being paid to ice now, that may have been the cause of the crash. We'll have the latest, we'll take you live to Clarence Center, New York.
NGUYEN: From the CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM. It is Saturday, February 14. Happy Valentine's day, everybody. And good morning. I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: And hello to you, all. I'm T.J. Holmes. Glad you could be with us this morning. We will start with that stimulus bill, the very latest on it. The $787 billion bill, well it has passed. And it is now on its way to the President's desk. The Senate passed it late last night with the help of three Republicans. The House did the same thing earlier in the day, however, GOP support there, zero.
So where is all of that money going? We can tell you where some of it is going, at least, $267 billion will be used for direct spending. They'll go to things like foot stamp programs, also unemployment benefits. $212 billion comes in the form of tax cuts. Most people will get a $400 tax cut if you make up to $75,000, couples making up to $150,000 will get $800. Now that all translates however to about $13 a week. So there you go. Take that for what it's worth.
$120 billion also goes for infrastructure, patching up roads, bridges and building and things like that. Also $100 billion set aside for education and then $30 billion will be spent on energy projects to create so called green jobs. This is all we need now is a signature. The last thing and it's a done deal. The President expecting to possibly sign it into law early next week. Our Elaine Quijano is at the White House. So all we need is a signature and then what?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, and then, the wait begins for the economy to turn around. Hello to you, T.J.. You know, President Obama said that he wanted to get this bill on his desk ready for his signature by President's day, which is Monday, as you know. And it looks like he is well on his way to getting that. Now we're told that the date might actually slide a little bit. It might be Tuesday morning before it's ready to go, because it's got some details yet to work out. The tricky part now though is going to be the message from the president from this point on. He wants people to know that, yes, help is on its way, that Washington has done its part, come together and crafted this legislation.
Now on the other hand he also is trying to buy some time if you will. He said in his weekly address that this really this is just the beginning of trying to get the economy turned around, the beginning of the process. Now republicans for their part are going to be watching this very closely.
As you noted only three Republicans out of the entire Congress actually supported this bill. Others including the top Republican in the senate Mitch McConnell really are adamantly against this package. They believe that there's just too much in the way of wasteful government spending and not enough in the way of tax cuts.
But on that point about wasteful spending, the president and the Obama administration are saying, look, we plan to have a website up, www.recovery.gov in which Americans will be able to track the money. Now once this plan starts to be implemented, that Americans will be able to go and look at how their taxpayer dollars are actually being used. You can bet, T.J., republicans are going to be monitoring that very closely.
And the big question is how long is it going to take for this money to really be felt in the economy, the president is saying over the next couple of years, he hopes to create or save three to four million jobs. Republicans though very skeptical that this plan can really jump-start the economy.
HOLMES: All right. And also just quickly, the president got out of town for the weekend, is that right?
QUIJANO: He did. He and the first family actually left out of town going back to Chicago. The first family is there right now. They are not coming back until Monday afternoon but as you know, Chicago is where their home is and at last check, I think T.J., he was off to the gym this morning. T.J.
HOLMES: As always, I guess we might start calling that the mid western White House now.
QUIJANO: That's right, the mid western White House.
HOLMES: Elaine Quijano for us at the White House. Thank you so much this morning.
QUIJANO: Sure.
NGUYEN: Well you could call the stimulus plan the first major victory for the Obama administration. But the president warns that this is only the first step and there will be more challenges in the times ahead. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRES. BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES: For our plan to succeed, we must stabilize, repair and reform our banking system and get credit flowing again to families and businesses. We must write and enforce new rules of the road to stop unscrupulous speculators from undermining our economy ever again.
We must stem the spread of foreclosures and do everything we can to help responsible homeowners stay in their homes. And in the weeks ahead, I will submit a proposal for the federal budget that will begin to restore the discipline these challenging times demand.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well the president says the bill shows that Washington is making real progress on the economy. And while democrats celebrate the stimulus victory, most republicans are uncomfortable with the $787 billion price tag and complained that it won't be spent properly.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SENATOR LISA MURKOWSKI (R-AX): It's not timely because less than half the discretionary spending in this bill will reach its intended target within the next two years. It's not targeted because much of the money isn't even directed where it's needed most. Much of the spending is wasteful, including hundreds of millions for new government cars and golf carts and some of it places new burdens on already strapped local and state governments.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Republicans say taxpayers should be given all the facts about the stimulus bill and they say they hope to work closely with democrats to monitor how this money is spent.
HOLMES: While some who are not part of the debates in Washington still are going to be responsible for doling out a lot of that money. We're talking about mayors from across the country, they are ones on the ground who are going to be implementing a lot of the programs that will help get the country back to work. We talked to a few of those mayors about an hour ago. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR RITA MULLINS: I want to thank the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the leadership of Manny Diaz. There were several of us that went to the hill, we went and met with the administration and said that we needed this money in our cities to put our people back to work. And I think it's happened.
HOLMES: That sounds great, but Mayor Newberry, as you know, there are some challenges ahead. Tell me still, what are the steps necessary? How much tape, bureaucratic tape do you still have to make it through before you see a dime? MAYOR JIM NEWBERRY: We'll be working very closely with the various federal agencies that are involved and then here locally have created the mayoral commission that will help me set the priorities for Lexington, help monitor how the money is being spent and help keep the public informed about how their money is being spent and about jobs being created which is what the stimulus package is all about.
HOLMES: Now Mayor Eulile, maybe you can explain this for us and a lot of people don't understand, people in your city maybe and around cities across the country, how exactly do we go from getting the signature of the president on that bill to cash in the account of your city? What is your understanding at least of how that money is going to get to you?
MAYOR WILLIAM EULILE: Well, it's a very good question. And it's my understanding that for the most part, a large portion of the stimulus funds will be directed to the states, to the governors and then they will use their standard allocation formulas to then redistribute those dollars to cities and towns.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well the president as we heard a minute ago from Elaine could sign the bill as early as Monday. The money could be distributed, who knows when after that.
Well, a lot of people trying to survive these tough economic times right now. A lot of our i-reporters are doing it. They are sharing their stories with us. We are talking to some of them, we are hearing from some of them. We also got some tips ahead on how to fireproof your job. You need to make yourself indispensable. Betty and I will be listening closely.
NGUYEN: And taking notes.
Let me get you an update on the Continental commuter plane that crashed into a suburb near Buffalo. Now the National Transportation Safety Board says crews have started to remove the remains of the 50 victims and they say that could take several days. Officials also say the crew noticed ice building on the wings and windshield before the crash. The flight data reporter which was recovered earlier showed the deicing equipment was switched on, but it is still unclear if it was functioning properly.
We're also learning more about the passengers aboard flight 3407. We have got some new information in fact about the crash from a news conference just this morning. And listen to this, it turns out the way the plane went down could have been a blessing. CNN's Mary Snow joins us live with much more on this. So explain that for us, Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Betty, local officials describe this morning that the plane had taken such a sharp nose dive that it only hit one home in a residential area. Officials said that there was some damage to a nearby garage, but because of the way the plane went down, that the damage was limited to that one home. This in an area about six miles outside of the airport. Now tragically, one man in that home was killed. He, along with 49 passengers aboard flight 3407 and a portrait is emerging of the passengers on board. We now know that there was a human rights activists on board, some musicians, mothers, grandmothers. Some had made a mark for themselves in their careers, their names are recognizable, others were just beginning their careers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): In an instant 50 lives were lost when Colgan Air flight 3407 crashed. First Officer Rebecca Shaw seen here on her Facebook 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 loved to fly, it was her passion. She just loved flying and any time she could be in the air, she's an amazing woman. She came very, very far. You know, she's just 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 Shawn Rooney in the tragedy. She was slated to attend a ceremony at Canias High School where a scholarship had been set up in her husband's memory.
55-year-old Susan Wehle was a cantor at Temple Beth Am. She was returning from a Costa Rica vacation. Her friend Rick Ellis is 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 would go 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 Alison Des Forges, recognized as one of the world's leading experts on Rwanda. She's remembered as a role model and human rights activist. Friends and colleagues say she may have been barely five feet tall, but she was a lion of a force fighting to stop the genocide in Rwanda
KENNETH ROTH, HUMAN RIGHTS WATHC:: For somebody who spent much of the last 20 years flying around the world for the people of Rwanda, I suppose there's that irony that she met her fate on an airplane.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: Two musicians who played with jazz musician Chuck Mangione were also on that flight. They have been scheduled to perform here in Buffalo last night. And a young college graduate who came to Buffalo to play for her alumni team, alumni hockey team that was supposed to happen today. These stories emerging of 50 lives from all different walks of life. And they're being remembered throughout this weekend in various memorial services. Betty? NGUYEN: Yes. It is so very tragic and really remarkable that more people on the ground weren't killed or injured because of this. Speaking of the crash site, I understand that the fire is out. What about those around that site, the people who lived nearby who had to be evacuated, will they be allowed back into their homes?
SNOW: Officials did say today that they will escort those families back to their homes but they're not being allowed to stay in their homes, they're allowed to go for a short period of time, but it's unclear when they'll be able to go back.
NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Mary Snow joining us live today. Thank you for that, Mary, we do appreciate it.
HOLMES: All right. Let's turn over to our Reynolds Wolf getting in place over there in the weather center, severe weather. Where do you want to start this time?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, let's start where we just left off. Let's go to Buffalo.
NGUYEN: OK.
WOLF: Let's talk about that. Right now we got some scattered snow showers that are moving right across the great lakes from Michigan back over to New York state. We're seeing some light to sporadic snow shower activity. In Buffalo, things are clear for the time being. Let's go right to our live shot, I believe we have one in Buffalo. You saw Mary Snow reporting live some moment ago and there was a little bit of (inaudible).
And here's a shot that we have also for you in Gorman, California. We have some video that we have of the West Coast where we're going to be dealing with this out of the West Coast is really some rough stuff later on today. We can see the winds ramp up. The snowfall could really intensify especially near the foothills of Mt. Shasta and then back up in the Sierra Nevadas, some places not just in inches but in feet. The grapevine farther south, you could be dealing with windy conditions right along parts of the i-5.
Let's steer right back to the weather computer. We're going to zoom in and show you what the setup is going to be for the day. You got high pressure right over the great basin, right off the coast in California you have an area of low pressure, the combination of both of these is going to create a tide pressure gradient. That's where you're going to have strong wings, some gusts topping 65 miles an hour into the afternoon. And of course, that heavy snowfall is going to be a big issue for you mainly to the north and also out into the eastern half of the state.
If you're trying to make that drive say from Sacramento over into Lake Tahoe or even Reno. Be careful especially in the high areas. Those mountain passes, that wind is going to be roaring. Highs today 20 in Minneapolis. 42 in Kansas City. 35 in Chicago. 47 in Washington, D.C., Tampa and Atlanta mainly into your 50s and 70s. A little bit of a front right through here. And along this area you can see some strong storms, Dallas with 58, Phoenix with 62 and Las Vegas into the 50s along the strip.
That is the latest on your forecast, let's send it back to you guys.
NGUYEN: OK. Thank you for that.
Well, you know, odds are that your industry, maybe even your profession is feeling the sting of this economy right now. You might be worried about your job, whether it's going to be in jeopardy. Well, in a little bit we're going to give you some information on those of you who really want to make that position of yours fireproof.
HOLMES: Fireproof, I can't be fired. I'm so valuable I can't be fired.
NGUYEN: We're taking notes.
HOLMES: All right. Valentine's day, a lot of people talking about love, love is in the air.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: People think about their relationships. Well, a lot of women sometimes get advice about their relationship from what? Other women. Their girlfriends.
NGUYEN: Yes, exactly.
HOLMES: Might not be who you need to be listening to. You might need to be listening to a man, maybe this one in particular.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVE HARVEY: A man shows his love in three ways, I call it three Ps.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: Steve Harvey.
HOLMES: The three Ps. The man knows what he's talking about. He's experienced. We sat down. We had a good old chat with Steve. We'll explain what those three P's are.
NGUYEN: I was really impressed. You know, you think his book is all about jokes and he's funny which he is but he gets serious in this book. And the advice, really, some words of wisdom. Stay tuned for that.
HOLMES: All right.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I gave my students an exercise to write about, you know, the biggest challenge of this month. And what was amazing to me is how many of them talked about financial matters. One woman married her husband as a truck driver of a cement truck. Because there are so few construction projects underway in New York, he's driving maybe one day a week. You know her salary as an aide in a school is not going to keep things together. So she really has to scramble to find out how she's going to be able to budget for herself and her two children and her husband.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: CNN i-reporters really give us a good idea of how tough it is as people struggle to hold on to their jobs. Joining me now live is Mitchell Lee Marks. He is the author of "Charging back uphill, work place recovery after mergers, acquisitions and downsizing." Maybe you've experienced at least one of those and his advice for you, how to actually hold on to your job.
Mitchell, I am listening very closely as are many people out there. I mean can you really save your job? I mean is there really something that you can do to keep from being laid off?
MITCHELL LEE MARKS, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY: No, there's nothing that you can absolutely do to keep from being laid off because the economy is what it is. But there's things that you can do to help yourself. There's really two things that you can do, find out what's going on around you and find out what's going on inside you, and what I mean by going to find out what's happening around you, talk to people, find out information.
The reality is, during a downsizing and following a downsizing, communication gets constricted. Leadership, it's a difficult position for them, they don't want to say anything that might be wrong down the road, so they tend to restrict their communication.
But one of the best things you can do is talk to your boss and find out, what should my priorities be now? Here's the problem with downsizing, if you had 10 people you work with and now there's suddenly just six, you have to cover their work. And the reality is you can't do everything. So talk to your boss, be proactive, get information, how should I prioritize my work?
NGUYEN: You say you can't do everything, but a lot of people really are having to do a lot more these days because people around them are being laid off. And one of your pieces of advice is first and last to leave. I mean that's really kind of a good example, but are you overworking yourself? Are you stressing yourself out?
LEE MARKS: That's what I mean by find out what's going on inside yourself. If you're burning the candles at both ends just simply to show your boss that hey, I'm tough, I can tough it out. That's not good. Better approach is do good, quality work, go home, get some rest, get some exercise, get an activity that gets your mind off of work and come back refreshed the next day.
NGUYEN: And are there things that you need to be doing within your workplace to really accentuate how good you are and how much of an asset you are to your company?
LEE MARKS: Yes, but be careful, because you don't want to be overly political, you don't want to come across as obnoxious and promoting yourself too much. I think one of the best things you can do is find out where the company is headed. One of the problems post downsizing is people go with what they know. Hey, this got me so far in my career, it should work for me in the future. The problem is the environment has changed, the business environment, the competitive environment has changed. You may have to let go of some of the things that you're used to do and adopt new ways of doing things. So be willing to do that.
So the key thing I think again is to talk, get information and make sure that what you're doing is aligned with the new organization, where the organization is headed, not what you got where you are today?
NGUYEN: Got you, but I want to find some tangible things as well that people can do within their daily grind, if you will, to really try to up their exposure, really try to show their bosses that you know -
LEE MARKS: Right.
NGUYEN: If you've got a list of names, I don't want my name to be on there because I matter to this company and this is why. So should you work on those high visibility projects. I mean what can you do tangibly?
LEE MARKS: Yes, rather than just talk about what you used to do. Get aligned with the high visibility project but also show how your past record contributes to that project. In other words, don't just say, GI was so great, such and such. Talk about how what I did before contributes to where we're headed and what we're going to do. Also I think you need to understand that your leadership may not have all the answers. That's why you have to be proactive. Talk to HR, just gather information. Don't assume you know what's going on.
NGUYEN: You know, something else that you say that I think is interesting, you call corporate downsizing, corporate anorexia. Is this the case where many companies are actually using the economy as, I don't know, an excuse to downsize to save the bottom line when maybe they're not doing that poorly?
LEE MARKS: I wouldn't call them an excuse, but it is something that leadership likes to say, hey, if we're downsizing, that shows Wall Street that we're being decisive, we're taking action. Here's the problem. Anorexia makes you leaner, it doesn't make you healthier. Downsizing makes the company leaner, it doesn't make the company any more effective.
People come back to work and do the same things the same old way. The clients that I have worked with that have used downsizing to actually enhance the organization have said, wait a minute, not only do we have to cut heads here, we have got to come back and work in a different way. We got to approach this differently. NGUYEN: And that means you as an employee have to work in a different way. Mitchell Lee Marks, thank you so much for your time and your insight today.
LEE MARKS: My pleasure.
NGUYEN: T.J.
HOLMES: Well, it was a year ago today tragedy struck an Illinois college campus. You may remember this cold-blooded attack. Five young people were killed in it. Well, now our Special Investigations Unit has a new investigation that reveals why the shooter might have done what he did that day.
Also we have the story behind this photo. It's award winning photograph. Another sign of these desperate economic times.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well today is the one-year anniversary of that Valentine's day shooting at Northern Illinois University. Five students were killed before the gunman Steve Kazmierczak took his own life.
NGUYEN: Now we want to get you to an exclusive CNN investigation which reveals what fueled Kazmierczak's rage. Special Investigations Unit correspondent Abby Boudreau has a preview of "Unraveling the mystery of the NIU killer."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ABBI BOUDREAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Behind that mask, is Stephen Kazmierczak. He dressed up as Jigsaw's alter ego for Halloween in 2007. Jigsaw is the sadistic killer from the horror movie "Saw."
JIGSAW: Heed my warning, Agent Perez. Your next move the critical.
BOUDREAU: Jigsaw tests his victims by teaching them the value of their lives by torturing them and making them face possible death. CNN has learned this was later be a clue that's important to understanding what happened and why he walked into that classroom and opened fire.
It's just amazing that he could that coldly plan to kill all of these people.
BOUDREAU: It was so calculated.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So calculated. Everything was planned out carefully.
BOUDREAU: David Vann is an author and professor. For nine months he studied the shooting for a book he wrote about the murders. He wanted to find out if there really were no red flags like NIU officials told the media right after the shooting. Vann says a law enforcement source gave him access to about 1,500 pages of the investigation. And Vann gave CNN exclusive access to those documents.
DAVID VANN, AUTHOR: The degree of self-destruction and anti-social behavior at the end of really scary behaviors was just phenomenal and at some point, after you look at all of those records, you just have to wonder what does a mass murder have to do to get noticed?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: For the story, CNN got access to about 1,500 documents that are part of the still secret police investigation into the murders. We've also reviewed Kazmierczak's psychiatric and military records.
HOLMES: Then later, we can now see all the red flags that were there throughout his life and why his obsession with serial killers, horror movies provide clues to what happened on that campus. Well that special "Unraveling the mystery of the NIU Killer" airs tonight at 11:00 Eastern.
NGUYEN: And while you were sleeping, Congress was actually crunching the numbers, all $787 billion of them. We're going to break down the stimulus deal right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: Well, President Obama says he plans to sign the $787 billion economic recovery bill possibly as early as Monday. And the massive stimulus bill, well, it won final passage in Congress when the Senate gave its stamp of approval late last night. Only three Republicans supported it in the Senate, none did in the House. >
Officials say people who live near the crash side of the flight 3407 can be escorted back to check on their homes. Investigators say the flight crew noticed significant ice buildup on the plane's wings before it crashed Thursday night, killing 50 people. And we have also just learned that the NTSB has a news conference scheduled for 4:00 p.m. Eastern in Buffalo, New York, we will bring that to you live when it happens.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: Well, they passed it, but they didn't read it. But, hey, they made the deadline that the president gave them. He said he wanted that big plan, that stimulus bill, on his desk by Monday, he will get it. But they passed it so quickly, in fact, no, they didn't get a chance to read it. It was just released to them to read Thursday night. They started discussing it and then passed it on Friday. So nobody even read the thing. Does anybody even know where this money is going? Our Senior Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN SR. CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Democrats are delivering President Obama's economic plan with the warp speed that he demanded. But that meant little time for lawmakers to actually review it.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER, (R) MINORITY LEADER: I don't know how you can read 1,100 pages between midnight, and now. Not one member has read this.
BASH: Across the capitol lawmakers and staff pored through pounds paper trying to determine exactly what's in the bill, before approving an unprecedented $787 billion. What's at the heart of those 1,000 plus pages are some $280 billion in tax cuts and more than $500 billion in government spending. Supporters insist the goal of this economic plan is simple.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jobs, jobs, jobs.
BASH: First for people who don't have jobs, here's what's in it. $24.7 billion to subsidize health insurance for nine months for most laid auf workers, up to 33 weeks of extended unemployment benefits and an additional $25 a week.
But creating jobs is what Democrats insist the 100s of billions in spending will do, by investing in infrastructure projects like energy efficient buildings, roads, bridges and mass transit. For example $27.5 billion for highways, $1.1 billion for airports that prove they can start construction work now, $8 billion for high-speed rail, a big funding boost thanks to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, who's pushing for a grant to build a train from Las Vegas to Southern California. But there are also programs like $50 million for the National Endowment for the Arts, which critics say will not stimulate the economy.
REP. ERIC CANTOR, (R) MINORITY WHIP: This bill is loaded with wasteful deficit spending on the majority's favorite government programs. We need jobs, not mountains of debt to be paid by our children. We can do better.
BASH: No Republican voted for this in the House and only three moderate Republicans voted for it in the Senate. In fact, it was so close in the Senate, Democrats held the vote open for more than five hours, until nearly 11 o'clock at night, so that the White House could send a government plane to Ohio to pick up Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown and bring him back from this mother's wake, so he could cast the final vote for President Obama's stimulus plan.
Dana Bash, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Well, it seems like this debate has been going for a while, you may be thinking, well, it has. Talk about this economic stimulus plan started almost immediately after the (AUDIO GAP). played out. Before even taking office, then President-Elect Obama delivered a major economic policy speech on January 8. Then on January 24, he asked for swift passage of an $825-billion plan. Four days later, the House passed an $819 billion plan, the Senate then passed it's own version at $838 billion. These numbers swirling around in your head yet? Members from both chambers worked on a compromise. That was reached on Wednesday, then yesterday, they both voted and approved a grand total of $787 billion.
NGUYEN: Officials and emergency coordinators say they no longer consider the crash site of Flight 3407 a dangerous zone. And some families could soon be allowed to visit their homes. Fire crews worked round the clock to put out a few hot spots that continued to burn hours after the crash --look at this IReport video - before they were able to determine that the entire crash site is safe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVE BISSONETTE, EMERGENCY COODINATOR: The scene has been made safe by the fire department, the Clarence Center Fire Department has completed fire operations there. They have done 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)
NGUYEN: All 49 people on the plane died in the crash, one person on the ground was also killed. So, here is the question today. Could anything have been done to save Continental Flight 3407? Well, we talked to a former inspector general for the Department of Transportation, Mary Schiavo. She works for a law firm currently, and actually sues airlines. Here's what she said a little bit earlier this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARY SCHIAVO, FMR. INSPECTOR GENERAL, NTSB: Though it had all the modern technology for a turbo prop plane, the NTSB -and they are going to be very interested in this, because they have been looking for more improvements. Even if you have all the equipment, it's still not the same equipment as you have on a jet airplane. And the NTSB has been very concerned that perhaps turboprops should not be going into severe icing conditions, or icing conditions such as this. And planes in the past have been banned. For example, the ATR, which crashed at Rose Lawn, was grounded for a while and then was regulated to Caribbean Island service.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: The former inspector general also says she believes icing caused the crash but it's still unclear if the ice was on the plane's wings or the plane's tail.
HOLMES: People hearing a lot of this stuff this week. And a lot of people seeing those images and people fly a lot. A lot of us do.
NGUYEN: Yeah.
HOLMES: Just people flying a lot. So, after hearing all of this, just how concerned should you when you board that next flight?
NGUYEN: Well, also we're going to be talking about this. The jobless, they're not the only ones battling depression and frustration. So, if you're still getting a paycheck, you're still facing incredible stress. We're going to delve into that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right, a lot of people out there, lucky enough right now - certainly feel lucky to be able to hold on to their jobs right now. It's not always a happy feeling you have if you hold on to that job. It can lead to you feeling depressed even. Psychologists call it layoff survival syndrome.
And Paula Caligiuri is the director of the Center for Human Resource Strategy, joining us now to tell us more about this.
It sounds like the exact opposite. You seem like you would be happy to hold onto your job, when it's not really the case there. And we were just talking a second ago, this is just like surviving a natural disaster, a plane crash, a wreck of some kind, and somebody else didn't. It's the same type of thing?
PAULA CALIGIURI, DIR., CTR. FOR HUMAN RESOURCE STRATEGY: Exactly the same.
HOLMES: Now what happens? Are the feelings just as intense as somebody might think, oh, because it's not a disaster, nobody died, if you will, somebody just lost their job. Maybe it wouldn't be the same, but are the feelings the same?
CALIGIURI: The feelings are the same. You know it's a constellation of very negative emotions that people feel when they watch those around them lose jobs while they get to keep theirs.
HOLMES: Now, can we call these, I guess, these layoff survives, just as much be qualified as victims who may need some help?
CALIGIURI: Exactly. Exactly. It's interesting because people don't want to talk about feeling as though they're victims, because they in fact have jobs. They're supposed to feel lucky or grateful and in fact they don't.
HOLMES: What do people go through? How can you identify, maybe people are going through this and don't even realize it. What are some of the things to look out for?
CALIGIURI: Sure. The most common one is guilt. People need to realize that this layoff was not their fault, it certainly was not their responsibility. And it wasn't within their control. What they need to do is try to get some information about how the decision was made, try to talk to their supervise, if they can, to understand more rationally how the decision was made.
HOLMES: Also they go through a couple of other stages here, anger, frustration and also sadness. CALIGIURI: Right.
HOLMES: Should we all be on the lookout for this within ourselves, and also should be we keeping an eye out for our co-workers?
CALIGIURI: Exactly, exactly. We need to be supporting each other through this. Anger in particular is an interesting one. Because you could be feeling anger toward management, or toward the organization, but you may also be feeling some envy or resentment toward the people who lost their jobs.
HOLMES: Now, how is that possible? That doesn't sound right.
CALIGIURI: I know. I know, it's hard to believe, right? But you know it is a real feeling. Face it, they were the ones perhaps, as you perceive have had a great severance package, or they go it the early retirement. They're not in the middle of a difficult situation anymore, they're the ones who you feel got the better deal. Doesn't have to be rational.
HOLMES: A lot of this as well, those feelings you can have come from even if you keep your job, and you see everyone around you being fired, you can get that feeling that oh, my goodness, maybe I'm next, so that doesn't feel good.
CALIGIURI: Exactly. It's a real good time, you know, if you're starting to feel some of that frustration, it's a very good time to talk to your supervisor. Talk to your manager about how tasks are going to be reallocated. You're not going to be able to do the work of two, three, four people. You're going to need to understand what your managers or supervisors priorities are.
HOLMES: And finally here, and I want to hit on this point. Because, again, people might not take this as seriously because it's not the same as having a life changing experience, as far as someone maybe getting killed in an accident or surviving a plane crash.
CALIGIURI: Right, right.
HOLMES: So it may not seem that serious. Is that really that serious and people may need to seek some professional help for this?
CALIGIURI: Absolutely. And we treat it as though any other type of depression. If it lasts beyond two weeks and it still feels very serious. And you've tried things like eating well, going to the gym, renting a funny movie. You've done all the things to be good to yourself and you're still feeling these negative emotions, I recommend either going to your employee assistance program within your organization, or perhaps going to seek some medical attention.
HOLMES: All right. Well, my goodness. This economic situation is hitting people so many different ways and even people keeping their jobs need to be on the lookout for some things that could effect them. Again, Paula Caligiuri, the director of the Center for Human Resource Strategy.
Ma'am, we appreciate you taking the time out with us this morning. Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention.
CALIGIURI: You're very welcome. My pleasure.
HOLMES: That's interesting.
NGUYEN: It really is.
HOLMES: You hold on to your job, still could be affected in such a way. It's interesting stuff.
NGUYEN: And it's very interesting how it just affects you not only as an employee, but as a person. A lot of people place their value on what they do. It can really change your psyche if things like that happen.
Speaking of how you feel, ladies and gentlemen, love school is in session on this Valentine's Day.
HOLMES: Are you teaching?
NGUYEN: Oh, no, not me.
HOLMES: We're going to talking about -- our guy, we had to spend some time with him this week, Steve Harvey. What can he teach you, teach us, teach Betty about finding romance?
NGUYEN: Why do you say me?
HOLMES: I don't know, I just felt like throwing it in there.
NGUYEN: Thanks.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Nobody will ever accuse you of not acting like a lady, but sometimes you need to change your thinking up, and not think like a lady.
NGUYEN: And think like who?
HOLMES: Think like a man.
NGUYEN: A man?
HOLMES: It will help you out. At least according to our guy, here.
NGUYEN: Steve Harvey. And you know, a lot of ladies out there are going wait a second, I know plenty of men, when it comes to thinking, sometimes they're not always right.
But listen to what Steve Harvey has to say because he's talking about relationships. And ladies you may get some good advice.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Steve, in your book you talk about there are five things that women need to know about men. What are those five things?
STEVE HARVEY, ACTOR, COMEDIAN: It's five questions that a woman should ask a man when they meet. You know, because a lot of women have been sold a bad bill of goods, you know. We have created this thing that if you ask us too many questions, if you're too inquisitive, that you're encroaching on your privacy. And then we won't have anything to do with you. That's not the truth. You have every right to know what you're getting into.
HOLMES: A lot of people follow you. And the fellows might say, why are you not talking to us? Why are you not giving us relationship advice?
HARVEY: That would be great, but they don't buy books.
(LAUGHTER)
HARVEY: Let's just tell the truth. So I really don't care what you think.
HOLMES: A lot of what's in the book can be applied to all men and women, but speaking particularly to black men and women, here. Is there a new standard and a new example for all black men and women and couples to follow given what we see in the White House now?
HARVEY: The book is written for everybody, but there is a new mandate here, Obama is the president. We got to do better than this. And that's just the tone that's out there in the country for a lot of people. There have been other beautiful families in the White House. Nobody's knocking that, I think George Bush, I like the guy personally.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: We spent a lot of time with Steve Harvey. In fact, I want you to listen up because we're going to show this full interview next Saturday. But ladies, I really stood up for us. I asked a lot of questions.
HARRIS: Oh, stop.
NGUYEN: Because I know a lot of women are wondering when is he going to propose so me? It is Valentine's Day. And a lot of women, too, at the same time want to know why do men cheat? Well, we tackled these questions with Steve Harvey. And he says he has the answer. And guess what, the finger comes back at women. We'll talk to him about that.
HOLMES: She filled up a reporter's note pad, doing that interview, I'll have you know.
But stay with us here. Again, you certainly want to see that next week. But coming up here, what does it take to pick the photo of the year? There's been a lot of photos, but the photo of the year. We're going to show it to you, coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: We expect to get a lot more details about Flight 3407. NTSB has a news conference scheduled for 4:00 Eastern Time that's going to come to us from Buffalo, New York. We'll bring you that live right here on CNN.
NGUYEN: Well, the images that we have been seeing from the plane crash just outside Buffalo can make anyone a little nervous about flying.
HOLMES: Certainly. But we always hear that flying is one of the safest ways to travel. Seems to be the case.
Josh Levs, is that the case?
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, actually it is the case.
Let me give you some numbers to back that up right now. And it's true. Just what you were saying some of these images can really scare people to the point that we actually have a story about it on CNN.com today. You see that right here, "Seeing Crash Reports Can Worsen Flying Phobia." No shocker there.
Let's try to counteract some of that phobia with some statistics here. We're going to go to this first one, which tells you how rare these kinds of accidents are.
There were no fatal accidents to passengers on U.S. commercial jets at all in 2007 or 2008. Before that, there was one each year. And they range in death from 11 to 47, but only one in each of those years, and none in the last two years. Let's go to next one, now, because the National Safety Council says something interesting. Your chances of dying in a vehicle accident is 1 in 6,500; chances of dying in an airline accident, one in 500,000.
One more thing guys. I had wondered if there is one airline that's safer than another? The government says no. You can see that there. There currently is no evidence and accident data that would support the ranking of individual airlines based on their safety records.
Let me tell you guys one more thing actually, just to help people feel maybe even better. There's a study done by a professor at MIT. Who also does some studies for the government. Check this out. He only looked at domestic flights on jets. Chances of death, he says, is one in 70 million. So we're certainly not talking about a high risk of death if you travel on a jet in the United States.
These stories make big news because they're so rare.
NGUYEN: That's a good "Reality Check". Because I think a lot of us know it, but just to be reminded it gives you that little extra assurance.
Thank you for that, Josh. We sure do appreciate it.
LEVS: You got it. Thanks. HOLMES: America's economic crisis is the subject of the winning picture in the World Press Photo Contest. Look at the picture and it will explain a lot to you.
The picture shows an armed officer, you see there, he's in Cleveland, Ohio, he's moving through the home where the residents have been evicted. They have lost their home due to foreclosure. The picture was taken by an American photographer by the name of Anthony Suow (ph).
The black and white photo looks like a classic picture from a war zone, or another country.
NGUYEN: Yes, you wouldn't imagine that was taken right here in America. And he's not going into a spot where people are holed up, or there's some kind of a standoff, this is just a house where people have been evicted. Maybe they lost their home because of mortgage defaults, or whatnot, bankruptcy.
And going in with his gun drawn like that, into a home. I mean this is the U.S. It really evokes a lot of feelings as you look at this picture here. This is the winning photo. But to give you an idea how many were submitted in this contest; 96,000 photos were submitted. The photographs were from photographers of all different nationalities, in fact, 124 different nationalities. But the award for the winning photo, 10,000 euros. And if you do the math on that, that's quite a bit of cash. But what a photo and what a story behind it though.
HOLMES: That's the thing. There's such a story behind that picture. And it really is, tells a story, it sums it up right there, in a way that it's that serious now for everybody. That used to be somebody's house, now he's having to walk through it and make sure --and protect himself. We know about squatters, using a lot of people's homes and what not.
NGUYEN: Right.
HOLMES: A powerful image.
NGUYEN: Unfortunately it is a sign of the times and just another example of the financial mess that we are all facing. And hopefully we'll see something come out of the stimulus package that was passed, the plan that went through Congress.
HOLMES: Let me read it first.
NGUYEN: And is still waiting to be signed by the president. I don't know a lot of people who have in fact read it. What, 1,100 pages?
HOLMES: Yes, and waiting to be signed and waiting to be read, as well, apparently by a lot of folks in Congress even though it did pass. That's what we have been focusing on a lot this morning. Certainly the plane crash as well. We will continue to focus on it. Don't you go anywhere because the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.
NGUYEN: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. The news is unfolding live on this Valentine's Day. Happy Valentine's Day everybody. It is Saturday, February 14. I'm Betty Nguyen.
