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Obama Warns Mayors; FDIC Chairman Interview; Americans Stimulus Plan Opinion; Obama Approval Rating; Infomercial Profits Booming
Aired February 21, 2009 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: All right, we're going to focus on fixing the economy because what else is there to talk about these days? President Barack Obama made strides in that directing this week, directing stimulus money to states and giving hope to some struggling homeowners.
CNN's Kate Bolduan is at the White House and that's just the beginning, isn't it ,Kate?
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: It sure seems like it, Fredricka. It's going to be a busy week coming up. But first, listen here to President Obama's weekly address. He tries to reassure the American public that with the stimulus package help is on the way and he says sooner than many may think. Listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA (D), UNITED STATES PRESIDENT: I'm pleased to announce that this morning the Treasury Department began directing employers to reduce the amount of taxes withheld from paychecks, meaning that by April 1, a typical family will begin taking home at least $65 more every month.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: As I said, another big week for the economy ahead with the administration. Monday, President Obama will be meeting with governors, Democrat and Republican, from across the country. You can expect the economy and the stimulus will be topic No. 1.
As you remember, just yesterday the president met with about 80 mayors from across the country. He had a very clear message for them. Be very careful with how you handle and how you deal with this money that the federal government is giving up.
That same day the president will be meeting with a bipartisan group of lawmakers, economists, as well as people from different sectors of business and labor. He's hosting what they're calling a fiscal responsibility summit to look more long-term to how to control the deficit.
Later in the week, the focus changes to the budget. We're going to see the first Obama budget. They're going to be unveiling the 2010 budget, and I can tell you that's going to be closely watched and carefully scrutinized.
Listen here to Republican congressman Dave Camp and the Republican response this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP DAVE CAMP (R), MICHIGAN: The summit next week is an important step as is the budget outline the president will release at the end of the week. If he is serious about dealing with the tough issues and getting spending under control, his budget will show it. If we do not act, we doom the next generation to fewer and worse government services, drastic tax increases and unprecedented debt. We must not leave that legacy to our children and our grandchildren.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: And addressing the budget today in his weekly address, the president said that the budget is going to be sober in its assessment and honest in its accounting. It's going to be definitely looked at and carefully scrutinized by many -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And you know that's going to happen. All right, thanks so much, Kate Bolduan at the White House. Appreciate it.
Well, America's governors are bringing their financial worries to Washington, as well. Some doubt the stimulus package will actually help. So, tomorrow night the president plans to have them over for a dinner and a little chat. However, a few high profile governors will not be there. Wonder who I'm talking about?
Well, Alaska's Governor Sarah Palin says that she can't get away with her legislature currently in session and New Mexico's Bill Richardson is also staying home. He was, by the way, the president's first choice to head the Commerce Department.
All right, President Obama also played host to dozens of the nation's mayors this week, as you heard Kate reporting, a little bit more on that. He talked to them about the stimulus and what they need to do to make it all work. CNN White House correspondent, Dan Lothian, has more on the president's message to them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One month in office, and the Obama administration is patting itself on the back.
BARACK OBAMA (D), UNITED STATES PRESIDENT: We've done more in 30 days to advance the cause of health care reform than this country has done in a decade.
JOE BIDEN (D), US VICE PRESIDENT: We've won passage of the largest economic recovery effort since World War II in a month. In a month.
(APPLAUSE)
LOTHIAN: Speaking in the East Room to the nation's mayors, the president put them on notice. When it comes to spending stimulus money from his biggest initiative, waste, inefficiency and fraud will not be tolerated.
OBAMA: I will call them out on it and use the full power of my office and our administration to stop it.
LOTHIAN: The threat of being called out didn't appear to rattle these mayors.
MAYOR MANNY DIAZ (D), MIAMI: We get called out every day at the local level.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every day.
DIAZ: We have plenty of constituents who will be doing that before the president does.
MAYOR DOUGLAS PALMER (D), TRENTON: We welcome that kind of accountability.
LOTHIAN: As the mayors get ready to spend their share of $787 billion on shovel-ready projects, a new CNN/Opinion Research poll shows 60 percent of Americans support the stimulus and 49 percent consider it a major victory for the president.
But it's not just one big love-fest. At least two Republican governors, Sanford of South Carolina and Jindal of Louisiana, are threatening to turn down stimulus aid, calling it bad for the economy. That complicates things for local communities since the state has to hand out the money.
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin says his governor's rhetoric is nothing but politics.
MAYOR RAY NAGIN (D), NEW ORLEANS: I think he's been tapped as the up- and-coming Republican to potentially run for president the next time it goes around, so he has a certain vernacular and a certain way he needs to talk right now.
LOTHIAN: The president still finding Republican resistance, even when it comes to handing out federal dollars.
(on camera): Next week the president continues to keep the pedal to the metal, if you will. He addresses a joint session of Congress, unveiled the federal budget and holds a fiscal responsibility summit. He also plans to take another road trip.
Dan Lothian, CNN, the White House
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right, indeed it will be a busy next week for President Obama. He addresses congress Tuesday night at 9:00 Eastern followed by Anderson Cooper and the best political team on television, here on CNN. At midnight there is a special edition of LARRY KING LIVE, remember, you can watch along with your FaceBook friends at CNN.com, live. Another bank goes belly up. The Silver Falls bank is the second in Oregon to fail in a week. It's the 14th to fail nationwide this year, and if you got money in Silver Falls. Don't worry, Citizens Bank and the FDIC are taking over.
And big news of the week, the Obama administration's effort to help in the foreclosure and housing crisis. Who specifically does it help? CNN's Tony Harris talked to FDIC chairman, Sheila Bair.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TONY HARRIS, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: OK. Let's do this. Let's drill down on the plan, all right?
SHEILA BAIR, FDIC CHAIRMAN: OK.
HARRIS: Let's talk about what is.
BAIR: OK.
HARRIS: Two hundred billion in support for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Describe the role you see Fannie and Freddie playing in this plan.
BAIR: Well, I think there are two components of this. One is to broaden the number of homeowners who are current on their mortgage who can refinance into the lower rates, who, though they may be underwater or they're what we call the loan to value ratio, the amount of unpaid principle balance on their loan to the current appraised value of their loan -- of their home, to help those people refinance into lower rates who may not be able to now, because of declining home prices.
So, that's for current homeowners and that's estimated to help four to five million folks who are current with traditional safe mortgages, refinanced into lower rates. And so that is really the piece -- the big piece that Fannie and Freddie will have. And then there is also the foreclosure prevention piece of this, the loan modification piece, that is designed to help about three to four million borrowers.
Those are people who are in a distressed situation now, or where there is a reasonably foreseeable chance that they will fall behind either because of a job loss or a reset on their mortgage. And so, this is designed to help them with a restructured loan, get you an affordable payment to deal with their circumstances and keep them off of the foreclosure market.
HARRIS: And that's about 75 billion, is that correct?
BAIR: No, that program will be about 50 billion.
HARRIS: About 50 billion.
Do you know yet who will qualify for which program?
BAIR: Right. Well, I think if you are a borrower in distress, if you have a -- first of all, it only helps those who are in owner- occupied properties, your first mortgage. You've got to be living in your house. It's got to be your primary residence.
If you're in distress now, and your debt-to-income ratio -- that is, your principal, interest, taxes and insurance on your mortgage -- exceeds 31 percent of your gross income, you may be able to get help. So, I would suggest contacting your servicer, the name and phone number that's on your mortgage billing statement. They will not have the final guidelines until March 4, so you might want to wait until after March 4 to contact your servicer.
Be patient. We expect a big surge of borrowers contacting the servicers, so it's going to take some time. But the program will be operational March 4. The guidelines will be out.
And you can facilitate the process by having your income verification information about if you have a second lien or credit card bills, things like that. The servicer is going to want to know about your recurring debt payments, as well as your mortgage payment, to make sure that they can get you into an affordable mortgage.
But having those documents ready when you call the servicer will help. And if you go on to the Treasury Department's Web site, there is a link -- I believe it's financialstability.gov -- that can give you more detailed information about who is eligible and the kind of information you should have before you contact your servicer.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right, that's the FDIC's point of view, right there. And, of course, we know you weren't able to get all of that down and we're going to actually revisit this entire topic later on today: housing and foreclosures, that's the topic of a special hour of the CNN NEWSROOM later today in the 4:00 p.m. Eastern hour. We want you to play a part as well.
So, are you facing foreclosure? Are you in a position to refinance? Are you worried about your property value?
Well, e-mail us your thoughts, your questions about all this at weekends@cnn.com. Tell us your story. A couple of financial experts will be joining us to answer those questions and provide some advice. This all happens today, 4:00 p.m. Eastern, again e-mail us right now, the address is weekends@cnn.com.
All right, other news we're following, as well, today. A possible break in the Chandra Levy murder case. We're hearing an arrest is imminent. CNN affiliate KGO reports police in Washington, D.C. are actually seeking an arrest warrant for Ingmar Guandique. He is already in the Washington prison system. You'll remember the Levy case gained national attention in 2001 when the Washington intern disappeared. Her body was found a year later. Affiliate KXTV talked with Levy's parents.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUSAN LEVY, MOTHER: We want justice and truly for a parent there is no justice, you know? You know, we have a life sentence not having our child, knowing what happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Though asked to comment, D.C.'s police chief says there's no new information ready for release at this it time. We'll keep you posted throughout the day as it becomes available.
Meantime in Pennsylvania, this very disturbing story. An 11- year-old boy is jailed on charges that he shot and killed a woman who was eight months pregnant. Police have not offered a motive in the case. The boy is charged with criminal homicide and criminal homicide of an unborn child. The woman's body was found by her 5-year-old daughter. You're looking at the picture of the victim.
All right, lots of straight talk these days about the economy from President Obama, but Bill Clinton says it may be too tough.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, President Obama has been very frank with American people saying that there's no quick fix for the recession, but as our Lisa Sylvester reports one former president thinks he needs to add more hope to his message.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Former President Clinton, the man from Hope, Arkansas, says President Obama could pass along a little hope.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER US PRESIDENT: The last thing that you want to do when you take office in a time like this is give people a lot of inane happy talk and false promises about how quickly we can get out of this.
Now, the only thing I'd like him to do, I just would like him to end by saying that he is hopeful and completely convinced we're going to come through this.
SYLVESTER: Former President Clinton is referring to proclamations like this one made by President Obama as he urged congress to approve the recently passed stimulus package. Without it, he predicted dire consequences.
OBAMA: Our nation will sink into a crisis that at some point we may be unable to reverse.
SYLVESTER: Press Secretary Robert Gibbs when asked about Mr. Clinton's comments said President Obama wants to tell it like it is.
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECY: It's important to be straightforward with the American people about those challenges, to underscore the path that we're taking as being one that he feels will get us on a path towards sustained long-term economic growth.
SYLVESTER: But one economist says there is a danger with talking down the economy, that it can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
PETER MORICI, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND: President Obama's basic problem is he hasn't stopped campaigning. He's got to stop knocking the situation, Bush is gone. Start fixing the situation, communicating the solutions with clarity and with confidence.
SYLVESTER: Since President Obama took office one month ago, the Dow Jones has fallen more than seven percent, despite the passage of the nearly $800 billion stimulus package, a new initiative to back the financial industry, and a major new housing plan.
(on camera): That suggests a confidence problem at least on Wall Street. President Clinton says that is a mistake to bet against the United States over the long run and president Obama embodied that message.
Lisa Sylvester, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Another reminder, Tuesday, the president is expected to lay out how the stimulus bill will be carried out, the mortgage plan and other rescue deals, how all that's going to fix the economy, but it might be a pretty hard sell still. Our deputy political director, Paul Steinhauser is checking out what some of the new polls are saying.
So, Paul, what do Americans, in general, seem to think about the stimulus plan?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: In general, they like it. Six out of 10 people in our brand new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll are in favor of the stimulus.
Now, we can this poll on Wednesday and Thursday. The stimulus was signed into law by President Obama on Tuesday. You can see right there, six out of 10 favor it. Only four out of 10 oppose it.
But, check this out, when we asked will the stimulus package do what it's supposed to do and that's basically pump up the economy, improve the economy, you can see the numbers drop a little bit here, Fred, down to 53 percent and when we asked specifically will the stimulus package help improve your financial situation? Only three in 10 say yes.
So I think the scene here is they like it overall, it's got tax cuts, it's got spending on things they like, bridges, roads, tunnels, hospitals, schools, but they don't think it's specifically going to help them out, -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: And then, apparently these polls broke it down by party, but I think most people have a general idea of how it breaks down by party. But, go ahead and elaborate for us because we can't forget the most recent vote, right?
STEINHAUSER: Yeah, that's reflected quite well right here. No surprise. Almost nine in 10 Democrats support it, Independent are split, and only two out of five or two out of 10 Republicans, one out of five, support the plan. And as you said, we saw that in the vote in Congress. Not one member of the House on the Republican side voted for the stimulus and only three Republicans in the Senate came over.
WHITFIELD: All right. Approval rating. We're already talking about the president's approval rating even though he's barely been a month in office.
STEINHAUSER: Yeah, and right now two out of three Americans are definitely giving him the thumbs up. Take a look at that, 67 percent approve of the way President Obama is handling his job as president. About three in 10 disapprove. That's down slightly from when we asked it a few weeks ago, mainly from Republicans who have determinate and jumped to the other side. But still, Fred, two out of three. Those are pretty good numbers, any politician would love to have that approval rating.
WHITFIELD: Yeah, so apparently most Americans like that frank talk. All right, even if it is grim. All right, thanks so much, Paul Steinhauser, appreciate it. Good to see you.
STEINHAUSER: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: All right, well, to see how the stimulus package is broken down in more specific terms you want to go to CNNmoney.com. You can also check out ways to boost your home value and see how your state is doing when it comes to foreclosures, perhaps, for all things financial go to CNNmoney.com.
All right, an update now on billionaire financier Robert Allen Stanford. He's accused of bilking investors out of billions of dollars. Regulators have taken control of his financial institutions in Antigua and in Barbuda and they've appointed receivers to manage those east Caribbean banks. No criminal charges have been filed against Stanford at this time, however.
All right, Infomercials make a comeback during tough economic times.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, lake-effect snow to talk about making a huge mess in Michigan, there. They could see a foot or more of the white stuff this weekend. Reynolds Wolf is in the CNN Weather Center.
I know folks there are fairly used to this, Reynolds, but still a headache, isn't it?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It really is. I mean, I can tell you as someone who lived in Michigan for about three years or so, I can tell you that, you know, it's all well and good, you do expect the snowfall when it's say, you know, November, December, January, February, but when you start pushing April and you're getting snow it gets absolutely crazy. I mean, obviously it's a far cry from that, but you will see people doing this as you see playing out right there on your television screen at home.
WHITFIELD: Yeah, I don't miss, you know, trying to get the snow off the windshield, though, I must say.
WOLF: No, I mean, on the list of to-do things it really doesn't ranked right up there as the best way to spend a Saturday, no question about it.
(WEATHER REPORT)
WHITFIELD: Yeah, well, you mentioned Carmel. I don't care what the temperature. I never feel sorry for anybody in Carmel. Have you been there? It's just so beautiful.
WOLF: I love Carmel.
WHITFIELD: They never have a bad day.
WOLF: It's Steinbeck country, absolutely. It's unbelievable.
WHITFIELD: It's gorgeous.
WOLF: You go there for great restaurants, good wine and good times.
WHITFIELD: I know, all right, thanks so much, Reynolds, appreciate it.
WOLF: You know it. WHITFIELD: All right, well, "as seen on TV," from Ped Eggs to Sham-Wows, infomercials are proving that many viewers are willing and able to act now despite the economic downturn. Here now is CNN's Stephanie Elam.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You've seen the commercials on CNN and other networks.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Call now and get the Pedi Paws for your pet for only $19.95.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Order your 12-compartment Shoes Under today.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A $30 value, all for only $10, don't wait, call now!
ELAM: They're everywhere, infomercial products and in a bad economy, these gadgets and gizmos are booming. A.J. Kubani, president and founder of Telebrand, a direct response company that markets popular products, like the Ped Egg and Get A Grip, says the economic downturn are good for business.
AJ KUBANI, TELEBRAND: Last year, for example, when the recession started, our business tripled and already, this year in January we were 20 percent over last year, so we're expecting another record year this year.
ELAM (on camera): How do you take this lift in your business and translate it into putting it back into the company.
KUBANI: Well, we feel this is a really good opportunity for us to maximize our sales, so we're very active looking for new products to put on TV as quickly as possible. We don't know how long this recession is going last, but it's a good time for us.
ELAM (voice-over): With many people opting to stay home over going out, traveling or shopping at the mall, frugal consumers are becoming a captive audience for direct marketers who are benefitting from a soft advertising market. That means more eyes and more sales.
KUBANI: I like to say we get beach front property at trailer park prices.
ELAM: They see no harm spending 10 or 20 bucks to make life at home more satisfying, so says clinical psychologist Dr. Jeffrey Gardere.
JEFFREY GARDERE, CLINICAL PSYCOLOGIST: You have to understand that the pitch people who do this stuff, they are excellent at what they do. They make you feel good. They entertain you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now I feel safe and confident.
GARDERE: The products, the infomercials are placed right after or in between the news where we're hearing about the bad economy or more foreclosures.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now, that's super strong.
ELAM: Still, "Consumer Reports" says despite the soft, cozy and bright things a product may promise, buyer beware.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just pay separate shipping and handling.
TOM MARKS, CONSUMER PRODUCTS: When you're considering an infomercial product, be realist being, don't expect the world and also look at two key things: What is the return policy for this product and what is the shipping cost?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop throwing your money away.
ELAM: Not all are bad deals, but you do get what you pay for.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The complete Ped Egg package is just $10.
ELAM: And it seems Americans are willing to part with some of their hard-earned cash if it means they can snuggled, smoothed, and stuck up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just stick it up, pull the cord...
ELAM: Stephanie Elam, CNN, New York. (END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: OK, while some are spending others, it's more like ready, set, foreclose. Law and order in the blink of an eye on the rocket docket. We'll take you there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Happening right now in the news, CNN is hearing that police may be close to making an arrest of this man right here in one of Washington's most infamous cold cases, the Chandra Levy case. Affiliate KGO reports police are pursuing an arrest warrant against this prison inmate in California. Police won't confirm that, however. And you may remember that Levy was a D.C. intern from California who disappeared from a Washington park almost eight years ago now. The 24-year-old's remains were found a year later.
Memorial services are now being held this morning for two of the victims in the Buffalo plane crash. One of them is Beverly Eckert whose husband was killed in the September 11th attacks. The other is Vietnam veteran Doug Wilinsky who was killed when the plane crashed into his home.
It's known as the sunshine state, but as America's mortgage meltdown heats up, Florida is now becoming more aptly called the state of foreclosure. And so are the courts and communities crunched by the housing crisis. CNN's Gary Tuchman reports from hard-hit Lee county, Florida.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Signed, 10 more to go.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a court that operates in fast forward. So fast the docket has become known as the rocket docket, handling up to 1,000 cases a day. It's the rapid conclusion to an agonizing foreclosure process.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My husband passed away.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sorry to hear that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And the debt just kept getting higher and higher.
TUCHMAN: Casey McNear just lost her home.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They told me my best option was to refinance, but they wouldn't do it.
TUCHMAN: The judge asks his final questions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you acknowledge you're behind in the payments?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're not in the home and it needs to go into foreclosure.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
TUCHMAN: And then the judge's order.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then it's my job to, an unhappy one, but my job to enter the final judgment of foreclosure.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I understand.
TUCHMAN: This is Fort Myers, Florida, also known as foreclosure Myers. One of the highest foreclosure rates in the country. Home values have plummeted by as much as 50 percent since the height of the market in 2005. Unemployment has reached 10 percent, leaving houses overgrown, abandoned and up for auction. For sale signs and lockboxes are everywhere.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't believe that I'm 60 years old losing my home today.
TUCHMAN: Foreclosures in Florida sometimes take a year and require a judge's approval. Here that's usually just a quick once over and signature. Nowhere is it quicker than in this courthouse where judges preside over the rocket docket.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have any questions?
TUCHMAN: Hugh Starnes is a retired judge, brought back to help move the backlog of 30,000 cases often dispensing with them literally in seconds.
JUDGE HUGH STARNES, LEE COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT: It is a legal, procedural response to an overwhelming number of filings that unfortunately is necessary.
TUCHMAN: But this day's news wasn't all bad for everyone. Patricia Valverde, a laid off mortgage broker thought she was about to be foreclosed but her bank gave her some more time. She says she hopes Barack Obama's housing plan succeeds.
PATRICIA VALVERDE, HOMEOWNER: I am so happy with his ideas and, you know, everything. I think everything is going to change with him.
TUCHMAN: Most cases in Fort Myers involve homeowners who were speculators or out of towners. They don't bother showing up. But for the other 40 percent this lightning-quick court action marks a surreal change in their lives. They have been part of the rocket docket. Gary Tuchman, CNN, Atlanta.
(END OF VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: They say diamonds are a girl's best friend, well, ladies, these friends may be getting harder to find. "The New York Times" is reporting today how the current economic downturn is hurting the high-end diamond business. Industry analysts say prices and sales are slumping worldwide, even diamond giant De Beers says it will cut rough gem production by half in light of these rough times.
So it seems everyone is spending less these days. Have you actually been to a mall lately? Reporter Dave Lopez from CNN affiliate KCAL TV shows us what some mall owners are actually doing about it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVE LOPEZ, KCAL TV REPORTER (voice-over): Just before 11:00 Friday morning. Inside the Westfield City Mall in Santa Ana, historically, one of the busier malls in all of Orange County, that is until the economic bottom fell out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I had, like, 24 hours a week and now they cut me to 11.
LOPEZ: The Westfield Corporation owns hundred of shopping malls throughout the country and they announced today that they are cutting the hours at the Main Place Mall beginning on March 1st, opening a half hour later and closing a half hour sooner.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm surprised that so many of them are going out now and that hopefully we stay here.
LOPEZ: No comment today from anyone at corporate headquarters at the Main Place Mall only to say that the press release speaks for itself, that they are cutting hours.
(On camera): On the surface, it doesn't seem like such a big deal. Opening a half hour later, closing a half hour sooner, but just stop and think how many stores are in this mall, 181 to be exact. That means every one of those stores will be cutting back their hours. That means less hours for people who work in there. That means it's a big trickledown effect for everyone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm surprised they didn't do it sooner.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've noticed. I've basically noticed, you know what I mean, you can tell. I mean I've come here for a cup of coffee before I go to work every day and it's just like that. You know you can see it slowing down.
LOPEZ: Like almost disappearing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely.
LOPEZ: When discussing business news today you might as well say read it and weep, and we are told in tough economic times like this, in order to keep some sense of sanity, think of pleasant thoughts. Does it make you feel any better? From Santa Ana, Dave Lopez, KCAL 9 News.
(END OF VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: It's been a very fast-paced 33 days in office for President Obama, but is there anything he could have learned from his predecessor that could serve him today. Our D.L. Hughley spoke with a former White House press secretary to get his thoughts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
D.L. HUGHLEY, CNN HOST: You see Obama coming in. He's very popular.
FLEISCHER: Yeah.
HUGHLEY: Do you think that there is anything he can learn from the Bush administration?
ARI FLEISCHER, FMR. WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Well, the most important thing in public life is to stand by your principles and act on them. This is what attracts people to you. Because you might be right and you might be wrong, nobody is smart enough to really know. But if people think you're sincere, it comes from your heart, people will back you up.
That's why George Bush won in 2004. A lot of people said he beat John Kerry in an election and one of the reasons was people said I may not agree with everything you stand for, but at least I know you take strong positions and you mean it. That carries a lot of weight in politics. It's called sincerity.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right, Ari Fleischer there with D.L. Hughley. This reminder, D.L. Hughley breaks the news tonight at 10:00 eastern and again tomorrow night at 11:00 eastern.
Ok, take a look. These dancers give inspiration to all who see them. You will be seeing them. The Alvin Ailey Dance Theater marks a 50-year milestone and its always exuberant artistic director, Judith Jamison, you know the name. You also know the face. Can we take a quick little shot of her? She's going to be joining me next. There she is. She'll be joining us next to talk about 50 years and what's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Don't you wish you could move like that? The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, a year when so many performing arts organizations are actually struggling in this economy, but no, not Alvin Ailey, they're still going very strong. The company's artistic director Judith Jamison joining me now. You all are performing in Atlanta.
JUDITH JAMISON, ALVIN AILEY DANCE THEATER: Yes we are at the Fox Theatre, and you came to see us.
WHITFIELD: It was fantastic.
JAMISON: You know we always do children's performances. You know, Alvin's mantra was excellence, you know, integrity. It was celebrating the African-American cultural expression and experience in the modern dance tradition of our country. So as cultural ambassadors for our country we declared that this year and as cultural ambassadors we've been spreading that word for 50 years now.
WHITFIELD: It's incredible how it's resonated.
JAMISON: It started out a long time ago with seven dancers. You know I have 31 of the most extraordinary dancers. I work with extraordinary people who understand what the gift is and how important it is, our culture is and how universal the things that he had to say about the human being in all of us. The nature of being kind to each other. The nature of being human is said in dance, you know?
WHITFIELD: And it really underlines the importance of performing arts. Does it break your heart though when you hear that there are dance companies, performing arts companies that are going under because the endowments are not coming in and the contributions. Ticket sales are down.
JAMISON: Yes, it does disturb me, but what enlightens the heart and what makes me feel really good is that some of those companies who are having problems now, their works are in our repertoire. So they are not dying. They're being spread around the world as we tour in Turkey and in Romania and where we just came from. And the 26 cities that we're hitting to finish out the 50-city tour we're doing in honor of our 50th anniversary. I work with such marvelous people. I have to mention one person, you know him, he's my associate artistic director, he's 38 years and it's his birthday today. So I have to give him a shout out.
WHITFIELD: Oh, that's fantastic.
JAMISON: And then, did I not design a Barbie doll?
WHITFIELD: I love it.
JAMISON: It's the first Mattel doll that's ever been done for a modern dance company. It's beautiful.
WHITFIELD: So you've expanded in so many ways. You go to the performance. Who cannot walk away? While you're sitting there watching these beautiful bodies.
JAMISON: We hope you're engaged.
WHITFIELD: Who doesn't leave there and feel so inspired and think for a second, can I do that? Is there potential for me to do that.
JAMISON: Yeah, if you train, if you dance like these dancers dance, they've been training. This is their lives. They're giving you their souls on the stage. They're dancing from the inside out. They're giving you something that says something about you, that's why you leave the theater feeling changed. Because they're dancing about what you're feeling inside. WHITFIELD: And it really is so moving and so --
JAMISON: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: Now people too when they feel like they need that Alvin Ailey fix in between performances, beautiful book, "Ailey Ascending."
JAMISON: Yes, a portrait in motion. Andrew Eckles designed this book, he followed us for two years, gorgeous, backstage, on stage, everywhere. He followed us. He's an extraordinary choreographer. He's made all of our posters, the Hallmark cards are sitting right there.
WHITFIELD: Oh no.
JAMISON: Yes, they've been out. That's all Andrew Eckles. I designed the doll, the Barbie doll, go get that doll.
WHITFIELD: The artistic director.
JAMISON: Makeup, she's gorgeous, right and then this bag which has my picture on it from '76. If you turn it over --
WHITFIELD: Because what, for, 15 years you were dancing?
JAMISON: I danced 15 years with the company and I've been directing for almost 20 and on the other side is the great founder Alvin Ailey.
WHITFIELD: Do you ever miss dancing or do you feel like it's always still in you because --
JAMISON: Fredericka, do I miss dancing? I don't miss dancing, what, look at this.
WHITFIELD: Do you miss being on stage?
JAMISON: Absolutely not. It hurts. What's happening is I treasure my life looking at my wonderful 31 dancers who carry the flame high. They carry his torch high. That's me, yeah.
WHITFIELD: There you are.
JAMISON: Yeah. That's me with a lot of beautiful dancers. Sylvia Waters she's the director of Ailey 2 is there. This is old.
WHITFIELD: This must be so fantastic to feel your legacy just have such incredible staying power.
JAMISON: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: And a lot of times people, they depart from their legacy and they look at it from outside looking in, but you're still in it. Your imprint is in Alvin Ailey all of the time. JAMISON: But you know what, he let us be individuals, he let us use our unique self. He said the most beautiful thing on that stage is you. And he meant you. He was interested in the human being and then the technical person that could do all of the wonderful things that you see Clifton Brown doing here.
WHITFIELD: Yeah.
JAMISON: (INAUDIBLE) Rushing and Renee Robinson who has been with the company. You know Renee, 27 years, right?
WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh, for 27 years.
JAMISON: but what keeps her going? She renews herself every day. She reinvents herself every day and she encourages the younger dancers who have only been there a minute and we all get together and remember our past, present and our future and celebrate the legacy of Ailey.
WHITFIELD: And really quick before we go. You had the honor of -- or perhaps it was the White House's honor of being in -- in the presidential suite there at the Kennedy center and how incredible. It wasn't just performing for the president which you all do all of the time, but the president and first lady actually came backstage didn't they?
JAMISON: And they met every single dancer and every one in the crew at the Kennedy Center and my crew. How gracious is that?
WHITFIELD: That's very nice.
JAMISON: All hail to the chief.
WHITFIELD: Judith Jamison, thank you so much.
JAMISON: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: Always great to see you. Your energy is just so contagious. I just love being in your aura.
JAMISON: Well, you bring it out. Thank you. Thank you.
WHITFIELD: Thanks so much to you. Appreciate it.
The pictures, I'm going to shift gears quite extraordinarily here. Because the pictures really horrified so many people. Allegedly showing the bruised and battered face of singer Rihanna. Her boyfriend, singer Chris Brown, facing possible charges. It is a huge topic in just about every household in America right now and it's also going to be the topic of our legal briefs coming up.
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WHITFIELD: All right. A singer could face domestic violence charges for allegedly hitting his girlfriend, another singer, Rihanna. New evidence now revealed in the Caylee Anthony murder case. We'll be delving into that and new details about to come in light of that prostitution ring that took down New York Governor Eliot Spitzer with our legal briefs today, Avery Friedman, a civil rights attorney and law professor. Good to see you.
AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Hey, Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: Let's talk first about the Chris Brown/Rihanna real mess.
FRIEDMAN: Yeah.
WHITFIELD: So many households and parents are talking to their children and trying to explain what's going on here. This has become even more topical now because now we understand an image of the singer as the alleged victim of abuse has been released possibly by L.A. Police Department. TMZ has actually been airing it. Tell me why this legal case now takes a new turn, Avery.
FRIEDMAN: Well, this is a radical development. By the way, Rihanna is 21 years old today. This is her birthday and all she is doing basically is recovering from what you're seeing in that picture. This is a horrible case because her situation is very much like what 1.3 million women who have husbands and boyfriends face every year and now it's compounded, Fredericka, because this picture has been released. So the question now is number one, what's going to happen with Chris Brown and number two, should the police department be accountable and responsible for making the suffering even worse?
WHITFIELD: Well, let's talk about that latter first because most police departments and LAPD has already said that it, too, has a written and unwritten rule when you're talking about domestic violence, images are not to be publicized, but apparently at least according to TMZ, someone within the L.A.P.D. and now there's an internal investigation, did release this so what is at stake here for L.A.P.D.?
FRIEDMAN: Well, number one, credibility is at stake. But secondly I think L.A.P.D. did the right thing by sending out a press release yesterday very adamantly, very sternly saying we don't approve of it. But you know what, look at the street reality of what happened. The celebrity gossip groups will offer money. In fact, it's alleged in this case they offered up to $100,000.
WHITFIELD: Wait a minute, potentially exchanged with this person at L.A.P.D. who --
FRIEDMAN: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, that I think is -- I mean no one has proven that, but you know what? How did a police shot wind up on TMZ? It's just not a coincidence and the reality is that if and when they catch that individual, if it's an officer of L.A.P.D., Fredericka, he or she has to be accountable and that could mean termination.
WHITFIELD: And then quickly, on the former, you mentioned Chris Brown and his legal problems now potentially because he released a written statement saying he's saddened by what occurred, almost like an admission.
FRIEDMAN: Holy smokes, what's this guy thinking? Look, number one, either he's got a terrible lawyer who's letting him talk or I think more realistically, he just said it and you want to know something, legally speaking that's an admission.
WHITFIELD: All right, let's shift gears now and talk about the Caylee/Casey Anthony case, now apparently we're talking about the little girl, whose remains were eventually found what, months after being reported missing. So now apparently new evidence that may have been located at the home where Caylee and Casey lived?
FRIEDMAN: Yeah. Two pieces of evidence. What happened, one that came out of the mother, Casey's diary and it's the most bizarre piece of evidence for whatever reason, Orange County Sheriff's are releasing the information. But the page Fredericka, talks about her impressions. This is five days after Caylee was missing and in that diary she writes she has no regrets that the ends justify the means and that she's a little bit frightened. Well, think about this.
WHITFIELD: And it's not like she actually spells out allegedly the act, but it's kind of this periphery talk and you kind of wonder what -- why could she be saying something like this?
FRIEDMAN: Well, I mean if you're a mom and your child has been missing for five days do you think you'd be writing something like that in your diary? There's probative value of that and clearly the prosecution is going to use it because Casey's never going to take the stand in this case.
WHITFIELD: Now quickly former Governor Spitzer case, the prostitution ring. It ain't over?
FRIEDMAN: It ain't over. And you know what, this is exactly what Eliot Spitzer and allegedly 66 other men who are in the file don't want to hear, but what U.S. district Judge Judd Raykoff did was the right thing. The Justice Department wanted to block the release, he said you're going to release it under the first amendment but he's going to redact the names to protect the innocents.
WHITFIELD: Avery Friedman, always good to talk to you. Thanks so much, appreciate it.
FRIEDMAN: Wonderful to be with you.
WHITFIELD: All right, take care.
FRIEDMAN: Take care.
WHITFIELD: All right now, of course we're going to delve into a whole lot of other topics throughout the day here on CNN. Stay with us throughout the day for the latest breaking news and of course, 4:00 eastern time we'll be talking about housing, mortgagees, property values, all of that, so please send us your emails and your thoughts and questions throughout the day at weekends@cnn.com.
I'm Fredericka Whitfield, "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.
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