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'Stop the AIG Bonus Payments'; Celebrating St. Patrick's Day; Vegas Tourism Dealt a Bad Hand?; Psychics Give Financial Readings; Where the Jobs Are; Thrift Store Fashion

Aired March 17, 2009 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. It is Tuesday, March 17th, St. Patrick's Day. And here are the top stories we're following for you in the CNN NEWSROOM. Big bonuses at AIG. Anger over the bailout boils even hotter today. This morning, Congress stirs the stew.

What happens in Vegas is supposed to stay in Vegas. But when your company hits the bailout jackpot, don't bet on it.

And job fairs are springing up around the country like shamrocks in springtime. Yes, some industries are hiring, and we have got a list. Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We are channeling your rage this morning. Verbal smackdowns coming from all angles directed at AIG executives who got getting billions of your tax dollars and are now paying themselves $165 million in bonuses.

We are hearing from you today. Here are two CNN iReporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZACH PRATHER, IREPORTER: Don't these people get it? Don't they understand that the average middle class, if there is such a thing anymore, taxpayers, are tired, broke and hungry. That we are at the end of our rope, fed up with these policies of rewarding those who have put us in this mess.

JIM MORRISON, IREPORTER: The remedy for a breach of contract is usually a lawsuit. Find me a jury of American taxpayers that are going to side with an AIG executive who's sued over his $2 million bonus. Good luck.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Your outrage echoing from the White House to Capitol Hill. The House Financial Services Committee right now holding a hearing. Chairman Barney Frank trying to put the problem into some perspective. He says private financial companies are operating without rules.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. BARNEY FRANK (D), CHAIRMAN, FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEE: The problem here is not deregulation, but non-regulation. It is not that rules that had been in place were dismantled, it is that as new activities come forward, there needs to be new rules that are put in place that, to the maximum extent possible, provide a structure in which the value of these innovations can continue, but some of the abuses are restricted.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. Our Capitol Hill Correspondent Brianna Keilar is following this hearing. We will talk to Brianna shortly.

"Rewarding failure," that's how one outraged CNN iReporter describes the AIG bones uses. David White of Washington has this advice for lawmakers...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID WHITE, IREPORTER: Stop the AIG bonus payments. If you're feeling anything like me right now, you're pretty livid about these $165 million in bonus payments rewarding failure to AIG's top executive employees. That, I find to be unconscionable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. That CNN iReporter saying stop the AIG bonus payments.

President Obama vowing to block the bonuses. Many of you agree with that. So let's look at it here.

Our Christine Romans joins me live from New York, and Richard Quest is in London.

OK, let me start this way, guys, because, as you know, I love stirring the cauldron. Is it a good idea for Treasury to use every legal avenue available to attempt to recoup the bonus money, or -- Christine, let me start with you -- do we have bigger fish to fry here, and we need to look forward and not backward?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, let me ask a question, trying to move the story forward.

HARRIS: Yes.

ROMANS: I mean, the outrage is overwhelming. And the White House and the Treasury Department clearly have heard the public on this. That's what they're vowing to try to figure out what they can do going forward.

But what does it change in the financial system or the global economy or in the recession if this money is clawed back? What does it change? It's the idea...

HARRIS: Well, we feel better. We feel better.

ROMANS: Exactly. HARRIS: It's our money, we'll feel better.

ROMANS: The symbolism of this thing is just sickening. I mean, what is happening here, people just don't like it. But it is an outrage to hang your hat on when there are so many other things around here that we just don't have any control over in an economy that is still limping along.

HARRIS: So Richard, what's your take on this?

RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's very simple. It makes good politics to hit the bad people. But firstly, Tony, we don't know who -- we don't know who was going to get the bonuses.

HARRIS: Because we can't get the names from AIG from Bank of America, from Merrill Lynch. We can't get the names.

QUEST: We will get the names if Cuomo has his way in New York State. The fact is, though, it is so easy to focus on this little bit of bitty money, $165 million in bonuses...

HARRIS: Oh, man.

QUEST: You say that, but the company lost $100 billion last year! And if you...

HARRIS: Give me back the low-hanging fruit. It's low-hanging fruit. Let's start there, and then we'll -- let's deal with the millions, and then we will deal with the billions.

QUEST: I'll give you low-hanging fruit if you want. But the fact of the matter is, the reality is, these people had contracts. Those contracts should not be interfered with by the force of law, and it makes bad law if government takes on single and individual people.

HARRIS: Christine, why not just rewrite these contracts? Labor agreements are rewritten all of the time.

You just talked to the autoworkers there in Detroit. I mean, rewrite the contracts. And look, how about this? Why not simply say, if you're Liddy over there at AIG, you were entitled to this. It's true, it's in the contract, but your division tanked the company. So I'm not paying you, and if you don't like it, sue me.

ROMANS: I think that Liddy, the CEO of that company, and the president of the United States and the treasury secretary should ask nicely for those people to give those bonuses back out of their patriotic duty to the world economy, yes. But a contract is a contract. And that is -- I'm going to agree with Richard Quest here.

You can't have the government all of a sudden deciding to rewrite contracts. That is pretty much the baseline for all global business. You just can't be rewriting contracts.

And why are some contracts rewritten, say, for autoworkers or for pilots, or for teachers? Well, they're rewritten when both sides agree to renegotiate a contract.

HARRIS: And Richard, let me have you respond to this. Maybe -- I'm sure you did, you saw the piece in "The New York Times" this morning from Andrew Ross Sorkin, who writes, "If you think this economy is a mess now, imagine what it would look like if the business community started to worry that the government would start abrogating contracts left and right."

QUEST: Tony, we have something that we abide by. It's called the rule of law. How would you feel if CNN turned around to you and said...

HARRIS: I knew you were going there.

QUEST: Well, it's true! Sorry. Look, sorry, Harris -- cut his salary. How would you -- I know I wouldn't be pleased about it, you wouldn't be pleased about it.

When contracts are renegotiated as a sort of the autoworkers' example -- and once again, you've managed to throw a smoke screen up -- it's done under the protection of Chapter 11 and the courts. It's not done by some -- it's either done by agreement or in the court authority.

HARRIS: OK. OK.

QUEST: You cannot -- cannot just have people willy-nilly changing contracts.

HARRIS: Well, Christine, here's the bigger issue here. We feel -- and at this moment, I'm America, so respond to me on this, Christine. We feel...

ROMANS: God bless America, Tony.

HARRIS: Yes.

We feel that Wall Street is simply gaming the system at every turn. You know what they're doing right now? They're pushing Tim Geithner to come up with this plan to get the toxic assets off their books, the books that they messed up. And once Geithner comes forward with this plan, you know what those folks at Wall Street are going to do? Figure out a way to game that plan so that it turns into bonuses and whatever else.

ROMANS: Is it really as simple as that, this us versus them? I mean, is it really...

HARRIS: Wall Street and Main Street, it's coming, Christine.

ROMANS: You know, but, I mean, isn't AIG kind of like in every street? Some of the people that were paid out by AIG include states and local governments. I mean, I just don't see -- I don't see that it is us versus them so much.

I think we're all tied up in much too much. I understand the outrage about all of this. I really, really do. But there are people who work on Wall Street who are outraged, too. You know?

I mean, there are people who work in the banking system who are outraged. And a couple of very big banks aren't based on Wall Street, I'll point out. They're based in North Carolina and other places, you know. So, I don't know, I think the Wall Street versus Main Street thing is a little misplaced. I mean, it plays nicely here, but I don't know, it's not that simple.

HARRIS: Richard, jump in. Give me the last word here.

QUEST: She's absolutely right. And the truth and the unpalatable fact -- get ready to hold your nose again, Tony, there is another stench coming down the line. The truth is that we are all very happy for those gains to be made when we were all profiting from them.

HARRIS: My 401(k), my pension, you make a great point.

QUEST: So when did you ring your financial adviser and say, oh, I do think 14 percent is a bit much? No, put me down at 8 percent next year, please. The truth is there's enough blame to go around here, and the moment politicians are united in obfuscating about these bonuses, you know there is something really wrong and there's something underneath it.

HARRIS: Christine, great to talk to you, as always.

And Richard, you're back with us a little later in the hour. See you then.

Good stuff.

All right. Let's check in.

Brianna Keilar now, as promised, on Capitol Hill, talking about Congress holding a hearing right now, the House Financial Services Committee.

Barney Frank is the chair of that committee, Brianna. And I'm wondering, are we still at the point in this hearing where we're sort of lodging the outrage, or are we talking about possible fixes here, if not at this moment, certainly moving forward?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There definitely is some outrage. Now, this is a bigger hearing having to do with overall regulation, Tony. But the fact is, here on Capitol Hill, lawmakers cannot ignore this outrage over AIG, and it's becoming the topic of the day.

A lot of outrage from Democrats, from Republicans. And we're seeing a lot of colorful language, including some that we saw from Chuck Grassley, a Republican senator, and the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. CHARLES GRASSLEY (R), IOWA: I would suggest the first thing that would make me feel a little bit better towards them, if they had followed the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say, I'm sorry. And then either do one of two things -- resign, or go committee suicide.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Some very colorful language there. And you're also seeing Republicans and even some Democrats really taking shots at the Treasury Department, saying a couple of weeks ago, when they were talking about moving that last infusion of bailout funds to AIG, $30 billion, they would have had more leverage to deal with this situation. Now the cat's out of the bag, and perhaps you can't get it back in -- Tony.

HARRIS: That is some language. Has Senator Grassley, to this point, has he backed off, or backtracked on any of that language?

KEILAR: Not that I'm aware of. And we're seeing a lot of these members who aren't backtracking. They are upset. They say it's appalling, they say it's outrageous -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. On Capitol Hill, Brianna Keilar.

That's strong stuff. Thank you, Brianna.

Does Wall Street need to follow a whole new philosophy? We certainly want to hear from you on that.

Our Josh Levs is here to tell you how you can weigh in -- Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Remember this guy, Tony? Let's zoom in for a second -- Gordon Gekko.

HARRIS: Oh, yes. Yes. Yes.

LEVS: How can we not talk about him? Greed is good! Greed is right.

HARRIS: Yes, I remember that.

LEVS: Greed works, people.

Well, obviously, not every single person ever to go through Wall Street has followed that philosophy, but there is this sense of a guiding philosophy, and that's what we want to talk to you about today. Does that need to change?

Let's show you all where you can weigh in here. Send us your thoughts on that, to cnnnewsroom@cnn.com. We'd love to get your e- mails on that. We're going to follow it all morning long.

Also, if we come back to the board for a second, my Facebook page, we've got that going now, too, Josh Levs CNN. You can weigh in there and see what other folks are saying. Tony, I'm going to be back with some of those responses.

HARRIS: All right. Josh, hang with me for just a second. I think we're getting close to a little tape.

You know, this is an annual event where the prime minister of Ireland actually visits Washington, Brian Cowen, and to present the shamrocks to the president of the United States. We believe that is about to happen. We have got the tape -- focus, focus, tilt, tilt.

And here we go.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Hi, everybody. Happy Saint Patrick's Day. I just want to say that we are incredibly honored to have Taoiseach here and his entire team.

This is an affirmation of one of the strongest bonds between peoples that exist in the world. You know, when you think about the history of Ireland and the enormous impact it's had on our own history, the fact that you've had people from Ireland who have shed blood on behalf of this country's independence and its freedom, that it has had probably as much impact on our culture and our traditions as any country on earth, the bond and the friendship that is felt between the United States and Ireland is something that I think everybody understands, but as Taoiseach just mentioned, we can't take for granted, and we have to continually build upon.

And so this visit gives us an opportunity to talk about some of the very important bilateral issues that we face. Also, to talk about some of the global issues that both the United States and Ireland want to take leadership in.

We are grateful for the lasting friendship that exists between us. I personally take great interest on St. Patrick's Day, because as some of you know, my mother's family can be traced back to Ireland. And it turns out that I think our first Irish ancestor came from the same county that Taoiseach once represented.

So we may be cousins. We haven't sorted that through yet, but even if by blood we're not related, by culture and affinity, by friendship and mutual interests, we are certainly related. And this gives us an opportunity just continue to strengthen the incredible bonds that we have between the two countries.

So thank you so much for visiting us.

BRIAN COWEN, IRISH TAIOSEACH: Well, can I, first of all, thank President Obama and the secretary of state and all of his team for the wonderful welcome here to the White House.

As President Obama has said, there's great tradition here in the United States for a warm welcome for Ireland, and we deeply appreciate that welcome. And as I said, in area of contributions, since I came to America over this weekend, this relationship is based on substance. It's based on a very engaged America working with a contemporary modern Ireland, helping to shape our history at home, and helping us to contribute so much more by reason of our unity of purpose and our common values.

And it is a great day for the Irish in America today. And I'm very conscious of that.

More than 44 million of our 70 million of the world are residing in the United States of America. And all of us, in my own family, have reason to be very grateful to this country and for what it's done down the generations -- helping them to progress, and thankfully go home and marry childhood sweethearts, and end up with Taioseach coming over here. And (INAUDIBLE) on occasion.

He said we're not related, and he looks forward to coming Ireland. The only thing I can say to him, is he's not going to share a slate with me over there, because I can't compete with this man, even in office.

(LAUGHTER)

Because you would be very, very welcome. And we look forward to an excellent discussion, as I said, on issues of mutual interest. And we are deeply grateful and appreciative for the wonderful access that our country is accorded on this great day for Ireland.

And he reminds us, of course, that we are not simply an island nation, but a disperse global family, and nowhere is that more celebrated than in this great country.

OBAMA: Just one last point that I would like to make, and that is that although I think it's wonderful that you visited the Oval Office in Washington, what you're really missing out on is the south side Irish parade in Chicago, which -- which I believe is one of the great events in America. And it is a lot of fun, although as president, I don't think I could have as much fun as I could before I was president at that parade, because I have press following me all of the time.

But anyway, welcome. Thank you so much for being here.

Thank you, guys. Appreciate it. We've got to get down to business.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: All right. There you have it. President Obama and the prime minister of Ireland, Brian Cowen, sort of talking there about the business portion of their meeting today. And in just a couple of minutes, maybe in the next 10 minutes or so, there will be the traditional bowl of shamrocks presented to the new president by the prime minister, and I believe we will have tape of that, and we will show it to you when we get it.

You know, because I like -- I so much like feeding on your anger and finding ways to stoke the flames even higher, I'm going to remind you again of why you can't just do what you're thinking -- get rid of AIG.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So now that you're good and worked up over AIG's bonuses, it is a good time to ask the question on everybody's mind. What happens if AIG needs more bailout cash? Will it get it? Probably yes. And here's why.

According to Chief Business Correspondent Ali Velshi, it will cost taxpayers more to let AIG go belly up. That's because AIG has $74 million insurance policies out there, and it insures just about everything. Take a look here -- everything from airline catastrophes to big-name movie stars to oil companies.

And here is the rub. AIG insured billions in mortgages that were repackaged and resold to investors. Now it has to pay out on those policies. But does it have to pay rewards to the very people who brought AIG to its knees?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: In the last six months, AIG has received substantial sums from the U.S. Treasury. And I've asked Secretary Geithner to use that leverage and pursue every single legal avenue to block these bonuses and make the American taxpayers whole.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Again, according to Ali Velshi, business wouldn't happen without insurance companies. And there is no one bigger in the risk business than AIG.

So what have you got to say now? Here's our e-mail address and our question. Does Wall Street need to change its money-first mentality? Have your say. E-mail us at cnnnewsroom@cnn.com.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pretty crazy.

Although it seemed like you were having a much better time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, 75?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nice job on the lawn today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We aim to please.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: You know the city is synonymous with casinos, late nights, and big shows, is also a hot spot for conventions. But this year, some big companies are pulling out, perhaps because they're afraid of getting a bad rap.

Here is Edward Lawrence with affiliate KLAS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EDWARD LAWRENCE, REPORTER, KLAS (voice-over): Significantly fewer conventions like this one have packed Las Vegas resorts so far in 2009, those 340 cancellations in the last 12 weeks where companies with contracts already in place. The reaction comes many different ways, that all reflect the same tough times.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's outrageous.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's heartbreaking. It really is.

ANDREW PASCAL, PRESIDENT, WYNN LAS VEGAS AND ENCORE: I'm very concerned.

LAWRENCE: Especially concerning to Andrew Pascal. He's the president of two of the best resorts in the world -- Wynn Las Vegas and Encore. Pascal says the perception that a business meeting in Las Vegas equals frivolous spending must change.

PASCAL: For a long time, we have done a good job of speaking to the general consumer about all of the fun that can be had here in Las Vegas, but the reality is that, five days a week, there is legitimate business being conducted here, serious business.

LAWRENCE: Casinos rely on the convention traveler more in many ways.

Jeremy Aguero examines the Las Vegas economy for Applied Analysis.

JEREMY AGUERO, APPLIED ANALYST: And not only do convention and trade show attendees spend more money than an average tourist, but they also provide that leveling during periods that were traditionally slow in terms of visitor travel.

LAWRENCE: He adds, when companies pay for workers at a convention, the money helps employ tens of thousands of people, from the valet, to the waiter, to the people who set up the stage for a business meeting. Removing that money means especially bad times for Las Vegas Strip properties.

PASCAL: You know, for our company, it accounts for as much as 22 to 25 percent of our overall business.

LAWRENCE: Which is why the Convention Authority pinned hope on a new advertising campaign and a trip to visit lawmakers in Washington, D.C., targeted to change the perception. (END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Edward Lawrence joining us live from Las Vegas now.

Edward, again, thanks for getting up and joining us.

Let me jump to a bit of a controversy here. President Obama made comments back in February -- I know you remember this well -- about Las Vegas.

Let's have a listen, and then I've got a question for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: You can't go take a trip to Las Vegas or go down to the Super Bowl on the taxpayers' dime.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: And he's talking about these big companies, companies taking bailout money, going out to Vegas, and being lavish in their spending there.

How did people react to those comments?

LAWRENCE: Tony, the reaction here is one of outrage from the workers on the Las Vegas Strip. They felt a little betrayed by President Obama saying, you know, don't go to Las Vegas. He was talking about publicly -- or public money given to some of these businesses; however, they say any money stimulates our economy and that keeps them working.

Now, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman was especially upset about this and, in fact, he expressed his comments and outrage over what the president said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR OSCAR GOODMAN, LAS VEGAS, NEVADA: That's outrageous. And he owes us an apology, he owes us a retraction.

What's a better place, as I say, for them to come here, and to change their mind and to go someplace and to cancel, and at the suggestion of the president of the United States? That's outrageous.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Wow, that's pretty hard stuff.

LAWRENCE: And Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman did say -- the Las Vegas mayor, Oscar Goodman, and the Convention Authority did go to Washington, D.C., and met with a number of congressmen and senators to try and change that perception and get business to travel here in Las Vegas.

HARRIS: OK. So where do things stand now? Is anyone suggesting that those comments from the president had an adverse effect on convention business in Las Vegas?

LAWRENCE: What we're hearing from the Convention Authority is that it was actually a perception, an overall perception. Companies started pulling out well before the president made those comments.

In the last 90 days, as you heard, 340 companies have pulled out. That's $132 million in non-gaming revenue for Las Vegas. That's people buying dinners and shows and spending -- shopping, spending their money here.

HARRIS: Right. All right. Edward, appreciate it.

Edward Lawrence from our affiliate KLAS.

And Edward, you're back with us next hour?

LAWRENCE: We'll be back next hour, in about 45 minutes.

HARRIS: OK. All right. We'll see you then.

Thanks, Edward.

Finding the job you need, it is possible if you look in the right industry. Our next guest breaks down who's hiring.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So many of you think the road to rescue will be a long one. Take a look at this new CNN Opinion Research Corporation poll that shows 42 percent of those polled say recovery will happen within two years; 58 percent say it will take longer than that to get out of this financial mess.

Will I get that job? When will my retirement bounce back? And, do you think there's any chance I could win the lottery?

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sounds good.

HARRIS: Hey, now. Wouldn't we all like to know the answers to those questions. That is why more people are actually turning to psychics. Brooke Baldwin, obviously right here with us.

Brooke, in this morning's meeting, you were talking about this astrologer. What is her name again?

BALDWIN: Maxine Taylor.

HARRIS: Maxine Taylor.

BALDWIN: First licensed astrologer in Georgia. Forty-two years doing this.

HARRIS: So you are telling me people are actually turning to astrologers, psychics to take a look into their financial future. What I'm wondering is, how is business?

BALDWIN: Business is pretty good.

HARRIS: Pretty good?

BALDWIN: You know, everyone is hurting right now, so I think the emphasis of Maxine, as she was explaining to me, you know, I'm not seeing more people, but the people I am seeing, they want to talk dollars and cents.

HARRIS: Really?

BALDWIN: What do you do? You normally look into a crystal ball, maybe you want to know about love, maybe you want to talk health.

HARRIS: Right, right, right.

BALDWIN: These people want to know, hey, when should I hire? Where should I put the next business? They're asking specific.

HARRIS: Well, let's talk about - let's pick up on the business point here, because this was a chestnut that Brooke dropped on us in the meeting this morning, that I still can't believe. Am I to believe that multimillion-dollar businesses, the people who run these businesses are actually going to - what's her name again? Maxine?

BALDWIN: Maxine.

HARRIS: And talking about their business fortunes based on her predictions?

BALDWIN: They are. These are businessmen and women. You're about to hear sound from two different people, Lisa Papparella-Lee (ph) she runs a multimillion-dollar food distribution corporation; Brett Nadell, he runs three chiropractic businesses. Both of them long-time clients of Maxines, they have been seeing her for a while. But they are talking finances.

Let's listen.

HARRIS: Oh, my.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRETT NADELL, VISITS PSYCHIC: I'm thinking about some type of marketing campaign or some type of expansion. Should I launch a new program now? I'll always talk to her about that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm very intuitive, so I kind of get that. I know what I know, and I just kind of go with what works for me, and it does work for me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Wait, Brooke. Wait a minute, hold on. Are they making business decisions based on what -- love Maxine, lovely woman - based on what an astrologer is saying?

BALDWIN: You seem in such a disbelief. Incredulous.

HARRIS: Well, you know...

BALDWIN: Yes, you heard the questions. You know, they're asking where should I locate my next business? They want to know, you know, who should I hire? How should I fire?

HARRIS: Really?

BALDWIN: Lisa's in business, you know, with her family, and tough life decisions, major life decisions and, yes. Your answer is yes.

HARRIS: Has she ever been wrong?

BALDWIN: She says once.

HARRIS: Once?

BALDWIN: Once on accident. But, you know, people come to her, they look for positivity. She's a very positive person, reassuring. It's all about how you interpret, interpret different things. Think about, reading your horoscope. You know, and they want reassurance. In an uncertain time, they want assurance that things will bounce back.

HARRIS: Very quickly, I know you're back next hour. What do you have for us next hour?

BALDWIN: Coming up next hour, we talk about the Latino community.

HARRIS: Yes.

BALDWIN: We were talking all week about "THE ROAD TO RECOVERY," we're talking about how the Latino community, immigrants, are dealing with the economy. We went to LA-RASSA, 102.3, we talked to a long- time business owner in the Atlanta-area - how are they responding? Find out.

HARRIS: "ROAD TO RESCUE: THE CNN SURVIVAL GUIDE." You've got to read the memos, Brooke.

BALDWIN: I'm just doing the stories, Tony.

HARRIS: Brooke, good to see you. Thank you.

BALDWIN: I'll read the font next time.

(LAUGHTER)

HARRIS: Finding the jobs you need, is it possible if you look in the right industry? The answer is yes. Our next guest breaks down who is hiring.

BALDWIN: Sorry! (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So a growing number of Americans see greater gloom on the road to rescue. Let's check new findings from CNN OPINION RESEARCH CORPORATION poll. Forty-five percent of people told us another Great Depression is likely in the next year. That is up eight percentage points since December. Just 11 percent describe economic conditions today as good; 89 percent called them somewhat poor or very poor.

Live picture now from Landover, Maryland.

Do we have that? We'll pop it up here for you in just a second. There we go.

Where as many as 10,000 people are hoping to end their job hunt today. About 50 companies are holding a job fair with about 1,600 open positions. And they're still looking for minorities who are getting hit hard by unemployment, both African-Americans and Hispanics have a higher unemployment rate than whites.

Here are the numbers here. Asians fare slightly better with only about seven percent unemployed.

We do a lot of talking about job losses, mainly because the numbers are so staggering, but there is growth out there. In fact, 53,000 new jobs were added in the first part of the year, according to the Labor Department. Maggie Mistal is a career coach.

Maggie, good to see you. Thanks for your time this morning.

MAGGIE MISTAL, CAREER COACH: Thanks, Tony. Happy to be here.

HARRIS: Yes, thank you. Let's talk about some of these areas where there is growth and where workers are needed now, and hopefully, into the future. Let's start with health services.

MISTAL: Absolutely. Well, think about it, Tony. We have an aging population of baby boomers who are living longer, and that means things like doctors' offices and specialists' offices where you have doctors, you have nurses, you have administrative personnel like billing specialists, things like that. Those are jobs in areas that are growing and are recession-proof.

HARRIS: One other area - we got two other areas we want to focus on here. And this one was interesting to me, general merchandise stores. What are we talking about here?

MISTAL: Yes, it's interesting. You know, Family Dollar, which is one of these types of general merchandising stores, stores that offer a large variety of products, are actually expanding. As people look for ways to save money in this dwindling economy, there are certain retailers that are experiencing a boom. So you think about store managers, cashiers, you know, folks to stock the shelves, these are all jobs that are growing in retail if that's an area where you have interest or you have the ability. HARRIS: Hey, Maggie, hang on for just a second, because I have a couple more questions for you. You can see the president on the right now, the traditional bowl of shamrocks, the Shamrock Ceremony is about to get underway right now.

Let's listen to the president and at some point here, probably Ireland's prime minister, as well.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITEED STATES: I -- just a private note here. Dan is a great friend. He and his family are as gracious and thoughtful a group of people as I know. And so I know that he is just going to do an outstanding job, and the people of Ireland, I think, will benefit greatly from him representing the United States there.

Now, before I turn it over to Taoiseach, it turns out that we have something in common.

He hails from County Offlay, and it was brought to my attention on the campaign that my great-great-great-grandfather on my mother's side came to America from a small village in this county as well. We are still speculating on whether we are related.

(LAUGHTER)

I do share, though, a deep appreciation for the remarkable ties between our nations. I am grateful to him for his leadership of Ireland. The bond between our countries could not be stronger.

As somebody who comes from Chicago, I know a little bit about Ireland.

HARRIS: Let's put a quick button on this, and let's get back to Maggie Mistol. The good news there is Dan Rooney, Dan Rooney, of course, is the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was named by the president just moments ago to be special envoy to Ireland.

Now let's get back to our guest. Our career counselor, Maggie Mistal.

Maggie, another area where we're seeing some growth, and it makes sense with all of the stimulus money out there right now, the federal government. Talk to us about the kinds of jobs that we're talking about here. And then maybe focus on green technology jobs that potentially are coming online here soon through the government.

MISTAL: Sure. Well, actually, the federal government is projected to be one of the biggest hires, Tony, going forward. And areas, essentially they're driven by retirement, it's driven by security concerns. So we're looking at everything from Department of Defense needing to hire to the TSAs, the folks we see in the airports, they're looking to hire those; border patrol. As well as interesting areas, things like accountants and technology specialists are also included in this as the government upgrades their systems, as they implement a lot of these regulations that we're talking about. And then you hit the nail on the head. Engineers, actually, as a whole. They're actually at a three percent unemployment rate. And they're in demand all over the public and private sector. The government's going to need them for green power, for infrastructure. A lot of these plans that we have in place to really build up the infrastructure that we have is going to be done by engineers. And even program managers or project managers as well.

HARRIS: Let's do this once again, just because we had to break away for just a moment to get to the president.

Let's cycle through this very quickly one more time. And let's talk about health services because you're telling us there is growth and there will be growth in the health care fields.

MISTAL: Yes, that the biggest area, Tony. The latest report by the government of the employment situation, you know, three to four out of the top areas are health care related. We have doctor's offices, specialist's office, we have hospitals hiring. So we're looking at clinicians, people who are going to be delivering care. So doctors, nurses, nurse practioners, physicians' assistants, people that are going to be hands on delivering care. And also, pharmacists are very much in demand both, you know, in hospitals and outside in the stores, the drug stores that we're used to considering. I mean health care is recession proof regardless because of that aging baby boomer population.

HARRIS: And once again, general merchandise stores, we're talking about the Family Dollar-type stores. And I'm sort of curious as to what kinds of jobs are available there.

MISTAL: Well, you think about, from a retail standpoint, Tony, it would include things like store managers, inventory management...

HARRIS: Clerks and bookkeepers.

MISTAL: ... cashiers. You know, people that are going to be in the storefront. Because people are still buying, they're just doing it in a way that's much cheaper given the economic recession that we're experiencing.

HARRIS: OK, Maggie, how do I determine - I'm out of work now, how do I determine on what to focus on? OK, there are jobs, but I'm not sure that they necessarily fit me. What do I focus on?

MISTAL: Well, you're hearing, Tony, a lot of these jobs are specialized areas, so they may require going back to school or something where you have to actually get new skills or certifications. So what I tell people is make sure you're genuinely interested in these areas, don't just follow them for a paycheck because it is going to take time, energy, money to invest in this new area. And if you don't have that kind of real enthusiasm, it might run out on you. So that's one area.

I also tell people to focus on transferability of skills that they already have. HARRIS: Nice. Nice.

MISTAL: You know, you don't have to make a change that's a 180. You know, if you're been an accountant in industry and now you're looking to make a change, that's a great transferable skill into some of these government jobs with organizations like the IRS, who's hiring.

HARRIS: Maggie Mistal...

MISTAL: So look for ways to transfer your skills.

HARRIS: Yes, that is awesome. Thanks for your time this morning. We appreciate it.

MISTAL: Thanks, Tony. Good luck with that job.

HARRIS: All right. Thank you.

(LAUGHTER)

HARRIS: You are not cheap. Just thrifty and you're finding new ways and places to save big bucks. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: You need answers on how to get out of this financial mess and we're getting some for you from a lot of experts. They've got 90 seconds to give their prescription for fixing the crisis.

Here's one remedy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK WILLIAMS, FINANCE PROFESSOR, BOSTON UNIVERSITY: My solution to the banking crisis is straight forward.

Banks can only be as strong as the loans they make. Right now we have lots of real estate loans on bank books. Real estate prices and the value of real estate needs to be stabilized. To do that, we need to keep individuals in their homes. Right now we have 2.4 million foreclosures that have happened since this recession. We need to focus specifically on keeping these people in their homes, put a moratorium for the next six months, allow these individuals to secure their homes, stay in their homes, and not dump more real estate on the market and push prices down.

By doing that, what we're doing is not saying, you don't have to honor your obligations as an owner of a home, but we're saying is that we are going to work with you so we can turn this corner.

Once we stabilize the real estate market we will stabilize the banking market.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK, and very quickly let's get you back over to Josh Levs.

And, Josh, if you would, remind everyone of the e-mail question so we can get some of those responses on the air next hour and the e- mail address.

LEVS: Absolutely. In fact, we have a graphic that'll show you, in case you want to weigh in right now.

We knew, Tony, people would weigh in like crazy. Does Wall Street need to change its money-first mentality? We're all looking back to the movie, today, at Gordon Gecko, etc.

CNNnewsroom@CNN.com or the Facebook page is already filling up right behind me here, JoshLevsCNN. Let us know what you think, we'll be back in a matter of minutes to read those reactions.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So a lot of us don't have money to spend on new clothes or shoes, but there is a way to look fly with a little dough. Let's take that trip to CNN.com's iReport desk. Hang on, little motion sickness going on here. One of the guys helping us run things down there at our iReport - slow it down - our iReport operation. Tyson Wheatley, there he is!

TYSON WHEATLEY, CNN.COM PRODUCER: Hey, Tony!

HARRIS: Good to see you, sir. What do you have for us today?

WHEATLEY: We've got day two of our "iReport Economy Challenge." And something really fun. You know, yesterday, we asked you to make your ultimate brown bags?

HARRIS: Yes.

WHEATLEY: Today, we're asking you to share your fantastic thrift store fashion finds.

HARRIS: Nice.

WHEATLEY: And let's start with this pretty cool video from Chris Morrow, she's from San Diego. She went to this consignment store called Buffalo Exchange. And she talked to some shoppers and some staff there and she found out that business has actually picked up recently and some people there do almost all their shopping at consignment stores. Including this guy. Let's listen to what had he to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I found this sweater at Buffalo Exchange. It's from Nordstrom's and Bloomingdale's. And it's Seven for All Mankind so it probably retails for like $180.00 and I got it here for 30 bucks. And my whole outfit's pretty much from Buffalo Exchange. This hat they sell at like Urban Outfitters for like 45. I got it here for like $8.00. CHRIS MORROW, CNN IREPORTER: Do you shop here often?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I shop here all the time. It's the only place I really buy my clothes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHEATLEY: All right, not bad but, Tony. But now I've got something really special. This is a thrift store fashion show.

Julian Modugno from Atlanta, he sent some photos of himself and two of his friends...

HARRIS: OK.

WHEATLEY: ... sporting several outfits they bought at the local thrift stores. Let's put some of these under the microscope, shall we?

This is Jeff. This is what he describes as "academic chic." A good outfit to wear to dinner with friends or a casual party.

All right, let's go to this next one. This is going to be Jeff again. Very simple, every day look. Pretty trendy there.

They got their friend Margie in on the action. This is dress a dress for a special occasion. She says it has an "Alice in Wonderland"-feel.

HARRIS: It looks like one of the dresses from "Hairspray" the musical.

WHEATLEY: Yes, it does.

She bought this for less than $6.00.

And this next one, Margie again, this is more like a summery look. Maybe more - wore on a more dressier occasion.

And this next one here is going to be Julian. Now he calls this his banker outfit. This is a classic three-piece look that can be worn on a formal occasion...

HARRIS: A formal occasion?

WHEATLEY: ... it's also casual to wear.

(LAUGHTER)

Hey! Look, these kids are hip, you know?

HARRIS: Come on, that's a stretch. All right, OK, all right.

WHEATLEY: And this last one...

HARRIS: Yes. WHEATLEY: ... is from Jeff. This is very chic, very young outfit. This is in style right now. You might see someone wearing this at a club.

HARRIS: That feels like a little Justin Timberlake, a little J.T. look there, huh?

WHEATLEY: You know, all three of these guys are in their early 20s. They don't have a lot of money to spend, so they're doing what they can by going to thrift stores.

And just as a reminder, all this week new challenges. Tomorrow, we want you to find something old and make it something new. That's tomorrow's challenge.

HARRIS: You are the man! Good stuff, Tyson. Appreciate it. Thank you.

So you've learned the lingo and seen which industries are hiring. Coming up in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM, we'll find out which states are the best places to find a job.