Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
North Dakota Braces for More Bad Weather; GM CEO Resigns as White House Imposes 60-Day Overhaul Deadline; Eight Cadets Dead After Standoff at Pakistani Police Academy; Pres. Obama on the World Stage; New North Korean Rocket Images
Aired March 30, 2009 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Putting tough conditions on carmakers. No free handouts and a new bailout strategy for GM and Chrysler. We'll break down the plan, plus watch for Wall Street's reaction.
A gunman's rampage in a nursing home. Patients in their 70s, 80s and 90s killed. We'll have the latest on the investigation.
And new pressure for the sandbag levees in Fargo. What could be a blizzard now bearing down.
It is Monday, March 30th. Hi, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
The automotive bailout. Billions of your dollars have already been spent and billions more could be on the way. Less than two hours from now, President Obama will unveil his latest plans.
Administration official say the government will offer both Chrysler and General Motors enough money to stay afloat for several more weeks. As part of the deal the White House requested and received the resignation of GM's top man Rick Wagoner. Analysts say that delivers a chilling new message to troubled automakers and their workers.
There's a lot at stake. And we have our teams breaking it all down for you. Kate Bolduan has details of the plan. Susan Candiotti looks at how people in the heart of the auto industry are reacting to what's going on. And Christine Romans looks at the larger impact both on your wallet and the nation's economy.
I want to begin, though, with Kate Bolduan, joining us now live from the White House.
Hi there, Kate.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Heidi.
Well, both GM and Chrysler, they both face a Tuesday decline to prove their viability to the Obama administration. But even before that deadline came up, the administration is giving both companies a failing grade. Officials saying that Chrysler will not survive a loan and at GM, their top man is already feeling the pain.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BOLDUAN (voice-over): GM's CEO Rick Wagoner announced his resignation from the top spot of the troubled auto giant early this morning. Posting a message on GM's Web site, Wagoner stated, quote, "On Friday I was in Washington for a meting with administration officials. In the course of that meeting, they requested that I step aside as CEO of GM, and so I have."
The White House is now giving GM 60 days to pull off a complete overhaul on the taxpayers' dime. Administration officials won't say how much more cash GM may get. The company has already taken $13.4 billion in government loans. GM's statement also confirming the majority of GM's board will now be made up of new faces.
In front of the cameras, President Obama is reminding this new plan means everyone involved is going to feel the pain.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And that is going to mean a set of sacrifices from all parties involved -- management, labor, shareholders, creditors, suppliers, dealers. Everybody is going to have to come to the table and say it's important for us to take serious restructuring steps now in order to preserve a brighter future down the road.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But they're not there yet?
OBAMA: They're not there yet.
BOLDUAN: And while the White House has high hopes for GM, things are much more bleak for Chrysler. Detroit's number three automaker is getting just 30 days to reboot. Administration officials say the only way forward for Chrysler is a partnership with Italian carmaker Fiat.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BOLDUAN: And if a partnership is reached with Fiat or another partnership, Chrysler could -- Washington could give Chrysler up to 6 billion more dollars. No dollar amount yet out there for General Motors.
But, Heidi, the administration continues to stress and threaten that a structured bankruptcy is still on the table for both companies.
COLLINS: Yes, right. Now I know that Rick Wagoner has been making a dollar a year for quite some time. But is he going to get any sort of golden parachute that we keep talking about in this deal?
BOLDUAN: Let me tell you. That is a very good question. So many questions swirling. How do the executive compensation limits under TARP apply here? How would they? As well as what kind of multimillion dollar pension could he be eligible for when he leaves the company?
We're reaching out to the White House for more details on that but what we do know, you just mentioned, is that during the first go- around he pledged to take $1.00 a year salary because of the outrage over executive compensation.
And the phrasing in his statement, I think, is key. He said "step aside" in quotation marks, so that may a way to get him out of the way and keep him from getting some of this compensation that we can expect would create some outrage among the American taxpayer.
COLLINS: Yes. And later on in the show, Kate, we're going to talk a little bit about who is taking over for Rick Wagoner, too. So appreciate that.
Kate Bolduan for us at the White House. Thank you.
BOLDUAN: Of course.
COLLINS: The resignation of Rick Wagoner signals big changes for the automakers and big questions for its rank-and-file workers. So what are they saying this morning?
CNN's Susan Candiotti is in Warren, Michigan, just outside of Detroit.
So, Susan, what's the mood there with people that you've talked to?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's a very cold and windy day here today. But so far, workers are keeping their thoughts to themselves as we approach them on their way into work here at the power trade plan in Warren.
As we caught up with them before the sun came up, all we got were a lot of no comments. But last night, employees were stunned. They were either energized by the resignation or disappointed by it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): When the news broke, veteran GM worker Stan Ream was out with friends.
STAN REAM, GM WORKER: I can't believe that the -- that our country, our administration has the power to force a CEO out of his job.
CANDIOTTI: Ream is jittery enough as it is. He builds prototypes, cars of the future like the new electric Volt. Ream is worried about his own future now that CEO Rick Wagoner is out.
REAM: We've been profitable for years with him at the helm. We did not cause the economy. Auto market did not cause the poor economy right now.
CANDIOTTI: The fact is GM, Chrysler and Ford sales have been plummeting. Analysts project the latest figures will drop as much as 49 percent since large March. Some union activists applaud change at the top comparing it to a new football coach for a losing team but not if it means even more devastating job cuts. MICHAEL FERGUSON, UAW LOCAL 160: We need customers. We need people with money in their pockets to buy products. We don't need any broke autoworkers that can't buy their own products.
CANDIOTTI: Some analysts say unions are going to have to sacrifice jobs, health care, and job benefits. And if the bankruptcy court has to get involved, so be it.
PETER MORICI, SMITH SCHOOL OF BUSINESS: At that point, the bankruptcy judge can evaluate the situation, impose a new labor contract and force the union to take a haircut on health care benefits, force the bond holders to convert to equity, and zero out the shareholders and even make changes in the management.
CANDIOTTI: Stan Ream says he's willing to sacrifice his $30 plus hourly wage within reason. GM is all he knows.
REAM: It's a great place to work. It's given me great -- a great living for 28 years. So it really doesn't owe me anything.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: Now Ream says don't get him wrong. When he says GM doesn't owe him anything, he doesn't mean that he doesn't want to stop working for the company. He wants another crack at it, as do many other employees, a crack at helping GM survive.
And, Heidi, I'll find out within about 60 days or so what those restructuring plans are all about.
COLLINS: Yes.
CANDIOTTI: And what part they will play in them.
COLLINS: Yes, and obviously, we talked with a lot of people who are second, third generation working at these plants.
In your piece, though, UAW workers said they need customers. Any idea how they're going to get those customers and what those ideas it might be?
CANDIOTTI: Well, of course, to get customers, you have to give them a product that they want to buy and at the right price.
COLLINS: Yes.
CANDIOTTI: And of course, one of the criticisms that has been leveled at Wagoner over the years is, did he do enough to make that happen? There have been some exceptions with a remodeled Malibu for example and the Volt, a new hybrid car, but it hasn't been enough.
COLLINS: Yes. All right, Susan Candiotti for us. Thanks so much, Susan.
The automotive bailout more than $17 billion already handed out. Billions more on the way. So what are you, the taxpayer, getting for your money?
CNN's Christine Romans looks at the big picture.
It's a good question, Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It really is, Heidi. Here's what you need to know about the auto industry bailout and your money, taxpayer money. Seventeen point four billion dollars has been spent so far to prop up these two automakers, Chrysler and GM.
I will point out that Ford has not had to take any low-interest loan payments from the United States government. And that's what they are. They are low-interest loans. The hope is that these companies can become whole at some point down the road and then, of course, taxpayers can be paid back.
For car owners, what does this mean for your money? Well, the government is going to guarantee and back up the warranties of GM and Chrysler warranties. The idea here is you don't want people not to go out and buy cars because they're worried about the warranty, right?
It all goes down to -- you know, you need people with money in their pocket to buy the cars so the government is going to back up and guarantee those GM and Chrysler warranties.
For employees, it has saved jobs in the near term but for how long and how many jobs? Keep in mind that GM, Heidi, has lost some 60,000 hourly workers just since 2006. So the president talked about sacrifices. Clearly the workers have made a lot of sacrifices and there are more sacrifices to come.
COLLINS: Yes. I wonder, too, how this is going to play with Rick Wagoner stepping aside? And that's the verbiage that he used which is interesting as well. Just a PR move here? Or is this really, possibly going to make a difference especially given who is taking over for him?
ROMANS: There have been rumblings among analysts for some time that the White House would have to make an example of one of these CEOs and that this was the most logical person because he has been at the helm for just so long.
COLLINS: Yes.
ROMANS: I mean he's been the president running North American operations since 1998. But he's going to be taken over -- his position will be taken over by someone who's also been at this company for a very long time.
COLLINS: Exactly. Fritz Henderson.
ROMANS: Another insider. Yes, Fritz Henderson. He's been at the company, I think, since 1984. He's seen as a real turnaround artist. He's gone from division-to-division over the past few years trying to turn them around. And he is being billed as an interim person but you're right.
Where are we? Do you need somebody who's an outsider or do you need somebody who knows this company, has been involved in the restructuring to date to be able to really work with the White House?
Fritz Henderson is someone, Heidi, who has been working with the White House over the past few weeks on all of this.
COLLINS: Yes. All right. Well, we're watching closely. They don't have much time, though, that's for sure.
ROMANS: That's right.
COLLINS: CNN's Christine Romans, thank you.
President Obama's budget on the hill and under fire this week. Both the House and Senate will look at their own versions of the massive spending bill. Republicans say the president's plan runs up unnecessary deficits while furthering his priorities like overhauling health care. Many Democrats say reforms like this will save money in the long run.
They loved him overseas before the election. Will President Obama be feeling love on his first overseas trip as commander in chief? Talk about that in a moment.
Meanwhile, though, a flooded school in North Dakota. Just when they thought the worst was over, now the people who live there are bracing for what may be a blizzard.
Rob Marciano tracking it at all for us.
Hey there, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Heidi. Blizzard number two and a series of potentially three before this week is done. Weather is coming up after the break.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And you might think this is lakefront property but it isn't. The water is still high here in the Fargo and Moorhead area. I'm Susan Roesgen. You'll see more coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: North Dakota is now bracing for a snowstorm today after a weekend of record flooding. They just can't take a break, can they? And even though the Red River is receding, residents in Fargo and Moorhead, Minnesota not letting their guard down just yet.
Probably very smart.
Susan Roesgen is in Moorhead, Minnesota this morning with the latest.
Hi there, Susan. ROESGEN: Hi, Heidi. Yes, the water is going down. So they say. But very slowly you can see how high it is here. And with the winter storm coming, things could get worse.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN (voice-over): With a possible blizzard on the way, no rest for the weary. Even though the Red River is receding, the storm's high winds could push waves hard against the dikes. So the fight goes on. More National Guard troops.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you. Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.
ROESGEN: And more sandbags. 29-year-old Aaron Johnson hauls them around on the back of his four-wheeler.
AARON JOHNSON, HOMEOWNER: One goes down, we all go down.
ROESGEN: From the air the river seems to be winning. Dozens of homes are surrounded and miles of farmland are swamped. But city leaders in Fargo and Moorhead believe the worst has passed and they are already pushing Washington for millions in federal aid to build permanent levees before next year's floods.
And remember Aaron Johnson on the four-wheeler? What you'd never know is that he broke his back two years ago and his legs are paralyzed. But he's been working as hard as anybody else.
JOHNSON: I kind of made, I guess you could call it a pact with myself when I was in the hospital or before I even went to the hospital, I should say, and said if I come out of this, I'm going to, you know, just being alive was quite an amazing feature in itself.
ROESGEN: Aaron loves this place and when many neighbors got out, he stayed.
JOHNSON: I don't let no one give me any special help or you know, I'm pretty much an independent guy. This doesn't stop me from being who I am, you know? It's just who I am.
ROESGEN: Sometimes even the force of nature is no match for the force of the human spirit.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: Now what you're looking at here are the hoses, those are black hoses that are attached to sump pumps and they keep pumping the water out because even though this sandbag dike with plastic over it looks pretty secure, the truth is that water will keep seeping into it and so all of the homes along this area here are using these pumps in the backyard to pump as much water out as they can, hopefully faster than it comes in -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Susan Roesgen, thanks so much for that. We're going to keep our eye on this story, of course, all day long right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. In fact, more at the Weather Center now with meteorologist Rob Marciano.
The severe weather certainly is not over for this area. I can't believe they are getting all the snow now, too.
MARCIANO: Yes, I mean, we're almost at April 1st and it's going to be another blizzard at least the western part of the state. But I think that what's going to be the problem is not so much the added snow and they'll get a lot, will be the winds. And they'll be getting battle winds.
So that will stir up the rivers, you know, create waves where it wouldn't typically create waves and put more pressure on the levees. So even though the river is receding, as you mentioned, Heidi, it's really not the time to be putting any sort of guard down, that's for sure.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MARCIANO: Before we get to the northeast, let's show you an iReport sent in from Fargo. One of our iReporters here, his named is Chris Schoenborn. He sent us these pictures of flooding near the Main Avenue Bridge in Fargo. These from yesterday afternoon so, obviously, very high there. And people are nervously looking at the river saying, yes, is it going down? It doesn't look like it's going down. Is it -- please go down further and faster. That certainly -- seems to be the mantra today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: All right. We are watching it closely. Thank you, Rob.
MARCIANO: All right. You got it.
COLLINS: Gunmen storm a training center in Pakistan and hold police candidates hostage for eight hours. Who was able to bring it to an end?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: In Pakistan, at least eight police cadets are dead after an eight-hour standoff at a police academy. Gunmen stormed the training center in Lahore and took dozens of candidates hostage.
CNN's Reza Sayah is in Islamabad right now.
So Reza, give us the very latest because I understand we're learning more about the death toll here.
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Heidi, let's give you the latest on the death toll. And one of the challenges here in Pakistan is getting officials to give us an accurate numbers. Oftentimes they fluctuate but I think we have it nailed down. We spoke to the spokesperson of the Pakistan army and he tells CNN that eight people have been killed in this deadly standoff. Eight cadets and members of the staff and his police academy. He also tells us that four of the militants have been killed. Some of them blew themselves up, according to the spokesperson, and three of the militants have been arrested.
They are in custody right now. This after a tense and deadly standoff that saw these militants storm into this police academy but about three hours ago, the standoff over, Heidi.
COLLINS: Any idea why this happened to begin with? What was their motive?
SAYAH: Well, it's too early to tell, but this is another example of the overwhelming security situation this country faces and another example of how brazen these militants are getting. They are going at the heart of the security apparatus.
These were militants that stormed this academy at 7:30 a.m. local time just when hundreds of these cadets were gathering for a weekly parade. They attacked them with grenades and guns and chaos ensued. Some of these cadets managed to scramble to safety and leave and escape many of them were trapped.
There was a three-story building inside this compound. The militants took it over. Over the next few hours, there was the standoff, lots of gunfire and explosion. Slowly a security personnel moved in, took over the first and second floor and eventually overpowered the militants.
Some of these militants were wearing police uniforms.
COLLINS: Yes.
SAYAH: So, again, it underscores how well orchestrated and organized these attacks are getting here in Pakistan, Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, and certainly the fact that the training center was a target something else to, obviously, be looking at closely. We're on top of that, alongside you.
Thanks so much. Reza Sayah live for us this morning in Islamabad.
President Obama is calling for more accountability from the Pakistani people. In an interview yesterday he defended his administration's plan to provide more aid to Pakistan security forces but he warned that it was not a blank check.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Now one of the concerns that we've had building up over the last several years is a notion, I think, among the average Pakistani that this is somehow America's war. And that they are not invested and that attitude, I think, has led to a steady creep of extremism in Pakistan that is the greatest threat to the stability of the Pakistani government and, ultimately, the greatest threat to the Pakistani people.
What we want to do is say to the Pakistani people, you are our friends, you are our allies. We are going to give you the tools to defeat al Qaeda and to root out these safe havens. But we also expect some accountability. And we expect that you understand the severity and the nature of the threat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The president also said he does not plan to send any troops into Pakistan.
It was a love fest when President Obama went to Europe during the campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People died. China lied. People died.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: But he may get a very different kind of welcome this time around.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins.
COLLINS: President Obama sending another message to the auto industry. Restructure or else. How is Wall Street taking it?
Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange now with a preview of the trading day.
Hi there, Susan. Just about to get the opening bell there.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. Seconds away from that opening bell, Heidi. And there it is. We're coming off the third consecutive weekly win for stocks. What we're expecting very different sentiment at work in the first few minutes of trading in any case. And we got our queue from Asia and Europe. Global markets selling off.
We're expecting a steep drop here as well. The focus, of course, is the auto industry. GM shares were down 20 percent in pre-market trading. Back below $3 a share. Right now 25 percent lower.
What does that amount to? About a buck. That's how low GM shares are. They are below $3.00.
The U.S. government saying it will give GM and Chrysler more money, but only if the automakers restructure. GM had 60 days to do so. Chrysler has 30 days to reach an agreement on its high with the Italian automaker Fiat. Investors worried about the implications of the government taking such an active role in managing the automakers.
And that issue, of course, applies to the banking sector, too. That sector also under pressure today. Citi and Bank of America shares right now down at least nine percent. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner says some banks will need a large amount of assistance to survive the credit crisis.
And taking a look at the averages. The Dow right now is down 162 points or two percent. Ditto for the NASDAQ and the S&P 500. I'm going to give you a headline that's just a little bit different coming out of Detroit, Heidi, and that is a windfall for Motor City.
Michigan state last night upset top seeded Louisville to advance to the final four and the final four will be played at Ford Field in Detroit. So there will be people spending money in Detroit.
COLLINS: Interesting, right.
LISOVICZ: A record crowd expected next Saturday - Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, that is kind of a sidebar note. Absolutely. All right. Susan Lisovicz, thanks so much. Live from the New York Stock Exchange this morning.
That announcement on the auto industry is happening about an hour and a half from now. The administration will offer Chrysler and General Motors enough money to survive for several more weeks as Susan was talking about.
But as part of the deal, the White House asked GM CEO Rick Wagoner to step aside and he is doing just that. Analysts see that as a warning to the auto giant about the government's expectations for this particular bailout.
Neal Boudette is the Detroit Bureau chief for "The Wall Street Journal." He told CNN, the administration just lost confidence in Wagoner.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEAL BOUDETTE, DETROIT BUREAU CHIEF, "THE WALL STREET JOURNAL": They didn't believe Rick Wagoner was the guy to do the job so they suggested, look, we're not going to put taxpayer money in unless we have a management team we believe in.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: So as we said, General Motors has been given 60 days to restructure. They had a plan, closing plants, laying off workers, reducing their model lines. The White House didn't seem to think too much of that. Under Fritz Henderson, who is going to take over for Rick Wagoner, can they do it? Can they restructure? Can they become the lean mean company that they need to be going forward?
BOUDETTE: Well, they gave very strong hints in the memos they released last night that they are not ruling out some kind of bankruptcy where the government is involved providing financing. And allowing the companies to restructure the liabilities they have. I think Rick Wagoner was a real opponent of bankruptcy, and Fritz Henderson may have a little bit different view, a softer view that maybe bankruptcy could work.
ROBERTS: Real quick. Do you think bankruptcy would not be the disaster that the auto CEOs said that it would be when they were testifying on Capitol Hill?
BOUDETTE: I'm not convinced that it would be. I'm not convinced that these companies can restructure any other way, other than bankruptcy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: We're going to get a lot more analysis of Wagoner's resignation coming up next hour when we talk to the former editor-in- chief of "Car & Driver" magazine, Csaba Csere.
Let's take a closer look now at Rick Wagoner for a moment. In June of 2000, he became GM's youngest ever CEO at the age of 47. He climbed through the ranks after joining the company as an analyst in 1977. Wagoner agreed to a salary of $1.00 this year. In 2007, his total compensation was valued at about $24 million.
So we know the president talking about the auto industry this morning. He'll announce more plans to help automakers at 11:00 Eastern, and then at 3:00 p.m., the president will sign a bill to protect more public land. Later on, he'll go to The Hill to push his budget proposal to his own party. He's meeting with House Democrats at 5:30.
President has to finish that long to-do list before leaving on his first overseas trip in office. Tomorrow, he is off to London for the G-20 Summit. Then stops in France, Germany and the Czech Republic and Turkey.
Europe welcomed President Obama with open arms during the campaign. But as Jim Acosta explains, he may not find it so inviting this time.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTORS: Revolution!
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is not the welcome President Obama is used to seeing on the road. But the president will find more than protests when he meets with leaders of the world's biggest economies at the G-20 Summit. The blame game over the financial crisis has gone global.
LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA, BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): It was a crisis that was created and spread throughout the world due to the irresponsible behavior of white people, blue-eyed people.
ACOSTA: From a racially charged rant by Brazil's president to the outgoing Czech prime minister's fiery assessment of the Obama stimulus plan.
MIREK TOPOLANEK, CZECH PRIME MINISTER (through translator): All of these steps, that combination and the permanency is a way to hell.
ACOSTA: German Chancellor Angela Merkel is rejecting Mr. Obama's calls for a global stimulus plan, telling the "Financial Times" newspaper, "The economic crisis did not take place because we issued too little money."
OBAMA: And thank you to the people of Germany.
ACOSTA: The world has changed since Mr. Obama stood before 200,000 people in Berlin during the campaign, when he vowed to repair America's damaged image around the world.
OBAMA: I know that I don't look like the Americans who previously spoken in this great city.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's the biggest celebrity in the world.
ACOSTA: The outpouring of Euro love was mocked then by Republicans, now populist outrage has spread around the world.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Barack Obama is still very popular overseas. Public opinion poll show that. But he is more popular than his policies. It's kind of the same story back here. While Barack Obama is very popular, his policies like the stimulus, the bailout of Wall Street and the banks not nearly as popular.
ACOSTA: While the focus of the G-20 Summit will be to solve the crisis, now much of Europe and the world are skeptical of Mr. Obama's plans, which is why Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner is making a global appeal that this is no time to pull back.
TIMOTHY GEITHNER, U.S. SECRETARY OF TREASURY: You know, the big mistake governments make in recessions is they put the brakes on too early. They see that first glimmer of light and the impetus to policy fades, and people put on the brakes, we're not going to do that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: And Jim Acosta joining us now live from Washington.
And Jim, just real quickly, taking a look at the Dow Jones Industrial Averages right now, about six minutes into the trading day. We're already off by about 200 points. So we're keeping our eye closely on that.
Meanwhile, talking about this as well, when we're looking at the G-20 coming up, the president is going to leave tonight. Why does Europe seem to be so cool to the idea of a global stimulus?
ACOSTA: Well, the president thought herding cats in Washington was tough. He is about to herd cats that speak different languages.
COLLINS: Yes.
ACOSTA: And you're right. You know, this is -- this is interesting. And this is Europe. You know, the prime minister in Great Britain, Gordon Brown, has called for this global new deal. The president has said just as much here in the United States, but France, Germany, they are not going that way. They are going a different way, and a lot of economists are saying, you know, what is going on in Europe? Why are they doing this during this global economic crisis?
Part of the reason is because they have a social safety net that we don't have here in the United States. So when there is a deep recession over there, you know, you lose your job, you still have health care. That doesn't go on here in the United States.
But the president is going to have a lot of convincing to do over there, and it's not altogether clear that they are listening at this point.
COLLINS: Yes. And I've heard quite a few different exchanges that Gordon Brown getting a really hard time for some of this as well.
ACOSTA: Absolutely. That's right.
COLLINS: So it is going to be a really interesting G-20 that we'll be watching closely throughout the week here. Jim Acosta, thanks so much for that.
ACOSTA: You bet.
COLLINS: Again, keeping our eye on the Dow Jones Industrial Averages there. You see down about 200 points already in the trading day today.
You'll also be hearing a lot about the G-20 this week. Exactly, what is it? G-20 is made up of top financial officials from 19 nations and the European Union.
These items top the G-20 agenda this year. Discussing a possible global stimulus package, as we just talked about with Jim Acosta. Looking for ways to stop countries from limiting trade just to protect their own businesses. Helping developing nations where the recession is hitting hard. And coming up with better ways to regulate the financial markets. Lots to talk about throughout the week.
Now back to that flooding in Fargo, North Dakota. It took every resource they had, but in the end, crews working around the clock managed to save a high school from going under. Teachers, city officials, the National Guard and army engineers all joined the fight to save the Oak Grove Lutheran High School. After a steel wall protecting the school gave way under pressure from the Red River.
Army engineers used helicopters to drop sandbags that eventually sealed the leaks, and cleanup crews pumped most of the water out. But boy, it is not over yet. The Red River crested on Sunday morning. Worries are still all over the place and in everyone's mind.
Meteorologist Rob Marciano is here now keeping an eye on it for us.
Hey, Rob, were those invisible walls that we have talked about that were protecting that school?
MARCIANO: I'm not sure about that. But I can tell you that the entire effort has been very impressive the way they plan together.
COLLINS: Unbelievable, yes.
MARCIANO: And the river, although it has crested as you mentioned, it's almost kind of like a hurricane that makes landfall. You know, you think of a river cresting, you can let your guard down. You can't.
COLLINS: Exactly.
MARCIANO: There is still a lot more pressure being put on these man-made walls and levees. And the question is, how are they going to hold? Because the longer that water runs up against them, the more they will seep through, and the more weaknesses there will be on some of those levees.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: Again, we're going to have to put you back in your weather box. You keep coming out and giving us all these bad news. It's all your fault, you know.
MARCIANO: Punishment. All right.
COLLINS: Yes, exactly. Rob, thank you. We'll stay on top of it.
I know you know about this, too. More on the severe weather that slammed parts of the country over the weekend. Heavy winds ripped up trees and tore down power lines in York, Pennsylvania. Several homes also badly damaged.
And major storm that dumped more than two feet of snow on Oklahoma cutting out power and stranding drivers.
And check out the damage inside this gym, at a boys and girls club in Tennessee. Heavy winds there punched holes in the ceiling, allowing in the rain that destroyed most of the building.
Can you tell what this image is? International security watchdogs can and it seriously scares them. A missile sitting on a launch pad in a country that doesn't exactly have a history of being predictable.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: That's not just snow on the ground you see in Anchorage, Alaska. Volcanic ashes also showering down after the eruptions at Mt. Rita. IReporter Walno Salo. Here we go. All right. Sent in shot of his yard, covered in dirty layers of ash. If you look closely, you can see a little patch of snow cleared off there. The whole neighborhood was in a haze from the latest blast from Rita. We've been keeping an eye on that for a while now.
To southern Afghanistan now. Eight people are dead and six others injured after a suicide bomber blew up a police station. Regional chief of police says five police officers are among the dead. The other three were civilians. The police station was in the Kandahar Province in southern Afghanistan.
A troubling sight. North Korea is reportedly planning to fire off a missile early next month. Now it seems like we know where it is, and exactly what it looks like.
Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence is joining us live.
Chris, looking at these new pictures, really incredible detail that we're able to see. What are defense officials actually learning from them?
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, the key thing they're learning is that by all accounts, it appears that North Korea is on track for its launch within the next week. Now people hear the word missile and they immediately think weapon. Well, it is a missile, but the key is what's on top of it.
COLLINS: Sure.
LAWRENCE: A halo. North Korea claims it's a commercial satellite. And for the most part, officials here in the Pentagon believe them. But Defense Secretary Robert Gates believes the north's ultimate goal is to put a nuclear warhead on top of a similar missile, and if -- that's why this test is so important, because even if it's a satellite, if it does work, North Korea will have learned all it needs to one day switch out that payload and potentially launch a long-range nuclear missile.
COLLINS: Exactly. So what happens if and when North Koreans launch this thing? What's the plan from the U.S.?
LAWRENCE: Well, if it was threatening, that's a big if, navy warships could shoot it down over the Sea of Japan or perhaps over the Pacific Ocean or if it kept traveling, the U.S. could use ground-base missiles from Alaska. But right now Defense Secretary Robert Gates says there is little to no probability it's going to come down to that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT GATES, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I think if we had an aberrant missile, one that was headed for Hawaii that looked like it was headed for Hawaii or something like that, we might consider it, but I don't think we have any plans to do anything like that at this point.
(END VIDEO CLIP) LAWRENCE: And in any case, it's going to be a quick decision because that missile will be over Japan within about seven to eight minutes - Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. Our Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence. We're watching that closely. Thank you.
Overcome by emotion. A mother collapses when she learns her two daughters have been violently killed. Their attacker? Her son.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Well, it's Monday. A new workweek just getting started. CNN crew is hard at work bringing you the latest developing stories.
Morning, guys.
LISOVICZ: Good morning. I'm Suzanne Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange where auto stocks are in reverse and so is the broader market for that matter. Why Wall Street is worried about Washington's ultimatum to motor city. More on that, Heidi, at the top of the hour.
ROESGEN: And I'm Susan Roesgen in Moorhead, Minnesota. Does it look like the flood water is going down to you? Not to me, either. I'll show you more at the top of the hour.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Susan Candiotti outside a GM plant in Warren, Michigan, where GM employees are weighing in on their big boss's forced resignation. I'll have a live report coming up.
COLLINS: All right. Thanks so much, guys. We're going to have all of those reports and look ahead to President Obama's first trip to Europe, that's coming up in the next hour of the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Investigators are looking into whether a gunman's rampage at a nursing home was linked to a domestic dispute. Seven patients and a nurse were killed in Carthage, North Carolina yesterday. The man accused of the attack was wounded in a shoot-out with a police officer. That officer's actions are being described as heroic and preventing more killing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS BLAKE, NORTH CAROLINA STATE SENATOR: And he just went around shooting people. People who pee on chairs, and this I think -- this could not be any more barbaric.
TAMMY CLARK, MOTHER IN NURSING HOME: To my understanding, he went into some of the rooms and shot some of the people right there in the bed.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COLLINS: Police say the gunman's estranged wife worked at the nursing home. We should be getting a little bit more information in a news conference that's set to begin in just a couple of minutes. We, of course, will pass any updates right along to you.
Police in a Boston suburb walked into what their chief called a killing field with one officer witnessing a 5-year-old girl being decapitated. The girl's attacker her own brother. Police say the 23- year-old man also killed his 17-year-old sister and was going after another sister when officers shot him dead.
Reporter Kelley Tuthill of affiliate WCVB looks at the emotional toll on the town of Milton.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PASTOR ROSETTE FALAISE, BETHEL PENTECOSTAL CHURCH: We really love this family. (INAUDIBLE) people.
KELLEY TUTHILL, WCVB CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A somber Sunday at Bethel Pentecostal Church in Field's Corner. Worshippers devastated by the horrific deaths of two young church members.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nice, nice kids. And once again, I don't know how that happened.
TUTHILL: Their pastor here is a long time friend of Regine Revelus, the girl's mother.
FALAISE: I love her. And then one hour, one hour and a half, everybody went over there. When people come in here, the door be closed. (INAUDIBLE). And we support her every day until everything is done.
TUTHILL: Seventeen-year-old Samantha, known as Princess, attended Milton High School where grief counselors were on hand to comfort classmates.
JOHN DROTTAR, MILTON HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL: Just a sweetheart of a girl and everybody in the school will miss her.
TUTHILL: Nine-year-old Sarafina attends Tucker Elementary School where she's known as, "the mayor." All here are praying for her full recovery.
DREW ECHELSON, TUCKER ELEMENTARY PRINCIPAL: The one thing I know about Sarafina, she's a very resilient young lady, and I know that she's going to overcome this and we're going to be as supportive as we can as a school and as a school community. We're going to really rise to the occasion for her.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: The 9-year-old girl is in the hospital now being treated for stab wounds. Checking stories happening right now, a search under way for a missing 8-year-old girl from Tracy, California. The girl hasn't been seen since Friday afternoon when she went to play with friends who were not home. Authorities say there is no evidence the girl was abducted or the victim of foul play.
An eight-hour siege has ended in Lahore, Pakistan. About a dozen gunmen had stormed a police training center taking cadets hostage. Eight people are dead, both cadets and staff members.
And flood waters slowly receding in Fargo, North Dakota. But the city is certainly not out of danger yet. Winds from an approaching blizzard could put added pressure on the sandbag dikes we've been talking about.
Also quick look now at the Dow Jones Industrial Averages, the market sure hasn't been open very long, about half an hour or so, and the numbers are down about 228 points, as you can see for yourself there. We will keep our eye on that, of course.
Also, we want to get a quick check now on the weather with Rob Marciano.
Yes, we've been talking with Susan Roesgen all morning, Rob, and she's looking at that water and everybody is trying to really figure out if it's receding or not.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: Unbelievable. Still record flood waters. I mean, we're going to have a long time of getting through the cleanup there, that's for sure.
MARCIANO: Yes. It's definitely -- still, a major flood stage and it will be for many days to come. So a slow recession and slow recovery for sure.
COLLINS: Absolutely. All right, Rob, thank you.
MARCIANO: You got it.
