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What President Obama Wanted Out of G-20 Summit; Protesters Take it to the Streets; Jobless Benefits for Over Five Million; Taking on the Taliban; Global Warming Forgotten; A 35-Hour Work Week

Aired April 02, 2009 - 12:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Two big stories we're following this hour, severe weather warnings across several southern states as fierce storms move in. And half a world away, leaders at the G-20 summit agree on a trillion dollar plan to pull the global economy out of recession. But what actually have they agreed to here? British Prime Minister Gordon Brown calls it, "A New World Order."

Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORDON BROWN, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We will create a new financial stability board to ensure cooperation across frontiers, to spot risks to the economy, and together with the International Monetary Fund, provide the early warning mechanism that this new global economy needs. We will completely complete the implementation of international colleges of supervisors of financial institutions, and we will implement new rules on pay and bonuses at a global level that reflect actual performance, with no more rewards for failure. We want to encourage corporate responsibility.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: President Obama discusses the summit outcome at a live news conference from London. That is next hour. It was originally scheduled for 12:45 p.m. Eastern Time. Now it's into the 1:00 p.m. Eastern hour.

Our Suzanne Malveaux is traveling with the president.

And Suzanne, I trust you heard a little bit of the back-and-forth there between Richard Quest and Paula Newton from the ExCeL Centre.

Did the president get what he wanted out of this summit?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Tony, it's a very good question. Obviously, it's a question that's going to come up at the news conference.

In some ways, you could say, yes, he did get some things he wanted. There was a proposal that was on the table to create kind of world this world global oversight of all of the financial institutions, regulating them, making sure that everybody was behaving in the same way. The Obama administration dismissed that outright. I mean, they felt that, look, each individual country has to take a look at their own way of regulating their financial institutions. You can't have some sort of person or a global group come in and try to manage something like that.

So that was dismissed. That was not a part of this deal. But did they get everything they wanted? No, they didn't.

I mean, you're talking about $1 trillion to promote economic growth, this type of thing. But when you think about economic stimulus, a big economic stimulus package, what Gordon Brown was saying is that each one of these individual countries has decided, OK, we'll go ahead and pour some money into this problem, as the United States has done. But collectively, they didn't do it as a group, and they didn't do it in a big, big amount like the administration, the Obama administration, would have wanted -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. Suzanne Malveaux for us from London.

Suzanne, appreciate it. Thank you.

And be sure to watch President Obama's news conference on the G-20 summit. It's pushed back a bit to 1:15 p.m. Eastern Time. And you can see it right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Demonstrators back on the streets of London today protesting the G-20 summit. The crowd smaller than yesterday, but still determined to make their voices heard.

CNN's Phil Black is following today's protests. He is live from London.

And Phil, if I take a look behind you there, there appears to be a smaller crowd assembled.

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, just behind me here, that's the ExCeL Centre there in the distance. That's where all the political action is today.

Around here, this is the designated protest area. And you can see hundreds of people. Most of them have been gathered here through the day.

The crowd is actually beginning to swell a little bit more in the late afternoon, and they're a little bit more excited, too, because we've seen lots of people departing, official-looking motorcades. When they drive past, big cheers go up, the flags wave. It's generally a pretty good-natured protest from very broad and different protest groups.

Big issues, international politics, climate change, peace groups, these sorts of things. That's here.

Four miles across town, in the financial district, where we saw those very aggressive protests yesterday, thousands of people there hemmed in around the Bank of England. Well, there's been some more protests there today. We understand that riot police have been used to contain a group of about 500 or so protesters in that same area again today -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. Phil Black following the demonstrations on the streets of London, outside of the ExCeL Centre for us.

Phil, appreciate it. Thank you.

So what do the protesters even want? Well, a group calling itself the G-20 Meltdown organized the event. Basically, they're calling for an end to capitalism as we know it.

Take a look at the Web site here. It's titled "G-20 Meltdown in the City."

The site read, "Lost your home, lost your job, lost your savings or your pension? This party is for you."

Here's a bit of the manifesto. "Oust the bankers from power; get rid of the corrupt politicians; guarantee everyone a job, a home and a future; and establish a government by the people."

OK. So what do you think about all of this? What will this summit achieve?

Josh Levs has been following the e-mails, listening to you.

And Josh, share some of the e-mails with us.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Tony, they're coming in like crazy. We were just taking a look at the latest ones here. These are from Facebook as well.

But let's zoom in. I want to start off with some of the first ones, people weighing in on all sides.

This I find interesting, given what we were just hearing from our reporting on the scene -- "Regulation, not donation. Before we consider a global stimulus, regulations must be put in place. Otherwise, all the money in the world will not help, it will fall into a crack."

That's from Isabella there, La Jolla, California.

Check this out -- "What I hope comes out of the G-20 summit is a more global understanding that the issues our country faces are planetary, not United States issues." That's from Michael.

We've got time for a couple more.

"It's a relief to know that we finally have a president that the rest of the world looks up to, as we do. I'm glad that I put all those hours in getting him elected"

But, see the other side here, Tony. This person says, "The U.S. is at a severe disadvantage at the G-20, as President Obama has no experience in these types of serious matters." That's from Bill in Omaha, Nebraska.

Now, quickly, I'll show you people are also weighing in here, at my Facebook page, Josh Levs CNN. And Tony, I'm going to be here throughout the hour following all of this.

HARRIS: Awesome. Awesome.

LEVS: Quickly, let's show the graphic. It has the e-mail address on it, cnnnewsroom@cnn.com, and that's the question -- "What do you hope will come out of the G-20 summit?"

Stay tuned to CNN as you hear the latest reporting. And send us your thoughts and we'll keep them coming -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. Appreciate it. Thanks, Josh.

LEVS: Thanks.

HARRIS: CNN's Anderson Cooper is live at the G-20 summit covering President Obama, protesters, and the global financial crisis. A special "AC 360," CNN tonight, 10:00 Eastern. Again, live from London.

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Boy, you'd have to tell me the last time the Dow was over 8,000, but take a look at this, 8,028. We're coming up on three hours into the trading day, and as you can see -- oh, we've got breakage in the NEWSROOM. You break it, you own it. Hello?

As you can see, the Dow is up 264 points, a really nice rally going on today. We will check the numbers throughout the day, of course, with Susan Lisovicz, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

You know, it's a record. For the 10th week running, the number of Americans who get ongoing unemployment benefits is now closing in on six million.

Boy, six million, Christine?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Yes.

HARRIS: Six million.

Christine Romans in New York, obviously, a superstar on our money team.

And we are just, what, a day away from the Labor Department reporting numbers for March, correct?

ROMANS: No, these are weekly jobless claims.

HARRIS: Yes. Yes.

ROMANS: So these are the most recent week that they measure. This is the number of people who line up for unemployment benefits.

HARRIS: First time claims.

ROMANS: Right. And so you saw more than 600,000 people again line up for unemployment benefits; 669,000, to be exact.

And then the continuing claims, that second number, Tony, that's the number of people who are getting a jobless check. It's a record. It's been a record for 10 weeks now.

And we looked up some data for you, because what these numbers tell you, Tony, is that people are taking a longer time to get a job. They're getting laid off, and they're taking a long time.

If you're 25 to 54 years old, you can expect about 20 weeks before you get a job, another job, if you can get one. If you're 55 or older, it's longer. It's 23 weeks.

So that's just a little bit of a nugget for people. If you've just been laid off or your lose your job, you're going to have kind of hunker down. You know, it's at least 20 weeks before people are getting other jobs.

HARRIS: You know, I jumped ahead of myself here, because I'm thinking, is it tomorrow that we get the numbers from the Labor Department?

ROMANS: That's right.

HARRIS: OK. OK. And that's for the month of March, correct?

ROMANS: That's right. That's right. And it's not expected to be pretty. And this number today is pretty much kind of a bad omen for that one tomorrow.

HARRIS: Right. Right.

ROMANS: But we know that. I mean, and it's funny, because -- not funny, but ironic, I guess, because stocks are doing so well. It's that leading lagging indicator thing. We keep talking about it.

HARRIS: Right.

ROMANS: You know, the stock market looks forward and the jobs market, it's delayed. I mean, even after the economy turns, you're still going to have troubles in the jobs market.

HARRIS: Can I ask what you think of the news coming out of the G-20 summit? We're talking about a package that is in the $1 trillion range of efforts to -- what is this? To stabilize the global economy, to promote growth, and to promote jobs. And yet, we don't have what the president seemed to be going over there for, which is an all-in- one pot, a global economic stimulus plan.

What do you think?

ROMANS: My two thoughts on this.

One, there is a number. And Wall Street likes that there is this number, this $1.1 trillion.

HARRIS: Yes.

ROMANS: And a commitment to spend money for the next couple of years, a financial rescue package. And they've agreed on this broad-based financial rescue package, including selling gold, the IMF selling gold to help poor countries get loans and financing. That's interesting.

And another thing, Tony, that really struck me, Gordon Brown said the old Washington consensus is over. As long as -- the old Washington consensus is over.

HARRIS: What does that mean?

ROMANS: He's trying -- the Washington consensus? This is western- style capitalism, the way we do business, and it is what we have tried to influence around the world...

HARRIS: Right. Right.

ROMANS: ... with democracy and western-style capitalism together. The Washington consensus about free markets. It's something that we have pushed for 50 or 60 or 70 years, since World War II. And to say that that's over, he's really trying to signal a dawn of a new era of global cooperation.

There will be this new group -- this old group, rather, in Switzerland that's going to be turn into this new bigger, revamped group that's going to have more voices in it. And that's this big financial stability board, this oversight board.

HARRIS: Right. Right.

ROMANS: You know, more opinions, more voices at the table. But to say that the old Washington consensus is dead...

HARRIS: It's a big statement, isn't it? Yes, it's a big statement.

ROMANS: ... is a big statement.

HARRIS: Yes. Christine, appreciate it. Thank you.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

HARRIS: Want to know where home prices are heading in your city? You can track -- I love this idea. You can track the latest projections for the nation's 100 largest metro areas at CNNMoney.com.

Today is World Autism Day. Stay with us. We will have a look at some of the latest research and what we've learned about the disorder.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: For people with autism, finding ways to express themselves can be really challenging. But Kim Miller, one of our iReporters, has found a creative form of expression.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIM MILLER, AUTISTIC: My name is Kim Miller, and I'm an autistic artist. And not only do I like to paint and draw, but I also like to use ceramics as another art form. This one here is called "No Words for Grief."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: You know, the United Nations has declared today World Autism Awareness Day, and there's been a lot of buzz about new research since the first Autism Awareness Day was held a year ago.

Our senior medical correspondent is here with me, Elizabeth Cohen, to talk about that.

A lot of research, to be sure, but are we any closer to identifying a cause for autism?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: We're maybe this much closer. They really don't mow. Researchers really don't know. It could be such a wide variety of things. They just don't know.

HARRIS: Yes. You know, there's been a lot of focus on vaccines as being a cause. And I'm wondering, is there anything definitive -- there have been rulings, courts are involved. Bring us up to speed on where we are in terms of vaccines as a potential, possible cause for this.

COHEN: I will tell you what I get when I talk to a wide range of autism experts. What I get is, look, we have looked at vaccines, and we feel that for the vast majority of people with autism, vaccines isn't what did it.

However, there is a possibility that for small "sub-populations," maybe vaccines did make a difference, that maybe the vaccine did somehow contribute to the autism for people with certain kinds of genetic disorders, for example. So there's more research. Research now I think is being more targeted to looking at these small groups of people rather than everybody.

HARRIS: So what are the other options out there if the question of vaccines being a cause is still, in a lot of people's minds, unsettled? What are the possible causes that are at least being explored right now?

COHEN: Well, the researchers we've talked to say, look, genetics clearly, probably plays some role. Now, they don't know exactly what role or exactly what genes, but genetics plays a role.

But there may be something out there in the environment that's played a role. For example, while mom is pregnant, if she is exposed to pesticides, does that make a difference? If she eats too much of something or too little of something else does that play a role?

And more and more, you're seeing experts saying let's look at that, let's look at what's going on outside this woman's body when she's pregnant. Or let's look at the kind of exposures that a little baby has, and let's see if that makes any difference. But they won't be able to answer that question for a very long time.

HARRIS: All right. Appreciate it. Thank you, Elizabeth. Good to see you.

COHEN: Great. Good to see you.

HARRIS: And you know there are a number of organizations supporting research, raising awareness, and doing all kind of good work in this area. What we'd like to do is direct you to our "Impact Your World" page, impaceyourworld@cnn.com/impact.

We are monitoring some severe weather in the Southeast, and we're going to get to that in just a second.

"LARRY KING LIVE" on Friday, special guests for you, Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey. And they are talking about all sides of this issue of autism. "LARRY KING LIVE," that's Friday at 9:00 Eastern. That is 6:00 Pacific, right here on CNN.

Again, severe weather across the Southeast. We are monitoring that situation with our Bonnie Schneider. Bonnie is next, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Take a look at the Big Board, New York Stock Exchange. Wow! My thought was a 400-point rally. It's looking pretty good, huh?

As you can see, the Dow is up about 304 points, just about three hours into the trading day. And for the first time in a long time, the Dow is up over 8,000 -- 8,064.

We're following the numbers throughout the day for you with Susan Lisovicz, right here in the NEWSROOM.

You know, the leaders of the world's biggest economies plan to spend more than $1 trillion to tackle the global financial crisis. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown calls it the largest economic stimulus ever seen.

The leaders agree to tighter regulation of hedge funds, tax havens and the banking system. They also plan to aggressively kick-start international trade. Plus, they're pledging an additional trillion dollars to institutions like the International Monetary Fund so poorer countries can get desperately needed loans.

As we said, we're awaiting a news conference from the president. Mr. Obama is expected to speak at about 1:15 Eastern Time. And we will take you to London as soon as it begins.

On the sidelines of the summit, President Obama met today with South Korea President Lee. The focus, North Korea.

The two presidents called for a stern international response if North Korea goes ahead with a missile launch. A senior U.S. military official tells CNN the North is already fueling that rocket. North Korea says it will put a satellite in space, but the West thinks it's a ballistic missile test. The North vows to attack Japan if Japan shoots down the rocket.

CNN's Kyung Lah has more now from Tokyo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A ramping up on a number of fronts concerning this potential North Korea rocket launch. Let's begin with the rocket launch itself.

A senior U.S. military official says that fueling has begun. What that signals to military officials is that North Korea is in the final stages of a potential launch, a launch that could happen as soon as Saturday.

Now, North Korea has said that this is all for peaceful purposes, to launch a satellite into space for its space program. But the U.S. and its allies believe that what this is, is actually a cover for its long-range ballistic missile program.

Now, Japan, on its front, says that it is prepared if, and only if, any of this rocket debris may be falling toward Japanese territory. Japan says it will shoot that debris down. But again, only if it's heading toward Japanese property.

Japan has dispatched three destroyers. Two are in the Sea of Japan, one is in the Pacific Ocean. Those destroyers are equipped with sea- to-air missiles. These are longer-range missiles.

There are also PAC-3 Patriot missiles that are on the ground of the north shore of Japan. They're also within Tokyo, three locations within Tokyo. They're poised and ready to go.

Now, North Korea says that any sort of interception of its rockets will be viewed as an act of war. Stepping up that rhetoric, saying that it will attack Japan's military and "other major targets."

Kyung Lah, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Well, from North Korea to another hotspot of sorts, Capitol Hill. The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan is testifying about the extremist threats in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, CHIEF, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: The United States has vital national interest in Afghanistan and Pakistan. These countries contain the most pressing transnational extremist threats in the world, and in view of that, they pose the most urgent problem set in the central command area of responsibility. Disrupting and ultimately defeating al Qaeda and the other extremist elements in Pakistan and Afghanistan, an reversing the downward security spiral seen in key parts of these countries, will require sustained, substantial commitment. The strategy described last Friday constitutes such commitment.

Although the additional resources will be applied in different ways on either side of the Duran line, Afghanistan and Pakistan comprise a single theater that requires comprehensive, whole of governments approaches that are closely coordinated. To achieve that level of coordination, Ambassador Holbrooke and I will work closely with our ambassadors and our counterparts from other countries and the host nations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. Live now to CNN Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence.

Chris, a lot there. The general's warning of the need for sustained commitment. Do we have any idea how long sustained is? What does that mean? And why aren't we calling this a war on terror anymore?

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, to the first part, Tony, General Petraeus is reluctant to put a year figure or set some sort of arbitrary time line. But from some of the military analysts that I've spoken with, they're looking at anywhere five, six years and out. Five years as a bare minimum to get the situation there under complete control.

As far as the war on terror, it's a term. It's a designation. It matters less what you call it and more how you fund it. And by that I mean how much money is allocated to it and how many troops and civilians will be allocated to this mission.

HARRIS: Got you. How does Pakistan, Chris, play into all this?

LAWRENCE: Well, it depends on who you ask, Tony. You know, General Petraeus, really, sounded an alarm in some of the testimony, saying that there is an existential threat to the state of Pakistan by some of these extremists inside their own country. He supports the idea of sending more money to Pakistan to fund their military, to help them battle insurgents, to help them get night goggles, equipment, things like this. Basically a show of faith that if we stand behind them with enough money, like the Obama administration is asking for, it will encourage them to stay with us.

Now on the other hand, you've got Senator John McCain saying he doesn't view success in Pakistan as necessarily tied in Afghanistan. And you've got Senator Carl Levin saying, you know, there's no way we should be sending more money to Pakistan until they have proven first that they will take on extremists in their own country.

HARRIS: Boy, a lot of perspectives on this.

Chris Lawrence, our Pentagon correspondent in our Washington bureau.

Chris, good to see you. Thank you.

LAWRENCE: You're welcome.

HARRIS: Of course we're keeping an eye on tornado watches and warnings along the southeast. It's going to be a rocky day to be sure. Bonnie Schneider is following that for us.

Good to see you, Bonnie.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: You know, some of those residents flooded out of their homes by the Red River are actually being allowed to go back home. You can see plenty of water remains, even though a lot of it is frozen. This is Moorhead, Minnesota, across the river from Fargo, North Dakota. We saw the picture just a moment ago. Much of Fargo and Moorhead escaped major flooding. You know, earlier this week, we talked with Connie Dreyer of Oxbow. A suburb of Fargo. She's on the phone with us again.

Connie, good to talk to you.

When we talked to you a couple of days ago, you weren't in your home. You and your husband, I understand, are now back in your home. Connie, how does it look?

CONNIE DREYER, FLOODING VICTIM: It's flooded. We're -- we've got some trailers here. We're trying to load up as much as we can that's dry on the main floor. But it's -- it's wet. It's dirty. It's icky.

HARRIS: Yes. When we talked to you, you mentioned that everything in your basement was gone.

DREYER: Yes, it's gone.

HARRIS: How much damage to your main floor -- you mentioned just a moment ago you were able to get some things out.

DREYER: I think most of our belongings on the main floor, we're going to be able to get out of here today before it warps and ruins everything. The flooring is all gone. The window seals are cracked. The sheet rock's starting to buckle a little bit and stuff on the main floor, too. So it's crucial I guess we get all of our furniture out of here today, what's left.

HARRIS: Well, of the possessions on the first floor, what's the most prized possession that you've been able to salvage?

DREYER: Pictures.

HARRIS: You know how often we hear that, Connie?

DREYER: Yes. Yes. HARRIS: You know, you have all kinds of fancy televisions, this, that and the other. And when it gets right down to it, it's the pictures that folks most cherish.

DREYER: Yes. Things that my dad made and, you know, few pieces of furniture that are special, I guess. So, yes, we've saved those.

HARRIS: Connie, how long and difficult a cleanup do you think you're looking at here?

DREYER: Oh, six months probably, I'm sure, if even we can get back in here ever. I don't know.

HARRIS: OK. Connie, the best to you and your husband and your extended family. And, you know, keep us posted. Maybe an i-Report or an e-mail on how you're doing, all right?

DREYER: OK. Thanks. Bye-bye.

HARRIS: Connie, appreciate it. Thank you.

Think you're having a crazy day? Think about this. What would you do if flood water was creeping into your basement, your wife suddenly went into labor and your midwife couldn't make it? Here's Kelsey Soby of CNN affiliate WDAY.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELSEY SOBY, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Watching Jordan heave himself through icy flood water, that is now also filled his basement, it's hard to believe this part for him feels easy. The week started with a much bigger challenge. At his house, flood water was flowing in.

JORDAN PECK, DELIVERED DAUGHTER: We watched the water get higher and higher, closer an closer.

SOBY: And his unborn baby wanted out.

J. PECK: My wife said, I think you're going to be the one to deliver this baby. I said, I don't want to deliver the baby.

SOBY: With the midwife unable to get there on time, the task was up to dad. With the help of some instruction from the Internet, he delivered a healthy baby Margaret.

J. PECK: I believe a lot of guys can relate to, you know, if all else fails, follow the instructions. Well, this was one of those cases where I was going to follow the instructions to the tee.

NATALIE PECK, HAD BABY DURING FLOOD: The thought of having to be transferred to the hospital was scary because our driveway was already in pretty bad condition.

SOBY: Jordan says he's never been through a flood and staying behind alone to sandbag was difficult. J. PECK: That was probably one of the hardest parts for me was, got a brand-new baby, I want to be with my new baby, and to have to send them off.

SOBY: Realizing today he'd lost the flood fight, Jordan headed to shore to see the perfect results of a battle won.

J. PECK: It was probably the most intense and stressful and beautiful moment a father, a person, could ever experience.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: How about that? A man who listens and follows instructions. He's a keeper.

The first lady, the queen, and a touch. We'll have the scoop on why it is the talk of the nation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: England is all abuzz about Michelle Obama and a lot of the buzz is about a rather touchy moment between Queen Elizabeth and the first lady. It was a hot topic earlier on CNN's "American Morning."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: OK. So we're all talking about the touch. So apparently it's very unusual for the queen to really touch anyone, yet there is word that she made the first move and touched Michelle Obama, although Christiane Amanpour is denying that. It was Michelle, she said, who touched the queen first. What do you say?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I'm just looking at the pictures.

ROBERT JOBSON, AUTHOR: Well, let's not get too political about this. The reality is, I spoke to the palace this morning about this and clearly the queen did make the first move on the first lady. So she had a -- she embraced her. It was quite a small room that they were in. Quite a lot of people in there. And she just pulled her close. And then Michelle responded. So it's not -- the first lady hasn't breached any real protocol here. I mean if this was an Australian prime minister, like Paul Keating in '92, there would be a right (ph) rowl (ph) about it. But actually, as the first lady can't do any wrong at the moment, I think it's fine as far as London is concerned.

COSTELLO: You know, I was talking with another royal watcher earlier this morning and he said it's unusual for the queen to touch her own son. So was there any -- I mean did she just instantly like Michelle Obama?

JOBSON: I don't think it's unusual for her to touch her own son. She kisses him every time she greets him. But the reality is, this isn't a big political football here. All that's happened is they got close and they had a little cuddle. And the first lady seems to be very popular with the queen. I don't think there's -- I think all this stuff about protocol is getting -- can get out of hand. I mean the royal family and the queen aren't that bothered about anyone who curtsies to her or bows to her. In fact, they say, it's up to you. It's up to you what you do. Things have moved on a pace since the 10 years ago when Diana died. They've learned a lot of lessons and they're nowhere near as stuffy.

COSTELLO: OK. Well, that's good to hear because -- I guess that makes me feel better about the queen because it seems perfectly natural to me, being a touchy feeling person myself.

They also had some private meetings and people are wondering what went on in those private meetings. Can you shed any light on that?

JOBSON: Not really because everybody says they know what went on in those private meetings. And I'd be extremely surprised because the only people inside the meetings are -- would be the president, the first lady, Prince Philip and actually the queen. There would be no aides in there, nobody else. It's rather like when the prime minister meets the queen, there is nobody in there. And so unless you are a fly on the wall, you just won't know.

COSTELLO: Did she like the iPod?

JOBSON: She got two other iPods, actually. Prince William gave her an iPod and she was given one I think by -- somebody else gave her an iPod. But this was particularly good because the White House and Buckingham Palace lias (ph) -- I spoke to one of the aides that dealt with it today and they really were happy about that -- that gift exchange. And it had all been cleared beforehand. So she's quite technical, actually, the queen. She's up with all the latest gadgetry. She's got the same Blackberry as the president, so she's not that far behind.

COSTELLO: Cool! Awesome.

JOHN ROBERTS, "AMERICAN MORNING" ANCHOR: There you go.

COSTELLO: And, you know, you can never have too many iPods.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. Buckingham Palace issued a statement today calling the touch a "mutual and spontaneous display of affection and appreciation between the queen and Michelle Obama. The London summit reception at Buckingham Palace was an informal occasion."

And in case you were concerned the global financial crisis had the people in charge wringing their hands with worry, don't fret. Take a look at this. While posing for the G-20's family photo, President Obama flashed a trillion dollar smile, of course, while hamming it up -- you didn't expect this -- with the leaders of Italy and Russia. A Fonzi thumbs up moment. For Canada's prime minister, an embarrassing moment. Steven Harper didn't make the group picture reportedly because of a much-needed bathroom break. This do-over photo-op was hastily arranged. What do you hope will come out of the G-20 summit? Our Josh Levs has your feedback.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Well, we certainly have been following the protests surrounding the G-20 meeting in London. One of the big gripes, world leaders aren't moving fast enough on climate change. Cnnmoney.com's Poppy Harlow has our "Energy Fix" from New York.

Hi, Poppy.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Hey, Tony.

I mean as we know, so many problems to tackle, especially at this G-20 meeting. The focus, the global financial crisis. But that has a lot of environmental activists pretty worked up that climate change has, they say, been put on a back burner of sorts. Many of the protestors in London right now demanding action on global warming and other energy issues.

Take a look at this video of some protestors camped out in London's financial district. What do they want? They want more specific details, specific commitment from G-20 countries on spending on not only green technology, but also investment in renewable energy, all as part of the G-20 plan to boost the economy. They did not get it.

Here's what the official G-20 communique says. "We agreed to make the best possible use of investment funned by fiscal stimulus programs towards the goal of building a resilient, sustainable, green recovery."

That is pretty general language, Tony. "Best possible use" certainly open to interpretation. So this really coming out, the communique, in the last hour or so.

Tony.

HARRIS: Well, I'm wondering about that. Is climate change even mentioned in the communique?

HARLOW: It is. It's right here sort of on the last page right here that we have underlined. The leaders re-affirming their commitment to address climate change, pledging to reach a new climate change agreement in Copenhagen this December. The new treaty would replace the Kyoto Protocol. But as you know, the United States never signed on to Kyoto. There are a lot of issues to work out with this new agreement that will come in December concerning emissions and how they'll be measured, what role the developing world is going to play. And a big question whether or not the United States is going to get on-board. That's going to get a lot of attention. We will focus on that in December, especially since President Obama has been, you know, making a big focus on cutting greenhouse gas emissions. That's been a top priority for him, Tony. So we'll see.

HARRIS: That's right. All right. Good. All right, Poppy, appreciate it. Thank you.

Want to get you quickly over to Bonnie Schneider now.

Bonnie, I understand you're tracking two new tornado warnings in Louisiana.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: You know, they are powerful financial leaders from all over the world. We're wondering if their decisions will actually help you. We've been asking for your views on the G-20 summit. Our Josh Levs has your reactions now.

Josh, what do you got?

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Tony, we're near the top of the hour. We want to get to as many as possible. Let's zoom right in on the board. You've been writing us all morning and into this afternoon over here.

Check it out. We're going to start off with this one from Comstock Park. DD writes, "I'd like to see a discussion as to how we can push green industries around the world to improve economies an save the planet."

How about this one from Ann in South Dakota. "I wouldn't let one of them cook me a piece of toast," Tony. "They wouldn't know how. They would need a stimulus package to do it."

HARRIS: Oh, no. That's a rip. Yes, that's a good rip.

LEVS: Yes, that's a clever rip. Wow. Not a lot of pride there for the G-20.

All right. "We don't need more free trade agreements that kill U.S. companies. Obama needs to tell them to keep their exports and come home. Let's rebuild America." That's Clay in Dalton, Georgia.

Let's read this one. "We need to reduce the concentration of global wealth and power in multi national financial institutions. The bailouts are encouraging business as usual but the same corporate leadership." That was Judy in Austin, Texas.

Tony, quickly, I want to show you the FaceBook page. A lot of people weighing in here at my page, joshlevscnn.

HARRIS: There you go.

LEVS: We got time to read one of them.

HARRIS: Sure.

LEVS: Check this out. Elvir writes us this. "What I hope will come out of it, economic stability. What will probably come out of it, economic stalemate." We obviously have yet to see what's going to come out of this ultimately, how it will affect these nations around the world. But you can keep the discussion going in the meantime right here at the e- mail address we showed you, or my FaceBook page, joshlevscnn.

And, Tony, we'll stay all over it right here.

HARRIS: That's a good point, writing it down in a communique is one thing, actually following through is another. But that's why we get the big bucks, right, to follow up on that.

All right, Josh, appreciate it.

LEVS: (INAUDIBLE).

HARRIS: Well, anyway.

How would you like to work a 35-hour work week? Sound pretty good, right? Well, just ahead, why some think it might be the key to getting us out of our economic slump.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Try this on for size. What if we, as a nation, worked less and played more? It's the way many Europeans approach work. And some contend if American companies adopted the idea, they'd see fewer layoffs. CNN's Alina Cho explores the idea.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I came here to put forward our ideas, but I also came here to listen.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): How about this idea, a 35- hour work week, mandatory vacation of at least a month? The European way of life. Relax more. It seems like a radical idea, but in hard times it's a way to save jobs.

HEATHER BOUSHEY, CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: Firms could cut back hours a bit, continue to keep people on payroll, continue to keep that money flowing throughout the economy. That's far better off for the whole economy than to just cut some people off.

CHO: In the 1970s, Americans and Europeans worked about the same number of hours. These days, Europeans work nearly 50 percent less and yet per hour worked, in many cases Europeans are more productive. But American businesses are traditionally resistant to the idea of cutting hours to cut costs. When times are tough, U.S. companies rely mostly on layoffs.

PROF. TRUMAN BEWLEY, YALE UNIVERSITY ECONOMICS DEPT.: Layoffs save much more money than work sharing because you get rid of the fixed cost of employment.

CHO: Sigma, an ad agency in New Jersey, decided otherwise. The company recently saved four jobs by cutting back the hours of eight employees to 32 hours a week or less.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You definitely have to budget. You have to, you know, find a way to, you know, work within a smaller salary.

CHO: Sigma workers say they've come to enjoy the time off. They're working less and getting more done while they're on the job.

PRACHI GOKHALE, COPYWRITER, SIGMA: I'm just more productive. I'm doing better work. I'm more focused.

BOUSHEY: It may actually be that by cutting hours and giving folks more time to relax and to rejuvenate, you actually get more creativity out of your employees.

CHO: Sigma says the move is temporary. Eventually, when the economy turns around, they hope to get everyone back to full-time status, which could be a difficult adjustment. Workers here have come to appreciate the time off.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHO: French workers so closely guard their time off that when President Sarkozy announced plans to scrap the 35-hour work week, there were massive demonstrations. Now the bill did end up passing in June, but there's no real indication that the French are working more. Tony, I have a sneaking suspicion that the streets of Paris will be quiet again in August when all of France goes on vacation.

Tony.

HARRIS: Yes, I am with you.

All right. Consulting firm Challenger Gray and Christmas says more U.S. companies are exploring alternatives to layoffs, including shorter work weeks.

Let's push it forward now with Kyra Phillips in the CNN NEWSROOM.