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Ford: No Plans for Bailout or Bankruptcy; Interview With Robert Gibbs; Finance Tips on School Loans, Credit Reports; Sri Lankan Civil War Wages On; New Orleans Jazz Festival Kicks Off; GM Plant Shutdowns Have Many Workers Worried

Aired April 24, 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 Friday, April 24th.

Here are the top stories we're following for you in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Ford says it is losing money, but not as much as analysts thought. At GM and Chrysler, bankruptcy a more likely option today.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's scary. You know, everybody in here is just worried about our jobs.

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HARRIS: GM pinpoints 13 plants that will close for weeks over the summer, idling thousands of workers.

And live this hour, Senior White House Correspondent Ed Henry on CNN Radio with the White House press secretary, Robert Gibbs, and the first 100 days of the Obama administration.

Good morning, everybody. I'm Tony Harris. And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Let's begin with the big three, where things stand.

GM and Chrysler could be headed to bankruptcy court soon.

What about Ford? Ford is the only big carmaker that hasn't gotten help from Washington. Ford announced today it lost $1.4 billion in the first quarter. That is less than expected. Perhaps more importantly, Ford says it cut its spending by almost half between the fourth and first quarters and remains on track to break even by 2011. Ford says it remains confident it won't need Washington's money, and it is certain it will not need bankruptcy protection.

I want to bring in our business correspondent, Susan Lisovicz, from the New York Stock Exchange.

Susan, good morning to you.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony. HARRIS: And let me bring in Poppy Harlow from CNNMoney.com.

Poppy, good morning to you.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Hi there, Tony.

Hi, Susan.

HARRIS: All right. Poppy, let me start with you.

So Ford announces losses better than expectations, while at the same time cutting its spending nearly in half between the fourth and first quarters. So what is the Ford story here? How is it weathering the downturn better than Chrysler and GM?

HARLOW: You know, what's really interesting here about Ford's numbers is its ability to reduce the amount of cash it's burning through per quarter. When you look back at Ford in the fourth quarter of 2008, it burned through more than $7 billion in cash. That means more than it was bringing in.

What it was able to do, Tony, was reduce that to $3.7 billion burn through rate, as they call it in the industry, in the first quarter. That's one thing.

And what also separates this company from GM and Chrysler is the confidence factor. A lot of analysts saying that Ford has been able to increase its market share here in the United States in the first three months of this year because consumers become less and less confident in the future of General Motors and Chrysler as the days go by. We're a week away from finding out whether or not Chrysler will be forced into bankruptcy or not, Tony, and not that far off for GM.

HARRIS: Yes.

And Susan, is that what you're hearing, analysts a little more bullish on Ford than certainly GM and Chrysler?

LISOVICZ: Oh, no question about it, as Poppy knows.

You know, if you look at the top 20 best-selling vehicles, Ford has got four of them, OK? Starting with the F series, which is the most popular vehicle sold in America. It's a pickup, of course. Then you've got the Fusion, the Ford Focus. I can't remember -- there's one other one -- the Escape, I believe it is.

Whereas Chrysler has got two of them; right? You've got the Jeep wrangler and you have the Dodge Ram pickup.

It's got a lot of liabilities, and what has really -- the theme that we're hearing is that the problem right now for Chrysler is that it hasn't reached any sort of agreement between the auto czars and the creditors as to what they're going to pay out. They're still about $3 billion apart.

HARRIS: Yes. That sort of dovetails nicely into this next question about Chrysler and Chapter 11.

What would a Chrysler Chapter 11 look like, Susan? And how much of that look really rests on this Fiat deal, the much talked about Fiat deal, at least having something in place, even if it's a memo of understanding on a deal in place?

LISOVICZ: It's huge. It's one of the three cogs, really, for Chrysler. It's Fiat, it's the creditors, it's the UAW. Reportedly, the UAW is on board.

The scenario is that if Chrysler can reach a deal with its creditors, it would file for bankruptcy protection to get rid of some liabilities. In that case, Fiat would come in and cherry-pick what it wants. And Chrysler, for all of its distressed condition, actually has some very nice assets, including the Jeep Wrangler, some of its more efficient factories. So that's the scenario, but they've got to reach agreement with the creditors by next Thursday.

HARRIS: Yes.

And Poppy, what are your thoughts on this? I'm wondering about the benefits of Fiat doing this deal with a company that may be in bankruptcy.

HARLOW: You know, huge potential benefits here. Just pulling up something from the press release from the two companies talking about the ability to distribute their vehicles, distributing more Chrysler vehicles -- jeep, a very popular Chrysler brand outside of North America; the ability to distribute Fiat vehicles in this market, where they are few and far between.

It's that ability. It's also the ability to reduce costs. You bring these two companies together, you streamline them, you cut out the excess fat, Tony, and you essentially, the thought is here, have a company that can return to the black more quickly, and also in a cheaper way coming in, if we do see Chrysler fall into bankruptcy.

HARRIS: You ladies will be watching these developments for us. Appreciate it.

Susan, good to see you.

LISOVICZ: Likewise.

HARRIS: Poppy, thank you.

HARLOW: Sure.

HARRIS: Ford is inaugurating a new approach to car building, what it calls flex manufacturing. This plant in Louisville is up and running after a quick retooling. Previously, it made Ford F-150 pickups. Now Ford Expeditions and Lincoln Navigators are rolling off the same assembly line, alongside the trucks.

Ford says the flex apreaproach will help it respond to consumer demand. Much of the $200 million retooling was covered by incentives from the state of Kentucky, which is eager to hold on to the jobs.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner says he sees signs the global economic downturn is easing. Geithner writes in today's "Financial Times" -- quoting here -- "Conditions in some financial markets are and have improved, and the decline in world trade may be abating. However, real progress requires time and significant risks, and challenges remain. Thus, it is critical that we continue to act together to strengthen the basis for a global recovery."

Geithner's article comes as finance ministers from the world's top seven economies meet in Washington. The group is discussing more economic stimulus measures.

Despite Geithner's signs of easing comment, it could be quite some time before we come out of this financial mess. CNN's Fareed Zakaria asked a Harvard history professor about the longevity of this recession.

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FAREED ZAKARIA, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": You have been in recent months on the kind of doom and gloom side of the spectrum. You have thought that things were -- this was a very, very serious problem. Japan in the '90s, you once said, was a good case scenario for the United States.

Markets are up. Credit seems to be thawing. Does any of this change your mind?

PROF. NIALL FERGUSON, HARVARD UNIVERSITY: Well, there were about 11 bear market rallies between 1929 and 1933. It's easy to be deluded by those upticks.

In fact, if you track the S&P 500, almost exactly trace the same downward, then upward, then downward trajectory that it did in the Great Depression. But I'm not an extreme doomster. I mean, I don't think this is going to be a replay of the early 1930s, not least because the policy response couldn't be more different.

But I do think we're in for something pretty protracted. And that's the thing that most people have difficulty with. We expect this all to be over because that's what we're used to. We're used to recessions that don't last too long. The idea that this could last years is beyond most people's imagining.

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HARRIS: Catch more of "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS" and the news that matters to you, this coming Sunday, 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

President Obama is talking higher education today, specifically student loans. That's at 1:30 Eastern, and we will carry that live for you, of course.

Our Dan Lothian joins us from the White House.

Dan, good to see you.

Student loans are an issue the Obamas know something about.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And he's going to take on these student loans by taking on the banking industry.

He wants to shift to direct loans. So let me break it down for you.

There are two kinds of loans that are out there. The direct loans is where taxpayer money goes directly to students to help them pay for tuition. But then the bulk of the loans out there that students use are called these private federal family education loans, and this is where taxpayer money is used to subsidize these loans, and they end up paying the banks for being sort of a middleman in providing these loans.

Well, the president wants to do away with those kind of loans because he believes, this White House believes, and other economists believe that there could be a savings of billions of dollars, perhaps as much as $48 billion if you do away with those kinds of loans. So he wants to go to just the direct loans, where taxpayer money goes directly to students to pay for tuition. So that's something we'll hear the president talk about here today -- Tony.

HARRIS: And that is 1:30 Eastern Time.

LOTHIAN: That's correct.

HARRIS: Dan, appreciate it. Thank you.

You know, we want to have you join us on President Obama's 100th day in office for the "CNN National Report Card." It is a primetime event that gets started next Wednesday night at 7:00 Eastern.

In the middle of it all, President Obama holds a news conference. Then Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper, and the best political team on television and you give the final grades for the first 100 days. You elected them, now you grade them, next Wednesday beginning at 7:00 Eastern on CNN and CNN.com/reportcard.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs joins our Senior White House Correspondent Ed Henry on CNN Radio. We sent Ed some really tough questions for Robert Gibbs. We will bring you that conversation live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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(WEATHER REPORT)

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HARRIS: Ninety-five days into the Obama administration, the president's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, is talking to our senior White House Correspondent Ed Henry on his weekly radio show. Let's dip in live.

ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: That's why the president has focused on a plan to keep people in their homes and help people stave off home foreclosure. That's why you've seen a small business lending initiative that helps small businesses that are having trouble getting loans get those loans.

The president is going to talk just today about how to get college tuition prices under control. And yesterday, met with the credit card industry to tell them if they were going to do more to protect consumers, and that Congress was going to compel them to do that. So I think this president has really put the government back on the side of working Americans.

ED HENRY, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Now, you also know that this week, Neil Barofsky, one of the watchdogs of the TARP and bailout situation, says he still has concerns the Treasury Department is not getting enough information from banks right now to figure out how these rescue funds are being spent. Obviously, accountability, transparency has been something you and the president have talked a lot about in these first 100 days.

Do you feel like you're there yet, or do you understand the concern that a lot of people have around the country about transparency on these bailouts?

GIBBS: Well, look, the president of the United States ran on a platform of transparency and believes that we have to have strong transparency and accountability to make any of this work.

The president is extremely concerned. And I can assure any of your callers that he understands that when taxpayer money is used to help anybody, including a bank, that they are doing so -- that when they do so, that they're doing so with some accountability and transparency so that the people can be confident in what we're doing each and every day. And that's what the president is going to try to do not just in the first 100 days, but every day thereafter.

HENRY: Now, as we get ready for the president to have this big town hall meeting on Wednesday in St. Louis, the Show-Me State, as well as have this primetime news conference on Wednesday evening, 8:00 Eastern, in the East Room, his third in these first 100 days, how do you assess -- I've heard a lot of White House aides in recent days say they believe this has been the best first 100 days, the best start since FDR. That's some pretty big shoes to fill, obviously.

How do you back that up, specifically on the economy and the stimulus package? What do you see as the big achievements?

GIBBS: Well, look -- and again, let me give you this short caveat, Ed. And that is while we think we've had a successful 100 days, the measure we know of the American people is not how we've done in the first 100 days, but how we're going to do each and every day to get this economy moving. Look, the president took on and addressed the economic crisis immediately by working with Congress to pass a $787 billion recovery and reinvestment plan that is already putting people to work, which is already building roads and making critical investments in things like energy independence. The president has outlined a plan to get our troops out of Iraq.

The president, as I said yesterday, has put the scientists back in charge of science. And we've had some important developments in things like stem-cell research and things like that.

Look, I think the one thing the American people should know most of all, and that is this president has spent 100 days keeping the promises that he made over the course of two years as a candidate for president of the United States.

HENRY: Any disappointment...

GIBBS: And I think we have been successful thus far.

HENRY: Any disappointment though that so far, he hasn't been able to win a lot of Republican support? On the stimulus package, for example, three Republicans joined on. Obviously on that campaign he also talked a lot about changing the tone in Washington and winning more Republican votes. I know, obviously, the Republicans bear some responsibility here, but doesn't the president as well?

GIBBS: Well, look, I think both parties bear responsibility. You can't have bipartisanship with only one of them.

I do think the president has been a little -- I wouldn't say discouraged, but I think the president would like to see the Republican Party work in a constructive way to get things done for the American people. I think he has done an incredible amount in reaching out to the Republican party. And look, there have been some bipartisan successes in this administration -- passage of Children's Health Insurance Reform, passage of national service.

There have been instances like that. We know we're not going to get 100 percent of support, quite frankly, from either party on every vote, but the president is going to continue to reach out and try to work with Republicans to make sure that we lay that strong foundation for economic growth.

HENRY: Now, let me ask you a quick question on news this morning. The "L.A. Times" reporting that your administration is set in May to release some photos, about 44 photos, I believe, that allegedly show abuses of prisoners at prisons in Iraq and Afghanistan during the Bush administration.

Can you tell us a little bit about why that's coming out? And are you worried this is going to further inflame this debate we've been having all this week in this country about the alleged torture in the Bush years?

GIBBS: Well, I think what's important for people to understand, Ed, is these are court cases that have been brought based on the actions of previous individuals and the previous administration. This is part of a similar lawsuit that was eventually going to compel any government to turn over the memos that the president of the United States released publicly last week.

I think one of the things that's important to understand is the president takes the job of protecting the American people with the utmost seriousness. It's the most important job he has, and he'll continue to make decisions about what are in our best interests for national security, and that's how he looks at each and every one of these.

HENRY: Now, as you have watched him wrestle with some of these big issue issues just like that, the alleged torture issue we've been talking about in recent days, how have you seen him change over the course at all over the first 100 days as he deals with and adjusts to what is a massive challenge to deal with?

GIBBS: Right. Well, you know, the one thing I have noticed as much as anything, Ed, is many of the reasons that we talk to you reporters and voters about over the course of two years of campaigning of why we thought he would be good at this job, we've been able to see up close. Somebody who spends a lot of time thinking about each of these decisions, engages all parties, those that agree and disagree with him on different ideas, listens to everybody in the room, and then makes the decision that he thinks is best for the American people. Not what's best for any party politically, or what's best for him politically, but instead, what's most best for the American people.

HARRIS: Boy, good stuff. Good stuff.

The president's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, on CNN Radio with our Senior White House Correspondent Ed henry. Good stuff.

News being made all over the CNN platforms today, special programming as we look forward on CNN to mark President Obama's 100th day in office for the "CNN National Report Card." We want you to tune in for that.

It is a primetime event that gets started next Wednesday night, 7:00 Eastern. In the middle of it all, President Obama will hold a news conference. Then Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper, the best political team, and you give the final grade for the first 100 days.

You elected them, now you get to grade them, next Wednesday beginning at 7:00 Eastern on CNN and CNN.com/reportcard.

So you need to check your credit report, but you don't know how to get it. Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis is answering viewer e-mails next in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. Caught early, survival rates are good, but uninsured women face a greater risk. They're twice as likely to be diagnosed in the later, more dangerous stages.

This week's CNN Hero is on the front lines of this war, and she is taking it to the street.

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ANNOUNCER: This is "CNN Heroes."

ANDREA IVORY, MEDICAL MARVEL: In 2004, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Initially, there's shock, but I realized how blessed I was to have health insurance. It made me think about all the women who didn't have health insurance. I wanted to make a difference in their lives.

I'm Andrea Ivory, and I'm fighting breast cancer in south Florida one household at a time.

The Florida Breast Health Initiative is an outreach organization. We're targeting working class people. We're going to make a difference and we're going to save some lives. We have a "take it to the streets" approach.

We feel like little pixies spreading breast cancer awareness.

Can I ask you a few questions?

We target women that are 35 years or older, and make appointments on the spot for a free mammogram.

I look forward to seeing you. I will be there.

Bringing the mobile mammography vans into the neighborhoods is one of the most important facets of the work that we do. We provide a service that is so needed. I know I'm saving lives.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They said it was free, so come right over and get it.

IVORY: Is the lady of the house at home?

We're giving free mammograms on the 25th. That's easy.

Thank you so much. Take care.

I was saved from breast cancer to serve other women. Every time I knock on the door, it's another opportunity to save a life.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And if you would like to help Andrea Ivory, or if you know someone who is doing something so extraordinary that they deserve to be a CNN Hero, just go to CNN.com/heroes. Remember, all of our CNN heroes are chosen from people you nominate, so tell us about your heroes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: Well, it's time to plug in to get some high energy, financial advice. Our personal finance editor Gerri Willis is open for business answering e-mails.

Gerri, good Friday to you.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Happy Friday to you too.

HARRIS: You ready to dive in, Gerri?

WILLIS: Let's go.

HARRIS: All right, the first - let's see, the first e-mail comes from Paul and Mari who write, "We heard you mention forgiveness of law school loans. Our son and daughter-in-law are both new attorneys saddled with law school loans and we'd love to help them find more information, if possible."

Can you help, Gerri?

WILLIS: Yes, yes, yes. Many law schools forgive the loans of students who serve a public interest or nonprofit positions. If that's the case, go to Equal Justice Works, they have a Web site, equaljusticeworks.org. And the American Bar Association also has a summary of loan repayment assistance programs. Go to abanet.org. That's abanet.org. For more info on student loan forgiveness, check out finaid.org, but it is out there for you.

HARRIS: Great. All right, our second question comes from Howard, and Howard's from New York. He writes, "Folks are going to get a $15.00 to $25.00 raise in their weekly/biweekly paychecks. What about us on Social Security and who are disabled?"

WILLIS: Yes, well, Howard you're referring to the Making Work Pay tax credit. This is where employees see a little less money withheld from each paycheck for federal income tax, and that turns out to be an extra $10.00 to $20.00 on a weekly basis.

Now if you don't make an income, you don't qualify. However, the stimulus bill also provided a one-time - one-time payment of 250 bucks for folks who get Social Security. You should see the check in the mail by late May. And guess what? You don't have to do anything to get it.

HARRIS: Nice.

WILLIS: Which is nice. For more info on this though, go to ssa.gov. That's the Social Security website.

HARRIS: Gerri, time for one more?

WILLIS: Let's go.

HARRIS: All right, this is from Andrea who writes, "I have heard that I can get one free, really free, credit report annually from the three major bureaus. Can you give me the site. I am about to file for bankruptcy and have no money to spare."

WILLIS: Yes. No money to spare, great Web site for you, annualcreditreport.com. You can also call them 1-877-322-8228. And this is where you get a free credit report once every 12 months from each of the nationwide consumer reporting agencies. This is Equifax, this is Experian, Transunion. Everybody should use this site, because you don't want to pay for this. Other sites offer you free credit report, but there are strings attached. They want you to buy something.

All right, if you have any other questions, please send them to me at gerri@CNN.com. We love, love, love hearing from you. And we answer those questions right here every Friday with Tony.

HARRIS: And once again, Gerri, would you tee up "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" this weekend for everyone at home?

WILLIS: Yes, we've got lots of topics. Of course, we're going to be talking about the first 100 days and what it means to you. But we've also got some fascinating info on what you need to know before you go shopping at the home improvement store. We'll also talk a little bit about, if you're talking about a job, what you need to know about privacy concerns. Lots of interesting stuff affects your bottom line.

"YOUR BOTTOM LINE." 9:30 a.m. Saturday.

You'll be joining us, right, Tony?

HARRIS: Absolutely. Gerri, can't wait to see the show. Have a great weekend will you, please?

WILLIS: You too. You too.

And looking outside your neighborhood for a job, one man did and now he is moving across the country. Just logon to CNNMoney.com for that story and other valuable information.

All right, want to show you some pictures just into the CNN NEWSROOM from just moments ago. We thought it was a great picture and wanted to show you. A bomber that sank during pilot training for World War II is being hauled out of Lake Michigan right now for the National World War II Museum.

Live pictures right now. Pretty good, huh? Yes, we saw this just a couple moments ago, and we wanted to share it with you.

When it is restored, the Douglas SBD Dauntless will replace the one now on display in New Orleans. So, just wanted to share that with you, going on right now.

And some unsettling numbers coming out of the United Nations regarding the civil war in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is the pearl drop island at the base of the Indian continent. The U.N. says nearly 6,500 civilians have been killed there since January 20th,14,000 injured. The U.N. secretary general wants to send a humanitarian relief team, but a report just hours ago says the Sri Lankan government is rejecting that.

CNN's Sara Sidner has more on the threats to civilians. And we want to caution you, some of the images may be disturbs.

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SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gut wrenching images of what war brings, age making no difference, young and old alike bear the scars. These pictures from a British-based Tamil organization.

And these pictures are from the Sri Lankan government. It says the video shows a desperate attempt by civilians to escape the war torn areas of the north.

Intense fighting has been going on for months as government forces make a final push in a 25-year civil war with separatist Tamil Tiger rebels. The images are mainly coming from two sources, the government itself and aid agencies with ties to the Tamil Tigers. The government is puts the full blame on the Tamil Tigers, accusing the rebels of holding the civilians hostage and using them as human shields.

Those with ties to the Tamil community say the government itself is causing the mass exodus because of heavy shelling in the area. Claims the government denies.

(on camera): Verifying information has been all but impossible because independent media organizations are being kept away from the war zone. Aid agencies outside the battle zones say, for days, tens of thousands of people are making the long grueling walk to what they hope is safety.

SARAH CROWE, SPOKESWOMAN, UNICEF, DELHI: Tens of thousands have left a sort of human avalanche in the past couple days, and they're escaping an unimaginable hell.

SIDNER (voice-over): UNICEF, which has aid workers in the country, say conditions in the overcrowded camps are difficult and more help is need.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We call on the government of Sri Lanka to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law, to take the steps necessary to save civilian lives, and to allow international monitors on the ground so that the U.N. can assist and monitor the treatment of civilians as they leave the conflict zone and to ensure that humanitarian relief gets through to civilians immediately.

SIDNER: The international community has called for an end to the fighting. The government says it's doing its part claiming that in just two days 60,000 civilians have fled to safety. It claims the end of the war is near and the clock is ticking down for the leader of the Tamil Tigers.

Meanwhile, the suffering of civilians continues as the fighting rages on.

Sara Sidner, CNN, New Delhi.

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HARRIS: Not wasting time getting out of harm's way with literally the shirt on your back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everything around us is just engulfed in flames, and we just got out. We took our dogs and got out.

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HARRIS: Boy, new pictures and information from South Carolina as wildfires rage along the coast.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RANDY WEBSTER, DIRECTOR, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, HORRY COUNTY: The tourists that are thinking of coming here this weekend for vacation, we should have no problems taking care of our guests and visitors that are going to come to Myrtle Beach and North Myrtle Beach and enjoy our beaches. I don't want to tell them to stay away. The chamber of commerce has issued a statement saying welcome. We can accommodate these folks and we're looking forward to doing that.

But this is going to be an ongoing operation. It's going to last -- we don't really know how long. We're not going to be able to look at this in two or three days and say it's over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Boy, so it's going to take some time, Rob, for the firefighters to get this under control. I just grabbed the latest wire on this. So there's at least one pretty vicious wildfire that continues to burn and continues to gobble up homes and businesses. And is this essentially an Horry County event at this point?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, pretty much. I mean there are some other hot spots, but it's pretty much one big fire that, you know, has spread to other smaller fires. You know how it works. These embers can fly around a quarter-half mile at times. And fire fighters last night, obviously, had their hands full. They did get a better handle on it yesterday and last night. We increased the humidity just a little bit, we knocked down the winds at least yesterday. That may not be the case today. But dramatic pictures , nonetheless, happening.

So the numbers work out like this. Almost 20,000 - 19,600 acres burned so far. County-wide in Horry County, they're officially 40 percent containment, but around the Myrtle Beach area or North Myrtle Beach, they claim to have that particular part of the fire 75 percent containment. So that's good news there.

Still have 2,500 people that are evacuated, about 400 of which are in shelters. A lot of them very frustrated. They were frustrated at that news conference. Some of them trying to help fire fighters in trying to protect their homes. But they want to go back, that's a natural human reaction, but they're not being allowed. A lot of them are not being allowed to go back until officials are sure about the safety of the area there. Seventy homes completely destroyed at this point, and another hundred or so have been damaged. So certainly a nasty situation happening there.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MARCIANO: All right, Tony, I heard your little rant yesterday...

HARRIS: Yes, yes.

MARCIANO: ... when you popped your blog open. So in sympathy of you, I've been getting some heat as well to do a little twittering, so I've opened up a Twitter account.

HARRIS: Really? Why'd you give in, man, come on.

MARCIANO: It's at CNN Rob Marciano. I have only done two or three. I can promise you, I'm not going to be tweeting on the weekends. There's going to be a strict "No Weekend Tweeting" policy in my house. But I'm going to use it to, you know, give our viewers some information. And it's great - it's a great aggregator for us. We get a lot of information from different agencies and resources out across the country.

HARRIS: So there is some value to this.

MARCIANO: There is some value on the users end. Tweet me, baby, come on. Follow me. I'll follow you.

HARRIS: I feel like we caved like lawn chairs on this.

MARCIANO: Pays the bills, man.

HARRIS: OK, so as Rob mentioned, he's about to start tweeting, and our program is blogging and in fact I'm going to class today, blog school. I was told to pack a lunch. Pretty funny group I work with here.

So hundreds of you sent notes yesterday as we launched, and that was good. That was kind of you. Thank you.

Another blog site page, blog portal, black hole, whatever it is, had some fun with my reluctance to join the networking revolution. So you know what? I think I'm going to blog about those fools today. Yes. Game on.

So here we go. Day two, and this story lit a real fire under our morning meeting. Women leaving men for women. Now, the first response from a newlywed on our team was, can you blame them? What? Now, I am not trying to stir up a new fight in the battle of the sexes. I just want you to post your comments on the story at CNN.com/newsroom, and when you get there just click on my mug and have some fun, all right?

While you're there, check out the pages of my colleagues, CNN.com/newsroom. There you go.

The picture-perfect weather for New Orleans this weekend, Jazz Fest. Opening day, Sean Callebs is there, and he's next.

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HARRIS: Joe Cocker, he is performing tonight at this year's New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Jazz Festival. And most folks call it Jazz Fest. Stepping off this hour, 12 stages in all. What is your pleasure? Blues, maybe? R&B? Gospel? Cajun? Rock? Rap? Country? Bluegrass? How about jazz? It is all there and more. So is our Sean Callebs.

Sean, if you would, leave a light on me - leave a light on down there for me, my friend. I may still make it.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, oh man. It's going to be a great couple of weeks here. Huge crowd expected. Without question, tourists and the money that they bring to this area, the economic linchpin for New Orleans.

Now, in this sour economy, there may be concerns that maybe Jazz Fest isn't going to be everything it has been in past years. Well, forget about that. The weather, absolutely perfect out here. The gates are going to open in just about 15 minutes. Behind me, you see just a smattering, a smattering of people inside the grass field in front of the big stage here, the Acura stage. But it's going to kick up in half an hour. The first band, Mem Shannon and the Membership open up this year's Jazz Fest here on the big stage. But we talked about, boy, they have just about everything anybody wants.

Want to talk about a handful of bulletin points. The reason that this event is so important to the economy here. Now, over the two weeks they expect as many as 400,000 people could come through here. So certainly that's going to be an economic boost for the city as well.

And in terms of where do they come from? Well, 40 percent of these tourists are from outside of this state. New York is the number one market, California at number two, and 10 percent, Tony, 10 percent come from overseas. So that's also great. And those numbers are expected to hold about stable. We talked to a number of hotels, they say they are sold out a year in advance. Great news.

And 88 percent of the bands, meanwhile, Tony, are from New Orleans or Louisiana. So they call it Jazz at Heritage Fest because it does celebrate all of the wonderful music and wonderful food -- got to tell you about that, that this area has.

Another thing, it ends at dusk. So the good thing is, once people leave here, they go into the city and spend a lot of money.

Listen to what Quint Davis, the organizer of Jazz Fest has to say about that.

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QUINT DAVIS, PRODUCER & DIRECTOR, JAZZ FEST: The fact that we're a daytime event and the festival ends at 7:00, means everything to the local economy. Because it means you can come out to the whole festival and then go into town and go out to dinner at the restaurants, go out to dinner at the clubs. I mean, New Orleans during Jazz Fest, we kind of call it a funk principality.

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CALLEBS: I like that. A funk principality. Look at him. He has been putting this on 40 years. He doesn't have gray hair. I want that job.

HARRIS: I want that look. Hey, look, we are really rooting for that city to be sure. We are rooting for a big turnout for Jazz Fest. Sean, it's great to see you. Thank you, sir.

CALLEBS: Great to see you, thanks.

HARRIS: Coming up next hour, disturbing allegations of back-door dealings involving the treasury secretary and Bank of America.

Plus, when all else failed financially, a single mom finds her passion. Survival of the fittest in these tough times.

And locks of love, Latino style. A CNN en Espanol anchor donates her hair for a good cause. And she will join me live with her new look.

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HARRIS: General Motors has firmed up its planned summer shut down. Thirteen assembly plants will stop production in North America. GM's goal? One hundred ninety thousand fewer vehicles. The closures will be staggered and will run as long as ten weeks at some factories.

Some of the specific plants that will close, GM's Tonawanda engine plant in Buffalo, billed as the world's largest, will close for four to eight weeks. The plant makes V8 engines for Cadillacs and Corvettes, about 2,500 people work there.

GM's assembly plant at Spring Hill, Tennessee will close for five weeks. It builds Chevrolet Tavares SUV crossover; 3,200 workers are affected.

Coincidentally, the last SUV rolled off the assembly line at this GM plant in Janesville, Wisconsin. This factory will be closed permanently.

The GM plant in Arlington, Texas, will be down for nine weeks. It makes the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon. Reporter Joel Thomas from KTXA talked with workers there.

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CLIFTON ROZIER, GM WORKER: What I do when I can't pay my bills then? If I don't pay my bills, hey, I'll be standing out here with a cup. Hey, I need the money.

JOEL THOMAS, KTXA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rozier and his coworkers were already scheduled for a mandatory two-week shutdown of assembly lines. GM's announcement adds seven weeks to that layoff. The company says it needs to reduce production by about 190,000 cars in coming weeks because too many vehicles are sitting in dealer lots. Workers will receive state unemployment and some money from GM, but not full pay.

J.R. FLORES, UAW LOCAL 276: It will probably get us to about 80 percent of what we was bringing in. But that's 20 percent cut in your pay that you're bringing in, but your mortgage is still 100 percent due. Your car payments. Still got to put food on the table and you know, get the kids through school.

THOMAS: Workers at local companies like Leer that makes car seats for GM, will also be impacted. Local suppliers declined comment, but did say if GM makes cuts, they'll make cuts, too. They did not elaborate on how many hundreds of jobs would be affected.

GM still faces a looking bond payment of $1 billion and possible bankruptcy. That could mean workers who have given their careers to GM may not see the retirement they worked toward for decades.

STEVE BATES, RETIRING WORKER, GM: It's hard to think that after 30 years of working for them, you may not go home with what you signed on to get when you started out. But the fact is that's the ball game.

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HARRIS: That GM assembly plant employees about 2,400 people in the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex.