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Bill Clinton in North Korea; Americans Held in Iran, Australia Terror Plot Foiled; Dow Hits Nine-Month High; Finding the Next Guantanamo; Uniform Prices in Health Care; Stock Rally on Hold; U.S. Army Aims Higher for Recruits; Bill Clinton Delivers Message to Kim Jong Il; The Fight Back Against Bank Fees; Taliban Trained Children to Kill

Aired August 04, 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: Surprise. Former President Bill Clinton is in North Korea, and he's on a mission, too. He's trying to free two American journalists. And he's getting a pretty warm welcome. So, our foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty will be taking a closer look at that.

So, keeping a very close eye on Iran today because there are new accusations and new questions about the three Americans that we told you about that are under arrest there. We'll be getting to that story shortly.

And in Pakistan, young boys stolen from their homes, brainwashed and then trained to kill.

Good morning, everybody, I'm Heidi Collins. Today is Tuesday, August 4th, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

A rare mission inside North Korea for a former American president. Bill Clinton arrived there early this morning. He's there trying to gain the release of two jailed journalists. They were sentenced to 12 years in a very secretive trial.

CNN's foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty is joining us now live from Washington with the very latest on this.

Jill, good morning.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Heidi. You know it's high profile, it's -- you could say high stakes, as well, although you'd have to think that the former president setting off for Pyongyang really did expect that he would come back not empty handed.

But it's -- can be unpredictable in the North. So what do we have. Two journalists them, both of them, Laura Ling and Eunice Lee. They were shooting on the border of China and North Korea, arrested March 17th, and then in June sentenced to 12 years of hard labor.

So the mission for President Clinton is try to secure their release. The statement that was released just in the past couple of hours by the White House spokesman Robert Gibbs says, "While this solely private mission to secure the release of two Americans is on the ground, we will have no comment. We do not want to jeopardize the success of former President Clinton's mission."

And note the wording there, "solely private mission." They are saying that this is not a negotiating representative of the United States.

And it's important to note that because as this is going on, you have the other plot, which is the standoff over North Korea's nuclear program.

COLLINS: Right.

DOUGHERTY: So, we're trying to keep these separate.

COLLINS: Yes, and absolutely. Interesting, as well, of course, who his wife is. I mean you have the secretary of state, Mrs. Clinton.

DOUGHERTY: Yes. Amazing number of threads that are interconnected and of course, just about a week or two ago, you had the North Koreans making very, very personal comments about the secretary, insulting her really as not so bright person who looked like a pensioner.

So there are a lot of threats. But as I said, they're trying to keep them separate.

COLLINS: Yes.

DOUGHERTY: Because this is very, very sensitive, and the most important thing, of course, is to get the two Americans out.

COLLINS: Yes, very good. All right. Well, Jill Dougherty, we sure do appreciate that. Keep us updated please, if you would.

In fact, here's a look at how we got here. Laura Ling and Euna Lee were arrested March 17th after allegedly crossing into North Korea from China. They were working on a report for Current TV on human trafficking along the border.

In June, the pair were convicted for illegally -- illegal entry, that is, and for, quote, "hostile act." In a closed trial, they were sentenced to 12 years hard labor.

We are also keeping an eye on three Americans now being held in Iran. This morning, Iran confirms their arrest and accused the west of using their case as propaganda. A newscaster on state television cast down on the American claims they were hiking in Iraq and strayed across the unmarked border.

So, who are these Americans? And why were they in such a volatile area?

CNN's Dan Simon has a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Shane Bauer, seen here on his personal Web site, graduated with honors two years ago from UC Berkeley with a degree in Peace and Conflict Studies.

SANDY CLOSE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NEW AMERICAN MEDIA: All of us who know Shane are sitting on the edges of our chairs.

SIMON: Sandy Close knows Bauer from his work as a freelance journalist. He takes photos and writes articles on Middle Eastern issues. She says Bauer was fluent in Arabic and left the San Francisco Bay Area last year for Syria.

Last week, she says he pitched a story on elections and Iraqi Kurdistan. That's apparently why he traveled to that section of Iraq before allegedly crossing into Iran with two others.

CLOSE: I think this is a very experienced traveler, a backpack kind of traveler, not somebody who would go to the Ritz Carlton, somebody who would go to the hostile, who would operate on a shoestring as many freelancers do.

SIMON: She says Bauer was known to be dating Sarah Shourd, also a Berkeley graduate and freelance writer. Writing on the Web site, Brave New Traveler, she described herself as a teacher, activist, writer from California currently based in the Middle East. It says she loves fresh broccoli, Sabatistas, and anyone who can change her mind.

The third detained hiker, Berkeley grad, Joshua Fattal, grew up in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, also known for his love of travel and learning.

CHRIS FORAKER, FRIEND OF JOSH FATTAL: Fiercely intellectual. Voracious reader, and Josh and I would have conversations like no one else.

SIMON: The fourth hiker, Shon Meckfessel, stayed behind in Iraq, His grandmother says he was sick.

Three Americans known for their sense of adventure, now getting more than they bargained for. Because the U.S. has no formal relations in Iran, Swiss diplomats are now trying to secure their release.

Dan Simon, CNN, San Francisco.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Australia's federal police say they foiled an alleged terrorist attack. The target, a military base. Four suspects were arrested in early morning raids in Melbourne, and another man in custody is being questioned. Police say if the alleged plot had been carried out, it would have been the most serious terrorist attack on Australian soil.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DEP. CHIEF COMM. TONY NEGUS, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE: The policemen alleged that the men who were planning to carry out the suicide terrorist attack on a defensive establishment within Australia involving an armed assault with automatic weapons. Details of the planning indicated the alleged offenders were prepared to inflict a sustained attack on military personnel until they themselves were killed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Police say the suspects are all Australian nationals with ties to an al Qaeda group in Somalia.

This hour in Raleigh, North Carolina, seven terrorism suspects are due in federal court. Last week the men were charged with plotting to kidnap, maim, and kill people in a foreign country.

Federal investigators say some of the men traveled to Israel and Pakistan, among other countries, to plot their, quote, "violent jihad." An eighth suspect is still being looked for.

The debate starts today in the Senate over President Obama's Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor. She's expected to win approval by the full Senate despite vocal opposition from several Republicans. The latest is Arizona senator, John McCain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: An individual who does not appreciate the common sense limitations on judicial power in our democratic system of government ultimately lacks a key qualification for a lifetime appointment to the bench. For this reason and no other, I'm unable to support Judge Sotomayor's nomination.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: McCain joins fellow Arizona senator John Kyle in opposing Sotomayor, both Texas Republican senators are also on the record saying they will vote no, but as many as six Republicans say they'll break with the party and support Sotomayor.

President Obama turning 48 years old today. But it's a working birthday, at 11:05 Eastern, this morning he'll meet with the National Commander of the American Legion. Then at noon, he's welcoming Senate Democrats for a White House lunch.

They're going to be talking a lot about the president's birthday wishes like health care reform and more funding for the Cash for Clunkers program. Then later, the president will meet with Vice President Joe Biden in the oval office.

Yesterday, in fact, we asked for your thoughts on President Obama's drop in the ratings, here are a few of them. Julie wrote this to us. "I do not know if I can rate the job of the presidency. It is one of the toughest jobs in the world. I will say, however, that I am very disappointed by the stimulus plan." And then Marsha tells us this, "The president is trying to do exactly what he promised. His lower ratings are the result of the gullibility of the American public. They listen to commentator and TV ads instead of getting the facts."

We also heard from many of you through our new "Hotline to Heidi." Let's go ahead and take a listen to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think your president's ability to run the country is below his ability to throw a baseball.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think President Obama is doing great for the country. The Republicans are trying to pull him down with their propaganda. False propaganda.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't wait until they get a bumper sticker that says don't blame me, I voted for McCain.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our president is doing a fantastic job considering what he was -- the hand that he was dealt and I pray you all have a little more patience.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: So thanks very much, everybody, for your comments. You can always send those to us at CNN.com/heidi or call the "Hotline to Heidi" number.

President Obama marking his 200th day in office this week, in fact. And now is your chance to grade the job he's done so far by logging on to CNN.com/reportcard. See the results from CNN's "National Report Card" Thursday night 8:00 Eastern.

The opening bell on Wall Street, less than half an hour away. August is off to a pretty promising start with the Dow hitting a nine- month high yesterday. Did you know that? We'll get the trend to continue today, hopefully we can make that happen.

Let's go to Christine Romans now standing by live in New York. Can you make that happen, Christine?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I can make that happy, Heidi. And unfortunately, we're both wearing red. So I don't know what's that going to say about the stock market today.

COLLINS: Color red. Come on.

ROMANS: I know. But look, listen, it could take a breather very easily.

COLLINS: Yes.

ROMANS: Because it's such a big run here. And some of you out there with stock market investment still, you might be scratching your head wondering, wait a second, all of a sudden, I'm starting to pay attention to this and the stock market is up. It is up.

You're clawing back some of your losses. Last year was a pretty devastating, financially devastating year for millions of Americans and in this spring has been a rally here that's going to claw back some of those losses.

So let's take a look at the S&P 500. It's probably going to start today above 1,000. It closed there yesterday for the first time since November. You can see that on the far right of your screen. Now move backward, that 676, that was in March. That was a 12-year low. Think of that. A 12-year low.

And then move further to the left of your screen and you can see just what a wild ride this has been. But that rebound from the bottom 676 to 1002 is about a 48 percent run for the S&P 500. It was the best July that we've seen, I think, since 1997. So you're putting together some pretty significant stock market gains here.

Again, clawing back from your losses, but you've got a long way to go to get back to where you were before these things started.

COLLINS: Exactly.

ROMANS: So the question, I guess, Heidi, is why is this happening? Manufacturing surveying showing a little bit of signs of life. Housing market, still deeply depressed but some signs of life in terms of sales and some sales of very depressed and foreclosed homes, earnings, construction numbers, every now and then there's a little clue that tells us that maybe we're not in a free fall anymore, but someone has pulled the chute or the chute has been pulled and you're floating down instead of, like, plummeting down to earth.

COLLINS: Yes.

ROMANS: That's the way one economist explained it to me.

COLLINS: I just want to know that my chute's been packed correctly, though.

ROMANS: That's true. And I asked one economist, I said so, but you still don't know if you're going to break your bones if you land on the ground. He's like, oh you already broke your bones.

(LAUGHTER)

COLLINS: Wow.

ROMANS: You know? But we are floating down.

COLLINS: Perfect.

ROMANS: And I think that's important for everyone to realize.

COLLINS: Yes. Absolutely.

ROMANS: That when there is a recovery, there are many people, Heidi, who are saying that the recovery could feel pretty grim for most of us for sometime. You still have foreclosures, you still have a jobless situation, but if you look in your 401(k) statement, you're going to see clawing back from some of those losses, not all of them, a long way to go, but clawing back from some of those losses.

COLLINS: Yes. Jobless report coming up later this week, too. Right?

ROMANS: Yes. They're looking for about 9.6 percent on that, a little bit of an increase in the unemployment rate.

COLLINS: Yes.

ROMANS: But most economists tell me it'll keep rising from there.

COLLINS: All right. Christine Romans, thank you.

ROMANS: You're welcome.

COLLINS: Terror suspects in America's heartland. It could happen if people at Guantanamo Bay are relocated there. We'll take a closer look at two options.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Also in America's heartland, some severe weather expected to break out, already doing so, actually. This morning, we'll talk about where that's headed. Plus a little bit of action in the tropics.

The CNN NEWSROOM with Heidi Collins is coming right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: As you know, President Obama vowed to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, but what about the detainees?

CNN's Jeanne Meserve says one possibility is to house them and try them under one roof.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The possibility that Guantanamo detainees might be headed for the military prison at Fort Leavenworth has Kansas officials in an uproar.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Transferring terror suspects here places a bulls' eye on this community.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a bad idea on an artificial "hurry-up timeline.

MESERVE: Administration officials say Fort Leavenworth and the maximum security prison in Standish, Michigan are being considered as possible multi-purpose destinations for detainees that could contain courtrooms for both federal criminal trials and military commissions and house in one place detainees now being sorted into three groups. Those being held for trial, those being indefinitely detained, and those cleared for release, but without a country to take them.

In Standish, Michigan, where the unemployment rate stands at 24 percent, the maximum security prison is slated for closure. Some local officials support using it as a detainee facility to preserve jobs.

But Michigan congressman Peter Hoekstra disagrees saying turning Michigan into a terrorist penal colony is not the way to improve the economic situation.

For now the White House is dodging the argument.

GIBBS: Well, I don't know to the degree to which they've gotten into specifics sighting and certainly no final decisions of any sort have been made.

MESERVE (on camera): Housing and trying most of the detainees at one location could reduce costs and avoid the risk of moving suspects for trial. On the other hand, moving prosecutors and judges and forming a jury pool could be a challenge, but probably nowhere near the challenge of overcoming local opposition.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: We've got some severe weather to talk about. Rob Marciano joining us now. I guess moving towards St. Louis or away now from St. Louis?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Yes. OK. Very good, Rob, thank you.

MARCIANO: You got it.

COLLINS: Health care reform. You have questions, Dr. Sanjay Gupta has answers, his insights coming up. "The Insider."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Health care reforms, how would changes made in Washington affect you? You want straight answers, that's what we've been hearing anyway. And chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here now to deliver them. So great. You have all the answers.

(LAUGHTER)

Sanjay gets off easily....

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: A lot of pressure.

COLLINS: I know. There's so much ground to cover. With all of this, because there are still so many questions, obviously. In fact, here's today's question. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CALLER: Hi, my name's Cindy and I'm calling from Covington, Georgia. Dr. Gupta, my question is, why doesn't the government make mandatory prices for doctors and their services?

That's the problem. They charge outrageous prices and vary from place to place. Will that change in the new plan?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUPTA: It's a great question. First of all, you know, Cindy, you're absolutely right. The sort of varied pricing across the country. You can have an operation, for example, in one state cost $6,000, $17,000 in another state for the exact same operation and that's under Medicare.

So, there isn't a lot of consistency already. What we're hearing are a couple of details, Heidi. One is that, there probably would be a cap on all out of pocket expenses, co-pays, deductibles, trying to keep those costs down.

And also preventive care would be fully covered out of these bills that are coming out of committees at this point. But again, the details just aren't nailed down. People talk a lot about this public option, and I think it's worth pointing out.

COLLINS: Yes.

GUPTA: In respect to Cindy's question, this idea of this is a government-run plan out there that people may be able to buy into if they qualify and they have certain prices they set, that's going to influence what private insurance companies reimburse, as well, you have one that's competing against the other.

COLLINS: Yes.

GUPTA: And they have a couple of specifics when it comes to how they're going to set those prices with respect to Medicare. No payment rates lower than Medicare and no rates higher than the average rate of all plans in this public/private exchange that we're talking about.

So, I think the best way of characterizing this, Cindy and Heidi, is that there's not going to be set pricing but there might be a lot of influence on pricing overall because of what's happening with this potential public option.

COLLINS: Yes. Got it. Well, devil's advocate here now. I mean, how is this proposal being received exactly? Because a lot of critics are saying that the private company, as you well know won't be able to compete against the government plan.

You'll have this massive whopper of a plan and a bunch of little guys. Right? GUPTA: That's exactly what they're saying, and they're saying look if have a public option out there, that is sort of on the backs of taxpayer dollars, it's going to be able to unfairly compete against private insurance companies and maybe eventually crowd them out.

There's a couple of things worth pointing out when it comes to that. One is that not everyone is going to be able to buy into the public options, you have to qualify to do that. A couple of criteria, one is that your premiums have to be greater than 11 or 12 percent of your income.

So if you're someone who's making $100,000 for example unless your healthcare insurance is costing $11,000 or $12,000 a year, you probably won't qualify for the public option. So not everyone's going to be able to get in. And you can't have access in any other way, through a spouse or some other person upon whom you're dependent.

So -- it's not -- it may not be quite the sort of flood of people, Heidi, from the private sector to this public option. But who knows?

You know, Heidi, let's see. It's August 4th today, we'll talk in a couple of weeks again and this may all change, as well. So this is how things seem to stand now.

COLLINS: OK. Well, we appreciate you being here as the insider, definitely, I know you're getting a lot of calls and questions.

GUPTA: Yes. We read about it all the time. So...

COLLINS: Yes, very good.

GUPTA: ... glad we could bring it to you.

COLLINS: Thank you, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, our senior medical correspondent sure to appreciate that.

Meanwhile need to get this out to you ASAP. Some breaking news that are hearing now. We've been reporting that. Former President Bill Clinton is in North Korea. We are just learning this morning, we are also now learning and here is a brand new part of this that he has delivered, President Obama's message, to North Korea's Kim Jong-Il.

Again that message has been delivered whatever it is to North Korea president Kim Jong-Il. Of course we are talking about President Bill Clinton's mission to help in the situation of Laura Ling and Euna Lee, the two American journalists that have been taken into custody if you will.

They were charged with going over the North Korean border from China. This happened in March. They have since been sentenced to 12 years of hard labor. It was a very secretive trial so there are still obviously a lot of questions coming from American, of course, the women's family.

So once again, the newest information that we have is President Clinton, former president Bill Clinton, has in fact delivered the message of President Obama to Kim Jong-Il of North Korea.

So we will continue to follow this story. We'll bring you any updates just as soon as get them right here in CNN.

The recent rally on Wall Street has pushed stocks above some threshold levels. The NASDAQ now topped 2,000 yesterday, the S&P 500 topped 1,000, and that hasn't happened since last fall.

Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange with a look at what to expect today. What do you think, Susan?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Expecting a little give-back and that's not surprising, Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, probably.

LISOVICZ: I mean, considering this summer's sizzler that we've been enjoying, and, you know, the mild fell-off that we're expecting. Is it too bad considering the threshold you that were talking about with the NASDAQ at 2,000, the S&P 500 at 1,000, these are -- these are levels we haven't seen since last autumn.

So basically the street's looking for more upbeat economic signs. That may not come until the top of the hour when we get a report on pending home sales. Sales are expected to rise in June for the fifth straight month. So that indeed is encouraging from the housing.

In the meantime, we've got another report about an hour ago showing our poor wallets taking another hit. Personal income tumbled 1/3 percentage, that's the biggest drop in four years, not surprisingly spending remains tight, spending rose slightly, but that's largely because we spent more in gasoline as prices went up.

Corporate news, we'll mention real quick, Pepsico buying it's two biggest bottlers. And Pepsi Bottling look for $8 billion the bottlers have rejected an earlier buyout offer.

Marvel Entertainment reporting profits. Down slightly from a year ago. But still better than the street expected. The company benefited from growth and its film production division primarily a strong "Ironman," DVD sales.

Marvel has a portfolio of more than 5,000 characters including Spider-man and X-Men. It also raised its earnings outlook for the year. And you know, ringing the opening bell...

COLLINS: I know.

(LAUGHTER)

LISOVICZ: You are? Tell us then.

COLLINS: Well, the G.I. Joe movie is coming out this Friday, right?

LISOVICZ: That's exactly right. And that's why Hasbro is, in fact, ringing the bell right now. The executives. The name of the movie, Heidi, I know you have two small boys. "GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra."

COLLINS: Let me tell you. I played with GI Joe when I was little. Barbie was like, whatever GI Joe, look, believe it. I have a friend in this movie, too. Carolina. We're looking forward to that -- to seeing it.

LISOVICZ: Well, you know, "GI Joe" for a whole new generation of viewers and children still out there and Hasbro's very glad that it is. I'm seeing -- I don't have Hasbro up there, but we're seeing a little bit of giveback in the first minute of trading.

COLLINS: OK. All right. Well, we'll keep our eye on it. Thank you, Susan Lisovicz.

LISOVICZ: You're welcome.

COLLINS: Appreciate that.

The U.S. Army looking for a few good men, some qualified women and a lot of future officers. Army leaders now aiming higher for recruits and raising the offer for those who are willing to sign up.

We'll get the details from CNN Pentagon Chris Lawrence now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The army needs officers. And it's launching its first-ever ad campaign to recruit them.

BRYAN SMART, STUDENT: Put a lot of thought into it you know. I'm not, you know, one to be a part of the army.

LAWRENCE: The goal -- change the minds of college students like these.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then I heard the commercials, and then I thought about it more but it still wasn't enough.

GEORGE DEWEY, MCCANN ERICKSON, NT: When they thought they were seeing just another army ad, they would shut it off immediately.

LAWRENCE: So ad agency McCann Erickson designed a new campaign targeting ambitious students and creative thinkers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are mentors, managers and decision makers.

LAWRENCE: Some feature civilian corporate executives with experience as officers.

DEWEY: We want to let people know that you don't have to stay in for 30 years and become a four-star general to achieve great things. LAWRENCE: The army has a goal of getting 90 percent of its enlisted soldiers with high school diplomas. It's missed that goal three years straight. And now the Pentagon is adding more than 20,000 soldiers next year, meaning more than ever the army needs highly qualified officers to lead them.

MAJ. GEN. ARTHUR BARTELL, U.S. ARMY CADET COMMAND: The environment is different today.

LAWRENCE: Major General Arthur Bartell says today's battlefield is so complex even junior officers are asked to make important decisions instantly.

BARTELL: We need leaders who have the ability to look at a problem, solve that problem in a time-constrained environment.

LAWRENCE (on camera): The army says it's not in crisis mode yet, but needs to do a better job of marketing its officer product the same way it learn to sell the benefits of the enlisted.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, The Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Former President Bill Clinton on a mission. He's in North Korea, and he has just delivered a message from President Obama.

Also, two brothers separated 70 years ago now getting to know each other for the first time over the Internet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Former President Bill Clinton face to face with North Korea's Kim Jong-il this morning. The two meeting to discuss two journalists -- American journalists being held in a North Korean prison. Mr. Clinton right now delivering a message from President Obama to the North Korean dictator.

CNN's John Vause has more now from Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN BEIJING CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The former U.S. president touched down in Pyongyang on board a private, unmarked jet and was warmly greeted by two senior government officials and a young girl with flowers. Expectations are growing that Mr. Clinton will meet one-on-one with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, a meeting which Mr. Clinton wanted to have back in 2000, but never happened.

MIKE CHINDY, PACIFIC COUNCIL ON INTERNATIONAL POLICY: For him, this is an important fulfilling of an unfulfilled mission, and for Kim Jong-il who wanted him to come when he was president, it would be the height of rudeness not to receive it.

VAUSE (voice-over): The turning point in all of this says analyst was when Washington dropped its demand for the journalist Laura Ling and Euna Lee to be released on humanitarian grounds instead saying they're hoping for amnesty.

HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: The two journalists and their families have expressed great remorse for this incident. And I think everyone is very sorry that it happened. What we hope for now is that these two young women would be granted amnesty through the North Korean system and be allowed to return home to their families as soon as possible.

VAUSE: Analysts say enlisting Bill Clinton as a high-level envoy is a sign that most of the ground work for a deal has already being done. In other words, you don't send a former U.S. president all the way to Pyongyang to come home empty handed.

CHINDY: I don't think Bill Clinton is going to sit down and engage in horse trading with the North Koreans over the terms under which these women are going to be freed.

VAUSE (on camera): It's hope the former president could be heading back to the United States with the two women in just a matter of days.

John Vause, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Nairobi, Kenya today. Her first stop on a seven-nation Africa trip. Besides Kenya, Clinton will address trouble spots with Somalia and Zimbabwe to the Dominican Republic of the Congo and Nigeria. In Kenya tomorrow, she will speak at an economic forum for U.S. and sub-Saharan trade. Clinton is expected to discuss the present commitment to making Africa a priority in U.S. foreign policy.

Rob Marciano joining us now again from the severe weather center. Keeping an eye on those storms, sort of in the Midwest there, right?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: OK. Wow, keep our eye on that, too. Sure do appreciate it. Rob Marciano, thank you.

MARCIANO: OK. See you later.

COLLINS: So, are you a distracted driver? Well, the Obama administration is taking on texting while driving. In fact, later this morning, transportation secretary Ray Lahood is expected to announce details of a summit to be held next month.

But we are blogging about it right now. We'd love it if you'd be able to log on to cnn.com/heidi, and go ahead and put your comments on here because we want to know if you were a member of this panel of experts that's going to be talking today. What would you have to say about it? Because there are some ideas out there, talking about even maybe banning the whole idea of texting while driving. There have been some studies that have been done. We've reported about them here as to, you know, how long you look down off the road while you're texting. I believe it was Virginia tech that did it, really interesting study on this, saying that the average length is something like five whole seconds. That's a length of a football field.

So, again, just want to know what you think about it. That is banning or not banning texting while you drive. CNN.com/heidi is where you blog or you can always give us a call to the hotline to Heidi. That number on your screen there, 877-742-5760.

The recession shows signs of easing, but you need to save money right now. Today's target, trimming those bank fees. It may be a little bit easier than you think.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Fees are a big money makers for banks, but that doesn't mean you have to pad their bottom line. Personal finance editor Gerri Willis joining us now on how you can save money by fighting back against big fees.

I love the sound of this, Gerri. You just call and tell them, I'm not paying?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Well, it's where you get your loans. You know, we've talk a lot about the perils of say payday loans. These are short-term cash loan security. Interest rates of 400 percent to 5,000 percent.

COLLINS: Oh.

WILLIS: Yes, right. Now there's a new payday-like loan that's being offered by some credit unions, and we really want you to know about this. According to the National Consumer Law Center, these payday loan alternatives offer effective interest rates. That's if you roll in the fees of 455 percent. Too much money.

Keep in mind that by law, federally chartered credit unions can't charge you more than 18 percent on loan. So our advice here if you're really strapped for cash and need money immediately, negotiate a payment plan with your lender, stay away from these short-term loans that just keeps you in debt.

COLLINS: Yes, yes, yes.

Well, you say there are fees for unemployment benefits too, right?

WILLIS: That's right. Instead of getting checks, paper checks for your unemployment benefits, now, prepaid cards are getting distributed in about 30 states, and fees on these cards for just accessing your money range from 40 cents to a high of $3 per transaction.

Now, even some banking services that are normally free like checking your account over the phone or not using your card, inactivity, that's costing you money, too. If you have one of these cards, make sure you read the fine print. And you can skip this altogether by choosing the direct deposit unemployment pay option over the prepaid card and have your money just directly deposited into your regular bank account. Find out if this option is available to you. It's far better than taking the prepaid card.

COLLINS: Yes, sure. Sounds like it.

What's being done about overdraft fees? Because some of these are just really exorbitant. It's kind of like blood from a turn up if you're trying to get money from people who are over drafting, right?

WILLIS: That's exactly right, Heidi. You know, overdraft fees, these are fees the bank charges if you don't have enough money in your account to cover a transaction and they pay that transaction. About 75 percent, 3/4 of U.S. banks automatically enroll people in these programs and then they charge you $35 to cover any overdraft. The fed is considering whether to crackdown on these things. It's triggered if you use a debit card forcing the banks to allow consumers to choose it, or to opt in or opt out of overdraft protection.

And Representative Carolyn Maloney, she's on the case, too. She's introduced legislation that would require you to be warned before you overdraw your account. In the meantime, make sure you have access to your checking account online so you can keep tabs on this and you don't get caught overdrawing your account. You should also link your savings and checking accounts together so you have some money to cover any overdrafts. But if you are not on guard, right now you're paying $35 a hit.

COLLINS: Yes. Well, I wonder what are they going to do? Give you a quick phone call or an e-mail or something to warn you?

WILLIS: Well, Maloney -- yes, wants some kind of way...

COLLINS: Out of New York, right?

WILLIS: Maloney wants some way to warn people ahead of time. So that they know that you're over drafting. That's the problem. You know, you go ahead, spend the money, you may not be aware you're over drafting. You could easily build up hundreds of dollars in fees that would be avoidable, perhaps, if you just knew what the problem was.

COLLINS: OK. Very good. Gerri Willis, thank you.

WILLIS: My pleasure.

COLLINS: Turning children into walking bombs. We're inside Pakistan with a group of boys who say they were kidnapped and trained to kill.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Children kidnapped, beaten and then brainwashed by the Taliban. International correspondent Stan Grant talks to a group of boys in Pakistan who say they are victims of a brutal recruiting program.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STAN GRANT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Look into the eyes of these boys. Pakistan's military says these are the lost souls of the Taliban's terror.

The boys tell me they were stolen from their families, abused, beaten and brainwashed by the Taliban.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The first day, they beat us. Then they made us exercise. They made us run. And told us you will wage jihad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): They told us that the army is against the Koran. It is against Islam. They said wage jihad against the.

GRANT: The Pakistan military gave CNN limited access to these boys. The army says they rescued them during heavy fighting with the Taliban in Pakistan's Swat Valley.

Their faces are covered, their identities protected because of the possibility of retribution. The youngest is only 13. We can't independently verify their stories, but doctors say they have no doubt about their trauma.

The boys themselves each told me how they were kidnapped by the Taliban.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I was coming from the shop to my house. I had some stuff with me. They said put your stuff in the car. They said should we drop you in the village or in the square? When we reached the village, I said I want to get off here, but they blindfolded me and put a hand on my mouth.

GRANT: Other boys say they were snatched working in the fields. In militant camps, they say they were being trained to be suicide bombers to do the Taliban's killing.

(on camera): Would you kill for God?

(voice-over): "Yes," he says.

In the right circumstances or the wrong circumstances, would they kill?

DR. FARIHA PERACHA, PSYCHIATRIST: They would kill them, two of them, wouldn't even feel it.

GRANT: They would kill them and they wouldn't feel it?

PERACHA: They probably wouldn't have an empathetic response to what has happened.

GRANT (on camera): These boys have been so badly damaged by this experience, psychiatrists say, it's difficult to know exactly how they are feeling. The doctors say some are psychotic, some psychopathic, and some pose a very real risk.

PERACHA: His statement with the army was that, if he had a suicide jacket, that he would have committed suicide, and he had a Kalashnikov, he would have fired.

GRANT: Dr. Fariha tells army chiefs they are just the tip of the iceberg. After talking to the boys, she believes there are possibly hundreds of others just like them.

Are the boys brainwashed?

PERACHA: Yes, of course they are. They are brainwashed against you and me.

GRANT: The army hopes the boys will one day be able to be rehabilitated and return to their families. But the doctor says they should be under close surveillance at least for the next decade.

PERACHA: These children except for two don't certainly give me any indication that they would be rehabilitated. So if they're going to gauge their future from the perspective of today or where they are, that future doesn't look very rosy, does it?

GRANT: But Dr. Fariha does not blame these boys. They are the innocent victims, she says. All they are left with, they tell me, are the voices in their heads, voices of the Taliban, commanding them to kill.

Stan Grant, CNN, Mingora, Pakistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: There's an awful lot going on this morning, that's for sure. CNN crews are in place to bring it all to you. We want to start this morning with our correspondent Jill Dougherty in the very latest on the situation in North Korea, Jill?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. Well, former President Bill Clinton is in the North Korean capital on a delicate, diplomatic mission. Will those two Korean-American journalists come home? I'll have that at the top of the hour.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange, where it's a double whammy for your wallet today. Not you're your stock is down, but a report shows personal income tumbled. Heidi, I'll put more of that in perspective in the next hour.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: And I'm Poppy Harlow in New York. First, Chrysler, then General Motors, now Detroit's public schools could be headed for bankruptcy. We are not kidding. It is an unprecedented move for a school system. We'll have more on that in the next hour.

Heidi?

COLLINS: Yes. It sure is. Look forward to it.

All right, guys, thanks so much for that. Also, we are staying very much on top of former President Bill Clinton being in North Korea. We'll get you the very latest in just a moment here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Quickly we want to get you the very latest on former President Bill Clinton in North Korea. Our Elaine Quijano is at the White House this morning because, Elaine, we are hearing more information about whether or not there was a message from President Obama that could actually been delivered to the leader of North Korea.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I just walked out of a gaggle just minutes ago with White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs in his office. When asked about that report, he said, that's not true.

COLLINS: Really?

QUIJANO: Did not elaborate. And we should tell you, of course, reporters went to great lengths, including myself, to try and press him for some clarity on the statement that the White House released earlier today, talking about how this is a solely private mission by former President Bill Clinton.

He said look, guys, obviously, he understands the interests. But he said that he will not have anything to add to this statement for a while. He said, you know, this is the extent of it. It's a little sensitive. Obviously, we all know that. But he said that we will have more to say on this hopefully later on. But right now, Robert Gibbs obviously being very cautious, but telling us again about that report of a message being delivered from former President Clinton to the North Koreans. Robert Gibbs saying flatly, that's not true.

Heidi?

COLLINS: Elaine, is there any way to know, of whether of not, in fact, former President Bill Clinton has, indeed, met with Kim Jong-il.

QUIJANO: Yes. We don't know that. The White House has not confirmed anything regarding any of those reports. But, again, obviously, we're hoping that perhaps later on today based on what Robert Gibbs has told us that we will get a little bit more information. I asked him. I said, look, when all is said and done, if things are resolved the way the U.S. wants to see it, and those journalists are, in fact, freed, could we learn more perhaps about the president's involvement and that's when he said, you know, we'll have more to say hopefully later on.

So, really, not a lot of information, but significant obviously here. Not sure how helpful the statements from the North Koreans are going to be if, in fact, that is not true.

COLLINS: Understood, yes.

QUIJANO: What that might do to things, but Robert Gibbs saying flatly denying that report out of North Korea today.

COLLINS: Yes. And important to remind everybody, Elaine, one of the reasons why this is so sensitive, obviously, in the very beginning of all of this when it happened in March, when Laura Ling and Euna Lee crossed the border according to the North Koreans and were taken.

The White House was saying, you know, we need to be very, very careful here, because we have the issue of the journalist and then we have the issue of nuclear disarmament.

QUIJANO: That's exactly right. And that's something that should be repeated. That obviously this is a delicate balancing act here for the Obama administration.

On the one hand all along, you're absolutely right. What the administration has said is that, look, this is a separate humanitarian issue. It is separate from the nuclear issue. At the same time, we have also seen North Korea since then fire off ballistic missiles. We saw nuclear test, and most recently we saw that really fascinating rhetoric between Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the North Koreans. All kinds of names, really, being thrown out there.

COLLINS: Yes.

QUIJANO: So, it's just been an interesting dynamic to watch here, when you've got not Secretary Clinton, but her husband now going on what the White House is calling a solely private mission.

Heidi?

COLLINS: Yes, understood. All right. Our Elaine Quijano, really, really working this story. We sure do appreciate you pressing Robert Gibbs on all of this. Thanks so much, Elaine. Let us know, if anything else, develops there.