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President Obama's Back-to-School Speech; Four U.S. Troops Killed in Afghanistan by IEDs; On the Taliban Highway

Aired September 08, 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: It is Tuesday, September 8th. And here are the faces of the stories driving the headlines today in the CNN NEWSROOM.

President Obama: his welcome back message to the nation's schoolchildren. Whipped up conservative critics, judge for yourself. We've got the address live.

The American soldier: Eight U.S. troops lose their lives today in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

And teen tennis player Melanie Oudin. We told you to look out for this kid last week. Earlier than anyone, she is on fire at the U.S. Open. Is she a threat to Serena Williams?

Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris.

You are in the CNN NEWSROOM, where we quickly get you caught up on the day's hot headlines, then take the time to break down the big issues to find out why they really matter.

Leading the way this hour, no politics, just a pep talk for President Obama when he delivers his back-to-school speech next hour. The address will be available to students around the country on television and the Web.

Some conservatives blasted the speech as an attempt by the president to promote his political agenda, but the White House released the text in advance. One of the most vocal critics calls it a good speech. The president will deliver his message from Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia.

Congress gets back to work on health care today after an August filled with clatter and commotion. Democratic leaders go to the White House this afternoon to talk strategy with President Obama.

He is addressing a joint session of Congress tomorrow night. A leading senator in the debate, Democrat Max Baucus, is circulating a reform plan. He is one of the Gang of 6 trying to write a compromise health care bill. Baucus' bill does not include a government option; it pays for expanded coverage with attacks on health insurance companies.

Senator Charles Grassley, a Republican member of the Gang of 6, talked to CNN this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHARLES GRASSLEY (R), IOWA: I've been working the last three or four months with Senator Baucus one-on-one, and then later with a group of 6 to come up with a bipartisan plan. And it seems to me that the bipartisan approach is the best.

And if you look at the president during his campaign, he wanted to be post-partisan. And it seems to me like those statements yesterday were very partisan contrary to what he promised in the last campaign.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Well, even if the president gets a compromise in the Senate, House leaders are still insisting on a bill that includes a government option.

Eight U.S. troops killed today at war. The military says four died in Iraq when roadside bombs struck their patrols in two separate incidents. The other four were killed in the other war, Afghanistan, during fighting in Kunar Province. It's what the military calls an ongoing event.

Also in Afghanistan, new fallout from fraud allegations in the presidential vote. The Elections Commission now ordering a partial recount of ballots from several polling centers. This comes after the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan urged President Hamid Karzai to allow a vote fraud investigation. Officials report getting more than 2,000 complaints.

A little after 8:00 in the San Francisco Bay area, the peak of rush hour. The Bay Bridge, the major artery linking San Francisco and Oakland, reopened about an hour ago.

Oh, we were hoping for live pictures. We don't have them?

No. Not yet.

Crews got a two-inch crack fixed earlier than they predicted, heading off potential rush-hour gridlock.

President Obama will urge schoolchildren to take responsibility for their education during his hotly-debated speech next hour. Supporters say it's an appropriate message, but some critics say it shouldn't come from the president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it should be up to the parents' decision if they want their children to hear that or not.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He only has a good message. Is it all about politics? No, not necessarily. It's just about being a good person and doing the right thing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's good. They need that. You see, if the president speaks up, that will make kids look up to him and want to go to school.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I think that's a good idea, to talk to the children, because they need to know that it is their responsibility, because apparently a lot of the parents are not taking the responsibility.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK.

White House Correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joining us live.

Suzanne, so much pre-speech analysis. Hey, what will the president say in less than an hour?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, we've got a copy of the speech. Everybody can take a quick look at it, but essentially, it really is just calling for students to take responsibility for their own school work and to make their parents proud, their school proud, and their country proud.

He talks about not to be afraid of failure, not to be afraid to ask people for help, or even to make mistakes. He uses his own example, his own childhood, saying there were times his own mother had to get tough on him from time to time, but that he turned things around, and that essentially anybody can do that in this country. It is very much a message that doesn't seem political in any way that he's addressing to the children.

The controversy in part came from a lesson plan that was suggested by the Education Department, for children to write an essay about how to help the president. It's -- quite frankly, it's a message that previous presidents have also addressed towards children, but there was some controversy around that, and people said -- some people said he was indoctrinating the children.

One person who was leading the charge, Jim Greer, he's with the Republican Party in Florida, saying that it was a socialist ideology. Now, I had a chance to speak with Greer about this, and I really pressed him on this point, whether or not he saw anything in this speech that was anything close to what he was claiming.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIM GREER, REPUBLICAN PARTY OF FLORIDA: After reading the text, seeing the Department of Education have told teachers they are not to lead students in the direction that they would have a week ago, my kids will be watching the president's speech, as all -- I hope all kids will.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So, Tony, you see he's backed down from his criticism from before. He says he still had objections about the lesson plans, but the White House has withdrawn the suggested lesson plans. So, they're also saying as well that they don't believe this guy has any credibility here. They say the speech is not what he thought.

Greer also said, well, he thought perhaps this is a different speech, it's not the original one. The White House has come back this morning -- I've spoken with several officials -- saying that's not true, that it was largely written a couple of weeks ago.

So, they say he has no credibility. The president is going to go forward to the nation's children and essentially try to give them a pep talk, something that's inspirational. And interestingly enough, Tony, it will be Greer's own four children who will also be sitting in school listening to this speech.

HARRIS: My goodness.

One more quick one here, Suzanne. Cabinet secretaries out there today giving their own version of a pep talk to students.

MALVEAUX: Well, certainly. I mean, this is something that the White House decided, that they were going to broaden their base here, broaden their scope. They want to talk to kids on their first day of school.

You've got secretaries from the State Department, Energy, Commerce, Housing, you name it. They're all going to be out there in elementary, high school, middle schools, essentially to give the same message, to encourage kids to do well in school. And this is something that they do from time to time when they want to underscore the president's message. They're doing that again today -- Tony.

HARRIS: Suzanne Malveaux at the White House.

Suzanne, good to see you. Thank you.

Again, President Obama's pep talk to students today is live at noon, and you can also see it live online at CNN.com/live.

And I want to know what you think of the president's speech. Everyone else has had their say at this point. What do you think about it?

Watch it for yourself, watch it with us here at CNN, and give us your comments on my blog at CNN.com/Tony.

If there is a road to success or failure in securing Afghanistan, this could be it. We will take you along the Taliban highway.

But first, a look at the latest numbers from Wall Street. The Dow, as you can see, up 48 points.

We're back in a moment.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Four more U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan, plus a suicide bomber strikes. At the military's entrance to Kabul's main airport, at least two people killed there.

Our Atia Abawi joining us live now from the Afghan capital of Kabul.

And Atia, good to see you.

First of all, let's focus on the troops killed. What do we know? What's the latest?

ATIA ABAWI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we have very little information at the moment, Tony. We do know that four U.S. soldiers were killed in Kunar Province. Kunar borders Pakistan.

We were actually just in Kunar Province on Friday with the commander of ISAF forces, General Stanley McChrystal, as well as U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry. They were showing us this new initiative from the Obama administration to mix military and the civilian effort together. And although we saw little steps, when I spoke to an Afghan police officer there he told me that we may be safe in the area that we were standing at the moment, but just 10 kilometers away from us was a village that was controlled by the Taliban.

So, yes, small steps being made, but a very long way to go. And we figured that out today, when four U.S. soldiers died in the same province -- Tony.

HARRIS: Well, and Atia, tell us what you know about this attack at the main entrance of Kabul's main airport.

ABAWI: Absolutely. Kabul Airport is actually a mixture -- a civilian airport, as well as a military airport. When we talked to the minister of Interior, he told us that a suicide bomber went to the eastern gate, which is the military gate, where he then exploded, killing two Afghan civilians, injuring others. ISAF, the International Security Assistance Force, telling us that they did not have deaths, but they did have some minor injuries. And among those injuries were both U.S. and Belgian troops.

HARRIS: And one final thought here on the election front. What are you following here? We're hearing that the Elections Commission is now ordering a partial recount of ballots from actually several polling centers.

ABAWI: Well, if you want a political soap opera, you come to Afghanistan for the elections right now, because you have some drama at the moment.

The Electoral Complaints Commission stating that there was fraud involved and they want the independent Elections Commission, who have been releasing the results at the moment, to actually investigate many polls that they say have had fraudulent votes. But the IEC today, in a press conference, still releasing results, stating that they took that order from the ECC back to them, stating there was a discrepancy between the English and the Dari version, and they're going to continue to release results until they have a proper order -- Tony.

HARRIS: Wow. OK.

Atia Abawi for us from the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Atia, good to see you.

The deaths of four more American troops in Afghanistan, the latest painful reminders of Taliban resurgence. Our Michael Ware looks at a key symbol of that resistance, the Taliban takeover of a vital road from Kabul to Kandahar.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Afghanistan is hurting badly. Eight years after America's war began here, the combat continues with the death tolls among coalition soldiers, Afghan security forces and civilians ever rising. Politically, it's little better, with the nation in limbo.

The final results of last month's presidential election have been stalled by a storm of corruption allegations. But it wasn't meant to be this way.

Having turned its back on Afghanistan throughout the 1990s, once the Soviet army lost its war here, the United States has spent these eight years trying to make good on its past neglect. But true, undeniable success is hard to see.

(on camera): Well, for most ordinary Afghans, this, perhaps, is the simple, clearest measure of that. This is Highway Number 1. It's here that Kabul ends, and 300 miles down that road is Kandahar and the Taliban heartland.

I remember when taking the journey from Kandahar to Kabul was more than 12 exhausting hours. But in 2004, American aid money re- paved this road and cut that down to a mere five or six. Now, that journey is back to nine or 10 hours.

There's at least three known Taliban checkpoints on this American-paved highway. People are being pulled off buses and executed by the Taliban.

(voice-over): Truck driver Mohammed Qasim runs this Taliban gauntlet once a week. He hauls fuel in this tanker. The road, he says, is in terrible shape, wrecked by explosions. Drivers are left completely exposed.

"It's been blown up by landmines and there is no security on it," he says. A father of three, Qasim has to provide for his children. He takes his life in his hands each time he travels Highway 1. "I'm compelled," he tells me. "How else do we eat? There's simply no alternative."

Highway 1 looks like this. It is one of the most vital arteries in Afghanistan, rebuilt with almost $300 million in American aid money. Its asphalt rolls out from the capital, Kabul, to the west, towards Kandahar, the nation's second largest city and a political epicenter.

(on camera): And this is the other end of that road. Kandahar is just a short distance down there. Kabul, hundreds of miles that way.

But here in Kandahar, this is a city surrounded by pockets of Taliban resistance, and just a few miles down that dirt road is a Taliban-controlled district. A few miles up the highway is the first Taliban checkpoints.

The fact that the Taliban has been able to strangle the life out of this highway is a testament of the fact that there's simply not enough American, British, international or Afghan troops to secure it. What had once been an American project hailed as a sign of progress has now become a mark of a mission in crisis.

(voice-over): Michael Ware, CNN, Kandahar.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And our Anderson Cooper takes you inside Afghanistan all this week, "Live From the Battle Zone," tonight. Don't miss this special "AC 360" at 10:00 Eastern.

And let's get to our top stories now.

North of Los Angeles, unpredictable flames and wind are posing a challenge for firefighters. The 246-square-mile Station Fire is about 56 percent contained right now. Yesterday, firefighters had to scrap plans to set preventive backfires because of a new flare-up.

Milwaukee police have arrested a suspect in connection with the murders of nine women over the last 21 years. Forty-nine-year-old Walter Ellis is suspected of being the so-called North Side Strangler, a serial killer accused of attacking eight prostitutes and one runaway. Police say DNA evidence links Ellis to the crimes.

Tennis upstart Melanie Oudin is two wins away from the U.S. Open final and a possible match-up with Serena Williams. Seventeen-year- old Oudin has beaten four Russians in a row -- wow -- to reach her first grand slam quarter finals. Four wins in a row, that's the "wow" part. Her latest victim, 13-seeded Nadia Petrova.

Recess is over. Time to get back to work for Congress, and they have a brand new health care proposal to fight over.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: The mild-mannered approach apparently is gone. President Obama looks fired up heading into strategy talks on health care this afternoon. He has House Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid coming by the White House this afternoon.

CNN's Brianna Keilar on Capitol Hill.

And Brianna, OK, Congress is back from vacation. The rubber hits the road this afternoon. I don't know how many more cliches I can work into this tossed to you, but what can you tell us about what's on the schedule today on health care?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're really keeping an eye, Tony, on a meeting happening this afternoon 2:30 Eastern Time. That bipartisan group of six senators on the Senate Finance Committee, they will be talking about a proposal that has been laid out before them by the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Senator Max Baucus, who is one of these six senators in this so-called Gang of 6, as we call them here on Capitol Hill.

A key element of this proposal is a health cooperative, a nonprofit health co-op that would be governed by the patients that it serves. This is an idea in Senator Baucus' proposal, but it has got a lot of bipartisan support among this Gang of 6, including Senator Charles Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee.

Here's what he said a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRASSLEY: They're consumer-driven, and all of the consumers benefit from it. They're organized by members. There's no federal government running the co-ops, et cetera. And that's the way that Senator Conrad has devised them, and I've been discussing that with him. And along the lines of what he suggested, it's very favorable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: So, the big question here, Tony, is after these months and months of discussions between these six senators, can they come to some agreement? And I asked Senator Grassley that a few hours ago.

He told me that he hopes these three Democrats and these two other Republicans he's been meeting with, that they can strike a bipartisan deal before President Obama's health care speech tomorrow night. He said the timeline is not ideal. He would like to have more time. But he understands this is what Senator Baucus wants to do.

And he said he's hopeful. But really, Tony, you know how it is with this. We're going to wait and see. This committee has missed some deadlines, so we're really waiting to see what comes out of this meeting today.

HARRIS: Hey, Brianna, the Baucus proposal, does it also expand Medicaid health insurance to the poor? KEILAR: It does, Tony. Right now, Medicaid covers children up to 5 and pregnant women who are either below the poverty line or one- third above the poverty line.

This proposal would expand it so that it would cover everyone up to one-third above the poverty level. So, that would mean more children, that would mean poor adults who do not have children.

And then there's also this question of, how do you pay for this? Well, in part, there's a new tax proposed here on those Cadillac health care plans, those high-end health care plans that insurance companies would pay, although some critics say it's going to trickle down to other health care consumers.

And I should also mention, Tony, this according to -- we're getting all of this information from sources who are familiar with this proposal. And they are also stressing this protects people with pre-existing conditions, and also that it would help limit out-of- pocket expenses.

HARRIS: There is a lot there. OK.

Brianna Keilar on Capitol Hill for us.

Brianna, appreciate it. Thank you.

President Obama's message today at noon is for kids to stay in school. So, one question we're asking, is the dropout rate getting better or worse around the country?

Josh Levs is here and he's tracking that for us. What are you finding, Josh?

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know what, Tony? The numbers have actually changed big time, and we have the list also of which cities have had the most improvement and which are falling the furthest behind.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So, not all schools will be tuning into the president's back-to-school message today. Some districts in the Virginia area won't air the speech. Others will allow teachers to show it only if they notified parents in advance.

Here's what some parents and students in Richmond had to say about the speech.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's one of the first presidents to be talking to the kids about school, and I think it's very -- it's something good that the kids can listen to.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know when I was a kid, it would have been a big deal to have the president come and address school children, but given the political climate we live in now, it's kind of a tough call until you see what's really going to be spun.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's unfortunate because, I mean, all kids can hear this message.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's kind of mixed feelings, I guess. I mean, like I said, it's current events. I think all kids, if they have an understanding of it, should know what's going on and should be able to watch it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. A little background now on the school where the president will be delivering his message to students. Wakefield High School has a projected enrollment this year of 1,363 students. It had an on-time graduation rate of more than 63 percent last year.

The school has a diverse student body. The 2008 enrollment was 47 percent Hispanic, 27 percent black, 14 percent white and 11 percent Asian. Students at an Atlanta charter school will be watching President Obama's message next hour.

Susan Hendricks joins us live from the Ron Clark Academy. Susan, good to see you. We know that school is showing the speech. But what about public schools in the city of Atlanta? Good to see you.

SUSAN HENDRICKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you, Tony, as well. Of course, No surprise, as you said. The Ron Clark Academy, of course, showing that speech, as you see the kids behind me getting ready for that. It will play at noon Eastern time. There's a big screen here. The kids are very excited.

A lot of these kids met President Obama at the inauguration, of course, performing that famous song now. Some of the other schools in Georgia, though, they have decided against it. And other counties are leaving that up to each school district really to decide.

I want to bring in Ron Clark himself, the man of the hour. Ron, we spoke a little bit off camera. What was behind your decision to say, you know what, I'm going ahead, I'm showing this?

RON CLARK, FOUNDER AND TEACHER, THE RON CLARK ACADEMY: We feel at the Ron Clark Academy that it's important to show kids both sides of every story, whether it's liberal, conservative, Republican or Democrat. And we want our kids to be exposed so they can make their own opinions. And so, when we talked with the kids, they all said, yeah, we want to see it because we need to be educated, because once we're educated, we can be a better citizen.

HENDRICKS: Ron, you also talked to your students, you told me earlier about the schools not showing it, and some of the kids said that's up to them.

CLARK: Yes. And we teach our kids here how to be a good citizen. And I love that a lot of our students said, you know what, Mr. Clark, it's a free country, and they have that right. If they choose not to show it to the kids or if the parents don't want their kids to see it, that's their right, and that's why it's wonderful that we live in this country. And a lot of kids felt differently. And they said, but everyone needs to hear this speech because it's a message about hope and about being a good student. And so, we had both sides.

HENDRICKS: And you told me earlier -- we both read the speech. Your students did as well. It was available on the White House Web site. And in that speech, it really said the kids are in charge of their own destiny. Your philosophy here at this academy is, let's bring the parents in, let's get them involved.

But when it comes down to it, it really has to do with the students being responsible for themselves. Do you incorporate that philosophy as well here?

CLARK: Yes. At the Ron Clark Academy, we're about empowering these kids to feel strong, to be confident, to have pride. And in doing so, we need to give them opportunities to express their own opinions and to find their own way. And so, to have the president making a live address today to all of these kids, we think it's wonderful.

I'm excited that my students are going to get to hear his words of inspiration, and I'm saddened that there are a lot of kids around the country who aren't going to be uplifted, because I'm telling you, there are kids out there today who really need to hear what he's going to say. There are kids who need him as a role model, and I'm sad not everyone will see him today.

HENDRICKS: All right, Ron Clark, appreciate that.

CLARK: Thank you.

HENDRICKS: Thanks so much.

We're excited to see the students' reaction, of course, to the speech, again, 12:00 Eastern time. And Tony, Forsyth County in Georgia has decided not to show it at all. And another -- Cobb, Fulton, Cherokee and Gwynett counties, they're leaving it up to each school. So, it depends on the school, really, to decide if they want to show it. Back to you.

HARRIS: That seems to be the pattern around the country, as well. And Susan, tell Ron I said hello. The kids there are just terrific. They do a nice job over there.

HENDRICKS: They truly are.

HARRIS: Susan Hendricks for us. Susan, appreciate it. Thank you.

Former first lady Laura Bush defends President Obama's decision to talk to the nation's school children. Mrs. Bush sat down with CNN's Zain Verjee during a United Nations meeting in Paris. She supports the idea of the president encouraging school children, but she says she also understands the concerns expressed by some parents. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAURA BUSH, FORMER FIRST LADY: That certainly is the right of parents to choose what they want their children to hear in school. But I think really what people were unhappy about were the guidelines that went out with the -- before the speech went out. And I think those have been changed. And I think it's also really important for everyone to respect the president of the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Again, President Obama's back to school speech is live in less than 30 minutes from right now right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. And you can also watch it online at CNN.com/live.

And I want your thoughts today. Watch the speech with us. Watch it online of course. You can do both if you want. Watch us on television and there you go. Leave us your comments on my blog at CNN.com/tony. We will read some of your remarks later in the CNN NEWSROOM.

You know, one of the president's big goals today, to convince kids to stay in school. Just how bad is the dropout rate in America? Some call it a crisis. Let's check in now with Josh Levs.

Josh, what are you finding?

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, you know, there actually is some good news in this big picture of how many dropouts there are in America. A lot of people might be surprised by this. Let's go straight to this from the Education Department. I want everyone to see.

If you look back at the last 30 years, we have some graphics for you here. It will actually show you that things have improved to some extent. You go back to 1980, dropout rate in the country was at 14 percent. And now, look at that. It's under 9 percent. So, we are seeing overall a reduction in the number of dropouts in America.

They also -- and this is important, on the next screen breakdown by race. And you can see what they say about black students here. It was at 19 percent, down to 8.4 percent as of last year. Hispanic students by far the biggest numbers. Check that out, Tony. It was at 35 percent in 1980. Latest figures, 21 percent.

Now, look, that's still horrendous. I mean, we still too many dropouts in America. It is a problem. But you can see big-picture things improving to some extent in terms of how many students ultimately drop out.

HARRIS: Well, Josh, we got figures on best and worst cities?

LEVS: Yes, we do. And this is interesting. Actually, there's a -- let me show you this for a second. This is EPE Research. This is the group that puts out magazine "Education Week," and they've broken it down by city. They talk about closing the graduation gap. They also use the term "dropout crisis." They looked at the stats, and they put together these graphics I got for you, which show you the cities that are doing best in fighting this problem of dropouts. They say Philly, Tucson, Arizona, and Kansas City, Missouri are the cities that are doing the best holding on to students and helping them graduate.

But you also have schools that are at the opposite end that I'll show you here, where they're actually losing more and more and more students. The worst they have is Las Vegas, also Wichita, Kansas and Omaha there. So, Tony, we're seeing in those cities things get even worse. And I'll tell everyone, I'll post links to all this stuff at our blog and also for Facebook and Twitter so you can see it yourself.

HARRIS: All right, Josh. Appreciate it. Thank you, sir.

LEVS: Thanks, Tony. There you go.

HARRIS: 2008 was a record-setting year. Both oil and gold prices -- yes, oil and gold prices hit all-time highs as the recession reared its ugly head. And today, gold prices are once again making headlines. Susan Lisovicz making headlines for us right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. She's on the floor of the New York stock exchange with all the numbers.

Good to see you Ms. Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony. And you know, I'm tempted to take this gold bracelet and melt it down because I'd get a nice price for it today. Gold topping $1,000 an ounce today the first time we've seen that in six months.

And oil another big commodity, topping $71 a barrel today. No, that is not $147 a barrel, like we saw last summer, but it is a jump of nearly $3.50 in one day.

Why is that? The greenback. U.S. dollar hitting a low for the year against the euro. One euro goes for $1.45, and the U.S. dollar falling against other major currencies like the British pound, the yen and other currencies -- Tony.

HARRIS: Well, Susan, explain this to me, this connection here -- or is there a connection between the dollar, gold and oil prices?

LISOVICZ: Oh, there is. And basically, you've heard this expression many times, unfortunately -- we've all heard it over the past year -- that the U.S. government, the treasury is literally printing money. There's a lot more dollars out there.

Why? To finance all this stimulus, a trillion dollars. Let's round it off right there. What's happened is, it has certainly weighed on the demand for dollars. There's a lot of concern about this deficit spending, one, and two, about what will happen as a result, the inflation that could result.

We also have G-20 ministers meeting over the weekend, saying that their efforts continue stimulus spending and in fact increase the money supply. So, if there are concerns about the dollar, where do you go to a safe haven? Well, what used to be the currency, the number one currency for 6,000 years -- gold. So, there's a rush into gold, a rush into oil.

And you know, I wouldn't call it a stampede into stocks, but we do have nice positive momentum today following Thursday and Friday's rally. Right now, the Dow is up 35 points, the Nasdaq also up a few points as well. So, some positive mo there.

But concerns about the dollar. And that's something that we'll be talking a lot about.

HARRIS: Hey, Susan, we were trying to get you on next hour. We've got -- you know, we're pretty busy around here in the NEWSROOM, the president and some other news.

LISOVICZ: Always available for you, Tony.

HARRIS: All right, Susan. See you next hour.

Let's get to our top stories right now. Eight U.S. troops killed today at war. The military says four died during fighting in Kunar province in eastern Afghanistan in what officials call an ongoing event. And the other four were killed in Iraq when roadside bombs struck their patrols in two separate incidents.

Rescuers are searching for survivors after an early-morning explosion at a coal mine in China. At least 35 people were killed, and dozens are missing. The mine is about 460 miles south of Beijing. China's news agency says it was operating illegally. .

The bay bridge linking Oakland and San Francisco reopened today, 24 hours earlier than expected. Live pictures now. Crews fixed a two-inch crack in the bridge, heading off a potential rush hour nightmare for the Bay area.

No health care, no job? Ali Velshi takes the CNN Express to one town in Illinois that's struggling with both issues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

HARRIS: Oh, yes! The CNN Express on the road and asking Americans about health care and the economy. Chief business correspondent Ali Velshi sat down for beers in Naperville, Illinois.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're in Naperville, Illinois, with the CNN Express.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: What do you think about this debate that set us on the road on this bus? Do you think that this administration is doing the right thing to try to reform health care?

EUGENE CHOI, NAPERVILLE RESIDENT: If it doesn't happen now, like, I don't know when it's going to happen.

LISA GANGI, FREELANCE EDITOR: I think it's going to go on and on and on. It's been in our main consciousness for a dozen years now. And I don't think there's any end to it anytime soon. Is it the right time? Gosh, I mean, how can this happen in four years?

CHOI: Who is for world peace, everyone will raise their hand, right? But then when you...

VELSHI: (INAUDIBLE) paying for world peace.

CHOI: Exactly. Right. So, there's going to be a lot of -- there isn't going to be a perfect plan where everyone's going to be happy.

VELSHI: I was last in Naperville several months ago. And things have changed, because back then we were still at that point where we really were confused about where this economy was going. There was still a lot more attention around it. And that seems to have dissipated a little bit.

JULIE THRESH, NAPERVILLE REALTOR: The shock is kind of over. Now it's like, like Lisa said, how do we rebuild? Where do we go from here?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Start planning for the next steps?

VELSHI: What do the next steps include?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lot living within your means. I think that's one thing America...

THRESH: A lot of it is examining...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We never live within our means. And now, hopefully, this is, like, the big wake-up call.

VELSHI: Do we even know how to do that?

THRESH: Yes. I think we do.

VELSHI: What do you think?

JENNY CHOI, PHYSICAL THERAPIST: I think so. But I definitely think we do a lot less impulse shopping. Now, when I shop, I'm not like, oh, I want this and this and this. I'll be like, let me think about it, you know, before I really buy it or not.

VELSHI: Let's talk a little bit about this government.

E. CHOI: Frankly, a lot of politicians focused on what is the other party saying, and how can I disagree with them in a (INAUDIBLE) manner? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) the federal government, I suppose, continues to spend and perhaps, just like we are, the belt- tightening needs to get a little more serious.

THRESH: Right, and I just don't know if, you know, sending a crew out to resurface a road is really a reinvestment in our country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Naperville is an affluent suburb of Chicago and hasn't been as hard hit by the downturn as factory towns in the heartland.

Which kids will see the president's back-to-school speech today? Which ones won't? And what's behind the decision? We'll find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: We have some flood watches in effect. There he is, meteorologist Rob Marciano. What region of the country you watching here, Rob?

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: And here's what we are working on for CNN next hour. What do educators think of President Obama's school speech? We will talk to the principal of a Connecticut school to get his take on the message on the controversy after it's over.

Tomorrow, the president goes before Congress. It's his big speech on health care reform. Talk of a trigger and a public option? could there be a compromise? We will have analysis from the executive editor of "Politico." We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: When President Obama gives his back-to-school pep talk a few minutes from right now, many students across the country will not hear it. Our Gary Tuchman reports on one principal's difficult decision about airing the speech.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This North Carolina school principal had to decide whether or not to air President Barack Obama's speech for students in his school. The pressure was on.

CHRIS GIBBS, PRINCIPAL, CLAREMONT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: This may sound a little strange, but after a flurry of phone calls, my first thing was to go in my office, shut my door and have a prayer because I knew I was going to have to make a decision.

TUCHMAN: What was he hearing from parents? Mostly comments like those we heard at the county fair just down the road.

(on camera): Do you think the school should play Barack Obama's speech?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely not.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's getting more like communism saying we're going to do this and we're going to do that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it should be up to the parents' decision if they want their children to hear that or not.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): And that is exactly what Principal Chris Gibbs decided. The speech will not be shown at Claremont Elementary School.

GIBBS: I'm not going to sit here and deny that the political climate right now is pretty high. A lot of emotions are flying high. Just didn't feel like that kids should be put in the position where they can be singled out, where staff members can be singled out, parents singled out.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Singled out because they wouldn't want to stay for the speech?

GIBBS: Exactly.

Teachers we met at the school told us they backed the decision.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not something that we want to divide our school with.

TUCHMAN (on camera): In our research of the schools and school districts that will not be showing the president's speech live, we found that most of them, perhaps not surprisingly, are in counties where Barack Obama did not do particularly well during the November elections.

Catawba County, the home of the Claremont Elementary School, is no exception. John McCain received 67 percent of the vote here.

This is what he's going to say in his speech: If you quit on school, you're not just quitting on yourself, you're quitting on your country. I mean, isn't that a message you'd want your kids to hear? Isn't that part of what education is all about?

GIBBS: Most definitely. And we've asked our parents, again, going back to responsibility. A responsible parent is going to sit down and talk to their kids about staying in school.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But Barack Obama's message about it won't even be shown here in an edited form in the days to come. The principal has decided if the children are to see any of it, it should only be from their parents.

(on camera): Let's say President Obama said, I want to come to your school? He calls you up, I want to make a live appearance at your school and have an assembly. You'd be dealing with the same thing with these parents, wouldn't you? GIBBS: I would, probably.

TUCHMAN: And how does that make you feel?

GIBBS: Well, we have a long way to go. And the issues out there today are divisive issues. They're sensitive issues. But if the president wanted to come to Claremont Elementary School, he would certainly be welcome to come to Claremont Elementary School. And I guess I would go back in my office and shut the door and pray again.

(LAUGHTER)

TUCHMAN (voice-over): This principal believes in these words he put on the school marquee: "The price of greatness is responsibility." The world leader getting top billing here on Tuesday will be Winston Churchill, not Barack Obama.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Claremont, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)