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Terror Strike on U.N. Office; Six Job Seekers for Every Job; Rallying Doctors on Health Reform

Aired October 05, 2009 - 10:59   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 Monday morning, October 5th. And here are the top stories for you in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Terror attack on a United Nations office. A suicide bomber targets workers who feed the hungry.

The economy is getting better. Why aren't companies hanging out more help wanted signs?

Inside the jobless recovery this hour.

Southern California firestorm cloud cover and cooler temps may give crews a break today against this 12-square-mile inferno.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

President Obama is hoping doctors will provide some emergency aid to his push for healthcare reform. The president is meeting with physicians from around the country. Just minutes from now, they will join him as he talks about health care reform.

We will take you live to the Rose Garden as soon as the president begins his remarks.

First this hour, a terror strike on a United Nations office in Pakistan leaves five people dead. A suicide bomber used a ruse to get past tight security.

CNN's Reza Sayah live now from Islamabad.

And Reza, how does a suicide attacker strapped with explosives get into a U.N. building?

REZA SAYAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Tony, this guy duped his way in by using one of the oldest tricks in the book, and you can be sure someone's going to have a lot of explaining to do. According to a government official, he wore a military uniform, and then, listen to this, Tony. He asked if he could use the bathroom, that's how he got in.

First off, let's show you new video being aired on Pakistani television that shows the suicide attack. This is surveillance video that shows a man wearing dark clothing walk into the offices of the World Food Program. Moments later, you see a flash. That is the explosion, according to officials.

Then interior minister saying the man was wearing the military uniform that belongs to the Frontier Corps. This is a Pakistani paramilitary force that had assigned several men to keep watch outside of these offices. The interior minister saying he went up to the private security offices there, asked if he could use the bathroom. They said OK.

Moments later, you had the explosion in the reception area. Here's what witnesses say they saw and heard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We felt the building was collapsing. We started running, we came outside the basement. We saw the glass of the building was breaking.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The moment we heard the sound of the blast, we sat down. We thought the roof had fallen down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAYAH: Officials say five people were killed in this suicide attack, all of them employees of the World Food Program, four of them Pakistani citizens, two of them women, one an Iraqi national. The U.N. says it has closed its offices here in Islamabad and nearby Rawalpindi indefinitely as a precaution.

But Tony, this looks like an ugly security breach. There is no way a professionally-trained, private security firm should fall for a trick like this. But all indications are that they did in Islamabad today.

HARRIS: You have hit the nail on the head there.

Reza Sayah for us in Islamabad, Pakistan.

Reza, appreciate it. Thank you.

And let's fast forward now to the day's other top stories.

President Obama plans three meetings this week on his Afghan war strategy. Today, a solo sit-down with Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

In the war zone, a daylong Taliban assault on a remote American outpost killed eight U.S. troops this weekend. By one count, the Americans were outnumbered 4-1. That played into Washington's debate over a possible troop buildup.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARBARA BOXER (D), CALIFORNIA: I just voted to say yes to the 22,000 troops we just sent there, but I do believe we need to have an end game and we need to have a strategy that's clear. And I take it back to what the general said, because that's where I'm leaning. We've got to finish the business that we started. SEN. JON KYL (R), ARIZONA: I think the question really ought to be turned around. And that is, if we know that the commanding general has recommended more troops to win in Afghanistan, if we know that time is of the essence, then why are we, in effect, having this big public debate about it and why can't we make a decision that would enable us to get those troops in there in order to have an effective campaign next spring? If we delay it much longer, there's a question about whether even sending more troops will do any good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: The number of dead in Indonesia's earthquake tops 600 today. Rescuers have all but given up on finding survivors.

Heavy equipment operators began clearing the rubble. As many as a thousand people still missing and feared buried in the wreckage.

Former Fed chairman Alan Greenspan predicts unemployment will top 10 percent and stay there for a while. It hit 9.8 percent in September.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALAN GREENSPAN, FMR. FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: The silver lining is, at some point we're going to start to see an improvement in employment. But remember that unless there is a monthly increase of more than 100,000 a month, we've still got the unemployment rate at 10-year lows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: And later in the NEWSROOM, I will speak with Georgia Tech economics professor Danny Boston about the big picture on jobs.

Crews are on the scene of a fast-moving wildfire about 40 miles northeast of central Los Angeles. The Sheep Fire, which has already burned more than 7,000 acres, is threatening dozens of homes. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency for San Bernardino County, and hundreds of families have been ordered to evacuate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Got everything we can think of -- clothes, computers, pictures, family albums.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's mostly just clothes and valuables. This is stuff from my wife's family.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We evacuated 40 head from my ranch last night.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(WEATHER REPORT) HARRIS: You know, most companies are offering open enrollment for health care plans. Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis has your "Top Tips" on what to sign up for and what to let go.

But first, let's take a look at the Big Board, the New York Stock Exchange.

As you can see here, the Dow is up after a rough week last week. The Dow starting Monday in positive territory, up 73 points.

We are following these numbers.

And let's do this -- let's take a quick shot here of the White House Rose Garden. And once again, we are standing by waiting for the president's remarks on health care reform. He will be joined by doctors, physicians from around the country.

When the president begins his remarks, we will take you live to the Rose Garden, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: If you're looking for work, you have a lot of company. Job seekers now outnumber available jobs by the highest ratio on record. But with the economy improving, there's an end in sight. Right?

Here's CNN's Maggie Lake.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAGGIE LAKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jam-packed job fairs, huge lines to turn in resumes. For the millions of people in the U.S. looking for work, the struggle to stand out seems to intensify by the day.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a lot of competition out there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a little harder because everybody's trying to apply to the same places.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's so many people out there looking for a job right now.

LAKE: The odds of landing a job has never seen so remote to so many. According to recent figures, there were fewer than 2.5 million full-time job openings for the 14.5 million Americans actively looking for work during the summer. That means for every available job in the U.S., there were, on average, six job seekers fighting to fill it, the highest ratio on record.

Economists see little improvement in the months to come.

DEAN BAKER, ECONOMIC POLICY INSTITUTE: We're likely to continue to lose jobs through the rest of the year. And just to keep even with the growth of the labor market, labor force, we have to have about 130,000, 140,000 new jobs being created. So, we're falling further and further behind.

LAKE: The U.S. has been falling further behind for some time now. Since mid-2007, the number of available jobs in America has declined 50 percent, and even though companies are pleasing investors with stronger profits through cost cutting and easier profit comparisons from previous quarters, firms are still reluctant to create jobs.

BAKER: No businesses is going to hire just for the sake of hiring. They're going to hire because they feel they need additional workers to meet the demand. And the demand is not being created because people aren't spending, and they don't spend for the simple reason they don't have jobs.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Boy.

CNN's Maggie Lake reporting.

Some economists believe only a major new round of government stimulus could break this vicious cycle. Without it, some fear the fight for available jobs will remain competitive for months to come.

We will talk to a Georgia Tech professor about the jobless rate.

Plus, we are waiting on President Obama to speak about health care reform at the Rose Garden.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And we are well inside the two-minute warning here for the president's remarks on health care reform. President Obama rallying doctors in support of his push for health care reform.

Several doctors from around the country are joining the president for an event at the Rose Garden. It should be getting under way shortly.

An important week for health care reform, as you know. The Senate Finance Committee wrapped up its work last week, Friday, early in the morning, 2:18, 2:20 in the morning, Friday morning, on its bill on health care reform. That bill, we understand, is now being scored by the Congressional Budget Office. Once that score comes back, we expect at some point this week the Senate Finance Committee will pass its bill out of committee, then begins the process of melding that particular bill with the bill that was passed, oh, a good deal of time ago now by the HELP Committee.

Those two bills will be melded together. It will be interesting to see, as that process takes place, whether or not the public option that is a part of the HELP Committee's bill will find its way some way into the bill that was passed by the Finance Committee. The line seems to be no at this point. So the question is, what will we ultimately end up with? Will we end up with a reform bill with a public option trigger?

We'll just have to wait and see.

The president of the United States.

(APPLAUSE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you, guys. Thank you.

Please, have a seat.

On this spectacular day here in the Rose Garden, I want to welcome all of the doctors who have joined us today at the White House, but there are a couple that I want to make special mention of.

First of all, on stage behind me, Dr. Hershey Garner, Dr. Mona Mangat, Dr. Richard Evans, and Dr. Amanda McKinney, who are representing, as we were talking about the Oval Office, red states, blue states, recalcitrant states, high-cost states, low-cost states, rural and urban states. And we're so pleased to have them. In addition, the organizations that are represented here today, the American Medical Association, the National Medical Association, the Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, the Doctors for America, American College of Pediatrics, and American College of Cardiology.

I am thrilled to have all of you here today. And you look very spiffy in your coats.

All of you represent all 50 states. Some of you are members of physicians organizations, and others are simply respected members of their community who work in hospitals and clinics and private practices.

All have devoted their lives to the healing of others. And all understand that their jobs would be a lot easier if we finally reform our system of health insurance.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, we have now been debating this issue of health insurance reform for months. The United States Congress has been working on it for better -- for the better part of a year. And last week, the final congressional committee involved in shaping legislation completed their proposal and will soon vote on it.

At this point, we've heard all the arguments on both sides of the aisle. We have listened to every charge and every countercharge from the crazy claims about death panels, to misleading warnings about a government takeover of our health care system. But when you cut through all of the noise and all of the distractions that are out there, I think what's most telling is that some of the people who are most supportive of reform are the very medical professionals who know the health care system best -- the doctors and nurses of America.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, these men and women here would not be supporting health insurance reform if they really believed that it would lead to government bureaucrats making decisions that are best left to doctors. They wouldn't be here today if they believed that reform in any way would damage the very critical and sacred doctor/patient relationship.

Instead, the reason the doctors are here is because they have seen first hand what's broken about our health care system. They've seen what happens when their patients can't get the care they need because some insurance company has decided to drop their coverage or water it down. They have seen what happens when a patient is forced to pay out of pocket thousands of dollars she doesn't have for treatments that she desperately needs. They've seen what happens when patients don't come in for regular checkups or screening because either the insurance company doesn't cover it or they can't afford insurance in the first place. And they've seen far too much of the time that they want to devote to taking care of patients spent filling out forms and haggling with insurance companies about payments.

So, these doctors know what needs to be fixed about our health care system and they know what health insurance reform will do, that it will go a long way towards making patients healthier and doctors and nurses to be able to perform that -- those tasks that are so important to them and led them into medicine in the first place. So, let me just outline once again what exactly we're seeing coming out of all these committees. And although there's still some details to be worked out, there's some general principles that I think we can have confidence on.

Number one, if you have insurance, the reforms we've proposed will offer you more security. It will be against the law for insurance companies to deny you coverage because of a pre-existing condition. It will be against the law for insurance companies to drop your coverage when you get sick or water it down when you need it most.

Insurance companies will no longer be able to place some arbitrary cap on how much coverage you can receive in a given year or in a lifetime. We will place a limit on how much you can be charged for out-of-pocket expenses. And insurance companies will be required to cover at no extra charge routine checkups and preventive care.

Now, if you don't have health insurance, reform will finally offer you affordable choices. It will set up a new insurance exchange, a marketplace where individuals and small businesses can shop for an affordable health insurance plan that works for them.

This is how everyone in the federal government, including members of Congress, get affordable insurance. And there's no reason we shouldn't give every American the same opportunity that we give ourselves.

(APPLAUSE) Now, these doctors also know that reform will make their lives easier by moving to electronic medical records. In a system carefully constructed to protect patient privacy, physicians will have less paperwork to fill out, more critical information at their fingertips, and more time to spend with their patients.

(APPLAUSE)

And expensive tests won't have to be repeated over and over again.

There are also proposals to provide loan forgiveness for primary care physicians who choose to practice in rural and underserved areas.

(APPLAUSE)

Since I've talked to enough doctors who feel they're forced to practice defensive medicine, I've directed my secretary of Health and Human Services to move forward with programs that will help us put patient safety first, while still allowing doctors to focus on practicing medicine. And we are working to fix the flawed sustainable growth rate formula by which doctors are reimbursed under Medicare.

(APPLAUSE)

You know, every one of you here today took an oath when you entered the medical profession. It was not an oath that you would spend a lot of time on the phone with insurance companies. It was not an oath that you would have to turn away patients who you know could use your help, not devote your lives to be bean counters or paper pushers. You took an oath so you could heal people. You did it so you could save lives.

The reforms we're proposing to our health care system will help you live up to that oath. They will make sure...

(APPLAUSE)

They will make sure that neither some government bureaucrat or insurance company bureaucrat gets between a patient and their doctor.

(APPLAUSE)

They'll offer security to those Americans who have insurance and insurance to those who don't.

And I want to thank every single doctor who is here. And I especially want to thank you for agreeing to fan out across the country and make the case about why this reform effort is so desperately needed.

You are the people who know this system best. You are the experts. Nobody has more credibility with the American people on this issue than you do.

And so, if you're willing to speak out strongly on behalf of the things you care about and what you see each and every day, as you're serving patients all across the country, I'm confident we are going to get health reform passed this year.

Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you.

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: All right. There you have the president in the Rose Garden, surrounded by doctors, doctctors in the chairs in front of him, doctors to the left of him, doctors to right of him, essentially outlining the broad strokes of the Finance Committee bill that we expect to be passed out of the committee some time this week, after it's scored by the Congressional Budget Office.

The president this morning talking health care reform in the Rose Garden -- is he coming back to the microphones very quickly? He is just shaking hands in the front rows. OK.

You know, it is that time of year again, and we're talking about open enrollment. The segue couldn't be better here. American workers are selecting their health care options for 2010. It's like we planned this.

Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis is here.

And Gerri, generally speaking -- good to see you.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: It's a lot like we planned it. Yes.

HARRIS: Yes, I know. It looks like we're going to be paying maybe a bit more and getting less. What's going on here?

WILLIS: Well, you know, Tony, premiums and out-of-pocket expenses are set to rise 10 percent next year. In 2010, the combined average premium and out-of-pocket costs for health care coverage will climb to $4,023. That's money right out of your pocket.

Now, for workers, that means they will be paying $147 in premiums and $162 in out-of-pocket costs. That's each and every month.

Now, that's why it's so important that you really look at all of your open enrollment health options this year as you get ready to make the all-important decision about what plan you're going to go with.

HARRIS: I think this is so important that you put up those numbers, because we've had a running debate here as to what is a tax and what isn't a tax incorporated in the language in the health care options that are being negotiated right now. And when you see those premiums go up like that, there is no doubt about the fact that that represents a tax.

But moving forward, how do we choose the best open enrollment option here, Gerri?

WILLIS: Well, you know, Tony, the big problem is that people just default into the plan they had last year. You really want to look at coverage you had, analyze it. How much did you spend on co- pays and out-of-pocket costs? Did you see any doctors who were out of your network plan? How long did your flexible spending account last?

Look, most companies will offer you tools that can help you analyze your health claims from last year. Ask your company if they have this kind of estimator. But that will help you figure out, did my plan really work for me?

HARRIS: Yes. And what should people be looking out for?

WILLIS: Well, you know, companies are increasingly charging higher premiums for working spouses who have access to other health coverage. Other employers are even cutting back or eliminating all together the subsidy for spousal and dependent coverage. You're really going to have to watch for that.

And more and more often, companies are conducting audits to make sure your plan doesn't cover people who are not eligible. So, you've got to make sure that you know what the rules are, make sure you're living inside those rules and take advantage of the lowest cost options for you.

HARRIS: OK. So, there are a number of options out there. Can you effectively measure the quality of a health care plan, Gerri?

WILLIS: Sure. And there are people who do it for you.

Accreditation groups such as the National Committee for Quality Insurance -- it sounds important, right? They measure plans using a variety of standards, report cards published by consumer groups, independent Web sites. And your state insurance departments are great sources of info. Many state insurance departments track the number of customer complaints filed against insurers, including health plans. Mainly HMOs. Now, most states issue these complaints as a ratio or an index, so there are plenty of places to go.

And, of course, if you have any questions, send them to me at Gerri@CNN.com. We love to hear from you, and we answer those questions right here every Friday.

HARRIS: Gerri, appreciate it. Thank you.

WILLIS: My pleasure.

HARRIS: The number of unemployed workers is rising in America. Is that a good sign? You'll hear from one professor next, right here in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Fifteen million people -- 15 million -- are out of work in this country according to the latest government figures. And it may be hard to believe, but some employers are saying they're having a difficult time filling open positions. Come on

Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange with details on this and the changing job market. Good to see you, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you, Tony. We emphasize a lot we have this working estimate there are six people for every one job opening. But there is actually a growth market for a number of good jobs. Easily overlooked because we talk about how the U.S. economy is shedding more jobs than creating them.

Where are these jobs? In health care. What kind of jobs? Nurses, pharmacists, MRI technicians, ultrasound technologists, physical therapists. In sciences, electrical engineers, geotechnical engineers. They're the people who build offshore platforms. What else? Accountants, actuaries. They're the people who calculate risks. Software sales representatives.

These are good-paying jobs. Oftentimes, starting salaries $50,000 and up.

President Obama, of course, has talked about green jobs. He wants to create 5 million jobs with everything from solar to wind to energy efficiency. Well, it would require advances in current technology, from transmission lines to energy storage. The bottom line is that these are highly specialized jobs, and for many people who are out of work, they need to get the training or the education to switch to these types of careers. And that often can take a year or more, Tony, but they're out there.

HARRIS: Yes, that's encouraging to hear that there are those good jobs out there. But my concern is that many of the jobs that have been lost during this downturn are never coming back, Susan.

LISOVICZ: Well, your fears are well-grounded, Tony, because I think that many economists agree that some of these jobs are gone for good, and the obvious sector that we can point to is manufacturing. I mean, that's an area that's been in decline since the 1950s.

But what else is in jeopardy? Well, with this kind of housing recession, real estate, finance jobs may not come back soon. Also, retail, leisure. The industry depending on consumer spending.

And on that note, want to talk about some big news from Conde Nast, the publishing giant. Today, it's shutting down "Gourmet" magazine. I know you read it religiously every month. Tony, I can see you with the apron. I know you're out there at the barbecue.

But "Gourmet" magazine is shutting down two of its -- bridal magazines are shutting down, "Cookie" magazine. This is all from Conde Nast in one day.

So, there are jobs in jeopardy, but they are -- you know, what happens to the economy is it's constantly changing. While manufacturing's been shedding jobs, the service sector has been gaining jobs. And by the way, very quickly, Tony, we did get a report on the service sector today. It showed growth for the first time since the summer of last year.

HARRIS: Really? LISOVICZ: So, we're seeing growth in the stock market as well. The three major averages up at least two-thirds of a percent today -- Tony.

HARRIS: We're going to chew on this a little bit more. Susan, stay there for just a moment, and I want you to join the conversation with my good friend Danny Boston here in just a second.

Former Fed chief Alan Greenspan's on a mission. The September jobs report was pretty awful, and will probably get worse. He is quick to add this is what a recovery looks like.

All right, let's bring in our good friend, Danny Boston, CEO of economic consulting with the firm EuQuant and professor of economics at Georgia Tech.

All right, let's look at the trend over the last three months here. Let's put this number up here, and we're looking about -- we're looking at the overall unemployment rate for let's say, July, August,and September. And now we've got this number at 9.8 percent for September.

Look, we're talking about -- and there are the numbers. You can see for yourself -- 263,000 jobs lost. There was nothing in the report, Danny, that suggested there was going to be a lot of hiring between now and end of the year. Also in the September report, the work week fell and is now back at its June low. And the hours workers are putting in, that's down as well. So, realistically speaking, give me an assessment of this labor market right now today.

DANNY BOSTON, CEO, EUQUANT: It is where we would expect it to be. We are in a cycle, and things are not going to go up smoothly from one month to the next.

HARRIS: Fits and starts.

BOSTON: Fits and starts from one month to the next month. And there were some economists that had predicted, I think overly optimistic, that the job loss would be a lot lower than it was. And I think that was being too optimistic. I think that it's right about where you would expect it to be. And the recovery is going to be very slow because the decline was very severe.

HARRIS: And Susan, back to you. I mean, what are you hearing here? You know, there is this sentiment out here that we're in a recovery right now. So, where are the jobs?

LISOVICZ: Well, you know, it's not going to be an even recovery, and I think as Professor Boston will say is that unfortunately, unemployment is going to continue to creep higher. And we saw that with this report. I mean, on the bright side, and I put that in quotes, "bright side," is that, I mean, this is a year, Tony, where we saw 700,000 jobs lost in one month.

So, while we had been seeing this trend where the job losses were getting smaller, this was a setback. But that's not surprising. I think, actually, Professor Boston, what I think was worrisome were two things in that report. And that is that the hours worked, the average work week, 33 hours. That's a record. That shows a complete lack of confidence among employers. Also that temp workers were among those let go, also pointing to employers' fear that their business cannot support them.

HARRIS: We've got another graphic I want to show folks. And, boy, these are areas, if you're looking for a job right now in these particular cities, it is tough. Look at this. And we don't even have the September numbers yet.

But these are the August unemployment rates for some major cities here. We're talking about Detroit at 17 percent, San Juan at 14, Fresno, 14, Riverside-San Bernardino, Las Vegas at 13 percent.

Just a parting question here, where are the jobs ultimately going to come from, Danny? Are we talking about small firms, growing firms? What sectors and what employers will start to hire folks to start to turn this thing around?

BOSTON: Very interesting, because the recovery that we're seeing thus far is a small-business recovery. And if you look at the numbers, beneath the numbers, what you'll find is that 77 percent of all of the new jobs being created are being created by small business. Prior to the recession, 65 percent.

So, that's a trend that's been increasing, but even more so today. So, while large businesses are focusing on the bottom line, that is paring down costs to get more profitable, small businesses are actually growing.

HARRIS: All right, Susan, final thoughts on this? You mentioned just a moment ago some of the sectors that are actually doing some hiring. It's probably worth repeating.

LISOVICZ: That's right. And it's -- you know, these are good jobs. And they really reflect -- I mean, remember the economy changes just like the world changes. And good-paying jobs reflect some of the trends that we've seen. The baby boomer population is aging, so you see a lot of growth, a lot of need in health care, everything from physical therapists to registered nurses, technicians to do highly specialized things like MRIs.

Also in the siciences, the sciences and math. And I would imagine that Professor Boston is telling that to his students all the time. These good jobs -- and this is where the future is. Whether it's software, whether it's green technology, there are jobs out there. And they require a lot of training but they are also highly paying jobs, and they're going to make up, hopefully, for the jobs that we're seeing lost and that may never return.

HARRIS: Yes, we need these offsets.

All right, Susan, appreciate it. Thank you.

LISOVICZ: You're welcome. HARRIS: Danny, good to see you as always.

BOSTON: Thank you.

HARRIS: Appreciate it.

You know, we're talking about the unemployed in America, and we want to hear from you. What, in your mind, is most responsible for the worsening employment picture? Slow-to-work stimulus package? An economy much worse than we thought? Employers cutting deeper and hiring more slowly than expected, or something else altogether?

Send me your thoughts by logging on to CNN.com/tony.

And let's get you caught up now on today's top stories. At least five people are dead after a suicide attack on the headquarters of the World Food Programme in Pakistan. Several others were wounded.

A senior Pakistani police officer says the bomber was carrying about -- listen to this -- 15 pounds of explosives. Is it unclear how he gained access to the offices.

The first of the H1N1 flu vaccine is arriving today in doctors' offices. The first doses are the nasal spray variety. They're recommended for health care workers with no existing health conditions and children at risk of getting the flu. Forty million flu shot doses will be available by midmonth.

And in Chicago, a federal judge will decide today whether to grant bail to 47-year-old Michael David Barrett. He is accused of secretly videotaping ESPN reporter Erin Andrews through a peephole in the door of her hotel room.

Flooding (ph) in Texas is actually a good sign for farmers stuck in a severe drought. We will explain in just a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: All right, flooding worries in southern Texas now. IReporter Russell Mancuso took photos of flooding at his home near San Antonio. Russell says it had been raining for about ten hours straight. Parts of southern Texas are under a flood warning.

Rob Marciano, remember, oh, it was about a week and a half, maybe two week ago, we were going through the great flood here in Georgia. And I recall that it actually started in Texas, what, Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and then moved east. I'm wondering if we might see a similar pattern here.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, actually, well, the rain that you woke up to this morning in Atlanta is what was in San Antonio, for the most part, yesterday. And that's good news that it's out of that San Antonio and Austin area.

As you mentioned, they were in a severe drought. Still are really, but they got a lot of rain at one time, and that's a problem. A lot of moisture on the ground. There might be a pop-up thunderstorm or two across that part of the country. But most of the rain is focussed across the extreme southeast.

And the other big weather story is this storm that's really kicking up some winter-like weather across the Colorado Rockies into Wyoming and Montana as well. Yellowstone probably seeing snowfall there. That's definitely strong for this time of year.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Rob, thank you.

Want to show folks some more pictures from the Sheep fire out in California. More pictures from our iReporters. Thick smoke blanketing the sky near San Bernardino, California, where this fast- moving wildfire has already burned 7,500 acres. This video shot by iReporter Tommy Yune. The Sheep fire is threatening dozens of homes at last check and has forced thousands of people to evacuate. We will keep an eye on that.

It is the start of a new year for the government. Will the $11 trillion debt go higher or lower?

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HARRIS: A new fiscal year begins with an old problem, the huge national debt. The U.S. begins the financial year with more than $11 trillion in red ink. Is that a typo in and of itself there?

Christine Romans of our CNN Money Team live from New York. And Christine, look, I'm trying to figure out in my own head, what's my share of that debt? And, you know, what's your share, my kids. I mean, they've got a share. That's an unbelievable number.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It is. And it's mostly our kids and our grandkids, I guess, when you talked about the fiscal hawks...

HARRIS: Yes, yes.

ROMANS: ... who are really concerned about all this debt that we're piling on.

So, happy new year, everyone. It's 2010. And we're probably going to party like it was 2009 again in 2010, with an awful lot of spending. I mean, this is the federal deficit I'm showing you here. And this is a number that climbs and climbs, both in its raw number and its percent of the overall economy.

2008 was a record, 459 billion. In 2009, the year that we just put in the books, 1.58 trillion. Look, there was an economic disaster, and we had to have economic disaster relief, and that's what that is. A lot of money going in there to try to right a fallen economy. And then 2010 slightly better but at 1.5 trillion. These are numbers, Tony -- when I started covering financial news a decade ago, I would never have believed that these were the kinds of numbers coming out of my mouth. But they are, and it really shows you how historic this has all been.

Now the debt, the national debt, which is the accumulation of all of these deficits, is about $11.8 trillion, and Congress is probably, one of these days, going to have to have a vote where they're going to raise the debt ceiling again. Right now, I think it's $12.1 trillion.

Tony, if you took a trillion -- we don't even know how much a trillion dollars is, right? If you took a trillion dollars, dollar bills...

HARRIS: I'm just trying to count the zeroes.

ROMANS: ... 12 zeroes -- stack them up on top of each other, a trillion dollars would go 68,000 miles into the atmosphere, a third of the way to the moon. There's another thing that fiscal conservatives like to say. If you spent a million dollars every day since Jesus was born, you still would not have spent a trillion dollars. That's a lot of money.

HARRIS: Well, I'm wondering if there is anything on the horizon to suggest an improvement this year.

ROMANS: If you get economic growth -- I mean, the whole idea here is that debt in itself is not a bad thing if that debt is an investment, and you're investing into the powerful American economy, and it starts to come back, and you can start to get tax revenues and tax receipts up, and then it can kind of eat into it.

It looks as though the forecast for 2010 is a little bit better, and I think when you go out a few more years, they've got federal deficits in the $700 billion range. It's an awful lot of money.

And listen to what Alan Greenspan said to George Stephanopoulos on ABC's "This Week."

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ALAN GREENSPAN, FORMER CHAIRMAN, FEDERAL RESERVE: Over the generations, we have been very careful to keep the level of debt well above the borrowing capacity of our economy, so far as federal issuance is concerned. That cushion is now being tested and I'm getting a little concerned. And I don't want to find out where the upper levels are.

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HARRIS: What does that mean?

ROMANS: One point, Tony. Interest rates are very, very low, so that means, you know, all of this money that we've borrowed to fund the difference between what we're bringing in and what we're putting out, all the money we borrowed, we're paying low interest rates on it. But if interest rates were to go up, if the rest of the world, you know, our bankers in China, Japan and elsewhere, if they were to get nervous about our fiscal situation, if interest rates have to rise, then it becomes more burdensome and more troubling for America's future.

So, we're at this very historic and interesting point here where you're hoping that all the spending is going to rebuild the American economym, and that that in itself will help bring down the deficit and the debt down in the future.

HARRIS: How do you build a country, an economy on this much debt? How do you move forward? You just -- you can't even translate that into the lives of everyday people. You just can't operate your lives this way. And we know a lot of folks have, and that's part of the reason that we're in this downturn. But that is an astounding number, 12 zeroes.

ROMANS: And you know, Andy Bush, one of my sources who's a good friend of mine at Bank of Montreal, who has covered this kind of stuff for a long time, is a trader, an economist, analyst, he says we're in the greatest financial experiment in history. And so, we're kind of living through how it's going to work out, you know?

HARRIS: Oh, man. I'm glad you're watching it for us.

ROMANS: Sure.

HARRIS: Christine Romans in New York for us. Christine, thanks.

You know, we are talking about the unemployed in America, and we want to hear from you. What, in your mind, is most responsible for the worsening employment picture? We're talking about a slow-to-work stimulus package? An economy which was much worse than any of us thought? Maybe employers cutting deeper and hiring more slowly than expected? Or something else altogether? Send us your thoughts by logging on to cnn.com/tony.

And coming up in the next hour, Taliban militants attacked two outposts in Afghanistan, killing eight U.S. service members. It is the deadliest single day for the Americans in the Afghan war in more than a year. We will have a live report.

Attention-getting results from a new study suggests autism may be more widespread in the United States than previously realized. But why? That story and more in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM.

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