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Health Reform Backroom Deals; Developments From White House Briefing; What Corporate America is Doing

Aired December 22, 2009 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. It is Tuesday, December 22nd. Here are the faces of the stories driving the headlines today for you in the CNN NEWSROOM.

You, the viewer, you've got questions about health care reform. Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, has answers. He joins us live.

Lou Jing, a reality TV sensation in Shanghai, coping with the challenge of being Chinese and black.

And Cady Coleman, woman on a mission. An inside look at her training for a six-month trip to the International Space Station.

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

Inch by inch, the Senate health reform bill moves a step closer to final passage. This morning the bill cleared the second of three procedural hurdles. Senators voted 60-39 to adopt the changes negotiated by Majority Leader Harry Reid. That keeps the bill on track for passage Christmas Eve.

Democrat Max Baucus spoke just moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MAX BAUCUS (D), MONTANA: We are truly closer than ever to bringing security and stability to our health care system, to providing real reform that American families, businesses and workers so desperately need. The finish line is in sight and all the groups standing behind us know it. And now we know with certainly we have the will to cross it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Now to the wheeling and dealing it has taken to keep the bill moving forward.

More on that from Senior Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN SR. CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a series of backroom deals that secured Ben Nelson's vote, the last Democratic holdout. One sweetener given only to his home state of Nebraska.

Here on page 98 of the compromise, the federal government will pay 100 percent of Nebraska's tab indefinitely for expanding Medicaid for low-income Americans. And when we asked the Democratic leader, he revealed Nelson wasn't the only one getting special deals.

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: Dana, I would say this -- if you read the bill, which I'm sure you will, you'll find a number of states are treated differently than other states. That's what legislation is all about, compromise. It's compromise. We worked on different things to get a number of people's votes.

BASH: Like Bernie Sanders, the liberal senator was unhappy Democratic leaders dropped a public option and said this a few days ago.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I), VERMONT: It is not for sure that I will vote for that bill.

BASH: Suddenly, his home state of Vermont got some extra help from Medicaid, too. But to clinch Sander's vote, Democrats added his pet project, $10 billion for community health centers nationwide.

SANDERS: One new provision that was placed in the healthcare reform bill by Majority Leader Reid and I want to thank him very much.

BASH: Republicans accuse Democrats of bribery.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chicago-style backroom buy-offs at the expense of the American taxpayers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sweetheart deals, which make this thing begin to stink to high heaven.

BASH: But Democrats didn't just slip things in to win votes to pass health care. Leading Democrats also added provisions aimed at helping themselves back home. Chris Dodd's support was never in doubt.

SEN. CHRIS DODD (D), CONNECTICUT: This bill is long overdue and critically important.

BASH: But the Connecticut Democrat facing a tough re-election battle buried $100 million in the measure for a new hospital. Other states can compete for it, but he put it in hoping Connecticut gets the hospital.

DODD: It doesn't involve just my state, although my state is very interested.

BASH (on camera): And it doesn't stop there. Lots of other senators are getting different things for their states, like there's extra Medicare funding for states like Montana, South and North Dakota. And the Senate majority leader is unapologetic about it.

He says it's just the way things are. In fact, he also said, "I don't know if there's a senator that doesn't have something important to it to them. If they don't," he said, "it doesn't speak well of them."

Dana Bash, CNN Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And checking the wire now and the day's other big stories.

We could find out today if David Goldman will finally get custody of his 9-year-old son, Sean. Brazil's chief justice is weighing whether to uphold a lower court decision to return the boy to his American father. This five-year legal fight has been filled with twists, turns and a lot of allegations, as you can tell from this next exchange.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SERGIO TOSTES, ATTORNEY FOR SEAN GOLDMAN'S BRAZILIAN FAMILY: I have invited him to spend Christmas with Sean so that he can see with his own eyes the environment in which Sean lives. There is no torture whatsoever. I invited Mr. Goldman. I have not received a response for him.

DAVID GOLDMAN, SEAN'S FATHER: How about a new beginning? How about, let's go home for Christmas? Didn't we just get a record snowfall?

Let's go home. Let's go home with your dad and your cousins and your other grandmother and grandfather who have been forcefully shut out of your life by an illegal abduction. Let's come home and have Christmas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. We are keeping our eyes on this story and we will have more for you a bit later.

The top U.S. general in northern Iraq lays down the law. If women soldiers under his command get pregnant, they could face court- martial and jail time. The same for male soldiers who get them pregnant.

Major General Anthony Cucolo says his policy is needed now because his troop levels are stretched very thin. In a statement to CNN said -- quoting now -- "Anyone who leaves this fight earlier than the expected 12-month deployment creates a burden on their teammates. Anyone who leaves this fight early because they made a personal choice that changed their medical status -- or contributes to doing that to another -- is not in keeping with a key element of our ethos."

Some legal experts are questioning the general's policy. Here's what one told CNN's Erica Hill on "AC 360."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) THOMAS KENNIFF, FMR. JAG OFFICER & DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes, you do sacrifice certain rights when you put on a uniform, but even military orders and military laws are still subject to constitutional scrutiny. And if you look at the history of the Supreme Court, which ultimately has the final say on these sort of matters, in the last 40 to 50 years there's been a long line of cases that have vigorously defended the rights of private citizens, as well as those in the military who wear the uniform, their right to privacy, especially with regard to intimate dealings, acts that occur between consenting adults behind closed doors.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Of the 22,000 people under the general's command, more than 1,600 are women. The general says he considers his female soldiers invaluable.

It is the nightmare before Christmas across Europe. Severe winter weather continuing its stranglehold on travelers.

Thousands of them stuck or delayed at airports in London, Paris, Rome, Madrid and Milan. Heavy snowfall also causing huge problems for motorists. And rail travelers finding delays after Eurostar's three- day suspension. The high-speed train service resuming partial service.

Reynolds Wolf is here. He is tracking weather here at home. More severe weather is on the way, and he'll tell us who's getting hit in just a moment.

And how about this? An item thrown into a Salvation Army bucket ended up being worth over $1,000.

But first, let's check the numbers, the Big Board, New York Stock Exchange.

We're in positive territory, as you can see. We're up 42 points.

We're checking the numbers throughout the morning, throughout the day with Susan Lisovicz, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: More now on our top story, health care reform and the backroom wheeling and dealing to move the legislation forward.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid defends the deal-making to secure votes. Critics call it bribery.

Here's part of the discussion with Erica Hill on last night's "AC 360."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: The sense of victory has been dampened by these stories of these backroom deals.

You know, we have always known that deals were being made in the backroom, but now the -- in the age of cable news and blogs, they -- they have been brought into the front parlor. And a lot of people are now seeing them, and they don't like it.

And with a bill that already was -- had a lot of people against it, had a majority against it, I think that this is -- sends exactly the wrong signal. It's something so easy for team to grasp. When seven different senators get breaks for their states, and everybody else has to pay the bills, and they get breaks for their states, they get angry. And I think this was not a good night for the Democrats in that sense, to have this story now passing around the country.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: And Tanya, how do you reconcile that? Because even as we talked about with Dana a little bit, look, I mean, this is, for the most part, a lot of times how bills do get made, or the sausage, but nobody likes to see the process. And it is rather remarkable to hear somebody be so blunt about the process.

And, as Dana said, really, Senator Reid was just teeing this one up for the Republicans.

TANYA ACKER, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, I don't know that he needed to really draw attention to it. But the fact is, is that this always happens. I mean, I'm frankly a bit surprised by the notion that people are somehow taken aback by this backroom dealing.

This is how legislation is always made. Sadly and unfortunately, this is the legislative process in this country. I mean, I find it curious that the GOP are now complaining about this, when Mitch McConnell, in the last spending bill, requested $51 million in pet projects for Kentucky, when you have got folks like Lisa Murkowski asking the United States taxpayer to pay for the construction of a fairground in Alaska.

Senators, our congresspeople, unfortunately, sadly, always do this. This -- it's not new with this bill.

HILL: Although they don't always admit it as readily as it was admitted this time around.

Michael, Tanya just brought up, of course, Senator Mitch McConnell, who has said he's holding out hope that the reform will be killed when it gets to a conference committee, plenty of talk, as well, from Senator Lindsey Graham, who equated this to Chicago-style politics, Enron accounting, and that the concessions simply looked like bribery.

And, as Tanya pointed out, it's not like Republicans have never done this. MICHAEL GERSON, FORMER SPEECHWRITER FOR PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: Well, it depends on the degree here. I mean, Senator Reid really won ugly in this case.

And, you know, I spent some time in the -- in the -- as a Senate staffer. And seldom was the kind of almost bribery that you see in this case as raw or as venal. And it had a consequence.

There's literally no reason Nebraska should be treated -- given a different deal on Medicaid reform than, say, Iowa next door. And all the states realize this. So, eventually -- there's already grumbling among other states, saying, we're going to demand this same kind of deal eventually.

That really undermines the theory of Medicaid, which is supposed to be a federal/state responsibility. And it eventually blows another hole in the federal budget. It was a deal not like these others. It had a much broader public consequence.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: You can catch "ANDERSON COOPER 360" weeknights, beginning at 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

How could the Senate version of health care change your life, your budget and the quality of care you receive? The man, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, answers CNN viewer questions next, right there in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Top stories now.

Rudy Giuliani is expected to endorse Republican Rick Lazio for governor of New York. The former New York City mayor has scheduled a news conference for 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time today. Democratic Governor David Paterson is seeking a full term in next year's election.

The Philippines on high alert right now. Scientists are expecting the Mayon volcano to erupt any day now. More than 44,000 people have evacuated to emergency shelters. The last major eruption in 1993 killed 79 people.

A surprise gift for the Salvation Army in one of those kettles. An anonymous donor apparently dropped a gold coin worth more than $1,000.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hear that a lot of the donations are down. Hopefully this will spur somebody to do more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Boy, let's hope so. A spokesperson for the Salvation Army says the donor probably knew the coin's value. It was wrapped up to protect it from any damage.

So, a White House briefing just ended, and like you, I want to know if any health care ground was covered.

Our White House correspondent, Dan Lothian, was in the briefing, and he joins us now live.

And Dan, anything from Robert Gibbs on health care this morning?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes. We did hear a bit about health care. And, essentially, the White House showing a lot of confidence that they believe that the president will be able to get a bill that he will be able to sign, but they're not -- they're staying away from any deadlines at all, but feel that there's a lot of momentum to get health care reform done.

And Robert Gibbs pointing out that the president will be fully engaged in the process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president and his team will continue to play the role that they have throughout this process, John, and that is working with leaders in the House and the Senate, discussing with them policy options. I think the role that he and his team have played up to this point has gotten us to the point where, in all honesty, health care reform is not a matter of -- health care reform is not a matter of if. Health care reform now is a matter of when.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LOTHIAN: So, the administration today not only focused on health care but also on bankers. The president sitting down with the CEOs of small and community banks. And again, the subject is, how can lending be increased to small businesses?

As you know, Tony, that's one of the big concerns. Small business owners saying that they can't get enough money, enough capital for inventory to hire new workers. So, the president is sitting down trying to figure out, what can the administration do and what can these bankers do to free up lending so businesses can start doing the work that they need to do to turn the economy around?

HARRIS: Absolutely.

Hey, Dan, you know, the president also spoke on the really big, really popular "Tom Joyner Morning Show."

LOTHIAN: That's right.

HARRIS: And they spoke about a controversy that keeps coming up.

LOTHIAN: They did. And it was in the context of asking about the president, how can he reach out, such as at a Christmas party, and shake hands with some of the people who criticize him on the airwaves, on radio and on television? And the president addressed an issue that's been around a while about, you know, where was he born?

Take a listen.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My hope is that with the health care debate winding down, we get that done, that people, everybody takes a deep breath and remembers that everybody is American, you know. I've got my birth certificate to prove it.

(LAUGHTER)

We are all just trying to do what's best for the country. We're going to have our differences, but we don't have to attack each other's motives the way I think has become a habit in Washington.

And you know me pretty well, Tom. I'm always an optimist and I don't hold grudges. And I'm just interested in getting the job done.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

LOTHIAN: Tony, I should point out, in that interview as well, the president reiterated what we heard yesterday, that both he and the first lady did get their H1N1 shots over the weekend. And, you know, in the African-American community this has been a big deal, because there are those who just are scared of getting these shots, believing there might be some conspiracy behind it, some testing going on. People just want to stay away from it.

And the president wanted to make it very clear that these shots are safe, that he wouldn't let his daughters take them if they were not. And he, himself, and the first lady have also had had their shots.

HARRIS: So let me recap this. The president received his H1N1 shot on Sunday. The first lady received hers, I'm reading here, a few days earlier.

LOTHIAN: Exactly.

HARRIS: Right? And the daughters, Sasha and Malia...

LOTHIAN: They got theirs a couple of months...

HARRIS: Back in October, right?

LOTHIAN: A couple of months -- exactly. A couple months ago. So they have their vaccinations, they shouldn't be getting sick.

HARRIS: And the vaccine is safe. That's what the president is saying.

LOTHIAN: That's what he's saying. That's right.

HARRIS: OK. Dan, appreciate it. Thank you.

LOTHIAN: OK.

HARRIS: Dan Lothian at the White House for us.

A new report today says the economy is growing, but let's -- really, let's face it. Many Americans just aren't feeling it. That's because companies all across the country are still in cost-cutting mode.

Susan Lisovicz is at the New York stock Exchange with a look at what corporate America is doing.

Boy, help us with this one, Susan. Good morning to you.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Well, you know, some of it just goes right down to jobs. Ford is offering buyouts to all 41,000 union workers. Ford says business is improving, and the numbers certainly support that.

In the third quarter, Ford made money, a billion dollars. But the company says it has a surplus of employees. OK?

It doesn't say how many workers it wants to accept the latest buyout offer. Also, remember that these new workers are paid half the salary of older workers, and this is the second time this year that Ford is doing this.

Yahoo!, meanwhile, is shutting down from Christmas to January 1st. That's terrific, except for the fact that you either have to take vacation time or unpaid leave.

This is notable, because Yahoo! is doing this for the first time to reduce its operating costs. A lot of tech companies do it, but this is a year when Yahoo! posted its first revenue drop since 2001.

Another story, another big company, Pepsi. It won't advertise in the Super Bowl. It's the first time in 23 years that Pepsi is going to skip it.

Pepsi's not saying it's doing it because it's saving money, but let's be real here. A 30-second spot goes for three million bucks, and Pepsi has been one of the top Super Bowl advertisers in the past -- Tony.

HARRIS: I'm sure you can do something else with that money, save a couple jobs maybe.

OK. So the economy grew last quarter, and home sales, you'll remind us, absolutely surged. Many economists, Susan, say the recession is over. So why are we still seeing these big cutbacks?

LISOVICZ: Because it's going to be slow going to get out of it. I mean, for instance, you talk about those home sales. Well, one of the big reasons why the big stampede to get in before that tax credit expired -- and, in fact, it has been extended -- but you get the idea here. There is some stimulus at work, and that is going to go away. But the estimate for fourth quarter growth is four percent. Boy, if that happens, that would be the first -- that would be the best growth since 2006.

The U.S. economy is growing, but we're still seeing consumer spending tight, business investment is weak, and that is holding the U.S. economy back. So it's going to be slow going. And, unfortunately, some jobs are still going by the wayside -- Tony.

HARRIS: Yes. We've got some buying on Wall Street today? We're in positive territory.

LISOVICZ: We do have some buying because of the existing home sales. That was a nice report. That was triple, basically, what Wall Street was expecting, and so we're seeing the three major averages up about a third of a percent.

HARRIS: You rock.

LISOVICZ: Merry Christmas, Tony.

HARRIS: Thank you, Susan. See you next hour.

LISOVICZ: You got it.

HARRIS: All right.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, didn't get that pay raise this year? That may change in 2010, but there's a catch.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: The second key Senate vote took place this morning moving the health care reform bill closer to a full vote by Christmas Eve.

I lose my mind when Sanjay is here. I get to see him so infrequently here.

But, all right, a lot of you are wondering how it might change your lives, your budgets, the quality of care you receive -- if it passes. So, the man, our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here.

Sanjay, good to see you, Doctor.

(CROSSTALK)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm here for you, Tony.

HARRIS: I should take this tie off. You're looking so relaxed and chilled out.

Are you ready for the first one? It comes from Tom, and Tom is in Mountain View, Arkansas. He writes, my wife and I operate a restaurant, a small one, and earn about 50 to 60K annually. Is there a ballpark figure on our projected costs should this bill as presently constructed pass the Congress?

What do you think, Sanjay?

GUPTA: Well, it's interesting, and there's a couple of key points here and key numbers to keep in mind.

One is 25. The significance of the number 25 is if you're a small business and have fewer than 25 employees, this is probably not really going to affect you. So for Tom, for example, he's not going to have a mandate to provide health care insurance for his employees, again, for small businesses.

Now, a lot of small businesses say we still want to do this. And if you're a small business making $50,000 a year or less, you are eligible for federal subsidies. So 25 employees, $50,000 or less, those are the key numbers for Tom and every other small business owner out. They can get the federal subsidies in those situations.

HARRIS: And above that number, in terms of employees, you need to start look at providing some kind of insurance for your people.

GUPTA: So a couple things. If you have more employees than that, you do have to otherwise you could face fines. And two is if any of your employees are eligible for federal subsidies as things stand now, you've got to make sure they're getting those as well.

HARRIS: Got another question here from Daniel who writes, "If someone can't be denied for pre-existing conditions, what is the motivation for a lower income individual to pay for health care insurance? Doesn't this make paying into an insurance plan unnecessary?"

I love this question.

GUPTA: This is fascinating and this is exactly what people have been talking about with regard to potentially gaming the system.

HARRIS: Yes.

GUPTA: So it's this idea, Tony, that you would not be insured until you got sick. Go out and buy the health insurance at that point. You can't be discriminated against because of the non- discrimination and then you cancel that insurance after you get better. That's exactly what people are concerned about, that's gaming the system.

What people will say who are crafting the bill is say that doesn't happen because of two things. One is people are now going to have mandates to buy health care insurance, so you have to have it. And two is you get find if you don't. So, you know, the fine is around $750 a year or 2 percent of your income, whichever one of those is greater. Now if you're watching this thinking, well, that doesn't do me any good because I simply can't afford health insurance, you can get an exemption if you simply can't afford it. More specifically if the health insurance policy is 8 percent of your income or more.

So is that going to be enough? Who's going to enforce it? Where's the money going to go? Will people circumvent, who knows. But that's who things stand now.

HARRIS: I think we have time for one more.

Melissa H. writes, oh, Dr. Gupta, I have read that in the Senate version of the bill there will be a tax on so-called "Cadillac" or high value insurance plans. What types of insurance plans are included in this designation?

GUPTA: Cadillac plans, because they're -- what kind of car do you drive, by the way?

HARRIS: I've got a Highlander, but I'm ready to get out of that thing.

GUPTA: Highlander plan, Cadillac plan.

HARRIS: I'm bored with it, I've got to tell you.

GUPTA: As the name might suggest, this is a plan that's sort of an exclusive plan and a very expensive plan as well. It covers most things if you're going to the doctors' offices. It was thought people on Wall Street, those kind of folks benefit from this, but a lot of people do. Union workers, for example, who are elderly, they get these plans.

The idea is that if it costs more than $23,000 for a family of four or $8,500 for an individual, anything above that, you get taxed at 40 percent. And they estimate that about $150 billion over 10 years will be brought in. This helps offset the cost of this plan. That's how this -- that all works.

HARRIS: Well, and the other side of this is you've got to get people in the system. The idea facing fines and mandating some kind of coverage for folks, it's about getting people in the system to pay the massive cost of this over ten years.

GUPTA: That's right. And you have a lot of young immortals, people who are healthy who do not have health care insurance...

HARRIS: Young invincibles.

GUPTA: Young invincibles, that's right, just like you.

HARRIS: You are the man, look at that.

Did you break your finger on that? Did that hurt?

GUPTA: I need to check with my doctor. HARRIS: That's what's going on here.

Sanjay Gupta, appreciate it. Happy holidays.

GUPTA: Good to see you too.

HARRIS: Headed home for the holidays this week? Reynolds Wolf is tracking the Christmas travel forecast. We will talk to that man in just a second.

Yes, Reynolds.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, I'll tell you, things are a little better today than they were yesterday in terms of your travel. Problem is, though, we got to get another storm that's coming in just in time for Christmas Eve. We're going to talk about that headache coming up in a few moments. Sit tight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Checking our top stories right now, the Senate health reform bill moves a step closer to passage this morning. The bill cleared the second of three procedural hurdles. Senators voted 60-39 to adopt the changes negotiated by Majority Leader Harry Reid, that keeps the bill on track for passage Christmas Eve.

A 107-year-old woman honored by President Obama in his election night speech has died in Atlanta. Ann Nixon Cooper was born before blacks or women had the right to vote. The president called her an example of the heartbreak and hope of the past century.

Another ambush-style attack on law enforcement officers in Washington state in the same county where four policemen were killed last month. Two Pierce County deputies were wounded last night responding to a domestic dispute between two brothers at a home near Eatonville. Officials say this man opened fire and the deputies shot back killing him.

Let's get you now to the Severe Weather Center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WOLF: Speaking of that, our neighbors across the pond in London and England have certainly have had issues with their travel as well, especially on the five trains that go underneath the Channel. They have had had all kinds of problems there and officials are blaming the snow and the ice that they have been receiving out there, but a lot of the passengers, they are not buying it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was absolutely horrible. I'm traumatized. We haven't slept much for the last three days.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were you waiting like three days to get out of the train? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I was stuck in Brussels. I was supposed to go back to my family for something pretty important, never managed to make it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right now we have no money, no baby food. We just had to struggle on and try to get some funds to eat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF: You know, it's funny, it really doesn't matter where you happen to be when you're traveling, it seems like complaints are always the same, either here in the U.S. or, of course, over in parts of England.

Morgan Neill is with us. What's the latest over there? Things a little bit better?

MORGAN NEILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Reynolds. Things have gotten a lot better actually over today just from when we arrived here this morning just before the first train started running, the first trains in three days that started running under the Channel Tunnel. And now, I don't know if you can see behind me, but the station is essentially clear. We're just about to see the last trains of the evening run.

Now, they are running at only two-thirds capacity and there's still plenty of a backlog of passengers whose trips were pushed back that are still trying to make their way home for Christmas. But at this point as much as we're seeing those complaints that we've seen the last several days, we're also starting to see some very relieved faces of passengers who are finally getting to see their family and friends and making it in time for the holidays.

WOLF: OK, I just missed you a little bit, I couldn't hear part of what you said. But the question I have for you and I'm sure many are curious about this, what about Christmas? What are the odds for people getting home on time for Christmas, pretty good?

NEILL: Well, the official response to that is there's no guarantee that all the passengers will make it for Christmas. What we can say is they started off today saying they would begin to get the passengers who had tickets originally for Saturday and Sunday on trains today. Well, by the end of the day, they were doing that as well as passengers who had planned to travel on Monday and some who had planned to travel today.

So they seem to be doing better than the worst case predictions. Still no guarantees, but things are looking better, whatever the reason. Now that may well be that people finally got fed up and found another way to get home, but we're certainly not seeing the kinds of lines that we'd seen here over the last couple of days, Reynolds.

WOLF: All right, Morgan, I appreciate the report.

You know, folks, it's a funny thing. You know, no matter how we travel, by planes, trains or automobiles, when it comes to the weather, we are always at Mother Nature's mercy. Aren't we, Tony?

HARRIS: Ain't that the truth? All right, Reynolds and Morgan Neill, appreciate it. Gentlemen, thank you.

WOLF: You bet.

HARRIS: Very quickly, here's what we're working on for the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM.

The Illinois prison with terror detainees from GITMO may be housed, we'll give you a tour. Protesters descending on the site today as state lawmakers discuss the federal plan.

And the tough training for a mission that is out of this world. We will show you how an American astronaut is preparing for her trip to the International Space Station.

That and more in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: We have too much fun on this program. Pretty packages with gift wrap and bows, the anticipation is agonizing. What's in the box? This season, you know what, I want to know what your favorite all-time holiday gift? Let's talk about it. Just go to my blog, CNN.com/Tony. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK. Here's the deal. If a pay raise tops your Christmas wish list, you may be in luck, but the boost may not be as big as you'd like. Our Christine Romans has the numbers.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Tony, good news for people who are able to hold on to their jobs this year, you're more likely to get a raise come 2010. More employers are expected to grant pay increases next year, that's according to the consulting firm Mercer. Only 14 percent of employers said they will freeze salaries, that's down from 30 percent of employers this year.

Now here's the bad news. That pay boost, it might not be as big as you'd like. Average base salary increase is projected to be a mere 2.7 percent versus 3.2 percent in 2009.

Anyway, who will see the best raises? People in the consumer goods and high tech industries, they're predicted pay bump? Three percent. The smallest pay raises happen to be in the very area where we're adding more jobs, health and education. Predicted pay raises for health, 2.4 percent; 2.2 percent in education.

To put these numbers in perspective, consider this -- after months of sharp layoffs, companies are getting more out of the workers they have kept. Productivity is up 4 percent year over year, that means you're delivering 4 percent more for that 2.7 percent raise -- Tony.

HARRIS: Christine, appreciate it, thank you.

Check out our special report, "AMERICA'S MONEY CRISIS," that's at CNNMoney.com.

Changing lives with the stroke of a pedal. Two New Yorkers are on a mission to build and design bikes made out of bamboo. Their success could make all the difference for people half a world away in Ghana, Africa. Photojournalist Bob Bickel (ph) takes us along for the ride.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JUSTIN AGUINALDO, BIKE DESIGNER, BAMBOO BIKE PROJECT: My name is Justin Aguinaldo. I am a bike messenger and bike designer.

It's very stressful. There is a lot to worry about, there's a lot to be afraid of. I ride around all day and I wouldn't want it any other way, really.

I have messengered on aluminum. I've messengered on steel. I've messengered on different types of steel. Now I ride a bamboo bike.

MARTY ODLIN, ENGINEER, BAMBOO PROJECT: Bamboo bikes are important because bamboo bikes are probably the cheapest way to make bikes. Steel bikes right now are made in China and they are sent to Ghana, for instance. They cost over $100. There's many things that factor into that high cost. Making bamboo bikes locally addresses a lot of them.

I went to Ghana to do some logistics for the factory that we're hoping to start. It was really interesting to see how people lived and to see how the bicycle sort of impacted them.

AGUINALDO: We actually want people to be the engineers.

ODLIN: You're able to reduce the cost of the bicycle by half. So as the cost comes down, the market just explodes.

If you're on a bicycle you can effectively move five times as fast. I mean, if you actually calculate that out, you get roughly 27 times the area you have access to. Or 27 times the economic opportunity, 27 times the health care opportunities, 27 times the educational opportunities.

AGUINALDO: It's really just making it more stable.

ODLIN: Maybe they can sell twice as many goods at the market and then they can increase their income twice as much.

AGUINALDO: We're not giving them fish. We're teaching them to fish.

ODLIN: What we are giving is the technology that was developed.

AGUINALDO: This is to wrap around the joints. ODLIN: We're going to be able to set up just like a really efficient factory that makes these great bikes for an incredibly low cost.

AGUINALDO: We want them to contribute, not just with labor but also with their ideas.

ODLIN: We are giving access to cheap bicycles that isn't dependent on anybody else, it's just dependent on people on the people that make the bikes. That will increase access to bicycles and improve a whole lot of people's standard of living.

AGUINALDO: I really miss my bamboo bike when I don't have it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Pretty cool stuff, huh? You can hear more about the Bamboo Bike Project and other inspiration stories in CNN's hour-long show called "GIVING IN FOCUS." It's airs Friday, Christmas Day at 1:00 p.m. Eastern and there's a special encore presentation on December 26th for you at 3:00 p.m.

They called her names and said she shouldn't have even have been born. The story of fame and fallout because of the color of her skin.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Hey, it looks like we're taxiing right now for takeoff.

Take a look at this.

We were curious, sort of anxious about whether or not the weather would hold up in the skies over Everett, Washington, and it looks like everything is go right now for a second Boeing 787 Dreamliner to take off. It looks like it's going to happen pretty soon here.

We are taxiing for takeoff from Paine Field in Everett, Washington.

It was scheduled for about 11:45 Eastern time, 8:45 local time but it looks like, you know, after a bit of a delay -- my understanding is they had to get other planes in and out just to clear some space for the 787 Dreamliner. It is huge, as you know.

Let's see, the first launch -- not the first launch. I knew I was going to say that. The first flight, the maiden flight, took place, as you know, last week, last Tuesday. And bad weather forced Boeing to bring that flight back down earlier than planned. The pilots on that first flight reported the plane flew beautifully with no surprises or major issues during the flight.

Boeing obviously hoping for a similar outcome today. As we're about to see takeoff here for the second Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

We'll turn that tape around for you. A new era is about to begin in air travel. One in which airlines can no longer leave passengers stranded for an indefinite amount of time on the tarmac. Passenger advocates love the new regulation; the airline industry, not so much.

Here's CNN's Lisa Sylvester.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Anxious JetBlue passengers stranded on this airplane for ten hours at New York Kennedy Airport in February of 2007. Same storyline for passengers of Continental and two smaller airlines left on a tarmac overnight at the Rochester Minnesota airport in August.

LINK CHRISTIN, AIRLINE PASSENGER: There wasn't any room. The plane was getting warmer. There were at least two babies nearby me who cried and screamed almost the whole night.

SYLVESTER: Under new rules announced by the Transportation Department, airlines in the future will have to allow passengers to get off the plane if the flight is delayed more than three hours.

If not, the airline will face a fine of more than $27,000 per passenger. The only exceptions, if there are safety or security concerns, or if air traffic controllers say it would disrupt airport operations.

That news came as a relief for holiday travelers at the Reagan National Airport.

JIM HOSETH, AIRLINE PASSENGER: Definitely better. Three hours is still kind of long in my opinion, but it's quite an improvement.

SYLVESTER: The Air Transport Association, which represents the largest airliners, says it will comply with the new regulation but warns it could lead to more headaches.

JIM MAY, AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION: A hard and fast three-hour window, and it is very clear to us that that plane has to be back at the terminal or back to a point where we can deplane passengers, has to be within that three-hour window, is going to lead to more cancellations and conceivably greater inconvenience for passengers than they would have had otherwise.

SYLVESTER: But Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood disagrees. He says passengers will have more options instead of having only one choice -- to sit and wait on a plane.

RAY LAHOOD, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: They can go back to the terminal, re-board the next day, go home or figure out if they want to get back on this flight if they know it is going to be delayed. It gives them the option so they're not sitting there trying to figure out what's happening in their life.

SYLVESTER (on camera): The new rule won't help travelers this holiday season, though, because it doesn't take effect for 120 days.

Lisa Sylvester, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: She found fame in China, then suffered the unexpected fallout because of the color of her skin.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: You know, for some young girls today, it would be a dream come true becoming a star on a TV reality show. That's the case for a beautiful young girl in Shanghai, Lou Jing is one of our "Faces of the Story" today, but her dream appears to be only skin deep. Our Emily Chang has her unique and troubling story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EMILY CHANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It started with the lure of the glitz, the glamour, the dream of being China's next pop star, but Lou Jing's instant fame had its consequences. She was born in Shanghai, to a Chinese mother and an African-American father whom she's never met.

(on camera): One year old. So cute.

(voice-over): Growing up a single mom, 20-year-old Lou Jing says she had a normal life, good friends and only rarely felt out of place. "Sometimes people on the street would ask me, why do you speak Chinese so well? I'd say, because I'm Chinese."

When Lou Jing stepped into the national spotlight on a Chinese reality show called "Go Oriental Angel," she got attention not necessarily because of her talent, but because of how she looked. Hosts, fondly calls her "Chocolate Girl" and "Black Pearl." The Chinese media fixated on her skin color. Angry netizens vented online saying she "never should have been born" and telling her to "get out of China," sparking a bitter debate about race.

(on camera): In many respects, China can be considered a very homogenous society, more than 90 percent of the population is Hahn Chinese, so people who look different stand out.

(voice-over): "At first I cried a lot," she says. "Then, I got angry. And finally, I just started to ignore it."

Lou Jing's background became national gossip. Show producers convinced her mom to appear on air, the most private details of their life becoming painfully public. "Lou Jing didn't ask me about her dad until she was 16," she told the audience. "I cried and she never asked me again."

But as the show went on, so did Lou Jing, listening to Beyonce, her favorite artist, hanging out with classmates and going to school.

"I was so angry," said her drama teacher. "But she said she wasn't letting these things get to her heart."

Fans continued to vote for her, the judges praised her confidence. Lou Jing was eliminated before the finale, but not without a powerful parting message.

"I think I'm the same as all the girls here, except for my skin color. We share the same stage and the same dream."

Emily Chang, Shanghai.

(END VIDEOTAPE)