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President Obama on Economy; Tracking Stimulus Money; West Hollywood Gets Facelift

Aired January 25, 2010 - 12:04   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: So there you have it.

Middle class America, President Obama is speaking directly to you. The president convening a meeting of his Middle Class Task Force.

Let's get to the White House. Suzanne Malveaux is at the White House for us.

And Suzanne, we've just seen, look, another example of the president trying to turn the focus at the start of his second year in office to even more programs to get the jobs portion of this economy going.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And Tony, I think what we also heard, too, is very interesting. It's a foreshadowing of what we're going to hear on Wednesday, the State of the Union Address.

This is a president who clearly is focused on the American dream working for the middle class. And you noted one of those sentences. He said this is not about how Wall Street performs, but how the American people perform.

It's all about this campaign from are this administration after that Massachusetts loss to say, look, I get it, I understand what the American people are focused on, it's about creating jobs. This is what we need to do in the future. This is what we have done in the past.

The administration, on the one hand, saying, look, our $787 billion economic stimulus package has made some progress, has taken us from the brink of a depression, but at the same time, acknowledging that there is frustration, there is fear among the American people. And that is what we are hearing from the president today.

HARRIS: All right.

Suzanne Malveaux, a perfect segue.

Thank you, Suzanne.

We want to invite you to tune into CNN and the best political team on television for President Obama's first State of the Union speech. Our prime time coverage begins at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday.

And all this week, CNN is focusing on the president's biggest economic initiative so far, the $787 billion stimulus plan. The stimulus project digs into how the money is being spent, who it is helping, and who is abusing the program.

In just a couple of minutes, we will check in with Josh Levs at the stimulus desk to find out what they're working on this hour.

You will also find in-depth coverage of this special initiative on our Web site. Just go to CNN.com/stimulusproject for details on how the program is and isn't working.

Rescuers hold out little hope for survivors off the coast of Lebanon. Seats and luggage from an Ethiopian jetliner are washing up in Lebanon. The plane plunged into the Mediterranean today, just after takeoff from Beirut.

Ninety people aboard. Officials say they have recovered 23 bodies so far. The plane headed for Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.

U.S. intelligence officials are studying an audiotape today for new clues about Osama bin Laden. A voice said to be bin Laden's claims credit for the botched bombing of a U.S. jetliner Christmas Day. An al Qaeda offshoot had already taken responsibility for the attack.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: I think the fact that bin Laden seeks to associate himself with the attack, they think it's a success. And I think that we know that Umar Farouk is not going to be the only person who tries to do this.

They've already tried to do this in a failed assassination attempt against a senior Saudi official, and this modus operandi, just by the law of averages, will work in some context in some time in the future. And it's clearly going to be an al Qaeda signature going forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Coordinating efforts to help Haiti. Donors from 20 nations are meeting right now in Montreal to draw up an earthquake recovery plan. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton among those attending.

The Haitian government plans to release the official death toll today. Authorities say 150,000 bodies have been buried so far. Several families want rescue efforts to continue at a hotel in Haiti in Haiti where a young man was pulled live over the weekend.

We are devoting a lot of resources this week to tracking how your stimulus dollars are being spent. We are going to check in with our team at the stimulus desk. First, though, our "Random Moment" in 50 seconds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: All right. Now time for our "Random Moment of the Day."

The White House in the palm of your hand. Oh, yes. There's an app for that.

The new White House iPhone application delivers content straight from the White House Web site so current affairs and political junkies can get their White House fix by tapping their phone. Sooner or later, there will be an app for everything in this world, maybe even your "Random Moment of the Day."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK. All week long, CNN is breaking down for you what has happened to hundreds of billions of dollars in the stimulus.

Boy, that is a lot of money.

Our Josh Levs is -- what would that look like if you stacked it up end to end, ceiling to floor? How many stacks -- all right.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: People like to do that, how many football fields...

HARRIS: How many?

LEVS: ... of single dollar bills would it be?

HARRIS: Wouldn't you like to know that?

LEVS: At this point, no. But honestly, we're never going to see that much money, I'm afraid.

HARRIS: Because you are swamped in stimulus minutia.

What are you finding, Josh?

LEVS: Yes. I'm going to pull out of the minutia for a second. I'm glad you said that, actually. It sets me up well because, Tony, what I want to do is start off with the really big picture here.

HARRIS: Great. Great.

LEVS: We all know -- let's just get to this -- literally, I'm giving you a big picture.

You all remember the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act passed last February, $787 billion. Tony, what some people don't realize is that the majority of that was actually for things like tax cuts and some other entitlements. There was a portion of that, about $158 billion, that has gone to what has already been funded as projects out there, so... HARRIS: Now, wait a minute. Don't go too fast on that.

LEVS: I'm showing you.

HARRIS: Go back over that again...

LEVS: You got it.

HARRIS: ... because everyone thinks that $787 billion has been set aside for projects.

LEVS: Exactly.

HARRIS: And that's not the truth here.

LEVS: That's why I'm here. This is the number of funded projects in America from that. What we saw from that $787 billion, a lot of it did show up in tax cuts and some other ways. It funded some other programs. But when it comes to the kind of things we hear about, the shovel-ready projects, every city in the entire country suddenly raised their hand, right, and said I have 10,000 shovel-ready projects right here.

HARRIS: You don't hear that term anymore, do you? No, you really don't.

LEVS: Yes, it was a buzzword for about a month. I think we exhausted it in 2009.

But what you see here is the actual number of projects, Tony, that have been funded, 56,986 projects that have been funded so far. And there are still billions more that will be funding more projects. So we're going to go for a walk now.

This is what we're doing at the stimulus desk this week. I'm going to take you over to the desk. The basic idea here is this -- you have seen the binders, probably. The binders are filled with information about every single project, literally.

HARRIS: Which no one reads.

LEVS: Every single project.

HARRIS: I mean, the truth is, who reads that? I mean, we've got our team working on it. But who is reading it?

LEVS: Our team does. Our team reads it. But you're right, certainly, there is no way every lawmaker out there has read every single project in here.

So what we're trying to do is dig into as many as possible to find out what kind of jobs were created, how long did they last, what difference did they make in individual communities. And we have one we're going to start off with that our producer here, Steve Brusk, is pointing out to, because it involves President Obama.

Steve, why don't you tell us what we're going to look at first now?

STEVE BRUSK, CNN STIMULUS DESK PRODUCER: Yes. We're looking at several projects in Ohio, because on Friday, the president went to Elyria, Ohio, an area just outside Cleveland, in an area that has been very hard-hit over the past several years.

He touted as part of a town hall meeting there a lot of projects in Ohio. Not all by name, but he made a big deal out of how much money Ohio got, made a big deal out of appearing with Ted Strickland, the Democratic government of Ohio, who has a very tough re-election bid. He was trying to say Ohio has been at the center of what the recovery money is allegedly supposed to do.

LEVS: Well, let's take a look right now at what President Obama said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: We gave aid directly to states to help them through tough times. Ted can testify the help that it provided to the Ohio budget so we wouldn't have to lay off teachers and firefighters and police officers all across this state. And we made the largest investment in infrastructure since the creation of the interstate highway system, putting Americans to work rebuilding our roads, bridges, waterways, doing the work that America needs to be done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEVS: So, now it's time to zoom in on the special stimulus desk map. As a result of what President Obama said, choosing that location to highlight the strength and power of what the stimulus has achieved, we decided we will take a look at Lorain County, Ohio, what has actually been done and not been done in that area. That's coming up later in this hour.

And also, Tony, as part of that, when we were looking into Ohio this morning, you hear a lot about building roads, bridges, these kind of things. We also found a statewide project in Ohio that involves $63,000 for fish food from the stimulus fund.

That is actually now going to be added to the total amount that we here at the CNN Stimulus Desk have examined, and you will hear the results later this hour. We are so far at -- oh, I guess a roundup now, close to $1.8 billion in just what we hear at the Stimulus Desk are looking at, Tony. You'll get details on all those projects in Ohio later this hour.

HARRIS: So that's what $1.7 billion -- that's what...

LEVS: It's just a trickle of the funds, but, yes, that's what...

(CROSSTALK)

HARRIS: Can't even read that number. Look at that!

LEVS: I know. HARRIS: That is insane.

LEVS: I know.

HARRIS: Josh, appreciate it. Thank you.

LEVS: OK, Tony.

HARRIS: All right. Included in the stimulus is funding for local infrastructure.

CNN's Kareen Wynter reports from West Hollywood, California, the city that got $1.1 million for a facelift.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Business owner Mikeal Maglieri has seen it all here on the world-famous Sunset Strip, a tourism magnet of trendy restaurants, bars and nightspots like Maglieri's family-owned Whiskey a Go Go and Rainbow Bar and Grill.

MIKEAL MAGLIERI, SUNSET STRIP BUSINESS OWNER: It is the West Coast Times Square. It's where everyone comes to either see someone or be seen. There are a multitude and into the hundreds of major artists that started right here on this Strip.

WYNTER: Artists like The Doors, Fleetwood and Jimi Hendrix -- just some of the iconic acts Maglieri says over the decades helped turn his bars into bustling hotspots.

While his business has come a long way since the 1930s, when the Strip was changed from a dirt road to concrete, Maglieri says the city's most popular boulevard needs a makeover. A six-month beautification project is under way with plans to replace aging sidewalks and repave the street with asphalt made from recycled tires.

MAGLIERI: It needs a facelift because the economic times are so tough for everyone. They're trying to make it where, OK, we're going to clean the street up, make it more conducive so we get more foot traffic.

WYNTER: And Washington is footing some of the bill. Just over $1 million of $5 million being spent on the project is from federal stimulus funds.

JOHN DURAN, WEST HOLLYWOOD CITY COUNCILMAN: It is jobs and salaries and people being able to provide for their families.

WYNTER: Money well spent, says West Hollywood City Councilman John Duran. The city estimates the project has created or saved at least 20 jobs so far. But some Republican critics in the Senate have balked at the beautification, ranking it number four on their top 10 stimulus bill projects to remember as foolish. (on camera): So those critics in Washington who believe using the money in this way is nothing -- equates to nothing more than waste. What's your response to them?

DURAN: That's very short-sighted. I mean, really what it's about is money changing hands. The stimulus money into cities like West Hollywood allows us to sort of improve our local infrastructure here in a way that attracts more tourists, means more people in hotel rooms, means hotel workers keep their jobs, means restaurant workers keep their jobs. Money keeps moving around.

WYNTER (voice-over): More than money. Maglieri says it's about maintaining an image for a strip that's just as famous as the stars who built their careers on it.

MAGLIERI: It's an image. Keep it alive. It's something that needs to be done.

WYNTER: Kareen Wynter, CNN, West Hollywood, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: OK. New poll numbers reflect concern about waste and politics in the stimulus program.

In the CNN/Research Corporation poll, only 36 percent say the stimulus projects will benefit the economy. Wow. Sixty-three percent say the projects are for political reasons and will have no economic benefit. Man.

The poll also finds that 21 percent of Americans think nearly all the stimulus money has been wasted. Twenty-four percent say most of it has been wasted and 29 percent say half. And 25 percent say little to none.

We want to know what you think, obviously. Are you for or against the federal stimulus plan? And if you would, tell us why.

Leave us a comment at by blog at CNN.com/Tony, or go to my Facebook, Twitter pages, and tell us what you think. Leave us a comment there, please.

We will read some of your comments a bit later this hour.

And tonight on "CAMPBELL BROWN," at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, find out why some residents of Montana think their state has committed a double fault with their tax dollars.

Then "AC 360" investigates why stimulus money is going to so many companies that have a history of breaking the law. The stimulus project all this week at 6:00 a.m., 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. Eastern, only on CNN.

Do you like -- where is my bubble wrap? Do you like to pop bubble wrap? You know, it is the last Monday in January, and that means it's officially Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day. That's according to the folks at Sealed Air.

The company formed in 1960 to manufacture and market what we now know and love as bubble wrap. And they're marking this year -- all right. That sound is driving me crazy.

Sonia (ph), stop the madness.

Let's go to break. I've had enough. It was fun 30 seconds ago.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Has time run out for those buried in the rubble of Haiti? We will hear from those managing one of the most successful rescue teams operating there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Families of Americans who were staying at Haiti's Hotel Montana have an online petition going for rescue efforts to continue at the collapsed building. They are encouraged by several recent rescues, including one on Saturday in which a 24-year-old man was pulled out alive. Can you believe this? He survived on food and drink found in the wreckage.

Our John Roberts spoke to rescue team officials earlier on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENNIS CROSS, FIRE CAPTAIN, L.A. COUNTY SEARCH & RESCUE TEAM: We deployed our search and rescue team, they arrived on site. There was an international team already there. They assisted them with equipment and some technology, and they effected this rescue.

It was a vertical breach. The person was apparently down six to eight feet in the concrete. And due to the good fortune and the combined effort of the international search and rescue teams, this individual was able to be pulled out to safety. It's remarkable, and it reminds us that at any time, the call could come in, and we could be deploying and finding that person that has found a way to stay alive for 14-plus days.

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. We're looking at the pictures as you're describing it, and you can see, it's just got barely enough height for his head and shoulders to get through, and he's kind of wriggling through on his belly.

But Larry, the last time we had Dennis and his team on, they were talking to us about the rule of fours here when it comes to rescues. It's four minutes without oxygen, four days without water, 40 days without food.

A lot of these survivors seem to have thrown out the rule book. LARRY COLLINS, L.A. COUNTY FIRE DEPT. SEARCH TEAM MANAGER: Well, I think this earthquake event is going to -- it's a game-changer in a lot of ways. We planned to do 'round-the-clock search and rescue operations for up to 16 days, in some cases, anyway, because people have survived that long. So we're nearing that record scenario.

And there's such vast devastation here, there's so many buildings collapsed, and you simply can't completely search every one of them. So there may be some surprises popping up as they start de-layering the buildings, and we're not going to know until we actually dig them all out. And that's why you see these continued efforts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Got to tell you, we are going to have more on this survivor's incredible story. He spoke to CNN's Hala Gorani from the cot where he is recovering. It is a real talker, and it's coming up later this hour.

Our team is busy at the Stimulus Desk right now checking where your dollars are being spent. Josh Levs will bring us an update on one community the president visited this week.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: All right. As always at this time, we'd like to direct your attention to cnnmoney.com, because our Money team does such a terrific job. You're going to hear from Jeanne Sahadi in just a minute, a member of the Money Team.

Let's see -- let's get you to Wall Street. New York Stock Exchange right now three hours into the trading day. As you can see, stocks are in positive territory, up 54 points. Rebounding after, boy, the rough end of last week. And the Nasdaq -- oh, Joe, I forgot. What's the number? The Nasdaq is up six. We're following these numbers with Susan Lisovicz for you throughout the day right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

You know, over the weekend, President Obama signaled his support for a bipartisan fiscal commission to help tackle the federal debt. Jeanne Sahadi from the CNN Money team is joining me from New York.

And, Jeanne, we've been talking about this back and forth in e- mails and everything for weeks now whether or not this commission would actually happen, would it be formed. And now it looks like the president is signing off on it. Maybe you can tell us how this commission is actually going to work. Because it's really important work here.

JEANNE SAHADI, CNNMONEY.COM: Well, the president has expressed his support, but that doesn't mean it's going to happen, because the Senate is voting on it tomorrow. And if the Senate approves it, it still has to go to the House. So we're not quite at the finish line yet.

But his support was important. This is a commission that would basically come up with the tough choices that lawmakers have so far failed to make to rein in the country's debt. And they would do it by considering everything in the federal budget. Nothing would be off the table. And their recommendations would be sent to Congress after a year, by the end of this year, and Congress would be required by law to vote for them.

HARRIS: So you're being...

SAHADI: To vote for or against them, I apologize, up or down.

(CROSSTALK)

HARRIS: Yes, yes. So you're being extra careful here. And, again, we've been going back and forth on this because who's going to vote against this at this point because the blue dogs in the House are going to vote for this because they've been screaming about more fiscal responsibility. I'm wondering, what are you gauging here as to the possible push-back on this idea of this commission doing this work?

SAHADI: Well, the critics of this type of commission say, look, the mandate for this commission's too broad. We can't reform Social Security or Medicare or the tax system or the health care system. Just one of those things can take years for Congress to address. And now we're saying to this commission, hey, let's just do it all at once. And it's not that they're going to form each and every system, but they're going to come up with some painful spending cuts and tax increases that I guarantee you everybody in Congress will dislike. The Republicans will dislike the tax hikes and the Democrats will dislike the spending cuts. And the supporters of this commission say, and that's its point, because if you just let the regular order of Congress take place...

HARRIS: Yes.

SAHADI: We're just going to have partisan food fights all day long, because that's what we've been having. So that's the supporters' biggest argument for this. And they say, look, we're on a time crunch here.

HARRIS: Absolutely.

SAHADI: You know, this financial crisis has really accelerated our need to deal with this long-term fiscal shortfall.

HARRIS: Well, Jeanne, if you would, stay on this for us, because I've got to tell you, I think this is really important work and whether or not this commission is ever formed, you know, there are some hard choices and hard discussions to be had coming up here on how we tackle this deficit issue. Jeanne Sahadi, a member of our CNN Money team.

Jeanne, appreciate it. Thank you. Good to see you again.

SAHADI: Thank you, Tony. HARRIS: And following your tax dollars. All this week, the CNN stimulus project is tracking the $787 billion program and how the money is being spent.

Let's do this. Let's check in now with Josh Levs. He is at the stimulus desk. How long does this go on? Josh, if you would, what's the latest here?

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, I love what we're doing here. What we're doing is we're finding an example, boom, getting you information about it.

Now earlier this hour, as you know, we showed you President Obama visited a location inside Ohio. And we're saying, hey, this is a great place to use as an example of the success of stimulus funding.

Well, we also have some video of a man he met there. Take a look here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: I'm one of the electrician folk. I'm working on one of your transportation projects right here.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Which one?

QUESTION: Right down at the Lorain County Transportation Center.

OBAMA: Fantastic.

QUESTION: Down in (INAUDIBLE).

OBAMA: Recovery act.

QUESTION: Thank you.

OBAMA: Helping put folks to work.

QUESTION: You are. Definitely.

OBAMA: What's your name?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEVS: So we went into looking at that right away. And this is a perfect example of how we're kicking off this week here.

Let's zoom into the computer behind me. Basically what that man was talking about here was a $4 million project in Leary (ph), Ohio, to renovate a historic train station. So one thing we're looking at now from government officials and elsewhere is how many jobs have been created by this project, and how big a project really is in that area. How good an example is it?

We're going to go back to our Steve Brusk, who's joining me here. He's the one who pointed this out to us in the first place. And, Steve, I understand you're also finding another example inside that same county that involves another million dollars there.

STEVE BRUSK, CNN STIMULUS DESK PRODUCER: Yes, there's several that they're trying to point out in that county. Lorain's unemployment rate has been just below 10 percent. About the middle of hard-hit Ohio. They've got several major transit projects there. One of them helped restore bus service that would have been cut, that would have run out of money by the end of the year. The federal stimulus money basically to help keep the buses running. That's something you hear local officials touting as a direct real example. But other people there point out that the jobless rate continues to go up. So it hasn't been a complete success story yet.

LEVS: And before we go, $63,000 for fish food. Tell us quickly about that.

BRUSK: We're going to look into that. Our Emily Rusa (ph) is looking into that right now. It's a state grant that the State Department of Agriculture in Ohio. They had $63,000 that went to basically people who grow fish, to help pay for their food, we believe because they're alleging they've had very rough times and they could get reimbursed for their food.

We're going to look into it. Right now it shows no jobs created, but we're going to find out, is this impacting businesses that might otherwise not been able to stay afloat.

LEVS: Perfect example of what we're looking.

HARRIS: And thereby saving a job.

LEVS: I mean you can see what's going on here, Tony. We're picking up all these examples. And what you see here at the stimulus desk behind me is just a handful of what we've got going -- of our global resources.

And, in fact, what we're going to do now is end on the big number. We've got a big board that is tracking for you -- you like this, Tony. You're loving this.

HARRIS: I do. I do.

LEVS: The billions of dollars that CNN is following at the stimulus desk, where has your public money gone when it comes to these projects? That's your favorite number of the day, Tony, isn't it? $1.754 billion so far and counting every minute.

HARRIS: I just can't even begin to read that number.

LEVS: Check it out. Check it out.

HARRIS: That's in -- it's like a tote (ph) board.

Josh, appreciate it.

LEVS: You got it.

HARRIS: And the other point is, it's not just whether the program has created jobs, it's also about whether or not the program has saved jobs, correct?

LEVS: Well, let me say two things about that.

HARRIS: Yes.

LEVS: First of all, yes, save jobs. But also, keep in mind, when we hear the word jobs as a buzz word. A job is sometimes two weeks.

HARRIS: Yes.

LEVS: A job is sometimes a week.

HARRIS: That's a great point to make.

LEVS: It's not what you think of as solving the unemployment crisis that exists for so many millions of Americans. But that's something we're looking into here and updating they're updating all the time at cnn.com/stimulus, how many jobs were created, but how long did they last, as well.

HARRIS: Right.

LEVS: It's a key point. We're going to keep making it all week.

HARRIS: Yes. Josh, thank you, sir.

LEVS: You got it.

HARRIS: All this week, CNN is tracking the stimulus plan and its money. We want to hear from you, of course. Are you for or against the stimulus? Here's a few of your responses from my blog page.

Let's start with Laura who writes, "I am for economic stimulus spending for people, individuals and families. Stop throwing money at corporations that just give it to their CEOs or put it in the bank."

And Jerry says, "our tax money has been wasted both up and down the line. If you want businesses to be kick-started, put the money in the hands of the American people directly."

Dan says, "government spending our money wisely is a oxymoron in its truest form."

If you would, please send us your thoughts. Just log on to cnn.com/tony.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK. Let's get you caught up on our top stories now.

So far, crews have found no survivors from that plane crash in the Mediterranean Sea today. Ninety people were on board the passenger jet when it went down shortly after takeoff. It was headed from Beirut to Ethiopia's capital. Lebanon's president says that there is no indication it was a terrorist attack.

President Obama is seeking to increase aid to middle class families. He is meeting with a task force today to discuss a number of initiatives. Included is a plan to double the child care tax credit for families making less than $85,000 a year.

Oh, that is good, good stuff. The Who Dats. How good is this for New Orleans? Man. Shouting it out on Bourbon Street after the big win. For the first time in franchise history, New Orleans, the Saints, going to the Super take those pictures full, please going to the Super Bowl. Who Dats. The Saints will face the Indianapolis Colts. And their quarterback, Peyton Manning, a New Orleanian in (INAUDIBLE). Good, good stuff.

All right. It the housing market feeling any effects of the stimulus plan? We are looking at the latest numbers with Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: We are tracking your stimulus dollars all week long, and we're calling it "The Stimulus Project." One big use of taxpayer money was for the first time home buyer tax credit. We know it gave the housing market a real kick, at least it did until December. But a new report shows home sales fell off a cliff in the final month of 2009. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange with details.

Susan, what happened?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, a sense of urgency went away, Tony. You know, there was a big surge into the housing market in October and November. Everybody trying to capitalize on this tax credit. And it was extended just before it was set to expire.

So we knew there was going to be a fall in existing home sales. The broadest part of the housing market. We just didn't expect this kind of plunge. Nearly 17 percent in December. We're looking at a fall in the single digits. It's actually the biggest drop in more than 40 years.

You know -- and it really speaks to the bigger question, not only for the housing market, but for the economy as a whole. You know, there will be a time when these extraordinary programs go away.

HARRIS: Absolutely.

LISOVICZ: What will happen to the housing market that the extension of the tax credit now goes to the end of April and the Federal Reserve, which is really trying to keep a lid on -- on mortgages, that ends at the end of March, Tony.

HARRIS: Well, it depends on jobs, right? If you've got a job, maybe you can buy a home. But why aren't we seeing a bigger reaction to all of this on Wall Street?

LISOVICZ: Well, it was certainly an unpleasant surprise. But then -- well, we had a few unpleasant surprises last week. And we saw the last week for the -- the worst week, I should say, in the stock market since last March, which was the lows of the bear market.

But if you're looking for the glass is half full...

HARRIS: Yes.

LISOVICZ: In that housing report, there are some -- and, come on, we can't expect the housing market to all of a sudden be healthy. Sales rose 5 percent for all of the calendar year 2009, and rose from December to December. That was the first annual gain we've seen since 2005. And prices firmed.

HARRIS: Nice.

LISOVICZ: The median price rose 1.5 percent from December 2008, OK. I mean it's still low, but it's going in the right direction. And, you're right, I mean the housing recovery, like everything else, will depend on jobs.

As for what's also helping the market today, there is a renewed sense that Ben Bernanke will be able to keep his job. We're talking about jobs in general, but his job specifically. So we're seeing the Dow, the Nasdaq, the S&P 500 all up about a half a percent or better.

Tony.

HARRIS: Terrific stuff. Susan, appreciate it. Thank you.

LISOVICZ: Thank you.

HARRIS: $5 billion. That's how much money the stimulus bill set aside to make low-income homes more energy-efficient. But the program has gotten off to a slow start. Stephanie Elam is in the cnnmoney.com newsroom in New York.

Stephanie, this was supposed to be a win-win for everyone involved. What's going on here?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNNMONEY.COM: Yes, that's right, Tony. The Obama administration said weatherizing home would save people money by cutting their utility bills. Well, at the same time, it would create thousands of jobs for people doing the work. We're talking about everything from energy audits, to caulking, insulation and other improvements. But it's been really slow-going.

Let's give you a couple of examples of this. Texas. They're eligible for about $327 million to weatherize 56,000 homes by March of 2012. Yet as of December 31st, a paltry 47 homes, that's it, that's all that have been completed.

Now the numbers are a little bit better in Georgia. That state eligible for about $125 million, with a goal of winterizing 13,000 homes by March of 2012. Six hundred and thirty-three have been completed so far.

And, Tony, while we're taking a look at just these two states, this is pretty much the story across the country.

HARRIS: So what's the problem? Why's it taking so long to get the work done?

ELAM: Well, one of the main problems is just the sheer amount of money that the states are dealing with. Before the stimulus, weatherization programs were just a small piece of the budget. Used to be $6 million in Texas. Now it's 50 times as much. So that's going to change things a bit. States say they've had to take a step back and create a plan for how to handle all that money.

Also, the stimulus fund had some very specific requirements, like how to pay workers. State officials say they had to set up training academies to make sure everyone knew the rules. Needless to say, all of these changes, everything that's going on here, fodder for critics. One nonprofit watchdog group called the weatherization program the quote, "the perfect storm of wasteful spending," saying it's complicated, inefficient, and lacks enough oversight.

But state officials we spoke with are confident the pace will substantially ramp up now that a lot of the growing pains have been addressed. Texas told us more than 2,000 home projects are already in progress. And Georgia says about 500 homes a month will be winterized starting in February.

The federal government is also holding back half of each state's funding until at least 30 percent of the homes they've targeted are done. So that's probably going to be another powerful motivator. Of course, Tony, we'll be keep our eyes on the story. HARRIS: Yes. I don't see the states giving the money back. Stephanie, appreciate it. Thank you.

ELAM: Sure.

HARRIS: Putting the stimulus project into perspective, our chief business correspondent Ali Velshi is here next.

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HARRIS: You know what, Roger, let's come to the two-shot. I want to talk to Ali here for a second, OK, because were we've got the stimulus project going, right, now going on all week.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All week.

HARRIS: And we're talking about $787 billion here.

VELSHI: Yes.

HARRIS: And we've got polling here. I'm just going to do a little bit of this. Throw up the polling. The most recent CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll. Only 36 percent say the stimulus projects will benefit the economy, 63 percent say the projects are for political reasons and will have no economic benefit. Why -- why such a dim view of Americans of the stimulus project?

VELSHI: Well, part of it is because it's an either-or question. They can have political benefit and they can help the economy.

HARRIS: Yes. Yes.

VELSHI: What we do know from the last year is the White House hasn't done as fantastic a job at conveying why they're doing it. So what you saw in the president's speech on Friday, it was supposed to be about jobs in Elyria, Ohio.

HARRIS: Yes.

VELSHI: Did it not sound to you like candidate Obama?

HARRIS: He did. He did.

VELSHI: He was pumped up. He was back in the gig of saying, this is how we're going to change the world.

Now, people are angry with government intervention generally.

HARRIS: Yes.

VELSHI: Some of it's the stimulus, which is $787 billion. Some of it is health care. Some of it is TARP, which is the money that went to banks.

HARRIS: Right.

VELSHI: I find when I talk to people, they don't necessarily distinguish, I'm mad about stimulus, I'm mad about the 787, I'm mad about all of this money that's been sunk into the system and I haven't yet seen the benefit to me.

HARRIS: What is your take on this? I mean because my problem here is that I -- it's difficult to project where we would be.

VELSHI: More than difficult. It's impossible.

HARRIS: Yes.

VELSHI: I've spoken to some economists, in fact one, Lachman Achuthan, who I think you've spoken to, all they do is track economic cycles. And he said, this recession would have happened regardless of what happened to precipitate it.

HARRIS: Yes. Yes.

VELSHI: And it would have ended regardless of what happened to get us out of it.

HARRIS: Yes. Yes.

VELSHI: So we don't really know whether it would have been the question. We need to find out this week is, do we think it would have been worse if stimulus wasn't in there?

HARRIS: Right. Right.

VELSHI: But what are the long-term costs? Will it get us more jobs in the long term and what's it going to do to our taxes, because it increases debt.

HARRIS: Yes.

VELSHI: A lot of questions, and we are on this 17 hours a day.

HARRIS: OK.

VELSHI: All right?

HARRIS: In just a couple of minutes, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

He is the ultimate survivor. Eleven days after a hotel fell down on top of him. Look at these pictures. A Haitian man finally sees daylight again.

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HARRIS: This story. Boy, he was there. Eleven days, pinned under a slab concrete that used to be a piece of a hotel. Eleven days after Haiti's earthquake, a man scrapes and wiggles (ph) himself to freedom with barely a bruise. CNN's Hala Gorani from Port-au-Prince.

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HALA GORANI, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): It was the survival story rescuers called a miracle. Wisman (ph) John Pierre (ph) pulled out alive from the rubble of a building after being trapped for almost 12 days. And this is Wisman today in a French hospital.

"Were you afraid that nobody would find you," I asked? "No. No, never," he replies. Still weak, but overall healthy.

This is a family story. Wisman's brother, Ensu (ph), visits him in the hospital. He never lost hope. He got the attention of rescuers when he heard his brother cry out for help.

From the hospital, we offer Ensu a ride back to his house, an underground shack. He moved here with his wife and four children when the quake destroyed their home. They share this space with cousins and other family members. There's no electricity. We use flashlights in the tiny living area.

In the hallway, we show the family tape of Wisman's rescue. Ensu is seeing this for the first time. His wife cries. "I thought he was dead," she says.

But after the dramatic rescue, the good news story of Wisman's survival against the odds comes the grim reality of what lies next, of what the future holds. "I have no hope," Ensu says. "You want to leave? Where to," I ask? "To anywhere but here."

Wisman will come to live here after he is discharged from hospital in a few days. He flirted with death under ground for 12 days. And when he comes out, it's in an underground shack that he and his family will try to rebuild their lives.

Hala Gorani, CNN, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: With barely a scratch. Hard to believe.

CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Ali Velshi.