Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Rangel Ethics Probe; Bunning Backs Down; Victory Over the Taliban; Schools Getting Big Chunk of Stimulus; Working the Night Shift: EMS Techs in NYC

Aired March 03, 2010 - 11:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Remember, we want to hear from you. Just log on to CNN.com/Fredricka and share your comments.

And Tony Harris, he doesn't have a cough, so he's going to talk now.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, I know I've been gone for a couple of days. No need to get all choked up that I'm back, Fred. Take care, Fred.

It is Wednesday, the 3rd day of March. Washington gridlock in the CNN NEWSROOM spotlight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JIM BUNNING (R), KENTUCKY: We must get our debt problems under control, and there is no better time than now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: A Republican stands alone against debt, then chokes after his party gets wrapped as coldhearted. The Senate extends benefits for thousands of jobless Americans, but voters are still venting at Kentucky's Jim Bunning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's really unfortunate that Jim Bunning doesn't understand the plight that Kentuckians are in with the economy and being in the state that it's in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm unemployed also, no question about it. And that's the reason we need to stand up against this leviathan of a government that we have.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK, it is hot.

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

More on the jobless benefits story in just a couple of minute, but first another big story on Capitol Hill. Congressman Charlie Rangel is stepping down temporarily as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. That is the panel that is all about the nation's tax policies. The New York Democrat is accused of ethics violations.

Here's his statement this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. CHARLES RANGEL (D), NEW YORK: I have this morning sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi asking her to grant me a leave of absence until such time as the Ethics Committee completes its work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. A leave of absence. Let's talk about this.

CNN Congressional Correspondent Brianna Keilar live from Capitol Hill.

Brianna, a couple of questions for you. Describe, if you would, the pressure that has been building around Charlie Rangel, the pressure that seemingly has brought about this moment.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: For over a year now, Tony, Republicans have been pressuring Charles Rangel to step aside or to resign his chairmanship of this very powerful committee, but recently what we've seen is an increasing pressure coming from within his own party, from rank and file Democrats. And, in the last couple of days, we've seen some pressure coming from Democratic leaders in the House.

In fact, here is a statement from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. You heard Rangel say that he submitted a letter. She said in response, "Chairman Charlie Rangel has informed me of his request for a leave of absence from his duties and responsibilities as chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means. I will honor his request." She went on to say, "I commend Chairman Rangel for his decades of leadership on jobs, health care and the most significant economic issues of the day."

But why did this happen today? Well, today, Republicans were going to really force a pretty tough vote, calling for the ouster of Rangel. They were going to do this on the House floor. And what we saw was that as this Democratic support was waning, it was possible that Republicans could pick up enough Democrats to make this resolution go through.

Rangel has been in Congress for decades, Tony. He is very charismatic. He is considered someone who, at least for Democrats, can really get things done in this very powerful post as the head of the Ways and Means Committee, which deals with taxes, which deals with health care legislation, issues on the economy.

He's been hugely involved in a lot of Democratic legislative priorities here in the last year. But what you see going on and what really precipitated his announcement today was that moving closer to the November midterm elections, as Democrats become increasingly vulnerable, and looking back to when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi -- when Democrats took control of the House and she said this was going to be the most ethical Congress in history, you saw that the benefits of his chairmanship really started to be outweighed by the negatives of suspicion around him.

HARRIS: Well, Brianna, let me fire one more at you, because you mentioned that he has been around forever. I mean, look, everybody in this country has seen Charlie Rangel. He's on our air a lot, he's with Wolf Blitzer in "THE SITUATION ROOM" a lot, he's on all the Sunday morning talk shows.

What did he do wrong? Remind us of the issues around the Caribbean trips. And also remind us of what Charlie Rangel has done to square his handling of the rental property income not reported on parcels there in the Dominican Republic, because that sets low-hanging fruit that everybody can understand.

KEILAR: Yes. And this is -- there's really a list, Tony, so let's talk about what he's been formally admonished by the House Ethics Committee for first.

HARRIS: Terrific.

KEILAR: On Friday, the House Ethics Committee said that he broke the House gift rule because of trips that he took to the Caribbean, to Antigua in 2007 and to St. Maarten in 2008 for a business conference. Well, as it turns out, that was a trip that was sponsored in part by a corporation.

Now, there were other members of Congress who went on this trip who were not admonished. Rangel was admonished because documents showed that two of his staffers, including his then chief of staff, were aware that this was sponsored by corporations. So even though the committee said they couldn't prove that Rangel knew, they also said they couldn't prove he didn't and he was responsible for the behavior of his employees. So that's one.

But really, there are other issues that are much larger than this that have been unresolved up until this point. And one of them is what you mentioned about his rental villa in the Dominican Republic.

He failed to pay taxes on earnings that he got from renting out this property in the DR. And that's a big deal when you're the head of the tax-writing committee.

He got so much flak for this, and even Democrats will tell you, hello, what was he thinking? He really should have taken care of that.

There's also other issues that he failed to report. You know, hundreds of thousands of dollars of assets on financial disclosure forms that members of Congress have to submit. At this point, though, some of these major ones that I've just mentioned have not been resolved by the Ethics Committee, and so we're still waiting to see what they say about that -- Tony.

HARRIS: What was that picture? Let me see that picture again.

Are you familiar with this picture that we're showing? OK.

KEILAR: I'm sure that this is an unflattering picture --

HARRIS: Yes, it is.

KEILAR: -- of Charles Rangel that has been captured --

HARRIS: Well, there you go.

KEILAR: -- certainly. And this is something that certainly, you know, I guess some people have said sort of exemplifies some of their disdain for him, some of his critics, because a lot of the issues, as you know, Tony, deal with trips to the Caribbean, be it his rental villa --

(CROSSTALK)

HARRIS: Right. Hey, stay with me for just a second, Brianna, because I believe we've got some sound in from House Minority Leader John Boehner.

We do have that sound?

All right. Let's roll that and any comments you might have on the back side of this, Brianna.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), MINORITY LEADER: The Ethics Committee has spoken. The Ethics Committee has found that Mr. Rangel violated the rules of the House, and he's been admonished. As a long-time member of the House, he does not deserve to be a member of the Democrat leadership, nor as chairman of this committee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: So that's a push for him to step down completely, totally, and not this whole sort of temporary, I'll step down for a while until the Ethics Committee gets its work done.

KEILAR: Well, and that's one of the questions that came out of what Congressman Boehner said. Is this going to be enough, or might Republicans still push forward with this vote to say, hey, temporary step-down, no, that's not enough, we want you to get out of here? But the early read, Tony, is that Republicans may be happy with this, because when this resignation was read into the record on the House floor, the president pro tem, the person who's there up at the front of the House, said this resignation is accepted. So Republicans may read this as a resignation --

HARRIS: That's interesting wording. KEILAR: -- in the formal sense that it may be -- yes. And honestly, that's a little fuzzy. So that's something that we're still tracking down at this point.

HARRIS: This idea of "here, the resignation."

Brianna, good stuff. Appreciate it. Thank you.

Let's get to other big stories we're following for you.

The showdown is set in the Texas governor's race this morning. Incumbent Rick Perry will face former three-term Houston mayor Bill White in November. Perry advanced to the general election after defeating Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison in Tuesday's GOP primary. He painted her as a Washington insider.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON (R), TEXAS: A contested primary will naturally leave some hard feelings, but I ask my supporters tonight, all through Texas, to join me and unite behind Governor Perry. That is what will be best for all of us and for Texas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: And the FAA has sidelined an air traffic controller and a supervisor at New York's JFK airport. Tower recordings confirm a boy talked with pilots on February 17th, clearing some planes for takeoff. The FAA says that's unacceptable. The boy is believed to be the son of the controller.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JFK TOWER (CHILD): JetBlue 171, cleared for takeoff.

PILOT: Cleared for takeoff, JetBlue 171.

JFK TOWER: Let me see, AeroMexico 4030 Kennedy, position hold?

PILOT: Position hold, AeroMexico 4030.

JFK TOWER: This is what you get guys when the kids are out of school.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: How is that funny?

Money to extend unemployment benefits and pay for road projects will start flowing again. The Senate passed the $10 billion measure last night after Kentucky Republican Senator Jim Bunning gave in. Bunning had blocked the bill for days while trying to force Congress to find the money to pay for it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUNNING: If we cannot pay for a bill that all 100 senators support, how can we tell the American people with a straight face that we will ever pay for anything? That is what senators say they want, and that is what the American people want.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: All right. Let's get to this.

Senior Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash joining me with how this has all played out.

Dana, great to see you.

Bottom-line this for me, if you would. Why did Senator Bunning back down? Look, he was in a very dramatic way, mind you, making an argument that seems to have boxed Democrats in. You know, this argument that everything Dems touch adds to the deficit. So why did he back down?

DANA BASH, CNN SR. CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In the end, he backed down because Democrats gave him one vote last night and promised a couple in the coming weeks to pay for these benefits. The vote last night did not pass, and he knew that that was the case.

In fact, that is why although he was offered this deal several times before, he even admitted it, he said no because he said he knew that the Senate would not vote to pay for this. Many Democrats think that it's not necessary because it's emergency spending.

But, Tony, I know what you are getting at here, which is that he was so dug in, and it was very hard for his fellow Republicans. But it very much is in keeping with who Jim Bunning is.

I've got to tell you, just in talking to some of his colleagues in the hallways the past couple of days, they have shrugged their shoulders and said he's a lone wolf. And we saw in the past couple of days his storied character traits, I should say. The fact that he is -- you know, he has been mean-spirited.

In fact, I'll tell you one quick story. Pat Roberts of Kansas, the senator, he told us -- you know that Jim Bunning was, of course, a Hall of Fame pitcher.

HARRIS: Oh yes. Oh yes.

BASH: The story to explain how he is, that back when he was pitching, he was in a game and the Yankees figured out what the catcher's signs were to him. And he got so mad that he -- at pinpoint accuracy, he actually took the ball, and when Mickey Mantle tried to steal a base, he hit Mickey Mantle with the ball.

So that just gives you an indication of how he, you know, stands on his principle, I guess you'd say, but he also gets pretty angry about it. HARRIS: Is there -- one more -- there are about three or four questions I want to ask you. Maybe we can get you back again next hour.

What's happening for real folks now, now that at least the extension has passed? Is there some reapplying for benefits that has to happen here? I'm thinking COBRA, unemployment benefits.

BASH: No need to reapply that we know of. We talked to somebody at the Department of Labor just a short while ago who said that the best thing for people to do who might be affected, or might have been affected, is to call their local office. But bottom line is, don't expect any delays. The checks should be in the mail, so to speak.

And for the workers at the Department of Transportation, 2,000 of them who were furloughed, already last tight they were told to come back to work. They should be working already this morning.

HARRIS: That's awesome. OK.

Our senior congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, for us.

Dana, good to see you. Thank you.

BASH: Thank you.

HARRIS: The political drama overextending jobless benefits may have ended, but for many, the outrage lingers.

iReporter David Kronmiller has been unemployed more than a year. He says he is furious over the way Senator Bunning and Senator Jon Kyl spoke about unemployed people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID KRONMILLER, IREPORTER: It's insulting to me to hear people like Bunning and Kyl act as if those of us who are unemployed don't want to find work because we're on unemployment. We're not proud of being on unemployment, it's embarrassing. And we're terrified every night.

We lay next to our spouse trying to figure out how we're going to pay our bills the next month. So I don't know what's up with these two senators. I don't know why they dislike the American people so much that they're willing to hurt them in order to prove a point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Man, there is a lot of that out there. We are getting a lot of responses from you to our blog question asking what your thoughts are of Senator Bunning's actions.

Jeffrey Young says, "Jim Bunning is the perfect example of what is wrong with the U.S. Senate and the Senate's arcane rules."

From Mari D., "Senator Bunning is obviously not among those of us out of work. As an unemployed citizen, I speak for many who are struggling. Is he looking to add to the homeless population?"

Scott says, "The unemployed are a growing block of voters now representing 10 percent of the population."

And from Fred, "It is time the government got responsible and set some realistic priorities. Cut out the unnecessary spending and you can extend unemployment."

Still to come, Pakistan's takeover from the Taliban. The military showing off its victory.

Storms coast to coast. Rob Marciano, right there, is tracking that for us.

But first, let's get you to the New York Stock Exchange and take a look at the numbers here. We're in positive territory, up 52 points.

We're going to take a quick break. We're back in a moment.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Triple suicide bombings in Iraq killed 29 people. The attacks happened in the central city of Baqubah.

In the first blast, boy, a suicide car bomber targeted a government building. Two minutes later, a second car bomber struck nearby. The final suicide attacker detonated at a hospital where the wounded were being treated. This comes just day before Iraqi elections.

Pakistanis are celebrating a victory over the Taliban. The military taking over a city where al Qaeda was once headquartered.

Our Reza Sayah takes us there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A few months ago, singing and dancing in Pakistan's tribal region meant a death sentence by the Taliban. "No, no, we never sang," says Abdul Satar. "We couldn't even listen to songs on our cell phones."

But in a place called Damadola, hundreds danced and partied to mark a victory over the militants. Up until last month, it was the Taliban who were in charge here.

The Pakistani army took journalists on a tour of Damadola, a region in the district of Bajaur, a 30-minute drive through the mountains from Afghanistan. This was a militant nerve center, the army says, where fighters launched attacks across the border.

In 2006, a U.S. drone strike hit a building on this mountain. Al Qaeda's number two, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was the target. GEN. TARIQ KHAN, PAKISTANI ARMY: But we know that al Qaeda was here. And this ridge that you see behind you called the Mulasad (ph) Ridge, it housed al Qaeda headquarters.

SAYAH: In August, 2008, the army launched an offensive here, steamrolling its way towards Damadola. The militants were ready, holed up in a maze of more than 150 tunnels and caves.

(on camera): These tunnels aren't big. It's a tight fit, but there's just enough room to comfortably stand up and walk back and forth.

We've made it way down another tunnel into what looks like another sleeping area, about 10 sleeping bags lined up.

All right. And out we come. That's our little tour of the tunnels and the caves that they have built.

(voice-over): A year and a half of fierce fighting later, the last month focusing on Damadola, and the army says it's now in control. Leading 8,000 troops for the entire battle was Brigadier Abid Mumtaz. He survived. Seventy of his men did not.

BRIGADIER ABID MUMTAZ, PAKISTANI ARMY: I've missed bullets by some inches. A rocket has landed near me. I've lost a couple of people who were standing very near be.

SAYAH: In a nearby market, shuttered doors show many of the 250,000 refugees who fled the fighting are not back yet, maybe afraid the Taliban are waiting to come back too. But this time the militants won't come back, says the army, because the thousands of locals who remain are making sure they stay out.

The men dancing, all part of a local militia that has taken up arms against the Taliban. "No, no. They can't come back now," says Abdul Satar. "The Taliban have weapons, but we'll show them we have more."

Reza Sayah, CNN, Damadola, in Pakistan's tribal region.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: OK. If you are planning a trip overseas, you need to know how to protect yourself. Our Stephanie Elam joins us with "Top Tips." That is next.

See you in a minute, Stephanie.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

HARRIS: The disasters in Haiti and Chile are reminders you should take precautions when traveling abroad.

Our Stephanie Elam joins me with "Top Tips" on keeping yourself safe when visiting another country.

Stephanie, good to see you. Where should we start here?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You know what, Tony? This is really important, it's something that a lot of people don't think about.

Before you leave, make sure you register your travel plans with the State Department. They have an online service that makes it a lot easier now. You can just go to travelregistration.state.gov. You just click on "Create an Account" and fill out some basic personal information.

Leave an emergency contact for someone who's not traveling with you. And this is really important, because when an emergency happens like a natural disaster, like we've been seeing, the nearest U.S. embassy will be able to locate you. And your info, just in case you're worried about the privacy of it all, is not released to other people without you giving your consent -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. That's a good start.

But what other precautions can people take when traveling abroad?

ELAM: Well, how about this? How about a checklist of copies of things you should leave behind?

You want to leave copies of your passport, the information page on your passport, and your visas with family or friends that aren't coming with you. Other things you want to make copies of, airline tickets -- or at least your itinerary -- your driver's license, the rest of your planned itinerary while you're traveling, and make copies of the credit cards that you plan to take with you as well. So someone knows out there what you're using, what you have and how you plan to get around.

HARRIS: OK. And what kind of information should you get before you travel?

ELAM: You should definitely make it your business to get up to speed on any travel warnings or alerts that are issued from the State Department. These alerts or warnings cover everything from terrorist threats to the threat of a natural disaster.

So here's where to go for that information. On the Web, go to travel.state.gov. The number there, 888-407-4747. That's from within the United States.

And, of course, you want to make sure you are aware of all the rules you have to follow when you're in a different country. Go to travel.state.gov and look at country-specific information. You'll get the lowdown on crime rates, the condition of medical facilities, and what the road conditions may be like.

And Tony, just a personal note, on 9/11, on any given day an Elam is in the sky, after that day we've made it a rule that someone in the family needs to know where you are, because it becomes really imperative at that point. And it's something everyone should think about.

Well, from your family to ours. Good stuff. That's a good tip.

All right, Stephanie. Appreciate it. Thanks now.

ELAM: Thanks.

HARRIS: Stimulus money being used to make sure your child gets a good, healthy meal at school. We are tracking the money.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Can a new proposal from President Obama resuscitate the push for health care reform? We will go live to the White House for a preview of the plan straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So President Obama makes a last attempt at resuscitating health care reform. In a little more than two hours, the president outlines his new plan that incorporates some republican ideas. White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joining us live now.

Suzanne, great to see you. What do we expect to hear from the president today?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Tony, we expect about a 15-minute speech or so. And there are not going to be a lot of surprises, no bombshells I'm told. The president has been tinkering with the language a little bit here, but clearly what he's going to do is try to show that he's trying to reach out to some republican ideas when it comes to health care reform.

So, for instance, he is going to mention that he is embracing taking on fraudulent medical charges, something that came out of that bipartisan health care summit last Thursday at the White House. Also, new funding for resolving malpractice disputes, something else that was mentioned at that summit. Increasing doctors' Medicaid reimbursements, for example, as well as offering tax incentives to help cut down on doctors' visits. These are all the kinds of things that republicans have been hammering saying, cut down on the fraud, the abuse, the waste, these types of things.

So the president says, look, I've been listening, I'm going to go ahead and incorporate that in the health care legislation, the one at least I'm signing off on, so join us if you will. And democrats, let's push this, let's move this thing along. That's going to be the main message today.

HARRIS: And, of course, now republicans are going to say, thank you, Mr. President, for listening and signing on to many of our proposals. We can now join you now on health care reform, correct?

MALVEAUX: Oh, boy. In somebody's fantasy or dreams I'm sure, Tony.

(LAUGHTER)

That's not happening.

HARRIS: That's good.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: We've already been hearing from republicans who essentially fundamentally say this is not what they want. This is -- they consider this to be a massive -- you know, that $1 trillion expense here when it comes to health care reform. They say, do it smaller, piecemeal or start all over.

We've already heard from Mitch McConnell and here is how he put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), MINORITY LEADER: Americans don't know how else to say it. They don't want the massive bill. It's perfectly clear. They want common sense, bipartisan reforms that lower costs and they want us to refocus our energy on creating jobs and the economy. They have had enough of this year-long effort to get a win for the Democratic Party at any price to the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So that, of course, coming from the Senate minority leader. Is it the White House surprised by this? No, they're not surprised by this.

But the main message here is not so much to the republicans, it's to those moderate democrats. It's to those who are getting a little queasy, a little nervous about supporting this legislation. The president essentially trying to give them some political cover, if you will, and say, look, we have been open here, we've tried to be bipartisan, so let's move on this and let's at least try to get something done here.

HARRIS: In somebody's dream, but if not -- it's great to see you, thank you.

Probably good to remind you of the cost of health care in this country. A federal study released in January shows the U.S. spent an average of $7,681 per person on health care in 2008. It adds up to an eye-popping -- are you ready for this? -- there it is, it's on the screen already -- $2.3 trillion which was actually a slower rate of increased spending because of the recession.

Can you believe that figure? Just a reminder, we will have live coverage of President Obama's unveiling of his new health care package. That is scheduled to get under way at 1:45 Eastern time right here in the CNN NEWSROOM

Death toll rising in Chile four days after the earthquake. We have got the latest on the rescues, the aid, the looting.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: The official death toll from Chile's earthquake has jumped to 799. Our Ines Ferre is monitoring the situation from New York.

And, Ines, officials say the death toll is, even now, still likely to climb.

INES FERRE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, exactly, Tony. You know, search-and-rescue crews are still hard at work. They're digging into collapsed buildings, finding more bodies from Saturday's 8.8 magnitude quake.

And as that work continues, officials are also cracking down on looting and lawlessness in parts of central and southern Chile. A curfew was in effect until a short time ago. And also, Tony, aid agencies are saying that the threat of violence has slowed the flow of relief supplies, but that's expected to improve with more than 13,000 soldiers now dispatched to the affected areas.

HARRIS: So, Ines, I take from that that aid has been slow to reach some of these affected areas.

FERRE: Yes. That's one of the chief complaints that Chileans, many Chileans have. They have accused the government of being slow to respond and slow to ask for international aid immediately following the earthquake. Now, some residents say that they really feel like they have been abandoned.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has tried to address those concerns saying that the country has received offers of international assistance and she's promising that much of that needed aid will arrive.

HARRIS: Well, I tell you what, there was a way for folks who watch us to help and I know you've got some information on "IMPACT YOUR WORLD."

FERRE: Exactly, exactly. If people want to figure out how they can donate, just go to our website, CNN.com/impact. You'll see a list of international agencies working in the disaster zones. Plus, details on how you can text your donations -- Tony.

HARRIS: That's terrific. All right, Ines, see you next hour.

And checking our top stories now, in just about two hours President Obama will unveil his newest plan to overhaul health care. Democratic sources familiar with the proposal say it includes republican ideas on tort reform and health savings accounts.

Twenty-term democratic Congressman Charlie Rangel says he is temporarily stepping down as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. An ethics board is investigating, among other things, his failure to pay taxes on a home in the Dominican Republic. Rangel is saying he is stepping aside until that investigation is completed.

Do we have live pictures here from Capitol Hill? Terrific.

There you see House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and in the room other members of Congress hosting a memorial service for the late Congressman John Murtha. He died last month at age 77 after suffering complications from gallbladder surgery.

The first lady takes her fight against obesity to the nation's fattest state today. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK, the first lady in Mississippi today. The latest stop on her Let's Move campaign against childhood obesity; she will visit two schools. Stimulus money is being spent on ways to help trim the fat off menus in school cafeterias.

Josh Levs -- where are you, Josh? Break this down for us.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you know, Tony, we've talked about this a bunch of times, that schools are getting a lot more stimulus money than a lot of people realize. Because, you know, we hear about the stimulus, we hear about the shovel-ready projects, but the truth is nothing even comes close to what schools are getting. Education is getting so many jobs out of this. Let's show you some figures here.

First of all, the place where the first lady is going today, this Jackson Public School system, they have gotten $34 million out of that giant stimulus pile that passed last year. So that in and of itself is a big chunk, but not unusual given what we've been seeing at the desk for spending on education.

Now, one thing that caught our eye, given the first lady's project, is in this next figure for you. It's close to $200,000, 188 there for a bunch of things to improve what kids are eating during the day, including they're buying double-oven steamers. I wasn't familiar with these things either, but basically they replace those big, deep- fat fryers.

HARRIS: All right, OK.

LEVS: Instead of getting everything fried in disgusting gunk, you know, they're getting some healthier stuff. They're steaming food. So that's the basic idea. We've got some pictures here for you. So that's where they're spending some of that money.

Now this fits right in, as I was saying, with what the first lady has been talking about, including recently at the National Governors Association.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: We can't forget, for example, that 31 million of our children participate in federal school meal programs. So we don't want to be in the position where we take one step forward with parents making good decisions, but then we take two steps back when lunchtime rolls around at school and kids are faced with poor choices in the school cafeteria.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEVS: Now, Tony, I'll tell you, no one is doubting that it's good for kids to get healthier food. We've already been hearing from people today, a lot of them questioning is this an appropriate use of stimulus funds. And this is just another good example of what we look at at the desk.

It's a giant $862 billion project. We're breaking it down, looking at some specifics of what's getting money, and it's up to you all out there to decide what counts as something that stimulates the economy in a good way and something that's just a nice project that's not, you know, a stimulus.

HARRIS: Yes, and also the idea of saving jobs as well. A lot of these teachers in these districts would have been laid off otherwise because the states just don't have the revenues.

Now, for all those parents who are watching us right now, what can you do if you want to improve school lunches for your children?

LEVS: Right, because that's another thing. People hear about one school getting some money and they're like wait, what about my kids' school. Well guess what. I've got a few web pages for you you can go to. I'll do this really fast, I know we got to go. But let's just go to this computer right behind me. And I have our main page, CNN.com/stimulus, right behind me. I've also opened up a couple of web pages -- and we're seeing something else crazy.

So just forget it, just go to my graphic. Ignore that. I have posted links at my graphic right there. And this is what we have, it's up at the blog and Facebook and Twitter. So the blog is CNN.com/Josh and Facebook and Twitter are JoshLevsCNN. And what you have there are links to the federal program, Tony, in which you can try to get your kids' school in on this action, maybe get some federal support, maybe improve those school lunches.

HARRIS: And get the school districts to apply for some of this money. Come on.

LEVS: Yes. You've got to do some stuff to get it, but if they do, they might get federal funds from various piles and the whole project that Michelle Obama has going called Let's Move.

HARRIS: Get the grant writers to work here. All right, Josh, see you next hour. A new recall from a Japanese automaker involving brakes, and, no, it is not Toyota this time around.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK. So, Nissan is recalling more than half a million vehicles worldwide, so if you drive the Titan, Armada, and Quest as well as Infiniti's QX56, made since 2008, well those vehicles could experience brake failure if a pin comes loose. And the six models listed here -- do we have them? OK, made between 2005 and 2008, may have faulty fuel gauges. A detailed list is available to you at CNN.com.

You know, when it comes to the American automakers, the race for market share is on, especially after Toyota recalled 8 million vehicles. Well, the results are in. Stephanie Elam is with us.

Stephanie, we thought the problems for Toyota offered an opportunity for Detroit. Did it work out that way?

ELAM: Yes, Tony, from a business standpoint, it sure did. And Ford benefitted the most. It outsold GM for the first time in 12 years. Ford sales actually surged more than 40 percent in February. Sales of the Ford Fusion, a rival of Toyota's Camry, doubled. Sales to rental car companies were also a big factor.

GM, meanwhile, gained 12 percent. And as for Toyota, look at that, it posted a 9 percent sales drop.

HARRIS: Yes.

ELAM: And that's just last month, Tony, so they're feeling the pain.

HARRIS: Yes. As I recall, Ford fared particularly well during the Cash for Clunkers program, too.

So, how long are these recalls going to really impact Toyota? I mean, is this the beginning of kind of a downward slide here?

ELAM: Yes, you know, it's hard to say. But so far, Toyota says it hasn't lost a lot of current customers, it's first-time buyers that they are losing out on. So to combat that, they are pulling out all the stops, launching their biggest sales programs ever. Do I sound like a commercial? There's zero percent financing on its most popular vehicles and tow years of free scheduled maintenance. Incentives in the industry, that's totally normal. But it's not normal for Toyota. So, analysts say this shows Toyota is worried about the climate out there.

Meanwhile, Ford is raising its quarterly production targets, that's a sign of confidence. And there are signs of confidence other places like on Wall Street. The service sector grew last month at the fastest pace in two years. The Dow is up 46 points, up to 10,452, and the Nasdaq is up half a percent as well.

So not bad today, Mr. Harris.

HARRIS: Not bad. We're off of session highs a little bit, but not bad. We're still in positive territory. We'll take it for now.

ELAM: Indeed.

HARRIS: Plenty of room in the day to get some more work done.

Stephanie, good to see you. See you next hour. Thank you, lady.

So what about Ferrari, Porsche, BMW? These automakers unveiling luxury hybrids at the Geneva Auto Show. You can take a look by clicking on CNNMoney.com.

Here's what we're working on for the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM -- the high, high cost of cancer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRISCILLA MINTER, CANCER SURVIVOR: My whole income, everything that I've saved, everything that I thought really mattered that I can get to the next step, all this is gone. All this does not now exist because I've used that just to pay medical bills.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: A conversation with this amazing, amazing woman, Priscilla Minter. She's in remission from stage four colon cancer, but her medical bills just keep piling up. It's another one of our health care profiles, Americans asking Congress to, look, do something.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: I like it already. Working the night shift, a lot of Americans do it. In our newest "In Focus" series, we're looking at this slice of life that a lot of folks don't see.

Today, we go behind the scenes with EMS workers at Station 8 Bellevue in Manhattan. Their story from CNN photojournalist Jonathan O'Brien (ph).

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like being on midnights, because it's a more rounded tour. There's less supervision out here overall, so I have the ability to actually have more hands-on approach to my personnel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll pretty much coordinate the resources between fire, ambulance resources.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the life pack 12. It's a defibrillator and a heart monitor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The New York City Fire Department has four ambulance stations in the borough of Manhattan. On the midnight shift, I'm covering from 14th street up to basically 72nd street. East side to west side, river to river.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Things happen on the job, you know? You don't know how to explain that to the person that you're with or to your family.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Definitely interferes with your family life, your social life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have to start it from the beginning of the relationship. It depends on the person you're with.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything we get, you could get on any tour. I mean, you know, as far as a shooting or a stabbing or somebody in cardiac arrest. That's why 911 is the 24-hour service.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If I'm too, too tired or I become sick, I just -- I just bang out, because no need for me to bring it to work, you know? And I just find I have to be on point, you know, I have to get the things straight. If I'm tired and I'm sick, I'm not going to be able to think straight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know of a lot of other people who have had problems, you know, with insomnia and stuff like that from being up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The lack of sunlight definitely has an effect on you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My body seems to be very resilient.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is what I want to do, and this is where I'm going to stay. I'm not going to fight it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You kind of see the other side of people. The person who is a very quiet person you see at work every day, you see her at night, a completely different person outside. So it's interesting, sometimes entertaining, definitely a lifestyle.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Good stuff.