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Waiting on Jobs Recovery; Teachers Out of a Job; Muslim Myth About President Obama Persists; New Credit Card Rules; Ultimate Grilled Cheese Sandwich; What's Hot
Aired August 20, 2010 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And hello again, everyone. I'm Tony Harris.
Top of the hour in the CNN NEWSROOM, where anything can happen. Here are some of the people behind today's top stories.
Where are the jobs? The bad numbers keep coming and the pain keeps growing.
And rebuilding after Katrina. For some, it is a decision that could tear a family apart.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't go back there. I can't do that again. This is the major battle. This is the one time he's not budging.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's my home, man.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: You're online right now, and we are, too. Ines Ferre is following what's hot -- Ines.
INES FERRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, on Twitter, on Google, actress Jennifer Aniston under fire for using the R-word.
Also, check this out. first came the Snuggies, now these blankets. We'll tell you all about it -- Tony.
HARRIS: All right, Ines. Appreciate it.
Let's get started with the lead story.
The economy has been growing all year. Slowly, but growth is growth, right? And it has been creating new jobs, just not enough to put a significant dent in a stubbornly high unemployment rate. The latest numbers suggest a double-dip recession is possible.
Let's talk to our chief business correspondent, Ali Velshi. He is in New York.
Ali, is it possible, a double dip? ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I certainly am hearing more people talk about it. And as you and I have discussed, Tony, over the years, recessions really are impacted by how people feel. If people feel there is a recession, they decide to stop spending and you don't see the recovery.
Now, the thing we look at on a weekly basis are these initial job claims that we see. We saw those numbers come out last week -- this week for last week, 500,000 people going to the unemployment office, phoning or going online to claim for benefits for the first time. That's the highest it's been since November of last year.
If you take the four-week moving average, which is how we sort of even it out to make sure there are no anomalies, 482,000. That's still as high as it's been since December last year.
So why are we seeing these kind of numbers? Why is it so stubborn? That's what's leading a lot of people, Tony, to think about the concept of a double-dip recession.
HARRIS: Ali, you know, when we talk about this recession, we're talking about, what, about eight million jobs lost since it started?
VELSHI: Yes, that's right.
HARRIS: And isn't the reality here that some of these jobs simply aren't going to come back? Which jobs come back, which won't come back, we may not know, but --
VELSHI: Well, that's the science of the whole thing, which ones are coming back. And if we thought we had a recipe for that, what would happen is people would feel a little more secure and they'd spend a little bit.
I want to show you this. I don't know if we've got a graphic of it, but this is the danger.
You see what happens is, you have this recession, you go down. That's all the way down. And then you go up again. And then see where we are, kind of in the middle there? We could continue to go up, or if people are worried about what you just said, where are the jobs going to be, we could start going down again, and that's what you call a double-dip recession.
The beauty is, eventually you do emerge from it, but this is where we might be. And if you and other people who are watching us think we're here, this becomes something where you say maybe I'm not going to buy that car or that fridge or the new house.
HARRIS: Absolutely. That's the confidence game.
VELSHI: It's a sentiment issue right now. You know, we're worried about debt in Europe, we're worried about what you just said. Most importantly, jobs here.
HARRIS: Right. Right. Has the United States' economy ever experienced a double-dip recession?
VELSHI: Yes, some people think so. In 1980 and 1981, the official arbiters of recessions, the National Bureau of Economic Research, says, in fact, those were two separate recessions with a recovery in the middle. But a lot of economists think it was a double-dip recession. So the issue is, were they two separate recessions and this was just longer in here, or not? But technically, we haven't had a double-dip recession in the United States.
HARRIS: Yes.
He is our chief business correspondent, Ali Velshi. He's also host of CNN NEWSROOM, top of the hour, 1:00 p.m. Eastern.
VELSHI: And --
HARRIS: Yes?
VELSHI: -- I'm brought to you today by the letter W.
(LAUGHTER)
HARRIS: Good stuff. See you next hour, Ali. Thank you.
VELSHI: All right.
HARRIS: More on jobs, on again, off again. Furloughs for state workers resume today in California.
Close to 150,000 people are forced to take three unpaid Fridays a month off and what amounts to a 14 percent pay cut. This week, California's Supreme Court allowed furloughs to resume until a hearing next month. Governor Schwarzenegger says he has no choice on the furloughs because the legislature hasn't passed a budget.
I talked with a union leader last hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE BLANNING, PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS IN CALIFORNIA GOVERNMENT: The furloughs are there for pressure. If you cut people's pay, then you do put pressure on them to try to reach agreements. I think that's what the governor has in mind. It's not working, but I think that's what's basically behind the furloughs.
The governor has also tried to put all state employees on minimum wage, and the state comptroller, John Chiang, refused to do that, and the courts thus far have stopped him. So he's doing various pressure tactics to try to get unions to agree to his wish list at the bargaining table.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: The economic downturn is affecting state budgets across the country.
Josh Levs takes a look at how the nation's schools are paying a big price here -- Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are paying a really big price, Tony. And, you know, we have been talking for a while about the ways that schools are really having to change this year. And now that more and more kids are going back to school, it's interesting to stop and take a look at some of the new conditions that they are dealing with right now.
We're going to go to a map. I'm going to show you Google Earth right here, because I want to zoom in on a few examples of cities that have had to make big changes.
You know, we keep hearing about the education crisis in California. Take a look at what's going on.
We're going to zoom in into the Modesto area. There's a school district there that's called Sylvan Union Schools. We're reporting this today on CNNMoney.com.
Check this out. They now have up to 34 students in that area per kindergarten class. That's 12 more than average. But educators there saying that's what they had to do in order to make sure they could even keep teachers and enough students at the school at all.
Let's go to the next one here, which is Queen Creek, Arizona. And it's just outside Phoenix.
You know what they're doing, Tony? This is unusual. They're charging now for full-day kindergarten. You want your kid to go to a full day of kindergarten? Two hundred dollar fee for kindergarten.
They're saying that's keeping a lot of people in school, keeping teachers there. Many people instead are choosing the half day, which is free. But a lot of people have never heard of paying for a full day of kindergarten.
One more example I want to show you here. St. Louis, Missouri area, there's a school district called Bayless in this area. And take a look at what they're doing here. They have actually ended their bus service.
And these are just three examples of the way the school districts around this country have had to make some serious changes in order to keep operating. And this is even with something that Congress did just the other day.
HARRIS: Right. Right.
LEVS: I think there's some video here of this. But the idea here is that they have had to make some changes even with Congress going to work here.
What Congress did just the other day, they provided basically $10 billion more, which includes money to prevent layoffs, and they're saying that could keep 140,000 educators working. That said, Tony, we could still be 135,000 teachers lower this year than last year.
HARRIS: Well, OK. So we're talking a bit about stimulus money here.
What about stimulus dollars? Wasn't that supposed to keep the schools afloat, or is this a case of without the stimulus dollars, things might be even worse?
LEVS: It was supposed to do that, and it did help last year. And what's happened is a lot of that stimulus money dried up. And unfortunately, the stimulus didn't end up being a bridge to a better place when schools have enough money.
It provided a bunch of money for a year to keep a lot of teachers working, in some cases more. Now there is this fight for more stimulus money in Race to the Top. But the idea here, big picture, is that that money has largely dried up, and schools now are searching for ways to scrap for pennies.
HARRIS: All right, Josh. Appreciate it. Thank you, sir.
LEVS: You got it.
HARRIS: Filling in the blanks today on the arrest of an Arizona prison escapee and his alleged accomplice.
John McCluskey and Casslyn Welch taken into custody at an Arizona campsite without a fight. Both make an initial court appearance in about two hours.
A U.S. marshal tells CNN Welch had agreed to be an informant for law enforcement, but never followed through. He says McCluskey and Welch have ties to a white supremacist group. McCluskey broke out of prison 21 days ago. An alert forest ranger linked his car to a couple killed in New Mexico.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHERIFF JOSEPH DEDMAN, JR., APACHE COUNTY, ARIZONA: He is a true hero. He made that contact, he was vigilant about it. He was out there doing his job. When he had seen these two fugitives, that's when he tipped the sheriff's office that day.
The two fugitives are out there at Galbadon (ph) Park, so I congratulate the forest service officer for being vigilant out there on behalf of our community.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: And are you ready for this? Authorities say McCluskey expressed regret that he hadn't killed the ranger.
The British government is urging Libya not to celebrate the first anniversary of the Lockerbie bomber's release. It's been a year since he was set free from a Scottish prison after doctors said he only had three months to live.
Last hour, U.S. Senator Robert Menendez told families of the victims his release sends a message to terrorists.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ (D), NEW JERSEY: From the moment al- Megrahi's arrival in Libya was celebrated, every day that passes with him living the high life, and every new doubt that arises about his release gives hope to other terrorists. It signals to them that they too can have hands stained with American blood and get away with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: President Obama's faith, an open question for many Americans. We'll look at why the Muslim myth persists.
First, though, our "Random Moment" in 90 seconds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: So let's call this one the "Random Mooment of the Day."
(MOOING)
HARRIS: All right. A fifth-grader named Austin is the mooing champ at this year's Wisconsin State Fair. He out-mooed 80 other contestants who won a $1,000 prize and that lovely cow print outfit.
Austin is enjoying his new fame. His mom says he moos at the bank, he moos at the department store, he moos everywhere.
And the secret to a great moo? Thanks for the question. Austin says it has to come from the top of the throat.
Your "Random Moment," always utterly fascinating.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: New hopes today for a peace agreement in the Middle East. Israeli and Palestinian Authority leaders have agreed to meet with President Obama in Washington early next month to resume talks.
The announcement last hour from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: On behalf of the United States government, I've invited Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Abbas to meet on September 2nd in Washington, D.C., to relaunch direct negotiations to resolve all final status issues which we believe can be completed within one year.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: The peace talks stalled two years ago over Israel's three-week offensive in Gaza.
What does President Obama have to do to convince people he is not a Muslim? The president has repeatedly made it clear he is a committed Christian. Still, the Muslim myth persists.
Evangelical leader Franklin Graham, son of Billy Graham, has actually prayed with the president. Now listen to what he told our John King.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KING, HOST, "JOHN KING USA": The president came -- I believe it was back in April -- he came to see your father. You joined that meeting. He came to see you, as well. And my understanding is that you prayed with the president at that meeting back in April.
REV. FRANKLIN GRAHAM, SAMARITAN'S PURSE: Yes.
KING: Do you, sir, have any doubts about this president's Christian faith?
GRAHAM: Well, first of all, I think the president's problem is that he was born a Muslim. His father was a Muslim. The seed of Islam is passed through the father like the seed of Judaism is passed through the mother.
He was born a Muslim. His father gave him an Islamic name.
Now, it's obvious that the president has renounced the Prophet Mohammed, and he has renounced Islam, and he has accepted Jesus Christ. That's what he says he has done. I cannot say that he hasn't. So I just have to believe the president as what he has said.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Apparently, many Americans do not believe or have not heard what the president has said. A new poll shows one in five think he is a Muslim.
Our Tom Foreman reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I didn't become a Christian until many years later, when I moved to the south side of Chicago after college.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The poll showing a growing number of Americans believing Barack Obama is Muslim caught even the researchers off guard.
(on camera): Were you surprised by the results of this?
ALAN COOPERMAN, PEW RESEARCH CENTER: Yes, I was. And I -- but I was less surprised by the increase in the percentage of people who think Barack Obama is a Muslim than I was surprised to see that, even among his supporters, groups like Democrats or African-Americans, that the percentage who think he's a Christian has dropped, and it's dropped by substantial numbers.
FOREMAN (voice-over): So, why did that happen? The president has suggested his name, Muslim father and childhood in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, are part of the problem. And political realities have fanned the fire.
REVEREND JEREMIAH WRIGHT, TRINITY UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST: God (EXPLETIVE DELETED) America -- that's in the Bible -- for killing innocent people!
FOREMAN: First, in the heat of the campaign, even as he successfully courted Christian voters, candidate Obama suffered a very public break from his longtime Christian pastor, Jeremiah Wright, who was denounced by many as a radical.
Then there was his infamous comment about communities devastated by high unemployment --
OBAMA: And it's not surprising then that they get bitter, and they cling to their guns or religion.
FOREMAN: -- suggesting to some that he's never clung to religion and couldn't identify with anyone who has.
Second, as president he reached out to the Muslim world with visits to Egypt and Turkey.
OBAMA: As-Salamu 'Alaykum
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
FOREMAN: But pundits have suggested he's not been as aggressive about maintaining relations with older, more Christian allies.
(on camera): And, third, the vast majority of people who say the president is a Muslim told Pew they learned that through the media and the Internet. And YouTube is filled with video clips offering alleged proof.
(voice-over): A popular one comes from a campaign interview with ABC News, in which he seemingly confesses.
OBAMA: You're absolutely right that John McCain has not talked about my Muslim faith.
FOREMAN: Some sites stop it right there, but the whole clip reveals that's not what he meant at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Christian faith.
OBAMA: My Christian faith.
FOREMAN (on camera): Still, the president and his family are almost never seen anywhere near a church. And even though the White House is once again saying that he prays daily, talks with ministers, and takes his beliefs very seriously, as the president's political popularity drops, America's faith in his faith is falling too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: OK.
If almost 20 percent of Americans think the president is a Muslim, what else do 20 percent of Americans believe? Well, "The Washington Post" came up with a list.
Recent surveys show 20 percent think socialism is superior to capitalism. Twenty percent believe in the right of a state to secede from the union. Twenty percent believe intelligent beings from other planets have made contact with us Earthlings. And the same percentage, 20 percent of us, also admit to tinkling in the swimming pool.
So, five years after Hurricane Katrina, a lot of people are still dreaming of going back home to New Orleans. The dream is tearing some families apart.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWSBREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Five years after Hurricane Katrina, the anniversary of that terrible tragedy is just over one week from today. A lot of people gave up on their neighborhoods after the storm, packing up and leaving for good. But for some, the dream of returning lives on, and it is causing some friction for one New Orleans' family.
Here's CNN special correspondent Soledad O'Brien.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The storm is breaking at this hour. Hurricane Katrina, the monster storm, bearing down on New Orleans.
MAYOR RAY NAGIN (D), NEW ORLEANS: A mandatory evacuation order is hereby called for all of the parish of Orleans.
O'BRIEN (voice-over): Hurby and Lisa Oubre thought they would be gone two days. Two months later, they came back to what was the pristine middle class community of Pontchartrain Park..
HURBY OUBRE, HURRICANE KATRINA VICTIM: Driving in, it was dead quiet. You know, no birds, no insects, no dogs, no people. It was just the area is quiet here.
O'BRIEN (on camera): Did you think Pontchartrain Park was dead?
LISA OUBRE, HURRICANE KATRINA VICTIM: Absolutely. It looked dead, it smelled dead.
O'BRIEN (voice-over): With their neighborhood in ruins, the Oubres were divided over what to do next. Their future, uncertain.
L. OUBRE: I could not get on board with, you know, let's start thinking about how we're going to rebuild. I'm like, what? What?
H. OUBRE: I wasn't going to let it die. And I knew that. I always felt that. I always said I would go back.
O'BRIEN: Hurby Oubre's attachment to Pontchartrain Park runs deep. For him, rebuilding became a mission to give his family what he once had.
(on camera): Did you ever fight over the return or not to return?
L. OUBRE: We've fought terribly. Sometimes he would just get so aggravated, that he would just in his car and leave -- "I'm going back to New Orleans. I'm done." And then I would go to the window, "Oh, my God, he's gone."
O'BRIEN (voice-over): The Oubres had been living between two cities for five years.
H. OUBRE: I've been with the post office almost 20 years, and I would lose most of my seniority. Because of the seniority, they would then start September of '05.
And I had always planned on coming back to New Orleans. I said, I'm going back. That's where my home is. I want to go back. I always said that.
O'BRIEN: Already traumatized by the storm, families are falling apart over whether to return.
L. OUBRE: I can't go back there. I can't do that again. This is the major battle. This is the one time he's not budging.
H. OUBRE: That's my home, man. Get it. That's my spot.
O'BRIEN (voice-over): Is your marriage going to survive this?
H. OUBRE: Boy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Soledad O'Brien with us now from New York.
Good to see you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: And likewise. Thank you.
HARRIS: You know what? Out of all of the neighborhoods in New Orleans devastated by Katrina, how did you decide on this particular one? O'BRIEN: We were trying to answer the question, five years after the hurricane, so how is New Orleans doing? Is it back or is it not? And sometimes the answer to that is, well, where are you standing? Are you in the French Quarter, which looks great, or are you in some of these neighborhoods that are really struggling?
So, for us, Pontchartrain Park was a wonderful neighborhood to focus on because it has an incredible history, but also because it was a middle class African-American neighborhood. Ninety-three percent homeownership, and yet it was one of the last neighborhoods to start recovering. And we wanted to understand why.
It seems on paper it would have been one of the first neighborhoods to come back. And it wasn't.
Plus, Wendell Pierce -- you know him from "The Wire" -- he's (INAUDIBLE) now -- he's a local boy. He's a guy who is from Pontchatrain Park, and he sort of picked up the flag and started leading people who lived in Pontchartrain Park, or who had left Pontchartrain Park and now wanted to come back to figure out, how could they get back? Because they realized it was either between the developer doing it or them getting it together and doing it themselves.
And I think that's a story that every neighborhood in the city of New Orleans is trying to navigate and figure out.
HARRIS: I think you're right about that. Can't wait.
Soledad, appreciate it so much. Good to see you.
O'BRIEN: Thank you.
HARRIS: Let's tee this up for everyone so they don't miss it.
As you have just seen, there is no place like home. But for residents of abandoned New Orleans neighborhoods, going back seems like an unattainable dream.
Soledad O'Brien takes you on the journey to rebuild Pontchatrain Park in "New Orleans Rising." That's Saturday and Sunday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK. As the voice of several characters, including Mr. Burns and Smithers on "The Simpsons," he has made all of us laugh for decades. Now Harry Shearer is getting serious. His new documentary on Hurricane Katrina is what we're talking about on our "What Matters" segment. Shearer's film, "The Big Uneasy," takes aim at the Army Corps of Engineers and how the Corps built the levees that flooded and failed New Orleans almost five years ago.
Harry Shearer joins us to talk about his documentary.
Harry, great to see you. Thanks for the time. HARRY SHEARER, "THE BIG UNEASY": Thank you, sir.
HARRIS: Well, what was the impulse, Harry, for you to begin the work on this documentary?
SHEARER: It was a moment in time. I was watching President Obama's town hall meeting in New Orleans last October, and he said in passing that what happened to New Orleans was a natural disaster. And everybody who lives in New Orleans knows, thanks to two independent teams of investigators, that this was, in terms of one of the teams, the worst manmade engineering catastrophe since Chernobyl.
And I thought that story has to get out to the American public because we paid -- we as taxpayers paid for the failed system that failed New Orleans five years ago. And so the movie is about those two investigators, their journey from curiosity, why the official explanation didn't seem to measure up to the facts, to their reports, to the consequences for their lives. And a third person is involved in the film as well, a whistleblower from inside the Army Corps of Engineers.
HARRIS: The Army Corps of Engineers -- boy, the bull's eye right here in your film is placed on the Army Corps. For folks who haven't seen the film yet, and I hope will see the film after our conversation, shape up the indictment against the Army Corps.
SHEARER: Well, the Army Corps was tasked by Congress after Hurricane Betsy in the 1960s to build a system that would protect New Orleans from the maximum probable hurricane. And through a series of misjudgments and then errors, that system failed to protect New Orleans from a hurricane that was, you know, not unusually strong.
It was a strong hurricane, it did hurricane damage to the Mississippi Gulf Coast. But what damaged New Orleans was the failure of this system, which the Army Corps itself admitted in 2006 was a system in name only.
By the way, at the time of Katrina, that system had not yet been completed after 45 years.
HARRIS: You know, Harry, I get that the Army Corps in your film certainly didn't want to look backwards and didn't want to answer any questions that were reflective in nature. I guess I understand that sentiment. What do you think we gain from your film by looking back at what failed five years -- just about five years later?
SHEARER: Well, look, I mean, I think we all saw the images of people suffering. And the suffering is undeniable. More than 1,500 people died in this event. Most of them poor, sick and old.
But I think what people gain from seeing this film is a knowledge of why that suffering was made to happen. And our federal taxpayers' role in making that happen. And maybe a sense of how it could be prevented from happening again. I certainly hope so.
HARRIS: Yes. So we've got a statement from the Army Corps. And maybe you're aware of this statement. "The greater New Orleans' area has the best perimeter defense against hurricane storm surge in its history. Using sound engineering and science, best business practices, heavy team collaboration and partnership." It goes on. Suppose I want to know, have you revisited New Orleans to take a look at some of the work that's described in this statement?
SHEARER: We filmed the head of task force hope of the New Orleans district of the Army Corps of Engineers on the site of the construction of the lake-borne barrier, the major jewel of that project. So, yes, I have.
What I have to say, Tony, is that if you play side by side the reassuring statements from the Army Corps now with the reassuring statements before Katrina, they track. That's what the Corps does, they make reassuring statements. You have to look behind those statements to see what's been done, what the charges from this whistle blower are, how they've been supported by independent investigators, and what that means for the future of New Orleans and also for the future of other cities which are protected by Corps of Engineers' levees. Like, for example, Sacramento, California.
HARRIS: We want to get people to watch this. Where can they see it and when?
SHEARER: It's in motion picture theatres across America, one night only, August 30th, the fifth anniversary of the flood. It's called "The Big Uneasy" and it's in theatres near you.
HARRIS: Folks should take a look. It is really compelling work.
Harry, good to see you. Thank you.
SHEARER: You too. Thank you.
HARRIS: Have a good weekend.
To read more stories that matter to all of us, pick up the latest issue of "Essence" magazine on newsstands right now.
Planning to say charge it this weekend? A final round of new federal credit card rules kicking in. The CNN Money team will take a look for you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Let's get you to cnnmoney.com. CNN, of course, is your source for financial news. Here we go. Lead page, cnnmoney.com. And more of the terrific work of our Money team featured right here. "Most affordable cities to buy a house." What do you think? Maybe one of the cities in Nevada where the mortgage meltdown has really left a lot of inventory on the market? Maybe one of the cities in Florida? I don't think it's Atlanta, that's for sure. So cnnmoney.com.
Let's get you to the big board. The New York Stock Exchange, three hours into the trading day, and we're trending down, selling off 104 points. And the Nasdaq is down 14 points as well. We'll continue to follow these numbers for you throughout the day.
HARRIS: Got to tell you, if you're drowning in credit card debt right now and frustrated by unrelenting fees, guess what, we may have a little relief. It may be on the way for you. Stephanie Elam joining us from New York.
And, Stephanie, new rules really going into effect that will help us?
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Tony. This is all about protecting the consumer.
The government has made these efforts here to get the credit card industry to stop abuses of people out there. So this is the big news here. This Sunday, a whole batch of new rules are going to go into effect. Let me give you some of the highlights. And you're probably going to like to hear this.
Astronomical late fees, they're going to be history now. Those fees are now limited to $25. And they can't be more than your minimum payment either. One exception. If you've had another late payment in the past six months, the fee can be as much as $35. Another thing I need to point out here. You can only be charged one penalty fee per billing cycle, so they can't keep charging you a new late fee every day. And no more fees if you don't use your credit card often enough. Those inactivity fees, those are bye-bye.
HARRIS: Oh, yes.
ELAM: Also new -- that's good too. And also new here, if your interest rate is about to go up, the credit card company, they've got to tell you why. And if your rate has been raised since January of 2009, the bank has to go back and make sure the higher rate is justified, and they have to do this now every six months with every hike. So if the issue were decided appropriate, they must cut your APR within 45 days. But, Tony, obviously there's a catch here because the bank gets to decide this one and there's no magic formula for this, so that one may be a little bit more hard to see that one happening more often.
HARRIS: Yes.
ELAM: But, overall, this is going to really help the consumer.
HARRIS: Speaking of magic formulas, you know with all these protections, we know that people still get into credit card debt and have some real problems here. You know, any magic formula to help folks avoid the traps here?
ELAM: Besides putting your debit card or bank card in a block of ice? Besides that one?
HARRIS: Yes. Yes, there you go.
ELAM: Well, actually, there is a new plan that's coming out from MasterCard, and they've developed a new program to help you control your spending. It's called "In Control." Citigroup is the first to sign on to the program in the U.S. And it's been designed here to put you in charge of your spending limits. You can put a limit on some of your monthly purchases. Say if you have a hankering for, you know, special coffee drinks there or --
HARRIS: A hankering? A hankering?
ELAM: Am I to young for that word? I'm sorry.
There's that. Or if you have a need for a double cheeseburger or maybe the french fries, something like that. Or maybe it's just about controlling how much junior is spending in college there.
HARRIS: There you go.
ELAM: All of that, once you hit that limit, you'll get an alert. And in the beginning, you'll still be able to spend past that limit, but MasterCard told us that eventually you'll be able to set it up so that all future spending on those select items are banned for the rest of the month so that way you may still have money, but you won't spend it on things you don't say you need.
HARRIS: Got you. You're fitting to go now after that hankering?
ELAM: Hankering.
HARRIS: Have a great week.
ELAM: You're in the south, I'm not, leave me alone.
HARRIS: Yes.
ELAM: You too.
HARRIS: OK.
Here's something for your bucket list. It is something so simple yet so satisfying. You'll love this. We're going to show you how to make the perfect grilled cheese sandwich. And it is not, as you know, too late to change your lunch plans.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And checking our top stories now.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced today a new round of Middle East peace talks will resume in September. They will be the first since December of 2008.
The British government is asking Libya got to celebrate the anniversary of release of the convicted Lockerbie bomber. The bomber was released a year ago from a Scottish prison when doctors said he only had three months to live.
And state agencies are closed today in California. A mandatory furlough is underway. It effects about 150,000 state employees. You know, there is nothing better -- think about it -- than a nice grilled cheese sandwich. Eatocracy.cnn.com looking for ways to make the ultimate comfort food. Eatocracy's managing editor, Kat Kinsman, joining me from New York.
Kat, I am thinking about this grilled cheese sandwich now. The mouth is watering. I'll try to keep it together here.
KAT KINSMAN, MANAGING EDITOR, CNN'S EATOCRACY.COM: Are you having a hankering?
HARRIS: Yes, a hankering. And I'm fitting to go order one.
KINSMAN: Yes, you're hankering now, aren't you?
HARRIS: So, Kat, what prompted you and this quest for this great grilled cheese sandwich?
KINSMAN: Well, is it possible to even hear grilled cheese sandwich and not just want one immediately?
HARRIS: I'm with you.
KINSMAN: It's the perfect food. It's the perfect comfort food. It's crunchy and it's melty and you can dress it up in all kinds of different ways. So -- and I've always loved them. Who hasn't. It's just -- it's a great comfort thing from childhood. So when we were in Aspen at the Food and Wine Festival, I was looking through the catalog brochure and I was thinking, oh, there's a wine class. There's a, you know, something class. Wait, there's a seminar on grilled cheese? So we were able to sit down with Laura Werlin, who is -- they call her the cheese lady. She is the expert. So she sat down with us and told her method for the ultimate grilled cheese. You may or may not agree, but I sure do.
HARRIS: Uh-huh.
KINSMAN: So we have -- I think we have a little bit.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAURA WERLIN, AUTHOR/CHEESE EXPERT: A great grilled cheese sandwich.
I'm Laura Werlin and I'm the author of four books on cheese and cheese is my life.
Yes, yes, I am the cheese whiz. Yeah, cheese!
The key to making a great grilled cheese sandwich is to grate your cheese. Here's why. So when you grate the cheese, you are, in effect, almost pre-melting it. And the whole key is to get that cheese melted before your bread burns.
Now, the reason you butter the bread is because if you put it in the pan, the minute your bread hits the pan, the bread just soaks it up like a sponge, and I don't really like it that way. I like it evenly distributed on the bread.
And then nonstick is because the cheese, invariably, weeps out. And I'd rather have it get on my spatula and therefore in my mouth than in the sink where I'm scrubbing it until, you know -- until I have no pan left.
And then I might put a pickle or two on the sandwich, because, again, it kind of contrasts with the richness of the cheese. I love caramelized onions on grilled cheese sandwiches. And I love an egg on grilled cheese sandwiches, too. A fried egg.
See, all this talk about grilled cheese sandwiches makes you hungry.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Huh, I would never have thought of onions on the classic grilled cheese sandwich. So, Kat, how do you like your grilled cheese sandwich?
KINSMAN: Oh, hot sauce. Hot sauce and (INAUDIBLE) for a little bit of crunch.
HARRIS: Hot sauce?
KINSMAN: Hot sauce. Try it. Try it at lunch today.
Well, we actually put this question out to our viewers at Eatocracy. So you can go to eatocracy.cnn.com. We had answers, grape jelly, cream cheese. The world is your oyster or your grilled cheese.
HARRIS: I love it. All right, I'm going to order up a double stuffed, maybe triple stuffed grilled cheese sandwich. Man, this is going to work for me.
KINSMAN: Don't forget the pickle.
HARRIS: And don't forget the pickle.
KINSMAN: Yes.
HARRIS: No onions.
Kat, have a great weekend. Thank you. See you next week.
KINSMAN: Thanks. Have a delicious weekend.
HARRIS: Yes, I will. Thank you.
Still to come, if you're a single man having a tough time finding that special someone, have we got a story for you. It is on cnn.com, and it's definitely what's hot on the Internet today.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ELAM: Time now for "The Help Desk," where we get answers to your financial questions. Joining me this hour, Carmen Wong Ulrich. She's a personal finance author, and Ryan Mack, he's the president of Optimum Capital Management. Thanks for being here again today.
CARMEN WONG ULRICH, PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hi.
RYAN MACK, PRESIDENT, OPTIMUM CAPITAL MANAGEMENT: Thank you.
ELAM: All right, first question is coming from Brian. He writes, "I'm an international student who just graduated from a community college in Illinois and I'm transferring to a four-year institution this fall. My family cannot afford to pay my tuition and I couldn't find any scholarships. So I want to apply for private student loans. Are there any with a fixed interest rate and does the government give private loans to international students?"
That's a good question, Carmen.
ULRICH: That's a very interesting question, but, no, the U.S. government does not give federal student loans to international students, unless, of course, you're a naturalized citizen or have a green card. You can look up a site like finaid.org to look up those restrictions there.
However, you can borrow from a lot of borrowers out there for international loans for foreign students for student loans. So like Sallie Mae, for example, but you want to be really, really careful because private loans are so expensive. So make sure that you get a low, fixed interest rate. So as hard as you can, shop around to get that low fixed interest rate. And make sure you look at the terms. Don't borrow too much because you will owe a lot once you graduate.
ELAM: So, but he still should be able to go through and get into school this fall and be OK?
ULRICH: Yes, absolutely.
ELAM: All right, next question is an anonymous writer. And they write, "I haven't been able to make any credit card payments in over a year. What should I do to help my credit, and should I contact a debt consolidator?"
What's your take on debt consolidators?
MACK: Well, first of all, how come you haven't made your payments in over a year? You know, 35 percent of your FICO score is making your payments on time. So have you written you're your debt? Have you tried to negotiate your debt? How many times I've been on the phone helping individuals negotiates. Sometimes that fifth call to the individual who has a good day can actually lower your interest rate.
Debt consolidators, there's pluses and minus to both of them. The plus side is that Fair Isaac Corporation realizes that those individuals who go to debt consolidation companies pay their debt off more frequently than those who don't. However, on the other side, there is fees that cost in order to use these companies. So you might actually end up paying more dollars in that to use -- it's a service in order to get your debt consolidated. So make sure that you go to sites like fincalc.com and really do some good calculations to see, exactly, is it worth going. Most of the time it's not. You can do things yourself, negotiating, get those rates down and save a whole lot of money.
ELAM: You may have to do some more legwork on your own, but it will take you farther.
MACK: Exactly. Exactly.
ELAM: All right. Thanks very much Carmen and Ryan.
"The Help Desk" all about getting you answers. So send us an e- mail to cnnhelpdesk@cnn.com, or you can log on to cnn.com/helpdesk to see more of our financial solutions. And you can also pick up the latest issue of "Money" magazine. It's on newsstands now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: So we've got some time here. We're going to talk to Ines Ferre about what's hot online. Oh, I'm sorry, wrong camera. We're going to rip a little bit on Snuggies, right?
FERRE: Yes.
HARRIS: And then -- what are we leading with here?
FERRE: Let's lead with single, single, you're not alone. Oh, this is depressing if you're a single woman. All you single ladies out there, there are --
HARRIS: All you single ladies. All --
FERRE: All you single ladies. There's 100 single women for every 88 unmarried men. So basically you've got to either share 12 or --
HARRIS: Really?
FERRE: Or --
HARRIS: Really?
FERRE: Or, yes, I don't (ph) like (ph) it (ph).
HARRIS: For every 100 single women in the United States, there are 88 unmarried men.
FERRE: Yes. And that's according to the U.S. Census Bureau. And that --
HARRIS: That does not make me unhappy, as a matter of fact. But, anyway, go ahead. What were you saying now?
FERRE: And there's 43 percent of all Americans over the age of 18 are single. So there's a lot of single people out there, but there's more single women than men. HARRIS: Probably factors here, but you need to go to cnn.com to -- right? Is that on our page?
FERRE: Yes, it is.
HARRIS: OK. Beautiful.
FERRE: Yes.
HARRIS: OK.
FERRE: Completely.
And then you've got this other one, which is, you know, first it was the Snuggies. Now it's the Snazzy Napper.
HARRIS: Yes.
FERRE: And this is very cool if you're on a plane, though, and, you know, you want to completely be in the dark and you don't want people to see that you may be drooling or something when you're --
HARRIS: Nice. You did go there, didn't you, to the drool. OK. Yes.
FERRE: You know, the whole bit. So Jeanne Moos did a great piece on this, and you can check it out online as well, the Snazzy Napper.
HARRIS: OK, beautiful. Is that it? Just two items today?
FERRE: Yes, that's it.
HARRIS: That's it?
FERRE: Yes, unless you wanted more?
HARRIS: Yes, yes, that would have been nice. Have a good weekend.
FERRE: Yes, you too.
HARRIS: See you next week.
FERRE: Later.
HARRIS: Lady Ferre.
The war, winding down and the troops -- oh, we can't get enough of these scenes -- coming home.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: So with the Iraq War winding down, we are seeing more and more happy reunions at military bases across the country. We brought you this homecoming live yesterday. Members of the Army's Fourth Stryker Brigade returning to Washington's Fort Lewis. Then, last night, 200 members of Fort Benning's Third Infantry arrived back in Georgia. Look at that scene. their return coming early thanks to President Obama's call for an end to the U.S. combat mission in Iraq by the 1st of September. Great scene.
OK. It's time to go. CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with a man, he's in New York city, Ali Velshi. Have a great weekend.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Is it me, or is there always a little more gusto in your voice when you're leaving on a Friday afternoon, my friend? You have a great weekend.
HARRIS: Yes, and you're right. Have a great show, Ali.
VELSHI: All right, Tony.
