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A Bite Out of Apple; Chinese President Heads to Washington; Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords Continues to Improve; Syringes and Blood Vials Wash up in One Hawaii Beach

Aired January 18, 2011 - 09:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, guys. Good morning.

Nine a.m. on the East Coast, 6:00 a.m. out west.

Here are the stories that we are talking about this morning:

Sarah Palin says she's not sure if she'll run for president. But she is making one pledge. Where will -- well, she's definitely not going to sit down and shut up, that's what she's making clear. Palin dismissed critics who say her charged political rhetoric may have contributed to that deadly shootings in Tucson.

In New York, trial to begin for a TV executive accused of beheading his wife nearly two years ago. Her headless body was found in the offices of the network Bridges TV, designed for Muslims living in the U.S.

Oprah Winfrey raising eyebrows and it all happened on CNN's newest show, "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT." Winfrey says she considered suicide when she was 14 years old and pregnant. And saw the death of her newborn as a second chance at life.

(MUSIC)

PHILLIPS: But we begin with "Fortune" magazine calling him the Thomas Edison of our time, the Apple CEO just 28 in 1983 when he introduced to the world the McIntosh. Since then, it said that Steve Jobs killed the Walkman with the iPod and he resuscitated the music industry with iTunes and reinvented the phone with the iPhone. He's made some pretty popular computers, too.

But news today is that he's taking another medical leave of absence.

Stephanie Elam is joining us live from New York.

So, Stephanie, let's get to the effect of this in just a second. But, first, just a quick look at Jobs' two leave announcements. Interesting point that we'd like to make.

In 2009, he said, "I've decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June. I plan to remain involved in major strategic decisions. I look forward to seeing all of you this summer."

Now, here's what he says today. "I'll be involved in major strategic decisions for the company. I love Apple so much and hope to be back as soon as I can. In the meantime, my family and I would deeply appreciate respect for our privacy."

Now, Stephanie, it seems like there's a very different tone here.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I think that's what a lot of people are looking at. You know, when these messages come out, they're just not thrown together willy-nilly. You know, there's a lot of thought put into these messages to go out to the public, to let them know what is going on.

So, a lot of people are concerned about what this means for the direction of Apple as a company because he is such an inspirational leader and so much part of the fabric of Apple. You know, I grew up basically down the street, one town over from where Apple's headquarters are in California. This is a major deal for the people who work for this company.

Take a look what he's done and how he's been obsessed with the design of every product that comes out, how integral his input is to what happens there, a lot of people are concerned. So, with that said, we're probably going to see the stock actually take a bit of a hit today, maybe the next couple of days. It's already trading lower in Europe -- I can tell you that now. We are expecting it to open lower here in the United States.

But a lot of analysts are saying, this is probably just going to be a short-term hit and for those people who are looking at the stock long term, they've got a lot of good products in the pipeline coming in. It will have a good future and this may just be a good time for people to buy the stock. But overall the company itself will probably be fine here on this one, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And I know it's a lot of speculation because he leads such a private life, but he's saying he hopes to get back. And I think there's a lot of concern about him personally and professionally because he has done so much for so many devices and computers that everybody depends on. But, at the same time, you know, he has been a true force professionally for the people that work for him.

ELAM: Oh, there's no doubt about it. You know, when analysts look at Apple, they're saying, it's just not one going to be person who can do all the things that Steve Jobs does for Apple. It's going to take several people to do this. That's just there's no doubt about it.

The fact that he says he hopes to return, that he loves Apple, this change in tone, it does have a lot of people nervous what this means for Steve Jobs. There's a lot of speculation that he probably won't return. A lot of people are very concerned about his health right now.

Also, we've just seen the pictures, you know, when he would stand up there in his black, you know, mock turtleneck and jeans from before to when he does it now. He's, obviously, a lot slimmer. So, that has a lot of people concerned about what that means. In his absence, now, Tim Cook, will be taking over and he's the chief operating officer. He is the one who led the company right after Steve Jobs took his last leave of absence two years ago. He kept everything on time. A lot of people are hopeful that he'll be able to do the same thing.

They've got a strong executive team but it's just going to be different without Steve Jobs. No doubt about it.

PHILLIPS: Yes. All right. Well, it's a story we'll keep talking about, that's for sure. Stephanie, thanks so much.

Well, red and gold Chinese flags flying alongside the stars and stripes at Pennsylvania Avenue in D.C. China's president, Hu Jintao, arrives in Washington today, ahead of his meeting with President Obama. Two leaders are representing the world's largest economies.

A lot of attention is being paid to the balance of power. China's growth is surging up wards, easily topping 9 percent. And as we are fighting high unemployment and sluggish growth, well, we are talking about this even more.

President Hu lands in Washington this afternoon at 4:00 Eastern Time. He sits down to dinner with President Obama just a little after that.

But this isn't just a meal between leaders. So, let's make that clear. President Obama is meeting the banker. China is the biggest holder of U.S. debt. We're talking hundreds of billions of dollars.

And guess what? If you're paying taxes, you're footing interest on that debt.

Chief financial correspondent Ali Velshi is here to take a look at the good, the bad, the ugly, the positive, the scary.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: All I really wanted to do was one where you can put a banner at the bottom that saying who is Hu? But we'll get by that.

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: Who is Hu? Let's talk about he was affecting all of us.

VELSHI: Well, you know, the issue is: Is China's economy good for or bad for the U.S.? I think a lot of the rhetoric you hear out there is that this only gets bad. I want to give you the bad and the good. Let's go over to the wall --

PHILLIPS: OK.

VELSHI: -- and let me, first, show you what a lot of people will tell you is the bad. And by the way, it all depends on where you stand. There are a lot of companies that make money out of this and you might be invested in them through your 401(k).

The bottom line is the Yuan, the Chinese currency, is pegged to the U.S. dollars. It doesn't float like other currencies. A lot of people say that it is undervalued by 10 percent to 40 percent.

What does that mean? Well, it means that things that are made in China end up being cheaper than equivalent U.S. goods because you pay for them in this Yuan. You use your dollars to buy this Yuan, and it ends up being cheaper. So, that becomes uncompetitive for U.S. industries.

Now, here's another issue: hard work for little pay. Chinese workers end up earning -- manufacturing workers end earning the equivalent of about $1 a day. Now, the fact is that that is changing. The work force in China is changing. I'll tell you about that in a second.

But in China, like in America, there is a buy China movement. So, the idea is that if you manufacture, produce and sell things in China, you get certain tax incentives and that is making it unfavorable for American made goods to be sold in China, even though there is a growing consumer population there.

And what you mentioned a moment ago, Kyra, China is the banker of the world. China has - holds $938,000 in U.S. debt but they actually lent more to developing countries last year and the year before than the World Bank did.

Now, let's take a look at the good. That's the bad for the U.S. economy. There's actually a fair amount of good and I want to show you some of that.

First of all, China's economy is on a tear. It grew 9.6 percent in 2010, versus 2.4 percent for the U.S. economy. Why is that good? Because it's a good economy, they've got lots of money and they have money to buy things. So, we should be able to advantage of that by selling them more stuff.

Number two. China, as much as they buy a lot of Chinese stuff, they're also the third largest buyer of American goods. The biggest buyer of American goods is Canada, followed by Mexico. But China is the third and they are growing. So, there's a lot of opportunity there.

Number three, Chinese exports or exports to China, not from China. While we buy more from China than we give to them, the imports that they take in are up 12 times over the last 20 years. So, they've just kept on importing and importing and importing more.

Their labor force, I told you how little they earn. But the bottom line, the labor force is -- they're running out of people. They are manufacturing so much stuff that their labor force is tightening up and there's a growing middle class because of all these people who are getting better jobs. Growing middle class means people want to buy thing. Might they buy some of the things that Americans actually produce?

So, bottom line is it is a bit of a land of opportunity for American businesses. China is a place that is growing not just internally, Kyra. I'm going to come over back to you. But Chinese tourists, for instance, over the next 10 years, there will 100 million people outbound from China to places like the United States.

So, we can benefit from that, too. So, double-edged sword. It's difficult and it has been difficult, particularly for our manufacturing. But there's some opportunity.

PHILLIPS: Well, it's great to see that their economy is growing, but we want our economy to grow as well.

VELSHI: To grow (INAUDIBLE).

PHILLIPS: Right. We don't want them to be the big banker.

VELSHI: And that's why this currency issue seems to be central. A lot of people don't really want to talk about currencies, they are kind of boring, but that's what it is. If China lets its currency float against the U.S., it will balance out our trade relationship a little more, they'll buy more from us and we'll import a little less than from them, but we can all prosper at the same time.

PHILLIPS: Good perspective for us. Ali, thanks so much.

VELSHI: My pleasure.

PHILLIPS: All right. Well, the battle over health care reform is this week. House Republicans will vote on repealing the overhaul and even though that effort is ultimately doomed to fail, the White House is releasing new numbers to help win the support of a very skeptical public.

Here's a sneak peek of today's relief -- release, rather. Thanks to "The Washington Post." It's actually reporting this White House claim.

As many as 129 million Americans under the age of 65 stand to benefit from the governments guaranteed health care coverage. The reason? Those Americans have medical problems that would either drive up their insurance rates or prevent them from getting coverage altogether.

And here's a quick glance at how the health reform battle is likely to play out. The final debate in the House is set to get underway today. And then, tomorrow, a final House vote is scheduled. Even if the Republican majority in the House passes the repeal, the measure is almost certain to die in the Senate where Democrats remain in control. That's basic math, right?

Well, not according to one Tea Party lawmaker. He says today just begins all of the unraveling.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. STEVE KING (R), IOWA: No scenario that could be laid out by anyone to repeal Obamacare could be laid out without including this vote that we start to debate today and we'll vote on tomorrow to repeal it in the House. And, initially, there are 23 Democrats in the Senate that are up for re-election. Some of them know already that if they have a vote on repeal of Obamacare, they will vote to repeal it and I predict that if we can get a vote in the Senate, Obamacare will be repealed in the Senate and that will put the bill on the president's desk.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Now, just yesterday, King referred to the health care reforms as a malignant tumor. Today, he says he will abide by the bipartisan calls for more civility and may even sit among Democrats for the State of the Union address.

Well, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, doctors are saying that she might get out of the hospital in weeks, maybe even days, apparently making good progress since she was shot in the head 10 days ago. Her husband says that she's smiling, touching his face, and the family is looking for the rehab facility right now for the next step in her recovery.

And a man who was shot in the knee at that same event in Tucson is apologizing for shooting off his mouth. James Fuller went to a town hall meeting on Saturday and told a Tea Party leader, quote, "You're dead." Fuller released a statement through his girlfriend apologizing for that. He was arrested and sent for a mental health evaluation.

And we've also got some new developments in a serial killer case in Philly. Police think that they've got their man. They've locked up this homeless man that they think sexually assaulted and strangled at least three women. They say DNA test linked Antonio Rodriguez to the crimes. He's going to be in court today.

Now, freezing rain, sleet, snow -- the winter weather trifecta hitting much of the Northeast this morning, not to mention ice accumulations overnight for parts of Pennsylvania and the New York state. And it's not just the Northeast under the gun from severe weather.

Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is live in the severe weather center for -- with pretty stormy forecast, right?

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, I know. And, you know, this is a completely different type of storm that what we have been dealing with over and over again, particularly for the Northeast. You know, we've had a lot of snow, but now, we're dealing with some freezing rain and ice and that's making travel very hazardous.

The good news is, as the temperatures are going to be slowly warming up, in fact, already in places like Washington, D.C., as well as into Philadelphia, we start to see those temperatures begin to warm up. So, just rain there and drizzle now. But New York City still the freezing rain, 31 degrees around the cusp here, and Boston and Hartford are getting accumulating snow. A second system is behind it and so that's going to come in after your break and come in late tonight and early tomorrow to keep you in kind of an active wet pattern.

Now, I want to show you what this is doing at the airports at this time. Take a look at this, big time problems. We've got delays at LaGuardia and now, ground stop until 9:45, which means you can't take off from other airports to get into New York City there. San Francisco, same thing, ground stop until 7:00 local time. Newark delays about an hour and a half; and Philadelphia looking at ground delays of about an hour and a half. There have been, you know, maybe a dozen-ish or so cancellations out of the few of these airports because of the ice. So, make sure you do call ahead.

Now, what can we expect throughout the rest of the day today? Our low pressure storm system is going to be moving up the coast. You get into interior parts of like the lower Hudson River Valley and that's where we're going to be seeing the snow, as well as parts of Vermont, New Hampshire and into Maine. We're expecting those accumulations to be anywhere between probably five and 10 inches, but the big cities just got about an inch or so before you got that freezing rain and some of that rain as well.

Now, that second system is keeping foggy conditions all across parts of the Southeast. I just wanted to show you the tower cam from Atlanta to show you how foggy it is. And, really from Raleigh, Durham, down towards Atlanta, Nashville over to Dallas, everybody is dealing with this pea soup and that's going to be sticking around at least until tomorrow morning -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Apparently, we're just getting news. Do you watch live with "Regis and Kelly"?

JERAS: From time to time, I do.

PHILLIPS: OK. Well, this just in. Apparently, just now on his show, he is announcing that he's going to be leaving. He's going to be retiring, apparently, at the end of summer.

JERAS: Wow! That's huge!

PHILLIPS: The tweet action here is going crazy. Yes. He's been doing this obviously for decades. And he just announced he will be leaving. So, it will be to see what's going to happen, who will replace him, if anyone is going to replace him or it would be Kelly's show. Who knows?

JERAS: Maybe. Well, Kelly's husband fills in a lot, I know.

PHILLIPS: Ooh.

JERAS: Interesting thought.

PHILLIPS: Married couple doing the day time. I could see that. Yes.

JERAS: Perhaps.

PHILLIPS: Yes, that could be good! We'll follow the story. Breaking news!

All right. Regis is leaving the show at the end of the summer. We'll get more in our entertainment report. Camden, New Jersey -- it's a city that loses enough sleep already because of violent crime. Well, people there are about to lose even more sleep. One of America's most dangerous cities is about to lay of half of its police force.

And look what a lot of free time and a load of snow and ice has created in one Indianapolis neighborhood. The man who created this ice sculpture, well, never knew he had any talent.

(MUSIC - "Cold as Ice")

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PHILLIPS: As we head Cross Country this morning, our first stop, west of Honolulu, Hawaii, and something no vacationer wants to find. Medical waste washing ashore. For two days now, people have run across vials of blood and syringes, among other things. They've been traced to do a nearby landfill. Some of the beaches have remained closed.

And Duncannon, Pennsylvania, police say vandals knocked over 50 headstones at a local cemetery. Some broke, others frozen into the ground and can't be fixed until a thaw.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think a person has to be sick to do it. I mean, they had a cemetery that they probably have no thinking at all, I mean, to go through there and upset stones like that and push them off and break them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So true. And police are now estimating the damage, thousands of dollars.

Look what you'll find in a suburb of Indianapolis. A lawn full of ice sculptures, Greek gods, goddesses, even the winged horse, Pegasus. This is all Scott Hale's talent come to life. Talent that he says he found as an unemployed welder. A lot of ice and snow, a lot of free time on his hands, led to what could become a new career.

Well, it is a new day in Camden, New Jersey. Great day, a banner day, for criminals. Get this. Camden, across the river from Philly, America's second-most dangerous city last year, by the way. Take the national average for violent crimes, like murder and rape, multiple it by five, and you have it. Camden, New Jersey, in 2009.

It's one of the last cities that needs to lose police officers, right? Well, today, it lays off half of its police force. We're talking about 170 police officers. A great day for criminals, folks. Dozens of firefighters losing their jobs, too.

Life is tough enough in that poor and struggling city and, now, it just got tougher thanks to the city's gaping budget problems. But the mayor, Dana Redd says that, don't worry, quote, "we're still going to protect our residents. Public safety will remain our top concern. We'll shift our resources to be more efficient with what we have." End quote.

Well, we're talking about this with John Williamson. He's the president of Camden's Fraternal Order of Police. So, John, this has got to be devastating, not only for police officers, but firefighters as well. They're being laid off. What's going to happen in Camden, New Jersey?

JOHN WILLIAMSON, PRESIDENT, FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE, CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY (via telephone): Good morning. Today is a sad, sad day in the city of Camden and in the state of New Jersey. All of the residents in the city of Camden and in the surrounding municipalities, everyone needs to be concerned if, in fact, they go through with their plan by the end of the close of business today.

PHILLIPS: So, is it possible that the plan could not go through by the end of the day, John?

WILLIAMSON: Well, I don't see it not going through. They started as early as yesterday as collecting equipment from officers. Last night, I had a late night meeting with the mayor. It ran about, maybe three hours. We discussed a lot of the issues. But at the end of the meeting, it didn't culminate to the point where every officer would not be saved.

We're still looking at, you know, even if we could save a number of jobs, we're still looking at laying off close to a hundred people.

PHILLIPS: So, what's going to -- I mean, put this in perspective. Your crime rate is five times the national average. We're not just talking about petty crime. We're talking about serious crimes, like murder and rape. If you lose all of these officers, what do you see happening in Camden?

WILLIAMSON: I see the crime rate going up. I see pretty much the criminals having a free rein to do what they want.

PHILLIPS: Now, apparently, the mayor hired 50 officers in June to help fight the crime because it was so bad. What happened to the priority? Do you see mismanagement? Do you see -- what is your view of what happened here?

WILLIAMSON: Well, the 50 officers -- it actually was about 60, 64 officers, and they were hired between January and April of last year. And the officers, the 50 that you're talking about in June, graduated from the police academy and were going to be ready to go to the street.

Those officers were desperately needed, and I can't imagine or even think to where the priority went. But I do know that we're going to lose those 50 officers -- actually those 64 officers, and we're also going to lose officers into 1998, as far back as 1998.

PHILLIPS: Well, I don't see how cutting the public safety budget is going to help this city in any way economically, especially with regard to crime. John Williamson with the Fraternal Order of Police there in Camden, New Jersey. We will follow this story to the end of day and see what happens. John we appreciate you calling in. It's a concern not only for you and everybody there, but for us, too. We'll stay on the story. Thanks, John.

The proud papas, Sir Elton John and husband David Furnish, show off their new son Zachary. We've got the front page news and the back story, straight ahead.

(MUSIC - "Steppin' Out With My Baby")

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, we've all heard about Sir Elton John's new son. Now, we're getting our first glimpse of little Zachary, who's on the cover of the British magazine "OK," and also "US Weekly." Zachary was born Christmas Day by way of surrogate. Sir Elton John and husband David Furnish went the surrogacy route after failed attempts at adopting a child.

After weeks of awaiting the launch of "Piers Morgan Tonight," we now have ignition. In his debut show last night, CNN's Piers Morgan sat down with queen of American talk shows, Oprah Winfrey, asking the talk maven-turned-network television owner if she likes being famous.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OPRAH WINFREY, HOST, "THE OPRAH WINFREY SHOW": That is a good question. Provocative question. I'll give you credit for that.

PIERS MORGAN, CNN HOST, "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT": Thank you.

WINFREY: However, I'm not going to give you the answer that you want. And that is, you know, a "yes" or a "no," like, "Gee, I love being famous," or "No."

Fame comes with the mission and purpose. You know, you cannot define me or try to put me in a box, and you can't look at my life unless you look at the whole life. So I am a negro formally, born in 1954 in Mississippi at a time when it was an apartheid state.

And to be sitting here with you as your first guest in 2011 is a miracle that is beyond anything I could actually do for myself. So, there's something greater at work here. And the thing that's greater at work, the force that has -- and forces that have made this happen in my life, along with me working as hard as I have, it's bigger than I am, and fame is the vehicle from which I get to have this platform.

So, do I like that? I appreciate it. If I had been what I thought I was going to be, and that is a great fourth grade teacher, I would have also liked that.

Because at the core of me, I am a teacher, and I am happiest when I feel that people are getting something, learning something, enhancing themselves in a way that they never thought of before. That's really truly one of my favorite moments on television or in any experience, when I'm just one-on-one with a friend or somebody I don't even know, being able to share something with them, and they think, "I never thought of it. Gee!"

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, premier week for "Piers Morgan Tonight" continues with Howard Stern. That's tonight, 9:00 Eastern. And tomorrow, former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice joining Piers. Tune in all week.

Reading, writing, and racking up the bills. Welcome to the sky-high cost of college. There's help out there, but time's running out. We'll tell you about some deadlines for your financial lifeline.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

PHILLIPS: All right. It's the bottom of the hour. Let's go ahead and check some of the other stories on our radar.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords continues to improve less than two weeks after being shot in the head. Her doctors says that she could be released from the hospital in days to weeks.

President Obama taking a in the latest CNN Opinion Research poll. Fifty-three percent of those questioned approve of how he's handling his White House duties. That's a five-point improvement from last month and it's better than Bill Clinton's ratings at the same time in his presidency.

And the Detroit school system and a $325 million dollar hold. The city has a plan to close 44 schools by the summer. More schools would be closed in 2012. Some buildings would be renovated, others consolidated.

Well each year the cost goes higher and higher for higher education. And for many families loans and grants play a crucial part in paying that bill. We're coming up on some deadlines for the all-important FAFSA.

Christine Romans in New York to tell us about it.

First of all, let's have a little FAFSA 101. I don't think everybody knows what that is.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: If you're the parent or a grandparent of a college senior, -- high school senior, rather -- you're learning what that is. FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid -- FAFSA. It's a government form that you need to file that shows what the government determines is your share, what you can afford to pay for college. And then that is used as the financial aid offices around the country make up your student aid program, your package of student aid.

Here is what you need to know. I'm quoting, Zac Bissonnette, one of my sources who wrote a book called, "Debt for You." And I want to just tell you, Kyra, we asked him to, you know, help us come up with the most important things to maximize your FAFSA.

And he said, look, no one cares about you and your family's financial well-being except for you. Colleges just want your money. So you have to make sure you are very, very smart about this. File early. File your FAFSA early. Each university has a different date. If you are going to apply for four or five different colleges, make sure you file the FAFSA for the first college -- the earliest college that wants it. And there's a list of all of these on the government's FAFSA web site.

File savings in the parents' name because this is incredibly important. The way that the whole system works is you want to make sure that the savings is done in the parents' name rather than the students name because the FAFSA formula counts student savings more heavily than parents' savings.

Also, under match. What does that mean? Recognize that the financial aid office is going to give you a better package if you look overqualified. So if you're going to go for these big reach schools, the top of the line you're probably going to get less of a package than if you shoot for something that's more like your "safety school." Think of it that way.

Don't forget to apply to instate schools. This is a cost effective way for parents and students to pay for school. Do not underestimate the instate schools. You're going to graduate with a lot in loans. Most people do. So make sure you minimize the loans on the front end.

No personal loans. I can't say this enough. Zac Bissonnette says this, I say this, every single financial planner says this. You cannot borrow money for your retirement. You can borrow money for college. So remember, you want to be putting money in your own 401(k), in your own retirement savings first and then putting money in a college savings plan second.

A blind spot, Kyra, of the FAFSA form is that it doesn't count your retirement savings against you. Remember that. Incredibly important. Save for your own retirement first. And look at the deadlines because they are coming up. Go to FAFSA.gov and you can see all of this there. I'll also Tweet and Facebook the links for you if you want to check it out.

But now is the time. If you've got a senior kid going to college, now is the time to get all of these finances in order.

PHILLIPS: There you go. Save for your retirement and then tell your kids they must get a scholarship to college. That makes it so much easier. I know that is what you're telling your boys.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Exactly. Christine, thanks.

Well Dick Cheney is back in the spotlight after his recent heart surgery. The former Vice President is speaking out about President Obama and also explaining also how his new heart pump works.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Fast forward. Let's take a look at the day. BP claims administrator Kenneth R. Fienberg has some explaining to do as he returns to the Gulf Coast. He's going to answer why some claims relating to last year's massive oil spill in the Gulf still haven't been paid.

China's president Hu Jintao, en route to the U.S. The leaders of the world's two economic super powers will meet later today at the White House for a private dinner and some weighty conversation. Expected talking points, trade, currency concerns, and North Korea.

And an hour prior to the president's arrival, House Republicans are slated to begin their attempt at repealing President Obama's health care law. Final debate in the House set to get under way at about 3:00 p.m. Eastern time. Tomorrow a final House vote is scheduled. And even if the majority passes the repeal, the measure is almost certain to die in the Democratic-controlled state (sic).

Well, a 10-year-old boy's favorite hockey team leaves town good but the team invites him to visit them in their new home. Now this little boy who's battling a rare disease may get to see his team a lot more often.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(VIDEO CLIP, PUNCHLINE)

PHILLIPS: Dick Cheney says that President Obama will not be reelected because his administration has expanded the size of government and the size of the deficit. Former Vice President spoke to NBC's "Today Show." He also told NBC how his new heart pump works.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DICK CHENEY, FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: I wear it on a vest and there is a control element here. And then two batteries, one on each side. They're good for about 12 hours each. And then there's a cord that runs inside my chest to the pump on the inside and that's what powers it and keeps it functioning.

Initially, obviously, it's kind of awkward to walk around with all of this gear on. But you quickly get to the point where you've adapted, where it's second nature to you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, President Obama's job approval ratings are on the rise even despite all of this criticism.

Senior political editor, Mark Preston, at the CNNPolitics.com desk to break down the numbers for us -- Mark.

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Hey good morning, Kyra. Yes, great news for President Obama. Back in December his approval rating was at 48 percent which was a little higher than what we saw right before the elections but in the new CNN Opinion Research Corporation Poll out just this morning it shows his approval rating is at 53 percent.

So it begs a question, why do see it rising? Well, a couple of things. First of all, he had a very successful lame duck session where, in fact, he got through the tax cut compromise. By getting that through, he's probably able to pull over some independents that were on the fence of whether they thought he was doing a good job or not doing a good job. In addition to that, Kyra, he also had that speech out in Tucson. A lot of people took that favorably.

We also have a new ad coming out, Kyra, just today. It is on health care and its being put out by a liberal group. They're trying to put pressure on the Republicans in Congress who are not supportive of it and are trying to repeal it. The ad is only going to be in the five figures and it's going to appear on national cable over the next couple of days.

So a lot of pressure Kyra on Republicans from the liberal interest group now, regarding the whole health care repeal -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, talking about pressure back and forth. Sarah Palin speaking out even more on this controversy surrounding the Tucson shootings. What's she saying now?

PRESTON: Well, we saw her on Fox News last night where she is a paid contributor. A kind of a friendly setting, but she defended herself from all the criticism Kyra, that's been directed at her regarding a Web site that she had put out where she had used crosshairs over 20 Democratic candidates.

Now a lot of people said that her rhetoric is inciting violence. She said that that is not true and she also talked about the issue of blood libel. She said look. It -- it's a term that was used. She understood the use of the term and she said that, in fact, people were directing it at her.

As far as -- as far as 2012, she isn't saying whether she's running or not -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We got you. Mark thanks.

China has unveiled a plan that could threaten the U.S. dollar as a global currency. We'll explain next.

But in the mid-70s, Archie Bunker's brash neighbor got his own show.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: Stomping on the floor, Rocky, you remember that show? George Jefferson and his long suffering wife Lizzie (ph) finally moving on up and out of "All in the Family". The debut "The Jeffersons" first aired on CBS on this date 1975 and it helps solidify the term "spin-off" becoming one of the most successful of its time.

A quick trivia question. What did George do for a living? Do you remember? He had a chain of dry cleaning stores.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, the U.S. dollar, the euro and the Yuan. Yes, China has its site set on Yuan eventually rivaling the U.S. dollar as a global currency. China has unveiled an ambitious plan to end its dependence on the dollar.

And our Eunice Yoon has details.

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EUNICE YOON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Travelers often carry a lot of currencies in their wallet. U.S. dollars, euros, maybe a little bit of yen. But in five years' time, if Chinese policymakers get their way, you'll also be carrying these.

The Chinese government is trying to get more people to use the Chinese Yuan instead of the U.S. dollar when doing business. It's all part of China's drive to expand its influence worldwide.

(voice-over): Historically, no one's really used the Yuan outside China. In fact most of the country's own international trade is done in dollars. But as the Chinese economy grows, Beijing is changing its rules, allowing the redback to take on the greenback.

QU HONGBING, CHINA ECONOMIST, HSBC: If economy of China's continues within five years' time, one-third of China's cross border trade is likely to be set to the Yuan rather than the dollar, that will actually make the Yuan one of the top three currencies being used in the global trade.

YOON: To make that happen, Beijing is allowing local companies to use the Yuan to conduct business outside the country. It's kicks started trading of the Yuan, in financial centers like Hong Kong and for the first time, New York.

And to satisfy the growing appetite for Yuan overseas, China is working with central banks to make its currencies available to companies in other nations.

(on camera): China is also encouraging companies to use the Yuan by allowing them to issue bonds in the Chinese currency. These are known as "dim sum" bonds.

(voice-over): White-bred American companies like McDonald's, are jumping in. The fast food giant is the first multinational to issue a "dim sum bond". DAN MARCH, CFO, MCDONALD'S CHINA: This is a market that we really are passionate about. We opened 166 restaurants in 2010. We're going to continue that development going into the future. So we're using these type -- these types of funds for our growth strategy.

YOON (on camera): But there are still a lot of hurdles before the redback rivals the greenback. The government controls the currency and that's led to tensions between China and the U.S. and raised questions as to whether or not the Chinese Yuan is fairly valued.

(voice-over): The dollar still dominates trade and finance, yet with China's economy now second only to the U.S., Qu says the momentum is behind one currency.

HONGBING: Yuan is going to be -- become -- become popular. You know and the whole world is really to hold Yuan.

YOON: A strong start in the battle for the top spot against the American dollar.

Eunice Yoon, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And just yesterday Chinese President Hu Jintao told the "Wall Street Journal" that the current dollar dominated international currency and is quote, "A product of the past". You can bet this will be a hot topic between the Chinese leader and President Obama when they meet today.

Well, our correspondents are following all kinds of developments in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. Let's check in first with Stephanie Elam in New York -- Steph.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi Kyra. Yes, when it comes to Apple, everyone things Steve Jobs is a key part of making that company tick. We're going to take a look at what second leave of absence for the leader of the company means and what it will mean for the stock. Coming up in the next hour.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Elizabeth Cohen in Atlanta. I'll have a tall, I'll have a grande, I'll have the Venti. Well, how about a Trenta? Yes the Trent is huge it's the new Starbucks cite. But really, how many calories are you getting, you need to be careful.

I'll talk about that at the top of the hour.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys.

Thanks so much, stealing honor and selling it for scrap. That's how some thieves show their appreciation for America's heroes.

Next hour, we'll tell you how greed and gall defaced a memorial to veterans, a memorial that other vets pay for out of their pocket. And how this crime has really cut other veterans to the quick. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: And this just in, we're learning that North Dakota Senator Kent Conrad will be retiring. He's been in office since 1986. He's often been considered a deficit hawk. Currently serves as the chairman of the senate budget committee and when this happens, you'll definitely see a shift of balance of power.

A 10-year-old boy battling a rare disease wants to move to a distant state so he can be closer to his favorite hockey team. And his parents? They're making the wish come true.

Jeff Fischel from HLN here with a great story. He is so adorable.

JEFF FISCHEL, HLN SPORTS: He is, he loves his team. He's already gotten to make the one big trip down to see them. He wants to make it permanent.

Zack Benner's had 20 centuries to fight a degenerative disorder where tumors grow on his nerves. He's even had both legs amputated. Zack lives in Albany, New York; his favorite team has been the Albany River Rats. He went to all the games; tot to know all the players really well. But in the off-season, the team moved to Charlotte.

They flew him down to see a game. He wants to live there. As it turns out there's a clinic in charlotte that specializes in his disease. His parents have put the house up for sale and they're going to move to charlotte as soon as it sells.

Not all minor league hockey stories though are heartwarming. Utah grizzly's coach Kevin Cully (ph) is an angry man and he's taking it out on the team's hockey sticks. He was, by his estimation, extremely angry after some calls went against hiss team. And he just keeps throwing the sticks, one after another after another. He was suspended one game for expressing himself. And the NBA, the single best scoring night of the rookie; Clipper Jones, superstar Blake Griffin.

Poured in 47 points last night and the Clippers win over the Pacers. There he goes -- go one on one -- You cannot stop him and a foul. The most dominant player, young power forward in the league just might be this guy right here.

Here's something I can honestly say I have never seen in a tennis match; Australian open, Agnes Radwanska (ph). Her racket snaps at the handle; the head of the racket just goes flying. Fortunately no one hurt. Look at her expression. That's great.

It's not such a mystery once you find out about two points prior, Kyra, she banged her racket on the court a couple of times out of frustration, so --

PHILLIPS: It's not because she has a powerful backhand.

FISCHEL: It was not a powerful backhand.

PHILLIPS: Just have a bad temper.

FISCHEL: Exactly. It all comes down.

(CROSSTALK)

(LAUGHTER)

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PHILLIPS: All right, thanks, Jeff.