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State of the Union Address: Win the Future; Barack Obama in Wisconsin; Dow Tops 12,000 Ahead of Federal Reserve Prediction; Toyota Announces Another Recall; Mining Accident In Northern Columbia; Richard Quest at Super Bowl of Economics; Research on Guns and Violence; Davos Hosts The Rich & Powerful; Sanjay Gupta's Seat at Davos; Viewers Grade Obama's State of the Union Address; President Obama in Wisconsin; Demands For Freedom in Egypt; Eat, Text, Read & Drive???
Aired January 26, 2011 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Ali Velshi. Let's get straight to the "Severe Weather Center." CNN's Bonnie Schneider for the latest on the weather storm -- winter storms causing major problems, again, across the northeast. The northeast cannot cut a break -- get a break this winter.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Not at all, Ali. It's been week after week consecutive huge nor'easters. And, now, some of the airports are reporting delays over five hours. That's what we're looking at at LaGuardia Airport, right now. Five hours in Newark, New Jersey. Teterboro, also in New Jersey, the runways are closed there, so you can't get any flights out of Teterboro.
VELSHI: Yes, we rarely see that, absolutely closed.
SCHNEIDER: Yes, and then in Philadelphia, two hours and a half. So, it's interesting, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., you will see some -- a little bit more movement because a little bit less snow is occurring there. But this is just the beginning. I think, that's what is so complex about this storm. It's coming in in two parts. So, we have the advisories posted all the way across the eastern seaboard, not just for this morning, but the advisories across New York and into Boston go straight to Thursday.
VELSHI: Wow.
SCHNEIDER: And for northern New England, we'll still be talking about the storm through tomorrow afternoon.
VELSHI: Wow.
SCHNEIDER: When it's all said and done, you have to see, there's going to be a whole lot of snow, mixing in with sleet at times, this afternoon. When, then, when it tallies up, we'll be looking at a foot or more. This legend, here, this dark purple, this little pocket, right here, in Connecticut, that's 20 inches of snow. So, we could see over a foot in many areas. Blowing and drifting snow and getting heavier tonight. So, for those of you driving, that's when it's going to get even worse.
VELSHI: The pattern's really been interesting. The last few storms, it really gets -- that they're in the Washington and Philly area, but they move up here and New England really just keeps on getting hammered at the tail end of these storms.
SCHNEIDER: Absolutely. They swarm in the Gulf of Mexico, a little pressure. We got slammed, here in Atlanta, with snow and ice just a few weeks ago, and then they work their way up the coastline, as you said, and then explode in intensity with wind, snow and rain, and what's interesting about this storm, in terms of the accumulations, we're kind of watching the movement of warm air working its way through. That will also bring, what we call, a wintery mix. So, during the day, you might get sleet, you may get a little bit of snow, but, then, tonight, Ali, when those temperatures drop and the cold air comes in behind it, it's all snow. And that's when we'll really be shoveling out, in the morning.
VELSHI: Well, I got on a flight from New York, this morning. Everything was fine. And I got -- I landed and they were all saying to me, oh my God, good thing you got out because they were canceling flights. And I said, it looked perfect this morning. I've heard, in Philly and New York, they expected it, but it's -- it got worse than they expected.
SCHNEIDER: Well, it -- I think, also, it came in a little bit earlier. There were, actually, two pieces of the storm., so we saw -- we definitely saw the snow coming first through areas of Washington and Philly and work its way into New York. So, unfortunately, the snow is going to be a big problem as we go through the afternoon for the day today.
VELSHI: OK, Bonnie, thanks very much. We'll stay on top of this and the travel advisories. If you are traveling today, please check with the airline to see what the situation is where you have to be.
OK. A day after President Obama told us, the future is ours to win, he's visiting a town that spans the generations. Manitowoc, Wisconsin, is home to three home grown companies that make things geared toward clean or renewable energy. And, just moments ago, he spoke at Orion Energy Systems, which is as far back as 2008, he was citing as a shining example of 121st century industry. Today, the President credited the whole town with reinvesting itself.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Back in 2003, one of the largest employers around, Miro, moved their operations abroad, and that must have been a really tough time for this town and this community. Jobs were lost. Families were hurting. The community was shaken up.
And, I know, from Illinois, my home state, when a town loses its major employer, it is hard to bounce back. A lot of the young people start moving away, looking for opportunities someplace else. But when you fast forward to 2011 and new manufacturing plants and new hope are now taking route. Part of the reason the unemployment rate, here, is four points lower than it was at the beginning of last year. That's good news.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Of course, he's talking about the local unemployment rate, not the national unemployment rate. Last night, the President described America's fiscal distress, and many other challenges, as a modern day sputnik moment. And Manitowoc can relate to that, too. In 1962, a 20-pound chunk of the Soviet satellite, Sputnik 4, landed in Manitowoc, smack in the middle of Eight Street. Now, to this day, the town holds an annual Sputnik Fest, which organizers describe as "hooky fun and ridiculous."
Now, none of those words applies to the serious business at hand, nor, certainly, to my good colleague Ed Henry, our Senior White House Correspondent, who joins me, now, from the White House with more on the President's visit, his vision for the next couple years.
Ed, let's talk a little bit about last night's speech, that's history, now. That is a speech for broad themes, the President -- whether his -- it depends where you fall on that, but he did that. Now, he moves into this budget phase, and he has indicated that there are going to be investments and there are going to be cuts.
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Right. That's what this is going to come down. You know, Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican leader, yesterday, was saying, in joking, that he believes investment is really a Latin word for Washington spending, and that, basically, this is just a way for the President to cloak more government spending in the idea that he wants to invest in the future. And there's going to be a big battle about that, but, I think, that's what's interesting in what you just played, it follows, perfectly, in what the President was doing last night in talking about good news, optimism.
This, to me, was a page right out of Ronald Reagan's playbook, Morning in America, 1984, his reelection campaign. I, now, think back to the president's vacation in Hawaii, over the holidays, and aides, at the time, were telling us that one of the books he was reading was a biography by Lou Cannon who chronicled Ronald Reagan, for a long time, "a role of a lifetime." And why was he reading that book? Ronald Reagan had a gift of connecting with the American people.
This president has struggled, somewhat, with that. He, also, found a way to get through those midterm elections of 1982, a recession, et cetera. This president, now, dealing with that as well. And, so, while a lot of people have made the connection to the Clinton State of the Union, in 1985, certainly parallels there.
But, I think, that optimism, that, look, there's good news, we're turning the page. That's part of what they were trying to do last night. Very Reaganesque to say, look, the last time he did the State of the Union, it was a national emergency. Things were falling apart. They were worried about another great depression. He's trying to make a clear delineation that things have gotten better, not good enough. There's still a lot of room to grow, but when you talk about unemployment being four points better in this one community, this one state, that is, obviously, good news. And it's Reaganesque to be optimistic and keep looking forward. And he's going to be doing that from here on out.
VELSHI: Let me parse this investment conversation, because, really, the President may lose control of this message if Republicans continue to label his use of the word "investment" as government spending. The way the President, and his team, look at this is that, if you invest in things that will create businesses, become profitable, for instance, alternative energy, and employ people, the return to the economy is greater than if you didn't invest in it. So, the idea is that something comes back to you in competitiveness or in jobs or in the fact that all of those people are employed or those companies are paying taxes.
HENRY: Yes. And, look, I mean, this is a President who has taken a beating from Republicans, in the past couple years, for, allegedly, not having an environment that's good enough for investment -- for the investment community, not having enough certainty for the business community. We've heard that argument again and again and again. And now, he can maybe turn that around and say, well, hold on a second, I'm trying to talk about, like, corporate tax reform, last night, for example, that will help the business community get some more certainty about what taxes they're paying, but, also, whether they can use some tax cuts to hire more people.
Talking about clean energy here in that Wisconsin stop. Again, maybe these companies can hire more people if they're getting tax credits, et cetera. And, I think, the other thing, to go back to the Clinton analogy, is that this President may relish a fight over, quote, unquote, "investment", as you say. Because while the Republicans, and Michele Bachmann with the Tea Party Express, last night, are going to say, look, this is just more spending. We've got to cut. We've got deal with the debt and the deficit. That is a problem. But this President may look back to '95, '96 when Bill Clinton was fighting with Newt Gingrich, and talking about, look, we've got to cut some things, but there's other things we've got to wall off that we need to spend on, we need to nurture to help the economy grow, et cetera.
I'm not saying that argument is going to work, but I'm saying that it worked somewhat for Bill Clinton. That was part of the reason why he came back. And, maybe, now, if it looks like the Republicans are cutting too much and it's going to choke off the economic recovery, that's an argument this President is willing to make. Whether it works or not, we'll find out.
VELSHI: All right, we're going to hear the argument, a lot. Ed, thanks very much. Good to see you, as always.
Our good friend, Ed Henry, who's been working a very -- well, working around the clock, actually.
OK. Here's another big story. Take a look at that. That is the Dow Jones industrial average. That is -- boy, it's almost 20,000 -- it was 20,000 -- 12,000. Why did I say 20,000? That's wishful thinking. Maybe one day, 12,000. It pushed past the 12,000 point for the first time in two and a half years. It did that a little earlier today, may do it again. Take a look at that. Things have settled a bit, now, ahead of the federal reserve's policy statement later today. They meet every six weeks or so. In about an hour, we'll hear from them.
There are no major changes expected, certainly, no changes to interest rates. But analysts will be looking to see how confident the members of the board are in the economy improving. If you want to know why that matters, it's because the federal reserve collects a lot of data from across the country. Data that you and I don't see. So, they've got a bit better a gauge on the economy than we, typically, do.
We'll keep watching Wall Street for you. We'll give you updates on any big moves, and, you know, don't pay too much attention. They'll probably cross 12,000 again.
Oh, what a familiar feeling for Toyota. The world's biggest carmaker has announced another huge recall. It affects 1.5 million cars in all, nearly 250,000 of them here in the United States. The issue is a, potentially, loose fuel pressure sensor in some Lexus IS and GS Sedans. Model years 2006 to 2009. So, if you own one of these, what do you do? Well, for now, just keep checking your mailbox. Lexus says, when it's got all the parts it needs to make repairs, it will send an official safety recall notification to you. Make sure, by the way, they have your address, and if you have any questions about it, just call up a local dealership.
We just got an official cause of death in the Elizabeth Ennen case. This is the 15-year-old Texas girl reportedly missing three weeks ago. Her body was found on Monday. According to her autopsy, Ennen died as a result of asphyxia and strangulation. Police already have their suspect in custody. So far, just charged with kidnapping. He's a family friend and the father of the kids Ennen was babysitting the night she disappeared.
And we are getting conflicting reports on the death toll, but lives have, certainly, been lost in a coal mine explosion in northern Colombia. Several miners have been killed and several more injured. Several others may still be trapped in the rubble. The state government says a buildup of methane gas caused the disaster. An explosion, at the same mine, killed 32 people back in 2007.
Well, Richard Quest is our quarterback at the super bowl of economics. Wait until you see who he has been hobnobbing with. We are going to Switzerland, in Davos, right after this.
And check this out, there's been very little research on guns and violence, the connection between the two, in the last 15 years. "The New York Times" wrote a great article in the subject. We want to hear from you throughout the show on gun research. Head to my blog, CNN.com/ali or Facebook and Twitter pages. They're up there. Give me your input. Do you think there needs to be more research on guns and violence? We'll read a few of your comments, later on in the show.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: The world's rich and powerful are in Davos, Switzerland, today, for the annual meeting of the minds. Hobnobbing with the world's elite at this year's world economic forum is my colleague - my esteemed colleague, and my slightly luckier than me colleague, Richard Quest.
Check out his introduction to what some people call the Super Bowl for economists.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: D stands for decision makers, destination, Davos. Each year, at the end of January, the elite from government, business and finance take their limos through this tunnel. They've been making the same journey for 40 years, all in a bid to find some common ground.
A is for the Alps. High up in the Swiss mountains they come to create lofty goals.
V is for value. At Davos, there's always a lot of talk. Does anything actually come of it, or is it just hot air? When you talk about values, it's all too easy to take cheap shots at the annual meeting as a gab fest for the global elite. But the fact is, there is value in people who have the power to change things coming together.
O is for organization. This is where everything will take place, in the new enlarged congress hall where improving the state of the world seems to have taken on industrial proportions. The congress center has had a revamp. There are new lounges, nooks and crannies with suitable 21st century themes.
S is for skis, whether it's downhill or cross-country. There's plenty of them here in Davos. Just don't think of ever using them if you're here for the economic forum. For me, it's more suits than skis.
I think this is yours.
Skiing may be off the agenda, but here we can still learn an economic lesson or two.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Classical, slow, but always forward.
QUEST (voice-over): Classical, slow but always forward. Heaven forbid you move backwards.
QUEST (on camera): Come back here, Han (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, we should always go forward. And you called me and I came backwards.
QUEST: Life.
QUEST (voice-over): A moral we could all do well to learn.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELSHI: You know, I love the fact that Richard does one of these stories for us every year because if he had to come to the conclusion that it was a colossal waste of time, then we wouldn't spend all the money sending Richard to Davos. So he's got to come out and say, oh, no, this is really important. Important things are done here.
There he is. It's an invitation-only event. The World Economic Forum in Davos.
Again, how is it that you continue to get these invites?
QUEST: You are such a bitter man when it comes to this particular event. Someday, I promise you, you'll be grown up enough to come to Davos, Ali, I promise you. Let me tell you what's been happening.
VELSHI: I will have grown hair by then.
QUEST: Well, you'll need it, either that or a strong hat.
Let me tell you, away from the frivolity, perhaps, the serious stuff. We've just had President Medvedev, who has been giving the opening session report. President Medvedev is talking about the bombing, of course, in Moscow. He says that the terrorists had hoped that the Russian president would cancel his visit, he said, but Russia knows its responsibilities.
And, now, Ali, the Russian president is sketching out a picture in which he says the Russian economy is open for business. They're looking for international investment. And, he says, they want -- they're happy to listen, Ali, but they don't want to be lectured. So here you have an economy, Russia, that is oil and gas rich, flush with funds and now sending the gauntlet down to the international business community.
VELSHI: Richard, quick question for you. We have got evidence in the United States, we've seen new home sales up, we've seen the stock market, the Dow crossing 12,000. We've seen unemployment stubborn, but we started to see jobs created. But the rest of the world has different things going. China is still soaring in terms of growth. So is India. Europe's still got problems. Britain came in with a GDP that was negative all of the sudden.
QUEST: Yes.
VELSHI: So what is the mood at Davos? Are we post crisis, are we post talking about double dip recessions or are we still muddling through?
QUEST: No, I think you're all of those things and more. The theme of Davos is the complexity of the issue. Two years ago it was get out of the mess. Last year it's what would the rebuild look like. This year it's China with fast growth, but inflation. The U.K. heading towards stagflation. The rest of Europe, low growth. The United States with a budget deficit and a State of the Union and questions about investment and austerity. It's the balancing act between east and west, north and south, post globalization. And it's -- you know, I can't remember a Davos where I have waded through the treekal (ph) of what is the issue, what's the core here as much as this year. But the fact everybody is going through this agonizing process can only perhaps be to the good.
VELSHI: Richard, I'm glad that you've got it all under control there for us and leaving me to be able to deliver important financial news to our viewers. Have an excellent time. We won't be seeing you at Q&A this week, Richard, because you're there. I'll be out in Arizona. But we'll get back on track next week.
QUEST: Next week.
VELSHI: Yes. Very good. Richard Quest at the World Economic Forum at Davos. He'll have lots more reporting as the course of this week goes on.
Hey, listen, as banks take turns inventing new fees and hiking existing ones, you may think there's no escaping their dirty tricks. But we have found eight banks that you may find a little easier on your wallet. Get your pen and paper or your iPod or whatever it is you use out. I'm going to tell you about them on the other side.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: As banks take turns inventing new fees and hiking existing ones, you may think there is no escaping their dirty tricks. But cnnmoney.com found eight banks with zero ATM fees, free checking and high yielding accounts, relatively high yielding accounts. The list includes Internet banks like Ally Bank and brick and mortar banks like Capital One.
Let's take a closer look at the perks that some of these banks offer. The whole report is on cnnmoney.com.
Ally Bank is an online bank. The pros, no monthly maintenance fees, no minimum balance required, and it is free to use any ATM. The rates that you get, 1.05 percent -- annual percentage yield if you've got a balance of at least $15,000. If you don't, then it's 0.5 percent annual percentage yield. What are the cons. Well, you can't easily deposit checks at a branch or by phone. That's a little inconvenient if you deal with checks. If you don't, don't worry about it.
ING Direct. That's an online bank as well. The pros there, you get a free checking account, no ATM fees on 35,000 ATMs that are with the Allpoint network. Person to person lending through its site or its mobile app. That's interesting. Quarter percent APY if you have a balance under $50,000. If you've got more than that, it's 1.2 percent. The cons, of course, is you don't get paper checks from them.
Capital One is a big brick and mortar bank. They've acquired a lot of other banks over the last few years. No maintenance fees on checking accounts. No minimum balance requirements on checking accounts. There are some cons. $2.00 to use a non-Capital One ATM, plus whatever the other ones charge you. And they only have 2,000 Capital ATMs in nine states. But if you're in one of those states, like New York, that has them, go for it.
When shopping around, remember that a great yield and zero fees do not always go hand in hand. So first you have to figure out, which is more important to you, a good interest rate or lower fees? If you have a large amount of money to deposit, more than $10,000, typically look for a bank with a higher interest rate. Don't worry so much about the monthly fees because the interest you make could offset those fees. If you're just starting to save money or you need a bank to pay bills, you don't have a lot of money to put into the account, find a bank that offers free checking. All eight of these banks have free checking.
You can see the whole report on cnnmoney.com. Be sure to tune in to "Your Bottom Line" Saturday mornings at 9:30 a.m. Eastern with my friend Christine Romans, and my show, "Your $$$$$," airs Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Eastern and Sunday at 3:00.
Twenty-six minutes after the hour. Updating developments in our top stories now.
Google says it's going on a hiring binge this year. The company expects to beat its 2007 hiring record when it added more than 6,000 employees. Executives say they're looking for, quote, "top talent" across the board and around the globe as Google pushes forward with diversifying the products that it offers you.
New home sales jumped 17.5 percent last month to their highest level in eight months. That is substantially better than analysts had expected. Compared to a year earlier, though, December sales were down more than 7 percent. The Commerce Department says the median sales price rose $26,000 last month to $241,500. Remember, though, new homes are now a very small proportion of the homes sold in this country, under 10 percent.
Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords now in a rehab facility in Houston after being released from incentive care earlier today. Eighteen days after she was shot in an assassination attempt, doctors have now upgraded her condition from serious to good. She was well enough to watch some of the State of the Union speech on TV last night.
And you graded the president's State of the Union address on my Facebook and Twitter accounts. Ed Henry comes back, joins me next, to go over some of those report cards. Stay with us. There he is.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: As we mentioned earlier it's day one of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The scenery is spectacular. Everywhere you look CEOs, world leaders and economists. There really is beautiful scenery. But there are also CEOs, and world leaders, and economists trying to solve problems continuing the playing the world.
One thing on their minds is health care. Our very own chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta had exclusive access to closed- door meetings today. He was invited there to be part of a panel. He joins us now live from Davos, to tell us what's going on.
Sanjay, we don't normally associate the World Economic Forum with health care. What's the global concern about health care that they're talking about with you?
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Ali. It seems like you should be here in many ways, instead of me enjoying this beautiful cold setting.
But, you know, health and health care obviously is a big issue when it comes to sort of predicting economic development and economic impact overall of some of the issues that are brought up at a world economic forum like this. So, you know, both in the developed world and the developing world, they sort of think about Davos, as I found out, as an informal, unofficial opportunity for various groups to get together with regard to health and chronic disease.
For example, everything from food industry executives who can talk to government regulators, perhaps, about the fact that, look, we don't want to be regulated, but we do agree that we should lower the amount of fat, the amount of salt, the amount of sugar in our foods. Pharmaceutical industry, sort of some of those same discussions. And also really defining what some of the problems are and looking at solutions. It's a very solutions-oriented forum, Ali.
VELSHI: You know, a lot of people don't know most of these sessions and meetings are private, they're closed. You were part of a closed door meeting that focused on personalized medicine.
What does that mean and what did you talk about?
GUPTA: Well, it was a closed door session in part because I think some of what was discussed are things that are proprietary to some extent, developing new technologies, for example, for being able to sequence your genome, for example, your genetic code.
The idea that it took a trillion dollars to do this several years ago and 10 years to do it and now it's something that could be accessible in most hospitals, literally around the world. And you can have your genes sequenced for about $1,000. That's becoming reality.
What exactly to do with that information, how exactly to apply it, and will it be any part of the solution toward preventing many of these diseases that are costing so much money, again, around the world, was sort of the focus of the meeting.
I was moderating the panel, Francis Collins, for example, head of the NIH; Jonathan Rothberg, who you may have seen on the cover of "Forbes," this week for his development of one of these machines. People like that getting together and sort of hammering through some of the issues and some of the solutions, Ali.
VELSHI: Well, bringing it back to what I know a little bit about, the money. These DNA tests, these at-home genetic tests almost are instant or fast turnaround tests are becoming a lot less expensive and a lot more accessible to people.
Are they a reliable predictor of disease? Are they the kind of thing that the general public should start to get involved in the they can afford?
GUPTA: I don't think so yet, Ali. And some people are going to disagree with me on that particular issue.
But, let me put it to you like this. For example, if the average risk of someone developing diabetes in the United States where you are was around 23 percent, Ali, and then you went and got one of these tests and found out that your risk was, in fact, 30 percent -- so seven percent higher than average, what would you do with that information? Would you make significant lifestyle changes? Should you have already given the average risk of diabetes? We don't have the technology yet, as part of these tests, to say you are for sure going to develop this problem and you should do X, Y and Z.
Also there is the concern that if your test comes back negative, you don't have the genes say, for diabetes, you might take a false sense of comfort in that even though your risk is still about 23 percent. So, I think that we're not there yet. People say as we sequence more and more people, we'll get more information, the tests will become better. But not yet, I don't think, Ali.
VELSHI: Right. That'll be interesting to see sort of when we get to that yet.
Sanjay, have a fantastic time. Keep an eye on Richard Quest. He was bounding around there a couple of minutes ago. Make sure he gets a little work done in between all those soirees and all that --
(CROSSTALK)
GUPTA: I'll do that, I'll keep him healthy.
VELSHI: OK, Sanjay. Good to see you, as always.
Hey, listen. You all graded the president's State of the Union address on my Facebook and twitter accounts. Ed and I are going to go over those report cards. Ed, unlike Richard Quest, has stayed to do some work on the continent.
Also, take a look at that Dow. Oh, just missed it. I was going to show it to you. It was just at 12,000 again. It slipped back down. Don't worry about it. Again, don't concern yourself with it. It's just an interesting piece of news we're going to talk about later.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Thirty-seven minutes after the hour. Happening now, a day after his State of the Union speech, President Obama is taking his jobs message to Manitowoc, Wisconsin, where he's touring three businesses involved in innovations that he highlighted in last night's speech. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is urging the Egyptian government to be open to reform and to allow peaceful protests. Today police turned water cannons and tear gas on anti-government protesters for the second straight day. Yesterday at least four people died in clashes. I'm going to talk more about that in Globe Trekking a little while.
And as Moscow observes a day of mourning for the victims of the Monday's airport bomb blast, Russia's president has fired top airport security officials. President Dmitry Medvedev accused transport police of quote, "Taking an absolutely passive position."
Last night President Obama presented his report to Congress on the State of the Union. In conjunction with this I've been asking you on Facebook and Twitter for you to fill out the president's report card on his address.
Joining me to go over your grades is our straight A senior White House correspondent Ed Henry at the White House.
Ed, let's start with a few topics that many viewers agreed upon. First of all, immigration. Let me read you some of the stuff that came to me. VonLuck says, he gives the president an F. He says that, "Obama has no intention to secure our border with Mexico."
Steve says "Obama wants to make as many citizens/voters as he can."
Most of the immigration comments were like this. The president got some good applause for saying some things about immigration. What's your sense of it?
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think the second one, this notion that the president wants to turn illegal immigrants into legal immigrants so he can get votes is something not supported by facts, we should say.
But on the first one, I think it's probably a more thoughtful one that has a lot more resonance with people who have criticized this president, which is the fact that there are a lot of Americans who believe that he has not gotten serious enough about securing the U.S. borders first, and then maybe you can do some sort of comprehensive immigration reform.
And on that point I was intrigued as we were focusing so much last night on who was sitting next to each other and who was clapping when, that John McCain seemed to leap up I believe at one point over immigration reform. Because it's been obviously a very difficult issue in Arizona. He has moved and shifted ever so slightly on that issue, and highlighted a lot more border securities last reelection race. Maybe this is an issue these two men can finally work on.
They were opponents in 2008. There was a lot of talk after that race about how maybe they'll come together on climate change or immigration. It's never materialized. Maybe, finally, if, as the president said last night, said we focus on sitting together, who's going to stand together the next day, the next week, et cetera. That may be an issue where John McCain and this president could finally come together.
VELSHI: Let me talk about another one that the president did pretty well on. Ron Hall game the president -- by the way, mostly we had a bunch of categories, he gave the president mostly Ds and Fs. But he gave him an A on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." He said, the president "Has exerted sound leadership in this area."
In fact, most of the grades for "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," Ed, were pretty positive.
HENRY: Look, this is something he got done. And obviously, people like a winner, even if they're not completely on board with them on the issue. I think part of the reason we saw it finally go through in December during that lake duck session is that the public mood has shifted on this, certainly a lot since Bill Clinton had a very emotional divisive debate about it at the beginning of his presidency.
I think attitudes have changed ever so slightly in this country and it helped push it through. I think, as well, last night the president by jumping on something that didn't get a lot of attention, but was a very interesting little note in this speech is when he said, look, it's time now that Don't Ask, Don't Tell has been repealed, for colleges to let Military recruiters back on their bases. A lot of Ivy League schools had the recruiters leave because of this divisive issue. Now that issue is mostly cleared up, maybe now we can get recruiters back on campuses.
VELSHI: All right, Ed. Did you get any sleep last night? Because you worked really late and then I saw you on "AMERICAN MORNING" first thing, this morning.
HENRY: I know. And you tweeted about it. That was awfully nice of you. You know, I slept a few hours. I've got it better than the president, though.
He had to go to Wisconsin just a few days after his Bears lost to the Packers. They handed him a couple of jerseys when he landed, the governor. And it's also on twitter that basically in the press file there in Wisconsin, the locals have had some hot dogs in there. And the hot dog ones are yellow and green, the Packers' colors. So the Packers' fans are rubbing this in to the president and his entourage. There's no doubt about it.
VELSHI: Ed, good to see you, as always. My friend, Ed Henry, our senior White House correspondent with the Stakeout.
All right. Do you like to text and drive or eat and drive? Maybe even read and drive? We are not recommending that. But in today's Big I, we've got a possible solution coming up right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) VELSHI: The second straight day of massive antigovernment protests in Egypt trigger a heavy police crackdown. Demonstrators directed their outrage at long-time President Mubarak demanding he step down after 30 years on the job.
The unrest poses a tough dilemma for the United States. How do you balance protesters' calls for democracy, something we think is important in the United States, with U.S. strategic allies to a -- strategic ties to a key ally in the Middle East?
CNN's Ben Wedeman has been on the streets talking to protestors as today's dramatic events unfolded. You've been following this since they started. Ben Wedeman joins us from our Cairo bureau.
Ben, when you were covering what was going on in Tunisia, the resignation of the head of government there, the concern was that this starts to spread to other countries, and that's exactly what's happened. It spread to the most populous country in the nation.
Tell me what's going on.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Ali, today the demonstrations were smaller than they were yesterday, but what we're seeing is a real harsh crackdown by the police on these demonstrators. The Ministry of the Interior put out a statement this morning saying that no -- any public demonstrations would not be tolerated. And so, we saw them using teargas, batons, kicking, punching, basically dragging people from the crowds to arrest them. So a real harsh crackdown on the situation.
And talking about U.S. foreign policy, I talked to one woman who said you need to tell your government that they're making a big mistake here because the majority of Egyptian people are against this government that's been backed by the United States since the late 1970s. They feel people in Washington just aren't listening to the voices of ordinary Egyptians and that they're listening to the head of state, somebody most Egyptians seem to be saying these days they want him to go.
VELSHI: This is becoming more and more complex. And of course, that remains the question, will he? Will what happened in Tunisia happen in Egypt? It's a much tougher, more established government.
Ben, thanks very much. We'll stay on top of this with you.
Forty-seven minutes after the hour, checking the latest developments in top stories.
Fresh off last night's State of the Union speech, President Obama is taking his jobs message to Wisconsin where he's visiting several companies that make things geared toward clean or renewable energy. The president says creating smarter products with better technology is the best way to create new jobs.
Many parts of the country are in for more snow today. Forecasters are predicting a quick-hitting storm will coat most of the northeast and parts of the south by tonight. Airport delays are already being reported in New York; some smaller airports shut down entirely. The National Weather Service says including areas like Hartford, Connecticut and Boston, could see as much as ten inches of snow.
And singer Jimmy Buffett stunned fans when he tumbled off a stage during a sold-out concert in Sydney, reportedly landing on his head. "The Daily Telegraph" says the 64-year-old was rushed to Sydney's Saint Vincent Hospital. Doctors there listed him in stable condition, but the hospital did not give out details about his injuries.
If you work some places in this country, you likely drive to work. Actually, according to the latest Census date tax 76 percent of people commute to work using a car. They spend an average of 25 minutes commuting to work.
Now imagine if you were able to get that 25 minutes back, to work, to eat, to text, to read, even a little extra sleep in the car? Sound dangerous, but there's new technology. It's today's "Big I" and I want to break it down for you.
It is called Safe Road Trains for the Environment or the SARTRE Project. First, let's start with how it works. Check out this animation. You're driving down the street and you see this train, basically a train of cars. Look at it, it's like a convoy, OK? It's a truck-style vehicle in the front of the line, it can be anything.
The train leader is able to control your acceleration, braking and steering using wireless technology in that vehicle and in yours. So if you join that train, they can control what you do. So you send a request to the leader of the convoy. You're then able to sit back and relax while your car is basically pulled into the convoy, like this.
When you want to leave, you send a signal to the leader. You are then released from the convoy and you go about your merry way, you've got full control of your cars. The system then automatically closes the gap your car created by leaving.
Now this technology has four major benefits. Number one, it cuts congestion, it creates safer roads -- OK, cuts congestion, that's one of them. Two, it creates safer roads. Three, it lowers carbon emissions. And, of course, four, all of that stuff I said you can do instead of driving.
Let's talk about a system like this actually coming to the market. The SARTRE Project started in 2009. They're testing it out to see if this is good. Just last month, the team tested the technology at Volvo's test track in Sweden and they say the technology worked. The next step is to test the system with an actual five-car convoy.
We'll let you know how it goes, this could be interesting. I could imagine if I'm going on a particularly longer drive, not even one to work, but just -- it's like cruise control on steroids. Don't have to steer, don't have to look, do whatever you want. Check out the technology yourself, head to my blog. This really is an interesting one, I got to tell you. CNN.com/Ali, I'm also going to post it on Facebook and Twitter accounts.
Well what do you give the first fan of the Chicago Bears when he's visiting Green Bay? John King is up next to show us what the president got.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: It's 1:53 on the east, that mean it's time for the Political Ticker. Boy, there's a lot to talk about. CNN's chief national correspondent John King, another busy guys, joins me now from the Political Desk in Washington.
John, Senator DeMint is moving forward on his bill to repeal health care.
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You remember last night, Ali, it was mostly civil, a lot of bipartisan talk at the State of the Union. Well, it's back to partisan business the day after the State of the Union.
Jim DeMint, conservative senator from South Carolina, you know him well, he's a favorite from the Tea Party, he introduced the Senate version of the repeal of the Health Care Act today. Question here is whether the Republicans can get a vote because the Democrats still control the Senate. But they're pressing ahead. The House has passed repeal.
Thirty-four co-sponsors for Senator DeMint on that one, notably several Republican on the ballot in 2012. Scott Brown of Massachusetts, Richard Lugar of Indiana, they did not co-sponsor that, interesting calculation by them heading into their reelection cycle. We'll watch that out.
As you noted, Ali, before the break, the president is in Wisconsin today and you might remember, everybody, he's a big Chicago Bears fan and the Packers beat the bears on Sunday. So the new Republican governor on hand among others to greet the president of the United States with a Packers jersey. This is what we call all politics is local. President took it in good fun. He did say, though, we'll get you next year. So the president not backing away from his Bears next time around.
Now why is he in Wisconsin? Tradition for the president to travel the day after the State of the Union. He was at a solar plant there to pitch one of the proposals in his State of the Union address. He says 80 percent of America's power needs to come from clean energy by the year 2035, also more electric vehicles on the road, the president pressing that agenda.
And Ali, no coincidence here, Wisconsin was a big Obama state back in 2008, just elected a Republican governor, just elected a Republican senator. The president is looking at the 2012 map saying, I better go back to these places and make some friends.
VELSHI: It's going to be a busy two years, John, and for you as well. By the way, great job last night. It was fun working with you. It's always great to get your analysis on things like the State of the Union.
Watch John every day 7:00 p.m. Eastern, "JOHN KING USA." Your next update from "The Best Political Team on Television" is one hour away.
All right, anyone have an idea on how that piano, that piano, anybody got any idea on how that got there? That's a 600-pound piano sitting on a sandbar. I'll tell you more about it right after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: If you are planning a vacation anytime soon, you may want to think twice about staying at any of the hotels I'm about to tell you about. TripAdvisor.com -- I love this site -- released the 2011 list of dirtiest hotels.
Topping the list is the Grand Resort Hotel in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. After 224 travelers reviewed the hotel, 87 percent said no thanks on returning. Quote, "If you're looking for a hotel with chewing tobacco spit oozing down the halls and corridors, spiders actively making webs in every corner of your room, carpeting so greasy and dirty you wouldn't want to sit your luggage down let alone walk around barefoot, by all means stay at the Grand Resort." That's a quote from somebody who stayed there and posted on TripAdviser.
The Grand Hotel responded to this report vowing to get its name off that list.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE CHANEY, PRESIDENT & CEO, THE GRAND RESORT: We're taking this very seriously, and we are going to have this back to being what it was at one time, the Grand Hotel and Convention Center.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Let's head to Biscayne Bay in south Florida. Look at this, look at this. How in the world did a 600-pound piano end up on a sandbar? That sandbar is the highest point sort of in that bay. No one seems to know. No one saw how it got there.
But get this, there are no plans to remove it. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation said unless it's a danger to wildlife or boaters they are not responsible for removing such items. So if you are there and you have some good, well, you know, fingers, by all means, take a shot.
Good news for one man in Oak Lawn, Illinois. Yesterday, I told you about John Stone, a father of two, who was fired for wearing a Green Bay Packers tie in honor of his deceased grandmother, who was a huge fan. After hearing his story from our affiliate, WGN, Homewood Chevrolet stepped in and gave John a call and offered him a salesman job.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN STONE, GOT FIRED FOR WEARING GREEN BAY PACKERS TIE: Something about it, I feel better now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes?
STONE: Yes. And I'm so happy right now. I'm so thankful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Not quite sure exactly how those guys got away with firing him.
