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Unemployment Falls in February; Libyan Rebels Move Toward Tripoli; Presidential Politics of Libya; NASA Rocket Likely Crashes; Man Saved After 96 Minutes of CPR; Study Shows More Teens Waiting to Have Sex; One in Three Americans Sleep Deprived; Sabbath Manifesto Encourages Shutting Down Devices for 24 Hours; Libya Beefs Up Security Along Borders; Protests Grow After Friday Prayers; U.S. Military Aids Refugees; U.S. Options and Risks in Libya; Stocks Up After Positive Jobs Report; NFL Talks Extended to Midnight; Unemployment Falls Below Nine Percent

Aired March 04, 2011 - 09:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Hey you have a great weekend, too. Thanks.

It's 9:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 6:00 a.m. in the West. I'm Carol Costello.

This morning we're watching Libyan rebels. They have Benghazi, now they're on the move towards Tripoli with an eye for Moammar Gadhafi's hometown.

Stakes go up in Wisconsin. The governor says if Democrats don't come back now to vote on his budget repair bill hundreds of state workers get laid off today. Other lawmakers want those same Democrats arrested.

The 2011 NFL season saved for now but the day is young. Owners and players getting another day to find some common ground.

And a tough night for NASA. A satellite and rocket should be in space. Instead, they are somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.

The February jobs numbers are out and they bring some good news. The U.S. economy added 192,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate dropped below 9 percent for the first time since April of 2009.

CNN's Christine Romans joins us from New York with some perspective.

So what do these numbers really mean? I mean they make you smile, but what do they really mean?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: As one -- as one economist said, well, February was healthy enough. And two years into an economic recovery, we've been still -- been waiting for that economic news that the labor market at least was healthy enough.

192,000 jobs, Carol, absorbs new entrance into the workforce, new entrance because of immigration and because the way people are aging and coming into the workforce. New workers coming in, so that's good news. And then it picks up a few other workers as well.

So 192,000 the best we've seen since May 2010. And there were a couple of revisions. You had more jobs created in December and later in the year than we had thought. We picked up another 58,000 jobs that way. So it paints a picture of what many analysts, economists, small business owners and others have been telling us that you were starting to see some action in the labor market.

You were starting to see, Carol, people newly unemployed having an easier time of getting a job. The sectors that led, you had jobs gains in just about everything, Carol. Temporary work, health care, education, you had manufacturing, construction. I mean you go down the list.

The only place where we did see jobs lost, pretty definitively, state and local governments. No surprise, right, Carol? Because you're seeing all these budgets where state and local workers are losing their jobs, there are furloughs, there are people being laid of, those numbers reflected in here as well.

Another thing -- and you've been hearing me say it for a really long time that 2011 is likely to be the year that if you are newly unemployed, you're going to have a much better time getting a job. But if you've been unemployed for a long time it's still the same old story.

These numbers reflect that. You have -- of the people who have been out of work, you've got duration of unemployment meaning how long they are out, even got worse. About 37 weeks out of work. So that's still something that really needs to be worked on even as you're seeing some action on the front end where newly unemployed are getting some jobs -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Understood. Christine Romans, live in New York, thank you.

We'll check in with Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange for Wall Street's reaction to these job numbers. And after that, I'll talk to President Obama's labor secretary about the nation's employment situation.

Americans are also feeling the pinch of rising gas prices and they've risen yet again. At this time yesterday we told you the national average for unleaded was $3.43 a gallon. Today's new average is $3.47. An overnight increase of little more -- a little more than 4 cents a gallon.

It's all linked, of course, to the price of crude oil. Yesterday, crude oil closed down just a bit at just under $102 a barrel.

The spike in oil and gas prices is, of course, because of the instability in several Arab states. Today protests flared again after Muslims took part in their Friday prayers.

In Yemen, government security forces reportedly fired on crowds in the northern part of that country. Two protesters are reported dead, nine others wounded.

We're also keeping a close eye on the demonstrations in Libya. Opposition sources tell CNN that Gadhafi forces clashed with protesters earlier today in at least two cities.

CNN crews are scrambling to gather more details for you.

The United Nations says there may be a disturbing new development along Libya's borders. It says government troops are beefing up their presence and maybe preventing refugees from crossing into Tunisia and Egypt. So far about 200,000 people have streamed into neighboring Egypt and Tunisia.

So let's get the latest now, CNN's Ben Wedeman on the phone from eastern Libya.

Ben, you're actually following rebel troops, I understand. So what are you seeing?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (via phone): Yes, we're outside the town of Ras Lanuf, a very important town with a large oil refinery where opposition forces are trying to get close to the town. We don't know whether they have succeeded.

What we hear are steady, loud thugs of what we think either artillery or mortar fire coming from that director. We've seen dozens and dozens of cars and pickup trucks full of anti-Gadhafi militiamen heading in that direction. But it appears that they have yet to take control of the city.

Some people here are telling us that they are also trying to take over the airport in this Ras Lanuf but it's very hard to get solid information, given how fluid the situation on the ground is. But this certainly represents the first major push by the opposition from the east to try to gain ground and strategic ground at that from Moammar Gadhafi forces -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Ben Wedeman reporting live from Libya tonight -- or today rather.

The crisis in Libya is forcing some tough debate at the White House. The administration has to decide whether it should remain on the sidelines of this growing humanitarian crisis and that carries big political risks, but so does any level of involvement up to and including the use of our military.

Candy Crowley, CNN's chief political correspondent and host of "STATE OF THE UNION" is here.

So Candy, as the president struggles with a plan for Libya, how is politics playing into his decision-making?

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen. I -- you know, how it's playing into his decision-making is different from, you know, what are the politics of it, so let's start first with what are the politics of it. You do see some people on the more liberal side saying we need to get in there, we need to help the -- those protesters who are being shot by their leader. We need to help. It's a blood bath. You see those conservatives, some of whom are saying we need to arm the rebels, we need to enforce that no-fly zone. That seems to be a more -- kind of a bipartisan thing. Democrats and Republicans saying what about a no-fly zone.

Here's the problem is that, right now, there is this -- obviously, the crisis is in Libya. There are other places where there has been unrest, you know, Tunisia, Egypt. So there's this huge opportunity for the U.S. in the Middle East to change an image which has not been altogether good in the Middle East as you know.

But the more a U.S. fingerprint is on something, particularly when it comes to a no-fly zone, which we now know the Arab League is -- you know, doesn't want that to happen. They see this as a Libyan thing.

If there are U.S. fingerprints on it, it makes it very difficult when the outcome becomes clear because it looks as though the U.S. has interfered. And so I think that's what certainly what the president must be contemplating at this point.

And I think it's why you see that we are constantly getting sort of press releases about here was the president's phone call with the German leader and here's the president's phone call with the British prime minister.

This is going to be some sort of global effort and not a U.S. go- it-alone, because the U.S. is not all that popular in the region. We certainly don't have any sway over Moammar Gadhafi at this point.

So humanitarian, that's something entirely different. You know you'll see that, you're seeing that. Military action, the president says he's contemplating it. You never want to take anything off the table, but that, I think, is a much more multilateral item.

COSTELLO: Candy Crowley, many thanks. Reporting live from Washington.

What goes up must come down. But NASA had far higher hopes for this morning's launch of the Glory satellite. We'll tell you about today's pre-dawn failure over California.

And put your cell phone in that drawer. Turn off your computer. Unplug your laptop. Could you do that for an entire day? Coming up, the "Sabbath Manifesto.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: We have flood watches in effect from northern Mississippi all the way to upstate New York. A wet weekend on top for a lot of people.

Meteorologist Rob Marciano is here to tell us more. ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It was wet earlier in the week as you know. And you're from Ohio so you know about the flooding situation there. And even some of those larger rivers, including the Ohio, the Mississippi, that have been waiting to crest and recede, they haven't done that yet. There is more rain coming on top of that.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MARCIANO: Want to point out this thing. This is a Taurus XL rocket. And on top of this thing earlier today was a pretty cool satellite. Take a look at the launch out of NASA.

This was launched in California about 5:00 a.m. Eastern Time. And the launch is really cool and this will take a satellite that was going to study some climate issues including aerosols and the amount of energy that we're getting from the sun.

Well, Carol, it never made it.

COSTELLO: Oh, no.

MARCIANO: About five minutes into the launch, part of the covering of that satellite was supposed to release and it never released. And because of that, the weight was too heavy and it never made it into orbit and it's somewhere now crashed in the Pacific Ocean.

So this isn't the first time this particular rocket has failed at NASA so they're not very happy there.

COSTELLO: I bet not.

MARCIANO: It's been a disappointing morning after five minutes of what looked to be a successful launch.

COSTELLO: I know. And so much research goes into that and so much money.

MARCIANO: And a blow to the climate -- climate study community as well because we needed that puppy up there to help us out. But they will try again. They never give up.

COSTELLO: No, they don't. Thank you, Rob.

MARCIANO: You bet.

COSTELLO: Time to go cross country and see some of the stories our CNN affiliates are covering.

Police in West Nyack, New York looking for this woman going through a bottle busting rampage through a local liquor store. I'm not exactly sure what set her off but they think she had been drinking.

In Unicol, Tennessee a father/son reunite. Nearly six decades in the making. With a little help from Facebook, Albert Miller Sr., he hasn't seen his son Junior in 37 years and says Thursday's reunion is the answer to more than 50 years of prayer.

In Berkeley, California, college students angry about rising education costs took to the ledge of this building in protest chained to one another. The demonstration canceled some classes but it did get the attention of school administrators who say they'll sit down with students to discuss how impending budget cuts will impact the university.

One group is saying tonight, turn it off. They want you to shut off your devices and here's a crazy thought. Get to know your friends and family again. Maybe slow it down a bit. And strangely there's an app for that.

And sex might be losing its appeal among young people. More of them seem to be hot for virginity.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A Minnesota man is alive thanks to a marathon session of CPR. A heart attack threw Howard Snitzer down on a sidewalk. People around him, auto shop owners, a teacher, about two dozen people total actually took turns trying to bring Howard back, and they refused to give up. Ninety-six minutes later, a pulse. And there he is, hugging some of his many heroes. Snitzer talked to CNN earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOWARD SNITZER, SURVIVED HEART ATTACK: I crashed on the sidewalk, and the next thing I remember was five days later in the ICU at St. Mary's. And the story has slowly been told to me and it's -- it was -- it's an incredible story, so I'm -- I just happen --

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR, "AMERICAN MORNING": It is incredible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: It's just unbelievable. A heart expert at the Mayo Clinic says fewer than half of the people who go into cardiac arrest outside the hospital survive, so he does have to thank his many heroes, thank them again and again and again.

More young people seem to be hot for virginity. A government study of young people ages 15 to 24 shows more than a quarter of them have never had any sexual contact at all. I can hear the parents rejoicing. Elizabeth Cohen is here. So, why do you think this is?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: First, let's take a look at the numbers.

COSTELLO: OK.

COHEN: And to see what's happened over time. Because this really is quite interesting. So, the CDC does these surveys, they get into a room with the kid, they pay the young person, and they ask them all sorts of very explicit questions. And so, what they found out is that in 2002, 22 percent of people in this age range, 15 to 24, were not sexually active. I mean no intercourse, no oral sex, no nothing with any other person, same sex or opposite sex.

Then, in 2008, 27 percent of males were not sexually active and 29 percent of females. So, from 22 percent to 27 or 29, depending upon the gender, that's actually quite a big leap for just six years. And now, you mentioned, why?

COSTELLO: Why?

COHEN: Why? OK, that's the million-dollar question.

COSTELLO: Yes.

COHEN: Nobody really knows. One theory is that abstinence education is working. Another theory is that these kids -- or I should say young people -- these young people's parents grew up with the AIDS epidemic unfolding before their very eyes. And so, those parents were, perhaps, especially vigilant with their kids in telling them, hey, don't do it. Those are two theories, but you know what? No one really knows why.

COSTELLO: It's interesting, because you would think that young people are watching "Jersey Shore" and there's so much sex going on, and they're imitating that behavior, and they're sexting. But that's really not having an affect on how much sex, at least, young people are having.

COHEN: Well, maybe the other proportion, the ones who are having sex, are really doing it up. Maybe they're the ones who are watching "Jersey Shore," and they're not just -- they're doing everything with everyone. That's completely possible. But as far as the kids who are not, there are more young people who are not doing anything, which is really interesting.

COSTELLO: Yes, it's fascinating. But by the time someone turns 24 or 25?

COHEN: You hope they're doing something, right? Unless they're a member of a religious order.

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: I think this study shows they are doing something.

COHEN: This goes away at some point. Right, they are doing something, right, they're doing something.

COSTELLO: It doesn't last forever.

COHEN: Right.

COSTELLO: Thank you very much, Elizabeth. Next hour, we'll talk with a sex therapist and an author about this. Dr. Laura Berman will join us from Chicago, and maybe she can figure it out.

How much sleep did you get last night? A government study shows more than a third of Americans get fewer than seven hours per night. The CDC recommends adults get at least seven hours per night. A lack of sleep has been linked to bigger problems, like heart disease, diabetes, and depression.

So the iPad2 has launched, and my next guest says, now you have to turn it off. And then you can get some sleep. Because I just told you a moment ago that all that technology might be keeping you awake at night. So, cell phones, laptops, tablet computers, GPS, Bluetooth. Maybe we're just too connected.

Dan Rollman is part of a movement to get you it shut it down, at least for a day. You're calling this the Sabbath Manifesto. Point blank, why should we do this?

DAN ROLLMAN, CREATOR, "SABBATH MANIFESTO": Yes. Well, I don't think anybody should be forced to do it. I think it's something that people on a deep, innate level are feeling they want to do, which is really find a way within our always-connected, hyper-busy lifestyles to turn off technology once in a while and to reconnect with family and friends and community and some of the things that are becoming increasingly difficult to do in our busy lives.

COSTELLO: Lots of groups and lots of people have suggested this before and, frankly, people -- a large number of people have not turned off.

ROLLMAN: Yes. I think it's fair to call it an addiction for many of us. You know? And I feel it myself. I land on an airplane flight and, whereas, I used to say thank God the plane landed safely, I now say, thank God, I can turn on my cell phone and see what I missed in the last three hours.

And so, there is a -- it's not an easy thing to do. So, I think by creating a weekly day of unplugging, and now we're doing this national day of unplugging, it becomes more of a communal exercise, and I think will make it easier for more people to say, let's unplug collectively and get outside and be with family and friends and so forth.

COSTELLO: So, how much traction does your movement have? Are you doing it online? How do you know how many people will actually buy into a national day to turn it off?

ROLLMAN: Sure. So, I'm part of a group called Reboot, which is a think tank that's all about redesigning new interpretations of Jewish rituals. And so, we created the Sabbath Manifesto out of our own desire to create a more modern Sabbath day of unplugging.

And we launched with a web site, sabbathmanifesto.org, that lists our principles. We found -- it's been interesting. We launched it through, again, a Jewish group, but we found national and international feedback from all types of religions and communities, from Buddhists, from Catholics, from Muslims, have all been really fascinated by this project and said, "We want to take this manifesto that you've created and share it with our communities."

COSTELLO: We'll check back and see if it works. Thank you so much for joining us this morning. We appreciate it, Dan.

ROLLMAN: Sure thing. Thank you.

COSTELLO: The refugee crisis in Libya. The US military answers an urgent call for help, but how much involvement is too much? We'll take you to the Pentagon for the debate.

Also ahead, Egypt wants Oprah. We'll tell you about a campaign for the queen of talk to host her show from Tahrir Square.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: In Libya, the United Nations says there may be a troubling development for refugees trying to escape the violence. The UN says government troops are beefing up their presence on the border with Tunisia, and that may be preventing refugees from crossing.

So far, about 200,000 people have streamed into neighboring Tunisia and Egypt. We're also keeping a close eye on the demonstrations across much of Libya. Opposition sources tell CNN that Gadhafi forces clashed with protesters earlier today in at least two cities. CNN crews are gathering more details for you.

And new information. The US is joining the international efforts to help Libya's refugees. It's deploying military aircraft to the crisis, as the crisis deepens and the United Nations calls for an urgent call for aid. Barbara Starr is live at the Pentagon. And Barbara, I understand you ran to the set because you have something new to tell us.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, yesterday, President Obama talked about authorizing military aircraft to go to neighboring Tunisia to help pick up some of the refugees.

We now know that it is now planned, two US military transport plans will land in Tunisia later today and try and get going on this humanitarian relief effort. They will land on the Tunisian side, where those tens of thousands of refugees, many of them Egyptians, are waiting in terrible conditions to try and get home, to try and get back to Egypt.

The two aircraft that land today will only be bringing in humanitarian supplies at this point. They are not yet fully authorized by the governments on the ground to pick up the refugees and take them back to Egypt. That process is underway. Many other nations, including the Egyptians, of course, already making that effort.

President Obama made it very clear yesterday this may only be the beginning. He had some very interesting words about how prepared he might be to use the US military in this crisis. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARAK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So, what I want to make sure of is that the United States has full capacity to act, potentially rapidly, if the situation deteriorated in such a way that you had a humanitarian crisis on our hands. Or a situation in which civilians were -- defenseless civilians were finding themselves trapped and in grave danger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: Civilians trapped and in grave danger, having the US military move rapidly. Those are very key words by the president, Carol. There's a lot of concern that Gadhafi may make a move that they will have to deal with. Carol?

COSTELLO: Well, I was just going to ask you about -- what's the tipping point? What has to happen before the US gets more involved militarily?

STARR: Well, I don't know that anybody really knows that yet, but the nightmare scenario that you begin to hear about is Gadhafi has already shown great capacity to move against his own people. If that steps up, what does the US do about it, what does the world community do about it?

The U.S. -- the White House has made it very clear, they want to move, if they have to, within an international framework. The United Nations, NATO, not a unilateral US military movement with allies in the region, but being very clear here. There's very little stomach for doing something, unless there was this type of massive crisis.

Nobody's looking at a US military invasion, but they are ready if something terrible were to really happen, and they did have to move. Carol?

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr, live at the Pentagon, many thanks.

On Wall Street today, it is all about jobs. As we told you at the top of the hour, the economy added 192,000 positions last month. And even better, the unemployment rate fell below nine percent. Finally.

It sounds like good news, but what does Wall Street think? Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange. So, what is the answer, Alison?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT; You know what, Carol? There is this saying that has been around forever here on Wall Street. "Buy on the rumor, sell on the news." And that's pretty much what we are seeing at the open right now. Kind of a flat start to the day, even after this very good jobs report came out, especially since it was spot on. The expectation was that the economy added 190,000 jobs, and it actually added 192,000 jobs.

But the problem is that Wall Street wanted the number to be better, especially since other economic reports that have been coming in lately have been very strong. I'm talking about weekly jobless claim numbers are down. The service sector is heating up. Even retail sales are improving, so analysts are now pushing up their expectations, and it looks like investors wound up buying into thse expectations.

Still, though, we've got a strong jobs report. The February number shows the job market is at a turning point. Even the December and January jobs numbers were revised higher. So, sure, the labor market is recovering. But it's going to take a lot of time to dig out of the hole completely.

All right. Wall street coming off its best gains of 2011. Let's take a closer look at stocks to start the day. The Dow up only 10 points. The NASDAQ, down slightly. We will see if any momentum can happen here throughout the day, Carol.

COSTELLO: Alison Kosik, many thanks.

It's just past 9:30 on the East - on the East Coast, I should say. 6:30 out West. A quick check of some headlines for you.

Wisconsin's governor warns layoff notices could start going out this weekend to 1,500 workers unless Democratic lawmakers return to the capital. Two sides locked in a standoff over the budget and the governor's plan, which could strip public workers of collective bargaining rights. The Democrats are needed to provide a quorum for the vote.

NASA says an unmanned rocket carrying a satellite into orbit apparently crashed into the Pacific Ocean. The satellite was supposed to collect data to help scientists better understand the Earth's climate.

Some 20 years after his beating at the hands of Los Angeles Police, Rodney King was pulled over by police in Arcadia, California. His fiancee says he ran a red light and was cited for driving without a license. He's had a few other run-ins with the law over the years.

Be sure to join us tonight as CNN presents "RACE AND RAGE: THE BEATING OF RODNEY KING." That is tonight at 8:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.

Three weeks after ousting Egypt's president, protests are celebrating arrival of the next prime minister. This is the scene a short time ago in Cairo's Tahrir square. Calling himself the prime minister of the people, he vowed to resign if he could not deliver the reforms that have been promised.

And there is a lot of buzz about an online campaign to get Oprah Winfrey to host a live show from Tahrir Square -- from Tahrir Square in Egypt, just like when she went on the road with her show in Australia. But Harpo Productions says reports that she will broadcast from Egypt are not true. Tahrir Square, of course, was ground zero for the revolution that ousted president Hosni Mubarak.

CNN's Nina Elbagir is in Cairo. So, Nina, if Oprah does come, how safe is the square now? NINA ELBAGIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we were just down there when Essam Sharaf came down, and we were right in the middle of the crush. And you know, even though there was, obviously, a huge amount of people around us, it felt incredibly safe. You know, the Egyptians have taken a huge amount of pride in how they say that they have carried out a peaceful uprising.

Essam Sharaf, the current prime minister of Egypt, was carried away on the shoulders of supporters. So I think for a lot of people, if Oprah Winfrey did decide to come and broadcast from Tahrir Square -- and it was definitely a rumor that was causing a great deal of excitement here -- I think for them, they would feel like it was a validation of the dignity and the respect, as they see it, that they carried out their uprising, Carol.

COSTELLO: So Oprah Winfrey is that popular in Egypt?

ELBAGIR: Well, she's carried by one of the major Arab broadcasters in the Middle East. So, believe it or not, she is incredibly popular throughout the region. There are a lot of copycat shows, several very high profile female Arab journalists who have made their names in very similar formats.

For a lot of people, I think Oprah represents a certain perspective of the West and if she came here, they feel perhaps, especially America would be sending a statement to them that "We don't view you as these headscarved, militant Muslims. We accept this was uprising about democracy and about very specific values we share across the wolrd," Carol.

COSTELLO: Fascinating. Thank you very much, Nina. She is reporting live from Cairo, Egypt, today.

Actress Angelina Jolie visits Afghanistan. We will tell but the goodwill mission that brought her into that war-torn country.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Let's take a quick look at some the stories we are keeping our eyes on for later today.

Remember T.A.R.P.? At 10:00 a.m. Eastern, the oversight panel for the Troubled Assets Relief Program holds its final hearing on T.A.R.P.'s impact on financial stability.

At 10:48 Eastern this morning, the 12 crew members aboard shuttle Discovery and the international space station will hold a news conference. Yesterday, President Obama called to congratulate them on their mission.

At 4:00 p.m. Eastern this afternoon, President Obama makes an appearance at Miami Central High School with Education Secretary Arne Duncan and former Florida governor Jeb Bush. The event is highlighting the results of a turnaround program at the school.

President Obama may be losing support amongst Hollywood a-list. Case in point, actor Matt Damon, one of the first to come out in support of then-candidate Obama. But striking a far different tone last night on "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT." Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PIERS MORGAN, CNN HOST: Are you happy with the way that Obama has been running the country? Are you a fan?

MATT DAMON, ACTOR: No.

MORGAN: No?

DAMON: No. And I think -- I really think he misinterpreted his mandate. I think -- I don't -- a friend said to me the other day, I thought it was a great line, I no longer hope for audacity, you know? And you know he's doubled down on a lot of things. Going back to that education thing.

One of the things, if I were the adjustment bureau, this idea that we're testing kids and we're tying teachers' salaries to how the kids are performing on tests, it's just -- it's a really -- you know, that kind of mechanized thinking has nothing to do with higher order of thinking.

We're training them, we're not teaching them. The programs that are getting cut out at a lot of these schools and the things that are getting focused on are the things that are going to wind us up -- put us in -- put us in jeopardy down the road.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: If you missed Piers' interview with actor Charlie Sheen on Monday, don't miss the encore. The replay appears for Piers Morgan's full hour with Charlie Sheen. That's tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN.

Potential presidential candidate Mike Huckabee has a problem with Natalie Portman. Huckabee doesn't like it that the Oscar winner is pregnant and not married. Our political ticker in three minutes.

(COMMERICAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: He is the newly elected mayor of Chicago but Rahm Emanuel has some business back at the White House. CNN's Ed Henry is here with that story. Hey, Ed.

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Carol. Oh, to be a fly on the wall. 10:45 a.m. this morning, Rahm Emanuel returns to the Oval Office. He has not been around here, really, since October 1st. A lot has happened since then when he had the big sendoff from the president as the outgoing chief of staff. He had the election shellacking for (INAUDIBLE) comeback, if you will, in that lame duck session of Congress. Now all of this upheaval in the Mideast. Those budget talks that Rahm Emanuel used to be in the middle of as a member of Congress and then as chief of staff around here. Now, of course, he is mayor-elect of Chicago. "Chicago Sun- Times" reporting that his family still here in D.C. as the kids finish up school. He is getting a little R & R. Going to be here for a couple of weekends before heading back to Chicago fulltime when he is sworn in as mayor in May.

Secondly, interesting that as these budget talks continue here in Washington between the White House, Democrats and Republicans on the Hill, Republican senator Jim DeMint taking aim at NPR and PBS, saying that at a time when some of their executives make more money than the president of the United States, taxpayers should not be funding their efforts. He says, quote, "Sesame Street, for example, made more than $211 million from toy and consumer product sales from 2003 through 2006. Sesame Workshop President Gary Knell received $956,000 in compensation in 2008. With earnings like that," the senator writes, "Big Bird doesn't need the taxpayers to help him compete against the Nickelodeon cable channels Dora the Explorer." So, setting up a little fight here between Dora and Big Bird. I wasn't expecting that one.

But some groups on the left, like MoveOn.org have entered this budget fight as well, saying that what Republican senators like Jim DeMint are really trying to do is make a political point and are not really about the budget savings. But want to take on NPR and PBS for a perceived liberal slant there at those networks.

Finally, Mike Huckabee, you mentioned before. He is now going after Natalie Portman. Fresh off that Oscar victory for her role there in "Black Swan." She, of course, is engaged to a choreographer who worked on the film and is pregnant. And basically Mike Huckabee said on a conservative talk radio show that people see a Hollywood starlet like that boasting about being unmarried and having a baby, and it gives them a distorted image of what it's like to be a single mom. Huckabee saying, quote, "Most single moms are very poor, uneducated, can't get a job, and if it weren't for government assistance, their kids would be starving to death and not get health care." Natalie Portman has not responded yet.

But boy, what a week for Mike Huckabee on talk radio. He started off saying that the President grew up in Kenya and had to walk that back. And now taking aim at Natalie Portman. What a week.

COSTELLO: Yes, what a week. Thank you Ed Henry, we appreciate it.

HENRY: A pleasure.

COSTELLO: We'll have your next political update in one hour. And a reminder: for all the latest political news go to our Web site, CNNpolitics.com.

Oh, there is a reprieve, at least until midnight for pro football fans. The NFL and the players union have agreed to keep talking until then as they try to hash out a new collective bargaining agreement.

And it seems President Obama has no intention of wading into that dispute.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm a big football fan, but I also think that for an industry that's making $9 billion a year in revenue, they can figure out how to divide it up in a sensible way and be true to their fans who are the ones who, obviously, allow for all of the money that they're making.

And so my expectation and hope is that they will resolve it without me intervening because it turns out I've got a lot of other stuff to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: He certainly does.

Sports attorney David Cornwell, you were in the NFL and you actually participated in labor negotiations. So you're a good guy to talk about this.

So the President said something interesting. He kind of laid some of the blame for this dispute over money on the fans. If they -- I -- I -- I'm just guessing here -- but if the fans weren't so loyal to the NFL and watching the NFL, I mean, the players are using the fans. The owners are using the fans. And there's this threat of a lockout looming.

So how does that factor in negotiations?

DAVID CORNWELL, SPORTS ATTORNEY: It factors into it very significantly because the fans are the reason that the game is so popular and so profitable. So both the owners and the rep -- and the players recognize that up until this point, they have been expressing their positions in negotiations.

I think last night, we got a substantial break-through to the extent that both sides, instead of expressing their competing positions, are recognizing their shared interests and, frankly, their obligation to the fans to keep this game going.

COSTELLO: So they really care about their obligations to the fans and they don't just care about the money?

CORNWELL: Absolutely.

Listen. I've been in meetings with players and the commissioner where his -- his primary focus is how the fans perceive the game and the players who play it. And -- and players recognize that obligation as well. The players are partners for the owners. But our customers are the fans.

COSTELLO: Yes, but -- but this just didn't start like three days ago. This thing has been boiling over for quite some time. Why didn't they work it out a way long time ago when they knew it was going to come to this point? CORNWELL: The nature of negotiations. Up until this point, the owners have been saying we want $1 billion off the top, that's been their position, that's been their way of expressing their interests in ensuring that the game is profitable.

The players have said we want to look at your books. That's been their position of expressing their interest and ensuring they got a fair share of this huge pie created by the fans.

COSTELLO: Ok and let's just talk about the union question because, you know, we have union stuff going on all across the country with collective bargaining. The players are fighting for a bigger share of this $9 billion profit. It's 60/40 right now, the split, right? And the owners say they can't afford that any more.

So is this an example of -- of union members just being greedy? Because don't they make enough money, these players?

CORNWELL: Well actually, players are not asking for more. What their position has been to keep the same that they have been making. Their owners are asking to pay them less. When we talk about labor costs, what we're really talking about is the salary cap. The salary cap is function of league-wide revenues, that's how it's set, but it's paid with team revenues.

And teams like the Dallas Cowboys and the Redskins they don't have any problem paying the salary cap, teams like the Bills and the Bengals do. So this is going to come down to focusing on setting the salary cap at a point where the Bengals and the Bills can continue to be profitable. And then the next step is going to be arguing about the surplus.

COSTELLO: Something says they are still pretty profitable. Thank you very much for joining us.

CORNWELL: Certainly.

COSTELLO: So football fans, don't despair you could have Sunday games even if there is an NFL lockout because -- this next sentence hurts me -- the women of the lingerie football league would be suiting up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: We're following lots of developments in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. Let's check in first with Becky Anderson.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. What you see behind me tonight will be home to thousands of migrant workers. They may have successfully fled the fighting in Libya, but they are a long way from home. I'm Becky Anderson on the Libyan/Tunisia border. More after the top of the hour.

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Casey Wian in Madison, Wisconsin, where protesters under threat of arrest have voluntarily left the inside of the state capitol building. Democratic lawmakers are also under threat of arrest but they're not going anywhere. I'll have details at the top of the hour.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Elizabeth Cohen in Atlanta, does your 8-year-old need to be in a car seat? How old is too old? I'll have more on that at the top of the hour.

COSTELLO: I like that prop. Thanks to all of you. We'll get back to you.

New numbers released this morning show unemployment below nine percent and nearly 200,000 jobs created. The figures for February indicate the job market is edging in the right direction. The 8.9 percent unemployment rate is the lowest level since April of 2009.

President Obama's labor secretary Hilda Solis, joins me live from Washington. Welcome and thank you for joining us.

HILDA SOLIS, LABOR SECRETARY: How are you? Thank you.

COSTELLO: I'm good.

So these -- these job numbers make us smile but there are couple of things looming that some say could actually halt the economy's growth. And of course, number one, the price of oil.

What can the administration do to -- to lessen the damage?

SOLIS: Well, I think to be sure, we have to remember that when we started in the -- in the process of beginning in the administration, as you know, we were losing quite a large number of jobs, over well over 800,000. Then we provided a year of recovery. That effort then now results in job growth, and in the last three months you've seen that unemployment rate really going down. More people are going to work. We're adding jobs. We're finding that there is growth in manufacturing --

(CROSS TALK)

COSTELLO: But we under --

SOLIS: -- construction and health.

COSTELLO: -- we understand that, but I'm just wondering, there are those things looming out there, like the price of a barrel of oil. So what can the administration do to like lessen the impact if oil -- if the price of oil continues to go up?

SOLIS: Well, I think the Department of Energy, Secretary Chu, is overseeing that right now, as well as our global partners, and folks at the White House. So my -- my effort here is to focus in on job training and employment and trying to make sure that those 13 million that we still need to help find employment find the skills and they get the training that they need and to make sure that we make a better connection with businesses.

And businesses I think are coming back because of what happened in December, the tax credits, the payroll tax credits; all of those things that help to incentivize businesses to begin to make more investments and to hire up people and as a result we're starting to see that.

(CROSS TALK)

COSTELLO: And then -- and then just -- just another question. Like how much do these numbers take into account that many Americans have opted out of the job market and many Americans are taking part- time work? How positive really are these numbers?

SOLIS: Well, I would say that, again, looking back at the last year, we've added 1.5 million private sector jobs, and that is quite, I think, impressive, given that we have been in a two-year period that has been very hard when we were inheriting job losses of well over 800,000 jobs a month.

It takes time to get this moving, and we said that from the get- go, but the investments that the President made through the Recovery Act are showing, I believe, their fruits in different ways. We see it in the automobile industry with 72,000 jobs now coming back. We are looking, especially because of the hard times, to cut our dependency on foreign oil by making those investments in fuel efficient cars, lithium batteries, wind turbines and renewable energy and solar power. That's where we want to kind of see people going into those careers and hopefully cutting off our dependence on foreign oil.

COSTELLO: Hopefully so. Hilda Solis, thank you for joining us. We appreciate it.

SOLIS: Thank you so much.

COSTELLO: Ahead in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM, the trial of self-help guru James Ray under way in Arizona and several participants of the sweat lodge purification ritual testify. Our legal expert weighs in.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Lebron James went to Miami to win a championship. Jeff Fischel from HLN Sports is here. So Jeff, his team, the Miami Heat, not looking so much like a champion right now?

JEFF FISCHEL, HLN SPORTS: No. When they're facing the good teams, they're not looking very good, and of course, that's who they're going to play in the play offs, right? The good teams.

An epic collapse against Orlando and that makes you really wonder what this team can do in the postseason. Watch Lebron throws it right off teammate Chris Bosh's, right over the face. The Heat led by as many as 24, but Orlando goes on a 40-9 run. Ryan Anderson gets the layup inside right there, and Magic goes on to win, taking down the Heat after trailing by as many as 24.

Ok. Soccer now, no player wants a red card. It means you get thrown out. A referee in Argentina gave every player on both teams a red card and the coaches too. The second half is total chaos. Fans came on to the field, and the teams even tried to fight in the locker room after the match.

Now, with a red card, they get a three-match suspension. So if everyone's suspended, who plays next time. We don't know.

We've been telling you about the NFL labor negotiations.