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The Debt Crisis and Your Finances; Last-Minute Dealing on Boehner Bill; Drug Lords On Big Screen; Babies Born Addicted
Aired July 29, 2011 - 11:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Top of the hour. I am Suzanne Malveaux. I want to give you up to speed.
"We are almost out of time." Those were the words from President Obama just a short time ago. The deadline for raising the country's debt limit just four days away now, and Congress and the White House are gridlocked.
President says that the U.S. has to cover its debts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The debt ceiling does not determine how much more money we can spend, it simply authorizes us to pay the bills we already have wracked up. It gives the United States of America the ability to keep its word.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: House Speaker John Boehner trying to wrangle enough Republican votes to get his bill passed today. A vote was expected last night, but Boehner delayed it because he didn't have enough support. Well, Senate Democrats say even if it passes the House, they're not going to support it. Majority Leader Harry Reid says he intends to act on a Senate bill by the end of the day.
The debt crisis, it's not the only news that investors are worried about today. We've got new numbers that show the economy grew at a sluggish pace during the second quarter of the year. The gross domestic product measures the value of all goods and services produced in the United States. Well, it rose by an annual rate of just 1.3 percent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Recall in silence those who lost their lives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: In Norway, a day to honor the victims of last Friday's deadly bombings and shootings. Mourners gathered this morning for a memorial service in Oslo. The attacks killed 76 people, and today police are questioning the suspect for a second time.
From Poland, a report placing the blame for last year's plane crash that killed the country's president and almost 100 others. The plane went down in Russia. Investigators say pilot error was mostly to blame, but they say that Russian air traffic controllers and bad weather also played a role in that crash.
Well, almost two years after the Fort Hood shooting spree, police may have stopped another attack on the post. They arrested an AWOL American soldier after FBI agents found potential bomb-making materials in his hotel room. Private First Class Nasser Jason Abdo reportedly told investigators he wanted to attack troops at Fort Hood. His arrest, triggered by a tip from a gun shop salesman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GREG EBERT, GUN SHOP SALESMAN: He shows up here in a taxicab. How many people go shopping at gun stores in a taxicab?
I rang it up. He paid cash, took his bag, and left without the receipt or his change.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Left without his change?
EBERT: Yes. It wasn't much. You know, like 18 cents, 20 cents.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Planes continue to hammer Libya, but despite gains on the battlefield, rebel fighters just lost their commander. General Abdul Fatah Younis was killed in the port city of Benghazi. It is not clear how he died. His supporters say rebel leaders were about to question him about alleged ongoing ties to Moammar Gadhafi.
Meanwhile, the woman who told the world that she had been raped by Gadhafi's forces and then fled for her life is now living in the United States. Eman al-Obeidi flew into New York late last night, then boarded another flight to a final undisclosed location.
The former astronaut who attacked a romantic rival is forced to retire from the Navy. Prosecutors said Lisa Nowak drove from Houston to Orlando wearing NASA diapers to avoid making pit stops. She then attacked a woman who was dating her former love interest. Well, Nowak served a year on probation under a plea deal, and her lawyer denies that she wore those diapers.
Well, the clock is ticking, the anxiety is building over the debt limit crisis. Most of us are just trying to figure out what we need to do with our mortgages, our retirement accounts, our investments, all those kinds of things.
Well, financial analyst and money expert Clyde Anderson, he's here to talk about all of that.
Clyde, we need you. We need you, man.
CLYDE ANDERSON, FINANCIAL ANALYST: Yes. MALVEAUX: Help us understand what it is that we need to do. First of all, let's talk about just investments, 401(k)s. Should we start pulling our money out?
ANDERSON: Well, I wouldn't say pull the trigger now and start pulling your money out, but we need to know what's inside of our 401(k)s. And a lot of times we're investing in treasuries. And really, we're investing in the stock of the United States government. And this may take a hit. If we lose that AAA rating, it could devastate some of those treasuries and we'll lose money. And so you definitely want to talk to your broker, or whoever manages that 401(k), to know exactly what you have inside of that.
MALVEAUX: Should we do that this weekend? Should we do that before the August 2nd deadline?
ANDERSON: I would say do it as soon as possible. You want to know. You want to be knowledgeable. How many securities? How much am I invested into these types of securities? You definitely want to know.
MALVEAUX: What about making large purchases, like buying a home, for instance? Is it a good idea to do that now?
ANDERSON: This is a great time to buy a House regardless, and so definitely now, as rates are at an all-time low, it's a great time to go ahead and invest, because rates are going to go up. And now this could be the catalyst to drive rates up right now, if we have this decision that comes about next week.
And so I would say, if you're looking at buying a car, you're looking at buying a House, this is a great time to do it. They are already on sale, but now you have a rate that's beautiful. And so if you go ahead and take advantage of this rate, this is a great time to do it, before they go up.
MALVEAUX: And what about refinancing? Is now the time to refinance?
ANDERSON: Well, refinancing I would say, as well. If you're looking to get that lower rate, if you can save one percent, or maybe two percent. But the problem a lot of people are having is they don't have that value in their homes. If the value is there, if you've got that equity there to refinance, I definitely think it's something to look at that.
MALVEAUX: All right. Clyde, we're going to see if we should be buying some gold. We're going to have a quick break. We're going to have you talk about that afterwards.
ANDERSON: All right.
MALVEAUX: A lots of questions that we've still got for you.
Well, you've heard about the gold prices going up. We are going to see if this is a good time to buy gold and other precious medals. Going to have more with Clyde in just a second.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Well, we have been talking with financial adviser, money expert Clyde Anderson about the debt crisis, your personal finances, what we all need to do here, because there is a possibility of a financial disaster just four days away, and a lot of people are very concerned about this.
ANDERSON: They definitely should be.
MALVEAUX: Talk about gold. Should we be investing in gold? Is that a good idea now?
ANDERSON: I think gold is a great investment, but you have to be smart about how you invest in it. If we look at where gold has come from, even over the last five years -- you know, right now gold is at about $1,600 an ounce. And I can remember when everyone was wondering, was it going to hit $1,000? And now look at where it is.
And the thing I tell everybody is that we're printing more money, but we're not making more gold. That's not possible. And so it's a commodity that I think we really should look at investing in, but don't fall sometimes for the 1-800 buy coins and that type of --
(CROSSTALK)
MALVEAUX: Well, explain to us what the difference is between investing and buying.
ANDERSON: Yes, exactly. You're not going to get the same value. You're going to get a percentage of the value. I mean, you're buying a trinket, for the most part. And we're seeing these signs pop up, "We buy gold."
So, not going in and just giving up your gold. There's a reason these signs are popping up, because gold is increasing in value. But definitely, just by buying gold jewelry, or buying some of these gold coins, you're not getting 100 percent gold either. And so you definitely want to make sure you're dealing with someone that's investing in gold itself, or the commodity of gold.
MALVEAUX: And we're watching this kind of back-and-forth in Washington. Should we just kind of hang tight? Should we just hold off, wait, maybe do nothing until they can figure this out? Or should we be doing something?
ANDERSON: I believe in doing something. Again, even at least educating ourselves, because some of us just don't know.
So look into these things. Look into gold. Look into your 401(k). Find out exactly what's inside of there, because you don't want to be blindsided either.
You don't want something to happen next week and you're going to take an immediate hit. And so you definitely want to know, and you want to be patient at the same time. So you don't want to make any rash decisions, but make a smart decision
MALVEAUX: What's the smartest decision? What's the one thing that you would advise folks to do?
ANDERSON: If you're going to buy something, or you've been thinking about buying something like a home or a car, do it now. That's one of the smart things I would say. But also, look at gold really as a good investment, and diversify some of your things and make sure you're not to heavily invested in bonds in the treasuries, investigating in the government. There's other things that we can invest in to make sure we're spread and we're protected.
MALVEAUX: All right. Call your finance guy this weekend.
ANDERSON: Call him quickly. Call him this weekend. Hopefully he's home.
MALVEAUX: I'm going to call you. I'm going to talk to you.
All right. Thank you, Clyde. Appreciate it.
ANDERSON: My pleasure.
MALVEAUX: And I understand that we have some news coming from the Hill. Our own Kate Bolduan is on the Hill with some news about deal-making on the Boehner bill.
What do we know? What's the update, Kate?
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Suzanne.
Well, it appears that there could be a breakthrough here in terms of getting a debt ceiling bill through the House of Representatives. Now, while leaders are not yet predicting that they have all the votes, members that we have been talking to as they were just now leaving a closed-door meeting of House Republicans say that they think that they are there, a definite change from yesterday's evening. And here's why.
They're tweaking the language of the bill and just very briefly, for our viewers, so they can understand it, is that they are now going to make the second hike in the debt ceiling that would happen early next year, making that contingent upon congressional passage, that Congress passes the balanced budget amendment. The original language only required that there be a vote, not congressional passage.
Now, this change comes as a result of conservative pushback that really seemed to be clearly holding up the vote here as they couldn't rally enough support around this bill. But this was, as we're told -- my colleague Deirdre Walsh was told last night -- this was part of the discussion last night, and it seems maybe members slept on it and we're definitely seeing signs that some firm no's last night are now becoming yes's.
And I'll tell you one quick quote that is noteworthy, as this comes from the Majority Leader, Eric Cantor, asked today by one of my colleagues, "Do you have the vote?" Last night he wouldn't have said this. Today he says, "I think we do."
And I'm told as guidance we could be possibly seeing a vote sometime later today, looking like it could be into the evening -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: And Kate, real quick here, a question. If this does pass in the House, does it make it any more likely that it's going to be passed on the Senate side?
BOLDUAN: To be honest, it doesn't seem like it. Of course, they would have to see what the exact language is of this amendment. But as we know, as it was said early on from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, as well as all the members that vote with the Democratic Caucus, they said that that bill was dead on arrival, but we'll have to see how it goes.
MALVEAUX: OK. Kate, we understand Senator Harry Reid is speaking now.
Let's dip in now and take a listen.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: -- right-wing leaning bill that is called the Boehner plan. It's really hard to comprehend the confusion that they have had over there and they are still having today.
It's really time that they legislate. As we know, they are having trouble doing that. They've changed this so many times, it should be fairly easy to get the votes now. They've basically given the right wing even more than what they had before.
The Senate, we have proposed compromise. As Fred Thompson said, the Republicans have gotten what they wanted, and they should put their chips in their pockets and go home and declare victory.
It's really -- what we have now as our amendment is one that reduces the debt, extends the debt ceiling until March of 2013. The CBO has scored it. It's raised the number to over $2.4 trillion. So it's real compromise directed towards the Republicans.
So I am going to today, as I did on the floor this morning, ask my Republican colleagues, starting with Senator McConnell, give me some ideas as to what you think would improve my legislation, keeping in mind, as I've said on the floor, there will be no agreement if it's a short-term extension. We're not going to do that, and my caucus supports that fully.
Right now this is the only compromise there is, obviously. Obviously.
What is being done in the House is not a compromise. It's being jammed through that with all kinds of non-transparent dealings, people shuffling in and out of the Republican leadership's officers.
So we're recognizing the only compromise that there is, is mine. Ours is truly a bipartisan piece of legislation. And the Republicans realize that. I have had a number of Republicans come to me.
I had one Republican come and say, "Thanks for your legislation." And we had meetings with a number of Republicans last night, various senators, and they feel concerned that we're not arriving at a compromise more so than what we have now. And we want to do that.
I repeat, I've asked my friend Senator McConnell to meet with me to try and work this out, and I am confident he will, I hope, come back with some suggestions that he has.
The stakes couldn't be higher. The security of our nation -- literally the security of our nation -- every family is at stake here.
If the debt ceiling is not increased, every American family will feel an increase in their taxes in various ways -- higher payments on all their debts, credit cards, loans they have taken out to put their kids through school, car payments, mortgages on their houses. So I say to my Republican colleagues here in the Senate, do the right thing and put the interests of the country ahead of the Tea Party extremists.
They're the ones driving that. They're all in town. That's what all the news said. They came, they've made all of these demands.
The people that we all represent want us to come together in a bipartisan method. "Compromise" is not a bad word. So it's time for us to act together, and we hold our arms out to my Republican colleagues to visit with me and talk to me how we could strengthen my legislation.
Senator Durbin?
SEN. RICHARD DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Thank you, Senator Reid.
On Monday night we had an announcement and a message to --
MALVEAUX: You have been listening to the Democratic leadership on the Senate side, Harry Reid.
We're going to have much more on this after our break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Ten-time Grammy Award winner Chaka Khan, still delighting audiences with her brand of music, one of my favorites. Early this month she was in New Orleans for the Essence Music Festival. She did more than just sing while she was there. I sat down with Chaka Khan to discuss her newest project and to get her take on "What Matters."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
MALVEAUX (voice-over): "Tell Me Something Good" launched Chaka Khan's singing career in the mid-1970s. It's been more than 35 years, and Khan is still making beautiful music.
Khan recently performed at the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans, but she wanted to do more.
CHAKA KHAN, SINGER: It really all started when I found out I was going to do Essence again this year, but somehow I just don't feel right just putting on some fancy clothes and getting on stage and singing some songs and then leaving.
MALVEAUX: So Khan hooked up with the Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged women of color. Over the next year she'll be working closely with 50 young women from the New Orleans area who are participating in a program to get themselves back on track.
KHAN: These women are in various stages of, like, challenge. Some of them have health problems, some of them are living from their cars.
MALVEAUX (on camera): What do you want to give them?
KHAN: I want to give them a sense of power over their lives, over what happens to them in the future.
MALVEAUX (voice-over): And Khan has had her own life challenges. About seven years ago she went through drug and alcohol rehab.
KHAN: I had to stay there for almost three or four months, no contacts with anybody. While I was in there I lost my voice, I couldn't sing.
I had to relearn that this is a gift. I had to learn to like myself, or pretend I did until I did. I'm still working on that part, too, still.
MALVEAUX (on camera): What gave you the strength to get beyond perhaps that moment when you hit the bottom?
KHAN: Well, I knew that I had a calling. And I have a lot to do for other people.
MALVEAUX: You grew up in Chicago, in Hyde Park. What do you think of your fellow Chicagoans, the Obamas?
KHAN: I think he's doing a bloody good job. He's really a strong person. His wife is a strong woman. They've got it together.
MALVEAUX: And you had said something before where even -- despite the fact we have a black president, that we have not come far enough when it comes to civil rights.
KHAN: No. MALVEAUX: Why do you believe that?
KHAN: Well, because I see it. I think that a lot of people are being victimized, just in more sophisticated ways. (INAUDIBLE) is happening in a lot of way in a lot of cities -- land-grabbing and putting people out. I think that the educational system is really a wreck. I think that a lot of that is really biased, not so much by color, but more by what you can afford.
MALVEAUX: Economically.
KHAN: Yes.
MALVEAUX: Right. So will still have a way to go?
KHAN: Yes, we do. Yes, we do.
MALVEAUX: Yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Well, as for her music career, Chaka Khan tells me that she is working on a new CD. We're going to be checking back with Chaka Khan and see how things are going with her project to help those 50 women in New Orleans.
Well, Americans are lashing out at Congress and the White House over their failure to agree on this debt limit plan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These idiots up there can't even do anything about it. They're like wanting to -- they just ought to raise the debt and then deal with everything else, but they know they can't do that, so they just -- it's a waste of time. They're saying we're going to hold everybody hostage while we get what we want.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: We're going to fill you in on where the debt limit battle stands right now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: New developments in the case of Private First Class Naser Jason Abdo. He's an AWOL American soldier who was arrested after FBI agents found potential bomb-making material in his hotel room.
Ed Lavandera just got out of the court at the hearing on this case. And he joins us by phone. Ed, what happened? I understand there is a development.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on the phone): Well, it was a really bizarre experience. A short hearing. This was an initial appearance by Private Abdo. He walked into the courtroom just a short while ago, the federal courtHouse here in Waco, Texas. He was wearing a white jumpsuit, shackled around the waist and the arms as well as the feet. And there was a heavy law enforcement presence, nine U.S. marshals surrounding this soldier.
And as he went through the process, right before the judge was about to walk into the courtroom, everybody stood up as is common procedure. Abdo refused to stand up. Two U.S. marshals leaned over to him and said stand up, stand up. He continued to refuse. And those two U.S. marshals yanked him up by the arms to force him to stand up.
Then they went through the process where he has essentially been charged so far with one count of possessing an illegal firearm. That was the only charge brought up in the court hearing this afternoon, and we anticipate that perhaps more would be filed, but that's all that was announced in this court hearing today
And then as everything was wrapping up, Abdo was being escorted out of the courtroom, and he started talking out loud so everyone could hear him and made reference to a 2006 rape and murder of a young Iraqi girl who was raped and murdered. Her family killed by U.S. soldiers. And then he also gave essentially a shout-out to Major Nidal Hassan, who is the Army major who is accused of gunning down in that massacre at Fort Hood two years ago 13 soldiers on the Fort Hood army post.
So, a bizarre kind of way to start -- actually did not do himself many favors here in terms of gaining any kind of sympathy with his behavior in the courtroom here today. Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: Wow. Ed, very dramatic developments. Thank you very much, Ed. Appreciate that.
Well, the threat of the U.S. government financial disaster over the debt limit is now just four days away.
Here is a quick look at where things stand now. House speaker John Boehner met with Republicans today, and sources say that he may have enough votes to get his plan through the House. Sources say Boehner's plan is being tweaked to include a congressional vote on a balanced budget amendment.
Well, Senate Democrats say they are not even going to support the Boehner bill. So, just moments ago Senate majority leader Harry Reid called for a compromise. And he said he is open to suggestions to change his plan.
So, while Congress debates the national debt, millions of Americans are dealing with their own personal economic crisis. One of the group's hardest hit is African-Americans. The national unemployment rate is 9.2 percent, but unemployment in the black community is 16.2 percent. It's even worst among black youth. It's more than 40 percent.
Joining me to talk about this is Desiree Rogers. She is President Obama's former social secretary, and now CEO at Johnson Publishing Company, when publishes "Ebony" and "Jet" magazines. Desiree, it's good to see you. You gave a keynote speech at the National Urban League's annual conference, addressing this very subject. Explain to us, help us understand, why is it that unemployment rate is so much higher for African-Americans?
DESIREE ROGERS, CEO, JOHNSON PUBLISHING COMPANY: Well, you know, I don't have the answer to that, but what I can say is the trend, as you mentioned the numbers, is extremely troubling. We basically are stuck at a quarter of the black American population being, you know, poverty ridden or what is called the abandoned ones.
And so the question is how do we reverse this trend? How do we reverse the trends of such a large decrease even in the income that black Americans have been able to achieve in the last ten or so years?
And so, this is a major issue in this country. We are seeing that the numbers really are terrible. And so how do we begin to address that?
I mean, yesterday was absolutely a step in the right direction. The room was filled with young black Americans anxious, you know, many of them working already in jobs, entrepreneurship, and really pulling together and trying to work this issue. But I think we have to hold hands and figure out from the ground up what can we do, because certainly what we've got right now is not working.
MALVEUAX: As the CEO of a major corporation, what can the business community do?
ROGERS: One of the things that we're doing is -- and the companies that I represent have been around 65 years, and we're in the process of rebranding those magazines and the cosmetics company and bringing them back to life.
We actually have jobs available. And so, we have gotten out there and asked for the support from the community. That has occurred, and now we are able to grow the business. And so, I think it requires a lot of hard work on the part of business, but we are seeing some inroads.
We just did a deal with JP Morgan Chase, so obviously a very large bank working with us. We still have majority ownership, but the business is going to grow. But I think it is going to be one step at a time.
MALVEAUX: And just watching what is happening in Washington with this whole debt crisis and potentially a financial crisis next week, could it impact the minority community, the black community disproportionately? Could they actually see signs of even more economic suffering?
ROGERS: You know, without question. I mean, I think one of the trends that we are seeing played out here in Washington is this whole idea that America is so diverse now that there are so many opinions, so many splintered groups, that we are really losing sight of just the individual American. And what this might mean to them, you know, whether it is higher mortgage rates for those that have adjustable rates, more difficulty getting loans or the cost of loans.
I mean, this is going to impact everyone. Anyone that has credit cards or student loans. I mean, if you really break it down to the individual person, the minority community is already hurting. So, to have this layered on top of that, is really just detrimental to a community that is already struggling.
MALVEAUX: All right. Desiree Rogers, thank you so much. We appreciate your perspective.
We are going to have a look at the markets straight up - next ahead -- after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: They say that Wall Street hates uncertainty, but uncertainty is really about all there is when it comes to the debt limit standoff right now. Senior congressional - rather, senior correspondent Allan Chernoff, he's joining us from the New York Stock Exchange.
Allen we've been hearing from congressional leaders. And obviously, folks are watching, paying attention to what is going on. How is the stock market reacting?
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: The stock market certainly doesn't like it. Stock market does not like uncertainty and it wants to hear that a deal is going to get done. So there is worry about whether the U.S. is going to pay off, avoid this potential for default, but there is also concern about government spending coming to a halt, which really could hit the economy hard.
So, the stock market right now, the Dow Industrials off about one-half of 1 percent; for the week as a whole, we're off more than 4 percent. A really tough week in the market. The concern has grown through the week.
And in the bond market, we also have seen people moving away from very short-term securities, fearing that the U.S. government may not make its payments in the next week or two. Investors have been moving into long-term bonds. So, ten years or 30 years out, no worry there the U.S. will pay. But for short term, people are moving out, and that's a big adjustment in the bond market. Suzanne?
MALVEUAX: That's a big development. All right. Allen, thank you.
She has been on the run since March, when she accused Libyan soldiers of rape. Now, Eman al-Obeidy is safe now in the United States. We're looking back at her long journey.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: She stormed into a hotel room in Tripoli.
(VIDEO CLIP) MALVEAUX: Screaming out to reporters in the lobby that she had been gang raped. She claimed her attackers were the soldiers of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
Well, that was in March. Since then she has bounced around the globe from Libya to Tunisia, Qatar and Romania, searching for a safe haven. Well, Eman al-Obeidy spoke with our Nic Robertson in April about why she came forward in the first place.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMAN AL-OBEIDY, ALLEGED LIBYAN RAPE VICTIM (through translator): So the whole world can know what's happening in Libya. Libya has lived many, many years without media exposure, without exposing the facts. Let the world know what's happening. The world (INAUDIBLE) and especially women, because I was raped and kidnapped, which moves people. And at the same time, the truth is coming out. Nothing remains hidden.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What should the world know about you as a person, apart from the terrible things that have happened to you?
AL-OBEIDY: I'm an ordinary Libyan citizen. Muslim. Conservative. And everything they said about me is a lie. I'm well educated, unlike the way the Libyan TV portrayed me. I come from a good family regardless of what they said. I'm also not mentally challenged like they said. Just because I raised my voice and talked to the media, they blamed me and questioned my sanity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Now al-Obeidy has finally found a safe place to hide here in the United States. She flew to New York late last night and she boarded another flight to a final, undisclosed location. S
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Want to go straight to the White House, where the daily brief is beginning. Jay Carney there. Let's take a listen into him.
JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Michael is the deputy assistant to the president for energy policy. Together they worked closely with teams from the Department of Transportation and the EPA to reach, as I said, an historic agreement on fuel economy. With that, I will turn it over to them. If you have questions for them about their issues, obviously ask them. We'll get those done at the top and then I will return to the podium to take your questions on other matters.
Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thanks.
As Jay said, President Obama, today, announced an historic agreement with 13 mayor auto manufacturers representing over 90 percent of --
MALVEAUX: We're going to go back to the briefing when Jay Carney is speaking about the debt ceiling debate. And we'll be watching that as it develops.
Well, we're going on to another story. The reality of a bloody drug war being taken to the big screen in Mexico. Our senior Latin American affairs editor Rafael Romo has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR (voice- over): It's a scene that Mexicans have become accustomed to, drug lords, hit men and organized crime bosses paraded in front of the cameras for the whole world to see. It's a reality that pays itself in front of the eyes of the Mexican public. The ongoing arm (ph) conflict among rival drug cartels and the Mexican government has left as many as 40,000 dead in the last four years.
This shocking reality has made its way on to the big screen with a new genre called narco movies. In this movie called "High-Powered People," a drug lord, and one of his associates, discuss alliances with a rival cartel. Filmmakers say their screen plays are based on current events, but the violence in their movies pales in comparison to reality.
JUAN MANUEL ROMERO, FILMMAKER ( through translator): We are not even close to reflecting reality. You can actually call our movies soft because we don't show as much blood and killings. We just try to give people what they want.
ROMO: The English translation of the movie titles are very revealing. "The Big Bazooka Shot," "The Sin Law Jackals (ph)," "Land of Blood," and "Narcos and Dogs" are among the most popular. The filmmakers say they make sure their screen plays don't rub any of the cartels the wrong way. It's a kind of self censorship that keeps them safe.
ROMERO: We deal with these issues in the best way possible. We're not afraid that they're going to come after us because we behave. We do things the best we can and so far we haven't been threatened by anybody.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Rafael Romo joins us now.
How popular are these movies? When you take a look at this, I guess a lot of people are a little worried about it?
ROMO: Exactly. Well, not necessarily mainstream just yet. They're popular in especially the four states where the violence is concentrated, but the popularity is increasing.
MALVEAUX: Is there any concern there that this is glorifying, you know, real life violence and crime? It's such a huge problem. ROMO: There is a lot of concern. And as a matter of fact, there's a governor in one Mexican state of Senalora (ph), he banned folk songs that have to do with drug violence and drug lords. Now he's thinking about taking this one step higher and banning the movies. That hasn't happened yet. But at the same time, there are many questions about freedom of expression.
MALVEAUX: All right, Rafael, thank you so much. Good reporting, as always.
ROMO: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: Well, you told us what you'd like to see. Your "Choose The News" story is just moments away.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's irresponsible that two sides can't get in a room and make a deal. And each of them has got to give some. But together they ought to come up with a plan.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are waiting until the last minute. I don't know what's going to happen. I'm scared about it.
UM: It's as though they're a bunch of babies that are playing games and they don't realize how important the decision is.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are a lot of people that aren't going to get a vote from me again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're bickering back and forth. You know, I mean, do what's best for the country. Get on board and come to some kind of an agreement. You know, give a little, take a little.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dragging things out. They're playing their games.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Forget the partisanship and work together to achieve the goal.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Something can be figured out. It's what you make your money on. It's your job. Figure it out.
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MALVEAUX: Americans expressing outrage at Congress and the White House over the debt limit fight. Without an agreement, the country won't be able to borrow money just days from now. We are actually monitoring a briefing that is taking place at the White House. If we get more information from the White House from that podium about the debt limit debate, we will certainly go to it.
Well, it is time for your "Choose The News" winner. Amber Lyon talks to a mother who admits taking pain killers during her pregnancy and is now worried about the effect on her newborn child.
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AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Broward County, Florida, is filled with pain clinics. Doctors making millions dolling out prescription opioids, also known as heroin in a pill, like candy.
LION (on camera): More and more people keep dying from prescription drug overdoses.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These doctors are (INAUDIBLE) our children every single day. Look at us. We're desperate. We're begging you.
LYON (voice-over): As one generation succumbs to prescriptions opioids, a new generation of addicts is being born.
SHERIFF AL LAMBERTI, BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA: Because we saw the number of crack babies that died. And this is just another version of that. We all need to be concerned.
LYON: According to state health records, during the first half of 2010 alone, 635 Florida babies were born addicted.
JESSICA: Good morning, ladies. I'm Jessica.
CROWD: Good morning, Jessica.
JESSICA: I feel good today. Casey goes for a follow-up appointment at the doctors. So hopefully they'll say she's doing better.
LYON: For most of her pregnancy, Jessica flooded her body, and therefore Casey's, with the prescription painkiller oxycodone, a synthetic version of heroin. These prescription pills have emerged as the nation's fastest growing drug problem. Jessica fears the drug use is responsible for Casey's frequent respiratory infections.
LYON (on camera): If you are pregnant and you know that it's harming the baby and could know it could possibly cause birth defects, why don't you just quit using the pills?
JESSICA: It's just not that easy. You feel like you're going to die.
LYON (voice-over): Jessica was weaned off the pills before Casey was born. Those that aren't give birth to babies who begin to suffer with their first breath.
LYON (on camera): So you actually have to detox the babies?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. They go through their withdrawal symptoms, yes. Either miserable, they're irritable, they have -- they sweat. They can have rapid breathing. Sometimes they can even have seizers.
LYON (voice-over): Even more troubling, researchers still don't know what the long term affects of opioid use will be on infants. And neither does Jessica.
JESSICA: Because I know that I'm going through stuff, getting off of the pills. So what's she going through? Because she's just a little baby and she can't talk and she can't tell me how she feels. I want to make sure that she doesn't want for anything. That she doesn't have to hurt anymore than I already put her through. She didn't deserve that. She's a princess.
LYON: Amber Lyon, CNN, Broward County, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: To see more of Amber Lyon's special report, you can watch CNN Presents Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
If your choice didn't win or you just want to check out the runners up, I'll have links to them on my page at facebook.com/suzannecnn.
CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Randi Kaye.
Hey, Randi.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Suzanne. Thank you. Have a great weekend.
