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Markets Teeter After Jobs Report; President Says We've Got To Do Better; Interview With Paul Rieckhoff and Bronze Star Recipient Nick Colgin Lots Of Cash, Lots Of Fear; Cops Guilty In Post-Katrina Shooting; Congress Funds FAA; President Aids Unemployed Veterans; Heat-Related Football Injuries; Chilean Mine Rescue One Year Later
Aired August 05, 2011 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Stocks matter, debt matters, GDP matters a lot, but nothing matters more to the bottom line health of the economy than jobs. And that's why you need to know this number. Take a look, 117,000. That's how many jobs our struggling economy created in the month of July. And it's way more than expected. Businesses actually hired more people than that, 154,000.
But that's offset by layoffs in government, most of those were caused by a temporary shutdown in Minnesota. The jobless rate is down, if you can call 9.1 percent down. In was 9.2 percent in June. Speaking of June, we now know more jobs were added then, also in May, than first reported. Still, the July numbers are higher than both those months combined. So, what does Wall Street make of all this? We had a triple digit rally at the opening bell, then a double digit rally, then no rally at all, and then, the rally restarted. Before we jump into our coverage from New York and beyond, I want you to hear the president's take on the job numbers and the long road ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: When Congress gets back in September, I want to move quickly on things that will help the economy create jobs right now. Extending the payroll tax credit to put $1,000 in the pocket of the average worker, extending unemployment insurance to help people get back on their feet, putting construction workers back to work, rebuilding America. Those are all steps that we can take right now that will make a difference.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: And now, let's turn to Poppy Harlow at CNNMoney.com. She is following all of this from New York. Poppy, what do you make of this? I mean, everything that we hear about corporate earnings I want to ask you about first, because that sounds really strong, yet the companies aren't exactly hiring?
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: It's such a great point and such an important point to make, Randi. You've got this performance of major American companies that is so strong, some record profits we've been seeing lately, and then a lack of hiring. So, this big divide about how we're all feeling and how the corporations are doing by the numbers. Just to give you a sense of how much cash these companies have on hand, I want to pull the number up for you because it's pretty astonishing. That's $1.5 trillion, that's how much about 4,000 non- financial publicly traded big companies here in this country have on their books.
To put it in perspective, Randi, that is the same of the GDP of Canada, the entire country of Canada. But even with that cash, they're not really hiring right now. And this is really symptomatic. Take a look on your screen what will pull up. It's the small and medium-sized businesses that are doing the hiring right now. Those two red marks, those represent two million jobs that small and medium sized companies have made in the last two years. The negative 22,000 jobs, that's how many jobs big fortune 500 companies have cut in the last two years.
The big question is, why is that? Shouldn't they be hiring? Generally, the big companies are not the drivers of growth, it's generally small and medium companies, but more and more, Randi, you're hearing this rallying cry for them to hire. But also, I want to give a sense of how much cash just a few big companies have on hand. We're going to pull them up on the screen so you can see them, Cisco, GM, Google, $10 billion of cash sitting on the sidelines.
Many of them are not hiring, but Google, that's an example of one that is. They have hired, in just the last year, almost 7,000 workers in the United States. Another tech company, Cisco, opposite story, they've laid off some 6,500 workers. And when you look at a big host of companies that we have here on the screen and you add up how much money they have, Randi, $310 billion, and that's the cash equivalent of Denmark. So, this has sort of got people fired up and they are asking, why? I'm going to play for you some sound from an expert on this explaining why these companies aren't using the money to hire. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAKSHMAN ACHUTHAN, MANAGING DIRECTOR, ECONOMIC CYCLE RESEARCH INSTITUTE: Companies, you know, are saying, whoa, they have the muscle memory from the last recession, and they know that some companies didn't make it through, so they want to really hoard cash unless they have business beating down their door, they're not going to hire anyone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: So, bottom line, Randi, we'll take the better than expected jobs number this morning but they are nowhere near where they need to be to turn around this employment crisis in this country -- Randi.
KAYE: And let me bring in Jim Boulden, he is watching, of course, all the global markets in London for us. Jim, the markets certainly overseas they were encouraged, I guess we could say, by the U.S. jobs report for at least, what, a few minutes anyway. What's going on now?
JIM BOULDEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Twenty minutes, yes.
KAYE: That's about it.
BOULDEN: Twenty minutes, maybe. And then we had -- you know, when the markets here closed, with the -- from the Dow was actually going again, and the negative territory in the Nasdaq was down some three percent. So, this little blip we've seen of positive numbers for Wall Street came too late for Europe, but it's all because of Europe, Randi, it's because they're rumors in the market that the European central bank might go in to buy bonds of Italy and Spain.
We're going to have a press conference any moment from the prime minister of Italy, Berlusconi, who may say some things to calm markets as well. So, it is so volatile, it changes minute by minute, so we can't predict what will happen again. But it was too late for these markets, and they were down between 10 to 13 percent for the week, all the big four (inaudible) -- Randi.
KAYE: The biggest driver of the global selloff?
BOULDEN: First, it was the unemployment numbers were good today, but we went right back to the debt worries. The debt worries in Europe that there isn't going to be a serious attempt to stop it from spreading despite the words from politicians, and also, global growth. So, if you have problems in the U.S., they -- until you see the U.S. growing at a hefty rate and better unemployment numbers, if you know what I mean, better employment numbers, the worry is the U.S. will not be able to help the rest of the world come out of recession, or close to recession.
KAYE: All right. Jim Boulden, thank you to you and our thanks to Poppy Harlow as well.
We have breaking news now just in to CNN we want to tell you about. A federal jury has reach -- it's this coming in here, so I'm just reading it, so bare with me. A federal jury has reached a verdict in the trial of five current or former police officers charged in the deadly shootings in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina. This is coming to us from our affiliate there, WWL. All officers were found guilty of deprivation of rights and civil rights violations. The jury reached a verdict today, this was the third day that they have been deliberating. Federal prosecutors say that the police shot unarmed people without justification. I want to bring in our Jeffrey Toobin who's on the line with us. Jeffrey, your thoughts on this as we're getting this news just in to CNN.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, this has been a long-running legal saga in Louisiana. These prosecutors were initially prosecuted by the state of Louisiana, and the cases did not end in convictions, so the federal government stepped in, much like the Rodney King case several years ago in California, state acquittals followed by federal prosecution, and here we now know they were convicted. This was a really tragic difficult situation where a lot -- where in the chaotic aftermath of Katrina, there was a confrontation on this bridge and people were killed. And now, the officers being convicted in federal court. KAYE: Yes. These shootings -- they left two people dead, four others wounded on that Danziger bridge after the 2005 storm. How unique is something like this, Jeffrey, for the federal jury to come to this conclusion?
TOOBIN: Well, it's not unique but it's certainly unusual. It is always difficult for police officers to be prosecuted. Most juries are sympathetic to them, most juries feel the police are on their side. So, these are fortunately unusual prosecutions. As I said, this does have a fairly direct parallel in California where there were acquittals in state court in the Rodney King case followed by a conviction in federal court. It's fortunately unusual, police are usually the good guys, but the federal government takes very seriously its obligation to police those who police us, and these cases do happen.
KAYE: I mean, the federal prosecutors had said that the police shot the unarmed people without justification, but the defense, Jeffrey, said all along that the officers were shot at before this happened. Do these -- do these officers -- can they do anything now after this? To fight this?
TOOBIN: Well, first they'll have to be sentenced and they will almost certainly get some prison time and then they will have the right to appeal. I think the key issue in this case, there was no doubt that there was a shooting here and these people died at the hands of the police, but the key issue has always been false statements, cover-up by some of these police officers. That certainly suggested a guilty state of mind on the part of them, and that's really, I think, what led to the convictions here. You know, if the officers had simply come forward and said exactly what happened, that might have made the jury look very differently than if they had made false statements which is very much part of the case.
KAYE: Yes, there was the fabricated witnesses possibly, the falsified reports, the -- they allegedly planted a gun, you think that's where they lost the trust?
TOOBIN: I think false statements are gold for prosecutors, because that suggests a guilty state of mind, and obviously, we haven't spoken to the jury yet, but certainly, I think that was a very important part of this case.
KAYE: All right, Jeffrey Toobin, appreciate you joining us for that breaking news. Thank you very much.
We are going to take a quick break, but on the other side, we're going to tell you the news about the FAA and the shutdown. Apparently, there is a settlement, the Senate has agreed, the House has agreed to end the -- at least to get these workers back to work. Four thousand FAA workers that have been furloughed are now back to work, so we will get very the latest from Capitol Hill when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: Welcome back. Well, if you had been watching the markets like we have been, you know they have been all over the place. So, let's turn to CNN's Alison Kosik, she's at the New York exchange, she's watching it very closely. Alison, where does it stand right now? What happened to the jobs rally?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: The jobs rally fizzled out a long time ago, but we are higher right now, we're up 108 points. What you're looking at, Randi, is a market that's reacting to the news headlines. At the opening of the day, we saw the Dow rally 172 points on those better than expected jobs numbers. Then, we were getting unsubstantiated worries that Standard & Poor's, one of big credit agencies, may downgrade the U.S. credit rating.
After the opening bell, we did contact S&P, they have not commented. Now, we're getting new news headlines that the ECB, that's the equivalent of the -- our fed here in the U.S. that it may buy up Italian and Spanish bonds. So, I brought in Allen Valdez, he is the head of floor trading here at DME Securities. Why is the market so fickle today? I mean, we're getting whiplash today.
ALAN VALDEZ, FLOOR TRADING, DME SECURITIES: You really are, it's incredible. Well you know, a lot of it has to do with the S&P, too. For traders, they're bouncing off markets here in the S&P numbers, but we got down 1170, that was the hold. We bounced off that, then we got to 1208 again, now we're coming back in a little. It's all technical rallying right now, but like you said, all of these rumors that are unsubstantiated.
KOSIK: While we're seeing these wild swings, is there a trend we can grab on to?
VALDEZ: Probably not, I mean, it started yesterday. I mean, in 2008, when the banks were cracking, we saw a lot of volatility, especially at the end of the days. I mean to tell you, we're up 600 point swings in total, up 100, down 240, and back and forth. So, you're going to see this volatility until we know what's going on. Wall Street loves certainty, they hate uncertainty. On any given day, the ebb and flow is all about confidence, people want to be confident. They buy a stock today at $10.00, two weeks from now maybe they sell at $12.00. But now, they think, if I buys today at $10.00, maybe two weeks I sell it at $8.00, I'm backing up. So, you see that on a lot of volatility, people just backing up right now.
KOSIK: And we're seeing more participants in the market?
VALDEZ: Yes, you are, and you see a lot more program traders, that's for sure, but you are seeing other participants also, and that's moving the market. Today, we have pretty good volume, yesterday, we had great volume, six billion shares on the composite take, the most we saw all year. So, we've seen a lot of volume lately.
KOSIK: All right, thanks for talking with us. So, this is definitely a market, Randi, that you have to have a strong stomach for, to say the least. Randi, back to you. KAYE: Yes, that is no doubt. All right, Alison, appreciate it. Thank you.
Up next, transportation secretary, Ray LaHood, was begging them to come back from vacation and act and they have. We'll tell you what Congress has just done to make sure FAA employees can go back to work. Keep it here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: To Washington now where an outrageous standoff that cost 4,000 government workers their paychecks and it cost the government $30 million a day, it's suddenly over just like that. I'm talking about the FAA funding fiasco that Congress failed to take care of before members left for their August recess. A few members are still in town and today they did this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JIM WEBB (D), VIRGINIA: Mr. President, the senator from Virginia. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to consideration of calendar number 109 HR 2553, the bill be read a third time and passed. The motion to reconsider be laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. And any statements related to the bill be placed in the record at the appropriate place as if read.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is there objection? Hearing no objection, so ordered.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: OK, I want to bring in Kate Bolduan to tell us what we just saw and what it means.
Kate, explain.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Riveting, riveting television I know for all of our viewers. What happened right there was that the Senate came to order, gaveled in and passed this short-term extension that Democrats and Republican have been fighting over so much since the debt ceiling crisis just ended and passed it with unanimous consent. Meaning, they can set their procedural rules aside, and if no one objects, which there were only two members, both Democrats in the chamber, so no one did, they passed it. So both the House and the Senate have passed it and now it's on the way to the president to sign.
So the short-term fight has now come to an end. But that doesn't mean that the -- that the issues that this was really all about are resolved. They really remain unresolved. So this short term issue gets the country through September 16th.
KAYE: Right.
BOLDUAN: That's when it's extended to. And then they still have to deal with the major sticking point, which just comes down to the unionization of airline workers. Republicans in the long term funding bill, Randi, they want to change a recent -- they want to reverse a recent change to federal rules that would make it easier for unions to organize in airlines. Democrats, obviously, are fighting them on that. And that's really where this stands. And so they finally, at least, came to the senses, if you will, and passed a short-term bill to have that fight for another day. But they do need to deal with that issue if they're -- likely before they can move any further than September 16th.
KAYE: Right, they have a labor rights issue and then they also have the issue that's also hanging out there, right, of the rural airports.
BOLDUAN: So the rural airports, it's very confusing and really unnecessarily so, but it is. The rural airports part of this had to do with the short-term extension. House Republicans inserted in a short term extension that they just passed -- this is what we're talking about here -- they wanted to cut funding the -- cut federal subsidies to air service for rural airports. For small airports. Basically making it so the tickets were not so expensive if people were going to fly there.
Democrats opposed this, saying that it was going to negatively impact the communities. Republicans, obviously, were sticking to their guns. But then secretary of transportation, Ray LaHood, came out to say that he has the authority to grant waivers so that the affected communities would not be impacted if he so needed. So that was enough for Democrats to sign on. They say that the net result would be effectively a clean extension of funding, which they were hoping for to begin with. So basically, as we always say, and I hate to use it, they basically kicked the can down the road to have this fight another day. But this fight will be another heated one.
KAYE: Yes, they resolved something, but they really didn't resolve anything. So -- but, hey, at least all of those FAA workers get back to work, which is very important.
BOLDUAN: Right. I mean that the important thing.
KAYE: All right, Kate Bolduan, appreciate it. Thank you.
What do our veterans get for keeping us safe and serving the country? An unemployment rate that triples the nations. In just two minutes, what the president is proposing to do about it and what two vets think. They'll join me live right here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: President Obama is focusing today on adding more jobs for unemployed veterans. The president reveal a new initiative that includes tax credits for companies who hire vets.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're challenging the private sector to hire or train 100,000 unemployed post 9/11 veterans or their spouses by the end of 2013. This builds on commitments that many companies have already made as part of the joining forces campaign.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: The nation's unemployment rate dipped by 0.1 percent to 9.1 percent in July. But the reality of joblessness is far worse for the men and women who fought and served their country. Take a look at these numbers. According to the White House, about 1 million veterans are out of work. That includes more than a quarter of a million service members who joined the military after the 9/11 attacks. The unemployment rate for just the veterans who joined post 9/11 is a staggering 13.3 percent. Compare that to the nation's unemployment rate and, yes, you get the picture, which is the main reason why President Obama met the executive director and founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
Paul Rieckhoff was there with the president as he outlined his new veterans employment initiative. Rieckhoff joins me now from D.C., along with Bronze Star Recipient Nick Colgin, who struggled to find a job after getting back from Afghanistan.
Thank you both so much not only for coming on the show, but, of course, for serving the country.
I want to review what this initiative includes first really quickly with both of you. Training to transition veterans from the military to the civilian world by the Department of Defense, Veterans Affairs and labor and businesses. He also proposes what he calls returning heroes and wounded warriors tax credits so companies who hire an unemployed vet will get a tax credit of $2,400. If that vet has a service related disability, that company gets double. That tax credit goes up to $9,600 if they hire a vet that's been unemployed for more than six months as well.
So, Paul, let me start with you here. Do you think that this will be enough?
PAUL RIECKHOFF, IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN VETERANS OF AMERICA: It won't be enough, but it's a great start. This is exactly what our nation's veterans need right now. You mention the numbers, but drilling down even farther, in states like Michigan, unemployment for veterans is at 30 percent. We see 20 percent in IAVA's membership nationally, and that should be unacceptable.
So we really think this is a great kick start. It starts a national conversation. This shows people that veterans are exactly the type of people you should be hiring in a tough economy. They've been through tough times. They know how to use technology. They're great in teams. They're dedicated. They'll be on time. And this is exactly the type of message we need to send to the entire nation, that these are the folks who can be on our front lines of economic recovery as well and it's exactly the type of support that guys like Nick need when they're coming home. KAYE: And, Nick, I want to mention that as I was watching that speech, I was struck when the president mentioned your name. It was certainly the story that he told was quite revealing. Let's listen -- let our viewers listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Nick saved the life of a French soldier who was shot in the head and helped 42 people escape from a flooding river. He earned a bronze star for his actions. But when Nick got back home to Wyoming, he couldn't get a job as a first responder.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: It's an amazing story, Nick. You earned a bronze star, you saved lives and you couldn't find a job here at home. What was the obstacle?
NICK COLGIN, AWARDED THE BRONZE STAR: The obstacle is, they prepare you to go overseas, but when you're getting out, its little preparation at all. I just had to go get a box checked saying I was ready to get out of the military. And then I get out and my certificate -- I don't have the certificate to transition to the civilian world. So while that all sounds great, it's -- I can't even pass out Band-aids stateside. And now I've got to convince people that what I did overseas is who I am. And I'm able to do that every day, saving lives or just serving my government.
KAYE: And how was it for you, just even psychologically, mentally, to not be able to find a job here in the country that you served?
COLGIN: I went from overseas earning a bronze star, saving a French soldier that got shot in the head, and I get back and, like I said, I cannot even pass out Band-Aids. And it's soul crushing. I've got to go home and I've got to tell my wife everything is going to be all right, but I can't tell her everything is going to be all right because I don't know. It's great what the president said today, but I'm hoping to see some action behind it in the coming days and coming weeks.
KAYE: Paul, of course Congress still has to approve these tax credits. Based on what we saw, how Washington works these days, is that OK with you? Are you confident that this will, indeed, get through?
RIECKHOFF: It should get through. You know, Congress hasn't been able to agree on much lately, but they should be able to agree on supporting veterans. Tax credits would be a real help to big businesses and small businesses. And giving them a bit of a financial backstop so they can hire folks like Nick. I mean, look, this guy's still doing an interview while trucks are going behind him and he looks unfazed. Imagine what he can do in a small business. These are exactly the types of folks who need every kind of support we can get. And Republicans and Democrats should agree on this. We need a jobs bill. We need a jobs bill for vets and the tax credit would be a really good start.
KAYE: Speaking of -- I know it's a good start, but why did it take so long to get it -- to get this going? I mean it's not like we just went to war. It's not like we're just learning that all of these veterans are out of a job. Why do you think it took so long, Paul?
RIECKHOFF: Yes, I don't know. It definitely took too long. But it's here now. And I think a lot of folks are disconnected. Less than one-half of 1 percent of the nation has served in Iraq and Afghanistan. So for many folks, it's something they only see on TV. But we hope that stories like Nick and Maria Kanalis (ph), another IAVA member who was mentioned today by the president, those personal stories will resonate. And if people understand, if you really want to support the troops, give them a job. Hire them. That's what we need to ring across America right now in big cities and small towns and hopefully the president's message today will start that conversation.
KAYE: Nick, just very quickly, what would you say is the most important skill a veteran needs right now to get a job?
COLGIN: Veterans need resumes coming out of the gate right there. And that's something you have no idea. You get a DD214 (ph) when you get out of the army, and that's your service record. You don't know what a resume is. I got in 2008. I just got a resume in 2011. And it's crucial. You prepare us to go overseas, prepare us to get out.
KAYE: Paul Rieckhoff, Nick Colgin, certainly appreciate you coming on. And if anyone out there would like to hire Nick Colgin, he is available for service at your company. Thank you both very much. And, Nick, keep us posted. Let us know who hires you.
RIECKHOFF: Thank you very much.
COLGIN: I will. Thank you so much.
RIECKHOFF: Yes, ma'am. Thank you.
KAYE: All right. Best of luck. Thank you both.
No question it's hot out there. We all know that. But did you know you could be suffering from a heat stroke and not even know it. The lie-saving signs to look for right after a quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Once again, this summer extreme heat is proving deadly for athletes, particularly high school football players. So far, four high school players and a coach have all died within a week of each other, and all suspected to be heat related. In addition, four high school players in Arkansas were hospitalized for dehydration as records hit a record high 114 degrees. And the weekend death of a 28- year-old runner in a Kansas City endurance race was also blamed on a heat stroke.
Professional teams are trying to beat the heat. As part of the new NFL labor deal, two-a-day practices are a thing of the past. Only one padded practice is allowed per day and players can no longer be on the field more than four hours in a day.
But there are no nationwide rules written to protect high school athletes from sudden death due to hot weather. Two of the four deaths were in the state of Georgia.
CNN's George Howell shows us what some high school are doing in Georgia to prevent these unnecessary deaths.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN JONES, FATHER: He's my hero. So strong.
GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Glenn Jones admits he did not see the signs until it was too late. His 16-year- old son Forrest started feeling sick a few days after a summer football camp.
JONES: I did not think anything about it, and I did not put two and two together. He was giving us signs, but he was not complaining, but he was giving us signs that something was wrong.
HOWELL: The teen died of heat stroke the next week after collapsing at a voluntary team workout. Jones was one of at least four high school football players across the country to fall victim to the extreme heat this summer.
DR. FREDRICK MUELLER, UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, CHAPEL HILL: I think some of the preventive measures aren't being taken place.
HOWELL: It's especially frustrating to Dr. Fredrick Mueller, a professor at the University of North Carolina, who says that heat- related deaths are preventable.
MUELLER: I spoke with somebody today and they saw a practice happening at 12:00 or 1:00 in the afternoon at the height of the heat.
HOWELL: Mueller has been studied heat-related football injuries for more than three decades, and says heat-related deaths are on the rise.
To beat the heat, the head coach of St. Pius High School in suburban Atlanta holds practice late in the evening with lots of water breaks. The team's athletic trainer also keeps close tabs on the heat.
GARY SCHMIDT, ATHLETIC TRAINER, ST. PIUS X HIGH SCHOOL: The wet bulb reading takes into really everything, humidity, temperature, wind. If that reading gets too high then we have to tell Coach and Coach is real good about it and we have to shut the kids down from activity.
HOWELL: At nearby Tucker High School, we found players practicing indoors to stay cool.
FRANKLIN STEPHENS, HEAD COACH, TUCKER HIGH SCHOOL: Got to kind of regulated that for us today. I think that was big, them making that decision they were not going to put kids in harm's way by a allowing them to go outside today.
HOWELL (on camera): Monitoring the wet bulb, pushing practice back later in the evening and even practicing indoors are methods that coaches are using to protect their players, but they say education is the most important piece, making sure that coaches know what to look for on the field and that players speak up when they feel they have reached their limit.
You talk about monitoring kids, but as a student I am sure they want to impress you and show you they are bringing their A game, and how do you tell a student to walk-up and tell you this is too much.
STEPHENS: Well, I think some of them do it, but as a coach, you are going to see it.
HOWELL (voice-over): All precautions Glenn Jones hopes everybody will take to heart.
JONES: It's a shame that Forrest had to pay for -- to get it to be better, but if it makes it better, then it's worth it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here to explain what exactly happens to your body in the heat.
So what are the signs, because we here that, you know, this dad did not recognize the signs, which is so sad.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Breaks your heart.
KAYE: What should we look for?
COHEN: All right, you should especially be vigilant when it's very hot out like it is now. I mean, I know, for example, my daughters play tennis, so we were just on them to make sure that they are not showing the signs, because it's so incredibly hot here.
So there are basically three stages here. There is cramps, exhaustion, and then stroke. And you never want to get to stage two or three, but let's talk about the first stage, heat cramps, muscle pains or spasm, which you might contribute, under other circumstances, just attribute to a kid working out a lot. If it's hot, think heat, don't think they are working too hard.
And then the next stage would be heat exhaustion, which is where if you see your child or this would go for an adult as well, heavy, heavy sweating. If they feel nauseous or have a headache, or if you feel their pulse and it feels quick, that's a sign also that they may be in trouble.
And then the final stage, which we hope no one would ever get to, is the body temperature goes over 104 degrees, the body just can't sweat out that heat anymore, the sweating stops. So sometimes people see that someone's not sweating and they think that's better, and that's not it at all. That's actually bad, it means you are not working anymore. Shallow or rapid breathing, if they are at all confused or disoriented. So those are things that you want to look for.
KAYE: So now the next obvious question would be, if you know what you're seeing, what can you do if you or your child are showing these signs?
COHEN: Very quickly, you want to get inside to air-conditioning and you want to give that person lots of fluids, and sometimes might you want to give them a sports drink instead because that can replace some of the salt and other minerals that they're losing --
KAYE: Like the electrolytes?
COHEN: Exactly, salt and electrolytes.
And also, you know, it's probably wise just in general to be outside during cooler times of the day. We saw that in that story that George did, that they were practicing in the early evening. I mean, it makes a lot of sense. It's light out until 9:00 at night, and why not practice at 7:00?
KAYE: I mean, we do it. If you want to take a walk or play tennis, you do it either really early in the day or later in the evening.
COHEN: Yes, I don't take a walk at noon, no way.
KAYE: But how unique is something like this? It's so tragic, but have we seen this before, students and football players dying?
COHEN: This is a lot of deaths in one year. I mean, George mentioned five deaths in one year, there were 58 deaths between 1980 and 2009.
And what's interesting, Randi, is almost 80 percent of those were kids who were technically obese. If you look on a BMI chart, they were obese. And so there is some suggestion that the heavier the kid, the football player, the more dangerous it might be.
KAYE: All right, Elizabeth Cohen, very important tips there. Thank you.
A mine disaster and rescue that brought tears of joy to the world, but for most of the 33 rescued Chilean miners, life today is one of grinding poverty. The latest on the one-year anniversary right after this.
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KAYE: It was the rescue that captivated the world. One year ago today, a cave-in at a mine in Chile trapped 33 miners 2,300 feet underground. At first it was believed the miners may have been killed. And then, on August 22cd, he discovery that brought joy to the miners' family, to Chile and to the world. A drill reached a depth of 2,260 feet and rescue workers heard tapping on the drill. A few hours later officials announced the miners attached had tied a note to the drill saying, quote, "The 33 of us in the shelter are well."
Over the next several weeks, food, water and medicine were sent down to the miners through a tiny drill shaft. Finally, 69 days after the start of that ordeal, the first miners were pulled to the surface on October 13th in a specially designed steel cage as it brought them all up through the rescue shaft. It was a slow, painstaking process, one miner at a time.
Once they reached the top, there was an explosive of sheer joy both from the miners, the family members and officials -- I'm sure you remember it. The last miner was pulled to safety the following day after a 22-hour televised rescue that, yes, gripped the world.
The miners became instant celebrities, and they were invited to Disney World where they served as honorary grand marshals of the Main Street, USA parade. Edison Pena, the miner who worked out underground, ran in the New York Marathon. He's a huge Elvis fan, and when I interviewed him in New York City, I got him to sing a few lines.
Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDISON PENA, FORMER TRAPPED CHILEAN MINER (singing): Are you lonesome tonight? Do you miss me tonight? Are you sorry we drifted apart?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: But fame has proved fleeting for the miners, most live in poverty.
Joining us to talk much more about the miners' fate is Rafael Romo.
What happened to the miners, Rafael, is really heartbreaking. How did this happen?
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: Well, it's a mixed bag. You have some miners who have adjusted very well to their new life. Some of them have become public speakers, and one of them even the is trying to coach company executives into safety conditions and stuff like that.
But many others have been unable to find stable jobs, as many as seven, according to reports, are still unemployed. One is working as a cabdriver in the capital of Chile, Santiago. There are seven who are still undergoing some sort of medical or psychological treatment. So -- and many of them are still living in poverty in the same area where this happened. KAYE: You know, I remember at the time there was so much talk after Disney World there would be big book deals and we really had such high hopes for their future. But now some are suing the government. Is that something that may have had an impact on what has happened to them and maybe their reputation in Chile?
ROMO: Well, when asked what is the reason behind this lawsuit against the Chilean government, what they say is it's not about the money, although there is big money involved. It's something like 60 million U.S. dollars if they win this. But what they say they are trying to do is send a message because what happened to them, the accident, had to do with decades of neglect in the mining industry in Chile. And it was not supposed to happen. The company that owned the Copiapo mine was not clearly evaluated by the government, and so that neglect was, in the miners' opinion, what caused the accident. That's what they are trying to do for the rest of the miners who work in Chile under very similar conditions.
KAYE: How is the anniversary being observed there? Is it?
ROMO: Yes, it is. There was a mass at noon Eastern, which is the same time in Chile, attended by the President Sebastian Pinera. And then at 2:00, and just a few minutes from now, they are going to inaugurate an exhibit at a regional museum in the Caman Desert, the same area where this happened.
So, a couple of high profile events. But what they are seeing is that many people in Chile do not really regard the miners as heroes as they did back in October when they were rescued.
KAYE: It just changed? That's it.
ROMO: Well, one of the miners were saying it's like people have envy because of all of the attention we have generated worldwide --
KAYE: And they don't like that.
ROMO: And they don't like that. Although abroad, he says, we get really good treatment and people like talking to us.
KAYE: Oh, yes, they are stars here. Has any one of them, even, made any type of money on a book deal or nothing like that?
ROMO: There's one miner who was the writer underground who was chronicling everything going on that may eventually gather all of his notes and publish a book. But he is the one miner who was not allowed to do interviews because of his psychological treatment. And then there's also the movie deal that was announced last month that should also include a book deal. But that's still in the works and it's probably going to be months before we know anything about that.
KAYE: Well, we certainly wish them the very best. Thank you for bringing us the update. Let us know how they're doing.
ROMO: Sure.
KAYE: All right. Rafael Romo, thank you.
Coming up, how a spanking led to a shooting on a public bus in Philadelphia. You have got to see this video. We'll have it for you on the other side of the break.
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KAYE: You hear about shootings in the inner city all the time, but it's rare when you can actually see one play out. Video from a SEPTA bus camera in Philadelphia shows us how frightened people were when two people showed up with automatic guns. Philly.com reports this all started when a passenger on the bus scolded a mother for spanking her toddler who had been running up and down the aisles. The mother then made a phone call, and the gunmen appeared. Thirteen shots were fired in all. No one, luckily, was hit. Six people are now facing attempted murder charges. Some incredible video there.
Serial killer Ted Bundy was executed 22 years ago, but his newly discovered blood is now offering new hope to cracking some very cold cases. A vial of Bundy's blood was found in an evidence lab in Florida and will be entered into the FBI's CODIS system today. That stands for Combined DNA Index System. Investigators believe doing that will possibly help solve cases as far back as 1961.
To explain how all of this works, we have with us today Chris Asplen. He's a DNA expert and former federal prosecutor.
Chris, nice to see you again. I want to ask you first, why wasn't Ted Bundy's blood collected before he was actually executed?
CHRIS ASPLEN, DNA EXPERT: Well, remember, when Mr. Bundy was executed, we didn't really have the idea -- really didn't have the potential that we do now for doing some of the DNA testing that we are on some of these old cases. So, we are just really very fortunate that we have the opportunity to go back and retroactively look at some of these cases and to put this DNA into the database.
KAYE: So, you mentioned this database. The blood goes in, and then how does it work? What does the system actually do?
ASPLEN: Well, the system already contains hundreds of thousands of crime scene profiles. In other words, DNA profiles that are taken from both current and very old cases. And so what will happen is Mr. Bundy's blood will be profiled, or it has already, and that profile will be put into the database. And then that will be run against, in a computer, it will be run against all of the profiles currently there that were developed from crime scenes. Including crime scenes back when he was alive and when he was committing so many crimes.
KAYE: So you think we have a better shot at this now because of the improvements in DNA technology than we might have had had all those years ago if we did have his blood?
ASPLEN: Well, we do. Because, for one thing, DNA -- DNA databases have really kind of enabled police to go back and look at old cases that were previously closed where they had no suspects. And it has really given them an incentive to go back, open them up, and look for biological evidence that might contain DNA from the perpetrator.
Before we had DNA databases, there really wasn't a value for police to do that. There was no reason to. But now that we have this database, now there are cold case units cropping up, not only on TV but really in reality all over the country.
The other thing that technology has done is it has allowed us or enabled us to get DNA profiles from even very, very tiny biological samples that we couldn't have done before under the old technology.
KAYE: And when you talk about possibly finding a match, I mean, how good of a match might this be? Is this a perfect match or are there varying degrees of a match when it comes to DNA in a cold case?
ASPLEN: Sure. Well, there can be varying degrees, and it depends on the nature and the quality of the evidence from the crime scene. Sometimes evidence is degraded and it's old, and you may not have very much of it. But you can certainly get a level of confidence that would tell you whether or not Mr. Bundy most likely was, in fact, a killer. And some may be exact matches, but even if they are not, we can probably, like I said, get a level of confidence about whether or not Mr. Bundy was, in fact, a murderer or the rapist in some of these old cases.
KAYE: And Chris, just very quickly, one important note: the California appeals court ruled you can't take DNA samples from someone who has been arrested but not convicted. How significant is that in trying to make these matches along the way of crimes?
ASPLEN: Well, it's really significant. And here's why. What Mr. Bundy's case, or what this exercise shows us, is the vast power of DNA to identify perpetrators all over the country in very, very old cases and in cases where, as Mr. Bundy did, people change their identities all the time. Mr. Bundy was also, remember, when he was committing his crimes, he was fooling everybody. even the FBI profilers. They didn't suspect that Mr. Bundy was this good-looking guy who could act in a very socially appropriate manner.
DNA enables us to get past all that. And one important thing about Mr. Bundy, he was arrested several times as a juvenile. He was arrested. Now the records have been expunged but most people don't realize that he was arrested as a juvenile. Think about it. If they had taken DNA and it was in the database, think how many women would be alive today.
KAYE: That's -- that's an incredible -- something to think about. Thank you for leaving us with that. Chris Asplen, great to have you on the show. Thank you.
KAYE: A group of GOP officials has personally delivered a message to Texas governor Rick Perry this week. Kate Bolduan will tell us what the message is, right after break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: Time now for a CNN political update. Kate Bolduan joining me from the political desk in Washington with all the details.
Hi again, Kate. David Wu announcing last week he would resign, but he was seen earlier this week still working. What exactly is going on here?
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the House of Representatives is officially less one member. Oregon Congressman David Wu, his resignation was announced earlier, but it was -- really became official this morning when the clerk on the House floor read his resignation letter on the House floor.
Wu, who was serving his seventh term, I believe it is, he resigned amid allegations and accusations that he had made unwanted sexual advances on a young woman. It was actually a daughter of one of Wu's fundraisers.
But Wu had postponed his departure from Congress because he said he -- until the House had voted officially on the final debt deal, he said he wanted to see that vote through. So, he has finally made that resignation official -- the House has. And if you are keeping count at home, which I'm sure you are, the total number of House of Representatives now stands at 432. As we have been seeing, that number can change quite a bit these days.
But anyway, in other news on the race to the White House, New Hampshire is calling on Texas governor Rick Perry. Top officials -- a group of top officials from New Hampshire, visited the Texas governor to invite him come to the first in the nation primary state. And their message was really if you're going to do it, do it soon.
As you know, Rick Perry has been considering a run for the White House but has not made it official one way or the other. And the message from these same officials is that there are many groups, representatives and activists in New Hampshire that have yet to endorse a candidate. He could benefit from it, but that opportunity isn't going to be there forever -- Randi.
KAYE: Good point. All right. Kate Bolduan, thank you very much.
Your next update from "The Best Political Team on Television" is just an hour away.
