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Perry, Romney Trade Barbs in Debate; New Details on Obama Jobs Plan; GOP Launches Political Attack Ads; Russian Hockey Team's Jet Crashes; Interview with Congressman Maxine Waters; Fashion Icon Found Guilty; Weak Labor Report to Hit Stocks; Interview with Joe Walsh; 9/11: How has your Life Changed?; Oddest Robbery Disguises

Aired September 08, 2011 - 09:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, ladies. Thanks so much.

We begin with the two stories shaping our political future. Just hours from now Barack Obama will unveil his plan to create jobs and at the same his own job may be on the line. For the first time, Rick Perry and Mitt Romney faced off in a national debate.

Jim Acosta has all the fireworks from that. Paul Steinhauser has the new attack ads. And Brianna Keilar previews tonight's presidential address.

Also this hour, my interviews with two very different members of Congress, Republican Joe Walsh, who's boycotting the president's speech, and Democrat Maxine Waters, who's voicing her own skepticism.

We'll hear from her in just about 15 minutes.

All right, let's begin with the debate. Eight Republicans on stage but two candidates trading the most punches.

Jim Acosta has the highlights in Los Angeles.

So, Jim, this is Rick Perry's first presidential debate. How did he do?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I said last night, Kyra, that he felt like the Republican Party pinata. And he was. The other candidates on stage last night did their best to take a whack at the new GOP front-runner but Rick Perry showed he can hit back.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA (voice-over): Rick Perry and Mitt Romney stood side by side at the Reagan debate close enough for the fur to fly. First on the question of which governor created more jobs.

GOV. RICK PERRY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Michael Dukakis created jobs three times faster than you did, Mitt.

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As a mater of fact, George Bush and his predecessor created jobs at a faster rate than you did, Governor.

(LAUGHTER)

ACOSTA: Jumping into the mix was a newly aggressive Jon Huntsman.

JON HUNTSMAN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I hate to rain on the parade of the Great Lone Star governor but as governor of Utah we were the number one job creator in this country.

ACOSTA: The debate soon switched to the Romney health care plan in Massachusetts and its individual mandate that requires residents to have medical insurance. What some Republicans now call Obamneycare.

PERRY: It was a great opportunity for us as a people to see what will not work. And that is an individual mandate in this country.

ACOSTA: Ron Paul later noted Perry was once a Democrat who showed some of his own support for government health care.

REP. RON PAUL (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The governor of Texas criticized the governor of Massachusetts for Romneycare but he wrote a really fancy letter supporting Hillarycare.

PERRY: Speaking of letters, I was more interested in the one that you wrote to Ronald Reagan back and said, I'm going to quit the party because of the things you believe in.

ACOSTA: Newt Gingrich tried to bring the Republican rumble to a halt.

NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I for one and I hope all of my friends up here are going to repudiate every effort of the news media to get Republicans to fight each other to protect Barack Obama who deserves to be defeated and all of us are committed as a team. Whoever the nominee is, we are all for defeating Barack Obama.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: There were a couple of risky moments for Rick Perry last night. He did double down on his comments in his anti-Washington book "Fed Up" in which he refers to Social Security as a Ponzi scheme. He repeated that Ponzi scheme phrase last night.

But, Kyra, I have to say I think the most surprising performance last night might have come from Michele Bachmann. You'll remember she was a flavor of the month in this campaign not too long ago and she has seriously lost a lot of support basically to Rick Perry in this race.

But she did not go after Rick Perry last night and I think that was a pretty key moment for her that she did not do that -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Jim Acosta, thanks so much.

And of course join us Monday for the next Republican debate. CNN is going to host the event with the Tea Party Express and several other Tea Party groups. It's coming from Tampa, Florida, the site of the 2012 Republican National Convention. That's Monday night, 8:00 Eastern, 5:00 Pacific right here on CNN.

OK. Now the president's job plan. And new details that we're getting just ahead of his speech tonight.

Brianna Keilar is at the White House.

So, Brianna, what are we learning?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, the number has actually changed since we spoke yesterday, according to Democratic sources familiar with the president's speech.

It's a $400 billion jobs plan right now. That is a working number and the big chunks of it are that payroll tax extension, as you know, a lot of employees getting a break on their payroll taxes. That would continue to be extended to employers. You should expect that from the president tonight.

Also the other big chunk as we're understanding a working number of $100 billion in infrastructure spending. Other things that we expect the president to talk about in this plan will include aid to states and also incentives to hire people who are chronically unemployed like the elderly, like U.S. veterans.

And what we're hearing from the White House this morning, Kyra, is kind of this sense of they are delivering actual legislation to Congress. It's almost as if they are saying to Congress, OK, you know, the ball is in your court at this point.

Listen to what Jay Carney said this morning on "AMERICAN MORNING."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: All of these ideas are bipartisan in nature. They're the kinds of things that Republicans and Democrats have broadly supported in the past. And that therefore, given the fact that they're paid for, given the fact that the economy needs help and that Americans need help, Congress should act right away and get it done.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: So the White House saying that it will be next week delivering one bill, a comprehensive jobs package to Congress, Kyra. But what's interesting is when you talk to people on the Hill, even Democrats admit, it's very unlikely that Congress would pass a big singular bill. They are expected to do this sort of incrementally in bits and pieces for spurring job growth -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: OK. Brianna Keilar at the White House for us. And you can join us tonight for the president's address to the nation. CNN's special live coverage begins at 6:00 followed by the president's speech at 7:00, then analysis immediately following.

Well, the political ad wars are heating up. Our deputy political director Paul Steinhauser has a new Republican spot slamming the president -- Paul.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Yes, no surprise, Kyra. Listen, jobs, the top economic issue on the minds of Americans. So a lot of politics at play here.

American Crossroads, you've heard of them. They're that GOP independent group partially held by Karl Rove. Take a look at this Web video out this morning. They're basically criticizing the president and what he's done on jobs since he's been in the White House the last two and a half years.

Also getting in the game the Republican National Committee earlier this week out with their own Web video, plus radio spots in some key battleground states criticizing the president on jobs. So yes, the speech still 10 hours away, Republicans not wasting any time -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: I know you've been tapping into the mood of Americans as the president prepares for the speech tonight.

STEINHAUSER: I think it's pretty fair to say Americans are in a foul mood. Take a look at some recent numbers from CNN and ORC right here. Nearly three-quarters of Americans say that things are going badly in the country today, Kyra. And that number has been on the rise from earlier this year.

Why? Well, go to the next screen. It's pretty obvious. Look at that. More than 8 in 10 Americans say this country is in a recession right now. The economy is in a recession. The economists will tell you, no, we have not been that way for two years. But Americans don't feel that way.

As for the president and jobs, take a look at this. Americans do not think he is doing a very good job creating jobs. You can see that number right there. And that is below his overall approval rating.

But, Kyra, as poor as the president's numbers are on jobs, congressional Republicans' numbers are worse. That's where things stand right now -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Paul, thanks.

We'll have your next political update in just about an hour. And a reminder, for all the latest political news you can always go to our Web site 24/7 CNNPolitics.com.

Well, thousands of people in central Pennsylvania are under mandatory evacuation orders as the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee rained down.

Meteorologist Rob Marciano is monitoring the situation for us in the CNN Severe Weather Center. I know he's working on his maps and looks like we've got a little reboot situation going on, Rob, is that right?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, when you have this much information coming in.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: It's overload.

MARCIANO: It's overloaded. Look at the amount of rainfall coming into Binghamton, New York. Over 10 inches of rainfall with this storm, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. And these are the two areas that really are getting hit the hardest as far as flooding is concerned.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MARCIANO: Kyra, back over to you.

PHILLIPS: OK. Rob, thanks.

Well, it's one of the worst aviation disasters in sports history. A plane carrying a Russian hockey team crashed shortly after take off yesterday near Moscow. Forty-three of the 45 people aboard are dead including some former NHL players like all-star Pavol Demitra.

CNN's Zain Verjee live in London with the latest now -- Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hi, Kyra. Fans gathered at the stadium where the hockey team used to play. They put down flowers. The teams' scarves as well as lit candles.

It was so sad, 43 died, as you said. There were only two survivors, one has 80 percent burns all over his body.

Now they're looking into the cause of this crash. It's not really clear what exactly has happened. They haven't made a definitive determination, but what they're saying it was either pilot error or a technical malfunction.

Let's take a look at some of the headlines here and see what they're saying. The "Moscow Times" in Russia says this. "With jet crash, Russia is riskiest place to fly." It goes on to say, "The crash sealed Russia's position as the most dangerous place to travel by plane in 2011 with the country surpassing even the Democratic Republic of Congo in the number of aircraft-related fatalities."

And then "The National Post" in Canada, its headline, "Hockey world endures its darkest day." It says, "The disaster of an entire hockey team perishing in a plane crash is just one more blow to the solar plexus of the sports' global community" -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Zain Verjee out of London. Zain, thanks.

And President Obama makes his pitch tonight to put Americans back to work. One member of the Congressional Black Caucus says it's about time. My conversation with Congresswoman Maxine Waters is next.

Now we're going to hear from a Republican who's boycotting the president's speech. Is this really the way to get things done in Washington? Congressman Joe Walsh defends his decision.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking stories "Cross Country" now.

Hundreds of people are homeless as wildfires continue to burn in Texas. The biggest blaze is near Austin where nearly 1400 homes have been destroyed and at least 5,000 people have been evacuated now. Statewide wildfires have scorched nearly 134,000 acres.

The search is on for the suspect involved in a road rage attack in Lincoln, Rhode Island. It was all caught on tape. Police say the suspect got out of the car, kicked and punched the car of an elderly victim. No one was hurt but beyond the horrible behavior, police say that the suspect had a small child in his car who witnessed that attack.

And just call these two college football players life savers. Defensive backs Jack Long and Shane Simpson left practice when they found a grandmother who had locked herself out of her car with her 17- month-old grandson inside.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The lady came -- before we could even open the door the lady came running says she needed help and said there's a baby stuck in the car so --

TERESA GALL, GRANDMOTHER: He just took one swoop or hit with the hammer and it busted.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, grandma says she is now a lifelong fan of Missouri Western State football.

President Obama unveils his grand plan tonight telling us all how he plans to put Americans bark to work and for millions of African- Americans attending job fairs like this one in Atlanta, gainful employment cannot come soon enough.

The jobless rates for blacks is 16.7 percent and Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters is pushing the president to do more for her community.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MAXINE WATERS (D), CALIFORNIA: When you tell us it's all right, and you unleash us and you tell us you're ready for us to have this conversation, we're ready to have the conversation.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So, just moments ago, I asked Congresswoman Waters, has she been able to unleash herself and go after the president on jobs?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WATERS: Yes, the conversation has begun. We not only put a face on it. We continue to remind this Congress and the president of the United States, this is not something that can be swept under the rug.

PHILLIPS: So, you --

WATERS: This is something that has to be identified and has to be talked about, has to be dealt with and I expect him to say something about it tonight in his speech.

PHILLIPS: Well, and you have said that the president isn't creating the type of jobs that blacks need. You've said that green jobs are what he keeps talking about, and that's not what African- Americans want. What do you want to hear from him tonight?

WATERS: Well, what I'd like to hear is that he is going to target some efforts toward the most needy in this country, where the unemployment numbers are high, that's where you need to send some resources. Of course, you should deal with all of the unemployment but you should pay some special attention whether it's rural or it's urban, or it's suburban, wherever it is. We know that in the rural communities and the urban communities, people are hurting, and we want to see special efforts directed towards them.

We want green jobs, but they have not developed as we have talked in the Congress or the president has talked about. I'd love to have solar panel development going on down in my district but it is not happening. So, what we want to do is we want to make sure that there's a big investment in the infrastructure so that we can repair the roads and the bridges and the streets and the water system, put people back to work like the CCC program, the WPA of the Roosevelt Years. We want to make sure that we get those resources.

PHILLIPS: Yes, you're talking about America now. Right.

WATERS: Yes, I'm talking about all of that, yes, absolutely.

PHILLIPS: So, let me ask you this. Have you considered looking away from Obama and looking to another Democratic contender?

WATERS: No, I have not. This president, I think, wants to do the right thing. I don't know what it takes to get him to stop being nice and stop trying to compromise too much. I was sick when Boehner walked away from the negotiations on raising the debt ceiling saying you got 90 percent of everything he wanted and we got hurt.

Not only are we having to suffer these terrible cuts and all kind of government programs, services and operations, we didn't get any revenue. The richest people in this country still are getting their tax break.

So, those kinds of negotiations do not work. You've got to get tough and everybody wants hem to be tough.

PHILLIPS: You know, speaking of tough, let me ask you a question. As you know, Dick Cheney has been out on his book tour and he said last week, hey, Hillary Clinton may not be a bad idea. She's worked well with Republicans like me. What are your thoughts about Hillary Clinton?

WATERS: Well, first of all, we don't need Dick Cheney telling us what we should be doing in the Democratic Party. I know that he has his book out there and he is promoting his book and every time he says something that's controversial, he does that.

We have this president. He has not been challenged. He is the party's nominee basically and we want him to take that mantle and run with it.

We want him to be tough. We want him to create the kind of change that he talked about when he first ran for office. We believe that he is capable of doing that and now we hope that he has seen that everything that he has tried does not work, they want to kill him off as quickly as they can, legislatively, and this cannot happen.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: President Obama's job speech before a joint session of Congress begins tonight at 7:00 Eastern and CNN will carry the speech live.

A Christian Dior fashion icon is found guilty of making anti- Semitic remarks. It's a case that stunned the high fashion industry. We'll have that story next.

And out jogging in southern California, actress Reese Witherspoon is struck by a car. Details next in the showbiz headlines.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Let's get straight to your showbiz headlines. On the day he would have turned 75, Buddy Holly gets a star on Hollywood's walk of fame. The senior songwriter's widow Maria actually has a chance to unveil it, accompanied by actor Gary Busey who once played Holly in a movie. Buddy Holly tribute also comes out this week.

And a judge green-lights a lawsuit that claims Madonna used her New York City apartment as a rehearsal studio. The neighbor's noise complaint says that blaring music, stomping and shaking walls annoyed residents for as much as three hours a day.

And actress Reese Witherspoon was hit by a car while jogging near L.A. Police say the Oscar-winning actress suffered just minor injuries when an 84-year-old woman struck her in an unmarked crosswalk. Witherspoon's rep says she was taken to the local hospital, but she's now at home resting.

Well, the flamboyant fashion designer known for his outrageous outfits has been found guilty in his abuse trial. Former Christian Dior designer John Galliano was on trial for making racial slurs in a Paris cafe.

We got more now from Zain Verjee out of London.

So, Zain, tell us what happened.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hi, Kyra. Well, he didn't get tough sentence as he could have. He was fined a little over $8,000. It could have been as high as $32,000. He also did not get a prison sentence. He was facing the possibility of being put in jail up to six months or so.

The plaintiffs each of them, there were three, each were each symbolically given one euro.

Listen to what he had said that got him into this mess.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you blond?

JOHN GALLIANO, FORMER DIOR DESIGNER: No. I love Hitler. People like you would be dead today. Your mothers, your forefathers would be (EXPLETIVE DELETED) gassed and (EXPLETIVE DELETED) dead.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my god. Do you have a problem?

GALLIANO: With you? You're ugly.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With all people, you don't like peace? You don't want peace in the world?

GALLIANO: Not with people --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: The start of the trial, Kyra, Galliano blamed that rant on drugs. He said he was trying to cope with the death of his partner and he had been taking drugs for a long time and that's not really what he thought. His lawyer came out just a short while ago and said that Galliano is happy this is all over. He didn't come to listen to the verdict in person because he just did not want to deal with the media -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Zain Verjee out of London -- Zain, thanks.

Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange, where there's a new report on the labor market.

And, Alison, not looking so good.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Not looking so good. You know, we expect stocks to open higher but then we got those weekly jobless claims numbers and guess what? Stock futures began to drop. First time claims rose to 414,000 last week. That's an increase of only 2,000, but the thing is, everybody expected them to drop.

And, you know, they have been hovering around that 400,000 level since April. It really shows we're stuck at a pretty high level at this point. Even though layoffs have stabilized, we are just not seeing any job gains at this point. We are not seeing enough improvement.

Of course, Wall Street is going to be having its eye on President Obama's speech tonight on the jobs picture. Of course, you know, everybody expecting to hear something new, something different to help the jobs picture but then there is the question of even if he makes some great proposals, will he be able to push them through Congress? Or will he hit a brick wall?

So, a lot of skepticism but everybody is going to be watching tonight, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Yes, we'll see how it impacts the markets. Alison, thanks.

KOSIK: Well, we're just hours away from the president's speech on Capitol Hill. We're going to talk to one lawmaker who refuses to be under the same roof after the break. Republican Joe Walsh explains his decision to boycott the speech.

And later, Michael Jackson's doctor goes on trial. Jury selection in the case against Dr. Conrad Murray is set to begin. Live to the courthouse in just a few minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking top stories now.

German police have arrested two men suspected of plotting a bomb attack. Police don't believe the suspects had a specific target.

And we're keeping our eye on a trio of tropical weather systems. Hurricane Katia could bring rough surf to the East Coast tomorrow, we're told. And tropical storm Maria is not threat to land right now. As for tropical storm Nate, it's churning in the Gulf of Mexico.

And the special congressional deficit commission begins its first meeting an hour from now, the bipartisan panel has a November deadline to agree on a plan to cut $1.5 trillion.

Well, when president speaks tonight before a joint session of congress, some empty seats may speak volumes. Several congressional Republicans are boycotting the president's address saying it's a little more than a campaign speech.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

SEN. JIM DEMINT (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: Frankly, I'm so tired of his speeches, it's going to be hard for me to watch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to be watching from my family room in Metairie, Louisiana, because I have a Saints' game party there and I'm absolutely going to be there for the big game.

REP. JOE WALSH (R), ILLINOIS: He wants Congress, each and every member of Congress to be a prop in that 30-minute theater, and I just don't want to be used like that.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

PHILLIPS: And that was Congressman Joe Walsh and he actually joins me live from Capitol Hill this morning.

So, Congressman, isn't this disrespectful to the office of the president to not even attend, to say, hey, I'm not going to listen on top of that?

WALSH: No. And Kyra, look. I'm going to listen to what he says. I'm going to respond to what he proposes. I'm actually going to fly home this afternoon and instead of attending his speech, I'm going to sit with 40 to 50 small businessmen and women. The job creators in this country. They are going to give me your recommendations, and I'm going to take them back to the president.

Look. This is nothing more than a campaign speech. It really does seem like every time someone skins their knee, this president wants to make a big speech. We are beyond big speeches.

PHILLIPS: But -- why not be there, show up, say you want to stop the rhetoric, and make it clear that you want to work together? I mean, you've got to come together and figure out a bipartisan solution at some point.

WALSH: We do. And if this president were serious, Kyra, about coming together, he wouldn't throw together a big campaign speech.

Look. This is his fifth joint session of Congress speech in two- and-a-half years. He is cheapening the whole notion of a joint session of Congress, which we used to reserve for big, huge momentous occasions, heads of states from around the world. He's going to present his third jobs plan to us, and that is a big deal?

If he were serious -- Jim DeMint had it right, we are tired of speeches. Roll up your sleeves, put something in writing, and present it to Congress without all of the hoopla.

PHILLIPS: So, are you saying there is not one thing that the president of the United States is going to say tonight that you and your constituents would have interest in?

WALSH: No. And, again, Kyra, I will respond to what he says. My constituents will. I will read the speech. Anything in that speech that he proposes, I'm going to respond to. So, I'm not really even judging him yet on what he is going to say. I think he has fooled your profession because he can press this button and you all go atwitter because he is going to give a big speech again. You cannot lead this country by speeches. You have to do something.

PHILLIPS: So, what's your solution then? How are you going to build consensus then? What is your solution?

WALSH: Well, what we have to do is find enough Republicans and Democrats who will agree that this economy right now is overregulated and overtaxed, and we somehow have to begin to get Washington out of the way.

I'm afraid that this president tonight is going to just go down the same road of proposing more Washington involvement when, right now, the economy is already in over their head with Washington regulations and taxes. We need to find enough Democrats who will join us Republicans in providing relief. Relief for the private economy because, right now, they are just dying.

PHILLIPS: You know, I asked Congresswoman Maxine Waters, and I want to ask you too. You know, Dick Cheney made a number of headlines last week. He is on his book tour, saying that Hillary Clinton may not be a bad idea in the upcoming race. She would have worked better with Republicans like him.

So, what do you think? Do you think that you could work more effectively with a President Clinton?

WALSH: I don't know, and I surely don't want to get involved in Democratic politics.

I will tell you this. This president, I think, hasn't done a very good job of working with Congress, but his greatest fault is he has surrounded himself with academics. Nobody who knows how to run businesses and his policies reflect that. We need somebody in the White House who understands how the rest of the country works and not just academics.

PHILLIPS: Congressman Joe Walsh, appreciate you weighing in.

WALSH: Thanks, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: You bet.

Fourteen million Americans are unemployed, but certain sectors of the job market are hurting more than others. CNN's Tom Foreman has a break down for us. Tom?

TOM FOREMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra. All week long, we have been talking about how the national unemployment rate of 9.1 percent is an average and it's very different, depending on who you are and what you do. For example, if you work in construction or the leisure business or retail business, you've actually had a worse unemployment rate than this for quite some time. If you've been in government, mining and oil and gas or education, it's been a little bit better than the national average.

So, where are we going to be in the coming year? Here are some of the projections that are out there and they are instructive. Construction, for example, is expected to improve, which is likely if you've been way down. Leisure is expected to go up. Retail going to climb just a tiny bit. That's what's projected. Government work, which has been very strong, is expected to start declining. All that talk about the cutbacks, there is part of the impact. Mining oil and gas expected to climb more than four percent, and education also expected to go up.

But, again, these are averages. It also depends on where you are. Look at this map of the country and all of these places out here. If you look at a list of the professions we are talking about and then you look at those colors over here you can see such as mining and gas will be very strong in some parts of the country. In others, not so much. The same with education. The same with manufacturing. The same with transportation.

The simple truth is, all of these averages can be deceiving because your experience of unemployment has a whole lot to do with who you are, what you do, and where you are. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: Tom Foreman, thanks so much.

Up next, jury selection in the trial of the doctor charged in the death of Michael Jackson. We will take you live to the courthouse.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking stories "Cross Country" now.

Flash flood warnings are in effect from Washington to New England due to the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee. Central Pennsylvania in the bull's-eye of the rainmaker right now, but about 65,000 people have been told to evacuate. The worst near Wilkesbury, actually. At least two deaths blamed on the storm now.

And this isn't good. A giant crane in Washington suddenly toppling over yesterday. It was making repairs to the National Cathedral, which was damaged in last month's earthquake. Several cars were crushed; one person was hurt.

President Obama unveils his jobs plan tonight, but many unemployed Americans are turning to the higher power to find a job. A church in Buffalo, New York, invited parishioners to put their resumes by the altar so they could be prayed over.

Jury selection this morning for the man accused of causing Michael Jackson's death. Dr. Conrad Murray is charged with involuntary manslaughter. Let's get live now to Los Angeles now, where Ted Rowlands is at the courthouse. So, Ted, a few last-minute motions yesterday before the jury selection could begin, right?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Yesterday, they had a couple of things. One of the things was that was dealt with yesterday from an appellate's point of view was the defense wanted this jury to be sequestered. That is not going to happen at this point. Looks like the jurors will be able to go home. It's about a four- to six-week trial.

Today what we're going to see is the first group of three 180 perspective jurors come to the courthouse. The bulk of them will have an excuse or two to get dismissed. And then the rest of them, the ones standing will be given a questionnaire, 30-plus pages to fill out. And then of course, the attorneys will pore over those over the coming days and then the whittling down will occur until the opening statement starts on the 27th of this month.

So, today is the first day of a very long jury selection process.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's talk about Murray's defense for a moment.

ROWLANDS: Well, the case comes down to the Propofol found in Michael Jackson's body. The defense here is going to say there is no way that Dr. Murray - he's a physician, would ever give a patient that much Propofol because it would kill him. A first-year med student would know that. That's what they will tell the jury. They'll say the only probable scenario Michael Jackson accidentally killed himself out of frustration, couldn't sleep, grabbed the Propofol that was sitting there and drank it.

The prosecution on the other hand, will say that's preposterous. Dr. Murray was incapable of delivering good quality medicine. And what he did here was absolutely criminal, and he should pay for it. They will blame Murray for Jackson's death, obviously. But it will come down to what the jury believe, the dueling experts, and you might see Dr. Murray himself take the stand.

PHILLIPS: All right. We will continue to follow the trial with you, Ted. Thanks.

One decade after 9/11, we asked how has your life changed?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I grew up in the last ten years. I left a 28-year marriage that was very, very abusive and found the love of my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Other Americans voice and tweet their own stories next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The world changed after 9/11. People's lives changed, too. Not just those who lost loved ones, and not just because of the attacks. CNN's Chris Lawrence looks at the difference a decade can make.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In September 2001, we still had our "Friends."

DAVID SCHWIMMER, ACTOR (acting): That little naked guy would be me.

LAWRENCE: But we were just getting to know a certain ogre.

VOICE OF MIKE MYERS, ACTOR (as Shrek): Of course!

LAWRENCE: "Drops of Jupiter" topped the charts.

(SINGING)

LAWRENCE: When we watched music videos and still bought CDs.

RACHELLE DELA CRUZ: Ten years ago, on 9/11, I thought I was going to be in the corporate world with a big old ring on my finger.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't see the light of day personally. I had a lot of personal issues going on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was there at that time extremely excited about what I was doing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were celebrating our 48th wedding anniversary.

GUY JENKINS-BASS, HIV POSITIVE: In 2001, I was diagnosed with HIV as a college student.

LAWRENCE: On September 11th most of us didn't work in the Pentagon or know someone in the Twin Towers. We weren't first responders or American troops.

But the day became a marker -- life before and after. Guy Jenkins was young, black, gay, and HIV positive.

JENKINS: I've never thought that I would be here ten years later.

LAWRENCE: Rachelle Dela Cruz was sure she would be a married corporate executive by now but she is still single and ditched corporate America when she found her faith.

DELA CRUZ: I work as a Catholic missionary here at George Mason University. I support, I fund-raise my own salary.

LAWRENCE: Life takes some unexpected turns over ten years. Personally, professionally and from your money to you marriage.

NANCY JACOBUS: I grew up in the last ten years. I left a 28- year marriage that was very, very abusive and found the love of my life.

LAWRENCE: Roger McDaniel made more money then, than he does now.

ROGER MCDANIEL: The people who work for me I'm offering them jobs that were basically half the price of what I was offering people before.

LAWRENCE: Richard and Sarah Summers celebrated another ten years of marriage and added a granddaughter.

SARAH SUMMERS: Paulie.

RICHARD SUMMERS: Paulie, right.

S. SUMMERS: And she's now 10, 12?

R. SUMMERS: Yes. Almost.

S. SUMMERS: Time flies.

LAWRENCE: And that student who saw no future, he is still alive at 30.

JENKINS-BASS: My greatest fear in life, up until two years ago, was I was going to die and die alone and no one would be at my bedside and that no one would ever love me. But at this time in life, I'm happy. I'm married, I'm happy. And HIV will not be the death of me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Wow. Chris Lawrence joins us now live. Chris, you also reached out to viewers and asked how 9/11 changed their lives via Twitter and other avenues. What were the responses? What are people saying?

LAWRENCE: Yes Kyra, the idea behind this was that if I asked you what was your life like in the fall of 1998, or even 2003, you'd have to take a minute to think about it. But if I ask you who you were with or who you worked for where you lived in the fall of 2001, almost everybody remembers exactly what their life was like.

In comparing then to now, Barbara Johnston tweeted in and said, "Not even close". She said, "My life was all about me. Now I'm a mother of three young boys and my family is the priority. I couldn't say that ten years ago".

Also Conrad Cordova tweeted in and he said, "9/11 brought me closer to God." He said, "I became a better husband and father. I volunteered for an Iraq deployment in the Air National Guard and also a nurse."

So it's just -- it's just amazing how people kind of take this day sort of our generation's Kennedy assassination in which you sort of mark that moment in time and remember your life before and where it's come since.

PHILLIPS: So I'm going to put this one at you. What do you think has been the biggest change in your life in the last ten years? LAWRENCE: By far, the 7-week-old baby daughter that's keeping me up at night, Kyra. Without a doubt. I couldn't have seen that coming ten years ago. I know you've got two twins at home so I know you know what I mean when you -- when you look back and it's like, wow.

PHILLIPS: Yes. It is pretty amazing and it makes you realize what -- what our purpose in life is.

LAWRENCE: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Chris thanks so much.

LAWRENCE: You're welcome.

PHILLIPS: Well join us for our special 9/11 TEN YEARS later, live coverage of remembrance events begins Sunday, 8:00 a.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Stories making news later today, 11:30 a.m. Eastern in Washington, Senate Republicans focus on jobs, making remarks ahead of the President's speech later this evening.

And President Obama reveals his jobs plan to a Joint Session of Congress at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. CNN's special live coverage begins at 6:00 and then we'll have post speech analysis at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

And roughly a half hour later, the 2011 NFL season kicks off with the defending Super Bowl champs Green Bay Packers, oh yes, hosting the New Orleans Saints.

We're following lots of developments in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. Let's check in first with White House correspondent -- or actually, not with our White House correspondent -- our main money gal, Christine Romans. Then again, Christine, you could cover the White House if you needed to. You know politics just as much as money.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRRESPONDENT: It's too crazy down there. I have to stay up here in New York where things are peaceful and safe. Look, we're looking at the Republican plans, the Republicans who want to be president. What are their plans for the economy? They want smaller government, they want smaller regulation, they want to repeal, quote, unquote "Obama care." But where do they differ, I'm analyzing the Republican job plans right after this -- Kyra.

JIM SPELLMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Jim Spellman in Bastrop, (ph) Texas where hundreds more homes are discovered destroyed in the wake of this devastating wildfire. We'll have more at the top of the hour.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys. Thanks so much.

And also ahead, harnessing the power of the Tea Party: Republican candidates lining up for its support. We're going to look at the state of the movement and the influence it could have in its first presidential election.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Jeff Fischel, big football game tonight.

JEFF FISCHEL, ANCHOR, HLN SPORTS: I cannot get an image out of my head right now.

PHILLIPS: Ok.

FISCHEL: Ok.

PHILLIPS: For full disclosure, yes, a little locker room talk.

FISCHEL: Yes.

PHILLIPS: I covered the Packers for a little while. And I was just mentioning how I saw things I wish I never would have seen.

FISCHEL: But pro football is tonight.

PHILLIPS: Yes, it is and it's hard for me. I love both these teams. I don't know who I'm going to root for yet.

FISCHEL: It's actually a great start to the season after the lockout. All these worries we wouldn't even see an opening night. The players say they are excited. And a great way to get the fans excited. The last two Super Bowl champs, the Green Bay Packers, the New Orleans Saints, two great quarterbacks. Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers versus New Orleans Drew Brees.

But we won't see another quarterback on week one the Colts' Peyton Manning will not play on Sunday. Still recovering from neck surgery, it ends his streak of 227 games in a row. It was the longest streak in the NFL. He is trying to get back as soon as possible. But we don't know when we're going to see him again.

Crazy happenings in baseball in the bull pen. Indians' reliever Chris Perez on the hunt for a squirrel. He's trying to trap him in warm ups. Watch this -- did you see that squirrel jump? Look, there he goes. He's fearless like the honey badger.

PHILLIPS: Is it -- is it -- ok.

FISCHEL: He still don't care.

PHILLIPS: It is a flying squirrel. Hey, we have issues with those here in Atlanta, FYI.

FISCHEL: The Indians couldn't catch the Tigers either. Detroit won the game, 8-6.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Jeff.

FISHEL: He's still trying.

PHILLIPS: Seriously, you don't have any issues with those here in Atlanta? I've had them trapped up in my -- all right. Let's move on. We'll be watching those Packers and those Saints.

FISCHEL: It's going to be great.

PHILLIPS: Ok.

Well, he's big, green, and bendable. Now he's wanted for attempted robbery. That incident definitely got CNN's Jeanne Moos musing about the oddest robbery disguises ever.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pick your favorite robbery disguise. Was it Darth Vader robbing a bank or the boney bandit robbing a convenience store? How about the guy who wore a President Obama mask to stick up Austrian bank? Or the robber who dressed head to toe in Santa and pulled a gun out of his red sack?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And he explained that he was robbing the bank because Santa had to pay his elves.

MOOS: Possibly you prefer none of the above as in bank robbers dressed as nuns. Well, there's a new contestant in the robbery costume contest. Skin color, green. Alias, Gumby.

Only instead of his usual side kick, Pokey the horse, this Gumby walked into a San Diego Seven-11 convenience store with an unmasked guy. First, Gumby asked for Marlboros. Then he said this is a robbery.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The clerk, thinking it was a joke, said, I don't have time for this. I'm cleaning.

MOOS: Gumby didn't get a away with any loot. He actually ended up losing money, 27 cents to be exact. When he reached into his costume as if reaching for a gun, he managed to drop some change, which the attendant later swept up after Gumby high-tailed it out of the store.

The clerk behind the counter had never heard of Gumby. So when he described the suspect, he said he looks sort of like a greenish version of Spongebob Squarepants. Actually, a real robber once wore a Spongebob mask as he and an accomplice knocked off a Florida convenience store at gunpoint.

And don't just call the police. Call the fashion police when a male suspect shows up wearing a dress and underwear on his head. The trend extends to thongs at this Colorado convenience store holdup. Or for a more masculine look --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It appears he has some plaid boxers on his head. MOOS: But Gumby doesn't need no stinking boxers. So far, the San Diego case is a head scratcher. Could the robber have been Eddie Murphy?

EDDIE MURPHY, ACTOR: I am Gumby, damn it. You don't talk to me that way.

MOOS: Rehearsing for his gig hosting the Oscars.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good luck with that.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)