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Afghanistan: Ten Years Later; Security Beefed Up in New York Ahead of 9/11; Millions Lose Power in Southwest; Two Unemployed Respond To Barack Obama's Plans; Barack Obama Gives Speech at University of Richmond

Aired September 09, 2011 - 11:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Suzanne Malveaux. Let's get you up to speed this Friday, September 9th.

Police are on alert in response to a possible terror plot coinciding with the 9/11 anniversary. Officials say that they have received "specific, credible, but unconfirmed information." It's believed to involve three people and a possible car or truck bomb. Officials say the focus seems to be on New York and Washington, but law enforcement around the country is on alert.

We asked CNN national security contributor Fran Townsend how concerned we should be.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRAN TOWNSEND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTOR: The one thing that's most concerning to me, we heard from Commissioner Kelly this morning that the three individuals, at least one of which is a U.S. citizen, officials tell us, they haven't identified. That's a very difficult problem, especially for the U.S. citizen. Americans cross our borders pretty easily. That's a real challenge for them, and that's why you're hearing officials ask for Americans' help.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: President Obama is on the road to Richmond, Virginia, to promote the $447 billion jobs plan that he outlined last night. He is expected to speak this hour, around 11:35 Eastern Time, and of course we'll take you there live as it happens.

In his address last night, the president repeatedly urged Congress to pass this jobs bill.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Pass this jobs bill, and starting tomorrow, small businesses will get a tax cut if they hire new workers or if they raise workers' wages. Pass this jobs bill, and all small business owners will also see their payroll taxes cut in half next year.

(END VIDEO CLIP) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Not only should Congress not pass his plan, I say, Mr. President, stop. Your last plan hasn't worked, and it's hurting the American economy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. The plan got mixed reviews from Republicans. The only formal response was from presidential candidate Michele Bachmann. And you got a chance to hear her.

Meantime, parts of southern California are getting back to normal this afternoon after a massive power outage left millions of people in the dark. San Diego Gas & Electric says it has restored power to all of its customers.

The blackout started yesterday. Parts of Arizona and Mexico are also affected. Authorities say a worker replacing equipment at a substation near Yuma, Arizona, triggered the outage.

Still no sign of Moammar Gadhafi, but now there is a new warrant out for his arrest. This time, from Interpol. The international criminal police organization is sending out red notice arrest warrants for the former Libyan leader, his son Saif al-Islam and his brother- in-law. The warrants will help with the extradition of Gadhafi from Libya.

Meantime, I want to take you straight to Capitol Hill, where they are having a moment of silence in memory of the thousands killed on 9/11.

Let's listen in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

WHITFIELD: Again, that moment of silence there on Capitol Hill in commemoration of the thousands killed on 9/11. Ten years ago, three airplanes hijacked by terrorists causing the deaths of thousands in New York, at the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The House will be in order.

WHITFIELD: And it is another day on the front lines for firefighters in Texas battling dozens of wildfires, and the flames are still spreading. A fire near Austin is the biggest. At last count, it had destroyed 1,400 homes. Dozens of new fires have started in the last week.

And President Barack Obama has signed emergency orders for parts of Pennsylvania and New York devastated by flooding. One of the area's major rivers, the Susquehanna, is starting to crest, but the water is still rising in other places. At least three deaths are blamed on the flooding brought on by the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIANN TRIMBLE, FLOOD VICTIM: We had no warning for this. If it wasn't for me waking up at 3:00 to go to work, we would have never known that the floodwaters came up.

ROBIN WALTON, FLOOD VICTIM: I'm still shocked. I still can't believe it. My husband said to me, "The cars are going." I'm thinking, "What do you mean the cars are going?"

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four, three, two, one, fire.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And NASA holding a very loud test there of what this space agency calls its largest and most powerful solid rocket motor ever designed for flight. This happened in Utah yesterday. They'll use the information collected from this test and earlier ones to better understand the motor's performance and reliability.

Ten years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the start of the war in Afghanistan, what is going on there right now?

Our Suzanne Malveaux is looking for answers as she is live from Camp Eggers in the Afghan capital of Kabul -- Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred, it's good to see you.

This is really a race against time if you think about it. It's slated that U.S. and NATO troops are going to be pulling out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014. So what they're trying to do here at this base is really get the Afghans up to speed to get an army, a military service, an air force that can protect its own country.

It is a tall order, Fred. It is a top priority, officials admit. But we had a chance to see first hand what it is that they're actually doing here and throughout the country.

First, when it comes to the air force, had a chance to go up in a helicopter, as well as a C-27 transport plane, went flying high above Afghanistan. If you take a look at the terrain, it's about the size of Texas or so, very rough terrain. That is why the air force is really critical to the security of Afghanistan, trying to train these pilots to get them up to speed.

On the ground, you've got what is traditional, conventional training. They are shooting guns, they are shooting targets, they're replacing some of those old Russian military weapons with American weapons, advanced weapons. But at the same time, there is something that is very fascinating and unique that is happening here, and that is the focus on education. You wouldn't think that perhaps the greatest, most powerful weapon against al Qaeda is teaching Afghans how to read and write, but, Fred, that is actually the case here on the ground. About 86 percent of Afghan recruits for the army are illiterate, and they say that is no way to run an army, that is no way that people will really be able to have the kind of quality to produce the kind of army that they need.

So that is the focus here, to try to get people up to speed in many different areas. And we're going to focus more on the education aspect, more that's taking place on the ground, after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Ten years after 9/11 and the start of the war on terror in Afghanistan, the race is on to train the Afghan army to take over its own security. U.S. forces come home in 2014.

Our Suzanne Malveaux is in Afghanistan to see first hand how that training is going. She's joining us now live from Camp Eggers again in Kabul.

So, Suzanne, tell us more about the military readiness.

MALVEAUX: Well, Fred, it's really interesting when you think about it. Ten years ago, what was the priority of the Bush administration? President Bush saying, look, we have to get rid of al Qaeda and make sure the Taliban is not -- make sure that they don't come back into power.

Well, now the focus certainly is on training the Afghans to try to get them up to speed to provide with their own security. And what is surprising here is that a lot of the training that you see, not the conventional type of training, but really is the kind that is taking place in the classroom. They think that that is the strongest way they can beat back al Qaeda, is actually empowering the Afghan people.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX (voice-over): The mission now is for Afghans to take over their security by the end of 2014 so that U.S. and NATO troops can get out.

On the ground at the Kabul military training center, U.S. and NATO trainers are frantically trying to get thousands of raw recruits up to speed.

(on camera): Where these folks are standing in this training exercise is significant. Six months ago, American trainers were standing up front. They've since been moved to the back with interpreters to be on standby in case they're needed, but up front the Afghans are training the Afghans.

SGT. ADNAN TRTKOVIC, NATO TRAINING MISSION: And most of the time we don't have to intervene, but if there is something that they cannot associate with weapons, maybe heavy weapons, then we step in and resolve the issue.

MALVEAUX: The race is on to train the Afghans sufficiently before U.S. troops are scheduled to pull out in just over three years' time.

Critics charge that NATO is putting quantity over quality.

PHILIP GIRALDI, FMR. CIA COUNTERTERRORISM SPECIALIST: Everything is a numbers game. And that is essentially what we're seeing here. You know, this is like a big machine which takes in this these Afghan recruits and spits them out at the other end, and it doesn't really matter how good they are or how effective they are.

MALVEAUX: Colonel Mike Minor, a top adviser to the Kabul training mission, defends the program.

COL. MIKE MINOR, COMMANDER, KABUL MILITARY TRAINING CENTER: What we've tried to do is build an army quickly. And, you know, we're on track to do that. Once we have an army at a certain level, then we'll be able to sustain that and improve the quality.

MALVEAUX: But the challenges right now are immense.

(on camera): Eighty--six percent of the Afghan recruits are illiterate. They can't write their names. They can't add or subtract, even at a kindergarten level.

(voice-over): That's why the U.S. and NATO mission launched an all-out literacy campaign last November to make sure every recruit has at least the basics. Hamidullah Ghaufouri couldn't even write his own name when he signed up for the Afghan army. Now he's proud to be reading at a second grade level, while supporting his sick father on his soldier's salary.

HAMIDULLAH GHAUFOURI, AFGHAN NATIONAL ARMY RECRUIT (through translator): Before I wasn't able to read the signs, I wasn't able to write letters or sentences. Now I am able. Even right now, if I want to go to the doctor, I can see the sign and read it.

MALVEAUX: For Mohammed Ismail, it's much more personal. His older brother was killed by the Taliban.

MOHAMMED ISMAIL, AFGHAN NATIONAL ARMY RECRUIT (through translator): Even my parents told me that, "You are joining the army. You will be going the same way." But I told my parents, "No, I would like to serve my country from this way."

MALVEAUX: Sergeant Jesse Finley, a U.S. member of the training team, says the Afghans have a lot of heart but don't always stick around.

SGT. JESSE FINLEY, OFFICER TRAINING ADVISER: Getting that retainability, it's very difficult to, because some of them just want to go back home. You know, get a little pay, go back home.

MALVEAUX: But their home, Afghanistan, is at a critical turning point. Its future, uncertain.

MINOR: This war is not over, no. No, it's not over yet. It will be over when the Afghan people decide it's over.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: So, Fred, it's kind of strange when you think about it, when you first hear about this whole literacy campaign that the army, that U.S. and NATO forces be involved in this. But if you think about it, I mean, the folks I talked to, the Afghan recruits, I mean, they were not able to, if you issue them a weapon, for instance, be able to keep track of the serial number because they can't count. They can't actually read the numbers.

If they got lost they, they couldn't read a map. They can't even, like, get a pay stub for their military work because they're not able to actually read, write, or count.

So if you look at it that way, it makes sense that the military is involved in trying to educate these folks so that they can become more independent, they can become stronger, and essentially have a military that can act independently -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: So, Suzanne, there is another obstacle, right? And we're talking about the rugged terrain. It's been an obstacle for allied forces, for U.S. troops, and now is likely to be an obstacle for these new recruits as well, right?

MALVEAUX: Well, sure. You have the whole air force component of all of this, because if you think about Afghanistan, it's about the size of Texas, very rugged terrain. You've got extreme weather, extreme heat, extreme cold.

If you use the roads, a lot of times travelers are subject to insurgent attacks, those kinds of things. So you've got to have an army, an air force that's flexible, that's able to move in the sky to get around, that type of thing.

They've got some pretty old aircraft that they were working with previously in the Russian age, the Soviet age. They are now upgrading to some American aircraft. But they have a long way to go, Fred.

They've got a lot of work to do, and that is because of what I mentioned before. You can't teach someone how to fly until you teach them how to read. And so this is a slow process. They admit, the officials here, that there is a lot of work to be done, but they feel like they are making some progress.

WHITFIELD: All right.

Suzanne Malveaux, in Kabul.

We'll get back with you momentarily, within this hour. Thanks so much.

More now on the response to a terror threat aimed to coincide with the 9/11 anniversary. Officials say New York and Washington are likely targets, but law enforcement agencies across the country are also on alert.

Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff joins us now on the phone from New York. Oh, there he is.

Not on the phone, but there you are live and in person.

OK. So, Allan, how are authorities, you know, reacting, responding to this possible plot?

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, the police are out in force all across Manhattan today. There are checkpoints just like this set up in downtown Manhattan near the financial district, right near Ground Zero; midtown, especially near Times Square; and here, at the beginning of the Upper West Side, we're standing at 60th street and Columbus Avenue.

What the police are doing is they are visually inspecting all vehicles. They have to pass just one lane. Trucks and vans are being pulled over, they're being asked to open up. The police take a look inside.

You can see right over here, one truck pulling over right there. They're going to ask the driver to open up so they can look inside.

In addition, the police are wearing radioactivity detectors on their bodies. They're like large pagers, and they'll go off if there is any radioactivity. So they're checking for dirty bombs as well.

On top of that, the police have license plate readers at bridges and tunnels entering Manhattan, they've got these checkpoints set up all over town. There are two more set up on the Upper West Side, above us, and have a look at what that is doing to traffic. Backed up, way backed up not only to the Upper West Side, but come with me.

If we look over here, this points over across town. We're looking right over at Columbus Circle, Central Park. Traffic, a complete mess over here.

Fredricka, I should also add that police vehicles are cruising this city with those license plate readers, but they're certainly not cruising at a very fast speed today.

I asked Paul Brown, the deputy commissioner for public affairs of the police department whether all of this might have been happening anyway since we're only a couple days ahead of the 9/11 anniversary. He said we would have had a large presence, but we certainly would not have had all of these checkpoints like you see right here -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Wow. Incredible. All right. Allan Chernoff, thanks so much from New York.

Meantime, out West, a massive power outage hits parts of California, Arizona, and Mexico, and the blackout snarled traffic and left millions in the dark. We'll go live to San Diego.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Live pictures now of the University of Richmond's Robins Center. Any moment now -- you see a huge crowd there has turned out. Any moment now, President Barack Obama will be coming into the crowd there and taking to the microphone.

He's starting his nationwide tour to impress upon the points made last night on his jobs plan on Capitol Hill. Of course, we'll dip into that live as it happens.

A lot of people in southern California spent the night in the dark as utility crews scrambled to get the power back on. Most of the outages were in the San Diego area, but the power is now back on.

CNN's Casey Wian is in San Diego.

So, Casey, how did this blackout happen? Is there a better explanation now?

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we don't have a clear explanation, Fredricka, yet.

What we do know is that it started in the state of Arizona, near the community of Yuma, when a utility worker there was working on a piece of equipment. For some reason, that piece of equipment caused a massive power outage to spread from the Yuma area, where it started with about 50,000 people losing power, throughout southern California, across the Mexican border.

Ultimately, five million people were without power during parts of the day yesterday. And what you're seeing behind me is something that's a real welcome sign for San Diego residents. It's traffic actually moving through an intersection relatively smoothly. Even though this intersection is still blinking red lights, traffic is much better than it was yesterday afternoon, when it was snarled throughout this area.

Businesses were without power. Many of them have complained that they lost inventory -- convenience stores, restaurants. It was a really a big inconvenience for them and for a lot of people.

San Diego Gas & Electric officials though worked all night long to try to get power restored, which they were able to do very, very early this morning. And they were able to get 100 substations back on line and more than a thousand different points of distribution.

So the impact of that, since they were warning yesterday that residents may have to prepare for power outages all day today, perhaps even into the weekend, is that some businesses haven't reopened. Schools remain closed today throughout the area. The airport here is experiencing a little bit of delays, but it's back open. Flights are resuming.

But one thing that I've never seen before -- and I've lived most of my life in southern California -- is if you look at your smart phone traffic map, from southern Orange County to the Mexican border, which is about 75 miles, it's completely green, which you would never see at 8:15 in the morning on a workday. So it's a quiet day in San Diego, which is very welcomed news for people in this community -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Casey, thanks so much for that update.

All right. As we approach the 10th anniversary of 9/11, we want to tell you about a New Yorker who was deeply moved by the outpouring of help his hometown received. Since 2004, CNN Hero Jeff Parness has been saying thank you by giving back to communities across the country.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF PARNESS, CNN HERO: September 11th was a very tough time for the fire department. I lost some friends, guys I went to the academy with.

Afterwards, people came from everywhere to help us out. It was incredible. You knew you weren't alone.

As a New Yorker, to see the outpouring of kindness and generosity was more powerful than the terror that happened. It really changed me.

I'm Jeff Parness, and I just want to show the world that New Yorkers will never forget what people did for us following 9/11.

Every year on the 9/11 anniversary, we take volunteers from New York and send them to some part of the country where they had a disaster and help folks rebuild.

The whole thing there is the grain silo. It's definitely a little culture shock. Rebuilding homes or barns or churches, it's our way to say thank you.

Now more than half our volunteers are not from New York. People from all the small towns that we've helped, they keep showing up to help the next community. They're from Louisiana and California and Indiana and Illinois. Every year you keep seeing more T-shirts from more locations.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got to pitch in as much as we can. After Katrina, we just jumped on his bandwagon. This whole paying it forward thing is just contagious.

PARNESS: It's like this big dysfunctional family reunion of all these disaster survivors who get together and do a barn raising.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're banging nails and building something, but it's the relationships that help you heal.

PARNESS: It's about using the 9/11 anniversary to celebrate the volunteer spirit. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll see you all next year.

PARNESS: People say thank you for doing this. I say, "You want to thank me? Show up on the next one."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Jeff's group has also restored an American flag from Ground Zero now known as the National 9/11 Flag.

To find out more about his work, or to make a donation, go to CNNheroes.com and you can join the conversation on CNN Heroes, Facebook, and Twitter pages as well.

U.S. troops in Afghanistan talked to our Suzanne Malveaux about the 9/11 attacks. Emotions are still very raw for some. Suzanne will be joining us live from Kabul after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Ten years after 9/11, emotions are still raw.

Our Suzanne Malveaux is in Afghanistan, looking at the war that began in response to the September 11th terrorist attacks.

Suzanne, what are American troops telling you about their memories of 9/11?

MALVEAUX: Well, Fred, I had a chance, an opportunity this morning just to gather at a picnic table with some soldiers here to talk about that day. And what was really unique, what was interesting, is of course they all still believe in the mission. That really kind of motivated them, catapulted their mission, if you will, to get involved in the war against terror. But one of the things that they reveal is really a personal side to this, the pain that came out of that day and the memories that still exist every day for these guys.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX (voice-over): Thomas Carter (ph) was in room 4D131 of the Pentagon when it was hit.

THOMAS CARTER (ph), U.S. ARMY: I heard a loud sonic boom, and then after that boom, it was like an earthquake had actually hit the Pentagon. That massive building actually literally shook. It was a feeling of surprise and shock and then anger.

MALVEAUX: Colonel Todd Key was also inside the Pentagon on the other side. He had just gotten off the phone with his wife.

KEY: I swear I thought she was dead. I just had that feeling that she was dead.

MALVEAUX: He realized she was alive when he reunited with her after escaping the burning building. KEY: I realized, too, that everyone that died in the Pentagon has a family, and it made it real to me that that's -- was a -- that was different at that moment. It was different.

MALVEAUX: Colonel David Kumar was thinking of his 5 and 2-year- old children when he began carrying out the toddlers of the Pentagon daycare.

KUMAR: What was painful was the thoughts that went through my head that perhaps some of those children's parents had perished.

MALVEAUX: For Captain Jason Gracin the pain of 9/11 was different. He had to leave his pregnant wife to identify the Pentagon bodies.

GRACIN: I was the one who was taking all the x-rays on all the victims and trying to match dental records. To be honest, the toughest part was at the end of the day they would take the victims that were ready to be transported back to the families.

MALVEAUX: It's okay. Take your time.

GRACIN: And the hearses would come.

MALVEAUX: It's okay. Take your time. It's okay. Take your time. Do you want to join him? It's okay.

GRACIN: And the hearses would come and the military escorts, we'd all line up. We'd do the final salute. And you do that enough times it wears on you, because you know that could have been me. It could have been one of these guys. And they all had families and that was the worst part. That was the worst part.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: That was Captain Jason Gracin. And you can tell just, Fred, how close those guys are. I mean, they are there for each other and still a very emotional time. He told me that, you know, sometimes a song will come on the radio or he'll smell a smell and it'll take him back to those two weeks that he had to work there and identify those bodies but, you know, these guys, they say that they've been there for each other. You can tell how close they are, how important this is. And they say every day they still think about that day at the Pentagon. Some really have very vivid memories, but they take a great deal of comfort in supporting each other.

Fred?

WHITFIELD: And, Suzanne, you talked to other soldiers who also have memories very different from these gentlemen.

MALVEUX: I had a chance to actually talk to some 9/11 soldiers. They were -- 18, 19 years old. And it was so fascinating to hear their perspectives. They were in fifth grade, sixth grade. Because they were in fifth grade, sixth grade, they were ten years old. And a lot of them talked about the fact that they didn't know what terrorism was. They didn't know what a terrorist was.

They remember the video. They remember watching television, having to go home early from school and having their parents describe to them and talk to them and tell them what this meant to them. And it ended up being something that for a lot of them motivated them to go into the military to try to understand that there was a threat, that the country was not invincible. And that was something that was totally foreign and totally new to them. Very different than the guys I talked to today who really experienced it first hand but they seemed to be ready. They seemed to be ready to wrap up this mission and turn it over to the Afghans.

WHITFIELD: All right. Suzanne Malveaux from Kabul, Afghanistan.

We're going to hear from you again back next hour from us focusing on the U.S. efforts to create an Afghan air force. You'll be seeing a 19-year-old Afghan woman who is defying the odds by training to become a pilot.

And then when we come back, we'll take you back to a University of Richmond where the president of the United States is likely to be speaking about his jobs plan on his national tour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNISTED STATES: -- and his lovely life, Ann, who I love more. And another history maker and outstanding former governor, Doug Wilder is in the house.

Now you guys can sit down by the way if you want to. But you don't have seats.

It is good to be here in Virginia first of all because the sun is out. I have not seen sun in about five days. So it was nice to remember what that's like. It is always nice to get out of Washington once in a while. Being with the American people and, you know, I have great memories of Richmond and I have wonderful feelings about the Commonwealth of Virginia.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right!

OBAMA: The people here, you know, the people here I just think have an innate optimism and can-do spirit that is typical of this country.

I love you, too!

I love you, too.

So it's good to get fresh air, good to get fresh perspective. I'm grateful to spend some time with you because obviously we're going through a difficult time in this country. And I know you folks are as frustrated as I am about the economy. You know, it's, I know you're also frustrated not just about our economic conditions but also what's happening in Washington.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Tim, I got an amen there.

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: You have every right to be frustrated. Here in Virginia, here in Richmond people don't have time for political concerns. You've got real life concerns. You may be looking for a job or you know somebody who is looking for a job.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We still love you, Barack.

OBAMA: I love you back. You make sacrifices to make ends meet. You work hard to meet your responsibilities. You expect the people you send to Washington to do the same thing, to meet their responsibilities.

(APPLAUSE)

(END LIVE COVERAGE)

WHITFIELD: Oh boy, we keep losing that signal. We hope to re- establish it. The president there at the University of Richmond. Let's try again.

(BEGIN LIVE COVERAGE)

OBAMA: ...to help the economy, to restore some security and opportunity, restore the American dream, restore those things that made America the envy of the world. In other words, you expect action and you deserve it right now.

That's why after a few scheduling issues I went to congress last night to suggest new ways we can grow the economy, help businesses, and put more fellow Americans back to work. It's called the American Jobs Act.

Next week I will send it to congress. They should pass it right away.

Now, everything in the American jobs act, everything in there is the kind of proposal that's been supported in the past by both Democrats and Republicans. Nothing radical in this bill. Everything in it will put more people back to work and more money back in the pockets of those who are working. Everything in it will be paid for.

But the reason I'm here in Richmond, because to make it happen every one of your voices can make a difference. Every one of your voices will have an impact.

I'm going to talk about the politics in a second but let me right now just talk about what's in the American Jobs Act. It will create more jobs for construction workers, more jobs for teachers, more jobs for veterans, more jobs for young people. More jobs for the long-term unemployed. It will provide a tax break to companies if they hire new workers. It will cut payroll taxes in half for every small business owner and every working American. It will jump-start an economy that has stalled and it will give companies the confidence that if they hire new workers and they invest in their businesses then there are going to be customers there who can afford to actually buy the things they're sealing.

Passing this jobs bill will put people to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and our crumbling bridges and it will also help us rebuild our schools.

I just -- in the back I was taking some photos with folks who had helped out to organize this event. And there was a young lady who was a teacher. And she said I heard your speech last night. I really appreciate it. I'm teaching 8th grade English and I teach in a trailer.

We shouldn't have people teaching in trailers. We shouldn't have kids learning in trailers. They should have classrooms with internet and science labs.

So you've got aging bridges on I-95. You need to replace them. You got schools like Nigel's that need to be upgraded. There are millions of unemployed construction workers across America ready to put on their tool belt and get dirty. I don't know about you, I don't want the newest airports, the fastest railroads to be built in China, I want them to be built -- I want them to be built right here in the united states of America.

CROWD: USA! USA! USA!

OBAMA: I don't want any of our kids to study in sub par schools. I want all our kids to study in great schools.

So there's work to be done. There are workers ready to too it. Let's pass this jobs bill right away. Passing this jobs bill will put thousands of teachers in Virginia and across America back to work when we need the most.

This is a new age. Everybody here knows that. If you want a good job, a good career, if we want America to succeed, then we've got to have the best trained, most highly skilled workers in the world.

You've got places like South Korea that are adding teachers to prepare their kids for a global economy. We're laying off our teachers in droves. It's unfair to our kids. It undermines their future. It undermines our future. It has to stop. Let's pass this bill and put our teachers back in the classroom where they belong.

Passing this bill gives companies new tax credits to hire America's veterans. a lot of veterans here in Richmond and all across Virginia. We ask these men and women to leave their careers or interrupt their careers, leave their families, risk their lives to fight for us. They come home and they can't find a job. The last thing they should have to do is fight for a job when they come home. Pass this bill now and put these folks to work.

Pass this jobs bill and we'll give small business owners here in Richmond and here in Virginia a tax cut for hiring new workers, but also for raising workers' wages, cut their payroll taxes in half that will give small businesses money they can use to hire more workers.

Pass this bill and we give hundreds of thousands of disadvantaged youth the hope and the dignity of a summer job next year. That instills in them good habits that last a lifetime. It'll make it easier to find a job in the future and to continue their education.

Passing this bill will give companies a tax credit for hiring anybody who spent more than six months looking for work. And there are a lot of folks like that. This has been a terrible recession.

And, you know, I get letters from folks and they write to me about what it's like month after month writing letters, sending out resumes, knocking on doors. And folks get discouraged and at some point they drop out of the labor force and it is very hard for them to get reattached. And you've got some employers now if you've been out of work for a long time even if they're looking to hire a lot of times they'll say, well, you've been out of work too long. I'm not sure we want to hire you.

(END LIVE COVERAGE)

WHITFIELD: All right. President Barack Obama there at the University of Richmond re-emphasizing what he revealed last night to the American public, his jobs plan. He says he plans to send it to congress next week and his words, he said they should pass it right away underscoring that tax incentives and breaks will be extended to employers who hire people who have been out of work for extended period of time as well as to military veterans.

Well, next we'll actually have reaction from two unemployed workers right here in the studio with me to see if they heard anything that sounds appealing from the president last night or just now. We'll talk to them right after this

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The president in Richmond, Virginia at the University of Richmond promoting his new jobs plan revealed last night. So in that speech to congress last night he says everything in the plan has been supported by members of both parties like the proposal for infrastructure spending.

Well, here are some of the highlights of the president's $447 billion plan. It would extend payroll tax cuts for workers and employers. It calls for infrastructure spending on roads, railways, transit projects, and school renovations. And the plan would extend unemployment benefits and it includes money to subsidize job training and to keep teachers and first responders from being laid off. So the 14 million Americans who are out of work were hoping to hear something encouraging in the president's plan. We're talking with two job seekers to get their reaction. Johanna Hill is back with us. We met her during the Congressional Black Caucus Jobs Fair in Atlanta a few weeks ago. And she has been looking for work a year and a half now.

Jataya McGhee worked in marketing and business development before she was laid off. And she'd been out of a job looking for about 14 months now. So good to see you, ladies.

Johanna, let's begin with you. We spoke a couple weeks back. You were very discouraged, very disappointed about how things were going. Did you hear anything encouraging from the president last night or moments ago?

JOHANNA HILL, UNEMPLOYED WORKER: Yeah, oh, yeah. One thing he did say -- we have a lot of work to do. And we have some workers that can do it. Just put us back to work.

I think the plan will work. Of course there is going to be some spending, but, you know, like I said earlier, anything you do in order to make money you are going to have to spend some money. So, I really think they should really work together, Democrats and Republicans, stop the bickering, stop the fighting, because actually we're suffering right now. As a nation we're suffering.

WHITFIELD: And that's something you said a few weeks ago. You said the most discouraging thing here was the bickering, and it seemed the stalled efforts on Capitol Hill. We have already heard from some Republicans including Eric Cantor and John McCain saying there are some things they like and there are some things they may not necessarily be on board with.

Is your worry those things might hold up the entire plan?

HILL: Of course. Definitely. I hope that those people who are against part of the plan would look at it as a whole and see how it's going to affect us as a whole. And know that we're going to have to spend something to get these millions of people back to work.

WHITFIELD: Jay (ph), among the things that would be appealing to you, the extending of unemployment benefits, that was something in the plan.

JETAYA MCGHEE, UNEMPLOYED WORKER: Yes. WHITFIELD: And also incentives for employers to hire people who have been out of work a long time.

MCGHEE: Absolutely. Because I think the problem now is that employers are looking at the long-term unemployed and not wanting -- they are leery about hiring us. They think that we don't have the skill set...

WHITFIELD: Do you feel like you feel that, you have heard that, when you have been looking?

MCGHEE: I don't feel that I -- I have not -- I have not heard it specifically, but I think in the nonresponse to the resume, to the resume to the follow-up phone call to the follow-up on the interview, I think that that definitely shows that employers are just leery about hiring the long-term unemployed.

WHITEFIELD: And maybe the incentives, then, being offered will...

MCGHEE: I think that the incentives being offered would definitely encourage employers to hire the long-time unemployed. I do.

WHITFIELD: All right.

And Jay McGhee, Johanna Hill, good to see you ladies. All the best. And hopefully things will turn around soon.

MCGHEE: Thank you for having us.

WHITEFIELD: Appreciate it.

All right, meantime police are on alert in response to a possible terror plot coinciding with the 9/11 anniversary. Next, Rudy Giuliani and Hillary Clinton respond.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's take a look at the big board. The U.S. markets are taking a hit right now. The Dow is down about 285 points.

Let's check in with Alison Kosik live from the New York Stock Exchange. Alison, is there a fairly decent explanation as to why?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredericka. Yes, actually the stocks are off their lows of the session but are pretty close to them. But you know I talked to some traders who said this has a lot to do with President Obama's speech on his jobs plan last night. They said it was a bit of a letdown. That they wanted to see more specifics especially on the corporate tax code. They didn't get enough specifics.

And they were actually happy about some of the things he said about regulation, but the one big question they have is how he is going to pay for this and how is he -- even if he wants to put these proposals forward, how is going to get this through congress. So you are seeing skepticism we can move forward and move the economy forward at this point, Fredericka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Meantime, some encouraging words coming from the floor today from the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and former New York mayor, right?

KOSIK: Yeah, actually they wound up talking a lot about the threat that was announced yesterday. You know, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told me that the threat is unconfirmed but you know they are taking it very seriously, because the government learned a lot when they went through bin Laden's headquarters. They found that al Qaeda was still determined to attack around these anniversary dates.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, he sounded a similar tone when I talked to him. He said the people who were killed on 9/11, they still want to kill. But he said Americans have shown a readiness to band together and make it through.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: The reason that America and this great city have shown such great resilience is because we refuse to be intimidated. But that doesn't mean we're stupid, we're going to keep our eyes open. We're going to be vigilant. Part of the reason to go public with this particular threat information was to tell people go on with your lives, keep your eyes open and let us know if you see anything suspicious.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI (R), FMR. NEW YORK MAYOR: They must be pretty convinced that this is a real one. That doesn't mean it's going to happen, it doesn't mean they aren't able to intercept it. We've got much better methods in place now for picking these things up than we did before September 11th. I'm pretty confident the New York City Police Department will be able to prevent this, but people should be a little more alert.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: And you know what? We can do a lot, because you have to remember, it was a street vendor, Fredricka, who spotted the Times Square bomber's SUV. He saw something suspicious -- a.k.a. smoke coming out of the SUV -- and you know what? He said something.

And that's kind of the mantra that New Yorkers really know well. The saying is, if you see something, say something. And you know what? It's worked.

And officials say we still need to go about our daily lives, as we do. Even Mayor Bloomberg, he took the subway today, as he does every day -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Alison Kosik, thanks so much, from the New York Stock Exchange.

KOSIK: Sure. WHITFIELD: And Sunday, join us for our special "9/11: Ten Years Later." Live coverage of events begin at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time, right here on CNN.