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Alleged Plot to Bomb U.S. Capitol; Northern Syrian Town Controlled by Opposition; New York Times Reporter Anthony Shadid Dead at 43; Where Are America's Skilled Workers?; Obama Remarks on Jobs and Exports

Aired February 17, 2012 - 14:00   ET

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

HALA GORANI, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Hala Gorani, in for Brooke Baldwin this Friday.

Let's take you straight before we get to the rest of the program to Washington, D.C. Brian Todd is on the phone.

I understand, Brian, that a man has been arrested in Washington on his way to the U.S. Capitol with plans to attack it.

Can you give us more details on this developing story, Brian, please?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we can. We're told that a suspect has, in fact, been arrested in connection with a terrorism investigation.

This was an apparent attempt to attack the Capitol, we're told by a law enforcement source. This person tells us that the person was arrested essentially on his way to the Capitol. The arrest, according to the Justice Department, was the culmination of an undercover operation during which the suspect was closely monitored by law enforcement.

Now, what we're told by the Justice Department is that explosives the suspect allegedly sought to use in connection with this plot had been rendered inoperable by law enforcement and that there was no threat to the public. According to one federal law enforcement official we spoke to, as soon as the suspect accepted what he thought was going to be a suicide bomb vest from an undercover officer, he was arrested.

So that is what we know at this time.

Right now, we are at the scene of what we believe was some kind of activity regarding this arrest. This was in an alleyway next to a restaurant at the foot of the Capitol, where there's been a lot of activity with FBI agents in flak jackets coming in and out of a parking garage.

We're trying to figure out whether this was, in fact, where the suspect was picked up or not. But, yes, a lot of activity around where we are and a significant arrest today in this alleged plot to attack the Capitol.

GORANI: Well, do we know anything more about the suspect, Brian? TODD: There are reports that he is a Moroccan national. We have not -- at least I have not confirmed that on my end yet, but we're working that information. But, no, we know very little about the suspect at this time.

This literally just happened within the last couple of hours, we're told. But we're working that information right now.

GORANI: All right.

Brian Todd, there in Washington, D.C.

Thanks very much with the latest on this developing story of an alleged bomb plot to attack the U.S. Capitol. And a suspect we believe apprehended in the nation's capital in the last several hours.

We will continue to follow that story and get back to Brian once more details emerge.

All right. Now let's catch you up on everything else making news this hour. And let's start with "Rapid Fire."

The Syrian city of Homs being is bombed again for a 14th straight day. Dramatic video coming to us online. The explosion you just saw is said to have hit a civilian city. As the attacks continue, angry Syrians filled the streets of major cities by the thousands today.

Our Arwa Damon is in one of the neighborhoods hit hardest by the fighting, she is describing how some families are trying to escape their own homes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: These types of holes were dug into various walls inside the neighborhoods, we're being told, by the Free Syrian Army. And this was how they were getting families out, because there was so much firing from the front end. They weren't able to evacuate that way. They were forced to come out like this to get to relative safety.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Flags are flying at half-staff in New Jersey today honoring singer Whitney Houston. Fans have been leaving candles and photos and balloons outside of Houston's childhood church, where her funeral will be held tomorrow, Saturday, as the investigation into her death focuses on the doctors and pharmacies who provided the singer with prescription drugs.

Also among the stories we're following, a barge collision and oil spill near New Orleans shut down a five-mile stretch of the Mississippi River this morning. No injuries have been reported. Oil is no longer spilling out of the barge, but officials aren't saying how much escaped into the river. Booms have been placed around the area to stop the oil from spreading. Angels and demons figure into a high-profile murder trial in Georgia. Hemy Neuman claims insanity in the shooting of Rusty Sneiderman outside a daycare center in an upscale Atlanta suburb. Attorneys say Neuman was delusional, guided by a demon that looked like Barry White and an angel that looked like Olivia Newton-John. Testimony in the case begins next week.

A dispute between two U.S. immigration agents erupts into gunfire at the Federal Building in Long Beach, California, last night. Officials say one agent who had been threatened with disciplinary action pulled his gun and wounded his supervisor several times. A third agent shot and killed the gunman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVEN MARTINEZ, FBI: At this time, we believe this was an isolated incident and we believe the shooter was acting alone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Well, the wounded agent is reported in stable condition at a Long Beach hospital following surgery.

Johnson & Johnson is recalling 574,000 bottles of grape-flavored Infant Tylenol. The bottles were distributed throughout the country, so check in your medicine cabinet. The recall was issued after parents complained about problems using the device that helps measure dosage. There are no reports of children, though, being harmed.

Both houses of Congress passed legislation today extending the payroll tax cut. President Obama has promised to sign it as soon as it gets to his desk.

The extension impacts 160 million Americans who already pay a smaller amount towards Social Security. For example, a person making $50,000 a year will continue to bring home an extra $83 every month.

Is tonight the night the streak ends? You can insert your own puns, the "Linning" streak, or the "Linsanity," but Jeremy Lin has taken New York, not to mention the rest of the country, by storm, and he and the New York Knicks go for their eighth straight win tonight against New Orleans, and the hoopla around the Asian-American phenom grows bigger with every victory.

Minutes from now we will hear the president tout "Made in America" at a huge Boeing plant in Washington State. And as we wait for that to get going, did you know that, well, apparently machinists are in demand? It may not be the sexiest job, but it's a vital one. We'll talk about what's needed to get America going again.

Also, very sad news for our profession and journalism in general. A Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Anthony Shadid, who dodged bullets and escaped kidnappers in his career, has died in Syria. I'll talk with a CNN colleague who was one of the last to speak with Shadid.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) GORANI: We're going to show you an image now that captures precisely what is occurring today in parts of Syria.

(CHANTING)

GORANI: This is smoke from government shelling rising above the city of Homs. But on the ground in Homs, hundreds of people have gathered in opposition to the regime of Bashar al-Assad. That is the theme of the day across Syria, protests.

We should also tell you that 56 people have reportedly died today, including this man, reportedly killed by a bullet at what was otherwise described at a peaceful protest in Damascus.

CNN's Ivan Watson has entered Syria. He is in the northern part of the country, in a town that is precariously close to a Syrian army base. And Ivan visited a section of the town that is controlled by the opposition.

Tell us about what you saw today, Ivan.

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hala, the uprising has been going on for 11 months. More than 6,000 people have been killed in the government crackdown here. But today, neither torrential freezing rain, neither the threat of tanks parked just a mile and a half away could stop hundreds of people from turning out in what has become a weekly ritual of defiance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: A freezing winter rain hasn't stopped hundreds of people from gathering here in the town square for a weekly show of defiance against the regime of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. This is a ritual that's been preformed week after week for months in this opposition-controlled town.

This is one of the opposition activists.

Why do you do this every Friday?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every Friday we do this in this town to send a message. Bashar al-Assad's army is shelling the buildings every day in Homs (INAUDIBLE). Please help us. Please (INAUDIBLE).

WATSON: The Syrian army has a base just five minutes' drive from here, and activists tell us that they have brought in additional tanks to that base within just the last 24 hours. Some of the people here welcomed the United Nations General Assembly's decision to condemn the Syrian government crackdown on its own citizens.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need real action from United Nations (INAUDIBLE). They are just treaties.

WATSON: But they add that that will do little to protect them should the Syrian military decide to attack this opposition-held town within the days and weeks to come. Ivan Watson, CNN, Banish (ph), northern Syria.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GORANI: Ivan, thanks very much.

And there's more distressing news today connected the to the story in Syria. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Anthony Shadid, who was a friend to many of us who traveled to that part of the world, died overnight while trying to cross from Syria into Turkey. His employer, "The New York Times," says the cause of Shadid's death is not precisely clear, but there is strong indications that the 43-year-old reporter may have suffered an asthma attack brought on by exposure to the horses being ridden by his guides.

It's really one of the ways and, in some cases, the only way to get into Syria when you sneak in. Again, we'll hear from CNN's Ivan Watson in a little bit on what happened, to speak with Shadid in the hours before his death.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Ivan, what can you tell us about the last time that you saw and worked together with Anthony Shadid?

WATSON: Well, we -- Jim, we saw him Thursday night with his colleague, Tyler Hicks. They've also been operating here out of northern Syria.

And I surprised them in the little hut that they were staying in and gave them both a hug. And they were very excited to get out to Turkey to start sending stories.

They were being very careful, Jim, to maintain a very low profile here, very conscious of the risks here, and not wanting to gamble with their security. They preferred to save their material and file it once they were outside of the combat zone, rather than draw attention to themselves. Anthony was a very careful journalist.

CLANCY: A very careful journalist.

Did you know that he had asthma problems? I understand he did bring the medications with him.

WATSON: I don't know about the medications, but one of the first things he told me on Thursday night was that when he came into the country -- and it's very arduous trip -- he had an allergic reaction to the horses that the guides were using. And he was overcome by it, and he collapsed on a hillside in the dark, in this no man's land between the two countries, and could not walk any further. And they were lost there and contemplated going back into Turkey.

So the news that he had succumbed to asthma came as a real shock, of course, but that apparently was reaction to the same animals and the same allergy. It's just terrible. (END VIDEOTAPE)

GORANI: That's a cruel irony in a way, someone who survived war zones, who survived being shot, who survived kidnapping in Libya, should succumb to an apparent asthma attack. It's a true loss, an irreplaceable journalist, and we'll talk more about Anthony Shadid and his stellar career in journalism later. I'll speak with his father in the next hour of NEWSROOM.

Now, we have a follow-up about some of the injured Syrians we told you about yesterday. CNN's Arwa Damon showed us the conditions in a makeshift hospital. Doctors told us they were overwhelmed and ill- equipped to take care of the injured and dying.

These hospitals are not hospitals, they're in homes. Their most seriously wounded patients often die within a few hours.

Well, two of those men are now safe. Arwa's tweet says, "Great news. Abad (ph) with brain injury who traced tank with finger and the man with the rotting leg wound up smuggled to a Lebanon hospital." One of the men, unfortunately, though, at the beginning of her piece there, died. But best of luck to the two others in their treatment.

All right. We're going to take a short break.

When we come back, two barges run into each other on a busy river overnight. We're getting new information about how much oil spilled and what caused the collision as well.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: In just a few minutes, President Barack Obama will be speaking right there at a Boeing assembly plant in Washington State. His message, boosting the demand for American exports around the world.

And we'll bring you that event live as it happens.

And talk about the manufacturing industry in the United States, in Louisiana now, a barge collision, an oil spill closed a five-mile stretch of the Mississippi River this morning. Booms have been placed in the water around the crash site to keep the oil from spreading.

Now, the crash happened about 50 miles upriver of New Orleans. No one was injured. And so far, there is no estimate on how much oil actually spilled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EDWARD "TOOTIE" NOWELL, PORT OF SOUTH LOUISIANA: Two tugs had collided. We responded, came back, retrieved the Coast Guard personnel, brought them on scene. They're surveying the barges and making sure nothing is leaking. And we're doing a sonar test of the barges to make sure, and that's about where we stand. (END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Well, the area where it happened is a busy section of the river.

Let's bring in Chad Myers.

OK. So where is it located exactly, where this collision occurred?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Upriver of New Orleans. And you would think that that would be north of New Orleans, but really, at that point in time, the Mississippi River goes from west to east. So it's 50 miles west of New Orleans just the way the river meanders.

But this was a big collision. This was a double hull -- which means one on hull on the inside, one hull on the outside -- keeping the oil secure inside. And it pierced this double hull with a 10-foot by five-foot gash.

GORANI: Right.

MYERS: A hundred and fifty thousand gallons of oil were on board, but the gash was above the water line, so therefore not that much oil clearly came out.

The deal is now, this oil is in the river, and people get their drinking water out of the river. There are fish, wildlife, plants. There are waterfowl in the river, and now we have this oil in the river.

So, here's New Orleans, and here's this meandering Mississippi River. I was showing you how it actually goes more west to east at this point in time.

There's a reserve, and then a big bend in the river here. And there's so much barge traffic in this bend. You can actually see some of these barges are parked out there, or just kind of anchored out there.

What happened here, we have a crane barge with a crane on it to do some operations, and then this oil barge. Basically, like an oil tanker, but it doesn't have its own engine. Both being pushed by tugboats, one going up river, one going down river.

And at 2:00 in the morning last night, they collided. And the collision had to be significant to go through both hulls of this oil tanker -- of this oil barge with oil coming out.

They did get right on it. They closed down the water intakes -- there are actually some water intakes for some of the lower parishes down here -- so that no water mixed with oil is actually in the drinking water.

There's no -- theoretically, there's no problem for humans. But you know what? Can these people just not get a break?

GORANI: Yes. MYERS: It's just one thing after another from a big flood to the -- it's just -- it's been a very, very, very difficult couple of years.

GORANI: But thankfully, it looks pretty much -- I mean, it's contained now. But we don't know how much oil spilled, essentially, right?

MYERS: Don't really know. I've heard a couple numbers thrown around, about 3,000 gallons. That's obviously only tenths of a percent of what could have come out.

GORANI: Right. Thanks very much.

MYERS: You're welcome.

GORANI: Chad Myers, see you a bit later.

Help wanted. Skilled machinists are in demand. But is there enough training for the job?

Also ahead, we'll bring you the president's remarks live. He's pushing "Made in America" at a Boeing plant in Washington State.

We'll be back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: America is selling. Now it's time to find more buyers. That's the message we'll hear in just a few minutes from President Obama.

He's visiting a Boeing assembly plant in Washington State to announce new steps to make it easier for American companies to export their products to other countries. We'll take that speech live.

But first, let's bring in Dan Lothian, who's covering the president's event at Boeing, and Poppy Harlow, who spoke with another big U.S. manufacturer that just announced a major new product.

First, to Dan.

And what are these steps that the president is going to outline today, Dan?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, one of them is the administration working with the Export-Import Bank to provide financing for companies that will allow them to compete with countries like China. And in fact, Boeing just recently completed a major deal with the airline Lion Air of Indonesia, where they credit the Import- Export Bank with helping to get that deal done.

In addition to that, the administration is laying out steps to help smaller businesses that are a part of the exporting venue by providing short-term credit for these companies. And then, additionally, the administration is starting a Web site where it will be, as they've described it, a one-stop shopping effort where businesses can get information for hiring or export information as well.

This is all part of the president's push to expand in the manufacturing field. Earlier in the week the president was in Wisconsin, where he was touting a small company there that had brought jobs back from China.

Here, the president is at Boeing, because Boeing is one of the major U.S. exporters. More than $34 billion in value last year.

And I'm standing behind one of the newest ventures from Boeing, a 787 Dreamliner. So far, they've had more than 870 orders.

And so, again, the president touting manufacturing as part of the overall strategy to create jobs here in the U.S. -- Hala.

GORANI: And I believe we see President Obama there walking up to where he's expected to deliver this speech on U.S. manufacturing. We'll go to it live when it starts.

I think we have just about a few seconds to talk with Poppy Harlow.

You spoke with another big American manufacturer, the CEO of Caterpillar. What is Caterpillar's sort of position on U.S. manufacturing? What needs to be done to make sure that it gets some sort of boost?

POPPY HARLOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's some very good news from Caterpillar.

They are creating a number of jobs in this country. The news just coming out today, 1,400 jobs are coming to right near where you are, Hala, Athens, Georgia. They're going to build a $200 million plant there.

And I spoke to the CEO earlier today. He said it's about demand increasing in the United States. That's a good story. But it's also about exports and exporting out of the port of Savannah there in Georgia, down to hot markets like Brazil, et cetera.

Now, what's very interesting about this announcement is they are bringing back jobs, all those jobs. They're taking them out of Japan and they're bringing them back here to the United States. And that is critical.

That is something I guarantee -- or I'm pretty sure you'll hear from President Obama in his remarks, is the importance of manufacturing in this country. He's at Boeing, a huge company just like Caterpillar is.

I want you to take a listen to the CEO of Boeing and why he says -- CEO, rather, of Caterpillar and why he says they decided to build that plant in Georgia. It's about exports, but it's also -- listen carefully. It's also about politics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DOUG OBERHELMAN, CEO, CATERPILLAR: Well, we avoid the freight, obviously, from Japan to the United States and South America because most of the market is here. And we use the port of Savannah and others down here to export both to Europe and South America.

So a lot of that was involved. But beyond that, you know, we looked at Georgia in a climate that's very friendly to expansion. And Georgia -- I would give the state of Georgia a lot of credit for a very competitive package to make us feel at home and really take care of our people going forward. It is about 4,000 jobs when we're all done with this in 2015 or '16.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: And the way they get to 4,000 jobs, Hala, is 1,400 direct jobs, and then they argue about 2,800 jobs supported by that plant. So, restaurants, hotels, it's automakers, et cetera, and also supplier jobs.

What's critical in what he said is that Georgia is friendly to expansion. That is code for an attractive tax policy within the state, et cetera. And that's what you hear a lot of Republican candidates pushing for more of, is that we need more of that to create jobs in this country, get those plants built.

I will tell you, it's been amazing to see how many of these big manufacturing plants now are going to the South in these right-to-work non-union states -- Hala.

GORANI: All right. Poppy Harlow, stand by.

We're going to actually speak with someone who is very much aware of the situation of American manufacturing in this country. If the president's plan works, it would mean more jobs at U.S. factories.

Manufacturing, it's making things. It's not services, it's not consumer spending, which accounts for most of growth in this country.

The question there is, what manufacturing sector should this country's focus on and how do you train Americans so that they become skilled to fill these positions that will add value to the U.S. economy and help this economy rebound?

Scott Paul is the executive director at the Alliance for American Manufacturing, a group that represents a number of U.S. companies. Now, what are you in your position hoping to hear from the president today in Washington?

SCOTT PAUL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ALLIANCE FOR AMERICAN MANUFACTURING: Well, I do hope the president talks about the ways in which our companies can be more competitive. I think boosting exports and having export financing is a key component of that.

If you look at his blueprint for manufacturing, it's comprehensive. It deals with vocational training. It deals with actually import competition from China and levelling the playing field. It talks about innovation.

It also talks about tax policy, which is obviously very important to American companies and having incentives in our tax code to invest in the United States as opposed to outsourcing their jobs.

So I'm hoping I hear more of that message. We certainly heard some of it in Wisconsin a couple days ago. But it's a popular message even more important than that, it's vital to our economic future to grow these jobs.

GORANI: OK, so, which sector, though, do you focus on? If you're talking about government tax breaks, essentially the government is peaking here, Boeing being a huge exporter for the country and revenue generator, but how do you focus on which sector to focus on in this country?

PAUL: Sure, well, look, the value added for manufacturing is much higher than it is for other sectors of the economy. Manufacturing spins off four or five other jobs for every job it creates. It provides 90 percent of our patents, two-thirds of research and development.

And the truth is, if you locate a Boeing, a Caterpillar, or a Ford plant in your community, it means you're also going to get a Wal-Mart, you're going to get a nice vibrant main street. You're going to get a lot of other activity. I don't think that's not true for most other types of economic activity.

So it's the one type of economic activity that governors, mayors, everyone's fighting for. I'm glad our country is fighting for it because we spent the last decade or so seeing these jobs leave and with haven't done much about it.

GORANI: Sure, but again, which sector do you chose? Do you choose the lower added value sectors? I mean, making, I don't know, next tiles, that kind of thing or do you spend money with government programs -- I'm just throwing ideas or possibilities out there -- on, for instance, skilled technology-based jobs that add a lot of value throughout the production chain?

PAUL: That's a very good question. I think it's important to point out that the jobs we have left in manufacturing here in this country are also highly skilled. We shed one-third of our manufacturing jobs over the last decade.

And if you walk into every steel mill or nearly any factory today, it is high-tech. There are lots of lasers. There are lots of computers. And I think one of the things that we need to understand is that 94 percent of all U.S. manufacturing is globally cost competitive.

So it makes sense to invest in advanced manufacturing. That means most manufacturing today. Yes, we won't create manufacturing, how it was in the 1950s and 1960s. We don't want to do that. But there's a lot of manufacturing we can do everything from steel to aerospace and a lot in between.

GORANI: All right, thanks very much, Scott Paul of the Alliance for American Manufacturing joining us live on CNN.

We're going to be back in just a few minutes. We're going to take the president's remarks live from Washington State. Just ahead, stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: All right, we are waiting for President Barack Obama there to address employees of Boeing in Everett, Washington. He's at a production facility there.

Currently, one of the Boeing executives is speaking, talking about how Boeing is an industry leader and about the Dreamliner as well. It suffered several production delays, but in the end the Dreamliner came out of that production line at Boeing in Washington State.

So we'll go live there to listen to President Obama. But before we do, let's listen to the Airplane Commercial Group head for just a few moments.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- around the world when we go and compete and they've really helped us win. For that we thank you. Right now, there's tremendous demand for our airplanes. And there's a tremendous demand because the market but moreover, we do build the most capable airplanes in the world.

Right now, our backlog is 4,000 airplanes and current rates, that's about seven years' worth of production. We're going to increase our production by 40 percent over the next three years.

Every airplane we sell means jobs, though. You know, here at the Boeing Company, we've hired 13,000 new employees just in the last year. And our supply chain supports 250,000 jobs in the United States of America.

You know, I think the reason we win is because we're building tomorrow's airplanes today. That's something the competition can't say. And it's because of American technology, innovation and also determination.

And I know this team in front of me knows how hard this airplane was to build, but I think this effort is really worth the wait. This is truly the first new airplane of the 21st Century.

The Dreamliner has changed the way that people will travel and certainly changed the way that airplanes are built. This is really the first departure since the 707 almost 50 years ago.

But you know, innovation and hard work, and it doesn't guarantee success. It's really about having a skilled work force. We have the best engineers and the best machinists and best mechanics in the world.

We also need, you know, very good and strong partners in government, business and education to help us compete. And we get that here in the state of Washington. I can't think of a more exciting time to be in this business or a better time for America to lead this industry into the second century of flight.

I'm now pleased to introduce my boss, Boeing's Chairman, President and CEO, Jim McNerney. Jim took over this job in 2005 and he has been relentless trying to push for profitable growth. Our exports have doubled under his leadership. He's a great leader.

That was provides recognized by President Obama in 2010. Jim was asked to be the chairman of the export council to support the present school of doubling exports within five years. I tell you, you know, Jim and the company, we're doing everything we can to help double those exports with your support.

It's my pleasure to introduce now the leader of the best and the largest aerospace company in the world, and also America's largest exporter, Jim McNerney.

GORANI: All right, Boeing executives there touting their success with regards to the Boeing Dreamliner, the 787. In the end, it came out of the production line at Boeing. It's designed to be a more fuel- efficient plane.

Boeing says it wants it to be the future of aviation and continue to have a dominant position in the airline and airplane industry over airbus. We're expecting President Obama, of course, to come speak at this production facility in Everett, Washington, and we'll take that speech live when it happens. A short break on CNN, we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Once again we're waiting for President Barack Obama. He's in Everett, Washington at a Boeing production facility. He's going to be speaking soon. When he does, we'll take that live.

In the meantime, let's talk about another big American corporation, General Motors, is paying out fat bonuses, even though it hasn't repaid all of its bailout money.

The company reported record profits and workers are getting a taste of it. As Lisa Sylvester reports, the company is still on the hook to taxpayers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): November 2008, the CEOs of the big three auto companies came to Washington to ask taxpayers for a multibillion dollar bailout.

They flew to the capital on private jets, sparking the ire of some members of Congress who accused them of being tone deaf.

REPRESENTATIVE GARY ACKERMAN (D), NEW YORK: It's almost like seeing a guy show up at the soup kitchen in high hat and tuxedo.

SYLVESTER: GM eventually received $49.5 billion from the government. Chrysler, $12.5 billion. That helped keep the car companies afloat. Fast forward to today.

GM has announced it has posted a record annual profit, $7.6 billion last year. GM's 47,000 union workers will each get a $7,000 profit- sharing bonus check. But keep in mind, GM hasn't fully paid back the taxpayers.

The U.S. government still owns about a quarter of the company with 500 million shares. The National Legal Policy Center is a nonpartisan ethics watch dog group. Their directors it's a great deal for the United Autoworkers Union, lousy deal for taxpayers.

PETER FLAHERTY, NATIONAL LEGAL AND POLICY CENTER: I think these bonuses add insult to injury. The United Autoworkers have already received equity in the course of the bailout and structured bankruptcy. And now it's just gravy. It does nothing for taxpayers who are still in the hole on this deal.

SYLVESTER: General Motors justifies the bonuses saying they have replaced automatic pay increases. A spokeswoman for GM saying, quote, "What we're trying to do is align compensation with how the company performs. As the company improves and delivers on its goals that's reflected in our compensation." The UAW also says workers should get a small cut of the profits.

JOE ASHTON, UAW VICE PRESIDENT: We haven't had a pay increase since 2003. There's no pay increases in this contract. No pay increases whatsoever. There were no pension increases and no pay increases. Everything that we will get will be based on profit-sharing.

SYLVESTER: But GM is not out of the woods yet. GM's European and South American operations are still losing money and its fourth quarter profits missed Wall Street's expectations.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SYLVESTER: For taxpayers to recoop the government money from GM, shares of the company would have to double from $26 a share to about $52 a share. And that's not likely to happen any time soon. Lisa Sylvester, CNN, Washington.

GORANI: Well, is it fair for GM to pay out bonuses when it still has a huge tab with the American taxpayer? We'll ask someone who knows the motor city inside and out, the auto reporter from the Detroit Free Press next hour. We'll have that and a lot more. We'll be right back after a break stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Let's take you back live to Everett, Washington, where President Barack Obama is addressing workers at a Boeing plant in Everett, Washington. Let's listen in.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: -- your heating bills must be crazy. I want to thank Jim McNerney for hosting us here today. Give them a big round of applause. Your machinist leadership, Tom Buffinberger, Rich Mahulski, Tom Roboleski, and Tom McCartier here.

One of the finest governors in the country, Chris Gregoire is in the house and I want to thank the mayor of Everett for having us here today. Now, I want to thank all of you for also giving me a pretty smooth ride. As some of you may know, Air Force One was built here right in Everett 25 years ago. In fact, I met one of my guys that I met during the tour worked on the plane.

So, I told him he did a pretty good job. It's flying smooth. I get to see your handiwork in action every single day. But as wonderful as it is to fly Air Force One, and it is wonderful, it's hard not to be amazed by the Dreamliner.

I noticed this one's going to United, one of our outstanding carriers. I have to mention that just because I'm from Chicago. So, I've got to give a few extra props there. But this is the first commercial airplane to be made with 50 percent composite materials.

It's lighter, it's faster, it's more fuel efficient than any airplane in its class and it looks cool. The Dreamliner is the plane of the future. And by building it here, Boeing is taking advantage of a huge opportunity that exists right now to bring more jobs and manufacturing back to the United States of America.

We know that the last few decades haven't been easy for manufacturing. New technology has made businesses more efficient and more productive and that's a good thing. That's what raises our standards of living. It means we can get better products for less.

But that also means the companies need fewer workers to make the same amount of product as they used to. And technology makes it easier for companies to set up shop and hire workers anywhere where there's an internet connection.

So, the result has been this transition process that's been incredibly painful for a lot of families and a lot of communities -- a lot of communities that used to rely on a lot of factory jobs. They saw those shrink. They saw those get shipped overseas.

Too many factories where people thought they'd retire, left home. Too many jobs that provided a steady, stable life, a middle class life for people, got shipped overseas. Look, the hard truth is, a lot of those jobs aren't going to come back because of these increased efficiencies.

In a global economy, some companies are always going to find it more profitable to pick up and do business in other parts of the world. That's just the nature of a global economy. But that does not mean that we've got to just sit there and settle for a lesser future. I don't accept that idea. You don't accept that idea.

America is the place where we can always do something to create new jobs and new opportunities and new manufacturing and new security for the middle class. And that's why I'm here today. That's our job. That's what we're going to do together. Now, just today, we actually took an important short-term step to strengthen our economy. Just before we got here, Congress did the right thing and voted to make sure that taxes would not go up on middle class families at the end of this month. Congress also agreed to extend unemployment insurance for millions of Americans, maybe some of your family members who are still out there looking for a job.

So, I'm going to sign this bill right away when I get back home. You guys may remember this middle class tax cut is something I proposed in my jobs bill back in September. And because you kept the pressure on Congress, because you reminded people what it means to have 40 bucks taken out of your paycheck every week, it got done.

This is a big deal and I want to thank members of Congress for listening to the voices of the American people. It is amazing what happens when Congress focuses on doing the right thing instead of just playing politics. This was a good example and Congress should take pride in it.

But the payroll tax cut is just the start. If we want middle class families to get ahead, we've got to deal with a set of economic challenges that existed even before this recession hit. We've got a choice right now.

We can either settle for a country where a few people do really well and everybody else is struggling, or we can restore an economy where everybody gets a fair shot. And everybody does their fair share. And everybody plays by the same set of rules from Washington to Wall Street to Main Street. Everybody's doing their part.

We're still recovering from one of the worst economic crisis in three generations, the worst in our lifetimes for most of us. We still have a long way to go to make sure everybody who can -- everybody who wants a job can find one. And every family can regain that sense of security that was slipping away even before this recession hit.

But the tide is turning. The tide is beginning to turn our way. Over the last 23 months, businesses have created 3.7 million new jobs. And American manufacturers are hiring for the first time since 1990. And the American auto industry is back and our economy is getting stronger and that's why we can look towards a promising future.

And Boeing is an example of that. But to keep it going, the last thing we can afford to do is to go back to the very same policies that got us into this mess in the first place. We can't go backwards. We've got to go forwards.

We can't go back to an economy that was weakened by outsourcing and bad debt and phoney financial profits. I want us to make stuff. I want us to sell stuff. In the "State of the Union," I outlined a blueprint for an economy that's built to last.

That has a strong foundation. An economy based on American manufacturing, American know-how, American made energy, skills for American workers, and the values that made America great, the values that Kathleen talked about, hard work and fair play and shared responsibility that's what America is about.

And that blueprint starts with American manufacturing. It starts with companies like this one. A lot of people say, well, they're going to be fewer manufacturing jobs than there were in the past. I already said, we're more efficient now.

What used to take a 1,000 people to make, you might only need 100 now. We understand that. We understand there are going to be more service jobs. That's important. We want to make sure we're promoting service industries as well, but manufacturing has a special place in America.

When we make stuff and we're selling stuff that creates jobs beyond just this plant. It raises standards of living for everybody and here at Boeing, business is booming, booming. Last year orders for commercial aircraft rose by more than 50 percent.

And to meet that demand, Boeing hired 13,000 workers all across America including 5,000 right here in Everett. Now the biggest challenge is how to turn out planes fast enough. Jay, that's a high- class problem to have.

So, this company is a great example of what American manufacturing can do. In a way that nobody else in the world can do it. And the impact of your success, as I said, goes beyond the walls of this plant.

Every Dreamliner that rolls off the assembly line here in Everett supports thousands of jobs in different industries all across the country. Parts of the fuselage are manufactured in South Carolina and Kansas.

Wing edges, they come from Oklahoma. Engines, assembled in Ohio. Tail fin comes from right down the road in Frederickson. And the people in every one of these communities, some of whom are here today, they're benefiting from the work that you do.

All those workers, they spend money at the local store. They go to restaurants. So the service economy does better because you're doing well. What's happening here in Everett can happen in other industries. It can happen not just here, but it can happen in Cleveland and Pittsburgh and Raleigh.

We can't bring every job back. Anybody who says we can, they're not telling you the truth. But right now, it's getting more expensive to do business in places like China. Meanwhile, American workers have never been more productive. And companies like Boeing are finding out that even when we can't make things faster or cheaper than China, we can make them better. Our quality can be higher.

And that's what America's about. That's how we're going to compete.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Now, during the State of the Union, I issued a challenge to America's business leaders. I said, ask yourselves what you can do to bring and create jobs here in this country, and your country will do everything we can to help you succeed. And I'm encouraged. We're actually seeing a number of companies, large and small, domestic, but even some foreign companies recognizing, you know what, we're going to -- we're going to open new facilities and create new jobs here in America. This is a good place to work. This is a good place to be.

And our job as a nation is to make it easier for more of these companies to do the right thing. That starts with our tax code. Right now, companies get tax breaks for moving companies and jobs overseas. Meanwhile, companies that choose to stay in America get hit with one of the highest tax rates in the world. That doesn't make any sense.

So, my message to Congress is, what are we waiting for? Let's get this done right now. Let's make some changes to the tax code. And let's follow some simple principles. First, if you're a business that wants to outsource jobs, that's your choice, but you shouldn't get a tax deduction for doing it.

That money should be used to cover moving expenses for companies that are deciding to bring jobs back home. That's who should be getting tax breaks. Second, no American company should be able to avoid paying its fair share of taxes by moving jobs and profits overseas. My attitude is every multinational company should have to pay a basic minimum tax. You should not have an advantage by building a plant over there over somebody who's investing here and hiring American workers.

And every penny of that minimum tax should go towards lowering taxes for companies like Boeing that choose to stay and hire here in the United States of America. Number three, if you're an American manufacturer, you should get a bigger tax cut. And if you're a high- tech manufacturer, we should double the tax deductions you get for making your products here.

And, finally, if you want to relocate in a community that's been hard- hit by factories leaving town, then you should get help financing that new plant or financing that equipment or training for new workers.

Everett, it is time to stop rewarding companies that ship jobs overseas. Reward companies that are creating jobs right here in the United States of America. Congress should send me these tax reforms. I will sign them right away.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Now, another thing we're doing to support American jobs is making it easier for businesses like Boeing to sell their products all over the world.

Two years ago, I set a goal of doubling U.S. exports in five years. We're on track to meet that goal. We're actually ahead of schedule. So, last November, when I was in Indonesia, Boeing announced a deal with the help of the export/import bank to sell more than 200 planes to one of the fastest-growing airlines in the world. Boeing is one of the largest exporters in America. This was one of the biggest deals Boeing had ever done. Over the years, it will help support thousands of American jobs, including jobs here in Everett. So, I tease Jay (ph) every time I see him. I said, "You know, I deserve a gold watch because I'm selling your stuff all the time."

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: I will go anywhere in the world to open up new markets for American products. And, by the way, I will not stand by when our competitors don't play by the rules.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: That's why I directed my administration to create a trade enforcement unit that just has one job: investigating unfair trade practices in countries like China or places like Europe.

(END OF CNN'S COVERAGE)