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CNN Live Today
Martha Stewart Begins Five-Month Prison Sentence; Israel Suspects Al Qaeda in Yesterday's Egyptian Bombing\
Aired October 08, 2004 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning from CNN headquarters in Atlanta. I'm Daryn Kagan.
Now in the news, Martha Stewart is in prison. Stewart checked into federal prison in Alderson, West Virginia early today. She'll spend the next five months at the minimum-security facility that is sometimes known as Camp Cupcake. Stewart was convicted of lying to investigators about her sale of Imclone stock. Details in a live report coming up in a couple of minutes.
So far there's no claim of responsibility for the bombings of three Egyptian Red Sea resorts popular with Israelis. One bomb demolished the Hilton Hotel at Taba near the Israel/Egypt border. At least 26 people were killed, and dozens wounded. Many remain missing, and thousands of Israeli tourists are pouring across the border heading home.
Israel's deputy defense minister suspects that al Qaeda could be involved. But has not ruled out the possible role of Palestinian militants. We have a full report coming up within the next 10 minutes.
To Iraq, U.S. warplanes launched a strike on an insurgent's target in Fallujah. The local hospital officials say the attack hit a wedding party instead. Fourteen people, including the groom, are reported dead. A live report from Baghdad coming up in about eight minutes.
Kenya's Deputy Environment Minister Wangari Maathai is this year's winner of the Noble Peace Prize. The Noble Peace Committee cited Maathai for promoting peace and better living conditions on the African continent. She was recently acclaimed for her campaign against deforestation, which led to the planting of 30 million trees in Kenya.
Up first on CNN, Martha Stewart is officially an inmate of the federal prison system. She arrived early this morning at the minimum- security facility for women in Alderson, West Virginia. That's where she will spend the next five months.
Our Allan Chernoff is there, joining us with the latest.
Allan, good morning.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, to you, Daryn. And Martha Stewart arrived at about 6:00 in the morning. Stewart is known for being an early riser and she drove right through in her SUV, not stopping at all to talk to any of the dozens of reporters camped out here at the entrance. Big contrast to how last month, Martha Stewart publicly announced that she would begin serving her prison term, even though she's continuing to appeal her conviction. Her conviction, of course, of lying about the sale of stock in Imclone Systems.
Now, Martha Stewart is going to have a very tough day. She has already gone through a strip search. She has had to trade in her street clothing for prison khakis. She'll be assigned a cubicle where she'll be sleeping, sharing a bunk bed. And she'll also be assigned to a job. She's going to have to work for 7-1/2 hours every day, earning about 12-cents an hour. She's likely to be working either as a janitor, a kitchen aid, or as a groundskeeper.
Now, there are some people in the prison, some prisoners who are actually permitted to work in the local community, helping to do some cleanup work. That is highly unlikely for Martha Stewart. It's something that's usually assigned over the summertime.
Now remember, Martha Stewart is serving five months here. And afterwards, she'll have five months of home confinement. Martha Stewart said that she wanted to get the nightmare behind her. She wanted to return to her good life. And Daryn, she should be able to do that. Her home confinement will be at her compound in Bedford, New York, which is about 150 acres -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Any chance, Allan, that that five months could be collapsed for good behavior?
CHERNOFF: No. Because, that is only done if an inmate has a term greater than one year. If your term is less than one year, you do not get any time off for good behavior. So it's five months flat. That's it for Martha Stewart.
KAGAN: So for the next five months that will be her home. Allan, thank you.
Let's look at tonight's presidential debate. George W. Bush knows there is added weight to his words tonight. His stumble in the debate last week tipped the scales in favor of John Kerry and erased the incumbent's lead. In St. Louis, the host city of the debate, we have our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux. She is traveling with the president. And our national correspondent Frank Buckley, with the Kerry campaign. Suzanne, we begin with you. Good morning.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Daryn. One of the things that Bush aides did immediately this morning was to respond to the new job numbers. Ninety-six thousand new jobs created in September that is lower than expected for from analysts' perspective. But Bush aides coming out very clearly, of course, and emphasizing -- or rather deemphasizing that number, saying they believe it is not accurate in terms of reflecting the true nature of the economy: those who work at home, who own small businesses, as well as those who are freelancers. They say these numbers are revised generally upwards over the last six months or so. They also say, of course, that they're pointing to the president's own economic plan, saying that they believe the tax cuts are working. They point to a figure 1.7 million jobs they say that were created just within the last year. An official statement was released this morning. One of the spokespersons in the campaign saying, "The U.S. economy is continuing to grow. Senator Kerry's proposals of higher taxes and increased regulation is the wrong prescription for an economy in recovery."
And expect to hear that later in the debate, Daryn. They will be talking about the president's economic plan, saying they believe the tax cuts should be made permanent. You should have an energy policy that makes the U.S. less dependent on foreign oil. They believe that the economy is going in the right direction, that you do have these new jobs. And they believe that that is important.
They are setting up a very clear contrast between President Bush and Kerry, saying essentially that Bush is a low regulation, low tax president, and that is the way that it should continue.
Also, of course, Daryn as you imagine, yesterday you heard a lot of sharp words from the president over the state of Iraq and the war on terror. Both of the candidates coming out swinging just in the last couple of days over that very pointed issue.
Should let you know the president's day, of course, just within the hour he is going to be surveying the debate site. He's going to be looking over the technical aspects of it. Then we expect that he will lay low for the rest of the day. We are told that he is prepared; much has been made about those grimaces and scowls from his performance the first time around. His aides say he has watched the debate tapes. He has a new up stepped stump speech that he is ready to go for this evening -- Daryn.
KAGAN: All right, Suzanne Malveaux.
Well, let's check with the other camp. John Kerry, who's going to try to build the momentum that he apparently gained in last week's debate. In fact, he spent two days in Colorado getting ready for tonight's forum.
Our national correspondent Frank Buckley is following the Kerry campaign. Good morning, Frank.
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NAT'L. CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn. As you might imagine, the Kerry campaign also reacting to the Jobs Report, with the jobs being added to U.S. payrolls, lower than Wall Street expectations. Kerry advisers believe that this adds to their argument that the job growth under President Bush has been, as one adviser put it yesterday, "anemic." A Kerry adviser was available immediately with the reaction to the Jobs Report. David Wade, a spokesman for the campaign saying, "We wish more Americans had been put back to work. But sadly, this is more evidence President Bush can't face the truth about his failed economic policies."
This question sure to come up tonight during the portion of the debate that will deal with economic policy and domestic policy. Other parts of the debate will deal with Homeland Security and foreign policy. But as Suzanne was just mentioning, yesterday the discussion was dominated once again by the topic of Iraq. Senator Kerry criticizing President Bush for the final CIA report on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, that indicates there were no weapons stockpiles at the time of the war.
Senator Kerry saying that this shows that President Bush's primary rational for war was misleading.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We remember the pieces of evidence, like aluminum tubes and Niger, yellow cake uranium that were laid out before us. All overblown then, we said they were. And now completely known to be wrong. All designed, all purposefully used to shift the focus from al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, to Iraq and Saddam Hussein. All with the result that the president shifted the focus from the real enemy, al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden, to an enemy that they aggrandized and fictionalized.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BUCKLEY: But again, this Jobs Report the news of the hour, and expected to dominate or at least be a part of the discussion, the debate tonight. Senator Kerry expected to say, as he has repeatedly on the stump, that President Bush is the first president in 72 years to see a net loss in job growth.
We just got off a conference call with Gene Sperling as well, who was a top Clinton adviser now a Kerry economic adviser, just to get a sense of the language we might hear. Sperling saying, quote, "Our labor force has gotten into a deep hole under President Bush -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Frank Buckley, thank you.
I'll have a chance to talk about the Jobs Report with Commerce Secretary Don Evans. He's my guest in just a few minutes. Then in the next hour to get the Democratic perspective, Alexa Herman the former Labor secretary will join me, as well.
Let's look at the latest numbers in terms of who the American people are supporting. The latest CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll showing at least three battleground states are locked in a statistical dead heat. In New Mexico, President Bush leads Senator Kerry by three percentage points among likely voters. And only one percentage point among registered voters. Both fall within the margin of error. In Wisconsin, President Bush leads by three percentage points among likely voters and among registered voters. Again, that is a statistical tie. And in Colorado, Bush and Kerry have identical numbers among both likely voters and registered voters.
Stay with CNN for extensive live coverage before, after, and during the debate. Our coverage begins at 7:00 Eastern, 4:00 Pacific. The debate itself gets under way at 9:00 Eastern. A popular tourist destination in Egypt is targeted by terrorists with deadly results. A live report from Taba, Egypt, as rescuers dig through the rubble searching for anyone left alive.
Then, the last Jobs Report before the election is out. We're going to look at it again, look at the numbers. And as I mentioned, I'll be talking with Commerce Secretary Don Evans about the economy and what these numbers mean.
Later, the story of small-town football on the big screen. Mr. Moviefone joins me a little later. See what he says about the hype surrounding "Friday Night Lights."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Want to talk about the new numbers as well as the jobs record of the Bush administration with Commerce Secretary Don Evans , joining me this morning.
Mr. Secretary, good morning.
DON EVANS, COMMERCE SECRETARY: Good morning.
KAGAN: Good to have you here with me.
EVANS: How are you?
KAGAN: I'm doing great.
EVANS: Great, good to be with you.
KAGAN: Let's talk about how you think the numbers look today. This last set of numbers that we'll see before the November election.
EVANS: Right. I was certainly very encouraged to see the Bureau of Labor Statistics increase the jobs created from the year from March of '03 to March '04 by 236,000. They realized they had underestimated job growth during that period by that amount, which means that since August of last year, we've created almost 2 million jobs in this economy.
So the trend of job growth and job creation continues to be very, very strong. We've seen unemployment move from 6.3 percent down to, as you announced just a little bit earlier, 5.4 percent. So the trend continues to be very strong and very powerful. And so, I feel very good about it. You know, you don't want to pick just one single data point and draw all your conclusions.
KAGAN: Well, actually...
EVANS: If you look at it collectively...
KAGAN: Actually, we do want to pick some of those data points, to zero in here and ask you some questions here. You do mention that the 2 million jobs created over -- since January 2001. But Mr. Secretary, there is still with this administration, the net job loss. Meaning when President Bush came into office, there were more jobs than there are now. And you know you're going to hear tonight, you know you'll hear John Kerry bring up this point that this is the first administration in the last 72 years that has, at the end of four years, has fewer jobs than at the beginning. So how do you respond to that?
EVANS: Well, I just don't accept that. I don't accept it on several fronts. One is, Franklin Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan both turned around job declines into job increases. Furthermore, if you look at the Household Survey it shows we gained 2 million jobs since President Bush took office. The Household Survey simply says we got more Americans working today than we've ever had working in the history of our country. So I don't know how anybody...
KAGAN: So you're saying you need to count the jobs differently than they're being counted is what you're saying? Than the numbers that are actually...
EVANS: The Payroll Survey doesn't count everybody. The Payroll Survey does not count. It just counts jobs. It does not count entrepreneurs, small business owners, sole proprietors, farmers. It doesn't count everybody. And so there's this ongoing conflict between the two. Exactly what the answer is, I'm not sure where. But it's somewhere in between, probably.
But the survey that counts, the total number of Americans working in this country today, the one survey of the government that does that, says that we've added some 2 million jobs since the president took office. And we have right at more Americans working today ever in the history of our country.
KAGAN: The Bush administration likes to tout the recovery; the economic recovery it believes is going on. Do you think, though, the recovery is reflective of the same -- of the amount of jobs? That the amount of jobs that have been created is as significant as the recovery, or there is still a disparity, as many people believe?
EVANS: There's certainly been two million jobs created according to the Payroll Survey.
KAGAN: Right. But given how the economy is recovering, should there be even more jobs?
EVANS: We're seeing tremendous job growth. And we're seeing unemployment coming down to levels that we didn't see in the 1970s, and the 1980s, and the 1990s. In the 1970, '80s and '90s the average unemployment was much higher. Not just higher, but much higher than the 5.4 percent unemployment that we see in this economy today.
But listen, you know, if there's one person out there that needs a job, doesn't have a job, wants a job, we've still got work to do. And we understand that because we don't leave anybody out in America. And we don't leave anybody behind in America.
But the more work to do is continuing to cut taxes. That has been the central -- the centerpiece of job growth in this economy. What Senator Kerry wants to do is raise taxes. That will destroy jobs. That will eliminate jobs. And he's promised to do that.
You know, what President Bush likes to do, is he likes to sign the front of the check. And send the money back to the people. It belongs to them. What Senator Kerry likes to do is sign the back of the check. He wants to keep the check, and deposit it for him, and put it in the bank account of those in Washington, D.C., or in the government, and get -- and have larger government.
KAGAN: Mr. Secretary, final question for you here. Looking forward to tonight's debate, and the one job that really will be the focus of the next president of the United States. Any advice or any input for your boss and good friend tonight, as you go through debate No. 2?
EVANS: Listen, I don't need to give him any advice, because he once again will go out there and show what a -- what a steady, focused determined leader he is. And how he makes every decision based on what's in the long-term best interest for the general well being of the American people, and doesn't change. Doesn't vacillate. Doesn't change his position week-to-week, month-to-month, based on what the political winds are saying for that particular moment.
I mean he's debating against somebody that said the war was a mistake, then it wasn't a mistake. He's debating with somebody that said I was for supporting the troops and voted against $87 billion...
KAGAN: Well, what...
EVANS: And you've got to have a president -- you've got to have a president that you can trust 100 percent of the time.
KAGAN: Got it.
EVANS: And this president, my good friend...
KAGAN: We're going to...
EVANS: ... for 35 years, you can trust him 100 percent of the time.
KAGAN: I'll take your word for that. We'll let the men do the debate tonight. The question was, do you have advice and I guess the simple answer was no. He'll do fine on his own. Mr. Secretary, thank you for your time.
EVANS: He'll do fine on his own. Just going to go out and be himself.
KAGAN: I got the message. Commerce Secretary Don Evans. Thank you for your time today.
In the next hour, I'll have a chance to talk with former Labor Secretary and current campaign adviser Alexa Herman -- Alexis Herman to get a Democratic perspective on the latest jobs numbers. We're talking about your money and we're managing your money. A flexible spending account, it can be a little bit tricky when the end of the year is getting closer and closer.
But not to worry, Gerri Willis here to help us with that.
Hi, Gerri.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN-FN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hey, Daryn. Remember with a flexible spending account you've got to spend it or you lose it by the end of the year. Stick with us on CNN LIVE TODAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Perhaps you're trying to clear out the funds in your flex spending account for the year. or perhaps you're trying to figure out how much you're going to need for next year.
Our CNN/FN personal finance editor Gerri Willis has today's "Top Five Tips" on how to help you use that flex account and not lose it. Because that is the trick with these things.
Right, Ger?
WILLIS: Absolutely. The money just goes away if you don't use it. Think about getting some over-the-counter drugs that you might want to stock up on right now. Used to be you couldn't spend this money on that. They let you do it now. So think about Claritin, Prilosec, Zantac. All of those are over the counter, you can really stock up.
But here's the trick. Not everything can be -- can you use this -- this money for. Keep in mind, if it has to do with like teeth whitening or something like that, it doesn't qualify. To figure out what does, go to this web site fsafeds.com. It will give you a good idea of what kind of things you can buy and then write off.
KAGAN: All right. Look for some kind of alternative.
WILLIS: You know, alternative medicine, right? And you might think boy, I'd never be able to use this money for that. Not so. Acupuncture, massage, even your chiropractor, his costs could be covered by this. Now, massage is a little tricky, Daryn. I know this is important to a lot of people. If you're going to use your flexible spending account for that you have to have your primary physician OK the massage therapy. Say that you need the massage therapy. So it's a little tricky but you can make it happen.
KAGAN: Oh, so you just can't go down to the spa...
WILLIS: No.
KAGAN: ... and write that off. Darn.
OK. How about buying some wellness? WILLIS: Wellness visits very popular now. And you should really think about using the money for that: specialists, physical therapists, allergists. You know, there's a lot of things we put off looking at because we just don't have the time. Now is the time to do it before the end of the year. Naturally you can get new glasses, we all talk about doing that all the time. But how about a smoking cessation program? You may be covered for that, as well.
KAGAN: All right. One of the biggest places these flex accounts help folks are with day care. But not just for kids.
WILLIS: That's right. If you have elderly parents who are living with you, dependent on you and they need day care during the day, this money can be used for that, as well. And remember the limits on these accounts are a little higher than the health care accounts. They're $5,000. So, it's really worthwhile checking it out, particularly if you have children under 13 or elderly parents.
KAGAN: And you like us to think ahead.
WILLIS: Oh, yes. You've got to enroll now. Right now, open enrollment time for these programs, you definitely want to take advantage of it. Because remember, you're setting aside pretax dollars. There's a little free money in this for you if you get involved. So up to $3,000, set it aside and you can use it throughout the year.
KAGAN: Free money. We love it.
WILLIS: Yes.
KAGAN: Gerri, thank you.
WILLIS: You're welcome.
KAGAN: Have a great weekend.
WILLIS: You to.
KAGAN: The presidential race neck and neck. Straight ahead, you're going to hear why one Democratic mom says she feels she has to vote Republican.
And our Christiane Amanpour looks at the run-up to the election in Afghanistan.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Let's take a look at the stories that are happening now in the news.
Media mogul Martha Stewart is in prison this hour, beginning her five-month sentence for lying to investigators about a stock trade. Stewart reported to a minimum-security prison in Alderson, West Virginia just about four hours ago. Terrorists have launched their deadliest attack yet on an Israeli target outside the country's border. Bombs today, targeted three resorts popular among Israelis, nestled along the coast of the Red Sea in Egypt. At least 26 people are confirmed dead, and dozens wounded and missing. One Israeli official says the coordinated strikes spread the hallmarks of al Qaeda.
Both George W. Bush and John Kerry are in St. Louis, Missouri today, as they prepare for tonight's second presidential debate. Unlike last week's face-off, tonight's forum will be a town hall format with undecided voters asking each candidate questions.
From the diner to the doctor's office, some faces may be missing today. It is called The Boycott for Equality, a campaign for gays and lesbians to drop out of the U.S. economy for the day, by not working, shopping or even using cell phones. Word of the boycott was spread by e-mail.
Rockets hit Kabul earlier today, one day before Afghanistan's first direct democratic elections. One rocket exploded in the air above the main U.S. military compound in the capital. The blast damaged vehicles in a nearby parking lot.
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Aired October 8, 2004 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning from CNN headquarters in Atlanta. I'm Daryn Kagan.
Now in the news, Martha Stewart is in prison. Stewart checked into federal prison in Alderson, West Virginia early today. She'll spend the next five months at the minimum-security facility that is sometimes known as Camp Cupcake. Stewart was convicted of lying to investigators about her sale of Imclone stock. Details in a live report coming up in a couple of minutes.
So far there's no claim of responsibility for the bombings of three Egyptian Red Sea resorts popular with Israelis. One bomb demolished the Hilton Hotel at Taba near the Israel/Egypt border. At least 26 people were killed, and dozens wounded. Many remain missing, and thousands of Israeli tourists are pouring across the border heading home.
Israel's deputy defense minister suspects that al Qaeda could be involved. But has not ruled out the possible role of Palestinian militants. We have a full report coming up within the next 10 minutes.
To Iraq, U.S. warplanes launched a strike on an insurgent's target in Fallujah. The local hospital officials say the attack hit a wedding party instead. Fourteen people, including the groom, are reported dead. A live report from Baghdad coming up in about eight minutes.
Kenya's Deputy Environment Minister Wangari Maathai is this year's winner of the Noble Peace Prize. The Noble Peace Committee cited Maathai for promoting peace and better living conditions on the African continent. She was recently acclaimed for her campaign against deforestation, which led to the planting of 30 million trees in Kenya.
Up first on CNN, Martha Stewart is officially an inmate of the federal prison system. She arrived early this morning at the minimum- security facility for women in Alderson, West Virginia. That's where she will spend the next five months.
Our Allan Chernoff is there, joining us with the latest.
Allan, good morning.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, to you, Daryn. And Martha Stewart arrived at about 6:00 in the morning. Stewart is known for being an early riser and she drove right through in her SUV, not stopping at all to talk to any of the dozens of reporters camped out here at the entrance. Big contrast to how last month, Martha Stewart publicly announced that she would begin serving her prison term, even though she's continuing to appeal her conviction. Her conviction, of course, of lying about the sale of stock in Imclone Systems.
Now, Martha Stewart is going to have a very tough day. She has already gone through a strip search. She has had to trade in her street clothing for prison khakis. She'll be assigned a cubicle where she'll be sleeping, sharing a bunk bed. And she'll also be assigned to a job. She's going to have to work for 7-1/2 hours every day, earning about 12-cents an hour. She's likely to be working either as a janitor, a kitchen aid, or as a groundskeeper.
Now, there are some people in the prison, some prisoners who are actually permitted to work in the local community, helping to do some cleanup work. That is highly unlikely for Martha Stewart. It's something that's usually assigned over the summertime.
Now remember, Martha Stewart is serving five months here. And afterwards, she'll have five months of home confinement. Martha Stewart said that she wanted to get the nightmare behind her. She wanted to return to her good life. And Daryn, she should be able to do that. Her home confinement will be at her compound in Bedford, New York, which is about 150 acres -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Any chance, Allan, that that five months could be collapsed for good behavior?
CHERNOFF: No. Because, that is only done if an inmate has a term greater than one year. If your term is less than one year, you do not get any time off for good behavior. So it's five months flat. That's it for Martha Stewart.
KAGAN: So for the next five months that will be her home. Allan, thank you.
Let's look at tonight's presidential debate. George W. Bush knows there is added weight to his words tonight. His stumble in the debate last week tipped the scales in favor of John Kerry and erased the incumbent's lead. In St. Louis, the host city of the debate, we have our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux. She is traveling with the president. And our national correspondent Frank Buckley, with the Kerry campaign. Suzanne, we begin with you. Good morning.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Daryn. One of the things that Bush aides did immediately this morning was to respond to the new job numbers. Ninety-six thousand new jobs created in September that is lower than expected for from analysts' perspective. But Bush aides coming out very clearly, of course, and emphasizing -- or rather deemphasizing that number, saying they believe it is not accurate in terms of reflecting the true nature of the economy: those who work at home, who own small businesses, as well as those who are freelancers. They say these numbers are revised generally upwards over the last six months or so. They also say, of course, that they're pointing to the president's own economic plan, saying that they believe the tax cuts are working. They point to a figure 1.7 million jobs they say that were created just within the last year. An official statement was released this morning. One of the spokespersons in the campaign saying, "The U.S. economy is continuing to grow. Senator Kerry's proposals of higher taxes and increased regulation is the wrong prescription for an economy in recovery."
And expect to hear that later in the debate, Daryn. They will be talking about the president's economic plan, saying they believe the tax cuts should be made permanent. You should have an energy policy that makes the U.S. less dependent on foreign oil. They believe that the economy is going in the right direction, that you do have these new jobs. And they believe that that is important.
They are setting up a very clear contrast between President Bush and Kerry, saying essentially that Bush is a low regulation, low tax president, and that is the way that it should continue.
Also, of course, Daryn as you imagine, yesterday you heard a lot of sharp words from the president over the state of Iraq and the war on terror. Both of the candidates coming out swinging just in the last couple of days over that very pointed issue.
Should let you know the president's day, of course, just within the hour he is going to be surveying the debate site. He's going to be looking over the technical aspects of it. Then we expect that he will lay low for the rest of the day. We are told that he is prepared; much has been made about those grimaces and scowls from his performance the first time around. His aides say he has watched the debate tapes. He has a new up stepped stump speech that he is ready to go for this evening -- Daryn.
KAGAN: All right, Suzanne Malveaux.
Well, let's check with the other camp. John Kerry, who's going to try to build the momentum that he apparently gained in last week's debate. In fact, he spent two days in Colorado getting ready for tonight's forum.
Our national correspondent Frank Buckley is following the Kerry campaign. Good morning, Frank.
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NAT'L. CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn. As you might imagine, the Kerry campaign also reacting to the Jobs Report, with the jobs being added to U.S. payrolls, lower than Wall Street expectations. Kerry advisers believe that this adds to their argument that the job growth under President Bush has been, as one adviser put it yesterday, "anemic." A Kerry adviser was available immediately with the reaction to the Jobs Report. David Wade, a spokesman for the campaign saying, "We wish more Americans had been put back to work. But sadly, this is more evidence President Bush can't face the truth about his failed economic policies."
This question sure to come up tonight during the portion of the debate that will deal with economic policy and domestic policy. Other parts of the debate will deal with Homeland Security and foreign policy. But as Suzanne was just mentioning, yesterday the discussion was dominated once again by the topic of Iraq. Senator Kerry criticizing President Bush for the final CIA report on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, that indicates there were no weapons stockpiles at the time of the war.
Senator Kerry saying that this shows that President Bush's primary rational for war was misleading.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We remember the pieces of evidence, like aluminum tubes and Niger, yellow cake uranium that were laid out before us. All overblown then, we said they were. And now completely known to be wrong. All designed, all purposefully used to shift the focus from al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, to Iraq and Saddam Hussein. All with the result that the president shifted the focus from the real enemy, al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden, to an enemy that they aggrandized and fictionalized.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BUCKLEY: But again, this Jobs Report the news of the hour, and expected to dominate or at least be a part of the discussion, the debate tonight. Senator Kerry expected to say, as he has repeatedly on the stump, that President Bush is the first president in 72 years to see a net loss in job growth.
We just got off a conference call with Gene Sperling as well, who was a top Clinton adviser now a Kerry economic adviser, just to get a sense of the language we might hear. Sperling saying, quote, "Our labor force has gotten into a deep hole under President Bush -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Frank Buckley, thank you.
I'll have a chance to talk about the Jobs Report with Commerce Secretary Don Evans. He's my guest in just a few minutes. Then in the next hour to get the Democratic perspective, Alexa Herman the former Labor secretary will join me, as well.
Let's look at the latest numbers in terms of who the American people are supporting. The latest CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll showing at least three battleground states are locked in a statistical dead heat. In New Mexico, President Bush leads Senator Kerry by three percentage points among likely voters. And only one percentage point among registered voters. Both fall within the margin of error. In Wisconsin, President Bush leads by three percentage points among likely voters and among registered voters. Again, that is a statistical tie. And in Colorado, Bush and Kerry have identical numbers among both likely voters and registered voters.
Stay with CNN for extensive live coverage before, after, and during the debate. Our coverage begins at 7:00 Eastern, 4:00 Pacific. The debate itself gets under way at 9:00 Eastern. A popular tourist destination in Egypt is targeted by terrorists with deadly results. A live report from Taba, Egypt, as rescuers dig through the rubble searching for anyone left alive.
Then, the last Jobs Report before the election is out. We're going to look at it again, look at the numbers. And as I mentioned, I'll be talking with Commerce Secretary Don Evans about the economy and what these numbers mean.
Later, the story of small-town football on the big screen. Mr. Moviefone joins me a little later. See what he says about the hype surrounding "Friday Night Lights."
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KAGAN: Want to talk about the new numbers as well as the jobs record of the Bush administration with Commerce Secretary Don Evans , joining me this morning.
Mr. Secretary, good morning.
DON EVANS, COMMERCE SECRETARY: Good morning.
KAGAN: Good to have you here with me.
EVANS: How are you?
KAGAN: I'm doing great.
EVANS: Great, good to be with you.
KAGAN: Let's talk about how you think the numbers look today. This last set of numbers that we'll see before the November election.
EVANS: Right. I was certainly very encouraged to see the Bureau of Labor Statistics increase the jobs created from the year from March of '03 to March '04 by 236,000. They realized they had underestimated job growth during that period by that amount, which means that since August of last year, we've created almost 2 million jobs in this economy.
So the trend of job growth and job creation continues to be very, very strong. We've seen unemployment move from 6.3 percent down to, as you announced just a little bit earlier, 5.4 percent. So the trend continues to be very strong and very powerful. And so, I feel very good about it. You know, you don't want to pick just one single data point and draw all your conclusions.
KAGAN: Well, actually...
EVANS: If you look at it collectively...
KAGAN: Actually, we do want to pick some of those data points, to zero in here and ask you some questions here. You do mention that the 2 million jobs created over -- since January 2001. But Mr. Secretary, there is still with this administration, the net job loss. Meaning when President Bush came into office, there were more jobs than there are now. And you know you're going to hear tonight, you know you'll hear John Kerry bring up this point that this is the first administration in the last 72 years that has, at the end of four years, has fewer jobs than at the beginning. So how do you respond to that?
EVANS: Well, I just don't accept that. I don't accept it on several fronts. One is, Franklin Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan both turned around job declines into job increases. Furthermore, if you look at the Household Survey it shows we gained 2 million jobs since President Bush took office. The Household Survey simply says we got more Americans working today than we've ever had working in the history of our country. So I don't know how anybody...
KAGAN: So you're saying you need to count the jobs differently than they're being counted is what you're saying? Than the numbers that are actually...
EVANS: The Payroll Survey doesn't count everybody. The Payroll Survey does not count. It just counts jobs. It does not count entrepreneurs, small business owners, sole proprietors, farmers. It doesn't count everybody. And so there's this ongoing conflict between the two. Exactly what the answer is, I'm not sure where. But it's somewhere in between, probably.
But the survey that counts, the total number of Americans working in this country today, the one survey of the government that does that, says that we've added some 2 million jobs since the president took office. And we have right at more Americans working today ever in the history of our country.
KAGAN: The Bush administration likes to tout the recovery; the economic recovery it believes is going on. Do you think, though, the recovery is reflective of the same -- of the amount of jobs? That the amount of jobs that have been created is as significant as the recovery, or there is still a disparity, as many people believe?
EVANS: There's certainly been two million jobs created according to the Payroll Survey.
KAGAN: Right. But given how the economy is recovering, should there be even more jobs?
EVANS: We're seeing tremendous job growth. And we're seeing unemployment coming down to levels that we didn't see in the 1970s, and the 1980s, and the 1990s. In the 1970, '80s and '90s the average unemployment was much higher. Not just higher, but much higher than the 5.4 percent unemployment that we see in this economy today.
But listen, you know, if there's one person out there that needs a job, doesn't have a job, wants a job, we've still got work to do. And we understand that because we don't leave anybody out in America. And we don't leave anybody behind in America.
But the more work to do is continuing to cut taxes. That has been the central -- the centerpiece of job growth in this economy. What Senator Kerry wants to do is raise taxes. That will destroy jobs. That will eliminate jobs. And he's promised to do that.
You know, what President Bush likes to do, is he likes to sign the front of the check. And send the money back to the people. It belongs to them. What Senator Kerry likes to do is sign the back of the check. He wants to keep the check, and deposit it for him, and put it in the bank account of those in Washington, D.C., or in the government, and get -- and have larger government.
KAGAN: Mr. Secretary, final question for you here. Looking forward to tonight's debate, and the one job that really will be the focus of the next president of the United States. Any advice or any input for your boss and good friend tonight, as you go through debate No. 2?
EVANS: Listen, I don't need to give him any advice, because he once again will go out there and show what a -- what a steady, focused determined leader he is. And how he makes every decision based on what's in the long-term best interest for the general well being of the American people, and doesn't change. Doesn't vacillate. Doesn't change his position week-to-week, month-to-month, based on what the political winds are saying for that particular moment.
I mean he's debating against somebody that said the war was a mistake, then it wasn't a mistake. He's debating with somebody that said I was for supporting the troops and voted against $87 billion...
KAGAN: Well, what...
EVANS: And you've got to have a president -- you've got to have a president that you can trust 100 percent of the time.
KAGAN: Got it.
EVANS: And this president, my good friend...
KAGAN: We're going to...
EVANS: ... for 35 years, you can trust him 100 percent of the time.
KAGAN: I'll take your word for that. We'll let the men do the debate tonight. The question was, do you have advice and I guess the simple answer was no. He'll do fine on his own. Mr. Secretary, thank you for your time.
EVANS: He'll do fine on his own. Just going to go out and be himself.
KAGAN: I got the message. Commerce Secretary Don Evans. Thank you for your time today.
In the next hour, I'll have a chance to talk with former Labor Secretary and current campaign adviser Alexa Herman -- Alexis Herman to get a Democratic perspective on the latest jobs numbers. We're talking about your money and we're managing your money. A flexible spending account, it can be a little bit tricky when the end of the year is getting closer and closer.
But not to worry, Gerri Willis here to help us with that.
Hi, Gerri.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN-FN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hey, Daryn. Remember with a flexible spending account you've got to spend it or you lose it by the end of the year. Stick with us on CNN LIVE TODAY.
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KAGAN: Perhaps you're trying to clear out the funds in your flex spending account for the year. or perhaps you're trying to figure out how much you're going to need for next year.
Our CNN/FN personal finance editor Gerri Willis has today's "Top Five Tips" on how to help you use that flex account and not lose it. Because that is the trick with these things.
Right, Ger?
WILLIS: Absolutely. The money just goes away if you don't use it. Think about getting some over-the-counter drugs that you might want to stock up on right now. Used to be you couldn't spend this money on that. They let you do it now. So think about Claritin, Prilosec, Zantac. All of those are over the counter, you can really stock up.
But here's the trick. Not everything can be -- can you use this -- this money for. Keep in mind, if it has to do with like teeth whitening or something like that, it doesn't qualify. To figure out what does, go to this web site fsafeds.com. It will give you a good idea of what kind of things you can buy and then write off.
KAGAN: All right. Look for some kind of alternative.
WILLIS: You know, alternative medicine, right? And you might think boy, I'd never be able to use this money for that. Not so. Acupuncture, massage, even your chiropractor, his costs could be covered by this. Now, massage is a little tricky, Daryn. I know this is important to a lot of people. If you're going to use your flexible spending account for that you have to have your primary physician OK the massage therapy. Say that you need the massage therapy. So it's a little tricky but you can make it happen.
KAGAN: Oh, so you just can't go down to the spa...
WILLIS: No.
KAGAN: ... and write that off. Darn.
OK. How about buying some wellness? WILLIS: Wellness visits very popular now. And you should really think about using the money for that: specialists, physical therapists, allergists. You know, there's a lot of things we put off looking at because we just don't have the time. Now is the time to do it before the end of the year. Naturally you can get new glasses, we all talk about doing that all the time. But how about a smoking cessation program? You may be covered for that, as well.
KAGAN: All right. One of the biggest places these flex accounts help folks are with day care. But not just for kids.
WILLIS: That's right. If you have elderly parents who are living with you, dependent on you and they need day care during the day, this money can be used for that, as well. And remember the limits on these accounts are a little higher than the health care accounts. They're $5,000. So, it's really worthwhile checking it out, particularly if you have children under 13 or elderly parents.
KAGAN: And you like us to think ahead.
WILLIS: Oh, yes. You've got to enroll now. Right now, open enrollment time for these programs, you definitely want to take advantage of it. Because remember, you're setting aside pretax dollars. There's a little free money in this for you if you get involved. So up to $3,000, set it aside and you can use it throughout the year.
KAGAN: Free money. We love it.
WILLIS: Yes.
KAGAN: Gerri, thank you.
WILLIS: You're welcome.
KAGAN: Have a great weekend.
WILLIS: You to.
KAGAN: The presidential race neck and neck. Straight ahead, you're going to hear why one Democratic mom says she feels she has to vote Republican.
And our Christiane Amanpour looks at the run-up to the election in Afghanistan.
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KAGAN: Let's take a look at the stories that are happening now in the news.
Media mogul Martha Stewart is in prison this hour, beginning her five-month sentence for lying to investigators about a stock trade. Stewart reported to a minimum-security prison in Alderson, West Virginia just about four hours ago. Terrorists have launched their deadliest attack yet on an Israeli target outside the country's border. Bombs today, targeted three resorts popular among Israelis, nestled along the coast of the Red Sea in Egypt. At least 26 people are confirmed dead, and dozens wounded and missing. One Israeli official says the coordinated strikes spread the hallmarks of al Qaeda.
Both George W. Bush and John Kerry are in St. Louis, Missouri today, as they prepare for tonight's second presidential debate. Unlike last week's face-off, tonight's forum will be a town hall format with undecided voters asking each candidate questions.
From the diner to the doctor's office, some faces may be missing today. It is called The Boycott for Equality, a campaign for gays and lesbians to drop out of the U.S. economy for the day, by not working, shopping or even using cell phones. Word of the boycott was spread by e-mail.
Rockets hit Kabul earlier today, one day before Afghanistan's first direct democratic elections. One rocket exploded in the air above the main U.S. military compound in the capital. The blast damaged vehicles in a nearby parking lot.
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