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CNN Sunday Morning
Galveston Tries to Recover After Hurricane; Terror Blast in Islamabad
Aired September 21, 2008 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING. It is September 21st.
Good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen.
RICHARD LUI, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, a very good morning to you. I'm Richard Lui, in for T.J. Holmes this day.
It's 7:00 a.m. right here in the east, 6:00 a.m. in Galveston, Texas, where the city is taking more steps toward reopening after Hurricane Ike.
Thanks for starting your day with us.
NGUYEN: Something else that's taking place today, a raid has occurred at a compound dealing with a minister in Texarkana. We're going to get the latest on what they are accusing of happening at that compound. It does involve children and the possibility of child pornography.
LUI: And after a huge bomb blast outside the Marriott Hotel in the capital of Pakistan, we'll go straight to Islamabad and get the latest, the death toll has gotten larger since yesterday. U.S. citizens are among the victims there. Reza Sayah is going to join us with that.
NGUYEN: And he pastors one much the largest churches in America, if not the largest one -- 44,000 parishioners and many of them dealing with that right there, damage and destruction after Hurricane Ike. Find out what Pastor Joel Osteen is going to be saying in today's service.
LUI: All right. First off, we're going to start with the raid on a noted evangelist compound in Arkansas, the raid, part of the two- year investigation into the possible physical or sexual abuse of children.
NGUYEN: The evangelist, Tony Alamo, it happened in the far southwest part of the state, in the small town of Fouke, about 100 agents raided the Christian ministries there. And no arrest warrant has been issued, but authorities say they have interviewed several children and those interviews are expected to continue today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, KARK) TOM BROWN, FBI: The state investigation is aimed at allegations that children living at the Alamo facilities may have been sexually and physically abused. The federal investigation is based on possible violations of the Mann Act, which is title 18, section 2423.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My heart goes out to the kids and the women, and the women or adults, they can choose if that's definitely what they want to be, but those kids are innocent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Alamo denies anyone has been abused in the 10 to 15-acre compound. And Alamo, who turned 74 yesterday, has dabbled as a singer, as well as an entrepreneur. Critics, though, regard his ministry as a cult. Alamo and his ministries have faced legal action before. He was convicted in the early '90s of tax related charges. And last night, he spoke with CNN about that and yesterday's raid in Arkansas.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
TONY ALAMO, EVANGELIST: What they did is they railroaded me on that one charge. They charged me with 100 different things including trying to kidnap a federal judge, Morris Arnold. And I won that case. The whole jury knew I was not guilty.
But they let a lot of people out of prison to testify falsely against me so that they could railroad me into prison on the IRS charge. And I just figured, well, you know, the Lord said these things would happen to us and they are. They've been going on ever since I've been born again of the spirit at 44 years ago.
LUI: OK. I got ask you, Mr. Alamo, have you spoken to investigators at all?
ALAMO: I talked to people. They didn't even ask to talk to me.
LUI: You have not been interviewed by investigators?
ALAMO: No, because they've been interviewing a lot of the little girls over there and their mothers and everything, and they're coming up with nothing -- N-O-T-H-I-N-G. And they never will come up with anything.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
NGUYEN: And it is not known just how many children live at the Alamo Christian Ministry site.
LUI: Well, starting Wednesday, Hurricane Ike evacuees will be allowed back home to Galveston, Texas. It's a relief for many anxious to see the calamity left by Ike, but there really is not much comfort.
Officials are warning residents to expect rats and raw sewage. And they say few people have electricity. There are no medical facilities. And cell phone service is limited right now. Officials have also instituted a curfew from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, KHOU)
STEVE LEBLANC, GALVESTON CITY MANAGER: When you come here, you're going to see a very heavy presence of law enforcement. And that's to maintain order. And we will have order in the city.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LUI: Anyone caught breaking the curfew will be fined $2,000.
NGUYEN: We want you to take a look at Galveston's coast and you'll see many beachfront homes were virtually wiped off the map. The water is now receding, but a state law could prevent some of those beach homeowners from ever rebuilding.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CARLOS ORTEGA, GALVESTON RESIDENT: The amount of force that it takes to make this happen is pretty unbelievable.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Carlos Ortega's home used to be on the second row of houses on this Galveston Island beach. Hurricane Ike gave him an oceanfront view.
ORTEGA: That row that was there tumbled on to what is now -- what used to be a bedroom and a garage.
LAVANDERA: As tens of thousands of residents along the Texas gulf coast return to see their destroyed homes, Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson says as many as 500 homes might not be rebuilt on the water's edge because of a 50-year-old state law.
JERRY PATTERSON, TEXAS LAND COMMISSIONER: Under Texas law, if the beach naturally grows in front of your house, you gain title to that land. Under Texas law, if the beach erodes and in some cases goes underneath your house or behind it, you lose title to that land. We won't be able to make that final determination until the beach has had a chance to recover.
LAVANDERA: Ortega wants state officials to get out of the way and let people rebuild as they see fit.
ORTEGA: It would be a huge uproar on this community if the state or the city decided that these houses can't be rebuilt and folks can't come in here and clean up our messes. There would be just a huge outcry of anger and frustration.
LAVANDERA: Hurricane Ike eroded away the old beach lines and since no one knows where the new beach lines will eventually emerge, state officials say it will take at least a year to determine who will be allowed to rebuild permanently.
PATTERSON: If we made a determination now and said that your house is now on the public beach, a year later after four seasons have lapsed and the beaches have recovered, like it will do to some extent, we may have told someone that they've got a house or structure on public land when, in fact, a year from now, it's not.
LAVANDERA: From Carlos' front porch, the beach is now about 100 feet closer than before Hurricane Ike. And he never wanted to be this close to the edge.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Ed Lavandera is live for us right now in Galveston, Texas.
And, Ed, beach erosion was the main worry as Ike was heading in. Did any of those preparations down there help?
LAVANDERA: Well, you know, just take a look at where we are right now. It's hard to imagine in certain parts of Galveston, it did, where there is the seawall. But here on the west end of the island, look at this main road that would bring in you to this row of houses that were literally on the beachfront. The storm surge buckled the road and, essentially just wiped it all away.
So, as you hear the land commissioner here in Texas talked about waiting for where exactly the beach is going to end up, that is the big question. You can kind of see the surf out here this morning, but a home like this, which is very close to where the shore line is now, a home like that is in jeopardy as to whether or not these people will be allowed to rebuild.
NGUYEN: (AUDIO BREAK) not only do people want to see the damage, they want to start picking it up and getting on with their lives, and hopefully, rebuilding.
Ed Lavandera is joining us live from Galveston. Ed, thank you.
You know, Hurricane Ike victims not only need help rebuilding their homes, but they also need emotional support. Coming up a little bit later this hour, we're going to talk to a pastor helping his community heal and rebuilding their faith.
If you'd like to get involved with relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Ike, just visit our "Impact Your World" page. There, you'll find links to organizations working in Texas and along the gulf coast. That's at CNN.com/impact.
LUI: Investigators in Pakistan today are trying to learn who set off a huge explosion at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad.
The death toll in Pakistan's capital is climbing now to 57. Now, among them, two U.S. citizens and the Czech Republic's ambassador to Pakistan. At least 150 others were hurt in yesterday's explosion.
The hotel, popular with westerners, has been attacked before.
CNN correspondent Reza Sayah was on the air with us yesterday morning when this broke just minutes after the blast. We'll talk to him live from the scene in just about 20 minutes from now and ask him if investigators have made any headway there.
NGUYEN: Well, right now, we do want to get to issue number one, America's money crisis. The pressure is on Congress this morning. Lawmakers are dissecting that massive plan designed to overt a financial catastrophe. President Bush hoping to get a deal by the time the markets open tomorrow.
Our Kathleen Koch reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Taking his first questions in over two months on the struggling economy, President Bush called himself a "market guy" and said initially the idea of a massive federal rescue went against the grain.
PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: My first instinct was to let the market work until I realized, upon being briefed by the experts, of how significant this problem became. And so I decided to act and act boldly.
KOCH: The plan would give the Treasury Department authority over the next two years to buy up to $700 billion in troubled mortgages from banks and other financial institutions. That, in hopes they'd then be more willing to make loans. Once the housing market rebounds, the government would then try to sell the bad loans they bought for a profit.
BUSH: It was a big package because it was a big problem. And, you know, I will tell our citizens and continue to remind them that the risk of doing nothing far outweighs the risk of the package. And that over time, we're going to get a lot of the money back.
KOCH: Congressional leaders who are now going over the proposal aren't so sure. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, called it a "good foundation," but...
SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER, (D) NEW YORK: It does not fill in what we're going to do to protect the taxpayer and to protect the homeowner.
KOCH: Republicans, too, want to be cautious that they're investing a huge sum of money wisely. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell insisting, quote, "We must closely scrutinize the proposal to make sure it works and we must do so quickly."
To cover the cost of the bailout, the plan raises the limit on the national debt to $11.3 trillion. It also requires the federal government to report to Congress within three months after it begins buying the bad mortgages and then every six months after that.
(on camera): President Bush is pushing lawmakers to approve the plan without delay and without unnecessary additions. And while Congress is unlikely to pass the plan as is, neither party wants to be responsible for delaying the package or for the economic consequences that could follow.
Kathleen Koch, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: So are you worried about your money? Well, we're going to get advice on how to protect your savings and your investments. The editor of "Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine" will join us in the 9:00 o'clock hour.
LUI: Barack Obama is taking it on the chin for his stance on abortion.
NGUYEN: Now, he is responding and the CNN truth squad is fact checking.
Hey, there, Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey. Good morning, everybody.
(LAUGHTER)
LUI: There he is.
NGUYEN: He's busy fact-checking.
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: I was busy fact-checking. What's going on, guys? So, this is the thing. We're digging into one of the most sensitive issues of the entire election. Obama is saying that John McCain opposes abortion rights even in cases of rape or incest. Is that true?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Barack Obama says John McCain opposes abortion rights even in the case of rape and incest.
LUI: Yes. So CNN's truth squad is asking: Is this true or is it false?
CNN's Josh Levs, he is up bright and early in wagging his bushy tail on that one. Good morning to you, Josh.
NGUYEN: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
LEVS: You know, that's never going to happen on camera.
LUI: Good. Thanks.
LEVS: Good morning, everybody. Just like we were saying before the break, I mean, this is one of the most sensitive issues that there is in the election. Now, this is a pretty specific attack from Barack Obama. Let's first watch it, then I'll give you the truth squad.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D-IL) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Change isn't a president who thinks Roe versus Wade is a flawed decision. He opposes the option of abortion even in cases of rape and incest. Change is a president who will stand up for choice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: Now, John McCain has called Roe v. Wade a flawed decision, but the part that really struck us right there was with this idea opposing it even in cases of rape and incest. One reason it struck us, let's zoom in on the board behind me, this is what we have about it at CNN.com already, and we say that he opposes abortion rights except in cases of rape or incest. Hard for you to see the words there, but that's what we have there.
So, let's go to this first graphic because one of the -- he doesn't talk about it very often, but he did in early 2006 and he said, "My position has been consistently pro-life -- but rape, incest, and the health of the mother has been my position."
And we called his campaign and they say, "Yes, that's still his position." So, actually, he does support abortion rights in cases of rape or incest, making Barack Obama's statement false.
Now, there's one more thing I want to show you because when Barack Obama talks about this, sometimes he words it differently and this is important. Sometimes he says, "John McCain is running on a platform that opposes abortion rights even in cases of rape or incest," and that could be a reference to this -- the last graphic I'm going to show you here, which comes from the GOP Party platform.
The GOP -- it says, "We support human life amendment to the Constitution and we endorse legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendment's protection apply to unborn children."
And I have the platform right here behind me, we can zoom in on the board one last time, this is the GOP Party platform and they say in big words right there, at its core, "Abortion is a fundamental assault on the sanctity of innocent human life."
So, guys, this is what's going on. The short version here, John McCain does support abortion rights, still his campaign says so, in these cases of rape or incest. The GOP Party platform does not and that's the difference that Obama sometimes is jumping on.
NGUYEN: All right. And we're going to have another truth check coming up.
LEVS: That's right. We're going to take a look at another attack, this one from McCain against Obama and that one involving literally radioactive issue, nuclear energy. That's coming up in just a few minutes.
NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Josh.
LUI: That's going to be a good one. Thank you, Josh.
LEVS: Yes.
LUI: All right. Charities in trouble.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. A government report suggests if there is a major catastrophe, you should be ready to take care of yourself.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LUI: In Columbia, South Carolina, federal investigators have recovered the cockpit voice recorder from a fiery plane crash that killed four people and critically-injured two celebrities: Adam Goldstein, better known as D.J. A.M., and former Blink 182 drummer, Travis Barker.
Officials say they are not sure how much information they'll be able to recover from the voice box because of damage from that crash. Investigators are also talking to air traffic controllers and eyewitnesses. One man says he saw Goldstein and Barker trying to distinguish the flames on their clothes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, WIS)
WILLIAM OWENS, WITNESS: I saw a ball of fire go across the highway, but I wasn't sure what I had just seen. These two were like running in circles; one of them was on fire. The other was trying to assist him. And he managed to get out of his clothes and was standing their naked when I approached.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LUI: Doctors say Goldstein and Barker have extensive burns. They are listed in critical but stable condition.
NGUYEN: Well, charities, we depend on them in times of disaster, but a government report suggests some of the country's largest charities might not be ready to handle the big one. More now from Homeland Security correspondent: Jeanne Meserve.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Charities are on the ground in Texas and Louisiana helping hurricane victims, but how much could they do in a larger catastrophe? If a nuclear blast rocked Washington, D.C., an estimated 150,000 people would need shelter. But the Red Cross could house only 1/3. An earthquake in Los Angeles could displace 313,000, but the Red Cross has shelter for only 84,000.
In a new report, the Government Accountability Office looked at the capabilities of the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the Southern Baptist Convention and other charities, and concluded: "A worst-case large-scale disaster would overwhelm voluntary organizations' current sheltering and feeding capabilities." CINDY FAGNONI, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE: For a really catastrophic incident, no one entity alone could handle this, and that reinforces the need to have very good collaboration and cooperation across all sectors -- public, private, government.
MESERVE: After Katrina, the Red Cross tripled its number of volunteer, expanded its ability to serve meals, and upgraded its communication system. Those resources are being put to work right now in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike.
But money is an issue. The Red Cross estimates it could spend $130 million this year on hurricane relief. But its hurricane fund has collected only $19 million in contributions. A situation so dire, it is asking Congress for $150 million.
Earlier this year, budget problems forced the Red Cross to lay off 1,000 workers. The GAO says those cuts could hinder the charity's ability to respond to a catastrophe, but the Red Cross says it will not.
SUZY DEFRANCIS, AMERICAN RED CROSS: We were very careful not to cut the kinds of services that the American Red Cross provides -- feeding, sheltering, providing emotional support and assistance.
MESERVE (on camera): The GAO criticizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency for not doing more to assess the capabilities of volunteer groups. And make their responsibilities crystal clear. FEMA had no comment.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LUI: Well, there's a disturbance in the Caribbean. Meteorologist Karen Maginnis is tracking all that for us.
Good morning.
KAREN MAGINNIS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And good morning, Richard and Betty.
Yes, we've been watching this for the last couple of days. And yesterday, late in the morning, it started to look a whole lot better than it does now. Still, on the ragged side. So the National Hurricane Center says slow progression, but slow development could become our next tropical system named Kyle.
Across the southeast and the eastern seaboard, not a whole lot of activity, certainly nothing at severe level, but we do have some showers and storms along the gulf coast. But, like I said, nothing of severe levels, just a few scattered showers across eastern sections of Tennessee and northwestern Georgia, as well.
Well, temperatures are still going to be warm across the south section of the United States, 89 for Dallas, just about normal for this time of year. And yesterday, we saw pretty cool temperatures into New England. Today, we've got a ridge of high pressure across the area, but a cold front will sweep through. That will drop those temperatures down just a few degrees.
I want to show what you happens in the forecast. Here's that frontal system and there continues to be a disturbance that is hanging on across southeastern Missouri. That's going to trigger some of those showers in some areas.
Now, here's the Pittsburgh forecast. We've got partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies for this afternoon, but watch how the temperature drops down.
But we want to show you a live picture out of Pittsburgh. Yes, there's Pittsburgh. But you can barely see it because the visibility is greatly reduced in fog. But by about 9:00 or 10:00 o'clock this morning, it looks like that fog is going to be burning off just a little bit. The sun will come out and those temperatures are going to soar to around 80 degrees. Thank you, WPXI in Pittsburgh.
And that's a look at your weather for right now. I'll have another weather report in just about an hour -- Betty and Richard.
NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Karen.
LUI: All right. Israel's embattled prime minister makes it official, Ehud Olmert announcing his attention to step down at a cabinet meeting just a few hours ago. He's expected to submit a formal letter of resignation to President Shimon Peres later today.
Olmert is being investigated over his financial dealings before he became prime minister. He denies any wrong doing here.
And you might remember, Ehud Olmert took over as prime minister after 2006 stroke, left then-premier, Ariel Sharon in a coma. Now, Olmert founded the Kadima Party in 2005 with Sharon. He was also Jerusalem's mayor and held several cabinet posts. Then in July of this year, Olmert announced his intent to resign after his party elected a new chairman.
NGUYEN: Police in Pakistan, they are trying to learn who was behind a deadly blast.
LUI: Yes. Was the government warned? We've got a live report from the scene for you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LUI: And we hope you're having a fantastic Sunday as we keep on moving here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm Richard Lui, in for today. T.J. Holmes is on vacation.
NGUYEN: Yes. Well, hopefully, he's having a good time.
LUI: Yes.
NGUYEN: We've got a lot to tell you about today. Good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen.
Let's get you more now on that Marriott Hotel bombing in Islamabad, Pakistan. At least 57 people were killed in yesterday's attack. And among the dead, two Americans. Also, the Czech Republic's ambassador to Pakistan.
We want to take you live now to our Reza Sayah at the scene.
Reza, we spoke with you yesterday just minutes after this happened. What's the latest on the investigation? Who's to blame for this?
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's too early to say. It's unusual that nobody has yet to take responsibility for this attack. Usually we see within the first 24 to 36 hours somebody, whether it's the Taliban-linked group or al Qaeda, step up and claim responsibility. That has yet to happen.
But analysts say this has all the hallmarks of an al Qaeda attack. Just about an hour ago the head of the Pakistan's Interior Ministry held a press conference and described this incident as the worst blast in the history of Pakistan and he also disclosed some dramatic video of the truck bomb.
I understand we have that video and if we can roll it, and I'll try to describe to you what I saw on local television. This was just literally three minutes ago, we saw the truck, a very large truck, come up to the steel gates of the Marriott. According to police, the truck driver tried to talk his way into the Marriott. He did not succeed.
And what the video shows is spark and a fire inside the truck and according to police, just a few minutes later, you had the explosion. I understand we're looking at the video now. This video released by the Pakistani government, surveillance video just about a few minutes ago. The death toll at this hour stands at more than 50 among the dead. Two Americans and the Czech ambassador. This was a Czech ambassador who moved to Islamabad just about a month ago. He was about to start his job, he was looking for a home while staying at the Marriott. He was among the dead.
This morning, there was some hope that there may be some survivors still in the wreckage. It did not turn out to be that way. There was a search and rescue team that arrived on scene. They only found another eight bodies, which added to the death toll. Witnesses last night describe a horrific scene. Here's what one young man described as the immediate aftermath.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The people are helping out and they're just picking up the dead bodies. And they're helping each other but the thing that's so depressing to tell about it that I can't explain it to you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAYAH: Once again, no one has claimed responsibility for this attack. The head of Pakistan's Interior Ministry says an investigation is under way, but no arrests have yet to be made. This attack came hours after newly elected President Asif Ali Zardari addressed Pakistan's parliament for the first time saying that he is committed to rooting out terrorism. Militants on Saturday night showing Pakistan and its president that it's going to be a long road ahead.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN, ANCHOR: All right. Reza Sayah joining us live today. And if we can, thank you for that, Reza, if we can, if we can re-rack that video, I want to take another look at it from the beginning. You see that truck is on fire right there but look at the people to the left, the guard there. There's really no sense of immediacy, no sense urgency. One of them just kind of casually walking away and that's why we understand yesterday there was some claim that perhaps there was a breach in security here.
I mean, again, none of this is verified at this point, but you would think there could be a greater sense of urgency when you see a truck like that coming up to a secured gate on fire. Especially in an area where it is heavily fortified at the Marriott, just to make sure people staying there are safe.
RICHARD LUI, CNN ANCHOR: So this is a view from the Marriott looking out towards that security gate. And as Reza was saying, it exploded later. Of course, we don't have that shot as of late, as of yet.
NGUYEN: Yes, and I'm being told right now from our producer and we'll try to re-rack this video and get it to you a little bit later, but the fire here, we understand it caught fire after ramming the gate, which is another reason why it just seems kind of odd that after the flames started, you know, going off there, that people to the left, and you can't see them in this particular portion of the video, just kind of stood in a circle and kind of congregated there and there was no sense of emergency.
Again, don't know what the discussions were, but I found that interesting as we watched this new video coming in from GOTV. I want to reiterate, 57 people killed in that bombing. 230 wounded.
LUI: Now to "Issue number one," the United States money crisis, the big bailout of the nation's financial institutions is on speed dial. Congress is expected to work on the proposal this morning. The President's plan gives the Treasury Department authority here to buy up to $700 billion in troubled mortgages over the next two years.
Now, once the housing market rebounds, the government would try to sell the bad loans at a profit and to cover these costs, the ceiling on the national debt will be raised to $11.3 trillion. Now, President Bush hopes to have a deal by the time markets open tomorrow.
Just what are the candidates saying about plans for handling this financial crisis? For that we turn to CNN deputy political director Paul Steinhauser. He's in Washington this morning with more on that. How's it going there, Paul?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Good morning, Richard. Yes, both candidates are applauding the White House, the administration, Congress, bipartisan leadership there for working together to try to solve this as quick as possible, but neither candidate is really applauding the plan yet. They both seem a little cautious and both candidates are kind of using this crisis to say what they would do if they were president.
John McCain was not on the campaign trail yesterday, but did he put out a statement saying this "I encourage all parties to consider both the principles and proposals that I laid out on Friday in my Mortgage and Financial Institutions trust plan - an approach that would proactively resolve the troubled financial institutions, enforce discipline on management and shareholders and minimize the burden on the taxpayer." So there you go, John McCain trying to push a little bit of what he would do if he were president.
Barack Obama, he was on the campaign trail yesterday, two stops in Florida. And he talked about not only helping Wall Street, but also Americans. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have to make sure that whatever plan our government comes up with works not just for Wall Street, but for Main Street. We have to make sure it helps folks cope with rising crisis, that sparks job creation, and helps homeowners stay in their homes. That's the kind of help folks need right now. We have to make sure that any plan we come up with is temporary and restores top oversight and accountability on Wall Street. We've got to have regulations in place that makes sure people are doing the right thing.
STEINHAUSER: A lot of policy there, Richard, but not just policy, remember, these guys are candidate running for president, so both side, both candidates attacking each other over this crisis. So a lot of rhetoric, as well.
LUI: And Paul, no doubt, considering to work today, 44 days to go. What are they doing today as they sort of work up to that first debate?
STEINHAUSER: Yes, today you got Barack Obama in North Carolina. That's a state that's voted for the republicans quite often in presidential elections, but the Obama campaign thinks they can make gains there. He has a rally, we'll see that in (inaudible) later today.
John McCain is going up to Maryland. He's going to be in Baltimore, where he speaks at the National Guard Convention and his running mate, Sarah Palin, will be on the campaign trail in Florida, another crucial state. And as you mentioned, the big debate, the first one Friday night. We're hearing that Barack Obama will be in Tampa, Florida probably Tuesday and Wednesday going up and getting ready for the debate. We're hearing John McCain from his campaign won't be off the trail they say he's been kind of studying nonstop. This will be huge, though one in ten Americans still undecided. These debates could go a long way towards making those people, helping those people make their minds up.
LUI: All right. Great Stuff. Paul Steinhauser on the road for us watching what's happening there on the campaign trail. Appreciate it.
STEINHAUSER: Thank you.
LUI: You can hear more from the candidates on CNN's "Ballot Bowl," extended excerpts from the campaign trail. The candidates unfiltered in their very own words, "Battle Bowl" starts at 4:00 p.m. Eastern today right here on CNN.
And for the best political team on television, check out cnnpolitics.com, as well, your source for all things political.
NGUYEN: He is healing the minds and hearts of Hurricane Ike victims. Pastor Joel Osteen's mission, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well, with gas costing as much as it does, the issue of energy is playing a huge part in this presidential race.
LUI: John McCain says Barack Obama opposes nuclear power. True or not? Well, CNN's Josh Levs is on our truth squad watch this hour and we're talking about nuclear power, huh?
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right. We looked at an attack on the other side earlier involving abortion and now we're going to literally radioactive issue of nuclear energy. Let's take a look first at John McCain's attack.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My opponent is against nuclear power. He's against offshore drilling. And my friends, that's not the way you make America energy independent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: So does Barack Obama actually oppose nuclear energy? The simple answer is no. This is his energy plan behind us. He doesn't simply oppose nuclear energy. We have a graphic here with a quote from the plan that pretty well summarizes where he stands. He says "It is unlikely that we can meet our aggressive climate goals if we limit nuclear power as an option. However, before an expansion of nuclear power is considered, key issues must be addressed."
So the basic idea there is he's not ready to expand it right yet, but he is saying nuclear energy is something that needs to be looked at. He just talked about this again a couple of days ago. Let's look at that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There is somebody here who is hollering about nuclear power. Look, we need to invest in technology to see if we can store it properly. We may not be able to. But we need to - look, we've got to try everything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: OK. So basically you can see where he is standing. He's not saying that the safety and other issues that concern him are at an adequate place right now to expand nuclear energy nationwide, with new facilities or expanding those that exist but it's also not outright opposing them. He's saying we need to look at everything. You can read more about this right here. This is our fact check. Up on line.
Fact check is Obama against nuclear power. We have these details and more right there, Richard. So there you go. That's the basic idea. He does not oppose it, but he's not ready to expand it. John McCain meanwhile says he wants to expand nuclear facilities starting right away to create what he views as clean energy.
LUI: Yes. No doubt that debate will continue because of its very important issue when it comes to energy as you were mentioning there.
LEVS: That's right. You got it.
NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Josh.
You know, we do have some new video coming into CNN of that blast in Pakistan. Take a look at this. This is the vehicle that rammed into the gate there outside the Marriott Hotel. And then you see it catches on fire. And what was really interesting, and you can't see it in the left hand corner of your screen just now, but as we rerack the tape, you'll see that there is a lot of guards just kind of congregate. There you go, there's the blast. It rams into the gate. And then you see the smoke billowing out of the vehicle and then eventually you'll see catch on fire right here.
57 people were killed in this blast. 230 injured. This occurred in Islamabad, Pakistan yesterday outside the Marriott Hotel. Two Americans are among the dead. Also among the dead, the Czech ambassador to Pakistan. Obviously we are going to be watching not only this video, surveillance video of the actual ramming of the gate there, and explosion, that hopefully will provide some kind of clue as to possibly who did this and if the right precautions were taken afterwards to ensure the safety of those inside the Marriott Hotel. So we'll be looking that this very closely and there will be a lot more discussion throughout the coming days no doubt. Especially with 57 people killed in that bombing.
LUI: And an interesting point you make there that the security guards are still around despite that being a high security area.
NGUYEN: Right. And they were kind of, you know, congregating in a circle as if they were having a discussion or something yet just a few feet away, this vehicle is on fire, which seemed a little odd. But maybe when we get more clarification, like I said, we'll be looking into this video and bring you the latest.
LUI: He's healing the minds and hearts of Hurricane Ike's victims. Pastor Joel Osteen's mission in Texas.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. RICK PERRY (R), TEXAS: One of biggest impacts on the storm was loss of power. 2.8 million Texans have lost power. And if there's one word that describes recovery, it's power. We've got about half of those people back on power in less than a week.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well, Hurricane Ike just roared ashore in Texas eight days ago, disrupting the lives of millions. Popular Houston-based pastor Joel Osteen is pitching in with relief efforts of body and soul. And I asked him what his message will be on this, the first Sunday service following Hurricane Ike.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOEL OSTEEN, HEAD PASTOR, LAKEWOOD CHURCH: Hopefully let them feel, you know, the strength that we can draw from our faith. And so it's going to be an uplifting time, we're going to take time to pray for of course all of their needs and all the responders and things, but I think when you get, you know, thousands of people together in an atmosphere of faith, it just, it lifts your spirits. So we're going to do our part to let them that there are good days still up ahead.
NGUYEN: When I was in Houston covering this storm, in fact, in Galveston, as well, saw lot of people coming together helping their neighbor, making sure that others were getting the food and the water, especially with all the electricity out, especially for you, having a church so large, are you able to go out into the community and have those members go out there and assist those in desperate need right now?
OSTEEN: Absolutely. As a matter of fact, the city has asked that we - there's these different P.O.D. sites, points of distribution around the city and they've asked that we would have our members help volunteer and pass out the water and the ice. And so that's what we've been doing, encouraging our members and I know we've sent out hundreds and hundreds of volunteers to do that. And, too, Betty, you know at times of need like this, I really feel like it brings out the best in people. We're seeing people that, you know from different faiths and different denominations and different skin color. All those defenses come down. People inside, they want to help out each other and that's what I love about our city and I know it's not just our city, but it's just bringing out the best in people.
NGUYEN: How difficult though, is it for you? I mean, this is a personal story. This hit where you live, where you pastor. This is your hometown. And to see so much of it damaged in this storm, how do you get through it?
OSTEEN: You know, I just come back and I do what I ask other people to do. Just to believe that god is still in control. And, also, try look at the bright side. I think of how bad it could have been if, you know, just the wind was a little bit higher. I mean, we've had some loss of life and that's terrible, but you know, it could have been a whole, whole lot worse. So I encourage myself just like do I others to look on the bright side. We're alive, we're healthy. In a month or so, we're going to get through this and I just believe somehow we're going to come out of this better off than we were before.
NGUYEN: If you had any requests, is it on the issue of aid coming in? Is it getting it there quickly enough? Is there enough aid? I mean, what is it that Houston needs, that your members need, that your church needs, that you need?
OSTEEN: Well, I think there's several things. I think, you know, just strength for those that are responding, those that are helping out, strength for the linemen, those that are bringing the power. I believe there's food and supply, if we can get the volunteers to help give it out and so I guess, you know, our request would be just for prayer that, god would give us the strength and the grace and people the comfort that have lost loved ones and of course, if they want to donate their finances, they can donate to charities or to our ministry, or to anything, we can help get that to the people that thank need it the most.
NGUYEN: And looking at the lessons learned from Katrina and assessing not only the damage but the response in Hurricane Ike, how do you think that the government and the state agencies have fared in this one?
OSTEEN: What I see is that we, the government and our mayor and our county judge, they've done tremendous. I don't have any - we don't have any complaints. I think most of the city feels the way I do. I mean there's some little snags here and there, but they're dealing with millions and millions of people but I think they were here early. They did their best, and you know, we have no complaints. We think our city and our government are doing outstanding jobs.
NGUYEN: Joel Osteen joining us on a Sunday, where you've got a big message to give to your parishioners there. Best of luck to you as everyone try to recover in Houston.
OSTEEN: Thank you so much, Betty, my pleasure.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LUI: Rising foreclosure rates mean a lot of cheaper houses for sale. The lower prices are tempting but foreclosed properties could be a big headache. Christine Romans has details in this week's "Right on your Money."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ERIC TYSON, HOME BUYING FOR DUMMIES: It's attractive to people, to be able to look at terrific properties and get them way below market value, possibly even flip the property and make a quick profit.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Simple, right? Not so fast says real estate expert Eric Tyson. There's plenty that can go wrong when buying a foreclosed property.
TYSON: You really should be an experienced property buyer, this should probably be your fourth or fifth purchase at least.
ROMANS: He says your credit should be top notch as well. Lenders know foreclosures are risky. Unlike a conventional transaction, it can be hard to get access to a foreclosed property before the sale which can lead to some ugly surprises, damage or disrepair can turn a bargain into a money pit.
TYSON: You know, you might move into a house and think everything looks OK and it turns out there's problems with electrical wiring or plumbing. Or things weren't done right the first time.
ROMANS: Tyson recommends you double what you expect to spend on repairs and then subtract that amount from your offer.
TYSON: Fix-up work, construction work almost always costs more, takes longer than what you think.
ROMANS: And be prepared to walk away. If a bidding war overheats, the price could climb near market value.
TYSON: There's just so many things that can go wrong. It's not worth what, you know, little money you might save.
ROMANS: Christine Romans, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LUI: Well, next hour, CNN's money team live from the White House awaiting Congress's word on a $700 billion bailout and what's in store this week for world markets? We'll go live to London for that.
NGUYEN: And the Emmys are tonight. This could be an historic ceremony.
LUI: Oh, no doubt. Everyone is focused on basic cable programming and what could be an unprecedented win. We'll tell you why.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LUI: It seems to be a week of stadiums. Another piece of history dying this hour. Yesterday it was the Yankee Stadium, today we're going to be looking at some pictures coming out of Miami Arena. This should go down. These are live pictures right now. You can see it's still standing. This one-time home of the Florida Panthers and Miami Heat coming down, just blocks away from American Airlines Arena. The aging building was known as the city's pink elephant and Betty you're telling me here on the weekend, you like to see these things go down.
NGUYEN: Oh, yes, implosions are a sweet, we like a good explosion on the weekend and this one, you know, it's making a way for a new not facility -
LUI: Right.
NGUYEN: - but a series of new shops and other developments to come in. So all will not be lost and what I find interesting about this implosion as it happens in the next few minutes is the fact that seats have been ripped out of this arena.
LUI: Yes.
NGUYEN: There's been some lockers taken out and all of the things have been stored away. So don't be surprised if you see it on ebay coming up sometime soon.
LUI: And a developer said he's doing this for his daughters. Is this whole thing for (Boca) Properties, tear it down -
NGUYEN: Investing in the future.
LUI: Yes. We're watching this though, when it does happen in Miami, we'll have pictures for you.
NGUYEN: In the meantime though glitz, glamour galore. Yes, basic cable shows actually will be in the Emmy spotlight tonight. The award usually reserved for those premium channels. Well it could be handed out to regular programming.
LUI: All right. CNN's Brooke Anderson has the story for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on baby.
BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "Madmen's" got a groove on.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's do the twist.
And for breaking bad, it's all good. At the Emmy nominations, their network made news.
LISA DEMORAES, TV COLUMNIST, "WASHINGTON POST": What everybody's talking about this year is that AMC has 20 nominations.
ANDERSON: And with that, basic cable has become the belle of the ball.
DEMORAES: For the first time, basic cable series being nominated for best drama series. There are two of them, "Madmen" and "Damages." ANDERSON: FX's legal thriller "Damages" and AMC's '60s era "Madmen" are up against "Boston Legal," "Lost," "House" and "Dexter" for best drama, all from broadcast networks and premium cable.
DEMORAES: In the past, the cable programs that were nominated in the series competitions were all on pay cable, more specifically they were HBO.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you were a man, I'd kick the living dog [ expletive ] out of you.
ANDERSON: Three basic cable women, Glenn Close, Holly Hunter and Kyra Sedgwick, and two basic cable guys, Bryan Cranston and John Hamm, compete in the drama lead acting category.
JOHN HAMM, EMMY NOMINEE, "MAD MEN": Cable television has sort of come into its own as a place to watch original scripted programming.
CHARLIE COLLIER, GENERAL MANAGER, AMC: I think there was a belief that premium cable, cable that you paid extra for, was the place where you could get quality, and you can find it in a number of places now.
ANDERSON: FX was the first stop for "Damages."
DANIEL ZELMAN, CO-CREATOR, "DAMAGES": The basic cable channels are just allowing creators, just like ourselves, to take bigger risks in their programming for whatever reason.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're taking more risks and doing some of the things that HBO and Showtime were known for and now people are finding that, you know, lower down on the dial.
ANDERSON: And with all of cable at the table, this year's prime time Emmy show is anything but basic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And go like this.
ANDERSON: Brooke Anderson, CNN, Hollywood.
LUI: We're back at the CNN Center in Atlanta. This is "CNN Sunday Morning," It is September the 21st. Very good morning to you. I'm Richard Lui. I'm in for T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Hello, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen. You know, it's 8:00 a.m. here in the east, 6:00 p.m. in Islamabad, Pakistan, where a new video has just been released in the last half hour showing us the moments leading up to that deadly bombing yesterday at the Marriott Hotel.
There you see it right there. A vehicle plunges into the gate, just plows into it. You see smoke and eventually you'll see this -- fire. But after this, is where you have the huge explosion, so we're getting this new video in to CNN.
All right. So, what we're watching right now this tape being recued and it's cued up to the point where you see the big truck ram into the gate. And soon after this, you will see smoke billowing from the vehicle, and then it catches on fire. And then after that, you're going to see a huge explosion and that is what, not only rocked the Marriott Hotel, but it set off some fires inside the building.
We'll take you live to CNN's Reza Sayah at the scene.
And, you know, Reza, we've been looking at this video, watching it very closely. Obviously, it's going to be providing some clues, but you mentioned yesterday, this Marriott Hotel is heavily fortified it, it is highly secure. But when you look at the video of the truck coming in, ramming the gate, smoke coming from it, see there, you see a little explosion and then you see the smoke billowing from it. Eventually, you'll see it catch on fire.
And then you'll see some of the security guards, though, this is what I found quite interesting -- is the security guards, there was no sense of emergency. In fact, there is a point later in the video where they're kind of standing around talking to each other, while this vehicle was on fire.
SAYAH: I agree, Betty. That's what I saw, I saw some confusion, maybe some panic. It looked like they weren't sure what to do. You saw a couple of security officers run to the truck, try to put the fire out, and run back.
So, I agree, there was a sense of confusion, but as police told us yesterday, this truck did not penetrate the steel gate but it didn't matter. The magnitude of this blast, the explosives were so large that it destroyed the Islamabad Marriott. But this is certainly a dramatic video that was released about 30 minutes ago that shows the truck bomb that caused this blast, the video released during a press conference by Pakistan, ahead of the interior, the ministry.
This is nighttime surveillance video of this truck bomb. It happened a little before 8:00 p.m., and again, it shows the truck driving up to the steel gate and the video corroborates what government officials and police told CNN yesterday, that this truck pulled up to the gate and tried to talk its way into the Marriott. The guards said, "No," and then what the video shows is a fire what appears to be in the engine block and the fire spreads to the truck and lasts about a few minutes, and then, police say, there was the explosion.
The video does not show the blast, from what we see. The video just stops. What we do see is the initial fire, the spark and the fire and the engine block and it spreads to the truck, and then, according to the government officials, you have the blast.
But indeed, Betty, do you see some confusion and panic in the security officers there, not sure what to do. Minutes later, the blast went off -- Betty.
LUI: Reza, this is Richard here. Let's stay on the video, if we can. The domestic news channel, Geo TV yesterday was saying that there was an initial small car that did come through this gate area followed by a truck. They also said that most of the fatalities were of drivers, cars outside of this gate. What have you heard on those two items?
SAYAH: Let's address those one at a time. As far as the small car goes, initial reports indicated that maybe there was a small car and this car and this truck were working in tandem, that's no longer the case. The official statement by the government and police says that the only vehicle that was involved was this truck bomb.
As far as some of the casualties, some of the victims, some of the people who were killed, they were drivers of rental cars for the Marriott.
This is a hotel that we frequented a lot. And right next to that entrance that you see the video, to the right of that steel gate is a parking lot, where you have parked lots of rental cars and oftentimes the drivers of the rental cars when they drop off their passengers -- that's where they wait. So, it's no surprise that officials say many of the casualties were those innocent drivers who were standing by there -- Richard.
LUI: Reza, quickly if we can here, the question of why this happened, you brought the possibility of militants earlier yesterday, and also the timing, it's so soon after President Zardari has taken office. What sort of theories are being put out there at the moment?
SAYAH: Well the timing is certainly remarkable. This blast happened just hours after newly-elected President Asif Ali Zardari addressed the parliament, saying is he committed to rooting out terrorism and this blast happened hours afterwards.
It's also important to note, that in the past couple of weeks, just as soon as President Zardari was elected, you saw a spate of missile attacks by those U.S. unmanned drones on Pakistani soil. That created a lot of outrage among Pakistanis, and especially among the militant groups who promised reprisal. A lot of analysts are saying, indeed, this attack on Saturday night, the suicide truck bombing was reprisal, even though no one has stepped up to claim responsibility -- Richard.
LUI: All right. Reza Sayah, our correspondent there in Islamabad with the very latest for us, getting us the information yesterday and again, following up 24 hours later -- thank you so much.
NGUYEN: In other news, the evangelist compound in Arkansas -- well, one has been raided in the questions of child abuse. Federal and state authorities swarmed the Tony Alamo Christian ministries last night near Texarkana.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN (voice-over): This is the third time federal and state police have raided one of Tony Alamo's Christian ministry's compounds. The FBI says this latest operation in southwest Arkansas follows a two-year investigation into possible child pornography. TOM BROWN, FBI SPECIAL AGENT, LITTLE ROCK: State investigation is aimed at allegations that children living at the Alamo facilities may have been sexually and physically abused.
NGUYEN: Authorities have not disclosed how many children live in the compound. Owner and minister, Tony Alamo, denies any wrongdoing.
CNN reached him by phone in Los Angeles, California.
VOICE OF TONY ALAMO, EVANGELIST: Why did they make up allegations against Jesus when they nailed him to the cross. They will not find any pornography there. There is none. There never was any that there's a child abuse or child pornography or any thing like that. They're barking up the wrong tree this time.
NGUYEN: Alamo has not been charged but one U.S. attorney told the "Associated Press," he expects a warrant to be issued for Alamo in the coming days. The arrest wouldn't be the first for the religious leader. Alamo's group has faced lawsuits and government actions in the past, both in Arkansas and California, and he's no stranger to controversy.
VOICE OF LYNN LAROWE, TEXARKANA GAZETTE: It's not very rare to come out of any baseball game or whatever and finding Alamo literature on your car. Now, as to his popularity, there are quite a few people around here with whom he isn't so popular. You know, and to the people to who live on his compound and I suppose the people who attend his church, he is. But around here, he is extremely controversial a figure.
NGUYEN: Some critics regard his ministry as a cult.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe in my heart that the compound in Texas that was as raided, it's no worse than this compound here.
NGUYEN: It remains to be seen what law enforcement officials found inside the compound or what fate awaits the children who call the property home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And again, it is important to stress that Tony Alamo denies any wrongdoing. He denies these allegations flatly. He says that he loves children and he doesn't abuse them.
LUI: Now, to "ISSUE #1," the United States money crisis. The big bailout of the nation's financial institutions on speed dial. Congress is expected to work on a proposal today as it did yesterday.
The president's plan gives the Treasury Department authority to buy up to $700 billion in troubled mortgages over the next two years, and once the housing market rebounds, the government would try to sell the bad loans at a profit. Now, to cover costs, the ceiling on the national debt will be raised to $11.3 trillion.
Now, on money watch this morning for us, Kate Bolduan in Washington, and Adrian Finighan in London for us.
Kate, let's start with you. Break down the plan for us.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Richard, the plan would grant the Treasury Department some pretty broad power, the authority to buy up to $700 billion in bad mortgages from U.S. financial institutions. That's for the next two years. And the goal is to help stabilize and strengthen the financial sector and help pointing the economy in the direction of recovery, which everyone clearly thinks the economy needs to recover at this point.
President Bush talked about this plan yesterday. Listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: My first instinct was to let the market work until I realized, upon being briefed by the experts of how significant this problem became. And so I decided to act and act boldly.
It turns out that there's a lot of inner links throughout the financial system. The system had grown to a point where a lot of people were dependent upon each other. And that the collapse of one part of the system wouldn't just affect a part of the financial markets, it would affect the average citizen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: And when talking about the big price tag of this plan, the potential price tag, President Bush said that the risk of doing nothing far outweighs the risk associated with this package. And that's a thought that has been echoed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. Earlier this week, he said a very similar thing.
But now the ball is in Congress's court. Yesterday on Capitol Hill, treasury staffers briefed leadership staffers and those of the key committees on this plan. And while initial reactions varied, lawmakers seem to agree, at least, that time is of the essence and that is going to be a big player here -- Richard.
LUI: You know, Kate, one of the criticisms being made of this plan is that it does not look forward to how to prevent those who might go into foreclosure. How has that been discussed on the Hill right now because there's so much question about the future?
BOLDUAN: Yes, that is something that we've heard a little bit about. And what we've heard so far is, especially from staffers, is right now, we're just trying to digest this plan and understand really what's going on. A lot of questions, a lot of trying to get some more answers, but we have heard some reaction as you mentioned, a concern that there isn't enough protection for homeowners facing foreclosures and that's something that we can expect to hear a little bit more about.
But at the same time, while there is possibly some criticism, this is something -- this criticism has been talked about even before lawmakers have seen this plan.
LUI: Right.
BOLDUAN: At the same time, leaders continue to say we have to put partisan politics aside, we have to do something and it has to be quick.
LUI: OK. Kate Bolduan in the Capitol for us, thank you so much.
BOLDUAN: Thanks.
NGUYEN: Let's take you now to London. Adrian Finighan joins us from CNN's European headquarters.
Adrian, how might all of this affect the markets as they open there tomorrow?
ADRIAN FINIGHAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Difficult to say, Betty. One thing is for sure, though, nice though it was, Friday's party is over and the hangover is about to set in. The relief when news of that plan came and sent stocks soaring is supposed to be tempered this week by thoughts of -- well, what have comes next?
Yes, Henry Paulson rode to the rescue of the banks by announcing that he was set to exercise some of these toxic debt that are dragging them and us towards financial meltdown, but -- and it's a big but -- the devil will be in the details. Is Mr. Paulson going to pay the full write-down cost of the bad debt when he takes it off their hands, an enormous cost to the U.S. taxpayer, or is he going to play hardball for a discount to the market price, leading banks to take yet more pain and reluctant once again to lend to each other and us, in which case surely we're back where we started?
And, of course, Mr. Paulson's plan still has to get through Congress, that could take months and hello, it's an election year. It's just around the corner now. One thing is pretty certain, though, Betty, the banking industries in the future are likely to be subject to much tighter regulation of public scrutiny. That will impact growth and profits, and of course, the bank's willingness to lend us money, as freely as they have done in the past. We're all likely to feel a little poorer in the years to come.
So last week, we had a five breathless days. We escaped global financial meltdown by the skin of our teeth, with reality set to bite. This week, I think, hopefully, fingers crossed, we're in for a less stressful but no less interesting week.
NGUYEN: Oh, it's going to be interesting, no doubt, and especially, and the fact that they're hoping to get this big bailout plan passed within just a few days. So, we'll see how that plays out.
Adrian Finighan as always, we appreciate you for joining us across the pond today. Have a good morning.
All right. So, are you worried about your money? We'll get advice on how to protect your savings and investments. The editor of "Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine" will join us in the next hour.
LUI: Well, in the last 10 minutes, guess what happened?
NGUYEN: Look at that.
LUI: This. Betty, we've been waiting for this, haven't we?
NGUYEN: Oh, yes, we have. That is the Miami arena going down. Look at the smoke there, billowing into the air. This is a place that, you know, used to be home to the Miami Heat, the Florida Panthers. They spent a lot of money on this building but it really kind of lacked the luxury amenities that it needed to thrive.
Of course, you know, the American Airlines Center, or is it called the arena there?
LUI: That's right, right.
NGUYEN: The center there, the arena in Dallas, they're all over the place, that is nearby. So, obviously, that taking a lot of the business away from this place, that is going by the wayside.
LUI: You know, when I look at this, Betty, I want the walls kind of fall in with more drama here.
NGUYEN: That's not enough drama for you?
LUI: No. I mean, the ceiling kind of goes down. But -- all right, there we go. Thank you. There's a live picture now from WPLG, our affiliate down there. It looks like there's still some structure left, though, after all of this?
NGUYEN: Yes, here's why you may not see a whole lot of drama, because a team has actually been slowly disassembling this arena for months. They've start ripping out some of the seats, some of the stairwells even, taken apart some of the locker rooms. So, this has been in the works for awhile and it's going to be a major development site in the future. But right now, they're going to tear the old one down in order to make room for the new ones.
And these pieces of nostalgia, like I mentioned, you know, the seats and some of the lockers and whatnot -- those are going to be stored in a warehouse, and like I said a little bit earlier, perhaps we'll see them on eBay one day.
LUI: That's right. So, you had a stressful weekend, keep on watching this video, let it all loose. All right. There it goes in Miami, we want to show that to you.
So, have you got health insurance and need a plan?
NGUYEN: Well, McCain and Obama each say they have got the answer for you -- Josh.
LEVS: Hey, why do I have to follow the cool implosion video?
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: Yes, try to live up to that, buddy.
LEVS: That was a really good one, too. I really liked that. Oh, man, and I have no successful metaphor except maybe that there's a new study out about this healthcare initiatives that both candidates have us knocking down their promises. Does that work? Anyway, the short version is: In this thing, some amazing stuff and I'll tell you there's harsh criticism for both of them.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LUI: Healthcare in the United States is always a hot topic on the campaign trail. Both John McCain and Barack Obama have released the plans that they'd like to put in place if elected president.
NGUYEN: So, how do they compare? Well, for that, we'll turn now to CNN's Josh Levs who is stacking it up.
Hey, there, Josh.
LEVS: Hey. Good morning, Betty. Good morning, Richard. Good morning, everybody.
You want to see the glamorous life of a TV reporter, try to take this incredibly complex report, the most complex report that's been done about Obama and McCain's healthcare plans and figure out what it actually says. That's what we're going to try to do for you right now.
We're going to start off with a very general statement you hear from both of them on the campaign trail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R-AZ) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'll give every family, every family in America, a $5,000 refundable tax credit to buy their own health insurance policy.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D-IL) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I will finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible healthcare for every single American.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: All right. So, here's what happen. This journal called "Health Affairs" in which blue ribbon panel of economists from major universities got together and studied their actual healthcare plans.
I want to start off -- we're going to zoom in on board quickly. I want to show you just the headlines so you can see how they're attacking both these plans. They're saying McCain's plan would transform the system but provide less coverage. And they're saying that Obama's plan over here will bring more regulation and unsustainable spending. Neither side comes out happy with this report. Now, I want to go to a graphic here. And what I'm going to try to do is summarize for you what they're saying McCain would actually do. I'll just tell you quickly. They're talking about how he would start taxing the premiums employers pay, that he would offer tax credits to individuals and families, and you're going to hear a lot about this -- deregulation. He wants to allow people to buy policies across state lines.
Well, this report, in this next graphic will show what they say he would actually do, the result: leaving more people uninsured, right? And the plans out there would be far less generous than they are now, and they're saying that people who have chronic or acute illnesses would have to pay a lot more cash themselves.
Now, you might think his side is unhappy with this report.
Let's go over to Obama now. On Obama side, here's what they what they look like. He's called for a national health plan, his program to offer more choices to people, a new set of requirements and reimbursements for employers when it comes to healthcare, and the mandate that you insure children.
Now, what are they saying he would achieve in addition to what I showed you before, unsustainable spending? They say he would not adequately curve -- he wouldn't curve the healthcare costs that are out there. So, if more people get covered it would unravel, soon, because costs keep going up. They also say he would greatly increase federal regulation.
Now, I'll just tell you very quickly. Both sides disagree with this. I called both campaigns. They say you don't go and buy this, you can read more about their plans on their Web sites, they say they will control spending and bring more to everybody.
So I wish I could tell you simply what the facts are but it's all prediction and analysis. What I will tell you that this report is very respected, and it presents the new challenges for anybody looking at it.
NGUYEN: Well, looking at the report, though, it doesn't seem like either plan is very good.
LEVS: Right.
NGUYEN: I mean, it's all negative, it seems.
LEVS: It is. It is negative on both sides. Definitely, they're not happy with either side even though the campaigns reject it. And I'll tell you, it's a very respected blue ribbon panel. I should mention that this one person who analyzed Obama's campaign who is an unpaid adviser for the McCain side, but overall, they are considered to be totally nonpartisan in this, Betty.
NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Josh, for showing that out for us.
LEVS: Thanks, guys. You got it.
LUI: And Josh is glamorous. I don't know what his talking about. (INAUDIBLE).
NGUYEN: His own.
LUI: All right. This may be a sad day for some in New York, though.
NGUYEN: Yes. They are taking out the bases of Yankee stadium for the last time.
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LUI: Well, good-bye New York. A big chunk of the city's sports history is going away today, Betty.
NGUYEN: Oh, man. From the early days of black and white television to now, what a history -- and not just in baseball.
CNN Sport's Ray D'Alessio tells us about one of the nation's most recognized stadiums.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RAY D'ALESSIO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When you first walk in, it's not so much the sight, the smells or the sound of the stadium that gets you, it's just that there is so much of it.
DEREK JETER, YANKEES SHORTSTOP: Without question, I think, it can be a little bit intimidating. First time I came here, everything just seemed larger than life.
PHIL PEPE, FMR. N.Y. DAILY NEWS SPORTSWRITER: When it was built it was the Taj Mahal, it was the last word in ballparks. It was the largest. You start with that, the size.
D'ALESSIO: Yankee Stadium opened on April 18th, 1923. And it took just three innings and one swing of the bat by the game's greatest player for it to be renamed.
PEPE: Isn't it wonderful that they came up with the name "The House That Ruth Built." And to this day, well, 80, 90 years later, and it's still "The House that Ruth Built." Everybody knows Babe Ruth, everybody knows Yankee Stadium.
D'ALESSIO: Ruth's blast was the first word in a volume of the game's greatest history Lou Gehrig's farewell speech in 1939, Dan Larsen's perfect World Series game in '56, and Roger Maris' 61st home run in '61.
UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Way back there, holy cow.
D'ALESSIO: Even after a complete renovation in 1975, there was Reggie Jackson's three straight World Series homers in '77, and finally, Aaron Boone's shot to, again, crush the Red Sox in '03, and of course, all those World Series wins.
RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: The team made the stadium. I mean, the stadium would be another stadium if it weren't for all of the world championships, all the pennants, all the great moments.
D'ALESSIO: But while the Yankees made the stadium great, other greats have made the stadium legendary.
TONY MORANTE, YANKEES STADIUM TOUR GUIDE: The first papal mass in the United States, 30 processional championship fights, college and professional football, soccer, boxing, circus, rodeos, Negro Baseball, Billy Graham Crusade, Jehovah Witnesses, Reverend Sun Myung Moon.
D'ALESSIO: Even those events were often extraordinary, both the Notre Dame "Win one for the Gipper" game and the Colts/Giants NFL championship called the greatest game ever played were held in the Bronx. And Joe Lewis, Rocky Marciano and Muhammad Ali -- all fought on the same ally that three popes and newly-freed Nelson Mandela prayed on.
GIULIANI: It says something historically about New York. It's become a very important part of what New York City is all about and it's the place you would think of, of where to hold an event that would signify New York City.
D'ALESSIO (on camera): Frank Sinatra never performed at Yankee Stadium but you can hear him sing here after every game and the signature line from Sinatra's "New York, New York," might as well be about the ballpark it rings through. If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.
Ray D'Alessio, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Ain't that the truth?
Well, at 9:00 o'clock Eastern hour, we're going to talk with a Yankee legend from the 1950s, former first basement, Moose Skowron. We'll be right back.
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NGUYEN: Take a look. New security video released from that deadly hotel bombing in Pakistan. What investigators are learning this morning, we'll have it at the top of hour.
LUI: Yes. Plus, the latest information of that. But first, we're going to go to Dr. Sanjay Gupta with "HOUSE CALL," that starts right now for you.
