Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Saturday Morning News

Senate Dems Plan Tax-Cut Extension Votes; Obama To Discuss South Korea Trade Deal; U.S. Diplomatic Cables Provide Sometimes Embarrassing Insights; Senate to Vote on Extending the Bush Tax Cuts

Aired December 04, 2010 - 06:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.

We are expecting President Obama to be back home within the next home after his quick, unannounced trip to Afghanistan. And this is what's waiting on him when he gets home: An uptick in the unemployment rate.

Also, a rare Saturday Senate vote on his middle-class tax cuts.

Also, a stalemate from the debt commission over what to cut from the federal budget.

Welcome home, Mr. President.

But some positive news for him as well. A long-awaited trade deal with South Korea.

All of these stories have a direct impact on your wallet and on your job security and they are all developing live right here this morning.

Good morning to you all. From the CNN Center, this is your CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Six a.m. here in Atlanta, Georgia, where I stand; 5 a.m. in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Wherever you may be, glad you're right here. I'm T.J. Holmes.

Let me tell you what else we've got coming up for you over the next 90 minutes.

Paradise lost in a Florida town built by the happiest people on Earth: the Disney team. This town has now recorded its first homicide in its history. That happened this week.

But then just days later, another violent death in the same town after a police standoff. What in the world is going on there?

Also, gunmen hold dozens of hostages in a bank. Police storm that building, but not everybody makes it out alive. We will take you there.

Also, as we know, the housing market, it has been in a rut. But there's one deal that's an offer that maybe you can't refuse. You might see where I'm going here. The Godfather's home is up for sale. We'll tell you how much you need if you want to live in Corleone's old place.

Also, whatever you have in your pantry, we're showing you video there of a couple of spices. There's some stuff you need to have in that pantry - a couple of spices that are going to drive your significant other wild. We'll explain.

Let me get you back to this trade deal now with South Korea. You had heard so much about it when the president - remember his 10-day trip to Asia? This was what he was trying to hammer out with South Korea at the time, but they didn't get it done there. But the White House says they have gotten it done now, and they say this new trade deal will create jobs - tens of thousands of jobs for Americans right here, and also give a boost to U.S. carmakers.

We're going to get all the details about the deal from the president. Like I said, he's on his way back now from Afghanistan. Expecting him to land at any moment.

And then at 8:30 Eastern Time this morning, he is going to make some comments that we'll bring to you live about the trade deal.

Now here is what we do know about it so far. It would do away with tariffs on more than 95 percent of industrial and consumer goods within five years. The U.S. International Trade Commission estimates the tariff cuts will increase exports of U.S. goods by $10 billion to $11 billion. It also calls for South Korea to reduce tariffs on American car imports by half, from 8 percent to 4 percent. Those tariffs would then be eliminated in the fifth year of this agreement.

Also, a two and a half percent tariff on cars imported from South Korea will remain in place until the fifth year of this agreement.

Now, even though they have reached a deal, the U.S. and South Korea, the trade deal still needs to be approved by Congress.

CNN, like I mentioned, will be bringing you President Obama's comments on this new trade deal. We're expecting those at 8:30 Eastern Time this morning. When it does happen, we will bring you those comments live.

Also, something major on the plate for the president and also on this lame-duck Congress now - what to do about these Bush era tax cuts. Well, the Senate is working on it today, on a Saturday. Yes, this is a showdown on whether to extend the Bush era tax cuts, all of them or just to the folks in the middle class.

Now, Democrats want to exclude the rich; Republicans, however, said they want everybody to keep the tax breaks. They don't want tax - taxes to go up for anybody right now with this fragile economy.

Here now is our CNN senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash with a preview of what we're going to see today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN SR. CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: T.J., usually when the Senate works on a weekend, it's because they're racing to complete something that is a pressing issue before the country.

Well, what they are working on, expiring tax cuts, certainly is pressing. The Bush era tax cuts are going to expire at the end of the year. That's in just 27 days.

But the reality is, that the reason - or, the votes that they are going to take later today - are not going to get the Senate and the Congress any closer to solving that issue. And the reason for that is because the - everybody knows that they votes they are going to take are not going to pass.

What we're talking about here is the plan that Democrats have put forward since President Obama was campaigning, and that is that they believe that the only tax cuts that should be extended are those for those making $250,000 or less. All other tax cuts - those for higher income earners - they believe those should expire.

Now, Republicans, they don't agree. They believe that all tax cuts for all income levels - all of them should be - should be extended. And that is why Republicans will vote against this.

Again, everybody knows that this is going to happen later today. But what Democrats say is it is critical for them to get on the record with their position, long-held position, that this is the right way to go.

Meanwhile, while this is going on, there are negotiations going on that we expect maybe could see fruition by early next week to, what we are told by Democratic and Republican sources, extend all Bush era tax cuts for all income levels temporarily, probably two or three years - T.J.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: All right. Thanks to our Dana Bash. We'll continue to check in with her throughout the morning. She'll be live for us this morning.

That vote expected somewhere around 10:30 Eastern Time there in the Senate. We'll be breaking down exactly what's happening today. Those proposals are expected, quite frankly, to fail. But still, this might be able to move us further along in the negotiations and what's going to happen long term with these middle-class tax cuts.

Now, got a question here. Certainly still having to do with the president here, but what in the world with a penny? Cutting a penny down into a dime. Does that really sound like a federal crime? Does it sound like a felony? Seriously. Taking a penny, cutting it down into the size of a dime.

Well, a man, some 40-plus years ago, was convicted of doing just that. He has now gotten a presidential pardon. It is the first round of pardons that this president, President Obama, has issued. Nine convicted criminals altogether have been pardoned for their crimes. But again, the one that kind of got so many people 's attention is the one for Ronald Foster. He had a felony conviction he didn't even know about, really, for coin mutilation. Who knew? He said he - he was a Marine and - at his barracks, and he and some other guys would cut down these pennies to the size of dimes and then use them to put into vending machines to get cigarettes and pops and things like that. They said at the time, it wasn't a big deal to them; then the man found out so many years later, it was actually a felony on his record. So he asked for a pardon and he did get them.

But again, most of these minor offenses. But usually, sometime around the holidays, traditionally, presidents will issue pardons. And this is the first round for this president.

It's seven minutes past the hour. Time for me to say good morning to my man Reynolds Wolf.

Reynolds, if you could be pardoned for something, what would that be? What crime?

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: We're - we're on live, right? I think we are.

HOLMES: All right.

WOLF: I think I'm just going to zip it up on that one. I'm - you're putting the pressure on a man.

Hey, you want to talk about some serious pressure? In a place like Buffalo, New York, snow is something that you expect. However, several feet of snow might be a little bit more than you could handle. And that certainly was the case for many people there. They sure get a break today, but it looks like more may be on the way.

Plus, many places around the nation getting their first snowfall of the season. We'll show you who's going to get what, coming up.

HOLMES: All right. Reynolds, thanks. And I should clear up, he does not have a criminal record.

Before we take a quick break here, the morning's news quiz. You may have heard this week, the Grammy nominations were handed out. They happened on Wednesday. And Eminem led all artists with 10 nominations, including Album of the Year, for his "Recovery."

Question this morning: Who won the last Album of the Year Grammy? Was it Beyonce, Black Eyed Pears or Taylor Swift?

Going to have that answer for you after the break.

I do have a quick picture I want to show you though before we do - we do go to break. That is the president of the United States landing aboard his Air Force One. This is at Andrews Air Force Base. The president just getting back from his quick, unannounced trip to Afghanistan. He was only on the ground there for about four hours. He did speak to troops. You saw those pictures; he had a message for them about the efforts there, certainly undertaking there in Afghanistan. But the president, like we mentioned, is returning to a different place than when he left. We got the economic news yesterday that the unemployment rate had gone up to 9.8 percent, the president having to tackle that. And also, the announcement that, in fact, there is a trade agreement now with South Korea that the president said could mean about 70,000 jobs here in the U.S. - could support some 70,000 jobs. The president will address that issue of the South Korean trade deal coming up about 8:30 Eastern Time. We'll have that live for you.

But the picture you just saw, a live picture, the president of the United States is back after his quick trip to Afghanistan. And he does have some things on his plate already on this Saturday.

Quick break here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. We're right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: All right. At 10 minutes past the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING - before the break, we asked, who won last year's Album of the Year Grammy? Was it Beyonce; was it the Black Eyed Peas; or was it Taylor Swift?

Well, I'm told it should have been an easy one. But yes, it was Taylor Swift. She won four Grammys that night: Album of the Year, Best Female Country Vocal Performance, Best Country Song, Best Country Album.

Beyonce won more, with six Grammys, however. We'll have more on Beyonce a little later.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HOLMES: Like Reynolds mentioned, the weather might cooperate, but a bit of a political storm the president is coming back to.

You're seeing Air Force One here at Andrews Air Force Base, just getting on the ground a short time ago. The president from here is going to take the hop over - quick hop over on Marine One to the White House, where he's going to be making comments around 8:30 Eastern Time this morning. We will certainly have those for you live.

He's going to be talking about the new trade deal that the White House announced yesterday that the U.S. has reached - or the administration has reached with South Korea, a trade deal that could, they say, support some 70,000 jobs here in this country and increase the trade between the two countries to some $10 billion to $11 billion.

Now, certainly some critics of that trade deal. But the president is touting that as good economic news. But he comes back when there is some - as we know, some bad economic news with the unemployment rate ticking up to 9.8 percent that we saw yesterday.

But again, a live picture, Air Force One, bringing the president back. We'll be hearing from him plenty this morning and what's happening in D.C.

I do want to turn now to a little sports here. Everybody's been asking this question for quite some time - you know, Reynolds: When will Tiger be back?

WOLF: It's going to happen at some point.

HOLMES: They're asking if he's back right now though. And the reason they're asking that is because, we head out to Southern California, where the - the Chevron Challenge is taking place. And this is a tournament that Tiger hosts. Only 18 other golfers in the - in the field. But still, they're some of the best in the world.

But right now, Tiger has a four-shot lead after two rounds. This is the first time this year, at any tournament he's played, he has been ahead after two rounds. He played a bogie-free second round, and he is six under at the time. So people are asking: Does this mean he's back?

Another people were asking whether or not - yes, that wasn't Tiger you're seeing there, actually. But --

(LAUGHTER)

HOLMES: Derek Jeter, is he going to be back with the Yankees? Can you imagine him in any other uniform?

WOLF: I really can't. I mean, he's spent his entire career in New York. I mean, it just seems wrong. Can you imagine if he went to Boston? I mean, no. It just - it just can't happen.

HOLMES: OK. Well, they're trying to work this out. If a lot of you all don't know, he is a future Hall of Famer. He is just - he is the face of the Yankees, and has been for quite some time.

But the man is - he has a 36-year-old face now. And his contract is up. He wants a longer contract for more money. The Yankees actually said, 'Hey, you're 36, my man. You got to take a little less money for three years.' Three year, $45 million is what they initially offered. Apparently, they have upped it a little bit.

But still, the two sides have not come to an agreement. He is checking his other options. But right now, a lot of people concerned about whether or not he will continue to be a Yankee.

Yes, you're shaking your head. Nobody -- .

(CROSSTALK)

HOLMES: Now to one of the most beloved figures in Chicago Cubs baseball history. There he is. A lot of people - you may not be familiar, but they certainly are in Chicago with this man.

Ron Santo - he passed away yesterday at the age of 70. He's a former third baseman, and he also has been a radio announcer there in Chicago for the longest. But he has been a part of that organization, and he has stuck with the Cubs through all the ups and downs over the years. Mostly downs - is that fair to say?

But - but passed away after from complications from a longtime illness he had been having. But the nine-time all-star, 15-year career and was with the Cubs all that time.

But - but yes, a lot of people said, one of those beloved - Chicago - they love their sports figures in Chicago.

WOLF: Absolutely.

HOLMES: And he's one that was really beloved.

WOLF: I mean, he was a - a great philanthropist. He was actually a double amputee from another injury that he had.

And he was one of the guys who would actually wear the winds and, unfortunately, the losses -- .

HOLMES: Yes.

WOLF: -- on his sleeve. He would really take it to heart.

But, I mean, a great man, and I know he's going to be missed by many people.

HOLMES: All right.

Just a couple of things we're keep an eye on this morning. Going to be checking in plenty the rest of the morning with - with Reynolds.

But at 17 past the hour, we've been telling you about these jobs numbers. The unemployment rate ticked up, as we told you, up to 9.8 percent now. But unemployment is under 5 percent for one particular group. Who are these folks? We'll explain.

Again, it's 17 past the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Stick with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: And at 20 past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING, this was just moments ago. The president of the United States getting off of Air Force One, heading over to Marine One and then over to the White House. The president just getting back after that quick trip to Afghanistan.

The unannounced trip - he was only on the ground there in Afghanistan just four-plus hours there. Spoke to some troops there.

But he has a busy, busy day ahead of him right now. And a lot has changed, if you can believe it or not, since the president left, with the new unemployment number, the South Korean trade deal now in place. And also today, the Senate is working on a Saturday to take up what was really one of the centerpieces of - of the president's agenda, which is middle-class tax cuts. The Bush era tax cuts - they are going to take those up today in a vote. That's around 10:30 Eastern Time today.

So a lot on the president's plate. We're going to hear from at 8:30, in about two hours - 8:30 Eastern Time - about that South Korea- U.S. trade deal that the two have reached, the two countries have reached. So stick with us for that.

Also, we talked about those unemployment numbers. It was kind of a surprise in that jobs report. Growth last month far lower than was expected. That caused a rise in the unemployment rate.

But actually, for one group in America, unemployment is still below 5 percent.

Josh Levs with that for us this morning.

Good morning to you, Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning to you, too.

You know, a lot of people don't realize what this breakdown really is and who has the lower levels of unemployment in America.

Let me talk you through this.

First of all, big picture right here. As you've been hearing, 9.8 million - percent. That is 15.1 million people unemployed in the latest jobs report that just came out.

But take a look here. This is about education. And what I'm going to show you now is who has the lowest level.

So among the - basically, based on your level of education, people who did not finish high school are at 15 percent - 15.2 percent in terms of - of unemployment.

Here, high-school graduates, 9.6 percent. People who have done some college at 8.3 percent.

And right here, people who have bachelor's degrees or higher, people who have completed college, maybe go on to get another degree - either way, it's under 5 percent. It's about 4.8 percent. So basically, just over 95 percent employment if you have a college degree.

And, you know, what a lot of people are doing right now in this economy is going back to school. They couldn't get a job. And getting those degrees. And what these numbers show is that it can really help you; it pays off.

Now, another thing I want to show you also is about race. This is always striking, in these reports, and it says a lot about the picture of jobs in America.

Look here. Among black people in America, 16 percent unemployment. Among - among Latinos, 13.2 percent. Whites, 8.9 percent. And down here, Asians, 7.6 percent. And we see these numbers all the time. It's always basically this breakdown. Highest by far among African-Americans.

Now, I want you to note, if you are someone who is looking for a job - you might even have one, but you're looking for a different one.

We have a section at CNN.com called CNN.com/jobs. Here it is right here. It's filled with resources. It talks you through basically anything you could need to know about finding a job; tips on interviews; tips on where to find jobs.

And right here, one of my favorite features, is this map, which shows you the state of jobs in every state in America. So you can search by any industry; you can just click here, and tell it - you want to work in manufacturing, you want to see what they have over here, what the picture's like in Nebraska.

Boom. All of this should help you, at CNN.com/jobs. Because keep in mind, in addition to all those millions of people unemployed, there are millions more who are underemployed, and millions more than that who just don't like the jobs they have. So hopefully, this resource can help a lot, T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Josh, thank you so much.

LEVS: You got it.

HOLMES: And coming up, a tense hostage situation taking place in Peru.

This all went down at a bank. Employees were escaping through windows. We'll tell you how this story ended.

It's 24 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Well, taking a look at some of the stories making headlines.

A hostage standoff in Lima, Peru, ends in gunfire. A gunman took 33 people hostage in a bank, held them for hours before a police sniper took him out. Just before the shooting, the SWAT team helped some of the bank employees escape through the windows.

Two hostages were wounded during this ordeal. The man threatened the hostages with a gun. He also had explosives strapped to his chest. He was demanding $700,000 in ransom and a helicopter.

Well, in just about two hours from now, we're expecting to hear from President Obama. He's going to be talking about a new trade agreement with South Korea. Now, Congress would have to approve this agreement. Now, the deal would, according to the president and supporters - it would create stronger economic ties between the two countries by eliminating most tariffs within the next five years. Now, that would mean an increase of about $10 billion in U.S. exports by some estimates. The White House says the trade agreement would also create or support jobs here in the U.S.

Again, the president speaking in about two hours. You'll see that live here on CNN.

Also happening this morning, the Senate is working. They're voting on whether to keep the Bush tax cuts from expiring at the end of this month. Now, here is the deal though - it's not that simple. Beautiful shot though this morning of the Capitol. Live picture there in Washington, D.C.

But now - Democratic - the Democratic proposal - the two that they are considering today, both of them are expecting to fail. Essentially, Democrats are trying to put Republicans on the record, making them vote on something. Both sides trying to resolve an important difference here.

As you know, the Republicans want to keep the tax cuts in place for everybody, including those who are making more than $250,000 a year. As a compromise, Democratic lawmaker Senator Charles Schumer, he suggested raising the cutoff to $1 million. So just everybody who makes over $1 million would see their taxes go up. That's going to be considered today as well.

But again, both measures are expected to fail. We will be covering that live for you this morning.

Well, Britney Spears - she says you can kiss her you-know-what. The young lady turned 29 years old this week, and those were some of the words she had for some of her critics out there, and including some people who are spreading what she says are nasty rumors about her relationship.

Now, reportedly out there, she had been abused, if you will, in the relationship she's currently in with her current boyfriend. Her rep has says that absolutely not true, there has been on physical abuse in that relationship. And she had her choice words, as I told you just a moment ago. She has also announced that her latest album is going to be coming out soon.

Well, also, the cast of the hit show "Glee" - they are not going to be in high school forever. Ryan Murphy, one of the show's co- creators, says the plan is to age out the stars just like in an actual high school. They'll also introduce new characters as the seasons advance.

Also, the mansion used in the epic opening scene of the "The Godfather" is now up for sale. Would you want to live in that house? Some nasty stuff went down at that house. But you can live like the Corleones. You're seeing it here, it's gone at the market for $2.9 million. You got eight bedrooms, five bathrooms, four-car garage, two fireplaces, an English pub and an in ground swimming pool.

You will remember that movie that opening scene the 1972 with "The Godfather," Marlon Brando, Don Corleone, he welcomed the guest, granting favors at his daughter's wedding. The location of this mansion is on Staten Island at about $3 million, it can be yours.

Well, Federal employees have been told not to read WikiLeaks documents on their personal computers. We'll explain why when we come back. It's 31 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Hello. It's 33 minutes past the hour. Now, welcome back to CNN SATURDAY MORNING. I'm T.J. Holmes. Glad you could be here with us with the backdrop, the live picture there in downtown, Atlanta, Georgia. We are here at our CNN Headquarters. Wherever you may be, glad you are right here with us.

Now, of course, you have been hearing, the rest of the country has been hearing so much of the leaked documents, the secret U.S. documents being revealed by WikiLeaks. Well, the Federal government has a message for its employees: don't read them.

A government memo issued yesterday says, many of these documents are still considered classified. No matter if WikiLeaks released them or not. They're still considered classified and that any un- authorized worker looking (video gap) or at home on a personal computer could be punished. CNN (audio gap) diplomatic documents have revealed so far.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A week of WikiLeaks that kept world leaders in suspense. The most shocking revelations, a cable that showed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asking diplomats to spy on top U.S. officials, including the gathering of biometric data.

The Gold State's revealed, Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh has on record telling the U.S. General David Petraeus that he has, quote, "lied to parliament about U.S. attacks on terror suspects in the country." Quote, "Will continue to say, they are our bombs not yourself." The U.S. Embassy has sent out quoted him as saying.

The private views of the Bahraini and Saudi Kings on Iran's nuclear policy remain excruciatingly public. Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah pushed for a U.S. Military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, quote, "cut of the head from the snake." He urged the U.S. ambassador to Riyadh.

China was revealed be a not so strong ally of North Korea. One Chinese official described the state as acting like a quote, "spoiled child." Saying, you may not like them but they are our neighbors.

U.S. diplomat is also reported on Russia under Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as a quote, "mafia state," dissecting the money-driven politics of Putin's closest allies, including mayor of Moscow. And suspicions by U.S. diplomats that the close friendship of Putin and Italian President Silvio Berlusconi may also be fueled by financial interests.

Corruption in Russia is bad, the cables say, but in Afghanistan, it is overwhelming and that every level of society. Afghanistan's vice president was caught smuggling out $52 million in cash out of the airport, the cables revealed though he denies it. President Hamid Karzai himself was described by the U.S. ambassador to Kabul as quote, "a paranoid and weak individual unfamiliar with the basics of national building."

And then, there were the embarrassing profiles of world leaders. Russian Leaders Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev were described as Batman and Robin. Slanderous was Putin response to that.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel was described as simply as, "avoids risks rarely creative." And French President Nicholas Sarkozy, "thin-skinned and authoritarian." The most juicy cable possibly Libyan Leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, and the quote, "voluptuous blonde Ukrainian nurse that access his personal aide."

Is there more to come? Well, perhaps. WikiLeaks has only released only several hundred of the quarter of a million diplomatic cables on its possession.

Atika Shubert, CNN London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: All right. Thirty six minutes past the hour. Let's check again once again with our Reynolds Wolf. Keeping an eye -- what's the problem? Is there a problem spot really today weather wise? Would you say, Reynolds?

WOLF: I would say so, and it's going to be especially in parts of the Southern Great Lakes, the Ohio valley. The reason why planning simple is this is going to be the first decent snowfall we've seen so far this season. And that's going to cause a few wrinkles on the travel plans -- have been many of world's airports too.

For our friends that are travelling around the nations, some people that have the day-off there are going to be packing their bags and going around the nation, you will have some trouble spots other places around the nation. We'll let you know what to expect coming up.

You're watching CNN SATURDAY MORNING, and we'll see you in a few.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: All right. Developing story. Out of Spain, welcome back, where about 39 minutes past the hour here on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.

Air traffic has come to -- you can't even call this a slowdown or a standstill. It has come to a stop in Spain. They have closed airspace there. It's been closed since yesterday. What has happened here is that air traffic controllers are in some kind of a dispute right now. Of course, this is a dispute about money and benefits. But the air traffic controllers have essentially been on strike.

And if you have air traffic controllers who are not going to do their job, you essentially cannot have planes flying without those air traffic controllers. So, you have people right now stranded at airports. They are telling people there in Spain, don't even go to the airports. You need to get a hold of your airline. But right now, everything has been stopped as far as the air traffic goes.

Now, the military has been brought in, they're trying to control the airspace to some degree. But the air traffic controllers, as we know, Reynolds, and you've covered this plenty, when we talk about travel and whether whatnot, still, air traffic controllers are -- I mean, is there any more important of a role than the actual pilot when it comes. To fly, you've got to have these air traffic controllers that coordinate that delicate dance above the sky.

WOLF: It is essentially your -- basically your patrol traffic. I mean, it's basically the policeman in the middle of the intersection who is waving cars in.

HOLMES: Yes.

WOLF: Only in the atmosphere, in the skies above which is dangerous thing. It's always tough for parents, and for the adults, but, you know, they can always go and get a Martini here at the bar. The people you got to feel sorry for the poor kids. The kids are going to be saying, their certainly rough times at the airports.

And those rough times are going to be filled back here in North America especially the U.S., Chicago, all your major airports, you can have anywhere from a half hour to a full hour delay, all due to the snowfall. Cleveland, Chicago, Cincinnati, same deal, Salt Lake City, clouds, a little bit light snow. In fact, less than an inch. It might be enough to give you slight delay in 15 or 30 minutes on the tarmac.

Now, in Chicago, Cleveland and Cincinnati, the snowfall you're going to get is going to range anywhere from one to three, maybe four inches of snowfall. However, in Cleveland, we've been talking one to four feet.

And they're going to get a break today but more snow is going to be on the way. That snowfall could get especially heavy, especially over the next couple of days. Now, what's going to happen is we've had those prevailing winds out at the northwest, as it moves across the warm lakes by Lake Erie, causing the snow to pile up on parts of the Erie, they're going to get a little break any action today much the focus of the snow again in the Midwest, not very heavy but still, the big reason why we're talking about it is this is going to be some of the first significant snowfall we've seen this year.

Meanwhile, the west and rain and a little bit of frozen precipitation high off. Your high today in Chicago, 33 degrees by late afternoon. Early, the snowfall is going to be coming down. Denver, 44 degrees, 60 in Dallas, 58 degrees in Atlanta, and in New York, 48 degrees with a few high clouds. Overall, though, fairly nice day. Go out there for a jog on the avenue of the Americas. You should be all right -- T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Well, sounds good but we will talk to you again here shortly.

Well, powerful aphrodisiacs without a prescription. Apparently one of our guys here in the studio got really excited about this story. He's dropping things all over the place. But we are talking about aphrodisiac again, you need to go to a doctor for, you don't need to buy and some specially shop, they're just right down at particular aisle of that grocery store.

Our Nadia Bilchik will tell you what you need to be reaching for next time you're looking to put a little sizzle in your love life. There she is. We're going to check with her right after the break.

It's 43 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: It's 44 minute past the hour now.

I'm joined by Nadia Bilchik, our editorial producer. Always has something interesting kind of off the rail for us when she comes here. This is one that has a lot of people's attention, something spices in the cabinet, not just for cooking.

NADIA BILCHIK, CNN EDITORIAL PRODUCER: Yes. Not just for cooking.

HOLMES: OK.

BILCHIK: So, in Zanzibar which is an island of the East Coast of Africa, what women do is they take this what they call the erotic spice, the magic spice, Viagra for women or the Chikai (ph) which is -- have a smell first. Tell me if that has any effect. That is nutmeg.

HOLMES: OK.

BILCHIK: Now, what they do is they grind nutmeg and at least to be in fairly large quantities to have the effect.

HOLMES: How large the quantities would be --

BILCHIK: That would be probably four teaspoons that goes into porridge and that has to have over a period of time.

HOLMES: OK. What kind of effect this supposed to have?

BILCHIK: It is apparently the same effect as drinking wine. Now, you have to understand that Zanzibar is a Muslim country so no alcohol is allowed. But nutmeg is. And apparently, it causes arousal in women. And they have it before their weddings and I have to read you this, because this was found on a bottle of nutmeg in stone town which is a natural heritage site in Zanzibar.

HOLMES: OK.

BILCHIK: In a bottle of spice, a bottle of nutmeg renowned its aphrodisiac quality, it says, "this is better for drinks, cooking and for women that have given up strong desire for mating or to fulfill their men."

HOLMES: OK. But it's just for women, correct?

BILCHIK: They say women. Now, here in America, the Chicago Institute, it's the Smell and Taste Research Institute for smell and taste has come up with the fact that pumpkin pie, here is pumpkin pie and lavender have the same effect on men.

HOLMES: OK.

BILCHIK: Now, why? Let's think about it because the nutmeg cloves in spices and pumpkin pie.

HOLMES: OK. Then I'm going to back up here just for a second to the nutmeg and women. You said, the same effect as alcohol. Now, is it intoxicating in some way?

BILCHIK: Yes, the ethanol apparently has an effect on the central nervous system and gives you the same high as certain amount of alcohol but this is even better because sometimes, alcohol can be a depressant. This is supposed to be an arousal. And a well-known fact.

(LAUGHTER)

HOLMES: Reynolds is yelling for some nutmeg. Is this kind of the main one that people point out?

BILCHIK: Nutmeg is the main one, not cloves, ginger and other spices apparently do have a similar effect. Which is why pumpkin pie, pumpkin rolls, pumpkin bread, apparently also if you sniff them. Now, often people say, if they're selling their home, you should have the smell of baking bread, I say have the smell of hot pumpkin pie.

HOLMES: Yes. OK. I'm fascinated too by this nutmeg. Again, you said, four tablespoons or teaspoons.

BILCHIK: Well, it would be -- if they don't give exact quantities but they say large quantities.

HOLMES: OK. But over time, it's not like --

BILCHIK: And it's quite a strong pungent taste. That's what they say when women can deal with the pungent taste more easily than men. Which is why they have it in their porridge. And that's something you can just do and women have been reported to be much more loose, friendly and --

HOLMES: Loose, is not how we like our women. BILCHIK: We focus on eroticism, post nutmeg.

HOLMES: All right. Well, you take this with you --

BILCHIK: The magic spice or tea pie is what nutmeg is known at.

HOLMES: Nadia, I swear, I love it. This is why we have her, we've loved her here.

BILCHIK: And we can have some pumpkin pie with on nutmeg.

HOLMES: We will.

BILCHIK: For our morning, tea cup.

HOLMES: My wife is out of town. I don't need to be doing all this stuff right now. All right. Thank you, dear.

Well, I mean, we tell you about the president just made it back not too long ago. We saw Air Force One short time ago landing live at Andrews Air Force Base. The president took a quick hop over on Marine One to -- at the White House. I think I'm told he has made it back. We do have video of that to show you here in just a moment. We don't have a keyed just yet. I'll show it to you when I do have it.

Meanwhile, I can tell you that the U.S. is joining an international effort right now to help fight a huge wildfire that's burning near Haifa, Israel. At least 41 people have been killed. More than a dozen injured. The fire has burnt nearly 7,500 acres in three days. The worst of wildfire in Israel's history, police suspect this was deliberately set. U.S. is sending military planes as well as medical personnel to help out.

Also, investigators not quite sure what caused a tour bus driver to lose control before crashing in Vermont on Friday. Sixteen people injured here. The bus was taking students from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst to Canada for a skiing trip. And police say it crossed the median, rolled over. Doctors say all the student injuries appear to be minor. Don't know yet the driver's condition.

Also, Minnesota may finally have a new governor. Finally, I say that, Democrat Mark Dayton beat Republican Tom Emmer after a recount. According to the Minnesota Secretary of State, Dayton has a lead of more than 8,000 votes with 99.9 percent of all the ballots now being recounted. Now, still, his opponent could be taking this issue to court, however. He's questioning the recount, saying it looks as if more ballots were cast than there are voters in the State of Minnesota. Something we have to be up there.

Now, when we get to do that picture, I was telling you about just a moment ago with the president. Really dark, but if you look real closely, if you squint, if you squint really, really, just really squint really harder, you -- I'm kidding because I can't make it out myself, folks. But I'm told, in this picture, Marine One is in there somewhere. Not there. We're trying to get that picture for you keyed up. It's just dark in this particular picture. I apologize for that. But trust me, the president is back. We saw Air Force One land a short time ago. Just made his way over to the White House where the president is of course, going to be making comments little later this morning about the new trade deal.

There you go. It helps when you have a little light with pictures. But Marine One there landing there at the White House. The president, like I mentioned, has a lot on his plate today. A lot on his mind, including extending the Bush era tax cuts. That's on the table today in Washington. But do you think they should continue? That is topping our Political Ticker when we come back. Ten minutes to the top of the hour. Stick around.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We're about seven minutes to the top of the hour now. As you know, time is running out to extend the so-called Bush era tax cuts. They are up for a vote. An expected vote in the Senate today. Yes, on a Saturday, they're going to be voting but most just consider this political posturing. New Jersey's Democratic Senator Robert Menendez compares that tax cut dialogue with Republicans do negotiating with terrorists.

CNN's Deputy Political Editor Paul Steinhauser takes a look at where Americans at least stand on the issue.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey, good morning, T.J. We've got the Senate coming in later this morning, they're going to vote on extending those Bush era tax cuts. Remember, those tax cuts expire at the end of the year unless Congress takes action.

So, how do Americans feel about all this and who should get him and who shouldn't get those extensions? Check this poll out from CBS News from about two days ago. Interesting numbers here, only about a quarter of the people in this poll say that Bush tax cuts should be extended for the wealthiest of Americans. And that number is a little bit lower than other polls we've seen over the last couple of weeks.

Fifty three percent say, a slight majority in these polls say, that the tax cuts should be extended for families making under a combining come of a quarter million dollars a year, you could see at the bottom, 14 percent say, let's the tax cuts expire.

Well, the Democrats and Republicans agree on this issue? Maybe not. Look at this number from that exact same poll. You can see right here, 46 percent of the Republicans say, those tax cuts should be extended for all Americans. But that number drops to 25 percent for independents. And only one in 10 Democrats say that the tax cuts should be extended for everybody -- T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Thanks to our Paul Steinhauser, we'll continue to check in with him this morning. You know, that's on the table this morning in Washington today with the senators on a Saturday, working on those tax cuts. The president is also been talking about today, the new trade deal with South Korea. We're expecting some live comments from the president a little later this morning. We'll certainly bring those to you but this is the president just moments ago stepping off of Marine One after getting back from Afghanistan, the quick trip to Afghanistan. The president going to the White House this morning. It just happens moments ago. And again, he already has a couple of things on his agenda for this Saturday morning. And we will have it for you on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Stick with us, on the top of the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: OK. Admit it. OK. You've thought about this before. What about taking a gift you got last year that you never used and giving it to somebody else. We've got some rules of etiquette from Emily Post. The Emily Post Institute. That's coming up a later this morning. Peggy Post joining us live 9:15 Eastern to talk about the idea of re-gifting.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)