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CNN 10
The U.S. Debt Ceiling Fight; The Myth Of "Blue Monday"; Indonesia Builds A New Capital City. Aired 4-4:10a ET
Aired January 17, 2023 - 04:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COY WIRE, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hello, lovely people. Terrific Tuesday to you. I hope you had a wonderful weekend and a marvelous Martin Luther King Jr. Day
yesterday.
I am back. My voice mostly back. Thanks for all the love and well wishes on my Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok.
And special thanks to the Army JROTC program at Klein Cain High School in Klein, Texas. The Hurricane Battalion sent this lovely letter, and they
also sent their school colors and their pride in the form of this tie.
I`m Coy Wire. This is CNN 10, and we start with the dilemma over the rapidly approaching debt ceiling for the United States government.
What`s the debt ceiling? It`s the limit the total amount of money that the U.S. government has authorized to borrow to meet its existing legal
obligations, which include Social Security, Medicare benefits, military salaries, interest on national debt and tax refunds. That credit limit
currently sits at about $31.3 trillion.
Now, the debt ceiling can be raised, and it has been for decades hits the massive current debt. It was last raised in December of 2021, and is
expected to last until at least July of this year. Well, this has set up a major battle on Capitol Hill between the Republican and Democratic Parties.
Can the two sides agree to terms on which the debt ceiling could be raised again?
Here`s CNN anchor and chief business correspondent Christine Romans with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): We`d like to get a debt ceiling done in this work period.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: So, when it comes to the debt ceiling, it should not -- it should not be used or never be a matter
of political brinksmanship.
JANET YELLEN, SECRETARY OF TREASURY: It`s really up to Congress to raise the debt ceiling.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Ah, the debt ceiling, the eternal Washington food fight. So what is it? And why is it so
contentious?
The debt ceiling is the legal limit set by Congress on how much money America can borrow. Because the U.S. spends more than it takes in, it
borrows to make up the difference. The debt ceiling caps how much.
The problem is, it`s not enough. So, every once in a while, Congress needs to raise it. If it doesn`t, the Treasury Department won`t be able to pay
all the country`s bills in full and on time.
Now the Treasury does have a little wiggle room before it gets to that point, what it calls extraordinary measures to move money around. But
eventually, the accounting tricks run out and there`s no more avoiding the debt ceiling. That`s when the fireworks usually break out.
REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): Our debt is out of control. I mean, we`re talking about over $30 trillion.
SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA): Me? I get rid of the debt ceiling altogether. It serves no function except to create leverage.
REP. DAN CRENSHAW (R-TX): Look, they`re difficult political times. Nobody likes them but they are necessary evils in a sense because it`s the only
time that you can actually negotiate ways to get our budget under control.
ROMANS: Now, many say raising the debt ceiling is just a license to spend more money and grow the debt but it`s not really raising the debt ceiling
just lets treasury pay the bills America already owes.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There`s nothing to do with any new spending.
ROMANS: If Congress really wants to clamp down on debt, it has to do it a lot earlier like before passing spending bills or tax cuts, both of which
can add to deficits. Failing to raise the debt ceiling won`t keep a lid on debt. It just risks the U.S. defaulting on its obligations something that
could forever stain America`s global reputation.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Ten-second trivia:
In 2005, the British travel company used an unscientific formula to determine what kind of day of the year?
Best for shopping, the most depressing, the shortest, or the worst for traffic?
Blue Monday as they called it was supposed to indicate the most depressing day of the year and it typically fell on the third Monday in January.
Well, yesterday was the third Monday in January and while Blue Monday is a myth, some still use the marker to predict when travel purchases may peak
as people are looking to escape the cold temperatures for a sunny vacation destination.
The winter blues though, those can be very real. Ever hear of seasonal affective disorder?
Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta tells us all about it and gives us some tips on how to make the most of the winter months and to help us find our happy place amid
the wintertime grind.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even if you love the cold and winter sports, you`ve got to admit, this has felt
like a long winter. At least 12 million Americans suffer from something known as seasonal affective disorder or SAD, numbers probably even higher
than that.
Longer nights, shorter days, all of that leads to a chemical imbalance in the brain. What happens is your serotonin levels are down and melatonin,
which makes you sleepy, that`s up.
To make sense, symptoms can be mild or severe, you can get fatigue, lack of energy over sleeping, difficulty concentrating, and also cravings for food
that cause weight gain. That probably sounds familiar as well.
Diet and exercise can always help. Also, get outside as much as you can. You can also get a specialty designed light box. You just sit there and
stare at it for a while each day or at least put it on your desk, the point is you can get a boost of more natural light.
Another tidbit, find things that bring you joy -- open up the blinds in your house, play some of your favorite music, and be with your family.
Laughter and togetherness are always great therapy for the winter blues.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Up next, Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, is sinking into the ocean. So, the government of Indonesia has decided to build a completely
new capital city in a completely different location. But at what cost?
Aside from the estimated billion-dollar price tag for the futuristic smart city that the government officials are calling the world`s most
sustainable, critics say that the impact on the wildlife, ecosystem and indigenous people could be devastating.
More now from CNN international correspondent Kristie Lou Stout.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIE LOU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jakarta is a sinking city, scientists say the sprawling capital of Indonesia, home
to more than 10 million people is dropping below sea level at alarming rates, mainly due to excessive groundwater extraction.
The government of Indonesia has a plan, to carve a new capital city called Nusantara, out of the dense jungles of eastern Borneo. At an estimated cost
of more than $30 billion, it`s being designed as a futuristic smart city and touted by government officials as the world`s most sustainable.
JOKO WIDODO, INDONESIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The development of the new capital has to become a move towards building cities that are
healthy, efficient and productive, that are designed to be a place where the people are close from any destination, where they can bike and walk
everywhere because there are zero emissions.
STOUT: Officials describe the new capital as a sort of Garden of Eden, built along the contours of the natural landscape.
Nusantara is expected to be completed in 2045, and the government says it will be more than three and a half times the size of Singapore and home to
nearly 2 million people. Officials and developers claim it will have minimal impact on surrounding rainforests that are some of the oldest in
the world.
SOFIAN SIBARANI, ARCHITECT: We have in our -- in our guidelines is all the building, especially key buildings or government building needs to be
green, green building. It needs to be sensitive to the environment. It`s also futuristic. It`s a future -- smart city, smart government, smart
society, smart infrastructure.
STOUT: But some environmentalists disagree, warning of a potential habitat destruction.
AGUS BEI, MANGROVE ACTIVIST (through translator): The area is unique with its natural habitats and native species, and if its mangrove forests are
destroyed, all the native species will be gone, too, and the next generations can only hear the stories about the species because they don`t
exist anymore.
STOUT: There is another concern about the project: the potential displacement of indigenous tribes.
SIBUKDIN, BALIK TRIBE LEADER (through translator): The land and the farms are inherited from our ancestors. The land is the biggest asset of our
tribe. For us, the farm is the source of life. If our land is taken away, how could we farm? How could we live?
STOUT: To that, the government has said it will compensate landowners, and there are also some critics who say Indonesia should concentrate on fixing
the problems in Jakarta arguing millions of residents will remain in the current capital struggling to cope with pollution traffic and worsening
floods.
DORINA POJANI, UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND: Will it relieve congestion in Jakarta? Will it make whoever is left behind in Jakarta get to live a bit
better? Well, I don`t think so.
STOUT: As construction ramps up this year, many questions remain. But one thing is clear the road to creating Nusantara, Indonesia`s shining city on
a hill, will likely be an uphill climb.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: All right. Today`s 10 out of 10 is pandastic. Some baby pandas were having a tough time getting their bearings out of giant panda research and
breeding habitat in southwest China. These cute cubs were tumbling, stumbling and rumbling. For all you teachers out there with toddlers or any
of you with baby brothers or sisters, you know exactly the type of stress these researchers were feeling. My goodness. Pandemonium.
All right. Now, shout out time. This one goes out to Washington middle school in Miles City, Montana. Rise up.
I leave you with words of motivation today, one of my favorite Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. quotes in honor of yesterday`s national holiday.
If you can`t fly, then run. If you can`t run, then walk. If you can`t walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.
Keep moving forward y`all. No matter what you`re going through, you`ll come out through on the other side a little bit stronger. I`m Coy Wire. This is
CNN 10.
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