>> hope so. >> new office towers will be built on the site. >> hopefully moved before that happened. >> thanks for watching "around the world." cnn newman starts right now. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com right now, major news on that chemical spill in a west virginia river that made tap water undrinkable for hundreds of thousands of people. now there's a criminal investigation. also right now, target officials testifying up on capitol hill. they say they'll start using a new kind of credit card technology that will better protect your personal information. also right now, more than 2 million jobs. that's what obamacare could cost over time. this according to a just-released congressional report. we're going to get live reaction this hour from a top white house adviser.

hello, i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. we start with news on a criminal investigation into last month's water contamination in west virginia. nine counties were affected when a company released chemicals into the elk river. some schools are still using only bottled water. our investigative correspondent, drew griffin, is joining us from the cnn center in atlanta. tell our viewers what you have learned. >> reporter: what we have learned, a federal grand jury is now hearing testimony or issuing subpoenas in this case. that seems to be an elevation of the criminal investigation that is under way, wolf. not just looking at freedom industries, the company whose tank has two holes in the bottom of it, and those leaks led to this contamination of the water. but also at the water company itself and questions about why the water company in this valley was not able to detect this chemical in the water supply that has led to this

contaminati contamination. we ourselves have done our own testing, testing yesterday, which we will get the results back later this afternoon, wolf. but in the meantime, hundreds of thousands of people are still not drinking the water out of their taps, because they're afraid they're not being told the truth. and it's easy to understand why. the hearing last night, we asked the question to the head of the water company. it's called the west virginia american water company, whether this water is safe to drink. here's what he said. >> our customers' concerns are paramount to us. but the water is below the 1ppm health guidance provided by the cdc and that's what i have to tell customers. i can also tell you, i'm using it, my wife is using it. my employees are using it. many people i've talked to are, in fact, using it. >> reporter: now listen to this, wolf. from the county health director. his name is dr. raoul gubda, asked the same question just within minutes of that interview.

>> it's very alarming. and it's very concerning. because that raises the issue of trust. when state officials come out and say the water is safe, and now we have almost three weeks into it that people are not drinking they're water, they're demanding distribution of free water. and they're feeling like their water is not safe. >> are you drinking the water? >> i have drank the water. and my wife was also a physician has told me i better not be drinking the water. >> so this is a confusion that is happening. there are people just not secure in what they're being told about this water supply. in the meantime, there is this criminal investigation going on, which could lead to some very, very serious charges, wolf. but as i said, in the meantime, hundreds of thousands of people literally don't know what to do. should they drink this water or not? >> yeah, remember when the scare first erupted, they were told don't even shower with the water. don't even boil the water. because potentially could be

very, very dangerous. i know one of the issues, they keep referring to the cdc. but that study apparently, correct me if i am wrong, drew, that cdc study is a 20-year-old study and dealt with rats. that's one of the reasons like dr. gupta and some of these others are suggesting, maybe it's not so safe yet. >> reporter: and that is the problem. so what's the long-term, you know, problems that happen to rats? what's the long-term problems that happen to humans? what is the level that is safe and unsafe? i don't think they have the science there to definitively tell you, which is why you're hearing one thing from the water official and the other thing from the health department. i mean, obviously, right now, the safe thing to do is not drink the water until they figure it out. but that is creating long lines of people like you see right there, waiting for this water, demanding that bottled water be given to them. it's a real mess. and i might also add, wolf, this should not just be looked at in terms of a west virginia perspective. i talked to the u.s. attorney

there in charleston and he said look, this is a cheap wake-up call for the country. he said he can't believe that west virginia has the only tank in this country above ground that is leaking right now. and he thinks this should really be a wake-up call to everybody in the united states. >> you're in atlanta where the cdc is headquartered. have they issued any statements as far as you know? >> i have not seen one. i will check with them and get back to you. >> all right. thanks very much, drew, for that report. worrisome stuff coming out of west virginia. here in washington, the senate is today looking to massive credit card data breaches that en tangle target and other retailers. target's chief financial officer faced questions from members of the senate judiciary committee as they looked deeper into the branch that may have compromised the information of more than one-third of all americans. >> to begin, i want to say how deeply sorry we are for the impact this incident has had on our guests, your constituents. we have had ongoing relationships and information-sharing with law enforcement.

that needs to happen more broadly between our organization and private organizations more broadly, and the government to find solutions here. >> this is kind of an ongoing war. and the types of threats are changing all of the time. and the new technology comes on the market to protect all of the time. so we're constantly kind of raising the bar. so whatever gets developed needs to allow for that to happen versus locking in at any particular time what might seem acceptable. >> our joe johns is up on capitol hill, watching all of this. joe, what's the purpose of this hearing? what is congress trying to get at? >> reporter: well, they're talking about legislation, for one thing, wolf, but also trying to get a sense of just what happened here. what was the time line. all of this in anticipation of legislation that would require some type of a notice for consumers whenever their data is breached. in the incidents of target, we learned today they found out just a little bit earlier than we had known before, on december 12th, about this data breach that had occurred in their systems. and it wasn't until seven days

later that they actually ended up notifying their consumers. and you have to point out that this data breach, they believe, actually began right around thanksgiving, wolf. >> you know, target's chief financial officer also spoke about adding micro chips to the company's credit cards by 2015. it's a standard in europe right now. is this something congress could require of all credit card companies in the united states? >> well, i say it's probably a little bit more likely that the congress might pass a bill that requires notification of consumers before they actually get to passing legislation on something like that. simply because of the cost. there's a huge cost involved in putting smart chips into the payment card system. in fact, for target, it's about $100 million to do this just next year. if you were to impose that across the board, it would be a huge cost to consumers and the safest system is a system that has both smart chips and personal identification numbers,

pins. a lot of stores don't have the pin pad. so that would be another cost that congress might be imposing on consumers. all things for the lawmakers to think about, wolf. >> certainly is. joe johns on capitol hill, thank you. on wall street, a very different story today, after making a huge loss yesterday, 325 points, the dow is actually getting some gains today. these are live pictures from the board over there, 102 point up right now, 15,475. alison kosik over at the new york stock exchange. alison, help us make some sense of this. is this a rebound? what's going on? >> you know what this is, wolf, a lot of push and pull that's very normal to see with stocks. and you're seeing the market pretty much trying to find its footing again. but, you know, overall, analysts are still saying get ready, because a correction is coming. the dow is actually closer to it. but you look at the s&p 500. this index is bigger. it's more important. and here's a level that you want to keep your eye on. 1665.75, if you're really

watching to the penny. it's right now at 1758. still the s&p 500 has got 4% to go. the jury is still out whether or not it will actually hit correction territory. but if it does, it really shouldn't be a big surprise. because you look at job growth right now, it's not great. the feds also ending its stimulus, which has really been the main reason that you're -- that we saw the market run up so high last year. wolf? >> well, i guess a lot of folks who have 401(k)s, other investments, portfolios, are wondering, how worried should they be, the dow jones going down 1,000 points over the last few weeks? >> that's a good point. that's a lot of points, right? it's not easy when you open up your portfolio and see it drop so much from last year. but last year was really unique. i mean, you saw double-digit gains for the major indices. but at this point, wall street isn't too worried about what's happening, and many analysts aren't either. something to keep in mind. a correction doesn't mean recession. it doesn't mean, you know, a

repeat of 2009. what it does mean is the market is resetting. it's a way to avoid bubbles, and you know what, everybody is saying it's time. many are saying we're overdue for a correction. that a correction is actually the understatement of the year. especially since the market hasn't had one in more than two years. now, there are a lot of concerns about how the economy will do without the feds' stimulus. so what you're seeing is wall street really taking a breath. wolf? >> all right. alison, thanks very much. alison kosik of the new york stock exchange. the new jersey governor, chris christie, taking new questions about the so-called bridgegate scandal, rocking his administration. but his answers remain the same. he tells radio listeners, i knew nothing about it. we're taking a closer look at the controversy, how it's affecting his poll numbers, and a whole lot more. [ male announcer ] this is betsy.

her long day of pick ups and drop offs begins with arthritis pain... and a choice. take up to 6 tylenol in a day or just 2 aleve for all day relief. all aboard. ♪ all aboard. it's been that way since the day you met. but your erectile dysfunction - it could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medications, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sexual activity. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache.

to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than 4 hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or if you have any allergic reactions such as rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a 30-tablet free trial. eight million new jobs. new businesses. new factories. anncr: you're working hard. all day. every day. and it shows... new hope. still, it's harder than it should be to raise a family... save for retirement. so president obama is urging congress to give america... a raise. his plan raises the minimum wage to ten ten an hour. and requires equal pay for women to boost family incomes. congress...give america a raise, we've earned it.

introducing cardioviva: the first probiotic

to help maintain healthy cholesterol levels without a prescription. cardioviva. there's a potentially explosive congressional report that just has been released that recalculates the economic effects of the affordable care act. the highlight is a jump in the affect on the work force. let's go to lisa desjardins. tell us what they're expecting the impact of the obamacare program, the affordable care act, what it means. >> reporter: this is significant, wolf. i just got back from the briefing on this report. this report estimates that the affect on the work force will be far more significant than we had previously seen. the congressional budget office has effectively said they think it will be double the hit to the number of people in the work force as they thought. specifically, wolf, the cbo estimates that by the year 2017,

affordable care act will have the effect of taking out the equivalent of 2 million u.s. workers. now, want to say, first of all, that's not necessarily because they will be laid off. instead, cbo says those workers, most of them, will choose to leave their jobs, because they will be able to get health insurance outside of work through subsidized government health exchange. so these workers will have a choice that they don't have now, and that's what the white house is pointing to as something good in their response to this report. but, wolf, this is a hit to the economy. there will be 2 million fewer workers in the u.s. work force at a time when we already see our labor contracting, because baby boomers are getting older, those kinds of things. so this will affect the economy, overall. >> what is this new cbo report, the nonpartisan cbo report, suggesting? the impact of the affordable care act would be on the nation's budget deficits? >> reporter: right. that's an easy one.

there's actually no change in the expectations there. the congressional budget office is not giving an overall estimate of the deficit. they're sticking by their previous ideas. they say they still think the affordable care act overall will reduce the deficit by a little bit. now, this report does sort of slice up what different parts of the affordable care act, and they do say the insurance provisions of the bill will cost the government. they say overall and i asked the cbo's director about this specifically, they say overall they're sticking by their expectation that this health care law will end up reducing the deficit overall. >> lisa desjardins, i'm going to question one of the top economic advisers, gene sperling on this new report and other issues coming up later this hour, as well. lisa, thanks very much for that. meanwhile, new poll numbers may mean more bad news for the governor of new jersey, chris christie. we'll have the latest on that front when we come back. ♪

they lived. ♪ they lived. ♪ they lived. ♪ (dad) we lived... thanks to our subaru. ♪ (announcer) love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

there's nothing like being your own boss! and my customers are really liking your flat rate shipping. fedex one rate. really makes my life easier. maybe a promotion is in order. good news. i got a new title. and a raise? management couldn't make that happen. [ male announcer ] introducing fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex. this is the first power plant in the country to combine solar and natural gas at the same location. during the day, we generate as much electricity as we can using solar. at night and when it's cloudy, we use more natural gas. this ensures we can produce clean electricity whenever our customers need it. ♪

new jersey governor, chris christie, is adamant in a new interview. heinists insists he had nothing to do with the bridgegate scandal. he told radio listeners he first found out about the lane closures at the george washington bridge from news reports. the resulting traffic jams were thought to be political payback for a mayor who didn't support governor christie. dana bash is here with us, watching this story. what's the latest? his latest strategy, latest approach in dealing with this scandal? >> it's effectively to stay above it all. it's more of what we heard from that press conference, but i think in a more emphatic way.

he did reveal that the u.s. attorney, the one doing the federal probe, did subpoena his office. but he tried to take it in stride, saying he wants to get to the bottom of what happened, just like everybody else. on the key question, did chris christie know anything about gw bridge lane closures before they happened, he emphatically repeated his denial. >> did i authorize it, did i know about it, did i approve it, did i have any knowledge of it beforehand. and the answer is still the same. it's unequivocally no. >> over -- >> i had nothing to do with this. >> and over again. >> to make clear to everybody in the midst of, you know, all of the things that were reported over the weekend, that nobody has said that i knew anything about this before it happened. and i think that's the most important question. >> but christie did leave wiggle room on what former aide, david wildstein's attorney says he has evidence. countri christie knew about the lane closures while it was happening

in september. >> if i read that or someone said something to me about traffic issues up there, it wouldn't have been meaningful to me. because i didn't know there was any problem up there. >> christie said the first time he remembers hearing about the problem was when he read this october 1st "wall street journal" article about the port authority executive director calling lane closings abusive. but what may have been most note worthy about this radio appearance was what christie did not say. no attacks on david wildstein like in this memo christie supporters sent around this weekend, attacking wildstein's character with examples from high school, saying of wildstein, as a 16-year-old kid, he sued over a local school board election, and he was publicly accused by his high school social studies teacher of deceptive behavior. this was an embattled politician trying to stay above the fray. >> and i'll be damned if i'm going to let anything get in the way of me doing my job. >> determined not to feed the image of a bully. >> that while i am disappointed

by what happened here, i am determined to fix it. >> trying to come across as a politician scorned. >> but i'll tell you something. i'm not warrantying anything anymore after what happened. >> a source familiar with the investigation in the new jersey state legislature says they have now received documents from 4 of the 20 subpoenas sent out last month. no word as to what's in them. but we do understand that they have not got -- they have not gotten back evidence or any documents from wildstein, which, of course, is going to be the key person they're going to look for. >> aide after aide after aide now, all completing the fifth, refusing to cooperate, to testify, if you will, which is their constitutional right. >> it is. two of the key aides we know about, bridget kelly and bill stepien. bridget kelly the one who sent the e-mail, get ready for some traffic in ft. lee. she has decided to invoke her constitutional right of the fifth amendment, and bill stepien, who was really chris

christie's right hand, his campaign manager -- >> and wildstein earlier did the same thing as far as his fifth amendment. >> to testify but not for documents. we're not sure about documents. >> we'll see if he gives those documents. he gave some earlier. >> yes. >> hold on for a moment. gloria is with us, as well, gloria borger, senior political analyst. this is the new cnn rnc poll numbers, all americans, registered voters, choice for 2016. back in december, it seems like a long time ago, christie was slightly ahead of hillary clinton, 48-46%. now hillary clinton is way ahead of christie, 55-39%. that's a pretty striking switch. >> yeah, she has clearly been the beneficiary on the national scale of his down fall. and that's because of independent voters. christie, if you look deeper into the poll numbers, christie has lost 20 points with independent voters. and hillary clinton has picked up those independents. and so she is really gaining from his problems. whether that would last in the long-term, whether those

independents would end up voting for hillary clinton, of course, it's early. we do not know. but right now, this is a good -- has been good for her. >> and i was talking to a christie source before coming on with you who really underscored sort of the point that i made in the piece, which is that he wanted to stay above the fray. he wanted to be somebody who was not going to say the kinds of things you saw in that memo. and a large part of it is because a., they realized that maybe he antagonized wildstein by making comments about him -- christie being the high school football star and didn't know what wildstein was doing. but more importantly, because of his image, that they really need to get back so he doesn't lose 20 points with independent voters. >> but you can't do both. i mean, the point is, if an e-mail goes out to all of your supporters from your folks in new jersey and says wildstein had a tumultuous time in high school, and totally tries to destroy his credibility, and the governor goes out on the show on a radio show and says i've got to do my job as governor of new jersey, i think it's very

difficult line for -- >> it is difficult. but one thing to have under the radar e-mail that we're talking about. it's another thing to actually hear those words come out of christie's mouth. >> right. we would like to ask him the question, okay, what about that stuff in your e-mail. let's talk about it. but that didn't occur. >> the president of the united states, let's show our viewers this current job approval numbers in our brand-new cnn or rnc poll. all americans, how is president obama handling his job as president. right now, 45% approve of the job he's doing. december was 41%. couple months before there was 44%. gloria, within the margin of error, there's not a whole lot of change. 45% is better than 41%. but it's not 55 or 60%. >> well, no. it's not. and then there's this question of hoping that the president will succeed. and that's the number that's really down. you know, the 58%, whereas when he was inaugurated in 2009, that number, that 58% number, was at

86%. when he was inaugurated the last time around, you see it was at 70%. so people have kind of lost hope that the president is going to get things done. and 56% of the people in our poll, wolf, believe that his policies are going to fail. >> and that is so interesting, because the fewer people who are rooting for the president to win, the more that hurts democrats on capitol hill. because in any midterm election, it's a referendum on the president. but in this one in particular, they're hoping there is still enough people out there in the base, especially, who understand the importance of having a democratic congress or democrats in congress to help the president. >> you cover congress. in the senate right now, let's say there are eight or ten potentially vulnerable incumbent democrats. maybe six. the republicans need a net gain of six in order to become the majority in the -- are these vulnerable democrats all running away from the president of the united states? >> they're not running towards him. let's put it that way. i mean, you heard the interviews

and discussions we had in and around the state of the union, a time when people in the president's party generally rally around him. mark u dahl of colorado, mark beggart said come with me to alaska so i could tell you how much your policies are not good. that's where things are right now. they would really take his money. there is nothing on the books right now for the president to fund raise for senate democrats. i'm told it's probably going to happen soon. but i think too much to say they're running far as sort of a mass exodus. but they're certainly not -- >> i'll be curious, gloria, jeanne shaheen, democratic governor from new hampshire. scott brown, former governor from massachusetts, sold his house in massachusetts now lives in new hampshire much. he may challenge her. in a race like new hampshire, would she be willing to side with the president if he came to new hampshire or would she run away? >> she would be more likely than somebody from a red state, obviously. but again, you know, you have to sort of keep your distance, gauge the approval of obamacare

in your state. and, you know, i think the problem for all of these candidates is this question as a problem for the white house. this question of whether the president has reached a set point, that he's not going to get much of above it and not go below it. it's in the 40 to 45% range. and the question is whether people have given up paying attention to what the president is saying. you saw the viewership overall for the state of the union was way down. and so each politician has to weigh, you know, whether it's really cost effective for them to have the president standing next to them and campaigning publicly. as dana says, they'll always take his money. >> and one of the problems in new hampshire is that for jeanne shahe shaheen, potentially people who signed up for obamacare may have lost their health insurance if they liked their health insurance. you know how many health insurance companies compete for their business in new hampshire? >> zero. >> one. >> one company. so there is really no competition. >> right. which is why i think jeanne

shaheen did sort of lead the way for a lot of these -- they call them front-liner 2014 democrats, to propose changes to obamacare. that's why she is really one of the people who gets that. >> we'll see if scott brown runs. a lot of fun. >> we will. >> thanks very much. by the way, tomorrow in the "situation room," i'll sit down live with mitt romney, ask him the big question that's been on some people's minds right now. will he run again a third time in 2016. we'll talk about that, we'll talk about security at the sochi winter olympic games tomorrow, 5:00 p.m. eastern, in "the situation room." getting more schools online, president obama announces a major education overhaul. more details from one of the president's top economic advisers, gene sperling joining us live from the white house. we'll also ask him about this new congressional report on the economic effects of bashobamaca. that's next. across america people are taking charge

of their type 2 diabetes with non-insulin victoza®. for a while, i took a pill to lower my blood sugar, but it didn't get me to my goal. so i asked my doctor about victoza®. he said victoza® is different than pills. victoza® is proven to lower blood sugar and a1c. it's taken once-a-day, any time, and comes in a pen. and the needle is thin. victoza® is not for weight loss, but it may help you lose some weight. victoza® is an injectable prescription medicine that may improve blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes when used with diet and exercise. it is not recommended as the first medication

to treat diabetes and should not be used in people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. victoza® has not been studied with mealtime insulin. victoza® is not insulin. do not take victoza® if you have a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to victoza® or any of its ingredients. symptoms of a serious allergic reaction may include: swelling of face, lips, tongue, or throat, fainting or dizziness, very rapid heartbeat, problems breathing or swallowing, severe rash or itching. tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck. serious side effects may happen in people who take victoza®, including inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis), which may be fatal. stop taking victoza® and call your doctor right away if you have signs of pancreatitis, such as severe pain that will not go away in your abdomen or from your abdomen to your back, with or without vomiting. tell your doctor about all the medicines you take and if you have any medical conditions.

taking victoza® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may cause low blood sugar. the most common side effects are nausea, diarrhea, and headache. some side effects can lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. if your pill isn't giving you the control you need ask your doctor about non-insulin victoza®. it's covered by most health plans.

turning now to afghanistan. president hamid karzai reportedly holding secret talks with the taliban. the "new york times" says he appears to be hedging his bets after u.s. forces leave the country. supposedly all u.s. troops are supposed to be out by the end of this year. pentagon correspondent barbara starr is following all of this. barbara, as you know, the u.s., i think, wants to keep about 10,000 u.s. troops in 2015-2016. karzai is causing all sorts of headaches for the obama administration. now there's reports he's talking to the taliban.

what's going on? >> reporter: well, you know, wolf, it wouldn't be the first time the karzai administration has talked to the taliban, or at least tried to. several efforts in the past, and they really haven't gone anywhere. why might karzai be doing this now? well, he's about 60 days away from the next presidential election in afghanistan. he is not able to run again. but he has got legacy issues, he wants to make sure he's getting the best deal he can, many people say, before he leaves office. and he wants to ensure at a minimum, his own security, one can only suppose, in the next regime. senator john mccain is someone you talked to all of the time, has been very adamant in his criticism of karzai and his criticism of karzai and the u.s. not coming to it an agreement to let those troops stay. i want you to listen to some of what mccain has been saying lately. >> we should not be surprised that president karzai has been

having secret contacts with the taliban, because he knows that we are leaving. and therefore, he has to try to accommodate for that most likely scenario. doesn't have any sign-off. president karzai is paranoid and irrational. but like most people with paranoia, there is a basis for that. and when he reads that the united states is planning on having everybody out by 2017, then he makes a accommodations, such as trying to negotiate with the taliban. that is completely understandable. >> so again, i think most people would tell you, karzai is looking to cut the best deal he can, you know, before he leaves office. but for the obama administration, they can only pledge, even if this new deal is signed that would keep u.s. troops, only to keep them really until the end of the obama administration. it would be up to a new president of the united states to decide how to proceed after

2017, and even as we speak, wolf, at the white house today, a big meeting with top officials on the way ahead in afghanistan, talking about ckarzai, and talking about how to monitor pakistan if the u.s. isn't allowed to keep that listening post of u.s. troops on the afghan side of the border, how do you keep an eye on al qaeda in pakistan and maybe even more dire, how do you keep an eye on pakistan's nuclear program. wolf? >> there was talk in the pentagon, pentagon planners saying if the u.s. is going to keep in 2015-2016, 10,000 u.s. troops, let's say another 4 or 5,000 nato troops, they've got to know very, very soon in order to make those plans. otherwise everyone is going to be withdrawn by the end of this year. what is the drop-dead deadline, according to pentagon planners, for a decision on whether or not to keep any troops in afghanistan after the end of this year? >> reporter: i am smiling, wolf, because that's the key question.

that's the question we ask around the pentagon almost every day. that is the question they do not want to answer. they want to give themselves as much flexibility as possible. one can only suppose in hopes after the presidential election in afghanistan in 60 days, a new president will be more forthcoming in signing the agreement. but look, by july, the u.s. will have the basic force, that follow-on force, of 10,000 in shape and in place in afghanistan. plus whatever other troops it has there. so the -- sometime between july and december, they have got to make the decision either pull everybody out, the 30,000 or so that are left right now, or leave the 10,000 there. wolf? >> you remember what happened a couple years ago in iraq, all u.s. troops were pulled out, no residual force left in. we see what's happening in iraq, obviously, right now. a real, real disaster unfolding there. all right, thanks very much, barbara starr at the pentagon. a new congressional report

sheds some light on the economic impact of obamacare. so what does it mean for all of us? we're going to get details from one of the president's top economic advisers. there he is, gene sperling. he's standing by live at the white house. we'll discuss right after this. welcome back. how is everything? there's nothing like being your own boss! and my customers are really liking your flat rate shipping. fedex one rate. really makes my life easier. maybe a promotion is in order. good news. i got a new title. and a raise? management couldn't make that happen. [ male announcer ] introducing fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex. afghanistan, in 2009. orbiting the moon in 1971. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance

is often handed down from generation to generation. because it offers a superior level of protection. and because usaa's commitment to serve current and former military members and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve.

president obama made a major education announcement today, speaking at a school in delphi, maryland, unveiled a federal government partnership with several tech companies that will provide computers, faster internet service for the nation's school children. >> if you're studying designs science and actually seeing the engineers who built rover, curiosity rover and being able

to see the rover on the martian landscape, it makes vivid and real math and science in a way that is more interesting to the students. which means they're more likely to be engaged and can potentially do better. and this is how it should be for every student and every teacher and every school and library in the country. that's how it should be for everybody. not just some. >> gene sperling is the director of the national economic council, an assistant to the president on economic policy. he's joining us now from the white house. gene, thanks for coming in. >> thanks, wolf. >> clearly a very ambitious $2 billion plan. what's the time table here to get it fully implemented, to get all the schools in the united states, kindergarten through high school on board. how many children are going to be affected by what the president announced today? >> so what the president announced last year in the state of the union was the goal that in five years, we would bring high-speed broad band to the

schools that would cover 99% of our children. and the reason he was doing that, wolf, is because the entire vision that we would like to see in the classroom where young people learn at their desk with a digital device at their own pace, none of that can happen if 70% of our schools don't even have the broadband necessary to empower more than a computer lab in their school. so what happened now is that because of the hunger, i think, america has had to make good on this goal, the fcc has found available money, reprioritized, reallocated, so they could do a down payment, $2 billion, which will connect 20 million young people. about half of the young people that today are not connected to high-speed broadband. and then what was just really almost unprecedented today was that the president made a call to the private sector. and they responded with $750 billion. that's a b. three quarters of a trillion dollars in commitments.

which included laptops, and making internet service available for lower income young people at home. microsoft offered, you know, deep discounts and free word packets for low-income schools. apple offered $100 million in tablets and other devices for low-income schools. so this was an enormous down payment. and i think it shows just the hunger in the country for action and to move forward on a national goal when the president does a call to action. and it showed we can do it even without congress and without adding a penny to the deficit. >> and those high-tech firms, they deserve a lot of credit for getting involved and helping to educate the young people of the united states. >> wolf, i added -- i'm sorry, it was three quarters of a billion, so the b is the three quarters of a billion dollars, but that is a lot for seven companies to put forward for a

national goal. three quarters of a billion dollars. >> yeah. they're doing important work. while you're here, let's talk about this congressional budget office report today. because there are a lot of headlines coming out that there are a lot of numbers. i assume you've gone through it already. >> yes. >> one of the things sparking a lot of buzz out there, the affordable care act could wind up costing the u.s. labor force the equivalent of about 2.3 million workers by the year 2021. that sounds very, very disturbing. go ahead and react to what is in this nonpartisan cbo report. >> well, first of all, let's look what's happened so far. people said jobs would be destroyed by the affordable care act. 8.1 million private sector jobs have been created in the last 45 months. that's the best since the 1990s. that's what's happened since the affordable care act. it also showed that the affordable care act would still be taking -- still reducing the deficit by $1 trillion. the health care costs are the

lowest that they have been in a very long time. what this report said should not suggest this is going to cost jobs. what this report said is a rather obvious point which is that as people have greater access to health care, there is going to be some two-parent families where someone says i'm going to work a little less because we can get health care and i'm going spend time raising my children. there is going to be somebody out there who because they can afford health care has wanted to retire and may retire earlier. this is about giving americans more choices. and on the overall impact on what it's going to mean for jobs, well, i think that's an incomplete number, because we know that with lower health care costs, we're going to have more productivity, some experts predicting hundreds of thousands of more jobs due to that. so i think the key is, we have seen that the affordable care act brings down costs. that's going to be good for wages, that's going to be good for productivity. and the numbers that are being incorrectly portrayed as costing jobs are just saying that as americans have more choices,

just like social security gives them the choice to work less and retire with dignity, providing health care is going to provide some families who working overtime, working very hard. some will choose to work a little less, spend more time with their family, because the affordable care act has offered them a more affordable option for health care. >> do you accept that number, 2.3 million workers, fewer workers than would have been the case by 2021 because of the affordable care act? >> no, i don't. >> that's in the report. >> first of all, i don't accept that portrayal. because that's implying this is costing jobs, as opposed to just giving more americans the option. people who are working more than they want to simply for health care. some of them will have the option of working a little less. and in terms of what the overall impact on jobs will be, i think you're going to -- you have to look at what the impact on productivity is, because people are healthier, working harder. having less sick days. you have to look at what is the

productivity benefits of having lower health care costs in our economy. i believe very strongly, and i think it should be very clear, the affordable care act is good for growth, good for job growth, good for deficit reduction. and these numbers should not be misinterpreted to suggest somehow this is -- this is costing jobs. just look what's happened so far. since the affordable care act took place, we heard all the predictions of job-killing. and we have seen 8.1 million jobs in 45 months. that's -- gist think, the whole previous decade before, we only created 3.8 million jobs in the economy. >> well, but remember, the affordable care act didn't take full effect until october 1st. >> well, no. i mean, what we heard is that this was going to threaten people, and, of course, lots of parts took effect earlier. no, i think that what you're seeing is historically low health care costs. and i think all this report is doing -- i mean, wolf, think of it this way.

you could sit there and say that before social security happened, somebody would say, oh, people are going to work less hours, because they can retire. or if you don't allow child labor, there will be less hours worked, because people are going to school. these are the types of things that in an advanced economy give people more options and choice. they give people more options and choice to live their lives as they have. when you have two parents and they're both working full-time to provide health care and they don't feel they're there to do homework with their kids and this allows one of the kids to work a little less because they have health care, that's not costing jobs. that's giving typical hard-working american families more choices and more options. and that's a positive thing. >> getting ready to wrap up his tenure over at the white house. got another month to go. we'll stay in close touch. thanks very much. >> thank you, wolf. >> meanwhile, two senators say secretary of state john kerry admits that u.s. policy has been a failure. the state department calls that

a mischaracterization. we're going to get the latest on that front right after this.

two senators say secretary of state john kerry has admitted that u.s. policy in syria is failing and they say kerry is calling for a change in strategy, according to reports in the daily beast, "washington post," bloomberg view. but the state department calls those comments a mischaracterization of what kerry said during a private meeting. let's bring in our foreign

affairs reporter. officials where you are at the state department are disputing these claims by republican senators john mccain and lindsey graham. what are they saying? >> basically, wolf, this is about a conversation that secretary kerry had over the weekend at the munich security conference with about 15 congressmen. some of those congressmen, senator mccain and others talked to these journalists and said in the meeting that secretary kerry said the policy was failing. that the u.s. administration needed to do more. the state department came out strong and said listen, he didn't say that. obviously secretary kerry was talking about concern for the situation on the ground in syria, the growing humanitarian situation, growth of extremists on the ground. but he didn't explicitly call for a change in policy. dana bash actually spoke to one of the senators in the room with secretary kerry and said well, it is true that the secretary did not call explicitly for a change in policy. he did say that he was concerned

about the situation. he said more needed to be done to help the opposition, that they needed to work more closely with the russians. the russians aren't exactly being helpful. and that they could do more. and also, that this chemical weapons deal that was really the thing that staved off military action against syria has stalled. so secretary kerry's a little bit of both. he wasn't actually saying that the administration policy was failing. that they needed a new wholesale policy. but the secretary has been pretty vocal about the fact that he wants to see a little bit more done to help the opposition, and a more robust policy, wolf. >> there's no doubt that there's a lot going on. let's not lose sight of the fact that the humanitarian crisis in syria is awful. well more than 100,000 people killed. millions of people displaced from their home's refugees. we'll continue to watch the story. thanks very much. that's it for me. thanks very much for watching. i'll be back 5:00 p.m. eastern

in "the situation room." "newsroom" continues right now after a quick break with brooke baldwin. being your own boss! and my customers are really liking your flat rate shipping. fedex one rate. really makes my life easier. maybe a promotion is in order. good news. i got a new title. and a raise? management couldn't make that happen. [ male announcer ] introducing fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex. [ male announcer ] introducing fedex one rate. she loves a lot of it's what you love about her. but your erectile dysfunction - that could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical

conditions and medications, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sexual activity. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than 4 hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or if you have any allergic reactions such as rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a 30-tablet free trial.

here we go. top of the hour. you're watching cnn. i'm brooke baldwin. thank you so much for joining me here on this tuesday. developing right now, a new report suggests obamacare will push two million workers out of the labor market. why? one of the reasons, folks will choose to get health care benefits from the government rather than from their jobs. the white house is pushing back on this big-time. i want to go straight to capitol hill to lisa desjardins. explain this to me. >> right, okay, this can be complicated, but i'm going to make it very simple for everybody. what the congressional budget office is saying here is that over the next ten years, the equivalent of two million people will