stories we'll be breaking down in the next 15 minutes. on the ground in afghanistan they are trying to rescue one of their own after he turns up in a taliban video. live details on who this private first class is, where he may be and his families prayers to get him home safely. cnn exclusive, front lines of afghanistan as u.s. troops push into the hotbed of taliban violence. see their mission as they cure villages and disrupt drug trafficking rings. with president obama pushing congress for health care reform and legislation soon a new poll is suggesting the president's approval rating is slipping on key issues like health care. approval of his leadership on health care now dropping below 50% for the first time. we're going to take a look at the president's six-month report card. celebrating the life and legacy of the legendary cbs man walter concite.

we'll talk to dan rather who took over the chair following his retirement. a disturbing video of a u.s. soldier captured by the taliban. a 28 minute video providing the first glimpse of private bergdahl since he disappeared from his base in eastern afghanistan nearly three weeks ago. the u.s. military is condemning it as propaganda and violation of international law. in the video the 23-year-old talks about his family and his fears. >> i am scared, scared i won't be able to go home. it is very unnerving to be a prisoner. >> this morningberg doll's trends and family are praying for his return. barbara starr is following the developments from the pentagon. do they have any idea where he will be. >> reporter: if they do, they

are not saying. bowe bergdahl disappeared june 309. they have been looking for this american so this since then, looking for the possibility he could be on either side of the border in afghanistan or pakistan. certainly they are not saying publicly. now that this private first class is a prisoner, we hear the tape, we hear him and private first class bergdahl tells us how he feels. have a listen. >> my girlfriend who is hoping to marry. i have my grandma and grandpa. i have a very, very good family and i love them back home there. and i miss them every day that i'm gone, i miss them. and i'm afraid that i might never see them again and that i'll never be able to tell them

that i love them again, and i'll never be able to hug them. >> throughout the 28 minutes, his captors put a number of political questions to him. he answered, even toned answering political questions about the war under duress. his family in idaho has asked for privacy, asked for the media not to bother them. they have issued a short statement over the weekend saying, quote, we hope and pray for our son's safe return to his comrades and then to our family. we appreciate all the support and expressions of sympathy shown to us. that from private first class bergdahl's family in idaho. the military is keeping the family fully informed of all the developments. after three weeks they are continuing to hunt for him. john. >> certainly our thoughts and prayers are with bowe and his family. barbara at the pentagon. thanks so much. friends of the captured soldier

are urging to get him home. one spoke directly to him. >> bowe if you see this, know that we love you and are praying fervently for you and prayers are going up for you from all over the world. stand tall and stand firm. to all our valiant men and women in uniform, know that the american people believe in you, support you and are 100% behind you. we thank god every day that you have our backs. >> bergdahl's neighbors say they didn't know about the capture but asked not to talk about any publicity that might compromise his safety. a drew was able to safely eject after taking off from kandahar airfield. the fourth wreck in three days. no indication insurgent activity caused the attack. troops pushing deeper into a

taliban stronghold. it's part of the country that produces more opium than any place else in the world. ivan watson on the front lines during the afghanistan-pakistan border where u.s. troops are gathering and destroying chemicals used to produce opium. what can you tell us about the drug trafficking ring? >> reporter: i'm standing in front of 1500 bags of poppy seed assembled by this battalion. these have been gathered in raids where the taliban believed to control the area up until this marine push into the area. marine offensive into southern hellmann province which could be described as the opium capital of the world. more than 90% comes from afghanistan and a lot from hellmann province.

significant portions of this province in southern afghanistan were controlled by the taliban. this is a major shift for the u.s. military which has argued in the past that it is not into the drug interdiction business. it is focused on combating insurgency. kiran, last night we went out with the marines on the raid into the this. let's take a look at part of that visit. >> reporter: we're on a night operation in hellmann provence. right now the marines back here are rigging these chemicals with explosives, c 4 plastic explosives. you can see them getting ready for what will be a controlled explosion in a couple of hours. now, the reason for this. the reason these plastic explosives are being placed there is these chemicals are believed to be used to process heroin, more than 90% of the world's heroin comes from afghanistan and a bulk of that

comes from this very province in southern afghanistan which has not really been under the control of the afghan central government in years. part of the reason why this operation and the push this month is sup a big deal because the marines have moved into areas where the taliban have been able to operate freely, where drug car cartels have operated freely. you can see miles of poppy fields growing where heroin is later produced using chemicals. in addition to this marines this found chemicals for improvised explosive devices, deadly weapons that have helped make this the bloodiest month yesterday for nato forces in afghanistan. in a couple of hours, we expect before the sun comes up that these stalls here in this busy bazaar will go up in smoke.

>> reporter: kiran, we did film that explosion two hours later. let's take a look at that blast and the huge chemical fire that followed. >> wow. >> reporter: this is, of course, just part of this operation that's under way here. kiran, back to you. >> ivan, it's interesting you talked about this shift. the obama administration it and believed at first in destroying these poppies and opium crops, it was driving some of the farmers there to actually support the insurgency. how are they going to tackle that challenge as well on top of all this? >> reporter: that is the big question here because it's impoverished country. most of the locals here rely on this opium growing industry. so how can you replace their

livelihood. all that live here, this is basically the next season's harvest that's going up in smoke when marines drop bombs on this. well, you're hearing that the u.s. government, that the british government, and united nations plans to pour aid into this area. that's the challenge. this has been going on for eight years. there's been efforts to reconstruct. they haven't seen results. they are promising aid to rebuild this place. one of the big challenges also, kiran, the afghan central government hasn't had the backbone and credibility and manpower to really follow through along with the international partners for a program for the impoverished people here. they are going to have to follow

this. >> in afghanistan this morning, thank you. apollo 11 astronauts will be at the white house to mark the 40th anniversary of their historic walk on the moon 40 years ago today the eagle landed on the moon. neil armstrong took mankind's first steps on the moon surface. buzz ald ron followed. he spoke last night. >> we are moved by the young american president that challenged himself and us to make polled and not retreat. in the past john f. -- the path john f. kennedy inspired us to choose was not easy. in fact, it was very hard. but it served the betterment of america and ultimately the ending of the cold war. >> the apollo 11 astronauts are

pushing for the next giant leap. later john zarrella will look at the future of the spaceflight. that's one of those, you always remember where you were when you heard the words "the eagle has landed." >> fascinated, still a lot of conspiracy theorists questioning whether or not it happened. we'll talk later to a syracuse university professor who helps debunk those myths. >> some people have too much time on their hands. >> interesting every life changing event in american history there's a conspiracy theory about why it might not have happened. we'll be right back. much more ahead at the 11 minutes after the hour.

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good choice. only meineke lets you choose the brake service that's right for you. and save 50% on pads and shoes. meineke. well, unfolding as we speak, the leading lender for main street in desperate need of help could get a bailout. not from uncle sam. christine romans joins us with a deal, cit, helping businesses out. >> tens of thousands of small businesses are trying to figure out what kind of deal will it be. who will help them, the bond holders, will they salvage this company. this is why cit matters to so many people on main street.

>> reporter: at his store in massachusetts, he's never seen this. >> i'm not beauty to call it quit now. we'll be around, find suppliers. i just feel sorry for the manufacturers that i would lose. >> he's one of a million small businesses that depend on the cit group, the latest lender to face financial ruin. they were denied a bailout by the federal government because its failure wasn't deemed detrimental to the financial system as a whole. they did receive $1.3 as part of the initial bailout. this time they issued a statement saying a high threshold for government assistance. bottom line, cit wasn't big enough to get help. the national retail administration said that wasn't right. >> they are too important to fail. it finances the life blood of the retail economy. >> reporter: they specialize in the type of lendering called factoring. it keeps businesses afloat so

they can stay operational while the money rolls in. >> if they are not there that 80 to 90% up front cash the supplier needs in order to produce more goods to sell to another retailer isn't available. consequently it's likely the supplier will go out of business. maybe from the big picture cit is too small to deal w but from the bottom end, this is the small business. >> reporter: he says he doesn't know why they bailed on the bailout but he fears it could mean lights out for small businesses across the country. >> that's why so many are nervous about what kind of deal cit will get and how much breathing space it will allow them. this is a company with cash flow problems, many people they are lending money to are not able to pay loans back. this is something we've seen again and again. we don't know the details what kind of deal there is, if any right now, but we know it does not involve the government. a if you phase.

this time they step back and say wall street, free market economy on your own. >> what are the chances cit will reinstruct you're enough loans to maintain cash flow. >> in the near term, that's what they are trying to do to buy time. the deal worked out is something a very punitive deal, 10% plus interest rates on those loans. that would just buy them a little time to keep the cash flowing for main street while ci advertisement tries to figure out how to keep its own cash flowing. this is not the end of the story. >> christine, thanks so much. he was the most trusted man in america. he passed away at 92. up next dan rather standing beside walter cronkite with his reminiscences of the anchor man. stay with us. we'll be right back. it's 18 minutes after the hour.

welcome back to the most news in the morning.

tributes pouring in for walter concite who passed away friday at 92. for journalists he was the ultimate role model. dan rather replaced him. he now anchors, reports. interesting the 40th anniversary of the man landing on the moon. walter cronkite was not just a huge reporter but a fan as well. >> when reports came in walter was not doing well two or three or four weeks ago, i said to myself he'll make it to the anniversary of the moon landing. he did make it to the anniversary of the takeoff. but not only with the space program but when they broke this, it resonated with me, for a so-called boomer generation of

americans, walter cronkite represented a time line of their life. civil rights movement, kennedy assassination, vietnam, the space program. in that whole period of mid 20th century america, he was the time line. >> for a large part of america, too, who were born after 1981, they don't know walter cronkite's history. so many people are hearing this talk about america's anchor man, the most trusted man in america. they are not quite sure what to make of it. what would you say to those people in describing walter cronkite? >> first of all, let me pause and say my thoughts are with the cronkite family. his children whom i have met over the years. beyond that and in answer to your question, he helped in vent, i would say more than any other person, he invented television news as we know it today. you're quite right people born after 1981 say who are you talking about here. this is a man, in terms of news

that brought us into the television age. news came of age after the assassination of kennedy sin '63. before that newspapers were dominant, after that television was dominant. that's number one. number two, walter cronkite set the platinum standard for quality news of integrity. that the people who watched the news were people who were passionately, actively, personally involved in gathering the news. i've said it before and i think it could be said many times. walter cronkite was not just playing a reporter on tv, he was a reporter. >> he was sort of the consummate reporter. >> he was the consummate reporter. i think one reason he was so popular as the anchor man and he was the country's most popular anchor man for no fewer than 12 or 13 years was his passion for gathering news and presenting news. he loved it. walter cronkite was a

competitive fellow. >> yes, it was written lars week nobody beat him to a story. also opinion had a place in news. we see that a lot. wasn't one to let his emotions show, but on a couple of prominent occasions, in 1963 when he announced kennedy had died -- his father died in '62, i always get that mixed up -- he took back his glasses and choked back emotion. you could see it 40 years ago today when the eagle had landed, he took off -- he rubbed his hands together and couldn't believe it and let out a wow! the natural honesty and authenticity of walter cronkite affected him he let you know about it. it was honest reaction, not the calculation of so many on television. >> often thought of that as one who succeeded him, no one could

replace him. when i succeeded him i thought about the key to walter's connection with the audience. you use the word "authenticity." he was authentic. there was no prettience about walter cronkite. as far as news was concerned, straight up, he didn't like gadgets and gimmicks. for election night coverage, as the years went by, there was always a new gadget or gimmick. walter had very little patience. what you saw on television was what you got and you knew it. about opinion, he felt very strongly as anchor he shouldn't give his opinion. other people could give analysis and commentary, but his role was to be the honest broker of information. at the time he broke ayatollah, he went to vietnam, the tet

offensive, walked the ground and made an assessment. as he has written in his book called "a reporter's life" he decided in there he would speak up. he did and it made a difference. >> do you think it was a turning point in the war? walter called that his proudest moment. >> that was. let's face it, he had a lot of proud moments, how he handled the kennedy assassination, the moon landing. i wouldn't say it was the turning point but it was a very important turning point. i wouldn't argue with anybody who said from a historical perspective it was the turning point. because after that, it was pretty clear things had to change in terms of american policy in vietnam. it took a while but change they did. >> he stepped down in 1981, cbs had a mandatory retirement policy when you hit the age of 65 you had to retire. you worked evening news until

73, morley safer, mike wallace until 88. in later years walter cronkite sort of regretted he left at 65. was he pushed out too soon by the system? >> first of all, i know there's a lot of misunderstanding about this, he wasn't pushed out at the time. i know this because i talked to him about it and told him straightforwardly, if you don't want to go, not ready to go, he interrupted me mid sentence and said, dan, you don't understand. i can't wait to get out of here. the reason as his long time aide said, he wanted to go out as a champ, on top. who can blame him for wanting to do that. and he chose the time. he didn't have to go at that time and he knew, but he wanted to get out. what happened is once he got out, he said he wanted to sale and spend his own time. but after a few months, i do think that he regretted it.

he felt he had left too soon, which i think is fairly normal for a lot of people who leave different high-profile jobs. but no doubt he wanted to go out at that time. he felt it was the right time. the game was changing. television news game was changing. cnn had started up. abc news which had not been a competitor worthy of the name was beginning to gain ground under the late, great. concept of news was changing. walter knew it. he knew it would be fiercer, more kpe tissue environment e wanted to go on top. people forget walter cronkite as anchor didn't start on top. >> huntley-brinkley on top. >> took him seven years to get on top. he knew what it had taken to get there. once becoming, if you will, the heavyweight champ of the rightfully legendary walter cronkite, the iconic figure, he wanted to go out on top and he

deserved it. >> we'll all remember. >> good to see you. >> thank you so much. 28 and a half minutes after the hour.

if we don't act, medical bills will wipe out their savings. if we don't act, she'll be denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition. and he won't get the chemotherapy he needs. if we don't act, health care costs will rise 70%. and he'll have to cut benefits for his employees. but we can act. the president and congress have a plan to lower your costs and stop denials for pre-existing conditions. it's time to act.

welcome back to the most news in the morning. 31 minutes after the hour. top stories, u.s. military says taliban video shows a captured american soldier is pure propaganda in violation of international law. he's scared he will not be able to go home. his family and friends say they are praying for his safe release. south carolina governor mark sanford is again apologizing for an extramarital affair with his argentine soul mate and asking

people in his state to forgive him. he wrote an op-ed saying god will change him so he can emerge more humble and more effective leader. sanford said he would work to repair his relationship with his wife and the mother of their four sons. pulitzer prize winning author frank mccourt has died. he was gravely ill with meningitis and treated for skin cancer. he was famous for "angela's ashes" recounting his childhood in ireland. it turned him into a literary celebrity. he spent three decades as a high school english teacher in new york city. president obama pushing health care reform today. he'll be speaking at the children's national medical center this afternoon. the president has been waging an all-out campaign to gain support to help the 46 million americans with no health care. cnn jim acosta live in knoxville, tennessee where you had a chance to see firsthand the struggles that people who

have no health care are facing. >> reporter: that's right, kiran. you may be wondering with this health debate going on how the uninsured go about getting treatment. in many cases they rely on charities like this one in knoxville called remote area medical. they have been caring for the uninsured for decades. it started before sunrise. people in wheelchairs and holding babies waiting in line for their number to be called. >> who has got number one? >> i do. >> okay. come on down. >> with that the doors were open. >> 141, where are you at? >> reporter: within minutes the charity organization remote area medical transformed this high school in tennessee into what looked like a hospital for the uninsured. >> we have had to cut back on operations in places like haiti and guatemala and india because of the tremendous demand here in the united states. >> we're getting into the

nitty-gritty here. >> reporter: the group's founder stan brock took us on a tour that provides medical, dental and eye care at no cost. >> they are all doing it for free. >> reporter: licensed doctors, dentists and nurses fly in from across the country on their own dime. some patients can barely make it through the front door. >> the way my blood pressure was so high, i might have had a stroke. >> if these folks weren't here. >> reporter: need your teeth pulled new york city problem. need glasses, stan has got them. >> this is all free. >> absolutely free. >> brock says it's washington that can use the glasses. >> would you like to see the president? would you like to see members of congress come to one of your events and see these folks firsthand? >> well, i think that would be a marvelous idea. nothing would please me more than for us to be put out of business here in the united states so we can concentrate on

these places where the need is so, so desperate. >> one thing brock and his volunteers can't stand, turning people away. >> seeing the line here, seeing the need for services in so many ways is very clear evidence we need health care reform in the country. >> as the sun was setting, remote area medical had treated nearly 500 patients. there were cars lining up for the next day. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. >> now as had you they pay for these services and equipment, it's all through donations. later this summer, remote area medical will hold events in virginia, indian reservation in utah all while this health care debate rages in washington. until they fix the health care system, dan brock says he will be in business. >> amazing how many people line up and how many they are able to

treat. jim acosta in knoxville. thanks. we want to hear what you think about the story and some solutions out there. should the government add more taxes to families making more than $250,000 to help pay for health care reform. send us thoughts going to the blog cnn.com/amfix. right now 36 minutes past the hour.

welcome back to the most news in the morning. forty years after the moon landing, only seven nasa moon launches left. what will become of the agency facing budget cuts and layoffs. in america we take you to a concert where they are trying to raise awareness. u.s. soldier vanished, live in a taliban video. an important milestone in obama's office, six minutes still enjoying widespread support. on key issues like health care, a new poll shows his support is slipping, dropping below 50% for the first time. our next guest has been keeping track of the president's

campaign promises. bill adair is founder and editor of politifact.com. he joins us with the new report card. >> good morning, kiran. >> is it high to keep high approval ratings with cost initiatives and stimulus plans and health care plan. >> absolutely. i think what we see early on in his presidency president obama was able to accomplish a lot of things early. he got a lot done through the economic stimulus, a lot of promises through presidential power. now comes the hard part and i think that's what you're seeing in the poll. >> let's talk about some of those promises on health care. you guys have been tracking them at politifact. one candidate, employers would be required to contribute to a health plan.

you took this, he's getting pushback when he wants health care passed before the recess in congress. how far is he on this? >> it's definitely earning 'n' in the works" on the obama meter. it's interesting to watch. not just republicans but democrats wary about this. now we have concern about the medicare cost down the road. so the promises on health care are doing to be tough to keep. but there were 10 that we moved to "in the works" last week. an interesting week. >> a lot of people at home saying we have needed for decades health care return, seeing this coming down the road. why does it have to come in august? >> momentum is important in baseball and politics. the president wants to very much

get the momentum going and force congress to do things before the recess. legislative bodies really tend to do a lot in the waning hours of a session. i think the white house is afraid if they don't get it done before the august recess, they will lose that momentum. >> all right. so we're at the six-month mark, you have kept a tally of campaign promises. let's take a look as we put it on the screen tracking them. 32 promises kept, a compromise on ten of them. seven promises broken, 12 stalled, 78 in the works. of course not to be too rough on him, only six months into this but 376 promises where there has been no action. what are his key priorities. we know he has a long to do list. >> he's got to build coalitions. he's got to continue to make deals like he has had hospitals and pharmaceutical manufacturers and try to get promises kept. a lot of 32 promises kept were included in the stimulus. that enabled him to get a lot

done, a lot more than i think people realize. what's grown on the obameter are numbers that stalled. some that were important to key constituent groups like repealing don't ask don't tell in the military. we've got that rated "stall." he's got to prioritize and form coalitions. >> we have one truth-o-meter. we run statements to see how they add up. a republican senator highly critical of the economic stimulus package out there. some are arguing the obama administration is using stimulus money to launch a pr campaign to support the stimulus. one was republican senator robert bennett of utah who said, the administration is wasting millions of taxpayer dollars on a pr campaign. what's the verdict on that claim? >> we didn't rate the wasting

part we wondered if they spent millions on signs. we gave that a half true on the truth-o-meter. the truth is in the middle in that the administration is encouraging states to put up signs for the stimulus. the math we're not quite sure it will add up to millions as senator bennett suggested, it's up to the state. that gets a half true on truth-o-meter. >> bill adair, from politifact.com, thanks for joining us. >> good morning, thanks. for all the topics we discussed head to the blog, cnn.com/am fix and check out details. be right back. 44 past the hour.

46 minutes past the hour. welcome back to the most news in the morning. we'll be running down conspiracy

theories about whether or not it actually happened later on this morning but 40 years ago today people sat in front of their televisions glued to the black and white images of neil armstrong becoming the first person to walk on the moon. but after that one small step for man, there's now questions about the next giant leap for nasa facing budget cuts and layoffs. cnn's john zarrella for that. >> three, two, one, boost off ignition and liftoff of "endeavor." >> reporter: now there are seven, the number of flights left. soon just a chapter in history. >> it just makes me want to cry to think this the end of it. >> reporter: when the last shuttle flies 2010.it leaves a gaping hole behind. because of nasa's budget cuts,

the area rocket and orion, they won't be flying until 2015. until then have to carpool with russians, thousands will lose their jobs. workers who are needed may not be around if more budget cuts spur the delay of the next generation of spacecraft. further delays are possible. an obama administration ordered blue ribbon panel is reviewing nasa's direction after shuttle ends, i.e. constellation program which is fuzzy, without direction. >> i don't see if that organization doesn't begin talking to their potential customer base, they are doing to end up with something that no one is interested in using. >> he insists constellation is clearly visionary. >> it behooves to build an architecture to serve a multitude of missions over the

next 50 years. that's where it was first envisioned to think about space station lunar steroids, beyond mars. >> reporter: safer for astronauts, the constellation program is supposed to be everything shuttle is not. funny how perceptions change. for decades it was maligned as too costly, too complicated, too risky, too unreliable. now what do you hear? too bad it's over. john zarrella, cnn at the kennedy space center in florida. >> forty years after the moon landing, conspiracy theories still spark public imagination. we'll go to robert thompson, professor of television and popular culture at syracuse university and see if we can put some of these theories to rest. theories like why is the flag waving when there's no wind on the moon. why are there no stars in the sky? right now, ten minutes to the top of the hour.

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some dramatic clouds this morning in kansas city where right now it is 56 degrees, going up to a high of 58 where it's supposed to be sunny. reynolds wolf tells us we could be looking at severe weather for kansas city, missouri. >> that's right, outside kansas city royals may have thunderstorms this afternoon. some could be severe. let me show you what i'm talking about. take a look at the national perspective. notice in the middle of the country you have a big swath

shaded in red. a bull's eye, if you will, potential for severe weather. heading in from the gulf of mexico, this boundary approaching from the northwest could give us storms right in kansas city later on. meanwhile desert southwest relatively dry until extreme southern arizona. same deal in parts of northern plains. you could get it there and the twin cities. back to the east, big tore is the cooler temperatures, cooler than what you expect this time of year. minimize this, expand this view, higher temperatures which you anticipate. chicago, 85 in atlanta, 83 in tampa due to scattered showers, maybe thunderstorms. then in new york and boston, high temperatures in the 80s. 80 in boston, new york 32. mention a chance of rough weather in parts of the central plain. take a look. delays possibly in dallas, houston, tampa, san francisco, california due to low fog,

philadelphia and d.c., could see thunderstorms there in the afternoon. you're up to speed. send you back to new york with kiran. >> you said we've had unseasonably cool weather. i was thankful for that. this the week my air conditioner broke. >> timing is everything. timing was awfully good for you. >> you want ac in july usually. reynolds wolf for us. thanks. >> video released over the weekend of bowe bergdahl, the soldier captured in afghanistan. barbara starr at the pentagon with the desperate search to findbe berhim.

welcome back to the most news in the morning. dramatic video from a protest inside iran this morning. you're looking at amateur video of a huge rally of university students on the streets in the historic city. it follows a cry from a former

president rafsanjani to release students arrested in the uprising. while they try to silence the opposition they cannot quiet viz bond border. what happened in new york city may be proof. here this morning to tell us about it, good morning. >> every since 1979 revolution in iran there's been a large iranian group who left the country because they didn't like social freedom, wanted more political freedom. many over the past month have been looking at the protest, crackdown by the government, they have been yearning to go back. a group of musicians in new york, that has not been possible so they have decided to get a little creative. in a lounge in manhattan's lower east side, a group of young musicians take another step toward tar dom. their thoughts are half a world away, they say, in the islamic republic of iran.

>> since events started unfolding in iran, it's all i've been consumed with. i haven't really been thinking about anything else. >> johnny b doesn't fit the common stereotypes but he's iranian. for the past month lead leader of electric black has seen the iranian government's brutal crackdown on mostly peaceful protesters. >> it's hard prert says he's heartbroken, too. >> i wish i was back there on the streets right now with my brothers and sisters. >> reporter: the lead singer was in iran but rock and roll unislamic. played in public and you can spend the night in jail. today it's iranian protesters landing in jail. >> these kids are risking their lives in the name of freedom and justice. we over here on this side of the pond, we feel powerless. >> then came the idea to simply raise awareness, hyper nova,

electric black and another, filmmaker created freedom glory project. >> this song to all the people, brave ones who stood up. >> reporter: just days after the disputed vote in iran, the group wrote and dedicated a song to iran's opposition movement. it started playing soldout shows in new york. some say a concert in manhattan can have little impact on opposition movement half a world away facing fears and government crack down but don't tell these guys they can't make a difference. >> there's a part of us that wants to stand up and let our voices be heard. >> freedom glory project rocking in the lower east side of manhattan sunday night. it's remarkable, not just iranian artists who want to help but american artists, joan baez, even john bon jovi did a version

of "lean on me" in farsi. farsi a bit rusty. >> people are saying how much impact inside iran for these types of protests and events take place inside iran. >> iranians aren't internet savvy. they don't have all the television stations, but they monitor the internet. they see these people, word get out. any type of event inspires them. they are watching. that energizes the movement there. >> good to see you this morning. thanks. >> you're welcome. thanks for being with us monday 20th of july, watching most news in the morning, i'm john roberts. >> i'm kiran chetry, the stories breaking down for you in the next 15 minutes. for the first time since he was captured we're seeing dramatic video of a u.s. soldier taken by taliban in afghanistan. the u.s. military are calling

the tape propaganda. we're live with that. president obama's approval ratings slipping on key issues including health care. something he has been pushing hard for this month. >> also secretary of state hillary clinton meets with india's leaders this morning. she's in the middle of her week long trip to india and thailand. key diplomatic test after mumbai terror attacks in the region again. more on the developing story. u.s. military says video showing a frightened soldier captured by the taliban is in viles of international law. here it is. it's our first glimpse at private first class bowe bergdahl since he disappeared in eastern afghanistan nearly three weeks ago. the military is calling the 28 minute tape propaganda. >> i'm scared. i'm scared i won't be able to go

home. very unnerving to be a prisoner. >> barbara starr has more on the fallout from this video and whether it's yielding any clues on the continuing search for him. good morning, barbara. >> reporter: good morning. this soldier a prisoner of the taliban for the last three weeks of the hunt goes on for him throughout the eastern afghanistan pakistan border area. u.s. forces say they are doing everything they can to find 23-year-old private first class bowe bergdahl who disappeared from his base back on june 30th. private bergdahl, private first class bergdahl for the tiefirst time talking about how he feels. >> i have a girlfriend, whom i'm hoping to marry. i have my grandma and grand pa. i have a very, very good family that i love back home.

i miss them every day that i'm gone. i miss them. i'm afraid i may never see them again, that i'll never be able to tell them that i love them again. i'll never be able to hug them. >> reporter: throughout the 28 minute video his captors put a number of political questions to the soldier. it should be understood, of course, all of his answers are under duress because he is being held captive. his family in idaho has asked for privacy. they have asked for the media not to approach them at all. they are keeping very quiet about all this. they did issue a brief statement over the weekend saying, quote, we hope and pray for our son's safe return to his comrades and to our family and we appreciate all the support and expressions of sympathy shown us.

the u.s. military has a liaison with the family that is keeping them fully informed at all times of any developments. the u.s. military also issued a statement saying they publicly condemn the exploitation and public humiliation of private bergdahl. kiran. >> hopefully we'll find new information that will lead to his release soon. barbara starr following this for us. thanks so much. also in the soldier's hometown everyone is watching closely hoping and praying for safety. this partial message came from a neighbor in idaho that was speaking to our cnn affiliate and directly to the soldier. let's listen. >> bowe if you see this, know that we love you and we're praying fervently for you and prayers are going up for you from all over the world. stand tall and stand firm. to awful our valiant men and women in uniform, know that the

american people believe in you, support you and are 100% behind you. we thank god every day that you have our backs. >> again, that was one of bowe bergdahl's neighbors. they knew about the capture but the family asked them not to talk about it for fear publicity might compromise his safety. president obama is hoping to get his health care reform plan out of sick bay. proposals on capitol hill could kill too many jobs. a new dire prediction about how much change in the system could cost all of us. where it all goes from here. suzanne, predictions on what the government likes and what this will cost. some are wondering if this whole thing might be doa. >> reporter: it really was a body blow to the president's plan reforming health care. but i spoke with top obama administrations they say when things get tough for the white house, they send the president

out there. he's the best pitchman. it's an aggressive public relations campaign. we'll see him at the children's national medical center later today talking about the need to push for it. they are trying to get this done as quickly as possible because they are trying to build momentum here. facing a tough week ahead president obama is trying to recapture the spotlight in the health care debate. >> i will not seen on to any health plan that adds to our deficits over the next decade. >> this after a devastating announcement on friday by the congressional budget office that the administration's health care bill would raise health care costs and add $239 billion to the deficit over 10 years. the white house dispatched their head of health care kathleen sebelius. >> work in progress. good news they are actively working and overall costs have to come down. >> reporter: the president's top

money man took up the argument. >> the president said he will not sign a bill that isn't deficit neutral. >> reporter: republicans seized on the deficit announcement. >> those are damming words to be honest. >> reporter: senate's minority leader said the bill will not have republican support. >> this is a bill that shouldn't pass at any point before the august recess or later in the year. >> reporter: the obama administration is pushing hard for the bill to be on the president's desk before the august recess. many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle say that was too ambitious. >> sure we wish we had more time. the president has given us a deadline. we're working under it. >> they are obviously working on it. they feel the president has the political capital to push this forward. there is definitely a sense of urgency on the administration's part. we're going to see the president hold a prime-time news

conference wednesday 9:00 eastern. this the fourth prime-time news conference the president has held in the first six months of his presidency clearly using the bully pulpit as well as the media to make this point and sell his plan. we want to hear what you think about all this. should the government tax risk to pay for health care reform or should everybody pay a tax on employer covered health care benefits to pay for it. send us your thoughts by going to the blog, cnn.com/amfix. investigators trying to figure why two light rail trains collided over the weekend. witnesses say it was a west bound l train that barreled into the k train at the west portal station. a deadly crash in september was blamed on an engineering sending text messages. police found a laptop they

believe belonged to bombers at the ritz carlton and marriott killed many people. the death toll includes two suspected suicide bombers. forty years ago today man first walked on the moon. an incredible feat, such a source of pride. so incredible that some find it hard to believe. we're putting the conspiracy theories to the test. nine minutes past the hour.

back to the most politics in the morning. inside the beltway, president obama tried to rally lawmakers on health care reform. critics say it will be way too expensive. cracks in the party may derail an august deadline for the vote if not the whole thing. here democratic strategist lisa here in new york with us this morning.

good morning. >> good morning. >> and republican strategist leslie. yesterday it was suggested the august deadline while they would like to stick to it may be a little softer than thought. when you look at public opinion polls, president obama's approval on health care reform slipped below 50%. he was at 57 now 49. lisa is this whole thing in trouble? >> that's why you see the president going full barrel. he's the greatest resource. you see him doing an event, a press conference wednesday night. i think it's important to note they are using michelle obama now of you're going to see a grassroots effort through the internet. he's going out full barrel. one, have you to remember what peter said yesterday. while the criticism is on, this will add to the deficit. you have to remember they are not taking into account the cost aids you get from cost-cutting

from medicate and medicare program. >> that's if congress -- >> states will benefit from reduced health care costs. and it's also important to note when take you a step back and look at this, people are not understanding the fact that the they are doing to save money when it comes down over ten years on children's health and medicare. >> what do you think about all of this, leslie. obviously there's the cost that's one issue. also having to pay for it. do you tax wealthy incomerners, employer benefits? is this thing going to fly? >> it's going to be very difficult to fly. let's start with the obvious which is the american public is very skeptical about politicians and their ability to get this right. with all due respect, high approval ratings, there's a lot of scepticism about a congress that is trying to railroad a major reform, major government involvement on health care. do you have peter orszag there

is potential to tax benefits. that is implying if you look at individuals making less than $250,000 which was the threshold the president set. you're talking about an increase in taxes. who knows if this is going to be the right solution. i think it is very cautious. the american public is right in this case of wanting to slow down and look at the details of what the president is trying to do. >> we saw six moderates sending a letter, republicans and democrats send ag letter to the leadership saying, whoa, slow this down. why are we going so fast. we need to get this right. >> there's two issues, the revenue extreme, political implications. barack obama ran on health care as one of his platforms. he's got to think about political ramifications going into the election. that's why you see democrats saying hold on a minute, going into the elections do i want to be associated with something that may raise taxes on the

wealthy. this is the political dynamic the president will address over the next several days. senator kennedy did a fantastic job laying out the case for health care. >> there was an interesting article calling president obama the shuffle president. here is what he said, obama is the first shuffle president. he's telling lots of stories at once and in no particular order. his agenda is fully downloadable. if you care about herk, jump to that, global warmingi cli, clicr to that. much administration about nothing. what do you think, is he taking on too much? has this administration got too much on the table to get anything done effectively? >> i think republicans and democrats would agree this is an ambitious agenda. the problem is the president, by their own administration, said they misread the economy. now you have 15 states with unemployment over 10%.

they are not seeing the type of residual benefits in the economy. the president talk about the stimulus package. in fact it's gotten worse. now talking about health care, cap and trade, imdprags reform, cigs increasingly difficult in afghanistan. so many issues the president has to deal with. with respect to his ability to be effective, people don't want to see in tant gratification. they are starting to see let's look at the details. can he do this, can the economy take it. >> even colin powell running in on this. i've talked to some of his people about this, you can't have so many things on the table and absorb it all. >> a couple of things. i take issue with what leslie said. the tim lsu package is not supposed to work in six months. let be clear about that. >> she's impatient. >> address what was a do-nothing administration for eight years. he's got a lot of political

momentum. he's got very high approvals, even though they are slipping and he should use that to his advantage to push through various reforms that i think the country needs. bottom line, john, he's losing support among independents. he's losing not partisans but people looking objectively at the president. the situation was not supposed to get worse with the stimulus plan and it has. >> i'm looking at the same polls. independents are still in favor of health care reform. >> i think reality is the deficit, we didn't see it. the government misread it and i think that's where people are most concerned. >> we have to wrap this up. always great to see you. thanks for coming in. 17 minutes after the hour.

twenty minutes past the

hour. christine romans minding your business. >> state jobless number, looking at the number of states topd topping 10% unemployment. pretty dire. couple of states talking 15%. i want to show you. these are the worst states in the country. this is not a news flash. we've seen these. we're hitting levels of '82. if you've seen red states, these are top spots. 15.2 in michigan, 12.4 rhode island, oregon 12.2%. this is a political story, ladies and gentlemen. anything above 10% starts to really wreak havoc in politics and really tough for incumbents. brings me to something i want to show you recession 101 ad campaign has 2000 billboards across the country. there's an unidentified donor who is so sick and tired of hearing about the economy he wanted to point out recessions do end. bill gates started microsoft in the middle of a recession.

self worth beats net worth one of these billboards says. stop obsessing about the economy, you're scaring the children. a little reminder, yes, the numbers are ugly but people out there who like to say recessions do end and this will end too. >> skngs you're the one with the job. >> this is what constitutes good news in a bad economy, 14,373, a number to make you think. 14,373. >> no idea. >> hmm. it is the number of people in the last three months every day who lost their job. 14,373. how does this come? every day. in the first months of the year it was 22,000. so we have 7900 fewer people. >> 14,000 is better than 23. >> i am reaching. but that is something to let you know the job situation is still

the lagging indicator. we'll see numbers like this for the foreseeable future. >> looking forward to the day we have 14,000 people getting jobs. >> this is political, a washington and incumbent story. people at home start to lose patience with all the things out there rig to fix the economy. so should be interesting to see what happened midterm. already talking about midterm. >> you're right. christine romans, thanks. >> you might remember a movie, cap corn 1. a lot of people say did it happen on the moon or in a hollywood set. conspiracy theories in a minute or two. 23 minutes after the hour. here is kevin shale's comfort suites hotel. here's the spacious room where he relaxed with the free paper...

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we're following breaking news. the loan gunman that survived the terror attacks in mumbai confessed in a statement that shocked the courtroom. he reportedly said, quote, i plead guilty to my crime. he's one of ten pakistanis police say attacked several sites including the taj mahal hotel killing 160 people. this morning secretary of state hillary clinton is in india. earlier she paid tribute to people who died in terror attacks in mumbai, attacks that raised tension with india's longtime rival pakistan. then on to new delhii with the prime minister. mali kapur is live. >> not getting everything she's looking for. interesting timing. the main topic of discussion

between the secretary of state and indian prime minister in new delhi today is terrorism. of course we know significant today in the light of the dramatic confession from the man who after months of saying not guilty of the 86 charges against him this morning surprised everybody by pleading guilty to the charges against him. the u.s. secretary of state could not avoid during her trip to india. >> a wet and windy welcome to hillary clinton on her first visit to india as u.s. isn't of state arriving during the peak of the monsoon season. she stayed at a hotel attacked last year calling it a rebuke to terrorists. the purpose, strengthening ties to i saidia at a time when the u.s. is preoccupied with pakistan and afghanistan. >> i believe this is reaching out saying, look, we still love

you. you're still important to us. >> a leading industrialist says it's significant clinton chose to land not in the capital of new delhi but financial hub mumbai where she had breakfast with business heads. many industrialists say it was disappointing. >> what does president obama really intend to do about taxes offshore, what does he intend to do, is there a bias. these are fears for corporate india but none of that was discussed. >> happy and satisfied, the action pakistan is taking against terror. >> reporter: clinton tried playing down pakistan. >> discussion between india and pakistan is between india and pakistan. >> reporter: the u.s. is walking a fine line trying to keep the two neighbors on the same page in the fight against extremists. india blames a pakistan group for the attack and says pakistan isn't doing enough to tackle

terror. observers say india faces tension from washington to ease tension and allow u.s. and pakistani forces to fight extremists along the afghan border. >> reestablishing dialogue and agreeing to exchange realtime actionable intelligence between their agencies. all that happened because of american diplomacy, involvement. >> reporter: clinton preferred to keep the focus on other issues, climate change, women's rights and education. when it comes to climate change, too, u.s. secretary of state did not get what she wants. this morning india side coming out strongly and saying it will not adhere to any caps on carbon

emissions saying india simply doesn't pollute as much. >> malacca, thanks so much for that. coming up on 30 minutes past the hour. checking our top toers in the pentagon confirming the i had it of a captured american soldier, private bowe bergdahl, a 23-year-old from ketchum idaho. military calling it a piece of propaganda. >> i am scared, scared i won't be able to go home. a very unnerving to be a prisoner. >> bowe if you see this, know that we love you and we're pralg fervently for you and prayers are going up for you from all over the world. stand tall and stand firm. to awful our valiant men and women in uniform, know that the american people believe in you,

support you and are 100% behind you. we thank god every day that you have our backs. >> private bergdahl disappeared from his base in eastern afghanistan. it was nearly three weeks ago. the exact circumstances surrounding his capture still not clear. the military has been distributing leaf letlets in th area seeking his release. >> trying to out smart security according to "wall street journal" bombers in jakarta attack disguised bomb parts to look like laptop computers. mvp while police in jakarta say the explosive materials used in bombings is identical to those used by jemaah islamiyah terror attacks. the pope preached to followers in northern italy. a spokesman for the 82-year-old pontiff is saying he's learning to live with his cast. it was 40 years ago today the apollo 11 moon walk,

historic feat. the first time americans beat russians in space. believe it or not, there are still some people who think that never happened, that it was a huge conspiracy, cooked up by the government to put the u.s. ahead in the space race and boost patriotism. how do conspiracies get started? robert thompson, professor at syracuse university's school of communication and extensively studied conspiracy theories around the moon landing. good to have you with us. >> good morning. >> set the stage for those who only read about the moon landing because they weren't around yet, what a pivotal time in our history and why it was so important. >> well, it really was. we were in the middle, of course, of a cold war with the soviet union and in the space race the soviet union had been beating us quite handily. they, of course, got the first rocket into orbit with "sputnik"

in 1957 which was an enormous blow to the ego of the united states. as they were launching all kinds of rockets into orbit, a dog, a woman, all kinds of things, we in the beginning kept blowing our rockets up on the launching pad. we couldn't get out into space much less orbit in the beginning. so this moon landing thing was going to be the way we kind of reclaimed our national identity. in many ways it was a machismo thing to do. there was a lot of national pride riding on the landing. >> over the years the polls show most people believe it did happen. a small but vocal minority believe this is a conspiracy. how do these conspiracies get started? >> in this particular case, one of the main reasons in an odd

sort of way it's plausible. we're not talking about aliens landing and being covered up by the government or anything. we're talking about something if you think about it actually isn't that outrageous. for one thing, and i do not number myself among the 6% who think this was a fake. i think we really landed there. for one thing the federal government had the motive, means and opportunity to pull off a hoax if they wanted to do so. the motive was we really, really wanted to make this symbolic act. it had a lot to do with our national identity. the means and the opportunity, let's face it, everybody except three people saw this as a television show. there were no eyewitnesses except the three people up there. they were under the employ of nasa. if you were going to fake something, something nobody else can see is probably an easier way to do that not to mention

the fact that -- >> it's endlessly fascinating and pictures are fascinating. we want to run through a lightning round of the biggest reasons conspiracy theories happened. one thing, the appearance of the waving flag. it and the flag was waving even though they say there's no wind on the moon. there it is. explain this. >> it was waving. the reason it was waving, not because there's wind. as we say there's no wind on the moon, no atmosphere. however, to make that flag stand out and go straight, have to have ribbing to make it go. it's not going to fly straight because there's no atmosphere. every time they touched that pole, it sent vibrations through the ribbing. i think the flag is the biggest argument against the moon landing being a hoax. if you go back and watch the coverage of them trying to get the flag to stand up, it looks

like keystone cops. if you were going to fake it, you wouldn't make astronauts look so silly. >> next, the picture of buzz aldrin. there are conspiracy theorists say the shadows aren't right, well lit, coming from studio cameras, the shadow question. >> these are the most convincing for many people. the shadows look like different light sources. the answer is simple. they are different light surfaces, reflecting off the module, astronauts themselves, whatever irregularities there are on the surface. that would explain the fact that everything doesn't look like it's coming only from the light source of the sun. >> all right. finally a lot of people say it

adds credence to the conspiracy theorists, where is the proof. nasa admitted they don't have the original video of the transmission, they taped over it by accident, they had hollywood restore it. what about that? >> well, this the one i swear almost makes the conspiracy theorist out of me, i hear oh, we don't have the tape anymore. a few years later a missing tape in the watergate theory and that was a conspiracy. missing tape is bother some. the fact they taped over in the '70s and '80s, say they needed more tape so they taped over this seems so incredible. that does seem really, really suspicious. it hasn't convinced me. i don't think if whole thing is a conspiracy. i do have to say when i leer they taped over one of the most historic events in science of all time may not make me think it's a conspiracy but makes me

think a lot of other things about nasa. >> we could go on, people saying where are the stars, in the mirror of buzz's space helmet you don't see a mirror of the person taking the picture. >> the stars are easy. go to a late night football game with bright lights. the bright lights make you not able to see the stars. that seems easily checked off the list as i think most of these are. >> you study this a long time. you don't count yourself among the 6% that don't believe we landed on the moon on the 40th anniversary of this lunar landing. thank you for being with us. >> people tape over important things all the time. how many people tape over their wedding video. >> back it up. >> big fan of space was walter cronkite.

he reported on all the shots. he passed away friday. dan rather who succeeded him joins us to talk about his reminiscences of america's journalist.

remembering a legend. walter cronkite was america's anchor man, the most trusted man in america. he passed away friday at the age of 92. dan rather had the unenviable task of following walter cronkite in the cbs anchor chair. earlier dan talked about the walter cronkite he knew. he invented television news as we know it today. you're quite right people born after 1981 say who are you talking about here. this is a man, in terms of news that brought us into the news in the television age. news came of age after the assassination of kennedy in 1963. before that newspapers were dominant, after that television was dominant. that's number one. number two, walter cronkite set the platinum standard for

quality news of integrity. that the people who watched the news were people who were passionately, actively, personally involved in gathering the news. i've said it before and i think it can't be said too many times. walter cronkite was not just playing a reporter on tv, he was a reporter. >> he was sort of the consummate reporter. >> he was the consummate reporter. i think one reason he was so popular as the anchor man and he was the country's most popular anchor man for no fewer than 12 or 13 years was his passion for gathering news and presenting news. he loved it. walter cronkite was a competitive fellow. >> yeah, david wrote last week nobody could beat walter cronkite in a story. he also believed opinion had no plan in the news. we see that a lot. wasn't one to let his emotions show, but on a couple of

prominent occasions in 1962 when he announced kennedy had died -- his father died in '62, i always get that mixed up -- he took back his glasses and choked back emotion. you could see it there. then 40 years ago today when the eagle had landed, he took off -- he rubbed his hands together and couldn't believe it and let out a wow! the natural honesty and authenticity of walter cronkite that if something really affected him he let you know about it. it was honest reaction, not the calculation of so many on television. >> often thought of that as one who succeeded him, no one could replace him. i succeeded him. when i succeeded him i thought about the key to walter's connection with the audience. you use the word "authenticity." he was authentic. there was no pretense about walter cronkite. as far as news was concerned,

straight up, he didn't like gadgets and gimmicks. for election night coverage, as the years went by, there was always a new gadget or gimmick. walter had very little patience. it was the authenticity of the man and what you saw on television was what you got. >> private funeral for walter cronkite will be held thursday in new york city. he will be cremated, his remains buried next to his dear wife betsy at the family plot in new york city.

good morning. in atlanta, georgia this morning, partly cloudy skies, 62 degrees. a little later clouds remain going up to a high of 85 degrees. our reynolds wolf is down there right now in atlanta at the cnn weather center. you like the music this morning? you're bopping along to it. also enjoying unseasonably cool temperatures. >> this is weird, crazy, like fourth graders at a jonas brothers concert. not supposed to happen but that's what we had. 63 degrees in atlanta, charlotte got in on the fun, cool temperatures, 60, august, a 58, columbus 62. we're headed to another day with temperatures warming up not quite as dramatic what you would expect this time of year. temperatures going into the 90s in a couple of spots.

let me enlarge the spot so you can take a look. favorite spot in chicago, 78 the high, 82 new york, 90 miami, tampa 83, atlanta 85. when you get back out towards the west, places like phoenix and las vegas, dry air warms up quickly. by late afternoon temperatures in the triple digits, 111 in phoenix. something else popping up, the chance of storms across parts of the nation's midsection. central plains, portions of the midwest, western great lakes before the day is out. could see severe storms, isolated tornadoes. the cooldown in the west, rather the east that's the big story for us today. it will bring a lot of smiles in the southeast. back to you. >> thanks, reynolds. 63 for lows in july in atlanta. >> sleeping weather. >> you've got to admit, thanks, reynolds. road signs are supposed to help drivers find their way. check this one we found. this is an actual sign.

where it's pointing is anyone's guess. looks like the symbol prince used for his name. one driver said it looks like a tatoo. a person with the city-tattoo. told the local affiliate of cnn you have to make a right on a jug handle before you make a u-turn. >> i wonder what it looks like on a gps. >> my lord. so the swine flu, world health organization was warning us it might go away fur the summer and come back with a vengeance. 10 minutes till the top of the hour. between an environment at risk and an environment in balance.

between consuming less and conserving more. there is one important word: how. and it is the how that makes all the difference. to the planet we all share.

i'm sorry. i can't hear you very well. announcer: does someone you know have trouble hearing on the phone? dad. dad, let me help you with that, okay? announcer: now, a free phone service shows captions of everything a caller says. i'd like to make an appointment to see the doctor. announcer: to learn more about captioned telephone, call 1-800-552-7724 or go to our website. i'll see you at 3:00! announcer: captioned telephone - enjoy the phone again! ♪

53 minutes after the hour. good morning, new york city, where it's mostly cloudy, hazy, and 74 degrees right now, going up to a high of 81 today. and partly cloudy skies, sounds like it's going to be a pretty good day in new york city. is it mostly cloudy is really for haze, it does look like a lot of sunshine out there. just when you thought you might have heard the last of the h1n1 virus, there's this. countries in the peak of flu season are getting slammed with the swine flu. elizabeth cohen live with more. >> good morning, john. john this is not your regular flu season coming up this fall. that's because they know that h1n1 will return and that there's very little immunity to it. very few of us have any immunity whatsoever. so what they do is look to the southern hemisphere to see what the virus is doing.

take a look at these numbers, john. they are amazing w. picked australia. on july 6th, they reported about 5,000 cases, by july 17th, 11 days later, the number of cases had more than doubled and probably not even counting every single case. while i say that, we see thousands of cases, there aren't obviously nearly as many deaths. there have been 31 deaths in australia as of july 17th. now, to take a look in the united states, what's been happening with h1n1, 41,000 cases and 263 deaths, but those numbers of cases are misleading because they're not counting all of the case of h1n1, john. the cdc says there have probably been 1 million cases in the united states. >> so we don't have that much time between now and fall when the flu season might start to emerge again. what are the best things people can do to try to prepare for this? >> well, if there's a

reemergence, it's probably when there's a reemergence. it is not the same list we see with regular flu. let's take a look at this. who is most ath risk? pregnant women, for example, really seem to be the most at risk for complications. children and younger adults. usually it's older people and also people with other medical problems. so it's a little bit different than regular flu season. now, you know, as far as what we can do to prevent h1n1 really washing hands, good hygiene all of the stuff your mother taught you. john? >> developing good habits. elizabeth cohen for that. thanks so much. >> thanks, john.

♪ welcome back to the most news in the morning. more than $500,000 to fix a small bridge in rural wisconsin. well, some republicans say it's

another example of the wasteful waifs some communities are spending their stimulus money. but as jessica gomez says, they deserve the money just like everyone else. >> at the back water saloon in western wisconsin, it's dinner time. >> we're going to rusty's. >> reporter: to get to rusty's, many drivers have to crash this bridge, a bridge the county says is falling apart. >> the deck has deteriorated to the point where the concrete is just starting to -- >> reporter: plans to fix the bridge have been in the works for a few years, but couldn't afford it until now. >> when the stimulus program came about and they said, you know, if you've got shovel ready prompts, we're willing to give you some money to do it, we jumped at the opportunity.

>> reporter: some money turned out to be about $850,000 in approved stimulus funds, even though bids have come around $240,000. >> well, one few travversus man travel. >> reporter:est mater about 250 cars cross this bridge every day, and while they acknowledge there are hundreds of other bridges in need of repair, this bridge was given priority simply because it was shovel ready. >> people here point out the bridge doesn't only lead to rusty's, it's a local paper mill and country club. >> it's not a bridge to nowhere. >> reporter: the debate on this project seems to be water under the bridge. construction is set to begin next month. in wisconsin, for cnn, jessica

gomez. and good morning, once again, we're coming up at 8:00 here. >> thanks for being with us today. here's what's on this morning's agenda. the stories we'll break down for you in the next 15 minutes. on the ground in afghanistan, u.s. forces trying to rescue one of his own after he turns up in a taliban video. new details on who this private first class is, where he might be, and his family's prayers. a new poll suggests president obama approval rating is slipping on key issues like health care now dropping below 50% for the first time. reportedly a lender that is helping to keep main street running, but not from the government. who's behind it and why it matters to so many people. race against time for troops in afghanistan trying to rescue the army private who appeared as a prisoner in the taliban video. it was the first public glimpse

of the 23-year-old since he disappeared from his base nearly three weeks ago. in the video, he talks about his family and his fears. >> i was hoping to marry. i have my grandma and grandpa, i have a very, very good family that i love back home. and i miss them every day that i'm gone i miss them. and i'm afraid that i might never see them again. in fact, i'll never be able to tell them i love them again. i'll never be able to hug them. i am scared. scared i won't be able to go home. a very unnerving to be prisoner.

>> barbara starr is working her sources at the pentagon this morning. what's the thinking there, barbara? >> here at the pentagon, very disturbing video, we haven't seen anything like this since the hottest days of the war in iraq when there were several servicemen held in captivity briefly. this now about three weeks, that really puts a lot of strain on the search for the private. when these cases happen, the best chance is try to get them back as quickly as possible. but now it's been about 20 days. they are continuing to search by all accounts along that rugged border region between afghanistan and pakistan. that is where he was based, that is where he disappeared and they tried to seal that area off very quickly when this incident happened. so they're hoping that whoever has him hasn't been able to take him very far. john? >> you have to expect, too, barbara that the family would be

extraordinarily upset by seeing that video, beset with worry. what's the military doing for the family? >> well, it should be said that there has been a military liaison with them in idaho since this unfolded. the military has been keeping them fully apprised of all of the developments. the family over the weekend issued a very brief statement asking people for privacy, for the media not to come and approach them, and, in fact, in the idaho town where he lives, people there have known for some time but have kept it very quiet. part of the thinking here is if they can keep it quiet, if they don't raise the profile of all of this too much, military officials say that may help their chances of trying to get him back, but they are using all efforts, they say to try to locate him and rescue him. >> hopefully they'll have success. barbara, thanks. and stay with us because coming up in about ten minute's time, we'll be talking with peter

bergen to get inside on the military options and whether or not he thinks private first class is still in afghanistan or potentially moved across the border into pakistan. as president obama increases the pressure on congress for health care reform, there's a new washington post abc news poll suggesting that public support is eroding. it shows the president's approval rating on health care dropping below 50% for the first time. since april his approval rating has dropped from 57% to 49% with disapproval increasing from 29% to 44%. again, all of this on how the administration is handling health care. suzanne malveaux live for us at the white house right now. and there are other challenges as you well know, growing concern out of spending and rising unemployment rate. where does the administration go from here? >> reporter: well, i spoke with top aides who believe that the president still has momentum here, political capital, but they really need to push this. they feel there's a sense of urgency here. they don't want to try to push

this when he starts to lose that kind of support, right now they are putting him out there front and center. a very aggressive public relations campaign. we're going to see him pushing for reform going into the weekend. >> reporter: facing a tough week ahead, president obama is trying to recapture the spotlight in the health care debate. >> i will not sign on to any health plan that adds to our deficits over the next decade. >> reporter: this after a devastating announcement on friday by the congressional budget office that the administration's health care bill would raise health care costs and add $239 billion to the deficit over ten years. the white house dispatched their head of health care kathleen sebelius. >> the good news is the house and senate are actively working and share the president's goal that overall costs have to come down for everyone. >> reporter: and the president's

top money man peter orzag took up the debate. >> he said he won't sign a bill that isn't deficit neutral. >> reporter: he seized on the announcement. >> those were -- >> reporter: the senate's minority leader says the bill will not have republican support. >> this is a bill that shouldn't pass at any point, before the august recess or later in the year because it's not good for the country. >> reporter: the obama administration is pushing hard for the bill to be on the president's desk before the august recess. but many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle say that's too ambitious. >> sure we wish we had more time, but the president has given us a deadline, we're working under it. >> and kiran, a lot of discussion of whether or not this is a deadline or a goal and how far the obama administration should push the sense of urjgeny here. once again, kiran, on wednesday, 9:00 eastern. this is the fourth one that he's

had prime time in the first six months of his presidency. he knows how to use the bully pulpit and the media to try to sell his agenda. >> suzanne malveaux for us, thanks. and we want to know what you think about this story. should the government raise taxes for individuals with an annual adjusted gross income of $280,000 or for families making $350,000 or more to help pay for health care reform. we want you to send us your thoughts. go to our blog cnn.com/amfix. president obama will mark the 40th anniversary of the first moon landing by welcoming the apollo 11 astronauts to the white house this afternoon. neal armstrong, urging the president to take another leap, backing a man mission to mars. and frank mccourt has died, he was 78 years old, being treated for skin cancer. he was most famous for his

memoirs "angela's ashes," recounting his childhood living in poverty in ireland. it turned him into a literary celebrity, before that he spent three decades as a high school teacher. operator error may have caused a train crash over the weekend. the operator switched the controls from automatic to manual just moments before the train slammed into another one parked in the station. 48 people were injured, including the operator. eight minutes now after the hour. with its revolutionary web os. they're running multiple live applications at the same time. - ( thunder and rain ) - 3 million are using the simply everything plan. each is saving $1200 - over an at&t iphone plan. - ( cash register dings ) together that's over $3 billion. - enough to open a dunkin' donuts in space. - ( walkie-talkie sounds ) from america's most dependable 3g network. bringing you the first and only wireless 4g network. get the palm pre from sprint. only on the now network. deaf, hard of hearing and people with speech disabilities access www.sprintrelay.com.

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we're back with the most news in the morning. mark sanford is apologizing for an extramarital affair and asking people in his state to forgive him. writing a letter saying god will change him so he can emerge from the scandal a more humble leader.

he says he will work to repair his relationship with his wife. sarah palin is getting ready to step down out of the alaskan governor's digs. she said she and her husband todd were packing up the possessions. she officially stepped down july 26th, 18 months before the end of her first term. are you stashing millions over dollars overseas? if you are, uncle sam is coming after you. the irs getting tougher on people who have offshore accounts, the enforcement campaign could sweep up tens of thousands of taxpayers to offshore tax evasion. the agency warning you have until september 23rd to come clean or you'll be hit with far bigger penalties. well, back to one of our top stories this morning, the taliban releasing a tape of an american soldier held hostage. it is the first confirmation that 23-year-old is alive after being captured nearly three weeks ago.

peter bergen is in our washington bureau and joins us this morning with more on this. and the broader picture of afghanistan right now. peter, great to see you this morning. >> morning, kiran. >> taking a look at this video. they say it was shot on the 14th of july. they have no idea where dropping leaflets trying to cap intelligence. what else can they do in a situation like this? >> well, obviously, a rescue operation. my hunch is he's not in afghanistan, he's probably in pakistan already. we've seen this pattern with westerners being kidnapped in afghanistan by lower level taliban and either sold or given further up the food chain of the taliban leadership, which is all based in pakistan. we saw that with "new york times" reporter, other journalists kidnapped in afghanistan, similarly been taken into pakistan. obviously the united states has much less leverage and ability to find somebody in pakistan

than they do in afghanistan, kiran. >> and so depending on who he was sold to, if you say they sort of do the selling back and forth, how does it determine the outcome? what's the best case scenario here? >> well, unfortunately there are no best-case scenarios, unless the soldier was able to escape, that would be the best case. but what will happen is the taliban likely the network based on the pakistan side of the border will start making demands, the kind of demands they're going to make are not demands u.s. government is very likely to agree to. the release of taliban prisoners from bagram air force base in afghanistan, very large sums of money, the u.s. government official policy is not to negotiate these kinds of releases. so unfortunately this is going to be a very tough situation. >> speaking of tough situations, july turning out to be the deadliest month in afghanistan for coalition forces there. we've got two weeks left of

july. is this a sign the situation is deteriorating, or what has changed? >> well, i think one of the biggest variables here you've got 17,000 american soldiers who have just gone into southern afghanistan, most into eastern afghanistan, and they are conducting very aggressive operations. not only to try to clear areas in afghanistan, but to hold them. historically native forces have not been able to do. that's why the death rate has gone up so markedly. we saw the same thing with the surge in iraq. >> until we saw it go back down again. so we can hope that progress will be made there, as well. in the meantime, people have started to compare the war in afghanistan, calling it obama's vietnam, and we even had defense chief robert gates making some statements saying after the iraq experience nobody's prepared to have a long slog. he goes on to say the troops are tired, the american people are pretty tired.

you wrote a column, where do things stand now in terms of figuring out what our strategy is? >> well, i think the obama strategy is a pretty good one based on bringing more security to the afghan people. and that is one of the reasons you've got this much larger presence in southern afghanistan. historically, the u.s., the number of u.s. boots on the ground is being pretty low in afghanistan. so bringing security to the afghan people is really the first and most important thing that the u.s. and international community can do. but a situation, kiran, is very different from in iraq. it's still in iraq, four times more civilians killed in afghanistan than iraq. iraq is still far more dangerous than afghanistan, and afghans unlike iraqis remain very enthusiastic. 53% of afghans say they are in favor of u.s. forces. and quite an optimistic number if you're looking at the center of gravity of the views of p

populati population. right now the population is rooting for the -- >> you argue the exact opposite of calling it obama's vietnam. you say this is the war to win and the reason there's been so much trouble in the past because we misread afghanistan. if you would offer a solution that would turn the tables and bring about change and peace there, what would it be? >> well, i think pretty much what is happening right now. an effort to -- afghans right now don't feel very secure, particularly the south and east of the country. and that is something, i think, with the new strategy and also with the emphasis, by the way very importantly, general mcchrystal's guidance. the main problem the community has in afghanistan. if you can provide security and dramatically reduce the number of civilian casualties, you're well on the way to some form of

success. >> cnn national security analyst, thanks so much for joining us this morning. >> thank you. well, it appears as though it's back. el nino brewing off the coast of peru. what does that mean for our winter? what about the olympics in vancouver? and there you're looking at a hurricane. what does it mean for this summer's hurricane season? will it be as bad as normal or not as bad? stay with us. 17 minutes after the hour. our parents telling us what to do... how to behave. now, all of a sudden, we're there, in that role, at that time in our lives where everyone and everything is depending on us. it's a scary feeling, but it's also a good one. especially when i'm confident someone's there for me.

♪ welcome back to the most

news in the morning. the leading lender for main street, which is in need of help reportedly is getting a bailout, but not from the government. christine romans is live with details on an effort to save cit. >> the market says, let's let the free market try to do this. we're waiting for word what this deal is going to do to avoid bankruptcy. it's incredibly important the future of this company for an awful lot of small business owners. >> reporter: bob has weathered many storms at his store in massachusetts, but he's never seen one like this. >> i'm not about to call it quits, throw in the towel. we'll be around, we'll find suppliers, i feel sorry for the manufacturers that i would lose. >> reporter: his is one of a million small businesses that depend on the cit group. cit was denied a bailout last week by the federal government because its failure wasn't de

deemdee deemdee deemdee deemed detrimental for the system. cit wasn't big enough to get help. the retail federation says that was a mistake. >> what we're saying is that cit is too important to fail. it literally finances the life blood of the retail economy. >> reporter: cit specializes in a type of of lending called factoring. keeping businesses afloat so they can stay operational while they wait for the money to roll in. >> if cit is not there, that 80% to 90% up front cash in order to produce more goods to sell to another retailer isn't available. and consequently, it's likely the supplier will go out of business. >> maybe from the big picture they are too small to deal with, but from the bottom end, this is where small business dwells. >> reporter: he says he doesn't know why the government bailed on cit's bailout, but fears that

decision may mean lights out for small businesses across the country. >> at a time when they're having an awful lot of trouble, small businesses are getting hit from their own declining demand for their products and their vendors are in trouble and it's been a real tough moment here when the factoring, that's that lending that keeps the cash flowing among businesses starts to dry up. that can be a problem for them when they're trying to hold on. the irony here is that cit allows the cash flowing among business, but cit is fighting for its own cash crunch. >> a bailout's good enough for wall street, but when it has to do with small business, they're not getting any money. >> that's what a lot have been saying. wait a minute, we only care about the good guys? they made the determination that the financial system has healed enough that they can let this company fend for itself and maybe there are other healthy players who can help this company or take over the

business. that's the wager here. >> christine romans, minding your business this morning. thank you very much. el nino is back. what's the weather going to be like? we'll find out coming up in a few minutes. the chief meteorologist with khou and an expert on el nino joins us.

well, president obama putting out heavy heavy push right now to get health care reform rolling. he's set to speak at the children's national medical center this afternoon. and day after day, the president has been waging really an all out campaign to try to gain support to help the 46 million americans with no health care. live in knoxville, tennessee. you get a chance to see

firsthand here just how many people are struggling with no health insurance. hey, jim. >> reporter: hi, kiran, absolutely. that's right. and you may be wondering with this health care debate going on how the uninsured go about getting treated. well, in many cases, they rely on charities based here in knoxville called remote area medical, which has treated the uninsured for decades. it started before sunrise. people in wheelchairs and holding babies waiting in line for their number to be called. >> so who's got number one? >> i do. >> okay. come on down. >> reporter: and with that, the doors were open. >> 141, where are you at? >> reporter: within minutes, the charity organization, remote area medical transformed high school and tennessee what looked like a hospital for the uninsured. >> we have had to cut back on our operations in places like haiti and guatemala and india

because of the tremendous demand here in the united states. >> we're getting into the nitty-gritty here. >> reporter: the group's founder took us on a tour that provides medical, dental, and eye care at no cost. >> and all of these people that you're seeing here and all of our support staff are all doing it for free. >> reporter: the licensed doctors, dentists, and nurses fly in across the country on their own dime. some patients can barely make it through the front door. >> the way my blood pressure was so high, i might have had a stroke. >> if these folks weren't here? >> yeah. >> reporter: need glasses? stan's got them. >> this is all free. >> absolutely free. >> reporter: but brock says it's washington that could use the glasses. would you like to see president and the members of congress come to one of your events and see these folks firsthand? >> well, i think that would be a marvelous idea. nothing would please me more than for us to be put out of

business here in the united states so that we can concentrate on these places where the need is so, so desperate. >> reporter: one thing brock and his volunteers can't stand, turning people away. >> seeing the lines here, seeing the need for services in so many ways is very clear evidence that we need health care reform in this country. >> reporter: as the sun was setting, remote area medical had treated nearly 500 patients, and there were cars lining up till the next day. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. >> reporter: now, how do they pay for the stuff? actually, all of it is paid for thanks to donation from people just watching these sorts of stories on remote area medical and feeling compelled to call in and donate their time and money. and believe it or not, later this summer, remote area medical will be holding other events around the country. one in southwestern virginia,

another on an indian reservation and the group's first ever urban setting in los angeles a couple of weeks from now. expecting more than 10,000 people and until washington fixes this nation's health care system, kiran, he says he will be in business. >> well, meanwhile, they are doing great work and making a difference in the lives of so many people. great story, jim, thanks. 29 minutes now after the hour. checking our top stories this morning. the pentagon confirming the identity of a captured american soldier who appeared in a video posted online by the taliban. beau bergdahl, the military calling it a piece of propaganda. >> i am scared. i'm scared i won't be able to go home. it's very unnerving to be a prisoner. >> beau, if you see this, know that we love you and we are

praying for you and prayers are going up for you from all over the world. stand tall and stand firm and to all of our valiant men and women in uniform, know that the american people believe in you, support you, and are 100% behind you, and we thank god every day that you have our backs. >> private bergdahl disappeared from his base nearly three weeks ago. the circumstances surrounding his capture are unclear. the military has been distributing leaflets in the area seeking his release. growing concerns about terrorists' ability to outsmart security measures. the bombers in the jakarta, indonesia hotel attack disguised bomb parts to look like laptops. now the explosive material used in friday's bombings is identical to explosives used by the terror group in similar attacks. three days after falling and

breaking his wrist, the pope preached to followers on sunday in northern italy. the spokesman for 82-year-old pope says he is learning to live with his cast. and the pain from that injury. well, no matter where you live in the country, chances are you've seen some strange weather this summer. the experts say that it might have something to do with the weather phenomenon known as el nino. it's making a comeback. gene norman works on technology for nasa, the chief meteorologist in houston and that's where we find him this morning. gene, it's so great to see you. we know how much you love el nino, explain what happens in the el nino year. >> it's kind of like a pendulum in the pacific ocean. the water temperatures being warmer than normal or cooler than normal. now we are back into a phase where monitoring abnormally warm water out there, and what that tends to do is shift the pattern of jet streems, it intensifies

the tropical jet streams, so out across the southern united states, that could lead to a wetter winter and stormier spring. and with texas in a drought for the last two years, that's great news. across the northern plains and over to the great lakes and the northeast, we're looking for a somewhat warmer winter with perhaps less snowfall than you all have been experiencing. the other thing that el nino does by shifting the jet streams, brings them over the caribbean and the tropical atlantic, introducing more sheer into the atmosphere, and that helps reduce the overall number of tropical storms. doesn't mean we're not going to have any tropical systems this particular summer, but what it does mean is we'll probably see fewer of them. back in 1983, we had an el nino season and we had alicia. that was a summer we only had four total named storms. and of course, we had andrew, a very powerful hurricane in south florida.

but in that year, there were only seven named storms. so the overall number of storms could be less, but there might be one big one that gets you. so you can't rest on the fact that el nino's going on. >> gene, i remember back in 1992, and andrew was, you know, that upper level wind sheer was keeping it disorganized, jumped north of that jet and wound up in a monster category 5. but we all remember the el nino year of '97 and '98 where there was devastation to the coastline. how strong might it be? and also in terms of less precipitation, warmer temperatures in the northern tier of the country in vancouver this winter, we've got some olympics. talk to us about california and talk to us about snow in british columbia. >> well, that'll be a little bit dicey. it'll all depend on when we see the drop of it will surge, that brings the cold air out of canada. as far as southern california and as far as the south, again, we could see more stormy

weather. it all depends on how deep the el nino gets. they have about 70 buoys constantly monitoring the temperatures out there, and that tells us what's going on as far as how deep that warm water is going. and we're still getting a sense of what's that looking like. i don't know that it's going to rival the '97 to '98 el nino, but it'll be close. >> is there enough now that that subtropical jet stream to keep the hurricanes a little more disorganized than they might normally be in a typical year? >> we are seeing more sheer out in the atlantic. at the same time last year we already had three named storms. so the fact we're seeing more sheer, some of those tropical waves off the west coast of africa had not had a chance to intensify. of course, things will start to heat up by the time we get to august and early september. >> all right. well, gene norman, we really appreciate you coming on this morning and telling us about

that. we'll come back to you, i think, frequently throughout the season too to get a read on how things are going. >> thanks, john. well, the former nfl star michael vick is now a free man. the future, though, still unclear. his attorney telling the ap that vick was released from federal custody this morning, also saying that he can now remove that electric monitoring device, convicted on federal charges of running a vicious dog fighting ring. well, anyway, whether or not he'll return to football still a big question. he is allowed to resume his pro football career technically, nfl commissioner has said he will review vick's status after he completes his sentence, that would be now. vick wouldn't be with atlanta, though, because the falcons released him in june. >> there you go. meanwhile, slumdog millionaire's child star, you may remember her and her family's story, still living in the slums, some of the homes around them being raised.

well, she is now writing her autobiography. i'm sure she has quite a story to tell. you know, from living in the slums of mumbai to being on a hollywood set, winning huge accolades and then back again. >> there was some talk about her father trying to -- >> possibly sell her. >> wow. what the heck is going on with that life? >> i guess we'll find out more as we hear about how she's going to be writing this autobiography. 36 minutes after the hour. discover friskies indoor wet cat food... and unlock the freshness of the outdoors... for your indoor cat...

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well, she stole our hearts and headed back to her poverty-stricken life, now the star of that hit movie has a new

role and our zain has the latest feat of the 9-year-old. >> reporter: john, kiran, forget about california dreaming, how about slum girl dreaming? one young girl shares her dramatic life and she's not even 10. from the streets to the store shelves, "slumdog millionaire's" child star is telling her story in "slum girl dreams." for her fans, age is just a number. >> i think she's had so many experiences already. she has so many stories to say. >> you've got a mini oscar there. >> reporter: she grabbed the headlines since her oscar night, but the stories have taken an ugly turn. her father was accused of trying to sell her to an arab shake. police investigated but no charges filed.

her mother and stepmother were caught on camera fighting over the girl's custody. her life hits a low note when the slum house she lived in even after her huge success was among the homes torn down by authorities for being built illegally. she's hoping her rags to riches to rags story sells many copies. >> interest people who are generally interested in how a 9-year-old girl goes from living in a slum to becoming a movie star. >> reporter: disney's singing sensation miley cyrus was the grand old age of 16 when her book came out, and a young cast nova va wrote a book at 9. >> good book for boys with crushes. >> reporter: we don't know how much money she will make from profits from "slum girl dreaming"," but we know they'll

be shared with the charity. one of her biggest dreams is to get out of the mumbai slum. >> the amazing thing about that is that the producers and directors of that film set up trusts for these kids because they wanted them to be able to have, you know, a secure financial future than what they were living in before getting plucked from obscurity. >> it is tragic what happened to them. any other place in the world that has a robust movie industry, they would have been better taken care of. >> good luck with her memoirs. >> absolutely. 40 years ago today, americans landed on the moon. so where is the space agency headed next? there's only a handful of shuttle flights left. the folks who landed on the moon have some ideas about that. john zarrella is tracking all of it and he'll be chasing it down for us next. 42 1/2 minutes after the hour.

love this shot of downtown atlanta today where it'll be another hot one. let's fast forward to stories that will be making news a little bit later on today. california budget talks continue today. governor arnold schwarzenegger postponed the talks because of a scheduling mix-up. lawmakers believe they're on the verge of closing the budget deficit. they've gone as far as issuing ious to cover their bank bills. also a close watch on the markets.

stocks closed on an upswing after the first major quarter of financial upswings. texas instruments reporting today after the closing bell. and astronauts aboard the international space station are scheduled to carry out their second space walk today at 11:28 a.m. eastern time. but they also have another task. they need to repair one of the space station's broken toilets. get out the plunger. what's next for nasa? besides the broken toilet. the space agency now facing budget cuts and layoffs in an uncertain future. and another chapter is nearing its end with only a handful of shuttle flights left. here's john zarrella with a future for nasa. >> three, two, one. booster ignition and liftoff of endeavor. >> reporter: and now, there are seven. the number of space shuttle flights left. nearly 30 years of flying astronauts in reusable space

plane soon just a chapter in history books. >> and it makes me want to cry to think that this is the end of it. >> reporter: when the last shuttle flies in september 2010, it leaves a gaping hole behind. because of nasa budget cuts, the next generation vehicle, the rocket and ryan capsule, key opponents of the program won't be ready to fly astronauts until 2015. until then, nasa has to car pool with the russians to get to space. thousands of shuttle workers not needed for the new vehicle will lose their jobs, workers who are needed may not be around if more budget cuts further delay the next generation of spacecraft, and further delays are possible. an obama administration ordered blue ribbon panel is reviewing nasa's direction after shuttle ends, ie, the constellation program.

>> i don't see if that organization doesn't begin talking to the potential customer base, they're going to end up with something that no one is interested in using. >> reporter: insist that constellation is clearly visionary. >> for those next 50 plus years and that's where this was first envisioned to think about space station, lunar, asteroids, beyond maybe to mars. >> reporter: build as less expensive for shuttles, safer for astronauts, the constellation program is supposed to be everything shuttle is not. funny how perceptions change. for decades the shuttle program was maligned and too costly, too complicated a vehicle, too risky, too unreliable. now what do you hear? too bad it's over. john zarrella, cnn at the kennedy space center in florida.

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t tcks. ququq n . there's some dramatic new video of a major protest coming into cnn now. inside iran this morning, amateur video of a huge rally of university students in the streets of the historic city. this demonstration follows a call from a former president to release people arrested in last month's uprising following the highly contested elections in that nation. and while the iranian government clamps down trying to silence the opposition there, it can't quiet the voices coming from

beyond its borders. what happened in new york last night might be proof of that. reza sayah is here to tell us about it. >> ever since the 1979 revolution, many have left their country because they wanted to get away from the reach of the government. they've wanted more social and political freedom. but over the past month i've spoken to so many iranians who have watched the protest and the government crackdown and i want to be back there to help. for a group of musicians in new york, that's not been possible, so they've decided to do what they do best. >> reporter: in a lounge and manhattan's lower east side, a group of young musicians take another step towards stardom, but their thoughts are half a world away, they say, in the islamic republic of iran. >> the event started unfolding in iran. it's all that i've been consumed with. i haven't really been thinking about anything else. >> reporter: johnny v. doesn't fit the common stereotypes, but

he's iranian. for the past month the lead singer of electric black has seen the brutal crackdown on mostly peaceful protestors. >> it's heart breaking. >> reporter: he says he's heart broken too. >> i wish i was back there in the streets right now, with my brothers and sisters. >> reporter: three years ago, the lead singer for hyper nova va was in iran where rock 'n' roll is considered unislamic. today it's iranian protestors landing in jail. >> these kids out on the streets are risking their lives in the name of freedom and justice. and we over on this side of the planet feel very powerless. >> reporter: then came the idea to simply raise awareness. so the musicians hyper nova and film maker created the freedom project. >> this is a song for all the people, the brave ones that stood up against the oppressive.

>> reporter: the days after the dispute in iran, they wrote and dedicated a song to the opposition group and started playing soldout shows in new york. a concert on the lower east side of manhattan can have little impact on an opposition movement that's facing a fierce government crackdown. but don't tell these guys that they can't make a difference. >> there's a part of us that wants to stand up and let our voices to be heard. >> that was a freedom glory project rocking it in the lower east side of manhattan. it's remarkable, a few days after the elections and the unrest, they got together and about 12 hours wrote a song and dedicated it to the opposition. it's remarkable how many of these events are happening outside of iran. wednesday, a hunger strike in the front of the u.n., and saturday, a call for protests all over the world. >> and does that make a difference? does that make any dent in what's going on there? >> well, certainly iranian -- especially the iranian youth

monitor the internet. they know what's happening outside the country. and any of these types of events certainly gives them a boost to keep going. >> reza sayah for us this morning. thank you. >> you're welcome. right now 55 minutes past the hour. we want to make sure that we provide responsible lending, and we want to make sure that we enable our customers

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well, this is the story of a coffee shop owner who was doing so well that he decided to open up a second location. then, the recession hit. >> yeah, and that recession hit his business hard, but in today's money and main street our allan chernoff found a coffee shop owner who didn't fold, instead he got creative. >> reporter: it all started with a left wing radical activist who wanted to create what he calls the anti-starbucks. a communal cafe, bookstore, and performance space.

vox pot. >> my vision was to create a place where people could come together and voice their opinions and share and cross pollinate. and across the political spectrum. >> reporter: in one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the country, vox pop was becoming the people's cafe. but just as the recession was taking hold, zander opened a second location in manhattan. >> the recession bit me in the butt. i literally saw the economy come grinding down to a halt in front of me. >> reporter: debbie ryan, a friend of a friend with a smattering of non-profit business. quickly discovered well-meaning employees were running vox pop into the ground. >> somebody would order a salad, they'd buy a salad for $9 and come back and sell it. i said, okay, there's a problem. >> reporter: she had the manhattan cafe close, he was

$190,000 in debt, behind on rent, taxes, and fines for health code violations. >> the soundest business decision would have been throw in the towel, file bankruptcy, call it quits. >> reporter: instead of a bailout, vox pop found its rescue in a buy-in, a community buy-in. the cafe sold stock to its customers for $50 a share and in ten days raised $64,000. nearly 200 people invested to keep their cafe open, families like the mitchells who put in more than $1,000. >> what this place provided was unique for the neighborhood. >> we have to think about where we put our money, but that was a no-brainer for us. we believe in what they believe in. >> i consider it a good investment for my neighborhood, for me, for kids, my coffee addiction. >> reporter: they are a long way from seeing a profit, vox pop is still paying off debt, but investors say t