forget towns like wardensville. >> i don't have the words. i just thank god the money came through. >> reporter: these grants pay for both salary and benefits for the next three years, and require the local agencies to cover those costs for at least one additional year. towns like this one across the country are counting on the economy to turn around by then. >> and that was cnn's kate bolduan. it is go time! we're pushing forward with the next hour of "cnn newsroom" with kyra phillips! >> it's friday, tony. >> yeah. >> we are pushing forward. making waves. hurricane bill stirs up the surf around bermuda. the east coast of the u.s. is next. chad myers watching every move. some call it mercy. others a travesty. scotland's release of a libyan bomber was controversial enough. his arrival back home? outrageous. and a former swimsuit model murdered. her ex-husband charged and on the run. we're pushing forward on the

manhunt. hello, everyone, i'm kyra phillips, live at the cnn world headquarters in atlanta. you're live in the "cnn you're live in the "cnn newsroom." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com warnings go out as hurricane bill closes in on bermuda. waves are already picking up, as we can see in these pictures from one of our i-reporters and along the u.s. east coast people are being advised to keep a close watch on the big storm. it's not expected to make a direct hit, but it's still going to produce some pretty dangerous riptides and mess up a lot of weekend plans. bill's impact is expected to be felt all the way from florida to new england and actually into canada. chad myers tracking hurricane bill for us there in the cnn severe weather center. what's going on, chad? >> it is still going between bermuda and the u.s. it is still going to be a big category 3 hurricane as it does that. it's going to pass by bermuda with winds coming in this direction. a lot of surf on the south side. it is already throwing surf, although not landing on the beaches yet, these waves are

propagating toward the u.s. right now. from the carolinas all the way down to florida. and this will be tomorrow's big-wave action day here. and then on sunday, it will travel on up here. waves will be between 10 and 15 feet. and i know people are really excited about surfing in this. we're trying to tell you about rip currents and how they happen. i know you know, kyra, but i'm just going to try to explain this for a second. from wftv, our affiliate here, here is daytona, this is our affiliate out of orlando. here's the sandbar right here, that's why the waves will crest and crash back here. when the sandbar gets a break in it, when there's just a little bit of a hole in the sandbar right there, the waves crest over the sandbar. they crash onshore. they come over here. they crash onshore, and they only go back out in one place. and that one place is where you don't want to be. literally hundreds of yards or miles of beach will be fine. but it's this one place that will not have the sandbar there

anymore because it's been eroded. there goes the crashing wave, one wave right over where the sand bar is. you look out from the shore, you're standing here, you see that crashing, you can tell that that's where the sandbar offshore is. when you stop seeing the crashing in any one place, that sandbar is being eroded. that water is going out in that direction, and you are in danger if you are anywhere inside that area, because that's where all the water's going to be pulled out. you won't even know what's happening until basically it is too late. it's a big storm. it's still a very intense storm, even though it's only 115 miles per hour. the winds are gusting to 140 miles per hour. and at least it's missing bermuda with its eye. there still will be damage in bermuda, i believe, but at least missing it with its eye. i think the biggest problem will be overwash in the cape. bigtime coastal flooding here. all this water piling up along the east coast. we could see tides six feet above where they should be as that water gets forced into the u.s. east coast. if you have boats there, you need to plan on this very high tide coming up.

it's about -- it depends on where you are, but 9:00 is when most of those tides, somewhere, in the morning and in the afternoon up and down the east coast, kyra. >> okay, we'll be talking a lot about this today. chad thanks so much. >> you're welcome. he was out of sight yesterday, but we've seen plenty of him today. and we're still hearing much about his home coming. abdel baset ali al megrahi in the dark suit, the only person convicted in the 1980 attack that blew pan am flight 103 out of the sky over lockerbie, scotland. 270 people were murdered. most of them americans. now, scotland has freed the cancer-stricken al megrahi eight years into a life term and they sent him back to his native libya, where a cheering crowd gave him a hero's welcome. >> i have decided to allow him to go home to die. i am showing his family some compassion. i accept it was a compassion not shown to families in the united states or in scotland. but we have values. we will not debase them, and we

will seek to live up to those values of humanity that we pride ourselves on. he was brought to justice after tremendous work, not simply by scottish police, prosecution and authorities but by the united states. equally, as i say, in scotland justice is tempered with compassion. and that, as i say, why he's been allowed to go home to die. >> compassion? that's the judge that decided to free him. it's an emotion that loved one of the lockerbie victims can't find in their hearts right now. >> we said the nightmare is that you let him go. and you do it out of compassion, and he goes home and he's a hero. and he never asked for forgiveness. he'd never said that he did it. we've got this man who says that he's innocent, but i don't know about you, but if i only had a few months to live, i would want to try to clear my name and my legacy. and i think by withdrawing his appeal -- he withdrew his appeal, it says that -- it reinforces that he is guilty. but there's no remorse there, and we're showing him mercy.

it's absurd. >>able sured to say the least. libyan authorities are keeping al megrahi out of the public eye today. it appears they tried to tone down his initial questions. but that's not stopping new questions surfacing about libya, a nation the u.s. took off its terrorist watch list not too long ago, by the way. let's seek some answers with the professor from international affairs from new york. i'm curious, were you as outraged as i was when you saw this hero's welcome? >> well, kyra, first, i think our empathy and prayers are with the families of the victims. after all, the only convicted murderer is out, as you said, 270 civilians were killed, most of them are americans. this is point one. so, yes, it must be very painful -- it is very painful for the families of victims. secondly, i'm glad that finally the libyan government got the message. it was initial -- it was supposed to give him -- give al megrahi a hero welcome.

now, it downplayed. it scaled down the reception. after all, he is not a hero. he is a mass murderer. he was tried and found convicted. and, thirdly, i think, finally, the libyan government got the message, that not only it showed sensitivity to the families of the victims, but also it was told very bluntly by the united states, by britain, by other nations, it should show sensitivity to the families of victims and be a member of the international community. >> but, fawaz, let me ask you something, why were there thousands of people on this tarmac welcoming this murderer home, like he's a hero? i mean, are you telling me that every single one of these individuals has no idea what he did because of censorship within the media, or are these individuals that totally support terrorism? >> you know, kyra, this is really the question. you asked me about the context. i want you to know, regardless of the fact that the court found

him guilty of the murder of lockerbie, there are very few libyans who believe that he is guilty, the conventional wisdom -- >> why? why is that? >> because of various reasons. first of all, they believe there is a conspiracy against libya by the united states and britain, to basically extract concessions from the libyan government. remember, most of the media are controlled by the government. you don't have really freedom of information, like there exists in many countries in the world. and also, i think, kyra, the war on terror, guantanamo and everything else, has done a great deal of damage to the -- basically the idea of justice in the west. and here for our american viewers, there is a gulf of percepti perceptions, between americans and arabs and muslims. while americans and westerners rightly believe he was guilty -- after all, he was tried and found guilty of a mass murder of

270 civilians -- most libyans and arabs and muslims believe he's innocent. and that's why the reception, the hero reception, by many libyans in that part of the world. >> once again, fawaz, just goes to show we have a long way to go when it comes to our relationship with libya and trying to be of like mind on terrorism. fawaz, sure appreciate your insight. thank you so much. >> you're welcome. the families of lockerbie victims are planning a conference call tonight actually to talk about the next move now. one option is to protest during libyan leader's moammar gadha gadhafi's first-ever visit to the u.s. he is scheduled to speak to the united nations general aassembly in new york city next month. politics, fear, credibility, and security, competing forces that tom ridge now claims led him to get his job as the nation's first secretary of homeland security. in a new book, ridge says that he was pressured to raise the terror alert level just before the 2004 election. we get details now from cnn's

white house correspondent, ed henry. ♪ >> reporter: the friday before the 2004 elections, only two or three points separated democrat john kerry from president bush. suddenly, a twist. osama bin laden released a shocking new videotape. and it played nonstop on the arab-language network al jazeera. >> translator: your security is not in the hands of kerry or bush or al qaeda. your security is in your own hands. >> reporter: the next morning, just 72 hours before the polls opened, the president's top securitied a mizers, including donald rumsfeld and john ashcroft, huddled for an urgent meeting, to decide whether to raise the color-coded threat level from yellow to orange. then homeland security secretary, tom ridge, reveals in an explosive new book, a vigorous, some might say, dramatic discussion ensued. ashcroft strongly urged an increase in the threat level and

was supported by rumsfeld. he goes on, "there was absolutely no support for that position within our department. none." "i wondered, is this about security or politics? postelection analysis demonstrated a significant increase in the president's approval ratings in the days after the raising of the threat level." the bush campaign was already pushing the envelope on frightening voters. listen to cheney ten days before the bin laden threat. >> the ultimate threat is them succeeding and getting a biological agent and smuggling it into the united states, in one of our own cities, and raising the specter of being able to kill hundreds of thousands of americans. >> reporter: in the summer of 2004, just a few days after the democratic national convention, the white house had raised the threat level. drawing charges of political manipulation that were sharply denied by bush officials like ridge at the time. >> we don't do politics in the

department of homeland security. >> reporter: but now at the tense meeting the weekend before the election, ridge writes that it, quote, seemed possible to me and to others around the table that something could be afoot other than simple concern about the country's safety. in the end, however, the threat level was not raised. after ridge claims he and others told rumsfeld and ashcroft, quote, back from the brink. but ridge said the episode left him disillusioned. he writes, "i knew i had to follow through on my plans to leave the federal government." he tendered his resignation within a month of the election. he concluded -- but other bush officials in the meeting, including cnn contributor fran townsend, insist ridge is wrong. townsend says politics was never discussed at the meeting. and the discussion was based solely on intelligence. ed henry, cnn, the white house. as you know, tom ridge isn't

the first bush administration higher-up to actually write a book. you may recall former white house press secretary scott mcclellan wrote a scathing memoir, "what happened, inside the bush white house and washington's culture of deception." he said they relied on propaganda to sell the iraq war. and the commander of coalition forces there also wrote a book, "wisner battle, a soldier's story." ricardo sanchez describes chaos on the battlefield, and once again, blames the bush administration. and former attorney general john ashcroft looks back, not in anger, but in awe, in "never again, securing america and restoring justice," ashcroft writes about his role in wake of 9/11 and his defense of the patriot act. and still to come, former vice president cheney's memoirs scheduled for publication in spring of 2011. that should be interesting. he's expected to give detailed accounts on differences with his

boss, specifically in their second term. and former defense secretary donald rumsfeld also has a book deal. his book will cover his entire political career. former swimsuit model murdered and mutilated and jammed in a suitcase. the manhunt intensifies for her reality star ex-husband. fancy feast appetizers. simple high quality ingredients like wild alaskan salmon, white meat chicken, or seabass and shrimp in a delicate broth, prepared without by-products or fillers. new fancy feast appetizers. celebrate the moment.

unemployment's high and credit is tight. but the fed says recovery is still on the way, and soon.

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well, americans all across the country want to know one thing -- when will the economy recover. and today, one of the highest authorities on the topic is weighing in. susan lisovicz at the new york stock exchange with the details on when the fed chief sees a recovery. i guess, susan, bottom line, we want to know when the average american is going to feel the recovery. >> well, that's a good question. well, ben bernanke, first of all, is getting more and more optimistic about this, kyra, because last week the fed said things seem to be leveling out. today in a meeting in jackson hole, wyoming, the fed said prospects for a return to growth to the near term appear good. he said unemployment will

decline only gradually from high levels and that accessing credit will remain tight. but as to when will real people feel the recovery? well, i'm happy to tell you, you're feeling it if you look at your 401(k) statements, right? we have seen the stock market rally. the s&p 500, kyra, has gone up more than 50% since the lows in march. and also, of course, we've been seeing steady improvements in the housing markets. today, existing home sales -- the biggest part of the housing market -- jumped more than 7% in july. the fourth straight month of improvements there. the unemployment rate did tick down last month. it actually fell in 17 states. 9.4%. still high. and there are estimates that it will go higher. but it did tick down last month. and we told you earlier this week that gm was calling back 1,400 workers. so, we are seeing some signs. real people are feeling -- are feeling real progress, kyra. there's no question that we have a ways to go yet for everyone to enjoy that.

>> indeed. all right, susan, thanks so much. >> you're welcome. we've heard federal reserve chairman ben bernanke say the u.s. economy is on the brink of discovery. susan mentioned that as well. in asia there's already a lot of optimism that the worst of the global recession is over. cnn's richard quest has been checking out the scene in hong kong. richard, you've been there a week now. so, what do you think besides that snappy new suit that you have? >> reporter: yeah, the snappy new suit which was at a bargain basement rice, yes, kyra, there's no doubt there's a view the worst is well and truly over. all of the countries seem to be showing some sort of growth. in the case of china, very fast. in the case of hong kong, up 3%, what everybody's worrying about -- and you and i have talked about it this week -- is when the u.s. is going to start spending again? when will consumers feel good to go back into the shops. but until then, the people i've spoken to in hong kong -- like you, i've come here from a moribund, depressed and rather

dismal economic scenario of europe or the united states. i've arrived here, the bunting's almost out, the balloons are flying, and there's just about a feeling that happy days are back here again. >> oh, okay. i thought you were going to possibly go to some sound there. i'm thinking, okay, how do i get from happy days soon to arrive once again to your experience with noodles? ha! >> reporter: glad you asked. because if you want to know what's happening in an economy, go and see where people have lunch. i went to this noodle shop to actually try some real hand-made noodles. i have to tell you, they are actually very difficult to make. but more important, i actually discovered when they make the noodles, they actually had to put the price down. it used to be $4 for lunch. when did you last buy lunch for $4, kyra? now they're down to $3. i also discovered, i have used

chopsticks for years. there's a demonstration coming up here. those women with children and the fainthearted, do not watch too closely. right. this is how i have always used my chopsticks. i've pretty much -- i thought this was the norm. until i did it in this noodle shop when i was told, actually, you do it like this -- now, what's the significance of that? >> i don't really see a difference. >> reporter: you actually get more leverage. what? look. this is one finger. this is two fingers! what it means is that when you come over here, you see, i can pick up all sorts of things! i can pick up -- >> yeah, i see that works -- that works really well! >> reporter: most of my lunch -- most of my lunch went right down my white shirt. it just shows -- the point i'm making is, you think you know how to do something, you travel across the world, and all of a

sudden you discover it's very different. >> and it's the simple things in life. all right. so, you're going to be leaving hong kong and headed to new york. and what will you be bringing to us from the lovely big apple? >> reporter: right. when i -- it's ny-long-kong. new york, london, hong kong. i've seen asia. and i will see how the financial world in new york is looking at things. i will cross the date line. i will leave here saturday morning. i will arrive in new york on saturday afternoon, because i'm already saturday morning here. and next week, it will be fascinating to see whether there is optimism that things are turning round, or is the big, bad, bonus culture back with us once again? >> richard quest, we look forward to it. and thanks for the lesson on chopsticks. i appreciate it. you've changed my life. that's our richard quest. well, you better get them while you can.

the cash for clunkers program, it may soon be a thing of the past.

time to tell you about today's top stories. afghanistan's presidential election was defined by insecurity. a lower standard than last time, but still credible. that's the word from international monitors anyway. ha mi hamid karzai and abdullah abdullah, each saying they are ahead. results expected next week. some lutheran members are locked in a divisive debate. the largest lutheran denomination is trying to decide if it's okay for gay and lesbian clergy to have a sex life. a vote is expected to happen

today. if you haven't cashed in your clunker yet, better put the pedal to the metal. the rebate program will end monday. at last count, almost 460,000 new cars have been sold. the government expected cash for clunkers money to last through labor day, but we've burned three $3 billion already. a former swimsuit model murdered and stuffed in a suitcase. how a wealthy tv bachelor went from dream catch to prime suspect. multivitamin in a drink mix. with more calcium and vitamin d... to support bone and breast health... while helping you hydrate. one a day women's 2o. refreshingly healthy. there's no way to hide it. sir, have you been drinking tonight? if you ride drunk, you will get caught... and you will get arrested.

grisly new picture about what happened to murdered former bikini model found stuffed into a bloody suitcase with her fingertips missing. her reality star husband is a prime suspect and he's nowhere to be found. erica hill tells us why the manhunt stretches from canada to hollywood. >> reporter: a man looking through a trash bin through

recycles, saw a suitcase. >> when i lifted it up again, i saw the birthmark, the marks on the body, and everything, i verified that it was a body. immediately called 911. >> reporter: the body was jas mi jasmine fiore. >> the preliminary findings from the orange county coroner was that she was strangled. >> reporter: police are now looking for this man, ryan jenkins who was reportedly briefly married to fiore. they were last seen friday night at a poker game in san diego. about 100 miles south from where her body was discovered. on saturday night, jenkins filed a missing persons report on fiore. but he hasn't heard from since. >> our fear is he might possibly be en route to canada. he was the last person seen with her. >> reporter: jenkins is described on the show as an investment banker from calgary.

police believe he is driving a black bmwx-5 suv like this one with an alberta license plate, hly 275 or he may be in jasmine fiore's mercedes. neighbors describe her as outgoing. >> she was cool. she was outgoing and had a cool roommate. and it is a shocker. >> reporter: a former boss at the modeling agency where she worked in las vegas said fiore seemed to have her head on straight. >> she seemed very responsible. she seemed very driven, like, focused even wanting to get into the business, but not, you know, wasn't enamored by it. >> reporter: henderson says the last time he saw her, she looked really happy, and mentioned she had this great guy. the question, whether that great guy may know something about how jasmine fiore died. erica hill, cnn, new york. this week's surge in deadly bombings in baghdad has upset a lot of the country's lawmakers.

they want something done about it. on wednesday, dozens of people were killed or hurt in a series of bombings in the iraqi capital. and some of the targets were government buildings. lawmakers, political leaders, government ministers, well, they met today and they called for an emergency session of parliament and for a reassessment of iraq's security forces. danger lurks everywhere in a war zone, but inside your own unit? at the hands of your own superiors? there's the allegation in a bombshell announcement from u.s. forces in baghdad. four gis based in southern iraq are being charged with cruelty, maltreatment, and reckless endangerment of their own subordinates. allegedly the four abused low-ranking soldiers with, quote, excessive physical fitness. it all came to light, the spokesman says, as officers investigated another soldier's suicide. there's no confirmation the suicide was linked to alleged wrong doings. other details haven't been released, but we'll keep pushing the story forward for you. well, so many veterans, so many claims, and so many

months -- even years -- in bureaucratic limbo. for months now we've pushed forward on a mountainous backlog of benefit claims that the department of veterans affairs. hundreds of thousands of men and women who served in iraq and afghanistan are fighting uphill battles just to learn whether they qualify for disability payments. all the while, the va is sometimes held up as a model in the white house push for health reform. listen to this -- >> medicare and the va are both government-run health care programs that have very high satisfaction rates. generally if you look at surveys, they have actually very high satisfaction rates. now, the va, because it's a self-contained system, meaning that people see patients year after year because they're not -- it's not dependent on what job they have, they can actually do some things in terms of prevention and wellness and some of the things that i just talked about, that have helped to lower their costs and improve

quality of care. in a pretty impressive way. >> well, if this is a typical day, the va will get more than 4,000 new claims and process a lot fewer than that. here's cnn pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. >> ft. benning, georgia. >> reporter: laurie emers served with the 84th airborne division in afghanistan in 2003. but after getting hurt in a truck accident there and retiring in 2005, she faced a new battle. she's still trying to get the department of veterans affairs to settle her disability claims. >> but i think they're doing the best they can. but sometimes they don't know where your file is. they can't tell you where you are in the process. and so you're in limbo. >> reporter: when va secretary eric shinseki was nominated by president barack obama, he told congress it was a priority to reduce the number of backlogged

claims. today, some 400,000 cases are still pending. >> if you were to walk into one of our rooms where adjudication or decisions are being made about disability for veterans, you would see individuals sitting at a desk with stacks of paper that go up halfway to the ceiling. >> reporter: the flood of claims keeps coming, and they're growing more complex wish issues like traumatic brain injury, so many new vets are suffering. from fiscal year 1999 to 2008, the va processed 60% more claims, but the number of claims still pending jumped 65%. simply put, claims are coming in faster than they can be processed. president obama is promising to help. >> cut those backlogs, slash those wait times, deliver your benefits sooner. >> reporter: the va turned down

our request for an interview. they did tell us they're trying to improve efficiency, but with two wars, claims continue to mount. elliott miller a veteran himself, helps other vets with their paperwork. >> they are getting more new claims in, and the va goes out and advertises and does outreach to get more claims in. they don't have the manpower to handle all the claims they're getting in. >> reporter: former master sergeant emmer says the va also should communicate better. >> we can't be left in limbo, because it just adds to stress. >> so, barbara, you point out the backlog in these claims. and we've talked so much about it, too, here on our program. and now, just today, another story coming out about $24 million in bonuses. the inspector general did this huge investigation on the va, and in particular this one official, jennifer duncan, the inspector general said she was acting as if she was given a

blank checkbook, engaging in nepotism and even got $60,000 in bonuses just for herself. you really tend to wonder what is going on within the va, and where's the monitoring? if well, that's the question now, kyra. the inspector general, of course, is the internal va watchdog, and they have taking a very close look at this situation. they found, as you say, $24 million in bonuses over a two-year period, but it's when, you know, 500,000 nearly claims are still pending and so many disabled and wounded troops are still waiting for their va benefits. not exactly the picture one thinks that the obama administration wants to put out. because the president has made the va a top priority. >> and now he's going to be making afghanistan a priority as well. apparently he's going to make some comments about the elections. >> this was an important step forward in the afghan people's efforts to take control of their future, even as violent

extremists are trying to stand in their way. this election was run by the afghan people. in fact, it was the first democratic election run by afghans in over three decades. more than 30 presidential candidates and more than 3,000 provincial council candidates ran for office, including a record number of women. some 6,000 polling stations were open around the country. and afghan national security forces took the lead in providing security. over the last few days, in particular yesterday, we've seen acts of violence and intimidation by the taliban. and there may be more in the days to come. we knew that the taliban would try to derail this election. yet, even in the face of this brutality, millions of afghans exercised the right to choose their leaders and determine their own destiny. and as i watch the election, i was struck by their courage in the face of intimidation and their dignity in the face of

disorder. there is a clear contrast between those who seek to control their future at the ballot box and those who kill to prevent that from happening. once again, extremists in afghanistan have shown themselves willing to murder innocent muslims, men, women, and children, to advance their aims. but i believe that the future belongs to those who want to build, not those who want to destroy. and that is the future that was sought by the afghans who went to the polls and the afghan national security forces who protected them. the united states did not support any candidate in this election. our only interest was the result fairly, accurately reflecting the will of the afghan people, and that is what we will continue to support as the votes are counted and we wait for the official results from the afghan independent electoral commission and the electoral complaints commission. meanwhile, we will continue to work with our afghan partners to strengthen afghan security, governance, and opportunity.

our goal is clear -- to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al qaeda and their extremist allies. that goal will be achieved, and our troops will be able to come home, as afghans continue to strengthen their own capacity and take responsibility for their own future. our men and women in uniform are doing an extraordinary job in afghanistan. so are the civilians who serve by their side. all of them are in our thoughts and prayers, as are their families back home. this is not a challenge that we asked for. it came to our shores when al qaeda launched the 9/11 attacks from afghanistan. but america, our allies and partners and, above all, the afghan people, share a common interest in pursuing security, opportunity, and justice. we look forward to renewing our partnership with the afghan people, as they move ahead under a new government. i want to, again, congratulate the afghanistan people on carrying out this historic election and wish them a blessed

month as they come together to welcome the beginning of ramadan. thanks very much, everybody. >> what about the hero's welcome in libya? >> all right. the president of the united states there wrapping up some last-minute business before going on vacation with his wife and kids. you just heard him talk about the afghan presidential election, the results of which are still up in the air. and could be for some quite time -- or could be, i guess, for quite a bit of time, rather. let's bring back pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. thank you for staying with us. maybe you could answer a question for me. the election in afghanistan, and the families back home with troops, wonder how this will affect troop activity this month in afghanistan? >> i thought it was interesting, kyra, that he talked about troops coming home, but he didn't say when, did he? defense secretary gates has been saying over the last several weeks, it's going to be in his words a few years of combat operations and many years perhaps of u.s. involvement in

afghanistan. right now what we're all waited for with bated breath is the report from general stanley mcchrystal about what happens next. how many more troops he will ask for. whether he thinks there needs to be any changes in the strategy. sources close to mcchrystal, in fact, told us today that the election went off well enough -- there was violence, but it went off well enough that general mcchrystal now is still on track to deliver his assessment to the president and defense secretary gates within the next several days. and following that will come the recommendation about resources, whether mcchrystal will say more troops and more equipment is still needed for this war. kyra? >> barbara starr, thanks. this sure doesn't happen in canada's biggest city, tornadoes slam homes and businesses in toronto. we're going to show you just how bad it was. %%%%%%%%%%d

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but the centers for disease control said it's possible it won't be any worse than the severe flu season. what if shaping up was as easy as slipping on the right shoe? it's a big promise. but some shoe companies say exercising is just that simple. our chief medical correspondent, dr. sanjay gupta, sizes up the claims. >> reporter: every month new fitness products are hitting the market that offer to help you get fit faster and easier. the latest craze? shoes that claim to help your gluts and hamstrings and back muscles. but do they work? this expert says probably not. >> one shoe that makes one shoe better for one person than another is the comfort of fit. >> reporter: this is one example of the new rocker shoes. reebok claims lab tests show marked increase with the muscle activation due to the mini balance balls underneath the shoe. >> the type of technology that you are using if we use to it rehab, roo ha bill tate ankles,

and work our position stance, not your fitness or your strength. so, to think that that would, then, make you more fit with your regular activities, i have a hard time kind of buying that. >> reporter: then, there's the fit-flop that claims added support to your feet leads to a fitter, more fabulous you. mason's verdict? >> it does give good arch support. it does give good cushion to the heel, and there is some good support for the midfoot which you don't have a lot of the fit-flops. if you are buying them because you want a stylish pair of flip-flops, that would be a good purchase. >> reporter: they say while the footwear may not be the magic pill to get you fit, they may relieve presh yurn on your fesu and help tone muscles that women and men care about. dr. sanjay gupta, reporting. this is one way of getting vitamins and minerals.

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well, little did cnn's deb ferric know she was going to get into when she traveled to vermont. on a dairy farm. this is the story behind the story. this is something se with going to do every friday. looks like deb had hands on. >> boy, did she. the shooter, the producer, what we do on back story, in fact, i thought my show was starting when you showed the graphics. what we do on "back story" is

what you don't see in the main news stories. stuff goes on behind the scenes that doesn't get to air and this is a classic example. deborah and the crew were doing a story on the economy using dairy farms as an example. the farmer says come look at this cow. she is going to have a calf soon. oh, no, soon. now. the cow wasn't making it easy. so have a look. here's what happened. >> here's the "back story." >> so the cow is less than two years old and now giving birth but it is having trouble pushing it out so the farmer has gone to get some chains. totally relaxed. he does this a couple of times a week. >> now to sneak up on her without her getting up.

come on. now we can push. >> is it stuck in there? >> yeah. it will come. >> you just need a good push. >> i need -- i need steve to come over and give me a hand. >> i'll give you a hand. i'm going to do this. >> you want to do this? you are going to get dirty. >> all right. what do i do? >> going to pull on this. >> both of them? >> pull on this and i will pull on the other. you want to get down low. >> am i not helping you. >> adjust. >> okay.

>> i can see the nose. oh, my god, that's the tongue. >> are we going the right direction. >> yeah. perfect. there you go. >> that is the hardest part right there. >> steady pressure. >> she is going to push and help you. >> trying to get all this stuff out of her nose. >> oh, there she comes.

>> move that way a little bit. >> okay. >> there you go. >> oh, my gosh. >> beautiful. >> oh, my gosh. i gave birth to a cow. it took so much strength to pull out the calf. your entire body was trying to get that calf out. you don't know if you are doing it right, if you are pulling it out gently. the cow was fine with it. >> she wants it out just as bad if not worse than we want it out. >> i don't know how long she was pushing. >> now you know why she needed help. >> i have two of my own. i looked just like the cow. except i'm pretty sure the cow's language was better than mine.

>> you got to love deb far rick. >> deb saying am i pulling in the right direction? how many directions are there. the farmer told us if the crew hadn't been there, steve and the producer and deb getting involved the cow and calf would have died. he couldn't have done that on his own. >> what a good story. you will be with us every friday. not as gruesome as that. >> not as miracle of life as that. >> great stuff. thanks, michael. we push forward with the second hour of cnn newsroom. is legalizing drugs the way to end a drug war? sounds confusing to us, common sense to mexico. she can't walk, talk or breathe on her own and soon the

people who nurse her will be gone. who will care for little jessica? dangerous rip tides and rain in store for parts of the east coast. bermuda is in the bull's-eye. storm warnings in place on the island. while the east coast of the u.s. isn't expecting a direct hit, the weekend will be a washout for a lot of folks. chad meyers checking the charts and radar. what does it look like? >> the most important part, the most damaging part for the u.s. and for bermuda will be the waves generated from this now category two 110 miles per hour, 111 is category three so at that point what is the difference? the waves are generated around the middle and thrown out, down to the dominican republic and porto rico, u.s. virgin islands,

but still a lot of wave action going on there. the storm is still going to track in the identical place that the hurricane center and the computer model said it would five days ago. you can't, literally, you can't get a better forecast to be that far out for a storm that is that large that very well could have hit the u.s. the high pressure not moved away like the computer said it would. it is called a seam or a crease in the high pressure that doesn't keep it down like a hand on a balloon under water. now the balloon was allowed to pop out of the water. as it did, it will continue to turn to the right. this never went back and forth more than 100 miles the entire time. what are we going to expect? rip currents. that is the big deal. if you don't know what it is, www.ripcurrents.noaa.gov. it is simple.

waves get caught on a sand bar. the sand bar breaks and you can get caught in the rushing water as it goes out. it is almost the force of a water fall. it comes in all directions but only goes out in one place. we have a jacksonville camera, i am told, because we wanted to be able to see the increase in the wave action. wjxt, our affiliate out of jacksonville, beautiful beach, amelia island, cinnamon beach, palm coast, that entire area is going to be in danger of these dangerous, dang rain showers rip currents. that what is breaking on the sand baroff shore, it piles up close to land. when the sand bar doesn't break it goes out evenly. when you have huge waves like this weekend that sand bar

breaks. when the sand bar breaks all the sand is washed away to sea and so will you if you are in the way. not every place on the beach is dangerous but you can't afford to take that a chance, kyra. you don't see this terrifying scene in canada. a suspected tornado slamming into homes and businesses. the funnel cloud hit in ontario near toronto. the storm killed a little boy. drug cartels outgunning cops and soldiers. what is the solution to mexican's drug war? how about decriminalizing drugs it might sound controversial to us, it is common sense to mexico. cocaine, marijuana, heroin, okay to possess in small amounts. why? to allow police to track the big time traffickers and offer addicts free treatment. so this is mexico's problem,

right? wrong. here is why people across america need to care. look at this map from the "new york times." it shows cities where mexican cartels are supplying drugs to distributors. from washington to oregon, new mexico, oklahoma, arkansas, tennessee, kentucky. all those little red dots talk about the drug cartel activity. marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin. as you can see here in atlanta, georgia, that is the main spot where drug traffickers operate in this part of the region. smack dab here in atlanta. other areas, little dots across texas that is where all the cartel activity is. atlanta is the main city in georgia where the cartels are. that is where brook baldwin takes us now. >> reporter: drugs, weapons and cold hard cash, a lethal combination fueling the mexican

drug cartels. according to the drug enforcement administration a new city has emerged as the staging ground for this trade. >> metro atlanta is a hub for businesses in the southeast. it is a hub for mexican organized crime. >> reporter: atlanta, prime real estate for drug distribution according to the dea's top agent. he agreed to take cnn on a special aerial tour to show how the deals go down, starting with the southern cities web of freeway. >> you can go east, west, north, south from atlanta, moving shipments of drugs up the easternboarder. >> reporter: the driver must stay here often in broad daylight. >> a truck driver will wait. it could be as soon as an hour, two or three days. then they'll receive instructions. >> reporter: next the driver heads to a warehouse. there is plenty to pick from in

atlanta. there the drugs are parcelled out and sent to dealers throughout the u.s. but the drivers aren't done. they use this same truck to smuggle money and guns back into mexico. in 2008 atlanta led the nation with $70 million in confiscated cash according to the dea and last september federal agents along with local law enforcement rounded up 34 members of mexican's gulf cartel. a nationwide effort called project reckoning. if you think drug cartels are keeping their high-dollar drug operations in the gritty inner city. think again. they prefer the suburbs. they move into quiet, middle class neighborhoods like this one, set up shop, stock piling drugs and cash before they distribute. last july a man lured a rhode island drug dealer to this home. they chained him, beat him and held him hostage demanding he

pay $300,000 they say he owed. the dea raided the home before it was too late. >> there is no doubt in my mind if we didn't act when we did he would have been dead. >> reporter: three men got caught and pleaded guilty. the rest escaped. the explosive growth of hispanic immigrants is another reason why mexican cartels come here, allowing them to blend in. allowing this deadly drug trade to rage on spreading roots in this southern city. brooke baldwin, cnn, atlanta. >> should the u.s. adopt mexico's tactics and are we focusing on the wrong target? tim padgett, as i mentioned, mexico has decriminalized small-time drug possession. would something like that work in miami, other cities across the u.s.? do you think we will see a domino effect? >> there are a growing number of people especially officials who

think it will. in el paso, the entire city council annan mousily passed a resolution to ask lawmakers in washington to consider legalizing marijuana because they feel that would do more than the conventional interdiction we are involved in on the border to put a huge crimp in the cash flow of the cartels that traffic marijuana. >> what is catching a lot of people's attention, there has been the debate of legalizing marijuana, but when you hear lsd, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, wow. that puts a lot of people on the tip of their toes. >> yeah. i don't think anyone is calling for the legalization of those drugs. what people are pointing to is much research shows marijuana, casual use, is no more harmful than casual alcohol use. i'm no doctor or scientist but

that is what people are basing their argument on. why are we spending so much resources on busting the casual small-time user of a drug like marijuana and so much resources in imprisoning that user when we could focus more of our attention on rehab where studies have shown by think tanks like the rand corporation where you get a lot more bang in terms of drug war buck on rehab than interdiction. >> do you think more money will go targeting the cartels, the dirty politicians and dirty cops and less on the casual user, therefore, helping the battle in mexico and impacting what we showed our viewers on that "new york times" map. the massive drug cartel activity here in the u.s. which you cover on a regular basis. >> right. look, two things, two basic

things fuel the drug crisis in north america between mexico and the united states. on the mexican side it is police corruption. on the u.s. side our voracious demand for drugs. they can take the money they would spend on busting casual users and redirect the resources to build more transparent police forces that won't be bought by the drug cartels. on this side of the border, i agree with the argument we do need to find more ways to channel our resources towards reducing demand. on this side of the border that is what is fuelling the drug crisis. >> final thought, tim, before i let you go. this is your baby, you cover this on a regular basis. looking at the passing of this law, what are you going to be focusing on now? what is your next inside story?

>> we need regular drug interdiction. we need what the dea and other anti-drug law enforcement agencies do. no question about that. what is going to interest me the most is to see, as i said before, if this kind of reprioritization in the drug war in mexico, if that does actually lead to a better focus on things that are really needed like creating more professional police forces that can actually get at the big-time cartels and more important the politicians in mexico who protect those cartels. >> tim padgett, miami bureau chief. great to see you. >> thank you. >> we have been getting a lot of tweets on this topic, as you can imagine. this coming, just because mexico becomes more soft does not mean the u.s. should, too. what kind of example would we be

setting? yes. tleets we can make tax money of of it then. if legalizing small amounts leads to tax revenue and less spent on enforcement and incarceration, i'm all for it. he has put his skills to work in war zones. he is a refugee in the united states. today he is our "30-second pitch." with an epa estimated 32 miles per gallon. and up to 600 miles between fill ups. it's the most fuel efficient crossover on the highway. better than honda cr-v, toyota rav4 and even the ford escape hybrid. the all new chevy equinox.

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unemployment is high, credit is tight but recovery is just around the corner. so says a guy who should know, ben bernanked a a fed conference. here is growth for you.

a 7% surge in existing home sales, the fourth monthly jump in a row and the biggest on record. 30% of last month's resales went to first-time buyers. they were lured in part by tax credits and prices that have tanked for two years. the median resale price was $178,500, down 15% from july of '08. look at the numbers quickly on the big board, dow industrials up 134 points. it is tough enough finding a job. just imagine if you had to move your family and find a job as a refug refugee. this man has skills, weapons bi guard and electrical engineer. hamdi is a very special friend in cnn. he worked with us in our baghdad

bureau, guarding me and other members of our cnn crew as we covered the war in iraq. hamdi is here. good to see you, my friend. >> good to see you as well. >> this is a lot easier than working in iraq. >> absolutely. >> there might be a lot of pressure to do this. >> there is a lot of pressure to find a job and to organize my family and to the kids have to see the place and get used to it this is a big move. >> let's talk about that for a minute. first of all, why did you decide to come work for cnn? obviously, the war happened and you had to make some choices. why cnn? >> well, i always liked the news and media thing. this is my skill. security things. i have a big background on security. one of my friends he asked me why don't you give them help. you sit with them and accept the

job. i have been working with them since that time. >> that was the remarkable time. you knew stories, you knew iraq. you knew the right people. we were in extremely dangerous areas. you knew. you came back and said we can do that story. i wanted to do the story on the school for the blind and you said, no kyra then you came back and said it is fine. we can go. >> on a daily basis, when i was working with cnn on baghdad, is depending on the day. one day could be bad, second day would be a green light and we could go. we have to take precautions all the time. >> finally you are here. i know it was tough on the kids and your wife. they have been amazing. what do you think the hardest part has been finding a job? you got your license in a day which cracks me up. they told you to read the manual

and you passed with flying colors. you got your security card and you worked fast. what has been the biggest challenge because you have credentials? >> the biggest challenge is for the kids. i'm a family man. i want to put the kids on the first step where they can move on smoothly. they are moving now very hard because of the language, because of the new life for them. it is a new place. and i mean, when i pass that, that will be easy for me. i'm trying to find everything for them and make everything happen for them. >> that's you. you've defined yourself. a 30-second pitch. we have your e-mail. we are going to start the clock. look right in there and like you always do very boldly and with tremendous confidence and tell folks what you have and what you can offer them. okay. are you ready? >> yeah. >> start the clock. >> my name is hamdi.

i arrived in america about eight months so far. i moved my wife and three kids to here. i'm ready to do a lot of jobs here. i have security skills. i have done five years of security with cnn baghdad. i have an electrical engineering degree. and i am happy to relocate. i'm in atlanta at the moment. my ideal job is anything suit me in these two skills. >> perfect. >> now, i'm being told we are having an issue getting your e-mail on the screen. we are going to put it on the blog. here we go. h.alkheshali@gmail.com. we will put it on your website. you are going to keep us posted?

>> yes. always. >> thanks, hamdi. >> thank you so much. >> you can watch our pitches. tweet me and get hamdi's information. we want to follow up on hamdi and others that are interested in participating in our 30-second pitch. taking the brewing health care debate to the coffeehouse. how seattle is health care reform with a cup of joe. hey bets, can i borrow a quarter? sure, still not dry? i'm trying to shrink them. i lost weight and now some clothes are too big. how did you do it? simple stuff. eating right and i switched to whole grain. whole grain... studies show that people who eat more whole grain tend to have a healthier body weight. multigrain cheerios has five whole grains... and 110 calories per lightly sweetened serving. more grains. less you. multigrain cheerios.

other top stories now. he wrote the book on health care. okay. he wrote a book oon health care. tom daschle sharing expertise with the president. daschle was obama's first choice for health and human services secretary but had a problem with his taxes. karzai and his opponent abdullah abdullah both saying they are ahead. last hour president obama weighed in praising afghan voters for courage in the face of taliban intimidation. 26 people were killed in election-day attacks. four soldiers hit with with with cruelty and maltreatment charges. they are accused of verbal abuse, physical punishment and ridicule as the army investigated a suicide in their unit. people in seattle reach for

their cup of joe they might get more than a morning jolt. some coffee shops are taking on the health care debate. we are drinking it all in. >> reporter: fresh coffee, in seattle it's ever where. after all, it is the home of starbucks and drive through espresso. >> it says support health care reform. i went to a local coffee house where i immediate the owner. >> we are a small business, independent, doing what we can do to maybe use our business as a platform for social change. >> reporter: hall owns four coffee and cupcake shops. she came up with the idea of putting health care reform messages on coffee cups after

struggling to come up with health insurance for her employees. those employees say health insurance at a coffee shop is a luxury. >> you bite the bullet. >> reporter: health care is on customers' minds. >> i'm afraid obama is going for such a big reform that it won't happen. >> reporter: what if the plan becomes law? hall says she needs a break. >> every year our insurance goes up at least 20% a year. one year it went up 40%. it is phenomenal that -- it is almost unsustainable. it is unsustainable. >> reporter: by the end of the year hall says health insurance will account for 10% of her business cost. think of small business as a $2.50 cupcake, wages, overheads, rent, supplies, but 10%?

that is 25 cents from this cupcake just for health care. that is a pretty big slice. those numbers, jody hall says, show worry any inspiring entrepreneur. >> to think about the fact that we really do drive the economy. who would want to in this day and age with insurance costs the way they are, leave their plush job in corporate america to start their own company? >> reporter: while the health care debate gets louder, yes or no, trying to be heard, one cop of coffee at a time. for more on the health care debate and how reforms could affect you and your family check out health care in america at cnn.com. cnn.com/healthcare. cheering crowds, welcome home signs and confetti all of this for a convicted terrorist.

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his answer had him quit. donald rumsfeld and john ashcroft pressured him to raise the terror alert level just days before the 2004 election. osama bin laden had just put out a new video. ridge says he thought the real motivation was to scare voters and he didn't go along with it. fran townsend doesn't remember it that way. president bush's homeland security adviser and now a cnn contributor. >> i'm co-chairing along with bill webster a bipartisan task force to make recommendations to secretary napolitano about the advisory system. we asked tom ridge and chertoff talk to the panel. tom ridge never mentioned any concern about politicization of the thread advisory system. you've got to believe this is personally motivated in some

way. >> tom ridge isn't the first administration higher up to write a book. scott mcclelland wrote this scathing memoir. he claims bush's inner circle relied on propaganda to sell the war in iraq. speaking of iraq, the former head of coalition forces, ricardo sanchez describes chaos on the battlefield and blames the bush administration. former attorney general john ashcroft looks back not in anger, but in awe in "never again." ashcroft writes about his role in the wake of 9/11 and his defense of the patriot act. still to come, dick cheney's memoir, he is expected to give detailed accounts with his differences with his boss.

and donald rumsfeld has a book deal as well. it will cover his entire political career. a convicted terrorist gets a hero's welcome. crowds in libya cheering the man convicted of the bombing of pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, killing 207 people. scotland let abdel basset ali al megrahi return home on compassionate grounds. president obama couldn't work up any compassion. he was asked about al megrahi's warm welcome. >> i think it was highly objectionable. >> it took 11 years after the lockerbie bombing to bring al megrahi to justice. he served eight years in prison. the cash for clunkers program may be at the end of the road.

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a nightmare delay that trapped dozens of flyers is not being blamed on continental express or its crew but a different airline. the pilot pleaded for the 47 passengers to be let off the

delayed flight. instead they were stranded overnight 50 feet from a terminal. a representative for the airline refused because csa personnel got home for the day. they could have stayed in an isolated area. a little boy beaten to death in los angeles just before his 7th birthday. his fugitive caretaker found and under arrest. community outrage about the child welfare system has not quieted down. marcus fisher was in disguise and on drugs. he was on the run since devon bailey's body was found. fisher used to date devon's mom. the l.a. county child abuse hotline fielded a dozen calls about devon raising questions about how he came to be placed with this man. with the money running out

the government is pulling the plug on the wildly successful cash for clunkers program. what do you need to know? >> reporter: you have to get the background. if you have a gaz guzzler time is running out. the government is shutting down the $3 billion program because it is almost out of money. good reason. dealers have to submit the paperwork by maryland night monday. some will stop offering the deals on sunday or sooner to make sure they have enough time to complete the paperwork. a lot of dealers have been frustrated by the program. they say the government is taking too long to pay them back. the transportation department is adding more workers to speed up dealer reimbursements. some dealers are saying too much. we are going to sit this one out. >> dealers are expecting a big rush this weekend. so what would customers look out for besides a heck of a lot of

people? something they haven't seen in a while. >> a crowd at the dealership that is true. there are things to be aware of. some customers will sign a form saying they will pay back the voucher money if the government reimbursement doesn't come through. some dealers are asking the customers to wait to take the car home. that not how it works. if you have a clunker deal they have to give you the car immediately. your car has to get 18 miles a gallon or less and less than 18 years old and you need to have owned it for a year. >> next the cash for clunkers for appliances. >> we are moving out of the garage and into your home. the appliance industry is hoping that the government rebates program will help them like the auto industry. starting late this fall rebates

will be available on dish washers, washing machines, refrigerators, and $300 million program that was passed. this is part of the stimulus bill. rebates could reach $200 on some appliances but you don't have to haul in your old fridge or washer to get the rebate. it might be nice if someone came along and took away the old one. that would be a good thing. >> yes, it would. >> it is not part of it. >> i can't wait to see what is next. clothes. clothes for clunkers. you and i would have a lot of that. thanks, stephanie. the country's largest lutheran denomination is trying to decide if gay and lesbian clergies can have a sex life. they can serve the church but have to be celibate. married straight clergy always good to go. surf's up for much of the east coast.

hurricane bill is turning up in the atlantic, rip tides and high seas from florida to maine with cape cod potentially getting the worse of it. some of the best tornado video. roll it and bring it in full, scotty. you can feel how scary it must have been. at least four funnel clouds reported. in one of them and 11-year-old boy was killed. time for you to meet another cnn hero nominee. faith coleman was one of the estimated 46 million americans without health insurance but she turned a crisis into a career. >> i was completely denied all insurances. >> i have been unemployed and basically have no income. >> they told me i have breast

cancer. i did not have insurance so i came here. >> if they have no insurance and they have no money, what is going to happen to them? in 2003 i discovered that i had kidney cancer. i am a nurse prak tigser in but i had no health insurance. i was able to mortgage my house to pay for the surgery. if it can happen to me then it can happen to anybody. i'm faith coleman, i co-founded a free clinic for americans who don't have health insurance. >> good morning, everybody. >> we welcome every patient here who is uninsured and who meets the federal poverty guidelines. i'm faith. nice to meet you. we have what i call controlled chaos. it is busy, busy, go, go, go. having kidney cancer was one of the best things that happened to me because i can truly empathize with patients. any questions at all?

>> no. >> nothing you can think of? >> all right. i want to see you back in here in two weeks. okay. awesome. i'm so proud of you! we all have the same right. i'm sorry the right to health care is right up there with the rest of them. >> you can follow cnn heroes on facebook and twitter and find out more. log on to cnn.com/heroes. we will announce the top ten heroes of 2009 in a few weeks. dogs aren't picky dressers. a michael vick jersey for your pooch?

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a family trying to find peace with a sudden death finds someone else in the casket. at the viewing mourners kept whispering the body didn't look right. the funeral home people kept telling them you are wrong.

>> they kept trying to tell us it was him. i knew it wasn't. >> i would like an apology and make sure this doesn't happen to another person. this is ridiculous. >> only after the two-hour viewing did the funeral home admit, yeah, it's the wrong guy. our affiliate wpbi tracked down the director and he confessed this isn't the first time it happened. you wouldn't think college students need anymore incentive to drink beer. a new marketing campaign features bud light beer cans emblazoned with college team colors. anheuser-busch says it is targeting legal drinkers. philadelphia eagles sponsors are staying true to their team and michael vick is on the

roster. not a single corporate supporters has flown the coop. that doesn't mean there is uniform support. dick sporting good stores is not carrying the quarterback's jersey. jerseys for fans are one thing, but now you can dress your pit bull like michael vick and it is officially sanctioned by the nfl, by the way. for $39.99 a vick dog shirt can be yours. the number seven jersey is not premade but you can customize it. some vick related words have been nixed. his alias is off limits and so is bad news, the name of the dogfighting ring. seems like they have ethical control there. >> doing some camera work for myself. how is that? >> doing your own camera work. >> did you see that story?

>> i didn't. >> trying to make yourself look good. >> time for your close up. >> what happened to that? >> that is crazy. >> you are looking blown out, pal. >> hold on, chris. >> i thought you have a big budget. >> i have a big something, probably a big butt. what do we got? we got band-aids? and we put stuff -- no. i'm kidding. >> would you just get to the point, sanchez. this air time is valuable. you've got 20 seconds pal. what are you talking about? >> tom ridge, important story. especially when you consider americans are asking serious questions. we are talking about something else having to do with the scottish authorities and libyan authorities and whether this picture we saw yesterday of this terrorist arriving in libya will

change u.s. relations with libya. we are drilling down on that. it is an important story. one all americans should be paying attention to. we are bringing it to you. >> rocky, can you turn camera two around and show you. rick i want to point something out. >> go ahead. >> i have a whole crew of camera folks back here. >> wait. go back to mine. i want to show you my camera guy. take the shot. there is my camera guy right there. holding a light. >> here we go. mine is much better looking. rocky, give us the cameo. wave. i have a whole staff. see. look at my whole staff. there is chris. >> i'm getting in trouble. we have gone off the rails. much more serious news to talk about.

one of the many faces of the economic problems plaguing our state, a 12-year-old girl literally struggling to survive california's financial crisis. you will meet her in just a second. back to school costs less at walmart. save money. live better. walmart.

a family's critical condition. their daughter suffers from a genetic birth defect that robbed her of the ability to walk, talk or breathe on her own. with the state cuts in california the home health care providers will be gone. jessica's story in today's "health care in focus." >> i'm here to talk about the home health care cuts will affect my 12-year-old. jessica suffers from a debilitating disease. she receives home health care through the westside regional service. ♪ good morning good morning ♪ >> this is a family that was trying to be caregivers, nurses and doctors and go to work and

support their family. we have been able to find out how to take care of jessica. if they had told me ten years ago this is what is your life is going to be i would have said, we don't have the training, the energy, but they fell in love with jessica and wanted to help. >> carmen is going to the races. who is going to win? >> carmen said i think i can do this. we were so desperate for somebody to come in. >> i call her my angel. i bait her, position her, massage her. make her comfortable. >> your hair is very pretty. i have been her friend so long i feel we have a connection. i wanted to keep it. once you have a friendship that is big enough like that you are always wishing for the best for her. >> we finally got everything in place where they could be parents again, which is a wonderful thing.

that is what scares me a little bit about these budget cuts. it is frightening to think what would happen if the services were no longer there. they are absolutely essential to keep jessica going. >> i believe worse case scenario if the services stop coming, physically you cannot do it. you can't 24-hour care give. we wouldn't have the medicines, the supplies required to sustain her life. >> jessica would like to thank everyone for coming to her 12th birthday party. >> this is her 12th birthday. it is significant because we don't know how many more birthdays she can celebrate with us. it is hard to think of that, one day i'm not going to be able to see her anymore. it comes sad but it is happy that she is going to be happier there. >> for more on the health care debate and how reforms could