jay leno suggested we follow the trail of the mystery contrail. >> let's play it backwards and place where the contrail came from. oh, there it is. there it is right there. >> reporter: contrail controversies have happened before, and they'll happen again so -- ♪ happy trails to you >> reporter: make that contrails. ♪ until we meet again >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn, new york. happy weekend, everybody. see you on monday. tony, it's the u.s. navy blue angels. smoke on. >> i know a little something about contrail. >> you do? >> i was wolf blitzer's contrail at the soul train awards last night here in atlanta, the tapele taping of the program. >> he got the dougie down, i

heard. >> black people love wolf blitzer. everybody loves wolf but black people love wolf blitzer! live from studio 7, cnn world headquarters, news and information you need, their ship comes in, and, boy, are they glad. cruise passengers safe on shore today and telling horror stories about their vacation. the u.s. military begs war vets to take our money, please. soldiers are too suspicious to cash in. >> i was immediately suspicious about it. it seemed like another scam that a lot of people prey on soldiers with. good morning. a big automotive recall, garfield, the cat bombs, and golf, a contact sport? all of those stories and your comments right here right now in the cnn newsroom. these are not the kind of

vacation memories they expected. passengers from the crippled carnival cruise ship are back on dry land this morning and sharing their stories of a misadventure at sea i'd say. panama is leading the investigation into the fire that caused the splnld to lose power. the coast guard is also involved. passengers spent three days stranded without hout hot water, food or air conditioner. for some it was an adventure. for others it was a nightmare. >> they just now told us there was a fire on the boat. >> you did not know there was a fire on the boat until now? >> yes. >> why did they tell you the boat stopped? >> they never told us what the issue was. they told us there was smoke. there's lots of smoke. >> it was absolutely deplorable. my expectations were completely fell through the floor. i expected a really nice time, and it was like gilligan's

island or something. i felt like marooned on a prison ship, you can call it that because i was in the dark buy mayo sandwiches and backed up toil hes. it was really bad all the way around. >> carnival was wonderful. the crew and everybody on it were just friendly and encouraging and big smiles and helpful all of the time. they were great. >> they did keep us informed of how long it was going to take us to get back to shore. we were surprised today when we heard it was a fire. they kept telling us it was flameless smoke. to keep us calm. i understand now why they were saying that, just to keep everybody calm. i think they handled the situation really well, but it is a shock to kind of learn there was a big fire. >> it was anned venture. i'll tell you that. from everything from the military to cold water showers to spam to salads every day,

but, i mean, carnival did a great job. you know, with just the resources they had, so i can't say enough. the crew was great. >> a lot of things went wrong but it was really fun. we went to the kids camp. i met a couple of friends, and it was just really fun. >> it was so exciting to see the land! >> let's get to a couple of other big stories we're following. president obama on the road in asia insists she not caving on bush era tax cuts. a number of reports suggest he'll go along with republican demands to extend all tax cuts even for the wealthiest americans. not so fast. >> i want to make sure that taxes don't go up for middle-class families starting on jan 1st. that's my number one priority for those families and for our economy. i also believe it would be fiscally irresponsible for us to permanently extend the

high-income tax cuts. i think that would be a mistake, particularly when we've got our republican friends saying that their number one priority is making sure that we deal with our debt and our deficit. a tennessee politician taking some heat today for comparing immigrants to rats. state rep curry todd asked health care officials if pregnant immigrants must prove citizenship to get state aid. here's the exchange. >> we are not permitted to determine citizenship because the child once born is a u.s. citizen. >> we go out there like rats and multiply, i guess. >> it showed him as an elected official, that he doesn't care about the immigrant community, that he doesn't value them as human beings. >> todd apologized for what he called a poor choice of words but stands by his point. >> here are some of the stories

trending. garfield comic jim davis is apologizing for this comic strip that appeared in newspapers on veterans day. garfield is about to kill a spider way rolled up newspaper, but the spider says, if you squish me, they will hold a day of remembrance in my honor. in the final panel, the spider asks, does anyone know why we celebrate national stupid day. davis apologized saying it wasn't unintentional. he drew the comic strip a year ago and publishing it on veterans day was the worst timing ever. a plan to cut the national deficit by $4 trillion over the next ten years is forcing us to think about making some big sacrifices that will impact all of us. did you know 20% of the federal budget goes to national defense and 20 to just social security. guess how much of the budget goes to education. reality have .

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congress having to make tough decisions about reducing the national debt.

20% of our federal budget goes to national defense and security, 20% going to social security. can you guess how much goes to education? the answer is, take a look, just 3%. 3%! most of the rest of our budget goes to medicare, medicaid and other safety net programs as well as interest on our debt. as promised, we are keeping up our focus on reducing the nation's crushing debt. it is one of the most important debates we are likely to have. most of you have had to make difficult decision about your own personal debt and finances. we are going to follow this in real detail. how big is the debt, and how did we get here? who owns the debt, and why does that matter to you? what cuts are being proposed and what would you cut? a draft plan to begin reducing the debt calls for spends cuts, and it's whether the lawmakers

will have the will to do that. in the situation room, a rising star in the republican party was asked about the proposal. >> congressman, just yesterday, the co-chairs of the president's deficit commission said, as we come out of this recovery a couple of years from now, the 800-pound gorilla is the debt. they proposed that we cut $2 in spending for every $1 in tax increases, and the question for republicans is are you willing to have any tax increases as part of a deficit reduction program long term after we get back on the road to recovery. >> well, david, i would say this, i think it's early to start to speculate on what we're going to do in two years, first of all, who the congress will be, who the president will be in two years. >> this will be voting in this congress. >> republicans today are committed to ensuring that no american receive a tax increase

now. i think we're going to have bipartisan to ensure that, and the more important thing is what are we going to do to start reining in the testifies. you can argue that we need to raise taxes. i argue job one is to find cuts. i'm encouraged by the deficit commission's recommendations, although many of the members haven't had an opportunity to weigh in, dave camp, the chairman of the ways and means committee. this is a proposal brought forward by the republican and democrat chairman. 14 of the 18 members have to support it before it comes to the floor. i haven't heard any of the 18 endorse this proposal. so when they talk about rolling back domestic spending to 2010 levels, house republicans said, look, we want to roll back domestic spending to 2008 levels, which is save over $1 trillion. >> next hour, we will speak with

the cnn money team about what debt reduction could mean for your taxes. that's next hour. it is a big issue creating a lot of buzz. here's what you're saying about slashing the deficit by $4 trillion. we ask what you would cut. robin on facebook says cut out all of the rich, fat cats, but aaron says, if we continue hating rich people and insist on taxing them, they will take their corporations and businesses elsewhere along with job opportunities. i would cut military, and glen from west hollywood says cutting executive bonuses, campaign funding and lobbying. a number of you had similar comments to gather who says cut in salaries for all senators and congressman, plus rollbabes and higher co-pays for their cadillac health care. who is this man and why is turkey going crazy over him? the answer after this.

[ male announcer ] nature is unique... ...authentic... ...pure... and also delicious. ♪ like nature valley. granola bars made with crunchy oats and pure honey. because natural is not only good, it also tastes good. nature valley -- 100% natural. 100% delicious. i was living on welfare and supporting a family of four. after i got the job at walmart, things started changing immediately. then i wrote a letter to the food stamp office. "thank you very much, i don't need your help any more." you know now, i can actually say i bought my home.

i knew that the more i dedicated... the harder i worked, the more it was going to benefit my family. this my son, mario and he now works at walmart. i believe mario is following in my footsteps. my name is noemi, and i work at walmart. ♪ [ but aleve can last 12 hours. tylenol 8 hour lasts 8 hours. my name is noemi, and i work at walmart. and aleve was proven to work better on pain than tylenol 8 hour. so why am i still thinking about this? how are you? good, how are you? [ male announcer ] aleve. proven better on pain. we're back. we're having this conversation, and we need to have it on air. allen iverson, treated like a rock star in turkey, a huge welcome for the former nba star who signed a two career deal. >> it's kind of a sad story because you're talking about one

of the best -- >> first ballot hall of famer, would you agree? >> absolutely. a guy who crossed over michael jordan in his rocky year. now he's going to end his career in turkey. there's a certain kind of sadness about this but look at how well he is getting received over there. this is good for him. let's listen to some of the chants. [ chanting ] now, a.i. has never gotten chants like that. >> not in philly. >> here's the dichotomy and makes the story interesting because by most accounts, this man is in europe because he refused to accept a lesser role and come off of the bench. >> do you buy that? >> that's the last we heard of him, but for 30 teams to totally not touch this guy, that's shocking. >> couldn't the miami heat use

him? >> he wants to get that ring. there's a good chance, but would he agree to come off the bench. some say he would, some say he wouldn't. >> we have something out of australia. tiger is playing in the australian masters. >> he is not in the heat. he is nine shots back. this is where she's supposed to rewrite the script. scene of the crime. >> not going to happen. >> nine shots behind a guy who has not qualified for the pga tour. he is playing behind lesser talent. this is sad for the guy in the gallery. robert allenby. the gallery is so big, and he hooks it to the left and unfortunately hits a poor guy right square on the head. >> knocks him out. >> right down. >> that's why you yell fore.

he comes over and signs a ball for him. >> thanks a lot. hit your drive straight. this is the australian masters, and allenby is australian. so this is australian on australian crime. >> did you stay up for the gim? >> on my shift, we don't stay up late. we get up early at midnight and watch the end of this exciting game. >> walk us through this because that looks like the falcons have this in the bag and then we get this. >> the ravens were down by 10 points at the half and with a minute left, they come back and take the lead. 25 seconds left. roddy white. >> how did he get that wide open? >> there's controversy because ravens fans -- he pushed off. >> does the replay indicate he pushed off? >> it does, nothing was called. incidental conduct. in baltimore they're

celebrating, and now atlanta looks like a super bowl caliber team. >> 7-2 now? >> 6-2. >> 7-2. you need to know that. 7-2. i'm not supposed to know that. you are. >> that's why i'm leaving. i enjoyed my last time on the show. >> we'll see you on monday -- maybe. news week is making a very bold move next on the cnn newsroom. dermatologist recommendedr ] aveeno has an oat formula, now proven to build a moisture reserve, so skin can replenish itself. that's healthy skin for life. only from aveeno.

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to evolve to survive. we're talking about "newsweek" magazine, around for 77 years, just announced here it is merging with what popular blog? it's the daily beast. tina brown, the beast's chief will now be the new editor in chief for the new entity. it will be called the "news week daily beast company soes soes. nissan is recalling cars saying corrosion could cause the steering column to crack on frontiers and xterras and 2010 sentras have a bad battery cable. it's the season to buy video games. 40 of video games are purchased in november and december, and according to one video game maker the november and december period is already breaking records.

alison kosic on the floor of the new york stock exchange with details. good morning. >> good morning to you. what a lucrative industry this video game industry is. think about it, the hottest new game called call of duty black opposite took in $360 million in the first 24 hours of being on sale. more than 5 million. act vision blizzard, the economy that puts out the game is on a roll because it has another huge launch next month. these games aren't cheap, 60 bucks a pop but a lot of these more action packed video games end up being violent, so they attract the older set and have more disposable income. >> this kind of a number, so early in the season, is this giving electronics retailers hope for a big holiday season? >> it is. retailers like walmart, target, amazon.com, a good sign that people are shelling out money for the games. the consumer electronics

association thinks it's going to be a banner holiday shopping season especially for electronics, and video game consoles are among the top five most wanted electronics items on wish lists, also a good sign for retailers. >> allison, if you would, a quick market check. >> the dow is down about 79 points, and the nasdaq off about 26. not the greatest day. china had a worst time over night. the shanghai composite fell more than 5%, equivalent to a 600 point drop on the dow. we are not seeing that. nothing compared to what china saw over night. so there's the bright spot for you as i leave you. >> see you next hour. checking top stories now, president obama wants to make sure taxes don't go up for middle-class families come january 1st, and he's denying any suggestion that his administration is about to cave

in to republicans who also want to extend bush era tax cuts for the wealthy. lots of folks talking about the carnival ship. passengers have disembarked safely and government regulators investigating the fire that caused the ordeal. tech blogs sayaheau who is t to cut jobs for its workers.

the midwest is bracing for a strong winter storm to sweep in here. here is a bird's eye view in minneapolis. not bad, now, pretty good actually but a winter storm

watch in place for saturday morning. the twin cities are preparing for their first snow of the season but new york, new york, big city of dreams. what a way to upstage the winter weather. you're looking at central park where it is bright and beautiful. cnn reveals the 2010 hero of the year thanksgiving night. here is one of our top ten honorees. olympic skater evan lice check introduces our next hero. >> as a champion of help usa, i'm committed to breaking the cycle of homelessness and poverty in our country. i see just how much the world needs hero and i'm thrilled to help cnn introduce one of this year's top ten honorees. >> baghdad ended up being a hell of a ride. i sustained a serious blast

injury. my life came to a complete halt. >> how are you doing? you look sharp today. >> i have been building custom homes for 30 years, and one of the most important things for a family is a home. >> read the sign. >> future home of sergeant alexander reyes. >> congratulations. >> giving these folks a new home means the world. >> thank you. that's all i can say. >> my name is it dan wallrath. we build homes for returning soldiers from iraq and afghanistan. the homes are mortgage free. it gives the family a new start so they can move forward. these young men and women are doing this for you and me. how can i not help them? >> wow. vote for your cnn hero and watch thanksgiving night when we reveal the winner for 2010, cnn heroes hosted by anderson

cooper. jerry seinfeld takes on broadway and our richard roth, oh my. ♪ when you're responsible for this much of the team, you need a car you can count on.

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how about this? jerry seinfeld hits broadway. he is working with fellow comedian colin quinn, pretty funny, too, on an incisive commentary on civilization. richard roth sits down with the director and star of "long story short." when you come off the step. >> reporter: jerry seinfeld's show was about nothing, but in his directorial debut on broadway, he helps comedian colin quinn tackle the world. >> thanks. you betrayed me. >> reporter: what is it you're trying to show about the history of the world. >> there's an element in the decline of every great empire that you see in america right now.

countries have a tendency to keep doing what they do after it stops working. >> reporter: empires might fail but not the partnership of seinfeld and quinn. >> what would you like me to say? >> did you ever try to cheer up a russian. how are you? what would you like me to say? >> reporter: the one-man show pulls no punches. >> the jews got chased out immediately. that's why shalom means hello and good-bye and peace because that's there story. we're here, we're's living, don't hit us. people have insecurities and low self-esteem. they show up with polished swords, pressed uniforms. really, this is where you live. >> reporter: based upon your 75-minute plus examination of history, where are we going in civilization? >> i feel we're not going wra

where differently. china is going to be the big empire. i feel it keeps going. >> reporter: the show isn't a disaster. critics love it, but don't expect the director to get nostalgic. in your comedy show you waited a long time in your chinese restaurant. here, you didn't have to wait long for your menu and food and that work ethic has gotten them somewhere and they scoff at americans having lunch. >> that's the worst possible way to tell the joke but you hit the subjects involved. >> reporter: if tv, you have to leave a little for the guest to get out here and jump in. >> you took all of the good parts, threw them in a blender and dumped them on my head. that's what you did. >> okay. you guys said that would be good. if you want that, the best seats in the house to see colin quinn, in "long story short" be

prepared to shell out some bucks here, big bucks. it takes more than $100. what a waste. look at this. a messy, sloppy, gooey, chocolate pie fight for a good cause. you'll see when we run some of the best videos of the day. [ woman ] you know, as a mom, i worry about my son playing football. which is why i'm really excited. because toyota developed this software that can simulate head injuries and helps make people safer. then they shared this technology with researchers at wake forest

to help reduce head injuries on the football field. so, you know, i can feel a bit better about my son playing football. [ male announcer ] how would you use toyota technology to make a better world? learn how to share your ideas at toyota.com/ideasforgood. no, no, no. he looks great. >> he looks incredible. >> i saw the first game that tnt broadcast, the celtics and the heat game, and -- we're talking about charles. he looked like he lost almost a

person. >> he's a good looking man. >> did he lose 40 pounds?

if you dropped dead on our conversation. an auburn man, so we were talking about charles barkley. he looks great. he lost a lot of weight. he looks fantastic. i was going to ask you about cam newton. >> if you want to make me cry right here, that's the way to do it. but it's not done yet. >> as we turn to weather, that's a significant system in the midwest there, and you were telling me a story about

amarillo. >> amarillo, people woke up to raindrops and in the blink of an eye, it changed to snow. they had 1 to 3isms of snowfall and possibly another big snow maker. there it is, a storm system about 1,000 miles wide. temperatures above freezing. closer behind that on the back half of the system, we could see heavy snow in the midwest. 30s on one side, cold air on the northern plains and overrunning moisture that is the big ticket that gave you, of course, the heavier noefl that we had. you want to talk about serious know, the type of snow this weekend that if you're not ready for it, you better be soon. this area of low pressure with the same recipe, overrunning moisture with a very shallow layer of cold air, could give you anywhere from 2 to 8 inches of snowfall in the western great lakes, twin cities, 6 to 12.

live image in the twin cities. you see the overcast skies. not so bad now but tomorrow, you could see snowflakes in that frame. for dark don't worry about the snow. enjoy the sunshine. east coast, picture perfect. boston, 57 degrees outside fenway park. in atlanta, 77 degrees. 74 in fen 96, sunny in portland, scattered clouds but in terms of rain makers, that's later in the weekend. the best chance of snow right here in the middle of the u.s. >> and you have a big game this weekend, auburn and an thens. >> it's georgia. >> good luck with that one. we'll talk about it on monday. let's do this before we take a break. let's share a couple videos of the day. the fog bowl. miami of ohio and bowling green tried to play football in this. it's soup. the fog rolled in in the second

quarter. we understand miami won the game 24-21 after an end of game field goal that we think went through the uprights. got to show you this. the pies -- sky high at a new jersey prep school. organizers say they had 600 pie throwers and 1500 chocolate custard pies. that would be a new world record if confirmed by guinness. it takes a couple of weeks to do that. this raised about 10 grand for a soup kitchen. [ advisor 1 ] what do you see yourself doing one week, one month, five years after you do retire?

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let's get you caught up on the top stories now. a nobel prize winner who spent most of the 20 years under house

arrest in myanmar has become the world's most recognizable political prisoner. the death toll in cholera's outbreak in haiti has raised. scientists predict the outbreak could last for months, and the entire nation is at risk because they have no immunity to cholera. san francisco's mayor is expected to veto the city's ban on most mcdonald's happy meals with toys but the veto will be meaningless because the board approved the ordinance 8-3 and that's a veto-proof margin. what started as a soccer league for boys from war torn country has become a way of life. sanjay gupta has more on this story. >> reporter: at first glance, they look like a bunch of kids playing soccer. but take another look. a closer one. this is the fuji's family.

anybody who wants to ub a part of this family can be? >> any refugee can be. >> reporter: that's what binds them together, they are all refugees, 86 children and teen dprs more than 28 countries. >> any country that's had a war in the past 20, 30 years we have kids from those countries. >> reporter: what started six years ago is now a school full of students most of who have never been in a classroom before. robin, short stoply dressed in the school's uniform is an 8th grader at the fuji's academy, something almost impossible in sudan. right after you moved to the united states, and someone said, robin, what are you going to do with your life, what would you have said? >> i didn't know what to say during that time, but now, when i look at myself, i want to be

someone like very good and make my people proud. >> reporter: life in america has not always been good tore robin. what happens to you here? >> everyone is picking on you, treating you different like you don't belong here. >> reporter: what did do you? >> i used to fight a lot. now days i don't get into fights. >> reporter: while there are refugees living all around the united states, the fuji's family is the only group combining soccer with the hope for a future. are there other organizations like this around the country? >> no. we get e-mails from around the country and world about bringing the fujis to us. >> reporter: how many more years? >> four years because i'm in eighth grade. then another four years of college. >> you can learn more about the fujis family more on dr. sanjay

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hill. compromise, is there room for compromise somewhere. >> reporter: well, there could be. the talks have not started in earnest at all. i should tell you that off the bat. talking to democratic and republican sources, what i'm hearing more and more is the most likely compromise at this point, and it is early, at this point, could be to simply extend all of the bush era tax cuts for all income levels temporarily for two or three years. we were hearing more about before they all agree on extending oh called middle-class tax cuts permanently but disagreed on those for the wealthiest. why do everything temporarily? i'm hearing from republican sources they don't want to separate the two because politically it would be harder to fight just on extending tax cuts for the wealthiest americans. it is early, and democrats and republicans are still publicly standing their ground, but this might be some kind of middle ground to do everything temporarily and come back in two or three years after the

presidential election when the economy hopefully will be better. president obama was in seoul giving a press conference saying nothing changed in his position but did say he hopes there is some kind of middle ground they can work out. he did something very interesting with regard to nancy pelosi. he seemed to give a tacit endorsement to pelosi as being the next house minority leader. there is nobody opposing her right now but still there are conservatives right off the bat before she announced said they don't think this is a good idea. the president said she is an outstanding partner for me. there is some palace inquiry going on there because she is making the case that she could be a counterbalance to president obama who seemed more mistrusted here even among fellow democrats here in congress. >> i think i saw this item on the ticker.

there is a conservative talk show host who is going to be a staffer for a newly elected congressman. >> no anymore. her name is joyce kaufman, conservative talk show host in florida and she was going to come here and be the chief of staff to allen west, a newly elected republican but she said she's not going to do that now in part because of the some controversial things she has said at rallies and on her radio show, for example, a "new york times" reporter at a really she talked she said that's not bigotry, that's a fact, and she effectively called nancy pelosi garbage, so she's not coming here. >> man, it's coarse. it's harsh. and your next political update in an hour, and you can go to cnnpolitics.com. when attempts to cut the federal deficit start to get

personal, we will explain how the proposed cuts could affect your wallet. and sarah palin's "alaska" debuts. in the series, she shows off her state from salmon fishing to hiking a glacier. we're back in a moment.

cuba warns it will turn children into sociopaths, the latest exchange in the history of u.s./cuba ties. more now. >> reporter: a new american video game literally takes aim at cuba's fidel castro. one of the first missions in

"call of duty black ops" is to rub out the young leader of the cuban revolution. unlike in real life, players appear to do just that, in disturbingly gory details. no official reaction from the government here in havana, but this state-run website denounced the game for glorifying assassination and inciting america's youth to behave like violent sociopaths. the cuban government site also ridicules the cia. what the understand couldn't accomplish if more than 50 years, they're trying to do virtually, it says. in real life. castro survived scores of assassination attempts and outlasted ten u.s. administrations. ilness forced him to step down in 2006, but after four years of seclusion, fidel castro is back in action. he's not in power, but he's got his trademark fatigues on and

tours havana delivers endless speeches about the risk of nuclear war. for its use. the attempts on castro have been re-enacted in a big budget tv series. in one episode, the cia has scientists develop a poisonous cigar for castro's visit to the u.n. in new york. >> any of the cigars is enough to kill him. >> the plot is foiled when new york's police chief refuses to deliver them. >> you are dead. we killed you. you killed a double. you think we didn't know? >> reporter: even in "call of duty" castro proves immortal. >> here's my gift to you. >> reporter: shasta darlington, cnn, havana. have a look at this as we go to break. the department of defense set aside millions. you'll never get how much money is waiting to be handed out. gecko: gd news sir, i jugot ae

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aspercreme breaks the grip, with maximum-strength medicine and no embarrassing odor. break the grip of pain with aspercreme. so the defense department put aside $534 million for stop-loss. how much is still in the pot? $324 million remains. the deadline to file a claim for that money is exactly three weeks ago. chris lawrence explains the problem. >> reporter: it's like a winning lotto ticket that's about to expire. the government's got half a billion to give away, but can't find enough troops to claim it. >> i was immediately suspicious about it. it seemed like another scam that a lot of people prey on soldiers with. >> reporter: but it's not. ian smith earned that money. so did other soldiers and marines, when their enlistment

was up, the pentagon forced them to stay in. >> you have orders to report to the first brigade. >> not me, i'm getting out today. >> you leave on the 22nd, going back to iraq you've been stop-lo stop-lossed. >> reporter: like the fictional, he fenned an enlistment. >> i could not bring myself to acknowledge the horrors. we had daily memorial services for people that were dies in atrocious ways. >> reporter: ian works at a veteran outreach center, but still remembers that the army told him you're going back to iraq. they weren't just saying stay another month. >> right. it's going to be a surge tour, 15 months instead of 12. it was probably the worst news you could have heard. some lost relationships, so congress authorized $500 for any month they werehood over. in ian's case it was nearly

$7,000, but thousands of veterans forgot to fill out paperwork or thought it was too good to be true. >> i'm hear to tell you this is no gametic or trick. >> reporter: even after the president implored vets to get their money there's still nearly $300 million available to claim. >> if you can imagine someone coming to you and telling you, without any strings attached, that they're going to pay you thousands -- >> reporter: the pentagon's representative says they did direct mailings, and advertised it on any site it could. mike pereira is rushing to fin his paperwork. >> i hope i don't miss out on any opportunity. especially had i known sooner, i would have been able to prep better. >> in just a few weeks, it might be too late. >> we want them to apply. >> reporter: all someone has to

do is file the application by december 3rd. after that, there's a ton of folks available who can work out the kinks with documentation and paperwork and all that. remember, congress authorized $530 million for this program, more than half of it is still sitting out there. chris lawrence, cnn, washington. and hello again, i'm top of the hour in the "cnn newsroom" where anything can happen. deductions in danger. recommendations to lower america's crushing debt could mean you could lose prized tax rates like your home mortgage interest deduction. we are digging deeper. chaotic cruise. what was it like aboard that ship stuck at seas. and for all the men watching and the women who love them, do something you're likely to be a little wary of, maybe even afraid to do. >> so stick your tongue out

here, now high "e." >> t.j. holmes overcoming his -- i'm not going to call them fears, concerns, issues, and sharing an important message about going to the doctor. >> your taxes, and what to expect. president obama insists he's not caving to republicans on the issue. reports recently surfaced suggesting that the president was willing to give in to gop demands to extend bush-era tax cuts to the rich. it is a fight that will play out on capitol hill beginning next week which congress returns for the lame-duck session, but the president sets the record straight. >> that is the wrong interpretation, because i haven't had a conversation with republican and democratic leaders. here's the right interpretation. i want to make sure that taxes don't go up for middle-class families starting on january 1st.

that's my number one priority. for those families and for our economy. i also believe that it will be fiscally irresponsible for us to permanently extend the high-income tax cuts. i think that would be a mistake, particularly when we've got our republican friends saying that their number one priority is making sure though we deal with our debt and our deficit. >> okay. asked about his future discussions with party leaders, he would only say he wasn't going to negotiate in seoul, but negotiate back in washington. so the other money and politics story we're following, reducing the nation's crushing debt, it was a major theme in midterm elections, as you know. most of you have made difficult decisions about your personal debt and finances. now it's certainly the country's turn. at this debate unfolds, we are going to go and follow it in depth, in great detail. we will focus on the size of the debt and how we got here, who owns the debt and why it matters

to you. and what would you cut? think about that. a preliminary proposal to slash the nation's debt has gotten the conversation going. the plan by the cochairman of a bipartisan panel calls for deep spending cuts and tax increases to cut $4 trillion over ten years, also calls for overhauling the tax code. that could mean the end of some very popular tax deductions, jeanne sahadi, senior writer of cnnmoney.com breaks the issue down on their website. your article is called "blowing up the tax code." if you would, walk us through the three main ideas for tax reform. >> the cochairman of president obama's commission did what a lot of tax policy experts have been saying all along needs to happen. they simplified the tax code, their proposals would simplify the tax code. they reduce the income tax rates for individuals and businesses, and they call for the reduction or elimination of most of the

tax breaks that lots of people in the country enjoy, lots of special interests lobby for. >> let's do this. let's break these down one by one, starting with the idea of simplifying the tax code. >> right, a couple things they do, they get rid of thinks like the alternative minimum tax, the so-called wealth tax. it's sort of complicated to figure out. you have to figure out your taxes twice every year. it's like a marketing plan for adville. they're getting rid of that. they are reducing the number of tax brackets from six to three. there are six tax rates. until some of their proposals there would only be three. they also -- part of simplification is also reducing the number of tax breaks in the code, but that also accomplishes a lot of other things. >> the next item here is the idea of actually lowering tax rates, correct? >> right. right. and again, that is tied into reducing tax breaks. they have a couple proposals in

their draft plans, and it would reduce rates across the board for everyone, individuals and corporations. the idea of doing it for corporations is that it makes them more competitive internationally, because companies will choose to invest here. that's the theory. another reason for lowering income tax rates is that it makes the whole system more economically efficient. by that, they mean it will reduce incentives to avoid taxation. in other words, you wouldn't do something economically just to avoid, you know, to lower your tax bill. >> got you. >> the same thing is true when you reduce tax breaks, they're doing it, one, to simplify the code, but also we give up about a trillion in revenue every year to these various tax breaks. we talk about the mortgage interest deduction, the health tax break you get at work when employers help you pay for your insurance policies, the charitial deductions. none of these would be sacred

until these proposals. they account for a disproportionate amount of that trillion that we lose in tax revenue every year. this is a deficit reduction plan. >> i think you blended in some of the ideas on closing some of the tax breaks there, didn't you? >> did i blend them? well, there are over 200 tax breaks in the code, but five or six of them are the most expensive and also most popular. so you will see a lot of fights about it. this isn't just a proposal right now. i don't think -- most people don't think that the fiscal commission will sign onto it, certainly not as-is, but what tax experts are saying is this is really laying the groundwork for people to begin this discussion. >> aren't we getting another report next week with additional ideas, maybe some of the same ideas? >> yes a member of the president's commission is also co-chairing a debt reduction commission for the bipartisan

policy center, and they're coming out with their report. they were supposed to come out before the president's commission. as we know the cochairman surprised everybody by putting out their draft. it was my understanding al son strickland told us that she thought her group's proposal would be more aggressive than what the commission puts out. i think what the final report for the commission will be will be less aggressive with either the cochairman or what the group has put out, but the truth is once the commission is gone, they disband after december se, these two reports will really lake the mark against which president obama's 2012 budget proposal will be measured, against the proposals that the republicans and the tea partiers who have been complaining about the debt are going to be making. this is an important framework that both groups are laying down. >> terrific. well doane, jeanne, in your piece at cnnmoney.com is titled ". >> "blowing up the tax code."

>> terrific work. thank you, jeanne. >> thank you, tony. the saga of the cruise ship "splendor" is over. hugs all around as the ship was towed into san diego thursday. carnival offering free cruises after an engine room fire turned a vacation into a nightmare. a passenger captured the announcement that signaled trouble ahead. >> we have a smoke situation, lots of smoke in one of our engine control areas. you are all smelling that smoke if you're on decks 1, 2, possibly deck 6 as well. >> wow, the ship actually set out on sunday, but by early monday it was dead in the water. no electricity. for passengers that meant no air conditioning, no hot water, no real food, just pop-tarts, mayonnaise sandwiches, stuff like that, spam. passengers talked to cnn's john roberts on "american morning." >> when it happened it was loud.

the rest of the days were just -- i wouldn't say chaotic, just not organized at first as the time went on it got a little better. situations weren't great as far as not having toilets and power, but most people made it through and survived already obviously. >> we talked about people being left with mayonnaise sandwiches because passengers in they two-hour lines were taking all the meat off sandwiches. backed up toilets, cold showers in the dark. waves the worst for you is it. >> you know, i was disappointed. i was planning this trip with a group from church. i don't wish this experience on anyone, john, but i was just disappointed like, my goodness, why is this happening? why now? but i'm so thankful we're all alive. i give god praise that we made it out okay, because it could have been so much worse. >> some passengers say, sure,

they'll take carnival up on their offer of a free cruise. some are running in the other direction quickly. ask any woman how tough it is to get a man to go to the doctor's office. i've got to tell you, though, those checkups are really important. >> so stick your tongue out here, now a high "e." moirc "american idol" needs you, huh? >> that's a good look, t. t.j. holmes on the importance of getting those men in your life to visit their doctor. first the random moment in 90 seconds. granulated with fiber. sweet! [ female announcer ] tastes like sugar and has 3 grams of fiber per tablespoon. use it almost anywhere you use sugar. even in cooking and baking. sweet! [ female announcer ] splenda® granulated with fiber. over a million people have discovered how easy it is to use legalzoom for important legal documents.

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and then the baby gets loose. alas action all good things must come to an end. >> what happens when it ends? [ crying ] >> yay, good job. >> unhappy baby. all good things have to come to an end. we have to get to t.j. we're back in a moment. [ man #2 ] i worked with people from all over the world. [ man ] today you can see that you're part of something much larger. it was great to be a part of that community. you know, we learned from each other. it was amazing. ♪ [ crowd cheers ] [ man ] ladies and gentlemen, i now present to you the graduating class of the university of phoenix! ♪

if it ain't broke and you're not bleeding, why go to the doctor. was the point? >> ain't broke, ain't no problem. >> but here's the point, right? there are people in our lives, and men, this is for all of you who actually, believe it or not, love us and want us to be around -- so t.j., you did something you haven't done in how many years? >> i'm embarrassed.

it's been over ten years since i had a physical at the doctor. >> why so long? >> ain't broke, ain't bleeding, i ain't going. what's the point? we feel fine. we just don't go. you know that and every guy out there can relate to this. what happened to me some march? i got married. things changed a bit. so she's been on me, even before we got married. she's on me. i had my executive producer, hearing this conversation with my wife and i on the phone. she's like, you ain't been to the doctor for how long? that triggered it. i'm the exact problem, 33 years old, work out, eat fairly well, no problems. meat and vegetables, that's it, but there needs to be something else in there. but that's the point. you're seeing this, tom joyner, a syndicated radio host, he's had this campaign for years, take a loved one to the doctor. what happened with me here is that we decided to try to do some good.

i am the exact problem. >> i've been there, man. >> so you're talking about a guy like me, who has all those risk factors, i like red meat, my dad had prostate cancer, granddad prostate cancer, and i'm a black male. every risk factor they tell you about. heart disease, i'm all of those things, so cooper clinic, they took me to down in dallas. >> they worked you out and worked you over? >> a little bit. you could say that. >> this was the stress test? >> this tests the heart to let you know what kind of condition that heart is in and if you're in a risk area for heart disease. i'm doing this as 33, though. what i learned at 33 can help me change my life now to keep from having to go back when i'm 50 or 60 with a much bigger problem. >> you said this was tougher than you thought it would be. >> it was a lot tougher. treadmills you've been on 3.3 miles an hour, that ain't no problem. i walk that. >> that's my sweet spot. >> but on this one it goes one

degree up on the incline every minute, so you're climbing up the wall. >> can we listen? >> you feel like you're about 17 to 20 on there? >> i'm trying to hold on. >> you're hanging on for dear life. here's the point. i know you're in good shape. i've tried to play a little ball with you. i know you're in good shape, but this was tough. >> we think we're in good shape. what you don't know is what that blood pressure is doing, what the cholesterol is, how that heart is doing. that's the point we're trying to get out, maybe by showing folks what you have to go through, heart disease the number one killer, cancer the second leading killer. you can detect those early. bev tom joyner talking about it. >> are we literally killing ourselves? >> yes. yes. yeah. yeah. but we can do something about it with prevention and the first

step of prevention is right up until your shoes. take a -- you're at the doctor's office, and that's the first step to prevention. >> i'm sick of -- prevention is key, and i've done good work, but i'm sick of these text messages and e-mails i'm getting about keep t.j. on longer with his shirt off. what is this? >> stop, stop, stop. >> we're trying to get a serious message out here. >> i get these blasts, but did you come away with any knowledge about health factors, risks, things that you need to be mindful of? >> yes, my life changed this week. my life changed this week. my habits changed this week. like the doctor said, and you'll hear this this week, prevention, they don't focus on it in the medical community, because there's no money in there's money when you get really sick. >> right, right. >> but the wife is glad. everybody loves me like you. i'm glad i got in there. >> terrific. this weekend, starting tomorrow?

>> tomorrow we're going to do a whole half hour on men's health. you'll see the results of my physical, and maybe we can get some men into the doctor. >> all right. 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, "cnn saturday morning." rocking it. boy, that was tough. it looked tough. still to come, a winter storm watch for parts of the country this weekend. the forecast is straight ahead. and right now enjoy a delicious way to try to set a world record. 14,000 pies, 650 students in lawrence township, new jersey. we're back in a moment. [ advisor 1 ] what do you see yourself doing one week, one month, five years after you do retire? ♪ client comes in and they have a box. and inside that box is their financial life. people wake up and realize i better start doing something.

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pictures, information, insight you won't find anywhere else. "c newsroom" with tony harris. anything can happen. >> stormy skies elsewhere. a live look -- can we make this happen across the country right now? there you go. there's the scene in los angeles. not bad, huh, chad? we have a special guest out of los angeles, our bureau out there in just a couple minutes, but it looks good. thanks to our affiliates there, kcal/kcbs, i think we're blending pictures. what's the picture? >> not so good. dallas at the airport slowing, because of the rain. you can't see the tops of the building. >> there are some spots that are

nice. >> right here. i called my parent and said stop working in the yard, go look at some leaves that are still on the trees. it's nice, depending on where you are. we have truly a dichotomy of flow here, the cold is here, warm here. i was coming in to work, there was a big fire in downtown, traffic was all over the place, but the smoke has cleared. >> all those ravens fans leaving unhappy after that butt whipping. >> they were having a barbecue there. clear skies, beautiful weather. the rain is through the middle of the country. up into minneapolis, it gets cold enough we're going to turn this into snow. this will be a snow event in minneapolis. but somewhere there, become be into ramsey county, but i'm thinking southeast. our winter storm watches out there for minneapolis, and it

was snowing to beat the band in amarillo. i-40 was white this morning. i guess pieces of things to come, tony. it is turning into winter all over the country. >> what are we, coming up on the middle of november, right? >> yes. yes. >> kind of where we should be, right? >> i like the cool -- i like opening my doors, windows, letting some nice, fresh air in. >> have a great weekend, chad. >> i will. all right. a politics likened some pregnant immigrants to rats that multiply. top stories are next.

sgl checking top stories, a tennessee politician admits to a poor choice of words, but he stands by the point he was

trying to make about pregnant illegal immigrants. have a listen. >> we are not permitted to determine citizenship, because the child once born is a u.s. citizen. >> they go out there like rats and multiply then, i guess. >> it showed him as an elected official, he doesn't care about the immigrant community, he doesn't value them as human beings. >> boy, representative said later he's not going to try to be politically correct with everything he says. the college student convicted of hacking the account of sarah palin is going to prison for a year and a day. and anticipation and uncertainty. a building of myanmar where an icon of democracy could walk free.

aung san suu kyi is set to be released, but no one is certain when. sunday is the day of the child. founder of children uniting nations, daphna, good to see you. >> so good to see you. >> i've been waiting for this conversation all week. >> i'm waiting for you to come to l.a. >> yeah, that's happening next week. i can't wait to see you and the family. >> tell us about the day of the child and your organization's involvement with this. >> well, the day of the child this year is particularly amazing. we're hosting 1,000 foster children and 1,000 university student mentors for a day of fun, rides, food, and major, major celebrities. actually a sponsor this year is george clooney, and our host

forrest whitaker, don cheadle. maggie gilliland, david arquette, so many more. adrienne garger, so it's going to be a very special day for all the kids. >> daphna, you have a star-studded roster for the event on sunday. what is it about this cause that has resonated with the stars who will be on hand, and with you to take it on as an issue for your life? >> well, these children are removed from their home through no fault of their own because of abuse and neglect, and because they don't raise money, they don't vote and they don't have parents who vote or raise money, they are neglected and abandoned by our community. the whole point is to really reach out and make the most voiceless children in our

community or in our country have a voice. i think the fact that the communication media, and all of us, stars have reached out like that shows that we are developing a consciouses ness a feeling that -- i am so proud of los angeles, hollywood, washington and all the people reaching out to those children. in this day, these children who at best are caught up in a revolving door of strangers, they are actually being conceded as stars. they are the stars of the day. you know that ron artest is actually raffling his championship ring, and he's going to bring it to the day of the child, and it's $2 a ravel. with that money, he's actually going to adopt schools and he's going to add a mental health

component in the educational part of children who have suffered such trauma. >> is it true that every time you get some media attention that you get a number of kids who actually are adopted as a result of you talking about this issue? >> absolutely. you know, i was actually involved in starting adoption saturday, which then became adoption day across the country. in the beginning, we only had like 300 children that are being adopted. there are now adoption days across the entire country, and people call and people adopt these children. you know, more than anything, every child has the right to a family. it's so important to raise other people's children, because that's the future the not only our country, but our world. you just mentioned that there are 52 million children across the world who are orphaned.

right here in los angeles we have 59,000 children. we really need to think again, because 78.8% of all inmates in penitentiary come from the child welfare system. >> well, daphna, i want to tell you that i love having you on the program. we've talked about this on a couple occasions, and we spent time among ourselves talking about it. i'm going to see you soon. i want to thank you for being on the program. i want to say good-bye by reading your goal and mission statement to everyone. our mission is to create loving, tolerant and capable world citizens, and we are dedicated to helping children find their way to fulfilling their dreams. daphna, always good to talk to you, and see you soon. >> thank you so much, tony. >> we'll visit soon. still to come, in the cnn newsroom, the trauma of war and a novel approach to helping vets

heal. >> we developed a program to be able to help the men and women that are coming out of afghanistan and iraq. these are heroes, and these people deserve our accolades, deserve our applause. >> finding solace in the most unexpected places. we'll take you there. >> pretty cool, huh? we were actually thinking, maybe... we're going to hike up here, so we'll catch up with you guys. [ indistinct talking and laughter ] whew! i think it's worth it. working with a partner you can trust is always a good decision. massmutual. let our financial professionals help you reach your goals.

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cnn's photojournalist jerry simonson visits the shores of marathon key, florida, and captured this amazing story. >> come on, let's go out to the dock. come on out. wo wants to play? there you go. look. good girls. so this is not a bad way to spend the rest of your life, watches these wonderful animals, learning from them. my name is mandy rodriguez. i served in vietnam. when i joined the marine corps, i was a teenager.

i was -- i went through my training, was sent to vietnam almost immediately. i made the best friends ever in vietnam and also saw the most horrific things i have ever seen in my life, which unfortunately still stick with me. after coming back from vietnam as a young marine, i was very confused, very angry, probably just like all of us out of war. these animals helped me. they actually saved my life. they're just a wonderful way of being -- their happiness, the way they look at you, the way they treat you. it carried through, and i use that with other humans. guess what? it worked. i'm mandy rodriguez. we figured maybe this would be a good way to help these veterans. ready, marine? attagirl. here she comes. she's sizing you up.

there you go. look this way. big smile. feel the vibration? we developed a program to be able to help the men and women. these are heroes. they deserve our accolades, they deserve our applause. for that one half hour of time, they probably would have forgotten all those things they have gone through. can you kiss johnny good-bye, please? they have that ability to put you in a world where you're accepted, to put new a world where it's a good world and you're not thinking about those things, those traumatic things you have experienced in the past. >> wow. >> that's good stuff. catch more of these stories all week in the cnn newsroom. tune in saturday at 3:00 p.m.

eastern for a one-hour special. we're back in a moment.

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how about this? a ten-carat diamond ring, a vintage rolex are just some of the items, jailed billionaire

bernie madoff's items going up for auction. but another auction is taking the baseball world by storm this weekend. check it out. this baseball autographed by babe ruth was used in the game where he hit his 702nd home run. it's expected to fetch between 50 and $100,000, and guess who is the amazing photograph that will go on sale this weekend? a personal picture given by a particular blond bombshell to joe dimaggio. we will show you the pic after the break.

okay. let's just do a quick reveal. here's the picture. marilyn monroe, norma jean, joe dimaggio, of course, was wonderful maryland's former husband, and you can see her autograph right there on her upper chest. can you make that out? it says "i love you, joe." if it's happening in hollywood you will see it in our showbiz update. kelly carter, good to see you. >> good to see you too, tony. thanks for having me again. >> it's my pleasure. are you one of those highfalutin correspondents that gets advanced copies of like sarah palin's new show this weekend? >> i'll take the highfalutin label certainly. i do get a sneak preview of

things like reality shows with ex-politicians. >> did you get a chance to look at it? what did you think? >> i haven't seen it in its entirety, but for sarah palin, this is her revention on what she considered to be a pretty brutal media. this is her controlling sarah palin, controlling her image as you will see it. she gets to show us a different side of herself. she's hunting, taking on polar bears. >> is it anything more than travel logs? i know the work they do, but do we get toss the random, unscripted moments that male reality shows interesting to watch? >> absolutely. we'll get to see a different size of the palin family and what it's like inside the household, yet. >> can i switch gears? this is the palin bloc, it seems. bristol palin is actually still in the hunt on this "dancing

with the stars" program. now, i haven't watched a lot of it, but plenty of people have told me she's not the best in the group and they have wondered out loud how is it she's sticking around? but she looks pretty good here. >> bristol is the consistent low scorer, but what makes a show like "dancing with the stars" work is you get this eclectic group together assembles, and bristol has landed herself in the top four, and she's staying there even though the judges consider her not to to have much rhythm. >> the judges don't care for her much, but she's making it from week to backe because the fans at home are voting her? >> they're absolutely voting her on, for whatever reason they find her endearing. with shows like they, i think the underdog really, really is what the audiences look for and

what they root for. >> kelly, does chef a chance -- i don't know who us is in the final four, does she have a chance of winning? >> right now the front-runners are jennifer grey and r&b singer brandy. bristol is hanging in there, but it looks like she'll sail her way into the finals. >> i've gone on too long, i wanted to this to the new michael jackson single, but maybe we can have you back next week. >> that sounds good to me. >> have a great weekend. good to see you. >> thanks. you too. if you want more information on everything breaking in the entertainment world, get it on this evening's edition of "showbiz tonight." we're back in a moment. that can simulate head injuries and helps make people safer. then they shared this technology with researchers at wake forest to help reduce head injuries on the football field.

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the tea party lays out its agenda for soon-to-be members of congress, paul stein hauser joining us from my hometown in baltimore, maryland. paul, good to see you. what's crossing right now? >> reporter: tony, they miss you in baltimore. they remember you well. but, yeah, just finished up a news conference in a hotel in downtown baltimore.

we had about 25 republicans who were just elected last week to congress. this whole thing was put on, a two-day retreat, put on by freedom works. they're not well known, but very important, a conservative grass-roots organization, they do a lot of organization for the tea party movement and put a lot of money into this election. what was this retreat all about? it was to get these new lawmakers together so they can hit the ground running, they say, when they come to congress in january, and it was to talk about specify conservative values, how to implement them, how to turn politics into policy. one of the story lines is, is this what's happening here kind of at odds with the house republican leadership? because, you know, a lot of these tea party candidates when running for were directing anger at some of the establishment republicans, but the chairman of freedom works dick armey said absolutely not. take a listen to what he had to say. >> there is no conflict here.

there is no difference of objective or point of view. there is a complementary effort for us to all come together, make sure we have a clarification of our mutual understandings and commitments, hone our skills and working relationship together for one important reason and one reason alone, to make this new republican majority the most responsive majority to the will and the needs of the american people than that which we will have seen in our lifetime. i daresay, speaker boehner understands this as well as we do. >> that's what dick armey says, it will be interesting to see how these candidates and lawmakers deal with moderate republicans in congress. tony, back to you. >> paul, appreciate it. have a crab cake for me. put it on my bill. your next political update in one hour. for the latest political news go

to cnnpolitics.com.

time for the help desk, where we get answers to your financial questions. joins me is carmen wong ulrich, and let's get right to our first question. lebron writes in i'm interested in consolidating all the debt on my credit report and paying it off. is that smart in will i pay less in the long run?

>> it's always smart, but you have to look at not only the average rate, because you have difficult balances on different cards with different interest rates, so you do some math, go to some calculators at dinkytown.net and plug in your numbers and see what you could get as a consolidated loan. it depends if you have good or bad credit. that's the first thing you want to do, get the interest rates down. also you have to put more money towards the debt. >> if you can do that, that is a good thing. our next question, from bev in ohio. i'm 51 and looking to start college and change careers. i want to know if there are any scholarships or grants available. i don't want to go into debt. what do you say, ryan? >> definitely, you want to look at the local community colleges as well. that could be a cost-effective ways. you might be able to get it for next to nothing or if you have a good financial aid package, but check back to number 2

college.com. they have great similarships and individuals trying to get back into the workforce, and look for local not-for-profits. you may just want a different training or certification to make sure you can diversify your skill set without getting back into the college mind-set. >> it sounds like they need to do some research. you have a question you want to get answered? send us a question any time. ♪ i hate suburbia and the bourgeoi-sie ♪ ♪ but i really love my bank ♪ i hate-- didn't quite catch that last bit. i said i really love my bank. right... is there a problem ?

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a nobel prizewinner who spent most of the past 20 years under house arrest in myanmar may be released very soon. political activist aung san suu kyi has become one of the world's most recognizable political prisoners. the cholera outbreak in hayi has risen. the entire nation is at risk because they have no immunity to cholera. and san francisco's mayor is expected to veto the city's ban on most mcdonald's happy meals with toys, but the veto will be meaningless, because the board approved the ordinance 8-3.

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"what the week" crashed your lunch yesterday to find out. >> can i crash your lunch today? do you know what the federal holiday is? >> today is thursday. >> veterans day. >> there, he knew. wee don't you support our troops? >> yes. so you can have everybody tell me happy veterans day. >> i served in the navy for 20 years. >> what does the day mean? >> people say thank you for serving, and it means a lot. >> reporter: do you know any veterans? >> yes, i do. >> reporter: who, me? you're a veteran? >> afghanistan, six months. >> reporter: what would you like to receive in a care package? what do you need over there? >> anything from home that shows that you have folks back here that care about you. >> reporter: do you think we do enough right now legislatively for veterans. >> no. >>ne