valentine's. right now members of cpac, the conservative political action conference, is voting in a straw poll. we'll have the results when they are announced, 4:15 eastern time. i'm fredricka whitfield. right now time for "your money." well, if clint eastwood says it's time for a comeback in america, who are we to argue? welcome to "your money." i'm ali velshi. the reasons for optimism are clear. led by private sector hiring, we've added more than 200,000 jobs a month, more than two million jobs in the year 2011. the unemployment rate has been steadily declining. stocks are soaring so far this year. the dow hitting its highest level in four years. so how do we keep the recovery going? president obama pleaded with congress not to get in the way. >> now is not the time for self-inflicted wounds to our economy. now is the time for action. so i want to send a clear

message for congress. do not slow down the recovery that we're on. don't muck it up. keep it moving in the right direction. >> steven moore is an editorial writer with the "wall street journal." steven, the president's message don't muck it up. your message is to the voters and you're saying the worst thing they could do for the economy is four more years of president obama. why do you see president obama as a particular threat to this recovery? >> well, first of all, i agree with you the economy is picking up. we're just getting week after week signs of a stronger economy. manufacturing has picked up. we got some good unemployment insurance claims this week which suggests we might get another bump down in the unemployment rate so i agree with you. we're seeing some really nice signs of recovery right now. what i question whether it's durable, whether it's sustainable. and i keep looking at what could happen on january 1st, 2013, with the big tax increase that

is going to go up. i do think as we get closer to the end of the year and investors and businesses start to look at that tax time bomb, all bets are off on how well the economy will do. look, the economy is definitely picking up. but we're still five million jobs short of where we were in 2007 and this has still been by far the weakest recovery. >> but we may well be, by election day or shortly before that, where we were when barack obama took office. so it does weaken the argument that he's been bad for job creation. we have to think more broad low about that, which you're doing. no one wants to get in the way of this recovery, but fed chairman ben bernanke reminded us this week of all of the tough decisions lying ahead. >> i've often said i'm in favor of the law of arithmetic. if you want a low tax economy, which has benefits from an efficiency perspective, you've got to make the tough decisions on the spending side. vice versa, if you want to spend more, you have to figure out how to raise taxes and raise the

revenues. so i mainly try to urge congress to make sure they're looking at both sides so that there's a balance between the two. >> christopher is the editor of thompson reuters digital. this is the point where you're working out, trying to lose weight, nothing is happening and a few weeks in all of a sudden it starts to kick in and you're saying how do we not mess this up. what is the way in which we don't mess this up. >> actually, and stephen is going to be shocked, but i agree with him. i think that you don't want to increase taxes too quickly. i think in the medium term you are going to have to increase taxes but i don't think you want to do it until the recovery is really in place. the other thing that i don't think you want to do is cut government spending. what's opinion very interesting about the jobs picture is it's been this fine balance of private sector jobs growing, but the reason the numbers aren't looking more robust is public sector jobs have been falling. so i think what you really don't want to do is repeat the mistake that was made in the 1930s,

where as the economy was coming out of the great depression, people celebrated too early and decided, okay, now is the moment to balance the budget. that is not the main issue for 2012. this should be the year of focusing on growth and jobs. >> richard quest is the host of cnn international's quest means difference. because he speaks with a british accent, i like to hold him responsible for the europe economy. at the end of the week we saw a threat to any optimism that built up and as usual it centered around greece's inability to make tough cuts and satisfy the conditions that country needs to satisfy to receive a bailout that it desperately needs. everyone in the u.s. and in fact around the world, richard, is desperately worried that it's going to mess up this recovery we've got here. any reason we shouldn't be worried? >> absolutely none. the situation in greece is serious. at the end of last week, the euro zone told greece to go back

and redo its numbers and stick to its pledges. greece now feels it's been humiliated so the situation is worrying. the only difference i would say perhaps is maybe greece isn't quite as relevant that it was because people have got used to the idea that it would default or leave the euro zone and familiarity will breed contentment of the situation. to your point, ali, that you've just been discussing about the u.s. recovery, i read a fascinating report this week from hsbc which basically suggests that the recovery we're seeing in the first part of this year is similar to that which we saw last year and could falter and fade and disappear. >> but we've got some real things that are happening. stephen, go ahead. >> okay. i agree with that point. you know, i do think the economy is picking up, but let's not forget, ali, in 2010 and 2011, we saw pickups with the economy

and then it drifts back down to very slow growth. so i don't think we're -- i think it's too early to uncork the champagne and for the president to take a victory lap here. >> and i think that's the key point here. we're not looking to uncork champagne but i like my weight loss analogy the best because clearly i'm obsessed with that. the idea that i'm starting to feel something happen from all my hard work, how do i make sure i don't fall off the wagon. richard, the european situation is part of that falling off the wagon because it could derail things. >> it's not just a european situation. you've also got a rising oil price and strains and tensions in the middle east. >> sure. >> you've also got a preoccupation that will take place this year in the united states with the deficit. you've got a crisis of consumer confidence that will come on board when people start to look and see and the election campaign really gets into full throttle later in this year. the unemployment situation is

improving, but it is nowhere near perfect. so it's way too soon, ali, for you to be shucking off the clothes, putting on the gym shorts and running round. >> i'll keep the jacket on so you don't see the tank top i've got underneath showing you my six-pack. >> please, ali! we need to see it now. >> well, we need to see the economy's six-pack. where is it most likely to grow? what can happen now, notwithstanding the things we've been discussing, the things that can mess up this slight momentum that we've got, what's the best way to underpin it and keep it going? >> i guess i'll be the optimist today. and the two optimistic things i would say is once a recovery does set in, once you get on that path, the good news is you have a lot of pent-up demand. >> right. >> and the places where i think you could see pent-up demand, once we all really believe in the recovery and it really starts to be real is actually, believe it or not, housing.

there is a lot of pent-up demand for housing in the united states. so that is one source of optimism that i have medium term. another one actually is cars. >> we started to see that happen. >> people put off the big buying decisions during the recession. and as the jobs numbers improve, as people -- as confidence improves, you will at some point, i'm not saying it's going to be now, but we will have a moment when there's a real takeoff and suddenly we're going to be optimistic. >> we started to see that in december a little bit. >> yeah, but you're all forgetting that four-letter word that i always bring up on this show and that is debt. when we talk about $5 trillion of debt over the last four years, my worry is that we've built this economy on sand and that the debt is so enormous that very much like what we saw in 2007 when everybody said, oh, everything is going so wonder. everybody is buying homes, but it was an economy not built on a

firm foundation. now, i'd ask this, when should we -- i've been in washington 25 years and everybody says don't cut spending now. when? when are we ever going to get the debt down? >> hold that thought. >> i want to answer richard. >> i want stephen to know i know the word he was going to say. after saying it week after week after week it does have an effect. all of you stay there. i've got a personal question for all of our viewers. do you earn enough money now? and do you expect to earn enough in the future? tweet me your answer @ali velshi or stick around and i'll show you which group of americans shocked me with their response next on "your money." americans are always ready to work hard for a better future.

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it may surprise you to find that 88% of 18 to 34-year-olds say that they either earn enough money right now to live the kind of life they want to lead or they are confident they will earn enough money in the future. this is according to the pew research center. less than one in ten ronespondes claimed that they either don't or won't earn enough. wow. all we think is everybody thinks they hate their situation but believe it or not, some of these young people don't. so chrystia, tell me because you have said you're concerned the world is headed for a few haves and a whole lot of have notes. some of those occupy people will agree with you. is this optimism on the part of these 18 to 34-year-olds that pew talked to justified? >> i'm delighted that they're optimistic but i worry that the world is a slightly harder place than the young people think. two thoughts.

one is once you start having a family, that's when things become really difficult. so i think a lot of what we're seeing is people are having families later in life. charles murray has been writing about this really quite eloquently. and that's when it really starts to bite. it's not that bad to be making 15, 20 bucks an hour, crashing on the couch of your friend, maybe even having a good time. but once you start having kids, that is more difficult to do. the other thing which i think will be a big social issue and anyone who employs them knows, they have been raised in this bubble of everyone is above average. they have really grown up at a time when every kid is constantly told you're brilliant, you're a genius, find your delight, the world will be great. and that's a lovely lesson to be taught in kindergarten. i think coming into this job market right now, it's a lot harder to make that work. >> it's american exceptionalism

small. >> exactly. >> it's this whole idea we don't have to reinvent ourselves, richard, because we're america and it's great and europe is learning the same lesson, just being who you are no matter how good it was may not be enough to compete with india, china and growing economies. give me your thoughts. >> look, the milleneals are a breed unto themselves. their optimism is unbridled. they are love annual aable and t the same time. they have an ambition to put us all out of our jobs because they believe they can do it better than we can. and they look at those of us over 40 with a contempt that says you guys screwed it up. so are they optimistic? yes. but they will also learn it's not that easy in the world. >> and, stephen, we do have this problem where you mentioned it, still lost a lot of jobs, we

continue to. whether it's government custodianship or recessions, the fact is our world is moving towards one where it's globalizing some jobs, high-paying jobs are leaving the united states, have been for a lot of years. we need fewer people to do things and we have many, many unemployed right now. what is our best solution to making a world where those kids' optimism is justified? >> right. well, first of all, let me just assure chrystia i never tell my kids they're brilliant, far from it. i don't think they're above average. look, i'm actually optimistic long term, believe it or not. i do think that there is american exceptionalism and i do believe where we lead the world, ali, is in the area of innovation. we are innovators. we are the steve jobs and the michael dells and the bill gates of the world. we need to create more innovators and entrepreneurs, because in my opinion that's where we beat china, india and japan. we have to be the world's

creative class, both in terms of manufactured goods and services and financial products. and look, that's been the whole history of america. so i'm optimistic long term, but i just think we put ourselves in a little bit of a rut right now. i couldn't be happier that these young people are optimistic because that's what america is all about, thinking the future is going to be better than it has been in the past. >> we can all agree on that one, stephen, good to see you. chrystia, always a pleasure. richard, i'm glad you were able to bring your own tie to today's show. richard quest in london. the housing crisis continues to hold back the economic recovery and now the banks are paying up, but is it enough and who gets the help? what is the solution to fixing the housing market long term? stay with us and i'll tell you.

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it is the biggest payout to date over america's housing

crisis. five of the largest banks will fork over $26 billion to help homeowners who lost their homes due to improper foreclosures. christine romans is the host of cnn's "your bottom line." you've sifted through this, looked at it, talked to people, what does this mean? >> first, people who are very underwater on their loan and are late on their mortgage. so they are in arears, they are definitely in default. those people will be qualified for up to $20,000 in principal writedowns. again, these are nonfanny and freddie loans that are owned pie the servicer. if you're underwater and late, you're going to get principal writedowns. if you're underwater and current on your mortgage, you could qualify for refinancing at these record low mortgage rates. that's pretty important because a lot of people have not been able to do this, they were too underwater. there's a third group of people who will be helped. these are people improperly foreclosed on sometime between september, 2008, and december,

2011. those people will get a check. $1500 to $2000. the big question everyone is asking me, how do i know if this is me? remember, these are nonfannie and freddie loans. you need to go to the website that's been set up by the government for this. get the phone number of your servicer and start working right now. they want to get this money out within three years. >> i've had tweets and questions about what happens to fannie and freddie mortgages. we've already had a couple of programs and this one is specifically tied to some of these improper practices where people have been foreclosed. stay where you are, i want to get back to this in just a moment. first opt to bring in sean donovan, the secretary of housing and urban development. thank you for being on the show. the show, as you know, is about solutions. we know what the problems are. and i don't want to diminish this settlement at all, but it is, as we know, a small slice of

the intractable and huge housing problem we continue to have in this country. how will this push the needle closer to getting us out of the housing crisis? >> ali, it's great to be back with you again. look, you raise an important point and i think it's very important to see this in context. look, this is the largest, as you just said, the largest payout by these servicers, the largest single act of real accountability for them of this housing crisis. it's the biggest federal, state settlement in the history of the country. but recognize that the servicing practices that we investigated, the recklessness of the banks, was really egregious was only a part of the problem. the crisis was created by the owe ridge nation and securitization of these mortgages. you have to see this in the context of the broader problems. so it will help to solve it but

it's not the only thing. that's why over the last couple of weeks, as you know, the president has announced a range of other steps that we're taking. he wants to get to universal refinancing. he talked about it in the state of the union. >> let me ask you this. we've covered those well, mr. secretary. here's the issue. as christine said, as you know, as we know, they all do make sense, but they have success rates, hit rates that are much lower than the government usually expects they're going to have. and part of that is the banks' lack of participation, lack of enthusiasm for these programs. how do we really get them to do the right thing? there are some people here that are mad that this isn't stronger than they would have liked it to be and maybe it was impractical to make it stronger. but there's people that think the banks are cheats and five banks are paying $26 billion which feels like a drop in the bucket. how do we get them to participate and get them involved. >> first of all, if we'd taken

every one of these cases we could have brought to court and won every one of them, we think we maybe could have got 30, $35 billion, so this really is justice in terms of that. but on the other side, what we need to remember, this is done as an enforcement action and there is real teeth in this agreement that we haven't had where there are voluntary programs or we're using incentives. so, first of all, this is not that the banks have to make offers or mail letters. if they don't actually deliver the principal reduction and the family isn't successfully able to stay in their home for at least 90 days, they get no credit. second, if they haven't completed their responsibilities within the three years, not only do they have to convert all of this into kcash, they have a 25 or 40% penalty they have to pay. third, there's a court-appointed monitor who's going to be able to fine them for any violations they find, and be able to go back into court and hold them accountable.

so there's real teeth here that will make sure that this actually happens. >> and we've evolved into this, because we were really hoping starting three years ago that the banks would have been a little bit more cooperative in trying to keep those houses off of the market. they didn't and now we're in this pickle that we're in. what is the next step from your perspective as the housing secretary, what's the next step that the government can be involved in to getting out of the housing crisis? >> i would say two things, ali. one is that we settled the servicing practices, but their egregious practices in origination and securitization. we set up a joint federal/state investigation to go after exactly those practices, so we're not going to keep going on this, we're not stopping here. we talked about it, fannie mae and freddie mac, they are critical. they represent about two-thirds

of the mortgages. they weren't part of this settlement. they have a separate process they follow. we have just announced not only a set of steps to expand refinancing for fannie mae and freddie mac becauorrowers. those should many millions more families. but we also need to get principal reduction happening. it's the one area we haven't made real progress. this settlement is the first step but we also announced just a few weeks ago for the first time tripling our incentives for principal reduction and making them available for fannie mae and freddie mac mortgages. that's an important step as well. >> come back and visit with us again. let's keep track of how this is moving along. we've now started to see a break in the back of the jobs problem and now all attention gets put onto the housing problem because that continues to be the thing that holds this economy back. secretary donovan, always a pleasure to talk to you. will cain and christine is

still with us. >> eric holder, the attorney general, told the world this week that they found very disturbing behavior among the nation's biggest banks and servicers who were not acting in good faith with people. you've heard the stories of people so frustrated they didn't even know who to call. who's going to make sure that there's going to be someone on the end of the line. there are new standards, a national standard for how to service a mortgage now. that's part of this whole deal. every borrower will have one point of contact in the bank. >> we have struggled for this for years. in stories that i've done, it's been the most frustrating thing. can somebody just tell me what's happening with this person's mortgage. >> and sometimes two people in the same bank saying two different things. you modified a loan you thought and still had somebody telling you you were in default on the other side. this happened tens of thousands of times. now, one of the cynical things that i think is -- so this must be good for the panicbanks. until now they really haven't

tried to fix the problem. have we got to the bottom of the housing market? >> some say it's good for the banks because now they can move forward without fear they'll get sued. >> there's a lot to still me sued for. >> here's the thing. secretary donovan said it. when i spoke to the delaware attorney general who was one of the holdouts and then did sign the deal in the end, he said the same thing everyone i have talked to has said. let's put it in context. in and of itself while it's the biggest deal of its type that we have seen, it's still a drop in the bucket. >> that was the undercurrent of your interview with the secretary just now. what is the broader context, and also is it a solution. let me put that into a larger contest. i don't want to rain down numbers but they are important. >> do you think christina will be offended? >> we love raining numbers. >> the total value of the housing market is $17 trillion. that's backed by $11 trillion in mortgages. trillions i'm talking about here. there is $750 billion worth of

underwater mortgages. this is $26 billion. it's not good, it's not bad, it's largely nothing. >> is there some benefit in having it out of the way so that we can now start to solve other problems? >> you don't need to fix all of the underwater equity to fix the housing market. >> if somebody is underwater by 20% or 40%, they need help with some of the amount that they are underwater. it's not the worst thing in the world to be a little underwater in your house. >> one of the things that the housing secretary and his people and attorney general eric holder and others have said is if you can start fixing up one -- if you can prevent some foreclosures one neighborhood at a time, the whole neighborhood does a little better. so they can't -- i think they're trying to get as much as they can, but they can't do it all and that's going to be enough to hopefully put a bottom floor in. >> it doesn't mean it's not on some strategic path. i do think it is on a strategic path attempting to solve the housing crisis. one path is the default math.

the massive market liquidation movement. let's find the true value of the homes. i've said on both of your programs that could suck us all into bread lines. the other is principal reductions, big writedowns. take your housing value from 200 to 120,000. >> we're all starting to think that one makes a lot of sense. there's some principal reduction that's been done. >> meaningful. >> it's very, very small proportion. now it looks like we can shine a light on this and say we're going to be 100 years old each before some of this value comes back. get it off the market. >> but that's a hard thing to implement. >> somebody has to pay for it. >> this is on the third path. muddle along and hope that housing values are up higher in three years and we grow out of this problem. it's a little optimistic. >> and a lot of people keep asking me for the best benefit of the settlement, i need to not pay more mortgage a couple of months but i don't think that's

a good idea. it's going to be how underwater and late you are at the day this settlement was done. >> don't chase a default or foreclosure. will, christine, always great talking to you. you know so much about this, christine, it's great to get perspective on a complicated issue. when it comes to growing the economy, the answer may be to think smaller. i'll explain to you next. ( whirring and crackling sounds ) man: assembly lines that fix themselves. the most innovative companies are doing things they never could before, by building on the cisco intelligent network. the two trains and a bus rider. the "i'll sleep when it's done" academic. for 80 years, we've been inspired by you. and we've been honored to walk with you

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if you still believe that bringing manufacturing jobs back to the u.s. is key to our economic recovery, you're probably watching this program on a black and white tv. most bets today are on american innovation or something else. the u.s. remains number one in terms of supporting research and development in science and technology. but only by a slim margin. that's according to a recent survey of global competitiveness

in science, engineering, research and development. the director of research at duke university's pratt school of engineer and vice president of academics in innovation at sing latter university. peter is one of the founders of singularity university which brings together entrepreneurs and technologists to solve global problems. he's founder and chairman of the x prize foundation. gentlemen, welcome to the show. vivek you had an excellent article about the need for a different kind of model for research and development in america. and you say small prize-oriented competitions are the key to economic growth rather than large government-funded labs. explain what you meant. >> look at the way we've been reacting to the economic downturn and the lack of innovation. we talk about big bailouts.

look at happened with solyndra, half a billion dollars. we're talking about national big schemes. look at where the innovation comes from. it comes from small businesses, from entrepreneurs, from innovators who want to change the world. what we need to do is empower those innovators to take the ideas that they have, take exponentially advancing technologies and let peter explain what that means and put together new solutions that change the world. that's what the solution is. x factor is the one where we -- peter ended up launching an entire private space flight industry with a simple competition to put a lunar lander on the moon. they give people ideas on what technologies, what companies they can develop to change the world. they compete with each other and you get a lot of innovation from it. >> it's a great suggestion. peter, you know i'm a big supporter of the x prize, which is at its base a technology and innovation competition.

tell me about this. we've discussed it before on this show, but tell us why -- he is explaining why those competitions not just take the best and brightest in an area that you've put the competition out for, it gives birth possibly to new industries and new businesses and people's entrepreneurship. >> thanks, ali. he is right on the money here. our friends at the kauffman foundation proved that statistically all new job growth over time comes from start-ups. start-ups are a small group of extraordinarily passionate individuals who are committed to making their dreams happen. and most importantly they're willing to take risks. they're willing to try something which is a crazy idea. and i'm fond of saying the day before something is truly a breakthrough, it's a crazy idea. in society today, especially in large corporations and governments, they're not willing to take huge risks because they're worried about their

stock price plummeting or congressional investigation, and consequently most progress is incremental. but we really need to be taking the risks that are going to drive true breakthroughs. that's what created silicon valley and drove it forward and our economy is really driven more than anyone really realizes by the innovations coming out of silicon valley. >> so i know peter works very, very hard and sometimes i work alongside him on this in trying to drum up the funds for these competitions to do it. where should the money come from? is this all -- should this all be privately funded? should this be wealthy people who fund these competitions? >> i would do half and half. we threw half a billion dollars at the solar industry. instead of half a billion to one company, what about five million to 100 countries. we would have had new industries emerge from that investment. because the innovators take the risks and think outside the box.

they're not afraid of making the mold. big companies can't innovate. it's not the googles and microsofts who innovate, it's the tiny little startups that come out of nowhere that want to put google out of business so you have a facebook coming out of nowhere and that changes the dynamics. >> guys, thanks very much. we're always looking for solutions and you two are employed in the business of trying to create solutions and make -- help other people create them so we applaud the work that you do. >> this is the american way, ali. this is the way america was built. we need more of it. >> very good way to end it. when is comes to improving our banking system, should we look north for answers? what u.s. banks can learn from canada next. i love that my daughter's part fish. but when she got asthma, all i could do was worry ! specialists, lots of doctors, lots of advice...

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canada's banking system is considered one of the strongest in the world. what are they doing that the u.s. isn't, and what can the u.s. learn from canada going forward? i was able to sit down with the president and ceo of toronto dominion bank and i started asking him how canadian banks handle mortgages different than u.s. banks. >> completely different. we hold our mortgages on our

balance sheet. that has two effects. it makes our bank safer because we have a very good asset that stays on their balance sheet. it's a very good asset because we keep it, we worry enormously about the quality of those mortgages, so you don't do stupid lending and say i just can sell it to somebody else. >> so historically is it a little tougher to get a mortgage in canada? >> what's interesting is historically canada's homeownership has been higher than the united states. so i think people mistake toughness means that you can't run a country. no, you can run a country very well. when we hit the crisis, the other big difference was that we could freely modify those mortgages and help people through the crisis. >> when you say freely modify, it means you didn't have to get regulatory and government approval. you didn't have to cut deals in some room on a weekend. >> exactly. or go back to investors and say hey, i own this, you can't modify it. look, 125,000 of our customers,

let's change our condition and help them through here and that is great for the economy, it's great for those customers but it's also good for the banks. at the end of the day we got 125,000 people we'll always be td customers. >> one of the things, though, one of the reasons for the financial innovation in the united states that gave birth to this idea of reselling mortgages into a secondary market was that more people could get access to mortgages. now, again, you're making the point that on a percentage basis, it hasn't made much of a difference. can you give out enough mortgages if you hold your own mortgages? >> absolutely. absolutely. and i just think you have much more flexibility. i guess, you know, i think this word innovation is a kind of odd term because i think there's true innovation that's built around how do we make the world better for our customers and clients and then there's financial innovation, which is how can i actually make bets in more complicated structures that no one can understand and in the

end turn out to have huge negative consequences. >> we spoke to sheila bahr who told me she thinks there's a difference in how canadians regard financial regulation. they seem to be more regulation friendly. in the united states with the exception of financial regulation, which people do actually support, there's an anti-regulatory feeling. what are your thoughts? >> yeah, there's no question there's a difference in the way we operate on both sides of the border. not to misinterpret, canadian regulators are tough. canadian regulators have insisted on capital standards historically that were higher than the rest of the world. on the other hand, they're principle-based regulators and their attitude to me is to say, ed, you're responsible for td bank. i don't care what the law says. if you're doing things that are putting it at risk, we're going to hold you accountable. the u.s. has come out of a system that's much more rule based, detailed rules. and i think embedded in that is this view that there should be a

conflict between the regulator and the banks and, therefore, you have to keep on having more and more rules. if you have more rules, you have better regulation. that's not obvious that it turns out to be the case. one would hope that over time you could move to a world where, you know, as a bank ceo i sit there and say to the regulator all the time, you and i are on the same side of the table. i don't want my bank to blow up either. if you find things that are imprudent, tell me about them and i'll clean them up because i have the same interests you do. >> have you pictured your retirement? do you know what you'd like it to look like? that may be the key to getting you there. i'll explain next. ♪ [ male announcer ] offering four distinct driving modes and lexus' dynamic handling, the next generation of lexus will not be contained. the all-new 2013 lexus gs.

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christine's back and you and i speak monday a little differently. and we're not married to each other, but many people who speak money differently are married to each other. as a matter of fact, as we found from this book we've written, lots of people who are coupled, paired or otherwise have to spend time with each other speak money differently. christine invited me on your show and asked me three questions about a topic we cover and disagree upon in our book. so it's my turn now. three questions to you about money. do you know -- bruce always says people would save better if they knew what retirement looks like. do you know what your retirement looks like? >> i know what you think your retirement looks like. you want to be on a druz bcruis on land? >> right. >> i don't want an umbrella drink. i want to make sure my kids have a college education that's paid for and i have enough money to make it to the end. so i just want security and

comfort. >> you wrote something in our book about in the year 1900, the average age that you lived to was like 42 or something like take. nobody had to worry about outliving retirement. year after year, we come up with these medical developments and breakthroughs and i'm not sure people think, wow, i'm going to be healthier and live longer. sfwh we're not saving enough for it. chances are you're not saving must have for it. and that's just the bottom line. and the expenses in health care, you you look at some of these statistics. and you know you how i got nervous about covering medical 1k3e7b expenses. you look at how much it costs being in a nursing home. i don't mean to be debbie downer about money, but i do think we can focus more on the long term than the near term. >> so you definite will take ly time lead. you're the organized one between us. i have this view that it will work out, it will all be fine.

in a relationship, who tshould take the lead? >> the one it bothers the most. i don't think has to be 50/50. could y you could go crazy. the person who it bothers the most is the person who should take the lead. >> savers and spenders, if they muddle hathrough to retirement, can they live together? >> it's all about understanding the strengths and weaknesses of your partner. and the same is true for everything. >> for all those who don't talk money, i bet you they haven't had the conversation about what do you think retirement is going to look like. >> people talk and argue about all kinds of things. politics, religion, what's going on in the front page of a

newspaper, but they won't talk about how they're going it make sure they're getting some kind of a paycheck when you're too old to work. >> christine, always good to see you. we need to spend our time looking for solutions to make sure we don't fall behind and sometimes that means getting out of our own way. my xyz is next on your money. so what do you think? basic.

at meineke i have options... like oil changes starting at $19.95. my money. my choice. my meineke. time for the xyz of it. because of our focus of economic solutions and opportunities, we've often spoken about urbanization. a global trend whereby people move to cities which are generally more efficient than suburban living. urbanization works for many reasons. people use less space to live, they burn less fuel and use mass rpgs. arou transportation. as people join the middle class, they're moving to cities for a better choice of jobs because cities offer services that rural areas can't. the savings of gas and the time spent commuting add up. but this process is slower in

the united states than it is elsewhere for a couple of reasons. gas prices are relatively lower here than they are elsewhere. land hasn't been at the same premium and americans like their vehicles, their highways, and their big properties. but it is changing and that has some tea party activists saying that encouraging public transportation or the preservation of open space is part of a u.n. led conspiracy to deny americans their property rights and to herd them into cities. referring to a 1992 resolution called agenda 21, in which the u.n. encouraged member nations to steer developments to already dense urban areas in order to conserve land use. u u.n. resolution which is nonbinding aimed to promote efficient use of resources with sustainable development. last month, the republican marty adopted a resolution blasting the, quote, destructive and insidious nature of agenda 21. huh?

the idea is that the so-called agenda 21 is a u.n. effort for sustainability projects. but it's no joke. tea party activists have actually been able to torpedo projects in many american towns because of their protests. it seems pretty misguided and it takes of less government be better to the extreme. building infrastructure that makes our city more liveable and efficient got to be near the top of the list. no one is signatuwon one is sug can't own whatever land they wand and burn as much gas as they want. but actually standing in the way of communities trying to manage and improve their public infrastructures, that holds this nation back from progress. that's my xyz. thanks for joining the conversation this week on "your $$$$$." we're here every saturday