scott kohn. >>> and scott will be highlighting some of the other issues facing american cities, five cities, five issues in five days. >> and coming up, how businesses large and small are helping veterans transition from active duty to a job. >>> first, how the commodities performed today. the bond market was closed today for veterans day. >>> it is veterans day, and sadly, many of the nation's vets, transitioning service members and spouses are currently unemployed. but now there are big strides in changing that. hampton pierceon has the latest. >> reporter: after paying tribute to the nation's veterans at arlington national cemetery. now, the nation is paying tribute for those coming home from iraq and afghanistan. >> our time for our service to our newest veterans has just started. >> reporter: jason served two tours in afghanistan, but when the infantryman came home last year after a medical discharge due to combat injuries, he spent eight months looking for a job, his service and sacrifice overlooked by potential employers. >> they just looked, they said yes, you're infantry, an

scott kohn has more from oakland, california. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> reporter: curtis robinson is not your averager. before he took the pulpit at the church, he spent time as a stockbroker, which figures into his work. peace comes at a premium in oakland, with 127 murders last year, and the highest armed robbery rate in the country. >> we have to have more at the police department. >> reporter: the mayor says the city is hiring officers again but the force is still down by roughly a quarter in the last four years, thanks to budget cuts. it doesn't help that about $4 million a year, around 2% of the general fund budget is going not to oakland but to goldman sachs. >> we have tried to negotiate with goldman sachs. and i have not totally given up. >> reporter: the payments are a result of a 15--year-old swap contract, to guard against rising interest rates. trouble is, rates went down, not up. and the city wants out. but under the contract that would cost around $15 million, money that oakland doesn't have. curtis thinks they took oakland for a ride. goldman sachs declined to comment, but asked about

scott kohn is going across america to save our cities. stop number one, oakland, california. scott? >> yeah. sue, you know, this is a real main street versus wall street story. the issue here, did wall street take hundreds of american cities for a ride or were these cities simply playing the market with their taxpayers' money. it's the first stop on our critical conditions tour, looking at america's cities and what can be done to save them. we're in oakland, california, and we'll have the story coming up on "power lunch." mine was earned orbiting the moon in 1971. afghanistan in 2009. on the u.s.s. saratoga in 1982. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation because it offers a superior level of protection and because usaa's commitment to serve current and former military members and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve. at bny mellon, our business is investments. managing them, moving them, making them work. we oversee 20% of the world's