American Morning
Angry voters sound off on stimulus
By Bob Ruff and Carol Costello, CNN
How angry are some voters in Youngstown, Ohio?
Here's a clue. Remember that NY Daily news headline, "Ford to New York: Drop Dead"?
It was October of 1975. President Ford was refusing to bail out financially struggling New York City. Voters were furious when the president said he'd veto any bill that aimed to help out the city with its budget woes. He suggested bankruptcy as a better option for the nation's largest city.
Flash forward to 2010. Youngstown, Ohio, a much smaller city, is also struggling mightily with its economy. So we couldn't help but recall the Daily News when we saw this headline recently from the online edition of the Vindicator, a newspaper based in Youngstown: "HUD to Mahoning Valley: Drop Dead"
What's it all about?
Youngstown's once thriving manufacturing base has disintegrated. The city has been in an economic black hole for decades. It's hard to miss the abandoned buildings and foreclosed homes. So, when the Recovery Act, also known as the stimulus bill, was signed by President Obama, cities like Youngstown were hopeful that they'd get a big enough piece of the pie to help them through their financial troubles.
Obama faces tough sell, analysts say
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://blogs.cnn.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/37/2010/01/obama-pointing-gi-art.jpg caption="President Obama needs to reassure the nation and members of his own party with his speech, analysts said."]
By Ed Hornick, CNN
Washington (CNN) - President Obama's State of the Union speech Wednesday will be a tough sell for millions of Americans struggling under the weight of an economic recession, political analysts said.
"The president will respond as he always does to emergencies: with a speech. In this case, it's his State of the Union address," said David Frum, a CNN contributor and former speechwriter to President George W. Bush. "The Obama team always assumes the best remedy for any Obama difficulty is more Obama."
Frum said Obama's new populist tone, which he said emerged after the Democrats' surprising loss in the Massachusetts special Senate election, might work short-term if he uses it in Wednesday's speech, but it won't work over the long haul.
"If so, it would be a big mistake. It may win the president an immediate bounce in the polls by exciting downcast liberals and progressives," Frum said in a CNN.com commentary. "But that bounce will prove limited and short-lived, and it will come at the expense of more trouble not very far down the road."
What do you hope to hear in President Obama's State of the Union? Sound off below.
Paying the cost to be your own boss
One couple has turned a hobby into a lucrative online business. But doing what you love and getting paid for it has its price. Our Deb Feyerick has the report.
Critics: 'Avatar' is anti-military & anti-religion
20th Century Fox says James Cameron's 3D epic "Avatar" has officially sunk "Titanic, taking the crown for the biggest movie ever.
It has topped more than $1.84 billion so far, but some critics aren't too happy about that success. Our Jason Carroll has the report.
Dying town in need of stimulus
Editor's Note: All week, CNN examines the stimulus and looks at one of the greatest areas of concern for Americans: the economy. Today, we talked to a mayor in Pennsylvania whose town is in need of a stimulus. And tomorrow on American Morning, can a $5.5 million resort town restoration project be a good use of stimulus aid? We find out why one woman is grateful the government is spending the money.
You would be hard pressed to find a town more in need of economic stimulus than Braddock, Pennsylvania.
It was the site of Andrew Carnegie's first steel mill, a thriving industry town of around 20,000 people. Now, 3,000 remain. Unemployment is sky high, and on Sunday, the town's biggest employer will close.
The mayor of Braddock, John Fetterman, joined us on Tuesday's American Morning to explain why his town desperately needs a stimulus.
Complete coverage: The Stimulus Project
Why Jonathan Demme loves Haiti
By Alina Cho, CNN
Jonathan Demme has had a love affair with Haiti for more than 20 years. So when he heard about the earthquake, he wanted to help.
"I almost went last weekend. I've got my shots, I get on a plane, I'm going to go down, I'm going to help. What am I going to do?"
The Academy-Award winning director's passion for Haiti came first through art.
Walking by a gallery in the mid-1980's he says, "I was really overwhelmed by the creativity of these paintings, the excitement of the music and I thought, 'Wow, Haiti. This is very interesting.' And I bought a painting."
That eventually led him on a trip to Haiti to find more paintings. What he discovered was a country full of people who were as vibrant as their art. It was 1986.
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