American Morning
White House puts full-court press on health care holdouts
(CNN) – It's down to the wire for President Obama's health care overhaul.
The key to getting reform done is the thirty seven Democratic congressmen and women who are wavering or voted "no" the first time. Each is being heavily courted by the president and House leaders.
One Democrat not on that list, but still on the fence, is Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly. You would think the White House would have reached out, but you'd be wrong. Our Jim Acosta caught up with the congressman for this report.
Health care puts Dems on the line
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/POLITICS/03/15/health.care.next/t1larg.senate.gi.jpg caption="To pass the Senate bill or not? Either way, House Democrats face risks."]
By Kristi Keck, CNN
(CNN) - House Democrats wary of the Senate health care bill find themselves in a quandary.
Now that the Senate parliamentarian has made clear to Democrats that they won't be able to take the path they had considered to get a health care bill passed, they must ask themselves: If we vote for the Senate's bill, do we trust the senators to make the changes they say they will?
"If the House is going to do this, they are going to have to vote for the Senate bill, holding their nose and trusting that in fact they are going to go through this reconciliation process, and they are going to get the fixes that they are looking for to the legislation," said Cheryl Block, a professor of law and a budget policy expert at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
Those "fixes" are a part of a package of changes to the Senate bill that President Obama proposed last month. The idea is for the House to pass the Senate bill, wait for Obama to sign it into law, and then vote separately on Obama's proposal.
The Senate no longer has the 60-seat supermajority it did when it passed its health care bill in December, so it would need to pass Obama's plan using the parliamentary shortcut known as reconciliation. FULL STORY
The Teaser
"The Teaser” is a preview of the guests we have lined up for the next day – so you know when to tune in (and when to set your alarm!). Guests and times are always subject to change.
Here’s the lineup for tomorrow:
6:30AM: 6:30A "Kill the Bill" – Dick Armey on why his group FreedomWorks is supporting two health care protests in D.C.
7:20AM: No more bailouts? How do we stop companies from becoming "too big to fail"? Sen. Chris Dodd discusses his plan to reform the way Wall Street works.
7:30AM: What went wrong on a CIA base in Afghanistan – how did a suicide bomber get near so many people? Former CIA Operative Bob Baer will talk about his incredible GQ article on what the bombing means for the CIA.
8:30AM: Tired of slow internet connections – long download times? The government hopes to help you out with their new broadband policy. Ryan Singel, writer for Wired Magazine, joins us to break it all down.
Got questions for any of our guests?
Tweet 'em at Twitter.com/amFIX or post them below and we'll try to use 'em!
We Listen – Your comments 3/15/10
Editor's Note: Monday’s American Morning viewers were interested in the Toyota investigation of owner Jim Sikes’ Prius. Some were skeptical of Sikes’ claim of a stuck gas pedal, as it could not be replicated by technicians. Others supported him, as they had faced similar situations in other vehicles, remarking “some things just don’t show up on those tests.”
- Michael: You look at Toyota...The gas pedal problem I can reproduce 80% of the time. I know what is causing it but no one would listen. What I found was Toyota knew about the possible flaw but was more concerned about the sales during the harsh economy.
- Andrea: In regards to the runaway Prius. I have an SUV where I have had 4 incidences where the steering wheel locked while I was actually going at lower speeds-3 times making turns and 1 x on a straight away. I reported it to my service manager, they did tests and couldn't find anything wrong with it. The last time it happened, I was on a freeway exit and thank God, it was early am and minimal traffic. My SUV was serviced the week prior to my incident . I took my SUV back to the dealer, refused to take it home until they figured out what was wrong with it. A tech kept my vehicle for a couple of days and they still couldn't duplicate the problem. No memory of the incident was found via computer, driving it, etc. I was told it has to happen when they can see it. BTW,I told the dealer the locking happens randomly, there’s no warning. I reported the first incident to the NHSI and I tried to file a complaint in Feb. 2010,but my complaint would go through due to the system overload from Toyota complaints. I don't know if Mr. Sikes is telling the truth or not, but some things just don't show up on those tests.
In AM’s original series “Growing Up Behind Bars,” many were surprised the adult who purchased the gun was not held responsible for the death, rather than his young son.
- Gerhard: To me the ultimate responsibility lies with who left a gun and ammunition unsecured so that an eleven year old Jordan Brown had access to the weapon.
- Ian: 12 year old... life sentence. Once again you have missed the point(s). Why was there a “youth style shot gun”, accessible to an 11 year old? Where there are guns, more people get shot! Duh! And who buys a youth style shot gun? What a moronic idea! If the victims family is set on vengeance (or justice), maybe they should focus on the person who had guns in the same house with 3 children. 2. After spending time in the “youth detention facility”; do you think he will be less of a threat to society?
What do you think? Continue the conversation below.
'Mission: Impossible' actor Peter Graves dead at 83
Los Angeles, California (CNN) - Actor Peter Graves, best known for his starring role on TV's "Mission: Impossible," died Sunday. He was 83.
While the cause of the actor's death was not immediately known, he apparently suffered a heart attack, his publicist said.
Graves had gone to brunch with his family Sunday morning. After they returned home and entered the house, one of his daughters began to wonder why he hadn't come back inside with them, said publicist Sandy Brokaw.
The family went outside and found Graves had collapsed. His daughter performed CPR but was unsuccessful in reviving the actor, Brokaw said.
Graves had been in good health and was celebrating 60 years of marriage and 60 years in the entertainment business. He was still pursuing work when he died, the publicist said. FULL STORY
Study: Ad could influence 174,000 underage girls to smoke
(CNN) – Was a sexy name and pink camel on a pack of cigarettes meant to target young girls? That's the focus of a new study in the Journal of Pediatrics that looked at an ad campaign by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company.
The findings present some pretty troubling news for both kids and parents. Our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has the report.
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