American Morning
A father's mission to end bullying
Kirk Smalley has lived every parent's worst nightmare. His 11-year-old son Ty committed suicide in 2010 after being bullied in school for over a year. Ever since, Kirk has made it his life mission to end bullying. He's started an anti-bullying non-profit and participated in President Obama's bullying summit earlier this year. Kirk has also traveled extensively around the country, sharing his story at 210 schools.
Smalley spoke to Carol Costello this morning about his anti-bullying efforts and explains how any kid or adult can work to end bullying.
New bill could make it easier to switch banks – Rep. Brad Miller and Molly Katchpole explain
A lot of people have been asking, when will the bank fees stop?
Many banks have been slowly raising debit card fees. Last week we spoke to Molly Katchpole who started an online petition calling for Bank of America to cancel its $5 a month debit card fee. But even after the petition, Bank of America says that it would be "premature" to cancel the debit card fees. So what are customers to do?
This morning on American Morning, Christine Romans talks to Molly Katchpole and North Carolina Representative Brad Miller about a new bill that could make it easier to switch banks without paying a fee.
How the recession is affecting American attitudes on debt
Ron Brownstein's new Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor survey was released this morning. The poll raises the question: Are American attitudes towards the government and money changing to as great of a degree as they did during the Great Depression?
"The big takeaway is that while debt is more a chronic than acute concern for most people, we are seeing a broad movement in public attitudes toward enormous concern about both public and private debt-and a sense that the country has to focus on paying down debt despite the warnings from many economists that if government and families alike simultaneously tighten their belts, it will deepen and lengthen the downturn by squeezing buying power from the economy," Brownstein says.
This morning on American Morning, Christine Romans talks to Ron Brownstein about the findings and how this will impact the 2012 presidential election.
CNN Managing Editor Mark Whitaker on his new book "My Long Trip Home"
In his new book, "My Long Trip Home, CNN Managing Editor and Executive Vice President of CNN Worldwide Mark Whitaker goes in search of the factual and emotional truth about a complicated and compelling family – his own.
It starts with the story of his parents, an interracial couple who fell in love in the 1950s, and who raised a child through the civil rights movement. He struggled in search for an identity and finds the truth, which leads him to forgive his parents and to accept himself.
This morning on American Morning, Ali Velshi asks Whitaker about the process of writing this book and what he learned by delving into his family's history.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry to unveil "Energizing American Jobs and Security" plan – he explains his plan on American Morning
2012 GOP presidential candidate and Texas Governor Rick Perry has been slipping in the polls for the last few weeks, making way for candidates like Herman Cain to take the lead. Perry's performance in the debates has led to disappointing polling numbers while his wife, Anita, said in South Carolina that they are being brutalized by the GOP party for their Christian faith.
Governor Perry is unveiling his "Energizing American Jobs and Security" plan today in Pittsburgh. This morning on American Morning, Ali Velshi asks the governor about what we can expect from his jobs plan and Tuesday's upcoming CNN debate.
Velshi also asks how his wife Anita is handling the ups and downs of the campaign.
"You know, family members always take these campaigns more substantially personal than the candidate," Perry says. "I’ve been doing this a long time. I understand slings and arrows, and that’s a diversion frankly. This is the big leagues. Everyone understands that. It’s about the presidency of the United States. And we’re committed to this campaign.”
Velshi also asks Perry about Rev. Robert Jeffress, who caused some controversy when in the speech introducing Perry at last weekend's Values Voter Summit. He said the Texas governor was a genuine follower of Jesus Christ unlike another candidate he did not name. Jeffress later said he believes voters should choose Perry over Romney because Romney is a Mormon and Mormons are “not Christians,” and also called Mormonism a cult. Velshi asks if Perry was prepared to disavow the pastor.
“We live in a great country," Perry responds. "Our founding fathers gave us freedom of religion. And we certainly have that in America and I respect that. We have religions of all backgrounds. But we also have freedom of speech and I’m not going to spend my time defending everything that is said by someone who endorse me. It doesn’t mean I endorse what they said, and that is the case here."
Velshi also asks about what critics say is Perry's lackluster performance at recent debates.
"You know I hope I make progress every day in my life as well as my debate performances, but again Americans aren’t looking for the best debater,” Perry says.
AM Minding Your Business for Oct. 14, 2011
Today on American Morning, Christine Romans reports on the morning business news headlines.
Today we're watching:
* U.S. stock futures are up ahead of the big G-20 meeting of the world's finance ministers in Paris today.
* Ratings agency Standard and Poor's has cut Spain's long-term credit rating by one notch from 'AA' to 'AA-'. And ratings agency Fitch put 13 major banks on notice for a potential downgrade.
* Here in the U.S., you could be seeing fewer Gap stores soon. The company says it plans to shut-down 21% of its stores in North America over the next 2 years.
* The rise of gas and oil prices is hitting American consumers harder than ever before. According to a new report from the Consumer Federation of America, you could spend up to $600 dollars more on gas this year – that amounts to about $2,900 per household.
* Get it while it's hot – people are already lining up for the new iPhone 4S this morning. It goes on sale in stores this morning
Tune in to American Morning at 6am Eastern every day for the latest in business news.
About this Show
Welcome to the American Morning blog where you can get daily news updates from American Morning's reporters and producers. Join us for "the most news in the morning," weekdays from 6-9 a.m. ET, only on CNN.
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