Hello everyone!

Today kicks off CNN's week-long special report on the economy – Road To Rescue. We are explaining this economic crisis to you in a way only CNN can do. We are cutting out the partisan noise and giving you the information and knowledge needed to successfully navigate these times of uncertainty. Road To Rescue begins on American Morning today and here is some of what we have in store for you:

• Outrage over AIG distributing 165 million dollars in bonuses to its executives.
• Bernanke on 60 mins. For the first time in 20 years, a sitting Federal Reserve chairman is interviewed about the nation’s economy.
• Many unemployed workers looking for a career change are turning to the trucking industry. Because truck driving jobs can pay around $30 thousand to start, and require only three weeks of training, these jobs are now in high demand. Truck driving schools across the nation are seeing an increase in applicants and the American Trucking Association says they are getting some much needed help in finally filling some long-time employment gaps.
• Craigslist is a mirror of these tough economic times. It started out as a place for people to list the things they wanted to sell or places they had for rent. Now, the ads reflect just how hard the recession has hit home. FULL POST

Hey everyone. Happy Friday the 13th! Here's what's in store for today's show.

• Former Anna Nicole Smith boyfriend Howard K. Stern and two doctors charged with furnishing drugs to the star, who died in '07 of a drug overdose.
• Madoff victims express their anger both in court and outside after he pleads guilty to ponzi scheme.
• Jim Cramer defends his advice on the Daily Show last night after being attacked by John Stewart.
• Obama administration set to roll out a new strategy on Afghanistan next week.
• When it comes to the Mexican drug war, the US is considering all options at stemming the flow of drugs northward and weapons south of the border. Federal officials say that could mean deploying military personnel and equipment to the region but militarizing the border is not the immediate goal.
• The millions of people who use their cell phones daily to play games, download applications and browse the Web may not realize that they have an unseen companion: advertisers that can track their interests, their habits and even their location.

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Today on American Morning:

• As accused Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff prepares to plead guilty, one major question remains: what happened to the money? CNN's Allan Chernoff reports.
• The Taliban is now bragging it can strike at will at the very heart of Kabul. Just to prove it, they launched a suicide attack last month on government buildings that killed 20. CNN's Paula Newton reports.
• North Korea Korea says it will test a rocket in April. CNN's Jill Dougherty reports.
• Taxpayers hate the bank bailout. Lawmakers too. And now it looks like some of the bailed out banks themselves are starting to get fed up with it as well.
• The role of Michelle Obama – she has a much higher profile than many of her predessors – not just public appearances, but various print publications – landing on the cover of many magazines.
• A man used to giving advice perhaps should have gotten some of his own – think before speaking. CNBC Business analyst Jim Cramer is under fire after a web video surfaces where he admits to manipulating the market when he managed a massive hedge fund.
• John Edwards makes an appearance at Brown University and takes students’ questions – including one that alludes to his affair.

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Today on American Morning:

• Bernard Madoff will plead guilty later this week to 11 counts including money laundering, perjury and securities, mail and wire fraud.
• The stock market yo-yo, a mammoth budget, a bold agenda all have some Democrats worried about whether President Obama is taking on too much too soon. Jim Acosta reports on how some nervous Democrats may not be backing all their commander-in-chief’s policies.
• Ed Lavandera looks at a new breed of would-be refugees - business owners, law enforcement officers, journalists and other professionals - on the run from Mexico's vicious drug wars. Increasingly, they are seeking safe haven in the U.S. by filing for asylum.
• Another wrinkle in the Chris Brown story – he is up for two kids’ choice awards – would Nickleodeon pull him out of the running?
• Mexico, murders, weapons, drugs. What's the U.S. government doing to work with Mexican authorities so a solution is found? The violence is spreading out of Mexico to the U.S.

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Today on American Morning:

• President Obama plans to reverse limits imposed by President Bush on using federal money for research with embryonic stem cells. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux reports live.
• Pastor killed in an Illinois Church. Parishioners take down the gunman. CNN's Carol Costello reports live.
• Some 12,000 troops will be pulled from Iraq over the next six months as part of a gradual troop withdrawal in the region – this as a man wearing an explosives-laden vest drove a motorcycle rigged with bombs into a group of police recruits in eastern Baghdad Sunday. The ensuing explosion killed 30 people and wounded 61 others, the interior ministry said. CNN's Nic Robertson is live from Baghdad.
• President Obama says he is considering efforts to reach out to elements of the Taliban. We will do a reality check on whether this is a good idea or even a plausible idea. Gary Berntsen/Fmr. CIA officer who led CIA forces in Afghanistan after 9/11 will be joining us live.
• President Obama’s way with words. 1) Obama speaks out against Holder saying we are a “nation of cowards” 2) Several leading black cultural critics say Obama uses "code words" to sends messages to the black community. And he's not the only one who does this. Michael Steele also has been using the technique, as has past presidents- from Reagan to GW Bush (with evangelicals). Michael Fauntroy/Professor at George Mason University who teaches and writes books on race and politics joins us live.
• The blameless victims of the foreclosure crisis—renters whose landlords face foreclosure. CNN's Kate Bolduan reports.
• In her trip through the Middle East and Europe last week, Hillary Rodham Clinton was warmly received in most places by audiences who are fascinated by the life of the former first lady – and she is trying to reach out to ordinary people through public diplomacy efforts. CNN's Jim Acosta reports live.

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