American Morning
Pay as you go?
We landed an interview with Kent Conrad, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Budget Committee yesterday to talk about the president’s plans to restore fiscal sanity to Washington.
Conrad says, “We're headed for a cliff. A fiscal cliff." He’s trying to sound the alarm and get people to pay attention to the fact that the nation’s deficit is now projected to be 1.8 trillion dollars this year. A record when it comes to red ink.
He fears the president will not be able to keep his promise to cut the deficit in half in four years. Why? Check out our story and find out:
FAA whistleblower alleges safety concerns were ignored
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/06/10/chernoff.faa.whistleblower.art.jpg caption="FAA inspector Christopher Monteleon says the agency put business interests above safety."]
By Laura Dolan and Allan Chernoff
A Senate hearing this afternoon will examine the Federal Aviation Administration and its oversight of air carriers. Some FAA inspectors say the FAA is too "cozy" with the airlines.
We spoke with one inspector who noted problems at regional airline Colgan Air a full year before the tragic crash in February near Buffalo, New York, that killed 50 people.
Christopher Monteleon was in charge of overseeing Colgan Air's addition of a new aircraft to its fleet – the Bombardier Dash 8 Q-400 – the same model involved in the Buffalo crash.
Monteleon reported trouble during Colgan Air's testing of the new plane in January 2008.
"I observed from the cockpit operations all day long for the first day, and I observed unsafe practices. And I observed violations of the safety regulations. I observed pilots flying too fast for the design of the aircraft," said Monteleon.
In his report Monteleon noted 'the aircraft exceeded air speed limitation three times" and the pilots failed to note those violations so the plane could be properly inspected.
Excessive speed did not cause the February crash. The NTSB’s preliminary findings pointed to pilot error and mentioned pilot fatigue as a factor. But other problems Monteleon says he spotted at Colgan mirror issues uncovered in the Buffalo crash.
Actor is 'dying' to make a living
Mike Doyle is dying to make a living. Literally. He has made a name for himself as the actor who “dies” all the time onscreen. But what is it like to get killed so often? We met the very “alive” actor and he told us how he actually gained his trademark status. “The first time out, I thought, oh interesting, it would be fun to die,” he said. “And now when I turn the page, I’m like, ‘Oh, man. Again? Again?'”
And what is his technique to making the scenes so believable? "It’s not as easy as you think," he says. In one of his death scenes he kept his eyes closed and they started to flicker, so he figured next time – play a dead man with his eyes open.
Fortunately for moviegoers who want to see him staying alive, his next role is with Nicole Kidman in the upcoming movie, "The Rabbit Hole." He won’t have to rehearse playing dead for that one, but who knows now that casting agents get to see him play out his last goodbyes so well in our CNN "American Morning" piece.
Commentary: No risk-free Gitmo solution
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/06/10/intv.stimson.art.jpg caption="Former Deputy Asst. Defense Secretary for Detainee Affairs Cully Stimson says there is no risk-free solution to bring Guantanamo detainees to the U.S."]
The first terror detainee from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba arrived in New York City yesterday to stand trial. Many from both parties don't want him or any other detainee here. The transfer is said by some to be a key test for President Obama's plan to have the prison camp closed within a year of taking office.
Cully Stimson is a former Deputy Assistant Defense Secretary for Detainee Affairs. He’s been to Gitmo several times. He spoke to John Roberts on CNN’s “American Morning” Wednesday.
John Roberts: This is being talked about by some people as a big test case for closing Guantanamo. Do you see it that way?
Cully Stimson: I don't, John. It's a unique case. Remember, he was indicted for his alleged involvement in the '98 East Africa bombings. His four co-conspirators have already been tried and convicted. So this is unique. This is not, as some are suggesting, a huge test case beginning a trend of removing detainees from Guantanamo to the United States. So I just see it as a one-off.
Roberts: So what is the significance of this case?
Stimson: It’s significant in the sense that it’s finishing up unfinished business from the '98 bombings. And so once you eliminate or move one detainee from Guantanamo somewhere else, that is one less person you have to deal with at Guantanamo. But it's finishing up unfinished business. Obviously he’s presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. But this is a strong case.
Official: Drug lords using 'gift cards' to smuggle money
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/06/10/goddard.arizona.art.jpg caption="Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard says Mexican drug cartels use gift card technology to smuggle money across the U.S. border."]
The state of Arizona is finding itself on the front line of the war against Mexican drug cartels. Their attorney general will meet this week with leaders of other southwestern states to try to stop the flow of drugs across the border with Mexico. To do that, they say they will have to stop the flow of cash as well, including a new way smugglers are trying to get past the cash-sniffing dogs.
Lawmakers say gift card technology is now making it easier for drug lords to move cash across the border undetected. These 'stored value instruments' are often issued by offshore banks and allow large sums of money to be moved throughout the world. Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard spoke to Kiran Chetry on CNN’s “American Morning” Wednesday.
Kiran Chetry: Walk us through these gift cards. How have they become so useful to the drug cartels?
Terry Goddard: This isn't your Starbucks or Best Buy gift cards. What we're talking about here are stored value instruments, which have chips in them…that basically can store fairly large amounts of cash. The total amount is undetermined; it depends on who the depositing bank or financial institution is. As a result, since they're not considered monetary instruments, they can be taken across the border and you don't break any laws. It is a huge loophole in our financial crimes observations.
Chetry: So you're talking about gift cards, these blank cards that can be preloaded with large amounts of cash. How do they cash it in once they get across the border?
Goddard: These basically are your passport for cash. They are your way of getting into a financial institution. If you're buying coffee with them, obviously your return is not that big. But if you've got a participating financial institution, say in the Cayman Islands or in Central America, then all you have to do is go to a group that corresponds with that financial institution, present your card and take out your cash. So there's nothing at the border that you have to display. Under U.S. law, these cards, however much they may be worth are not considered financial instruments. Therefore, the border patrol, customs agents when they see them there is no violation because they're not part of the money that you're required to declare. And they can't read them, which is a big problem. Basically we need to have transparency so that if a law enforcement agency looks at one of these cards, he or she knows how much it is worth.
Finding college cash in tough times
By Ben Kaplan – Founder of CityofCollegeDreams.org
Not too many years ago, I was caught in the classic middle-income financial-aid crunch. The obvious options: take on piles of debt or settle for a much cheaper school.
Fortunately, I stumbled upon a third way: Over the course of my senior year in high school, I applied for three dozen scholarship awards. With a healthy dose of determination, some dogged detective work, and more than a little elbow grease, my efforts paid off. When the dust settled, I had accumulated more than two dozen scholarships worth $90,000-enough for me to attend Harvard University virtually for free.
These days, I answer thousands of questions on the topic at my CityofCollegeDreams Web site and at my national "Paying-for-College Pajamas Workshops." Here are answers to four of the most frequently asked questions.
Q: Are scholarships only for exceptional students?
Many students mistakenly assume that they must have sky-high GPAs or amazing SAT scores to win merit scholarships. Although some scholarships use grades and test scores to evaluate merit, others use criteria such as extracurricular activity participation, leadership ability, community service involvement, obstacles overcome, family affiliations and much more. Contrary to popular belief, "merit" is not another word for "academics."
Q: When should I begin looking for scholarships?
For many students, the process begins during the junior and senior years of high school. The earlier you can start, the better. Some students may want to start searching as early as seventh or eighth grade because of the many learning contests for younger kids that include scholarship awards (usually as a cash prize or U.S. savings bond).
But it's never too late. Once students select their academic majors and potential career paths in college, a wide range of corporations, foundations, professional associations likely offer scholarships in those fields. There are a lot of scholarships for adult returning students, too.
Q: How can I find scholarships on the Internet?
A nice way to get your feet wet is with free Internet scholarship search databases. You fill out questionnaires and these databases match you up with scholarships that fit your personal characteristics.
Just one big piece of advice-none of these databases are comprehensive, so search as many as you can. To start, go to www.CityofCollegeDreams.org and use my free "Scholarship Surfer" tool to connect with and optimize these helpful resources.
Q: Is it really worth all of the work?
For every dollar of scholarship money you receive, you can potentially save more than two dollars in student loan principal and compounded interest. Better yet, by avoiding substantial student debt, you will open up a wide range of exciting opportunities and possibilities when you graduate. In the final tally, it's a simple equation: More scholarships = less debt = greater freedom. That's powerful motivation, to say the least.
Ben Kaplan is the creator of the new DVD, "Finding College Cash in Tough Times." He is hosting a free scholarship workshop on June 18 at 9:00 p.m. EDT that you can watch online or listen to on the telephone. Visit http://www.CityofCollegeDreams.org/workshop for more information.
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