aren't statistics they are people in pain. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room". we begin this hour with what's happening in iowa. right now the state that holds the lead off presidential contest is gauging early support for the republican candidates. we're standing by for the results of the iowa straw poll. the winner could get an important boost heading in to the 2012 primary season. cnn don lemon is joining us from ames, iowa. don? >> all right. thank you very much for that, wolf. joining me here is cnn candy crowley to talk about all of this. are you hearing anything? >> back there at thtabulating. i mention we'll hear in the next 15, 20 minutes. >> we were talking about ron paul, herman cain, rick santorum, michelle bachmann. he said if he didn't place high enough he's is going to get out. >> the problem isn't so much oh, my gosh this person placed fifth it's that donors look at it and they don't want to give any more because you only have so much money. so money starts to dry up after the straw poll. >> newt gingrich, mitt romney, jim huntsman. >> he can self-fund. he can stay in it if he wants to. usually it's me sitting in a studio tossing to you. >> here i am and i don't have a thing. >> it's great to see the energy. we had some folks joining us earlier. tons of people here. they bus in from all over the state. they have to show i.d.. they feed them. they give them drink. they give them love. they want their votes. this shows how organized the campaign is. >> yes. i want shows the depth of passion. because it can't just be, you know, people knocking ining on. you got to want to. these truly are the committed of the committed. but it's why these sorts of things favor a ron paul, or a michelle bachmann. the people that ignite sort of fierce loyalty and real passion. >> can't go anywhere without seeing a ron paul sticker. i saw a guy with a tattoo on his forehead. this is big breaking political news here today on cnn. iowa straw poll is supposed to be the main event for republicans. some might say the real action happened today in south carolina where texas governor rick perry announced he is joining the race. so we go now to jim acosta standing live in charleston. what was the reaction in the room? >> reporter: don, it was a strong reaction. we talked to several republicans after this speech who said this is the speech that conservatives have been waiting for and, you know, rick perry i think took a look what was happening in ames and said i'll see your fried butter on the stick and raise you shrimp and grits. south carolina is just as important, as an early voting state as iowa and new hampshire. so he made a big impression on voters here kicking off his campaign, announcing he's running for president here. it was a very aggressive fiery speech aimed at the president, basically calling the president a failure on the economy, perry used the line it's time to get america working again. that also happens to be the title of his new web video, new campaign website put out today. you can see the makings of this campaign coming together. he also brought up some topical references in his speech remember referencing the recent downgrade of u.s. credit, and he laid that -- he laid all of that on president obama's door step. >> the fact is for nearly three years president obama has been downgrading american jobs, he's been downgrading our standing in the world, downgrading our financial stability, he's been downgrading our confidence, and downgrading the hope for a better future for children. >> i don't have a clock out here. >> reporter: and south carolina governor nikki hailey who was a tea party favorite here herself she praised rick perry's decision to come to south carolina and steal the thunder of the iowa straw poll. she called at it brilliant move and so, you know, you can say rick perry left this state having impressed some people. he's now in new hampshire talking to republicans up there. he's heading to iowa where you are in your neck of the woods there tomorrow. so rick perry is off and running. >> all right. thank you very much. jim acosta. candy, i want to bring you back in here. is perry the guy republicans have been looking for? the polls have been showing that people are not so hot about the candidate that have declared already. >> they have been waiting for him. i don't know it's who they are looking for. people always like the politician who is just beyond reach, sort of the political version of the grass is always greener and politicians either come in and live up to all the hype, or they can come in and crash. >> don't you miss the studio when you don't have the wind. >> i still like this. >> just little things like that. thank you. we'll stick around here as soon as the results come in we'll bring home to you here on cnn. we'll be here. cnn will bring you live coverage of the iowa straw poll results as soon as we get them. join me and candy right here for cnn newsroom special report on the iowa straw poll results. that begins at the next hour at 7:00 p.m. eastern. i think we make a pretty handsome couple. we'll bring you those poll results live regardless of when they come in. all right. meantime, wolf blitzer returns to "the situation room" in just a moment. don't go anywhere. ♪ [ male announcer ] you never know when a moment might turn into something more. and when it does men with erectile dysfunction can be more confident in their ability to be ready with cialis for daily use. cialis for daily use is a clinically proven low-dose tablet you take every day, so you can be ready anytime the moment's right. ♪ [ man ] tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medications and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sexual activity. don't take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. [ man ] do not drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than 4 hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, stop taking cialis and call your doctor right away. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor if cialis for daily use is right for you. for a 30-tablet free trial offer, go to cialis.com. for a 30-tablet free trial offer, host: could switching to geico reon car insurance? or more host: do people use smartphones to do dumb things? man 1: send, that is the weekend. app grapgic: yeah dawg! man 2: allow me to crack...the bubbly! man 1: don't mind if i doozy. man 3: is a gentleman with a brostache invited over to this party? man 1: only if he's ready to rock! ♪ sfx: guitar and trumpet jam vo: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. i'm gonna need my biggest player. a change in the lineup? [ female announcer ] one bottle of ultra dawn has the grease-cleaning power of two of this competing brand. [ sponge ] way to go, kid. [ female announcer ] dawn does more... [ sponge ] so it's not a chore. investors here in the united states and indeed around the world are reeling after a wild week on wall street. they saw stocks lurch from dramatic highs to dramatic loss. what can we expect next week? let's get some insight from our expert who is joining us from london and ali velshi who is in new york. richard, first to you. a truly amazing week. i don't remember anything like this at least in a long time. >> yes, wolf. what does this mean? was this an aberration or the canary in the mine syndrome where what we saw during the week is actually telling us that the air in the markets is back and there's something wrong with the economy. just look at the way the dow traded throughout the course of the week. a sharp fall as a result of the u.s. downgrade. then we have a massive rise because of the fed keeping interest rates low until 2013. then once again another roller coaster down because of france and rumors about that. throughout the course of the week the market seemingly never wanted to stop bouncing around. and the rumors kept on flying. societe generale was it in trouble? ben bernanke said the u.s. is growing considerably slower. jean-claude trichet at the european central bank said there were exceptional market circumstances. put all these factors together and you've got to ask yourself is it a blip or was the canary starting to tell us that the air is bad. >> what's the answer, ali, to that question? >> richard is a little off. a canary tells you when there's a problem in the mine. the appropriate analogy is a squirrel running around your garden. if you see one of those they run around for no reason. this was just jitters. investors were saying i don't want to be caught holding the bag and they sell out. oh, my gosh those stocks went down too much. this is market schizophrenia. i don't think the gas is in the air for the canary to be smelling. >> don't agree. i don't agree because of the reasons underlying what we saw. yes the volatility was there, but the volatility was symptomattic of what's happening underneath. interest rates for 013, come on, ali -- >> let me tell you why. i'll give you evidence. wolf, the united states gets downgraded. we covered this. united states gets downgraded. it cost the u.s. less money to brother than it did before the downgrade. the selloff because of that french rumor of getting downgraded just a rumor. no truth. number three u.s. unemployment came in stronger in july and then we got weekly unemployment claims that were lower. where is this double dip recession? where is this world collapsing. this european debt thing is not new. it's not new. the investor overreaction is very new. there's just a slot of skittishness. for the smart investor find the buy, hold tight and stay diversified. gold has been going up, bonds are going up. currencies are going down. this is the time to be in and be diversified and hold tight. >> you have thrown everything into that except the kitchen sink and i suspect that's not far off. ali, you had the ecb buying italian and spanish bonds. you got central bankers admitting that thing are slower. i'm not saying it's a crisis. i'm not saying that double dip recession. what i'm saying is there is an underlying weakness that this market canary is starting to say might have some validity. >> it can't see because it would have read the u.s. federal reserve's announcement that they are going keep interest rates close to where they are now. >> exactly. >> until 2013. teach the bird to read not just smell and maybe we'll have a more stable market. >> why durng they are keeping it until 2013? they are not doing it out of great love for cheap money. they are doing it because as bernanke says the economy is considerably weaker. he described the housing market as depressing. and he talked about the problems of unemployment. that's why. >> very quickly. >> your refusal -- >> ali, next week can we expect more of this crazy volatility. >> you'll see this for a little while. if richard and i can't agree, people a whole lot smarter can't agree as well. you'll see buying opportunity and people trying to get out of the market. you'll see this contest. you'll see volatility from day-to-day and intraday volatility. >> richard, more of the same? >> absolutely. because what's happening is those people who was got profits will have seen what's happened and when the market recovers they could well head to the door to lock those profits in. we know volatility. ali can agree on one thing, volatility is the name of the game. >> we're getting ready for more of that roller coaster with both of you guys. van thanks very much. we're standing by for the results of the iowa straw poll. as soon as we get those results we're going back to ames, iowa. president obama, he's trying to rev up the economy with small initiatives. some say a grand plan is what the country really needs right now. plus the death of so many navy seals in afghanistan, what impact will it have on one of the u.s. military's elite fighting fors. stay with us, you're in the situation room. [ dr. ling ] i nt the results from the m.r.i. see if the blood work is ready. review ms. cooper's history. and i want to see katie before she goes home. [ male announcer ] with integrated healthcare solutions from dell, every patient file is where dr. ling needs it. now she can spend more time with patients and less time on paperwork. ♪ dell. the power to do more. in servicing clients that serve our country. my name is marjorie reyes. i'm a chief warrant officer. i am very grateful and appreciative that quicken loans can offer service members va loans. it was very important for me to be able to close and refinance my home quickly. i wanted to lower my mortgage payment. quicken loans guided me through every step of the process. the whole experience was amazing! [ tony ] serving those who serve us all... one more way quicken loans is engineered to amaze. just don't feel like they used to. are you one of them? remember when you had more energy for 18 holes with your buddies. more passion for the one ya love. more fun with your family and friends. it could be a treatable condition called low testosterone or low t. come on, stop living in the shadows. you've got a life to live. [ male announcer ] so don't blame it on aging. talk to your doctor and go to isitlowt.com to find out more. with wild market fluctuations, high unemployment and sluggish growth president obama is under enormous pressure right now to help create jobs and turn around the economy. he visited michigan this week to highlight the economy but also sounded very much like a candidate. >> a couple of people i want to thank. some in congress right now rather see their opponents lose than see america win. and that has to stop. it's got to stop. we're supposed to all be on the same team. especially when we're going through tough times. we can't afford to play games. not right now. not when the stakes are so high for our economy. and if you agree with me, it doesn't matter if you're a democrat or a republican or an independent, you've got to let congress know. you've got to tell them you've had enough of the theaterics. stop sending out press releases. start passing bills that will help our economy right now. >> those hoping for a grand jobs plan from the president so far have been disappointed. let's bring in our chief white house correspondent, jessica yellin. she's working the story for us. what is the president doing right now, immediately to try to create some jobs? >> reporter: he is hitting the road. he's emphasizing a lot of his proposals that are in essence policies that the executive branch can do on its own and ways it can prompt congress to take action. what you're seeing him do on the road is shore up his support for his handling of the economy. in the big scheme of things he's resisting pressure to unveil a bold economic plan which is what many in the business community have called on him to do. after touring a hybrid battery plant, an impassioned president obama told workers -- >> there's nothing wrong with our country. there is something wrong with our politics. [ applause ] >> reporter: he blamed congress for the recent credit downgrade. >> it was a self-inflicted wound. [ applause ] that's why people are frustrated. maybe hearing it in my voice. >> reporter: if only these batteries could rev up our stalled economy. >> we're in a fragile period and it will last a while. >> reporter: robert kaplan kaechs ceos about leadership and they want more economic loep from the president. >> they want to see an integrated plan from the president of the united states and they are not sure what his plan is. they don't quite under not putting a plan out there because you're afraid the opposition would shoot it down. they are not into the political tactics. they want to see a vision. >> reporter: instead the president now vows each week he'll highlight specific policies that could boost the economy. so far the administration has called for tax credits to encourage hiring and training of recent war veterans, announce ad new effort to take government backed homes facing foreclosure. and loerk american's gas costs by improving fuel efficiency in cars and trucks of the future. even some economists acknowledge there's only so much the president can do on his own. >> he cannot spend money without the authority of congress and congress isn't giving him the authority to do the kinds of things we really need to be doing. >> reporter: critics are still calling on the president to do more. the latest poll shows american's confidence of the president's handling of the economy has fallen ten points since january. >> the president is making it clear he has no great desire to recall congress from its august recess. >> reporter: that's right. and when he was in michigan he said it's because he wants them to hear what the people are saying, which is that they are frustrated with washington. listen to this. >> the last thing we need is congress spending more time arguing in d.c. [ applause ] that's why i'm here. that's why i'll be traveling to a lot of communities like this one over the next week. that's what congress should be doing. go back home. listen to people's frustrations with all the gridlock. >> reporter: now to add a little perspective, in addition to that it's true also that there's no real advantage to having congress here in washington, d.c., unless the president and the leadership in congress have a legislative plan that they can move forward on if there's no action here and there's just more arguing that doesn't serve the white house or the leadership very well. >> it undermines everyone's confidence in washington. thanks very much. let's dig a little deeper with our senior pill analyst david guer gergen. >> he's facing a strong candidate on the republican side, we would all be saying he could be the underdog. the best thing he has going for him right now is the republican field. >> when you say -- he doesn't have any major challenges potentially. mitt romney the former governor of massachusetts seems to be the front-runner although he could face a stiff challenge from the current governor of texas, rick perry. >> there's a widespread sense in the country we need to see more of mitt romney if he becomes a nominee to make that final judgment. he's running a much better campaign than the last time. but even so, the political odds maker when they look at romney, they say obama can beat romney. we have to wait and see. i have to tell you, what i think is most worrisome is we have a wounded president and a weak opposition. and in terms of governing and leading the country over the next four years, that is not exactly the most hopeful way to go into the next four years. >> in this highly charged political environment in washington, indeed around the country right now how does the president get out of this jam as far as jobs, jobs, jobs are concern. >> the president is doing what presidents normally do. he's out hitting the campaign trail, making the case for his policies, pointing fingers at the other side, blaming the other side. the problem is these aren't normal times. when you look beyond volatility of markets at the markets this past week, americans are going through a great deal of distress and what the federal reserve told us is we'll have a very weak economy for the next two years. not much job creation, weak growth. under those circumstances, i'm among those who believe that it would be good for the president to do something not normal, try to have a circuit breaker here. i disagree with him about leaving the congress on vacation. i wouldn't call the whole congress back. i would call the congressional leaders back