Transcripts For WMPT PBS NewsHour 20111201 : vimarsana.com

WMPT PBS NewsHour December 1, 2011



reports on the growing concernç over the use of full-body scanners at airports across the country. >> it uses x-rays to see right through clothing and identify all kinds of potential threats. critics call it an electronic strip search. >> woodruff: we have a conversation with long-time congressman barney frank of massachusetts as he announces plans to retire at the end of this term. >> brown: and hari sreenivasan talks with global-post correspondent iaon grillo about his new book "el narco," which chronicles the growth of mexico's violent drug cartels. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> computing surrounds us. sometimes it's obvious and sometimes it's very surprising where you find it. soon, computing intelligence in unexpected places will changeó & our lives in truly profound ways.ç technology can provide customized experiences, tailored to individual consumer preferences, igniting a world of possibilities from the inside out. sponsoring tomorrow, starts today. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.çç >> brown: "we can beat this disease," so declared president obama as he marked world aids day. he also pledged a stepped-up effort to reach more victims of a pandemic that began 30 years ago and has since infected an estimated 66 million people worldwide. the president announced the initiative in washington and raised the hope that earlier treatment and prevention could soon lead to the beginning of the end of aids, three decades few could have imagined this >> few could have imagined that we'd be talking about the real possibility of an aids-free generation. that's what we're talking about, that's why we're here.ç d we arrived here because of all of you and your unwavering belief that we can and will beat this disease. >> brown: speaking at george washington university, the president called for distributing anti-retroviral drugs to two million more people worldwide by 2013, including 1.5 million h.i.v. positive pregnant women. funding would come from savings through the "president's emergency plan for aids relief" program, known as pepfar. president george w. bush created the program in 2003 to provide treatment to four million people. he joined the event, along with president clinton by satellite. >> there is no greater priority than living out the admonitionç to whom much is given, much isç required. we are a blessed nation in the united states of america and i believe we are required to support effective programs that save lives. >> brown: president obama's new initiative also called for an additional $50 million for h.i.v. treatment in the united states. earlier this week, the c.d.c. released a report showing that just two in five of the more than one million americans with h.i.v. have their infection under control. worldwide, some 34 million people now live with h.i.v./aids. in south africa, where more than five and a half million are infected, a memorial service was held. a nurse at one aids hospice center said she remainsçç optimistic about the availability of new treatment and funding. >> so, i think we are making progress, slowly, in our country, but it's thanks to a civil society. we fight hard for what we've got around h.i.v./aids and a.r.v.s. >> brown: but concerns in africa and worldwide remain, particularly in the midst of a financial crisis that threatens funding cutbacks. just last week, the global fund to fight aids, tuberculosis and malaria-- the world's largest backer of h.i.v. treatment and prevention programs-- announced it would halt any new grants until 2014. there's also been sobering news on the scientific front, as trials of a promising microbicide gel for h.i.v. prevention for women in developing countries were halted after researchers saw noç decrease in new infections.ç still, the tone today was optimistic and the president called on americans to continue to lead the way. >> look back at the history of h.i.v./aids and you'll see that no other country has done more than us. that's testament to our republicans said that would only penalize those who create jobs. instead, the minority leader republican mitch mcconnell called for freezing federal pay and cutting 200,000 government jobs. >> millions of americans have had to go without or live with less over the past few years. yet all they see here is that washington just keeps getting bigger and bigger and richer. it's about time washington took the hit for a change. so we think this is a plan that those who are fed up with washington and wall street can embrace. >> holman: democrats rejected the republican plan. senate majority leader harry reid charged the republicans' real goal is to protect the wealthy at the expense of everyone else. >> this is really a subterfuge what they are doing, what they are trying to do. they are not letting the rich do what's fair as seen by the american people. and not only that, we're trying to create jobs, they are going to cut jobs. probably as many as 250,000 job, middle class jobs. >> holman: neither side appeared to have the 60 votes likely to be needed to advance a plan. the economy turned in a mixed report today. government data showed factory output grew last month, and construction spending was up in november. but first-time claims for unemployment benefits moved back above 400,000 last week. it was enough to keep wall street in check, after wednesday's huge rally. the dow jones industrial average lost 25 points to close at 12,020. the nasdaq rose nearly six points to close at 2,626. u.s. auto sales in november may turn out to be the strongest in more than two years. chrysler reported today its sales were up 45% over a year ago. ford sales went up by 13% and general motors had a gain of 7%. the industry says sales were driven by people who held off buying during the recession. the average age of a car on u.s. highways is now more than ten- and-a-half years-- a record. the european central bank may reverse course and take stronger action on the continent's debt crisis. bank chief mario draghi hinted that today, before the european parliament in brussels. he opened the door to buying more bonds of heavily indebted governments in a bid to safeguard the euro system. but draghi said first, the euro zone nations must link their fiscal policies to prevent runaway spending. >> it's first and foremost important to get a commonly shared fiscal compact right. confidence works backwards f there is an anchor in the long term it is easier to maintain trust in the short term. after all investors have themselves often taken decisions with a long-term horizon. especially with regard to government bonds. >> holman: in another development, french president nicolas sarkozy and german chancellor angela merkel announced they'll meet monday in paris. sarkozy said they will call for fundamental changes in the treaty governing the euro system. islamist parties in egypt now appear certain to be the big winners in that country's landmark parliamentary elections. newspapers in cairo today predicted a major victory for the muslim brotherhood, the country's oldest islamist group. an ultra-fundamentalist party was competing for second place. meanwhile, official results from this week's first round of voting were delayed until tomorrow. the elections commission said it needs more time to count all the votes because of the large turnout. the u.n.'s top human rights official concluded today that syria has plunged into a civil war. navi pillay said the death toll may be far higher than the official figure of 4,000 killed since the syrian uprising began, eight months ago. also today, the u.s., the european union and the arab league imposed additional sanctions on a dozen leading syrians and eleven syrian companies. those are some of the day's major stories. now, back to judy. >> woodruff: hillary clinton in burma-- a country not seen by a u.s. secretary of state in more than 50 years. margaret warner has the story. >> warner: secretary clinton is spending three days in the isolated nation. "washington post" correspondent willian juan who is traveling with her joins us by phone. william, thanks for being with us. relations between the u.s. and the military regime in burma have been in a deep freeze for a couple of decades. how is secretary clinton being received? >> she's been received well. she is the first u.s. official ever to set foot in the presidential palace, this ornate, somewhat gaudy mansion that looks like it's built for giants. and so that in itself is a big, big step. >> warner: well, tell us about that meeting with the president saying in the new capitol. what message was she conveying and what came out of it? >> it was a very interesting interaction. it took part basically on the part of the president t was a 45 minute very detailed presentation going point by point, his plan for reforming everything that has-- people have criticized this country for. and it shows kind of the eagerness as well as somewhat the desperation of the country for lifting of sanctions, for engagement with the outside world. he's really putting a lot of eggs in this basket, it seems, in the meeting with the secretary. and then on clinton's side, she was also a very formal presentation, five points going one after the other, over what they want in order to give them these kind of incentives like lifting of sanctions. they want full release of political prisoners. reforms like media freedom. most importantly political freedom as well as a cease-fire to the brutal kind of wars that are going on between military troops and ethnic minorities in the outlying regionses of burma. >> warner: . >> warner: so afterwards what conclusions did she and her team draw on whether this government is seriously committed to more reforms beyond, say, the new media openness they are allowing? >> they were very cautious going in. and i think coming out they are also very cautious at least publicly. but you know, administration officials have kind of told me they were very surprised by the frank nature of the talks. the president expressed the pressure he was under that there were some within the government, many are either sit on the fence about these reforms or actively opposing them. it's unknown even though the-- to the highest levels of the state department exactly how much control he has over the government, how these decisions are made, and so it's a very delicate balance. they're very careful not to claim any kind of foreign policy victory yet, even if you see the excitement in a lot of these state departments, folks because this is delicate and there has been a lot of promise in the past before of reform that fell apart. and in fact devolved into brutal crackdowns of democracy movements. >> warner: and tonight she was having dinner with the nobel laureate opposition aung sung su chi. >> it was a private dinner between the two of them, that was less policy and more personality, i think. one person who was briefed on it told me they talked about su chi's memories as a little girl swimming in a lake near where they were eating. most interestingly, su chi said one of the things she missed about being under house arrest is that she had a lot of time to read. and so that lead to this discussion of what she's reading now. and she says she's reading a lot about military personalities, specifically military personalities who have gone into politics. and it was an interesting insight because this is exactly who she is is dealing with now, the president, a military general, who you know, has gone civilian and now is running the country ostensibly. this is the person she has to deal with. so you see her trying to grapple with how to deal with this man and make compromises is so that they can build these reforms that both have been talking about. >> warner: and how does the u.s. see aung sung su chi's role right now. how does she fit into the u.s.-- of the u.s. intention. >> the u.s. has been deliberate and careful consulting her before they do anything. the surprising thing is the level of commitment she has shown to its president, it's surprising, the same government that kept her under house arrest for two decades, she is now starting to work with and even endorsing the u.s. working with. so she has a lot at risk here that she is putting into the game. secretary clinton and obama have a lot at risk as well because of the-- they are lending to the talks and the president is under extreme pressure, i think, and has a lot at risk. and so i think the more people have at risk, one of the officials was telling me, the more chance there is of this succeeding. everyone has something to lose. but again it's very delicate, all sides think this could fall apart any time. >> warner: finally so, few americans have seen myanmar, give us a flavor of what it is like. have you been able to talk with any ode burmese? >> i've tried, you know, we spent one day in the new capital t is a bizarre place. it's fairly newly constructed in the last three years it is big, bulky government buildings, sprawling complexes. and then from one complex to another on these cement highways so it is a network of these big complexes which very few cars, wide, wide highways and no one to really talk to besides, you know, we tried to go to dinner at a restaurant. people are still very careful in talking to outsiders. -- on the other hand, very different, very vibrant city a lot of tourists, people are very friendly. but i think they are a little more open in talking. here i have been talking a lot to the dissidents, the opposition movement. and everyone wants to talk but they're still very careful in please don't use my name. this is just my view, and because there has been media reforms but who knows how long those reforms will last. >> warner: fascinating, william juan from the "washington post", thanks some of. >> it's been great, thanks for having me. >> brown: and we come back to world aids day and the president's announcement now with doctor eric goosby is the u.s. global aids ambassador in the obama administration. doctor patricia nkansah-asamoah is the director of clinic at tema hospital in ghana that works to prevent transmission of the virus from mother to child. and david ernesto munar is the president and c.e.o. of the aids foundation of chicago, which works to improve healthcare and services of people with h.i.v. he tested positive for h.i.v. in 1994. i will start with you ambassador goosby, how close are we today to see wag the president referred to as an aids-free generation that great hope. >> well, thank you. we're very close to understanding the science of prevention intervention, that when combined in the appropriate way, allow us to drop the number of new infections or incidents precipitously. the ability to use male circumcision to prevent mother to child transmission and now with distribution and targeted populations at high risk with condoms, behavioral modifications that complement and enable that, matched with the new data that came in last summer showing the treatment drops the risk of infecting another individual by 96%. all in combination, really give us an opportunity to drop that incidence curve precipitously. >> brown: when you say close, i mean give us-- you can actually put years on it or a time frame? >> the modelling that we've been able to do shows that we will begin this process over the next three years by moving our numbers of people with a concentration of treatment, matched with an expansion of our prevention portfolio. so moving our prevention strategies to a maximum and now adding a more vigorous treatment component to of it. we're looking at three to five years for our, in our ability to actually have more people getting on treatment than are actually becoming newly infected. >> brown: and clear up one thing for us. in the president's announcement today, is there actually new money going into these programs or is it more from savings from existing programs, in the current budget climate, can you guarantee new funds being directed to those? >> we are in a position where we have gotten so good at saving resources, money, in our current programs at our current level of funding that we have been able to calculate that if we increase our numbers by $2 million we have the resources to do that in our current funding window. and anticipate that that will be the case if that funding is maintained. >> now dr. nikansah-asamoah what do you see on the ground every day? and you were at the event today. >> yes. >> brown: what dow take from that as the hope that translates to what you see on the ground. >> yeah, i was very excited when the president announced that even, he would like to go beyond the 4,000 people they were anticipating to put on a, v to 6,000. there has been a lot of disappointment when global fund consult some proposal sent because of funding issues. and for me it just takes me back to the time when we did not have access to arc. >> brown: those are the anti-receipt ra virals. >> exactly, yeah. when you went into the clinic and all you had to tell someone was i know you have hiv but there isn't much i can do to help you. when there was a sense of helplessness for you as a clinician, to even tell someone what they had to do. so with all the cuts t was almost-- are we going to go back to those days, but today's message was very, very hopeful and it made me very excited that what i was doing was not just going to come to an end as i was probably thinking and that there was some hope that in the next few years there will be funding to support what we were doing. >> but what are you doing depends so much on the funding. >> that is so true. >> brown: we are still in this very tough financial situation. >> exactly. >> brown: most countries may have a hard time coming up with the funds. >> yeah. >> brown: and what touchly-- usually happens is what country's pledge, is sometimes is so small out of their budget, sometimes less than 1 percent, but a lot of the population sometimes have the feeling that this is such a huge amount. some people it is about 10% or 20% of their budget and the thing that in such difficult times, such money should not go to help other people, should be given back into the country. this is so, so, small looking at the budgets governments have and what they have pledged to support global funds, so what we are saying is that it may look small but when it comes to saving lives, these monies really go a long way and improve the lives of a lot of people. >> brown: now david ernesto munar one-- one of the things the president said today which may be surprising, the rate of new infections might be going down elsewhere but it's to the going down here in the united states. and we cited that statistic that just two in five here get the care they need. now why is that happening? >> that's correct. and we are very concerned about the state of the epidemic in the u.s. and we know today that there is 1.2 million americans living with hiv. a quarter of a million of them don't even know they're infected and half a million do knothey are infected and are not receiving the medical care and treatment they need that could save their lives and help slow new infections. and this is a huge problem and that's being driven by a variety of issues. pov cert a big one. lack of access to health care and stigma, still contributes to individuals so fearful of others learning their status that they don't con forward to receive the care and support that they need. >> and who's most affected? >> well, in the u.s. we're continuing to see ep dem thake increasingly is affecting people of color so two-third its of those living with hiv are afr

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