Democrats Believe Stimulus is on the Right Track; New Report Shows Japan Has Emerged From Recession
NGUYEN: Let's take a look at the markets today and see where the numbers are. Looking at the Dow already off to a rough start. We kind of knew this might be happening today. Down 189 points at 9,131. We're going to be watching the markets for you very closely today and bring you the latest numbers throughout the show. All right. Give you a thumbs up though from the Democrats on how the stimulus program is doing. But many Americans not sharing the same enthusiasm. In fact, six months into the $787 billion program, many Americans are still hurting and the jobless rate still isn't as low as predicted. But Democrats believe there is a silver lining. Fewer jobs were lost last month and other reports show the economy is improving. Only a small portion of the stimulus fund has been spent do far. So your stimulus money at work. With visits to the Grand Canyon in Yellowstone Park over the weekend, the president is putting the spotlight on the country's national parks. $700 million was earmarked for some of our national parks. So we ask Kate Bolduan to look into what's happening with all that money.</s>KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRRESPONDENT: From</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you come around the back of the cabin, you'll see that the signing is all</s>BOLDUAN: Rocky Schroeder is a park ranger at Prince William Forest Park, about 35 miles outside of Washington where more than dozen historic cabins are slated for repair. One of 250 national parks getting spruced up, thanks to the economic stimulus. The park service estimates national parks across the country face a $9 billion backlog of work. The stimulus is supposed to contribute $750 million to that. So far about 10 percent is in the pipeline.</s>DAN WENK, ACTING DIRECTOR, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: It's camp ground. It's camp site. It's amphitheater for evening programs, it's the bathrooms. It's literally everything that we have to make our business enjoyable.</s>BOLDUAN: Nearly $56 million is going to repair Washington landmarks. More than 14.5 million to the Mesa Verde National Park and nearly $11 million to the Grand Canyon to name a few. But when it comes to this money, you have to ask - (on camera): How is money for national parks stimulus?</s>WENK: It's stimulus because we are putting people to work. We will be putting people to work for the next two years. But it's also stimulus because we are creating a better place and increasing our visitor experience.</s>BOLDUAN (voice-over): Some Republican lawmakers aren't buying it.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, clearly we need to improve our national parks. But nobody should confuse that with economic stimulus. I mean, frankly, that's just false advertising.</s>BOLDUAN: The Interior Department estimates this stimulus target will create about 8,000 jobs over two years. Many will be temporary jobs but this park ranger is confident that it's a worthwhile investment.</s>ROCKY SCHROEDER, PARK RANGER: The national parks are past, our history, preserve that, that's where we come from. It will give us an idea of where we're going.</s>BOLDUAN (on camera): Here at this Virginia Park, they are hoping to start putting hammer to nail in the next month and park officials say they have overwhelming interest. For projects like these, they need to hire about six additional people. They've received nearly 200 applications.</s>NGUYEN: All right. So we want to know from you, what do you think so far? We are six months into the stimulus plan. Is it working? We've got that question up on the blog right here. That's cnnnewsroom.blog at Heidi Collins page. You can also reach it my page. You can also go to my Twitter page, Facebook as well. There are several ways to reach out and speak with us today. We're going to be getting some of your comments and reading them on the air. But the big question today, is the stimulus plan working? Let us know what you think. Well, signs of the economic recovery from the world's second largest economy, for the first time in over a year, Japan recorded growth in the economic sector and says it's pulling out of a global recession. What is happening there? Well, will the good news lasts? That's a good question. Here's our Morgan Neill.</s>MORGAN NEILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A new report out on Monday shows Japan's economy has emerged from recession. According to a preliminary report, the country's economy grew in the second quarter by 0.9 percent. Now in annual terms, that comes to 3.7 percent, the first time Japan's GDP has grown in 15 months. Now, the main driver -- a growth in exports, spending by governments from around the world has boosted sales of Japan's cars and electronics, the country's main stay -- the country's economy's main stays. In particular, recovery from China which grew by 7.9 percent over the last year has helped Japan's economy. Now massive government stimulus program here has also boosted domestic spending in Japan but nevertheless, it's a big driver of today's news, Monday's news, is export growth. In particular, we're seeing the country's developments, near developments we've seen in its main export markets with a delay of a couple of months. Now, the news isn't all positive. Unemployment is at its highest level in six years. And analysts continue to be concern about dropping prices. Nevertheless for the first time in more than a year, people here in Japan can find some reason for optimism looking at their country's economy. Morgan Neill, CNN, Tokyo.</s>NGUYEN: All right. So you've seen those two huge photos in women's magazines. You know, baby fast asleep but are those images really giving moms the wrong picture about putting baby to bed?