Will Banks Release Details of Allocation of Bailout Funds?
SYLVESTER: A deep freeze is gripping much of the country tonight. Bitter cold temperatures and record wind chills are reported from the Pacific Midwest all the way to the Northeast after a weekend of massive snowstorms. The winter storm dumped eight to 12 inches of heavy snow in the Seattle area. The storms shut down major highways and canceled hundreds of flights. Massive nor'easter brought traffic to a standstill in Portland, Maine, a record-breaking 14.5 inches fell on Portland over the weekend. Lots of snow there. Another frigid night is in store for Rochester, New York. Low temperatures will be about minus 10 degrees tonight and lake effect snow could drop an additional six inches of snow on Rochester and surrounding areas. And things are slowly returning to normal at the Manchester, New Hampshire airport. Hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled at the height of the storm. Certainly a lot of people are trying to get back home today. Well new developments tonight in the Denver Boeing 737 crash. The plane skidded off the runway Saturday night as it was taking off. The National Transportation Safety Board is now reviewing the cockpit voice recorder and flight recorder and said today it has good data. Susan Roesgen has exclusive new details.</s>SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For the first time, reporters were allowed to get close to the burned-out plane while investigators in Washington listened to the cockpit voice recorder.</s>ROBERT SUMWALT, NTSB: We should have some overall characterization of what was said in that cockpit. I don't -- we will not have exact phrases and all but I think we can be able to characterize for you, in general terms, what may have been said in the cockpit of that airplane.</s>ROESGEN: The Boeing 737 was just starting down the runway for take-off Saturday night. The deep skid marks show what happened next. The plane veered off the runway tearing across a ravine and losing all of the wheels before it stopped, belly-down in the snow. Firefighters say they crawled through the cabin searching for victims, but in fact, everyone had already gotten out on their own. Nearly 40 people were hurt and now we know that one of those injured was the pilot.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We do want that information as quickly as possible, but we want to make sure that he is -- he or she is mentally ready to be interviewed and physically ready as well.</s>ROESGEN: Investigators won't say yet what might have caused the accident. Instead, they will continue to collect what they call "perishable evidence", parts and pieces that will lose their meaning once the plane is moved.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our goal is to be very methodical. To do it right. Once the airplane is moved we can't go back and say well how was this switch set or something, so we want to make sure that we carefully document things.</s>ROESGEN: So for now, planes continue to fly in and out of Denver International Airport from all runways except one, where Continental Flight 1404 remains a reminder of what could have been a disaster.</s>ROESGEN: And now we know why the National Transportation Safety Board investigators were not able to interview the pilot. Why they haven't talked to him yet. We have learned -- CNN has learned through an exclusive source that the pilot is among the injured. He is in the hospital, still, in serious condition. Lisa?</s>SYLVESTER: Yeah, Susan, you look at that wreckage and it really is quite a miracle that you had 115 people who survived that crash, essentially.</s>ROESGEN: That's true. And also one more thing that the investigators will have to look at, Lisa, is some of the passengers have told us that they were actually told in the gate before they ever got on the plane that there was some kind of mechanical problem. Some problem with the engine and later they were told, no, the plane is fine and you're going to make an on-time departure, so the investigators have a lot to go through and a lot of people to talk to.</s>SYLVESTER: Yeah. That might be a crucial clue there. Thank you, Susan, for that great reporting. Well companies across the nation are cutting costs everywhere they can to avoid massive layoffs and that means eliminating overtime and contributions to 401(ks). Hard-working middle class Americans are feeling the effects. Kitty Pilgrim has our report.</s>KITTY PILGRIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Forget the company Christmas party. No raise. And you're not going anywhere on the company dime. Corporate cost-cutting is severe, but companies say they are doing what they can to avoid large-scale layoffs.</s>LAURIE BIENSTOCK, WATSON WYATT: While some organizations are taking the approach to doing layoffs they may be doing so in very targeted areas of their business and along with that looking at other actions they can take to reduce costs.</s>PILGRIM: They say batten down for a host of other measures that will hurt such as higher health care deductibles. Unpaid holidays. A recent survey found one out of ten employers are cutting matching contributions to their 401(k) plans. Rafael Garcia has been a mechanic with FedEx for more than 16 years and is worried about it's company's decision to temporarily cut the company's its 3 percent match on his 401(k).</s>RAFAEL GARCIA, FEDEX EMPLOYEE: It means I'll have to work longer and retire later. And have to work longer hours to make the extra money to put into my pension and retirement.</s>PILGRIM: FedEx points out their CEO took a 20 percent pay cut and managers a 5 to 10 percent cut to try to share the pain. Other companies are also cutting 401(k) matches including Motorola, Eastman Kodak and the Frontier Airlines. Corporations are scrambling. Back in May, one out of three had no contingency plan in case of an economic downturn. Now, more than half of all companies are looking to freeze salary levels for 2009 and putting a freeze on new hiring.</s>PILGRIM: Even with all the penny-pinching many company also still have to cut jobs. It's already showing up in the data. Testimony number of companies doubled from 19 percent in October to 39 percent this month. Lisa?</s>SYLVESTER: All of these cost-cutting measures like, for instance, stopping the contributions to 401(k), is this a temporary measure? Or is this how companies are going to move forward and do business? It's kind of like what they did with the pensions where you just don't see pensions.</s>PILGRIM: When they initiated the 401(k) cut on the match, some say it's a year. Other companies say we don't know how long we'll do it. It has to be until business conditions improve there's no real answer.</s>SYLVESTER: It comes at a time when middle class families are crunched in so many ways. All right. Thanks Kitty for your report. We have reported extensively on this broadcast on the utter lack of oversight of the trillion dollar bailout of Wall Street. Now there is evidence that these banks are being less than forthcoming about how they're spending your money. In fact, when we tried to find out where your money was going, the banks basically said, it's none of your business. Mary Snow has our report.</s>MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: With investors on edge, Bank of America is among banks trying to seek customers and soothe nerves with ads like these, but what banks aren't so public about is what they're doing with the billions in bailout monies they were given to start lending again. We contacted the banks who are given the biggest amounts. Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo and bank of America. Bank of America received $15 billion as part of the troubled asset relief program or T.A.R.P. Where did it go? A spokesman sent us a statement saying we're using the TARP funds to build our capital and make every loan we can. The bank says it anticipates releasing more information. Sarah Binder of the Brookings Institution has been monitoring the bailout money.</s>SARAH BINDER, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: The banks have said, largely, we're using the money to stimulate the economy. To get the economy moving. That's far, far too general to know what precisely these banks are doing with the money.</s>SNOW: Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo, each received $25 billion, the largest. Wells Fargo says it can't provide any details until it releases its fourth quarter statements though it says it intends to use the funds to help customer as void foreclosure. Citigroup says its using T.A.R.P. Money to expand the throw of credit and formed a special committee to oversee the money. JP Morgan Chase points out it recently bought more than $1 million in Illinois bonds and plans to lend five billion to non-profit and healthcare companies. The Associated Press surveyed 21 banks and reports. A republican member of the house financial services committee who opposed the bailout says, don't be shocked.</s>REP. THADDEUS MCCOTTER (R), MICHIGAN: Unfortunately, a lot of people are disgusted but not surprised. One of the problems with the wall street bailout is the people that caused problem were not called in front of Congress to explain what they had done and what needed to be done.</s>SNOW: And Congress did not put conditions on the bailout money and the Government Accountability Office, for one, is calling for more transparency. Critics say now is the time for Congress to act and demand conditions since the second round of bailout money has yet to be distributed.</s>SYLVESTER: Mary, when people hear stories like this it comes across as pure arrogance on the part of these banks. I'm actually puzzled by it. They received this money, why wouldn't they know where it went and why wouldn't they disclose it?</s>SNOW: The banks are saying look all this money is in one lump sum. We'll have more details down the line but Congress didn't say specifically, you need to account for this as you go along and that's the problem. The next time money is doled out, everyone says there has to be accountability for this.</s>SYLVESTER: But the problem is, these are banks. You would think they have accountants that can track where the money is coming and where it's going out.</s>SNOW: A lot of these answers are very generic.</s>SYLVESTER: Somehow I have a feeling we're going to see another hearing on Capitol Hill for this issue. Thanks Mary for that report. That brings us to tonight's poll. Should the banks be required to tell you where they're spending your money? Yes or no? Cast your vote at loudobbs.com. And hundreds of thousands of people apply for jobs in the new Obama administration. We'll discuss that with three of the best political analysts in the country. And who's responsible for the country's mortgage crisis. We'll talk to the author of the book "Chain of Blame" next.