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NATO Chopper Crashes in Afghanistan; S&P Downgrades U.S. Credit Rating; Jeffs Awaits Sentencing; Gov. Perry Hosts Prayer Service; Helicopter Crash In Afghanistan; S&P Downgrades U.S. Credit Rating; Tiger Woods Back On The Course; Chile Mine Rescue Anniversary

Aired August 06, 2011 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN ANCHOR: And from the CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. I'm Deborah Feyerick in for T.J. Holmes. Welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world.

For the first time ever, the U.S. loses its prized AAA credit rating. We'll tell you how Washington is reacting to the S&P downgrade and what it means for your finances.

Dozens of U.S. troops are killed in Afghanistan after their helicopter crashes in an area rife with insurgent activity. A live report from Kabul is just seconds away.

And polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs heads into court at this hour as a jury prepares to decide whether to sentence him to life in prison.

Well, in Afghanistan what may be the deadliest day for coalition forces since the war started; Afghan President Hamid Karzai says 31 U.S. troops and seven Afghans died in a helicopter crash in Wardak province in the eastern part of the country. A U.S. Military official says more than two dozen Americans are believed to have died, many, if not all of them, Special Operations Forces.

CNN's David Ariosto is in Kabul. And David, the Taliban are claiming they shot down the helicopter. What are you hearing? Has this been verified?

DAVID ARIOSTO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, talking with the Taliban is always suspect as to whether these reports are verified. But we have spoken with some local provincial source and provincial sources and they've indicated that this helicopter was traveling in Wardak Province. This is a central eastern province, known to be very violent, and known to have an uptick in -- in some of the attacks we've seen over the last couple of weeks and months.

Now, this NATO helicopter was traveling through this area, which ISAF, NATO, that is, confirmed that there was insurgent activity in the area. Local sources that we've spoken to say this helicopter -- excuse me helicopter took on -- took on fire from -- from RPGs, effectively downing the helicopter and probably killing all of those on board.

We're getting conflicting reports as to the exact number, but by all accounts, this seems to be one of the most if not the most deadly day for Americans here in Afghanistan since the war began almost ten years ago.

All right, David Ariosto there for us in Kabul.

And obviously the President issuing a statement paying his respect for those fallen soldiers.

Well, turning now to domestic news, it could mean higher interest rates on mortgages, car loans, credit cards and may make it even harder for the U.S. economy to recover from the recession. And at a time where most Americans agree that we need to cut the federal deficit, it could drive the deficit up.

Standard & Poor's downgraded the U.S. credit rating yesterday from AAA to AA-plus.

Felicia Taylor is standing by in New York. Felicia, Congress just passed a compromise to avoid default and cut spending, but that wasn't enough to avoid this downgrade, why not?

FELICIA TAYLOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No it is simply -- it's just wasn't enough. I mean, what the S&P is saying is that the political system in this country just isn't stable enough. They are not certain that we have financial stability going forward.

The S&P was looking for a $4 trillion deficit cut, and we didn't get that. We didn't get anywhere near that frankly. We have $900 billion on the table so far. We have to wait and see what that super committee is going to -- is going to come up with in terms of further spending cuts, but we don't know. I mean, it may only amount to $2 trillion.

So basically what S&P is saying is that what the government in the United States has done so far just simply isn't enough to right our finances -- Deb.

FEYERICK: Which is basically, they haven't necessarily created jobs and they haven't sort of put forward a plan to show how the economy is going to be growing. The S&P did make an error in its calculations, but really, it still decided to downgrade and that's because they kind of had their minds made up, right?

TAYLOR: Absolutely. Yes. I mean they may have made an error in terms of -- sort of like a rounding error, really, in terms of the $2 trillion that they said that the U.S. brought to their attention, but that really didn't make any difference. Because the point is, is we're looking down the road.

It's about the future of this country. It's about where we're going. Will we be able to get a global recovery? Are there going to be jobs provided? So far, we haven't seen that.

We've got a jobs number on Friday that was ever so slightly better than expected, and I mean ever so slightly. That wasn't enough to show that jobs are being created to keep up with population growth. We need to see 200,000, 250,000 jobs created every month for it to really make a difference.

And I mean six, seven months in a row. Not just one or two. The last two jobs numbers we've had have been kind of like wild cards. They haven't really portrayed any kind of growth whatsoever.

So that's what S&P is looking at, is really down the road and where this economy is going and how quickly it's going to be able to right itself.

FEYERICK: Wow, Washington is going to have a very big and very serious job ahead of it when they return from vacation. Felicia Taylor in New York, thank you so much.

And the head of the S&P Sovereign Ratings committee says this downgrade could have been avoided. He says much of the blame rests with Congress.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN CHAMBERS, HEAD OF S&P'S SOVEREIGN RATING COMMITTEE: I think it could have done a few things. I mean, the first thing it could have done is to have raised the debt ceiling in a timely manner so that much of this debate could have been avoided to begin with as it had done 60 or 70 times since 1960 without that much debate. So that's point number one.

And point number two is it could have come up with a fiscal plan, you know, similar for example to, you know, the Bowles/Simpson commission, which was bipartisan, although it didn't have a super majority vote, it did have a majority vote, and came up with a number of sensible recommendations. I mean, you can envision other recommendations, but that would have been a start.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: So how is Congress reacting to all of this? CNN's Athena Jones joins us now live from Washington, where the finger pointing, not surprisingly, well underway.

Athena, what are you hearing from lawmakers there on Capitol Hill?

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is really interesting. As we just heard from the last two guests, one of the things that the S&P cited when making this downgrade decision was all the political problems we saw in Congress and getting everyone to agree to raise the debt limit.

So they said this long, drawn-out debate didn't give them any optimism that another deal could be reached later on with this joint committee of Democrats and Republicans who have to come together to make these further cuts that they promised down the road. The S&P says Congress has kicked the can down the road on tax revenues, on entitlement reform.

And what's interesting is that as soon as that news came out last night, we got a whole slew of e-mails from members of both parties. You had Speaker Boehner, for instance, saying that this S&P decision shows that Democrats have -- have been spending too much and this proves that the Republicans are right; we've got to keep cutting spending. The good thing is that we're now talking about that.

Then you had Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid saying well, this S&P decision shows that we need to have a balanced approach to cutting the deficit, that it involves taxes and -- and other reforms. And so you still feel like you have the parties still in both corners. One point that Reid did make, though, is that it's going to be really important, who's going to be on this joint committee. These members of Congress will be making that decision down the -- down the line in November. And that's certainly true.

FEYERICK: And maybe this joint committee can get something done. You know, it's interesting, 84 percent of Americans disapprove of the job that Congress is doing. What is the White House saying about this downgrade?

JONES: Well, that's interesting as well. So far, the White House isn't saying anything, not in terms of an official paper statement or anything. We haven't seen anyone on camera yet. And so -- but we do know that the administration is not happy about this. There was a briefing last night that we were able to have with sources close to this matter, and they said that they thought that this was a rush to judgment on the part of the S&P. They wanted to see them spend some more time reviewing their decision.

As your earlier guest pointed out, there was this $2 trillion error that Treasury Department officials pointed out to them. And so they argue that's a big deal and that the S&P should have taken longer.

But one more point that officials have been making, and that is that while the S&P has downgraded the America's debt, two other ratings agencies, Fitch and Moody's still have the U.S. in the AAA. And so while we're not going to see it go back to AAA right away with S&P, some officials are feeling somewhat hardened that so far these other two ratings agencies haven't followed suit -- Deb.

FEYERICK: All right. The American people are going to have a very interesting thing to watch here as this plays out, especially gearing into election season.

Athena Jones, thank you so much from Washington.

JONES: Thanks.

FEYERICK: Well, not surprisingly, reaction to the downgrade from Republican presidential candidates, it's been fast and furious. Mitt Romney released a statement saying "America's creditworthiness just became the latest casualty in President Obama's failed record of leadership on the economy. Standard & Poor's rating downgrade is a deeply troubling indicator of our country's decline under President Obama." That from Mitt Romney. The reaction from Michele Bachmann, also a presidential contender, "I call on the President to seek the immediate resignation of Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and to submit a plan with a list of cuts to balance the budget this year, turn our economy back around, and put Americans to work."

And John Huntsman also running, he says, quote, "For far too long, we have let reckless government spending go unchecked and the cancerous debt afflicting our nation has spread. We need new leadership in Washington committed to fiscal responsibility, a balanced budget, and job-friendly policies to get America working again."

Well, what now? Two questions really dominate. How can the U.S. regain its AAA rating and what immediate impact will the S&P action have?

Financial analyst Clyde Anderson is here to talk about that and explain what the credit rating is. It's basically like your credit score?

CLYDE ANDERSON, CNN FINANCIAL LIFESTYLE COACH: Exactly. It's like your credit score; 850 is a great credit score. It's like waking up tomorrow and having a 600 or a 590 credit score. It's going to hurt you in several ways, it's going to pay more on things, you pay more in interest, and like you said before is we can't afford to be paying more on the debt that we already owe.

FEYERICK: And -- and interestingly the debt that -- that America's got now, obviously, now much higher than it was, but -- but when you think about it, it's really all about jobs, jobs, jobs.

ANDERSON: Yes.

FEYERICK: The American people want them.

ANDERSON: Yes.

FEYERICK: Right now it seems that Washington can't create them. So what's happening?

ANDERSON: Exactly. Well, it's not there. The jobs aren't there. And the companies aren't feeling comfortable enough to go and hire more people, because you mentioned we don't have a plan. And so that's why I think they are calling for this plan. This detailed plan is needed to make companies feel comfortable to even go out and hire and to create more jobs and more positions.

FEYERICK: The AAA rating that we're talking about, it really gives the economy standing globally.

ANDERSON: Yes.

FEYERICK: But -- but what are we talking about? Just for -- for the average person, AAA, that means what? ANDERSON: AAA is the best and it's the highest rating. That means I'm going to pay back my bills or my debts that I owe. I'm a good candidate and I'm a good risk to really loan money to, because I'm going to pay it back. Now, when you lose that, it looks like I'm a little bit more risky; that I may not pay back in a timely manner. So that's what hurts us and that's what we can relate to our credit report. It's the same thing.

FEYERICK: And when we talk about AA-plus which --

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: Yes.

FEYERICK: -- I don't know.

ANDERSON: Yes.

FEYERICK: All right, what -- what does that mean? I mean --

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: It's a little questionable.

FEYERICK: It can go either way?

ANDERSON: It can go either way; that we're not as a solid risk as we used to be, looking at us from a super power point. Meaning we are not always a solo or a guaranteed risk. That you want to maybe raise an eyebrow before you raise or lend money to this country.

FEYERICK: OK. Now I'm going to ask you this question which is -- the Standard & Poor's, does it ever reverse itself? Is it possible that something magnificent could happen in the U.S. economy and they change their minds?

ANDERSON: As we've seen, anything is possible right now, but we don't know. You know, it's happened -- this is the first time in 70 years that we've had this downgrade happen. And so we really don't know. The economists are saying right now, it's really hard to happen, for it to just turn around. So it won't happen overnight. It could take some time.

And we've got to prove that we can pay back. We really put a dent or a scratch in our debt when we're talking about what we can pay back. When they're looking for number of $4 trillion, we're not even half of that, saying that we can pay back over the next ten years. And so that really doesn't give them too much confidence.

FEYERICK: Right. And clearly it's going to affect how America borrows in the future.

ANDERSON: Exactly.

FEYERICK: But also how America spends in the future.

ANDERSON: It's true.

FEYERICK: And -- and -- it is, I think a lot of people especially in this time of financial belt tightening --

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: Yes.

FEYERICK: -- do want everyone to stop spending all this borrowed money.

ANDERSON: Exactly. Exactly.

FEYERICK: All right, well Clyde Anderson, thank you so much for all of your great insights on this. I really appreciate it.

ANDERSON: It's my pleasure. My pleasure being here.

FEYERICK: OK.

Well, the Governor of Texas and a possible presidential candidate, today Rick Perry leading a huge prayer service. So why is that rubbing people the wrong way? We're going to tell you coming up on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: And another day of testimony in the sentencing phase for Warren Jeffs; the polygamous sect leader was found guilty earlier this week for sexually assaulting two young girls, his so-called spiritual wives.

Let's bring in Beth Karas, a former prosecutor and correspondent for "In Session", which is on CNN's sister network, TruTV. She's outside the courthouse in San Angelo, Texas. And Beth, really the big -- we're talking about child rape here. Warren Jeffs -- he's decided not to be in the courtroom.

BETH KARAS, CORRESPONDENT, "IN SESSION": That's right. But he is at the courthouse. He arrived shackled at his ankles and at his wrist and waist, since he is now a convicted child rapist. He is sitting in a room across from the courtroom, because he's asked to be absent from this phase of the case. We do expect that maybe he doesn't want to confront some of the people who are going to say some pretty bad things about him on the witness stand.

FEYERICK: Beth, do you know who it is who's going to be testifying against him? Who are prosecutors calling?

KARAS: Well, between today and perhaps Monday, we do expect that among the witnesses will be two now-adult relatives of Warren Jeffs who will say when they were grade school age -- this is a man and a woman -- they were raped and sodomized by him. Taken out of Sunday school, one of them will say, and sodomized in a bathroom. That's the little boy, who is now a young man. So we do expect either today or Monday, he will testify, along with his sister. They say his brother also was sodomized by Warren Jeffs, but he has since committed suicide.

FEYERICK: And obviously, prosecutors would not put these people on the stand to testify did they not think that they were credible. How long do you think it will take the jury to decide whether he is going to spend the rest of his life in prison?

(CROSSTALK)

KARAS: Well, they'll get the case on -- correct. They'll get the case Monday or Tuesday and they can sentence him to anything from 5 years to 99 or life on that top charge of aggravated sexual assault. It could take them an hour, could take them five minutes, could take them a day. There's no telling. There are ten women and two men on this jury. It took them about three hours to find him guilty.

FEYERICK: All right. Beth Karas there for us in Texas. Thank you so much.

We're now going to move to a different part of the state, Houston. Thousands of Christian conservatives are praying for a divine intervention to solve the nation's problems. They were called there by Governor Rick Perry, a potential presidential candidate who some say is blurring the lines between church and state.

CNN's Jim Acosta is at the service and joins us live. Jim, why is this event and Governor Perry's involvement creating so much controversy?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Deb, this is going to be a big moment for Rick Perry. He's expected to take the stage here at this prayer event dubbed "The Response" in about an hour from now.

And it has come under criticism because of what you just said there. Critics say this event will blur the line between separation of church and state. And for Rick Perry this could be a political leap of faith.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOV. RICK PERRY (R), TEXAS: This is Governor Rick Perry --

ACOSTA: A Texas governor who says he feels called to run for president, Rick Perry has issued a call of his own: for people across the country to fill this stadium in Houston this weekend to pray for what organizers believe is a nation in crisis.

PERRY: With the economy in trouble, communities in crisis and people adrift in a sea of moral relativism, we need God's help. That's why I'm calling on Americans to pray and fast like Jesus did.

ACOSTA: Organizers hope the event, dubbed "The Response", will kick-start a sluggish economy to pray away the malaise. But critics argue Perry's leadership role as initiator of a gathering featuring a Christian-only line up tears down the walls separating church and state.

BARRY LYNN, AMERICAN UNITED FOR SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE: Many people love a little slogan down in Texas called "Don't mess with Texas." It was a very effective campaign. I would say to the governor, don't mess with the constitution.

ACOSTA: But Perry is up-front about his Christian faith. The governor called for days of prayer earlier this year to end the drought in Texas. And he once told a televangelist he believes the recession serves a higher purpose.

PERRY: I think we're going through those difficult economic times for a purpose and that -- to bring us back to those biblical principles.

ACOSTA: Questions are also being raised about statements made by some response planners and official endorsers. A spokesman for one key organizer, the American Family Association, has compared gay rights activists to Nazis.

BRYAN FISCHER, AMERICAN FAMILY ASSOCIATION: If you have religious views about homosexual behavior, you are squashed -- I mean, ladies and gentlemen, they are Nazis. Homosexual activists when it comes to freedom of speech are Nazis; when it comes to freedom of religion, they are Nazis.

ACOSTA: Doug Stringer, the national mobilization coordinator for "The Response" defends the governor's handling of the event.

The governor is holding a Christian event.

DOUG STRINGER, COORDINATOR, "THE RESPONSE": Now, the governor is not holding the event --

ACOSTA: He's the initiator of --

STRINGER: He trumpeted and made a declaration that we need a day of fasting and prayer and asked the church to respond to that. The church is doing what we should be doing anyway, responding to that trumpet call.

ACOSTA: A call that could work with a key republican voting bloc, Christian conservatives. The trick for Perry is what happens if he wins the GOP nomination.

BILL MARTIN, RICE UNIVERSITY: Having an event like this will be brought up again and again by his opponents to say Governor Perry does not represent the separation of church and state.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: And the other big question for "The Response" is the response. They only had 8,000 people register online to attend this event. That's in a venue that has a seating capacity of 70,000 people. The organizers here did say they may see more than that 8,000 figure and we can tell by the crowd, it is only getting bigger at the moment. And as you can tell behind me, Deb, this is very much a part revival, part rock concert. It's pretty loud in here -- Deb.

FEYERICK: OK. Jim, I'm going to try to ask you a question and hope that you hear me, but why Christians only? Did anyone ask Governor Perry, if you're calling for a national day of prayer, why not include other religions?

ACOSTA: Well, you know, that is the big question down here in Texas about this event. Why is this really a Christian-only event? I asked the organizers about this, and they said, well, the event's open to anybody, any faith that wants to come.

But I can tell you having watched the first hour or so of this gathering, this is a decidedly Christian event. The prayers that are being said on stage are to Jesus and there is certainly a Christian- only message coming from the stage.

Having said all of that, Rick Perry is very unapologetic about it, despite the fact that there are protesters outside this stadium at this very moment, you know, not as large a crowd as what's inside here, but they're also gathering to have their voice heard. They're saying that this isn't -- this isn't really what the governor of Texas should be doing, that in the words of one protester outside, nobody elected him pastor -- Deb.

FEYERICK: And just very quickly, Jim, this is -- how political is this, really, is this event, given that he is going to potentially run for president?

ACOSTA: You know, that's going to depend, I think, in large part, on what Governor Perry says in about an hour from now. His aides have been very tight-lipped about what he's going to say on stage.

The first couple of pastors who came up on stage here earlier said this is going to be a prayer-only event. That you're not going to hear political messages. You're not going to hear people talking about their various churches. They're not going to be selling merchandise and that sort of thing.

But really, this is coming at a time when the Republican establishment is trying to size up the Texas governor, decide whether or not he should be, you know, a part of this campaign. So I think that what he says is going to be scrutinized pretty --

FEYERICK: Very close.

ACOSTA: -- pretty carefully, as the days go on. That's right.

FEYERICK: All right. Jim Acosta thanks so much. Really appreciate it there.

ACOSTA: You bet. OK. FEYERICK: And a lot of music going on behind you. Thanks so much.

Well, turning to another story, terrifying video from a killer storm. We'll show you just-released pictures of the tornado that leveled much of Joplin, Missouri this past may.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: And dramatic new video from May's deadly tornado in Joplin, Missouri. Cameras at Joplin high school recorded the terrifying moments as the storm just blasted its way across the campus. The tapes are just now being released. The storm heavily damaged the school and destroyed a big part of the city of Joplin and it killed more than 150 people, including several students from that school.

Reynolds Wolf joins us now. And Reynolds, the heat -- we're moving away from tornadoes -- but the heat right now really the big story.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. Heat is a tremendous story.

Unfortunately, I've got to just jump right back and get back into tornados, because believe it or not, I know -- this just popped up a second ago. Part of this boundary you see here, this warm front will (INAUDIBLE) over the Carolinas -- into the Carolinas just moments ago we had a tornado warning that did pop up.

Let's take a look at this if we can. Here, just to the east of Raleigh, this cell moving to the northeast about 10 miles per hour at this time. There is no visual confirmation at this moment of a tornado; again, Doppler-indicated. So again, just be prepared. Again, as I mentioned, if you happen to be tuning in say from Rocky Mountain perhaps, even Wilson, maybe even Greenville. Be advised, we might see more of these throughout the afternoon hours.

Other places we might see some of these storms pop up will be up in parts of the northern plains, back in the Midwest perhaps even more into the southeast, keep that in mind.

Now let's go right back to what Deb was talking about. And she's right, the biggest story we have of all today is going to be the extreme heat. Over the last couple of days -- forget that, the last couple of weeks -- we've been dealing with the extreme heat in places like Dallas.

In fact, we're over a month at this point, 35 consecutive days of triple-digit heat. And the way it appears, we may be dealing with more of that heat through the rest of this week, possibly into next weekend, Deborah. If we get to Sunday with triple-digit heat that will be an all-time record in terms of the prolonged heat wave they've had there.

FEYERICK: And heat is so hard, because you can't really -- every time you go out you can't escape it. There's no wind. There's no breeze.

WOLF: Precisely, absolutely.

(CROSSTALK)

FEYERICK: It's like walking in soup.

All right. Reynolds Wolf, thank you so much. Really appreciate that.

WOLF: You bet.

FEYERICK: Thank you.

We are now going to turn to our breaking news story, which is that helicopter in Afghanistan that crashed. Barbara Starr, our Pentagon correspondent, on the phone. It's a tragic day for coalition forces in Afghanistan; a U.S. official saying that more than two dozen U.S. troops killed when that copter went down. Barbara, what are you hearing?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Deborah, at this point, the U.S. Military is absolutely reeling at the news. Several U.S. government officials now tell CNN that the majority of those killed in this incident are believed to be U.S. Navy SEALs. That's U.S. Navy Special Forces, the very types of troops that, of course, conducted that raid against Osama bin Laden.

One official saying this is a big loss for the U.S. Navy. The information is that it is Navy SEALs, of course, could not be more sensitive, because at this hour, the U.S. Military is moving very rapidly to try and contact and notify as many of the military families impacted by this as quickly as they can.

And as you know, often, military families are spread across the United States, so what we are going to be seeing or learning about over the coming hours is casualty officers will be spreading out to hometowns, to bases, trying to track down all of the family members and give them this very sad news.

We don't believe that all of them were Navy SEALs, Deborah. There were some other forces on board. It was a Chinook helicopter being piloted by the U.S. Army, is our understanding. And there may have been some other special forces on board from other services.

But this may, in fact, become, sadly, a historic loss for U.S. Navy SEALs. The military is saying that there were reports of enemy fire in the area at the time this helicopter went down last night in eastern Afghanistan -- Deborah.

FEYERICK: And, Barbara, obviously to underscore, the U.S. Navy SEALs, they get so much training. They are this elite tactical force. To think that so many have been lost and that families now waiting to see whether that knock on the door comes.

What do you know about the circumstances? Was the helicopter shot down, as the Taliban is claiming, or is that right now under investigation?

STARR: Well, that's a really good point, Deborah. It is absolutely completely under investigation by the U.S. military. The Taliban often make these claims. It is interesting to note that the coalition has said there were reports of enemy fire in the area at the time. But there will be a very thorough investigation to find out what happened and how this came to be.

I think we just want to circle back one more time and say that, you know, we know how sensitive it is at CNN to put out the information that it is Navy SEALs, but in the interest of transparency, multiple government officials are now saying this.

Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, put out a statement just a little while ago about all of this. He, of course, a longtime senior Navy officer, asking people to be very sensitive to the notion of reporting information that will catch these families off guard. But they are clearly aware that this has happened, the families. And, sadly, so many of them now really waiting to see how and if it affects them. That news should be emerging for them in the coming hours, Deborah.

FEYERICK: And, obviously, the U.S. Navy SEALs critical to this -- some of the tactical stuff that goes on there because they are so highly trained. Recovery right now, is that -- that's what's going on now? At least is the site secure?

STARR: Right. For the last several hours, U.S. units have been in the area recovering those who have -- those who have been lost, bringing them back for very quick, immediate identification, as soon as they can. This is a very specific process that the military goes through. They, you know, even if they think they know who's on the helicopter, they will do forensic medical identification and then move quickly to notify the families.

But I think you also made a very important point. It is U.S. special forces that have been doing so many of these extremely risky raids and assault missions across Afghanistan. To a large extent, however, in the east, close to the Pakistan border, where the insurgent buildup has been rather significant, it was just a few days ago that the four-star head of special operations command, Admiral Olson, talking about the fact that hundreds and hundreds of these raids happened night after night after night in Afghanistan. The world came to know about them, perhaps, through the Osama bin Laden raid over in Pakistan.

But this is what U.S. special operations forces have been doing in Afghanistan. And even as the drawdown begins for the conventional forces, for the regular forces, if you will, there is every indication special forces, special operations forces, will stay and continue to conduct these missions. But make no mistake, this is perhaps one of the most significant losses ever today for the United States Navy SEALs -- Deborah.

FEYERICK: Yes. And, Barbara, that's such a critical point that you make because these really are the strike teams. They are tight. They are very unified. They know when they're going in. Sort of what's expected of them. And they're so efficient and so effective at carrying out these missions, really, in such an effective way. And they're the ones who are going to sort of be there when the majority of the troops are pulled back. But they're really interrupting or trying to interrupt the rise of the insurgents in that area.

STARR: Oh, absolutely. This is what they do. Typically, these missions are not very visible to the American public. Very little is said about them. But they generally go the same way the Osama bin Laden raid goes. Helicopter-borne assaults. Helicopters fly into a compound or a target, they assault into the target by helicopter, always very heavily armed. And, of course, using a variety of their handheld machine guns, assault rifles.

This is close combat. This is as nasty and tough as it can get. They are face to face with insurgents. This is not, you know, precision weapons dropped from 40,000 feet from an airplane, as tough as that may be. This is close combat on the ground. Dirty, nasty. The most dangerous business that they can be involved in.

I would remind you, you know, it was just a few days ago we reported that an Army special forces master sergeant, very sadly, was killed in a firefight. He was on his tenth tour of duty in the war zone. These guys are deploying six, eight months at a time, year after year after year. And you are seeing these special forces troops not on their third or fourth tour. Again, we just saw one who lost his life on his tenth tour of duty, Deborah.

FEYERICK: Oh, my gosh. Well, Barbara Starr, really, it takes a very special person to be a Navy SEAL and this is just a sad, sad day and a great loss for everyone. Barbara Starr, thank you so much for bringing us up to date with the latest information. We appreciate it.

Well, more news next. We're going to be right back.

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FEYERICK: Well, checking our top stories. Everyone seems to be pointing fingers after the U.S. loses its prized AAA credit rating. Officials with Standard & Poor's say they downgraded it to AA-plus because of all the bickering in Washington over America's debt problem. Republicans running for president blame President Obama. The White House says the S&P messed up its analysis.

New information on the deadly helicopter crash in eastern Afghanistan, calling it a big loss. U.S. military officials are now saying a majority of those killed were elite Navy SEALs. Afghan President Hamid Karzai says at least 38 people died, 31 of them U.S. troops. The Taliban claim their militants shot down the chopper. That has not been confirmed and it's under investigation.

We're also keeping an eye on Syria. In particular, the city of Hama. Witnesses say more than 50 people were killed there yesterday when a government tank fired on protesters near a hospital. Because of all the shelling, mourners reportedly are scared to travel to cemeteries outside the city, so they're burying their dead in their backyards.

Now, more on yesterday's decision by Standard & Poor's to downgrade America's credit rating from AAA to AA-plus. Senior correspondent Allan Chernoff reports the announcement came as no surprise.

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: This is not shocking at all. It is shocking from a public relations standpoint. But S&P actually had warned of this back on July 14th when they said there was a better than 50 percent chance they were going to do this and they've pulled the trigger. It wasn't easy for them, but they've done it.

What they're saying here is that the deal struck this week to avoid default, to raise the debt ceiling and cut spending simply isn't sufficient. It's not enough to stabilize the debt situation of the United States. And they're also saying, they're making a judgment here on the politics that occurred in Washington this past week. The disarray, the fighting, the fact that it took until the very last minute, almost, for them to come to a deal and they're saying we just don't believe that the Congress and the administration will be able to leverage their agreement into a broader fiscal consolidation policy. So, they're just giving a thumbs down to what's occurred over the past week in Washington.

It's certainly possible that some interest rates could crises from this. Really, the more likely impact is that we could have more pressure on the stock market come Monday morning. We've already had a horrific week. But this certainly is a blow to the United States without question.

In terms to the Treasury market, right, that's where it really should hit because that, after all, is how the United States borrow money. We issue bonds, notes, short-term bills to investors. They give the United States their money. The United States says, we'll pay you back with interest.

So, will people run away from those? Well, unlikely. The full faith and credit of the United States still means quite a bit. And, indeed, some other major nations have seen their credit rating cut and it didn't have all that much impact on those countries, including Japan.

This is certainly an embarrassment for the U.S. in financial markets and the United States now has a lower credit rating than Luxembourg, Finland, Denmark, and Sweden -- Deb.

FEYERICK: Allen Chernoff, thanks so much.

Well, it's not where Tiger Woods wanted to be as he started playing his first tournament in three months. We'll find out where he stands right now in the Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio.

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FEYERICK: Well, not a great start for Tiger Woods in his first tournament in three months. He's in the middle of the pack at the WGC Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio. CNN's Joe Carter is there.

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JOE CARTER, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: It seems like there are so many golfers in contention to win this tournament, except for the one golfer most people came here to see. And that's Tiger Woods. He had a great opening round. A very encouraging opening round, 68 on Thursday. Then struggled to find consistency shooting a 71 on Friday. And today finds himself deep in the middle of the pack with more than 30 golfers in front of him.

But perhaps the most encouraging sign for Tiger Woods is how encouraged he is about his own game. He says he has this newfound power. His drives are going further than they ever have before. Now it's a matter of managing that newfound power.

But, of course, Tiger Woods, the expectations are always super high. Everyone expects him to win any tournament he enters. But let's be realistic. At this point, it's simply a tune-up into next week PGA championship in Atlanta. He'll never admit it, but this is the point in time where he needs to work on his game because winning a major title next week puts him on track to not only catch Jack Nicklaus, but to pass his 18 major wins.

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KAYE: All right, Joe Cater there.

Well, it's been one year since that collapse at the Chilean mine that trapped 33 men some 700 yards underground. We'll check in with them next to see how they're doing.

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FEYERICK: Well, NEWSROOM continues at the top of the hour with Joe Johns.

Joe, you guys -- you have a lot coming up.

JOE JOHNS, CNN ANCHOR: We sure do. We're, obviously, going to be staying in touch with everything that's going on in Afghanistan. Plus, I mean, just such a news weekend, isn't it. We've got the downgrade of the United States for the first time in history. A crazy week. And one of the things that interests me so much is Warren Jeffs. This is the polygamous sect leader, if you will, in Texas. On trial now in the penalty phase of his trial for child sexual abuse. And very bizarre kind of, you know, proceeding, where this is a guy who actually went out and said he was going to defend himself.

FEYERICK: Right.

JOHNS: And then pretty much didn't defend himself. The question is, what's going to happen in his appeal? What's going to happen with his sentencing? We're going to bring in our legal guys and just have a real discussion about that. FEYERICK: You know, I also wonder what's going to happen, ultimately, with his, you know, with his church or the group that he's head of.

JOHNS Absolutely.

FEYERICK: But you also -- you're also going to Casey Anthony, as well. You're talking about her, too.

JOHNS: Right. Yes. Right. Casey Anthony is never going to go away, or so it seems, you know. I really want to know what's going to happen to her or her movie deal or book deal or whatever. I mean she gets to take all the money because she was not convicted.

FEYERICK: Right.

JOHNS: You know, but the thing we're -- we want to talk about right now is her probation. What's going to happen with that. Whether she still has to serve probation or whether she actually can be construed as having served her probation while she was locked up, because she was locked up for so long before the trial actually got resolved. Casey Anthony, people have been following that case. We're going to have an update for you.

FEYERICK: OK. Well, good. Joe Johns, we are absolutely going to be looking forward to that. And you're absolutely looking, it's been such a busy week with everything that's going on. And it's going to be interesting. I mean you're in Washington. It's going to be very interesting to see how everybody spins this.

JOHNS: Yes. Absolutely.

FEYERICK: And I think the average American just wants to know when it's going to get fixed.

JOHNS: Right.

FEYERICK: How it's going to get fixed. And whether people can play nicely.

JOHNS: And that's very true. I mean it's been a historic week, when you think about it.

FEYERICK: Yes.

JOHNS: Just remarkable developments. The president of the United States and the Congress actually agreeing to a deal on raising the debt limit. People were following that so closely. The stock market up and down. And then we have a downgrade -- a dramatic downgrade on Friday night. The end of the week.

FEYERICK: Right.

JOHNS: And so now we -- we want to go and just look at this on the consumer side. What am I supposed to do as the average investor with a 401(k) or whatever? How do I, you know, navigate these seas? FEYERICK: Right.

JOHNS: It's a scary situation for people who have little money in the market but not too much.

FEYERICK: For a lot of people. For a lot of people.

All right, Joe Johns. Well, a lot of people going to be tuning in to watch. I'll be one of them. Thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

Well, coming up, a devastating day for the U.S. military and a sad day as well. New information coming in from the Pentagon. We're going to have it for you at the top of the hour. Stay with us. We're going to be right back.

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FEYERICK: A year ago, we were riveted to our TV screens, watching the rescue of 33 miners in Chile. These miners had been trapped deep underground for 10 weeks. They became instant celebrities. But as CNN's Rafael Romo tells us, for most of them, fame has proved fleeting.

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RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR (voice- over): They spent 69 days in the bowls of the earth, not knowing if they would survive. The story of the 33 miners who were trapped at a depth of 700 meters and their miraculous rescue made headlines around the world. This week, four of the miners traveled to Washington, D.C., to commemorate the first anniversary of the mine collapse by opening an exhibit in their honor at the Smithsonian Museum.

MARIO SEPULVEDA, RESCUED CHILEAN MINER (through translator): In spite of our painful experience, it is very important to us that what is being exhibited will show the world what happened.

ROMO: Since all 33 of the miners were rescued alive and well last October, they have travelled the world and appeared on multiple TV shows.

They were all invited to Disney World for a week during which they served as honorary grand marshals of the Main Street USA Parade. At home in Chile, one of them says celebrity has not been what he expected.

JORGE GALLEGUILLOS, RESCUED CHILEAN MINER (through translator): They love us more abroad. They congratulate us. They want to touch us and get a blessing from us. That is not the case in Chile. Only a few greet us with affection. Many more say (ph) high with envy.

ROMO: Edison Pena, the miner who worked out under ground in the darkness, ran the New York Marathon. The eldest fan was also a guest of honor at Graceland in January.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We like Elvis. We like this.

ROMO: A movie and a book about their story are in the works. But at home, relations with the Chilean government are strained. Thirty- one of the 33 miners filed a lawsuit accusing the agency that oversees mining of failing to ensure safety measures.

CARLOS BARRIOS, RESCUED CHILEAN MINER (through translator): We're not suing the current president. This has been happening for a long time. This happened during the administrations of other presidents. Why didn't they take a closer look?

ROMO: Chilean government officials say they respect the miners' right to sue.

HERNAN DE SOLMINIHAC, CHILEAN MINING MINISTER (through translator): As any Chilean citizen, the miners have the freedom and right to file any lawsuit they wish. They have chosen to do so and our judicial authorities are evaluating the suit.

ROMO (on camera): The miners are seeking the equivalent of 16 million U.S. dollars in damages for the collapse of the mine where they got trapped last year in the Chilean Atacama Desert. They say their lawsuit isn't about the money, but about raising awareness about the working conditions for miners in the country which they say have been neglected for a long time.

Rafael Romo, CNN, Atlanta.

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FEYERICK: Well, that will do it for me. CNN NEWSROOM continues with Joe Johns. Joe in for Fredricka.

And I know you have a lot to cover.

JOHNS: You bet. thanks so much, Deb.

FEYERICK: Of course. Have a great show.

JOHNS: Great job today.

FEYERICK: Thanks.