NBC Nightly News - 2009-03-20

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:01] On the broadcast this evening, sending a

[0:03] message, a presidential video reaching

[0:05] out to a surprising audience, Iran. Is a

[0:08] new [music] relationship possible? Eye

[0:10] of the storm, inside the huge company at

[0:12] the center of the financial crisis, a

[0:14] revealing look at how and where the

[0:16] trouble started. Growth industry,

[0:19] Michelle Obama starts a vegetable garden

[0:21] at the White House. Turns out she's onto

[0:24] something big and it's [music] growing.

[0:26] And party favors, making birthday wishes

[0:29] come true even in hard times by making

[0:32] [music] a difference. Nightly news

[0:34] begins now.

[0:37] >> [music]

[0:39] >> From NBC News World Headquarters in New

[0:41] York, this is NBC Nightly News with

[0:44] Brian Williams.

[0:46] Good evening, I'm Natalie Morales in

[0:48] tonight for Brian Williams. Fresh off

[0:50] his California tour, the president is

[0:52] revving up for another critical week,

[0:55] laying down guidelines for his $787

[0:57] billion stimulus plan. But we also

[1:00] learned today just how bad the economic

[1:03] crisis is and it's expected to get

[1:05] worse. The Congressional Budget Office

[1:07] is projecting the deficit will climb to

[1:09] a whopping $1.8 trillion just this year.

[1:13] While the president continued to focus

[1:15] on the dollars and cents, he also made a

[1:17] dramatic foreign policy overture to a

[1:20] nation the president but the Bush

[1:22] administration once labeled part of the

[1:23] axis of evil, Iran. Obama called for a

[1:26] new beginning in Iran after decades of

[1:28] strained relations. And we begin tonight

[1:31] with NBC News Chief Foreign Affairs

[1:32] Correspondent Andrea Mitchell at the

[1:34] State Department with what is behind the

[1:36] message and how it's being received.

[1:38] Andrea, good evening. Good evening,

[1:39] Natalie. President Obama has said that

[1:41] he's willing to extend a hand to Iran if

[1:43] they're willing to open and unclench

[1:45] their fist. And now he's made that

[1:47] appeal directly to the Iranians

[1:49] themselves.

[1:52] New Year's in Iran, called Nowruz, an

[1:55] ancient holiday celebrated with flowers

[1:57] that means new day, marked by a video

[2:00] greeting from President Obama.

[2:01] >> So in this season of new beginnings, I

[2:03] would like to speak clearly to Iran's

[2:05] leaders.

[2:07] We have serious differences that have

[2:08] grown over time.

[2:10] My administration is now committed to

[2:12] diplomacy. In his message, the president

[2:14] did not concede any ground on the

[2:16] nuclear issue. This process will not be

[2:18] advanced by threats.

[2:20] We seek instead engagement that is

[2:22] honest and grounded in mutual respect.

[2:25] But his tone was conciliatory,

[2:27] respectful, and he closed with these

[2:28] words. Thank you.

[2:30] And Eid-e Shoma Mobarak.

[2:33] Happy New Year in Farsi.

[2:35] President Obama's message was not shown

[2:37] on Iran's government television, but

[2:38] appeared on satellite networks and

[2:40] websites throughout the Mideast. At the

[2:43] same time, in apparent coordination,

[2:45] Israel's President Shimon Peres sent his

[2:47] own audio greeting to Iran, appealing,

[2:50] he said, to the noble Iranian people on

[2:52] behalf of the ancient Jewish people. But

[2:55] Peres does not speak for Israel's

[2:57] incoming hardline government. Iran's

[2:59] leaders had already taped their New

[3:01] Year's greetings before President

[3:02] Obama's overture. Still, officials

[3:04] reacted with moderate statements, and it

[3:07] was the talk of the internet in Iranian

[3:08] chat rooms. US experts called President

[3:11] Obama's message a sea change. This is a

[3:13] completely new tone.

[3:15] Obama is addressing them. He's referring

[3:18] to the Islamic Republic, recognizing the

[3:20] Iranian government, recognizing that

[3:23] Iran has a legitimate right for a role

[3:25] in the region. Nonetheless, the

[3:27] administration does not expect real

[3:28] progress until after Iran's elections in

[3:30] June, when President Ahmadinejad faces

[3:33] moderate challengers.

[3:35] The next step could take place in less

[3:36] than 2 weeks when Hillary Clinton has

[3:38] invited Iran to a conference in Europe

[3:41] on Afghanistan, and that could mark the

[3:43] start of real diplomacy.

[3:45] Natalie? Andrea Mitchell at the State

[3:47] Department tonight. Thank you. And as we

[3:49] mentioned, the economy remains the

[3:51] president's top priority, and that's a

[3:53] problem that just seems to keep getting

[3:55] tougher, as it did today with those new

[3:57] deficit projections. NBC's chief White

[3:59] House correspondent, Chuck Todd, has

[4:01] more on some staggering numbers. Chuck,

[4:03] good evening.

[4:04] Good evening, Natalie. Well, as you

[4:05] know, the president's budget is an

[4:07] attempt to do more than just talk about

[4:09] numbers. It's an attempt to revamp

[4:11] healthcare, energy, education, and a

[4:13] number of issues, and it's very costly.

[4:16] The president

[4:17] own numbers estimate that his budget is

[4:20] going to add $7 trillion to the deficit

[4:23] over the next 10 years. However, the

[4:25] Congressional Budget Office came out

[4:27] with their own analysis, and they have

[4:29] it at $9.3 trillion,

[4:32] basically labeling the president's

[4:34] numbers as a bit too optimistic about

[4:37] economic growth over the next two two

[4:39] years. Republicans calling it rosy, it's

[4:41] making the entire campaign that the

[4:43] president is attempting to do with the

[4:45] budget that much tougher. There's a

[4:47] whole organization this weekend that's

[4:49] going to try to gear up and revamp this

[4:52] thing, and try to push the budget

[4:53] through, but these new numbers from

[4:54] Congress make it that much harder for

[4:56] the president to claim that he is trying

[4:58] to focus on deficit reduction, when

[5:00] frankly, those deficit numbers look like

[5:02] they're ballooning. Natalie. Chuck Todd

[5:04] at the White House tonight, thank you.

[5:07] Last night, during his appearance on the

[5:08] Tonight Show, President Obama made a

[5:10] comment he probably wishes he hadn't.

[5:12] Making fun of his own, admittedly,

[5:14] limited skill as a bowler, the president

[5:17] said it was, quote, like the Special

[5:18] Olympics or something. Well, after the

[5:20] show, the president made a call from Air

[5:22] Force One to the chairman of the Special

[5:24] Olympics, Tim Shriver, to apologize. And

[5:26] today, White House spokesman, Robert

[5:28] Gibbs, called President Obama's remark a

[5:31] thoughtless joke, and said the president

[5:33] believes the Special Olympics are a

[5:34] triumph of the human spirit.

[5:37] Now, to the political storm that has

[5:39] angered many lawmakers and taxpayers,

[5:41] the outrage over bonuses paid out to

[5:43] executives at AIG. And tonight, we take

[5:46] a closer look at what exactly went wrong

[5:48] specifically in its London office, now

[5:51] ground zero for the insurance giant's

[5:53] financial collapse. Here's NBC's Tom

[5:55] Costello.

[5:57] It was in this London office that AIG's

[6:00] problems exploded into a financial

[6:02] tsunami that has threatened the entire

[6:04] economy. The man in charge, Joseph

[6:07] Cassano, who lives in this London

[6:09] townhouse, a hard-charging New Yorker

[6:12] who opened AIG's financial products unit

[6:14] in London back in 1987. And in 1998

[6:17] dramatically changed AIG's business,

[6:20] taking on huge risk insuring other

[6:22] banks' debts, corporate investments,

[6:24] bonds, real estate deals, and subprime

[6:26] mortgages. $2.7 trillion in so-called

[6:30] derivative contracts. They said, "Look,

[6:33] we'll insure all the risk in the world."

[6:35] As you know, which is a crazy idea,

[6:38] uh but they got huge premiums for doing

[6:40] it, resulting in huge bonuses over a

[6:42] number of years.

[6:43] >> Cassano himself earned $280 million

[6:47] over 8 years. But when the real estate

[6:49] market turned sour, AIG suddenly didn't

[6:51] have the cash to pay out on the

[6:53] insurance claims. And the company really

[6:56] did not have a good handle on what it

[6:58] insured. What they didn't perhaps

[6:59] understand is anything about the

[7:01] origination of those loans. AIG lost its

[7:04] AAA credit rating in 2005. That's when

[7:07] former CEO Hank Greenberg retired. I

[7:09] think there were some foolish

[7:11] management decisions in AIG financial

[7:14] products.

[7:16] Uh and

[7:17] and there was a cash drain. And AIG

[7:20] should have recognized that when they

[7:22] lost their AAA rating, they should have

[7:24] stopped. But instead, Cassano's unit

[7:27] took on even more risk. By September

[7:29] 2007, AIG was reporting a $352 million

[7:33] loss on its swaps business. By March

[7:36] 2008, Cassano left AIG with a $34

[7:40] million dollar parachute and this

[7:42] agreement to earn a million dollars per

[7:44] month in consulting fees. While he's not

[7:47] charged with any wrongdoing, his AIG

[7:49] financial products unit did pay a 126

[7:52] million dollars in 2004 to settle

[7:55] federal criminal and civil allegations

[7:57] of fraud and helping clients falsify

[7:59] financial records. The company admitted

[8:01] no wrongdoing. This week, AIG's current

[8:04] CEO insisted things have changed in

[8:07] Cassano's old unit. The people who

[8:10] were primarily responsible for credit

[8:11] default swaps that brought us to our

[8:12] knees, they're gone. In 2007, Cassano

[8:15] said he could not imagine the company

[8:17] losing one dollar in any swap

[8:19] investment. He was wrong. In the last

[8:21] quarter of '08, AIG lost 62 billion

[8:24] dollars.

[8:26] Tom Costello, NBC News, Washington.

[8:28] And another sign of these tough economic

[8:30] times, the US Postal Service is

[8:32] eliminating 1,400 management jobs and

[8:35] offering early retirement to 150,000

[8:39] workers. The post office lost 2.8

[8:41] billion dollars last year and is

[8:43] expected to lose even more this year.

[8:46] Confessed swindler Bernard Madoff will

[8:48] remain where he is, behind bars in a

[8:50] small jail cell in New York City, until

[8:52] his sentencing in June. A federal

[8:54] appeals court today denied Madoff's plea

[8:56] to be released, saying he could try to

[8:58] flee if allowed bail. Madoff was jailed

[9:01] last week after pleading guilty to

[9:02] defrauding investors of as much as 65

[9:05] billion dollars. He faces up to 150

[9:08] years in prison.

[9:09] On Wall Street today, stocks put

[9:11] together two positive weeks in a row for

[9:13] the first time in nearly a year.

[9:15] However, today ended on a down note. The

[9:17] Dow lost more than 122 points on the

[9:20] day.

[9:21] The price of oil has been edging back up

[9:23] lately, and with it talk of alternative

[9:25] energy sources and saving the planet.

[9:27] But in the end, the planet may save us.

[9:30] Dig deep enough, even in the coldest

[9:32] places on Earth, and you'll find an

[9:34] unlimited source of heat, and that means

[9:37] opportunity. More now from our chief

[9:39] environmental affairs correspondent, Ann

[9:41] Thompson.

[9:43] On the snow-swept shore of a New York

[9:45] Finger Lake, Rich Moravec's crew drills

[9:47] for heat.

[9:48] The temperature hovers near freezing

[9:50] above ground, but far beneath the

[9:52] surface, some 200 ft down, the earth is

[9:55] an average 55°.

[9:57] The source for a geothermal heating and

[9:59] cooling system that produces

[10:01] dramatically fewer carbon dioxide

[10:03] emissions and much lower energy bills.

[10:06] 30 to 70% savings. Instead of burning

[10:09] oil or natural gas, a geothermal system

[10:11] uses the constant temperature of the

[10:13] earth to heat and cool your home. In a

[10:16] geothermal system, the earth is your

[10:18] power plant, heating or cooling a water

[10:20] mixture, similar to the antifreeze in

[10:22] your car, by moving it through pipes

[10:25] buried underground. The water mixture

[10:27] then travels to a heat pump in your

[10:29] house. It's using electricity to

[10:32] transfer and concentrate the energy from

[10:35] the ground into the house. Flip a

[10:37] switch, the process reverses, and you

[10:39] get air conditioning.

[10:41] Joe Fantasia put geothermal in his new

[10:43] 3,500 sq ft home, twice the size of his

[10:47] old house. We had a utility bill of

[10:49] about $250. $250?

[10:52] >> About $250. The utility bill here, for

[10:56] almost twice the space, is about $140 a

[10:59] month.

[11:00] The initial price can run around

[11:02] $15,000, and now there's a 30% federal

[11:05] tax credit to lower costs. Demand for

[11:08] these systems is growing. Nationally,

[11:10] shipments of geothermal systems nearly

[11:12] tripled between 2003 and 2008, heating

[11:15] the homes of 3 million Americans. And in

[11:18] upstate New York, Moravec's office, a

[11:20] hotel, even a city hall.

[11:23] Brian Hayden runs a company training

[11:25] installers. In the first 6 months, we

[11:28] had four seminars. We weren't able to do

[11:31] one a month, and now we're doing one or

[11:33] two a week.

[11:33] >> So, this is a technique that we use

[11:35] >> Lessons that can help small businesses

[11:36] survive and homeowners save money and

[11:39] the earth. Ann Thompson, NBC News,

[11:42] Jordan, New York.

[11:44] Our Nightly News continues on this

[11:45] Friday evening. A top mortgage company

[11:47] executive blows the whistle on his own

[11:50] industry.

[11:51] >> [music]

[11:51] >> And later, making a difference on the

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[11:59] I never thought it could happen to me.

[12:02] Heart attack at 53. I had felt fine. But

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[12:15] When diet and exercise are not enough,

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[12:30] Lipitor has been extensively studied

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[12:53] learn from my story. Have a

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[13:00] I thought a complete multivitamin was

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[13:05] One A Day Men's has more selenium than

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[13:29] Bicycle, I've missed you. Gathering dust

[13:32] as flowers bloom and pollen floats

[13:34] [music] through the air while I,

[13:35] sneezing, itching eyes, looked for safer

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[13:57] [music] love the air.

[13:59] Tonight, her husband made money. Then,

[14:02] he made headlines. Is it some kind of

[14:04] attempt to fake his own death? A

[14:06] suspicious plane crash. Did you know

[14:08] that he was in trouble with the law?

[14:09] Now, she's holding the bag, but where's

[14:12] the cash? He left me with nothing. She's

[14:14] talking only to Dateline. Tonight, 10:09

[14:17] Central on NBC. It's Left Wing Smear

[14:20] Machine Week, the finale, with Keith and

[14:22] a special guest. Whose idea was this?

[14:25] Countdown with Keith Olbermann tonight

[14:27] on MSNBC.

[14:30] More on the economy tonight. This week,

[14:32] Dateline NBC will focus on the current

[14:34] financial crisis and how we got here.

[14:37] Tonight, an exclusive look at what went

[14:39] wrong in the multi-trillion-dollar

[14:41] mortgage business, what some describe as

[14:43] the match that lit the fuse. Here's

[14:45] NBC's Chris Hansen.

[14:48] As chief operating officer of a subprime

[14:50] lender, James Lo Liberty had a front-row

[14:53] seat to the mortgage meltdown. The

[14:55] reputation of the company was It was a

[14:57] fraud factory.

[14:59] The company, People's Choice Home Loan.

[15:02] Our chief appraiser once said, "Fraud is

[15:04] what we do. That's how we got where we

[15:06] are today." He says one of the factors

[15:08] that fueled the crisis was the so-called

[15:11] stated income loan, where lenders didn't

[15:13] verify how much borrowers really made.

[15:16] In Los Angeles, Delores Parker Jackson

[15:19] told People's Choice she earned $180,000

[15:22] a year running a daycare program, and

[15:24] they loaned her nearly $300,000

[15:27] to refinance this condo.

[15:29] And People's Choice wasn't the only one

[15:31] to lend her money. Four lenders gave her

[15:33] a total of six loans. Two were funded by

[15:35] a company owned at the time by NBC's

[15:38] parent, General Electric. You have

[15:41] four condos,

[15:42] six mortgages, including the second

[15:45] >> and the second you are correct. totaling

[15:46] $1.3 million. That That is correct.

[15:49] Problem is Parker Jackson had a history

[15:51] of filing for bankruptcy, and court

[15:53] records show during the years she

[15:54] obtained several of her loans, she

[15:56] reported negative income to the IRS.

[16:00] This is a list of thousands of other

[16:02] stated income loans People's Choice

[16:04] funded. A massage therapist claimed

[16:06] income of $15,000 a month, a carpenter

[16:10] $12,700 a month, and a house cleaner

[16:13] $11,500.

[16:15] The company commissioned an internal

[16:17] survey in 2005. A third of employees who

[16:21] responded said they'd witnessed breaches

[16:23] of laws and regulations. 10% said they'd

[16:26] been asked to do fraudulent things

[16:28] themselves. It was double digits, and it

[16:30] was very It was very disturbing to

[16:32] executive management. You look at that,

[16:35] and and you think to yourself, "How am I

[16:37] going to correct something that's this

[16:38] far out of control?"

[16:40] Ultimately, LaLiberty was fired. In

[16:43] 2007, People's Choice filed for

[16:45] bankruptcy. Former company CEO Neil

[16:47] Cornsweet declined our request for an

[16:49] on-camera interview. In statements to

[16:51] NBC, Cornsweet's spokesman said

[16:53] LaLiberty was the primary architect of

[16:56] the People's Choice system. The

[16:57] spokesman acknowledged the results of

[16:59] the internal survey, but said that

[17:01] People's Choice had higher standards and

[17:03] was more conservative than most subprime

[17:05] lenders, and did everything it could to

[17:07] prevent abuse.

[17:09] Today, Cornsweet lives in this

[17:11] oceanfront home in Southern California

[17:13] and works with a business auctioning

[17:15] foreclosed properties. Chris Hansen, NBC

[17:18] News, New York.

[17:20] And you can see more of Chris Hansen's

[17:22] report on Dateline NBC Sunday night at

[17:24] 7:00, 6 Central.

[17:26] When we continue this Friday evening

[17:28] planting the seeds of a revolution in

[17:30] the way we [music] put food on the table

[17:32] one garden at a time.

[17:37] They tickle, they tease, and you sneeze.

[17:42] Maybe it's time [music] to ask your

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[17:57] Side effects are generally mild and vary

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[20:03] and focused. Uh, he's a little focused

[20:05] right now. Can I take a message? Sunday,

[20:07] exclusive. Three political heavyweights

[20:10] speak out on the economy.

[20:12] Schwarzenegger, Bloomberg, Rendell.

[20:15] Together only on Meet the Press.

[20:18] Oh, oh. On this first day of spring,

[20:20] Michelle Obama was out working in the

[20:22] yard at the White House. With the help

[20:24] of some Washington fifth graders, the

[20:26] first lady broke ground for a vegetable

[20:28] garden. The first at the White House

[20:29] since the Roosevelt's victory garden

[20:31] during World War II.

[20:33] And growing your own vegetables is a

[20:35] great way to spend more time outdoors,

[20:37] getting closer to nature, while putting

[20:39] healthy food on the table. But it can

[20:41] also be a way to save real money, and

[20:43] these days, that's a recipe for success.

[20:46] Here's NBC's Chris Jansing down on the

[20:48] farm.

[20:52] The off-season quiet of the Irish Eyes

[20:54] farm in Washington state is a far cry

[20:57] from what's going on in the office. Good

[20:59] morning, Irish Eyes. This is Sue.

[21:01] >> We're sold out of organic all blueberry.

[21:03] >> Your order should be shipped out.

[21:05] The Lutovsky family business, selling

[21:07] seeds to grow vegetables has exploded.

[21:10] As the economy worsened, it's just

[21:12] gotten busier and busier and busier. A

[21:14] lot of first-time growers are calling. A

[21:17] gardening resurgence explained with some

[21:19] simple math. Take a package of lettuce

[21:21] seeds for about $2.50. You could

[21:23] probably get maybe 800 heads of lettuce

[21:26] out of this package alone.

[21:28] The Shinnazy family expects to harvest

[21:30] thousands of dollars worth of produce

[21:32] for a $200 investment.

[21:34] >> You dig a little hole. The team of

[21:36] Shinnazy was a manager at Starbucks, but

[21:37] when they downsized, she became a

[21:39] stay-at-home mom who discovered growing

[21:41] her own food can mean big savings. It's

[21:44] the time that you spend to go out to the

[21:47] grocery store. It's the gas money. So,

[21:49] you end up using less. So, you have less

[21:51] waste. It's just back to the basics.

[21:54] Basics that hearken back to victory

[21:56] gardens of World War II. Nearly 20

[21:58] million Americans planted gardens from

[22:00] backyards to city lots.

[22:03] In 2009, community gardens are sprouting

[22:05] new plots in record numbers from Los

[22:08] Angeles to Atlanta, Jackson to Columbus,

[22:10] Huntsville to Orlando.

[22:12] Back at Irish Eyes, these recession

[22:14] gardens are fueling an economic boomlet.

[22:18] See all these potatoes? They're not for

[22:20] eating, they're for planting. The farm

[22:22] has gone from 30,000 to 160,000 lb in a

[22:26] year. They've had to build two new

[22:28] buildings with two more on the way.

[22:31] From six employees, there are now 15.

[22:34] They're working as fast as they can.

[22:35] Orders pouring in from all 50 states. If

[22:38] you can

[22:39] get this order out here. A bumper crop

[22:42] of new enthusiasm for the old-fashioned

[22:44] family garden. Chris Jansing, NBC News,

[22:47] Ellensburg, Washington.

[22:50] When we come back, making a difference

[22:52] by putting the happy in happy birthday

[22:54] for kids who really need it.

[23:02] Sunshine [music]

[23:12] >> Allergies [music] can make them miss

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[23:16] your child's allergy symptoms like runny

[23:18] nose,

[23:19] >> [music]

[23:19] >> sneezing, and itchy eyes. It works when

[23:21] they need it most.

[23:23] Children's Benadryl.

[23:26] You can't pause life.

[23:32] Eat healthy.

[23:34] The 80 awesome calories of Silk [music]

[23:36] Light provide 6 g of protein and all the

[23:38] calcium of milk for a feeling of

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[23:52] lotion clinically proven to help keep

[23:54] dry skin from coming back.

[23:56] Olay [music] Quench.

[23:58] What's that say? Mr. Clean with Febreze

[24:02] Fresh Scent. Oh, boy. Oh, Mr. Has-It-All

[24:05] comes in here.

[24:06] >> Hey, world. He cleans great and he helps

[24:09] eliminate odors, too.

[24:11] >> Oh, wow.

[24:13] Yeah. [sighs]

[24:14] He's like a guy that's like

[24:16] a good actor but then also he is a

[24:18] musician, too.

[24:20] And then sometimes he'll do some

[24:21] modeling. I can't compete with this guy.

[24:24] The power of Mr. Clean, the freshness of

[24:26] Febreze in one bottle.

[24:28] It's clear we need more energy from all

[24:31] sources and most Americans agree we need

[24:33] more domestic oil and natural gas. But

[24:36] does that mean you'll see more oil and

[24:37] gas platforms?

[24:39] Well, with advanced subsea technology

[24:42] one platform can now gather oil from

[24:44] wells 40 mi away.

[24:47] So, what [music] used to take many just

[24:48] a few years ago now takes only one.

[24:51] That's more of the oil and natural gas

[24:53] we need [music] from less than meets the

[24:55] eye. Log on to learn more.

[24:58] Want to bounce back fast from tough

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[25:13] Nothing is going to stop me from eating

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[25:22] But if you wait until gas starts, isn't

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[25:26] Take Beano before and there'll be no

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[25:29] This is a KGW [music] News Channel 8

[25:31] update. Next, Portland's now the home of

[25:34] a major league soccer team. Today's

[25:36] announcement. Plus, the parking shortage

[25:38] in Oregon City that's keeping ticket

[25:39] writers very busy.

[25:41] And that's the feeling I'll have your

[25:42] spring break forecast. We've got

[25:44] showers, but we've got good skiing on

[25:45] the way as well. All the news and

[25:47] weather at 6.

[25:51] Making a difference, brought to you by

[25:54] Beano.

[25:56] In our continuing search for good news,

[25:58] tonight our making a difference report

[26:00] shines the light on an organization

[26:02] helping make children's wishes come

[26:04] true. Every child counts down to his or

[26:07] her birthday every year, but for

[26:09] families who have fallen on hard times,

[26:11] birthdays can be just like any other

[26:13] day. No party, no celebration. But now

[26:16] some very caring folks in Massachusetts

[26:18] are trying to change that. NBC's Rehema

[26:21] Ellis has their story.

[26:23] HAPPY

[26:25] BIRTHDAY

[26:29] >> [music]

[26:30] >> IT'S A birthday party with all the

[26:32] trimmings of a typical celebration.

[26:35] Except it's not. These four kids and

[26:38] their friends are all homeless and

[26:40] living in a Boston shelter.

[26:42] The party's run by a non-profit

[26:44] organization that helps families

[26:46] struggling through hard times remember

[26:48] their child's special day.

[26:51] It was something that there was a need

[26:53] for, a great need for. Lisa Vasiloff and

[26:56] three other friends came up with a

[26:57] program called Birthday Wishes. They

[27:00] wanted to find a way for their own kids

[27:02] to give back to the community. At the

[27:04] time, one of my friends was volunteering

[27:05] at a homeless shelter, and she learned

[27:08] of a child who had a had a birthday pass

[27:11] completely with no celebration, no cake,

[27:12] no gift, or anything. In 2002, the

[27:15] program began with 12 kids in one

[27:18] shelter. Last year, there were parties

[27:20] for more than 1,000 homeless children in

[27:23] 65 shelters in Massachusetts. Using

[27:26] private funds and corporate grants, the

[27:28] Birthday Wishes organization donates

[27:30] almost everything for the parties, from

[27:32] balloons to presents and goody bags.

[27:35] Once a month, volunteers turn into party

[27:38] coordinators for the shelters, bringing

[27:40] in all kinds of fun.

[27:44] Activities parents say they can't

[27:46] afford. It's really hard to give her

[27:48] that big special day that kids love.

[27:50] >> It's like a cloud that has been lifted

[27:53] with the children like rainbows coming

[27:55] in because of the fact that someone

[27:57] actually does care. We give each other

[27:59] hugs, and we're really happy to see each

[28:00] other, so it's more of like a friendship

[28:02] now than a community service project.

[28:04] Throwing parties for homeless children

[28:07] and making birthday wishes come true.

[28:10] Rahima Ellis, NBC News, Boston.

[28:14] And that's our broadcast for this Friday

[28:16] night and for this week. Thank you for

[28:18] being with us. I'm Natalie Morales, and

[28:19] Brian Williams will be back here on

[28:21] Monday. Have a good weekend. Good night.

[28:25] >> [music]

[28:31] [music]

[28:36] [music]

[28:42] >> Soccer City.

[28:46] The announcement met with cheers and

[28:48] chants. But now that Portland has landed

[28:50] a Major League Soccer team, what's next?

[28:53] And what's in it for the unemployed?

[28:55] Plus, when surviving is everything, a

[28:58] backcountry ski trip turned into a fight

[29:01] for his life. A Vancouver fire captain

[29:03] talks about the avalanche that buried

[29:05] him and two others. And about the friend

[29:09] who didn't make it. And everybody loses.

[29:12] It's not just students forced to do

[29:14] without vending machines in Oregon

[29:16] schools. It's teachers, too. Nobody ever

[29:19] talked about education employees. How

[29:21] they're fed up with this

[29:23] one-size-fits-all

[29:24] law.

[29:26] From the KGW HD Studios.

[29:30] Where the news comes first. News Channel

[29:33] 8 at 6 starts now.

[29:36] Hello, I'm Laurel Porter in tonight for

[29:38] Tracy.

[29:38] >> And I'm Joe Donlon. First at 6, a Major

[29:41] League Soccer celebration. Today, it is

[29:43] official. Portland gets a big league

[29:45] team. And it was an announcement that

[29:46] drew cheers from hundreds of soccer

[29:49] fans. We have News Channel 8 team

[29:50] coverage tonight, including how this

[29:52] plan will bring jobs. Randy Ndevs was

[29:53] there for the announcement. It was a bit

[29:55] rowdy, and he's live at PGE Park

[29:57] tonight. Randy? Yeah, rowdy's an

[29:59] understatement, Joe. The Timbers Army

[30:01] that normally rattles opponents at this

[30:03] stadium here showed up to today's press

[30:05] conference to cheer those who pulled off

[30:07] this Major League deal. After the

[30:09] announcement and all that enthusiasm

[30:11] spilled over into a local pub.

[30:17] Unbridled joy after a highly anticipated

[30:20] announcement from the commissioner of

[30:21] Major League Soccer. Portland will be

[30:24] the 18th team in Major League Soccer.

[30:28] The Timbers name will now belong to a

[30:30] professional top-tier soccer team.

[30:47] >> The Collins Foundation. The Collins

[30:49] Foundation is dedicated to improving the

[30:51] quality of life in Oregon.