good morning. i m erica hill. i m chris wragge. we would like to introduce my new co-host. it feels like it s been a while. good to have you back. nice job out there. it was a good story to tell there in africa. at home, president obama is in the midwest talking jobs and his republican opponents he is on a three-day, three-state tour and official presidential tour that to a lot of looks like a campaign swing. norah o donnell is traveling with the president in peosta, iowa this morning. reporter: the white house touted this trip as a nonpolitical tour, an opportunity for the president to talk to people here in america s heartland about the economy and jobs, but, boy, it feels more like a campaign with the president attack the republicans in the presidential field and texas governor rick perry is also here in iowa and has delivered one of the most stinging criticisms to date of this president and his administration. reporter: after rolling through the farmlands of
international manhunt behind the arrest. and google bets big on motorola mobility, spending billions to acquire the cell phone company. as it sets its cites on rival apple. so, what does this mean for the american consumer? we ll tell you early this tuesday morning, august 16th, we ll tell you early this tuesday morning, august 16th, 2011. captioning funded by cbs and good tuesday morning to you, i m erica hill. and good morning, i m chris wragge. we like to introduce my new co-host. it feels like it s been awhile, doesn t it? it has. over a week. good to have you back. thank you. nice job out there. thanks. nice to be back. it was a good story to be able to tell there in africa. we begin this morning here at home. president obama is in the midwest talking about jobs, and his republican opponents. he s on a three-day, three-state tour. an official presidential trip that to a lot of folks looks a lot more like a campaign swing. cbs news chief white house co
unaffordable. sharyl attkisson has details of a plan to dramatically overhaul a long-cherished veterans benefit. reporter: cbs news has learned high-level closely held meetings are taking place at the pentagon regarding a radical proposal to overhaul retirement for the nation s 1.4 million service members, a bedrock guarantee of military service. the proposal comes from a panel of military advisors called the defense business board. their plan, laid out in a 24- page presentation, modernizing the military retirement system, would eliminate the familiar system under which anyone who serves 20 years is eligible for retirement at half their salary. instead they d get a 401(k)- style plan with government contributions. they d have to wait until normal retirement age to collect. it would save $250 billion over 20 years. douglas holtz-eakin is former director of the congressional budget office. how important is it the military attack this retirement issue? it s very important
plan with government contributions. they d have to wait until normal retirement age to collect. it would save $250 billion over 20 years. douglas holts-eakin is former director of the congressional budget office. how important is it the military attack this retirement issue? it s very important. it s hundreds of billions of dollars in the next 20 years and if you want to maintain the core mission, which is to defend the nation and have the strategic capabilities we need, you can t have all their money tied up in retirement programs. reporter: advocates say the new system would not only save money but would also be fairer. it would give benefits to those who serve less than 20 years. right now they walk away with nothing. and it would give more money to those in combat or high-risk situations. the proposal leaves a lot of blanks to be filled in, including whether to exempt current service members so their plans won t change. we spoke to some active duty troops who agreed c
as victims are remembered, investigators ask if anything could have prevented it. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the cbs evening news with scott pelley. pelley: good evening. the military retirement system has long been considered untouchable, alongside social security and medicare. but in these days of soaring deficits, it seems everything is a potential target for budget cutters and tonight a pentagon-sponsored study says military pensions are no longer untouchable, they re unaffordable. sharyl attkisson has details of a plan to dramatically overhaul a long-cherished veterans benefit. reporter: cbs news has learned high-level closely held meetings are taking place at the pentagon regarding a radical proposal to overhaul retirement for the nation s 1.4 million service members, a bedrock guarantee of military service. the proposal comes from a panel of military advisors called the defense business board. their plan, laid out in a 24-page presentation, modernizing t