Transcripts For CNN CNN Newsroom 20120109

against president obama is not someone who called him a remarkable leader and went to be his ambassador in china. >> this nation is divided, david, because of attitudes like that. [ applause ] >> we want someone when the time gets tough, and it will in this election, we want someone who is going to stand up and fight for the conservative principles, not bail out and not run, and not run to the left of ted kennedy. >> can we drop a little bit of the pious baloney? you have been running consistently for years and years and years. so this idea that suddenly citizenship showed up in your mind. just level with the american people. you have been running at least since the 1990s. >> well, mitt romney is trying to seal the deal. he is out rallying supporters in new hampshire, trying to win over last-minute converts. cnn's jim accosta is at the romney event and will join us in just a few minutes. also, joe johns with rick santorum. we will talk to him coming up in just a few minutes. ok. let's talk about the latest strain on your wallet. gas prices on the rise. some experts saying that we could see new record highs by this summer. christine romans, why are those prices climbing? >> why do i have to have the bad news. >> you had good news last week, and now we wrapped up a great friday. >> interesting you point that out. you look at the job gains in the market and the economy overall. could that be undone by higher gas prices? we're seeing gas prices up about 12 cents over the past three weeks. why? because oil prices are moving higher, and they are moving higher, $3.37 a gallon is the national average, that's about 30 cents more than it was a year ago at this time. so you're feeling it. this acts as a tax on consumers, kyra. this is the thing that you're most economically sensitive to. every week, every 10 days, you're filling up the gas tank. so this is money out of your pocket immediately, that you're not spending on something else. it's important to watch. >> how high could the prices go? because it really has been fluctuating. >> it has. we're watching iran. believe it or not, the strait of hormuz is directly tied to your service station. and i'm not kidding. you look at that tiny little strait there. and iran's sabre rattling about pressuring the u.s. and the international community is putting on its nuclear program, and iran says we can shut that strait of hormuz. 40% of all the world's traded oil goes through there. there's a two-mile wide naf igable straight there. there is something called the u.s. fleet they have to get past. >> don't underestimate the u.s. navy. >> but the worst-case scenario is maybe $40 more a barrel. that's significantly higher. that's the worst-case scenario and unlikely, but that's what we're watching. tensions in the oil market even as the economy is just barely moving higher. >> we'll keep talking. thank you, christine. this hour as i mentioned, rick santorum is reaching out to the right with a taown hall meeting on faith, family, and country. right after yesterday's debate, he jetteda up to south carolina, right? >> that's absolutely right. he is sort of trying to straddle the primary races, both here in new hampshire and in south carolina. it's been a tough crowd here in new hampshire frankly. he is only up about 10%, which is better than he was doing but not great. the only person he is ahead of is rick perry, who has given up on the state for the most part. and south carolina, he went down there yesterday. right after the second debate. reaching out to social conservatives. they are more in his wheelhouse. traveling there with gary bauer, who is a very well known movement conservative that so many people there in south carolina look up to. mr. santorum has essentially been saying to the people in south carolina, look, this may very well be the last stand for true conservatives in your state. so he's calling on them to help him out. let's listen. >> if south carolina doesn't stand up and say, we want a conservative on the ticket, ladies and gentlemen, we very well may not have one. it's up to you. it's up to you. that the most critical election in the history -- well, maybe since the election of 1860, but certainly in your lifetime, the most critical election in your lifetime, what are you going to do? >> most critical election in your lifetime. that's the message of rick santorum to the people in the state of south carolina. and after the primary here in new hampshire tomorrow, he'll be able to devote his full attentions to that state where he hopes he might do better than he's doing in the polls here right now, kyra. >> we should talk about how important it is that santorum does well in new hampshire before the south carolina primary. >> yeah. well, i mean, it's just hard for him here. we know from last week that rick santorum actually got booed at one point because of his positions on same-sex marriage. he's talked a lot about sort of his populist appeal, if you will. the common man here. but it really just hasn't worked for him. and it's interesting too because he came out of iowa with so much momentum, you know, finishing so close. and he could have been the winner, you know. but for seven or eight votes. but he's just not looking so good right now in new hampshire. >> joe, thanks. >> still has time, though, right? >> anything is possible, as we will know, joe. as we have been watching so far. >> yeah. quite a primary race. >> yes, it has. and it's going to keep getting better. we'll have more from new hampshire throughout the next couple of hours. and tomorrow night, all eyes on new hampshire as the new political year is heating up. make your best choice for politics. wolf blitzer, anderson cooper, candy crowley, john king, all part of our live coverage tomorrow night 7:00 eastern, right here on cnn. all right. isra iran sentences an american to death. the former marine was arrested in august while visiting his grandmother. zain verjee is watching this story for us from london. give us the details. >> his name is amir hekmati. he is 28 years old, from arizona. now, this is what the news agency from iran had to say. they say he was working for an enemy country, for membership in the cia, and also for his efforts to accuse iran for involvement in terrorism. now, hekmati has done one tour of iraq. his family is saying this is totally ridiculous. he is not guilty. he just went to iran back in august to visit two of his grandmas who live there. they also say that they tried to get him legal representation 10 times, they tried to get him 10 different lawyers, and the iranian government rejected it and eventually ended up appointing a state appointed lawyer for him. but he only met once at his trial. now for the u.s., they are saying release him. he is not guilty. the u.s. are represented by the swiss in iran, and the swiss weren't even allowed in the trial. iran is saying he confessed, he confessed to his crimes on tv. they taped it. but a lot of human rights groups around the world say that's a joke, they are forced into those confessions and they have no credibility. >> the reports this morning that iran is enreiching uranium at a new nuclear site. what's the latest? >> i was just looking at that. and this is a site they are saying is deep in the mountains in the north of iran. this is called the fordo nuclear enrichment plant. and iran is saying it's immune to military attack. they say they have activated some 3,000 centrifuges. this has got to worry the u.s. and other western countries that have accused iran of pursuing a nuclear weapons program. kyra, iran is saying, look, it's ok. everybody relax, because we are trying to get radio isotopes by enriching this uranium because there are 800,000 cancer patients who need it. kyra? >> zain verjee out of london. thanks so much. and we are learning about a big break that police had in their investigation of jerry sandusky. it was in the pages of the former coach's own book. we'll talk with the reporter who broke the story next. and tucson marks one year since a gunman put the city in the headlines. one year since the survivors and the city began the healing process. we'll show you how far they've come. ♪ he was a 21st century global nomad ♪ ♪ home was an airport lounge and an ipad ♪ ♪ made sure his credit score did not go bad ♪ ♪ with a free-credit-score-dot-com ♪ ♪ app that he had ♪ downloaded it in the himalayas ♪ ♪ while meditating like a true playa ♪ ♪ now when he's surfing down in chile'a ♪ ♪ he can see when his score is in danger ♪ ♪ if you're a mobile type on the go ♪ ♪ i suggest you take a tip from my bro ♪ ♪ and download the app that lets you know ♪ ♪ at free-credit-score-dot-com now let's go. ♪ vo: offer applies with enrollment in freecreditscore.com™. mitt romney trying to seal the deal, out rallying supporters in nashua, new hampshire, trying to win over last-minute converts. >> had similar ideas in different parts of the country and raised capital and began other businesses. but think what happens then. when the president and his people pick one company in which to invest $500 million, guess what happens to the other people seeking private capital for their solar energy ideas? who's going to put $2 million or $3 million into a solar startup when they hear the government has put $500 million into something called silindra? nobody. so the investment he made was lost but also crippled investments in other ideas in solar technology. so rather than encouraging innovation in solar technology, it discouraged it. that's what happens when people in government thinks that government is the answer to our economic challenges. government is not the answer. it's the problem, as ronald reagan used to say. let markets work. have government create the conditions that allow markets to work. fair tax codes. updated regulations. opening markets for american goods. getting energy at a low and effective cost basis. having fair labor rules. not slanting it one side or to the other. these are the kinds of principles i want to bring to washington. i happen to believe that the principles upon which this nation was founded are principles that were not temporary in their impact but are permanent. when i think back to the declaration of independence and those famous lines, where the founders wrote the creator had endowed us with certain rights, among them life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, our declaration made it very clear it would not be government that would guide our lives and tell us what we could do or how we could run our enterprises. it would instead be free people making their own choices. >> mitt romney speaking live in nashua. we'll check in waith all the candidates as they are holding their rallies. one of the biggest breaks for police in the jerry sandusky case came from his own biography, "touched." that's when we learned when we spoke to one of the mothers of the victim. what did this mother tell you, sarah? >> she told me the story, and she told it to me because she is upset with the -- the allegation that jerry sandusky's attorney has been making that a lot of these victims knew each other, and got together after they heard of one allegation and decided to substantiate the allegation and make more stories up, seeing lawsuits and seeing money coming from penn state. but she told me this story for that reason. and this is what she said. she said when police came to her in early 2010, when said, you know, we know your son came forward 10 years ago and made an allegation to police, and wasn't believed. tell us what happened. she sat down with them and she said, my son had a lot of friends back then. they all hung out together. they all hung out with jerry sandusky. and i think you should talk to these other boys too, not knowing what they would say. she pointed them in these boys' direction. and they were from the pages of that book. she sat down with police and went through the book and identified several of the victims that ended up being in that grand jury presentment. >> so basically, the key to this case was right there on the shelves of the penn state bookstore? >> it's very interesting. a lot of these things were out and obvious. a lot of the keys to this case. because, you know, that's one big break. but the other one was finding that mother, finding victim six's mom, and remember her name and her phone number was sitting in that police report that was at penn state's police barracks that had been closed, and no charges came of it. but it was sitting there in the police barracks for over a year after that victim one came forward, after the police investigation began, before they actually contacted her. so some of the keys to this case were out there, which goes right back to that overriding theme that prosecutors are now talking about, that many people knew something, and did nothing. >> sarah, before i let you go. a number of former penn state football players are pushing back against the hires of bill o'brien as head coach. how did the search committee come to this decision? >> they say that contrary to reports, it was not a toxic job. they had a lot of applications. that bill o'brien's name was someone that they knew of from the beginning, and slowly they just became enamored with him. they really fell in love with him, and it had nothing to do with being a penn state guy, but finding someone who had penn state heart is what they said. and they said that's how they landed on their guy. you know, it seemed like he said all the right things on saturday when he was introduced, and he did get a loud applause from some penn state fans. about 100 fans showed up for that announcement. >> sarah, thanks so much. checking stories across the country now, a cashier at a pappa john's pizza joint in new york is fired over this racist receipt. if you look closely, you can see how an american asian customer was identified as lady chinky eyes. she posted it on her twitter account over the weekend, which quickly went viral. nearly 100 soldiers are on lock downright now. commanders at joint base lewis mccord are reacting to reports of missing sensitive military equipment, including night lasers and gun scopes. and look at this planned implosion. just a few seconds in it all took for the 20-story building in houston's medical district to come down. the houston chronicle says an aging foundation and asbestos made the building too costly to maintain. straight ahead, the irs is coming up short as americans skirt the tax man. how big is the short fall? and this is the video we can't stop watching. not only did a young woman's bungee accord snap, it snapped over a river full of crocodiles. you just can't get any closer to death than this, but she's ok and she's talking about it, next. now to that unbelievable story of survival in zimbabwe. a young woman goes bungee jumping over a river full of crocodiles, and the cord breaks. that's where the thrill ends and the fight for survival begins. zain verjee has all the details and of course the video. oh, my gosh, zain. >> oh, my god, kyra. take a look at this video. it tells it all. she's from australia. erin langworthy just jumped off into the river. and the cord that was frayed just snapped and down she went into the water. you know, that is a place near victoria falls. you have victoria falls behind you, and she is actually jumping into the river in front. and sometimes there's no water there. it's totally dry. she is so lucky. listen to how she put it. >> it went black. straightaway. and i felt like i had been slapped all over. i actually had to swim down and junk the bungee cord out of what it was caught into. it's definitely a miracle that i survived. >> it say miracle, kyra, because those rapids are so powerful. the rocks there are so large. and she also had a towel wrapped around her feet to do the bungee jump. so that as well as the rope was still there. she had to swim her way through. she was so lucky she wasn't thrown against a rock. and by the way, there are crocodiles there too. not necessarily on the rapids but in other parts of the river. so she is very lucky. that's a very exciting new year's eve, though, kyra. >> almost as exciting as your vacation. hanging out with the giraffes. i'm sorry. after you sent me this picture, i had to go there. what is the story with this? are you that desperate for a little loving? >> well, no. i mean, look, this guy is the kind of guy who i like the height of. you know, got a little bit of action over here. this is my new year's eve kiss, kyra. we had chemistry. he is a little bit tall for me maybe. and, you know, i put a little giraffe food in my mouth. and he came and gave me a big old wet kiss. and by the way, if you ever kiss a giraffe, its strong is like sandpaper. it's very long. this is a rothschild giraffe. there are only 650 in the world. this is one of 10 in kenya. i think we can agree this takes necking to a whole new level. >> yes, it adoes. you made my monday. thank you, zain. glad you're back. big sloppy wet kisses to you. all right. a lot of americans skirting the tax man, leaving the government billions of dollars short. allison kosik, not dissing any giraffes, thank goodness. >> you know, i always wanted to kiss a giraffe. she beat me to it. what can i say? >> well, give us some good news about the markets. try to here. >> well, i'll get to the markets first. let's talk about the irs, our next favorite subject next to giraffe kissing. did you know that 15% of federal taxes went unpaid in 2006? so in real dollars, that means the irs didn't get $400 billion. meaning that money just didn't get to the irs. now the biggest reason that this is happening is because many people and businesses, they underreport their income, meaning they don't include all of their receipts, they overstate their expenses. and they claim incorrect amounts of deductions as well. and of course this is all coming as the u.s. government is $15 trillion in debt. and that is one of the biggest reasons why politicians are calling for tax reform. that $400 billion unpaid, that's a lot of money. but get this. americans are still among the best in the world at paying their taxes, what they owe. give ourselves a nice pat on the back. >> the last thing we want is to be chased by the irs. all right. let's talk about the markets. what kind of day are we expecting? >> ok. looking at a mixed open in about five minutes when the opening bell rings. one thing that may trump all the attention on europe, the start of the fourth quarter earnings season gets underway after the closing bell today. now overall, expectations for corporate earnings, they have been falling because of the weak global economy. so that is going to be on the radar. there's corporate earnings. but still, europe is still going to be front and center. german and french leaders met today. they say negotiations are going well, and an agreement could be reached by the end of this month on a broad financial overhaul. we shall see. kyra? >> allison, thanks. coming up, we'll talk about all the hits that mitt romney has been taking in new hampshire, and whether the damage from his own party could hurt his electability if he becomes the nominee. and reports say jay-z and beyonce produced their biggest production yet. details coming up. have i got a surprise for you! a mouthwatering combination of ingredients... i know you're gonna love. 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[ woman announcing ] new beneful healthy fiesta. another healthful, flavorful beneful. a news agency in israel iran reporting that a marine has been sentenced to death by hanging. amir hekmati is an iranian american who was arrested in august while visiting relatives. his family says he is not a spy, and they tried without success to hire a lawyer. check your medicine cabinets. over the counter drugs in your home may contain broken pieces of other pills in their bottles. novaris is recalling excedrin and nodoz with expiration dates between now and december of 2014. bufferin and gas-x are also being recalled with an expiration date of 2013 or earlier. and the winner is the hyundai elantrelantra, the nort american car of the year. the range rover evoke the truck of the year. in case you haven't noticed, things are getting nasty in new hampshire. mitt romney isn't just the guy to beat. he is the guy taking a beating. listen to this. >> mitt, i realize the red light doesn't mean anything to you because you're the front-runner. [ laughter ] but can we drop a little bit of the pious baloney? >> the person who should represent our party running against president obama is not someone who called him a remarkable leader and went to be his ambassador in china. >> this nation is divided, david, because of attitudes like that. [ applause ] >> let's bring in cnn contributors will cain and lz granderson. guys, it's sounding more like the others, especially gingrich, is out to destroy romney. will it work? >> i don't think so. i think what it does is make mitt tougher, helps his campaign figure out where the holes are and where president obama may actually hit him in a general election. but i don't think that anything that's going to happen barring some scandal is going to derail romney. the gallup polls finally released today, and he is up to 31%, which is kind of a career high for him. i think if anything, he is just picking up steam and learning to get tougher because he's the front-runner. he is a front-runner who is taking a beating in the primary. >> will, given romney's ahead in polls in new hampshire and south carolina, could it destra destry strategy back fire? >> yes, it will back fire. it's not going to work in new hampshire. i feel like it's too late in new hampshire. he is way up in this state. the question is, will it help down the line? will the attacks hurt romney in south carolina and florida? and i think you have to weight that potential against the unprecedented momentum romney would have coming out of iowa and new hampshire as a winner, and also the ugliness of looking like the attack dog, the mean newt effect, that you don't look appealing when you're going after somebody so hard. >> all right. let's take a listen to newt talking to nbc's david gregory about romney. >> the fact is, president obama is going to have a very hard re-election effort. but i do think the bigger the contrast, the bolder ideas, the clearer the choice, the harder it is for that billion dollar campaign to smear his way back into office. >> now, assuming mitt survives the gop attacks, will it be damage and he won't be electable? >> no. because i think what we're looking at, there's an anybody but romney campaign in the primary. and i think there's a general election focus that is anybody but president obama. so i think that for a lot of people who have already made up their minds that regardless of who the candidate is coming out of the gop, they don't want president obama back in the white house. and so i think newt is just actually kind of once again campaigning for himself, and not really being genuine. he knows that there's a -- most of the republican party are looking and saying we just don't want president obama. we are not happy with the candidates here, but we are really unhappy with the guy in the white house right now. >> will? >> i totally agree with lz. come the general election, it's a referendum on barack obama. people will be voting largely on whether or not they want barack obama to remain in office. i don't see anything that newt or huntsman or santorum is doing or saying that could hurt mitt romney enough that people are going to vote saying, i just can't allow this mitt romney guy to sit in the white house. >> final question, guys. chris christie campaigning for romney in new hampshire. pretty interesting combo. such different guys. let's listen to christie pushing back against hecklers. >> needing to get this done. really? you know, something may go down tonight, but it ain't going to be jobs, sweetheart. >> all right. sweetheart, lz, it looks like christie is defending romney like some kind of political bodyguard. >> he had a little bit of soprano -- tony soprano energy right there for sure. you know, there's a reason why the republicans wanted chris christie. and i think that epitomizes it right there. he's tough. he's not afraid to confront, you know, in an unconventional manner. the problem is, you know, while that may make him appear to be a good vp choice, and i'm sure a lot of people are wondering, you have to remember what chris christie said about himself, and that is he's not ready. if he's not ready to run for president, he shouldn't be put in position to be a heartbeat from the presidency. but i loved that moment. and i think a lot of people who vote gop loved that moment as well. >> now to my sweetheart will. when romney is being attacked for being not authentic and not trustworthy, is chris christie the guy to, you know, step in and help him out? >> you know what? i don't think anybody watches this chris christie stuff as stepping in as a surrogate for romney and says, you know, boy, he is really helping out romney. people see those clips, and you know what they think? they think, man, i wish chris christie was running for president. >> hmm. lz, will, always great to talk to you guys on a monday. we always have something good for you guys to go on. appreciate it. and cnn tomorrow night, all eyes on new hampshire as the new political year heats up. make the best choice for pliblgs. politics. all the live coverage tomorrow night at 7:00 eastern, right here on cnn. the gop presidential candidates' fate isn't the big issue for most voters in new hampshire. see how the candidates are changing their pitches to woo the voters. and fans have been waiting for months. you only have to wait just a few minutes here. beyonce and jay-z's big news, next. ut. cut! [ monica ] i thought we'd be on location for 3 days -- it's been 3 weeks. so i had to pick up some more things. good thing i've got the citi simplicity card. i don't get hit with a fee if i'm late with a payment... which is good because on this job, no! bigger! [ monica ] i may not be home for a while. [ male announcer ] the new citi simplicity card. no late fees. no penalty rate. no worries. not quite knowing what the next phase was going to be, you know, because you been, you know, this is what you had been doing. you know, working, working, working, working, working, working. and now you're talking about, well you know, i won't be, and i get the chance to spend more time with my wife and my kids. it's my world. that's my world. ♪ so you remember this revealing performance on mtv just a few months ago? ♪ you're the one i always call ♪ when i need you ♪ finally ♪ i'm on top, top [ applause ] >> aj, what a moment that was. they knew how to get everybody excited. she finally gave birth after all those baby bump rumors. >> yeah. i guess she actually really was pregnant, kyra. you know, it was something they never officially confirmed, but yes, it's true. the year's most anticipated celebrity baby has arrived, according to reports. beyonce knowles and sean carter, who of course we all know as jay-z, welcomed their daughter saturday night in new york city's lenox hill hospital. thing te it came through a scheduled c-section. and the hip-hop princess' new name is blue ivy carter. at least that's what jay-z is reportedly telling pals, and people are tweeting about it. the couple's reps haven't responded to our calls seeking comment just yet, but you might be wondering, how did they come up with the name? and there are already plenty of theories floating around. conventional wisdom suggests that the couple chose the name ivy because of the number four or the roman numeral iv. beyonce's birthday is december 4, and the two married on april 4 in 2008. they have matching iv tattoos on their wedding fingers and beyonce for some reason named her latest album iv. as far as the significance of blue, jay-z's album has the word blue in the title. in any event, we obviously offer congratulations to all three of them. >> holy cow. that was a long explanation. thank you, aj. now, one of our favorite shows, i understand, we're going to be sort of upset at something going on with "glee." do tell. >> well, there was this "glee" spinoff that was buzzed about for the characters rachel, finn, and curt. and that spinoff is now officially not happening. the deal is that the head of fox entertainment just announced the news to gathering of reporters on sunday. here's what he said. we are graduating the characters that are arcing to graduation, adding there will not be a spinoff. so, kyra, that basically puts an end to all of the speculation about the possibility of another show. however, we have also learned that lea michelle will be sticking around, because there was some buzz maybe she wasn't. chris culver, that remains to be seen. obviously, again, you and i love the show. so we want them all to stay. >> that's right. i want everything to get back in its place. aj, thanks so much. aj will be back next hour to talk about khloe kardashian. apparently she gets punked. pretty embarrassing, chaotic. aj hammer has all the juicy did details for us. and no doubt religion helped shape the men rick santorum and mitt romney became, but their faith will not be a key factor for most new hampshire voters. we'll explain coming up. and breaking the ice. a u.s. coast guard vessel helping clear the way for a russian oil tanker. the mission, an emergency fuel delivery for nome, alaska. a live update from the ship next. dozens of teachers in bucks county, pennsylvania, already hitting the picket line. teachers say they have worked without a contract for nearly four years, meaning no pay raises. big sticking point, health care benefits. about 9,000 students are affected by the walkout. and it's not spring yet, but cedar trees releasing the pollen in a big way in austin, texas, causing misery for allergy sufferers. and no shame in their game. some metro riders in d.c. and other cities dropped their pants and showed off their undys over the weekend. it's an annual event, called the no pants subway ride. all right. faith and family. it sure worked in iowa. just look at rick santorum's jump. but new hampshire is quite different. as a matter of fact, in 2009, a gallup survey found that new lamp is the second least religious state in the country, so will religion matter as candidates preach their politics? cnn.com's religion editor says probably not. dan, why the reticence about religion? >> yeah. it's such a fascinating dynamic in the presidential race, because these candidates are all starting off in iowa, where 60% of the republican elector al is evangelical. the third state is south carolina, where they head directly after new hampshire, where again about 60% of republican voters there are evangelical. and then in the middle, they find themselves in new hampshire, where evangelicals only represent about 1/4 of republican voters. where most voters in 2008 who were casting ballots for the republican presidential election said they were actually pro choice. so it kind of causes this political whip lash where these candidates have to adjust their message and some of them just kind of skip new hampshire entirely and head straight to south carolina in order to connect with more evangelicals. >> so it's going to be all about fiscal matters, bottom line. >> in new hampshire, it largely will. and you asked why. and i think it's because of history. for centuries, the new england states have been dominated by this protestant, yankee protestantism. and unlike evangelicals, they don't really talk publicly about their faith. some of them even refer to themselves somewhat jokingly as the frozen chosen. and so, you know, also there's been a huge catholic influx into new england over the last 150 years. and there were all of these fears about how catholics and protesnts might fight because of religion, so there was a tacit agreement let's not talk about it. and a lot of new englanders abide by that. they just don't talk about religion much. >> so taking that all into consideration, could ron paul become new hampshire's santorum? >> in a way, i think he can. he might not finish that strongly. but, you know, someone like mitt romney has a lot of obstacles because of his mormon faith. someone like rick santorum has a lot of opportunities because of his deep catholicism, his ability to connect with pro-life evangelicals. then you have a much more secular candidate, ron paul. and he is outside of those dynamics. so in a state that's very religious like iowa, he does pretty well, about 20%. his polling in a mostly secular state, new hampshire, around that same level, about 20% support. and so his support is not super high. but it's kind of locked in because he is outside of all of these religious effects in the race. >> dan, thanks so much. >> thanks for having me. for more on issues related to faith, go to our belief blog at cnn.com/belief. making an emergency fuel run for nome, alaska. the u.s. coast guard ice breaker helping a russian oil tanker make the delivery. we'll check in on the mission, next. ttd# 1-800-345-2550 ttd# 1-800-345-2550 let's talk about the typical financial consultation ttd# 1-800-345-2550 when companies try to sell you something off their menu ttd# 1-800-345-2550 instead of trying to understand what you really need. ttd# 1-800-345-2550 ttd# 1-800-345-2550 at charles schwab, we provide ttd# 1-800-345-2550 a full range of financial products, ttd# 1-800-345-2550 even if they're not ours. ttd# 1-800-345-2550 and we listen before making our recommendations, ttd# 1-800-345-2550 so we can offer practical ideas that make sense for you. ttd# 1-800-345-2550 ttd# 1-800-345-2550 so talk to chuck, and see how we can help you, not sell you. ttd# 1-800-345-2550 what's going on? we ordered a gift online and we really need to do something with it... i'm just not sure what... what is it? oh just return it. returning gifts is easier than ever with priority mail flat rate boxes from the postal service. if it fits, it ships anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. plus i can pick it up for free. perfect because we have to get that outta this house. c'mon, it's not that... gahh, oh yeah that's gotta go... priority mail flat rate shipping starts at just $4.95. only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship and return. a rescue mission is under way right now to get emergency cruel to gnome, alaska. a u.s. coast guard ice breaker is actually helping to clear the way so a russian oil tanker can deliver earth fuel. pretty amazing picture wes got from the u.s. coast guard right here. joining us on the phone, captain craig lloyd, he is actually coordinating this operation. so captain, tell me, you know, i've been on a coast guard ice break before it is a pretty incredible experience. how thick is this ice and how tough has this been? >> well, essentially under the ice a couple of days ago, they have encountered ice that has grown in thickness from about six inches up to -- what they are encountering as of last night is ridges that are three to four feet and plate ice that i is upwards of two feet thick. the ice conditions yesterday were relatively decent and they were able to make good progress. yesterday the ice was a little more dynamic. wind-driven currents pushes the ice against the side of the renda after the healy breaks the channel and stops the renda which requires a direct assist by the heellism >> just for our viewers that may not understand all those buzzwords, i mean, it's pretty incredible when the ice breaker goes up against this ice. i mean, it's like crashing in to a brick wall, that feeling on the ship. now, the preps in gnome have got to be pretty -- in nome have been difficult as well? >> we have been preparing the operation and planning with a number of partners the last month to get this stage and the city of nome, the state alaska department of environmental conservation, the native corporation industry, the department of defense, national weather service, i mean, the list just keeps going on and on. we have a phone conference every morning with about 30 or 40 different partner agencies coordinating what's gonna happen, getting the latest weather. we predict windchill probably about 40 below. >> oh, my gosh. >> up in nome. >> but -- and that's why it is such a well-coordinated effort. final question, captain, put in perspective why this is such an important mission and when that fuel may arrive. >> the 1.3 million gallons of fuel is equipment that is going to be used to power their -- a lot of heavy equipment, the equipment that keeps the runway clears, the fire trucks that's used for -- at the school. so there's -- there is some fuel there. it's not going to run out next week, but it's -- if they don't get this fuel in, what's gonna happen is by march it is going to run out and the conditions to deliver ter then would be even more difficult. >> captain craig lloyd, u.s. coast guard, we will keep track of the mission. thanks so much for calling in, craig. >> thank you. have a good day. >> you bet. flash forward to other events happening later today we are following. louisiana governor bobby jindal will be sworn in for a second term around noon eastern. the republican first took office in 2008 as the nation's first elected indian-american governor. also around noon, president obama will welcome the dallas match rockies the white house. going to congratulate them for wing the 2011 nba championship. brad pitt, meryl streep, among the stars expected at the new york film critics circle awards. that ceremony is at 5 eastern. we are following lots of developments the next hour, cnn newsroom with you. check in first with our zain verjee. zane? >> hey there, kyra. an american-iranian has been sentenced to death in iran. he has been accused of spying for the via. i will bring the details in a few minutes. i'm alison kosik at the new york stock exchange. top honers were just doled out to the world's automakers. i will tell you which vehicles drove off with car and truck of the year honors at the detroit auto show. that's coming up. kyra? >> thanks. at the top of the hour, taking you on a rare look inside syria's violence. our nic robertson is there we will have more on the developing story. osteo bi-flex has really helped my knees. osteo bi-flex has been incredible for me, and i swear by it. 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[ male announcer ] osteo bi-flex. the #1 doctor and pharmacist recommended brand. tim tebow working his magic or maybe his prayers again. >> it was a magic moment watching what happened in overtime yesterday against the steelers. you know, tebow's broncos lost their final three regular season game, at least for his first playoff game, tebow came through in the clutch. this is the second quarter. tebow run it is in for the touchdown to put denver up 14-6 on the steelers so fired up on the sidelines. actually his best passing game as a bronco, best passing play of the day. in the fourth quarter, steelers tied up, ben roth his big to jerricho cotchery, forced overtime. the first snap, there goes tebow, finds thomas, who is gone, 80-yard touchdown, tebow nope for his faith, his fans pointing out the stats yesterday, passed for 316 yards. 316. and of course, thomas scored the winning touchdown born on christmas, fans putting it together, broncos win 29-23. giants and falcons, eli manning, hakeem nicks for the touchdown, new york up 7-26789 you don't see that often in football it is a safety. then manning again this time, knicks again and he is taillights on height way, 72 yards. someone stop him. manning threw for three touchdowns in the game. the last to mario manningham. the giants win this one pretty easily, 24-2. so, next week, here is what we have. saturday, the saints are at the 49ers followed by the broncos and patriots, yes, tebow versus brady. then on sunday, the ravens host the texans, then the giants at aaron rodgers and the packers. tonight, of course, college football crowns its national champion in new orleans, number one lsu against number two alabama in the bcs title game. tigers beat 'bama 9-6 in november. i don't know if you watched "saturday night live" saturday night. charles barkley was the host. >> i have twins, i was sound asleep. bring us up to day. >> check out his postgame translation app. >> okay. >> so many postgame interviews are full of nonsense and they are just boring. that's why you need this, the charles barkley postgame translator app. use my app for football. >> fast finish strong. some both, some neither. >> i got three super bowl rings, you guys don't know anything about football but i got to talk to you. >> that's so barkley. just being completely honest. a coach or players going to say something, figure out what it means, barkley will say exactly what's trying to tell you, you guys don't know what you're doing, i'm man. >> jeff, thanks. you're our man. all right. wither going to hit the top of the hour now. we begin, of course, with presidential politics, the count down to the first fry mary of the 2012 race. tomorrow, voters in new hampshire will cast their votes for the republican nominee and mitt romney still leading the pack. here is the latest poll conducted by the university of new hampshire around wmur. it shows mitt romney with a commanding lead over ron paul, 41% to 17. jon huntsman, rick santorum and newt gingrich, way behind, locked in a statistical tie. rick perry's support, barely even rem gistering. this morning, the challengers hoping to close the gap by wing over last-minute converts and minutes from now, john huntsman is going to visit mary's bakery and cafe in hen neckar. later this house, rick santorum will reach out to the right with a town hall meeting on faith, family and freedom in sail rem. for santorum, it is already the second stop of the day. he began his campaigning last hour in nashua and that's where joe johns is standing by for us live. joe, santorum is back in new hampshire this morning but right after yesterday's debate, he actually jetted off to south carolina. >> he sure did. and just got back here this morning and i got to tell you, just checked out this event, the top of the hill here in nashua, new hampshire. shows how much momentum can change coming out of iowa. rick santorum was really flying high and then something seems to have happened. he is polling around 10% that would be good for fifth out of sixth place among the republican contenders. a little while ago that the convenient, attended by just about 100 people on a soccer field, he explained, it's been tough here in new hampshire. >> we buy in bulk. we are sam's club and cotsco folks and the way we operate to try to be as efficient as we can. we have run an efficient campaign. we have -- we have been able to go out and put together a campaign with probably i wouldn't even say 20% of the next highest person out there. obviously, if you are looking for someone who can put together ideas and motivate people and get things done and do it on a -- do it on a shoestring, well, you have evidence in this campaign. ideas matter. >> hasn't been able to really go up on tv with television ads in any meaningful way because the other guys have a lot of money. of course, they are able to do that. so tough for rick santorum, still hopeful he will do well here in new hampshire. and south carolina also hoping it will be a little bit of a different story because that is the rick santorum wheelhouse, as you know. a lot of conservative voters there, evangelicals who speak the language that he does. so, he is probably looking forward to getting south where it is a little bit warmer, care rah. >> how important is it that santorumdoes well in new hampshire before the south carolina primary? >> the bottom line with him is that he love do something. you come out of iowa running strong, you want to show a little bit of momentum here in new hampshire just to sort of hold your place, full, before you get to the next stop, which for some is going to be their last stand, you know, very possibly. going to be some people in this field who seat place very much make or break because of the social conservative and it being, of course, the first primary in the south, kyra. >> joe johns, following it closely. and is trying to seal the deal, out rallying supporters in new hampshire, trying to win over last-minute converts. jim acosta was at romney's breakfast convenient in nashua. that this where he is standing by live now. romney was attacked from all sides in the weekend debates. we have been talking about it all morning. >> that's right. he really was. but you have to say at this breakfast event he just wrapped up a few moments ago, the move was definitely sunny side up, feeling very confident going into tomorrow's new hampshire primary. he barely mentions his gop rivals when he gives speeches out on the campaign tray. he focused almost entirely on the president during his remarks here and they were basically focused on the economy. but i have to say, at the very end of this event, some news was made. a woman who called herself a uaw representative, a representative of the united auto workers union, interrupted romney's q & a section of this event that just wrapped up and asked him about his opposition to the general motors bailout, of course, the obama administration supported. and it was very interesting, mitt romney went in there and basically did not back down from his position on this issue, saying that he believes that the market works better than a president in his word, helping out his friends. and so it was a very tense exchange that went on the as soon as governor romney finished his remarks and answered this question, this event ended immediately. and as the woman was trying to talk to reporters, it was -- i haven't seep anything happen like this out on the campaign trail during this campaign, kyra. as the woman was trying to talk to reporters about her comments, why she came here, tried to question romney about his position on the gm bailout, the soundman here in the room turned up the music full blast so the reporters could not essentially hear what this woman had to say and all that had to go outside. this is the second time this has happened in the last 24 hours at an event last night in exeter, new hampshire, there were protesters who interrupted romney's event when he was with chris christie with the chant, romney kills jobs, romney kills jobs. all this is happening as romney appears to be coming under some criticism, some fire from the democratic side of thing bus not necessarily his rivals. we have about hearing from rivals the last few day bus not coming to his convenient and interrupting him. there are hecklers doing so and we saw that again this morning. >> jim acosta, continuing to get interesting. coming up, a slice of presidential politics with your morning coffee. we will talk with the own other of a landmark lanman chester -- landmark manchester diner about candidates that have stopped in. the parents of an american sentenced to death in iran say they are shock and terrified and say that iran has made a grave error. former marine was arrested in august while visiting his grandmother and convicted of spying. cnn's zain verjee watching the story for us from london. what do we know now, zane? >> his name, kyra is amir hekmati and he is 28 years old, from arizona. the farce news agency, a semiofficial news agency had to say he was working for an enemy company for membership in the cia and also for his efforts to accuse iran of involvement in terrorism. now, hekmati did a tour of iraq. his family is saying he is absolutely not guilty. they say what he did was he went over to iran back in august go visit his two grandmas there. they say, too, that they have tried to get a lawyer for him like ten times and each time, it has been rejected by the iranian government and the iranians themselves just appointed a state lawyer to represent him on the first day of the trial. the u.s. is saying release him immediately, that he is not guilty of any of the charges that they have leveled against him. the u.s. is represented by the swiss in iran because the u.s. and iran don't have any diplomatic relations since 1979 but the is swiss themselves weren't even allowed in a trial. so the video that we are seeing of this man, mr. hekmati is of one on iranian tv giving a so-called confession, kyra, but a lot of human rights groups says these confessions are really questionable, a lot of pressure to put on foam say things that the iranian government wants and not really that credible. kyra? >> we are going to poll three in dad toying these reports out this morning that iran is enriching uranium at a new nuclear site. what have you been able to find out? >> this is a worrying development. the reports coming out of iran is esepgtsly that they have a second nuclear facility in the north of the country and it's called the fordough nuclear enrichment plant, they stay is deep in the mountains and therefore, immune to military attack. iran's got something like 3,000 seine riff fines up and running. what iran is saying, they need to do this they need to enrich this uranium here because they need to create these radio isotopes used in treatment of cancer patients. they say that 800,000 patients need them so that's why they are doing it. the u.s. and other western countries thinks that that's not true, iran is pursuing a nuclear weapons program. they have slapped major sanctions on iran and iran has retaliate by threatening the u.s. and the rest of the world to close the strait of hormuz, which is a really big deal because something like 40% of the world's oil supply goes through these very narrow straits. kyra? >> zain verjee out of london us for. thanks. missing military equipment, soldiers on one military base on lockdown until investigators get some answers. and the red arrow diner is a required stop on the new hampshire campaign trail. we will talk with the own better most memorable candidates who have come by so far. ♪ you want to save money on car insurance? no problem. you want to save money on rv insurance? no problem. you want to save money on motorcycle insurance? no problem. you want to find a place to park all these things? fuggedaboud it. this is new york. hey 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[ female announcer ] the space of a small suv. the fuel efficiency of a prius. ♪ well, baby, can't you see the all-new prius v from toyota. ♪ come along with me have more fiber than other leading brands. they're the better way to enjoy your fiber. we are getting a rare first-hand look at the violence inside syria, facing more protest and thousands of people have reportedly been killed by security forces despite increased international pressure to stop. nic robertson is on the phone from damascus. nic, let's talk about what is unique about the new protests. >> reporter: the knew protests are really a continuation of what we are been receiving, the protest we attended today, anti-government protest, a couple thousand people, they were burying somebody, they said you can killed the previous day, a 32-year-old man. passions were very high. people were very angry, they were very afraid a lot of people were coming and showing us what they said were bullet wounds, bird shot wounds as well as some people showed us where they had been shot by forces loyal to the government. yet at the same time in the center of damascus today, large pro-government rally, people telling us that they love president bashar al assad. what is happening here, kai rark the ask dividing, polar rising. people are believing opposite things. some believe that the president is the right map for the country. there are others that don't. they are not talking to each other and this is really leading to a much more divided country than it was even a few months ago, kyra. >> what do you see as the future for al assad at this point? >> reporter: now, i'm on a busy street in the central as ma'am damn mass cuss, almost as if there is nothing going on the rest of the country, a leader at the moment who appears to be able to weather this storm. he has the loyalty of a significant part of his army. they are able to put down at the moment and prevent any growth of the revolt against him there are the opposition, living, they say, in here of the government. i think what we can see is the divisions are going to get -- divisions are going to get deeper. the arab monitors here who are here to monitor the government that is supposed to pull the heavy weapons off the street are largely been ineffective. the language they use they do not criticize the government here even though the government hasn't met what the arab league is telling it to do in terms of pulling weapons and troops off the street. so, divisions are getting big and we can expect the situation here at the moment stable but deteriorate in the future that is the direction it is going in, kyra. >> nic robertson there in damascus, we will continue to follow that story with you. back here at home, we are getting word now of a tornado warping near houston. alexandra steele following this for us what do we have? >> 9:45 until 9:45 central time. houston's in harris county, for two counties, harris county and fort bend county. you can see this delineates where this tornado warping is. law enforcement have reported seeing a funnel cloud near mission bend. this cell, moving east about 30 miles per hour. so locations in this tore died in warning are pretty big, the medical center in houston, reliant park, minute maid park, hobby airport, just to name a few. again this tornado, seen on radar moving east, 30 miles per hour, tornado warping now including the city of houston until 9:45 central time. a live look at houston right now. again this is offs to the south and west, moving north and east 30 miles per hour, so, if you are watching us, you do have a tornado warning scrolling across your screen, certainly take shelter immediately and more as we keep an eye on this. >> got t alexandra, thanks so much. >> sure. a papa john's pizza rhea in new york fires a cashier over this racist receipt. if you look closely, you can actually see how an asian-american customer is identified as lady chinky eyes. that customer posted a picture of the receipt on her twitter account over the weekend which quickly went viral. 100 soldiers are on lockdown at a washington state army and air force base. commanders at joint base louis mccord are reacting to reports of missing sensitive military equipment, including night lasers and gun scopes. take a look at this planned implosion. just a few seconds that happened 20-story building in house answers medical district came on down t has been md anderson cancer office space for 30 years. the houston chronicle says an aging foundation and asbestos made the building too costly to maintain. all right. the red arrow diner is the place to go in manchester, new hampshire, not just for famous chili or grilled cheese but if you are running for office it is the place see and be seen. carol sheehan has owned the diner since 1978 and meat a lot of presidential candidates as they have come through her digs. who has come through so far? >> we had romney come through huntsman come through and ron paul's son this morning and santorum has been through so far. >> so, who has impressed you the most? >> you know, unfortunately, this primary and they came by, it was a little over, you know, a week and a half two weeks ago when they started come by other than ron paul's son this morning, but i met santorum and i have met romney in the past because he has been into the dinary few times. so you know -- >> are you supporting one over another? >> no i'm not. you know, like a lot of the new hampshire voters right now, i'm undecided. i'm not sure. i'm just not sure. >> so, who drew the biggest crowd? >> this primary? talking this primary obviously? >> oh, yes. >> well, you probably don't know to know that because we were visited on saturday by ru paul. >> who doesn't want to be mistaken for ron paul as he is pimping his new show. that was the biggest crowd over romney, santorum and huntsman? >> >> can you believe it? yes. the last primary, all the candidates that came through, it was incredible. >> let me ask you this, the folks there in your diaper, what did they want to know from the candidates? what are the most important issues to them right now? >> i think what, you know, what my diners and most of new hampshire really want to know, you know, they are worried about jobs and health care and i think that we are looking for a presidential candidate that is going to do what they say. >> were they more impressed by one candidate versus another? >> they don't really say. i don't think so you know, some of them -- most of my customers really get into this time of year and a couple that grumble and -- you know? no one's really saying anything still this close to the primary. who knows what is going to happen. >> sounds like hillary clinton is still your favorite. i know when she came to visit, you couldn't be stopped talking about her. >> you know she -- for some reason, i just kind of assumed when she came, i assumed differently and i was really pleasantly surprised when she came. she was very gracious and really actually shook your hand and looked you in the eye and you know, up like a lot of the other ones that don't -- you know, just kind of there for, you know, whatever, i was pleasantly surprised with hillary clinton. >> carol sheehan, apparently the police to be, not only if you are a candidate but for some yummy chili, thanks for joining us this morning. >> thank you very much. thank you. >> you bet. the detroit auto show named its pick for car of the year and you will probably never guess which one that is. i will help you out t is not a luxury car. fling like a shadow of your former self? 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[ laughs ] hey! detroit auto show kicks off with a bang, car and truck of the year. alison kosik has the vehicles with the top honors for us. hey, alison. >> hey, kyra. >> you know what i love about the car of the year, before i tell you, some people turn their noses up at this car this automaker, and now this automaker is getting a car of the year. it is the hyundai elantra. now, the honors came out for the hyundai elantra during the detroit auto she could. it is actually open to the public on january 14th. this car beat out the ford focus, volkswagen pass sat as well and detroit automakers are doing okay but looks like they got shut out you can the top spot. hyundai's star, it has been rising lately. before today, eat lan tra was one of the top selling compact cars and hyundai and kia, south korean partners, captured 9% of u.s. market share last year, that's double from five years ago. now, truck of the year goes to the range rover evoke. the common theme with these winners, both are considered fuel efficient. if you want more information on what's happening at the detroit auto show, go to cnnmoney.com. great information there. >> should we expect some other big headlines out of the auto show? >> definitely. some reports say expect almost 40 new vehicles to be unveiled. that includes chrysler's dodge dart and buick's encore. automakers are trying to strut their stuff, puffing out the feathers because they are going through a big change from those recession year bus in a position to do so this time around with ford saying that the economy is expected to pick up this year. gm says more americans are more confident this year. we will have to see if all that confidence translates into sales. kyra? >> alison, thanks. a wrecked cargo ship from last year has split in two. we will tell you where, coming up. our intrepid political buzz panel will talk about the new book about the obamas. we will ask if it could influence the election. 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[ male announcer ] if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. checking top stories. a second iran nuclear facility has moved deep into the mountains. the facility immune to a military attack, they same iran still says there is a medical purpose behind its new program. a new zealand coastal area is getting some unwanted deb brachlt cargo ship that struck a reef last year has split in two. washed up items are causing quite a mess and hundreds of tops of oil have already leaked. bad weather is blamed for breaking up that ship. check your medicine cabinets. over-the-counter drugs in your home may contain broken pieces of other pills. pharmaceutical company novartis is voluntarily recalling ex-seine drain and no-doz with expiration dates between now and december of 2014. bufferin and gas x are recalled with an expiration date of december 2013 or earlier. political buzz, rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. three questions, 30 seconds on the clock and playing today, cnn contributors maria cardona, will cain and dana loesch. dana is a tea party activist and talk radio host. first question, guys, mitt romney trying to seal the deal in new hampshire, lead the pack by a large margin, do you see any other candidates making a serious 11th hour challenge? maria? >> sadly no, kyra and i still don't understand why it was that they waited to vet last debate to start going strong against romney who is an incredibly flawed candidate with incredibly flawed economic record that has a lot there to go after. but unfortunately in new hampshire, i think his lead has solidified, the big story is who comes in second, john huntsman that is a big story there he is on the rise. who know it is it will be enough, or if santorum comes in second, start consolidating the anybody but romney vote, the story out of new hampshire as well. >> will? >> i don't see anybody making an 11th hour push to catch romney. i do agree it is a race for second, third and fourth, but that's interesting to me for these reasons f it is jon huntsman what does that say about his future? is his second or third place finish close enough to romney to justify put putting money into his campaign? his dad one of the richest men in america l he put money in to push him to south carolina? if it is rick santorum talk about for second, third or fourth will rick santorum stay in the news? high enough to stay in the news and keep momentum going into those states. second, third and fourth. >> dana? >> i don't think anyone's gonna take romney on in new hampshire at this point. this is all about setting the same for south carolina. south carolina is where we will see the nonromney candidate emerge. i think that we will probably also see someone drop out of the race that person will probably be jon huntsman, especially if he doesn't have a good showing in new hampshire. santorum and huntsman are going to battle it out possibly for third place in new hampshire but a moderate's background -- backyard and i agree with mariey that that i don't know why some of these candidates are waiting until now to finally take on the front-runner t is shocking to me really. >> all right. a new book out tomorrow, guys, "the obamas," the first lady, their marriage, the presidency by jodi kantor. how could this help or hurt his re-elect ability in 2012? will? >> i don't think it helps. let's put it this way, nice little book how sweet and perfect their marriage is you are not going to ask me about it and we are not going to talk about. if it is the opposite it can hurt. we have heard stories from this book about robert gibbs cussing out michelle obama. if it is full of stories like that, that's gonna get people in the media talking you and is not going to help barack obama's elect ability. >> maria? >> it is going to have absolutely zero impact on the race, kyra. people are going to be focus old the economy. look this book is about an author's opinions, about an author's thoughts, who frankly had no access to the obamas in over three years. she didn't sit down for an interview with them for this book. it is all her opinions, period. and it is, frankly, talks about a spectacularly committed couple, committed to each other who are also spectacularly committed to the american people and this country and how to get the middle class successful again. that's what the focus is. >> dana? >> she may not have spoken with the first family but she did speak to individuals that were close with them or had access to their inner circle t is about the economy why the stories that come out of this book are important. you have an administration telling americans to scale back while at the same time this book is talking about all of the ways in which this administration personally and publicly are not scaling back. i think that is going to be huge, especially an election where populism is key. >> your buzzer batter, 20 seconds each on this one. okay, guys who doesn't love a delicious muff.at breakfast time unless maybe it's an angry muffin. peggy noonan of the "wall street journal" calling newt gingrich an angry little attack muffin. sadly, there's no mention whether it is blue berry, bran, english muffin what do you think? is it a fair description? maria? >> sadly for newt, it is a fair description and what republicans so scared of having him be the front-runner were afraid of and it has come to pass. he is his own worst enemy, some of the things he has been saying about romney are actually true, unfortunately, no one is listening because he is so angry. >> will? >> so there. so there. maria answer herd own question from the first question you asked. why haven't people gone after romney? answer dana's question, haven't gone after romney because when you do you look mean. you look like whatever kind of muffin we just talked about. newt has come off as the mean guy and that's why people haven't done it. >> dana? >> that's right. well, and mitt romney has pacs that do all the heavy lifting for him and newt gingrich has one. he is doing what they have been doing the entire election, which is investigate the front-runner. some of the candidates vying a vp job aren't willing to do. it is nice to see t gingrich may look angry to progressives, some conservatives like ourselves throwing up our hands saying, oh, my goodness, thank you, finally. >> i'm sending muff all your way in the next 20 minutes. thanks, guys. miley cyrus and kelly osbourne invite khloe kardashian for a nice evening but, well, someone got punked. that is next. fans are been a waiting for months, you only have to wait a few minutes here though. beyonce and jay-z's big news. this is an rc robotic claw. my high school science teacher made me what i am today. our science teacher helped us build it. ♪ now i'm a geologist at chevron, and i get to help science teachers. it has four servo motors and a wireless microcontroller. over the last three years we've put nearly 100 million dollars into american education. that's thousands of kids learning to love science. ♪ isn't that cool? and that's pretty cool. ♪ live pictures out of houston, texas. we are still following that tornado warping that apparently is going to be in effect for about another 15 minutes or so we are keeping a close eye on it, thanks to our affiliate kprc for these pictures out of houston. tim tebow got his magic back just in time for the denver broncos' playoff game against pittsburgh. second quarter, tebow run us in for the score to put denver up 14-6 on the steelers. tebow had his best passing game as a bronco, by the way, see how fired up he is. late in the fourth quarter, steelers quarterback ben roethlisberger rolls out, jerricho cotchery, ties the score, going into overtime, not for long, first snap, tebow to thomas, stiff arm, scores the touchdown, tebow, nope for his faith, as you know. his fans pointing out he passed toer 316 -- for 316 yards, 3:16, you know the verse. thomas was born on christmas. broncos win 21-23. presidential politics in new hampshire, two debates, 12 hours, one big question, did the weekend showdowns change the landscape for tomorrow's primary? paul steinhauser has that coming up. cut. cut! [ monica ] i thought we'd be on location for 3 days -- it's been 3 weeks. so i had to pick up some more things. good thing i've got the citi simplicity card. i don't get hit with a fee if i'm late with a payment... which is good because on this job, no! bigger! [ monica ] i may not be home for a while. [ male announcer ] the new citi simplicity card. no late fees. no penalty rate. no worries. ♪ tell me what you really mean ♪ do you know what you want? ♪ while beating up on yesterday ♪ ♪ rolling on, moving on [ female announcer ] the space of a small suv. and more ways to connect to your world. ♪ do you know what you are? the all-new prius v from toyota. ♪ do you know? so you remember this revealing performance on mtv just a few months ago? ♪ >> well, aj, according to e! online, beyonce finally gave birth? >> yes, she did, kyra, the news a little harder to keep under wraps, of course, even for this notoriously private couple. now, they are not officially confirming it yet but b and her husband, jay-z did welcome their daughter saturday night at lenox hill hospital in new york city via a scheduled c-section, according to e news. jmt jail-z saying they have named her blue ivy carter with ivy a play on the roman numeral iv, and recurring number for beyonce and jay, born on the 4th, married on the fourth of the fourth month of the year and the reports that lenox hill hospital employees, kyra, are saying beyonce and jay-z paid $1.3 million to seal off and completely redecorate a wing of the hospital where the baby was born. you can certainly understand they would want extra security measures in place but i don't see a day where they will be confessing that they took over the hospital in a fashion like that. just unbecoming. what you did though, right you took it over, redecorated and spent about a million bucks. >> oh, exactly. i don't think so. started saving lot more. what is the deal with kim car darrion's sister, khloe, getting punked? >> mtv is bringing back the hit show "punk'd" and making a splash right ato do that go after a kardashian, right? the network released a early clip of the show, got everybody talking. it shows kim k's little sister, khloe, punked by her friends, miley cyrus and kelly osbourne, particularly embarrassing watch picture this setup for a prank. khloe comes out to hang with miley and kell lakers delivery man comes to the door, asks a-to-use the restroom, you hear the screaming, he emerges with privates caught in his zipper around unsuspecting khloe who has to call 911 relate store rained tell the guy what he has to do. i tell you i'm getting uncomfortable talking about it i will leave it right there. airs in march when "punk'd" is relaunching, but it is quite a way to kick things off. >> i hope you never get "punked" a.j. we will see you back here tomorrow. anything breaking in the entertainment world, including all the punks, aj has it, "showbiz tonight," 11 a.m. tomorrow's first of the nation primary, today, they are fanning out across the state but across the weekend, toe-to-toe, two gop debates for less than 11 hours. let's break down the memorable moment he is. >> this experience doesn't necessarily match up with being the commander in chief of this country. >> i think people who spend their life in washington don't understand what happens in the real economy. they think that people who start businesses are just manager he is >> here's what frustrates me, you go get the earmarks and then you vote against the bill? i don't know what that call that in other place bus congressman paul in texas, we call that hip to be po pock crisis. >> you have convinced a lot of people so somebody has to point out your record. >> i convinced a lot of people of it because my record is actually pretty darn good. >> somebody did make a survey and the top corrupted individuals because he took so much money from the lobbyists, but really what the whole -- there it goes again. >> caught you not telling the truth, ron. >> dr. paul has a long history of saying things inaccurate and false and i personally resent the kind of comment and aspersions you he routinely makes without accurate information and slurs people w. >> i'm sorry, governor, you were the last two years implementing the policies of this administration in china. the rest of us were doing our best to get republicans elected across the country and stop the policies of this president being put forward. >> as they would say in china, mitt [ speaking chinese ] he doesn't understand the situation. what he is calling for would make for a trade war. easy talk and nice applause line but far from reality. >> i would send troops back into iraq. >> now? >> i think we start talking with the iraqi individuals there, i think it is a huge error for us, we are going to see iran in my opinion, move back in he it at the speed of light. >> iranian people have taken to the streets repeatedly, still do, trying to overlow throw their government, a president of the united states who stood silently by as thousands were killed on the streets. >> worried about the iranians in iraq, develop a strategy to replace the iranian dictatorship and iraq will be fine. >> we have been at the war on terror ten years now, strengthened civil society, helped the military, helped the police, i believe it is time to come home. >> straight to manchester new hampshire now, cn this deputy director paul stein hours. did the debates change the playing field there? >> i don't think so the doubleheader saturday night/sunday morning. smith front runner, expected him to come under attack, he did especially the sunday morning debate, he gave almost as good as he got, the dynamics here are not changing, two brand new polls out in the last 12 hours, some taken partially before and after these debates, guess what mitt romney still the front runner here in new hampshire, ron paul, second spot, gingrich, is santorum, huntsman all battling for third position. polls can change. we will see what happens 24 hours from now you that is the lay of the land as we speak this morning, kyra. >> could romney's record from his years at bain capital come back to hurt him? >> it could and we have seen the candidates and the democrats start to question him about that. as romney runs for president he touts himself a job creator and businessman and talks about years at bain capital, private equity firm and creating 100,000 jobs. others are saying, no there was a net loss of jobs when romney was at bain, now an independent group, super pacs, supporting newt gingrich, putting up big ads in south carolina, spending lots of money talking about that. kyra? >> paul stipe houser, thanks so much. straight ahead, a deported teen back home in texas a year after disappearing but questions remain about what exactly happened to her. that story is next. a texas teenager is back home months after running away and being deported but the mystery is far from solved. cnn's ed lavandera reports. >> reporter: jakadrein turner spent her first weekend in her own bed in her own dallas home that she hasn't seen more than a year, a family friend tells us she was enjoying being around her mother and grandmother again. >> family's ecstatic. we are happy to have their daughter home. we are planning to get some rest, planning to do what we can to make sure that she is able to get back to living a normal life. >> reporter: with many people anxiously awaiting for jakadrein turner to start unlocking the secrets about how she turned herself into tika cortez and ended up in colombia, her family is quickly realizing that getting back to normal won't be easy. the 15-year-old is pregnant and needs critical medical checkups there and are investigators who will spend hours asking questions about why she ran away and how she got herself deported to colombia. >> you know, i don't necessarily know that she really ran away from something as much as she may have ran to something. >> reporter: dana amess the director of the united search and response rescue team, a nonprofit group that counsels families searching for missing loved ones, ames. spent the last seven months helping her family search for the runaway. the mother and grandmother believe the young girl was lured and coerced into a dangerous underworld of sex and drugs. ames believes jakadrein was preyed upon and the troubled teen was not acting alone when she adopted the made-up name tika cortez and got herself deported following her arrest in houston following shoplifting. >> i think the child was groomed. i believe we will find out that there were quite a number of adults involved. i don't believe for one minute that this child concocted this plan. >> reporter: studying eight months of facebook postings associated with tika cortez there are pictures of jakadrein turner enjoying life in bogota and show relationships with various men. >> although it looks like she was a willing participant, i truly anticipate that the information that's going to come forth is going to indeed show that she was not necessarily willing. she may have cooperated, and there was probably a lot of coercion involved, but i don't necessarily believe that she just willingly created this plan and went to colombia. >> as you mentioned that the girl will speak with the investigators, which agencies are investigating this? >> it was interesting, when she arrived here in dallas, friday night, about 7:00 in the evening, central time, it wasn't until about 10:00 that she was reunited with family members. wither told that she had met with immigrations, customs enforcement agents child as well as child protective service investigators and spent quite a few, several, three hours on friday night talking you and do know that other detectives here, the local agencies here in dallas want to speak with her as well. this is a long process and this family niece getting back to normal here will take quite some time. kyra? >> indeed. all right. ed lavandera, continue to follow the case with you. we appreciate it. >> you got it. all right. let's flash forward to events happening later today. louisiana governor bobby jindal will be sworn in for a second term in an hour, around noon eastern. the republican first took office in 2008 as the nation's first elected indian-american governor. also around noon, president obama will welcome the dallas match rockies the white house. he will congratulate them for winning the 2011 nba championship. and brad pitt and meryl streep are among the stars expect ted new york film critics circle awards. that ceremony begins at 5 eastern. so, who has better sex, a 25-year-old or a 60-year-old? well, the results of a new study on older women and their sex lives might surprise you. elizabeth cohen is going to join us in our noon hour with details. and as republican voters are picking their candidate for 2012, some democrats are talking about a new ticket for the white house. talking about an obama/hillary clinton ticket. in our noon hour, joined by "new york times" writer bill keller who has interesting reasons why an obama/clinton ticket is just the thing for a democratic win in 2012. wi your buddies? lost your appetite for romance? and your mood is on its way down. you might not just be getting older. you might have a treatable condition called low testosterone or low t. millions of men, forty-five or older, may have low t. so talk to your doctor about low t. hey, michael! [ male announcer ] and step out of the shadows. hi! how are you? [ male announcer ] learn more at isitlowt.com. [ laughs ] hey! on my journey across america, i've learned that when you ask someone in texas if they want "big" savings on car insurance, it's a bit like asking if they want a big hat... ...'scuse me... ...or a big steak... ...or big hair... i think we have our answer. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. can you enjoy vegetables with sauce and still reach your weight loss goals? you can with green giant frozen vegetables. over twenty delicious varieties have sixty calories or less per serving and are now weight watchers-endorsed. try green giant frozen vegetables with sauce. chris christie had mitt romney's back in new hampshire. tell butts up scripted moment, shall we say? >> running for president serious business but times like these that make it very fun if not very interesting, let's hear what chris christie said last night to some hecklers who don't think that he is doing a good job at creating jobs. >> americans are right to be angry, they are right to be disappointed in the government that in washington, d.c. is doing nothing but posturing and bickering and solving nothing for the people who wind up needing, needing to get this done. really? [ applause ] you know, some may go down tonight but it ain't gonna be jobs, sweetheart. >> you know, kyra, you know, kyra that is chris christie at his best, sometime he is doesn't have a governor on necessarily. he speaks his mind a lot of people would like to see chris christie as the vice presidential running mate for mitt romney, whoever wins the republican presidential nomination, some like to see him be the vp because there will be a a lot of moments like that, kyra. >> what do you think? is it going to help or hurt romney? >> you know, it's funny if you see the governor's reaction in the background, he seemed a little shaken by that. by shaken, i say a little bit surprised. talk about a contrast in personalities, chris christie the street brawler are, mitt romney not so much. not going to hurt him but i'm sure mitt romney would prefer if chris christie didn't say that too often. >> mark prince, appreciate it. your next political update just about an hour. also go to our website 24/7 for all politics. street brawler. i wound if ashleigh been a field has any street brawler in her? i want to go all chris crist crist test on you going right to the end of the stage, mm-hmm. >> i just want to hug you. he is great. he always has the moments, doesn't he? create the homes. >> a walking episode of "the sopranos." >> that was a "con brahm know moment." i would not boo chris christie. coming after me. >> i wonder if she is alive today. >> have a great show. >> thank you. a whole bump of great stuff coming up. live from studio 7, that was such an announcement. how ridiculous is that? get you up to speed for this monday, january 9th. okay. it is primary eve in new hampshire if you didn't know it republican presidential candidates are all over the state, scrambling for those last-minute votes. newt gingrich is holding a town hall meeting right about now in manchester, new hampshire. polls are showing that mitt romney has a rather substantial lead heading into the nation's first primary. gingrich is in fourth or fifth place, depend wig poll you have been looking at and we have been tracking them all as the candidates trek across the itty-bitty state of new hampshire. several of them have campaign stops in the ex-two hours, we will be watching those events. john huntsman visiting concord, new hampshire, 15 minutes from now mitt romney is in huds. a little later ts

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