columbia. that's why we are reporting from outside. there are major developments involving cell phones, information that you need to know from the world health organization about the possible danger of cell phone use and cancer. stand by. elizabeth cohen has a full report. we're also watching bin laden and the black money trail. new information coming in on money and bin laden. stand by for that as well. we'll have the latest on anthony weiner, the congressman from new york. our own dana bash is following up on this story. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." but we begin with major developments involving cell phone use and you. information that you need to know right now. the world health organization for the first time has raised a serious possibility of a link between cell phone use and cancer. here's our report. what did this world health organization report conclude? >> the who concluded that cell phone are a possible carcinogen for humans. this is a really big deal. we've never had a group this large, this prestigious that said that there may be a link between cell phones and cancer. this now puts cell phones into a category with several other things. the who says that, for example, lead is a possible carcinogen and engine exhaust is also and chloroform. that gives us an idea of how seriously they are taking us. >> should we all be freaking out? we all use cell phones. >> one of the things that i worry about is that people are going to hear me and freak out and feel that they are toxic and shouldn't be using them and that's not the conclusion that experts want people to come from. one cell phone conversation is not going to give you cancer. this risk is something that is accumulated over a period of, you know, months and years of using your cell phone over and over again. so that is not the conclusion. you shouldn't freak out. first of all, if you spent a lot of time with the cell phone next to your head, that's done. it's over. and but don't drop your phone. it's not going to kill you. >> so moving forward, what do we do? >> that's the other reason not to freak out, wolf. there is something that you can do. i'm happy to say that what you can do is not do this. holding the cell phone to your head. the radiation is going into your head. use a headset. that way you plug the headset into your phone and then you can hold your phone at a distance so that the radiation gets emitted into the air instead of into your head. it reduces it by a huge amount. >> i use one of those blue tooth ear pieces. is that safe? >> absolutely. that reduces the radiation by a huge amount as well. there's been a discussion about which is better a. wired headset or a bluetooth but the bottom line is, using a blue tooth or wired ear piece is way better than holding it to your head. >> what does that mean to the cell phones out there? >> i think the ftc may tell cell phone companies, can you figure out a way to make your cell phones emit less radiation? we got in touch with a group that makes cell phones and this is what they say. this classification from the who does not mean that cell phones cause cancer. the w.h.o. finding is based on limits evidence. so that's the response from the cell phone industry. >> bottom line, if you have a cell phone, put it on speaker if you can do that if you don't have a headset or something like that which is obviously so much better. thanks so much. >> yes. there is something that we can do. thanks. >> we're all going to try to do it. elizabeth, thank you very much. the worst thing you can do is hold it up to your ear all the time. good advice. appreciate it. now to the uprising in syria. including a reversal by president bashar al assad. saying that he will grant amnesty for protesters arrested for various alleged crimes. the same protesters that were called terrorists. arwa is covering thl and is live from beirut. potentially a significant development but a lot of people are taking it with a huge grain of salt. >> reporter: that's right, wolf. there most certainly is a lot of skepticism surrounding this so-called amnesty that was initially announced on state-owned television and then there was an elaboration on the news agency. this is not necessarily an amnesty in that it's not a decree and more of a reduction in individuals prison terms. those that received a life sentence, for example, would be imprisoned for 20 years. those who received the death sentence would see that reduced to serving out a life sentence. many people, though, are saying that this is merely a superficial mood, that it falls into the same pattern that we have been seeing, where on the one hand they appear to be making concessions but on the other hand they do continue to employ the same, brutal tactics. wolf? >> is there any sense that what bashar al assad is doing is going to make an impact on the protesters? they seem so determined to try to get their way. >> reporter: they are determined, wolf. as each day goes by, they grow even more determined. what we have been seeing since the onset is that this was an up rising that began in asking for reforms and has now ended up asking for the removal of the regime. activists are grieving this so-called amnesty, saying that this is just a move to try to temporarily apiece them, perhaps a move to buy itself some more time. activists are adamant at this stage that there are only two possible outcomes for this uprising in syria. that is that the regime step down and the other, they are telling us that he will have to militarily crush the opposition. activists repeatedly talking about how this is not a regime that they believe is capable of reform. they continue to point to the fact that on the one hand the regime continues to promise reforms. remember, assad did lift the emergency law over a month ago but at the same time that has not led to any sort of different behavior when it comes to how the regime is dealing with the demonstrators. the regime continues to call the demonstrators terrorists, saying that it is simply targeting armed groups fueled by out size sources and are intent on destabilizing it, wolf. >> arwa, thank you. we're doing the best we can under the circumstances. later here in "the situation room" i'll get a full briefing from a professor of the john hopkins university. into meanwhile, another international financial figure now stands accused of sexually assaulting a luxury hotel maid. deborah is working the story for us. we're told the chairman of the former head of the egyptian bank in egypt is now under arrest. police say he sexually abused a staffer at the pierre hotel in new york a woman came into his room toll drop off tissues that he had requested and this comes two weeks after the head of the international monetary fund was accused of raping a housekeeper. what specific information, in addition to that, deborah, do you have? >> well, what is so start belg about this is how quickly it has happened again after the incident involving the former head of the imf, dominique strauss-kahn. but this guest, staying at a five-star hotel, called down to housekeeping asking for a box of tissues. when the housekeeper arrived, she handed him the box of tissues and not sure why she entered the room but that's when mr. omar closed the door behind her and the alleged molestation occurred. the incident was reported to a manager on duty, this happening sunday evening. however, we are told that in fact the night manager said that the woman who reported it the following day which she did and that's when police were called. all of that under investigation. because clearly if there was any forensic evidence, it could have been compromised because of the time delay. six hours is when the incident allegedly happened. police did not arrive until 11:00 the next morning. all of that under the investigation. the pierre hotel says it supports the investigation. it is doing what it can to help. but, again, this happening so closely after the late -- after the last incident. mr. omar is scheduled to be arraigned and the charges against him expected to include sexual abuse, unlawful imprisonment, and forceful touching and harassment. a lot to digest there with all of this happening and why now is always the question, especially with all of the press that mr. strauss-kahn received. wolf? >> do we know why they waited to report this incident, you said 24 hours? >> it seems to be that the night manager on duty simply put it in the log and that the woman was to come back the next day. she's a 44-year-old woman. that's what she did. we were told by the hotel that that manager who gave those instructions, well, he has been suspended, wolf. >> deborah on the scene for us, let's bring in mary snow. the union representing these hotel workers is asking for more security. what is going on? >> the union also citing that lapse in the reporting time now asking for more training, more training for what to do when an incident like this is reported but they have asked the pierre hotel to equip workers with an electronic device that would alert security once you push it. the hotel is looking to buy these kinds of devices for their workers a state lawmaker has also suggested that all employees be equipped with this and saying that it is something that they are looking into. a number of security and safety measures are being under consideration. anthony is a security consultant to the hotels, and here's what he told us. >> approximately a dozen a year are reported to us. and they -- >> from across the country? >> from across the united states. and they range from exposing one self, the guest ex posting one self to the maid, to touching, to propositioning, to sexual assault itself is a reasonably rare report. approximately twice a year. in our estimation. however, we believe that's severely underreported. >> and he said that he believes it's severely underreported because the hotel housekeepers are immigrant, hard workers, and afraid to come forward and he believes that's one of the reasons why they don't come forward and we spoke to a former hotel worker who was a hotel housekeeper and is now a union organizer. she told us she really wasn't so surprised, unfortunately, by these reported incidents and that while she had been working at a hotel for more than a decade, she and other workers felt that they really couldn't come forward and report these incidents. wolf? >> mary snow with the latest on this case and a trend that seems to be developing. thanks, mary. thanks very much. congressman anthony weiner is trying to downplay a lewd photo briefly placed on his twitter account account. dana bash is standing by on capitol hill. also, home prices that were on the rebound take a turn for the worse. we're taking a closer look at what is driving them down. and find out why charges have been refiled against the alleged conspirators behind the 9/11 attacks. stay with us. you're in "the situation room." [ wind howling ] [ technician ] are you busy? management just sent over these new technical manuals. they need you to translate them into portuguese. by tomorrow. [ male announcer ] ducati knows it's better for xerox to manage their global publications. so they can focus on building amazing bikes. with xerox, you're ready for real business. producing products that save on fuel and emissions like ecopia tires... even making parts for solar panels that harness the sun's energy... working on social activities like clean up programs on beaches in many locations... and regional replanting activities that will help make a better world for all of us. ♪ one team. one planet bridgestone. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] and just like that, it's here. a new chance for all of us: people, companies, communities to face the challenges yesterday left behind and the ones tomorrow will bring. prudential. bring your challenges. jack cafferty is here with the cafferty file. jack? >> you'll recall bin laden is dead now and we're still fighting and dying in afghanistan. the u.s. death toll recently went past the benchmark of 1500. in a speech of september 2009, president obama announced that he would begin the withdraw of troops in july 2011. now we are all waiting to hear this plan. the pressure is mounting from unlikely places. house democrats are backing more vocal on afghanistan and pushing for an accelerated withdrawal plan and want the president to go after a settlement with all interested and that compares to the approval rating of 48% of nonmilitary americans who approve of the performance in office. we're still in iraq. we were told we would be in libya for a matter of couple of days, remember? that was more than two months ago. afghanistan has never been conquered. the russians gave up after 2 1/2 years. the karzai government is a joke. it's uneffective and a joke. the schools in afghanistan teach young children how to hate the united states. the population cannot read but teach their kids how to hate our guts. when it comes to the war in afghanistan, how much is enough? go to cnn.com/caffertyfile and post a comment on my blog. wolf? >> jack, thank you. pesky prank or something more? democratic congressman anthony weiner of new york has now hired an attorney after a lewd photo briefly appeared on his twitter account. said that his account was hacked and that someone sent it to a 21-year-old college student under his name and that the media have better things to do with its time. listen to this. >> i'm going to return to working on stories that i care about. this is a distraction and i'm not going to let it distract me. >> he may have a tough time getting the media to back away. jeffrey toobin is standing by live in new york. some of the issues fueling this controversy is his refusal to answer certain questions. how much of a problem is that? >> i think frankly the whole thing is a pretty minor problem. regardless of who did this, i think -- i don't know what happened here but this is a fairly small tempis, as far as i can tell. >> some people are saying if your twitter account was hacked by someone sending lewd photos, the least you could do is notify the police that you've got a problem to make sure that it doesn't happen again. apparently he didn't do either of those things. >> he didn't do those things but frankly there is no obligation on a public figure or even a private figure to seek out an investigation of a single possible hack, a possible frank. anthony weiner is looking at this as a politician as well as a potential victim or perpetrator of something wrong and i think at this point all he wants is to make this thing go away and an investigation would simply extend it further. i cannot imagine anyone bringing charges under any circumstances whether weiner sent this, whether someone else sent it. it seems like it was a funny story at first for him. he's no longer seeing the humor in it. i think he wants to make it go away so an investigation would just he can tend it. >> is it a crime for someone to break into your twitter kaccoun, hack it, and send a lewd photo? >> you know, i think that is an interesting legal question at the frontier of social media and criminal law that has not really been settled at all. i don't believe there has ever been a prosecution but it may fit within some definitions of wire fraud. if the government were to prosecute someone for basically stealing someone's twitter identity, i am certain they would take a more dramatic case than this, someone that did it multiple times. i cannot expect any agency opening a full flej investigation over a single lewd but not obscene tweet. if it's something that federal prosecutors with the full range of american crimes would get involved in. >> jeffrey toobin, thanks very much. later in "the situation room," dana bash, our senior congressional correspondent is going to have new information. meanwhile, a tour bus veers off i-95 in virginia and flips over. now four passengers are dead and dozen more are injured. what investigators think caused this tragic accident. stay with us. you're in "the situation room." ♪ ♪ membership rewards points from american express. they're a social currency with endless possibilities. president obama makes his pick for the commerce department. brooke baldwin is monitoring that and some of the other top stories in "the situation room" right now. what is going on, brooke? >> wolf, let's begin with that. president obama has nominated john bryson as his new commerce secretary. could have a tough time getting confirmed. republicans have threatened to hold up confirmation until trade agreements wi agreements and says that lawmakers he wants to extend job restraining first. and ratko mladic was extradited after losing his appeal. he's accused of atrocities in bosnia's civil war includes a massacre in which bosnia and muslim boys, some 8,000 were killed. and look at these pictures. investigators blame driver fatigue for the deadly crash of a tour bus on busy i-95 in virginia today. four passengers were killed when the sky express bus just veered off the road. you can see it's overturned. dozens of riders are hospitalized with injuries. police say charges against the driver are pending. wolf, back out to you. >> yeah, we lost power and a big chunk of washington, d.c. that's where we are broadcasting from right now outside. hopefully that power will be coming back. we don't know why power has gone down in major chunks of the nation's capital. brooke, thank you very much. new numbers on the number of people missing after the tornado that ravaged joplin, missouri. casey wian? >> i'm coming to you from los angeles. there is good news from the battered community. the department of safety saying that the number of unaccounted for people has now been reduced to ten. if you remember, that number started out as high as 1500 in the days after the tornado. just thursday of last week there was still over 200 people identified as missing. they have now got that number down to ten. so that is some welcome news for the residents of that community. the death poll, however, still stands at around 140 people. there are 146 sets of human remains that they have found. they don't know because of the severity of that tornado and the damage that it did to those bodies, whether some of those remains may in fact be duplicate. i want to report that a search and rescue operation continues to be under way there. it's kind of amazing that after this tornado struck this community and leveled a third of the structures. they are still going through that rubble and searching for potential victims. they have gone through most of the community five times now and they are preparing to conduct a sixth go around with dogs and volunteers trying to find whom -- whoever may be buried under that rubble. 7,000 people volunteered, officially have volunteered to help in joplin and they think that there are thousands more that have not registered. lots of people from around the country helping out there. >> that always happens. imagine if your home lost 70% of its value in five years. that's a reality for some homeowners. we're taking a closer look right now into this story. why is this going on? and we're on the trail of what is known as the terrorist banking system that helped keep osama bin laden in business. much more coming up right here in "the situation room." ♪ could that have also inspired its 556 horsepower supercharged engine? ♪ the all-new cadillac cts-v coupe. we don't just make luxury cars, we make cadillacs. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 are still talking about retirement tdd# 1-800-345-2550 like it's some kind of dream. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 it's either this magic number i'm supposed to reach, or... tdd# 1-800-345-2550 it's beach homes or it's starting a vineyard. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 come on ! tdd# 1-800-345-2550 just help me figure it out tdd# 1-800-345-2550 in a practical, let's-make- this-happen kind of way. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 a vineyard ? schwab real life retirement services is personalized, tdd# 1-800-345-2550 practical help that's focused on making your retirement real. open an account today and talk to chuck tdd# 1-800-345-2550 about setting up your one-on-one consultation. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 host: could switching to geico reon car insurance? or more host: do people use smartphones to do dumb things? man 1: send, that is the weekend. app grapgic: yeah dawg! man 2: allow me to crack...the bubbly! man 1: don't mind if i doozy. man 3: is a gentleman with a brostache invited over to this party? man 1: only if he's ready to rock! ♪ sfx: guitar and trumpet jam vo: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. ♪ well, you know i love it too ♪ ♪ you love money ♪ well, you know i love it too ♪ ♪ i work so hard at my job ♪ and then i bring it home to you ♪ ♪ i love money in my pocket if you're trying to sell your home or thinking about trk the widely watched index shows home prices right now in this country have fallen back down to the lowest levels since the housing market collapsed. gains made in recent years have been wiped out in major parts of the country. there is a major lining to this set back there. are some remarkable deals out there for home buyers. lisa sylvester has been looking into this story for us but if you're a homeowner and see the value of your property plummet, you're very nervous. >> yes. in fact, many people thought the housing market was rebounding and recovering. if you thought that, guess what? it's not the case. new data suggests that we're in a double dip. you're recall that the market was skyrocketing and everybody was happy and feeling very house rich. now fast forward. then you have 2006. you have the bubble burst and what we're seeing is a bit of a recovery and now it's come back down again. that's what people are calling a double dip and it's a big concern. new data from the s&p case schiller that shows in the first quarter of this year housing prices fell more than 4% nationwide. there are some cities, washington, d.c., is an exception, where values have been sustained and there are also other places. one place in particular, arizona. i want to talk about a neighborhood north of phoenix. el mirage, arizona. home values have lost 50 to 60%. so a house selling at 200,000 back in 2006, that house is selling for $70,000. and that is according to arizona realtor, john greer. >> this is a short sale property which means that the owner owes more on the property than what the house is worth. what it will sell for. this house, the list price is $70,000. probably was worth 60, possibly 70% more than that during the peak. >> reporter: you know, and that is a real concern. and another thing, wolf, there are so many bank-owned properties. there are more than 800,000 bank-owned properties and they have a glut of these foreclosed properties and that doesn't look good in terms of the market turning around in the short term. >> how do we turn things around? >> they say a lot of this is tied to the job market and that's part of the problem. you have people unemployed athey lose their jobs, they are not able to pay for their house, and it's going to take time. you've got to get people back to work and lenders lending again. that's a really key point, wolf. >> you're in the d.c. metropolitan area and you're sell sheltered from some of this. florida, california, arizona -- >> yeah, those places have been hit really, really hard. >> lisa, thanks very much. sarah palin's bus tour may be leaving for possible rivals for the presidential nomination way behind. at least in the media dust. stand by for our strategy session. and will the death of a 13-year-old boy be a turning point in syria's revolution? ♪ ♪ ♪ introducing purina one beyond a new food for your cat or dog. we're going to head on into the interview. ivan . . . ivan . . . alright, go ahead, right in front. what's your favorite piece of technology besides the engine? it would have to be the sync. i use it everyday, all the time. what do you think ford is doing right? striking a balance. you need to have the balance of fuel efficiency, with today's economy, and you absolutely need that horsepower. do you think your car looks good in here? i think it looks good, but it think it would look better if i was in it. >> announcer: this past year alone there's been a 67% spike in companies embracing the cloud-- big clouds, small ones, public, private, even hybrid. your data and apps must move easily and securely to reach many clouds, not just one. that's why the network that connects, protects, and lets your data move fearlessly through the clouds means more than ever. sar a palin is playing hard to get, keeping the media guessing about her mystery bus tour as she makes her way across historic sites, sparking a lot of buzz about a possible white house run. gloria borger is here with me. what is she trying to do? >> she is very much trying to rebrand herself. she has 61% unfavorable rating among independent voters. 59% overall. she does much better with republicans. but if you want to go out there and have an impact on policy, you have to prove to the republican party and so voters that you can beat barack obama and that you're worth listening to and i think there are people that i have spoken with, republican strategists who say that she has been too relentlessly negative and ought not give thought to resentment and that's what we hear her doing on this tour. i think it's a bit of redoing of the brand of sarah palin. >> improving the brand for her own personal fortune, shall we say? she's been making millions of dollars since giving up the governor ship of alaska or improving her brand to run for the republican nomination. >> well, we don't know, do we? i've been talking to republican strategists who say that there's absolutely no sign in the early states that she is hiring the requisite staff that you would need. but if you talk to people close to sarah palin, they will tell you that they believe it's a spontaneous thing, that she would not need to run a conventional campaign, that people would come out of the woodwork to help her and support her. they say we judge these things don't count when it comes to sarah palin. >> she may be right because she has 100% name recognition? >> she does. >> the problem is, a lot of that is unfavorable and republicans more than anything else want to beat barack obama and you're not going to win a republican primary contest when people think you're unelectable. so being electable is the key thing here and in many ways i think if sarah palin were to get in, the beneficiary of sarah palin getting in would be mitt romney. and the reason for that is, it would freeze the rest of the field, republicans would start looking towards a candidate that they thought could beat barack obama, and he could be the last guy standing out there. >> because a lot of republicans have said to me, as much as they like sarah palin, they think she's dynamic and has great ideas, she could turn out to a sharron angle who lost a tea party favorite or christine o'donnell who lost to chris, a mainstream democrat. she might be able to get the republican nomination but these republicans are concerned that there's no way she could win on election. >> right. and you have to judge this state by state. sarah palin may have a good shot but if you go to a state like mitt romney in new hampshire, she could have a more difficult time. so you have to work your way through the primary process. the question i have about sarah palin, and one of the things that we've seen in the republican field is that other people have been getting more attention. donald trump got an awful lot of attention. mitt romney, tim pawlenty getting a lot of attention. she takes up all of the oxygen but we'll see what happens when the tour is over. >> you've heard that one scenario unfold, how she becomes president of the united states. i'll walk you through it briefly. she wins iowa, does well in south carolina, goes on and gets the republican nomination and then a third party candidate like michael bloomberg decides to run and no one gets the electoral votes. it goes to the house of representatives where there is a clear republican majority. >> for sarah palin, right? >> for sarah palin and if no one gets 270 electoral votes, the house of representatives decides who is the next president. >> we can spin out all of these scenarios all we want. we love spinning out these scenarios. i think first thing is first. sarah palin has to declare whether indeed she is a ka da see for the president of the united states and she has been saying i haven't decided yet. this is her version of a family vacation, except there's a bigger bus than an rv most families would take. >> it's a really nice bus. >> not as nice as the cnn election express. >> we have a lovely bus, too. programming note, the presidential debate now more than two weeks away. monday night june 13th as the republican nominees square off on the issues. only on cnn. pressure is mounting on president obama to pull u.s. troops out of afghanistan. he promises the withdrawal will begin in july. what is going on? when it comes to the war in afghanistan, how much is enough? you're telling jack cafferty what you think. and a young boy is detained by syrian authorities. but it is what happened next that is the uprising and causing other children to say enough is enough. man: all right. we were actually thinking, maybe... we're going to hike up here, so we'll catch up with you guys. [ indistinct talking and laughter ] whew! i think it's worth it. working with a partner you can trust is always a good decision. massmutual. let our financial professionals help you reach your goals. ♪ [ male announcer ] humble beginnings are true beginnings. they are the purest way to gauge success. ♪ maybe the only way to gauge success. but the most powerful thing about humble beginnings is that they are... ♪ ...humbling. ♪ show where you're going without forgetting where you're from. ♪ with your host, betty white. featuring lifetime aarp member, betty white. and betty white. i'm sorry, betty isn't here. [ male announcer ] with outstanding performances by the bettys. if you're 50 or over but hesitant to join aarp because you think it makes you old, i have a very important message: [ all ] get over it! [ male announcer ] joining aarp is only sixteen dollars a year. so call in and get a free travel bag when you join now. jack is back with the cafferty file. jack? >> the question this hour, when it comes to the war in afghanistan, how much is enough? mark writes from oklahoma city, we went way past enough a long time ago. when will these nation building idiot leaders of ours realize we cannot force democracy on our culture that doesn't even comprehend the concept? 6,000 americans lost in that region of the world for what? gary writes from michigan, of all of the ideological wars we've gotten ourself into since korea, none has been worth one american life or one life of those homes of the countries of the people that we have fought in. i had yolg and promoting our way of life on those that because there is never any definition of winning. jim writes dash afghanistan played host to vermin that launched the 9/11 attacks. when afghanistan as the ability and will to fight the terrorists and defeat them or at least keep them in hiding then we can leave. lori in pennsylvania says wasn't getting bin laden the whole point of afghanistan? now that we have done that isn't it time to bring the troops home? money we saved could be put towards bringing down our deficit and to help those hard hit by natural diseases in places like joplin, missouri, elsewhere. whatever action the government takes, it needs to be done only to benefit the united states. annie writes from georgia -- time and you the media tell it like it is. it will be enough when the military industrial complex eisenhower warned bus says it is enough. and not a moment before. as long as there is money to be made it will never be enough. greed is the name of the game. no matter the cost. it hasn't been enough for years. if you conquer it la what will you do with it? at times we don't seem capable of running our own county. let the afghan people work their own way into this century. you want to read more on this, go to my blog, cnn.com/cafferty file. >> thank you. it is one of the mysteries of the bin laden's year in hiding. how did he fund this terror network without revealing his location? we are investigating a secretive system of exchanging cash in pakistan. startling condition that some anti-government protesters in egypt were forced to endured called virginity checks. at 190 miles per hour, the wind will literally lift ordinary windshield wipers off the glass. so, did we build a slower car? or design wipers that could handle anything? what do you think? the cadillac cts-v, the world's fastest production sedan. we don't just make luxury cars, we make cadillacs try capzasin-hp. it penetrates deep to block pain signals for hours of relief. capzasin-hp. take the pain out of arthritis. almost a full month after the death of osama bin laden, we are now learning more about how he was able to secretly finance his terrorist network during a decade in hiding. our senior international correspondent stan grant investigates a very old and very shady way of exchanging cash in pakistan. >> reporter: branded terrorist banking. doesn't take long important people to get nervous. we are outside the uncomfortably named but unconnected osama money exchange. these meant don't want us here. we can't say we are hiding anything. according to those that know, you want to trace the black money trail, this is the time and place to start. this is the sort of place where these transactions are carried out. >> we can see this type of place, i told you. >> reporter: he's a pakistani academic who tracks the workings of al qaeda. he zeroed in on osama bin laden's financing. bankrolling, terror network, he says, tens of millions of dollars each year. how to do it? something called -- banking. century's old system of transferring cash. money placed in one location and collected immediately from a broker. sometimes completely different countries. all that's needed is the secret code. a fee is collected at both ends. >> totally based on the reputation. >> and trust. >> yes. >> it is quick. reliable. >> cheaper. safer. >> also open to corruption. >> yes. >> reporter: he says sometimes actions can run into the millions of dollars. governments simply cannot trace the money. it thrives in third world countries where ordinary people prefer the simple traditional system. so do terrorists. >> terrorists all over. >> prefer this system. >> prefer this system all over the world. working, whenever they are there, for this system. >> reporter: we can't stop them. no way. >> we can't stop them. but we can take -- the people who are operating the system. >> reporter: that's what pakistan is trying to do. the transfers incorporating it into their regulated banking. interior minister muller has made it his mission to go after the black money trail. that set up a special task force to crack down on the brokers. he says that it is a battle that they can't win alone. >> the international community, helping us identify those people worldwide who are dealing. we can handle this end but we need help from the other end. >> reporter: it runs on trust and criminals and terrorists have their own. they want to keep up their secrets easily. we are now being told to leave. had don't want us to film. we are not allowed to film here. okay. we are about to leave this this is clearly a sensitive area and sensitive subject. we are going to leave now. thank you. thank you. to our viewers you are in "the situation room" happening now. allegations of a new level of brutality in an already brutal crackdown of 13-year-old boy allegedly tortured and killed by the syrian regime in damascus. sarah palin getting -- playing cat and mouse with the news media on her bus tour. p it is not a campaign swing, what exactly is it? we catch up with congressman anthony weiner of new york. pressing him for answers about the growing scandal over a lewd twitter picture. jeanne moos all straight ahead. i'm wolf blitzer. you are in "the situation room." we begin with a very heated exchange this afternoon between congressman anthony weiner and a cnn crew asking about the lewd photo that was tweeted from his account. let's go to our senior congressional correspondent dana bash. she has been working this story. dana, told us what was going on yesterday but there have been dramatic developments since then. >> reporter: that's right. really the developments have just been us trying to get some answers from congressman weiner. the back story quickly here, of course, over the weekend, there was allegedly a lewd picture that went out on his twitter account. which he quickly said was something that was resulting from a hack, somebody hacked his twitter account. he put out a couple of statements over the last few days saying it was a distraction, saying it was prank and that he had gotten a lawyer to figure out whether there should be any criminal or civil action taken but there were a lot of questions about this. whether or not or why he apparently was in contact or following a woman, 21-year-old college student in seattle, who was alleged recipient of this tweet. i want to you look at this exchange. congressman weiner for the second time today, wolf, came out and was very open, he said about wanting to stand before the cameras and talk to reporters. problem is he didn't answer questions. >> up here, down here. preference? >> okay. okay. >> congressman, can you answer quite blank, you say you were hacked which is potentially a crime. why haven't you asked the capital police or law enforcement to investigate? >> look, this was a prank that i have been talking about for a couple of days. i am not going to allow it to decide what i talk about for the next week or the next two weeks. i'm not going to be give anything more about that today. i think i have been responsive to it in the past. >> you are here which we -- which we appreciate. you are not answering the questions. can you say why you haven't asked law enforcement to investigate what you are alleging as -- >> you know, dana, if i was giving a speech to 45,000 people, someone in the back of the room threw a pie, would i stand the next two hours and responding to that? no. i would get back -- >> this is not that situation, though. >> why don't you -- you want to do the briefing? do you want to do the briefing, sir? >> from your dwiter account, nude photograph was sent to a college student. >> sir, sir. >> answer the question, was it from you or not? >> sir, you guys want me to finish my answer? >> yes. this answer. did you send it or not? >> if i were giving a speech to 45,000 people and someone in the back threw a -- pie or yelled out an insult i would not spend the next two hours of my speech responding to that pie or that insult. i would return to the things you want to talk about to the audience that i wanted to talk about. >> all you have to do is say no. >> that's what i intend to do. >> let me try this question. the woman who allegedly got this tweet or was directed to, 21-year-old college student in seattle, she released a statement to "the new york daily news" yesterday saying you follow her on twitter. is that true? did you follow her on twitter? if so, how did you find her and what was the reason? >> you know, i have -- i think said this a couple of ways. i will say it again. i am not going to permit myself to be distracted by this issue any longer. >> all you have to do say no -- >> you are very good at -- >> you are not -- >> why don't you let me do the answers and you do the questions. >> as soon as you answer the questi question -- >> by the way in related -- i have in the -- i have passed michele bachmann in twitter followers. i will give you that. >> congressman p. you understand what is going on, the frustration, we appreciate your coming out and talking to us, you are smiling and you are -- cooperating. and -- that gives you -- you are not answering the questions. can you answer -- >> this is how -- this is now day -- this is now three. have you statements my office put out. >> they don't answer the questions. >> there are statements my office put out. and dash there are going to be people who are -- look, this is the tactic. the guy in the back of the room who is throwing a pie, yelling out the insult. wants that to be the conversation. >> you were hacked and that's -- criminal -- >> dana, dana, let me -- follow rules here. >> i would love to get an answer. >> you do the questions, do i the answers and this -- interrupts me. that's the rule of the game. let me just -- let me just -- let me -- let me just give the answer. the objective of the person who is doing mischief is to try to distract me from what i'm doing. for the last couple of days that's happened. i made a decision, i'm not going to let it happen today. i'm not going to let it tomorrow. you are doing your job. i understand it. go ahead and do it but you are going to have to do it without me every day and in answering the questions about it. today i want to talk about the debt limit vote. it is very feel free to stay here and ask me again. we have a situation where across the way is a supreme court that the -- justice clarence thomas -- his household received over $800,000 of renew mexico ration from people trying to overturn the health care law. trying to stop it. refused to recuse himself. that's something important. those are the things i'm going to talk to. >> do you have any evidence? >> you did retain a lawyer. what are you directing your attorney to do on your behalf? >> we are -- i think that the statement speaks to that. it says they are going to advise us on appropriate -- we are going -- no. no, that's not right. i refer you back to the statement and read it in its entirety. are there any other questions? look, there are people that will want to try to distract from the work i have to do. there are. there are going to be people that will want to have this debate. to some degree, the people that are engaged in it are zealous to do it. i don't want to. i choose to fight for the things i chair about. the things i have been working on. can i tell you something? i know this is how the game the played. some people decide they want to talk about this thing for days and days. i choose not to. >> can i just throw this out there? if this is the nonstory you say this is and distraction -- >> i will leaf it -- leave it to you -- >> you are a sophisticated. why don't you answer the questions. >> i have the past couple of days. now i choose -- now i choose -- people here that have other statements you have. look, all i can tell is this. this is akin to someone deciding t day three or four i consider a distraction and me making a decision on how i will deal with it. the decision i made is i'm not going to permit it to disracket and not permit it to continue on for three, four, five, six more days. if that's not satisfying to you i apologize. i think what people want to talk about are things like the dead limit vote today. things like the -- oppressive disparity. the fact it is more and more difficult being middle class in this country. that's what i'm here to talk about. thank you, guys. >> what an exchange that was. dana still with us on capitol hill. dana, i don't think the story will go away. just a-to-recap, has the congress been asked capitol hill police or new york city police or any -- local law enforcement authority or the fbi for that matter to investigate who may have -- gone into his twitter account and sent out this lewd photo? >> well, as you saw there, i tried to ask that question. probably more than a handful of times. he wouldn't answer. but i can tell you from talking to suppose people for both capital police and we also talked to the fbi, the answer is no, they are not investigating and the case of the fbi, they explicitly said they were not asked by congressman betweener to do that. otherwise they would and i can tell you talking law enforcement officials familiar with the process and pret cole here on capitol hill, capital police is not investigating, i'm told, it is because he has not asked to do that. but you saw that was -- the first question that i had for him because -- he has said that he was hacked which, of course, it is dashes especially when you are talking about a member of congress is potentially criminal. why not have law enforcement investigate. i should also say that the tall guy next to me was ted barrett, our congressional producer, who the congressman referred to as a jackass but we disagree. >> and you know, because of the fact of the matter is as jeffrey toobin, senior legal analyst said in the last hour, a crime may have been committed if someone did, in fact, hack into his twitter account and falsely send out under his name that lewd photo, we don't know. it is new law that -- whole social media issue but it may have been a violation of the law. worthy of investigation. go ahead. >> exactly. you know, we should also point out, wolf, obviously just saw there that the congressman did come out and this is the second time he did this today. and he -- you know, put a tie on, came out, he knew the cameras were there and staff knew we were there. all day long. and talked to us, didn't ask the questions but talked to us twice. we have lots of questions that he wouldn't answer for the congressman but there are also other questions out there on -- for other aspects of this story, namely if -- if it is true, that he was hacked, you know, who is it? why is it that the conservative blog and site got this so quickly? why is it that, in fact, it was -- clearly a right wing twitter, if you will, who put this out there right away. how did that person get it? there are lots of questions for people and entities other than congressman weiner but he is the one with the centers around and allegedly his twitter account. and he's the one who first came out and said he was hacked which is what led to the other questions if you were hacked, you know, why isn't there an investigation and -- why are you communicating allegedly with the woman who -- apparently got this tweet or who the --directed to. let's put it that way. >> i know you are going stay on top of this story for us. thanks very much. other important news we are following. there have been many horrific accounts of brutality coming out of syria as we all know. certainly as the regime is cracking down. but now the apparent torture, killing, mutilation, and of a young boy who has become a rallying cry for syria's revolution. and it prompted very strong reaction from secretary of state hillary clinton. she said that the case symbolizes the total collapse of any effort by the syrian government to work with the syrian government and work to let the syrian government listen to its people. cnn's arwa damon put together this report. we must warn you, though, cautionary note, some viewers may be upset by graphic images of injuries sustained by children. >> reporter: on april 29, anti-government protesters tried to break the syrian army's siege. eyewitnesss at the time described how security forces indiscriminately opened fire on them. dozens were killed and wounded. countless others detained. among them, say his family, was 13-year-old hansa. separated from his father in the chaos. a month later the family received their son's body. his face bloated, purple. this video posted to youtube catalogs each of his wounds. much of it too graphic to broadcast. the narrator points out multiple gunshots. even more shocking, his genitals were mutilated. cnn cannot independently verify what happened to hansa or the authenticity of this void yideo. after it was broadcast the family was threatened. now they are too petrified to talk, even to close friends. she has no doubt it is real. and that the regime had a message in releasing the boy's body. >> they warned the people to see this. they warned the people to get scared and to know that there is no lies, everything, no matter how awful it is could happen to their family members if they continue to participate in this revolution. >> reporter: it only made them boulder. demonstrations to protest hansa's death erupted. even children took to the streets, risking a similar fate. vowing that his blood was not in vain. they are not surprised the regime could have committed such cruelty. and claim it is not the first time a child has been targeted. this 11-year-old boy was allegedly shot in his home. this video shows the body of a child lying in street street. amid intense gun pyre and as others tried to recover his body. and here children lie wounded and in the hospital after security forces fired at their school bus. hansa's death prompted internation international outrage. we are all the martyr the child the 60,000 followers by tuesday. the face of the 13-year-old from a village in southern syria now the symbol of an uprising. war damon, cnn, beirut. >> cnn made repeated attempts to reach out to the syrian authorities in damascus for comment on the death of hamsa without success. medical examiner told syrian tv that there was month evidence that the boy had been tortured and the body's condition was consistent with decomposition. syrian tv which is the official tv network of the damascus regime also said the president met with the boy's family and interior minister said there will be an investigation into hamsa's death. this 13-year-old boy's terrible death could be a turning point in syria's revolution. will the death of this boy, this 13-year-old boy, become the symbol and turn this revolution around? eventually resulting in the overthrow of the regime? >> you know, wolf, we really don't know the answer about the overthrow of the regime. that's -- for the future. but what we have seen now, this is the great stain of shame on the city and regime. i think the mask has fallen in damascus. we see what it is about. and our own secretary of state a while ago when asked would you like -- would you be sad if the regime were to fall, he said well, it depends on what replaces it. president obama and his speech of may 19 while ago ended up saying, he said he could leave the reform or step out of the way. the door was left open. people are not sure about the barbarism. and now we know. now we know that he has become the emblem of this revolution. emblem of a war between the regime and the syrian people. >> moammar gadhafi and libya started committing atrocities against house own people, u.s. quickly not only recalled its ambassador but collected out the u.s. embassy in tripoli. the u.s. embassy is still operating at full speed in damascus. there has been no decision to recall the u.s. bams doreen from damascus as a sign of protests. is this the right step? >> this is exactly -- the issue with the syrian regime. it has been given enormous amount of running room. they are given running room by the -- by the obama administration and they are given running room by the arab states. you were talking about libya, wolf. here is the difference. in the case of moammar gadhafi, the league of arab state, arab league, came down against moammar gadhafi and unbrokered them and gave a warrant, license, for intervention against moammar gadhafi. no such thing in the case. this is the mystery, people have kept the hope alive. somehow or another they will see the light of date, not a monster that his people are saying he is. now we see the truth of the syrian regime. his genitals cut off, mutilated, brought back to his family. and -- this is an -- this is an incredibly cruel regime and really obtuse. they keep thinking that one more deed of barbarism will sfrit fr the people and it is not work. >> it seems to me -- i don't know if you agree -- they deliberately wanted to send this 13-year-old boy's body mutilated as it was back to the family to send a message to other families. you mess with assad, this is what will happen to your children as well. is that why they returned the body instead of just getting rid of it? >> absolutely. they didn't want to hide this crime. it was meant to be displayed and a message to all parents. if your children go out had is what we will do to them. if indeed you can mutilate and kill a 13-year-old, what's the limit? so i think that he sent a message this is not libya. this is not even -- this is not tunisia. this is not egypt. very cruel. there may be an argument that the syrian regime is much more cruel than the libyan regime. the war, syrian regime, conducting against the syrian, exceeds barbarism what gadhafi is doing in libya. but still, still people keep cutting slack for the regime. still people keep hoping that this regime isn't what we know it to be. >> thanks, as usual. appreciate it very much. >> thank you, wolf. homeownership is on jack cafferty's mind. >> more than two-thirds of americans say that they have achieved the american dream or will do so at some point in their lifetime. according to the economic mobility project. a new report out today, a troubling one. says a crucial part of the american dream is no longer a reality for many americans, that of owning a home. the rate of homeownership in this country is actually declining. it is now back to the level it was in 1998. importantget the housing boom. like it never happened. i can experts say the homeownership rate could decline farther. perhaps to the level of the 1980s or even earlier. last year, 66.4% of americans owned a home. down from a peak of about 69% in with our. housing prices fell in march to their lowest levels since the great recession began. this is all according to the standard and poors case shiller price home index, considered one of the best indicators. according to a survey from real estate websites realty track, 54% of americans say they think that real estate market will recover in 2014 or later. that's up from a third that gave the same answer to the same question last november. the outlook is bleak. unemployment, bad credit, preventing a lot of americans from buying a home. others are struggling to hold on to what they already own. eether under water in their homes meaning the home is worth less than what they owe on the mortgage or facing foreclosure. and then there are those that have the money to buy a home but they are choosing not to. out of fear that the worst is still ahead. here's the question then. homeownership levels are on the decline. what's that tell us about the american dream? cnn.com/caffertyfile and post a comment on my blog. [ male announcer ] breathe, socket. just breathe. we know it's intimidating. instant torque. top speed of 100 miles an hour. that's one serious machine. but you can do this. any socket can. the volt only needs about a buck fifty worth of charge a day, and for longer trips, it can use gas. so get psyched. this is a big step up from the leafblower. chevrolet volt. the 2011 north american car of the year. fiber one. almost tastes like one of jack's cereals. uh, forgot jack's cereal. [ jack ] what's for breakfast? uh, try the number one! i've never heard of that. [ wife ] it's great. it's a sweet honey cereal, you'll love it. yeah, this is pretty good. are you guys alright? yeah. [ male announcer ] half a days worth of fiber. not that anyone has to know. fiber beyond recognition. fiber one. from "i like you." "i really like you." "i love you." "i will always love you." and sometimes a gift says, "you mean more to me than anything else in the world." life insurance from new york life ensures your loved ones will always be taken care of, with 166 years of financial strength -- it's the most selfless gift you can give. new york life. the company you keep. it's the most selfless gift you can give. we share. shop from anywhere. and are always connected. we live in a social world. isn't it time we had a social currency to match? membership rewards points from american express. use them to get the things you love from amazon.com, ticketmaster.com, and more unexpected places. they're a social currency with endless possibilities. smoo we are watching in "the situation room. "we had a power outage in d.c. wolf blitzer will be back momentarily as we resolve technical issues from washington, d.c. we will pick up the program. senior egyptian general admitting that virginity checks were performed on women arrested at a demonstration in march. the allegations arose in an amnesty international report claiming female demonstrators were beaten, given electric shots, strip searched, threatened with prostitution charges, forced to submit to virginity checks. more n >> reporter: it was a month after the fall of the mubarak regime. egypt's new military rulers attempted to clear cairo's tahrir square of protesters. one of them, this woman, says she was among several women sexually assaulted while in military detention. the hairdresser was submitted to a forced virginity test under the threat of electrocution. >> translator: during the test no one was standing except for a woman and male doctor. six soldiers standing behind us watching the back side of the bed. i think they were will to be witnesses. >> reporter: she says that was after soldiers tied her, forced her to the ground and shocked her with a stun gun, calling her a prostitute. an egyptian journalist said the fact that such assaults continue shows that little changed for women since the revolution. >> a way to determine whether a woman is a virgin or not and it usually depends on whether a hymen are in place or not. what goes to the heart of what happened there in egypt, we have final confirmation of is that the state is once more sexually assaulting women in egypt but this time it is under the council of the supreme military council. >> reporter: the army denied the allegations at first. then it was admitted to a journalist the army had conducted so-called virginity tests. >> these tests were carried out, he said, because the military didn't want to be accused of sexually assaulting the girls. >> reporter: the egyptian general defends the practice telling them that these women were not decent girls because they had camped out with male protesters. >> turning now to zooes. are the media obsessing over sarah palin and ignoring a republican front-runner? in today's strategy session, cnn political contributor and democratic strategist donna brazile and cnn.com contributor david fromm. >> let me say that a very great column today about mitt romney who is expected to announce sometime later this week in his column, david, of course, talked about sarah palin who is, of course, on a bus tour. why are you worried about sarah palin and the bus tour and what happened to mitt romney? >> it just seems perverse. mitt romney who has been here every week since the last presidential election. number one or number two in the polls. when number two, behind mike huckabee and now out. he is now number one all the time. he raised more money than anybody else. what's a guy have to do to get respect in this town that -- in the week he is going to announce the media are chasing sarah palin's bus. >> as you well know, michele bachmann earlier today talked about running herself. is there room for two tea party candidates? >> i think sarah palin is the real thing. michele bachmann is the knockoff. number two is trying harder. michele bachmann and sarah palin with the work ethic. that may matter. meanwhile, we are scaring half the world with the way we cover this. because -- what republicans have a number of very credible candidates who actually could do the job of being an effective person, like mitt romney, tim pawlen pawlenty. there are other people that can't be president and get the press attention when you talk to our friends -- in government ask other allied country, and -- they -- cannot -- assure look, it is not bogey to happen, michele bachmann, republican nominee, much less the president. they know it. what do they see on their television? >> look, there is another potential candidate that will toss his hat in the ring, rick santorum. will he attract social conservatives? >> i think we will say rick perry, okay. rick pair write is the governor p of texas. rick perry could be a real candidate. rick santorum -- you don't get to run for president if you didn't win your last race. >> well, let me just say this. on behalf of many democrats out there, we are very excited about michele bachmann and sarah palin and all of the other contenders who may be jumping into the presidential field. right now, you see our front-runner. we know mitt romney has strong name recognition. sit really a front-runner? >> this is the thing. yeah, yeah. he is one or two in every poll since 2009. it is just -- name. newt gingrich had name i.d. and republicans able to examine and discard his candidacy. donald trump, name i.d., how long did he last, five days? if you are ahead in polls, week after week, raising money, week after week, you are raising more than anybody else, you are not making mistakes. you are building a national organization. that does not mean you are going to win but get to be called the front runner. >> donald trump is hosting sarah palin tonight for dinner. what do you expect them to talk about? what might be on the menu? >> something that may be gold flake on top, something el zbanzban elegant and classy. both of them -- circling the other. both of them like the notoriety of running, both of them obviously like the money. but both of them are averse to accepting attention and criticism they get. that's one thing the real candidates accept. >> you think sarah palin is a spoiler for romney? >> if you are a republican who really wants to beat barack obama and wants to have successful administration afterwards, you want to look at people who have done a good job at the essentials of being president. in the column, some of the things presidents do, presidents are not -- presidents are negotiators. presidents have to have goals and priorities. good at discarding things desirable. how many things does a president get done over four years or eight? maybe three or four big things. if he's really successful in four years, maybe one, two more. if he is really successful in the second four years. that -- how many things would he like to do? thousands. >> judging from president obama, a lot in two years. president obama wants another would years. sarah palin, my money, she will run. i think if sarah palin runs she will win the nomination because she has a lot of supporters and can raise the money. what's wrong with sarah palin being the nominee of the republican party? >> what's wrong is sarah palin being nominee of the republican party is republicans have a real chance -- defeating incumbent is a heavy lift. barack obama, however, unlike most incumbents has a very bad economic situation, economy is growing sluggishly. he is vulnerable. if the economy grows same 2% or whatever it is in 2012 it has been growing until now he is vulnerable. >> david and i have more to say but perhaps you might have some news for us. >> are the lights back on? >> donna and david -- it is hot out here. >> yeah, i can imagine. thank you very much. coming up, military conflicts sparked by a cyber attack. would the u.s. retaliate against attackers with weapons against war. watching the situation room, wolf blitzer will be joining us shortly. as you may have known, if you have been watching, we had a power outage in the washington, d.c., bureau. and we have had technical difficulties. mayor write snow. we are waiting important wolf blitzer to join us again. the pentagon has reportedly decided that cyber attacks originating abroad can qualify as acts of war and that could merit a military response. let's bring in cnn's national security correspondent, fran. if other countries health care our computer systems, can you really picture the united states using military force in retaliation? >> you know, mary, there's an exercise called cyber shock wave. cnn covered it, wolf blitzer covered it. i was part of this exercise. it was this very sort of fact pattern where a foreign country and unknown foreign country attacks our power zbrid and you begin to see during the course of the exercise, this -- gain, if you will, lights cascading out along the northeast corridor. and -- immediately it becomes clear how pervasive this is going to be. the damage, lights are going out in hospitals. generators are failing. people's cell phones no longer work. 911 systems cascading. so we begin to look at who is responsible. it became very difficult. you can imagine with the department of homeland security was quickly overwhelmed and looked to the united states military and there, what you found the most difficult problem in such a cyber attack, cyber crisis, is attribution. how can you be certain that this is coming from a foreign country? a tremendous challenge and it is not very well tackled, we understand, in the pentagon's new cyber strategy. what they do find is that there are circumstances in which a cyber attack could be considered an act of war. and it goes on at some length, our understanding from sources, that it is really -- a question of equivalence. if the cyber attack cause it is kind of damage or economic damage that would be the equivalent to a fiscal attack, they may, in fact, treat it as an act of war under the law of armed conflict. it is clear that a lot more thinking has to go into this. this is the kind of strategy document you would expect now that the pentagon created a cyber command. they want to create their rules of engagement so they know when it will be their responsibility to act. >> just to be clear, this is the first really foremost cyber strategy, right? >> that's right, mary. going back to the bush administration, there was a cyber strategy developed while i was at the white house working with others in the national security community. that was really the first wave was really a defensive document. how do we close you will havuln. you will recall there was the virus launched against the iranian nuclear program. the first thing you want to do is protect your -- close your vulnerabilities and the first piece of the u.s. strategy. after that you then want to get on to you do we use offensive capability. the united states military actually has quite sophisticated offensive capability and you want to make sure the rules of engagement are clear and after the stand-up of the cyber command by the secretary of defense, secretary gates, that was what they turned their attention to, working through the initial strategy so that they could clearly define the rules of engagement. >> fran townsend, we will leave it there. thank you very much for joining us. coming up, disturbing new development that impacts anyone who use as cell phone. scientists make a new link to cancer. plus, a showdown on raising the debt ceiling. there's another way to minimize litter box odor: purina tidy cats. tidy cats premium line of litters now works harder to help neutralize odors in multiple-cat homes. and our improved formula also helps eliminate dust. so it's easier than ever to keep your house smelling just the way you want it. purina tidy cats. keep your home smelling like home. love those jeans. $175. ch-ching! excuse me? ever consider showing your customers what other stores charge for jeans? um...no. when it comes to car insurance, progressive direct does. i saved hundreds when switching. that's a lot. the jeans are skinny. the savings... are fat. out there with a better way. now, that's progressive. has twice the calcium of the leading yogurt. that's 50% of the daily value. pass on the news and make sure you and everyone you know is getting the calcium they need. ♪ welcome back. we are here in "the situation room." mary snow is monitoring other top stories happening now. what else is going on? >> we will start off with the disturbing medical story. the world health organization says all of them may cause cancer. scientists are the group added cell phones as a carcinogen hazard after finding increased brain cancer among cell phone users. more studies are needed. doctors urge people to take precautions like using headsets in case there are long-term effects. they also discourage excessive use by children. supreme court ruled this a kansas man who was held without charges for 16 days cannot sue former attorney general john ashcroft. he was held as a material witness in a terror investigation and never charged or called as a witness and wanted to sue ashcroft for wrongful arrest and detention. the high court ruled unanimously against it. military prosecutors refiling capital charges against accused 9/11 mastermind mohammed and four other alleged co-conspirators. that will allow them to be tried before a military commission at guantanamo bay, cuba. the obama administration shelved plans to prosecute in the federal court in new york city. the five are accused of planning and executing september 11 attacks that killed p 3,000 people. they could face the death penalty if convicted. >> mary, thank you. thanks very much. showdown in the house of representatives on raising the nation's debt ceiling. let's go straight to cnn's congressional correspondent kate bolduan. she is standing by. we will have her report after this. ♪ i thought it was over here... ♪ [car horn honks] our outback always gets us there... ... sometimes it just takes us a little longer to get back. ♪ showdown in the house on raising the debt ceiling. let's go straight to our congressional correspondent kate bolduan. kate, this is a major issue raising the debt ceiling. lots at stake right now. what's this vote today all about? >> reporter: this is an important issue, raising the federal debt limit. we have been talking about it for weeks now. this showdown that's happening today, though, is very interesting this. this vote will be happening in the next few minutes that the president supports -- has supported the proposal. democrats supported it and republicans are bringing the vote to the floor. still no agreement and still this vote is expected to fail. this is what's going on. house of representatives brought a bill to the floor that would raise the federal debt limit by $2.4 trillion. estimated to allow the treasury to continue paying its bills through december of 2012. this does not have spending cuts attached to it. but because of that, the republicans are going to be voting for this and the point of this whole vote today is to demonstrate that there is not enough support to let a so-called kleenex tension pass through the house without some steep spending cuts which is something john boehner called for over and over again. interestingly also today, though, wolf, the number would democrat in the house, steny hoyer, now telling his colleagues to vote against this as well because he says that he has told the reporter -- told reporters today to not play this political charade. political theater today on a very important issue, debate, the battle, negotiations continue. but today a little bit of a symbolic vote, little political theater, if you will. >> we have been seeing a lot of that political theater on capitol hill over the last few weeks. i suspect we will be seeing a lot more especially as we head into the year. homeownership levels are on the decline. what's that say about the american dream? jack has your e-mail when we come back. in cyber attacks. 93% incree in financial transactions... on devices... in social interactions... and applications in the cloud. some companies are worried. some, not so much. thanks to a network that secures it all and knows what to keep in, and what to keep out. outsmart the threats. see how at cisco.com cisco. should i bundle all my policies with nationwide insurance ? watch this. on one hand, you have your home insurance with one company. and on another hand, you have your auto with another. and on another hand, you have your life with another. huh... but when you bundle them all together with nationwide insurance... ... they all work together perfectly-- and you could save 25%. wow... it's all in the wrists. ♪ nationwide is on your side people maybe are living within their means than they used to. that's what led to the mortgage crisis. people not living within their means. carol in florida writes -- means we immediate to bring our jobs home and put our people back to work. it is time to question any politicians patriotism who allows one more job to leave the country. time to do what is best for the country or we will no the have a country. poof, like a white rapid in a magician's hat, unless, of course, you are smart enough to realize homeownership is often not true ownership at all. after all how many of us are forced to pay exorbitant property taxes in order to keep our property. renting seems smarter and smarter. artie in california, for many the american dream is a nightmare. now it is to find a job which you can support your family. talk about lowered expectations. . the american dream is on hold but still exists. this generation has to invest in a home as it may be their only source of retirement income. where people used to rely on i.r.a.s and social security which are threatened home investment may be their only hope for the future. real estate will stabilize if we can eliminate fannie mae and freddie mac and let the market qualify loans without government pressure to cram substandard loans. larry in texas writes -- it means our economy is not recovering the way some people want us to believe and better just get used to the reality we are headed in the wrong direction. . if you want to read more on this, go to my blog. >> jack, see you tomorrow. thank you. the second to last space shuttle mission is nearing an end. john king speaks to the crew in the next hour. you will want to see it. jeanne moos is horsing around with a surprising twist at a rodeo. they're made from whole roasted nuts and dipped in creamy peanut butter, making your craving for a sweet & salty bar irresistible, by nature valley. as a glimmer in your mind. ♪ it travels and your heart begins to race. ♪ and wherever you want to go -- you can get there. ♪ the 2011 jeep wrangler. adventure is never ordinary. ♪ some rodeo queens are showing their metal and proving they won't be unseated even if their horses won't compete. here is jeanne moos. >> reporter: what do you do with horse herpes turning real horses into no shows? forget your saddle. just straddle a stick horse. >> a stick horse is a lot different because you have to do all the work. i think it's going to be a lot more tiring. >> reporter: in davis county, utah, the mounted posse junior queen contest had to pony up with sticks. >> well, it's kind of weird but you can't really help that the disease is going around. >> reporter: 75 or more cases of horse herpes in nine states. just those two words, "horse herpes" left one morning host in stitches. >> i don't -- >> why would you -- what is wrong with you? >> reporter: nope. horses don't give people herpes. just other horses and it's often fatal. but a stick horse sticks around forever. giddy-up. come on. giddy-up. giddy-up. >> reporter: actually long before horse herpes at ranch rodeos like the western classic in texas kids were riding bucking stick broncos. instead of shaking a stick they pretended a stick was shaking them. the western heritage class, up to a hundred kids do their best to simulate getting thrown. >> you know what those kids needed with their stick horses? sound effects. those monty python guys didn't even need the stick. >> you're using coconuts. >> what? >> you've got two jars of coconuts and you're banging them together. >> so? >> reporter: stick horses have been used in contests to cut cows from a herd. they've been used to imitate famous dressage routines. okay. you may never see a stick horse commemorated by a statue but at least with a stick pony you get to pick out a horse that matches your outfit. ♪ happy trails to you >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn.