what's causing more teens to run away from home. >> couric: tonight, can a twisted arm lead to health care reform? president obama steps up the pressure on senate democrats, but an independent may hold the key. i'm katie couric. also tonight, the president's solution to the guantanamo problem. he wants to move some of the terror suspects to this prison in his home state of illinois. cbs news exposed the problem. tens of thousands of rape cases unprosecuted because of rape kits untested. today congress demanded to know why. and a reunion of lennons and lucy. ♪ lucy in the sky with diamonds... ♪ captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with katie couric. >> couric: good evening, everyone. president obama invited democratic senators to a white house decorated for the holidays and let them know what he wants for christmas and that it could be the last chance to get it-- a health care reform bill. after their private meeting, the president said the country is on precipice of historic legislation but his he said differences remain over the details. chip reid is at the white house and, chip, that means the bill still doesn't have the votes to pass. >> reporter: that's right, katie. the white house admits that at this moment they don't have the votes but they are increasingly confident that they will have the votes to pass health care reform through the senate by next week. the president was all smiles at the white house today after a meeting with senate democrats appeared to convince him that health care reform is within his grasp. >> it's clear that we are on precipice of an achievement that's eluded congresses and presidents for generations. an achievement that will touch the lives of nearly every american. >> reporter: the senate bill will not include everything the president wants. sources say there will be no public options and no expansion of medicare to cover people aged 55 to 64. those two ideas took a major hit this weekend when independent senator joe lieberman-- the decisive 60th vote for the democrats-- said he'll oppose the bill if they're included. today, after senate democratic leaders appeared to give into his demands, he changed his tune. >> i'm getting toward that position where i can say what i wanted to say all along, that i'm ready to vote for health care reform. >> reporter: democratic senators who were in the meeting say the president did not draw any lines in the sand but sought to inspire them, stressing how close they are to making history. >> finally giving people fighting chance against health insurance companies, reducing the deficit and the cost of health care across the board. it's an historic bill and we can't miss this opportunity. >> reporter: most polls, though, show support for health care reform is fading. anger is growing and protests are mounting across the nation, including one today on capitol hill. >> kill the bill! >> reporter: congressional republicans, who have virtually unanimous in opposition, say democratic claims that health reform will save money are nonsense. >> what we know for sure is that this bill will include a half trillion dollars in medicare cuts, $400 billion in new taxes, and higher insurance premiums for everyone else. >> reporter: republicans say they do agree that if the bill becomes law it will make history-- the bad kind. >> the majority leadership seems determined to engage in this political kamikaze mission toward an historic mistake. >> reporter: even if f the senate does pass the bill next week, the two houses then have to take their bills and combine them into one and that could be the hardest part of all. katie? >> couric: chip reid at the white house. chip, thank you. now, more about the senator chip mentioned in his report, independent joe lieberman of connecticut. as chip said, he holds the 60th vote needed to get the health care reform bill passed in the senate and nancy cordes tells us supporters of reform are angry and confused about lieberman's position. >> reporter: even close colleagues of senator joe lieberman were at a loss today to explain his apparent about-face. >> i have no idea. >> reporter: after all, the proposal to allow younger americans to buy into medicare had been crafted specifically as a compromise for lieberman and other moderates who had opposed a public option. the connecticut senator has championed the buy-in idea for nearly a decade and reiterated his support just three months ago. >> what i was proposing was they have an option to buy into medicare early. >> reporter: but this week he suddenly threatened to block the health care bill if it contains a medicare buy-in, throwing the entire process into disarray yet again. >> i'm very disappointed because i thought we had senator lieberman's staff in the room, i thought during the negotiations i thought he would go along with it. >> reporter: what's especially mystifying, senators say, is that lieberman has historically sided with liberals on domestic issues, even though he became an independent in 2006 after losing his democratic primary. >> no one can understand exactly what joe's up to with this. you know, some people think he's... you know, that he's grandstanding, there's some people think that think he's kowtowing to the insurance industry. >> reporter: the industry does have a large presence in connecticut and gives generously to his campaigns. but lieberman is hardly the only moderate putting the brakes on the bill. democratic senators mary landrieu, blanche lincoln and ben nelson, who come from conservative states, successfully blocked the public option even though the other 55 democrats support it. nelson is still holding out for stricter anti-abortion language, leading some liberals to complain their agenda is being hijacked by a few. does it trouble you that you're going against an overwhelming majority of your caucus? >> well, it's not fun. i said that to my colleagues at the white house. i haven't enjoyed it. but you've got to do what you think is right. >> reporter: so this small group of four or so senators has managed successfully to impose their will on the other 530 members of congress because the changes that they're demanding to the senate bill will likely have to be made to the house bill, too. katie? >> couric: nancy, how does senator lieberman explain that he supported allowing people to buy into medicare as recently as september? >> reporter: well, he insisted today that he hasn't flip-flopped, the that the medicare-buy in is something he icoz2o healwy2t.fdñ this one that does so many other things to make health insurance affordable for older people. >> 4qinñ]pbczçpéo meanwhile, nai you mentioned there are plenty of senate democrats who feel burris of illinois or bernie)8q] for them to support a bill if it doesn't containj#r6u#@ae"4nqé"un but they stopped short of drawing a line in the sand the way that senator joe lieberman did so it does look like there was some wiggle room there. >> couric: nancy cordes on capitol hill tonight. nancy, thank you. now to another item on the president's got do" list, finding a place for the terror suspects at guantanamo when he closes that facility. today he ordered the government to buy a state prison in thompson, illinois. if congress approves, as many as 90 of the 210 detainees at guantanamo would be transferred there. more now from national correspondent dean reynolds. >> reporter: white house officials said the move to illinois is key to the president's plan to close the prison at guantanamo bay, cuba. >> in taking this action, we are removing from terrorist organizations around the world the recruiting tool. >> reporter: yet republicans attacked the plan as an unnecessary risk. >> with the busiest airport in the world and the tallest building in north america, i do not think that we should make chicagoland the center of jihadi attention in the world. >> reporter: but in thoplson, where the prison stands three hours west of chicago and the hope is that new jobs will come with the prisoners, reaction is almost uniformly positive. >> oh, about 98%. >> reporter: duke hebeler is thehomson village president and he seess an economic boost. >> housing, grocery,, gas, construction work. >> reporter: illinois estimate it is move will create 3,000 new jobs and inject possibly a billion dollars into the battered local economy over the first four years of operation. with only 200 minimum-security inmates now in a facility built to house 1600, the prison has a modern surveillance system, enough room to segregate terrorists and hold them indefinitely, plus a courtroom for trials. and though it's only a mile from main street, not many in thomson are worried. >> i think the town will be safer than ever before because of the prison. i think it will be very safe. i don't have any concerns about that at all. >> reporter: but intelligence analysts say questions about the prisoners' legal status persists. >> >> you do have the potential of simply shifting those problems and issues to illinois from guantanamo. >> reporter: they say this will be the most secure prison in the country, beyond supermax, they say, and that the transferred terrorists will be totally isolated, receiving visits only from their own attorneys, federal officials, and the red cross. katie? >> couric: dean reynolds in thomson, illinois. dean, thank you. one of the first of the big-name t.v. preachers died today. oral roberts, he was 91. beginning in the 1950s, roberts used television to raise spirits and raise money and he even once claimed he'd raised the dead. don teague now with the oral roberts story. >> out of that barren ground... >> reporter: oral roberts was considered the father of televangelists, among the first preachers to take religious revivals from tents to television, establishing a multimillion dollar ministry that reached around the world. >> my soul's at stake. i may lose my soul. i know i will if i disobey god. >> reporter: roberts faith and philosophy grew out of a bout with tuberculosis as a teenager. he said god healed him and gave him healing powers of his own. he brought charismatic christianity to the mainstream. >> what god wants is people with faith. what god wants is people who are willing to suffer! >> reporter: roberts' crusades were often controversial. he once claimed to raise a child from the dead. and in 1987 he predicted god would bring him home to heaven if he failed to raise $8 million to support his struggling city of faith medical and research center in tulsa, oklahoma. >> i need some very quick money so i'll know when march comes i won't be taken, i'll get to live. >> reporter: despite his pleas, the facility closed two years later. more successful was his namesake oral roberts university in tulsa, the campus that includes a 60-foot statue of praying hands. the campus was rocked by controversy in 2007 when his son then university president richard roberts, was accused of lavish spending. >> it's about intimidation, blackmail, and extortion. >> reporter: richard stepped down and oral roberts came out of retirement briefly to help get his university back on solid financial footing. tonight, millions touched by oral roberts and his message are mourning his loss. don teague, cbs news, is dallas. >> couric: and coming up next on the "cbs evening news," what's behind a huge spike in teenage runaways? dad, here-look at this- your p.a.d. isn't just poor circulation in your legs causing you pain. ok-what is it? dad, it more than doubles your risk of a heart attack or stroke! you better read about plavix. if you have p.a.d., plavix can help protect you from a heart attack or stroke. plavix helps keep blood platelets from sticking together and forming clots- the cause of most heart attacks and strokes. talk to your doctor about plavix? (announcer) if you have a stomach ulcer or other condition that causes bleeding, you should not use plavix. taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin may increase bleeding risk. tell your doctor before planning surgery or taking aspirin or other medicines with plavix, especially if you've had a stroke. some medicines that are used to treat heartburn or stomach ulcers, like prilosec, may affect how plavix works, so tell your doctor if you are taking other medicines. if fever, unexplained weakness or confusion develops, tell your doctor promptly. these may be signs of ttp, a rare, but potentially life-threatening condition, reported sometimes less than 2 weeks after starting plavix. other rare but serious side effects may occur. bonus on every single purchase. what you do with it is up to you. what will you get back with your cash back? it pays to discover. with certain high blood pressure medicines the way aleve sometimes can. that's one reason why doctors recommend the medicine in tylenol arthritis more than any other pain reliever. then we need to figure this out now. our nest egg took a real hit. what's that website your friend mentioned? retirementredzone.com? that's it, from prudential. she talked to her financial advisor about what she learned there. said it really helped her get back on track. i like that. (announcer) help get your plan back on track. watch our educational video at retirement redzone.com, the site for the critical years before and after retirement. maybe i can retire after all. now you're talking. (announcer) click retirementredzone.com. then talk to your financial professional. ...now feel that >> couric: the recession is taking a heavy toll on american families. in a new cbs news/"new york times" poll, nearly half who've lost their job said it's been a hardship in their families. more than a third said they'd seen changes in their children's behavior. 56% believe their children's lives have changed and for parents out of work more than six months, the number jumps to 70%. tonight from salt lake city, seth doane tells us all this is adding up to a surge in runaways as we continue a series of report wes call "children of the recession." >> we don't want people seeing us doing this. >> reporter: fiercely protected. >> what here is what we'll normally go through. >> reporter: hidden from view. >> we'll come to this place because it's a good squat. >> reporter: we're led to what's called a squat where bradley sometimes sleeps. it's hardly his but it's all he has. >> i did run away from my parents house, but that's only because they were mentally and physically abusive. >> reporter: more than one and a half million teenagers run away or are kicked out of their homes every year. they flee one set of problems and find others. >> we need jobs. we need ways to earn money. we need to have an apartment or to have a house or a solid place to call home. >> reporter: you don't have that now? >> none of us do. >> reporter: by "us" he means these guys, bound by hard luck and homelessness, many are runaways. their salt lake city refuge is run by volunteers of america utah. zachary bale oversees outreach efforts. >> we've seen more recently as some of these economic forces have kicked up and the economy kids being either kicked out or leaving because of financial distress in the families. >> reporter: over the last two years, volunteers of america utah have seen the number of youths they serve double, from around 400 a year to more than 800. and they say the timing during the recession is no coincidence. >> this is my first squat place. >> reporter: shawn gonzalez lost his $20 an hour computer job three months ago and wound up on the street. how many nights do you think you slept here? >> about a week. >> reporter: he left home two years ago. he says his dad worked four jobs and at just 17 shawn was helping to pay the mortgage. >> i was the oldest, you know, i had to be mr. example and i couldn't do it anymore. >> reporter: but now, without work, he's stuck. >> it's tough. tough to find a job. a lot tougher than i thought it was going to be. >> reporter: how much have you been looking? >> everyday. >> national runaway switch board. >> reporter: with few alternatives, callers to the national runaway switch board report turning to and handling, prostitution, selling drugs and stealing to survive. >> i used to steal from stores and stuff but that ended up getting out of hand. >> reporter: now 18-year-old zach, who's a runaway, too, depends on the drop-in center. but the center itself needs a little help. this year, there's only enough funding to stay open until 6:00. >> we offer them what we can to help them stay warm, stay safe. that's all we can do. >> yeah, this is actually one of my buddy's old squats. >> reporter: when night falls, it's time to find a place to sleep again. we follow zach right up the side of a building. you sleep out here? >> throw a blanket down because look how dirty it is. >> reporter: they're on the streets for different reasons. >> i've been adopted twice, put into foster care once. >> reporter: but all share the same reality. now you're here. >> yeah. now i'm here. >> reporter: the recession just made it worse. seth doane, cbs news, salt lake city city, utah. >> couric: an update on our investigation as to why so many rape cases are never prosecuted. last month, we revealed that in a dozen major cities, tens of thousands of rape evidence kits had never been tested. chief investigative correspondent armen keteyian tells us that was the subject of an emotional hearing today in congress. >> reporter: debbie smith was home in march of 1989 when a masked man abducted her, dragged her to a nearby woods, and repeatedly raped her. >> after he let me live i wished he'd killed me. >> reporter: today on capitol hill, smith and other witnesses implored a senate panel to eliminate the alarming backlog of untested rape kits nationwide. >> each box holds within it vital evidence that is crucial to the safety of women everywhere. >> as a recent cbs news special documented... >> reporter: last month, a cbs news investigation found more than 20,000 rape kits in major american cities they were never tested. an additional 6,000 languishing in crime labs waiting months, even years, to be tested. >> we need to be figuring a way to get our local law enforcement up to where they need to be. >> they solve homicides, they solve many, many rape cases. >> reporter: linda fairstein led the manhattan district attorney's sex crimes unit for 26 years. spearheading new york's decision to test every single rape kit. the result: an arrest rate for& rape of 70% today, nearly triple the national average. >> we need to find, identify, test, and get results on every rape kit that exists in this country. >> reporter: several senators today called for strengthening the 2004 bill designed to reduce the backlog of rape kits that sit untested. a bill named after none other than debbie smith. >> it's one of the few things that we can do that not only make... brings justice to the victim but it prevents crimes. >> reporter: for smith, justice finally came with a d.n.a. match of a prisoner in virginia. justice still missing for thousands of other women across the country. armen keteyian, cbs news, washington. >> couric: now to a major safety recall, more than 50 million roman-style shades and rollup blinds are being recalled because their cords can strangle a child. in fact, since 2001, eight children have died after their necks got caught in the cords of these shades and blinds. you can get more information about the recall at cbsnews.com. and up next, like father like son. this time it's julian lennon's turn to sing about a girl named lucy. how's your daughter, manny? good. we were just going over prescription drug plans. medicare, huh? (manny) umm-huh. i'm there next year. yeah, every year during open enrollment i can review my plan. mine still works for me. now how 'bout a plan for up here? (whistles) uh-uh. (announcer) now's the time to review your medicare prescription drug and health plans. visit medicare.gov or call 1-800-medicare. campbell's green bean casserole... for joint pain. for joint pain. bonus on every single purchase. what you do with it is up to you. what will you get back with your cash back? it pays to discover. your hair mixes with pollen and dust. i get congested. but now with zyrtec-d®, i have the proven allergy relief of zyrtec®, plus a powerful decongestant. zyrtec-d® lets me breathe freer, so i can love the air™. (announcer) zyrtec-d®. behind the pharmacy counter. no prescription needed. (announcer) zyrtec-d®. behind the pharmacy counter. grill: holy moly!!! what just hap...whoa! grill: i mean...wow! hey! that looks great. grill: and there's no need to discuss it further. in fact, you can buff most of that out. just give it a once-over with a wet paper towel...hee, hee grill: ok, good talking to you... anncr: accidents are bad. anncr: but geico's good. ding! >> couric: finally tonight, more than 40 years ago john lennon and the beatles sang about a girl named lucy. now as anthony mason reports, his son is back singing about the same girl. >> reporter: it's been a while since we heard from julian lennon. ♪ it's much too late... >> reporter: after a string of chart hits in the 1980s, john lennon's son walked away from the music business in the late '90s. where have you been all these years? but he's back. and there's a familiar name in his new song. ♪ we still love you, lucy... >> reporter: yes, it's this lucy lucy vodden who inspired the beatles song "lucy in the sky with diamonds." >> reporter: lucy was your schoolmate? >> yeah. >> reporter: as a boy, julian drew this picture of lucy in school. >> i didn't often bring drawings home. >> reporter: but he showed the one to his dad. >> he he said "what is it?" i said "it's lucy in the sky with diamonds." i thought, that's beautiful. >> reporter: after lucy died of lupus in september at age 46, julian recorded his new song with james scott cook to raise money to fight the disease. >> julian's my hero, he knows that. he's been amazing. >> reporter: but it also helped julian-- now 46-- heal an old wound with his father. >> it felt so upset by the way that he treated not just me by also my mum. >> reporter: after john lennon left julian's mother cynthia for yoko ono in 1968, he had little contact with his son. do you find it difficult to forgive? >> initially, yes. but, again, i had to view... had to view things from his perspective. >> reporter: and what did you see? >> this 20-year-old kid hit in the face by the biggest amount of fame anybody could be, really. ♪ we still love you, lucy... >> reporter: he finally found forgiveness writing "lucy." >> it's related to heavily to dad, so heavily with the beatles. >> reporter: in closing a circle with his old friend, julian lennon also closed one with his father. >> it's been sort of a sigh of relief. ♪ you know i do... >> reporter: anthony mason, cbs news, new york. >> couric: and that is the "cbs evening news,". for my exclusive interview with general raid odierno, the top u.s. commander in iraq, you can go to cbsnews.com. i'm katie couric. i'll see you tomorrow. good night. hello. i'm bruce johnson. we begin with breaking news tonight in your olely newscast at 7:00. a d.c. police officer is charged with murder. "the washington examiner" is reporting online that officer reggie jones is accused of plotting a drug robbery that went bad. 40-year-old arvell alston was killed december 1st. the examiner says jones was not the triggerman but he and alston were parters in in the robbery. the newspaper reports alston was killed in the process. the chief is holding a news conference. more on this at 11:00. unless the congress 0 or courts intervene, same-sex marriage is on the way to becoming law. the d.c. council by an 11-2 street gave final approval to the bill. these men helped lobly and organize