The president stood up using some pretty blunt language, saying that anyone whos got a problem with her has a problem with him. Instead, there wont be a confrontation because late today, ambassador rice took herself out of contention, writing the president shes honored to be considered for the office, writing i am fully confident that i could serve our country ably and effectively in that role. However, if nominated, i am now convinced that the confirmation process would be lengthy, disruptive and costly. That tradeoff is simply not worth it for our country. I made the decision that it was the best thing for our country, for the American People that i not continue to be considered by the president for nomination as secretary of state, because i didnt want to see a confirmation process that was very prolonged, very politicized, very distracting and very disruptive, because there are so many things we need to get done as a country, and the first several months of a secondterm president s agenda is really the opportunity to get the crucial things done. Were talking about comprehensive immigration reform, balanced deficit reduction, job creation. Thats what matters. And to the extent that my nomination could have delayed or distracted or deflected or maybe even some of these priorities impossible to achieve, i didnt want that, and id much prefer to continue doing what im doing, which is a job i love at the united nations. President obama accepted her decision to bow out, calling her an extraordinarily capable, patriotic and passionate public servant. More with what decision and whos the leading candidate, dana bash, Gloria Borger and david bergen. What was the Pivotal Moment for ambassador rose . Reporter no question, it was the series of meetings a couple weeks ago here on the hill, first of all with her chief republican foes, senators mccain, graham and ayotte, but more importantly it was probably with a republican who hadnt quite made up her mind, the moderate republican from maine, susan collins. By all accounts, that meeting did not go well at all, because according to a source familiar with that meeting, she didnt want to answer really basic questions and got frustrated and maybe even a little prickly at some of the basic questions. And after that, the feeling even among some democrats who talked to these republicans was they really werent sure if she cant handle meetings with u. S. Senators, how is she going to be on the world stage representing the u. S. There . So, that definitely was an issue. Theres no question that the president in his statement made clear that he didnt think susan rice was treated fairly. Theres no question there was politics at play here by republicans who were really, really angry about benghazi, and she illustrated that, but it was more than that. It was also personality driven, because democrats even think she is very smart and capable but maybe doesnt have the personality for the job. Gloria, i heard you say earlier that you think ambassador rice underestimated the club. What did you mean by that . Right. That was from a democrat very close to the white house. She said the club is really important on capitol hill. John kerry is the leader in that club, john mccain likes him an awful lot and would clearly go along with that nomination. Also, when she traveled up there and she wanted to go up there to talk to these senators, there is a sense from the source that she kind of overestimated her ability to woo them over on the question of benghazi. That was a really big preexisting condition for her, and dana just pointed out, she didnt win over susan collins, who was quite important to her. And david, i mean, what do you make of this . Is this just a sign of how partisan things have become, or was it pretty clear from as soon as the controversy over benghazi, the comments began, that it wasnt going to happen . I dont think this is just about partisanship, and i also dont think its just about benghazi. That was an issue, of course, but in this case, there are a number of senators on both sides of the aisle who believe that the United States has some tough work ahead in international relations. You know, someone has got to go and negotiation with the iranians to make sure we dont get into a conflict over there and someone with the kind of toughness and authority of a jim baker. And frankly, there was a sense about susan rice that, even though she is very talented and i think she did a generous thing today by withdrawing, she really was loyal to her president by doing that, but there was also a sense that she didnt have the weight, she didnt have the background that senator kerry does, and he is extremely schooled and knows the rough parts of the world. And there was a sense in the senate, you know, that people there would just be more comfortable with him representing the United States. David, what do you think this says about president obama himself, because it certainly seemed like, especially in the last month or so, that he was digging in his heels preparing for a fight . Well, it did seem like that, and there was also you know, there had been various reports that hes been agonizing over this choice, and in a sense, she let him off. She recognizes agony and removed it. I think one can read into this that he doesnt want a series of fights with republicans across the board. Hes got a big fight on his hands on the fiscal cliff, and you know, it may be one struggle too many when he wants to get his second term off and running and he doesnt want to be ensnared like this. This happens to president s, and weve had some really good people who have not made it through this process. I remember so well the iconic figure ted sorensen, who was nominated to be cia chief, and it sort of just fell apart after time, and ted sorensen went on to great things and hell be well remembered, but it was a tough chapter in his life. Anderson, you were just talking about the senate being more comfortable with john kerry. I think in a way, the president would have been a lot more comfortable with susan rice. Shes an old friend of his. Its not that he doesnt like john kerry. John kerry helped him out during the debates, hes known him for a long time. Susan rice is a dear old friend, and you know, theres another issue here, which is the question of diversity. Because if it sort of all stacks up as we think its going, it looks like the top four cabinet posts could now potentially be filled by men, and im sure that thats something the white house really is thinking about. And dana, i mean, this team that looks to be falling into place, huchuck hagel talking abt replacing panetta, does it seem like it will pass confirmation in the senate if john kerry is the candidate . It does, unless theres something we dont know about, like if Senate Minority leader, tom daschle, an important member of the club, he didnt make it through because of a surprise issue with tax returns. With john kerry, even the republican leader late today said kind words about him. It is virtually sure that he is going to get through the senate because he has been vetted in many ways because he was the president ial candidate. You dont get more vetted than that. With regard to chuck hagel, same thing, he is somebody who maybe didnt have the closest relationships here, but the fact that it would be a bipartisan pick, since hes a republican, would go a long way likely. So, yes, it does look like its shaping up. The one thing i would say about susan rice, the sort of vetting here on capitol hill, is the president is maybe looking at her to be National Security adviser. She wouldnt need senate confirmation. Interesting. Thank you. Politics now and high stakes when it comes to the taxes you pay, the size of government, the economy, the works. President obama and john boehner back at it tonight trying once again to reach a deal on the fiscal cliff. The question is, will it be any different this time . Lets check with jessica yellin. Hey, anderson. Tonight the two met for 50 minutes in the oval office as they struggled to find a way out of this stalemate, and so far, no word of breakthrough. Aides to both men describe the conversation as frank, and were told that lines of communication remain open. Now, that is political speak, and i will translate it for you. Frank, that generally means that the conversation was somewhat tense. Lines of communication remains open, that means that the two mens staff will continue talking. And in fact, ive confirmed that there is no current plan for the two men, the president and Speaker Boehner, to have a followup meeting as of yet, and Speaker Boehner does plan to return home to ohio tomorrow. Now, thats a challenge for a deal to come together because they are running out of time. They are all but out of time to get a deal done before the christmas deadline and next to out of time to get one done before the new year, anderson. Jessica, thanks very much. Let us know what you thin think, andersoncooper. Ill be tweeting tonight. Next, an out break of a deadly disease and allegations of what the Hospital System knew about the risk. nc rno keeping them honest now, looking for facts tonight, not offering opinions or playing favorites. Our goal tonight is real reporting, as it is every night, finding truth and calling out hypocrisy, but tonight the stakes are life and death. Every year, millions of americans put their life on the line for the country check into va hospitals. All deserve the best care possible. Certainly, none should ever expect that a trip to the hospital might make them sick or even kill them, yet one pittsburgh area family says that is exactly what happened to their dad and theyre finding more cases like his. He was treated in pittsburghs va Hospital System, one of the most highly regarded in the nation, and they have died because of what he caught there, legionnaires disease, a potentially deadly bacterial infection that spreads in contaminated water supplies. And what makes this story even more troubling is the evidence that cnn has now uncovered. It shows that hospital officials knew about the problem, and yet apparently, they failed to fix it. But since january of last year, last year, there have been at least five cases directly traceable to the va Hospital System in pittsburgh, but only last month did the va admit they had a problem with their water supply. They said so in a news release and issued two more, including one that said the problem has been solved. Apart from news releases, though, theyre simply not talking. Drew griffin tonight is investigating. We firmly believe that the va was going to give him the best care they could possibly give him. Reporter knowing what you know now, did the va give him the best care possible . No, no, they didnt. I mean, i can say there was strong negligence on the vas part. Reporter bob nicklas is talking about his father, bill, a World War Ii Navy hero who would drop into hostile waters to save downed navy pilots. But bill nicklas died the day after thanksgiving from Heart Failure and legionnaires disease. He contracted it from using the water at the va, which was contaminated with high levels of a bacteria known as legionella, the cause of legionnaires disease. Two other families are wondering whether their veterans contracted the legionnaires disease that killed them from this same pittsburgh va. Cnn has now learned that hospital officials knew they had a problem with the water system as far back as december of last year but chose not to reveal any of that publicly until a month ago. Being a veteran myself, im shocked and appalled that the va would put, you know, their veterans in that type of situation. Reporter records obtained by cnn show that over the past year, the amount of disinfectant in the vas water was less than the amount needed to prevent legionella bacteria from reaching dangerous levels. And internal records from a Water QualityCompany Called liquitech show that in december of 2011, an infection found they have legionella. Systems are not being properly maintained. A site visit by the same company five months later found the problems continued, obvious evidence that the systems had not been properly, regularly maintained. Liquitech is the contractor who installed the vas water system and a system like it in hundreds of other hospitals across the country. He says it is inexplicable that the va hospital in pittsburgh knew it had a problem, was warned about it, and did not fix it. They were not cleaning the flow cells, they were not doing the monitoring, they were not doing the things that are critical to the efficacy of the system. Reporter and did you tell the hospital . Yes, we did. Yes, we did. We told them we actually had two audits and told them twice that they were deficient in their maintenance. Reporter what is so frustrating to shira is if the system had just been maintained, if the hospital had just listened and made simple adjustments, he says he believes lives could have been saved. Absolutely, absolutely. Reporter 100 . 100 . Reporter as is done in all the other hospitals that you serve . Yes. This outbreak was absolutely preventible. Reporter dr. Janet stout with her colleague, dr. Victor yu, worked for more than 20 years at this same pittsburgh va hospit researching legionnaires disease. They were pioneers in the field developing the copper silver ionization filtration system which is still being used at pittsburghs va and in hospitals nationwide. Six years ago, in a controversial move, the doctors and their legionella research lab were told by the va their services were not productive and a drain on clinical resources. The doctors say for a decade before they left, not a single patient got legionnaires from the hospitals water. She says if she were still there, monitoring the water, this entire tragedy would have been prevented with the turn of a knob. So, this is not, you know, as they say, rocket science. This is straightforward. Reporter so, what went wrong . Our calls and emails to the va went unanswered, so keeping them honest, we went to the United StatesVeterans Administration hospital in pittsburgh in hopes of getting answers. We were met by four armed federal officers. Hey, how are you . Drew griffin with cnn. Nice to see you. Va police. Yes, sir. This has not been approved by our Public Affairs office. I cannot allow you inside. Im calling Public Affairs right now. Do you want to call them and see if they can come on . I cannot technically call them. Can you take the camera back across the street until we have authorization . Reporter hold on, im on the phone now. Again after reaching an answering machine, they asked us to leave. Who told you to kick us off . Its our policy. Reporter your policy . We cannot stand on United StatesGovernment Land with a camera . Without legitimate purpose to be here. Reporter without legitimate purpose . Im trying to figure out why these patients died. And being news media while reporting, i have to ask you to leave until approved by our Public Affairs office. Reporter instead of answering our questions, the va spokesperson David Cowgill released three public advisories. The last one on the day we left in a voice mail. Va is committed to providing safe facilities and quality care for veterans. Reporter it goes on to say that an investigation is under way and that testing results indicate remediation at the pittsburgh vamc University Drive has been successful. Reporter bill nicklass flag still flies on the front lawn that he mowed himself. He would have turned 88 this past weekend. Instead of celebrating his birthday, his family held a memorial service. They should have the best and utmost care that anybody else, even better than the normal civilian. I mean, they fought for their country, you know, they go to battle, they, you know, they love their country and where do they go . They go to a hospital and they basically die in there. Reporter anderson, let me tell you a little bit more about bill nicklas. This guy drafted at 17 years old into the u. S. Navy. He would drive 30 miles out of his way, past two other hospitals, just to go to the va because he thought he would get better care there as a veteran, which is why his sons really feel let down by this. We know of three possible deaths due to this legionella at the hospital, but there actually could be more deaths, right . Reporter certainly. All the information on these cases, 29 cases, is coming from the hospital. This has been going on for a year now, anderson. I think a lot of health care professionals, a lot of families, quite frankly, are going to look back over this year, look back at the family members they may have lost and begin asking questions about what this was that killed their loved one. Could it have been this legionnaires disease . And who besides us are trying to get answers on this, and is the va still refusing to talk to you . Reporter yeah, they will not come out. As you saw in that piece, they will not talk to us at all. They referred us to the washington pr division, sent us right back to pittsburgh. Its been a mess. But the centers for Disease Control and prevention, they did send a team there in november to investigate this. Were told that the investigation, the results from the cdc will go to the va in coming weeks. Were not sure if thats going to be released to the public. And i still cant understand why the va did nothing when they knew they had a problem. Reporter actually, anderson, we found out that about six months ago, the va did bring in a consultant who made recommendations on how to fix the water, but the va apparently did not tell that consultant that they had legionnaires cases at the hospital. If they had told the consultants that, there would have been different recommendations, the va would have been told to handle it differently, and we just dont know why, because the va wont talk to us. Unbelievable. Drew, appreciate it. Thanks. Well, a cnn exclusive ahead. A truly breathtaking display of courage by a syrian teenager. He risked his life to save a stranger, an old woman who was hit by a sniper. Thats him crawling along the ground trying to rescue this lady. Arwa damons report is next. 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