nominees. and here's the president. >> good afternoon everybody. it's no secret that the american people have probably never been more frustrated with washington. and one of the reasons why that is is that over the past five years, we've seen an unprecedented pattern of obstruction in congress that's prevented too much of the american people's business from getting done. all too often we've seen a single senator or a handful of senators choose to abuse arcane procedural tactics to unilaterally block bipartisan compromises, or to prevent well-qualified, patriotic americans from filling critical positions of public service in our system of government. now, at a time when millions of americans have desperately searched for work, repeated abuse of these tactics have blocked legislation that might create jobs. they've defeated actions that would help women fighting for equal pay. they've prevented more progress

than we would have liked for striving young immigrants trying to earn their citizenship. or it's blocked efforts to end tax breaks for companies that are shipping jobs overseas. they've even been used to block common sense and widely supported steps to protect more americans from gun violence. even as families of victims sat in the senate chamber and watched. and they prevented far too many talented americans from serving their country at a time when their country needs their talents the most. it's harmed our economy, and it's been harmful to our democracy. and it's brought us to the point where a simple majority vote no longer seems to be sufficient for anything. even routine business through what is supposed to be the world's greatest dleliberative party. i realize neither party has been blameless for these tactics. they've developed over years,

and it seems as if they've continually escalated. but today's pattern of obstruction, it just isn't normal. it's not what our founders envisioned. a deliberate and determined effort to obstruct everything, no matter what the merits, just to refi the results of an election is not normal. and for the sake of future generations, we can't let it become normal. so i support the step a majority of senators today took to change the way that washington is doing business. more specifically, the way the senate does business. what a majority of senators determined by senate rule is that they would restore the longstanding tradition of considering judicial and public service nominations on a more routine basis. and here's why this is important. one of a president's constitutional responsibilities is to nominate americans to

positions within the branches. over six decades before i took office, only 20 presidential nominees to executive positions had to overcome filibusters. in just under five years since i took office, nearly 30 nominees have been treated this way. these are all public servants who protect our national security, look out for working families, keep our air and water clean. this year alone for the first time in history, senate republicans filibustered a president's nominee for the secretary of defense who used to be a former republican senator. they tried everything they could to hold up our epa administrator. they blocked our nominee for our top housing regulator at a time when we need more help for more families to afford a home and prevent what has caused mortgage meltdowns from happening again. and in each of these cases, it's not been because they opposed

the person. that there was some assessment that they were unqualified, that there was some scandal that had been unearthed. it was simply because they opposed the policies that the american people voted for in the last election. this obstruction gets even worse when it comes to the judiciary. the constitution charges the president with filling vacancies to the federal bench. every president has exercised this power since george washington first named justices to the supreme court in 1789. but my judicial nominees have waited nearly 2 1/2 times longer to receive yes or no votes on the senate floor than those of president bush. and the ones who eventually do get a vote generally are confirmed with little, if any, dissent. so this isn't obstruction on substance, on qualifications, it's just to gum up the works. this gridlock in congress causes gridlock in much of our criminal and civil justice systems.

you've seen judges across the country, including a bush-appointed chief justice to the supreme court, say these are vital vacancies that need to be filled. and this gridlock has not served the cause of justice. in fact, it's undermined it. over the past three weeks, senate republicans again denied a yes or no vote on three highly qualifiy eied americans to fill three vacancies on america's second highest court. four of president bush's six nominees to this court were confirmed. four out of five of my nominees to this court have been obstructed. so the vote today, i think, is an indication that a majority of senators believe, as i believe, that enough is enough. the american people's business is far too important to keep falling prey day after day to washington politics. i'm a former senator.

so is my vice president. we both value any senate's duty to advise consent. it's important. and we take that very seriously. but a few now refuse to treat that duty of advise and consent with the respect that it deserves. it's no longer used in a responsible way to govern. it's rather used as a reckless and relentless tool to grind all business to a halt. and that's not what our founders intended. and it's certainly not what our country needs right now. and i just want to remind everybody what's at stake here is not my ability to fulfill my constitutional duty. what's at stake is the ability of any president to fulfill his or her constitutional duty. public service is not a game. it is a privilege. and the consequences of action or inaction are very real. the american people deserve better than politicians who run for election, telling them how

terrible government is and then devoting their time in elected office to try and make government not work as often as possible. now, i want to be clear. the senate has actually done some good bipartisan work this year. bipartisan majorities have passed common-sense legislation to fix our broken immigration system and upgrade our courts, our ports. it's passed a farm bill that helps rural communities and vulnerable americans. it's passed legislation that would protect americans from being fired based on their sexual orientation. we know that there are folks there, republican and democrat, who want to get things done. and frankly, privately, they've expressed to me their recognition at the system in the senate had broke down, and what used to be a sporadic exercise of the filibuster had gotten completely out of hand. i believe i'm confident that that spirit will have a little more space now.

i want us to make sure that we can do more work together to grow the economy and to create jobs. and if there are differences in the senate, then debate should be had. people should vote their conscience. they should vote on behalf of their constituents. but they should vote. that's what they're there to do. and ultimately, if you've got a majority of folks who believe in something, then it should be able to pass. americans work hard. they do their jobs, and they expect the same from everybody who got sent here. and as long as i have the privilege of being in this office, i'll keep working as hard as i know how to make sure that the economy is growing and we're creating good jobs and we're widening prosperity and opportunity for everybody. and i know that that's what the majority of folks in the senate believe as well. but the gears of government have to work. and the step that a majority of senators took today, i think, will help make those gears work just a little bit better.

thanks very much, everybody. and now josh will answer all of your questions. >> all right. thank you. welcome, everybody. the president just wrapping up a short statement about the senate's plan to change the voting structure for presidential nominees, saying too often a single senator uses, quote, arcane procedural tactics to block qualified nominees, noted that it has been both parties that have used the filibuster tactic. john harwood joining us now. john, i'm trying to understand the president's sort of intention in giving this sort of rare media appearance at all. what was the intention of bringing the president out? >> reporter: you know, i think the president, who has been dogged by very damaging stories about obama care, look forward to celebrating a victory for his party and a victory for his administration in terms of enhancing their ability to fill out the court vacancies, fill out administration vacancies, making the case that was the

flipside of the one republicans are making in the senate. republicans are saying hey, democrats, be careful because the shoe's going to be on the other foot. when we're in the majority, you're vulnerable to what you're doing to us right now. and the president was making the opposite case for president, saying it's not just about my ability to stock my government, it's about a future president's ability. and, of course, any future president could easily be a republican. but i think overall, this was a president who knows now that the road blocks have been cleared for some of his nominees. he's pretty happy about that. he's in a long-term war with the republican party as democrats are. he said this is going to make the gears of congress work a little better. that's what we're going to see over the next few weeks. it depends on how much of a reaction republicans mount to this, whether they try to use procedural tools available to them to slow all the business to a crawl. >> thank you very much for the wrap-up there, john harwood. let's take a quick look at what the markets are up to. we have a lot of green out there. we're in the money, and i think, brian, it's a case of maybe good

news is finally good news. you had, for example, stronger labor market condition, data out this morning along with benign inflation data, rebound in manufacturing, all of those things. and as you can see, the dow is up by nearly triple digits now. by the way, on this day back in 1995, the dow closed above 5,000 for the very first time. a little trivia there for you. >> i lo of ve the trivia. by the way, we may have a plane taking off in kansas. there you go, folks. last night, if you're not paying attention, that plane, one of the largest, if not the biggest in the world, mistakenly landed at the wrong airport about six miles away from its intended airport. the problem is the airport that landed that, a regional airport, the runway is 6100 feet long. seven stories tall. it is going to be a tight, tight effort to get this plane off the runway. they say they can do it. atlas air cargo based in new york. when that plane starts to taxi and goes to the runway, we will bring that you video live.

pretty dramatic scene in wichita, kansas, as well. >> yeah, i believe the surrounding roads are being closed off to the public just in case. and there are also some fire rescue crews just on standby to make sure that everything will hopefully go smoothly. up next, it is shaping up to be a record year for dividend-paying stocks. but do big payouts mean big returns in this market? and we have today's "mystery chart." can you name this stock? it is up more than 50% over the past three months. here's a hint. it marks the spot. it also may be a feel-good american story. the answer coming up. and then later on, the miraculous survival story behind the most dramatic video you will see today. "street signs" is back in a flash. for over 60,000 california foster children,

the holidays can be an especially difficult time. everything's different now. sometimes i feel all alone. christmas used to be my favorite. i just don't expect anything. what if santa can't find me? to help, sleep train is holding a secret santa toy drive. bring your gift to any sleep train, and help keep the spirit of the holidays alive. not everyone can be a foster parent, but anyone can help a foster child. let's get back to stocks, shall we? it is shaping up to be a record year for dividend-paying stocks. s&p capital i.q. says that companies are on track to return 12% more to investors through dividends than they did last year. but do big payouts mean big returns in the market? dominic chu is with us, diving into the dividend boom. dom. >> let's talk about this, brian, because out of the s&p 500, there are only 38 stocks that

currently yield at least 4%. so not that many have those hefty dividend yields. and generally speaking, they've underperformed the overall market. but we found two stocks, two, so it's time for that name that stock game we've been playing. two stocks that have actually outperformed the market and carry yields of at least 4%. now, our first guy is up 22% year to date. it is a consumer staples stock. and it's one that yields around 5%. so any initial guesses? >> it's got to be a grocery -- safeway? >> not safeway. it's not food, no. >> kroeger? >> how about this? >> dom, sit tight, everybody, because the plane -- we're going to come back to you -- the dreamlifter in kansas is working down the runway. let's watch.

yeah. >> yeah, excellent! >> let's get up in the air, big boy. that is some piloting right there. wow! and bad condition, too. phil lebeau, i've got it tell you what, i don't know who those pilots were, but tip of the hat to them because that was a short runway for a very large plane. >> reporter: you bet that they were all the way backed up to the end of the runway. i can't hell from here, but you've got to think that they were. that was a crew they brought in, the other crew getting its rest after landing last night. what they're going to do now, brian, they're going to circle around a couple times and then land at mcconnell air force base which, yes, it's only nine or ten miles away. but they'll land there, then they'll taxi over to spirit air where they're going to unload the parts that they have brought from italy for the dreamliner, pick up other parts and then go off on their destination. >> do we have any clear idea of how exactly the pilots got off course in the first place? >> other than the air traffic control tape, and if you listen to that, it's clear that they confused the runway at jabara

with the runway at mcconnell air force base. they're nine miles apart, but they are lined up in the same direction. now, from above, it's hard to know why they confused one for the other. i can tell you this, mandy, from living in wichita. mcdonnell is a huge base. it's a huge base. and so you would think it would be hard to miss it as you're coming in. but clearly, whether you listen to the air traffic control tape, they do not know exactly where they are. or were. >> and i'm guessing, phil, that perhaps those pilots that were relieved, it wasn't just because of exhaustion. obviously, that's a big mistake to land at that runway. >> oh, yeah. >> tell us quickly about this plane. obviously a lot of our viewers saying why does it look like that? it's one of only four in the world, right, and it's a key plane for the 787. >> right. well, that's how the parts for the dreamliner all come together, either in everett or charleston, south carolina. remember, parts of the dreamliner, they're spread out around the world in terms of where they're manufactured. and then the dreamlifter, which is actually a modified 747, the

tail actually opens up. so it's a huge cathedral-like area. it's bakally just carrying parts. there's nothing else inside of that plane. and then it flies. they're constantly flying. landing in one loading and going on to the final assembly. >> then you've got the dream weaver which can help us get through the night. phil, thank you. >> thanks very much, phil. let's get back to the wall and dominic chu. you were telling us about some of the best dividend players. i think we were halfway through a mystery chart. it has a yield of over 4%. and you said it was consumer staples. i don't know, i was thinking maybe p&g or kimberly-clark? >> it might have also been a grocery, but we're going to take it a step further. the next hint is that this company -- i got "dream weaver" stuck in my head. thanks, brian, for that, by the way. this company is based in winston-salem. >> philip morris. >> it's not philip morris, but you're on the right track. it's america's second biggest tobacco company. >> reynolds america. >> you got it, rai.

>> it's based in manhattan. you live in the penthouse above their headquarters, i thought. >> i have no idea. the single best performing stock that's a dividend payer over the market is one that's up about 33% year to date. this is also a consumer staples company that yields around 4%. so i will tell you it's not a grocery, and it's not proctor & gamble. any guesses? >> j&j? >> not j&j. this one is headquartered, brian sullivan, is greensboro, north carolina. >> lauralar? >> it is. two companies, both cigarette makers, outperformers of the stock market and both pay at least a 4% dividend. only two of those, i goos, in the s&p 500. >> that company controls the e-cigarette market, about 50% of those kind of weird things. >> the e-cigarettes, they're catching on. what are some of the best

dividend bets out there according to the experts? let's ask matt mccormack and john golderman. herb is also along for the hide for good measure. gentlemen, great to have you with us today. matt, i want to get to you first of albas you in terms of your dividend picks, you are pounding the table on the tech sector going into next year. why? >> mandy, first off, they have strong free cash flow. they have little debt. they have the second lowest payout ratios in the s&p 500. they have a great demand -- restricted stock which means future dividend increases. they have strong products, and we expect to see strong dividend growth out of names like qualcomm, microsoft, intel, et cetera. they have the ability to have a ton of cash that's offshores. and god forbid, the politicians actually do something. they bring foreign capital back to the u.s. that could be strong dividend growth. we think technology is going to be the best sector going forward. >> qualcomm,le and microsoft, john, what about you? you have three picks as well. >> yeah.

we're looking at some names that pay dividends, potash being one of them, desal being the other, and these are names more in the value camp. they've had challenges to their businesses, specifically potash with its recent kerfuffle with pulling out of its bpc consortium and creating an opportunity in the potash and ag sector. but this is a company that pays a 4.5% dividend. it's got room to increase that dividend going forward as it reduces its capital expansion plans. it will be able to pass along some price increases, which we anticipate as a demand for fertilizer continues on. with desalle, we see this as a great business which has kind of kept the share price down in my opinion. so it trades at a cheap valuation but great growth opportunities and a lot of opportunity to improve profitability there. >> so matt and john, thank you very much for those comments. her, you know, we should also say that because of the fear of rising rates out there in the

market, a lot of these dividend players have underperformed the market. how do we think they're going to perform according to you going into next year in this environment? >> well, i don't know hue they're going to perform, but i can tell you this. be careful because some that have been performing well, you always have to be concerned that some will be cut. you know, i did a piece on this a while back. analysts say windstream, for example, is one that could be cut. and by the way, green mountain coffee suddenly out with a dividend, out of the blue, out of nowhere. and you have to look at that and say, is that really good news? do you want to get that yield? or is that a company that you could have risk with with the dividend? >> i know we'll be talking more about green mountain later on in the session. indeed. >> and i owe you an apology. >> why? >> altria moved back to richmond, virginia. they're not in new york city. >> thank you. >> altria's space was taken over by who? i'm kidding. >> i'm done with quizes. one quiz a day is perfectly enough for me. thanks, guys. okay. still ahead with gas prices down, u.s. oil and gas

production off the charts. we are asking, is this the beginning of the end for ethanol? and later on, if you like cinnabon and vodka, have we got the combination for you. trust us on this one. the most free research reports, customizable charts, powerful screening tools, and guaranteed 1-second trades. and at the center of it all is a surprisingly low price -- just $7.95. in fact, fidelity gives you lower trade commissions than schwab, td ameritrade, and etrade. i'm monica santiago of fidelity investments, and low fees and commissions are another reason serious investors are choosing fidelity. now get 200 free trades when you open an account.

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♪ [ woman ] i'd be a writer. [ man ] i'd be a baker. [ woman ] i wanna be a pie maker. [ man ] i wanna be a pilot. [ woman ] i'd be an architect. what if i told you someone could pay you and what if that person were you? ♪ when you think about it, isn't that what retirement should be, paying ourselves to do what we love? ♪

well, gasoline prices are moving higher as we head closer and closer to the weekend. let's get out to jackie deangelis for today's "pump patrol." >> reporter: gas prices creeping up today. the national average for a gallon of regular, $3.22 according to aaa. keep in mind that is still 20 cents lower from the same time last year. today the cheapest gasoline could be found in warrensburg, missouri, where the price is $2.71 per gallon. but compare that to hawaii where people are paying $3.94 a gallon. now, today there are six states where gas is below 3 bucks a gallon, aside from missouri, those are oklahoma, kansas, new mexico, nebraska and also arkansas. but keep in mind, if you live in the tri-state area, you're going to want to fill up in new jersey where gas prices are roughly 40 cents less than connecticut and new york. that's today's "pump patrol." back to you. >> jackie, thank you. that's right. come to new jersey.

we don't have enough people yet. gas prices falling, oil prices down, shale production is booming, and the epa proposing cutting the ethanol mandate for blendable fuels back to last year's level making some to wonder whether ethanol is being left out in the cold. our next guest is the world's fourth largest ethanol producer and he's to make the caste for it, todd becker, ceo of green plains renewable energy. todd, good to see you. make the case for ethanol. you guys have been getting jabs from both sides lately. >> yeah, we have, but i think there's a great case for ethanol. it's in a resurgence now. today it's the cheapest molecule in your tank. we're trading at $1 a gallon cheaper. ethanol is providing a very, very cheap fuel stock for the u.s. consumer. we're producing -- >> then why would the epa do what it did, then, or they're proposing to do this? many considering it a big win for big oil. what do you make of the epa's decision? >> yeah, big oil absolutely has

gotten a small victory here, but we have a big period where we're going to show the epa where ethanol has a permanent part in the fuel supply. one of the things that epa pointed out was that gas demand has been going down when in fact, if you look at the weekly data, we're pushing towards 138 billion gallons a year of gas demand which means ethanol production and ethanol blending is actually going up. so we're going to take the next 60 days to prove to the epa that some of the data was wrong, that they've been bullied by big oil, and this is really a fight for the fuel tank. i mean, every 1% share that ethanol gets is about a $4 billion hit to big oil. so they have a lot of reasons to fight us. but in general, i don't think we're going to go away any time soon. >> very quickly, i don't know if you know this, todd, i race cars. to be fair for ethanol-free fuel because we're worried about what it does to our fuel lines. lay it out right now. any risk in ethanol to engines or fuel lines? >> no, absolutely not. just ask nascar. they just passed 5 million miles running e15. even expanded blend. and they love the fuel. it's performing better.

the engines are running better. and they're getting better overall mileage. if nascar's willing to run it on all three tracks, i don't know why the u.s. consumer wouldn't want more of it. >> todd biffle apparently loves you. stocks more than doubled this year. thanks. >> thanks for having me. still ahead on "street signs," herb is all fired up over green mountain. episode two coming your way. plus -- >> let me explain it to you. it's a six foot high cinnamon swirl cake made for one sad fat man. >> we like him, too, and america's cinnabon obsession is taking a fluid new turn. you won't believe the latest cinnabon-flavored concoction. we're cooking it up for you coming up. the american dream is of a better future, a confident retirement. those dreams, there's just no way we're going to let them die.

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special "street talk" for you today. first of all, morgan stanley initiating coverage of the whole managed care sector. we are looking at names like aetna, cigna, unitedhealth, you name it. >> also looking at a bottle of vodka which we'll get to in a second. morgan stanley giving the

overall sector a neutral view. diversified earn, they like the names higher. aetna, cigna, unitedhealth. >> we were talking about this stock just a moment ago. philip morris getting a downgrade to mutual by goldman sac sachs. >> it was removed from their conviction bicyclist earlier this week. they said cigarette volumes should drop 3%. goldman didn't say that. by the way, this was on their conviction bicyclist. the stock is basically down 4% over the past 12 months. if that's your conviction buy, you need better conviction buys. that's a bad call. >> clovis oncology, getting a decent target price boost. >> yeah, it's our under-the-radar mover. stock's up. it's obviously an oncology company, a biotech. swan increasing their target. the stock's at $56.72, that's a 70% upside from here.

i'd like to get the analyst on to find out why you need to boost the target when you're still $20 away from your original target price. either way, wildly bullish on clovis oncology. they made a deal for a new drug. >> that is an informal invitation to the analyst, by the way. >> bazaar voice, this one is tanking by 14%. >> now 16%, it's losing momentum as the day goes on, down $1.44 to $7.45. also announced current ceo will step down in january. the president will become the ceo. this stock down 25% in the past month. bazaarvoice getting walloped. >> i'd also like to bring back herb on green mountain. the company posted earnings, but what is amazing here, i mean, it's an absolutely sizzling stock price today, up by 13%. and this is despite a weak outlook for the first quarter. what gives? >> that's because they're going to be -- >> what are you doing? are you sexting somebody as you walk on set?

>> i'm looking at a story from "the san jose mercury news" reporting that the head of sales of tesla, george blankenship, has left the company, basically leaving for family issues. >> the head of sales for tesla leaving the company there "the san jose mercury news"? >> his linkedin page has changed. he said tesla, gone. that is because you could argue the stock is up because perhaps they're going to give away a tesla with every k-cup. the reality is, this was a low-quality quarter. sales are going down. the company has taken a very risky strategy of going out, and they're going to create a new keurig system, 2.2, that will only take licensed k-cups. the question analysts were asking on the call was will this create great confusion at the company, in the marketplace? >> i could see a clash. >> especially because they're going to make it, you're going to go into the grocery aisle, you won't be able to shop for pricing. >> it's like the windows 8 tiles for coffee. i just made that up. i've got to show something here,

folks. the plane, the dreamlifter, that took off, very successfully, has now landed successfully. short flight because remember the real airport it was supposed to land at was actually just a couple of miles away. the pilots last night got confused. these are new pilots they brought in. very short one. amazing job by those guys. one of the biggest planes in the world. we're glad they're safe. good job. the story goes on. all right. most of us have tried cinnabons before. many of us have drank vodka. perhaps a lot of it. so if you like both things, you can rejoice because we are here to introduce pinnacle's new cinnabon vodka. pinnacle is made by beam and beam north america president bill newlands is with us and president of cinnabon. i want to combine peanut butter and chocolate. me and a car engine. cinnabon and vodka, not necessarily two things that first come to mind. why this partnership? >> we bring all the great flavors that you've always loved in a vodka format. and what is more indulgent than great cinnabon?

>> mm-hmm. >> and the vodka is not intended to be consumed with the rolls. in fact, it's one of the only fat-free replacements with our flavor that you can get. >> talking of fat, how much is in one of these babies here, by the way? >> i think there's around 15 grams of fat in the mini-bon. >> you're saying don't nuzzle up with a box of cinnabon and a bottle of vodka. >> the new cinnabon k-cup with the rolls with the vodka. >> now you know why you're running the company. did you come from marketing, by the way? no, seriously. who brought it to who? did you bring it to kat? >> we've done a lot of indulgent-type flavors. >> so you said to cinnabon, hey, let's make a vodka. >> you bet. >> and what was your reaction? what is this. >> you know, it would have been what if they hadn't already led the market with their whipped line, the vanilla notes, all the vanilla vodkas had gotten to so pa popular. we were following the trend they created but lending our

credibility in cinnamon frosting flavors of indulgence. >> this is your very first branded flavor of vodka, isn't it? >> that's right. last year we did a pumpkin pie, but it was just a pumpkin pie. >> pumpkin is a very -- it's a gourd that is either loved or unloved. i hate pumpkin. i can't stand it. >> it's a very hot flavor. >> starbucks, a lot of places. >> it's a divisive gourd, i think, among america. >> the question is what is going to be next? what are you looking at in terms of new combinations that you would like to bring into a vodka bottle? >> kat and i have been talking as today has gone on. we've got a couple ideas up our sleeve. you might see another thing in the same general zip code. >> like a fluid-filled cinnabon with vodka in the middle of it for the kids, you know. >> that sounds horrible. >> it wouldn't be for the kids. >> is this just available here in the united states at the moment? >> so far, but we were talking today, kat's in 58 countries,

and i'm sure we'll be happy to follow into many of those. >> 58 countries? >> absolutely. >> are my compatriots in australia going to get a little taste of this? >> yes. >> ai've got one that's already been pretried. may i offer you? i'm not going to -- >> absolutely. a little bit of vanilla in the aroma. >> strong vanilla. >> it's just like our frosting. >> i've got a career in bartending if this tv thing goes south. >> cheers. okay. >> i would have never thought these two, i have to say. >> very strong vanilla. okay. and the rest of the show is going to be -- >> mix it with some cider. >> it's actually pretty good. i'm not a big vodka drinker or cinnabon. in this area you don't tend to live near malls. that's where most of your locations are. >> absolutely, malls, airports. >> the ma'am came to us todamal

today. >> thank you so much. he can have mine. still ahead, the single biggest mistake the wealthy make when it comes to investing. >> drinking vodka before investing. plus, can you name our mystery chart? here's a hint. it marks a spot, and it may just be a feel-good american story. it's not cinnabon or beam, but those are good answers. bill griffeth, though, you're jealous of the cinnabon vodka. what's coming up? >> yes, but you know where my desk is located in the newsroom, sully. >> there will be a shot waiting for you. >> thank you. we'll find out if home retail products williams-sonoma will take that route to win shoppers when we seek exclusively to the ceo coming up. then mcdonald's is u suggesting to its workers that they sell unwanted possessions to help with their budgeting. we're going to hear from somebody who says the fast food giant should just pay their workers more money. and can the second "hunger games" movie help lionsgate.

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cinnabon vodka time is over. it is time now to talk some numbers. throughout the show we've been asking if you can name today's mystery charts. it also, mandy, marks the spot. >> "x" marks the spot. >> u.s. steel, ticker is "x." some of you go the it. good job. maybe it was too easy. making it one of the s&p 500's best. let's talk numbers now. on the technicals, richard ross, on the fundamentals, mark lichtenfeld. big optimism here? >> i like the stock. obviously it's a play on economic recovery in the united states and also europe. the company is seeing some strong demand out of the auto sector and energy, and i expect that to continue,

they're going to be crying like a-rod after an arbitration hearing. fueling demand for it. i say you buy the stock and make the shorts cry. >> i really liked it. i like to zig when others zag. this is a stock along with a couple of other names in the sector that were really left for dead. only about three months ago. rich, what are the charts telling us? can the comeback continue? >> the charts are in alignment with mark's bullish view. when we bring up the shorter-term chart, you can see it's a tale of two halves, mandy, the best of times and the worst of times. right out of the gate we stumble. we break down from that head and shoulders top, we take out the 150-day moving average, but we establish a nice five-month base of support. we krreclaim that 150-day and ge

on that tear, we've reclaimed that previous resistance which now is at $26. you want to buy it on the breakout alone. bring up that long-term weekly. this is where the magic happens for u.s. steel. you can see this 150-week moving average has worked extremely well, getting you out of the stock on the way down, around $80. once again down from $200. then we move lower here. look at this beautiful multiyear base of support. tested and held several times, around $20. we're now retesting that 150-week moving average around $28. i think we have what it takes to break through and move higher. there's at least $7 of upside. i would be a buyer here. >> wow. very bullish view, i'd say, a tale of two opinions, but obviously not. both bullish. nice reference, ross. be sure to check out the online numbers of "talking numbers." head right now, i mean right now, after the show, anyway. to cnbc.com/talking-numbers.

there's a slash and a dash. talking of slashing and dashing, look at what's going on in the markets. we've got the dow up by triple digit, folks, and we've cracked back above that 16,000 mark. we'll see whether or not we can actually close above that. the nasdaq is also on a tear. 1.2% pop for that one. and the s&p after, i think, three days in the red is now making a comeback. it's moving back towards the 1800 mark. they're technical numbers, psychological be ins, whatever. >> people drinking cinnabon vodka and throwing in market orders willy-nilly. buy at any price. be careful. >> have another vodka, brian. next, is having a ceo in the boardroom a good thing for a company's stock? we've got a new study that might surprise you. and the story behind this incredible video.

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be sure to catch the season finale of "american greed." tonight. a seattle real estate developer with a sterling reputation ends up in bankruptcy court and is now on the run. catch an all new "american greed: the fugitives." tonight at 10:00 p.m. eastern and pacific. file this under obvious, right, as a headline. companies with better boards tend to do better in the stock market. however, there are some surprises and new data out. let us bring in jim drury. apparently no relation to mandy. >> we don't know that. we haven't established it yet. >> at some point you are related. jim, welcome to the program. good to have you on, i think. >> thank you. >> obvious, good boards, good companies, right? but you found some interesting correlations. what are they? >> well, we found that really -- companies that are regarded as very good do not necessarily have great governance capacity in the board room.

and some companies that are probably less visible, that are smaller, mid-sized, growing, have extraordinary governance capacity in the board room. we found some interesting correlations between governance capacity relative to company scale and their stock performance over the long term, five-year period. >> give us some examples here of some strong governance equalling strong stock performance. show us what you've got. jim? >> well, i would say that we picked about 25 companies that would have been at the lower range. let's say below the 300 on the fortune 500. and we looked at their governance capacity rankings. and what we found was that companies like foot locker, eastman chemical, discover card, ralph lauren had significantly better stock performance than the large companies with less than expected governance capacity. and if we were to rank them by their governance capacity,

difference from their rank in size, we would have found an awful lot of financial institutions that had not surprisingly poor financial performance including citigroup. >> hey, jim. it's herb greenberg. interesting you mention that. years ago it used to be that the banks all had, you know, their customers on the boards and all. but one of the issues here is, is when you see more ceos getting back on the boards and getting involved in this, is there more of a buddy system in the bigger companies than little companies or vice versa? does that play any role? over the past few years they've been trying to get away from the rubber stamping type of boards. >> herb, i think there's been so much scrutiny of corporate boards by investors, activists, et cetera. the old boy network may exist in a few companies. but it is long gone. it is past history. today's board directors fully understand their risks, their

responsibilities. and if you recruit highly reputable, highly accomplished executives, whether ceos or cfos, that doesn't go on anymore. it just doesn't stand. >> we have to leave it there, jim. thank you very much. i just want to highlight some of the ones that stood out. small companies with high governance strength like harley davidson. avery dennison. large companies with low governance strength. jim drury, one day we will sit down and establish whether or not we came from the same forebearers. ever wonder how the super rich invest? maybe you even are the super rich. here's a hint. just like you and me. let's bring in robert frank. >> when we talk about rich investors we assume they have better information, better products, better advice when it comes to investing. a new study suggests they make the same mistakes as everyone else. the analysis from professors

looked at investors with average wealth of $90 million and see how they did between 2000 and 2009. their portfolios are pretty straightforward. half their investments are in stocks. about 30% in fixed income. 10% hedge funds. about 10% private investment. more alternatives than the average joe. during the crisis their financial wealth fell 45% and their other investments did almost as badly. total wealth falling 40%. the big mistake they made at the crisis was not rebalancing. many actually sold stocks at the bottom of the market in the spring of 2009. the study's authors note that, quote, they do not appear to have particularly good skills as a group to anticipate market movements. we don't know how they've done since 2009. if they've just kept pace with the market they've done better than the rest of the market which owns fewer stocks. when it comes to stock picking, the rich are not --

>> peel back the expensive clothes, they're just like us. >> finally, a report from me that makes everyone else feel better about themselves. finally. >> finally. >> thank you. coming up next, things get very ugly very quickly during a california race. the unbelievable outcome of this incredible video, next. it's as simple as this. at bny mellon, our business is investments. managing them, moving them, making them work. we oversee 20% of the world's financial assets. and that gives us scale and insight no one else has. investment management combined with investment servicing. bringing the power of investments to people's lives. invested in the world. bny mellon.

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incredible video of the day. brian gillespie got sideways. he did get hurt initially. 11 days ago. suffered a collapsed lung, some bruises. happy to report, he's okay now. scary scene. testament to modern safety. hauthank you so much for watching "street signs" today. >> "closing bell" is next. cheers. >> hi, everybody. we enter the final stretch. welcome to the "closing bell." i'm maria bartiromo at the new york stock exchange. another assault being mounted to close above 16,000 for the dow for the first time. we're there, bill. >> we're there. >> question is do we stay there? >> they approved janet yell en t the senate banking committee. things are positive. mr. bullard said a little while ago he sees more room in the fed's balance sheet. meaning they could move along with more purchases before they begin tapering.