>> hey, suzanne, hello everyone i'm joe johns, it's 1:00 on the east coast. former penn state coach jerry sandusky is pleading not guilty to charges he raped young boys. his plea came after he waived his right to the preliminary hearing which means he will be put on trial. he was minutes away from coming face to face with a number of his accusers on the verge of explosive testimony from 11 witnesses who prosecutors say were standing by ready to recount in detail how sandusky allegedly sexually abused some of them of the sandusky said this about his decision. >> stay the course and fight for four quarters and we'll await the opportunity to present our side. >> we couldn't do that today. >> a lot on the line for both sandusky and his alleged victims. keep in mind sandusky faces more than 50 counts involving ten

young boys he allegedly targeted over a span of more than 15 years. let's go straight to nancy grace who's been all over this case to try to get a better understanding of all of this. nancy, was this a smart decision by sandusky and his attorney? >> it was a win-win decision. it was a win for the defense joe johns because otherwise they would have had the case laid bear for the public of the granted it's a closed courtroom to cameras but there are spectators and reporters that can hear what happened and they would have had heard every excruciating detail. to our count, we can identify five alleged victims there waiting in line to testify against sandusky. so they would have given their testimony. the win for the prosecution is that the defense did not get a dry run at cross-examination. this is what i predicted to you yesterday should go down. the state should under no

circumstance offer up all of the alleged victims like a thanksgiving turkey, to get sliced up on cross exam. they did it, now for the defense, defense attorneys typically would love the chance to go fishing at the expense of the state's witnesses here it would have been a pr nightmare for sandusky's lawyer. so you know, today the lawyer amendola is out on every news network talking about how great it was there was not a preliminary hearing. i don't care what he says all right, all i care about is what sandusky says and for once he's remaining quiet. >> let's listen to a sound bite we got from sandusky's attorney earlier today. here's what he said. >> in return for us waiving this hearing, which was a close decision, we really kind of labored over whether we wanted to do this, but ultimately we decided it would be better for jerry to be guaranteed that he can remain out on bail pending a

resolution in this case and trial rather than proceed with a preliminary hearing and run the risk that additional bail might be set either today or a later point in time. >> now nancy, sitting there listening to that on your couch at home, you think that's a big win for the prosecutors. is it really? >> get real! look. they were having talks into the night. so all of this would not come out on the witness stand. hey, it was no skin off the prosecution's back to avoid putting their witnesses on the stand. this was a big win for the defense. don't tell me it was a last minute decision. he was on his knees last night begging the state not to go forward. this is the state's decision, they could have gone forward whether the defense liked it or not. in fact it's their duty but here they are moving forward, we're going to have another court date in a couple of weeks, mid january, where there will be an arraignment. i guarantee there's going to be a not guilty plea entered and

sandusky will probably not even show up in court. why? because it will be another chance for him to look bad. how can he avoid it? there's like 40 counts of alleged child molestation. >> you also have to wonder whether there's going to be a plea deal in all of this because we've heard so much about the evidence. realizing some of that evidence is already been called into question, at least the testimony, do you think there are chances of a plea dell -- >> says who? you? what's been called into the question, nobody has taken the stand yet. >> mcqueary's testimony has been called into question. >> by who? >> we talked about it yesterday on this program. >> i asked who called it in, the defense has. i need to come to washington to straighten you out. let me tell you something, the defense is going to use every public forum they can to attack the state's witnesses. listen, even if one witness, mcqueary has been called into question, as you saw today, they

are lined up to testify against sandusky. how many more states' witnesses can they destroy on cross-examination. maybe he is a fatality for the state but he's one of many. >> do you think the attorneys for sandusky have messed up this case? will he have a defense that he didn't have good counsel? >> when there's conviction, it's standing operating procedures that the defendant sits in jail and decides his defense lawyer is to blame. true, the defense lawyer should never have let sandusky go on air and interview with anybody. that was a big mistake. all of that can and will come into court. i can guarantee you that. but the reason that we're in court now is not because of the defense lawyer, it's because of the allegations claimed against sandusky. sandusky has made this mess and he's the one that going to have to answer in court for it. regarding a plea as you wisely mentioned a few moments ago, it

would likely be in sandusky's best interest to enter a plea so all of this doesn't come out in open court. but i guarantee the state is not going to go down without hard jail time. so sandusky and his wife need to resign themselves to the fact that he's going to jail. >> you do think his wife has real legal exposure at this point and would you be advising her to get a lawyer if she hasn't already gotten one? >> i don't, i don't think she has real legal exposure. under our system, even if she heard a young boy crying for help, which i don't think she did. i believe the little boy's story, i believe that did happen from what i have read, but i really do not believe this woman, this good and kind hearted woman would have turned a deaf ear to a call for help. i don't think she has legal exposure and don't think she's going to be prosecuted. of what? of being a trusting and

believing wife? i don't think any jury in this jury could find her guilty. sandusky is an entirely different matter. >> it is always a pleasure to talk to you and i learn something every time i do. >> bye, friend. >> the other stories making news, the house of representatives may vote today on a republican plan to extend the payroll tax cut. democrats have been pushing to extend the cut which will otherwise expire next month but the republican plan adds conditions democrats don't like, including the construction of a controversial oil pipeline from canada to texas. even if the republican plan is approved by the house democratic leaders say it won't pass the senate. president obama wants iran to return the u.s. drone it claims to have downed. it says the u.s. has asked for the drone and is waiting for a response. the iranians say the unmanned aircraft was on a spy mission over iran and they say they are keeping it. there's concern the drone could

provide iran with u.s. military secrets. >> anybody on either side. >> former vice president dick cheney says president obama should have ordered an air strike to destroy it. four soldiers died last in a helicopter crash, two army observation helicopters crashed in a training base mccord. they are trying to determine what went wrong. a congressional panel is holding its first meeting today looking into reports of serious misconduct at the dover air force base mortuary. most of america's fallen troops pass through the delaware base as they prepare for burial. remains were mishandled and body parts incinerated and dumped in a landfill. there's news about another hazing investigation involving the florida a and m marching 100 band. three band members were arrested

yesterday in connection with an incident that allegedly occurred weeks before the death of drum major robert champion. police say the suspects attacked hunter on october 31st and november 1st, breaking her leg and causing blood clots. so far police are not linking the suspects to the alleged hazing death of champion three weeks later. just how far can a state go in its crackdown on i am legal immigrants and does arizona go too far? as the u.s. supreme court is prepared to take up the case, i'll ask one of the toughest anti-immigration in the nation, sheriff arpaio joins any next. first, meet aaron wright, the brave 6-year-old met his mother after her car flew down a 60-foot snow covered em

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but i'm only 37 and a half. [ buzzer ] [ male announcer ] finding the must have soul by ludacris headphones for $199.99 at radioshack. so right. ♪ [♪...] >> male announcer: book now, save up to 65%. call 1-800-sandals. enforcing immigration laws is a tough job but somebody has to do. the question is who? the supreme court will tell us in june whether it's solely the job of the federal government or whether the states can join in. arizona, for example, the high court has agreed to take up four key parts of that hugely controversial arizona law that

requires police to check the status of suspected illegal immigrants who are stopped or arrested for other reasons. it makes it a state crime for immigrants to violate a federal registration law and makes it illegal for undocumented immigrants to hold or try to find jobs. it let's police make warrantless arrests if they believe the suspects are deportable. lower courts at the urging of the white house have put all of the measures on hold but now arizona wants clarity. when it comes to immigration enforcement, nobody is more clear than my next guest, maricopa county sheriff joe arpaio. let me read you one sentence the judge writes, the idea that 50 individual states or one individual state should have a foreign policy is absurdity too gross to be entertained. what do you think of that

statement? does arizona s a foreign policy and is that appropriate? >> i spent years in mexico enforcing the laws with the federal drug enforcement. i'm kind of shocked at that decision was made by that judge but now i'm happy that we're going to the supreme court and get this problem resolved. you ought to keep foreign problems away from us and arizona enforcing state laws. >> now, how much a difference does this law, this individual law really make to you if the supreme court says the law has to be struck down once and for all, would you still be able to do your job? or would you you be hand strung in any way there? >> we've been doing the job anyway, we have investigated and arrested on the streets and in the jail system. it doesn't change anything. i do like certain parts of that new law but i'll tell you one thing we've been doing that

under two other state laws. we have two other state laws, one is the employer sanction that the supreme court ruled in our favor. it's not going to change anything i'm doing regardless of what that decision is. >> so the fact of the matter is, if you look at this thing closely, the supreme court could do away with sb 1070 and you wouldn't be affected? >> that's right. we got two other state laws we're enforcing. not -- for get the 1070 raid businesses on employer sanction and catch people from mexico coming in our county, thousands we've arrested. nothing to do with the 1070. >> do you have any second thoughts about what you're doing? as i understand it, the fellow who wrote the law has been booted out of office and they are coming after you too. >> let them come. as long as the laws are on the books i'm going to enforce those laws. i'm the elected sheriff.

so you don't like it, take the laws off the books. if they are on the books, this sheriff will continue to enforce it. >> what do you think about the politicians who say there ought to be humane enforcement. i think newt gingrich is among those who have made this point. do you think that's the same as amnesty or do you agree with this notion of humane enforcement. >> i think it's aamnesty. a lot of politicians wasn't amnesty, the texas governor perry sent the troops out to the border for five years. he's one governor at least who is enforcing these laws since the feds are not doing it. get other people involved, other states involved to fight this problem. forget about a national policy emanating from the white house and the justice department. let every state take the laws and enforce them. >> i don't know if you've seen it but there's new immigration

numbers out that suggest border arrests are down sharply. the numbers i have in my hand here say 340,000 in fiscal 2011. 705 in 2008, 1.6 million in 2000. what does that say to you? do you believe those numbers and actually think the number of people trying to cross the border has gone down too? >> the only answer i can give you, every time we go out there we're locking up illegals in the workplace, we have no problems arresting them from the border. how domestic this sheriff doesn't have any problems? they are still coming in and you can draw all of the statistics out there but they are still coming in to arizona. >> sheriff joe arpaio, thanks for talking to us. i know we'll come back to you soon. >> thank you. >> imagine losing 30 pounds in 30 days? sounds like a diet too good to be true? the fda agrees and cracking down

on companies selling hcg. what is this new diet craze and is it dangerous? i'll speak to one doctor who's all for it. everyone believes in keeping their promises once a year. but we believe in helping people take steps to keep them every single day. that's why every day we help people across the country get into their first homes. prepare for a comfortable retirement and protect the people and things that matter most. at genworth we believe every day is the right day to take a step toward tomorrow.

a diet all the rage is the target of fda rage doctors use it to treat infertility but it's not approved over the counter for any purpose. they submitted letters to seven diet companies that submit it and they say the drug is unapproved. the weight loss claims

unsupported. if the companies don't comply they could face legal action. the doctor is a weight loss physician, do you think the fda got it wrong? >> no, i don't think they got it wrong. we've been explaining to patients this is a prescription drug that needs to be prescribed by a doctor, it's not something to be bought over the counter. >> what do you think triggered this decision? what is it that makes the fda go out and decide there's something wrong with a treatment like this and say we've got to get rid of it or whatever? >> i think because this diet has become so growingly popular in the united states, that some companies may have been jumping on the bandwagon and trying to sell this over the counter. however, in my practice, what we are doing is we're really pioneering and having this looked at as a possible use for

weight loss in an approved way by the fda. hopefully when the research comes out t. will show that. >> what makes you think hcg is better than some of the other diets on market, and what makes you think this one works? we've had so many different examples of different diets that turned out to be scams. >> well, hcg used in a prescription form has the potential to change the dynamics within the body during the use of a low calorie diet. it's those changes that occur in the body that may be contributing to longer term changes to help people with weight loss. that is what we're taking a closer look at. however, a lot of companies selling things over the counter may be making false claims and that's something the fda has decided was something that people should not be taking lightly. diet is something that physicians really need to follow closely with their patients to ensure they are a good

candidate, that they don't have any underlying medical conditions that need to be followed closely and make sure they have success on it as well. >> you use the stuff on the prescription level, if you will, but the fda says it shouldn't be used. we have 'statement here, there's no substantial evidence that it increases weight loss beyond that resulting from calorieic restriction that hcg causes a more attractive or normal distribution of fat or that it decreases the hunger and discomfort associated with calorie-restricted diets. it says it doesn't work. i mean, plain and simple. what's your response to that? >> right, there was a batch of data in the late '70s to early '80s and that was the ee quif cal conclusion from that but it hasn't had a new batch of research done to look at different perimeters such as higher dosing and body composition. so that's what our practice is focusing on.

the evidence is very strong so just it needs to be looked at more closely. once the data comes out, it will allow it to be re-evaluated and looked at a second time. >> thanks so much for that. i know a lot of people are talking about this diet. >> a lot of people are talking about it and there's a lot to be said. stay tuned on that. >> appreciate it. >> thank you so much, joe. >> we're going to take you to an ancient european city after the break. it's located on islands where two rivers meet. it was the birth place and known for its christmas market but today that market turned deadly. we go globe trekking next.

we begin in eastern bell jim jum after a gun and grenade attack. the attacker is among the dead, identified as a 33-year-old city resident. there's no information on any motive. some reports say the attacker served prison time on drug and firearms convictions but never been charged with any terror crimes. now so syria, where at least 34 people are said to have died in today's fighting between government troops and dissidents, the united nations says 5,000 people have died since the violence broke out nine months ago. but a government spokesman disputes that figure calling it incredible. they say the dead include a 10-year-old boy killed by sniper's bullet in his own home. mourners were going to bury the boy friday, the funeral procession also came under fire. finally to pakistan where

political leaders are criticizing a u.s. move to cut aid. pakistani relations have grown increasingly strained and pakistan recently stopped fuel shipments to nato sources. yesterday a committee voted to withhold $700 million in aid in to pakistan. the chairman of the the foreign affairs committee calls the u.s. move unfortunate and untimely. newt gingrich has advice for mitt romney. you be nice to me and i'll be nice to you. but is all of this good guy talk possible in such a heated presidential race? plus, win or lose the first few primaries why romney says he's in it for the long haul.

this is the part of the show where we go past the partisan talking points and all sides are fair game. mitt romney has tipped his hand in an interview he called newt gingrich the front-runner but conceded it will be a long road to the presidential nomination. romney seems to be looking past iowa and south carolina and florida. joining me now are maria cardona and lenny mcallister. people out there, the taxpayers and voters, the people who are going to be covering these

races, the candidates we all want to know, is this going to be a very long race? start with you, lenny. >> i don't think it's going to be a long race. i think the reason he has to shape it that way, the possibility of losing all four of the first four contests. super tuesday may end up being a formality, he's hoping to get the clinton obama model we saw four years ago. these two going for the nomination as there was with senator obama and senator clinton. he has an uphill battle regardless of what transpires, four years ago tore thereabouts we had a situation where everybody thought hillary clinton was the front-runner in the nomination race and turned out to be a very different thing not long after that.

do you see this changing a couple of times? >> i think that's very possible, joe, i think that what we are -- at least what romney really wants to see is a drawn out race. and i have to tell you, the polls right now do make it look good for newt gingrich but let's remember that met romney has a lot more money than gingrich does and has more resources and infrastructure and let's remember that iowa is not a one a day -- not a one-day poll like new hampshire is, for example. and iowa you have to have the infrastructure to get your folks out and be ready for them to be at these caucuses for three hours, for four hours, it takes infrastructure to take people to the polls and to the caucuses. right now gingrich doesn't have that. i do see this as a very possible drawn out race. right now for that kind of drawn out race, the person that it benefits is the person with the most money and most

infrastructure and right now that's romney. >> the question also whether it's going to be a nice race or nasty race. have you seen the letter that newt gingrich put out today? i want to read from it. he's telling his staff to be nice. he said he's instructing all members of the campaign staff and respectfully urge anyone acting as a surrogate for our campaign to avoid initiating attacks on other republican candidate. and he has refrained from launching attacks on republican opponents but reserves the right to respond when his record has been distorted. he responded quick, last night against romney. nonetheless, do you think it is going to be a nice race or nasty race given the tone right now? >> i think that that was actually pretty brilliant statement for gingrich to put out. it puts him in a position to be the nice guy, to be imagine nam mouse and later on when he goes out to respond to what will be the negative attacks on him,

he'll already have said it on the record, look, i didn't start this. he's the front-runner, he is in the exact position to say something like that and to be able to stick with it if in fact nothing else changes. we know when there's a tight race and very short period of time, the only way to really change things and to change the dynamic that's going on is for opponents to go negative. i don't think this is going to last very long, joe. >> what do you think? do you think romney and gingrich can avoid beating each other up and tearing each other down? >> no, the lead dog doesn't need to be the attack dog, this is why newt gingrich said this previously. senator obama wanted to have a nice clean campaign and going to stay above the fray until senator clinton started to go negative and senator obama abandoned that completely and both got into the mud for the next six months. don't be surprised if both front-runner candidates end up

going negative at some point in time especially after first couple of contents. >> i think this will be long and drawn out and ultimately helps president obama by the end of the day. >> is it doesn't have to be long and drawn out with the leader though. >> we're going to find out soon enough i think. thanks so much for that. that's "fair game." in a moment, an end to the iraq war, but as the u.s. troops pulls out its troops of that country, we're leaving just as many problems behind perhaps. that's a question we'll try to answer with fareed zakaria joining me next. ttd#: 1-800-345-2550 at charles schwab, what every trader gets is customized to

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iraqi prime minister nuri al maliki is leading with leaders in washington today. does that mean an end of foreign influence in iraq? specifically from iran? >> prime minister maliki has been explicit here in the united states and back in iraq that his interest is maintaining iraqi sovereignty and preventing meddling by anybody inside of iraq. and i believe him.

>> fareed zakaria, host of gps joins me from new york. let's get to iran in a moment. first, after united kingdom left iraq 80 years ago things crumbled pretty quickly. if iraq can remain strong, fareed in the coming years, something mr. obama says he is hoping for, could the united states and iraq end up in an adverse sarial situation? >> i don't think so. i think if iraq were able to stay strong, build greater stability, the singest most important thing that would happen is iraq would start exporting more oil. remember, iraq has the second largist oil reserves in the world. if it were able to produce anything near the amount it is capable of, this will have a huge impact on the world of oil and therefore have a huge impact on u.s./iraqi relations because the iraqis would be doing us a big favor, diversifying the

sources of oil and increasing supply. the united states and iraq did not have fundamentally add ver sarial interests, we're not adversaries by interest. saddam hussein was a weird dictator and we found ourselves on the other side of the stick with him. >> now to iran, can the united states essentially find itself in a worst position in iraq because iran is there? because united states leaves, we have a vacuum, what happens? >> that's a real concern. look, iran is the neighboring power. it is going to have influence in iraq no matter what. in addition, many of the leaders who now rule iraq including the president, mr. talibani, the prime minister mr. maliki, iran

aa proud nation, while the leaders may have spent time in iran, most iraqis have a memory of iran, they spent a eight-year war are iran. 7,000, 8,000 people. i don't think the iraqi people are going to be too comfortable with a policy in which the prime minister of their country becomes some kind of a puppet of the iranian regime. nations have national interests and i expect that iraq and any iraqi prime minister will try to preserve his national interest and not become a puppet of iran. >> not to be too cynical, several nonmilitary personnel and contractors will end up on the ground after the military leave. are those people there for iraq or are they there for the united states? >> well, it's a little bit of both. there are in a sense disguising the drawdown so it is not a

drawdown quite to zero. we have some who are protecting the embassy, embassy personnel, there's going to be a fairly healthy ci axt contingent i'm sure. people from the dea. you add that together and the united states will have a certain kind of offensive presence in iraq. look, it's entirely justified. the u.s. consulate in basra is minutes from the iranian border. what were to happen should some iranian thugs were to cross the border and try to launch an attack on the u.s. consulate in basra? well, you've got to be able to protect yourself. the u.s. is appropriately taking precautions so they don't end up in some situation that looks like the iran hostage crisis all over again. >> fareed zakaria, always great to talk to you. thanks so much for coming in. >> pleasure. >> keep your money and we'll keep ours. stinging words from this man,

husba russell simmons, his target home goods giant lows. coming up next. the fcc wants loud commercials to leave kbi et quietly. they required tv programming to maintain a constant volume, no more loud abrupt commercials after watching cnn, even though the regulations don't go into effect for another year. it is now time to say hush, loud commercials, your 15 minutes are up. [ woman ] my boyfriend and i were going on vacation, so i used my citi thank you card to pick up some accessories. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? we talked about getting a diamond. but with all the thank you points i've been earning... ♪ ...i flew us to the rock i really had in mind.

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let's start with deer born michigan, where the tlc show all american muslim takes place. lowe's ranked his ad now russell simmons tweeted, just purchased remaining spots for all american muslim next week. the show is now sold out. keep your money and we'll keep ours. simmons backs a petition urging companies to advertise during the show. it premiered in november and

airs on monday nights. russell simmons will be live later this afternoon and talk about his big ad buy at 3:00 eastern right here on cnn. now on to cecilia, kentucky, where santa surprises two young girls at lakewood elementary with an early christmas present. >> okay. you guys -- >> katie and bailey's father tommy neil returned home early from afghanistan. he wasn't supposed to arrive until after christmas. their mom, stephanie, organized the surprise with the school. for these girls, christmas wishes do come true. let's head to boston, where a marine becomes a crime stopper. police say this man, albert denisio broke into a car when the family was shopping. when they returned he was still in the car.

he tried to run away but ran straight into this man, a marine collecting toys for the foundation toys for tots. >> i was actually in the back of my cargo van with the toys packing them in and that's when i saw -- i was able to catch him -- >> he was probably about 20 or 30 feet in front of me when he caught him. so i was there a couple of seconds later and we're both able to secure him to the ground. >> sergeant matthew la roche held the thief down until police arrived. now to triangle, virginia, where the marine toys for tots foundation we just mentioned is based. the charity group collects unused, unwrapped toys for needy children. the gifts are handed out around christmas and you can help make a wish come true. the president and ceo lieutenant general henry hoffman joins us live to explain. i know you received a lot of

toys this year, but do you think you'll reach your toy goal? >> that's always a challenge, with the economy the way it's been for last three years, the big challenge has been the demand. the revenue flow from the donors and corporate sponsors has been good and it can be better. the challenge has been the in d. >> do you think the economy affected all of this this year? so many people have been suffering and i do know that charity in other areas goes down when the economy is bad. >> well, there's no question that it has an impact. however, toys for tots, i guess because we don't ask a lot -- you purchase that toy and drop it in the barrel, or go to our website and make that small online donation, we don't ask a lot. and so a great number of americans continue to support toys for tots. the real challenge, as i said, has been an increase in demand. we hear that from our coordinators and big cities and

they exceed what they have seen in the past. how do you reach that increase in demand. >> give us an idea of the kind of toys that you are looking for and who do these toys end up going to? >> well, people ask that question all the time. what kind of toys are you looking for? the answer is, whatever you buy for your own children is what we are looking for. if you're still at a loss, i always say sports equipment is a great toy, as are books. as far as the children that are to receive it, we look for the unfortunate child. somebody who may go without this year. with the census bureau telling us we have 16 million children living at the poverty level, believe me, they are out there. fortunately, we have social organizations, churches, police departments to help identify the families and the communities and we work hard to make sure those families receive the help that they need for those children. >> so i guess you have a deadline on this. in other words, a time when people have to have all of the toys to you otherwise you wouldn't be able to get these

toys to the kids before christmas. what's the deadline? >> each campaign establishes its own deadline. any coordinator will take toys literally up to the 11th hour. on christmas eve they will find a family that is overlooked or find somebody that says, i need some help and they will make that distribution literally on dris mass eve. toy donations, particularly monetary donations, we'll take them up to the 11th hour. >> what is that website? >> toysfortots.org. and you'll find information there for toys for tots and an opportunity to make the online donation and an opportunity to volunteer your services. >> got you. if somebody can't find a marine to give these toys to, you just go to the website? >> exactly. >> all right. great. thanks so much, general. really appreciate seeing you.

we see your folks all over d.c. all the time. >> thank you for your support. i appreciate it. in iowa, the battle for the republican nomination is anybody's to win and with just three weeks left, the rest of the pack is pulling out all stops. [ sniffs ] i have a cold. [ sniffs ] i took dayquil

but my nose is still runny. [ male announcer ] truth is, dayquil doesn't treat that. really? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus fights your worst cold symptoms, plus it relieves your runny nose. [ deep breath] awesome. [ male announcer ] yes, it is. that's the cold truth! [ male announcer ] yes, it is. ♪ sen♪ co-signed her credit card - "buy books, not beer!" ♪ ♪ut the second at she shut the door ♪ ♪ girl started blowing up their credit score ♪ ♪ she bought a pizza party for the whole dorm floor ♪

♪ hundred pounds of makeup at the makeup store ♪ ♪ and a ticket down to spring break in mexico ♪ ♪ but her folks didn't know 'cause her folks didn't go ♪ ♪ to free-credit-score-dot-com hard times for daddy and mom. ♪ today marks exactly three weeks until the iowa caucuses.

the first contest in the republican presidential race. our own john king is there in iowa and his show "john king live" is live from iowa all week. where are you? i hear you're in an art gallery? >> yes. last night we were a music store and we're getting a taste of the culture and politics as we spend a week here in iowa. >> let's talk politics. newt gingrich and romney, we've heard so much about that. we do know that the caucuses can be a bit unpredictable. who else should we be watching in the iowa race? >> it's a very important race you make. number one, watch ron paul. he ran second or third in the polls here. he had a mix of libertarians, active online, very well organized. ron paul could surprise you here in the iowa caucuses. this gives you a sense of who to

watch. speaker gingrich is on top and mitt romney just below him at 17% down a little bit. ron paul right there as well. he's up there a tad. rick perry was at 5% in the arg poll. he's at 13% now. rick perry is spending money here, time here, and about to launch a statewide bus tour. he's moving up right now. one of the interesting dynamics is, you know the state well, evangelical voters make up about half of the caucus-goers. speaker gingrich has a good slice of the evangelical vote. iowa has a history of surprising us. you see gingrich, romney, paul right now but three weeks is a long time, my friend. >> that's right. and rick santorum is combing the state, too. is it true that he is the only republican candidate actually having public events today and have you seen him or are you going to see him?

>> i had a conversation with him this morning. he's the only candidate in iowa today. we're having some new tv ads. rick santorum is the only republican so far who has touched all 99 of iowa's counties. michele bachmann says she will do that in three weeks. the race is different this time. i'm going to hold up the cedar rapids gazette. the character of the campaign is different this time. it used to be you did it the n santorum way. we'll see if he can surprise a lot of people. but because of the debates, debates are driving the race. the iowa polls roughly match the national polls. if go back in history, that's not always the case. iowa has a lot of veteran activists here and worry about

that. they think so much focus on the debate that the candidates are coming here fewer times, spending less money on tv ads. however, three weeks from today you'll see a lot of the traditional iowa campaign. >> where do you see that race? the theme of the questions today is about whether we're going to see a long nasty campaign or if we're going to see a pullback from the campaign on that. >> you see him pulling back and that's smart. he's the front-runner. he doesn't want things to get nasty because he knows, as you do, there's a lot of things in speaker gingrich's past that if

voters are reminded about it, maybe. he's having a play at safe strategy. newt gingrich is leading. iowa tends to change all that. so when you look at states two, three, and four, remember, when iowa votes three nights from tonight, they tend to reshuffle the deck. speaker beginning rim is way on his way with the momentum. is it a muddled race and does iowa send a clear message or does it send the field on to new hampshire having to drop out. >> john king in cedar rapids, iowa. thank you, john king. brooke baldwin is taking over. hi. >> hi, everyone. i'm brooke baldwin. let's get you caught up with

what "rapid fire." sandusky waived his right to a preliminary hearing on child sex abuse charges. his attorney announced that sandusky will not be facing his accusers today. >> we anticipated nothing new coming out of this case by way of our defense not being able to realistically present a defense. >> what does this move do? this is the fight of jerry sandusky's life, end quote. all of this as a grenade and gun attack in belgian. a 33-year-old man acted in a busy square. back here at home, a peak at the big board.

the dow is up a smidgen. up 90 points. in a couple minutes we'll be watching the federal reserve will announce whether they are going to keep interest rates where they are. we have asked for it back and we'll see how the iranians respond. >> ask for this back and iran is now responding in this back and forth over the american drone. the iranians call it a spy plane and they claim they can control it. defense secretary leon panetta does not expect iran to give it back. border arrests are down this year. way down, in fact. the number dropping 53% over the last three years. also, more than 340,000 people taken into custody for being in the u.s. illegally. we are told 8,000 of those arrests dealing with serious crimes, like murder, rape, and assault. newt gingrich is planning to uphold the institution of

marriage through personal fidelity if is he elected president. he's made a promise in a letter he's written to the family leader. gingrich has been married three times. a minnesota school board is considering changing it's so-called neutrality policy about if they remain neutral about homosexuality. >> went from neutral on sexual orientation to labeling as controversial. >> we were a model for protecting pro homosexual propaganda. it's an excellent policy. >> two civil rights groups sued the board trying to force it to repeal this neutrality policy. and check your cell phone today. officials at verizon had some explaining to do after accidently sending an emergency message to wireless customers in

three different counties in new jersey. the text message warned of a civil emergency and told people to take cover now. hundreds of people called 911 asking what was going on. verizon saying, oops. and now this. nice tiara. do you like this? it could be yours. or the perfect gift for that lady who has everything. you can bid on this and much more when elizabeth taylor's daz delling multijewelry collection goes on sale. and from that kind of change to this. you know those $1 coins? well, they are not going to be produced anymore. vice president joe biden made the announcement today. this is part of the effort to eliminate misspent tax dollars. did you realize killing out these little coins will save

taxpayers $50 million. and we are just getting started here in the cnn "newsroom." we have a lot more coming in the next two hours. watch this. a plot, gang members beat a college student in this violent hazing attack and this comes weeks after a member of the same band died of suspecting hazing. i'm brooke baldwin. the news is now. it took me over ten years to come forward. a famous hockey player revealing his darkest secrets of reabuse. sheldon kennedy joins me live. lowe's yanks its ads and russell simmons makes a move. you will hear from him. forget drones in war zones. how about in your neighborhood? >> we're talking about drones being used over the homes of law

abiding americans, potentially. >> does this new way of fighting crime violate your policy? and stunning images. dozens of men and children found chained together underground below a school for religion. >> locked up, chained up, behind bars. >> now investigators are racing to find out why. [ mujahid ] there was a little bit of trepidation, not quite knowing what the next phase was going to be, you know, because you been, you know, this is what you had been doing. you know, working, working, working, working, working, working. and now you're talking about, well you know, i won't be, and i get the chance to spend more time with my wife and my kids. it's my world. that's my world. ♪ ♪ [ boy ] looks like our work is done here. i'm heading home.

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get more by choosing unlimited double miles or 2% cash back on every purchase, every day. what's in your wallet? this guy's amazing. nyqui tylenol: me, too. andllet? cougnasal congestion.ers? nyquil:what? tissue box (whispering): he said nasal congestion... nyquil: i heard him. anncr vo: tylenol cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion... nyquil cold & flu doesn't. three members of the florida a and m marching band had to go to court today for alleged beating of a woman.

all three defendants face hazing charges. two of them face charges of felly battery. i want to bring in george howell who has new information. what are you learning about this? >> reporter: brooke, keep in mind, brea hunter filed her police report almost two weeks before robert champion's death here in orlando. that obviously is a big investigation underway. but here in the next 30 minutes, we are expecting to hear from hunter's attorney. i got off the phone with her a few minutes ago to get a sense of what we will hear in that press conference. i want to read you strong statements regarding her client. listen to this. florida a and m has failed this child, this family. this has to stop. this school knew in 1998 it was a problem. it knew when bria reported it that it was a problem and it knew when champion died they had a problem. again, now we see three people in court today. we've seen shawn hobson, aaron

goldson and we've been able to learn that this might have been a several week-long period of hazing at the university. bria hunter saying that it resulted in her broken leg and blood clots. again, we've also learned here just in the last few minutes from hunter's attorney that bria will be leaving the university. she's leaving an $80,000 plus scholarship. she will be withdrawing the university concern about retaliation. >> concern about retaliation. i suppose we don't yet know the reasons behind the beating. i'm just going to throw that out there. as i read the statement from the school, this is what we know. the board of trustees and hope that through these arrests all involved in perpetuating this culture will begin to view hazing as a serious matter. so what has the ip university, done, george, to discipline other band members? >> reporter: well, just at the beginning of november, the university did suspend some

20 -- i believe 26 students that's in connection with hunter's case of alleged hazing. then after champion's death, the university fired band director julian white and also suspended four more students. here in the last week we've seen an about-face. the university went back on that decision and they brought white and the four students back because of the florida department of law enforcement. the fble apparently contacting the school asking them to hold on any disciplinary actions as this major investigation is under way into robert champion's death, brooke. >> george, thank you. we wanted to go deeper on the story and talk about florida a and m and describe the culture of hazing within the school's ban. jarod carter has been following this story. i appreciate you coming on. we heard from george, this is the first time i've heard this, this young woman is going to

leave this prestigious scholarship and college that she was on. her injuries of this young woman, a cracked femur, deep bone bruising and blood clots after being repeatedly beaten on the thighs. you've been covering this. what is happening at the school? what are band members telling you? >> it's a culture that's been prevalent at florida a and m for a while. it's something that students are coming into that band program, which is one of the more esteemed programs in the world, have become accustomed to. we've seen a death and a severe injury. something needs to be done beyond the individual punishment. something has to be done where a culture has to be rooted out. >> you and i were tweeting this morning. i would love to talk to someone. they don't have to show their face, someone part of this hazing, perhaps a victim who

hasn't come forward. you've talked to these people. it's hard to get them to speak out. why is this happening? who is fostering the culture? >> i think it's -- there are a couple ways you can look at it. one, you can't reasonably ask young people, 18, 19, 20-year-olds to go against what has been a long standing culture in the band, in the tradition of the band to then betray the gold loyalties of brotherhood and sister hood and reverse all of that, reverse what you've known from people who have come before you and have instructed you in the way of becoming a bona fide member of this band and any organization. when you throw in the culture elements that we don't want dirty laundry to be public. the bottom line is, we can't afford to have another serious injury. we can't afford to have another loss of life because we are unafraid or unwilling to reverse

the course on something that has been legendary for us. >> we have tried to reach out. i've tried to talk to the president of the university thus far. he hasn't gotten back to us. is there any indication that he might take any action with regard to the band? >> i think the first thing that we have to make clear, florida a and m did do a lot to try toer rat indicate hazing. i think the first thing you have to establish, you took this very seriously and worked diligently to end it. unfortunately, the other move that the institution could have taken, the band has to take a break for a while. we have to be aware of the ambassadorship and the goodwill that it spreads for florida a and m and everywhere it goes and

we have to say that this band has to take a break and everybody associated with the culture of hazing, whether it's participating in it, whether it's being silent partners by not recording it, has to be cycled out by graduation or discipline and we have to start over and we throw people out of school and we will not tolerate it. this is not a culture we will accept. >> zero tolerance. jarrett carter, i appreciate it. >> thank you. want to get this in. donald trump will not moderate a republican presidential debate. he has now pulled out as the moderator but you will never guess why. he's pulling out to avoid a conflict of interest for the republican party because he won't rule out independent run.

let me get to the statement. here's what we're hearing from donald trump. i would like to thank newt gingrich and rick santorum for having the courage, conviction, and confidence to immediately accept being part of the newsmax debate. i believe this would not only have been the most watched debate but also the most substant tif and interesting debate. 14 children, 54 men found chained in a religious school and drug rehab facility. find out why they were chained. plus, remember this, this scary scene in hollywood? >> the madman just shot people. >> we now have new information about this and about one of the victims in the incident. yesterday we told you about lowe's home improvement store pulling out their advertising in

this reality show. all of the ads have been sold. who is calling for a boycott.

an islamic cleric has fled a school just as police swooped in to find an underground torture area. here is reza. >> reporter: brooke, just an awful seen in karachi, pakistan. roughly 70 individuals, some of them teenagers, some as young as 8 years old, locked up, chained up, living behind bars in dreadful conditions. pakistani police say they found

these captives in a place that's part a religious school and part drug rehabilitation center. they say they raided the place after receiving the tip. the raid taking place during the overnight hours. a scary situation for some of these captives, especially the younger ones who were crying during the operation but certainly a lot of relief and then celebration after the raid was over. some of the captives on pakistani tv acknowledged they were sent there by their families because they were addicts. they were made to get up very early, signs that they were beaten and not fed. authorities say at least three people who worked at this facility are in custody. police still looking for the cleric who ran the place. because of pakistan's poor education system, there are

thousands of religious schools who were not registered with the government, not monitored by the government and often times there is taliban or militant activity. police say there is no evidence that there was any militant authority at this particular facility. brooke? also, new developments of the shooting in this massive intersection in hollywood. >> there's a madman in the street. oh, my god. you all right? there's a madman that just shot people. >> well, we've got brand-new information about one of those people. that man shot. that story coming up. plus, the new reality show, "all american muslim." we have learned that despite lowe's pulling its commercials, they have sold out their advertising. i would love to hear your thoughts on this one. send me your tweet as you did yesterday. we'll be right back. (rambling phone conversation)

when an investment lacks discipline, it's never this obvious. introducing investment discipline etfs from russell. visit russelletfs.com r a prospectus, containing the investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and other information. read and consider it carefully before investing. the music executive shot has now died. he was caught up in a the violent outburst by tyler brunn. >> he is shooting people. there's a madman. john atterberry was in his mercedes near this intersection when his bullet hit him in the face and neck.

atterberry had worked with michael jackson, jessica simpson, just to name a few. police are trying to figure out what prompted this man to open fire. but coroner's investigators say that he was des spoon dent over a long-time breakup with miss girlfriend. he was ultimately shot to death by the police. controversy over commercials for the "all american muslim" tv show. russell simmons may be buying the leftover ad space. just purchased remaining spots for "all american muslim" next week. the show is now sold out. coming up in the next hour, we'll talk with him, to russell simmons live on the show. he's calling for a boycott of

lowe's if they don't apologize. don't miss that conversation with russell simmons coming up in the next hour, 3:10 eastern time. switching gears, with all of the child abuse sex stories in the news, all too much lately, we cannot talk enough about how to make sure that you're own kids are safe. we're going to talk to a hockey player who says that he was abused by a coach when he was young and he has warning signs for you and your kids. i'm a b. oh, what do you hunt? deer. fish. fantastic. ♪ this holiday, chevy's giving more. now qualified buyers can get 0% apr for 72 months on a 2011 chevy silverado. or 0% apr financing for 60 months plus no monthly payments until spring. ♪ for a hot dog cart. my mother said, "well, maybe we ought to buy this hot dog cart and set it up someplace." so my parents went to bank of america.

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just today we have learned ex-penn state coach jerry sandusky did not want to face his accusers. he showed up for the hearing but waived his right to the preliminary hearing. that case, that sandusky case really served as the catalyst for a congressional hearing today on capitol hill breaking the silence on child sexual abuse. and i am thrilled to have former pro hockey player sheld don kennedy on the show here. he testified this morning on the hill. he was a victim of child sexual abuse, he says, in his testimony a child has to tell on average seven people before being taken seriously. watch this. >> we have to give people the tools so they can report it. these issues carry fear. so if we can eliminate fear and give people confidence to act on their gut feeling, we're going

to get a lot more of these parents and coaches and leaders and these teachers reporting and listening to our kids. our kids are telling. we're not acting. >> that was sheldon this morning on the hill. thanks again for coming on. i read your testimony and your abuser was your coach. at one point he was the international hockey man of the year in canada. i imagine that makes him a bit of a hero. i guess he didn't really fit the profile that we would imagine the abuser would be, would look like. >> no. and that's the situation in most cases, i believe, brooke. an individual on the sleeping corner with a sleeping bag and a homeless person, we wouldn't have a problem at pointing the finger. but most of the time they are trusted adults and whether they be coaches, teachers, grandparents, et cetera. it's a very difficult and sensitive issue to address and

discuss. >> and you asked yourself, why didn't i say anything? it took ten years to report the abuse to the police. >> i believe that's the biggest question around these issues. not only is that the biggest question that the victims ask themselves but i believe it's the biggest question that happens over a coffee table and it's the biggest question that parents ask when their children come to them. i know that they carry fear and the fear of not being believed. and so, therefore, it's our responsibility as adults to educate ourselves so when our kids do come and we witness abuse, that we take action. >> i want to ask you about the tools, the tools that people need here. but since it's timely and pertinent, i have to play you a sound. something that jerry sandusky's lawyer said. watch this. and then i'm going to ask you about it on the other side. >> what greater motivation -- and i hate to say it, but it's going to be part of our case.

we're checking on it now. what motivation could there be than money. i've seen money breakup families. siblings breaking over their parents' assets. what greater motivation, folks, could there be than the financial gain that could come out of this by saying, i'm a victim. >> so financial gains. that's what he's saying with regard to these accusers. when you hear that, what do you think? does that make you mad? >> well, you know, that's the court systems. i think that my thoughts are absolutely with the victims here and, you know, sometimes there's a process that has to happen and, you know, obviously sandusky wants to fight this. i think this is his last leg to 1257 stand on. here the victims need to be united and we need to support them through this whole process and be behind them and show them

that we believe them. >> in your case, sheldon, i know you say that there were people around who had the gut feeling, that's what you described, but didn't do anything about it and on this show, you know, we tend to report on horrific stories and they don't have to be happy endings. how can we be better? what are the tools that we can give people? when people see something, they say something? >> the way i look at it, brooke, if we walk down in the campus of penn state, walk downtown washington, you know, in canada and on any street, we ask the adults, can you give be the description of abuse and your moral responsibilities around them and the answers are not very good. we need to empower the buy 1257 bystander and we need to educate every youth that is in a youth program so that we can create a platform for conversation to happen. it doesn't have to be

complicated. it needs to be simple. we need to empower the well intentioned people to do the right thing. the kids are telling. as adults, we need to be able to act. >> as we empower people out on the streets, as you talk about that, you're on capitol hill, what role can congress play and where has congress failed, thus far, in this situation? >> well, i think, you know, we had our own penn state in canada 14 years ago and sometimes as sad as it is, there needs to be something that shakes us to our core before change happens and i believe that this is a platform for change. i think that today what i saw in congress was people that want change. they want to move forward. these issues are important and i do believe that the majority of adults here in the united states want to do the right thing for our kids and i think that that platform has been created and it's what we do with it from here. >> sheldon kennedy, i really appreciate you coming forward and sharing your story with us.

thank you. >> thank you, brooke. serious misconduct, gross mismanagement, service members' body parts incinerated and buried as medical waste. find out more about the hearings on capitol hill. also, our own wolf blitzer looking into the race for the white house. he's going to join me live in washington with the latest on the republican presidential candidates. stay here. we all have internal plumbing.

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call 1-800-sandals. the remains of the american war dead. hundreds of them in a landfill. the investigation panel meeting today for the very first time. air force officials acknowledging that whistle blowers were right. that body parts linked to military members who died in iraq and afghanistan were cremated and disposed of as medical waste. they are calling it unsensitive and dishonorable. the controversy between gingrich and romney may be calming down. gingrich urges people to stay positive and stop attacking

candidates. >> he was working as a spokesman for fanny -- excuse me. for freddie mac. if he was there because of his political connections and then if freddie mac fails, i think a fair question is asked, why did he profit as freddie mac failed? >> i would like to say if governor romney would like to give back all of the money that he has made from bankrupt companies over his yeerars of being, then i would be glad to listen to him. >> let's bring in wolf blitzer. wolf, gingrich says stay positive. is that possible for both candidates? >> no, it won't be possibility and you have to be very precise in appreciating the extent to which newt gingrich is saying in this memorandum to his staff, to his supporters. let me read the key word and what he is saying. he's saying, i am instructing all members of my campaign staff

and respectfully urge anyone acting as a surrogate to initiate attacks on other republican candidates. they say they reserve the right, in his words, to respond when my record has been distorted. in short, he's taking a very lofty, nice position. you know what, let's try to make this about solutions and policies and not try to get into any personal issues or anything like that. he's clearly leaving open the response. if somebody said, and you know they will, he's leaving open the option, as he should, if he's a candidate for the republican nomination, and respond in kind. as much as this sounds like he's trying to be, you know, above the fray, if you will, i suspect it's not going to have a whole lot of meaning in practical terms because he's going to be hammered in upcoming debates and

super pac ads. if you know gingrich, and i've only known him for 20 years or so, i've covered him for a long time, he's not going to say, well, i'm not going to respond. i wouldn't read too much into this. >> i appreciate you being precise. no initiating but you can respond. what's he hoping to gain from this message? >> well, it's a popular message. save your fire for the democrats. and for president obama in a general election. i think in the early debates, it's helped newt gingrich a lot when you saw some of the fights between mitt romney versus rick perry. you saw some of those fights going on. he could step back and say, you know what? let's not get into these kinds of personal attacks. and then he goes after the media from time to time saying, you're trying to incity gate, in terms of your questioning. that sounded good to a lot of

conservatives who are really anxious to get into the general election campaign against president obama. so it's helped him so far. i think this memo to his staff would help him. it's been widely publicized already. in terms of winding down the debate, i wouldn't hold my breath. >> three weeks away from iowa. less than a year from the election. when it comes to personal jabs, we will see more personal jabs? >> that's right. you'll see right hook, left hook. you've already reported the donald trump news, right? >> right. he's not going to moderate? >> nope. and what was interesting in the statement that he released, he is adamantly refusing to rule out the possibility after the next season of celebrity apprentice ends in midway. he doesn't want to rule out the possibility that if he doesn't like the republican nominee, he will throw his hat into the independent presidential candidate. he says he owes that to the american people.

the fact is that only since rick santorum and newt gingrich have opened for the debate, it is not going to be much of a debate. i don't know what they are going to do. maybe they are going to do what gingrich did with jon huntsman. >> a debate? >> yeah. >> who knows. who knows. wolf blitzer, thank you. 1200 women and men living in deplorable conditions in iraq. these families are surrounded by filth and garbage. >> it is a terrible existence. >> translator: i want to read and write like other children, she tells me. i want to be a nurse. with no school to go to, it's likely to remain a dream only. >> look at that little face. these families have nowhere to go. we're going to take you live to baghdad. more on them, next.

the end of the war and the men and women who fought it and the people who, for better and worse, are living in the country that is forever changed. as many as two million people are living in conditions like this. no utilities, no medical care, afraid for their lives to return to the homes that they fled. i'm about to talk about this

with one of our anchors, michael holmes. first, watch his report. this is his report on iraqi people with nowhere to go. >> reporter: they are a legacy of the war here. squalor camps and they have not gone back home. >> translator: i don't sleep at night. ever since my husband died, i don't sleep. i wake up at 4:00 a.m., i pray and keep checking on my children. >> reporter: the lives of those children changed forever in 2004 when masked men came to their neighborhood and started shooting. the family fled and ever since this has been home. >> translator: what do i do? i'm a widow with children and i live here. i have no one. >> reporter: this place is home

to 1200 men, women, and children, lots of children, living in appalling conditions on the grounds of what was a suddam hussein military base on the outskirts of baghdad. it is a terrible existence. >> translator: how should we feel, says, we have nowhere to go. mahmood fled sectarian violence in his home town. today his family of ten struggles just to survive. his 10-year-old daughter holds her baby sister and dreams. >> translator: i want to read and write like other children, she tells me. i want to be a nurse. with no school near enough to go to, it's likely to remain a dream only. numbers vary, but the best estimate is there are between 1.2 and nearly 2 million iraqis internally displaced. outside the country, another 1.5 to 2 million people who got out

of iraq altogether. several hundreds of iraqis have returned home and that's a positive thing for sure but the ongoing tragedy is those that have not and feel that they cannot go back despite this being the alternative and there are dozens and dozens of places like this all over iraq. though the residents of this place disagree, the iraqi government says it is doing its best. >> translator: the ministry plans are not just to achieve a return, but to integrate these families and help them restore to normal life. >> reporter: with security still the biggest fear, that's a case of promises, promises. >> translator: the government isn't taking care of these people, says a community spokesman. they just come and make promises they don't fulfill. there will be no future for these people unless that

changes. for people like this, until going home isn't akin to risking your life, this is home. >> i want to bring in michael holmes who is live for us in baghdad. you hinted at this in your report. the mother whop can't read and can't write but wants to be a mother, what has to happen for these people to feel safe enough to go home? >> reporter: i've been coming here every year since 2003 and the one thing that actually makes me angry, brooke, i've been to those camps several times over the years. nothing has changed. it's gotten worse, if anything. some of the kids that you saw in that piece were born there. some of them have been taken over by other people. they are not wanted back in those communities because they might be sunni and the other side has taken over those communities. they really don't have anywhere to go and there is nothing there

for them where they live. it's a terrible situation and not a lot seems to be being done about it. >> so if these kids were born there, they look like these established communities, it's not just a temporary fix, how are these people shaping these communities? >>. >> yeah, you have two saangles that, brooke. it's the communities where they are living now, and the camp in many cases in suburban areas, those communities are being shaped by having these inside and the locals not happy. the communities that have left are being reshaped because of the sectarian angle. if they are forced to leave because of sunni militias or others that drove out the other sect, if you'd like, then those communities have now changed on the face and that depends on whether you are sunni or which community you left. but entire communities here in the city are different now and those demographics are changed

probably forever. >> how does this then change iraq? the future of iraq, the culture of iraq? these people are not in school, they don't have homes, what does the next generation of iraq look like? >> yeah. there's no real social services for them either. these people -- and, you know, that was a camp of 1200 people. there are unhahundreds of these camps. 1.5 million people living in places like this. that's a lot of people. that's a lot of kids who are not getting educated. a lot of kids who are not getting fed well. so you've got malnutrition issues as well. and the whole sort of social -- there's a lot of generation or part of a generation in many ways. that has impact down the line. years from now. >> we appreciate you returning to these camps and telling their stories, michael holmes for us in baghdad. thank you. the end of the iraqi war back here at home looks entirely

different. i want you to watch the surprise reunion between an iraq deployed captain and his children who were not expecting him to return home before christmas. >> i'm ecstatic. i'm so glad that he was able to make it home in time for our son's birthday and christmas. >> i'm just excited. it's nice to be back with the family. >> we're going to surprise our kids at school. they don't know that he's home yet. >> what's up, buddy? >> ten years ago i was deployed when he was born so i thought i was going to miss his tenth birthday so i get to come home for that. >> hi, sweetheart. >> welcome home, dad. >> i was surprised. and scared because like -- well, not scared but surprised that he got home early. >> i was just surprised and i couldn't believe that he got

home early. i was so excited that he got home. >> did you you miss them when you're away and it's nice to be back with them. >> it's good to be a family again. >> welcome home. payroll tax cut puts an average of, you know, a grand back into the paycheck this year. it's up for a vote today. there were last-minute holdups. we'll take you back to capitol hill. first, are you looking for a job? do you want your resume to stand out? i want to pass along a couple of words. 20 most overused resume buzz words. they looked at profiles worldwide. so take notes, shall we? fifth most overused phrase, track record, don't use it, extensive experience. number three, effective. maybe skip the word effective. what are the top three words that could make or break your resume? next. (rambling phone conversation)

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come up with new words. major developments in the fight over money. less than three weeks from now the taxes in your paycheck will go up unless -- unless, let's go live to kate bolbuan. >> reporter: i will tell you, today has been a day of a lot of moving parts r parts and a lot of questions of really where things stand and where things go from here. that's a great starting point, brooke. tonight there is a scheduled vote on the house republicans proposal to extend the payroll tax for another year and extending the unemployment assistance for the long-term unemployed. republican leaders are confident that they have the votes and it will pass but, of course, i always warn, we don't call a vote until the last vote has been cast. in the meantime, senator harry

reid reiterated that that proposal is wasting time, in his view, because he says it cannot pass in the senate. one of the major holdups, as we've been talking about is, a controversial measure in their plan having to do with speeding up the approval of the keystone pipeline as well as other issues that democrats have an issue with. add to that that the white house just issued a veto threat saying that the president would veto this republican house measure if it came to his desk. so that is a major statement on where things stand there. meantime, and this is related, if you can follow me for one more second, house republicans are -- they say that senate democrats as well as the president, that they are holding up related issue, a massive government funding bill that is set to fund the government through fiscal year 2012 that had been worked out behind the scenes. they say that senate democrats are holding that up until house republicans come to the table