top of the hour. it is 7:00 eastern. let's get right to the news. nearly 48 hours left until the very first votes are count in the 2012 presidential race. the iowa caucuses are tuesday night and many of the republican hopefuls are spending the holiday making their last sales pitch to voters. here's how the field looks in the latest closely watched "des moines register" poll. mitt romney on top at 24%. ron paul close behind at 22%. rick santorum, one of the biggest surprises, now up to 15%. newt gingrich dropping to 12%. rick perry is at 11%. michele bachmann, 7%. we're going to dig deeper into those numbers and what they mean when we go live to iowa in just a moment. well, none of the candidates taking anything for granted. they were out on the campaign trail today, trying to seal the deal with undecided voters, and there are a lot of them, apparently. newt gingrich may be in fourth place, but he believes a lot can

change between today and tuesday. >> but, look, i think this is a volatile environment, where people are going to walk in undecided or semi-decided, and maybe as many as 50% could switch during the course of the caucuses. >> he's not the only one hoping undecided voters will break his way. michele bachmann was out today too. she hopes iowans will decide to back a native daughter so she can prove the pollsters wrong. well, the new year is bringing new violence to syria. video posted on the internet shows the funeral of a child today in one village. cnn cannot confirm the authenticity of these images, but activists say at least ten people were killed today, but there is hope of a brighter future. [ singing ] syrians in the city of home

celebrated the dawn of 2012 by hoping for the end of president al bashar's regime. arab leaders have toured the city. the search is under way in mt. rainier national park for a gunman suspected of killing a female park ranger. park officials say another ranger attempted to pull over a driver who then ran away. and ranger margaret anderson then stopped the man who opened fire, killing her before fleeing on foot. anderson, just 34, a mother of two children, age 2 and 4. >> margaret anderson worked at mt. rainier for about four years. she's an excellent ranger, a very dedicated public servant, really committed to park visitors and was an excellent ranger. her husband also works in the

park as a law enforcement ranger and they have two small children. so it's a terrible loss. it's a great tragedy for the park service and all of us are grieving that loss. >> the park is closed while the search for the gunman continues. well, the new year got off to a deadly start in suburban san diego. coronado police responded to a 911 call of shots being fired early today at a condominium complex. according to officers, one man's body was founded in a doorway. the bodies of two men and a woman were discovered inside. investigators say it appears to be a murder/suicide. well, one city leader is calling it a new form of urban terrorism striking southern california, an arson spree getting worse with seven more fires overnight in the hollywood area. that brings the total to 39. whoever is responsible is setting fire to cars and garages

and carports and the flames have destroyed homes close by, including one where jim morrison of the doors once lived. officials are not saying much about suspects, but they have announced $60,000 in reward money for information leading to an arrest. >> but the arson task force, i'm sure, i know is processing every lead. they have an unprecedented number of detectives and investigators working on this right now. the volume of calls in the fire department over last 72 hours has increased 17% over the same period last year. it gives you an idea of what the workload is. >> fortunately, only one firefighter has been hurt in the blazes and it was a minor injury. police believe celebratory gunfire may be to blame for a 12-year-old wounded by a gunshot early today. the boy was watching fireworks with his family outside their home in ruskin, florida, that's south of tampa, when he was hit. the bullet lodged in his skull and the boy is reported in

critical condition. police say the shot could have been fired from miles away. well, iran says its nuclear program has taken another step forward. tehran claims to have built and tested its first nuclear fuel rod. it's reportedly been placed in the core of a tehran research reactor. iran, of course, insists its nuclear program is peaceful. western powers doubt that. some have accused tehran of working towards a nuclear weapon. well, today's the day new lightbulb standards are being phased in, in spite of intense gop opposition. you may recall congress passed the energy law back in 2007, but this is the year lightbulbs have to be 30% more efficient. critics argue that the rules greatly restrict consumer choice by pushing out traditional incandescent bulbs in favor of

more expensive l.e.d. bulbs. well, no one was too worried about saving energy last night as fireworks lit up skies over cities around the the world. sydney, australia, always has one of the more brilliant displays. have a million people watched the fireworks over the harbor. such a beautiful place to see it. people in dubai, in the united arab emirates were treated to a dazzling display from the world's tallest building. the uae just finished celebrating the 40th anniversary of its independence last month. and russia kicked off the new year with a light show over the kremlin. but anyone looking to toast the new year with champagne or vodka was out of luck, unless they planned ahead. authorities banned the sale of alcohol to prevent the party from getting out of hand.

getting back now to our top story. the iowa caucuses are almost 48 hours away. the candidates needing some lights and fireworks of their own right now. let's bring in cnn political editor, paul steinhauser, standing by live in des moines, and kay henderson, the news director for radio iowa. first to paul. paul, the latest poll numbers show rick santorum running third in iowa, but is it a true surge? >> reporter: you know, it may be, because you showed the overall poll from the "des moines register" at the top of the hour here, natalie. let's break it down. that was a four-day poll. let's look at the last two days, thursday and friday, there's mitt romney still on top at 24%. but look at this, at 21% within the sampling era, there's santorum with paul now at 18%. you add it all together and it really indicates like our poll did earlier in the week, santorum is starting to surge. and because of that maybe, just about two hours ago, mitt romney on the campaign trail here in

iowa talked about rick santorum. take a listen. >> senator santorum was kind enough to endorse me last anytime around. i appreciate that. and we've been friends. i can tell you that our backgrounds are quite different. like speaker gingrich, senator santorum has spent his career in government, in washington. nothing wrong with that. but it's a very different background than i have. >> reporter: take that, rick santorum, and newt gingrich, i guess. that's romney, of course, just from about an hour ago. you know, santorum earlier today, natalie said, yeah, i did endorse romney back four years ago, but that's only because i did not want senator john mccain to win the nomination. of course, he did. one other number as i get blown away by the wind out here, one other number i want to show you, natalie, look at this, we're two days away from the caucuses. more than four in ten say i'm backing a candidate, but i could be persuaded to change my mind. just shows everything could be up in the air here in iowa, natalie. >> and what does that say, after

all of this time, paul, it's still up in the air, so close to the caucuses? >> we've seen here in iowa and nationwide when it comes to republicans, one person after another, one candidate after another, rise up and drop down. i think it shows republicans nationwide, they really, desperately want to be president obama next year. they're still kind of fickle, i guess, here in iowa and nationwide. >> well, kay, you're from radio iowa, so you should be able to tell us about the fickleness right now. what do you think's behind that? >> well, i think in the last couple of weeks, there's been no nationally televised debate, so iowans are making their choices the old-fashioned way. they're actually listening to what the candidates are saying in stump speeches. they're listening to their radio stations, television stations, and reading their newspaper, and they're paying attention to the advertising. that's primarily why newt gingrich has had a precipitous fall in iowa since the beginning of the month, when he was the

perceived front-runner here. it's also why ron paul's numbers have started to show some downward trend. so i think this is playing out much the way past campaigns have played out in iowa. >> and do you think, kay, that we're going to see the field whittled down after tuesday's caucuses? and if so, who might drop out? >> well, that is one of the primary functions of the iowa caucuses, to winnow the field. it's often said there are three tickets out of here. first, second, and third class, if you will. but you have folks like michele bachmann, as late as this morning, saying she expects a miracle here in her home state. i'm not quite sure if you look at the polling data that a miracle is going to happen for michele bachmann. she would have a hard time continuing her campaign if she finishes the dead last among the six candidate who is competed here. >> well, we thank you both. paul steinhauser, kay henderson

on the beat there in iowa. thanks so much. and for the latest on what the republican candidates are doing to win last-minute support in iowa, please be sure to join wolf blitzer and the entire cnn political team for "countdown to iowa: the final 48 hours." that's coming up in an hour right here on cnn. well, we have been talking a lot about who the voters of iowa will support, but what about the power brokers? who they are supporting, that's next. the healing power of touch can be even more powerful. with precise from the makers of tylenol. precise pain relieving cream works quickly to activate sensory receptors. it helps block pain signals fast for relief you can feel precisely where you need it most. precise. only from the makers of tylenol.

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will be giving away passafree copies nothing works faster. of the alcoholism & addiction cure. to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com. we've been talking a lot about who the voters of iowa will support, but what about the power brokers that people on wall street, who have the clout and the cash to make a huge difference in this election, who are they supporting?

for that, we go to our susan candiotti, standing by live for us. susan, which candidates are getting the most money from wall street? >> reporter: well, natalie, wall street already digging deep to line the pockets of contenders for president. here's a look at the latest numbers for the gop. so far, mitt romney is way out in front. the center for responsive politics says the former massachusetts governor has received more than $3.8 million from wall street stock brokers, brokerage companies, and bond dealers. that's through december 5th. now, romney's take is about five times more than the rest of his competitors combined. next is texas governor rick perry, followed by utah governor jon huntsman, texas congressman ron paul, and minnesota congresswoman michele bachmann, with the rest trailing her. >> well, you want to make nice with everybody if you're a donor at this early stage in the race. i think, typically, when you talk about the financial sector,y going to see donors giving more broadly to the sort

of establishment-friendly kind of republicans. your mitt romneys, jon huntsman, rick perry, all of those candidates raised a lot of money on wall street. >> reporter: and so, natalie, everyone's covering all their bases at this point. >> and, you know, it's interesting, because a lot of people looking down on wall street in the past year. they might be paying attention to who wall street is putting money behind. who are the top donors? >> reporter: well, remember, these are not necessarily the companies themselves. they include individuals who work for wall street firms or their political action committees. now, at the top, goldman sachs, $2 million. goldman is also romney's top wall street donor. next there's bain capital, a firm whose specialties include corporate takeovers. romney is a former director there and still has ties. but donors tied to bain capital give the majority of their money to democrats. paulson & company, a hedge fund, ranks third. >> the question, though, now is

how is president obama faring? he's certainly been at odds with wall street from time to time? >> reporter: that's true because of regulations in the wake of the financial crisis. and so far gop candidates, including house and senate leaders, are getting nearly 75% of the wall street dollars compared to more than 25% for democrats. still, president obama is cashing in, collecting $1.8 million. that trails romney, but, of course, natalie, it's still very early. >> certainly is. susan candiotti for us, follow the numbers there on wall street. big numbers. thanks, susan. well, the buzz back in iowa has no mention of newt gingrich. some critics are saying his presidential bid seems to have petered out. we will discuss that and much more on the iowa caucuses right after this break. but first, music isn't john legend's only passion. the grammy award winning artist brings a unique voice to the debate over education reform. he was home-schooled, but also

attended public and private schools. cnn education contributor steve perry sat down with the singer to get his perspective in tonight's "perry's principles." >> everyone believes that kids should get a good education. but you have to put your money and your policy where your mouth is. but here's what that means. quality principles, quality teachers, quality superintendents that are accountable for actually delivering on their promises. and when you talk about accountability, then that means everybody's not going to be protected in that situation. >> that's some loaded speech right there, man. >> the priority is to make sure that the kids have the opportunity to get a great education. >> now, you've gotten some flak from that. >> of course i've gotten flak from that. >> people are really not interested in hearing this singer out there telling them out to teach. >> i get flak for that and i'm not an educator, and i know that. i say this every time i talk about teachers. i truly respect what they do. and i don't envy the tasks that

they have. and like i said, we need to hold this job in high esteem, but when you hold it in high esteem, that means you just don't put anybody in front of 25 kids. you make sure they're doing what they're supposed to be doing. and if they're not doing it well, then they shouldn't be there. you know, the idea that rich kids get to go to good schools and poor kids don't is so entrenched in our national ps h psyche that we haven't challenged that notion. >> steve perry, new york. [ kimberly ] when i was 19, i found myself alone with two children and no way to support them. people told me i wasn't going to do anything. and i just decided i have more to offer than that. i put myself through nursing school, and then i decided to go get a doctorate degree. university of phoenix gave me the knowledge to make a difference in people's lives. my name is dr. kimberly horton. i manage a network of over a thousand nurses, and i am a phoenix. [ male announcer ] find your program at phoenix.edu.

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o. well, you certainly know the countdown to the caucuses is on,

because we are talking a lot about it. because two days away from the republican presidential candidates facing off in iowa, and we have heard the predictions whose going to come out on top. but independent voter and political analyst goldie taylor isn't so sure. happy new year. >> happy new year. >> first, i want to get your reaction to mitt romney tease topping the polls in iowa. you say he has conservatives doubting themselves. >> absolutely. there are a number of reasons for that. you don't really know where mitt romney stands. it really depends on which election cycle you catch him in. so conservatives are a little bit wary on where he really stands on the issues and what he'll do, you know, if nominated and if elected. and that's a chance that many conservatives really don't want to take. >> we've been watching poll this, poll that, undecided. do you have any idea how iowa is going to turn out? what do you think? >> the only thing for sure is that somebody will win this race in iowa. but the other for sure thing is that iowa is not a predictor of

who will be the nominee. it never really has been. but what we do know about iowa is that it is a tremendous vetting ground for a candidate to get their message out, to see where their support's going to come from, you know, to really build out their organization. it's been a real test for some of these candidates, and some are doing well, and others, well, they've floundered with this. >> and newt gingrich was riding just a couple of weeks ago, but you say he floundered because of negative ads. let's watch one of them. >> sure. >> in recent days, i would like to begin -- >> that means tea parties -- >> all right. well that was a press event, not newt gingrich, but certainly the folks in iowa have been inundated by these ads. so gingrich is now even breaking into the top three. so these ads have had an impact. >> well, there are a couple of reasons for that. number one, there are the negative ads. the super pacs, the independent

expenditure campaigns have put an awful lot of money in this race, mostly investing in negative ads against people like newt gingrich. you know, perceived front-runners. but the other part of it is newt gingrich and some of the others didn't have an organization. didn't go to all 99 counties in iowa, so they had no organization to really stave themselves off from negative attacks. and he had no money to answer those ads. and so all he had was really sort of the big ideas he would call them at the debates. he had the big ideas, maybe, but he skipped the little stuff. skipped the door-to-door campaigning that really wins races in places like iowa. and rick santorum's been benefiting from that. >> he's been working on it, knocking on doors. we've got the ad. let's try it again. >> ever notice how some people make a lot of mistakes? >> it was probably a mistake. i made a mistake. i've made mistakes at times. >> so far, newt gingrich has admitted his mistakes or flipped on teaming up with nancy pelosi, immigration, medicare, health

care, iraq, attacking mitt romney and more. >> i made a big mistake in the spring. >> oh, man. if that's just a sign of the things to come, we've got some negative coming in 2012. >> we absolutely, absolutely do. it used to be that, you know, conservatives would hang the late ted kennedy around a conservative's neck. now it's nancy pelosi. and so if you're seen agreeing with or partnering up with a liberal like nancy pelosi, it's a bad, bad thing in a republican primary and it can't pay off at a time like this for newt gingrich. >> absolutely. so moving past tuesday, what do you think will happen? who might fall? >> i think a couple of things will happen after tuesday. you'll look for michele bachmann to sort of re-assess her campaign and can she really pull herself up by her bootstrap after coming out of state where she was born, and not even being able to crack the top three. that's going to be a real question. the other question is, if romney is not able to pull out iowa, how long does he live to see another day? is the money enough?

can he trust that he can gain more conservative votes going forward? and that's going to be doubtful. >> we'll be watching. goldie taylor, as always, thank you, goldie. >> thank you. well, the new year is ushering in new voter laws that could affect you. we'll run through some of them, next. i take an omega for my heart.

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simple. effective. advantage: mom. let's fight fat with alli ♪ well, along with the new year comes a slew of new laws. did you know nearly 40,000 of them? they range from the controversial to the quirky, and josh levs is covering that for us. well, legislators have been busy. >> because we didn't have enough laws in this country, right? >> i know. >> so there were nearly 40,000 laws enacted in states this year. and some of them already go into effect right now.

a couple interesting ones, hawaii and delaware began allowing same-sex civil unions today. and in honolulu, some couples gathered for a ceremony. take a look. >> we now pronounce that you are legally joined as partners in life. >> that was just after midnight there in honolulu. five states now have same-sex civil unions and six states plus washington, d.c. have same-sex marriage. that's not including california, where same-sex marriages are currently not allowed. that followed a big debate. now, also controversial is this. a new law in new hampshire requiring parental notification for a minor who wants to get an abortion or that minor can seek a court order to avoid parental notification. the governor, john lynch, had vetoed it, saying he wanted an exception for rape, incest, or abuse. the state legislature then overrode that veto. that's in new hampshire. one more really interesting and controversial one. this is about immigration. different states have new laws

that contradict each other, that show the split in this country over this program, everify, which is used online to check a prospective employee's citizenship or verification status. what happened now, louisiana, tennessee, south carolina, and georgia are all requiring businesses to enroll. california, meanwhile, is saying that state and local governments can not require employers to use that program unless they have to to receive federal funds. supporters say it helps to make sure they don't hire undocumented workers. all those enacted today, some of the most controversial ones for you right there. >> the subjects of some of these laws are as varied and interesting as american themselves, right? >> i like that. >> two others involve pets and tanning beds. tell us about that. >> yeah, pets and tanning -- i didn't see this coming. when i was looking through this list of what's coming out, this new california law makes ate crime, and i have the words here, "to sell a live animal on

any street, highway, public right of way, parking lot, carnival, or boardwalk." and the reason for this, as we look at these nice pictures of pets, animal rights groups have pushed for this, because they say often that animals that maybe have problems, that are ill, some people will try to sell them on a boardwalk, and impulse buyers will buy the pet, but then regret it later, and then you end up with abandoned pets. they're hoping there will be fewer abandoned pets if they put in these new restrictions. and tanning beds, it's now illegal in california for minors to use ultraviolet tanning devices, even with parental consent. for a while, they had to have parent's permission. now even if your parents say it's okay, you cannot use a tanning bed in california if you are under 18 years old. so that's just a few of them. i want you all to see the language on these and see thousands more, which is why i've posted them online for you on this megalist. it's up at my page on cnn.com/josh, facebook and twitter, josh levs, cnn. natalie, i will tell you, it is

always fascinating to see what states around this country are implementing on january 1st of any given year. >> 40,000 in 50 states. that's a lot of new laws. and you know what, i saw a guy selling a puppy on the streets in atlanta and it was disturbing, at a popular place. i'm like, why is he selling a puppy? so, yeah. >> there are some people who oppose that idea, who say, hey, we should be able to sell wherever we want to, it's america -- but then you have these animal rights groups saying there are these problems. i'm really interestied to see what happens with that. because that might be here in atlanta. >> you had a busy january 1 sorting through 40,000 laws. >> tell me about it. >> thanks for that. josh levs, see you soon. coming up, if you want to kick-start your career in the new year, we have tips on how you can make that happen in 2012. stick around for that. but first, it is the season of giving, which also makes it the season of giving back. anyone can be a hero if their hometown or community, and

here's actor and comedian george lopez to show you how. >> the dream center, every thursday they feed people a hot meal here. a lot of times, these people, this is the only hot meal that they'll get. it does really bring you to the reality of our situation in this country and how easy it is to help someone else. there's a community here, and there's a family here. and it's not difficult to become part of that family. how does that make you feel? >> i wouldn't want to do anything else. i love this. >> this is one example of what will volunteers are doing to make their communities a better place. and there are hundreds of opportunities for everyone, every day, in every neighborhood across america. you could spend time and help a child who has special needs. >> what we're looking for here is really to see the kids emerge from their silent world, to see them vocalizing a lot more. with the objective of getting them to participate, even with their hearing loss. >> the reward is instantaneous when you walk in. >> you could work to clean up your community. >> i've always been interested in helping the environment and i knew this was a great place to get started.

what we're doing today is we're removing debris and cleaning up the trails, just to make it look beautiful and keep one of our natural parks here alive and keep it looking nice. >> you could provide homework assistance to kids who want to stay in school. >> you wouldn't believe how easy it is to volunteer. it's the easiest thing in the world. >> this is what matters. what matters is paying it forward and making a difference. and that's what gives true value to life. >> whatever your passion, whatever experience you have, whatever amount of time that you have to spare, there is something on your doorstep that you can do too. so what are you waiting for? one person can make a tiny difference. collectively, we can make a massive difference.

checking some of our top stories, this first day of the year. republican presidential candidates campaigning hard two days ahead of the iowa caucuses. new polling shows mitt romney with a slim lead over ron paul. rick santorum appears to be surging, as he tries to rally the revigilanligious vote to hi campaign. newt gingrich remains a contender, but he has sunk to fourth place. despite that, gingrich vows the

race isn't over. he told cnn that the flood of negative ads by his opponents would turn off iowa voters. >> speaker, by stating now that you're willing to get more aggressive, aren't you also acknowledging that you should have done it sooner? >> no. i think we're running a very interesting experiment. this is the first of many contests. i don't know what the result's are going to tell me. i think people are genuinely disgusted with the negative ads and i think it will be very interesting to see what happens tuesday night. >> we have already seen many of the negative ads against him. we've been reporting this all evening. a search is under way in mt. rainier national park for a gunman suspected of killing a female park ranger. park officials say another ranger attempted to pull over a driver who then ran away. ranger margaret anderson then stopped the man who opened fire, killing her before running off on foot. anderson, 34, is a mother of two children, aged 2 and 4.

>> margaret anderson worked at mt. rainier for about four years. she's an excellent ranger, a very dedicated public servant, really committed to park visitors and was an excellent ranger. her husband also works in the park as a law enforcement ranger and they have two small children. so it's a terrible loss. assist great tragedy for the park service and all of us are grieving that loss. >> the park is closed while the search continues. well, the arrival of the new year did not ease tension on the streets. an activist group says at least ten people died today in violent clashes between riot police and anti-government protesters. that's despite the presence of an arab league monitoring mission. people filled public spaces across syria again today, optimistic that this year will mark the fall of president bashar al assad. and 2011 saw plenty of

gadgets come on the market, so what will the new year hold in the year of technology? tech reporter katie linendoll joins us with that ahead. also, is your new year's resolution to earn more, perhaps, or do better on the job? hear what works from a man who has studied the science of workplace relations for more than 30 years. that's coming up as well. [ woman ] my husband, hank, was always fun. never took life too seriously... till our son was born. that day, he bought life insurance. now there's no way i could send our boy to college without it. if there was one thing i could say to hank, it'd be "thank you." you're welcome. hey, hank. [ male announcer ] life insurance you can use while you're still living. you are one lucky lady. mm-hmm. [ male announcer ] learn more from your state farm agent today.

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2012 is only a few hours old, but amazing new technology is already on the horizon for the year ahead. new computers, cameras, gaming consoles, gadgets. everyone's going to be talking about and wanting. and we have tech reporter katie linendoll to tell us all about them. hi, there, katie. so tell us, what are your most anticipated gadgets for this year? >> yeah, so a lot coming out in 2012. but i have to tell you, first, 2011 was all about the year of the tablet. and now get used to this buzz word of ultra books, because 2012 is the year of ultra books. that means light, portable, compact, and efficient. and according to intel, who has trademarked the word, they say by the end of 2012, 20% of all consumer laptops sold will be an ultra book. there are certain spefgss that make it an ultra book. we talk about how thin it is, less than 0.8 inches thick and it's going to weigh less than

1.3 pounds. five to eight hours of battery life and around $1,000, so pretty consumer friendly. but great for any of those college students or, of course, people that love to travel. first on the list, ultra books. >> yes. lighter than your starbucks venti, perhaps. or headed that way. of course, we can't talk about tech without talking about apple. i'm an apple freak myself. >> yes. a lot to talk about on the apple side. and these are merely guesses, but i will tell probably the biggest question again is when's the iphone 5 coming out, when's the ipad 3 coming out? maybe around fall for iphone 5, maybe as early as february for ipad 3. let's talk about something that we didn't expect, we got an insight of steve jobs' biography, talk of an appletv. not the set topbox that most people know, an actual television. and what's exciting about this, apple could really shake up the television market. a lot of rumors speculating that there could be use of series, so

you could be able to control your television with your voice, and have an a la carte programming lineup. we know that would be very tough to do with programming and licensing, but if any company has the clout to do it, it is apple. >> i got that book for christmas. chbt gotten to that part. i'll have to flip ahead and see. sounds intriguing. also on your list, a new kind of photography? >> yes. no camera got more attention in 2011 than one that isn't even on the market. and this is going to be out early 2012. this is lightro. it's a $400 camera, but it uses a whole entirely different kind of photography. it only has three buttons on it. a zoom, a shutter, and a power button, but it's about using light field photographer. that allows you to do with this little gadget, and it doesn't really look like a camera, it gives you the capability to take a photo and go back to any photo that you've taken and change the focus, which looks really cool, and it gives you more power than

an amateur photographer. a nice little option. it is a high price point and it doesn't take any video and it doesn't have an sd card in there. you'll have to use the desktop software, which is a little bit of a setback. i want to go right from photographer to gaming, because we can't talk about tech in 2012 without talking about gaming consoles. one of the most anticipated is the wii-u console system. it's nintendo's sixth console. and what's different about this one is not only the does it give you the capability to have 1080p graphics, it's all about the touch screen controller. the wii-u will have a controller you can use separately. tv doesn't have to be on. you can use it in conjunction with the tv, do video chatting with it, and it will be backwards compatible with the wii and wii game and balance board. a lot of people looking forward to the wii-u coming out later this year. >> i just got my ipad, but i have a lot more to think about and contemplate in 2012 to keep moving with the gadgets.

thank you so much, katy linendoll. straight ahead, a new year, a new chance to excel at work. but what if your boss is bringing you down? how to handle that and other drags on the job from a doctor who has studied the science of business success, coming up. but first, stick with cnn all evening. wolf blitzer is up in a few minutes with a special two-hour look at the first contest of election 2012. mr. blitzer, the countdown to iowa. what can we expect? >> well, we're talking about the countdown. look at this clock over here. two days, 13 minutes, 51 seconds to go until they shut the doors in iowa at those caucuses. and the actual voting, the first voting for this, the 2012 election cycle, will actually take place. we're going to set the scene tonight in our two-hour preview, right here in our brand-new cnn election center. rick santorum will be joining us live. he's in iowa. of course, he's been surging, natalie. as you know, michele bachmann joins us as well. we've got our political

contributors. all of our reporters are standing by. our anchors are here. it's going to be a great two hours. if you want to -- if you're interested in politics, want to know what's going on in iowa, natalie, as i know you are, you should watch. we'll be starting at the top of the hour. >> certainly will. what's so interesting, wolf, is that iowa, many say it's not that important yet, because it's such a nail biter to the end. everybody is pretty much on the edge of their seats, trying to figure out who's going to get it. >> yeah. the last polls show it's very, very close right now and these next 48 hours, who knows what could happen. there could be some changes. we'll see who comes out at the bottom, who drops out, if anyone. so there's a lot of questions out there. but, you know, what, natalie, as a political news junkie, history is about to unfold in the 2012 campaign. and of course, cnn's going to be there every step of the way. >> all right. thanks so much, wolf. we'll be watching you just about 13 minutes from now. see you then. and we'll be right back. ♪

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all right. well, today is the first day to get started with your new year's resolution. that may involve trying to kick start your career. how do you get that promotion, improve work relationships and just overall do better on the job? we have the man with the answers. dr. aubrey daniels. he has written "other people's habits" and a handful of other

books on workplace performance management. let's get right to the dread of many jobs. the toxic boss. the movie "office space" captured what many workers face daily. let's watch a clip first. >> we have sort of a problem here. yeah. you apparently didn't put one of the new cover sheets on your tps reports. >> oh, yeah. sorry about that. i forgot. >> mmm, yeah. you see, we're putting the cover sheets on all tps reports now before they go out. did you see the memo about this? >> oh, man. you know, we laugh. but this type of supervisor is ruining a lot of careers, right? you've got five ways to handle these kinds of work challenges, we say. let's go through each one. the overall theme you say is that a person's own behavior is the first that needs to change. >> we change people's behavior every day. the interesting thing is many people don't realize that they change the boss's behavior, too.

depending on how you respond to the boss you may inadvertently positively reinforce the boss for mistreating you. >> you can convert your horrible boss, perhaps. >> perhaps. certainly you can make it better. >> it's your attitude. so after giving your co-workers positive reinforcement, you say the next step is to track your own interactions. >> well, part of the problem is that new year's resolutions fall apart because we don't have consequences for ourselves. one of the things you can do is track it to see am i actually changing? am i giving more positive reinforcement? am i building better relationships with people? the tracking will actually allow you to see progress. that typically is positively reinforcing. >> what should you do if you feel like you're not getting the recognition that you deserve? >> almost nobody feels they get the recognition. >> of course not. >> the interesting thing is the more you give, the more you get. my advice to people is, you just give me. if you're not getting enough, give more to other people and you'll get more in return. >> for bosses, compliment over

criticism, you say, will always work. some bosses don't seem to get that. >> well, the interesting thing is, if you think you're getting too little recognition, think of your boss, it gets less. as we go up the chain, people change less. find opportunities to reinforce the boss for timely decisions or helping you in some way. then you're going to have more influence on the boss than other people might. >> perhaps it's lonely at the top, if you're a boss you don't get enough recognition sometimes. >> it's lonely at the top, it is. >> overall your advice is that being positive will always advance your goals much more effectively than being negative. >> negative consequences rarely change behavior in a very good way. they're inefficient, ineffective and they just bring you down. it's better for your own mental health and job enjoyment to find positive in the work environment. and help others do the same.

>> you know, certainly so many people have been challenged this past year with work and losing their jobs and finding work and what have you. certainly this is the time when you've got to be aggressive in getting work. and then you've got to do your best to be aki kind of a soldie no matter what the situations are with your company or your boss or your co-workers. >> that's the problem. the natural consequences of that is to bring you down. it's exactly the opposite of what you need. so work on yourself and you'll find it'll improve yourself and other people as well. >> and you also talk about that with companies themselves and how they pat their employees on the back. and you also say in your books that this can affect a company's bottom line. that if you just really support the performance of your employees, you could turn your company around. you could see performance really enhanced. >> there's no question. the problem with positive reinforcement is it's misunderstood, misapplied. we're in an era where everybody

gets a trophy. everybody gets a bonus and those kind of things are really a waste of time and money. >> it matters, performance. >> it's all about performance. >> all right. what is your big tip for anyone that's thinking really negative about 2012 overall. you're a psychologist. you've been consulting companies around the world. everyone's really nervous about work. so just help us just from a psychological standpoint feel better. >> well, i think we -- if we look for the positive, there are always positives in every downturn. and those people are able to capitalize on those are the ones that do the best. >> all right. very well said. dr. aubrey daniels, "other people's habits" among your books. "oops" is another one. "management mistakes that waste time and money" is another. you've got many more out there. >> yes. >> thanks very much for joining us. we appreciate it. let it snow, give a kid a sled and stand back. not so fast. one town in the northeast is putting up "no sledding" signs in public parks. can you keep a kid from

sledding? that's not positive behavior, is it? i'll tell you where and i'll tell you why, coming up. welcome. i understand you need a little help with your mortgage, want to avoid foreclosure. smart move. candy? um-- well, you know, you're in luck. we're experts in this sort of thing, mortgage rigamarole, whatnot. r-really? absolutely, and we guarantee results, you know, for a small fee, of course. such are the benefits of having a professional on your side.

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want to check now some other stories across the country. some chicago area pizza shops are refusing to deliver to customers ordering by cell phone. that's after a recent rash of robberies. police say criminals are using

their cell phones to target and rip off pizza delivery drivers. the restaurants could see their bottom lines suffer since many people don't have land line phones anymore. such a shame. because chicago is the pizza capital. town officials in western pennsylvania are laying down the law on, can you believe it, sledding in local parks. in beaverborough, sledding is banned altogether in one park because of an accident there. in another park it is still okay to sled, but it's restricted to local residents only and kids under 12 must wear helmets. some out of control sledding, i guess, this winter. and now to florida where a pirate-themed party boat ran aground saturday, hours before midnight. and the planned ship board new year's eve celebration. another boat tried to ferry passengers to shore.