cracked. it's embarrassing. [ male announcer ] relief starts now. gold bond foot cream moisturizes and soothes, for soft, sandal-ready feet. gold bond foot cream. here are the top stories this

hour. snow, ice, tornados and floods. bizarre mix of severe weather that is affecting nearly half the country. it is taking a dbusy turn on on of the busiest travel weekends of the year. possible strategy this hour. anderson cooper and kathy griffen are ready to usher in the new year. brutal ice storm is making its way through upstate new york. and nearly 100,000 people there don't have electricity.

parts of the midwest are feeling the pain, ice and snow began moving through that region yesterday. and in the south, the storm turned deadly. 7 deaths now are blamed on the storm. two in mississippi where tornados torned over four semi trucks and four people drowned in flood waters in kentucky. all of this is happening when nearly 100 million people are on the move for the holiday season. our george howell is in the busiest airport ip the world. >> we are looking at the afternoon rush here. earlier we saw a lot of people and snow. the good news right now this airport is cooperating at least

for the moment. we changed our floot. >> when i saw the snow, i thought oh good. we'll get there some time today. we were monitoring the weather a little bit. 15,000 flighting have been delayed. more than 1,000 cancelled. with widespread delays major hubs are feeling the holiday ripple effect. we are hoping the weather

cooperates so that we can get out on time. when it comes to getting christmas packages to friends and families, companies are on the ready armed with snow removal equipment and teams of meteorologists on hand. depending on which airport you are going to, here in chicago the good news now there aren't many delays though you do see the line. keep this in mind if you think it is okay to get to the airport

with an hour best to get there two hours ahead of >> are you in central park? right outside of the park. this is where they set up the christmas shops and you would see people here wearing their coats and scarfs and hats. the temperature here today 70 degrees. if that sounds high to you yes, it is a record. the last record was set in 1998.

the temperature got up to 65 degrees. a bizarre experience. this is the time of year where we have a lot of people hoping to see the snow. not going to happen this year. the tourists are telling us that they did not pack for this kind of weather. we packed the wrong clothes and now it is too warm i'm here in a t-shirt and i have my sweater and i have too much stuff. but it is nice. >> i brought boots to walk through snow and i was so warm yesterday that i had to buy a t-shirt so that i could come out. >> the temperature here yesterday was 65 degrees. by tomorrow the temperatures will be back in the 50s. later this week down into the 30s. >> that is a quick turn around indeed. >> thank you so much.

>> all right let's turn to jennifer gray now who is tracking the whacky storm systems. >> the storm is getting better. that threat has diminished and we are looking at rain across the east coast. we will track this storm for you. still seeing showers in atlanta but charlotte seeing rain. as we get into monday afternoon things start to calm down. seeing rain in interstate 95. it could be rough for you in the east coast. around the area the snow fall totals could range three to six inches.

sunny in the south and we are going to see those cooler temperatures filter in as well. temperatures well above average but give it time. by tuesday and wednesday, new york city you will be back in the 30s. you will be low normal. you will be at 39 in christmas eve and 37 on christmas day. >> for the latest on that massive credit card breach involving credit card stores. >> the store says it will offer free credit 40 million card numbers were stolen over a period of time.

jp morgan chase is warning customers. their debit cards will have $300 a day spending limits until new cards can be issued. charles schumer is calling for an investigation into that breach. space walk is set for tuesday. >> astronauts are set for replacement of a cooling pump. without the pump some of the stations have been shut down. the second space walk have been set for tomorrow. that has been delayed. >> if you want health insurance and january 1st under the bicycle law tobama care law is to sign up tomorrow. that is through the federal site. if you live in a state that is running its own exchain, you have to check.

president obama has ended the year with the lowest numbers in the polls during his presidency. 1ñp my mantra? family first. but with less energy, moodiness, and a low sex drive, i saw my doctor. a blood test showed it was low testosterone, not age. we talked about axiron. the only underarm low t treatment that can restore t levels to normal in about 2 weeks in most men. axiron is not for use in women or anyone younger than 18 or men with prostate or breast cancer. women especially those who are or who may become pregnant and children should avoid contact where axiron is applied as unexpected signs of puberty in children or changes in body hair or increased acne in women may occur.

report these symptoms to your doctor. tell your doctor about all medical conditions and medications. serious side effects could include increased risk of prostate cancer; worsening prostate symptoms; decreased sperm count; ankle, feet or body swelling; enlarged or painful breasts; problems breathing while sleeping; and blood clots in the legs. common side effects include skin redness or irritation where applied, increased red blood cell count, headache, diarrhea, vomiting and increase in psa. ask your doctor about axiron. [ chicken caws ] [ male announcer ] when your favorite food starts a fight, fight back fast with tums. heartburn relief that neutralizes acid on contact and goes to work in seconds. ♪ tum, tum tum tum tums! ♪ through 12 blizzards blowing ♪ 6 snowballs flying ♪ 5 packages addressed by toddlers ♪ ♪ that's a q ♪ 4 lightning bolts ♪ 3 creepy gnomes ♪ 2 angry geese ♪ and a giant blow-up snowman ♪ that kind of freaks me out [ beep ]

[ female announcer ] no one delivers the holidays like the u.s. postal service. priority mail flat rate is more reliable than ever. and with improved tracking up to 11 scans, you can even watch us get it there. and look for our limited edition holiday stamps. jim, i adore the pool at your hotel.ver had to make.. anna, your hotels have wondrous waffle bars. ryan, your hotels' robes are fabulous. i have twelve of them. twelve? shhhh, i'm worth it& what i'm trying to say is, it's so hard to pick just one of you, so i'm choosing all of you with hotels.com. a loyalty program that requires no loyalty. plus members can win a free night every day only at hotels.com

it is day two of president obama's 16 day vacation. he and his family are enjoying a break in warm and sunny hawaii. hey, fred. 14 points. that is how much president obama's approval rating has dropped. during a tough year. >> that i will faithfully

execute. >> mr. obama's approval rating stood at 55%. now after the roll out of the health care law he is at 51%. which matches the all time low he fell to last month. while the president says there have been disappointments. >> if i look at this past year. there are areas where there have been frustrations. >> if i was interested in polling i wouldn't have run for president. >> how does he compare? >> george w. bush was at 56% and ronald reagan was sitting at a lofty 63%. the president says polling isn't

the best gauge of presidency. if you measure this by polls, mine have gone up a lot. >> thank you so much paul. let's turn to our chief political correspondent candy crowley, how did he turn things around what is his focus and his approach for 2014? >> there are external things that are mostly beyond this control that could help. health care, bicycobama care co turn things around. we could get more stories about how great it is and fewer about how what a mess it is. it has dragged down the numbers. he says he wants to focus on jobs so clearly he believes that is where he wants to go.

he has a whole big other ajean da that he would like to push. his approach i think will be interesting fred. one of two things is going to happen. it is a midterm election year. he want s as many democrats elected as possible. i think we can work with republicans and get some things done and take that approach. or he could take the approach of what the democrats are doing which is to beat up republicans for being obstructionists. it will be interesting to watch him over the year. the pan et how aggressive will the president push that kind of reform? >> also will be interesting to

watch. it is the left-hand side of the party who talked about transparency. before he got into office and come to find out that there are bush era programs that have been expanded as well as continued. my guess is and certainly the guess of those who were on the panel is that he will embrace most of these and congress is looking for that balance between keeping the country safe and also guarding personal privacy. i talked to west virginia senator joe mansion and this is what he had to say. >> i think with that panel's recommendation see what is needed. what is safety. what are we willing to give up and what is un-necessary to give

up just to have information. lots of food for thought on that. maybe i'll see you before the new year. excellent. happy new year just in case. >> many things washington's politics are broken. well, where they make the laws is indeed in need of repair.

many think washington is broken. from here, when you get up as close to this it is in need of prepair. >> the capitol dome one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world. we got up to 200 feet in top where you can see some of the damage. architects count more than 1300

cracks threatening the historic frescos inside. it binds the plates from moving and that creates enormous press y pressure s it is made of 9 million pounds of iron. when the capitol was first built in the late 1700s. this dome didn't exist. it was added 150 years ago. taking us from narrow steep staircases. it was eager to show off the dome's beauty. >> we had to walk hundreds of stairs. but boy was it worth it. up and all the way down. >> from famous frescos including

washington ascending to heaven. >> you have to be careful what you are saying up here. anyone on the opposite side can hear you. duck as you go through the doorway. to the view outside >> all the way up here 260 feet in the air. this is what you get to see. it is clear up here that the capitol is the focal point of the city's design. pennsylvania avenue radiating from the central point. >> starting this spring, the dome will be wrapped in scaffolding. these costs tend to explode. >> can you guarantee that you are not going to go over budget. >> we are confident. >> it has been planned in the works for years. >> it is something that has to

happen. there is no more recognizable symbol in the country than the dome or our flag. >> the last time the dome was restored was 50 years ago. thanks to the way they are doing this restoration, it should be years before they do this one. >> it has been a busy year. a olympic star charge wednesday murder. jodi areas and george zimmerman's charged trial but which story will be number one? p.

a nasty winter storm acreatingcations on the road and air traffic as people head home for christmas. nick has more on that. check it out. looks very, very pretty. it acreating miserable road conditions out there.

take a look. be careful out there. what is happening there is what is happening all across the midwest. and you know it hit memphis, tennessee and going all the way up through southern, illinois. it is creating problems for travel delays and anyone who is traveling during this holiday season. and in addition to that one fatali fatality, that has been blamed on the storm.

a former pr exec is apologizing for her tweets that led to her firing. today she apologized saying this quote: >> british police say that the celebrity chef used co sacaineo. police made it clear that they don't expect a change but tabloids have had a field day with her legal troubles.

she divorced a millionaire art collector earlier this year. >> police seized more than 1200 packets of heroin labeled obama care and some were marked curt co bain. >> police say the obama care label is a marketing ploy so that drug users know what they are getting. >> number ten, we have a report that shots have been fired at

the washington navy yard. >> three shots were fired and they tell us an active shooter is still inside that building. >> former navy reservist aaron alexis gunned down 12 people before police shot and killed him. number nine the mysterious death of ken drick johnson. >> i have some questions about the case. >> because our case is closed sir. >> and a rolled up mat in a high schoolgym. now federal shoauthorities are investigating. >> we are going to fight until it is all over. >> number 8, oscar pestorius

indicted on charges of murder in august. for the shooting of his model girlfriend. he admits he shot her on valentine's day but says it was an accident. his trial starts in march. >> number 7, california teen hanna anderson rescued after a week with her abduct ter. he killed her mother and brother and the family dog. their bodies found in his burned home. fbi agents killed him in a shoot out. >> number six a woman who needs no introduction. >> her outrageous behavior in the interrogation room.

the details of their sex life gripped the nation. but the jury could not decide if she should live or die for the crime. >> number five a gang of bikers taking on an suv driver on a highway in manhattan. his wife and 2-year-old daughter inside. it started with a bump and moments later. this terrible scene. the driver ran over a biker. 11 other bikers including a cop indictmented. >> edward snowden indicted for expose i exposing intelligence leak. charged and granted asylum.

george zimmerman. found not guilty of murdering trayvon martin. >> a tragic case that ignited questions about race. >> trayvon martin put race in this. >> you don't think that creepy ass cracker is a racial xhomt? >> no. >> a 17-year-old in a hoodie with a pack of skittles. and an emotional debate even the president weighed in. >> if i had a son he would look like trayvon. >> number two inside a cleveland out of horrors. three girls kidnapped raped and

held captive for more than a decade. but they finally broke flee. >> i will not let the situation define who i am. i will live on. you will die a little every day. >> ar yell castro sentenced to life plus more than a thousand years. >> i'm not the violent predator. i'm not a violent monster. but he would kill himself in his cell. that was ten through 2. this is number one. there has been an explosion at the boston marathon. >> 26 mile 385 yard marathon and it was wrapping up. wrapping up when you look at these devastating pictures these were pictures shot moments ago. shot on april 15th.

three people were killed 264 others were wounded. get them back. >> and days later, a police officer would be killed, another wounded. within four days, one suspect tamerlan tsarnaev would be killed by police. and his brother and then shut down the city. >> we believe that the suspect is cornered in a boat. arrested april 19th and later charged. now the u.s. attorney is deciding if he will face the death penalty. the attack knocked the city down but far than defeated. the whole country united with one resoupding message. >> strong. boston strong. >> thank you so much ashley.

what an incredible year it has been indeed. the top ten stories of 2015. you can vote on them. go to cnn.com/yir. >> a florida girl's mother, find out how she is trying to protect other children. next in the newsroom. d"

the mother of a florida girl who killed herself after being cyber bullies is calling for tougher laws and has a special message for all parents. it has been more than three months since the suicide of a 12-year-old girl who wrote in her journal every day children kill themselves because of bullies. her family is trying to get new laws passed to crack down on bullies and hold parents accountable. to her family rebecca was a normal kid with a big heart and a goofy sense of humor. she seemed happy until she

changed her screen name to that dead girl and then killed herself. >> when you stand over a 12-year-old child that is dead that jumped, your heart is broken forever. >> hateful messages and texts on social sites such as facebook. >> i think the biggest one was drink bleach and die, go kill yourself. i hate you. why are you still alive? >> officials at crystal lake middle school changed her classes to get her away from the bullies. when that didn't work her mom pulled her out of school to keep her safe to home school her. >> i gave her my old cell phone.

rebecca found her way back online. she wanted to see what was going on in her world >> there were bullies that weer tormenting her to her death. >> she had accounts on askfm and ki kik. we hate you so much. >> it is unclear why she snapped. she revealed portions of her journal and police reports. early accept she climbed the tower she could see and jumped. >> the two arrests we made last night -- >> sheriff arrests two of the girls that had been bullying her online. and she killed herself but i

don't give a -- >> they were charged not with her death but with stalking. charges that were later dropped in exchange for court ordered counseling. >> both girls posted nasty mess iths on their sites. >> they didn't get away with it at all. had we not arrested them. they wouldn't have been required for volunteered for such counseling. critics say they over reacted by charging the girls and focused on the warning signsment in her written journals she talked about suicide. also, people don't know how it feels to be hated by everyone who used to be so close.

online she posted results of a depression test. there is an instagram image that reads quote sometimes a want to disappear and see if anyone would miss me. the sheriff said she had been n inundated with ask fm and kik. because posts can be made anonymously it is difficult to know who is saying what and difficult to trace. >> rebecca's mom admits she didn't know the extent of her daughter's life online and the signs of troublebrewing there. they are trying to get a law passed making parents liable for the behavior.

rea rebecca's liar wa lawyer wantsh bigger penalties. >> how do you deal with the silences that have been left by rebecca. i still talk to her. i sleep with one of her stuffed animals. >> she knows now what she would have done differently. >> i would have taken her phone in the room with me and when i alarm wept off at 6:30 rather than jump in the shower i would have hugged her and said baby talk to me. >> the family's lawyer is planning on filing a civil suit. it is not clear who will be named as dest. >> that is powerful hard hitting stuff. >> one in three thefts involved

a smartphone. they want to require manufactures to install a kill switch to make it impossible to use a lost or stolen smartphone. iphone's new operating system has a kill switch but some mobile carriers are opposed to it. a couple of high power ee eed ss battled it out at the box office and race car driver says he is retiring following a horrible crash. this is the quicksilver cash back card from capital one. it's not the "limit the cash i earn every month" card. it's not the "i only earn decent rewards at the gas station" card. it's the no-games, no-signing up, everyday-rewarding, kung-fu-fighting, silver-lightning-in-a-bottle, bringing-home-the-bacon cash back card. this is the quicksilver card from capital one.

unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, everywhere, every single day. so ask yourself, what's in your wallet? became big business overnight? ♪ like, really big... then expanded? ♪ or their new product tanked? ♪ or not? what if they embrace

new technology instead? ♪ imagine a company's future with the future of trading. company profile. a research tool on thinkorswim. from td ameritrade.

singer justin timberlake brought some cheer to the set of snl. there he wasme instead of mostl

singing of his you know what in the box he traded in that sultry song for a holiday wrap. take a look. ♪ ♪ roll out, let's wrap to what that put some die ♪ what you've got in the bag ♪ [ cheers and applause ] ♪ and bring it on down rocking bell ♪ . . >> and listen to this. ♪ speech is my recital ♪ i think it's very bridal ♪

♪ >> they're having a little too much fun there. other guys with a surprise appearance with outgoing mayor michael bloomberg and paul mckarney. anchorman 2 to keep the box office title for a second weekend. the hobbitt earned $31 million while the anchorman pulled in almost $27 million. american hustle and saving mr.

banks both broke into the top five. mpx all right, a litt . all right, a little love news here. dewayne wade may have to fit a wedding in. the two have been dating for several years now, so it may not be a surprise to a lot of you. we get a twist, though, from the usual celebrity relationship. union is actually ten years older than wade. and wade made the engagement public with three lovely words. she said yes. congrats to them. and three-time indy 500 winner is retiring. 2 1/2 months after suffering serious injuries in that crash right there. he is planning to stay in the sport that he loves. joe? >> yeah, fred. one of the most successful, colorful and well-known drivers in the world.

and we will never see him race again because of that horrible crash back in october. you know, that krashl happened on the last lap of the race and his car went airborne and exploded into a million pieces where it ripped through that catch fence. 13 spectators were also injured. he suffered two spinal fractu s fractures&a concussion that turned out to be much worse than realized. really, if rigsing r risk of fu injuryings is want p what forced him to retire. he hobbled into the room on crutches. he said that he's accepted the fact that his racing career is now over. he knows it's goechk to be hard to deal with, especially in may when the iind .500 again. >> the lure of going for a

fourth would be tough to turn down. it would be reason to go and do it. that's been one of the hard things to get a chance at doing that. it will be tough because of that, i think. >> now, fredericka, he hopes to stay involved. rather than being bummed, he's thankful for being a part of racing. >> and itch know he's thankful to have been able to recover from that nasty crash. thanks so much, joe. okay, anderson cooper is getting ready for that new year's eve special right here on cnn. and they have a very special good luck wish from a surprise visitor. store knows how to hande a saturday crowd. ♪

[ male announcer ] the parking lot helps by letting us know who's coming. the carts keep everyone on the right track. the power tools introduce themselves. all the bits and bulbs keep themselves stocked. and the doors even handle the checkout so we can work on that thing that's stuck in the thing. [ female announcer ] today, cisco is connecting the internet of everything. so everyone goes home happy.

to sha-cool. get it? [ male announcer ] new gold bond powder spray. ol, drss. stay cool with gold bond. vrjts you can ring in the new year right here on c thrks n with anderson cooper.

>> so what are we going to do on new year's eve. >> i'm going to give you a pot brown knee right at 9:00. >> no, that's not going to happen. >> i also have a written statement from my mother because every year, she is embarrassed by my behavior. dear mr. cooper, the vanderbilts, the roosevelts and the sbiesh team at cnn. i am quite thrilled that my daughter kathleen was asked to join mr. anderson cooper, taylor swift and miley cyrus for the celebration. >> they're not going to be on. >> all right. i am also happy that santa claus remains now and forever wliet. oh, god, she watches fox a lot. >> i've already begun toasting to your success by drinking a box of fine wine. the only pronls i make is that i certainly will not be sober during your broadcast, love

maggie. >> there's your beloved maggie. i find it hard to believe that you come from her. >> well, guess what. >> what? >> she's here right now! no, real lay? are you serious? >> oh, mom -- >> hey, maggie, how is it going? >> hi, anderson, how are you doing? >> i'm doing all right. i'm doing all right. are you going to watch us on new yore's eve? >> definitely, anderson. certainly i'm going to watch you. >> there are some things that kathleen marie is not going to do. will do or will not do. >> what's she not going to do? >> like what? >> she's going to be a pillar of elegance, that's for sure. and there will be no transactions. >> transactionings? >> shenanigans. >> okay, good.

>> i'm curious about the transaction sns. >> as a mother, i can promise you that she'll be fully dressed at all times. and she will also not take the lord's name in vain or attempt to disrobe mr. anderson, mr. cooper. >> you don't have to call him mr. anderson. >> is she reading from the cnn contract you were forced to sign? >> yes, she is. she doesn't normally read contracts. >> all right. thafgs anderson cooper and cathy griffin and maybe even mom will be there new year's eve right here on cnn. they will be live in times square starting at 9:00 p.m. eastern time. we've got so much more straight ahead in the news room. and it all restarts right now.