are fish eaters. they do eat insects, as well a lot of times. some ennen eat fruit and nuts that fall from the trees in the rain forest. >> not this time. it was a holiday feast for them. george parsons from the shedd aquarium, appreciate it. happy holidays to you. >> happy holidays. >> thanks so much for watching. i'm fredricka whitefield. the "cnn newsroom" continues right now with brianna keeler. >> right now target confirms that hackers did, in fact, steal customers' debit card pin numbers during that massive breach of 40 million accounts. also right now, a nationwide manhunt. authorities are hunting for a bark robber suspected of killing a police officer two days before christmas. brand new numbers show us just how bad this year's flu season is. we'll tell you what parts of the country are hit hardest and how well the flu vaccine is working.

hi there, i'm brianna keilar in washington. wolf blitzer is off today. we'll be starting with more fall out from the target hacking scandal and an admission from the retailer. target now says debit card pin numbers were stolen during that data breach. our zain asher joining me now from the new york stock exchange. she has been following the story for days now. this is a bit of an about face. >> hi, it does look like it. target now coming out saying that pin data was stolen but they are emphasizing the pin dat data was encrypted and don't believe they can unscramble the pin data. target told us yesterday something slightly different. part of their statement yesterday they said to date, there is no evidence that unencrypted pin data was compromised. i mean it's not necessarily a lie burks they certainly did omit the truth. there was definitely some corporate spin announcing that in fact, encrypted pin data was

stolen, this he don't necessarily believe the hackers will be able to unscramble that data. i've been speaking to a professional what's known as a white hat hacker who, would with corporations to help their encryption systems. i asked him, should consumers worried? these hackers got away with the pin data albeit scrambled. should people be worried? he's saying to me the hackers in this case would actually have to hack into the payment processor in order to be able to unscramble the data. he says it's possible but it would take highly sophisticated hackers to be able to do that. he's saying it does look a little bit better for target, believe it or not. >> that's really the issue is sort of the pr problem here to come out in drips and drabs. >> i no he. >> really the final thing i think, zain, that will tell us if we're out of the woods here is if there are no reports that customers have had their bank accounts cleaned out. are there any at this point? >> we have seen some reports of people having countless

fraudulent charges on their target cards. there's one blog saying she burst into tears after getting a bank of america informing her of all the fraudulent charges. there's also some buzz on social media about it, too. people do seem to be taking it in stride. you've got to remember most of the time you're not going to be liable for fraudulent charges. the major issue is you have to report it in time especially with debit card. but it can take up to two weeks for that money to be reimbursed to you. most people not actually are going to be liable for the fraudulent charges. we have heard of people suffering in this case and having money stolen from them in a sense. brianna? >> and then the question is, is that definitely connected to this breach? zain asher at the new york stock exchange, thank you. joining me on the phone is clay johns from the department of better technology. what is your reaction to this? >> well, i mean this is clearly

a sophisticated security breach and clearly something that target is still getting its ahead around and i think federal envesters are getting their head around. i mean, at the end of the day, the thing to do if you're a target customer is call your bank and ask for a new credit or debit card. that's going to buy yourself peace of mind and security. if i was a target shopper, that would be the first thing that i would do. with the pin breaches, the security expert is exactly right. it's really hard to decrypt these kind i have pin codes because the key that decrypts them is held on the actual pin device, the hardware device in the store. so they would have to get access to countless numbers of pin devices and match them up with the credit card that they were swiped on in order to decrypt your code. i wouldn't worry too much about someone going to an atm and making a withdrawal with your stolen debit card but i would go and go ahead and call your bank

and get your -- get a new number and a new pin. >> what, clay, could target have done differently here? certainly there are ways they could have performed better in an instance like this. >> oh, for sure. i mean, the question really is whether or not this breach happened even upstream of target. the other thing that people should really be concerned about, i think, is you know, there's a new opportunity for new scams so you know, if you get a phone call from someone saying there's been a breach on your credit card or some fraud on your credit card because of this target thing, it may not be coming from your credit card company but from some other fraudster. i think target's done as much as it can. i wish they had been a little more forthcoming about these pin issues but encrypted pin numbers are i think the least of our worries. it's the account numbers and

balances and that data breach, that's the big problem here. >> so clay, you mentioned if someone were to kind of call i guess in some sort of phishing way to try to capitalize on this breach that has happened. so what should we do and how should our antenna be up ready to make sure that doesn't happen touts? >> well, you should never -- you should never take and i coming call from a credit card company very seriously. you should always say, you know, if it's american express, you should go on american express's website and call them to change your credit card and that kind of thing. you should never ever take a phone call from someone claiming to be your credit card company. which have t without the ability to verify themselves. that's the thing if most people did they would protect themselves 99% of the time. just call your credit card company. don't take calls from them. >> clay johnson, very helpful

stuff. the department of better technology, thank you. a judge has issued a ruling on the nsa's metadata collection program. surveillance on your phone call data could be affected. the judge says the nsa it's controversial bulk collection program is legal and justice reporter evan perez joining us now. this is a big deal. >> well, yeah, it's a big ruling. we have two judges of equal rank coming to opposite conclusions. this judge today in new york in a lawsuit filed by the aclu has found that the nsa's program which collects data on nearly every phone call made in america is legal. now, last week, there was another ruling by a judge in d.c., and he found that the program was was he called it almost orwellian and said it was possibly or like little unconstitutional in violation of the fourth amendment. so today's ruling is definitely a big victory for the nsa. they've been on a losing streak since edward snowden, the former

nsa contractor leaked documents that reveal this had and other programs. and so they needed to have somebody get their back on some of these programs. now, i should say the justice department has just issued a statement on this ruling today in new york, and the justice department says we are pleased that the court found the nsa's bulk telephony metadata collection program to be lawful. they've been very critical of some of the previous rulings and they are being given time to appeal the ruling the one last week in d.c. and as you know, president obama had appointed a blue ribbon panel to look at these programs. >> he's spending his vacation thinking about what changes may be made. >> exactly. he says next month, in the next month he's going to address those programs. now, one of the things that that blue ribbon panel said was that they're not even sure if this 215 program, this metadata program is even useful as it has even stopped an imminent attack

in the united states. >> the administration counters that and the president says he stands by there has been some progress because of it. so you have these competing rulings. and what happens next? it's an appeals process for each or what? >> they're separate appeals courts looking at this issue. what you likely will have is another maybe a couple of years of rulings that will go through the appeals courts in both sides here in d.c. and in new york. there are other lawsuits that are still outstanding. we may yet here another ruling on this issue. and then eventually probably the supreme court will have to get involved. >> sure. that's what you would expect. it's an unsettled issue. evan, thank you so much. >> sure. that dreaded h1n1 flu, it is back threatening young people. the cdc is reporting widespread flu activity in one out of five states. we'll be showing you where the flu is making a huge impact next. #%tia[

if you did not get a flu shot, that would be me, this story may scare you a bit. the cdc is reporting widespread flu in one out of five u.s.

states. doctors have seen that dreaded h1n1 flu and it sickened and scared so many of us a few years back. the first u.s. deaths are trickling in. victor blackwell is tracking the story from atlanta. walk us through this, h1n1 can be a threat for people not commonly at risk for serious flu complications. why is that? >> there is no exact reason why. some doctors believe possibly a similar strain circulated 50 to 60 years ago and now people oo elderly have built up immunity to that. this season h1n1 is back being considered a seasonal flu. we have new numbers from the is its for disease control and prevention illustrate how much and how quickly the flu is spreading. we know from the cdc today that the 49 states, here's the map, 49 states are the reporting some level of activity.

some flu-like activity. the only state that isn't reporting is north carolina, and it's not that there isn't any flu there. it's just they didn't accepted in their report. ten states though, ten states are reporting widespread activity. let's list them off, alabama, alaska, kansas, louisiana, massachusetts, new york, pennsylvania, texas, virginia, and wyoming. remember, we are still several weeks out from the peak of flu season. in texas, five deaths were reported as related to the flut this season. but federal health officials say h1n1 has not reached the epidemic or even the pandemic level we saw in 2009, brianna. >> so victor, if you haven't gotten a flu shot, is it too late? should you rush out and get one? and, of course, i'm asking for a friend. >> for yourself and for me because i haven't gotten a flu shot yet. i'm sit here doing the report on the in you. >> you're so bad. >> i'm going to get mine. >> i think i will too. >> you certainly should go out

and get the flu shot. get the vaccine. doctors say also wash your hands often, cover occur coughs and. hes and if you're sick, don't go to work. stay home from school, of course. keep the kids home from school. here's the other reason why you should get that vaccine. listen. >> every formulation of vaccine that you can get this year will protect against h1n1 and also protects against other influenza viruses we think are also circulating. it's very important for folks to get vaccinated if they haven't already been vaccinated. >> one more element, brianna, about that vaccine. the cdc rarts reports last season, their estimate is that the vaccine prevented 79,000 hospitalizations. 79,000 people. that's enough to fill a football stadium. and it prevented 6.6 million sicknesses so they emphasize if your doctor advises, get the vaccine. brianna? >> okay. so i pledge to go and get mine. you're going to get yours,

right, victor? >> i will get it soon. >> we promise each other. thanks, victor blackwell in atlanta. >> sure. right now, a nationwide manhunt is under way for a cop killer. hours ago a funeral was held for officer gail stauffer in tupelo, mississippi. the fbi says bank robbers shot and killed him two days before christmas. the suspect is believed to have been in this car that you see here. and our nick valencia is tracking this story. what's the latest on the manhunt, nick. >> good afternoon. the latest coming to us from local media in the chicago area where authorities there were reportedly told to be on heightened alert because the suspect in this shooting, the fatal shooting that have 38-year-old officer may have fled to chicago. now, as you mentioned, this is a nationwide manhunt for this man, a senate shot from the surveillance video provided by the mississippi bureau of investigations. he's described as a black male, about 6'3", last seen wearing

that cart heart hoodie, a ski mask and blue jeans. he is the suspect in the fatal shooting of one officer and critically wounded another officer. you mentioned the funeral held earlier for the former louisiana naurds mab. the update on the other officer, he has been stabilized and the reward for the suspect about $162,000 right now. >> brianna? >> nick, we know you'll be following that. a government crackdown leads to escalating violence in egypt. the reasons behind it ahead. [ male announcer ] this is george.

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but it is within sight of the stuck ship just miles away there. 74 people on board the ship. they've been trapped there for four days now the expedition leader says everyone seems to be in good spirits. no word yet on who detonated a

car bomb in beirut that killed six people and wounded dozens. a key friend of the u.s. is among the dead and was the parent target. muhammad chata was is the former ambassador to the u.s. chata was a staunch critic of syria's president and the militant group hezbollah. in egypt, fighting between muslim brotherhood supporters and police has left at least three people dead. the government officially considers the muslim brotherhood a terrorist organization and 250 people are now locked up for their connection to the group. this is the group that supported mohamed morsi is, the first democratically elected president of egypt. morsi has since been forced out of office and the new military leaders say anyone who claims to be a member of the muslim brotherhood will go to prison. elise labott join us now. why did the egyptian government do this? what started this?

>> this is an expansion of the crackdown you saw when the military ousted president morsi over the summer. since then a lot of leaders and supporters have been put on trial and in jail and the violence has increase. now this is an expansion of that. it's for the first time in a decade, this large social movement in egypt, the muslim brotherhood, anyone who's even a member of that group is going to be arrested and it's illegal to be a member of that group. that is really concerning because you can't just arrest these people and put them away in jail and shoot their way out of this. this is a very large movement and the concern is that with this group having to go underground, that you might have a lot more people turning radicalized and supporting some of the other forces in the country. you've seen in the sinai groups tied to al qaeda gaining strength. these are the groups believed to be responsible for these bombings, brianna, not the muslim brotherhood. >> just to be clear, the u.s. does have ties to the egyptian

military. the u.s. has been suspicious of the muslim brotherhood, but certainly the u.s. doesn't look -- this is the complication of the entire situation. the u.s. doesn't look favorably on the fact that they have been deemed a terrorist organization. explain that. explain the complexity here. >> you saw after president morsi was ousted by the military the u.s. hemmed and hawed but eventually did some small halt to u.s. aid to egypt to the military in particular. some weapons shipments and some money. now this expansion of this crackdown is really concerning. you had secretary of state john kerry calling the foreign minister about this terrorist designation. very concerned that this is the exact opposite of what the u.s. wants to see. in fact, they wanted the military to see bring the muslim brother hood into the political fold. they're not in power anymore but you have to recognize they're an important force in the country and this is just going in the exact opposite direction and there is a lot of concern that you're going to see egypt look

towards the kind of civil strife that you're seeing in syria and other places and very important ally of the u.s. was very instrumental in. >> in holding peace in the region. >> in holding peace in the region and holding peace between israelis and palestinians. we saw that's not going so well right now. >> some violence there. now, on tuesday, we want to breakdown the year in politics. chris christie and hillary clinton may be the front-runners in 2016 but where do they fall on the 2013 list? we'll look at the winners and losers of the year next. we're aig. and we're here. to help secure retirements and protect financial futures. to help communities recover and rebuild. for companies going from garage to global. on the ground, in the air, even into space. we repaid every dollar america lent us. and gave america back a profit.

we're here to keep our promises. to help you realize a better tomorrow. from the families of aig, happy holidays.

it is that time of year where we take a look at the winners and the losers here in washington. there are just so many choices, right? and reasons to be on either list. so let me bring in cnn political commentator ryan lizza and larry sabato, director of the center for politics at the university of virginia. political winners and losers. let's start with the new jersey

governor chris christie on both of your lists. why? >> this is guy who won a crushing republican who won a crushing re-election campaign in a blue state, and he's the most talked about person for on the gop side run for president in 2016. and i know these polls don't mat they are far out but they matter to chris christie. he's already at the top of the heap on these early 2016 presidential polls. all in all, a good year for chris christie. 2014 i think will be a little bit different for him, a lot more scrutiny of his record as new jersey governor. >> we know that there's some stuff there. we learned that in the last year. that will get picked over. larry, another duplicate for you two, paul ryan. >> we coordinate this. >> you didn't. this is why we find this so interesting. he started the year as a loser. what turned him into a winner? >> which one did you say? i couldn't hear. >> sorry. paul ryan. so he sort of started the year as a loser and then he turned

into a winner. why did that happen? >> well, because he managed the more difficult half of the budget compromise. democrats were much more likely to vote for it than republicans. and he managed to get it through the house with a big majority. i don't think it does much for a potential presidential candidate, but it does add luster to his record if he decides to go for speaker of the house which i think he will eventually. >> yeah, and he was able to do something of course, that we've seen repeatedly speaker boehner has been unable to do. >> totally agree with that with un. >> right? he's been able to be shepherd that conference through in a way that boehner hasn't. >> navigated the tricky politics of the gop house conference in a way few others did successfully. >> the disagreement that you two have is on our number three winner. ryan first for you. >> i think elizabeth warren had a very successful 2013 and is now holding up the an banner of the democratic left.

there is a populist wing of the a part revived and she is their champion. she's someone to watch going forward. she says she probably won't run for president in 2016 but there are a lot of people who want her to run. >> larry, who is your third winner of 2013? >> well, thought it was hillary clinton. because hillary clinton essentially has the large majority of the democratic vote, in fact, in some polls she's up in the mid 60s. i agree she's going to be challenged. she's going to have a much more difficult 2014 than she had 2013. but i doubt it's elizabeth warren. if i had to pick somebody who follow through and challenge her other than joe biden, it would be brian schweitzer, the former governor of montana who is a populist. >> and larry, as we move on to our naughty list, the losers of 2013, i'm going to start with you on this. did president obama land on this list? i think i sort of know the answer. at least i know the answer that i would give. what do you say?

>> oh, yes. i would put him at the top of the losers list. he put himself at the top of the loses list. he admitted he had had the worst year of his five as president. now, you know every year is different. i'd have to say 2014 doesn't look a whole lot better. it's the midterm election year. obama is down to 41%. frankly, the sixth year of a two-term presidencicy usually not always but usually is not a very good year for the incumbent white house party. so i think the president's going to have another tough year. >> should he have been a loser this year? >> he had a bad year if you judge him by what he wanted to get accomplished and what he got accomplished. the three big things he ran on he wanted implementation of health care to be successful, to get an immigration bill and pass his economic and budget package and all three of those things on the third one, it was a sort of halfway. all three things fell short from what he wanted when he ran for

president in 2012. >> the fact that it was such a loud loss in a way on the end of the year. >> yes, and the public responded. the public gave a verdict on his year with the approval ratings at a low point in his term. >> larry, you have the house gop conference and the tea party on your losers list. explain that. >> well, look what they did. they were -- they had obama on the ropes and they were making some progress on their issues. and what did they do? the tea party part of the caucus in particular led the republicans off the cliff for an incredibly unpopular 17-day shutdown of the federal government that even the republican leadership in the house private will i said was a disaster. now, president obama rescued them with the disastrous rollout of obamacare but they did nothing as a group to improve their very low ratings with the public. >> and you, ryan, have two

losers of 2013. >> so i have marco rubio as the first one. he's sort of on the loser's list for the same reason paul ryan is on the winner's list. rubio started this year at a high point, he successfully helped push this immigration bill through the senate and after that he had lots and lots of trouble navigating the sort of tea party wing and moderate wing of the republican party, tied himself up in knots for the rest of the year. >> at every chance he was protecting his right flank. any move after that immigration vote. >> every one of those moves he looked political rather than confident. so i put him on losers. and the other person i put on therein is the head of the senate intelligence committee, dianne feinstein. the revelations from snowden, the recent report from the white house panel on intelligence issues and the judge last week who declared one of the programs unconstitutional has really been a blow to defenders of the nsa

programs like dianne feinstein. she's got a big challenge from the reform wing on these intelligence issues. that's going to be a big fight in 2014. >> ryan lizza, larry sabato, thank you so much for -- stay with us because although those were the people who won and lost in 2013, we'll be talking about the issues, as well. which ones rose to the top and which ones were forgotten. we'll get larry and ryan's take next.

so before the break, we broke down the political winners and losers of 2013, but we only talked about people. now it's time to take a look at the issues. i've got ryan lizza and larry sabato back with me. i'm going to throw these out, guys. i actually picked a few of these myself. and you tell me where you think they fall. i think i have a good idea. immigration, larry, what do you say? winner, loser? >> big loser. big loser. just go back a year. what was everybody saying right after president obama was re-elected? hey, the democrats want this and the republicans need this. therefore, it's a commonality and it might produce some comprehensive reform or at least some big pieces of the comprehensive reform. absolutely nothing emerged. nothing at all.

and i don't think the prospects are very good for 2014. >> do you share that view for 2014. >> i pretty much agree with him there. i this i the one person who could maybe unlock this is the person we talked about in the last break, paul ryan. he's the one republican leader who has shown a little bit of an ability to get the right and left flanks of the republican party on board. and if he stepped up and if he could find a bipartisan solution in the house, maybe you could get something to the president's desk. but i think the odds are very low. >> the next issue, same-sex marria marriage. this as far as for people who advocate for same-sex marriage, this to me was perhaps the issue that won the gold med this year that saw the most progress without any setbacks. >> yeah, this is the year where that issue just crossed the rubicon both in terms of public opinion and in terms of the law. and just recently utah we have the first red state where same sex marriage was actually legal. so i think frankly, i think the debate on that issue is lost.

i think the question on gay marriage has always been, is it going to be an issue like abortion where it continues to polarize the electorate for decades after or like a civil rights issue where the people against civil rights faded in the battle. i think it will be in the latter category. >> is that where you think the history books will say 2013 was the year where advocates of same-sex marriage triumphed? >> absolutely. i agree with everything ryan said. and i would go further. i think 50 or 100 years from now when historians are looking back at the year 2013, almost everything we discussed won't get a mention. but same-sex marriage will. this is an irreversible social trend. it's going to move forward and there's no going back. >> so marijuana is the other issue that we've seen a lot of progress on. in fact, as we go into january, you're looking at colorado that

has will have legalized recreational use of marijuana. big year for marijuana. >> huge year. colorado and washington state both have legalized it now. this one i don't know what the trajectory is. i think you're going to see red states moving in one direction and blue states in another direction on this. . we're going to have a bit of a patchwork of legalization and crackdowns on it. until the federal government steps up and congress loosens the laws and i think on the republican side there's not really much debate on this yet despite the libertarian wing and people like rand paul who want to decriminalize some of these drug laws. on the democratic side this is an issue where hillary clinton and whoever else is running for president in 2016 has to start thinking where they come out. it's going to be a big cutting edge issue in the democratic primaries. >> it's a big issue, larry, but do you think it's as sort of clear-cut as it is for some of the other winning issues of the year? >> no, it certainly can't

compare to same-sex marriage. but and i agree that it's going to be difficult to see this go countrywide, but eventually, an your going to see some cracks in the red states and they're going to be in the more libertarian red states, frequently in the west. they're going to be the first to fall toward at least decriminalization. >> and look, we're going to have an experiment and see how this goes in colorado. we're going to see how this goes in washington. if its an a disaster, this could be reversed. if it looks like it's okay, then i think other states will start adopting it. >> i want to end on an issue that i think you could maybe argue both a ways. that would be gun control. we saw, larry if you can weigh in on this first. we saw that a bipartisan bill that would have put universal background checks in place failed to get through the senate. but overall, do you think gun control was a loser?

>> well, i this i it was a loser compared to where many people thought it was going after the tragedies that occurred in the prior year and even during this year. i think certainly, universal background checks, people thought there might be some way to get a compromise bill that included some things that conservatives wanted on videos and that kind of thing. r rated videos, violence inclined videos but nothing happened except in a few states. if there's going to be progress toward background checks and other parts of gun control, it's not going to be at the national level at least for a long while. it will be at the state level. >> i did a story on this, ryan. that's really the point. i thought, this issue was the year of loss for voces of gun control. you talk to some of them and they say, yes, the federal level didn't go well for us. yes, even in some states they've actually loosened gun laws but they point to be the progress

they've made in some states. is that a fairway to read as a success or no? >> it's a trend in most of these social issues we're talking about. we're going in two different directions as a country out in the states. the red states are getting redder and more conservative on some of these issues and the blue states getting more liberal on some of these issues. with gun control, 80s one of those issues where all the passion is on one side and on the pro gun side and on the gun control side, it doesn't have the ability to produce votes or influence congress but you're right. at the state level and places like colorado for instance, which passed strict gun control and a pretty pro nra state, they had some victories. >> and people who got pushed out for. >> there was a backlash in colorado. >> ainge it's considering the gravity of the tragedy at newtown, i don't think it was a successful year for gun control as advocates expected to be. >> ryan lizza, larry sabato, thank you guys so much for weighing in and happy holidays

and happy new year to you guys. >> to you too. >> same to you. well, many people were offended when the star of "duck dynasty" made anti-gay and racial remarks. but one alabama lawmaker wants to declare phil robertson a hero. we'll be talking to him next. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 searching for trade ideas that spark your curiosity tdd# 1-800-345-2550 can take you in many directions. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 you read this. watch that. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 you look for what's next. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 at schwab, we can help turn inspiration into action

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the controversy surrounding duck dynasty's phil robertson and his comments on homosexuality and race could be

a topic for the alabama state legislature next month because republican state senator jerry fielding is proposing legislation that would back robertson. fielding says he doesn't want to see people run over for believing in the bible and standing up for jesus and god. a & e suspended robertson after he told "gq" magazine among other things that homosexuality is a sin. an oklahoma politician thinks the state has bigger fish to fry. >> it's not one of the most important things facing alabama that we need to be taking time to even even discuss in the legislature. >> yeah, i've watched "duck dynasty." i liked it. probably still will continue to watch it. i think most of us it was like no big deal. who cares. yes, of course he thinks that. >> alabama state senator jerry fielding joining me now by

phone. senator, tell us why you are pursuing this resolution in support of phil robertson. >> brianna, my position is i'm offering this resolution to support mr. robertson to publicly show my support and hopefully the support of the men and women of the alabama legislature that we believe in freedom of speech for mr. robertson and that also the right of empty robertson to give his personal religious views as supported by the scriptures. for too long, the silent majority has wered silent when we ought to be speaking up in support of these constitutional issues. and that -- i just think we need to publicly get to moving and get the people fired up. >> now, your resolution calls robertson a hero, but let me play devil's advocate a little bit here. even his family said that his remarks were coarse. >> i agree. >> you would agree with that.

do you think in that case that. >> i don't greet with the way in which he said some of the things. i don't agree with putting the bestiality in the conversation because that's completely foreign to the issue that he started out on. and also, i don't believe in what he had to say about the african-americans. that he grew up having no complaints about their life. we understand they didn't complain because they were afraid to. and we've got that behind us, i believe. i didn'tdon believe in either of those issues but the other issue he spoke upon, that's still a relevant issue and still -- and is supported by the biblical scriptures. that's what i'm speaking to in my resolution. >> so you represent the people of alabama, the robertsons though live and run their business in louisiana. how is your resolution benefiting your constituents in

alabama? >> well, are i think it is making a public awareness of the fact that for too long, a portion of it so-called politically correct folks have strongly encouraged tolerance and open mindedness and now they -- when and some open mindedness, such as phil robertson, they go in the other direction. i just believe that we ought to assess the fairness in that. i believe we ought to stand up and get behind folks who are speaking out and exercising their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and also their religious rights provided by our constitution. i think that we need to get out of -- supporting people like this. not necessarily because we agree with what they say, but it gets to the core principles of our

country that we live under. and so that's why i wanted to bring it to the attention of the people, and hopefully have some positive impact in that regard. >> you certainly have brought it to the attention of many people, and we will be following your resolution. state senator jerry fielding of alabama, thanks for joining us. >> thank you, ma'am. well, from jodi arias to george zimmerman, it's been a wild year in court, to say the least. up next, our top ten crime and justice stories for 2013. some picks may surprise you.

crime and justice stories of 2013. >> number ten. >> we have a report that shots have been fired at the washington navy yard. >> the u.s. navy is telling us three shots were fired. they tell us an active shooter is still inside that building. >> former navy reservist aaron alexis, a military contractor, gunned down 12 people before police shot and killed him. number nine, the mysterious death of 17-year-old kendrick johnson. >> got some questions about the kendrick johnson case. >> i'm not going to discuss that with you. >> why not, sir? >> because our case is closed. >> his body found upside down in a rolled up wrestling mat in the

high school gym last january. local authorities ruled it an accident. kendrick's parents believe he was murdered. now federal authority are investigating. >> we are kendrick johnson. that's my child and we're going to fight until it's over. >> number eight. oscar pistorius. the blade runner. a double-amputee, beloved south african olympic athlete. indicted on charges of murder in august for the shooting of his model girlfriend, reeva steenkamp. he admits he shot her on valentine's day but says it was an accident. his trial starts in march. number seven, california teen hannah anderson rescued after a week-long hunt for her abductor in august. family friend james dimaggio killed her mother and her brother and the family dog. their bodies found in his burned home. fbi agents killed him in a

shootout. number six. a woman who needs no introduction. >> at least done your makeup, jodi, gosh. ♪ it might change my memory >> her outrageous behavior in the interrogation room, the brutal murder of her ex-boyfriend, travis alexander, and x-rated details of their sex life gripped the nation. jodi arias convicted of first degree murder. 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 runs over one biker. his wife says he was left paralyzed. 11 other bikers, including an undercover cop, are indicted.

number four. edward snowden. branded by some as a hero, by others a traitor. for exposing the nsa's spying programs in may. perhaps the biggest intelligence leak in u.s. history. charged with espionage, granted asylum in russia. number three. george zimmerman. found not guilty in july of murdering trayvon martin. >> do you think he's yelling help? >> yes. >> what is your -- >> a tragic case that ignited questions about race. >> trayvon martin put race in this. >> no. >> you don't think that creepy ass cracker is a racial comment? >> no. >> a 17-year-old in a hoodie with a pack of skittles enduring images from a case that's prompted cries for civil rights

charges. and an emotional debate even the president weighed in. >> if i had a son, he would look like trayvon. >> since zimmerman's acquittal, he's had a few other runins with the law. >> number two, inside a cleveland house of horrors. three girls, kidnapped, rapes, and held captive for a decades. but they finally broke free. >> i will not let the situation define who i am. >> i will live on. you will die a little every day. >> ariel castro, sentenced to life in prison plus more than 1,000 years. >> i am not a violent predator, a monster. i'm not a monster. >> but ultimately, he would do himself in, killing himself in that cell. that was 10 through 2. this is number one. >> apparently, there's been an

explosion at the boston marathon. i am told. >> a 26-mile, 385-yard marathon. and it was wrapping up, wrapping up when you look at these devastating pictures right at the finish line. this are pictures that were shot just moments ago. >> double bombings at the finish line of the boston marathon 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, shot and killed by police. then the manhunt for his brother, dzhokhar, that shut down the city. >> we believe that the suspect is cornered in a boat. >> tsarnaev arrested april 19th, and later charged.

now, the u.s. attorney is deciding if he'll face the death penalty. the attack knocked the city down, but it was far from defeated. >> can feel like we're all boston. >> the whole country united with one resounding message. >> strong. not just strong. boston strong. >> that's it for me. see you at 5:00 eastern on "the situation room." "newsroom" continues right now with kyra phillips. and brianna, thanks so much. good afternoon, everyone. i'm kyra phillips. we begin with that fight over your privacy and how it's become a fight in the u.s. legal system. a federal judge has just ruled that the white house endorsed nsa program that digs into your phone records and is completely legit. legal. that's a 180-turn from last week when another judge called the nsa s