go to our website for parts of my new book. thank you for watching this special. we will be back next sunday with our regular programming. >> hello everyone. look at our top stories this hour. an explosion rocks a train station in russia. more than a dozen people are dead. a manhunt across the u.s. for an alleged cop killer is over. we have the latest. and help is on the way for a chip stu ship stuck in ice. but the rescue ships are running into the same problem. how the people onboard are doing next.

>> they are just 28 nautical miles away from the ship stranded on frozen waters. it has been stuck in ice for almost a week now. although a chinese ship got within sight of that ship, it was not close enough to rescue the people. rosie thompkins is coming to us from london. how soon will they australian ship make contact? >> reporter: this is a waiting game. they are at the mercy of the weather. that is hampering efforts. it is 28 nautical miles away. but it had to stop because of snow showers. they don't have good enough visibility to proceed. the captain of the ship is waiting for the snow to clear at

that point he will decide whether or not he can go through the ice. the question is whether or not this ship can cut through the ice. this ice breaker only has the capacity to cut through one and a half meters or less of ice. it is a question of what the conditions are like if they can see. >> if the ice breaker can't get to the russian ship, is there a back up plan or how might they get to the people and pluck them off the ship or rescue them? is that something they are considering? they have had a plan be in place. they new there was no plan to get through. a chinese vessel which attempted a rescue has been waiting in the wings. just six nautical miles and it has a helicopter.

if they can't get in there, it is a simpler cause of action. they will use a helicopter to move people out. and then if they were to do that, it is an issue of leaving that ship there and what towing it at a later date? >> yeah, i spoke to the australian maritime safety a while ago. they do have plenty of food and resources and they are not in any danger and they will stay with the ship and monitor, they have to wait and see will the ice melt and will things soften. it is a question of when not if. they cannot tell at this stage >> thank you so much. this is considered summer there now. all right. we'll check back with you. >> all right russian investigators meantime say a bombing at a train station may have been the work of a female suicide bomber. at least 16 people were killed in the attack.

in vulgagrad. no one has claimed responsibility for the attack. it sits the same distance from s sochi where the olympics begins. we have the latest from nos mos >> reporter: a huge blast in the main railway station. this around noon on sunday and this is two days ahead of the biggest russian holiday. timed for maximum damage. we are hearing this was carried out by a female suicide bomber. she has been identified as a 26-year-old called oksana who was on the russian intelligence wanted list. on that list since june 2012. she is believed to have been married to a former militant who was killed in an tie anti terror

operation. this was two months after another suicide bombing. another female bomber who got onto a bus and killed six people when she detonated her device. this is all in the region of the southwest. you have sochi where the games are happening and to the southeast you have the troubled region and the leader of that insurgesy, has issued a video statement back in july where he promised to unleash maximum force where he tried to disrupt president putin's olympic games. >> after a rocky start the president's health care law ends

the year with new numbers. more than 1.1 million people enrolled in coverage medicare and medicaid official called the numbers quote a welcome surge. still the obama administration has a long way to go for the target for both the exchanges by the end of march. >> he is taking legal steps to renounce his citizenship and was born in canada to an american mother. cruz says he first learned of his citizenship last summer when the dallas morning news explored that issue. the minimum wage will rise. workers in new jersey,

connecticut, new york and rhode island will be paid between $ $8.70 earlier this month. president obama said it is well past the time to raise the minimum wage. he said it is below where it was when harry truman was in office. >> now to that alleged killer and bank robber. who the fbi believes was killed during a shootout. the fbi held a news conference on this nationwide manhunt what was said? >> it was two days before christmas a gunfight left one officer critically injured and one killed. police then linked that suspect to an attempted robbery that morning in atlanta, georgia. a manhunt followed on saturday.

police closed in on a man carrying a gun and a bag of money. they followed with officers not hurt. one officer followed back killing him. >> this is a senseless tragedy and out of respect for all of the law enforcement people particularly the one who died. we wanted to come and show our respect and brought our flag from our house. so, it is a tragic thing and i'm so sorry for him and his family and all the law enforcement that worked through the holiday year. it is just the kind of thing that shouldn't have happened. stoffer leaves two young children and a wife. the wife spoke at the service. she says the healing can begin.

the fbi is checkeding this suspect to all three robberies. >> and why are they so convinced of that? >> they are pointing to the similarities to the attempts and the robbery and saying that they have a court order showing the cell phone records which put their suspect in the place of the three events at those three times. >> thank you so much. if you plan on washing the ball drop in times square tuesday night you are going to need to dress extra warm. another frigid blast of air is headed to the east coast. >> hi, fred, we are talking about incredibleably low temperatures but cold windchills around the northern plains and upper midwest. we are going to watch those temperatures begin to rebound.

24 degrees below average but what happens? the coldest air drops south and then tuesday that colder air modifying still but still colder than it's been. and only in the low 30s in new york city. so, what we are seeing, this area of low pressure moving up the coast sunday into monday bringing rain with it for boston and north of that sunday night we will see snow showers in northern new england. and it all moved through on monday. times square, it is going to be cold across the board. most people will see colder than average temperatures. you can see temperatures for new year's eve. chicago colder than that with wind and 15 degrees and snow showers around and to atlanta, georgia. temperatures there in the 30s by the time the ball drops and in

los angeles we will see nice conditions with temperatures in the 60s. have a happy new year as we look ahead. heading towards the east. very fitting. thank you so much. how worry ied should we be for terror threat. and also, we'll talk about a huge head line about another deadly attack. just by talking to a helmet. it grabbed the patient's record before we even picked him up. it found out the doctor we needed was at st. anne's. wiggle your toes. [ driver ] and it got his okay on treatment from miles away. it even pulled strings with the stoplights. my ambulance talks with smoke alarms and pilots and stadiums. but, of course, it's a good listener too. [ female announcer ] today cisco is connecting the internet of everything. so everything works like never before.

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returning to one of our top stories a suicide attack on a russian train station. now with the olympics beginning in just weeks leaving many to worry whether russia can keep people safe at the winter games

at sochi. how big a threat is this on what took place in russia. they don't have a good grip on this group behind this attack. i know they are going to fence off sochi. but this is a very, very dangerous region which the russians have never gotten control of. what is the message here? >> i think the group is saying we can get you anytime we want

as long as there are large groups of people. and they call these girls -- they can get to the russians anytime they want --. black widows is the name. >> is this, does this mean that the threat is strictly russia alone or might it migrate and be exported elsewhere? >> it was exported to boston. yes, it can hit the united states and almost anywhere it likes. what could the u.s. do to thwart the potential attacks. >> we are pretty blind and it wasn't our area of expertise. it is only since boston that we trulyfocused on them. there is nothing that we can do

to help the russians. >> let's talk about another huge head line today. >> let's talk about benghazi. the report suggests that al qaeda probably was not involved in the attack. the times article questioning how well u.s. operatives und understood the situation there. and how they might have thought their allies would warn them in the attack and saying that libya is reluctant to arrest the man suspected of masterminding the attack. bob, a lot there in this report. do you have conclusions with

this spelled out? >> now that it has gotten out and the "new york times" report and the other ones i don't think there is a scandal there. benghazi went bad very quickly. the person responsible for assessing the threat was the ambassador. terrible tragedy that he died. i think the embassy miss judged the threat there. this war against kadafi would turn against us so quickly. >> is this an issue that american operatives on the ground misjudging the sentiment on the ground there. they spelled out there was a conversation involving diplomates and people saying we wanted americans out and perhaps that didn't seem threatening enough? >> in 20/20 hindsight, yes, they

should have closed the base, the consulate. but i served in places that were very dangerous. actually putting a finger on where it is going to come from, the attack. it is nearly impossible. the middle east is a mess. it is not getting better. there will be more and we have to learn our lessons and move on. what does the white house have to do? perhaps it might not be as eye opening to others what if anything should be done from here? >> i think we have to stop making this a political football. let's get to the facts. we need to get the washington politics out of it. we are going to have to protect our embassies and be more

isolated in the middle east. but frankly. there is no choice. >> thank you so much. appreciate it. >> a&e network drops it's suspension of phil robertson. did the quartcontroversy turn vs away or bring them in? next. ññ ♪ [ 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! afghanistan in 2009. on the u.s.s. saratoga in 1982.

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now back to ancartica where a ship is stuck in the ice. ice breakers? how does that happen. >> reporter: you would think that sea ice would move at a glacial pace. they can expand and grow thicker and rise and fall with the winds beneath them. you might remember this scene from minnesota. think of this principle. you can see how they were surrounded and how that ship was eventually crushed.

even animals are vulnerable. >> did you see that? >> what does it take to get through the ice and rescue whales and cruise ships that get tra stran strands. they are designed to wedge up on top of the ice so that the heavy ship can crush down on it. >> australian ice breaker is inching closer even though we are talking 28 nautical miles away from that stranded ship. we have the spokeswoman for the

australian maritime authority on the phone. what does that mean? it sounds far. realistic realistically, will your ship be able to make it to the russian research ship? it is hard to tell at the moment if it will make its way through. conditions are supposed to deteriorate for the short-term before clearing later today. basely we are wait iing for the to tell us. if conditions are to deteriorate, that means you couldn't put helicopters in the

air i understand there is helicopter ability for the chinese ice breaker that is still in the area. and that could pluck some of the researchers off that ship. it is a way to see a complex operation. they can change quickly. how it goes with the forecast. little bit during that and watching it closely. we need to be able to tell us if it can make its way through the ice and if it can't we will use the helicopter and obviously that will be weather depend aan.

>> can you describe for me, this ice breaker, what is it up against. besides the deep ice, is it having a difficult time breaking through that ice or is there something else going on that is keeping that from making some head way. >> at the moment, it hasn't made much head way because it is just not doing so because of the poor visibility. at the moment it is not moving very fast. it is in the area to the east. so that is good. which is where it is sitting now. it is trying to enter from the east and it was determined ye yesterday so it is standing by at the moment. it is waiting for conditions to clea clear up a bit.

are these just stationed there at all times to help at all times? >> they are working on various research projects xts it is issue i issuing and able to do the job and to presond. the vessels were in the area and this seems like an expensive venture to carry out this rescue if it come to that. can you give us an idea of how costly this can become?

>> under the convention, they are obligate to respond to distress calls. we are tasked in the area and in terms of the fuel and that sort of cost, that is on the owner to look at after the event. lisa martin, thank you so much. we are hoping for the best for everyone involved in this. >> all right the day's top story are up next. right after this. before copd... i took my son fishing every year. we had a great spot, not easy to find, but worth it. but with copd making it hard to breathe, i thought those days might be over. so my doctor prescribed symbicort. it helps significantly improve my lung function starting within five minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. with symbicort, today i'm breathing better.

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bottom of the hour. russian authorities say a female suicide bomber may be behind a deadly attack on a train station. police say an unexploded grenade was found at the scene. the white house has condemned the attack. required formula one legend mine michael schumaker has suffered a skies accident. british television says he is suffering from severe head

trauma and people in new york are helping to ring in 2014 with ped al power. city bikes. the bike sharing program is helping to power the new year's eve ball drop the time's square. energy is being stored in large batteries and it will be used to power the ball's drop. a&e network says it is bringing back phil robertson. the network suspended him after his disparaging remarks in a gq magazine interview. i asked brian if the quarter say

could help the show? >> it was one of the most popular kwacable television programs of all-time. but the numbers weren't at stro strong. if anything, this, i wonder if this is going to help the show in some way in january when the next season premiers. this whole quartcontro versy ha increased interest. some viewers are turned off by it now. but i have a feeling that there are more viewers curious about it than there are bothered by it. >> it ruffled a lot of feathers, i couldn't resist either.

but this has become fodder for politics. you have bobby gindle saying that he is glad that the people at the network came to their senses and you are other prominent people who came along the way such as sarah palin and then you have texas senator ted cruz saying back on. >> yeah, the show has become politicized. i think that is the new normal for the show. which may or may not be a good thing over the long-term. i think we'll find out when we see the ratings in jan jan. >> i think lots of people can enjoy the show which is a light hearted family comedy and not agree with what he said to gq. whether viewers hold the show

accountable or not. let's take paula dean for example. they yanked her shows off the air. and in other cases, though, there can be reality stars acting badly and speaking in ways off camera that doesn't affect the show. we'll see which way this ended up going. a&e claims that they will end up promoting tolerance. >> to some of these gay rights groups and civil rights groups. that were offended by some of what phil robertson said. their point is here is phil robertson comparing gay people to terrorists and yet a&e seems to be bringing them back into the business where they were ten

days ago. i think we will continue to hear from those groups and they will continue to hear from those signs showing tolllerance and supporting unity. i don't know if we will see them in those public service comments though. having them is a way to signal to these groups that they understand their concerns. it is a dance that television networks have to do.

just by talking to a helmet. it grabbed the patient's record before we even picked him up. it found out the doctor we needed was at st. anne's. wiggle your toes. [ driver ] and it got his okay on treatment from miles away. it even pulled strings with the stoplights. my ambulance talks with smoke alarms and pilots and stadiums. but, of course, it's a good listener too. [ female announcer ] today cisco is connecting the internet of everything. so everything works like never before. ♪ maybe i'm wrong ♪ ♪ and nobody ever says goodbye ♪

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"new york times" report on benghazi debunks the idea that al qaeda was behind the attack by fearing the gop has advanced for more than a year now. but it also talks about huge missteps in failing to protect pes nprotect personnel in benghazi. it said the movie did light the fuse that led to the attacks. will the white house say that this individual kates them?

>> officials are not disputing details of the story and allies of the white house and former members of the obama administration are plen pretty pleased with the report. this piece by david kirkpatrick, also tweeted if republicans spent 1/50 of the time that he did learning what happened in benghazi we could have avoiding months of demogogery. he is referring to numerous hearings on capitol hill. republicans saying that the administration purposefully blaming the attacks on this

video. it paints a murkier picture. there is something for both side. >> thank you so much. >> turning to the economy now. wall street is ready to close out a year of record highs. new cnn poll shows most people think economic conditions today are poor. here is alison kosik. the poll asked about economic conditions today and 68% said conditions were poor. and a majority of those polled don't think conditions are going to get better a year from now. 58% said they saw conditions as poor. here is something very telling. they were asked whether the economy has made them put off making major purchases. that shows that there is concern

about the future. so why this disconnect? you look at data about the economy. it has been getting better. you look behind those numbers and you find the long-term unemployed and those who have brop e brop dropped out of or entered the workforce. those people aren't buying big ticket items and some are cutting back on essentials like food and medicine. and those people who aren't buying medicine. some may call it one america, two economies. >> thank you so much. so that mindset on the economy will likely have a big impact on the elections. paul steinhauser looks ahead to the coming election season. >> 2014 is an election year.

and next midterm elections will take center stage. the wbig question? will republicans be able to take control of the chamber. and will they recapture control of the house. we feel confident about where we go in and what our opportunity is in those districts and don't forget about the battle for the governors. a bun of ch of republican gover first have to win re-election. hovering overall of this is the affordable health care law and republicans plan to make the issue a key part of their campaign pitch. obama care continues to wreak havoc on our economy. >> the economy is stronger than

it has been in a very long time. the establishment versus tea party battle for the heart and soul of the gop. 7 senators the top two rep republicans will -- hillary clinton will make up her mind on whether she launches another bid for president. as the head of the republican governor's association, he will be -- traveling all over the country trying to help republican governors. >> and expect the potential contenders to make a slew of trips to such sates as iowa, new hampshire and south carolina. 2016 isn't as far away as it seems. >> fred? >> thank you so much paul. in a battle between obama care,

the partial government shut down, what was your top political moment of 2013. cnn's top ten list next. >> fame, fortune and millions in prize money. who did the best players in the world have to thank for making tennis what it is today? >> billy jean king. >> we stood together to form the wta. >> billy jean king took center stage when they reunited in london. >> she has told me so many things and is always so inspirational to see. >> you feel better after talking to her. >> the players today are living our dream.

>> yeah, i'm married. does it matter? you'd do that for me? really? yeah, i'd like that. who are you talking to? uh, it's jake from state farm. sounds like a really good deal. jake from state farm at three in the morning. who is this? it's jake from state farm. what are you wearing, jake from state farm? [ jake ] uh... khakis.

she sounds hideous. well she's a guy, so... [ male announcer ] another reason more people stay with state farm. get to a better state. ♪ i have a cold with this annoying runny nose. [ sniffles ] i better take something. [ male announcer ] dayquil cold and flu doesn't treat all that. it doesn't? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus fights your worst cold symptoms plus has a fast-acting antihistamine. oh, what a relief it is!

. welcome back. diplomates around the world are urge gently trying to find a way to end violence in sudan. it hasn't been safe there, some including a 6-year-old girl reportedly had been hit by gunfire. un security general is now backing calls for peace. a double war craime blaming the lebanese government while attacking civilians. israeli military say rockets

landed inside. and take a dysfunctional congress and throw in a derailed presidential agenda and add in that never ending issue of obama care. and what do you have? >> it was the year of living angrily. >> sit down and shut up. >> do you stand for your country or do you want to take it down? >> this place is a mess. >> i reject that allegation. >> white house hot rhetoric. icy cold relationships. >> that said, 2013 started as inaugural years of ten do. >> we are made for this moment and we will seize it. he was a popular president with an ambitious agenda. and improved voting process immigration reform and gun

control. none of it has happened. january was the kindest month. he ends the year with an approval rating that has gone south. >> there was a time when i was young and after five years in this office people don't call me that anymore. >> another year like this and they will call him blame duck. sons of the tea party, newbies on the block, catapulted to star status pushing his party toward immigration reform. >> i wasn't going to leave it to democrats alone to figure out how to fix it. >> i will speak until i can no longer speak. >> and a one off politician from the lone star state. >> thank you very much. >> ted cruz tried to make the

case against obama care filling time with a story for his kids. i do not like green eggs and ham i do not like them sam i am. >> welcome to new jersey. in a moment all his own another of the 2016's rising, new jersey governor chris christie wins a landslide re-election and sounds like he is opening a presidential campaign. >> i know that if we can do this in new jersey maybe the folks in washington, d.c. should tune in and see how it is done. >> the former secretary of state left washington for hmm something else. the fact is, what difference at this point does it make? >> hillary clinton's benghazi

moment. if she runs for president expect republicans to make it a tv add moment. >> i know declare you spouses for life. >> now brought to you by the u.s. supreme court. less a 2013 moment than a page in history for gay rights. >> senate democrats blew up the status quo with the first major rules change banning filibusters and sending republicans into orbit. >> let's not forget about the raw power at play here. >> the change will give any president with the senate manority the hower to shape the lean of courts. >> this moment another one for the ages. >> further proceedings for this motion will be postponed. >> work left undown, mega problems unaddressed. gridlock it is not just about

traffic anymore. >> the senate stands adjourned. the first shut down in 17 years and people read that voters largely blamed republicans plow producing the democratic talking point. >> if we don't have our own way, we are going to shut government down. you are and attitude are a luxury this country cannot afford. >> the president's affordable care act. obama care got off to a troubled start and his broken you can keep your insurance promise. >> when we get to january 1st, it will be clear that more americans will have lost their health insurance than will sign up under their policies. >> the final moments are the politics of 2014. shut down versus melt down and

happy new year. candy crowley, cnn washington. ♪ [ male announcer ] the mercedes-benz winter event is back, with the perfect vehicle that's just right for you, no matter which list you're on. [ santa ] ho, ho, ho, ho! [ male announcer ] get the all-new 2014 cla250 starting at just $29,900. 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.

today's vikings game marks a day in history. it will be leveled to make way for a new stadium. rachel slovick takes us inside

the dome. >> reporter: in the belly of the dome history is on display. three canvass show the employees from the past 31 years will offer a chance to lee flect and it has been fun to check them out and see what people have written on there. >> great times. one of my bartenders thanks for the memories. >> it is an emotional walk down memory lane. >> there are a lot of people missing. photos show staff during the dome's greatest moments. >> world series, super bowl. >> and even capture uniforms that are last forgotten. and i remember we had red and green pizza outfits as well. >> she couldn't help but leave

her mark. >> thanks for sending me to 56 countries. >> and while many will remember the dome for it's sporty moments, those who worked here, the writing is on the wall. >> it is not about the dome. the dome is a concrete structure. and the teams that have been here. the stories are topping our news this hour. help is on the way for ships stuck in the ice. how people onboard are doing next. an explosion rocks a train station in russia. more than a dozen people are dead. plus, a proble in seattle. a drill with tons of power runs into something that it