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 can't get

through. what could it be? that is coming up. new developments from an arc ti ca today. ice breaker is 28 miles from the ship stranded and the crew onboard is trying to figure out how to rescue the people on that ship. it has been stuck in ice for almost a week now and although a chinese ship got inside of it earlier it was not close enough to rescue the people on it. rosie the trapped ship is surrounded by miles of ice. >> snow is hampering their

efforts to rescue this ship? the vessel as you say 28 nautical mile as way and he got this close and it couldn't proceed because the visibility isn't good enough. this ice bracer ceaker can only through a certain amount of ice. they will get them out one way or the other but when and how they won't get to see. she said her big problem was visiblibility with snow showers moving in and out. it appears that weather is only going to deteriorate. for how long will this ice breaker be able to stay in the area and wait nfor conditions t improve. >> in terms of resources on the ship, they have plenty of food to keep them going and they he

have dry food once they run are out of wet food. there is no din vanger unless a iceberg approaches. they will resort to lifting people out by helicopter. >> they are hope that go the weather cooperates to get a championshiper er ier i champo. >> anyone going to the olympic games has plenty of reasons to be anxious now. at least 16 people were killed in a bombing that is less than a day's drive from where the winter games begin. it is roughly 400 miles and it is the second terror attack in that city in two months. diana is joining me now from

moscow. >> well, we are hear that go it was the work of a female suicide bomber and there are a few conflicting reports running in the local media that maybe there was a man in involved. as far as the official source so far they are working on dna evidence and this was the work of a female suicide bomber. you mentioned there has been another attack in the city two months ago. that was the work of a bomber who climbed onto a bus. this happened in the main railway station. it is just two days before the busiest holiday of the year. designed really to cause maximum damage and what happened was the suicide bomber came up towards a metal detect or and she detonated her explosive device. >> my goodness.

what about security at the sochi games? how might this incident dictate or encourage authorities to alter the plans to keep the winter games safe. there has been ani islamist insurgency in place there. therefore sochi itself is plobly not going to experience much security there. it is 400 miles away. there are other cities in the southern region that terrorists could attack where they know that security won't be as high but they could spread a message of fear during the games which

could prevent people from tra l traveling there. >> retired formula one legend michael schumaker has suffered a head injury while skiing in the alps. he was on a trail, fell and hit his head on a rock. first aid workers rescued him before air lifting him to the hospital. minimum wage increases january 1st. it will be higher than the federal level than $7.25 an hour. workers will see a bigger bump and they will get paid $8.70 an hour. earlier this month, president obama said it is well past the time to raise the minimum wage.

a supreme new yorker will do the honors at times square on new year's eve. supreme court justice sonya s a sotomayaor will push the button. they she hails from the bronx. new enrollment numbers show a major rebound in obama care enrollments but the white house says it is still a long way to go to hit it's target number by march. little encouragement for the white house, right? >> that is a little encouraging, fred, but the white house sure does have a long way to go. but they point to the december

enrollment numbers. they signed up on the federal exchanges this month alone. the administration calls this a welcome surge. white house toast in 2010 when the health care bill passed in the house. but at the stroke of midnight when that legislation becomes reality will the president again, pop the champagne? we might have people who are going to have health care on january 1st and that is a big deal. >> come wednesday, the program gets it's first full test. those who could sign up on the new insurance marketplaces will now be able to use their coverage until they have until january 10th to make their first payment. >> we screwed it up. >> a website plagued by glitches

improved but they have created more confusion. >> if you try to do it by yourself and you sit down and work through it. it can be difficult. >> this past week the website has seen a surge in traffic nearly 900,000 visitors christmas eve a long. on sunday, the administration announced more than 1 million people have are signed up. still unclear whether insurance companies are getting reliable information. after the botched website roll out october 1st, the president took heat for not paying close enough attention. he was briefed by this health care team. he is not dropping the ball this time. one of the president's chief critics told us the new enrollment numbers are not something to write home about and hinted at the republican's new year's resolution. this has been a failed launch.

>> it is important to note that these new enrollment numbers don't account for the 14 state run exchanges. we are still waiting for the figures there. >> thank you so much in washington. >> new report says you can forget about the idea that al qaeda had anything to do with that attack on benghazi. it says u.s. operatives made a huge mistake in that city. more next. cg/úññ [ female announcer ] who are we?

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energy lives here. ♪ oerk will oerk h h . al qaeda may have not had something to do with the attack in benghazi after all.

the report debunks that al qaeda was involved after all and alleges that mistakes were made. mine ali it points the finger at libya. cnn's athena jones is near where the president is on vacation. will the gop jump all over that angle and report and what is the white house saying about it? >> hi, fred, well republicans have already been jumping all over that angle. the angle that there was not enough security on this night on the night of september 11th when the attack occurred. the administration has acknowledged that.

but of course as you mentioned, this report has something for everyone in it. on the white house side, they are not disputing any sis can significant details of the story. they are clearly very pleased with this report coming out. david axelrod tweeting, for anyone interested in the truth and not the politics about benghazi this piece is a must read. and tommy voter who was the president's national security spokes man tweeted if republican's spent 1/50th of the time on this -- he is referring to the hearings that the republicans held trying to get the administration to admit some of the mistakes that they have

admitted. >> thank you so much. appreciate that. >> so al qaeda may not have been involved in libya according to that article but the situation described is frightening and underscores the vulnerability overseas. brian williams aa contributor to the huffington post. good to see you. what is your initial reaction to that article removing responsibility to al qaeda? >> it sort of proof proofs that has happened before. over and over again this word has been over used and we see this "new york times" piece seem to indicate that it was a local libyan jihadi who had nothing to

do with al qaeda. >> instead the article took advantage that the american preacher did insult islam and that perhaps this was the result of that video that made air. >> it shows that in many ways susan rice was correct. it individual kavindicates her five days after the attack that the catalyst for the protest was actually this video called "the innocence of islam". not some premeditated al qaeda attack. >> what does this tell you about the vulnerabilities overseas and how much protection can be put in place? >> it highlights it. the ambassador seems to have

trusted the libyans and we helped with the campaign that turned against us. it highlights how volatile it has become. >> now turning to russia. let's tauklk about this suicide bombing attack. taking place away from the olympic games in february. what does this tell you about how ten youous security is in the country of russia given that this attack takes place two months after a similar attack? >> it shows you how determined the caucus is to remind the western world that there is an insurgesy in the caucuses. so i think the russians have a hard time on their hands trying to tamper down the insurgesy in the region.

does this say that there can't be security strong enough to be put in place in russia to protect the thousands of people who will be descending on sochi for the games? >> i don't say for sure. but getting in the wider region, it is an unstable region. the thing is that the site of the olympics was an ancient center for the people who were exterminated by the russians in the 919th century. that was the goal to remind people of the genocide of the 1860s. what do you know about this label so called black widows in russia and does that apply here? >> it does. the black widows have been used over and over again. recall if you will in 2002 black

widows were in gauged in the crisis and they have set up in metro moscow and brought down two airplanes. they are a strong terrorist wing to the caucuses. >> brian williams thank you so much for your time. >> 74 people stuck on that russian ship. they are waiting to be rescued but it is not an easy task. it looks like they are going to have to wait even longer. [ sniffles, coughs ] shhhh!

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so everyone goes home happy. new details on that stranded ship. the ice breaker still can't get close enough to get the researchers off the ship. our rosie thomp kins has the store yixt so close and yet so far. this was the happy scene on saturday when the stranded passeng passengers saw help on the horizon. >> fancy ice breaker coming to rescue us. hopes were quickly dashed though. china's snow dragon coming out.

>> the decision was made that the ice was too thick and it was beyond the vessel's capacity and he turned around and went back through the channel that created to open water. >> while the chinese vessel remains on stand by, a third vessel has been making its way there for some time and is waiting for visility to improve before it proceed. >> what happens when it gets there with no guarantee that it will succeed where the others have failed. there is no guarantee it will be powerful enough to break t through. enter plan b. while they wait, the team are well equipped with enough fresh

food to last two weeks and dry food to last longer if needed. team leader expressed concerns. >> we have some know falling but it is not too windy. weather conditions continue for the next few days. >> spirits remain onboard remarkably high. >> it is my birthday today. it couldn't be a better day than to have my birthday with my new friends. >> we are going to have singing on the ice. it is spectacular here. it is like a magical winter wonderland. >> the passengers enjoying the magic of their rur rousurroundi. with the chinese vessel in view and visitors in the form of penguins they don't feel alone. cnn london.

>> and my colleague bill weir spoke to three people onboard that ship. >> i was with them when he first cited the ice breaker on the horizon and he said psyc psychologically that was an important moment. as soon as the chinese captain visibly saw us, the ability to get to us was a real thing >> it is a crucial moment for all the people who seem to be following us. we are in a bit of a bubble here. but we have been using social media to share what we have been doing. but it is hard to see the reaction outside. yesterday lawrence tweeted a tiny picture of the ship that is coming to rescue us. within five minutes it has been sent around the world 200 or 300

times. we've been doing a series of vine videos and they have bon viral too. >> it is just superpersuperb. in the old days we would be stuck. today we can chat to you. >> expedition leader chris turney says that everyone onboard is doing well. straight ahead. parts of the dakotas hit by blizzard conditions and coming up a candidate conversation with shirley mcklain. hear what she says about her ties to the rat pack. and what hollywood and washington have in common. and this will be your premium right here.

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with all due respect we had four dead americans. was it because of a protest what difference at this point does it make? it is our job to figure out what

happened and do everything we can to figure out what we can do to prevent it again. >> new report seems to contradict what americans have said. the report says the attack was not so straight forward but the result of several things. the killing of americans in benghazi haunted this administration with criticism that it didn't do enough to protect our americans there. now the report was that the message wass enflamed by an american preacher. >> how does the administration

not say i told you so? >> the administration said that this was caused by a krout that gathered. and in fact the republicans said that they didn't go there for a tape. this was a planned terrorist attack. now we have this report that says there were some people there because they weren flamed by the tape. there seems to be that there was a lot going on that this became this perfect and awful storm. i'm not sure that benghazi will

not go on and on and on as an unanswered question. while the "new york times" investigation seems thorough, they won't give up on the fact that they believe that compound was left unprotected for a u.s. ambassador to be there. >> onto obama care. the administration saying that 1.1 million enrolled since november 1st. >> they always thought that the closer a deadline came the more people would sign up. ags they saw the problems that

the website had, they wanted to be sure that they could get as many as possible for the year-end report they would have a number that appears respectable. they have a third of what they thought. they have a long way to go. we'll see the question is it is a surge. certainly 1.1 million is better than anything they got in october and november. but it is still not enough. happy new year. thank you so much. [ male announcer ] every inch. every minute. every second --

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much of the country is not getting a break from nasty winter weather. oh boy, folks in parts of north dakota and minnesota your best bet is to stay indoors. they have been dealing with blinding know and brutally cold temperatures and the wind is making it feel worse.

we are talking about low temperatures. dangerously cold windchills. temperatures were one degree. watch what happens, the coldest of that air drops south. on tuesday that colder air modifying but still colder than it has been. 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 new

england and it all moves through on monday. times square it will be cold across the board. in new york city you can see temperatures for new year's eve will be in the low 30s. snow showers around and to atlanta georgia. we will so temperatures there in the 30s by the time the ball drops and in los angeles temperatures in the 60s. have a happy new year. a lot of cold air heading towards the east. thank you so much. >> happy new year. this weekend many of you will head to the stores to return gifts. but it is a good time to take advantage of more big sales. christine roman shows us what

bafr ga bargains are out there. >> reporter: it is the most selfish time of year. the best after christmas sales are clothing. this is according to deal news. last year gap and french connection shocked detailers with up to 30 to 50% off on top of sales. new year's day is the best time to buy furniture. it has become a tradition for people to shop for furniture on that day. new lines come out in february so there are all old products to move. it is also a big day to buy mattresses. if you want a big screen tv think super bowl weekend. retailers are looking forward and moving out the old stuff and

how about a new car? did you know december 31st is the best day? dealers and automakers want to meet their year-end goal. consumers are going to get their best deal on a new car maybe until january 2nd. hunt for zero% financing. cnn new york. >> good stuff big bargains. rocky mountain high will have a new meaning this week. law legalizing recreational marijuana is going into effect. >> the count down is on. marijuana becomes legal to sell for recreational use here in less than a week. the state hoping to questigener tens of millions of dollars of new tax revenue. certain pop shops are operate

ing as medical marijuana dispenries. this week state licenses went out giving them the green light to start selling recreational marijuana. money does grow on trees and it is called the canibus plant. >> anyone over the age of 21 will soon be able to buy marijuana. 126 dispenries have state licenses to sell it and grow it for recreation al use. >> he are the united states to amsterdam. >> morgan cultivation. >> i hope people are responsible

with it and don't mess it up for the rest of us. >> retail outlets had major hurdles with fees up to $15,000. tony fox said that she has more than $1 million in vested in her medical facility center. her store is one of only a handful expected to be ready for business on that first day. >> a year ago i would have said i wish i hadn't done it. and now i'm looking forward to the future. >> it was medical marijuana that paved the way for this new retail surge. a lot of this is being rolled out on the existing intrastructure surrounding or supporting medical marijuana. including how they decide to

regulate or safeguard it. but keep in mind the federal government still considers all this criminal. >> and coming up, she is an oscar winning actress with a 60 year career in hollywood. shirley mcclain is here for an interview. >> and a powerful drill comes to a stop. while digging a highway tunnel, what could be brocking it? this is the quicksilver cash back card from capital one.

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floridflorida's population zoom past new york's new census estimates will come out tomorrow. the number three spot is up in the air. right now new york has the third highest population in the u.s. but it is neck and neck with florida and the sunshine state has been growing very fast. at last count both states had

just under 20 million people. a giant drill is stuck and no one knows why. it was digging a path for a highway tunnel when it hit something. >> no doubt bertha is huge. at five stories tall she is billed as the largest drill in the world. but bertha was only a tip of the way on her nearly two mile journey when she encountered something large enough and strong enough to stop her in her tracks. we are being cautious and don't want to damage his $80 million machine. what is it? >> geeologists point to how the edges were filled in with anything by the city's pioneers. >> there is a boat buried downtown. so you name it, it could be down

there. >> another they'ory is it is a massive boulder. >> residents have their own ideas. >> if that is the case, bertha's christmas break started two weeks ago and since then the $3 billion tunnel project has been on hold as workers drill wells in front of bertha in hopes of sending workers in front of the drill to see what she is up against. >> so, all you can really do is proceed forward. >> but the transportation department says she won't be moving forward until early next year, after the mystery is solved. cnn los angeles. >> and an engagement ring missing for more than six years is found just in time for the holidays. adam tiller said his fiance lost

the ring just before his wedding. and then he took his car to the auto shop. when he went back to pick up his car a technician said they found the diamond that belonged to taylor's wife. so hickman returned the ring to tiller who then surprised his wife with the ring christmas morning. so, another explanation is due on that one. all right, she rubbed shoulders with marilyn monroe and frank sinatra. so what's shirley mcclain doing for an encore? she tells us next. needed was at. 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. 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!

it didn't stabd stand a chance to a film already showing on the big skrcreen, kw"the hobbitt." right behind it, number two, "the frozen," which is now disney's highest-grossing animation ever, behind "the lion king accounts. m mpx. now, to a huge legendary actress, shirley mcclain is t n turning 80 years young.

and now, mcclain receives honors for american culture. she sat down with gloria bourger and shared award-winning moments from her career. >> i remember sitting in the car with john kennedy on top of mulholland drive talking about film and power and entertainment. and that's all we did was talk. >> oh, okay. you were backstage when marilyn monroe sung happy birthday at the garden to kennedy? >> oh, there's a back story to that. marilyn wouldn't come out of her dressing place. i don't know, she didn't like the dress. i don't know what was or wasn't happening and they asked me if i would sing. there i was, an understudy again

and they asked me if i would sing happy birthday to the president if, indeed, ms. monroe didn't come out. well, at the very last moment, she came out. but i was right back there thinking i wonder if she'll finish the song. and she finished him off, starwise. >> mcclain found her natural with the rat pack. >> i have to show you this picture we found of you with two of your favorite memories of the rat pack, dean martin, frank sinatra. >> oh, is that jack carter? >> yes, i think it is. what was it like being the girl in the rat pack? >> i was the one who picked up the crackers and the jelly beans and answered the door. and i always told them the truth. >> did it ever get romantic? >> never. no, no, no. i had a crush on dean for

about 15 minutes. >> she liked sinatra, too, and discovered how helpful he could with. >> a couple times, i went on the road with my show and there was some union problems with whatever theater we were playing. and you don't mess with the union. sto i would call frank. he'd say yeah, i've got people. the next thing i knew, there was no problems. >> mcclaine looks back on her rat pack days. >> they were human beings who were soal ented on all levels. and they loved the mistakes of the moment. >> they didn't like to rehearse. they didn't like to be aware of what was happening so that they wouldn't look ridiculous.

they were very aware of how smart they were. >> does that happen in hollywood now? >> in my opinion, no. even if they're playing dishevelled, they knew exactly what was going to happen. >> did washington have anything in common? >> they both want to be understood. they both want to entertain. they both want to understand the secrets of how to win an audience with the comedy. they both want to look good. they both want high ratings. they both want the right wardrobe mistress.

they wapt wachb want to learn t of exercising power. >> what if shirley mcclaine had gone into politics instead of showbiz. >> i don't think i was ever that nuts. they asked me. how old was i? i guess i was in my 50s. a bunch of people asked me if i would run for the senate from california. i said not interestd. i said sure, i'll do it, but if i win, i want at least eight weeks a year to play vegas. >> she needed a larnger stage and her signature moment came in a movie. >> you have to go back to the oscar, "terms of endearment." you're the mother, frantic, trying to give your daughter the painkiller. >> give her the shot.

>> my daughter is in pain. give her the shot. do you understand? give my daughter the shot! >> thank you very much. >> one take. >> one take? >> one take. mcclaine is convinced real life isn't done in one take. she's a believer in incarnation and other worlds. >> aren't they saying, also, no, i want to hear about the uncooky part that they say. have i earned the right to have that uncooky part, too. i'm really interested in this. >> shirley has revealed a greater, deeper truth. >> and she's still doing it as the visiting and formidable mother on "doubting abbey." >> oh, you think the british have a lock on van dam's list?

let's see the other side of the pot. >> for the first time, the kennedy center honor is a family affair. warren beatty got his in 2004. >> your younger brother got it before you. so what's that like? >> well, we have a lot to talk ant. he called me and said okay, well, what's next. i said you have to get it first. maybe the nobel peace prize for understanding there are other realities. and that's when they call you up. blavrng . >> hello, again, everyone. i'm flredericka whitfield. officials believe it was the work of a female suicide bomber. help is on the way