>> the team's made up of many guys who could ball back in the day and ended up on reality tv like cliff robinson and kenny anderson. and doug christie, who recently announced he and his wife were aproducing porn og pi. happening now, 2014, a reset back from vacation. president obama atems to jump start his second term. his showdown could be less than one hour away. the pope and politics when pope francis, washington listens. and basketball party. dennis rodman heads back to north korea to help kim jong-un celebrate his birthday. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room."

president obama now back here in washington determined to hit the reset button and make 2014 the political success 2013 was not. but are republicans in congress on board? the first test possibly only minutes away. a key vote on extending long-term unemployment benefits and the outcome could be raiser close. let's bring in our white house correspondent brianna keilar over at the white house with all the latest information. what's going on? >> reporter: wolf, democrats need five republicans to join them for this to pass, and they seem unsure if they have that. though republicans seem to be indicating to cnn that they will be able to provide those votes. either way, it's going to be very close in what is a key test vote to begin debate on extending these long-term unemployment benefits. it's also for president obama the opening sal vo in his sixth year in the white house. it's back from vacation and on to the next battle for president

obama, getting benefit checks to the long-term unemployed after congress failed to pass an extension before the holidays. >> let's get them done right now in a bipartisan way and everybody can share credit in doing something that's the right thing for the american people. >> reporter: house republicans want the $6.5 billion cost offset with cuts to other government programs. it's a concession democrats see little reason to accept convinced republicans come off as insensitive to struggling americans. they are considered a bill co-sponsored that does not cover that price tag, extending benefits for the long-term unemployed for three months. >> they are trying to make ends meet from month to month. today there's one job open pg for every three people searching. we have never had so many unemployed for such a long period of time. >> reporter: it's part of the new agenda that includes a plan

to increase the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour. >> there are a lot of service workers who get up, do some of the critical work for all of us every day but still find themselves barely above poverty or in some cases below poverty. >> reporter: it's a point to rally the base. in alaska, north carolina, louisiana and arkansas. democrats whether they win or lose will determine whether president obama is able to fulfill his agenda or if if he's going to be stymied by republicans. >> let's dig a little deeper now and talk about all of this with

republican congressman charlie den of pennsylvania. thanks for joining us. >> thank you for having me. great to be with you again. >> let's assume the senate passes an extension of these emergency unemployment benefits for three months. will it pass the house of representatives? >> don't know, and i don't know what the senate is going to do tonight to be quite honest. what i have recommended all along if we were going to extend benefits, we ought to tie them to job creation policies. for example, let's approve it along with the keystone pipeline, the medical device tax, and what it it means to be a full-time worker under the health care law. let's take it closer to 40 hours a week. we should tie those types of programs unemployment benefits with job-creating policies. >> but in the meantime over the next three months, and this would be a three-month emergency extension, 1.3 million americans haven't been able to find another job. they are going to go without.

for these folks and their families, there's a crisis. you want to bring in other issues that could complicate any such deal. >> well, the issues that i just raised are ones that i believe draw bipartisan support. i'm open to extending emergency unemployment bf, by also believe we have to phase them down. remember, emergency unemployment benefits did go out as far as 99 weeks. the maximum is 73 weeks. i think we're going to have to further ratchet that down as the economy slowly improves maybe closer to 38 or 40 weeks. i think we have to talk about phasing this program out and phasing it down and not eliminating it ab druruptabrupt. >> just a clean three-month extension without any attachments or payoff or whatever, reducing spending elsewhere or any of these other issues, would you vote for that? >> well, it it depends.

i prefer the bill be paid for. it's completely fair and reasonable to attach this to a job-creating policy. one that enjoys bipartisan support. i think democrats in the house as well as the senate would be amenable to extending unemployment benefits along with approval of the keystone pipeline or any one of those policies or redefining what it it means to be a full-time worker. our workers are having their hours reduced as a result of the health care law. i don't think it's too much to ask. we have done these types of things along with unemployment benefits. >> here's a quote from you in today's "new york times." i wanted to explain what you're talking about. you're talking about your fellow republicans here. you said what happened in the fall with the shutdown, that was an act of political malpractice. we will be very careful not to

make those kinds of unforced errors again. explain what you meant. >> well, i felt all along, we had spoken about this before, i felt the government shutdown was completely unnecessary. i knew we were going to have a clean cr passed before or after the shutdown. it happened after. many of our members have learned a lesson that we ought not be dealing with issues that could lead to some type of instability or lack of predictability. and that certainty would happen with the government shutdown. we'll have to deal with issues like the debt ceil iing. all the members understand that defaulting on the full faith and credit is not acceptable. we should not make ourselves our issue. when issues like obamacare are unfolding so disastrously. why make ourselves the issue politically. that's what happened with the shutdown. . a number of our members thought it was smart to make ourselves the issue rather than let the

implementation of the health care law be the center of attention. >> because as you know, referring to the debt ceiling, it has to be raised within the next few weeks. the president says he's not negotiate. ing on that. he. s a clean bill that raises the nation's debt ceiling without any concessions, without any change of policy. is this a similar kind of fight that you say was political malpractice as far as the shutdown of the u.s. government was concerned back in october? >> wolf, i lost your volume there, but i wanted to say this. every member of the house understands that defaulting on obligations is unacceptable. it it would lead to a disastrous outcome. that's unacceptable. e we know that. we cannot allow that to happen. again, presidents reagan and

bill clinton have had some kind of negotiation along the debt ceiling that could deal with policies. at the end of the day, we're not going to let this country to default. >> charlie dent tr pennsylvania, thank you for joining us. thank you very much. a major setback for supporters of gay marriage today. the supreme court ruling marriage licenses for same-sex couples in utah can no longer be issued. the move blocks a recent ruling clearing the way for marriages and could have sweeping national implications for the issue. joining us now to talk about this are analyst jeffrey toobin. what do you make of this decision to temporarily prevent same-sex marriage in utah? >> you're right, there's no question this was a real setback for the same-sex marriage movement. last week gay people could get married in utah. today they can't. it's as simple as that.

plus the way the order is phrased, it will probably be at least months before same-sex marriages can resume because the supreme court's order said the tenth circuit court of appeals, which now has the case, has to completely resolve it before same-sex marriages can resume. given the way it it works, it's likely to be many months before the case is resolved and certainly whichever side loses in the tenth circuit will very likely appeal to the supreme court and that could be a very big test indeed. >> what happens to all the couples who did get married over the past few weeks in utah? will the state of utah recognize those marriages? >> wolf, that's a good question and i don't think there's a clear answer. the attorney general of utah said he was studying that issue at the moment. certainly those people, those 900 couples that got marriage licenses, they are not suddenly divorced. they are still married.

but whether the state of utah will grant them the same kind of benefits, can they file joint tax returns, can they visit each other in the hospital. all those questions are up in the air in this point and i don't think it's out of the question that there might be a litigation about their status happening sooner rather than later. >> will the federal government recognize those marriages? >> i think it's pretty clear that the federal government will. ever since the defense of marriage act was struck down, president obama has said to his administration we want to recognize same-sex marriages as equal to any other kind of marriages. certainly the federal government will go out of their way to try to recognize these marriages, but marriage is usually a state issue. and the state of utah, i think, is on the fence about the status of these marriages and i don't know what the status is. >> ip you to stick around because there's another subject i want to discuss with you. also with the president of the

u.s. conference of catholic bishops, who is joining us as well. the archbishop joseph kurtz is standing by. we have much to discuss. also on what the pope is saying and his influence on the american political system right now. democrats and republicans are using his message here in washington. i dbefore i dosearch any projects on my home. i love my contractor, and i am so thankful to angie's list for bringing us together. find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. yeah... try new alka seltzer fruit chews. they work fast on heartburn and taste awesome. these are good. told ya! i'm feeling better already. [ male announcer ] new alka seltzer fruits chews. enjoy the relief! [ male announcer ] new alka seltzer fruits chews. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. everybody knows that parker. well,

did you know auctioneers make bad grocery store clerks? that'll be $23.50. now .75, 23.75, hold 'em. hey now do i hear 23.75? 24! hey 24 dollar, 24 and a quarter, quarter, now half, 24 and a half and .75! 25! now a quarter, hey 26 and a quarter, do you wanna pay now, you wanna do it, 25 and a quarter - sold to the man in the khaki jacket! geico. fifteen minutes could save you... well, you know. you stand behind what you say. there's a saying around here, around here you don't make excuses. you make commitments. and when you can't live up to them, you own up, and make it right. some people think the kind of accountability that thrives on so many streets in this country has gone missing in the places where it's needed most. but i know you'll still find it when you know where to look. anncr vo: introducing the schwab accountability guarantee. if you're not happy with one of our participating investment advisory services, we'll refund your program fee from the previous quarter. while, it's no guarantee against loss

and other fees and expenses may still apply, we stand by our word. isn't it time you discovered the sleep number bed? because only the sleep number bed offers dual air technology that lets two people find the perfect balance of comfort and support for their bodies. their sleep number setting. ok, right there. and only the sleep number bed is clinically proven to relieve back pain and improve sleep quality. oh that feels really good. it's hugging my body. and right now, we're offering our lowest prices of the season. save $300 to $800 on our newest innovations. it's the perfect time for you to try the sleep number bed. plus, take advantage of 18-month special financing on all sleep number beds. sale ends soon. discover the sleep number bed. costs about the same as an innerspring, but lasts twice as long. only at one of our 425 stores nationwide, where queen mattresses start at just $699.99.

sleep number. comfort individualized. pope francis has garnered fans around the world, but his influence is stretching to an unlikely place. what's going on here? >> since when did the pope's words become so politicized?

especially when he's not talking about communism, but helping poor people. a lot of folks feel it was when the pope's words started showing up on the front pages of newspapers across the country his popularity started soaring. >> reporter: whenever this pope speaks, the ears of washington politicians perk up. >> we're talking about pope francis and what he said was a responsibility of elected officials. >> reporter: and yet something to agree on. quoting the pope, left and right. >> i think every republican should be concerned about inequality. when you have places where there are billionaires living in a city with 22,000 homeless children, anybody who has a sense of decency has to be concerned. >> the pope himself spoke about this at eloquent length. >> reporter: in president obama's case, using his words to

make a case for income inequality. >> how can it be that it's not a news item when an elderly person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points. >> they want to piggy back on his for their own political purposes. >> reporter: very few catholics think pope francis is too conservative or too liberal. at 87%, the overwhelming they support his positions on current issues and approve of him as a leader. >> people in washington would kill for those numbers. >> reporter: some say the pope's popularity and willingness to speak out are pushing politicians to face issues they have avoided up till now. >> president obama rarely talks about the poor. he talks about the middle class. pope francis is putting the poor back on the agenda. >> basically back when a lot of

u.s. bishops were talking about abortion as a major issue, it made it seem as if the church was very aligned with the republicans, but he says that wasn't the case. it's never been a part of either party and he said a lot of democrats who want to tie themselves so closely to exactly what the pope is preaching, then they are going to be in sort of a bind because this pope is not changing church doctrine and he's certainly not going to come out in support of gay marriage. >> chris lawrence, good report, thank you. certainly obamacare is on the supreme court's docket once again. we're awaiting a ruling from the supreme court justice sonia sotomayor. they have to provide birth control coverage to employees even through a third party insurer. the little sisters of the poor are suing arguing that by

signing their extension they could have to provide coverage in the future through a third party who would, and i'm quoting now, sin on their behalf. joining us is the archbishop joseph kurtz, president of the u.s. conference of bishops. thank you very much for coming in. >> great. to be with you. thank you. >> i want to get to the legal issue before the supreme court. it is right now. but what about the politics of pope francis? he's now saying he doesn't believe in trickle down economics, which was a major pillar of republicans. he wants to help the poor and not by the trickle down formula. where do you see this playing out? >> pope francis has captured the imagination of everyone. and i would begin by saying our holy father is saying focus on the person. any time you reduce an economy or a person to a consumer or a producer, you've left out the full person. and so our holy father is

basically saying, listen, economists, remember the effect that the economy has on the person. that was that quote where he said stock market goes up or down two points and everybody looks, but a poor person on the street who dies, people barely notice. >> what did the pope mean when he suggested also that children of same-sex couples should perhaps be treated differently by the catholic church? he was opening up a new door and it raised a lot of questions. explain. >> first of all, i think his representative he did clarify as our holy father has said that there's not a change in our church doctrine. what our holy father is saying is see the person first. a child needs to be treated with great care. are we to endorse and continue the time honored teachings of our church of the sanctity of marriage? of course, we are. but are we also to see that

person, and that's where our holy father is saying before we see a rule, let's first see that person and let's walk with that person. it's quite engaging. i told you i met with our holy father and my gosh, he is very engaging and also is very serious about challenging all of us to that level. >> do you see the day of this pope who is saying some controversial things and opening up some new doors where catholic doctrine might change as far as same-sex marriage? there has been public opinion change over these many years. >> first of all, i can take our holy father at his word. any time he's been asked to clarify the sanctity of marriage, e he says with the catholic church, by the way, he says it in such an engaging and beautiful way it may be the first time many people are hearing the richness of our

church teaching instead of a caricature of that teaching. >> you wrote a let tore president obama the other day on the whole issue of the contraception. did you get a response? >> not yet. however, let me say this. i was so glad that you're covering this. i was a social worker before i became a bishop for 24 years and working with catholic charities. so i can identify very clearly with people like the little sisters of the poor. their acts of service and nobody questions i think the goodness of their service are so intimately linked to their faith. they should not have to face crippling fines in order to do their work. what i said in the letter to president obama was basically with the rolling out of the affordable care act, there have been many delays and exceptions being made. why would people like the little

sisters of the poor be left out in the cold? >> that's a fair question. let's bring in jeffrey toobin, our senior legal analyst. jeffrey, explain the law here. what is the issue that's going on? >> as i understand the issue, and i'd love to have you clarify this, the little sisters of the poor do not have to pay for contraception or insurance at all. all they have to do is file a form. a one-page form that says we are a religious order, we object to contraception, what's wrong with that? why shouldn't they have to just file a form and be done with it? >> fair question, thanks so much. let me try to address it in this way. let me not be the one who speaks for myself. i'll just quote a number of the courts have actually said in some of the lawsuits that went forward. they said that that signing of the form is actually an endorsement of the very things that the little sisters of the poor and others are seeing as

morally objectionable and formid-en by their faith and are protesting. so i guess we have to take at their word the courts who are making that serious question of putting a stay until the courts can decide it. i believe it's been about a two-thirds majority of the court decisions on these cases that have been in favor of a stay so that these can be decided. all we're asking is reasonably give a delay so that the courts can do their work. this balance that's being talked about in many courts decisions is at the effect and at the expense of religious freedom. >> as you know, jeffrey, and i want you to weigh in, the justice department immediately filed a motion before the courts arguing against this whole point that the archbishop is making.

>> right. that's the issue is whether this form is simply an exemption from the requirements or as the archbishop suggests it's somehow an endorse m of it. i wonder if i can ask a question that's related but from a different direction about the hobby lobby case. that's a big chain of craft stores, 584 stores. the owners, it's a privately-owned company, they want to be excluded from providing some forms of contraception to their employees. why should clerks or janitors at hobby lobby not get the same rights to health care that clerks and janitors at macy's or safeway get? >> well, it's a fair question. let me say that what we're talking about here is not access to procedures that i might find objectionable. we're talking about whether the employer is required, or i would say forced, to include these in health policies.

i think the supreme court has already said they are going to weigh in on this and we could probably wait until, i guess, late june in order to find. out exactly what's going to be said. we're confident that the supreme court will hear the objections. we're not talking here about access to procedures. we're talking about an employer being required to provide procedures that are objectionable. >> what if they didn't have to sign anything? it just happened, it's part of the law. >> that's not what we're talking about here. >> what if the administration came up with a formula, you don't have to sign anything, your insurance company will just do it. >> we would have to study that, as you well know. just as we had to study this. when i think it was announced that there would be an accommodation a number of months ago, we did study and we will take any approach that's being

said and examine it. but remember that a knee jerk reaction of saying this is going to be morally acceptable, it it should be the person of religious conviction who has an opportunity to weigh in on whether it's morally objectionable. that's what we're saying the little sisters of the poor are the ones being forced to do something that will likely involve crippling fines. >> archbishop, thanks so much for joining us. >> great to be with you. >> jeffrey, as usual, thanks to you as well. coming up, serious health issues forcing liz cheney to bow out of her senate race. and an important vote in the senate could affect a lot of americans livelihoods. 1.3 million americans who get unemployment benefits right now on the line. stay with us. you're in "the situation room requests. [ male announcer ] this is the story of the dusty basement at 1406 35th street

the old dining table at 25th and hoffman. ...and the little room above the strip mall off roble avenue. ♪ this magic moment it is the story of where every great idea begins. and of those who believed they had the power to do more. dell is honored to be part of some of the world's great stories. that began much the same way ours did. in a little dorm room -- 2713. ♪ this magic moment ♪ ♪ this magic moment and it feels like your lifeate revolves around your symptoms, ask your gastroenterologist about humira adalimumab. humira has been proven to work for adults who have tried other medications but still experience the symptoms of moderate to severe crohn's disease. in clinical studies, the majority of patients on humira saw significant symptom relief, and many achieved remission. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal events, such as infections, lymphoma, or other types of cancer, have happened.

blood, liver and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure have occurred. before starting humira, your doctor should test you for tb. ask your doctor if you live in or have been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. tell your doctor if you have had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have symptoms such as fever, fatigue, cough, or sores. you should not start humira if you have any kind of infection. ask your gastroenterologist about humira today. remission is possible. where does the united states get most of its energy? is it africa? the middle east? canada? or the u.s.? the answer is... the u.s. ♪ most of america's energy comes from right here at home. take the energy quiz. energy lives here.

we're just getting some information about an emergency landing of a plane with a powerful u.s. senator on board. lindsey graham just tweeted "interesting day. just made a return flight emergency landing at gsp. requests. minutes later he tweeted this. "about five minutes into the flight from greenville to washington, i and my other passengers noticed the enjij making strange sound." an express flight reported a possible issue with the right engine. it returned to the airport

landing safely at 3:00 p.m. eastern time. good news on that. we're awaiting what could be a history-making moment in washington. the senate has just begun to vote to confirm the first woman chair in its 100-year history. if janet yellen is confirmed, she faces a major challenge weaning the u.s. economy off so much economic stimulus. let's talk about this and more with gloria borgeer and john king and our digital correspondent kelly wallace. gloria, as we await the senate confirmation of janet yellen i think she will be confirmed, she needs just a majority confirmation. ha would make her one of the most powerful women not only in the united states, but around the world. >> powerful woman. and i think that's very important not because she's going to be a different kind of a chairman of the fed, but because she's going to be an important role model for women.

economics is a field in which there aren't as many women as some would like. only a third of new economic ph.d.s are women. so when you see more women in this kind of a role in central banking, and she'll be very visible and she'll be speaking a lot publically, it will be a good thing. >> she's going to be a powerful force, if you take a look at the impact that a federal reserve chair could have. >> and consider the moment. the outgoing chairman ben bernanke thinks the economy is about to shift to kick into a fourth gear. how does jan e et yellen manage this that? the monastery decisions she will make about economic growth. the stock markets did great. last year. if you're at the lower end, maybe working at minimum wage, maybe not so good. maybe you still feel the economy still hasn't turned around for you. she's taking this powerful

position when the economy is front and center. >> let me bring kelly into this conversation about hillary clinton. she's one of the most powerful women in the world as well. let's talk about this politico story today. this long report that she's already had at least one meeting with political strategists out there weighing the pros and cons of running for the democratic presidential nomination. from everything you're hearing, kelly, is she anxious to break that ultimate glass ceiling, become president of the united states to try once again. >> i know, wolf. how ironic that back in november when she launched this program, no ceilings to get women more opportunities and to break the glass ceilings calling the glass ceilings the last piece of unfinished business in this century. how ironic that if she ran and won, she would crack that ultimate glass ceiling. as you mentioned, that report in politico where she had this meeting and talking about how

difficult a campaign could be and how some advisers close to hillary clinton are concerned about the impact on her legacy if she were to run and lose. so it seems, obviously, that hillary clinton is weighing a number of things not just that impact on that proverbial glass ceiling. >> when you heard that she met with some major strategists to discuss this, what did you think? >> i thought she was doing what any smart, potential presidential candidate ought to do, which is meet with people, get a realistic assessment. >> even this early? >> even this early. especially this early. every presidential candidate now has to have a super pac. those things don't just happen overnight. they have to figure out how they are going to raise money in large contributions and in small contributions. they have to figure out the calendar. they have to know when they have to start. so she was just behaving like a presidential candidate actually. >> this organization is up and

running. her decision is to to tell them to stop. but if she tells them to stop, there's a lot of pressure on her to do that as early as possible. most people believe she will run. if she makes the decision not to run, the other democrats aren't as well known. they don't have this infrastructure. even joe biden is not a hillary clinton. history says after a two-term president, the other party wins. so if you're going to have unknown democrat, they need to signal from hillary clinton early. >> i was going to say, john, you brought the story of liz cheney deciding not to run for the republican senatorial position in wyoming. she issued a statement saying serious health issues have arisen in our family and under the circumstances i decided to discontinue my campaign. what's going on here? >> i want to respect the privacy of the cheney family, especially now that she's not seeking public office. some say this was because she was behind or had issues in the campaign. i know from several close friends and family that she does have some serious family issues

with two of her daughters and that that's the biggest part of this. it's the first time she's run for public office. she had a public spat with her sister about gay rights. it was unseenly around the holidays. but they have separate and unrelated health issues and decided i can't do this right now. >> kelly, what did you make of this? >> it's interesting. we just don't know, obviously, john talking about respecting the privacy of the family, we don't know what those health issues are and we also don't know if. a male candidate faced with these same health issues would do the same thing. we often talk about this issue of balancing family concerns with the position when it it comes to a woman, but men face these very same issues. that said when you talk to experts about how can we get more women into public office, one of the top things they mention is the difficulty of a campaign. many women are not excited about the challenges of the campaign

when it comes to balancing the family. also they feel sometimes they are under more scrutiny than male candidates and might have more difficulties raising money. >> i think with hillary clinton, the scrutiny issue is clearly an issue because she understands that the kind of scrutiny she gets is even more than most women would get because she's been in public life for so long. her husband has been in public life. so she's the presumptive front runner. she's been there before. she's lost and it it wasn't a lot of fun and she understands the scrutiny. maybe liz cheney, you can speak to this better than i, i'm not sure liz cheney even though her father was vice president, really understood what it was like. >> it's hillary clinton herself would tell her she's around her husband's campaign. it's different. i want to change the subject for one second. today at the white house where i worked a long time ago, jay carney came out to the podium and showed what he looked like. it's brown. it's a little scruffy.

let's pop up something side by side with this. that would be wolf blitzer. >> that was many, many years ago. . >> when i came to the white house, that's what you looked like. i had brown hair too. this should be a message to jay carney. stay too long, this is what happens. >> i got a nice e-mail from his wife who used to work with us at white house. she was one of our correspondents. she always liked my beard too. maybe she likes jay's beard. >> thanks so much for joining us. kelly wallace, i remember you from those days as well. gloria and john, as usual. jay carney, nice beard. we'll see how long it it stays on your face. mine has been on mine for a long, long time. next, dangerously cold ps gripping the country. windchills dozens of degrees below zero. what's causing this bitter, deep

freeze? plus dennis rodman returning to north korea. we'll show you what he's doing on his latest controversial visit. my dad has aor afib.brillation, he has the most common kind... ...it's not caused by a heart valve problem. dad, it says your afib puts you at 5 times greater risk of a stroke. that's why i take my warfarin every day. but it looks like maybe we should ask your doctor about pradaxa. in a clinical trial, pradaxa® (dabigatran etexilate mesylate)... ...was proven superior to warfarin

at reducing the risk of stroke. and unlike warfarin, with no regular blood tests or dietary restrictions. hey thanks for calling my doctor. sure. pradaxa is not for people with artificial heart valves. don't stop taking pradaxa without talking to your doctor. stopping increases your risk of stroke. ask your doctor if you need to stop pradaxa before surgery or a medical or dental procedure. pradaxa can cause serious, sometimes fatal, bleeding. don't take pradaxa if you have abnormal bleeding or have had a heart valve replaced. seek immediate medical care for unexpected signs of bleeding, like unusual bruising. pradaxa may increase your bleeding risk if you're 75 or older, have a bleeding condition or stomach ulcer, take aspirin, nsaids, or blood thinners... ...or if you have kidney problems, especially if you take certain medicines. tell your doctors about all medicines you take. pradaxa side effects include indigestion, stomach pain, upset, or burning. if you or someone you love has afib not caused by a heart valve problem... ...ask your doctor about reducing the risk of stroke with pradaxa.

an arctic blast is paralyzing half the country right now. plunging parts of the midwest into scenes like this in minnesota where temperatures are now in the negative 20s. it's reeking havoc on travel across the country. some members of congress weren't even automobible to make it it r critical votes. we're taking a closer look.

it's pretty cold out there. >> cold and it's a big headache if you're traveling by air. delays roughly 6,000 and cancellations we're talking about 4,000. just to give you a little perspective on an average day you see 200 koconsolatiokon can. this is all because of brutal weather, but one airline, they are not just blaming the weather, they are blaming the government and new rules on pilot work schedules. >> reporter: snow and ice have caused a nightmare for millions traveling today. in boston, mindi and her family are. >> i just called the school o tell them they wouldn't be there. she said everyone is stuck somewhere. >> reporter: travelers grounded because of severe weather. >> i have been in three different airports since yesterday at 10:00 a.m. >> reporter: from new york to

miami, even though it's hot and sunny, flights are cancelled because of the storm. >> i have another flight to newark, which is cancelled also. >> reporter: what's to blame? beside. s the weather, one airline says new faa rules requiring pilots to get time to rest. today jetblue halted operations at new york, new jersey and boston airports to reset from the storm. they partially blame a mandatory ten-hour pilot rest period that went into effect saturday. pilots union says airlines had time to prepare. >> they had two years to anticipate this and to adjust accordingly. i think it's overly simplistic to suggest they could ascribe this ab rupgs. >> reporter: no matter the reason, passengers just want to get. home. >> you just have to laugh at it.

there's nothing that we can do. >> that's a good attitude to have. american airlines in chicago got off to a rocky start when refueling pumps and equipment froze up. negative temperatures were too much for the equipment. there was a point that they could not refuel the planes, but that issue has since been resolved. one thing we want to point of the jetblue says they will not totally stop operations. originally they said they would, but now they said they are scaling back. >> hopefully the cold is not going to last that long. renee, thank you. just ahead, we're awaiting a closely watched vote on capitol hill right now. apparently too close to call still. will lawmakers extend unemployment benefits for 1.3 million americans. also dramatic efforts to stop poachers and curb the illegal ivory trade. ♪

humans -- we are beautifully imperfect creatures, living in an imperfect world. that's why liberty mutual insurance has your back, offering exclusive products like optional better car replacement, where, if your car is totaled, we give you the money to buy one a model year newer. call... and ask an insurance expert about all our benefits today, like our 24/7 support and service, because at liberty mutual insurance, we believe our customers do their best out there in the world, so we do everything we can to be there for them when they need us. plus, you could save hundreds when you switch -- up to $423. call... today. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy?

there's mounting international pressure to save the planet's elephants. our senior international correspondent arwa damon is on the ground in the congo with an extraordinary look at the so-called eco guards hunting poachers. a story you'll see only here on cnn. >> reporter: it's been eight grueling, hot hours on this river chasing poachers in the republic of congo's largest national park. for these eco guards, disappointment follows. disappointment. when you put your hand inside, it's actually still quite warm. which means that they probably left early in the morning.

finally around a bend signs of activity. smoke rising along the bank. they rush ashore and fan out into the jungle. within seconds a gunshot. and the pursuit begins. the terrain is dense and disorienting. they force their way through the undergrowth and slosh through knee-deep water. our cnn team can barely keep up. they've all gone forward trying to chase down what seems to be a poacher who, at least most definitely is armed. they appear to have caught him completely by surprise. the head of the park's anti-poaching division brandishes the weapon captured by one of his men. >> they tried to shoot him. >> reporter: pumped on adrenaline, he describes what happened.

"he tried to shoot me, like this." he says. he then tackled the poacher, grabbing the gun, but the poacher got away. there's elephant meat in the boat. the men find the poacher's canoe weighed down with fresh elephant meat still dripping blood. even more hangs off the sides. it's a sickening image of a trade that has decimated the park's elephants. the nonprofit group african marks which runs the park estimates that central africa has lost 62% of its elephants in the last decade. in this park alone thousands have been killed in the last five years. in the week we spent here we only saw one alive. the park about the size of connecticut is patrolled by just 76 eco guards. not nearly enough. but some 40% of them are former poachers themselves, which helps big time.

>> it's easy for them to think like them. >> reporter: it's part of a program created by eckel where poachers are granted amnesty if they hand over their weapons and confess. he says this raid is proof his program works. but the unit's successes come at a price. this is a country where corruption is routine and where poaching with impunity has been a way of life. all these eco guards have been threatened. this man tells us three men attacked his wife. they tried to rape her, but she was strong. she pulled back and her dress ripped off and she ran away, he says. the same men who he says are part of his village's poaching ring tried to attack him. he stabbed one of them. the unit doesn't find any elephant ivory but does end up with four gun, ammunition and a cell phone, a potential lead to the poachers. the eco guards torch the camp to

send a message. these men often find themselves pursuing people they once worked with, friends, neighbors and even family members. in the ever-evolving fight against the ivory trade, out here it's now personal. arwa damon, cnn, national park, republic of congo. >> thank you, arwa, very much for that report. coming up, dennis rodman is now back in north korea. this time he's brought some friends. and we're awaiting that very close senate vote on unemployment benefits. stand by. no matter how busy your morning you can always do something better for yourself. and better is so easy with benefiber. fiber that's taste-free, grit-free and dissolves completely. so you can feel free to add it to anything.

and feel better about doing it. better it with benefiber. c explore what's new. for 575 calories or less on our lighter fare menu. enjoy fresh tossed. go fish. and try our new rosemary garlic chicken at olive garden.

he's back and this time he's brought some friends. dennis rodman now back in north

korea to celebrate the leader ki kim jong un's birthday. >> reporter: party time for north korean strongman kim jong un. he turns 31 wednesday and basketball bad boy dennis rodman and his team of nba all-timers headed there to celebrate. >> all good. >> reporter: rodman is describing this trip as basketball diplomacy. but prior to takeoff he ruled out specifically pushing for the release of american missionary kenneth bey who is doing hard time in a labor camp. >> that's not my job. my job is sports. i'm going there to try to interact with un on that point of sports. i love the guy, he's an awesome comedian. >> reporter: they're scheduled to shoot hoops with the north korean national squad. a birthday treat for kim who is

an avid basketball fan. on his last trip in december, rodman spent a few days coaching the north koreans. as they waited for their plane to pyongyang, players insisted the focus was on the game, not politics. but shooting guard doug christie is hopeful they can build bridges. >> sport is what we're going for. sport is something that cancels and conquers all borders, all lines. it's an exciting feeling. >> reporter: power forward charles d. smith also seemed optimistic. >> the extreme views is on north korea come about because most people have not been there. and because people have a sense of fear of the unknown. >> reporter: critics see the trip as a publicity stunt and highlight north korea's record of human rights abuses, but the nba all-stars just want to play ball. >> i'm looking forward to playing and putting on a show in north korea. >> we don't really get into the

political aspects of it, but we all enjoy the game, love the game and try to spread all the great qualities that the game brings. >> reporter: only last month kim jong un sent his own uncle to the firing squad on charges of corruption and treason. that kind of controversy propted rodman's irish sponsors to pull out. but he remains unfazed. >> we can actually get along. let's get along. >> karl penhaul reporting from beijing. happening now, iraq disintegrating. the bloodiest fighting in years pitting government forces against militants threatening to split the country apart. will the chaos make al qaeda stronger? terror interrogations. a former cia lawyer makes disturbing revelations about the controversial techniques used on terror suspects. he says he could have stopped them but didn't.

why? and shadow campaign. hillary clinton's secret strategy meeting now revealed. what does it tell us about a possible run for the white house? i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." fortune, american blood and treasure spent in iraq now battles in that country soaring to levels not seen in years. but there's growing fear al qaeda is riding the deadly wave sweeping western iraq to new levels of power. our pentagon correspondent barbara starr is working the story for us. what is the latest? what are you hearing? >> reporter: wolf, a lot of concern about what is going on, especially in western iraq, and concern is underscored by the fear that across the region al qaeda is on the rise.

fallujah and ramadi once ground zero now new violence that threatens to split iraq apart. chiefs and shia government forces all fighting for control. >> as bloody a situation we've seen in iraq since the terrible years of 2006 and 2007. >> reporter: but this time the fight will be the iraqi government's alone win or lose. u.s. troops pulled out of iraq two years ago. republican senators john mccain and lindsey graham say the obama administration cannot escape its share of the blame for al qaeda's rise. ini ini insisting president obama withdrew u.s. forces over the objections of his commander, but don't look for that policy to change. >> we are not, obviously, contemplating returning. we're not contemplating puts boots on the ground. this is their fight, but we're going to help them in their fight. >> reporter: that help includes satellite image ru to locate

al qaeda fighters and quicker delivery from small drones and hellfire missiles so iraqi forces can attack those targets. fallujah and ramadi are now a patchwork of control between al qaeda, sunni tribes and a weak government force. iraqi prime minister nuri al maliki ordered his troops not to strike residential neighborhoods in fallujah and appealed to residents and tribes to expel terrorists from the city. the hope is the sunnis and shia-led government forces will band together and push out al qaeda, but there is still a rising threat just across the border. >> there's no question that this problem has some of its most significant roots in syria, that is, the border is very porous today, more porous than it has been in years, and many of these sunni fighters, who answered the call to come to syria are now doing their work in places like iraq and even lebanon.

>> reporter: so an unrestrained al qaeda back at the top in iraq, and unrestrained al qaeda across the border in syria. thousands of foreign fighters also in that immediate region and the issue at hand, wolf, is whether this kind of new capability will be able potentially to strike out at western targets and the united states that is a major concern. >> as you know, barbara, the u.s. pulled out all of its troops because the iraqi government of prime minister nuri al maliki refused an agreement that would have allowed any residual troops to be immune from iraqi prosecution. that was a demand na the u.s. put, the iraqis rejected it, that's why all u.s. troops are out. what do they say at the pentagon about that decision by nuri al maliki. >> the feeling is very strongly that it was the iraqis that decided they didn't want to pursue the agreement you're

talking about look there are others on capitol hill senator mccain, senator lindsey graham who say that the president also bears some responsibility, that the white house did not strongly pursue this with the iraqis, that the white house just made it very clear it was over and done with iraq and wanted to get out. people like mccain and graham say president obama bears responsibility for what has happened here, but the bottom line, the reality is there was no stomach by the american public for continuing on in iraq, and that may have truly been the deciding factor. >> same scenario could be unfolding in afghanistan right now. senator mccain will join us in "the situation room" tomorrow. barbara, thank you. we're also following disturbing allegations of terror suspects. a former lawyer for the cia is revealing new details about waterboarding, confinement and more of the so-called enhanced interrogation techniques. our brian todd has been looking

into this story for us. what are you finding out? >> reporter: learning more, wolf, about the intense pressure within the cia in weeks after 9/11. officials had to do something, anything to stop another attack. there came a moment when one of the biggest controversies of the war on terror was dropped in one attorney's lap. in the weeks after 9/11, the biggest fear gripping the nation was another attack around the corner. inside the cia, an obsession. >> to prevent another catastrophic attack on the homeland. >> reporter: john rizzo was one of the cia's top lawyers. how would the agency find out if another attack was coming? the cia worried one al qaeda operative in their custody could tell them. abu zubaydah, but he wasn't talking. in his new book rizzo writes one of the methods they wanted to try on him, waterboarding. depicted in the movie "zero dark thirty." that wasn't the only enhanced interrogation technique they wanted to try.

in his book, rizzo writes of something called the insult slap and cramped confinement where, in zubaydah's case, they'd make him curl up in a small box and place an insect in it. quote, why an insect? the response, zubaydah hates bugs. it will be something harmless, but he won't know that. he was speechless over these ideas and had the power to squelch them. he didn't. why? the cia had just been slammed for being asleep at the switch before 9/11. if there was a second 9/11 in the works and zubaydah knew about it and the cia hadn't gotten the intelligence from him, rizzo wrote, i could not countenance the thought of living with that. >> in 20/20 hindsight, no, but when he made the decision people told him that you've got to look at the legality of this in terms of more americans are going to die if we don't do something. >> reporter: rizzo punted to the justice department which greenlighted some of the

techniques. zubaydah started talking. rizzo says waterboarding and other enhanced interrogation techniques provided key intelligence leading to the capture of top al qaeda operatives. former cia officer bob baird disagrees with that saying that zubaydah would make things up if ever brought under those techniques. he is believed to have given good information and false leads. >> thanks very much, brian todd rereporting. this just coming in to the situation room. we're now learning that janet yellen has enough votes in the united nations to become confirmed as the first female of of the federal reserve. her biggest challenge ahead, weaning the u.s. economy off of a lot of that economic stimulus. janet yellen confirmed as the head of the federal reserve by

the united states senate. is the u.s. spying on members of congress? one man demands an answer and the agency's reply is revealing. plus hillary clinton's meeting withp to consultants. farmer: hello, i'm an idaho potato farmer. and our giant idaho potato truck is still missing. so my dog and i we're going to go find it. it's out there somewhere spreading the good word about idaho potatoes and raising money for meals on wheels. but we'd really like our truck back, so if you see it, let us know, would you? thanks. what?

open to innovation. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state. move here, expand here, or start a new business here and pay no taxes for ten years... we're new york. if there's something that creates more jobs, and grows more businesses... we're open to it. start a tax-free business at startup-ny.com. purina dog chow light & healthy we're open to it. is a deliciously tender and crunchy kibble blend. with 20% fewer calories than purina dog chow. isn't it time you discovered the lighter side of dog chow. purina dog chow light & healthy.

did you run into traffic? no, just had to stop by the house to grab a few things. you stopped by the house? uh-huh. yea. alright, whenever you get your stuff, run upstairs, get cleaned up for dinner. you leave the house in good shape? yea. yea, of course. ♪ [ sportscaster talking on tv ] last-second field go-- yea, sure ya did. [ male announcer ] introducing at&t digital life. personalized home security and automation. get professionally monitored security for just $29.99 a month. with limited availability in select markets. ♪ [ 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! kand i don't have time foris morunreliable companies.btact angie's list definitely saves me time and money. for over 18 years we've helped people take care of the things that matter most. join today.

trust icy hot for powerful relief. [ male announcer ] the icy hot patch. goes on icy to dull pain, hot to relax it away. so you're back to full speed. [ male announcer ] icy hot. power past pain. we know it's collecting data on phone calls and e-mails, even spying on some world leaders, but is congress also a target of nsa surveillance? one of the lawmakers demanding answers. i'll speak with senator bernie sanders about his letter to the nsa in a moment. but first our chief national

security correspondent jim sciutto is here with more. >> reporter: he's said to give a speech and he's reviewing these 46 recommendations from the intelligence panel. from the indications we're getting from the changes that the administration has signaled its openness to, you get a sense of substantive but not necessarily radical reform of the mass surveillance program. with a presidential speech planned this month, the administration is preparing a series of reforms to put the nsa under tighter control. one possible reform would put a public advocate on the secret intelligence court known as the fisa court where now judges only hear from government lawyers. another would move telephone met tadata from government hands back to the private sector. a congressional source tells cnn one additional prospect would be for the fisa court located inside this d.c. federal courthouse, o to approve dispatches on a case by case basis with the fbi director able

to grant quicker approval in emergencies. still, critics say that even these changes would leave the government collecting massive amounts of data unnecessarily. >> we can't continue to refer to ourselves as a quote, unquote free country when the united states government is collecting information on virtually every telephone call made in america, getting into people's e-mails, focusing on the websites that certain people are visiting. >> reporter: sanders says he may be one of those people. he sent a letter to nsa director keith alexander asking, quote, one very simple question, has the nsa spied or is the nsa currently spying on members of congress or other american elected officials. the nsa's only answer so far, that members of congress have, quote, the same privacy protections as all americans. senator rand paul, another ardent critic of mass spying, now wants to take the nsa to

court with a class-action lawsuit. >> a class-action lawsuit with hundreds of thousands of participants really beats home and brings to the forefront the idea that this is a generalized warrant and it should be considered unconstitutional. >> reporter: a senior administration official has given cnn more details just now on where the white house stands, first on transferring that met tadata back to telecommunications ferms. they have heard that some of these telecom firms have significant concerns about holding the data, so not necessarily willing partners on taking this data back from the nsa. one more recommendation from the panel had been regarding these national security letters which are kind of like subpoenas to access personal data including phone records, but this senior administration official tells cnn that some intelligence agencies have concerns that this would raise the bar for intelligence cases above even where they are for criminal cases. so some pushback on that as well. and the independent senator from vermont is joining us right

now. senator bernie sanders. thanks very much for coming in. >> my pleasure. >> you wrote a pretty strong letter to general keith alexander, the head of the nsa, and you asked if the nsa has or is spying on members of congress right now. what prompted you to write this letter? >> to be very honest with you, i was on a couple of tv shows here in the state of vermont, and the journalists asked me, do you think the nsa is spying on you. and my initial thought was, of course not. but i thought about it, and i wasn't sure what the answer was. and being unsure about whether or not the nsa is spying on members of congress made me think that it's imperative to get a flat, straight-out answer from these guys. what we do know, of course, is they have tapped the phones of foreign leaders around the world who are our allies. i can remember back, as you can, wolf, you know, 40 years ago we had a president named richard

nixon and he was prepared to do everything that he could to destroy his political opponents. and what i worry about is, if you have some other president like that or some rogue agent within the nsa, there's just an extraordinary amount of information and power that they can have over congress, blackmail members of congress, not a good situation. >> i take it you have not yet received either a formal or informal reply from the nsa to your letter, is that right? >> that is correct. what did occur, apparently, is on sunday night in response to media requests, the nsa issued a press release in which they said basically that members of congress were being treated the same way the general public was, which means that information on us is also being compiled. >> but they say all these phone calls, they have records of it, but they don't actually listen to the phone calls, they don't monitor the phone calls. if you were to get a phone call, for example, from some suspected terrorist in somalia, then they

might pay attention to what's going on, but people don't have to worry in general about the fact that they've collected this metadata as it's called. >> you know, wolf, that is suggesting that everybody at the nsa is an always will be wonderful, angelic, law abiding human beings, but let me pose a different question. what happens if you have a rogue agent in the nsa, what happens if you have a president, somebody like a nixon who has no scruples at all and wants to destroy his political opponents, wants to know what's going on in a political campaign, wants to hold a member of congress, put him in a blackmail situation and leak information to a political opponent? i think one doesn't have to be paranoid to be thinking that at some day in the future that could happen. and i think when you have so much information being controlled by a secret agency, it is a real threat to american

democracy. >> but you have no reason to believe any of that, that worst case scenario has already occurred? >> that is correct. i have no reason to believe that. but i do worry about the potential of it happening some day, and if it does happen, obviously, it will be a real threat not only to our democracy but to our political system as well. >> what about snowden? do you thing that he committed a crime or he was simply a well-intentioned whistleblower? >> well, i think what you have to look at is i think there is no question that he committed a crime, obviously. he violated his oath and he leaked information. on the other hand, what you have to weigh that against is the fact that he has gone a very long way in educating the people of our country and the people of the world about the power of private agency in terms of their surveillance over people of this country, over foreign leaders.

my own belief is i would thing, i would hope that the united states government could kind of negotiate some plea bargain with him, some form of clemency. i think it would not be a good idea or fair to him to have to spend his entire remaining life abroad, not being able to come back to his country. so i would hope that there's a price that he has to pay, but i hope it is not a long prison sentence or exile from his country. >> you wouldn't give him clemency, though, and let him off scot-free? >> no. >> thanks, senator, very much for joining us. >> thank you. >> and just ahead, hillary clinton's secret strategy meeting. politico calling it a shadow presidential campaign. i'll speak with a reporter who broke the story. [ male announcer ] start the engine...

and shift through all eight speeds of a transmission connected to more standard horsepower than its german competitors. and that is the moment that driving the lexus gs will shift your perception. this is the pursuit of perfection. there's nothing like being your own boss! and my customers are really liking your flat rate shipping. fedex one rate. really makes my life easier. maybe a promotion is in order. good news. i got a new title. and a raise? management couldn't make that happen. [ male announcer ] introducing fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex. it's a challenge to balance work and family. ♪ that's why i love adt. i can see what's happening at my business from anywhere. ♪

[ male announcer ] now manage and help protect your small business remotely with adt. arm and disarm your alarm, watch secure video in real time, and even adjust your lights and thermostat with adt, you get 24/7 protection through our exclusive fast response monitoring. you can be confident that adt is always there for you. hey, lisa. is that the delivery we've been waiting for? [ male announcer ] and now you can get adt monthly service for your business starting at less than $2 a day. [ woman ] i love the convenience of adt. i can finally be in two places at once. [ male announcer ] call today to get adt for less than $2 a day. helping protect your business, is our business. adt. always there.

we've just been told the united states senate is postponing a vote on extending unemployment benefits for three months. they've rescheduled the vote for 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning on the senate floor. it's apparently very, very tight right now. they need to pass this procedural hurdle in order to get it passed, three-month extension. we'll see what happens tomorrow morning, but as of now the vote that had been scheduled, this initial procedural vote scheduled for today has been postponed, rescheduled for tomorrow, 10:00 a.m. eastern. a top strategy meeting making a blunt appraisal of a possible white house run. we're now learning it took place

early last summer with hillary clinton as she weighs another presidential campaign in 2016. maggie broke the story for politico. she's joining us from new york. thanks so much for coming in. excellent reporting, good work. let's talk about what you learned. hillary clinton, she's always coy about whether or not she'll seek the presidency a second time. but you have these details that she actually brought into her d.c. home, what, last summer, a group of high powered political strategists to discuss some of the pros and cons. what's going on? >> so minyun moore helped convene this meeting of a bunch of her colleagues who are also very supportive of the work going on in one of the super pacs ready for hillary. they went through a blunt numbers-based experiment. they weren't doing a client pitch. here's filing deadline, what you have to raise, what you have to spend on television. one of them a veteran democratic

operative has extensively studied attitudes about female candidates. i think mrs. clinton is clearly doing what one would do if they were considering running for president. i do believe her when she says she has not made up her mind. i think that people are behaving as if she's going to run, but i don't think that means she will, but i think it's not hugely surprising that she is looking as closely as she is in terms of strategists putting together briefings in terms of looking at the details. she's gathering information as she considers this. >> one of the most fascinating parts of your article was some of her closest aides and adviser, at least a couple you mention by name, are raising some flags. maybe it's not necessarily a good idea for her to seek the democratic presidential nomination? >> i think that their concern is more about her personal well-being and making sure that she makes a choice that's what she wants as opposed to either driven to do something by the desires of others or for some other consideration. i think that if she does decide to run, those two advisers will

help her get there and they're certainly helping her preserve the option to run, but i do think they're aware that the 2008 campaign was a mess of misery for everybody involved in that race including the candidate, including her family, and i think that they after 30 years more public service would like to see her really give thought to taking a rest if that's what she wants. >> i want to play a little clip. this is the former president bill clinton speaking recently to cnn in espanol and asked whether his wife will run for the presidency again. listen to this. >> i think and she believed that the country should spend at least another year working very hard on the problems we have. we have very serious challenges in america. and we have responsibilities around the world. i think it's a big mistake this, you know, constant four-year parapa at the timic campaign.

>> remember, a year ago she did suffer a blood clot in her head, in her brain after fainting. her health, what are you hearing about this? because she's 66 years old. >> she's spending a lot more time focusing on, i think, on her health, on being well rested, on taking care of herself. she's not flying around at the pace she was when she was secretary of state. people are saying, no, no, this is not an issue, this is not something weighing on people's minds. but however, she's 66, she has a health issue, if you talk to people about what could prevent her from running again, one thing does come up is the unexpected and a health issue is the unexpected. right now there doesn't appear to be anything, but it's hard to predict for anyone what will happen in a year. >> maggie haberman is a senior writer for politico. you did an excellent piece of reporting there. thanks for coming into "the situation room." >> thank you. >> you can always follow us on twitter, tweet me @wolfblitzer.

"crossfire" starts right now. tonight on "crossfire," it's cold enough to turn hot water into snow. >> wow. >> how far below zero does it have to get to cool off the global warming debate? on the left van jones, on the right, newt gingrich, in the crossfire, levine nyack and david criteser. this week's historic cold brings out the skeptics. will it put the climate change debate in the deep freeze? tonight on "crossfire." welcome to "crossfire," i'm van jones on the left. >> i'm newt gingrich on the right. in the crossfire tonight, guests on opposite sides of the global warming debate. on this extraordinary cold evening when atlanta is colder than moscow, i want to begin by sharing some inconvenient facts about the theory of global

warming. in 2007 al gore and the bbc both shared this prediction -- the arctic would be ice-free by 2013. last year ice in the arctic grew by 60%. as for the alarmist claim that global temperatures would rise for the foreseeable future, temperatures have flat lined for the past 16 years. the facts are challenging politically correct theories. there's enough evidence to at least have a serious debate about carbon taxes, destructive regulations and job-killing high cost energy proposals. is it cold enough for you? >> it's about to get hot in here. i'll tell you that. look, i agree with you that we should have a debate, but we should not be debating whether or not global warming is real, whether it's caused by humans. 97% of all the peer review literature says it is. that's the same level of agreement that you got that hiv causes aids. we should be debating what to do about it, not debating wheth