great performance by him. peyton manning -- >> not so much. >> not so much. thanks for watching "around the world." >> "cnn newsroom" starts right >> "cnn newsroom" starts right now. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com right now, chris christie fights on, denying new charges he was in on what they're now calling bridgegate. and accepting an invitation to an important conservative gathering. also right now, the whispers are growing a bit louder. could mitt romney actually run again for president of the united states in 2016? and right now, heavy snow is hitting the northeast right in the middle of the workday, another commuting nightmare, just ahead. hello, i'm wolf blitzer in washington. for new jersey governor chris christie, it's the scandal that just won't go away. christie is facing new questions about the so-called bridgegate

controversy. later today, he'll take questions from constituents in a radio interview. in the meantime, he's battling back against his latest accuser, the former associate claims there is evidence tying christie to lane closures, and traffic jams used as political retaliation. our erin mcpike has the latest. >> reporter: what should have been a shining moment for chris christie and his state as hosts of this year's super bowl overshadowed by jeers. >> you've already heard enough speeches. this is the same thing. >> reporter: and new questions. >> governor, is there any truth to the allegations? >> reporter: on the eve of the big game, the governor's office circulated a scathing e-mail attempting to discredit the christie appointee making those allegations. former port authority official, david wildstein, who carried out the lane closures on the george washington bridge. allegations christie knew more than he's indicated. the bottom line, the e-mail reads, david wildstein will do and say anything to save david wildstein.

wildstein's lawyer said friday, evidence exists, tying mr. christie to having knowledge of the lane closures during the period the lanes were closed. a charge christie continues to deny. even john wisniewski, the democrat leading the new jersey legislature's investigation, was skeptical. >> the use of the words "evidence exists" as opposed to saying, i have documents or i have an e-mail, it's a curious choice of words. so it raises questions about what does he have, and why doesn't the committee have it? >> reporter: high-profile republicans defended christie, saying there's no reason he should stop helping his colleagues as chair of the republican governor's association. >> i don't think he should step down. i think he should stay there. >> reporter: and while others say he should be impeached from his day job, wisniewski calls that -- >> one word, premature. we don't have enough facts to get to that conversation. erin mcpike, cnn, washington. the special committee looking into the bridge controversy issued subpoenas for documents.

they are due today. another christie staff member, in the meantime, also resigned. chris frates of our investigations unit is joining us now from trenton, new jersey, the state capital. chris, what can you tell us about the resignation, the subpoena deadline today? >> reporter: well, wolf, what i can tell you about the resignation, it was by a woman named christina republicana, an aide to bridget kelly, from the e-mails who said time for traffic problems. she said she resigned because it was the beginning of a second term, a natural time to resign. but, you know, certainly because she is tied to ms. kelly, there are questions about what she knew certainly also because she is under subpoena herself. now, the democrats who are running that committee are telling me that they don't expect any documents to come out today. in fact, most of the people from the christie administration and elsewhere that have been subpoenaed have been given extensions so they'll have more time to get that paperwork into state legislatures looking into

this whole matter. >> you know, chris, normally when -- if you're going to resign at the beginning of a second term, you do it before the inauguration, you don't do it a week or two after the inauguration. so it's a little unusual to be resigning just after he is sworn in for a second term. that's just my experience with people who don't want to serve in a second administration. but let's talk about some related developments. the superstorm sandy relief money, if you will. what's happening on that front? because there are separate investigations under way there. >> reporter: well, that's right, wolf. and i just talked with the sandy relief czar, the guy in charge of sandy recovery for governor christie, a guy by the name of mark ferxan, will talk to reporters today and talk about $1.4 billion, a second stream of funding coming into the state. and he's going to take about how they plan to do it. they make the point that the first round of funding, about $1.8 billion, was to help

individuals. this new stream of funding is going to continue to help folks who were displaced with a eye toward infrastructure and community improvements. and why this is important in the context of the investigation is because they are of hoboken, dawn zimmer, has said she felt pressured to approve a development that christie favored in return for sandy aid. so sandy aid being watched very closely here in trenton and elsewhere in new jersey. so i think a lot of people want to hear what mark ferxan has to say today. >> thanks very much, chris frates, on the scene for us in new jersey. republicans are rallying around governor chris christie, coming to his defense on a sunday talk show. they said christie should not resign his position as head of the republican governor's association. >> right now, all we know is one person's word against another. you can't base any conclusion on such a thing. and so unless something else is known or made clear, i don't see why you would change what's

going on right now. i don't think he should step down, because nothing has been proven, and you always give a person the benefit of the doubt in those kinds of situations, in my judgment. >> chief political analyst, gloria borger, watching this very, very closely. it's interesting that the conservatives -- the cpac, the conservative political action conference, doing this year what they didn't do last year, namely inviting chris christie to their convention next month. >> you know the old saying, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. and they see chris christie being attacked by the left. they also perceive a real liberal media bias here against chris christie. they believe that he's fought back, and so conservatives are sort of saying, okay, we're now welcoming you to our conference, because you're fighting for your life here, and you're fighting against liberals, and we like that. >> yep. and that all of a sudden, has become more popular on the conservative wing of the republican party, and that's demonstrated. >> this has driven chris christie into the arms of

conservatives. i'm not so sure how long it's going to last, wolf. because as you know, chris christie is not perceived as a conservative in the republican party. >> much more moderate new jersey type republican. let's talk about david wildstein. his lawyer sent that letter on friday, saying evidence exists. he didn't say he had the evidence. he didn't say what the evidence was. evidence exists that christie may be lying about all of this. initially, christie's office put out a sort of legal statement denying that. but then they came out with these talking points to their supporters, really going after wildstein. >> yeah. they blasted him personally, professionally, in every which way they could. look, trying to disqualify him. i spoke with a republican state legislator who is close to chris christie, who said, look, this is a guy who is just trying to get his legal fees paid by the port authority. by the way, he also said he didn't believe that was going to occur. and so if you know chris christie is a politician, you know that he doesn't kind of sit there. and what was more in character,

i think, is what occurred later when he fought back. i think the question is, how -- where's the line here, wolf? fighting back is one thing. he's got to take on david wildstein. he's got to question his character. he's got to question his judgment. because he's going to say that the guy is lying. right? but when -- you know, politically, where is that line that you cross where you don't look like you're bullying your opponents? and i think that's -- that's very difficult. but it's clear chris christie is going to defend himself in a full-throated way. and we'll see how people judge that. >> let's not forget, it was governor chris christie who put wildstein on that port authority. >> right. >> he nominated him, he got him admitted. he was his big backer. >> right. but then you saw the original two-hour press conference that christie did when he was asked about wildstein, and his allegedly close high school friend. he kind of threw the guy under the bus at that point and said no, no, we weren't friends, we

hung out with different groups, i don't really know him. i don't hang out with him. so it's clear that the distance is getting wider wider wider. as each of them fights for survival. >> i was the class president, i was an athlete. wildstein, maybe not. >> right. >> loser. all right. there's a war going on between these two guys right now. and we'll see what the spillover is from that. gloria, thanks very much. >> sure. come back to this story. but there is other news we're watching, just as out of town super bowlers are trying to get home, a snowstorm is slamming the northeast, snarling air traffic. it's proving punxsutawney phil right so far. the famous groundhog saw his shadow yesterday, predicting another six weeks of winter. chad myers is right in the middle of all of this. chad, how much snow are we talking about? you're in new york. >> reporter: you know, 5 inches on the ground right now. there will be 8 inches on the ground at metlife stadium. metlife stadium, about the same time the super bowl would have started had it been on monday, and not sunday. yesterday a beautiful day.

we were at 55 degrees here. today it has been snowing all day, 1 inch per hour. and there is no end in sight. 510 flights are cancelled out of new york city alone. that's about 70,000 seats. so all those people trying to go back to denver or, you know, seattle or wherever you came from, because people came from all over the country to see. they are all stranded either at the airports or back to their hotels. it is pretty snow. trust me, it is nice, light, although fluffy snow. you will be able to make a great snowman or sledding hill out of this. but it is going to come down for the rest of the night. we could easily see in some suburbs 10 inches. and i wouldn't be afraid to say 12 inches west of philadelphia where we have had heavy snow even longer than here. jest west of the city, 6 to 10. this is still in addition to what we have on the ground right now. so we could see some western suburbs, 3 to 5, at least another probably 10 inches to go. and another storm system you didn't quite see that graphic, but another storm system will come tomorrow that will approach the midwest, kansas city,

indianapolis, just south of chicago, with another 6 to 10 inches of snow. and it may brush us here in new york city on wednesday. we'll keep you advised. wolf? >> here's what worries me, chad. and you can help me and our viewers with this. we saw what happened in atlanta last week when there was, what, 2 1/2 inches of snow and ice. the kids had gone to school in the morning. people went to work in the morning. but then everybody shut things down and then there was a huge traffic jam, huge problems getting home, 3:00, 4:00, 5:00 in the afternoon. kids in new york, they're in school today, right? >> reporter: a lot of them are. many were sent home early, like at 8:00 in the morning. as soon as they got to school, they said, all right, this is enough is enough, we're just sending you home now. we got you to school. we get the day credit. now you getting to home. i still think that's a little bit on the dangerous side to send kids out there, anyway, in an ice eevent. what we don't have to do, wolf, we do not have temperatures here that will get down to 12 degrees. like we had in atlanta just last week. the snow came, and it got down to 12. today it gets down to 28.

yes, there will be ruts, and yes some of this slush will freeze. but it isn't going to be the event. it isn't going to be that significant ice event. this completely iced over event that atlanta had seven days ago. >> all of us remember that one. all right, thanks so much, chad myers in new york for us. clamping down tight outside the so-called sochi ring of steel. russian forces keep a close eye on an entire group of people as the clock ticks closer to the olympic opening ceremonies friday. also ahead, the dow taking another big dive. so what's behind this year's market plunge? with my friends, we'll do almost anything.

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want to show you what's going on with the markets right now. the dow is racking up heavy losses once again today. alison kosik over at the new york stock exchange. alison, coming off the dow's first january since 2009. why are investors bailing on stocks? what's going on? i see the dow jones is down 236 points right now. >> reporter: exactly. in fact, wolf, we are watching those losses pick up steam as the session wears on today. you know what's causing the latest selloff, new worries about the economy. we got a new manufacturing report this morning, showing that the sector is growing at the slowest pace since may. we also got auto sales numbers from gm and ford. they came in as a big disappointment. we're seeing shares of gm down more than 2%, ford shares down a little more than 1%. now, alone, these reports might not be enough to cause more than 200-point drop. guess what, there's a whole other buffet of concerns that are hanging over wall street. for one, corporate earnings. 44 companies had issued weak

outlooks. here is a comparison for you. ten -- only ten have issued strong outlooks. and what that means is that most companies at this point, they're not very optimistic about the road ahead. also, there are these concerns about turmoil in emerging markets. china's economy is slowing. so you roll that all together, what do you get? a selloff today, adding to the losses that were racked up last month. you look at the dow, plunging more than 5% in january, as you said, the worst since 2009. wolf? >> yeah. the dow jones down more than 1,000 points over these past few weeks. all right, alison, thanks very much. we're only four days away from the olympic opening ceremonies in sochi, russia. and we have talked a lot about the threats from the dagestan area that's east of sochi. now hundreds of people there have been put under house arrest. our nick paton walsh is in sochi right now, joining us live. nick, who is being confined to their homes? what's going on? >> reporter: well, wolf, we

spoke to a number of people in two key towns with well-known militant links. one, in fact, from where the suicide bombers allegedly attacked the volograd station late last year stemmed from. there i spoke to a number of women, all of whom confessedly, had links to militants. perhaps their husband or son-in-law killed recently by russian special forces in shootouts. they said, all of them, they had been told by russian police they shouldn't be leaving not necessarily their homes, but the towns they lived in throughout the period of the olympic games. the police would check up on them regularly. if they went missing, so to speak, they would be put on the wanted list. so a clear, i think, warning from police to make their whereabouts well-known. another town i went to, a number of salafi muslims, stricter sect, considered radicals at times, saying they had also been told to sign a declaration they weren't going to leave the area where they lived until the games were over, as well. so while police won't confirm

there, it's not uncommon at all. a number saying they confess because the police believe they might not have links to militants, not allowed freedom of movement they would normally expect. wolf? >> i assume with only a few days left before the start of the games, security has really tightened around the olympic village. you're in sochi right now. set the scene for us. >> reporter: yeah. we have seen i think in the last week or so a change. it's harder to get around the roads now unless you have a accreditation and passes. a couple hot air balloons behind me now, blimps we call them in afghanistan that can give a bird's-eye view of the area. cameras all along. 37,000 russian officers piling in here. the strength of manpower russia hopes will keep any threat out. there is a broader question. you may have the sochi games here, as barack obama said friday, considered safe. perhaps for the athletes and the

tourists and fingers crossed, goes smoothly. the broader question is across all the north -- sorry, the north caucasus or southern russia, a volatile region for a decade now. can you give them the focus on security here, guarantee a similar level of security across the whole area. many doubt that's the case, and brace themselves for the weeks ahead. wolf? >> we'll check back with you, obviously, each day this week. nick pay ton walsh in sochi for us. thanks very much. the investigation, meanwhile, continuing to the death of the actor, philip seymour hoffman. we'll take a closer look back and why he's being called one of the greatest actors of our generation. welcome back. how is everything? 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.

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an autopsy is scheduled today for a phillip seymour hoffman, the 46-year-old oscar winning actor found dead in his grenich village apartment on sunday of a suspected drug overdose. investigators tell cnn he was found with a needle in his arm. stephanie elam looks back at his remarkable career. >> reporter: phillip seymour hoffman was an actor's actor. a chameleon who transformed into every character he played. >> since i was a child, he had me picked because of the way i talked. >> reporter: it was hoffman's lead role in this 2005 film, "capote" that won the actor an oscar. a sizeable man, hoffman convincingly transformed on screen into the slim, high-voice author, truman capote. in 1992, a small role in "scent of a woman" gave hoffman his big

break. >> when i got "scent of a woman" and the casting director ran out of the office and grabbed me in the hallway and said you've got the part, i don't think i'ven more joyful since that moment. >> reporter: he continued to make a name for himself in the highly regarded "boogie nights," a period piece that intertwined with the adult film industry. a student of the theater, hoffman landed his first professional stage role before he graduated from high school. he then went on to study acting at new york university, and enjoyed a career on stage and on screen. >> i like mixing them up. that's what i've been doing. and i'll keep doing. as much as it makes people crazy. >> reporter: who does it make crazy? >> depends on the day. depends on the day. yeah, it, does you know. yeah, i'll keep doing that. it's just -- i don't know how to do it any other way than that. >> reporter: the versatile intense hoffman garnered three tony nominations, as well as three other oscar nominations for best supporting actor for "charlie wilson's war" as a

nonconforming cia agent. >> since there is no other reason i should fear. >> reporter: for "doubt" as a priest suspended of inappropriate behavior as an altar boy. >> what did you hear, what did you see, that convinced you so thoroughly? >> reporter: and for "the master" as a charismatic sect leader. >> i'm a writer, theoretical philosophy. but above all, i am a man. >> reporter: in real life, hoffman was a man who struggled with addiction. in 2006, the actor told cbs "60 minutes" he nearly died of substance abuse after he graduated from nyu. >> yeah. anything i could get my hands on. yeah. i liked it all. >> reporter: and just last year, hoffman revealed to several news outlets that he checked into a rehab facility last may for prescription drug and heroin use. a private unassuming man, hoffman will be remembered for his roles in more than 50 movies, including "the talented

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so i know how important that is. with chris christie on the down side right now due to his george washington bridge problems, new names have surfaced at the top of the gop polls. last week it was congressman paul ryan, barely beating jeb bush. but there is another name that seems to be gaining a little bit of momentum right now and that name being mitt romney. remember this poll last november showing that if the election were held one year later, romney would have won. let's discuss with republican strategist o'connell and cnn political commentator, maria cardona. a lot of people have -- i just randomly, anecdotally asked people, do you think the country would have been better off today, a year after the election, if romney had been elected? and a lot of folks, including people who voted for barack obama for re-election, have been so disappointed by obamacare and other issues, they say, yes, they think romney would have

turned out to be a better president. >> well, i think those kinds of questions, wolf -- >> totally. it's not scientific. >> anecdotally. but this has been a tough year for the president. we have talked about this several times on your show. but he is actually now doing much better. his polls have rebounded. obamacare is doing much better. we're looking at all of the benefits that millions of americans are getting from obamacare. his state of the union well received in terms of the themes moving forward and focusing on economic, income inequality, economic issues, number-one issues. so, again, i think this is fun to talk about right now. but it in no way focuses on what the reality of the situation would be from a political perspective. >> the film maker who did the netflix documentary, "mitt," told our christie poll that they only release -- agreed to release this, assuming that romney was done with politics. romney himself told the "new york times," oh, no no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. no. people are always gracious and say, "oh, you should run again."

i am not running again. this talk of romney maybe a third time -- you remember, ronald reagan, he ran three times, the third time was a charm for him. are you convinced that romney will not run? >> no, i do not think mitt romney is going to run. look, i think that 2008 left a bad taste in his mouth. he would have -- i mean, 2012 left a bad taste in his mouth and would have liked to have done better. but at the end of the day, a lesson for republicans with respect to the poll. and that is, put forth a positive message, project yourself as a problem-solver. because you're going to need it in 2016, because hillary clinton is going to be really, really tough. >> if he it -- hypothetically, i don't think he's going to run either. i'm going to interview him wednesday. i don't think he's going to run. let's say he were to run against hillary clinton. how would he do? >> i think he would do terribly. i think all the republicans are going to do terribly. because what they have to understand, a positive message. make yourself a problem-solver, project that. and ex pan panned. the democrats have 247 electoral votes coming out of the chute, regardless of who the republican nominee is. until we can actually figure out

how to branch the blue collar and white collar voters of this country, we're in trouble. >> hillary clinton tweeted during the super bowl yesterday, you see a little fun with this tweet. it's so much more money to watch fox when it's someone else being blitzed and sacked. spokesman later said that was a joke. but i'm sure there was an element of truth as far as she was concerned. >> sure, of course there was a lot of truth to that. and as someone who has been on fox, i can completely understand where she is coming from. i loved that tweet. i was one of the millions of people who retweeted it. i think it also shows, wolf, though, her fun side, right? her more lighter side, more personal side. and i think she is having fun with that right now, you know, as she is a private citizen. because i think things are going to change if and when she does run, when everybody in the media will be so focused on everything she says, does, when she sneezes, when she sighs, what way she looks. oh, wait, never mind, that's already happening. >> what do you think? you assume she is going to run. >> i absolutely do assume she is going to run and her biggest

challenge right now, her expectations in barack obama's record. you can see his approvals are improving but they're pretty much in the toilet. and at the end of the day, this was a smart pr move. what did she do? she threw red meat at the democratic base. what does the democratic base love to hate? fox news. enough said. this was smart. this is the largest sporting event in america. this is great pr. it's free and everyone is talking about it. we're talking about it right now. >> a new poll, by the way, coming out on all of these things, including the president's job approval numbers at 5:00 p.m. eastern in "the situation room." you guys like polls? >> absolutely. >> be watching our show. >> can i just say one quick thing? >> yes. >> the republican party needs to listen to this man. because he was absolutely right in terms of the problem that the republican party still holds today, even with barack obama's poll numbers the way that they are. the focus on the middle class. they did not have a message. >> reince priebus, he did an autopsy after the defeat of mitt romney, and he's trying to make some changes. he's trying to bring in hispanics, minorities, young people, women. you don't think that's working? >> no, i think that it can work. right now i think we've got a

long way to go. but one of the things out there is, wolf, most people don't pay a heck of a lot of attention to politics. they don't follow it the way we do. and one of the things that the republicans and the big problem with is putting forth a positive message. don't talk about cutting things. talk about reform. don't -- you know, talk about modernization. make people take america to a brighter place. if you can do that, you can win the white house in 2016. yes, we do have to expand a the tent of voters. >> if they had followed that tent of autopsy, they would be in a better place. everything they have done thus far has been the opposite and they have continued the realm or the focus they were on in 2012. which has been disastrous. >> true. but, look, it took us a long time to hit this rock-bottom place and it's going to take us a while to get forward. right now the key is making the fwans in 2014, because the political lens are in our favor. i agree, when it comes to a different electorate in 2016, we can't count on what ear going to do in 2014, because it's a very different group of people. so when we get to 2016, there's going to be some changes made. >> mid terms are different.

>> absolutely. >> reform would help. >> thanks very much. wednesday, i will interview mitt romney live. that will take place in "the situation room," 5:00 p.m. eastern. talking about 2016, other important topics, including security at the winter olympic games in sochi. remember, he was in charge of security and everything else at the salt lake city winter olympic games. wednesday, 5:00 p.m. eastern. president obama makes plans to visit a u.s. ally in the middle east. why iran will be high on the agenda during the president's trip to saudi arabia next month. for over a decade millions have raised their hand for the proven relief of the purple pill. and that relief could be in your hand. for many, nexium helps relieve heartburn symptoms from acid reflux disease. find out how you can save at purplepill.com. there is risk of bone fracture and low magnesium levels. side effects may include headache, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. if you have persistent diarrhea, contact your doctor right away. other serious stomach conditions may exist. avoid if you take clopidogrel.

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we learned today that president obama will travel to saudi arabia next month. they'll meet with saudi king abdullah to talk about middle east interests. one issue certain for discussion will be the interim deal, the nuclear deal with iran. let's bring in elise labott over

at the state department. as you know, elise, the saudis like the israelis. the united arab emirates. they're very nervous about this interim deal with iran. the president is going to have to do some hand-holding to reassure king abdullah. >> reporter: hand holding on a whole host of issues. as you know, the relationship between the u.s. and saudi arabia has really hit new lows that you haven't seen really since years since the bush administration and over the u.s. invasion in iraq. i really think the iran deal is something that the saudis are extremely nervous about, not just that possibly that could give iran some lee way to develop its nuclear program if the curbs airport tight enough but also iran's growing influence in the region. when you look across the region, it particularly what's going on with syria right now, a lot of people see this as a proxy war between saudi arabia and iran. and that's why saudi arabia has been supporting a lot of opposition, sending arms to the

rebels, and this is one of the things that the u.s. will be discussing. i think there's a lot of fence-mending on this trip to be done, wolf. >> the president in his second visit to saudi arabia. you're correct. the saudis are very upset, not only about the interim nuclear deal with iran. they're upset about the u.s. posture in sear yeah. they hated the fact that the administration seemed to abandon president mubarak in egypt during the arab spring, thought that was a major disaster. there is so much going on negatively in this u.s./saudi relationship right now. >> reporter: that's right and i understand that the saudis in recent months over the -- this deal that the u.s. and russia brokered over the chemical weapons in iran, when they saw that the syrians were not giving up their chemical weapons, that they're going to be stepping up their support to the opposition and basically the message to the administration has been, look, we're not working with you on this. we're going alone, we're going to work on behalf of our best interests. if you look at what's going on in egypt, as you said, the

saudis are the ones, along with the united arab emirates, that are making up the difference in terms of the aid to the egyptians that were cut over this -- over the attempted coup of president morsi. and so the saudis more than ever are going it alone. don't see the u.s. as a very reliable ally. and i think president obama wants to go back and try and reconnect. one of the things that a lot of arab experts have said is, saudis are really used to a very close relationship with u.s. presidents and you really haven't seen that between saudi king abdullah and president obama. and i think president obama wants to go there, connect with the king and say, listen, we are still your most reliable ally in this region, wolf. >> yeah. the king likes to deal personally with world leaders, as well. that's why the president is going there. do we know if the president is going to make any stops in the united arab emirates? any other gulf states while he's there? >> reporter: as of now, no planned stops, but the united

arab emirates and very close ally that is very disturbed with what they say is a u.s. retreating in the region. very upset about egypt. very upset about syria and iran. and i think it would do him well to stop there. but there are no plans right now. >> elise, thanks very much. elise labott over at the state department. a new person in charge of the u.s. economy. we're talking about janet yellen, sworn in today as the head of the federal reserve, following ben bernanke's retirement. the first woman to take the job in the 100-year history of the fed. this makes her one of the most powerful people in washington, certainly one of the most powerful women in the world. her first big challenge will be to see how to unwind the fed's stimulus package without overly upsetting economic growth. so janet yellen, the chair of the federal reserve. still ahead, the olympics have become a terrorist target. this grainy image of a hooded gunman became the face of the 1972 munich olympic games.

the first time terrorists struck. we're taking a closer look at how security planning has evolved since then. and the very elaborate plans to security sochi. welcome back. how is everything? 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.

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the olympic games changed forever after the terrorist attack in munich, germany, back in 1972. those who saw it will never forget it. 11 members of the israeli olympic team died at the hands of palestinian terrorists, an attack that began in the olympic village, ended in a shootout with german police at the airport. since then, the games have taken on an inescapable political component. this year after threats by terrorists created chaos in sochi, security is at an all-time high. brian todd is taking a closer look at the games now, how they have changed over these years. the security component has been

significant. >> reporter: when you look at the difference between sochi and munich, wolf, it is staggering. i mean, now you've got the ring of steel. we just talked about that. check points, magnet to himters, search points going on. and you compare that to munich in 1972, and the contrast is amazing. in 1972, those games were dubbed in german "the happy games." the germans were sense active, the only olympics they hosted since 1936, when there was the nazi olympics. they wanted to promote an atmosphere of peace and harmony and they -- and security there was intentionally pretty lax, because of it. they wanted everything to be very open. well, of course, we know the result of that. in 1972, the israeli team quarters from wide open, palestinian terrorists snuck in wearing track suits. they carried assault weapons in duffle bags, easily got over a chain link fence with the help of other athletes who thought they were sneaking in after a night out. of course, that can't happen now. and so we're just looking at kind of just the change.

munich, according to experts, what they're telling us now, munich changed everything. that attack that left 11 israeli athletes dead changed the culture of the olympics. before before then you didn't ho submit a security plan to the ioc if you didn't want to host an olympics. now every city has to submit a detailed security plan to the ioc. munich changed that. munich did that. >> security escalated dramatically over the decades. >> you look at what happened over 1980 in lake placid. they build that in such a way it's a minimum security prison in new york. salt lake city, the first olympics after 9-11, $500 million was spent just on security for that olympics and it's only gone up since then. munich changed it, 9/11 accelerated it. the security atmosphere at an olympics will never be the same.

>> we will speak about this and a lot more. mitt romney ran those olympic games. that will be an interesting conversation. see you back here in "the situation room." another super bowl is in the history books. the seahawks demolishing the denver broncos last night. you can hear from two of the biggest stars after this. [ male announcer ] winter olympian ted ligety can't take a sick day tomorrow. [ coughs ] [ male announcer ] so he can't let a cold keep him up tonight. vicks nyquil. powerful nighttime 6 symptom cold and flu relief. ♪ pcentury link provides reliable yit services like multi-layered security solution to keep your information safe & secure.

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. >> there is one part of the super bowl that a lot of people are talking about is perhaps the highlight of the night that had nothing to do with the game. it was the halftime performance. bruno mars putting on a truly electrifying performance indeed. watch. ♪ >> amazing. a lot of people didn't know bruno mars, but they do now. a break out moment for bruno mars. fabulous, fabulous performance. only a 12-minute show and at one

point she was joined by the red hot chili peppers. seems like a little odd pairing, but i guess they pulled it off. i thought bruno mars was great. nice performance indeed. seattle certainly riding high, a day after their seahawks not only brought home the super bowl championship, but did it in a spectacular fashion, shutting down the denver broncos 43-8. rachel nichols was on the scene and you got reaction from the key players after the game. including richard sherman who went on the infamous rant after the nfc championship game. tell us what he is like after this game. he had to leave a little injured. we saw that. >> he was on crutches because of what turned out to be a high ankle sprain, not a serious injury. he was certainly excited. his legion of boom which is the nickname for the seattle

secondary was a decisive factors in the dominant performance for seattle. even given all of that and the amount of hype that the emotion was going on, they found a calm, grateful and really intro expectative richard sherman when he stepped off the field last night. listen. >> since you and i talked two weeks ago, you had a crazy couple of weeks. what has the super bowl experience been like? >> a lot of fun. humbling. you learn a lot about yourself and the media and the way people perceive things and it's really a chance to grow. i had a chance to grow and i thank you for giving me that opportunity to do the opportunity. it was a opportunity for people to get to know me and get to know me and not judge a book by its cover. >> where are you going now? >> disneyworld if i can. >> it has been amazing since then to see the met morphosis. so many people upset with him after the championship game.

little by little starting to understand who he was. through the super bowl, he blossomed into a full-fledged media star. he is of the most sought after players and his agent thinks he will have about $5 million in endorsements this off season. >> he was a fifth round draft pick out of stanford. >> yes. absolutely. >> not bad for him. what about russell wilson, the winning quarterback. he inspired a lot of us guys who are only 5'10". amazing what he did. he shared some advice from him. >> 5'10" and 3/8 inches. we know exactly how tall or short they are. they think you have to be about 6'2" to be an effective quarterback. russell wilson shows you don't have to be 6'2" to be effective or win the super bowl. you can be whatever you want as

long as you work hard and are good at the game. his father hold him that growing up. his father died when he was in college. he talked to me after his wedding. >> you told me when you were a kid, your late father would quiz you in the car. >> he would. >> say russell wilson, super bowl champion and give you interview tips. what did it feel like knowing your dad was a part of it? >> just standing up there and holding the lombardi trophy up in front of all seattle and the people who came to the game, our first super bowl in franchise history, think about the special times i had with my dad and my mom too. i miss my dad so much. all the things he taught me. >> wolf, the best part is the major league baseball teams drafted this guy two times, including as recently as december. the rangers said if it doesn't work out in football, come tryout for our team. i think it's working out.

>>. >> i don't think he has to worry about baseball. i'm sure he's a great baseball player as well. a fabulous quarterback for seattle. thanks very much for everything you are doing as well. that's it for me. thanks very much. i will be back at 5:00 p.m. eastern in "the situation room." newsroom continues with brooke baldwin. >> wolf blitzer, thank you. hi, everyone. i'm brooke baldwin. not great new fist you are looking at the dow. down 268 points as we are two hours away from the closing bell. why, you ask are we seeing these numbers? a worse than expected report on factories in the u.s. the bad streak continues into this new month. in february after a rough january, we will keep an eye on that for you. hot first, phillip seymore