general prospect upon not wanting to be part of a case. we had a victim go across the street of the building and tried to jump off of it when she was called to the stand to face her accus accuser, the man she accused. >> ann bremner. appreciate your time. i turn you over to wolf blitzer. he's next door in "the situation room". >> happening now, snow emergency. a deadly snow buries parts of new york under six feet of snow with more on the way as record-low temperatures leave most of the country shivering. wave of terror from jerusalem to the kurdish capital. new attacks claim innocent victims. are americans being targeted in are they safe? i'll ask congressman mike rogers. exploding air bags. a massive recall includes 8 million cars. now federal authorities want to expand it nationwide. >> and death by homicide. that's the ruling in the case of virginia student hannah graham. will the suspect in her

abduction now face murder charges? i'm wolf blitzer. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com this is cnn breaking news. >> let's get right to the breaking news. as winter weather hammers much of the country the death toll is now six in the buffalo new york area and many people are stranded under terrible conditions as the storm of historic scale buries parts of the region under six feet of snow, and guess what? much more now on the way. residents are urged to stay at home and many couldn't get out even if they wanted to. look at this. as the cnn ireporter sends out an aerial drone over his buried neighborhood and it's not just the buffalo area. half of the country. yes, half of the country now has snow on the ground and there's record breaking cold all over. temperatures in the southeast have fallen into the teens. the buffalo mayor, byron brown is standing by live along with our meteorologist chad myers and our correspondents, our analysts and newsmakers.

let's begin with brian todd. he's on the ground for us right in buffalo in cheektowaga. brian? >> reporter: wolf, this is a typical accumulation of snow here in the buffalo area that comes up to about my chest here, and you can see it's starting to snow again this evening. we're right outside the bellevue fire department. these guys have been manning this 24/7. they've conducted 115 rescues, they say in the 40 hours since the snow started falling early tuesday morning. they're getting ready to deploy again right behind me. people are calling in with all sorts of emergency calls and right now, wolf, we're just starting round two after a devastating round one. >> the deadly storm has residents struggling to cope and officials scrambling to protect them. >> stay home. if you do have to go out and please exercise caution. >> reporter: new york governor andrew cuomo has declared a state of emergency for several counties in the buffalo area.

crews have had to bring in front-end loaders and dump trucks to take the snow out of the hardest-hit areas. >> more than 230 truckloads of snow removed from south buffalo. over 5,000 tons of snow that have been removed. >> reporter: buffaloans are used to snow, but this snow dumped over five feet in some spots almost an entire season's snowfall in 24 hours and more is on the way. the national weather service another one to three feet could fall on western new york in the next 48 hours. at the bellevue fire department, we climbed into an engine after they received an urgent call. >> what call did you just get? >> partial collapse of a building, trailer park. >> the snow that caused the problem hindered the rescue. stranded cars blocking the street. >> we continue our pursuit on foot, but the homeowners changed their minds and didn't want to be evacuated. frustrated the commissioner. >> a couple of hours she's going to call us back and we'll have

to come back here. >> also among those stranded, the university ever niagara, women's basketball team en route to a game, trapped on their team bus for over 24 hours. >> it just kept piling up and piling up. there's just no way for us to get through that in a bus or for any other cars to get through it, as well. >> and bethany honabbingy never made it to the hospital and delivered her baby in the firehouse. it was a crazy time for sure, but a happy ending. her name, lucy grace and lucy means illumination. it was so sad how many people died, but this baby is such a bright light in such a dark storm. >> there is still a driving ban and people aren't listening to those warnings and it's forcing firefighters and first responders to use these vehicles, snow mobiles to rescue

a lot of motorists and the snow is just starting and they expect another foot or so between now and friday morning and it could get up to three more feet between now and the weekend, wolf. >> another 36 inches, a lot of snow. you've been moving around with the firefighters and first responders, brian. what are they telling you about mistakes that some of the local residents are making that are getting them into serious trouble? >> they really are, wolf. a lot of them feel like they can handle this snow and they haven't seen anything like this in their lifetime so they misjudge it. they go out when they shouldn't and one of the fire chiefs told me what frustrates him is that a lot of people come out just to see it. it's, of course, a great phenomenon. you want to see some of this. it's the sight sears that come out that go too far in their cars, they miscalculate and get stuck. that's a big problem. >> my fellow buffalonians are used to snow. the storm is dumping five to six

feet of snow in some neighborhoods and five or six inches a few miles away. let's go to martin savidge and he's in hard-hit buffalo and it's quite different in south buffalo than in north buffalo, isn't it, mark? >> reporter: oh, absolutely. what you measure in inches in north buffalo you measure in feet in south buffalo. that's the way this storm system has been. it's really unprecedented for buffalo. many people are accustomed to hearing buffalo get hit with snow and this is unlike anything that they've seen in the past couple of decades and its intensity has surprised many people. in fact, what should be pointed out here, by the time the system is all said and done they may have had a winter's worth of snow dumped on them in less than a week. that's what they're dealing with. we pushed our way into other areas hardest hit in south buffalo. many people don't even recognize their neighborhoods because it is so deep. imagine everything six feet

higher than it is right now at ground level. that changes it. you don't see the cars because the cars are below all of that. we come across a number of people trying to dig their cars out and they start at the roof and dig down to do it. snow blowers and the equipment they have that usually handle this stuff, bogged down or in many cases ineffective and they're back to the shovels because you've got to lift and move it. the same problem the city is facing here. 42 square miles makes up buffalo and only 10 square miles have been impacted and it's a very small section, but they've been so inundated, you can't plow it and you can't push it away. no room. it's got to be hauled out. truckload after truckload after truckload and it's now going round the clock 24 hours a day. they're hauling it from here and putting it into open ground two or three miles away and it will sit there maybe until june

depending on the snow pack there. >> more and more snow in the next few days on the way. martin savidge on the scene for us. thank you. this lake effect storm absolutely burying some areas and leaving others almost untouched and more snow on the way to the region. the rest of the country is shivering, as well. let's bring in our severe weather expert, our meteorologist chad miers and what's going on? >> one band after another. think about it like a train. we talk about trains when it comes to flash flooding and we had a flash snowstorm. the storm continued in the same direction for almost 30 hours. it's snowing and snowing lightly on places and look at how large the areas and that's 50 inches plus in that entire section. 65 inches of snow and you think about that on your driveway. if you take one square foot, that's 25 pounds.

then you think your driveway is 20 feet wide and maybe 50 feet long. that's 20,000 pounds, ten tons if you divide it out. ten tons of snow that one driveway it takes to get that out. that's why they call it heart attack snow. something else and i'm very disappointed in this, because it's going to get warm and rain. the rain isn't going to wash the snow away. it will make it heavier. that snow will accumulate the rain and will make the roofs, the one brian todd went on started to collapse the roofs and when you get rain on that heavy snow, all of that will get heavier, heavier and heavier and more of those roofs will get shovelled off. i remember getting up on the roof and shoveling off the roof because we knew the roof was going to collapse. this is a striking picture. this is the lake-effect snow. here's downtown buffalo. if you remember the auditorium would have been here and that snow will be 2 miles south of there.

if you take a look at cheekt cheektowaga, 65 inches and from the airport, you get 63 inches of snow compared to just six. we call it lake-enhanced snow, lake-effect and it's the lake enhancing the snow coming. so what's coming now? well, a southwest wind will drive it right back into buffalo. a typical lake effect, west-southwest drives it into cha tag what and this is the problem with this storm. another band of snow could go directly toward buffalo on top of what they're trying to dig out from right now, wolf. >> what an awful situation, chad myers, thanks for that report. so how are the emergency services holding up against this historic snowfall? let's get an update from the mayor of buffalo. byron brown is joining us on the phone right now. mayor, thanks very much for joining us.

how are you guys over there doing? >> good to be with you, wolf. well, as you reported, a lot of snow and tough, hearty people in buffalo. it's the city of neighbors and people are checking on elderly and disabled residents and emergency services are responding extremely well. >> are you getting ready? you heard chad myers say you could get a whole lot more snow in the next few days. >> we are ready for it. we have over 90 pieces of snow-fighting equipment on the road right now. much of it in south buffalo where we've gotten over five feet of snow that has fallen. buffalo, very much is like a tale of two cities. in south buffalo, one-quarter of the city, over five feet of snow and in the other three-quarters of the city of buffalo, no more than one to six inches of snow. look, people in buffalo and i grew up in buffalo and we're used to a lot of snow and no one

is used to this especially south buffalo and in the areas south of buffalo. north buffalo is okay and north of buffalo and niagara falls and that area is okay and everything near lake erie is awful, right? >> you're absolutely right. back in 1977 we had a very intense blizzard. people in south buffalo who went through that blizzard are saying the snow now is more than they remember back then. >> i remember that snowfall and that was awful in 1977. are you satisfied, mayor with the emergency assistance from the state of new york and maybe even from the federal government? >> very satisfied. we've heard from every member of the federal congressional delegation, senator, schumer, ji gillibrand and they sent dump

trucks, snowplows, in fact, the governor and county executive and i toured stranded truckers on the new york state thruway and very satisfied with the response that we're getting from the state and federal government and the governor's office has been in touch with my office and county executive mark, pulling cars every single day, multiple times a day during the storm. >> just update me and i'm curious on the buffalo fan. will the bills host sunday in buffalo? >> the bills are still looking at that. there is about four feet of snow in the stadium, ralph wilson stadium and again, we're hearty and we're looking forward to that game and everyone is hopeful that the bills will be able to play that game. i know that crews are being lined up to shovel out the stadium. in fact, my office has been sending out emails to people

throughout the community to join the effort to shovel out the stadium so that that game will be played. >> even if you shovel out the stadium will people be able to get to the stadium from south buffalo and elsewhere south of buffalo? >> you know, that is a good question. as you know as you just reported in a few days we'll have a major warming so temperatures here are expected to reach into the 60s. there will be a lot of the melting of the snow which will create some flooding, but i would assume, if that happens over the weekend as is forecasted, that people will be able to get out and will be able to attend the game even those who are living in the southern part of our region that have been so hard hit by this storm. >> good luck to you and good luck to everyone in the buffalo area. thanks very much for joining us. >> thank you, wolf. up next, isis says it's

responsible for a rare bombing right in the heart of the kurdish capital in iraq where the united states has a key military operations base. it comes on the heels of the bloody attack in jerusalem which killed three u.s. citizens. i'll ask the house intelligence committee chairman mike rogers if americans are being targeted. stay with us. shopping online is as easy as it gets. wouldn't it be great if hiring plumbers, carpenters and even piano tuners were just as simple? thanks to angie's list, now it is. start shopping online from a list of top-rated providers. visit angieslist.com today.

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as kurdish forces battle isis on the front lines in iraq, the terror group has carried out a bombing right in the heart of the kurdish capital, but was it targeting americans? the suicide attackers struck in erbil, that's a city mostly untouched by iraq's violence, at least so far. it has a large international presence including a u.s. military operation center with several, a lot of american diplomats and american military personnel on the scene. mike rogers is standing by and we'll get his thoughts in just a moment and let's go to our chief national correspondent jim sciut sciutto. he has the very latest. >> this is a concerning development because erbil has been at this point an oasis of relative security in iraq. it has a strong security system and cohesive security forces, but today's attack penetrated that security. a suicide bomber detonating at the entrance of a government building near the aging citadel, wounding some 29. ed kurdish strong hold is one of

the two bases for military strong hold and there are about 75 stationed there and 200 diplomats and many more american businessmen and officials trafrling there to a city that has regular international flights. in fact, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff general martin dempsey was just there this week. i am told by military officials that there is no evidence that this attack was intended to target u.s. personnel and u.s. diplomats, soldiers, et cetera and in essence, how close things are where this bomb struck is two and a half miles from where the u.s. embassy compound is. >> what are the plans on seeking additional authorization to engage in this war against isis? >> president obama said he'd like to right size a new authority ending the current dependence on the new 9/11 that was aimed at al qaeda. deputy secretary of state tony

blinkin said the white house will introduce legislation if it believes it can pass congress. >> we would like to have a focused that dealses with the challenge before us which is defeating isil and if we can get an aumf that gets broad support there is no question we will be better off. >> some of the newest calls are coming from democrats, senator tim cain have virginia and house member and adam schiff. they're pushing for it, but the trouble is you have many republicans calling for it, too, but they may have a different vision of what this authorization would have, for the use of ground troops and something the administration has said it does not want to have. >> lots going on. jim sciutto, thanks very much. joining us now the chairman of the house intelligence committee, republican congressman, mike rogers from michigan. thanks so much for joining us. based on everything you know, are americans, military, business personnel, are they being specifically targeted in

this kurdish capital of erbil? >> i don't think this specific attack, wolf, was targeted at the americans. i think it was targeted at kurdish government officials and what we've seen in the past is isil uses suicide bombers not only in tactical units when it does attacks in western iraq or eastern syria, but we've seen this call for more terrorist activity outside of that region and it only fits their recent chatter that they want to have this terrorist activity reach into places where they think they can create problems for the government. certainly the kurds and peshmerga have created problems for them and that's what you saw here today was specifically targeted at that. >> i guess i know the answer, but i just want your thoughts and israel, three american rabbis were killed yesterday as they were praying in a synagogue. last month an american baby was killed in jerusalem in one of these hit and run terror attacks. the question is are americans being targeted in jerusalem?

well, both israelis are being targeted and certainly an american jew is a big target for any of those targeted attacks simply because of the press that it gets and the chaos that it creates and we think some of it was targeted at israeli citizens with the added benefit in their mind of attacking jewish americans and what's concerning is that we're seeing an isis or isil tactic adopted by others. we knew that there was a lot of conversations. we know that of the 21 al qaeda affiliates that we track, about half of them have a pledged allegiance to isis. we know that there's been a lot of communications. this was a wing, we think of the palestinian, the plo, right? the palestinian liberation army we think it was a faction of that that conducted this attack so it was clearly targeted and

clearly political violence and clearly terrorism and that's what's so concerning. >> so you don't think these two guys, these two cousins who went into the synagogue yesterday morning and killed these people, they had these meat cleavers or whatever, they were just acting on their own? they were lone wolves, as they say, they were inspired and this was some sort of terror plot. is that what you're saying? >> i think it was certainly an aspiration of the plo to have that faction and the militant wing have a successful terrorist attack and the link is circumstantial at this point, but in the days ahead you'll find that there was lots of encouragement for this to happen and that's again, just as it is when isil contacts the people in australia and says randomly kidnap people and cut their heads off, i believe you will find very similar profiles in the israeli attack and what we saw isil trying to promote in australia and canada and the

united states in france and germany. you say plo you don't mean the palestine liberation organization. you're referring to some extreme organization, right? >> it's a militant faction. it is a militant group associated with the palestinian liberation army and so it is very clear distinction and i may have misspoke earlier. >> i just want to make sure you're not referring to the plo. >> you indicated the u.s. needs to move more quickly when it comes to isis. what else can the u.s. be doing? what should the u.s. be doing? >> we need an aggressive tempo in order to make the peshmerga more impactful and the iraqi military more impactful and they'll need u.s. soldiers with special capabilities with them. it makes the fighters far more effective and syrian rebels, as well and we're going to have to start targeting in a robust way their operations in syria. we're not talking about the 101st airborne and we're talking

about special capability soldiers and intelligence officials, targeted strikes and allowing the logistics that would go along with supporting those units and may be american enabled as well as intelligence. and it comes more effective fighters. i think we'll short circuit the need for any big military movement if this starts and begins to spill over as you saw today with the attack in erbil. we don't want this fanning and expanding the borders of where the current conflict is because it will cause more instability, more problems across the middle east. remember, their stated goal is to go into israel and jordan, and lebanon. and that is concerning. >> has the vetting of syrian rebels opposed to the bashar al assad regime actually begun? because we did receive some indications from representative peter king on the house side that some rebels are being vetted and presumably getting

read to be shipped off to saudi arabia for training. >> i don't want to talk about any of the specifics. obviously, there are sunni-led nations that are who participating and are assisting in vetting processes today, and we know that certainly our military intelligence and our civilian intelligence agencies have our participating in a vetting process to make sure that we get the right kind or at least, nothing's perfect, if we think this is going to be perfect, we should take that out of their heads. it will have some problem, but i think we can get to a very confident state where you can train these rebels and make them effective because it also fits their goals and their aims of making sure they're not fighting isis and the assad regime next week and so that presents a pool of individuals that we believe can be vetted accurately and safely and then employed to help u which would help the united states national security

industry push back to al nusra and isis which used to be an al qaeda affiliate. >> the president getting ready to announce a major shift in immigration policy in a prime time televised address tomorrow night. what are your thoughts? is the president legally authorized to go ahead and allow 3 million, maybe 3.5 million people who don't have authorization who are here without legal status, is the president authorized to go ahead and shift some of these policy decisions on his own? >> i don't believe he is, but i will tell you that even if -- let's just say for point of argument he is, this is so divisive. there is -- this is the failure of his presidency, i think, if he does this and he's had a lot of certain troubles in the recent past, but this will absolutely poison the relationship if he has any left between congress and the american people. there is a way, wolf, that is so

disappointing to me in this administration to sit down and the house has passed a version of immigration reform. the senate has a version of immigration reform. there is a way to lead discussions, with both parties, with both sets, to come to a conclusion. doing this is only serving a very narrow slice of whatever the president's agenda is on this, and i'll let viewers can make their own determination, but i will guarantee you this will cause real problems across america and really divide america in a way and it won't be republicans and democrats. that is a misnomer. you will see this across party lines in a way that we haven't seen before and that divisiveness will poison every other major accomplishment we need to get done on behalf of the american people certainly in this term and into next term, as well. >> if the legislation had come up for a vote in the house of representatives in the past with

several republicans supporting him in addition to the democrats, would you have voted for it? >> not in its current form. there are negotiable portions meaning there are ways to come to an agreement on immigration reform and the pob lem is nobody was talk being about it. nobody was sitting in the same room discussing those differences. you can do it if you actually sit in a room and have a discussion about these differences and get to a place. what you see now is i'm going get everything i want, that's what the president is saying, or i will take nothing. that's wrong. it's wrong in the congress if we do that and it's wrong if the president does it and i'll guarantee you, wolf. i talked to a lot of people back home, this is very divisive, and i don't think that's healthy for america that's trying to heal itself in its economy, in its stature in foreign affairs. i really, really am troubled by this. >> mike rogers is retiring from the united states house of

representatives, leaving, good luck in the next chapter of your life, mr. chairman. thanks very much for joining us. >> six more weeks as chairman. >> but who's counting? >> right. >> thanks very much. israel is stepping up its security as he promises to retaliate for a grisly attack in a synagogue. we'll go live to jerusalem where tensions are rising. the suspect jesse matthew may face murder charges after officials rule hannah graham's death a homicide. we'll va have details. stay with us. you're in "the situation room." [ male announcer ] at northrop grumman,

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security is stepped up in jerusalem a day after the horrific terror attack in a synagogue. four worshippers, three of the dead were americans. israeli authorities today demolished the home of a palestinian who killed a young woman and baby in an earlier attack in jerusalem. cnn's ben wedeman is in jerusalem with more with the very latest and the aftermath of what's going on. what is going on, ben? >> well, wolf, what we've seen throughout jerusalem is stepped-up security on the eastern side where most of the palestinians live. there are a lot of checkpoints, a lot of police checking papers, stopping cars. where the homes of the two

attackers of yesterday's synagogue attack come from, there are cement roadblocks blocking some of the roads. what you see is a lot less people in the street and a lot less cars going around. we haven't had the sort of angry anti-arab demonstrations that we saw just below us yesterday, but certainly there is this residual tension from yesterday. the israeli police are, of course, eager to prevent any further attacks, but also to prevent any sort of revenge attacks by israelis and palestinians. >> ben wedeman in jerusalem. we'll stay in constant touch with you and our entire team in jerusalem. >> coming up, exploding air bagses. the u.s. government is urging a recall that would cover millions of american cars. the list of vehicles is coming up next. plus officials are ruling the death of university of virginia student hannah graham a homicide. will the suspect jesse matthew

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the government is urging a recall of exploding air bags found in millions of vehicles across the country, but the company is now pushing back and refusing to comply. cnn's renee marsh is tracking the story for us. what's going on, renee? >> wolf, i can tell you that the maker of the potentially dangerous air bags is standing its ground saying a nationwide recall is unnecessary. until now, 8 million vehicles had been flagged, but the recall was limited to hot and humid

states, but when a driver outside that region in north carolina was injured, everything changed. safety regulators are now concerned about tens of millions of cars on the road tonight. >> u.s. safety regulators say millions of additional cars on the road right now could have potentially deadly air bags. the nationwide recall of driver side air bags made by japanese company tokata include ford, honda, chrysler, mazda and bmw vehicles manufactured before 2008. one car's safety group estimates that could impact as many as 25 million cars on the road. >> the record right now is 25 million vehicles in a single recall and if we go over 25 million vehicles we will have an all-time record. that's not a badge of honor. that's a badge of shame. >> the problem occurs when the air bag is deployed.

instead of protecting the driver and passengers, the air bag inflator can rupture, sending metal flying and that's what cory said happened when he crashed his 2001 honda civic near orlando in may. cory now only has vision in one eye. >> the car stalled. he fsz in a fender bender and should have walked away and instead the air bag exploded and sent a 3.5-inch piece of steel into his face taking out one of his eyes and now he's horribly disfigured, unfortunately. rich newsom filed a lawsuit against honda and takata on burdick's behalf. most people don't expect that they'll be blinded or killed by a police of exploding metal. >> the air bag manufacturer says they're cooperating with federal authorities, but the company is resisting a nationwide recall. in a statement, takata tells cnn

it's concerned a nationwide recall could potentially divert replacement air bags from where they're needed putting lives at risk. it favors a regional recall focusing on states with high humidity. takata says humidity triggers the defect. for cory burdick who survived his injuries is about holding manufacturers accountable, to prevent another injury or even death. >> what would really be great is for the manufacturers to come together and say, you know, we need to fix this broken system. we need to do a better job about telling people when there is a potentially deadly defect. >> since this expanded recall was just announced yesterday, the agency is still working with manufacturers to determine the exact models affected by this nationwide recall. in the meantime, safety experts suggest not sitting too close to the steering wheel. if you have passengers and no one is going so far as not to

drive your car and it will take a couple of days before manufacturers get all of the information out to nhtsa. what they're suggesting is download the smarter car, the safer car app on your smartphone and you will immediately be alerted if your car is impacted. >> just drive carefully, never text while you're driving and that's a huge problem out there right now. thank you very much for the report. officials are ruling hannah graham's death a homicide. we're awaiting new information from the medical examiner and what the ruling now means for the suspect jesse matthew.

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prosecutors are weighing a murder charge against jesse matthew as police rule the death of the university of virginia student hannah graham a homicide. let's get the latest. joining us, investigative journalist. as you know, the medical examiner confirmed hannah graham was the victim of what's called homicidal violence. explain to viewers potentially what this means for matthew, for the entire case. >> wolf, this news is i have to tell you personally when i heard this, it's devastating. it is horrific to think that what we have all suspected, what we've all sort of secretly believed might have happened the night hannah graham disappeared, we now know for certain that the worst happened. that her last moments were at the hands of a sickening monster.

and the top forensic scientist in virginia at the medical examiner's office in richmond, what they've done is they looked at the remains of hannah graham, which we understand were mostly skeletal remains and clothing. they looked at the remains and have concluded that in fact there is evidence of homicide. so from a prosecution standpoint, this is, and i hate to say this, this is welcome news, but only in the context of a search for justice for the death of hannah graham. this can then be used in court and we can absolutely expect capital murder charges in the case of hannah graham against jesse matthew. >> he's already been accused of one abduction. now it could go a step further, if you will. the medical examiner's report, all of the information they're still holding, they're not making a lot of it public. >> that's a great point, wolf. let's take a moment to underscore that.

the medical examiner's office has confirmed publicly that they know based on the autopsy and the study of hannah's remains, they know how hannah died. but that's all they've said. and they've said this is a death of homicide, that she died at someone's hands. but they are not releasing the specific forensic evidence that led them to that conclusion. frankly the reason could be that that is evidence, evidence that a prosecutor will use in court at some point, and we would expect that the case in fair fax would move forward once that has been resolved. you can absolutely expect capital murder charges here in central virginia in the case of hannah graham. >> thanks very much for joining us with the latest on the hannah graham tragedy. coming up, isis claims responsibility for a rare attack

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happening now, suicide attack. did isis hope to kill americans in a deadly car bombing in iraq? i ask the state department deputy spokeswoman. deadly storm. six feet of snow and counting. parts of new york state paralyzed. the nation is bracing for a second run of record breaking cold. decision day in ferguson, missouri. will the streets turn into a combat zone again? details on the grand jury announcement that could trigger violence. the president's big reveal, he is about to share his plans to change the nation's immigration system on his own and start a new fight with republicans in congress. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." let's get right to breaking

news. an official says isis is behind a deadly suicide car bombing in a city that's been relatively secure until now. the terror group on the attack near a key base for american forces, even as new u.s. led air strikes target isis fighters. 30 attacks have been launched in the past 72 hours in iraq and syria. by the way, we're getting new information about the war against isis and the threat to americans. the state department's deputy spokeswoman is standing by, along with our correspondents, our analysts, they're covering all the stories that are breaking right now. first, to our chief national security correspondent jim sciutto with the latest. >> wolf, what's concerning, it is wealthier, more organized there, and it is safer. and in large part because of that very fact, there are 75 u.s. military advisers based there, some 200 diplomats, many more american businessmen, and

officials that travel there. perhaps it is a base for kurdish forces fighting along sides the u.s. against isis. today, isis demonstrated its ability to penetrate some of the best security in the country. it has been an oasis of relative security in war torn iraq. today, isis brought terror to the streets. a suicide car bomb detonating a building, killing at least four, wounding another 29. the kurdish strong hold is one of two main bases for advisers in iraq, the site of a visit earlier by the joint chiefs chairman, martin dempsey. today, general dempsey acknowledged the u.s. strategy for fighting isis is under constant review. >> we have a strategy, but here is what i'll tell you about that strategy, it is going to change. it is going to change often.

the objective is not going to change, but i am not obsessing about what's in the middle because the middle is going to change. >> the latest violent video showing the death of american peter kassig is yielding new clues. french authorities identified two citizens as among the fighters seen slaughtering a dozen men, described as syrian military pilots. already hundreds of westerners, including a dozen americans, are known to have joined isis or attempted to. the group's remarkable recruiting overseas so far uninterrupted by the u.s. led war. >> they could be from any background, from any ethnic origin. but they easily can be brainwashed into becoming converts, and this is a very important matter. we must be vigilant. >> president obama has so far failed to seek new congressional authority to defeat isis. questioned by senators, at his

confirmation hearing, tony bling ensaid they would introduce legislation if it can pass congress. >> we would like to have a targeted focus to uff that deals with the challenge before us which is defeating isil. if we can get an aumf that gets broad support, there's no question we will be better off. >> regarding the bombing, a senior official says we have no information to indicate u.s. personnel were being specifically targeted in this attack. and as a matter of reference, the u.s. consulate some two and a half miles from the location of the bombing today. the real concern is isis's capability. it showed it could strike with regularity in baghdad and now there as well. >> the view from the ground in this war against isis. let's go to our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh near the border of syria and turkey. what's the latest?

>> reporter: wolf, as far as the attack, we know four were killed as a suicide car bomber attempted to get near the government. officials say 29 people were injured, among the dead, police officers who saw this vehicle try and approach the government's gate. they opened fire and lost their lives in the explosion, sending shock waves literally and emotionally in a city which has been not immune to violence but certainly significantly more prosperous, different from the front line, an hour's drive away. a lot more violence incur cook where in the last 24 hours have been a lot of air strikes against isis. this blast making many concerned that isis may have a new capability to penetrate in the more secure areas, the curds and peshmerga have in northern iraq. >> the fighting is continuing not far from where you are.

u.s. retired general john allen is the man in charge of coordinating this against isis. he was in turkey today. what can you tell us about that visit? >> reporter: a somewhat brief visit in the capital, meeting comparatively lower level foreign ministry officials, and turkish foreign ministry announced he went on to brussels, the next stop on his trip. the backdrop to the visit, we don't know precisely what's on the table. certainly the u.s. is keen to get its hands on more facilities in the southern turkish area. it came as president erdogan said turkey wasn't going to budge on the contribution against isis unless its conditions were less. they want the focus less isis, more about the solution, in the eyes of turkey with the president removing it, but also

establish ago no fly zone in north of syria. that's a key thing turkey wants to allow some refugees back in, to slow what they see as slaughter of civilians in northern syria, and give them effectively a security buffer zone before the turkish border is increasingly volatile month by month. >> nick peyton walsh on the scene, thank you. representatives of the obama administration are involved in critical talks overz on the war on isis, and iran's nuclear program at the same time. the deputy spokeswoman for the state department joins us from austria. i want to get to all those issues. based on everything you know, are american diplomats, military personnel, other american businessmen and women specifically being targeted by isis in irbil? >> wolf, we have no information

to suggest the horrific attack was aimed at american personnel. obviously we know this is a very tough security situation. we know americans there have been targeted by isil. all you have to do is mention that awful video of peter kassig's murder. in this attack, no information american personnel were the target. >> are you beefing up security for american diplomats in irbil? >> safe to say we have a high level of security at our facilities in iraq, basra, baghdad, we are always looking to do more, but it is very, very high. >> general allen was in turkey today. the u.s. had a pretty difficult time getting turkey and nato ally on board. based on reports you're receiving, did general allen make progress with turkish officials today? >> general allen had a very

productive set of discussions today, this is an on-going conversation with the turks about what they can do. they already played a role if you look at the human side. we will keep having the conversation about what more they can do. obviously they make their own decisions but they're more effected by the crisis given their geography. we will keep having the conversation with them. >> they would like the u.s. and other coalition partners to use air bases in turkey. any progress convincing the turks to let the u.s. use the air bases to launch strikes against isis targets in syria? >> well, as i said, the conversation continues on a variety of fronts about what more turkey can do, how more we can work together in terms of this fight against isil. suffice to say, we have the military resources we need, we're confident in that, we will keep having the conversation about what additional ways we can work together. >> on the terror attack

yesterday morning at the jerusalem synagogue, we know the secretary of state, john kerry, your boss, urged the president to issue condemnation. the israelis say that didn't go far enough. were you satisfied with what the president of the palestinian authority said in reaction to the murder of the rabbis at the synagogue? >> well, you're absolutely right, this was a horrific murder we saw yesterday happen, including with some unfortunately american citizens that were targets of this. we've called on all sides, on the pa, on president abbas and the israelis to take steps to tone down rhetoric, reduce tensions, restore calm. that's the best path forward and all sides need to do that. >> were you satisfied with that condemnation? >> we're continuing to have the conversations with the palestinians and israelis. secretary kerry has been in

contact with different parties in the past few hours today about this issue. so we'll keep having the conversation. no one statement is enough. this needs to be a consistent effort by leaders on all sides to reduce tensions. the scenes in the last 24 hours are horrific, unacceptable, and that is not what needs to continue happening. >> what do you want the israelis to do, you want them to calm down. what do you want them to do? well, it is some of the things you heard secretary kerry and all of us talk about over the past week or so, a couple weeks since tensions have really flared, particularly around holy sites in jerusalem. we need leaders to stand up and take steps to reduce calm, not take steps to further tensions. we know what some of those are, we asked them not to do that, it is in the best interest of their people to do everything they can to take the temperature down to try to prevent things like we

saw yesterday. >> be specific. what should the israel government do in the aftermath of the terror attack yesterday? >> well, we have these conversations privately, wolf, about what we think they should do. prime minister netanyahu and his government have responsibility for their people and they will take the steps they think are necessary to protect their people, but we don't want any side taking steps, even though sometimes in the aftermath of these kind of horrific events, these are steps people want to take, to increase tension. the opposite is what needs to happen. we'll have those conversations privately about what those steps should or shouldn't be. >> are you okay with the israelis destroying, blowing up the homes of the two terrorists that killed the rabbis? >> well, in general, we don't condone that as a positive step that contributes to reducing tensions. they make their own decisions about actions.

in general, this doesn't help contribute to reduction intention. >> the secretary is over there, may be there as we speak. monday is the deadline for the members of the u.n. security council in germany to reach a deal with iran on its nuclear program. are you close to a deal or not so close? >> well, wolf, the secretary will be coming to vienna later this week. he's not here yet. our negotiating team has been here for the past two days. to be quite frank, the discussions have been very tough and they have been very serious, very direct. iran has said it does not want a nuclear weapon, and just technically speaking if that's true, that's not a hard thing to prove. all we're asking them to do is take ved believe, verifiable actions to prove it. there's still significant gaps that remain. i don't ever say i'm optimistic. i am realistic about the fact we can still get this done, but a lot of work still remains and as you mentioned, time is pretty

short here. >> you could do an extension, keep it going a few more months, right? >> well, we are focused on the 24th. we have been negotiating now for a year. you remember last year at this time when we concluded the joint plan of action, again, if you want to prove your program is peaceful, it is not a difficult thing to do. what we are focused on in the room is not taking more time, not an extension, it is seeing if in the time left we can get this done and see if we can get to an agreement. that's our focus. >> the deadline being monday. thanks very much. we will stay in touch with you as well. breaking news coming up next. we're just learning of another death blamed on epic snowfall gripping the united states. some areas are buried under six feet of snow in new york state. and cnn is learning new information about the timing of the ferguson, missouri grand jury decision. will the officer, police officer, darren wilson be charged in the death of michael

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into trucks. they're lining up like a conveyer built, they're going to be loaded and they'll haul the snow out. this is essential. it is the only way people will get around. they had a break, looks like that break is over. as buffalo tries to dig out from an avalanche of snow, even more is on the way. the lake effect blizzard hammered areas dropping nearly six feet. yes. feet. >> i believe when all is said and done, this snowfall may break all sorts of records. >> reporter: the 42 square miles of buffalo, only 10 were impacted. they're overwhelmed with snow the likes of which maybe never have seen before. the impact so specific to south buffalo, even the airport three miles away got only six and a half inches. a break in weather wednesday allowed emergency crews to start the big dig. more snow expected into friday,

which could add a couple more feet on top of what they already have. >> please, do not be fooled by the beautiful sunshine. there's still tremendous amounts of snow on the ground in south buffalo. >> reporter: driving bans are still in effect in south buffalo, including the niagara university basketball team that was stuck on i-90 for 24 hours, that team was finally rescued. calls keep coming in from those still stranded, in many cases rescues like this one last night were carried out on foot. >> since 6:00 a.m., we have 12 new calls. those people now should be okay, but officers last night were responding on foot. >> reporter: ems and firefighters are depending on volunteers with snowmobiles to get in the hardest-hit areas. the death toll has climbed to six. some from cardiac arrest shoveling and others trapped in

the snow. one of the biggest struggles, simply clearing streets. ploys aren't enough. they need front end loaders, hauling the snow using hundreds of dump trucks. rescuers from as far as nevada contacted buffalo officials to offer help, the city says its most urgent need is for anything that can dig up and haul away the seemingly unending mountain of snow. one of the very interesting things about the storm, wolf, is that it has been so specific to a certain area. south buffalo. in other words, the major downtown area for the most part is clear. they had some snow, but they're functioning just fine. it is areas like this that have just been inundated, and it is equipment like this, that's the shovel you need in this incredible kind of snow, wolf. >> buffalo doesn't know how to deal and the equipment

underscores that. brian todd is in the middle of the snow emergency. south of buffalo, right? >> reporter: that's right, wolf, here where the snow is coming down again. this is round two of the snow event. it is more than an event. it is historic, as we have been talking about all day long. authorities just announced seventh person died from the snowstorm. an elderly man with a previous heart condition aggravated by the snowstorms died at an urgent care facility because he couldn't get to a hospital. show you what we are talking about. this is what more than five feet of snow looks like. comes to my neck, a drift in front of a house here on bore ton road. accumulations are even higher than this, places in the buffalo area. here is a big problem, abandoned cars on the roads. you have an abandoned car here, luckily this is off to the side. another one over here. a loft the time they leave these

smack dab in the middle of the roads, you can see how narrow this is. it causes nightmares for first responders that have to try to plow around them or move them to get to people in an emergency. that's why the driving ban is still on tonight and it will remain in effect through tomorrow and friday. but a lot of people here, a lot that are used to snow are still coming out because they want to see it and think they can handle it. a lot of people are getting stuck, they want people to stay inside and don't necessarily try to shovel. what a lot of people try to shovel in stages. a foot comes down, try to get it out of the way. a lot of the time, they're getting exhausted. they say wait, there is warmer weather coming, it will melt. >> brian todd on the scene. more snow is coming before better weather arrives. so the people there are going to

have a problem the next several days. brian, thank you. breaking news just ahead, the ferguson, missouri grand jury report, awaiting a decision on charging the police officer, darren wilson, in the shooting death of michael brown, a decision could be reached soon. stay with us. sheila! you see this ball control? you see this right? it's 80% confidence and 64% knee brace. that's more... shh... i know that's more than 100%. but that's what winners give.

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following breaking news in the michael brown police case. sources tell cnn the grand jury investigating the shooting could decide as early as friday whether to charge the police officer, darren wilson. our justice report, evan perez broke the news first here on cnn, joins us from clayton, missouri. also joining us, community activist, gone gas kin, don lemon, and st. louis alderman, evan french. let me begin with you, your sources on the ground, say a grand jury decision could come as early as friday. tell us what you know. >> that's right, wolf. looks like friday is a big day at the county prosecutor's office behind me. the plan is for the grand jury to return to reconvene here friday. the prosecutors will present some more evidence to them, and then they begin some deliberations. we expect that the decision will come pretty soon after that. the grand jury decision will not be released immediately, however.

the prosecutors plan to keep that under wraps for 48 hours while they give some notice to law enforcement. and then make an official announcement on sunday, wolf. >> on sunday. there could be a leak, right? that's what they're worried about? >> you know, they're worried about leaks, they're worried about the people on the streets will react to leaks, even before they have a chance to make an announcement. and i have to tell you, i don't know how it won't leak out between friday and sunday, wolf. >> what are you hearing, antonio, how worried should folks there be about the grand jury decision being leaked early and the potential, assuming if there's no indictment of this police officer, the potential for some angry, angry protests that could turn violent. >> well, one, i don't think people should be worried at all. there's too much fear and anxiety going on in the community now. i think people should be calm. we've heard lots of different

rumors in the last few days and weeks about an impending announcement. so the prosecutor said that once they reach decision, he will notify school districts and law enforcement and give us 48 hours notice. when i hear official announcement from the prosecutor's office, then we'll start preparing. >> as you probably should. don, there's a website, noindictment.org set up by protesters, providing potential protest plan resources, based on the assumption the police officer wilson won't be indicted by the grand jury. the website calls for peaceful protesting, there could be something that will incite. is the community prepared for this? you spent a lot of time in ferguson. >> i think the community is prepared, and we must start giving the citizens of ferguson their due respect. and we should not underestimate their ability to understand the

situation and that they want peace. as i was there witnessing what went on on the ground, most people in ferguson, in the beginning when i was there and i said since, they want this resolved, were protesting peacefully. they just want their voices to be heard. many people that came there and were agitators, i hate to say outside agitators, such a cliché, but it is, wolf, people coming in from outside the community who don't have anything better to do and want to instigate. we should give the people of ferguson more credit. i think they know how to deal with it. >> get to john in a moment. antonio french, you wrote a letter to the missouri governor, jay nixon, appealing for mental health professionals, counselors, others for the protesters, in your words who have been victimized by police. have you received a response from the governor or his office? >> i have talked to someone from the governor's office, and will be talking the next few days to

see if some of these needs can be addressed. i think it is important to remind folks there are more than security needs going on now, there isn't a military solution to many of the problems we have here. some of them involve understanding, love, compassion, empathy. hopefully we can get some professionals on the ground who can help with some of the issues people have been going through. it has been a traumatic, trying time for all of us in the community. >> certainly has been. john gaskin, another school district released contingency plan in advance of the grand jury decision. they'll be giving law enforcement 48 hours before making it public. what other plans have you been advised? >> simply what y'all have been told. them give the public 48 hours notice, particularly law enforcement. i think it is critically important that school leaders have an opportunity to get students safely home from school, if that announcement is not made on sunday, but school district leaders have been very

proactive. they've already begun plans to communicate with parents regarding contingency plans if students have to be home more than a day, possibly a week. they're doing due diligence to be sure the students have the resources, have food and other resources they may need from being away from school an extended period of time. >> don, you know conceal carry permit applications in st. louis county where ferguson is, they're up over 50% since michael brown was killed, according to a local report. local stores telling cnn gun purchases have soared in the aftermath of the shooting. should ferguson be concerned about all of this rise in the number of guns that have been distributed, sold in recent weeks and months? >> of course they should. there's more man power on the street. the reason they should be concerned is because the training for many of the gun stores for a right to carry

concealed weapons, the training is backed up until 2015. there's a waiting list. there may be people out there who are in possession of the guns and aren't trained for it. yes, there should be some concern. but i am optimistic and hopeful that calmer, cooler minds will prevail and actions and that there won't be violence on a mass level at least except for maybe some sporadic things when this announcement is given. >> let's hope that happens the way you described it, don. you'll have more at 10:00 p.m. eastern later tonight, cnn tonight with don lemon, coming up only here on cnn. guys, thanks to all of you for joining us. we will stay on top of this the next several days. more breaking news coming up in "the situation room." an arrest at the white house by the u.s. secret service. going live to the white house for the latest.

big day? ah, the usual. moved some new cars. hauled a bunch of steel. kept the supermarket shelves stocked. made sure everyone got their latest gadgets. what's up for the next shift? ah, nothing much. just keeping the lights on. (laugh) nice. doing the big things that move an economy. see you tomorrow, mac. see you tomorrow, sam. just another day at norfolk southern.

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liberty mutual won't raise your rates due to your first accident. switch to liberty mutual insurance and you could save up to $423 dollars. call liberty mutual for a free quote today at see car insurance in a whole new light. liberty mutual insurance. let's get right to the breaking news involving once again unfortunately security over at the white house. our white house correspondent michelle kosinski is standing by. tell viewers what happened? >> reporter: this is a case of things working as they should, you can see how things could have had a different outcome. this afternoon, a 41-year-old man from iowa walked up to a uniformed secret service officer about a block from the white

house and said that someone told him in iowa to drive to the white house and he did. well, that didn't sit well with the secret service, they found his car again about a block from the white house. asked if they could search it. in the trunk found a hunting rifle and ammunition. he is accused of having an unregistered gun and other charges that could happen as well, wolf. >> at least that's over for now. unfortunately there have been other incidents at the white house, security related incidents that did not go well as our viewers know. the other breaking story, president obama's prime time address to the nation tomorrow on immigration reform. he is going to take unilateral executive -- make a decision unilaterally. what are you learning, what can we expect? >> right. before he takes this momentous executive action, he is having dinner with more than a dozen congressional leaders, all democrats. the white house said they

repeatedly had discussions with republicans but they're the ones that held up immigration reform. the white house said there are some policy points they need to lockdown, but they feel confident this action has a strong legal foundation and that it will be fully implemented. president obama finally announced his impending announcement on facebook. >> what i'm going to be laying out is the things i can do with my lawful authority as president to make the system work better, even as i continue to work with congress and encourage them to get a bipartisan comprehensive bill that can solve the problem. >> reporter: tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. on television, he will unveil his plan, likely to offer work permits, defer deportation to more than 3 million, including undocumented parents of children who are american citizens or have some legal status already, if the parents have been living in the u.s. a number of years. it could expand the same

allowances granted in 2012 to people brought here illegally as children known as dreamers. but sources believe it will not include parents of the dreamers, and is not a path to citizenship but a temporary renewable right to stay and work, leading some groups to complain the president's action won't do enough. the white house director for domestic policy said this about its scope. >> he is going to go as far as he can under the law. >> reporter: asked about that today and questioned about what legal authority the president does have, considering he himself said repeatedly he didn't have the authority to act. >> i wish i could just by pass congress and change the law myself, but that's not how democracy works. >> reporter: the white house answered differently. >> an impartial observer would conclude the president sought to maximize use of his authority to try to solve the problem. frankly, that's what i think the people of the united states expect him to do. >> reporter: infuriated by

emperor obama, overstepping his bounds. >> if he goes through with this, sticks a finger in the eye of the american people with no thought about it, other than this is what i want to do and i am going to do it, he jeopardizes the long term ability of democrats to get back in washington, d.c. >> reporter: speaker boehner said this threatens to ruin congress taking action on immigration and other things as well. the white house put the blame for ruining things squarely on the shoulders of the house speaker. >> michelle kosinski at the white house. remember, we are told he is likely to defer deportation, expand work visas, bolstering resources for border security. let's bring in dana bash and chief political analyst, gloria

borger. dana, what are you hearing from republicans on capitol hill? >> they're so happy. i'm just kidding. as you can imagine, they have been warning the president for weeks not to do this, expecting he would, now he is, as you heard in michelle's report, they're calling him everything from an emperor to dictator. the question is what are they going to do. there aren't many options. they don't want to shut down the government, they're trying to bend over backwards to avoid it while using the tools, power of the purse, maybe filing suit, trying to block the president's nominees, a combination of all those things. they're not sure how to fight back. >> as you know, the president invited democratic congressional leaders for dinner at the white house. he is going to have them on board. why not invite republicans for dinner as well? >> because i think he knows exactly what republicans would say to him, which they already said publicly, they would say it

privately, don't do this. talking to a senior administration official, i think the white house posture is put up or shut up. you guys had over a year since the senate passed its bill. you haven't done anything. we're going to put this on the table now. you know if you legislate, that supersedes any action. you look at the demographics of a democratic majority, it includes hispanic voters and it is very important to their base, it is very important to their political future, and hispanics believe the president has been sitting on his hands, waiting for republicans to act, and they're saying no more. >> is there any chance there could be another government shutdown? >> extremely, extremely small. i don't want to say no chance because i don't want you to come back and say i told you so, but i have not found anybody who is for a government shutdown, except for the conservative groups who make money off

pushing republicans to do things like shutting down the government. even the most conservative members do not think that's a good strategy. they are twisting into pretzels to figure out to use power of the purse to stop the president without shutting the government down. the way the whole -- the way the president did it isn't by congress, it is through fees, custom fees. custom agencies use fees from customs and they take that money, that's how they pay for enforcement, it is not even congress, shutting down the government won't do anything to that end. >> is there any political negative as far as the president is concerned? >> sure. this notion of the imperial presidency polled well for republicans during mid term elections, and they used it in every race, particularly after the president said it was going

to take executive action. this plays into their hands on that. the big question i have is whether these grownups can compartmentalize, say we're going to be after each other on some things, maybe a couple things we can work together on. i don't know the answer, whether this poison the well so much they may as well pack up and go home. >> thanks very much. i want to remind viewers that cnn will carry president obama's address to the nation live, full coverage, starting 8:00 p.m. eastern tomorrow night. let's talk >> governor, first of all, congratulations on your re-election. thanks very much for joining us. what is your reaction to the breaking news that the president will announce tomorrow night he is unilaterally going to use his

executive authority to change the immigration status for 3 and half, maybe 4 million people living here in the united states? >> well, wolf, i hope you move to florida. it is a lot warmer down here than the cold northeast. look, the president, it is frustrating. he hasn't secured our borders, we have a humanitarian crisis on the borders with all of the undocumented children coming over. they've sent them into states like florida without anybody telling us what to do. and now without working with congress, he's going to take executive action. we can't comment until we know exactly what we are going to do. i can't do that in florida. i work with my legislature. i don't get exactly what i want. i work with them to make the best decisions possible. i'm surprised the president doesn't want to work with congress for the benefit of all americans. >> and as you know, he's been

waiting 16 months. the senate in a bipartisan fashion did pass comprehensive immigration reform, your florida senator, marco rubio voted for it, john mccain voted for it but it has been sitting in the house of representatives for more than a year and the speaker hasn't allowed it to come up for a vote. and the president said he can't wait forever. does he have a point? >> wolf, here is what i do. if i want something to pass, i sit down with the leadership in the house and the senate and i find out what their needs are to try to come up with something that everybody is okay with, where we can get the votes to pass something. i don't sit there and say golly, you didn't pass something so i'm going to do something by myself. you sit there and find out what the needs are and the concerns of their constituents are and come up with something that fits everybody. the president need to first off secure the border and then sit down with everybody and say what can we get done.

and maybe it is a comprehensive package. that is what i do in my state. i have taxes, i've got regulations. i've done things on education. and that is why we have 650,000 more jobs. because i work with my legislature like he should work with congress, what is the most i can get done today and what is the most i can get done tomorrow. every day he should do that. >> governor, i want you to stand by. we want to continue our conversation. we'll take a quick break. much more with rick scott, the governor of florida, right after this.

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we're back with the newly re-elected governor of florida, governor rick scott. as you know, the student loan debt in the country is a huge problem. more and more americans are graduating from college with mounds and mounds of debt. the film ivory tower tackles that topic. i want to play a clip from the film that will air here tomorrow night. listen to this. >> the rise in student tuition is unsustainable. we can not continue to charge significantly more year after year after year without running into some kind of a brick wall. >> college tuition has increased more than any other good or service in the entire u.s. economy since 1978. >> earlier today i spoke with time magazine and they believe the rise in student debt nationwide could lead to the

country's next economic crisis. do you agree? >> wolf, it is a significant problem. i grew up in a very poor family. after high school i went to the navy and got the g.i. bill. but my wife and i both had to pay our own way through school. and you look at what is happening to the children today, our students, the debt they are ending up with is unsustainable. so here is what i've done. we have 23 state colleges with four-year degrees and now they have a total tuition for a four-year degrees for $10,000. i stopped the tuition increases. they were going up 15% a year in florida. i stopped that after we came in. we reduced that for the prepaid, for a newborn, from $54,000 to $27,000. i'm going to continue to hold the line on tuition and we have performance funding for universities, talking about what it costs for a degree and do you get a job when you walk out and how much money do you make and

to get the universities to focus on getting a degree and how much money will you make. >> is it worth it for everybody to get a college degree or is there a better alternative for some young people out there? >> clearly there are better alternatives but students need to understand, if you go get this degree, what is the chance you're going to get a job? what are you going to make? and what is the long-term opportunity? and so we are doing also in florida is we're giving our students that information starting as early as 7th grade. we are giving our students that information if they decide to go on, whether it is to a state college or a university or someplace else, they know what the option is. why -- what is it going to cost me? do i get a job? how much money do i make? so they can make a logical decision. it is based on a return on investment. if you are going to invest your time and money, what happens? >> governor, good to have your thoughts. thanks for joining us. we'll continue our

conversations. and once again congratulations on your re-election. tune in tomorrow night 9:00 p.m. eastern for the film ivory tower. you want to see this important documentary. that is it for me. thank you for watching. erin burnett "outfront" starts right now. "outfront" tonight, breaking news, new details on the ferguson grand jury and the prosecutor said he will publicly reveal all testimony. could some witnesses be in danger. and buffalo's deadly snowstorm. seven deaths reporting. we have a special report from buffalo. and a super model among the people accusing bill cosby. and now reports tv land has canceled cosby re-runs. can his career be saved? let's go