>> instead we gave you koalas humping. that's what we decided to do instead. >> it was not our decision. >> forgive us, folks. we just got a few numbers mixed up. we'll get it corrected. we'll get you the right piece. >> technical difficulties. live tv. what can you say? >> stay with us. all the video this hour will be accurate this hour, folks. you're in the "cnn newsroom." hello to you all. i am the blushing t.j. holmes. >> i'm all worn out. i'm betty nguyen. we'll pull this together because we have serious news to bring you. a newly leased video sheds more light on the man believed to be the suicide bomber who killed seven cia workers in afghanistan. i want you to listen very carefully as imam al balawi promises to avenge the death of a taliban leader. >> this attack will be the first

of operations against teams outside the pakistani borders. after they killed the amir of pakistan. >> cnn senior international correspondent nic robertson has been talking with the suspected bomber's family. he joins us now from amman, jordan. what can you tell us about this guy and the fact that we're seeing this videotape now? >> reporter: there are several things about it, betty. for the family, it's final confirmation that this really is their son and this is what he set out to do, and he explains it in the video. i mean, when i talked to his father, he said he was very, very sad. when i pushed him about what he thought about it, he said he was angry about the people that had done this so his son. he wouldn't be explicit, but what he meant was the intelligence agencies. he's holding them responsible for taking his son and putting him in a position where he ended up getting involved in a suicide

bombing. what we've heard in this video is a very clear warning, if you will, if the cia and the jordanian intelligence operatives that money is not going to buy off ideological people like al balawi here. he said he did this in the name of god. it's interesting, as well, this arab doctor coming from the middle east to pakistan, joining the pakistani taliban in this operation, a pakistani taliban flag operation. nevertheless, the outcome very, very deadly, and it's according to analysts here certainly going to mean a re-evaluation for intelligence operatives in the region about how they operate and how they can trust the people they're using to run down al qaeda, betty. >> along with the bombing suspect in that video, if we can pull it up for our viewers, there was another man in there, and it's important to note who he is. talk to us about him. >> reporter: yeah. he's mehsud, the head of the pakistani taliban, the ppp.

baitullah mehsud, who was killed last year, the one who al balawi says he is avenging his death. what you're looking at here is the head of a big taliban organization repeatedly perhaps as many as 20,000 loyal fighters following him, not sure that he can call on all of them at the same time, but a man heading a big taliban operation. and now it seems sort of acting really in concert with al qaeda. almost as sort of a front operation for al qaeda, getting operatives like dr. al balawi to the front lines and then putting them on target that al qaeda wants to hit, betty. >> cnn's nic robertson joining us live today. thank you so much for that information. well, the man who allegedly triggered sunday's vok at the newark, new jersey, airport has now been arrested. you're seeing video port authority police with haisong jiang, last night in piscataway. police say he caused an

hours-long delay of the terminal, shutdown of that terminal, rescreening for thousands of passengers had to take place. he's been charged with defiant trespassing, was released from police custody early this morning. in the video you see him deep under and greet a woman. his roommate actually tells the press that he was just anxious to see his girlfriend, just give her a hug and a kiss, simple as that, but still got him arrested and he could be fined up to $500. the 23-year-old nigerian accused of trying to blow up a flight to detroit made his first court appearance on friday. cnn's deborah feyerick has the latest on umar farouk abdulmutallab. >> reporter: abdulmutallab waking today in a small michigan jail cell. yesterday he was here at the federal court in detroit. he entered the courtroom very slowly surrounded by u.s. marshals. he was walking with some difficulty. the alleged suicide bomber had

suffered second- and third-degree wounds self-inflicted after detonating that device on board the plane. now, his feet were shackled. he appeared thin, almost frail. his lawyer entered a plea of not guilty for the 23-year-old nigerian grad student. the judge asked whether he'd taken any medications within the last 24 hours. he did reply that, yes, he was taking pain medication. his lawyer says despite that he does understand the charges against him. those include attempting to destroy that u.s. jetliner and kill all 290 people on board the plane. now, the hearing took just a couple of minutes. when it was over again he was l led out of that courtroom surrounded by u.s. marshals. his lawyer did not fight the detention, although the judge said she does have the option to revisit it at a later date. abdulmutallab's long journey from ghana and yemen, nigeria then amsterdam in the u.s. and

now in a blaze of glory he thought it would but in a small michigan jail cell. deborah feyerick, cnn, detroit, michigan. all right. oh, you see this time and time again. you listen to that crunch there. but the snow and the black ice still affecting a lot of folks, especially here in atlanta. this is where some of this video is coming from. that black ice is still around, and they call it that for a reason. it's ice, it's black, and you can't see it driving out there. these are insurance seminars on the roadways, people call them. it's knifing its way through the florida crops. farmers struggling to save their crops down there. also the deadly arctic blast gripping so much of the nation blamed for at least nine deaths. windchills in many areas are well below that freezing mark. >> all right. so we're going to get any kind of a warm-up sometime soon? our bonnie schneider is in the cnn weather center tracking all the cold temperatures out there. much of the nation is looking to

you saying can i get some relief? >> i'm so happy i'm the one who gets to say it. >> bearer of goods news. >> finally. all week long, though, my weather colleagues have been telling you that this cold is just going to keep on coming, and it is because we still have it through the weekend. but monday and tuesday and wednesday you will see relief, just not this morning. check out the record low temperatures in aberdeen, south dakota, negative 31. that's not the windchill factor. that's the actual temperature. it plummeted that far down below zero. waco, texas, eight 8 degrees. it's been 20 years since waco, texas, has dropped down into the single digits. incredible numbers across much of the region and we're still tracking, of course, some very chilly conditions there, as well. we've also been watching the weather in florida. just to let you though that we are looking at snow that's accumulated not even on the windshield. this is from green eyed gem on twitter. it looks like it's sand on a wind cheeld but it's actually

snow. snow in ocala, florida. it's been cold in orlando, florida, no snow there but in florida we've had some sleet. look how cold it is. there's actually a half marathon happening right now in orlando. we're expecting the marathon to bring 55,000 runners and yes, we are looking at very cold conditions there across the region. so some very cold temperatures in florida. sleet now has subsided in daytona beach, but we did have reports of it earlier on. orlando, the temperature is about 37 degrees but relief is coming in the terms of warmer air. it's frigid right now, but here's the relief. monday and tuesday, less cold, all this warm air will start to slide to the east and we will see changes for the better. i'll have more coming up. >> all right, bonnie. looking forward to that. thank you. >> sure. you know we go the extra mile to make sure you're well informed of the news of the day. >> every single day. every single day. sometimes you have to go this far. sometimes -- >> do you really? >> it hurts sometimes, betty. the news can hurt.

>> in more ways than one. [ male announcer ] welcome to the now network, population 49 million. right now 1.2 million people are on sprint mobile broadband. 31 are streaming a sales conference from the road. 154 are tracking shipments on a train. 33 are iming on a ferry. and 1300 are secretly checking email on vacation. that's happening now. america's most dependable 3g network. bringing you the first and only wireless 4g network. right now get a free 3g/4g device for your laptop. sprint. the now network. deaf, hard-of-hearing and people with speech disabilitie.

only alka-seltzer relieves your upset stomach, heartburn, indigestion and headache... so you're good to go in the morning. you're late. alka-seltzer brings you back.

all right. sometimes you just got to see it to believe it. a reporter out in oregon throwing caution to the wind, literally, to tell her story. >> her name is kelie chalmers. she was out there with her tv crew trying to report on the wind.

and the wind became the star of the show. take a look. >> sustained winds blowing 60 to 70 miles per hour out here. the windchill, it is just painful. >> and there's the tumble. all right. >> they both went down. >> wind, one, reporter, zero. no. everybody's fine. good note here that no real reports of damage and no injuries at all with all that wind. >> so wild. i mean, couldn't you tell just by -- i mean, look, hey, i'm in the business. i get it, too. but couldn't you look out the window and see that the trees are blowing, it's awfully windy out there? >> she's trying to bring the viewers into -- >> i understand. >> give them an idea of what it's like. >> look where it got her. she's okay, though. good job. hey, you made cnn. right? >> right. >> there you go. wind there, the bitter cold also rearing its ugly head in a lot of places.

icy tentacles if you will on so much of the nation. it's been deadly in some places, including in the deep south. people simply aren't used to dealing with all this cold weather. homeless shelters also trying to help out here, as well. they have been busier. our catherine callaway is at one, the gateway shelter in atlanta. we talked to you a little earlier, and no doubt they're a little busier than they have been. >> reporter: yeah. e h we had the breakfast crowd, but believe it or not, most of the people haven't left. what the director told me earlier was usually they eat, they come, and they go, but they're staying and they're trying to take advantage of that opportunity by getting some of these homeless people into the programs that they offer here. and we spoke with one individual whose name is andre hall. he goes by "soldier." he was homeless about a year and a half ago. they were able to eventually get him his own place. unfortunately this cold weather, t.j., his pipes busted, his water pipes busted, and he found

himself back here this week to try and stay warm. and he says it's a good place to come, though, because there are so many programs to help the homeless. listen to what he had to say. >> all type of opportunities start here. just got to reach out and grab it. so you can't just come and sit down. you have to reach out for it, you know. reach out, or you'll never get it. >> reporter: and there are programs here to get people back. >> yes, there is. >> reporter: helped you, didn't it? >> yes. >> reporter: yeah. they helped him, help him find his own home. we're hoping that the pipes will be repaired soon and he'll be able to move back into his home, but he's looking for a job and he thinks he may have found someone to help him. while he was here, he ran into a city councilman in atlanta whose name is kwanzaa hall, and he's joining me now. interesting man, soldier, says he wants to be, what, a bodyguard? >> yes. he was actually a bouncer at a nightclub in new york for many, many years. and i think with all the night

life we have here in atlanta we should definitely be able to find an opportunity for him here in the city. >> reporter: so many stories like soldier here, so many opportunities out there that we'd like to connect people to. when you come here, do you find that there are things that you can do to help some of these people? >> absolutely. and it encourages me to want to redouble our efforts. we really need to continue to work together, bring more people to do things right to help the citizens here who want to get on their feet. >> reporter: and before we leave, we'll show you some of the volunteers councilman hall brought in from a collaboration effort with the university of wisconsin. these young people you see in the green bandannas are here volunteering. they were here for another program, but the cold weather actually -- they had to cancel. they were here for a habitat for humanity program and they're now here helping with some of the families playing with the children, talking with the mothers, and it has been a

moving sight to see today, the interaction between these young people and some of the children here, t.j. >> you know, you're absolutely right. you look at most of those folks and see them interacting there, doesn't look like they have a problem or a care in the world. if nothing else, fellowship. catherine callaway, we appreciate you this morning, again from the gateway center in atlanta. thanks so much. you know, you wouldn't think of the economy as being a laughing matter, not at this point, but josh levs has a story of a guy who has turned the recession into a stand-up routine. what's so funny about this, josh? people go wild over it. he's calling himself the first ever stand-up economist. he is this new comedian on the scene. we'll show you what he's saying that's getting crowds into hysterics.

imagine... one scooter or power chair that could improve your mobility and your life. one medicare benefit that, with private insurance, may entitle you to pay little to nothing to own it. one company that can make it all happen... your power chair will be paid in full. the scooter store. hi i'm dan weston. we're experts at getting you the scooter or power chair you need. in fact, if we pre-qualify you for medicare reimbursement and medicare denies your claim, we'll give you your new power chair or scooter free. i didn't pay a penny out of pocket for my power chair. with help from the scooter store, medicare and my insurance covered it all. call the scooter store for free information today.

call the number on your screen for free information.

some of our top stories this morning. we're seeing a video we're just getting a look at this morning. what you're seeing here is the man on the right side of the screen there. his name is imam al balawi. he's the jordanian doctor accused in that suicide attack on cia employees and contractors that happened last month in afghanistan. seven cia employees were killed

along with a jordanian. again, we're just getting a look at this morning. he talked about a motive in this video, talking about revenge essentially for the killing of a top taliban leader in pakistan. he also said that his faith cannot be bought. that's a reference apparently to the u.s. and jordanian intelligence agencies courting him as an informant. funeral arrangements are being made for the mother of vice president joe biden who died yesterday after a brief illness. catherine y catherine passed away at her home in greenville, delaware weather family by her side. more of our top stories in just 20 minutes. health care reform by next month, maybe? could be ready for president obama's signature if he gets his way. >> what still needs to happen, though, a big question there. our deputy political director paul stain haw paul stein hauser is taking a

look at that. betty and t.j., working on two different health care reform bills merging into one. president obama talked with the top four democrats in congress this wast past week. in the next few days he meets with the entire house democratic delegation, so expect the white house to stay very involved in the health care talks. congressional democrats would love to have a finished and approved bill by the time the president gives his state of the union address early next month. that could be you have tough be two bills have a lot of important differences to overcome. rather than the traditional route of a committee, congressional democrats are going it alone. they say they're doing that to prevent republicans from using parliamentary rules to slow down the final drive for passage. republicans are crying foul, and they're backing a push by c-span to allow cameras in any negotiations. they point out that presidential candidate barack obama promised to have such important negotiations televised on c-span. >> well, what we will do is

we'll have the negotiations televised on c-span so people can see who is making arguments on behalf of their constituents and who are making arguments on behalf of the drug companies or the insurance companies. >> while democrats don't appear to be taking c-span up on their offer, they do say the entire process has been transparent, and they add that whatever's agreed upon behind closed doors will be made public. if or when the democrats come to agreement, both chambers then have to vote again on the combined bill before it makes its way to the white house. and even the if the bill becomes a law next month, the fight over health care is far from over. some republicans say parts of the bill are unconstitutional and they are threatening legal challenges in court. and expect the bill or law to be a very big issue in this year's crucial midterm elections. betty, t.j.? >> and we appreciate as always our paul steinhauser. don't forget the dolans will be the guests today as they are every saturday at 2:00. >> they'll tell you how health

care reform could affect your family budget. join fredricka whitfield on cnn with the dolans. we told you -- or if we did if the economy was hilarious, you'd probably grab the remote and click because there's nothing funny about people being without a job. >> not at all, but someone has found a humor in this all, a stand-up comedian who's turned business into comedy gold. josh levs to tell us and introduce us to this guy. >> explain how the recession is funmn funny. it's interesting. sometimes you have to find a laugh out of it. what do you do if you have this love and skill for standup comedy and an understanding of all the complexities of what's going on in our economy? you smush them together into a surprising and successful package. >> due to the recession, americans are eating cheap, unhealthy, fatty foods. >> reporter: sure the late-night kings can joke about the economy. >> so apparently the recession started in 1957. >> reporter: but who can do this? >> you might be an economist if

you're an expert on money and you dress like a flood victim. if you refuse to sell your children because you think they might be worth more later, you might be an economist. >> reporter: the ph.d. declares himself the first and only stand-up economist. while his fellow number crunchers have been busy processing the effects of the recession, he shows up at meetings and conventions to lighten the mood. >> my father said you can't be a stand-up economist. there's no demand. >> reporter: how did you start doing this? >> while i was in graduate school i wrote a parody of an economics textbook and started performing it live and one thing led to another. it just kind of developed. >> i only have a couple things going for me as a stand-up economist. one of them is low expectations. it takes a little bit to loosen up and it's hard sometimes because they don't drink a whole lot, necessarily. >> reporter: right. >> so that's another

disadvantage. but you try. and, you know, because they don't get so many opportunities to laugh i think it's easier to make them laugh once you try. economists are people who are wrong about specific things. >> reporter: his shtick can also help make fun and sense of economics for the rest of us. >> all have the exact same translation, namely blah, blah, blah. you remember jokes a lot longer than you remember diagrams, equations, lectures. >> reporter: that's why his new book "the cartoon introduction to economics" is packed with his kind of humor. >> economists go into chinese restaurants and open their fortune cookies around instead of "in bed" at the end, they put "at the margin." i throw stuff out and eventually you'll find something that sticks, like what the treasury department has been doing the last year and a half or so. keep trying things until you find something that works.

>> reporter: he isn't afraid of bombing on stage. >> people always ask me if i'm afraid of failure. i'm like, afraid of failure? i used to teach introductory microeconomics at 8:00 in the morning. in walla walla, washington. if i do comedy and half the audience is still awake at the end, i'm, like, yeah, i killed. i killed them. >> we put a story online about him and we've been hearing from so many people around the country that said they want to book him. in the middle of all the struggle, it's nice to find someone who can make everybody laugh. you can see more of his routines and more of the interview. you can hopefully find a smile for yourself amid all the economic struggles we've all been facing as a country. that's how this one guy managed to do the unlikely, blend these two worlds. >> i guess it can be funny. >> it's something. >> okay. he's making a living at it, not

doing too bad at it. >> he said it's a significant minority of his income right now but it's growing and more and more places want to book him. we met him at a convention of 8,000 people. he's getting more gigs. >> a significant minority of his income. >> economic terminology. >> nice. thank you, josh. >> you got it, guys. well, some not really concerned about your privacy. airports now ready to use body scanners for a much closer look at passengers but not just for increased security. ner bell chi] high quality ingredients like wild alaskan salmon in a delicate broth, without by-products or fillers. fancy feast appetizers. celebrate the moment. and it's all right here. of different stuff from her. fancy feast appetizers. everything sent to you organized by the person who sent it. the droid eris. the droid that's as connected as you. exclusively at verizon wireless.

we got some new developments this morning, that cia suicide bomber story. here are the new images we got this morning, a a new video emerging show the suspected bomber promising to avenge the death of a taliban leader with an attack. seven cia workers were killed in last week's attack on a u.s. base in afghanistan.

on this tape, imam al balawi says we can't forget the blood of our leader and also says, quote, his faith cannot be sold to bidders. that is believed to be the apparent message from the double agent to intelligence officials that they failed to win his allegiance. listen to al balawi as he vows revenge. >> we will never forget the blood of our leader baitullah mehsud, may god have mercy on his soul. it will remain that we take revenge for his death in america and outside america. it is a curse on every person who baitullah mehsud supported. >> baitullah mehsud is that pakistani taliban leader who was killed in an air drone attack last august. now his family not the only one -- or his family is talking, as well, not just hearing from him but his family members. al balawi's mother saying her son was actually a loner.

his wife is saying she was shocked to hear what he had done. however, she's proud of him for it. >> translator: in fact, i am proud of my husband. my husband accomplished a very big operation in such a war. if he is a martyr, may god accept his martyrdom. >> u.s. and jordanian officials say al balawi was recruited to help search for al qaeda in spite of concerns about his extremist views. the nigerian accused of trying to blow up a u.s. airliner on christmas day has pleaded not guilty. umar farouk abdulmutallab was in federal court in detroit yesterday under extremely tight security. the hearing lasted all of ten minutes. the 23-year-old faces six federal charges including attempted murder. there were 289 other people on board flight 253. some of them credited with stopping him. all right. how much of your privacy are you willing to give up in the name of safety in airports?

now, there is some new technology out there that pretty much you go through security, going to scan you and it shows everything. everything. is that worth it to you? our phil black takes a pretty revealing look in. >> reporter: manchester airport wasn't an alternative to the full-body frisk. the motivation was greater passenger comfort, not tighter security. the attempted christmas day bombing has given its body scanner trial new urgency. >> step forward, please. >> reporter: the british government has said body scanners will be rolled out at all british airports despite strong concerns over privacy. to protect his identity, we won't show you this man's face while we show you the image the machine produces. >> highlighted up. >> reporter: in a nearby room, another security staff member can see through the man's clothes. >> potentially, but if there's anything that's interesting it will show up, anything that's

metal or dense on the body i prefer them to have a closer look at outside as a localized search. i definitely want a proper look at that one. >> see what we've got. >> reporter: back at the scanner, this is how suspect areas are identified so security staff nowhere to look. >> your belt buckle is fine. will you just turn around for me and show me what you've got here? >> reporter: the airport says it's all done with privacy in mind. only one person looks at the images. they're never stored. the computer is bolted down and cameras apart from the cctv are usually forbidden in here. >> just stand yourself on the two rectangles here facing that away. >> reporter: passenger patricia gilchrist gave the scanner a try. be happy to do that at any airport? >> anytime in and out. i don't mind. as long as security is done proper. what i object is when security is not done proper. >> okay, sir. if you step out, please. >> reporter: thank you.

i have used these machines in other parts of the world and they are fast. they're not as intrusive as the full patdown. but in a room not far from here there is someone right now looking at an image of me, well, pretty much naked, and there are people in britain and across europe who still have real concerns about those images. job protection advocates believe body scanner images are so revealing they may breach britain's child pornography laws. >> well, as far as anybody under the age of 18 is concerned, it's an offense to take an indecent image of any such person and it is an offense whether or not consent is given. >> and face this direction for me. >> reporter: and there are concerns about the scanners' effecti effectiveness. british politician ben wallace used to make for a company that makes body scanners and he says they have weaknesses. >> it doesn't really matter how many scanners you have around the world. it's not going to currently pick out what is being posed by al qaeda, plastics and liquid

and chemicals. >> reporter: manchester airport carried out a body scanner test using items the christmas bomb suspect is accused of smuggling onto his flight. its assessment -- the items probably would have been detected. phil black, cnn, manchester. here are some key points of how security will be beefed up to better protect the flying public. the government will deploy another 300 full body scanners at u.s. airports this year. right now there are over 40 scattered around the country. also in the works, more bomb-sniffing dogs, more metal detectors and more technology to detect explosives. there will also be security enhancements on board airliners. hundreds of law enforcement officers will be trained as federal air shalls. he may have pled guilty but the so-called balloon boy's dad said it wasn't a hoax. it can go from a scratchy throat in the morning. to a cough. to a full body ache... at night.

new tylenol cold rapid release gels day and night work fast too. they release medicine fast to relieve painful coughs, congestion and sore throats. so you can rest, day and night. feel better, tylenol cold. and all of these. paid invoices go right here. bang! - that hasn't been paid yet. - what? - huh-uh. - all my business information is just a phone call away-- to my wife... who's not answering. announcer: there's a better way to run your business. intuit quickbooks online organizes your business in one place. it easily creates invoices and helps you stay on top of your business anytime, anywhere. this is way better. get a 30-day free trial at intuit.com.

time to check out our top stories right now. in china, a fire in a coal mine has killed 12 people. two miners were able to escape. now an initial investigation blames the fire on a short circuit of underground cables. meanwhile, though, chinese

authorities have frozen the bank accounts of five mine shareholders and they're searching for executives who have reportedly fled the scene. two men are under arrest in connection with a new york city terror plot. one of them is a cabdriver. he was arined yesterday on a charge of lying to federal agents investigating the plot. the second suspect due in court today is part of the investigation into najibullah za zazi, who is accused of planning to set off an explosive last september 11th. a federal grand jury is looking into the case of the white house party crashers, the salahis, who got into a white house dinner november without being on the guest list. "the washington post" says two hairstylists were called to testify. the salahis have already said they plead the fifth. the man who led the whole country to believe his son was trapped in a balloon that was heading right across the country it seemed, well, he is heading to jail on monday. he pleaded guilty but in his first tv interview since his sentencing richard henie told

larry king, despite what you think, what you may know, despite what you heard, it was not a hoax. >> i'm not disputing the fact that i did have to plead guilty, and when i say "have to," i had to do it so save my family and my wife. >> how so? >> the threat of deportation was imminent. >> larry: deporting who? >> my wife. >> larry: to where? >> japan. we had applied years ago for some paperwork, things got fouled up, we had to reapply. he should have been an american citizen by now, but i can't break up my family. >> okay. next hour, our legal guy, richard herman, will weigh in on the heenie's interview. could it land him in even more trouble now? more on the bitter weather. do you know where it's really bad? and when can we expect some relief? another heart attack could be lurking, waiting to strike. a heart attack caused by a clot, one that could be fatal.

but plavix helps save lives. plavix taken with other heart medicines, goes beyond what other heart medicines do alone, to provide greater protection against heart attack or stroke and even death by helping to keep blood platelets from sticking together and forming clots. ask your doctor about plavix. protection that helps save lives. people with stomach ulcers or other conditions that cause bleeding should not use plavix. taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin may increase bleeding risk, so tell your doctor when planning surgery. certain genetic factors and some medicines, such as prilosec, may affect how plavix works. tell your doctor all the medicines you take, including aspirin, especially if you've had a stroke. if fever, unexplained weakness or confusion develops, tell your doctor promptly. these may be signs of ttp, a rare but potentially life-threatening condition reported sometimes less than 2 weeks after starting plavix. other rare but serious side effects may occur. tell carl he's coming to new york with me. i thought you said carl was our best presentation guy. [ worker ] he is. just last week he told my team about fedex office print online

for our presentations. we upload it to fedex office, then they print, bind, and ship it. the presentation looks good, right? yes, but -- wait, you didn't actually bring carl with you. good morning! but i digress. [ male announcer ] we understand. you need presentations done right. fedex office print online. all right. it's cold. >> to say the least. >> we're not used to this here, especially, bonnie, in the south. maybe a little cold but mild winters. >> you can tell by as many car accidents as we've had over the past few days. >> you're right. we'll show video of that. but we have seen a lot of accidents and we've seen a lot of icy weather. i want to show you our i-report from knoxville, tennessee.

heather sent these in. beautiful, pretty pictures, she says winter wonderland outside the window of her apartment complex. okay. it is beautiful until you have to drive in it. if you've ever been in the south when there's ice, you know that the actual -- definitely the weather does not make for good conditions. all right. here's a look at what it looks like in knoxville, tennessee. you can see icy roads on beaverton road. look at the hills off in the distance. all those cars could not get down that hill or they came down terribly fast and ended up at the bottom in a heap. there's an example of some of those accidents that we are seeing across much of the south due to this tremendously treacherous weather. all right. it is still snowing and sleeting not in tennessee, not in north carolina but in florida. we have snow and sleet reported. flagler beach, just north of daytona beach, where we had sleet earlier, reporting sleet mixing with snow at times.

that's right. this is florida i'm talking about. the temperatures are cold enough to support it, but we won't see it really sticking to the ground, just causing a bit of a problem out there. temperatures tend to 30 be-degrees below normal. no doubt about that for this weekend. but luckily change is coming and it's going to bring welcome relief across the area. notice this ridge of high pressure. less cold by monday. and what that means is even though temperatures will be 5 to 10 degrees below normal in the south, we're going to see some really big changes out there from today's high temperatures in the 20s, 29 in atlanta for example, today, once we get to monday, we are going to see the changes build in all the way up to 41. and in tampa, 59. so, that is some good news. so some big changes out there. but in the meantime, florida, you are faced with snowy conditions. i think that's the first time i've ever said that. >> they do have iguanas falling off of trees there because they've gotten so cold they've gone into hibernation. who knew? >> again, we're told they're not hurt and they're fine, this is

natural. >> what a way to wake up, though. falling iguanas. if it's raining iguanas you know it's cold. thank you, bonnie. the extreme cold as salvation army to gscrambling tt shelters to the homeless. >> they delivered hot chocolate to people under a bridge and offered to drive them to a local shelter for a hot shower and a meal and a bed. that is often met with some resistance, so this time the salvation army tried a little something different. >> we decided not to hand out blankets on purpose, and because of that, we're having greater success getting them indoors today. >> we don't have enough blankets or whatever, it's just hard being out here. >> an interesting concept, interesting approach. don't give them blankets and then they will come in and get maybe more of the help they need. unlike other visits, the men and women were able to bring their stuff along to the shelter this time. a lot about the cold weather we've been talking about. been tough on a lot of folks. we can all get inside, though.

if it doesn't work for a lot of animals stuck out in the freezing temperatures. this is what betty and i were just making a reference to. it's raining iguanas.

well, you know, it's not only humans who are shivering and running for shelter in this deep freeze. cnn's john zarrella reports from florida that the apes are bundling up, the turtles are slower than ever and the

iguanas, well, check out what happens to the iguanas. >> reporter: just throw me a blanket, will you? even with all that hair, bonnie, the orangutan, waste nods time wrapping up against the cold at miami's metro zoo. her buddy, manago, sipped on a cup of hot chocolate. the tortoises, they're not too swift with their feet or their brains. >> we have to take plywood and lock them in there because they're not bright now have stay in there. they'll go out and freeze and that's it. >> reporter: in florida, the animals are no more used to this kind of cold than people. zoos are doing what they can to provide creature comforts. space heaters for the parrots and the komodo dragons. boxes for the primates. this little guy shut his own door. don't ever say dumb animals. for bee keepers in tallahassee, where the temperature has been in the teens, the only hope, save the queen.

>> as long as the queen and some of the bees make it through the winter then we're fine. >> reporter: no, you're wrong. that's not protozoa under a microsoft scope. they're manatees, manatee, 300 of them. the heating system in a power plant was turned on to warm the waters for them. sea turtles, lethargic and stunned by the cold, rescued and brought to marine life sanctuaries. nearly 100 so far. to be honest, there are some animals here in florida that just don't get and won't get any love. so how do you feel about rats? maybe a foot long? they're not crazy about the cold either. well, they're scrambling and slithering and squeezing their way into nice, warm homes. >> that kind of rat should be in new york. it shouldn't be in florida and certainly not in my apartment with my kids. >> reporter: and the iguanas. invasive species overrunning south florida. the cold weather puts them literally in a state of suspended animation.

not good when you live in a tree. florida's version of groundhog day, when the iguana falls out of the tree, six more weeks of winter. john zarrella, cnn, miami. the "newsroom" continues at the top of the hour with fredricka whitfield. it's warm enough in here none of us are falling asleep. >> nice and toasty in here. gosh, outside? >> not used to this. are we? >> a tease coming into work. >> brutal. dangerous. the whole black ice thing. gotting to careful. what are we hearing about -- okay. all right. so let's talk about richard heene. talking about him. not a hoax -- or is it? i'm confused on the whole thing, what he's saying. he talked with larry king once again as he's getting ready to carry out his sentence. this is a little bit of what he to say.

okay. i i'm getting no sound. i think it was roll sound, but it's no sound. you'ller th hear that story. and it might jeopardize the legal hurdles he may still have to encounter. our legal guys will delve into that. speaking of legal hurdle, gilbert arenas in uncharted territory, or is it? another one of those, is it cut and dry or is it not? >> trying to get that on this morning, but that's him joking about it, like he's playing like he's shooting his -- >> that's exactly what upset david stearns. commission ef of the nba. about to do something. it's one thing to find weapons or take weapons. whatever your story is. now you're jokingly, you know, pointing the finger, pulling the trigger with your teammates. not so good. so, our legal guys have an opinion or two about this as well. in this case, what's next? >> no matter what you think, what are you thinking right there? oh! >> and it's, you know, a lot at

stake. >> $1100 million. >> and possible jailtime. >> think about it before you "pull the trigger" so to speak. >> we'll see you in a second. happy new year. >> yeah. we didn't say that. launched right into it. >> i was here last week when you guy s weren't. i along with the rest of the nation watching have already celebrated new year's, but happy new year's. so glad you're here. >> many weeks in which to continue to call it the new year. so cute how you both come in saying happy new year. it's the 9th. okay. >> good to see you. well, the average need not apply. it is a website for the so-called beautiful people. and it's taking people to the curb for having too many christmas cookies. also a 5-year-old hailed as a hero. able to lead rescuers right to her door. ÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷u

all right. lots of hugs and kitses out there for a 5-year-old indiana girl credited with saving her dad's life. >> dad thought he was having a heart attack, called 911 but was too sick to finish the call. so the little girl took oesh and talked to the dispatcher. >> every time i listened to it it's amazing. she's just a little person. >> keep him awake. okay? >> okay. he really needs a doctor. >> he really needs a doctor?

>> yeah. real bad. he looks like he's real shaky. i am real shaky, too. >> they should be getting there any minute. >> okay. like, how many minutes? >> probably only a couple. >> okay. you have to stay awake. it's okay, dad. it's okay. >> oh, my goodness. >> oh, my goodness. >> wow. well, dad is in fact okay and back at work a couple days later. boy a sharp little girl. >> so cute. comforting her dad. it's okay, daddy. hold on. how many minutes until you get here? >> from that story to this one. we've all put on a few pounds, not all. some haven't. i have. but that's why we make new year's resolutions, to lose the weight. >> you look great, as always, betty. >> thank you. >> but the people at one exclusive website don't buy that excuse. they say a few extra pounds aren't aloud if you want to be considered one of their beautiful people. our beautiful jeanne moos with the story. >> reporter: imagine you're a

beautiful person, dating website called beautifulpeople, and all that holiday food was just too beautiful to resist and you gained a few pounds. >> we had over 5,000 of our newly chubby members removed from the site. >> reporter: 5,000 members dumped like a second helping in the words of the founder of beautifulpeople, letting fatties roam the site is a direct throat our business motto. >> a very ugly thing they're doing. it's hideous. >> reporter: you can only become a member of beautifulpeople with existing members of the opposite sex vote you on. ♪ you're so vain >> reporter: you probably think this website is about you. ♪ one eye in the mirror and >> reporter: maybe both eyes. that's how we began a piece we did five years ago about the site. what we need is a guinea pig. not him. me. but despite our best efforts -- >> excellent. >> reporter: the photo i submitted was rejected. i didn't stack up.

at least i'm not alone. four out of five applicants are rejected by beautifulpeople. let them eat cake. wait. better not, now that they say they're shedding beautifulpeople who packed on a few pounds. members supposedly complained when they'd meet the actual person. >> and they hadn't looked as they represented themselves in their initial pictures. >> reporter: that's a shocker. huh? >> yeah. >> our members want it to be elite. >> reporter: a plus-size model sees no pluses in this. >> if you look at beautifulpeople, anything you would like to say to the beautifulpeople? >> they all deserve each other. get a life. >> reporter: she and we wondered if it could all be just a publicity stunt. co-founder greg hodge says, no. when he looks in the mirror, he sees this, a 7.84. how do you look at yourself in the mirror every morning when this is the kind of superficial thing do you? >> is