>> thank you very much for continuing to make us the number one cable morning news show thanks to all of you. we've been doing it. hope you watch elisabeth and hemmer tonight at starting at 9:00 p.m. eastern right here. >> happy new year. >> happy new year! >> 2014! >> an investigation into a fiery derailment. a train carrying crude oil derailed, releasing toxic fumes into the air. good morning, i'm gregg jarrett in for bill hemmer. happy new year's eve to everyone out there, too. heather: i'm heather childress in for martha maccallum. a television crew caught the

explosion on tape. people living in castleton * describing what they saw. i never saw anything like this happen before here. 70 years. so it's really crazy. it was the third explosion that rattled the house and the doors and the windows were shake. scott and i came out the garage door. the flames were so high it was like it was happening behind us. heather: will, do we know what caused the crash? >> reporter: we don't know what caused the first rain to derail but we know what caused the explosive situation. check out the local news crew in north dakota. we are told that the first train

was heading east. it was pulling over 100 cars and carrying crude oil. that train derailed. the train running in the opposite direction ran into the cars carrying the oil. explosions could be heard for miles. witnesses say they could see thick black smoke for more than 50 miles. >> it was like nighttime. it was just dark. the entire sky was black. we were digging around on the side streets trying to get a close view. it was a pretty surreal feeling overall. >> reporter: luckily nobody was hurt in any of though those explosions. heather: how many people have been evacuated from casselton? >> reporter: we are told 2/3 of casselton evacuated.

authorities were concerned about the wind shifting. they were worried the thick plume of smoke to settle on top of castleton *. told the fire is still burning. they are trying to figure out when people in casselton can return home. heather: oil is big business in north dakota. almost 70% of north dakota's oil currently ships to market by rail due to the lack of sufficient pipelines to do the job. north dakota approaching 1 million barrels% day in output second only to texas and the gulf of mexico u.s. oil

production. gregg: we could soon be in for an obamacare hangover. beginning tomorrow many new even controlees may not be able -- many purchase enrollees may not be able to use their insurance. stuart varney host of varney and company, what do you think we are look at here? >> reporter: i'll give you a news item what some people think is about to happen. walgreens is offering a one-month morer toup on paying for prescription drugs. they see the confusion and chaos that's about to start. the insurers are scrambling to sign people up and confirm payments. but as of monday only half of those who had been build by insurers, only half them actually paid up.

those are figures from a billing firm. only half the people who have been build for coverage, only half of them have actually paid up. the other half presumably does not have coverage. what happens 12:01, early tomorrow morning, what happens if you have got a claim. what happen if you show up and you have not been fully confirmed as having coverage? i think there is a period of chaos and confusion coming and it starts in just a few hours. gregg: a great many people and groups wants to sue, but do not have legal standing to you until the healthcare law officially goes into effect at midnight. so, stu, let the lawsuits begin. >> reporter: they will be protracted. if you have a protracted period of lawsuits, chaos and confusion, does that inhibit

people from signing up before the end of march? it's confusion and there is no way out of it. gregg: they were doing court wheels over the fact that 1.1 million enrolled on the federal exchange. but they seem to forget that you have 6 million canceled plans. so they sphrnt quite done their math yet. >> reporter: those 1.1 million people, we don't know who they are. are they young or old? we don't know. we don't know how many of them have actually got coverage. that 1.1 million is way swheefort they -- is way short of what they were predicting. gregg: some will also discover their doctor is not on the plan. they have a high out of pocket and deductible which may mean

somebody could pay $10,000 for a plan but have a $5,000 deductible which means it's really a $15,000 plan and as one woman put it, who's got that kind of money. >> reporter: that's the out of pocket up front expense a deductible represents. you pay that off first before the deductible kicks in. gregg: it is not as the president promised a $2,500 less than what they were paying. >> reporter: you haven't got long to wait now. gregg: the health official overseeing obamacare stepping down. the administration says michelle snyder is retiring.

lawmakers have been calling for someone to be fired. it's unclear whether that resignation is linked to the botched rollout of healthcare.gov. heather: at the stroke of midnight congress will let a package of 55 popular tax breaks expire. has this ever happened before? >> reporter: lawmakers typically allow the extensions to expire every year and after a short period they review them. they pass the law retroactively meaning the thanks credit are applied to the past. individual can claim fund. the vice president and tax council for the national retail federation released the statement and it read in part, it's impossible to plan when of every year this happens. but yet business has gotten used to that. a group of lawmakers have been

pushing to simplify the tax code. heather: times of thanks breaks are we talking about? >> reporter: some of them from fairly large. you have credit for big corporations, capital investments, breaks on research and development. exemptions on financial institutions doing international business. you see teachers buying classroom supplies, the makers of electronic motorcycles and energy companies. well, they have been renewed in the past and businesses and individual find it challenging when they are planning for the future. >> there is a lot of uncertainty with people. there is a will the of indecision. the lack of regulatory tax.

now uncertainty with obamacare, what do we do and what do we not do? >> reporter: people may be asking, why is there such hesitation? it could reduce ref thank you over the coming decade. gregg: is it cold where you are? chances are the answer is yes. bitter and dangerous cold from the midwest to the northeast. heather: what will the strategy be for the president in 2014 with republicans? gregg: a new update in the case of after teenager left brain dead. >> how can you tell someone they can't see their loved one. coming to a close,

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heather: welcome back. crowds already ringing in the new year in new zealand. a beautiful fireworks display erupting from the iconic sky tower in the ski of auckland. as the clock runs out, a live look at times square. how about celebrating with bill hemmer and elisabeth hasselbeck. the party starts at 9 time eastern on the fox news channel.

gregg: this won't be as bad as it has in years past. heat will be bundle up and there will be a lot of body heat. millions of people expected. gregg: president obama ending the year on a sour note because of the botched rollout of obamacare. will he tray to work with republican lawmakers or wait until the mid-term elections. steven hayes is a writer for "the weekly standard" and fox news contributor. one of the more common criticisms of the president even from democrats is he is beyond aloof. even uncommune today -- and even uncommune today tough and he and

his staff have little or no contact with congress. is it too later on is it out of character for him. >> i think at this point the chances are very slim. particularly the republicans running the house of representatives and the republicans in the senate. you have to look back at the way he handle it after he was elected and how he handle them in his first term. after the 2010 elections, a resounding defeat for the president. rather than do what bill clinton did after his saidback in 1994 and move to the center, president obama opted to go further to left and try to demon eye the congress and announce was going to work around congress. he ran in 2012 as a proud and aggressive liberal. he demonized republicans routinely. he did that after he was

elected. ahe announced the 2013 state of the union, he filled out those details. i think that's who this president is. to expect that he would suddenly become warm and cuddly toward republican would be placing hope in front of experience. gregg: a majority of americans think the president is dishonest and untrustworthy. maybe mainly because he promised you could keep your doctor. and we now know that's untrue. senator coburn writes this in the "wall street journal." in a republic deception is destructive. without truth there can be no trust. do you think the president has i are -- do you think he has

irreparably squandered the public's trust? >> one of the things the president had is people liked him. people respected him. the public at large was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. what's interesting from that open -- from that op-ed is coburn has said in the past he likes obama and is willing to work with obama. it suggests relations with other republicans in congress are beyond repair. gregg: does he not have the skill set orca passity to govern in a democracy, steve, that is built on and demand a measure of

compromise? >> i think -- the president came in -- if you go to january 2008 he gave an interview to a nevada radio station in which he said he wanted to be a transformative president. he didn't want to be a president who played small ball like bill clinton is the example he gave. he said he wanted to do the big things. an thought way to do the big things was to govern from the left and push as aggressively on a policy agenda that would move the country to the left and worry about selling it later. the problem is the policy agenda has run into difficulty here. it's not working. the economic promises he made were five years in. we are starting to see some modest recovery now. but it's taken quite a long time. obamacare promises he had to move back on he had to break in many case. that i think is a fundamental

problem. reality is moving difficult for this president. gregg: the federal stimulus was never popular and squandered a great deal of money and obamacare speaks for itself. steve, thanks very much and happy new year's eve to you. heather: new troubles for target. the latest black eye for the bull's-eye brand spoiling the holiday for thousands of shoppers. gregg: major developments in the case of a teenager declared brain dead. a judge gave her family more time to search for help. >> jahi is moving when her mother speaks to her. [ fishing rod casting line, marching band playing ]

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gregg: attention target shoppers. 40,000 gift cards sold over the holidays were not properly activated. this is different from the massive data breach. target says customers can go to the guest services decks or call the number on the back of the card for help. but that may not help you if you sent it to your sis for christmas. heather: a reprieve for the family of a california teenager

declared brain dead after routine tonsil surgery. jahi's mother hailing the decision as an answer to her prayers. >> how can you tell people they can't come see their loved ones and this is the last time you will see them. do you know the torture when somebody tells me my child is going to die december 30 at 5:00. think if somebody told you at this time on this day your child is going to die. that's what i have been going through all week. i do not want december 30 at 5:00 to come. adam, emotions running high yesterday. >> reporter: a very emotional day. the family didn't say much throughout the day. there was a statement by jahi's

uncle but all we heard was the hospital saying there didn't seem to be a plan in place and when 5:00 came they would honor what the judge said that they would be allowed to do, turn off the life support system and take out the feeding tube and the breathing tube. just after 4:00 local time the family came downstairs. the word came that the judge extended the deadline and the mother says they are not giving up hope. >> my daughter is breathing, she moves. when i touch her she moves her whole body, her legs and shoulders. how can you say my child is dead if she responds to my voice. >> reporter: the aunts were speaking with me. they are telling me how they are in the room together and reading the letters to jahi and how this is a tough time for the family. it's tough for everybody

involved in this very difficult case. heather: what are the legal implications of this. what is next? report * the hospital believes jahi is brain dead. they call her a body. they don't say she is living. she they say if would be moved to another facility they would be accepting a dead person. take a listen to the hospital's response yesterday. >> the hospital is not at all surprised by the extension. it's not unusual for a court given these sorts of circumstances to give more time to a family like this. we are not sure it was the right judgment call, but that was the judgment call and we'll comply with it. >> reporter: the deadline looms a greek today. the hospital says they need three things. they need someone to take jahi,

they need a doctor to be with jahi and they need transportation to be set up. gregg: we put together a legal panel of fine lawyers to try to explain this, iron it out and look ahead as to what they think will happen. that's coming up. new worries for the organizers of the 2014 winter olympics as a fair of suicide bombing in return. heather: more on the fiery train derailment in north dakota. >> we heard this big bam. we ran outside and seen black smoke and orange smoke then i called mire mom right away and told her about it.

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heather: officials in north dakota expressing concern after a train carrying crude oil derailed near the town of casselton triggering several explosions. specifically that a weather shift will increase the toxins.

the towns people are being urged to get out. gregg: a broad section of the united states is seeing the coldest air as the year approaches. it's expected to get a whole lot worse. meteorologist maria molina dons her holiday hat. love that hat this morning. >> reporter: it's very cold up there in times square for new year's eve but it's even colder in canada. it's centered across portions of canada. you can see yellowknife feels like 63 degree below zero and 60 below zero in thompson. portions of the upper midwest

like in the city of fargo, the current with is 32 degree below zero. we are talking about dangerously cold temperatures. in duluth, 40 below zero as we head out the door. with advisories and watches and warnings posted as well. wind gusting up to 50 miles an hour. and that's why it does feel so cold. we'll feel like 50 degree below zero at times. i want to show you the forecast for midnight tonight. so many of you will be heading outdoors. it will stay cold across parts of the midwest. the actual temperature in minneapolis at midnight is forecast to be 1 degree. only 10 degree in chicago. in chicago you will have a clipper system moving through and that storm will be producing 6 inches of snow across portions of the midwest. so please be safe out there.

otherwise new york city the temperature will in the middle 20s and miami always on the warm side. 73 degree for the temperature at midnight. gregg, i'm sure you have heard there is a storm system headed to the northeast, and this storm could be producing lot of heavy snow thursday into friday. some parts of new england could actually pick up to a foot of snow and new york city i wouldn't rule out 6 inches. you have got to stay tuned. things could change. computer models do not agree. gregg: maria molina, thanks very much. heather: vladimir putin is vowing to work for the annihilation of terrorists in this country.

it's believed a chechen terrorist group carried out the attacks. it's causing concern for the olympics which are just weeks away. do you believe this is just a sign of things to come? >> i think there is every risk of that. i think that's why putin has strengthened security all over russia, particularly sochi. the olympics are a target. any sports events where a lot of people come together is vulnerable. we saw that in the united states where the tsarnaev * brothers used the boston marathon for their attack. going back to this region specifically so people understand.

volgograd is where these two bombing took place. it's 400 miles from where the olympics will take place along the black sea. you mentioned the security that's already in place. vladimir putin, the russian security team said they have create sad security zone 60 miles wide. how do we know terrorists are not already inside of that security zone? >> the olympics are a spread out events. you can have security in a lot of places. you can protects the venues for the ice skating. but there still will be tens of thousands of spectators all over the area. if you secure one area, if you make the skiing venue safer, it simply means other targets may end up being softer, more attractive to the terrorists, bus depots, hotels, that kind of thing. i think there is considerable

reason to be concerned. we have seen other olympics used as a venue. and terrorists see this as a way to get their message out worldwide. heather: this chechen leader also known as the russian bin laden. what do we know about his ability to lead and orchestrate attacks? >> i think that's what these volgograd attacks are meant to show. but this goes back centuries and they have been attacking in recent years in 2002, the theater hostage taking whose could you. the school attack in 2004. there is a real history of animosity here. so that's why when the entire world's attention is focused on

oh chi it's a perfect opportunity for chechens and other terrorists to use it to attack. heather: you mentioned the focus on sochi at the time. what about using that as a benefit to attack other areas. perhaps america and the united states and go into more detail about the connection or the possible connection between the tsarnaev brothers and this chechen rebel which the fbi investigated the tsarnaev brothers, specifically the older one had gone over there and perhaps had training from. >> the russians say they tipped us off to the fact that they had been trained and that training was reflected in the type of attack that was committed at the boston marathon on april 15. i think the obvious connection between sporting events where you have a lot of people in this case out on the streets, i think it's something we should show

situational awareness to in this country. tomorrow we have the biggest of the college football bowl games. we have parades out on the streets. i suspect law enforcement and even til jones are focused on the risk that chesmen terrorists might try to one up the boston bombings. heather: the super bowl coming up very soon. thank you, we appreciate your insight. gregg: the controversy on the "new york times" report on what happened in benghazi deepening after the times editorial chief defends his paper's reporting and appears to mock republicans who claim al qaeda was involved. heather: a rescue ship trying to reach a ship stuck in arctic ice. that is ahead.

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management couldn't make that happen. [ male announcer ] introducing fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex. heather: tim tebow landing a new gig off the field. he will be an analyst on the sec network. tebow out of work since the patriots cut him at the end of the preseason. and while says he's excited about his new job, he says he still hopes to have a career in the nfl, gregg. gregg: you never know. a talented guy. doubling down on benghazi. the "new york times" editorial board defending the paper's controversy report that al qaeda had nothing to do with the

benghazi terror attack. in his own couple the times editorial page editor, his name is andrew rosenthal saying this. those trying to claim al qaeda was involved were doing so strictly for political reasons. how about himself? tara is a democratic strategist. happy new year to you. katie. rosenthe critics of his reporter's story after he crucial them of being political. then in almost the same breath rosenthal goes on this political tirade in defense of democrats. does sit strike you as not only hypocritical bull also a

childish temper tantrum in print? >> i say be wary of those who say they don't play politics. the "new york times" just like everybody on the left has done everything to belittle been gassive. but the fact is there is still no accountability. he is going to go into this rants about republic cans rather than calling for accountability wondering why the terrorists who committed this attack still haven't been arrested. wondering why those at the state department who were fired are back at the state department working, the fact that he would go on the defense for democrats and attack republicans really shows they are not interested in really what happened there. gregg: rosenthal focuses on republicans in the article. he seems oblivious that there are democrats who don't believe the article.

congressman shift says there was intel involved. dianne feinstein said it was a terrorist safe tack linked to al qaeda. here what else she told "meet the press." isn't rosenthal being one-sided here? >> you are making part of the points that rosenthal made in his defense as well as the original article by the reporter. one of the points that was made is there has been a lot of confusion by democrats and republicans about al qaeda and who they are and linking them in instances when they are not involved which is dangerous for us. the larger point and the issue is i think rosenthal is upset with republicans because a lot of this has been about politicizing this issue on the part of republicans. if you look at what happened here. people died and it was an

intelligence failure. that should be the debate. how do we avoid intelligence failures in the future. how do we protect our embassies. >> reporter: the state department initially claimed this attack spread out after video protest. then the state admits there was no protest on the ground before the attack. suddenly yesterday the spokesman comes out and speaks in defense of the "times" story of. the protesters were part of the attack. it can't be all three. >> it definitely can't be all three. i refer viewers back to the testimony from the state department whistleblower gregory hicks. he was the last person to speak to ambassador stevens before he was killed. the only thing he told hillary clinton and other leaders is we are under attack. this is a planned and coordinated attack with men on the ground giving orders.

this wasn't about a video or about a protest. it was about a planned attack. this wasn't just something that happened on 9/11. let's go back throughout the entire year when the british am balances doer had two assassination attempts. consulate was bombed. it wasn't an intelligence failure. it was a failure of the state department to have more security. gregg: it was the day matt olson says this was a terrorist attack, indications al qaeda was involved. 15 days after the attack hillary clinton very draws a link. leon panetta says it's an al qaeda attack. the top intel members say the same thing. they say no evidence over a video. but rosenthal wants everybody to believe his one reporter kirkpatrick is right and all

these other officials including two branches of the u.s. government based on top intel are wrong. that's a little implausible. >> this "new york times" report is based on testimony from libyans. >> reporter: with every reason to lie. >> libyan reporters who wants stability in this country. to say this did not involved a video. facts were changing quickly every day. we have seen false news reports. but i raise the points, back in 2005, there was an article in a danish paper that led protests all over the world just like this. katie and tara good to see you both. happy new year's eve. >> reporter: new popes for a they general dairy racing champion seriously injured during a ski accident. [ indistinct conversations ]

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heather: doctors treating racing champon michael schumacher saying he's showing small signs of improvement after undergoing a second surgery. laura ingle is live from our newsroom with more on this. what is the latest on his condition? >> reporter: doctors say they can't report he's out of danger but they have gained time with the success of this second operation relieving pressure on his brain. here is what one of the doctors had to say. >> reporter: the scan showed some signs he's in relatively stable condition. that is some say there were no

signs there was worsening of the original lesions. report report he fell and struck a rock sunday while skiing on a family vacation in the french alps. he was wearing a helmet by doctors say saved his life. he was taken to a university hospital which is known to have one of france's best neurological teams. heather: what is his prognosis. >> reporter: doctors say it's too early to say whether or when they will bring him out of his induced coma. the chief neurosurgeon said the scan performed yesterday showed brawsing -- showed bruising on his brain and they say it's out of the question to evaluate whether he has suffered brain damage. he was famously aggressive on the racetrack and shared the

same intensity for recreational sports. he won 7 formula one championships. his manager says he was not traveling at hay speed and it looks like he hit a stone which catapulted him on a rock and this is a case of very, very bad luck. gregg: optimism is the word of the day. we have the numbers coming up. heather: remember this guy? the crack-smoking mayor of toronto? we'll take a look back at his story, along with the biggest scandals of 2013. >> here we are. that helps prevent the urge to smoke all day long. help prevent your cravings with nicoderm cq.

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>> fox news alert. hours to go before americans who signed up for obamacare can begin using their plans. a change at the top.

welcome to a brand new hour of the newsroom. >> a top health care official is retiring. mitchell synder is her name. she oversaw the botched rollout of the white house site. could this be the highest levelf official to be held responsible are the botched rollout? >> it looks like it at the surface, but the officials say she is retiring for personal reasons. she wanted to leave in 2012 but did chose to postpone the

retirement. >> what were her responsibilities >> she was responsibility the budget and the website. the website is doing better now. meanwhile the president agrees that the federal government doesn't get as much for its money as the private sector information technology. they can not figure out how much is being spend. >> we have asked questions about where the money is coming from,

what the success has been, the access testing of the website and the answers i received took seven months. it is like putting a check in the box without information >> they claim the health administration is making their own decisions on obamacare but the democrats fear the republicans would deny any money if they could. >> to a news alert on a race against time. terrible weather conditions making it impossible for rescue a stranded ship in antarctica. high winds forced a second attempt to rescue the ship. but there could be a new

strategy for saving the 74 passengers on board. what is the plan now? >> with the second ice breaker having to turn back, the idea is to evacuate the passengers by helicopter. they have a helicopter on board on a chinese ship. they are out there marking out a landing zone. they have to find a piece of ice that is stable enough. there they are stomping on the ice. >> this is the of december. they are preparing the

helicopter to reach us when the weather improves. >> they do have to wait for the weather to improve. that helicopter did pass through over the weekend, but there is still blizzard conditions and they expect the weather to improve within the next 12 hours. they are all packed and ready to go. they are just waiting from the word from those who operate that helicopter. >> they didn't expect to spend their new years there, but they will never forget this. >> they said everybody has been rolling with the punches and it was just a few -- it is 4 a.m.

new years day and i talked to him after their new years eve party wrapped up. campagna was shared and singing took place which they have shared with the world. [singing songs] >> they are having a good time on board. it was a locked jaw as the gentlemen said if we are here in a couple months it might be different but hopefully they will be getting off the ship. >> they might be singing a different song then. jonathan, thank you. >> my daughter said why can't they lift him out with a

helico helicopter. i said it is scary out there. >> you might land in a thin spot and the weight collapses and people fall through the ice. new time lapse video shows run of the ice breakers trying to reach the stranded ship. you can see it plowing through the ice. it fails to reach the ship eventually with tough weather conditions forcing it to give up the mission. >> russia is ramping up its measures after a pair of deadly attacks. 5200 officers were sent to the city after two bombers attacked

killing 32 people. they are creating concerns for the winter olympics. the rebels are calling for increased attacks near the games which kick off in a few weeks >> today is the deadline for syria to hand over chemical weapons will likely be missed. they group that is responsible for that says there is bad weather and logistical challenges. how close are they to meeting the deadline? >> they will miss today's milestone and this is the second effort to remove the chemical weapons from syria. the hope to is remove the most deadly by tonight including 20 tons of mustered gast.

the deal was brokered earlier this year and progress is moving slower than planned but they are moving toward the goal. the syrian government can no longer weaponize their chemical agents and this was the real test of the plan. it is moving forward. >> who is to blame for the delay? >> they are not placing the delay on any one person. they are sighting the technical issues. but the white house says it is

syria's responsible to get them ow. but if is tough to get the inspectors in and weapons out. and they have hit rough winter weather so that slowed it down. the international inspectors have stressed that overall progress is strong and there is a clear determination to reach success by all parties. this isn't the case of the regime dragging their feet. they are working with good faith to dismantle and disarm it is just taking longer. but by there end of june in 2014 syria's chemical weapons will be out and they say they can reach that deal still. >> new polls revealing how americans feel about the future

of the united states economy. >> and stunning new information about the girl who was declared dead after getting a tonsils out.

>> west of atlanta firefighters rescued a 7-year-old girl from a 50 foot well. she was playing on after it and the plywood gave out. >> very difficult. tight as you can see from the well going down with very little light. >> she pushed up and i was able to get it under her arm and tie

it off >> she was alert and breathing who she emerged. >> 54% of americans believe the economy will get better a year from now and that is up 5% from last year. 35% say it will get worse. david rucker is a correspondent at the senior washington. which group is right? they feel optimistic but will we feel the recovery in 2014? >> we will find out and find out shortly. there are two issues with the economy. one is what are the metrics. is job creation strong? are people spending money? are businesses investing?

the other important issue is how do people feel about it? that has been lacking. and it has been an economic recovery for the past couple years but no one has felt it. very few people have been acting that things are getting better and that is why i thought the poll was notable because we are seeing people being optimistic about the economy and direction. republicans didn't share the optimism democrats and independents shared. and that could have an outcome on the influence of the 2014 elections in terms of does the country overall feel unanimously that the economy is getting better as opposed to parts of

the country. >> there are very real things set to roll out in 2014. we have to talk about obamacare and the cost associated with it. it contains 20 new or higher taxes on american families or smaller businesses and adds $500 billion in tax hikes over the next ten years. how how do you think people will respond once the realization that this is happening? >> that will depend on whether or not the taxes and the money they suck out of the economy effect the economy. if people feel the economy isn't doing as well as they think it should they might look at the

taxes. but if the economy increases they might feel they don't notice the taxes. and with obamacare, does the economy improving offset the negative reaction to the affordable care act? people are upset with the law and it has been a drag on the president's poll numbers. could the economy offset that? that is something that is going to be interesting to see. >> david, you mention jobs, and they are up, they remain about 1.3 million below the records and millions of would be records, 5.7 million have left the labor force all together. so there is that to deal with. >> that is correct. and that has been a big issue. i have looked at that. are people coming become into

the workforce or are they so down they are sitting it out? what i want to see is how close every month, if at all, can we get to 250,000 jobs created and do we see people off the sidelines and coming back to the labor force and if they do do they get jobs. this is important to see for the overall economy and whether or not that has effect on the politics of the country -- i have found it so interesting on how split people on are the economy. >> david, thank you for joining us. we appreciate it and happy new year's eve. >> happy new years back to you. >> battle for the senate. will capital hills' balance of power shift in 2014? >> the toronto mayor is making the naughty list.

our list of the top scandals of 2013. you are on the good list. >> a little bit of lie but i will go with it.

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[ squeals ] ♪ andou do the best you can ♪ i got lostin this o♪ ♪ and forgot who i am

>> two women save a babies live aboard an airplane. two nurses heard screaming from the rear of the plane and found an unresponsive six month old baby girl. >> i had no idea what was wrong the baby but i knew she wasn't

going to die. >> she was crying by there time we landed >> we were both in the right place at the right time >> the plane made an emergency landing and the baby is now in good health. >> six is the gop's lucky number to take the senate majority but they have to worry about showdowns within their own party first. what are the 2014 republican primaries going to look like? >> some of the hottest races are underway already. we have watching the primaries that will be going on till august. the republicans have to pick up six seats and cannot lose any of their own. let's look at four key states.

four states and four u.s. senate seats with there are 23 republicans vying. iowa is first. the gop has a real shot of picking up a key swing state. there are seven republicans battling for the nomination. over to georgia in the south. there is a republican retiring and they have held the seat not too long and they can not afford to lose any so the seat matters. eight republicans are running in georgia and they are ripping each other apart and that is helping the democrat in this case. kay hagan has three republicans vying against her and up in alaska the republicans have targeted a freshman democrat.

another red state. and they are five gop's seeking nominations up there. this will give an idea of how the balance will be resolved. >> and you have mitch mcconnell up as well. this is a tough race isn't it? >> he's got huge advantage. more money, experience and a dominant organization. this rival is a first-time candidate who moved to kentucky from new england and is running a tea party campaign against him calling him a fake republican.

democrats would love to run against bevin. but if it is a nasty primary battle the democrats benefit from that. >> nasty and politics might be the same for many people. >> an explosion rocks are railway and people are being asked to leave. >> will delays save the girl's live who is brain dead? >> who wants to know their child would die? think about that if something told you your child is going to die. that is what i have been gog through all day all week. through all day all week. today i have new campbell's

chuy spicy chicken quesadilla soup. she gives me chunky before every game. i'm very souperstitious. haha, that's a good one! haha! [ male announcer ] campbell's chunky soup. it fills you up right. add brand new belongings from nationwide insurance and we'll replace stolen or destroyed items with brand-new versions. we put members first. join the nation. ♪ nationwide is on your side ♪ [ male announcer ] when you wear dentures you may not know it, but your mouth is under attack. food particles infiltrate and bacteria proliferate. ♪ protect your mouth, with fixodent. the adhesive helps create a food seal defense for a clean mouth and kills bacteria for fresh breath. ♪ fixodent, and forget it.

>> the ntsb is set to hold a news conference after multiple explosions rocked a small north dakota train after a train carrying crude oil runs off the track. look at that. federal officials will be investigating the cause of what you just looked at there. authorities are asking up to the

1500 residents to evacuate their homes. we'll bring you developments as soon as we get them. the california teenager who was declared brain dead after getting her tonsils out is getting more time before the hospital is allowed to take her off life support. a judge ruled she has until 5 p.m. pacific time on january 7th to move to a new facility. the hospital said sadly she is again. the family said she is not going to give up >> how can you say this is last time you will see them? as a parent who wants to know the time their parent would die. think about that if someone said this time on this day your child is going to die.

that is what i am going through. i don't want december 30th at 5 o'clock to come. >> let's talk to alex little. is the judge likely doing the right thing? >> i think so. this is a tragic situations and every's heart going out to the family. the judge is making the right call. but the judge is determined that she meets the legal definition of dead. but this case is heart wrenching. >> and we want it make clear, because we get e-mail saying about what shivo. and she wasn't brain dead but a persistent vegetative state.

>> yes, very different cases. six different doctors have determined she has no brain activity. shivo and other cases are persistive vegetative states have to do with brain activity that is stunted and not going to continue beyond that state. but here you don't have a vej tv state. you have a dead individual who is giving signs of life because the machine is allowing her lungs to breathe. >> the family has to obtain transportation and another location to put her. and in order to do the transport they have to do surgery so she can breathe and a feeding tube as well and the hospital's position is it is against the canon of ethics to perform

surgery on what is under the law is the dead person. >> absolutely. there are massive medical issues about what kwlou you do with a dead body. there is going to be to a corner report on the body. >> everybody is sympathizing with the family. it is heart breaking and they will have to live with this for the rest of their lives. there is going to be a wrongful death but under california law hospitals are capped at 2500

dollars in california. people claim the hospital being insensitive, but you could go broke keeping people on ventilators. >> you could. if there is no infection it will stay around for a while. she would need surgery to get the fooding table and no doctor that the hospital has found and the family hasn't found one that there is a doctor willing to do the procedure to get the feeding tube in and that will hasten the body slowly ending its life. she has for all intensive purposes medically died and the family is going to have to bury their daughter way too soon >> it is hard reality to come to.

appeals are going to be fruitless? >> absolutely. they are trying to determine california's life is violating the right to life and the family's religious practice but the courts don't want to get into redefining death. there is a statue that the legal standard for death is met. her secession of brain activity isn't going to change. >> thank you alex little. >> happy new year. >> what do mayor ford, a-rod, ritchie incognito, anthony wiener and miley cyrus all have in common? they have contributed to making 2013 the year of the scandal. we are going over the biggest ones of the past year. >> they are known for super

hum hum human accomplishments. here is the rutgers coach berating his team. tao lying about having a dead girlfriend. >> he looked up the funeral homes and no one was buried bye-bye by that name. >> yankee slugger a-rod denies being on steroids. and ritchie incognito is accused of being a bully. >> i did lie to my wife about these things. >> how do you plead to that count? >> guilty. >> guilty or not guilty? >> also guilty.

>> i have let down the country, our constitchuants, and my family. >> i didn't use crack cocaine nor am i an addict. >> yes, i have smoked but i am not an addict. >> i beg my family, children, partners and everyone i beg forgiveness. >> and miley cyrus was in the news and so was justin beiber. and simon cowell father a child with his friend.

and the president wasn't excluded from the list beginning with the 2012 benghazi attack to the irs targeting certain groups. and james rosen finding himself in claims that the justice department was tracking phone records and edward snowden linking surveillance program information. >> the united states is not and will not monitor the chancellor's communication. >> and the president feeling the heat with the roll out of the health care law. his approval rating are hitting an all-time low. >> i think we underestimated the

complexity of building a website. >> and a leave of absence did you to the misreport of the benghazi attack. >> no doubt many of the heavy hitters are hard at work on one resolution and that is to keep their news of scandals in 2014. >> some folks might try to build up a scandal >> i am looking for the comebacks. 2013 is almost in the books. but what will some of the big political stories of 2014 be? >> probably a scandal or two in there. and taking television to a whole new level, greg. wait until you hear how much this 110-inch screen goes for. >> that is not big enough.

>> samsung is trying to prove that bigger is better with this u ultra high definition 110-inch television boasting four times the pixels of the head television trying to push the oh led screen. you can display images with better clarity and deeper color. a whooping $150,000. and it is only on sale in south korea right now. >> and the cost of shipping it from south korea to here. obamacare, the irs scandal, and the nsa spying stories were the biggest political stories of

2013 but what will the 2014 scandals be? we our panel here and happy new year's eve to you. 2014 is a mid-term election year. the magic number six: 35 senate seats up for grabs. a dozen in the house that are predicted to be worth watching. what do you predict the outcome? >> when it comes to the house, i don't think the republicans will have a problem but the question is can they pick up more seats because that is important. in the senate, we have another story. if the republicans are smart despite of predictions they

should run on the economy and obamacare and what that effect will be on the economy. >> ebony, what do you think? >> there is so much to be seen about the implementation of obamacare. we will see kay hagan trying to hang on and the senators in louisiana. but with the house seats, heather, it so partisan. the redistricting made it such that it will be hard for democrats to be successful. >> you expect obamacare to continue to unfold? it has been a disaster so far. >> it isn't about the website. that is one of the most expen expensive failures of the website. we have seen plans cancel.

six million. and there are multiple people per plans and that is affecting mothers and brothers and fathers. and then you have the mandate and employers will make decisions based on the employer m mandate. it doesn't look like this is going to be good for the economy and jobs and what kind of jobs grow in this economy and obamacare affects that via the employer mandate and waver with that. >> you can comment on obamacare if you want but i want to mention one of the points is you think immigration is going to be back in the news in 2014. >> i think so. i think the gop is going to have to decide which side the immigration argument they want to fall on. most gop leaders have

acknowledged they have to get in touch with the hispanic and other groups such as women, people of color and hispanics. immigration reform isn't going to go away either. >> you mentioned the presidential election not until 2016 but you think it will come up in 2014. david, let's start with you, benghazi and the clinton-obama grudge match. >> we saw that playing out with the new york times. first christy is a bully, and trying to get clinton off the hook. it is the president that sets the policy. look for the obama administration to throw hilary clinton under the bus so they

can pennpin benghazi on her which was a terrorist attack and that will affect her in 2016. >> ebony, i will bring you in to close it out. >> i don't think the obama administration is going to through her under the bus, but i think she is going to have to be more accountable for that before she can put the attack behind her. she needs to explain some of her commentary. i will say john kerry is putting himself in an interesting stuff and should be in the conversation for potential democratic nominee. >> what has he done? >> he has done a lot.

>> we have to wrap it up. >> let's go over to my friend who is standing by on what is happening now. >> we will bring you highlights and information on obamacare and a new report suggesting insurance companies might not be able to give you coverage on 2014. and could 2014 be the year things turn around for obama? and another benefit of moderate drinking according to a new steady. >> a bear proving he can not be stopped from getting what he wants and no matter what you do it will keep coming back for bear necessities. bear necessities. i was going to the library to do my homework.

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to do her homework. now, more than one million americans have been connected at home. it makes it so much better to do homework, when you're at home. welcome to what's next. comcastnbcuniversal. >> new economy, well new numbers from the labor department showing woman have recovered all of the jobs lost during the recession and pushed their employment to new record levels. what is the deal? anita vogel is live with what the deal is. why are more women back to work? >> it has to do with the type of jo jobs. a record 67 .5 million a working and their unemployment rate is

half a percent lower than many. woman hold jobs in health, retail and education which are fields that are recession proof. >> men are in industries that are not recovering as quickly in which ones woman are in. health care and private education sector is the growth for women. >> health care was one of the only industries that didn't lose many jobs and many are beginning to catch on and enter that field. >> men are slower and not as smart. or all of the women in my house, and that is everybody, tell me that all of the time every day. look, have a lot of people switched career fields just to

stay employed? >> well of course they have. woman are more flexibility about switching fields. take for example this woman who was a construction worker but was worried about the economy and her body and she switched careers and took a job in selling products. >> i am not putting by body through stress being in a retail environment but i get the satisfaction of dealing with people and helping them out trying to fix their situation >> so more women might be back to work but they still earn 77

cents on the dollar so still work to be done there. >> we'll be right back. >> we'll be right back. to the lovely city of boston. cheers. and seeing as it's such a historic city, i'm sure they'll appreciate that geico's been saving people money for over 75 years. oh... dear, i've dropped my tea into the boston harbor. huhh... i guess this party's over. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. well you gotta use head & shoulders for men. it's all you need to reach polamalu levels of scalp and hairness. check it. ♪ [ male announcer ] head & shoulders for men. with seven benefits for a flake-free scalp and great looking hair. even if you wear a helmet for a living. i know.

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>> don't forget the all american new year's special with bill and elizabeth. 9:00 here on fox. >> "happening now" right now. jon: we begin with this fox news alert. officials urging more than 2,000 people to leave their homes after a freight train carrying crude oil derails and explodes in north dakota. the fireball could be seen for miles away raising fears of toxic gas in the area. witnesses were in shock at what they saw. >> i have never seen anything like this happen before here. so, i mean, okay, i lived here, 70 years? so it's, it's really crazy. >> it was the third explosion that rattled the house and the doors and windows were all shaking and scott and i came out.