>> tonight, as congresswoman gabrielle giffords begins physical therapy, we'll take you inside houston's state-of-the- art rehabilitation hospital. i'm russ mitchell. also what's behind keith olbermann's surprise exit from cable television. both of tomorrow's nfl championship games in a bone- chilling deep freeze. and sleeping at work. do you know where your member of congress is bedding down at night? >> my wife calls it camping at the capitol. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with russ mitchell. >> mitchell: and good evening. there is more good news tonight in the recovery of congresswoman gabrielle giffords.

giffords remains in a houston rehabilitation center this evening, where doctors say she's progressing nicely and is responding to therapy, this two weeks to the day after she was shot in the head at a tucson rally. don teague is in houston with the latest. don, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, russ. gabrielle giffords still has a breathing tube installed in her neck and she can't speak to her doctors, but they say she is showing signs of progress. at houston's memorial herman hospital, the painstaking process of rehabilitating gabrielle giffords' injured brain is under way. doctors today said even in the intensive care unit, giffords has undergone two rounds of therapy. >> the physical therapy, speech therapy and she'll get occupational therapy as well. >> reporter: dr. gerard francisco is leading giffords' rehabilitation. he says she's responding well to therapy but still can't speak and suffers weakness or paralysis on her right side. >> it's improving. we're continuing to assess that.

>> reporter: giffords is in the i.c.u. because excess fluid is still draining from her brain. in the past, her medical team might have waited for her to heal completely before beginning rehab, but the wars in iraq and afghanistan have taught doctors time is everything. >> time is brain, brain is time. there's no question about that. >> reporter: dr. john holcomb was the army's top trauma surgeon. >> what we do know is that intensive rehabilitation earlier ends up with a higher level of functioning later. >> reporter: the bullet that injured giffords penetrated the left hemisphere of the brain, the area controlling vision, speech, information processing and personality. but doctors now know the brain is changeable, what they call plasticity, and with proper stimulation undamaged areas of the brain can take over the functions of damaged areas. >> now, this new neuroplastic rehab, this rehab that takes into account the plasticity of the brain, actually tries to grow new brain regions from scratch.

>> reporter: the process involves repeatedly performing the same tasks, something therapy patients say is a challenge. giffords will eventually work at the facility where lex frieden was treated and now helps run. >> it doesn't happen overnight. it happens so slowly sometimes you don't realize it's happening. but unless you continue to work at it, it won't happen. >> reporter: while giffords and the others wounded in the tucson shooting recover from their injuries, the alleged shooter is preparing for court. jared loughner faces arraignment before a federal judge in phoenix on monday. russ? >> mitchell: don teague in houston, thank you very much. we have what some are calling a bit of a media mystery to tell you about tonight. popular and controversial cable anchorman keith olbermann abruptly called it quits last night. as the media world scrambles to find out exactly why, elaine quijano tells us his departure

comes at a time of big changes at his now-former employer. >> reporter: after nearly eight years of host as msnbc's "countdown with keith olbermann"... >> this is the last edition of "countdown." >> reporter: ...the veteran broadcaster said good-bye to his viewers last night. >> on many occasions all that particularly the last two and a half years were all that surrounded the show but never the show itself was just too much for me. >> reporter: olbermann never said why he was leaving. his liberal views became the driving force behind msnbc's prime-time shift to the political left. but as years passed relations with his bosses became increasingliy strained. >> keith olbermann has been battling with msnbc management for two and a half years at least. >> reporter: in november olbermann was suspended for two days for making donations to two democratic candidates. in a statement last night, msnbc said:

>> that whole prime-time lineup kind of built on the "brand" that olbermann represented for them. >> reporter: olbermann's departure comes just days after cable giant comcast received government approval to acquire msnbc's parent company, nbc universal. an msnbc spokesman denied the merger had anything to do with the decision. comcast, which is expected to close the deal next week, said in a statement it has no operational control at any of nbc's properties, including msnbc. late friday, msnbc host rachel late friday, msnbc host rachel maddow, olbermann's liberal protege, said she knew little of what happened. >> all i know is it was between keith and the company. >> reporter: observers say maddow is now the heir apparent. >> she's next generation at msnbc, she's in her 30s and able to carry the ball forward.

>> olbermann was reportedly in the middle of a four-year, $30 million contract. it's not clear what his next move will be. msnbc announced liberal host lawrence o'donnell will be taking over the 8:00 p.m. time slot. russ. >> mitchell: in much of the country, if you stepped outside today, you know it is brutal out there. bitter cold weather is making this an icy weekend from the midwest to the northeast. take a look at these numbers-- in minneapolis, it's going to be in minneapolis, it's going to be eyewitnesminus 9 tonight. in detroit the low was 5 today, and buffalo, new york, this evening will have snow and a temperature of 9 degrees. cynthia bowers has more on this latest arctic blast. >> reporter: it's hard not to shiver just looking at duluth, minnesota. high today, 0. all across wisconsin steaming hot water turned instantly into snow. in minneapolis, where it was 16 below yesterday, even hardy pond hockey players from ohio were complaining of the cold. >> cleveland's florida compared to this. >> reporter: it warmed up to 6 degrees in minneapolis today as the entire northeastern quadrant

of the country remains in the grip of icy, arctic cold. on friday, 46 below in international falls, minnesota, 27 below in father oh, north dakota. and that brutal cold is now moving to the northeast where the temperature in buffalo, new york, tomorrow is expected to be 20 degrees below average. in hartford, connecticut and concord, new hampshire, 23 degrees below normal. bitter temperatures, yes, but not enough to bring down the raging fever of nfl fans. >> new york city will be crying themselves to sleep. >> reporter: game-time forecast is 14 degrees for pittsburgh tomorrow when the steelers play the new york jets for the a.f.c. title. it will be 18 degrees in chicago, where the bears will battle the green bay packers for the n.f.c. title. forget the cold. this is a heated match. >> i can't stand cheeseheads. so i just want them to melt. >> i'm rooting for the packers to beat the bears. >> reporter: the only thing that's for sure is that the fans in whatever the two winning cities happen to be won't be

feeling the cold tomorrow night. cynthia bowers, cbs news, chicago. >> mitchell: president obama is due to deliver the state of the union address this coming tuesday night. with a look ahead to the speech and to help put the past week in focus, we're joined by political analyst john dickerson. >> reporter: good evening, russ. the president's approval rating is at 49%, up from 45% in october. john, what do you think? is this a temporary blip for the president, or is he "trending up," as they say? >> he is trending up on a couple of measures. the number of people who have an unfavorable view of him is as low as it's been in years. majority of people are optimisitc. for a presidency that looked shaky after the last election, things look like they may have stabilized, but that's also the way it looks at the top of the roller coaster. the big downward problem may be the jobs picture. on that question, 41% approve of the job the president is doing on the economy. 52% disapprove. until those numbers improve on

the economy, all good news is temporary. >> mitchell: late this afternoon, the white house issued a video statement to the democratic national committee offering a preview of the president's speech on tuesday. we have a clip. let's take a listen. >> my principal focus, my number one focus, is going to be making sure that we are competitive, that we are growing, and we are creating jobs not just now but well into the future. >> mitchell: so, john, it's the economy. not exactly a news flash there, right? >> reporter: it's not. it's an old message, but the president is trying to make a new argument, sort of the opening argument for his last two years. and that word, "competitive," we're going to hear a lot. the president will argue the first two years of his administration were spent rescuing the economy from the brink, and now he's going to grow the economy in a global economy with countries like china and india that are growing faster. in the debate with the republicans over the size of government, the president will argue over what to cut and what to keep, always with this picture in the background of keeping america the number one

global economic power. >> mitchell: john dickerson in washington. as always, thanks a lot. >> reporter: thanks, russ. >> mitchell: still ahead tonight on the "cbs evening news." bad economic times overseas. has the luck of the irish run out?

>> mitchell: in ireland, brian cowan, under fire because of the country's economic crisis, resigned as party leader today but refused to quit as prime minister. he said he will stay on the job until an election in march. ireland's economic troubles have led to the departure of a new generation of young people, as we hear from elizabeth palmer. >> reporter: dublin at night makes an unusual studio for an unusual project. photographer david monahan is capturing a moment just before ireland's young and talented become voluntary exiles, fleeing the financial crash.

over 2010 and 2011, 120,000 people are expected to leave. >> the idea is to make, i suppose, a heroic gesture, to celebrate the comparison, to say they're full of pride, full of dignity. they're going out to do something and they're going to do it well. >> reporter: sadly, they're going to have to do it in another country. this economic collapse has brought crushing disappointment, but also resignation. after all, history is repeating itself. over the centuries, every time ireland hit skids, the young people hit the road. the potato famine caused the first wave of mass emigration in the 1840s. this time a disastrous banking failure and a giant real estate bubble that burst have left ireland with an economy on life support and crippling unemployment lines. ireland, the celtic tiger, is now europe's basketcase. >> bad. really bad. the country is on its knees.

>> etha o'donnell is a 27-year- old photographer who has made the tough decision to leave her home and her family because even though she graduated from college with top honors, she can't find work. >> i'm applying for jobs, even internships, even unpaid internships, can't get anything. and it's just like hitting a brick wall. so for two months i basically went on social welfare, and it got really demoralizing. >> reporter: now, o'donnell hopes to build a new life in new york. >> there's a huge new wave of emigration going on in our country at the moment, and it's quite palpable. i mean, i can just see from my own group of friends that i'm probably one of the last people to actually emigrate. >> reporter: a century ago, ireland's best and brightest usually left on a one-way ticket. but in the global village of 2011, there is a way back if things improve. >> i love it, yeah. i really love ireland. and i don't plan to be away forever.

>> reporter: but right now, it's time for etha o'donnell's portrait. her bags packed... >> three, two, one. >> reporter: ...and like so many thousands before, her hopes pinned on a far horizon. elizabeth palmer, cbs news, dublin. >> mitchell: here at home, the kennedy and shriver clans gathered for the funeral of peace corps founder and former vice presidential candidate sergeant shriver. also there, michelle obama and joe biden. maria shriver spoke of her father. >> the programs he fought for, the ones he created, they still have impact as we stand here. but for me as his only daughter, perhaps his greatest achievement was showing us in our family how to show up in other people's lives and how to love unconditionally.

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image of jail as a dumping ground for the mentally ill. dennis findle is an inmate in akron, ohio, arrested for public indecency. >> false arrest. i am a male stripper. >> mitchell: diagnosed with mania, he has a hard time controlling his thoughts. >> reporter: he is housed in the jail's mental health pod with one cell reserved for out-of- control inmates. >> this cell is set up for four- point restraint. >> mitchell: chief gary james, who runs the jail, says nearly one in five inmates has mental health issues. >> and most of them are taking psychotropic medication. >> medication is dispensed twice a day. >> i'm on depakote, which is a mood stabilizer. >> mitchell: and one part-time psychologist is available for counseling.

dr. james orlando believes mentally ill inmates would be better off in a hospital. >> the medication is the same medication here as in a psychiatric hospital. our counselors here are just as good, but the environment here is not therapeutic. >> this is where we'd bring them. >> reporter: when summit county sheriff drew alexander was a police officer in acton in the 1970s, he would take someone acting deranged to falls view, the state's mental hospital. >> in my day on the streets, this was automatic. >> reporter: but falls view is now falls village, an office park. the hospital closed as part of a deinstitutionalization movement that began in the 1960s. akron has more mental health facilities per person than most cities, with 350 hospital beds. but across the country, the number of psychiatric hospital beds has shrunk by nearly 90% from one bed for every 300 americans in 1950s, to one bed

for every 3,000 today. sheriff alexander believes his jail has become a dumping ground for the mentally ill who have no place else to go. >> it's almost like putting them in a dungeon and chaining them to the wall. the only thing different is we try to feed them. >> inmate chettori beasley hears voices. she thinks of demons. >> growl at you all the time. >> mitchell: she is accused of a violent crime, stabbing someone. >> i seen the demon. i had stabbed it in the chest. >> mitchell: now 38, medical records show beasley has been treated since she was 12. she spends most of her days under the covers in her cell. >> i know i need help. everybody keeps talking about "you need help." where can you go to get it at? >> mitchell: dr. orlando says her case illustrates why incarceration can aggravate mental illness. >> sort of imagine what it must be like, being mentally ill and in that position where you're literally trapped in a small cell with your own demons. certainly there's no way you're

going to get better under those circumstances. >> mitchell: since i visited, the first inmate we saw, dennis, was committed to a hospital after 63 days in jail. the second inmate, chettori was sentenced to 18 months in prison for the stabbing. still ahead, why so many members of congress are sleeping at the office. eping at the office.

>> mitchell: finally this evening, we all know that the new congress is sharply divided between members of the republican party and the democratic party. well, it turns out, there's another party in the mix. you can call this one the "slumber party." wyatt andrews explains. >> reporter: just off the corridors of congress are some of the nicest, carpeted campsites in america, using sleeping bags, blow-up mattresses... >> it's a lot better than rocks. >> reporter: ...at least 21 new members of the house, a fifth of the freshman class, have announced they will sleep in their offices this term and do not intend to rent in washington. >> that's the bed. >> reporter: that's home for now? >> yeah. >> reporter: illinois republican joe walsh is one of many tea party-backed freshmen who have become capitol campers, because he says their mission is to fix washington, not be seduced by it. you are saying "i am not about

washington." >> absolutely. everything about this, my time here, should be a sacrifice. >> hey, this is no big deal. >> reporter: republican paul gosar, whose family will stay in arizona, says he'll save $20,000 not paying d.c. parking or rent. >> so, this becomes very economical, from my standpoint, as well as very efficient. >> reporter: gossar showed us how the lifestyle works. >> this is our cage area. >> reporter: across from his office is a locked cinder block storage room he's outfitted as a closet and kitchen. dinners will come from the crockpot, breakfast from the toaster. >> this is a glamorous life. >> reporter: and like most campers, he will shower in the house gym. we don't know if the number of office sleepers set a record this year. there's no official count. we did find plenty of democrats who were doing this. it's not just the republicans. what we did not find was a single woman. >> i think it's a little bit of a frat kind of thing.

>> reporter: california democrat karen bass says camping might save money, but she sees life on the office floor as too boring and showers in the gym unappealing. >> i can't see myself walking through the halls of congress needing to go shower. >> i probably got it about as good as a man cave can be. >> reporter: the political message they are all sending home is that they are literally on the job 24/7. >> ah! >> reporter: having been elected to the people's house, they plan to use it as a house. wyatt andrews, cbs news, washington. >> mitchell: looks like fun. and that is the cbs evening news. later on cbs "48 hours mystery." thanks for joining us this saturday evening. i'm russ mitchell, cbs news in new york. good night. captioning sponsored by cbs captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

two murders in 24 hours. how the mini crime wave has been attacked. search suspended. what drivers found today in the hunt for a missing boy and where they will focus their attention next. i think our kids are being destroyed. and because families don't have the knowledge of what is really going on and what they're seeing, with the gangs, and they're invading our city. >> gang warfare in a south bay city and how youth advocates are fighting back. cbs 5 eyewitness news is next. ,,