gwen: christina? >> jeff, doesn't santorum remind you of the position mike huckabee was in 2008 where everybody was wondering if he won in iowa, he doesn't have any money, what is he going to do next? if santorum were to suddenly come in first or second somehow, could he even go anywhere from there? >> that's a really good question. rick santorum has spent a ton of time in iowa. the place he's been to most after that is south carolina. he has been campaigning there some. he doesn't have much money. but there is some thinking inside their campaign that he would get at least some grass roots support. i think santorum surge has to be put into some perspective here. he's surging from the very bottom here like 3%, 5%, up a little bit so even some of his supporters don't necessarily think he's going to win. but if he would beat rick perry, which is an open question. we don't know if that's going to happen, but if he would, perhaps some people would coalesce around him and he would go on to be an alternative

gwen: end of the year maneuvering. on the campaign trail, where mitt romney fends off the gingrich threat and on capitol hill where they're staring each other down. plus the end of the iraq war. tonight on "washington week." mostly polite on stage. >> i'm not in the business of blaming governor romney. i'm in the business of trying to understand what we can do as a policy. >> governor romney, do you want to respond to that compliment? >> thank you. >> fortunately for the republican party this year, probably anybody up here could probably beat obama. gwen: mostly polite. >> the fact that we know that he cashed paychecks from freddie mac. over $1.6 million. gwen: but things are heating up on the trail. >> zany is great in a campaign, it's great on talk radio but in terms of a president we need a leader. >> governor romney to like to give back all the money he has earned from bankrupting companies and laying off employees from his years at bain i would be glad to listen to him. gwen: countdown to iowa and another showdown

once again, live from washington, moderator gwen ifill. gwen: good evening. so newt gingrich is the man to beat. statewide polls show him with wide leads in new hampshire, south carolina, florida, and even nationally. and in new hampshire, which shares a border with the state mitt romney used to govern, the former house speaker has narrowed the lead. politicians in both major parties are struggling to absorb the new political reality and so is gingrich himself. >> we still have a lot of work to do. with the next four weeks in iowa, then a real rush in new hampshire, then on to south carolina, then on to florida and nevada. i mean, all those are within about a month. so i think if we have a little interview right after nevada, we'll have a better sense of how real it is. gwen: cue the takedown. including this mitt romney video. >> doesn't have the discipline that you want in a president. >> he's out and basically out on the left wing of the republican party. >> with allies like that you don't need the left. gwen: the gingrich people today called this a sign of

gwen: ok. we should keep an eye on ron paul, because he apparently does have the organization and the money. and all across the country. thank you all very much. i know this was a quick show. we had to leave you a little early tonight. you can get the chance to support your local station, which, in turn, supports us. but the conversation continues online, on the "washington week" webcast "extra." also online, you can find my take on whether the payroll tax cut debate is destined to become washington's next train wreck. stay up with daily developments online and on the air at the pbs "newshour" at pbs.org and we will see you next week on "washington week." good night. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> every thursday get a preview of our topics and panel with our "washington week" email alert, available at washington week one line at pbs.org. >> funding for "washington week" is provided by -- >> this rock has never stood still. since 1875. we've been there for o

>> not really, gwen. from my standpoint, the most theppointing thing about republican campaign as a foreign policy one is that there really hasn't been a coherent foreign policy debate here. there's been a series of attempts to take shots at president obama, and at times that has put the republican candidates in paradoxical positions, in the case of newt gingrich, being in favor of intervening in libya a week before he was against intervening in libya. gwen: the president poked back at mitt romney by saying, ask bin laden whether i've been too easy or not. and to take an issue that should be core to most americans, afghanistan. how long are we going to be in afghanistan? what's the strategy going to be? mitt romney has answers, newt has some answers but you haven't seen a fully rounded debate on that. >> you just got back from afghanistan. are they having that kind of rounded debate on the ground? >> the military is having that kind of rounded debate because president obama has given them a set of deadlin

. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. on the newshour tonight, we look back on the dictator's rule, and ahead to what's next for the isolated nuclear nation. >> brown: then we update the payroll tax stalemate with white house advisor gene sperling and house republican jason chaffetz. >> ifill: from our colleagues at the center for investigative reporting, we have the story of unusual and possibly fraudulent billing practices at a chain of california hospitals. >> there is a substantial amount of waste in the medicare program, and a lot of it comes from fraud. we're talking about billions and billions of dollars of fraud that isn't uncovered. >> brown: and we look back at the life and legacy of vaclav havel, the czech leader, writer, and dissident. judy woodruff talks to former secretary of state madeline albright. that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> intelligent computing technology is making its way into everything from cars to retail signs to hospitals; crea

. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. on the newshour tonight, we look back on the dictator's rule, and ahead to what's next for the isolated nuclear nation. >> brown: then we update the payroll tax stalemate with white house advisor gene sperling and house republican jason chaffetz. >> ifill: from our colleagues at the center for investigative reporting, we have the story of unusual and possibly fraudulent billing practices at a chain of california hospitals. >> there is a substantial amount of waste in the medicare program, and a lot of it comes from fraud. we're talking about billions and billions of dollars of fraud that isn't uncovered. >> brown: and we look back at the life and legacy of vaclav havel, the czech leader, writer, and dissident. judy woodruff talks to former secretary of state madeline albright. that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> intelligent computing technology is making its way into everything from cars to retail signs to hospitals; crea

. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. on the newshour tonight, we look back on the dictator's rule, and ahead to what's next for the isolated nuclear nation. >> brown: then we update the payroll tax stalemate with white house advisor gene sperling and house republican jason chaffetz. >> ifill: from our colleagues at the center for investigative reporting, we have the story of unusual and possibly fraudulent billing practices at a chain of california hospitals. >> there is a substantial amount of waste in the medicare program, and a lot of it comes from fraud. we're talking about billions and billions of dollars of fraud that isn't uncovered. >> brown: and we look back at the life and legacy of vaclav havel, the czech leader, writer, and dissident. judy woodruff talks to former secretary of state madeline albright. that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> intelligent computing technology is making its way into everything from cars to retail signs to hospitals; crea

i'm gwen ifill >> brown: and i'm jeffrey brown. we'll see you online and again here tomorrow evening. thank you and good night. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

i say only but that is a seasonal temperature that is a look what is happening with weather gwen will take over in a couple minutes. hey, lauren. >>> first, lighter volume than typical morning rush, good news rain has not begun yet today nice dry commute at this point let's take a lookout there, dealing with an accident, northbound 95, near mixing bowl it is in the the median travelling is not impacted flashing lights a distraction something to lookout for. we did have reports of slow traffic northbound 5 heading across the occoquan. not too slow. pretty smooth trip at this point i-95, 395 looks great from the belt way across the 14th street bridge. belt way incident free as you travel 66 inbound disabled vehicle on the right shoulder near 123, fair oaks to 70 no accidents or incidents to report for you. outer loop to the left of your screen a bit of volume other than that you should be in pretty good shape. >>> top story this hour, al qaeda taking responsibility for the deadly attacks in iraq that killed near hi 70 people last week. online, al qaeda in iraq claimed to have carried ou

let's check in now on traffic with lauren demarco. >> thank you, gwen.e had the wet weather last night so we do have the trees sort of wet and with the wind, you want to watch for any downed trees and branches as you head out this morning. should be a pretty nice commute on the roads right now. seeing night light volume and construction is wrapping up. no problems to report here on northbound 95. we have some cars out there though. the left of your screen headlights heading towards you, main lanes and nothing in your way. nothing in your way as you make a trip through the mixing bowl and springfield. 270 looks food from frederick down through germantown and rockville towards the lane divide in bethesda. nice trip through montgomery county and bridge. nothing to report in virginia. that's a check of your fox 5 on-time traffic. juror thank you. >>> today, december 28th, is the birth dave the 28th president of the united states. woodrow wilson. and a military honor guard will present a wreath at wilson's tomb at the national cathedral. wilson is the only on

gwen, take it away. >>> i can't compete with you guys with all that.rolling in, ahead of a frontal system. this is our next weather maker. i'll let you know when to expect it and how long it will stick around. we'll be back after the break. get the technology they love, on the network they deserve. like the powerful droid charge by samsung, or get the samsung stratosphere, and for a limited time, get twice the data for the same low price. verizon. [ speaking french ] movie buffs! this film is tres bien, but the interest rate on your checking account is le pew. interest on your checking? earn more with new high yield free checking at capital one bank. your interest rate will be five times the national average. five times the interest! and free atms at any bank. show's over folks. make your way to capital one bank. what's in your wallet? were you crying? yeah. >>> redskins have given up seven of the last eight. >> i love how you had to look down. >> no. no. sometimes you have to count the hurt. >> lost seven of their last -- >> you counted seven? >> no,

let's say good morning to gwen tolbart. she is in for tony perkins as they get ready for stuff a truck. it will be a cold one. >> temperatures in the 20s and 30s. reality of december, folks. let's take a look at our maps and show you where things are headed. we have had no clouds. we have a ridge of high pressure in

. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. on the newshour tonight, we have a newsmaker interview with postmaster general patrick donahoe. >> woodruff: then, we update the state of play in the g.o.p. presidential race as former house speaker newt gingrich rises in the polls, less than a month ahead of the iowa caucuses. >> ifill: fred de sam lazaro reports on how multiple disasters have made it tougher for charities to raise money. >> it's not so much about compassion fatigue. i think people are as come packsate today as they ever have been. for us it's actually more a belief fatigue. >> woodruff: jeffrey brown examines new proposals by european leaders to tackle the continent's debt crisis. >> ifill: and we look at the findings of a pro publica investigation into who gets presidential pardons, and who doesn't. >> woodruff: that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> intelligent computing technology is making its way into everything from cars to retail signs to hospitals;

i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, we get the latest on the political showdown in washington from todd zwillich of "the takeway" on wnyc. >> ifill: then, exactly two weeks before the iowa caucuses, we update the 2012 race for the white house with stuart rothenberg and susan page. >> woodruff: we assess the heightened sectarian tensions in iraq and look at what's left behind for iraqis after the last u.s. troops pulled out. >> ifill: margaret warner examines why u.s. intelligence didn't know that north korean leader kim jong-il had died. >> woodruff: we conclude our economist film project series with the story of a brutal african warlord turned christian evangelist. >> i killed their brothers, killed their sisters, ripped them, crippled them. they are right not to forgive me. >> ifill: that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. intel. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. s

let's get a quick look at the weather with gwen tolbart who is in for tucker. >>> good morning. wet weather moving across our area. the rain and clouds heading across. that will be the story into the course of today. right now, 57 degrees at national airport. humidity at 89%. a very light southerly wind at about 10 miles per hour. so light winds. it will be another mild day. plenty of rainfall into the course of the day. 06degrees our daytime high and we have some changes coming up in our five-day forecast and we'll have that for you a little later on. >>> jack johnson is scheduled for sentencing later on today. the former prince george's county executive is expected to find out how much time he will spend in prison for corruption later on this morning. johnson pled guilty in may to shaking down developers and collecting bribes to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars. his wife, leslie is also due for sentencing later on this week. >>> a five-day demonstration is under way on the national mall. the movement is called our d.c. and they are part of the take back the capital

i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, we get the latest on the political showdown in washington from todd zwillich of "the takeway" on wnyc. >> ifill: then, exactly two weeks before the iowa caucuses, we update the 2012 race for the white house with stuart rothenberg and susan page. >> woodruff: we assess the heightened sectarian tensions in iraq and look at what's left behind for iraqis after the last u.s. troops pulled out. >> ifill: margaret warner examines why u.s. intelligence didn't know that north korean leader kim jong-il had died. >> woodruff: we conclude our economist film project series with the story of a brutal african warlord turned christian evangelist. >> i killed their brothers, killed their sisters, ripped them, crippled them. they are right not to forgive me. >> ifill: that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. intel. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. s

. >>> all right in the meantime we have gwen toll bert standing by in the weather center to let us know what we have on tap for what has started as a very cold monday. >>> absolutely a very cold monday you make sure you dress warm as you head out into the course of this morning it is nippy out there, we don't have winds but we do have some cool conditions, as we begin with a look at our satellite radar composite you can see we have this sticking in across the area, helping us with some clear skies, it won't be too bad into the course of the day 30 degrees national airport, 22 dulles, 24 degrees baltimore area temperatures pretty much in the same range, today, we will be into the mid- to upper 40s, it will be a little warmer than it was yesterday a at least that is at least some good news 47 degrees for a high at national airport, 45 manassas, 46 at culpepper it will be a pretty nice day overall, across our area, here is a look at your day planner, chilly, sunny once again a few clouds midday 43 degrees, and 46 degrees by the time we get to the 4:00 p.m. hour for you just be prepared our

gwen is down in the weather center what do you think? >> sunshine but i hope those runners stay warm we have some very very chilly conditions let's look at temperatures yesterday melanie it was a reality check for us, such mild days, these temperatures or highs yesterday were where we should be this time of year 47 national same at baltimore and we hit 46 degrees at dulles. so that is our reality check. 32 degrees national only 22 dulles, 23 bwi. ridge of high pressure in control keeping skies clear and light winds, it will continue to be on the chilly side lots of sunshine today, very chilly 43 for the daytime high, light northwesterly wind but don't be fooled by the sunshine it will still remain very chilly we've got even really cold temperatures ahead tonight and a little bit of a historical record from last night, details for you later on and a look at the 5 day forecast back to you. >> thanks gwen. high-rises swayed in mexico city and panic in acapulco a large earthquake struck the western coast last night an update on the damage. >

i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, we get the latest on the political showdown in washington from todd zwillich of "the takeway" on wnyc. >> ifill: then, exactly two weeks before the iowa caucuses, we update the 2012 race for the white house with stuart rothenberg and susan page. >> woodruff: we assess the heightened sectarian tensions in iraq and look at what's left behind for iraqis after the last u.s. troops pulled out. >> ifill: margaret warner examines why u.s. intelligence didn't know that north korean leader kim jong-il had died. >> woodruff: we conclude our economist film project series with the story of a brutal african warlord turned christian evangelist. >> i killed their brothers, killed their sisters, ripped them, crippled them. they are right not to forgive me. >> ifill: that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: moving our economy for 160 years.f,bns e te nghe cthinconae bnsf, the engine that connects us. intel. and by the alf

. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. on the "newshour" tonight, we have a newsmaker interview about the justice department settlement with the illinois attorney general who helped bring the case, lisa madigan. >> brown: then, judy woodruff updates the political impasse in washington over extending the payroll tax cut. >> ifill: we assess new e.p.a. rules curtailing toxic mercury emissions from power plants. >> brown: from morocco, ray suarez reports on muslim clerics tackling a taboo subject. >> ifill: margaret warner looks at egyptian women on the front lines of protest, some of them brutally attacked. >> brown: and we close with poet mark doty on a community coming together to sing a christmas tradition, handel's messiah. >> brown: that's all ahead on tonight's "newshour." major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> intelligent computing technology is making its way into everything from cars to retail signs to hospitals; creating new enriching experiences. through intel's philosophy of investing for the

i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, we get the latest on today's attacks and assess what's next after u.s. forces leave the war-torn nation. >> ifill: then, we update the protests in russia, where, for a second day, hundreds rallied against alleged fraud in sunday's parliamentary elections. >> woodruff: we have a report from our pbs colleagues in detroit, about the city's plan to stave off a financial crisis. >> in the last 60 years detroit has lost more than half of its population. this is a common scene in once comfortable middle class neighborhoods: abandoned homes being leveled by city wrecking crews. >> ifill: geoffrey brown gets the story of the violent life and tragic death of a 28-year-old professional hockey player as told by john branch of the "new york times". >> woodruff: and we close with a look at a galaxy very, very far away, where there are two monster black holes, each of them billions of times more massive than our sun. >> ifill: that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major fu