joe johns sitting with me here.e have wolf blitzer, ron bonjean republican strategist, shannon travis on the scene. we'll all be back in just a second. daddy, come in the water! [ gnome ] awwwwwwww. i just feel bloody awful. she told tiffany, stephanie, jenny and becky that she was coming to a place like this! but somebody didn't book with travelocity, with 24/7 customer support to help move them to the pool daddy promised! look at me, i'm swimming! ♪ [ gnome ] somebody, get her a pony! [ female announcer ] the travelocity guarantee. if your booking's not right, we'll help make it right, right away. from the price to the room to the trip you'll never roam alone. >>> welcome back, mince away from an announcement from republican candidate herman cain. rising in the polls, gaining support, allegations of infidelity which could put an end to his campaign. this is a live picture here. we're told herman cain has arrived on that scene you're looking at. supposed to be the opening of headquarters in atlanta, which actually

our joe johns will be with me in a second.getting ready for cnn's "state of the union." >>> stay with us. >>> also coming up, dr. sanjay gupta has a new show -- another new show. it's called "the next list." this week he is talking to an interactive artist. >> before the ipad i used to joke that i make useless programs. but they are as useless as a song, a movie, a story, something like that. all of a sudden with the ipad i could just go direct tloi people and say check this thing out. we don't even have to label what it is. it is just called grav x. called bubble harp. see if you like it. and all of a sudden they did. >> catch that on sundays, "the next list," with our dr. sanjay gupta. set that dvr for 2:00 eastern time. one more gift... [ gasps ] [ male announcer ] if you're giving an amazing gift, shouldn't it be given in an amazing way? ♪ ♪ the lexus december to remember sales event is here, but only for a limited time. see your lexus dealer for exclusive lease offers on the 2012 es 350 and, as a gift from lexus, we'll ma

>> our joe johns. joe, ron brownstein was just here. he did note the number of folks out there who say they still haven't made up their minds about who they'll caucus for, so there certainly is room for gingrich to bring up those poll numbers. what's he -- realistically, what do the folks around him think he can pull in the caucus night on tuesday? >> reporter: well, you get the sense that people think this is still a bit wide open because you know and i know, there's a large percentage of people who make up their minds in the last couple of days, some who say they actually make up their minds on the day of the caucuses. so newt gingrich is pushing some buttons, too, because he knows people say they do not like negative advertising even though many people say it works. they say they don't like it. he's saying to them, okay, put your money where your mouth is. if you don't like these negative ads, then go ahead and vote for a guy who's not putting out negative ads and send a message to those who are. he's hoping that makes a difference.

joe johns, as you may know, i like to eat so let's focus in on this one.r: yes. well you know, it's sort of a down-home way to get close to your constituent or your voters' kitchen table as it were. this is ron paul's cookbook, it's his wife, carol's cookbook. they put this out every single year. they've been selling it for, what, i think about eight bucks plus shaipping and handling, wht have you. we actually reported on this a couple weeks ago, they're actually handing things out at some of these events. 24 pages, not real long, just a handful of recipes but the whole idea is to sort of maybe raise a little money, but also raise a consciousness of the people that ron paul wants to eventually vote for him, isha. >> i see some of the recipes, king ron's kitchen, chocolate chip cookies. rick santorum is also there in iowa. he went hunting yesterday, we saw him in his orange get-up, but did his teenage son upstage his dad? i'm hearing some rumblings. >> reporter: yeah, that's definitely true. also first i think you have to say just because this is political

joe johns and i going pop up style. don't miss it. be right back.surgery, and yes, i have occasional constipation. that's why i take doctor recommended colace capsules. i have hemorrhoids and yes, i have constipation. that's why i take colace. [ male announcer ] for occasional constipation associated with certain medical conditions there's colace capsules. colace softens the stool and helps eliminate the need to strain. stimulant-free, comfortable relief. no wonder colace is the #1 stool softener brand recommended by doctors. say "yes" to colace! [ male announcer ] go to colacecapsules.com for savings. say "yes" to colace! everyone believes in keeping their promises once a year. but we believe in helping people take steps to keep them every single day. that's why every day we help people across the country get into their first homes. prepare for a comfortable retirement and protect the people and things that matter most. at genworth we believe every day is the right day to take a step toward tomorrow. >>> the music video returns this year on vh one

joe johns has the top five stories in politics this year. >> number five. mpletely missed that writing on the wall. when he resigned his office, john ensign said he was leaving to save his family some embarrassment. but now, it looks like he couldn't raise enough money to get re-elected. why? maybe because of his money handlinging skills. he got his parents to give his girlfriend and her husband a $96,000 gift. to keep the affair quiet. number four. no, what i said was congressman elect. anthony weiner was absolutely adamant someone had hacked his twitter account after what you would call an inappropriate photo was sent to a college student. it was only after wolf blitzer pressed weiner on the owner of the briefs in the picture that he started to come clean. >> you would know if this was your underpants. >> photographs can be manipulated. doctored. and i want to make sure that, that we know for sure what happened here. it certainly doesn't look familiar to me, but i don't want to say something i don't know to be the certain truth. >> not long after that inte

>> our joe johns. joe, ron brownstein was just here.te the number of folks out there who say they still haven't made up their minds about who they'll caucus for, so there certainly is room for gingrich to bring up those poll numbers. what's he -- realistically, what do the folks around him think he can pull in the caucus night on tuesday? >> reporter: well, you get the sense that people think this is still a bit wide open because you know and i know, there's a large percentage of people who make up their minds in the last couple of days, some who say they actually make up their minds on the day of the caucuses. so newt gingrich is pushing some buttons, too, because he knows people say they do not like negative advertising even though many people say it works. they say they don't like it. he's saying to them, okay, put your money where your mouth is. if you don't like these negative ads, then go ahead and vote for a guy who's not putting out negative ads and send a message to those who are. he's hoping that makes a difference. he's hopin

it will be interesting to see if it pays off for him. >> joe, it to bring in joe johns. joe, you had another candidate who was in the headlines probably not for reasons he would like and that's newt gingrich, who has fallen in the polls from the time when he started the climb, he looked like a real challenger to mitt romney and is now way down, there languishing in these iowa polls. >> reporter: that's for sure, candy. we're in atlantic, iowa. actually inside a soft drink distribution plant and, you know, i just heard jim talking about the significance of the location. in some ways newt gingrich was just about a month ago the flair of the month if you will and now apparently no longer. really in a competition for third place, he was leading just not very long ago. he got hit by a number of really harsh campaign ad, huge money in fact spent by a political super political action committee that basically does things in the interest of mitt romney and all these ads came flooding on the air waves, newt gingrich's polling numbers went down. now, he's under pressure from the ins

joe johns is here with the political pop today.as a kid, i loved wonder woman, i might have spun around a playground or two. but we're talking about a certain senator perfect massachusetts, aren't we? >> i couldn't stop watching it either. >> amazing. >> around washington, d.c. we always have these auctions where interesting people if they pony up the right amount of money, they'll get some face time with just about anybody. senator scott brown of massachusetts, republican, paid $1,000 at a charity auction to have a sit-down meeting with linda carter, star of wonder woman. he won this at the d.c.'s funniest celebrity charity event. after bidding that $1,000. it's supposed to go to susan g. komen for the cure but it doesn't sound like this will be a date or anything. senator brown is bringing both his wife and one of his daughters. by the way, you have to say, senator brown is in what appears to be a in a tight race for re-election going against elizabeth warren. maybe he'll get a few tips. >> from wonder woman, very funny. tom cobu

joe johns, cnn, washington. >> what a year it has been. fo

joe johns, cnn, washington. >>> a pro football player facing federal charges. his tenure with the chicago bears cut short. what landed him in trouble next. >>> a look at our top stories, president barack obama says he's very pleased with this morning's senate vote extending unemployment assistance and extending payroll tax cut through february. he spoke at the white house just a few minutes ago. mr. obama urged the house to follow the senate's lead. he also urged congress to pass a full year extension of the payroll tax cut after it returns from its holiday recess. >>> a savage tropical storm has killed at least 436 people in the philippines and more than 150 people are still missing. five of the deaths caused by a landslide. most of the victims killed by flash flooding. there are reports one entire village was swept away. the government estimates 100,000 people have been displaced from their homes

in the next hour of "cnn newsroom" let's check in with joe johns. joe?gingrich said he wasn't going to go negative in this campaign, but it's crunch time here in iowa and he's calling out romney. we'll have that report coming up next. >> reporter: i'm mohammed jamjoom. in cairo arab league observers were supposed to fan out to other flash point cities in syria today. we're told those plans have been delayed due to logistical reasons. >> and i'm alison kosik at the new york stock exchange. more than 12 states now recognize or have legalized guy marriage, but all of those happy couples are in for a big tax headache this year because the federal government and the irs still don't recognize them. i'll explain in the next hour. hala. >> thanks, alison and to all of you. also coming up next hour, retracing the path of the titanic. 100 years after it hit an iceberg and sank. it's not for research. it's for vacation. would you shell out $5,000 to book a trip on the memorial cruise? we're talking to the managing cruise director next hour. >>> quick look at what's

joe johns, thanks so much in washington. appreciate that. >>> for the latest political news you know where to go to hear more about this and others on the campaign trail. cnn politics.com. >>> join us every sunday afternoon 4:00 eastern time when we dedicate a special hour to the presidential contenders in this 2012 presidential election. tissue box (whispering): he said nasal congestion... nyquil: i heard him. anncr vo: tylenol cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion... nyquil cold & flu doesn't. aflac... and major medical? major medical, boyyyy! [ beatboxing ] ♪ i help pay the doctor ♪ ain't that enough for you? ♪ there are things major medical doesn't do. aflac! pays cash so we don't have to fret. [ together ] ♪ something families should get ♪ ♪ like a safety net ♪ even helps pay deductibles, so cover your back, get... ♪ a-a-a-a-a-a-a-aflac! [ male announcer ] help protect your family at aflac.com. [ beatboxing ] >>> international headlines now. early results are in from egypt's first post mubarak election.

joe johns, thank you so much. let's continue the conversation and let me bring in will cain, and sherry jacob kjacobus, and this tough-talking guy with tears streaming down his face talking about his mom, and did that surprise you? >> absolutely. i have never seen anything like that from newt gingrich and as much as we talk about the substantive things, people remember mitt romney's hair, and michele bachmann's outfit, and this kind of humanizes him, and plays off well for him. >> well, it is sincere, kind of, cheri is what will says. what do you say about it? >> well, i spent time around newt gingrich when he took the house, and he does not show this emotion easily and he is a professional man. so for this to happen in the set, it was very genuine and i think that it even caught him off guard. the difference however between newt gingrich and hillary clinton is that hillary clinton seemed to be tearing up four years ago because she realized that she would not be the party's nominee and therefore not be president,

. >> i want to bring in cnn political correspondent joe johns with this and joe johns. you have newt gingrich in this coffee shop and he's surrounded by a bunch of mothers and he starts coughing back tears. >> i was kind of stunned and i was in the room watching all of this go on and i covered newt gingrich on capitol hill in the '90s, and i was just stunned to see the tough-talking speaker of the house basically break down in tears talking about his dearly departed mother. this was something very atypical for this speaker. he's got problems here in iowa with women voters and with evangelicals so this may be that kind of thing that sort of softens his image with them, if you will. you were talking to jim about romney's image and the former speaker has an image of being a tough talker and someone who shoots from the hip and not everybody likes it when he uses some of his toughest words, brooke. >> if i may, speaking about emotional moments on the trail, we talked about hillary clinton and she got teary eyed in 2008. here's that moment. >> i have so many opportunities fro

joe johns, thank you so much. let's continue the conversation and let me bring in will cain, and cheri jacobus, and here is this tough-talking guy with tears streaming down his face talking about his mom, and did that surprise you? >> absolutely. i have never seen anything like that from newt gingrich and as much as we talk about the substantive things, people remember mitt romney's hair, and michele bachmann's outfit, and this kind of humanizes him, and plays off well for him. >> well, it is sincere, kind of, cheri is what will says. what do you say about it? >> well, i spent time around newt gingrich when he took the house, and he does not show this emotion easily and he is a professional man. so for this to happen in the set, it was very genuine and i think that it even caught him off guard. the difference however between newt gingrich and hillary clinton is that hillary clinton seemed to be tearing up four years ago because she realized that she would not be the party's nominee and therefore not be president,

he was in atlantic, iowa, where we find our joe johns. e, as i was listening to gingrich give his talk to these folks, i was struck by how it opened, with his complaints about the negative advertising and trying to turn it into a "get out the vote" if he can nichl, sif he can nichl, saying, 45% of the negative ads have been against me. it has been a big part of that 19-point drop gingrich has seen in the last three weeks. >> reporter: yeah, you're right. that's quite a spin on it, isn't it? we've had all those negative ads come to the caucuses on tuesday and turn it around on them, show them, you don't like negative ads by voting, basically, for newt gingrich in the caucuses. that was definitely one of the stories of this event here in atlantic, iowa. he began the town hall with that message. he talked about it at the end of his remarks here. he also talked about it in a media avail just a few minutes ago right around the corner. i asked him about it. the long and short and the message from here is, number one, he says he's going to make s

joe johns with us from iowa.orse race element of this in a moment, but first, let's listen to rick santorum on the campaigning trail today. >> we have an administration going out and undercutting -- it's a war against poor children. is it war against children who need moms and dads? >> okay, some harsh words for the obama administration. santorum has to be happy with his third place right now, right joe? >> i think he's happy. i talked to him a little while ago. he's not just surging in the polls, he's getting a fund raising boost too. he told me at his biggest fund-raising day online, yesterday apparently after this poll came out. that's all good news for him. but the other thing that come as long with moving up a few notches in the polls here in iowa, you also come under attack by some of your rivals, that was evidenced today, an attack from rick perry, talking about the fact that rick santorum, number one asked for something like a billion dollars in earmarks, when he was in the united states congress, which i

let's go right to political correspondent joe johns. he's on the ground in iowa. joe, this is a bit of a shocker. santorumizi santorumize santorum rising as much as he has. this is a guy that's been to every county in the state and he still couldn't get that endorsement. what has done that this for rick santorum? >> reporter: ali, i've got to tell you, a lot of people thought that santorum was underperforming in the state of the polls for a long time. he's been to every county. he's spent more time here than i think any other candidate has been running for president. he also talks and speaks to the issues that so many he have january v evangelicals and socialists in the state concern themselves with. so it's probably not surprising that rick santorum at last was going to get his day in the sun here in iowa, if you will. it's a huge jump going from 5% in one poll all the way up to 16% in another poll which really suggests that of all these candidates and the way that the polls have gone up and down, rick santorum may be surging at exactly the right time for a guy ru

there's been an arab spring, and what shocked the entire country, here is joe johns. >> martin savidgeveral people have been shot. >> tragedy in tucson as accused gunman, jared lee loughner goes on a shooting rampage, killing six and wunounding 13, includin gabriel give pords. egypt's tahrir square, protesters demand hosni mubarak give up power. >> free egypt, that's what they are celebrating here tonight. >> gadhafi, the son of moammar gadhafi on libyan state television basically warning the people of libya, saying this is not tunisia, this is not egypt. things will go in a much different direction. >> february 16th, all eyes on libya as anti-gadhafi protesters take to the streets. it would take months before gadhafi was captured and killed. >> oh, my god. the building's going to fall. >> a massive wall of water. a devastating tsunami swept ashore japan's northeastern coast sweeping away cars, boats, homes, almost anything in its power. >> march 11th, scenes of utter devastation, as an earthquake spawns a tsunami off japan's coast. the walls of water heavily damage a nearby nuclear re

i just rock n' roll. >>> i want to welcome joe johns.have this piece of video, very festive red tie. >> all ready for the holidays. >> ready for the holidays. >> little early. >> i heard about this video. we're about to do this together, right? so it's the time of year, people think about family, shopping, and parties, it's also the time people are tree decorating, baking cookies, and we're at the mall, we're hanging out. so if you're placing the candles in your window this year, make sure they stay put and do not fall when lit. >> that's a good idea. don't let the dogs run over them. >> that happened to you because -- >> this is not good. >> this is what you don't want happening with your menorah, folks. >> not a merry menorah. >> also, if you're like me -- by the way, this is the first year i've gotten out and gotten my own christmas tree. i've been a fan of the -- oh! >> now that's really bad. the idea, i think, is to have the fire logs in the fireplace, not the christmas tree burning. >> look at that. so we just, you know, spreading

joe johns joins me now from washington. cial or the blue light special on hillary gear? >> how many politicians can get away with this? three years after the campaign? >> i didn't know they could. >> that's pretty incredible. sale on hillary clinton's campaign gear from three years ago. the historic race for president came down to her and barack obama, we know who won. still, there are people who wish they would have gotten some of the gear. as well as dvds of the 2008 speech, which apparently, are being signed by bill clinton and those go for $250 each. you've got to really want that, right? not just to get her name out there. she has something like $270,000 in debt to retire from the campaign and former candidates have been known to resort to drastic means to try to pay down that debt. >> it's mostly about paying down down. it has little if nothing to do with her eyeballing another run of some sort sm. >> i wouldn't go that far because you and i know that just about anything anybody does in washington, d.c., if it's a poli

as far as we know he certainly hand told joe johns or i at this moment but we're working on it. >> let me bring you into this equation. what are his staffers to think and how are they to operate at this point? is everything at a stop until this announcement is made or does he still have supporters spanning across the country particularly in the primary states knocking on doors saying herman cain needs you? >> okay. we'll start with supporters. there are still people out there who believe herman cain is a victim. they think he's a victim of the media. they think he's victim of a plot by democrats or what have you. they don't believe this string of women accusers who say he did something wrong. so yes, there are people out there. the question, of course, there is what kind of money are those people who support him willing to give to herman cain to keep that campaign sort of limping around the country while these accusations continue. as far as staff goes, it's a really difficult situation because we've gotten so many contradictory signals from this campaign, even the legal team that some

let's go right to political correspondent joe johns. he's on the ground in iowa. joe, this is a bit of a shocker. santorum rising as much as he has. he was out there with representative steve king on the hunting trip. king did not endorse him on that trip. it made people wonder, we're so close, this is a guy to every county in the state. he still couldn't get that endorsement. what has done this for rick santorum? >> reporter: ali, i've got to tell you, a lot of people thought that santorum was underperforming in the state of the polls for a long time. like you said. he's been to every county. he's spent more time here than i think any other candidate has been running for president. he also talks and speaks to the issues that so many evangelicals and social conservatives in state really concern themselves with. so it's probably not surprising that rick santorum at last was going to get his day in the sun here in iowa, if you will. it's a huge jump going from 5% in one poll all the way up to 16% in another poll, which really suggests that of all these candidates and

joe johns live from the political desk in washington.oe, does this have to hurt a little bit for newt gingrich? i don't think joe johns can hear. he lost his ifb. we'll get back to that. the story we've been telling you here is that, in fact, yet, mitt romney has picked up that endorsement of former president george herbert walker bush. see what that means. this one gets a lot of attention for good reason. i'm told now joe johns is ready now. everything all right in d.c.? >> yeah. my ifb went crazy on me. it's supposed to happen, t.j. it's our last ticker on cnn. >> is this it? >> something had to go wrong. i think so. for me and you. >> this is it. it's washington, d.c. crazy things happen. yes, even ifbs are susceptible to some of the badness in d.c. >> let's talk about this endorsement. it's not a formal endorsement, right? you get the message the the first president bush thinks romney is the guy that needs to get the nomination. he said in a newspaper interview he thinks that romney is the best choice. it's no surprise that the forme

joe johns wraps the rest of 2011. >> it's a remarkable moment.arkably important vote for the country. it is also remarkably emotional moment for this democratic congresswoman to return to the house floor for the first time. >> reporter: august 1st, a rare moment of bipartisan support on capitol hill. >> breaking news that could impact your mortgage rate or what you pay for your credit card. standard & poor's served notice this afternoon that it plans to downgrade the government's aaa credit rating. >> reporter: a big blow to the world's largest economy. america's credit rating is downgraded from aaa to aa plus. standard & poor's blames it on the lack of cooperation between congress and the house. >> steve jobs, the ceo of apple incorporated has resigned his position. >> reporter: jobs died october 5th. flowers were left at many apple stores around the world. >> new york city this morning, they're regrouping from occupy anarchy. there were a few bursts of violence, some protesters lifted barricades, blocking traffic. >> reporter: september 17th, t