molly henneberg with the latest. >> hi, shannon, the president said the homeland security advisors reported back to him with initial findings from the investigation into the failed bombing plot. the president said that 23-year-old nigerian, umar farouk abdul mutallab traveled to yemen, joined an al-qaeda linked group there and was trained, equipped with bomb components and sent to blow up the amsterdam to detroit flight on christmas day. yemen in response has said hundreds of troops to two

molly henneberg live in washington with more, molly, what's changed in his story? >> hi, gregg, initially southers, a fbi agent told a senate committee he asked a police department employee to look into some law enforcement records on his then estranged wife's new boyfriend and that was back in the late '80s. later southers told the committee that he personally had looked into those confidential records, what he now calls a grave error in judgment. southers wrote to the senators, quote, this incident was over 20 years ago, i was distraught and concerned about my young son and never in my career since has there been any recurrence of this sort of conduct. southers says the initial recounting to the senate committee was an inadvertent mistake, gregg. >> the republicans say they have other concerns about the nominee, correct? >> right. south carolina's republican senator jim demint says he wants assurances that southers will not support tsa employees seeking to unionize, if he's confirmed. listen to this. >> this is the last thing we need to do right now. our airport

molly henneberg is live with the very latest. hi, molly. >> hi, julie. president obama says the u.s. is at war against a, "far reaching network" of violence and hatred. the investigation in the failed christmas day bomb plot is focussing on al-qaeda in yemen, a country president obama says is grappling with "crushing poverty and deadly insurgency." today, yemeni officials said they sent hundreds of troops to the provinces, the areas where the government doesn't have much control and al-qaeda is said to be strong. president obama says al-qaeda in yemen struck previously. >> this is not the first time the group targeted us. in recent years they bombed the yemeni government facilities and western hotels, restaurants and embassy. including our embassy in 2008 killing one american. >> today, a new statement from michael leiten who says it's reminder of the insidious threat we face, al-qaeda and those supporting the ideology continue to refine their methods to test our defenses and pursue an attack on the homeland. in the g.o.p. response, mitch mcconnell did n

in washington, molly henneberg, fox news. >> security at u.s. airports was overhauled after the september 11th attacks, but the attempted terror attack on christmas day is a stark reminder how far we need to go when it comes to airport security. with all of the measures currently in place, how did abdul mutallab aboard a u.s. bound aircraft? joining us now to talk about this is counterterrorism expert charles allen. mr. allen, thank you so much for coming in today. >> thank you very much. >> shannon: 47 years experience in the cia for you. several years with the department of homeland security. we know there are many working around the clock 24/7 protecting this country, but they've got a huge job to do. how does something like this slip through? >> well, they have a very hard job and it is seven by 24 and i worked seven days a week when i was at cia and when i was at homeland security just to help fight the terrorist threat. this has been a whole ten years of terrorism. you've got to remember a guy named rah seem tried to blow up lax, los angel

molly henneberg is following the latest developments, she's in washington. the president says that the u.s. has had its eye on this group for a while. right? >> reporter: hi. yes. al-qaeda in yemen and in the broader arabian peninsula. the president says they've gone on the attack previously. listen to this. >> in recent years, they've bombed yemeni government facilities and western hotels, restaurants and embassies, including our embassy in 2008, killing one american. so as president, i've made it a priority to strengthen our partnership with the yemeni government, training and equipping their security forces, sharing intelligence, and working with them to strike al-qaeda terrorists. >> yemen in response has sent hundreds of troops to two eastern provinces where the government has little control to try to route out the terrorists operating there. >>> the president and the use of the phrase, war on terror, which was used so often during the bush administration, he really has been very reluctant to use it. does he use it to describe this failed bomb plot from

. >> gregg: molly henneberg is live in washington. molly, president says the u.s. has had its eye on al-qaeda in yiyz for a while. >> molly: yes, in the broader arabian peninsula, president said they have gone on the attack previously. take a listen. >> in recent years they bombed yemeni places. i have ordered to strengthen our with the yemeni government and working them to strike al-qaeda terrorists. >> molly: yemen in response as you were saying, has sent hundreds of troops to two mountainous eastern provinces where the government has little control to try to root out the terrorists there. >> gregg: the president has used the phrase war on terror only once before since taking office. does he use it to industry describe it for the failed bombing plot? >> not war on terror. obama administration doesn't like that phrase used frequently during the bush administration. he describes the plot, as an attempted act of terrorism. he has made it clear that the u.s. is at war against, quote a far-reaching of violence and hatred and the u.s. will do whatever it takes to defea

let's get molly henneberg live at the state department. >> both countries say they are committed to fightingerror wherever it is and helping the afghan people combat terror in the country. new information just out about the christmas dave thwarted bomb attempt. it turns out his name was misspelled in the initial state department report to try to find that if he had a visa. it's still not clear that anybody went back and checked to see this guy that was just coming on their radar screen, whether or not he had a visa. the department said it did not assess the risk assessments. they're looking into how this could have happened in the weeks leading up to that christmas day plot. trace: live at the state department. that is brand-new information at the bottom of the hour. >> while passion and politics can obscure the hard work before us, let's be clear about what this moment demands. we are at war. we are at war against al qaeda. martha: all right. those are the stern words from our commander-in-chief. prominent voices from the political and security worlds are starting to weigh in. here is a for