all of which raises the question why the international olympic committee chose sochi in the first placertant than olympic gold? to find out, we met some of the few russian journalists brave enough to ask those questions. including sergei kanov who always has a hidden camera in his bag in case he is attacked again, as he has been twice before. >> one put a slip knot over my net and tried to strangle me. >> and a russian businessman who went into hiding after allegations of corruption that led to threats on his life. >> you will be drowned in blood. >> reporter: and we heard from the mayor of sochi who tried to laugh off our questions about corruption and mafia tie with an aide offcamera telling him not to answer. >> what are you talking about? never. sochi could never be a mafia city because this is a city where people come to relax. >> reporter: the decision by the international olympic committee to choose sochi was made seven years ago. there's no doubt that the personal appearance by russian president vladimir putin was a big factor. he spoke in english, something he almost never does

security of every olympic games pose 9/11 the reality is security of the olympics weather in the united states or london or athens or sochi become a principal concern for policymakers around world because the olympics become such a target rich environment for terrorist groups including those that have designed not just globally but locally and regionally. the security concerns in sochi are even greater and more justified, let me explain why. terrorist groups led by the caucuses but not solely, and central asian groups, have the clear intent to disrupt the sochi olympics or to embarrass the russians in a particular vladimir putin who has so personalized the olympics and the success of them. and the past summer, very clear about the desire to have major at tax or major disruptions, significantly in july, a punitive than, and softer targets, transportation hubs, civilian sites, desire to engage in these attacks as seen through their video postings, blogs and communications so the intent is clear and it would have been obvious even absent their open declarations but the open declarations made it clear for authorities. they al

we are having the olympics in a subtropical village or city of sochi. that itself is this incredible conceit that he can effectively change or control the climate for the purposes of these olympics. and the idea you will have an olympics not far from chechnya and dagestan, places of terrorism, and you will have a secure olympics for thousands of visitors. >> one of the reasons putin wanted the games in russia, matt, was he wanted it to be a showcase for putin's russia, the new, modern russia. forget the soviet union. are the games htving the effect on the games? the one he wanted? >> not the one he wanted, but it is a showcase for modern russia. >> not in a good way. >> all of the construction projects are plagued with construction. there is a phrase now in russia it is the korrumpiad instead of the ole limb pea yad. it is a one-man state. >> matt knows this because he traveled a lot to russia. when we come back with the 2014 mid-terms approaching, vulnerable democrats try to distance themselves from obamacare. can they run against the law and win? for o

he had threatened to attack the upcoming sochi olympics. mark phillips, who will be covering the games, has our report. >> reporter: docu umarov is the bearded man on the right in this video which appeared on a russian jihadist web site just yesterday. although the green vegetation suggests it was shot sometime ago. russian security services won't confirm umarov is dead, but another video has appeared in which a senior figure from the same insurgent group talks of the sorrowful news of their leader's death. umarov is blamed for bombings going back years, the most recent being the double blast at a train station and on a bus in the south russian city of volgograd. the russians say 37 people died. the moscow subway bombings in 2010 killed at least 40. the campaign to try to establish a breakaway islamic republic in the caucasus mountains had hit the russian capital. four vladimir putin on the eve of his big show at the sochi olympics, umarov was russia's osama bin laden, public enemy number one. he had specifically called for the disruption o

three weeks away from the olympics, what's happening, are we putting 15,000 americans in sochi, there are a lot of gaps and concerns. >> professor, you heard glen howard touch on it previously, but this is not just not another olympic games. this is post russia's coming out party, and a lot on the line for vladimir putin to proof that prs russia is a success, modern russia. >> of course, at a cost of $61 million. that may be the reason why they had the approval to hold it in sochi they were able to donate so much of their resources to creating this spectacularcal, if you will. even if nothing course the fact that right now we're talking about terrorism rather than any other aspect of the olympics, means that to some degree the terrorists are already starting to get what it is that they wanted, which was to have this be the olympics that is actually about terrorism in the caucuses. >> is there pressure on russia to show that it can do this on its own? >> yes, if you look at the demands made by this group thougthey made astatement about, they said they had nothing to do about it, first

new terror threats for everyone heading to the sochi olympic games just weeks before the olympics beginy terrorist. we're live in russia with the te

the olympic torch is making its way to sochi. the torch went through the city of volgograd where the bombings happened. that's 600 miles north of sochi. the relay race started in moscow and will end on february 7th when the torch will be used to light the olympic flame. security personnel wrestled with a gay russian protester. the protester displayed his rainbow flag in front of the torch bearer yesterday. photos posted to a russian social network show security members forcing him to fold up his flag. officers took him down to a police station for questioning. he told the associated press he's still there. he also said hosting the games in russia contradicts the principles of the olympics which is to cultivate tolerance. russia has been criticized for its laws that bans so-called gay propaganda that promotes homosexuality to minors. >>> the u.s. olympic bobsled team has been named, and a monterrey man will pilot one of the sleds in sochi. about two years ago the u.s. bobsled and skeleton federation named nick cunningham as a bite

winter olympics it has its very own venue. it's curling up in sochi for the winter games and at the curling lympics stadium at least will be perfecting this sweeping slide and ultimately the quest for gold the ice cube curling center is a three thousand multi-purpose arena it's one of the smaller centers here at the olympic park it will be hosting the wheelchair curling competitions the come the paralympic games now it's quite a spacious small center and those with disabilities will be able to enjoy this center so what it is proving you made one point have seen this. this weekend this to some it looks like a sweeping map but it's more than that physics and strategy play a role. the idea is to push the story in from one end of the ice to the other aiming for the center of the house which looks like a bull's eye on the school's haunted comes when the sweeping begins sweepers with what looks like a mob out of the stones melting the ice ever so slightly with the friction of the sweeping this is done to make the rock go farther it can straighten out the to

. >> schieffer: today on "face the nation" will americans be safe at the sochi olympics. what is the tea party's plan now as new year begins in washington. as washington prepares for the annual state of the union address, we'll talk to the man who led the government shut down last fall. texas republican ted cruz, what is his next move? key senate democrat chuck schumer responds. with a sochi winter olympics near how homeland security michael mccoal just back from russia will have the latest on security preparations. and we'll talk with two openly gay members of the u.s. olympic delegation, tennis great billy jean king and 1988 gold medalist brian boitana what could they expect. plus analysis on all of this from peg knee noonan of the wall street journal, legendary "washington post" reporter bob woodward, conservative william chris tall of the weekly standard and former white house chief of staff now cbs contributor william daly. 60 years of news because this is "face the nation." captioning sponsored by cbs >> schieffer: good morning again as you probably know by now ther

lawmakers warning the threat to sochi games is real. >> i think it's the most dangerous olympics we have had. >> the threats are real. we have 150,000 americans traveling to sochi for the olympics. >> the russian government needs to be more cooperative with the united states when it comes to the security of the games. they are not giving us the full story, but we don't accept to be getting all of the information we need to protect our athletes in the games. >> i would not go. and i don't think i would send my family. >> representative jason chaffets is on the homeland security committee. he joins us. good evening, sir. >> hi, greta. >> well, it's no secret that russia has had certainly troubles with terrorism in the last year if not going back much farther. and now this threat where we think the four women are headed for the sochi olympics what you can tell the american people tonight? >> it's a very dangerous spot and very high profile venue. there is great cause to be very concerned about this. not only have they highlighted these four so-called white widows or black widows sometimes r

reality is the security at the olympics whether in the united states or in london or athens or in sochi, become a principal concern for policymakers around the world. because the olympics become such a target-rich environment for terrorist groups, including those that have designed not just globally but perhaps locally and regionally. i think the security concerns with respect to sochi are even greater, and even more justified in this regard. and let me explain why. the terrorist groups led by the caucasus emirate but not solely and their affiliates come but also central asian groups like i am you and i j. u., had a clear intent to try to disrupt the sochi olympics are least embarrassed the russians and in particular vladimir putin who have so personalized the olympics and success of them as andy describe the intent has been declared. doku umarov this past summer has been very clear about the desired to of major attacks on the olympics or at least major disruptions your significantly in july he lifted a ban on the attacks on civilians which in many way opens up the targets set for terro

olympics in terms of motive. russia has been fighting a war about 1,000 miles from sochi where the suicide bombers are originally from. they say this is about muslim blood and russia, not the olympics. ng to olympic athletes f course and their families who will be at the winter games within weeks. jim and jovan plan to cheer on their son corey but the family just found out yesterday their son had qualified for the games, they say they are proud, their tickets, visas ready but mixed emotions about traveling to russia with all of these terror threats. >> i just was told we're not to sit there and be so flashy in the village. usa and stuff. which i understand and so we're just going to be cautious. >> the family says they don't plan on much sight seeing. they will stick close to the venues. >> the 49ers' quest for six will have to wait for next season. the team knocked out of the playoffs by the seattle seahawks. players will be back this morning to clear out the lockers. bob redell live outside headquarters this morning. yesterday's loss came with a fair share of drama. >> reporter: and disappointment. good morning

fiscal and political duty on the part of the russian government in building the sochi olympics. putin, when he lobbied successfully 6 1/2 years ago to have sochi be the site of the olympics, he beat out a site in south korea, he beat out a site in austria and he did so because he promised he was going to spend an exorbitant amount on the olympics but the exorbitant amount that he cited to the olympic committee was $12 billion. the price tag -- right. the price tag for the olympics now is way higher. it is, depending on your estimates, anywhere from $50 billion on up. i've seen estimates as high as $55 billion. at least 1/3 that have money, according to reports from credible russian observers, has been lost to corruption. the result is that the basic, basic things that needed to be done to get sochi ready and to get sochi secure for the olympics simply haven't been done. for example, comparatively modest investments in infrastructure, rail infrastructure, air infrastructure, that would have allowed transport hubs to accommodate a greater volume of passengers simply weren't done. t

olympic games. did you believe it's too dangerous to go to sochi. >> two members of the intelligence community, intelligenceg in about the possibility of any kind of attack about the russian olympics. as you know the chechnyaans, a lot of attacks, raised the level. both king, a member of the intelligence committee and mike rogers, a member of the house intelligence committee expressed big reservations about how they are handling this so far. certainly not all that encouraging for folks who might want to go over there. in fact, angus king said he wouldn't go to the olympics knowing what he knows. >> i would not go. i don't think i would send my family. i don't know how you put a percentage on it but it's just such a rich target in an area of the world. they have almost broadcast they are going to try to do something there. >> so a lot to watch on both these big stories. candy crowley in washington. thanks so much. >> thank you, fred. have a good week. >> president obama has a few things to say about marijuana and football. find out what he said next in the newsroom. but first an olympic veteran won't let a s

we also got into the security situation at the sochi olympics. we spoke about corey, who the president honored during his state of the union speech. >> i'm going to give you a choice, you just have to pick one -- i'll give you two -- >> yeah. >> hillary versus biden or broncos versus seahawks. you have to tell me -- you have to pick one and give me the winner. >> so you'll be able to hear the president's answer to that. it's a slightly lighter moment from the walk and talk interview. most of it, of course, more serious about more substantive issues and all of that will air tomorrow. first, we'll start airing it on "new day" at 6:00 a.m. eastern and then right here on "the lead" at 4:00 p.m. eastern. tomorrow, friday, you'll be able to see the entire thing. when we come back, a man who hoped things had gone differently in 2012. former vice presidential candidate congressman paul ryan, republican of wisconsin. he'll join me next to react to what we just heard from president obama and the state of the union speech. >>> later, two suspects arrested f

mayor, let me hit you real quick on the sochi olympics. on. you're involved with the former planning of 2016 olympics in rio. do you think with everything that we've learned, mr. mayor, that sighting these in sochi was a mistake? >> it's now too late. it's one of the worst situations in the world in terms of terrorism, exportation of terrorism. happens to be in a country that has tremendous security. we know sometimes what the price of that is but it does have tremendous security. they devoted more resources to security than frankly i've ever seen. i'm also familiar with the winter olympics right after september 11 in utah that mitt romney ran which were almost cancelled. that hand h an-- had an enormou amount of security. the threat is there. on the other hand the amount of security is overwhelming. so, in retrospect, could you have picked a place that's safe? i guess kou. but the point i make to all of these olympic committees and i've dealt with a few of them, the minute you hold the olympics in a place where it's salt lake city or it's

sochi isn't the most natural place to host the pinter olympics. ucture here, it isn't very cold, more palm trees than snow. it's not far from the caucuses, the most dangerous part of russia, but putin likes sochi. it's like an american president hosting the olympics in martha's vineyard. putin denied the olympics are his pet project. it's not the way many see it in russia where putin is president and athlete in chief. >> a big sportsman. very active in judo. very active in skiing and his athletic abilities means he has something more than the country at stake. he wants the world to see he is not only running a country, but one in sports. >> reporter: the olympics are companying. putin's prestige is on the line. he hosts the games in his favorite retreat and according to his rules. the games are coming and putin promised they would be safe and open. that's according to to russian standards. alex? >> thank you very much from sochi. before the olympics kick off, there's a major event closer to home here. the super bowl is two weeks from tomorrow. law

but not solely asianeir affiliates and affiliates have the clear intent to try to disrupt the sochi olympicso try to embarrass the russians, in particular vladimir putin. the intent has been declared. past summer has been very clear about the desire to have major attacks on the olympics or at least major disruptions. significantly, in july, he lifted the punitive ban on the attack on civilians, which in many ways opens up the target set on terrorist groups and civilian sites. and they clearly have a desire to engage in these attacks. as seen through their video postings, blogs and communications. the intent is clear and it would have been obvious even absent there opened up a ration. but the open declaration has made it very clear for authorities. capability.ve the we have seen that in three sinces in volgograd september. we have seen that in past sinces directed by umarov 2009. the high-speed attack the twin moscow and st. petersburg. the airport and other attacks that have rebated. what is interesting and important is the caucuses emirates and their various groups ann arbor -- and demonstr

olympics. security in sochi is already tighter than at most airports. president putin has promised to mobilize the army, police and intelligence service if necessary. it would be difficult to get a bomb anywhere near the olympic venues. attackers might not have to. russia is vast, with plenty of targets. but why attack during the olympics, an ancient festival of peace? mostly revenge. russia is fighting a low-level war in the caucuses, a muslim majority territory less than 1,000 miles from sochi. the republic of daghastan is especially violent, and that's where the suicide bombers said they're from. another reason? syria. bashar al assad was provided with weapons. the olympics aren't really the target. russia is. the games, analysts say, are an opportunity to grab attention and to try to harm vladimir putin. u.s. officials tell us they expect the olympic park itself will be secure but worry there could be an attack somewhere else. lester? >> richard engel, thanks. >>> meantime tonight, questions being raised in this country over whether the russian gover

in this news hour, including new threats against the sochi olympics. and we're in bosnia talking to recent victims of a war that ended nearly 20 years ago. >> we've got all coming up in about 20 minutes, including a sneak preview, at brazil stadium. >> all this week, >> the strength of our future relies on education. >> we are creating a class of adults exposed to mediocre education. >> stealing education, part of our week long, in depth series. america tonight only on al jazeera america >> translator: based on our medical records she was workers in hong kong is i would say slave-like and it's vulnerable to abuse and vulnerable to expectation. >> reporter: and agencies say they were not aware of the problems until she returned home. the police accuse the agency of not providing enough evidence. >> justice for domestic workers. >> reporter: at a demonstration earlier in the week, another woman came forward saying she real reporting that brings you the world. >> this is a pretty dangerous trip. >> security in beirut is tight. >> more reporters. >> they d

about 15,000 americans are expected to attend the sochi winter olympics. some worry about the level of russian cooperation. >> the russians are more concerned about the threat that somehow people would learn about their sources and their methods. this is the most dangerous olympics we have had. >> russian officials are searching for three different potential black widow terrorists. >>> steve centanni live for us in washington. thank you, steve. >> it is a few hours chris christie will be sworn in for his second term. this happened as the lieutenant governor denied allegations made by the mayor of hoboken p. she claims christie threatened to withhold sandy storm remoef money unless she backed a project. >> i am surprised mayor sglirm has miss characterized about the development and job creation in hoboken. >> i am very surprised the mayor's allegations, and i deny wholeheartedly those allegations. >> zimmer later responded saying quote i stand by my word remain willing to testify under oath. seattle seahawks richard sherman now apologizing for that rant aft

that's why the organizers of the sochi olympic games are stepping up security even further. ick the mountains surrounding sochi have been turned into a high-security zone. tens of thousands of soldiers and police are on duty. security cameras are everywhere in the city. fears of a terrorist attack are high. but most of sochi's residents have other worries. this family used to live from there vegetable garden and fruit trees. sochi's unique subtropical climate provides excellent growing conditions, but when the city was chosen or the winter games, the family had to move. their land, just 700 square meters, was on the site of the olympic park. >> we used to harvest five times a year. crops like potatoes, radishes, carrots, beets. some people even planted peanuts. of course we had cucumbers and tomatoes. >> sochi has changed. the black sea resort city at the foot of the caucasus has seen nonstop construction since it was nominated to host the winter olympics. this, despite the region being designated a unesco natural world heritage site -- unesco world natural heritage site. sin

that's why the organizers of the sochi olympic games are stepping up security even further. ick the mountains surrounding sochi have been turned into a high-security zone. tens of thousands of soldiers and police are on duty. security cameras are everywhere in the city. fears of a terrorist attack are high. but most of sochi's residents have other worries. this family used to live from there vegetable garden and fruit trees. sochi's unique subtropical climate provides excellent growing conditions, but when the city was chosen or the winter games, the family had to move. their land, just 700 square meters, was on the site of the olympic park. >> we used to harvest five times a year. crops like potatoes, radishes, carrots, beets. some people even planted peanuts. of course we had cucumbers and tomatoes. >> sochi has changed. the black sea resort city at the foot of the caucasus has seen nonstop construction since it was nominated to host the winter olympics. this, despite the region being designated a unesco natural world heritage site -- unesco world natural heritage site. sin

we have 15,000 americans traveling to sochi for the olympics. >> sreenivasan: the challenge grows outof a long running islamist insurgency in russia's north caucasus region. which includes dagestan and chechnya. sochi lies roughly 400 miles away, but the militants have demonstrated an ability to reach across russia. in late december, two suicide bombings hit the southern city of volgograd, killing 34 people. on sunday, an islamist group in dagestan claimed responsibility for that attack, and threatened the olympics. today, russia's national anti- terror committee said police killed a senior islamist militant in a shootout in the north caucasus. russian president vladimir putin has promised a ring of steel to protect sochi. and foreign minister sergey lavrov counseled calm today. he said the world will join russia in safeguarding the olympics. >> terrorism has no nationality. terrorism has an international dimension - this fact is well has repeatedly stated that we will ensure security at the olympic games. special staff are operating, including representatives of practically all the s

next, a discussion about security concerns at next month's olympics in sochi, russia. then, tony perkins, and later, a portion from the republican national committee's recent meeting in washington, d.c., including a panel of the so- called rnc rising stars. next, a discussion about the upcoming winter olympics in sochi, russia, and the security concerns surrounding the games. this is a little over one hour. >> good morning and welcome. we will confine all questions about richard sherman until after the briefing. thank you for being here this morning. we have some weather coming into washington so it is good to have such an excellent turnout. this is obviously a very timely briefing and we will get to it. i'm joined by my colleagues dr. andrew kutchins and jeff minkoff. juan was the deputy security advisor in the bush administration, a key arson on counterterrorism and many other issues. -- a key person on counterterrorism and many other issues. we will open it up to your questions. thank you for coming. >> good morning, everybody. as andrew said, you braved the rumor of

huge opportunity to make it to the next level on home ice at the two thousand and fourteen olympic games in sochi. because i think for me it's not about extra pressure and all my home fan support can only encourage and boost my performance when it comes to the olympic games you always want to win the book when you feel the crowd is behind you that is something special it's a save bed the games will be really special for one of the most degraded athletes of the sport victor on this return olympic champion of cyrene two thousand and six for south korea was forced to leave his former team and country due to a conflict with the korean skating union vice president their coach after missing the two thousand and ten games in vancouver and receiving russian citizenship twenty eight year old looking forward to his olympic comeback in sochi. along with his younger teammates three million lists rather an all good billick over who already tasted the flavor of the games in two thousand tanned and claimed the time to shine has finally come for us on this side of course this time around it is a different story

. >>> and right now, the olympic torch gets closer to sochi, as new terror threats emerge. can russia keep the world's athletes safe? >>> hello, i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. completely false and illogical. that's how chris christie's lieutenant governor describes the latest allegations dogging the administration, lieutenant governor kim gud ago know, support for a development from a development project. the allegation comes from the democratic mayor of hoboken, new jersey. >> the bottom line is, she came and she made a direct threat to me. she came and when the lieutenant governor comes, pulls you aside in a parking lot, and says that these two things are connected, i know it shouldn't be, but they are. and if you tell anyone, i'll deny it. i mean, she felt almost guilty about saying it. she knows it's wrong. but that is exactly what they're trying to do. >> our owner raerin mcpike is o the season, the mayor saying governor christie was, if you believe this, alleged threat directly involved in that threat. lieutenant governor says there was no threat at all.

we have 15,000 americans traveling to sochi for the olympics. and i want to do everything i can to make sure it's a safe and successful olympics. >> do you think you and other u.s. officials can convince the russians to accept more assistance from the united states? >> well, you know, diplomatic security core says they're cooperation is good. we have two dozen fbi agents, it could be a lot better. i want to press that while here. i know secretary hagel has offered military assistance as well. you mentioned evacuation plans. i'm concerned if something happens, what is the evacuation plan and emergency plan that would take place? you're talking about -- and that group that these two suicide bombers claim to be taking credit for is an al-qaeda faction. and it's happening in the northern caucuses in russia. and outside of there in volgograd, which is formerly stalingrad, at the train station. very similar to what we saw in boston with the backpacks and blowing up things. all the briefings i've received from the intelligence community and the fbi ind

now you know so curled up at the curling stadium this winter olympics mom would say sochi olympics are to. credible continue to walk through the olympic park to watch a series of reports on the social venues here on r.t. international. world room is the iraqi capital baghdad has been shaken by a series of bombings and shootings leaving at least twenty people deed shops and restaurants and commercial districts of mainly shia neighborhoods were targeted although no one has claimed responsibility for the assault al qaeda linked militants often launch similar tactics against shia communities. hundreds of protesters poured into the streets of brussels to protest spain's abortion policies demonstrators marched from the spanish embassy to the european parliament last december madrid adopted restrictions on abortion allowing it only in limited cases including rape of physical risk to the mother. been put in an american jail sometimes means losing more than just the liberty figures published by the u.s. ministry of justice show more than eleven thousand people died in prisons over the last deca

in our world lead the head of the sochi olympics proclaimed today that sochi is, quote, the most securet the moment on the planet, unquote. sound reassuring. kind of. but what about the surrounding area where tourists will have to sleep and eat? matt olson, who is director of the national koun terrorism center, testified in front of the senate intelligence committee today. he was asked about how they're monitoring the olympics. >> the biggest issue from my perspective is not the games themselves, the venues themselves. there's extensive security at those locations, the sites of the events. the greater threat is to softer targets in the greater sochi area and in the outskirts beyond sochi where there is a substantial potential for a terrorist attack. >> and joining me now from his recent trip to russia is republican congressman dana rohrabacher of california, the chairman of the emerging threat subcommittee of the house committee on foreign affairs. congressman, thanks for joining us. you just returned from moscow. it was part of a larger congressional delegation trip on anti-terrorism a

now you know so curl up at the curling stadium this winter olympics would say sochi olympic called our team. and it will continue to a history of the olympic park to watch our series of reports on. the sortie venues here on r.t. international. being put in the slammer in america can be a life threatening proposition the most recent data from the u.s. ministry of justice shows more than eleven thousand people died in local jails in the decades to twenty eleven is all she is a mirror of david reports some of those hadn't even been charged. who. it's a mother still in mourning distraught over her thirty seven year old daughter died after spending several agonizing hours lying on the floor of a brooklyn jail cell the day which led to kyin livingston's death this past summer stemmed from a nonviolent altercation with her grandmother but after her arrest police brought her here to brooklyn central booking where she was held waiting to be arraigned by a judge unfortunately she would never make it to a court or ever officially be charged with a crime. instead livingston would spend the remaind

he is definitively concerned. -- the sochi olympics.imate, the people, the protesters, the unrest, he does see it. >> let's listen to senator john mccain. is a great pr guy. he has a great image. is, when you get down to it, they will insist on the right to enrich. as long as they have the right to enrich, they will be moving forward towards the acquisition of a nuclear weapon. there is no reason for them to want to enrich these materials. they want a nuclear power plant or a nuclear capabilities for peaceful purposes, we will provide it. >> so john mccain has the reputation for being hawkish, shall we say. talked to the leader of blackstone. he had a slightly different perspective on rouhani. had as manyhey have sanctions as they needed, creating real hardships, which was the design of it. i'm not a foreign-policy expert. to know what is going to happen from here -- >> differing views for different reasons. john mccain, the politician, steve schwarzman, the ceo of blackstone, he is an investor. they don't look at things the same way. >

the top three skaters from boston will then earn a trip to the olympics. >> if you're planning to go to sochi for the olympics, you need to be village lent about your safety. the state department said it isn't aware of any specific threat, but the alert noted large events like the olympics are an attractive target for the u.s. take precautions when using public transit. we're always on when it comes to the 2014 sochi olympics. you can find everything you need on our website, including our newsletter. just write in your e-mail to sign up to receive it. >> jeff ranieri should have gone with janelle. >> looked like she was having a good time. we should be getting back here across the bay area, but we are going to get a few snow showers tomorrow and even increase our chances of wet weather. increasing clouds for tonight and to the north yet again. that's where our storm system is producing heavier rainfall. for us, we're going to have to wait a little bit longer to get that rain. it's poised down here about 800 miles offshore. we'll have more on the timing of the system coming up in about 45 seco

and warning that more attacks could come during the sochi olympic games. in the hour-long video, the purported suicide bombings are constructing explosives and ex training their motives. the two men apparently part of an islamist militant group, vowing to prepare a presence for the olympics, and all the tourists who will come over. members of congress are very concerned. >> if something does happen, what is the evacuation plan, and emergency response plan that would take place? >> reporter: others worried about americans heading to sochi. >> i would not go. and i don't think i would send my family. >> i am very concerned about the security status of the olympics. i do believe that the russian government needs to be more cooperative with the united states when it comes to the security of the games. >> reporter: russian president, vladimir putin, deploying a security force of 40,000 police officers and soldiers to the region. in an interview with abc news, putin says he will do whatever it takes to keep athletes and visitors safe. and pledging that russia ha

now you know so curl up at the curling stadium this winter olympics would say sochi olympic our team. will continue to walk you through the olympic park reports on the. international. to other world news in brief now on a world update a wave of shootings and bombings have shaken iraq's capital baghdad claiming at least twenty lives no groups that claim responsibility for the attacks although al qaida linked fighters have mounted similar assaults in the past in last six suicide bombers stalled in iraqi ministry building killing at least eighteen before security forces regained control. of thousand people have filed a joint lawsuit against the companies that manufactured at japan's fukushima nuclear plant they claim the firm should take financial responsibility for the facilities the two thousand and eleven meltdown caused by a massive earthquake and tsunami the accident is one of the worst nuclear disasters in history according to experts it may take decades to finish the operations around the crippled facility which is leaking radiation into. bangladesh fourteen people including the h

know you know so curled up at the curling stadium this winter olympics would say sochi olympics our team. but i will continue to walk through the olympic clock watching a series of reports on the. already international. you're ok. how do you operate doing pygame i'm going to ruin was pretty good sports and short track speed skating is not as easy as ruth's a road i'm not an olympic hockey player bomb which is on the. way i live in my fire. and in other world news this hour iraq's capital baghdad has been shaken by a series of bombings and shootings leaving at least twenty people did shops and restaurants in commercial districts of mainly shiite neighborhoods were targeted no one has claimed responsibility for the assault al qaeda linked militants often launch similar attacks against shia communities. a young palestinian man has been shot dead by israeli soldiers near the west bank of city city of ramallah israeli defense forces claim the victim opened fire at civilians and the military pays but locals say he was on armed violence in the region has increased in recent months with over twe

there are fears one of the so-called black widows could be already on the ground within the olympic area in sochi: good morning, bill. good morning, everybody. i'm martha maccallum. russian president vladmir putin is vowed to keep the olympics safe with a so-called ring of steel. but the 22-year-old widow of an islamic militant may already be inside that area. her face is placerred on wanted posters all around sochi. congressman

new business saw them using that found in this landscape bad the city winning the olympic bid play in influence to. sochi winning the olympic three it encouraged us to take action as we became more sure that the region will now be developing fast and world so yes i'd say this fact did have an influence on our decision to move here. leaving well paid jobs behind meant making a living was a number one priority so they turned to so. are using his head for business to help his creative like christina at first it was not much more than a pastime but the business blossomed to david product line consists of organic soaps shampoos show a gels and creams you might even for gadgil looking at a bar of soap as everything looks appetizing there's a whole arsenal of bottles and flasks with essential and cosmetic aisles and greetings alga nicklas source locally water from the local mountains is used alongside herbs and spices which christina picks herself with no previous experience in the soap making industry and no formal education in chemistry kristina studied up on her own time with the business is doing well their

we go behind the scenes of nbc covering the sochi olympics next. ♪ >> in media, we are now over two weeksom the 2014 winter olympics. nbc is set to deliver a record 1539 hours of programming. we spoke to the two producers in charge. >> sochi will be the first winter olympics ever where all competitions will be streamed live. we did that in london as well. we found that people were engaged in olympic content whether it was streaming or online or on apps, then they were likely to watch television, whether prime time or the afternoon. for us, live streaming, the ability to take advantage of that capacity, has been a success on all fronts. >> in this world of social media, how can you decide what will be shown live? >> we have found through these last few olympics as we had made more content available, is that it simply galvanizes and circulates more communications and chatter around the olympics and more excitement. we have seen our primetime audiences continue to grow. >> it is not a traditional sports audience that wants to know who won or lost, because the result may know in advance means

the international space station and that's by the way the very torch that will light the olympic flame in sochi next month artie's james brown has been following its voyage which he described earlier to lindsey france. james brown welcome to the studio what do you have with you here the torch of the olympic games can give us a look at this well as you say this is my. personal torch it's as you can see very one of the car in souvenir let me let me have a look at this this is not light by any means heavy this is the ad it is what two kilos for actually really oh yes i'm going to. hold it up that is heavy quite and this is a better record breaking relay for the olympic torch going places it's never been before you were following it which one of the milestones do you think was the last memorable are important i think for me i've been to several. going to by car was amazing they took the torch on the water into my car so you have the burning flare torches specially made and passed very impressive on the water and then flew the torch back with the man with the jets on to the on to the very good video

the seventh of february we'll be bringing you more on why the olympic city has a store so stay with r t international for more on that. sochi more of the twenty fourteen olympics what's this place like why is it so special as the russian resort prepares to welcome the world power the games should be the city's present and future what more sochi will bring you this is the moment there we brought you from a very cold and snowy windy mountains to be on the olympics with the bomb let's say. on our. house take a look at some other stories from around the world an assault on a joint afghan naval base in east of galveston and has left one soldier dead five taliban fighters tried to answer the compound after a suicide bomber blew himself up at the base and turns all the attackers were killed in the firefight. now last week taliban militants launched a suicide attack on a nato military convoy in kabul killing three soldiers. opposition activist in bangladesh have torched dozens of polling stations and clashed with police had of sunday's parliamentary elections they say the polls will be rigged and demand a neutral caretaker ministra

officials expect the stream of terror threats aimed at the sochi winter olympics to continue in these days leading up to the games. but just how credible are they? and with the unprecedented security measures russia has put into place, just how safe is sochi? joining me now, evan coleman. with a welcome, i know that you monitor all these extremist websites. what are the most alarming things that you're seeing online in regard to the threats against the games right now? >> i think you're right. we're seeing an increasing crescendo of these kind of threats pop up. in addition to threats from the caucuses itself, people in dagestan or chechnya, we're also seeing threats from outside. just in the past few days, we saw video from the afghan-pakistani border. the russian national with a group called the islamic jihad union, which has come up with plots targeting frankfurt international airport, and they issued a statement in the run up to sochi threatening attacks on the infidels. it is a question, how much of this is propaganda, how much of this is just trying to take advantage of media fo