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Presidential Push for Climate Deal; Goldman Family Reunion on Hold; Insurgents Steal Video

Aired December 18, 2009 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: News that's happening right now, I want to tell you about this story in Northern California. Nerves are pretty rattled there. Authorities are keeping a close eye on these apartment buildings. They're teetering on the edge of a coastal bluff crumbling from erosion and heavy rain. Yesterday, one of the buildings was evacuated after large chunks of the cliff plunged into the ocean leaving the structure just 10 feet away from the edge of the 50-foot bluff.

The Obama administration is taking steps to include domestic abuse as a qualification for granting a person asylum in the United States. If adopted, the regulations would mark the first time the federal government formally recognizes domestic abuse victims in asylum cases. Nearly all asylum applications involve political persecution.

The mother of one of three American hikers jailed in Iran is reaching out to the Islamic Republic's supreme leader. In a video posted online, Nora Shourd appeals to Ayatollah Khomeni to release her daughter and her two friends for the holidays. The three have been jailed in Iran for almost five months now for allegedly entering the country illegally.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: America has made our choice. We have charted our course. We have made our commitments. We will do what we say. Now I believe it's the time for the nations and the people of the world to come together behind a common purpose.

A presidential push at the climate change summit. President Obama (INAUDIBLE) the world stage and scolds world leaders. He says time is running out to adopt the plan to combat global warming. Let's get to the very latest now from CNN's senior White House correspondent Ed Henry who is there. Ed, good morning to you.

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.

You're absolutely right, that time is running out on trying to get a climate deal, so as soon as the president landed here in Copenhagen, he ripped up his schedule and jumped into what really became an emergency meeting among about 20 leaders from key countries trying to work something out.

As you noted, the president was very direct in saying that enough is enough. Stop the posturing, let's get a deal done.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Ladies and gentlemen, there's no time to waste. America's made our choice. We have charted our course. We have made our commitments. We will do what we say. Now I believe it's the time for the nations and the people of the world to come together behind a common purpose. We are ready to get this done today. But there has to be movement on all sides to recognize that it is better for us to act than to talk.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: Now, the president, what he's basically talking about is cutting emissions, having a deal where all the great powers will step up and talk about what emissions they'll cut. He also wants more transparency to make sure countries like China are actually following through on those commitments and finally talking about money, making sure the U.S. and other large powers step up to help fund fighting global warming among developing countries that don't have as much money.

I just talked about some of these issues in an exclusive sit-down with Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She's here with a congressional delegation. I pressed her on the fact that there are some environmental groups that think the president should have gone further.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HENRY (on camera): Some of the environmental groups have responded to the president's remarks by saying they're glad he had a call to action but they're disappointed he wasn't more specific on U.S. emission targets and exactly what the U.S. will do to back it up in terms of getting something through Congress.

You went out there first, you got it through the House. It's been stalled in the Senate. And nobody really has a good handle on whether it can get through in 2010 with health care, the economy. All the job... (INAUDIBLE)

REP. NANCY PELOSI, HOUSE SPEAKER: It will get through. I just met with the ministers of the European Union and I want to remove all doubt. This bill will get through the United States Senate and it will pass the Congress and be signed by the president in this Congress, which means in the year 2010.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: You can hear right there a vow from the speaker of the House that this will get done on Capitol Hill in 2010. However, easier said than done. As you know it's been stalled in the Senate. A big fight over a carbon tax. Republicans saying that something like that will essentially hurt American businesses, lead them to layoff more people. Right now with 10 percent unemployment, something that is not needed. The Speaker told me that's absurd and that the tax he's talking about will not hurt American businesses. This fight will continue for some time to come, Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes. It sounds like it. We'd be remiss though, Ed, if we didn't talk about how high the stakes are for President Obama in Copenhagen.

HENRY: They're huge. Because let's face it, the president put the pressure on himself. Originally he was supposed to come at the beginning of this two-week summit. Then he changed it when the White House thought well maybe a deal was coming together. They wanted to make sure he was here in the final hours to try to push it along and let's be frank, get some political credit. If a deal falls through, he's likely now in the reverse, get some of the political blame.

I remember when I was here at Copenhagen last time with the president a couple of months ago he was making a last-minute push for the Olympics. That fell flat. We'll see what happens today, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. We'll be watching. Ed Henry, thank you.

I want to tell you about this late-night vote too. It puts the Senate now one step closer to paying for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The vote after midnight closed debate on a $636 billion spending measure. It provides money for the wars. Also includes an expansion of benefits for millions of unemployed Americans.

A final vote on the spending bill could come as early as tomorrow. Voting on that spending measure clears the way for the Senate to focus on the health care debate.

Speaking of, Senate Democrats are doing battle with each other now over health care. Majority leader Harry Reid could release the latest version of his $1 trillion, 10-year plan today but he faces a lot of opposition from within his own party over a decision to drop the public option and scrap a provision allowing aging baby boomers to buy into Medicare.

Labor leaders are not happy with the measure either, saying it's too soft on the insurance industry. Senator Reid wants to pass the bill before Christmas. Yesterday he accused Republicans of using stall tactics to prevent the bill from coming to a vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: They made their point to the American people. They made it perfectly clear that they have no interest in cooperating or really legislating but the families and businesses are suffering, hurting and dying every single day, have no time for these kinds of games. That's why we're going to finish health care whether the other side cooperates or not.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), MINORITY LEADER: The only conceivable justification for rushing this bill is the overwhelming, overwhelming opposition of the American people. Democrats know that the longer Americans see this bill, the less they like it.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Thanks to the efforts of so many people, including our leadership, we have turned American public opinion because we've been informing them of the consequences of passage of this legislation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: If the Senate passes a health care bill, its version will have to be merged, of course, with the House plan, which still does include that public option. We'll continue to follow this long story, I'm sure.

A disappointed father now won't be able to bring his son home for the holidays. That after a Brazilian Supreme Court justice decided to hold up yesterday's planned reunion in the much-watched international custody case.

CNN's Susan Candiotti has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID GOLDMAN, FATHER: I've been down this road for five years. It's another setback and it's very sad.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Not exactly the happy home for the holidays ending David Goldman hoped for. Instead, more heart break for the New Jersey dad who arrived in Rio de Janeiro hoping to finally bring home his son.

GOLDMAN: It's very discouraging.

CANDIOTTI: Only to learn a Brazilian supreme court justice had blocked the transfer of Sean to his only surviving parent, ruling the child had to first be heard from in court.

GOLDMAN: I honestly believe that the justice system does not want to be looked at as a country that is a safe haven for kidnappers that will allow a child to remain separated from their only parent and try to turn that child against that parent and then demand a nine- year-old, innocent, vulnerable, psychologically damaged child to speak in a court is beyond cruel.

CANDIOTTI: And it sends a message no court wants to send. According to CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: They introduced the idea of we need to get the feelings of the child, we need to interview the child. Well, if that's the rule, then the lesson to be learned is you should kidnap a child as young as possible so that they identify with their captors and ask to stay.

CANDIOTTI: A lawyer for the family in Brazil says Sean is happy where he is and wants to stay there. But New Jersey Congressman Chris Smith, who's been helping Goldman in his bid to reunite with his son, believes the Brazilian courts will ultimately rule in his favor. REP. CHRIS SMITH (R), NEW JERSEY: this justice could have done the right thing. He chose poorly and unwisely. This has become a major impairment to the Brazilian government, and I do believe the Supreme Court of Brazil is Hague illiterate, they understand the Hague Convention and will appropriately apply it's provisions and Sean will be on a plane home.

CANDIOTTI: Susan Candiotti, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Boy, oh boy, there is some weather out there and it is far-reaching too. Rob Marciano has been covering all of it for us. The eastern seaboard here getting hammered.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Rob, thank you. I know you've got a lot on your plate over there. We'll stay in close contact.

Meanwhile insurgents stealing military secrets using cheap software online, hacking into U.S. drones over Iraq. Well, the U.S. military says it was a necessary risk.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: It caused no significant military damage. That's what Joint Chiefs Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen is saying about Iraqi insurgent hackers. A U.S. official confirms insurgents were able to hack into U.S. drones flying over Iraq to see the same video feeds seen by the military.

CNN's Elaine Quijano has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The software in question costs as little as $25.95, made by a Russian company. The Skygrabber program allows users to take advantage of unprotected communications links. As "The Wall Street Journal" first reported and a U.S. official confirmed to CNN, insurgents used the program to intercept live feeds from U.S. military predator drones monitoring targets in Iraq.

ALLAN PALLER, RESEARCH DIRECTOR, SANS INSTITUTE: Well, what was surprising was that the military computers - the military drones weren't using hardened technology.

QUIJANO: A senior defense official did not deny the breach but insists the problem is an old issue for the military, one that's been addressed and fixed. Yet another official said this is sometimes a risk the military is willing to take, because encrypting slows down the real-time video feed when multiple people need to watch simultaneously. Still, one expert says this is exactly what happened in Bosnia years ago and should never have happened in Iraq. P.W. SINGER, AUTHOR, "WIRED FOR WAR": We assumed that our enemies would be dumb. We assumed they wouldn't catch up to our technology. We assumed because they were in a place like Iraq or Afghanistan they couldn't pull it off. Well, what happens when you assume.

QUIJANO: In fact a 2005 CIA report notes Saddam Hussein was suspected to be doing the same thing, monitoring U.S. installations after Iraqi hackers located and downloaded the unencrypted satellite feed from military drones. As for these latest breaches, a U.S. official says no American troops or combat missions were compromised, but P.W. Singer, author of "Wired for War" says the breach should serve as a wake-up call.

SINGER: There are other potential adversaries out there that have much, much bigger budgets, certain large nation states. And the kinds of things they're going to do make this look silly.

QUIJANO (on camera): One of the highest profile uses of drones has been in Pakistan where they have been used to hit Al Qaeda and Taliban targets on that side of the border. Now informed sources tell CNN that those drones are not vulnerable to this software because they do use the latest encryption technology and because they're used in a much more limited capacity than the military drones.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: The nation's top military official is in Iraq today. Joint Chiefs Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen is visiting U.S. troops in Basra. He headed to Iraq after a three-day stop in Afghanistan. Mullen says he expects Iraq will hold elections in March and the U.S. will begin withdrawing troops as scheduled that same month.

In Pakistan, at least 12 people are dead after a car bomb exploded near a police compound. It happened in northwest Pakistan where troops have been battling militant fighters. 28 others were injured in the blast. The police chief says the "Associated Press," the suicide bomb exploded just as police were leaving a mosque after Friday prayers.

Cleared after 35 years, thanks to new DNA tests. It's a story we've heard before about a Florida man who's walking a free man now, saying he's ready to get on with his life.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Time to check some of the top stories we're watching this morning.

A Florida man got out of prison 35 years after being wrongly convicted of rape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Bain, I am now signing the order, sir. You are a free man. Congratulations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: James Bain says he's not angry. He was freed after DNA evidence proved him innocent. Bain in fact spent more time in prison than any other inmate later freed by new DNA tests. The 54-year-old now says he wants to travel.

And are you hacked off this morning? You might be if you tried to tweet overnight. Hackers successfully broke into the popular microblogging site twitter.com. Millions were left tweetless, but the problem seems to have been fixed now.

An Oklahoma judge is reviewing a controversial abortion law today that could lead to every procedure being cataloged online for anyone to see. The law, which would take effect in 2011, requires doctors to fill out a questionnaire documenting race, marital status and educational background of their abortion patients.

They'd also have to ask why, but they don't have to include the patient's name. Supporters say it sets up a database that could help prevent future unwanted pregnancies. Opponents call it an invasion of privacy.

We're talking about this story on our blog this morning. What do you think about posting information online about women who have abortions? Just go to cnn.com/heidi and let us know. I'll read some of the comments a little bit later on in the show.

It is the season for holiday parties and holiday drinking, but be warned some cocktails can leave you with a brutal hangover.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Doctors in Brazil are preparing to perform emergency surgery right now on a two-year-old boy who has 42 needles in his body. One of the needles has punctured the boy's heart. These are x- rays now of the boy taken earlier this week.

His stepfather is under arrest. He said his girlfriend told him to put the two-inch long needles through the boy's skin. They were discovered when the boy's mother took him to a doctor after he complained of pain.

The holidays are here and if you keep in the spirit by drinking lots of spirits then you might want to listen up. Some types of alcohol can leave you with a much worse hangover than others.

CNN's senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is joining us now. There's so much I could say here. Why are some types worse than others? What happens to the body?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It's about how they ferment the alcohol and how many toxins end up in it. I must say I've never seen a study quite like this one.

COLLINS: OK.

COHEN: What researchers did at Boston University and University of Rhode Island is they got college - got university students drunk. They recruited 95 university students in the greater Boston area.

COLLINS: That never happens.

COHEN: That never happens but they got them drunk in a very controlled way. They, you know, put them in a room and they got them well beyond the legal limit of drunkenness. And sometimes they gave them bourbon and sometimes they gave them vodka and then they looked to see how their hangovers were the next day and they found that bourbon gave them a worse hangover.

Apparently because it has more of these impurities. And this is, I'm sure you'll be shocked at this, Heidi -

COLLINS: OK.

COHEN: They found that the day after when they had these hangovers, they had decreased cognitive skills.

COLLINS: Wow!

COHEN: Yes, there's a whole section of this study devoted just to that.

COLLINS: Shocking.

COHEN: Shocking.

COLLINS: I'm sorry, who funded this study?

COHEN: You and me. This was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.

COLLINS: Come on.

COHEN: It's right here. I can show you -

COLLINS: Where's the outrage? I don't think anybody knew about it.

COHEN: Who knew. It's very interesting.

COLLINS: Unbelievable. Well, hey, I guess while we're on the topic, any advice on avoiding a hangover.

COHEN: Yes. This is also shocking. The advice to avoiding a hangover is don't drink so much. Right, there you go. See, you don't even need to ask me. But we'll try to get more specific. When you're drinking, drink water every other drink so maybe a little vodka, a little water, a little vodka, a little water. Dilute the drinks. Because then they'd have less alcohol in them. Don't drink on an empty stomach and pace yourself. I mean, I'm laughing while I say this because really what it's all about is just don't drink that much.

COLLINS: Yes and certainly, if we can take a moment, don't drive after you do it, please.

COHEN: Oh, my god. Exactly.

COLLINS: All right. So, you know what, I want to hear more about this study later on and where they got the money from and how it works, that the taxpayers paid for it. I bet you'll hear a lot on your website as well.

COHEN: Yes, I'm sure we will.

COLLINS: All right. Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.

A snapshot of America's charities struggling to get enough so that they can give enough this holiday season.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: We are following a huge storm that is shaping up all along the east coast and Rob Marciano has been a busy man in the weather center tracking this thing.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: All right. All right. Well, I'll keep you posted because I'll be there, not moving very far. All right, Rob, thanks.

All he wants is his son back, but now a New Jersey man faces another setback in an international custody battle to bring his boy home.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A rough economy and the holiday season are never a good mix, as you well know. Not for families trying to make the days special, that's for sure, and not for charities trying to meet increased need while they see their donations drop. We're focusing on those charities in today's "Snapshot Across America."

Joining us this morning from Washington, Major George Hood with the Salvation Army. Also in Washington, Major Bill Grine with Toys for Tots. And in Miami, Lynne Cameron, whose organization runs an Adopt a Family program. And then in Memphis, Rick Shadyac is CEO of Alsac (ph). It's the fundraising arm for St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

Appreciate you guys being here so very much. And just off the top, I'd like to say really appreciate the work that you all do. We want to talk to you a little about this because obviously everyone is concerned about the economy, and when you are a nonprofit and when you are trying to give, if you will, I would imagine that things have been really affected.

Major Hood, I want to start with you. Everybody knows about the bell ringers and the red kettles that the Salvation Army organizes every year. We all see them this holiday season. Remind us and our viewers, where exactly the money that is collected in those kettles goes.

MAJOR GEORGE HOOD, SALVATION ARMY: Well, it's important for everyone to understand that our Christmas fund-raising is community- based. All of the money that is raised in a local community through that red kettle program stays in that community to address the needs of that particular community.

COLLINS: All right. So, then take a moment to tell me how this year compares with last year for you and the Salvation Army.

HOOD: Well, there's no question. We have our challenges in front of us. Last year was a record-setting year for our red kettle program. $130 million was donated by the American public. This year, we're realizing that the economy is having an impact. We're lagging behind about six percent as we look across the country, so there's a few days left. We have our work cut us for us.

Because the need in reverse to that, the need is extensive. Almost 100 percent increase in some communities.

COLILNS: Wow, wow. One hundred percent. And I know that you tried to take some measures to make it easier for people to give too, because the fact of the matter is some people just don't hold cash, so you have done something with credit cards, right?

HOOD: We're making it easier to give. If you don't have cash in your pocket, you can swipe a credit card and make whatever size contribution you want. What we're learning is that the average gift is approximately $15 per consumer that uses that option. And so we are feeling very good about it, but it's tough to get those credit cards swiped when increment weather comes along, and we haven't figured out how to address those challenges.

COLLINS: All right. Understood, understood.

Major Grine, I want to get to you and your organization, which is Toys for Tots. Tell us a little bit if you could first about the program, just in case somebody has not heard of it.

MAJOR BILL GRINE, TOYS FOR TOTS: Well, Toys for Tots is a Marine-run program. It's very simple. Marines collect toys, books and other gifts locally to give to locally less fortunate children. It's very simple. What we do, we do it during the Christmas holiday season every year.

COLLINS: How does this year compare for Toys for Tots over last year?

GRINE: Well, you know, every year we start the season out knowing that we're going to run out of gifts before we run out of less fortunate children, sadly. But each year we hope to do better than we did or at least as well as we did in the previous year. This year, we're not so confident. We sent a request out to all 691 of our units a couple of weeks ago asking who needs help. More than any previous year, we had a lot of units come back and say we had a lot of requests, a lot more requests for toys than we have in the past, and fewer toys donated and less dollars donated as well.

COLLINS: Yes, yes, understood. All right. I just wonder what's the best way if somebody is watching right now to get a toy to a child?

GRINE: The best way is to contact the local Marines, go to our Web site at toysfortots.org, and we have a list of all the units. You can look up the unit closest to you and track them down and call to arrange to give a toy or to receive a toy. This is the last weekend, however, that we're going to be very active, so you need to move quickly.

COLLINS: All right, very good. Thank you so much.

And Lynn, I want to talk about your organization for a moment here as well, Adopt a Family. Actually organizes a program -- you're with Neighbor 4 Neighbor, but tell us how your program works.

LYNNE CAMERON, NEIGHBOR 4 NEIGHBOR: Our program is a little different in that it's a more personal experience because we came out of Hurricane Andrew. So many people really like to meet the family that they're helping, and we find that often a mentoring relationship develops.

So, what we do is we work with social service agencies as well as people who self nominate, and we match them up with caring businesses, companies, groups, organizations and other families who just want to provide some Christmas decorations and gifts and friendship. And it's a really special opportunity.

We are very blessed because we have a partnership with CBS 4 in Miami, so we're able to use the media to sort of put a face on the need. I think we find that we are inherently good as people and we really do want to reach out to others. Our biggest problem is that people always want to adopt the little ones, and we need things for teenagers as well.

COLLINS: Yes, understood. Same question I asked the others, how does this year compare to last year?

CAMERON: The need is tremendously up. There are so many people who have never had to ask before, who have never had to put their hand out. And they're calling, and we're working very hard to raise toys. We've collected a couple of thousand toys through Bank Atlantic down here, who has opened up all of their branches to collect toys, and we get gift cards for every kid over 10, we try to give a gift card to. But the need is huge this year.

COLLINS: Okay, okay, understood. That's definitely what we're hearing from almost everybody. Finally to you, Rick, of St. Jude's Children's Hospital. We see the ads on television every year. You guys have the Thanks and Giving Campaign each year that we should mention. Tell us how that works.

RICHARD SHADYAC, CEO, ALSAC/ST. JUDE: Well, we're in the middle of our Thanks and Giving campaign right now. It's a fundraising and awareness program to raise the necessary funds to operate St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital.

We're the hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, though that treats kids from all 50 states and throughout the world. We see about 5,700 kids per year. And we share our research really throughout the world. We're also the institution where no child is ever turned away because of an inability to pay. We cover all costs not covered by insurance, including transportation and housing and things of that nature, Heidi.

COLLINS: Great, great, very good. Obviously that takes money. So, if I were to ask you how this year compares to last year, what would you say?

SHADYAC: Well, overall our fundraising is down a bit. We're down about 10 percent, but we're in the middle of our thanks and giving campaign right now, and we're cautiously optimistic that we're going to do very, very well. We think the American public will shop and embrace our corporate partners, and we're in the middle of that right now. We believe that we're actually going to exceed our goal from last year.

COLLINS: Wow, that's terrific. Hey, I love your tie, by the way. What am I looking at there? Is that Curious George?

SHADYAC: No, no, no. That's a St. Jude Children's Research Hospital tie. We try to embody what we're all about here. We treat kids from all across the world and all across the United States.

COLLINS: Terrific. I can only see the very upper portion. I knew it was a kid tie. I love it.

All right, well, listen, to the four of you, we sure do appreciate your time in telling us this situation, and of course, God bless you for all the work that you do. Major George Hood from Salvation Army, Major Bill Grine with Toys for Tots, Lynne Cameron with Neighbor 4 Neighbor, and Rick Shadyac with St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Thanks again, guys.

SHADYAC, CAMERON, HOOD AND GRINE: Thank you.

COLLINS: Checking our top stories now. Salvaging a deal on carbon emissions at the global climate conference. President Obama rearranged his entire schedule this morning and went straight to an emergency meeting with 20 other key leaders. The president told leaders that no country is going to get, quote, "everything that it wants" there. He urged them to accept a less-than-perfect agreement to fight climate change.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's better for us to choose action over inaction. The future over the past. And with courage and faith, I believe that we can meet our responsibilities to our people and the future of our planet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The two-week-long conference appeared stalled as late as yesterday, but a U.S. offer to help raise $100 billion to assist developing nations addressed their climate change needs may have helped.

An international custody battle gets uglier now. An American father, David Goldman, who you see there, arrived in Brazil after a court ruled in favor of his custodial rights. But as he got ready to return to New Jersey with his nine-year-old son, Brazil's Supreme Court stepped in and ordered yet another review. The case has dragged on for more than five years.

Los Angeles police have released two new composite sketches of a man believed to have killed at least 11 people since 1985. The sketches released yesterday use age enhancement techniques to show what the man dubbed the Grim Sleeper might look like today. The sketches are based on a description given by a woman who survived a 1988 assault.

Cleaning up the environment and fixing the economy, one Hybrid at a time. But is it is it a practical solution? We've got some answers coming your way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: It's that time of year the temperature is dropping and people are cranking up their thermostats. But for millions of people it's really not an option. A new study says a record number of Americans cannot pay their energy bills.

Susan Lisovicz is on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange now with more details on this. Boy, you hate to hear that, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and especially when temperatures are so bitter right now in so many parts of the country, Heidi.

Four million households had their -- had their power turned off this year due to nonpayment. That is an increase of 5 percent. This despite the fact that the government doubled funding for assistance this year to $5 billion.

That allowed it to help more families with more money. Eight million households received government heating assistance this year, which is a record high. The average government grant, $500. $500. A lot of people left in the cold right now, Heidi.

COLLINS: No question. When you talk about unemployment bowing in the double digits, it's presumably a problem that is going to get worse.

LISOVICZ: That's right. Because even though the economy is showing signs of strength, the job market is still weak. It's something the Federal Reserve said earlier this week when it kept interest rates at a historic low. NEDA, which is the consumer advocacy group that put out these numbers, says it expects applications for assistance next year to jump 20 percent.

COLLINS: Really?

LISOVICZ: So, it's something that is going to be in need for some time and hopefully the government will be able to respond to these people who are suffering right now.

One thing that we are seeing warm up is -- well, we saw the markets warm up. The Dow just dipped into negative territory, but the NASDAQ is getting a nice run today, a nice rally because of some positive earnings reports with Oracle and the maker of Blackberry, Research in Motion. So, we're seeing a rally there. But the Dow, starting to see a little bit of pressure. Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, Susan. Sure do appreciate that. We'll be watching those numbers throughout the day.

Meanwhile, as President Obama pushes for a climate change agreement in Copenhagen, he's also focused on cutting grown house gas emissions here at home. One of the keys is improving vehicle fuel efficiency, but there are, of course, some challenges to that.

Alison Kostic has our "Energy Fix" now from New York. Hi there, Alison.

ALISON KOSTIC, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Heidi, you know the administration has a pretty ambitious plan. It wants to see one million plug-in, hybrid and electric cars on the road by 2015, I'll tell you, but the cost of it could be a major obstacle.

There's a new study from the National Research Council that finds that next year, it's going to cost $18,000 more to manufacture a plug- in hybrid than a conventional car, and that's because the battery is so expensive. It could be decades before the upfront costs come down enough to cover the fuel savings.

Now, let me look at an example for you. Let's look at GM's Chevy Volt. It goes on sale next year, but the report find it won't be cost-effective for buyers until the year 2040. That's assuming, of course, that gas prices hold below $4 a gallon. GM, of course, shot back, calling the NRC's battery-cost estimates bloated and says they're going to come down quickly. Heidi.

COLLINS: Some of these cars are expensive and may not actually pay for themselves for years. How will they ever catch on?

KOSTIC: Exactly. And to make these cars more attractive to buyers, the study says big government subsidies are going to be needed. That's something we're already seeing. The stimulus act provides a federal tax credit up to $7,500 for plug-in hybrids next year that. And that would bring the Volt's estimated $40,000 price tag down below $33,000, though that's still a pretty good chunk of change.

And at the same time, ordinary gas-powered cars, they keep getting more fuel efficient. They're a lot cheaper, and don't need to be plugged in so, Heidi, definitely some challenges for reaching the administration's goal of one million plug-ins on the road by 2015.

Now, if you want to read more on this story, go to CNNmoney.com, and you can also follow us on Twitter. Heidi.

COLLINS: OK. Very good. Alison Kostic, thanks so much. Appreciate that.

Quickly want to take you to Washington, D.C., now where the mayor there, Adrian Fenty, you see at the podium, is getting ready to sign a same-sex marriage act that was actually approved by the city council earlier this week. Again, legalizing gay marriage. Let's go ahead and listen in for a moment.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

ADRIAN FENTY, MAYOR OF WASHINGTON, D.C.: ... grew up in the neighborhood, and this is one of the churches that my parents would have brought me to when I was a little boy.

And things have a way of coming full circle when you're mayor. My parents are here with me. Please stand, mom and dad. My parents are here with me. Please stand, Mom and Dad.

(APPLAUSE)

FENTY: My parents know a little something about marriage equality, married almost 40 years ago in a country that at the time, every jurisdiction didn't agree that an interracial couple should be married. Had they not been able to, I wouldn't be standing here as mayor of the District of Columbia right now.

(LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE)

FENTY: So, as we embark on this great milestone, it is as Reverend Hardy said, it is because we are thinking about the couples and their families and the great lives that they will have because of bills like this in Washington, D.C. and other places.

I want to thank a couple of people before I make my formal remarks. First and foremost, the council of the District of Columbia, who's shown amazing leadership...

(APPLAUSE)

FENTY: Let me just...

(APPLAUSE) FENTY: I know the chairman is on the way, but let's take -- and a couple of them are going to speak, but let's have all of them stand, one by one. Councilmember Muriel Bowser. Councilmember Harry Thomas from Ward 5 is here. Thank you so much.

COLLINS: All right. Once again, we are watching the public ceremony here where the Washington, D.C., mayor is at the podium getting ready to sign the same-sex marriage act, which passed city council a little earlier in the week. But as you well know it still has to go for review to Congress, which always has the final say over laws -- D.C. laws, of course.

So, once again, same-sex marriages in the nation's capital getting one step closer to legal here. We'll continue to follow that story throughout the day. A quick break here now in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A controversial abortion law is being reviewed today by an Oklahoma judge. The law would require doctors to ask patients about their reasons for having the procedure as well as their race, marital status and educational history. All that information would then be posted on the Internet through the -- though the patient's name would be left out.

So, that brought us to today's blog question. We asked you what you think this about this Oklahoma law.

"If the information was offered up voluntarily, that would be fine, but to make it mandatory should not be legal. Has anyone even thought that this might make women seek out sub-par abortion procedures in order to avoid questioning?" That from our first viewer there, from Amber.

Now this from Gayle. "This law is just another way men want to control women. I propose that any man who wants drugs like Viagra be subject to the same scrutiny. See how they like it."

Then from Melissa. "Having had an abortion as a teen, I believe that it would be good to collect the information. It would improve outreach programs and other resources for women. Abortion is a personal choice. Still, all choices hold some level of accountability. If a mere questionnaire is the only level of accountability, then I think it is fair and helpful."

Remember, we always like hearing from you. Just go ahead and log on to CNN.com/heidi and share your comments there.

Well, I hope you have a great weekend, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. For now, CNN NEWSROOM continues with Tony Harris.