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Trying to Reach Cloture on Health Care Legislation; Severe Weather Hits the East Coast; What Do Americans Think about Healthcare Bill; Private Text on Company Phones

Aired December 19, 2009 - 12:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: All right, nasty weather all along the East Coast. Hello everyone, I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. keeping a close eye on this monster of a storm. Believe me when I say you're actually looking at the nation's capitol, the nation's capitol. I know you can't see the dome, there. Just believe me see it, that's how blustery it is in the nation's capitol and surrounding area, Virginia as well. It is meant that there has been a ground stoppage on air flight and you know a lot folks need to stay off the roads as well, because this is a kind of a very dangerous winter storm in the making. Our Reynolds Wolf is in the elements, as is, as are many of our correspondents throughout the Washington, D.C. area. We'll check in with all of them, momentarily.

Police reported more than 300 accidents in the Washington, D.C. area. It is nasty, as I mentioned, on the airways as well as on the ground. Very bad stuff. All right, where are we going first?

All right. Charleston, South Carolina, is also pretty nasty, as well. We'll be taking you there so can you get a picture of all that's taking place.

All right, also, on Capitol Hill, a possible breakthrough as it pertains to the health care reform bill. U.S. Senate, Democrats feel like there is the 60 votes necessary in order to avoid a filibuster. We'll be taking you to Capitol Hill, as well.

All right, where are we going first? As you can see, this weather is also affecting kind of our programming, our planning stages, right here.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke moments ago talking about this being a potential victory as they move towards some sort of health care reform package. Just in time for the holiday season. This is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRY REID (D), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: More progressives. They feel that this bill doesn't go far enough and there are others who say, why didn't we get a public option? I think the public option, I spoke out loudly and strongly on it. But this bill, this bill will do so many good things for so many people, and we explained that in some detail in caucus just a few minutes ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: All right, folks at the White House also keeping a close watch on all that's taking place there on Capitol Hill. Not quite calling it a victory, but certainly hoping for the best. Let's go to our Brianna Keilar who is on Capitol Hill.

Brianna, give me an idea how this came about? We're hearing kind of a tepid victory coming from Harry Reid there, but also heard from Mitch McConnell who say that they want some more work done on this bill before there's any potential passage of such?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, and actually though, and it seems at this point that Democrats have the 60 votes that they need. That maybe a lot of them are, you know, they wish that it could have done more. But, the bottom line is, they're planning on voting for it.

So, this is really the biggest step, the biggest hurdle, it appears, that has been cleared in the effort to move health care legislation through Congress and to help the Senate Democrats really hit that timeline, that deadline, that they wanted, which was a vote by December.

But the key to getting those 60 Democrats onboard really was with Senator Ben Nelson, a conservative, socially conservative senator from Nebraska, anti-abortion rights senator. He had serious concerns about the abortion language in this health care reform bill. He was concerned that some federal taxpayer dollars in the form of federal subsidies that go to lower income Americans to help them buy insurance, he was afraid that that was going to go towards paying for abortions, and he wanted to tighten up the language. They came to an agreement between liberal Democrats and also between obviously Senator Nelson and some of the moderate Democrats -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Brianna Keilar. You mentioned, that we're talking about a possibly 1:00 a.m. Monday vote. Is that still the schedule.

KEILAR: That still is the schedule. Because of Senate rules it takes a certain amount of time. A debate has to go by, and so that is still the rules. Now, Republican could say, OK, you know -- actually I want to point out something going on the floor right now, Fredricka.

Have you seen this? They're actually reading all of the updated changes to this Senate health care reform bill? Republicans have said we want this bill read. So, this is what's going on. It's been going on now for a couple of hours. It's going to go on for a little while longer. But, yeah, bottom line, we are expecting this vote on Monday at 1:00 a.m. It's not the end-all vote, but it really is in terms of this key test vote, and it's going to be the hardest hurdle to clear, needing those 60 votes. That's why we're paying so much attention to it, Monday, 1:00 a.m.

WHITFIELD: And you know, just moments ago Senator Mitch McConnell spelled out many reasons why he and others were not onboard with this bill. Despite all the changes that they're going to be reading about right now as you just mentioned, Brianna, among them, Mitch McConnell still saying that federally funded abortions could possibly take place with this bill, and this bill would further tax certain states that are already having a difficult time as it pertains to Medicare. Except for, he pointed out, Vermont and Nebraska seem to be getting sweetheart -- a sweetheart of a deal through this?

KEILAR: Well, and that's the issue of -- so what this bill does is it expands Medicaid beyond what it now.

WHITFIELD: Medicaid. Sorry.

KEILAR: Yeah, it expands Medicaid so that more lower income Americans will have health insurance through that program. Well, when you pick up the tab for Medicaid it's something shared by the federal government and by state governments. So, one of the big complaints among a lot of senators has been, this is going to really be tough on my state when it's a -- you know -- they're already strapped for cash? It's just going to be rough for them to pick up the tab.

So, one of the things, and this was a sweetener for Senate Ben Nelson, the holdout Democrat, was something that said, OK, the federal government will pick up the tab for what the state owes for Medicaid, and Senator Reid was very, I thought, candid about what he said, part of legislating, this is part of deal making. Obviously indicating these are the promises you need to make to get votes.

And I think the other issue of that funding potentially for abortions la to do with, and we're still looking into this, whether in the language for, say, Indian reservations and just under the funding for Indian communities. If this sort of toughened up language would go into effect for them? We're working to figure exactly how that works -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Brianna Keilar, thanks so much or Capitol Hill. Appreciate that.

All right, well reaction trickling down, of course, to the White House and beyond. People at the White House keeping a close eye on the Senate's work on health care reform this weekend. Let's bring in our Dan Lothian for details on some of their reaction, thus far -- Dan,

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, there is been keeping a close eye on what's going on up on Capitol Hill. The president was supposed to have a quiet day, though, here at the White House as the snow was falling outside, but we're now told that the president will be making some remarks at 1:30. We were not told specifically what he will speaking on, but connecting the dots believing that he will be making some remarks, a reaction to health care reform.

A big day for the White House. The president really wanted to get this wrapped up before Christmas. It's certainly on its way. Not getting everything that he wanted. He wanted that public option. The president himself has pointed out this is not a perfect bill, but he says this is something that will help millions of Americans, 30 million uninsured Americans, get insurance. Those with pre-existing conditions will not be denied coverage it will also bring down costs. So while there's been a lot of pushback from Republicans and certainly pressure even among Democrats themselves, they've been able to line up behind each other looking good for this administration. The president expected to make remarks about that at 1:30, here on CNN. We'll take it live.

WHITFIELD: Oh, OK, we'll look for that. Do you suppose that he might be elaborating further what took place in Copenhagen? Whether he feels comforted by any potential progress?

LOTHIAN: We don't know if he'll talk at all about what happened in Copenhagen, but there's another victory, if you will, somewhat limited, though, for this administration. It looked for a while yesterday like the president would come back with no agreement at all. Certainly there's nothing there that's binding. It's a non-binding agreement, nothing leaply to persuade any of these countries to do anything to lower emissions, but certainly the president was able to come back with promises that these various countries, China, India, also south Africa, part of this agreement, Brazil as well, that the president met to hammer out this agreement, that they're all going to do something, that they're promising to do things going forward.

The president saying, listen, you could sat around and try to get the perfect agreement with something that was more binding, but they would not have gotten an agreement at all. So, he comes back with something, it's not quite the gold medal but he does have something in this hand.

WHITFIELD: All right, if not placing first, second or third, then maybe at least coming close to it.

LOTHIAN: That's right.

WHITFIELD: OK. All right, that's half glassful. That's what e we like, right? All right, thanks so much, Dan Lothian, appreciate that.

All right, as we said and you saw those pictures as the president returning there from Air Force One, that the picture of Washington. And really, the entire East Coast in the making, particularly the mid- Atlantic. Now can you see the capitol building, remember that shot at the top of the show? It was very difficult to see. Now you can see a good part of the dome. We'll be taking you live to Washington and surrounding parts for a monster of a storm, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Now back to that continuing dangerous blast of the winter weather hitting the East Coast. CNN crews are all over this story. Reynolds Wolf is out there among those intrepid reporters out there in the snow. Elaine Quijano is at Reagan National Air Port in Washington where airlines have cancelled most of their flights. Rob Marciano is in the CNN Weather Center tracking the storm, as well. But first let's get to Reynolds Wolf.

There you are in Frederiksberg, Virginia. It is so pretty, particularly if you're not driving. Glad to see no one is trying to take on those nasty roads, right now. REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, that is until (INAUDIBLE), our photojournalist moves the camera a bit and we see that do have people out here, Fred. And then something more. Let me show you something over here. Can't tell (INAUDIBLE) get this shot over here on this side. We have a snow plow. It is not just a snow plow, Fred, that is a snow plow that is actually stuck in the snow.

Take a look at this. They're trying to rock it back and forth. You see the sign here, it says, stay back 100 feet. Don't think that's happening. But it's pretty much the name of the story. You had a lot of snow that fell here in this area. They're going to do what they can to try to keep the roads clear. For the most part they've done a bang-up job. And you've seen traffic come on through. Let's get these guys on through.

You see the green light. Yeah. Push the long, skinny pedal. There you go. Go right on though.

You got these guys moving through this way, Fred's. This way, of course, they're not going to be moving through until this plow moves. And that's been the situation on a lot of the freeways. You've had some major closures out there. We're had hundreds of accidents, even had hundreds that were stranded on many of the freeways last night.

In terms of airports, just tons of cancellations which is no surprise that we have these blizzard-like conditions. Blizzard warnings in effect for this area, in Frederiksberg, Virginia and of course out towards D.C. the situation's been tough, too.

Now, although it has been frustrating for a lot of people, there are a lot of people who are trying to look at the good side of it. They're getting out there, enjoying themselves. Not just people, but also pets. We got a couple here.

Hey, how you doing?

EMILY, FREDERIKSBERG, VA RESIDENT: Good, thanks.

WOLF: I'm Reynolds. What's your name?

EMILY: Emily.

WOLF: Who's this?

EMILY: This is Meg.

WOLF: Meg, what do you think of the snow? She's rendered speechless. She is, I must say. Are you from the area?

ALISON, FREDERIKSBERG, VA RESIDENT: We are.

EMILY: Yes, we are.

WOLF: And your name is?

ALISON: Alison. WOLF: What do you think of the snowfall?

ALISON: I absolutely love it. I love being able to walk down the street without traffic.

WOLF: ASre you thinking about driving at all today?

ALISON: Probably not. I think I'm just walk everywhere. I just love the snow.

WOLF: You see, so people are definitely, Fred, really trying to make the most of this situation. I mean, let's be honest. I mean, there's not much we can do about it. We're at mercy of Mother Nature and Mother Nature may come down to about a foot of snowfall here before all is said and done, even more for the D.C. area, possibly breaking that record snowfall they set back in 1922 of 28 inches to be exact. So, could be a busy time, to say the least. Let's send it back to you.

WHITFIELD: Well, I guess this could be a good excuse for people who haven't finish their Christmas shopping, they were hoping to get it all in this weekend there in the Washington area and now can't get to the malls, so. people will understand.

WOLF: Oh, no question about it. I mean, this is the excuse. If you need extra time before you get your presents. It's going to be all right. Guys, does everybody have their Christmas presents for their loved one? They do?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.

WOLF: Everybody except me. Isn't it funny how that works out? All right, Fred, let's back to you.

WHITFIELD: Well, it's so beautiful. I'm glad people are taking it with a grain of salt, haar, haar, so to speak, and enjoy the weather as much as they can. Stay off the roads because definitely it is dangerous, very dangerous for many to be on the roads. Thanks, Reynolds, appreciate it.

Elaine Quijano is at Reagan National Airport in Washington. Where you have a lot of company if were you to step inside. Folks who are simply stuck, can't get in, can't get out. It's a mess. Isn't it?

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: You know, it really is a mess. And this is pretty much the story Fredricka, at airports in the region, here. Just take a look at these conditions, it's virtual whiteout conditions. Things have calmed down just a little bit, but really it is tough going. And you're absolutely right. You look inside, look at boards, cancellations, delays all around here. Things only promising to get worse as the day wears on.

But joining me right now to talk about all of this is Tara Hamilton. She is the spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority. And your agency is responsible for both Dulles and Reagan National. Tell me what the situation is like? Are any flights getting in or out at this point?

TARA HAMILTON, WASHINGTON AIRPORTS AUTHORITY: We have had flights coming in and out of both of our airports, earlier this morning. As you're said, this storm has had a major impact on our flight operations in the region. We were able to keep our runways open and accommodate the airlines that did have flights that were scheduled to go in or out, but a very small number of our normal schedule was operating today.

QUIJANO: Now, if things get worse, will the airports shut down at any point?

HAMILTON: Well, the airport doesn't shut down. We'll continue to work on our airfield. Because what we want to do is to be sure that we're ready, once the storm has moved through to have the airfield ready for the airlines to return and resume their operations.

QUIJANO: And on that point, if things do taper off here, say later on tonight, early tomorrow morning, how long do you think will really be before things get completely back to normal here?

HAMILTON: Well, as you know, when we have this type storm it affects flights all across the country. It's going to take the airlines some time and they're working hard to reschedule flights and get people re- booked, but as you see, most of the aircraft are not in this region. The airlines have wisely moved them out of the path the storm. So, they'll have to get them back in place here in the Washington area.

QUIJANO: OK. So, definitely if you're coming to the airport, make sure you call first?

HAMILTON: We would advise people, especially in these conditions, don't come to the airport until you have confirmed with your airline on the web site of the airline that you do have a flight.

QUIJANO: OK. Tara Hamilton with the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority.

So, there you have it, Fredricka, we hear it every time there's a big storm. Make sure you check before you decide to come to the airport. I have to tell you, though, I have seen a steady stream of people coming in, hoping...

WHITFIELD: No?

QUIJANO: Yes. Hoping that they can still catch their flights. And as we heard her say there, Fredricka, people are, at least earlier this morning, they are getting out. Now, are they getting out...

WHITFIELD: Maybe they're getting out on Metro?

QUIJANO: Well, it's funny you say that because if my information is correct, here, we just found out that things have been drastically affected there as well that things could be shutting down, at least some stations closing on the Metro line. So, certainly as this storm is blowing through and getting worse we're going to hear more about delays and cancellations and all kinds of operations being affected.

Right now here's what we know. Airtran, American Airlines, Delta, JetBlue, those are all airlines that have been affected here at the D.C. area airports. Cancelations, delays, you name it. So, if you're on a flight, on one of those airlines, you definitely want to check ahead.

WHITFIELD: Yeah, and I'm sure, as you mentioned, Metro, I'm sure it will be disrupted if not shut down altogether, because the rails both above ground and underground and it, too, is affected by the bad weather. We've seen that in the past many times before, unlike, say, like the New York subway system where people are hoping the Metro rail could run no matter what. Not usually. All right, Elaine Quijano thanks so much. Appreciate that.

QUIJANO: Sure.

WHITFIELD: All right, let's check in with our Rob Marciano keeping a close watch on this blast of a storm. It's a pretty ugly, but pretty, too.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, exactly. This is not only pretty on the streets, if you don't have to drive and you see it from your livingroom wind, but also pretty on the weather map. This is a classic nor'easter that has turned into a full-fledged blizzard for a lot of folks.

Mother low feeding baby low here, and this is the one that's going to take over as we go on through the next six to 12 hours. You can already see some of the rain bands feeding off the ocean as this low intensifies and also another nice pulse of heavy snow coming into the D.C. area. We're talking about snowfall rates that could exceed two inches per hour. I wouldn't be surprised if you heard a clap or two of thunder. There's so much lift in this system right now with obviously a lot of moisture.

Temperatures are fine. We've got them mostly below the freezing mark in D.C. Uu through Philly. The other thing we need to talk about are winds. In cases out towards Atlantic city, winds over 40 miles-an- hour. So, by that definition, by that, those kind of wind speeds, you're talking blizzard conditions and that's exactly what we have posted for a good chunk of some of these metropolitan areas.

D.C. is under a blizzard warning, meaning winds will blow at least 35 miles-an-hour over an extended time, three hours typically. Visibilities will drop to near zero at times and it's all and all going to be miserable and also looking blizzard warnings across parts of Long Island and the Cape.

All right, here's what we think is going to happen: 12 to 22 inches total in D.C. before it winds down tonight, 12 to 20 in Philadelphia, and maybe up to a foot in New York City. What a way to start off the holidays. WHITFIELD: Whew!

MARCIANO: We'll continue to have updates throughout the morning, Fredricka. This is turning out to be quite a winter storm.

WHITFIELD: It really is. It could be a nice way of starting the holidays if only you didn't have to go anywhere.

MARCIANO: That's right. There's always that catch-22.

WHITFIELD: That's right. All right, Rob, appreciate that. Thanks so much.

MARCIANO: Sure.

WHITFIELD: All right, high-level help now for an American dad fighting to get his son back from Brazil. But is it enough to help David Goldman get his son home for Christmas? Our legal guys take this one on in minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's take a look at top stories, right now. A major snowstorm taking a deadly toll on the northeast, at least three storm-related deaths are confirmed in Virginia. A blizzard could dump more than 20 inches of snow on the area and that's creating treacherous road conditions everywhere's look, there. North Carolina's highway patrol has already juggled more than 1,000 calls from stranded motorists.

And U.S. senators don their winter gear to get to work today, and they clear a major hurdle in getting health care reform close to passage. They've swayed the final Democratic holdout, Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson. He now says he'll support the plan that gives Senate Democrats the 60 votes they need to avoid a Republican filibuster. A vote is expected early Monday morning, about 1:00 a.m. possibly.

And more than 2,000 passengers had to be evacuated after four Eurostar trains broke down during the Chunnel crossing from London to Paris. Eurostar services warning travelers to expect severe disruptions this weekend due to bad weather there, as well. We'll have another look at the top stories in about 20 minutes from now.

All right, an American dad fighting to get his son back from Brazil gets another setback this week. We turn to our legal guys. Avery Friedman is a civil rights attorney and law professor. We don't see him right now because we're having problem with the signal, so we hope it will take place. And Richard Herman, who you do see right now, is a New York criminal defense attorney and law professor.

But I'm seeing Vegas behind you. Once again you're joining us from Vegas. Lucky dog.

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTY: Not snowing here.

WHITFIELD: Not stuck in New York. All right. Let's talk about this case, first, David Goldman. You know, he got a victory from a three- panel, three-judge panel who said, yes, you may get your son back, but then something strange happened this week. Within hours as he was on the way from the United States to Brazil, what happened?

HERMAN: It's unbelievable, Fred. You're right. An appellate court upheld a lower court ruling saying, return the boy to his biological father. Now, some obviously -- some corrupted Supreme Court judge in Brazil was either paid off or whatever, stepped in and said you know, he's a 9-year-old boy, and the court must hear from him to hear what he would like to do.

WHITFIELD: And so tell me how that would happen? Because oftentimes in the U.S., in many court cases, a minor would not necessarily take the stand in open court. So, this little boy, Sean is 9 years old. How might that play out there in Brazil?

HERMAN: Well, you know, I don't know how they do it in Brazil. It's corrupt over there, Fred. In the United States...

WHITFIELD: That's your personal opinion.

HERMAN: You know, a 13, 14, 15-year-old son a judge, a child, a judge will take those wishes into consideration and weigh them kind of heavily, the older they get. But at 9 years old, it's ridiculous. Perhaps a judge will take the child in camera, speak to the child one on one, but it really is, all this child knows is what these people are telling him in Brazil, the people who he is living with. His mother's family, that's who he's living with in Brazil, there. Not his father. He doesn't see his father. He has limited contact with his father. Obviously, the issue of parental alienation, which is huge, here.

WHITFIELD: Hasn't it been a year, maybe a year and a half since David has seen Sean, and so the stepfather has been alleging that you know what? This little boy doesn't even know his dad anymore. And by the way, the stepfather is an attorney, right? Is he responsible for the many appeals?

HERMAN: Of course he is, Fred. He's an attorney. He's wealthy, and he's very politically connected in Brazil and he's pulling his strings. He's calling in favors here to do whatever he can to keep this child over there. This child belongs in the United States. Everybody who has half a brain knows that, and what is going on in Brazil here is beyond an abomination, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Richard, thanks so much. We've got other cases we want to delve into, and we're hoping that our Avery is going to be able to join us. Hopefully that signal will work out. He's coming from Cleveland, not from a snowy Washington or New York right now, but we're trying to work something out.

All right, Richard, talk to you again, soon. We're going to talk about the Aster case, we're talking about the son of the New York socialite Brooke Aster, he is facing potential jail time for being convicted of stealing from his late mother. We'll delve into that case later on. Thanks, Richard. All right, the long and winding road to health care reform. Polls show Americans are getting antsy. We'll gauge support, next in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A major winter storm is shutting down much of the eastern seaboard right now. In Baltimore, dog owners, however, they're braving the blustery snow in the nation's capital. The mayor is urging people to actually stay put, try not to hit the roads and Delta Airlines cancelling flights in and out of Washington.

Twenty inches of snow is expected there by day's end. So take a look right here. The scene in New Jersey. Hundreds of drivers from New York to North Carolina has been stranded as well, and in Virginia just outside the D.C. area, three people have died as result of the storm. The National Guard is helping people on blocked roads, helping them to actually get to shelters.

Also, on a snowy Washington, D.C., it looks like Senate Democrats may have a healthcare deal. After a long negotiation, a key Senate holdout now says he'll commit to the bill. So what do Americans think about reforms in general? CNN Deputy Political Director, Paul Steinhauser joins us with the latest on this polling. So, Paul, what exactly is the public saying about healthcare reform?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Most recent polls, Fred, indicate that Americans aren't that supportive of what the Democrats are trying to push through Congress. Take a look at this, this is a recent poll from CNN Research Corporation really explains why Americans aren't so crazy about it.

You can see 85 percent of the people we recently questioned said they thought the bill would increase taxes. Seventy-nine percent said the bill would maybe increase the budget deficit and only, look at that, less than one in four said they thought the bills would help their family.

But remember, Fred, this poll that we took just about every other recent survey was taken before this agreement by Senate Democrats over this weekend. So we're really going to have to take a look at polls that are conducted after the holidays to get a better sense of how Americans feel what's going to pass through Congress if it does pass.

WHITFIELD: So people might feel a little bit nervous about the bill because they feel like it's being rushed. But in general, our people saying they want some sort of healthcare reform, or are we seeing a real parallel here?

STEINHAUSER: We have seen a change in those opinions and take a look at this. This is an ABC Washington Post poll that was just conducted over the last two weeks. Other recent surveys kind of like it. You can see now, is reform necessary? 51 percent said yes, 46 percent said they thought the new bill would do more harm than good. So Americans kind of split, but back in June, there was a solid majority that thought reform was necessary. We've seen a deterioration ABC's polls, but also in just about everybody's polls as well, Fred.

WHITFIELD: So do people have different opinions about Republicans, about lawmakers, versus the president?

STEINHAUSER: You know, you've heard a lot of criticism of President Obama and the Democrats when it comes to healthcare reform that a lot of Americans supposedly don't like what they're doing. But do they like what Republicans are doing any better. Here's a new poll from the ABC Washington Post, and just about every other recent survey said same thing.

Americans still have more trust in the president and the Democrats to do a better job on healthcare than Republicans, but that advantage for the president and for the Democrats is definitely narrowing over the last couple of months. Fred, this issue on healthcare is such a big one, it's going to be along with the economy, of course, probably two of the biggest issues as of now that will determine the outcome of next November' elections, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Yes, used to be the economy was like up front and center. Now it seems the economy and health care are kind of running neck and neck in terms of the interests of the American people. Paul Steinhauser -- sorry.

STEINHAUSER: Economy still number one.

WHITFIELD: OK, running a close second, then. Almost tying it for first. All right, thanks so much, Paul. Appreciate that. >

Staying warm and dry there in the nation's capital. >

Another question for you. Everyone's doing it. I'm talking about texting. How about that text you sent on your company phone? Is it really yours? Is there privacy involved? The U.S. Supreme Court is actually taking up your privacy in and our legal guys are delving into.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

A look at top stories right now. Blockbuster snowstorm is hitting the mid-atlantic region today. D.C. metro area has stopped above ground service. We're talking about the Metro Rail. That's affecting 39 stations that will close, and they will close at a 1:00 p.m. So if you're trying to get around on Metro, not going to happen if there's above ground service. >

Two feet of snow could actually fall from Pennsylvania through Virginia. The storm is blamed for three deaths already in Virginia. Hundreds of motorists are stranded on interstates. >

U.S. Senate Democrats announced a deal on healthcare reform today. It gives them a filibuster-proof majority and puts them on track to pass the bill by Christmas. It will provide coverage to 30 million some uninsured Americans. We're awaiting remarks from the president of the United States at 1:00 p.m. Eastern hour. We'll take that live. > And U.S. plans a drill next month simulating a missile attack from Iran. The military hopes to shoot down the fake weapon with the newest missile defense technology. Experts say Iran won't have a missile capable of hitting the U.S. until possibly 2020 at the very earliest. >

When you send a text or e-mail using company property, do you give up your right to privacy? The U.S. Supreme Court will take up that question. Here now is CNN's Bill Tucker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Texting has already changed the social scene and the workplace. Now it's about to change the legal landscape. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving an Ontario-California police officer who use the government- issued texting pager to send private, personal text. Some of which were explicitly sexual. Department policy allowed for personal use. So when the police department requested records of the texts, the officer, Sgt. (Kuan) sued saying his privacy had been violated. His lawyer explains.

MICHAEL MCGILL, ATTORNEY: They never put out a policy writing. Never explained to them unequivocally that it applies, that there is a no privacy policy.

TUCKER: Kuan lost his first trial but it California's 9th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the decision agreeing with the sergeant. Now the Supreme Court is stepping in and putting the case on their calendar for next year.

ORIN KERR, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL: This will be the first case that the Supreme Court has ever taken, which will give the court the opportunity to apply the constitution to text messages and by extension to the internet. It could be an extremely important case.

TUCKER: At the core of the case is the question of an expectation to a reasonable right of privacy. Should or can an employee expect his or her private communications to stay private? Lawyers arguing for employers say the expectation doesn't exist for employees working on company-issued equipment.

CHERYL WILLERT, CIVIL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: If I have a piece of equipment, whether it's a telephone, whether it's a computer, whether it's a video monitor, and it belongs to me. And I allow you in the furtherance of your performing a job for me for which you were hired, I should clearly have the ability to monitor what is going on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Employers need that ability. It's important to the way employers run their business.

TUCKER: Privacy advocates argue that while the equipment belongs to the boss, the content of an employee's personal text don't. Bill Tucker, CNN, New York. >

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's bring back our legal guys. This time we think we have both of them.

Avery Friedman is a civil rights attorney and law professor. You didn't see or hear him earlier, but now you all will be able to hear him. He's joining us from Cleveland, worked out half of our technical problems.

And Richard Herman is a New York criminal defense attorney and law professor even though you're seeing Las Vegas behind him because that's where he is today.

All right, guys, well, this seems really interesting, because I wonder if we should even read anything into the fact the U.S. supreme court is going to take on this case when everyone thought it was a no- brainer.

Avery, I'm going to you because you're a constitution professor as well. Everyone kind of thought this is a no-brainer if you're using company property then you really don't have that much privacy. Why is the U.S. Supreme Court taking on this case?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: I actually ascribe a great deal of significance, Fredricka, to the fact that they took the case, because the issue here is, never been addressed by the Supreme Court. I mean, the world uses social networks. The question is, are those private texts? And the argument by the employer is, you heard, well, look, we gave them the equipment.

Therefore, we have a right to go into the substance, but the bottom line is, does the fourth amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures, does that give a right of privacy. Now, in the case that's gone up to the Supreme Court, Sergeant Kuan, who is the plaintiff in this case so he's one of the plaintiffs, said you know what?

The sergeant, my superior was very laxed, because he was laxed I, therefore had that right of privacy, and that's a real quirk in this case. If it was a no privacy policy be different, but that's what's unusual here.

WHITFIELD: Well, you know, what's interesting, too, Richard. I mean, we talk about unusual search and seizure. Your fourth amendment right, however, in the case of this man, you know, the police chief and the police department said, but wait a minute. There was an overage use of his technology so that's why we had to investigate it and then along the way we saw that there were inappropriate messages that were being relayed back and forth and that's how this discovery was made. You buy that?

RICHARD HERMAN, LAW PROFESSOR: Isn't that beautiful? Here the police chief said, look, we want to monitor the amount of texting that's going on, because maybe we should get a different kind of texting plan. And as a result of monitoring this particular sergeant's plan we took a look at some of his texts and we found out, low and behold, they're sexually explicit.

But I don't know, Fred, this is a case specific one. I don't think -- they'll have to bring more cases to the Supreme Court on this. I don't think in this case it's going to be upheld. I think this is government-issued equipment. Trust me, Fred, if something was going on illegal with this equipment, they would sue that police department as well.

WHITFIELD: So you don't see this is potentially a precedent setting case?

HERMAN: It's precedent setting in that the Supreme Court is taking it, and Avery is right on that. That is very significant, but I think this is a fact specific case. The broader one that everyone's worried about is if that employer gives you that Blackberry whatever and you write to all your friends, can they go and take a look at it? That's not this case.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. Our favorite former governor, I say that affectionately because I mean, you guys always love to talk about Rob Lagojevich. This time the former governor says you know what or his attorneys say, they want to subpoena the president of the united states, Richard, how realistic is this?

HERMAN: I don't think --

WHITFIELD: And why?

HERMAN: A sitting president to be subpoenaed? I don't think it's going happen, Fred. They're trying to pull out every stop they can here and they think President Obama as the former senator who's embroiled in this Senate seat that supposedly block Blagojevich sold, he might have pertinent information on it.

At the end of the day, he's going to say I have no pertinent information, I don't know anything about it, and he's not going to do it. But the attorney representing Blagojevich is tweaking President Obama by saying, you know, he's a constitutional expert and he appreciates the fact that defendants have a right to call witnesses to protect them. So he's kind of tweaking him.

WHITFIELD: So Avery, you're giggling on this or --

FRIEDMAN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Sighing and laughing. Where do you think this is going?

FRIEDMAN: Absolutely nowhere. Look, maybe this is a ploy for the ex- governor to get his reality show that he's been gunning for. This is actually a frivolous, it's a silly argument. It is a great big bowl of nothing. It's going nowhere.

HERMAN: But Fred, the most devastating news that come out of it on the Blagojevich case, is that he's going to be reindicted, further indicted January or February on the honest services violations before the United States Supreme Court rules on it. That is absolutely going to do him in.

WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. Okay. Let's talk about another case that caught the attention of so many from start to finish. Well, it's still going on, but we're talking about the son of the late New York Socialite, Brooke Aster and he is now facing sentencing on Monday.

Anthony Marshall is here, looking at right here. He's 85 years old, and he faces upwards of one to maybe even 25 years in prison for being convicted of stealing from his mom right there, Brooke Aster. So Richard, this is your backyard. There are already appeals from celebrities who say, you know he should not serve any jail time. Might these appeals coming from Whoopi Goldberg, weatherman Al Roker, in the form of a written letter going to the judge, might it make any kind of potential impact?

HERMAN: Yes, I think it will make --.

WHITFIELD: Really?

HERMAN: I think will, Fred, only because this man is 85 years old. They've put no character witnesses on during the course of the trial. Here perhaps for the first time the judge has seen a different side in this individual aside from the person who gave himself a $1 million salary a year to control and monitor his late mother's estate, but the judge has only seen one side of the story.

Look, let's face it. He's 85 years old. A doctor's letter went in saying look if he goes in for any kind of time, he's probably going to die in prison.

WHITFIELD: All right, Avery, are the cardiologists also sending that letter. How do you see this unfolding on Monday.

FRIEDMAN: Well, that's the only important letter that came in. The only thing Whoopi said in her letter is that I moved here in the neighborhood, everybody was mean to me except Anthony. Big deal. It will impact -- you're looking for prison time. Not a lot. The letters will have very, very little impact, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: OK, and I think we've got less than 30 seconds for you guys to comment on Tiger Woods. British bookers are, you know, placing bets trying to figure out how much payment if there were to be a divorce. Not your ordinary potential divorce, if there were to be one, and whether pre-nup means $100 million, $500 million? I can't believe bookers are actually making dealings on this. Avery --

FRIEDMAN: Well, you marine bookies. You got the bookers. Those are the bookies. You know you're right. You're exactly right. But these guys set up these kind of systems on any kind of odds.

Look, the sad story here is the tragic destruction of a family. Whether it's going to be $100 million, $500 million, to be honest with you, who cares.

WHITFIELD: Yes, Richard, I should have gone to you first. You're the one in Vegas. What do I know about bookers and bookies. HERMAN: I thought that (inaudible) was so civilized, Fred, taking odds on much she's recover in divorce? It's so uncivilized, but it's 25-1 that she's going to get over $500 million. She is not that prenuptial agreement is rock solid, Fred. Rock solid.

WHITFIELD: Yes, so much for the stiff upper lip to our British friends. All right, Richard, Avery, thanks so much. Glad you guys could be with us, no matter how we had to make it happen, from Vegas, from Cleveland, seeing you eye to eye or just hearing you all of it were happy.

FRIEDMAN: Merry Christmas.

WHITFIELD: You all have a great holiday season.

HERMAN: Happy holidays.

WHITFIELD: Thanks, guys.>

All right, bowls for the hungry. A symbol of those in need this Christmas. Our photojournalist series, "Giving in Focus" takes a look (inaudible) in the nation's capital using their skills to give back.

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CNN photojournalists are putting "Giving in Focus" to showcase what Americans are doing to give back to the holidays especially. Photojournalist Jeremy Moorhead heads to an art college in D.C. where artists are making feeding the hungry an art form.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm making a wonderful bowl. To help raise money for feeding hungry people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Trim the excess off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're working here at the art gallery. Very first time I'm making a bowl in my life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got fresh clay.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Amen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Marge will sell these bowls for our empty bowls event to help support feeding the hungry. Hunger is in our midst here in the nation's capital. We have 9,000 homeless people. Some serves well over 1,000 meals a day to people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our goal is to walk the journey with people to help people become independent. The holidays remind us of certainly giving thanks for what we have.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have a nice day. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But also, the opportunities that we might have for reaching out to people that don't have.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anthropologists say the earliest bowls were a mimicry of hands holding together.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can't think of a better way to participate and in feeding hungry people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two hands for a stomach, to give, to receive and hold and to consume.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that's a very artistic symbol.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're really grateful for this partnership that we have this year. Great artists and great people here that are interested in people in the city.

JEFF HERRITY, COREORAN STUDENT: I mean, it's representing having nothing, and so I think prior to it being full, there are so many different things that can go into it. So today we're going to make upwards of around 500 bowls. You get the clay centered and then you start making the bowl form. It's good to -- work of our community in any way we can. I mean not everybody can donate.

So this is a great way for people to participate and contribute to an organization. I think this is really important, as an artist to keep giving back to the community. It's not just a gift for somebody at Christmas. It's a gift for somebody you don't really know, an I think that's probably what's the most important thing that we're really making this for somebody that needs it.

WHITFIELD: So for more information on how you can help, go to cnn.com/giving. For more stories about people making a difference in their communities and beyond, watch the CNN photojournalist series "Giving in Focus" at 1:00 p.m. Eastern on Christmas day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

A look at our top stories right now, it is slow going if at all, for much of northeast and the mid-atlantic states. They are getting hit with a significant snowfall you see right there that are dealing with near blizzard conditions right now. Road closings and flight cancellations or delays are numerous and winter weather watches and warnings stand from the south eastern Appalachian mountains north to Massachusetts. >

Also happening amid the storm, the U.S. Senate taking care of business. The Democratic majority appears to have the filibuster- proof 60 votes necessary to pass a health reform bill. Earlier lawmakers passed a $626 billion defense spending bill that awaits the president's signature. We're expecting to actually hear from President Obama to comment on the latest healthcare developments shortly. We'll carry that live within the 1:00 p.m. Eastern hour.

Stay with CNN throughout the day for the latest breaking news. "Your Money" starts right now.

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