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Storms Affects Holiday Travel; Senate Health Care Hurdle Passed; Artists Make Bowls to Feed Hungry; Remembering Lockerbie; Gift Cards Reused for Good

Aired December 21, 2009 - 09:00   ET

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

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, good morning, guys. And good morning to you, everyone. Here's what we're working on this morning.

Will your loved ones make it home for Christmas? That major snowstorm that rocked the east coast is gone, but as you can see travel problems certainly are not.

And also, health care reform hurdle passed as the Senate could be on track now for that final vote on Christmas eve, but Republicans are saying last minute deals amount to corruption.

And also, a young Hollywood actress is dead. You are looking at Brittany Murphy. She was 32 years old. We'll have that story for you as well.

Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. It is Monday, December 21st, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We begin with health care where a vote this morning has set up a clear path to final Senate passage, but as CNN's Brianna Keilar reports the vote came with concessions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. JEANNE SHAHEEN (D), NEW HAMPSHIRE: On this vote the yeas are 60, and the nays are 40, 3/5 of the senators duly chosen and sworn, having noted in the affirmative, the motion is agreed to.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And with that, health care reform cleared a major hurdle in an early- morning vote in the Senate. But for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid the key breakthrough came on Saturday when Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska announced that he would back the bill, giving the Democrats 60 votes, the absolute minimum they needed to pass a bill.

SEN. BEN NELSON (D), NEBRASKA: Change is never easy, but change is what is necessary in America today, and that's why I intend to vote for cloture and vote for health care reform.

KEILAR: Nelson signed on only after striking a deal with Democratic leaders to limit insurance coverage of abortions and he offered a warning if that provision is weakened, as the Senate bill is merged with the House passed bill. NELSON: I reserve the right to vote against the next cloture vote if there are material changes to this agreement in the conference report.

KEILAR: Nelson also scored a sweetener for his state. The federal government will pick up the tab for expanding Medicaid in Nebraska, the only state to receive the windfall. While liberal Democrats criticized the bill, which does not include a government-run insurance plan, President Obama praised the compromise.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: With today's developments, it now appears that the American people will have the vote they deserve on genuine reform that offer security to those who have health insurance and affordable options for those who do not.

KEILAR: Republicans unanimous in their opposition to the Democrat's health care reform bill lambasted it on the Senate floor.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: We will not put the whole nation at risk and take a broken system and make it worse just to get a vote. No way in hell.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: And Brianna Keilar joining us to talk a little bit more about this.

Boy, what a weekend, huh? Tell us, Brianna, what was some of the highlights of what is now in this latest Senate version, because there are obviously some new requirements, right?

KEILAR: There are -- there's a whole lot in this bill, Heidi, so let's just touch on the basics. First off, a requirement that everyone has to have health insurance. If you don't have health insurance you would pay a fine.

And then also there are federal subsidies so that middle class and low-income Americans making less than about $88,000 per year can afford insurance and purchase insurance.

There's also an expansion of Medicaid so that Americans who were making under about $29,000 per year can get that. Those numbers based on a family of four.

And, Heidi, there's also some really significant insurance industry reforms. For instance, one that would say to insurance companies you cannot deny someone coverage on the basis of a preexisting condition -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes. So this is a test vote. Obviously many more steps before getting health care passed. Run those by us just for a moment if you would.

KEILAR: That's right. And -- so this was a test vote, but the reason it was so important was because it requires 60 votes. The actual passage of health care reform of the health care reform in the Senate, we're not expecting that to take place until Thursday night, Christmas eve. It only requires 50 votes. That's why we paid so much attention to this vote very early this morning.

Now after that, you've got the House majority passed its bill in November. It is so different from the Senate bill, and it includes the government-run insurance plan, which this bill does not. A lot of other differences as well, and they're going to have to hash out their differences, the House and the Senate, settle on a final bill and then both the House and the Senate will have to pass that final bill.

That is what will end up on President Obama's desk. And as you can see, a lot of steps ahead of us and they are not going to be easy -- Heidi.

COLLINS: So what do they do, Brianna? Does everybody have a cot and do they all start sleeping on cots throughout this whole process?

KEILAR: You know, it's funny that you say that because I actually ran into Senator Grassley of Iowa, a Republican from Iowa, and the night before last he had actually slept on his couch, I believe, in his office.

So, yes, some of them are doing that. Certainly a lot of staffers are camping out here on the Hill if their offices allow them to do that.

COLLINS: Yes. I was going to say never mind the senators, they have entire staff as well, too. So we'll be watching very closely, obviously.

Brianna Keilar, thank you so much this morning.

And the Senate vote puts President Obama one step closer to his top domestic policy goal. We're going to be getting reaction from the White House a little bit later on this hour.

Former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is blasting Senator Ben Nelson for supporting the health care bill. Huckabee attended a rally yesterday in the Democratic lawmaker's home state of Nebraska. He called the bill a lump of coal that Americans don't want.

And Huckabee appeared to compare Senator Nelson to Judas saying the last time a deal like this one, quote, "30 pieces of silver exchanged hands."

And coming up in just a few minutes, our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, is going to break down what is in the Senate bill and what is out.

It is a messy ride this morning for millions of commuters along the east coast after this weekend's monster snowstorm. And many travelers going longer distances are still stuck after hundreds of flights were canceled.

The bad weather has also affected train and bus travel during this very busy holiday week. At least five deaths are being blamed on snowy roads and frigid temperatures. Power outages also a problem. Nearly 200,000 people in North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia have no electricity.

And another potential victim of the storms, of course, the economy. As you can imagine, the snow kept a lot of people from heading to the malls on the last weekend before Christmas.

Want to get straight over to our meteorologist, Rob Marciano, at this point.

So, Rob, the worst is over, but the cleanup as usual just beginning now?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Yes, I was reading that because of the snowstorm across the whole region, something like 3,000 traffic accidents. So yes, absolutely, good advice. And thanks again for the advice on Friday, because I canceled that whole trip to D.C. and I'm very thankful to you.

MARCIANO: We're all glad because you wouldn't be here right now if you did go.

COLLINS: I think you're right.

MARCIANO: All right.

COLLINS: All right, Rob, thanks.

MARCIANO: You bet.

COLLINS: Well, you know, much of the east coast will have their shovels ready to dig out this morning, and meteorologist Reynolds Wolf is standing by in Annapolis, Maryland this morning with a look at the situation there.

Hey, good morning to you, Reynolds.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hey, good morning, Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, definitely seeing snow behind you.

WOLF: Yes, we got it all around us. They had about 20.8 inches of snowfall that fell at a pretty quick rate. But I'll tell you, a team of about 30 trucks did a great job here in the area trying to keep the roads passable.

And if you look a little bit to my right we've got a scene in front of the journalist Rick Wagoner. We're behind the cameras. Rick Wagner is going to show you most are pretty good here around the circle. But if you look even further beyond me, you see a truck that's coming right down this alleyway where there's overloaded with a bunch of snow.

Much of the snow that has just been pulled out from the side streets and the cul-de-sacs, that's really where it's mounted up.

And Heidi, you have t also remember that in a town like this, you've got -- again the planning that they had in these communities, these buildings are kind of close together, so you have a line of shadows which means that many of the snow packs that you have between the buildings don't melt. They're on the benefit of the sun.

Now in terms of the snow, we have had 30 here in the city, about 814 around the state that have been removing the snow. The ice on the sidewalks is awfully tough. Kind of bad. I'm going to walk through here, I'm going to walk past these guys right here working and enjoying the snow.

Guys, you alright this morning? You alright? Nice and cold, aren't you? Yes, they're really cold. I'll tell you what, though, you've got to be careful when you walk on this. Then if you slip and fall, (INAUDIBLE), Rick, direct pressure and snow helps prevent bruising.

Let me show you something else we've got up here, Heidi. I'm going to step across this roadway and over these chains. You can see this fellow over here with the snow blower. And what many of them are doing are not only just scooping up the snow and moving it, they're actually moving it out in the Chesapeake Bay where it's melting.

But at the same time remember that a lot of the snow picks up really nasty stuff, a lot of trash, so what they're trying to do is trying to find the snow that's cleaner. It goes out in the bay, the rest of the stuff they push it somewhere else inland.

One other big problem that we're having here in the state, of course is, although the sun is coming down and the snow is going to be moving or at least dissipate, is the traveling issues that people are having.

Here's to share a personal story with you. I, of course, live in Atlanta. Trying to get back there has been next to impossible. Flights out of BWI, you're going to love this, the first available flight that we have takes you with the connection going after Toronto, then another connection from Toronto over to Montreal and then into Atlanta, Georgia by 8:00 tomorrow morning.

COLLINS: What?

WOLF: Yes. Try that one on for size. I know. I know. Crazy stuff. But at least on the roads here, things are looking pretty good.

COLLINS: Yes.

WOLF: So if anyone is going to try traveling on the highways and byways, be careful. There are certainly some slick spots. At the airport, though, it's really going to take some patience. It's going to be a tough time for you, but just keep smiling and enjoy the best of the holiday season.

Let's send it back to you.

COLLINS: Yes, you've got the snow clearing guys waving to us. And hey, I like the way you're walking around there. I know that area very well. You are just about to walk into my favorite Irish pub, so keep walking, Reynolds, if you too much more delayed.

Thanks so much. We'll be checking back in with you a little bit later on.

WOLF: You know my plan.

COLLINS: Yes, I do.

WOLF: You bet.

COLLINS: All right. Well, thousands of travelers, as you know, are snowed in. Will they make it home for holidays? That's the big question. We're going live to one of the hardest hit airports in the northeast to find out for you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: That huge snowstorm that hit the northeast is stranding thousands of travelers during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year. Of course, many of them desperate to get home for Christmas and now are getting increasingly anxious to say the least.

CNN's Nicole Collins is at Reagan National Airport in Washington which was buried under 18 inches of snow. Yikes, it was unbelievable what I was hearing coming out of D.C.

What's the situation now? Looks pretty desolate behind you, I have to say.

NICOLE COLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, Heidi, about an hour ago that line was up to my back and those cones there are put there to navigate it down this way and a little bit back around to the ticket counters. People have been waiting in that line for up to two hours at times.

And I've looked in the ferry, six years total, I've never seen those cones being brought out.

COLLINS: Wow.

N. COLLINS: So many of the ones in that line right there are the lucky ones, so to speak. They either had their flight originally scheduled today or it was cancelled over the weekend and they were able to go home or get a hotel room, but when we got here this morning there were a bunch of people sleeping on the grounds, sleeping on benches, where they could.

And we understand airport officials handed out about 400 of these blankets here at Reagan, about 600 were distributed at Dulles. So that's our best estimate of how many actually people slept in the airport overnight. COLLINS: Yes, because that blanket will make all the difference when you are sleeping on the floor, right?

N. COLLINS: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

COLLINS: OK. Let's take a look...

N. COLLINS: Any little bit helps, right?

COLLINS: Yes, no question. Let's take a look at your piece here.

N. COLLINS: Yes, no, so right now -- yes, OK.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

N. COLLINS (voice-over): While the snowfall is over and the dig- out has begun, the mess left by the first big snowstorm of the season is far from cleaned up. While many roads have been cleared, some remained slick and icy with cars abandoned on the shoulder, and some travelers are still stranded at airports along the east coast as airlines work to resume regular schedules.

CRYSTAL VELASCO, STRANDED TRAVELER: They're just telling us, stay in line for three hours. They don't tell you after (INAUDIBLE).

MEGGAN RUZICKA, STRANDED TRAVELER: It is kind of a disaster. It's little tiring, sleep wise. You can't get a lot of sleep.

N. COLLINS: Washington's Reagan National and Duller Airport saw record snowfall in the blizzard of '09 with totals between 16 and 18 inches. The highest one-day totals in December history. Storm left a backlog of holiday travelers.

CARRIE PALMER, STRANDED TRAVELER: People are really worried about missing their flights, not getting any flights, not getting out until Wednesday at the earliest.

N. COLLINS: With several deaths reported in Virginia, some hunkered down in airports are making the best of it and say they are keeping their perspective.

DENNIS KATOLIN, STRANDED TRAVELER: We'll be fine. We'll be fine. Everybody's healthy, everybody is safe, so not the end of the world, but frustrating.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

N. COLLINS: Now even though the snow stopped falling on Saturday, still we're seeing some spotty delays, some spotty cancellations up on the board, but all in all, flights have been moving smoothly for the last three hours or so. But if you do have a flight scheduled today it could be affected by a connecting airport, really just check with the airlines. It's the best way to go. And if your flight is still on schedule, check in online to avoid any unnecessary delays -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, absolutely. All right, Nicole Collins, thanks so much.

Are you stuck in an airport or stuck somewhere else when you should be headed home for the holidays? We want to hear your travel horror stories. Come on, you can vent on us. Go to CNN.com/heidi and click on comments, and we're going to read some of them on the air coming up next hour.

The sudden loss of a young star. Hollywood remembers actress Brittany Murphy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Checking our top stories now.

A witness says tens of thousands of people chanted anti- government slogans today before the funeral of a top Iranian cleric. They shouted "death to the dictator" outside the home of Grand Ayatollah Hussein al-Montazeri. He died yesterday from a heart attack. He was 87.

Montazeri was perhaps the most prominent cleric who publicly criticized the presidential elections last June that returned Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the presidency.

Security forces have prevented an attack by Taliban militants in the eastern Afghanistan. Authorities say several suspected terrorists, some wearing explosive vests and carrying rocket launchers and grenades, stormed a building in Paktia Province today. They fired on police who then fired back. Four militants died in the gun battle. Eleven people were wounded, including four police.

Hollywood in shock over the sudden death of actress Brittany Murphy. She collapsed yesterday morning at her home in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles County Coroner's Office said she apparently died of natural causes. Authorities are awaiting an autopsy but say there is no indication of foul play.

Murphy appeared in movies like "Clueless," "8 Mile," and the "Groom's Men," among some others. Brittany Murphy is survived by her husband, British screenwriter, Simon Monjack, whom she married in 2007. She was 32 years old.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: As we reported at the top of the hour, a key vote to close debate has moved health care rear form closer to final passage in the Senate.

So what's in the bill now and how is it different from that House version?

Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is joining us.

So, Sanjay, what can the bill actually do for people?

DR. SANJAY `GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Great question. It's over 2,000 pages so a lot of people trying to figure that out.

COLLINS: Yes.

GUPTA: A couple of quick broad brushstrokes. We talked a lot about the public option over the last several months, you and I, Heidi. There is not a public option. That is a sort of government- run health care system that could compete with private insurance. That's not part of the Senate bill.

Also this idea of expanding Medicare to people even as young as 55, also not part of this. So what does it do and how could it affect people specifically?

Let's take a look here. I want to give you a couple of examples. For example, take a look at a family of four. The Smith family in this case. A father is self-employed making around $28,000 a year. Simply not making enough money to be able to buy health insurance as things stand now.

After this bill is implemented, if it is implemented, they would immediate qualify for Medicaid which would have the same criteria in any state in which they live. So they would qualify for that and be able to get health care insurance.

In their case, they would get nearly full subsidy, but subsidies do occur for families of four making up to $88,000 a year. So that gives you a little bit of an idea and again, that would be implemented for them probably sooner for their children than it would be for the adults. As we sort of see things.

Another thing that we talked about a lot is this idea of preexisting conditions. And again, it's something you and I talked about. People who have a preexisting condition, either it's prohibitive for them to be able to buy health care insurance because of costs, or they just can't find the policy. Insurance companies won't take them.

So someone who's had a heart attack, for example, this is a man, Harry, he's making about $43,000 a year, and Heidi, he's making too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to actually be able to buy health care insurance on his own especially with this preexisting condition.

After this is implemented, he'd be able to join an exchange. Various insurance companies competing for his business, we did the math, tried to calculate this out for him. He probably would be able to buy health care insurance for about $4,500 a year, and then get some subsidies, taking it down to about $3,800 a year.

Again, a man who has some sort of preexisting condition and has a hard time right now -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Let me just say, first of off, that I love these graphics. They are very comprehensive.

(LAUGHTER)

GUPTA: I know. And my writing -- I have doctor's handwriting, as well, which really helps, I'm sure.

COLLINS: No, I think that's fabulously neat. But, you know, these are questions that people at home are going to have so I'm glad that you're talking about some of them, regarding the preexisting conditions and then of course later on when the Senate bill is merged somehow with the House which does have the public option.

Talk, if you would, Sanjay, about some of the other reform that people can expect from the bill at this point.

GUPTA: Well, you know, at this point I think is a key thing there because a lot of what we're talking about despite the fact that this is getting more attention than it has in sometime. A lot of these things won't take affect really until 2014.

COLLINS: That's right.

GUPTA: Something you can think about, that's four years away. And, you know, another election or two between now and then. The other thing is that you talk about 31 million Americans who will have access to coverage who right now don't. And we just gave you a couple of examples, people living near the edge of the poverty line, or having preexisting conditions, but the real question, I think, and we don't know the answer to this, is what is their health going to be like? Are they going to be healthier? Are they going to get prevention? That's more easily accessible to them. And I think some of that is going to be seen as this plays out.

COLLINS: Yes, there's no question about it. All right, well, we'll keep tapping you and all of your intellect for this thing as we watch it work its way through or not.

Thanks so much, our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

GUPTA: Thanks, Heidi.

COLLINS: Sleeping at the gate. Travel plans change after a snowstorm grounds hundreds of flights. We are checking in on airport operations today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins.

COLLINS: It's a holiday shortened trading week on Wall Street. For a look at what investors are expected to do before the break for Christmas, let's go to Susan Lisovicz now at the New York Stock Exchange just as the opening bell rings.

Hi there, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi. And we are expecting a modestly higher open now that the opening bell has rung. We have lots of snow here in the northeast and perhaps the Santa Claus rally to complete the picturesque scene.

We've got a few earnings from Walgreens and from ConAgra for different reasons. Walgreen's earnings, quarterly earnings jumped 20 percent as more people rushed out to get their flu shots. And at ConAgra, the big food giant, well, it's quarterly profit, Heidi, jumped 40 percent because more of us are eating at home.

What were people eating? Well, at ConAgra, let's see. Everything from oldies and goodies like Chef Boyardee, Peter Pan, Health Choice, Banquette Frozen Foods. The company is also boosting its forecast for the New Year because it expects that trend to continue.

We have good news for General Motors, Heidi. And you are going to enjoy hearing the story. You were so sad when we told you last week that Saab would ride off into the sunset. But that story has another chapter, because now, GM has until 5:00 to accept a revised offer from the Dutch sports car maker Spiker. So let's hope that they can get that deal done.

Different story, though, for Citadel Broadcasting. It's the nation's third largest radio group. It has filed for bankruptcy protection. Not a complete surprise here. The company has a lot of debt. But this has 200 stations in 25 states. It's hoping to exit bankruptcy protection soon.

What we are seeing in the first minute of trading? Green arrows. The Dow, the NASDAQ, the S&P 500 each up 50 percent, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. Very good. We'll come back and check those numbers with you again a little bit later on. Susan, thank you.

LISOVICZ: You are welcome.

COLLINS: A whopper of a weekend snowstorm breaks records and leaves problems now for the new week. Here is what we know. Up to two feet of snow fell in the mid-Atlantic in northeast states. Federal agencies in Washington and many school systems in the region are closed, because of the weather. Those that are not out for the holiday break already anyway. There is lots of snow piled up on the streets. And that, of course, is slowing drivers down.

The airlines are playing catch up this morning. Travelers on hundreds of cancelled flights were stranded. One of those airports where people are hoping to get home for the holidays or anywhere for that formatter is New York's LaGuardia airport. And our Allan Chernoff is there.

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Heidi, 250 flights were canceled here at LaGuardia Airport over the weekend. So today we've got long lines of travelers desperate to catch a new flight.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHERNOFF (voice-over): Sixteen inches of snow shut down Washington's Reagan National Airport on Saturday.

By the time it reopened yesterday, lines stretched outside the terminal. Roads in the capital area were no bargain either.

Nearly a foot of snow fell on New York Central Park.

With the school snow day already declared for Monday in some parts of the tri-state area, it was all fun and games for the kids.

But to the east, Long Island felt the full force of the storm. Twenty-six inches of snow fell in some neighborhoods. Drivers stranded everywhere.

MEGAN RUZICKA, DENVER RESIDENT: It is kind of a disaster.

CHERNOFF: And at LaGuardia Airport, hundreds of travelers were stranded, too. Nothing but long lines and even longer delays, hundreds of flights canceled, leaving this Denver-bound student no choice but to spend a second night sleeping at the airport.

RUZICKA: I was little sad to think it might be Christmas. So, if I get there before then, then I'll be happy.

CHERNOFF: As the storm marched up the coast to New England, snow drifts 10 feet high made traveling treacherous.

In Boston, whiteout conditions at Logan Airport left a lot of planes, a lot of travelers idled for hours.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHERNOFF: The airlines say they are doing everything they can to get travelers to their destinations. And at least this morning, the weather is cooperating and flights are departing on time here at LaGuardia Airport.

Heidi?

COLLINS: All right, Allan, thanks for that. I think, anyway, you know, much of the East Coast digging out from that monster snowstorm. We want to head over to meteorologist, Rob Marciano now. The bearer of good news or bad news today?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: All right, great video. Thanks so much, Rob. We'll check back later on.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: All right, guys. See you, Heidi. COLLINS: Health care reform passing its biggest test in the Senate yet with an early-morning vote to end debate on provisions. The way seems clear now for the bill's passage on Christmas Eve in the Senate anyway.

CNN's Elaine Quijano is joining us now from the White House with more on this.

Elaine, good morning to you. We'll talk about the snow later on. In the meantime, officials there coming out and calling this a victory just yet?

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Not quite yet, Heidi. Obviously, this morning's vote in the Senate was a big step forward. They are not quite ready to call this a victory because there is still a lot of work to do in reconciling the different versions, the House and the Senate versions of the health care reform bill. And on top of that, White House officials are also fully expecting Republicans to throw up any kind of procedural road blocks that they can.

Nevertheless, on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION WITH JOHN KING," White House senior adviser David Axelrod said ultimately he does expect a health care reform bill to get to President Obama's desk.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID AXELROD, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE ADVISER: I think there is a will to get this done. People understand we are on the doorstep of doing something really historic that will help the American people and strengthen our country for the long run.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: So officials believe significant progress has been made, Heidi, on this, but not calling this a victory just yet -- Heidi?

COLLINS: Yes, yes, I imagine not. It appears, though, in fact, there's probably going to be more drama that's going to happen before this is a done deal.

QUIJANO: That's exactly right. If as expected, the Senate does go ahead this week and passes its version of health care reform, there's going to be a break in the action here, a break in the momentum, because lawmakers are going to go home for the holidays. And then at that point, after they come back that's when the House and Senate negotiators will really going to sit down and hash out their differences.

And we're talking about substantive differences here. The House version of the bill does have this government-run public option, whereas the Senate version doesn't. I know you've been talking about that all morning long. And that's a really big point here to consider.

President Obama, of course, had said he wanted to get this bill on his desk by the end of the year. It's just not looking like that is even possible at this point. Nevertheless, officials here do think they're going to get this health care bill soon. Heidi?

COLLINS: Yes. And it doesn't appear that anybody is going to be going anywhere, anytime soon either because of the weather or because they still have a deal to work out.

Elaine Quijano, beautiful snow behind you there at the White House this morning. Thank you.

QUIJANO: Sure.

COLLINS: Checking our top stories now.

The Philippines bracing for the country's most active volcano to erupt. Tens of thousands of residents were evacuated on Sunday. Scientists say the Mayon Volcano could erupt within days. They raise the alert level now as they detected a surge in earthquakes and rumbling noises in and around the volcano.

Saying farewell to America's pioneer televangelist Oral Roberts. A public memorial service for the Christian leader takes place later today at the Oral Roberts University which he founded in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The service will be carried on the Web as well. Roberts died last week of complications from pneumonia. He was 91.

The lab technician accused of killing a Yale graduate student is due back in a Connecticut courtroom today. His attorney says he will ask for more time on the case. Raymond Clark faces charges. He strangled Annie Le. Her body was found in September hidden behind a wall in the Yale medical school research building where she and Clark worked. She disappeared days before her wedding.

Artists are giving back this holiday season. They're spinning their wheels in a productive way, making bowls that will help feed the hungry.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Artists in the nation's capitol are creating pottery with a purpose. They are teaming up with a non-profit group to make and sell soup bowls to help feed the hungry.

CNN photojournalist Jeremy Moorhead captures this creative community effort to give back.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FATHER JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT, SO OTHERS MAY EAT: I'm making a wonderful bowl to help raise money for feeding hungry people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Turn the excess off.

ADAMS: We're at Corcoran College here at the Corcoran Art Gallery. This is the very first time I'm making a bowl in my life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So you got some fresh clay.

ADAMS: Amen. And 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 a thousand meals a day to people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello.

ADAMS: Our goal is to walk the journey with people, to help people become independent. The holidays remind us to, certainly giving thanks for what we have, but also the opportunities that we might have for reaching out to people that don't have.

BOB DEVERS, CORCORAN COLLEGE OF ART + DESIGN: Anthropologists say that the earliest bowls were a mimicry of two hands holding together.

ADAMS: I can't think of a better way to participate in feeding hungry people.

DEVERS: It's two hands for a stomach: to give, to receive and to hold and to consume.

ADAMS: That's a very artistic symbol. We're really grateful for this partnership that we have this year. We have great artists and great people here that are interested in people in this city.

JEFF HERRITY, STUDENT AT CORCORAN: 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 get us to work with 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. And I think that's what's probably the most important thing that we're really making this for somebody that needs it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Hear more about the soup bowl project and other inspirational stories at CNN's hour-long special "Giving in Focus." Or you can see it Christmas Day that's at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. And there is also an encore presentation on December 26th at 3:00 p.m.

Think about it, how many times have you been given a gift card and then you forget to use it? Well, now there's a way you can make sure those gift cards don't go to waste. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Today marks a grim anniversary: 21 years ago Pan Am Flight 103 exploded in a fireball over the Scottish town of Lockerbie, 270 people were killed in the bombing. Many were Americans. Now, the only man ever convicted in the attack is now in Libya.

CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson is joining us now from London today. Nic, good morning to you, the families of course are still waiting for answers in all of this.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They are and they seem to be divided, Heidi. Many of the sort of Scottish victims if you will where the plane came down in Lockerbie, Scotland have seemed to have accepted that Mr. Megrahi has been freed to go back to Libya whereas many of the families of those who died on the aircraft itself still want to see justice; still see, still feel that his he's escaped justice.

And there has been a new development today that could bring that or a little more clarity to this case to light.

The Scottish Commission that investigates possible miscarriages of justice is right now considering and has announced that they may, as of the 1st of February next year release documentation that they amassed during a four year review of one of Mr. Megrahi's appeals. And at the end of that review, that commission said that there could have been a miscarriage of justice.

So if they release all that information all parts of it that will allow people to see why they thought there might have been a miscarriage of justice, certainly this will put into the public domain it appears at this stage information has not normally been there. It hasn't been there at until now. So perhaps the families may get one step closer to feeling they know more about this case and what happened -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Wow. Well, then the very latest on Megrahi is what? Because Libyan officials say that he has something like weeks left to live.

ROBERTSON: And you know, when he was released from jail in Scotland at the end of August, it was because he only had three months to live. Well, we all know now the middle of December, its way past three months. There's been a case recently where he doesn't appear to have been where the Scottish officials expected him to be, either in his home or in the hospital.

There have been rumors that and counts of rumors every time we check. The officials there in Libya tell us that Mr. Megrahi is still ok, he seems to have outlived that three-month period. But they maintain he is still very ill. And when I saw him about two and a half months ago, at that stage he did look very, very ill, in a wheelchair, he could barely sort focus on things going on in the room around him. It does appear that he doesn't have much longer to live but of course, everyone here in Britain is saying, well, the Scottish officials let him go with three months left to live and he's lived beyond that.

COLLINS: All right. Well, we'll continue to follow this story, of course. Nic Robertson for us this morning. Nic, thank you.

We do have a lot going on this morning. CNN crews are in place to bring it all to you. We want to check in with our correspondents now beginning with Reynolds Wolf in Annapolis. Hey there Reynolds.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hey, Heidi. Well, people in Annapolis were dreaming for a white Christmas, here's proof positive that dreams can come true. But although it's pretty, it is causing lots of problems, it's travel nightmares for a lot of people. Sidewalks and street are looking ok but cul-de-sacs and back roads can be a nightmare. We'll bring you the full story coming up from Annapolis.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: And odds of having a white Christmas in places like D.C., Annapolis, Baltimore, New York City, are about one in ten. Just to have one inch on the ground and they've got over 20 in some spots so a feast or famine, I suppose. Will it last? Will it stay on the ground for Christmas? We'll talk about that in the next hour.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Brianna Keilar on Capitol Hill where health care has cleared its biggest hurdle so far. And it happened at 1:00 a.m. this morning. I'll have details coming up.

COLLINS: All right. Thanks so much, guys.

Also ahead, why some say more frequent deployments are putting the all-volunteer military at risk. That's coming your way in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: You could call it a new form of giving. An Atlanta couple collects unused gift cards and gives them to good causes. Our Fredricka Whitfield explains how they brought good cheer to people in need around the world over the past three years.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Andre and Jeff Shinabarger have a theory, that there is at least one unused gift card sitting in everyone's wallet or purse. At a wedding they decided to test that theory on complete strangers.

JEFF SHINABARGER, CO-FOUNDER, GIFTCARDGIVER.COM: They got in their wallets and their purses and they started to put them on the table. And I said either you can keep those and hoard them in your wallet or you can give them to us and we guarantee we'll give them to someone in need.

And they kind of looked at each other looked at the gift card and they just tossed them to us. In that first day we walked away with about $50 in unused gift cards.

WHITFIELD: That was three years ago and since then they've given away close to $45,000 in gift cards, spreading their message through their Web site GiftCardGiver.com, Facebook and at BigEvent.

Blake Howard hosted a "Gift Card Giver" house party where each guest was carded at the door.

BLAKE HOWARD, HOSTED, GIFT CARD GIVER: We played card games all night and we ended up raising I think $1,300.

ANDRE SHINABARGER, CO-FOUNDER, GIFTCARDGIVER.COM: Our balance $10 we combine all those 10 cent ones and $1.25 put them in this huge sac and then it becomes $500.

WHITFIELD: A 2007 Consumer Reports survey found that 27 percent of recipients didn't used one or more of their gift cards. The value of those unused cards $8 billion.

Stories of those in need come in through the Web site and are approved by the charity's leadership board. Gift cards for art supplies stores went to Luo Charities that funds orphanages in South Africa using art work created by the kids themselves.

LINDSAY TARQUINIO, LUO: As I went and stocked up on paint and a ticket for Africa on our last trip and because of that we were able to make 200 new canvasses, which in fact raising $50,000 for us.

WHITFIELD: The Shinabargers use the gift cards to purchase toys and books for the Pride for Parents Christmas store.

J. SHINABARGER: There's this family, the mother had to quit her job, because the child was in a terminally ill situation and they needed to go the children's hospital and drive all the way to Boston -- all these restaurant gift cards and gas cards to basically pay for all their meals and their trip to drive up there and to come back.

Their family wrote the greatest notes to us.

WHITFIELD: The Shinabargers say that despite the down economy, they've never collected so many gift cards.

J. SHINABARGER: You might have given one penny, or you may have given $96 and we get to combine those together.

A. SHINABARGER: And it all makes a difference.

WHITFIELD: Fredricka Whitfield, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Love that story.