Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
GOP Candidates Prep for Final Push in Iowa; Ron Paul's Unconventional Appeal; Police Question Man About LA Fires; Iowa "Kingmaker" Endorses Gingrich; The January Barometer; Santorum's Surge in Iowa; Celebratory Gunfire Hits Child
Aired January 02, 2012 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Here is the latest poll by the "Des Moines Register." Mitt Romney in a statistical dead heat with Ron Paul. Rick Santorum still surging, in third place. Today all the candidates scrambling to win last-minute support.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Still half the people in Iowa are undecided. I just think this is -- they're going through the serious process of making an analysis of who the right person is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: And of course, we're covering all the angles. Jim Acosta is following the candidates as they race the clock. Dana Bash takes a closer look at Ron Paul and his unconventional campaign that seems to be clicking with a lot of voters.
Jim, let's go ahead and start with you. On the eve of the caucuses, things got pretty tense between Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. One of the big questions in this day before the Iowa caucuses is whether the man in the sweater vest can make Mitt Romney sweat. Rick Santorum is in the enviable position of being the final surging non-Romney conservative to do well before these Iowa caucuses and so he's out there, we're chasing him from stop to stop to stop today here in Iowa.
He is chasing those last-minute undecided caucus goers. And you get the sense looking at the "Des Moines Register" poll that came out over the weekend that showed Rick Santorum in third place. If you look at the last two days that that poll was taken, he is surging into second place into a statistical tie with Mitt Romney. So it's no surprise that the former Massachusetts governor went after Rick Santorum, talking about the fact that Santorum was a senator in Washington, trying to tie him to those other politicians, those other Washington politicians, who are in the race.
And Rick Santorum had a response for that. Let's play that for you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Senator Santorum was kind enough to endorse me last time around. I appreciate that. And we have been friends. I can tell you that our backgrounds are quite different. Like Speaker Gingrich, Senator Santorum has spent his career in the government, in Washington. Nothing wrong with that. But it's a very different background than I have.
SANTORUM: With respect to the issue about -- I get a kick out of this with Governor Romney. I mean Newt said this at the debate. Governor Romney is not like he hasn't tried to be a career politician. He just hasn't been successful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: So this is a real study in contrast in terms of how each of these two candidates have gone after caucus-goers in this state. Rick Santorum has been the marathon man. He would make any political road warrior envious with the travel schedule he's had. He's visited all 99 counties in the state. He's held nearly 360 town halls.
Contrast that with Mitt Romney, who is only on his ninth trip to the state. He's had a much lighter footprint than the last time around in '08 when he invested heavily in Iowa and lost -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, Newt Gingrich has seen his support fade in the last few weeks. What do you think, Jim? Is he planning anything bold?
ACOSTA: You know, Newt Gingrich is definitely changing course. You know, for the last several weeks, he has put himself in this box by saying, look, I'm going to wage a positive campaign. I'm not going to go negative against the other candidates. The problem was, Mitt Romney did not have the same game plan. Romney and his pro-Romney super PAC out there, Restore Our Future, they have been relentless in going after the former speaker.
Seeing Newt Gingrich as basically the only existential threat to Romney's candidacy. And so those ads that have been hitting Newt Gingrich have brought down his poll numbers. It's no surprise that that has happened. So what Newt Gingrich said yesterday, we were with him up in Marshalltown, Iowa, I asked him, I said, well, do you feel swift boated here in this state? He says no, I feel Romney boated.
He signaled heading out of Iowa, Kyra, going into New Hampshire, he's going to be taking a much tougher approach when it comes to going after Mitt Romney. He's going to be laying into the former Massachusetts governor's record, and it's going to be interesting to watch -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, we'll all be watching, that's for us. Jim, thanks a lot.
Now another candidate who's developed a love-hate relationship with voters and the very party that he wants to represent on a presidential ticket, Dana Bash is in Des Moines with a closer look at Ron Paul. So, Dana, you know, Paul has surged at just the right time. What's been pushing him to the near top of the polls?
DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Kyra, he is somebody who wants to abolish the federal income tax, he wants to abolish the IRS, he wants to audit the Federal Reserve, legalize drugs, and on foreign policy he wants to bring all troops back home.
That obviously makes him incredibly different than any every other candidate in this Republican race. Every other candidate in general. And that is what makes his supporters so fervent. But it's what makes the Republican establishment say he's nothing more than a fringe candidate.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH (voice-over): Go to a Ron Paul rally, and his appeal is apparent.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Different strokes for different folks as the old saying goes.
BASH: Especially on the economy. Anti-tax, anti-debt. Tea Party mantras Paul talked about well before they were cool.
REP. RON PAUL (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I want to cut a trillion dollars out of our spending in one year.
BASH: Libertarians love it.
PAUL: The role of government in a free society, in a republic, should be to protect your liberties.
BASH: Isolationists eat it up.
PAUL: I think we're in way too many wars, and it's time to change that and start bringing our military home to protect this country.
MATT STRAWN, IOWA GOP CHAIRMAN: Anecdotally I've had people come up to me that have been self-described Democrats who are going to caucus around Paul strictly on the basis of his non-interventionalist foreign policy beliefs.
BASH: Iowa's Republican chairman says Paul has an organization to behold. In 2008 he finished fifth with just 10 percent of the vote. But his supporters never left. They've been building a Paul infrastructure all over Iowa for four years. Campaign offices in tiny towns like here in Maquoketa. Population, under 6,000.
STRAWN: I think it's an incredible example of the way he has organized around the state. I can't imagine that any campaign either in the current caucus season or past caucuses would have had an office in that small of a community.
BASH: But Paul's power in Iowa appalls many in the GOP establishment. Exhibit A, about the Bush administration.
PAUL: Just think of what happened after 9/11. Immediately before there was any assessment, there was glee in the administration because now we can invade Iraq.
BASH: On foreign policy, this makes many Republicans go berserk.
PAUL: Why does Israel need our help? We need to get out of their way.
BASH: So does his hands-off attitude towards a nuclear-armed Iran.
REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That makes him a very dangerous person to be our next president.
BASH: Paul opposes sanctioning Iran.
PAUL: I think we should not put on sanctions. They're -- that's -- they are act of war.
ARI FLEISCHER, FORMER WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY FOR PRES. BUSH: Ron Paul wants to abandon the world. And I often think if Ron Paul was around at the time of the American Revolution, would he have told the French to stick their nose out of our affairs and stay home and then we'd have lost the revolution.
BASH: But even worried Republicans who call Paul dangerous say they get it. For caucus-goers who want to send Washington a message, this is hard to pass up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cut a trillion bucks year one. That's trillion with a T. Department of Education, gone. Interior, Energy, HUD, Commerce, gone. Later, bureaucrats. That's how Ron Paul rolls.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: In fact, Kyra, in that "Des Moines Register" poll that just came out it showed that Iowans who really want to reduce spending and limit the role of government say still that Ron Paul is their first choice. The problem he has as you have been talking about it is the Rick Santorum surge, as Santorum has surged it looks like Paul has diminished.
And a senior adviser I talked to in the Paul campaign admitted, Kyra, that the issue has been the scrutiny to some of the more controversial things that Paul has said, both on foreign policy and domestic policy. That that has taken a toll on his popularity here, and that is not what you want just a day before the Iowa caucuses -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: We'll be talking a lot more. And by the way, this is the first chance I have been able to see you and talk to you. Welcome back to work, Mommy. I saw -- John showed me the baby. Absolutely beautiful. BASH: Thank you. Thank you. You told me it was going to change everything. And it's the best thing in the world. And boy, you were right, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Amen. All right. Great to see you, Dana.
Well, for weeks, we've been talking about the Iowa caucuses so let's take a moment to explain exactly what happens tomorrow. OK? There's going to be nearly 1800 separate meeting places. One for each voting precinct. And then gatherings will mostly be in schools, libraries, and churches. Only two will be held in homes.
Representatives from each campaign are given time to speak on behalf of their candidate. The caucus results don't have a direct effect on choosing the party's nominee, but can be critical in building a candidate's momentum.
Now tomorrow night, the country's first real vote, the candidates' first true test, take place in the Iowa caucuses and you can watch what happens from all sides. A special live, "AMERICA'S CHOICE 2012" coverage of the Iowa caucuses, it all begins tomorrow night, 7:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.
Well, Los Angeles police have detained a man in a suspected arson spree. Now at least eight more fires were set early this morning. That makes a total of 47 fires in just the past few days. Police also released the surveillance video of an individual that they want to question about those fires.
CNN's Casey Wian joins us now live from Los Angeles.
So, Casey, what exactly do we know about the man that police have detained, and is there any possible -- well, and possible connection, I guess we should say, to those fires?
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we don't know a lot, Kyra, at this point. What I can tell you is that he does bear a similarity to that surveillance video that was released, taken not far from where I am standing at the command post in Hollywood over the weekend of a white male emerging from a parking structure as you mentioned. Someone police wanted to speak with.
Let me back up a little bit. We arrived here at the command center about 1:00 in the morning local time. So a little more than five hours ago. And we spoke to an arson investigator who said all was quiet overnight. It was just trying to get a lot of work done. Then over the next two hours, there were reports of a dozen different fires in vehicles throughout the Hollywood area and throughout the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles.
A dozen fires all related to vehicle brought the total number of fires according to the Los Angeles Fire Department since early Friday morning to 55. And then came word we were monitoring the fire department's scanner -- came word of a detention of a man that they wanted to speak with. And that was also near here for those familiar with the Los Angeles area near the corner of Sunset and Fairfax in West Hollywood, where two vehicle fires were set earlier tonight.
And what's interesting, even though the fire department nor police will say why they are questioning this man, why he was detained, we have been monitoring that scanner traffic all morning, and there have been no fires reported since that man was detained for questioning -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. So police think one person is -- or do police think that it's one person responsible for setting all these fires? Because there has been talk out there, Casey, that there might be more than one individual.
WIAN: There have been those reports. They will not tell us whether they believe it is one person or multiple people. They have been looking into both those possibilities. What I can tell you is they have been very concerned about copycats in the area. And they have released very few details about how these car fires were set, other than to say that some type of incendiary device was used.
They were also urging the public to keep their cars locked, to remain vigilant, and to report any suspicious activity and any sightings of the person who they -- that was in that surveillance video. I can tell you from all of the reports we've seen on Twitter and the people we've spoken with, this is a city that has been very much on edge over the last couple of days. And in fact, this is a significant break in the case, a lot of folks are going to be relieved -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Yes. All right. Casey, we'll follow it. Thanks so much.
Well, heavy snowfall and winter storm warnings may cause some major travel delays for a lot of people. CNN meteorologist Rob Marciano joining us with latest forecast.
Good morning.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning. Happy new year. Winter has finally arrived after a long, long wait. December certainly was mild.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MARCIANO: Good election weather. Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right. Thanks, Rob.
Well, it's 2012. And the November election doesn't seem so far off right now. We're going to actually take you back to the center of the political universe, if you don't mind, right after the break. A lot of Iowans haven't made up their minds about who to vote for tomorrow. But that could change now that the self-described conservative blow torch has made his choice. We're going to talk live to him.
Also, we're going to tell you about a manhunt going on right now in Washington state. Authorities think a killer could be hiding somewhere in the shadow of Mt. Rainier.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, in Iowa, it's the last full day of campaigning before tomorrow evening's caucuses. Live pictures now from Davenport for you.
The latest stop on the campaign trail for Mitt Romney. He's about to host a grassroots rally for his presidential bid. We're following it.
Now, Romney might be in the lead a day before Iowa votes, but he shouldn't feel too comfortable, and here's why -- Steve Deace is backing Newt Gingrich.
Steve Deace is a syndicated radio talk show host in Des Moines, and he's got a lot of followers. As a matter of fact, he's been called the conservative blow torch of Iowa. And his heat gets results.
He endorsed Mike Huckabee in 2008. And guess what? Huckabee won Iowa.
Steve, you're backing Gingrich. The polls haven't been so good to him lately. So, how is the conservative blow torch endorsement here going to help him?
STEVE DEACE, SYNDICATED RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Well, I don't know. We'll see.
I kind of think that the media has overhyped my endorsement the last few months. If anything, I'm the reason Mitt Romney lost Iowa. But Mike Huckabee had to win that campaign himself. Candidates win elections, not talk show hosts.
But I hope that the real positive and bold solutions that newt has for the country, I'm hoping if anything that my endorsement will open up the eyes of uncommitted voters to take a fresh look at those again between now and January 3rd.
PHILLIPS: So, let me ask you -- why did you wait so long to endorse him? And are you afraid that your support comes a little too late now?
DEACE: I think that's possible. You know, I really just had to wait until I was confident that, you know, I could back somebody. And, you know, as a Christian, I think one day I'll look God in the eye and give an account for every decision I have made.
And I wanted to get to the point where I thought I had the right rationale and the right reason to back a candidate. And then I had to determine who that candidate was.
And to me, I think there are only two candidates in this race who historically understand where we are at as a people and what needs to be done and are offering solutions to go along with that. I think other candidates understand where we are at. But I think their solutions are anemic.
Now, to me, the two candidates offering solutions are Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich. But if you look at Ron Paul, you know, I'd like to live in the world from a foreign policy perspective that he thinks we live in, where the bad guys just want wampum and not WMDs, but that's just not the case.
PHILLIPS: Now --
DEACE: You know, the other candidate that is offering bold solutions is Newt Gingrich.
PHILLIPS: You mentioned you're a Christian. You're a social conservative. And we have seen the bump for Santorum. Why aren't you backing him?
DEACE: I think Rick Santorum is a fine man. And he would certainly be my second choice. My prediction is either Rick Santorum or Ron Paul will win the caucuses tomorrow.
I think if Rick Santorum is the nominee, he would be one of the most conservative nominees we've ever had.
But to me, I think there's one issue that matters more than anything else. If you look at where the left has gotten its greatest victories, it is through the courts, through edicts of unelected judges passing laws that the American people have to live by, even though they didn't vote them into office. There's nothing more un- American than being governed by people you did not elect.
One candidate seems to understand that, and I think also has the talent and the ability to explain to the American people why that paradigm is so flawed.
I wrote an entire chapter in my book about this. And to me, that candidate is Newt Gingrich.
PHILLIPS: All right. Steve Deace, we'll see how this all unfolds, appreciate your time this morning.
DEACE: Thank you very much.
PHILLIPS: You bet.
DEACE: Well, authorities have cleared people out of Mt. Rainier National Park. They're looking for a man they think killed a park ranger. And it's not going to be easy. They have got more than 235,000 acres and five feet of snow to deal with.
PHILLIPS: Plus, it happened again. A flock of black birds fell out of the sky on New Year's eve in the same Arkansas town.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: A quick look at news from across the country.
Deja vu in an Arkansas town. About 200 birds were found dead for the second straight New Year's Eve. A wild life official says that someone might have set off fireworks nearby. This isn't as bad as last year, though. Nearly 5,000 black birds dropped out of the sky in the same area.
State leaders in Ohio say that four fluid injection wells are being -- are staying closed indefinitely. That's after several small earthquakes hit the Youngstown area. Experts will try to find out if there's a link between the wells and the quakes.
And an active duty soldier is charged with trying to get on a plane with a military grade explosive. TSA agents in Midland, Texas, say that they found it when they screened Trey Atwater's carry-on. Cops say there was nothing sinister about this, and there was no way to detonate the explosive.
Well, there's a manhunt going on right now at Mt. Rainier National Park in Washington. Cops are looking for a man wanted for questioning in the fatal shooting of a park ranger.
They say that this man, Benjamin Colton Barnes, has military experience and knows how to survive out in the deep woods and the snow.
They have evacuated everyone from the park while they're looking for him.
Co-workers say that ranger Margaret Anderson tried to stop the man before she was shot and killed. He took off on foot. Anderson was 34 and had two young children.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEE TAYLOR, MOUNT RAINIER NATIONAL PARK: Margaret Anderson worked at Mt. Rainier for about four years. She is an excellent ranger, a very dedicated public servant, really committed to park visitors and was an excellent ranger. Her husband also works in the park as a law enforcement ranger, and they have two small children.
So it's a terrible loss. It's a great tragedy for the park service, and all of us are grieving that loss.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: And Barnes is also linked to a shooting yesterday near Seattle that left four people hurt.
(MUSIC)
PHILLIPS: Well, the stock market is closed today, part of the three-day New Year's weekend. Investors will face a pretty important week of trading starting tomorrow, though.
And Alison Kosik is in New York to explain.
Good morning, Alison.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kyra.
You know, ask just about any market expert, and they would tell you it's almost impossible to time the market, you know, to figure out when the market or an individual stock has hit its high or its low. So, some experts say the best way to understand how the market is going to do is look at historical trends. And one of those is called the January barometer.
And since 1950, how the S&P 500 did in January has been used to predict how it will fair for the full year, and it's been correct more than 85 percent of the time. But lately, though, the barometer seems to be broken, because in 2009 and 2010, we saw big gains for the year despite January losses. And in 2011, the S&P gained 2.3 percent in January but finished flat for the year.
Now, one thing that could put the barometer kind of back on track is the fact that it's a presidential election year. And the January barometer has been 87 percent accurate in election years, including 2008. And that's actually the last time it worked.
Historically, Kyra, election years are good ones for stocks. But analysts this time around are kind of cautious about how 2012 will do just because it's an election year -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Alison, thanks.
Rick Santorum surging at just the right time in Iowa. Can he ride the evangelical vote to a win? We're going to talk about that with L.Z. Granderson and Will Cain.
And substituting gunfire for fireworks leaves a Florida child fighting for his life. His story is coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories now:
Iran says it successfully test-fired a long-range shore to sea missile today. The test came on the final day of naval exercises in the Strait of Hormuz. Authorities in southern California detained a man in connection with a suspected arson spree. There's been 47 fires in the Los Angeles area since Friday.
And Etta James' son says that the singer is off a respirator and breathing on her own. The 73-year-old remains in a California hospital, and is in the final stages of terminal leukemia.
Well, in Iowa, it's the last full day of campaigning before tomorrow evening's caucuses. A live picture as you see right here from Davenport, the latest stop for Mitt Romney, entering the room now with his wife. He is about to host a grassroots rally for his presidential bid. We're following that for you.
All the presidential candidates are blitzing the state today. And these final hours could decide who wins? Here's the final poll by the "Des Moines Register." It shows that Mitt Romney is in a statistical tie with Ron Paul. Rick Santorum is in third place, and riding a wave of momentum.
CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser is in Des Moines.
So, Paul, is Santorum surging at just the right time?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Yes, I think so. Remember when we said Newt Gingrich was surging at the right time about a month ago? Well, I guess not.
But, hey, Kyra, that poll you just showed, let's just show the last two days, Thursday and Friday. Take a look at this. It really illustrates that the former senator from Pennsylvania is surging. There's Romney, still on the top at 24 percent. But there's Santorum at 21 percent ahead of Ron Paul, and basically in a dead heat with Romney for the top spot.
It kind of illustrates how Santorum has been moving up. He used to be an afterthought in this campaign. No longer.
Let me show you another number as well. This is interesting. Again from the "Des Moines Register" poll of people likely to take part in that caucus tomorrow night, electability. Which one of these guys and ladies can beat President Obama you think in November?
Look, Romney on top. You know, Romney has been there with the electability numbers for a while. Gingrich has fallen, though, 13 percent. Those negative ads that have been playing here have been digging into Gingrich. Another sign of why his numbers have been dropping, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: And, you know, as we have been talking about all morning, not everyone has made up their mind.
STEINHAUSER: Yes. One day to go. Can you believe it?
Take a look at another number here from the poll that really illustrates that. Forty-one percent say, you know, I'm backing this guy or that woman. But I could be persuaded tomorrow night to change my mind at the caucus. And at the bottom there, Kyra, seven percent still haven't even decided on a candidate.
PHILLIPS: There's a lot of peer pressure that happens at these caucuses as we will know. What do -- who do the insiders like?
STEINHAUSER: Well, I'm glad you ask, because we have this. It's called the CNN insider's poll. We questioned 64 Republican insiders -- I don't make this up. We questioned 64 Republican insiders here in Iowa.
And look, who will finish first? Well, the insiders here in Iowa, the political experts on the Republican side, overwhelmingly, 2/3, say Mitt Romney. And I know you had those live pictures. He is about 2 1/2 hours from here in the eastern part of the state today.
And, Kyra, I know have you been talking to our guys today. But I'm outside. I'm not inside. I'm out here with (INAUDIBLE) and Jeff Parker. And we are enjoying the beautiful cold windy winter day here in Iowa.
PHILLIPS: And, obviously, I can tell by your energy level, you're on your sixth cup of coffee by now. Paul Steinhauser --
STEINHAUSER: Oh, yes.
PHILLIPS: -- good to see you.
All right. We'll be talking more, I can promise you that.
Well, in Iowa, this is the last full day of campaigning before tomorrow's Republican caucuses, and polls show uncommitted voters could decide the race, as you heard Paul say. And one candidate has spent more than a year reaching out to them. In the final days, well, Rick Santorum has been feeling their love.
Joe Johns takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have done literally 358 or 359 town hall meetings in the state of Iowa. We've been to all 99 counties, and we weren't speed dating.
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rick Santorum's polling numbers, his surge in the race for Iowa, is starting to look like love, though the question is, what took so long for a staunch conservative who has been courting the state for months to finally get some traction?
SANTORUM: The crowds are bigger. But I think they'd be bigger in any surge because people are focused.
JOHNS: And for some of those evangelicals and social conservatives, he's been with them on all of their issues for so long. It's as if they're just now remembering he's actually in the race -- anti- abortion, anti-gay marriage, pro-National Rifle Association.
On the right side, the far right side, of many things that matter to them most.
One Santorum selling point is that he appears to have no serious baggage compared to others, because he was vetted during his years in Congress.
SANTORUM: You know, I got a thorough cleansing, if you will, when I ran in 2006. I had everybody look at everything, and had national profiles and everything else. You know, the answer is, I've been through this.
JOHNS: That 2006 Senate re-election campaign haunts him. He got crushed in his home state, Pennsylvania, a battleground state.
So why would the Republican Party risk giving the nomination to a guy who got bounced out of office like that? Answer number one: it was a tough year.
SANTORUM: It was - it was the worst election for Republicans in, you know, probably -- maybe in the history of the Republican Party in Pennsylvania.
JOHNS: Answer number two, to explain that drubbing in the Senate election: principle. He got advice to moderate his positions in order to suit the voters' moods, but he refused.
SANTORUM: Yes, I lost, but I stood for what I believed in. And, you know, my feeling was, you know, there's one thing worse than losing and that's sacrificing your principles. I wouldn't do it. I didn't do it and --
JOHNS: Democrats poke fun, of course, pointing out this humorous ad that makes Santorum look like quite the compromiser.
SANTORUM: Barbara Boxer and I wrote a law protecting open space. I'm even working with Hillary Clinton to limit inappropriate material in children's video games, because it makes more sense to wrestle with America's problems than with each other.
JOHNS: He's also gotten slammed for earmarking while in Congress. He argues there was nothing wrong with it.
SANTORUM: Yes, well, I did.
JOHNS: But make no mistake. Standing up for conservative social issues has defined Rick Santorum's career, to the point that some Republicans who know him point out he's gotten pigeonholed.
RON BONJEAN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: He's really revolved himself around social issues like abortion. And when you're talking about the economy as the number one issue to Americans in Republican primary voters, you know, he's speaking their one language when he needs to speak -- speak everything to voters right now.
JOHNS: Joe Johns, CNN, Des Moines, Iowa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Now let's go from Des Moines to Davenport live, shall we? This is live pictures. The latest stop on the campaign trail for Mitt Romney. We will take it live as soon as he steps up to the mike.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got a lot of candidates who are running. We got a lot --
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Live in Davenport, Iowa, now. Mitt Romney campaigning before tomorrow evening's caucuses. He's got his family standing behind him. His wife by his side.
Let's listen in.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was immediately struck by that beauty, and actually we were at a party. She came with someone else.
I went to the guy she came with, and I said, look, I live closer to Ann than you do. Can I give her a ride home for you? And he agreed, and we've been going steady ever since.
I --
ANN ROMNEY, MITT ROMNEY'S WIE: It's great. It finally feels like winter in Iowa. It's really chilly out there this morning. I'm so glad we are in an indoor facility.
This is the way it's supposed to be. The caucuses are supposed to be cold. And I know that means if you get out today when it's freezing like this, you can get out tomorrow night.
So, please, folks. Let's do this. Let's do this tomorrow night.
We are excited to be here. We love being here. We made wonderful friends four years ago. And we see some of you in the audience.
And, Brian, again, thank you so much. You were so helpful last time as well.
This is a serious thing we are all coming to. And I sense something happening as we have been going across Iowa. I sense a feeling, a coalescing, a momentum, or whatever it is you want to call it, around mitt. And I think people are starting to figure out that this is the guy that is going to beat Barack Obama.
(APPLAUSE)
A. ROMNEY: So we're sensing it. We are loving this. We are loving the turnout. We're loving the fact that you guys are cheering us on. And it's important to us.
I have known this guy for a long time. I think he mentioned that. Three of the five sons are here. We love having the boys.
The best part of having children, I will tell you, is the grandchildren. And the best part of being a grandmother is watching my grandchildren misbehave.
(LAUGHTER)
A. ROMNEY: These boys deserve every minute of it. So it's a great thing for all of us to be here together to try to encourage you to get out. So let's hear Mitt tell us how he's going to do and what he's going to do to beat Barack. Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
M. ROMNEY: Thank you, sweetheart.
You didn't get to see her on TV this morning, by the way. She was on "FOX and Friends" this morning. And you were in the background. I saw some of you gathering at that early time.
And she was marvelous. They asked her tough questions, and she did exactly what you're supposed to do. She didn't answer them.
(LAUGHTER)
M. ROMNEY: She talked about what she wanted to talk about.
And I want to tell you what I want to talk about today, because I have been watching some clips of President Obama, then-candidate Obama, when he was going across Iowa four years ago. And the promises just were nonstop, of all the great things he was going to do -- heal the nation, bring us together, repair the nation and repair the world. I mean, the list was extraordinary. I haven't seen such a big gap between promises and performance in a long, long, long time.
And you go through the list. One, he was going to change things internationally. Probably the greatest threat we face on the globe is a nuclear Iran. And he said he was going to engage Iran. Remember, and visit with Ahmadinejad in his first year?
It didn't quite work out like he hoped. Iran pursuing their nuclear ambition, announced yesterday they now developed a nuclear rod. They tested a medium range surface-to-air missile. Iran continues to be and is actually a greater threat than when he became president.
And then he said he was going to be -- he was outraged at the size of the budget deficits that President Bush had put in place. Remember about $450 billion? Well, then his were about three times that size. And as the senator indicated, he is on track by the end of his first term -- well, his only term --
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
ROMNEY: He is on track to put almost as much debt in place as all the prior presidents combined. It's just unthinkable.
And then, of course, there's the economy. Remember when he said if we let him borrow $787 billion, almost $1 trillion, that he would hold unemployment below 8 percent? It has not been below 8 percent since. And 25 million people are out of work, or stopped looking for work, or seriously underemployed.
And by the way, that's not just a statistic. If you have been unemployed for some period of time, you know that being unemployed is a traumatic experience. And I had the opportunity to work with people who had lost their jobs. And try and help them get back on their feet.
But for a lot of folks, it's a psychological impact. It's -- sometimes marriages falter. People sometimes lose their faith. It's become depressed. It's tough being out of work.
Twenty-five million people -- we haven't had a presidency with this many jobs lost during their term since Hoover. This is just an American tragedy.
And so, I look at this president and realize that he just doesn't know what has to be done to get this country on track again. You know, when he was just a new elected president, he went on "The Today Show." and he said, "If I can't get this economy turned around in three years, I'll be looking at a one-term proposition." I'm here to collect. All right?
PHILLIPS: Mitt Romney there in Iowa, Davenport, actually, last full day of campaigning before tomorrow evening's caucuses.
We will follow all the live events taking place and dip in live for you so you can get a feel of what's happening the day before the big night.
We're going to take a quick break. More from the CNN NEWSROOM straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well police believe it was senseless celebratory gunfire that has critically injured a 12-year-old boy. Doctors say a bullet actually went through the top of his head. His parents say he was just watching fireworks in his front yard.
CNN's George Howell is here with more on this story and others like it, unfortunately. So what happened here and what's the deal?
GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well I just got off the phone with the Hillsboro County Sheriff's deputies. They tell me that Diego Duran is still in the hospital. The bullet still lodged in his head from this incident. Again, he was just outside watching fireworks when detectives say a bullet hit him in the head. His family, his mother, was outside. Didn't realize what had happened really until she got to the hospital with him.
PHILLIPS: So do we know who fired the gun? Could that person be held responsible?
HOWELL: It all depends. In certain parts of Florida, in rural parts, it's apparently ok to fire weapons. But in some areas, cities, closer to towns, it can be a misdemeanor. If this person is caught, it could become a felony with jail time attached.
Again, just depends upon them determining whether the bullet that's in Diego's head, whether that matches the bullet of the person that they find.
PHILLIPS: You know and this is not the first time, you know, that we have reported on stories like this.
HOWELL: No. Absolutely.
PHILLIPS: And sometimes you wonder, what are people thinking?
HOWELL: You know, we did a story on Friday on celebratory gunfire on a mother in Atlanta who was in a church with her son when a bullet came through the roof and hit Marquel Peters in the head.
So this happens, it seems, every year there's an incident of celebratory gunfire injury. Again, police and investigators trying to find a way to stop it, trying to get people to think about what happens when you fire that bullet in the air it's got to come down somewhere.
PHILLIPS: Yes there's other ways to celebrate, wouldn't you say?
HOWELL: Yes. Fireworks.
PHILLIPS: Yes, exactly. George, thanks.
HOWELL: Yes.
PHILLIPS: We'll get a quick look at other news from across the country. New York Police say that Molotov cocktails were thrown at three places in Queens last night, one of them at an Islamic center. There was some damage but no injuries.
And a soldier has been charged with trying to board an airplane with an explosive. The incident forced the temporary closing of part of the Midland, Texas Airport terminal. Law enforcement sources tell CNN there was no detonator on the explosives.
And same sex unions are now legal in Hawaii. There are now five states that recognize same sex civil unions; six states and Washington, D.C., recognize same-sex marriage.
Stay with us. We're going to take you live to Iowa once again on this day before the Republican caucuses. Our reporters have the latest news and insights from all across the campaign trail.
Plus the Denver Broncos lose a must-win game, but make the playoffs anyway. We've got a ton of NFL highlights in sports. That's eight minutes away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: And welcome back.
Here's a look at what's happening today. The 123rd Rose Parade makes its way through southern California starting at 11:00 Eastern.
New York Rangers take on the Philadelphia Flyers in the National Hockey League's Winter Classic. That outdoor game begins at 3:00.
And vacation is over for the First Family. They're headed back to the White House, scheduled to leave tonight at 10:00 Eastern.
Well, we're following lots of developments in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. Let's check in first with Jim Acosta in Polk City, Iowa -- Jim.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi Kyra that's right. We are following the surging Rick Santorum. Can the man in the sweater vest make Mitt Romney sweat? We'll have a live report coming up in just a few minutes.
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The number of arson fires in Los Angeles grew to 55 overnight. I'm Casey Wian in Los Angeles. There may be a break in the case. I'll have the details coming up at the top of the hour.
ROM MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: And I'm Rob Marciano. You may remember this time last year 5,000 black birds wound up dead in Beebe, Arkansas. Well, sadly it's happened again. I'll have the story in the next hour -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right guys, thanks so much.
Also next hour you probably knew him as Gopher on "The Love Boat". But Newt Gingrich knows him as one of his most well known supporters in Iowa. We're talking to former Iowa Congressman and TV star, Fred Grandy in the next hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, Dick Clark's New Year's Rocking Eve rang in the ratings with more than 22 million viewers. The 40th anniversary event gave the network its biggest draw in 11 years. We're talking about some pretty big performers, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Nikki Minaj; that was just some of the evening's biggest performances.
And the "Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" proves to be a box office gold raking in more than $31 million this holiday weekend and nearing the $350 million mark.
Steven Spielberg's "War Horse" brought in almost $17 million.
If you want a romantic vacation, where else would you go? Paris, naturally. Look how happy they are. According to people magazine that's exactly where Derek Jeter and Mika Kelly were for the holiday weekend. The couple broke up back in August for after dating for three years. They look pretty happy now.
Then Lebron James put a ring on it for New Year's. "People" Magazine reported that James popped the question to his long-time girlfriend on Saturday. The two have been together, by the way, since they were 16 and they've got two kids together.
Let's just talk about all of that scoop, Jeff Fischel. You want to talk NFL playoffs. Let's talk about all the love in sports.
JEFF FISCHEL, HLN SPORTS: She finally has a ring. Isn't that nice?
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIPS: Doesn't he already have a lot of rings?
FISCHEL: He'll win one, one day, I'm sure. He is the best.
PHILLIPS: Take it away my friend.
FISCHEL: Yes, yes. Last Sunday the NFL, we finally know who's in the playoffs. The Dallas Cowboys battle the New York Giants for the final playoff. The winner wins the NFC East first quarter. That's Giants quarterback Eli Manning finds Victor Cruz, 74-yard touchdown. Cruz, a Jersey kid, set a single team season record for receiving yards. Look at the little salsa after the score.
Then he threw for two more touchdowns. The giants win 31-14. And they take the NFC East. Dallas, go home.
Quarterback Tim Tebow trying to lead Denver to the playoffs. They need a win or a Raiders loss. But Tebow had a horrible game. He played just 6 of 22 passes for 60 years. He threw an interception. Kansas City beat the Broncos in Denver 7-3. So Oakland just needed to beat the Chargers to get to the play-offs.
San Diego's Richard Goodman takes it from deep in his end zone and he is gone -- taillights on the highway. The chargers win 38-26. The Raiders are out. That means the Broncos and Tebow get in even though they lost.
Buffalo ran up a 21-0 first quarter lead on the Patriots. Look at Stevie Johnson get the touchdown. Then to celebrate a t-shirt that says Happy New Year. Not a good idea. That got him a penalty. His coach was not amused, benched him for the rest of the game. Yes. He said, behave and he didn't do it.
No lead was safe against Tom Brady. The Pats QB threw for three touchdowns against the Bills; this one to Rob Gronkowski for the greatest 300 per touchdown. The Patriots scored 49 straight points. They win; they're the top seed in the AFC playoffs. Tom Brady was terrific all season.
Drew Brees was even better. The Saints' quarterback threw for 46 touchdowns a season, this one to Marcus Colston against the Panthers. Brees demolished Dan Marino's record for passing yards. He also set other NFL records this season. The Saints, They roll over Carolina and head into the playoffs on an eight-game winning streak. Boy, Brees has been great.
You know who else has been great? Another quarterback, Packers Aaron Rodgers enjoyed the New Year taking the day off. Packers already had their playoff spot wrapped up but the backup Matt Flynn, he threw for a team record. 480 yards, threw for a team record, six touchdowns including this game winner late, 45-41 the final. The Packers win. They finish up the regular season 15-1. They are the top seed in the NFC. At the other end of the spectrum, it's been a terrible year for the Colts without Peyton Manning. The backup QB Dan Orlovsky threw two interceptions yesterday as the Jags beat the Colts 19-13. Peyton Manning hurt all year. Indianapolis finished 2-13. But that was good for one thing They will get the top seed pick in the NFL draft which means they could get Stanford's Andrew Luck; some say he's the next Payton Manning.
Here is your schedule for the first round of the playoffs. Saturday, Cincinnati at Houston; then the Saints host the Lions; and on Sunday the Falcons visit the Giants and then the Steelers travel to Denver to face the Broncos. We'll see if Tim Tebow can get it turned around just in time for the playoffs because the Broncos are going on a three-game losing streak after he had that great six-game winning streak.
PHILLIPS: Kind of bump up the prayers.
FISCHEL: You know, the Broncos need some help. The Steelers are good. Of course, they keep making postseason runs. Tebow, you know, everyone worried that he might struggle. We're starting to see a little bit why people were worried. But again, he has those leadership qualities and I think you know. We'll see what he can pull off.
PHILLIPS: Yes. He's a good guy. Drew Brees too. He's got such a great (INAUDIBLE).
FISCHEL: If it were not for Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees would be the NFL MVP. Who knows, he might pull off (INAUDIBLE) with the voting.
PHILLIPS: We'll watch it. Thanks, Jeff.
FISCHEL: Ok.
PHILLIPS: Ok.
Well, we are hitting the top of the hour. Thanks so much for staying with us.
We begin this hour in Iowa. Of course, the clocking is ticking toward tomorrow night's caucuses and the first real test for the candidates. In the final poll now by the "Des Moines Register", Mitt Romney.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
