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U.S. Envoy in Critical Condition; Madoff Son Found Dead; Elizabeth Edwards Laid to Rest; Letter-Writing Campaign to Bernie Sanders on Behalf of Unemployed; This Weekend's Top Movie Picks

Aired December 11, 2010 - 16:00   ET

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

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Deborah Feyerick -- I'm Deborah Feyerick sitting in for Fredricka Whitfield.

Welcome to CNN NEWSROOM. We're following several developing stories this afternoon.

Two explosions shook Stockholm, Sweden today. One was a car bomb and authorities are trying to determine what's behind it.

Frigid snowy weather is pounding parts of the Midwest. People in many areas are facing whiteout conditions and temperatures well below zero.

And Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp take a trip to Venice that they won't soon forget. We'll look at the "Tourist" and other new movie releases.

We've been following a developing story out of the nation's capital. America's top diplomat to Afghanistan and Pakistan is in critical condition in a Washington hospital. Richard Holbrooke fell ill yesterday during a meeting with secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Doctors this morning completed surgery to repair a torn aorta.

Let's bring in CNN's Jill Dougherty to join us on the phone and Jill, you've been with us all afternoon. Is there any update on his condition or is the hospital pretty much keeping mum?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): So far they are. They are not saying anything officially. But of course, we did have that statement from P.J. Crowley, the spokesman, but that is a couple hours ago, where he said that he is in critical condition, and that his family is at his side at the hospital. But we can confirm that Secretary Clinton was at the hospital this morning, visiting Ambassador Holbrooke.

He is certainly a top key person member of her team at the State Department. After all, he is the special envoy on Afghanistan and Pakistan. And not only in the sense of, you know, sitting in an office in foggy bottom, as it's called, but going out into the field, meeting the people, wearing his boots out in the deserts and sandy areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan and really doing these deals.

And that is why he was brought in two years ago after a very long career. He's been a diplomat for 45 years and he was brought back by this administration to do precisely that. He's a man who is known as very, very persistent, who can go in there, shake hands, kind of like an LBJ of diplomacy, you would have to say, and crack some heads and get some things done. So they brought him in.

But this is a very, very difficult challenge for him. That is Afghanistan and Pakistan. And in fact, next week, the policy review on Afghanistan policy is expected to be released. And they're assessing the surge. Some very important issues. This is a bad time for him unfortunately to fall ill.

FEYERICK: Yes, it's interesting, obviously he's negotiated so many different things. He negotiated in the Balkans. He negotiated when he was U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. His ability to build bridges. He's also trusted by people within Afghanistan and also Pakistan, as well.

So you have to look at this in the larger picture, which is, he is a key sort of negotiator, not just representing the United States but also being able to reach out to the people that he's trying to work with.

DOUGHERTY: Yes, that's true. He's really bigger than life. A lot of people would say, people who have worked with him and people who have dealt with him would say he is larger than life. I mean, number one, he's a very big, tall, impressive man. And then also in the way he deals with people, his ability to really cut to the core, talk turkey and get things done.

Now some people have said, of course, you know, he is an ego. Well, yes, you have to have an ego when you're in this type of business, and he does. But that's what's needed. So at this point, you can imagine, you know, Secretary Clinton at a difficult time for the State Department with leaks and all sorts of challenges. This is a difficult moment, I can imagine.

FEYERICK: OK. Well, Jill, thank you so very much. Again, Richard Holbrooke in critical condition, but he's with his family and friends and certainly getting the best medical care possible.

Well, the elder son of convicted swindler Bernie Madoff has been found dead in an apparent suicide. Mark Madoff's body was found hanging from a ceiling pipe this morning in his Manhattan loft. His attorney calls the death "a terrible and unnecessary tragedy."

Let's get right to our Susan Candiotti. She is live outside Madoff's apartment. What kind of activity have you seen going on there, Susan?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, a lot of people are passing by, pausing to stare at the apartment building where Mark Madoff's body was found. What's especially tragic about this case, Deborah, is that he apparently committed suicide while his two-year-old son was sleeping in another room.

Now New York's Police commissioner says at this time no specific suicide note was left. However, he did talk about the fact that Mark Madoff had sent an e-mail before he apparently decided to hang himself.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAY KELLY, COMMISSIONER NY POLICE DEPT.: Mr. Madoff apparently left some e-mail notes. There's no note at the scene, but communicated with members of his family. Mr. Madoff's father-in-law was there, was called by Mr. Madoff's wife to check on the two-year- old who was there and the two-year-old was fine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Now, we're going to give you a look at what's happening outside the apartment building now. This is located on a cobblestone street (INAUDIBLE). He and his wife and family took up the entire fourth floor of this apartment building, located in Manhattan's SoHo district. It's a quiet area, but quite busy on this particular day, a lot of people out shopping. The area is filled, the street is filled with galleries and chic boutique shops.

Mark Madoff has never been charged criminally in his father's huge ponzi scheme that bilked investors out of more than $50 billion. However, many people to this day believe that his brother and his sons and even his wife all knew about what was going on. Earlier this week, as a matter of fact, Mark Madoff and other members of the family, of the Madoff family, have been charged in yet another civil lawsuit filed by the trustee trying to recover millions of dollars for investors. An autopsy will be performed tomorrow to determine the official cause of death. And there is still finally here, Deborah, a lot of bitterness among people who live in both New York City and around the world. When you bring up the name Bernie Madoff.

A lot of people who do believe this time that he was responsible and Mark, because of all the people that were hurt by this scheme. Now, tonight, we do have a statement from the attorney representing Mark Madoff, and this is what he said. "Mark Madoff took his own life. This is a terrible and unnecessary tragedy. Mark, he says, was an innocent victim of his father's monstrous crime, who succumbed to two years of unrelenting pressure from false accusation and innuendo. We are all deeply saddened by the shocking turn of events."

We understand by the Federal Bureau of Prisons that Bernie Madoff was informed today as he is serving out his life sentence in prison in North Carolina. Deborah.

FEYERICK: Susan Candiotti, thank you so much. Clearly, so many lives changed not for the better after that Madoff scandal. Thanks so much.

Well, it's an emotional day for friends and family of Elizabeth Edwards. Her funeral in Raleigh, North Carolina was attended by a host of dignitaries and former staffers from her husband's political campaigns. Edwards died Tuesday after a battle with breast cancer. Our Martin Savidge is outside the church. And clearly, Martin, so emotional listening to her daughter. Everyone here was certainly fighting back tears.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think any parent would. You were just so deeply moved by this young woman who had the strength and clearly she is her mother's daughter. As you say, there was a strong showing of people who came out, 1,200 people that packed in the family church, the United Methodist Church here in downtown Raleigh.

The same church where, 14 years ago, the family had gathered to bury their son, 16-year-old Wade who was killed tragically in an automobile accident. Cate read the eulogy at that funeral. Cate read the eulogy for her mother today. Cate said the difference between those two events was, of course, back then she had her mother to help the family through that most difficult time. Now, they did not have that luxury.

You talked about the members of political power that were gathered in the pews. There were quite a few. John Kerry, of course, who picked John Edwards to be his running mate in 2004, vice presidential running mate. But then the pews were also packed with lots of ordinary people who looked upon Elizabeth Edwards, as they put it, as a lighthouse. A person who was able to deal with some of the darkest moments of life, and yet do so in very public ways, and I'm talking about the death of her son, talking about the infidelity of her husband and the six-year battle that she had with cancer, especially to cancer patients and cancer survivors. She meant so very much.

But back to the daughter and the eulogy. Let's listen just to a letter, and this is the letter that Elizabeth left for her children so that they would remember her guiding words as spoken by her daughter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CATE EDWARDS, DAUGHTER OF ELIZABETH EDWARDS: These are the words she wrote "I've loved you in the best ways I've known how. I admit my shortcomings more than you know. For when I was less than I could have been, should have been, I did not - you did not get all that you deserved from me. For all I've said about life, I want you to know that all I ever really needed was you. Your love, your presence, to make my life complete. You are complete joy to me. I hope you will always know that. Wherever I am, wherever you are, I have my arms wrapped around you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: That was the message that they say Elizabeth gave them until the very end. That even when she could not speak, she still communicated that she was with them and will always forever be. A whole public service, there was only one private moment and that is the graveside service where she was laid to rest next to her son, Wade, who died 14 years ago. Deborah?

FEYERICK: Martin Savidge, thank you so much. So sad that Elizabeth Edwards will not be able to dance at her daughter's wedding or see her youngest two children grow up.

Well, they are the militants targeting U.S. soldiers, but it's rare to see what insurgents do. We're going to take you inside the Taliban.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: A car explosion in Stockholm, Sweden, has killed one person and injured two others. It happened in a major shopping area that was crowded with holiday shoppers. Multiple explosions went off in the car. A police spokesman says the car contained gas canisters but would not speculate what exactly caused the blast. Police are also investigating a second explosion in central Stockholm about five minutes later.

Fourteen hundred Americans have been killed in Afghanistan and many more injured fighting the Taliban. Little is known about this shadowy enemy that disappears into mountainside stronghold and hideouts. No western reporter has ever been behind the lines to film the Taliban for days on end, until now.

In this CNN documentary "TALIBAN," a Norwegian filmmaker Paul Refsdal revealed Afghan fighting forces playing also at rest and in this clip which are extraordinary images about why Refsdal chose to tackle this subject which imperils his very life.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT(voice-over): Taliban fighters prepare for battle.

A convoy approaches.

This is the Taliban as you've never seen them before. In battle, in their homes, in their hideouts. Rare, exclusive images. Behind enemy lines.

Norwegian film maker Paul Refsdal first came to Afghanistan in the '80s to report on the Mujahideen. Now he returns on a dangerous assignment. One that could get him to the country's deadliest regions. It's an assignment that could get him kidnapped and killed.

(on camera): Why did you want to do this?

PAUL REFSDAL, NORWEGIAN FILMMAKER: Because we've been fighting the Taliban for nine years. I thought it was time that someone met them and actually tried to show who these people are.

COOPER: Why risk your life to tell the story of these people who are fighting the U.S. government and fighting the Norwegians, as well?

REFSDAL: It's very important that people know who we're fighting, because at present, people don't have a clue, really.

(END VIDEOTAPE) FEYERICK: That is just a small slice of the documentary. To see more of Refsdal's amazing time with the Taliban and to hear him tell Anderson Cooper about his experience of being kidnapped, watch "Taliban" on CNN tonight and tomorrow night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and 5:00 p.m. Pacific.

And well, if you live in the Midwest, it is cold outside. It is very cold outside. And kids don't even get a snow day.

Jacqui Jeras, what's going on?

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I know. It's terrible, actually. It's a really, really brutal winter storm. And we have so many elements in the play. You know, it's not just the heavy snow. It's the incredible winds and the dangerously cold temperatures that are following this system that's going to make it so nasty. Not just through the weekend, but even into next week.

This is a tower cam that I swear I could see the road just a second ago. I don't know if they moved this, or it went to whiteout in literally a second when I turned my back. But they are under a blizzard warning in Des Moines. In fact, it feels like four degrees, visibility is going to get down to below a quarter of a mile. Snowfall totals may be only on the range of five to eight inches of snow, but it's going to be those winds and that visibility that remains the biggest problem here.

I want to talk about the snow that continues to come down across the upper Midwest. And really the worst of the conditions at this hour are in this area, from around the twin cities to northern parts of Iowa, into southwestern parts of Wisconsin. This is the brunt of the worst of the storm where the heaviest accumulations and the strongest winds are coming around.

We have lots of problems on the interstates. If you're trying to travel i-29, Sioux Falls, south of this is about a 75-mile stretch down towards the Iowa state line. That's closed, because you just can't travel here. Terrible visibility and it might affect your football game, too, by the way. Guess what, the New York Giants are supposed to play the Vikings tomorrow. Minneapolis, they got diverted and they're stuck in Kansas City at the airport right now and we don't know if they're going to make it there for the game. So yes, this is in fact, affecting people who don't even live in those areas.

The storm tomorrow moves off to the east. It's going to stay snowy and windy behind it. Ahead of it, the big cities in the northeast, for the most part you're going to be OK and this is going to be a rain event for you. We are going to get some snow on the wrap around and very windy by your Monday. Temperatures plummet behind the storm 15 to 30 degrees below average.

Look at the temperatures, tonight and into tomorrow morning, Minneapolis minus seven, but Deborah, it's going to be feeling like 20 to 30 degrees below zero. So that can give you, you know, frostbite and for a very short period of time, you really need to stay indoors this weekend. FEYERICK: Wow. And football is going to be canceled. What are people going to do?

JERAS: Well, maybe. We don't know for sure. It's not officially canceled but we know they can get there, at least not yet.

FEYERICK: That's right. Except they'll have to have a virtual football game.

All right. Well, Jacqui Jeras, thank you so much.

Three words, pay per view.

OK. Well, we're going to take a look at the winners and losers at the movies, in the theaters this weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm quitting, Shelley (ph). I'm done fighting. I don't need it anymore.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's sad that you let them take it away from you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was embarrass. I told everybody I was going to win that fight and get back on track. So I'm a disappointment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Well, in "The Fighter," Mark Wahlberg plays a fighter who gets knocked down but never out. We'll check out this and other movies coming to a cineplex near you. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: An unemployed woman starts a letter writing campaign. But first, a look at today's top stories.

Rallies in support of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was re- scheduled in several cities around the world today. This one was held in Melbourne, Australia Friday. A Spanish web site that supports the WikiLeaks cause urged protestors to gather in the capitols of Spain, Peru, Mexico, Argentina, the Netherlands and Colombia to demand Assange's release. Assange was jailed Tuesday on suspicion of sex crimes unrelated to WikiLeaks.

Bernie Madoff's son, Mark, was found hanged in his New York apartment this morning. His death, an apparent suicide. Today, it marks the second anniversary of his father's arrest in what is the biggest ponzi scheme in U.S. history. Mark Madoff has been named in several civil lawsuits connected to the scheme, the latest just this week.

And this from Mexico. An alleged Mexican drug lord was killed during a two-day shootout between Mexican federal police and drug cartel gunmen. Authorities say (INAUDIBLE) Moreno Gonzalez, dubbed the "craziest one," was the leader of a huge drug cartel. The Mexican government says his death dealt the cartel a very severe blow.

And a new jobless benefits extension is expected to help millions of unemployed Americans. But many others, known as 99ers are not covered in the deal. They've exhausted all benefits. Now one of them is taking matters into her own hands. She started a letter writing campaign for her Vermont senator, Bernie Sanders.

CNN's photojournalist Doug Shantz (ph) brings us the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEXANDRA JARRIN, OUT OF WORK, 99ER: Dear Bernie Sanders, I feel as if I'm living in a nightmare from which I will never awaken. I'm a 53-year-old divorced female 99er. The term does not necessarily mean that you have gotten 99 weeks. The term came to describe people who have exhausted their benefits.

Why have we been forgotten, forsaken and left for dead? I have applied to well over 1,000 places. I heard about, you know, what the Republicans and the president came up with, basically. And I was just disgusted. I will make sure that anybody who sends their letter to this e-mail address gets printed out and gets delivered to the office.

The more stories we get, the bigger the impact. I have exactly $5 in my wallet and $46.77 in my checking account. How are we supposed to get out of this recession when there are no jobs? Low on ink. They are coming from everywhere, from Nevada, California, New Jersey, New York, a lot from New York. We are the American people and we're telling you that we're starving. That there's too many people freezing. That people are dying. That people are turning to suicide.

I campaigned for Obama in 2008. I believe in President Obama. This is what I have printed off so far, and I'm going to keep collecting them and I'm going to keep bringing them to you. Send them to him quick. We want him to know now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They will be gone today.

JARRIN: But I have work to do now because I have to print more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Doug Shantz (ph) there.

Well, movie magic and fantasy in theaters across the country this weekend. Plus, Mark Wahlberg plays a fighter who takes a "Rocky" like rise to fame. And Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp team up in "The Tourist."

Wesley Morris is here with today's movie review. Let's kick it off with "The Tourist." Wesley.

WESLEY MORRIS, FILM CRITIC, "BOSTON GLOBE": Hi. FEYERICK: Hey there. So what do you think? What did you like about it? I hear it's a little bit violent, a little bit romantic, gritty, edgy.

MORRIS: Neither, really. I mean, it's like 1950 something all over again, except, you know, you can do more with guns and knives than you could, you know, 60 years ago. Basically, this is Angelina Jolie in her high glamour mode. She sort of floats through Venice and Paris with men looking up to gawk at her.

That's kind of amusing, then Johnny Depp plays a guy that in order to keep Scotland Yard and these other people who are pursuing her off her back, she basically gets Johnny Depp to pretend - she doesn't get him to pretend, she basically uses him to throw off these people who are looking for her as a decoy, because they want her husband basically, who is a world class thief.

You know, the movie does not work at all. It's kind of a mess. But as a moviegoer, it's nice to see Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp try to figure each other out and play off each other, because they are two people who rarely get to do any of that with a person of the opposite gender. I mean, their movies are usually about them, as opposed to their relationships to other people. So there, I mean, from that stand point, it's OK . But it's really, really boring.

FEYERICK: OK. We do have a little clip. So let's take a look. If nothing else, they're nice to look at.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where's the owner of this boat? Bottom of the canal?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sitting in a cafe with a pocketful of euros.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why is all this happening? Why is everyone trying to kill me?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's because I kissed you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Wow, OK. So actually I thought we were talking about "The Fighter" first. I can see your point here about sort of them playing character roles where they're interacting much other than individually dominating. But let's then go to "The Fighter," because that, I heard, was gritty and edgy and Wesley, we're going to play a clip first to start. So let's take a look at this.

MORRIS: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) let him punch himself out, take him to the body, right get inside, switch stances like you're going to work his right and hit him on the left.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) you can't beat me. I have no time beating me when you had your chance. And that's why you're in here and I'll fight Sanchez the way I fight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Now, this is a pretty incredible cast. You got Mark Wahlberg, you got Christian Bale, you got Amy Adams. What did you like, did you like it?

MORRIS: Oh, this is - I mean, as Hollywood movies go, they don't get better directed than this. I mean, David Russell made this film. He replaced a couple other directors who dropped out at various points. And what you have is a very somewhat standard boxing movie about Mickey Ward, the boxer from Massachusetts who is most famous probably for the fights he had with Arturo Gati in the early '90s.

But the movie is actually set before those fights. It's about his relationship with his family. So what you basically have is a movie about a family trying to figure out what's best for the family. And so Dicky and his brother - or Mickey and his brother, Dicky, are trying - are sort of fighting for dominance in this family of women basically and the mother is played by Melissa Leo, and the movie in a weird way becomes - she is the manager and the movie becomes more about her - the tension between her and Mickey's girlfriend, who is played by Amy Adams, who is a bartender. Then they start dating and she realizes that the mother might be exploiting him in order to make money for the family.

This is just - I mean, I do not - I have not seen a better directed movie of actors in a long time. It's really amazing watching all of these people be on the same page. You see a lot of good movies with individually good performances in one film, but this is one of those occasions where everybody from Mark Wahlberg to Christian Bale who is astonishing, to Amy Adams to Melissa Leo to Jack McGee who plays the father -

FEYERICK: So you're giving this an "A"?

MORRIS: Oh, I like this movie a lot. I like this movie a lot.

FEYERICK: OK.

MORRIS: It's very smartly made.

FEYERICK: All right.

And the one that I know kids have been waiting for and that is the "Chronicles of Narnia." I know one in particular who is definitely waiting for this. I want to tell you her review of this particular movie. The sea serpent is a little violent but won't give you nightmares. The best part is when they go into Narnia. What grade would you give this historic movie? And when I say historic it is because the "Chronicles". MORRIS: Yes. I mean, I would say a D plus, probably. You know, the series has a lot of problems. I think they're trying to take a great work of literature and shoehorn it into blockbuster-or maybe half shoehorn and have expand it to blockbuster proportions. And it doesn't really work. C.S. Lewis didn't write blockbusters. So it has now switched studios. This is the third movie. There are seven books. I can't imagine they'll get to book number seven.

FEYERICK: OK, well.

MORRIS: The movie sort of suffered from-

(LAUGHTER)

MORRIS: What was that?

FEYERICK: Well, certainly visually. You know, the Chronicles as they have been coming out, visually, they're kind of interesting. But you are the expert. I'm just the pedestrian. I watch it at home, you know, with kids jumping all over me.

MORRIS: Oh, really? It might work for kids. That big slug is kind of scary, but you can do much better than this on the literary franchise to movie front. I promise.

FEYERICK: OK, good enough. Well, listen, Wesley, thank you so much. You've got one of the best jobs going. Wesley Morris, thanks so much.

MORRIS: Thank you.

FEYERICK: Now the government has changed its recommendations on flu shots. We'll tell you how and why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Well, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is joining forces with evangelist Franklin Graham and a delegation in Haiti today. They are part of a humanitarian mission. Haiti is fighting a massive cholera outbreak as it struggles to recover from last January's massive earthquake. Our Gary Tuchman joins us from Port-au- Prince.

Gary, what is it like down there?

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's set the scene for you. Tomorrow, the 11-month anniversary of this devastating earthquake that killed more than 230,000 people. That's basically one out of every 45 people who live in this entire country. And things are getting worse in many ways.

For example, more homeless than ever, more than 1 million people homeless in this country. This park across the street from me, in the Chandemars (ph) area of Port-au-Prince, when we got here hours after the earthquake and it was basically empty. Within days it started filling up and now it's a permanent homeless camp. And this is what you see all throughout the Port-au-Prince area.

Also what's getting worse, you just mentioned it, Deborah, the cholera outbreak. More than 98,000 people infected. More than 2,000 people dead. And you also-to make matters even worse, have some bloodshed from the presidential elections two weeks ago. Things have quieted down a little bit over the last two days, but just a few hours ago, there was a drive by shooting at a market here. Two people were hurt.

Amid all this, John McCain's former running mate, Sarah Palin, has made her first trip to Haiti. She is with Franklin Graham, the son of the Reverend Billy Graham. Franklin Graham is the CEO of Christian charity called Samaritan's Purse. The former governor of Alaska and Reverend Graham are touring the area. Talking to children, talking to people, looking at what they can do.

You may be wondering why we're not showing you video of Sarah Palin touring Haiti. The reason is Sarah Palin and her people, during this two-day visit, today and tomorrow, requested no media coverage while she goes around the country today. That's her choice. We talked to some people here in Haiti who have absolutely no idea who Sarah Palin is.

But there are two minds to this. Number one, they're very jaded by celebrities and politicians who come from other countries for one for two days, parachute in. They don't think much of that. However, many of those people, and others, also say it's good because it continues to call attention to the tremendous troubles they're having here in Haiti. The Palin people do say they will permit us to be with her tomorrow, we should have some pictures tomorrow, but it is notable that Sarah Palin, who may run for president in 2012, is touring Haiti her first time ever here.

Deborah, back to you.

FEYERICK: OK, Gary Tuchman, thank you so much there in Haiti.

Domestic violence there also on the rise. We are going to be speaking about that tomorrow.

Right now, flu cases are going up. This year the CDC says everyone six months and over, should get vaccinated. In previous years only people in high-risk groups were urged to get a flu shot. And joining me now, Dr. Anne Schuchat, the director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.

Doctor, why did the CDC decide to change its vaccination?

DR. ANNE SCHUCHAT, DIR., CDC's NAT'L. CTR. FOR IMMUNIZATION: The basic situation is that even healthy people can get the flu and it can be serious. So we've been looking at the information about disease, about the vaccine, its safety, its benefits and our advisory committee this year recommended that everybody six months and up get the vaccine.

FEYERICK: Now that you've expanded the group, what does it mean for the ability to deliver that much vaccine?

SCHUCHAT: The companies have made buckets of vaccine this year. They have made over 160 million doses, about 40 million doses more than they made last year. So we do think there's enough vaccine and we really strongly encourage people to get vaccinated before the holidays, before they gather with friends and family. This is a great time to get vaccinated and not a great time to spread the flu.

FEYERICK: The thinking behind this, obviously it used to be high risk groups, now it's sort of everybody. Do you see this as something that we all end up getting, as we do other shots when we're raising kids?

SCHUCHAT: It's a great idea to be vaccinated, both to protect yourself, to help you from not getting the flu, but also so that you won't spread it to other people. We also found that the high-risk people didn't really recognize they were high risk. We were recommending vaccines for people with asthma and diabetes. But most people don't identify that way. They think they are fine. So we think that having a universal recommendation will do better at protecting healthy people and also help us get high-risk people even more effectively.

FEYERICK: There are two types of vaccine. One is a shot, the other is nasal. Is one more effective than the other?

SCHUCHAT: We think they're both fine. The nasal spray form, the nasal mist, is only for people who are healthy, between the ages of two and 49, and not pregnant. So if you have asthma, if you're pregnant, if you have diabetes, if you are 50 or over, we don't think you should get the spray. But younger people it is fine to get that. The shot is for anybody six months of age or up.

FEYERICK: What three strains of the flu does the vaccine cover particularly? Swine flu, everybody was panicked about that. Is that one of the flus that it covers?

SCHUCHAT: Yes. It does include the H1N1 strain that we saw so much of last year. That is not totally gone, it is still around. It also covers a B strain. Here in Georgia there has been a lot of B disease, already this year. It also covers H3N2, that is a strain that is causing quite a bit of disease in certain communities.

FEYERICK: Georgia seems to have been hit hard. As a matter of fact, a couple of folks I work with, there has been a pod that all seem to be sick. Why Georgia particularly?

SCHUCHAT: We just don't understand why Georgia, but we know it has to start someplace and Georgia was state number one for getting flu-for increases in flu. It's not over in Georgia. We have many months ahead that can be the flu season. But we think it's a warning for every place else to start worrying about that flu and get the vaccine.

FEYERICK: OK, certainly wise words of warning. Get it if you have it. Doctor Ann Schuchat, thank you so much. Really appreciate you coming in today.

SCHUCHAT: My pleasure.

FEYERICK: All right. Well, now, moving on to what men say, but what do they really mean? Comedian Steve Harvey deciphers the mixed signals and messages for women in his newest book. Harvey sits down with Fredricka Whitfield, in "Face To Face" coming up.

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FEYERICK: Straight ahead, funny man Steve Harvey has been called a lot of things, but relationship guru? It's more of Fredricka Whitfield's "Face To Face" interview.

But first, we're going to take a look at today's top stories.

More than 1,200 mourners paid their final respects today to Elizabeth Edwards. She was eulogized by her daughter, Kate, and friends at a service in Raleigh, North Carolina. Edwards, the wife of former vice presidential candidate John Edwards, died Tuesday after a six-year battle with breast cancer.

A four-day nationwide search ends for a Virginia girl and her alleged abductor. The family just held an emotional press conference expressing their relief. A shopper recognized the 12-year-old Britney May Smith and 31-year old Jeffery Easley and tipped police off. Officers caught up with the two outside of a San Francisco supermarket. Britney is in child protection services and will head home soon. In the meantime Easley is in police custody.

And a monster snow storm is pounding Minnesota and Wisconsin. This is a tower cam shot from the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. The storm is causing whiteout conditions in many areas. Officials are warning motorists to stay off the road if possible, and following the storm, well, it is not going to get any easier. The temperature is expected to plunge, as low as 20 degrees below zero.

Long-time comedian Steve Harvey has now turned relationship guru. He's giving women an inside look into men and just how complicated they are, how they think, what they mean. He talked with Fredricka Whitfield "Face To Face" about calling men out.

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FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: At 53, he's an icon, following his growing on the airwaves and in print worldwide. Steve Harvey is on the radio, television and embarking on a whirl wind book tour elaborating on his expected next best seller, "Straight Talk, No Chaser: How to Find, Keep and Understand A Man". How did this standup comedian, one of the original kings of comedy, former host of the Apollo, and now syndicated radio and television host, become a so-called relationship guru? He admits it's one of the biggest surprises of his career. He says women have remarkable power, but too often don't know it.

STEVE HARVEY, ENTERTAINER & AUTHOR: If you're the one at the risk of being hurt and burned, I would definitely want the onus to be on me. I would love to be the one that's the controlling factor. And I hate to break it to you, but you all are the controlling factor. We can't hold your hand without your permission. We can't kiss you good night unless you let us. We can't even take you out unless you get in the car. I'm telling you, man, you have all the power but you keep relinquishing it.

And all I'm trying to say to women is, stop relinquishing your power. Embrace it. You control this thing. So, yes, the onus of making this work and seeing if this is the right one, a lot of it's on you. But when you run into the right guy, you ain't going to have to push and pull too hard, because he's coming, both barrels loaded, right up the street, engine full of coal.

WHITFIELD: So while your book is primarily for women, right? Your women readers, when listening to your radio show, you interview young men after a first date, you talk to them about what were you really thinking on that first date. And you will challenge most of these young men on the air. That's not what you were thinking. You will tell them straight out, that's not what you were thinking. Why do you do that? Because they seem really uncomfortable. Are women gaining or learning something? Or are guys learning a lesson on this about-?

HARVEY: I want women to see. Look, he's telling you this. I'm telling you as another man, that's not the total truth. Tell them what you were really thinking. Because I already know. I already know what he's really thinking. I already know from the moment he saw you, a man has a plan for you. You just don't know that.

A guy doesn't just walk across the room and start talking to you at a club, or happy hour. He was eyeballing you. He noticed it. He saw something he liked. And he walked over there to see what it would take to get what he likes. That's his plan. No guy has no plan for you. I'm just getting to know you. Man, that's so much crap. No, you want to get to know her why?

WHITFIELD: I wonder, are dudes a little salty with you? You're blowing their cover.

HARVEY: Yes, but it's OK. Once again, they don't buy books. I don't care. I really don't care. Look, I sold almost 3 million books. Maybe 10,000 guys might have the book, maybe.

WHITFIELD: Are they ever reluctant to be on your radio show knowing that you're going to dissect their answers when they talk about that first date?

HARVEY: No.

WHITFIELD: They're willing participants?

HARVEY: Let me explain something to you. Nothing is more important to the guy than the girl. The ridicule, the running the risk that Steve might gut him open, none of that matters more than the girl. It's the most important thing in our world is the girl. It is, man. And it's never going to change. We will do anything to pursue you. If we want you, you can't stop us. Look, you're an attractive woman. You've had guys come on to you and you've told them, no, no. You have even had to tell a person, listen, I'm married. He'll come back twice and say something any way. Because once a guy locks in, he is going to just keep coming-you can't run a guy off. And that's what I try to share with women. So when these guys are on the show and they answer a question not truthfully, and I know it's not the truth. Because I already know what's in your head. I know you have a plan for this lady, right here, so let's tell her what hat is.

WHITFIELD: And they're often squirming. You can hear it.

HARVEY: Oh, swallowing.

WHITFIELD: Yes. They're hating that they're there, talking to you.

HARVEY: Yes, because they know. They know I know. Come on, man. I'm 53. You what, 28? You're telling me what?

WHITFIELD: Right.

HARVEY: This guy is telling me what? Are you serious, man? And every guy out there watching is going, oh, man, Steve is giving him up. Because they know I know. Yes, they still know the game. But I still know the game, even if you're 50 the game doesn't change. It's not going to change. They just added texting to it. They just got e- mails and texting now. The game is the same. It never changes.

Boy meets girl, boy likes girl, boy does whatever he can to get the girl. That never changes. That parameter is always going to be there. Women got to understand that. Just because this guy, oh, he texts me all the time. You can press send all and send that to quite a few women.

WHITFIELD: Oh, gosh.

HARVEY: Yes, I hate to tell you that. He texts me all the time. That's nothing. Are you crazy? Do you know how many people I text a day? I love texting it is so-no! You ain't got to explain it. Steve, will you be here at 8:30? No! I ain't got to tell you why.

WHITFIELD: More "Face To Face" with Fredricka and Steve Harvey, the funny man, turned so-called relationship guru, explains why some men cheat.

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FEYERICK: So women the take away on that is the right guy is coming, and stop relinquishing your power.

Now, you must hear what scared a woman so much in her bathroom she called 911. That's on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) FEYERICK: It's time now for a "CNN Equals Politics" update. We're keeping an eye on all the latest headlines at the CNNPolitics.com desk. Here's what's crossing right now.

A judge in Alaska has ruled against Senate Candidate Joe Miller. Miller had asked the court to toss out all misspelled write-in ballots in his race against incumbent and write-in candidate Lisa Murkowski. Election officials are now asking a federal judge to lift the stay so they can certify Senator Murkowski as the official winner.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs predicts the Senate will ratify a new arms control treaty with Russia by the end of the year. Three Senate Republicans declared their support for the treaty yesterday.

For all the latest political news, CNNPolitics.com.

And now we're going to have a little fun.

First of all, who knew Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is a dog lover? Here he is with his dog, Buffy, a very large tan and white puppy. Buffy was a gift to Putin from Bulgaria's prime minister. Where does the name come from? A five-year-old boy won a contest to name Putin's new pooch.

It is a good guess that 911 dispatchers get some pretty strange calls, but I want you to listen to this call that a dispatcher fielded in Edmund, Oklahoma.

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911 OPERATOR: What's going on there, ma'am?

CALLER: I have some kind of an animal in the toilet in my bathroom.

911 OPERATOR: Like, what does it look like?

CALLER: Well, it's gray, that's all I can tell you. I didn't look real good because it scares me to death. I'm sorry.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: And here's what scared her to death, a furry scurrying squirrel. And boy, he is a fast one. He was not going to be taken easily. Police shut the bathroom door, and cornered the furry suspect. He never really had a chance. Listen how police got their critter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OFFICER DEREK KENNEDY, EDMUND, OKLAHOMA: We wrangled up some snake tongs, a small dog kennel, and then we shut the door. And a squirrel jumped out of the toilet and after about five minutes of chasing him and him chasing us, we finally caught him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Police did not have the suspect in custody for long. They took him outside and set him free, hoping he learned his lesson and won't reoffend. I don't know who was more scared the squirrel or the woman.

Coming up in the next hour, it's called getting Urkled, and it's the last thing students want in at Westside Middle School in Memphis. Don Lemon has that story coming up.

Thank you so much for joining us. I'm Deborah Feyerick.

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