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Lingering Snow, Plunging Temps in Ohio; Health Care Mandate Unconstitutional; End of Privacy Through Hidden Cameras; "Time" Magazine Readers' Choice for 2010 Person of the Year; Miley Cyrus Videotaped Smoking Psychedelic Herb; Golden Globe Nominees Unveiled; Violent Protests in Italy

Aired December 14, 2010 - 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: Good morning, guys. Thanks so much.

It's 9:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 6:00 a.m. out West. Here's some of the stories that have us talking this morning.

At any moment, the man behind the WikiLeaks scandal is due in court. Julian Assange, the founder of the whistle-blowing Web site, faces a new bail hearing over alleged sex crimes. Sweden wants him returned to face those charges.

As early as today, the full Senate could approve the controversial plan to extend the Bush era tax cuts. The plan also extends unemployment benefits and cuts the payroll tax. Some House Democrats aren't saying if they'll support it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATIE HOLMES, GOLDEN GLOBE PRESENTER: Best performance by an actor in a supporting role in a series, miniseries or motion picture made for television.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: It's an early morning in Hollywood. Just before dawn local time. The Golden Globes announced their nominations. We'll give you the rundown on some of this year's nominees.

Well, we begin with the official start of winter more than a week away. Just trying tell that, though, to the eastern two thirds of the nation where the mercury is plunging and the records are falling.

From Minneapolis to Miami, temps are as much as 30 degrees below normal, and that's only part of the nation's extreme weather. In northwest Indiana, heavy snow and swirly winds stopped motorists right in their tracks. Two counties there have been declared states of emergency.

The south also getting pounded. This is Mountain City, Tennessee, just outside the window of our iReporter Phillip Mullins. Parts of his state saw as much eight inches of snow.

And in the Pacific Northwest, crews trying to assess the damage from weekend flooding. Rising waters chased hundreds of people from their homes and mudslides shut down roads and rail services.

Our meteorologists are covering all the angles for us. Rob Marciano covered in snow but he's still smiling. He's in Ohio. Jacqui Jeras has the big picture in our extreme weather center.

Jacqui, let's go ahead and begin with the northwest flooding.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it's just been amazing, Kyra. You know, since the weekend, we're talking about 29 landslides which have occurred because of all the rain we've had between two and five inches into the valley areas. As much as 10 inches into the mountains. A little bit of a break as a system moves inland today and more rain can be expected and flood warnings will continue.

The soil is very, very saturated so more of these landslides is a real good probability in the upcoming days.

(WEATHER REPORT)

JERAS: We had a record low this morning of 23 degrees in Jacksonville, Florida. And there are great concerns about the citrus crop. I have a picture to show you from morning in Lake County. This is just outside of the Orlando area and it shows you that -- you know, they'd spray water on top of these things which kind of provide a little bit of an insulation on the oranges and the lemons and the grapefruit in the area.

We're going to have a live report coming up later on this morning, by the way, from some of the citrus growers.

Let's show you temperatures right now. How high are they going to get today? Not very across the east. There you can see it's not going to get above freezing across about the northern two-thirds of the country. That cold air is blowing over the warmer lake waters. And we've had an incredible amount of snow coming in off the lakes, especially to the east of the Cleveland area.

A couple of feet can be expected before all is said and done and we think we'll continue to see some of these snow showers probably at least into Thursday.

That's where we find our own meteorologist, CNN's Rob Marciano. He's in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

And Rob, how much snow are we talking about here?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, just last night they got a foot here and that's on top of what they got last week and other spots across northeast Ohio seeing 19, 20 inches and it's still snowing. We still have a winter storm warning in effect until 7:00 tomorrow morning.

Less lake-effect snow, usually that's a light, fluffy stuff. Nonetheless it's still coming down. The other issue is the bitterly cold temperatures, biting cold. I mean we woke up in Cleveland this morning, walked out the door, and the winds coming off Lake Erie were just howling 40 miles an hour.

Temperatures in the teens. It is dangerously cold air. And even places like here, I mean, this is a little town about 20 miles east- northeast of Cleveland. It's beautiful. I mean they've got the holiday decorations up but even for folks here with the holiday spirit being pretty storm hardened residents, I mean this is too much.

This is pretty much three times the amount of snow that they typically get in the month of December and back to back weeks like this, they're already tired of it and we haven't even hit winter yet.

There are sporadic power outages across parts of the suburbs of Cleveland. In one spot in (INAUDIBLE), they have to boil the water because there's been a number of water mains that have burst because of the bitterly cold temperatures and as you know it's not going to warm up any time too soon. So they could use a break but they're not going to get it for the next 24 hours.

Snow is kind of sporadic. It has shifted a little bit farther to the east but it's a dangerous situation. Traffic is moving. They're pretty good about clearing the streets around here. But regardless of that, when you have to deal with water mains that are breaking, when you have to deal with power that is out because the winds are so -- so bad and we're talking about temperatures that are dangerously cold, it's not a whole lot of fun.

Back to you guys in Atlanta.

PHILLIPS: All right. Jacqui, Rob, thanks so much.

Well, at the top of the hour, we're going to talk to a couple of motorists who were stranded by the lake-effect snow, paralyzing much of the northwest Indiana area. They were bogged down for more than 14 hours. They're going to share their ordeal and all their pictures just about an hour from now.

Also this morning, the future of your health care is being debated. From conference room to water coolers. It comes after a big blow to President Obama's health care reforms. A federal judge in Virginia says it's unconstitutional to force Americans to buy health insurance.

Now earlier on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING" we heard from Virginia's attorney general who brought the challenge to court.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEN CUCCINELLI, VIRGINIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: There's obviously a lot of things to do in the area of health reform. I'm very sympathetic to that but you have to stay within the boundaries of the Constitution and there's no power given to Congress or the president to order you and I and other Americans to buy any product.

And this is never, ever been tried by any Congress before and we think it's because they have all recognized they didn't have the power to do this. And the judge yesterday recommends recognized that they don't have the power to order us to buy a product. In this case, health insurance.

But if they can do it here, they can order us to buy cars, to buy asparagus, to buy gym memberships to use the examples that we talked about in court in our case.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's take a closer look at what this meaning -- this ruling, rather, means to you and for that of course we turn to CNN chief medal correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

It's an interesting back and forth.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, the whole thing was sort of based on -- sort of a bargain between Congress and the insurance companies. This sort of deal, sort to speak.

So insurance companies said, OK, we won't charge higher premiums for people with preexisting conditions. We'll give them health care insurance. We'll let young adults stay on the parent's plan until the age of 26. These various provisions. But the whole was predicated on the fact that more people would buy insurance. This mandate sort to speak.

Got a lot of people out there who are -- the young invincible, so to speak. They -- they're young and healthy and a lot of them don't carry health care insurance because they don't they need it. That's the exact kind of patient or customer the insurance companies want because that's who provides money for the insurance to defray the costs of taking care of sick patients.

So that was sort of the bargain back and forth between Congress and insurance companies. So if the mandate is not in place and you can't penalize people for not buying health care insurance, it really puts this thing in a little bit of jeopardy.

PHILLIPS: Which -- you know, what does that mean for the folks that are counting on this benefit?

GUPTA: Well, you know there's a couple of things. A lot of what's happening here doesn't roll out until 2014. This was sort of -- sort of geared to take out over many years. A few things have already taken place. For example, young adults can stay on their parent's insurance until age 26.

There was always that gray area, Kyra. Finish with college, haven't gotten their first job yet. You know those four, five years can be tough. So --

PHILLIPS: And now in a tough economy --

GUPTA: Right.

PHILLIPS: You know, it's kind of -- it's lasting a little longer.

GUPTA: You may need those few years to find a job -- PHILLIPS: Right.

GUPTA: -- that give your health care insurance. So 26. Children cannot be discriminated against based on preexisting conditions. So if a child is born, has some sort of medical problem, getting health care insurance can be a very frightening burden for parents. And that doesn't exist.

But the other stuff -- the public option, people right now who say I have had some sort of preexisting problem, I can't get health care insurance -- they were banking on this. People who a job who think, you know, maybe I want to start my own business and buy my health insurance through the public option, they might be paying attention today, as well, because this puts it in jeopardy.

This is just one thing. There have been two rulings that have gone the opposite direction, and this is a state court. As you said, it's likely to go to the Supreme Court before this is actually finally said and done.

PHILLIPS: Yes. It's going to be a long time until we finally get some answers.

GUPTA: That's right.

PHILLIPS: We'll keep talking about it. That's for sure.

GUPTA: All right. Yes.

PHILLIPS: Sanjay, thanks so much.

GUPTA: Thanks, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. And Washington is remembering diplomat Richard Holbrooke whose efforts helped end the Bosnian war in the 1990s. Holbrooke died last night. He had surgery over the weekend to repair damage to his aorta.

The top U.S. envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan was 69 years old. President Obama called Holbrooke, quote, "A true giant of American foreign policy who has made America stronger, safer and more respected. He was a truly unique figure who will be remembered for his tireless diplomacy, love of his country and pursuit of peace."

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued a statement saying, "America has lost one of its fiercest champions and most dedicated public servants. He was one of a kind, a true statesman, and that makes his passing all the more painful."

CNN analyst David Gergen, adviser during four White House administrations, remembered Holbrooke as a tough negotiator.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: He was very tough. President Obama said at the State Department he was one tough son of a gun. And that's exactly right.

He was a man that if you're a president and you had to face somebody who is a criminal or one of the -- really bad guys out there, you call for Dick Holbrooke. That was especially true of the Clintons, both Hillary and Bill Clinton loved Dick Holbrooke. Both of them groomed him to be secretary of state and it was -- some people thought he would have won -- should have won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in Bosnia, and that was the Dayton Peace Accords.

Other people thought he should have been secretary of state. He never got there but he was still willing to go out and do these really messy jobs.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Holbrooke was a diplomat to the end. A senior administration official says that before going into surgery Holbrooke told his Pakistani surgeon, quote, "You've got to stop this war in Afghanistan."

So who's been the biggest newsmaker of the year? Tomorrow we find out who will the don the cover of "TIME" magazine's Person of the Year issue? But their readers, well, they've already spoken and next, I'll tell you, well, who they chose and not everyone is going to be thrilled by the choice.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Dodging fate and a date with the slaughterhouse. From San Antonio, a reluctant bull tops our look "Across Country" this morning.

Check out the showdown. Late last week near a local meat packing company, which is probably the big reason why the bull would not go quietly. It took them more than an hour to corral the big fella.

To West Lafayette, Indiana now, lots of people could use this today. A robotic snow blower. Snow-bot is the brain child of a few Purdue University students. Prototype cost about $6,000 to build and still has a few kinks to work out like snow-clogged wheels.

Last stop, Simi Valley, California, where a new stamp of the nation's (INAUDIBLE) president was unveiled by the U.S. Postal Service yesterday appropriately enough at the Reagan -- Ronald Reagan Library with his widow former First Lady Nancy attending. The stamp goes on sale in February.

Now to the end of privacy. Our series about all the ways that personal details turn up in the public domain. Today's topic, cameras. You're under watch more often than you know but you probably didn't know that.

CNN's Josh Levs shows us the way to shut down those prying eyes. I thought there wasn't a way to do that, Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I'm going to surprise you. Look. We all hear stories about hidden cameras that can be disguised as all sorts of things, but what few people realize is that you can actually hold a device in your hand that will show you if there is one of them near you. I visited a spy shop. Check it out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEVS (voice-over): They look like everyday objects. A lamp, a clock radio, an iPod docking station. But when you look closer, they have hidden cameras inside. Tiny, unnoticeable.

BRIAN CURRY, PEACH STATE INVESTIGATIONS: The camera lens is right here, and it's usually pointing up.

LEVS (on camera): And I have no idea that there's a camera there. There's nothing about this that suggests anything is videoing me.

LEVS (voice-over): They can provide an extra layer of security.

CURRY: The ones that tell me what they're doing with their cameras are going to be the people wanting to either keep an eye on their sitter, their nanny.

LEVS: And we've all seen how hidden cameras can help the good guys in movies like "Mission Impossible."

JACK HARMON, "MISSION IMPOSSIBLE": There's a camera built right into the bridge. Whatever you see, it sees, and then it transmits it back here.

LEVS (voice-over): But some end up with there shouldn't be.

CURRY: I recently heard one, that the guy had a pin camera that he got that's -- I guess it was motion-activated, and he set it up in a gym bag and took it in, I think maybe the YMCA or something.

LEVS (voice-over): They're relatively affordable. These cost a few hundred bucks, and technology is making smaller and more sophisticated ones all the time. Some even broadcast their video wirelessly over the internet.

So, how can you tell if there's a hidden camera where you are? Technology can help with that, too.

CURRY: This is actually a low-cost camera finder.

LEVS (voice-over): Private investigator Brian Curry runs a spy shop near Atlanta. He sells the cameras, but he also helps people watch out for them.

LEVS (on camera): I'm seeing a big, bright red blinking dot right there. And it's telling me there's a camera on me.

LEVS (voice-over): Some more sophisticated detectors can even seek out wireless camera signals.

CURRY: You can see it's actually scanning the frequencies in the --

LEVS (on camera): So, what we're seeing here, it's picking up all these -- lots of different cameras in here?

CURRY: Well, yes, it's pulling up -- that's going to be the flower pot camera that we had on.

LEVS (voice-over): It's technology versus technology, potentially giving people the tools to invade your privacy, but also giving you a chance to catch them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEVS: It is pretty amazing. You hold one of those things in your hand. There's different ways it can work. It can beep if there's a camera near you, it can vibrate if there's a camera near you, and then you can just look through it and see. And also, the more sophisticated ones can actually show you a screen of exactly what those hidden cameras are picking up.

I've got a lot more information for you about them posted at my pages at Facebook and Twitter, and we're having a conversation about it -- I'm @JoshLevsCNN -- about your concerns about the End of Privacy, what you want to know.

So Kyra, I'll tell you, while technology is taking away privacy in far too many ways, it is also giving people ways to empower themselves and try to get some of that privacy back.

PHILLIPS: Got it. All right. Josh, thanks so much.

LEVS: You got it.

PHILLIPS: Well, there are people who influence your life every day, family, your friends, maybe that chatty co-worker. But some people have an affect globally. "Time" Magazine names these global influencers as Person of the Year. You may remember Ghandi in 1930. Martin Luther King in 1963. Queen Elizabeth II, 1952. But not all Persons of the Year were heroes. Joseph Stalin was on "Time's" cover in 1942. And in 1938, Person of the Year was Adolph Hitler.

Tomorrow, "Time" picks someone for 2010, but their readers have already spoken. They are just polled prior to the picture and name that we'll see on "Time's" cover as Person of the Year. So, what does the online poll say? The readers' pick is Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks provocateur, who this morning, is appearing in a British courtroom after being charged with rape. So, who do you think "Time" should pick as person of the year? Head to our blog, cnn.com/kyra, and tell us what you think. We'll read your responses a little later in the newscast.

So, would you say "The Social Network" was the best pick of the year? Maybe the foreign critics agreed. They just came out with this year's list of Golden Globe nominees. Stick around to see who made the short list.

(MUSIC - "Fame," David Bowie)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Well, teen star Miley Cyrus making headlines recently and, of course, late-night comics jumped on the opportunity to joke about it. Here's Jay Leno.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY LENO, NBC HOST, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO": You heard about this? Apparently there's a video of Miley -- apparently? I saw it. A video of Miley Cyrus smoking what she -- a psychedelic herb. Salvia. That's what -- salvia. Although Miley says it wasn't her, it was her alter-ego Hannah Bong-tana. I believe it was Hannah Bong-tana smoking, not her.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: All kidding aside, next hour we do have a serious discussion ahead with you for -- with an addiction specialist on the pitfalls of salvia use, so join us for that in the 10:00 hour.

Now, the Golden Globes are often called the litmus test to the Oscars. They are the best performance of the year according to foreign critics, and we just learned the nominees for 2010. "Showbiz Tonight's" Kareen Wynter in Los Angeles with the results. It was an early morning for her. Any surprises, Kareen?

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Oh, there are always surprises on this exciting, exciting day. Because as you mentioned, the Golden Globes, huge, huge, huge deal because it kind of sets up -- not only kicks off award show season, but it sets up -- it gives you an idea of what the Oscar race may be like.

But let's get to those exciting categories. The big one, let's start with Best Motion Picture Drama category. "The King Speech," believe it or not, that actually garnered the most nominations this morning, seven nominations. Kyra, that's a small, independent film. It's highly regarded. It stars Collin Firth, and he plays King George VI, and he's really, really considered a big favorite this award season, so it garnered the most nominations, seven.

Also, "Black Swan" made the list. "The Fighter," "Inception," and "The Social Network," a film that you perhaps have already seen, Kyra. Six nominations. Big, big film.

Also, in the Best Motion Picture Comedy category, "Alice in Wonderland." Johnny Depp did really well this morning. He's up against himself. Not only did his film "Alice and Wonderland" get a nomination, but also "The Tourist," where he stars opposite Angelina Jolie.

Some other films in that category, "Burlesque," starring Cher and Christina Aguilera. "The Kids Are All Right," as well as "Red."

Let me talk a little bit about "Red." That was a bit of a surprise. It stands for "Retired, Extremely Dangerous." Not a lot of people may have either heard of that film or have seen the movie, so why is it in the category? Well, the Golden Globes, they love, love a great cast, right? They love a big party. That's what it's all about. And listen to the players in this movie. Helen Mirren, Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman. So, a little bit of surprise right there, as well. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: Always a little bit of surprise. Did you have a favorite, by the way?

WYNTER: I loved "The Social Network." "Black Swan" has to be right up there. I interviewed Natalie Portman recently, saw the movie. It's about this ballerina, it's a thriller, so I love that thriller --

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: I heard it was really dark, though. Kind of depressing and dark.

WYNTER: Very dark. Yes, you kind of have to prepare yourself for that one. But it's beautifully, beautifully directed. And again, Natalie Portman, such a talent.

PHILLIPS: All right, now, what about TV? What are the big picks?

WYNTER: Oh, all right. So "Glee," no surprise there. Come on.

PHILLIPS: Of course. Yes, we knew that.

WYNTER: You know? And they're still riding that momentum from the Emmy awards this year. They did so well. So, they had the most nominations, five, as well as "The Big Bang Theory," "The big C." "30 Rock," another big favorite, and "Modern Family."

And for Best TV Series Drama, "Boardwalk Empire" made the cut, "Dexter," "The Good Wife," "Mad Men," and "Walking Dead."

And something I just wanted to touch on briefly in the TV Drama category. We're really seeing a tip in power here between cable TV and network TV. Traditionally, TV shows were the ones that made that cut on the broadcast end. But if you take a look at that category, the only one, really, from that TV side, from that broadcast side, is "The Good Wife," which airs on CBS. The rest are from cable TV shows. So, that could be a new trend that we're seeing perhaps, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll keep tracking it with you. Thanks, Kareen.

WYNTER: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Well, as Congress fights over the current tax legislation, two million people wait to find out if their unemployment benefits are about to run out. More than 15 million are jobless in this country. And that's got a devastating impact on our economy. But what sort of affect does unemployment have on the unemployed? We're going to take a look at that next. (MUSIC - "Baby It's Cold Outside")

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

PHILLIPS: It's 9:30 on the East Coast, 6:30 out west. Here's a look at some other stories that have us talking this morning.

American diplomat Richard Holbrooke, special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan died yesterday after surgery to repair a tear in his aorta. Holbrooke was the chief architect of the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords which ended the violence in the Balkans. President Obama called Holbrooke a true giant of American foreign policy.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange back in a London courtroom. He's attempting to get released on bail. He was denied bail in a court appearance earlier this month. Assange is wanted for alleged sex crimes in Sweden.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: It's been a cold and restless night for a lot of farmers in Florida with those plummeting temperatures. Much of the state's citrus industry is literally hanging in the balance. In fact, Florida's governor preemptively declared a state of emergency proceeding this latest cold snap.

We want to turn to our CNN affiliate WFTV reporter Steve Barrett, live in Lake County, Florida. Steve, we saw you on the early morning feeds and we couldn't believe -- the way the crops look behind you. Give us a show and tell.

There's actual ice on the leaves there? Is that right?

STEVE BARRETT, WFTV REPORTER: Absolutely. You can see it right behind me. Look at the citrus trees here in Florida look like. Sunny Florida right here covered in ice. In just a second here, I'm going to tell you how this is helpful. But we'll have Phillip here give us a look right down the aisle here.

This is 350 acres of groves. It's called the Showcase of Citrus and what a showcase it is. It's like a winter wonderland this morning. But this is all done with irrigation. If we can walk over here, I can show you, they actually have these tiny little irrigation sprayers still working right now. They're going to be on all day for most of the day here and what they does is puts the water on the tree. It creates the ice. Then the ice creates a barrier to the cold, believe it or not. The more ice you have got on it, the better off the citrus is.

So, overnight they watched it very closely. And I'm going to give you a little demonstration of how exactly they figure out whether it's frozen. Take a knife. Stab it in there and then you cut a hole in the citrus, nice and deep, and what you can see there is that you got grapefruit. That's just grapefruit. It's not ice. No ice in there. So it actually worked.

Overnight it wasn't a problem. It didn't get cold enough long enough here to freeze this. So that's very good news. This is a $9 billion industry here, so, you know, people can't understand why at 20- something degrees this would be a state of emergency. But this cannot only kill the fruit, it can get into the wood itself and the trees and it can affect the crop output here for years to come. It can kill the whole tree if not make it just go dormant for several years. So it's a real problem.

But, I'll tell you this. Once this gets really cold, almost frozen, it's about as good as it gets for a Florida grapefruit. It tastes fantastic. Almost frozen, but not quite. Right off the tree -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Wow, Steve, it's deceiving because when you first saw the video this morning, we thought, oh my gosh, the cold weather and the ice is actually hurting the crops but it's a protective measure.

So what are farmers telling you? Do you think that they were able to protect the crops in time and we're still going to get our citrus?

BARRETT: Well, here's -- it's kind of a double-edged sword here. They protected the crops tonight. But this is very early. I've been in Florida for 20 years and this is a very early freeze. And often what this means is there are a lot more freezes to come. So while they dodged the bullet tonight, that may not be the case on another night.

The estimate is that if you get to 28 degrees or lower, for more than four hours, you're going to have a significant problem with your trees and with your crop. That didn't happen tonight but being that this is only the middle of December, you know, we're not even into winter yet. This could be a very, very difficult year. And we already had a couple of freezes in 2010 already back in January.

So these guys are really still scared even though right now they're sort of breathing a sigh of relief for the moment.

PHILLIPS: Yes. And I'm curious. Before I let you go, Steve, you have been there for a number of years and we're lucky to have a relationship with the affiliate so we can actually get a firsthand look of what you are dealing with because it affects all of us.

Have you ever experienced temps like this? This is extremely unusual for Florida.

BARRETT: Well, I'll tell you. Last year, earlier, January, it was extremely unusual, it lasted like four days. This is the second time in a week that we've had threatening weather that went down into the freezing level. But we're still not getting down into those low 20s.

The grove that we're at right now is one of the northern most groves. There aren't a lot of groves like this in this area of Florida. There are a few up north up of here. We're still waiting to find out how they fared in all this. It might not be good. But to answer your question, no, I don't recall this early there being a freeze and having consecutive years of freezing. Usually we go several years without a freeze at all here in Florida in the citrus area of Florida. Here we've got two consecutive years. It looks like it might only get worse from here. This could actually be one of the worst years I've experienced here.

PHILLIPS: Wow. Well, Steve Barrett with WFTV, we sure appreciate you reporting for us.

And keep us updated, Steve, please, as you get more information. We'd love to talk to you again.

BARRETT: We will.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Steve.

The Senate could see a final vote on the tax legislation today. Then the House gets it and that could be a real fight.

Meanwhile, two million jobless Americans holding their breath this week. They're waiting to hear if Congress will re-up their benefits for 13 more months. More than 15 million people are out of work in this country.

"AMERICAN MORNING's" John Roberts and Kiran Chetry actually spoke with Fortune.com's Daniel Roth about how high unemployment has an impact on the unemployed.

And that brings us to our AM Extra.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANIEL ROTH, FORVES.COM: The principle is that you remember what it's like to be in the work force, you know how to network, you know the people that you know, and you're constantly in touch with them.

If you're out of work for a few months, a few weeks, you're still calling people, you're still in the habit of going to work. That habit erodes after a little while and your connections erode and your connections to technology start eroding.

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR, "AMERICAN MORNING": Perishable skills, basically?

ROTH: Absolutely. And the longer the tread of work, the tougher it is for employers -- employers start thinking, this person's been out of work for a while. Why would I bring this person in? Their skills are rusty. They don't know how to use modern systems, they don't know all the people they're supposed to know. Why don't I move this person internally? Why don't I hire this person who just left his job?

Or, a lot of employers say I poach now and start to take people from other companies. Would I rather have someone who is still working somewhere else? Their employer kept them on even in these tough times. They must be really good. (END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: We've been waiting for RNC chair Michael Steele to make a decision about the next move. Well, now he has. And he's running again.

As we take you to break, Cleveland, Ohio, live pictures, 16 degrees right now with a high of 20. They can look forward to snow tonight, as well.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, the president and members of Congress may have to change their holiday travel plans. Our senior political editor Mark Preston working the story for us at the CNNPolitics.com desk.

Hey, mark.

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Hey, Kyra. Good morning.

Yes, you know, President Obama was supposed to head out to Hawaii, on Saturday, and Congress is supposed to wrap up on Saturday. But with so much still left on the agenda unfinished, including the Bush-era tax cuts, will they be extended? And, of course, all of these other votes that the administration would like to see happen, such as, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," and the START nuclear treaty, looks like that's going to slip.

Yesterday, during the White House briefing, Robert Gibbs suggested that it won't happen on Saturday, meaning, we'll see these lawmakers in town for a few more days. And I literally got off the phone with a senior aide on Capitol Hill that said, look, expect for it to slip into next week. So Congress will not be heading home it looks like, this weekend, Kyra.

You know, a lot has been said about Ronald Reagan and a lot has commemorated him. Just, you know, his 100th birthday is in February. Well, he has not has his third postal stamp has been issued to honor him. It was unveiled yesterday. And in fact, the former first lady Nancy Reagan was there during the unveiling. This is going to be one of those forever stamps. So it's not one of the limited issue stamps to honor the late president -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And then the suspense finally over Michael Steele. Michael Steele finally making a decision, right?

PRESTON: Yes. Well, it looks like he is now going to run for a second term as head of the Republican National Committee. You know, he had been mum for about a month now, really hadn't given us any indication which way he was going to go. In fact, yesterday there were reports that he was not going to run and then there were reports that he was going to run.

Well, last night, he put that all to a rest. He is now going to run in a conference call with RNC members. He acknowledged, Kyra, that he's -- you know had some stumbles but he said he's always been forthright as the head of the party. He also said that the RNC deserves credit for some of the big electoral gains the Republican made.

So we will see that election take place in January and he'll have some competition. So other people -- Kyra are looking to run against him -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Got it, Mark thanks so much.

We'll have your next political update in just about an hour. And a reminder for all the latest political news just go to our Web site CNNPolitics.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Mexico's ongoing drug war has doctors on the border saying "no mas".

Juarez is our first stop this morning in our "Morning Passport". Thousands of doctors put down their stethoscopes yesterday to protest the growing violence that they say is increasingly targeting them. They demanded the Mexican government do more to stop the killings in their city.

Next stop, Chernobyl, Ukraine; the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster. How would you like to vacation there? Next week, government officials will lay out their plan to reopen the restricted zone around the burned-out power plant that exploded in 1986. In case that you plan to visit, be forewarned, the background radiation levels there still well above normal.

Last but not least, St. Petersburg, Russia, where Prime Minister Vladimir Putin does his best -- are you ready for this -- Fats Domino impersonation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(RUSSIAN PRIME MINISTER VLADIMIR PUTIN PERFORMING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Ok. Well, the multi-talented Putin also tickled the ivories a bit. The event was a fundraiser for cancer research.

All right, we're following lots of developments in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM. Let's start with our Stephanie Elam. Hey, Steph.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN NEWS BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hey there. Well, we are taking a look at the workforce and women. Because it turns out women are getting stuck, females are getting MBAs and higher levels of education. Well, most don't make it to top of the corporate ladder.

Kyra, we'll take a look at the gender gap coming up next hour.

PHILLIPS: All right, Steph thanks so much.

We're also looking at the controversy surrounding video of Miley Cyrus partying with a bong.

And also ahead, Hugh Jackman was "People" magazine's Sexiest Man Alive in 2008, but he wasn't feeling so hot after a stunt that he performed. Yes, it didn't go so well.

All right, we want to get to a developing story out of Italy right now. Protesters have taken to the streets after Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi eked his way past no confidence votes, apparently at the last minute. One lawmaker thought to be against him changed her mind.

CNN's Dan Rivers live in Rome. Dan, walk us through what happened. And then let's also bring our viewers up to speed about why this guy has so many enemies right now.

DAN RIVERS, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this was a no confidence vote that had been provoked after one of his coalition allies defected and took a bunch of politicians with him prompting this no confidence vote.

Silvio Berlusconi has been embroiled in scandal after scandal here in Italy, all of which he has tried to shot off or deny. But the allegations just keep coming involving sex parties with underage girls, involving alleged corruption, involving court cases. It's just been one thing after another.

This finally was seen to be a big showdown for him and he narrowly got through this vote by just two votes. There were two votes in it and so he survives as Prime Minister.

But there has been a very angry reaction on the streets of Rome. We got caught up in it ourselves. There was tear gas being fired by the police at protestors who are responding with volleys of bottles and bricks and missiles and fires being lit in the streets.

This is all happening on one of the main shopping streets in Rome, Via Del Caso (ph) , just down from the Spanish steps. So right in the heart of the up market shops in the shopping districts of Rome and descended into, really, a full scale riot.

PHILLIPS: And -- and let's, you know, let's not forget how frustrated Italians have been with the debt, with the bad economy. And we're talking about these individuals being led by a prime minister who has been mired in a number of investigations into corrupt business dealings, profiting himself while others folks there in Italy are struggling just to get by day-to-day.

RIVERS: Yes. And I think that's what's really enflamed attention here. I mean, you know, these are all things that Silvio Berlusconi is -- is clearly, you know fighting and denying, but nevertheless, just as I say, it's been scandal after scandal here as the economy is in a dire stage.

I mean, the level of debt that Italy has is bigger than Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Greece combined. So it is -- there are massive structural issues with the economy here and all of this happening against a background of austerity cuts and so and so. So I think there is a fairly large chunk of citizens here who are very angry with Berlusconi, seeming to be lining his own pockets while the economy suffers, something he denies.

But he's still, ahead in the polls, amazingly, but despite all of this scandals, his -- his party is -- is still ahead in the polls, not enough to lead outright, but enough to -- to get a coalition of other parties together to lead.

So he survived this confidence vote. The second one in three months, he limps on as Prime Minister as the streets of Rome continue to be choked with tear gas and protestors.

PHILLIPS: All right, our Dan Rivers. We will stay in contact with you as this story continues to develop. Dan, thanks so much.

A quick break from CNN NEWSROOM. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: You're going to have a graphic and everything for this, huh?

PHILLIPS: Give me some electric slide.

HARRIS: Is that what we've got going.

PHILLIPS: Give me some electric slide.

HARRIS: If you'll do it with me.

PHILLIPS: Heck no.

HARRIS: I want to see you do the electric slide right now.

PHILLIPS: Yes, pregnant with twins and electric slide. I'll do the electric slide on my big butt is what I would do. Hi, Tony.

HARRIS: How are you doing? Good to see you, Kyra.

(CROSSTALK)

HARRIS: So we changed it up a little bit.

PHILLIPS: Yes. You like the couch. You look uncomfortable.

HARRIS: Well, I'm a tall guy. I have my knees up to my chin.

PHILLIPS: All right. Then why don't you sit back. There you go.

HARRIS: Is that better?

PHILLIPS: There you go. Yes, I got it -- your blue socks don't match, by the way.

HARRIS: What do you mean they don't match? They don't? Now I have unmatched socks? Are you kidding me?

PHILLIPS: It works on TV. You can't tell that they're dark blue.

HARRIS: There you go.

And it's just like on television, folks think I don't have any hair, but I have a lot of hair, right Kyra?

PHILLIPS: Yes, you've got lots of hair. And you've got some exciting Monday night football.

HARRIS: Yes. Did you watch a little bit of this last night?

PHILLIPS: I did not.

(CROSSTALK)

I know you have to crash. Take a look at this. The play of the game. There were a couple -- this was a great game. Within overtime probably for Ravens fans it was nerve-racking because the Ravens were in control of this game until the fourth quarter. But this is David Reed, young guy, KA rookie. First year in the lead and he breaks off a big one, David Reed to the house, 103 yards.

And then ready for the big PlayStation exbots finished, there you go. And the raiders really control this game. But you get a furious comeback in the fourth quarter. Matt Schabb plays terrific ball for about 10:15 minutes in this game. And he brings his team, the Texans all the way back. Andre Johnson is terrific football while see the Florida Texans.

They came all the way back in this game. It's hi, I've got it to overtime and then -- are you ready -- (INAUDIBLE) Ballgame over, Ravens win. Now the David Reed returned for a touchdown; 103 yards an all-time record for the Ravens. It's not the one that Ravens fans will remember. There was huge (INAUDIBLE) return in the Super Bowl 2000. Germain Lewis, the blast from the past -- one of my son's favorite player.

PHILLIPS: They're going back more than a decade.

HARRIS: Yes, my son's favorite player as he was growing up.

100 hard -- no, not that, not quite that long but it was a big return in the Super Bowell when the Ravens from 2000 beat the joints. I mention that because I was there. And it was terrific.

PHILLIPS: Now there's Brett Favre out.

HARRIS: How about that? What do we do without Brett Favre?

PHILLIPS: And it wasn't for texting his girlfriend?

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: I had to go there. HARRIS: Oh, my, do we have a ruler yet -- do we have a rule yet?

PHILLIPS: I had to go there.

HARRIS: That could potentially get really ugly, no pun intended.

So here we go. 297 games, the consecutive game streak ends last night in Detroit. Brett Favre can't play because he's got a busted up arm and shoulder. He's hurt. He's just hurt and he can't play.

PHILLIPS: Well, that's what happens when you get old. What is he now? He's 40.

HARRIS: He's 41, right. And so the streak comes to an end. He goes on the inactive list. Essentially, that ends his professional career, 297 games. And what does he do? He is now selling footballs, commemorative footballs, memorabilia with the stats, 297 games.

You know he started playing in '92 in the George H.W. Bush administration.

PHILLIPS: Way back when.

HARRIS: Way back when.

(CROSSTALK)