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Bitter Cold Grips Eastern U.S.; CNN Launches iPad App; Showdown Over Tax Cut Deal; 'The Big Play'; Joe Miller Refuses to Concede in Alaska; Holder and Sibelius Fire Back at Judge Hudson with Op-Ed Piece in the 'Post'; Assange Cleared to Leave Jail Once Bail is Posted

Aired December 14, 2010 - 11:01   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone.

We are tracking several stories developing right now.

At the White House, President Obama is meeting his national security team on Afghanistan and Pakistan. The meeting comes two days before the administration releases its review of Afghanistan policy.

Just about a half hour ago, a judge granted bail to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Assange turned himself into authorities in London last week. He is wanted in Sweden on sex crimes allegations. The Swedish warrant is not related to the release of confidential documents.

And the misery after the storm. Live pictures from Buffalo. Are you kidding me? We're talking about whiteout conditions. I can't see a thing.

Well, certainly our friends in Buffalo, New York, are weathering this, living this experience right now, whiteout conditions. The storm system is now in Canada, we understand, but parts of the U.S. are still feeling the effects.

Rain, snow and frigid temperatures. The eastern half of the nation is shivering under a blast of arctic air right now. The storm that pounded parts of this country is bringing snow and icy winds to Canada right now. This was the scene in Ontario yesterday, as cars tried to navigate snow-covered roads.

The iReport you're about to see is from Mountain City, Tennessee. Pretty to look at, but miserable if you have to get out in the snow and the cold to go about your day.

And in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, near Cleveland, Main Street is blanketed by snow. Our meteorologist Rob Marciano is there in Chagrin Falls.

And Rob, there are a couple of snow belts, as you know, in northeast Ohio. You've got the one, Chardon, Ashtabula, that way. And you are in the other one, my friend, in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Which is just to the east of Cleveland. So you go about, I don't know, 15, maybe 20 miles east of Cleveland, about the same distance away from the lake. And this is on the western edge of the snow that's been falling the heaviest over the past couple of days. Still falling now.

We are in the big freeze, as well. That's the other issue, is the bitterly, bitterly cold air.

For two weeks now in a row, they've gotten slammed with heavy snow and bitter cold air. And it's done a number of things.

I mean, they do a pretty good job of getting this snow off the roadways. But it's been so cold, that they've had some water mains that have busted. Obviously, that will flood the roads. And with temperatures in the teens, that will freeze up on the roads.

Even a couple of suburbs south of Cleveland have to boil their water because of those water main breaks. Also, some suburbs, because of the winds, have had some power knocked out.

So this has caused a number of headaches, that's for sure. And just to give you an idea of how dangerous this last couple of weeks have been, there's been some dramatic dashboard camera video coming in to the CNN newsroom out of the Cincinnati Police Department. I want you to take a look at this.

The end of this story is better than what it looks to be here, where a police officer had helped somebody on the side of the road, and then another car came and slid out of control, and pinned that police officer against the barrier there. They both were hospitalized, but now they're OK. So that's the good news end of that story.

But dangerously cold temperatures when we woke up in Cleveland this morning, Tony. And the winds off the lake were blowing 40 miles an hour. Temperatures in the teens. It looked like a hurricane, but once you steps outside, boy, it was a lot colder than that.

Over 200 closures with businesses, schools, and other organizations today for the second day in a row. So they're really in the grips of this.

And, you know, it's a beautiful spot. Look at this big old tree behind me, decorated nicely in Christmas lights, kind of a Norman Rockwell type of small town with about 4,000 people that live here. So they're doing the best they can to try to keep that holiday spirit, but even the heartiest of northeastern Ohioans are saying, you know what? This is probably a little too much, a little too quickly -- Tony.

HARRIS: And Rob, I've got to tell you, I spent nine years there in northeast Ohio, right there along Lake Erie in Euclid, Ohio, and other cities there in Cleveland. And you're right, when that wind gets to whipping off Lake Erie, it is -- oh, man, it just rips your heart out.

So, stay warm, my friend. Stay warm.

Let's get the latest on the bitter cold that is gripping the eastern United States right now.

(WEATHER REPORT) (NEWSBREAK)

HARRIS: Hot online this morning, CNN launches its iPad app.

Where is Derek Dodge? There he is.

Derek, give us a quick little show and tell, if you would, please, sir.

DEREK DODGE, CNN DIGITAL PRODUCER: Well, Tony, if you're an iPad user like me, and you like CNN, the first thing you did this morning was download the CNN iPad app. The wait is finally over.

The first thing you noticed when you downloaded it, look how stunning the images are. This is the broad sheet view, so it's an amazingly beautiful way to explore the news.

You have all these thumbnail images. But say you don't want to broad sheet view. We have three different ways for you to explore CNN on the iPad app.

You can do the broad sheet, what I'm showing you now. Maybe you just want some quick headlines. But check this out. This is a beautiful way to just sort of sit back and flip through the news. This is the slideshow view.

But there's more. OK?

We have two versions. This is the version in the United States, which we're on right now. But if you want to toggle and flip over to the international version, you can do that as well.

It doesn't matter where you are. You can get either the United States or international. The video on here is beautiful. OK?

You can also get live video, which is what I watched this morning. I watched the Golden Globes announcement live on the iPad. And it's available today. It is free. Go to CNN.com/ipad, and you can find out all the details.

And you're in the CNN NEWSROOM. Come right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: The final Senate vote on a deal to extend the Bush tax cuts could come as early as today. Yesterday, the deal between President Obama and Republican leaders cleared a hurdle in the Senate -- a big hurdle, too. Lawmakers voted 83-15 to end debate, but the big challenge will come from House Democrats.

Our senior congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, live from Capitol Hill now with the latest.

And Dana, first of all, good to see you.

Give us a bit more if you would on the bipartisan vote yesterday in the Senate.

DANA BASH, CNN SR. CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wasn't that an unbelievably stunning number? Eighty-three senators voted for it, even some Democrats that we got earfuls from, Tony --

HARRIS: Yes.

BASH: -- in the hallway last week about this deal. But many of them, most of them, decided to go ahead, at least with this test vote.

The question is going to be what the final vote will look like, probably something similar to this. We can't promise it will be exactly like this, but even if they lose a couple, they're still well within the margin. As you said, probably we'll see a final vote today.

What we're waiting for in the Senate is whether or not the Democratic and Republican leader who are working together on this will allow amendments. There are some Republican senators who want to put up amendments, for example, to pay for the unemployment benefits which runs almost $60 billion.

So those are the kinds of things that we're going to see. Those amendments, we're told, are not likely to pass, even if they do come to the Senate floor.

HARRIS: You know, Dana, given all the back-and-forth over this, I'm wondering, could we actually maybe get 90 Senate votes on this today?

BASH: I'm guessing that it probably won't be much higher than the 83 mark. But you know what? You never know -- Tony.

HARRIS: Yes. OK.

So, if you would, remind us again of what's in this bill that the Senate will vote on today. What's in it for Americans?

BASH: Well, first of all, the most important thing is that if Congress doesn't act, almost everybody's taxes will go up, because the Bush-era tax cuts will expire at the end of this month. So, in a couple of weeks.

But this bill extends for all income levels? That was the controversial thing that the president and Democrats conceded on. It also will extend unemployment benefits for 13 months, which is what Democrats got.

But one of the things that is most controversial and something to look ahead to in the House, Tony, is the estate tax. That provision is something that has really angered Democrats.

And I want to put up -- there you see a graphic. What is in the package is, it exempts states for individuals up to $5 million, and it sets the top tax rate at 35 percent. What many Democrats want and prefer is something less generous to wealthy Americans -- exempt estates for individuals up to $3.5 million, with a top tax rate of 45 percent.

Looking ahead to the House, what we have been told from several Democratic sources is that if they do go ahead and take up this bill, which we're told is likely despite the revolt last week, that they are likely to offer an amendment to change that estate tax provision. That would be a pretty significant change, one that would anger Republicans, particularly in the Senate.

So if they were able to pass that, it would probably kind of go back and forth again and maybe delay final passage a little bit. But that is something to look for in terms of a significant change that House Democrats will try to get.

HARRIS: Boy, it seems awfully quiet around you, Dana. Let's see if we can stir up some activity or something.

All right. Our senior congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, for us.

Thank you, Dana.

Brett Favre's glorious run is done, and so is his season. "On the Flip Side's" Aubrey Aquino -- where is she? There she is, teaming up with me next for your sports fix.

We're back in a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Aubrey, good morning.

AUBREY AQUINO,: Good morning.

HARRIS: We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK. After starting the season looking rather soft, dare I say -- yikes -- the Miami Heat are starting to really sizzle now with the so-called big three really lighting the fuse. They're playing great ball right now.

Aubrey Aquino joining me from Miami.

Aubrey, it's good to see you. So, the team has won nine straight games by double digits. Are people -- are the fans in Miami starting to show up at game time?

AQUINO: Well, good morning, Tony. It's great to see you.

And, you know, I was at the game last night.

HARRIS: Nice.

AQUINO: And I am happy to report that the fans were showing up. You know, it's one of those things where the Heat had a whole initiative, to fan up. And they're showing up, and it was packed last night.

HARRIS: Can I have you do me a favor here? We've got some tremendous video from this game last night against the Hornets.

This is third quarter action. We're teeing up the play now. This is LeBron James. We're going to see it in a second.

Will you describe what happens here? And the video will match you at some point.

AQUINO: OK. Well, you know, it was late in the third, the shot clock winding down. And LeBron cuts to the base line and does this turn- away, fade-away shot, and it just goes from behind the backboard, and it's all net. And who does that? Well, LeBron James does that.

HARRIS: LeBron James does that.

And here's the thing -- you remember the -- was it the McDonald's commercial from years ago when you had Magic and Bird and Jordan playing horse try this shot?

AQUINO: Oh, yes.

HARRIS: Isn't that what it looked like? It looked like a shot from a game of horse.

AQUINO: Yes. I mean, and at the 24 shot clock buzzer, at that. So it was very exciting and the fans were on their feet. American Airlines was rocking last night.

HARRIS: OK. Now, I want to change gears with you very quickly here.

And it's a piece of video that I guess we all thought we would see at some point. We just didn't know when.

It is Brett Favre on the sidelines at the start of a football game. This -- we haven't seen this in forever, 297 games. The streak comes to an end last night because of injury.

What are your thoughts, Aubrey, on the end of this streak?

AQUINO: Well, I mean, we definitely didn't want to see Brett Favre have to end his streak because of an injury. I mean, I much would have rather seen it because of retirement, which, you know, a few times we thought it had already ended.

But, you know, he is a class act. And, you know, his record is going to be safe for a little while. It will be five, six seasons before Peyton Manning can catch up. And Brett has had a great run.

HARRIS: Yes, he really has. And the thing about it is, it ends for Brett the way it does for so many great athletes. It ends with an injury, which is not necessarily -- we love the Elway story, but we're not going to get it with Brett Favre. It ends with him being injured.

AQUINO: Right. And, you know, it's time for change.

If the collapse of the dome didn't send a red flag that Minnesota needs some change, I don't know what will. So, you know, I wish Brett Favre the best, but 297, there's nothing to be ashamed of there.

HARRIS: Yes, absolutely.

So, Aubrey, if you would, tell everyone where they can find you, your site, and where they can see the great work that you're doing right now.

AQUINO: OK. Well, they can see my show at ontheflipsidetv.com and also check me out on Twitter@aubreyanne.

HARRIS: OK. So go on Twitter now and tell everyone what a great time you had in the CNN NEWSROOM with Tony Harris.

Great to see you. We'll have you back on the program again. Thanks, Aubrey. Good to see you.

AQUINO: Thanks, Tony.

HARRIS: And still to come, a police officer stops to help a motorist, but ends up needing help. Boy, it is the video that we just can't stop watching. And we know that's horrible, but we'll have the story for you. It's a good news ending.

We're back in a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Hey, we're pretty excited about this. The CNN app is now available for iPad. And if you've ever wondered how many apps are actually out there, available to you, Apple says more than -- can you believe this? -- 300,000.

Sandra Endo. Time for Sandy Endo. She's in Washington, following stories trending right now on the Internet.

And Sandy, what is catching your eye this hour?

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Tony.

Well, trending today, whatever this lady does, you know it's a big talker, yes. When the Sydney Opera House changes its name for Oprah, you know it's going to be a big production.

Well, the queen of talk bought her show to Australia for a week-long trip, accompanied by more than 300 U.S. audience members who took part in Oprah's Ultimate Australian Adventure. Now, the final two shows of the journey were taped today at the at the opera house, where a little mishap took place. Take a look.

That is Hugh Jackman zip-lining towards the stage. There he goes. But, uh-oh, he hits something, and that is a scaffolding, getting a boo-boo on his right eye. And the taping was suspended for him to get checked out. But he said a few sips of red wine did the trick and he went on with the show.

HARRIS: Wow. ENDO: That is amazing, yes.

So, Australia, obviously a big tourist attraction, right?

HARRIS: Oh, absolutely. One of the top tourist destinations in the world, actually.

ENDO: That's right. Well, how about going to the site of the world's worst nuclear accident for a vacation, Tony?

HARRIS: I don't think so.

ENDO: Yes. This story is trending big on CNN.com and all online right now. Ukraine says it's going to lift restrictions on visitation for the zone around Chernobyl nuclear plant starting next year.

In 1986, an explosion killed 32 plant workers and firemen, and the government estimates 4,000 more people will die of cancer from the radiation. Well, officials now say the radiation levels at the site are still well above normal, but it's not unsafe.

I don't know, Tony. Would you go there?

HARRIS: No. I think I'll go to Sydney. I'll go to Sydney.

ENDO: Yes, I think I'll pass.

HARRIS: Yes.

ENDO: But I know this story you're not going to pass up on because it features your sweetheart. The Golden Globes trending today from Hollywood.

The nominees for the 68th annual Golden Globes were announced this morning. And leading the way, racking up several nominations, including best film in the drama category, "The King's Speech." It stars Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter and Geoffrey Rush.

Now, "The Social Network" and "The Fighter" also picked up six nominations each. And then the one I know, Tony, that you are just waiting for is the best performance by an actress in a motion picture drama category, because there's tough competition out there. You have Natalie Portman in "Black Swan"; Nicole Kidman in "Rabbit Hole"; Michelle Williams in "Blue Valentine"; Jennifer Lawrence in "Winter's Bone." But your sweetheart, Halle Berry, in "Frankie and Alice."

HARRIS: Wow. She got that nomination, huh?

ENDO: Yes. Stop drooling though.

HARRIS: From Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland, not far from where Rob Marciano is right now, buried in snow.

Sandy, good to see you. See you next hour. Thank you.

ENDO: You got it. HARRIS: Richard Holbrooke's legacy. From Vietnam to Afghanistan, we look at the long and storied career of a hard-nosed diplomat.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: All right, Roger, let's cue up some live pictures here. Oh, that's a beautiful shot of Boston, Massachusetts, for you where the thermometer reads 27, but the wind chill is making it feel more like 16 degrees. That's cold. Boston, just one of the cities being affected by the nationwide deep freeze that is hitting everywhere from the Great Lakes to Florida right now.

In London this morning, bail for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. He will be under house arrest as he fights extradition to Sweden on rape charges. WikiLeaks has angered and embarrassed world leaders and governments by publicizing secret U.S. documents.

In Berkeley, California, today, the city will vote on a resolution declaring Army Private Bradley Manning an American patriot. Manning is suspected of giving thousands of secret State Department cables to WikiLeaks.

At the White House this hour, President Obama and his national security team are discussing war strategy for Afghanistan. A one-year review of the president's troop buildup in Afghanistan will be out on Thursday. A key player is missing from the White House strategy session this morning, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke. The president's special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan died, as you know, last night.

Foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty in Washington for us.

Jill, Ambassador Holbrooke spent five decades as a troubleshooter for U.S. presidents. If you would, take a moment and reflect on his career for us.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, it starts, as you said, almost 50 years ago, when he was a very young foreign service officer and he was in Vietnam. And seeing that war up close really changed him.

It was an approach, you know, trying to at that point rescue a war that had gone wrong. And now, at the end of his career, as some have said, trying to set right a war that could go wrong. And in between, probably the most notable thing was working and succeeding in bringing about the Dayton Peace agreement -- the Peace Accord back in 1995.

And it was a really template for solving the problem of a war and has been used by other people. Many people refer to it. And coincidentally, by the way, according to Bill Clinton, today is the 15th anniversary of reaching that accord.

HARRIS: Jill, if you would, watch with us former assistant secretary of state Jamie Rubin, his reflections on Ambassador Holbrooke on CNN this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMIE RUBIN, FORMER ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE: Richard, obviously, was an intelligent man, but he also had the ability to operate at several levels.

He operated as a -- in the world of politics, in the world of policy, in the world of the press. He was quite a formidable in the media, and he also operated in the world of people. So he put all those components together and I think his probably signature element was his historical analogies.

He was always making a grand analogy says this is the guns of august and -- like in World War I or that it was related to Vietnam. So he had this unique ability to use all the tools of historic and geography and politics and diplomacy and put it together for one purpose.

I think there are going to be some, you know, difficult times now finding someone who can do all the things as well as Richard could do them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Jill, how difficult is it going to be the to find someone to fill shoes that can't be filled?

DOUGHERTY: Oh, I think quite difficult because after all, as Jamie was saying, those are the things that he brought to the table. And he also brought to the table this amazing, you know, physical presence and his charisma. His ability almost to be like an actor when he was involved in these negotiations.

He would get angry, then he'd be nice. He was able to really pull off some amazing negotiations. And to find that in one person right now, although the policy and the policy review that will come out at the end of the week, Thursday, is already set and that will go forward and there is a team. But to find somebody with all of those characteristics will be difficult.

HARRIS: Our foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty, for us.

Jill, thank you.

In your face, old man winter. That's one of our CNN iReporters here showing off his great idea to cheat the cold. I'll tell you why he decided to jump in.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(CROSSTALK)

HARRIS: So you think you're having a bad weather day, right? Try telling it to the guys here. Take a look. Talk about misery loving company. We'll get the shot. That's pretty representative right there, about 70 cars in all, right? We're talking trucks, vehicles, cars, SUVs, all stuck in the snow, forced to wait it out at a gas station for nearly 15 hours. Fifteen hours. One bright spot, though.

Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEREMY PETTET, STUCK IN SNOW FOR 15 HOURS: One of the things that we definitely want to say is just how amazing the gas station service people were. They stayed there all night. They were the only two people there. It was the end of their shift and they ended up being there, just the two of them with us, and probably another 100 people all night long. They kept it up and running and they could have easily just gone home to their family.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: The attorney for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is speaking right now.

Let's have a listen.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

MARK STEVENS, ASSANGE'S ATTORNEY: -- In court with him today.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

STEVENS: I do believe that the Swedish process is an abusive process. As I stand here now, as I did last week, despite the exhortation of the district judge, we still have not been given the material about these -- and the evidence to which Mr. Assange is entitled to allow him to understand the nature of the allegations against him.

QUESTION: Mr. Stevens, if the appeal does happen within the next hour from the Swedes, is it true that Mr. Assange will have to remain behind bars for another 48 hours until there's another hearing?

STEVENS: Yes. Whatever happens, Mr. Assange will have to stay behind bars because he'll either be staying behind bars because there's an appeal and we'll be in court either late tomorrow or early Thursday. Or, because we haven't got 200,000 pounds which we can deliver to this court in cash because, of course, checks say seven days to clear.

QUESTION: How soon could you have 200,000 pounds, if allowed?

STEVENS: We're putting the begging bowl out and anyone who wants to send cash to the court here, I'm sure they'd welcome it.

QUESTION: Why did you choose 200,000 pounds?

STEVENS: We didn't choose it. The judge chose it. We chose a significantly less amount. As you all have seen, we had large number of people who are prepared to stand surety for 20,000 pounds. The position in the United Kingdom is a person who sends surety promises to pay 20,000 pounds in the event of a breach of fail, as oppose to putting up the cash, which is of course -- means you've got to liquidate a significant sum of money. QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

STEVENS: Yes, there are a number of failed conditions which the Judge Riddle put on Mr. Assange's release. The first is that he live and sleep each night at a particular address, which was given to the court. The second, that he has to be in that property between certain hours of the day and night so that he can be geo-positioned with an electronic monitoring equipment. That he has given two sureties to the court and you've seen both of them, (INAUDIBLE) Smith and Sarah. And in those circumstances, he's also got to come up with a security that is a cash deposit.

Those are the conditions before he releases. And otherwise and until those are met, particularly the surety, he will be sitting in the rather Victorian conditions at Wadsworth Prison, the prison where Oscar Wilde went.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

STEVENS: The extradition process can take a number of years. We saw with Gary McKinnon that his extradition to America is still ongoing and potentially may not even get there. So it can be an extremely lengthy period. And for that reason, we really don't understand why the prosecutor is wanting to turn this into a show trial.

QUESTION: Mr. Stevens, I stood beside Mr. Assange when he gave a thumbs up and a big smile at the end, a triumphant move.

Can you describe that moment as you had a chance to communicate and what he said to you that you can share with us?

STEVENS: Well, we were -- I think -- all very pleased. Everybody on the legal team -- and that is many of us -- have put in many hours of work this week getting very little sleep. And part of the problem has been actually preparing the evidence and all the rest of it.

It was, of course, an enormous relief. But it's tinged with enormous sadness that, we on his legal team know, that an innocent man is about to be in jail for another night in solitary confinement where he is denied access and ability to talk to other prisoners.

He's locked up for 23 1/2 hours a day and he's subject to infrared photography 24 hours a day. So it's a pretty unpleasant experience that he's going through at the moment. His mail is not getting through. He's not being allowed to read the newspapers or indeed "Time" magazine who sent him a magazine. That was ripped up by the censors at the prison and he was given an empty envelope.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: Have any of the sureties that you've got -- the surety -- it said that they would give you part of the security?

STEVENS: Some of them have gone away to think about that. They're very decent people. But it obviously takes some significant amount of time to -- even for people of enormous wealth, and particularly for people of enormous wealth and influence, to liquidate funds to make them available.

(END COVERAGE)

HARRIS: OK. You've been listening to the attorney for Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks. As you know, bail has been set for Julian Assange. It's at 200,000 pounds. That is about $315,000 U.S. He will be released into what is essentially house arrest once bail can be posted.

You heard his attorney there, Attorney Stevens, saying that the begging bone is out to raise this money. As you know, WikiLeaks has certainly angered a lot of diplomats, a lot of governments, world leaders by publicizing secret U.S. cables. Although bail has been set, Julian Assange will stay in jail until bail can be posted.

We'll continue to follow this story, of course.

We're back in a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Now, joining us live on the phone is Gary Parks and he is the co-owner of Parksdale Farms that produces more than three million pounds of strawberries a year.

Gary, just how cold and how much damage are we talking about?

GARY PARKS, PARKSDALE FARMS: Well, hopefully -- well first off, hi Ms. Jacqui, how are you?

We're doing fine at the moment. We'll have to wait for the rest of the ice to thaw to see if we got hurt from last night. But we'll then have to turn around because then we're expecting colder temperatures tonight.

JERAS: Yes, tomorrow morning may be bad for you, as well. Florida has seen these type of temperatures before. But, you know, this many blasts in a short period of time, is that more damaging, potentially?

PARKS: It could be. But, you know, we just had the -- I believe we had, was it 24 days under 32 degrees just last year. So, you know, this is only -- we just finished the third day and coming up on day number four, and then it's supposed to ease up on us a bit. So in comparison, we're feeling kind of -- you know, I'm much more confident in this year than I was in last.

JERAS: Well, that's some good news. So the long-term impact hopefully not too bad for you guys.

PARKS: I agree. Hope not.

JERAS: OK, great. That's a little bit of good news coming out of the frozen Sunshine State this morning.

Gary Park (sic), thanks so much for taking the time and joining us this morning.

PARKS: Appreciate it. Bye-bye.

HARRIS: How cold tonight, Jacqui?

JERAS: Probably down in the middle 20s again. He's just outside the Tampa/St. Pete area. One of the other issues is that they've had strong winds. And so, you know, they put that water from those little bubblers to try to protect it. And if the wind is too strong, it can make little ice pellets that hit at it, as well.

HARRIS: Yikes.

JERAS: We'll watch it.

HARRIS: Good update. All right, thank you (INAUDIBLE). Appreciate it.

The holiday seasons means it is time to -- let's see -- tip the mailman, the news carrier. Who else is on your list? Maybe the dog walker? The CNN Money Team Stephanie Elam is in New York at the New York Stock Exchange.

Stephanie, good to see you.

How much is enough to say thank you very much?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN MONEY TEAM: That is the big question this time of year, Tony. Consumer Reports says the average tip this year is around $35. But, of course, the amount varies when it comes to the type of service or also where you live. But some folks will be getting a tip pay cut this year. I'm just the messenger, don't hate me.

But according to our friends at "Money" mag, house cleaners are getting the shaft. They're getting about $10 less than their 2007 pre-recession amounts, that's down to 65 bucks from $75. But newspapers carriers are getting a raise, about $5 more this year for a neat $20.

But what's the exact right amount? A general guide for how much to tip is one week's pay or one unit of pay according to the Emily Post Institute. This applies to your housekeepers, your babysitters, the day care providers, as well as your barber and your dog walker. But if you can't afford that much, the Post Institute says, tip as much as you can, but don't break your holiday budget on tipping. And if you tip these folks regularly, you might be able to forego a big year-end tip and just give a small gift instead or a small tip, Tony.

HARRIS: OK. All right. Stephanie, appreciate it.

Let's do this. Let's take a quick break. We're back in a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK. Thought we were crunched on time. We've got few more moments with Stephanie Elam about holiday season tipping.

And Stephanie, if you can't give everyone a cash gift, who should you focus on and what should you do instead?

ELAM: Yes, Tony. This is what a lot of people are dealing with this year. But if you can't give everyone a gift, Consumer Reports says think about tipping only the folks who come into your home, like the babysitter or the housekeeper.

If you just don't have the budget to tip at all, then a handwritten note briefly expressing your situation and your appreciation of their service is perfectly acceptable. Also, the Emily Post Institute says, don't think if you don't tip, that you won't get great service the next year. If you think you've had bad service for those reasons, then you might want to think about change companies. This should all come down to the thought that counts, right, Tony? We all know that.

HARRIS: There you go. The thought that counts. Lovely sentiment. Let's how it works out in practice.

Stephanie, good to see you. See you tomorrow.

We're back in a moment.

ELAM: Sounds good.

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HARRIS: Stories we are working on for the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM. A Virginia judge ruling, his ruling against a major part of the Obama administration's landmark health care reform bill. But here's the thing. It is just the first round in what is likely to be a long battle. So what does it all mean for you? Stick around and we will tell you next hour.

Plus, cameras so tiny these days you can fit one anywhere. How do you know when you are being spied on? Our Josh Levs tells you how to maintain your privacy and keep your sanity.

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HARRIS: A response to the court ruling on health care reform in the editorial pages. Ed Henry, our senior White House correspondent, also part of the Best Political Team on Television, live from the White House.

And Ed, what is that response? Maybe you can paraphrase some of it for us.

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, Tony, two top guns from the Obama cabinet really firing back at that judge's decision. Attorney General Eric Holder, as well as the Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sibelius. They've got an op-ed in this morning's "Washington Post," and what they basically say is that right now, in their words, quote, "Every insured family pays an average of $1,000 more a year in premiums to cover those with no insurance." And that's why they write that everyone who can afford coverage needs to carry basic coverage by 2014 to level the playing field.

Of course, U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson in Virginia yesterday completely rejected that notion and said it's unconstitutional. We're not going to have a decision -- a final decision on this for probably a couple of years because it's likely to go all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Secondly, president moving closer to a big victory on that tax cut deal with Republicans, cleared a hurdle in the Senate last night. Might be moving forward to a vote in the house next couple of days. But Moody's, the rating agency, is saying not so fast, Mr. President.

They've got a new report warning that while this tax deal could boost economic growth in the short-term, it could really balloon the already awful U.S. debt, saying that it could raise U.S. debt to GDP ratio to 72 percent from about 62 percent right now. It's a warning that unless the president, as well as Congress start cutting some spending, get the deficit under control, we could have some real problems where U.S. debt gets downgraded, which could really be a very tough fiscal situation, Tony.

HARRIS: And Ed, if you would, tell us about this new appeal by Joe Miller's campaign in Alaska. What's going on with that?

HENRY: He's appealing it now to the state supreme court in Alaska. You'll remember that Lisa Murkowski has already basically declared victory. She's the incumbent Republican senator from Alaska, but she was a write-in in the general election because she lost the primary to Joe Miller.

He's now challenging and has been challenging the counting of write-in ballots that had misspelled names, for example, even though the Board of Election had decided before that voters' intent would be taken into account. So even if they misspelled Murkowski, if it was clear that it was just off by a letter or two and that they were trying to vote for her, they would count that.

Now, basically a judge has also ruled that Joe Miller has not proven there was any election fraud. And so he's appealing all of this to the state supreme court. Lisa Murkowski wants this to be over, obviously, as soon as possible. It's not going to affect -- the outcome of this won't affect which party's in control obviously. Either way, it's a Republican. But Joe Miller still not conceding. It's been dragging on for weeks.

HARRIS: It really has.

All right. Our senior White House correspondent Ed Henry for us.

Ed, as always, great to see you. Thank you.

Your next political update in an hour. For the latest political news, you know where to go. That's CNNPolitics.com