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Hundreds Trapped in Snow; Serial Killer in New York?; WikiLeaks Founder Granted Bail; Lawmakers Prepare for Tax Cut Vote
Aired December 14, 2010 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Ali, thank you.
I want you to take a look at this video with me.
We have found this video. This is a man, shot this, uploaded it to YouTube, all while he was stuck in his truck. This guy describes himself as a truck driver, rolling down the window, taking a look outside, seeing nothing but white.
He has apparently been stuck in this nasty snowstorm for 30-plus hours. Let's listen, only wind, wind, and a lot of white. How isolated would you feel? I would feel very much so. We have been showing you just how bad it is.
This is Canada just north of Detroit. He's not the only one stuck. See all those other cars in front of him and behind him? Hundreds of people trapped on this road since Monday. That has been the storm that hit the Midwest just a couple of days ago, moved northward to Ontario.
In fact, we just heard from another trapped driver live here in the CNN NEWSROOM just a short time ago. In fact, I want you to listen to him describe what it was like.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRANDON JUNKIN, STUCK IN SNOW SINCE MONDAY: I called and just let them know that we were here. And they said that there's just too many people out right now and that there's too much going on, and that it would be at least 12 hours until they could get to us.
But on the radio stations and all the local media when you're turning it on, like I was turning it on my satellite radio and even local radio stations, all they were mentioning was Highway 402, Highway 402.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
JUNKIN: But meanwhile you just felt almost disheartened, because the police had turned you around 12 hours earlier, sent you off the highway into the middle of the country, in the middle of nowhere, and said sit here. And now you're sitting here, and it's just whiteout.
And it's one thing to be in a whiteout. I have been in a whiteout before where it's like a 10-second gust of wind that came over, but this continued for 12 and 14 hours.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Yes. This is not just a simple gust of wind. That guy has been stuck about 30 hours.
Chad Myers has been watching this whole thing unfold.
And, Chad, we know it's very dire, very urgent, simply because the military has been called in to help try to -- to rescue, to try to save some of these people.
But talk to me about the high winds and how possibly that could hamper some of these rescues.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, what happened was that the winds that -- that will make snow in Buffalo -- we know Buffalo gets lake-effect snow -- so does Cleveland. But it came across Lake Huron, a very large body of water.
BALDWIN: Mm-hmm.
MYERS: And that wind, as it picks up the moisture from an unfrozen lake yet --
BALDWIN: Mm-hmm.
MYERS: -- will dump the snow on the nearest piece of land. And that nearest piece of land was the 402 Highway just --
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Full of cars.
MYERS: Full of cars. And then at some point in time, the police said this road is closed, take another highway, and pushed people off the main road onto other highways. That's where that reporter was, that iReporter was.
And he didn't know where he was at all. He would have been OK on the 402. They may have found him maybe hours earlier. But the wind literally made whiteout conditions for what he said was 14 straight hours.
BALDWIN: Well, guess what. We are getting a guy live with us in -- within the hour -- and maybe you can talk to him with me -- who has been stuck for 26 hours. He got out of there, but it's just -- I just can't -- you try to put yourself in these people's shoes. I just cannot imagine.
So, Chad, thank you.
And, by the way, stand by, because I want you to -- to be part of this next conversation.
MYERS: Yes. BALDWIN: And I want you to follow me with -- with me if you could here.
First I want to take you have back to Saturday morning. It's the southern shore of Long Island. A police officer and his dog, they're out there. They're searching for signs of a 23-year-old prostitute who has missing since may.
So, first, I'm talking you to Gilgo Beach. The officer comes upon remains just a couple of yards on the inland side of this particular highway. Well, now this story takes an even worse turn, because yesterday investigators combing the side of the highway, they unearth, not one, not two, but three sets of human remains, three sets, including two in burlap bags.
So if you're following me, four bodies found in all within just a quarter-mile of one another. As of today, two of those bodies have been identified as women. The other two apparently they are so badly decomposed they just can't quite tell yet.
The authorities, they are back at it, back out there again today. Apparently the weather was so bad Sunday, they couldn't search. Today, they're back out. They're conceding that we may talking about a serial killer. I want you to listen to the local police commissioner.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD DORMER, SUFFOLK COUNTY, NEW YORK, POLICE COMMISSIONER: I don't think it's a coincidence that four bodies ended up in this area. You know, that's a good -- you know, that's a good direction to go that they were all dumped here by the same person or persons.
QUESTION: So, it appears -- it appears you have a serial killer dumping bodies along this stretch --
(CROSSTALK)
DORMER: Well, you know, I'm not going to say that. But certainly we're looking at that. We're looking at that, that we could have a serial killer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So they're looking at it. They're looking at the possibility there could be a serial killer, maybe killers here, behind all of this.
I want to bring in Gil Alba in New York. He's a former detective. He was on the force for nearly three decades.
And, Gil, from what you're hearing, from what you know, from all these clues, is there enough to suspect -- let me pose that same question to you -- is there enough to suspect that this is the work of a serial killer or killers possibly?
GIL ALBA, FORMER NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT DETECTIVE: Definitely.
When you have three bodies in one location, two of them were with the burlap bags around them, that gives some kind of indication it was the same person doing that, yes, definitely. I would say that's the way the police are going, looking at this right now.
BALDWIN: And what do you make of the fact why -- what do you make of the burlap bags? What do you also make of the fact that they were found very close to one another, within about a quarter of a mile?
ALBA: You know what happens? When you do a random -- a random killing like this, as opposed to you knowing the person, know -- if you know the other person, you would bury them somewhere. A random killing, throw somebody off the road maybe 10 feet, 50 feet, 100 feet off the road, or even 500 feet off the road.
And that's what this guy did, because we're all creatures of habit.
BALDWIN: Hmm.
ALBA: And he knew the area. He knew where to put these bodies. He felt comfortable where there's no cars coming back and forth where he can just take the throw the body and throw them there.
BALDWIN: So.
ALBA: He or she. I'm not -- I don't really know who did it, so --
BALDWIN: He or she you're saying perhaps knew the area quite well.
But for people including myself who don't know the area well, I want to bring -- Gil, stand by for me. I want to bring in Chad Myers.
Because, Chad, help me understand --
ALBA: OK.
BALDWIN: -- understand sort of the lay of the land, if you will, exactly how this whole thing played out, where the bodies were and perhaps where this 23-year-old prostitute was headed when she went missing back in May.
MYERS: Talking about 36 miles as the crow flies from New York City right from downtown.
BALDWIN: OK.
MYERS: But if you were to drive there and take the Long Island Expressway and then come back down, you're talking about 55 miles or so of a drive from the city right down here toward Cedar Beach and Gilgo Beach. Right between those two beaches is where the body, the original body, was found. We're going to zoom in and kind of figure out why. What's the great location of this? Well, we know Fire Island, which is off there, off to the east, that's where a call was made on a Craigslist that we believe was to go to a Fire Island rendezvous, we will just call it.
But right through here, between Cedar Beach and Gilgo Beach there's a very desolate strip of land, no houses on the beach and just a bunch of marsh on the other side.
Go a couple more in, we will get right on down to the street and you will be able see literally nothing to see here, beach and then two lanes, the parkway going one way and along this side on the bay side, not the ocean side, the bay side of this highway, is where those bodies were dumped right through here -- Brooke.
BALDWIN: So, Gil, it seems to me -- and I have actually been to Fire Island. It's a pretty popular spot for, you know, homes heading to the beach getting out of the city. But for this particular stretch I guess where these bodies were found, it looks to me fairly desolate. I have read that there are no lights along the area. So, it would perhaps make sense to be the perfect spot to dump someone.
(CROSSTALK)
ALBA: Yes. That whole area is a good spot to dump. Yes, and then that has happened before. In fact, I had a kidnapping wasn't too far from there the same way off the roads and -- and it looked the same.
BALDWIN: Huh.
ALBA: But here you have people that aren't walking in that area. So those bodies wouldn't have been discovered if the -- if the police didn't get that information.
Now, that particular prostitute -- and I hate to say the name, because she -- somebody killed her -- but she was with somebody. Another person drove her. A male drove her there. So that's how they got that kind of a location where to look for her and where to -- where to -- and they found other bodies. They were not -- they were actually looking for her and they discovered other bodies.
So it's not really unusual that would be a dumping site. But like I said again, creatures of habit, so you can see pretty far both directions if a car is coming.
(CROSSTALK)
ALBA: And it doesn't take long to take a body and just dump it there.
BALDWIN: Do me a favor. Put yourself in the shoes of the Suffolk County police commissioner. We know that they of course have reached out. They have actually talked to the john and also to the pimp in this particular case. Again, we're talking four bodies, not just this young woman who went missing. What's your next step? If you're the police commissioner, Gil, what do you do next in this investigation?
ALBA: Well, the mere fact that you're putting this out in the news, you know what could happen is somebody else is going to call. And especially this guy, I'm sure he didn't do these three or these four at one time. I think he did somebody else, and maybe that other person got way, tried to do something, got afraid, and they have run. So, they may come to the police at some point and tell them what's going.
And that's how they become -- that's who they get a person of interest. Now what they're going to do is identify these bodies and where they come from. But you know the burlap bags and the bodies have DNA, meaning DNA from that particular person who may have done this.
BALDWIN: Right.
ALBA: And he probably was arrested at some point. And then they can match that up. Of course, it's going to take time for them to do all this, but that's a possibility.
BALDWIN: It's going to take time, but fortunately these days science is pretty impressive. And with dental records, DNA, they are going to figure out who these young women, young men were. And also there's the possibility there could be more bodies out there. We know they're still going to be searching.
Gil Alba, thanks for your perspective as a former detective.
ALBA: Yes. Thank you for having me.
BALDWIN: Appreciate that. Appreciate that.
ALBA: Thank you.
BALDWIN: And, Chad, thank you as well.
Let's talk about Julian Assange. He was granted bail today, but he's still in jail. And his attorneys say the U.S. is secretly chasing him. So what happens to this guy now? That's ahead.
Plus, a driver attacks a police officer. Look at this. This is in the midst of what was supposed to be a routine traffic stop. The whole thing, as you can tell, caught on dashboard video, but who is this gal? Wait for this video. We're going to tell that whole story.
We're also learning more about a heist at the Bellagio, beautiful Bellagio Hotel, in Vegas. I'm talking, yes, a heist -- details on that next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: The Bellagio, you been there? Pretty high-dollar place. It's one of the most recognizable hotels and casinos in all of Vegas.
And what happens there this morning sounds a little bit like "Ocean's 14." Want you to take a look at some of these pictures. We have just turned this around and got this in. At least this is what looks like the camera that was hopefully taking those pictures of this guy, a man wearing a motorcycle helmet.
Here he is. Here he is. A man wearing a motorcycle helmet walked into the casino in the wee hours of the morning, pulls out a gun at a craps table. Now, police say he got away with, get this, more than a million dollars in chips and then gets away on a motorcycle.
These are the first pictures we have gotten from the Bellagio, able to quickly turn them around for you. Take a good look. I know some of this is blurry, but this is what they're hoping to get out there so someone perhaps could recognize this guy. By the way, he didn't hurt anyone when he walked in there and did this, but police most definitely want to finds him.
Want to show you this piece of video. Wait until you see this. But first let me set it up for you. So, this is a routine traffic stop. This is Dayton, Ohio. Police officer pulls over this driver for a missing headlight. The officer here is Jonathan Seiter. He gets out. There he is on the left-hand side next to the car. Gets out, talked to talks to the driver, who apparently was not cooperating, some issue about a headlight being out.
So the officer tells the 64-year-old driver, Otto Coleman, to step out of the car. And you see this? The guy, the driver shoves the officer. Then the punches start being thrown. Just watch this with me. These guys are wrestling against this car. Several times during the fight, Coleman reaches for the officer's gun and Taser.
So this whole encounter lasted right around five minutes. Did you hear me? I said the driver of that car was 64 years of age. Now, take a look at this woman, just kind of rolls up on the scene. Apparently backup was on the way, but Didn't come soon enough. Passerby in a car hops out of her own car and tries to break it up.
We will replay it. I want you to watch her come up, try to break this whole thing up. Now, by the way, this woman who tries to stop this whole thing and definitely helps out, she is yet to be identified.
But the double-teaming here, see this woman banging on the guy, apparently allows the officer to regain control. By the way, backup finally arrived. And the two officers were then able to get that 64- year-old driver down to the ground. That officer, look at this, grateful for the help, but police have a big message for all of us. They don't want to encourage this type of behavior.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SGT. LARRY TOLPIN, DAYTON POLICE DEPARTMENT: This young lady did come to his assistance. And I think it's very commendable, although, don't get me wrong, I'm not endorsing that citizens participate in this manner. But under these particular -- this particular circumstance, it was very commendable of her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: How about that? Lady helps take that guy down. Here's this guy. This is the 64-year-old driver, Coleman, I was talking about. He is now charged with attempted aggravated robbery, resisting arrest and assault on a police officer. He's being held in the Montgomery County jail.
And want to keep you in the loop this, what is it now, Tuesday? Losing track of time. We're waiting for a crucial vote in the U.S. Senate right now. Lawmakers could begin voting on the president's tax deal very shortly. So, if nothing gets done, if this thing doesn't make its way through the Senate and then the House, everyone's taxes, your taxes, my taxes, they all go up the 1st of January.
As you know, many Democrats, specifically in the House, very much so against this deal, so we're monitoring what's happening there on the Hill. This is Senator John Thune of South Dakota. He was speaking there on the floor of the Senate. Again, keeping a close eye on what's happening there.
Jessica Yellin is as well, standing by to tell us how some on the right side of the political aisle are now speaking out against this whole tax agreement as well. Huh. Jessica is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Welcome back to the newsroom. At this hour, our eyes on the U.S. Senate, the Senate now nearing a final vote on this controversial tax cut deal. Reminder, this is the deal that the president and the Republicans helped strike up to extend those tax cuts passed under President Bush for another two years, pass them, extend them for everyone.
So, add-ones include also a cut in the Social Security tax and an extension of aid to the unemployed.
And we talked a whole lot about the screaming from the left side of things, some Democrats, House Dems in particular saying the president should have fought harder to raise taxes on the richest 2 percent. But I don't know if you've noticed. Apparently there's some growing unease now emerging from the right side of things.
Jessica Yellin, our national political correspondent, let's talk specifics here, Jessica. Who's angry on the right and why?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: OK. Brooke, already, some of the critics who have come out on the far right against this compromise include Rush Limbaugh, the House's Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, and the Senate's Tea Party hero, Jim DeMint, but joining them today, a surprising one, Mitt Romney.
BALDWIN: Huh. YELLIN: He is the former and likely future presidential candidate and he is now clearly breaking with his own Republican leadership, with the leadership in the Senate and in the House.
And in an op-ed in "USA Today," he writes -- quote -- "It's difficult to understand how our political leaders could have reached such a disappointment agreement. The new, more conservative Congress should reach a better solution."
Brooke, big picture, he objects because he's -- the tax cuts are temporary, not permanent, because the overall package won't, in his view, encourage hiring, and because the provisions aren't paid for. He says all this will fuel uncertainty for business, which will keep the economy stagnant.
But why it matters is it tells us he's aligning himself with Tea Party purists on this issue and it could be a sign where the Republican presidential nomination will be fought, Brooke.
BALDWIN: Hmm. That -- that could be the strategy there.
Would there be, Jess, any possibility here, as we're watching for this voted to maybe at the U.S. Senate, would there be any chance of the left and the far right kind of coming together on this thing and defeating the bill?
YELLIN: Right. It is a case of some strange bedfellows here with the far-left and far-right elements objecting. But I think ultimately this bill will likely pass, despite opposition from the left and the right.
What this does raise, though, is the possibility that, in time, Tea Party groups could become increasingly disappointed with this deal. And, eventually, who knows, they could become dissatisfied with Republican members who supported it. So it calls into question how the tax cut deal will play with the Republican base going forward.
BALDWIN: Before I let you go, I want to bring up Michael Steele. We're all waiting for that conference call, happened last night.
YELLIN: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
BALDWIN: Stunned a lot of Republicans by announcing he will be seeking this second term as the head of the RNC.
YELLIN: Yes.
BALDWIN: Is he -- is this sort of a dare, daring his own party to -- to unseat him?
(LAUGHTER)
YELLIN: Yes, I guess you could say, yes, it is.
BALDWIN: Yes.
ALBA: You know, as you say, he surprised a lot of Republican insiders, who thought that after all the criticism and controversy he'd want to move on.
But in that conference call, he says, look, I stumbled and I made mistakes, but he points out it was a very winning year for the party. And it was. He's right.
You know, Brooke, even though he's disliked by the establishment he's courted voting members of the RNC throughout the party. So who knows how this one will come out. The election happens in January.
BALDWIN: Hmm.
We will be watching right along with you.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Jessica Yellin, thank you from Washington.
A shocking discovery in Illinois: the mayor of Springfield found dead inside his home. Now, this news comes on the same day he was scheduled to appear in court. We will get you some of those details next.
Also, protesters in Rome take to the streets. Look at this. Italy's prime minister surviving, holding on to power, even though he's dealing with personal and political scandals. You have got to see this chaotic video next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: A couple other stories we want to pass along moving this hour.
Julian Assange granted bail, but staying in jail for now. The man behind WikiLeaks has to stay in police custody until another hearing because a lawyer representing Sweden filed an appeal to the decision to free Assange. Remember, Assange is wanted in Sweden on those alleged sex crimes. When he gets out on bail, Assange will have no passport and he will have to wear a monitoring device. By the way, that next hearing is expected within the next 48 hours.
Fire bombs fly one way, tear gas canisters the other way. People there in Rome clashing with police, they're angry about Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's success in a parliamentary confidence vote. So that means he will be staying in office, although the vote in his favor wasn't by a very large margin.
And the mayor of Springfield, Illinois, is dead. Timothy Davlin was found dead in his home this morning. The cause of his death not officially released, nor were many of those details, in fact. Davlin was a Democrat in his second term as mayor of the Illinois capital. He had been ordered to appear before a judge later in the day over an estate issue and he told the judge last week that he would hire a lawyer. Police in Springfield are of course investigating.
And we are getting some -- oh, I don't know if this is the right adjective -- fascinating video, maybe for us looking at it, maybe not for you stuck in it, fascinating video of weather conditions across the country. I'm talking from the north, from the south. We will show you how video, how it's -- how it goes when you're trying to get into a hot tub in the winter and what happens when you cut open frozen grapefruits.
(LAUGHTER)
BALDWIN: That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: All right, just in to CNN in terms of the weather world, it's been a wild day in terms of, you know, snow, but some actually news just in.
I want to bring in Chad Myers talking about a tornado reported in -- I was just there -- Salem, Oregon.
MYERS: Mm-hmm, near about 10 miles southwest there, Aumsville. So, you're talking about really the town of Salem, then Four Corners and right down on down 22, and there was a tornado on the ground. People are still trapped in their cars because power lines are draped all around their cars and they're not able to get out.
BALDWIN: Oh, my goodness.
MYERS: So, you know, we don't talk about Oregon as a tornado capital of the world ever, right?
BALDWIN: No, not at all, never in the same sentence.
MYERS: No.
(LAUGHTER)
MYERS: Right.
So, this pineapple express bringing in moisture from Hawaii, storms, showers, thunderstorms. We showed you earlier some of the destruction in Seattle because of the mudslides and the Amtrak being disrupted and all that because of all this rain. Well, did we never, ever imagine there would be a tornado.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: All right.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Well, I have a feeling there are a lot of people picking up the phones trying to get -- figure out the deal is in Salem. So we will try to work through that. MYERS: Yes.
BALDWIN: Meantime, let's talk about a different kind of weather today, shall we?
MYERS: Right.
BALDWIN: A little bit of major news happening today. Earlier we watched together top of the show that whole ordeal unfolding, all these people, hundreds of people in Canada just north of Detroit basically stuck in their cars, hundreds of them trapped in their vehicles, some of them trapped throughout the night.
Here they are stranded because of, you guessed it, piled-up snow there on the highways.
MYERS: Yes.
BALDWIN: But I want to take a look around some of the other areas that were also pounded by -- pounded by wintry weather. This is Cleveland. And imagine this is your morning commute. It doesn't look like fun. This is the famous or maybe infamous lake-effect snow whipping off of Lake Erie.
Winter storm warnings in effect for much of northeast Ohio until tomorrow morning.
And next: school canceled in north Georgia. This is Georgia? Kids burst out the sleds. Apparently, a big dump of snow not a headache for everyone everywhere. Thank you to iReporter Susan Gober and her sled cam -- I like that, slam cam -- for helping us lighten up the mood here, with all the gloomy, doomy wintry weather.
Listen to that kid just squealing along.
(LAUGHTER)
BALDWIN:
Also, how do you have kind of mellow out after five straight hours of shoveling record deep snow? Look at this dude. I don't know, fire up the hot tub maybe? People taking winter in stride. They know how to do it in Rochester, Minnesota. This is like nothing maybe to them. They know how to hang out.
CNN iReporter sent us these pictures of himself chilling out, opening up that hot tub. So that's one way to do it if you're in Rochester, Minnesota. Chad Myers, let's talk, though, about perhaps programs the worst-hit areas. Where is that?
MYERS: That would be downwind of any lake. And the first one we talked about were the pictures near Sarnia, and that is Canada. That's Ontario. On the other side is Port Huron. Right on down 69 and 94 you're either going to get to the middle part of Michigan or down to Detroit. So we're not talking all that far north and west of Detroit. And all of a sudden, this snow came down from Lake Huron and stranded people and they are still stranded in many areas. We're still seeing cold air across parts ever the upper Midwest and so on and so on. But that was the worst. You wanted me to pick the worst.
People ask, why don't you ever talk about San Diego? Because it's sunny and 72. That's not a news story. I'm sorry. I'm not going to be able to make anything out of that. When I talk about your town, it's a bad thing, so watch what you ask for.
Here's the rain in Seattle down to Olympia. There's Salem, and there's that cell. Take it one more time right through there, that big red dot right through there.
BALDWIN: That was the tornado.
MYERS: That was the tornado. We'll continue to watch to see what happens there.
BALDWIN: Chad, what about the south? We saw the pictures of north Georgia. I can't believe that was Georgia. Are we getting any relief? I'm cold, Chad.
Well, in April it will warm up.
(LAUGHTER)
BALDWIN: That's not good enough.
MYERS: I know. It's 23 right now in Atlanta, the feel-like temperature, 42 Tampa. There's an awful lot of damage. A new report out of Florida on some of the crops that were damaged last night, temperatures down into the 20s.
Now, this is on purpose. They spray this water onto the citrus on purpose because as water freezes, Brooke, it gives off warmth, and then it insulates the fruit from the cold air around it. So this is a good thing.
And I think we still have that picture of a sprinkler that was turned on by accident and it was so much water on the trees they were all kind of dragged down to the ground. You don't want to do it quite that way. You want to do it nice and slowly. And then we had a picture, too, of a guy cutting open a fruit.
BALDWIN: I know. I was kind of waiting for that. You have an orange Slurpee. He's trying to cut this grapefruit, stabbing it, opening it. Just needs a straw.
MYERS: Everything inside was still OK.
BALDWIN: Oh, OK, that's good.
MYERS: But the outside was frozen. That just means you are not going to be able to buy that one at Kroger or Publics as a real grapefruit. That will be squeezed into juice. BALDWIN: Let's get to our colleague who I guess drew the short straw. We sent Rob Marciano, poor guy, not to his chagrin but to Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Hello, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Brooke, Chad, it hasn't warmed up at all, all day long. We woke up in Cleveland. The winter falls 40 miles an hour. Wind-chills well below zero, and the sun trying to break through some of these clouds but the snow is coming down still.
So it's just been a rough go, not just today but yesterday and really all week long. And this is on top of what these folks had to endure last week as well. So two weeks in a row seeing the same thing with the exception that this time the air is even colder. So we're not only having to deal with the snow, but we're having to deal with things like a water main pipe bursting because of the cold. People have to boil water because it's not safe now.
And the winds have brought down a few power lines so we have power outages in some of the suburbs of Cleveland. Over 200 organizations and schools closed again for the second day in a row. So even for the hardiest of Midwesterners this has been a real blow, and we haven't even gotten into the middle part of winter. We really haven't officially gotten to winter, haven't even gotten to Christmas.
And what these folks are trying to do is maybe take comfort in the fact the holidays are here but a lot of them saying we could stand a little bit of warm-up. But, Chad, as you know, that probably isn't going to happen any time too soon.
BALDWIN: Chad, not going to happen?
MYERS: What do you want for Christmas, Rob? A new pair of gloves and a muffler to put around my neck. Maybe that will help Christmas sales for all the clothing stores. Go to the mall and buy some gloves.
BALDWIN: All right, Chad, thank you.
And we mentioned the situation, all those people trapped in Ontario. Coming up next I'll talk to a guy trapped in the snow in his car, look at this, for 26 hours, stranded in his car on this very snowy highway. How did he get out while so many people, hundreds of people are still trapped? Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: I shared this video with you at the top of the hour. We thought it was so good we wanted to replay it. The man who shot it and uploaded it to YouTube described himself as a truck driver, says he has been stuck in this nasty snowstorm for 30-plus hours. Listen to what he hears.
Yes, a whole lot of nothing. That's because no one is moving. No one is able to really get out of their cars, just a lot of wind. It looks like the Arctic Circle, but it's not. This is Canada. This is just north of Michigan. Hundreds of people have been trapped on this particular roadway since Monday. Look at them all lined up, not moving.
But one of the them was able to get out. He is good enough to hop on the phone. Hopefully he's now nice and toasty and warm. Joining me, David Beath. And David, thanks for hopping on the phone. I know you were dropping your kids off at school. You were headed to work. You got stuck. At what point did it sink in you were thinking I'm not going anywhere for a while?
DAVID BEATH, TRAPPED IN SNOW 26 HOURS: When the sun started going down and I noted there was no traffic whatsoever coming by on the other side of the road, I figured I'd better bear down for the night.
BALDWIN: Bearing down for the night. Little did you know you would be stuck in your car for 26 hours. How in the world did you stay warm?
BEATH: It was -- they said on the radio to try to conserve your gas. By that point I was almost down to about a quarter of a tank. So I shut my car down for two or three hours and I had a blanket, so I wrapped up in my blanket. And then I'd start my car after that for about 45 minutes just to kind of warm up a little bit. And then once I warmed up I'd shut it down again.
BALDWIN: You sound like a pretty calm guy, but be honest with me. Did you have panic at all?
BEATH: No, there's no panicking because there's nothing you could do. You're snowed in and you couldn't even open your doors to your car. It was just so windy.
MYERS: Let's say you did open your car window or door and tried to walk to safety. What do you think would have happened?
BEATH: Honestly, you couldn't see anything. I was just outside the airport, and you couldn't even see it. You couldn't see ten feet. So unless you knew exactly where you were going, you weren't going anywhere.
MYERS: Had you ventured out, you would have risked your life, correct?
BEATH: Oh, for sure, for sure. There's no going anywhere for anyone. I know there is a few abandoned cars the next day that I noticed, but I'm sure they just hopped into somebody else's car to warm up.
BALDWIN: David, how did you finally get out, considering the fact you were in the company of hundreds of people, some of whom are still stuck?
BEATH: The next morning the wind started to lighten up a little bit, and then a few of the truckers managed to kinds of weave their way through, and they were big enough to plow down, and I just tucked in behind the transport and followed them out. BALDWIN: Final question I have to ask -- who gets your first phone call, David? You're safe and sound. Is it your girlfriend or your mother?
(LAUGHTER)
BEATH: I gave my girlfriend my first call.
BALDWIN: Your girlfriend. David Beath, we're glad you're doing all right, and thanks so much for jumping on. We appreciate it, thank you.
BEATH: Your welcome.
BALDWIN: He would have risked his own life. Imagine that.
MYERS: No question about it. The wind-chill factor was way too cold to go outside. He had to stay in the car to stay alive.
BALDWIN: And he didn't panic. Good thing he had that blanket to keep him warm at least a little bit.
"American Idol" will have a new competitor next year. Wait until you hear the format of NBC's new show. That is ahead.
Plus, a stunt goes awry. Hugh Jackman gets hurt while taping something for Oprah. You know we have the video. It is "Trending." Brooke Anderson is all over it. Brooke and Brooke, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Welcome back. Hollywood award season is here already. Seriously, nomination season officially arriving, and it's also trending today with our own Brooke Anderson. And Brooke, we're talking not of Oscars yet, but talking Golden Globes.
BROOKE ANDERSON, CNNHN HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": We're talking Golden Globes, Brooke, and those nominations this morning really do signal the official kickoff to award season. You got it right.
And one thing you can bank on, Brooke, every single year with the Golden Globes is star power. The movies don't necessarily have to be winners at the box office or with critics, for that matter. For the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which determines the nominees to recognize them, they love big names. They love eye candy.
For instance, Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp were both nominated for their performances in "The Tourist," which has so far been a disappointment in the theaters and for the most part panned by critics. The film was also nominated for best film, comedy or musical.
But listen, "The Tourist" isn't the only box office disappointment getting Golden Globe love. "Burlesque" picked up three nominations and it has really failed to pick up steam in theaters. It has not been a critical favorite. On the other hand the globes nominated the film "Inception" which made more than $800 million, so highly regarded by critics. Can we put up that graphic of nominees for best films in the drama category? Here we go, "Inception" is up against "Black Swan", "The Fighter", "The King's Speech," and "The Social Network."
British actor and comedian Ricky Gervais is back to host the Globes ceremony. It's going to air live January 16 on NBC. And Ricky of course promises to push the envelope. I'm sure he might get a little tipsy. He's always got a loose tongue when he gets on stage for these things.
BALDWIN: Oh, boy, yes he does. Also as part of this nomination process, it was particularly special for Michael Douglas.
ANDERSON: Yes, it certainly was. As we know, the 66-year-old actor, Brooke, has been fighting stage four throat cancer. He reportedly has to wait until January for doctors to assess whether the cancer is completely eradicated. He recently underwent chemo and radiation. Michael was nominated for his outstanding role in "Wall Street, Money Never Sleeps."
And he tells "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" this, quote, "To be selected with these extraordinary nominees is an honor, and, boy, was I ready for some good news." We certainly wish him the best.
BALDWIN: Also, and this is video -- I stood up and was telling my whole team about this morning, this Hugh Jackman video. He's in Australia as part of this whole stunt for Oprah that did not exactly go as planned. Ouch, in fact.
ANDERSON: Far from it, Brooke. Hugh Jackman making a spectacular interest via what's called a "flying fox." Basically it is a zip line for Oprah's show in Australia. The guy was moving, just speeding through the air and, boom, he made a crash landing into a row of lights. The paramedics had to check him out. Thankfully, he's OK. He got the all clear, just an injury under his right eye.
And as I'm sure Hugh would say, the show must go on. He continued with that taping.
BALDWIN: With the red wine.
ANDERSON: Yes, I'm sure that took the edge off, right, the red wine helped him continue on with a smile. Oprah taped two shows there. And more than 350,000 people registered for 12,000 tickets. So it was mania.
BALDWIN: Wow, that's amazing. Look at him getting a little help from Oprah. I just love the shot with the glass of red wine.
Finally, Brooke, let's talk about could there be a competitor for "American Idol"?
ANDERSON: Could be, yes. It's a brand new singing competition that really could give "American Idol" a run for its money. It's reportedly an effort by NBC and reality show guru Mark Burnett. It will be called "The Voice of America." Basically it's NBC's answer to "American Idol."
It will feature four celebrity coaches with careers in the music industry. But here's the twist that "Idol" doesn't have. The judges are going to turn their backs during the performances during some of the auditions so that only the singers' voices will be evaluated, not their appearances.
BALDWIN: That's a new twist.
ANDERSON: Yes, I like it. The new show set to premiere in the spring.
Also Brooke, you remember Simon Cowell is bringing his version of "X Factor" to the U.S. next year. So it's becoming a crowded house, but this type of format has been money in the bank for "Idol," so it could work for everybody.
ANDERSON: They are. We'll be watching. Brooke Anderson, thank you very much. Brooke Anderson in a very warm Hollywood.
And I bring up the weather simply because we've been showing you all this crazy weather video, but this one of may be the winner today. An entire house -- here it is, or the trees may be in front of it covered in ice, now a tourist attraction. We'll tell you how it happened ahead.
Also Nic Robertson says if his meeting with members of the Taliban had been days earlier, he would be dead. Who is the "he" here, and what is changing their ways? And why are they joining the government? We've got a report from Afghanistan, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: President Obama has called him a "true giant of American foreign policy." And the president has not yet said whether he will name a replacement for Richard Holbrooke. The veteran diplomat died yesterday after surgery to repair a torn aorta. He was the president's point man for the Afghanistan-Pakistan region.
But he was probably best known for helping to negotiate the peace accord that ended the war in Bosnia. That agreement was signed 15 years ago today.
President Obama did meet today with members of his national security team, and they are talking about U.S. strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan. A military analysis of the Afghan war will be out this Thursday.
Meanwhile, the war in Afghanistan drags on, but some Taliban fighters are putting down their weapons. Our Nic Robertson met with them. Take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDETAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going to fight the government --
ROBERTSON: Until a few months ago, these three men sitting in front of me were Taliban commanders.
ROBERTSON (on camera): If six months ago we had met and I had been driving through your area, what would have happened to me?
ROBERTSON (voice over): Kareem and his two sub-commanders laugh. "In a second, you would have been dead," he says. They seem to find the idea amusing, but their fight was a deadly serious one.
He tells me he fought U.S. and Afghan troops for six years, sometimes planting IEDs because he says the Afghan government didn't care about him. But now they've been convinced it does, not least by this man, the governor of Herat and his unconventional message. Why fight? NATO troops are leaving anyway.
DAUD SABA, HERAT GOVERNOR: I called on all the groups in Herat. I said if you fight for a cause, which is the independence of your country or the foreigners, so this is not a cause. Foreigners, they are in a rush to leave Afghanistan, so don't fight for that.
ROBERTSON: Herat, the city is relatively peaceful, but the tribe outside, the evidence of lawlessness, heavily armored police trucks on a near deserted highway become a familiar sight.
ROBERTSON (on camera): The commanders live over 100 kilometers, about 70 miles further down the highway. It's far from safe. It's the main road leading Herat to Helmand, Kandahar, the Taliban heartland in the south.
ROBERTSON (voice over): But it is those outlying scattered communities the governor's message is having some success. So far this year, he claims, several hundred Taliban and their commanders have changed sides, some induced by the government offer of amnesty and support. Governor Saba welcomes them all.
SABA: They have lots of ammunition. They brought it here. That's why I didn't promise them anything because I didn't have the program running yet. But I promised them I will give them some community projects, repairing a mosque with the little budget I had.
ROBERTSON: Saba's point man on winning the Taliban over, a respected cleric, tells me he uses religious justifications and promises of support to win the fighters away from the war.
For Mullah Kareem and his cohorts it's been a relatively easy conversion. They say they are tired of fighting, want education for their children, and seeds for their farms. But they have a warning, too. "If the government keeps its promise to help, there can be peace," Mullah Kareem says. "If they just talk and do nothing, then no peace."
Nic Robertson, CNN, Herat, Afghanistan.
(END VIDETAPE) BALDWIN: Do you remember Inez Sainz? She was the sports reporter at the center of that New York Jets locker room firestorm? There she is. Well, "Playboy" apparently wants her. Coming up, I'll tell you about that offer and her answer.
Also, Rahm Emanuel fighting for his right to run for mayor of Chicago. We'll tell you what happened when he took the stand. Gloria Borger is standing by. Your CNN Political Ticker coming at you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Of course, CNN = Politics. Gloria Borger joins me with the latest from the CNN Political Ticker. Gloria, good to see you. What do you have?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: How are you doing?
BALDWIN: Good?
BORGER: First, we're going to talk about the Afghanistan- Pakistan review. As you know, it's been about a year since the president announced his Afghanistan policy. And now comes the much expected review of it. The president met with his team for an hour and 45 minutes today, a meeting that was clearly complicated and certainly saddened by the death of Richard Holbrooke, as you know, who was his special envoy to the region. But meet they did.
And Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said to journalists today, "The one thing we ought to expect is that the president will keep his planned withdrawal of American troops from the region starting in July 2011." He also said that the report is going to show some progress in breaking the momentum of the Taliban and getting the cooperation of the Pakistanis. Although there are lots of roadblocks ahead, it is going to show some progress.
Next, onto a fun story, which is of course the mayoral race in Chicago. We all know former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel is running for mayor of Chicago.
But there's kind of a block, a speed bump in the road, which is he's got to prove that he actually lives in Chicago. So today he spent some time testifying before the board of elections there.
The requirement is that you have to have lived in Chicago for one year. Now, what Rahm Emanuel says is that he owns a house there, even though he rents it out. He pays property taxes there, and, of course, he votes there.
And then he told them one more thing, which is that his wife's wedding dress is still in the house. So how can you not really live there when you leave your wedding dress behind, right, Brooke?
BALDWIN: Gloria, thank you very much. Sorry, I'm just getting a little bit of information in my ear. A quick reminder, another Political Ticker update in about half an hour. Anytime you can hop online at CNNpolitics.com.
