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Senate Passes 9/11 Health Care Bill; Senate Ratifies Nuclear Treaty; Chicago Firefighters Killed in Building Collapse; President Obama Signs "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Repeal Into Law; Betty Ford Clinic Employee Accuses Lindsay Lohan of Assault; Director of Department of National Intelligence Unaware of Recent Terror Arrests
Aired December 22, 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: Here we go. The day before my Christmas break, we have a lot going on. And let's continue, Ali Velshi, where you left off.
Look, we're going to stay on the breaking news from Washington, where the Senate just passed the bill to provide health care for those 9/11 first-responders. So, I will be talking to we will call him one of the most outspoken guys on the issue here in just a moment. He was a worker who spent months and months at Ground Zero after the 9/11 terror attacks.
We're also, as Ali had been watching, we will continue to watch here the vote on the START treaty. In fact, we have just gotten word that it has passed, yeas 71, nays 26. We are waiting on comments from the president specifically on this START treaty, on this nuclear arms treaty.
We're told he will take some questions from reporters shortly after the 4:00 -- 4:00 Eastern time. We will bring that to you live, of course, here on CNN.
And I'm going to take you to Chicago in just a moment, where tragedy really struck this city this morning. Two firefighters died, more than a dozen are injured when this building, this abandoned building, totally collapsed.
So, we're going to get to all those stories.
But, first, I want to begin with the breaking news out of Washington, a couple very busy few hours on Capitol Hill.
And that is where I want to go straight to our senior congressional correspondent, Dana Bash.
And, Dana, let me make sure I'm getting this right. On this nuclear arms treaty, final vote, yeas 71, nays 26. So, it's official. It passed.
DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That is correct. The Senate has now approved this arms treaty between the United States and Russia, and, as we have said so many times, the issue that really tops the president's foreign policy agenda. So, this is a very, very big victory for the president.
He did get some Republicans, many Republicans, but not the majority of Republicans. But he certainly got enough to reach the two-thirds majority of the Senate needed to approve this. This is something that, for -- for -- for several weeks was not clear if it was going to happen, Brooke.
Republicans were objecting on the issue of substance, issues that they had with the body of the treaty, and also the timing, very, very loud complaints from Republicans who might have been on the fence saying that they believed that Democrats were cramming them in trying to get this done in the last hours, maybe even last hour of this Congress --
(LAUGHTER)
BASH: -- before they go out before the new year. But it certainly is -- they're going to be slapping each other on the back at the White House, if they're not already.
We saw a lot of that going on, on the Senate floor as they were beginning to vote. But that is certainly very interesting. And one other thing I wanted to mention in terms of the specifics, we were watching John McCain, because he is somebody who was very openly skeptical of this treaty. He was one of the biggest critics of the timing of this.
But he got an amendment passed earlier today that had to do with the missile defense system. So, thought maybe he might have turned and voted yes. He didn't. He actually voted no on this. So, we're going to try to get from his office what happened in the end there, Brooke.
BALDWIN: And as you try to chase him down, as I know you're very good at, let me just follow up with you with one obvious question, which, Dana, is, what's next? Because we know this is not a bill. This is a treaty.
We know, with bills, the president has to sit there and sign it into law. With a treaty, now that we have the two-thirds majority approved in the Senate, what's next, procedurally?
BASH: Procedurally, this is -- this is I believe basically it.
BALDWIN: Ah, OK.
BASH: I mean, there are some terms -- there are some terms that need to be worked out. I should say that. And, actually, some of the amendments that passed have to do with instructions that the Senate is giving to the president, the things that he must say and do that go along with that. So, that needs to be worked out.
But this is a very important milestone for this.
The other thing I wanted to mention, as this has been going on, Ali, when he talked to you, he said there's a lot of news. (LAUGHTER)
BASH: The 9/11 first-responders bill, that actually --
BALDWIN: Yes.
BALDWIN: -- in between all this passed without a roll call vote. It passed by voice vote. So, all of the senators effectively said that they were OK with this.
This is a deal that happened in warp speed that we reported on earlier this morning that gave the -- especially the senators from New York who have been pushing for this, Democrat Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, a big victory, and obviously a big victory for the people in New York who have been pushing for this. It's a $4.2 billion compensation fund.
It has been reduced -- and that was part of the deal, Brooke, with Republicans. It was about $2 billion more. Some other concessions dealing with attorneys' fees and making sure that this fund only lasts for five years, that is what got Republicans on board. And it's already done.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Yes, I liked how you said that --
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: -- Dana Bash, warp speed.
(LAUGHTER)
BALDWIN: Warp speed, indeed. It was like, you blinked, you missed it. The Senate passed it.
And, as we mentioned at the top of the hour, I will be speaking to one of the first-responders about this major, major moment for them in just a couple of minutes.
But for now, Dana Bash, I'm going to let you put on your running shoes and chase down John McCain.
(LAUGHTER)
BASH: Thanks, Brooke.
BALDWIN: We will maybe see you a little bit later.
But now I want to turn our attention here to Chicago. Two firefighters are killed, 14 others injured after battling this massive fire there. This whole thing started when a fire broke out in this vacant building early this morning. And take a look at these pictures.
I mean, these aerial pictures are really astounding. A wall and portions of the roof of this building collapsed, trapping several men inside the rubble, several firefighters. And this, of course, led to the digging, this -- this difficult process of digging frantically through the charred debris to try to rescue some of their -- their brothers trapped inside, battling snow.
Look at this. Keep in mind, folks, this is Chicago, frigid, frigid cold, snow. They're pulling brick by brick by brick from the ground to try to get under there. Two of the four firefighters underneath were rescued. Two others died from their injuries.
And I want to bring in Larry Langford. He is with the Chicago Fire Department.
And, Larry, look, our thoughts here very much so with Chicago F.D., very tough morning. And we were all watching these pictures unfold, sir.
But before we talk about this search, I want to just get to these 14 firefighters injured. Can you just bring me up to speed? How are they doing?
LARRY LANGFORD, PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER, CHICAGO FIRE DEPARTMENT: The remainder of the firefighters that were injured this morning are all doing very well.
BALDWIN: Good.
LANGFORD: The most serious is -- is listed as stable condition. The rest of them are in good to excellent condition. And we don't expect that we have life-threatening situations.
BALDWIN: Oh, thank goodness.
Let's -- take me back this morning to, you know, these -- these men and perhaps some women. They're responding to this abandoned building, this fire, reports of possibly squatters inside, maybe some, you know, homeless people seeking shelter.
LANGFORD: Well, this building -- this building had been vacant since 2005, and did not have any utility service whatever.
BALDWIN: Got it.
LANGFORD: So, when you get fire in a building that's vacant and has been cut off from all utilities, chances are somebody has gone in and they have made a little fire to stay warm, a lot of homeless people in Chicago, like everyplace else.
And that -- that's what we think may have happened. So, what we will always do is make a very extensive search of the building, along with fighting the fire. So we had crews that were inside trying to extinguish the fire, which was not a huge fire. And other crews were searching to make sure that no one was inside.
And for reasons we do not yet fully understand, the back wall went and the roof came down. BALDWIN: And so how many people, how many firefighters were -- were in that building as that roof gave way?
LANGFORD: There were -- there were four to six inside. We know that four were trapped when the roof came in, but we had many other firefighters on the scene. That led to what's called a mayday and an emergency response.
And, in the end, we had about 175 firefighters on scene with the 311 response and 10 ambulances to take care of the injured.
BALDWIN: Wow, 175 firefighters. I -- I -- I lost count. I was trying to count them all while I was watching all of this unfolding earlier today. You say the mayday was called. Describe the search for me.
How difficult was it given these conditions? We're looking again at all the snow, not to mention just the conditions on the ground. Talk to me about the search. And could these firefighters, could they hear voices? Could they hear cries from within the rubble?
LANGFORD: Well, we do know that two of them were -- were found quickly because their alarms were going off. That's a -- an alarm that goes off on their equipment if they remain motionless for longer than a set period of time.
So, they were able to get to them very quickly. It took a little longer to get to the other two. Their alarms may have been going off, but they were so -- so covered in debris, that they couldn't be heard. So, firefighters were just digging where they were last known to be, and the pictures you have seen, literally grabbing brick by brick and throwing them into the alley and going in with saws and -- and hand tools until they found them and made the recovery with an ambulance standing right by.
BALDWIN: I cannot imagine. These are their brothers, and they wanted to save them.
Also, Larry, though, we had read reports of frozen fire hydrants. A., is that -- can you verify that for me? And if -- if indeed that was the case, would this scenario -- fire hydrants been properly functioning, would this scenario have played out differently?
LANGFORD: I -- I can tell you, with 10 years at the department and a lot of experience before that, no, it didn't make any difference. We had one frozen hydrant, but we -- we are anticipating that many times in winter conditions.
In Chicago, the hydrants are located about 300 feet apart. It doesn't -- doesn't cause a problem. A positive source of water was found right away and water was being put on the fire. That didn't have anything to do with it.
BALDWIN: Got it.
I want to end on some video that we have yet to see, but we're going to play this video. This is from when Captain Cory Ankum, one of the two firefighters who died today, he was taken from the hospital in an ambulance to the medical examiner's office.
And it's from my understanding that there were many, many -- here they are -- firefighters -- here's the video -- saluting him. Were you there? Could you describe the scene? Do you have friends who were there?
LANGFORD: I was at the building and I was at the hospital.
Whenever a firefighter or a police officer is transported from the medical facility to the morgue who has died, there's always a very solemn outpouring of policemen and firemen along the route. If there are any firehouses, they come out, they salute the passing ambulance. It's a very emotional scene.
And this went from the far south side of the city to the downtown area, where the morgue is located. And it's a very solemn procession and it's show of respect. And the problem is we have had to do it too often on both the police and fire side over the last several months.
BALDWIN: Larry Langford, we are so sorry for your loss. What a difficult story to have to endure, all of those men. We thank you for jumping on the line and talking to me about that from Chicago.
And speaking of firefighters, let's take this live picture. We have two New York senators, Senator Schumer, Senator Gillibrand.
Let's dip in for a moment. They're talking to -- here first is Harry Reid talking about this 9/11 first-responder bill that has passed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. Whew!
(APPLAUSE)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: I have been so impressed with the legislative efforts of the New York delegation, of course led by Schumer and Gillibrand. But also the House members.
Everyone worked very, very hard on this issue. It was -- it was an issue of fairness and justice. You can't take out of your mind the hours of 9/11 when these brave men and women rushed into that -- those burning buildings, smoke pouring out of them.
And when the smoke stopped, the debris was still there. The debris was cleared. But the problem is the people that rushed in and fought those fires and brought people out and helped clean the debris, they're the ones that will never, never forget what they did because they have the disease to prove it.
Every American remembers the fear, anger and sadness of the hours, the days, weeks and months that followed that terrorist attack of 9/11. We can all remember where we were that morning on 9/11. I can remember where I was. And S. 209 -- S. 219, I'm sorry -- we had our little leadership meeting in there every week. I was the first one to get there. John Breaux from Louisiana walked in, he said, "There's something going on in New York. Flipped on the TV." We flipped on the TV -- some pilot was off course.
And the meeting got started. Senator Daschle was leading the discussion. He was -- door opened. People came in and whisked him out. He came back. He said, "We got to get out of here." He said, "There's a plane headed for the Capitol," and we could see the Pentagon burning.
We also remember the pride we felt as we learned the stories of thousands of first responders who rushed into burning buildings, facing injury and in many instances certain death, to save people they'd never met, had never seen.
We also learned about emergency personnel who helped clean up and search for friends and loved ones in the weeks and months after 9/11.
Those brave Americans weren't just from New York. Most of them were. But emergency personnel, firefighters came from Nevada. They came from all over the country. Patriots from all over America answered the call.
When America needed these men and women following those terrorist attacks of 9/11, they didn't hesitate or waver. They did their jobs.
Because of the toxic fumes they inhaled that day, and the weeks and months that followed, these heroes are paying a price for their courage that is really difficult to describe.
And sadly, some have already paid the ultimate sacrifice. I can't say enough about Senator, Schumer, who everyone knows how close we are, and the new senator from New York. What a team.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hear, hear.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hear, hear.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kirsten.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
BALDWIN: Harry Reid saying the good guys have won, to a huge applause. What a day for him.
First, the nuclear arms treaty, reduction of those arms, otherwise known as START, has passed the Senate, now, really in a millisecond, the 9/11 first-responders bill.
Let me make sure. I want us all to know officially what the -- the name of this is called, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. And I just think it's worth reminding everyone who James Zadroga was.
He was a New York Police Department detective. He died down at 9/11 -- or because of the toxic plumes apparently he had inhaled. And they believe he is the first NYPD officer whose death was attributed to his exposure there at Ground Zero.
We're going to be talking to one of the first first-responders. His name is John Feal. He's actually at that news conference standing alongside Harry Reid. We will talk to him in just a couple of minutes, huge day in Washington.
But, first, also this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Like I said, big day. It's official. The president signs the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" into law. I'm going to talk to retired Naval Commander Zoe Dunning standing next to the president just over his right shoulder this morning.
She's been an openly gay member of the U.S. military for years and years, has been fighting for this for some time. We will get her reaction ahead live here on CNN.
And California continues to get pounded with powerful storms. We will check the weather next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM.
A couple other stories I want to keep your eye on.
First, it is definitely not all quiet yet on the Korean Peninsula. The South Korean military says a long-ago planned war games exercise will proceed, despite that recent spike in tension on the border both between North and South Korea. The war games start tomorrow, with South Korean air and land forces taking part. The navy in fact began training today in the waters just off the peninsula's East Coast.
And how many different ways can we say it's raining like crazy in California? Look at them just trying to keep the water out of this shop. This is the water in Laguna Beach today. Shop owners on Ocean Avenue using their short break to clean up a bit. In fact, we're hearing more heavy rain is on the way.
And to San Diego, scary scene there. This is last night. Rushing floodwater overwhelmed this car and people inside, rescuers pulling them to safety with ropes and rubber boats. Look how fast that water is rushing. And records are made to be broken, right? Well, I have one for you, courtesy of the University of Connecticut women's basketball team. Last night, they blew out Florida -- State, I should say -- 93- 62 to put up their 89th consecutive win. And this 89 was a huge, huge number for the UConn ladies. That is a new college bask record set by the UCLA men's team 37 years ago.
And if you are just joining us, the START treaty has passed the Senate. Also today, the 9/11 health care bill has passed the Senate. And the president signed the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." And we will be hearing from him from the White House in exactly one hour from now. We will bring all of that to you live.
Meantime, a controversial billboard shows Jesus in an ultrasound, and it's raising some eyebrows. Wait until you see it. That's a little snippet of a preview for you.
Plus, suffering first-responders to 9/11, they are now a huge leap forward to health care benefits, this bill that has now passed the Senate. Dana Bash, she is on the hill with new developments. We will check in with her coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: The Senate has approved a revised 9/11 health care bill. And this would provide medical treatment coverage for first- responders exposed to all the toxic debris, the fumes at Ground Zero back, you know, nine years ago.
And the main sticking point on Capitol Hill, at least up until now, has really been the cost, and, specifically, Senate Republicans wanting to protect a corporate tax loophole. Republicans felt so strongly about keeping this loophole, they filibustered the bill not two weeks ago. Over the weekend, the overall original cost was cut by more than a billion dollars and the tax loophole was replaced by fees that will affect foreign companies doing business in the U.S. and also tourists.
At that point, Democrats thought they had a deal. And people like 9/11 first-responder Kenny Specht started to implore Congress to make a deal, as he told me just this past Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KENNY SPECHT, FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, NEW YORK CITY FIREFIGHTER BROTHERHOOD FOUNDATION: We have run out of time, Brooke. Time for partisan politics and -- and -- and politics and procedures, it's over. The bill should be brought up for a straight up-and-down vote. We have done the work.
And, as your report alluded to earlier, we understand the concerns that the Republican Party had. And we have tried to meet those concerns.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BALDWIN: Now, Congress, though, they still didn't like the cost. And Senator Jim DeMint, for one, wanted to kick the tires on the bill a bit longer. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JIM DEMINT (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: Every member of this chamber, Republicans and Democrats, want to do what's right for the first-responders who may have been injured after 9/11.
But we owe it to the American people to be accountable to how we spend money. And to put a bill on the floor in an unaccountable lame- duck Congress that has not been through hearings, when we don't know what the -- the millions of dollars, how they have been used that we have already given to the same cause, certainly, it's worth a few weeks of committee hearings and understanding exactly how to spend taxpayer money effectively in a way that we know will help the people who have been injured.
But, no, we have got to push that through in a fired, unaccountable Congress.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So, let me bring you up to speed today. Negotiations continue today that reduce the cost of the bill by $2 billion -- among the changes made to bring down the cost of the bill, a cap on lawyer fees.
Joining me now by phone, Jim Ryder. He was a first-responder on 9/11.
And, Jim, I understand you are good enough to step out of that news conference, where we just heard Senator Schumer and Gillibrand and Reid were in. And, apparently, Senator Reid said the good guys have won.
JIM RYDER, 9/11 FIRST-RESPONDER: Absolutely.
BALDWIN: Is that how you feel? How do you feel?
RYDER: Absolutely
I feel elated. I'm glad for a lot of reasons, of course, for the first-responders who will get the aid and concern that they need, but I'm also glad about something else. I'm glad that the Republicans -- and I'm a fellow Republican. I have been a staunch conservative for 20 years. I'm glad they said no to this bill. I'm glad they fought us. I'm glad they questioned things.
I'm glad they stood up and said, we don't want to be patriots. We want to be politicians, because we moved this mountain.
BALDWIN: Hmm.
RYDER: They got bigger and fought more, and we still won. We couldn't have been more proud.
BALDWIN: Well, looking at the cost -- you bring up the Republicans. The issue, as I mentioned, was the cost. It had initiated somewhere around $7.4 billion, the price tag for this bill. Then it went down to $6.2 billion, now today passing the Senate at $4.3 billion.
And what message do you have for those Republicans who finally said unanimously today, yea, we pass?
RYDER: Well, I think they should learn from us, quite frankly.
The Congressional Budget Office originally recommended that this bill be $10 billion. And it went from $10 billion down to today's $4 billion.
BALDWIN: Mm-hmm.
RYDER: But you know what? That's OK. We're going to get it up and running. We're going to start covering the health care for these people, so they don't pay for thousands of dollars in medication per week and keep their homes.
And then when we turn to them in four or five years, we're going to say, this is it. We have got it up and running. This is what we told you was going to happen. It's a success story. Give us more money.
BALDWIN: Jim, I don't know if you know him -- I'm guessing you probably do -- Kenny Specht. I talked to him earlier this week.
RYDER: Gentleman.
BALDWIN: Very much so. And I asked him, you know, what has motivated you?
He told me, look, it's been -- Brooke, it's been nine years, two months since -- since 9/11. And he's been -- really been motivated by the loss of his brothers, his -- his fallen friends, said it fuels his tank.
What's kept you fighting all these years?
RYDER: A dear friend named Tom Neal (ph), who is still to this day fighting cancer. And he's a gentleman that stood next to me on the pile, and we did it together. And we did what we needed to do as police officers.
And now he's paying the price. And it breaks my heart. And when I saw him struggling, I said I needed to make a difference. Why God chose him and not me, I will never know.
BALDWIN: Jim Ryder, I appreciate you hopping on the phone. I know it's a busy, exciting day for you. Congratulations to you. And thank you for your service. I appreciate it. The president signs the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" just this morning. But is it safe for gays in the military to come out of the closet right away? That conversation is ahead.
And when will there be a break in all this storming weather? Bonnie Schneider has your forecast next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: There is still -- still no relief in sight for those of you in California just inundated by all this rain.
In fact, I want to take you to Southern California. And look at this video with me. The five-day rain total has topped 10 inches in many areas, snow measured out West also now being measured in feet, not inches.
Bonnie Schneider is here to look at some of the pictures we're getting in.
And, Bonnie, let's just take a look at some of these pictures together, if we can.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: First, let's go to -- this was Laguna Beach, California. And you can see the shopkeeper just trying with a broom to keep some of the water out. How -- it's just tough.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, what happened was a lot of that water came from the canyon, because, as the storms kind of go uphill, they squeeze out more moisture. So, we had mudslides and debris flow.
So, most of downtown Laguna Beach is flooded and impassable right now. So, we're definitely looking at some wet weather to continue for Laguna Beach, as the shop owners kind of try to clean things out.
BALDWIN: Let me interrupt you for a second, because I'm just hearing in my ear that -- let's go -- let's take the live pictures, guys.
Corona county, do we -- where is Corona County, Angie? Corona county -- I'm going by KCAL. This is somewhere in the area of L.A. And look at -- this is the airport. Is that right? This is --
SCHNEIDER: Completely flooded.
BALDWIN: This is the airport totally flooded. The runways are on the left-hand side of your screen. You can see where they begin, but you can't see where they end. Look at that. It's a muddy mess.
SCHNEIDER: That's just incredible. And it's going to take a while, because the problem is, Brooke, we still have more rain coming in at least through today. I think, tomorrow, the system will pass further to the east. But, remember, even when it all stops, we still have a lot of runoff, which is what we saw this morning in Laguna Beach, when the downtown streets were just closed, and officials said, don't even try to come to work today. The roads are impassable.
So, what is happening right now is, we have steady rain Orange County and then to the north in L.A., to the south in San Diego. And, as we open up the scope, you will see the rain stretches all the way into Las Vegas. That's another place that's really getting hit hard with a lot of rain at this hour. We're anticipating one to three inches of rain headed toward Las Vegas.
BALDWIN: Let's take a look. I think this is -- this is Mesquite, Nevada. So their issue -- you mentioned Nevada. Flash flooding obviously a problem. Flash flooding warnings there. Police in Vegas say a lot of the roads are closed. What are you hearing as far as a flash flood watch for, what, Arizona, California, southern Nevada?
SCHNEIDER: I think for California it will expire first as the storm moves east. But Las Vegas is still definitely under the threat of the flooding for the next two days as the storm continues to work eastward.
See what this man is doing? Not advisable. The water is knee deep. That force of water only takes six inches to completely knock you off your feet. And remember, the steady flow of moving water has tree mend owls force that could even pick up your vehicle -- 1,500 -- that car is I'm sure completely submerged and about to be picked up by the water. That's a very dangerous situation.
A lot of people being trapped in vehicles right now unfortunately due to the torrential water across California.
BALDWIN: A lot of rescues. We have more pictures. Guys, let's go to the rescue in southern California. This was from last night. People were totally caught off guard. You have to watch this very carefully. You have this fast moving water, emergency crews. There they are. I think they're on a boat it looks like trying to find them. See this woman being pulled out of her car holding on for dear life trusting this man or woman trying to get him out. That's one swift water rescue of many reported. In fact, in the L.A. area, police say there were 25 -- 25 swift water rescues overnight. Some crews had to use canoes to try to get to the people who were trapped.
SCHNEIDER: That's true. Obviously, you want to try to avoid the situation. The problem is it happens very, very quickly when you're driving in the road. The water can keep on piling up.
A couple of quick points that are advised if you find yourself in the situation. If you come over a flooded road, the first thing to do is power down your windows because chances are your system is going to short out and if you have to escape your car you're going to want to get out as fast as possible.
Also there are devices that you can puncture the windows if you had to escape you can. This is a worst-case scenario of course. Now we're also looking at a lot of snow, snow measured by the foot -- 17 feet, one of the highest snowfall totals I've ever seen in parts of California as well as Colorado still seeing a lot of heavy snow.
Then to the northeast as we head across the country, we're also tracking travel troubles. We're seeing that in Boston where we have light snow falling and cold temperatures. You can see there's a lot of delays as a result of that.
BALDWIN: It is that time of year, isn't it?
SCHNEIDER: It is.
BALDWIN: I'm heading to sunny so Cal tomorrow. Not so sunny in San Diego. Bonnie, thank you very much.
Now look at this story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want it to be a message of hope.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: A message of hope. Does an anti-abortion activist group go a little bit too far by showing a baby Jesus in an ultrasound? Look at this. I'm going to let you decide. We'll take a closer look ahead.
This woman has been fighting for the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" for many years. Now you saw the president this morning officially with his autograph. It's happened. It's now official. We'll get her reaction on her long, long fight, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: We told you it was a big day in Washington. A lot of that started this morning. I want you to take a look at the president signing a bill earlier today to a round of applause.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: There is President Obama and many people standing behind him. He has officially repealed the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. And Zoe Dunning was right there. You see her smiling to the right of the president? That is Dunning. The president was motioning her to be by his side when he actually signed that landmark legislation earlier today.
Dunning, by the way, is a retired U.S. Navy commander, endured two military discharge hearings after announcing she is gay. Until her retirement three years ago, Dunning was the only openly gay service member serving her country. A decorated veteran, Zoe served 22 years in the U.S. Navy both on active duty and the reserves.
And Commander Zoe Dunning is good enough to join me from Washington. Zoe, big day for you. Take me back to that moment when you were standing over the president's right shoulder and you were tweeting today saying "I can barely tweet, my hands are shaking." Describe your emotions. Did you ever think -- I know you hoped for this day, but did you ever think you would see this day?
COMMANDER ZOE DUNNING, U.S. NAVY (RET.): I mean, you have to have hope. I've about working on this issue for 18 years. You have to have hope to keep you going forward. But you have your ups even your downs. And I actually was in Washington two weeks ago when the Senate failed to pass "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" repeal as part of the national defense authorization act.
As I stood in the gallery and watched it go down, I thought that was it. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" repeal would be put on the back burner and it would be another two years until the next Congress that we would actually have an opening to do it.
So when they announced it I almost dare not get my hopes up for fear it would get dashed again. But the president showed tremendous leadership, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Steny Hoyer, they all were fantastic, and Susan Collins, pushing this thing through. And I'm so proud of them and so proud to be an American today.
BALDWIN: You were there this morning over the president's right- hand shoulder. I'm just curious if you'd be willing to share one little nugget. I don't know if you had a chance to speak with Mr. Obama before or after the signing ceremony, but did he say anything to you?
DUNNING: He shook my hand and thanked me for my service and I thanked him for his leadership on this. And he seemed very relaxed. He seemed very proud, I think, of this day and this accomplishment.
And it was kind of funny. I was a little nervous. I was trying to break up my own tension. So when he was actually signing the document and he does one pen per letter, and as he was doing the "R," the third letter, I just sort of jokingly whispered to him and said, make sure you spell it right. And he laughed and Speaker Pelosi laughed and it was a really magical moment.
BALDWIN: A magical moment and you as you mentioned a moment ago, you served 22 years in the U.S. Navy active duty and reserves. You have a different distinction as well, we mentioned, the only openly gay personnel for 14 years. Zoe, under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" how come you weren't discharged?
DUNNING: I was one of the first test cases. I came out publicly and proactively to challenge the constitutionality. I underwent discharge under the old policy and under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
Ironically I was selected for promotion to lieutenant commander between the two discharge hearings. So while they were trying to kick me out, they were also selecting me for promotion. It's a bit of a legalese issue but the way "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is written it equates status with conduct. The purpose of a military discharge hearing is review presumption of misconduct. I said I'm a naval officer and a lesbian, we're focused on stats, who I am and it wasn't meant to imply anything about conduct. For whatever reason the board of officers hearing my case found that to be sufficient and voted unanimously to retain me.
Subsequently the Pentagon issued a memorandum that didn't allow anyone else to use that strategy. So that's how I was an exception.
BALDWIN: I just wanted to ask.
It's a victorious day for you. It's not a victorious day for every single American or every member of the military service. My question is this. Zoe, what do you say to your fellow men and women who do serve, including those in the marines -- you saw the disapproval ratings highest among some of the marines. They're worried about possible distractions on the battlefield. What is your message to them?
DUNNING: My message to them is that if you look at the survey, when they talked to folks who had actually served alongside people that they knew to be gay or lesbian or suspected gay or lesbian, 92 percent said it wasn't a distraction, 92 percent said it had no impact on the unit's ability or effectiveness.
So I would rely on that statistic and say it's not that big a deal. You're serving alongside gays and less bans right now whether you know it or not. You're not going to find 65,000 service members suddenly come flying out of the closet once this is safe. I think people are going to be circumspect and do it at their own pace and actually will make the military stronger.
BALDWIN: Zoe Dunning, thank you so much for us from Washington today.
DUNNING: Thank you. Very happy today.
BALDWIN: Thank you.
Lindsay Lohan, here she is back in the news today. This time it involves a betty ford clinic worker who has now been fired. What is the story here? That's ahead.
And there is this controversial new ad that shows an ultrasound of baby Jesus. It's even got a halo. It's making headlines. That's next.
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BALDWIN: There is a billboard that's getting all kinds of attention in Ohio. A group of anti-abortion activists in Cincinnati sparked quite a discussion with the Christmas season ad campaign. Take a look at this with me. Here's the billboard. It's an ultrasound image showing a fetus -- there it is on the right side. See the halo? The message is this. "He came as a baby. Christmas starts with Christ." An anonymous donor supplied the money for the billboards.
A rehab worker is fired over an alleged tussle with Lindsay Lohan. And many, many people are tweeting about this one today.
Plus, Paula Deen's housekeeper is in hot water over what she allegedly stole from the chef's home. It is "trending" today. Brooke Anderson joins me next.
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BALDWIN: Before I take you to L.A. and talk about what's trending today, I just want to remind you it's been a huge day in Washington. First this morning the president signed the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Also this afternoon the U.S. Senate has officially approved the treaty, international reduction of arms treaty with Russia, and also the Senate passing the 9/11 first responders bill.
So a little bit going on. President Obama has a little bit to talk about. He'll be speaking live from the White House in a half an hour. We're bringing in the A-Team from Washington to talk about that. That's at 4:15 Eastern right here.
And now to L.A. where we're going to talk to Brooke Anderson about what you're talking about and tweeting about. Ms. Anderson as always is in Hollywood. Let's begin with Lindsay Lohan. Brooke, what is the story?
BROOKE ANDERSON, HLN HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Brooke, how does this happen? Even in rehab Lindsay Lohan can still wind up in the middle of controversy. There is a lot of she said/she said in this story. But a woman who was working at the Betty Ford clinic where Lindsay has been treated accused Lindsay of assaulting her.
Dawn Holland is claiming to TMZ.com that Lindsay had broken curfew, had alcohol on her breath. She tells TMZ that when she confronted Lindsay, things got out of hands. Watch what she said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAWN HOLLAND, LOHAN ACCUSER: She tried to snatch the phone from out of my arm. She just grabbed my wrist and snatched it down and twisted my arm and my hand to get the phone out of my arm and swore a few choice words at me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: In her statement to TMZ, Holland denies she initiated the confrontation and says in her opinion Lindsay has not been responding well to the rehab.
No surprise this interview did not go over well with the Betty Ford clinic. Holland was fired for breaking their confidentiality rules. Police, by the way, are still investigating the incident as a misdemeanor assault.
And it really is unacceptable, deplorable really that any rehab employee would ever disclose any controversial information about a patient. But if it's all true it still indicates Lindsay has a lot of work to do.
But Lindsay on the other hand reportedly says that the staffer was the aggressor and that she did -- Lindsay did nothing wrong and that she had not been drinking. Lindsay's lawyer told "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" -- take a look at this -- "At this time we are declining to comment on the underlying facts surrounding this incident as we await the completion of the police investigation.
It should be noted, however, that it was Ms. Lohan who called 911 to request police assistance at the time this incident occurred." So she said/she said. What ever happened, it's ugly. I had really been hoping Lindsay could complete this rehabilitation with no drama, and that doesn't seem to be case.
BALDWIN: We were all hoping that. As you said she said/she said. Maybe the truth lies in between. Let's wrap up with Paula Deen. Got a maid, not good.
ANDERSON: Yes, celebrity Paula Deen, she got burned by her housekeeper, Brooke. Mary Alice White --
BALDWIN: A lot of money.
ANDERSON: A lot of money. Her former maid will spend the next year and a half in prison followed by probation for stealing from Deen and her husband. White pleaded guilty to theft. She was arrested in May after attempting to pawn $1,000 pair of earring and later a watch and a bracelet. Deen's husband told authorities about $100,000 worth of jewelry was stolen. Deen reportedly told the judge in the case, quote, "the scars she left behind emotionally can't begin to be measured. She used our love and kindness against us."
Brooke, you know, the holidays haven't been easy for Deen this year or last. We have the video, you guys, from a year ago, remember, when she got hit in the face with that flying ham while helping out a charity in Georgia. Do we have that?
BALDWIN: Here we go. Here we go.
ANDERSON: She kept her sense of humor throughout it all, laughed it off, said "Ran head on into a hog."
BALDWIN: Could you do that in the Paula Deen voice?
ANDERSON: I don't know if I can quite do the Paula --
BALDWIN: You're a Georgia girl.
ANDERSON: I am, but I'm not even going to try.
BALDWIN: I'm not going to try either. I'm not going there. We're not going there.
ANDERSON: Let's just hope she has a joyful and uneventful Christmas and New Year's going for her.
BALDWIN: Absolutely, absolutely. Brooke Anderson, merry Christmas, by the way. I'll see you next week.
ANDERSON: You too.
BALDWIN: Switching gears, entirely, here. We told you this story out of Chicago, traumatic. Two firefighters died this morning in a search. More than a dozen others injured while fighting this fire. This abandoned building here in Chicago. You'll see the whole thing unfold ahead.
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BALDWIN: When authorities raided four cities to round up a dozen terror suspects, it was major international news. Just one problem, though. The director of the National Intelligence didn't know about it. And then he gave this embarrassing preview.
Plus --
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CELESTE FLORES-NARVAEZ, SISTER OF MISSING WOMAN: Right now, I don't know if someone is involved in the case or in what's going on. I don't know. I have to believe she's OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: The case continues here for the missing Vegas showgirl. We are learning a little bit more today about Debbie Flores-Narvaez, the woman with three college degrees who pursued her dance dream in Vegas, apparently has a history with police.
Also, I want to remind you again, we are about 20 minutes away here from a live presidential news conference. Stand by for that live from Washington.
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BALDWIN: When we're looking for questions that are just not getting answered, we turn to Joe Johns for political pop. And Joe, I want to begin with something that definitely caught our attention this morning, as it did yours. The top intelligence officer had a bit of a problem. What was that problem, Joe?
JOE JOHNS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, obviously, I mean, talking around town, there's a public relations problem for the director of intelligence, James Clapper. But it actually could have been a lot worse. He got a break because the president's Homeland Security Adviser John Brennan, jumped in.
Now, let's just look at the clip that aired. It was an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, and some of the government's top national security people. Go ahead and run the tape.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DIANE SAWYER, ABC NEWS: How serious is it? Any implication it was coming here? Any of the things they have seen were coming here? Director Clapper?
JOHN BRENNAN, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: You read the arrests of the --
SAWYER: The arrest of the 12 --
CLAPPER: -- by the British this morning. This is something they informed us about early this morning was taking place.
SAWYER (voice-over): Later in the interview, I came back to the director. Did he really not know?
SAWYER (on camera): I was a little surprised you didn't know about London, Director Clapper.
DIRECTOR JAMES CLAPPER, DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: I'm sorry. I didn't.
BRENNAN: Well, you referenced London, but you didn't talk about the arrests.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So he's kind of blaming Diane Sawyer for the questioning, it sounds like.
JOHNS: Right, right. And I talked to one media professional who's worked in this town for years and politics, called it shocking that this guy did not know about London, because it had been all over the news that day.
BALDWIN: We broke in, I think it was Monday morning, Joe, with the whole terror arrest roundup. How does Clapper not know about this?
JOHNS: Well, he says his staff didn't brief him on it, or at least that's what the reports are out there, but that answer, your staff didn't brief you, is also described in Washington as the dog ate my homework answer, because the first defense against being out of the loop is, news radio, cable, it's called open source information in the intelligence community, no filters, no top secret labels, just the news.
The other report we've seen is that the information out there about London was ambiguous and we don't know what that means, but the question is if they're suggesting somehow the DNI doesn't get briefed on ambiguous information too, which raises another set of questions, quite frankly.
BALDWIN: Sure. And also another question is, how might this -- what kind of affect would this have on Clapper's job. We'll certainly be following up on that.
Joe, let me follow up with this, and then I have to let you go. Speaking of the intelligence community, there's some news today in your loop in D.C. about Scooter Libby and Valerie Plame. Do tell.
JOHNS: Yes, absolutely. That's correct. You know, there was a movie that came out not too long ago. It's the movie "Fair Game." it's supposed to tell the story of how CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity was exposed in the media.
Supporters of Scooter Libby are out there now crying foul, saying it was distorted and so on. The director of that movie has come to his defense, reminding people that there was a criminal referral out of the CIA on all of these matters. But it just keeps the buzz going on Valerie Plame, Scooter Libby, and the whole story.
BALDWIN: I did see the movie, thought it was pretty good, but obviously, I'm not in the know. Joe Johns, thank you so much. I appreciate it, as always.
