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Flights Scrapped in Atlanta; Outrage Over Funeral Protest; Haiti Quake's Tiny Survivor

Aired January 11, 2011 - 14:00   ET

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

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Not many snow plows here in the South, and that's part of the problem.

But if your state isn't under some sort of winter weather warning, watch. Our advisory today, well, you're pretty much in the minority.

At least 30 states are snowed in, glazed over, or soon will be. And even the ones that aren't are still feeling the pain.

Check out this Palm Beach International Airport. Yes, as in Palm Beach, Florida. Thousands of passengers stranded because flights to or through Atlanta or Charlotte are canceled. Florida, by the way, the only state in the lower 48 entirely untouched by snow.

Speaking of Charlotte, the roads are in worse shape than the runways. And that is still the case right here in Atlanta. The storm that is responsible is now heading up the Eastern Seaboard. And believe it or not, it is getting stronger.

And that brings us to our severe weather expert, Chad Myers.

(WEATHER REPORT)

SAVIDGE: The world's busiest airport, once again not nearly as busy as it would like to be.

CNN's David Mattingly is at Hartsfield-Jackson International right here in Atlanta.

And David, I understand the airlines are at the mercy pretty much of the roads just like the rest of us.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It's busy all right, but it's busy here on the ground, not as busy as people would like in the air.

Part of the problem, we heard from one airline official today who said they couldn't get enough of their employees in to get as many flights in the air as they wanted. That's because all those roads were iced over and treacherous. Their employees couldn't get to work.

Well, that's been changing over the course of the day. We're starting to see -- as that ice melts, we're starting to see this world's busiest airport come back to life. This is the Delta check-in area. This area so far has been a story of lines.

Delta, the largest carrier here at this airport, there's a line over here against this wall that literally is the length of a football field. That's just in this area. It also extends down this way, out of sight to some windows over there.

Those are all people who have had their flights canceled or need to make some sort of change to an existing ticket. That gives you some idea of how many people have been affected by this weather event.

We talked to so many people who have been stranded here since Sunday, when their flights were canceled. Delta, alone, canceled 1,900 flights yesterday, 1,400 today. Delta says they're going to be getting a couple hundred flights back in the air today. And, in fact, one of the best lines to be in is right over here, where the kiosks are.

These are people checking in for flights today, hoping that those flights stay on time and don't get canceled like they have been the last couple of days. So those people coming in like it would be a normal day, checking in, checking their baggage, and hopefully getting off cleanly to their destination.

Now, one thing everyone continues to watch here is right up here, this board. All day long, every hour that goes by, we're seeing fewer and fewer of those red "canceled" signs that have been popped up, that have been decorating the board from top to bottom here. But we're seeing more and more of those flights coming open -- Denver; Des Moines; Greenville, South Carolina; Knoxville, Tennessee.

Every time you see a flight open up, you're going to see dozens of people who are relieved to know that they're possibly going to be getting home. But as you saw that bad weather moving to the North, some of the passengers who were stranded here in Atlanta are now having to deal with possible delays on the other end. So their problems are not quite over yet -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: You're right, you can't win for losing if you're headed up to the Northeast.

All right. David Mattingly, thank you.

To Tucson now, where surgeons treating Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords are still impressed with her progress. This is three days after surgery for a bullet wound in her brain, and it's a critical day for swelling, which could be a dire complication. But so far the news is still food.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MICHAEL LEMOLE, UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER: I'm happy to say that she's holding her own. Her status is the same as it was yesterday. She's still following those simple commands. We've been able to back off on some of that sedation and, in fact, she's able to generate her own breaths. She's breathing on her own. In fact, the only reason we keep that breathing tube in is to protect her airway so she doesn't have complications like pneumonia.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: CNN's Ted Rowlands is at the University Medical Center. He's been interviewing family members right now, and I believe he is ready to talk to us about that.

No?

He'll join us shortly. All right.

First, I want you to hear though a couple voices from the life of Jared Loughner. He's the only child of Randy and Amy Loughner, who have lived in the same quiet neighborhood for all of Jared's life.

Wayne Smith lives on that same street and says that he always knew two things about the Loughner family -- they're extremely quiet and the parents are devoted to their son. Last night, Randy Loughner called and asked Smith to bring in their mail.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you tell me what other sense you got from them when you spoke to them on the phone?

WAYNE SMITH, LOUGHNERS' NEIGHBOR: When he called up about (ph) his mail (ph)? That he needed help.

It was a loud, "Help me." I said something about Jared, "Do you need to know what's happening to Jared?" "I've seen it on the news." He said, "I know everything" and started crying.

She's in bed and she's just broke down, this nervous wreck. And he's in there crying, Mr. Loughner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: Now a friend of Jared who also got a late-night phone call, Bryce Tierney, says that Loughner left him a voicemail just hours before the rampage. Police don't want him to play it in public, but Tierney tells CBS the message is short and it's telling: "Hey, it's Jared. We had some good times. Peace out."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRYCE TIERNEY, FRIEND OF JARED LOUGHNER: It's sort of very strange, uncomfortable spot to be in, to be -- to know that you were possibly, like, one of the last people that he might have attempted to contact, you know, before doing this. It's sort of -- it's pretty uncomfortable.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SAVIDGE: Tierney says he wonders what might have been different had he answered Loughner's call.

Some new developments in the story that consumed the country for much of last year. Preventable, but almost inevitable, that is the scathing takeaway from the National Oil Spill Commission's final report on the Gulf oil disaster. According to the presidential panel, human and engineering failures were the immediate causes of the Deepwater Horizon blowout in April, with BP, Transocean and Halliburton sharing blame.

The commission also faulted what it called years of industry and government complacency and a lack of attention to safety. Among its proposals, tougher government oversight and bigger fines.

Up next, not on their watch. The plan some Arizonans have for potential protests at Tucson funerals.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: Many Arizonans are expressing outrage today over plans for a protest at Christina Green's funeral. Green was the youngest victim of Saturday's rampage in Tucson. The controversial church has announced plans to stage a protest at her funeral Thursday.

Westboro Baptist Church has become notorious for using funerals to publicize the notion that God is punishing America for tolerating homosexuals. A member of the Arizona House of Representatives has drafted legislation that is designed to protect mourners by keeping protesters 300 feet away. Backers hope to rush it through the legislature so that the governor can sign it today.

The protest plans are drawing, of course, widespread criticism from across Arizona's political spectrum. CNN's John King spoke with representatives from the Republicans and Democrats and the Tea Party.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KING, HOST, "JOHN KING USA": The Westboro Baptist Church might try to come here.

Do we think that's true?

BRIAN MILLER, PIMA COUNTY REPUBLICAN PARTY: Well, you want to talk about unity? Jeff and I already talked about this. And I would just advise any organization who's going to come to protest, to be an obstacle to letting these families and our community grieve, don't bother, because we will stand together to ensure that you're not heard.

JEFF ROGERS, PIMA COUNTY DEMOCRATIC PARTY: I think you'll see that across the board here. The first thing that's going to happen is the legislature is trying to pass a law to outlaw that. But I think it's generally suspect.

My legal opinion is that it's -- these kinds of laws are prior restraints of speech-type activities, and it's pending before the U.S. Supreme Court right now. And I'm not sure that will pass constitutional --

KING: Have you heard they're coming?

ROGERS: We've heard they're coming, yes. But I agree, we need to let these people grieve in dignity and have orderly funeral processions. And we'll work to make sure that happens and do everything we can together to make that happen, I think.

TRENT HUMPHRIES, ARIZONA TEA PARTY LEADER: And we can get the people together to do something like that, to help out. That's something we can all do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: It's not just political leaders voicing outrage about the Westboro protest plans. Some Tucson citizens are planning something that they call "Angel Action." They're using bed sheets to make angel wings, and they're planning to use those wings to shield mourners from the protests.

Tucson community activist Christin Gilmer is part of the Angel Action Group, and she joins us again from Tucson.

Tell me -- I'm wondering if you confront or if you come up against these people -- and I have in various stories that I've covered -- they're quite aggressive, they're quite loud, and in many ways they're quite obscene. And I'm wondering how you personally would deal with that.

CHRISTIN GILMER, ANGEL ACTION: Well, it's not just me. It's all of these 30 angels that we're going to have, as well as the rest of the people who will be lining the streets to block them.

So we're actually going to have a training tomorrow night at 7:00 p.m. And we're going to talk about meditation, nonviolent techniques, nonverbal techniques. But we're not going to speak.

This isn't about us. This is about the families. This is about us letting them grieve and mourn in peace, and letting our community heal.

So it's up to us to determine our actions. We can't do anything about Westboro coming. And if they do, I'm sorry to say it, but they won't come with a warm reception.

So we're going to do everything in our power to make sure they don't get their message heard. And it's up to us to not retaliate.

And I'm confident in Tucson's volunteers and our community and our families, that we won't do anything to hinder what the family is going through right now. We're going to protect them as much as possible.

SAVIDGE: Do you know of other groups that are come to your aid? In other words, wanting to join the effort you're trying to do?

GILMER: There are a lot of groups throughout all of Tucson. We've had support from U of A Pride Alliance. A lady named Cat Sinclair (ph) at U of A has done a tremendous job doing logistics and coordinating in helping us out. We've worked with the BreakOut Studios in Tucson, Arizona, who are lending us their space for the training and any other support we need.

I've had hundreds and hundreds of e-mails from people around the world and around the country who are trying to donate money. Businesses like Home Depot and Ace Hardware in Tucson have given us supplies to make the wings. There's a lot of groups.

On Facebook, there were four or five created on Sunday once we found out that Westboro was coming. So all these groups are working in unison now in order to prevent these hateful messages from being skewed. So, luckily, there's a lot of coordinating and just a beautiful amount of community unity and working together.

SAVIDGE: This is of course a horrible story, and there's no way around that. And yet we have horrible stories that happen.

And I'm wondering, this really has touched a chord with many people, not just in Tucson, but across the country. And I'm just wondering whether you have any idea, insight, as to why specifically we feel so strongly on this?

GILMER: Well, for me personally, I knew two victims of the shooting, including Gabe, who was an amazing, phenomenal human being who gave everything he could for public service for his community, for his friends, for his family, his fiancee. So I know that everybody in Tucson, who is such a tight-knit community and such a compassionate and caring group, is really, really upset about this.

They're doing everything they can. And if this is how they can support, that's wonderful.

And I think it's one of the largest shootings in U.S. history. Nineteen or 20 people were shot.

Our congresswoman who we fought for, who we elected, we the people elected, is in the hospital right now. This isn't something that we can easily stomach, especially with the death of 9-year-old Christina, who was an innocent bystander in all of this.

It's not about politics. It's not about actions. It's about dialogue and compromise.

Politics isn't crazy action and it's not shootings. Politics is about compromise. And that's not involved here. It's a peaceful protest -- a counter-protest, excuse me, where we're going to be silenced and show our strength in our silence.

SAVIDGE: I'm looking at the image behind you there, and there seems to be a lot of people. And I'm just wondering if you could describe for us, for those of us who aren't there, don't have the benefit of being able to see it, just describe what's going on behind you and what has been happening.

GILMER: Oh, it's so wonderful. It's like this here, it's like this at Gabbie Giffords' office, El Toradito (ph), which is a mourning site in downtown Tucson. And it's just wonderful.

There are so many people. Thousands have come and left flowers and pictures and candles, and basically support of Gabbie Giffords, saying keep up this amazing fight.

She's a miraculous woman in so many dynamic ways. But the fact that she's still alive, when 90 percent to 95 percent of people who were shot in the head have perished, kind of shows a lot about our town. And we're doing everything to show her our support, to show our community our support, to show her family and the families of those who unfortunately perished this last Saturday.

SAVIDGE: And do you think this will help you with your healing?

GILMER: I think it already is. Saturday and Sunday, I was overwhelmed personally. I was crying. My friends were crying. We had people stop by, and you feel so helpless.

There's nothing you can do when one person comes with all this hate. But there is. And showing solidarity and unity, and responding in a nonviolent way, and responding in our own way, I hope has more national repercussions to show that politics doesn't have to involve violence. It can be a completely dialogue-based, compromise system where people are peaceful and they can talk and discuss things.

And we're hoping to show that as the victims of this town -- in this town who have suffered this huge tragedy, that if we can respond in this way, then maybe they can, too, for at least much less intense situations.

Christin Gilmer, thank you very much. We appreciate your words and your insight.

GILMER: Thank you.

You can see John King's interview with the Tucson-area political leaders tonight. "JOHN KING USA" airs at 7:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

She was one of Haiti's smallest survivors, a 2-month-old child crushed beneath the rubble. We're checking in with baby Jenny one year later.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: A year ago we watched as Haiti crumbled, and we shared their stories of heartbreak as the people dug out from the devastating earthquake. But amidst the rubble, a tiny miracle, a beautiful baby girl who defied all odds and became a symbol of hope and survival.

Now, a day before the anniversary of that deadly quake, baby Jenny is reunited with the woman who saved her. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This baby, Jenny Alexis, was nearly dead. Her head and chest crushed, she was stuck in the rubble for four days without anything to drink. Two months old, separated from her parents, all alone.

Amazingly, someone found Jenny and brought her to a hospital where pediatrician Karen Schneider fought to save her. She rushed her to Miami, but had little hope she'd survive.

A year later, that baby once on the brink of death --

JENNY DEVILME, QUAKE SURVIVOR: Baby.

NADINE DEVILME, JENNY'S MOTHER: Baby.

COHEN: Is thriving. Today, she's perfectly healthy.

NADINE DEVILME: Love you, Baby Jenny.

JENNY DEVILME: Mama.

COHEN: Talking, walking, just like any 14-month-old.

NADINE DEVILME (through translator): "It's a miracle," Jenny's mother tells me. "I want to thank the doctors and God."

COHEN (voice-over): Nadine Devilme has thanked God countless times over the year for saving Jenny's life, but she's never met Dr. Schneider to say "thank you."

Then last week, by chance, I got this e-mail from Dr. Schneider, wondering how Jenny was doing. We decided to go see her together in Miami.

COHEN (on camera): Are you excited to see her?

KAREN SCHNEIDER, DOCTOR, JOHNS HOPKINS HOSPITAL: Absolutely. Because she's definitely one of the success stories.

DEVILME: Hello.

SCHNEIDER: Hello. I'm Dr. Karen.

DEVILME: Hello.

COHEN (voice-over): Jenny is taking her afternoon nap when we arrive.

SCHNEIDER: Gosh, she's so big.

DEVILME: Yes.

SCHNEIDER: I was so afraid she was going to die. But she did good. COHEN: Finally, a year later, Nadine has her chance.

DEVILME (through translator): "I always wanted to meet you," she says. "For me, it's just a great thing to be able to say 'thank you' to you."

SCHNEIDER: Well, you're welcome. You're welcome. She's a miracle baby.

DEVILME: Yes.

SCHNEIDER: Because for almost four days she had no fluid, and yet she survived. So I've always said God has a special plan for her.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SAVIDGE: And Elizabeth Cohen joins us from Miami.

And Elizabeth, thank you, one, for a great story there. It was very, very touching.

And I'm wondering -- immigration always seems to weigh in here. Do the parents have the right to stay in the U.S., at least for the healing process?

COHEN: Yes, they do have the right to stay in the U.S. for about another year and a half. And then their visa will be up.

And actually, her dad -- his name is Junior -- he actually got a job quite easily. That's why you didn't see him in the piece. He was working yesterday.

SAVIDGE: Good.

And then Dr. Schneider, what's up with her?

COHEN: Oh, she's an amazing woman. And she's actually going back to Haiti tomorrow to help take care of cholera patients, and she also was named Jenny's godmother. They asked her yesterday to be Jenny's godmother.

SAVIDGE: Well, that's great. A great story all around. Thank you very much for sharing it with us.

COHEN: Thanks.

SAVIDGE: Here are the developing stories now that we are following right now.

That winter weather, it has gripped the Southeast, and it isn't letting go here, but now it's spreading misery. People across the South are still snowed in, and that has led to the cancellation of the Atlanta Hawks home game tonight against the Milwaukee Bucks.

You can see from these pictures just how bad the roads are around Atlanta. The system that dumped all the snow on the Southeast now headed up that Northeast corridor through Washington and into New York and Boston.

Our Chad Myers is just moments away with the latest forecast and warnings.

As Arizona mourns the victims of Saturday's shooting, all district and magistrate judges in Tucson, Arizona's jurisdiction are recusing themselves from the case. They are trying to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

Suspect Jared Lee Loughner made his first court appearance yesterday. His next hearing is set for January 24th. A judge from outside Arizona will now be called in for that hearing.

And the final report on the BP oil disaster, it was delivered a few hours ago and it paints a pretty dreary picture for the oil industry and the government. The National Oil Spill Commission called it a foreseeable and preventable disaster. It cited errors and miscommunication between three companies at the center of the spill. That's BP, Transocean and Halliburton. The commission also blasted government regulation as ineffective.

Well, that paralyzing winter storm that has rolled into the South is now headed to the East Coast. CNN severe weather expert Chad Myers is coming up next to tell us what to expect.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: If your state isn't under some sort of winter weather warning, watch or advisory today, you are in the minority. At least 30 states are either snowed in, glazed over, or soon will be.

Our severe weather expert Chad Myers is now joining us to tell us what to expect next.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: But for the most part, you can't get on it because everybody in Atlanta is trying to get on it, and it's just very slow. So, there you go.

Here's the storm that's affecting coastal North Carolina right now. It will eventually run up the coast. And this is 8:00 tonight. Right now, it is snowing in New York City. At midnight, it is really snowing. Boston, still snowing all the way through tomorrow. Could be 15 inches of know in the Berkshires. Could be 12 probably on Long Island. Same story for most of Connecticut.

But it's over for New York City tomorrow morning. So, you're going to wake up in the city and go, what do I do now? But it stopped snowing, but you have eight inches of brand new snow on top of what mess you have left in your random neighborhood, wherever you are in New York City.

Boston, Providence, New Haven, all those place that are still -- Springfield, Mass - still going to be snowing all the way through tomorrow afternoon. I suspect even the hardiest of states in the cities and all that that usually don't like to do snow days for kids will have something on their hands tomorrow to discuss in the morning to see whether kids (sic) are going to be canceled or not.

SAVIDGE: Well, you know, New Yorkers, the city put in a lot of changes as a result of that last storm when they didn't seem to do too well. I guess we'll see how they do.

MYERS: This is an all snow event. That's good. We have all these horror stories about what it's like in Atlanta because of the ice. This is all snow all the time. Little bit better traction. A Little easier to scoop. Not heart attack snow. But eight inches of snow anywhere is still going to get in the way of commuting, the trains, the third rail, maybe, who knows? It's going to be an early morning to wake up and see what's going on.

SAVIDGE: The interesting thing about the Atlanta pictures is the lack of traffic. You don't see anybody out there.

MYERS: People don't want to leave their quart of milk and their little bag of bread they still have.

(LAUGHTER)

SAVIDGE: Who could blame them? Who could blame them? Thanks, Chad.

MYERS: All right.

SAVIDGE: Well, an official is calling it an inland tsunami. Deadly and devastating flooding threatens Australia's third largest city. That's up next in "Globe Trekking."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: This just in. The winter storm bearing down on Atlanta has led to the cancellation of the Atlanta Hawks home game tonight against the Milwaukee Bucs. Hundreds of more flights are still canceled today. Roads are covered with ice and snow across the South as that storm now moves north.

In Arizona, six of the victims in Saturday's shooting remain in the hospital. Also, all district judges and magistrates in the Tucson, Arizona, jurisdiction are now recusing themselves from the case to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

And a report from the national oil spill commission says the Gulf oil spill was preventable. They blame BP, Transocean and Halliburton for the disaster as well as ineffective government oversight.

Time for "Globe Trekking" now. First, the worst flooding in 30 years threatens Australia's third-largest city of Brisbane. Officials are urging residents to flee to higher ground as floodwaters rush toward the capital of the Queensland state. The swollen Brisbane River has already overflowed its banks. Brisbane's mayor warns at least 2,500 homes could be flooded by Thursday when that river is expected to reach 20 feet above its normal level. In what's being called a safety move, the city's electrical provider plans to shut down its massive power grid tomorrow, throwing hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses into darkness. Despite all this, some residents are pretty stoic about the situation.

And in a scene that could replay in Brisbane, heavy rain set a wall of water tearing through the nearby town of Tawumba yesterday. That killed at least ten people. What one official described as "an inland tsunami" swept away cars, ripped houses from foundations and then uprooted trees. People clung to the telephone poles or the rooftops of their homes. Helicopter have now rescued 300 stranded people. A total of 20 people have died in the flooding since the torrential rain began falling in Queensland late last month. At least 78 people are missing.

Now to Afghanistan. Vice president Joe Biden is in Kabul on an unannounced visit. Speaking after a meeting with Afghan president Hamid Karzai, Biden said the U.S. training and aid will continue if the Afghans want it after 2014 when U.S. and NATO forces plan to hand over control of security to Afghan forces.

And our next stop, Yemen. White House officials say that the destitute Arab country is the key staging ground for al Qaeda plots against the United States. Secretary of state Hillary Clinton arrived there today on a highly secret and very quick visit for talks with Yemen's long serving president. Clinton said the Obama administration will continue working with the Yemeni government in a bid to stop possible terror attacks to the U.S. She added that the U.S. also would provide aid for economic and social development.

Well, does political vitriol in Arizona create a hot bed for violence? We'll take a look at the fiery protest and debates in the Grand Canyon State, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: Political discourse and heating protests seem to run rampant in Arizona. Over the past year, we have seen fiery debate over the state's new immigration law and anger boil over over the health care reform. Now, law enforcement officials are looking at the political vitriol in Arizona as a possible fuel that sparked Saturday's assassination attempt.

CNN's Thelma Gutierrez takes a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CROWD: Go home!

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Political discourse in the state of Arizona.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (via phone): We're just going to enforce it in our state, keep people from getting shot down on the border here in Phoenix, you know, with all the gangs and everything else from all these illegals.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You don't belong here!

GUTIERREZ: That discourse hit a boiling point over the state's new immigration law. Anger over health care reform.

CROWD: Kill the bill!

GUTIERREZ: Fury with the federal government.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (via phone): Governor Brewer on behalf of the citizens of Arizona should file a federal lawsuit against the federal government.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have become the Mecca for prejudice and bigotry.

GUTIERREZ: The sheriff of Pima County, Clarence Dupnik says political vitriol and hate mongering is partly to blame for the massacre in Tucson.

SHERIFF CLARENCE DUPNIK, PIMA COUNTY, ARIZONA: When you look at unbalanced people, how they respond to the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government, the anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous.

GUTIERREZ: Political science professor David Rodriguez has been watching the situation heat up in Arizona over the last year. He says he doesn't know what provoked Loughner to target Congresswoman Giffords, but says it's time for the nation to reflect on how we disagree.

DAVID RODRIGUEZ, POLITICAL SCIENCE PROFESSOR, CAL STATE: We've lost ability to be civil. We've lost the ability to provide evidence in our discussion. And I think more importantnly, I think we've lost the ability to think critically. This is an underlying problem in our society.

GUTIERREZ: Rodriguez points to national political figure Sarah Palin, who posted a map on Facebook with a list of House Democrats, including Gabrielle Giffords, who voted for health care reform. With crosshairs aimed at their locations, she tweeted, Don't retreat; instead reload." A Palin spokeswoman says any link to the Tucson massacre is disgusting and appalling.

While Rodriguez says he doesn't blame Palin for Loughner's actions, he says militant metephors may send dangerous messages to unstable people.

RODRIGUEZ: I think one thing is you can have discussions where you have differences. There's no question. But I think you have to be responsible for what you're saying.

GUTIERREZ: Rodriguez says ultimately, Loughner is responsible for his actions. But he worries about others who are armed, unhinged and angry.

Thelma Gutierrez, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SAVIDGE: We should note that the investigation is still ongoing into Saturday's shooting, and police have not yet said whether alleged shooter Jared Lee Loughner was driven by political ideology.

Top stories now. This just in. That winter storm bearing down on Atlanta led to the cancellation of the Atlanta Hawks home game tonight against the Milwaukee Bucs. Hundreds more flights were canceled today. Roads are still covered with ice and snow across much of the South as that storm now is heading up north.

As Arizona mourns victims of Saturday's shooting all district and magistrate judges in the Tucson, Arizona, jurisdiction are recusing themselves from the case. They're trying to avoid any appearance of impropriety. Suspect Jared Lee Loughner made his first court appearance yesterday. His next hearing is now slated for January 24th. A judge from outside Arizona will be called in for that hearing.

And the final report on the BP oil disaster is out today, and it paints a pretty grim picture for the oil industry and the government. The national oil spill commission called the spill a foreseeable and preventable disaster. It cited errors and miscommunication between the three companies at the center of that spill: BP, Transocean, and Halliburton. The commission also blasted government regulation as ineffective.

The tabloids and gossip columns are buzzing. That must mean Britney's back. We'll tell you what the unsinkable Miss Spears is up to next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: Time for a little entertainment buzz. Britney Spears has a new song out today, but it leaked out on the radio and the Internet yesterday. How does that happen? Here's a snippet.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

(BRITNEY SPEARS SINGING)

(END AUDIO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: "Hold It Against Me" is the name of the song. It is the first single of her new album. It is due in March.

Okay, Britney, that's it. Your 30 seconds of free publicity are now done.

Shakira is taking a break from her longtime boyfriend. On her Web site, the pop star said she and Antonio De La Rusa -- de la Rua, excuse me -- decided to separate last year, but they remain good friends and business partners. Her manager -- he is actually her manager, they've been together for 11 years. De la Rua is the son of the former president of Argentina. There's no word on who, though, is getting the dog.

Actor Owen Wilson, he's going to get a child. He's going to be a father, and he's in the new "Little Fockers" movie. Wilson' rep tells "People" magazine and that he and his girlfriend are expecting. They've been together for a little over a year. There's no word on a due date. But some celebrity gossip sites are saying it could be any day now.

Good news for actor Michael Douglas. He says he's beaten throat cancer six months after that original diagnosis. For more on how Douglas did it, let's turn to CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Martin, what they typically mean when they say they've beaten cancer is there's no evidence of disease. NED, it's called. You get a scan, like a CAT scan or a PET scan and you don't see any of evidence of disease. No evidence of the tumor remaining.

Now, you know, as most doctors, health care professionals will point out, these tests have a certain limited accuracy. They're very good, but it's something, let's say, smaller than about six-tenths of a centimeter, it may be hard to pick up. That's why doctors and teams are going to be very vigilant about following up on this.

Now, I want to point out something about throat cancer in general. Throat cancer is a bit of an umbrella term. Throat cancer can mean cancer of the back of the tongue, of the gums, of the larynx, for example. Anything sort of in that region. And depending on where the cancer came from, it behaves differently. The likelihood of recurrence is different. Also, what caused it in the first place? Alcohol and tobacco, for example, are risk factors. Human papillomavirus is a risk factor. What sort of caused the cancer in the first place will affect the likelihood of recurrence.

Now, when you talk about recurrence, the most common location for recurrence is in the lungs. Doctors over the next years, three to five years are going to be looking at his lungs as well as the back of his throat to see if there's evidence of recurrence, and if so, deciding on a treatment plan at that point.

A lot of people have asked about what is the treatment for throat cancer? Well, he got chemotherapy and radiation. And it can be a very tough treatment, but also can sort of obviate the need for surgery. If he had surgery, for example, on his larynx, he would have lost his voice, for example. Chemo and radiation can be a first line therapy. It can be curative in certain cases. And in his case, it sounds like it did the job in getting rid of any obvious signs of tumor. He'll need to be monitored for the next several years.

Good luck to him. And Martin, back to you.

SAVIDGE: Thanks, Sanjay.

Time for a CNN political update and news on possibly extending the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan. CNN's senior political analyst Gloria Borger joins me from the political desk in Washington. Gloria?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLIITICAL ANALYST: How are you, Martin? Well, as you know, Vice President Biden is in Afghanistan, continuing his trip there today. The president has said quite strongly that all U.S. combat forces will be out of Afghanistan by 2014. And Biden, himself, said the same thing recently, saying that they would be out, quote, "come hell or high water."

But today the vice president seemed -- and seemed is the key word here -- seemed to suggest that U.S. forces could remain in Afghanistan after 2014. So the question is, is this a change? And the answer from the administration is very clear. Absolutely not. In fact, they went out of their way after Biden's comments to say he is completely in line with what the president has said, calling for an enduring partnership with Afghanistan. And that means helping them out with civilian governance, economic development, and fighting terrorism. So, as far as the administration is concerned, absolutely no change.

Now, Martin, closer to home here in politics, there are a couple important state of the state speeches given today. Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey just finished his. He says he's going to focus on fiscal discipline. A lot of folks in that audience are kind of hoping he's going to focus on the snow removal in the state of New Jersey. Remember there was a little controversy about him being away when the big storm came to New Jersey over the holidays.

Also, Governor Haley Barbour of Mississippi, giving a state of the state speech. He is someone who clearly could be a presidential candidate as is Christie. And Barbour says he's going to decide in the spring, Martin, about what he's going to do as far as the presidential run goes.

SAVIDGE: All right. We'll hold our breath on that one. Gloria, we know that President Obama is going to Tucson tomorrow. I'm wondering, you know, what challenge does a visit like that really pose?

BORGER: Well, it's very interesting. I just got off the phone with somebody who wrote President Clinton's speech after Oklahoma City. And this speechwriter said to me, look, you know, at times like this, the president has to become a national pastor in the country. He has to minister to the entire nation. And what he says is the president, we've all seen the worst of what we can be, in something like Oklahoma City and something like what happened in Tucson. The president's job is to remind us what the best of America is. They think it's going to be that kind of speech.

SAVIDGE: Right. I remember I was in Oklahoma City covering that and remember the speech well. Thank you, Gloria.

BORGER: So do I. So do I.

SAVIDGE: Your next update from The Best Political Team on Television is just one hour away.

Snow across the South. That winter blanket is making some people act a little nutty. We have the highlights -- or should I say the lowlights -- next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: The snow and ice has really socked in the South, and I spent the day yesterday with people trapped at the airport here in Atlanta. And I can tell you they were not happy about it.

But the snow in the South is also a novelty, which explains some of the odd things that we've seen. CNN's Jeanne Moos has our ode to Southern snow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's such an oddity down South...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is that? Snow?

MOOS: ... that when it happens, some Southerners act like they're flakey.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's snowing! And I'm in shorts!

MOOS: It's as if they're witnessing a double rainbow.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, wow!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my gosh, dude, it is snowing in Georgia.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're getting snow in Texas, y'all!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What the heck?! Georgia?!

MOOS: Perhaps it was summed up best by a little girl playing meteorologist with a cone for a microphone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today we'll be introducing snow.

MOOS: Snow, meet the South. South, meet the snow.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's a lot of snow, that there's some snow on everyone's boots, where they go.

MOOS: For some, it was their first snowfall ever.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here. Snow.

MOOS: And we don't just mean humans. For man and beast alike, it was strange stuff, scary to put a paw on. Even goats in a buried doghouse seemed hesitant to come out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on out of there. Yes, that's awesome. Come on, Lily.

MOOS: Motorists were the ones who shouldn't have come out. This BMW got stuck, and its spinning wheels ignited the car. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's on fire! Get out! Get out! It's on fire.

MOOS: A WXIA reporter doing weather live shots warned the driver, who did get out.

And while most cars spun out unintentionally, some did it on purpose.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to show these folks how to do a proper Michigan doughnut.

MOOS: A Michigan doughnut in snowy South Carolina.

The novelty of snow...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): We've got snow in Georgia.

MOOS: ... inspired this guy to write an ode to the white stuff.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): I can't believe I see what I'm seeing.

MOOS: Folks skiing down the streets of Atlanta, a sled towed by a lawn mower in Huntsville, Alabama.

(on camera) But skiing or getting dragged along by a lawn mower, that's kid's stuff compared to the way crazy New Yorkers play in the snow.

(voice-over) We don't recommend getting towed full speed down Park Avenue, but you have to hand it to those Southerners. They're creative.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good-bye, people!

MOOS: Who needs a sleigh when you can go dashing through the snow in a boat? For once, northerners and Southerners are in the same boat.

Jeanne Moos, CNN...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now back to you.

MOOS: ... New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SAVIDGE: I'm Martin Savidge. Thanks very much for having me. CNN's NEWSROOM continues with Brooke Baldwin.