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Who Leads North Korea?; Gingrich's Lead Slipping?; Lindsay Lohan Poses for "Playboy"; House may Not Pass Senate Extension of Payroll Tax Cuts

Aired December 19, 2011 - 15:00   ET

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

ALEXANDRA STEELE, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And this is the 25 corridor. This is really the corridor of concern.

Now, Brooke, it's a quick mover, by tomorrow at this time should be a fait accompli. But of course behind it we will have all that snow on the ground and temperatures staying cold, so no melting anytime soon.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: OK. That was my next question. Will it be cold enough for it to stay? And you're saying, yes, it will be.

Yes, all the way through Christmas. So there will be a white Christmas for a lot people there in the Southwest.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Alexandra, thank you.

STEELE: Sure, Brooke.

And as we roll into hour two, watch this. Welcome back. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

Let's just get right to it, the big story and really the big question mark today lies over the divided Korean Peninsula, the unknowns. Who is in charge now of the secretive North Korea now that Kim Jong-il is dead? What is happening today with the nearly 30,000 American troops stationed just below the DMZ? And does this mark the beginning of a brighter era for 25 million of the world's most tightly controlled people?

All answers right here. Time to play "Reporter Roulette" here.

First to Seoul, we go. CNN's Anna Coren is there, where reaction is still raw, it's emotional.

And, Anna, I imagine concern is high.

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, definitely, Brooke. There is a deep concern here in Seoul, but I want to bring you some news, something new what's come to us in the past hour. We have received reports from the U.S. State Department that they were set to announce plans to give North Korea food aid in exchange for North Korea saying that it would suspend its uranium enrichment program for nuclear weapons and allow international inspectors in to North Korea.

Now, that was expected to take place today, that being Monday, and, unfortunately, that has not happened because of the death of Kim Jong-il. This was going to be a precursor to those six-party talks to get North Korea back to the table and denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.

The U.S. State Department is now saying that they will respect the mourning period and they will wait for the right time to reengage North Korea on these talks -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: OK. I will talk a little bit more about food aid -- I'm glad you brought that up -- with someone at the State Department here momentarily.

Anna Coren for us in South Korea, thank you.

But, first, next on "Reporter Roulette," let's go to the Pentagon to Barbara Starr, I should say, Pentagon correspondent. I believe she's in Germany at Ramstein Air Base, where she spoke.

Barbara, you spoke with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff about the significant leadership change in the Pacific theater. What did you hear?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, indeed, Brooke.

We're here with General Martin Dempsey, returning from the Iraq and Afghanistan war zones. Overnight here, he was woken up with the news about North Korea. Earlier today, we talked with him about this, and he has some concerns about whether Kim Jong-un, the leader now, supposedly, of North Korea, the youngest son of Kim Jong-il, really will be able to take charge, control the regime and be the new leader.

One indication of how little the U.S. military and the U.S. government really knows about what is happening in North Korea, we have now confirmed that Kim Jong-il actually died on Saturday night and the U.S. didn't know about it for more than 24 hours until it appeared on North Korean television.

So where does that leave us, the U.S. military, the Pentagon? Watching North Korea around the clock for any signs of movements of troops or weapons, any signs of instability in the regime.

They don't see it yet, but General Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, made clear all eyeballs on the peninsula now 24/7 -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: And you spoke with General Dempsey. Let's hear what he told you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. MARTIN DEMPSEY, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF CHAIRMAN: No changes in readiness levels. We're simply remaining vigilant are and relying upon our leaders in South Korea and engaging them with their South Korean allies. To this point, we have not seen any change in North Korean behavior of a nature that would alarm us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So no change, no movement, Barbara, at least so far.

STARR: Well, not at this point.

But let's make clear, overnight, General Dempsey was involved with a high-level classified phone conversation with commanders in the Pacific, U.S. commanders in North Korea, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, national security officials. And they are putting together a program to keep intelligence assets focused on North Korea for the coming period of time, again, to look for any signs that troops, weapons might be on the move, any signs of instability in the regime, any signs of uncertainty and what they might do with their military forces.

This is really key now, because there's so little intelligence about what goes on there. They're using satellites, eavesdropping equipment, electronic intelligence-gathering gear, anything they can to get whatever information they can, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Wow. It's a tinderbox, as was said before. Barbara Starr, thank you so much from Germany.

Next on "Reporter Roulette," Elise Labott. She's our senior State Department producer. She's in New York for us today.

And just tell us, Elise, how Kim Jong-il's death will change things diplomatically, particularly -- and Anna Coren pointed this out -- as today was supposed to be a swap, food aid for perhaps agreeing to suspend the uranium enrichment program. How does this all affect one another? It's all very intertwined.

ELISE LABOTT, CNN PRODUCER: That's right, Brooke.

Over the last several months and even up until last week, the U.S. and North Korean officials have been meeting. They have had two meetings, one in July, one in November on the nuclear issue. And then the issue of food aid.

Just last week, U.S. and North Korean officials meeting in Beijing, about to announce this deal about the U.S. would resume some kind of food assistance that has been lacking for about three years in North Korea. In exchange, Korea would suspend its nuclear enrichment, which the U.S. really wanted to do. And that was supposed to be the catalyst to get back those six-party nuclear talks on abandoning North Korea's program.

So right now that all on hold until the United States and its partners figure out who's really running the show right now. Is it going to be Kim Jong-un? Right now, they expect it's going to be more of government by committee, perhaps his uncle and his aunt that we have been hearing about that have been working with him.

If those people that are more tied to the Foreign Ministry are involved, they think that they could resume some kind of dialogue because certainly North Korea wants this food aid and they do want to buck up the new leadership.

If the military has more of a leg up in the new leadership, if they're going to exercise their muscle, some in the military aren't really are keen on engaging with the United States and engaging with other countries like South Korea and Japan, for instance.

So they might pull back the reins. Right now, officials are telling me they want to wait and see. And they want -- it's really in North Korea. The ball is in their court. They know where they left off in those talks and it's really up to them after an appropriate mourning period to send the signal that they're ready. But the U.S. is not going to make the first move right now.

BALDWIN: It's up to North Korea. We will wait and watch for it. As you said, the ball is in their court. Elise Labott, thank you.

I should point out more on this reporting. Go to our security clearance blog, CNN.com/securityclearance.

And next on "Reporter Roulette," let's go to CNN's Thelma Gutierrez. She actually went out today to talk about people in the largest concentration of Korean ex-pats and Korean-Americans here in the United States, that being Los Angeles, particularly the part of the city called Korea Town.

And, Thelma, what were people telling you? How are they reacting?

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, I can tell you that this community is really keeping a close eye on all the developments.

In fact, you can see the radio station right behind me, Radio Korea. They have been getting dozens of calls from people wanting to express some of their concern, not knowing what is next. We're talking about a community that's 200,000 strong.

Many people have ties to Korea. They have family members there. So they're watching with a certain amount of trepidation wondering who will take over and how smooth that transition will actually be.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE LEE, KOREAN-AMERICAN: Well, Kim Jong-il has been a ruler for a very long time, so there was at least some stability in that. Now we don't know what's going to happen, if there is going to be an internal struggle.

GUTIERREZ: Your biggest concern right now? JASON KIM, KOREAN-AMERICAN: Is the safety, again, a possible -- a military struggle between South and North. So I hope it that the political situation settles down as quickly as possible, so there won't be any military actions or struggles.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUTIERREZ: And many of the people that we talked to in some of the diners and the cafes today were actually split according to age, Brooke, which was very interesting. Some were more hopeful, the younger people a little bit more hopeful, saying that Kim Jong-il's number three son is actually a person who is young and also had experience, international experience, and was educated abroad.

And yet the older people telling us they weren't as hopeful. They were a little bit more concerned because they said he has no experience, and, after all, this really is not a regime change, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Thelma Gutierrez there in Korea Town in Los Angeles, thank you.

Much more on the unfolding situation in North Korea and what it means for Americans coming up.

But, first, the baseball fan nearly beaten to death on opening day is speaking out for the very first time. You will see how this father looks now after months of recovery.

Plus, this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They hit him all over his body so it was pretty painful to know that my son had to go through something like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Police say his son died during a suspected hazing ritual, and now one school district putting every single one of its marching bands on ice. I will speak live with one parent who is furious over that decision.

Also, CNN releasing brand-new polls today suggesting Newt Gingrich has lost his lead in the GOP race. Find out who's rising as we get closer and closer to the Iowa caucuses.

And a major power player, a multibillionaire, has just thrown $300 million at Twitter. Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWS BREAK)

BALDWIN: And just in, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney weighing in on the fight over your paychecks and whether Congress can pass a deal over this payroll tax cut extension. If they do not, your taxes, my taxes, they go up in 13 days.

Here he is, Jay Carney.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The House needs to act, or else Americans are going to have their taxes go up.

And it is very hard to understand why a measure passed the Senate with nearly 90 percent support -- all it would take in the House, if all Democrats or virtually all Democrats vote for it, is about 25 or 30 Republicans, 12 percent of Republican support in the House, for this thing to become law, for this -- for the House to ensure that Americans don't have their taxes go up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Some Republicans say Democrats are kicking the issue down the road. They want more than just a two-month extension. Coming up, we will take you live to Capitol Hill and find out just exactly how far apart both of these sides are.

Also, this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If that would help one kid not to be hurt, be hazed, even losing their life, it would be worth it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Their son died in a suspected Florida A&M marching band hazing, and now more than 200 miles away, the student's high school district is suspending all of its bands over suspicions the bad behavior might have began there. Coming up next, I will speak live with one parent who says innocent kids are being punished, a move he says could put college dreams in jeopardy now. Don't miss that conversation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: The investigation into the apparent hazing death of a Florida A&M University drum major, Robert Champion, is sending shockwaves through the marching band community. The high school he attended, Southwest DeKalb High School in Atlanta, is one of 21 schools in DeKalb County, Georgia, that has now suspended all marching band activities after the district says it found "inappropriate activity" -- quote, unquote -- "at just two of those 21 high schools.'

The district has not named the schools and says it needs to ensure programs are safe and positive for students. But parents in the area are furious and say the suspension isn't warranted.

Here with us now, Keith Sailor. Your son plays trombone at Southwest High School.

KEITH SAILOR, FATHER OF SOUTHWEST DEKALB HIGH SCHOOL BAND MEMBER: Yes.

BALDWIN: You are the band booster. You have been involved with the band for, what, 20 years at the high school?

SAILOR: Pretty much.

BALDWIN: And you went to FAMU.

SAILOR: Yes.

BALDWIN: OK.

That said, how does this decision because of these inappropriate actions at two of these 21 high schools, how is that directly affecting your son?

SAILOR: It affects my son because of the image it that's being put on the DeKalb County music system, all the students of DeKalb County.

It makes them look like a bunch of criminals. I mean, to go before the media and say that we want to make sure our kids are safe, to someone listening on the outside, that implies that something -- it may be dangerous in the area to attend -- in music in DeKalb County.

BALDWIN: You had mentioned to one of my producers that you're even worried about your son graduating because of this?

SAILOR: No, because schools are interested in kids.

We had a student last year to get accepted to Harvard. Had this incident happened last year, this would go on his application and Harvard would have looked at him a lot different having an investigation on his application.

Now, they mentioned that if -- they're looking at two schools where something may have taken place. Why suspend the entire county?

BALDWIN: But what if it's possible -- if one of these inappropriate acts happened at Southwest DeKalb? We don't know.

SAILOR: Well, they said it was at two schools. They said it was at two schools.

Apparently, if they know it was at two schools, they know the two schools it took place at. So, my thing is, why punish the other 19 schools and have the entire county looked at like they're doing something wrong?

Now, being at band practice -- when you say things like safe, being at band practices, that's one of the safest places your child can be, other than at home. You understand what I'm saying? So... BALDWIN: You being so involved with this high school band -- we should mention Robert Champion went to this high school, also the young woman who was recently part of -- victim of another alleged hazing incident.

Two of the accusers involved in that, all of them went to the school where your son is. Has your son ever come home and said, dad, something isn't right here?

SAILOR: Absolutely not. Absolutely not.

BALDWIN: Never?

SAILOR: He loves it. And every kid that I talk to that is in the band now, previous kids in the band, they loved the band program, had nothing but positive tinges to say about the program.

DeKalb County schools, they are one of the 100 most -- best music communities in the country. They had more than $20 million in scholarship offers just last year in the area of music, more than any athletic program in the county.

BALDWIN: And you're proud of it, and your son is proud of it.

SAILOR: Absolutely.

BALDWIN: I do want to play some sound. We had parents of Robert Champion.

You knew Robert.

SAILOR: Yes.

BALDWIN: Parents of Robert Champion came on, talked to Suzanne Malveaux here in the studio earlier today. And they essentially are saying they're in favor of any action that needs to happen so that anything like this never happens again. Let's just -- let's watch that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAM CHAMPION, MOTHER OF ROBERT CHAMPION: I haven't talked to the university. The university hasn't explained anything about what they're doing.

What I would like to do is to see what things they're going to put in place to ensure that this does not happen again. It's clearly a cruel and a hateful thing to have anybody to go through. So I would like to see what kind of things they're planning on putting into place. Obviously, what they had in place was not working.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: I should also point out we reached out to the DeKalb County schools. They told us they're erring on the side of caution when it's comes to school safety. Can you not at all as a parent empathize with that at all?

SAILOR: Absolutely. Absolutely.

But when you're talking about safety, and you know the schools that the incident took place at, again, why the entire county? And I sympathize with the Champion family and any other family that is affected in this situation.

But we're talking about a situation that happened in college. This had nothing to do with DeKalb County schools or its students.

BALDWIN: I think the question that is then being risen, though, because apparently this -- because of the tremendous marching band at your son's and this high school, Southwest DeKalb, is a feeder into FAMU. And no one is connecting the dots, per se, but, as DeKalb said, they're erring on the side of caution.

Let me ask you about FAMU. You played percussion. Did you hear of anything like this, any hazing rituals happening when you were there?

SAILOR: Being in a band or any fraternity or sorority organization in college, you experience a certain degree of initiation.

Now, what draws the line between initiation and hazing is up to the individual. I experienced no hazing. I experienced initiation. So that's -- I mean, that's my stand on that.

BALDWIN: No beating?

SAILOR: Initiation, which involves a lot of exercise, a lot of practice, a lot of training, things that prepare you to perform better. That's initiation.

BALDWIN: So you were totally shocked as well when you heard about this?

SAILOR: Yes.

BALDWIN: OK. Keith Sailor, I appreciate it.

SAILOR: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Thank you.

Coming up next, it is said to be one of the most bizarre places on the planet. And CNN's Alina Cho is one of the few Americans to actually get inside.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What this is really, in effect, is an elaborate coming-out party.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Alina went face-to-face with Kim Jong-il. And while she was there, years of mystery unraveled when Jong-il revealed one of his biggest secrets. Alina is going to join me live coming up. She will share what it's like inside North Korea.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Senator John McCain had some strong words today on the death of Kim Jong-il. He released the following statement -- and I quote -- "The world is a better place now that Kim Jong-il is no longer in it. For more than six decades, people in North Korea have been consigned to live in dire poverty and cruel oppression under one of the most totalitarian regimes the world has ever known. I can only express satisfaction that the Dear Leader is joining the likes of Gadhafi, bin Laden, Hitler, and Stalin in a warm corner of hell" -- Senator John McCain.

Just over a year ago, Pyongyang opened its doors to Western journalists and gave them this extraordinarily rare glimpse inside North Korea. And it was a coming-out party of sorts for Kim Jong-il's youngest son, Kim Jong-un.

Alina Cho witnessed the pageantry of the North Korean festivities, the military parade, the Mass Games, as it was called. She filed this report one year ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The most reclusive dictator in the world opened his arms and his doors to the world, an unofficial and elaborate coming out party for Jim Jong-un, the hermit nation's hidden prince, the son of Kim Jong-il, who one day became its leader. This is the world's first glimpse of him in action after being name a four-star general last month.

Just after touching down, we're whisked to Pyongyang's May Day Stadium for the first event, the Mass Games.

(on camera): There are 100,000 performing in a massive display, a coordinated songs, dance and gymnastics. They practice eight hour as day every day for a year and there's never a guarantee that Chairman Kim Jong-il will be in attendance. Tonight, he is.

(voice-over): What's different this time is that Kim Jong-il appears along side his son. When the show is over, North Koreans in the audience applaud not for the performers but for their leader.

Next up, a massive military parade, billed as the country's largest ever. A goose-stepping show of fire power by one of the largest armies in the world. Kim Jong-il, said to be in frail health and rarely seen in public, shows up again for the second time in two days, walking unaided but with one hand on the railing.

This woman says, "Long live the general and long live his son." Here, Kim Jong-il flashes a rare smile, as his son jokes with elders. The crowd goes wild, jumping, clapping, even crying.

Then, as night falls, yet another spectacle.

(on camera): Tonight's event, called the soiree, is the third such event in less than 24 hours, and it is pure pageantry. Take a look behind me -- the colors, the choreography, literally thousands of dancers in traditional dress. The media has been invited as guests. This is the invitation. But make no mistake, the real guests of honor are up there in the balcony, Kim Jong-il and his son, the heir apparent, his son Kim Jong-un.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it was fantastic.

CHO: This man, an actor from Denmark, one of a handful of private citizens invited by the North Korean government, is among those watching.

(on camera): What about all of the reports of oppression and the people starving.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't see it. Maybe it is there, but I can't see it. I can just see lucky people.

CHO: This secretive nation will soon close its doors again, leaving many questions about its future. How will the young son rule? How long can North Korea continue as an isolationist state? The world's eyes are watching as North Korea begins its transfer of power.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: And I want to bring in Alina Cho there. Alina, I remember when you filed that piece over a year ago and you talked about how sort of out the blue you get this invitation to go to North Korea and at the time they didn't even tell you why. Is that right?

CHO: That's absolutely right, Brooke. I remember it very distinctly because I had actually just come back from holiday. And my producer came to my office and said, you know what, we've just been invited by the North Korean government to go to the country. And 48 hours later, boy, we were on a plane to Beijing.

What was interesting about that, with we were told at the time, and only told this, that it was going to be the country's largest military parade in its ha history. Of course, we had a feeling that it would be, as I said, an unofficial coming out party for the heir- apparent, now what North Korea is calling the great successor to Kim Jong-il, his third son, Kim Jong-un. And it was an extraordinary, as you saw, an extraordinary couple of days inside the country.

BALDWIN: We saw the colors, the pageantry. Did you ever for a moment get the opportunity to turn the cameras around, and see the streets in Pyongyang, see the devastation and the poverty, or that was never allowed?

CHO: Well, we are able to go around Pyongyang. This was my second trip to North Korea. I was first there in 2008 accompanying the New York Philharmonic when they performed there in Pyongyang.

It's very hard for westerners to understand just sealed off this country is to the rest of the world. Remember, you arrive as a journalist. Immediately your passport is confiscated, your cellphone, BlackBerry are confiscated. You do not get it back until you leave the country. You are constantly watched by a government minder. You cannot live the hotel without that minder. You are literally told where to point and shoot the camera.

So it is a different experience than what we're used to as journalists. I have asked repeatedly to leave Pyongyang to see the countryside. That is not something the country and the government wants us to see, obviously. That is presumably where many of the people are starving, many of the people are dying. What they want to highlight and what they want to show, Brooke, of course, is the showcase capital of Pyongyang.

BALDWIN: The military. Alina Cho, tremendous reporting there. Thank you so much for sharing your experience. Alina Cho in New York.

Now two trending stories today. The first, "Playboy" breaking all kinds of records thanks to a certain blonde.

And a professor claims he was fired because of something James Franco did. Huh? That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Here's what you're talking about today -- "Playboy." "Playboy" paid a high price for actress Lindsay Lohan to bear it all, but it actually might be paying off for them. Let me bring in our entertainment correspondent Kareen Wynter with more on this one. So apparently "Playboy" paid quite the chunk of change to Lohan to pose.

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Big bucks, yes.

BALDWIN: The issue went on stands last week. So is "Playboy" getting their money's worth?

WYNTER: Oh, they are very happy, very happy. Lohan wanted to mirror her idol Marilyn Monroe. She's looked up to her for so many years even though she's no longer with us. It turns out it paid off big for Lohan. The troubled starlet, the recent "Playboy" spread is selling very well according to the magazine's founder Hugh Hefner. Hef tweeted Sunday that, quote, "The Lindsay Lohan January-February double issue is breaking sales records." Wow.

CNN called multiple newsstands in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago and New York -- yes, Brooke, we had to check for ourselves, and we found that just one sold out of the issues, but that store is expecting more copies of the magazine to arrive today.

A spokesman for "Playboy" wouldn't provide any exact information regarding sales numbers, but they did echo Hef's tweet confirming that Lohan issue is selling very well. Lohan was reported by paid, as you mentioned $1 million, to pose for the photos, which, by the way, feature the 25-year-old with blonde hair posing nude in a style so much of the photographs taken of her idol of Marilyn Monroe on the cover of the very first "Playboy" magazine. That, by the way, Brooke, was back in 1953. Monroe at that time, get this, she was paid just 50 bucks for that shoot, so, boy, have times changed.

BALDWIN: $1 million.

WYNTER: Brooke, we should also mention -- $1 million, a lot of change, especially for someone who hasn't been working much.

We should mention that the "Playboy" spread was a rare opportunity for Lohan to make money. She hasn't been cranking out movies like she used to because frankly she spends so much time in court, all those legal woes from DUIs from 2007, probation violations, and last but not least a necklace theft conviction from this year. So Lohan it seems is ending the year on a high note and staying out of trouble, too. We reported last week at court she got rave reviews from a judge at her probation status hearing. So, who knows, maybe 2012 could be her year.

BALDWIN: Could be looking better for her. The biggest surprise was that Hef tweets. Who knew?

WYNTER: I know! Mind blowing. When I spoke with him a couple of months ago, he said he loves it. He tweets all the time. He's so hip. He had to chime in.

BALDWIN: Who knew? That's my biggest takeaway from that one.

As I mentioned, we're watching actor James Franco. Apparently a professor he had at New York University gave had him a bad grade and now the professor is claiming -- I guess I have this copy of this suit here -- he says he lost his job because of this. What?

WYNTER: You know, this is a story people are it talking about. Actor/producer/director James Franco, he may be a lot of things, Brooke, but model student was not one of them. This is according to a former New York University professor, his name is Jose Santana.

Get this, Santana says he was let go, actually terminated, from the university after he gave Franco a D for blowing off his class last year. He just didn't make the grade. He just didn't make the grade. He just filed a lawsuit, claiming he was harassed and eventually booted from his job after giving Franco the poor grade in his Directing the Actor II grad level class.

Now Santana is claiming other instructors in Franco's master of fine arts program gave the actor good grades in order to win favor with him and perhaps get some work on some of Franco's film projects.

A university spokesperson has issued a statement about the suit. Here's what they said, quickly, Brooke, "We have not seen the lawsuit yet, but the claims we are seeing in the media are ridiculous. Beyond that, it is regrettable and disappointing to see a faculty member former or otherwise discussing any students grade for the purpose of personal publicity." And that spokesperson also told us Santana was not terminated but rather his contract was not renewed. Brooke?

BALDWIN: OK, Kareen Wynter, thank you.

The presidential candidates making their final push, the Republican candidates, voters in Iowa getting ready to make their final decisions, and breaking today CNN releasing new polls that suggests Newt Gingrich's lead, gone. Mark Preston is standing by. We're going to look at some of these numbers. He's going to join me live, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: CNN political director Mark Preston joins me now with America's choice 2012 politics update. Mark, let's talk about the new numbers. The new CNN/ORC poll finds the Republican race now deadlocked at the top. Run through the numbers.

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Very quickly, Brooke, as you said, in the last couple of hours CNN/ORC has released this new national poll shows that support for Newt Gingrich is eroding. Good news for Mitt Romney in this poll. It shows that both men right now are at 28 percent, followed by Ron Paul who comes in third at 14 percent.

What this says at this point is that Newt Gingrich, the attacks on him are working, it so seems. It seems that what mitt Romney has been saying and what the likes of Michele Bachmann and Rick Santorum have been saying to or about Newt Gingrich have actually worked. So not very good news for Gingrich certainly as we head into the Iowa caucuses where we're seeing had his support in that state as well slip, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Now a horse race there. What about leadership? The question is, who do Republicans consider to be the strongest leader among the candidates?

PRESTON: This is where there is a sliver of good news for Gingrich. Let's look at this CNN/ORC poll just released in the last couple of hours. It shows that Newt Gingrich is out front, in fact, he bests Mitt Romney by 16 points. That is a huge number, Brooke. That probably can be attributed to this one fact is when people see Newt Gingrich on a national stage, they see him as these debates, he comes off as a leader. Let's not forget, it was, only, what, since 1997, 1998 when he was the speaker of the House of Representatives. So they view Newt Gingrich as a leader, Brooke.

BALDWIN: He's very strong in the debates as you point out. But then the next question is, when you're asking Republicans to put aside their personal preferences and tell us the actually think who will win, the answer is different.

PRESTON: Yes, the answer is different. That's when reality sets in, so to speak. Again, let's take a look at these numbers right here. Good news for Mitt Romney. These numbers are within the margin of error, but it shows Mitt Romney, who has been running a general election campaign from day one, somebody who talks about how he is most electable, according to these numbers here, he is on top. In fact, most Republicans think that he would most likely win the Republican nomination, again, within the margin of error.

a couple of reasons for this as well is that we asked another couple of questions we won't show the numbers but the questions were, who do you think is more trustworthy and honest? Mitt Romney came out on top. And who is the most likeable? Mitt Romney came out on top. So two good traits heading into the Iowa caucuses, Brooke.

BALDWIN: CNN.com/Politics, you have the goods there. Mark Preston, thank you in Washington for me.

Coming up next, it's a country with nuclear weapons, a history of starving its own people, and now a leader no one knows anything about. Wolf Blitzer, he was actually in North Korea this time last year. He's going to talk to me about how North Korea's new regime is putting the world on alert.

Plus, a music Monday that will certainly put you in the holiday spirit. We'll be right back.

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BALDWIN: Whether you're ready or not, by the way I just went to the mall for the first time this past weekend, Christmas is Sunday and with the hustle and bustle of the season we thought it would be fun to focus on making the holiday so memorable. So in addition to spending time with your loved ones, also memorable, the music. So without further ado, a little holiday themed music Monday.

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(MUSIC)

MICHAEL KRAJEWSKI, PRINCIPAL POPS CONDUCTOR: What I like most about the Atlanta Symphony is being able to use our music bring joy and happiness, the spirit of the season, to people's lives.

(MUSIC)

KRAJEWSKI: I really look forward to the opportunity to use our music to really instill the correct spirit of the holidays.

(MUSIC)

KRAJEWSKI: It's a song that's a tribute to our troops, and it's called "Bring them Home." We know they are out there, we appreciate what they are doing, and we certainly hope they will all be returning home safe and sound very soon.

COLIN WILLIAMS, PRINCIPAL TROMBONE: One of my favorites we are doing this this show is just the very first piece, "Holiday Overture."

(MUSIC)

TOM SHERWOOD, PRINCIPAL PERCUSSIONIST: This year, there was a drum line that they are bringing in for one number, which is really unusual, and it is a Christmas version of Bolero, so it is called "Little Bolero Boy."

(MUSIC)

SHERWOOD: What I like about the holiday pops show is that it's got a little bit of everything. And it's everyone's favorite holiday tunes.

The one that always just makes me smile that we do here is "Here comes Santa Claus." We just play sleigh bells in this tune.

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, thank you so much. You can go to my blog to watch that interview, and any other interview I've had, for all those Music Monday pieces.

And now let's go Washington and check in with Wolf Blitzer. Wolf, I was just checking your blog. There is a picture of you exactly this time one year ago. You were in Pyongyang. You talk about how last year had been relatively quiet and you are fearful that will change.

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, CNN'S THE SITUATION ROOM: I just wrote a block on our "THE SITUATION ROOM" web site as well. It is going to be such a tense time because it is such a mysterious place, North Korea. I have talked to top experts on North Korea, and guess what, Brooke? They don't have a clue about what might happen next. They are reading all the tea leaves and watching what is going on. But do they know for sure what will happen? There is a picture of me at the Pyongyang airport. I took the flight from Beijing to Pyongyang. They have a nice little airport. If you are traveling there, they don't have a lot of options. It was a good six days there. I learned a lot.

But as much as you learn about North Korea, you also learn there is so much you don't know and even people who have been there many times, top U.S. experts, potentially ripe for miscalculation. If South Korea or Japan or anyone else overreacts, North Koreans overreact and tension can escalate. Let's hope everyone takes a deep breath, calms down and lets this unfold smoothly and peacefully. That's most important.

BALDWIN: You were there travel be with Bill Richardson, someone with quite the foreign policy resume. Jon Huntsman, we will look for them both in "THE SITUATION ROOM" in a matter of minutes. Mr. Blitzer, thank you very much.

Coming up next your pay checks about to shrink, possible, because Congress can't seem to agree on anything. We are days away from Christmas and there is still no deal for tax cuts. But could something change possibly tonight? We go live to Capitol Hill, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: A political standoff over payroll taxes, and it could end up shrinking your paychecks. The House is expected to vote on the two-month extension on the payroll tax cut that has already passed the Senate, but the House vote is expected to fail. I will take you straight to Capitol Hill to Congressional correspondent Kate Bolduan. Kate, we know House Speaker John Boehner spoke today. What did he say?

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He said, in short, honestly, Brooke, he said that House Republicans won't going along with the short-term extension. He says they oppose the short- term extension. He said they are done kicking the can down the road to deal with problems another day. They don't think the two-month extension provides the certainty that Americans need.

Boehner went on to say that if they are going to extend the payroll tax cut and other issues, they want to extend it for a year. But that of course is an issue that is where talks broke down already, Brooke. We had a Senate Democrats and Republican leaders negotiating a more comprehensive deal, a one-year deal, but those talks broke down over how to cover the cost, and that's how they came to the two-month extension. But that's where it stands now with the house vote coming up this evening.

BALDWIN: Kate, 30 seconds, what about Democrats? Would they be open to renegotiating the Bill?

BOLDUAN: I'll tell you, it does not sound like it. Senator majority leader Harry Reid and other Democrats said they put forth this compromise, had broad bipartisan support in the Senate with all Republican leadership on board. They are not going to reopen the discussions.

He issued a statement that said "I will not reopen negotiations until the House follows through and passes an agreement negotiated by Republican leaders." So Senate Democratic leaders are not inclined to continue negotiations until the House moves on this two-month extension, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Kate Bolduan on the hill. Watch Kate on "THE SITUATION ROOM" here. She follows this upcoming vote in the House. That is it for me. I'm Brooke Baldwin here in Atlanta in the CNN World Headquarters. Now to Wolf Blitzer. "THE SITUATION ROOM" in Washington starts now.