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Chris Christie Stumps For Romney; Al Qaeda Targeting Libya; North Korea Vows Same Policies; Egyptian Forces Raid Non-Profits; Syrian Government Faces Military Defectors; Lottery Winner Beats Deadline; Crackdown On New Year's Gunfire; Iran's Threat To Close Strait Of Hormuz; China Ramps Up Space Program; Verizon Wireless Fee Outrage
Aired December 30, 2011 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HALA GORANI, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our next hour of NEWSROOM. This morning we begin with presidential politics once again. Mitt Romney showing off some star power on the campaign trail. Just last hour he stood alongside New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
The candidate many Republicans wanted in the race instead Christie endorsed Romney that was back in October. This is their first appearance together since October. It comes four days, of course, before the Iowa caucuses.
CNN political reporter, Jim Acosta is in West Des Moines, Iowa, with more on how this might help Romney. Hi there, Jim.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Hala. That's right, Mitt Romney was campaigning with the governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie just a few moments ago.
And obviously, you know, when you see these two out on the campaign trail, you're going to have a lot of people talking about, well, is this a potential ticket for the general election campaign? You're going to hear that conversation going on all day long today.
But really these last few days for Mitt Romney here in Iowa are all about seizing on this momentum that are basically showing up in a number of polls. There's a brand-new NBC-Marist poll that came out this morning that shows Romney in the lead statistically tied with Ron Raul but in the lead, nonetheless.
Basically the same picture we got you a few days ago in that CNN/"Time" magazine/ORC poll. But Chris Christie is a good spokesman for Mitt Romney and he proved that earlier this morning making the case that he is the candidate to beat President Obama. Here's what Chris Christie had to say just a few moments ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOVERNOR CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: America is watching Iowa. As we always do every four years, we're watching Iowa, and Iowa's going to be the folks who are going to help to start this process to get us going to make sure that the Republican Party nominates the very best person to take on President Obama in November. Now when you look at that statement, these debates, I think you have to come to the conclusion that I've come to. There is no person better qualified by his experience and his character to take on Barack Obama and to lead the United States of America than Governor Mitt Romney.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: All right. There we heard from Chris Christie, the governor of New Jersey, an important support there for Mitt Romney. But one of the other things, Jim Acosta, he said was he urged the supporters to come out and actually show up.
He said elections are won by people who actually show up and bother to vote. This is crucial for Mitt Romney, isn't it, that his supporters actually take part in this process? Jim Acosta is gone.
We'll catch up with him a little bit later once we're able to reconnect. He is in West Des Moines, Iowa where that campaign event took place, Romney for president, with Chris Christie, the governor of New Jersey and Mitt Romney.
He's currently tied statistically with Ron Paul in the latest polling by CNN and other organizations.
Here's a quick look at where the Republican candidates will be today, by the way. Michele Bachmann is getting some help from Congressman Steve King in early Iowa. Rick Santorum will be in Ames to host the first of two college football watch parties.
He starts with the Pinstripe Bowl at 4:00 and then he heads to Johnston later for the Insight Bowl. Newt Gingrich is in Des Moines. Later, he holds a tele-town hall meeting that's with phone calls only.
Rick Perry will visit Waterloo and Ron Paul will be in Lamars for part of the day. Two candidates head to New Hampshire today. Mitt Romney will be in Merrimack this afternoon to host a Romney for President Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiser.
Jon Huntsman, we haven't heard from him as much. He is campaigning in Plymouth, New Hampshire. This weekend is your chance to see the GOP presidential candidates offer their closing arguments uninterrupted and in their own words.
"The Contenders 2012," this Saturday and Sunday afternoon at 2:00 Eastern on CNN. So tune in for that as well. It will give you an opportunity there to see the candidates unfiltered.
Just months after NATO forces began pushing Moammar Gadhafi from power there and now disturbing reports that al Qaeda is stepping into the leadership vacuum in Libya.
A terrorist group has sent veteran militants into the country and has reportedly amassed at least 200 fighters ready to strike. Now that is according to a Libyan source briefed by western counterterrorism officials. Now another trouble spot in the world, North Korea just one day after the nuclear power paid its final tribute to Kim Jong-il, the new leadership sends a message to the world. CNN's Paula Hancocks is across the border in Seoul, South Korea.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just one day after the official mourning for Kim Jong-il is over and the confrontational statements from North Korea have started once again. There have been much debate as to whether the new leader, Kim Jong-un, who is much younger and has also been educated abroad for a year or two would have a different outlook on how to run North Korea.
Now the initial impression from this statement shows that he would not. This is the statement from the National Defense Commission and I quote, "We solemnly declare with confidence that the South Korean puppets and foolish politicians around the world should not expect any change from the DPRK."
That's the North Korea. Now this is really a very clear message that it is business as usual, that Kim Jong-un will be doing exactly what Kim Jong-il was doing in his time. Now we also heard from the North Koreans that they have no intention of dealing with the South Korean government and President Lee Myung Bak.
They are particularly angry that President Lee did not allow many delegations to travel to Pyongyang to pay their respects to Kim Jong-il. He did allow one delegation, a civilian delegation of 18 people, but the North is angry that more were not allowed to come.
Now a little context for this statement. Obviously, this is the sort of statement that we are used to hearing from North Korea and also the statement has phrases such as retaliate, refire, to burn the group of traitors.
It's the kind of rhetoric we are used to hearing from the political and military leadership through the state media. What is surprising is that it did come so quickly. Clearly, a sign by North Korea that they want to show that it is business as usual and nothing much has changed even though there is a change in leadership.
Now it is interesting as well that the South Koreans had actually softened their stance towards North Korea. The government had issued condolences to the North Korean people for the death of Kim Jong-il, but clearly for the north it wasn't enough. Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Now in Egypt 10, 11 months after the revolution, Egyptian authorities storm the offices of 17 non-profit groups, including three American-based groups. They took computers and files in the raids.
It's extra strained on an already tense situation between Egypt and the United States. Egyptian officials say it's part of an investigation into alleged illegal funding from abroad, but Washington is calling on Egypt to, quote, "immediately end the harassment."
In Syria, there are huge anti-government protests today erupting across the country along with reports of new violence. More than 30 people have reportedly been killed today. We have no way of confirming the number because outside journalists have been banned.
CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom is gathering information. He joins us now live from Cairo. Mohammed, when we see these images from Idlib, from Hama, there are reports that hundreds of thousands of Syrians are out in the streets possibly feeling a little safer because there are these Arab League monitors crisscrossing the country.
MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We've heard that this week, Hala. We've heard that the fact that the Arab League monitors there is emboldening people to come out. And yet, we're still hearing reports of violence.
Now we're seeing these pictures emerge today purporting to show thousands upon thousands of people out for this day that's called the crawl to freedom square.
They're encouraging opposition groups, encouraging Syrians to defy the government, to go out in public spaces in different cities and express that they don't want Bashar Al-Assad in power anymore
We've seen pictures from Idlib. We've seen pictures emerged from Homs as well, but also hearing reports of violence. Local coordination committee in Syria telling us that at least 30 people have been killed, 25 injured in different accounts of violence of security forces firing on these crowds that are out.
We got some video earlier that purports to show a man in Douma, a suburb of Damascus. Protesters we're told there gathered in an anti-government demonstration. This man was shot in the leg and had to be carried away.
Again, so it's just raising more questions as to how effective, how credible this mission is. Even though people are encouraged and emboldened to come out, the fact is violence is happening.
It's really causing a concern as to how effective this monitoring mission can be. That all these violence is reportedly still going on while they're fanning out across the country -- Hala.
GORANI: Well, you know what's interesting is the free Syrian army, I'm sure you've seen these amateur videos of them. We featured some of them in the reports by that journalist who made it in Homs. They are saying today that they are halting attacks against government forces. Is that correct? What's behind that announcement?
JAMJOOM: We spoke to a lieutenant colonel in the free Syrian army earlier today. He confirmed to us that the free Syrian army had been ordered to halt attacks.
This is part of the initiative to let the Arab League monitors in to try to calm the situation down but, you know, we've seen reports and heard reports this week that there were ambushes that were carried out by the free Syrian army against security forces.
There was video that emerge a couple of days ago in the city of Daraa that reportedly showed the free Syrian army ambushing a convoy. Syrian security forces were told four Syrian security forces were killed in that attack.
We asked about that. They said, look, if we're attacking right now, our attacks are defensive in nature because we are still coming under attack by the Syrian security forces.
And if the Syrian Security Forces are going to attack us while the Arab League monitors are in the country even though we've ordered a halt to the attacks, then we are going to respond in kind. That is a legitimate tactic of our right now -- Hala.
GORANI: You're seeing some of that amateur video there of free Syrian army fighters. Thanks very much. Mohammed Jamjoom is in Cairo.
Now, you remember this story of Iran threatening to shut down one of the world's most important oil routes. But is it easier said than done? We're going to look at the politics and logistics and what closing the Strait of Hormuz could mean for your wallet and gas prices. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Looking at stories from across the country. We'll know tomorrow if the coroner in Allentown, Pennsylvania, decides to exhume as many as 60 graves. The problem, a huge sinkhole, probably from a water main brake. Many of those graves date back to the 1880s.
Also in New York, work has stopped on the museum portion of the national September 11th memorial. Mayor Michael Bloomberg says there's, quote, "No chance it will be completed on time." It was scheduled to open next year on September 11th. The problem, a money fight with the Port Authority.
Talk about waiting to the last second. The mystery person holding Iowa's winning lottery ticket had a law firm deliver it to lotto headquarters just before the ticket expired. It's worth $14.4 million.
Happy New Year. This morning a poignant reminder of the dangers of one particular New Year's Eve tradition, gunfire at midnight. Every year we hear stories of how stray bullets wound or kill unsuspecting victims.
It happened last year in Atlanta to a four-year-old boy who was in church. His mother is now working to make sure the tragedy doesn't happen to someone else. CNN's George Howell reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I see a spark. I see a spark.
GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a dangerous tradition that plays out across the country each year with deadly consequences.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were sitting exactly over here on this right- hand side exactly where that bucket is. That's where both of us were sitting next to each other.
HOWELL: Something Natalie Peters knows all too well since her son was killed two years ago inside this church at a New Year's watch party.
(on camera): You can still see.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, right there.
HOWELL: When you look up there you can still see --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It pierced the roof.
HOWELL: That's where it came down?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I didn't know what happened. I picked him up because he was bleeding so much. Then others were saying it was a bullet.
HOWELL (voice-over): The victim of celebratory gunfire. A stray bullet struck him in the head. His mother may never know who fired the fatal shot, but the tragedy has sparked a movement. Officials are asking people to take his pledge online, a promise not to fire off weapons.
(on camera): Has his pledge made a difference in DeKalb County when it comes to celebratory gunfire.
BURRELL ELLIS, CEO, DEKALB COUNTRY, GEORGIA: I think that we can make head way and slow it down. We saw a 47 percent decline in celebratory gunfire from one year to the next as a result of our awareness campaign.
HOWELL (voice-over): Many other cities are taking similar stands. From Los Angeles to Birmingham, Alabama, police are using technology called shot spotter.
Microphones placed in neighborhoods that capture the sound of gun fire and pin point its origin. And in Miami, city officials are promoting a campaign called "One bullet kills a party" to prevent death and injury seen in recent years.
AUDREY EDMUNDSON, MIAMI-DADE COUNTY COMMISSIONER: When you hear the gunshots, when you see someone out there this holiday season, when you see them out there celebrating with gunfire, please, stop, pick up the phone, dial 911.
HOWELL (on camera): Whether people don't think about it or if they don't realize it at the time, you fire a bullet in the air. It can travel great lengths and it must come down somewhere. In this case two years ago, it came down through the roof of this church and changed a family's life forever.
NATHALEE PETERS, SON KILLED BY CELEBRATORY GUNFIRE: It took my only child away.
HOWELL: Do you think people realize what they're doing?
PETERS: That person probably didn't know what he did, but probably didn't know what happened.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, George Howell joins me now from Atlanta. You know, George, when you cover, as you know, in the Middle East funerals or celebrations, oftentimes people will shoot in the air.
You know that that bullet is going to come back down. I imagine Atlanta after this and Georgia is going to try to make it tougher for people to do this and the punishment harsher.
HOWELL: Hala, as you can understand, Nathalee Peters just not satisfied with the current laws here in Georgia. Right now, you fire a bullet in the air. It can be a misdemeanor if you're caught.
You have to pay a fine, but she wants to see this become a felony. She wants jail time attached because clearly this can be a very dangerous tradition with deadly consequences, Hala.
GORANI: But is this a common practice in Georgia?
HOWELL: You know, you see it. You hear it in neighborhoods from time to time. I worked here at one of the local affiliates. We'd drive around at night and you'd hear the gunfire at times on New Year's Eve, New Year's Day. So it happens. It happens in neighborhoods all around the country. This here in Georgia is an effort to stop it -- Hala.
GORANI: Well, it makes it particularly tragic that the victim in this particular case was a four-year-old little boy. Thanks very much, George.
Should Newt Gingrich be worried about his fluctuating poll numbers in Iowa? Our "Political" Buzz panel sounds off just ahead.>
And Iran's Navy plays war games as the country's threats to shut down that crucial oil shipping route get louder. We're talking about how serious the threat is and what it means to you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: A war of words escalating now between the United States and Iran as Iran's Navy plays war games and the fight now centers on the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran is threatening to choke oil tanker traffic through the strait. That, of course, would have a big impact on the world and your wallet. Here's why. The strait is only about 34 miles wide, but more than 15 million barrels of oil pass through it every single day.
That's about a thirty-third of all oil shipped by sea worldwide. This all started because the U.S. is preparing sanctions that would stifle Iran's oil exports, to pressure Iran to abandon its nuclear program.
Trita Parsi is president of the National Iranian-American council and the author of "Single Roll of the Dice, Obama's diplomacy with Iran." Thanks for being with us.
TRITA PARSI, THE NATIONAL IRANIAN AMERICAN COUNCIL: Thank you for having me, Hala.
GORANI: Let me ask you this. You wrote a piece on cnn.com, the title of which is "Without Renewed Diplomacy War with Iran Lies Around the Corner." Are we at risk of war here?
PARSI: We are. I think this is one of the things that people may not fully realize. We are kind of sleep walking towards a military confrontation.
I don't believe the Obama administration has the intent for war nor do I think necessarily the Iranians are looking for war, but the policies that we are pursuing nevertheless are increasing the risk of a military confrontation. What we are seeing right now in the Persian Gulf, with the Iranian warnings of closing down the strait is just an indication of the things that can come and that can actually spark a much larger military confrontation.
GORANI: Is this not just sabre-rattling by Iran? Closing off the Strait of Hormuz would choke off its own ability to supply oil to the world. Aren't these just words?
PARSI: I think at this stage he risk of the Iranians doing this is very little. However, if the U.S. pursues these sanctions and actually manages to already choke off Iran's oil exports then they have far less incentives not to do this.
This is a negative dynamic. The two sides are essentially trying to maximize the amount of harm this they can do on the other. In that type of a dynamic, taking a step like this, even if it hurts you, unfortunately that's what states tend to do.
GORANI: But let me ask you this. So you're saying essentially that the more sanctions are placed on Iran, the less that country has to lose in engaging in the kind of brinkmanship that would possibly lead to closing off the Strait of Hormuz?
PARSI: Well, it's not any type of sanctions in this case. We're actually talking about central bank sanctions as well as oil embargo. That is something that the Iranians have essentially defined as an act of war in and of itself.
So we're very close to something that we can't control. Here's the main point, these things potentially could be pursued effectively, but only if coupled with very significant diplomacy.
When you're doing it in the absence of diplomacy, you have very little capabilities of dialling things back, toning things down and de-escalating the situation.
GORANI: But here's one thing you wrote as well. You said, all hope is not lost. Contrary to common perceptions, diplomacy has not been exhausted.
PARSI: It certainly has not. I think the Obama administration did a very genuine effort at diplomacy earlier in 2009. Hour, because of a lack of political space and because of the response from the Iranians it ended up being simply a single roll of the dice.
After that, we started to pursue sanctions, which is the policy that we're most used and perhaps most comfortable with, but have not exhausted diplomacy.
GORANI: Which one is more effective?
PARSI: Sanctions or diplomacy?
GORANI: Yes.
PARSI: Well, sanctions we've had for more than 30 years. Look at the situation that we're in. If sanctions were effective, we would not be in this situation.
`If we're pursuing diplomacy with a type of determination, persistence and patience that we pursue other policies, then I think it has a much greater chance of success.
GORANI: Trita Parsi, thanks very much for your analysis.
A pop singer throws her support behind Ron Paul. The endorsement not so popular with some of her twitter followers. Our political buzz panel weighs on which celebrity endorsement would be helpful for the GOP contenders.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Checking top stories now. Three thousand gallons of water a minute are cooling a Russian nuclear sub. It caught fire yesterday while docked in Mormunk. The fire, thankfully, is out now. The Russian Navy says the nuclear reactors were already shot down and that no radiation leaked.
The president and first lady laid a wreath at the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor. This month, of course, marked the 70th anniversary of the surprise Japanese attack that propelled the U.S. into World War II. Nearly 2,400 Americans died on December 1941 and many on board the Arizona.
China wants to become a major player in space exploration. It's outlining plans to build space stations, even put a man on the moon. China's army runs the space program though raising concerns it will use it for military purposes.
Iowa is the center of the political universe right now. Just four more days until voters there christen the 2012 presidential race. The most recent poll from NBC shows Mitt Romney leading the pack.
Also a CNN/"TIME/ORC poll from Wednesday looks a lot like this. You don't even see Jon Huntsman's name there. This week he said they pick corn, not presidents, but history tells a different story. Here's CNN's Mary Snow.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Republican presidential hopefuls make the final sprint in Iowa. As they crisscross the state, campaigns and reporters flood the air waves with ads, $8 million worth and counting just this month. How much can a win in Iowa matter? That depends.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: This is the place where America remembered what it means to hope.
SNOW: For Barack Obama, a victory in Iowa proved to be a game changer. On the Republican side, a different story --
MIKE HUCKABEE (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I love Iowa a whole lot.
SNOW: Mike Huckabee's upset victory in 2008 with the help of Iowa Evangelicals failed to gain momentum outside the state. John McCain was the eventual nominee.
(on camera): when you take a look at who won in Iowa compared to the Party's eventual nominee, caucus goers have more traction on the Republican side. A win in 2008 was not only crucial for Barack Obama but in 2004 for John Kerry, and particularly in 1976 for Jimmy Carter.
On the Republican side in recent years Iowa victors George W. Bush in 2000 and Bob Dole in 1996 went on to win their party's nomination but their wins in Iowa were not as crucial to their campaigns.
(voice-over): Started in 1972 the caucuses are more about winnowing down the field of candidates. Winners gain no delegates and some political watchers say the Iowa contest has become more about the media attention.
DENNIS GOLDFORD, DRAKE UNIVERSITY: It's essentially in and of itself a meaningless event, but it has tremendous political impact because if a candidate does worse than expected, support and especially funding tends to dry up. And if a candidate does better than expected, that support tends to expand and in particular funding, campaign contributions tend to increase.
SNOW: Last presidential election about 118,000 Republicans took part in the caucuses, and in Iowa there's a stronger focus on social issues than other parts of the country. 60 percent of GOP caucus goers in 2008 described themselves as evangelical or born-again Christians. That turnout of Republican caucus goers in 2008 amounts to roughly one-fifth of registered Republicans in the state. Estimates for what turnout may be this time are all over the map. Mary Snow, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, this reminder. Tune in Tuesday night for the country's first real votes and the candidate's first true test. America's choice 2012. Live coverage of the Iowa caucuses for you begins Tuesday night, January 3rd at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
Newt Gingrich says he's not worried about a fourth place finish in Iowa. But should he be? We'll put that question and others to our political buzz panel.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: "Political Buzz" is your rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. Three questions, 30 seconds on the clock. And playing today with us Cheri Jacobus, Republican strategist and columnist for "The Hill"; Sirius XM political talk show host, Pete Dominick; and Democratic strategist, John Rowley. Hello everyone.
CHERI JACOBUS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Good morning.
GORANI: First question, Newt Gingrich isn't sweating his fluctuating poll numbers. He saying there's more than three tickets out of Iowa. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you come in fourth, will you stay in the race?
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Oh, sure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: so there are more than three tickets out of Iowa?
GINGRICH: Well, it depends what happens. Depends what the margins are. But yes, more than three tickets considering I'm 20 points ahead in some other states. It would be fairly foolish for me not to stay in the race. It is a long way from here to picking a nominee.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: How much does Newt need Iowa. Cheri?
JACOBUS: If he can come in fourth, that's really effectively a third place because I think that we have to put Ron Paul in a different category. I don't really look at him as being in the same category as the other candidates. I think that Newt can live to fight another day and do quite well.
What really hurt him, I think, was the perceived arrogance that he had. Then people have to remember that our nominee on the Republican side is going to be going up against a guy with extreme arrogance. Barack Obama one of the worst presidents in the century who thinks he's in the top four.
A healthy ego on the Republican side is probably going to be a good thing when you look at the outrageous ego of the current occupant of the White House.
GORANI: John?
JOHN ROWLEY, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Newt Gingrich is delusional. He's going to go down as one of the most volatile presidential candidates the Republicans have seen since Barry Goldwater. He reminds me of a character in the Monty Python film "The Holy Grail". And there's a knight in "The Holy Grail" that has had both arms, both legs cut off and announces, "It is but the a flesh wound."
Well, Newt, dropping 15 points in the polls is not a flesh wound. He's going to go down as one of the dumbest, smart guys in American political history.
GORANI: All right. Great scene, by the way, that one. Pete, what do you think?
PETE DOMINICK, SIRIUS XM HOST: Well, I think Cheri had a good point. His arrogance isn't perceived, it's real. People really think this about Newt Gingrich. People who know him think this.
He acts like he doesn't need anybody's help to get in the White House. He can just will it. There's probably more than three tickets out of Iowa, but Newt Gingrich's ticket is going to take him right back to Virginia where he's from and where he can't even vote for himself because he didn't get on the ballot there. Does anybody really think he ever took this presidential run more serious than just trying to sell books? I've never understood it. I really haven't.
GORANI: All right. Question number two, Rick Santorum's got momentum. Of course because he's fresh off a bump in the Iowa polls. He's tripled in his support. He's trying to capitalize on it. And he's put out a new radio ad. He says he's ready for the race ahead.
Here he is on "JOHN KING, USA". Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This isn't my first rodeo. I've been through tough campaigns. Big national scrutiny types of campaigns in the state of Pennsylvania. Most of the media says that Mitt Romney is the guy that can beat President Obama. But what history does Mitt Romney have of --
(CROSSTALK)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN HOST: There's polling for it as well..
(END VIDEO CLIP) GORANI: So what is Santorum's battle plan beyond Iowa, John?
ROWLEY: Well, there's one brutal irony for Rick Santorum. A few months ago I don't think anybody thought he had a chance to win. Now he's in danger of actually performing well but coming in under expectations because some are even talking about Rick Santorum winning Iowa.
I think, A, he needs to keep expectations lowered going into Iowa. Two, he has to broaden his appeal beyond just the evangelical base. He probably needs a good battle plan going into South Carolina where his socially conservative message has a very good chance of taking hold with that electorate.
GORANI: Ok. And Cheri, what is his battle plan beyond Iowa do you think?
JACOBUS: You know, I have to agree with a lot of that. If he can beat the expectations game on Tuesday, then he comes out being able to draw on a lot of media attention and a lot of money which is going to be important. If he can, as he does go into South Carolina, that will be where he has his best shot.
But, you know, this is his time. He's going into Tuesday on a positive, on a high. So he could be, I don't know if it's going to be a full-on wild card, but if he does well and hangs in there, I think you're going to see Perry and Bachmann, you know, sort of fall by the way side. Rick Santorum will be the next guy in line after Romney.
GORANI: Ok. Pete Dominick, beyond Iowa, Santorum, what happens?
DOMINICK: There's nothing beyond Iowa for Santorum. I think that he popped just at the right time. I attribute that to the sweater vest look. Very presidential, Rick, but the truth is the only reason he's so popular in Iowa is because those two issues of equality for gay and lesbian Americans and abortion really matter to those 120,000 Evangelical voters in Iowa.
But this is Mitt Romney's dream. Rick Santorum is the only person who can make Mormonism look less crazy with his brand of Evangelical Christianity that compares gay sex to polygamy and incest. He's nutso and he's going to make Mitt Romney look great in New Hampshire.
GORANI: Well, your buzzer beater now. 20 seconds each. American idol Kelly Clarkson endorses Ron Paul. She tweeted this. "I love Ron Paul. If he wins the nomination for the Republican Party in 2012, he's got my vote. Too bad he probably won't." It sent many of her followers, by the way, into a tizzy.
But if you're a Republican candidate looking to seal up Iowa, which celebrity endorsement would you want, Cheri?
JACOBUS: You know, if you get a big political name like Chris Christie like Romney has out there today that's good. But in terms of the Hollywood celebrities -- GORANI: Yes.
JACOBUS: You don't want anybody. Look, you have to understand Midwesterners, particularly Iowans. I spent a few months out there running a congressional campaign a million years ago and you can swing a dead cat and -- you can't swing a dead cat without hitting a candidate running for president in Iowa. They're very used to it. They want you in their living room several times. They don't care about celebrity endorsements. They want you there.
GORANI: All right. And John, what do you think? Which celebrity endorsement would work for one of these GOP candidates in Iowa?
ROWLEY: They probably want someone without a twitter account. I think "Celebrity Rehab" is probably in order for this field given how much rehabbing of their image and the operations of their campaigns. In reality, given how important the socially conservative vote and the evangelical vote is, a dream endorsement that anybody in this field would push a pea with their nose from Iowa to New Hampshire would be Tim Tebow.
GORANI: Pete Dominick?
DOMINICK: Well, first of all, Kelly Clarkson supporters are going to be really disappointed Hala when they find out they can only vote one time and it can't be by text. She's a game show winner. I give her credit for going out there and saying what she believes politically.
The truth is there is no celebrity that could help any of these candidates because anybody who would help them is dead. John Wayne, Charlton Heston . If it were somebody, I guarantee you it would be some old white tough guy. That will really put them over. Anybody who cares what a celebrity thinks shouldn't be voting.
GORANI: All right. Thanks for playing to all three of you. Cheri Jacobus, John Rowling, Pete Dominick. Thanks to you all.
DOMINICK: Happy New Year.
GORANI: Happy new year to you as well. 2012 is on the way. We're almost there.
Now we're going to take a short break here on CNN. Verizon Wireless has a new way for customers to pay their bills and customers aren't very happy about it. We'll explain.
Also, thanks to this year's economy the Rose Bowl parade will have fewer floats. Don't worry, the new additions are sure to get a lot of attention. We'll have the story live from Pasadena ahead.
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GORANI: If you are a Verizon Wireless customer, well, you're probably unhappy about this new measure. The company has announced a new fee. Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange with the details. What is this fee?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know what the response to this fee first was? If you were anywhere near Facebook or Twitter yesterday, Hala, you saw the outrage from consumers.
All right. So what is this fee? What Verizon is going to be doing starting January 15th, Verizon Wireless, I mean, is going to be charging $2 if you make a one-time payment. If you use your credit or debit cards either online or over the phone, but there is a way you can avoid this new fee.
Here's what you can do. You can use electronic check on line or over the phone, you can enrol in auto pay. You can use a Verizon gift card. You can even go and pay at a Verizon store or do the old- fashioned way, put the check in the mail. You can avoid the fee that way as well.
Now, Verizon is saying that this fee is designed to cover costs associated with the one-time credit card payments. Translation here in English it's actually passing on those transaction fees that the credit card companies charge them.
Some people may think of it as a late fee if you forget to pay your bill, but we'll see if this outrage has legs. You think about what Bank of America did, Hala. It folded. It pulled back on its $5 debit card fee because of the consumer backlash. We'll see if the consumer backlash with this has any bearing on what Verizon Wireless decides to do..
GORANI: We'll see. It was interesting what happened with Bank of America. But that was also, I think part of the outrage after the bailout. Customers felt you're charging me $5 a month to use my own money. In this case people might say you're charging me money to pay my bill? We'll see what happens with that.
Let's talk about the last trading day of the year. How's it looking on this December 30th, Alison?
KOSIK: Ghostly quiet. It's very quiet out here on Wall Street. The Dow is on track, Hala, to end the year with a modest gain of about six percent. The Nasdaq looks like it's headed for a loss of more than one percent. Now, the S&P 500; that's really the wild car. It's kind of on the fence. We're watching the S&P today because today's session is really going to determine whether or not the S&P closes with a gain or a loss for the year -- Hala.
GORANI: Thank you. Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange.
Floats in the annual Rose Parade have wilted in the bad economy. Companies are still investing in them. We'll find out more in a live report.
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GORANI: The 123rd Rose Parade is Monday. If you watch you might notice some changes. Some of the well-known sponsors dropped out because of the bad economy.
CNN's Casey Wian explains how that's opened up some spots on the parade route.
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CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Perennial award winner Rainburg Sprinklers, Budweiser's famous Clydesdales and the city of Long Beach, California, all have withdrawn from the 2012 rose parade because of economic concerns.
West Covina, California first entered the float in 1999 and wowed the crowd with 2010's memorable entry featuring the Tuskegee Airmen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What it does, it brings the community together.
WIAN: Like many cities West Covina stopped funding its float in 2004 turning it over to a private foundation which pulled out of the parade this year.
FRANK SCALFARO, WEST COVINA: We did our very, very best to try to raise the funds to pay for the float. The economics, I mean the businesses are hurting. They wanted to go ahead and if they had any additional available dollars to use it for other purposes.
(on camera): The picturesque back drop of the Rose Parade route traditionally has been viewed by cities as a valuable promotional tool to attract people and businesses to the region. But with so many municipal budgets in trouble, cities are now facing a difficult choice. Pay for a float in the Rose Parade or pay the salary of a police officer or librarian.
RICHARD JACKSON, PASADENA TOURNAMENT OF ROSES: Certainly when you have cities where their major financial issues going on, putting a float in the parade just seems like not necessarily the best use of resources.
WIAN: The smallest of the four companies that build floats for $75,000 to $200,000 or more each has shut its doors.
KATIE RODRIGUEZ, CHARISMA FLOATS: We started off January 1st well with a good parade and two happy clients and we're finishing the year out of business.
MATTHEW RODRIGUEZ CHARISMA FLOATS: people just aren't spending money like they used to. Everybody's holding onto it.
Tim Estes runs Fiesta floats. Though he's lost long-time client Rainburg, others have taken its place.
TIM ESTES, FIESTA FLOATS: Yes. There's been an impact. There's been cost increases with raw materials, flowers, steel, labor, insurance costs. I'm just fortunate.
REPORTERIAN: Float builders and parade organizers even with the slow economy say the rose parade remains a big draw for many advertisers.
JACKSON: We seem to have weathered all the economic storms for the last 123 years to still be in existence. Comfortable.
WIAN: Things may be a little uncomfortable after the upcoming parade. Protesters from the Occupy Movement plan to voice their economic concerns by staging a demonstration behind the final float of 2012.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, Casey Wian joins us live from Pasadena, California. I can see some floats behind you. Tell us what's around you and what interesting floats will be on display this year.
WIAN: Well, Hala, we're at the Phoenix Decorating Company here in Pasadena. You can see the finishing touches are just now beginning to be put on these floats. The parade is going to be happening on Monday this year, January 2nd.
And you know, despite what a lot of the people were worrying about, this company, which is the largest float building company, says that its business has actually continued to remain strong.
And as we mentioned, advertisers believe that this is a real sort of a bang for your buck issue. You get about six times as many eyeballs with the Rose Parade float per dollar as you do with an ad in the Super Bowl. Even with the down economy, that's one reason why you see all those float builders.
(INAUDIBLE) We have children's hospital over here. That's going to be their float. That's why you're seeing these folks continue to build these floats and invest this money even with the down economy -- Hala.
GORANI: Thanks very much. Casey Wian is live in Pasadena. Thanks for the preview.
They were rescued from a roadside attraction after a criminal investigation.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You don't usually put your face in a Wolf dog's face because there's always a danger of them being startled by something.
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GORANI: But now these Wolf dogs are getting help. They're helping war veterans. We'll have this story in the 12:00 p.m. Eastern hour of the CNN NEWSROOM.
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GORANI: New polls out this morning bring even more bad news for Newt Gingrich. The former front-runner's numbers have been dropping for a few days now. Details now from Des Moines, Iowa, and CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser. What do the latest numbers reveal, Paul, today?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Hala, I know we've been talking about this earlier this morning. The main polls showing Romney and Paul tied at top with Gingrich nose diving and Santorum heading up. Look at this little breakdown from the polls. Very interesting. Very fascinating.
This is from NBC MARIST and it asked among people likely to partake in the Iowa caucuses out here (INAUDIBLE) caucuses. Who's not acceptable as a nominee, 41 percent of people questioned said Ron Paul not acceptable as the nominee. Look at Newt Gingrich pretty high up as well, 35 percent. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann of neighboring Minnesota 34 percent at 34 percent. Who's at the bottom, Mitt Romney. Only about one in five say that Romney is not acceptable as the GOP nominee.
Now why is Gingrich's numbers so high there, 35 percent saying unacceptable? Here's one reason why. All that negative advertising we've seen here on the air waves in Iowa being directed at Gingrich.
A new survey -- a new study by Campaign Media Analysis Group, it says that almost 50 percent, almost 50 percent of all the political ads run in Iowa here over the last month have been attack ads against the former House Speaker. That's a pretty high number, Hala.
GORANI: All right. Well, yes, it is a pretty high number. It seems as though negative ads are having an impact, but let's talk about the candidates themselves. Some of them are actually leaving the state of Iowa, at least for part of the weekend. We're so close to the Iowa caucuses. Which candidates are taking off, Paul?
STEINHAUSER: Isn't that amazing, four days to go. I put the story up on CNN.com earlier this morning. Ron Paul, the Congressman from Texas, going back to Texas. He's here today, all day in Iowa campaigning but tomorrow and Sunday he spends the weekend, the holiday weekend New Year's Eve, with his wife. The campaign tells me he's going to be right back here Monday morning.
Mitt Romney, you saw Mitt Romney earlier this morning with Chris Christie. I know you took that event live. Well, Romney's going back to New Hampshire. Right now he has an event there later today and tomorrow morning. Then back here later on Saturday. But while he's gone Chris Christie and Romney's wife, Ann, will continue to campaign here in Iowa -- Hala.
GORANI: Ok. Thanks, Paul Steinhauser. We'll see you a bit later throughout the day. And this reminder to all of you. Tune in Tuesday, of course, "America's Choice 2012. We'll bring you the Iowa caucuses live.
It begins Tuesday night, January 3rd, at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
Well, that's going to do it for me. The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM comes to you live from Studio Seven at CNN Center with Fredricka Whitfield -- hi there Fred.
