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School Shooting Stuns Colorado; 1,000 Mile Wide Snowstorm Heads East; Remembering the Sandy Hook Tragedy; Obama's Shake-up of White House Advisers; Airport Worker Attempted Car Bombing; The Odds of Winning Mega Millions Jackpot; Feds Fight Over Allowing Cell Phone In- Flight; Parents of Sandy Hook Victims on a Mission
Aired December 14, 2013 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. I'm Martin Savidge in for Fredricka Whitfield. Here are the top stories we're following in the CNN NEWSROOM. A Colorado community in shock.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was terrifying because we heard gunshots and Dana, she came running down the stairs and saying she saw them shot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Answers in the latest school shooting, students that were there when it happened are haunted by the memory of what they saw.
A powerful winter storm is barreling across the northeast, dumping snow on an area that spans 1,000 miles. See just how bad it is inside that storm zone.
And if you were disappointed you did not pick the Mega Millions winning numbers, cheer up. Nobody did. The jackpot is even larger. We'll tell you just how big it will grow this hour.
We're going to start today in Colorado, a day after a school shooting just miles from Columbine.
Ana Cabrera is live there in Centennial.
Ana, what's the latest on the investigation?
ANA CABRERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Martin, we know there are a lot of unanswered questions this morning. But police have identified the gunman as 18-year-old Karl Pierson. And we're starting to learn more about where they're looking for clues. Today, we know investigators are planning to search the home where he lived. They're also searching his father's home to see if that could give them some ideas into whether this was all planned, for how long he had been planning, what his motivation might have been.
We did talk with the sheriff this morning who say that one of the many things they're really focusing in on and honing in on today is where the gun came from. You may recall he walked into this school behind me, Arapahoe High School, with a shotgun. It wasn't even concealed. So where did that come from, what hands did it pass.
The sheriff hoping to bring us some more details on that at a press conference this afternoon.
Now yesterday, it was just a horrifying scene here for the students in particular who had to go into lockdown as shots rang out. Listen to how this all unfolded.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The school got on lockdown, I'm not sure why. There's smoke. The north side of the school. There's a fire in the library.
CABRERA (voice-over): Chaos and confusion at Colorado's Arapahoe High School as a gunman opens fire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am on the north side, entering the west parking lot. I have a student down in the athletic hall. Two shotgun shells on the ground, I'm assuming they have a shotgun. I see two shotgun shells on the ground right here.
CABRERA: And this morning the suburban Denver high school is still a crime scene.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Be advised at this time we do have one student down and they found shotgun shells.
CABRERA: Police say the gunman identified as 18-year-old Karl Halverson Pierson shot one student before turning the gun on himself, taking his own life.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was pretty scary. There were two shots by my classroom. So we heard the screaming.
CABRERA: Police say Pierson appears to have been seeking revenge against a specific faculty member because of what police call a confrontation or disagreement. Witnesses saw Pierson enter Arapahoe High School carrying a shotgun. He made no attempt to hide it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw him. He was kind of running military toward the building. I alerted everybody in the building. And that's when I heard two big bangs, just boom, pop.
CABRERA: Police say Pierson asked other students the whereabouts of that faculty member, reportedly the school's librarian and head of the speech and debate team.
GRAYSON ROBINSON, ARAPAHOE COUNTY SHERIFF: When the teacher heard that he -- that this individual was asking for him, the teacher exited the school immediately. In my opinion was the most important tactical decision that could have been made.
CABRERA: In addition to the shotgun, authorities found two Molotov cocktails inside the school. One was rendered safe, the other had been detonated. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's why the deputies encountered a large amount of smoke in the immediate area. That was ignited either immediately prior to or during the shots being fired.
CABRERA: As part of the investigation, authorities will be looking at school surveillance video. They are also searching Pierson's car, his home and another home that he had access to.
The shooting happened just 10 miles from the infamous 1999 Columbine High School shooting where Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed 12 students and one teacher before killing themselves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My husband was a freshman at Columbine. So he's freaking out right now. It's bringing back horrible memories of that. And yes, it's just way too close to home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CABRERA: The only silver lining in all of this is that nobody else died. The gunman is the only person who was killed in all of this. But he did shoot a 15-year-old girl before he killed himself.
Witnesses say that that girl asked for help, she screamed for help, she motioned that there was a shooter, apparently she was still in the entrance area of the school, just happened to be in the path when that shooter walked into the school. At last check, she's still in critical condition after undergoing surgery.
We know students here are thinking about her today. They came to the school this morning. Some of them trying to start collecting donations for what is likely to be a very long road to recovery.
And of course it's just one year, Martin, after the anniversary of the Newtown school shooting. So a lot of heavy hearts for the folks who were part of that community, again a year ago today. And they're still thinking about how that has transformed the nation.
The president and the first lady lit candles for each of the victims of the Newtown shooting at the White House this morning. Twenty children and six adults were killed in that shooting last year. So just too many tragedies all around -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: It is certainly a heartbreaking day.
Ana, thank you very much.
Let's move on to some other news now. A storm that is causing misery for people in the Midwest today and it's going to spread it eastward. It is nearly a thousand miles wide and it's pushing east with a mixture of heavy snow and freezing rain.
You can take a look at Cleveland, Ohio, here courtesy of WJW, one of my favorites.
And then we'll also show you we think the scene coming from Detroit where it's hovering around 20 degrees. And then of course in Chicago. Folks there have seen the snow, it's been falling since this morning. The last few hours.
And that is where our Jennifer Gray is.
And, Jennifer, how's it going? How are people handling things there?
JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, Martin, people are handling things really well. It has been coming down steadily since 5:00 or 6:00 this morning. It's just now starting to let up. You're just now able to see some of the downtown buildings where you couldn't all morning long. And people have been out. But so have the snowplows, they've been clearing streets, salting the sidewalks and the streets, making things safer here in Chicago.
But, you know, it's not just Chicago. This is messy all into the northeast.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GRAY (voice-over): Winter still may be officially one week away, but by the looks of what's coming down this weekend, you might think otherwise.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was home and this started coming down so this has been constant all day. Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The back roads are just ice and snow and just makes it hard to drive on and everything.
GRAY: Here in Chicago, the conditions have been downright frigid, dipping to below average temperatures for days.
(On camera): This is Jim Marks. Come on in, Jim. We caught him running just a few minutes ago. You're from D.C., in town for a wedding.
JIM MARKS, JOGGER: Right.
GRAY: Some would call you a little crazy, Jim.
MARKS: No. This is a beautiful day for a wedding in December in Chicago. I love Chicago. It's beautiful out here.
GRAY: And I guess it's all about the miles at this point.
MARKS: Yes, we're just going to get the miles in.
GRAY (voice-over): But now this 1,000-mile storm is on the move, with tens of millions in the northeast about to get shellacked by large swathes of snow and ice. Some places could see more than a foot of the white stuff.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm freezing. This is terrible.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is brutal, I don't like it.
GRAY: The wicked weather didn't deter everyone. In Mount Kisco, New York, the Christmas parade went on its plan, with Santa braving the elements. Still utility companies and airports remained on high alert, as are emergency crews who overnight had to battle through bitter conditions and thick ice to fight this fire in Berlin, New Hampshire.
So with winter storm warnings and watches now in effect for large portions of the northeast, everyone is bracing for what could be a miserable 24 hours.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRAY: And this storm left about four inches of snow in Chicago as it travels out to the northeast. A little bit later this afternoon, tonight, even into tomorrow morning, places like Boston and even upstate New York could see up to a foot of snow before this is all said and done. It's expected to move out later tomorrow.
So that's it from Chicago. We'll have more coming up in the next half hour -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: All right. Thanks, Jennifer.
To all our friends up there in the storm zone, please be careful. And that includes you, Jennifer. Thanks.
Mega Millions fever, it is growing. Nobody had those winning numbers in last night's drawing. You know how that feeling is, I didn't win. Well, you know what, nobody did. So the jackpot is up to $550 million. The next drawing is Tuesday. How close did you come? Here are the winning numbers in case you didn't know, 19, 24, 26, 27, 70, with a Mega Ball of 12.
Your chances of winning, one in 259 million. But eventually, come on, somebody has got to win.
Nelson Mandela's final journey to his hometown is under way. His body was flown to his ancestral home and has arrived in South Africa's Eastern Cape province.
And near his hometown of Qunu, people are celebrating with song and dance, awaiting their chance to see his casket. Crowds are lining the streets to get a glimpse.
Mandela will be buried Sunday after a funeral service expected to be attended by thousands of mourners, he will then be laid to rest at his childhood village, surrounded by giant, lush green hills.
It's been one year since a gunman killed 26 people in Newtown, Connecticut. We'll see what one mother who lost her child in this tragedy is saying about it. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CABRERA: Hello, welcome back, everyone. We are live in Colorado where a community and our country is coping with yet another school shooting. Yesterday a student walked into this high school behind me shooting a 15-year-old girl before killing himself.
Now for the past year or so, some lawmakers have tried to pass gun laws that could help prevent tragedies like this, particularly after the Newtown, Connecticut, shooting last year, and Colorado in fact was one of a handful of states that did pass new gun control legislation. But on a national level, there hasn't been a whole lot of success or progress in that area.
And CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser has details on that -- Paul.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Hey, Ana. On the eve of the first anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy, another school shooting, this time in Colorado.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBINSON: We cleared the school and secured all of the students really quickly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: In the year since 20 young children were killed in Newtown, Connecticut, a push to pass new gun control laws never even made it to the Republican-controlled House. The bill went down to defeat in a Democratic-run Senate.
Hours before the new school shooting in Colorado, the top Senate Democrat expressed his frustration.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: Shameful that the United States Senate can't pass gun safety legislation that would protect our most vulnerable citizens, our kids, our children, our babies.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: One thing that's changed over the past year, support for gun control, which went up after the Newtown, Connecticut, massacre appears to have faded. Back in January, people we questioned in a CNN/ORC poll supported stricter gun control laws by 55-44 percent margin. In our most recent poll, support had waned and the public was divided.
Two other national surveys showed that same decline -- Ana.
CABRERA: All right, conversation continues. Thank you, Paul Steinhauser.
Now as we remember all those who died in the Newtown shooting last year, all 26 people, Gabby Giffords' organization, Americans for Responsible Solutions, has released this video. Take a look.
(VIDEO CLIP) Asking for action on gun violence, Giffords has now teamed up with Nicole Hockley, who lost her 6-year-old son Dylan on that tragic day in Newtown. They have created a lesson plan now to talk about how Newtown and other national tragedies are impacting students.
Jake Tapper spoke with Nicole Hockley about her role in this project and to see how she's coping now one year later.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NICOLE HOCKLEY, MOTHER OF SANDY HOOK VICTIM: This past year I have been spending a lot of time getting educated on the causes of gun violence and really committing myself to the mission that Sandy Hook promised to prevent future gun violence and save lives. And it's been a baptism of fire in many respects, but I have learned a lot and I believe that there's a lot of hope in terms of positive change that we can make happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CABRERA: Now Hockley also says that she believes the shooting would not have happened if there were stricter gun laws.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOCKLEY: Now I believe that the Sandy Hook shooting could have been avoided if proper intervention had been made, if he and his family had received help, had sought help, and had received help at an earlier stage and certainly if there hadn't been that sort of open access to firearms, I probably wouldn't be sitting here talking to you today, and to be honest, that would be -- that would be a really good thing.
I would ask that you be kind and remember, but really I would love people everywhere to join Sandy Hook Promise, and make the promise to parent together because together we can all be part of the solution and prevent gun violence in our communities.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CABRERA: We will have more on the tragedy there in Newtown later this hour as we remember it one year later, as well as staying on top of the developing investigation into the shooting that happened here in Colorado just yesterday -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: Ana Cabrera, thank you very much, from Colorado.
After problems with the health care rollout among other issues, President Obama has brought in some new advisers to help him recover his footing for a second term. We'll tell you why one of those faces may look familiar.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: It is safe to say it's been a tough year for President Obama. You've had the botched rollout of the Obamacare program, you've also had some other issues such as Syria that have led to a dip in his poll numbers. The administration is bringing back a couple of familiar faces to try to turn things around.
Brianna Keilar looks at whether a reboot can work.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Back from South Africa, and back to cold, hard reality. President Obama returned to this. Numbers showing just 365,000 Americans enrolled in Obamacare during its first two months, far short of 1.2 million the White House expected.
While half of Americans say they disapprove of his signature health care law in a new poll, what may be worse, he has lost credibility. Only 37 percent of those polled say the president is honest and straightforward, according to an NBC/"The Wall Street Journal" poll.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you.
KEILAR: So can he fix it? President Obama is bringing in two White House veterans as he tries to turn things around. Phil Schiliro, his former congressional liaison who shepherded the passage of Obamacare, back to steer it to success, and most notably, John Podesta, former chief of staff to President Clinton, who will serve in the influential advisory role as counselor to the president.
(On camera): Should that be seen as a reset? And does the president think that he needs a reset?
JOSH EARNEST, DEPUTY WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: That is part of the natural transition that you see on an annual basis at the White House. And I would anticipate that you'd see some more of that this year, too.
KEILAR: A signal that more changes are to come. But now some are asking will staff changes be enough or has the damage to the second term already been done?
RYAN LIZZA, WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, THE NEW YORKER: I think staff changes, they help change the media narrative to a certain extent. I am skeptical that staff can change the fundamentals of the problems that Obama has.
KEILAR (on camera): And those fundamentals would be his still troubled health care reform program, the economy, the recovery is still slow going, and the fact that President Obama is still up against a divided Congress.
Brianna Keilar, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SAVIDGE: So can the president get his political mojo back on track?
Let's bring in Emily Tisch Sussman, she is a Democratic strategist and the campaign director of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, and then Rick Tyler, he is a Republican strategist and former spokesman for Newt Gingrich.
Thank you both for joining us.
Emily, let me start with you. John Podesta, one of those familiar names, we're going to see coming back. What does he bring and most of all will it work?
EMILY TISCH SUSSMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I think yes and yes. He brings so much. Podesta is so smart in the way that -- you need to look no further than the way that he has built the Center for American Progress, and even what he's done in the past couple of weeks. He is always pushing forward a long-term look at income inequality and a progressive economic agenda, and he knows how to handle crisis.
He was -- you know, he was Bill Clinton's chief of staff through the entire -- you know, through the entire impeachment trial, he knows how to handle it. And I think that he brings not just, you know, strong income inequality and progress economic agenda, but also he is incredibly strong on climate, on health care.
These are things the president needs to hold onto moving forward and he has -- we've seen every signal to believe that he will.
SAVIDGE: All right. Let me bring in Rick Tyler here.
And what do you think, Rick, if you could advise the president? Let me give you that soap box. What would you say? Is this the right move?
RICK TYLER, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, it probably is the right move. I mean, John Podesta is, as just been said, very capable intellectual. I think he's actually brought in not so much for his policy advice, and we know where that is, it's all on the center left. He's anti-energy, he's the anti-progress, anti-wealth. It's curious to me that a lot of health care corporations were donors to the Center for American Progress.
But I think the reason John Podesta is here is because this president knows that his presidency, because of his credibility, is effectively over. And what presidents need to do is have political capital and President Obama is in the negative deficit. And in -- that political capital lends itself to getting Congress to do what he wants to do.
He has no political capital. Congress can't do what he wants to do. So he's going to rely on John Podesta to see what he can do without Congress and I think that's why John Podesta is in the White House. SAVIDGE: And Emily, to Rick's point here, is it all over essentially for Obama? Does that -- I mean, is there any hope, say, for something like immigration reform coming forward now given the way that health care reform has really started on a very bad foot?
SUSSMAN: We have major problems in this country with moving legislation forward right now. You know, what used to be moderate, reasonable Republicans that could come to the middle and actually work towards things moving forward, moving budgets forward, moving any piece of legislation forward, they're barely able to move right now. When you look at -- you know, it took the Violence Against Women Act two years to be reauthorized. There's very little to see that the Congress will actually work with the president. One of the things that Podesta does bring, and I do agree with Rick on this, is that he really knows how to use the executive actions very well. I do think he will bring that.
You know, you don't just build political capital by sitting there, you build political capital by moving forward. The president has had -- he has been very open asking Congress to work with him, bring any good ideas forward. It has been extremely difficult to him -- for him to work with the Republican majority in the House. So now he's looking towards alternatives.
SAVIDGE: I think, Rick, it has to be pointed out that the Democrats at least can say well, we're not the Republican Party at this particular moment. And what I mean by that is, of course, this infighting that we're seeing a civil war. How badly is that going to affect Republicans, especially when we talk about the next elections?
TYLER: Well, on the one hand, you know, Obamacare has really hurt this president, hurt his credibility because it was based on as we now know a lie. And I don't know what else to call it but a lie. On the other hand, that doesn't mean that the Republicans are going to win overwhelming majorities. Republicans have to have an alternative vision.
I might say in counter to the argument that the Congress doesn't get anything done is that Speaker Boehner in the House has passed 40 separate bills to stimulate the economy. None of those have been taken up by the Senate. So it really works both ways.
I don't think he'd get out of this until the next election. I don't think the president has any credibility to get anything done except for by executive order and that's going to mean challenging the Constitution, which I don't --
(CROSSTALK)
SAVIDGE: But how are Republicans going to win office if they are so deeply divided?
TYLER: I don't know that they're all deeply divided. They all -- every one of them voted against Obamacare, every one of them voted for pro-jobs.
We have a lot of disagreement in our he party, but I'd rather be divided in helping the -- divided in helping how we move the country forward than united and had -- lead to its eventual decay. And it seems -- that seems to me to be (INAUDIBLE) the Republicans and the Democrats in this case.
SAVIDGE: All right. Well, Rick Tyler, we've got to leave it there. Emily Tisch Sussman, thank you both for talking about this.
TYLER: Appreciate it. Thank you. SUSSMAN: Thank you.
SAVIDGE: You know we're going to be talking more. It's nice to see you.
In other news, a school shooting in Colorado has shocked a town, paralyzing students and parents with fear. But what's even more shocking is how the shooter's friends describe it. Hear what one had to say next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Welcome back. We are following all the latest developments out of Colorado, a day after a school shooting.
Ana Cabrera is live there in Centennial with more -- Ana.
CABRERA: Martin, this school is still blocked off. We know that investigators are still inside, processing the scene, making sure not to leave any stone unturned. They're also searching the suspect's home, as well as his father's home. And the sheriff told me they're also focusing on where the gun came from and just how Karl Pierson, the shooter, got his hands on it. They're trying to figure out why exactly Pierson brought that gun to school and opened fire.
Now the sheriff believes Pierson was looking for his speech and debate coach and tells us he may have been seeking revenge over some sort of disagreement.
I had a chance to speak with Frank Wornoff, an 18-year-old student here at Arapahoe High School who says he's a friend of the shooter, Karl Pierson. Listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRANK WORNOFF, FRIEND OF SHOOTER: The shooter actually was a good friend of mine. I've known him for -- since freshman year. And honestly, he was pretty geeky and nerdy but in a fairly charming way. He was one of the nicest and most humble people I knew, honestly.
CABRERA (on camera): So when you heard he may be involved, what went through your mind?
WORNOFF: I never saw that coming.
CABRERA: You never saw it coming?
WORNOFF: No.
CABRERA: He's not the type of person you'd expect.
WORNOFF: Never.
CABRERA: Any idea where he would have gotten a gun?
WORNOFF: That's actually something I have been talking to everybody with. We have no idea where he could have possibly gotten it.
CABRERA: And he wasn't a loner or anything like that?
WORNOFF: Not really, no.
CABRERA: No? You said he's part of the speech and debate team?
WORNOFF: Right. I don't know a lot of people that don't like him. No one has anything bad to say about him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CABRERA: Other students we've been talking to tell us that he was a very good person about expressing his own viewpoints, that he did have some strong political beliefs. Some people described him as having somewhat of an anger or a frustration against the government, believed it was communist, that he also being part of the speech and debate team did not like to lose an argument.
So those are some of the pieces that we're starting to put together, some of the puzzle behind what happened here and the mystery.
Of course, there was another victim in all of this. The shooter killed himself, but not before he opened fire, hitting a 15-year-old girl. And that girl is still in critical condition at the hospital today. We are in touch with hospital officials as well as the sheriff's department, so we're sure to bring you the very latest as we get it -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: Ana, thank you very much.
Let's get a check now on that 1,000-mile snowstorm that's effecting millions of people from the Midwest all the way to the east this weekend.
Our Jennifer Gray is one of those millions, she's standing outside in Chicago.
And at least it's looking a little better, Jennifer.
GRAY: Yes, they really have, Martin. The snow has started to let up, you know, it really came down for about six hours earlier this morning. Now we're starting to see it let up a little bit. The clouds are starting to lift a little bit. You're just now able to see downtown.
But look at this. It snowed for six hours straight. So we got about four inches of snow in Chicago. Comes up about halfway to my knees. We've also seen the snowplows out, they've been doing a really good job of clearing out the streets, the sidewalks. We've seen the salt trucks come every so often as well. So doing a great job as far as that's concerned.
I know the bridges and overpasses will definitely be slow moving, though, as we go through the next couple of days. Temperatures here in Chicago are not expected to get above freezing until Thursday. And temperatures have been at or below freezing since December 7th. So very cold here in Chicago. And like you mention, the storm system stretching about a thousand miles from east to west. So this is not only affecting Chicago, it's affecting areas like D.C., New York, Boston, as it continues to make its way to the east.
And so what we're going to be dealing with throughout the rest of this afternoon, tonight into tomorrow, the snow will linger into New York, into Boston before clearing out tomorrow. And advisories are in effect all across the northeast and the Ohio Valley. We're going to see possible five to seven inches of snow in places like New York City. And we could see even higher amounts as we go into places like Boston, and even upstate New York.
So there's an hour-by-hour forecast for you, showing that storm system pushing up the coast and pushing off the northeast as we go through tomorrow afternoon. But very cold temperatures are going to stay in place all across the north, the northeast, and the mid-Atlantic.
So we're going to be in the deep freeze, Martin, for quite awhile, here in Chicago especially at least until Thursday.
SAVIDGE: Well, at least it's the weekend. So if you don't have to go out, I guess you shouldn't, except for you, Jennifer. We need you out there.
GRAY: Yes. That's the good news.
SAVIDGE: So thanks very much.
GRAY: All right.
SAVIDGE: All right. We'll be back in touch.
A man accused of planning a suicide attack at Wichita's airport by driving a car he thought was loaded with real explosives.
CNN's crime and justice correspondent Joe Johns tells us how the FBI caught the man before he could do any real harm.
JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Martin, the FBI says he got set up by a pair of undercover FBI agents. He thought he was about to detonate a car bomb but when he tried to enter the airport with a vehicle, he was arrested.
The guy's name is Terry Loewen and he's apparently a practicing Muslim. He works at Wichita airport and he's charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction, a car bomb, and attempting to provide material support to terrorism.
According to court documents, the FBI and the United States Attorney's Office say Loewen had an online chat with someone and he allegedly said he wanted to engage in violent jihad on behalf of al Qaeda. But what he didn't know was that he was chatting online with an FBI employee, and the employee offered to introduce him to someone who would help him with this violent jihad.
And the court documents describe FBI employees number one and later number two who pretended to be an accomplice as part of what was a sting operation. They nabbed Loewen when he tried to enter the airport gate with a security pass. He thought he had explosives in the car but they were not active because they'd been provided by the agents.
These types of so-called aspirational terror cases have become controversial recently. The question is whether it makes sense to go after individuals who have terror plans, even if the plans are not fully operational, because the cases can be expensive and time consuming to prosecute.
The FBI has said many times since 9/11 its mission has switched to prevention of terrorism and this is the kind of case that shows just how far they'll go to do it -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: Thank you, Joe, very much.
Well, last night if you didn't win the Mega Millions, your dreams did not come true. Except for one because then what's your other dream. I hope nobody else won. And nobody else did. So the odds of you winning, we'll take a look at the reality coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: A one in 259 million chance to be richer than your wildest dreams. $550 million richer. That is how much you could win when the next Mega Millions drawing is held Tuesday night, by the way.
The odds are extremely long, but that never stops us, does it? And the dream of winning is extremely powerful.
Jennifer Mayerle joins me now with the odds.
What are they?
JENNIFER MAYERLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, the odds are tough, as you mentioned, one in 259 million. It almost seems impossible when you hear that number. But someone has to win at some point. You know, the Mega Millions has rolled over 21 sometimes now, reaching that $550 million jackpot.
And, Martin, you know, earlier this year Mega Millions made a few changes. They made it tougher. You now choose from 75 numbers, that's up from 56.
SAVIDGE: See, that's what I remember from last night, was I looked and then I said, wait a minute, 70, where did 70 come from.
MAYERLE: Right.
SAVIDGE: So they have -- they boosted the numbers.
MAYERLE: Just a few months ago, they made the numbers higher, more numbers, 75 numbers up from 56. You have to choose for more. The idea is to have fewer winners, but with a bigger payout. And it seems to be working with how many times it's rolled over. But making it tougher can also lead to disappointment for people who are dreaming of a big payout. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYERLE: Do you usually buy a lottery ticket?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, it's Friday the 13th, and I'm going wild.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's always nice to dream. I enjoy the what if, you know, before the big game. We could take trips here and there. So it's all about that really.
MAYERLE: What would you do with this money?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would share it with CNN.
(LAUGHTER)
MAYERLE: I'm going to hold you to that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have 400, that much million, that's a lot of money.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MAYERLE: All right. So Tuesday is the next drawing. As we talked about $550 million. When you think about it, more than half -- more than half a billion dollars.
SAVIDGE: Yes.
MAYERLE: It does seem pretty incredible.
SAVIDGE: But not the record, you say.
MAYERLE: Not the record. You know, last year, three people split $656 million. That is a record for the Mega Millions jackpot. This is the second highest, fourth highest in jackpot history for all of the lottery. And while it's easier to get hit by an asteroid or bitten by a snake, you still have a chance.
All hope is not lost. They say you have a 1 in 15 chance of winning something, maybe even just getting your buck back that you spent on buying that lottery ticket.
SAVIDGE: Sure, that's what the lottery says. All right. Well, thanks, Jennifer, very much.
MAYERLE: Yes. Tuesday night.
SAVIDGE: Yes. We'll be there.
MAYERLE: Yes. SAVIDGE: I'll be there, you can bet. Thank you.
Well, there are dueling arguments over whether airline passengers should be able to talk on their cell phones in flight. Really? There's somebody who wants to do this? One government department is considering lifting that ban. However, thankfully, another is thinking about blocking it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Many airline passengers want to talk on their cell phones in flight. Well, many other passengers like myself would consider it purgatory. The FCC is considering it, though. Thankfully, the DOT, that's the Department of Transportation, and the Senate say hold the phone.
Here is CNN's Irene Marsh.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RENE MARSH, CNN AVIATION AND GOVERNMENT REGULATION CORRESPONDENT (voice-over) : Talking on your cell phone in flight could be grounded before you start dialing. The FCC voted 3-2 to consider lifting its ban on in flight cell use, such as voice calls and texting. The commission says new technology eliminates interference with cell towers on the ground, for the reason for the decades-old ban.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't want somebody sitting next to me saying, hi, I'm on the plane.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's more noise, more stress to the flight.
MARSH: One commissioner bombarded with letters from opponents.
AJIT PAI, FCC COMMISSIONER: A third wrote simply, "No."
MARSH: The FCC chairman says it's their job to worry about technology, not what passengers want.
TOM WHEELER, FCC CHAIRMAN: I'm the last person in the world who wants to listen to somebody talking to me while I fly across the country, but we are the technical agency, and we will make the technical rules that reflects the way the new technology works.
MARSH: Thursday the Department of Transportation said it would consider possibly banning the in-flight calls. "The USDOT's role is to determine if allowing these calls is fair to consumers," Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement. In Congress a new Senate bill also aims to ban the calls. It joins Republican Bill Shuster's House proposal.
REP. BILL SHUSTER (R), PENNSYLVANIA: These airplanes are confined, they're noisy already, and to have dozens of phone calls going on while in flight I think is annoying to the traveling public and I just think it's unnecessary. MARSH: But on air, which provides cell service on planes, says passengers haven't complained. Most users text and the $3 to $4 a minute cost keeps calls short.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARSH: Well, Martin, on one hand you have the FCC which voted to consider lifting the ban. On the other hand, you have the Department of Transportation considering blocking in-flight calls. So what does that mean for you, the passenger? Don't start dialing just yet.
SAVIDGE: All right. On to news of a higher altitude, mainly the moon. China's newest spacecraft has landed there today. That makes China only the third country to make a soft landing there.
The rover that will be doing all the work is called Jade Rabbit. People in China got to vote on that name, by the way. It will be on the moon for three months studying the lunar crust. And of course, there were no humans involved with that.
Congratulations to them.
The economy showing signs of strength, but extended unemployment benefits will expire at the end of the month. What it means for more than a million Americans.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Your money is just minutes away. Christine Romans has a preview.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, ANCHOR, CNN'S YOUR MONEY: Hi, Martin. The economy is showing some signs of strength, but extended unemployment benefits will expire at the end of the month for 1.3 million Americans. Is now really the time to cut big holes in the safety net?
That's coming up next on an all new "YOUR MONEY."
SAVIDGE: Thanks, Christine. We'll see you in just a bit. Meanwhile, let's go back to Ana Cabrera in Colorado -- Ana.
CABRERA: Of course today we're here reporting live from the scene of yet another school shooting. And today is the one year anniversary since the horrible tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Twenty first graders and six adults at that school were shot and killed.
Anderson Cooper had a chance to talk with the parents of some of those victims about that horrible day and the legacies they're now creating for their children one year later.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was sure she was going to walk out. I did not understand the magnitude of the situation until about 2:00 in the afternoon. BOB GAY, JOSEPHINE GAY'S FATHER: I was at work, and I was driving back, and I'm calling her and asking for information. She's, like, I don't have any information. I'm, like, why am I getting better information off a.m. news radio than I am from you? You're standing right there.
I was about a mile from Newtown when they came out and said 20 children were killed, six adults, and it struck me. Thank God I was only a mile from there because if I had to drive on 86, you know, I'd have run the car off the road because it was just -- it was such a disturbing disconcerting moment.
KAITLIN ROIG-DEBELLIS, TEACHER AT SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY: Eventually a knocking. It was a police officer. I finally unlocked the door and there was a SWAT team member. I each grabbed a hand or two and we fled out the back of the school.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Kaitlin Roig-Debellis and her 15 first graders all survived. Three of the five first grade classroom escaped unharmed that day. And the other two a different story.
JACKIE BARDEN, DANIEL BARDEN'S MOTHER: They finally said if you're in this room and you're waiting, there's, you know --
MARK BARDEN, DANIEL BARDEN'S FATHER: Your loved one is not coming back.
COOPER: Among the 20 children and six educators who died that day --
JEREMY RICHMAN, AVIELLE RICHMAN'S FATHER: I think there's not a minute, not a second of any day that goes by where somewhere in my head I'm thinking, I don't have my daughter Avielle. She's gone. That's always in my head.
JENNIFER HANSEL, AVIELLE RICHMAN'S MOTHER: It's every second of every day that she's not with me, and that's enough.
RICHMAN: Literally days after we lost her, we said we have to do something. It's just in our nature.
HANSEL: It may have even been that very day. I remember asking why would somebody walk into the school and kill my child. I need to know that answer. I have to have that answer.
COOPER: Do you think there is always a why?
HANSEL: Because we don't know the answer doesn't mean there isn't a cause.
RICHMAN: Yes.
COOPER: Even before Avielle's funeral, her parents set off on a mission to honor her by searching for answers. They weren't the only ones.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, we can't go back in time, but we can take what we've learned and honor our daughter by doing something with it.
J. BARDEN: We were kind of faced with do you want to do something or do you want to do nothing, and there is no question.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CABRERA: And we hope you will join us on CNN tonight at 8:00 Eastern to meet many more of the Sandy Hook parents now on Missions of Love to turn their losses into legacies. We'll be playing an Anderson Cooper special report "HONORING THE CHILDREN: NEWTOWN, ONE YEAR LATER." Again, that's at 8:00 Eastern.
Martin, back to you.
SAVIDGE: Thank you, Ana, very much.
NEWSROOM returns at the bottom of the hour with all the day's top stories, including that 1,000 mile weather system that's got people digging from the Midwest to the east. In the meantime, "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.
