Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Sunday Morning
Searching for Shipwreck Survivors; Martin Luther King's Driver Remembers Time Together; GOP Race Could Make Religious History; Battle for South Carolina
Aired January 15, 2012 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN ANCHOR: From CNN Center, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING. It is Sunday, January 15th. Good morning, everyone, I'm Deborah Feyerick. We'd like to welcome our CNN International viewers who are watching from around the world.
Search crews are back out this morning looking for at least 50 people after an Italian cruise ship ran aground killing three. You're looking at live pictures. Now new details about the charges the ship's captain and first officer could face. We'll take you live to Italy.
And imagine your child being put into this storage closet at school. Teachers call it the scream room and they have no problem sending students there. We're going to explain why.
And you're looking at live pictures also from Copenhagen, Denmark. Tens of thousands of Danes are celebrating their queen's 40 year reign.
ANNOUNCER: From CNN's world headquarters, brining you news and analysis from across the nation and around the globe, live from Studio 7, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
FEYERICK: And we start with the rescue just moments ago from the Italian cruise ship that's sitting on its side. We're hearing that one of the ship's crew members was found in a restaurant on the ship. This comes more than 24 hours after this ship hit a sand bar and rolled over. The ship is mostly under water, as can you see there. Divers jumped back in the water this morning to continue their search for survivors or victims. A South Korean couple was also found alive overnight in one of the ship's cabins. Journalist Barbie Nadeau is near the island of Giglio in Italy and she joins me now by phone.
Barbie, first of all, look around. Describe what you're seeing.
BARBIE NADEAU, JOURNALIST (via telephone): All right. Right now, actually, I'm on a ferry that is about just 100 meters away from this boat. It's just a massive wreckage here on -- in the water. It's unbelievable. Every time I see it, it's just incredible to see it.
You can see the divers. You can you see the rescue crews. You can see movement inside the ship right now. You can see the wind on the ship. The curtains are, you know, obviously askew. You can see a lot of movement, helicopters above. There they had a rescue not too long ago. They're very optimistic. These rescuers are very -- looking very forward to perhaps finding some of the 38 other missing people held -- that are still unaccounted for on this ship.
Right now, though, the focus is on the upper reaches of the ship where the rescue crews are beating on the doors. After they found three people alive in the last 24 hours, they are optimistic that potentially some of these missing people are still in the cabins, either in a situation where they're trapped, like the Korean couple was, or in a situation like the Italian who was actually passed out of hypothermia when they found him in the restaurant area.
So the situation is still very volatile. There's really still a lot of movement and still very much a rescue and recovery situation right now.
Natalie (ph).
NADEAU: And, Barbie, we're looking at -- we're looking at this ship. It's laying on its side, obviously, and it hasn't -- after it initially sank, it really hasn't moved. Do the officials, the folks who are inside that ship, feel that it's going to come to rest? That this is the position it's going to remain in so that it's at least stable so that they can do this search and rescue mission?
NADEAU: No. In fact, it's still not stable. The authorities in charge of this rescue operation are still worried that there's some movement of this ship, of the vessel itself. They're trying to stabilize that. They're waiting for some heavy equipment to come in. Over 50 percent of the ship right now is under water, but they're really reluctant to let too many divers stay under for too long because the ship could still move, could still sink further.
I just -- I cannot express the incredible view of this huge ship, though, in this water off this pristine coast and the people that have gathered here this morning on this beautiful Sunday morning just here to look at this. Something they've never seen before and probably will never see again.
FEYERICK: You know, and, Barbie, what's so interesting is that this ship is about 951 feet long. That is the size, for our American audience, of roughly three and a half football fields. So we are talking about a massive ship. Just think about walking three and a half football fields length to length.
Let's talk about the captain and the first officer, because yesterday you were the first to report that, in fact, the captain had left the ship well before the majority of passengers and crew had disembarked. He's now under arrest. What is going on? What are they questioning him about? What are the charges?
NADEAU: Well, what we're hearing this morning is that both the first officer and the captain are being questioned separately about their actions and what they did in terms of not averting this disaster and why they left the ship before the rest of the passengers. They're both being investigated for manslaughter, multiple manslaughter -- there are three confirmed deaths -- and for abandoning ship, which is a serious maritime -- against the maritime laws. (INAUDIBLE) against maritime law.
You know, I think we'll find Monday morning, when the judicial system is sort of running again. Of course, it's a weekend, so offices are closed and things like that. We're probably going to have a magistrate, a judge, make some comments on the investigation so far. We could even get some information on the nature of the arrest and what they're really looking at, what they're investigating.
But they are questioning a lot of the passengers. They're questioning as many of the crew members as that they can. They're recording these interrogations and things like that just to try to understand what went wrong and why and who knew.
We're also hearing a lot of very unconfirmed reports that these ships sometimes come close to this island of Giglio. Kind of come off course for -- regularly. The mayor of Giglio, this tiny little island where this ship wreck occurred, told the Italian press that this was a common occurrence for this ship to come too close to shore either to wave to their friends or to salute them in some way. This comes from the mayor of Giglio, who told the Italian press that. We haven't confirmed that ourselves, Natalie (ph).
FEYERICK: All right. And, Barbie, thanks so much. It's Deb Feyerick here. We really appreciate it. We are going to be checking in with you. We know you've been up and on site for the last 24 hours. We're very grateful for your eyewitness reports. And we'll check back with you in just a little bit.
Well, total chaos on board. That is the way it is being described by passengers who were on the Costa Concordia. Joining me now are two of the survivors from the shipwreck, Mario and Nancy Lofaro.
And you've been describing this. You say that men were actually pushing past women and children in order to get to the life boats. It just sounds like everything was out of control.
NANCY LOFARO, SURVIVOR: Yes. That is absolutely true. It was completely out of control. The crew was trying very hard, but I -- they weren't given any information. They said they had no information. It also appeared to us as if perhaps they didn't have adequate training.
We boarded the ship on Friday evening. We were only on the cruise for three hours. We expected -- we're previous cruisers -- and we've always had fire drill. We expected a fire drill, and it wasn't scheduled until Saturday. And it, again, appeared as if there was lack of adequate training, although the staff -- the crew was trying very hard.
FEYERICK: You know, talk about that, as a matter of fact. Was there -- did you find that at least the crew was somewhat in control, able to direct passengers to where they had to go, able to bring them to the life boats, or was it more of the mix of whoever could figure out where to be, that's where they were going to go?
N. LOFARO: I actually think it was a combination of both. I think that there were some crew who seemed to have the good sense to direct people and I also feel that there were many people along the way. We asked people and many crew members didn't know anything and there were people panicking and losing their shoes and pushing and screaming and -- so it was a combination of both.
FEYERICK: Describe to us, Nancy and Mario, describe to us the moments leading up to this, where you were and what happened. What you heard. Whether it was an alert or an abandon ship. Bring us back a little bit and walk us through the stages as to what was done.
MARIO LOFARO, SURVIVOR: Well, we were in the theater when we heard the noise of the ship hitting the rock, and we felt a shudder in the ship. And it was a magic act, actually, at the time. And the performers' did a disappearing act. They just ran off the stage and took off. There was no communication at all about what was going on.
We noticed the ship was tilted a little towards the port side. Some people started leaving the theater. We waited a little bit to see what was going on and we decided to leave. We went towards the muster (ph) station. People were getting life jackets. But they weren't deploying the life boats at this time and people were leaving.
And we decided to go up to the top deck and see what was going on. And we were surprised when we got up there how close we were to land. It was dark at the time and it was probably about 9:30, 9:45. And we were shocked to see we were so close to the land. The lights -- there were lighthouses.
Then we noticed the ship was leaning and listing towards the other side, toward the starboard side. It seemed to be getting worse. So we decided to go to our rooms, get our life jackets and our coats, and then go to the muster (ph) station where the life boats were.
Before we left, they did have an announcement -- it was probably at least a half hour after we hit -- that they said that there was an electrical problem, a problem with the generators, which we knew that didn't sound right. And shortly after that, the lights went out for about five minutes. There was total blackness.
Then the lights came back on. We had emergency lighting. We made our way to the room and that's when we were asking people and people didn't know -- the staff did not know what was going on. We then heard the evacuation signal. And we went down to the life boats. And by this time they were having trouble deploying the life boats because the ship was listing so much.
FEYERICK: Right. And that's -- all right. Well, Nancy and Mario Lofaro, thank you so much.
We understand also that folks had gone back to their cabins. They were told to go back to their cabins. Clearly all of this right now the subject of a massive criminal investigation by Italian authorities to see exactly what orders were given, when those orders were given, and also whether passengers got the right information to get off those ships safely. One person that we spoke with had told us that, in fact, they had no idea where they were supposed to be and this was a crewmember who was on board that ship. All right, thank you so much.
Well, to give you some perspective, looking at that ship there in the water, the Costa Concordia is three times as large as the Titanic measuring three and a half football fields. It was at cruising speed, which means it may have been moving around 25 miles an hour, which is pretty fast for a ship that size and that weight. This is several -- this is about 100,000 tons. When it hit the reef, it appears to have come to a dead stop. When it was christened in 2006, the ship only six years old, it was believed to be the biggest cruise ship in all of Italy.
It's owned by a company called Costa Cruises, and that parent company is Miami-based Carnival, the biggest cruise line in the world. Costa had a bad 2010. One of its cruise ship slammed into a cargo ship in China, injuring three people. And another Costa shipped smashed into a dock in Egypt killing three crew members.
Coming up, we switch to presidential candidate Mitt Romney. He reached into his pocket and he hands out money on the campaign trail. Find out how much he gave and why he did it.
Also ahead, would you want your child put in a so-called scream room at school just to calm him down? Well, a lot of parents say, not a chance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not a problem. (INAUDIBLE). It's not a problem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All he said was take the child further away so nobody else could hear it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: Well, tempers flared at a very emotional PTA meeting. We're exploring the controversy and we're asking you for your feedback.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Well, to politics now and an interesting moment on the campaign trail in South Carolina. While shaking hands after a rally in Sumter, Mitt Romney actually took out his wallet and gave a woman about $50. He had met her earlier in the week. She told him she had no job and was having trouble paying her bills. Here's what she told the CNN political reporter Rachel Strayfield (ph) after yesterday's rally.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUTH WILLIAMS, ROMNEY SUPPORTER: He was kind to me. He held on to me and he made Governor Haley and them come see about me. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE)
WILLIAMS: Huh?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE)
WILLIAMS: No, at the rally. He stopped doing everything and made all Governor Haley and them come see and asked if they really helped people find jobs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: And, as I said, she first met Romney earlier in the week. She says God told her to pray for him. After that first meeting, she started working as a volunteer at Romney's campaign office in Columbia, South Carolina. She also tells CNN that South Carolina's state treasurer personally paid her electric bill.
Well, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich will be back out on the trail today. So will Jon Huntsman, Rick Perry, and Ron Paul. Mitt Romney has no public events scheduled in South Carolina today. They're all preparing for two debates this week. One Monday and another Thursday. And you can see that Thursday night debate right here on CNN. The "CNN Southern Republican Leadership Conference Debate" comes your way Thursday night 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
Snow in the northwest today with some watches and warnings out there. Meteorologist Alexandra Steele keeping an eye on all of this.
And I was watching the football game yesterday, the early one --
ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
FEYERICK: The very early one between San Francisco and New Orleans. And, boy, you could see the steam coming off, you know.
STEELE: Oh, I know.
FEYERICK: Actually, you know, that was the Broncos game now that I think about it. I did make it for the first 10 minutes of the second game. But it was freezing.
STEELE: Yes, you know, otherwise, weather -- I mean whenever the games were, the weather was kind of apropos for where they were. You know, we had some warm games as well in the west.
Well, you know, the big thing that's happening here, pretty benign weather around the lower 48. So whatever you're going to do today, certainly weather will cooperate with you.
But here's where the things are going to change. Pacific Northwest, we've got a storm system coming in. One to two inches of snow. Kind of slushy, wet snow.
But the big deal is, we've got a pattern change coming. And what this means is really we've seen such incredibly dry conditions in the west. This vigorous winter polar jet is going to make its way -- the 5,000 mile trek, give Alaskans and a break and kind of tap into us here on the Pacific Northwest.
Now, watch what happens. Wednesday at noon, bam, first big snowstorm. Going to bring heavy mountain snow and also some really heavy and very beneficial rains. Then watch what happens on Thursday. That system breaks up. Kind of the next batch of moisture. Next little nugget area of low pressure moves in. And then it's Thursday into Friday, the same thing. So, really incredibly necessary for this part of the country, but we'll really going to watch this pattern change.
But you'll notice kind of all this moisture isn't making its way eastward. Not really bringing too much rain or snow in toward the Great Lakes. I mean just a little bit of it, but certainly not in earnest like we're seeing out west. And with that we're going to watch these temperatures begin to drop off.
It's been steamy from Denver to Salt Lake. Temperatures well above average. But that kind of quells and you can see that dropping to the south. But look at this. Billings getting to 20 degrees below average. So much cooler in the west. Pattern change. Certainly where we should be for this time of year. Getting into cold January weather.
The heat kind of staying right here in the southern plains. And what we've seen cold temperatures in the northeast, they really moderate. So temperatures today, Boston, New York, in the 20s. Chilly starts. Chilly afternoon. But then tomorrow, back up into the 30s and 40s. Getting a little more climatologically on the mark.
Deb.
FEYERICK: All right, Alexandra, thanks so much. We'll check back with you shortly.
Well, coming up, would you want your child put in a so-called scream room at school to calm him or her down. A lot of parents say no way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not a problem. (INAUDIBLE). It's not a problem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All he said was take the child further away so nobody else could hear it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: Well, tempers flared in a very emotional PTA meeting. We're exploring the controversy and we are getting your feedback. So, stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: In Middleton, Connecticut, tempers and controversy are flaring over the use of so-called scream rooms for students with special needs. Middletown's school superintendent now says he is ordering a stop to putting students inside these bare rooms. Tina Martin of CNN affiliate WFSB reports worried parents vented their frustrations at a very emotional meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not a problem. (INAUDIBLE). It's not a problem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All he said was take the child further away so nobody else could hear it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't care.
TIN MARTIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Parents full of emotion tonight at the Farm Hill Elementary School in Middletown, as administrators try to explain what goes on in rooms like these.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At times, and in some situations, specific management techniques can be considered controversial practice. Time- out and the use of seclusion and restraint are two such examples.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Depending on the level and presenting behaviors, the staff may be in the room with the student or immediately outside the door.
MARTIN: Parents call them scream rooms and say students with behavioral issues are brought here to calm down. But parents and even some students say it does just the opposite. They say children are urinating and hurting themselves. And the state office of the child advocate is now investigating what it says is potential abuse.
NICOLAS CONNELLY, STUDENT: I just seen him in the room with a girl holding the door. And the girl's in there.
MARTIN: Eight-year-old Nicolas Connelly says his classmates who have to go into the room are usually pretty sad.
MARTIN (on camera): So the kids seem sad when they have to go in that room?
CONNELLY: Yes, they're kicking the door.
FELICIA RAULHAC, PARENT: This was a school that they told me that he can come to because they had the resources. And they don't have the resources for my son.
MARTIN (voice-over): Felicia Raulhac has a son with behavioral issues and says he's sent to the scream room way too much. So much so that she's pulled him out and is sending him to another school.
RAULHAC: Well, I hope something will change from this because we need help with our kids.
(END VIDEOTAPE) FEYERICK: So, what do you think? Are scream rooms dangerous or are they an effective way to control a student who's not acting properly? Well, I'm on twitter @debfeyerickcnn. Share your thoughts and I'll read some of those thoughts on air coming up.
Well, one teenager is giving his time and effort to put a roof over people's heads, one roof at a time. You're going to meet him.
And, a lot of talk in the U.S. presidential campaign has been about jobs, jobs, and, of course, more jobs. But, find out why the Republican race for the White House could make history for a very different reason.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Well, ,today is the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. The civil rights leader would have been 83 years old. Crowds are expected at the new MLK Memorial at the National Mall in Washington today to tomorrow to mark the national holiday in his honor. At noon Eastern, National Park Service Rangers will place a wreath inside the memorial. The Interior Department, meanwhile, says an abbreviated inscription on the monument will be corrected to more accurately reflect Dr. King's meaning about his role as a messenger for peace and justice.
Also, a big happy birthday to Mohammed Ali.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CROWD (singing): Happy birthday dear Mohammed, happy birthday to you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: And that's what greeted the champ at his 70th birthday party in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. That's his wife, Lonnie, and his sister-in-law with him helping him enjoy the day. Ali is battling Parkinson's Disease, but that didn't stop him from joining the party. The three time world champ's birthday, it's actually on Tuesday. There were around 350 guests at the private party, which doubled as a fundraiser for the Ali Center, his cultural and educational center.
And changing the world one house at a time. That's the goal of one young man who's dedicated to helping others realize their dream. Meet Justin Churchman. He is this week's CNN Hero.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JUSTIN CHURCHMAN: To give someone a home is from your heart and it's to their heart. You literally change their life forever.
My name is Justin Churchman. I work with an organization called Casas por Cristo and they build houses in Waters (ph), Mexico.
After I built my first house, I just fell in love with it. It changed my heart and it changed the way I saw the world. It's an addiction. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He organized a team. And at 13 years old, led a group of Americans across the borders. He built a home and he handed the keys of that home to that family in need.
CHURCHMAN: This is our first house that we built. We met this wonderful lady, and I've just fallen in love with it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING SPANISH)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He had a goal pretty early on that he wanted to build 18 houses by the time he turned 18.
CHURCHMAN: And my parents got behind me and supported me. And Casas por Cristo supported me. And on my 18th birthday, I completed my 18th house.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's absolutely a young wonder. He's changing the world one house at a time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: And do you know someone like Justin who's making big differences in the lives of others? Well, tell us about them. Nominate them to be the next CNN Hero. Just go to cnnheroes.com and you can easily find out how.
Checking our top stories, three people were found alive overnight inside the wreckage of an Italian cruise ship. Rescuers found a crewmember trapped inside a restaurant and a South Korean couple still inside their cabin more than 24 hours after the ship ran aground, killing three people. Many others are still missing.
The ship's captain and first officer have been detained for questioning.
And United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is calling for Syrian president to stop the violence. The Secretary General said at a conference in Lebanon, quote, "Today I say again to President Assad of Syria, stop the violence. Stop killing your people. The path of repression is a dead end."
Claims of deadly violence by opposition groups cannot be confirmed by CNN. Syrian government has limited access to foreign journalists.
And former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour is standing by his pardons. More than 200 people received some form of a clemency, including a full pardon to four men convicted of murder.
Mississippi requires a pardon request to be published (ph) 30 days before being granted could [(ph) said Barbour is in violation of that rule. Barbour said he wanted to give them a second chance.
And tomorrow the nation will celebrate the Martin Luther King Jr. national holiday. Before Dr. King became an icon, he was an Atlanta teenager with a menial job, who became a doting dad.
One of the King's friends shares his fondest memories of the civil rights leader with our Reynolds Wolf.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, perhaps one of the best way to get a solid understanding of the kind of guy that Dr. Martin Luther King really was is to speak to some people who knew him best. That's where Tom Houck comes in.
Tom, you knew him for a number of years as a friend and a driver. How long? How many years?
TOM HOUCK, FRIEND/DRIVER FOR DR. KING: I spent four years with SCLC, and about a year of that I drove for him and the King Family.
WOLF: OK, let's say we switch roles here a little bit. How about I drive, and you answer questions?
HOUCK: You got it. I'm up for it. I will show you where Dr. King used to hang in this town.
WOLF: Let's do it.
(voice-over): As Dr. King's friend and personal driver, he's in familiar territory, especially on the street named for the man he knew so well.
HOUCK: We're on Martin Luther King right now, Reynolds.
WOLF (on camera): Oh, good.
HOUCK: Right over here, where it says Southern Cross Bedding over here, that's where Martin Luther King at 14 years old for two weeks got a - Daddy King got him a job. He threw mattresses.
WOLF: So when you're driving around with Dr. King, and you're a young guy, was he an intimidating guy?
HOUCK: No, not at all. I mean, you know - I mean, it wasn't - I wouldn't have to worry, Reynolds, about driving. He was a terrible driver.
WOLF: But he had a great sense of humor?
HOUCK: Oh, a great sense of humor. I mean, he would be cracking jokes, and he would have, you know, a great sense of amusement about him, and you would never know that he just came back from - you know, he one time said, you know, I'm not going live to be 40, which he didn't. He was assassinated when he was 39.
But he - he never had fear in life.
WOLF (voice-over): From behind the steering wheel, Houck got an up close view of the civil rights movement, seeing history unfold at every turn.
HOUCK: That's where Martin Luther King would make decisions about whether he would - right in this room back here. He would be in his office, talking about Selma, what kind of strategic - strategy they'll do for the Selma to Montgomery march.
I think he would be very sad to see this. We're seeing his office shuttered.
WOLF: But some of the fondest memories are the ones he shared with Dr. King - not as an icon, but as a man.
HOUCK: Dr. King would get his cigarettes over there. He'd put them inside my coat because he didn't want Coretta, who was adamant against him smoking, he didn't want to have Coretta check him out when he was coming in the door.
WOLF: And that door led into this house, King's sanctuary, the place where he drew his strength.
HOUCK: This is where I would drive the cars in, and the kids would jump out, and you hear them, "Daddy, daddy, daddy." Coretta would come greet him as well.
And this is the house where Coretta heard the news that her husband have been shot in Memphis. This is where Ivan Allen, then the mayor of Atlanta, came over and took her to the airport when they found that he had indeed died in Memphis.
WOLF (on camera): A lot of laughter, a lot of tears in that house (ph).
HOUCK: Really. Indeed. Lots of laughter and lots of tears.
WOLF: And when people go to this memorial and they're going to see the - the image of him chiseled in stone, it's going to be just a memorial. But what do you want people to know about not the memorial but about the man? What is the single thing you want people to know about him?
HOUCK: I don't think there's anybody in the world today that can take his place. I think he was uniquely qualified, and given a few years to make a world a better place, and he did. And that voice has certainly been sorely missing in the decades since his assassination.
WOLF (voice-over): Reynolds Wolf, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: And a lot of talk in the United States presidential campaign has been about jobs, jobs, and, of course, more jobs. But find out why the Republican race for the White House could make history for a very different reason.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: The 2012 race for the Republican presidential nomination could make religious history, and our Josh Levs is here to tell us about it. So Josh, really break it down for us how this is sort of working.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is so interesting, the way it's playing out this year. It could make some real history, and it plays out against all of American history, but especially what we've seen over the last several decades.
This could be, folks, the Republican Party's first non-Protestant nominee in modern politics, and this says a lot about religion and politics in this country. This pack of GOP contenders is already historic.
Let's talk this through. You've got Romney and Huntsman, frontrunner Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman, both Mormons. Either would be the first Mormon nominee for either of the major party in this country.
Then you've got Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, both Catholics, setting aside for now how Newt Gingrich came to Catholicism. You know, John F. Kennedy was a Democrat, again a Catholic, and back then he had to overcome suspicion from some voters who feared he might take direction from the Pope.
They've also got two Protestants in the race this time around - Ron Paul and Rick Perry. Paul has been doing well so far. Rick Perry has not been much of a factor so far. He's hoping to turn that around in South Carolina.
And the story in the CNN Belief blog, experts are telling us that the diversity of this group reflects some major changes in this country, and one of the changes is that the Republican Party has won over a lot of Catholics who were once a very solid Democratic voting block, and a big reason for that change was Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision on abortion. Nearly 40 years ago many Catholics ultimately flipped to the Republican Party because of opposition to abortion rights.
We also talk about Mormonism. It's a quickly growing religion. More and more people know someone Mormon. Americans are becoming increasingly comfortable with the idea of a Mormon president, but some still are not. So that could play out in this race as well.
And Deb, no matter what happens, the fact that Catholics and Mormons have such a legitimate chance this time around shows how much has changed in this country in the decades, especially since Kennedy.
FEYERICK: And so how is this playing out on the campaign trail? Because they're trying to reach voters, and that's who they're really trying to resonate with, and so do they bring their religion up front? Do they sort of stay back? Do they - does it depend on what audience they're talking to?
LEVS: It's so interesting, you know, and this is something you and I were talking about a little bit earlier. One thing we are seeing is that across different religions, people who are conservative are reaching out to the conservative members of any religion.
We are seeing some changes so far in - in the race as well, and I can tell you about it a little bit. One of them is that there are some people, for example Christian Evangelicals, they are in larger numbers supporting people who are also evangelicals. For example, you're seeing support for Rick Santorum among Christian Evangelicals.
But if you look at New Hampshire, what you're seeing in New Hampshire is that Catholics and Protestants voted for Mitt Romney, just as all voters did. So you're seeing more and more acceptance, more and more changes in that way.
And I want you all to see the whole story. It's all up online for you. It's up at the blog, CNN.com/Josh; at Facebook and Twitter, JoshLevsCNN; and we'll get it on Deb's Twitter as well, send it out to her next.
But it is interesting, that the way that this intersection between religion and politics in America is reformulating this time around, and it shows how much this country has changed and has a long path to - to getting us here.
FEYERICK: And a very interesting thing also is that Mitt Romney, who clearly has had to somehow defend his faith, has said that, you know, he's not going to represent one religion. He's basically there to be president, should he be nominated, should he be elected, of all people, of all Americans.
So it will be interesting, religion playing a role now, perhaps once in the White House, because we don't hear about that much about, you know, religion that much in the White House.
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: And all the candidates -
FEYERICK: So that's the point.
LEVS: -- say, hey, we're going to represent absolutely everybody.
FEYERICK: John Levs, thanks so much. Really interesting, and check it out on the blog.
And don't forget, can you see the Southern Republican presidential debate live right here on CNN, Thursday night at 8:00 Eastern Time.
And two years after that devastating earthquake in Haiti, these med students are finally getting their degree, and we're going to tell you how they overcame training in the rubble. That's coming up in our "Morning Passport."
And if you have big plans to get out for the NFL playoffs or celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, meteorologist Alexandra Steele up next with your forecast.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Meteorologist Alexandra Steele, in for Reynolds Wolf this weekend. What's it looking like? ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: All right, around the country, on the whole it's pretty dry. So kind of a nice Sunday, Monday, if you're off tomorrow as well.
A few hot spots, and I don't mean "hot" hot. I mean trouble spots. We've got to the west, we've got snow, rain in San Diego, so if you are traveling these are kind of the places you may be impacted.
Chicago, St. Louis, it's winds in the Midwest, but in terms of the big picture, again, pretty dry. Radar not showing a lot around the country, except where we really need it. It's been an incredibly dry, really wet season in the west, so finally some beneficial rain and snow coming in.
All right, here's Seattle and Portland, about one or two inches of kind of wet snow for you today. Here's where the watches and advisories are. So, the Cascades, the Sierra through the Bitterroot, the Rockies, that's a place not only will they see snow today, but a big-time pattern change setting up. This very strong, vigorous polar jet stream making its way from the Pacific, moving in, kind of leaving Alaska behind, giving Alaskans a break, trekking 5,000 miles and picking up this Pacific jet stream here.
So look at Wednesday. Wednesday, we get into one, snow and rain, and really we're talking snow in feet, so, so beneficial for the west. Friday we get into more, but you'll notice it doesn't make a lot of eastward momentum, so it doesn't bring a lot of snow and rain to the Great Lakes or even make its way to the east. So pretty quiet, benign week for the country, except for the West Coast.
What you'll notice, big-time temperature change with that Pacific jet. We're going to bring in so much colder air, and where it's been very warm from Denver to Albuquerque, now temperatures there finally moderating, and even in the northeast, kind of getting back to where we should be.
FEYERICK: Thanks so much, Alexandra.
STEELE: Sure.
FEYERICK: Well, a new set of doctors graduating today in Haiti, and they're going to graduate med school which was put on hold after the deadly earthquake two years ago. We're going to tell you how they overcame training in the rubble. That's coming up in our "Morning Passport."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: In Haiti about a half a million people are still homeless and living in tents two years after the deadly earthquake. Later today a group of medical students will graduate. They're building the gap of having only six doctors for every 10,000 residents before the quake.
Graduation's going to look something like this - a white coat ceremony, officially putting on a white coat with their name on it. It symbolizes the cross over from student to doctor practicing medicine, and our Nadia Bilchik joins us live to tell us about how significant this is going to be for Haiti. I mean, it looks like once you get doctors sort of really healing and growth and regeneration.
NADIA BILCHIK, CNN EDITORIAL PRODUCER: It's enormous, and it's one of those heartwarming stories. Here's a group of physicians around the world who formed something called the Haiti Medical Education Project, and what they have vowed to do is to help educate physicians in Haiti.
So many of the medical schools were destroyed during the earthquake, and we spoke to the director of the Haiti Medical Education Project, and I want you to hear from her, Galit Sacajiu, about what the inspiration was for foreign doctors to educate Haitian doctors.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. GALIT SACAJIU, DIRECTOR, HAITI MEDICAL EDUCATION PROJECT: Those medical students not only lost their homes, family members and friends, but when you looked at their eyes, you can actually see that the dream of becoming a physician was shattering in front of you.
We're here for the long run, the people who work - that I work with, and I'm convinced that also all our partners are here for the long run to make these a sustainable medical education that produce physicians, Haitian physicians, to heal their country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BILCHIK: Now, how they do this, Deb, is via video, which is state-of- the-art video conferencing, so you have the Haitian medical students in a classroom, and they video conference with professors around the world so they're getting this incredible education, and these physicians are volunteering to do this.
But one of the stories that Galit told us, she said she volunteered during the earthquake. One of her patients was a young medical student. All of his classmates, 40 of them, had died in the earthquake. He was the only one that survived, including the professor, and he wanted to continue his education. And, without this project, it wouldn't have happened.
So, just a remarkable story. Out of such crisis comes great pathos and volunteers and just showing the best of humanity, and today 35 doctors will graduate at Quisqueya Medical School in Haiti because of this remarkable project.
FEYERICK: And do you know, will these doctors go out and help their people?
BILCHIK: Yes.
FEYERICK: They'll stay there and they'll help part of the rebuilding?
BILCHIK: Correct. FEYERICK: They'll become the next generation of doctors and hospitals and et cetera?
BILCHIK: And part of the philosophy and the - is that they do community service for a year, so they will go back into the community.
FEYERICK: A lot of hope. Thank you so much, Nadia Bilchik. Really appreciate that. It's a great sign.
Well, it's jubilee day in Denmark. Europe's oldest monarchy is marking a momentous occasion, four decades on the throne for Queen Margrethe. We're taking you live to Copenhagen for the celebration. That's coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Well, this weekend Denmark's Queen Margrethe is marking four decades on the throne. Europe's oldest monarchy is also one of its most popular.
Ahead of the jubilee celebrations, the Queen sat down with CNN's Max Foster. She was just 31 years old - think about that - when she ascended to the monarchy on the death of her father.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARGRETHE II, QUEEN OF DENMARK: Part of the tradition, you don't let that sort of thing get you down because that would not - that would be letting down my father's confidence in me if I sort of buckled.
I would really not have been doing what my father would be - would hope, nor my mother, for that matter.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: And Max Foster joins us now from Copenhagen, and, Max it's wonderful. The streets must be filled with people.
MAX FOSTER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Deb. I mean, it really is a fairy tale monarchy, if ever there was one. Let's take a look at the carriage ride, for example, through Copenhagen yesterday, a truly colorful affair. All the pomp and pageantry that you would expect from a European monarchy, and crowds and crowds of people.
This is a country of only five million people. It's a small country, Deb, with huge support for their monarchy and their Queen. And then today thousands more are turning out to the palace behind me for the moment when the Queen came out and waved to her people. Forty years since she took the throne and was announced on that balcony, actually, all those years ago as a new Queen taking over from her father.
This is a monarchy with 80 percent approval rating, so twice the approval to when she came to the throne, and this is why.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think the feelings are admiration and also pride, because she's ours and she's Denmark's, and she's done a fantastic job for the past 40 years, and we hope she'll continue.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: There you are, Deb. All sorts of people turning out here, but all generally supportive. It's been an amazing day.
FEYERICK: You know, Max, when you think about - when you hear someone say she's done a fantastic job for the country, how has - how do people see her as defining Denmark and growing it while she's been on the throne, basically?
FOSTER: Well, it's interesting, I've been asking lots of people this question, and what you hear is they have a lot of respect for her. She's very smart and she's very creative. She's involved in the arts.
But they say - they described her as their mother, and a lot of people say she's like them, so they don't look up to her as a monarch, inaccessible. She's very accessible and she's very open, and she's made the monarchy slightly more informal. I mean, she does go out shopping in Copenhagen to department stores. So she's a - she's a relatively normal monarch. They can relate to her.
And it's a small country, so you have a greater chance of seeing her. It's really just in here, you have them driving around. This is the main palace square. There's no fences here. The palace there, you could go right up to window, knock on it, virtually. It's very informal.
FEYERICK: Well, wonderful. And it's always nice when you see, you know, obviously so much focus is on - is on the British monarchy and we see the relationship that the Queen has had with her people and the controversy that that sometimes engendered. But it's - that's - there doesn't seem to be any controversy around her.
FOSTER: No. She's just got more and more popular over time. And it's interesting, I did ask her about her relationship with other Queens, and she is in touch with Queen Elizabeth, who this year will be celebrating her jubilee, but 60 years on the throne. So these are two queens that truly understand each other's roles, and there's not many people that really get that insight.
FEYERICK: Well, that's - it's a very unique and very elite club.
Well, Max Foster, joining us from Denmark, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.
Well, Denmark might be slightly smaller than Vermont and New Hampshire combined, but the constitutional monarchy's relationship with the U.S., it's significant. Denmark is a very close NATO ally, and as the Cold War drew to a close, Denmark has really been instrumental in helping integrate Central and Eastern European nations with the West.
Denmark has also been a key supporter of U.S. and NATO-led military efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Well, a convicted murderer sentenced to life. Now he's free, after serving only 10 years in prison. His connection to the governor who pardoned him, and that's ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Earlier in the show we asked for your thoughts about a controversial story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's a problem. (INAUDIBLE). It's not a problem (ph).
FEYERICK: In Middletown, Connecticut, parents' tempers have been flaring over the use of so-called scream rooms in schools, and this is a scream room. It is a small concrete room furnished with only a desk, and children with behavior problems can be put there during the school day. Well, some parents heard accounts of children screaming and kicking and crying from inside the rooms.
Middletown school superintendent says he is ordering a stop to this practice, but others say it's useful.
And we want to know what you think. Are scream rooms dangerous, or are they an effective way to control students who are acting out?
I'm on Twitter @DebFeyerickCNN. Share your thoughts and I'm going to read some of those thoughts on air. What would you think if you were locked in one of those?
(MUSIC)
FEYERICK: From CNN Center, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING. It is Sunday, January 15th. It is 7:00 a.m. in Atlanta, 6:00 a.m. in Kansas City, and 4:00 a.m. in Reno, which means you're either getting up or going to bed.
Good morning. I'm Deb Feyerick. Thanks so much for joining us.
Search crews are back out this morning, looking for at least 50 people after an Italian cruise ship ran aground killing three. You are looking at those live pictures. Now, new details about the charges the ship's captain and first officer might be facing. We will take you live to Italy.
Plus, imagine your child being put into this really what amounts to a storage closet at school. Teachers call it a scream room, and they have no problem sending students there. We'll explain why.
But we start with the rescue just a short time ago from that Italian cruise ship sitting on its side with a huge gash in the hull. One of the ship's crew members was found in a restaurant on the ship and plucked out by rescuers. This comes more than 24 hours after the ship hit a sand bar and then just rolled over. The ship is mostly underwater. Divers jumped back into the water this morning to continue searching for survivors or victims. A South Korean couple was also found alive overnight in one of the ship's cabins. And we get more on the wreck and the investigation from CNN's Colleen McEdwards.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tipped on its side, you can clearly see the gnarled hole in the hull of the Costa Concordia. A loud bang told horrified passengers something was wrong. The lights went out, and survivors say chaos followed.
BENJI SMITH, CRUISE SHIP SURVIVOR (via telephone): People were pushing and shoving. There was no order. There was no lines.
There was no system in place, and there was no one in charge. It was every crewmember who walked past would shout instructions, but the instructions contradicted each other.
VIVIAN SHAFER, CRUISE SHIP SURVIVOR: There was so little information. They didn't prepare the people. I mean, if they had just told us, you know, we're evacuating for your own safety, please put on warm coats.
MCEDWARDS: Some passengers were told to return to their cabins, but the boat shook violently and listed to the side making it difficult to navigate hallways and find life boats. Some had to make the horrifying decision to swim for it.
MARK PLATH, CRUISE SHIP SURVIVOR: By the time all the life boats had left, we were maybe 600 to 800 people still on the boat. They only had rafts left, but the angle of the boat was so steep, they couldn't get us out.
JUSTIN BAINES, CRUISE SHIP SURVIVOR: Everyone started to jump in the water. Me and my wife stayed close together as we swam 200, 300 meters to the out cropping, basically just a rock on the corner of the island.
SHAFER: It was pretty bizarre. You know, we were lucky. I mean, other people, their life boats got hung up and they got hurt.
MCEDWARDS: The ship's captain is being investigated for manslaughter and abandoning ship. He reportedly denies any wrong doing.
In a statement, the president of the Costa Cruise Lines saying to the rescue workers and said, "We are not at this time able to answer all questions because the authorities are trying with our cooperation to understand the reasons for this incident." Authorities are also looking at why the ship didn't send out a may day. While the investigation continues, so does the task of accounting for the passengers. Those still missing may have gotten to safety or simply got lost in the chaos of treating the injured on shore.
But with some 4,000 people on board, the searching and the verifying will take time and answering all the questions surrounding this tragedy even longer.
Colleen McEdwards, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: Well, just a short time ago, I talked with two survivors from that ship wreck. They said that it was at least 30 minutes before any alert sounded and they were told that, well, it was only an electrical problem.
Listen to how they described the scene.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NANCY LOFARO, SURVIVOR: It was completely out of control. The crew was trying very hard, but they weren't given any information. They said they had no information. It also appeared to us as if perhaps they didn't have adequate training. We boarded the ship on Friday evening. We were only on the cruise for three hours.
We expected -- we're previous cruisers, and we've always had fire drills. We expected a fire drill, and it wasn't scheduled until Saturday, and, again, it appeared as if there was lack of adequate training, although the staff -- the crew was trying very hard.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: And we will have a live report from Italy on the latest from that ship and on the search for survivors. That's going to be coming up next hour.
And to give you some perspective, looking at that ship in the water, well, the Costa Concordia is three times as large as the Titanic, measuring three and a half football fields. It was a cruising speed, which means it may have been moving around 25 miles an hour when it hit that reef, and it appears to have come to a dead stop. When it was christened in 2006, just six years ago, it was believed to be the biggest cruise ship in all of Italy.
It's owned by a company called Costa Cruises. The parent company is Miami-based Carnival, which is the biggest cruise line in the world.
Costa had a bad year in 2010. One of its cruise ships slammed into a cargo ship in China, injuring three people. Another Costa ship smashed into a dock in Egypt. Three crew members were killed.
And we're now hearing some of the first words from Joe Paterno on the sexual abuse allegations that ended his 46-year coaching career at Penn State. Paterno is back in the hospital. His family says he is suffering minor complications from treatment for lung cancer. Before going back to the hospital, the 85-year-old Paterno spoke to the "Washington Post" about the scandal and about his reaction to the original allegations against assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP) JOE PATERNO, FMR. PENN STATE HEAD COACH: I called my superiors, and I said, "Hey, we got a problem I think. Would you guys look into it? Because I didn't know, you know. I had never had to deal with something like that, and I didn't feel adequate."
(END AUDIO CLIP)
FEYERICK: Paterno was essentially fired for his handling of the Sandusky scandal and those original allegations. In that interview, Paterno said he thought he told the right people who would follow-up on the situation. He also says he is not bitter about the way his career ended.
Well, after "The Post" published the interview, CNN got a statement from Jerry Sandusky's attorney who seems to defend coach Paterno. The lawyer says that Sanduskys are extremely saddened by the events which have occurred since Jerry's arrest. We have been greatly dismayed by the kneejerk reaction of the Penn State board of trustees in summarily dismissing coach Paterno."
Sandusky faces more than 50 charges in the case. He has denied wrongdoing.
And to politics.
(MUSIC)
FEYERICK: We're switching over to politics now. We are less than a week away from the South Carolina primary. The airwaves are littered with negative political ads, though there are some positive ones as well. Most are coming from the so-called super PACs that are loosely connected with specific candidates.
Joining me now is Patricia Murphy, founder and editor of Citizen Jane Politics.
Now, Newt Gingrich, he is kind of front and center with these ads. Now, he is sort of backing away. He's saying, OK, let's wait a minute because it seems to have backfired, no?
PATRICIA MURPHY, CITIZEN JANE POLITICS: I think it's absolutely backfired on him, and that's why we see him stepping back from this. He originally promised to run a very positive campaign and then hammered Mitt Romney when he was running ads with his super PAC against Newt Gingrich. Now that Newt Gingrich is doing the same thing, he is stepping back and saying, oh, wait, I didn't mean to do that.
It's a little left brain/right brain, and it's extremely confusing and a little hypocritical, if you want to start calling names.
FEYERICK: You know, if you think of all the voters there that are all barraged. We've all been there, whether it's the television, whether it's through the mails, whether it's those cold calls, or, you know, those robocalls -- you know, there's this push and pull with the voters. They want them, but then they risk alienating them at the same time, no?
MURPHY: It's a very delicate balancing act. The average South Carolinian right now will see 180 commercials between now and the election. They are totally swamped. They're going to get more in their mailbox. They're going to get flyers on their windshields.
There is no escaping this in South Carolina, and the candidates are trying to have a positive and negative sort of a good guy/bad guy campaign happening within their own campaigns.
Vote for me. Vote for me. Don't vote for this other guy. Here's why he is so awful. Vote for me.
So, it's a lot of mixed messages. You're trying to get people to vote for you, and, also, to suppress the votes for the other guy. Sometimes you're just suppressing votes entirely.
A lot of these candidates would prefer to suppress votes entirely than to have them vote for somebody else -- unfortunately.
FEYERICK: That's exactly right. But, you know, when you think of it, when you also think of -- as we -- as it's just the run-up really to Super Tuesday, but every state is the most important, every state has its issues, every state has to sort of build the momentum.
Do you think on some levels too much attention is paid to the early races, or is that really how the candidates define themselves leading into Super Tuesday?
MURPHY: I think the early races are crucial, and there's a lot of -- there are a lot of complaints from other states, larger states, like California and New York, because they don't get to have the same impact as an Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, but I think these states are so important because it's where these voters are introduced to the candidates. They meet them one-on-one. They ask them very pointed specific questions, and a larger state, you don't have the freedom to get in and talk to voters one-on-one.
So, they're crucial. They're absolutely important.
It's also a very important test, I think. Can you organize? Are you a good manager? We know you have a message that people like, but are you effective at running a large organization? Could you run the country if you had to?
So, I think that we se -- we learn a lot about these candidates as they move through. We've already learned a lot about who is a good manager, who is not such a good manager, in addition to whether or not we like their messages.
FEYERICK: And what's also interesting is you say the candidates try to suppress votes for the other guy, pretty much. But we're not hearing the issues, for example, of, you know, different groups -- race, something that breaks down along racial lines, gender lines -- all those different groups that the candidates are going to have to win over basically. That's later, right? MURPHY: It's for later. It's somewhat for now. There's a lot of micro-targeting that's happening. There's a lot that happens above the surface. Your TV ads, your radio ads, and then there's a lot that happens below the surface, getting in and talking to church groups, getting in and having surrogates in and make specific contacts, just going door to door.
So, you have sort of above the line and below the line. They want every vote they can possibly get. They're not going to leave anything on the table at this point.
Once we get into a Democratic-Republican general election, then I think we'll hear more about targeting women, African-Americans, Latinos. Right now, the Republican race tends to be more focused on white voters. They tend to have just a more -- just a wider, more male electorate, so those are the messages that we hear. That's who they're going after right now.
But in general election, they're going to want every vote they can get.
FEYERICK: Patricia Murphy, thank you so much. So, essentially what you're saying is we're seeing the top 25 percent of what's to come.
MURPHY: Yes. Enjoy yourself.
FEYERICK: Thank you. We really appreciate it. Let it begin.
MURPHY: Exactly.
FEYERICK: Thank you so much. Appreciate you joining us this morning.
And be sure to tune in to CNN Thursday night to hear the candidates in their own words. The ads have been pretty nasty, but will the candidates keep up the pressure face-to-face?
CNN Southern Republican leadership conference debate comes your way. That's Thursday night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
And some parents call them scream rooms. They're small empty rooms at schools where some teachers put troubled students to calm them down. But some parents say it's got to stop.
And we want to know your thoughts. Are scream rooms dangerous or are they an effective way to control student behavior? Would you want to be in one of those rooms?
I'm on Twitter @DebFeyerickCNN, and I'm going to read some of your comments coming up. So, keep them coming.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Meteorologist Alexandra Steele is in for Reynolds Wolf this weekend.
What's going on now? ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: All right. A couple of different stories. Here in the Northeast, we'll hit there first, a very icy start, incredibly cold day. Right now, temperatures zero in Albany.
We also have some icy wind. So, wind chills even colder hand that. Right now, seven in Boston, 12 in Providence. It feels like it is two below in Syracuse.
So, with these icy winds, look, it feels like 4 below in Buffalo. It feels like 15 below in Albany. These northwest winds coming in 10 to 15 miles per hour sustained. Even gusts stronger than that.
So, a very cold start. Get up, get out. You pick up the "New York Times" and "The Post," the paper this morning, but what are you going to see this morning, not a lot of warmth. Look, you stay in the teens. 19, the best you're going to do in Albany. Look at six in Montpelier.
All you're going to do today in Boston, 22 degrees. You should be at 35. But look at tomorrow, we begin to warm up.
So, temperatures moderate. It's really the end of this icy, arctic cold. You can see 40s and even 52 in Philadelphia.
That's the story in the northeast, incredibly cold start. Kind of moderating trend beginning for tomorrow.
But here's the other big story. Winter storm coming into the Pacific Northwest, not only for today. One to two inches of snow. Seattle and Portland.
But a major pattern change, things really going to be quite different. We're going to watch storm after storm, Deb, come in over the next couple of days. Even through this week. Feet of snow and, boy, do they need it.
FEYERICK: Absolutely. All right. Well, winter has finally arrived. Thanks so much, Alexandra.
Well, earlier in the show we asked you what you thought about this controversial story.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
FEYERICK: In Middleton, Connecticut, parents' tempers have been flaring over the use of so-called scream rooms in schools. This is a scream room. They're small concrete rooms furnished with only a desk. The children with behavior problems are being placed into during the school day. Some parents say they've heard accounts of children scream and kicking and crying from inside the rooms. Middleton school superintendent says is he ordering a stop to the practice, but others defend its use.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Specific management techniques can be considered controversial practice. Time-out and use of seclusion and restraint are two such examples.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Depending on the level of presenting behaviors, the staff may be in the room with the student or immediately outside the door.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: We are definitely curious as to what you think. Are scream rooms dangerous, or are they an effective way to control student behavior and keep order in the larger class?
I'm on Twitter @DebFeyerickCNN. Share your thoughts, and I'm going to read some of them on the air.
Family members of the Mississippi murder victim are outraged that the man who murdered her is now free.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are going to give a murderer, you know, somebody that shot another female, you know, person that they said they love and shot them in the back -- you know what I'm saying? You wipe his slate clean?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: The former Governor Haley Barbour, he's standing by his decision. His connection to the convicted killer, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour says he is at peace with his decision to issue more 200 pardons on his last day in office. But his decision has outraged many, including the relatives of murder victims.
CNN's Martin Savidge has more from Jackson.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Nearly a week after Governor Haley Barbour pardoned so many in this state, there is still a lot of anger. Nobody is more upset than the families of the victims.
(voice-over): When Ronald Bonds wants to see his sister, this is the only way -- a photo album.
RONALD BONDS, JENNIFER MCCRAY'S BROTHER: That's Jennifer. Yes.
SAVIDGE: Jennifer McCray was murdered in 2001 by a man Ronald knew, her husband.
BONDS: We grew up together. SAVIDGE (on camera): Really?
BONDS: We were good friends.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): Anthony McCray shot his wife in a back, in front of a room full of witnesses in this spot on the outskirts of town.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He would have stood right here, and his attorney right there.
SAVIDGE: McCray admitted the killing in court and the Judge Michael Smith sentenced him to life in prison.
Last Sunday, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour set McCray free after less than 10 years.
(on camera): Do you think he should have been let out?
BONDS: If you kill somebody, you need to do time, you know? He took somebody's life, you know what I'm saying?
SAVIDGE (voice-over): As a prisoner, McCray worked at the governor's mansion. The governor got to know him and came to trust him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, Governor, how are you doing?
SAVIDGE: And this week, Barbour pardoned him -- which means in the eyes of the law, the murder never happened.
BONDS: You are going to give a murderer, you know, somebody that shot another female, you know, person that they said they love and shot them in the back -- you know what I'm saying? You wipe his slate clean?
SAVIDGE: For Bonds, there is no fresh start. He misses Jennifer every day, especially as he raises her now 18-year-old son, also named Anthony McCray.
(on camera): Let me ask you -- as the son of a man who was convicted of murdering your mom, what do you think of all this?
ANTHONY MCCRAY, JENNIFER MCCRAY'S SON: When I think about it, I just have to forgive him. Just forgive him, and the fact that he did it and she's gone. And I got to move on in life.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): And that's where this story might have ended, if it weren't for what happened next.
(on camera): So, we were actually led to this street here. It's an area where Anthony McCray used to live. And as we drove by, another person who is in the neighborhood pointed out that Anthony McCray was inside the house. We're going to go look.
Hello?
(voice-over): I knocked on the door. McCray came out and I couldn't believe it.
(on camera): And you are the man who was convicted of killing Jennifer McCray?
ANTHONY MCCRAY, PARDONED BY GOV. BARBOUR: Yes, sir.
SAVIDGE: The man who has been pardoned by Governor Barbour.
MCCRAY: Yes, sir.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): He told me it was like to be free.
MCCRAY: I've been saved. I've been baptized. I've been reading the Bible for 12 1/2 years, so this is truly a blessing. I didn't do this. God did this. God touched Haley Barbour's heart to do this for us.
SAVIDGE (on camera): Do you think that people should be angry at Governor Barbour for pardoning you?
MCCRAY: No, sir. He treat us like we his children.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): But Judge Smith is angry at former Governor Barbour. He says it's wrong to overturn his ruling when the murder was so blatant.
JUDGE MICHAEL SMITH (RET.), FOURTEENTH CIRCUIT COURT: There is no question, they have witnesses like, they had in the McCray case. I don't think that the governor should have authority to pardon the defendant.
SAVIDGE (on camera): Do you think because of the public anger, you may have to go back?
MCCRAY: There is a great possibility.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): Judge Smith hopes he's right, not just in his case but in the case of the other three murderers Barbour freed as well, saying the pardons have only brought back pain.
SMITH: Now they are back where they started from.
SAVIDGE (on camera): The families you mean?
SMITH: The families and the victims.
SAVIDGE: Back in what sense?
SMITH: Back in the grief and the misery that the murders caused.
SAVIDGE: If you could talk to Governor Barbour, what would you ask him?
BONDS: Did you think about it? You know what I'm saying? Did you think about how many people it would effect? SAVIDGE: Former Governor Haley Barbour continues to defend the pardons. In fact, he was on television locally and nationally yesterday, although he declined to talk to CNN. He says the pardons were the right thing to do. There are many in this state who would disagree.
Martin Savidge, CNN, Jackson, Mississippi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: Well, miracle rescues at sea. Search crews have found more survivors from that cruise ship disaster, but many more are still missing. The latest on the search coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FEYERICK: Well, checking today's top story.
There's been another rescue from the ill-fated Italian cruise ship, the Costa Concordia. Search crews found the vessel's cursor, he is the one in charge of making sure passengers are comfortable. He was trapped inside the ship's restaurant. A South Korean couple was also rescued overnight. The vessel ran aground late Friday, killing at least three people and injuring 20 others.
Well, earlier in the show, we asked you what you thought about a controversial story. In Middleton, Connecticut, parents' tempers have been flaring over the use of so-called scream rooms in schools. So, are they dangerous, or an effective way to control student behavior?
Well, here are just some of your comments.
Jeff Stewart says, "The scream room is simply a time-out. This has to be the most harmless of all punishments. I don't see any issues with it."
Sharon Stillson tweeted, "A parent who did this would be accused of abuse. What does this teach the child?"
Keep those comments coming. I'm on Twitter @DebFeyerickCNN.
And finally, another young woman is wearing the Miss America crown this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, your Miss America 2012 is Miss Wisconsin.
(CHEERS)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: Well, isn't she lovely? Twenty-three-year-old Miss Wisconsin, she is being crowned Miss America. She thanks Oprah and mentors children of incarcerated parents. Our next show starts right ahead. We wish her all the best.
