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CNN Saturday Morning News

Hate Group Plans Protest Of Elizabeth Edwards' Funeral, But Others Organize To Counter-Protest And 'Spread The Love'; President Obama Leans on Bill Clinton; Students Protest in London; FAA Loses Track of 119,000 Aircraft

Aired December 11, 2010 - 06:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good Saturday morning.

It was a 30-minute show stopper at the White House. President Obama brings in former President Bill Clinton to help him sell his tax plan to the public. And the former president does most of the talking. We will let you see and hear this extraordinary moment at the White House that happened late yesterday.

And also, Elizabeth Edwards being laid to rest today. And protestors plan to be there. Why? It is actually a group you've heard of before. We're there as well, as relatives political dignitaries and activists come together at today's services in North Carolina.

Hello to you all. From the CNN Center this is your CNN SATURDAY MORNING. For December 11th. I'm T.J. Holmes. Glad you could start your day right here with us.

Also, coming up for you in the next 90 minutes, it is the go-to website for anything on the Internet. You know, you Google just about everything out there. What did people really get into Googling in 2010? The lists are out and we will show you. I guarantee you, you will be surprised to hear what's at the top of the list.

Also, a little girl, she got, apparently a little frustrated with trying to get one of those toys out of that claw machine. She just decided to go in there and get it. How it played out in a Pennsylvania mall. Kind of a dramatic rescue mission here to go get this little girl.

Also, you know some people in your life that just won't shut up? Well, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders says he had a good reason for not shutting up. Talking on the senate floor for about eight hours. He said he had a dog-gone good reason for doing that. We'll tell you what exactly had him so fired up.

But again, here we are, top of the hour, we are a just few hours away from seeing the funeral services of Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of the former presidential candidate John Edwards. She passed away Tuesday after battling breast cancer. And at times she battled some embarrassing revelations in the headlines as well. She was 61 years old. More headlines could be coming out today. That's what so many people are worried about. They are worried the headlines will be about what's happening outside of the church where the services are taking place instead of what's happening inside. What's going to happen outside? Demonstrators, actual protesters. Why in the world would she be the target of protesters who are targeting her with hate and anger?

Well, the Kansas based Westboro Baptist Church says Elizabeth Edwards is quote, in hell for certain views and the way she live her life and things she did in her life. The church has been called a hate group. They are actually classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. If Westboro Church, if that doesn't sound familiar, this will. This is the same group, they are the ones who protest outside of military funerals. And while many of us would prefer to ignore them, wish this wasn't a part of the day, it can't be ignored that they have chosen today, this day and the service for Elizabeth Edwards for their protest.

Now the Supreme Court is taking up the case of Westboro, a case against them, that was brought by the dad of a Marine killed in Iraq. The church protested at his funeral. A decision is expected by the Supreme Court sometime this summer. Well, counter protesters also expected to show up at the service today to combat Westboro. Two of those counter protestors spoke with our Anderson Cooper last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN REQUENA, WESTBORO COUNTER PROTEST ORGANIZER: This isn't about us. It's not about the thousands of people from the local community and abroad that are going to come over and help protest and spread the love. It's certainly not about Westboro group. This is about human decency and common courtesy.

Our freedom to go there and counter protest takes care of their freedom to protest in the first place. Like I said, if they are there, and we aren't, they are the story. We want to be the bigger story, the better story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Elizabeth Edwards will be buried next to her son, Wade, who died in a car crash back in 1996. Again, back to this Westboro group. A lot of people ask why in the world would they protest? Why do they do it in the first place? They say dead soldiers, even 9/11 they have said, are actually this country's punishment for being tolerant of homosexuality. That is just one of the things they rail against.

Now, the funeral for Edwards is happening in Raleigh, North Carolina at 1:00 today, taking place at the Edenton (ph) Street United Methodist Church where the family worshiped. We will have live coverage of Elizabeth Edwards funeral. Again, 1:00 o'clock Eastern Time right here on CNN.

Let's turn to Washington now. A number of Democrats not very happy with the proposed tax compromise that is currently on the table. President Obama is counting on help now from former President Bill Clinton to help change a few minds within the party.

Some of the Democrats have been reluctant. As you know, they are less than pleased with extending the so-called Bush era tax cuts for everybody. The deal would lengthen job benefits for the unemployed, however. And by enlisting former President Clinton for the congressional sales job, President Obama sounded pretty confident.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Here is what I'll say. I have been keeping the first lady waiting for about a half hour so I'm going to take off.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, 42CD PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't want to make her mad, please go.

OBAMA: You are in good hands. And Gibbs will call last question.

CLINTON: Help me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: All right. What you saw play out right there. Let me explain what you saw. The both came out, these two were actually wandering around the hall. It was kind of empty. Some holiday parties were going on. After their 90-minute meeting in the Oval Office, the two actually decided on their own, they were going to go to the White House briefing room and talk to reporters about this. And what you saw, President Obama actually handed the podium over to President Clinton.

President Clinton got going for awhile, as he often can do, started to clearly enjoying the moment and enjoying taking questions. President Obama said I have to get out of here. I have to take off. And then he left President Clinton on his own. For about 30 minutes he took questions from reporters. Really set off the Twitter-verse. It was a surprise to everyone who was in the room. They didn't expect to see these two.

The latest score from the Congressional Budget Office about the proposed tax plan would add to the deficit by more than $890 billion over five years. President Clinton says it is a deal that has to get done for the good of the country.

Do we have sound from President Clinton now?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: In my opinion, this is a good bill. I hope that my fellow Democrats will support it. I thank the Republicans for agreeing to include things that were important to the president. There's never a perfect bipartisan bill in the eyes of a partisan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: We will see if the president, the former president showing up yesterday and lending his support will move the needle for any of those reluctant Democrats.

Sarah Palin, she is taking her family to Haiti this weekend. It's all part of a Christian relief mission. The former vice presidential candidate plans to visit a cholera clinic with Franklin Graham. That is the son of the famed Evangelist Billy Graham. Haiti's cholera outbreak has killed more than 2,000 people in recent weeks. Palin's trip comes as the U.S. government warns against traveling to Haiti. The island nation's airport also remains closed after post-election violence in the capital of Port-au-Prince.

A new day, a new life, another chapter for Elizabeth Smart; yesterday a federal jury in Utah convicted Brian David Mitchell of kidnapping Smart back in 2002.

Mitchell snatched her out of her bedroom. She was 14 years old. Elizabeth testified that he held her captive for nine months, raped her, treated her like an animal at times. She was chained at times, forced to drink liquor.

Mitchell's defense team claims he was in sane. Prosecutors say Mitchell is a predator however and knew exactly what he was doing. The jury, turns out, agreed.

Listen to now what Elizabeth Smart said after the verdict.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIZABETH SMART, KIDNAPPING SURVIVOR: It's a beautiful day. I am so thrilled to be here. I am so thrilled with the verdict. But not only that, I am so thrilled to stand before the people of America today and give hope to other victims who have not spoke out about their crime -- about what's happened to them. I hope that not only is this an example that justice can be served in America, but it is possible to move on after something terrible has happened.

REBECCA WOODRIDGE, BRIAN MITCHELL'S STEPDAUGHTER: I think he should have been found not guilty by reason of insanity and sent to where he'd be further evaluation and looked at to figure out why he's doing the things he's doing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now another court had earlier ruled that he was not fit to stand trial. However, the jury disagreed, even though he acted out in court just about every single day. He was singing, and chanting, and screaming. He had to be taken out of courtroom just about every day. He had to watch from another room he was so disruptive. Now, he could end up spending life in prison.

Elizabeth's father says she now wants to go to law school, wants to become a prosecutor. Turn now to now of the story of a 12-year-old girl from Sailor, Virginia, she has now been found 2,300 miles away from home in San Francisco. She was found with her dead mother's boyfriend. Somebody in a grocery store recognized the girl in San Francisco and also recognized the 32-year-old Jeff Easley from news reports they had seen right here on CNN. That person tipped off the cops. Virginia authorities put out an amber alert Monday for the girl after they found her mother dead in their home.

Coming up next, we are going to turn to weather. It is December, yes. It's not quite winter. Don't tell that to a lot of folks, including those in Minneapolis, where you are seeing a live picture of right now. We have some blizzard warnings and some dangerous winter weather that's going to be coming your way. Bonnie Schneider is up next with the forecast you absolutely need to see.

First, before we go to commercial break. This morning's news quiz. It is on Internet privacy. We're going to be having a push here at CNN on Internet privacy. Some things you need to know and how things are changing out there. In that respect, tell me, how many states have a law requiring your boss to tell you if your e-mails are being monitored? Just two states, ten states, or 38 states? The answer for you after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We asked you before the break, how many states out there require your boss to inform you if your e-mails are being monitored? The answer, two, 10 or 38. You would hope it is the higher number of 38, but no, just two. Connecticut and Delaware are the two. Delaware's law says your boss has to notify you one time by, yes, e- mail to let you know. Connecticut's law says that if your boss thinks you are doing something illegal, though, he is not required to tell you your e-mail is being monitored.

We are going to have much more Internet rights later this morning and all next week, when we focus on what could be the end of your privacy. This morning, we are going to be talking to a digital detective, who is going to show you how much information you can get from a person every time they log on. The director of Secure Works Threat Intelligence Services, is his name. He's going to be here with us.

And you want to see this because we are actually going to do an experiment here this morning. It's not a simple he's going to talk to you and tell you what you need to watch for. Not that kind of thing. We are going to hand him somebody's name and their log in. And you are going to see him. We are going to let him go for an hour and come back and check in and see how much information he can actually get about that person, on the Internet just with their name and their log in. You might be surprised by some of these results. So that's coming up you want to stick around for that.

Let's turn to some weather now. Our Bonnie Schneider is here with me. Reynolds Wolf taking the weekend off. And he took the weekend off when there's a lot going on. BONNIE SCHNEIDER, AMS METEOROLOGIST: He is a meteorologist, so he knew this was coming.

HOLMES: He loves this stuff. Don't get me wrong.

SCHNEIDER: Yes.

HOLMES: Much deserved time off. But we can't shake these temperatures right now and it's not even winter, yet, officially.

SCHNEIDER: You know what is funny, T.J. , is we are finally sort of moderating, getting a little bit more back to normal where we had that Arctic blast earlier this week. Guess what? Things are setting up so we will see yet another Arctic blast that will penetrate as far south as Florida in the days to come. So it is a very short-lived break. In fact right now we are tracking a major winter storm across the Midwest. The snow is coming down in Minneapolis. We can show you a live picture of what it looks like in Minnesota this morning. It's probably still pretty dark out there and the snow is on the ground from the previous storm.

Get ready, get set for more heavy snow. Accumulations will be substantial today, tonight and into tomorrow. This is such a vigorous system. In advance of it, we have a lot of advisories we are anticipating across much of the region.

You have got to take a look at this map. There's a blizzard warning all the way from Sioux Falls through parts of Nebraska, into Iowa. We are looking at very strong winds that will blow the snow about, creating snow drifts that could be several feet high at the highest point. And definitely going to cause some travel concerns.

In advance of this, we have winter storm warnings for places like Wisconsin, including Green Bay. And then ahead of it, winter weather advisories across much of Michigan, just to the north of Detroit, and certainly for areas of lake-effect snow as the storm advances to the east. Lake-effect snow is the big story more for Sunday into Monday.

But, I mentioned we are also tracking some really cold temperatures. Here is what's ahead. We are looking at another arctic blast where you can see the temperatures will get down into the negative numbers. The wind chill factor will feels like it is below zero in many locations. And temperatures will be departing from normal by 10 and 20 degrees at times. The cold air will be coming down to the single digits as far south as Eastern Tennessee.

If those of you that are traveling today. I know it is a busy weekend with all holiday travel and holiday shopping. So far, so good. No delays just yet. We are watching the snow in the Upper Midwest. This will likely impact travel for cities like Minneapolis as we go through the day. Also to the south in Iowa, travel is going to be very, very tough as the snow and sleet mixes in and that holds true for Indiana, Ohio as well.

The Midwest, the Great Lakes will be looking at some travel troubles as we go through the day. If you can get out earlier, all the better. Watch out for the black ice. T.J. the roads are going to be challenging this weekend for a lot of people.

HOLMES: I know you are not in the business of predicting delays. What time is it really going to start to get ugly for those travelers out there?

SCHNEIDER: Definitely this afternoon. We are going to see a lot of delays across the Midwest, especially with blowing snow and parts of the Plains states as well.

HOLMES: Important information. It's going to be a mess today travel-wise. Bonnie, thank you. I know you will be on it throughout the morning.

We'll check in with Bonnie, plenty today.

It's the end of the year now. The list is out. What was most Googled? You will be surprised at what's at the top of the most- Googled list of the year. It is 16 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: It's 18 minutes past the hour. People are always curious to know, what's being Googled out there. What are people searching for? We have the list. Josh Levs has them for us.

Good morning to you, Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

There are always some surprises on the list. The way Google breaks it down is there are some obvious things that everyone is going to search for, like weather, White House, president. What they tell us on Zeitgeist, Google Zeitgeist, is what were the fastest rising Google searches of 2010? What were suddenly people looking for that weren't looking for in previous years.

So, we are going to do a bit of a countdown here.

Number five, maybe you won't be shocked there, Justin Bieber. He was already famous the previous year but come on. It's crazy what is going on in 2010; everyone searching for information on this young star.

This one is interesting, World Cup. Because you had twice when everyone was looking for information on World Cup. First when it was going on, then, when the big announcement came where the next one will be. So that's at number four.

Go up to number three now. The iPhone 4, that got tons of Google searches. And this is all inside the United States.

Then, here is where the surprise comes in. Chatroulette, number two. Most suddenly Googled, taking up the entire year, Chatroulette, if you don't remember is the website where you can turn on your web cam and all of a sudden it hooks you up to any other random person's web cam anywhere in the world. There were jokes made about it. There were some disturbing things that came out of it. But everyone was talking about it. Chatroulette, at number one on that list.

Finally, the number one fastest rising Google search in the United States for 2010 was the iPad. Everyone suddenly who already didn't have -- well, had to know all about the iPad and then had to get an iPad. And they were going through Google to get it. OK, let's do this. We will jump over to the web for a second. Because I want you to see how you can find out how the world searches. This is it. Let's zoom in for a second. It's a pretty neat interactive. All these bars represent different countries, different areas, you just click on them. They take you to that country and then in every single country it will talk to you about what was hot there.

One thing I think you'll take an interest in also, is people. Who were the fastest rising people searched for on Google. Justin Bieber, Kesha, Wiz Khalifa, Nicki Manaj, Christina Hendricks.

We can zoom, can you get way in on those faces, Scott?

It's just interesting to see who, all of a sudden, this year got the uber fame that wasn't famous the year before.

One more thing I'll mention and then we'll go. The fastest falling thing of the entire year, swine flu. In 2009, everyone was searching for that. 2010, they are over it. Fortunately, because it didn't turn into what people feared. My page is up there. The blog, Facebook and Twitter, JoshLevsCNN. Take a look at it. See what you think. Start your predictions now for what we'll be talking about a year from now as the fastest rising Google search terms of 2011.

T.J. , back to you.

HOLMES: Thank you, Josh.

Coming up, we're going to have a preview of the some of the major business stories of the week. A review of what we saw this past week as well. Also, did you see this moment? Two presidents, one news conference.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: What I'll say is that I have been keeping the first lady waiting for about half an hour. I'm going to take off.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: He took off and left the former president hanging. Former president didn't mind at all. 21 minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: 24 minutes past the hour. Good shots of the capital this morning, in Washington, D.C. Glad you could be with us here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.

President Obama compromise on the Bush tax cuts pretty big this week. We told you last week, as well, that Black Friday was huge. How much did it impact the economy?

CNN's Carter Evans and Poppy Harlow getting you caught up on what you missed in the business week and what to expect in the business week ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARTER EVANS, CNNMONEY.COM: Well, stocks closed the week on the upside, T.J. President Obama's deal with congressional Republicans on tax cuts initially gave the market a boost, but only temporarily. Because concerns about the budget deficit kicked in, and the tax deal isn't even final. Still the S&P 500 managed to hit a two-year high during the week.

The economy is also still a big concern. New jobless claims fell more than expected to 421,000. Claims need to stay below 400,000 for significant job growth. We haven't seen those levels since 2008.

The government is selling the last of its Citigroup shares. Netting taxpayers a $12 billion profit. The government gave the bank a $45 billion bailout back in 2008. Now, the Treasury is making a 26 percent return on that investment in just two years. Not bad -- Poppy.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Well, looking ahead to next week, the holiday season of course will be in focus. We are expecting retail sales numbers for November. They include the big, Black Friday holiday shopping weekend. Recent surveys show sales both in stores and online were pretty solid that day. It's a good sign for next week's report and also for the entire U.S. economy.

Tuesday, in Washington, Federal Reserve policymakers will meet to discuss interest rates. Also the Fed's recent purchase of Treasury bonds, which of course is a stimulus for the U.S. economy.

And on Thursday, we'll the latest report on new home construction. We'll be watching to see if it can rebound from an 18- month low.

And finally if you are mailing gifts on Monday, expect very long lines. FedEx, T.J. , says it expects to ship a record 16 million packages on Monday. That is double the volume of a normal day.

T.J. , back to you.

HOLMES: Thanks to Poppy and Carter for that.

A U.S. Senator takes to the floor. Starts talking in the morning. He doesn't stop talking until the evening. We'll tell you who it is, and what he had to say. It's 26 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Well, bottom of the hour. Welcome back to CNN SATURDAY MORNING. I'm T.J. Holmes. Glad you could be here with us. Take a look at the stories making headlines now. Police in New York have arrested a man whose father is actually well known in Hollywood, in connection with the death of a swimsuit designer. Her name is Sylvie Cachay. They have charged Nick Brooks with her attempted murder, I should say, and strangulation. That's her boyfriend. Police found her body in a bathtub in an exclusive New York hotel bathtub Thursday, bruised with bite marks on her neck. The initial autopsy report is inclusive. Brooks is the son of Joseph Brooks, an Oscar-winning composer and director.

Now, the WikiLeaks scandal has Pentagon wrapping up computer security procedures. In a newly created cyber command issued a directive drastically restricting the use of portable devices like DVDs which can be used for downloading secret files. Also, set up a buddy system that requires two people to get clearance on sensitive material to reduce the insider threat.

Also, the public will get a chance to say good-bye to Elizabeth Edwards today at 1:00 Eastern Time. CNN will carry that funeral live.

Edwards is the wife of former senator and Democratic vice presidential candidate, John Edwards. She died Tuesday of cancer. The service will be held at a family church in Raleigh. Among those giving her eulogy will be her oldest daughter, Cate. Elizabeth Edwards will be buried next to her son Wade who died in a car crash in 1986.

In case you missed, it was one of those rare moments in politics. Two presidents, Barack Obama, and, the last Democrat to hold the job, Bill Clinton, together, at the same time, at the same podium in the White House briefing room. The party's two biggest names with one job right now trying to sell the administration's tax cut deal which many in the president's own party don't like.

Two men met earlier at the White House to come up with a strategy. And an extraordinary TV moment, President Obama turned the podium over to former President Clinton, who seems quite comfy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: I think this is a net plus. And you know how I feel, I think the people that benefit most should pay most. That's always been my position -- not for class warfare reasons, for reasons of fairness in rebuilding the middle class in America. But we have the distribution of authority we have now in the Congress and what we're going to have in January. And I think this is a much, much better agreement than if we were to wait until January.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Clinton gave it his strongest sales pitch, calling the tax cut deal with Republicans the best bipartisan agreement we can reach to help the largest number of Americans. Clinton did such a good job. See what happens now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Here's is what I'll say -- I've been keeping the first lady waiting for about half hour. So, I'm going to take off. But --

CLINTON: I don't want to make her mad. Please go.

OBAMA: You're in good hands. And Gibbs will call the last question. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: And President Obama took off. He said he actually had some White House parties, a lot of Christmas parties were going on and he was running a little behind. The former president didn't need much help. He actually stayed there, answered questions from reporters for the next 20 or 30 minutes.

But analysts were wondering after that moment when President Obama left the room, did it show a politician who was so confident that he could turn over the podium and the job to arguably one of the most popular Democrats in the country, or one who knows, or one who knows he is in deep political trouble and need's the former president's help.

CNN senior political analyst and former White House insider, David Gergen, appeared on "ANDERSON COOPER 360" last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, HOST, "ANDERSON COOPER 360": David, you worked in the White House for four administrations. You worked there for the Clinton administration. Can you ever remember a time when a sitting president, a former president, show up in a briefing room and then one leaves and the other kind of takes over?

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: No, Anderson. I was there some 17 years ago when President Clinton wanted to get NAFTA passed and he had a rebellion in the Democratic Party and he called in all former presidents, four of them. He told them to speak briefly. But I can assure you, he never let them have the podium, alone.

COOPER: Was this is wise move in your opinion for President Obama?

GERGEN: Oh, I think -- you know, there's going to be a lot of hoopty-doo about it. But I just think it didn't do any harm. I do think -- to go back to your earlier question -- I think President Obama has the self-confidence, an inner security, that this wouldn't faze him at all. I think he thinks, you know, what's the big deal?

But I -- you can tell, Bill Clinton relished this. I mean, I can only think of two presidents, Bill Clinton and Teddy Roosevelt, would have enjoyed this as much as he did. And I think he actually made what I think is a problem for Obama is that Bill Clinton makes a better argument for the compromise than President Obama did the other day.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HOLMES: Of course, making the argument. That is what all of this is about. When it came out this week that President Obama had, of course, reached a deal with Republicans on those Bush era tax cuts, a lot of Democrats did not like it. And they did not have a problem letting their voices be known.

Well, a lot of people just didn't like it, including Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. He didn't like so much he had something to say about it. And he said it and said it and said it for eight hours. Look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I), VERMONT: You can call what I'm doing today whatever you want. You can call it a filibuster. You can call it a very long speech.

Sounds like a good idea for working people it is actually a very bad idea.

When is enough enough? How much do they need?

Again, it has to be put within the broad context of what's going on in America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Started about 10:00 in the morning, didn't wrap up until, well, about 7:00 in the evening. He was up there for about eight hours talking and talking and talking, just making his argument. When he got done, he said, first thing he mouthed to reporters was that he was tired.

Now, technically, the long speech, it actually was not a filibuster. He was not filibustering a bill that was up for debate. So, it was essentially just a long speech to let his views be known.

Coming up, it's 35 minutes past the hour. It's going to be a nasty weather day. It's cold, cold, cold in a lot of places. And actually, we're going to have some dangerous winter weather. Some warnings, some winter watches and warnings that are going to be out we need to tell you about.

Our Bonnie Schneider is going to be along with that and it is going to cause a problem for a lot of people traveling today, especially in the afternoon. We're going to be checking in with her.

Also, an Oregon man wanted to spice up his name a bit. Did you see what he decided to call himself? He decided to pick his favorite TV character. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC)

HOLMES: All right. Thirty-eight minutes past the hour. If you could pick any name in the world for yourself, what would it be? Give that some thought. Really, if you could change your name, what would it be?

Let me tell you what one guy in Eugene, Oregon decided he wanted to pick. The guy, let me get his real name here first. The name is Doug Smith, Jr. That's fairly simple.

But you just saw the idea there -- I.D. there. He actually changed his name, legally, to Captain Awesome. There he is -- Captain Awesome.

Doesn't he just look awesome, Bonnie? Very awesome, look at that. He says he kept getting his dad's mail -- yes, his name is Doug Smith, Jr. So upset about his dad's mail and his dad was getting his mail, that was part of the inspiration for the name change.

But how in the world is it going over with Captain Awesome's friends and folks he comes in touch with?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPTAIN AWESOME, FORMERLY DOUG SMITH: There's been all types of weird things. I have gotten admiration to disgusting, people calling me all types of not friendly names.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Bonnie. Are you serious?

SCHNEIDER: Captain Awesome.

HOLMES: Inspiration? People are inspired by his name change. He's actually an ordained minister.

SCHNEIDER: Oh!

HOLMES: Do you buy that?

SCHNEIDER: It's good for branding, I guess.

HOLMES: Possibly, Captain Awesome. There you go. Well, our awesome Bonnie Schneider is here with us.

SCHNEIDER: Oh, thank you.

HOLMES: Weather is anything but right about now. It's going to be ugly today for a lot of folks trying to travel.

SCHNEIDER: Absolutely. And December is such a busy time for travel. No delays yet at the airports, but I am anticipating a lot, because we have a huge winter storm that's brewing in the Midwest. It's going to slide to the east. So, that means Saturday and Sunday, both, will be facing rough weather in many locations.

Brutally cold, cold enough for snow and even blizzard conditions in some locations. Look at all the snow piling into Green Bay, Wisconsin. Minneapolis is likely to see several inches before the day is over and then more tonight.

Temperatures in St. Louis and in Memphis, well, they are fairly mild at this point, in the 50s. But remember, there's cold air coming in behind the storm. So, that rain will change over to snow and that's why we have so many winter weather advisories posted as far south as St. Louis.

Look at this map. There's so much activity. Blizzard conditions, meaning blowing snow, blinding conditions, so you won't have any visibility if you're driving in Sioux Falls or down through parts of Nebraska, into Iowa. It is really going to be treacherous out there, even St. Louis, as I mentioned, is under a winter weather advisory.

As this storm slides to the east, we'll see more of these pop up across the Great Lakes. So, the lake-effect snow machine will get cranking once again starting on Sunday. Cleveland, under a winter weather advisory. We're likely to see a lot more lake effect snow advisories as well as the system advances to the east.

Thunderstorms right now rolling through Memphis as well as Mississippi, a little bit of light rain in Nashville. As it moisture travels to the east, we may even see snow in the Georgia mountains as early as tomorrow because that cold blast is coming in right behind it.

Let's talk about the cold and what we can expect. Well, here's the way the system will break down as we go over the next day or so. You'll see this low pressure slide from the Midwest down, kind of take a dip south and then come right back up to the Northeast. So, that means so many places will be affected by the same storm.

You can see the strong area of low pressure will get that lake- effect snow cranking for western New York, Pennsylvania and northeast Ohio. And remember, it's only less than a week ago that we had the huge lake-effect snow event in this region. So, a lot of rooftops are already filed with wet, heavy snow that hasn't been cleared. So, the snow that comes on top of this will creates dangerous situation for those of you that are in that region and you really have to take caution so we don't have to see roof collapses.

And cold air will be coming further to the south. We'll be looking for snow across parts of Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, and, even as I mentioned, parts of north Georgia. Notice the wintry weather even kind of eclipsing parts of northern Alabama. So, it is going to be another blast of cold temperatures as we go into the next few days. You don't see that on this map, but I can give you a preview that this blast of arctic air will plunge as far south as Florida.

Low temperatures will be right around freezing in places like Jacksonville, getting very close to it in Tampa by the time we get to Sunday into Monday. So, we're watching for that cold weather as well. And finally, just to take a quick look at flight explorer. Right now, we have over 2,000 planes in the air, coast-to-coast, most of the activity in the Eastern Seaboard. But you could actually see the wintry weather. Here's the blue. That's the snow across parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota right now. And it's likely to impact travel, T.J., as we go through the afternoon.

HOLMES: All right. Bonnie Schneider, on the case for us, we appreciate you. Thanks so much.

SCHNEIDER: Sure.

HOLMES: Well, take a look here. Did you see what happened this week in London? These young people outraged and they were taking out that outrage on anybody who was in their way, including a lot of police and including the future king of England. We'll explain why these young people were so upset.

Our Nadia Bilchik checking in with us, as she always does, on CNN SATURDAY and SUNDAY MORNING. Quick break here, 43 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Quarter to the top of the hour now.

We're back with Nadia Bilchik.

It was extraordinary what we saw play out in London this week.

NADIA BILCHIK, CNN EDITORIAL PRODUCER: Yes, Thursday, we had students smashing the car window of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, part of a wider protest because this week, the House of Commons passed the law that said that the tuition hike from 3,000 pound as year to 9,000 pounds a year will take place. And it only has to now be approved by the House of Lords. And that's just perfunctory.

But let's take it back a step. Let's look at 1998. Up until 1998, the British did not pay for university, even living costs they got a grant. In 1998, it goes up to 1,000 pounds a year. In 2004, to 3,000 pounds a year. And now, 9,000 pounds a year.

Now, the other thing, T.J., is that most universities in Britain are public. They are state. For example, Oxford and Cambridge which people think are these very expensive are not -- they are state. You get in on prestige, but it's the same. It's the same. It's like a government university. It's not like Harvard or Yale.

So, what's happening is students having to pay for those universities are saying that keeps the lower classes out. But interestingly enough, you don't have to pay back the loan until you have completed a course and start working.

HOLMES: Yes, and that was a part of one of the concessions, I believe as well, and they raised --hat you have to make a certain amount of money.

BILCHIK: Correct.

HOLMES: You don't have to start paying until you reach a certain salary in your career

BILCHIK: Right. So, these protesters, it's really an ideological thing. The British are saying that our right to education is being taken away, that it's a right, not a privilege. And by increasing the fee to this degree, they are making it only for the privileged.

But, of course, the counter argument is, anybody can go and then you can pay back only when you start earning.

But once again, when we look at these riots and you saw what happened this week, the smashing of the car, or earlier in the month with the fire hydrant that went into the headquarters of the Conservative Party, that gets hijacked, because the real reason for the protest is overlooked.

The other reason that students are so furious is the liberal Democrats who are part of the coalition government promised that they would not sign tuition hikes. That was part of their promise. So, what's happening is the students are feeling very betrayed. And I'm going to give you the saying of the week. They feel that the government and everything has gone pear-shaped.

HOLMES: Pear-shaped?

BILCHIK: That is my saying of the day, pear-shaped. And what it means, it comes from the Royal Air Force. Instead of doing a perfect circle in aeronautical practice, you're going to put a line and instead of being circle, it was more pear-shaped. It's gone pear- shaped.

HOLMES: And it's unfortunate. And I don't -- I'm not sure when the other vote is. But the universities aren't required is what they say. It allows them to have this cap necessarily.

BILCHIK: That's correct.

HOLMES: I'm not sure. I don't know the research if you do as well, what the universities did last time. Did all of them, for the most part, raise the tuition up to the cap?

BILCHIK: They raised it, some to the cap. But nobody obviously went beyond the cap.

HOLMES: Yes.

BILCHIK: But it is -- it's the cap.

HOLMES: It's a huge increase. Three-fold.

BILCHIK: Well, it is. Compared to American universities, if you think 9,000 pounds a year, compared to what people pay to Harvard or Yale, which is around $60,000 a year.

HOLMES: Good point.

BILCHIK: But again, it's the ideological right and the fury and the sense of betrayal.

HOLMES: All right, Nadia, pear-shaped.

BILCHIK: It's gone pear-shaped.

HOLMES: I'm going to try not to go pear-shaped this morning, OK, on this show. All right. Nadia, good to see you. We're going to see you again as always.

BILCHIK: We are going to talk eyebrows.

HOLMES: Eyebrows? Can you give anything else besides just eyebrows?

BILCHIK: All you ever wanted to know about eyebrows.

HOLMES: All right. We're going to see her again in a little bit.

Well, coming up on 10 minutes to the top of the hour. It's the FAA's job to keep up with airplanes out there. But apparently they lost track in some way, form or passion, with about a third of the planes they're supposed to be keeping up with. We're talking about 100,000-plus airplanes.

This could be a security threat. We'll explain what's going on. Stay with us.

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HOLMES: Fifty-one minutes past the hour.

The FAA has lost track, in a way, of about a third of all the aircraft in this country they are supposed to be keeping track of. They're talking about private planes out there and we're talking about 119,000 planes. Any one of them could easily become a national security problem.

The FAA is now scrambling to try to correct this issue. But why is it taking so long?

Homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Count them -- there are 357,000 aircraft in the United States. But, the Federal Aviation Administration doesn't have accurate records on one-third of them, 119,000 planes.

MICHAEL BOYD, AVIATION CONSULTANT: This is the equivalent of the IRS losing a couple of million tax returns. This is a core part of the FAA's responsibility. And losing track of 119,000 airplanes is nothing to sneeze at. It's a very serious problem.

MESERVE: Why so serious? Because that registration can help authorities distribute critical safety information to aircraft owners and can help law enforcement track stolen planes, drug dealers and possibly even terrorists. Some experts say it is a security concern, but probably not a security problem.

CHRIS DANCY, AIRCRAFT OWNERS & PILOT ASSOC.: They are probably where they are supposed to be, owned by the people, the FAA has record of. They just don't know that.

MESERVE: The records are badly out of date because until now, owners have only had to register their aircraft once, at the time of purchase. Many have failed to update the FAA as required when they had moved, sold an aircraft, or scrapped one.

To correct the situation and cleanse the current database, the FAA is requiring that all civil aircraft be re-registered over the next three years. Owners will then have to renew their registrations every three years. The FAA says that changes are necessary in part because of the events of September 11th, 2001 and our continuing war on terrorism.

Experts say this isn't going to end the misuse of aircraft and their registrations. Tail numbers can still be easily changed to throw off law enforcement. But hopefully, this will make it easier to catch it when it does happen.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Santa Claus? You don't need no stinking Santa Claus. One little girl is not waiting for old St. Nick to come down to the chimney and bring her her holiday toys. She decided to take a dive right in and get it herself. And it led to a rescue effort. We'll explain.

It's six minutes to the top of the hour.

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HOLMES: We are getting close to the top of the hour. Take a quick trip across country right now, checking stories making news across the nation.

First up: Dallas, Texas, where, wow! "The Dallas Morning News" is reporting a jury found the arrest of this woman did involve excessive force by the officer. The video shows former trooper, Arturo Perez, was throwing a woman face first into a concrete highway divider. This happened on Dallas' North Texas Tollway in 2009. The woman suffered a deep gash in her chin. The officer was convicted of misdemeanor assault. Next stop for you -- New Haven, Connecticut, where a man is under arrest for receiving the wrong kind of Christmas gifts. Pot, a lot of it -- more than 100 pounds of it. It was stuffed into presents and delivered to his home. What kind of cookies was he leaving Santa Claus?

An informant tipped the police off about the special delivery. They also seized about $23,000 in cash.

Let's turn now to Robinson Township, Pennsylvania, where firefighters were called in for a rescue mission of that little girl. It took about 15 minutes to free this 2-year-old after she had found her happy place. She crawled into a toy machine in a suburban mall. She got stuck. She probably didn't want to be rescued.

But it took them awhile to get her out. Not exactly sure how she got in there or not sure if she was able to come out with one of those toys, but the little girl was not hurt.