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i'm alina cho in for john berman. >> i'm zoraida sambolin. today is december 3rd. just about 6:00 a.m. in the east. another pacific storm soaking northern california this weekend leaving thousands of weary homeowners without power, as well. it's the third storm to hit the region in less than a week. unleashing floodwaters and damaging homes from san francisco, sacramento and several surrounding communities. people who've lived in the areas for decades say they have never seen anything like this. >> i mean this thing just went up fast, real fast. we have seen where it's gotten up real high but wasn't gotten this bad. >> you live right here? >> right there. >> right here? >> yeah, right there. i got my mom out. i took her down to a friend's house down the street. you never know water, at this point, what it's going to do. >> people are evacuating out of the park, and as you see in the front of the park you can't get out. i had to park up on the hill and walk down the side hill to get in here. so it's really, really, it's very bad in here. >> rob marciano's been track

thank you alina cho. for more on matt damon's efforts to provide clean water to people around the world and how you can help, go to cnn.com/impact. bye dad. drive safe. k. love you. [ chirping, buzzing continues ] [ horn honks ] [ buzzing continues ] [ male announcer ] the sprint drive first app. blocks and replies to texts while you drive. we can live without the &. visit sprint.com/drive. we've decided to we're all having such a we great year in the gulf, put aside our rivalry. 'cause all our states are great. and now is when the gulf gets even better. the beaches and waters couldn't be more beautiful. take a boat ride or just lay in the sun. enjoy the wildlife and natural beauty. and don't forget our amazing seafood. so come to the gulf, you'll have a great time. especially in alabama. you mean mississippi. that's florida. say louisiana or there's no dessert. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. >>> record snowfall now blankets much of arkansas. 9 inches fell yesterday in little r

alina cho has a look at today's top stories. >> good morning ali and everybody. the outlook not so good, pennsylvania, new york, massachusetts, new hampshire, vermont and maine all under winter storm warnings. look at that radar there, all of that white across the country, up to 18 inches of snow or more expected to fall on parts of new england today. more than 1,700 flights had to be canceled just yesterday because of the weather, and more than 200 more today have already been canceled. >>> doctors say two firefighters shot on christmas eve are improving and now starting physical therapy. police say a gunman set fire as a trap, and then ambushed joseph ho hoffstetter and theodore scardino. we spoke to the webster fire marshal earlier this morning and he said it's hard to believe what happened. >> after 9/11, we trained to be alert for secondary devices that were aimed at the first responders, but never, never would anybody have thought that somebody would have been waiting for the firemen as they came around the corner, barely even out of their rig yet. the rig

i'm alina cho in new york. da dana, good morning. >> good morning. alina. i'm dana bash in washington. it's christmas eve. "starting point" begins right now. >>> and our starting point, an american contractor in kabul shot and killed earlier this morning by a woman wearing an afghan police uniform. it happened inside kabul's police headquarters, and it's the latest in a string of suspected green on blue attacks. pentagon correspondent barbara starr is working her sources, and she joins us from washington. barbara, we have seen a lot of these attacks. correct me if i'm wrong, this is the first time it's happened with a woman. >> reporter: i think that is absolutely correct, dana. u.s. officials, nato officials looking into all of this, trying to figure out what exactly did happen. a woman in an afghan police uniform opened up fire, shooting and killing a u.s. contractor inside kabul police headquarters. key question perhaps, was she really an afghan police official, or was the uniform perhaps stolen? was this an infill tator of the taliban? what exactly was

and now we have alina cho for the rest of the news. >> good morning, ali. good morning, everybody. for all of you traveling back to the holiday vacation or heading to one, a new weather threat after that powerful winter storm that brought hoard rife haeking snow. ten deaths blamed on this week's snow. 2,400 flights already canceled. bonnie schneider with a look at the forecast. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, alina. the new threat, freezing rain frttle rock, arkansas, paducah, kentucky, branson, missouri. it's the same region that got hit with snow on christmas day. this will not freeze over. when temperatures are as cold as they are across oklahoma and certainly into little rock, likely to see ice accumulate on top of snow and that could compromise powerlines. keep that in mind for those of you traveling on i-40 specifically. behind the system exiting the northeast, much colder air. temperatures in the 20s this morning. brutally cold, bundle up in new york or pennsylvania. taking a look at the storm system setting up for this weekend. traveling no, pressure slides across

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i'm alina cho. >> i'm drew griffin. soledad has the week off. >>> a blizzard blankets the midwest and tornadoes tear up parts of the south. >> oh, my god. we need to go. it's right there. >> we're getting reports of extensive damage in places like mobile, alabama. this video from wala you can see the twister blowing up transformers and knocking out power to more than 23,000 customers in that area alone. 7,000 of those are still in the dark this morning. more than 200,000 are without power across the extended region. >> on top of the tornadoes, snow piling on by the hour, some places could see a foot. blizzard conditions expected in the northeast and much further south they're already dealing about this snow that they're not used to. meteorologist bonnie schneider has been tracking what's happened and what's coming. bonnie? >> that's right, drew. we are looking at heavy bands of snow. look at our radar picture and see the brighter white, that indicates the snow falling heavy and hard, across kentucky, indiana as well as

alina cho looks back at the life of this television icon. >> for millions of television viewers, he will always be the sports writer. cigar smoking, beer drinking, opposite tony randall. surprisingly, it was not his most successful television series. in the 1970's, it was on five years on abc. and it never went up to 36 but reruns' turned this into a cult classic. it was far more popular than his other television series, quincy. he was the medical examiner for seven seasons. it premiered in 1976 as the mystery movie. it quickly became a weekly series and when it ended, he made brief appearances but stayed on his ranch racing horses. he continued to smoke and he lost a vocal cord. >> he thought sure that he was going to get better. - and i thought that i was going to get better. >> one of his most memorable was "days of wine and roses"... he also starred in 1283 me12 angry men. he married twice and had two sons. he earned two emmy nominations on the odd couple. it was his longtime friend, tony randall who helped him through his throat cancer. and persuaded him to resume 19 90's. with just

alina cho, double duty. i'm jealous. >> it's cold out here. you're jealous? >> tell us what's going on. >> reporter: people are already lining up behind me. they're in for a long day and a long night. it is bitterly cold outside, suzanne. for all the talk about the confetti, the crystal ball, and all the new year's eve resolutions, here's what you really need to know if you plan to come to times square tonight, dress warmly. it will feel like it is below freezing tonight. let's talk about security. it is mind boggling the amount of security that will be in place. the nypd says there will be thousands more police officers. sharp shooters on roof tops. radiological scanners, explosives teams, firearms teams. tactics teams. there will be security that you will see and security that you won't see. and lest you be worried it will be secure in times square tonight, there will be surveillance cameras throughout the area. some other things you should know, if you plan to come here, do not bring a large bag or backpack or alcohol. you will not be allowed inside the pe

i'm alina cho. john and zoraida have the day off. it's 30 minutes paragraph the hour. whether you're driving or flying chances are your holiday travel plans are in turmoil today. the culprit, a devastating winter storm that's smothering the northeast. look at all of that white. more than 1,700 flights had to be canceled just yesterday. hundreds more are already off the boards this morning and that number will almost certainly climb. bet it will. storm has already battered the south and midwest. folks in six states from pennsylvania to maine could see up to 2 feet of snow today. meteorologist bonnie schneider is tracking the extreme weather from the cnn center in atlanta. first we go live to ines ferre in a snowy syracuse, new york. ines, good morning. >> >> reporter: good morning, alena. yes, it's still snowing here in syracuse. visibility, ice, are some of the concerns. you can see that plows have been coming in and out of these roads here in downtown syracuse, but you can still see that the snow is still accumulating. we saw the last plow just a few minutes ago here.

i'm alina cho in new york. >> and i'm dana bash in washington. john and zoraida are off. >> a developing story in afghanistan. an adviser to the afghan police has been shot and killed by a woman wearing an afghan police uniform. the latest in the series of green on blue insider attacks and our pentagon correspondent barbara starr joins us live with details on that. good morning. how unusual is this? >> well, alana, sadly this is a story we've report sod often during the year, haven't we? the details on this attack are different in one respect. as far as we know this is a case where a woman, an afghan woman in a police uniform conducted this shooting and killing. a contractor in cab uhl police headquarters. the nato alliance has already announced the incident but not said the nationality officially of the contractor involved. this typically does not happen where the perpetrator is a woman. they are going to have to determine, of course, if she really was an afghan police officer or perhaps the uniform was stolen or she somehow came into possession

i'm drew griffin. >> i'm alina cho. john and zoraida have the day off. >>> we begin with your paycheck on the fiscal cliff chopping block. four days left until we go down the cliff. triggering automatic tax hikes and spending cuts that could send the country back into recession. the president has scheduled a meeting at 3:00 p.m. eastern time. on hand for today's fiscal cliff face-off, the president, vice president biden, senate majority leader harry reid and house minority leader nancy pelosi on the democratic side. john boehner and senate minority leader mitch mcconnell representing the republicans. brianna keilar live from washington. you say logistically, a deal can happen. politically, open question. >> that's right. logistically, it's still possible. but it appears right now, the prospects for a deal are dimming. the senate is in yesterday, but not doing a whole lot on the fiscal cliff. still awaiting the proposal to come out from senate democrats and what we're seeing is the blame game. kind of in full swing. publ

. >>> i'm alina cho. topping our news. if you're hoping for a fiscal cliff averting, tax-reforming package all wrapped in a big red bow, better fire off a quick note to santa. a grand bargain isn't going to come by christmas or new year's when all sorts of tax increases and automatic spending cuts take effect. it may take up president obama's bare bones stopgap measure. that plan would block tax hikes for those earning $250,000. it would extend unemployment benefits to 2 million americans and put off spending cuts until the new year brings a new congress. our expert on all matters relating to the fiscal cliff is dana bash. she joins me now from washington. dana, great to see you again. tell me does even a band-aid approach work? >> it's going to be tough. this is all math. but it really has to do with the math with regard to votes. and democrats especially who i'm talking to in the senate which is probably where this will originate, the reality is that democrats don't hold a very big majority. her going to need to have a h

i'm alina cho in new york. thanks so much for being with us on this christmas morning. >> a huge storm creating a holiday travel has or. new this hour, getting word of a big pile-up involving at least 20 cars and a big rig on interstate 40 west outside oklahoma city. that has shut down the interstate for about two miles. freezing rain likely triggered that wreck and several people have been taken from the scene with injuries. our bonnie schneider is tracking the storm this morning. good morning. i know that alexandra steele was saying they haven't received snow in that area so drivers aren't used to having it on the roads. >> not on christmas day. that's what's unusual. snow before in this region this time of year, but to have it start on christmas day and continue through christmas night, hasn't happened in some parts of this region for 80 years. it's much more difficult to drive in freezing rain because as soon as that moisture hits any surface it ices over and driving on snow versus ice, more tracks on snowy

alina cho is there. good morning. what's it like around you there? >> well, sanjay, as you know, we last talked about an hour ago. since then, the sun has come up as you can see behind me, and i can tell you with 100% certainty, that the weather has not improved one bit. it is still 30 degrees outside. feels like 25, so the number one tip if you are coming to times square tonight is dress warmly. take a look at my shoulder behind me, my left shoulder, you can see people already lining up, they are in for a long day and a long night. it will be frigidly cold tonight. let's talk about the security. to say that security will be tight is a big understatement. some of the you will see, some you won't. here is what i can tell you, according to the nypd, thousands more police officers on the streets. sharpshooters on rooftops, radiological scanners, explosive teams, firearms and tactics seams and surveillance cameras everywhere. if you plan to come here tonight, sanjay. know this. don't carry a large bag, backpack or alcohol. you will not be allowed inside

i'm alina cho. let's get started. four days before the fiscal cliff. four hours before a last-ditch meeting at the white house. it's still not clear whether a last-minute deal is even possible or whether this is now all about shifting blame. president obama and vice president biden are sitting down with house leaders. the guest list includes harry reid, who this time yesterday said he didn't see any way the fiscal cliff could be avoided. whatever the case, our chief white house correspondent jessica yellin will be watching. what can we really expect to come out of this meeting this afternoon? >> well, alina, we're not sure what really will come out of it. the ideal scenario would be if all sides agree to a scaled-down version of the fiscal cliff agreement that the president and spe speaker boehner had been discussing weeks ago and then senator mcconnell would agree that no republicans would block it in any way if he can promise that. he argues that he can't really make that promise but if e he could then speaker boehner would promise to bring it to a v

cnn correspondent and resident fashionista, hope you don't mind, you are, alina cho in new york. >> always flattering me. >> why would anna wintour want the job? she's kind of busy as it is. >> she most certainly is very busy. you're talking about the most powerful person in fashion, brooke, as you know. this is a story that has been out there for quite some time. it was long rumored, talked about quite a bit in fashion circles during the campaign. and it was said that she might be given the post of u.s. ambassador to the uk. and anna wintour after all is british. and the guessing game even began as to who might replace her at vogue. those rumors over the past several months actually had died down, brooke, until today. but you can imagine why people are talking about this. listen, as one writer put it, the tea party has the coke brothers. mitt romney had bain capital, but only president obama has anna wintour. this is a woman who was one of the president's most powerful boundlers of donations. she raised more than $500,000 toward president obama's re-election campaign. she held a $40,000 a

candy, happy holidays. >> and happy holidays as well to our alina cho. thanks. >>> retailers have recalled a popular brand of baby recliner after several deaths. lisa sylvester is back with that story and more. lisa? >> hi, there, candy. well, major u.s. retailers, they are recalling the nap nanny recliner after the reported deaths of five infants. the u.s. consumer product safety commission says the nap nanny poses a substantial risk of injury and death to infants. pictures show how babies can hang or fall out over the side of the recliner. the company tells cnn it stands behind the product 100%. >>> and the security camera recorded this incredible video of a tornado sweeping past an alabama walgreens on christmas day. high winds blew through the store's front door as workers and shoppers took shelter in the back. the twister came about a hundred yards from smashing the store. >>> and shoppers is at a shanghai mall got a terrifying surprise when an aquarium burst open. see the pictures there. the massive tank, it held 33 tons of water, along with lemon

. >> alina cho from new york. >>> did you get your flu shot? still ahead, a warning that this year's flu season is starting earlier. [ male announcer ] rocky had no idea why dawn was gone for so long... ...but he'd wait for her forever, for any reason, and would always be there with the biggest welcome home. for a love this strong, dawn only feeds him iams. compared to other leading brands, it has 50% more animal protein. ...to help keep rocky's body as strong as a love that never fades... if he ever lets her leave again. iams. keep love strong. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] you've been years in the making. and there are many years ahead. join the millions of members who've chosen an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. go long. insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. well, if itmr. margin?margin. don't be modest, bob. you found a better way to pack a bowling ball. that was ups. and who called ups? you did, bob. i just asked a question. it takes a long time to pack a bowling ball. the last g

i'm alina cho. i'll be back tomorrow at 5:00 a.m. eastern and again at 11:00 a.m. eastern. "cnn newsroom" with suzanne malveaux starts right now. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> welcome to "cnn newsroom." i'm suzanne malveaux. we're keeping you updated on the news here in the united states and around the world. former egyptian president hosni mubarak being transferred to a hospital for medical treatment. the country's state prosecutor ordered the transfer. mubarak is serving life in prison for his role in the killing of demonstrars in egypt's recent demonstration. ian is live in cairo. ian, what are we learning about mubarak's condition right now? >> reporter: suzanne, right now he's in stable condition. he's had three fractured ribs after slipping in the bathroom. the general prosecutor ordered that he be taken from torah prison to a military hospital for more specialized treatment for his condition. his lawyer told us that he has been angry with the fact that mubarak hasn't been getting treatment he believes he deserves in the prison hospital, so he's glad to se

alina cho live in new york with details now. >> super mayor. >> this is sufficient for him. 0 no easy feat to get on food stamps. >> he said he wanted to have a deeper understanding of what people on federal food assistance go through. you're absolutely right. seven consecutive days, ashleigh, starting today, that's how long he will live on food stamps. i want you to have a good look at something mayor booker posted on his twitter account. there it is. hard to see, but -- >> what is it? >> a grocery store receipt from path mark. it is a list, if you look very closely, you can read what he'll be eating over the next week. they include red delicious apples, yams, broccoli, chickpeas and lots of black and pink beans. something i didn't know until today, he's vegetarian. these are the types of thing his likes to eat. >> he can afford the vegetables? >> he could. he will be living off $30 off a week in groceries, that works out to $4 a day. and over the course of a month, that's $133.26. hard to understand for most people in the middle class, that they would live off of $4 a day but this i

alina cho is there already. what's it like around you? >> hey, sanjay, good morning. as a doctor, you should be very happy to hear i did dress warmly today, because are you absolutely right about the weather. it is 30 degrees officially right now outside, but it feels like it's 20 degrees. so the number one piece of advice, if you plan to come to times square to ring in the new year? dress warmly. let's talk about security. it seems like we talk about this every year, but it's mind boggling the amount of security that will be in place. thousands more police officers will be on the streets. there will be sharpshooters on rooftops, manhole covers will be sealed. all mailboxes and trash cans will be removed. radiological scanners, explosives teams, firearms and tactics teams. security you will see, and security that you won't see, and, of course, there will be surveillance cameras all around times square. be advised if you plan to come here tonight, no large bags, no backpacks, no alcohol allowed inside times square, also if you plan to come here and ring in the new year

. >> i'm alina cho. i'll be back. >>> you know, dana bash is the -- she's good on capitol hill. good morning and merry christmas. >>> stories we're watching in the newsroom on this christmas day. pope benedict xvi tells people not to up hope even in the world's most troubled reasons. his appeal for peace. >>> and it's not the grinch stealing christmas cheer. it's the weather. blizzard warnings may turn your white christmas into a travel nightmare. and tornados threaten the south. your forecast is coming up. >>> and we're seven days away from going off the fiscal cliff and with washington in a political gridlock we're getting closer and closer. the question, how will it affect you and your paycheck? >>> the images, the words, the names, highlights and low lights of 2012. "newsroom" starts now. >>> good morning to you. i'm carol costello wishing you and yours a merry christmas and we begin with pope benedict xvi using his an i'll christmas message to speak about the hope for peace even in the most difficult times and situations. >> translator: in this world there's a good soil whi

alina cho spoke to him. >> it is very hard for us to understand. you wake up in the morning, if you're thirsty, there is a faucet right there, one in the bathroom, one in the kitchen and clean water comes out of both of them. >> reporter: for some, there is no affordable access to clean water. double that number lacks proper sanitation. >> every 20 seconds, a kid under the age of 5 is dying, losing their life because they do not have access to clean water. it just doesn't have to be that way. >> reporter: so in 2009, damon and world refound in water expert gary white founded water.org. their mantra, wells are great, but charity can't help everyone. so white pioneered a concept called water credit. >> we knew that women in india, for instance, were going and paying 125% interest on loans to loan sharks so they could build a toilet. we said, let's take microfinance and layer it in here and give people access to affordable loans so they can buy that toilet and get that water connection. >> reporter: depending where you are, that could mean a faucet in

we'll have that family on live later this morning of i'm alina cho in new york. a huge christmas storm threatening holiday travel this morning for millions, the southern plains and the deep south could get a rare white christmas and possible christmas tornadoes. our bonnie schneider tracking the storm and all the delays. >> good morning. wish i had a better report for you. you can see the realtime lightning strikes sweeping across louisiana and arkansas moving right into jackson, mississippi. this is just the beginning of a dangerous christmas day in terms of severe weather. a moderate risk for tornadoes across parts of mississippi, louisiana and even areas of southeast, texas, including beaumont and houston as well though not in the red zone where there's a concentrated area of tornadoes. watching that throughouts the day. what we're seeing that's dangerous for those of you up early on the road. in oklahoma ice accumulating. when we're talking about measurable snow, 4 to 6 inches. some of the rain will change over to snow in little rock, arkansas and looking tow

alina. >> that's a lot of places, chad myers. all right, chad, thanks so much. >>> i'm alina cho. thanks so much for watching. have a great weekend and a great new year's. "cnn newsroom" with my friend suzanne malveaux starts right now. >>> i'm suzanne malveaux. welcome to our 500th edition of our show. we've got a lot to cover so let's get right to it. russia dominating our newscast this hour. for two very different reasons. first, the man, that man you see there, russia's top diplomat, he is now taking an active role in trying to end the civil war in syria. now, remember, both russia and china have blocked u.n. attempts to force out the assad regime. now the russians say they are willing to meet with the syrian opposition. it could open the door for real u.n. action on the ground, action that could mean american involvement. we've got more details in a live report in just a minute. >>> but also, russia's president formally saying no to americans who want to adopt russian children. it is a heartbreaking development for hundreds of americans who are trying to adopt children from r

here is alina cho with today's big stars, big giving. >> i've been pulled a million different directions with supporting aids in africa or, you know, sex trafficking in thailand or dolphins in japan and you can't do everything. and so in thinking what do i really want to do, where can i create the most impact? >> reporter: to answer that question, you could say eva longoria looked in the mirror. >> i always knew i wanted to be with women and within the latino community. >> reporter: best known for playing the vixen on "desperate housewives." >> how are you? >> the best you ever had. >> reporter: -- longoria had humble beginnings. the youngest of four daughters in texas to mexican-american parents. >> i wasn't the first to go to college. it was expected. >> reporter: let's be honest, you went to college, it wasn't a walk in the park. you had to work. >> i was flipping burgers. i was an assistant to a dentist. i worked in a car shop changing oil. i was an aerobics instructor. i was a work-study. >> reporter: 17% of latinas drop out of high school. fewer than half of adult latinas hold coll

alina cho sticking around to help us, too. starting point is the search for answers in the suicide of kansas city chiefs linebacker jovan belcher who also killed his girlfriend over the weekend. the team took to the field a day after that tragedy. it was a somber victory. they beat the carolina panthers 27-21 winning just their second game of the season. saturday morning, belcher shot his 22-year-old girlfriend kasandra perkins. then he turned the gun on himself right outside the chiefs' practice facility and right in front of the general manager and coaches, too. he and perkins have a 3-month-old daughter whose name is zoey. now she is left behind. cas cas cas cas cas casey wians has been talking. >> reporter: it was a real somber mood as you mentioned after that game. this is only the chiefs' second victory of the season. normally there would be a lot of celebration because by all accounts they played their best game of the season. but there was no celebration. very limited celebration in that locker room. let's hear from so

alina cho is in times square. >> for all the talk about the crystal ball, the confetti, and new year's resolutions, here's what you need to know if you come to times square tonight. dress warmly. it is frigidly cold, and it will feel like it is blow freezing tonight. let's talk about security. it's something we talk about every year, but it is mind-boggling the amount of security that will be in place tonight. thousands of police officers, sharp-shooters on rooftops, radiological scanners, explosive he teams, tactics teams, firearms teams. unless you think it won't be safe here in times square, there will be surveillance cameras throughout. also, something you should know if you plan to come to times square, do not bring a large bag or a backpack, do not bring alcohol. you will not be allowed inside the perimeter. some of these people who are here early already, they're very smart. get here early. the streets around times square start to close at about 1:00 p.m. eastern time, so get here early. 1 million people expected to jam times square tonight. it will be packed. it will be freezin

cnn's alina cho profiles actor matt damon in her special series, "big stars, big giving." >> joe, would you believe nearly 1 billion people around the world struggle to find clean water? these are things we are used to, like faucets and toilets. damon is on a quest to change that, and he says the biggest challenge is getting people in the western world to care. >> it's very hard for us to understand. you make up in the morning, if you're thirsty, there's a faucet right there. there's one in fact bathroom, one in the kitchen, and clean water comes out of all of them. >> reporter: but for nearly a billion people around the world, a billion, there is no affordable access to clean water. more than double that number lack proper sanitation. >> every 20 seconds, a kid under the age of 5 is dying, losing their life because they do not have access to clean water and it just doesn't have to be that way. >> reporter: so in 2009, damon and world-renowned water expert gary white founded water.org. >> we're approaching it differently than many other organizations. >> reporter: their mantra, wells ar