are coming from. many from inner cities. i don't think that's an excuse they're from inner cities. lots of people from inner cities don't carry guns. go tar hill says some get caught up in the tough guy image, others grow up around violence and can escape their past. past is just the past. move along. leave it behind. get help if you need it. that's it. twitter, myspace, facebook, ireport.com. you can always get us there. we appreciate your comments. we're going to talk about air travel as we know it. it's about to change. we're following new developments from the white house tonight as the tsa outlines stricter security measures for international flights in the wake of the failed christmas day airline bombing. starting at midnight all travelers flying into the u.s. from abroad will be subject to stricter random screenings. if you're flying from a terrorism-prone country every single passenger can expect a tough security check. a statement released just a few hours ago reads, quote, tsa is mandating that every individual flying into the u.s. from anywhere in the world traveling from or through nations that are state sponsors of terrorism or other countries of interest will be required to go through enhanced screenings. those countries identified by the state department of sponsors of terrorism are cuba, sudan, syria and iran. the other countries of interest the tsa alludes to include pakistan, yemen and nigeria. these are big changes to airport protocol. let's get perspective on this now from a former fbi assistant director joining us live by phone from fairfax, virginia, outside of washington, d.c. tom, thanks for joining us. how much will these new measures help if at all? >> hi, dan. it seems to me these new measures are very inadequate and very arbitrary. tsa seems to be coming up with a new security policy every other day since the incident happened. and to list the countries that they've put on for enhanced screening right now seems to be completely inadequate. they're not taking into account that these are just a fraction of the countries where al qaeda has a very strong presence and when they list countries of interest and airports of interest they're going to have to list places really throughout europe because al qaeda members in europe that have been radicalized have european passports that do not require a visa to come to the united states and they're going to be coming from airports london, paris, madrid, frankfort, brussels, rome, copenhagen. you have countries in asia that have had terrorist cells, al qaeda cells like sydney, australia, had several sets of rest. they fly nonstop into l.a. toronto 18 in 2006 direct access to the u.s. -- >> tom, are these all part -- these are all going to be added? that was part of my next question then. if the tsa alluded to that partial list of countries where 100% of the passengers traveling through will have to go through enhanced screenings. are you saying these countries you're mentioning, you're talking about asia and europe, is that going to -- everyone? >> tsa hasn't said that those countries and airports are going to be included. they're talking about other countries of interest. >> do you think it will be updated? >> i'm just saying those are only a fraction of the countries that have people that pose a threat, and what about the u.s. airports? we haven't talked about the five virginians that went to pakistan. we had subjects from minneapolis, new york, denver, boston, dallas, springfield, illinois, chicago, raleigh, north carolina, buffalo, new york, that have all had al qaeda either direct members or sympathetic members to an al qaeda affiliate. >> what are you saying? you think it's overkill? it's too much? >> i'm saying it's not enough. it's not going to be adequate. you're talking that the threat is everywhere from all of these countries that have cells that have conducted major attacks, all of these cities have had cells that have been arrested or neutralized through law enforcement and intelligence efforts. >> how do you do all of this? that's a huge undertaking. >> exactly right. it's a huge undertaking. until the undertaking occurs you're going to have a vulnerability. there's no two ways around it. until passengers from everywhere that could pose a threat, and that's everywhere, much greater number of countries than what we have listed here. until that happens you're taking your chances. think that -- i think that's what has to be addressed. nobody wants to really say that out loud, but that's the truth. >> yeah. you know, i want to hang with this a little bit longer. tom, this is good information you're giving. we talked yesterday a lot about civil rights when it comes to these screenings and protecting people and these puffer machines and these airport screening machines. do you think that would help, mr. fuentes, if they allowed those machines to go online? >> absolutely it would help. the question here is you have several challenges with the imp implymenation. do we impose that through diplomatic and other means around the world for the flights coming to the united states? it's been mentioned, a former secretary chertoff was on tv talking about the eu having restrictions of privacy, not wanting european airports to implement the use of intrusive screening devices. the problem is that the areas that need the most examination are absolutely the most private areas of your body and you're not going to want people in a machine where you're virtually naked or a bomb-sniffing dog or someone physically touching you in the case of a hand search in those areas of your body. it's going to be the most intrusive search possible. that's where the explosives are going to be hidden and were in this particular case in detroit. that's the political issue. then you get to the second issue of is it practical? houma sheen w many machines wil? the lines of people waiting to be searched are going to go out the doors at many airports and down the sidewalk. that might be fine in miami in january. that's not going to be fine in minneapolis when it's 40 below zero and people are outside for an hour and a half with little children. >> that's why i asked if it was overkilled. what i meant by that, is it practical to do all this when you're trying to get people through? we want to keep people safe. i saw that particular interview you're talking about. the former secretary chertoff was -- is also a consultant for one of these screening companies as well and talked about his particular machine. here's the thing, if people are hiding those particular devices in those areas then i don't understand why not do it? i wouldn't mind if someone screened me in that area if it was going to keep hundreds of other people behind me on an airplane safe. >> here's the problem now. even if we all decide collectively, politically, administratively, operationally, to do it, how long to get the machines in place, in force to where it can be adequately and effectively utilized? >> how many of those machines you have to have to get people through. >> how many you have to have worldwide in many countries that are poor. not even to mention the united states. how many examiners, how much training, how long it will take. how many companies make the machines, how quickly they can fill the orders. >> let's say that's an overwhelming task that people can't imagine to get online quickly. what about targeting certain people? i asked this question yesterday. we look at israel. israel hasn't had a major attack for quite some time. they say they know who's coming through their airports. if the research shows, i've heard some say the research is not accurate, that 90% of the people committing these sorts of acts of terrorists or trying to terrorism are of a certain decent or background, then why not look at those people? >> because the members that either are members of al qaeda or sympathetic to al qaeda are from every country, every race, every ethnic background at this point. it would be -- if you zero in on one group you're going to exclude another, and, you know, there's just many other possibilities of why somebody might want to do something or carry a dangerous item on an aircraft even if they're not members of al qaeda. what if the little old grandmother is told we're holding your grandchildren hostage and going to torture and kill them if you don't carry this bag on the plane for us? those are possibilities that exist and have to be thought out when they come with policies. >> former fbi assistant director. so much more to talk here. great information. thank you so much, sir. charles schumer has his own plan for tightening airport safety. he says u.s.-based airlines should threaten to stop flying to airports with lack security. the new york democrat wrote to the heads of major airlines today asking them to report security issues at foreign airports and he says those problems aren't fixed, we should stop landing there. schumer is asking the state department to double check all travel visas for people who have been added to a terrorist database. it is the most dramatic evidence that yemen is emerging as a serious terror concern for the united states and the west. the u.s. government closed its embassy in yemen's capital city citing security threats and continued possibility of terrorist violence. britain shut down its embassy as well. cnn's samantha hayes has more from washington tonight. >> reporter: on the southern tip of the arabian peninsula where the red sea meets the indian ocean is yemen, where a strike just last month killed three al qaeda members suspected of targeting the u.s. embassy for attack. cnn learned a fourth was captured with his suicide vest on, according to a senior u.s. military official. now, the u.s. and british embassies have been closed because of continued threats in the area. >> there are indications al qaeda is planning to carry out an attack against target inside sanad, possibly our embassy. >> reporter: president barack obama in his weekly address tied al qaeda operatives in yemen to the attempted bombing of a northwest jet christmas day. the suspect, a 23-year-old nigerian, abdulmutallab, received training. a lack of coordination among u.s. government agencies failed to keep him off the plane. >> there is no smoking gun piece of intelligence out there that said he was a terrorist, going to carry out this attack against that aircraft. we had bits and pieces of information. >> reporter: information about underwear bombs like the ones used on the northwest flight was already known, according to fran townsend, cnn contributor and former homeland security adviser to george bush. >> john brennan this morning said that he did get a brief on the underwear bomb from the prince, the head of the saudi security service. >> reporter: senator joe lieberman says former al qaeda prisoners held at the guantanamo bay prison may also be to blame. >> one of the shocking facts about al qaeda in yemen is some of its leaders are people that we had previously captured and were holding at guantanamo. we released them back to the saudis for rehabilitation. they were sent back to yemen. >> reporter: six more yemeni detainees are scheduled to be sent back to yemen. although brennan refused to say when. >> before he was a bombing suspect, umar farouk abdulmutallab was reportedly a student of extremism known by british intelligence for radical ties while at school in london. senior british official tells the associated press that the nigerian man started making contact with extremists under surveillance about a year after arriving in the uk. the official says no one considered him enough of a threat to alert american authorities. with evidence of a growing terrorist threat in yemen some lawmakers say now is not the time to close the prison at guantanamo bay. critics say once that happens former detainees will be back fighting against the u.s. president obama's top counterterrorism adviser says the failed terrorist attack isn't going to change plans to close gitmo. >> i have been in constant dialogue with the yemenis about the arrangements in place. several of those individuals were put into custody as soon as they returned to yemen so we are making sure we don't do anything that's going to put american citizens, whether yemen or here in the states, at risk. >> it would be irresponsible to take any of the yemeni detainees in guantanamo and send them back to yemen. we know from past experience that some of them will be back in the fight against us. president obama had originally planned to close the facility by the end of last year. no new deadline as been set. nba player admits to having a gun in the locker room. it's not part of the story that he didn't talk about that everyone else is talking about. and we've been covering the violence against students in chicago for a while, and it is not ending. two more high school students killed in just the past week including one in this video right here. police need your help and we're talking to the head of the chicago police department. we want to know what's on your mind. if you want to comment about that story or others on cnn, log on to those sites. would you like a pony ? yeah ! ( cluck, cluck, cluck ) oh, wowww ! that's fun ! you didn't say i could have a real one. well, you didn't ask. even kids know when it's wrong to hold out on somebody. why don't banks ? we're ally, a new bank that alerts you when your money could be working harder and earning more. it's just the right thing to do. this is a honda pilot, and this is the chevy traverse. it has more cargo space than pilot, and traverse beats honda on highway gas mileage too. more fuel efficient and 30% more room. maybe traverse can carry that stuff too. now get 0% apr for 72 months, or during the chevy red tag event, use $1,000 holiday cash to get $4,500 total cash back on select 09 traverse ltz vehicles in stock now to a story everyone is talking at. it goes beyond the sports world. nba star gilbert arenas said he used bad judgment in taking guns into the washington wizards locker room. an alleged locker room showdown between two players. our national correspondent susan candiotti has the latest. >> reporter: washington wizards guard gilbert arenas is an all star but alleged locker room gun antics could get him into serious trouble legally. >> i'm a jokester. >> reporter: it's no joke. the d.c. police, u.s. attorneys office, and national basketball association all say they're investigating. the "new york post" reports arenas and teammate kritenton drew guns on each other in the locker room over a gambling debt. >> i can't speak on that. if you've known me, you've been here, i never did anything violent. anything i do is funny to me. >> reporter: team owner says arenas kept weapons in his locker with no ammo. quote, guns have absolutely no place in a workplace environment and we will take further steps to ensure this never happens again. >> i agree. that's bad judgment on my part storing them here. i take responsibility for that. >> reporter: when players are working there's a great deal of security, but away from the spotlight, it's a whole new ball game. some professional athletes own or carry guns saying they consider themselves potential targets and need protection. protection from attacks like that suffered by washington redskins defensive back sean taylor who was murdered in his miami home during a robbery. carrying a gun can be costly, even for a celebrity. ex-new york giants wide receiver plaxico burris is serving a two-year prison sentence for illegal possession of a gun after accidentally shooting himself in the leg at a nightclub. megastars like lebron james and shaquille o'neal create fan frenzy when they hit the court. in postgame fans get up close and personal with their heroes. shaq, who works with police in his spare time, declined to talk about the arenas incident. neither did lebron james but he did talk about security in general. >> i live in akron, ohio, which is my hometown, so i don't need security. i don't travel with security. only thing i do is continue to make sure my family's always safe. so we did a segment in the 6:00 hour on this story with steven a. smith and it was a pretty interesting segment. he had been responding on twitter and we're going to tell you, he's responded within the last five minutes on twitter about we believe it is this segment. we'll play it for you. what are the league rules in all this? nba bans employees and players from handling guns on property time and recommends against it for personal protection. the discussion now is whether teams should or could write a gun clause into player contracts similar to banning car racing or sky diving or other dangerous activities. this is in response to the steven a. smith segment. that idea of pro basketball players might be bringing weapons into their locker rooms is hard to believe. nba analyst steven a. smith told me last hour he thinks a lot of secondary issues including race, african-american players, male players in general is all a part of this story. take a listen and we're going to talk about the tweets after this. >> you have quite a few players, it's not the majority but the actions of a few taint the many. you have the actions of a few acting like prisoners in a prison yard or something. >> what do you mean about african-americans? what do you mean -- explain that. >> i'm talking about the arrest of african-american players in the nfl, talking about the behavior of some players on the nba level of african-american decent. something that hasn't been talked about quite enough. >> you think it's cultural? >> i think you can make the argument it's cultural right now because you look at the way guys act and the way some guys are conducting themselves. it has been a problem that has been lamented by league commissioners for quite some time. they don't go to that level where they point out it's occurring in the african-american community because they don't want to go there. i'm on national tv with you and i am going there. >> if you look at -- >> that's what we're saying. >> okay. so that was steven a. smith in our last hour. i want to make it -- gilbert arenas has been tweeting. stopped tweeting 2:30 this morning. after the segment on cnn he started tweeting again. i asked followers to tweet him and tell him to get in touch. he said, why do people try to make me look bad? i can do that all by myself. lol and i'm out. need to put some jump shots up. that's what he said. gilbert, if you're there, tweet me or get in touch with us at cnn. we'd like to hear the reason why you brought the gun in and what's going on with the nba and if you agree with steven a. smith. is there an issue among african-american professional athletes when it comes to guns, violence and the culture of thuggism as they call it? we're going to continue to update the story throughout the evening on cnn. some of the worst flooding one australian town has seen since 1971. hundreds of people an animals doing what they can to get to higher ground. another blast of winter on the way in the u.s. jacqui jeras, what do you have for us? >> as if this weekend wasn't bad enough, right, don? arctic blast heading toward the nation's midsection going to be impacting a lot of people. plus your holiday travel today really brutal. will that carry into the workweek? we'll let you know. the worst flooding in nearly 40 years is forcing hundreds of people to evacuate their homes in australia. ten days of heavy rain all but submerged new south wales northwest of sydney. while the worst of the rain is over, rivers and reservoirs overflowing with extra water. a problem here, rain on the coast, possibly flooding, right, yesterday on the coast? it's snow and freezing temperatures? >> yeah. it was the coastal floodi