will on the streets. journalists get a look at the violence syria doesn't want you to see. it is amazing to me how this guy has been shot this many times. i mean, he's superman. i have been shot three times. my fingers have bullet holes. >> did you hear had a? part man, part terminator. shot three times in a robbery. a marine pulls out the bullets with his own hands. and now he's talking about it from his hospital bed on this "american morning." good morning, everyone. it is thursday, december 29. this is "american morning." a lot going on today. let's get right to it. >> that's right. good morning, everybody. glad you are with us. i'm alina cho. up first, dramatic shift in the political landscape with five days to go before the iowa caucuses. just look at this brand-new c cnn/"time" poll. mitt romney on top in iowa now. followed closely by ron paul. newt gingrich plunging and rick santorum suddenly rolling right to the top three. gingrich now 11 points behind romney. he's dropped 19 points in less than a month. after gingrich called on romney, again, to debate one-on-one the following massachusetts governor told our wolf blitzer he is in no hurry to accept. >> look, this is a campaign about the things we believe in. as for a one-on-one with newt gingrich, if he and i are the two finalists we will have that opportunity. right now, debated ten times, more debates in january. but until he and i -- there are other people that still deserve to be on the stage. i think ron paul is leading in iowa as of today. the idea that this is all about newt or all about mitt is not right. we have a field of candidates out. i will debate all of them. when it comes down to finalists, i hope i'm one of them, if i am i will debate who the other finalist is. >> remember this. romney likened good rich's campaign to lucy at the chocolate factory. well, gingrich seemed to appreciate the humor but is still not dropping his challenge to romney for a face-to-face showdown. >> governor romney had a cute line yesterday about my team resembling luisy and the chocolate factory. i want to say here i am in the chocolate factory. and now that i have the courage to come to the chocolate factory hope governor romney will have the courage to debate me one-on-one. >> you had to know that was going to happen. right? all of a sudden rick santorum's star is rising, too. just yesterday the former pennsylvania senator was talking about packing it in if he finished last in iowa. doesn't seem like that problem now. political editor paul steinhauser live in des moines with that part of the story. good morning. i have to say that when i heard the new poll numbers and saw them i was most surprised by santorum's rise in the polls. what happened? >> reporter: yeah. he was one happy person this morning in iowa. no doubt about that. what happened? we always talk about social conservative voters out mere and how influential they are. because of the stances on abortion, gay marriage and other issues like that. very popular santorum with social conservatives and making the call. take a look at this. break down that poll you just showed, all right, this is people who describe themselves as born-again christians and look who is on the top. break those numbers down. rick santorum and 22% ron paul, 16% romney. so on. why social conservative voters influential in iowa when it comes to the republican side, rick santorum is atop the list. the other reason, hard work. the guy has been here a long time. he has been in all 99 counties. take a look at what he told wolf blitzer yesterday in "the situation room." >> like any small business person. the money is not coming in, work harder. that's what we are doing. continuing to work hard and going off in the morning and doing radio shows at 6:00 in the morning here and going until, you know, 9:00, ten cloak at night. town meeting after town meeting. 357 town hall meetings i have done in the state of iowa. you know, hard work pays off. >> reporter: i guess you can say that rick santorum is climbing the polls at just the right time. >> that's right. i mean, you know, just goes to show that hard work does pay off. can pay off. there are some people, a small number of you think he he could pull off a huckabee in 2012 ask iowa will have to see what happen was that. the other big surprise in this poll was that newt good ruch really slipped. what happened to him? >> reporter: well, gingrich campaign says it's that negative advertising we have been seeing. a barrage of it on iowa tv directed mostly at newt gingrich. here's what's his campaign communications director told our candy crowley last night. >> $9 million in negative advertising. you know, i was a very small media market. you can blanket the airwaves. you have enough money. and i don't care what candidate is in the race, if they have $9 million in negative advertising against them they will drop in the polls. >> reporter: you know what, five days to go, people could still change their minds. look at this. among likely caucus voters, look at that. 43% say i still may change my mind. >> it is extraordinary that nearly half of voters in iowa still haven't settled on candidate. the other news we want to get in here is michele bachmann's iowa state chair jumped ship yesterday and decided to support ron paul. what does that mean, big picture here for the bachmann campaign? >> reporter: probably not good news. this was a shocker last night. the guy's name, ken sorensen. state chair. you see him all the time at campaigns. he was here earlier yesterday. last night he shows up at a ron paul event. guess what, he endorses ron paul. it got crazier. later last tonight, bachmann's campaign says hey, he was paid off to jump ship. the paul campaign and sorensen say that's not the case. >> michele bachmann maintains she will stay in the race. paul steinhauser, we thank you for joining us live from des moines. later this afternoon, jon huntsman with will be in "the situation room" live from manchester, new hampshire. michele bachmann will be live from nevada. iran is threatening to stop the flow of oil. new sanctions imposed on the crude exports. sanctions are meant to pressure iran to halt nuclear program. third of the world's oil supply travels through the strait and something that could send gas prices soaring to historic levels. u.s. navy is already warning the mood will not be tolerated. jill dougherty has a look at what's at stake. >> reporter: just 34 miles wide, the strait of hormuz is one of the world's most strategically important choke points. one-third of all oil carried by sea is shipped through it. now iran is threatening that not one drop of oil will pass through if the u.s. follows through on tough new sanctions aimed at stopping its nuclear program. but the u.s. is warning iran any disruption will not be tolerated. >> any miscalculation could mean we are drawn into conflict and that would be -- that would be a tragedy for the reason and the world. >> reporter: world oil prices are spiking. upping the tension iranian naval vessels lurk nearby in the north iranian sea holding a ten-day military exercise. >> close would be disastrous for the global economy. i don't think any u.s. president could let that stand. >> reporter: matthew served as special adviser on iran at the pentagon. he says that any attempt by tehran to close the strait of hormuz could mean war. >> united states would be compelled to open the straits, something we could, not military is much stronger than iran's but would mean attacking iranian navy and attacking iranian ballistic missiles and rocket sites so that is war. >> reporter: he thinks it is likely iran is bluffing, trying to stop president obama from carrying out the new sanctions. the state department, too, is downplaying iran's threat. calling it an attempt to distract the world's attention from the nuclear program. but iran has been increasingly belligerent and unpredictable. including allegedly hatching a plot to kill a saudi diplomat on u.s. soil. you about just their threat athrown shut the strait of hormuz is making washington and the world nervous. so far, however, the pentagon says that there have been no hostile moves by iran. u.s. aircraft carrier and also a guided missile cruiser got through the strait without incident. jill dougherty, cnn, the state department. >> also new this morning, a national memorial service for the late north korean leader jim congress ill tod -- kim jong-il. officials using artillery fire to honor kim jong-il and regime declaring his son, kim jong nam, the supreme leader. bp may soon be hit with criminal charges for the oil spill last april. prosecutors are considering charging several bp employees for allegedly providing false information to regulators about drilling risks. felony charges could be announced in the coming months. the oil spill is considered the worst in u.s. history. 11 workers died. no comment from bp or the department of justice. the parents of april teenage girl driven to suicide received nearly a quarter million dollars settlement from their town. hadley, massachusetts, paid $225,000 to the parents of 15-year-old phoebe prince in order to avoid a lawsuit. prince committed suicide back in november of 2010. choking dangers for a popular children's toy build-a-bear workshop is recalling nearly 300,000 colorful hearts, teddy bears. the u.s. consumer products safety commission says that the bears' eyes can loosen and fall out and becoming a choking hazard for kids. so far no injuries have been reported. the chinese made toys were sold in the u.s. and canada. check your tickets. clock is ticking on an unclaimed $10.75 million iowa lottery jackpot. the winner has until 4:00 p.m. local time today to present the ticket. it was purchased exactly one year ago at a quick trip convenient store in des moines. the winning numbers, 3 p. 12, 16, 26, 33, and the hot ball number is 11. earlier this week, a $77 million powerball jackpot went unclaimed. >> they are focusing too much on politics and not focusing on lot owe picks. incredible story that proved yet again marines are just a new breed. >> go to iraq and afghanistan multiple times and i-haven't been shot or blown up. i'm here at home and here i am in an ambulance with two gunshot wounds. >> a man home from two wars shot on the streets of south florida. not only did he live to tell about it, he actually plugged the bullet holes with his own fingers. also this. a disney overload. we are going to tell you how many visitors it takes to force disneyland to shut its gates. firefighters saved the life of a dog trapped in ice. the rescue captured on camera. we will show you that story after the break. it is 13 minutes after the hour. yeah, i'm married. does it matter? you'd do that for me? really? yeah, i'd like that. who are you talking to? uh, it's jake from state farm. sounds like a really good deal. jake from state farm at three in the morning. who is this? it's jake from state farm. what are you wearing, jake from state farm? [ jake ] uh... khakis. she sounds hideous. well she's a guy, so... [ male announcer ] another reason more people stay with state farm. get to a better state. ♪ it's real milk full of calcium and vitamin d. and tastes simply delicious. for those of us with lactose intolerance... lactaid® milk. the original 100% lactose-free milk. will be giving away passafree copies of the alcoholism & addiction cure. to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com. welcome back. 16 minutes after the hour. new this morning, more than 1 million people had visited the new 9/11 memorial since it opened 16 weeks ago. a museum on the site is still being built. it should be ready to open next year on september 11. and a close call for eight people who walked away from a crash landing in ft. lauderdale's executive airport. the 650 took off yesterday morning but an unspecified problem forced the pilot to make an emergency landing. the jet crashing through -- after coming down hot. the passengers were terrified. >> i had my husband in the next seat. he held my hand and told me we were going down. we are going down. >> the faa is investigating the cause of the accident. part man and part terminator. a marine is recovering this morning in south florida after he was robbed and shot three times you about men who responded to a craigslist ad about his fiance's gold chain. lieutenant colonel carl was chasing down the chiefs when one opened fire and hit himself of ral times in the chest. listen to this. he pulled out the bullets with his own hands and then he even called home. here's the story in their own words. >> i go to iraq and afghanistan multiple times and i haven't been shot or blown up. i'm here at home in florida and here i am riding away in a an ambulance. he hit me five times. i was pointing out the marks on the necklace to him and then he kind of picked it up and put it in his hands and yeah, that feels real and just took off running. dialed my phone and talked to my fiancee. listen, i have been shot. i think three times. >> i mean, it's amazing to me how this guy has been shot this many time. i mean, he's superman. you know. and he -- he's talking to me just as calmly as i'm sitting here talking to you now. i have been shot three times. my fingers are in bullet holes the police are going to take care of the kids. >> superman is right. she's -- i think the -- the shock masks her happiness. >> doing okay. we are very happy to report that he will join us tomorrow from the hospital with more of his incredible story. firefighters saved the life of a dog trapped in the frozen waters of fargo, north dakota. the entire rescue caught on camera. emergency crews strapped on water rescue gear and helmet cam and they jumped on the ice, red river to save a stranded black labrador. the lab stuck on the ice shown clinging for his life. >> looked like he jumped in the river like most black labs love to do and play in the water. >> it was really tired. you could tell i don't know how long it was there but it das i'm sure it struggled white a kwil. >> both paws up on the ice and -- begging for mercy. >> firefighters say jake, 11-year-old black lab, lost his way home. he's now safe with his family. imagine one calendar, one time zone, for the entire world. that's right. team of scientists at johns hopkins university proposing a new standardized calendar system. take a look at your screen. each day would fall on the same day of the week every year, christmas always on a sunday and new year's eve always on a saturday. and instead of 365 days, the year would have 364. plus, an extra week every few years. no more leap years, most month was have 30 days and every third month would have 31. scientists say the new system would have save time and make scheduling easier. i don't know. it sounds more confusing to me. meanwhile -- >> takes the randomness out of it, excitement of knowing what days you will be getting off ruined the holiday time. >> what day of the week your birthday is? rob marciano off today. reynolds wolf in the extreme weather center with the forecast. good morning. >> good morning. big mistake they are making. you need to have christmas every day needs to be on a thursday, thursday, guaranteed at least a four-day workday. >> i like your thinking. >> obviously for people like us, television doesn't apply to us but for everyone else, hey, how could you possibly be lose. you will be losing it at a few airports. few backups here and there. especially in places like -- detroit, seattle, san francisco, and denver. you have wind that can give you delay. under an hour. chicago, it is going to be rain. in new york and boston, big issues going to be the wind. wind will play a huge factor in your day today. lit make those cool temperatures feel even cooler. es pshly to the friends in montpelier, vermont. 7 below is what it feels like with the wind roaring in from the northwest and syracuse, it feels like 7. albany, 3. portland, 8. abo what we are going to see to the west, western great lakes, something different. we have cold air in place. also rain in chicago. some light snow falling. sleet. in places like milwaukee, wisconsin, just east of minneapolis. farther out to the west and parts of seattle, even into our friends in vancouver and seattle, portland, we are going to be seeing the cloud cover and with it high elevation, combination of rain in the valleys but up above the snow. it is going to be very heavy. some places getting well over a foot of snowfall. that coupled with strong winds, p wind gustses in parts of big sky country, northern rockies, approaching and surpassing tropical storm force. it is going to be very breezy up there to say the least. southern half of the country, wrapping things up. sunshine for the four corn terse p. i'ms in place like dallas and houston sishgts and 70s. 55 in billings. 48 in minneapolis. 37 in new york. and 58 in atlanta. that's your forecast. let's send it back to you guy. >> chilly in new york. thank you very much. still ahead, look inside syria. you won't see anywhere else. freelance journalist sneaks into the city of homes under sniper fire and finds people living in terror. too afraid to cross the street. ron paul on the rise in iowa. could the texas congressman actually win tuesday's caucuses? you are watching "american morning." 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[ female announcer ] to nurses everywhere, thank you, from johnson & johnson. minding your business this morning. two more trading sessions to go in 2011. so far the dow is up 5% for the year. leading the dow down 138 points yesterday. all things considered, the it has been bernanke year for the auto industry. according to trucar.com close to 13 million cars, trucks, suvs were sold in 2011. that's the best perform since 2008. analysts say next year is looking even better. late surge in holiday shopping has retailers celebrating. according to shopper track, online sales in the final week before christmas were up 16% over last year. spending in the same week went up nearly 15%. overall retail sales up 4.5% to the year. the deal is believed to be worth $7 billion to the afghan government with china national petroleum given the right to develop a small field in northern afghanistan. that's believed to hold 80 million barrels of oil. million apologies from "the new york times." that's how many people received an e-mail say p sent by mistake. informing they would no longer be receiving home delivery of the newspaper. readers were concerned that the paper had been hacked and their personal information had been compromised. "the times" says it was an employee error. and the google plus social network topped 60 million users. some analysts say that number is going to go up. 400 million by the end of 2012. facebook has the 800 million active users. "american morning" will be right back. capital one's new cash rewards card gives you a 50% annual bonus! so you earn 50% more cash. according to research, everybody likes more cash. well, almost everybody... ♪ would you like 50% more cash? no! but it's more money. [ male announcer ] the new capital one cash r