That this was a heart breaking tragedy, by any standard. And many, many people will be affected by this terrible act of violence every day for the rest of their lives. And we should keep them in our thoughts and prayers. On the other hand, i think we all need to be very thankful that this incident wasnt much worse. We will take you live to portland for more on the shooter in just a moment here. But first, the victims. And this is where this briefing got emotional. I want you to listen here to the sheriff spokesman describe the victims and the requests on behalf of the families. This first statement comes from the family of cindy rule, age 54, from portland. Cindy was everybodys friend, she was a wonderful person who was very caring and put others first. The family has advised us they want time and space to grieve their loss and will not be giving interviews at this time. The family will make a statement at an unspecified later date through the sheriffs office. This is a statement from the forsyth family. Steven Matthew Forsyth was a loving husband, father of two children, a son, a brother, an uncle, a longtime youth sports coach, and a friend to the many people who had the privilege to meet him. Steve was one of the most passionate people with a true entrepreneurial spirit that drove him to start his business, coastums. He had a great sense of humor and a zest for life. He had a vision and a belief in others that brought great joy and value to many lives. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him. And, again, we have our correspondent standing by of all places called happy valley, oregon. Well take you there in minutes. Meantime, a defiant north korea took the u. S. Somewhat by surprise today, firing this long range rocket several days earlier than expected. The launch is raising worldwide concerns about the reclusive governments plans for its nuclear arsenal. The rocket was not carrying a warhead, north korea claims it launched a science satellite. The defense secretary leon panetta talked to erin burnett and said the u. S. Is evaluating whether the rocket launch was a success. He said this, quote, we have no idea. Were still assessing exactly what happened to determine whether or not it really was a success. Eight months ago, north korea totally flubbed a launch attempt, rocket broke apart after 90 seconds and fizzled into the ocean. Jim clancy, Cnn International here. Talk to me, i guess, first, the fact that this was a surprise. How did north korea get this past the u. S. . Well, it didnt really get past the u. S. It said it had a few problems, was going to delay the launch and then suddenly on calendar, e for many, and kim jongil got very lucky. The three latest attempts had all failed. And this one appears, appears to be a success. Something is in orbit. We know the rocket range is Something Like 5,000, 6,000 kilometers. What does the distance tell you . Well, it is technology. It is a three stage rocket. Thats what is significant here. Tells you it is advanced. This is 1950s scud technology they built, a lot of people thought they would never get this far with it. But they made incremental advances. So in that sense, it poses a threat. Remember, while they were celebrating in the streets of pyongyang, there were probably also celebrating in the control rooms in iran because those two share their missile technology. What about ally, china . China that was a big surprise. Let me quote, expressed regret, quote unquote. Regret from china . China has been their backer, tried to support them quietly in all these talks. But for them to come out today and say we regret that this happened north korea further isolating themselves. Further isolating themselves and look at this from another perspective they didnt fire it anywhere close to japan because the japanese have set up antiballistic missiles and they have told the north koreans, we will shoot them down. Remember what the fundamentals are of this north Korean Missile program. First of all, theyll sell it to anybody that has the cash. But second of all, it is blackmail. Give us money for food, give us money for technology, give us money, give us energy, give us oil, otherwise we may kill a whole lot of people. Were going to be out there with that threat and they will be appeased. Strategy isnt working with the south koreans. Isnt working with the japanese. Other asians are now lining up. Theyre looking at all of this and saying, we cant allow this. This country to hold us, you know, at risk, constantly, to get what it wants. Jim clancy, thank you, on north korea and this rocket launch here. Back to oregon. We feel your shock and we feel your grief today and now the shock of learning the gunman, who opened fire at this crowded mall, 10,000 people inside, was 22 years old. Here he was, this is the picture, just handed out by oregon officials. I want to bring in dan simon. Hes outside the mall, this is suburban portland. I was listening to the news, the sheriff walked us through what we refer to as a timeline, a ticktock of the shooting. What did he reveal . Reporter well get to that in a minute, first of all, authorities wanted to stress that the shooter in this case, jacob tyler roberts, acted alone. There was a lot of speculation that perhaps he was with others, but they said time and time again that this was a sole person who went on a rampage, no terrorist attack or anything of that nature. The way they explained the narrative in terms of how this took place, they said that roberts entered the mall on the second floor, going through the macys store, and then rushed towards the food court area, where the shots rang out, thats where the mayhem occurred, and where all three victims were shot. They say at that point Police Responded very quickly and actually arrived at the mall within one minute after the shots rang out. And roberts apparently in a desperate move went downstairs to the first level, got in a corner and then shot himself. Here is how authorities described what happened. The suspect pulled his vehicle in front of macys, parked his car, exited, and moved in a rapid manner toward the food court. A lot of folks reported he was running, moving quickly, left his car, opened fire in this general area. He ended up striking two victims that both died of their injuries. There were some medical staff and other people that rendered aid. Following this, the individual fled down this along this corridor, out down the back hallway down to some stairs, which is this is actually on the upper level, he came down the stairs to the lower level, back in this corner is where he shot himself. And one of the things that we located, a victim, transported to ohsu this was her. We believe she was up in this area, but was able to come out through the front macys, work her way down to near rei, that where Law Enforcement officers met with her and she was subsequently transported. Dan, one question, as i was listening to that newser and he stressed, were talking 10,000 people and he said, many people, thanking them, kept level heads, got themselves out of the mall, many, many heroes. So as there are two lives lost, to quote the sheriff, this could have been so much worse. Reporter thats exactly right. And one other reason perhaps why more people werent shot is that one point the weapon, described as an ar15 semiautomatic rifle, jammed, and authorities said thats one of the reasons why perhaps why more people werent injured or shot during this attack. We can tell you that that weapon, the ar15 was stolen from a friend yesterday, according to authorities, and, of course, were learning a lot more information. Well bring it to you as the day unfolds. Brooke . Well wait for the updates. Dan simon for us, in the portland area, thank you. Before we do move on here, i just want you to listen, one more thing. This is from the Clackamas County sheriff as he pretty much sums up what many of us are thinking. The mall is supposed to be a place that we can all take our families, feel comfortable that this is a great place, especially the holiday season, like this. And these things arent supposed to happen. These things arent supposed to happen. We have heard those words in some form before. A man suffering from amnesia had no identity. My name is benjamin cot. You dont know who i am. And quite frankly, neither do i. Hell join me live on what could be his last chance at having a past and finding a future. Im brooke baldwin. The news is now. An assassin on the loose after a hit in broad daylight. Details about the victims past revealed. An asteroid barely misses earth, and we had no warning. Plus, a former marine behind bars in mexico. What is happening to him there is causing one senator to ring the alarm. [ bells dinging ] hark how the bells, sweet silver bells all seem to say throw care away from everywhere, filling the air [ female announcer ] chex party mix. Easy 15minute homemade recipes you just pop in a microwave. Like caramel chocolate drizzles. Happier holidays. Chex party mix. Happier holidays. Why they have a raise your rate cd. Tonight our guest, thomas sargent. Nobel laureate in economics, and one of the most cited economists in the world. Professor sargent, can you tell me what cd rates will be in two years . No. If he cant, no one can. Thats why ally has a raise your rate cd. Ally bank. Your money needs an ally. Social security are just numbers thinkin a budget. D. Well, we worked hard for those benefits. We earned them. And if washington tries to cram decisions about the future. Of these programs into a last minute budget deal. Well all pay the price. Aarp is fighting to protect seniors with responsible. Solutions that strengthen medicare and. Social security for generations to come. We can do better than a last minute deal. That would hurt all of us. Hurry in and try five succulent entrees, like our tender snow crab paired with savory garlic shrimp. Just 12. 99. Come into red lobster and sea food differently. And introducing 7 lunch choices for just 7. 99. Salads, sandwiches, and more. Here is where we are on the fiscal cliff talks. We are less than three weeks now from the 12 punch of tax increases and Government Spending cuts and the two sides appear to be moving farther apart. Heres House Speaker john boehner describing his latest negotiations with the president , just over the phone last night. The president and i had a pretty frank conversation about just how far apart we are. Dana bash is our senior Congressional Correspondent. She s unearthed some Surprising New details here about the speakers latest offer to the president. Dana, what can you tell us . Reporter well, we were told first earlier today by democratic source that part of the reason why that phone call between the president and the speaker didnt go so well to put it mildly is because part of the republican counteroffer they sent to the white house yesterday included a renewed call for, quote, permanent tax cuts for the wealthiest americans. Now, we know that that is a nonstarter in general for the president. He said it ump team times, but the democrats at the white house felt that to put the word permanent in a republican offer made clear according to the source i talked to that it was that they just dont understand what needs to be done to get something to pass the senate and the house, or to get more importantly the president to sign something. Thats one of the main reasons why there is a lot of tension today. I can tell you on the republican side, the speaker wasnt happy because he simply does not think, and he said this in private to republicans today as well as in public that he doesnt think the president has done enough to offer spending cuts. So that is why they are further apart than they were before. Also as you listen to the republicans, more and more they seem to be saying the president is being unreasonable, not really budging. In fact, you talked this morning to trent franks of arizona, he said that the president is out of touch with reality. Lets listen to some of that. I never speak to the negotiations because i think the speakers are at a profound disadvantage in the negotiations as it is. Why . Simply because hes got a recalcitrant senate and a president that is simply out of touch with reality. Thats his opinion. Maybe the opinion of other republicans as well. Let me share this with our viewers. We have this brandnew poll, and it Shows Nearly Half of the public approves of how the president is handling the talks. Only 25 they say, you know, say the same for boehner. We do have one more poll, this is really the big kahuna, shows 65 believe the voters gave the president a mandate to raise tax rates on the wealthy. So dana bash, given all of that, do we have any idea what the republican calculus is here and apparently hardening now their position on the taxes . Reporter im not really sure if in reality their position is hardening on raising or keeping tax cuts in place for the wealthiest americans. It may have been on paper in the proposal, certainly departments are using that today. That is the story line of the day. Democrats are using it politically against republicans. But i talked to so many republicans, trent franks is one of them, who kind of shrugged their shoulders and say they understand that they dont have leverage as you just illustrated in that poll that the democrats have leverage, for a number of reasons, whether it is the amount of that the president won by, politically, or just the substance of this argument, the democrats are winning when you talk about taxes. But what the speaker has been able to successfully do and it happened again behind closed doors today, is keep his party behind him in the house, by turning their anger towards the president for not calling for spending cuts and that is the dynamic that were seeing still today. Thats why the speaker has been able to keep his troops in line. Keep us posted, dana bash. We appreciate it here, 20 days to go, until those automatic tax increases, spending cuts go into effect. From a democrat to an independent here to a Vice President ial candidate, moments ago, long time senator Joe Lieberman called it quits on the senate floor. We will play you what exactly it was that he said next. Joe lieberman joked on the Senate Floor Today that when he became a senator, a blackberry was merely a fruit. The reflection came in his Farewell Speech as he prepares to leave his seat after 24 years. During my time here in washington, we have had our first female secretary of state, nominated and confirmed, and our first africanamerican president elected and reelected. And it will forever remain one of my deepest honors, thanks to Vice President gore i was given the opportunity to be the first Jewish American nominated by a Major Political party for national office. And incidentally thanks to the american people, grateful to have received a half million more votes than my opponent on the other side. But thats a longer story. So while there is still much work to do, and many problems to be solved, i believe we can and should approach our future with a confidence that is based on the real and substantial progress we have made together. Senator lieberman also thanked the staff and the security at the capital for all their service. Thanked his parents who, by the way, never went to college, but saw their American Dream fulfilled when he and his siblings did. A cnn exclusive here, something the Syrian Government does not want seen. Our camera crew inside syria got dangerously close to a chemical weapons productions plant. What did our crew find . Well show you right after this. Americans are always ready to work hard for a better future. Since Ameriprise Financial was founded back in 1894, theyve been committed to putting clients first. 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All waking up. Connecting to the global phenomenon we call the internet of everything. Its going to be amazing. And exciting. And maybe, most remarkably, not that far away. Were going to wake the world up. And watch, with eyes wide, as it gets to work. Cisco. Tomorrow starts here. Cisco. Try running four. Ning a restaurant is hard, fortunately weve got ink. It gives us 5x the rewards on our internet, phone charges and cable, plus at Office Supply stores. Rewards we put right back into our business. This is the only thing weve ever wanted to do and ink helps us do it. Make your mark with ink from chase. President obama sends a clear message to syrian president Bashar Al Assad, saying the u. S. Now recognizes the Rebel Coalition fighting against assads crumbling regime, the president made that declaration in an interview with abcs barbara walters. The Syrian Opposition coalition is now inclusive enough, is reflective and representative enough of the syrian population that we consider them the legitimate representative of the Syrian People in opposition to the assad regime. Keep in mind here, what he just said, that doesnt mean that the u. S. Will be arming the rebel forces. The declaration is just intended to be a showing of support. But all of this comes one day after a group of rebel fighters called the al nursa front are labeled a terrorist organizat n organization. Some say this latest flurry o