On brookeb. Got to be with you. Now to wolf blitzer in washington. Wolf . Brooks, thanks very much. Happening now when we hit the dock, everybody went flying. All of a sudden we just hit. Boom. And people were catapulted forward. The search for answers as to why a packed ferry boat didnt stop in time, crashing into a dock and injuring dozens of new york city commuters. Also, Vice President joe biden hears from the victims of gun violence. Still to come, the nations biggest gun seller and the nra. Plus, from my visit to egypt, the writing on the wall, the graphite in Tahrir Square tells the story of a revolution that many fear is going wrong. Im wolf blitzer. Youre in the situation room. We begin right here in washington with important news. The Vice President joe biden met with victims of gun violence and gun safety advocates. They spent several hours over at the white house trying to prepare the task force for recommendations to the president. They are deeply worried public sentiment for changing the nations gun laws is fading too quickly despite the Connecticut School massacre and other Mass Shootings over the past year or two. The Vice President revealed his task force on curbing gun violence. Is considering measures the president can take without having to wait for any congressional action. Lets bring in our cnn White House CorrespondentBrianna Keilar. Shes working the story for us. What are you hearing . Reporter wolf, im told that there is very much a sense in this meeting between Vice President joe biden and advocates of gun control as well as those who have suffered gun violence themselves or lost loved ones to it that there was actually very much a sense that this was an opportunity to do something and they believe they have a bit of, i guess you could say, a mandate to do something because of poll numbers showing the Public Opinion has shifted in this. The news that the Vice President made today was that the white house is looking to go it alone, at least in some ways as it chooses to tackle this problem. Go it alone without Congress Help and observers of this debate, as you know, have said that this is definitely a possibility but biden today confirmed that its something the white house is pursing. Heres what he said. I want to make it clear that we are not going to get caught up in the notion unless we can do everything were going to do nothing. Its critically important. The president is going to act, executive orders, executive action can be taken. We havent decided what that is yet but were compiling it all with the help of the attorney general and all the rest of the cabinet members as well as legislative action we believe is required. Reporter now, folks outside of the white house who are familiar with the possibilities that the white house may pursue say that could have to do with reporting of statics to the federal database to make sure that people who should not be able to purchase weapons cannot to further strengthen the database. But the white house at this point staying very mum on specifics. Jay carney saying he doesnt want to get ahead of this task force that is under a deadline for specific proposals to the president at the end of the month. One source familiar with the meeting, wolf, told me that officials are still at this point mulling over ideas. They really havent come to conclusions about which solutions to pursue and part of that is because there are very real legal issues, both having to do with the constitutionality of what the white house can push for and also legal issues because there is Mental Health at stake here, Mental Health issues which bring up privacy issues. So theres a lot for them to sort through. There this is a meeting that was only supposed to go for an hour and it went for an hour and 45 minutes. Do you have any sense, having heard that, what congress will most likely get through congress . Reporter theres a consensus and we heard this from the director of the Brady Campaign today that showing that gun show loophole. Meaning right now, you can do so without a background check. This is how many weapons are purchased in the u. S. One of the people here at this meeting today, colin goddard, a victim shot four times at norris hall. He said this was a large part of the discussion. What you can do at gun shows, you can do that over the internet, newspaper classify ads. That doesnt really sole have the bigger problem of the larger unchecked gun sales in the country. The executive action, i think the president is looking at really anything he can do. Reporter so thats something that the white house feels they will have support for. Okay. Brianna, well watch the story for us. We also learned today the president has decided to nominate his Current White House chief of staff, jack lew to secede timothy geithner. Gloria, do we expect any serious opposition . Well, there are going to be republicans who oppose him. Senator sessions, the ranching republican on the Budget Committee came out and said he would not support jack lew. Because . Because of his testimony before the Deficit Committee and that the budget could be reduced. He said thats evidence that jack lew should not be confirmed. Particularly on these fiscal matters, he did run the office of budget during the debt ceiling negotiations and i remember from covering those debt ceiling noish ags that republicans didnt like him very much, wolf. Some of them said to me that jack lew kept moving the goal posts on them. Yes, there will be opposition. For chuck hagel, no. I believe in the end jack lew will get confirmed. But ill tell you this, the reason the white house put off the announcement of jack lew until tomorrow is because of the fiscal cliff. They didnt want it to get involved in the negotiations for the fiscal cliff. They felt that they already had a fight on their hands. They didnt want to add any fuel to the fire on that, which is why theyve held off of the nomination until this week. They do expect him to get confirmed and so do i. John kerry, secretary of state. Weve got a lot of white males, shall we say, chuck hagel, we have pictures up there. Jack lew, eric holder is over at the justice department. Hes not a white male. Hes an africanamerican. But no women. Men. Men. I want to put up another picture of the seen yr staff, if you will. There you you he sue the staff. Theres been mur muring that theres not enough women part of this white house, the inner circle. What are folks saying about that . The visual you just showed with the four cabinet members being men, the problem there, its not an opportune visual for the white house and they will readily admit it. Particularly because youre replacing secretary of state Hillary Clinton with a man. But jay carney came out today and said the president understands diversity is important and he pointed to Janet Napolitano at Homeland Security, Kathleen Sebelius who runs hhs, the Health Department, susan rice at the united nations. So theres another visual for you, wolf, of women. But ive been told by a few sources, as ive been looking into these cabinet appointments, that they are really actively going after a woman to run the Commerce Department which is another key cabinet position. So they are on the hunt for women. The New York Times did an analysis of female high level appointees over the past three administrations and they said the obama and Clinton Administration had 43 compared to the Bush Administration which had a 33 rate. So obviously things for women are improving. Thats what they say. And theres another picture that ran in the New York Times todays. Im not sure if we have it but theres a picture there it is. Theres a picture that ran in the New York Times today. Again, another visual that the white house doesnt like. If you look closely, wolf, theres a leg there in front of the president s desk and thats valeries leg. Thats a really important leg because shes a key adviser to the president. She has his ear and she is the first among equals in many circles. So that is a visual they didnt like but they point out Valerie Jarrett in that picture. To me the question is, do they listen to the women . They have. We have some evidence that they do and we have some evidence that they havent. I know the president listens to Valerie Jarrett. You can argue she alone is worth four or five of those men. Thats what bothers them, by the way. She has a lot of influence. Shes very loyal to the president and she has his ear and the first ladys ear. Lets not forget the first lady herself. Shes obviously an important person in the white house. You bet. A deadly flu outbreak and cities and towns declaring a state of emergency. This is scary stuff were watching. The virus killed a teenage athlete that had been in perfect health. And just when it seems like things havent gotten any worse for syria, winter hits. [ male announcer ] this is bob, a regular guy with an irregular heartbeat. The usual, bob . Not today. [ male announcer ] bob has afib Atrial Fibrillation not caused by a heart valve problem, a condition that puts him at greater risk for a stroke. [ gps ] turn left. I dont think so. [ male announcer ] for years, bob took warfarin, and made a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. But not anymore. Bobs doctor recommended a different option onceaday xarelto®. Xarelto® is the first and only onceaday prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem, that doesnt require routine blood monitoring. Like warfarin, xarelto® is proven effective to reduce the risk of an afibrelated stroke. There is limited data on how these drugs compare when warfarin is well managed. No routine blood monitoring means bob can spend his extra time however he likes. New zealand xarelto® is just one pill a day, taken with the evening meal. And with no dietary restrictions, bob can eat the Healthy Foods he likes. Do not stop taking xarelto® rivaroxaban without talking to the doctor who prescribes it for you. Stopping may increase your risk of having a stroke. Get medical help right away if you develop any signs or symptoms of bleeding, like unusual bruising or tingling. You may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take xarelto® with aspirin products, nsaids or blood thinners. Talk to your doctor before taking xarelto® if you currently have abnormal bleeding. Xarelto® can cause bleeding, which can be serious, and rarely may lead to death. You are likely to bruise more easily on xarelto®, and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. Tell your doctors you are taking xarelto® before any planned medical or dental procedures. Before starting xarelto®, tell your doctor about any conditions, such as kidney, liver or bleeding problems. Ready to change your routine . Ask your doctor about onceaday xarelto®. For more information including cost support options, call 1888xarelto or visit goxarelto. Com. A terrifying crash in new york. At least 57 people are injured, two critically, after a ferry slammed into a dock in lower manhattan. More than 300 commuters were on board. One passenger says she saw people being thrown into the air. Another witness describes the aftermath as a lot of bleeding heads with white bandages. Cnns alison kosik is on the scene for us. Alison, how did this happen . Thats what crime scene investigators and ntsb are trying to figure out. Theres going to be a press conference in minutes given by the ntsb. Everyone is trying to figure out how this ferry carrying 300 passengers crashed into the dock in new york be city around 8 45s this morning. Not only did it send passengers flying in the air inside this boat, its caused a huge gash in the hull of the boat itself. The coast guard says a tracking device shows that this vessel was coming in too fast, that it was coming in up to 15 miles per hour, which the coast guard official says is too fast when youre docking a boat. We did talk with the head of the company who says that the captain who was at the control of this vessel was in control or in command of this vessel when it did crash hitting one loading dock and then hitting a second loading dock. This captain, by the way, has been with this company for about ten years. A breathalyzer was performed on the captain. It came back negative and preliminary breathalyzers were conducted on five crew members and those also came back negative. Wolf . We have tapes of eyewitness survivors. Let me play that and then well discuss. Everybody who was standing fell forward and people that were in their seats got thrown forward. Basically, it was, you know, 60 to 0. I dont know how fast we were going and usually it sloefs down a little bit, people get up to get off the boat and thats what the problem was. When we hit the dock, everybody went flying. So thats why we had so many injuries, you know, people got thrown downstairs and thats where most people got hurt. I was actually sleeping. All of a sudden we just hit, boom. And people were catapulting forward. I was standing up and i went backwards and hit chairs and then people landed on top of me. It was normal approach. And then what happened . Just a sudden crash. You know, alison, i guess a lot of people are saying despite the fact that 57 people are injured, two critically, given what we were seeing there, it could have been a whole lot worse. It could have been. But you can only imagine how terrifying this is. Think about it, these people do this commute every day. This is an every single day thing. It came out of know where and heres what sort of adds to the injuries. When a boat comes in to dock, a lot of people stand up, they are getting ready to get off the boat. Those people were standing and they stumbled down the stairs. This ferry is two floors. She saw people lying on the floor everywhere. What a scary, scary moment indeed. Alison, thank you for that update into a growing deadly flu outbreak here in the United States in years. In massachusetts alone, there have been almost 208 flurelated 20 flewrelated deaths. A perfectly healthy 17yearold boy is wondering how this common treatable virus could take the life of their son. Elizabeth cohen is joining us. She spent the morning with the family. Elizabeth, how did this happen . Reporter wolf, it was such an emotional morning. Im in front of the church that the family attends. Mack was 17. That personified who he was. As you said, perfectly healthy. On december 21st he started feeling sick, a headache, a little bit tired. He had a fever but really no big deal and he was better in about two days and he then he felt fine for a while. And then a couple days later he started feeling bad again. His parents took him to a local hospital in the rural area they were in and they said hes got the flu and his kidneys are failing. They said, we have to get him to a bigger hospital. They put him on a helicopter and this is what max said to his mother as he was getting on the helicopter. One of the last coherent things he said, he looked at me and tears were rolling down his face. He was scared. He said, mom, im scared. I said, i know, buddy. I am, too. He said, mom, its going to be okay. Youre going to be okay. I love you. Reporter max was in the hospital for four days in intensive care. Doctors fought for his life but, unfortunately, he didnt make it. He developed a bacterial infection as a result of that flu and he died on december 29th. Wolf . Yesterday this is such a sad story. Yesterday, elizabeth, dr. Anthony fauci, a real expert on the flu and other infectious diseases, he told me that maybe 40,000 people will die from the flu this year. It looks like a pretty bad season. Did they actually die from the flu or secondary infections that they develop as a result of the flu . Reporter wolf, they actually die from both. Some people like max died from secondary bacterial infections. Either way, they died because they got the flu. That 40,000 number ive been hearing from other people. This is going to be a moderate to severe year. Usually about 36,000 people a year die from the flu. So 40,000 sounds like its in the ballpark. This strain of flu is particularly severe. The doctor says its not too late. Sanjay gupta says its not too late. Its late but you can still get one that could potentially save your life. This is a very, very serious problem. Much more coming up in the next hour as well. Elizabeth, be thank you. Today the secretary of state Hillary Clinton made her first Public Comments since returning to work on monday. She had been off of work for more than three weeks. First for a stomach virus which caused her to fall and suffering a concussion which was then followed by treatment for a blood clot in her head. Ive really missed you all. I wouldnt say that i wouldnt say that under normal circumstances. I am thrilled to be back and i am also incredibly grateful to this Fabulous Team that i have here at the state department who never missed a beat for the time that i was away and we are focused on continuing our work, finishing up everything that we can and helping senator kerry with his transition. Secretary clinton was asked if shes also looking forward to retirement, she replied, and im quoting her now, i dont know if thats the word i would use. Shes not going to retire. She added shell be stepping off the very fast track for a little while, though. She deserves a rest and we hope only the best for her. The venezuelan president is so sick he cant attend his own inauguration. In fact, hes not even in the country. But now a major decision may keep chavez in power for years to come. Cnn paula newton is in the capital of caracas joining us now. What did the Supreme Court decide . Reporter the way they interpret the