stand by to learn more about edith and carolyn, who solved the case of the missing votes. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer, you're in the "situation room." tuesday's new hampshire primary is just around the corner. get this, the dramatic anticipation is building for the republican presidential candidates. the first southern showdown will take place on january 21st, our new cnn poll is the first snapshot of support in south carolina, taken after the squeaker in iowa this past week. look at this, mitt romney now has an 18 point lead in the state of south carolina, which wasn't seen necessarily as all that friendly of a place for him. rick santorum has shot into number two in south carolina after his near victory in iowa. romney has an even wider lead in new hampshire, where his closest rival at least right now is ron paul. rick santorum has gained ground in new hampshire as well, his support climbing into the double digits. cnn's dan lothian is joining us from new hampshire, covering the story for us. what's the latest, dan? >> reporter: the latest is that romney continues to have that strong lead in the state in new hampshire. as you pointed out, paul right behind him, rick santorum, getting a little bump coming out of iowa. the number you can pay attention to, 15% of the voters here still remain undecided, still shopping around, trying to figure out which candidate they'll align themselves with. as we've been talking to voters and others in the state, we find two things. first, there is that sense that they don't feel overly enthusiastic about the overall field and secondly, a little bit of frustration the candidates have not been spending enough time here on the ground doing that retail publicing. yes, they've been here prior to the iowa caucuses but some of the voters believe they've seen enough of them out there on main street. in these final days, what you will see from the candidates, they'll be out there on the street, trying to shake hands, holding larger events, town hall meetings trying to make that final pitch to the undecided voters. >> we'll see how they shake things up in new hampshire. thank you. we've also seen some bitter infighting in this republican primary while president obama is out there campaigning but also doing his day job. we're joined by the republican national committee chairman. thanks for coming in. i want to talk politics in a moment. i want to get your reaction. on the economics jobs front, the numbers are moving in the right direction friday. we saw 200,000 jobs were created in december. moving up, six months in a row, at least 100,000 new jobs created. that's a dramatic improvement. what do you say? >> the numbers speak for themselves, wolf. personally, and i think in all objectiveness, they're just not where they need to be. nancy pelosi and the same people three or four years ago saying 5% was unacceptable and now dismissing 8.5%. it's still a disaster, where we're at is nowhere near where the president promised we would be at. spent over a trillion dollars trying to stimulate this economy. here's the bigger problem. americans don't feel better off than they were a few days ago just because the department of labor tells us things have ticktic ticked ever so slightly better. the fact is people are hurting out there, this economy is not where it should be and 70% of americans say we're on the wrong track in this country. we have a lot of work to do. >> no doubt an enormous apt of work that has to be done. look at this chart, i don't know if you will see it, shows the unemployment numbers month by month, going into the obama administration, last six or seven months of the bush administration, dramatic, 600,000, 700,000 jobs lost and the first few months of the obama administration, it continued, then starts picking up and in the positive all of this past year and the last six months, at least 100,000 new jobs every month created. that show as pretty dramatic improvement since the president took office. >> yeah. what you don't see in the numbers, though, wolf, and i can't see the chart. i can tell you what you don't see in the numbers, i think many astute observers know that, you're only seeing the percentage of people that are actually looking for work that are reflected in those numbers. what you don't see are the hundreds of thousands of people that are saying, i'm not even going to look for work, so they're not even actively looking for work and they're not even tracked by the department of labor. if you combine the people, first of all, looking for work and finding it and add on to that number the people who have said, look, i can't find a job, i'm not going to look for work and underemployed, we have numbers beyond any comprehension here in this country going on. while those numbers -- i can't see it, i'm not doubting your actual figures there, they're only reflective of the amount of people actually looking for work. let's face it. i think the idea of cheerleading for 8.5% unimplement employment country, even of that number is a joke. now, we can agree it's an uptick, but certainly, i couldn't possibly take it any further than that. >> obviously, we have to see where they go in the coming months between now and november what impact it will have. let me talk politics a little bit. republican party politics. you're the chairman of the republican party. as you know, it's been very bitter the past few weeks. newt gingrich calls romney a lie ear. and ron paul called disgusting and then a chicken hawk. these are not democrats blasting each other, republican presidential candidates. what are you doing about this? >> listen, you know this maybe even more so than i do, wolf. primaries are tough. history shows that tough primaries, usually for the opposition party, they're usually a good thing. i happen to think the opposite, wolf. i think a tough primary, a little bit of drama, everyone is talking about it, even david axelrod is talking about our primary, i think it gives us a lot of horsepower. the interest and the intrigue is great. voter registration, both in iowa and new hampshire are out-pacing democrats 2-1. we closed registration gaps in both those states where 8500 votes ahead in new hampshire. so what i'm telling you is that although tough primaries can cause some people to wring their hands and be concerned, at least on our side of the aisle, in reality, the history shows, and you look at hillary clinton and barack obama, tough primaries usually equal winners in american politics. i'm excited about it. >> how worried are you that ron paul, if he doesn't get the republican presidential nomination, might run as a third party candidate, dividing up a lot of that conservative vote, if you will, and could almost certainly guarantee, at least potentially, president obama's re-election? >> i'm not worried about it, wolf. i have to worry about where we're at on the republican side. i think ron paul's a good republican. i know he loves our party. and his son is a great leader in the united states senate. i don't see that at all. i know that he believes that barack obama, and i do, too, is squandering the very idea of america, the idea of personal and individual and economic freedom, that this president is flushing down a toilet, and i know he believes that and i know that he is a republican, and i'm not worried about it at all. >> we're out of time. flushing economic freedom down the toilet. what do you mean by that? >> what i mean is when you have a federal government that's on a pathway here under barack obama's watch, to spend 42 or 43 cents on every dollar made in america, that's a battle for freedom, that's a battle for freedom between governments insatiable appetite to grow and it's also a battle for everyone's individual and economic freedom. we've created a government that is so big, golwolf, we can't afd it anymore. that's the problem. we created something so big, forever we don't get in control of our spending and the size of government we will lose our freedom in this country. >> reince, priebus the chairman of the republican party. thanks for coming in. >> happy new year. >> happy new year to you. >> and the poms in south carolina. who's the favorite. all in the family, rick santorum says his family brings his strength and others pointing to some controversy. we'll explain? the two iowa women who became big-time internet sensations after iowa's caucus. stay with us. osteo bi-flex has really helped my knees. osteo bi-flex has been incredible for me, and i swear by it. 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[ chris ] quicken loans constantly kept us updated and got us through the process twice now. quicken loans is definitely engineered to amaze. they were just really there for us. rick santorum capped his surge in iowa with an early showing in that state finishing second to romney by a grand total of eight votes if not a victory, certainly a virtual tie. i spoke to santorum, right after the votes were counted. >> well, you know, this is the first step in the process. we will be on to new hampshire, work hard and compete there. i'm a little bit behind the curve in the sense governor romney has been spending a lot of money and time up there and running for six years and we feel like we can go up there and compete. we have a great team on the ground. my campaign manager is from new hampshire. he started out as my new hampshire guy. he knows how to run races. he managed a campaign up there. we have a lot of frank's organization able to win a tough congressional seat up there. we have about 25 state reps already before tonight who have signed up. they haven't just signed up, we have hard working state reps up there. new hampshire is all about grassroots politics. we feel very good we will climb that ladder, just like we did here. >> what about john mccain's endorsement of mitt romney, which came a few hours after the iowa results. >> yeah. that's fine. i would have expected that. i'm surprised he hasn't done it earlier. john mccain is a great man, someone an honor to serve with. he has served this country and sacrificed more than frankly anybody i've had the privilege to know in any way. i commend governor romney for getting his endorsement. i'm not surprised by it. john is a more moderate member of the republican team and i think he fits in with newt newt's -- excuse me, mitt's view of the world. i wish him the very best. again, i have nothing but respect for john mccain. you know, look, people are going to make -- john mccain is not paying me back, john mccain is doing what he thinks is right for the country. i respect that. he's always done what he think is right for the country. i respect that and had my disagreements over the years and sure i will do in the future. john is a patriot and i commend him and encourage him to do that. >> santorum made family values a de~ theme as he doggedly campaigned for months in iowa and a key them as he enjoyed his hard work after the caucus votes were counted. >> six of my kids are up here, elizabeth, john, daniel, sarah maria, peter and patrick. they have not seen much of their dad over the past several months. yet, they have stood by me every step of the way, encouraged me and loved me unconditionally. there's another little girl who is not here tonight. she is with a little buddy. she's our little angel. that's isabella maria. isabella maria, we don't take her out in crowds, she's -- has a disability. >> brian todd has been taking a closer look into senator santorum's own compelling family story. tell our viewers what you are finding out. >> that family story has now become a huge part of the campaign narrative. a story of a fromley that has drawn controversy in recent days but also a real value of compassion, especially when they speak of their youngest member. in the glow of his dazzling performance in iowa, rick santorum speaks of the strength he's gotten from his family. the six children with him and one absent, who he calls their little angel. >> she has a disability that has a -- according to the records, the statistics, has a 1% chance of survival after one year. she is 3 1/2 years old. >> that's bella, isabella marie santorum, born with a genetic disorder that's a chromosomal defect that causes brain damage. the odds have been against her from the start. sometimes with his wife, karen, weeping alongside him, rick santorum has spoken about bella and those around her on the margins of life. >> she is an angel around us because she is pure love, a little girl who shouldn't be here. >> reporter: dan santorum, his younger brother says they often have to leave her home while on the campaign trail. >> how challenging is it to leave bella during the rigors of the campaign? >> as difficult as it is when bella is healthy, when she develops pneumonia is very difficult. to see your child gasping for air is heartbreaking. >> reporter: his wife, a former neonatal nurse treats her with a neb bulizer. the santorums who are devout catholics had to defend their actions about another child they had in the mid-90s. >> reporter: a boy named gabriel who died only two hours after he was born. karen wrote in a book, she and her husband took he deceased child home, slept with him and showed him to their young children who were then very young. and liberal alan combs said voters wouldn't respond to that. >> once they get a load of things he has done, taking his two hour old child home after childbirth and played with it for a couple of hours so the other children would know the child was real. >> reporter: rick santorum addressed why they brought the child home. >> it was so important to recognize for the family, recognize the life of that child, and for all the children to know they had a brother and sister. and -- >> reporter: combs later apologized. i asked dan santorum if that traumatized rick's other children? >> not at all. if you know rick's family, being as close as they already, very loving family, they needed that. rick and karen did the right thing. >> reporter: others who know rick santorum said those episodes give him strength on the trail and will help mhim wih other evangelicals in the primaries. he genuinely walks the walk of his pro-life convictions and that will earn the voter's respect. >> pretty compelling story he has. thanks. they got out of bed in the middle of the month in iowa. now, they are famous. we will show you how they helped all of us clear up caucus confusion. plus, outrageous amounts of campaign track. we're now on track for a billion dollar, with a b, a billion dollar race for the white house. when it comes to home insurance, surprises can be a little scary. and a little costly. that's why the best agents present their clients with a lot of options. because when it comes to what's covered and what's not, nobody likes surprises. 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[ male announcer ] we are insurance. ♪ we are farmers ♪ bum, ba-da-bum, bum, bum, bum ♪ some rather unlikely stars emerged from this week's caucuses. their names are edith and carolyn and the highlights of our caucus coverage. these ladies were pretty amazing. >> they certainly were, wolf. now, they are big-time stars of youtube and twitter. carolyn and edith, two charming women who provided the best moments on iowa caucus night. it was the closest gop caucus ever, a nail biter. >> rick santorum, look at this, he's 13 votes aheads of mitt romney. >> reporter: one minute richter them up, five minutes later, it was mitt romney. >> mitt romney is 13 votes ahead of rick santorum. >> reporter: on and on throughout the night. >> omg. look at this. look what's going on. one vote. >> reporter: it finally came to war room two, precinct two in clinton, iowa. carolyn heads the clinton county women's club. >> it's late here, they were in bed and the chair was also in bed -- >> what you're saying -- >> they needed the information so i came to edith's home and pounded on the door and woke her up. >> reporter: that would be ed h edith, the clinton county republican women's chair woman and says the reported the results sometime in the night and there was some kind of glitch and the state office had not received them. cnn was able to get her on the phone and she officially called the election. >> who won? >> mitt romney won wifrth 51 votes. rick santorum and ron paul tied with 33 votes each. >> that's 51-33. if this is the missing precinct, wolf, add it up there, mitt romney wins. >> reporter: as john cain did a little bit of math edith showed off her feisty size at 2:00 a.m. >> if this is what is missing, the numbers receiving from the state do not match the numbers we just receivered from the county claire woman. >> what do you mean, the numbers don't match? >> i'll explain it to you. you go ahead and explain it. it looks like the math we got from edith and carolyn, our ladies in clinton county, anderson, who would have thought -- >> that was the best live phone call ever. >> edith and carolyn, they knew what they were talking about. >> edith and carolyn started blowing up on twitter. >> they took the twitter-verse and media by storm at 2:30 in the morning when they came to the rescue of everyone and solved the mystery of the missing votes in iowa. >> you're trending worldwide apparently on twitter i just learned from ali velshi. are you big on the twitter? >> caller: not so good. i just got an ipad for christmas but i don't know how to work it yet. >> would you ladies like to be the co-anchors of a new cnn program, "citiznn after dark"? >> reporter: they joined cnn for a second time after the results were finalized with the cnn anchors and contributors. >> guess what, joining us now on the phone, edith and carolyn. let's give them a big applause. let me start with edith. thank you so much on behalf of all of us and the american people, we want to thank you for clearing up this mystery. tell us how you feel right now, edith. >> caller: i am just overwhelmed with all of this. >> the two have become media superstars, much to the amusement of their kids and grandkids. carolyn, in fact, has been referred to as a modern day paul revere for her role in driving to edith's house to get the information that the whole country was waiting for. >> i love these two women. they were great. >> very very charming. >> thanks very much for that. >> new hampshire, this coming tuesday, then on to south carolina, two weeks from -- we will go inside that critical contest with our political analyst, gloria borger and ron brownstein. also, campaign cash, who's spending and how much? we're following the money trail. plus, chilling new allegations by a syrian defector. he says the government in damascus spent so much money slaughtering its own people, it was forced to make huge budget cuts. did you say pie? pie. she said pie. pie. 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