Transcripts For KPIX CBS Evening News With Scott Pelley 2013

Axelrod good evening. Scotts off tonight. Im jim axelrod and this is our western edition. Were getting our first look at just what kind of boost Holiday Shopping provided to the u. S. Economy and it is not the kind of picture retailers were hoping to see. According to Mastercard Spendingpulse Retail Shopping was up 2. 3 this holiday season. Keep in mind, these are just the initial numbers, but the National Retail federation had projected a bigger 3. 9 increase in Holiday Shopping. So if this first snapshot holds, this would be disappointing and the first time below 3 growth since 2009. Heres Terrell Brown. Reporter deep discounts and extended hours couldnt get americans to spend as much as stores expected. So now retailers are cutting prices even more. Even along chicagos exclusive michigan avenue, stores today were offering 75 off. Retail analyst craig johnson. Retailers overshot the mark in terms of apparel supply so there was an imbalance of supply demand in apparel leading to the promotions you see today. Reporter stores couldnt make up for the storm which is hit during two key shopping weekends and the lackluster economy. People are not buying as much and why they arent buying as much, because their incomes are very soft. Reporter aftertax income grew an average 1. 1 between 2007 and 2012. But this year its up only. 6 . Now the race is on for stores to clear inventory. Today was expected to be the fifth busiest shopping day of the year. A wild card is the projected 29 billion spent on gift cards over christmas. The value of the cards is not recorded until theyre redeemed. Richard ortiz is a manager of this Banana Republic in manhattan. The traffic is a little bit down in terms of previous years. I think were seeing more online shopping. Reporter web sales were up more than 10 over last year and more people did their Holiday Shopping on smart phones. Visits from mobile devices made up a record 48 of all online traffic. And some stores here like macys have been open since 6 00 this morning, jim. Some analysts we talked to said that this week, the week between christmas and new years could be the second or thirdbiggest shopping week of the year. Axelrod Terrell Brown with our first look at the Holiday Shopping numbers. Thank you, the runup to christmas did see substantial growth in online shopping. Nearly 40 more during the weekend before christmas this year than last year. So much online shopping, in fact, that the two Biggest Delivery Companies could not keep pace. Heres manuel bojorquez. Reporter u. P. S. Workers spent today racing to catch up. The company had delivered 132 million packages in the week leading up to christmas, a pace of 300 per second. But it wasnt fast enough to clear an avalanche of holiday orders including a package for jeff cormier in dallas. I dont know what more to say about how frustrating it is. Reporter it was an iphone case with his daughters picture. His grandmother flew back home to ohio this afternoon without it. Thats what im missing the most. Its not the gift, its just that that aww moment. You wanted her to open it in front of you. You cant recapture that wow factor. Thats gone. Reporter a short shopping season and icy weather created backlogs which became insurmountable as lastminute shopping orders poured in. Many customers trusted store guarantees that deliveries would be made by christmas. Neither u. P. S. Nor fedex would disclose how many packages were late. In a statement, u. P. S. Said , u. P. S. Said in its statement, fedex said tatement, f rather than wait any longer, some customers have been showing up at Distribution Centers like this one for overdue packages. Today the nations Largest Online retailer, amazon, said it is reviewing the performance of delivery carriers. Jim . Axelrod manuel, thank you. Updating the situation for those who spent christmas without power, in michigan, 88,000 homes and businesses are still in the dark. About 28,000 in maine. Crews have been rushed in from other states to fix power lines that snapped in an ice storm last weekend but fresh snowfall has now slowed them down and the repairs could take two more days. In pennsylvania today, an Appeals Court threw out a milestone conviction of a catholic priest. Monsignor william lynn was the first priest to be found guilty of protecting other priests accused of sexual abuse. Elaine quijano covered the trial and she has our update. Reporter monsignor william lynn is serving a three to six year sentence in state prison. Thomas bergstrom is lynns attorney. What they found was that monsignor lynn didnt have the authority to transfer these priests. The only person who had that authority was the cardinal. Reporter the trial was a landmark case in the u. S. Catholic church as former Philadelphia District attorney Lynne Abraham told us in april of last year. I think this is the first time in the history of a prosecution in this country where a member of the hierarchy of the church has been put on trial in a public courtroom for covering up sex abuse. Reporter prosecutors argued monsignor lynn transferred pedophile priests from parish to parish during his 12 years as the philadelphia archdiocese secretary for clergy. That, they said, violated the states law against endangering the welfare of a child. But in a unanimous decision, the Appeals Court said that law could not be applied since monsignor lynn did not directly supervise children. The judges concluded the evidence was not sufficient to prove lynn intended to promote or facilitate child endangerment. The Philadelphia District Attorney Says he will most likely appeal this decision. Jim, its not clear when monsignor lynn would be released from prison. Axelrod elaine, thank you very much. In a video released today, an american held hostage by terrorists in pakistan pleaded with president obama to negotiate his release. Warren weinstein, 72, from rockville, maryland, and was kidnapped while working as a consultant. Hall will williams is in our London Bureau and is follow the story for us. Holly . Reporter Warren Weinstein was kidnapped by al qaeda two and a half years ago from his home in pakistan where he was working as a Development Consultant for a private american company. Its thought hes being held somewhere along pakistans border with afghanistan which is an al qaeda stronghold. This is the second video that al qaeda has released of mr. Weinstein. We cant authenticate it and we dont know when it was filmed. It was emailed from an anonymous address to the Washington Post newspaper along with a letter said to be written by Warren Weinstein. In the video he appears tired and at times emotional. He asks the president to negotiate with al qaeda so that he can see his family again. Mr. Obama, you are a family man and so you understand the deep mental anxiety and anguish that i have been experiencing for these past more than two years. I am therefore appealing to you on a humanitarian basis if nothing else and asking that you take the necessary actions to expedite my release. Reporter the u. S. State Department Said it is trying to authenticate the video and has called for Warren Weinsteins release. Al qaeda leader Ayman Al Zawahiri has previously said that weinstein will only be released if the u. S. Stops carrying out air strikes in pakistan and afghanistan and releases al qaeda prisoners. But, jim, that is clearly not something the u. S. Government would consider doing. Axelrod holly, thank you very much. President obama took time out from his vacation in hawaii today to sign several bills into law. One is a Defense Authorization bill which, among other things, includes a crackdown on Sexual Assault in the military. Another is a bipartisan budget deal that eases spending cuts. Chip reid is in honolulu with the president tonight. Good evening, chip. Reporter well, good evening, jim. That budget bill the president signed today funds the federal government through the year 2015 and that is significant because it all but eliminates the possibility of another Government Shutdown any time soon. And, jim, the other bill that you just mentioned is the annual spending bill for next year. In a written statement the president said hes please it had bill eases is transfer of Guantanamo Bay prisoners to other countries but hes disappointed that it does not allow the transfer of prisoners to the United States for trial. The president said the executive branch must have the authority to determine when and where to prosecute Guantanamo Bay detainees based on the facts and circumstances of each case and our National Security interests. The president even suggested that if he determines that that bill violates the constitution, he will ignore those provisions and, of course, immediately after signing those bills, the president shifted back into vacation mode. He went hiking with his family and golfing with his friends. Jim . Axelrod chip reid in hawaii where there is at least some work being done. Thank you. Tonight three ice breakers are speeding to rescue a ship carrying tourists and researchers trapped in thick ice in antarctica. The ship has been stuck since tuesday about 1700 miles south of new zealand. Bill whitaker has more. Reporter passengers and crew aboard the Research Vessel Akademik Shokalskiy had to endure fierce antarctica conditions the last two days temperatures well below freezing, winds approaching 50 miles per hour. Australian climate scientist chris turney is filing video updates from the distressed vessel at the bottom of the earth. The vessel hasnt moved for the last two days and were surrounded by sea ice, we just cant get through. Reporter the ship left new Zealand November 28 on a month long scientific expedition. 74 scientists, tourists, journalists and crew studying antarcticas wildlife and waters. Turney is leading the expedition. Its a glorious day, the fog has lifted, its very still and calm. Reporter they were retracing the steps of australian explorer Douglas Mawson who made the trek in 1911. Finally made it to mawsons hut. Its right here behind me. Reporter as they traveled on toward the magnetic south pole the see ice thickened. Three weeks into the trip they were locked in ice. Conditions worsened outside. Were actually in a blizzard at the moment. Reporter inside, researchers and crew are able to keep warm. They have plenty of provisions. We spoke with professor turney by skype earlier today. Weve got a couple of weeks worth of fresh food and then on top of that if things get really bad weve got two weeks of glorious dehydrated food. laughs . Reporter jim, professor turney tweeted some good news today. The blizzard has passed and while theyre waiting to be rescued the scientists are carrying on with their research. Now, when explorer Douglas Mawson made the same trek a little more than a hundred years ago, he was stranded for two years. Axelrod Bill Whitaker with the dramatic story from the south pole. Thank you. And we have some news about one of our colleagues. Today Senior Correspondent john miller announced hell be leaving cbs news to join the new York City Police department. John will be working on intelligence and counterterrorism under incoming commissioner william bratton. This will be johns second tour with the n. Y. P. D. And all of us here at cbs news wish john all the very best. A computer glitch gave some delta customers the deal of a lifetime. Home prices are shooting through the roof in one big city. And 50 years ago this song helped the beatles break through in the u. S. , when the cbs evening news continues. I wanna hold your hand bell rings they remind me so much of my grandkids. Ive been thinking about moving in with my daughter and her family. Its been pretty tough since jack passed away. Its a good thing you had Life Insurance through the Colonial Penn program. Youre right. It was affordable, and we were guaranteed acceptance. Guaranteed acceptance . It means you cant be turned down because of your health. You dont have to take a physical or answer any Health Questions. Well, how do you know . Did you speak to alex trebek . Because i have a policy myself. It costs just 9. 95 a month per unit. Its perfect for my budget. Affordable coverage and guaranteed acceptance . We should give them a call. Do you want to help protect your loved ones from the burden of final expenses . If youre between 50 and 85, you can get Quality Insurance that does not require any Health Questions or a medical exam. Your rate of 9. 95 a month per unit will never increase, and your coverage will never decrease. So call now and ask one of their representatives about a plan that meets your needs. Go call now well finish up here. You know how painful heartburn can be. For fast, long lasting relief, use doctor recommended gaviscon®. Only gaviscon® forms a protective barrier that helps block stomach acid from splashing up relieving the pain quickly. Try fast, long lasting gaviscon®. I need you. I feel so alone. But youre not alone. I knew youd come. Like i could stay away. You know i cant do this without you. Youll never have to. Youre always there for me. Shh ill get you a rental car. I could also use an umbrella. Fall in love with progressives claims service. Axelrod travelers found some great deals on Delta Airlines web site today. A little greater than delta intended. Some domestic fares were offered for less than 5. Then there was round trip boston to honolulu for less than 68. Delta called the fares a mistake caused by a computer glitch but says it will honor all tickets sold. Theres new evidence the Housing Market has made it back from the depths of the recession. This week, the federal government reported home prices rose half a percentage point in october. Nowhere is the market hotter than San Francisco. John blackstone is there. Reporter in a city famous for its scenery, the skyline is being transformed. Office towers and luxury condominiums are rising in San Francisco. The bursting of the real estate bubble in 2008 is a distant memory. Realtor cece blase finds no shortage of prospective buyers at a holiday open house. December feels slightly 4kskneck. There are fewer deals to be had but we are seeing substantial overbidding. Reporter that must be great for a real estate agent. It is wonderful for a real estate agent. It can be tough for my buyers. Reporter buying a house in San Francisco costs about 50 more than in 2009 at the bottom of the real estate collapse. The average price rise in major u. S. Cities since then is 18 . The median u. S. Home price is less than 200,000, in San Francisco, its up to more than 900,000. That has sparked protest by saf franciscans who say well paid tech workers are pushing others out of their home. I understand what the protests are, they feel threatened. Our city reporter San Franciscos mayor ed lee has been a target of the protestors. Not everyone approved of the tax breaks he offered twitter to move some 800 workers into a Headquarters Building near the city center. We hear revitalization, recovery, and people are angry with you because of that the citys affordability has become a big, huge topic. I recognize that. Reporter even if the Tech Companies themselves arent located in San Francisco, their employees often choose to live in the city. Google is just one of the companies that run a fleet of private buses carrying workers every morning to Silicon Valley some 40 miles away. Anyone can still leave their heart in San Francisco, but increasingly, only those with plenty of money can actually afford to live here. John blackstone, cbs news, San Francisco. Axelrod its a wonder anyone survived this fiery wreck, but well meet the cop who pulled off a daring rescue, next. G rescue, axelrod we have some extraordinary video to share tonight of an offduty Los Angeles Police officer making a Christmas Day rescue after he saw a car on fire. Is there anybody else in the car . Axelrod this was the scene on the 405 highway in los angeles just before 2 00 p. M. Christmas afternoon. A mercedes Station Wagon was engulfed in flames. The driver, a 72yearold man, was trapped inside. Fortunately, don thompson was driving by. Thompson, a 26year veteran of the l. A. P. D. , was off duty but, like many cops, hes always on the job. I heard people screaming in