it will go down fairly quickly after that. but we have a heightened state of readiness at all times. we see ourselves at the top of the terror list. we have to do more than other places. everyone expects that. it's an expensive undertaking but we see no alternative. >> as someone in new york city you can feel the heightened security at all times. commissioner, john miller, thanks so much. you can catch john miller when cbs airs january 9th. happy new year. hope it's a happy, safe one for both of you. here is russ. >> rebecca, thank you. now to politics, the countdown to iowa. caucuses three days away, neck in neck with mitt romney and ron paul. another surprise rick santorum. jan crawford in iowa where it's balmy this morning. she's been following the republican candidates as they crisscross across the state. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the remarkable thing going into this weekend is how many undecided voters there are. we've been talking to voters and so many say they can't make up their minds. we're seeing candidates go out and make this final push on this final weekend all in an attempt to persuade undecided voters. it's almost the last chance for republicans to get their message to iowa voters. mitt romney is the front-runner in the state drawing big crowds and bringing tough talking new jersey governor chris christie with him to strengthen his support. >> let's be clear. president barack obama came out to iowa three years ago and he talked to you about hope and change. let me tell you, after three years of obama, we are hopeless and changeless and we need mitt romney to bring us back, to bring america back. >> reporter: rick santorum is dealing with larger crowds as polls show him rising in the state. >> i'm a little bit surprised at the scale of the turnout here today. let me apologize to everybody here. >> reporter: conservatives and evangelicals are boosting appeal. there were tears from newt gingrich who teared up when he recalled his own mother's illness. >> from dealing with the real problems of real problem in my family. >> reporter: it called to mind the time another candidate cried on the trail, hillary clinton after an iowa loss to barack obama in the 2008 democratic primary. back in iowa michele bachmann was visiting a diner in early iowa where a voters go a one-on-one pitch. asked if she's worried about her standing with iowa vietnamers come caucus night bachmann says she's still a contender. >> we think we're going to do very well here and we look forward to going on and beating barack obama in 2012. so i thank you. >> one-time front-runner rick perry is more humble about his standing tuesday night. >> i'm going to feel good about our performance regardless where we come in in iowa. >> reporter: so of course rick perry was at one time a front-runner, so was michele bachmann, newt gingrich. remember, herman cain he also was at front at one point. this race has been so volatile, so many front-runners. now like you said, looks like santorum surging up, making it a tight three-way tie. with undecided voters three days away anything could happen between now and tuesday. listen to this. some of the voters i talked to say they aren't going to make up their mind until news night caucus night. >> jan, thank you very much. we'll see you later in the broadcast. also in des moines, national lit cal reporter for real clear politics, political news website. good morning to you. >> good morning, ross. >> kind of a johnny-come-lately who had been blown off, do you think he can win? >> mitt romney has a good chance winning caucuses. if he doesn't win and fingertip issues second that's as good as a win. he's headed to new hampshire with a full ahead of steam. mitt romney is in a win-win situation in the caucuses. >> as jan pointed out, newt gingrich was riding high not that long ago. where have his supporters gone? >> reporter: newt's supporters are flocking to rick santorum. he's been getting killed over the airwaves. it's hard to turn on the tv without seeing an attack ad on newt gingrich. rick santorum is the one to watch. eve been traveling through the state frequently over the last year. a lot iowans have like rick santorum but haven't thought he was electable. that's changed overnight and i'd watch him into caucus day. >> why do you think that's happening? why do you think santorum is having the late surge. >> it's his moment. all the candidates had their day in the sun. rick santorum said he was going to work harder than anyone else. the evangelical vote so big in the republican caucuses, really starting to coalesce around santorum. the other candidates didn't have time to knock him down. if this happened a week ago. mitt romney, rick perry would come after his with attack ads but there's no time to do that. he's really peaking at the right moment. >> back to newt gingrich for a second. we saw newt gingrich crying talking about his mother. we've seen this before in iowa. historically does that tend to hurt a candidate in iowa when they show this kind of emotion. >> reporter: the jury is out on that. it helped hillary clinton last time around. there was a famous case of crying that killed the candidacy. newt, maybe it will help. it showed an emotional side we rarely see from newt gingrich. the feeling i get on the ground here, he really is not going anywhere in this state right now. his strategists are pivoting sords south carolina and florida. they are looking ahead. newt is stuck in fourth or fifth in iowa now. >> real quickly yes or no. could ron paul win iowa? >> ron paul could absolutely win iowa. i talked to a lot of supporters, they are working hard. he's got a lot of passionate people who are going to come out and caucus for him. >> thanks a lot. see you later. >> reporter: thanks, russ. >> rebecca. customers have hung up on verizon wireless. the company tried to charge a $2 convenience fee. the backlash was fast and loud. it was put on hold. the reaction as financial contributor carmen wong ulrich. good morning. >> good morning. >> this is a very interesting story to me. companies are learning to react differently to what we say online. >> i love this story because this is the power of consumer story. this $2 convenience fee were for a few if you pay debit or credit card on the phone or online. last min bill payers, a quarter of the customers but didn't stop customers for getting upset. >> if you set up auto pay -- >> they were still mad about it. >> online reaction widespread. >> facebook, boycott verizon page. also change.org put up a petition. within hours they had 50,000 signatures. this morning it was up to 145,000 signatures. twitter, people were really outraged ott on twitter. the convenience fee popular fast. >> immediately starts trending on twitter. >> exactly. >> there's tons of companies that have sort of fallen bo this trap over the last year like bank of america as well. >> bank of america we know early this year they talked a lot about this, $5 debit charge fee for a month, such an outrage over that. talking hundreds of thousands of people being vocal about not wanting that fee. that was only tested in a couple of markets. that got pulled off, took about a month for outrage to affect bank of america. netflix they tried the 60% fee hike and splitting their streaming and dvd service which they ended up scrapping that. they lost 800,000 customers. >> verizon had to -- that's why they had such a quick reaction. >> within 24 hours they pulled the fee and it was a smart reaction. >> do you think customers will see this fee show up in another way in their bills with verizon. >> that's why i tell folks to really scour all of your statements every month from banking to utilities, cable because you don't know when these fees pop up. if they do pop up and see them, be vocal. go on twitter. >> you have that power. >> it's not like the old days where you picked up the phone and talked to one customer service representatives. now your complaints are not in a vacuum, they are in a public forum and it gives you the power to change things. >> carmen, thank you. happy new year. >> let's get to headlines from whit johnson at the news desk. good morning. >> rebecca, good morning to you. good morning, everyone. there are reports iran has already or is about to test other long range missile. the fars news agency said they were tested in the gulf. iran senior commander denies that but said they will. they threatened to stop oil shipments through the strait of hormuz in response. an arsonists struck again in los angeles torching seven or eight cars. they are trying to find if they are linked to fires yesterday. parked cars, one spread to a nearby home. one firefighter suffered minor injuries. president obama is delaying his request to ask congress to increase the debt ceiling by $1.2 trillion at least for a few days. congress asked for the delay because it's in recess until mid january and wants time to consider the official q the nation is close to hit the current debt limit. a trillion dollar increase would allow the government to borrow money through 2012. did you see this? an iowa wide receiver had to worry about more than oklahoma defenders. an espn tv camera overhead crashed onto the field in tempe, arizona late in the fourth quarter, narrowly missed martin mcnut, jr. he became tangled in the guide wire but wasn't hurt. hawkeyes lost to sooners 31-14. filling in for lonnie quinn this morning, good morning to you. >> as an iowa state grad, i had nothing to do with that, i was here in new york. $22 billion of weather disasters going out with a whimper this last day. talked about the great weather for the ball drop. there is rain showers this morning. travel trouble spots for today include new york for the morning but it's going to be nice. lower 40s for the ball drop, 50 in boston with rain showers along i-95 corridor. denver high winds but still pleasant. 48, houston, fog burning off for the morning. minneapolis turning to snow overnight but 40 degrees still 20 degrees above average for this time of year. quick check of the national scene, a closer look at the weather for your weekend. hang onto your hats, 80-mile-an-hour winds today and tomorrow for the first day of 2012. >> thank you. >> hold on. to outsiders it seemed like one of hollywood's happier marriages at least for a bit. >> pop star katy perry and comedian russell brand called it quits. >> reporter: fireworks katy perry were so well-known for singing about are different. in court documents her husband of 14 months british comedian russell brand asked for divorce. >> cited irreconcilable differences. he feels nothing could save the marriage at this point. >> reporter: the two met after brand hosted the mtv video awards where perry performed. their relationships proved one of the sweeter ones in 2011. in recent weeks there has been speculation something was wrong. rumors brand denied on a recent appearance of the "ellen" show. >> there's a rumor you and katy split up? >> what? she should have told me. >> reporter: then christmas she was photographed without her wedding ring while brand spent his in the uk. >> russell takes sobriety very, very seriously. katy is a pop star. she loves to tour. she loves to go out with her friend and have fun. >> reporter: in a statement given to the associated press, brand said i'll always adore and i know we'll remain friends. but for perry, the last friday night before the new year is hardly something to sing about. cbs news, hollywood. looking at that ellen clip, russell brand is a better actor than i gave him credit for. coming up superstar singer adele has a big year. winners and losers of 2011 coming up. this is the "early show" on cbs. incredible years for blockbuster trials. casey anthony accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter and then found not guilty. and amanda knox, her conviction was overturned. coming up, we will take ,, wm÷ sean miller just wanted to spend new year's eve here. >> i thought while i'm up, right? >> welcome to cbs. >> good to be here. >> excited to have you. how are you going to ring in the new year, john? >> i was thinking of going to times square. >> really? >> i haven't done it in years. it is one of those experiences if you haven't done it, you have to do it at least once and i think it's time to do it for the 11th or 12th time. >> wow. >> you listen to a police -- the whole time you're there to make sure. >> this is kind of embarrassing but yeah. >> you do? wow! maybe we could all experience it that way. >> it's so loud and so much going on. if something happened it would be hard to tell so i like to have that other feed coming in soo so while you're bringing in the new year. >> do you rush to the service of the nypd at that point? >> i'm working for cbs. if something happens, that is the story. that could be overtime actually. >> are you able to have fun or is it like you're too busy watching suspicious vehicles and all of that? >> you can have fun and look at suspicious vehicles at the same time. >> i guess that is true with a million people and a few drinks and in times square, why not? >> what an art form. suspicious people and have fun at the same time. those people do not have a police blotter at their disposal, any advice for people going down there tonight? >> the practical device is keep your eyes open and if you see something suspicious, report it. we do live in that age. >> right. >> the other advice is not going to be that cold but dress warmly because you're outside for a long time and have a good time. >> have a good time? >> yeah. >> i like that. whit, the most important thing. i hope everyone has a good time this holiday, this new year's. be safe out there. we will be right back. future to uncover the big stories of 2012. now we turn to russ. >> aging pop stars on the phone for you, rebecca, about the last comment. 2011 was a huge year in the courtroom. outrage over the acquittal of casey anthony and total vindication of amanda knox and conrad murray responsible for the death of michael jackson. here with more insight to the cases that defined 2012 and a look at next year's big legal battles is jean casarez from "in session" on trutv. casey anthony, the case built over the year. >> there was a little missing girl and i think the country turned to nap the cast of characters came out and we found her mother hadn't reported her missing for 31 days and george and her mother and i think they turned the case on its head when they said that caylee died and drowned in the family's pool and george anthony sxexually molestd her and then the stunning verdict. >> the people spoke. she was found not guilty. as someone who covered that trial, were you shocked at that verdict? >> stunned. absolutely stunned, yeah. >> interesting. let's move on now to amanda knox. the american college student who was freed after four years in an italian case. another case the public came more and more interested over the years. >> that's right. i think we learned how evidence can be fabricated from nothing, how someone can sit in jail and be convicted. also i think the lesson here is when you're in another country, you're governed by their laws, their police and you're rights as an american are really trumped for the country that you're in. >> another big trial this year conrad murray in the death of michael jackson. no surprise as to why so many people were interested in this were ysurprised at the verdict? >> no. i think one of the headlines is southern california has not been able to get a verdict of guilty in a celebrity trial. they got it with conrad murray. on the ninth floor where the trial was held, the fans of michael jackson lined that hallway every day of that two-month trial and near the end, russ, as the prosecutors would leave the courtroom for lunch or a break, they would start to cheer on the ninth floor for the prosecutors! the jury had to hear that. they were never around that, but you could hear it on the whole floor and that was amazing aspect, i think, of that trial for me. >> vander slut never charged for the killing of natalie holloway. he is being tried in peru for murder of a girl there. the trial will begin on friday. ultimately he will go to trial. many of the laws -- of course, he's not an american citizen, but many of the laws in peru are similar to ours. however he is charged with first-degree murder but no life in prison in peru. the maximum he can get is probably 35 years but i think we may see on friday when the trial begins, he may have an acceptance of responsibility. he confessed very explicitly. whether it was a true confession, we don't know, because joran van der sloot isn't one to tell the truth. if convicted of killing her he could get as little as seven years. >> coming up in 2012, jerry sandusky, former assistant coach at penn state and going to court to testify against charges against him of abusing kids. how -- how much of a circus do you expect this to get? >> it's amazing so far. first of all, we will see on the side of the prosecution will more alleged victims step forward and will there be more charges? sandusky may continue to do interviews and in a sense put himself in a corner because everything he says can be brought into a court of law when that trial begins so stay tuned. >> are you surprised he keeps talking to the press? >> very surprised. >> his lawyer is telling him it's okay to do? >> very surprised. this could come into trial as a statement against the interest. if it doesn't add up to the evidence the prosecutors have, there are inconsistencies. >> jean casarez, thank you and happy new year. >> and to you too. now sean mclaughlin is filling in for lonnie quick. am i the first person to do that? >> not the first in the last 20, 30 years. >> 2011 looking clear in the southern plains. a mixture of snow and rain in the northeast. northern plains, future radar here from 9:00 a.m. until 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning for the first day of 2012. you can see wintry mix of rain and snow through minneapolis but here's the hot spot. chicago. up to an inch by tomorrow morning. possible flight delays. and then up to 3 to 6 inches up in through the northern and eastern great lakes. in fact, the great lakes, russ, heading into cleveland, down about two feet of snow that will all change in the next 24 to 48 hours. coming up next, two sisters who made 2011 their year. which sisters are they? well, you're looking a picket of them. we will look at the winners and losers in the year that is just about to come to an end. 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