listen to newt gingrich and hannity later on tonight. watch. >> i'm clearly the more conservative candidate by any rational standard. 90% of the american conservative standing for 20 years. it helped ronald reagan and jack kemp develop supply-side economics and led the effort to defeat communism in congress and helped the speaker of the house balance the federal budget for four straight years. that part is no contest. >> dana: i think michele bachmann would disagree. she went out right away and attacked gingrich on them gration piece. she did an ad, last week that i'm the true conservative in the race. >> eric: fair. >> dana: santorum would disagree and so would perry. >> eric: he was asked a question who is more conservative you or romney? >> dana: gingrich ads another point. i'm not just the most conservative. i'm the most electable. >> a big difference, though. is it not, bob? >> bob: go ahead. >> dana: no, go ahead. >> bob: what strikes me about this is one, he talks about he was the most conservative with ronald reagan. and worked w

newt gingrich is appearing at a pizza place in iowa. >> okay. we're a little suspicious of this one because you know, you read about it. it sounds like an attempt to move in on herman cain's turf. godfather's pizza. turns out this pizza party in iowa has zero to do with godfathers. actually at a place called pizza king and they're calling it a slice the deficit party, which sounds like something ron paul -- ron paul might be interested in that, right? doesn't sound like they tried to do anything special with the theme, if you will. our producer did some snooping around, called him up and checked and he says they don't even have a specially named pizza for tonight's event. >> if craig was hoping he would get the goods, he tried. we appreciate it, but no dice. no dice. >> no. >> go ahead. >> even -- if newt gingrich had spin doctors working on this, they would have something like thin crust pizza you call it no waste, fraud and abuse pizza. >> thank you so much and now to wolf blitzer. you're situation room starts you. >>> it's a huge day on wall

newt gingrich is appearing at a pizza place in iowa. >> okay. we're a little suspicious of this one because you know, you read about it. it sounds like an attempt to move in on herman cain's turf. godfather's pizza. turns out this pizza party in iowa has zero to do with godfathers. actually at a place called pizza king and they're calling it a slice the deficit party, which sounds like something ron paul -- ron paul might be interested in that, right? doesn't sound like they tried to do anything special with the theme, if you will. our producer did some snooping around, called him up and checked and he says they don't even have a specially named pizza for tonight's event. >> if craig was hoping he would get the goods, he tried. we appreciate it, but no dice. no dice. >> no. >> go ahead. >> even -- if newt gingrich had spin doctors

go after newt gingrich. he's going after newt gingrich who now, together with mitt romney, they are the two front-runners for the presidential nomination. some are suggesting that it's a two-man race. gingrich and more herman cain support if in fact herman cain drops out. and we're now beginning to see mitt romney suggesting, you know what, he's a businessman, spent his whole life in the private sector except for four years in massachusetts but gingrich has been in washington for 30 years. he's a washington insider and he's beginning to make those kinds of cracks, accusations, so it's beginning to show the heat from newt gingrich. this could get tough over the next four or five weeks and the battle between newt gingrich. >>> coming up in "the situation room" we'll see what is going on. wolf, thank you. >>> coming up next, the first civil lawsuit has been filed in the former penn state assistant football coach, jerry sandusky. the alleged victim says sandusky abused him more than 100 times. we'll tell you who

you wouldn't expect many people to be talking about newt gingrich. they wanted to know more about him. is he different? has he changed? is he someone we could seriously look at? newt gingrich himself has told me and others, he may not survive the next few weeks of vetting, but if he does, he has emerged as a powerful and potentially upset rival to mitt romney. he's getting a lot of -- there's some excitement about him and mitt romney needs to bring some of that magnetism back to his own campaign. look at the polls, what we've seen here in the last few days. newt gingrich has now moved ahead in iowa. he is second in new hampshire. he surged in new hampshire. second to romney. he has opened up a lead in south carolina of some 15 points. there's a poll out of florida today, these are early, poll out of florida today shows newt gingrich up by 24 in florida. if he were to sweep all those states except new hampshire, he'd be hard to beat. this may not last. as we've seen, it's mercurial in republican primaries. there's something going on that we can recogn

>> i think among the contenders, you have to think that newt gingrich will benefit from this. a lot of voters say i'm off the herman cain train. >> thank you very much. good seeing you. >> great to see you. >>> the nation's best selling drug is about to get a lot cheaper starting today. how you can cash in on lipitor losing its patent protection. we'll go to new york stock exchange for details and an update on the markets that are set to surge this morning. they're going to open at the bottom of the hour. we'll keep watching that. >>> growing a stash and raise some dough. now, it's time to shave. the hairy top lips go away today. we'll tell you why, next. neutrogena® t/gel shampoo defeats dandruff after just one use. t/gel shampoo. it works. neutrogena®. vietnam, 1967. i got mine in iraq, 2003. u.s.a.a. auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation, because it offers a superior level of protection and because u.s.a.a.'s commitment to serve the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto insurance quote. u.s.a.a.

newt gingrich has been taking heat for immigration comments. last night o'reilly asked him about the border. take a listen. >> would you put a border from brownsville to san diego if you were president? >> yes. >> okay. >> absolutely. >> but you support a registration of illegal aliens? >> yes, i would support a universal registration of those who are here illegally. >> sanctuary cities, what do you to them? >> we'll propose a bill to cut off funding to any sanctuary city or sanctuary state. they get no money of any kind from the federal government, period, as of that moment. >> what do you think, greg? >> he's got his opinions. >> i'm for a border fence, but to keep the attractive immigrants in, based on my immigration policy of good-looking people. the thing is the problem with newt he's so full of himself he needs two heads. he carries one around in a duffel bag when this one is full. no matter what he says, people get like more newt. >> he has an answer for everything. the question about the fence is a good one. a lot of these immigrations

there's a new poll showing newt gingrich well ahead in that state so florida would be a crucial pickup for governor romney to say in this race and to stay in that front-runner role. and so florida is very key to their hopes at this point, brooke, if they want to win this nomination. >> jim acosta in florida. thank you. >>> she was 16 years of age when she was forced to be a prostitute. now she's a young woman and she wants the rest of us to know what football legend lawrence taylor did to her. >>> plus, new information in the case of the young man who went missing after her appearance on "the people's court." we're on the case. at liberty mutual, we know how much you count on your car and how much the people in your life count on you. that's why we offer accident forgiveness, man: good job. where your price won't increase due to your first accident. we also offer a hassle-free lifetime repair guarantee, where the repairs made on your car are guaranteed for life or they're on us. these are just two of the valuable features you can expect from liberty mutual. plus, when you insure both y

i think they would probably end up going to newt gingrich. the tea party supporters have gone from bachmann to perry to cain and now it looks like they are headed to newt gingrich. he's leading in iowa and has a lot of momentum behind him. it looks like he's the one that will take on mitt romney. herman cain seems to be caught in political quick sand and there's no way out for him. >> liz, what do you think? >> i couldn't agree more. i mean, what's really fascinating about the republican primary season this year, there is a large chunk of the republican party, republican base, that just can't find a candidate. first bachmann, then perry, now cain now we're gingrich. it's fascinating and we're only about 35 days out from the iowa caucus and nobody knows what will happen. i do think herman cain's roller coaster ride is coming to an end. >> one of things they are say they are reassessing during next few days, they'll look at fundraising. after the first allegations came out, he brought in a lot of money online and elsewhere to his campaign. do y

newt gingrich says 15%, rick perry says 20% and herman cain says 9%. a flat tax hurts the middle income spectrum more than anything else because if you take a flat tax, a 20% flat tax, 4% tax hurts you more than a $20,000 tax of somebody making $100,000 a year. right now there are a lot of exemptions and tax credits for people who are at the lower end of the income spectrum. if they lost those, a flat tax would hurt them more. >> all right. christine, thank you. i want to go to wolf blitzer who has some new information coming out of the herman cain campaign. wolf, what do we know here? >> what we know is that the republican presidential candidates, suzanne, had a conference call with senior staff. a lot of people were on that conference call, and during the course of that conference call, he said he was going to reassess his position right now in the republican race for the white house. not necessarily drop out, but wanted to reassess. he gave a couple earlier examples of where he had reassessed in the past. after the iowa straw poll, michele bachmann

it may as well be newt gingrich. the reason this puts him in the crosshairs, though, he says he's more conservative than mitt romney, and that requires a very close examination of his own record, and there is a question whether he's more conservative. newt gingrich supported t.a.r.p., he supported freddie mac. whether he lobbied or not, we know he got paid a million dollars by them. so is he as conservative as mitt romney? who knows. we'll go through his record now line by line by line. >> chris? >> i think at this point, newt is doing what he should do, which is dnc has come out with this attack ad questioning mitt romney. and as a result of that, i think what newt is doing is starting to pile on. and i think actually that that is a smart strategy. now, to the question as to whether or not he is more conservative than mitt romney, i think the answer to that is probably yes. however, the caveat is it depends on which mitt romney we're talking about, which is why a lot of conservatives, myself included, actually don't

newt gingrich is going to school him. it will be so bad he will deliver enough sympathy to win the election. >> bob: somebody elig said nice things about newt. do we have bill clinton up here? >> he is articulate and tries to think of a conservative version of an idea that will solve a legitimate problem. for example, last night, i watched the national security debate last night. newt said two things that would make an independent voter say i've got to consider that. >> bob: that is the key. newt made independent voter statements. we would prefer to run against gingrich than romney. i think bill in his own way there is a good old boy, he's just fine. from my stand point, newt is terrific. >> eric: i think you're right that the obama administration would rather run against anybody but romney. seen the mitt versus mitt ad? >> dana: the white house is exciting they are going to run against romney so that's why they're making time and money ads against -- >> bob: i'm not sure it's wasting. >> dana: it's too early.>> all of us

an important night for newt gingrich. a town hall meeting, trying to tell conservatives in this conservative state, look at me. i know you were talking earlier, this is a first television interview he will do since getting the union leader endorsement in new hampshire. he's trying to build momentum. >> talk about the significance of the "union leader" endorsement. why is that such a big deal? >> well, it's important because it's a statewide newspaper, the leading conservative editorial voice in the state of new hampshire, a newspaper that mitt romney has courted and courted and courted in hopes of getting that endorsement. he's been at it for three, four years courting them. essentially the editorial says on the front page mitt romney will say anything to get our endorsement. newt gingrich may not be perfect, but we think he success a good candidate. when with the union leader gives you the endorsement, it's not just one day. it's usually over and over again. new hampshire votes second, after iowa. romney is way ahead rig

does newt gingrich scare the obama administration? >> the anyone but romney narrative is actually one you are seeing taking place through the republican primary right now. you've had a different front-runner every month and you've got a new one in november. we could have a new one in december all together. as to who obama wants to run against? i think he has a strong record to stand on and we're willing to -- democrats are willing to stand on what we believe and what we're fighting for for the rest of the year no matter hot nominee is. the problem here is that if romney has made new hampshire his fire dull wawall and is not the endorsement of the daily paper, that's a problem. because the people who know him best are the ones who have a problem with him. not a good sign six weeks away from the first primary. >> you read the endorsement, let's take a listen to the paper's editorial page editor. it is not exactly a ringing endorsement. take a listen. >> we consider the candidate overall. i mean we don't just look at the poll numbers. th

. >>> newt gingrich surging in popularity now. i'll tell you about the endorsement that he got in new hampshire that could be bad news for the romney campaign. oup. >>> after 16 terms in the house, barney frank says he's not going to be seeking re-election. live from the political desk in washington to talk about this and more. joe, obviously the conservatives, they're not losing any sleep over this. he was an enemy of the conservatives. what does this mean? he is a larger than life political figure? >> he certainly is. you and i know, suzanne, he is the frank of dodd-frank which is that banking reform bill that republicans love to hate. they've been talking about that so much on the campaign trail. a controversial figure. he is expected to announce his retirement today. been in congress for 16 terms. known for all kinds of things. house financial services committee. one of the first openly gay members of congress, among other things. dodd-frank is the kind of bill that people have talked about again and again and again. even the

and now here's newt gingrich today. but my own sense right now is that while he will pay a short-term price, especially in iowa, he clearly has got the momentum, as you suggested. this endorsement from "union leader" in new hampshire was a terrific boost for his campaign. just when he needed it. because he is getting all this attention now. but what the question was, how do you sustain momentum with no debate this week? and here he gets "the union leader", in a state that looked like a laydown for mitt romney. this by no means -- "the union leader" has endorsed conservatives in the past who have not won. so it doesn't guarantee anything. but it does give newt more credibility and more stature, and that's what he's seeking right now. kyra, he has -- he knows -- i have talked to him about this. he knows the next two to three weeks are crucial to his campaign. if he is still standing as a viable alternative after christmas, he will become probably the serious alternative to romney in the campaign, and it could be a real cl

the same thing they are saying about newt gingrich now. he has already said some of my mistakes will be between me and god and i hope god can forgive me as well as the american people. people want more of that type of demeanor from their politicians than what they are getting with cain. and as long as cain is like that it will be a problem. >> lz, who do you think obama would like to meet in the jerlt election, romney or one of the nonromneys? >> i think he would rather meet one of the nonromneys with the exception of jon huntsman. i have been talking to him since he made his candidacy unknown. if you look at his resume, it is something the president should be fearful of. same thing with romney. both men happen to be mormons and i believe that is why they can't get over the hump. i think clinton is actually playing with the -- >> again rich is a great thing. who said it is not an issue this year? we had an evangelical pastor who issued perry and said that mormonism is an issue this year. >> lz, it doesn't hold much weight because he is in

in this incredibly important election, that candidate is newt gingrich. so how is the track record for "the union leader." take a look. four years ago it was john mccain. i guess they got that one right. mccain won the primary, went on to win the nomination. go back earlier, steve forbes in 2000. patrick buchanan, pierre dupont in 1988. back to 1980, ronald reagan the last time that the newspaper got it right in new hampshire. what about where the latest polls are? look at this, a poll out last week this is still mitt romney's state. this is a suffolk university poll. and romney at over 40% right now in new hampshire among likely primary voters. gingrich starting to gain. he's at 15%. still pretty far back. six weeks to go until the new hampshire primary, fred. >> meantime, herman cain, we said many analysts said that the numbers would change. who is out front, who is at the bottom, all of that would change. so herman cain, he's going the other direction. he's going down now when he was enjoying, you know, riding high on the polls. >> he was. remember, he

but newt gingrich says he wants to get rid of social security. yeah. well, wait a minute, let's think about it. who is more qualified to give this country financial advice than a guy who ran up a half million dollar bill at tiffany's. that's the guy. >> that's david letterman punching some fun at newt gingrich. he has had a big week with the jump in the polls and a key endorsement. chief political correspondent candy crowley wraps it all in this week's game changer. >> give this week to newt gingrich, the latest republican game changer to rise in the polls and today's brass ring recipient. he won the endorsement of the influential conservative newspaper "the new hampshire union leader." the paper praised gingrich for bold, innovative ideas that will help a country in crisis. mitt romney has consistently led the polls in new hampshire, but the editor of the editorial page says romney is too careful a guy, trying to please everyone. >> i don't think we're in the kind of situation right now as a country that that's necessarily the right kind of president

. >>> republican presidential candidate newt gingrich picks up an important endorsement from new hampshire's largest newspaper. today's edition of "the union leader" says the former house speaker is by no means the perfect contender, but calls him the best candidate who is actually running. >>> right now, back to our top story. lori fine, wife of syracuse university associate head basketball coach, bernie fine, may have been aware of her husband's alleged inappropriate acts with children. espn's outside the lines released audio tape given to them by bobby davis, the man who has publicly accused the coach of years of molestation. in the tape mrs. fine says among other things she witnessed one of the acts. espn has independently confirmed the voice on the recording is that of lori fine. here is espn's mark schwartz. first a warning, the piece you're about to see contains graphic sexual content. >> bobby davis says he knew of one person who could validate he was being sexually abused by bernie fine. that person was fine's wife, lori fine. >> hello. >> hello. >> hi, bobby, how are you? >> davis

but it's been talked about, some thought that newt gingrich peaked too early. you want to peak on election day. >> yes. >> he's here now and has time, needs to keep this momentum up. if you're at the top now and doing really well in the polls and now people are in the holiday, not paying as much attention, christmas is coming up, people have got other issues, are you in a pretty good position now? because you're not at the top of mind for people anymore. >> yeah, five weeks is more than enough time to blow it for newt gingrich. he's gotten more than enough time with consistent statements like this for conservatives to hop off the bandwagon. but the good news for him is that voters really start to pay attention to other things instead of just what's happening in the republican primary like what's on sale at best buy. where's my 52-inch tv. you know, they are not like, what is -- what is newt gingrich saying about immigration today. so people have lives. they start to live those lives in the holiday season. all these other candidates now, they are doubling down.

republican candidate newt gingrich is standing firm in his call for a more human approach to the illegal immigrant issue. he says those who just came here should go home, period. he said those here with longer ties and family should not be kicked out. he is a supporter of amnesty. >>> the caucus will not serve an eighth term in congress. charles gonzalez says he's been in congress for 14 years and he wants to do something else. >>> for the latest political news, you know exactly where to go, cnnpolitics.com. >>> now a little time for some virals. karen maginnis back now. this is crazy, zany, over the top. we hinted to it earlier, flour everywhere. >> these poor little -- one is three years old, left alone, five-pound bag of flour. he's already wearing the prison stripes. >> that's right. that's funny. >> just for a hot second or a couple minutes, apparently mom went to the bamthroom. when she came back, this is what she saw. they had a field day with flour. a five-pound bag of flour can do that much damage. >> i'd like to think i never did that as a little one. >> i don't think i did, ei

she gave the same answer as newt gingrich. >> kimberly: but you like the approach? it's fine she did it? >> andrea: she didn't clarify what she would do with the 11 million. >> eric: what would he do? give them red card to allow them to stay and not vote. >> bob: that is not what he said. >> eric: what did he say? >> bob: let me explain. >> eric: is it what he said. >> bob: the only republican that understand hispanic bush was george bush. he got 44% of the vote. gingrich is in a position not only where the country is but the republican party is. not necessarily the primary or caucus voters. he said if you are here 25 years. you put down roots that are automatically american citizens. and he doesn't want to break up families. the rent should be sent back. >> eric: did he not say they can stay with the -- >> bob: over 25 years. >> eric: he did say it. >> bob: give you the math. that takes it from 11 million to 1 million. >> eric: i don't think so, bob. i don't think so. >> bob: you think that -- >> eric: i don't know what the number is. i don't think he knows what th

newt gingrich is standing firm in his call for a more humane approach to the illegal immigration problem in the u.s. he says illegal immigrant whose have come here recently should go home period. he says those with much longer ties in the u.s. should not be uprooted from their families and kicked out. gingrich's plan includes an earned path to suzeshicitizensh. >> the chairman of the congressional hispanic caucus will not seek an eighth term in the u.s. house of representatives. congressman charles gonzalez of texas says he has been in congress 14 years and wants to do something else. he says right now he doesn't know what his future plans are. >>> and for the latest political news you know exactly where to go. cnnpolitics.com. join us every sunday afternoon at 4:00 eastern time when we dedicate an entire hour to the presidential contenders in this 2012 election. who ate my cookies and milk? oh, brother. hey, guys. ni-i-i-ck. oh... i thought those were put out for me. i did it again. no worries, nick. [ sighs ] say, nick, you must be busy this holiday. oh, yeah, with all the great saving