we ha we have begin to keepip keeping thkeeping th against time. a race betweenp sais it irsais agreemep agreement agreeme bloody conflict and opposition forces which say that is a flatout lie. caught in the middle, hundreds of civilians pleasing for the international community including the united states to step in and stop a massacre. although no journalists are being allowed in, these are the videos coming out of syria tonight. reportedly showing tanks, snipers and artillery units pounding away at neighborhoods surrounding by thousands of troops. while observes of the arab league are arriving in damascus to verify beshear al assad is keeping his promise to dial back

the violence, start talks with the opposition and let aide workerlend a hand. before showing this next video i really do want to warn you it is very hard to watch. you may want to turn away. it underscores the sharp contrast between the two different versions of what is going on here. this is video claiming to show the aftermath of an artillery strike today on the city of hanms. there are more than just the one body you see here. it's too gori y to show. take a look. [ gunfire ]

>> these are streets of a neighborhood. the gunfire in homs is reportedly nonstop now. some witnesses say it seems as if government troops are basically racing to wit out the opposition before observing can arrive. the worst appears to be happening in baba amr southwest of the central part of homs. it's not clear whether arab league observes will see this tomorrow. keeping them honest, just a couple of weeks ago president assad denied there was anything to see. >> we don't kill our people. nobody kill, no government in the world kill its people unless it's led by crazy person. for me as president, i became president because of the public support. it's impossible for anyone in

this state to give order to kill. >> that was president assad december 9th talking to abc's barbara walter. his own people as anderson found out from a rare western reporter who managed to sneak into the country, his own people knew better even as he said that. >> people are terrified in a lot of the towns outside syria. the economy has ground to a standstill. there are daily violent house to house raids. activists and protesters are too scared to leave their houses during the day. so they live life on the run. moving from safe house to safe house. life is not normal. in fact, it feels like wartime era there. >> when you hear the syrian leader, the dictator of syria, saying we're not ordering the deaths of people, there are no house to house searches, people aren't being arrested and killed in their homes, what do you think? you've seen it for yourself.

>> yeah. i mean, on some level, it's quite laughable. i was watching an assad interview. i was laughing at the same time, screaming at the television. of course, what's happening there is absolutely undeniable. it's all around you. you can't escape it. >> since then, it appears that it's only gotten worse for the people living in homs. that arab league delegation we mentioned at the top arrived in syria this evening. the members are at least expected to go to homs tomorrow. we don't know if they will. the opposition puts little stock in the arab league and is calling for action from the u.n. including military protection if they can get it. we spoke earlier tonight with opposition member abu rami. >> well, the situation here in homs is so bad in baba amr area in particular is under shelling. and the security forces and

militia are using the armored vehicle and tanks and anti-aircraft armor, storming this area, storming this neighborhood. there are more than ten houses completely destroyed. and there were many bodies under the rubble there. there is now a genocide take place in this city of homs. >> do you have enough medical care for the people who are injured or any medical care for the people who are hurt? >> five days ago until now we don't have any medical supplies, any medical tools or equipment. also, there is a shortage of medical assistance. no doctors, there is no doctors enough. we are targeted. many of hospitals changed into prisons. most of injured people staying on the streets until they died. that's what's going on here in

homs. >> what do you want the world to know about what is happening in syria right now? >> that this regime is not honest. this regime just want to kill everyone who oppose him, everyone who says for assad to step down. we are calling to direct intervene to the whole organization and the international community to intervene here in syria and stop this bloodshed that's going on in syria and in homs in particular. there are massacres that are happening every day. we are appealing these world organizations to see what's going on here. we don't have the media here to -- to make you, the outside, watch what's going on. so i would like to thank you so much to make the syrian people's voice going outside through your free media and explaining to you what's going on here. we want you to intervene.

we want you to help us. we are suffering day by day and people are dying. children, women, every single person here is targeted and maybe will be killed tomorrow. >> let's dig deeper. time.com intelligence officer and cia officer robert baird. also robin wright. let me start with you with a very basic question here. people are using big words right now like "massacre" and "genocide" to suggest that whole sections of the population are being wiped out even as inspectors are arriving. are they overstating it or is that true? >> this has gone on for nine months now. this is not something that's been a short experience. the scope of it gets worse and worse despite the fact that the president of the country denies that he's ordering any kind of brutality against his own people. we're getting close to the point that we can use words like that. the united nations claims that

there are at least 5,000 people who've been killed. there's some estimates that 70,000 syrians have been arrested. some of those who've been released have talked about really brutal torture. the scope of this is now getting really horrendous. >> bob, let me ask you this. if you have a president of a country like this who wants to say against a backdrop of pictures like this that nothing is going on, that nothing is wrong, how much faith would you have that these inspectors from the arab league will even get to see the right areas? >> they're not going to see anything. he's just buying time with the inspectors. this regime feels it's under threat, existential threat. it's a minority regime. i've been talking to them today. they said, look, we're never going to give up bashar al assad. we're never going to give up fighting. we'll die to the last person. i think we're seeing a sectarian war here like we've never seen in the middle east.

at least in my time. >> explain to me what you mean, bob. >> well, you've got the sunnis are dug in. they're preparing for a civil war against those who control the military and the security services. a branch of shiia islam. but they're looked at by many sh sunni as postates. they've fallen away. a more difficult conflict than libya or even yemen or egypt. there are these sectarian divisions. as the fighting goes on it gets worse and worse. the fact is, we have to acknowledge it, the opposition and the rebels are killing regime figures. they are singling them out and murdering them and vice versa. so this is really very much a two-sided war which we can't forget. >> robin, the opposition here wants the other governments of the world to step in and do something about this. why can't they?

what's keeping the u.n. and other countries from stepping in and saying, enough already? >> well, with libya you had first a consensus among the arabs themselves and it then went to the united nations and then it went to nato. we haven't even gotten through that first step. the arab league is still trying to negotiate with the assad regime. they're very nervous, arabs in general, about setting a precedent, again, as in libya and that the west will get involved militarily. something they don't want given the u.s. intervention particularly in iraq. they don't want to set this pattern. so there's a reluctance to open the way for that to happen. i think the international community, frankly, doesn't want to replicate what happened in libya and i think there's frankly a nervousness nine months in or a year now into the beginning of the arab up risings that -- about what will happen next. who will take over. one of the big questions is if assad does fall, as many of us believe that he eventually will, what replaces him? that's not clear. you have a real problem today between the various opposition forces. they do not speak with one

voice. they are not using one set of tactics. you have the local coordination committees that are trying to engage in peaceful civil disobedience. get people out on the streets th are challenging. then you have the army defectors who've launched over the last month particularly an increasingly effective or visible campaign against the regime. they're using weapons. the two sides are not coordinating. they don't have a common strategy, a common vision. and that's a real source of concern. we don't know what happens next. >> bob, let me jump in on that point that robin just raised there about the military defectors. many of whom, as we understand it, are actually in this neighborhood that's being hammered so hard. they're trained fighters. they want to fight back. as somebody who's been involved in intelligence work, does that open any cracks for trying to say, look, there's a way to take advantage of the fact that there are military people on both sides of this to somehow get around the regime, to somehow

coopt this thing and quiet it down, or is the world going to stand by and just wait until a lot of people get killed? >> well, what the state department would like is for bashar al assad to step down, have some sort of committee replace him as much has happened in egypt. but with the army, what we're seeing is the beginning of -- of cracks in it. many of the rank and file, the officers from less important units are sunni muslims. undoubtedly, as no one can tell for sure, these are the people defecting, taking their arms. last night i talked to the muslim brotherhood. the syrian muslim brotherhood who are based outside the country. and they said they're desperately trying to get arms in to these defective units. they bring them in through lebanon or the coast. so far they haven't been successful. so i think that this -- we're looking at this conflict as getting worse before we find a solution. >> all right. robin wright, bob bear, thanks so much for joining us. i'm tell ing you, folks, it's

happening on the other side of the world. it may seem like it has nothing to do with you. these are big events this holiday week. thanks for joining us, you all. let us know what you think. you're on facebook, twitter and google. up next, the raw politics of courting a reluctant king make ner iowa. that's candidate rick santorum in hunting orange there. you may not recognize the other guy. congressman steve king. he's a big deal in iowa. everyone wants to know what he's thinking with just days to go until the caucuses. i will ask the congressman why he has not made a pick among the republicans. later on also, the mystery of a little girl's disappearance and the new reward being offered to anyone who can help find her in crime and punishment. first, let's check in with isa. >> hi, tom. we'll bring you the latest on the investigation into what happened at a connecticut home early christmas morning. and why firefighters could not do more to save the people inside. that and much more when ""360"

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many of us are taking it easy this week between the holidays, but the republican contenders are storming into iowa for support in next week's caucuses. the most recent polls still show

ron paul, mitt romney and newt gingrich pretty much tied for the lead there, but with only days to go, many in the hawkeye state have their eyes on a known kingmaker, especially when it comes to the strong conservative vote. u.s. congressman steve king went pheasant hunting with rick santorum today. look at him there, just as he has with other candidates. and once again, he ended the outing with kind words but no endorsement. with time running short, i spoke to the influential congressman. congressman, you're the kind of guy that people listen to in iowa, and they're listening really hard right now, but you're not picking anyone. what does that mean? do you not like any of these candidates? >> it means more that i actually like all of these candidates, and it is a very difficult decision. a large percentage of iowans haven't decided. i'm among them. i thought i would come to a conclusion in september or october. it's nearly the end of the december, and we're within a week of the caucus, and i've not

gotten to that point where my head and my heart come together. i've said when that happens, i'll jump in with both feet. >> why have you not decided? >> there are a number of reasons, one of them is how the field is spread out and another part of this is as the months have unfolded and i've watched the lack of will in this congress to tighten down on this spending, we're burning up our political capital discussing on whether we're going to be at $28 trillion of national debt or $26 trillion. europe and greece is ready to default and i've not heard from a presidential candidate the deep conviction how to get us out of this impending economic disaster we're in. i want to know when the budget will first be balanced, when we'll pay off the first net dollar on our national debt. i'd like to hear about a transformative tax policy. i'm hoping that yet happens. i thought i might get that for christmas and it didn't quite happen. >> you've raised a really interesting point. in our polls what people are most concerned about is jobs. the idea of worrying about the deficit and spending is way,

way down on the list compared to that. so if you can get the candidate who says what you want for your nod, is that a candidate who can win the election? >> that is one of those questions. but, you know, from my standpoint, i don't want to appear that i'm bargaining for some piece of policy that i want and using that as a chit or leveraging point. i really instead want to see that a candidate has that conviction and understands this, and, you know, we're electing a leader. that leader should be looking over the horizon and taking us where we need to go. it's not enough to react to the public. the public wants jobs, yes, and businesses have to be able to make a profit before they can pay wages. that's all part of it. but meanwhile, if neither democrats nor republicans show the will to tighten down on our spending and get us to a balanced budget, we could march off into a financial deback kl. we need a leader to lead us away from that, to lead us away from the abyss.

i'm not yet convinced any of them have that vision and are able to inspire the american people to take us where we need to go. >> your alternative, though, if you don't pick someone, if people like you doept decide who you want, is probably to allow president barack obama to be re-elected. i've heard an awful lot of conservatives say they're willing to compromise to stop that. what about you? >> well, i'm willing to compromise to stop that. i look at what he's done with our finances and extra $1 trillion a year in red ink, each year he's been in office at a minimum. and i look at him delivering us obamacare. that's got to go. we've got to repeal obamacare. i think all of the presidential candidates on the republican side have taken the oath to do that. i'm worried about the appointments to the supreme court. another four years of barack obama and i don't think we'll recognize the constitution in my lifetime again. those are all big things but it's not an easy decision. you don't just get to look at one side of the card and say i'll play this one or that one. most of it takes a subjective judgment and who actually can see in that crystal ball? i wish i could. >> in the end, do you think you're going to speak up on this?

because you've said before one thing that's very important to you is that iowa remain important in this process, and i imagine one of the ways it remains important is by people like you speaking up and saying, i'm picking someone i think should win. now back him. >> well, iowans do need to do that. and i would not have said months ago that was my intention if i didn't think that that was also a responsibility that i have. but i've also said that i have to come to a conviction before i could take such a position. i just challenge all iowans, come out to the caucus, make your decision, even if you make it late it's better than not making it. i think this will be a caucus where there are thousands of iowans that make up their mind right there in the precinct caucus listening to the speeches that are given on behalf of each of the candidates. the undecided caucusgoers might hear something in that speech. whoever is the best organized, whoever has the best and the most respected speakers at the many, many locations we have might just be the surprise of the night on the caucus. perhaps i'll get around to that conviction yet.

i want to just make this confession. that no one has accused me of being an equivocator overall these years. but tonight i feel like one. >> all right. we'll see if you reach that decision. i'm sure you'll come tell us first if you do. representative steve king, thanks so much for being here. >> thanks for having me. more on the raw politics now with gop strategist and former newt gingrich press secretary rich gaylon. also democratic strajist maria cardona, senior adviser to hillary clinton's 2008 presidential campaign. maria, let me start with you. you must be delighted to hear republicans talking this way. >> i've had so much fun during this process, tom, it's unbelievable, but you know the representative steve king brings up an interesting point. it's funny, because at first he dodged your question saying he wasn't endorsing anybody because he liked all the candidates so much. and then in the next breath he basically says that none of them are good enough for him and that's why he hasn't endorsed. but i think that it does upside

score the lack of enthusiasm among all gop voters for any one candidate both in terms of substance, in terms of their own history, in terms of whether they're going to be able to beat president obama or not. >> okay, you raise an interesting point there about lack of enthusiasm about the candidates. but, rich, i got to tell you, traveling the country there is no lack of enthusiasm for beating barack obama. it seems to me that what they're really doing right now, particularly conservative republicans, is playing a bit of a game of chicken. they're trying to say how far can we get to the right with the candidate we ultimately choose and still win. is that a fair assessment? >> i think that's right, tom. i've traveled with steve king four years ago. he endorsed fred thompson to whom i was the senior adviser. and i think that may have something to do with his lack of enthusiasm. >> that worked out really well for you, rich. >> but the point i think is that republicans, conservatives and moderates, may not have their

first choice as the nominee, but their last choice to be president is still barack obama, and as we move through this process, i think it will become clearer and clearer. and the polling shows both in the battleground states and elsewhere that enthusiasm among republican and republican leaning voters is much higher than it is amongst democrats. and that's what happens at the end of a first term when you've got the kinds of problems, some of which were the president's making. many of which were not. but people -- we've become the 11:00 society. we expect all crimes to be solved by 11:00, and all problems to be solved in an hour. >> you know, maria, that's one thing that rich raises here that i think is a very valid point. i think if i were a democratic leader right now the biggest thing i'd be saying to democrats is do not chill the champagne yet because we're very early in this process. and some chaos in the republican side, some confusion, doesn't really mean anything next

november, does it? >> there's no question about that. and i think that president obama and this white house will be the first ones to tell you that they're running as the underdogs. because regardless of who the gop candidates are right now, and, you know, regardless of how flawed most democrats think that they are, the problem is that this president is running against the economy. and right now the economy is not where we would all want it to be and the president will be the first one to say that. i think what's important here, going into this election cycle, the debate on the payroll tax cut, i think, was incredibly valuable for one reason. it started to define the debate about what this election is going to be about between a president and a party who is squarely in the court of the middle class, fighting for the middle-class and working-class families. and a party who all they've done all year is fight for millionaires and billionaires. frankly, the house republicans did such a good job of defining that debate for us as we move

into 2012. i think that's going to help the enthusiasm on the democratic side and we've already seen it. >> maria, we've all read the talking points. we'll move on from that but i get your point here. rich, let me ask you something about virginia right now and newt gingrich. is he toast now? to not even make it on the ballot in virginia, the issue isn't that you don't make it on p pal lot as much as what it says about your organization. if you're not organized enough to get on the ballot, you can't win. >> it's hard to get on the ballot in virginia. but clearly not impossible. it has to do with the age-old commonwealth battle between northern virginia and southern virginia. but the fact is that we may see another ipd kags of this lack of organization on the 3rd because the prevailing theory is that you've got to be organized to be able to get your people out to a caucus in iowa. you've got to have the lists. you've got to have people that steve king was saying -- who is really a decent guy.

you've got to be somebody prepared to stand up and talk for you, know who's going to show up. i'm not sure that newt's kind of telephone call campaign, having a conference call every day, is going to substitute for being able to have built an on-the-ground operation. and it showed in virginia. that's 50 delegates that he cannot compete for because he's not going to be on the ballot. >> maria, quick question here. would you rather have the republicans pick a candidate sooner so you know who your man is running against or would you rather have them keep mulling it over longer? >> i think it doesn't really matter in terms of what the final outcome is going to be for the democrats. because they're going to be ready. this president is going to be ready to run against whoever comes out of the process. but a drawn out process i do think is helpful. because the more infighting there is amongst the republicans, the more i think it shows where this president is going to be at the end. >> before you get too far down that track let me just remind you that the fight between clinton and obama went all the

way to june, and guess who got sworn in the next january. >> rich, you took the words out of my mouth. there were an awful lot of republicans gloating over that right up until election day when it didn't work out. >> but we were all unified. >> rich galen, and good luck as we head into the new year. >> thank you so much. still ahead, new controversy surrounding newt gingrich's marriages. gingrich claims his first marriage ended because his wife wanted a divorce, but court documents obtained by cnn tell a different story. we have the exclusive details. also ahead, crime and punishment. a new reward for information about a toddler who vanished just days before christmas. it's an amazing and heartbreaking story. what we've learned is coming up. d the yummy cereal? yummy. [ woman ] lower cholesterol. [ man 2 ] yummy. i got that wrong didn't i? [ male announcer ] want great taste and whole grain oats that can help lower cholesterol? honey nut cheerios.

let's catch up on some of the other stories we're following tonight. isha, a "360" bulletin. a bloody day in iraq. a suicide bomber in kabul got through security check points and set off an explosion and killed five people at the interior ministry in baghdad. at least 39 others were wounded. in san bernardino, californ california, police have arrested a man accused of shooting and paralyzing a u.s. soldier at his homecoming party. the victim, christopher sullivan, earn add purple heart after surviving a suicide bombing in afghanistan a year ago. georgia court documents obtained by cnn cast doubt on newt gingrich's claim that his first wife wanted the divorce in 1980. the files show jackie gingrich asked the judge to deny the divorce.

still, the gingrich campaign says he was simply following her wishs. and it was a very merry christmas for actor matthew mcconaughey and his girlfriend, brazilian model, camila alvez. they are engaged. the couple has two children. tom, he tweeted he'd asked her to marry him. i guess she said yes because he tweeted it. >> do you think he proposed to her over twitter? >> i think she was sitting across from him, he was like "hey, want to tie the knot." >> a dramatic re-enactment, very well done. magnificent. >> you get it all. the news and a little drama. as the end of 2011 approaches it's a chance too -- for us to look back at big moments in the news from pop culture to politics and so much more. we do it every year. we put it together in a big special. this saturday, new year's eve at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. eastern, write it down, stick it to the refrigerator, we bring you that special. it's all the best, all the worst of 2011.

here's a preview. ♪ >> the word "crazy" keeps coming to mind. a crazy year. >> i think it was one of those roller coaster years. >> talk about unexpected, right? >> this year's been all over the place. >> the final liftoff of "atlantis." >> this year was weird, wasn't it? >> i think it's been a tough year for the country. >> i agree. >> the iraq war is coming to an end. >> let's start with the biggest, best story of 2011. ♪ >> the wholesale return of american troops from iraq after more than eight years of combat, more than 4,000 lives lost, tens

of thousands wounded. whether you supported the war or not, this end was a long time coming. even with afghanistan still in play, it was welcome relief for many military families. but some of the happy reunions may have been stifled by the biggest, baddest story confronting everyone once again. >> what was the number one concern that everybody had was jobs. everybody knew someone who had lost their job. >> we've been hovering between 9.2% and 9.1% for the past couple of years. you know, that has defined 2011. >> a late year dip into the 8% range helped a bit, but despite a lot of ambitious talk from politicians about plans for recovering, the millions of jobs lost in the recession, unemployment lines remain long and frustration levels high. >> the retail slump continued. waa waa. >> it's horrible not to be able to pay for yourself, to have a job, to work at what you're good at. >> it feels like, i think, to a

lot of people that the game is rigged or they just can't get ahead. there are some very, you know, very severe imbalances in this country. >> at least there is this. if misery loves company, more americans seem to be warming to the notion that the whole world is in this economic mess together. >> we need each other. we need each other to buy each other's products and make it all work. >> biggest blow-up goes to the middle east where the arab spring movement ignited passions across the region. >> i don't think the middle east went crazy. we're just starting to pay attention. >> i think what we're seeing happening in the middle east is extraordinary. >> it's quite thrilling, and where is it all going to end? >> where, indeed. that's just a little taste of all the best, all the worst of 2011, airing saturday, new year's eve at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. eastern. after, make sure you ring in

2012 with anderson and comedienne kathy griffin 11:00 p.m. at times square. new year's eve, the only place to be that night, on cnn. just ahead, her father says she vanished from her own bed. it's a chance for you to help locate a missing little girl. stick with us. tonight police are offering a big reward, trying to find the missing toddler, ayla reynolds. and an apparent murder/suicide on christmas. new information tonight about the man who police say killed six members of his own family. stick around. [ male announcer ] you are a business pro.

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tonight in "crime and punishment," police in maine are offering $30,000 to anyone who can help them find ayla reynolds, a toddler who disappeared from her own bedroom days before christmas. her story starts our new steerz, "vanished." her father reported her missing on december 17th, saying he put her to bed the night before and found her room empty in the morning. investigators conducted dozens of searches, including the family's home and nearby pond and hiking trails, but police still do not know what happened to her. and at a news conference today they offered that big reward in hopes that it will produce

someone with concrete information. >> initially we had a lot of leads come in, as you might expect, but as the days and the investigation continued on, they dropped off somewhat. they were still coming in, they're still coming in, and again, we're in hopes in offering the reward that those folks who might not have contacted us with information will do so now. >> that's the police chief on this case, who also says he believes this is the biggest reward ever offered in maine in a missing person case. let's get more on this mystery from deb feyerick. >> reporter: it's friday night, december 16th. 20-month-old ayla reynolds is ready for bed, wearing her green polka dot pajamas with the words "daddy's princess" on the fraudulent. her father, justin dipietro, puts her to sleep. he says it's the last time he saw his daughter. the next morning, ayla was gone, vanished sometime during the

night. dipietro had been caring for baby ayla for weeks, after her mother, trista reynolds, checked herself into a ten-day rehab program. after completing rehab, reynolds filed court papers to regain custody of her daughter. the papers were filed the day before ayla was last seen. police say both parents are fully cooperating in the case, and say they have no suspects yet, but they are certain ayla was taken from her home on that friday night. >> we believe that someone was involved in taking her out of the house, and that's where the focus of this investigation has turned. >> reporter: two days after ayla's disappearance, trista reynolds tells various media outlets, including hln's nancy grace, that she worried her daughter was not safe with her father. the day after ayla's mother gives these interviews, justin writes a letter to law

enforcement. he says he has no idea what happened to his daughter. nor does he know who's responsible for her disappearance. adding, i will not make accusations or insinewuations towards anyone until police have been able to prove who's responsible for this. meanwhile, the search for ayla widens. police received nearly 200 tips. civilian volunteers joined state, local and federal authorities in over 80 searches of the area, including a nearby river, a pond, and several hiking trails. cadaver dogs are brought in. still, no sign of the missing girl. >> is she okay? is she laying somewheres dead? is she save? is she cold? is she being fed? it someone watching her? >> bring her home. just bring her home to us. i want my baby home. i want her home. >> and on christmas day, prayers instead of presents for ayla. it's been over a week since the

blond-haired, blue-eyed toddler was last seen. in these cases, time is the enemy. but police continue their search, hoping a new $30,000 reward will bring them closer to finding little ayla. deborah feyerick, cnn, new york. >> digging deeper into this case, let's bring in forensic psychologist helen morrison. helen, thanks for being here tonight. deb just said time is the enemy. >> that's right. >> i must say in my experience, whenever a child this young goes missing this long, bad news seems to be just around the corner. >> you're absolutely right about that. most people understand that the first 48 hours are critical in any investigation, and it's been so long now, and the question is, was she taken? who might have taken her? what would the motive have been? and where is she now? bringing in cadaver dogs is not

unusual. that's pretty normal as far as protocol is concerned. but the question is, with all of those leads, why hasn't there been someone named a person of interest? >> you raise an interesting point there, but the fact that there hasn't been a person of interest named against this backdrop of hundreds of leads. >> right. >> does that mean police don't have one or they're just not talking about it? >> they may not be talking about it. i think one of the things that police have learned over the years is that not talking tends to keep their investigation tight, and it doesn't allow a lot of information to leak. if a person of interest thought that they were going to be named, the question is what would they do in that type of a situation. but there have been so many statements about did this little girl walk out on her own. highly unlikely. was it someone in the house at the time? because there was another infant

in that same bedroom. so why was she taken, if she was taken in why not the other child? the speculation rings from was somebody on a revenge kick? did somebody need to have money owed to them? the speculation has gotten pretty wild. >> almost always in cases like this, unless i'm mistaken, helen, it's somebody who is either in the family or close to the family. at least police look at them very, very carefully. is it in the police interest right now to keep family members talking to each other about this, to see if something comes up, or is it in their interest to try to keep family members away from each other to kind of play people against each other, to either find a suspect or to rule them out? >> i think you're on the right track about that, but in this family, it certainly appears that they have no need to be kept apart. they are apart. they've not been communicating on the basis of their own wishes.

there's a tremendous amount of anger on the part of the maternal side of the family, and we've heard nothing from the paternal side of the family. so again, is it something that the police are doing? police always look at the intimate family. they are the people who have opportunity. they have exposure. and no one knows what motives might be. but family and intimate partners are always the first to be looked at. >> all right, helen morrison, thank you very much for joining us on this difficult, difficult case. i so hope we get some kind of decent news to come out of it. but thanks for being here tonight. >> thank you for having me. ahead, another deadly tragedy for a connecticut family this christmas. fire rips through their home, killing five people, including three young girls. why firefighters say they weren't able to go in and rescue them. also, police catch up with a group of teens accused of stealing thousands of dollars in cash and merchandise. and you will not believe what

they did to get the cops' attention. you must stay around. and who is copying whom? anderson takes on stephen colbert as part of our countdown of the top ten rediculist of 2011. looking good! you lost some weight. you noticed! these clothes are too big, so i'm donating them. how'd you do it? eating right, whole grain. [ female announcer ] people who choose more whole grain tend to weigh less than those who don't. multigrain cheerios... five whole grains, 110 calories.

will be giving away... passafree copies of the alcoholism & addiction cure. to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com. anderson has got the best of the ridiculist coming up. first, serious stuff. on the "360 news and business bulletin." >> tom, new information tonight on an apparent christmas day murder/suicide near dallas. police believed the gunman dressed as santa claus, opened fire at a holiday gathering right after gifts were unwrapped. authorities say he killed six members of his family before taking his own life. police expect to release autopsy results and the victims' identities tomorrow.

another christmas day tragedy. this one in connecticut. a massive fire at the stamford home of an ad executive. her parents and three young daughters were killed. the executive and a friend escaped but the flames were so intense, firefighters were unable to go inside to rescue the others. and here's a business tip. if you want a future in crime, don't brag about it online. pittsburgh police arrested fourteens. they're charged with robbing a local market. authorities say they found one of them after one alleged posted pictures on facebook posing with the loot. up next, number fun on anderson's ridiculist countdown of 2011. his beef with stephen colbert.

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we have been counting down the top ten ridiculist of the

year and this week we're down to the top five, based on your votes. and tonight a journey back to may when stephen colbert first made the list. take a look at number five on our countdown. >> time for the ridiculist. i got to admit, i struggled tonight whether or not to add this person to the list. but i decided in the end that enough is enough. so tonight we're adding a man by the name of stephen colbert to the list. now, at first i must admit i'd forgotten who stephen -- what? colbert? really? are you sure? the "t" is silent? stephen colbert, apparently. my team of professionals tell me i have been on mr. colbert's show, but i have no memory of that. anyway, a couple weeks ago i put sean hannity on the ridiculist because of a clip of his show edited to completely change the meaning of what i said. mr. colbert took issue and accused me of copying him. he went so far as to create

something called the absurdu chart just to put me on it. you, sir, are nothing but a thief because your segment "the ridiculist" is a clear rip-off of my on notice board, and for stealing my idea, i am putting you and your ridiculist on my absurdu chart. >> absurdu chart, sorry. words hurt mr. colbert, words hurt. the very idea i am copying you is simply ridonculist which is the original name i would come up with the ridiculist. i cannot believe you say that i'm copying you, oh i'm going there, it has been you copying me for years. that's right. i said it. i give you exhibit "a." here you are on the current issue of the cover of "outside" magazine. like you ever go outside. oh, wow, where could you ever

come up with the idea of being on the cover of "outside" magazine. oh, yeah. one year ago. april 2010. there i am. look. i'm on the cover of "outside" magazine. now my cover shot was a far more heroic pose, far be it for me to say, though i did just say it. exhibit "b." here's your ben and jerry's ice cream flavor. americone dream. sounds pretty good. wow. wonder where you could have gotten that idea? could it have been from my ben and jerry's ice cream which came out years ago? perhaps you've heard of it. anderson cooper's white bread ripple. little chunks of dry white toast in vanilla ice cream with vanilla pieces, swirl of gin and a hint of tonic? may not be as well known as yours, sir. it does have a brisk business. n

your chart was funny especially when you used peanut butter to affix my actual figure. i thought that was pretty inspired. >> there you go, boom! mmm, mmm, mmm. mmm, mmm, mmm. how's that taste, anderson? i assume like peanut butter. i didn't even check to see if you had a peanut allergy. the ratings feud is on! i await your next move. >> now, i know if i was one of these other cable anchors i would try to keep a ratings feud going with you. it would get attention. it would get ratings. it would be mutually again official. i'm not going to do that. i'm willing to let bygones be bygones, both adults and tv professionals, no need for a feud. it's certainly not worth it for me. because as we all know, at the end of the day, everyone goes to sleep after "the daily show" anyway. here's to you, stephen colbert. love your chart. m