and a very good morning to you. it is really early. hi, i'm ashleigh banfield. >> we're bringing you the news from a to z. let's get started. it's new hampshire eve as we're calling it around here. 24 hours to go. the rivals are turning up the heat on romney. you have been watching? a reporter from the concord monitor is going to join us later m folks run decided there. >> if you have also been watching that other big story out of penn state, they have a

new head coach. some call him an outsider. others say, you know what? maybe that's not such a bad thing. we're going to tell you the coming to jesus moment they had with the outcider. >> we have an over the counter drug recall to tell you about this morning. painkiller and many other drugs that you have in medicine cabinets. >> and did you hear the one about tim tebow? i'm kidding. did you hear this one? holy moly! and i stress the holy! is it divine intervention? what's this guy got that nobody else got? and will it get him all the way where he needs to go? i don't even like football and i'm excited about it. and a rookie to boot, right? >> i know. who knew? >> but up first this morning, it's final kounddown to the new hampshire primary. republican field is tangled in two weekend debates or they tangoed.

mitt romney is ahead in the polls. we have other candidates trying to knock him down. so here we are in the eve of the first in the mags new hampshire primary. let's get perspective and bring in our panel. our "new york daily news" columnist and will cane and from washington, democratic strategist mol elathy. thank you for joining us, everyone. >> good morning. >> let's begin with you. >> two new state polls show mitt romney slightly down. but still holding a solid double digit lead. in a university wdh poll, romney leads 35%. paul at 20%. hun huntsman at 11%. is it a sure bet that romney takes new hampshire? and if so, does it make the next 24 hours really about who finishes third? >> right. who gets up at 5:00 a.m. to talk about who finishes second and third, right?

but here i am. and here we are. i'm telling you, that's what this is about. >> we're happy you're here. yeah. >> no, but seriously, this is about second and third. romney looks like he's going to win new hampshire handedly. second and third is interesting. if huntsman can creep into second and make you wonder where can he go from here and does very to creep up in the second but a close second which i would argue probably does. so, yeah, it's who is second and third. what momentum does that give you going into south carolina which is going to be a much bigger indicator of where this is going to go in the future. >> all right. so let's turn to you. the polls were taken before this weekend's double debates where romney's opponents went on the attack, especially former speaker newt gingrich. let's listen in and then i want you to weigh in. >> i real realize the red light doesn't mean anything you to because you're the front-runner. but can we drop a little of pias

bologna. you ran before and you lost. the fact you is had a very bad re-election rating. you dropped out of office. you've been out of state for something like 200 days preparing to run for president. >> all right. so that wasn't it. the candidates all took their turn going after romney. rick santorum said when romney faced a difficult re-election run, instead of seeking a second term, he ducked and decided not to run. i'm going to play something from john huntsman who some people said couldn't get into the mix. listen to this and then we'll talk about it. >> you learn in one fell swoop the biggest difference between me and mr. romney. i'm somebody who believes in putting my country first. mr. romney apparently believes in politics first. i say that's a problem in this

country right now. you hear what i'm saying? >> so how effective are these attacks against romney? and will they even make a difference? >> yeah. i mean conventional wisdom is that it's too little too late. it's like someone just told these guys that for months mitt romney is the front-runner. john huntsman had a good performance, especially i thought in the saturday night debate. and he delivered that line, you know, i put my country first. and this is why the country is partisan. this is what's wrong with the country. i actually think he missed a huge opportunity. for huntsman to finally come out and say, look, i put my country first. i serve a democratic president again. but supporting the president is not the same as supporting his policies. and here's where i differ. with obama on the policies. that was his opportunity to woo conservatives.

doin i don't think he infeeffectiveld that. >> we just heard from huntsman. it's really important for him to stay in the mix. he's number three in the latest polls. do you think that he's going to be able to stay in the top three? if not, what happens? >> well, if not, i think he's done. he staked his entire campaign on new hampshire. he's got to -- there is probably three tickets out of new hampshire on to south carolina. he has to have one of those three or his campaign is done. whether or not he makes it, it's hard to say. the polls are kind of -- you know, while romney is out front by wide margin everyone else is bunched up for that second and third slot, i do think, you know, once again it shows the challenge. every cycle there is somebody out there who says i'm going to skip iowa, go straight to new hampshire and bank their entire campaign on that. it's tough.

you don't see that work all that often because you're just out of the conversation. everyone is so focused on iowa. you're out of the conversation. and so he missed an opportunity to get any momentum or buzz coming out of iowa. i think he could still do well in new hampshire. but, you know, it remains to be seen. >> all right. thank you so much for joining us this morning. of course, you can stay with cnn for the best political coverage on television. we'll have brand new poll numbers on the new hampshire race. and at 7. 3067 -- at 7:30 eastern, we'll have rand paul with us. >> doesn't that sound like u2. we commissioned the edge for that music. a couple news headlines. gabriel

gabrielle gi gabrielle giffords attend and event this weekend. and she led the crowd in an emotional pledge of allegiance. >> pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under god indivisible with liberty and justice for all. >> we have goosebump patrol on the set. i can't believe seeing that especially since she's still in recovery mode from that enormous head injury that she sustained from that gunshot. i am so glad to see that. i had to cover that story. i remember thinking there was that erroneous reporting that she had died. and then this. here we are a year later tshgsz a great story. >> nice to report that and see her doing so well. >> honest, really.

the goosebumps were there. >> the u.s. markets kicked off 2012 on a high note. on friday, the dow and s&p 500 slipped .5%. >> that's why we're singing friday, friday. christine is here on friday. sorry, christine is talking on monday about friday. i always love these day to day reports, especially whether we got our 2011 report which was -- >> i know. don't get too worked up about one day. this morning things are feeling okay. you have futures looking up a little bit. the big story here is that the united states is showing signs of live in terms of its economy. a lot of concerns about europe. we'll be closely watching europe and the rest of the world for growth there. the u.s. is starting to look up and it's a big world and the stocks respond to what is happening elsewhere. >> the world is flat. >> that's right. >> there's a story this morning that you love talking about. it's america's huge national

debt. >> i know. i love talking about debt. >> if you could just control it. >> here at cnn we've been talking about this since 2004 as our debt was going up. now it's a good political story. usa today bringing it home that the u.s. debt, our overall debt is past the size of the economy. now it's $15.23 trillion. it's a milestone. it's a warning sign that there is a debt bond in the united states. even as we talk about pulling back the reins on spending, we still have problems. this is the debt we owe other people, $10.5 trillion. that's the number that economists say is really important to watch. that means our debt is 70% of our gdp. the bad news is we're there. i mean our big debt is bigger than our economy. the good news is we look at just the debt we owe others, it's still about $10 trillion, too big but gives us a little breathing space. >> as our debt continues to

grow, is our gdp going to grow? >> you need to have your gdp growth. you need your growth. the economy needs to grow faster otherwise the debt is going to grow faster. that means as time goes on, you're just paying your interest on your bills to such an extent that you can't pay for other stuff. and that's a real problem. this is what republicans are talking about on the campaign trail. the important thing is how you're going to fix it. that's where it gets tricky. >> by the way, how about the 15% of people who don't pay their taxes. >> can you believe this? 15% of people don't pay taxes. it's an unbelievable number. $385 billion. the irs was $385 billion short. now the good news here is that you and i, joe and jane w-2 worked for a company. oh, they're getting the money out of us, don't worry. we're paying our taxes. it's automatic. but companies, small businesses and individuals underpaying to the tune of $385 billion. >> can you get a close-up on this. i want to ask you a question about this pie chart.

that big black area right there being look at them. they had it produced into a graphic in 20 seconds flat. how much of that is general electric? >> when you talk about the deficits that we were talking about and the national debt that berp talking about a moment ago, underreporting income and not paying all your taxes becomes that much more critical. you can imagine that the irs is going to come after you. you know millions do. that one out of eight millionaires are being audited, the highest in many years. >> wow. >> so, yeah, millionaires listen up. >> that's right. a little heads up for everyone. they want to make sure where the money is. >> and if the irs doesn't get you, christine is coming. >> no. i'm the good cop. >> thank you. we have a couple other things we want to get under way. we like to do something like get you ahead of the game, alert you as to what's happening. not just the news from

overknight and this morning. but to get you on to what is on prime time tonight. here's a big one. there are shots being taken in the united states. he's going to meet with venezuelan president hugo chaff tows day. he's on a tour of latin america today. he is going to go to ecuador and cuba. >> and the supreme court is stepping into the texas redistricting showdown today. wale hear arguments over new election maps that were changed by the gop-controlled texas legislature after the last census. so the changes could determine which party has control of the house of representatives in 2013. latinos say they were ignored when they carved out the new boundaries. >> and the future is on display today. if you just happened to be at the consumer electronics show. it's kicking off in veg yas,

baveg ya vegas, baby. smart tvs and even more powerful phones expected to dominate as the companies try to play catchup to apple. >> trying to figure out what all those gizmos are. >> and it's called the rematch of the century. number one lsu and alabama playing tonight in the super dome for the bcs national championship. lsu handed alabama its only loss of the year back in november in their first meeting. >> there was some bcs controversy. >> we will be after we're done here. >> i'm pretty sure they don't get baskets in football games. i do remember something about the bcs is a big ole hassle a few years back. i'm glad they -- well, i assume they settled it. i have no idea what i'm talking about. >> we'll look it up. >> it's 14 minutes past 5:00 and my mind doesn't work so fast at this hour. i do know one thing and that rob marciano may be very, very pretty. but alexandra steel is prettier. >> yeah!

>> but he's extremely pretty. >> you know he got us gifts. >> he d. >> he is smart and smooth and cute. he's got it all. >> what did you get us? >> nothing. i'm sorry. i'll bring you something after. how about some coffee? >> how about good weather. >> all right. good morning, everyone. let's look at the travel forecast. the southeast is seeing the bulk of the issues. rain and snow and also the fog. a lot of fog especially fli georgia and bam this morning. here is the southeast radar picture. west texas, three to six inches of snow, even up to eight in some areas. east texas, three inches of rain. definitely need it. very dry there. so as we head from there all the way farther eastward, what we're seeing here, more rain. so the mid-atlantic, southeast really going to see the rain today. even look at this, blue ridge mountains, year getting snow. moving all the way to washington, not the snow, but the rain. washington, almost 7 0 two days ago. so big picture. here's the rain in the

southeast. that's all the action. the snow in west texas. and the mild air continues to come down. temperatures well above average. take a look at these. minneapolis, 44 degrees today. above average almost 20. but upper midwest, northern plains, extremely warm. but by the time we get to thursday, these places like minneapolis that are 44 will be to 17. the cold sayer coming. it's going to take a couple days. >> poor folks. >> always s you know if you get the bonus now, you're going to pay for it. >> absolutely. >> it's been mild. >> i asked rob just to humor me ever so often and put winnipeg on the map. i'm telling you, my brother sent me a picture. there is almost no snow on the ground which is unheard of. >> absolutely. and so many places. even the iconic pictures of new hampshire this time of year with the snow and the town squares. >> you know what? our reporters are freezing their you know what's off up there. >> we'll take it. a little warmup and then cold temperatures, we'll take it.

>> great new show, guys. best of luck. >> and we're loving you. >> thank you. >> you are a gift. >> are you related to remington? >> yes, he's any daddy. >> thank you. >> it is 16 minutes past the hour. time to check the stories making news. >> the republicans are making the final push in new hampshire. mitt romney is still the man to beat. he's taking lots of heat from his fellow candidates. they are trying to close the gap. >> and a company called know various 'tis is recalling a few popular over the counter medicines. so listen up. it all happened after complaints came in of mislabelled or broken pills. the recall includes bottles of ecedrin and no-doz. and also bottles of gas ex-and bufferin. >> and tim tebow's play-off magic. his 80-yard touchdown pass on

the first play of overtime led the broncos to an overtime win over the pittsburgh steelers sunday. the broncos advance to play the new england patriots next week. i'm sure you didn't miss any of that? >> i missed the whole thing. i'm a tebow fan because he makes news. i'm not a football fan. actually, we have another football story that's making news and that is there is a new head coach of penn state. and we all know it's a very controversial story at penn state. but this could be a about thing for this group, at least they're thinking so after thinking not so much beforehand. . >> and look at this. this bungee cord snap over croc invested waters. find out what happens to the jumper. you're watching "early start." beth! hi. looking good! you've lost some weight. thanks! you noticed!

you know these clothes are too big now, so i'm donating them. not going back there again. good for you! how'd you do it? eating right, whole grain. whole grain? whole grain. [ female announcer ] people who choose more whole grain tend to weigh less than those who don't... multigrain cheerios has five whole grains and 110 lightly sweetened calories per serving... more grains. less you! multigrain cheerios.

it is 21 minutes past 5:00 a.m. on the east. if you're in los angeles, you probably had a really crazy sunday night of partying and probably heading to bed. >> perhaps. >> night-night. but if you're not heading to bed and just waking up, we have the morning papers for you and a couple things we've been seeing from miami to chicago. been to this store? yeah. bet you didn't know what might

have been going on behind closed doors. the founders of that company, three brothers, under some serious speculation after a lawsuit has been filed against them. actually, it's weird. only two of the brothers are being sued. but the other brother made a deal with the parent company because the parent company is livid. you are ready for the accusations they're filing against these three brothers, the founders? they are suggesting, i'm not kidding here, that they looted this company of millions by stealing electronics, by going on exotic trips on the company payroll, taking kick backs from vendors, and then i love this one, using employees for their personal errands. i didn't know that was so -- >> it's annoying but i didn't know it was illegal. >> it's a civil suit. they're not saying how much they're suing for. but it's estimated there are $17 million in electronics missing. >> can we good to my hometown now of chicago? >> yeah. >> we're going to check in on

the chicago sun times. they're reporting on billing problems on project shield. it's a homeland security program. it is supposed to make chicago area safer. but there have been a lot of untrained first responders, millions of dollars wasted. it was supposed to happen here. two police squad cars and 128 suburbs were supposed to be fitted with cameras. in addition, there were mix mounted cameras to be installed to feed pictures in case of a terrorist attack or emergency. it failed miserably. the cold weather has played a part in that. the cars malfunctioned during the extreme hot and cold temperatures. there was a loack of training. if you do a google search of $43 million, this is what you would find, wasted by the federal government. just did not work. >> unfortunate. we don't like to hear about taxpayer money being wasted.

>> spring semester starting out of penn state. there is a big news story and a big sports story. see that guy? that's your new head coach bill o'brien. he was the new england patriots offensive coordinatocoordinator. he is the replacement for joe paterno. a lot of people suggested he was an outsider. he wasn't a former penn state player or coach. that wasn't so key for a lot of folks. they didn't like that right away. and we're also hearing that one of the biggest breaks in the child rape investigation may have been penned by mr. san dus i can himself in his book. and i didn't know this. but the book is called "touched." we'll talk a little bit about what's in the book and this head coach from sarah gannom. she is live in harrisburg, pennsylvania. i love talking to you about this story. you've been on it since march. there is a significance to that. but first i want to find out

about this new head coach. if this is one of the jobs that nobody else wanted. >> it's interesting because that's what had been widely reported here in pennsylvania and really within the sports nation that nobody wanted this job. this was toxic. it turns out according to the search committee miembers that were allowed to talk once bill o'brien was announced, they say that's not the case. they had stacks and stacks and stacks of resumes from very highly qualified and big name coaches. but the way that this played out, they weren't looking for necessarily a penn state person but what they called a -- someone with penn state heart. and they found that in bill o'brien. they said his name was in their piles from the beginning. there wasn't so much direct contact from the beginning because of, you know, the situation with football and with pro football, college football. if you have a job, you don't

necessarily want to jeopardize it by looking for a job. by the time they got so far in the negotiations where they were talking to him face-to-face, they really just fell in love with him. >> and they had a come to jesus meeting this weekend with the players and the other folks within the organization to just win them over? >> you know, he said he couldn't wait to get started. he couldn't wait to meet the players and the key people at penn state university. although on saturday, it seems like about 100 fans, about 100 people that were not part of the media or with penn state but were in penn state garb showed up and were cheering loud applauses that caused them to stop for a minute during his speech and, you know, it seemed like people were accepting of him although there have been some very vocal people. >> let me move on quickly to rodney ericsson, he was the second in command at the university. now he's taken over as new university president. i know that you were in a news conference with him asking about

what did you know? whether did you know it? he's suggesting he didn't know anything until the grand jury testimony came out. but you asked him, what are you talking about? people have been reporting on this since march. you are kidding me? and he didn't answer? >> right. right after bill o'brien was announced as head coach, he made himself available to a small group of the media. someone asked him, how is it that penn state seems like they were so caught off guard when this was widely reported as far back as march? he said, you know, i didn't know anything until november when i read the grand jury report. i didn't know penn state was involved. i had heard some things about something in another county but didn't know anything about penn state. well, you know, i basically followed up with my report in march mentions that your president -- your former president head football coach joe paterno, several other people received before the grand jury were involved in this investigation and that penn state had a report from ten years ago of alleged abuse

against jerry sandusky. >> listen, how about did you read the book? i mean jerry sandusky's own book said "i always professed that some day i would reap the benefits of maturity but my lifestyle just wouldn't let me." find it fascinating that actually has gone, you know, increased the investigation and led to more charges. but i'm flat out of time. your work has been great. keep it up. we'll talk you to again on this one. thanks, sayer yach thank, sarah. >> of course. >> 28 minutes past the hour. we're totally switching gears. did you hear that beyonce's baby arrived? >> no. >> yep. you're watching "early start." t. that's why there's new glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. [ male announcer ] new glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes.

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it could be very abrasive. if the surface gets abraded, it's just the environment that bacteria likes to nestle into and they can cause the odor. your denture needs to be cleaned gently on a daily basis. i like to recommend polident, it kills the bacteria without causing any abrasion. when my patients follow my instructions, their dentures feel clean and fresh. they look forward to putting them in their mouth and smiling.

5:31 a.m. if you live in the east. it's really late in tearly in t. >> welcome back. in the next half hour, major over the counter drug recall here. painkillers and other drugs you might have right in your medicine cabinet. we're going to talk to somebody about what you should be concerned about. >> and normally you're not allowed to say oh, jesus. but when you talk about tim tebow, you can say oh, jesus. look at this. 80 yards. he could go all the way! >> yeah, baby! >> that's what you call a win in ot. i swear to god i am auditioning right now for espn. that is what i'm doing. and down goes the prayer. okay. so we're going to -- >> you need to learn a little bit more about sports before you

audition. >> i don't know jack about sports. you know why i don't know about football? because in canada where i grew up, i think there's a -- >> hockey. >> there are four downs and three in american football? >> i'm not a football fan either. we're going to talk to somebody that will scoop us this morning. >> thank god you have two girls on the set that don't know anything about football. we'll tell why you that is so significant and what it means. blah, blah, blah. that's what we're going to do. at 5:32, a good time to check headlines for you. after two weekend debates, yes, there were two this weekend, one last day of campaigning. republican candidates are heading into the nation's first primary tomorrow. mitt romney is well ahead in the new hampshire polls. >> and an iranian american on trial in iran for espionage has been sentenced to death. a news agency report says the man was convicted of spying for

the cia. he was arrested in august while visiting relatives. his family and the u.s. government claim he has been falsely lly accused. >> and the president of that country is in venezuela today meeting with president hugo chavez. he also plans to visit nick waga and ecuador. >> and for the first time since the middle of october, we are paying more for gas. according to the survey, gas prices jumped 1 cents. that was over the last three weeks. it is now a national average of $3.36 a gallon. >> okay. if you're gearing up for another voting day, we happen to be in the election center if you couldn't tell from the -- how many flags are there -- i can't even count them. this is the election center and another election week. primary. >> it's the eve. >> it's the eve. we have about 36 1/2 or three quarter hours until voting gets under way in new hampshire. boy was it a fun weekend if you

like debates. there were a couple debates and serious last-minute campaigning, too. did you see the one about chris christie in new hampshire? he is stumping for mitt romney. somebody is getting up in his grill and here's what he said. >> americans are right to be angry. they're right to be disappointed in the government than in washington, d.c. is doing nothing but posturing and bickering and solving nothing for the people who wind up needing to get this done. really? you know, some may go down tonight but it ain't going to be jobs, sweetheart. >> oh, snap! no, you didn't. and then, of course, that was after the campaign we got into the debating and mitt romney was railing on his colleagues for

being career politicians and the like. and then newt came in with this. >> can we drop a little of the pias bologna. this idea that suddenly citizenship showed up in your mind just level with the american people. you've been running for at least since the 1990s. >> so that just might be the line, what, at least of the week anyway. let's bring in esse cup. she is a columnist. will cane who is a columnist with "the blaze" and works with us here at cnn and from washington, mo elathe. i know you were chewing all over this one. ut was fun to watch that stuff. there is something serious going down with john huntsman. this is a guy who has staked his campaign out in this state. and wasn't doing so well. but there are a couple of polls. we'll get to shows in a minute that show he's doing well. man did he have a great moment in this debate.

especially whether mitt romney was going all over him about having served under the obama administration, having been an ambassador to china under obama and then i love this moment when john huntsman said this. >> the person who should represent our party running against president obama is not someone who called him a remarkable leader and went to be his ambassador in china. this nation is divided because of attitudes like that. >> that's some powerful stuff. don't you think? >> yeah. but, you know, it was a great line and played really well in the room. it was finally huntsman's moment to hit a one liner on the right tone. but like i said earlier, he missed an opportunity. he should have laid out for conservatives why his policies are different than obama's. that's what they want to hear. i grew up just down the street from manchester on the border of massachusetts and new hampshire. when i drove up to manchester

yesterday, all i saw were ron paul signs, mitt romney signs. john huntsman does not have a huge presence here. i don't know if this is mostly, you know, fiction and sort of mythology that he's got this huge groundswell of support in new hampshire. but i'm not seeing it on the ground yet. >> tell you what, maybe it's not on the ground. it is sure in the polls. the latest poll from suffolk university tracking has him coming in at not a distant third. take a look. romney at 35. paul at 20. huntsman at 11. if you skip over to the american research poll, he does even better. romney is sitting at 40%. huntsman is coming in at a cool 17%. and, you know, one of my colleagues from a former network, i'll say it, msnbc, chris matthews had this hilarious line. he said south carolina is going to be five weddings and a funeral. who is going to get the vettings and who is going to have the

funeral? >> i actually totally agree with chris matthews on this. the only threat coming out of new hampshire is john huntsman. there is a reason we're talking about huntsman so much. over the next 24 hours, his campaign will be determined. the other candidates will be determined in south carolina. and huntsman, my friend s.e. cup and i have had long debates about john huntsman. he said like my son who serves in the navy, i don't -- >> both of his sons. he said both of my sons serve in the navy and do not ask their leader. >> right. exactly. but here's what i want to say about that. there are many reasons that conservatives can have problems with huntsman. on the economic front, he's one of the most conservative candidates out there. >> really? >> he has since walked back on cap and trade. can you dislike he is condescending. but one thing you shouldn't begrudge the man is that he worked for barack obama. that is not the line of attack conservatives should be using. >> let me get mo in here.

it is really infective strategy to rail on someone for being a political insider, you know, for suggesting they have a lot of experience in the beltway? has that worked in past elections? that is really a tact people like to take in this particular campaign. >> i think in this political environment it sure does. when you look at just about any poll and people's approval ratings of congress and washington, d.c., i mean it's in there. people hate washington right now. >> people hate washington every election cycle. is it the tea party do you think? >> i got to say, i think so. i think in a republican primary, absolutely. but i think there's a general dissatisfaction with washington across the ideological spectrum. it's an understandable strategy. i agree that going after huntsman's service is not necessarily the right one or the most effective one. i thought gingrich actually had a great line in the way went

after romney. romney who is railing against washington and he served in washington and spent 20 years running for office. >> right. >> i think you wrapped it up with the line of the century, cut the pias bologna. we're going to come back to you in the next hour. so will, s.e. and mo, thank you. >> thanks. >> thank you. >> it is 40 minutes past the hour here. a woman cheats death after her bungee cord snaps. >> this is the creepiest video. >> you have seen it? >> incredible. take a look at this. unreal. yep, there it goes. oh, my gosh. so it happened in zimbabwe. it snapped about 30 yards over the water. crocodile invested waters. and she was dragged down stream with her legs still tied. >> it went black. i felt like i was slapped all over. i actually got to swim down and

yank the bungee cord out of what i was caught in. i think it's definitely a meeshg that will i survived. >> that's definitely a miracle. she made it to the rocks on the river bank where rescuers actually pulled her to safety. you can take a look there. she is covered in bruises and scrapes. doctors are amazed she didn't suffer any major injuries. the company says the operations are safe and that the broken equipment was replaced. >> that's good to know. >> i don't know, you would try it? >> i did. i jumped 229 feet over skipper's canyon in new zealand. >> but would you do it after something like this with this company? >> no. i did it once. i could check that off my bucket list. i'm not doing it again. what's great here is it snapped just at the right time. if it snapped earlier where she didn't have some bungee kick in and bring her momentum and speed down, it would have been lethal. but this is an unbelievable story. >> lucky, lucky lady. >> all right. so we have a recall to tell you about.

if you take a couple of popular drugs this is going to affect you. bufferin, if you take bufferin and a couple other popular things, you might want to check your cabinet. exedrin, gasx prevention. we're going to let you know which of these you need to toss out and do you need to do it. you're watching "early start." aflac... and major medical? major medical, boyyyy! [ beatboxing ] ♪ i help pay the doctor ♪ ain't that enough for you? ♪ there are things major medical doesn't do. aflac! pays cash so we don't have to fret. [ together ] ♪ something families should get ♪ ♪ like a safety net ♪ even helps pay deductibles, so cover your back, get... ♪ a-a-a-a-a-a-a-aflac! [ male announcer ] help protect your family at aflac.com. [ beatboxing ] and it hasn't been going exactly as planned. cut. cut! [ monica ] i thought we'd be on location for 3 days --

it's been 3 weeks. so i had to pick up some more things. good thing i've got the citi simplicity card. i don't get hit with a fee if i'm late with a payment... which is good because on this job, no! bigger! [ monica ] i may not be home for a while. [ male announcer ] the new citi simplicity card. no late fees. no penalty rate. no worries. your doctor will say get smart about your weight. that's why there's new glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. [ male announcer ] new glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes. and who ordered 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. [pig oinking]

[hissing] [oink] [oinking] [ding] announcer: cook foods to the right temperature using a food thermometer. 3,000 americans will die from food poisoning this year. keep your family safer. check your steps at foodsafety.gov. [oinking] hi, everybody. we have a big story for you right now. if you are going to go pop a bufferin, you better hang on. novartis decided to recall several of the over the counter drugs. >> the recall includes certain bufferin and exedrin products. the concern is about mislabelled and broken pills.

elizabeth cohen is joining us now. this is really scary. these are popular drugs. what is exactly happening here? >> it's huge batches of popular drugs. it's not like a lot here or there. it's a lot. so exedren and no-doz. anything with an expiration day of 2014 or earlier -- >> from now to 2014? >> yeah. or bufferin or gasx prevention, 2013 or earlierment so these are huge bunches of drugs. >> okay. what's the problem? why do they have to do it? >> the problem is they found there were chips, kind of like broken pills. then there is potential that some of the medicine ended up in the wrong bottle. >> that i get. that is serious. >> that's bad. >> but chipped pills, who cares?

>> because year getting less of a dose than you think. >> you're not going to get hurt. >> they say no one's gotten hurt by any of this. so far, nothing bad has happened. but, of course, they want to avoid something happening. >> that is good news, right? they're trying to avoid that. >> and consumers caught this which i think is interesting. consumers called novartis and said what is going on here? >> i got there zanex in my bufferin. >> something like that. >> there are no zanex in the bufferin bottles, it was a joke. >> if you take these on a regular basis, maybe for migraines, what do do you? >> what do you is when you go to the store, you want to check those expiration dates. i want to tell you a story. for another drug recall, ways in the store. i went to go buy medicine for my daughter who had a fever. i found medicine there that had been recalled. it had been recalled and on the shelf. >> in a big chain store? >> yes. i brought an employee over and

said i want to buy this but -- >> she said we forgot to take that off. don't rely on them to take it off the shelves. it's up to us. if you want to look at the expiration dates again, cnn.com. >> we're going to do the segment throughout the program. >> all right. thank you so much for coming in. >> my pleasure. >> thanks, elizabeth. >> nice to see you. >> nice to see you. >> all right. tim tebow throws a miracle touchdown last night. this is all the talk this morning. a sports reporter for the colorado springs gazette is going to join us to break it all down. you're watching "early start." with your mortgage,

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sign. announcer: if you're facing foreclosure, talk to the right people. speak with hud-approved housing counselors free of charge at... welcome back to "early start." we're talking all things tebow. did you see it? >> i don't watch football. >> this was a special moment, though. tim tebow works a meeshg until denver. the quickest overtime win in nfl history. he stunned steelers 29-23. so joining us now, frank schwab, sports reporter for "the colorado springs gazette." good morning to you. >> hey, good morning. >> it's going well herement i have to tell you easterliyer i called him a rookie. i got in so much trouble i started getting e-mails.

so how are folks responding there? to quickest overtime win in nfl history. >> i mean it's just the next step of tebow maenaa. you know, the city of denver is so excited about this guy. he's brought just new life to the brafroncos franchise. you know, people are just excited. and i think it's a lot because people are polarizing nationwide, people debate whether he's good or not. and denver embraced him and said he's our guy. and they enjoy the way he played. they enjoy his spirit and the fact that broncos are winning again and the crazy improbable ways. >> frank, why is he so polarizing? >> i don't know. i think part of it is the religious angle. some people don't like that he throws religion out there so freely. but that's who he is. and i think a lot of people think he's fake. this is not.

he stood up there after the game yesterday in a press conference and talked about a girl who he had hosted from his foundation who had, you know, 73 operations in her life and said, you know, we like to talk about football, it's fun. but the best thing i'm going to do today is spend time with this little gerl who has had such a tough life. that's him. in an era where athletes are beat up for the reputation so they can get commercials or whatever reason, tim tebow is a real guy. and i mean i think people think that's fake, but that's really who he is. and, you know, it rubs some people the wrong way. i don't know. i don't get it either. i think this is a guy they should root for. not everybody does. >> hey, frank, everybody seems really surprised by this even tebow. did you think he was surprised? >> i don't know. he's been such a successful guy. he was great at high school and great at the university of florida. i think part of him expects greatness. he handles himself like, you know, he's been a successful nfl

quarterback for 15 years. pretty crazy to imagine. he's only played, you know, started 15 envelonfl games now. but he handles himself like a guy who just expects all this and handles it so well. he's a pretty amazing guy. >> we know you're a fan and we're becoming fans around here. frank schwab, thank you for joining us this morning. >> sure. appreciate the time. >> you know, i was reading online that there is a girl who is going to ask him to prom or something. >> yes. did you hear the one about beyonce's baby? she had it. we're going to tell you the name of said baby. en you have diabet. your doctor will say get smart about your weight. i tried weight loss plans... but their shakes aren't always made for people with diabetes. that's why there's new glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. and they have 6 grams of sugars. with 15 grams of protein to help manage hunger...

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hey there. it's about three minutes until the top of the hour. we want to get you all trended up. the big trendy story is beyonce. she had her baby. i love the story. she took out a whole suite in new york and she had a little baby and name the baby blue ivy carter. now carter, you're wondering why would she not have named her baby blue ivy carter z. that's because jay z's name is actually shawn carter. so the baby is blue ivy carter. and we wish beyonce and jay z

well. she's so pretty. >> she's sweet, yeah. >> everyone was shocked this morning when they heard the news, too. >> which is weird. if you do the math, we shouldn't have been shocked. >> ahead in the next hour, it's the eve of the new hampshire primary. rivals turn up the heat on romney. did you watch the debates? >> i couldn't help it. it was every ten hours. >> incredible. you're watching "early start." 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. that can help lower cholesterol? i'm really glad we took this last minute trip! you booked our room right? not yet, thanks for reminding me. wait, what? i have the hotels.com app so we can get a great deal even at the last minute. ah, well played sir. get the app. hotels.com. so i used my citi thank you card to pick up some accessories. a new belt.

some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? we talked about getting a diamond. but with all the thank you points i've been earning... ♪ ...i flew us to the rock i really had in mind. ♪ [ male announcer ] the citi thank you card. earn points you can use for travel on any airline, with no blackout dates. your doctor will say get smart about your weight. i tried weight loss plans... but their shakes aren't always made for people with diabetes. that's why there's new glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. and they have 6 grams of sugars. with 15 grams of protein to help manage hunger... look who's getting smart about her weight. [ male announcer ] new glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes.

during the break we were talking football. >> yeah. because it's really turn any that we don't know anything about football. it's the top story. good morning, everybody. this is "early start" at 6:00 a.m. on the east, and it's just 3:00 in the morning on the west coast, night-night. >> we know a little bit about football. i'm zoraida sambolin. it's 6:01. let's get started. countdown. >> new hampshire eve, the rivals turn up the heat on romney. will it have any affect? we'll find out. >> we're going to watch the numbers. see this man? he's a paramedic but he's being charged with rape. accusations that he may have assaulted a woman in the back of an ambulance.

are you ready for this? christmas morning. we're going to get to the bottom of it. we have an over the counter drug recall to tell you about as well. excedr excedrin, nodoz, gas x. did you hear about tim tebow? hello, super bowl. i think that's what he's thinking. or thank youing, god, thank you, jesus, for what just happened. in overtime. it is a fabulous 80-yard touchdown. i don't know. did everyone expect it because he's been hulling off some serious miracles, lately. what kind, do you suppose? we'll talk about it. >> you can't discount the power of prayer there. >> i'm with you. i'm a big fan of prayer, no matter what kind of prayer, meditation, church, prayer, big fan. there's clinical evidence to support it makes you healthier. just 24 hours to go before the new hampshire primary. and mitt romney must be feeling

like a pinata. they tangled if n. two weekend debates. romney comfortably ahead in new hampshire and south carolina. he is getting attacked from all sides. star panelist here, senior columnist with "newsweek" and the "daily beast" and man chaster, and from washington, democratic strategist mull elathy. so let's talk start with you, john. two state news polls shows mitt romney slightly down but still ahead in the poll there's. romney, 35%. paul, 20%. huntsman, 11%. let's take a look t the other poll that we have here as well. this is romney at 40%, huntsman at 17%, paul at 16%. with romney ahead by so much, what are the next 24 hours about for the candidates? what's the story to watch coming out of new hampshire? >> i think the most fascinating thing right now is how huntsman and ron paul are both fighting over independent voters. remember, independent voters,

what makes a difference in new hampshire. open primary, independent voters make up 40% of the local electora electorate. that's what folks are fighting over. right now huntsman and paul rising in the polls. romney safely ahead but as long as that margin closes that's the real fight. watching ron paul and jon huntsman take fights at each other to knock mitt romney off his person. >> if we can talk to mull here for a second. has they're headed into south carolina, i was reading an article this morning saying that people, even though they're not excite about mitt romney, that he is the only one that is going to be able to b. beat obama so they're going to vote for him, none the less. >> well, i think in these primarys a lot of times, particularly when you one against an incumbent, that's a key issue. mitt romney is the most elect i believe of the bunch. i don't actually agree with that. i'm actually the one guy in the

republican field that i would keep an eye on is jon huntsman. and he doesn't seem to be going very far. but, look, there seems to be two different contests going on right now. in new hampshire there's a contest between ron paulnd jon huntsman with independents. they're fight for relevance. down in south carolina there's another contest going on that seems to be fighting over the christian conservative base, to be the anti-romney. and romney just seems to be kind of floating above both of them. i think he's well positioned over the next couple of contests. someone is hoping to breakthrough, though. >> mo, if you can weigh in here on huntsman. what do you think is going to happen if he doesn't finish here in the top three? >> he's done. he doesn't have the money or the organization to sustain a campaign beyond that unless he makes a big splash in new hampshire. >> what do you think, think,ess? >> huntsman is hope that if he can make it anywhere, it's going

to be here. he's put all his eggs in this basket. so mo is right. if he doesn't do it now and at least top three, i'm thinking he needs to finish second to make a convincing exit out of new hampshire and into south carolina, then he's done. he is almost sought of money. so it's sort of now or never for jon huntsman. >> all right. mo, s.e., john, thank you for joining us this morning. >> thanks. you can stay with cnn for the best political coverage on television at 7:00 eastern. brand new poll numbers on the new hampshire race. and 7:30 eastern on "starting point," soledad o'brien will be joined by kentucky senator rand paul. there's that fabulous u-2 music is just for us. i'm pretty sure it wasn't u-2 and not commissioned for us. this is the goose bump patrol here. arizona congresswoman gabrielle giffords attending a memorial vigil over the weekend. it's been a year now since the shooting rampage killed 6 people

and wounded 13 others. she and her husband, the astronaut mark kelly, both spoke at this affair. she actually led the crowd in an emotional "pledge of allegianc allegiance." listen. >> i pledge alen jens to the flag of the united states of america, and to the republic under one nation under god, indivisible, and liberty and justice for all. >> crowd. >> mark kelly behind her. >> i swear, but you know what, how proud she is as well, you can tell, right, that she's come so far. >> goose bumps again. we did this story last hour when you were sleeping, or maybe sleeping, i got the goose bumps then. i got the goose bumps again. i'm so proud of her. i'm so happy for her. >> very special story. seven minutes past the hour. u.s. markets kicked off the year on a high note. on friday, the dow and s&p 500 both slipped less than half a

percent. nasdaq eked out small gains. >> basically flat. let's just call it flat. >> you don't want me singing the "friday friday" song again, do you? >> no. monday. what's going on today. a lot of earnings. eye on urp because even as the zus showing a little signs of stability in the economy, you still have big concerns about europe. europe is our biggest customers. if europe has problems, if it can't get its deal done, debt problems under control that means u.s. factories close. >> biggest customer? >> we sell more to europe, the euro zone than anywhere else in the world. >> biggest country is canada. biggest zone is europe as a trading zone is the biggest partner. i don't want to -- >> you know what? i just make this stuff up. >> don't say that. don't say that. that's on tape. i tell you right now. i can tell you about gas prices because where we're seeing those little pieces strengthen the economy we're seeing gas prices rise.

$3.37 a gallon. you felt it. 12 cents in ten days they've gone up. gas prices are up because oil prices are up. what does the strait of armuz have to do about anything? because iran is talking about that closing it again. they say they have to take up the u.s. fifth fleet to do it first. that is unlikely. they got some stuff staying in the way, like the u.s. navy. however, the strait of hormuz, that's where they pass through. it's a two-mile wide shipping lane that happens to sit right off the coast of iran. a lot of oil goes through there. obviously the u.s. and iran are having conflicts right now over its nuclear program. >> the u.s. was peeved about this. >> right. it would hurt itself, too. if iran did that it would be shutting off its economy, too. all of that, big talk about what's happening in the strait of hormuz is why oil prices are moving higher. when oil prices move higher, gas

prices move higher, too. last year at this time, $3.03. now at it's a 30-cent a gallon tax on consumers. it's a tax on consumers when you're paying a lot more like that year over year. >> weapon just hear that the trps are going to start plummeting so folks are going to start putting up the heat. >> already we know people are paying more for heating oil. it's big in the northeast, not necessarily so much here in atlanta. >> as i found out. >> you're right. oh, yeah, the first time i paid my first heating bill i couldn't believe it. >> ask you something about investing because a lot of people are going to look at their 401(k)s now, do the reallocation and look b ahead to 2012 maybe hopefully being a better year. every year as we head towards memorial day, gas prices surging. why doesn't that translate to, gee, maybe i should ingest in oil right now. they don't translate, do they? >> no, they don't. you've got to have a strong stomach to invest in the oil markets right now. plenty of people are but it's an unpredictable geo politics of

the oil markets. >> break it down for news 15 seconds. >> the entire geo politics, umm. if you follow me on twitter i'm going to tweet you right now a risk profile so you can figure out how you should be rebalancing this year. >> risk pro bound in 58 cashers? >> link to one. how you should invest based on your age, time or rye zone, your stomach. so follow me on twitter. right now i'm going to do it. >> you are a smart cookie. >> should be your new year's resolution, right, to get your money straight this year? >> thank you, christine. and wa-wa. we would like to give you an early start because that's what we call the show, we do like to give you an early start and get you up to speed on what's going to be happening latered in day. iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad is taking shots at the u.s. right now in their own backyard. he's on a four-nation tour of latin america.

he's going to go to anything wag ecuador. the supreme court stepping into the texas redistricting showdown happening today. we'll hear arguments over new election pmaps changed by the legislature after the last census. the changes could determine which party has control of the house of representatives in 2013. they were ignored when they carved out the new boundaries. geek alert. the future is on display today. did you hear about the consumer electronics show in vegas? it's kicking offnd it is the biggest tech showcase in the world. look for the ultrathin laptops, the smart tvs, and big and more powerful telephones dominating this conference as the companies try to play catch-up to apple. >> this is being called the rematch of the century, number one lsu, number two alabama playing tonight in the super bowler dome for the bcs national champ wron ship. lsu handed alabama its only loss in the year in november in their

first meeting. time for some weather. don't know what you do at 6:0012 in the morning but we do weather. don't know if you're traveling or just want to know what's going on. >> rob is out. alexandra steel is in for use this morning. >> i do weather at 3:12, 4:12, 5:12. we've been doing weather for hours. i'm here to stalk about this morning the southeast getting the action. there's a tornado action we want to talk about. the rain, the snow, the fog. before i show you the picture, want to show you what's happening north of houston. in houston county, tornado warning you can see it there. again, it has and has seen and produced trees down earlier. tornado reported moving 35 miles and moving east. so just keep an eye on that this morning. not out of the question this time of year to have severe weather like that but here in the southeast temperatures are warm. west texas though, we've got six to eight inches of show.

east texas is where the rain is. one to three inches of rain. all this is moving east here into the mid atlantic as well. hey, some snow dusting west virginia. kind of nice to look up, feel a little like january. blue ridge getting a white coating. pretty this morning. washington, d.c., 70, now a whole different story. here's a big picture, guys. again, south, rainy and warm. but look at this, still mild in the northern plains. temperatures there from fargo to minnesota to minneapolis, 20, 25 degrees above average. but that will change, dot, dot, dot, thursday, down to 17 from 44 in minneapolis. >> i knew that was coming. >> that's of course. >> that's a january thing, right? >> absolutely the fluctuations, you know? >> at least we enjoyed the warmer temperatures. thanks for that. >> it's not totally gone. it's going to be a cia zi inter, i think. very highs and very lows. >> next weather hit i want our steady cam jack to take a look at your shoes. you are not only amazing at weather but doing them in those

platforms, sister. >> no way. i could jog in these things. are you kidding me? >> jack. >> he has tried this. >> jack has got to get a look at these. i'm not kidding. if you know how hard it is to do weather, imagine doing that in these babies. impressive. look at that. >> all right. >> really cute, also. >> oh, god, seriously? that's enough of that. come on. >> you're my new hero. >> when you're little, you wear high heels all the time. it's time to check the stories making news this morning. the republican candidates making their final push in new hampshire on the eve of the nation's first primary election. mitt romney is still the man to beat. and he's taking lots of heat from his fellow candidates. now trying to close the gap. and brand new this morning for you. the pharmaceutical company novartis is recalling certain popular over the counter medicines, marp mislabeled, broken, or other pills had gotten into those bottles. excedrin and nodoz. those ones have december 20th, 2014 expiration dates.

the bottles of gas x and bufferin have expiration dates of december 20th, 2013. take a look. and tim tebow's playoff magic. 80-yard ttd pass on the first play of overtime led the denver broncos to an overtime win over the pittsburgh steelers on sunday. the tee who lbow led them to pl new england patriots next week. coming up on "early start," a paramedic has turned himself in and this is creepy. he's accused of assaulting -- sexual assaulting a semi-conscience female patient who was strapped to a gurney in his ambulance. and we have some pretty incredible video here. it will make you forget all about that bungee jumping fantasy you have. put it off the bucket list after you watch this. you're watching "early start."

hey, i'm really glad we took this last minute trip me too. you booked our room right? not yet, thanks for reminding me. wait, what? fret not ma'lady. i have the hotels.com app so we can get a great deal even at the last minute. ah, well played sir. download the free hotels.com app and get exclusive mobile deals. hotels.com. be smart. book smart. when bp made a commitment to the gulf, we knew it would take time, but we were determined to see it through. today, while our work continues, i want to update you on the progress: bp has set aside 20 billion dollars to fund economic and environmental recovery. we're paying for all spill- related clean-up costs. and we've established a 500 million dollar fund so independent scientists can study the gulf's wildlife and environment for ten years.

thousands of environmental samples from across the gulf have been analyzed by independent labs under the direction of the us coast guard. i'm glad to report all beaches and waters are open for everyone to enjoy. and the economy is showing progress with many areas on the gulf coast having their best tourism seasons in years. i was born here, i'm still here and so is bp. we're committed to the gulf for everyone who loves it, and everyone who calls it home.

hey, y'all. it is 19 minutes past 6:00 in the east, and 19 past 3:00 in l.a. we're getting an early read on your local headlines making national newspaper head inloose. we've got headlines from both

atlanta and charleston, south carolina. i want to start with atlanta. you have a daughter, sophia, who is in third grade. >> yes. >> how would you like it if your daughter came home with math homework that had questions. here's one. each tree had 56 oranges. if 8 slaves picked them equally, then how much would each slave pick? i am not kidding. i am not kidding. this was truly in one school district. another one for you. ready? if frederick got two beatings per day, how many beatings did he get in one week? >> what were the consequences here, actually? >> i don't even know where to begin with this one. gwinnett county school district, obviously coming under immense scrutiny. are you ready for the explanation? >> no, because i can't imagine. >> the school officials thought it would be a good idea to

combine history to math teachings. safe to say the parents are outraged. >> oh, my goodness. >> honestly, you can't script this stuff. amazing. this is an outrage, also, but for different reasons. "charleston post and courier." adoptive parents had been forced to surrender their 2-year-old daughter veronica to her biological father because he is a member of the cherokee nation he he says he never knew he was put up for adoption and winning custody after using a indian child welfare act. they want to place the children first with their own tribes. the law originally intended to preserve culture and families. in this case they're fighting it because this is a family that went through in vitro, seven different attempts, before they finally -- >> that child lived with them for two years? >> the child did. the mother gave the baby up for adoption and apparently the father didn't know. >> it's tragic. that's tragic on both sides. >> it is. >> there's a father who wants his child and adoptive parents who have a child.

>> and the law. the obscure law that occasionally gets used. >> really sad story. another weird one, too, out of connecticut. a paramedic -- i'm not sure i ever heard of this happening before. >> crazy. >> facing sexual assault. i really want to see this one come to trial because i would like to see the evidence and details on this one. the paramedic allegedly -- he's facing charges for raping a 22-year-old woman, semi conscious in the back of his ambulance. 49-year-old mark powell. i guess he's also being charge with unlawful restraint because the gurney had no straps. he has turned himself in. the woman waited three days to report this crime, alleged crime, because she said that she was embarrassed and scared, which is not unusual when you talk about rape cases. but the connecticut police chief is outraged. >> paramedics and police officers, firefighters are in positions of tremendous public

trust. these allegations represent a tremendous breach of that trust. >> well, again, we should stress, once again, they are allegations and that's why cnn legal analyst paul cowen is here. paul, i cannot wait to chew this over with you. so many legal issues at play not the least of which is alcohol. apparently the woman was in an ambulance because of falling at a christmas party, alcohol involved. could you please explain to me why alcohol could be a cornerstone to this case? >> obviously at some point in time when the case gets tried it's going to be her word against the word of the again attenda attendant. if he comes in and says, this is a fantasy, she's making it up, she was under the influence of alcohol. alcohol becomes a cornerstone in the case. but it's a really odd case. i mean, there was presumably an ambulance driver in the ambulance as well. >> a witness. >> yes. and they can see into the back of the ambulance usually wi.

so how did this go on without the blanch blan driver knowing. fortunately we don't hear of too many of these happening. >> no, but we sure do hear a lot of alleged rape case where's alcohol is involved and i know that always becomes a big part of the defense for the accused. by the way, you said when this gets to trial. there is always a chance this may not go to trial, right? >> well, yes, for a variety of reasons. obviously a plea could be taken in the case. the prosecutor might ultimately look at it and say the case is too weak, we're going to dismiss the case. there are all kinds of things that can happen between now and the time of trial. >> his bail was relatively low. i think by regular standards. $25,000. and far be it for me to know the standard in this particular community in connecticut. i have always been under the assumption is just to make sure you stick around. you think it's a different message? >> i think the bail is low in this case.

i was looking at connecticut bail decisions over the past five or six years in rape cases. and they are a little bit on the low side compared to some other jurisdictions. but none the less, when you have a case like this, this sends a fear through the entire state about helpless people on gurneys being allegedly raped by ambulance attendants. it's a horrible fact and fits true it's such an abusive public trust that i would have expected a judge possibly to set higher bail in the case. so sometimes that indicates that maybe the judge thought the case was a little bit on the weak spied, a side, and that may be something we can read from the low bail. that is speculation. until this lay plays out in court it's hard to know what the facts are. >> i do recall in the last year reading all the headlines in the case in new york city about a police officer and partner let themselves into an apartment building a few times and allegedly molested a woman who

they had to rescue who was loaded and vomiting and alleged rape. they got off because, again, the booze and the story just was very convoluted. even if the criminal case doesn't play out to either side's liking, there is always that civil issue afterwards, isn't there? >> well, yes, there is. and what people have to understand is that the standard in a criminal case is beyond a reasonable doubt. it's a high standard. in a civil case, it's just which side has more evidence than the other. by a preponderance of the evidence. so it's a little bit easier to win a civil case. o.j. simpson case was an example of that. i was looking and i found a case, i think it was in michigan, actually, where a woman recovered a verdict of about $12 million in a fact pattern just like this, where he was an ambulance attendant, committed a rape while transporting a patient. so this is not the first time this has happened. >> a guilty verdict in that? >> i think it was about $12 million was awarded. >> a guilty verdict and then civil case? >> i don't think the -- the

press reports only referred to the civil case so i didn't see how the criminal case worked out. >> i'm thoroughly impress it at 6:26 in the morning eastern time you've done all of that research. thank you very much. >> always nice to be with you. >> see you soon. and still to come, some popular over the counter pain relievers in the country. they are being recalled. our medical correspondent elizabeth cohen is going to join us to tell you what to do with these drugs. actually you need to throw them out. you're watching "early start." this is an rc robotic claw.

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hi, everybody. welcome back. it is 6:30 in the east. 3:30 in the morning in l.a., you're probably just coming home from the club. nice to have you here. i'm ashley banfield. >> i'm zoraida sambolin. on the agenda in the next half hour, major over the counter recall, folks, painkillers and other drugs you might have in your medicine cabinet. elizabeth cohen is going to join us live to explain what we need to do next. now and again we like to, well, we feel the pain of waking up very, very early in the morning so we just like other

people to feel the pain, too. we dial them up on the show and have them wake them up. should we tease them or tell them who snts. >> no, don't tell them. >> don't tell? >> yeah. it's a comedian and particularly happens to like politics. we're going to see how funny he is first thing in the morning. that's coming up in a bit. >> on the west coast? >> i don't know. that's the good question. >> or new york. >> i think in new york city. wake yourself up, for crying out loud. in new york city it's only 6:30. we've been up since 1:30 -- or 1:00. coming up in the top stories of the half hour as well because these are the ones making headlines. two weekend debates. did you miss them? they were like every ten hours up on the podium. republican candidates going into the nation's primary tomorrow. mitt romney well ahead in the polls in new hampshire. new this morning, iranian american on trial in iran for espionag espionage.

they say amir hekmati was arrested in august while visiting relatives there. amir's family and u.s. government claim he has been falsely accused. while on the subject of iran, may have something to do with this story. here at home we're paying more at the pump. lundberg survey says gas prices jumped 12 cents in the last three weeks. nationwide average is $3.36 per gallon. and tim tebow's playoff magic. 80-yard touchdown pass on the first play of overtime led the den kver broncos to an overtime win over the pittsburgh steelers. they move on to play the new ek gland patriots next week. a lot of excitement there. >> we had to become football experts in like 20 minutes i don't know about expert. >> we're playing expert on tv. >> i call them a rookie, okay? i don't know. >> at one point he was. >> last year. >> like she was totally right. that's all i'm here of say. pharmaceutical giant

novartis is recalling over the counter drugs. >> here's what they include. certain bufferin and excedrin bottles. senior medical correspondent elizabeth cowin joining us now. is that what started this recall, the broken pills? >> consumers started calling novartis and saying what's going on here? there are some broken pills and it appears that perhaps they put the wrong stuff in the wrong jar. maybe some nodoz ended up with excedrin. >> it woub wouldn't have been particularly lethal. >> they say nothing bad has happened but they've done this out of abundance of caution. but you don't want to take nodoz when you're wanting to fake excedrin. >> we wouldn't want to take nodoz. >> can you imagine? that would be awful. people should look for this because this is important. this is a huge group of medicines. excedrin and nodoz with an expiration date of december 20,

2014 or earlier. 2014 or earlier. that is -- i have to imagine that's pretty much everything that's on the shelf. >> isn't that millions and millions of pills? >> got to be millions and millions of pills. i don't see how it couldn't be. these are things that expiring nearly two years from now. just more than that. bufferin and gas-x prevention, 20 12-20-2013 or earlier. >> you take it back to your pharmacy or a refund for what you bought? >> i have not seen anything specific on that. either way, don't take it. >> yeah. >> that's the point, is that you're not supposed to take it. >> that's got to cost them millions of dollars, too. i wonder if that affects stock prices. >> $120 million it's going to cost them to correct this. $120 million. i will tell you as a consumer, you should really be careful when you go out there because you think, oh, recall, they must have gotten it off the shelves by now. not necessarily. i once almost bought some medicine that had been recalled because they left it on the

shelf, so you have to be an empowered patient and ask or look at it yourself. >> wait a minute. didn't you write a book called "empowered patient." >> i did. >> i knew it. >> you can't assume that other people are taking care of things for you. you have to do it yourself. >> elizabeth cohen, thank you for joining us this morning. we're also keeping you in the pop culture loop because we like you to know about this stuff. it's critical when you get to the watercooler. here's what's trending on the web and social media and googles. nba player west, do you know him? the rest of his team is headed to the white house without him. this is what yahoo! is trending. apparently this dallas mavericks champion is not allowed to go to the white house because he's got a little background check problem. the president security team did the routine background check and popped up, he had a weapons charge in 2009. he had two loaded handguns and a shotgun, so that's kind of like,

sorry, can't come into the white house. anyway, the rest of the mav rings arin ricks to the white house. trending on facebook and twitter. have you seen this? a woman cheats death after her bungee cord snaps. tough one to watch. she is okay. it was caught on tape. it happened in zimbabwe. snapped about 30 yards over the water. they are crocodile-infested waters. she was dragged downstream with her legs still tied. >> it went black. straightaway. i felt like i had been slapped all over. i actually had to swim down and yank the bungee cord out of fr whatever it was caught on to. i think it's definitely a miracle that i survived. >> at miracle. she made it to the rocks on the river banks where the rescuers actually pulled her to safety. you saw her body. the doctors say they're amazed that she did not suffer any major injuries. you would have thought that, right? >> listen to the beeps. you know what they're saying up

top. >> i'm sure that they thought she was dead. the company says operations are safe and that the broken equipment was replaced. that's one of those things i've never wanted to try. >> i did pit. 229 feet, skippers canyon in new zealand. >> i feel like it snaps you. >> it's fun. it's very comfortable. but it's that your feet are both bound together and wound and then attached to the bungee cord. so if it does released, you're not going to be able to kick anywhere. some of those streams that you bungee into are too swallow to even do a dip. so if your bungee cord snaps -- >> not in a million years. >> i'm done with all that. >> that's good news. >> that's right. good news for my kids anyway. so you know the thing we always do when we feel like other people should their our pain. we're going to wake -- have you ever heard with him? chuck nice. we're going to find out just how nice he is, or not nice, chuck is about to get the phone call that, well, you're going to hear it.

you'll find out what he's like. is he a morning person? funny in the morning you're watching "early start." copd makes it hard to breathe, so i wasn't playing much of a role in my own life, but with advair, i'm breathing better so now i can take the lead on a science adventure. advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator,

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and use the interactive discussion guide to speak with your gastroenterologist. it's 40 minutes past 6:00 on the east coast and 40 minutes past 3:00 on the west coast, which is the perfect time to just dial up a friend, you know. >> this is late. >> it is, isn't it? >> yeah. >> should have done it at 5:00.

chuck nice is a comedian, tv personality. we're dialing him up of just to see how he is in the morning. let's see how this works out. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't work. pretty funny dude, though. >> hello. >> hello, chuck. >> hello. >> chuck. >> chuck, this is the fbi calling. >> no. >> this is somebody else. >> oh, is this chuck nice? hello? >> yes, maybe it's the wrong number. i thought i hard pardon. >> zoraida, you're taking this one. >> we didn't mean to call you so early in the morning. we apologize whoever you are. >> i totally don't believe we just got a right number. >> we have another number. stand by. we may get him still. maybe we just misdialed, right? >> the guy has no idea he was just on cnn.

>> like you said, sometimes it works, sometimes it -- >> sometimes it doesn't, yep. or we got, yet, a third bogus number. i could see chuck doing that. >> you think? >> he may be nice to these. he's chuck nice. vh-1, they're hateful. it's -- yeah, he either gave us a bogus number or he -- >> hello. >> hi. is chuck there? >> this is chuck. >> hi, chuck. it's ashlee and zoraida calling from cnn. >> we just got the wrong number. poor guy, speaking in spanish. do you speak spanish? >> no, i was watching. >> no, you were kidding? >> yeah. i'm not kidding. see, i was going to go with the whole i'm still hammered from the night before routine. >> i knew it! >> but that wasn't just you. >> i'm already up and i absol e absolutely happen to flip you guys on and then you woke up some poor latino guy, you know,

and he's just like, you know, i don't know who this is. is this ashton kutcher? i don't know what's happening. >> so you weren't punking us, we really did screw up? >> we did. redid. definitely, unless you have a really, really good accent, that was t not you. so, listen. did you watch the debates? >> yes, i did, as a matter of fact. >> what did you think? >> you know what, i -- well, i know the abc debates it was very nice to see george stephanopolous go hair to hair with mitt romney. >> i love george. >> that was fascinating. >> you know, george is my former colleague. you have to go easy on the stepm. he used to work with him on abc. >> i think that's happening is that we're seeing mitt romney kind of emerge as the candidate for the republican party.

i think that's what we're seeing. >> i can read your tweets? they are hilarious. >> my tweets? >> yeah. i'm going to read them. perry wants to go back into iraq. that's like liz taylor wanting to go back to richard burton, and i mean right now. and then you have one for ron paul, cute, too. ron paul just served up a big platter of shut the "f" up to newt gingrich. never talk about the military to someone who is actually served. dude, you were watching this. you were watching closely. >> yeah. i find these guys to be a well spring of material. >> thank god for that. i always wonder what happens when political season ends for you guys. where you turn. do you turn to newscasters and make fun of them? >> no, no. you never make fund of newscasters because they have the ability to absolutely make fun of you back. >> yeah. >> or calling you -- you know what? or calling you at 5:45. >> or calling you at 5:45 in the morning which may be worse.

latino who has to get up and go to work. >> i smell a civil suit coming on that one. chuck, you are nice. you really are nice. >> yeah. you know, it's kind of hard to be a jerk with the name chuck nice. you know? >> yeah. >> that's just the way it goes. >> thank you for doing this. >> thank you for letting us wake you up nice and early in the morning. we'll call you again sometime. >> please do. i'm always here for you ladies, always here for you. >> thank you. >> thank you, darling. have a fun political season. >> have a great day b b. bye-bye. it is 6:45. countdown to new hampshire to the primary there. and the latest on the campaign trend from concorde monitor reporter trisha. you are watching "early start."

welcome back to "early start." it is 6:48 in the east. time to check the stories making news this morning. the last call in new hampshire. today's the last day for republican candidates to shake hands, kiss babies, and attack each other. most of those attacks aimed at mitt romney who is way ahead in the polls now. >> and iran has reportedly started to enrich uranium at yet another nuclear facility.

and it says that facility is, quote, immune to any military attack. the plant is said to have 3,000 century funsent centrifuges in . iran is claiming there is a medical purpose behind its nuclear program. tebow time, he's working overtime. the denver broncos quarterback threw an 80-yard touchdown pass in overtime to beat the pittsburgh steelers sunday, 29-23. tebow-led broncos advance to divisional round against the new england patriots. >> go football! i don't know. i don't even know what team. >> go bears. hey, soledad o'brien is joining us now with a look ahead. >> come on. come on. >> oh, yeah, girl. >> come on. that game was so exciting. please. oh, my goodness. and, hey, are you guys going to send a basket of fruit to that nice latino man you woke up?

>> you know what? soledad, do you know what we just remembered? i joked about it i said, hello, this is the fbi. that was to the wrong wrong number. >> yes. yes. he hung up on you. i noticed. >> yeah. >> and anyone in their right mind would do when you get that call. anyway, coming up on "starting point," if it's monday we must be in a diner somewhere. we're going to talk to senator rand paul. of course he is campaign for his dad ron paul as they head into the final day and a half what's their strategy now. and the florida plan for the end of the month. plus, oh, my goodness, i had a chance this weekend to sit down exclusively with awreath thro a franklin, the queen of soul. she's lost 85 pounds. her exercise strategy actually uses walmarts a lot. i'll tell you about that. and she's getting hitched. i called her guy the boyfriend.

she said, he's my man, not my boyfriend. all of that ahead and much more this morning, is what i'm trying to say. and "starting point" gets here in ten minutes.

hampshire primary, we are talking with trisha nadolny, concor"concord monitor" reporte. we are talking about the latest on the trail in new hampshire. are you with us? >> i am, thanks. >> good morning to you. very nice to see you. so there were two debates that happened in past weekend. you had an opportunity to talk with some folks are voting in new hampshire. and in your article, some folks are saying that they are

comfortably unattached. and we are less than 24 hours to go here. what are they waiting for? >> i think voters don't really feel a rush. there is a group of undecided voters here in new hampshire. they are holding off until fairly late. i think they wering looking at the national scene more this year trying to see that clear alternative to president obama. they didn't find it. and so then they kind of set to doing what people in new hampshire do best, went out and vetted the candidates themselves in that and played a very large role for some of those voters who said i'm still shopping around. i'm 99% sure but i'm not in the booth yet. the man who told me that i'm pretty sure might make his decision in the booth. >> wow. >> people here sometimes put off their decisions kind of late. >> we're kind of shocked around here reading this. the national average for unemployment -- because it's high, seems that most voters are concerned about that. but rick santorum, when he was fielding questions he fielded two questions or several questions about online piracy.

talk to me about the new hampshire voter and what they're interested? >> well, you know, i think the economy really is the biggest issue that's coming at the candidates here. it comes up in every single town hall. they talk a lot about tax policy. the voters here are very serious and take this responsibility very seriously. we're not seeing as many social questions come up, even with candidates like rick santorum that are known for talking about that. unemployment is not as big of an issue here but as i said, voters are looking at the national scene and that is what is coming up. time and time again in town halls here. >> all right. trisha nadolny, reporter of "concord monitor." thank you for joining us. good luck to you. >> thanks for having me. >> thanks. what she wants, baby she's got it. turns out that the queen of soul, aretha franklin, she's got herman and he put a ring on it. guess who she's talking to? >> oh, our very own soledad o'brien.

i wish that was me sitting there with her. >> soledad will have the queen of soul coming up.

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you will not even miss your bus because it's 6:58 which means that's the news from a-z. i'm ashlee banfield. >> i'm zoraida sambolin. >> soeledad o'brien has the quen of soul, aretha franklin. hi, everybody. i'm soledad o'brien. your watching our new show "starting point." live this morning in manchester, new hampshire. it is primary eve here in new hampshire. the specialty, the specialty at this diner is something called a giant plate of fries covered in cheese kurd, canadian cheese kurd, and then a spicy gray zi on top. they promise it will be on a