i thought i was going to have to sneeze right off the start of the show. >> come on. >> not a good thing. hello, everybody. nice to have you here with us on

"early start," i'm ashleigh banfield. >> and i'm zoraida sambolin. we are bringing you the news from "a" to "z." it's 5:00 a.m. in the east. let's get started here. >> this was a good one, guys, if you missed it. the tarmac in arizona got hot. it wasn't about the weather. it was about the president and the governor. jan brewer and barack obama getting testy on the tarmac and brewer even pointed her finger, shaking it, wagging it at the president. what was this all about? why did they have an issue and have they resolved it? >> just five days left until the florida primary. there are four folks out there. we're talking gingrich and romney in a dead heat. can someone land a knockout blow at tonight's cnn debate? that's debate number 19. >> if you're counting. and we are. >> we are. >> also, this amazing story of the rescue of the these two aide workers in somalia. here are the graphics but boy is there a story behind these graphics. if you like blackhawks, you like

rescue do we have the details for you. check out the pictures. we're going to tell you how this all went down, step by step. >> we talked about this yesterday. there is a lot of anger building up in east haven, connecticut. a report found that the police engaged in bias policing, the use of excessive force against latinos and the mayor apologize are about a taco remark. is it enough to calm the controversy? "early start" starts right now. up first, the tension on the tarmac. the president and arizona governor jan brewer. we see brewer pointing her finger at him. >> it's hard to see because they're behind the limo. people who were there say this was awkward. it all kind of got triggered by things that jan brewer said in his book "scorpions for breakfast." she talked about an encounter she had with the president in

the oval office in 2010, said he was pat tronnizing and it wasn't a good visit. the white house doesn't recall it being quite like that. here's what brewer wrote about it, we sat down and started with chitchat. after a few minutes, the president's tone got si serious and condescending. he started to lecture me about everything he was doing to promote comprehensive immigration reform which was code for encouraging more illegal immigration. >> the brewer called the president thin skinned. >> i had a handwritten note for him. i told him what was in there. he changed the subject to my book "scorpions for breakfast" and was a little bit disenchanted, if you will, about how he was portrayed in the book. i believe that the book is a very straightforward, honest

recollection of exactly what took place at the white house. bottom line is, i wanted to be there to welcome him, to come and see firsthand what arizona has done in regards to our economic recovery. he wanted to talk about the book. and i thought that he was pretty thin-skin. they always say that a picture is what it is. but i must say, that i was not hostile. i was trying to be very, very gracious. i respect the office of the president and i would never be disrespectful in that manner. >> did he walk away from you at the end? >> i believe when we were in the conversation that i was in the middle of a sentence and he walked away. i wasn't angry at all. i felt a little bit threatened, if you will, in the attitude that he had. i was there to welcome him. i was there and glad and pleased that he was here to share with us the arizona comeback. we've worked hard to get arizona

back from being number 47th in job growth to number 7. i was there to share with him what we have done and ask for that opportunity to sit down and to talk with him. >> that's pretty serious stuff, her saying she felt threatened. >> threatened by the president? okay. >> he had his hand on her arm the entire time when they were speaking. >> do you think he was squeezing. >> you never know, right. >> i'm just teasing. here's what i can say, the white house issued this statement. after the last meeting, a cordial discussion in the oval office, the governor inaccurately described the meeting in her book .president looks forward to continuing taking steps to help arizona's economy grow. i'll say one thing. that statement didn't talk about threats or feeling anger or squeezing arms or anything of the like. >> right. >> and didn't respond to jan brewer's suggestion she felt threatened. >> i'm sure there will be a lot more talk about this.

i know we'll talk about it with our political panel. it's 5:05 in the east. right now it is a tossup between mitt romney and newt gingrich in florida. here's the latest cnn/"time"/orc poll. romney 36%, gingrich, 34%. the primary is five days out. the four gop candidates face off tonight at the cnn debate in jacksonville. it is the 19th gop presidential debate. cnn political editor paul ste steinhauser is live in jacksonville with a preview. we understand that 25% of the folks say they could perhaps change their minds. this could change these numbers. >> reporter: oh, exactly. that's why this debate is so important. it may be number 19 but it's the last one before tuesday's primary. 50 delegates at state, winner take all. you win, you get all 50, you come in second, doesn't matter. let's take a look at the cnn/"time" poll.

newt gingrich had a lot of momentum coming out of the south carolina win. look at this, we started polling on sunday, gingrich is up, he's ahead. look at the more than and tuesday numbers. that included that first debate here in florida. look who's ahead, mitt romney. so has gingrich slowed down coming out of south carolina? zoraida, here's proof. >> i love how excited you are about this. >> reporter: i'm excited. i'm awake. i'm awake. 25% said they still could change their minds. that is another reason why this debate is so important. you know one of the story lines, i think tonight will be just as -- want more proof? there's the bus behind me. it's a big deal if we bring the cnn express. right there, that's the building. >> i thought that's where you slept. i thought that was your hotel. >> i slept in the bus. in the bus. >> are you hearing anything about what is that one issue out there that is going to get people to change their minds?

what is it they're waiting for? >> reporter: you know what, i think a lot of people still want to hear more about jobs and especially in this state, they want to hear about illegal immigration and home foreclosure rates. such a high rate of foreclosure states. wolf blitzer moderating, 8:00 eastern. >> it bears repeating. wolf blitzer will moderate tonight's gop debate at the university of florida in jacksonville. >> it could get ugly. >> things could get testy. let's switch gears to the remarkable story that involved kidnapping victim jessica buchanan. her and her family could be getting back together today. she was freed from her somali kidnapers by an elite navy s.e.a.l.s unit and other military members early this

week. rescue operations were pulled off by the same s.e.a.l. 6 group that got osama bin laden last year. they landed about two miles away. came in fixed wings, in the black of night in the parachutes, marched that two miles to the compound, encountered enemy gunfire, took out nine of the somali gunmen, all of them, all killed but not one of our guys killed. 32-year-old american jessica buchanan and 06-year-old danish citizen were both unharmed and rescued by waiting helicopters that swooped in to get them. i can't tell you just how exciting this story is, because they're safe and it could have gone two different ways. live from nairobi, kenya, our correspondent there. i just have to ask you, how things went down there. that is a remarkable operation and when we see the graphics, i know it's not exactly like it really was but it sure does look

a lot like the bin laden raid. they had this down to a "t," didn't they. >> reporter: a lot of people say much riskier than the bin laden raid. this was a daring and dramatic raid by u.s. special forces who really parachuted into somalia in the middle of the night. and then, as you said, advancing on foot towards those compounds where the two hostages were being kept. gunfire, nine people killed. we're hearing from government sources on the ground that there were some injuries and that some hostage-takers were also taken captive by the u.s. forces. but, of course, the white house has not confirmed this. and then the hostages were taken to djibouti, where the u.s. has its biggest military camp here in africa. just northeast of where i am here in kenya. really dramatic stuff and really

anything could have gone wrong and it didn't. so many people who know jessica buchanan here are so relieved that she's out there alive after 92 days. >> i want to ask you, you're in nairobi. you talked about the hostages not too far from you in djibouti. as i understand it, jessica's husband lives in nairobi and obviously he is awaiting her return to this part of the world and also her dad is en route from the u.s. it's what, 1:00 in the afternoon there? what's the status? >> reporter: well, at the moment, we're hearing many reports from different sources. abc news is reporting that her dad will be reunited with her in italy. we're hearing that jessica buchanan's husband who actually lived in somalia with her, has left somalia and he's on his way to djibouti. the white house has not confirmed any of this. we are working our sources to just find out when this meeting is going to happen and exactly

where, ashleigh. >> another quick question for you. something sort of sat oddly with me when i heard the white house saying the window of opportunity was now, because jessica was in ill health. but then our chris lawrence at the pentagon reported that the aid organization actually says she wasn't that sick. do we know what the story is here about her health and the timing of this? >> reporter: you know, we all can't wait to get those questions across to the person herself. exactly. company she works for, the ngo that she works for, the danish refugee council says that there was a thorough examination, medical examination, done on her in djibouti at that base that i was telling you about, the u.s. base in east africa and that she was okay. and we also are hearing that it was her deteriorating health

condition that really expedited the authorization of this mission. so we really are waiting to hear confirmation from her, see her, see how she's doing, to confirm whether she is very, very ill or whether she is okay. >> great work. excellent. we'll work forward to your updates as the day progresses there as well. we want to remind our viewers, there are several hostages being held in somalia. among them, a british tourist, two spanish doctors and an american journalist who was just kidnapped on saturday. dozens of sailors also are being held captive by somali pirates off the coast. it is 13 minutes past the hour. minding your business now. u.s. markets closed higher, the dow up 0.5%. nasdaq got a boost from the jump in apple stock and the s&p 500 up about 1%. part of that market boost was because of statements from the federal reserve in the afternoon. christine, tell us what they're

saying. >> fed chief, ben bernanke is saying interest rates will stay low, maybe into 2014. we know interest rates will stay low. the fed and ben bernanke are concerned about how slow the economic recovery has been. ben bernanke said he's concerned about structural unemployment, people being out of work for more than six months and having a hard time finding a job. the second line you're seeing on the screen, there is a case for additional policy action. that line is what got markets to turn around and close higher. that means the fed is considering maybe doing some more bond buying, revving up its plans to keep money flowing throughout the economy. and that's something that the markets really liked. >> does it work? i only ask that because interest rates have been historically low for a long time now. >> right. >> everybody says, everyone goes in and buys up houses. that's not necessarily the story. >> that's right. mortgage rates have been low for you. there are record-low mortgage rates if you can qualify.

that's been the problem. for companies, they love the clarity that for the next few years things will stay very low. it means they have clarity in the fiscal outlook for the financial outlook. >> stability. >> they know they'll be able to borrow money at low rates, maybe they'll build another plant, make some capital improvements, maybe they're going to do some big purchases because they know rates will be low. that's where the fed hopes it will spur growth. >> create jobs. >> timothy geithner says he doesn't want to stay a second term with president obama. >> bloomberg reporting this yesterday, that he doesn't expect to be asked to stay tore the next term and he wants to go on doing something else. it's not really a surprise. it's been a parlor game in washington, how long geithner is going to stay. we all thought after the debt deal in august he'd be done. he went through the financial crisis. he had the first two years were

very, very difficult with stimulus, trying to sell the stimulus and stabilize the economy. his people close to him and who have worked with him say they're not sure what he's going to do next but all -- no one expected i think that he stay on for a second term. hillary clinton, i think this is going to be the enfor her in terms of her role as secretary of state as well. >> she keeps on saying it and nobody wants to believe it. >> some people do. some people want to believe that. >> i think tim geithner wants to come back to new york. he has a son who will be graduating from high school. it's been a very, very rough couple of years in that job of treasury secretary. >> also, like you said, he's almost been through two wars. >> at least. >> christine, thank you. good stuff. we want to get you your travel forecast with rob marciano who'sen stading by live. >> we have issues down south and up north. let's start with what happened yesterday in dallas and around the texas area. big state, big drought problems, big rain yesterday. here's the video. across northern texas, flooding

issues not only in dallas but in houston as well. we also had a couple of tornadoes touch down in the houston area. feast or famine there. they've been suffering drought, they need the the rain badly but obviously not all at one time. a lot roads closed throughout the day yesterday. that water beginning to drain. austin setting a record yesterday, 5.67 inches. that blew the record away by almost -- by over 4 inches. dallas, san antonio, almost 3 inches. dallas also getting into the act. towards the east, not a lot of severe threat right now. the threat for thunderstorms as we go through the day is certainly in the forecast. a little bit of light wintry precipitation across the northeast. this isn't a big dell. actually, pretty far north of new york and boston is where we'll see the precip pick up throughout the day today. that ill with be in the form of snow. warmer air moving into the bigger cities. new orleans, birmingham and cleveland, those are the cities that will be problems today. in between, not too bad.

another storm coming into the pacific northwest. back to you. >> thanks, rob. 17 minutes past the hour. coming up, east connecticut's mayor remarks about the tacos outrage. or the tacos comment that outraged the latino commune. it's gone viral, folks. why some are not buying the apology. you're watching "early start." ee you're giving me the silent treatment? ummm, yeah. jen, this is like the eighth time you've called... no, it's fine, my family has free unlimited mobile-to-any-mobile minutes. i can call all i want. i don't think you understand how the silent treatment works. hello? [ male announcer ] buy unlimited messaging and get free unlimited calling to any mobile phone on any network. at&t.

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to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com. the arrest of four connecticut police officers on federal racial profiling charges was supposed to be the end of big controversy but it turned out to really just be the beginning. >> the town of east haven, the mayer there is under fire for something he said. it started when the reporter asked the mayor about relations with latinos. >> what are you doing for the latino community today? >> i might have tacos when i'm not home. i'm not quite sure yet. >> that did not go over very well. those comments went viral. they are national comments now and yesterday, the mayor had to come to jesus and do an apology.

>> i created something that went viral. it was something that the media says gotcha. and ran with it. i accept full responsibility. i've apologized profusely. >> well, joining us now is a reporter for the "new haven register" right next door to east haven. thanks for coming in. media gotcha? i hear that a lot. is it a media gotcha? i also have heard this mayor was exhausted. he had done dozens of interviews and kind of lost it. which is it? >> i think he sort of let fly with something before he fully had a grip on what it was. >> you know him. is this really him? is this really like him or was this a stupid mistake? god knows we all have made stupid mistakes. >> i think it was a stupid mistake. he's been mayor -- well, he was mayor for ten years and has just

come back. >> he's well liked, right? >> generally he's well liked and he's pretty much, he's not an ultraprofessional person. he was elected as sort of, you know, guy of the people. and sometimes acts like one. >> let's talk -- i hate to interrupt you, i'm sorry. let's talk about some the allegations here and what exactly folks are saying that's happened within the police department there, if you can clear that up for us. some of them are serious allegations there. that's why his comments seem so flip. >> they clearly have a problem in the east haven police department. it didn't just start. this investigation has been going on for a while and there's -- before it ever started and before all this stuff -- >> it's racial profiling. let's talk about -- >> it's worse than profiling. >> it's abuse. >> there are some allegations about beating people up who are already hand cuffed and already

under control and, you know, bashing people's heads into the sides of police cars and with regard specifically to latinos, you know, stopping people just because of who they are or what they look like. i can't tell you that they're all true but i can tell you that during the last couple of years we've been writing about this stuff for a couple of years now, since this first came up and i've heard enough things from enough latinos in and around east haven about what this officer or that officer did or said. >> there's a history here, right, in 1997 an officer shot an unarmed black man as well? >> yes. >> this isn't new. this is a history that's been happening for quite some time. >> you're referring to malik jones. >> yes. >> and there were marches on east haven, you know, the naacp

out of new haven led a march. it was very tense. there were people lining the streets. >> you made a small comment, i want to watch forward as you say there could be more people in the line of fire in terms of being arrested. it's good work. continue to update us, mark, as to what happens in east haven. now the whole country is watching. >> i should say, there are plenty of good people in east haven who really wish they could not be on cnn in the morning and on the front page of newspapers. >> especially with flip comments like that. >> mark, thanks. >> thank you very much. ahead, the fight for florida, the politics get hot. if they're not already hot, they're in a hot state. we'll preview a big hot debate. it's coming at you, tonight on cnn. and the navy s.e.a.l.s, they do it again. the same unit that killed osama

bin laden, they pull off that daring somali rescue. how did they do it? step by step, we're going to walk you through it. you're watching "early start." 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. on my journey across america, new glucerna hunger smart. i've learned that when you ask someone in texas if they want "big" savings on car insurance,

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welcome back to "early start." it is 29 minutes past the hour. time to check the stories making news this morning. just five days to go before the florida primary. >> why are you excited about another primary and another debate? >> you know what, because paul steinhauser lit me up this morning. i loved it. newt gingrich and mitt romney are running neck and neck in the latest polls tonight the candidates debate for the 1th

time. watch it live on cnn. wolf blitzer moderating. it will be a good time. >> i glove the blitz as herman cain calls him. also, several american citizens, this is a strange one, being barred from leaving egypt, the son of our transportation secretary ray lahood. that group stopped while trying to board a plain out of cairo last weekend. he's in egypt to monitor that country's elections. more drones. that is the pen gone plan that will be presented by leon panetta. he's proposing a 30% expansion of its global network of grown drones and special operations bases while cutting back on conventional forces. >> wow, all at the same time. there is a major black-ops raid at that, a successful black-ops raid at that. >> wow, all at the same time. >> it's not the pose a president wants to strike. jan brewer doing one of these,

shaking her finger at him at the phoenix airport on the tarmac as the two kind of got in each other's face. i don't know if we can say that. that's what people are calling it anyway. why was she shaking her finger and why the tense exchange? she's telling the press that the president was up set with her about how he was portrayed in her book. >> bottom line is, i wanted to be there to welcome him, to come and see firsthand what arizona has done in regards to our economic recovery. he wanted to talk about the book. and i thought that he was pretty thin-skinned. >> well, what was it? i wish we had special mikes for that moment. but instead we have cnn political editor paul steinhauser, live in jacksonville. lenny mccallister, our conservative commentator and raid know host in chicago. and jamie harrison, democratic strategist and former executive director of the house democratic caucus who is with us from washington. i want to do round the horn with

you all quick. i feel like you have something to say on this. paul, let me start with you. is this a big media moment or is it a bigger moment than that? >> it's a big media moment for her, no doubt about it. they volcano seen eye to eye, brewer and the white house, dating back to 2010, dating back to the new immigration law in arizona. we heard what she has to say. i would love to hear what the president has to say. until then, i don't know. >> lenny? >> it seems to be an oversensitive president and oversensitive governor that's buying into the boogie man, that is barack obama. it's those two coming to a head in frot of cameras. >> if i may quote the great sarah palin, is everyone just getting their panties in a wad? >> i think governor brewer said negative things about the president in the past.

i think the president is getting in election mode and he's pushing back. which i think a lot of democrats are very happy to see. >> okay. let me switch gears now that we've chew that as well as we can. it makes for a great picture and great talking point but we have a big thing happening, an election and debate and primary that's coming on. let me start with you, paul. you do this every day. i adore you for it. they seem to tell a different narrative, that is that they change all the time. here are the latest numbers. romney ahead by two points, that's within the margin, i think. yes. margin is plus five. sure. within the margin. maybe the bigger story is this volatility set of numbers, which show gingrich on sunday at 38% and then on monday, tanking to 29. romney on sunday at 32% and on monday just from sunday to monday and tuesday, soaring to 38%. what a different a day or two can make, right?

>> that's the beauty of this election so far, this campaign for the gop nomination. if you don't like the numbers, if you don't like the front-runner, wait a minute, it's going to change. we knew newt gingrich was going to get a lot of momentum coming out of south carolina. he did. maybe that is starting to fade a little bit. the first number, the overall, you look at it, it is dead even. one more number, one out of four people likely to vote on tuesday. say you know what, i may change my mind. all that means our debate tonight, very important. >> more volatility expected. let me get this out there. jamie, i want you to weigh in on something that could have been capitalize on by mitt romney. the univision anchor who was interviewing him, jorge ramos. is that the right pronunciation. >> you're good. you're good. >> i'm glad she's here because i

actually suck the this. >> you're good. >> when jorge asked mitt romney about his heritage and specifically his family's heritage, let's watch this. >> your father was born in mexico. so the question is, are you mexican-american? could you be the first hispanic president. >> i would love to be able to convince people of that particularly in a florida primary. but i think that might be disingenuous on my part. >> okay. i fell in love with him at hello for that. a lot of people would think that a candidate would capitalize on it, milk it for all it's worth, especially in a place like florida with 13%, 14% hispanic voters. what do you think about that, jamie? >> i was surprise as well. given governor romney's tendency to flip-flop, i expected him to say he was mexican-american in florida and then going to arizona and say that he wasn't. so i was pleasantly surprised as well.

>> it's no ammo for the democrats who are looking for everything they can against romney. according to the democrats, he's the presumed front-runner in all of this, potentially their candidate to beat. let me move on to something that i want to dedicate to frank zappa's offspring, moon unit zappa. newt gingrich has been talking a lot about going to the moon an colonizing. i think there are a lot of people who think it's great and serious, especially people who live on the space coast in florida who have been hurting with the cutbacks there. let's hear what newt gingrich had to say about setting up a permanent base on the moon. >> we will have the first permanent base on the moon and it will be american. >> okay. there wasn't anyone laughing. i just want to point that out. nobody laughed athe that and nobody laughed at this, either. when newt gingrich said that earlier in his career, he would allow american residents on the moon to petition for statehood

once they reached a population of 13,000. let me just let that sink in for a moment. once 13,000 people are living on the moon they can become a u.s. state. lenny? you want to -- go with it. say what you want. >> i know it sounds crazy but let's think about the political strategy behind this. >> go ahead. >> number one, he's in florida. this is i aspace state. he's talking to people and he's talking about what, jobs, economy, industry, legacy, history, on top of that, he is the candidate of big ideas. you can't say that you're the reagan of this generation or the kennedy of this generation, a president with big ideas, and not say something bold like that. remember, he hasn't spent $4 million in the florida market yet. he has to come with big ideas, get to our debate tonight, perform well there and capture the imagination of floridians in order to win on tuesday. this is a move in that direction. so it makes sense from that regard. of course it sounds crazy to colonize the moon to us.

>> just a bit. >> from a political standpoint in florida, it makes sense. >> i just wonder how the democrats may be able to play with that. >> they'll have fun with that. >> he's appealing to the "star trek" convention. >> guys, thank you. great to see you, as always. >> good to see you, ashleigh. wolf blitzer is once tough cookie. he's decided he is beginning to moderate the gop debate at the university of north florida, jacksonville, despite what happened to john king. it all happens at 8:00 on cnn. don it the miss it. >> it will be fun to watch. 5:38 on the east. more coming up, more on the elite command doughs who saved the two aide workers two were taken hostage in somalia. we'll talk to a former navy s.e.a.l. who knows what it takes to pull off that daring mission. you're watching "early start."

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welcome back to "early start." i'm zoraida sambolin along with ashleigh banfield. it is 5:41 in east. this morning, the american woman freed during that daring u.s. raid in somalia could be reunited with her father and her husband. jessica buchanan's father is said to be making his way to nairobi, kenya, as we speak right now. we're learning more about the elite commandos who carried out tuesday night's mission. it included members of the navy s.e.a.l. team that killed osama bin laden. they parachuted in and entered the compound, killing at least nine pirates they escaped with the unharmed hostages by helicopter. eric grightons is a former navy s.e.a.l. he's joining us this morning. very nice to see you. >> pleasure to be on with you. >> the pleasure aall ours. as we're watching this and listening to the details we're

riveted by it. we find out it's s.e.a.l. team 6, the same elite team that took out osama bin laden. although we don't know if it is the same people involved in that team. can you talk us through the planning and rehearsal that has to happen to execute this? >> for an operation like this, it's likely that planning for this kind of contingency, zoraida, would have been happening for months. as soon as a hostage was taken at the end of october, members of this unit and intelligence community would have started to think about how to plan for an operation for rescue. as they developed a fuller intelligence picture, they would have assessed their options and determined when they were ready to go. >> we knew from the osama bin laden raid that they actually built a compound very similar to it in order to practice. would that happen in a situation like this, too? >> navy s.e.a.l.s always try to prepare as best as they possibly can. it's very likely if they had had the opportunity to build a

compound like this, to practice, to do mock assaults, they would have done everything they can to rehearse every aspect of the operation. whether or not they did so in this case we don know. relentless preparation is part of what goes into making all of these operations successful. >> i was reading online that the aerial surveillance of the scene was hampered because it was a dlo cloudy night. what is going through the head of a navy s.e.a.l. when they are dropped in a situation like that? >> when they're dropped into a situation like that, every s.e.a.l. is thinking about execution of the mission. in this case, they knew that in order for this to be a successful mission they had to bring out both of those hostages alive. no matter what else is going on, all they're thinking about is how can they work together as a team to accomplish that mission. >> now, what are the rules of engagement in a situation like this? because we understand we're watching right now, a simulation of a firefight. and we do know there was fire. do they have to wait until they're fired on or are they

allowed to fire first? what are the rules of engagement there? >> the rules of engagement are going to be set by the chain of command, pent gont hasn't yet released the specific rules of engagement they gave to the s.e.a.l.s in this particular situation. sometimes the enemy can be what's called declared hostile. that was the case with osama bin laden. that means the minute that you see osama bin laden, he's a hostile enemy. in other cases, they actually say that there has to be aggressive action before the enemy is hostile. we don't know what the specific rules of engagement were for this operation yet. >> you know, we're hearing more about situations like this, of course, the osama bin laden situation and this one, do you think this will be useds is a more prominent tool going forward? >> absolutely, going forward we'll be relying more on units like this, more on special operations than we have even in the past. when you think about what's happening, not just in somalia and afghanistan but you think about threats in yemen, for

example. all of this is dependent upon the use of special operations and teams of intelligence professionals who can come together and eliminate threats like this with surgical precision. >> can you just talk a little bit before we go hear about the training that take place in order to become a navy s.e.a.l.? i think that's what we're looking at right now. >> navy s.e.a.l.s go through the hardest training in the world. b.u.d.s. stands for basic underwater demolition s.e.a.l. training. it's considered to be the hardest training in the world. the pinnacle of that training is a famous week called hell week. it's considered to be the hardest week of the hardest training in the world. >> how many make it through? >> in my class we started with over 220 people in the original class and by the time we graduated, zoraida, we were down to 21. >> wow. eric greitens, we could talk to you all day. we appreciate you toing by this morning. >> my pleasure. >> serious problems being

uncovered at arlington national cemetery. can you say $12 million? where it did it go? you're going to be surprised when you find out what some of the suggestions are for this missing money. and why on earth would it happen at a place like this? you're watching "early start." so who ordered the cereal that can help lower cholesterol 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?

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good morning, new york. gosh, that's pretty. it is pretty, honestly. >> pretty cold. >> nothing like this city. and it is, you're right, a little bit chilly. not everywhere. weather's not so bad where you live, i'm sure, unless it's nome, alaska, where you're digging out. it's 50 past the hour. time to get you caught up on the top stories. although it's behind the limo, you can see the president and the tiny tuft of blond hair is the arizona governor jan brewer.

they got into it a wee bit on the tarmac. >> a wee bit. >> apparently jan brewer is shaking her finger at the president, all of this happening in the shadow of air force one yesterday. he was not happy about how he was portrayed in a book she wrote about immigration. according to his family, 21-year-old abotta mozaic was turned over yesterday. he was studying in damascus. >> there's a story with a reward. a familiar story with a different twist. a reward to find those convicted murders who were pardoned by mississippi governor haley barbour. joseph osment did not show up for his court hearing that was in an effort to challenge his pardon that happened monday. officials say they do not know where he is but they are

offering cash to you and me and anybody else in the country who might be able to find him. the weird thing is -- >> why would he show up? >> i hear you. he's not a popular guy right now. they're not saying how much the reward is for. they're just saying there is a reward. kind of bizarre. >> controversy in chicago ago public schools. they're trying to make the school day longer. some parents are not excited about this. how long is too long is what they're saying? you're watching "early start."

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welcome back, everybody. it's six minutes now till 6:00. we're hard at work here getting all sorts of stuff for you. we stack the papers, go through them, find the national headlines coming from local papers. today we're pulling out papers from d.c. and chicago. this one here, "washington post," i know you're familiar with it. go to the metro section for this one. it's on the front cover, arlington cemetery is missing $12 million. how do you miss $12 million? that's a quarter of their annual budget. >> where did it go? there's a senate hearing under way to try to figure this out. here's what they think. they don't think it's something nefarious like stealing. but what they do think is that perhaps they might have done some really bad contracting. actual fraud, fraud in the contracting of some of these projects. we've had all sorts of

reporting. >> that's kind of like stealing, though, isn't it? >> it depends on what the mindset is or if it was wasteful, bad and fraudulent, wasteful. arm runs that -- the army runs that place. they dumped the top two people there. >> there's a big debate in chicago over how many kids should go to school each and every day. next fall, chicago public schools are scheduled to expand to a 7 1/2-hour day. so there's a group called 6.5 to thrive. they're collecting signatures, petitioning for 6 1/2-hour days. why? because the parents say the kids are exhausted. in one school that's actually experimenting with a 7 1/2-hour day. they're also upset because they say they have no input or say into this and they would like the mayor to listen to them. but i founded this really

interesting article in here and it was from arne duncan. apparently they give waivers to schools who actually do this. you could spend the money in different areas, so you could spend the money on a longer school day. the fact that chicago has out of 50 of our largest school districts the shortest school day is a disgrace. it started a while back. >> yikes. >> i get the argument, don't you? >> i get it. if you look globally, i think we have the shortest school days of anybody across the globe. >> we're having so many problems with our kids testing. >> how about a short school year? a lot of kids go to school through the summertime. the kids are going to go bananas if i talk about this while they're getting up and getting ready for school. >> parents may love it. >> i do.

good morning. it is 6:00 in the morning on the east coast. i'm ashleigh banfield with an early start and i'm zoraida sambolin. it is 6:00 in the east. if you saw this, quite something jan brewer behind that limo wagging her finger at the president getting in his face. she is talking about what triggered tensions between her and the president on the tarmac. the mayor is apologizing for this crazy taco remark that he made. allegations of police brutality in that area. is the apology have people calm down because of this crazy controversy? we're going to dig a little bit deeper into the story and get some answers.

also, overseas, what a day. a u.s. aide worker freed. jessica on the right reunited with her boyfriend and father. the blackhawks, wow, the operation. wait until you hear the step-by-step. and the reward is now being offered for a missing murderer in mississippi. governor haley barbour pardoned four convicted killers right before he left office. all but one has appeared in court. they have no idea where that man is. >> feels weird. i'm not sure if we're allowed to call him a murderer, which means he has been pardoned. everything is wiped out. >> he's clean. >> he has a clean slate. but we do know he is a bad guy. whether he has a label or not. up next, the stunning faceoff between the president and the governor. obama versus brewer. he's on his tour supporting his

four or five pillars, can't remember how many pillars were in the state of the union, but things got tense because the two of them got into it about her book. she said a few things in her book about the meeting she had with the president in the oval office and the president doesn't recall the meeting the way she described it. >> the verbal confrontation triggered by brewers' book, "scorpions for breakfast." brewer called him "thin skinned" to reporters. listen. >> had a little hand-written note for him. he wanted to know what was in the envelope, i told him exactly what was in there and he changed the subject to my book "scorpions for breakfast" and was a little disenchanted. a recollection of what exactly took place at the whoush. the bottom line is, i wanted to

be there to welcome him, to come and see first hand what arizona has done in regards to our sx economic recovery. he wanted to talk about the book and i thought he was very thin skinned. they always say a picture is what it is, but i must say that i was not hostile, i was trying to be very, very gracious and i respect the office of the president and i would never be disrespectful in that manner. >> did he walk away from you at the end? >> i believe when we were in the conversation that i was in the middle of the sentence and he walked away. i wasn't angry at all. i felt a little bit threatened, if you will, and the attitude he had because i was there to welcome him. there i was there and glad and pleased to share with us the arizona comeback. i mean, we worked hard to get arizona back from being number 47th in job growth to number 7.

so, i was there to share with him what we have done and ask for that opportunity to sit down and to talk with him. >> mrs. brewer said she felt threatened, but there were a lot of secret service there that could have protected her. i will give her the benefit of that. maybe she was using that word, politically threatened or whatever. the white house issuing a statement about all of this saying, quote, after their last meeting, a cordial discussion in the oval office, the governor inaccurately described the meeting in her book. the president looks forward to continuing to take steps to help arizona's economy grow. we do not know what the president said to the governor. it could have been as testy as she says. >> we have no idea. just the two of them there talkingi talking. a story that sparked quite an outrage . alleged mistreatment of latinos. he said this.

>> with such tension in the latino community with a force of 50 officers, still, no police officer of latino ancestry? >> your point being. >> what are you doing for the latino community today? >> i might have tacos when i go home today, i'm not quite sure. >> you might step in it when you use that, your point being? i even know that in the office politics. the mayor has since apologized, but people are asking, is that enough? a lot of people are saying, no. jason carroll busy following this one. we were talking to the reporter from the new haven newspaper earlier who said a lot of the frustration is coming from outside the community. it's outside community. >> we've seen it everywhere. you look at it on the internet and you see peeping writing in on facebook pages, et cetera. the question is, will that apology be enough? i'm not so sure. i'm not so sure after speaking to some of the people in the

community. the stress of the situation basically got the best of it. he had planned to read a statement apologizing for what he had said and he did, but when pressed, he explained what he meant by that comment that got him into so much trouble. take a listen. >> do you think the apology will be enough? i think that will help. >> i certainly hope so. i created something that went viral. it was something that the media says, gotcha. and ran with it. i accept full responsibility. i have apologized profusely. >> it will be helpful at this point if you will at least explain -- it will be helpful if you at least try to explain what you were trying to say about the latino community. that's what i'm saying. >> i'm going to get myself in trouble. >> in hindsight, what were you trying to say? >> i don't feel bad going into any community. i didn't feel persecuted by what happened in our town prior to

that. so, by going into another section, that's all it meant. that i could go into a different section of a community and have a bite to eat. i didn't feel, i didn't feel as though i was being, or our town was being discriminatory or that i was. that i wasn't afraid to talk to or be in the company of anybody. >> okay, well, the question now is, will that further explanation be enough for the mayor's critics. those we spoke to in east haven latino community said it's going to take more than just talk to mend hurt feelings there. >> how people look like or what they do because it's not fair f. >> you felt offended. >> yes, offended.

>> we are tired of the harassment and people following us and it's not right. >> well, connecticut's governor called the mayor's comments insensitive and showing a lack of judgment. when i asked the mayor about that he said, look, whatever the governor said. he wants to promote some healing and focus on the larger issues facing the community and that, obviously, would be that investigation into the officers with the allegations of, you know, stopping latinos there and shaking them down. >> this is not the end. >> this investigation has been going on since 2009. >> that reporter earlier this morning from the new haven newspaper said he expects a couple more waves of arrests. >> it could be. remember what investigators are saying about these officers. they call them bullies with badges. it was not targeting latinos in the area, it was covering up evidence. allegations of assault. these are some very serious

allegations. they said there is basically a culture that exists within the department. when you have a culture, if the allegations are true, it might stand a reason. >> if this is your leader, it causes all sorts of questions about what is really happening. >> that doesn't even get into the civil rights issues at this point. >> but, once again, the mayor basically saying y stepped in something, i made a mistake and it wasn't what i met. >> he blamed the media, how do you really accept that apology? he takes responsibility but then he says it's the media. >> like others say, it will take more than words at this point. >> kn work. thank you, appreciate it. one last chance to address florida voters in mass during a cnn debate in jacksonville. let's look at the latest polls here. orc/cnn/"time" poll 36% romney. paul steinhauser is live in

jacksonville with a preview. i hope you are as excited as you are earlier because we have a lot of folks that say they can still change their minds. >> 25% of the people could change their minds. one other number, take a look at this zoaraida. we broke down the poll number you just gave. look at this, sunday's numbers. sunday was the day after gingrich's big win in the south carolina primaries double-digit victory. he is ahead of romney among people likely to vote in the primary. look at the monday and tuesday numbers and maybe gingrich's momentum has started to slow down. so, so much on the line tonight. remember, 50 del gs here in florida and winner take all. three things i'm looking for tonight. mitt romney was very much playing offense. will he continue to do that tonight but still look president snl a second thing, newt gingrich seemed to be asleep on monday night's debate. more forceful in defending himself and going on the attack

against mitt romney. remember, this is still a four-person race. the people on the sides, rick santorum and ron paul, will they be more active in this debate? stay tuned we have the bus behind me and the debate hall there. we are ready for action. >> paul steinhauser, you never disappoint. thank you very much. this is one mitt romney might like. are you ready? >> yes. >> newt gingrich did not have his acts right after all. are you ready for this? the former speaker totally took down our john king here at cnn for starting the debate last week with the question about his ex-wife and what his ex-wife was alleging about the whole open marriage thing. newt gingrich also criticized abc news for airing that interview with mary ann gingrich right before the south carolina primary, remember? he denied anything about every saying to maryanne gingrich

about an open marriage. abc news did this interview but refused, refused to interview several witnesses who could back up his side of things. witnesses that offered abc news. it turns out, my friends, that's not so true. i use to work for abc news. they once said no. i had a three-source story they said, no, we need more on that. i was really suspect about that. turns out john king had a little conversation with the speaker and here's what the speaker admitted to. >> tonight after persistent questioning by our staff, the gingrich campaign concedes now, speaker gingrich was wrong in his debate answer. the only people the campaign offered to abc were the speakers' two daughters from his first marriage. >> i knew something was up, z zoaraida. they even asked gingrich and his staff for other witnesses.

anybody that could refute the story and abc news said none was offered it sounded odd when speaker gingrich said what he said. i had a great story with three sources and they said, no, not good enough. 13 minutes past the hour. the american aide workers saved from her captors by navy s.e.a.l.s. a possible reunion in the works right now. we have a live report from kenya heading your way. also want to get you a quick check of today's travel forecast. that's why rob marciano is quick at work. hello. >> a tornado watch now in effect. check it out. the same storm that brought tremendous rainfall yesterday. this effect until noon central time. new orleans and biloxi. light snow across parts of the northeast. this is not a big deal, but the storm bringing the severe weather to the south will be

riding up the appalachians in the day, as well as warm air. northern new england and upstate new york will see a little bit of snow with this system. temperatures in new york city, 43 degrees. quick check on weather. early start is coming right back.

we like to have good news in our newscast. kidnapping victim jessica buchanan. three months they've been waiting for her. fre freed, freed in a deadly raid by navy s.e.a.l.s and we have our correspondent on our the ground. joining us live.

all right, i cannot believe how remarkable this operation was. it reminded me of the osama raid and it looked somewhat the same, especially if you look at it graphically speaking. walk me through it. how did this go down where you are? >> ashleigh, what professionalism and pruscission. u.s. special forces parachuting into somalia in the dead of night. somalia, one of the most dangerous places on the planet and then advancing on foot towards these compounds where these hostages were being kept. yes, they were kept hostage for three months and we understand jessica buchanan's ill health is what expedited this mission. the biggest military base here in africa. really amazing stuff and

buchanan and her co-worker, danish co-worker are to be reunite would their families, ashleigh. >> remarkable stuff. >> great story. >> it is a great story. i am thrilled to hear it. i question the timing of it because you just mentioned that the government has suggested the window was closing because of her ill health, yet, one of the organizers, lead organizers of the group that she was with said she wasn't ill at all. so, i don't know if this is just details getting lost in the shuffle or there's something else to the timing of this. what are they saying on the ground about just how sick she really was? >> you know, i haven't spoken to anybody who has seen jessica buchanan. we're all waiting to get that first look at her to see if she is well. i really think this is a matter of two governments, really. and the company that they work for trying to manage the situation the best way possible,

ashleigh. if they say she's gravely ill, how many people do they worry out there? they haven't seen her, her family hasn't seen her for three months. we understand from people here who have been trying to get hold of her husband, that he just cut off all communications. this must have been very, very devastating not know figure your loved one is going to come out of the most dangerous place on earth alive or not. so, we'll just have to wait and see for ourselves, really, whether jessica is sick and if she is sick, how sick she is. ashleigh? >> thank you for that. imagine what it would have been for her father, john, to get a phone call from, hi, this is barack obama calling to say that your tautght daughter's okay. thanks for that. excellent work from our bureau in nairobi. it is 6:21 on the east. the last debate on cnn tonight before the primary in florida. a cnn/"time" poll is showing gingrich and romney in a dead heat right now.

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if they do nothing, it expires in july. that means student loan rates would go back to where they are up to 6.8 emergency ro%. say you're a kid taking out the maximum in a $23,000 that is $11,000 extra in interest. $11,000 extra in interest. everyone says they want to fix it, but i want to be clear here, fixing it will cost more than $5 billion. we live in an age where everything you want to give to your country, you have to find a way to pay for it because we're in an age of paying for what you're giving away and that's where it gets complicated. >> a whole other segment on how to pay for college. >> save a third, borrow a third and get scholarships in and loans from family for the rest of the third. >> oh, gosh, loans from family, like they're not taxed. >> grandma, you heard me. >> real legacy. i want to know if i lied when i said j krc penny is not going t have sales any more.

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governor of arizona and the president of our fine union. tense moments on the tarmac. you can see barack obama, you can't see jan brewer, but there was some fire, some light, some heat. >> it wasn't the arizona warmth. four murderers pardoned by mississippi governor haley barbour before he left office. three showed up for a hearing to discuss whether they should have been on parole. where's the fourth one? you're watching "early start."

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home stretch half hour. 6:31 on the east, everybody. nice to see you, welcome to the show. this is the top topper -- it involves that, ashleigh. the finger pointing. >> but for the limo, jan brewer with the blonde hair, just a tiny peek of her behind obama's limo. shaking her finger at the

president. the governor shaking the finger because she says the president sparked this exchange when he took exception to how she wrote about him in her book, scorpions for breakfast. >> what a title. >> i know. the pentagon wants more drones. their wish list will be presented later today by leon panetta. its global network of drones and special operation bases while cutting back on conventional forces. and an ohio-born student is back. being released by syrian authorities after being detained for three weeks, according to his family, 21-year-old was handed over to his father in damascus last night. great news for that american family. all right, so, we want to bring in our political panel because we're going to talk about the faceoff between arizona president and jan brewer. gop candidates putting on their best face for voters in florida. so, here we go.

cnn political editor paul steinhauser live in jacksonville, conservative commentator and radio host is with us in chicago and jamie house democratic caucus is in washington. that's a mouthful. so, before, before we get started here on all things politics, let's talk about the brewer moment. was that much ado about nothing? paul, let's start with you. >> listen, we know what she said about it. she talked to reporters extensively after the meeting. what we don't know is what the president says about this. so, i would love to hear his version of the story. we know there has been bad blood between brewer and the white house dating back to the passage of that controversial immigration law out there. something to talk about out there this morning but we have to stay tuned until we hear the whole story. >> jamie, she handed him that note saying i want to have a meeting with you and he was concerned because of what she said in her book about the

meeting before. do we know anything more about that? >> not much. the president is just a little hesitant. if he grants her another meeting, will she write another derogatory remark? he's tired of being the punching bag and just pushing back a little bit. >> lani, what do you think? >> he's sick of being the punching bag for the republican party. just wait until we get later on in 2012. a media savvy president that's used to having the good image in the media going up against a governor that really has the ear of the tea party audience. they just clashed over something that has been playing out for the last couple years. it's not a surprise, it will blow over and probably come back, again, as we move through the campaign season. >> so, let's change topics here, gentlemen. paul, i'll begin with you. we just talked a half hour ago about the orc poll numbers. gingrich is in a tie,

statistically, with romney. but romney leads with latino voters in florida. listen to this poll here. a new abc latino poll show a small percentage overall, it's only 11%, but how important is this as we head into that primary? >> oh, it could be very important. listen, if this contest is as close as our cnn poll and others indicate every vote is going to count, especially the latino community. we are talking about cuban americans down in the miami-dade area and porten re puerto rican. talking to univision. they could be a big factor on tuesday night. >> jamie, of course, they're both stumping for that latino vote. they took part in a spanish-language meet the candidates forum and romney was

talking about his family in mexico. his family history in mexico. his dad left at the age of 6, never learned spanish. jorge from univision asked romney if he will be the first hispanic president. listen to this. >> i don't think people think i was honest with them that i was mexican american. >> it was really interesting moment, how do you think that's going to play, jamie? >> well, you know, i was very surprised to hear the governor actually acknowledging the fact that people would be somewhat skeptical if they did claim. right now, i want to see how the governor actually tackles the issue of immigration in florida, but also the issue in arizona. i mean, you have two different constituencies there. you have the tea party folks there in arizona who have a take

on the immigration issue and you have such a large population of hispanics in florida. so, i really want to see, will he be the old mitt romney on both sides of the fence? >> you know, it's interesting. we'll talk about that, lenny, even though we are talking about immigration, it's not the top priority for latinos, jobs are. a pew hispanic research poll says really for latinos that's number six on the agenda of what they would like to deal with. the latino vote is very important and maybe the candidates believe that the immigration issue is a way to capture the vote. so, we hear gingrich attacking romney on it. listen to what gingrich said about romney's self-deportation statement. >> i think you have to live in a world of swiss bank accounts and cayman island accounts and income with no word to have some fantasy this far from reality. >> you know, there's a popular guy in florida, his name is

marco rubio and he told gingrich to knock it off. how do you think that's going to play come primary voting? >> it will have an impact on the primary voting, not just with the latino community, but you have to remember, marco rubio was the face of the tea party movement. he overcame governor chris to go from an unknown person to being the face of the tea party movement and sliding into that senate seat late 2010. it will have an impact. but if people read the tea leaves. this is nothing more than another person from now the republican establishment of 2011, 2012 now basically trying to at the very least protect governor romney as we move into tonight's debate as we move into tuesday. i think the tea party, although they'll understand what senator rubio is saying, they'll also see this as establishment versus grassroots. gingrich is now becoming that grassroots guy. one heck of a fight this evening at the debate. >> paul, lenny, jamie, thank you

for joining us. >> thank you. >> all gets under way at 8:00 here on cnn. after the break, we'll take you on a little vacation to switzerland. >> beautiful, though. >> beautiful, but, you know what, don't let the beautiful snow belie the fact that europe is being accused of killing us globally and economically. but at the same time we're being told that europe is getting their act together. what exactly are they getting at in that snowy land?

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equality, inequality and they're talking about it in europe, as well. what does that matter to us? >> a big issue that is resonating half a world away where world leaders have come together to try to stave off a worldwide recession. >> cnn's money poppy harlow is live in switzerland. you go on the road and you work really hard because you're breaking news left and right from there. >> we're trying. we're trying. you know, it's so interesting, this 99% versus 1% conversation is getting a lot of attention among some of the richest people in the world here. billionaire investor sat down with an interview and he had interesting points on income inequality. occupy, what it means this year for that. take a listen. will we see more social unrest this year? will the situation get worse? should politicians pay more attention to what's brewing? >> yeah. i'm afraid that it is brewing

because there is a great deal of frustration and anger. i think something ought to be done. so, that's why i'm personally very happy to pay more taxes. a lot of people like me who feel in the 1% who feel that this is, this is appropriate. >> is it class war fare? >> pardon? >> is it class warfare? >> that's what my fellow hedge fund managers are saying, but i think it's because they don't like to pay taxes. >> tough words there coming from one of the richest people in the world, guys. of course, it's coming off of president obama saying in the state of the union. anyone who makes over a million dollars a year should pay at least 30% in taxes. >> this is what ashleigh was alluding to earlier. you just heard about a big ceo endorsement. tell us about that? >> we did. we just wrapped up an interview

with cisco's ceo, he said publicly for the first time he's endorsing mitt romney for president. he told romney that privately on tuesday evening. he is a republican that is well known. an adviser to mccain in 2008. some other interesting news, jamie diamon told our richard quest, he doesn't endorse anyone, but he does not think romney will be the candidate. calling him an experienced, knowledgeable and successful guy. he also says he thinks it will be a tight race. >> some of the richest people we talk about these days in the papers and you're talking to him in a little bit, but you also have some news about him. >> i do. sitting down with bill gates in a little under an hour. the gates foundation run by bill and melinda just committed $750 million to the global fight that fight hiv, malaria and tube

tuberculosis around the globe. two years ago when i sat down with them, they made an $8 billion pledge for vaccines. so, these are folks that give a lot of money away and their real focus is vaccines and fighting disease in the emerging and developing countries. we're going to sit down and talk to them about that. also interested to get bill gates' take on the 99% and 1% conversation since it's really dominating here. >> he sounds like the 1% of the 1%. >> the 0.00%. poppy y ho poppy, i hope you got a good night's rest. nice work. >> thanks, guys. >> she got three hours sleep because anybody who is anybody is there and it's a reporter's dream because you're chasing after the people who are making the decisions. it's interesting because they're making the decisions on how the u.s. will make it this year

because it's what happens in europe. >> what happens in europe doesn't stay in europe. >> affects us. >> you have some squabbling going on between the private lenders and people, the politicians about how to fix greece, that squabbling is playing out in those hall there's. you have people talking about state capitalism, versus the western style capitalism that dominance in the 20th century. is china a new model? what does it mean for the u.s. model? how does germany fit in? these are, i would say, real issues going on there right now. and all of them matter to what happens in our economy. our economy is slowly recovering, finally. we have all these other problems around the world. >> we'll look at a dinner table seating who is the most important and who gets to sit next to the host. if the emerging economies gets the better seats at these tables. >> oh, definitely. oh, yeah. you hear brazil, russia, india,

china. it's an acronym for all of you to remember. bric. brazil, russia, india, china. that is the conversation there. that is the emerging economies that don't play by the rules that we invented, that the u.s. middle class and the european middle class benefitted from. they play by their own set of rules and that's what the real story is. you have china growing at 8% plus. you have the uk shrinking in the last quarter and the u.s. maybe we'll know for sure on friday, maybe 3% growth. the story the emerging markets is where the story is really fascinating. >> christine romans, always nice to have you weigh in. >> i have never been colder than standing at that location in davos. that is the coldest i've been in my life. >> you should have started your career in winnipeg. minus 40 when it's warm in the winter. >> christine romans, thanks, good job. soledad o'brien is busy, hard at work. >> yes, keep telling people

that. good morning, everybody. this morning we'll talk about several americans who have been stopped from boarding flights out of egypt, including the son of transportation secretary ray lahood. he's among them. how they got caught up in this power struggle between two countries. disneyland, you know this company has strict rules for its employees, well, now, they're allowing anything. no, they're not. they have changed, lifted a ban for their male employees. we'll tell you what they are doing differently at disneyland. maybe this vacation wasn't a good idea vacations are always a good idea ♪ priceline negoti - - no time. out quickly. you're miles from your destination. you'll need a hotel tonight we don't have time to bid you don't have to bid. at priceline you can choose from thousands of hotels on sale every day. save yourself... some money

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welcome back. 51 minutes past the hour. time to check the stories that are making news this morning. we are hearing from both sides of yesterday's testy tarmac exchange between jan brewer and president obama that happened in phoenix. brewer said it is because she wrote in her book that the president wasn't cordial to her when she visited the white house. the white house claims the president was cordial to her when they met back in june of 2010. a lot of fingerpointing on her behalf there. >> i would love to hear what the president was actually saying. they're both talking about it. maybe we'll find out later. founder of the french

company at the center of an international scare involving breast implants is under arrest this morning. he runs something called the polly implant polly thesis. those products are not approved for use in the usa. don't worry about that. worry about this. picked up by police who were investigating the cancer death of a french woman who had those implants and the police are saying her death is a homicide. and washington, d.c., the capital of our country and also the reading, reading capital on the list. most literate, seattle. minneapolis came in at number three and the survey from central connecticut state university considered things like newspaper circulation and number of book stores. >> a lot of book stores are closing. >> people might buy the books, but necessarily be buying the ones that are tough to read. i don't know. what do i know about conducting

polls? there is a reward, you ready for this? a reward being offered to help track down a convicted murderer, who apparently isn't being considered a murderer any more in mississippi. because four convicted murderers serving life sentenced were granted full pardons by haley barbour earlier this month. all but one appeared in court on monday for a hearing that was challenging those pardons. >> now officials admit that they they have no idea where he is. he was last seen in northwest mississippi. the state's attorney general tells cnn that he is a danger to the community. cnn's ed lavandera joins us now on the phone from jackson, mississippi, this is a tough story, i have to tell you. we're trying to figure out how they're going after someone who actually has a full pardon. >> yeah, exactly. that's the challenge that the attorney general here in mississippi says he has. this is why this is unprecedented. they're trying to figure out if

they could at least serve him with the paperwork. they have not been able to give him the paperwork needed to show that he needs to show up at these court hearings. without having that he's under no obligation to show up. so, they're hoping and they figured out a way to offer up some reward money. they wouldn't specify how much, but they suspect he might be in northwest mississippi where his family lives and where he was from originally. and they're hoping that in some way that might rattle and convince some relative who might know something or a friend that might know something and convince someone to make a call and tip then omto where he might be. if they can just deliver the paperwork. that would give him the incentive to show up at these hearings. >> what are they serving him with? for a court appearance? >> exactly. remember earlier this week they have the court hearing. there is a temporary injunction on these pardons and that is

still kind of making its way through the courts here in jackson, mississippi. but since he's a full pardon, not like they can issue an arrest warrant because he's no longer considered a criminal. if they give him the paperwork, they could then argue for a judge, look, heeds he's been served and told to show up here and a judge could hold him in contempt and issue an arrest warrant without giving him that paperwork. >> it's like saber rattling. this story has bothered me from the get go on both sides of this because it sound more and more political between the ag who is a democrat and the outgoing governor who is a democrat. when you get a pardon, here's how it goes. you are clean, you have a clean slate. how they can order people to check in with parole officers and some legal notion that this bad, bad man killed somebody who is clean as a whistle now, according to the law, has to check in with anybody in the government is beyond me.

i don't get it. >> the ag is arguing if it's a simple argument of haley barbour not following the constitution. we talked about the ag arguing before this judge that according to the constitution, the inmate that is being pardoned has to post for 30 days leading the pardon announcement and newspapers, wherever the crime happened, that this person is up for a pardon and he's arguing that didn't happen. 28 days instead of 30 days in these cases and because of that, the pardon should never have been allowed to have happened and it violated the state's constitution and that's what the ag is arguing. >> ed lavandera, thank you for joining us. i'm sure you'll continue to follow this story. three minutes to the top of the hour and we're back right after this. but if you take away the faces on the trees... take away the pixie dust. take away the singing animals, and the storybook narrator...

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that was "early start." news from a to z.