♪ good morning to you. welcome to early start. i'm zoraida sambolin. i'm ashleigh banfield. rick santorum is waking up to great headlines. he's pulling away and his lead, folks, is in the double digits. so the banner says can santorum really beat romney? you're going to hear answers. >> he's the sheriff that's tough on immigration laws and also

famous from an ad with mccain saying, complete that dang fence. he's been outed, accused fd threatening to deport his immigrant boyfriend. we have lots of coverage on that story today. also, take a look at these pictures. this is what you call chafing the hailstorm. it hurts. ow, look at that. we'll taking where this is happening. and the folks who took that video. >> millions of dollars in plastic surgery, to the taxpayers. their nose jobs, breast implants, lipo. you name it. how is this happening in the middle of a budget crisis? >> that's a good question. plastic surgery, teachers, really? >> quite a remarkable story. >> lordy. >> i don't know if you want to be a teacher in that district. >> heck ya. one minute past 5:00 in the east. double digit lead. always good news it you're a candidate seeking to be the guy who runs against president obama. that's the story for rick

santorum this morning. he's kind of in the driver's seat now. >> he's got a ten point lead over romney now. look at the numbers. app storm 36%, romney 26%, gingrich, 13%, ron paul at 11%. even some party insiders are starting to believe that santorum could win the nomination. listen to ari fleischer last night onac 360. >> you really think he could get the nomination? >> i really do. i'm prepared to say that now. for the first time i'd say that. i always thought it was an open race, anything could happen. was that kind of wild year. don't underestimate what's happening with people going to rick santorum and he does need to broaden it. the social issues really do motivate him. he speaks from the heart. >> cnn political director is live from mesa, arizona. just last week, we were talking statistical ties. these leads are quite amazing. >> yeah, they are. rick santorum, if we were just

to be talking, having this conversation five weeks ago, rick santorum was left for dead. in fact, newt gingrich was saying that rick santorum did get out of the race and out of the support. look at how the pendulum was swung back. this former senator from pennsylvania who was crushed back when he lost his reelection bid back in around 2006 is now in the lead and in fact, as ari fleischer has saying last night on ac 360, there are washington insiders that think he can win the nomination. a lot of them are concerned that he can win the nomination, because they don't think he can beat barack obama in november. >> the republicans are poring over filing deadlines we understand trying to figure out the worst case scenario. what are their options? >> well, i mean, there's a lot of chatter in washington, d.c. about, if rick santorum or mitt romney or newt gingrich is not able to get enough delegates to head into august for this

so-called contested convention or brokered convention, depending how you look at it, some talk about getting a consensus candidate that would come in. bottom line, it's going to be one of these three gentlemen, ron paul of course running as well. he doesn't have a chance at the nomination. but it's either going to be newt gingrich, mitt romney, rick santorum. it's coming down to rick santorum or mitt romney for the republican nomination. >> cnn political director mark preston, live from mesa for us. do not miss the debate, the arizona republican debate tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. eastern. it's four minutes past 5:00 n on the east coast. an early start to the day by alerting you to the big stories. jury selection beginning today in an alleged church sex abuse scandal that rocked philadelphia's archdiocese. three priests and april catholic school teacher are charged with the alleged assault of young

boys. a high ranking church official is accused of covering it all up. all five have pleaded not guilty. the international red cross is trying to negotiate a cease-fire between syrian forces and the opposition. the agency is trying to get food and much-needed medical supplies to besieged city of homs and other locations there that need it. >> voting is under way in yemen's first election in more than three decades. long time president hand the overpower back in november after months of really vigorous protests in that country. the vice president and yemen's now interim president is the only candidate on the ballot to replace him. five minutes past 5:00 in the east. we're minding your business now. greece securing a second bailout finally. the lafrj he's sovereign debt bailout in the history of the european union. greece will get an additional

$172 billion in aid, in turn greece agreed to more cuts to spending. $431 million worth. how are the markets reacting. stock futures are up right now ahead of the opening bell. >> let's bring in christine romans to talk about that that. we talk every day about greece and the bailout. now we have a plan, but are we closer to having resolution? >> we are. here's why. because greece has now got the money. european lieders say you're going to get the money. they won't go bankrupt. they're going to make a big large bond payment and greece can move forward. they've promised more austerity and cuts in greece so they can deserve this. investors are taking a luge hit. >> bankrupt, default, same thing? >> it's basically -- at this point it is. this is the end of the road for greece. they had to figure this out. it was a contentious down to the wire negotiation. they've agreed to do something

to -- with this kind of emergency firewall. so overall, leaders are hopeful that these kind of countries aren't going to bring down the entire eurozone. this is not without an awful lot of pain for the citizens. >> they've had smaller pensions, steep job cut, reductions in pay, they're going to have pay cut. this is why people are taking to the streets over and over again. here's another concern as well. this concern that cutting, cutting, cutting, doesn't remake an economy. greece still has to change it dna. it has to learn how to combine private equity, private capital with people's good ideas and have innovation, new business and it's got to grow. it's got to grow out of this long-term. otherwise, it's going to be in the same situation. market today are not really moving a lot on this because they wanted this deal, they got this deal and now they're looking for validation down the road that greece can become a new greece. could start all over after this. >> you know what i was reading

this morning. it surprised me. greece is in its fifth year of a recession. >> it hurts. for those people, that's why they're rioting. they're saying what, you can't keep cutting our way and saying that's making the economy better. structural things have to be done. they've been fighting about how to do it. there's a piece called pain without gain in the new york times that a lot of people are talking approximate this morning. look, you keep cutting, cutting, cutting and ep says that we've seen over the past few years that all this cutting hasn't made anybody grow yet. >> i've never seen anybody suggest being someone told me and i thought it's crazy until i thought it through. how about selling some islands. >> when you start talking about getting rid of -- >> property. real estate. >> getting advertising on some of the big tourist venues. i mean, they have to think of everything, everything is on the table. >> is that something that might happened, selling greek islands? >> maybe leasing them or licensing them or getting --

>> i want the -- >> these are -- >> these are greek treasures. >> if it's going to drive this economy in tourism, it shouldn't get rid of the thing that will help it grow in the pew tur. >> for americans watching who say great idea, how about selling the grand canyon, how would you feel about that? that's what we're talking about here. >> they like to compare greece to the united states. we have so much debt too, could we be like greece today? we're very different economies. >> christine romans, thank you for that perspective. appreciate it. >> we have video that's unbelievable to watch. we always talk about first responders and what heroes they are. look at these pictures of firefighters desperately digging through wreckage. look how fast and furious they're trying to find people buried. this was a mobile home in oklahoma. it was shredded in a severe storm that blew through. the sheriff has confirmed for us that one person was actually killed in that incident. but, but the good news is they were able to rescue another

person. the work paid off. >> good to see that in action. jacqui jeras is minding the weather for us this morning. >> good morning, ladies. those winds were really incredible with thunderstorms. it wasn't a tornado that caused that damage at that mobile home park there. we also had damage in kansas due to hail. take a look at these pictures. just incredible. it was like nickel-sized hail but it covered the streets, it covered cars and moved through very, very quickly. overall, the storm system packed a punch. but it really was a fast mover. this thing moving across parts of the great lakes and bringing in some rain into the ohio river valley as we take a look at the radar now. you can see this wintry mix of some rain and some snow as well. some big cities impacted by this too. minneapolis st. paul. this is moving out in the next hour. watching for improving conditions. any roads that haven't been treated certainly on the slick

side. chicago for you, primarily a rain event that we might see mixing, very little accumulation will be expected. the other aspect we've been dealing with has been the wind. it's been incredible. not thunderstorm winds, we're talking about winds from the strong low pressure area. yesterday, in texas, take a look at what it did. this is texas. here's lubbock. did you guys see the haze over the top there. that light brown is dust. an incredible dust storm by this as well. we're going to focus a little bit on the west now. we have a powerful storm that's moving in here. this is going to be bringing in incredible rainfall totals and the snow levels are going to be really high. we're talking about 6,000 or 7,000 feet. we're very concerned about that. the avalanche danger remains extreme. temperaturewise across the country, staying comfortable. well above average for this time of year. back to you ladies. >> jacqui jeras thanks so much.

are you planning a vacation, maybe a stay-cation. we're talking about $5 gasoline by the summer. people are forced to make choices with their family budget. >> go bike riding instead, right? if you're one of the folks who bought the iphone 4 and found april glitch, something wasn't working right with the case. keep your eye on e-mails folks. don't assume that something called death grip is a hoax. the settlement and it's going to be good for you. we'll tell you all about 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.

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recognize that song? if you're in new orleans, you will. it is 58 degrees there now. listen to this, sunny and 71 later. loving that. >> that is professor long hair. go to the mardi gras. in case you're waking up and not seeing your tv. that's a nice song to wake up to. exactly 15 minutes past the hour as we whistle a happy tune. want to get you caught up on top stories. here's a good one for rick santorum. he is now in a double-digit lead nationally in the latest poll.

former senator leading with 36% of those asked. romney coming in second at 26%. also making news, this is new overnight. the red cross is trying to broker a peace deal at least for a short time in syria to try to get food and vital medical supplies to one of the cities so hard hit. homs. an opposition group is reporting at least seven more people including an infant were killed in heavy shelling by regime forces. sugar land is responding to a lawsuit claiming their negligence contributed to this. at least in part that stage collapse at the indiana state fair last year. dozens were injured and several killed. the collapse was caused by a combustof wind that was of unprecedented intensity and was also "a true accident or act of god "requesting. i suspect is in custody in the robbery of justice stephen breyer. the man used a ma shet toy rob

him in the caribbean. the new jersey nets attempting to tame lin-sanity. i guess they accomplished it. the nets beat jeremy lin and the knicks last night at madison square garden. lin began his remarkable run against new jersey. ron williams took that personally scoring 38 points. jeremy lin had 28 points in the loss. not bad. let it fly. today is fat tuesday. people already partying in new orleans. we have live pictures from bourbon street here. you got eat up today. a dozen parades getting ready to roll in and around the big easy. of course, it is the last big blowout of carnival season before ash wednesday. every day is fat tuesday for me. that's all i'm saying. the arizona sheriff accused of threatening to deport his ex-boyfriend is talking about it and he's saying a lot. sheriff paul babeu spoke

exclusively with our wolf blitzer yesterday. >> alina cho is here with more of what he had to say. >> wasn't it incredible. >> all of the story is incredible. all of it. >> what was most remarkable, at least to some is that the sheriff didn't shia way from any of the tough questions. he admitted to having a relationship with a man we're calling jose, a mexican national. spoke to our miguel marquez yesterday. the sheriff said they dated when jose was an unpaid volunteer running the sheriff's campaign website. that includes much of the social media, including twitter. he says when the relationship went sour, about a three-year relationship, jose posed as babeu online because he had the passwords and posted what babeu calls slanderous information. the sheriff said he never threatened to deport him. >> one, he's legal. he has said that. i have said that. and then in addition, this whole thing about deportation, we all know i don't have deportation

authority. i have the authority to arrest. there were several crimes committed here against me in -- >> ald crimes? >> absolutely. >> he isn't convicted. >> no. he has a business and he stole my property and the images purported to be me. so also identity theft in addition to that. all i wanted done is for this to stop. >> i mean, he makes a convincing argument. obviously, this was a part of the story that jose did not reveal to our miguel marquez. presents a new twist. if you believe him, it's a stronger case for the sheriff, obviously. >> it's messier than just that. he's a rising star in the gop. >> he is. and obviously, a lot of people concerned about the political fallout. yes, he is going to continue to run for congress. he's running for the republican nomination in the fourth congressional district. he says he wants voters to judge him not on his personal life, but on his record and his love

of country. that he did step down, however, from a very key role on mitt romney's presidential campaign. he was the arizona campaign co-chair, but the sheriff insists he was not forced out. >> explain why you decided to step down as co-chairman of the romney campaign here in arizona. if you've done nothing wrong, why did you step down? >> one, i didn't want this to splash over on mitt or any of the other candidates. >> what part, the allegations or the fact that you're gay? >> this controversy. certainly not that i'm gay. the romney campaign, and i don't think anybody should have a problem with my personal life and who incompetent. it doesn't take away from my patriotism or my service. if you asked any of the candidates that, i don't think they would disagree with that. >> it's interesting, the huffington post had an article because of that statement there, that he admitted he's gay that his career is essentially over. >> hope that's not true.

>> where does his relationship with his boyfriend tan stand. >> that was one of the most interesting part of the conversation. kudos to wolf, he asked all the questions. babeu does not wish him ill will as he put it but believes the attack is politically motivated. the timing is suspect in his words. we'll have more of the interview in the next hour including wolf asked him what his stance was on gay marriage. lot of people now very interested in what the sheriff has to say about that. we'll give you his answer. >> i wonder if it's the statement about being gay or photos. photos in the bathroom mirror never go well. >> the anthony wiener looking photos. they never play well in the campaign. >> photos live forever. >> they do. >> we'll talk to the reporter who broke the story. it lives on. >> thank you, alina. it's 21 minutes past the hour. we're getting an early read on local news that's making national headlines.

chicago and richmond. the chicago tribune here, gas prices rising at a record pace. you know that. more than $4 a gallon in some parts of the united states. analysts blame the hike on iran's decision to cut oil sales to britain and france. some analysts fear the threat could spark record high gas prices. they're talking $5 a gallon by this summer. others say that we're close to peak now. but i got to tell you, the tribune, burrow owe chicago normally has the highest gas prices in the nation but they dropped ten cents a gallon, which is below the national average. so good morning to you, chicago. there's good news. we're trying to figure out where is the lowest gas price to steer our viewers in that direction. >> that another thing that makes you miss home? >> no. not really. i just miss home because it's home >> let's get you to the richmond times dispatch. another headline. here's something the governor is getting mixed up in. that state is expected to pass a bill requiring ultrasound for women who want to get abortions.

it's about to end up on the governor, bob mcdonnell's desk after passing the house today. he's voiced his support for the bill. don't expect last minute veto necessarily. on saturday, he said he'll review it in the final form if it does pass. a thousand people were rallying outside the state capitol on monday. the majority of the folks been asked do not like this. 55% of the virginians asked say no go. don't like it. that's 36% say they do like it. we'll see what the governor decides to do in the end. >> that's a tough one. it is a very tough one. >> it's never easy when you're talking anything that has to do with abortion. 23 minutes past 5:00 now. still ahead, can rick santorum pull this thing off? how long will it take him if he does pull it off? by the way, is that such a good thing? some republicans apparently saying not so much. some whisper rumors about this. we'll let you had on it. you're watching "early start."

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teachers face layoffs across the country, some teachers in buffalo, new york, are getting lipo. >> how the heck is a school system fresh off a recession paying for plastic surgery? you might ask that. be a good question if you did. you're watching "early start."

good morning to you. it's 27 minutes past the hour. welcome back to "early start" i'm zoraida sambolin. i'm ban ban. making news, rick santorum surgerying ahead.

a 10-point, double digit lead nationally in the latest gallup tracking poll. former senator leading with 36% of the vote. mitt romney in second, ten points behind, as we said, 26% of the vote. a new $173 billion bailout approved for greece this morning. it's the country's second bailout granted . 't ]

good morning. it is 46 minutes past the hour. time to check your top stories if you're heading out this morning. rick santorum out to a double digit lead over mitt romney in the latest gallup tracking poll. new federal election commission figures also show he doubled his fundraising in january after winning the iowa caucuses. >> a panic that sparked high oil prices appears to be wearing off this morning. oil prices were mixed in the asian market today after a spike monday. analysts blamed the hike on iran's decision to halt oil sales to france and britain. >> it was a very bad night in oklahoma. some deadly storms rolled through there, killing one person and trapping at least one other in a mobile home. that home was leveled and look at the rescue attempts for the first responders as they frantically dig through trying to find people under the rubble. that storm pounded the plains with hail and rain and winds up to 70 miles an hour.

>> former imf chief and former french presidential hopeful seen here through a reflective window in the car. come nooek strauss-kahn is in trouble again being in an alleged prostitution ring in france. you might remember in the city, there was all that press because he was charged with the attempted rape of a hotel worker in new york. the charges later dropped. but strauss-kahn filed a civil suit against his accuser. now he sought legal fronts in both countries. >> colbert nation, you can rejoice this morning. stephen colbert and the colbert report back on the air last night. he took two days off last week reportedly to attend to his 91-year-old ailing mother. last night he gave a tribute to his mom in a confidential message. >> evidently having 11 children makes you tough as nails.

confidential to a lovely lady. >> preciousu he's the youngest of 11 by watt. the little thing you saw, placing his finger on his nose. >> i fell in love with him. >> that's an homage to carol burnett sending a message to her grandmother. she was tugging her earring. that was to say i love you. so many saying that was a confidential mess tooj his mom when he did that to her. >> imagine having 11 kids for starters. >> ouch. she deserves a huge award for that alone. >> push my nose for mrs. colbert. way to go. >> let's head to jacqui jeras and get a check on the weather. good morning to you. >> good morning, ladies. adorable. the weather today, stormy. we're looking at this in the country from the great lakes down to the gulf coast, we're going to see very windy conditions. rain in the ohio valley. some snow mixed in here. not heavy accumulations but they'll be impacting your travel. the other storm moving into the pacific northwest, this is a

doozy. this is going to be tracking all the way across the country. might produce severe weather late in the week. today, it's heavy rain and snow in the higher elevations. major delays expected in chicago. most of those delays across the great lakes. back to you, lady. >> thank you. 40 minutes past the hour. when teachers in buffalo, new york go under the knife, taxpayers foot the bill. an insurance perk you may not believe. also, an exclusive here at cnn. take a look at the pictures. happy couple, not so much. on the right the arizona sheriff, paul babeu. on the left, his ex-boyfriend and allegations that he tried to have him deported by threatening to say, you say i'm gay, you're out of the country. but is it true? you're watching "early start." [ 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.

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welcome back. 53 minutes past the hour. if you know if you're a teacher in the buffalo area, you can get a bob job or nose job and have it paid for. >> here's what makes the story more surprising. both the city and the teachers union want to do away with the insurance rider that allows that to happen. gary tuchman has the details. >> reporter: this buffalo plastic surgeon has a lot of happy patients. >> let's suppose that i was a woman who weighed over 300 pounds and i lost maybe 150 or

160 pounds. >> indeed, that's what happened to buffalo school teacher beverly. it's not just the results that make her happy. it's the sweet deal that she gets. the sweet deal that all the 3400 teachers had buffalo are eligible to get under an insurance plan option. they're billed nothing for any plastic surgery procedure, botox, tummy tucks, liposuction. there's no deductible. >> linda teaches second grade and says she gets regular treatments. >> i think it's great for us. i wouldn't want to see it taken away. >> this doctor has been a plastic surgeon in buffalo for about 40 years. i feel that the teachers have paid their dues and i think they could be wrong to take it away from them. >> while he has plenty of nonteacher patients, three out of ten are buffalo teachers and the school district covers every single penny.

>> they were coming for like hair removal on lips, face. >> do they also come in for liposuction? >> yes. >> breast enhancements? >> yes, they do. >> facelift. >> rhinoplasty. >> yes. >> so it's busy. >> yes. >> he is one of many plastic surgeons who advertise in the teachers newsletter. >> it's also known as a cosmetic rider. the buffalo teachers have had this rider for nearly four decades. >> i've been unable to identify another district with cosmetic riders for teachers. >> you might think buffalo school district must be flush with cash to offer these perks, right? wrong. the president of the buffalo board of education says he's projecting a $42 million deficit in next year's budget. >> if you had this $5.9 million that wasn't spent on plastic surgery, what would you do with it now? >> hiring about 240 teachers. >> you don't have to be a brain surgeon to know that a plastic

surgeon or a teacher would like this policy more than the typical taxpayer. but the teachers will tell you there's a lot more to the story. they say their contract with the stit expired nearly a decade ago, that negotiations have failed and they add they are woefully underpaid. it's quite interesting to hear what the president of the teachers union says about the plastic surgery benefit. >> we've told the district from the beginning of negotiations six or eight years ago we're willing to give it up. as long as the district comes back to the table with us and negotiates, it's gone. >> do you feel that as a gesture of good faith, the union should say teachers no more free plastic surgery. >> it would be a wonderful gesture. willing to give it up. they just have to come to the table and negotiate. >> you're not going to do it unilaterally? >> no. >> firefighters have similar programs. but those departments are not dealing with the same financial problems as the economically challenged school sis stem. >> everybody works for a living. they should pay like everybody

else. >> i don't think the taxpayer has to pay for that. not for free anyway. >> at least for now, the policy remains. in a school district with the unique mix of brain and beauty. gary tuchman, cnn, buffalo, new york. hmm. >> wow. that's all we have to say. wouldn't want to be a taxpayer in that community. that's all i'm saying. the gop starting to think about the possibility of rick santorum winning the nomination. he is out to a double-digit lead in the latest polls. can he really beat romney or perhaps some worried about him beating obama. >> the president has a plan to "nudge" republicans into action. he's talking today about getting things done in an election year. oh, how's that going to work out for you? you're watching "early start." . but i did pick up your dry cleaning and had your shoes shined. well, i made you a reservation at the sushi place around the corner. well, in that case, i better get back to these invoices...

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good morning. it's 6:00 in the morning on the east coast. that means it's an "early start." i'm ashleigh banfield. >> we are very happy you're with us this morning. i'm zoraida sambolin. we are bring i don't guess you the news from a to z. let's get started here for you. santorum is pulling away. he has a double digit lead now in the latest polls. does that worry republicans? we're going to let our panelists weigh in on that this morning. also, we've got a cnn exclusive with sheriff paul babeu. he's the tough on immigration sheriff, famous for an ad with john mccain saying complete the dang fence. but now he may be made more famous because he's been outed as gay. and, also, because he's been accuse of threatening his

ex-lover with deportation if that lover said he was gay, and he's a rising star in the republican party. and we love sharing good news with you. listen to this. apple has been ordered to pay up. they're settinging a lawsuit with the iphone 4 death grip. and, baby, you can drive that car but you are going to pay for it big time. gas prices are surging and some folks are actually whispering five bucks a gallon by summertime. yeah. there's that. families already have been forced to make tough choices now have to decide if they need to stay home for vacation or pay. >> what makes me really mad. >> $5? >> yes. so many people, their daily budget. how do you do that? >> that reaction is a exactly what the republicans want because this is where near going with their campaign against president obama. a lot of people are saying they're going to focus on the fact that --

>> this is reality. regardless of whether you're a republican or democrat. >> how much can you blame it on the president and how much can the president says it's iran's fault, don't blame us. it's a great debate. here it is now, a double digit lead. former senator rick santorum is in the driver's seat. >> i don't know if he's paying $5 for gas but he is in the driver's seat. he got a lead over mitt romney in the national tracking poll. are you ready for the numbers? look at the picture. he's at 36% over romney's 26%. gingrich falling well behind at 13%. good old ron paul hanging in at 11%. all of this as some party insiders are starting to whisper that, hey, santorum could really win this nomination and is that such a good thing? reason to ari fletcher last night on "ac 360." >> you really think he will get the nomination? >> i really do. for the first time i would say that.

i always thought this was an open race, anybody -- anything could happen. it was that kind of wild year. but don't underestimate what has happened now with people going to rick santorum and he does need to broaden it. social issues really demote vat him. he speaks from the heart. >> cnn's political director is mark preston. he's live in mesa, arizona, where the debate gets under way tomorrow. mark, i had been thinking all along, much to do about nothing. this whole gop race with loads of peaks and valleys. this is just another one of those until i heard president obama's former press secretary say that. is there something more to this? >> well, you know what's great about what he said is he said i am now prepared to say that rick santorum could win the combination. that's drama and that's exactly what a republican insiders are thinking right now. mitt romney actual i was supposed to be the one who is going to win the nomination and

he was going to be best suited to take on president obama in november and he could perhaps appeal to those independent voters orren, even more moderate republican voters who who could vote democrat depending on the election year. now they'ring looking at rick an store rum. now up ten points nationally as you just pointed out. the reason why he's doing so well in the republican primary is that he's talking about issues that real conservative republican voters want to talk about. these aren't issues that are going to play well in the general election. that's why you have the gop establishment scratching their head saying, oh, if rick santorum wins, could we lose november? >> so, mark, i'm reading on politico this morning that -- and i'm preface this by saying it was the headline that stood out to me. "pro santorum pac picks up another mega donor." romney has the money and gingrich has the money and

santorums that peanuts. and now i hear that santorum has picked up a donor, a million dollar donor. >> what we are seeing now is that people are starting to get behind santorum. there are a lot of deep-pocketed republicans down this want to see him win the nomination. these are republicans who are driven by social conservative issues. as you said, rick santorum doesn't have the money but he's got the momentum. and in some ways he has the support of the grass roots. when you're run for president in the republican presidential nomination, maybe the grass roots can just win out over organization and money, which is what mitt romney has. >> there's mojo, there's money, and then there's debates. we've got one coming tomorrow night. what does rick santorum need to do to make some sort of memorable moment that newt's done, mitt's done. is this rick's turn? >> well, you know, rick santorum has pretty much had very good debate performances over the

last 19 debates. yes, i did say that, 19 debates. >> oh, lord! >> he's done well. tomorrow night here. yeah, right. so, you know, he's always had a good debate performance. they've always been overshadowed by mitt romney and rick perry and newt gingrich and sometimes ron paul. he's a very good debater. he spent a lot of time in congress, he knows how to do it. but tomorrow night there's going to be a lot of knockout punches thrown, not only by rick santorum but by mitt romney and newt gingrich because there's a lot on the line. this will be the last debate, not only before the arizona/michigan primaries but before super tuesday. there's an incredible amount on the line tomorrow. >> maybe that's the great strategy. stay under the radar as long as you can. mark preston, nice to see you. thanks. also want to remind you, don't miss the last presidential debate before super tuesday. cnn's arizona republican debate gets under way 8:00 p.m. eastern

time tomorrow night. seven minutes past the hour. new this morning, president obama expected to go after congress today. cnn is learn that he will push lawmakers to get more accomplished today at his payroll tax cut event that's scheduled at 11:35. officials telling jessica yellin he will use it as a springboard to urge congress to pass more bipartisan measures. the white house saying no longer accept that congress can sit on its hands in an election year. philadelphia's catholic march diocese is figuratively going on trial today. jury selection set to begin in a child sex abuse case in that city. three priests and a catholic schoolteacher are charged with sexual assaulting young boys. monsignor william lynn is charged with child endangerment. the highest ranking to stand trial. the philadelphia archdiocese is accuse of failing to investigate the sex abuse claims and the testimony is expected to begin

next month. arizona sheriff paul babeu defending himself against allegations from a former boy friend that the sheriff threatened him with deportation. >> he sat down with our wolf blitzer exclusively on monday. alina cho is here with that interview. bombshell after bombshell but he is digging? >> he most certainly is. he hit all of the tough questions head-on. a big reason why this is getting a lot of attention, of course, is because paul babeu is a rising star in the republican party in arizona. by the book sheriff who has built a reputation of being tough on immigration, tough on drug enforcement, he also served a tour duty in iraq. these accusations are not threatening to derail his political aspirations and pose problems for mitt romney. we'll explain that in just a moment. but here's the back story. babeu said his former boyfriend who we are calling jose once worked as a volunteer on his campaign website, running much

of the social media. you see miguel there. he spoke to miguel yesterday after their relationship soured, the sheriff said jose stole his identity, hacked into his campaign website and then posted what he calls slanderous information online. babeu said he never threatened to deport jose and said he never had the authority to do so anyway. >> he says there were phone call, there were text messages in which you were supposedly threatening him. >> and this is documented as well. i said, i said, how can you -- you think you're going to do business. he had a business with websites. he just stole my websites and put slanderous information on my websites and how can -- how can anybody expect to do business? all i wanted this -- because i have waffle authority for arrests, there was no arrest, there was no lawful authority. i do what you and other citizens would have done, went to an attorney. the attorney handled the matter.

i thought it was done. now as i'm approaching five months into this election, i'm ten points ahead in the poll over an incumbent member of congress, and all this stuff comes out. >> timing is everything. >> it most certainly is. >> he's run for congress, as he said there. any word on whether he plans to drop out or what he plans to do next? >> no, he plans to stay in the race. he is running for the republican nomination to the 4th congressional district in arizona. he's staying in and he's fighting. he said he's never backed away from a fight. he believes this is politically motivated. he harks however, stepped down as the arizona campaign cochair as the romney campaign. he adds he not pressured to do so. it is his decision. probably a big reason why he's speaking out. so watch this moment in the interview when wolf asked him about a topic that will likely become a campaign issue. >> you want to be a member of the house of representatives, right? >> yes.

>> people are going to ask you political questions about gay marriage, for example. should gay men and women have the right to get married. >> this is where i go ron paul on people in terms of the libertarian. i believe in less government at the federal level. they should get out of the people's lives. unless it's an enumerated power in the constitution, it falls to the states. this is where it falls to the states. we have had washington, we have had a number of other states, massachusetts. now we have -- >> maryland. >> -- maryland. and they have all made decisions. arizona has made a decision. that's the law of the land. i enforce the law. i can tell you my personal beliefs and my political beliefs is i believe in freedom of religion. >> so i don't quite understand why he would step down as co-chair yet continue to run for congress. like one is not acceptable, the other is? >> et ceteit's interesting. people have asked me. what about the political fallout. i said, well, it depends on how you look at it.

he is stepping down as campaign cochair of the romney campaign. he was very adamant about saying it was his decision. they did not ask him to step down. that is what everyone is saying publicly. you don't know what is going on behind the scenes but you have to take him at his word. having that he is continuing to run for congress. as for the support that he has gotten, this is also interesting. he said that it has been far reaching and unwavering. members of his staff, elected official, mayors, all have come forward to support him. and the sheriff said that he rarely gets emotional but when he saw that type of support that he did get emotional. he said he's never backed away from it and he's not about to now and he's going ahead with his campaign. >> wonder if his mitt folks were as supportive as his staff around the congressional battle. >> you have to wonder. >> good work. we're going to speak to the reporter who broke the story and ask him about that, whether he has that support in his area. monica alonzo from the "phoenix

new times" is joining us at 6:45 eastern. and it's now 13 minutes past 6:00. you have an iphone and ipad and everything. >> look at her. she doesn't go anywhere without it. are you one of the people who is going to benefit from the settlement? >> yes. >> she's excited. >> i love freebies. doing the right thing, and they did. >> the iphone folks might be send you an e-mail entitled dret grip. it's not a joke and it's not a virus. it might be something you might appreciate. >> i'm making a big deal out of it. it's not that big but still et cetera free. lin sanity, remember him? all started a few games ago against new jersey. what happened in the rematch? >> oh, it's just a one-game thing, isn't it? >> it is. you're right. ashleigh banfield, it is a gun-game thing. >> lin sanity didn't continue. >> i'm good with it. i'm wearing my t-shirt to wish him luck. jacqui jeras is joining us this morning with a quick look at the travel forecast. >> travel insanity kind of across parts of the midwest this

morning. blusier start for you. minneapolis, st. paul, one to three inches in the last 24 hours. things are going to be slick there. chicago, your rain just changed over to some snow. but little accumulation is going to be expected. high pressure hugging the east coast. great weather for you here today. and the northwest, this is going to be the storm of the day. a bunch of moisture moving in. flooding along with high winds and speaking of winds, take a look at what they did yesterday in texas. that's dust. you can see it from space. that's the latest on your forecast. ashleigh and zoraida are back right after this break. don't go away.ke ome good points. we need safer energy. [announcer:] who's right? they all are. visit powerincooperation.com. [ technician ] are you busy? management just sent over these new technical manuals.

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santorum. ashleigh is having a moment. >> i love the shangrilas. just listen. it's a great way to wake up. you've got to admit, right? if you've got to get up at 18 minutes past the hour. >> i don't know. motorcycles. >> no? >> i don't know. i don't know that i would choose that. >> oh, come on. this is a good tune. like i said, if you're waking up now, then we've got news for you. top stories, time, rick santorum, leader of the pack, my friends. out in front with the latest national numbers in the latest national gallop poll. i think this is before he heard about double digits. this is a guy whose smile might dissipate because the former senator is leading mitt romney with 36% of the vote to romney's 26%. also in the news, former imf chief and former french presidential hopeful, too, dominique strauss-kahn, bad news for him again. he is being questioned in an alleged prostitution ring in france. you might remember that he was charged here actually in new york last may with attempted rape of a hotel worker.

those charges were later dropped. he in turn filed a civil suit afterwards. also, greece is getting another chance. it's a second bailout, folks, that's been approved by the e o eurozo eurozone. finance minister approved $173 billion bailout deal for that teeny tiny country. greece agreed to toughen the austerity measures. we'll see how that goes over with the folks who live in greece and have to eat up those measures. police say they have caught the man who robbed supreme court justice steven breyer. 28-year-old brown turned himself in. he's accused of using a machete to rob justice breyer at his vacation home in the caribbean. and listen to this, folks. apple is counting down on its website as it closes in on a magic number 25 billion apps downloaded. listen to this. whoever downloads that 25th billion app will win an am gift

card worth $10,000. >> hount juw about just the mon? you have to buy apple stuff? >> i will take the gift card, ashleigh. >> i am such a whiner. the nets taping linsanity. jeremy lin and knicks, 100-92 last night at madison square garden. he began his run against new jersey. he took that personally scoring 38 points and the win. jeremy lin had 21 points and the loss. >> i'm still kind of bitter about that present, that money that you have to spen spend at the apple store. >> thn then don't bother. >> i won't. how about this little bite out of the apple? if you had a problem with your phone and it was the death grip which was the problem? watch your e-mail because something that says death grip in your e-mail is no problem. open it. look at it. could mean relief for you. we'll explain. >> something that's going to

turn you up, $5 gas by the summer? could surging gas prices derail the recovery? you're watching "early start." [ hermann ] there's always something that's going to have to be done by a certain date. you always have homework, okay? i don't have homework today. it's what's right here is what is most important to me. it's beautiful. ♪ ♪

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just before christine romans gets here we have to get you up on another apple story. full of apples today. but this is payback for those of you who had dropped calls because of a bad antenna problem. they followed a suit in is called the death grip. so here's the deal. you're going to get an e-mail. it's going out sometime in april. something about a death grip but it's not a virus.

usually if i see death grip in my inbox it's a big fat delete. >> no, pay attention. minding your business. gatz prices just keep on going up. aaa says the national average for a gallon of gas is $3.57 right now. it's been rising for the past two weeks. i'm sure you've noticed, right? >> i get all crazy about this until i saw a statistic earlier this morning that back in 2008, i think in july, we were why whey higher than this. >> but it hurt. gas prices will probably rise through may, ladies. if you haven't, make sure your tires are properly inflated, don't have a bunch of junk in the trunk of your car. if you're carrying on too much stuff, it's not a good idea. don't drive the big car, drive the little car. gas is up 10% almost in price so far of this year. interestingly enough, it's not because we're using more gas in this country, it's because we're concerned about iran and because the global oil markets are moving higher. gas prices rise, it hurts

everybody. it also hurts the u.s. economy and that's what people are worried about right now. why? it's not just us driving. i want to show you all the things that oil prices affect. how much you pay at the pump, of course, but transportation cost, everything that's going to your grocery store, everything that's going to be mall. those are up. tires and petroleum byproducts. packaging is going up. derivatives of petroleum products. >> bubble wrap? >> yes. raw materials for manufacturing. cost of manufacturing goes up. chemical prices go up. in the end, you've got companies who have all of their costs rising. you say, hiring plans on hold for now because we have our input costs are going up. this is why we're watching it so closely. iran is getting all the blame. it's a lot of psychological blame at this point but iran is saying they're going to keep oil away from some european markets because the european union, they're already saying they're not going to take iranian oil after six months. always a fight going on between iranian oil. but we're all in the same world market so that's what's causing

the prices to go up. but it affects everything. go to the aaa website to make sure that you're doing everything for your car. >> the junk in the trunk. >> you forget the little things you can do. >> i think people are starting to carpool a little bit. >> tough when you think of this great story about driving and just coasting. >> yeah, yeah, yeah. >> a year or two ago. >> all of these myths and realitie realities, go to fuelgaugereport.com. >> great. >> you can get all of this great advice on aaa. >> we'll all tweeted out. >> you rock. >> iran. >> iran. >> plan accordingly. gas prices are rising. >> thank you, christine. i think. still ahead. >> religious power. >> coast when you drive. don't hit the brake all the time. just coast to the stop sign. >> don't be an aggressive driver. >> exactly. >> mean drivers pay more. >> midwest girl there. surging on the politics front, this guy has reasons to smile. is it just a blip or is this

boost he's been getting, is he going to get some traction, ride that all of the way to the convention? why are some republicans not happy about that? you'll find out. ♪ dave, i've downloaded a virus. yeah. ♪ dave, where are we on the new laptop? it's so slow! i'm calling dave. [ telephone rings ] [ sighs ] i need a new i.t. guy. [ male announcer ] in a small business, technology is all you. staples easy tech experts are here to help. you must be... ...dave. [ male announcer ] with everything from new computers, to set-ups, to tune-ups. stapes. that was easy.

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enjoy vitafusion calcium gummies today. a little pep in my step. >> sometimes we open the power cam and it's "shangrila" and sometimes it's house music. i'm ashleigh banfield. >> i'm zoraida sambolin. it's time to check the stories making news. rick santorum surging ahead. he's now out to a double digit lead nationally. this is in the latest gallup tracking poll. the former senator with 36%. mitt romney is coming in second place with 26%. president obama hoping the payroll tax deal is just the start of a productive year. he's expected to push congress

to pass legislation to help the economy and to create job. that's scheduled an event in just a few hours from now. deadly storms rolled through oklahoma and one person is dead. another person trapped. look at the first responders trying to dig through the rubble of a mobile home that was flattened. just desperately seeking any signs of life. that storm pounded the plains with hail and rain. 70-mile-an-hour winds as well. it is fat tuesday, as they call it. live picture on bourbon street. don't you love waking up to a shot like that? take a look on the left-hand side. love the garage festering on bourbon street. things are going to get pretty excited there. a dozen parades are getting ready to roll out this morning in and around the big easy. you will know from years gone by this is the last big blowout of carnival season before ash wednesday. look at that. >> cleaning away all the garbage there. they're listening to you, ashleigh. take that garbage out of the way. we don't want that on our

pictures. there it goes. >> they must have heard us complaining about the dirt on the street of bourbon street. how about that timing? >> perfect timing. >> it's lovely on bourbon street now at 6:33 in the morning. so we are counting down to the big cnn arizona gop debate. the last presidential debate before super tuesday. rick santorum is now clearly the front-runner in the gop race. he's opening up a double digit lead nationally. this is in the latest gallup tracking poll. we're now hearing something new from some key republicans. he could win this thing. so let's talk to our panelists about this. we have senior contributor politics 365.com lenny mcallister. and ro"roll call" writer jonath strong. lenny, i want to starts with you. we're talking about mitt romney being the inevitable nominee and now santorum is ahead in the polls. let's listen to what ari fleischer said last night on "ac

360." >> you really think he could get the nomination? >> i really do. i'm prepared to that say now, for the first time i would say that i always thought this was an open race. anything could happen. it was that kind of wild year. but don't underestimate what has happened now with people going to rick santorum. and he does need to broaden it. the social issues really demote vat him. he speaks from the heart. >> that's former press secretary for george w. bush. that's pretty huge. how do you think the gop feels about that? >> they're not too excited about it. if you look at two states it tells you exactly why mr. fresher is right. you look at michigan where romney grew up and you look at pennsylvania. one of the arguments against rick santorum, always was, look at how he lost in 2006, by a huge double digit loss deficit. now look at pennsylvania. he's actually winning and has been ahead of romney for a while in pennsylvania. if santorum wins michigan and

can somehow win pennsylvania later on in this process, you probably will see rick santorum ahead of the pack moving into tampa and it's something the republican establishment absolutely positively does not want to see, but it's headed that way. >> ari said don't underestimate him. we're going talk about that, whether or not they're happy with this choice. john non, i'm going to a to you about this. reports that senior republicans are nervous about either candidate and circulating plans that show how new candidating could actually enter this race. they're talking about a brokered convention, perhaps a contested convention. 66% of republicans don't want that. what's the likelihood that any of that will happen? >> well, it's still a long shot but there is a lot of unease among republicans about this slate of candidates. if i can just disagree there with my fellow panelist on michigan, for instance. mitt romney made huge progress in the last couple of days and the polls are now within the margin of error. usually the states that, you know, have been big contests where a lot of money has gone

into them, romney has been able to go ahead. there's a lot of momentum for santorum but i wouldn't put romney out of this yet. >> dean, there is one person that is pleased by an store rum's success. media mogul rupert murdoch. from a distance, santorum doing great. values really do count in america and not sneered at as in parts of europe. win michigan, game over. that's my question. win michigan, game over? your thoughts on that. >> no, not even close. let's be honest. you know, it gives momentum to rick santorum if he wins michigan and arizona. super tuesday coming up a little over a week after that. ten primaries. this is far from over. this is a battle to the end. and rick santorum, his views get more and more by mainstream americans, he has a problem. far right. there are people in the taliban that would call him a radical conservatism. sincerely, he's far right. he wants to see our laws and the

bible contort or agree. it's scary. i don't think -- i think it's far from over. i don't think the average american has taken time in the recession and struggle of their life to focus on this race yet. that's going to be in the future. >> who is laughing? >> i was laughing because, you know, the idea that santorum is to the right of the taliban is a little ridiculous. i mean, yeah, the guy has polarizing conservative issues but i think that's over-stating it just a bit. >> it is lightly over-stating but let's be honest. the man is against abortion even in the case of rape, meaning a woman who is raped has to carry a child to term. against gay marriage that he will annul it if he's president. everyone who has gay marriage legally will be thrown in disarray. against pornography, which i think is anti-american, let's be honest. >> i'm going to mo ve on, gentlemen. i'm moving on to my final question here. i think we're going to play by the rules today. i'm not sure. it's one name answer. newt gingrich gave an interview on the rich stevens radio show. so he said that he would want

brad pitt to play him in a movie. not because they look alike but because it's brad pitt. so who would you choose to play newt in a movie? i said i don't want any reasons on this but -- just a name. i may want reasons. lenny, i'm going to start with you. >> you know, i was thinking about anthony hopkins, somebody that is extremely intelligent but very scary smart. but after brad pitt, i'm thinking about lady -- yeah, but now i'm thinking about the ladies man, maybe he should do that afteric ping brad pitt. maybe it goes back to his philandering past. >> dean? >> you have newt, you've got qualities at newt that i -- he is likable and that actually is. >> i get a big kick on this saturday night live parody on newt. forget the name of the actor but that's a great one.

>> gentlemen, thank you so much. >> thanks. of course, do not miss the last presidential debate before super tuesday. cnn's arizona republican debate tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. eastern. when you have diabetes... 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.

it's 43 minutes past the hour. welcome back to "early start." happening right now in afghanistan. hundred of demonstrators are gathering outside bagram air base protesting the copies of the koran and other religious materials. commander of nato forces in afghanistan is apologizing and promises an investigation. >> cnn's nick patton walsh is

monitoring the developments. that is his beat. he's in beirut this morning in leban lebanon. nick, this isn't something that somebody should jump to a conclusion about but what exactly happened? >> well, ashleigh, it's still quite hard to understand how this could have occurred. deeply insensitive to many, of course, in the entire muslim faith. bagram air base is a huge facility. detainees there, traffic for the eastern of afghanistan goes through there for many operations as well. of course, part of that, there will be as they refer to religious materials. and we should see in this case to included parts of the koran. now, it's not clear how these were collected and then passed through. seems to be the waste disposal part of that base which then i think is outside of agains who at this point obviously taking great offense at finding these

particular materials. this is a distraction. this is the last thing they need. they're trying to win hearts and minds. the clock is ticking on the amount of time they have troops there to continue their mission. and things like this, frankly, there have been many reports of it denied by actually having to come forward and say, yes, this did occur and we are deeply apologetic about it. >> the apologies are fast and furious at this point. as you mentioned, the commander allen has issued an apology to not only the president of afghanistan but all of the we'll of the islamic republic. this is not enough? is there anything they can do to assuage this? you can see those crowds and those are the kinds of crowds that get out of hand real fast. >> it's basically things like this recently in which u.s. marines are going to -- what they do is act as trigger points that inflame the tension in the population, already furious with a ten-year nato presence that

hasn't really changed their lives in the way that was originally promised. troubled by corruption in the afghan government. things like this just act as a flash point. that's the scenes like this. >> nick paton walsh for news beirut, lebanon, on the beat of the afghan story. and what is ahead on "starting point"? good morning. >> hey, good morning, ladies. coming up this morning on "starting point" which begins in roughly 15 minutes, we're going to talk to the democratic congressman of new york. going to talk about rick santorum who is gaining the steam. the target of both republicans and democrats. we'll ask about strategy there. and a young woman who says she is a atheist is able to win a big battle that ends up in a $40,000 scholarship. she gets a sign that displays a religious slogan taken out of her school. we'll talk about that this morning. also, a rare look inside a really interesting community, jewish community in new york. he has written a book about running away from that

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...we inspected his brakes for free. free is good. free is very good. my money. my choice. my meineke. 51 minutes past 6:00 on the east coast. the sheriff accused of threatening to deport his gay lover, speaking out exclusively on cnn. >> you know those photos emerged of sheriff paul babeu and the ex-boyfriend known as jose. also we saw some more intimate pictures of the sheriff as well. he is running for congress. he has built a national reputationic taking a very hard line on immigration. all of these allegations are threatening to derail his political career. so last night he told our wolf blitzer that the allegations were politically motivated. >> this has been trying to get

rolled out by numerous political opponents and now it has under the slanderous, baseless attack. and then all of a sudden everybody reports it as if it was true from this tabloid and nobody has verified any of the facts. >> exclusive interview that he had with wolf blitzer. monica alonzo is the reporter who broke this story. she is with the "phoenix new times." thank you forgetting up so early this morning. we really appreciate it. i don't know if you watched the interview. sheriff babeu spoke with wolf blitzer last night and we think that there was some criticism that was directed at you. he called your paper a tabloid. he said that the allegations are baseless and slanderous. you know, it's in reference to the evidence that he actually threatened his exboyfriend with deportation. what can you tell us about that? >> when jose approached us and shared these allegations with us, part of the thing that he did is he did provide us some

letters, some text messages. one of the things that the sheriff hasn't talked about is a text message which he doesn't deny that he sent to jose that talks about you'll never have business again and he also says in that text message that jose is going to cause great harm not only to himself but also to his family. you know, what exactly did he mean by that? and the other thing that jose provided us is letters that his attorney sent to christi rose, who is paul's attorney, paul babeu's attorney. and in it, in the l letter, the definitely get into, she reference their claim that his legal status here was not valid and she says that's simply not true. so colorly at some point a discussion about jose's visa came up. at so point, you know, the sheriff was angry and he was telling jose that, you know, that he was going to cause great harm to himself and to his

family. >> so that was interpreted to mean a threat of deportation? >> no, the letter -- the letter that jose's attorney sent to paul babeu's attorney makes reference to their claims that jose's status here was not valid. so they raise the issue of his visa being expired. and what -- >> ten-year multiple entry visa, has he not? did you confirm that? >> that's what he says. that's what his attorney says. what was here was just sort of using the visa as leverage. the thing is, i talked to multiple immigration attorneys. and when you're an immigrant here in this country, whether you're status is legal or illegal you don't always understand what the process works. when you get a text message from somebody like the sheriff who, as you mentioned, you know, very hard line stance on illegal immigration, you know, that can be taken very seriously by someone. >> yes. the sheriff we understand is running for congress. and he said that really this is

politically motivated. he's questioning the timing of this. how did you come to talk to jose? did he reach out to you or did you -- how did you find him? >> yeah, jose reached out to us. part of the reason that he went to the attorney was because he was afraid he was being intimidated. and then he reached out to us. during our conversations, one of the things that he said is that he felt that it the accountability. and he wanted to stop being afraid. and he felt like the best way to do that was just to stand up and speak out. >> well, we were -- we had alina cho, one of our reporters, on earlier. she was sharing with us some of the interview last night with wolf blitzer. one of the things that the sheriff said is that he still has the support of the people in his run for congress. what do you know about that? >> well, there's definitely people that are coming forward and supporting his right to be gay and his right to be a

politician at the same time, which is fine. i mean, that's wonderful. but the story is not about paul babeu being gay. the story is about this allegation that he was using his ex-boyfriend's visa status as leverage to silence him about their relationship. in fairness to both parties, this really does need to be investigated. >> monica alonzo, thank you. we'll be right back. [ horn honks ] hey, it's sandra -- from accounting.

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that's it for us. i'm zoraida sambolin. >> i'm ashleigh banfield. that would mean the end of our show is the beginning of soledad's sole. >> parting is such sweet sorrow. >> we've been up all night, sister. >> you're right. sorry. i'll take it to here. good morning. welcome to "starting point" this morning. europe seals the grak bailout deal overnight. we're talking about moving markets affecting your money this morning. we'll talk about that. rick santorum is picking up steam. more to talk about the uneasiness of the gop establishment. could he be head for a rare battle on the convention floor this summer? a teenage whole is an