hello and good morning, everyone. happy friday. it is friday. >> say it one more time. >> should i say it like rebecca black. >> you can sing it, say it, think it, it's just friday. >> we kind of look alike. it's christine romans doing the duty. i'm ashleigh banfield, this is christine romans. >> it's 5:00 a.m. in the east.

let's get started. >> usually it's her. she's the one who says this over and over, jobs, jobs, jobs. you know what, jobs is the big story today. big report, remember the last one we told you that was real good, we have another one out for you. as good? anything negative? we'll get the low down on it all? is it going to boost or bite president obama. also we're talking iran and israel's stance on iran. the prime minister talking about a timetable on an attack on iran giving a series of interviews laying out how many days, weeks, months, who knows for sanctions to take hold. the pressure and the heat on that situation. attention pennsylvania. take a look at this. a little plane coming in and it is not a good story, folks. the landing gear, look, it's not down. >> wow. >> how did it end? you'll see this but you'll hear more about it in just a moment. >> wow. bobbi kristina speaking to oprah. that's right, whitney's only daughter. the first time she's opening up about her mom. whitney houston since her death, some are asking, is it too soon?

just a month oprah nabs this big interview. is it too soon for this little girl -- well, 19-year-old young woman to be speaking. we'll talk about that and everything else. it's only one minute past 5 clo:00 up to date. it's all about the jobs story. we have the february numbers. just a few hours from now the official numbers coming out and expecting everything on your menu. wall street, oil prices, hey, what's in the grocery store too could tell us more about the presidential election than any poll can actually tell you, too, and the cab dates, they know that. >> the economy's getting stronger and the recovery is speeding up and the question now is how do we make sure that it keeps going. >> this, for me, this is not just about numbers and tax policy, this is about getting americans good jobs with rising incomes. >> we have a choice that we're going to make in this election. is it going to be about jobs? yes, it will be about jobs.

is it going to be about growing this economy? yes, it's going to be about growing this economy. >> if you prefer food stamps and unemployment, vote for obama. if you prefer jobs and a paycheck, vote for us. >> so that's the stump and here's the fact. in about three hours you're going to hear the real numbers, but you and all your friends in this business are always hard at work trying to get ahead of the stats and predict them. >> that's right. 210,000 is what economists on average think happened in terms of job creation in the month of february. a short month with 210,000. folks, that would be enough jobs created to absorb all the new entrants into the work force and eat into that big hole we made from the recession. the unemployment rate forecast at 8.3%. i want to give you some context. this is why you have a white house that's careful about being too cautious. there's underemployment. people who are under employed, people who are, woulding part

time and want to work full time. people who dipped into the labor market but they could be working. that number is 14.6% for men, 15.5% for women. think about that. even as the jobs numbers get better, a lot of you out there are saying i don't feel it yet. when you look at education you can see someone with a bachelor's degree, 8.1% is their under employment rate. look at some of those other folks, high school, some college nearing double digits. look by race and you can see african-american underemployment, 23%. can you imagine, almost a quarter of the african-american demographic is underemployed in it country. 21% hispanic, 12.3% for white. that is why these numbers are so incredibly important politically and we can look at an 8.3% unemployment rate. that only tells a little part of the story. that's what you'll see on the campaign trail today, slicing and dicing to see the two

choices people have. >> the food stamp president. >> or job president. >> i'm sure it will take until 8:31 until this comes out. >> i have a feeling that there are already press releases that are written and we haven't seen the jobs report yet. >> that's a duey versus trueman press release. >> right. >> christine will have a full jobs report breakdown at 8:32 and throughout the day. you're not going home this early friday. >> no, i'm not. we have some new cool interactive graphics to show you that i'm very proud of. we're going to be able to show you inside the jobs market, all of those different slices that depend on who you are, where we are. >> she's a win some woman and very geeky. >> that is the word of the day. >> 5:05, crew, appreciation? >> winsome, not geeky. that was the word of the day. >> jobs, democrats, republicans set aside their differences at least to send the jobs bill to the senate. they passed it in the house. they passed it in the house

yesterday. landslide 390-23. senate bound. jobsville is really the jump start or the business startup act as they like to call it. it's essentially something that would make it easier for those little mom and pop businesses out there to get investors and get more workers by getting the red tape out of the way. all of that sec red tape. the house majority leader eric cantor is pretty thrilled about it. on "john king u.s.a." he was applauding it. nancy pelosi downed it. >> this bill i think reflects congress actually coming together both sides trying to set aside differences and rally around what we know needs to happen and that is to get entrepreneurs, small business men and women back into the game of job creation. >> it's meager. trumpet. it comes the little king. >> the little king. majority leader harry reid said the senate would move quickly to

pass similar legislation. >> the senate shutting down a plan to fast track the controversial keystone pipeline project. that measure would have allowed construction to start immediately on this pipeline extension. it fails to get 60 votes needed for passage. republicans unanimously supported it. i think only 11 democrats voted for this so four votes shy of passing. the president personally lobbied democrats to oppose this thing. it's a proposed 1700 mile pipeline expansion. you can see it there. the yellow part of the bottom and all the way, that stuff going up to hardesty. is that calgary? >> probably north of calgary, actually. >> crude oil to the u.s. gulf coast. supporters said it would cut u.s. dependence. they say the crude is poor quality. they're worried about the pipeline leaking. a lot of people are saying do you know how many pipe lines we have traversing this country? it's not good for us to have

leaking pipe lines so we're on it. also transcanada, people who are -- own the pipeline or the company behind the pipeline, they've started to work on other parts of it that they can do. >> that's what i find so fascinating. that is one big piece of optimism. if you're building the second part of the pipeline. >> the keystone thing is not over. >> by the way -- >> we'll be hearing more. >> all of this talk about environmentalism. i like it just like the next guy, but in the same sense, this is 2012. don't we build better pipe lines than we did 20 years ago? >> i certainly think everybody has to be on notice that it has to be absolutely perfect. some environmentalists say raising all of this awareness has made the plans and proposals better. >> hope they cross their ts and dautd their is. israel's prime minister is talking about his concerns over iran's nuclear program. benjamin netanyahu did a bunch of tv interviews in israel and some tune is changing here, folks. he says he hopes there won't be

a war and that diplomatic pressure on iran actually works. that sounds like something we heard in the white house last week. he also gave a time frame for an israeli attack on iran to remove that nuclear threat. have a listen. >> translator: i am not standing with a stopwatch in hand. it is not a matter of days or weeks but also not a matter of years. everybody understands this. >> so while he speaks today iran says it's ready to talk about the nuclear program too and in an unexpected twist the supreme leader praised president obama, are you ready for that? don't hear that very often. he actually praised those efforts to try to tamp down all that war talk. president obama says there's a window of opportunity to try to resolve the crisis and khamenei says that's pretty wise. have a look at this. he said this. this talk is good talk and shows an exit from illusion.

rez za sayah is live in islamabad. i don't know the last time i heard good speak good speak going back and forth between these countries but i also know it's just talk, reza. >> reporter: yeah. could it be that all of a sudden everyone's getting along suddenly? i doubt it, but when an iranian leader comes out and praised u.s. president barack obama it gets some attention. that's what's happened here. ayatollah khamenei says he welcomes president obama's statement that we should give diplomacy a chance to solve iran's nuclear crisis. of course, for weeks we had heard intense bluster and rhetoric against iran mostly fueled by israeli leaders. three of the republican presidential candidates and many members of the u.s. congress essentially saying the time for talk is over. we should consider attacking iran and president obama this week came out and said, relax. going to war is not a joke.

the facts show that iran is not an immediate threat and let's let diplomacy and the sanctions take its course. the supreme leader saying i like what he's thinking. if you look at the past couple of days, ashleigh, you can see the rhetoric toning down considerably. that sets the stage for another round of talks between the western powers, russia, and china and iran to try to reach a negotiated deal. >> reza one question i think would have to be asked. when amadinejad speaks it's different. do we know where he was during all of this last communication or has he weighed in at all in this kind speak towards our president? >> reporter: well, here's what everyone should know. there's a reason that ayatollah khamenei is named the supreme leader. the final decisions rest with him. any decision that has to do with the nuclear program rests with

ayatollah khamenei. it's impossible to get inside his mind and see what he's thinking about the nuclear program and if he has decided to build a bomb. i think that's the problem with this iran debate. there's a lot of speculation, political commentary, bluster and rhetoric that sometimes could distort reality. if you look at the facts, the facts show that there's no evidence made public that iran is actually building a bomb. that doesn't mean many countries aren't very worried that they one day will have the capability. now how to stop that nuclear program, that's the dilemma. many observers say it has to be a negotiated deal where iran can at least project itself as having gained something, not project itself as a loser, as a country that has cowed down to the u.s. >> so many will say it is real hard to collect evidence from an alleged crime scene when you can't get near the tape. meantime, republican presidential candidate rick santorum is calling iran the

most radical regime in the world and he's criticizing president obama's approach to the crisis. last night santorum told cnn's piers morgan the question of iran's nuclear ambitions really isn't a question. >> you know, it's just hard to have any reasonable person look at what's going on in iran, look at the sanctions that they're taking, look at the isolation that's going on, the threat to the stability of the government that some of the sanctions is causing. the problems to the people of the country that the sanctions are causing and have a country that has 200 years of oil and gas to power their country for as long as the eye can see and yet they're building nuclear facilities? you know, it's like, you know, casablanca when the guy walks into the cafe and says, there's gambling going on here. we know what's happening. now the question is how far along are they. >> rick santorum will be a guest tonight on "john king u.s.a." that's 6:00 eastern right here on cnn. here was a store bring we talked a lot about in the last couple of months.

the mississippi pardons story and finally a real vindication for governor haley barbour in that state. the mississippi supreme court has decided to uphold all of his pardons. >> that's a right of a governor? >> it is a right of a governor. there was a sticky wik ket. they didn't notify a lot of the families that some of these inmates will be pardoned. some were killers, folks. more than 200 pardons. the ones that were convicted killers created the biggest controversy. the court said, you know what, i know the state attorney general challenged this based on the ril loophole, based on the fact that many inmates didn't file notices in their local papers telling all those victims and the public that these crimes had been committed and they were going to be let out, but too bad. court ruled in the governor's favor saying the governor has this ultimate power and you know what, it may not be set aside or voided by the judicial branch, meaning we just can't come in and on that technicality swoop

in and change it all. some of the convicted killers, they were working, here's four of them, take a peek, they were working in the governor's mansion, something called a trustee. they get trusted and they get a lot of leeway. they make friends sometimes with the governor and his staff. it's often a pipeline to release. randy walker was one of them. and he shot and nearly killed -- randy walker was nearly shot and killed, pardon me, by david gatlin. randy walker was a victim. david gatlin was the killer and also was pardoned. he talked to cnn's anderson cooper last night about what's about to happen. >> david gatlin only served 17 years 6 months and 3 days for a life plus 30 sentence. he should have never gotten out of jail. it happened for me. i'm still living it every day. i can't be pardoned from the scars i have. i can't be pardoned from the nightmares. i can't be pardoned from looking over my shoulder wondering where this guy is. you know, none of that. there's no magic pill for me to

take. there's no magic pardon pill for me. >> so randy walker survived a killer's efforts and now has to live with the fact that that killer is going to be out there. later on "starting point" at 8:00 a.m. soledad o'brien will have a chance to talk to randy walker about the mississippi pardons and how he's going to have to live with it in the coming days. >> i can't wait for haley barbour to tell us. he has been stalked by reporters. i haven't heard a good explanation. is that all you have, sun? many saying the big solar storm was just a dud. >> a flameout. >> i guess that's better than the end of modern civilization. you still could fly in an airplane. it was the biggest solar flare up in five years. it only made a minor impact. really pretty pictures. it didn't mess up satellites, cell phones, the power grid, lights. a researcher says the earth's magnetic field weakened the impact of the solar flare.

score one for earth. "usa today" reports the solar storm earned the lowest of five possible ratings on a geomagnetic intensity scale. >> you really know what a geo -- this is what she does all night. >> it was in "usa today." still, gave us some pretty good pictures. geomagnetic intensity scale. >> every 15 minutes she geeks out. you have lost the official title of chief geek. >> i like that. anybody throws words like that out at 5:00 a.m. >> that gets his attention. >> go take a cold shower. good morning, ladies. this wind storm did not wimp out across the northeast. check out the video coming from new bed ford, mass., where winds were gusting. the rooftop flown off. so that was strong enough to do that. some isolated wind damage and isolated power outages. you know it if you lived in the northeast. certainly had some gusty winds. 49 mile an hour wind gusts in newark, 45 in philly, at

laguardia you saw 36 mile an hour wind gusts. the breezy condition will continue but there will be a chillier wind. everything moves faster up north. the cold front, you'll be done with it, seeing mostly clear skies and dry weather. slicing back down to the south, little bit slower. we'll try to hear it. it's hanging. the rains will continue across parts of the south as this front moves a little bit slower down there. some snows across the northeast. the rain will continue across northeastern texas, the arc cla techs region. atlanta, if you're traveling through the city, dallas and chicago maybe some wind as well. there's your clearing skies. high pressure building. should be a decent weekend for a good chunk of the eastern half of the country. seasonable temperatures. 60 degrees once this rain moves out. ladies? >> it's like august. >> not really. it's awesome. >> thanks. all right. it's 18 minutes after the hour. time to check the stories making news this morning. the candidates and voters all waiting for the big february

jobs report. it's about three hours from now. the labor department is expected to announce the economy added about 210,000 jobs last month. the jobless rate stayed steady at 8.3%. greece clears the final hurdle to bailout from the european union and the international monetary fund. the creditors have agreed to a plan to restructure the greek government bonds, a move which is absolutely vital to this country's financial future. thousands of u.s. homeowners getting new reductions on their mortgages from bank of america. b of a reaching a deal with the government expanding on last month's $26 billion settlement. a bank of america will now use part of that money to provide deeper principle reductions to some 200,000 homeowners. it's law now. do you know it's going to be law that all these banks have to start being nicer to you when you try to deal with them on your homeowner's stuff. >> you can legislate morality? >> they have to answer the phone.

one person to talk to. homeowners have been crazed about this for years. now they have to clean up their behavior. >> good news. we like that. still ahead at 19 minutes past 5:00, have you seen this documentary? it has gone viral and if you haven't seen it, check your in box. it's there. >> 40 million people have looked at this. >> 40 million? >> yeah. >> good lord. the goal is pretty simple, folks. put the world's most wanted warlord, joseph kony behind bars and this year. >> the coffee wars. starbucks is moving into green mountain turf. we'll tell you what it means for your early morning cup of joe. you're watching "early start." >> cup of joe. you can't say that on this network. two covergirls. that's right. get two miracles in one product. covergirl makeup... and olay advanced hydrating serum. it's new tone rehab 2-in-1 foundation. one pump... covers spots, lines... and wrinkles. and one bottle helps improve skin tone over time. that's what i was supposed to say now. well, no one can understand you. ♪ new tone rehab 2-in-1 foundation from

[ babbling ] ...covergirl. that's what i'm talking about. see? what did you just say? i'm looking for some "beeza-beeza-vuza-vuza." no, i wouldn't use that single miles credit card. hey, aren't you... shhh. i'm researching a role. today's special... the capital one venture card. you earn double miles on every purchase. impressive. chalk is a lost medium. if you're not earning double miles... you're settling for half. was that really necessary? [ male announcer ] get the venture card at capitalone.com and earn double miles on every purchase every day. what's in your wallet? cover for me. i have an audition.

in here, the landscaping business grows with snow. to keep big winter jobs on track, at&t provided a mobile solution that lets everyone from field workers to accounting, initiate, bill, and track work in real time. you can't live under a dome in minnesota, that's why there's guys like me. [ male announcer ] it's a network of possibilities -- helping you do what you do... even better. ♪

23 minutes past 5:00. there's a story you need to know about. the organization behind a hugely viral video, kony 2012 is responding to the increasing backlash. this is a video campaign by a group called invisible children to put joseph kony behind bars. it didn't take long. 49 million people have viewed it on youtube.

here's a quick clip. >> for 26 years kony has been kidnapping children into his rebel group, the lra. turning the girls into sex slaves. and the boys into child soldiers. he makes them mutilate people's faces and kill their own parents. >> this has taken off so quickly. this is getting high profile support. oprah winfrey is now spreading awareness through twitter. here's what she said. have watched the film. had them on show last year. made big donation. kony 2012. she gave them $2 million and other celebrities too are weighing in on this, justin bieber, rihanna jumping in voicing concern. >> the movement is facing harsh criticism. invisible children accused of misrepresenting facts,

exaggerating the scale of kony's murders, ignoring atrocities by uganda's army. the group is accused of spending too much money. not enough direct action. the film makers responding to those claims on cnn's piers morgan. >> it costs money to make powerful movies, we know that. and so we spend about 1/3 of the money on the movie to make it amazing. we spend 1/3 on the movement. that's actual volunteers around the world, our vans that tour the movie, high school and colleges, t-shirts, websites to make it powerful and aggressive. third is the megs whiission to war and rehabilitation the war affected children through education, reintegration and building jobs for the community. >> those two gentlemen there are winning the wharf arguments. the harsh backlash.

>> isn't resonating. >> 49 million people are watching this video saying, let's get this guy. >> it's like the arab spring. >> social media. >> by the way, to that end, those guys are saying that all the finances are available on their website if you want to look at it. in the meantime, joseph kony, he's a bad dude. that's what it comes down to. he's a bad, bad man. he's been indicted by the international court but he's on the loose. president obama, however, has authorized deployment of 100, 100 special forces to try to track him down. you just know now that this is out there all around the world a lot of people know what he looks like and maybe know just how bad the story is. >> a lot of people know more about uganda today than they did two weeks ago. that's an important thing about social media. >> we knew a lot in the '60s. now it's the resurgence of information. coming up on "early start", space is the place. china wants to expand into the

frontier. you're watching "early start." made with only milk... cream... a touch of sugar... and pure natural flavors. ♪ who knew being natural could be so delicious? coffee-mate natural bliss. from nestle. add your flavor naturally. you noticed! these clothes are too big, so i'm donating them. how'd you do it? eating right, whole grain. [ female announcer ] people who choose more whole grain tend to weigh less than those who don't. multigrain cheerios... five whole grains, 110 calories. and what do you see? clean lines connecting city to city. the map shows you where we go... but not how we get there. because in this business... there are no straight lines. only the twists and turns of an unpredictable industry. the passengers change...

the gates change. government regulations change... oil peaks and plummets. and let's not even get started on the weather. the fact is: no two flights are ever the same. no matter how many times we've accomplished them in the past. the eighty-thousand employees at delta... must predict the unpredictable. anticipate the unexpected. and never let the rules... overrule common sense. this is how we tame the unwieldiness of air travel. pull it taut... and wrap it around the globe... until it's not just lines you see... it's the world.

the guitars are intense. >> a lot of guitar. >> 5:30 in the morning. welcome back to "early start." it is exactly 5:30 on the east coast. i'm ashleigh banfield. >> i'm christine romans. big february jobs report out in about 2.5 hours the labor department is expected to announce the economy added about 210,000 jobs last month. the defense is expected to present its case today in the rutgers web cam spying case in

new jersey. dar rum ravi put his roommate's intimate encounter on the internet. clementi later committed suicide. china is getting back into the space race big time. chinese officials announced that china will launch its first manned flight to dock at its space lab this summer. long-term plans include building a manned space station by 2020 and eventually a moon landing. starbucks unveiling its own version of a single cup coffee brewing machine. no price has been given for the new verisimo. goes on sale this fall. it will compete directly with green mountain's keurig machine. currently dominates the single cup market. the republican presidential candidates are stumping deep in the heart of dixie. i think it's deep in the heart of texas but we're changing it to dixie for the purposes of this newscast. the primaries in mississippi and

alabama are next tuesday. rick santorum wants to emerge once and for all the sole rom antiromney candidate. he wants to boot mitt romney out of there. when president obama ran, it was a big, big deal. the white house hired a long-time lobbiest. his name is steve richetti. he will work for vice president biden. that's kind of of critical, ain't it? marjorie clifton, democratic strategist and national editor of go vote.com. in west palm beach florida, eric erickson, editor in chief of red state. you're getting an early weekend start? is that your story. >> totally. >> you are one honest man. i love it. in miami, i smell a rat. you're both in florida. all right. the independent, goldie taylor.

marjorie, i want to start with you. you democrat you. steve ruschetti. what the what the? he is a lobby. i know he de-lobbyist registered, right? that makes it legal. isn't that a loophole and isn't that hippocracy at its finest. >> this is washington, right? >> no, i don't want you to say that. give me something better. >> well, i will say this, that it's hard to go anywhere in this entire city without running into an attorney or a lobbyist. they're everywhere. you know, we had the same issue before and gingrich managed to overcome the same issue of having worked with fannie mae. i'm wondering, he does have the history. i will say this, he came out of the chin tonl administration. >> schetti. >> yes. he was first and foremost part of the clinton administration and very successfully so. he does have the track record that i think will be useful to the obama administration. it does create a little bit of an image problem. >> a little bit, marjorie? hold that thought. >> absolutely. >> hold that thought for a

minute. this is the image problem i think the democrats are going to have to chew on big time. have a listen to president obama. it's called the mashup on the stump in 2008 about lobbyists. >> if you are ready for change, then we can go ahead and tell the lobbyists their days of setting the agenda in washington is over. they haven't funded my campaign. they will not run my white house. the problem we've got in washington has to be fixed. the problem of lobbyists and special interests and big money dominating the agenda. at the beginning of this campaign i said i would not take pac money, i would not take money from federal lobbyists. they have not funded my campaign. they will not run our white house. >> get that last part i can see coming out in some gop campaign ads in the next few months. they will not run our white house. there is no amount of florida sunshine that can disinfect those comments, is there, eric? >> not really. he's not the first lobbyist. i'm surprised by some of the media rortsds on this. going back to 2009 the president

started giving what the white house was calling waivers to allow lobbyists to come in. he talked about big money. the washington post has done a story that roughly 80% of the people who gave barack obama or bundled $500,000 or more have gotten jobs in the administration. >> while it sounds ugly to the guy on the street like me, i'm real pedestrian when it comes to politics, aren't these people really, really good at what they do? they're smart. they know everybody? aren't they the guys that kind of know how to get things done? >> oh, you know that's what people were saying in 2008. in fact, some of the democrats in 2008 go back to the press reports were kind of scratching their head over barack obama saying this. he's the one who said it. the other -- >> he is, indeed. >> -- the others didn't. he's trying to have it both ways. then 80% of the people who bundled 500,000 or more are getting jobs. >> you are good with your talking points. >> it's early. i had to study up. >> it's 5:35 in the morning and

you are acing it, my friend. >> he must have not gone to bed. >> let me move on to something fun. this is adorable. there was this little moment that played out on the campaign trail. i don't think anybody expected it. there's no secret that mitt romney has a bit of an image problem when it came to being real stiff. it was a radio interview. it had to do with all things breakfast cereal. have a listen. >> you're keeping me up at night. not much keeps me up at night. by the end of the day. >> you're tired? >> i am tired and i always -- i always eat something at the end of the day. my favorite is cold cereal. i try to eat some cold cereal. a full tummy puts me to bed. >> what kind of cereal do you like? >> i like honey nut cheer re owes and honey nut chex. i love anything with sugar in it i like the most. sugar pops, honey smacks. >> get some cocoa pebbles, if

it's a rough day. that's how you handle it. >> i was about to ask you, wasn't it a bit year that he said full tummy at that age. while he was speaking christine romans was whispering, i like honey nut cherieoes too. we all like it ant isn't it adorable? is this a good thing that he's human? >> i think it's a good thing. it humanizes him for the first time. the point be is he's a dad. he speaks in terms of tummies and potties. that's a natural thing. what i took from him yesterday is that he was campaigning across the south and said that he loved grits. well, see, i've got to have him over now for grits, corn bread, some collard greens. >> he had you at hello? >> yeah. i think it does humanize him for the first time. if he can keep this up, he can foster a brand new narrative for himself. if he falls back on some of the other things about cadillacs, things that people don't really

connect with, then he's got problems. >> everybody likes that about trump. i don't get it. they love that trump is just crazy rich but they don't love that romney is crazy rich. all right. marjorie, eric, goldie, stand by. thanks for all the comments and for the tummy factor. >> now that we're both hungry have. ahead on "early start," whitney houston, her only daughter, bobbi kristina is speaking out. it's her first interview since her mother's death. also some pretty tense moments just before you get to this situation on the tarmac. if you notice, that plane's on its belly. aren't you supposed to land on landing gear? what happens when you radio ahead saying, i don't have any? we'll show you how this thing turned out. turn left. the passat is one of nine volkswagen models named a 2012 iihs top safety pick. not...that... we'd ever brag about it... turn right. come on, nine. turn left. hit the brakes.

huh? how did that get there? [ male announcer ] we can't hide how proud we are to have nine top safety picks like the passat and jetta. so we're celebrating with our "safety in numbers" event. that's the power of german engineering. right now lease the 2012 jetta for $159 a month. lease the 2012 jetta are you still sleeping? just wanted to check and make sure that we were on schedule.

the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers. ♪ [ sighs ] [ bird chirps ] [ bird squawks ] ♪ [ bird screeching ] ♪ [ elevator bell dings ] [ sighs ] how mad is she? she kicked me out. but i took the best stuff. i'll get the wrench. ♪ [ male announcer ] kohler's tresham collection. life. with a twist. ♪ i like yoplait. it is yoplait. but you said it was greek. mmhmm. so is it greek or is it yoplait? exactly. okay... [ female announcer ] yoplait. it is so greek.

41 minutes past the hour. whitney houston's only daughter gives her first interview to oprah winfrey. this sunday it's on oprah's own network. it's exactly a month to the day of whitney houston's death. oprah also sits down with whitney's closest confidante, it's her sister-in-law patricia

houston. e online posted a sneak peek of that part of the show. >> did you think that drugs would end up taking her? did you think that? >> the handwriting was kind of on the wall. i would be kidding myself to say otherwise. >> allison samuels was scheduled to interview houston when her body was discovered. she joins us live now. welcome to the program. it seems so soon for bobbi kristina to be doing this interview. everyone wants to hear. >> everyone wants to know she's okay. they want to know the entire family is okay. people know how much whitney loved her daughter, how close they were. i think it's obvious why people would want to see her right now, but i did question why at 3.5 weeks. it'll be four weeks on sunday. oprah did this last week. so i sort of wonder how she's processed such an important person in her life passing in such a short period of time. >> oprah winfrey is known for

asking very tough questions gracefully. she's known for asking the tough questions. there's still a lot of tough questions about how whitney houston died, what happened to her voice and her vision and her potential for such a young age. it's not the first sort of big oprah event for this family. oprah's conversation with whitney back in 2009 was really a highlight of her last years. listen to this part. >> what was your drug of choice? >> cocaine. >> cocaine? >> yeah. marijuana. that's it. he liked to drink. i wasn't a drinker. >> she's talking about bobby brown, of course, her ex-husband and the father of bobbi kristina. is there any chance, do you think, that oprah doesn't ask this kind of question to bobbi kristina? >> i think oprah will be very, very conservative in her questions with bobbi kristina. i mean, she is still a little girl. people are very concerned about her. people see her as whitney's child. i can see her asking her brother that. i can see her asking the sister-in-law that but i think she'll soft shoe it a little bit

with bobbi kristina. this is a fragile girl. she's had her own problems in dealing with substance abuse. that's sort of been reported. i think oprah will soft shoe it with her. >> the fine line is to build up a grieving young woman, to also get a good and, you know, fulfilling interview because so many fans want to know how this young woman is doing but also to be honest, honest to the interviewing craft. >> i also was surprised that they wouldn't have waited until the toxicology report was released because then you have to come back out again depending on what's on it and talk about it again. he was a little sort of surprised that they didn't wait until that so they could deal with the whole thing at one time. i think bobbi kristina and sissy houston felt like they needed to edit whitney's story. they needed to control it. they felt people were saying things and the family hadn't had a chance to give their point. >> do you think we'll get some more insight from bobbi

kristina, what was happening with sissy houston, aretha franklin, some of the reported but also sort of patted away or debunked talk of rifes close inner circle? >> i don't think you'll get into that. they don't want that discussed. they want to squash all those rumors. hopefully they had that conversation with oprah so she sort of goes around that. i don't think bobbi kristina can bring any kind of clarity to that situation. i think she's still grieving. i think she's still in shock so i'm not really sure what kind of clarity she can really bring at 3.5 weeks. that's my concern. >> wow, 3.5 weeks. allison samuels, really nice to see you today. thank you. >> thank you. so it is now 45 minutes past 5:00 a.m. you probably fly. we fly a lot. the last thing you want to hear is, our landing gear's not down, folks, so brace yourself. see this plane? that's what the people on board heard and the call went out ahead to the airport. when we come back, you will find

out how it all turned out. >> how hard is that pilot's heart beating right there, right? radio silence during rush limbaugh commercial breaks. fallout from the sandra fluke comments. we'll tell you more about that. you're watching "early start." [ male announcer ] this is lawn ranger -- eden prairie, minnesota. in here, the landscaping business grows with snow. to keep big winter jobs on track, at&t provided a mobile solution that lets everyone from field workers to accounting, initiate, bill, and track work in real time. you can't live under a dome in minnesota, that's why there's guys like me. [ male announcer ] it's a network of possibilities -- helping you do what you do... even better. ♪ heltoday is gonna be an do... important day for us. you ready? we wanna be our brother's keeper. what's number two we wanna do? bring it up to 90 decatherms. how bout ya, joe? let's go ahead and bring it online.

attention on site, attention on site. now starting unit nine. some of the world's cleanest gas turbines are now powering some of america's biggest cities. siemens. answers. who have used androgel 1%, there's big news. presenting androgel 1.62%. both are used to treat men with low testosterone. androgel 1.62% is from the makers of the number one prescribed testosterone replacement therapy. it raises your testosterone levels, and... is concentrated, so you could use less gel. and with androgel 1.62%, you can save on your monthly prescription. [ male announcer ] dosing and application sites between these products differ. women and children should avoid contact with application sites. discontinue androgel and call your doctor if you see unexpected signs of early puberty in a child, or, signs in a woman which may include changes in body hair or a large increase in acne, possibly due to accidental exposure.

men with breast cancer or who have or might have prostate cancer, and women who are, or may become pregnant or are breast feeding should not use androgel. serious side effects include worsening of an enlarged prostate, possible increased risk of prostate cancer, lower sperm count, swelling of ankles, feet, or body, enlarged or painful breasts, problems breathing during sleep, and blood clots in the legs. tell your doctor about your medical conditions and medications, especially insulin, corticosteroids, or medicines to decrease blood clotting. talk to your doctor today about androgel 1.62% so you can use less gel. log on now to androgeloffer.com and you could pay as little as ten dollars a month for androgel 1.62%. what are you waiting for? this is big news. and the family car to do an experiment. we put a week of her family's smelly stuff all in at once to prove that new febreze car vent clips could eliminate the odor. then we brought her family to our test facility to see if it worked. [ woman ] take a deep breath. tell me what you smell.

something fresh. a beach. a clean house. my new car. [ woman ] go ahead and take your blindfolds off. oh! [ laughs ] look at all this garbage! [ male announcer ] introducing new febreze car. eliminates odors for continuous freshness so you can breathe happy. ♪ ♪ working for a living so dark in pittsburgh. >> isn't it though. good morning, pittsburgh. huey lewis and the news. it's 31 degrees if you're opening your eyes. fear not, you'll wake up to a sunny day and 43. time to check the stories making news this morning. candidates and voters waiting for the jobs report. the labor department expected to announce the economy added 210,000 jobs last month. 8.3% unemployment rate.

expected to stay steady. mississippi's supreme court ruling those controversial pardons including four convicted killers, they should be carried out. they can stand. they are legal. haley barbour issued them during his final days in office. the state's attorney general had asked the court to void those pardons. so the plane's coming in for a landing. look at the screen. the landing gear, do you see it? >> nope. >> making the landing at johns town airport in pennsylvania. the reason we don't have the landing is the camera got obscured by the building. you can see the aftermath. the emergency call paid off ahead of time. they didn't think things were going to end well, but after circling to burn some fuel, the plane came down, belly landing. emergency crews were there. not sure what the snowplow was going to do, but all hands on deck on that one. glad to report today that the folks on that plane thanking god and allah and everyone else. >> just getting a good drink. >> good, stiff rum. how about this radio

silence? radio silence. we don't say that with regard to rush limbaugh but more that have the than five minutes of dead air was planned because dozens of companies pulled ads after the conservative talk show host called georgetown law student sandra fluke a slut for saying health care plans should cover contraception. >> a lot of those ads were public service announcements, the things that did run were not paid ads in many cases. still ahead, peyton manning, he didn't get his $28 million from the colts, but i don't think he's crying about it. i think he's doing okay. >> he's still a pretty big tipper as well. james cameron, planning a seven mile ocean dive. jason carroll got an exclusive look at what will take him to the deepest part of the earth. >> how would you like to be in that going down lower than the height of everest. >> close second to being in a plane with no landing gear. you're watching "early start." for a limited time, passages malibu

will be giving away free copies of the alcoholism & addiction cure. to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com.

♪ you like the heavy guitars. we got you some aerosmith. >> a head banger. you have to love that stuff. we're keeping you in the pop culture loop this morning. taking a look at what's trending on the web, social media. on google, pink slime in your

beef. it's gross. usda whistle-blower says ping slime is a filler. it makes us think it tastes good. >> or it makes it bigger. >> right. the stuff is so gross that mcdonald's and burger king swore off using it in january. it's a ground up blend of beef scraps, apparently connective tissue. >> please. >> other trimmings have been treated with ammonium hydroxide to kill germs. it's used to make homemade bombs. report from the daily says the u.s. department of agriculture has made a deal to buy seven pounds of pink slime. it's gross. >> that's got to be a typo. more than that. 7 million. 7 million pounds. >> did i say 7 pounds. >> i was okay with 7. >> 7 pounds per person. no, i'm kidding. there's a lot of fillers in your food. you'd be surprised. >> as disgusting as you just

described it, and the ammonium -- >> it's what makes it pink. when you take a hamberger, the pink. >> it's okay. we're okay with this? the fda is okay? is that the only deal? the ammonium hydroxide is not a problem? she's silent. >> i'm not eating meet today. >> yeah. that's why you go to the organic department. >> change the picture so we'll stop talking about the beef. this guy, not only is he a star on the field, but he is a he a star if he walks into your section of a restaurant. i was a waitress once and i always wanted this customer, peyton manning, dropping a cool $200 tip even though he just lost his big fat bonus. apparently he's doing okay. not only did he give his waiter at the angus barn in raleigh, north carolina, a $200 tip, he gave that tip on top of the 18% automatic gra tut. how nice is that. as a nice thing to do, i'm guessing, the waiter took a picture of the bill with the tip and posted it on his facebook i think to say look at peyton

manning, what a great dude. then it got so much attraction it went viral and the restaurant fired him. >> no? >> i know. i know. i'm here to say, like a doctor, you can't talk about your patients? it went on one of those websites that usually posts the nontippers like tiger woods has been out there for being a bad tipper. i guess this was one of the ones that was a good tipper. he still got fired. i hope he gets his job back. still ahead, the critical jobs report coming in about 8:30 eastern time. this is a number that affects everything from, i don't know, the entire presidential race. how you feel about your own personal economy, if you do or don't have a job. we're expecting to hear that in a couple of hours. iran's supreme leader, the ayatollah praising the great satin. that's not a typo? >> no, it's not. he's praising even as netanyahu and israel is stepping up the heat with the time line for potential attack inside iran. iran is praising the united

states. >> that's remarkable. if wholt the first ingredient in your breakfast cereal, what is? now, in every box of general mills big g cereal, there's more whole grain than any other ingredient. that's why it's listed first. get more whole grain than any other ingredient... just look for the white check. i are you still sleeping? just wanted to check and make sure that we were on scheule. e.

the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers. ♪[music plays] ♪[music plays] purina one beyond. food for your cat or dog.

and a hello and good morning to you, everyone. it's nice to have you here with "early start." i'm ashleigh banfield. >> i'm christine romans in for zoraida sambolin today. it's 6:00 a.m. in the east. time to get started. >> here are three words you probably hear a lot, jobs, jobs, jobs. you're going to hear more about it today because the big jobs report for january is going to be out in two hours. predictions are interesting but could they boost or bite president obama? israel's prime minister is talking about a timetable for an attack on iran. and series of interviews talking about when they could do something there, how many days, weeks, months, before time runs ounchts here's something a surviving crime victim shouldn't have to feel, shocked after

ruling that these four killers and a bunch of other criminalses are going to be free to exercise their pardons after the mississippi high court upheld the former governor's decision to let them out of jail. it's like a gravity rocket aimed at the center of the earth. jason carroll gets a look at the capsule that will take james cameron on a dive seven miles deep. gravity rocket. >> that's a brilliant way to say it. a gravity rocket that could squeeze you like a peanut if all things don't go well. >> more like a grape. >> scary stuff. this guy is brave and he's going for it. up next, like we said, it's number one issue, your home, it's the number one issue on the campaign trail, jobs, and the lack thereof in the country. the jobs report for february is just in just a couple of hours. it affects everything, from wall street and oil prices and might tell you more about the presidential election than any pollster can do with his telephone. the candidates know it.

>> the economy is getting stronger and the recovery is speeding up. the question now is how do we make sure that it keeps going. >> this for me, this is not just about numbers and tax policy, this is about getting americans good jobs with rising incomes. >> we have a choice that we're going to make in this election. it's going to be about jobs, yes. it will be about jobs. is it going to be about growing this economy? yes, it's going to be about growing this economy. >> if you prefer food stamps and unemployment, vote for obama. if you prefer jobs and paycheck, vote for us. >> normally you would see john king at a magic wall but this morning my friends we have christine romans with the massive magic wall. you might even call it the monster wall. >> because it's a monster important report, the jobs report. what i'm trying to show you here, ashleigh, is how far we've come and where we're going. this report is more than just one month in is a report that is

putting into context a jobs tren trend that was truly horrifying for this country. this is the end of the bush administration. monthly job losses here at the end of 2008 that were horrific. you can see just how deep the hole was that we built. this line here is when obama took office. this what it was like in the first months of his presidency. truly awful. hundreds of thousands of jobs lost every single month. then you can see throughout 2009 into 2010, the bleeding stopped and you started to see some jobs gains. everything was so tentative. when you saw a pullback. we worried about a double dip recession. here have been slow, steady, jobs gains, that gray bar right there is the expectation for 20 2 10,000 jobs created in february. now, here's the thing. the president can take credit for a slowly improving jobs market over the last year, right? but he can't take credit for strong jobs growth that got us back to where we need to be because that hasn't happened

yet. you will see politicizing of these numbers no matter what. what this chart is meant to though you, the trajectory of the trend and sort of a real fact check of where we stand. >> that gray piece at the end there? the one that says -- the projection of -- stick around because you have to fill it in at 8:30 a.m. >> i will make that a bar for you that will be the real number at 8:30. >> higher or lower, but at 8:30 christine will have the actual number. speaking of jobs, democrats and the republicans set aside their differences and decided to send that jobs bill to the senate because the house passed it yesterday in a landslide. 390 to 23 was the final number. if you are wondering what the jobs bill is about, it's sort of called the jump-start or businesses start-up act. it's supposed to make it easier for the small businesses to find investors and actually hire people to cut through so of the sec red tape. the house majority leader john

cantor was on "john king usa" but nancy pelosi was not super thrilled. she said this was a jobs bill light. here's how they both depicted it. >> this bill, i think, reflects congress actually beginning to come together. both sides trying to set aside differences. and rally around what we know needs to happen. and that is to get entrepreneurs, small businessmen and women back into the game of job creation. >> it's so meager. trumpet, ta-ta-ta-ta, here comes the little king. >> stick to your day job. that singing was just okay. majority leader harry reid for his part said the senate would move quickly to pass some similar legislation. >> the senate is shutting down a plan to track that controversial key lime -- keystone -- i was thinking about goldie taylor who is in south beach. but keystone pipeline, it would have allowed construction to start immediately on that. it fails to get the 60 votes it

needed for passage. republicans you nunanimously supported it. four votes shy of passing. president personally lobbied democrats to oppose it. it's a proposed 1700-mile pipeline expansion. it's the dotted line there. you can see the orange parts are already in, already there, already built. we bring crude oil from canada to the u.s. gulf coast. opponents say the crude is poor quality. the pipeline could leak. they don't like it for the environmental reasons and the like. >> the dotted ones are the ones already built. >> the dotted one is the extension, the solid one is there. we've got lots of pipelines in this country. >> it's long. maybe inefficient. we like fasht si in america, don't we? let's talk overseas stuff because it's all enter connected. netanyahu saying he's going to give sanctions a chance against iran trying to make things work

between those two countries. netanyahu said it is clear that time is running out. he did give a sort of a time frame, a bit of a time frame regard that idea of attacking iran over that whole nuclear threat issue. >>. >> translator: i am not standing with a stopwatch in hand. it is not a matter of days or weeks but also not a matter of years. everybody understands this. >> iran says it is ready to talk about its nuclear program. we'll see if talk means letting in those inspectors. and really when they let them in, letting them do their job. the country supreme leader, ayatollah actually ended up praising president obama. we don't hear that very often, folks. the supreme leader praising an american president because of obama's efforts to dampen all the war talk. for his part, the president here says that there is a, quote, window of opportunity to try to resolve this crisis and cohe sa

it's wise. he also said this, this talk is good talk and shows an exit from illusion. there are a lot of krit sicks say that when the ayatollah talks it's all hot air though. and i don't know how that message is resonating but lit be fascinating, none the less, reza. >> well, when iran's supreme leader praises and compliments u.s. president barack obama it's going to mike headlines and that's what's happening here. the supreme leader ayatollah khomeni says it can still be solved through diplomacy and not war. of course, for months now we've heard intense saber rattling against iran, fueled mostly by israeli leaders, three of the republican presidential candidates and many u.s. congressmen essentially saying that the time for talk is nearing an end, that iran is indeed building a bomb, and they should be stopped by any means

necessary. it's important to point out that not even the u.n.'s nuclear inspection agency is saying iran is building a bomb. even so there's still a lot of concern. this week president obama essentially coming out and saying everybody calm down, take a deep breath. going to war is not a game. let's allow diplomacy and sanctions to take its course. if you look at the past couple of days you can see the rhetoric toning down considerably. that could set the stage for the talks between the western powers, russia and china on one side and iran, that could happen in the coming weeks. ashleigh? >> it's interesting, usually when ahmadinejad saber rattles the price of oil goes up and that's helpful to a country that's struggling under these sanctions. so when the supreme leader starts to tamp that down bus that cause a problem within iran and does that even matter to us? >> well, i don't think anything the supreme leader says in iran at this point with respect to

the nuclear program is going to cause any problems. his word is the final word. it's very difficult to get in his mind, but we heard from iran's leadership. they don't want a conflict. especially a military conflict with the west. even so, as we mentioned before, the israeli government mostly has been saber rattling, calling for the consideration of a military attack. and there's been a lot of rhetoric in bluster. and to cut through some of that bluster we should point out to our viewers that the top authorities on u.s. intelligence, people like james clapper, the u.s. director of national intelligence, has told congress just last month that there's no evidence that iran is building a bomb. ronald burgess, the director of u.s. defense intelligence agency said we assess iran is unlikely to provoke a conflict. these statements don't go along with the narrative that iran is a threat to the world. it's important to remind our viewers that these statements are coming from top u.s.

intelligence officials. >> and they say something smells fishy, those are my words, not theirs. reza, thank you, we appreciate that. coming up this morning, a new copter begins in the rutgers university webcam spying trial. you know those other show sthas have starbucks on them? starbucks is trying to percolate more business with its own home brewing machine. i wonder if it will show up at a an anchor set near you. but first, a quick check of your travel forecast. good morning, rob. >> listen, wind conditions. that front is pushing off to the east. the rains that were along the i-95 will be ending throughout the day. in the south, it's kind of hanging around. it will be a slow go to clear this stuff out. the rain will only increase across parts of the east texas and the arklatex over the weekend. that should eliminate your doubt elsewhere. clear skies moving in. not a bad weekend with seasonal

temperatures. 40 in chicago. 49 in new york. 60 degrees once the rains move out in the west. you're up to date weatherwise, 12 minutes after the hour. "early start" is coming right back. i am loving this greek yogurt. i like yoplait. it is yoplait. but you said it was greek. mmhmm. so is it greek or is it yoplait? exactly. okay... [ female announcer ] yoplait. it is so greek. to help protect your eye health as you age... would you take it? well, there is.

[ male announcer ] it's called ocuvite. a vitamin totally dedicated to your eyes, from the eye-care experts at bausch + lomb. as you age, eyes can lose vital nutrients. ocuvite helps replenish key eye nutrients. [ male announcer ] ocuvite has a unique formula not found in your multivitamin to help protect your eye health. now, that's a pill worth taking. [ male announcer ] ocuvite. help protect your eye health. [ male announcer ] ocuvite. ah, welcome to hotels.com. i get it...guys weekend.

yeah! if you're looking for a place to get together, you came to the right place. because here at hotels.com, we're only about hotels. yeah! yeah! noooo. yeah! finding you the perfect place is all we do. welcome to hotels.com

♪ so '80s. wake up, miami. >> goldie taylor is in miami. it's going to rain later today. chance of storms. 83. >> they're jamming to loveboy, though, and "working for the weekend." >> friday in miami is better than any other workday anywhere else, don't you think? >> yeah, i would choose miami over anywhere in florida. if you're just waking up we've got your top stories all down for you. we're going crunk on the top store is are here. candidates and voters all waiting for the big february jobs report that's coming out at 8:30. christine is brog to break down those numbers for you. the labor department, around 210,000 jobs added last month. also in the news, an agreement by most of greece's

private creditors is clearing the way for another mass financial bailout for the european union. they agreed on a plan to restructure the greek bonds. that ripple effect? we'll have to wait and see if it works. no word on a possible motive for a deadly shooting at the university of pick psychiatric center. a man walked in with a pair of guns and just opened fire. one person was killed. seven people were hurt before he was shot dead by the campus police. in new york city, the city is going to fight a judge's ruling enforcing it to pay $128 million for discriminating against minority fire department candidates. the federal government and a black firefighters group argued the nypd's entrance exam was bias for whites. seeing red or staff bucs announces competition for the popular k-cup brewing machine. no word yet on t. how much it's going to cost when it hits the market sometime this fall.

17 minutes past 6:00 right now. coming up, it's a trial that a lot of people are looking at because it has to do with web spying and bias, or does it? the defense is going to start its case in that issue over a gay student who committed suicide after that young man was alleged to have put the spy cam on him and it's all about why, why, why would you do it? and as the u.s. hitchhikes with the russians, china, china is upping the heights in the space race. china wants to dominate a new frontier. you're watching "early start." >> those pictures never get old. for fastidious librarian emily skinner, each day was fueled by thorough preparation for events to come. well somewhere along the way, emily went right on living. but you see, with the help of her raymond james financial advisor, she had planned for every eventuality. ...which meant she continued to have the means to live on... ...even at the ripe old age of 187. life well planned.

see what a raymond james advisor can do for you. lemon burst, blackberry harvest, pina colada... i can't imagine where she is... orange creme... [ grocery store pa ] clean up in aisle eight. found her! [ female announcer ] yoplait original. 25 flavors for you to love. 8% every 10 years.age 40, we can start losing muscle -- [ female announcer ] yoplait original. wow. wow. but you can help fight muscle loss with exercise and ensure muscle health. i've got revigor. what's revigor? it's the amino acid metabolite, hmb to help rebuild muscle and strength naturally lost over time. [ female announcer ] ensure muscle health has revigor and protein to help protect, preserve, and promote muscle health. keeps you from getting soft. [ major nutrition ] ensure. nutrition in charge!

good morning.

it's 21 minutes past the hour. i'm christine romans in for zoraida sambolin this morning. >> i'm ashleigh banfield. the big story today, prosecution has rested its case in the webcam spying trial. you probably have heard something about this. this man, a former rutgers student, is on trial for a lot of things including buy as intimidation and he's facing up to ten years in prison because that's the most serious charge. he's accuse of using a webcam to spy on his roommate, 1-year-old tyler clemente. tyler clemente ended up jumping off bridge in new york and killing himself. the jury in this case has viewed a lot of texts and an hour long interrogation in a place interrogation room. i want you to take a look at this. a detective here reading a twitter message sent by ravi to him. >> anyone with i chat, i dare you, not please don't, not i'm

warning you, i dare you to video chat me between the hours of 9:30 and 12:00. yes, it's happening again. >> but obviously i said that in a sarcastic way, first of all. and second of all, i turned off my computer so they wouldn't be able to -- or i put it to sleep so they wouldn't be able to view anything. >> that is ravi's explanation but this young man ended up committing suicide several days after learn that his roommate had been spying on him. it's still an allegation, folks. this trial is still ongoing. but the defense gets a really hard crack at this case to try to prove what was in the defendant's mind. joining us now is midwin charles, criminal defense attorney. she's also not just an attorney, she's a radio host, too, and she's just lovely. i know her. i love her. good morning. >> good morning. >> i can't wait to talk to you about this. when the prosecution has this case, the headlines are, oh, man, this guy is going down. baths that's because all you get to hear is the prosecution's version. now we get to here dharun ravi's

version. what are they going to say to this jury to switch gears? >> i think the strongest charge is the bias intimidation charge because that carries a sentence of ten years. so i think the defense is going to focus on the fact that he was not homophobic or looked down on people who were gay or who had a sexual orientation that was different. in fact, during cross-examination of the prosecution's witnesses, he did a remarkable job of pointing out from those witnesses that dharun ravi is not homowbow fik. he had a close friend that was gay. >> what does it matter? if he's homobphobic or not, we'e talking about a crime. where does homophobic tendencies factor into evidence and what happened and why the young man jumped off the bridge? >> one, no such thing as a dumb

question, ashleigh. >> thank you. i got millions of them. they're all here. i got millions. >> and, two, the bias intimidation is a hate crime. what that means is that prosecutors often have to get into the head of a defendant and determine whether or not they singled out the victim because of gender, sexual orientation, national origin, or religion. so that's why finding out whether or not he is homophobic, his attitude towards gays is relevant. and it is very, very important. at least with respect to the bias intimidation charge. >> that is critical here. that carries ten years. >> it is. >> rubber the going to meet the road. i'm nfr going to suggest for a moment that any of us is good enough to get into someone else's head but the closest you can come is whatever evidence you can gather, say, text messages, conversations, witnesses, that sort of thing. to that end there is a text message i feel is going to play heavily in the defense's case. again, this is a long message we've cut down a bit.

bharun ravi text this to tyler cleme clemente the day he jumped off the bridge. i don't know if tyler was able to read it but he said this. i've known you were gay and i have no problem with it. i don't want your freshman year to be ruined because of a petty misunderstanding. it's adding to my guilt. you have a right to move if you wish, but i don't want you to feel pressured to without fully understanding the situation. isn't that what you call a really strong piece of evidence in the defense case? >> well, it's helpful. you know, the defense will say it's a strong helpful piece of evidence but the prosecution will turn around and say, you know what, look at the timing at which that was sent. it was sent after he found out that tyler clemente requested a change in rooms. he wanted a different -- >> so what though? >> it shows that, you know, he's trying to kind of mitigate what happened and trying not to look like the bad guy and cover his tracks. >> change of room isn't such a crime. he doesn't need to mitigate

himself for a change of room. >> one of the charges is here is hindering apprehension. this is a guy that is very good at trying to cover his tracks. he's alleged to have left about 86 text mess samgs in trying to cover his tracks. interesting fact, i think. but i think you're right. i think it's helpful to the defense but i can see how the prosecution can counter it. >> yeah. they always can, right? especially a good one. midwin, good to see you, as always. >> you, too. >> that line about adding to my guilt. >> adding to my guilt, meaning i feel bad about doing this to you. i have a feeling this is going to be a very interesting jury deliberation. >> still ahead, how good jobs numbers need to be played very carefully on the campaign trail for president obama if he's not careful, you know, people could say he's boasting about what has been a subpar recovery. we'll talk about the obama jobs pickle here. [ male announcer ] this is the network -- a living, breathing intelligence teaching data how to do more for business. [ beeping ] in here, data knows what to do. because the network finds it

and tailors it across all the right points, automating all the right actions... [ beeping ] ...to bring all the right results. it's the at&t network -- doing more with data to help business do more for customers. ♪ today is gonna be anmore important day for us. you ready? we wanna be our brother's keeper. what's number two we wanna do? bring it up to 90 decatherms. how bout ya, joe? let's go ahead and bring it online. attention on site, attention on site. now starting unit nine. some of the world's cleanest gas turbines are now powering some of america's biggest cities. siemens. answers.

it is 30 minutes past the hour, which means you might be waking up and starting your friday, but it means we're 30 minutes until our friday. >> five-mile run. no pressure, everyone. no pressure. >> i'm ashleigh banfield. >> i'm christine romans in for zoraida sambolin. big february jobs report comes out at 8:30 eastern time if labor department is expected to announce the economy added about 210,000 jobs last month. the jobless rate probably steady at 8.3%. we'll know for sure in two hours. president obama is urging restraint, but israel's not backing down in the confro confrontation over iran's nuclear program. netanyahu laying out a time fray saying it won't be day or weeks, but not years. keystone pipeline plan fails in the senate by four voetsz. the measure would have kick started construction of that pipeline to bring crude oil from canada's oil sands to the u.s. gulf coast. the president personally lobbied democrats to vote against that.

and china is trying to reach new heights with its space program. officials there saying it's going to launch its first ever manned flight to dock at the space lab this summer. long-term plans include building a manned space station and eventual landing on the moon but not before we try to beat them to it. if newt gingrich has his way. by the way, speaking of newt gingrich and those folks on the campaign trail, there's something suggesting we have a enthusiasm deficit, folks. enthusiasm deficit. apparently when it comes to the republican voters nationwide, the turnout in the primaries in 13 states this year is down compared with the last two primary races in 2000 and 2008. and please, folks, it's your right. it's your right in this country. go. vote. do it. it's fabulous. it's fun. you get a sticker. >> you get a sticker. >> you do. it's great. >> and then you get a new president eventually or the same president you had the last four years. >> it's up to you. >> there you go. newt gingrich immediate

political future, obama. and mississippi next week. rick santorum is out to make it a two-man race. could gingrich be a king maker? political panel to weigh in on that this morning. in washington, maernlgry clifton, national editor of govote.com. and in florida, eric erickson of redstate.com. and in miami, goldie taylor, independent political analyst, managing editor of the goldie taylor project. yesterday tony perkins sent an e-mail to his followers saying it's time for gingrich to move on, to get out of the race. and take the position of a king maker. you said the very same thing about rick perry and rick perry dropped out. is it time for this to be a two-man race? >> i think a lot of conservatives are starting to see that. when you drill down into the exit polling from ohio it looks like the newt gingrich had gotten out before ohio most of his voters would have gone to rick santorum. an easy night for an store rum

had gingrich not been there. oklahoma and tennessee, both states gingrich was expected to do well in he wound up not doing well in those. he didn't get 50% in his home state. look at alabama and mississippi, it's clear that gingrich voters are dragging down santorum, santorum voters are dragging down gingrich but united they would be able to stop mitt romney in those states. >> goldie, the jobs report. this is something that you're like leg to get 200,000 plus jobs today, according to economists, right, which on its surface is good flus. the president has the challenge of trumpeting these numbers while walking a fine line and acknowledging that a lot of people are still underemployed, that republican s do have a point that the unemployment rate still is too high. and mid romney has recently even said something to that effect, you know, kind of taking some of the umph out of the president's victory on the jobs front. let's listen. >> these days here the president keep telling us things are getting better.

but 24 million americans are still struggling for work, high-fiving each other in the west wing. but my friends, the truth is 8% unemployment is not the best america can do. it's just the best that this administration can do. >> so i think all of the press releases have already been written for everyone who wants to spin these numbers the way they want them on the trail today. how does the white house play, goldie? >> i think you're right. tinge white house has a very fine line to walk on this, sure. we're in one of the worst economic downturns that we've seen in modern times. and it's going to take a lot. you know, really to get us out of this. this is good news. you know, 200,000 additional jobs is always good news. it clearly is not enough. there are too many americans still hurting out there. and so, sure, there's a fine line for this president to walk. there's also a fine line for these gop candidates to walk. on the one hand they say that government, you know, can't create jobs. and on the other hand they're going to blame the white house for not creating jobs. fact is we've all got to work together and betting against americans is never ever going to

work. >> you're likely to see more government jobs lost in this report. we have seen that again and again and again. and more job cuts -- or more cuts from government from the budget will mean more government jobs lost. and that has been, of course, something that's been key in the republican platform. marjorie, the house though and the senate is going to take on, you know, this jobs act. the house passed this jobs act yesterday. and i'll tell you what people in the business world were saying. they were kind of yawning about this yesterday because four of these proposals have already been passed by the house and it doesn't really move the needle on the economy yet they're trumpeting of this great show of bipartisanship. you know, is it an important victory or just one small little move in a sea of partisanship? >> i think anything is a move right now. as we've seen the. pro sal rate for congress has been 4% and 7% and 9%. they need any victories they can get at this point. what's enough right now, that's the question. and asoff must january bucking

about it's all about positioning and as many of us experience in our own relationship, it's about setting expectations. what's a reasonable bump in the economy given where we've been historically? will this bill actually move the needle forward a little bit? yes. but is it enough? probably not. and, you know, a third month now of improved numbers is absolutely a win for everyone. >> do you guys agree with me? we don't have time right now but a show of hands or nod. do you agree with me that the jobs report and what with dough here in the near term is probably the most important poll indicator in the election season in is the number that everybody is following, yes? >> yes. >> that and the gas prices. >> that and gas prices, you're right. absolutely. and basically, i mean, i don't know how much control anybody has hover any of those things right now in the near term, suggesting strategies according by li. thank you very much. bright and early for us on a friday. happy friday. >> bright and early for them. >> not bright and early for us.

it's late, it's late. it's 37 minutes past 6:00. another story we've been telling you a lot about but a little different. violence that's raging in syria. but no less, listen to this, the rebel groups are saying 20 people were killed today including women and children, but now they're accusing the government of storming through villages not just to chase down the women and children, no, no, no, they want to go after their own soldiers. their own soldiers who defected. we keep hearing that's happening. in the meantime, bashar al-assad's government is claiming the attacks and those who they're looking for are terrorists. terrorists. not just simple civilians. and they say that those terrorists are carrying, get ready, ready? israeli made weapons. and that they're using those israeli made weapons to kill civilians. syria is accusing other neighbor turkey of smuggling guns across the border. talk about problems in that neighborhood. and to that end, this is one of the worst places in the world to be a reporter. it's the worst place in the world to be a civilian at this

point. cnn's arwa damon able to get inside syria and has been doing extraordinary work inside syria is going to give us an extended look this sunday. it's unfiltered just as to how dangerous this situation is there for everyone involved. one-hour special called "72 hours under fire." it airs this sunday at 8:00 p.m. eastern. >> her reporting is amazing. she is why -- >> she's why we're in this job. she's the one out there under pressure doing it. it's amazing. >> nic robertson has done it, too. a few other reporters. we talked about maria colvin who lost her life in this. i can't express how dangerous and difficult it is to step over that border. when you make that decision, you never know if you're coming out. 39 minutes past 6:00. coming up also on this program, those pardons that made everybody see red. four killers and a whole lot more criminals walking out from behind bars after being pardoned by mississippi's governor.

others taking issue, taking it to court, and the supreme court in that state weighed in. we'll tell you what they decided overall. and also, killer tv. "sopranos" hit a list of influential programs but can you guess which one was number one? you might be surprised at this one. you're watching "early start." back then, he had something more important to do. he wasn't focused on his future but fortunately, somebody else was. at usaa we provide retirement planning for our military, veterans and their families. now more than ever, it's important to get financial advice from people who share your military values. call now for our free guide and tips on planning for your retirement this tax season.

ready? as i'll ever be. break a leg! i used to love hearing that phrase... but not since i learned i have... postmenopausal osteoporosis and a high risk for fracture. i want to keep acting but a broken bone could change that. so my doctor and i chose prolia® to reduce my risk of fractures. prolia® is proven to help make bones stronger. proven to help increase bone density. i take prolia®. it's different. it's two shots a year. [announcer:] if you take prolia® (denosumab) you should not take xgeva®. prolia® can cause serious side effects,

including low blood calcium levels, serious infections... ...some of which may require hospitalization, and skin inflammation, rash and eczema. tell your doctor if you develop dental problems... ...as severe jawbone problems may happen. what's out there matters to me. so does what's in here. break a leg! thanks ed. ask your doctor if prolia® is right for you.

good morning, memphis. get up. 40 degrees. it's going to be sunny and 62. it's friday. you've got about, you know, eight or nine hours to get some stuff done and then enjoy the weekend. >> she does not mince words.

get up. >> get no moving. >> 6:43 on the east coast. welcome back to "early start." the supreme court in mississippi has weighed in on something a lot of people have been talking about. the pardons. what did the supreme court decide to do? upheld them. they're good. haley barbour's pardons are good to go. >> they didn't buy that technicality of putting it in the paper. >> they say it's a governor's right to do it, which means now four convicted killers and, oh, i don't know, 196 or so other prisoners are all free to go. free at last. some of them worked as trustees so they got close to the governor and his staff while they were working in the mansion there. the court just said, you know what, the pardon power that's given to our leaders, our governors just can't be, quote, set aside or voided by the judicial branch. cnn's ed lavandera has been on this story since the beginning. i remember watching you in the cold, cold weather trying to get a comment from haley barbour. everybody wanted to know what his answer was and what his

explanations were. and i think he said to you, maybe i'll talk to you but you can stale stay out in fact cold. i tell feel like we're in the cold on this one. >> i think we will be stay that way for quite some time. we're going to keep trying. he told us then that he would talk to us after the supreme court ruled. he put out a statement yesterday saying he was gratified and happen we the result that the supreme court had come to but no expectation he sit down with us and answer many of the questions that still exist surrounding this case. it was a 6-3 decision as you mentioned, ashleigh, and they're basically saying that it was up to the government. remember the attorney general in mississippi was arguing that they didn't put forth enough notice. that mississippi law is that they had to have announced these pardons 30 days in advance of the pardon and they felt the fa vast what wrmajority, it wasn't. the supreme court saying it is up to the governor and the governor only to determine if 25 or 28 days is good enough. and if the governor deems that to be appropriate, we had that

discretion. >> what the supreme court was saying, yes, absolutely that teeny-weeny part of the constitution there was an infraction and they did sort of screw that up but in the end you're allowed to screw that up, it doesn't matter, because the governor is the king when it comes to these decisions. is that what this means? >> essentially. all of this is over. one of descenting judges, three that didn't agree with the ruling, basically called this in the words that the judge used, a stunning victory for convicted, lawless criminals. you can imagine that hasn't gone over well with many people in mississippi. >> what about those victims? there were some family members, victims who survived some of those killers' attempts. what's going on with them? >> if i. you been following this story closely you have probably gotten to know a randy walker quite well. he was shot in the head by david gatlin who is one of those trustees that worked in the governor's mansion. he survived the attack where his friend was murdered. he spoke with anderson cooper last night.

you listen to the emotion and the power of his words. >> david gatlin only served 17 years, 6 months, and 3 days for a life plus 30 sentence. he should have never gotten out of jail. it happened for me. i'm still living it every day. i can't be pardoned from the scars i have. i can't be pardoned from the night marries. i can't be pardoned from looking over my shoulder wondering where this guy is. you know, none of that. there's no magic pardon pill for me. >> so hard to hear. ed, quickly, i always ask, it ain't over until it's over until it hits the supreme court. but is it over? is that done or is anybody looking to push this further? >> they might try to push. we haven't heard any of that yet. it's essentially over. remember, there's five more people that were caught up and still in prison. not released yet. they will be released by tomorrow. that includes another murder, accessory to murder and another woman convicted of aggravated

assault. that story continues. >> we will add it is an astounding story. great work and staying on it from the beginning. >> thanks, guys. 45 minutes past the hour. time to check the stories making news this morning. the candidates and voters all waiting for the big february jobs report. the labor department expected to announce the economy added 210,000 jobs last month. the jobless rate stayed at 8 1/2%. we'll have that at 8:30 eastern. 47 minutes past 6:00. israeli attack on iran could happen in matter of months? really? according to prime minister benjamin netanyahu. in a series of tv interviews in israel the president said it's not a matter of days or weeks but it's also not a matter of years. so somewhere in between, folks. he also added he hopes the diplomatic pressures succeeds. but he said it must be removed. soledad o'brien has a look at what's ahead on "starting point." good morning, sunshine. >> hey. good morning to both of you.

we're coming to you live from south by southwest this morning in austin, texas. of course, that is a music and film festival. this morning we're going to talk to one of the cofounders of the festival. we're here at the cnn grill. you can see they're getting ready to make breakfast, the french toast. get a shot of our set, look who it is. ali velshi. coming on the set this morning joining our panel, of course. this is where all the magic is going to happen. also, we're going to talk to a guy who is launching a big craze for tech companies like to launch and talk to fleming about his company they're launching today at south by southwest. and the chopras, they will talk about the film they're day pewing here. also going to talk about the jobs numbers you guys were talking about, austin golsbi and the implication of the numbers coming out. and then did you see this? a rap patle, a battle over rap.

>> i think so jay-z said it best and i'm going to quote it for you. i know my rights so you're going to need a warrant for that. and even went further to say, aren't you as sharp as tack. ront you a lawyer or something? >> i respectfully disagree. it was the officer who said ant you sharp as a tack or something. you should try for lawyer something. i got you on that. >> what has it all come to? what has it come to when everybody is quoting jay-z and the lyrics of "99 problems. that and much more this morning on "starting point" when you see us at the top of the hour. back in just a moment. man, i'm glad aflac pays cash.

aflac! ha! isn't major medical enough? huh! no! who's gonna help cover the holes in their plans? aflac! quack! like medical bills they don't pay for? aflac! or help pay the mortgage? quack! or child care? quack! aflaaac! and everyday expenses? huh?! blurlbrlblrlbr!!! [ thlurp! ] aflac! [ male announcer ] help your family stay afloat at aflac.com. plegh!

♪ we all live in a yellow submarine yellow submarine yellow rub marine ♪ >> we did this, didn't we? yesterday we told you the story about james cameron and the gravity rocket heading to the bottom of the earth. you're so fascinated by the geeky part of the tube that he's going down? >> jason carroll has an inside look at this. >> it's not yellow, it's kawasaki green. let's get that straight first. basically, you know, it's been

something years in development. you know, this is not something that happens overnight. this is something that cameron has been working on with a team of engineers and deep sea experts as well as some of the folks from nation"national geo " geographic." this is how he's going to get to the trench. this is going to happen sometime this month. you see him climbing in there. a few stats about "deep sea challenger." 24 feet long. weighs 12 tons. made of a special type of foam. it runs on lithium batteries. all this so it can withstand the pressures at challenger deep some 36,000 feet down. the idea is to spend as little time as possible descending and ascending and spend as much time possible down there on the seafloor. cameron talked to me about how the subwill move in the water and what safety measures are in place just in case something goes wrong. >> so it does say vertical like a sea horse.

>> it just stays up right, it's the same idea. we're pushing from the center of a tall object. we just do it like this. it's like a gravity rocket aimed at the center of the earth. it's designed to go down fast and column fast. >> if you do get stuck on the bottom for whatever reason, if your weights don't drop, there's a way to jettison. multiple ways to jettison. the very last one is you have to wait for a link to dissolve. it eventually dissolves in sea water and the weighting fall off. >> simple way of coming back just in case something goes wrong. in addition to putting -- this all about science. and there's a slurp gun, i know that's not a technical term but there's a slurp gun they've got attached to this thing so he can suck in sea life so it will be up on the ship to look at what's going on down there. >> when you think about the applications of what's alive in the mariana trench, how you withstand that kind of pressure, low light, what kind of --

just -- >> you know what that means, also, it redefines what really life is all about. and if life can survive at those pressures, who knows what life may look like on other planets. >> new frontier. it really is. he's like magellan, fabulous. lots to come in a moment.

ready? as i'll ever be. break a leg! i used to love hearing that phrase... but not since i learned i have... postmenopausal osteoporosis and a high risk for fracture. i want to keep acting but a broken bone could change that. so my doctor and i chose prolia® to reduce my risk of fractures. prolia® is proven to help make bones stronger. proven to help increase bone density. i take prolia®. it's different. it's two shots a year. [announcer:] if you take prolia® (denosumab) you should not take xgeva®. prolia® can cause serious side effects, including low blood calcium levels, serious infections... ...some of which may require hospitalization, and skin inflammation, rash and eczema. tell your doctor if you develop dental problems... ...as severe jawbone problems may happen. what's out there matters to me. so does what's in here. break a leg! thanks ed. ask your doctor if prolia® is right for you.

that is better than today. since 1894, ameriprise financial has been working hard for their clients' futures. never taking a bailout. helping generations achieve dreams. buy homes. put their kids through college. retire how they want to. ameriprise. the strength of america's largest financial planning company. the heart of 10,000 advisors working with you, one-to-one. together, for your future. ♪ i like yoplait. it is yoplait. but you said it was greek. mmhmm. so is it greek or is it yoplait? exactly. okay... [ female announcer ] yoplait. it is so greek. at meineke i have options... like oil changes starting at $19.95. my money. my choice. my meineke.

"hill street blues" named the most influential shows. they say it changed the direction of television. also in the top five "i love lu lucy," "sopranos," "the tonight show" and "survivor." and. >> just say "early start," we were a contender, but "hill street blues", can't get any better than thanchts that's it for us. >> i'm christine romans in for zoraida today. >> at this point we're sending it down to austin, texas, where it is as warm as a dutch oven. that's the ward of the day. i had to get it in. soledad. >> hey. thank you for the word of the day. i appreciate that. welcome, everybody. our "starting point," we're just minutes away from that big february jobs report. we're going to talk about that this morning.