ron brownstein, we start with you on "end point." >> the unemployment rate on friday could have a big impact on the presidential race and what happens after that. >> when that tower is put on top of world trade center the tallest building in the western hemisphere and the pink berry sign up and i will be laughing off broadway tonight. >> that's nice. >> a big flexed arm to the world. you knock it down, we build it back. bigger! >> two seconds to go. "cnn newsroom" begins right now with carol costello. i'll see you back here at 7:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. >> i'm carol costello. good morning to you, soledad. happening right now a blind act taivis activist. a chinese man stood up for the rights of the disabled and victims of forced abortions hiding out right now inside a u.s. embassy at least we think so. this morning, hillary clinton is on her way to china. missing in arizona. the search for little 6-year-old isabel celis who vanished from

her bedroom nine days ago. the focus this morning a new surveillance video capturing three people outside of her home. heights of freedom on the eve of osama bin laden death. one world trade center marking a milestone today becoming the tallest building in new york city. blasting the bible. dan savage from "it gets better" campaign goes on the attack saying, quote, he should learn to ignore the b.s. in the bible and when it says about gay people. this morning, he is not backing down. newsroom begins right now! . a daring escape and diplomatic quandary. house arrest slipped away and apparently hiding inside the u.s. embassy in beijing and sets the stage for a tug of war between the two countries. you may remember the plight of chen in december. we were the only crew to

accompany actor christian bale as he tried to meet with the activist instead bale was roughed up by chins chinese security guards. >> carol, this is an extraordinary story of escape. a blind man who under the cover of darkness managed to escape his captors and climb over a wall and cross a creek and then get to meet a waiting car at a secret rendezvous point and they spirited him to beijing and passing through multiple checkpoints and now, of course, the hunt is on for him. >> reporter: somewhere behind niece walls may well be the answer to china's great guessing game. where is chen? within minutes will pulling our camera security at the united states embassy in beijing pounced. i understand we can't take photos but is chen here at the embassy? >> i know -- i don't know

whether he -- >> reporter: the blind human rights activist has been in hiding after escaping house arrest in his village and fleeing to beijing. now, a close friend and fellow campaigner says chen is, indeed, here, given refuge at the u.s. embassy. he first fled to beijing we had to keep moving him from place-to-place. chen had been under heavy guard the last 18 months. the self-taught lawyer angered chinese authorities by campaigning against alleged forced abortions and sterilizations. he spent more than four years in prison convicted of disrupting traffic and damaging property during demonstrations. since his release, he has been in lock-down. this is what happened when we tried to visit chen last year. with hollywood actor and

"batman" star christian bale. >> we have been stopped. we have been stopped. >> reporter: now bale has released a statement to cnn, in it, he says an innocent family has been horrifically tortured while it gives hope that for now chen is safe, his family is not. as a world leader, china must now show its wisdom and compassion and remind the world of its rich cultural history by permanent ifreeing guangcheng and his family. china's citizens deserve more. all of this now political time bomb. the fuse is lit and u.s. on one side and china on the other. hillary clinton, the u.s. secretary of state, due to touch down here in a matter of days, and this is number one on the agenda. carol? >> dan, you mentioned secretary of state carol costello leaves today for talks with china. a lot is at stake. the u.s. would like to see

greater flexibility on security issues involving iran, syria and north korea and u.s. touting itself as a defender of human rights, though. in just about ten minutes we will talk to james rubin, a former assistant secretary of state under president clinton about hillary clinton's delicate dance. in tucson, arizona, this morning, a surveillance video may offer new clues this morning in finding a missing 6-year-old girl. it shows a group of men and women leaving a bar around 1:30 in the morning a block from the home of isabel celis who was discovered missing hours later when her father says he found her bed empty and her window screen removed. police aren't revealing what these potential witnesses have to say. >> if fi anything, it's one less thing we have to concentrate efforts on. we have seen these people and we have identified them and we have statements from these folks and now we are in the process of evaluating that information and determining how valuable that

is, if at all, to us. >> cnn's thely will gutierrez s is -- thelma gutierrez is in los angeles. it was tough for us to identify the people in the video. blurry video. how were the police able to identify them? >> reporter: they are looking for any clues at this point that will lead them to that little 6-year-old. that surveillance tape was released to the local media in hopes that somebody would recognize the five people who are captured on that tape, leaving the bar between 1:00 and 1:30 morning. isabel's father said he put her to bed at 11:00 a.m. as you you mentioned. police are hoping these people may have seen something. one person in that tape came forward but police are not revealing what he might have said. >> do they have any clues at all, thelma? >> reporter: right now, they are leaving no stones unturned, carol. the first grader has been missing now for ten days.

police have received more than 300 leads. they are circulating flyers and investigators have canvassed the neighborhood. they have searched the landfill and even lakes in the area. now fbi dogs have been flown in from virginia to help find the girl. border patrol agents are also at the u.s./mexico border and keeping their eye out for her. investigators say now that so much time has passed, they do admit it's very frustrating and hard breaking. carol? >> thelma gutierrez live in los angeles for us. in the world of politics, mitt romney is stumping in new hampshire today and alongside him, a fresh u.s. senator who is getting a bit of -- she could be a viable contender for the number two spot on the republican ticket. we expect to see both of them at a campaign event in about an hour when that happens. we will bring it to you live. take a look at this swanky

mansion outside of washington. quite a party going on there. if you wanted an invite it would have cost you up to $20,000 the going rate to see onetime rivals bill clinton and barack obama together. remember, they didn't much like each other during election 2008. the party actually, a fund-raiser for president obama. the host clinton buddy and former democratic national democratic chair, terry mcauliffe. instruction crews ready to erect a steel beam on top of the new one world trade center or the freedom tower. on the day before the anniversary of osama bin laden's death. a proud moment now being used to attack mitt romney by none other than bill clinton. >> we're honorable path and the one that produced, in my opinion, the best result.

♪ >> republicans like senator john mccain called the ad "shameless." a witness to the assassination of robert f. kennedy comes forward with new information in the 44-year-old case. she says there was a second shooter. you'll hear her account. that comes your way in ten minutes. beefing your security for the 2012 olympic games. what do you do when your government says they might place missiles near your rooftop for anti-terrific measures? some londoners are getting that notice. "cnn newsroom" is back in two minutes. the next revolution in music is happening here.

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checking our top stories now. police in tucson, arizona, hoping this surveillance video will help them find a missing 6-year-old girl. the video she's group of people leaving a bar near the home of isabel celis on the night she disappeared. police trying to figure out the cause of a deadly accident. seven people, including three people, were killed when their suv flipped over a guardrail and landed upside down in the bronx zoo. the vehicle plunged 60 feet before crashing into an area close to the public in the zoo. chen guangcheng had been imprisoned by chinese official for taking a stand against forced abortions and now in what chinese call the one safe place in china, the u.s. embassy. this is a political nightmare for the united states. secretary of state hillary

clinton is hors way to china to talk about security issues involving syria and iran and north korea and timothy geithner is making the trip and talk to china about the exchange rate. jamie rubin is in new york to help us why chen's escape has political implications for the united states. welcome. >> nice to be with you. >> good morning. so my first question, why isn't anyone in the united states confirming that chen is actually inside the u.s. embassy? >> well, my guess is that the united statesmen wants to avoid situation in which the chinese are forced to back down, so if they don't admit that they are holding the individual inside the embassy and they have to make negotiation with the chinese and certain steps are taken, it never appears as if the united states has forced china to back down. this is all about chinese

dignity in the face of what i hope will be a strong stand by the united states on behalf of this individual who we should remember is not really a disside dissident. not even an opponent of the communist party but declares him elf a member of the communist party but wants to change the practices and policies of the chinese membership. >> the u.s. doesn't want to embarrass china but wants to protect human rights and wants to protect chen so how does it do that? >> without knowing some of the details, it's difficult to determine because we don't really know what he wants. every indication is that the dissident mr. chen does not want to leave china, in which case, what he is going to be seeking is some confirmation from the authorities in beijing that he can leave the embassy, that he can live out his life in china without the brutality that he has experienced this past 18 months, as you've shown with

your trying to get to his house. he has got unauthorized extra judicial thugs blocking visitors and making his life miserable. so because this is about chinese behavior towards an individual inside their country, this is very different than the famous case of the chinese disincident physicist back during the first bush administration who lived in the u.s. embassy, i believe, for a year and a half before he was allowed to come to the united states. if mr. chen doesn't want to leave china, that makes this even harder. >> so hillary clinton is on board a plane and flying to china. a long flight. what is going through her mind? >> well, i think on the ground, she has a very able assistant secretary of state kurt campbell who is about as good as anyone to try to negotiate an arrangement here. he is probably giving her updates of what is going on on the ground, trying to determine, again, what mr. chen wants. does he want to get out of

china, to get his family out of china? that would be one path. and that would, frankly, probably be an easier path than trying to get the united states to obtain ainsurances frssurans they want to treat him. one silver lining is mr. chen is seeking the support of china's president and if the united states can essentially be a broker passing a message between a chinese citizen and its president and the president chooses -- and the government of china chooses to respond to this citizen's request, then we may be able to see this thing resolved. but it won't be easy because the united states doesn't want to seem to have abandoned human rights. remember, years ago, the united states really did take a strong stand in favor of human rights in china. they were prepared to cut off trade to china. congress voted against most favored trading status for china when that was a time when human rights was very important.

over the last decade, human rights under the republican and democratic administration says really been, frankly, a low priority matter for washington and this is making it a high priority and that is why it's so tricky. >> james rubin live in new york for us thanks. >> thank you. the wife of the former aide to john edwards goes back on the stand. she will give details on her part on hiding the alleged candidate's affair. why did she help out too? we will have more on that next. the man who told gay teenagers it gets better, gets blasted for blasting the bible. the same guy the white house leaned on to spread a positive encouraging message. did dan savage go too far? cnn is back in a minute. you skip the counters, the lines, and the paperwork. zap. it's our fastest and easiest way to get you into your car. it's just another way you'll be traveling at the speed of hertz.

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some nasty weather hitting the midwest over the weekend. boney schneider is here. it was really terrible. but hopefully things will calm down. >> they will calm down for the morning but we run the risk of more severe weather unfortunately this afternoon. now we are moving into may we can expect a lot more in the way of severe weather. let's take a look at the threat right now. you'll find there is a lot of heavy rain sweeping across the midwest and we are seeing that rolling into areas of missouri and illinois. down to the south, a lot of that rain has pushed through oklahoma city and working its way from kansas city into st. louis. it's not just there. we are watching for the threat to continue overnight with heavy amounts of rain. in the midwest and guess what some down in south florida. it's been a really rough ride down in miami over the weekend. more is to come with 3 to 5 inches of rain in total from west palm beach down to the florida keys.

and that is where we see the heaviest rain right now. today's threat large hail and damaging winds and isolated tornadoes continues from pittsburgh through cincinnati and back up towards oklahoma city. really the bull's-eye for severe weather today. hot along much of the gulf coast and wet in the northwest. cooler. we had freeze advisories this morning in the interior sections of the northeast. so starting off kind of cold as we well into the spring season. >> bonnie, thank you. >> sure. 44 years after the assassination of robert f. kennedy. nooen rah rhodes-hughes was a few feet away from kennedy when he was killed. she claims a second killer to her right of sirhan sirhan. she accuses the fbi of changing her original account. >> there were more than eight shots and interesting you read whatever the fbi issued,

everybody said eight shots. not. i wish there some recordings of me that night i did give an interview with someone with a microphone where i said at least 12, maybe 14. i know there was, because i heard the rhythm in my head. you know? and i know the first two or three shots, i wasn't aware, as i said, i thought they were flashbulbs. what has to come out there was another shooter to my right and robert kennedy was also to my right where sirhan sirhan was almost straight ahead and to my left and standing on some steel raised platform. and that there were two shooters. that must come out and who they were. it must come out who the other shooter is because there definitely was another shooter. >> a federal court is set to rule on a request by sirhan sirhan that he be released, retried or granted a hearing on new evidence, including rhodes-hughes account. also this morning the wife of john edwards former aide

returns to the witness stand. sherri young is expected to testify about how she helped her husband cover up the former presidential candidate's affair. but she will also be asked why she decided to help. joe johns has more for you. >> reporter: beginning the second week of the john edwards campaign finance trial here in greensboro, north carolina, expected to take the stand when testimony resumes is sherri young, the wife of john edwards' right hand man, who actually endorsed many of the big checks from a wealthy donor that never made it to john edwards mistress. a lot of that money ended up being used for the andrew young family expenses at a time when young says he wasn't able to get a job because his reputation had been ruined. he had falsely taken credit for fathering john edwards' child. on friday, sherri young said, her husband's work for the edwards family had become extremely maddening to her, but she allowed it to happen. the main question in the case, however, is about campaign

finance funds and whether john edwards knowingly and willingly accepted illegal money. carol, back to you. now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. the question is should osama bin laden's death be a campaign issue? tomorrow marks one year since osama bin laden was shot dead by u.s. navy s.e.a.l.s. what had happened all of us democrats and republicans joined together in relief and celebration. but that unity was short-lived. it's re-election time. president obama is playing the osama bin laden card. here is his new campaign ad. >> he took the harder and the more honorable path and the one that produced, in my opinion, the best result. >> the ad suggests mitt romney wouldn't have given the order to kill bin laden. it quotes romney's criticism of

candidate obama's promise to strike inside pakistan to get bin laden. senator john mccain call it pathetic as did the romney campaign. >> took something that was a unifying event for all americans and an event that governor romney congratulated him and the military and the intelligence analysts and our government for completing the mission in terms of killing osama bin laden and he has managed to turn it into a divisive partisan political attack. >> if this all sounds familiar, you are right on the money. in 2008, candidate obama complained when hillary clinton used a picture of bin laden to question obama's credentials. this time, obama's campaign says it's different, when it comes to national security, it's fair game to compare how the two men would act as commander in chief. but does it? so the talkback question for you today should osama bin laden's death be a campaign issue? facebook.com/carolcnn.

i'll read your comments later this hour. still ahead, dare i say it? the infamous oklahoctomom is ba! rumors she wants to do porn. a.j. hammer gets to the truth of the matter after a break. i'm always looking out for small ways to be more healthy. like splenda® essentials™ no calorie sweeteners. this bowl of strawberries is loaded with vitamin c. and now, b vitamins to boot. coffee doesn't have fiber. unless you want it to. splenda® essentials™ are the first and only line of sweeteners with a small boost of fiber, or antioxidants, or b vitamins in every packet. mmm. same great taste with an added "way to go, me" feeling. splenda® essentials™. get more out of what you put in.

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just about 30 minutes past the hour. the bell is about to ring on wall street and we have have very good news. a much needed pump in the arm. is that how you say it? it's a much needed win for detroit.

felicia taylor is at the new york stock exchange. tell us about it. >> reporter: this is more symbolic than anything. chrysler moving up 60 wokkers from its auburn hills headquarters to detroit. auburn hills is 30 minutes outside of detroit and moving sales staff and people who work with local dealerships. an important move to detroit. they have about 17.8% unemployment. 17.8% unemployment. it's huge. almost double the national rate. the move also means more tax revenue for detroit and a sign of solidarity and sort of confidence and chrysler is saying we are here, we're established here. remember, chrysler never had offices in detroit, only manufacturing plants. so the official announcement is actually going on right now and just to mention where the markets opening, slightly lower but that was as to be expected. >> felicia taylor live at the new york stock exchange, thanks so much. other stories we are watching right now in the newsroom. escaped chinese dissident

guangcheng is sheltered at the u.s. embassy in beijing. secretary of state hillary clinton holding talks with chinese officials in beijing this week. people hope this video surveillance will help police find a missing girl. one world trade center the freedom tower will become new york's tallest skyscraper today. workers will push the unfinished freedom tower past the height of the empire state building. still a year left of construction before freedom tower reaches its full height of 1,776 feet. high school students at a national high school journalism conference thought they were going to talk thoughtfully about anti-bullying. instead, many of them walked out in tears after a prominent anti-bullying advocate, dan savage, called parts of the bible b.s.

>> we can learn to ignore the full [ bleep ] in the bible about gay people. funny as someone who is on the receiving end of beatings that are justified by the bible, how [ bleep ] some people react when you push back. >> so those high school students the audience were from christian high schools. so who is dan savage and why he is so important? is an author and gay right activist, he created a website to support gay teens and tell them it gets better. president obama expressed his support in the video. savage it gets better message is still up on the white house website so he still has got a voice in washington which makes this message he gave high school journalism students that much more disturbing. let's talk this over with will cain and lz granderson. welcome to you both. >> good morning. >> good morning, carol. >> lz, start with you.

savage was talking to high school students, not college students, and some people might say maybe he had some valid points but do you think that high school students are old enough to really think about that in the way savage perhaps wanted them to? >> first of all, let me start off by saying that i've been a fan of dan savage's work over the years. i've gotten to know him and consider him to be a friend and i know him to be a very good father himself. but if i was a parent and my son was in that audience, i would be very upset with him. not necessarily because he challenged religion per se or the text of the bible, but just the manner in which he said it. very disrespectful to me the language was totally uncalled for. dan is a very, "in your face" kind of guy, but a high school auditorium as a journalism conference isn't the space where that language should have been used. >> some republican gay groups

are calling for mr. savage to apologize. should he, will? >> yeah, yeah. i think that he probably should. i'll say this. i think lz and i are on the exact same page on this. actually, substantive, i think dan savage had some pretty interesting things to say. i think more often than not, the genesis, the starting point of debate over the acceptability of homosexuality begins with the religious foundation and you ought to have the debate there. lz and i have had various debates over marcus bachman's involvement in reparative therapy and i made the point to lz i think you need to go farther back and go back to the religious debate and homosexuality acceptance at that level. i think substannively, savage had interesting points to make in a debate. he is hostile and lives in a world so many people who have a public forum do that you seem to think the world and those listening to you are kind of your twitter limbings. that everybody wants to hear what you have to say exactly the

way you want to say it and i think what the way he chose to say it was, yeah, it was offensive. it was inappropriate so, yeah, he should apologize. >> savage, i guess, did apologize during the speech and also gave context to like his b.s. line. so listen. >> i apologize if i hurt anyone's feelings, but i have a right to defend myself. and to point out the hypocrisy of people who justify antigay bigotry by pointing to the bible and satisfy we must live to this code. >> explain what he was talking about, lz. >> this is pieces that i've written over the years about the hypocrisy, that, you know, some people when it comes to condemning gay people, but there are many other passages that they don't pay any attention to like eating shell fish or mixing fabrics or not having sex with

your wife while she is menstruating which is one of the things that dan savage talked about. all of those things, in addition to homosexuality, are somewhat talked about in the -- however whenever you have a conservative that condemns homosexuality, they only talk about that issue. they don't talk about anything else. so that is has pypocrisy he is talking about and something i've written about and i think many activists point to when they criticized rick santorum they talk about how come it's just this issue and not everything else written in the old testament of the bible. >> will, it sort of seems like dan savage, although he's clearly an anti-bullying advocate, became a bully himself. >> but he always has been, carol. i think there is an also legitimate conversation debate to be had when dan sachi koto is not the best messenger for his message. lz said he has always been in your face kind of guy but i would say he has gone further than in your face. he licked the door nobodi knobs

previous candidate to get a candidate sick when dan savage was himself sick. he is way behind a journalist and much more like an advocate and beyond an advocate. we shouldn't be surprised but i don't think his role is something wholly accepted and embraced. >> it makes you wonder, lz, why this guy was invited to speak before a group of high school students. >> right. >> well, as i said, i mean, he is a really good father for one. two, he's a very strong advocate for kids. so we shouldn't confuse the work he has done over his life span with this or other incidents in which he has taken it over the top. at the core of his work, if someone is very passionate about protecting people who don't have a voice for themselves and i would hate that campaign to get tarnished what he did at the high school because he really is a very strong advocate, one of the strongest advocates in the country in terms of protecting young people in school.

>> will this become a campaign issue like everything else does? >> for a a little while, like everything else does. it probably will have legs for months and months but, yeah, for a little while. >> just saying and just asking. thank you both so much for being with us this morning. >> thanks. later on, actually, in about 45 minutes, we hope to have the high school journalism teacher who invited mr. savage to speak before these high school journalist. we will hear what he has to say. also, the trial of the man accused of killing three members of singer jennifer hudson's family resumes in chicago. plus, the death of osama bin laden. the daring military raid is being celebrated again. this time in presidential politics. is the obama campaign going too far. don't forget today's talkback question. yes! the question this morning should osama bin laden's death be a

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41 minutes past the hour. with him to "cnn newsroom." the woman the world knows as octomom is speaking out and fighting back. she biz tonight a.j. hammer is here. at last check, octomom was accused of negligence. >> that's right. and she is in a pretty tough spot right now. showbiz tonight nichelle turner had an exclusive interview where octomom is in danger of losing their home right now. watch. >> house is in foreclosure for several months so i was unable to -- how many people can identify with that? stop judging and just listen. many people are losing their homes and i'm not the only one. >> a lot of people would argue she got herself into a situation that not a lot of other people

did by having so many kids. she did take the opportunity during this interview to defend herself against allegations that her children are neglected. she told nichelle her kids are thriving. that's something she told me a few weeks ago as well. when she was asked about the appear avers of the house. holes in the wall and graffiti in spots and said these problems were there when she moved in house and the graffiti is a as a result of her 10-year-old son who was cleaning up the paint while we were there in the house. the a tragic situation for those kids but because so many people dislike her and blame her for putting herself in this situation by having a the octuplet she is having a hard time getting a job where she can earn a decent living and told nichelle she is willing to do anything at this stage to make money. watch that. >> all that matters. >> porn offer? >> it's a well paying job and allow me to get us out of here in a very safe huge home that they deserve. i'm going to do it.

>> so she is not ruling anything out. it's, obviously, a very desperate situation. i know a lot of people have a hard time having any sympathy for her but when you separate all we know about her, it is a mom trying to make a living in a really tough spot with a lot of kids to look after. >> those poor kids! you're right, a.j., these poor kids. a.j., thank you. he will be back next hour with more showbiz headlines. he plays dr. mcdreamy on tv. here how patrick dempsey came to the rescue and saved a teenager's life. also still to come, security for the 2012 olympic games have some people in london in fear this morning because the government says it may put missiles near their rooftop. zain verjee will have the story. horrific accident ending at the bronx zoo kills three generations of the same family. the latest on the police investigation in our next half hour.

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47 minutes past the hour. checking stories we are watching noul in the newsroom. escaped chinese dissident chen imprks uangchis. u.s. troops now helping in the hunt for american war lord joseph kony. the alleged villain in a viral

2012 video. president obama spent 100 special forces to south africa last year to track down the leaders of kony's group the lord's resistance army. he is wanted by the international criminal court for crimes against humanity. the coast guard is suspending its search for a missing sailor after a racing accident left three crew members dead. their boat was taking part in a yacht race from california to next mexico when it actcidentaly collided with a bigger vessel near the coronado islands. in london, people living in an east london apartment complex say they got a notice on saturday warning that surface-to-air missile system might be placed on or near their roof. all for security in preparation for the olympic games. let's head to london now and talk about that zain verjee. wow! >> yes, exactly!

wow, carol. imagine you go home to, i don't know what is it? buckhead, morningside, marietta, and you're going through your pamphlets and pizza delivery and chinesed into over here. over, surface-to-air missile launch pad on your roof. that's exactly what happened to about 700 or so residents in east london where they were told via a little pamphlet that was delivered this is what is going to happen. so many people totally outraged and shocked by it. the thing is that their apartment building, while it has a great view and, you know, a swimming pool and sauna and fabulous things, great buildings have, it also means that it's a great position in case anyone tries to attack during the olympics and the british government can fire surface-to-air missiles. so people are worried about that. think of it kind of like the meat packing district in new york, you know? it's kind of artsy and cool and creative. this is the same kind of area in east london and people paid a

lot for fancy little place there and this is what they got. >> are they going to shoot enemy planes out of the sky? or are they going to shoot like surface-to-air missile in the middle of a london street? >> that's the idea. i mean, if if there is some kind of threat and low flying aircraft over the olympic stadium, they still the olympic stadium, they still need to confirm that they will do it but they have been looking at the best position. so, yeah, the idea is they would fire from that location. there would be a lot of debris as a result all over east london because of that. this kind of thing has been done before like surface to air missile. bejang did it but they didn't pick a cool apartment building it was more of a neutral location. >> whacky. these are the times in which we live, zain verjee. live from london. thank you. the australian billionaire

intends to build a replica of "titanic" complete in every detail. more on this fascinating venture, cnn newsroom will be right back.

we asked you to talk back on one of the big stories. the talk back question this morning should osama bin laden's death be a campaign issue? this from charity, yes because bush had eight years and couldn't get it done. president obama did it less in four. this from andrea, no way. let's see if he can bring something else to the table.

this from louie, you better believe the other side would use to it their advantage. obama talks about the death of bin laden like he pulled the trigger. the only people who should be able to brag about it are those s.e.a.l. team members that put their lives on the line. this from janice, yes it should be. if it was anybody else they would be doing a victory dance on board an aircraft carrier saying mission accomplished. i'll read more of your responses in the next hour of newsroom. we're following a lot of developments in the next hour, let's check in first with thelma gutierrez. >> i'll have the latest on the search for the first grader in tucson, arizona who went missing ten days ago. we'll have more at the top of the hour. >> i'm felicia taylor at the new york stock exchange. more dads are filling that role

as mom heads off to work. more on that in the next hour. >> who can forget osama bin laden was killed one year ago tomorrow. now the obama campaign releasing an ad highlighting that fact and suggesting mitt romney as president would not have approved of the daring raid. that's ahead in the next hour of newsroom. made with only milk... cream... a touch of sugar... and pure natural flavors. coffee-mate natural bliss. from nestle. add your flavor naturally.

how math and science kind of makes the world work. in high school, i had a physics teacher by the name of mr. davies. he made physics more than theoretical, he made it real for me. we built a guitar, we did things with electronics and mother boards. that's where the interest in engineering came from. so now, as an engineer, i have a career that speaks to that passion.

thank you, mr. davies.

crazy things can happen in the playoffs in a that's what makes them exciting. >> the shockers get more shock. we saw crazy last night. the craziest part, the team that brought back the greatest come back the team that's been synonymous with losers. it's the clippers. game one of their first-round series against the memphis grizzlies. the grizzlies had a 27-point lead. the clippers. they outscored memphis 35-14. memphis at one point went nine minutes without a basket. the players on the clippers surprised them self. we'll see if memphis can come back. celtics and hawks.

celtics, now a no-no. he gets tossed and may be suspended for game two as well. rondo says he didn't intentionally make the chest bump. you have to say that. the hawks took game one, 83-74. three years ago "sports illustrated" put 16-year-old bryce harper calling baseball's chosen one. saturday the washington national called him up to the big leagues. you always want to remember that first major league hit. here he is against the dodgers. watch the fan behind him. stands up and yes he showed his derriere while harper is getting his first major league hit. harper end up in the hall of fame. this is how his first major hit is remembered, some guys hairy flabby smile. harper made great plays. made a couple of hits.

and snags it, stealing an extra-base hit. harper has all the tools to be a superstar. we'll see if the nats keep him. he's great and this is how his first major league hit will be remembered forever. i don't know that you can edit it out. >> so wrong. i'm sure he'll have -- i wouldn't but i'm sure he does. thank you, jeff. >> okay. good morning to you i'm carol costello. stories we're watching a baseline activist, daring escape and diplomatic attention. a chinese man who stood up for the rights of the disabled and victims of forced abortion hiding out now. hillary clinton on her way to china. missing in arizona the search for 6-year-old isabel celis who vanished from her bedroom nine days ago. a surveillance video capturing three people outside of her

home. heights of freedom on the eve of osama bin laden' death 1 world trade center marking a milestone today becoming the tallest building in new york. and blasting the bible, dan savich says we should learn to ignore the b.s. in the bible and what it says about gay people. this morning he's not backing down. >> a first, though, a milestone takes shape in the new york city skyline. 1 world trade center inches upward and becomes the tallest building in the city. that's the building that's in the middle of your screen. it was one year ago tomorrow that navy s.e.a.l.s killed osama bin laden, the mastermind behind the attacks and for one brief moment the death of the al qaeda leader seemed to bring americans together, spontaneous crowds

celebrated outside of the white house and both parties embraced the mission as a final measure of justice. but that has changed in the harsh light of presidential politics, chief political correspondent candy crowley has more for you. >> reporter: it was only a matter of time about 365 days before the death of osama bin laden got into the political ground water of 2012. >> he took the harder and the more honorable path and the one that produced, in my opinion, the best result. >> reporter: the former president praising president obama for approving the risky raid in a campaign ad suggesting romney wouldn't have. which path the silent screen asks would romney have taken. it kuts romney's criticism of candidate obama's promise to strike inside pakistan if kneed to go after terrorist. it quotes romney in 2007 questioning whether the pursuit of bin laden was worth moving heaven and earth. where to begin and what can be

best described as situational politics. only four years ago the obama campaign was outraged by an ad from the former president's wife then candidate hillary clinton. she used a picture of bin laden to question candidate obama's credentials. the bam campaign accused her of acting like then president bush trying to invoke bin laden to score political points. four years later the obama re-the election campaign has different rules. >> there's a difference in roles they would play as commander-in-chief. i certainly think that's fair game. >> reporter: playing the part of the agreefd this time, the romney campaign accusing the president of turning a unif iing event on its head. >> he turn it into a political take. most americans will see it as a sign of a desperate campaign. >> reporter: that's mild of president obama's rival john mccain. he called it a chief political

attack and political act of self-congratulation. sunday the president's office had a rare round on political talk. john brenner arrived with high praise for his boss and nothing on the ad. >> first i don't do politics. i'm not a republican, i'm not a democrat. >> reporter: it wasn't like this the night bin laden was killed. or in private when he called the people who most wanted to hear the news. >> the raid happened the first two people president obama called were in this order george walker bush and then bill clinton because he knew at some level both men had tried to actually kill bin laden and been unable to do it. >> reporter: public reaction a year ago may not have been as solemn as the phone call sound but bin laden's death was greeted across party lines as a matter of justice, not politics. candy crowley, cnn, washington. >> also this morning a daring escape and a diplomatic

quandary. china's best dicy dent has managed to slip away from house arrest and apparently hiding out inside the u.s. embassy in beijing and that sets the stage for an extraordinary tug-of-war between the two countries. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton is now on her way to china, just last hour we heard from a former assistant secretary of state who described the delicate dance that will be needed. >> every indication is that the dicy dent, mr. chen does not want to leave china. he'll be seeking some confirmation from the authorities in beijing that he can leave the embassy and livous his life in china without the brutality that he's experienced this past 18 months as you've shown with your reporters going, trying to get to his house. he's got unauthorized extra judicial thugs blocking visitors

and making-life miserable. because this is about chinese behavior towards an individual inside their country, this is very different than the famous case of the chinese dicy dent physicist back during the first bush administration who lived in the u.s. embassy for a year and a half before he was allowed to dome the united states. if mr. chen doesn't want to leave china that makes this harder. >> this is the example of what james was talking about. this is the chinese government officials preventing chen from seeing visitors. this happened back in december. we were the only crew accompanying an actor trying to meet with chen. he was roughed up by chinese security guards. a surveillance video that may offer new clues in finding a missing 6-year-old girl. it shows a group of men and women leaving a bar around 1:30

in the morning a block from the home of isabel celis. she was discovered hours later missing when her father said he found her empty bed and window screen removed. >> if anything, it's one less thing that we have to concentrate efforts on. we've seen these people. we've identified them. we have statement from these folks opinion we're in the process of evaluating that information and determining how valuable that is. if at all to us. >> cnn thelma gutierrez is live in los angeles to tell us more. how are investigators able to i.d. anyone off that tape, it's so blurry. >> well, you're right, carol, that tape is grainy. it appears to have been shot from some kind of overhead parking lot camera. tucson police released that surveillance tape to the media hoping someone who recognize the five people captured on tape

leaving the bar between 1:00 and 1:30 in the morning. isabel's father said he put his daughter to bed around 11:00 p.m. one of the people in the tape did come forward, contacted police and investigators say they now have spoken to three of the five people seen on the tape but they are not revealing any of the details, carol, at this point of what they may have said. >> hopefully they will gain something valuable from them. thelma gutierrez reporting live from los angeles. a celebration turned tragic saturday when a sports bar tent in st. louis collapsed, killing a man. baseball fans were celebrating at a tent behind the bar near bush stadium when a thunderstorm hit. nine others seriously injured. 100 others were treated at the scene for cuts and bruises. up to 150 fans were underneath that tent. three generations of one family killed in a car accident that ended up at the bronx zoo. happened sunday in new york after a van carrying seven people including three children plunged off a guardrail and fell

more than 60 feet into an area of the bronx zoo that's dloesd the public. police say everyone was wearing seat belts. >> week two of the john edwards trial in north carolina. back on the stand this morning the wife of the former presidential candidate's aide. sherry young is expected to talk about her role. >> in the trial of the man accused of murdering three relatives of singer jennifer hudson resumes today. the trial started on a highly emotional pitch with hudson's testimony last week. ted rowland is on the phone from chicago on what we can expect today. >> reporter: more testimony from the prosecution. their case really turned last week on friday with the girlfriend of the defendant william balfour on the stand. it was one of those points in the trial that ended a conviction and you look back and say this was a turning point. this was damning for balfour. she got up on the stand and

testified that balfour admitted to her he killed jennifer hudson's family. the judge will have an emergency hearing on the 911 tape that julia hudson, the 911 call that julia hudson made after discovering her mother dead in her house. the media want as copy of that. the judge will rule on that. the judge doesn't like the media. at one point he threw out a reporter that had a -- >> interesting. ted rowland reporting live from chicago. high school students at a national high school journalism conference thought they were going to talk about bullying. instead many of them walked out in tears after a prominent anti-bullying advocate dan savich called parts of the bible b.s.. >> we can learn to ignore the

[ bleep ] in the bible about gay people. it's funny who someone is on the receiving end of beatings that are justified by the bible, how [ bleep ] people react when you push back. >> he's the founder an ain't bullying campaign that features president obama. >> if you ever feel like because of bullying, because of what people are saying that you're getting down on yourself you got to make sure to reach out to people you trust whether it's your parents, teachers, folks that you know care about you just the way you are, you got reach out to them. don't feel like you're in this by yourself. the other thing you need to know is things will get better. >> this morning those high school students and gay conservatives want an apology from savich. not first time he's made waves. we'll talk to a teacher who

brought his students to that speech. i'll ask him about his students reaction. >> a witness to the assassination of robert f. kennedy comes forward dispute the fbi report she says there was a second shooter. you will hear her account. that comes your way in ten minutes. he saves lives every week on tv. hear how dr. mctreatmenty, patrick dempsey came to the rescue in a real life drama. bg the calcium they take because they don't take it with food. switch to citracal maximum plus d. it's the only calcium supplement that can be taken with or without food. that's why my doctor recommends citracal maximum. it's all about absorption. but proven technologies allow natural gas producers to supply affordable, cleaner energy, while protecting our environment. across america, these technologies protect air - by monitoring air quality and reducing emissions...

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. just about 15 minutes past the hour. check being our top stories. 1 world trade center will become new york city's tallest sky trap -- skyscraper. the full height will be 1776 feet tall. a blind chinese dicy dent might have esdipd the u.s. embassy in beijing. the chinese government imprisoned him for violating civil rights abuses. he spent four years in prison and last year and a half under house arrest. neither country talking about the case. u.s. troops are now helping in the hunt for african war lord kony. president obama sent about 100 special force to africa to track down the leaders of kony's group. kony is wanted by the international criminal court for crimes against humanity. we've been talking about that controversial speech by the

founder of the it gets better campaign that left students crying and walking out of a convention. a teacher who brought his students to hear a talk about anti-bullying says that it felt like an attack on christians. >> we can learn to ignore the [ bleep ] in the bible about gay people. it's funny as someone who is on the receiving end of beatings that are justified by the bible how [ bleep ] some people react when they push back. >> that's dan savich, a prominent anti-bully judging campaigner. rick tuttle is the man you're seeing now. he's a teacher and journalism advisor at sutter union high school. his students were at that speech and walked out. set the scene for us first, mr. tuttle. >> well we're at the bi-annual

convention. there's thousands of students there ready to hear this keynote speaker. what we expected to be an anti-bullying message, talking about student publications can prevent bullying on campus instead more profanity came out and vulgarity, it became clear this was not the anti-bullying message we expected. >> how old were the kids in the audience? >> high school, mostly high school-age students. from schools all over the united states. mostly the western united states. >> dan savich, the man who gave this speech the anti-bullying speech he hasman. o. of giving speeches like this. some people said oh, you should have expected it. >> i had no reservations. as a teacher my main goal is to protect my kids. when i heard there's a speech about anti-bullying and there might be some benefits from that

i said i'm willing to take a chance. i'm a form joirnlist. i'm big on the free marketplace of idea. i was very open to hearing what he had to say. it took a real dark hostile turn as i saw and some other students felt. he became very hostile towards christianity to the point where you saw many students walked now clueding my students. >> i'm sure you've talked to your students about this. what did they take away from this speech? >> well, i think they realized that this -- they came in like me with expectations it may be something they might not agree on may have a different message but they literally came away feeling they were attacked. as you saw in the clip they felt it was a pointed direct attack at one particular group of students. to me it's amazing we go to an anti-bullying speech and one particular group that's picked on specifically with harsh, pretty profane language. >> did you understand mr. savich's point at all?

>> absolutely. i have an obligation to protect gay students on my campus. students who have different religions. disability reasons. i certainly agree. he talk a lot about gay suicide of students who are gay and commit suicide because of bullying. i certainly understand that and i certainly agree with his right to say that, his project. but in this particular environment this speech was completely inappropriate in terms of the language, the vulgarity. he talked at length how good his boyfriend looked in a speedo. encouraged the kids to use birth control. stuff that was way over the heads of the age group he was talking to. >> at what point during the speech did the students walk out and i guess i should ask you how many decided to leave? >> well, half of my students did. i think the other half would have. again, in the hall of thousands

of students when you're among your peers many were cheering on mr. savich and his attack on the bible. very daunting with the idea of guesting up and walking out. three of my students asked to leave and i said absolutely. about another 100 or so left as well. i think in the video you can see students walking out. >> so, all in all, what will you be teaching your students today in class about this speech? >> well, you know, we've had quite a few discussions. certainly the students that went with me on to the convention, it was a learning experience. i mean, again, i'm all for exchanging ideas but i didn't want to subject my students to this kind of verbal abuse either. we took it in stride, i guess. nevertheless it was disappointing. >> mr. tuttle, thank you for being with us this morning. we appreciate it. >> you bet. >> coming up on news room the house speaker tells us why mitt romney's wealth should not be an

issue in the campaign because you don't want to vote for a lowers. plus a billionaire intends to build a replica of the "titanic" completed in every detail but he wants to do something different this time that will prevent another disaster. cnn newsroom will be right back. çñv,>wvs[rk÷=$fí]çffs8rkaglcçñ on my journey across america, i found new ways to tell people about saving money. this is bobby. say hello bobby. hello bobby. do you know you could save hundreds on car insurance over the phone, online or at your local geico office? tell us bobby, what would you do with all those savings?

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nearly 44 years after the assassination of robert f. kennedy a witness comes forward with her version of what happened. that witness is nina rhodes hughes. she said there was a second shooter to her right in addition to sirhan sirhan convicted of the crime. rhodes-hughes spoke on cnn's

starting point. she accused the fbi of changing her original account. >> there were more than eight shots and interesting that you read whatever the fbi issued, everybody said eight shots. not. i wish there were some recordings of me that night. i did give an interview to someone with a my dproen. there were 12, maybe 14 and i know it was because i heard the rhythm in my head. i know with the first two or three shots i wasn't aware. i thought they were flash bulbs. what has to couldn't there was another shooter to my right and robert kennedy was also to my right where sirhan sirhan was almost straight ahead staending on some sort of steel raised platform and that there were two shooters that must come out and who they were. must come out who the other shooter is because there's definitely was another shooter. >> a federal court is set to

rule on a request by sirhan sirhan that he be released, tried or grant ad new hearing on new evidence including the evidence rhodes-hughes just told you about. now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. should l bin laden's death be a campaign issue? tomorrow marks one year since osama bin laden was shot dead by u.s. navy s.e.a.l.s in his hideout in pakistan. all of us democrats, republicans joined together in relief and celebration. but that unity was short-lived. it's rethe election time and president obama is playing the osama bin laden card. here's his new campaign ad. >> he took the harder and the more honorable path. and the one that produced, in my opinion, the best result. >> the ad suggests mitt romney would not have given order to

kill bin laden. it quotes romney's criticism of candidate obama's promise to strike inside pakistan to get bin laden. republicans were quick to pounce. senator john mccain called it pathetic as did the romney campaign. >> took something that was a unifying event for all americans that governor romney congratulated him and the military and intelligence analyst and our government for completing the mission in terms of killing osama bin laden and he's managed to turn it into a divisive, partisan, political attack. >> if this all sounds familiar you're right. in 2010 be candidate obama complained when hillary clinton used a picture of bin laden to question obama's credentials. this time obama says it's different. when it comes to national security it's fair game. is it? the talk back question for you this morning should osama bin laden's death be a campaign issue?

facebook.com/carolcnn. i'll read your comments later this hour. it looks like president obama does have a new campaign motto, it's short, simple and going straight through the political buzz saw after the break.

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30 minutes past the hour. checking our top stories 1 world trade center will become new york city's tallest skyscraper. workers will push the freedom tower past the height of the empire state building. escaped chinese dissident is reportedly being shell terrified at the u.s. embassy in beijing. if true it sets up a diplomatic

dance with secretary of state hillary clinton holding talks with chinese officials in beijing this week. it is the start of week two in the john edwards trial in north carolina. back on the stand this morning the wife of the former presidential candidate's aide, sherry young is expected to talk about her role in the cover-up of edwards' affair. political buzz is your rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. three questions 30 seconds on the clock. playing with us today cnn contributors. first question, the obama campaign has released an ad highlighting osama bin laden's death and suggesting mitt romney as president would not have approved of the daring raid. romney's senior campaign advisor is not happy.

>> took something that was a unifying event for all americans, an event that governor romney congratulated him and the military and the intelligence analysts and our government for completing the mission in terms of killing osama bin laden and he's managed to turn it into a divisive, partisan, political attack. >> so, has the president politicized bin laden's death? dana? >> i would have to say yes he just recently released an ad where they included an out of context quote from mitt romney that tried to show him as being weak on jihad when in fact full quote shows the exact opposite and they made at it political ad. so that is absolutely politicizing it. not only that we learned later it was all in the craven's hands. it was set up if he had to take the blame he necessarily wouldn't have to but he could take the victory for it. he opened himself up to with it this ad. >> maria? >> i'm going to use a word that

comes from the gop's own newt gingrich which is, spare me the pious baloney. who out there really believes if this operation had gone sour if we had lost lives and not gotten osama bin laden that it wouldn't be the number one reason that republicans would use to get president obama out of office. by the way, if mitt romney and all the other republicans who have been trying to call this president weak on foreign policy. so both of those things put together absolutely this is something that should be talked about in the campaign. it was an important event in foreign policy, it was a huge accomplishment. >> obama criticized hilary for it back in 2008. >> that's true. >> absolutely different. >> will? >> i actually think both of them are right. here's the deal. president obama deserves a ton of credit for making the call to kill osama bin laden. i think he should be able to run on his record. he should be able to brag about it this happened under his watch

he made the call. where he went too far. by saying that mitt romney wouldn't, he took that quote from one debate where mitt romney said i won't move heaven and earth and week later said i would, said i made the call and mitt romney would not. that's untruthful. >> cnn candy crowley asked john boehner if mitt romney's wealth could be a liability in the race. listen to what he said. >> american people don't want to vote for a loser. they don't want to vote for somebody who hasn't been successful. mitt romney has an opportunity to show the american people they too can be succeed. >> does this mean you have to be a multimillionaire to be a winner? maria? >> it certainly southern like it to me, carol. when speaker boehner said that i think he really stepped up the level of what you need in requirements and not make it about leadership or your record

or what you say or what you do but make it on what's in your bank account. it's ridiculous. mitt romney is not the only one out of touch, most republicans are out of touch and they not only prove it in what they say but prove it in their policies where all they want to do is protect exactly those millionaires that boehner is talking about. >> will? >> right. right. exactly. that's exactly what he was saying. he's saying you're only a winner if you're a multimillionaire. >> it sound like it. thank you. >> look. what he did is provide an appropriate response for all this nonsense about how mitt romney's wealth. how you accumulate it without it being a big factor. auth sign of success. mitt romney's accumulation of wealth, everything about his history shows he was successful. but i don't think it means exclusively. i don't think you're only a winner if you're a multimillionaire. >> dana? >> i would have to agree with

will a little on that and also say i don't think we're hearing two different things. i didn't hear anyone in fact put wealth or class warfare into the discussion except for the left. acmillionaire isn't the only indicator of being successful. you can be successful in many years. you want someone who is motivated and can be successful. >> okay. time for your buzzer beater. looks like president obama has a new campaign motto. it's short and even easier to remember than yes we can. it looks like the motto for 2012 is forward. how minimalist. what would your one word campaign motto be for president obama. will? >> minimalist. it's copyright infringement. he stole it from msnbc. it's so blatant and obvious.

not going to lean. just go forward. if i had to pick one word directional theme and say left. >> maria? >> i actually like forward. i think it exactly explains where we're going. i thought about strength. i thought about cool. i thought about bad ass. but reality is the way that describes how he's been leading, the policies he's put in place where you have mitt romney talking about how woe have done it faster. come on live in reality mitt romney. same thing with foreign policy. reality describes it well. >> dana. >> you know, when i vote for president the first word that pops into my mind i don't know about you all is cool. i want somebody cool. let's forget where they stand on economy and foreign policy. this was difficult for me because i would only get one word. my first thought was nope. second one was backwards. my third maybe if you want to

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he plays fast thinking dr. mcdreamy on tv and patrick dempsey used some of those skills in a real life emergency. a.j. hammer is here with the drama. what happened? >> i love this story. patrick dempsey played a real life hero last week after a car accident. he use ad crowbar and fire

extinger to safe a 17-year-old boy. the boy only suffered a concussion and eye injury. dempsey wasn't done yet. you'll love this. he reportedly called the boy's mother to reassure her everything was okay. she thought that he was just a paramedic or something until he identified himself. the first thing she thought of was mcdreamy. not the way he identified himself. he didn't say ma'am i'm not a doctor but i play one on tv. >> on to not such a nice story. mel gibson is talking about his temper. what so saying? >> yeah. i don't know how this will go for him. mel is trying to repair his image yet again. for the first time he's speaking out publicly with the audiotape where he loses his cool in such an uncool way at screen writer

joe esterhouse. he joked maybe you don't know about this about me i have a little bit of temper. if you ask me, carol, mel is trying revive a career that doesn't seem to be surviving that temper he has and i think he may have well surpassed the three strikes and you're out rule by now. >> watched his previous movies and all i can think about is him yelling at people. it's just in my head. >> yeah. >> that's an actor's worse nightmare and i have exactly the same feeling and so many people do as well. >> a.j. hammer, thank you. just ahead, baseball fans celebrating their team's win end up in the wrong place at the wrong time. under a tent when a killer storm hits. plus "titanic" ii is coming. not a sequel to the movie but a sequel to the actual ship. cnn newsroom will be right back. i love cash back.

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. 46 minutes past the hour. checking our top stories in just a few hours 1 world trade center will become new york city's tallest skyscraper. workers will push the freedom tower past the height of the empire state building still a year left of construction before freedom tower reaches the full height of 1776 feet. investigators are looking this morning into what cause ad sports bar tent in st. louis to collapse killing a man. baseball fans were celebrating at a tent behind the bar near

bush stadium when a thunderstorm hit. five others were seriously injured. 100 others treated at the scene for cuts and bruises. up to 150 fans were underneath that tent. more video of that nasty round of storms. hail the size of -- look at that hail. him a pounded a city outside of st. louis. kansas got heavy wind and rain on sunday. another round of severe weather could hit the region tonight. after a historic 100 year anniversary memorial cruise the "titanic" is making more headlines this morning. now an australian billionaire intends to build an exact replica of the ship, complete in every detail but with a few bells and whistles that aims to keep it afloat. zain verjee is in london with more. who would want to go on a cruise on this thing. that would be frequenty. >> reporter: that's the question. are you superstitious or not.

he wants to create an exact replica of "titanic". 840 rooms. nine decks. exactly what you saw in the movie. so, a lot of people are saying, carol if i gave you two tickets to take the "titanic" would you take sophisticate >> i'm not sure i would. >> i'm not sure i would either just in case what he's saying is that there's no way, you know, it's going to sink -- >> that's what they said the last time. >> right. exactly. that's part of the rob if you're superstitious you walk right into that. the difference is, for state-of-the-art 21st century technology. he said it will sink if you put a hole in it but it will be designed site won't sink. if you're superstitious you never know what could happen. thank you very much for that. this thing will be made in china. it's not going to happen until 2016 when it will make the

maiden voyage from london, from england to new york. a lot of skeptics are saying, you are just tempting fate. it's up to a lot of people. people are interested. this was number one on twitter for the last few hours. so people are still into this. >> so the replica of the "titanic" will be made in china. doesn't make me feel any better. >> made in china. we'll feel much better about that now. we don't know how much it will cost, those because he's not revealing the cost of the whole thing. a little extra cash. why not build "titanic" ii. >> just ahead move over moms, stay at home dads are becoming more of the norm. we'll tell you what's behind this new friend. cnn newsroom back in a couple of minutes. ♪ there's a place i dream about ♪ ♪ where the sun never goes out ♪

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with more choices and fewer calories, how did the nba become the hottest league on the planet?

by building on the cisco intelligent network they're able to serve up live video, and instant replays, creating fans from berlin to beijing. what can we help you build? nice shot kid. the nba around the world built by the only company that could. cisco. students in new york's stuyvesant high school went on youtube to ask jeremy lin to speak at his high school graduation. he couldn't make it but created a video. >> as you go on from high school i want to encourage you guys to have a lot of fun, you enjoy what you're doing and pursue your passions. most important thing for me looking back isn't that i got to the nba it's that i enjoyed the path to the nba, that i had fun

playing basketball and that was something i loved and still love doing. >> i like the music, didn't you even put music interest. taking a page out of his own story the young knicks guard said never let anyone tell you what can't do. lin as you probably know failed to make it with two nba teams before having huge success with the knicks. a big shift in the labor force. the old idea of mom staying at home to raise the kids, i don't think it's fading away but it's a little bit fading away. dad now increasingly wants to fill that role. felicia taylor is at the new york stock exchange. really? >> reporter: up sound so disbelieving. >> i'm skeptical. >> reporter: terribly skeptical but the numbers do prove that there are a growing number much dads who are staying at home to raise the kids. it's because, you know, things have shifted in the economy. among those households where both parents are working 32% of

dads say they do take care of kids at least one day a week. i know that makes you feel better. it's up from 26%. one day. it's better than nothing. >> true. up from 26% in 2002. this comes from a census bureau study that looks at kids under 5 years of age. one father said he started a dads group and it has 500 members. so there are men out there that are doing it. >> they made a movie about it. i saw the previews when i was seeing the "hunger games". i'm thinking, oh, is this really real life? apparently it is. dads are very important. >> they are important. >> as far as being stay at home dads, the numbers of fathers choosing to do that not high still, right? >> right. i'm not suggesting that there are a lot of men out there

choosing to be stay at home dads. a lot of it is because of the economy. we've gone through a very difficult economic times. because of the recession men suffered bigger cuts in male dominated fields like construction and manufacturing. so it's not necessarily a choice for them to stay at home and wages are somewhat of at a standstill. nedia household income from 2000 to 2010 fell 7%. child care costs during that same period rose 37%. >> wow. >> it's a huge disparity. that's because food and gas prices along with medical costs have all risen in the past decade. so in some cases it just doesn't make financial stones go back to work and have to pay for somebody to stay at home when the father can do it and especially moms out there are making a good living these days. >> all true. felicia taylor, thank you. >> we asked you to talk back on one of the big issues.

the question this morning should obama bin laden's death be a campaign issue. i'll read your responses. you're watching newsroom. if you made a list of countries from around the world... ...with the best math scores. ...the united states would be on that list. in 25th place. let's raise academic standards across the nation. let's get back to the head of the class. let's solve this.

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okay. you're looking at live pictures from new hampshire. these people are waiting on a pair, waiting for the presumptive republican nominee mitt romney to begin speaking. he's in new hampshire. soon to be joined by a freshman senator who is getting quite a bit of buzz as a possible running mate.

over the past couple of months mitt romney has been appearing with possible running mates. you know kind of like marco rubio. today it's kelly iotes turn. when romney begins speaking we'll go to that event live. we asked to you talk back on one of the big questions of the day. should osama bin laden's death be a campaign issue. this is from ron. terrorism was a campaign issue for the republicans for 11 years now. so osama bin laden's death is a valid campaign issue. this from christian, no, bin laden's death is in the past. issues in the campaign should be problems that we as americans have and are struggling with today. this from gordon, if he was still alive i'm pretty sure it would be a huge issue with the republicans. and this from aaron, it may distract from the real issues of the well being of the country but it's a grand accomplishment. mention it but don't go overboard. please continue the conversation.