guessing. look, the warm weather will be here soon enough, but at least one guy in illinois has proven that even in the spring, snow can totally rock on the "ridiculist." that does it for us. ridiculist. that's it for us. "early start" begins now. new this morning, david petraeus breaking his silence. the former cia chief's first public words since the sex scandal cost him his job. history in the making at the highest court in the land. justices now just hours away from hearing a case that could redefine marriage in america. and also new this morning, shaken and scared. the first moments of a deadly earthquake caught on camera. dramatic video this morning. take a look at this. a camera captures a bus driver's close brush with death. welcome to "early start." i'm christine romans. john berman is hosting later this morning. >> and i'm zoraida sambolin.

let's get started. first an apology for former cia director david petraeus. the five-star general making a return to public life after retiring in disgrace over an affair with paula broadwell. casey, petraeus has been laying really low since november. what is the end game behind last night's public appearance and very public apology? >> clearly, zoraida, petraeus is attempting to rehabilitate his public image. retired general david petraeus picked a receptive audience to launch his comeback from the sex scandal that cost him his job with the cia and his reputation with the military. >> so please allow me to begin my remarks this evening by reiterating how deeply i regret and apologize for the circumstances that led to my resignation from the cia and caused such pain for my family, friends, and supporters.

>> reporter: supporters once were abundant. petraeus was a four-star general who commanded american forces during the surge in iraq. he also wrote the field manual for how u.s. troops fight insurgents. >> i join you keenly aware that i am regarded in a different light now than i was a year ago. i'm also keenly aware that the reason for my recent journey was my own doing. >> reporter: his undoing was an affair with paula broadwell, the woman who co-authored his biography. both were married. it came as an investigation into an unrelated matter uncovered his affair with broadwell. he resigned from the cia three days after president obama was reelected and ten days before he testified about the attack on the u.s. embassy in benghazi. now petraeus has reentered the public stage and is reported to be talking to employers. >> general petraeus is a gifted and talented guy. he had a great career.

he can have a great career going forward. he's got to navigate through this the right way. he's starting in the right direction. >> reporter: i know i can never fully asage the pain inflicted on those closest to me and on a number of others. i can, however, move forward and as best as possible make amends to those i have hurt. >> chief among them, his wife holly, who did not attend petraeus' speech. the event was sponsored by usc, which has a longstanding tradition of close ties to the military and is comfortably located an entire continent away from the pentagon. i should point out reporters were kept far away from general petraeus and were not allowed to ask him any questions. >> casey, thank you. coming up, cnn military analyst general spider marks will talk about petraeus' future plans. game changer for gay rights. in a few hours, a historic legal

battle shifts focus. from prop 8, california's same-sex marriage, to doma. doma denies couples rights by defining marriage as between a man and a woman. it's dark this morning. look behind you. you can't see anything behind you, shannon. what happened in that court yesterday. how did the justices respond to prop 8 arguments? >> reporter: essentially with pointed questions and no clear clues of how this court might decide. for anybody reading the tea leaves, we're going to have to read a little bit further. the justices seemed conflicted. a lot of questions over that california same-sex marriage ban. they asked a lot of questions of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, pointed them, pressed them on the different issues, the different merits of the case. let's play a little bit of a back and forth between different justices -- not between the

justices, but from one justice to another. let's start with samuel alito. he was addressing this whole notion of redefining marriage. >> you want us to step in and render a decision based on an assessment of the effects of this institution which is newer than cell phones or the internet? we are not -- we do not have the ability to see the future. >> reporter: now, from kind of an alternate line of thinking, anthony kennedy, justice kennedy, he had this to say in terms of the history of traditional versus same-sex marriage. >> we have five years of information to weigh against 2,000 years of history or more. on the other hand, there is an immediate legal injury or legal -- what could be a legal injury, and that's the voice of these children. there's some 40,000 children in california, according to the red brief, that live with same-sex

paren parents, and they want their parents to have full recognition and full status. the voice of those children is important in this case, don't you think? >> reporter: now, obviously, christine, many people are paying very close attention to justice kennedy because he could be a pivotal swing vote when they decide this case. >> all right. shannon travis, very, very early for us this morning in front of the supreme court. thanks, shannon. in the 7:00 hour, "starting point" senior legal analyst jeffrey toobin breaks down yesterday's arguments and looks ahead to what we can expect today. this morning north korea says it has cut off an important military hot line to the south. the hot line is key because it allows south koreans to cross the border to work at a jointly run complex in the north. tensions are already high on the korean peninsula, and this shows yet another breakdown of what's left of the inner korean

cooperation. and jolting taiwan after a powerful 6.1 magnitude earthquake shook the island. this is earlier this morning. this is what it looked and felt like from inside the television station. taiwan is said to be mostly unscathed. no reports of any major damage there. "the wall street journal" reporting at least eight people are injured, most of them by fallen objects. and the end to a standoff with a gunman in washington state. it began tuesday afternoon when the suspect began shooting at home in the five points neighborhood near tacoma. 60-year-old mike mcphee surrendered after allegedly strolling through his neighborhood firing randomly. police say he pointed a gun at people but didn't shoot them. no one was injured. and north dakota enacting one of the nation's toughest anti-abortion law. the governor signed it yesterday, admitting it's a direct challenge to roe versus wade. the 1973 landmark decision

legalizing abortion. he asked the legislature to set aside money for expected legal battles. it bans most abortions about six weeks after conception, about the time experts say a fetal heartbeat can be detected. a navy s.e.a.l. who was part of the team that killed osama bin laden is disputing another account of that raid that appeared recently in "esquire" magazine. the s.e.a.l. known in "esquire" at the shooter claims to have fired three shots after a point man intercepted two women in the hallway. now another member of s.e.a.l. team 6 tells cnn's peter bergen that a completely different s.e.a.l. team member fired the fatal shot. >> the account in "esquire" was inaccurate. it's not the shooter described in that article who killed bin laden. it was, in fact, the point man that fired the shot at bin laden and hit him in the head. >> "esquire" magazine sent a

statement to cnn saying the story is well sourced. cnn stands by its reporting. a new director of the secret service. julia pearson is the first female to ever head up that agency. pearson inherits a $1 billion budget, 7,000 employees, and a department with scandal after agents allegedly hired prostitutes in colombia during a visit by the president last year. the dow finishing up 111 points. a record close, 14559. all eyes on the s&p 500. the s&p closing yesterday at 1,563, less than two points from its all time high. it's within shouting distance today. market futures pointing heighter for all three major indexes. we could see records set this afternoon. new this morning, a bus driver in china is being called a hero for somehow stopping his bus after a light pole came smashing through his windshield.

take a look at this incredible surveillance video. it will make you want to duck. that is exactly what the driver did with only a split second to spare. he suffered a ruptured spleen but managed to bring the bus to a stop, unbuckle his seat belt and escape. there were 60 people on board. despite his injuries, the driver helped each and every one of them off the bus. no one else was hurt. >> that is remarkable video. i can't believe you quickly he moved to get out of the way. amanda knox finds her future hanging in the balance again. italy wants her extradited to be tried again for murder. could that really happen? and justin bieber's alleged face-off with the guy next door. s when it's more than a bad dream, be ready. for the times you need to double-check the temperature on the thermometer, be ready. for high fever, nothing works faster or lasts longer. be ready with children's motrin.

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be tried for murder yet again. the death of her clenl roommate and her conviction was overturned by an appeals court in 2011. yesterday the supreme court ruled that knox should be tried again. jill dougherty is at the state department. good morning to you, jill. this is a big looming question. what are the chance that's amanda knox will be extradited? >> reporter: if you ask experts, really there's no total agreement on what will happen because, after all, it hinges really on an agreement between the united states and italy, and there's a legal side, and then there's the political side. amanda knox has been back in seattle for a year and a half. >> give them some time. give them some time. >> reporter: trying to live a normal life. so does tuesday's decision mean she has to return to italy? >> the question of whether she'd have to go back to italy for a trial will come down to how the

extradition treaty between the united states and italy is construed. >> reporter: former federal prosecutor david loughman says, if amanda knox had been convicted and acquitted in the united states, she'd be protected by double jeopardy, which prevents a defendant from being tried for the same crime twice, but it happened in italy, which has a more flexible legal system. so italy could, he says, ask the u.s. to extradite her. >> that doesn't mean the united states is necessarily going to extradite her. there will likely ensue a fevered dialogue between justice ministry officials in italy and department of state lawyers, maybe department of justice lawyers, possibly even to head off a formal extradition request. >> reporter: in other words, a diplomatic end action ultimately a political solution. but amanda knox's attorney is hoping any new trial would end up with the same verdict,

acquittal. >> there's no reason to believe that any further review will result any differently. keep in mind, there was no physical evidence against her, and anything that was reviewed was considered unreliable, inaccurate, insubstantial. >> reporter: now, italian courts have convicted americans in absentia. that means they weren't in the courtroom in italy. but the most recent case, in fact, is cia agents who kidnapped a terror suspect. they're free. they're in the united states, but if they return to europe, they do risk arrest. zoraida? >> jill dougherty live for us. thank you. 15 minutes after the hour. let's get you up to date with what's new. david petraeus back in the public eye, apologizing for the extramarital affair that ended his career in the cia. the retired four-star general told an audience in los angeles last night he regrets the pain he caused his family, friends,

and supporters. his wife holly petraeus was not in attendance. >> he actually opened with that and closed with that statement as well. the historic legal battle between tradition and equality shifts focus from proposition 8 to the defense of marriage act, or doma, as it's known. in a few hours, the supreme court will hear arguments for and against doma's appeal. it denies same sex couples access to benefits as it defines marriage as between a man and a woman. a california man is accused of trying to smuggle a cell phone into a convicted murder. craig hammond was arrested on sunday. he tried to bring a wrist cell phone into the prison where charles manson is serving a life sentence for a series of murders in 1969. hammond has been released on bail. police in canada are looking for three suspected scammers who are trying to sell fake gold necklaces they say belonged to osama bin laden. they claim the jewelry was smuggled into the country from iraq. a 50-year-old man has already

fallen victim to the group, paying $760 for three gold necklaces and four gold rings that turned out to be worthless. a neighbor of teen heart throb justin bieber accused the singer of, quote, battery and threats. los angeles officials investigating a confrontation outside bieber's home in calabasas, california. a member of the security team said bieber entered the property. words were exchanged, but there was no physical contact. officials are deciding whether charges should be filed. it's a draw. last night's world cup qualifier between the u.s. and mexico ending in a 0-0 tie. this is a huge disappointment for mexico. they traditionally dominate the u.s. team. the mexican team had many more opportunities to score, taking ten shots, compared to just one for the u.s. team. the world cup will be held next year in brazil. one clear winner, wall street, another record. coming up, we're can traing the

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york. minding your business today. just two points, that is all the s&p 500 needs to set a new record. >> couple of layups, a few free throws. stock futures are slightly higher following solid gains yesterday. positive gains in the u.s. economy helping to calm fears about europe. i want to be clear, there are still fears about europe. but when it comes to your personal economy, i'd like to say there are three legs to the stool that make up your wealth, your money. three legs, that's what makes it solid. your job, your home, and your investments. right now 2 of those 3 are looking pretty good. take a look at the s&p 500 over the past six years. this goes back to the recession when the economy was booming. the s&p 500 last hit its record in 2007. then you see the big drop as the economy tanks. now it's all the way back. again, two points away from record highs. next, housing. the housing recovery is real. prices in 20 major metro areas jumped in january. that's the most recent data from s&p case shiller. i knew you'd like that zoraida.

biggest gains, phoenix, las vegas, detroit, atlanta. >> where some of the greatest falls were, right? >> that's absolutely right. those places were hit very close. foreclosure crisis in some places. now they're posting double digit increases in home values compared to last year. new home sales were down slightly. we're going to get a report on pending home sales later this morning. really critical to see how the housing recovery -- how the bounce back is going to hold. labor market still struggling. 20 million americans unemployed. the stock market rally could end in the next couple of weeks. no one knows for sure. the past three years, the stock market hit peaks in april and then dropped 10% to nearly 20%. those losses weren't recouped for more than five months. the saying on wall street, sell in may and go away. market appears to be in a similar position right now. that's at least what the bears are saying. 24 minutes past the hour. the rescuer becomes the rescued. after a dramatic highway crash,

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new this morning, david petraeus in his own words for the first time. the former cia boss talks publicly about the sex scandal that brought him down.

mystery on the high seas. the search for clues after a woman turns up dead on a cruise ship. the supreme showdown. in just a few hours, justices set to hear arguments that could lead to a landmark ruling on same-sex marriage in america. welcome back to at "early start." i'm zoraida sambolin. >> and i'm christine romans. let's get you started. david petraeus back in the public spotlight and apologizing for all the pain he caused. the disgraced former director of the cia apologizing for the affair that forced him to step down, making that apology in a speech last night at the university of southern california, saying he hoped to move forward, after, "slipping my moorings." >> please allow me to begin my remarks this evening by reiterating how deeply i regret and apologize for the circumstances that led to my resignation from the cia and caused such pain for my family, friends, and supporters. >> the retired general has

reportedly hired an agent and is shopping a book proposal. in a few hours, the supreme court takes on doma, the defense of marriage act, hearing arguments for and against its repeal. doma denies same-sex couples access to federal benefits under a definition of marriage between a man and a woman, but a new cnn/orc poll shows a majority of americans, 56%, believe the federal government should recognize same-sex marriages from states where it is legal. shannon travis is outside the supreme court for us this morning. shannon, tell us a little bit about what happened yesterday in the courtroom and how the justices are leaning on this issue. >> reporter: there were substantive arguments obviously for and against same-sex marriage, zoraida, but if he were listening for clues to how they might decide, keep listening. day two we might get those. the justices seemed conflicted. you saw the trip cal flood of conservatives asking more

conservative questions and liberals sticking with that point of view. just to give you an example, take a listen to justice scalia, one of the more reliable conservatives, ask a pointed question about this issue of when did same-sex marriage become actually constitutional? >> the california supreme court decides what the law is. that's what we decide, right? we don't prescribe law for the future. we decide what the law is. i'm curious, when did it become unconstitutional to exclude homosexual couples from marriage? >> reporter: obviously, that was a rhetorical question to the lawyer arguing for same-sex marriage. on the other side, there's this issue of whether or not, if you allow same-sex marriage, whether it will prevent or harm procreation, man and woman being able to have children. take a listen to elena kagan,

justice kagan, make a pointed question about that point. >> because we think that the focus of marriage really should be on procreation, we're not going to give marriage licenses anymore to any couple where both people are over the age of 55, would that be constitutional? >> no, your honor, it would not be constitutional. >> reporter: so, zoraida, as we've said, we've heard these different points of view, these different lines of questions, which makes it really hard to guess exactly where the court will go. >> really interesting to read it as well and listen to it, and a little bit of humor happened as well yesterday in the court. so today the court looks at doma. at issue here is whether house republicans have standing or legal authority to make the case. how might this affect any doma ruling? >> reporter: let's explain what this actually means. the obama administration is not defending doma. they basically abandoned it. so the house republicans picked up the baton. so the supreme court will have to decide whether the house

republicans even have the legal authority to even decide this. so that's one of the questions. that could actually impact whether this case goes forward, the doma case goes forward or is actually thrown out. zoraida? >> it's really nice to have you, shannon, in the morning. we appreciate it. >> reporter: i have tears coming out it's so cold. >> sorry about that. we can't control the weather for you though we'd like to. >> reporter: no worries. >> thank you. a developing story this morning. the fbi investigating what it calls the suspicious death of a 64-year-old passenger on board a royal caribbean cruise ship. the virginia woman was found dead by her husband in the cabin on sunday. the ship, enchantment of the seas, returned to baltimore on sunday following a seven-day cruise to florida and the bahamas. no word on why the investigators called the death suspicious. new developments in the murder of a 13-month-old georgia boy. and the mother and aunt of one of the children in the case, have been charged.

the women have been released on bond. two teenage boys are accused of shooting the baby to death last week. the child's mother saying they tried to rob her before firing at her baby and shooting her in the leg. a court appearance for the man accused of kidnapping and murdering etan patz. the boy was murdered in 1979. it was only last month when pedro hernandez was arrested and charged. and a man in dayton, ohio, in serious condition after trying to rescue a driver on an overturned vehicle on an icy road. look what happens when another car comes crashing into them. >> get to the side! >> oh, my goodness. captain barry kron was thrown 25 feet through the air, but fellow firefighters were able to get him to safety and get him to an area hospital as well. we're told the 20-year veteran

firefighter's injuries are not life-threatening. can you believe that? captain kron was trying to help one of the drivers in the pileup that took hours to clear. in the same florida neighborhood where one wan was swallowed by a sinkhole in his own bedroom, two other people were evacuated yesterday after they found cracks in the walls. florida officials came to check the home. still not clear if the damage is caused by a sinkhole under the house. firefighters in california say a very alert dog is a hero for leading his master to a hiker who was trapped in some rocks on a mountain for several days. the victim had no food or water. listen to ramon llamas, mole's owner, explain what happened yesterday. >> he pulled me over, pulled me and crying. i said, what's going on, boy? it was dark, still dark.

i see these strange eyes. i thought it was an animal. i talk to the person, and he didn't talk to me. he was too weak. >> llamas gave the victim water and called for help. a rescue team pulled him from the rocks and took him to an area hospital, where he is being monitored this morning. great for mole, huh? big changes are taking place on the iconic golden gate bridge. that's coming up. plus imagine being suddenly rich, like uber rich, like unbelievably rich. coming up, cnn up close with america's newest multimillionaire gazillionaire. copd makes it hard to breathe, but with advair, i'm breathing better. so now i can be in the scene. advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications,

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no they don't. hey son. have fun tonight. ♪ ♪ back against the wall ♪ ain't nothin to me ♪ ain't nothin to me [ crowd murmurs ] hey! ♪ [ howls ] ♪ a new era begins this morning on san francisco's famous golden gate bridge. every toll on the span is now

electronic. drivers handed over flowers as well as cash to toll takers. it eliminates 20 toll taker jobs, but some are worried that traffic will stop moving as confused motorists will hesitate while driving through the tolls. sad chapter for singer dionne warwick. despite selling millions of records during her 50-year career, she had to file for bankruptcy last week. she blames her financial trouble on bad management in the 1980s and '90s that left her owing $10 million in tax penalties to the irs and to the state of california. an unusual guest at a five-star resort in southern california. a rescue crew from sea world was called to the hotel after this malnourished and dehydrated california sea lion decided it needed rest and relaxation. the human guests did not mind too much. the pup is now resting kwofr ta comfortably at sea world this morning. >> imagine running into that.

it is official. a day after he ran around his new jersey neighborhood telling everyone who would listen to him that he won a huge powerball jackpot, lottery officials confirmed what pedro quezada already knew. he is a very rich man. cnn's jason carroll has his story. >> reporter: pedro quezada beamed like a champion as he held a huge check high in the air, feeling joy, as he put it, over becoming powerball's latest multimillionaire. he and his wife ynez showed up for the winners news conference. when asked how many family members he has, he joked, they're growing, they're growing. every day i have one more. quezada owns a bodega, a combination deli/mini market in the heavily hispanic community of passaic, new jersey. he says it's a tough way to make a living, long hours and the threat of robbery. quezada came to the united states 26 years ago from the dominican republic from what he

called a poor and humble family. how did he find out he won? he heard about the liquor store that sold the winning ticket, the same place where he had bought his ticket. he dropped by, saw the commotion, reporters and camera crews, and went in. he says, when i handed him the ticket, the man said to me, congratulations. and that's when everyone started shouting. most people who play powerball dream about whether or not they'll take the lump sum payment or the annual payout. quezada took the lump sum, $211 million. after taxes, that translates to about $151 million. in passaic, neighbors see themselves in quezada, someone who has known hard times. >> he's a modest, humble man. he's not going to go buy himself yachts and stuff like that. i'm sure he's going to take care of his family first. >> reporter: quezada has five children and says he wants to help his family and others. as for work, he's retiring. his son was working at the bodega but not anymore. he says, would you, with all

those millions, let your son work at a deli like that? maybe not. jason carroll, cnn. >> my advice to pedro, we've seen so many of these big, big wins. give everyone in your family something right away, and then set up a fund. >> you actually said 10%. is there a reason why? >> because 10%, the rule is 70-10-10. you live on 70% of your money, give away 10%, invest 10%, put 10% in savings. set something away as a nice gift, then set up a trust and not get to that money. the mistake lottery winners make is how you spend your millions. you need to grow your millions and spend what you're making for it, and then it lasts for generations, not just your lifetime. >> i think setting up a trust is a good idea. he's from the dominican republic, and he has a lot of family, a lot of people to take care of. $150 million goes a long way. >> you can buy a company and invest for the future.

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47 minutes past the hour. let's get you up to date this morning. david petraeus publicly apologizing for the extramarital affair that ended his career as director of the cia the. the retired four-star general told an audience in los angeles last night he regrets the pain he caused his family, friends, and supporters. his wife holly was not in attendance there. the legal battle between tradition and equality shifts focus today from proposition 8 to defense of marriage act or doma, as it's called. doma denies same-sex couples access to federal benefits under

its definition of a union between a man and a woman. investigators have found bomb making materials in the car that longed to evan ebel. he was the suspect in the shooting of a sheriff's deputy. ebel died in a shootout. one of the deputies was grazed in the head by one of ebel's bullets. he talked about his encounter with the suspected killer. >> at that point in time, i remember the gun shooting off a number of times, and i could see the cartridge flying by my head. at which point i blacked out. i had no clue whether i was standing, sitting, laying, whatever. >> texas officials say they also found handwritten directions to the home of tom clements, the colorado prison chief who was killed. and the school voucher program in indiana upheld

unanimously by the indiana supreme court. opponents called the voucher program unconstitutional, claiming it takes money away from public schools. lebron james and the miami heat continuing their historic run tonight in chicago. they'll be going for their 28th straight win, and they're going to try to do it against the bulls. if they get it, they'll be five victories short of an all time record of 33 wins in ray row, set by the los angeles lakers in '71. it's been 53 days since the heat last lost. they've got to go through the bulls, and they've got the knicks on the agenda. >> quite a roster they've got to beat. i'm a little worried. i think they may beat our bulls tonight. just looking. that will cost you at one australian shop. the specialty grocery store in brisbane implementing a new policy, charges customers $5 just for looking. if you don't want to pay the fee or buy something, you're invited to get out. the owners say they have to do it because so many people use

the store for pricing references before purchasing goods elsewhere. fishy. >> i don't know. lingering snow and below average temperatures still hanging around much of the country. what will your day look like? will spring weather finally arrive in time for the holiday weekend? jennifer delgado is going to tell us. >> looking into her crystal ball. >> no matter what you tell us, we still love you. >> i'm glad you love me, more than punxsutawney phil. guys, it is cold outside. a lot of 30s, 20s out there. for areas from the northeast down towards the south, we are talking very chilly conditions. look at that. 30 degrees in atlanta. 38 in new york city. and we have freeze warnings once again. we said this yesterday. very likely the setup. we're seeing them now. arkansas spreading over towards georgia, south carolina, and we're also talking into florida. you can see central florida, even including glace county. we're going to see the temperatures flirting with the

lower 30s as well as the upper 20s. we're not worried about the florida citrus crop because it takes a few more hours before we see damage setting up there. on a lighter view, temperatures are starting to warm up. you see the yellow out towards the southwest. that's going to start to build in. it's going to eventually spread over towards the east, and we'll start to see temperatures rebounding even as we go into the holiday weekend. here's your forecast for today. just very light snow flurries for areas all the way up to the north, including maine, as well as right along the southern parts. otherwise, high pressure is in control. new york city, you are going to see sprinkles around until noon, 1:00, then partly sunny skies. here's a look at your high temperatures. as we go through friday, saturday, and sunday, notice you get back to seasonal. much warmer down towards the south. speaking of the south, i want to show you something kind of creepy caught off the florida keys. this is a bull shark, and that's the bull shark's baby. it sort of had twins. that's a double headed fetus

that you're looking at. it's pretty rare. they've only seen about six of those. if you're wondering whether or not -- how the fisherman got this, got the fish, the bull shark, but they said the fetus would not have survived. i guess they would have had some trouble swimming around with double heads. isn't that kind of gross? >> that makes sense they would have trouble swimming around. i saw that yesterday and wondered how common are these things? we just never know. >> apparently six of them. >> thank you very much. a new nike ad featuring tiger woods. take a look. is it too much too soon? back after the break. we're here! we're going to the park! [ gina ] oh hey, dan! i really like your new jetta! and you want to buy one like mine because it's so safe, right? yeah... yeah... i know what you've heard -- iihs top safety pick for $159 a month -- but, i wish it was more dangerous, like a monster truck or dune buggy! you can't have the same car as me! [ male announcer ] now everyone's going to want one. let's get a jetta. [ male announcer ] volkswagen springtoberfest is here and there's no better time to get a jetta.

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trending this morning, a whole lot of red, white, and equal showing up on facebook profiles, and here's why. users who support same-sex marriage have been replacing their profile pictures to this equal sign in red, symbolizing marriage equality. the u.s. supreme court is hearing arguments this week over same-sex marriage in two cases. proposition 8, california's ban on same-sex marriage, and the legality of the federal defense of marriage act. and the new nike ad for tiger woods is triggering a social media backlash. take a look for yourself. you decide. the online ad shows a picture of the number one golfer in the world, because he is number one again, with a quote from him that says, "winning takes care of everything." it's supposed to celebrate tiger's return to form and the top of the golf world after a very public fall from grace, but critics are slamming it. they're calling it inappropriate in light of woods' past marital problems. looks like prince william

could be out of a job. the british government announcing tuesday its search and rescue helicopter service, which employs the duke of cambrid cambridge, is being taken over by an american company, bristow helicopters. it's unclear whether bristow plans to keep the same employees. it sends 70 years of service run by the royal air force and royal navy squadron. >> for more information, turn to cnn.com/trends. >> a look at the president's passover dinner, amanda knox's trial, and new jersey powerball. interesting story last night. president obama celebrated passover by hosting a seder at the white house. isn't that nice? yeah, that's cool. there was an awkward moment when sasha asked, hey, i thought we were muslim. you know who i'm talking about when i say amanda knox? >> yes. >> these italians, they said we're going to overturn the

acquittal, and she's going to have to stand trial for murder again. oh, my god, what a nightmare. it's like this will never end. here are the conditions of the retrial. she was not arrested. does not have to leave her house, and does not have to go to the trial. ooh, that sounds serious. they're not kidding around. a 44-year-old new jersey man has won the $338 million powerball jackpot. he said on the news today he will use the money to fulfill his lifelong dream, which is to get the hell out of new jersey. that's what he said. just get the hell out of new jersey. >> hey, that's not nice. "early start" continues right now. new this morning, david petraeus breaking his silence. the former cia chief's first public words since the sex scandal that cost him his job. history in the making in the

highest court in the land. justices just hours away from hearing a case that could redefine marriage in america. and shaken and scared. the first moments of a deadly earthquake. it was all caught on camera. dramatic new video this morning. take a look. a camera captures a bus driver's close brush with death. hard to watch. welcome to "early start." i'm christine romans. john berman is off today. >> fast reflexes. i'm zoraida sambolin, march 27th, 6:00 a.m. in the east. let's get started. we begin with an apology from former cia director david petraeus. new this morning, the former four star general making a return to public life five months after resigning in disgrace over an affair with his biographer paula broadwell. casey wian is live with us. casey, petraeus has been laying really low since november. what is the strategy behind his public appearance and public apology? >> reporter: it's clear, zoraida, that that apology is an effort or the beginnings of an

effort to try to rehabilitate general petraeus' public image. retired general david petraeus picked a receptive audience to launch his comeback from the sex scandal that cost him cost him t the cia and his reputation with the military. >> so please allow me to begin my remarks this evening by reiterating how deeply i regret and apologize for the circumstances that led to my resignation from the cia, and caused such pain for my family, friends, and supporters. >> reporter: supporters were abundant. petraeus was a four-star general who commanded american forces during the surge in iraq. he also wrote the field manual for how u.s. troops fight insurgents. >> i join you, keenly aware that i am regarded in a different light now than i was a year ago. i'm also keenly aware that the reason for my recent journey was my own doing. >> reporter: his undoing was an affair with paula broadwell, the woman who co-authored his biography, both were married.

it came as a shock to many when an fbi investigation into an unrelated matter uncovered his relationship with broadwell. he resigned as cia director flee days after president obama was re-elected and ten days before he testified about the attack on the u.s. embassy in benghazi. now petraeus has re-entered the public stage and is reported to be talking to potential employers. >> general petraeus is just an enormously, gifted, talented guy. he had a great career. he can have a great career going forward. he's got to navigate through this the right way. it looks like he's starting in the right direction. >> i know that i can never fully assuage the pain that i inflicted on those closest to me and on a number of others. i can, however, try to move forward and as best possible to make amends to those i have hurt. >> reporter: chief among them, his wife holly, who did not attend petraeus' speech. the event was hosted by usc, a university that has a long-standing tradition of close ties with the military.

yet is comfortably located all the way across the country from the hot spots, washington, d.c., the pentagon, and the cia. i should also point out, zoraida, that reporters were kept far away from the general, not allowed to ask him questions. >> casey wian live for us in los angeles. appreciate it. coming up on "starting point" at 7:00 eastern, cnn military analyst general james "spider" marks will give his take on petraeus' public apology. >> day two, round two of potential game changers for same-sex marriage. in a few hours the historic legal battle for california's prop 8 to the defense of marriage act, doma. doma denies same-sex couples access to federal benefits under its definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman. shannon, how are the justices leaning on same-sex marriage after hearing those arguments yesterday? can we glean any kind of information from what they've said? >> we've been trying to read the tea leaves to see exactly how

they might be leaning, christine. i mean the conservative justices pretty much asked a lot of questions, and imposed a lot of pointed arguments in line with their conservative line of thinking, the liberal justices get a little bit of the same. but justice kennedy, you know, that he is often a swing vote on a number of issues before the court. he seemed genuinely conflicted about whether or not to support same-sex marriage or to strike it down. take a listen at this one piece of sound that he was talking about entering into uncharted territory when it comes to actually standing in favor of same-sex marriage. >> the problem with the case is that you're really asking, particularly because of the socioological evidence, for us to go into uncharted waters. and you're doing so in a case where there is a -- a substantial question on -- on -- on standing. i just wonder if the case was properly granted.

>> and, again, this is what everybody's watching justice kennedy because he could be the deciding factor. should the justices align under normal kind of polar opposites of the conservative versus the liberals. christine? >> all right. today the court looks at doma. that's, you know, what are the arguments for and against doma focus on? how will that be a little bit different than the prop 8 argument? >> this really centers on the one central question of whether or not the federal government can deny federal benefits to same-sex couples. we're talking about things like tax benefits and social security and pension benefits. also there's a question of whether or not same-sex couples that are married in states that allow it, whether their marriages could be recognized nationally. we've got some new cnn/orc polling on that very matter, on that same question. should the federal government recognize same-sex marriages performed in states that allow it. 56% of the people in our you is va say yes. 43% say no. just goes to show you how the majority of americans are

backing, beginning to back this notion of same-sex marriage. >> all right. shannon travis. thanks, shannon, in front of the supreme court. 7:00 a.m. hour of "starting point" senior legal analyst jeffrey toobin breaks down yesterday's arguments and looks ahead to what to expect today. north korea claiming it has cut off an important military hotline to the south. the hotline is key because it allows south koreans to cross the border to wouk at a jointly run industrial complex in the north. tensions are already high as you know on the korean peninsula. and this shows yet another breakdown of what's left of inter-korean cooperation. also new this morning, buildings shaking in taipei. aftershocks jolting central taiwan after a powerful 6.1 magnitude earthquake shook the island. this was earlier this morning. take a look at that there. people are recording it as it's happening. this is what it looked like, what it felt like from inside the television station. taiwan is said to be largely unscathed. there are no reports of any major damage. "the wall street journal" reporting at least eight people

injured, most of them by falling objects. a peaceful end to a dangerous standoff with a gunman in washington state. it began tuesday afternoon when the suspect began shooting at homes in the five points neighborhood near tacoma. 67-year-old mike mcphee surrendered hours after strolling through the neighborhood firing randomly. police say he also pointed his gun at people but did not shoot them. no one was injured. and north dakota has enacted one of the nation's toughest anti-abortion laws. governor jack dalrimple signing the measure yesterday admitting it is a direct challenge to roe v. wade. the supreme court's landmark 1973 decision making abortion legal. the governor even asking north dakota's legislature to set aside money for expected legal battles. the law bans most abortions after six weeks. about the time experts say a fetal heartbeat can first be detected. a cnn exclusive, a navy s.e.a.l. who was part of the team that killed osama bin laden, that s.e.a.l. is disputing another account of the raid that appeared recently in

"esquire" magazine. the s.e.a.l. in the article known only as the shooter claims to have fired three shots at the terrorist after a pointman intercepted two women in the hallway. but now, another member of the s.e.a.l. team six tells cnn national security analyst peter bergen, a completely different s.e.a.l. team member fired the fatal shot. >> the account was inaccurate. the shooter that described in that article who killed bin laden it was, in fact, the point man who fired the first shot at bin laden and hit him in the head. >> "esquire" magazine sent cnn a statement saying its story is well sourced. the secret service has a new director. it is julia pierson, the first female to ever head up the agency. a headline in the "usa today" reads secret service pick breaks up boy's club. so she's been chief of staff there since 2008. pierson inherits 7,000 employees

and a department tarnished by scandal with agents allegedly patronizing prostitutes in colombia ahead of a visit by the president last year. records falling away on wall street. the dow up 111 points to close at a record 14,559. all eyes on the 71500 this morning. the index closing yesterday at 1563 just two points shy from an all-time high. market futures pointing lower this morning for all major averages suggesting a possible sell-off at the opening bell. >> eight minutes past the hour. a bus driver in china is being called a hero for somehow stopping his bus after a light pole came smashing through his windshield. look at this. this is incredible surveillance video. it will make you want to duck. that is exactly what the driver did with only a split second to spare. he suffered a ruptured spleen but managed to bring the bus to a stop, unbuckle his seat belt and escape. there were 26 passengers on board. despite his injury the driver helped each and every one of them off the bus. no one else was hurt.

wow. amanda knox finds her future hanging in the balance this morning. italy may want her extradited to stand trial again for murder. could that really happen? plus the alleged plot to smuggle prison contraband to charles manson. [ rosa ] i'm rosa and i quit smoking with chantix. when the doctor told me that i could smoke for the first week... i'm like...yeah, ok... little did i know that one week later i wasn't smoking. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. it reduces the urge to smoke. some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it. if you develop these stop taking chantix and see your doctor right away as some can be life-threatening. tell your doctor if you have a history of heart or blood vessel problems, or if you develop new or worse symptoms.

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welcome back to "early start." it is 11 minutes past the hour. the big question facing amanda knox this morning is whether she will be extradited to italy to stand trial for murder yet again. her conviction in the death of her college roommate in perugia, italy, in 2007, was overturned by an appeals court in 2011. yesterday, italy's supreme court ruled knox should be tried a second time now. foreign affairs correspondent jill dougherty is at the state department for us this morning. good morning to you, jill. so what do you think the chances are that amanda knox will be extradited? >> well, you know, this case doesn't get any easerier, does it, zoraida? it's complicated. and experts disagree because so much of this right now hinges on this extradition treaty between the united states and italy from 1984. and, as is most things legally have to check the fine print.

amanda knox has been back in seattle for a year and a half. >> give them some time. >> reporter: trying to live a normal life. so does tuesday's decision mean she have to return to italy? >> the question of whether she would have to go back to italy for a trial will come down to how the extradition treaty between the united states and italy is construed. >> reporter: former federal prosecutor david laufman says if amanda knox had been convicted and acquitted in the united states, she'd be protected by double jeopardy, which prevents a defendant from being tried for the same crime twice. but it happened in italy, which has a more flexible legal system. so italy could, he says, ask the u.s. to extradite her. >> now, that doesn't mean the united states is necessarily going to extradite her. there will likely ensue a fevered dialogue between, you

know, justice ministry officials in italy, and the department of state lawyers, maybe department of justice lawyers, possibly even the head office of formal extradition request. >> reporter: in other words a diplomatic and ultimately political solution. but amanda knox's attorney is hoping any new trial would end up with the same verdict, acquittal. >> there's no reason to believe that any further review will result any differently. keep in mind, there was no physical evidence against her, and anything that was reviewed was considered unreliable, inaccurate, insubstantial. >> and here's another question. could she be tried in absentia? in other words if she were not physically in italy or in that courtroom. and there is precedence, because there were cia officers who kidnapped a terror suspect, and they were convicted in italy in absentia. they are in the united states. they're free. but if they go back to europe,

they do risk being arrested. zoraida? >> and meantime, there's, you know, huge legal expense, and then all the opening of the wounds again for these families. jill dougherty live at the state department for us. thank you. all right, it's about 15 minutes past the hour. let's get you up to date. david petraeus back in the public eye, apologizing for the extramarital affair that ended his career as director of the cia. the retired four-star general told an audience in los angeles last night that he regrets the pain he caused the family and friends and supporters. his wife holly petraeus was not in attendance. >> the historic legal battle between tradition and equality shifts focus from proposition 8 to the defense of marriage act, or doma as it's known. in a few hours the supreme court will hear arguments for and against doma's repeal. doma denies same-sex couples access to federal benefits under its definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman. a california man who is a follower of charles manson is accused of trying to smuggle a cell phone to the convicted

murderer. craig hammond was arrested on sunday. officials say he tried to bring a wristwatch cell phone into the prison where manson is serving a life sentence for a series of murders in 1969. hammond has been released on bail. canadian police are on the hunt for at least three suspected scammers who are trying to sell fake gold rings and necklaces they say belonged to osama bin laden. they claim the jewelry was smuggled into the country from iraq. a 50-year-old man, unfortunately, has already fallen victim to the group. he paid $760 for three gold necklaces and four gold rings. that, of course, turned out to be bogus. it's a draw. last night's world cup qualifier between the u.s. and mexico ending in a 0-0 tie. this is a big disappointment for mexico. they traditionally dominate the u.s. team. the mexican team has many more opportunities to score, taking ten shots compared to just one for the u.s. team. the world cup will be held next year in brazil. >> what may have been conceived

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oh, that is gorgeous. take a minute to come over to your tv set. good morning to you, new york city. that is the george washington bridge all lit up.

temperature not so great this morning. at least earlier it was 38 degrees. but we are headed to 50 degrees and some sun for you as well. eventually it will get up to 70 degrees. we are minding your business this morning. >> not today. >> that's right. the s&p 500 is just two points away from hitting record highs. >> futures have just turned lower after markets in europe opened lower so the record may have to wait. but we'll watch. new this morning, story many of you were talking about yesterday, and say some employees at ford's ad agency in india have been fired following those offensive drawings that hit the web this week. you may remember the images. one depicts former italian prime minister silvio berlusconi driving a ford with three women tied up in the back. another image depicts paris hilton driving what's meant to be the three kardashian sisters tied up in the back. the ad agency says the drawings were not ordered by ford, and that they should never have been created or distributed. and this morning we're learning that people have lost their jobs over that. >> i was a little confused by

that. how did they actually end up out there? >> some sort of internal exercise, not sanctioned by ford, but it was drawings of a ford car. very offensive. and those people who did that we're now told are gone. if you took a flight last year, chances are your plane was packed, right? a trade group airlines for america says that nation's biggest carriers posted an average occupancy rate of 82.8% in 2012. that's a technical term for packed. because it's the highest since 1945. airlines are being forced to operate more efficiently because of fuel prices and labor costs that are rising. that caused a number of flights to drop while the number of passengers increased. so, airlines are flying smaller, more fuel efficient planes and they're packing them to the gills so they can make more money. >> and there's less room for carry-on bags. so be careful with that. what is the one thing we need to know about our money? >> the u.s. economy is feeling, we've got signs of it every day, europe is still hurting. that will be the conflict for investors going forward. big week for u.s. economic data.

so far in the u.s., both the positive, solid gains in home prices. a large jump in sales of big manufactured items. but europe is in a deepening recession. the bailout in cyprus this week reminded investors of the major problems, zoraida, that continue, as we look at all of these highs, remember that we've got some trouble here. >> i want to end on a positive note about the home prices again. >> up 8.1%. biggest jump year over year since summer of 2006. we're not back to those peak levels by any stretch of the imagination. but you are seeing gains again in home prices. that's helpful. >> and some people say we never will be, right? we'll never be back to those prices again. >> well, we shall see. i hope so. hope remains eternal here. 22 minutes past the hour. the rescuer actually becomes the rescued after dramatic highway crash all caught on camera. it is a story of incredible survival. plus a hiker saved from certain death by this dog. >> and if you're leaving the

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>> new this morning, david petraeus in his own words. for the first time the former cia boss talks publicly about the sex scandal that brought him down. >> mystery on the high seas. the search for clues after a

woman turns up dead on a cruise ship. a supreme showdown. now just hours away justices set to hear new arguments that could lead to a landmark ruling on same-sex marriage in america. welcome back to "early start." we're glad you're with us. i'm zoraida sambolin. >> i'm christine romans. it's wednesday morning. 28 minutes past the hour. new this morning, david petraeus back in the public spotlight. and apologizing for all the pain he caused. the disgraced former director of the cia saying he's sorry for the affair that forced him to step down in a speech last night at the university of southern california. petraeus saying he hopes to move forward after, quote, slipping my moorings. >> please allow me to begin my remarks this evening by reiterating how deeply i regret and apologize for the circumstance circumstances that led to my resignation from the cia and caused such pain to my family, friends and supporters. >> the retired general has reportedly hired an agent and is shopping a book proposal. in a few hours the supreme

court takes on doma, the defense of marriage act. hearing arguments for and against its repeal, doma denies same-sex couples access to federal benefits under its definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman. but a new cnn/orc poll shows a majority of americans, 56%, believe the federal government should recognize same-sex marriages from states where it is legal. shannon travis is right outside the supreme court for us this morning. some arguments yesterday seemed to foreshadow today's arguments. how are the justices leaning on this issue? i might add that the no"the new times" says justices may be wrong for proulxing on gay marriage. >> it is, kind of guess from yesterday's argument exactly where they'll go, zoraida. we'll probably all be wrong trying to decide that. i mean, again, the conservative justices tend to, you were to point that line of thinking, pointing the questions, the liberal justices, the same exact

say, anthony kennedy, justice kennedy seemed to be a little bit more in the middle. he seemed to be genuinely conflicted. he's typically a swing vote. but take a listen at chief justice john roberts. he asked a question about this whole notion of redefining labels on what it means to be married. >> if you tell a child that somebody has to be their friend, i suppose you can force the child to say, this is my friend. but it changes the definition of what it means to be a friend. and that's what seems to me what supporters of proposition 8 are saying here. all you're interested in is the label and you insist on changing the definition of the label. >> meanwhile, elena kagan, justice kagan, one of the more liberal justices on the bench, says this whole notion about whether or not supporting same-sex marriage will actually affect men and women having children, take a listen at what she had to say about that.

>> that because we think that the focus of marriage really should be on pro-creation we're not going to give marriage licenses anymore to any couple where both people are over the age of 55? would that be constitutional? >> no, your honor, it would not be constitutional. >> now, zoraida, i started by saying that yesterday, we don't have any more clarity of what they'll do maybe today we'll have a little bit more. >> well, today, actually the court is looking at doma. and at issue here is whether house republicans have standing to make the case. can you explain to us what that means? >> that's right. it's very simple. basically the obama administration is not defending the defense of marriage act. normally the solicitor general of the u.s. is the one who goes to the supreme court and defends it. they're not. so the house republicans, they hired a team of lawyers to step in, and defend doma. so that's basically what's happening. so there's the question of whether or not the house republicans, having stepped in

to do this, whether they have standing. the legal authority to actually argue this case in court that could really affect the outcome. >> all right, shannon travis right outside the supreme court. thank you so much. a developing story this morning. north korea says it's cut off an important military hotline to the south. this hot line is key because it allows south koreans to cross the border to work at a jointly run industrial complex in the north. our matthew chance is live from yeonpyeong island only seven miles from north korea. matthew, this is not the first hotline they've cut. what's the significance of this? >> i think it's significant because it's north korea trying to do whatever it can, short of actual military action against south korea, to kind of damage relations between the two countries, if you like. i mean, you're right. it's cut military hotlines before. this is a key one because it's a hotline that exists in something called the kaesong industrial complex which is a jointly sort of operated industrial zone in

north korean territory. where south korean companies, very high tech companies often, have manufacturing spaces which employs many, many north korean workers. and so, you know, in the sense that closes down it could actually be damaging to north korea, as well. but you know, it's just comes as another one of the threats of the actions that north korea's been carrying out over the course of the past several weeks, since it faced renewed sanctions at the united nations over its missile and nuclear programs. to show its anger and outrage at the sort of actions taken -- against it by the international community. and so, a very -- a very serious step but also just another step in a series of actions that have been taken, escalating tensions on the korean peninsula. >> those two countries at war, technically at war, but they do, on the border there, allow this cross-traffic so that they can work together in this -- in this facility. so what would this mean for deteriorating relations between the two countries?

>> well, it's obviously not a good thing. this kaesong industrial complex is one of the sort of bright stars, really, bright areas of the relationship between the two kor koreas. it's been an opportunity for the two decrcountries to come toget in a peaceful way and make some profits. it's very profitable for the north koreans, as well as for the south koreans. it's a very important owner of hard currency for the regime in pyongyang, and so, if it's damaged, if this means the companies can't operate there, it will be very damaging to north korea's economy, as well. but i think from the south korean perspective it's seen as a sort of bridge, literally, and symbolically, between the two countries, and i think many people in south korea would be very sorry to see that bridge damaged in any way. >> all right matthew chance. thank you so much, matthew. meanwhile, a developing

story this morning, the fbi investigating what it calls suspicious death of a 64-year-old passenger aboard a royal caribbean cruise ship. the virginia woman was found dead by her husband in their cabin on sunday. the ship "enchantment of the seas," returns to baltimore on monday following a seven-day cruise to florida and the bahamas. no word on why investigators, zoraida, are calling this death suspicious. >> 35 minutes past the hour. new developments in the murder of a 13-month-old georgia boy. the mother and aunt of one of the teenagers charged in the case have been arrested. accused of making false statements or writings. this is according to an official complaint. the women have been released on bond. two teenage boys are accused of shooting the baby to death last week. the child's mother saying they tried to rob her before firing at her baby and shooting her in the leg. a court appearance this morning for the man accused of kidnapping and murdering etan patz. the 6-year-old child disappeared in new york city in 1979 but it was only last year that 51-year-old pedro hernandez was

arrested and charged in this case. he worked in a store in patz's neighborhood at the time the child vanished. a fire captain from dayton, ohio, is in serious condition after attempting to rescue a driver from an overturned vehicle on a really icy road. look at what happened when another car comes crashing into them. >> [ bleep ] >> oh, my goodness. >> captain barry cronn was thrown 25 feet through the air but fellow firefighters were able to carry him to safety and got him to an area hospital. we are told the firefighter's injuries are not life threatening. he was trying to free one of the drivers involved in a 12-car pileup on u.s. 35. it took crews several hours to clear. reports this morning of another possible sinkhole in the same florida neighborhood where a man was swallowed up and killed in his own bedroom. two families who live in this duplex evacuated yesterday after they discovered cracks in the

floors and the walls. fire rescue and code enforcement officials came out to check the home. still not clear if the problems are being caused by a sing hole under the home. but you know there are property and insurance companies that look at florida, and they say there are thousands and thousands of potential sites under homes where this could happen. >> i would imagine if it continues to happen in that neighborhood everybody has to check their homes. i would move out. trending this morning, word that a neighbor, a teen heart throb justin bieber is accusing the singer of quote battery and threats. los angeles officials are investigating a confrontation tuesday morning right outside bieber's home in calabasas, california, a member of the singer's security team says the neighbor entered bieber's property and words were exchanged. but that there was no physical contact. officials are deciding whether they should file charges. prince william may need to dust off his resume. the british government announcing tuesday its search and rescue helicopter service which employs the duke of cambridge is being taken over by an american company, bristow

helicopters. it is unclear whether bristow plans to keep the same crew employed. prince william has been flying an iconic sea king chopper and it's being reported that fleet is scheduled to be grounded. >> i think i would keep prince william on my payroll. i think it's good pr. a new nike ad for tiger woods is triggering a social media uproar. the online ad shows a picture of the number one golfer in the world, he's back up there with a quote from him that says, "winning takes care of everything." it's supposed to celebrate tiger's return to form, and the top of the golf world after a very public fall from grace. but critics are calling it inappropriate in light of woods' past infidelity problems. >> a family shattered. >> winning takes care of everything. that's not a true statement. >> firefighters in riverside, california, say a very alert dog named mole is a hero. for leading his master to a hiker who was trapped in some rocks on a mountain for several days. the victim had no food or water. listen to ramon, the owner,

explain what happened yesterday. >> he kind of pulled me over. pulled me, crying, and i said what's going on, boy? so it was dark. still dark. and i thought it was an animal. and i talked to the person. he don't talk to me. he was too walk. >> lamas gave the victim water and called for help. a rescue team then pulled the man out of the rocks, took him to an area hospital where he's being monitored this morning. >> that is a special dog. >> yeah. >> while you were sleeping big changes were taking place on the iconic golden gate bridge. we're going to share them with you. >> plusplus lounging in the lob. not your average guest. this is my family. this is joe. hi joe! hi there! earn a ton of extra points with the double your hhonors promotion and feel the hamptonality.

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soledad o'brien joins us now with a look at what's ahead on "starting point." >> a lot happening this morning. talking about david peat raes this morning make a public apology. the first time after that extramarital affair that forced him to resign from the cia. this is the first step in overcoming the scandal. we're going to talk this morning with retired general james "spider" marks and an army reserve officer who served under petraeus. and the supreme court will hear arguments today about the defense of marriage act, doma, that states marriage is only between a man and a woman. we'll take a look at how the court could vote. cnn legal analyst jeffrey toobin is going to be with us. then starring in a new comedy called "it's a disaster" serious topic but a comedy, julia stiles will join us live to talk about that. and then phil has some explaining to do.

punxsutawney phil, groundhog club president taking him to task over his inaccurate early spring predictions. >> you have punxsutawney phil on today? >> yes, we do. >> no. >> yes, yes! people just had him on groundhog day. we have -- >> i'm told he spent a lot of time in hair and makeup. >> it's groundhog day redux because the prediction has not been working out for us. >> no, it has not. >> looking forward to that. we're about a week into spring, right? winterlike conditions still hanging around much of the country. will it finally warm up in time for the holiday weekend? jennifer delgado is live in the cnn weather center. can you send us your questions for how you like us to grill punxsutawney phil people this morning. >> exactly. and tell soledad in self-defense he doesn't have radar. he doesn't have satellite down there. >> oh, you weather people stick together. >> oh, we do stick together. >> i've got -- >> he's getting a bad rap over there. >> oh, no he's not. he screwed it up. >> hey. as i said, follow science, not

phil. >> yeah. >> and the science today -- exactly. we want to talk about the cold temperatures out there, guys. and as well as gals. we have temperatures right now in the 20s and the 30s. we are still flirting with temps in the upper 20s. that means for areas down in the south we have nearly a dozen states right now under a freeze warning. anywhere in blue, i feel for you because it's cold there. and it's cold in atlanta. down towards florida. we're also looking at cold temperatures, freeze warnings in place. even for glade county. temperatures running 10 to 20 degrees below average this year. we're not worrying about this tomorrow. we're seeing temperatures warming back up. on a wider picture the weather forecast is going to be very nice and quiet today. just a few lingering snow flurries. you can see for areas, including up to maine, as well as the mountains, including the apps. new york city as well as in washington, d.c. you are going to see some clouds around and chance for a few sprinkles. sunshine and warm down towards texas as well as out towards the west. here are your high temperatures

for today. for denver, chicago, you're all going to see a warming trend by friday. you'll be by average it looks like the weekend for new york city, and the same for atlanta, but as we move into sunday, of course, this is easter, everybody gets excited they want to know can you break out your spring clothes? i wouldn't do it. i think you should just wait on that a little bit. chance of rain and some snow setting up for parts of the ohio valley and then warm down towards the suth. i want to leave you with photos, beautiful display of sand sculptures. this gets you kind of in the spring fever a little bit. you're talking about the beach. beautiful, right? e.t. phoning home there. and we're also looking at harry potter. they have about 20 of these giant sculptures. this is impressive. i can't even do stick figures much less something like that. that is amazing. >> takes a lot of time and a lot of patience. >> it does. >> thank you very much. >> all right, ladies. >> say hi to phil. 46 minutes past the hour. new era begins this morning on

san francisco's famed golden gate bridge. every toll on the span is now electronic. so that means drivers handed over flowers as well as cash to those toll takers on their last day of work, which was yesterday. officials say the move will save $2 million a year by eliminating 28 jobs. some drivers worry that traffic will stop moving as confused motorists attempt to pay while driving through the toll lanes. an unusual guest found his way into a five-star resort in southern california. a rescue cue from sea world was called to the hotel after this little guy, malnourished and dehydrated california sea lion decided he needed a little rest and relaxation. human guests didn't seem to mind. the sea lion remained relaxed until the net squad showed up. the pup is resting comfortably at sea world this morning. we hope he's doing better. it's a long way from the glory days for grammy winner diane warwick. the big challenge the singer is now facing. and call him the comeback kid.

manti te'o taking off and trying to leave that fake dead girlfriend scandal in the dust. this is so sick! i can't believe your mom let you take her car out. this is awesome! whoooo! you're crazy. go faster! go faster! go faster! go faster! no! stop...stop... (mom) i raised my son to be careful... hi, sweetie. hi, mom. (mom) but just to be safe... i got a subaru. (announcer) love. it's what makes a subaru a subaru. but that doesn't mean i don't want to make money.stor. i love making money. i try to be smart with my investments. i also try to keep my costs down. what's your plan? ishares. low cost and tax efficient. find out why nine out of ten large professional investors choose ishares for their etfs. ishares by blackrock. call 1-800-ishares for a prospectus which includes investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses.

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welcome back to "early start." 51 minutes fast the hour. the program in the state of indiana has been upheld unanimously by that state's supreme court. supporters of the program are saying that it gives indiana families no matter what their income more options to educate their children. but opponents call the voucher program unconstitutional, claiming it takes money away from the public schools. a sad new chapter for singer diane warwick, despite selling millions of records over a 50-year career the performer had

to file for bankruptcy in new jersey last week. she blames her financial troubles on bad management in the 1980s and '90s that left her owing $10 million in tax penalties to the irs, and the state of california. >> sad to see her fall. >> andy enfield and his supermodel wife have become the talk of the ncaa tournament. the new power couple -- >> who cares about the team. >> -- unexpected success of enfield's team the florida gulf coast eagles. joe carter has more on this morning's bleacher report. good morning. >> good morning, guys. this whole story is really great. it's more or less shocked the sports world, of course, the florida gulf coast eagles becoming the first 15 seed to advance to the sweet 16. but it's not just this team that has an amazing back story. their head coach, andy enfield, does, as well. he was the valedictorian at his high school. he became a great, outstanding college basketball player. he was a self-made millionaire in business, and he's a man with

enough charisma, you could say, to end up courting and then marrying a supermodel. friday night, his eagles are hoping to, of course, continue this cinderella story but it might be the couple's daughters who want daddy's team to win the most. >> my oldest daughter's focus is to go to target and by some stuff from the dollar bin. that was promised after we got back from the tournament. >> i told her if we won the first game she could get a dinosaur, and the other daughter would get a barbie. >> what do they get if you win game three? >> they get more. i've already agreed to that. >> enfield, and the 15 seeded eagles play friday night against third seeded florida. the game is in cowboys stadium. tip-off time 10:00 p.m. eastern friday night. the story getting the most buzz this morning on bleacherreport.com is manti te'o the linebacker made up for a disappointing performance at the nfl combine by running a faster 40 yard dash yesterday at notre dame's pro day. some experts say his new time

greatly improves his draft status. he's now moved up to a first round pick. others are saying we're not quite convinced he's star material yet at the nfl level. a couple of updates from a wild weekend in nascar. driver denny hamlin who crashed his car hard into the wall during the end of the race, he's been released from the hospital. he cannot race for at least six more weeks because of a compression fracture in his lower back. now meanwhile, nascar has decided a few things. they're not going to penalize joey logano for sending him into the wall and no suspension for tony stewart for trying to fight joey logano after that wreck. chicago native mr. t., yes mr. t. was at the black hawks game last night. the legendary actor had this to stay before the competition. >> what is your prediction for shoot the puck? >> pain! i pity that puck! i pity it! >> so the always interesting

mr. t. was involved in a slap shot contest. he missed the first two then he made the third one. oh, that's so fun during the intermission of the black hawks game. of course the crowd went wild and when you think of hockey from this point forward guys you will think of mr. t. apparently he did this a couple years ago, missed the shot, said he was able to make one. >> good for him. thank you so much, appreciate it. >> i love mr. t. did not know he was from chicago. awesome. >> all right. so just minutes away on "starting point," david petraeus. we're going to have much more on his very public apology. matt's brakes didn't sound right... ...so i brought my car to mike at meineke...

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thank you for joining dawes. that is it for us on "early start." i'm zoraida sambolin. >> i'm christine romans. "starting point" with soledad o'brien begins right now. welcome, everybody. our "starting point" this morning is new information. david petraeus speaking out for the first time about his very public sex scandal. we'll tell you what he said, and why he's saying it now. then the supreme court is taking up the federal defense of marriage act or doma just one day after the justices took a look at same-sex marriage ban in california. >> the voice of those children is important in this case, don't you think? >> what do you think? cnn legal analyst jeff toobin will join us to talk about what to look for when justices grill the attorneys today. president obama putting a woman in charge of the secret service for the first time. this morning we're learning more about her background, and ask, can she help turn the agency's image around? se> and pictures you have to