that's it for "starting point." "cnn newsroom" with carol costello begins now. happening now in the "newsroom," back home. >> our grandchildren are safe. we had an opportunity to talk with them before they left cuba. >> two boys kidnapped, taken to cuba, now back in florida. their parents now booked in jail, tracked down by cnn in havana. >> as soon as we got there, started filming, you saw josh hakken get out of boat. and the warnings and threats, a launch by north korea could be imminent.

guns under fire. at issue? background checks. new hope that a deal could be near. and lohan steps out. >> i'm happiest when i'm working and the healthiest. >> reporter: going on letterman, calling rehab a blessing. then dave guess ugly. >> do you drink too much? >> we've discussed this in the past. >> did we? i don't remember that, maybe i'm the one having the blackout. >> ouch! you're watching "cnn newsroom." >> good morning, i'm carol costello, thank you for being with me. cnn special. guns under fire. all day, we're focusing on background checks. a subject on target. a break through in the senate on the same background checks. a bipartisan deal will make it to the floor of the senate, maybe as soon as thursday.

dana bash on it. what exactly is in the deal? >> background checks right now, only required at licensed firearms dealers, so what this would do, expand the requirement to include two new areas, gun shows and internet sales this falls short of the universal background checks for all private sales that the president and other democrats are calling for, but in talking to gun control advocates, they are still saying this is a big break through. it does expand current law and most importantly it would require that the seller keeps a record of the sale on the background checks. that really is the key here for gun control advocates, because a lot of republicans especially say they are for background checks, refuse to accept keeping a record, even a paper record. they tier it will go to a national registry and threaten civil liberties. law enforcement sources say this is critical to keeping records, it's the only way they can make sure background checks are

enforceable. this is a deal between two key senators, both of whom have very strong ratings from the nra, democrat and republican, joe manchin and pat toomey, we expect them to announce two hours from now and then they have the find the magic number. 60 votes, anything this controversial has to get past someone in the senate trying to block it. >> and are you talking about filibuster. the threat of the filibuster faded completely? or are we still in danger, or could debate start as soon as tomorrow? >> the short answer -- or the short-term answer is yes, he did bait is expected to start tomorrow. they -- the senate will need to vote to start debate. people will still vote no, it doesn't look like they will have the 60 votes to do that. we expect there to be a vote, and the debate will begin tomorrow. when you talk about the idea of filibuster, there is no question

that as we see this debate go through, which is going to be, carol, probably about two weeks, and you will see votes on amendment after amendment, probably all of them are going to require 60-vote threshold. that's the way it works, at the end of the day, once the senate ready to vote on whatever package they come up with through all of the amendment votes that is likely to require 60 votes, so, you know, the terrible filibuster is sort of used in different ways, but anything that you see will be voted on is very likely to need a 60-vote threshold. when it comes to the particular deal we talked about on background checks, i'm told that this could actually be the first amendment that they vote on as soon as tomorrow or early next week. >> we'll see. dana bash, thank you very much. all of the talk about expanding background checks, what's wrong with the background checks already on the books. chris cuomo explores that side of the story. >> chris, mike, what can i do for you? >> i'm looking for home protection shotgun. >> okay. i'll bring you down to the

shotgun section. >> reporter: seems simple, but there is more to it than you might think. every purchase from a licensed dealer requires a federal background check. are you under indictment? no convicted of a felony? no. questions including criminal and mental health history, requiring government confirmation, add potential state and city laws, thousands across the country and it could feel like an obstacle course. >> background check for the rifle and then there is a pistol license. >> but this pales in comparison to the pain that nation felt on december 14th in newtown, connecticut. the most vulnerable victimized. by dangerous weapons in the wrong, sick hands. cnn's latest poll shows people want it to stop. calls to do something, resulting in demands for expanded background checks. despite the fact that they wouldn't have stopped the newtown shooter. >> we know that background

checks can work. but the problem is, loopholes in the current law let so many people avoid background checks all together. >> gun control advocates want all gun sales, not just those by dealers, subject to background checks. >> this background check law we're talking about is enforcing the law. >> colin goddard works for the brady center to prevent gun violence. is he a gun violence, shot four times at virginia tech six years ago. >> how do you know if someone has a restraining order, a mental illness, criminal record without doing a back ground check? you supposed to look at them really hard? >> reporter: some background checks could lead to a national gun registry and maybe confiscati confiscation. the big concern, making it harder to buy a gun lawfully will not stop gun violence. owner mike marinello was a

police officer in 11 years. >> in 11 years, i never had a legal pistol licensee ever use his weapon in a crime. >> reporter: the nearly 2 million people who have been denied guns is proof of effectiveness. >> most of the people it turns out were not on prohibited lists. most of them false positives, their name looked like somebody else. records incomplete. the first thing you have to do, take the system you have and get it fixed and make it work. >> mike says the big issue isn't the law, but enforcement. >> if somebody comes in, hell bent on buying a gun, we let them fill out the form, and they fail. in a perfect world, alcohol, tobacco, firearms will go arrest the person. >> that's the big catch. >> current laws on the books would make this state the safest in the union, if they were enforced. >> reporter: in my case, the system works. after 25 minutes of completing forms and waiting for approval, i had my shotgun.

>> thank you very much. chris cuomo joins us now. you mentioned the fear of the national gun registry. 2-3 people say if the government ever had a list of gun owners, they would use that list to take away guns from people. the nra agrees. >> there is only two reasons to have a federal list of gun owners, to tax them or take them. the only reason. and anyone who says that president obama says you are an absolutist. >> and many gun control advocates say that's ridiculous. why are people, how are people making the leap between background checks and taking away guns? >> there is an old expression, just because you are paranoid doesn't mean people are coming after you. some principalities have made

some guns illegal. what is the difference between taking them and forcing you to get them up? this is a political football. when it becomes emotions and politics, things get distorted. checking all sales would be helpful in knowing who has weapons, of course that is something we should put in place if done right. that winds up becoming sophisticated. you have to remember, background checks at the end of the day, only deal with people who want to get a weapon lawfully. and so many crimes are done with illegally obtained weapons. so the point becomes this. do you want the check? yes. how do we do it? we have to figure it out. politicians don't talk much about that. a bigger point being lost in the discussion. very troubling, the victims of crime, and even people who cover crimes and that is, when you look at massacres we want to stop, especially when we look at faces from newtown, let us not forget, that mother, of that shooter, got those guns legally

and rightfully, his mental illness, propelled his madness. where is the discussion about the mental illness, where is it in this bill? where is the political enthusiasm behind making it so we have a better mental health system? it's not there. all of the crimes that happened with guns, how do we enforce those crimes? how long do people go to jail? do they just get out? that does the most to deter crime. where is that in the discussion? the concern is checks matter, carol, but not the only way to stop gun violence, probably not even at the top of the list. >> chris cuomo, many thanks to you. and in 20 minutes, our exclusive interview with gabby giffords and her husband. it doesn't bother her to hear gunshots, even though she was shot in the head. all right, let's talk north korea the situation with north korea getting more tense. in the past hour, a new intelligence out there, north

korea could be planning multiple missile launches any moment. that is beyond reports that it plans to fire two mobile missiles from its east coast. japan, positioned two anti missile batteries in the heart of tokyo. and south korea officially accuses north korea of orchestrating cyber attacks that crippled major banks and broadcasters. and the pentagon is preparing for what the north might do next. let's bring in barbara star at the pentagon. tell us more about these missile launches. >> well, good morning, carol. there was a lot of thinking that the missile launches we were waiting for, two mobile missiles would have happened overnight our time, that did not happen, na waiting game on that. but u.s. officials say there is other intelligence showing that the north koreans might be up to more than those two missile launches, satellite imagery showing they might be moving

around other missile launches, other types of missiles and may be planning to have a barrage of missile firings. look, these are not intercontinental, that's something the u.s. could predict, watch for. a tactic they have used before to have a barrage of missiles. very interesting question for u.s. intelligence is how much are the north koreans really planning to do? they are masters of deception, the u.s. has very little solid intelligence. waiting and watching. carol. >> all right. barbara starr reporting live from the pentagon. let's turn to big overnight developments in the arrest of the florida couple accused of snatching their young sons and fleeing to cuba. new video from the hillsboro county jail. josh and sharyn hakken locked up and waiting to make their first court appearance. you can see on exclusive video, a cnn crew that first found the family, hunkering down inside

their sailboat at a havana cuba marina let's get the latest from patrick hoffman. patrick, you approached this couple, you spoke to them. how did they react at first? >> reporter: you know, for fugitives, they didn't seem to be taking great pains to hide their identities, joshua hakken was on the boat, they fled from florida. the son cole playing on the deck of the ship. let's go to sound from yesterday, right after cnn discovered the hakkens hiding out in ha vana we're outside the marina hemingway, a lot more security than when we were here earlier. we drove, looked for the hakken's boat. back up in the area here and dozens of boats from the united states, none that matched the description from the united states. the last boat, we saw the salty, a much smaller boat and really beaten up. as soon as we got there, started

filming, i saw josh hakken get out of boat. heed asked me who i was, and i said an american reporter, and i asked him who he was, he got back on the boat. we were able to convince them allow me to go up without a camera and speak with josh hakken. they let us go up to the boat. he wouldn't speak to me. his wife confirmed, that both their sons -- >> carol, rare praise from u.s. diplomats for the cuban government's actions. the cuban government immediately contacted the united states, worked with the united states to bring this case to quick resolution. they are praising efforts to keep children out of danger. cuban authorities telling cnn, the couple first came to the attention because of the boat they came in frankly wasn't sea worthy. everyone in this family was lucky to survive such a dangerous crossing, high seas, shark-invest fested waters in a

boat that they shouldn't have been out on the water on. carol. >> really strange and sad sorry. we hope the kids are okay. patrick opman, reporting live this morning. two people in critical condition after a stabbing on a college campus in texas. a series of stabbings. in all, 14 people stabbed at lonestar college, outside houston. school has reopened. dylan quick, a 20-year-old student, has been arrested. and he has admitted to fantas e fantasizing about killing people. we have the latest. good morning, ed lavendera. >> reporter: we are receiving a couple bits of information. dylan quick will make his first court appearance tomorrow, here in houston and we've received his mugshot from the harris county sheriff's department. he was taken into custody yesterday shortly after this attack, where investigators

accused him of stabbing more than a dozen people here on this campus. and it all came to a quick end, because of three students. investigators say dylan quick unleashed a rapid and frightening attack on 14 people as he walked through a hallway of the lonestar college campus in cypress, texas. kathy said it was surreal to watch the horrific scene unfold. she was in a classroom when she heard students creaming. how in the world does someone stab 14 people? >> he uses his backpack as a shield, and he gets close, bumps into them and stabs them at the same time and then out and down the other way. >> reporter: so this guy and walking, leaving a trail of pain behind him? >> just basically stabbing anyone in his way. no pattern, no method. it -- it was completely random. >> reporter: 14 people were wounded in the surprising assault. four had to be air lifted to

hospitals. for many, it was all over before they could figure out what had happened. the wounds were gruesome, a piece of a blade broke off in one victim's cheek. others stabbed in the throat and face as students ran from the chaos, a group of three students went after the attacker. one of them was steven maida. >> the next thing, a guy stabbing girls in the face, i was like, all right, got to go in there, go help, see what i can do. >> reporter: he and two other students started chasing dylan quick and caught up with him near the parking lot. >> i jumped back on him. i jumped on his back, put his hands behind his back. >> reporter: when you got on top of him what did he say? >> right away i give up. and i was on top of him. why did you do this? what made you want to stab these girls? >> reporter: maida said he didn't get an answer. but dylan quick said he had fantasies of stabbing people since he was in elementary

school and had planned the attack for some time. investigators also say dylan quick used a razor type knife and charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. and as i mentioned, dylan quick will make his first court appearance tomorrow here in the houston area, and as far as we understand, carol two victims and they are still in critical condition this morning. >> ed lav aandera, reporting li. and there are sick rhett recording of a strategy session in the office of mitch mcconn l mcconnell. he was considering attacking then potential candidate ashley judd over religious views and battle with depression. >> we can go chapter and verse from her autobiography about, you know, she's suffer suicidal tendencies, she was hospitalized for 42 days when she had a

mental breakdown in the '90s. >> mccobble claims she were bugged and uses a left-wing group called progress kentucky which already smeared the senator's wife. >> as i indicated, last week they were attacking my wife. and apparently also bugging my headquarters. much like nixon and watergate, that's what the political left does these days. >> actress ashley judd released a statement of her own saying we expected nothing less from mitch mcconnell and his camp than to take a personal struggle such as depression, which many americans cope with on a daily basis and turn it into a laughing matter. end quote. coming up, jay-z changes his tune. cashing out once sports investment and go all in for another.

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22 minutes past the hour. a winterlike storm hammering parts of south dakota and it's only going to get worse. ice-covered trees and telephone poles have toppled, leaving many without power. temperatures dropping, snow falling. up to 20 inches to be on the ground by this time tomorrow. recording star jay-z, cashing out a small stake in the nba so he can expand his new sports agency to basketball. according to yahoo! sports. jay-z owns less than 1% of the team, but nba rules allow sports agenci agencies from having ownership. the blue angels have been grounded for the rest of the year. pulled from air shows because of the federal government's forced spending cuts. the pentagon taking the biggest hit in the cuts, and military readiness could also be impacted. from washington to hollywood, everyone weighing in on president obama's proposed

budget. it's true, the president will unveil the plan later today to the delight of comedians everywhere. >> president obama working hard. pushing his new budget plan, president obama, and the obama administration's new budget plan calls for saving billions of dollars by selling off federal properties. did you know that? yeah. folks, get ready for the washington monument, brought to you by cialis. >> that is so wrong. but at least someone is having a good time with it, right? in washington, budgets no laughing matter. the president's budget out today. bria brianna keilar in washington with details. >> reporter: that was pretty funny, but this is serious stuff when president obama officially unveils his budget in the rose

garden at 11:00 a.m. this isn't something, carol, that is going to be enacted. but it's really his now official opening salvo in a new round of discussions about deficit reduction that he will be having with republicans. his message, deficit reduction is important, but not at the expense of investing in things like education, job training, infrastructure, some of the new areas of spending in this new budget. one thing in there, though, that is getting a lot of headlines, chain cpi. you say what is that? a fancy way to talk about adjusting the cost of living increase for social security beneficiaries, so reducing the increase that social security beneficiaries will see over time. republicans like this, generally speaking, democrats do not. take a look how this will affect seniors in a real way over time. chart for seniors who are 65 right now, they will get significantly older than 65. 80, 85, 90, 95.

they will be seeing less in social security benefits than they would if the math was the way it is right now. democrats don't like this. although there are tax increases. 580 billion in tax increases over ten years that republicans don't like and democrats are fans of. a little bit for everybody to hate in this budget you could same. >> we'll wait for the fireworks later on. brianna keilar, many thanks. cnn's exclusive interview with gabrielle giffords. it doesn't bother her to hear gunshots, despite what happened to her. that's not much, you th. except it's 2% every year. go to e-trade and find out how much our advice and guidance costs. spoiler alert: it's low. it's guidance on your terms, not ours. e-trade. less for us. more for you.

back to our special coverage. guns under fire. focusing on background checks. their impact in the arguments for and against them. one huge supporter of background checks former congresswoman began gabrielle giffords, shot head at a mass shooting in tucson two years ago. dana bash visited with gabby and her husband mark, and it's a fascinating interview. >> thanks, carol.

she is obviously a fascinating woman and still has a lot of trouble speaking, but former congresswoman has made considerable progress, especially in the last three months, and, carol, those around her tell us they think it's because she is reengaged in public policy and politics. the sandy hook shooting in december spurred gabby giffords and husband mark kelly to take a stand. >> sandy brook -- >> sandy hook. >> reporter: the brain damage from giffords' own gunshot wound makes it difficult for her to find words. >> sandy brook. >> sandy hook. >> sandy brook. >> sandy hook elementary. it's something we just can't -- you know, 20 first graders. >> died. >> in their classrooms. >> awful. >> the couple originally called for a ban on assault weapons and a limit on high-capacity

magazines. she made a dramatic call to senators. >> be bold, be courageous. americans are counting on you. >> reporter: they now admit there are level limits on what realistic. if you could name the one thing that congress could do to limit the kind of violence you were the victim of, what would it be? >> background checks. >> yeah. certainly. without a doubt. >> giffords has learned to navigate an ipad for e-mail with her left hand, because her right hand is paralyzed. most communicating with former colleagues goes through telle, mostly on the phone. there is irony, you are such a good spokesperson for new laws to curb gun violence because you can't speak very well. >> yeah, i guess it's

maybe it's bad irony. >> it stinks. >> it stinks. >> reporter: no question, gun culture is deeply ingrained in giffords, even after a nearly fatal shooting, she still owns a gun, which her husband uses in target practice, with her looking on. what is it like to hear the gunshots go off? does it startle you. >> no. no. >> i think gabby doesn't remember the gunshot going off the day she was injured. you don't remember that? >>. no. >> it is your hope to shoot a gun again? >> i don't know. >> reporter: not a big priority in your life. >> not really. >> not at the top of the list. >> and carol, we'll have a lot more on the personal side of gabby giffords and mark kelly's life. her recovery and other things that may surprise you, including whether the 42-year-old giffords, actually going through fertility treatments when she was shot two years ago, may try to have a child of her own.

>> will her speech ever improve? >> they don't know. she has something that's called aphasia, not unusual for people who have the kind of head wound she had. remember, the bullet went completely through one side of her brain, and she has made remarkable progress. you know, at the beginning she couldn't even ask questions, never mind say words, and justine, agajus just even again in the past few months, she is able to speak in sentences. she has a speech therapist with her a lot. there were a couple different ones in the days we were there. she is working very hard at it and they hope she continues to progress and be able to speak -- i don't know if she will ever speak like she was able to before. but she will do better than she is now. it's amazing how just one word she can say maybe what you and i say in three sentences, she knows how to do that. >> definitely true.

>> what a wonderful husband she has too. it's really awesome. >> that's true. >> dana bash, thank you so much. our special coverage continues, next hour, looking at an unusual program to stop would-be school shooters before they do anything dangerous. and opening bell, just rang on wall street. many hoping the rally will continue. s & p 500 closer to record territory. alison kosik at the new york stock exchange. good morning. >> good morning to you. gains and roecords continue. new records for the dow and not to be outdone, so is the s & p 500. a new record high again this is kind of becoming the norm. record after record after record. it adds up to big gains. the dow up 12% just this year. and the timing is interesting, because it comes as first quarter earnings season kicks

off and the expectations aren't that great. we see stocks rocket higher. what this is about really is momentum, the path of least resistance is higher. also most economic reports show there is a recovery going on here in the u.s., albeit very closely, in housing, construction, auto sales and spending. also, you have the fed bumping billions into the economy, pushing interest rates down, pushing investors into stocks. one thing i got to mention that happened this morning, the minutes from the fed's latest meeting in march, inadvertently released early yesterday, sent to a group of congressional staffers, those minutes, supposed to be released at 2:00 today. congressional staffers got them early, the fed had to go ahead and release them at 9:00 this morning, so investors are going over the minutes. doesn't seem to be affecting the trade in a negative way. carol. >> that's a good thing. allison cossic, reporting live in this morning. back in a minute. zap technology.

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october 16, 1991 started out of as a normal day for my next guest, and it ended as anything but. a lunch at luby's cafeteria turned tragic as a gunman drove his truck into the restaurant and opened fire, including this woman's parents. she is an author of "from luby's to the legislator" one woman's fight against gun control. >> good morning. >> we found out the senate might begin debate on the floor of the senate on thursday. your thoughts? >> well, you know, background checks are one of those things that sound so good, even to very conservative people. but the fact of the matter is, it's really just a de facto gun owner registration. and, of course, that makes a lot of us very nervous, because that typically leads to confiscation.

>> but gun control advocates would dispute that. why shouldn't there be gun control for everyone. stop one mentally ill person from getting a gun? >> that's the reason. the truth of the matter is, it will pick up a couple of really extraordinarily stupid criminals, you know, it's going to catch a few of those, you're right. but what it really will do is create that -- that registry, that registry of gun owners and historically that does lead to confiscation and i have to tell you, governments have been responsible forfar more murders than the average creep on the street. >> wow. i think some people would dispute that. many police officers -- >> there's nothing to dispute. that's statistical, historical evidence. >> many police officers want background checks, they say it's necessary to do their job.

so police officers, that deal with criminals every day. and a lot of criminals are stupid, quite frankly. >> and they should continue to deal with criminals, but the fact is, the vast majority, in fact, millions of gun owners, are not criminals. look, if guns are the problem, then why don't we see dreadful shootings at gun shows? places where there are thousands of guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens? and why haven't we seen these mass shootings any place -- look, there are two things we can do to make a difference. we can eliminate gun-free shows. these creeps go where they can rack up high body bag counts where people can't defend themselves. and the media can quit showing the bad guy's face, and after the first day, make a pact. say we will never report this

guy's name again. we will blur out his face. take away the infamy they achieve. they are copycats. >> right, a lot of people feel that way. susanna, thank you for joining us. we appreciate it. >> thank you very much for having me. david letterman not mincing words with lindsay lohan. >> yes or no, do you steal stuff? >> do you? >> no. you can have that, that's complimentary. >> oh, thank you. >> we're done? >> what other awkward, mean questions the late night comedian had for the troubled actress. we'll be right back.

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lindsay lohan goes on "letterman" and ends up in the

hot seat. she is going to rehab again next month and she took it on the chin last night. a.j. hammer, david letterman was mean. >> i don't know if he was mean, carol. really, it's david letterman, he asked lindsay pretty much what you would expect him to. with dave, as far as he is concerned, no question is off-limits. he began the interview, perhaps a little perplexed about how she was even able to be on a show last night in the first place. let's watch. >> aren't you supposed to be rehab now? >> do not watch anything that goes on in the tabloids? may 2nd. >> i do. may 2nd. >> yes. >> how long will you be rehab? >> three months. >> how many times have you been rehab? >> several. >> and how will this time be different? what are they rehabbing, first of all? what is on their list? what will they work on when you wo walk through the door? >> we didn't discuss this in the

preinterview. >> do you have prediction problems? >> now you sound like dr. phil. >> yeah, sorry. is it alcohol? drink too much. >> we've discussed this in the past. >> did we really? see, i'm the one having the blackout. >> i am just saying. i ought to be rehab. what is wrong with me? who is taking to you rehab? you don't want to talk about that either, right? >> oh, god. jimmy fallon. >> jimmy hall fallon and you. >> jimmy and i will drive her to rehab. >> and tina fey and lorne michaels. >> when you come out much -- i don't want people to think i'm making a joke of it. i'm not. >> this could be for you. it will be good for you. >> it will. >> tearing up a little bit. god bless you. >> i love you too. >> carol, i think this is classic letterman. put it right up there with his encounters with joaquin phoenix and madonna.

>> i just go back, number one, why did david letterman invite her to be on. she's a troubled young woman, needs to deal with her troubles and poking fun at her problems, whatever they are. and a national audience was laughing at her. >> well, you know, again, it is the letterman show. a comedy show, and always had a great success at sort of balancing what is real and serious with the comedy. she was on to promote scary movie 5, and if laindsay told dave she wasn't going to go there, and he did, that's different. i don't think that happened, because he wouldn't have agreed to restrictions, but when you talk about addiction and those questions, that could be very, very touchy. she could have handled it with a bit more grace, if she had done that, it would have been inconsistent with her. >> he could have asked her the same questions in perhaps a more caring way? maybe i'm a bleeding heart. i don't know. i kind of felt sorry for her.

i don't think anyone should interview her at the moment. so troubled. just let her go take care of her problems. i know. all right. at least we agree on something. a.j. hammer, thank you so much. okay, the s & p breaking records. let's head to the new york stock exchange to check in with alison kosik. >> up, up and away go stocks. dow making new inroads to record territory. the s & p doing it too. keep it mind, records we're seeing right now, they are called intraday records, meaning trading levels. what really counts is the s & p 500, dow, close at these record levels when the closing bell rings. still, pretty interesting to watch. you look at the gains, adding up. the dow up 12% just for the year and the timing of this is interesting, because, you know, we got the lousy jobs report on friday. first quarter earnings season kicked off earlier this week, not expected to be very good,

but, yet -- yet we see records being broken here on wall street. why is that? well, one of the big reasons because the fed has its hand in billion of mortgage backed securities and treasury bonds. what's that is doing is moving interest rates lower. and investors are saying i'm not going to make any money in the bond market, the best game in town is the stock market. you're seeing investors move into stocks, moving their money, creating this wealth effect on the big board today. >> that's a good thing for people with lots of money, but maybe not such a good sign for others who don't have lots of money. >> true, but not necessarily. if you're invested at all. if you've got a 401(k), if you have any mutual funds, the s&p 500 hit these record levels. they're going to see that reflected in your 401(k) in those returns. so even though maybe you're not a day trader if you, let's say you work and you invest in your 401(k), you'll see it in your

401(k). >> a lot of people are contributing to their 401(k). >> exactly. that's where it counts. >> that's right. thanks so much. it's a masters tradition and this year it's bubba's turn. if you're looking to go to school, you deserve more than just flexibility and convenience. so here's a few reasons to choose university of phoenix. our average class size is only 14 students. our financial tools help you make smart choices about how to pay for school. our faculty have, on average, over 16 years of field experiene. we'll help you build a personal career plan. we build programs based on what employers are looking for. our football team, is always undefeated. and leading companies are interested in our graduates. we'll even help you decorate your new office. ok. let's get to work. [ male announcer ] just when you thought you had experienced performance a new ride comes along and changes everything. the 2013 lexus gs. this is the pursuit of perfection.

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time to check our top stories. an american couple sits in a florida jail this morning after

cuba sent them and their two children back to the united states. josh and sharon face several charges including kidnapping. the family arrived in the u.s. early this morning after being spotted by a cnn crew in havana. the children live with their grandparents, the grandparents have legal custody. a circus elephant is expected to fully recover after being wounded in a drive by shooting. the 39-year-old elephant was shot in the shoulder on tuesday morning. it's part of the circus in tupelo, mississippi, a $16,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to an arrest. and former congressman anthony weiner might return to politics. he told the "new york times" magazine he is considering running for new york city mayor. he's already spent $100,000 on polling and research. he resigned in 2011 after tweeting lewd photos of himself. president obama's new budget plan is expected to put a cap on

retirement plans for the rich. it would remove the tax advantages for retirement accounts exceeding $3 million. every day savers aren't likely to notice. but .1% of retirement plans would be affected. a man named bubba gets set to defend his masters title. joe carter here with bleacher report. >> yeah. bubba, he likes to cry. we're not surprised to see him get emotional. he did last year, he won the masters, we watched him win it like a man and then break down like a little baby. here he is with his mom after he won. gushing tears of joy. here we are one year later, he's back in augusta sharing a story about what he did with his infant son caleb just after winning the green jacket. >> i told him i was going to go home and wrap caleb up in it.

>> out of respect, out of honor. i'll finish. i'll try to. out of respect and honor for the augusta national. and one of the great eest clubse have. one of the greatest tournaments out of respect for them, i didn't. do any of my funny antiques, the only thing i did was wrap caleb up in it. >> that's a real moment from bubba watson. he's the defending champ. he got to pick the menu for the champion center which was tuesday night. and bubba went bubba as you see there. chicken mashed potatoes corn, mac and cheese. i love that it's grilled chicken. go all the way with fried chicken. tiger, of course, got to attend that dinner because he's a past champion, won the master four times before. this year he says he's feeling,

quote, very balanced with his life and very comfortable with every aspect of his golf game. beware, the rest of the competition, he's back, he's got three wins so far this year, ranked number one in the world again and he's the overall favorite to win the masters. now the annual par three contest is later this afternoon in augusta, it's always the family affair. you've got current and past players bringing out the kids, bringing up the grand kids. rory mcilroy on the other hand is bringing his girlfriend. she's actually going to caddy for him today. you can check out a complete guide to this year's masters at bleacherreport.com. louisville head men's basketball coach made the flight to new orleans yesterday to watch the lady cardinals take on uconn in the women's national championship game. they did not fair as well as the men did. uconn dominated from start to finish. they crushed louisville.

93-65. most lopsided game ever in a championship. uconn and tennessee now are tied for eight for most national championships. more tears of joy. a lot of tears in today's bleacher report, carol. >> i know. hurts me physically. thanks so much, joe carter. cnn continues after a break.

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happening now in the newsroom, two kidnapped kids taken to cuba back on u.s. soil. and on their way home. >> right now we're just looking forward to getting them home and hugging them. >> their parents in jail accused of kidnapping them. plus, fantasizing about murder, a college student goes on a stabbing rampage. >> i give up right away. and i was just on top of him like why did you do this? what made you want to stab me? and cnn's day long look at guns in america, stopping gun violence without gun control legislation. and the famous blue angel grounded by forced spending cuts. we're live in the cnn newsroom.

good morning, we begin with big overnight developments in the arrest of the florida couple accused of snatching their young sons and fleeing to cuba. this is new video in florida. where josh and sharon hagan are now locked up and waiting to appear in court. that could come at any time. you can see in our exclusive video, it was a cnn crew that first found the family hunkering down inside their sailboat out of havana, cuba, marina. first, let's hear from the grandparents who have legal custody of these little boys. this is what they said after learning the boys were found safe and sound. >> our grandchildren are safe we had an opportunity to talk with them before they left cuba. they're on their way and they'll be home soon. right now, we're looking forward to sitting, hugging them and being with them and getting them home where they'll be safe again.

>> patrick is in havana, cuba. you approached this couple, you spoke to them. what did they say? >> they didn't act like fugitives on the run. they were in this marina, there were boats from around the world, including some from the united states and the son was playing on the top deck. and i wouldn't have thought it was them, but of course, you recognize the boat from the police photographs. and i went up to josh and immediately confirmed who he was. and that's when i knew that cnn had, in fact, tracked down this fugitive couple here in cuba. we're outside where there's a lot more security than were here earlier. and then we were able to look for the boat. back up in this area here, it matches the description.

we saw the "salty," there was one much smaller boat. and as soon as we got there and filming, i saw him get out of the boat and he asked me who i was. i said i was an american reporter and he confirmed who he was. cuban authorities came out immediately, some of them packing pistols and told us we needed to leave. but we were able to convince them before they kicked us out, go up and speak to him. keeping a close eye on him. they let me go to the boat, he wouldn't speak to me, but his wife confirmed to us that both the sons were with them and they're doing fine. now, carol, the big development has been how closely cuban and u.s. authorities coordinated on this in a short amount of time was able to send this family back. and there have been some concerns that maybe the family would find safe haven here. we saw jay-z and beyonce here a few days ago. looks like, certainly from here in havana, that cuban

authorities are much more interested in having american pop stars, movie stars, people who are going to help their tourism industry rather than have dangerous fugitives and today the cuban authorities are receiving some very rare praise from their u.s. counterparts to diffuse what could have been a dangerous situation for these young children, carol. >> patrick oppman reporting from cuba this morning. boy, the dow and s&p 500 hitting record highs yet again. heading even higher, maybe, who knows. alison kosik at the new york stock exchange. >> brand spanking new record highs for the dow and s&p 500. now the dow now sharing the spotlight, seemingly, almost on a daily basis with those record high levels. and the s&p 500 is good to watch because it's a broader index. it gives us a better idea about the market and how your investments are doing, the health of your investments because the s&p 500 includes 500 stocks. many, many more stocks than the

dow which includes just 30 stocks. so obviously the s&p 500 includes a wider range of companies. and certainly mirrors what maybe the 401(k) or your mutual fund is doing, as well. now, stocks in general, stock prices are reflective of consumer confidence, of investor confidence and how companies are doing. but this is an interesting time to see the s&p to see the dow breaking the records. because right now it's first quarter earnings season. and it's not expected to be all that. in fact, it's expected that first quarter earnings are expected to rise only 1.6% compared to 6% during the fourth quarter. now about a fifth of the companies, carol, they've already issued negative guidance. but for some reason, we're seeing stocks move higher. looks like maybe investors know that earnings are going to be bad, they're getting in before the bad news rolls in. carol? >> all right, alison kosik live from the new york stock exchange. it's six minutes past the hour, time to check our other top

stories. new intelligence this morning that north korea could be planning multiple missile launches any moment. that's on top of expectations pyongyang will testify fire two mobile missile from the east coast. japan has beefed up the defenses. in the meantime, south korea has officially accused the north of orchestrating cyber attacks last month on its broadcasters. in all, 14 people were stabbed on tuesday, the school did reopen early this morning. the 20-year-old student, the suspect is under arrest. he's undergoing a psychological evaluation. he told investigators he had fantasies of killing people and that he had planned the attack. he'll make his first court appearance tomorrow. beginning this week, some 13 mortgage companies will begin shelling out money to homeowners who slogged through the foreclosure process. they didn't have to lose their

homes in 2009 or 2010 to be eligible. payouts will range from $300 to $125,000. the biggest check will go to service members whose homes were repossessed while they were on active duty. now for a cnn special this morning. guns under fire all day we're focusing on background checks. their impact and the arguments for and against them. a subject that's on target because, yes, there is a breakthrough in the senate on that very thing background checks. in about one hour, we'll hear from senators joe manchin and pat toomey who will announce a bipartisan deal. it's expected to expand background checks for gun shows and internet sales. it could be up for debate on the floor of the senate as soon as thursday. this all comes as a new cnn/orc poll shows 9 out of 10 americans support background checks. in the meantime, some people have been working to stop mass shootings, especially school shootings before they happen without passing any new laws.

cnn's nick valencia is covering that story. good morning. >> good morning, carol. in the national debate after school shootings, we hear a lot about regulating firearms. but a collaborative program between mental health clinicians and police in los angeles is working on preventing violence before it happens. >> if i were a teacher, i would go mad, i would have an ak-47 disguised as an umbrella. then i will pull the gun out, shoot the kids and then save the last bullet for me. >> and this is from somebody eight years old? >> eight years old. an 8-year-old child. >> for the last few years, they have worked to try to prevent the next school shooting. >> how are we going to impact this kid? >> one of the things they've found is that students who show a strong potential for school violence are getting younger and younger. >> we don't always get the classic school shooter on his way to school with a handgun or semiautomatic, but see kids in significant distress. and we know if we intervene

early, those things will not become so incapacitating in the future. >> while they may not be able to predict a violent outburst, his team looks at indicators, including communications like letters and drawings. >> i never felt that he was a danger to others. he always was more of a danger to himself. >> as the mother of a boy debilitated by mental illness, lynn goodlow saw the warnings science when he was in high school. a surgeon for more than 30 years, she says she struggled with understanding her son's condition. with mental illness, there's no clean diagnosis. >> you identify a problem, you cut it out, done, finished, it's done. but with mental illness, it's a very emotional roller coaster and it is heartwrenching. >> she championed a mental health program for high school students in l.a. it's another resource in the city that many regard as a model in addressing the issue. the lapd works hand in hand with

the l.a. county department of mental health. >> absent this program or the strategy and the dedicated work of the clinicians and officers who work here, we would be another front page news item. >> something he hopes never happens here. >> the program has been effective in identifying individuals on a pathway to violence. and our follow-up has shown they haven't acted out. >> with nearly 700,000 students in the los angeles unified school district, it's a daunting task. >> carol, it is a daunting task, but dr. belize and the lapd say the follow-up is the most important part. last year in 2012, they identified more than 30 students, they say were close to carrying out a school attack because of this program none of them did. >> nick valencia reporting live this morning, thanks. since newtown, we've had a lot of support for clamping down on who could buy a gun and the kind of weapons that can be sold in the united states. but in the past four months, more have expanded the rights of gun owners rather than tighten

them. cnn national correspondent deb feyerick in new york. tell us more. >> despite president obama's urgency to restrict and control access to guns, twice as many states have passed laws making it easier to carry firearms. now five states including new york, connecticut, and colorado have passed some of the strictest gun laws in the country. ten states, however, eased gun restrictions passing 17 new laws. and to better understand this, the reason for this, take a listen to tennessee lawmaker joshua evans. >> the president said we needed to have a national discussion on gun control. and i think he's right. because any time you set up a place where guns are restricted you're telling criminals this is an area that you can come and prey on people. and so those gun-free zones do exactly the opposite of what the opponents think they do. and so we want to -- i think we need to have a discussion. i think we need to work toward eliminating those zones and giving people the ability to carry and protect themselves and their families whenever they go.

and so the president couldn't be more wrong on taking us the wrong direction on taking away what will actually put more people in danger. >> now, tennessee signed a law last month allowing people to carry guns in restaurants that serve alcohol. and the woman behind that bill that took years to pass, her name is nikki goser and she explains why. >> my husband was murdered in front of me by a man that had been stalking me. this occurred in a restaurant that served alcohol when my husband and i were working. and tennessee state law at the time says that you could not have your legal handgun for self-defense inside of a restaurant that serves alcohol. myself being a permit holder, i left my legal handgun, walked in my car and the man that was stalking me did not have a permit, he bought that gun illegally and put six bullets in my husband right in front of me and 50 patrons right in the middle of the restaurant.

>> so as strongly as people feel following sandy hook, others who have also suffered tragedy take it from an opposite direction. tennessee also passed a gun in trunk law. that allows people to take their gun to work as long as they keep the guns locked in the trunk of their car. other states, arkansas, gun owners can carry guns in churches and on college campuses. south dakota, indiana, teachers and other school staff can carry a firearm. and i've spoken to a lot of gun owners, people from the nra, what's happening is really an urban rural divide. gun owners cannot understand why people don't carry guns and those who don't carry guns can't understand why anyone would want to in the first place. and even if you look at the semiautomatic rifles, some people see those as weapons that can cause maximum damage, but others see them as competitive sports rifles. so there really is a cultural divide, carol. >> well, and it'll be interesting to hear a debate on background checks. set to take place, we think, tomorrow. so we'll see if any of this

comes up. and i'm sure it will. deb feyerick, thanks so much. police in ohio are using a new tool to keep school safe. officers can now access every security camera from a laptop inside their cruiser. that means an officer can monitor the hallways, the gym, the cafeteria, parking lots while on patrol elsewhere. cameras even have night vision. officials say the schools save money because it takes fewer officers to keep an eye on them. the blue angels, a powerful promotional tool for the u.s. navy. not even the position flying team can overcome those forced spending cuts.

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it includes a $50 billion stimulus for infrastructure and increases for early childhood education programs. also included controversial cuts to medicare and social security. jay-z is expanding his new sports agency into basketball. that's according to yahoo sports. jay-z owns less than 1% of the team. but nba rules forbid sports agencies from having any ownership. grounding one-third of the air force's fighter jet fleet, that includes the blue angels, the precision flying team. no more air shows, no more performances. casey wian has more for you. >> reporter: since 1946, the blue angels have been dazzling americans with their displays of aerob aerobatics, now the blue angels are grounded. >> the navy has announced the official cancellation of the blue angels 2013 air show season.

we held off on that decision as long as possible with the hope we would salvage a portion of our season. that was no longer possible. >> no longer possible because of the federal budget crisis, ending the performances is expected to save between $20 million and $25 million this year. >> we don't want to jeopardize any of the resources our deployed forces have. you don't want to find out you've been -- you don't have the equipment you have because of an air show so to speak. >> reporter: pilots will continue to fly a minimal schedule at their home base in pensacola, florida, just enough to remain proficient and maintain their aircraft. for now, the navy says all 130 members of the blue angels squadron will keep their job. >> it was very disappointing. we spent a lot of effort into this, into learning the demonstration. but they understand that this is one of many steps that focus efforts toward the deployed forces. >> even before the announcement,

some hosts of blue angel events, including the indianapolis air show canceled their performances because of the federal budget uncertainty. >> we had one $10,000 sponsor drop out yesterday. >> not only will millions of fans miss seeing stunts like these, the navy will lose a valuable public relations and recruiting tool, especially for americans living far from naval court. the air force's thunder birds have also canceled their shows for the rest of the year. both groups hope to be flying again by 2014 money permitting. casey wian, cnn, los angeles. a secret recording of a campaign meeting reveals how mitch mcconnell planned to stop actress ashley judd from taking his senate seat. hmm, who was responsible for recording that campaign meeting? the fbi now wants to know. ó? ??çó

a strange story of campaign politics out of kentucky. ashley judd decided not to

unseat mitch mcconnell next year. but before she filed out, mcconnell's staff was plotting their defeat and the plan was not pretty. we know that because the secret strategy session was caught on tape. and now the fbi is involved. here's cnn's national political correspondent jim acosta. >> reporter: even though he's not up for reelection for more than a year, mitch mcconnell has been gearing up for a muddy kentucky horse race. and an audio recording obtained by "mother jones," mcconnell can be heard in what's considered a typical strategy session. discussing with his campaign advisers back in february. >> later on, one strategist runs through the campaign's opposition research on actress ashley judd who at the time was considering a run for mcconnell's seat. judd has since announced she's out of the race.

>> about she suffered and was hospitalized for 42 days and had a mental breakdown in the '90s. >> the staffers contacted the fbi which is now looking into the matter. a campaign manager told cnn the meeting was in a private closed locked conference room among half dozen long time mcconnell aides like a family meeting. the campaign insists this was no leak, more like a watergate style break-in. >> like a nixonian move. >> mcconnell blamed a liberal group called progress kentucky, which has already smeared the senator's wife. >> the opinion of your campaign staff in kentucky that your office there was bugged and was it appropriate for members of your staff to talk about ashley judd bouts with depression as a potential campaign issue? >> well, as you know, last month my wife's ethnicity was attacked by a left wing group in kentucky and then apparently they also

bugged my headquarters. >> outraged mcconnell's staff would target judd's past struggles. this is yet another example of the politics of personal destruction that embody mitch mcconnell and our pervasiare pe washington, d.c. >> i can never anticipate what would push me over the edge. >> they had her in a web video. even though the senator said back in february he wasn't sizing up his opponents. >> i'm not going to start handicapping who might be an opponent. >> it was not involved in the recording of mcconnell's campaign meeting and the audio came from an anonymous source. a source from the mcconnell campaign said there's nothing wrong with discussing the personal history. it should also be noted mcconnell has not heard responding to the discussion of judd's mental health on the tape. jim acosta, cnn, washington.

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lennox mobile app. lennox. innovation never felt so good. good morning. i'm carol costello, thank you so much for joining us at 31 minutes past the hour. let's take a look at our top stories. an american couple sit in a florida jail after cuba sends them and their two children back to the united states. josh and sharon face several charges, including kidnapping. the family being spotted by a cnn crew in havana. the children will live with their grandparents. the grandparents have legal custody. this morning, a winter-like storm hammering parts of south dakota and it's only going to get worse. ice-covered trees and telephone poles have toppled over and left many without power. now, temperatures are dropping and snow is piling up.

20 inches could be on the ground by this time tomorrow. the university of louisville couldn't complete the sweep. the lady cardinals fall the university of connecticut in the women's final. the game wasn't even close, 93-60, the uconn's women team has eight basketball national championships tied for number one all time. turning now to your money, the dow and the s&p 500 both hitting record highs this morning. christine romans is in new york to tell us what this all means. >> it means if you've got a 401(k), carol, it's doing better. it's been high after high after high for the year. i mean, you're up double digits if you've got a stock portfolio just this year that's, you know, basically reflected in the s&p 500. that's the index, 500 different companies and that's up about 11

points if you look down in the bottom right hand corner of your screen, it's up about 11 points, level of 1,579 or 1,580 or so. his projection is you could see 1,610, which would mean that the stock market could keep going up a little bit, at least reflected in the s&p 500. he said it's been very resilient, carol. and other analysts told me there's no other place to be right now. you don't get money if you put it in the bank. so a lot of people are saying the only game in town still is the stock market. >> that is if you have any money to invest in the stock market. tell us, what is the average amount that people have in their 401(k)? >> well, about half of americans are invested in the stock market. for those invested in the stock market, when you look at the 401(k), fidelity says the arch size of a 401(k) at the end of last year was about $77,300. $77,300, look at people who are a little bit older, 50 to 54, that's an age that needs to be

planning retirement. the number is higher, $111,000 is -- neither of those numbers is enough to retire on, that's the sad news. but the good news is, those balances are 12% higher than they were a year ago today. >> okay. i feel a little better now. thanks, christine. >> you're welcome, carol. >> we'll be right back. that st, it yellows over time. when it comes to your smile, if you're not whitening, you're yellowing. crest whitestrips whiten as well as $500 professional treatments. guaranteed. crest 3d white whitestrips. i took my son fishing every year. we had a great spot, not easy to find, but worth it. but with copd making it hard to breathe, i thought those days might be over. so my doctor prescribed symbicort.

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he has blasted the republican party, says his fellow conservatives need to be more inclusive. and today, rand paul is taking his own message to heart. the tea party movement darling is headed to howard university, the first visit to an historically black college or university. press release says he'll focus on civil liberties. joining me a senior at howard university and director of

political and external affairs for the association. welcome. >> thanks for having me today. >> just give me a sense of, you know, what the sentiment is on campus about rand paul's visit. >> well, there's two different sides to the sentiment. people that are skeptical of the republican party, you know, people of african descent are leaning toward the democratic party. but you also have the people excited and curious on what exactly rand paul's going to talk about today or senator paul. >> i was going to talk about you what do you want rand paul to talk about? >> well, our student government has been heavily involved with attacking the war on drugs and we want to talk to him about that. we understand that the whole fiscal conservatives are very concerned with those movements, as well. >> we often hear that ron paul, rand paul's father had many, many young people supporting him. do you sense that rand paul has that same support among young people? >> it's a little different. i was actually a big supporter

of ron paul, as well. i followed some of his policies. i know a couple of people on campus curious about rand paul. >> what's different between rand paul and ron paul? >> well, some people say ron paul is a big ideologue, he would never compromise. rand paul seems to have a lot of press around him and actually a lot are talking about his filibuster for 13 hours. definitely put his name on the hot spot. >> that impressed a lot of students. >> yeah, definitely impressed a lot of students, a lot of students made jokes about it, but put his name in our ears. >> the republicans really want to embrace the black community. what in your mind do republicans need to say to see more welcoming? >> well, i think some of the issues with the republican party, the media takes extreme remarks and try to paint it as broad based on republican beliefs. but i believe if they focus on things such as reforming the war on drugs or the repeal or try to

make fiscal conservatives and those philosophies more appealing to minorities would go a long way. >> and you know, you have african-american conservative like dr. ben carson, he's become this republican darling, but he's gotten a lot of blowback too. why do you think that is? >> i think a big issue and a lot of people are concerned, they don't want african-americans to become tokenized, and they fear in african communities. >> what is your assessment of ben carson? >> i apologize, dr. ben carson. i've listened to some of his remarks and how he equated homosexuality to bestiality, but it's been a little overblown. >> do you -- i mean, are you open to what he says if he ran for office, would many in the black community embrace him? >> i don't believe so. >> why not? >> well, it depends what type of

office he's running for. but i know he's definitely -- there's a lot of push behind him, but with his more recent comments toward homosexuality, people are wary of him. >> got ya. stanford frazer, thanks so much. >> all right. thank you for having me. >> you're welcome. anthony weiner is reportedly hoping to be the next comeback kid in the world of politics. but, will voters give him a second chance? okay, team! after age 40, we can start losing muscle --

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how old is the oldest person you've known? we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have known someone who's lived well into their 90s. and that's a great thing. but even though we're living longer, one thing that hasn't changed: the official retirement age. ♪ the question is how do you make sure you have the money you need to enjoy all of these years. ♪

the politics of redemption. it's the thing. mark sanford is doing it in south carolina and now anthony weiner is dipping his toe into the pool of redemption. yep, back, anthony weiner the former congressman from new york who tweeted nude photos to a woman who was not his wife and then lied about it and then admitted to it and then was forced to resign. well, anthony weiner is back or he wants to be. let's talk about that. a cnn contributor and senior writer for espn, and ana navaro is also a cnn contributor. welcome to you both. >> morning, carol. >> good morning. according to the "new york times" magazine, are voters willing to give him a second chance or not, that was the question. regardless of what race or

contest, that was the question that this polling asked the voters. so i'll ask you the question, and i'll start with you, anna, does weiner deserve a second chance? >> oh, that's up to the people of new york to decide, it's not up to me. but definitely there's redemption in politics, carol. his name is william jefferson clinton. you know, he went from being a man who had a big, big problem to now being the most popular politician in the united states. i think a lot of it depends on what you do afterwards, ho uh you deal with the crisis and also, by the way, if your wife forgives you or your spouse forgives you. in this case, that seems to have happened. if your spouse doesn't forgive you, you've got a problem. i think that was, you know, john edwards, please, do not think of a comeback, that's not going to work. but certainly, we've seen, you know, sanford, and we've seen in the cases where there have been redemption that the american people are forgiving if the

family has been equally forgiving. >> you have a point there because certainly it seems like anthony weiner's wife has forgiven him. he's playing mr. mom these days while she brings home the bacon so to speak. he stays home and tends to their child. but those pictures -- >> she wants him to run. she wants him out of the house, carol. >> the article says he's been -- the article says he's been stuck at home in a five-block radius for the last 15 months. >> he's lying low, wants to be under the radar until this whole thing blows over. but there's still the pictures out there, how can you overcome that? >> you don't. you don't overcome that. that's just the point. i mean, especially with the internet, they're out there, they're permanent, but the real issue is that the american people and voters, we aren't the ones that hold the redemption card. it's all about the wife. the wife is the only one that could forgive. we're the ones that could decide

whether or not we could forget. you know, forget the scandal, forget the initial lies and decide whether or not this person's the best person to run for mayor and be mayor of new york city. ultimately, that's the question for the voters. the redemption part of it, you know, we abuse that word, but the fact is that only his wife can allow him to be redeemed. and if she feels he's worthy, then he's been redeemed. now the question is, will voters forget? >> you know, he does have a sense of humor about it all. i want to read something to you out of the "new york times" magazine because they did a big article on anthony weiner. despite his troubles, mr. weiner appears to have retained his trademark sense of humor. he's quoted recounting what people say to him on the subway. it's one of the following. oh, you should run, two, man, you got screwed. three, i'm so sorry about what happened to you. and four, you're governor spitzer. >> it's absolutely hilarious. if there's any city that's

willing to let bygones be bygones, it's new york city. maybe san francisco a close second, but certainly new york is not going to sit here and say what he's doing in his private life is going to hinder his ability to be mayor of the city. and prior to the scandal, he was considering the run, he was well-positioned to run. i was talking to several people who were also part of it before the scandal broke. he's still very popular. and let's face it, at the end of the day all he did was flirt with a woman who wasn't his wife. and there's not a lot of people -- >> you call that flirting? >> yeah. a lot of people -- >> that's not a little thing -- >> there are a lot of people in new york who are not going to look at anthony weiner and what he did and judge him so harshly they're going to eliminate him from being mayor. >> come on. >> we can judge him a little harsher. he did a little bit more than that. he lied about it.

he did -- >> yeah, he lied about it. of course he lied about it. >> he sent a woman pictures of his netherregions. that's not normal flirting to me. >> that's flirting 2.0. that is flirting 2.0. >> so i really -- >> anthony weiner runs again, carol, it will be endless amount of entertainment from the late night shows, from the new york papers, and i'm glad he's got a sengs sense of humor. when you're blessed with a name like weiner, you need a sense of humor. >> i'm going to have a serious question to end it all. if something like that happened to me, and i can't envision a day that it would, i don't think i have the intestinal fortitude to show my face in public again. it constantly amazes me that people will do something -- and he did. he cheated on his wife. she was pregnant. come on, he was tweeting these foul, lewd pictures to women.

and then he's going to come back on the redemption tour and say i'm really, really sorry. i don't think i would have the fortitude to do that. what does that say about people in politics? anna? >> they've got more intestinal fortitude or less shame than you do because certainly in politics we see it happen all the time. we can go through a long list. look, running for public office requires a big ego, great deal of self-confidence and requires a great deal of daring, frankly, to put your name out there. i think anthony weiner is a guy who has been known for being very ambitious, very hard driving and obviously if you're spending $100,000 in polling, you are very serious about looking at it. >> but there's also this element of it too. we've already had this conversation decades ago. vanessa williams was dethroned because of lewd pictures of her. madonna was questioned early in her career because of lewd

pictures. both of those women survived those things in the '80s when we were more conservative as a country. you're asking me in 2013 can lewd pictures derail a politician? i'm forced to say no because of what history has already taught us and because of what history has shown us about the american people. it's a disgusting industry, politics is, and so anyone that gives into it, you've already got to raise a eyebrow anyway. you're not going to disqualify them because of pictures. and yes, in my book, carol, he did cheat on his wife. but in a lot of people's opinions, all he did was flirt. >> he just -- you see l.c. just redeemed himself with the women of america. >> partially, partially. >> i'm going to have some problems. >> many thanks. we'll be right back. >> thank you.

53 minutes past the hour. check of our top stories in a few minutes. president obama will talk about his brand new budget plan amongst other things, it's expected to put a cap on retirement plans for the rich. tax advantages would give -- every day savers i should say likely will not see any impact. study says less than .1% of retirement plans would actually be affected.

the 39-year-old elephant was shot in the shoulder on tuesday morning on circus grounds. part of the circus visiting tupelo, mississippi. a reward is now being offered. to toronto where a woman ran down the street like a crazy person when she found out she won $40 million. actually, at first she thought she'd only won $40,000 until her daughter checked online and saw all those zeros. >> work so hard and so much. $40 million is so much. >> oh, i hope we see the dance. there it is, the happy dance. maria carreio knows how she'll

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i'm wolf blitzer in washington. welcome to the "cnn newsroom." we're following two special developments unfolding here in washington right now. the president of the united states is about to step into the white house rose garden with his new budget plan. it's later than scheduled, but as a lot of people say, better late than never. this is a dramatic moment in the president in his effort to try to come forward with new budget ideas. on capitol hill, meantime, there's a breakthrough of sorts when it comes to background checks for gun buyers. that so-called gang of two republican and democrats clearing the way for the senate to at least attempt to start a serious debate on gun violence in the united states. we're watching both of these developments unfold once the president starts speaking in the rose garden. we'll have live coverage of that. we'll also have live coverage of these two senators, senator joe manchin of west virginia, senator pat toomey of

pennsylvania, both of these senators are republican and a democrat. they've worked hard to come up with a compromise on background checks. our chief white house correspondent jessica yellin over in the rose garden. first on the budget, the house has a budget, the senate has a budget, now the president's coming forward, albeit late with his own budget for the fiscal year 2014, which starts october 1st. give us a couple of headlines what the president wants to do. >> when he comes out here, he'll lay out the highlights of a 3.7 plus trillion dollar budget. some of the other headlines in it. it includes $1.2 trillion in spending cuts, some $600 billion in new revenue, and i'll let the president tell you the rest. good morning, everybody. please, please have a