i'd like to see him come pick on me. and you can print that one. that's how badly i feel about what he did to that man. what he did to that man. he's a bully and a punk. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com happening now, severe storms creating big problems across the country. roofs caving in, trees crashing down on roads. no long safe travel for anyone from the blizzards to the thunderstorms to tornadoes. indra petersons is tracking the damage and what's coming up. indra? breaking news overnight as ukraine's president reached peace with protesters after days of demonstrations on the streets. the country's leader promising the violence will end this morning. we are live with the latest. new information this morning on the terror threat facing millions of americans at the airports. why homeland security is once again worried that terrorists are hiding bombs in their shoes. good morning and welcome to

"early start." i'm don lemon. i'll wake up in about an hour. >> i know. it's friday. only one more day to get through, folks. i'm christine romans. it is friday, february 21st, 5:00 a.m. in the east. good to see you. love the red. >> thanks, nice. >> we're on the same wave length this morning. let's begin with the severe weather threat right now. from the gulf of mexico to the midwest all the way to new england, there could be snow, rain, high winds, even hail. happy friday. things could get very dangerous today. >> yeah, certainly could. tornadoes did touch down overnight in illinois. this one was west of springfield and one of at least a dozen reported in that area. survey crews from the national weather service will be out today to look at all of this damage. >> take a look at these dramatic images from nashville, lightning striking a building there as a line of very severe thunderstorms rolled through. there are reports of tree -- >> wow. >> look at that, trees down there and damage to some homes. some 9,000 customers without power in the nashville area at

the height of that storm. lightning being blamed for a fire at a daycare center in mississippi, the damage there extensive. one of the owners was driving in torrential rain with his son when he saw the strike. >> he said, "dad, look!" and i looked back and i saw a bolt of lightning just went straight down. >> no one was here. they had just left five minutes before the lightning hit the building. so, luckily, blessed, no one was here. >> oh, my goodness. talk about terrifying. >> look at the difference just a few hundred miles to the north, right? heavy snow falling on parts of the midwest, including minnesota. these pictures are from the twin cities, where snow fell at rates of up to 3 inches per hour. and in iowa, snow and ice forced this bus off of interstate 80 west of des moines. winds blowing so hard, the bus went sliding. at least three people were hurt. >> and the weight of the snow and ice taking down this garage roof near detroit. the owner keeps classic cars there. they were damaged, but no one was hurt. a fog is the issue southwest of chicago, near joliet, leading

to this 20-car pileup on interstate 57. many of those vehicles were on fire. the highway had to be shut down for hours. at least ten people had to go to the hospital, but the injuries are said to be not life-threatening. flooding is now becoming a concern in many areas as well, as the snow melts and the rain falls. it's called minor so far in chicago, where the pictures are from -- these pictures are from. >> yuck. >> crews are working to clear snow out of storm drains so the water can make its way out of the streets. goodness. >> i know. look at that. >> indra, we just depressed everyone. we're like, it's the end of the world! it's armageddon! >> well, the good news is the weekend's going to get a lot better, but unfortunately, we still have another day of severe weather to make our way through. look at the last 24 hours, 13 reports of tornadoes in illinois. notice as the squall line went through, all the reports we saw, heavy wind and also large hail was seen out there. what are we looking at this morning? look at the difference. on the west coast, you can see storms producing snow today over the rockies, but look how

explosive these storms are. almost looks like they're blowing up as you look at the squall line making its way through. that's how we know these are convective in nature. in fact, we still have severe thunderstorm watches in effect until 9:00 this morning towards the east coast, atlanta also included in this watch. why? we still have the risk for the same type of weather we saw yesterday. it's just farther to the east today. so, just south of d.c., stretching down through jacksonville. where you see the yellow, we're talking about the threat for even thunderstorms out there today. so, a lot of activity going on. taking you, again, towards the upper midwest, talking about blizzard warnings. 4 to 10 inches of snow already fell. another 6 inches of snow additionally possible today. the other concern will be the strong winds. so, any of the snow already on the ground, you have strong winds, visibility very poor as it lifts up that snow and kind of blows it around. but i need to end you on a good note. so, yes, finally, once the storm makes its way through, it does look beautiful. temperatures will be above normal, especially on the east coast. >> look at that. >> but it cools off next week. >> where do we go now? do we go to miami, puerto rico, like, if you want to -- >> i don't know, where are you taking me?

let me know. i'll go anywhere. >> anywhere there's a beach and some warmth, right? >> sure. >> thanks, indra. let's go to ukraine now, where we're looking at live pictures of independence square in kiev. the president is now claiming he now has a deal to end the violent bloodshed that's left more than 100 dead just this week. that a day after security forces opened fire on demonstrators in kiev. the bloodiest violence in ukraine's modern history, killing at least 77 people. some elected officials have now stepped down in protest. and the white house is readying sanctions against ukraine's government. nick paton walsh is live in kiev this morning. nick, there's a lot going on there. we understand there have been shots fired near the square. what can you tell us is happening at this hour? >> reporter: well, according to a police statement by reuters, there have been short exchange of fire, police firing back, they say when they were shot at by protesters. that hasn't really changed what's happened behind me. we're not seeing a repeat of yesterday morning. it seems the incident hasn't

impacted what's going on. what is important is that about four minutes ago, cording to a statement from the presidency, there should have been a deal signed between the president and the opposition. now, that doesn't look like it's happened at this stage. they were supposed to go to the president to actually pen that piece of paper. we don't know what was on it. there have been suggestions yesterday from diplomats that maybe that was going to call early elections, weaken the power of the presidency and the constitution, and also, perhaps, put a new government in place pretty quickly as well. but we're also hearing from german diplomats, french diplomats that really look at that statement from the presidency was premature. perhaps that's the government claiming a deal's in place when there's actually not, but at end of the day, we still have a very energized crowd behind me, frankly, increasingly angry after yesterday's deaths. official numbers now saying 76, but we did hear it could be as close to 100 from one medical official yesterday. i have been down in the crowd walking around them. there were a number of defected police officers from the west of the country, told me they were

there voluntarily and they did seem to be slightly nervous but more or less relaxed, being marched around in kind of the company of people trying to protect them from the protesters there as well. so, still a very tense scene here, extraordinarily well-fortified barricade on the way up the roads from this protest site towards government buildings, and all eyes really also on parliament, too, which is trying to push through a number of measures today, which may further weaken yanukovych. >> we are watching the situation in venezuela, where protesters and security forces are clashing once again after more than eight days of demonstrations against the government of president nicolas maduro. one of the protesters is the latest victim apparently shot during a protest. the opposition lead yer lopez i imprisoned, but apparently charges have been dropped. he's accused of inciting

violence. new information on the threat of shoe bombs on claims. the threat is credible. specifically, a master bombmaker in yemen who has tried to strike the u.s. before. >> this is the guy who was responsible for several of the attempts on u.s. aviation in the last few years. he's ingenious at making bombs. he's constantly trying to come one new ways to get past airport security. so, if al qaeda groups are, indeed, trying to develop a new generation of shoe bomb devices, it's quite possible that al asiri is at the center of this. >> officials say this threat appears to be aspirational at this point, but at least one official tells cnn, look, homeland security would not have put out a warning if the threat wasn't real. when president obama unveils his 2015 budget in the next two weeks, it won't include cuts to cost-of-living increases in social security checks. the white house says that that

gesture of bipartisanship the president made to republicans last year is now off the table, and republicans are already pouncing, insisting the president has no interest in tackling a looming debt crisis. happening today at the white house, president obama will sit down with the dalai lama. the exiled tibetan spiritual leader. they're likely to discuss politics and reports of human rights violence in the chinese-controlled tibetan areas. it is the third time they have met since the president took office. >> and something the chinese authorities do not like to see, when the u.s. sits down with the dali lambie. all right, huge jumpikkei c on gain of nearly 3%, a nice gain for one day. hong kong also closed higher. stocks in europe heading for a third straight week of gains. markets there broke a winning streak yesterday, following disappointing manufacturing data from china, but today stocks look to be coming back. the u.s. stock market on a tear yesterday. the dow, look at that, the dow up 92 points. the s&p closing within 10 points of its all-time high. look, we're within reach of the all -- remember all that concern

about correction, correction, correction? >> yes. >> tech stocks also on fire. the nasdaq closing higher nine of the past ten trading days. political unrest in ukraine being felt in the financial markets. standard & poor's downgrading ukraine's foreign currency because of "the escalation of political turmoil." now, ukraine is not a big economy, $176 billion economy in 2012. but look, ripple effects of the political situation could still be felt there in its economy, in the region. the country also pulling a big sale of bonds designed to help the country pay its debts, shelving that. so, you can now see what's become a political crisis, you can see the economic ramifications inside that country right now. >> the dow up 92, and you said it's a tear. i guess you could call that a tear, right? >> you can. the s&p is within ten points of a record high again, so the market now weathering the weather and weathering those concerns of all the selling we saw in january so far. >> fingers crossed. >> fingers crossed. let's talk about new revelations this morning on why a jury could not decide if a man had the right to kill an unarmed

teen after an argument over loud music. one juror takes us inside the deliberation. and deadly protests on the streets of ukraine creating some changes at the olympics. we are live in sochi to explain. no matter how busy your morning you can always do something better for yourself. and better is so easy with benefiber. fiber that's taste-free, grit-free and dissolves completely. so you can feel free to add it to anything. and feel better about doing it. better it with benefiber. [ car alarm chirps ] ♪ [ male announcer ] we don't just certify our pre-owned vehicles. we inspect, analyze, and recondition each one, until it's nothing short of a genuine certified pre-owned mercedes-benz for the next new owner. [ car alarm chirps ] hurry in to the mercedes-benz certified pre-owned sales event. visit today for exceptional offers. ♪ visit today for exceptional offers. i'm bethand i'm michelle. and we own the paper cottage. it's a stationery and gifts store.

anything we purchase for the paper cottage goes on our ink card. so you can manage your business expenses and access them online instantly with the game changing app from ink. we didn't get into business to spend time managing receipts, that's why we have ink. we like being in business because we like being creative, we like interacting with people. so you have time to focus on the things you love. ink from chase. so you can. i'll believe it when i -- [ both ] oooooh... [ female announcer ] as you get older, protein is an important part of staying active and strong. ensure high protein... fifty percent of your daily value of protein. low fat and five grams of sugars. [ major nutrition ] ensure. nutrition in charge!

♪ every now and then i get a little bit hungry ♪ ♪ and there's nothing good around ♪ ♪ turn around, barry ♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ [ female announcer ] fiber one. ♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ thcar loan didn't start here. it began way, way back. before he had children. before he got married. it started in his very first apartment. see that overdue bill? it arrived after he moved out. and he never got it. but he's not worried. checking his credit report and score at experian.com allowed him to identify and better address the issue... ... and drive off into the sunset. experian . live credit confident.™ [ female announcer ] neutrogena®

pore refining cleanser. alpha-hydroxy and exfoliating beads work to clean and tighten pores so they can look half their size. pores...shrink 'em down to size! [ female announcer ] pore refining cleanser. neutrogena®. live pictures right now from kiev's independence square. we are following breaking news over efforts to end the crisis that's left more than 100 dead in just the last few days. conflicting reports this hour over whether negotiations between the president and the opposition leaders have reached an agreement. we're going to bring you the latest on this developing situation. standard & poor's has downgraded the country's currency. we know it's pulled a big bond offering. this is how the country pays its bills. so, now you have a political crisis and you have financial concerns in this country because of it. meanwhile, the violence in ukraine resonating all the way to sochi, just a few hundred miles away, where some ukrainian athletes have now pulled out of the olympic competition. ivan watson live in sochi for us

this morning. good morning, ivan. >> reporter: good morning, christine. can you imagine what it must be like to be an ukrainian athlete, wearing the colors of the ukrainian flag here in sochi as the death toll in kiev soars above 100 killed, as the streets of kiev have been on fire? it has been an enormous pressure, says the head of the ukrainian national olympic committee, sergei bupka. he gave a very emotional interview to cnn yesterday, describing the despair that the ukrainian national team is feeling. the international olympic committee denied requests for the ukrainian athletes to wear black arm bands in honor of the dead at the various events. instead, what they allowed the ukrainian team to do is to hold a moment of mourning yesterday in the olympic village, where there they were allowed to wear ukrainian arm bands. the head of the ukrainian olympic committee, he also said

that ukraine really needs victory right now, that the ukrainian team can be a symbol of unity at a time when the country itself is so bitterly divided. however, some of the athletes have said that's not good enough. and in fact, a father-daughter pair, it's a coach and one of the slalom skiing athletes by the name of bogdana they say that is not enough and have pulled out of today's alpine skiing event. they posted a message on facebook, basically denouncing the president of ukraine, accusing him of killing unarmed protesters in the ukrainian capital. that's clearly putting even more pressure on the ukrainian team right now, a very difficult time. again, if you can imagine trying to perform at your peak for your country at a time when your country appears to be on the brink of war with itself. christine? >> wow, ivan watson, how

dramatic. okay, thank you, ivan. talk to you soon. back here at home, we're hearing more from another juror in a controversial loud music trial. one of two black women who were tasked with deciding if michael dunn was guilty of murder in the shooting death of 17-year-old jordan davis. croshuna miles tells alina cho in a cnn interview that dunn was guilty of murder for opening fire on jordan davis and his friends in an suv, but they just could not reach agreement on the murder charge. >> i honestly think he was a good guy. i think he is a good guy. i don't think he hates everybody, i don't think he walks around wanting to shoot everybody. i think that he made bad decisions. >> you still think he's guilty of murder, though? >> yes. i really think he's guilty of murder, but not the guilty as charged. i was convinced -- i was honestly convinced that he was

in self-defense until he chased the car down and started shooting more. everybody's making this a white-and-black thing, and it's not. in our decision-making process, nobody brought up not one race, never. it was never brought up. >> prosecutors plan to try dunn again for davis's death. he faces up to 60 years in prison when he's sentenced next month on the attempted murder conviction. in california, a woman is in custody this morning after a deadly attack at a tribal office not far from the oregon border. four people are dead, two others seriously hurt. police not giving out the suspect's name, but they say she opened fire before turning to a butcher knife to continue her attack. the motive so far not clear. happening today in missouri, a middle school football coach is due in court, facing charges he kidnapped and killed a 10-year-old girl, hailey owens. craig michael wood allegedly grabbed the girl off the streets in springfield. he worked in her school district, but police say there is no evidence he knew her.

there's a make-shift memorial now near the spot where the abduction took place. a candlelight vigil is planned for this weekend. new developments this morning in the sexual assault allegations against a former nfl great. a california judge increasing the bail for darren sharper, a 14-year pro football veteran turned tv analyst who's suspected of raping at least eight women in five states. sharper has been told he cannot be alone with women he does not know and cannot leave los angeles county. he's pleaded not guilty to rape charges there. well, think one california is enough? how about six californias? a proposal to divide the golden state is now closer to being on the ballot there. that's kind of odd. a venture capitalist has been given permission to gather signatures for his plan to turn california into north, south, central, west, silicon valley and jefferson. north, south, central, west, silicon valley and jefferson. it wouldn't hit the ballot until 2016. of course, even if voters agree, congress would get final say over admitting any new states to

the union. boy, that could make us 55 or -- >> why not six? california's a big state. >> so, break it up into what, six? >> right. >> so, that would make 55 states because there would already be one? you're the numbers, lady. >> i still only have a journalism degree, so that means i have to think about the math. lebron james bloody on the basketball court, drama playing out as the heat takes on the thunder. andy scholes breaking down all the drama after the break. [ male announcer ] are you so stuffed up, you feel like you're underwater? try zyrtec-d® to powerfully clear your blocked nose and relieve your other allergy symptoms... so you can breathe easier all day. zyrtec-d®. find it at the pharmacy counter. zyrtec-d®. a steel cage: death match of midsize sedans. the volkswagen passat against all comers. turbocharged engines against...engines. best in class rear legroom against other-class legroom. but then we realized. consumers already did that. twice. huh. maybe that's why nobody else showed up.

how does one get out of a death cage? vo: hurry in and lease the 2014 passat for $189 a month. visit vwdealer.com today. [ chicken caws ] [ male announcer ] when your favorite food starts a fight, fight back fast with tums. heartburn relief that neutralizes acid on contact and goes to work in seconds. ♪ tum, tum tum tum tums! heartburn relief that neutralizes acid on contact all stations come over to mithis is for real this time. step seven point two one two. verify and lock. command is locked. five seconds. three, two, one. standing by for capture. the most innovative software on the planet... dragon is captured. is connecting today's leading companies to places beyond it. siemens. answers. [ angelic music plays ]

♪ toaster strudel! best morning ever! [ hans ] warm, flaky, gooey. toaster strudel! [ female announcer ] try new pillsbury heat-n-go mini pancakes. [ nephew ] hi heath. i can't wait to see you win gold! bye. [ male announcer ] there when you need it. at&t. the nation's most reliable 4g lte network. so i get invited to quite a few family gatherings.

heck, i saved judith here a fortune with discounts like safe driver, multi-car, paperless. you make a mighty fine missus, m'lady. i'm not saying mark's thrifty. let's just say, i saved him $519, and it certainly didn't go toward that ring. am i right? [ laughs ] [ dance music playing ] so visit progressive.com today. i call this one "the robox."

the top two players in the nba went head to head last night. it was a bloodied lebron james getting the better of kevin durant as the heat beat the thunder. >> so andy scholes, for anyone who slept through it, bring us up to speed in the "bleacher report." >> hey, good morning, guys. lebron punished the thunder all night, pouring in 33 points, but he paid for it in the fourth quarter. on the drive, serge ibaka whacks him in the face. lebron is able to score on the play, but blood pours out of his nose. lebron would leave the game. he passed a concussion test and was set for an x-ray on his nose. he joked on instagram after the gram with this pic, saying "i might have to just banejames." another huge upset in college basketball. duke/unc is one of the best rivalries in the game and the fifth-ranked blue devils led this one nearly the entire way, but north carolina went on a

huge run in the final five minutes to get the win. and this is something you never s see, tar heel fans storming the court after the victory. even dick vitale thought this was pretty weird. all right in sochi yesterday, we witnessed arguably the worst collapse in u.s. olympic history in the women's hockey gold medal game. usa was up 2-0 with under four minutes to go. canada scored a goal. then, after pulling their goalie off the ice, they scored the tying goal with under a minute left. then in overtime, canada on the power play scores the game-winner, a crushing defeat for the americans. canada has now won gold in four straight olympics. the u.s. men will look to get revenge for the ladies later today when they play canada in the semifinals. they also want to get a little revenge for themselves. canada beat the u.s. in overtime in the gold medal game at the last olympics. both these teams so far in the olympics undefeated. usa, of course, just two wins away from winning gold for the

first time since the miracle on ice back in 1980. >> miracle. >> and you know it, guys, the usa's been waiting for today's game for four years since losing that gold medal game back in vancouver in 2010. so, i'm excited to see what happens there. >> yeah, me, too. >> the puck drops at noon eastern. >> we're all excited, but while you're talking, guess what we're talking about here? remember you and i were down at super bowl -- what is it -- >> super bowl boulevard. >> boulevard. we were talking about how much weight we gained for the super bowl because we were eating everything? >> pizza every day? >> yeah, wings, pizza, and christine says she makes really good wings. how do you do them? >> when you do sports stories, i think about the food i eat while i watch sports and i'm already thinking of how to make the hot wings. >> she does beer. >> i soak them in beer first. >> i soak them in beer after i eat them. thank you, andy. have a good one. >> it's so early in the morning to be talking about hot wings and beer, but we'll do it anyway. top news headlines, everything you need to know for the day, including the weather set to hit

much of the nation, after the break. k... [ meows ] ...and let in the dog that woke the man who drove to the control room [ woman ] driverless mode engaged. find parking space. [ woman ] parking space found. [ male announcer ] ...that secured the data that directed the turbines that powered the farm that made the milk that went to the store that reminded the man to buy the milk that was poured by the girl who loved the cat. [ meows ] the internet of everything is changing everything. cisco. tomorrow starts here. the internet of everything is changing everything. thmortgage didn't start here. it began on her vacation in europe on the day she arrived in london. someone set up a bogus hotspot, stole her identity and opened some credit cards in her name. but she's not worried. checking her credit report and score at experian.com allowed her to better address the issue... ...and move right in. experian. live credit confident.™

♪ aflac, aflac, aflac! ♪ [ both sigh ] ♪ ugh! ♪ you told me he was good, dude. yeah he stinks at golf. but he was great at getting my claim paid fast. how fast? mine got paid in 4 days. wow. that's awesome. is that legal? big fat no. [ male announcer ] find out how fast aflac can pay you at aflac.com. lactaid® is 100% real milk? right. real milk. but it won't cause me discomfort. exactly, because it's milk without the lactose. and it tastes? it's real milk! come on, would i lie about this? [ female announcer ] lactaid. 100% real milk. no discomfort.

happening right now, dangerous storms across the country, people waking up to blizzards, thunderstorms, flooding, and you see it there, even tornadoes. indra petersons tracking the latest for us and what's coming next. breaking news overnight, peace in ukraine? dozens have been killed, hundreds injured, but this morning the president is promising that violence will stop. we also have the very latest on that. new details this morning on a terror threat at the airport. who homeland security believes may be trying to smuggle bombs

on board planes. welcome back to "early start." i'm christine romans. >> and i'm don lemon. it is 5:30, almost 5:31 in the morning. this morning we are following breaking weather news. most of the country facing some major weather, severe weather threat. snow, rain, high winds, hail all in the forecast, and we could see storms that usually happen in the spring happening right now. >> wow. >> and from the midwest to the gulf of mexico to new england, it is all over. overnight, tornadoes touched down in illinois. this one west of springfield, one of at least a dozen reported in that area. today, the national weather service crews are going to be out investigating just what happened. severe storms also hitting nashville, tennessee, where you can see the lightning -- >> this pictur is wild. >> -- hitting the top of the building, right? if you look close enough, it will do it again. there it is right there. the results of intense thunderstorms. there are reports of trees down and damage to some homes. some 9,000 customers were without power in the nashville

area at the height of this storm. and lightning strike said to be the cause of this fire that seriously damaged a daycare center in mississippi. one of the owners was driving in torrential rain with his son when he saw it happen. >> he said, "dad, look!" and i looked back and i saw a bolt of lightning just went straight down. >> no one was here. they had just left five minutes before the lightning hit the building. so, luckily, blessed, no one was here. >> wow. >> awful. in minnesota, it wasn't rain, but snow. oh, minnesota, i'm so sorry for the winter you've had. intense, heavy snow at rates of up to 3 inches an hour leading to whiteout conditions in the twin cities and elsewhere. >> we haven't had it easy in the new york area as well. >> no, everybody's just been hammered. the roads slippery all the way around here. look, this is iowa, where this bus was forced off the road west of des moines. and this garage in detroit taken down by all the weight of the snow and ice that's fallen for weeks. the owner keeps classic cars

there. the cars were damaged, but luckily, no one was hurt. all right, this is thick fog, blamed for this accident not far from joliet, illinois. a 20-car pileup on interstate 57 that left the highway shut down for hours. many of the cars and trucks were on fire, and at least ten people had to go to the hospital, but the injuries are said to be not life-threatening. and in chicago, crews desperately trying to move snow away from storm drains to deal with the problem now of flooding. water backing up on to streets as the snow melts and rain falls. so far, the flooding there is being called minor. indra petersons has the latest, but indra, it's a good day to stay at home, if you can, right? >> yeah, the severe weather is not over with yet. this is just the last 24 hours. i mean, this puts it into perspective as you watch the wall making its way through. we had 13 reports of tornadoes in illinois. but notice all the wind damage and hail reports we did see, and it's very easy to see when i show you the water vapor loop, you can actually see how explosive in nature these storms are. and they are still out there. that is the concern moving

forward as we go throughout today. already watching severe thunderstorm watch into the southeast. atlanta, you are under the gun for this. looks to about 9:00 a.m. or so we'll still have that watch in place. i showed you the swell progressing to the east, so just south of d.c., all the way down towards jacksonville, we have the biggest threat, again, for more severe thunderstorms. but also thunderstorms really lining the entire eastern seaboard today, so be monitoring that, look for some rain making its way through. we know now that is not the only story. take another look at the upper midwest, talking about snow still. 6 to 10 inches already fell. strong winds are out there, continuing to blow snow around and reduce visibility, but additional snow will be falling. so, another 6 to 10 inches could be still out there today. so, definitely, those blizzards and winter weather advisories. otherwise, i have to owned a good note, so i'm sticking with this, guys. beautiful as we go through the weekend. temperatures are going up. so, heads up, next week they go back down. >> i know. >> so, enjoy the 24 hours or more. >> what's 52 degrees going to do to the 4-foot snow in my front

yard? >> the rain as well, and that's flooding. >> i took away your good note, sorry. >> yeah, you did. >> try again next hour. we've got to get to breaking news now. it's in ukraine this morning. you're looking at live pictures from kiev's independence square where there may be a tentative deal to end the violence, maybe a tentative deal. that violence left more than 100 people dead in the last few days. nick paton walsh live in kiev this morning. nick, what is the latest? >> reporter: well, we were expecting half an hour ago, according to a statement from the president, that he was going to sign a deal with the opposition to perhaps end this crisis, but no sign of that as yet. in fact, what we're hearing instead is signs from european diplomats who have been negotiating that deal, that perhaps he jumped the gun with that statement and they've had a break in talks. they're going to resume later on at some point. there was a report from the ukrainian police of shots fired near the parliament. i have to say, we haven't seen much evidence of that on the ground. if there was an exchange of

fire, you'd know about it in the atmosphere amongst the crowd. that's purely on the basic statement, though, from the police. we saw also down in the crowds reasonably large number of police officers who have defected, it seems, from the rest of the country, brought through the crowd. there was a cheer in the crowd for their presence here. people still waiting, though, for a public state from victorivictoktor yanukovych himself. he's certainly under pressure here. perhaps that premature statement about a deal may have added on to the pressure here as well. we're also hearing, oddly enough, that ukraine isn't going to be getting involved in a $2 billion bond deal with russia. that was part of the moscow bailout to keep the country afloat. that may be on the rocks. that's a sign, perhaps, they're moving westward, rather than eastward at this time, where certainly they want to enflame the crowd by cozying up too much to moscow, but the hours ahead are absolutely vital. can they reach a deal? and more importantly, if the deal doesn't mean the departure of the president from his job, is the crowd going to buy that?

now to the latest in venezuela, where protesters and security forces are clashing once again. the death toll in more than a week of demonstrations there has now reached six. a supporter of the president, nicolas maduro, was apparently shot during a protest. the opposition leader, leopoldo lopez, is jailed, but murder charges against him have been dropped now. the government accuses lopez of inciting the violence. this morning we're finding out new details about what was behind a government warning over possible shoe bombs on planes. u.s. officials tell cnn the threat is credible and is linked to al qaeda's branch in yemen, specifically a master bombmaker there who's tried to strike the u.s. before. >> was responsible for several of the attempts on u.s. aviation in the last few years. he's ingenious at making bombs. he's constantly trying to come up with new ways to get past airport security. so, if al qaeda groups are, indeed, trying to develop a new

generation of shoe bomb devices, it's quite possible that al asiri is at the center of this. >> officials say the threat appears to just be aspirational at this point, but at least one official tells cnn homeland security would not have put out a warning if the threat wasn't real. we now know more about the obama administration's plans for its next budget, including that it won't offer to make cuts to cost-of-living increases in social security checks. the administration offered that last year. it was a gesture of bipartisanship to republicans, but it's now off the table. republicans say it shows this president has no interest in tackling a looming debt crisis. and at the white house today, a sit-down between president obama and the dalai lama. the exiled tibetan spiritual leader and activist, a meeting almost certain to anger china. the two are expected to discuss politics and reports of human rights violations in the chinese-controlled tibetan areas. it is the third time the two have met since the president took office.

>> and the dalai lama a popular figure in the united states, but there's always a polite request from china not to have the united states president sit down with him, and the president does anyway. stocks in asia and europe higher now, a great end to the week for stocks in asia, japan up nearly 3% today, european stocks heading for their third straight week of gains. u.s. stocks seem to be heading in the same direction if all things hold. futures are higher following yesterday's gains. the dow broke a two-day losing streak. nasdaq back on its hot streak. and the s&p 500 now ten points away from an all-time high. facebook, we've got to keep talking about this, the biggest deal ever, $19 billion for the messaging app whatsapp, creating buzz around tech stocks. the nasdaq higher 10 of the past 11 days. facebook closed higher yesterday, even after announcing it would spend all that money for that app. facebook closed higher yesterday. watch the s&p 500 today after tanking in january. the s&p, look at that, it's had a huge rebound this month, now ten points from that all-time high set on december 31st. >> so, you think the whatsapp

thing was worth it? i'm thinking nothing is worth $19 billion. >> i was in the silicon valley, san francisco when that news broke and a lot of people were saying $19 billion, are you kidding me? that's crazy! it's like a third of facebook's cash to that deal. but what if someone else got that app? it'd be 450 million active users growing gangbusters and it would be outside of facebook. facebook needs it and needs to make sure no one else had it. >> all right, first time someone said that to me, i was like, $19 billion. >> look, that's bigger than the annual budget of nasa. look at that, a company that didn't exist five years ago. wow! >> there you go. new jersey's embattled governor heading south to washington for a key meeting that could help shape his presidential chances. we're going to break it all down, next. [ sniffles, coughs ] shhhh!

i have a cold with this annoying runny nose. [ sniffles ] i better take something. [ male announcer ] dayquil cold and flu doesn't treat all that. it doesn't? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus fights your worst cold symptoms plus has a fast-acting antihistamine. oh, what a relief it is! i've quit for 75 days.

15 days, but not in a row. for the first time, you can use nicorette... even if you slip up... so you can reach your goal. [ male announcer ] now, quit on your own terms with nicorette or nicoderm cq. [ female announcer ] only aveeno daily moisturizing lotion has an active naturals oat formula that creates a moisture reserve so skin can replenish itself. aveeno® naturally beautiful results. ♪ ♪

be powerful... ...connect. verizon. you want a way to help minimize blood sugar spikes. support heart health. and your immune system. now there's new glucerna advance with three benefits in one. [ male announcer ] new glucerna advance. from the brand doctors recommend most. this morning, new jersey governor chris christie is getting ready for his next big test, a day after avoiding any bridgegate backlash at the first town hall of the second term. christie is heading this weekend to washington, a trip with major

implications for 2016. here to tell us more about it is cnn's political editor, paul steinhauser, who's in washington this morning. good morning! >> good morning. >> finally, after being canceled twice, he finally got to have his town hall we were all waiting for. >> reporter: he sure did, his first town hall in a number of months. he's coming right here to the nation's capital, and he's got important meetings. the republican governors association today and tomorrow here in d.c. remember, christie took over as chairman of the rga three months ago, and many see that move as a stepping stone to a possible run in 2016 for the white house. you know, for christie, this is his first get-together with his fellow republican governors since the george washington bridge controversy went viral in early january. and the key here is, we'll see how he's received by his colleagues. one thing, though, that may make his colleagues happy, his fellow governors, a republican governors association official telling me christie has helped raise $18 million since he took over as chairman three months ago. that's not too shabby. christie known as a veracious

fund-raiser. also, rick perry in town. he's a republican governor as well, we know that, from texas, here for those meetings. and you know what? like christie, he's also thinking about making a run for the white house in 2016. if he does run, he and christie, well, they could be rivals. and catch this. listen to what perry said last night with wolf blitzer in "the situation room" about chris christie. take a listen. >> we're on the same team, we're working together, but let me tell you something, he's a competitor, and i'm going to go and compete against him. i'm going to go against and compete against rick scott. i'm going to compete against bobby jindal, i'm going to compete against nikki hailey. i'm going to compete against jerry brown and pat quinn, and those guys are a little easier to compete against because of the policies they put into place. >> whoa, whoa, what's he talking about there? is he talking about 2016? it sure sounded like him and christie going at it in 2016, but he said no, no, no, i'm talking about 2014, helping more republican governors get elected. we'll see. stay tuned if rick perry runs or not. guess where perry will be next

week? iowa. >> it's cold in iyt wf. we keep showing pictures of how cold and snowy it is in iowa, but iowa's hot, hot, hot for politics, right? >> reporter: you got it. >> all the talk about 2016 has been about hillary. and you know, it's so interesting, because last night on "piers morgan," walk us through what john mccain says about the hillary chances. >> reporter: this raised some eyebrows. they were talking about 2016, of course, and whether clinton may run or not. listen to john mccain. >> i would bet, my friend, as much as i hate to admit it, that right now, this is why we have campaigns, but right now, if the election were tomorrow, hillary clinton would most likely be the president of the united states. >> yeah, how about that? but you know what he said? hillary clinton wouldn't be my candidate. of course, he's a republican, she's a democrat. one more thing, the first lady on "jimmy fallon" last night. take a listen. oh, no listen, sorry. no sound there. but guess what? her and jimmy fallon have teamed

up once before for the healthy eating initiative she does. and she was on "jimmy fallon" last night. they did skits, talked serious things about health care. and you know what? maybe she should run for president. what'd you guys thinks of the performance? >> i thought it was really good. obviously, the first lady was in town yesterday doing "jimmy fallon." look at that. >> i think she's got a great sense of humor. >> but she was down in the bowery yesterday doing an initiative for water. >> really? >> called the drink up campaign, yeah. and i went down there. she was gone already, but i went down and checked out art. lots of young people. she's trying to get young people to drink more water, so -- >> and sign up for the health care law. >> absolutely. >> that's another thing she's trying to get people to do. >> thanks, paul. happy friday. a look at what's coming up on "new day." here's chris cuomo. good morning, chris. >> hi, chris. >> how are you doing? don't you two make a nice, fetchifetc fetchifetc fetching color this morning. >> no, we're not making a call for the stock market by any stretch of the imagination. >> always about the stock market with you, romans, well, not here on "new day."

today we'll obviously be dealing with what is hitting too many people for, you know, what, the 15th time? severe weather. we're not just talking about plummeting temperatures, we're talking about literally the full range of bad stuff. we've got tornadoes, we've got snow and rain snarling up traffic. we'll take you through what is happening where. we're also going to focus on ukraine. here's why. you remember the syria situation. it starts about being all about them and the push for democracy and the u.s. monitoring and the u.s. pressuring for the right type of force to be used and it to be as peaceful as possible. then it starts to escalate and we wind up on the brink of war? that's happening in ukraine. they say they found a deal, but we're only hearing that from one faction. what's happening on the other side? well, you're looking at it. if this is happening in the streets, will anything really get better if the u.s. doesn't get involved? if so, what should the involvement be? general wesley clark understands this region of the world very well. he's going to break down the conflict and what the stakes are for the u.s. then we'll turn back here to the u.s. and talk about something very central to our

culture, the nfl. football is the most popular sport in the u.s., it's not even close. there's a battle about what the culture is in the nfl. are they too rough? is it a culture of violence? most recently, we have the ravens running back. he's a local product from here in new york. he was a college standout. ray rice supposedly, allegedly knocked out his fiancee before dragging her off an elevator. there are mixed allegations here. both were arrested, originally. and then you have former nfl star darren sharper, who's facing multiple rape allegations. this is obviously just the latest legal trouble, but is there a problem in this league? is there a character issue about who's being allowed to become an nfl player and star? or is it just about highlighting the worst, but on average, the league is as good or better than the rest of society? this is the discussion we're going to have today. >> all right, we'll see you in a few. thank you, chris. >> we'll be right back. ♪ turn around ♪ every now and then i get a little bit hungry ♪

♪ and there's nothing good around ♪ ♪ turn around, barry ♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ [ female announcer ] fiber one. ♪ ♪ so you can have a getaway from what you know.nack ♪ so you can be surprised by what you don't. get two times the points on travel and dining at restaurants from chase sapphire preferred. so you can taste something that wakes up your soul. chase sapphire preferred. so you can. (voseeker of the sublime.ro. you can separate runway ridiculousness... from fashion that flies off the shelves. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle... and go. and only national is ranked highest in car rental

customer satisfaction by j.d. power. (natalie) ooooh, i like your style. (vo) so do we, business pro. so do we. go national. go like a pro. lactaid® is 100% real milk? right. real milk. but it won't cause me discomfort. exactly, because it's milk without the lactose. and it tastes? it's real milk! come on, would i lie about this? [ female announcer ] lactaid. 100% real milk. no discomfort.

breaking overnight, an attack at a tribal office in california has left four people dead, and a woman is in custody this morning, accused of opening fire and then using a butcher knife to finish out her assault. police are not giving out the suspect's name and the motive is so far unclear. autopsies are set for today. it's now the law in arizona, a controversial measure that would allow people to cite religion as a defense against claims of discrimination. the republican sponsors of the bill say it allows business owners to refuse service to gays and others if it goes against their religious beliefs. they claim it's a first amendment issue. democrats call it an outright attack on the rights of gays and lesbians in arizona. the bill goes to jan brewer who vetoed a similar measure last year. marijuana becoming legal business in colorado and washington state, and that's good news for the government. we'll tell you the tax benefits

of legalization in "money time," next. are you still sleeping? just wanted to check and make sure that we were on schedule. the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers. so i can reach ally bank 24/7, but there ar24/7.branches? i'm sorry, i'm just really reluctant to try new things. really? what's wrong with trying new things? look! mommy's new vacuum! (cat screech) you feel that in your muscles? i do... drink water. it's a long story. well, not having branches let's us give you great rates and service. i'd like that. a new way to bank. a better way to save.

ally bank. your money needs an ally. peoi go to angie's listt for all kinds of reasons. to gauge whether or not the projects will be done in a timely fashion and within budget. angie's list members can tell you which provider is the best in town. you'll find reviews on everything from home repair to healthcare. now that we're expecting, i like the fact i can go onto angie's list and look for pediatricians. the service providers that i've found on angie's list actually have blown me away. find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. a steel cage: death match of midsize sedans. the volkswagen passat against all comers. turbocharged engines against...engines. best in class rear legroom against other-class legroom. but then we realized. consumers already did that. twice. huh. maybe that's why nobody else showed up. how does one get out of a death cage? vo: hurry in and lease the 2014 passat for $189 a month.

visit vwdealer.com today. try zyrtec-d® to powerfully clear your blocked nose and relieve your other allergy symptoms... so you can breathe easier all day. zyrtec-d®. find it at the pharmacy counter. mayo? corn dogs? you are so outta here! aah! [ female announcer ] the complete balanced nutrition of great-tasting ensure. 24 vitamins and minerals, antioxidants, and 9 grams of protein. [ bottle ] ensure®. nutrition in charge™.

good friday morning to you!

welcome back to "early start." it's "money time." stocks look like they could end the week higher. futures are up. there were gains in europe and asia. and you know what? the stocks in your 401(k) most likely track the s&p 500. look at that chart. the s&p this morning is within ten points of an all-time high, record territory again for that broadest gauge of the stock market, after all that concern in january. here we are again. looking at ukraine, you've seen these pictures, political unrest there now being felt in financial markets. ukraine has canceled plans to raise $2 billion by selling bonds to russia. without this deal, there's concern the country won't be able to pay its bills. standard & poor's downgraded ukraine's foreign currency because of "the escalation of political turmoil." it's less than a $200 billion economy, so small relatively speaking, but really a big impact for the people who live there. in this country, legal pot sales in colorado will mean money in the state's coffers, but how much? the state expects to take in $184 million in tax revenue from

marijuana sales in the first year and a half of legalization. what will they spend it on? teaching kids to stay away from p pot. and to treat people who are abusing pot. marijuana became legal for recreational use in colorado on january 1st. pot is heavily taxed, three times its tax when it's produced, when it's sold and when it's bought. that revenue will be used to treat i'm 46 years old. and i have never had a winter like this. >> breaking overnight, extreme weather is back. blizzards whipping up, traffic a air travel snarled. and guess what? the misery, not over yet. we're tracking it all. word of a deal in ukraine but neither side is standing down just yet.

we're live in kiev. heartbreaking loss. the u.s. women's hockey team falls to canada in overtime but the men get their chance to exact revenge today. your "new day" starts right now. good morning. welcome to "new day." it is friday, february 21st, 6:00 in the east. right now, dangerous, potentially deadly storms. severe weather alerts in effect this morning from the muscle of mx -- gulf of mexico all the way to new england. that's what i'm leading you hear, though. those are winds that are being tornado whipped. take a look at that. it's a twister in illinois knocki