well as on facebook and twitter. from the left i'm sally cohn. >> i'm newt gingrich. "erin burnett outfront" starts right now. breaking news from the white house tonight. we're just learning about an hour-long phone call boo between president president obama and president putin. the showdown of the ages now calls for the chairman of that committee to step down. the man at the center of the controversy is out front tonight. an emotional breakdown at the oscar pistorius trial today. the blade runner sobs as witnesses describe detail his girlfriend's death. let's go "outfront."

good evening, everyone. i'm erin burnett. the white house announcing that president obama and vladimir putin spoke for an hour this afternoon. we'll go to the senior white house correspondent for the details in just a moment and also speaking to the spokeswoman for the state department. but, first, the latest developments in the crisis in ukraine itself. the united states steps up the pressure on russia because today the pentagon sent six fighter jets to the bolic region to help boost the u.s. presence there. president obaobalma signed a sanction for groups responsible for the crisis in ukraine, that did not apply to mr. putin. another significant development today. the crimean parliament voted to separate from ukraine. that is ahead of a march 16th referendum in crimea where the voters will vote whether to split from ukraine. president obama denounced that referendum strongly today. >> the proposed referendum on

the future of crimea will violate the constitution and violate international law. any discussion about the future of ukraine must include the legitimate government of ukraine. >> continues to solidify its position with the military including a sunk russian ship and the region remains on edge as russia conducts large-defense drills from the ukrainian border tonight. i want to go to the white house first. jim acosta is there. what can you tell us? this just coming right before the show that the president and vladimir putin had spoken for an hour. what did they talk about? >> well, they talked about the steps that the president took today that executive action that he signed basically authorizing sanctions that may be coming against a russian and ukrainian targets. the visa bans that are aimed at also russian ukrainian targets and the president also said, once again, that he believes that this invasion of crimea is

a violation of ukraine sovereignty and he made that clear in the phone call, according to a readout from the white house. but one other thing that was interesting to note in this readout that we got in just the last several minutes and that is that the president laid out the off ramp, once again, to president putin. saying that what he is recommending at this point is that russia and ukraine hold direct talks over what is happening in crimea and international observers can come in to make sure everything is on the up and up and something that is also interesting, erin, if you look at the kremlins version of this readout and we have a rough translation of it, it mentions that the russian's president stressed the paramont importance of russian/american relations to secure stability in the world and this is just a rough read of it that putin is perhaps responding to some of the pressure that is being brought to bear by the white house and by the international community. >> jim acosta, thank you very much. i appreciate that.

let's get more on this call, jen is the spokesperson for the state department. she's out front tonight. what more can you tell us? you heard the readout from the white house, but jim acosta's interpretation. vladimir putin talk about the central nature of the relationship on the world stage in terms of trade. do you have a feeling and what is your view of this call? is this positive? is vladimir putin going to go with a dip lomaltic solution? >> engagement is an incredally important part of this decision. whether president obama speaking with president putin. they had a couple calls this week. secretary kerry on the ground in paris and rome and he has been engaging with eu foreign ministers talking about our unified path forward. he gave a good summary there. the important there is, look, if russia continues down this path there are going to be consequences and there are going to be costs. you saw us announce some of those costs today. there is an off ramp and steps they can take and, of course,

what the president conveyed today. >> the one thing i wanted to ask you about, jen, the whole issue of legitimacy. you heard the president talk about a legitimate government and the one thing when i talked to people outside the united states they questioned the handling of this, the whole question of the legitimate government in ukraine. no one denies the toppled government was a bad government, "bad guy." why is the united states supporting a government that is not democratically elected when it replaced a democrat that was democratically elected? >> there is a lot of context there. yanukovych left and this is a temporary solution here. the key piece here is that they're all working towards elections in may and what we've seen from this new government, from the legitimate government they're taking steps to benefit the country of ukraine and the people of ukraine and supporting them in those efforts. >> this issue of legitimacy.

no one is saying that yanukovych was a good guy. according to freedomhouse.org that rates countries on corruption and democracy. a lot of countries along the former soviet border that are a heck of a lot worse. uzbekistan all rank the loetest in the world. ukraine is better than all of them. so, why is this situation suddenly so significant when the united states finds it possible to ignore these other terrible governments every other day of the week? >> i don't think that's true. we do all sorts of reports and calling out of yilissues and ths we're concerned about every single day. this is a case where russia violated international law by invading ukraine. our relationship with ukraine is incredibly important and stability in the region is incredibly important and it's in our interest and russia's interest to have a stable and prosperous ukraine. so, of course, we're invested in

it. just like our european partners are, as well. >> if you talk about this invasion and then it would seem, again, people say to me, if crimea is asking for self-determination, the right to vote and choose what it is a part of, whether it's a part of ukraine or a part of russia. how is it that the united states, the president says today that that is not legitimate. they can't do that. how can the u.s. be on the side of choosing their own destiny? >> it's not the united states determining that. ukraine's constitution doesn't determine that. it relates to ukraine's constitution. crimea is a part of ukraine. not a separate entity. the point here as the president said today that the government needs to be a part of any discussion and, obviously, any decision needs to be abided by and abide by the constitution. >> but isn't that the same constitution that got thrown out by, i don't know what word. i understand you don't want to use the word coup but when the people kick the elected guy out? >> no, it's not. kind of agreement that was put

together or agreed to in practice but yanukovych never signed it and he fled the country. the institution that has been around for quite some time and i'm not aware of any constitution in ukraine's history that would allow for one region to vote on a referendum to be a part of another country. >> all right, jen, thank you very much. we appreciate you taking the time. the most influential members of the republican party gathered today. why they believe it will help them win the white house. a gambler loses $500,000 in one night and now he wants the casino to give him his money back. yeah. you're going to hear him explain why. and the bladerunner's breakdown. oscar pistorius tears up in court. >> i saw there was blood and hair and what looked like brain tissue intermingled with that. means advanced technology.

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where did the republican party go wrong? a lot of different theories at cpac the largest annual gathering of conservative leaders and activists. >> we have to stop letting the media define who we are and what we stand for. >> conservatives can't afford or expect to win elections by default. we need to win elections with a mandate. >> we put our head down, we stood for nuthing and we got

walloped. >> the way the left tells it, the republican party is in this big massive civil war. tea party versus establishment libertarians versus social conservatives and conflict and discord. look, i'm irish. that's my idea of a family reunion. i don't see this great divide in our party. what i see is a vibrant debate. >> a vibrant debate. joining me now cnn political common trarts and anna nuvara on the right. let me start with you. you were in the room today for those speeches. vibrant debate or divided party? >> i think it's a little bit of both, but i think what paul ryan was trying to say and i agree with this we need to make it a big tent party, not only when it comes to women, minorities and also when it comes to ideas and that we need to lead as a party of ideas and raise diversity of

thought. you know, that was the big message that i took out of paul ryan that i took out of most of those cpac speeches. >> where is the diversity of thought, though, cornell? >> well, it's hard to do. i mean, i've gone through tough primaries before. but primaries is hard to do because strategically you don't actually want to let a lot of issue contrast between you and the pac because then they can attack you. i think you saw that with romney last time around. you won't see a lot of issue contres between republicans and what they do they double down on the red meat issues that really play to the base that hurt them and hurt them in general elections. >> which can hurt them. speaking of being hurt in general elections, ana, governor christie hasn't been invited because he was seen as liberal northeast governor and people are looking into this whole issue with george washington bridge and in a sense galvanized the base and he is being picked on by the media. but, yet, a poll today from abc

news/"washington post" would you vote for chris christie in 2016? among republicans, definitely not, 30%. what is the deal with chris christie? is he the second coming any more or not? >> i think, look, i think chris christie is a governor. is a republican governor who has a strong record of some actions that he's taken at the state level. he was there today wearing several hats including his hat as chair of the republican governor association and highlighting some of the actions taken by governors across the country and also that they are not part of the washington dysfunction. that unlike washington, that engage engages, they actually have to get things done. he also talked about having to stand for something, not just being the party of no, but being the party of something, of ideas and offering alternatives. yeah, he did talk about the first and that, of course, gets a lot of applause and that crowd and, you know, he's been feeling

the heat from the press, as you well know. >> yes, he certainly has. cornell, what about the scene, though, talking about going to the base. the minority leader mitch mcgonal gomcgone al mcconnell gives it to retiring senator coburn and my understanding is there was no explanation and just a gun gets handled over and turns out a lifetime achievement award from the nra. >> it is an odd thing because i think having a gun open like that is illegal, but that aside. >> it was maryland. it was maryland. >> okay, good. so, he won't be arrested. but that aside, again, it really does sort of play to the base, although the problem is mitch mcconnell is in a tough sort of situation with a primary, too. so, he has to right even further to the right and try to reach that base. the problem with mitch mcconnell, it seemed awkward and doesn't seem natural and clearly that room doesn't love him. >> what about, ana, be honest,

the fact that the republican party has some people that they cannot distance themselves from. i'm going to be diplomatic about it. one of them was there today, donald trump. i know he gives a lot of money to these guys so he's important but i wanted to play part of his speech where he talked about the president. >> his disapproval rating is 54%. when you think of that, it's sort of inconceivable. i mean, we're getting into jimmy carter territory. and i never thought i'd see anything like that, again. i lived through that time. and it was not a good time. and we're pretty close. i think maybe by next month we will have surpassed the late, great jimmy carter. >> just to clarify jimmy carter's grandson did weigh in he is not the late jimmy carter. jokes aside, ana, just go ahead and respond. this is your party. >> listen, erin, first of all, it's cpac. this is not an official

republican event. it's not the rnc and let's just also put it in context. donald trump is not an elected republican. he is not going to run for election despite the fact that he keeps wanting to trump that up. he's not going to run for election in new york and he's not going to run for president. this is part, we all get the joke, right? this is part of it and let's just be real about something. if he didn't have money and if he didn't donate money to some of these organizations that that makes him a supporter or a sponsor and gives him the ability to speak. he probably wouldn't be there because he's not crafting policy and not deciding agenda and not affecting votes in congress. he's there to promote his brand to feed his ego, to give his lecture and reading of the world and he can do it because he's got money and everybody gets the joke. >> all right, thank you very much. ana cornell, we appreciate your time. a man blows $500,000 at a

casino in one night and now suing them to get it back. this is america. plus, the man at the center of one of the ugliest exchanges ever on capitol hill. congressman elija cominummings guest "outfront" next. >> i am a member of a conference of the united states of america. i am tired of this. became big business overnight? ♪ like, really big... then expanded? ♪ or their new product tanked? ♪ or not? what if they embrace new technology instead? ♪ imagine a company's future with the future of trading. company profile. a research tool on thinkorswim. from td ameritrade. [ male announcer ] for paul ridley, there's no substitute for advil. it's built to be as fast as it is strong and fights pain at the site of inflammation

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whatever happens in vegas can cost you big time if you're intoxicated. that's the lesson one businessman learned after becoming so drunk he gambled away $500,000. but this being the united states, he wants his money back so he's suing for it hoping in the odds of the law, the odds are in his favor. kyung lah is out front. >> they served me all the drinks, they should have cut me off. >> reporter: a wild weekend in sin city but what happened to mark johnston didn't stay in vegas. he lost $500,000 gambling. and he says it wasn't his fault. >> just picture a drunk walking down the street and he's drunk and somebody goes up and just pick pockets him and takes his wallet out of him. that's how i characterize it. >> you feel like they're stealing from you? >> absolutely. >> reporter: they is the downtown grand casino. in a civil lawsuit he claims

that the casino took advantage of him. according to johnston's lawsuit he was so invisibly intoxicated he was dropping chips on the floor and confusing chip colors and slurring his speech badly and unable to read his cards. he said he had a 44-hour gap in memory that he calls "the blackout period." how much does he claim he drank? 20 alcoholic beverages in 17 hours. that's on top of the approximately ten drinks he said he consumed before he even stepped into the casino. how is that the casino's fault? johnston says that the downtown grand continued to serve his free drinks violating nevada state law forbidding comping drinks to patrons that are visibly drunk and then letting them balbgamble. how do you view that weekend now? >> my responsibility is, i had a few drinks that airport and had a drink on the plane. you know, at some point, that's my responsibility. okay, but, the unfortunate part

about it for them is that they have a more bigger responsibility than i do. >> reporter: the state gaming commission tells cnn it is investigating johnston's case and if the casino is in violation of state laws, it could be subject to fines or revocation of his gambling license. the casino had no comment saying it is in the middle of a lawsuit with johnston. as far as johnston? we chatted next to his $250,000 mercedes. he says his lawsuit is not about the money. come on, this is vegas. you gambled with the money. is this a sore loser? >> i am not a sore loser. i have lost $500,000. i've lost $800,000. i've lost a lot of money and i've won a lot of money. this has nothing to do with that. obviously, i can afford what i lost. this is about you almost killing me. >> now, this lawsuit could potentially have a ripple effect, certainly if this is

found to have some sort of merit if the gaming commission decides that the casino and other casinos will take notice and so, too, could other gamblers. erin? >> kyung, thank you very much. let us know what you think about that. still to come, back to our breaking news. president obama talking to vladimir putin for an hour this afternoon and he had his mike cut off during a heated dispute with another congressman. did he get an apology? elijah cummings is out front tonight. ♪

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with investment information, risks, fees and expenses to nbcuniversal's coveragens of the biggest loser olympic winter games ever, with the most coverage of the most events on every device. and the most hours of streaming video on the nbc sports live extra app, including the x1 platform from xfinity. comcast was honored to bring every minute of every medal of nbcuniversal's coverage to every screen. so what's next? rio 2016. welcome to what's next. comcast nbcuniversal.

more breaking news out of washington tonight. talking about the crisis in ukraine. obviously, translation. not a full hour of talk time, but from the understanding we have of what happened russia's actions and the president reiterating violation of international law but a way to resolve the situation diplom diplomatical diplomatically. the russian readout jim acosta loosely translated and basically said the relationship between u.s. and russia so important to the world stage that acknowledgment implied that there is some movement on a deal but no news of that as of yet. foreign affairs committee and he's out front tonight. great to see you, congressman. a lot of criticism from the

president from republicans. i mean, we all know ted cruz don't respect weakness and that weakness is all but openly laughing at the president. ted cruz today and a lot of other comments like that. marco rubio and others jumping onboard. do you share that view? >> i don't think some of that dialogue is constructive. we're americans and we need to unite in this effort. the fact of the matter is i do think that putin having gone to russia understands one thing and it's strength. he probably does view this president as weak and it invites aggression as we've seen in the ukraine and certainly in crimea. i'm very concerned about the words we use, as well. at the hearing today i asked the administration if this was an act of war. and they kind of danced around that issue when one government invades another country and sovereign nation with troops, i think that is an act of war that

must be dealt with. i think russia to get into the policy side is looking at the georgian playbook and their liegeance now to russia. i think russia and putin is trying to do the same thing. recast the empire that he once had. >> the invasion of georgia was under george w. bush. you can't blame obama for that, obviously. but also the point that you're making about the president seeming weak. i mean, this is exactly what i'm curious about. if you want to declare it as something, an act of war. that's a strong word to use, right? if he called it an act of war, wouldn't he then be forced to interview militarily or have people like you saying, he's being weak? >> no, an act of war against the ukraine and the ukrainian people. i think that we need to give our nato allies every assurance that we are going to provide them with the necessary military assistance, but it's not our war.

it's a war an active war of russia against the ukrainian people and i think it's important to call it that because that's putin's language and he understands that. when you're negotiating with him and i do give credit to the president to try to negotiate with putin over this. i don't know if i'm entirely optimistic but i think the sanctions we voted on a measure today to give guarantees to ukraine. i think the sanctions the administration is looking at in fairness to the president. they deployed a destroyer to the black sea and given fighter jets now to poland. that's all very important messagin messaging, if you will. that's the only message that putin really understands. >> to your point, what would the president do differently? lindsey graham was just on "crossfire" and hoe basically applauded him directly and said, look, the past 24 hours he's been great specifically referencing the fighting jets that the president has now deployed over the baltics. what would you do differently?

easy to criticize whoever is president in a time like this but hard to come up with something better than sanctions or something that a lot of critics call weak, but what's the better idea? you have one? >> well, you know, i agree with that. very complex situation and i think we should have seen this thing coming and try to do everything we could diplom diplomatically and through sanctions to stop it. but, again, i think he's doing exactly what he did in georgia, which i think, i hope the sanctions and the pressure amounts to something. i'm very concerned that crimea will go back to the russian s d federation. the parliament just voted today to do just that in crimea. i agree with you, i'll tell you one thing i would do and that is open energy exports to the ukraine. they have been denied by this administration since the russians don't have that leverage that they have over ukraine right now. this natural gas has been chunked by the russians as

leverage. >> this country should be exporting natural gas left, right and center. but that's a totally different congressman. appreciate your time. >> thanks, erin. calls for the removal of powerful congressman from his leadership post and democrats are demanding house speaker john boehner remove republican congress darrell issa. the chairman of the house sight committee. very powerful position. the congressional black caucus said "issa abused his authority." in that hearing he clashed with elijah cummings and let me play for you exactly what happened. >> i can see no point in going further. i have no lerner will cooperate. >> chairman, i have a statement. i have a procedural question, mr. chairman. mr. chairman, you cannot run a committee like this. you just cannot do this. this is, we're better than that

as a country. we're better than that as a committee. i have asked for a few minutes to ask. >> i want to ask a question. what are we hiding? what is the big deal? may i ask my country? may i state my statement? >> the gentleman may ask his question. >> if you will sit down and allow me to ask a question, i am a member of the congress of the united states of america! i am tired of this! >> joining me now the man at the center of the exchange. congressman, good to have you with us. >> good to be with you, erin. >> should he lose leadership because of that? >> that is going to be up to the republican caucus. i would hope that they would look at the tape that you just showed and see that that is no way to run a committee. but i leave that up to them. that they'll make that decision. but i would hope that speaker

boehner said today that he thought that chairman issa was acting appropriately and i was shocked to hear that because, clearly, you cannot have a situation where the minority is silenced so that and prevent it from speaking one syllable. that's what issa was trying to do. preventing the minority from speaking one syllable at a hearing. it doesn't work that way. it's not the american way and not the democratic way. >> let me just play for our viewers what speaker boehner said today to defend congressman issa. here he is. >> from what i understand, i think mr. issa was within his rights to adjourn the hearing w when he did. >> do you approve the way he's acting and are you preprepared to say you're not going to replace him? >> that's pretty declarative.

>> yeah. i mean, again, that's up to them. but i got to tell you, i'm hoping that speaker boehner will, again, look at what happened and i cannot imagine a democrat chairman cutting off the mike of a republican. i cannot imagine it. and i would never do it. i think that i respect my colleagues, all of us representing over 700,000 people. i respect their voices and i want to hear their voices. i will fight to hear their voices. >> now, what do you think caused congressman issa to do this? he was frustrated because loris lerner was taking the fifth and not saying anything. that's why he said he did what he did. but why is the congressional black caucus calling for him to step down? it sounds like you're supporting that and being careful with your words, i understand that. but, go ahead -- >> erin, let's be clear. it's questionable, nobody seems

to know what chairman issa wants. it seems as if there's an effort to draw this thing out to the 2014 elections in november. and, so, come on. he could have gotten information yesterday and he refused to get it. and shut me off. shutcompletely. the reason why he shut me off is basically that he didn't like what i was saying and he didn't like what he thought i would be saying. come on, please. >> now, have you -- obviously, sounds like you haven't spoken to chairman issa. >> i spoke to him briefly today. >> how was that? was it civil? it doesn't sound like he apologized. >> he has not apologized. i didn't expect him to apologize. i didn't. this is not the first time that this has happened. congressman terny of our

committee his mike was shut down a couple weeks ago, the same kind of activity. >> you mentioned this isn't the first time this happened. the chairman cutting off a mike a couple weeks ago. not the first time that you and chairman issa had run-ins with each other. over the summer he faced some heat for an inappropriate comment. referring to you as a little boy with his hand caught in the cookie jar. some people questioned the use of his word boy. now, obviously, the congressional black caucus is coming out and asking for him to step down as chairman of this committee. do you think there is a pattern of disrespect to you, specifically, from darrell issa? >> erin, i just told you that he disrespected my colleague, mr. ter terney and he is white. i am not going to get caught up in the racial piece because that ends up being a distraction and becomes the headline. >> thank you very much, i appreciate your time, congressman. >> thank you. still to come, an emotional breakdown at the so-called

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she had no breathing movements that she made. >> reporter: oscar pistorius unable to bear the graphic eyewitness testimony from his neighbor. the athlete's head in his hands, wiping away tears as the doctor described the gruesome scene last valentine's day. the first to see the blade runner's model girlfriend after she was shot three times. >> as i approached the lady, there was a man on his knees and the first thing that he said when i got there was that, he said, i shot her. i thought she was a burglar. and i shot her. >> reporter: then told the court an emotional pistorius was praying to bring her back. >> is she survivable? oscar was crying all the time. he prayed to god to please let

her live. she must not die. >> reporter: at times pistorius looked like he was going to vomit during the testimony. >> i saw there was blood and hair and what looked like brain tissue intermingled with that. >> reporter: someone in the court even bringing him what appeared to be a sick bag. stiff is the fourth witness to remember hearing screams that he shot through a bathroom door killing his girlfriend of three months. >> yeah, if someone was in fear of his or her life. >> reporter: but under intense cross-examination by the defense team, the doctor admitted that if steenkamp were killed, then it's possible the screams he heard actually came from pistorius. >> the medical specialeist thati consulted with all said the same thing. that person after the shots would not have been able to

scream. that person would be nonresponsive and would have made sense to you as a medical doctor? >> it does, yes. >> reporter: i've been inside the courtroom for the past four days and this witness, this doctor and neighbor has such powerful testimony. he's composed and we'll hear more of that on friday. back to you, erin. >> thanks to you, robin. now, let's bring in our legal analyst we've been talking about this together all week. but today was really powerful testimony and, obviously, you saw the physical reaction of oscar pistorius. i guess the big question for you, first of all, is this whole issue of how he responds. yesterday there wasn't the graphic detail of reeva steenkamp's death and the grisly detail of the bodily fluids and brain. so, he didn't react as emotionally, but today he was pretty emotional. so, does that play in his favor or does it look like an act? what do you think? >> the bottom line, erin, is that as a defendant, you just

can't win. if you show too much emotion, people will say that you're putting on an act. if you are calm and collected, they say, look at that stone-faced killer. so, the best advice you acan give a client is just sit there and look innocent. whatever that means. >> so, now, what about the testimony today. for the fourth time now we heard a witness say that he had heard a woman screaming for her life. now, obviously, you know, the whole pistorius case, i thought she was an intruder and i shot her before i knew it was her. if she was screaming, that would be false, so, how big of a problem is this for pistorius? >> increasingly, a bigger and bigger problem because witness after witness is sticking to their story under cross-examination that they are convinced they heard a female voice. but look out, the defense has said they're going to bring in an expert in decibels to say that the screams could have come from oscar pistorius, which shows one similarity between the u.s. and south african systems.

you can find an expert to testify to just about anything. >> they are trying to say he was just so distressed that the pitch of his scream went up and it was him screeching. thanks very much to danny as we continue to analyze this trial with him. robert redford presents "chicago land" the highly toxic fight over slashing the budget of the third's largest city. mayor rahm emanuel, who last year closed 50 schools in chicago that affected 27,000 students. it was the single biggest school closure in american history. now, most of those closures came in low-income, black neighborhoods. and that decision led to the mayor being called. this is what you'll hear in the series. a liar, a classest, a racist, the murder mayor. the principal of a high school located in rosedale which is one of the chicago neighborhood hit by the closures. one of the hardest neighborhood in the city. so, what do you think about rahm

emanuel, did he do the right thing closing all these schools? >> i think it's a tough call. you have 100,000 empty seats in the city of chicago in terms of students not being in schools any more. hundreds of millions of dollars. $700 million also the very real issue of safety for kids and parents wanting to get kids to and from school safely. it's a tough call. >> to and from school, to get from where you live to a new school district you might have to walk through a gang area. children's lives are put at risk. savings, half a million dollars to -- a lot of savings. but is it worth it when you look at the other side? >> here's what i focus on, erin. i focus on finger high school and my school. so i think that ultimately i think cps and i think rahm emanuel and the teachers union wants kids to be safe. luckily i don't have to make that call. i focus on my school.

>> 12 year trend of finger academy's act scores which students tend to take in the midwest. three points below your district, six points below your state. our areas you've done well. standardized tests are a mainly factor in this country. what are you doing to make sure that your school which is in one of these very very hard-hit neighborhoods is never on that list? >> yeah. no, i think that's a fair point. you have to look at where kids are coming at. this is why we think about kids being in low-performing elementary schools. people across this district across chicago will tell you when you're coming from a low-performing elementary school and into a high school they're coming in lower. so yes, the scores score might not be where they should be. kids need to be prepared for college and beyond. >> so overall, how would you rate what's happening in chicago? is this going to be a success, this headline, biggest school closure ever in american history? will this end of history proving it to be smart? >> i hope so. i think that's what we're all

hoping for. i'm focusing on finger high school from a huge dropout rate drop. huge increases in attendance. >> how have you had that plunge in the dropout rate? >> we had a $1.6 million grant for four years that was amazing and provided us additional support what michelle obama said you've got to have resources. i think two the phenomenal teachers and staff that we have at finger high school that go above and beyond every day for our kids and partnerships that we make with community organizations like sga. great chicagoans like begley deck who have gone out and provided us with resources and supports. all those things mat and makes a difference for kids. >> the principal of fenger high school. don't miss "chicago land" which premiers tonight. still to come the nicest prank in history. there's only one person who can tell this story so well. that's jeanne moos. she's next.

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you don't usually hear the word "heart-warming" to describe a prank but it is the only word that can describe the one trick that a virginia man pulled. mischievous. jeanne moos has the story behind one of the most watched have you had -- videos on youtube today. >> reporter: this man got pranked with a lottery ticket. >> i'm going to make him think he won the lottery. >> reporter: he's still a winner. it is a good deed prank and this is the prankster. normally rahat is doing things like dressing up in a car seat costume so he can scare fast food workers as the invisible driver. >> oh, my god, really? >> reporter: but instead of a laugh, expect a tear when rahat pranks a homeless man with a good reputation who had been hanging around a virginia shopping center. >> i don't really have any money to give you. but i do have this winning lottery ticket. >> that's cool, my friend. >> reporter: they head for a

nearby deli to cash in the tick zblet and t ticket. >> the store clerk is in on it. >> reporter: as the clerk counts out 10, 100s, the man stares at the cash, stunned into silence and then -- >> oh, come on. that's all, man. >> i was really then off. i did not expect somebody to do that. i was like -- >> reporter: when rahat insists he keep all the money, the camera catches the eyes of the homeless guy welling up. >> here. >> reporter: and when they were done hugging, it wasn't just the homeless man who had to wipe his eyes. >> let's get out of here. >> reporter: he was not aware that rahat was recording everything. eric the homeless guy now knows that there's a video. but what he still doesn't know

is that the lottery ticket wasn't a winner. >> i didn't want to really ruin the moment of him winning the lottery ticket. i wanted him to just like capture that moment, that memory. >> reporter: rahat says he's going to break it to him soon. though most think the video is touching, some have qualms. good deeds on camera or exploiting people as props was the headline. >> i'm not just going to give him the 1,000 and just walk away and say hey, have a great day. >> reporter: rahat set up a fundraising site for eric. in less than a day it totalled over $6,000 and counting. eric didn't win the lotto but he did hit the jackpot. jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> probably brought tears to your eyes. i know it did to mine. obviously understand people say that maybe the video was that right or not. but think about how much more money and the change into this guy's life. jeanne tells me 8 million people have looked at that video and

been contributing to that fund to help eric with his life touched. thanks so much as always for watching. "ac 360" starts right now. good evening, everyone. there is breaking news tonight. president obama speaking this evening with russian president vladimir putin have been. we are getting late details about what was discussed. we'll get to all of that in the hour ahead as well as latest diplomatic developments on the ground. we're coming to you from ukraine kiev independence square. i want to give you a sense of where we are and what has taken place here. this is one of the main roads heading into independence square. it's just a couple feet in that direction. this is one of the main -- the last barriers, the main battlement that was made. i want to show you some weaponry and defensive items still lalg a laying all around. protesters are still here determed