also, small business owners across america forced to cut to the bone. skyrocket premiums are landing many on life support. so is it time for the feds to step in and put a stop to the insurance company rate hikes. we have a special report. broken government ahead. and at seaworld, a whale dragged a trainer to her death just after a performance. what went wrong? we'll have a marine biologist who has been studying orcas for 20 years. in just a few hours, president obama will host a health care summit that will be live for the nation to see. there's almost grade school pickering going on over who invited whom, the shape of the table, and seating assignments. and all right, one senator is saying there may not be anything to discuss at all.

we have ed henry live at the white house. first, we're going to head to dana bash. >> hi there, kiran. it's important political theater. important in this year's health care. a team of republicans going to the white house today, each huddle more than once to prepare their strategies for the days before the camera. make sure it gets across. >> reporter: we asked both the senate's top republican and democrat where they may agree on health care. but their answers were mostly how they disagree. >> you will not see from us a 2,700-page comprehensive rewrite of one-sixth of our economy. we don't think it should be done. >> that's what people of america want. they want health care reform.

not some band-aid. >> reporter: not exactly compromise. take young adults. republicans want to change the law to allow dependents to stay on their parents' insurance policies until age 25. president obama's plan isn't far off. he says age 26. or promoting a healthier lifestyle. a house gop proposal says people in prevention and wellness programs should be rewarded with better health insurance rates. the president adopted a similar idea in his plan. but the reality is those are minor issues. so what about major popular issues like banning insurers from discriminating based on preexisting conditions? well, they agree on the concept. >> i think the issue of preexisting conditions is a serious issue in our health care system. we have a way to do it that doesn't drive up the health insurance costs for every other american. >> reporter: but what republican

way is expanding high-risk fools and reinsurance programs that already exist in various states. democrats call that a nonstarter and want an all-out federal ban. which brings us back to where we started, intense disagreement. and though democrats say this -- >> we've heard that they have ideas. and we look forward to those ideas. >> reporter: -- skepticism reigns. >> we're happy to be there but we're not quite sure what the purpose is. >> and the reason the gop leader said that is despite today's six-hour event with cameras and republican, democrats have tentative plans in the works to use a parliamentary short cut. without republican support. one of the things you'll hear from republicans today is they want to take on health care incrementally. kiran, yesterday, top democrat senator chris dodd said, if the gop wants to start over, quote, there's nothing to talk about. we did find something that is bipartisan, and that is, there's

not much help for progress today. >> we'll see how it goes. dana bash, thanks. meantime, president obama has challenged republicans with ideas. ed henry is at the white house. ed, you've got the new information about a target date for the final deal? >> that's right. advisers are telling us that the new target date is to get all of this done by march. the reason is, they start the easter recess right there at the end of march, beginning of april. and if they don't get it done by then, once democratic leaders come back from that recess from early to mid-april, they've got to move on to things. the spending that's piled up, climate change. and the jobs. president obama tried to reframe that by putting health care on the back burner and jobs on the front you burner. if he didn't get it done by next month, a lot of telling us that they'll not get it done. >> what does he have to do to

reach this target date? >> what they're really looking for today is momentum. as dana laid out it's unlikely there's going to be a eureka moment. that we have a deal today. instead, what the president wants is some momentum. they believe right now inside of the white house that they have at least 50 votes in the senate, in order to pass through the process known as reconciliation. at least most of the legislation, if not all of it. and their real fear right now is they don't have 218 votes. the majority in the house. so the president's real target audience today, when you talk to some of his visors is getting some of those conservative democrats in the house. nullifying them on things like abortion funding and the big picture of is the government spending too much. he's going to have to make the case that this is not going to spend too much money in the long run, it's actually going to save money. >> ed henry covering that. thank, ed. will you be covered?

will your current coverage be more affordable. we'll talk to house secretary robert gibbs about the plan. and just a reminder, best place to watch the debate is right here. cnn's live coverage of the summit will start at 10:00 eastern this morning. all right. the northeast bracing for plenty of snow this morning. our rob marciano is tracking this nor'easter which is not too bad, but supposed to get more powerful in the next 24 hours. >> it is. both in the form of precipitation and where the rain/snow line is going to be. let's take a look at the radar and show where it is. it's snowing in philadelphia, with that, the snow is going to pile up rapidly. looks like d.c. is going to be left out for the most part. just a dusting. most of the action will be there through trenton and new york. zooming in, it is rain in new york. watch the rain/snow line begin to sneak to the east. so even though it's rain heavily in places like fairfield county and i-95 up towards new haven.

the rain/snow line is beginning to sneak towards the coastline. so the farther away from the coastline, the more snow. 12 to 24 inches in upstate new york. eastern pennsylvania, 6 to 12 from philadelphia to new york. i think more in philly than new york. either way, it's going to be enough to slow things down, to say the least. the fourth major winter storm of the season. and in some parts of the northeast, it will be crippling. we'll talk more about this and the blizzard condition expected later on in the program. john, kiran, back to you. >> all right, rob. thanks. it seems like week after week we keep getting zapped. >> like the winter of 1996, 1996, 1997, snowstorm after snowstorm. march is just around the corner. the senate is voting to extend the patriot act for a year. and that includes, court-aproved wiretaps on phones. it enables authorities to keep important tools in the fight

against terrorism and now heads to the house. new york governor david paterson following an investigation of a report in "the new york times." the woman in question had accused johnson of domestic violence. the hero from tuesday's school shooting in colorado credits another school shooting for his quick actions. math teacher david behnke tackled the suspect after he allegedly shot two students at deer creek middle school. behnke said the shooting at columbine just three miles away from where this shooting happened, prepared him for his moment. >> i noticed that he was working a bolt-action rifle. i noticed that. and realized that i had time to get him before he could chamber another round. and basically -- whenever we had

had these drills, and whenever we had worked with students, i said, basically, if something happens, and there's something that i can do about it, i want to try and do something about it. >> what is it like today knowing that you faced this? >> it bothers me that i was a little bit late. it bothers me that he got the second shot off. >> well, but it could have been so much worse. he's very humble. a facebook page called dr. david behnke a hero already has close to 30,000 members. a terrible incident at seaworld, a trainer killed by one of the killer whales that she worked with. up next, we're going to talk a marine biologist about what might have happened here. and all your little mile-pebbles ameriprise financial can help.

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come to meineke now for maintenance tune-ups... starting at $39.95. at meineke, you're always the driver. ♪ it's 12 minutes after the hour. welcome back to the most news in the morning. new information emerging this morning about the killer whale who dragged a trainer to her death yesterday. >> yeah, it happened at seaworld in orlando yesterday as vitters watched the scene unfold in horror. the orca named tilikum has killed at least twice before. first in 1991, when a trainer fell in his tank. and in 1999, when a man snuck in the pool. >> this morning, the whale

actually grabbed the trainer dawn brancheau and pulled her into the water. joining us is nancy black, who is a marine biologist studying whales your 20 years. thanks for joining us. people are asking why the whale grabbed her, apparently, this happened after a show. was it the intention of the whale to hurt the trainer or potentially was he just trying to play with her? >> yeah, it could be, you know, a variety of reasons. but killer whales are very powerful, even what seems like a gentle thing for us, you know, for a 12,000-pound killer whale could be obviously fatal for a person, if it just accidentally holds her under a saddle too long so she couldn't get her breath. this killer whale could have wanted companionship. maybe it was frustrated, maybe it wanted a person to pull in the water. because they play with seals and sea lions in the wild. they don't necessarily kill

them. they toss them in the air and sometimes let them go. you know, it could have been act of frustration. act of play. but i don't believe that the killer whale actually intended to kill the woman. it was more likely an accident, i would guess. >> nancy, what you're touching on is the unpredictability of wild animals, that we use for entertainment in this situation. are there larger questions about what it makes sense to have animals like orcas or others who have miles of ocean in their habitat to be confined in places like seaworld aquariums? >> yeah, i think times have changed. now that we've learned so much about killer whales in the wild. they live in family groups. even the males will stay with their mothers their whole lives which is unusual in most animals. they live in these tight family groups. they rely on each other for social structure. for hunting, for play. and they do cover hundreds of miles of ocean and not just

sitting there, bobbing their head up and down in the ocean like you see them doing in the tank. and i think they do need more space. and, you know, spaces like that do cause a lot of stress most likely. he has a fin -- often males get the fin flop when they're in captivity. we don't see that in the wild. i do believe in the future, you know, down the line, situations in captivity will stop, and people will see them more in the wild. or see them on these amazing nature shows instead of in a small, confined tank. >> you know, there's a famous case of a polar bear at the central park zoo in new york city named gus who developed a compulsive disorder because of his captivity, they actually had to introduce things into his pen for play with. he would obsessively swim back and forth and dip his paw in the water. this particular orca was described as depressed, difficult.

there's intrapod communication. could it just be he was depressed because of 20 years of captivity. >> yeah, i think so. >> if you put a person in a confined area, they might snap. did this orca just snap? >> it's possible. i heard that the whales were a little agitated before this happened. maybe something unusual happened in their environment. and they're so used to this regular situation every day. and anything that makes louder sounds, you know, could have disturbed him. he could have been upset. just like a frustrated person might hit a whale or something. the killer whale will grab a person and just pull her in the water because there's nothing else to take his frustrations out on. i did hear that killer whale is often isolated. it probably didn't have much to do. just like you see the polar bears, you know, pacing back and forth in the zoo. these are very intelligent mammals. they're the most intelligent of all the whales. and they do need stimulation and activities and things to keep them occupied.

>> nancy, on the other side, people argue because of drawing attention to animals like this in places like seaworld and others, it helps with the conservation, it helps with awareness, as well as learning more about these animals. but what changes, if any, do you think at seaworld or other organizations and companies that have large mammals like this -- what changes might they have to make in the future? >> well, obviously, i think they'll be more careful as far as them interacting with people. you know. i understand this whale, people were not getting in the water with it because of the temperamental condition. i think they'll be more careful that while. they're going to have these killer whales for quite a while because a lot of them were born in captivity. they do have that captive breeding program which is good, they're not taking more from the wild. so in the future, these captive animals raised in captivity, maybe their tanks can be bigger. they can have more stimulation.

especially for an adult male, you know, doing something different. this whale was born in the wild, the one with the incident. so he was captured from iceland and taken away from his family group which is a lot different than just being born in captivity. >> obviously, the authorities are going to be investigating it. looking into it, to try to determine what might have happened. maybe it was like you said, a freak accident. >> yes. >> nancy black, marine biologist, thanks for joining us. we'll take a quick break. hey!

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we're hearing from people is, they just want to know what to do with their car or what to do in the instance of sudden acceleration. it's more about preparation than analyzing for the long-term impact of this brand. so the top most common questions. will turning the car off tour putting it in neutral help with a stuck accelerator? and there's also, should i shut off the engine while driving? these are the top things that people are now asking. are the vehicles that have been repaired now safe to drive? these are really nuts and bolts questions and answers. i want to tell you something. i'm going to tweet this for all the social media people. i just put it on facebook. but a blog on how to stop a runaway car. these are the things most tweeted. number one, brake firmly. do not pump the brakes. we told you over and over again. even as late sass last night, what am i doing? am i supposed to pump? am i supposed to hold it down flat? >> although, we heard from that woman, she held down the brake.

>> that's right. that's why people are asking these questions. shift to neutral. steer to a safe location. this is from "consumer reports." shut the engine off to go to neutral. you heard a woman say she thought she shut the engine off, and it was still revving. finally, do not try to drive the car. these are things that people are asking about. really preparation about nuts and bolts. still two weeks about this. edmunds.com bought this into context. numeral 17 on the list of what -- toyota is number -- >> consumer complaints? >> consumer complaints we are vehicle sold. it's not even in the top ten. so they're saying that there are still a lot more vehicles out there that get a lot more complaints. number one, in case you're wondering is land rover. >> what's number two? >> number two is the suzuki. and then the volkswagen.

i can go on forever. i'll post this. too. i'll put it on facebook at christine romans. >> christine, thanks so much. >> sure. still to come with the most news in the morning, the nickname is masters of disaster. we're going to take a closer look at an engineering firm that's been hired by toyota to help prove that its cars are safe. stay with us. how do the editors of consumers digest determine if a car is a "best buy"? first, they drive it in the real world.

and put it through its paces. they rate its fit and finish and the amenities inside. they factor in purchase price and operating costs. fuel economy and resale value. in short, they do what you do to test its quality. now get a low mileage lease on this 2010 malibu for around $199 a month for 39 months. call for details. see your local chevy dealer. this is not more benefits at greater cost to your company insurance.

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but akio toyoda came armed with his study. they hired a company called exponent to test the vehicles. but exponent has an interesting past. so our ted rowlands came to find out is exponent just a hired gun? >> reporter: in fact, in an initial report given to congress this month, couldn't find anything wrong with toyota vehicles. that report was compiled by a company called exponent. hired by -- guess who? toyota. >> we've asked people to evaluate exponent's analysis, and they said it was not a very good analysis. >> reporter: exponent is an engineering firm with the nickname "masters of disaster." when a big-name company gets in trouble, these are the guys they call to defend them. and it reads like a who's who of companies with major product or

pr problems over the past decades. like exxon, when the valdez run aground, exponent went against tobacco companies on the hazards of smoking. dr. glance has been battling tobacco companies for years. he claims exponent is basically a hired gun for big business. >> if i were toyota and you wanted somebody to do this, i would have found somebody who didn't have this baggage. to get an independent assessment of toyota cars or anything else, you need to have people doing the assessing who are actually independent. >> reporter: exponent's initial report given to congress states after testing several vehicles, they can, quote, unable to induce through electrical services to the system, unintended acceleration, despite concerted efforts. electrical engineering consultant dr. anthony anderson told cnn that the report was,

quote, seriously deficient. a skepticism shared by some lawmaker. >> was the interim report produced by exponent, inc., to just the position, the equivalent of junk science? and how much credibility should it be given by this committee and american consumers? >> there was a comment made by one of the american congressmen yesterday, we want to look at the report and see if it's junk science. >> reporter: exponent vice president angela myers sat down with us and fired back at critics. >> you're saying if a victim hire ushgsd had the money to do so, in this exact case, you would run the exact same test and do the exact same thing as if toyota was your client? >> that's correct. >> people have a very difficult time believing that. >> well, engineers are much like doctors. we have ethical standards. we are licensed professionals. >> reporter: meyer said the report is only the beginning of what will be an exhaustive

investigation. while myers insist the wishes of the paying client don't matter in the same breath, she seems to indicate it's how the game is played. >> they're going to look at our report and they're going to tear it apart. we're going to look at their report, i'm sure, and we're going to tear it apart. >> but with the science, that's what's wrong with our system. you could have ph.d.s on either side and have different conclusions. and lo and behold you have conclusions marrying them. >> we're going to do the right science. if toyota likes it, great. if toyota doesn't like it, unfortunately, they're going to have to deal with the consequences. we're crossing the half hour at 6:30 eastern. that means it's time for the top stories. you're invite today the health care battle today. front row seat. the president trying to save an effort that dominated his first year in office. he is hosting a health care summit with both sides on live

television. and he's asking republicans if they have any better ideas than his. cnn's going to have live coverage starting at 10:00 a.m. eastern. insurance companies and their runaway rate hikes sending small business owners to the brink of bankruptcy. some say it's time for the feds to step up and put a stop to it. but is our government going to depend on, our broken report coming up. in seaworld, the whale grabbed on the trainer, dawn branchc brancheau, he grabbed on to the trainer and killed per. in the small state, a big battle is erupting. the school board in central falls rhode island has voted to fire every teacher. it's part of the new federal push for education reform that

requires each state to identify its worst performing schools and to take specific actions to fix them. but is wiping out an entire staff the most sensible approach? joining us now is deborah gest, she's the education director. thanks for joining us. >> thank you. >> ultimately, it fell in your lap to approve the firing. and did you. explain to us why this is the best solution to fix this school's problems. >> well, i think what's important to realize that it's of the step that the board has taken, that the superintendent of central falls has taken, is not just about the staff at the school. this was a directive that we gave to superintendent gallow and to the superintendent of another school district in our state. we have six schools in total that we've identified. what we've asked for them to do is choose one of four models for their turnaround efforts for the

schools. and it isn't just about the staff. it certainly isn't just about the teachers. it's about every part of the school, and how we completely turn it around for the benefit of those students. so it's the staff. it's the curriculum. it's the school day. it's the extra support for students. it's much more than just this born action. >> obviously, there's been a lot of protest of this decision. and some arguments made that there has been some progress, especially at this school. and we want to just listen right down to one of the fire guidance counselors, george mclaughlin, told cnn about it. let's listen. >> i know for a fact, we have three times as many students who are accepted to colleges now as they were five years ago. how do i know that, i'm in the guidance office and i do most of that work. >> the union rep said there's been a 21% rise in reading scores and 3% rise in math scores over the past two years. is that a sign that there was some progress being made, and some of these teachers were doing something right? >> well, certainly, we comment

the staff for the progress that they did make. but i think it's important to look at all of the information. what we have is a school where the majority of students do not graduate. the graduation rate is only 48%. and in mathematics, only 7% of the students are proficient in mathematics. more than half of the ninth graders are failing more than two classes which san indication that they are frustrated, and what we know about student achievement, when students aren't successful in their class, they're much more likely to drop out of school. and so this is a very serious situation. it's extremely urgent. >> right. >> and this has been many years in coming. this has been a school that's been in corrective action for about eight years. >> deborah, let me ask you about this, it seems like they're up against insurmountable odds. 100% of the students live in poverty. 65% of the student body is hispanic. for most of them, english is not their first language.

what are you looking for as a teacher administrator, given these challenges? >> well, one of the things that we know about education today that is very encouraging is that young people from any background, whatever their family's income level or whatever the color of their skin or their language can be successful academically when we put the right supports in place. and when we haven't an excellen teacher in every single classroom. >> so what is the plan? this say big challenge to basically rehire an entire staff to run a school? how is this going to work? >> right. the way the process works, the superintendent has selected the model. her school board has approved it. i have approved it. now, she's in planning mode. she steps into a several week-long process where she and her community team will be putting a very specific plan in place for how they will turn the school around. how they will decide which of

the teachers can stay in the school. because they can bring back up to 50% of the teachers. how they will find an excellent school leader to lead the school through the changes. what they will do about extending the school day, providing extra support to students, engaging parents, what curriculum they will use and how they'll make sure that curriculum is aligned with the standards in place. they will submit that plan to us and we will provide support and assistance to them and then ultimately approve their plan before they launch into implementation. >> there were some are student protests as well. some of them speaking out about the firings. some in particular giving their heart-wrenching stories. one saying she doesn't have a father in her life. that her mother works at a factory all day and that her teacher was one constant in her life. referred to the teachers as mentors. what kind of impact would this have on the students who feel

they're losing the few people who are really there for them? >> well, first of all. this is an incredibly difficult situation. it's difficult for everyone involved. fact that it's so difficult is one of the reasons that we don't take the necessary steps to truly make the changes that we need to make. so we acknowledge how difficult this is. and take it extremely seriously. i would also say that dr. gallon low gallow, the superintendent of this school district wants to bring those teachers back. she has the model to bring back up to 50% of the stlaf at the school. so there there be a number of teachers to stay at the school. >> deborah gist, thanks for your perspective this morning. we appreciate it. >> thank you.

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welcome back to the most news in the morning. all week longer we're examining america's broken government. and today the focus is on health care. >> well, the government's failure to stop insurance companies from imposing staggering rate hikes on customers who can't afford them. some are saying that the only fix is federal control.

jim is live. small business owners are feeling the squeeze. what do they think the answer is? >> well, depends on who you talk to. but we felt the health care pinch right where we are, right? this happens to almost all of us. the health care debate happening in washington, john and kiran, is not the only show down on this issue. every day, businesses go toe to toe with insurance rates that go through the roof. some of the rates you have to see to believe. >> reporter: kelly and his wife kit started this small wood working business 32 years ago. what's tougher, paying the rent or the insurance? >> about equal right now. >> reporter: earlier this month he got what he calls a dear john letter. but it wasn't from his wife. it was from his health insurance company. you call it a dear john? >> a dear john. >> reporter: and why is that? >> it's the old kiss-off letter, right. >> reporter: the kiss-off? >> right.

>> reporter: the letter explains that the insurance rates were about to explode by 124%. you can see it goes for a family, $900 a month to $2,000 a month. what do you think is going on there? >> well, they're trying to get rid of us. >> reporter: conklin now has to shop for a new insurance plan for his 11 employees, trying to avoid the one cut this employer doesn't want to make, health care coverage. >> something has to give. >> reporter: his insurance company, health snet, one of th largest said they've had significant increase in premiums. >> you've had to lay people off? >> yes, absolutely. >> reporter: conklin said he did lay off two younger employees which did make his workforce older. he also worries about his wife who suffers from a chronic condition. the ceo of one insurer got hauled in for a congressional

hearing, after its subsidiary trying to raise rates 39% in california. >> it is important, to be a business that's sustained that we have an appropriate profit. >> reporter: the president wants to give the federal government more power to control rate hikes. >> there's no certainty in the future where premiums rise without limit. >> reporter: but republicans say that idea is part of a health care package that's just too big. >> you will not see from us a 2,700-page comprehensive rewrite of one-sixth of our economy. >> every year is worse. unpredictable rate hikes, unaffordable premiums. >> reporter: last year, conklin testified on capitol hill. >> i don't think my employees can afford. i know i can't afford it. it would put a huge drag on our business month in and month out. >> reporter: can you afford to stay in business? >> no. >> for all of the officials gathering for the bipartisan health care summit. one of the employees at the wood

shop had a suggestion, let the lawmakers walk in his shoes for a week. they'll understand in a heartbeat. >> jim acosta for us, thanks. also tomorrow on "american morning," the reporting takes us to a company spewing cancer-causing substances each other. dr. sanjay gupta investigates why it's taken a decade to even listen to residents' complaints. every wonder why it often demonstrates rorschach tests? call it gerrymandering? and would you go out and spend money on a new car or furniture. one state who did exactly that. so bad weather in the northeast this morning. our rob marciano is tracking it all. he's got the travel forecast up coming up after the break. >> yeah, the red and blue equals

no good. also, in ten minutes, the circus comes to capitol hill after toyota testifies. jeanne moos with some of the lighter moments you may have missed. [ male announcer ] acid reflux disease.

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a look at chicago this morning where it's 24 degrees right now. a little bit later, it's going up to 28 degrees and it will be cloudy today in the windy city. welcome back to the most news in the morning. 48 minutes past the hour. time for "a.m. house call." men and women who travel the world have something in common. they actually get sick when they get home. their illnesses are different. swiss researchers tracked 59,000 travelers, found that women are more likely to develop stomach problems, while men are at much higher risk for mosquito or tick problems. if you're traveling in the northeast, get out while the getting it good. the heat is coming down, at least the hurt is coming down. rob marciano tracking a nor'easter brewing. how bad is it going to be?

>> in some cases, it will be hot enough to cause rain and flooding. . tonight, upstate, inland, partings of pennsylvania -- that would be all of pennsylvania, eastern parts of pennsylvania may see blizzard conditions. this storm is going to intensify as we go through time. look at the snow totals. this isn't from this storm. this is from the warmup storm. parts of vermont, 29 inches. parts of massachusetts, 28. altamo altamont, just east of the albany, 2 feet. check out video coming out of albany where they saw over a foot of snow. digging out yesterday, it was a pretty, heavy wet snow. and now, heavy wet snow coming on top of that. we could have problems with, say, roof collapses in update new york and eastern p pennsylvania. philadelphia, it's snow right now. new york city, it's raining but you'll see the rain over to snow rapidly. everything is going to pivot around new york city. this is where the low is going to kind of hang around for the

next day and a half. that means new york will be going rain to snow. sleet mixed in there from time to time. that will keep snow totals down, at least, in the city proper. but outside of the city, you could easily see a foot of snow. 6 to 12. in the i-95 corridor, 12 to 24 expected in parts of pennsylvania. and the storm will be blowing as the wind winds up and creates can blizzard-type conditions. in new york metro, snow is going to be an issue with the wind and the rain, as philadelphia and d.c. although d.c., thankfully for the folks tired of snow, you're not going to see much. >> rob, this thing is going to stitt there for 24 hours? >> yeah, there's a road block in the atlantic ocean. it's going to new york and pivot over new york city and drift inland. and get news about it drifting inland, it will begin to weaken as opposed to sitting out here

and remaining a full-on blizzard for 24 hours. that's going to be for sure for at least two days. >> silver cloud -- silver lining in a dark cloud. three minutes after the hour, a killer whale kills again in front of a horrified seaworld audience. the tragedy at seaworld. and why the park kept this whale, despite its involvement in two other deaths. at quarter after the hour, robert gibbs on the president's last chance of getting health care against the goal line. and president obama and scott brown, one-on-one on the court. could it really happen? there's a site for the showdown. right now you can get a great deal on any volkswagen. well, the tiguan's great. mm. and the routan has everything we're looking for. plus, every volkswagen includes no-charge, scheduled, care-free maintenance. so, what's this punchdub days about? you know, where you punch someone in the arm every time you see a volkswagen. red one! [ baby crying ]

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♪ five minutes to the top of the hour, which means as it does every morning, that it's time for the moos news in the morning. you say toyota, he says toyoda.

how they say his name on capitol hill is a whole other thing. >> yeah. our jeanne moos has some of the quirky moments from yesterday's hearing. >> reporter: with cameras with herring like insects, the press preyed upon toyota's ceo. >> hey, hey, hey! >> reporter: as they pushed and shoved to get the shot. while congressmen took their shots. taking turns, holding up gas pedals. >> and this one here's had sticking problems. >> which means when you take your foot off. >> reporter: and though toyota was on everybody's list they didn't pronounce it the same. >> i'm a great admirer of toyota. in the tomato tomato ♪ >> reporter: the car with the company's founder. >> it's got mr. toyoda's name on it. you don't want to claim it. >> my name is on every car.

>> a akio toyoda, spelled differently but sounds the same. >> reporter: what a difference a "d" makes. mostly strokes. the family changed the name from toyota with a "t" to toyoda with a "d." it has more brush strokes in japanese. >> eight, nine, ten. >> reporter: ten instead of eight, and eight is a lucky number. despite the apologies. >> i'm deeply sorry. >> from the deepest part might have heart. >> i sincerely regret. >> reporter: there were no bows of contrition as he bowed at a press conference in japan. and the going got rough for a congressional hearing, especially in toyota of north america over a company memo. >> i'm embarrassed for you, sir. this is one of the most embarrassing documents we've ever seen. >> seems like we're having a hanging before the trial. i'm not saying you're not guilty. >> reporter: even the poor translator getting shoved to the

mike. of course this is nothing compared to the jabs by the comedians. ♪ toyota >> reporter: reporters ran into their own defects. >> special treatment that he's going to get -- if it's unlocked -- oh, that's horrible. that's just what you don't want on television. can we unlock it. you did it so gracefully, that's all right. here we go. >> reporter: lines with that most famous encounter with a locked door, mr. toyoda probably wishes he had been locked out of this hearing. jeanne moos. ♪ let's call the whole thing off ♪ >> we're going to take a quick break. top stories coming your way in 90 seconds.

-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com good morning, thanks for being with us on this february 25th. i'm kiran chetry. >> good morning, john roberts. he said, let's put it on c-span. finally, president obama will hold a health care summit on live television. we're live on capitol hill with the preview. without warning, a killer whale kills a veteran trainer at seaworld are in orlando while an audience watches in horror. but this isn't the first time that the six-ton whale has lashed out with deadly consequences. a weary east coast bracing

for the storm for the second in two days. dumping up to 2 feet in some places. cutting power, closing schools. caution at least three traffic deaths. and the storm is expected to intensify over the next 24 hours. rob's got the latest forecast for us coming right up. first thing is, political theater at its best, depending on how you look at it, at its worst. in just a few hour, president obama will host a health care summit live for the nation to see. what is supposed to be a compromise is shaping up to be more of the same. already one senator is saying there may be nothing to talk about. dana bash is live to set up what we may see. good morning, dana. >> good morning, kiran. well, it is political theater. you can't find anybody here, democrat or republican who will tell you otherwise with a straight face but it is important theater because of how important health care politics is this election year. that is why both the teams of republicans and democrats who are going to head to that summit today have been huddling and

trying to device their strategies because they want to get across their political talking points. never mind any compro he's. >> reporter: we asked both the senate's top republican and democrat where they may agree on health care. but their answers were mostly how they disagree. >> you will not see from us a 2,700-page comprehensive rewrite of one-sixth of our economy. we don't think that ought to be done. and we've said it repeatedly. >> we need major health care reform. that's what the people of america want. they want health care reform. not some band-aid. >> reporter: not exactly the makings of compromise. but peel back the rhetoric and raw emotion and there are some areas of agreement. take young adults. republicans want to change the law to allow dependents to stay on their parents' insurance policies through age 25. president obama's plan isn't far off. he says age 26. or promoting a healthier lifestyle. a house gop proposal says people

in prevention and wellness programs should be rewarded with better health insurance rates. the president adopted a similar idea in his plan. but the reality is those are minor issues. so what about major popular issues like banning insurers from discriminating based on preexisting conditions? well, they agree on the concept. >> i think that the issue of preexisting conditions is a serious issue in our health care system. we have a way to do it that doesn't drive up the health insurance costs for every other american. >> reporter: but that republican way is expanding high-risk pools and reinsurance programs that already exist in various states. democrats call that a nonstarter and want an all-out federal ban which brings us back to where we started. intense disagreement. and though democrats say this -- >> we've heard that they have ideas, and we look forward to those ideas. >> reporter: -- skepticism reigns. >> we're happy to be there, but i'm not quite sure what the purpose is.

>> and the reason that the senate republican leaders said that is, despite this summit and the six-hour event around it, democrats already have tentative plans in the works to use a parliamentary maneuver work around republicans and pass their bill without republican support. and republicans today will argue, kiran, that that is absolutely the wrong approach. they think that health care should be one incrementally. get this, chris dodd, a senior senate democrat, he's going to be there today. he told reporters if the gop wants to start over then, to quote, there's nothing to talk about. >> and also about who will be here today at this summit. party leaders i understand for the most part put together the guest list. what are you hearing about the white house inviting a certain republican senator? >> this is really interesting. a moderate republican, olympia snowe, the white house reached out and invited her. she, of course, had been the one republican that democrats thought they could get on their side. and in the end she voted against the senate democratic bill.

obama officials did this knowing full well that their own republican leader did not want her there. for that reason, snowe told the white house, according to a spokesman, she told him that she had declined. this is an attempt clearly by the president to crack the republican unity that we think we're going to see today. and the fact that snowe declined and the fact that she won't be there pretty much shows it's going to be hard for democrats to get moderates on board, at least if they continue down the path that they're on with the bill that they proposed. >> wow, interesting stuff. all right, dana bash for us this morning. thanks so much. coming up, white house press secretary robert gibbs joining us live in ten minutes. what could stay? what could go and what will be left if it passes? seaworld shows featuring killer whales have been canceled after a terrifying scene in orlando. in front of a horrified audience, a 12,000-pound male killed the trainer.

40-year-old dawn brancheau was killed without warning, dragged under water. and this is not the first time that this orca has shown signs of aggression. >> reporter: she never had a chance. a 40-year-old female trainer in the jaws of a 22-foot long killer whale. a massive orca weighing 12,300 pounds. >> she apparently slipped or fell into the tank and was injured by one of the males. >> reporter: it happened at 2:00 in the afternoon at seaworld in orlando, florida. seaworld said senior trainer dawn brancheau who was interviewed on cnn two years ago slipped into the tank. but an eyewitness tells cnn, the killer whale, a bull orca named

ti tilikum actually grabbed the trainer. >> it the trainer said, oh, yeah, they're giving him a belly rub, he really likes that. i could tell, you could tell by the huge fence. >> reporter: the whale isle believed to be the largest orca in captivity. his fins alone measure more than six feet. the eyewitness said when the trainer who was not in the water gave the go-ahead, the whale took off. >> just took off really fast. came around the glass. jumped up and grabbed the trainer around the waist and started shaking her violently and they are shoe fell. silence immediately. >> reporter: the crowd that had gathered for the show was cleared out. the park manager at seaworld said the trainer drowned. an expert for studies whales told me tilikum has been aggressive and doesn't swim with other trainers.

orca network's howard garrett said the whale's lack of companionship may have triggered this attack. >> when put a highly social mammal like an orca into captivity for long periods, they have nothing. they have no stimulation. they have no companionship. and that can tend to create stress. >> reporter: in fact, parkgoers say the whales earlier shows wednesday appeared stressed and stopped obeying commands. >> we've never in the history of our parks experienced an incident like this. >> reporter: but this is not the first time this killer whale has been involved in the death of a train per. back in 1991, 20 years ago, tilikum and two other whales killed their trainer at a park in british columbia in front of a crowd. eight years later in 1999, the naked body of a man was found floating in tilikum's tank.

he had snuck into seaworld. authorities say he was the victim of horseplay. could it be that tilly was looking to horse around, too? >> unlike a dog who wants to scratch your leg, he wants to play with you. >> they believe seaworld will keep him. as the primary breeding male for all seaworld parks he's worth millions. at a time when whales are dying faster than being born, the orca network said tilikum is seaworld's future. while they're known as killer whales, these whales are not threats to human it's in wild. earlier, we spoke to nancy black she's a marine biologist studying killer whales. and i asked her if the orca could be potentially depress order agitated after spending many years in captivity. you put a person in a confined area. they might snap. did this orca just snap? >> it's possible. you know, he could have -- i

heard that the whales were a little agitated maybe before this happened. maybe something unusual happened in their environment, and they're so used to this regular, you know, situation every day. and anything that makes louder sounds could have disturbed him. he could have been upset. and just like a frustrated person might hit a wall or something, the killer whale will just grab a person, you know, just pull her in the water because there's nothing else to take his frustrations out on. and coming up in the next hour, we're going to get insight into what possibly could have happened at seaworld when we talk with chuck tompkins, he's the park's zoological curator. and also coming up, an immediate investigation that state police forced them to drop a report against an aide of his. they accused johnson of domestic violence. homeland security's e-verify program checks online security

databases to confirm if an employee can work in the united states. now, a research company has found that e-verify wrongly clears illegal workers 54% of the time. cutting carbs may help you shed pounds but can increase your rate for heart disease. people who ate a diet high in fat found a spike in adl or bad cholesterol. well, it's good work if you can get it paying $3,000 an hour. forced out after eight months on the job, the ceo of general motors fritz henderson is back as a consultant for general motors. his pay, $59,000 a month for just 20 hours of work. well, gm also making news after announcing its shutting down production of the hummer. the decision comes after a deal to sell the brand to a chinese automaker fell through yesterday. hummer is the third brand to go

since the reorganization last year. and from wall county, new jersey, the second nor'easter on wait. lots of snow coming down there. a wintry mix as well. 1 to 2 feet of snow. dangerous winds expected to paralyze the northeast as flooding battles the coast. this after snow dumped a foot or more in pennsylvania all the way up to new england. 11 minutes past the hour. we got a quick check of the weather with rob marciano in atlanta. rob, we got a picture from wall, new jersey. >> yeah, when you go upstate to where they have that 2 feet of snow that you mentioned, we're going to have situations that people already out without power. more power lines coming down, you get rain and wet snow on top of that, well, roof collapses in some area. that's entirely possible. that kind of scene is going to slow down quickly as we go through the next 24 hours.

radar scope, snow on the west. rain on the east. there are flood watches out for parts of connecticut and massachusetts. and the rain/snow line from the new york freeway to about the jersey shore, you can see new york is trying to change over to snow. everything's goes to pivot sarnd new york city. knowing in philadelphia, has been all morning long. it will remain snow through the duration of this event. it's a matter of how much you get. 6 to 12 expected from philly to new york. new york will be more wet snow. you go north and west of the city, jersey and eastern pennsylvania, scranton could see 12 to 24 inches of snow on top of this. and wind will also be been issue. we'll see some cases of blizzard condition later on tonight. this storm is going to stick around for a couple days, guys. it's not heading out to sea quickly like winter storms do. that will create its own problems. see you guys then. enjoy the winter weather that won't end. >> thanks. >> could have said that a week ago, two weeks ago, three weeks

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it's now 16 minutes after the hour. welcome back to the most news in the morning. later on today, president obama will sit down with democrats and republicans for a televised six-hour long health care summit. it could be the last meaningfulle place for health reform. robert gibbs is here from the white house to talk about this. robert, great to see you this

morning. >> good morning, john. >> what i heard since it was announced, why did the president wait too long? to come out with his own plan. what have we been doing for the past year? >> well, what we've been doing for the past year is going throughout congress, having republicans and democrats in congress debate certain ideas. both of those bills went through both the house and senate. and included ideas from both republicans and democrats. we're to cut the costs that federal government has to pay for health care, it makes sense to get everybody in the same room. go through any more good ideas that we should add into a proposal. and once and for all, let's get health care and health insurance reform done for the american people. >> let me also come back to the original question of why the president waited this long to come out with this own plan. there are many democrats who have been saying through most of 2009 that the president should have been the first one out there with his own plan, instead

of letting congress do it. >> well look, we've gotten health care reform, john, farther than it's ever been in seven decades of presidents working on health care reform. so i'm not going to second-guess the process that's gotten us this close. >> terms of the costs, one of the provisions to help pay for all of this is a tax on so-called cadillac health care plans. but that tax is not going to kick in until the year 20 aerngs that's long after the president is out of fofs he wins the second term. sort of kicks the can down the road, if you will. and who knows whether or not the tax will ever be implemented. in the short term, does this program do anything to rein in the cost of health insurance? and is the president caving into demands of labor demands and liberals in his own party? >> that's quite a long question, john. what we do, as you mentioned, that tax is on insurers. it's phased in at a later date because we want to give insurance companies that offer these expensive plans time to phase some of them out. that will cut costs.

we have increased efficiencies in this system, bringing people into this system will cut people's costs. because it will lower people's premiums. right now, john, if somebody doesn't have health insurance, and they get into a car accident week paying for that twice. we pay for our health care and we pay for their health care. let's do something about costs. let's give tax cuts to small businesses so they can insure the middle class. let's do things on health i.t. and technology. it's increase choice and competition and assure that people have access to affordable health care. >> labor unions were very much opposed to this tax on cadillac plans as were liberals in democratic parties. did they cave to their demands essentially putting this off for eight years? >> no, caving to them would not have been doing it at all. but the president recognized what was important was making sure we're doing something to bend the cost cutting.

>> in terms what the president needs to do from here on out. there are democrats who say he really needs to bring a more forceful approach. he needs to be the lead negotiator on this. anthony wehner, the democrat from new york said if the president wants a bill, it's up to them. the difference now, the president is not in the back room with his sleeves rolled playing lyndon johnson. he's now abe lincoln, ronald reagan, bill clinton, which we is what we've needed all along. >> it's convoluted. we've gotten farther than any other president as you mentioned has gotten health care reform. and we know what happens if we don't do anything. individual insurance market in california, the insurer that covers that market is sending out letters to those individuals right now, they're opening that mail and find ought that their health insurance next year will

cost almost 40% more. that's what's going to happen all over this country, if we don't bring good ideas to the president's meeting today. and instead of fighting back and forth, and just reading our talking points, if we focus on getting something done for the american people, that's what they want to watch today. i think that's what we hope comes out of it. the product will be based on people's willingness to come sit at the table and discuss those good ideas. >> i know you got to go. but some are some democrats who believe today's meeting will be nothing more than political theater. would you agree with them? >> absolutely not. i think we're going to have a big table. we're going to listen to a bunch of ideas. i hope participants on either side. democrat or republican, come with the open mind of listening to the people that they work with every day. understanding their point of view. incorporating more of their ideas, both democrat and republican into a good proposal, and doing something on behalf of the american people. the american people are tired of watching the two parties simply

sit up here in washington, d.c. and fight each other. i think it's time we did something on behalf of them. >> we'll be watching very closely. we'll be coverage the whole thing. robert gibbs, already great to catch up with you. thanks for joining us. we just heard the white house perspective, what is the gop saying. we'll talk to senator john cornyn, the republican from texas, when we come right back. the integrity of its design... or how it responds... in extreme situations? the deeper you look, the more you see the real differences. and the more you understand what it means to own a mercedes-benz. the c-class. see your authorized mercedes-benz dealer for special offers through mercedes-benz financial. ♪

♪ and we're back with the most news in the morning. all this week, the full resources of cnn are looking at washington gridlock in the special series "broken government." today, we're investigating gerrymandering. it's an old political trick, that means dividing up local districts to give one party or another a political edge. the way these lines are drawn can swing entire elections. it's bizarre the way it's done. one example, check out maryland's second congressional district. at its longest point, 50 miles. at its shortest, about 1,700

feet. one possible solution to all of this, bring in independent commissions to redraw congressional districts. but how likely is it that's going to happen. we sent our jason carroll to california to find out. >> reporter: partisan pickering, republicans and democrats unable to find common ground, searching for reasons why. alan lowenthaw says try looking closer to home. do you think most people out, wherever they may be, have a keen sense of where districts are drawn. >> no, this is boring, this is a yawner. >> reporter: he's working to change an old practice, one he says has taken place next to his own district. gerrymandering. >> it's all designed to protect the incumbents. >> reporter: gerrymandering is named after massachusetts governor alberts gerry, who

signed a bill in the early 1800s, redrawing a district to look like a sal mander. centuries later, it's still happening. held by a democrat, carved like a pacman, pennsylvania's 18, held by a republican, a rorschach block. allow lowenthal says -- >> is it true, yes, it was. >> reporter: this is just across the street, the 46th district. it used to look like this. but it was changed in 2001 making it a republican stronghold. how? using a narrow strip on largely democratic long beach to link two traditionally republican communities. costa mesa and palo verdes.

fluke at that, that's where the district stops. if you look here, just where the water is, beyond tra stop light. it's essentially one block wide. about 300 yards. 46th district gop congressman dana roar ra balker did not agree to an interview. he lives across the street from lowenthal. >> i know my vote is worthless. >> reporter: he says it protecting the governments. >> it makes the government stagnant. there's no new blood in congress. we'll see what's happening. nothing is getting done these days. >> reporter: redistricting experts like douglas johnson also speaking to the willingness

not to compromise. >> it's the grassroots movement, whether the tea party today or the obama movement last year. you would think they have more influence. really the incumbents don't have to answer to them. >> reporter: lowen thalis responding to push for an independent commission to have california redraw congressional districts. how do you think this is resolved? >> ultimately, we will have independent commissions and redraw our boundaries. we move forward two steps and back one step. >> while lowenthal and others are trying to take another step forward, they're hoping that initiative to have an independent commission deal with all of this will be on california's november ballot. they gathered about half the signatures. again, john, that's what they're hoping for. we're going to have to look at it and see what happens. >> when you look at these

congressional districts and the way they're drawn, sometimes it just baffles the mind. but are there any efforts under way to change the process? >> well, of course. and if you look nationwide, in states like arizona, they've already done that. they have an independent commission that's doing this right now. there are other states such as pennsylvania, florida, colorado. indiana, minnesota, some others that are also now. there is this movement sort of under way to try to get these independent commissions but you know, it's an uphill battle, no question about it. >> and so, these movings under way to try to get independent commissions, how likely is it that these initiatives will pass? >> well, you speak to people like lowenthal, john, they'll tell you that they are extremely hopeful. you speak to experts like we have in doing the story, they'll say there are both democrats and republicans who like the system the way it is now. it helps incumbents.

they don't want to rock the boat. it's an uphill battle. >> jason carroll this morning, great story. brings us to the half hour now. that means time for the top stories. today president obama and democrats and republicans will hold a health care summit. it's going to be held at the blair house across the street from the white house. republicans say they're not optimistic, claiming that the president has already made up his mind about health care reform. it's being called, quote, historical day in marjah, reportedly taken off official control of the offices of the southern taliban stronghold. the governor of the province raising the afghan flag. it's the lampest military operation since 2001. and chrysler is replacing crash sensors that help control the air bags in 2005 and 2006

minu minivans. it's not say recall, but they're urging them to bring their minivans in to be fixed. we're now just two hours away from the president's health care summit. but feel perhaps we can get something done here. we just heard from robert gibbs. here is senator john cornyn of texas. he won't be there, but he's joining us from capitol hill. senator cornyn, thanks for your time. >> good morning. >> you called it a made-for-tv event. do you think there any chance that today will be productive? >> well, i wish it were so, i wish it were possible. but i don't think the way this has been handled. i mean, the president has taken a senate and house bill that are enormously popular with the american people, reduced to an 11-page summary. we don't even have an accurate score or cost estimate from the congressional budget office. and he said he's not going to shelf these unpopular bills and

start over again and work with republicans to come up with a consensus bill. i do think that the pundits are right. this is about theater. this isn't about substance, unfortunately. >> you mentioned the congressional budget office. some of the estimates do have it at just under $1 trillion. is it a comprehensive bill that went through the house and senate. but back in september, you said there was agreement on about 80% of things. and about 20% of things are really holding back any type of health care reform. what's changed from that 80/20 that you talked about in september? >> unfortunately, that 20 means for the average person with health insurance, their premiums would rise. and it takes half a trillion dollars from medicare already on a physicalally sustainable path to create a new entitlement. unfortunately, those thing aren't changed and they remain the residence why americans don't want this bill so i don't understand why the white house and the majority are intent on jamming it down their throat,

whether they like it or not. >> now, one of the things the president has talked about is trying to find some common ground. if he comes out this morning and offers a new compromise, maybe an idea on medical malpractice, tort reform, is there anything that republicans would be willing to give on in return? >> well, that would be positive. we've heard the president talk about medical liability reform which the congressional budget office said would save $55 billion over the next ten years. but then when you actually see the bill, they create pilot programs and things that are essentially meaningless. so if we can match up what they say with what they do, i think that would be a good start. >> tell us some of the specific proposals that republicans want to get out there on the table today at this health care summit. >> well, you mentioned one. melt medical liability reform would be important. expanding the health savings accounts, to allow people to decide what and how to shop for their health care. competition across state lines

increase transparency and let the market help control costs. the problem with this bill, and this proposal, is it simply does not lower health care costs. that's what the american people want first and foremost. what this does is it makes it worse, not better. >> you talked about some things that the republicans want to see. but i also ask, what would be some of the areas that you might be willing to give on that you're not necessarily in love with, but in order to get it done, that you might agree to? >> well, i mean, the president's going to have to scrap the mandates on individuals in terms that raise the cost of insurance. he's going to have to reduce the taxes on the middle class to pay for it. so, really, i think that's not possible to take this bill or his proposal, this 11-page summary, and to work with it around the edges. we're going to have to put it on the shelf. that's what the person people want us to do and we'll start over. >> you don't agree with the

figure of 46 million uninsured americans. you actually talked about it being much lower than that. but are you satisfied with the republican plan that talks about perhaps covering 3 million people, that it goes far enough to help people who really want insurance but cannot afford it? >> well we need a safety net for people who can't afford health coverage in this country. that's why medicaid and the c.h.i.p. program, the children's health insurance program are important. but we have to recognize that the democrat proposal forces many more people on medicaid and it represents an unfunded mandate on states. in texas, for example, this proposal will cost texasal $24 billion that the federal government is not going to pay for. that's a crippling costs that will force out higher education in the state. that's why we need do do some things that make better sense. >> we've been examining on cnn,

the poll, 86% of the people asked that they the government is broken. >> i disagree that the government is broken. i think the american people are finally taking the power back, after massachusetts, after virginia, and after new jersey. i think you'll see in november 2010, the american people speak very clearly, that they don't like this big government takeovers. higher taxes, reckless spending. and they want a new direction. i think they're going to get it come november 2010. >> all right. senator john cornyn, great to get your perspective this morning. thanks for beings with. >> thank you very much. the budget masters. the knockout artists who are finding more ways to spread their dollar further. to bolder color in less time. say hello to newer ideas and lowered prices, enabling more people... to turn more saving into more doing. that's the power of the home depot. try behr premium plus ultra, it's paint and primer all in one, and rated number one.

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♪ 40 minutes after the hour. welcome back to the most news in the morning. more now in our special investigation into your broken government. and our carol costello is looking today at trade. last year, the united states bought more from other countries than we sold. how much? more than $380 billion, according to the folks at the census department. so what's the fix? some economic experts say adjusting free trade agreements. carol costello is in baltimore this morning to find out why. >> reporter: as one economist

put it, it's the trade deficit, stupid, as long as imports outweigh exports, countries like china will continue to boom while the united states continues to struggle. president obama has a plan but is it good enough to fix what's broken? you want a dose of yes, we can, in a no, we can't economy, welcome to marlin steel. how, this is serious. >> we make everything here. we export all over the world. >> reporter: in baltimore, maryland, marlin steel is up and running 24/7 and hiring by making and exporting what it calls the best damn wire baskets in the world. that's crazy, i've never heard of such a thing. like america exporting goods to taiwan? >> that's exactly right. we ship wire baskets to taiwan, can't get any better than that, i love it. >> reporter: marlin steel is the exception, just about 1% of american companies export to foreign countries.

>> tonight, we saet a goal on exports. >> reporter: analysts say that's possible but only if congress acts aggressively. his congress is trying. marlin steel is trying to export without financial risk because if the customers don't pay their bill, under a new program, uncle sam will. greenblat says fantastic, but he wishes that congress would fix what's broken. >> right now, as 20 million in korea, panama, and colombia that we should be selling to because we don't have free trade agreements. >> reporter: that phrase "free trade" many are not aware of that because they don't play by the rules. want to talk about china? >> i'd love nothing more. >> reporter: many economists say china keeps its currency exchange rate artificially low

which makes american exports more expensive and china's goods a whole lot cheaper. is china a currency manipulator? >> you know, that's a judgment for tim geithner to make. >> reporter: but a lot of people in the country would say it's so obvious that china is manipulating its currency. it's so obvious. why not just say it and deal with it. >> we have engaged china about the need to rebalance their economy, just as we're rebalancing ours. and i understand the american voters are angry. i understand american voters want us to throw out a lot of strong verbiage. >> reporter: that's difficult when the united states is in china's debt, and depends on china to help america deal with countries like north korea. greenblat is frustrated by that, but he's not giving up. 20% of his goods are sold overseas. and, yeah, he can compete with china, even now. china makes things cheap. you can't possibly do that and

compete? >> you're right. we can't beat them in price. we beat them because we have great engineering. when an american box comes in, it comes in on time, it comes in fast. and that's how we're going to beat china, because we're fast, we're great quality, and we have great engineering. and that's our secret recipe. that's our secret sauce. >> greenblat employs 30 people right now. he says for every million bucks he makes exports goods, he'll hire eight more people. that's what the obama institute is shooting for. but there's a hurdle, there are of plenty of people who play massive losses to free trade. free trade is the phrase. 45 minutes past the hour, rob is going to be along with the morning's travel forecast. and there is a blizzard heading up and down the east coast, affecting parts of pennsylvania as well.

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♪ well, good morning to you. and bon dia to playa de touria in the azores in portugal. we show you the snow in new york and nice days in the azores. later on today, it's going to be sunny, and the temperature's

only going to get up to 60. so a bit of a cool day there in the azores, looks like beautiful weather. >> it's gorgeous that shot this morning. and we can only see that because what we're getting here is very, very different. it's 48 minutes past the hour. we're going to check on the weather headlines. we have snow in the future. not the beautiful shot of the 60-degree azoreses, rob. >> you know, there's a couple of times this week that's happened. we go to rob and he sounds like the ocean surf. >> you know what, no one wants to hear the bad news that we're getting another storm on the east coast. >> exactly. it's electronic justice there. you don't want to hear how bad the weather is going to be. we'll be back with rob as soon as he gets a new battery. stay with us. pacific life can help... using 401k savings, life insurance, and annuities to provide a dependable income for the rest of your life. with more than 140 years of experience, pacific life can help you achieve your vision of the future. ask your financial professional about pacific life...

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like there is a malfunction with his battery to keep us from hearing the bad news. >> that's not the brand i am using, so maybe that's the issue. this is the winter that keeps going and going and going. the long range forecast for next week looks to be just as cold as what we are seeing right now. to the west of albany, we saw two feet of snow. the snow blowers out trying to get rid of it. what we have got bgoing now is rain turning to snow. vermont, over 2 feet in many locations, including northern vermont. look at the temperatures now. temperatures in the 30s across parts of the connecticut, and massachusetts. and then getting down towards new york city, it's snowing now

in new york. the changeover is beginning to happen. philadelphia has been in snow pretty much since daybreak today. d.c., you are pretty much out of the mix with this things. that's good, because d.c. and baltimore do not want more snow. but philly, you have had your share of record-setting snowfalls, and this will add on to that. philly will be in snow the entire time, and it might turn back to rain for new york, so a wet snow for sure, and it may be blizzard conditions at times later tonight. >> thanks, rob. well, it's 53 minutes past the hour. time for your "am" house call. there is an idea that president

obama has not been open to. here he is addressing the american medical association. >> i am not advocating a cap on malpractice awards, which i believe -- i personally believe can be unfair to people who have been wrongfully harmed. but i think we need to explore a range of ideas about how to put patient safety first, and how to let doctors focus on practicing medicine, and how to encourage broader use of evidence-based guidelines. >> all right. for some perspective on this, our medical correspondent, dr. sanjay gupta joins us. there is two sides to the debate about whether or not it hinders people from practicing medicine, and whether or not people harmed could get compensation for it.

>> a lot of people think threes type of lawsuits can drive up health care costs overall. and let me give you a perspective on what we are talking about. at last recorded, 2008, a million people claim some sort of harm because of medical practice, and so you have 1 million people harmed, and 85 million lawsuits, and 11,000 claims had money on them. you do hear about the higher profile cases, the bigger cases that president obama was eluding to. $6.5 million was need in north carolina was paid, and the real question is how much money is that in the context of health care costs overall. and it's 2% overall of health care costs. the lawsuits themselves and the

payouts from the lawsuits do make up a small fraction of health care costs. >> doesn't it have to do with insurance sometimes, because sometimes it's hard to get insurance or they pay a lot for insurance if they were made to payout because of something? >> doctors worried about the lawsuits even though there is a relatively small number, therefore they practiced medicine differently. according to a recent gallop poll, take a look at that, if you can see the numbers. 35% of people may order more diagnosists tests, and 19% more hospitalizations, and 16% more prescriptions and 8% more surgeries, and not because they needed things but because doctors were worried about

potentially getting sued. and there is another part to it, the premiums for malpractice insurance have become extremely high. as a result in some areas, it's hard to find a doctor. in mississippi, for example, there are certain areas in mississippi where aub stwomen ir last trimester of pregnancy may have to go live 100 miles away from their home because of where they are located. >> and that affects each and every one of us. it's fascinating and a discussion that they will be discussing under two hours today. >> thank you so much. top stories coming your way in two minutes' time.

dw

good morning to you. >> i am kiran chetry. >> and i am john roberts. democrats and republicans together in the same room discussing health care reform on national television and president obama is serving as the mc. already, members of both parties are asking, why bother? winter blasts round one, and already hit the northeast and now time for round two. our rob marciano was tracking it all from the extreme weather center coming up. and sea curled canceling all whale shows today, after a trainer was killed. >> jumped up and grabbed the trainer by the waist, and her shoe was floating and sirens

started. >> what went wrong? could it have been prevented? we will talk with the curator of the park. in two hour's time, president obama and both major parties will assemble together and talk about health care for four hours. controlling costs, insurance reforms and reducing the deficit and expanding coverage. the summit, which some believe is nothing more than a dog and pony show, could be the administration's chance for a deal. >> i think it's time that we did something on behalf of them. >> the president has taken a senate and house bill that are enormously unpopular with the person people, reduced it to an 11-page soummary, and he said that he is not going to shelf

these unpopular bills and start over again and work with republicans to come up with a consensus bill. i think the pundits are right, this is about theater. >> politicians grandstanding in front of the cameras. >> how will average americans be impacted today? >> i think he is trying to get momentum finally. he realizes time is running out on this effort and we have been saying that for sometime. he does have to, by his own station, move back to jobs. that's what he did when he reset things in the state of the union a few weeks ago, and here we are with health care reform back on the front burner, and many americans must be wondering if it's going to get done or not.

top advisers don't believe there will be a eureka moment where both sides are going to magically find a formula, but they think beyond theater of the absurd, this will be ideas, and there is a maneuver why they need majority votes and the bottom line here inside the white house they believe they have enough votes to get that through. they are unsure about the house and whether they have 218 majority votes to pass the measure through without republican votes. largely because republican votes are not onboard, john. >> remember, the president said he wanted a deal before the august recess and that deadline went by and then the end of the year, and that deadline went by. what do you think about the next

deadline? >> reporter: the president is not going to issue a deadline or a ultimate um today. they go on recess for easter at the end of march and into early april, and they want to focus on jobs and other spending bills that piled up in the senate. if they don't get it done between now and the end of march, democratic leaders are warning the white house they have to move on. they have 30 days from the meeting today and that's why there is so much pressure on the president, john. >> ed, thank you so much. coming up at the bottom of the hour, david gergen and candy

crowley. here is a look at some people think the circular red, white and blue think it looks like the obama campaigning look. the commander in chief has a friendly game of basketball. the mayor wants to host the match-up. and senator brown accepted. he accepted the hoop challenge to the president after winning ted kennedy's seat. he says the invitation is being studied. >> it would be great if he said yes. >> yeah, i would love to see it. >> they could both win the pins,

too. and let's check in with rob marciano. we are already seeing wintry mix, i guess you could say, in columbus circle this morning. >> yeah, a little wet there but the snow is beginning to mix in. we have to deal with a little bit of warm air trying to sneak in and the fact it will sit down and spin in the same spot pretty much for about two days. still developing, actually. the rain and the warm air is definitely filtering in on the eastern fridges of the storm. new york and hartford, they have seen their fair share of snow. and most of jersey is in the form of snow right now. you can see the abundant amount of moisture there. and more wet, heavy snow in new york and in philly.

12-24 inches expected. i should mention east of the new york-connecticut border, this storm has about every facet you can imagine. we will talk more details about the storm in about 30 minutes. >> thank you. rob mentioned the jersey shore. a lot of theories as to why there has been so much storming. >> i am glad we are not on the east coast right now, no matter how good the pizza is. 5 inches expected in new york and new england, and some areas might be getting up to 30 inches, and now it's pretty

clear god is punishing us for "jersey shore." >> he is talking about the show. >> i have to confess, i know nothing about that show and have no inclinician to learn, either. >> you are better off. when we come back, we will talk about the killer whale attack. we will talk with the curatocur.

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first, they drive it in the real world. and put it through its paces. they rate its fit and finish and the amenities inside. they factor in purchase price and operating costs. fuel economy and resale value. in short, they do what you do to test its quality. now get a low mileage lease on this 2010 malibu for around $199 a month for 39 months. call for details. see your local chevy dealer. welcome back. sea word making the call to shut down all killer whale shows today after their frightening and sudden attack in orlando. a whale killered veteran trainer yesterday. it happened after one of the

shows. witnesses say the or kau grabbed the trainer and pulled her into the water. chuck, thank you for being with us. >> thank you. >> i am sure it's not easy for you guys today, and this is a tragedy, of course, for so many reasons for you. if you could clear up some of the conflicting reports about whether the trainer fell into the whale or if she was pulled into the tank by the whale. >> she was working with him right by the pool, and she was working him on dry deck, and she was rubbing his head and had a long tony tail that brushed and it got on his nose, and he felt it and grabbed it and pulled her into the water.

>> do you know what happened after that that led to her death? >> well, she was pulled into the water and under water for an extended period of time. we don't have anymore information until we investigate what happened. >> when you say it's not an animal the trainers don't work with in the water? is that because of his personality or because he is so big, or just something they don't do in this particular show? >> well, he is a very large animal. and just because of his size alone we were careful how we worked him. we have very specific training procedures and protocols that we use in working with the animal. we are going to make any change necessary for in the future our trainer's safety is of the utmost importance.

>> there were some people that said there seemed to be odd behavior going on, some familiar with seeing the show before saying two of the bigger whales seemed to be, quote, flipping out. perhaps they were not in the mood that day or maybe something wasn't quite right in the tran k? >> no, that's an accurate. he just finished a really good session with dawn. she had one of the best working relationships with this animal. she had done a great session with him. he seemed to enjoy what he was doing at the time. nothing would indicate that there was a problem whatsoever, not with him or any other animal in our environment. >> we talked about the unpredictability of wild animals, because even though they gain trust and bond with their trainers, and they are still wild animals. should we be rethinking whether or not it makes sense to keep the large animals that usually

have hundreds of thousands of miles of sea water to explore in captivity? >> we have had a great track records. we have done millions and millions of interactions with the killer whales with a very small percentage of problems. we need to remember it's useful to have animals here, and our job is to learn about them and share them with the public and educate them with what they are about. we need to remember this is the first time in 46 years we ever had an incident like this with a trainer. >> some people are asking about the whale's presence at all given the past. one was an incident when he was involved in the death of his trainer, and somebody climbed into the pool or tank and was also found dead on his back. should there be rethinking about whether or not that particular whale should be there? >> well, obviously we need to

evaluate the whole situation. but to refer back to the incidents. one occurred long before sea world actually owned him. somebody got in the pool at night, we were not around and don't know exactly what happened. those two incidents don't have anything to do with this one, and to mark him as a killer is unfair. he is a very large animal and by the nature of being a killer whale. we have to manage him carefully. we have to make sure that we continue to focus on, from this point out that we evaluate the safety protocols, and providing the safest environment for the trainers working around them and we will not move forward until that can happen with the trainers. and out of respect for dawn and her family, we want to take time to respect her, and that's why currently we are not doing shows at sea world, and we need to

assure ourselves that we have the safest environment. >> somebody was saying the whale was kept isolated from some of the other killer whales and the trainers because of the violent history. is that the case? >> that is not accurate at all. i worked with him for many years. and the females love having them around when they are sexually active, and when they are not sometimes they like to have him in a separate area. he performs regularly with the females, and there is a variety in his day when he is with different people and animals all the time. >> he is also in the water with trainers? >> no, he is not. we never got in the water with this particular animal because of his size and previous history. we make sure to try and provide an environment when we put our trainers in the safest

situation, and we felt like getting in the water is not something we need to do with a 12,000 pound animal. >> so you would say it's something you were not willing to take a chance with? >> absolutely. we didn't ignore those situations. again, it's a combination of the previous history and size. remember, our normal killer whales weigh 6,000 pounds, and he is 12,000 pounds. he is a large animal. for the size alone, it would be dangerous to get in the water with him. >> how does sea world plan to deal with this in the future? >> we need to evaluate the situation and figure out the best possible way for the trainers to interact with him safely, and there is a way to do that. he still needs to be taken care of. we need to mentally and physically stimulate him he is a social animal. we want to review the process,

and as time goes on we need to figure out the best way to take care of him and again make sure the trainers are safe. >> thank you so much for your time this morning. we appreciate your time. >> thank you. it's 18 minutes after the hour. another brand under the gm going down, and this time it's the hummer. we will tell you what is going on next.

21 minutes after the hour. christine romans here minding your business here. we are talking about the death of a couple things. conspicuous consubpoemptioconsu. >> what is more conspicuous than the hummer. rest in peace, hummer. they were trying to negotiate a deal with hummer, so hummer will close. this is a brand that peverybody thought it was great to be a conspicuous consumer. and they are based on a military vehicle were sold, and 9,000 last year, down 67% from the year before. the hummer is going bye bye. >> it was gas prices that killed

it, right? when gas prices got up $4 a gall gallon, who wanted to buy one of these. >> and you can expect home prices to fall further. the economists there expect a 6% further price decline in the average home price by september of 2011. that's after 27% in the past three years. miami, if you are waking up in miami, i am sorry to give you the bad news. and it's -- some of these places they are expecting the free fall to continue and bottom out. >> tell us the figure you told us off camera? >> 29%. >> 29% further? yeah. >> still, people are in the properties and they will never be able to afford the house they are in. have you job losses, so you can't afford any kind of a

mortgage in you don't have a job. and the mortgage services are trying to figure out who will never be able to pay the bills. there are still, hundreds of thousands of people in homes, even if you modify the homes they will never be able to afford what they are in. >> they got in the game and now they are seeing there may be no potential drivers left? >> yeah, they cleared out the first-time starters, with the $8,000 tax credit, and now where the is next wave coming from. these folks are predicting a slow summer and that's why prices are declining. >> do you have a number for us? >> 49%. what in our life is 49% bigger than a generation ago? >> the size of our home? >> the size of our home.

>> one right. one right. >> you are correct! a house in 1970 was 1500 square feet. by the week in 2007, a little after the peak, 2,227 square feet. we started to build houses with parking spaces and bedrooms. >> my mom and her sister shared a room. >> i am just telling you, everything got big in the bubble, and now the bubble popped and we are downsizing and getting smaller. >> how do you downsize a studio apartment in manhattan? >> it's called a closet. >> yeah, you could not get a credit card back then. >> health care on the brink.

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and our freshly-baked cheddar bay biscuits. come celebrate lobsterfest. right now at red lobster. welcome back to the most news in the morning. all this week the full resources of cnn is looking at washington gridlock, and today we are investigating gerrymandering, an old political trick that means dividing up districts to give

one or the other an advantage. >> there is one possible solution, and that is bring in an independent commission to redraw the districts. check out maryland's second district. at the longest point is 50 miles and at the narrowests point it's 1,700 feet. >> it gets ridiculous when you break some of these down. we sent out our jason carroll to california and he is live from the l.a. bbor bureau. if you want to know about gerrymandering, this is an interesting state to explore. partisan bickering, and republicans and democrats unable to find common grounds, and

searching for reasons why? one says before looking in washington, try looking closer to home, in your own district. >> reporter: do you think most people out there, wherever they may be, really have a keen sense of how their districts are drawn? >> no, this is very boring. this is a yawner. most people don't really care about this. >> reporter: he is working to change an old practice, one he says has taken place to his own district. gerrymandering. >> it's decided to protect the incumbent, and people think they have a choice but they don't. centuries later, this is still happening. illinois' fourth district, pennsylvania's 18th, held by a

republican, a blot. and they say the shape of the district next to him, a sore thumb. >> is it true my district was carved around my house? yes, it was. >> and just across the street is the 46th district, and it used to look like this and it was changed in 2001, making it a republican strong hold. how? using a narrow strip on largely democratic long beach to link to traditionally republican communities, pal oes verd verde costa mesa. >> when you look at where the stop sign is, that's where it starts. where the ends, look where the water s. beyond the stoplight. this area of the district is one block wide, about 300 yards. 46 district gop congressman did

not agree to an interview, but epstein did, and he is just a voter, and just across the street from lowenthawl. >> there is no new blood in congress because of this, and nothing something getting done these days. >> redistricting experts not surprised by congress' unwillingness to compromise. >> these people don't have to worry about being re-elected back home because of how their district is drawn. >>a, tea party today or obama movement last year, you would think they have more influence. but the incumbent don't have to

respond to them. >> reporter: there is a push to have a independent commission re-draw the districts. >> i think we will draw our boundaries. this is a wonderful strength of our democracy. we move forward two steps and back one step. >> well, he is hoping to take another step forward. he hopes that initiative will get on california's november ballot. kiran, it will be an uphill battle. >> yeah, i imagine so. seeing it happen for so long, it doesn't seem like it's changing anytime soon. but very interesting. thank you so much. we are checking the top stories. it's being called a historic day in the battle of marjah, afghanistan. the afghan government has taken official control. the massive assault now in the

second week since the war started in 2001. and then the east coast getting hit with the second storm in two days. yesterday's blizzard dumped more than a foot of snow from new york to new england. and 1 to 2 more feet of snow expected to paralyze the southeast. rob marciano joins us in a few minutes. and facebook is working to send a glitch that was sending messages to large groups. it was caused by a bug in some new code that they recently put in the website. some people complained about the snag on twitter. and there could be a do or die discussion on health care. the president has come closer than any president that tried to change the system, and this could be it.

joining us now is "state of the union" host, candy crowley, and david gergen. >> i have talked to people on both sides, and nobody expect a big break through agreement coming out of this, but nonetheless the conversation is important. the white house believes that millions of americans want to tune in today to get a better sense of what the debate is all about. very important politically is that this could change the dynamics of the health care debate and make it more likely that a bill passes or much more likely that it doesn't. a good deal hangs on this politically. >> the president, candy, has multiple audiences he is speaking to today. he will talk to independent voters and democratic voters of the house who some people he is trying to urge, pass the senate

bill and see what happens then and then he has health care reform. >> exactly. it's not just the president. the democrats understand that they cannot go into the election this fall without some form of health care reform, even if it's the scaled down version that so many in the house, that democrats don't like. so there is that. they come from that understanding. so there is an urgents now. and he is talking about the liberals, why didn't we go and push for everything, because we had the numbers. he needs to keep them in mind as well. they feel they have to pass something, if it doesn't come out with any republican support, they certainly, i think, the democrats i think will move

ahead in any way that they can. the question remains if they have the votes in the house at this point. >> is it possible for the president to convince democrats in the house to support the senate bill? >> no. the republicans are fairly -- the way they get rid of the current bill, start over and come up with a smaller bill like candy describes. they go into this with some public support behind them. there was a cnn poll released yesterday that found only 25% of the public wants to have this bill passed. 48% say start over. another 25% say let's not do health care at all for a while, and let's get back to jobs. and so the president in that sense is trying to change public opinion as well as opinion among his own democrats. >> candy, some talk that the

senate in order to get something different than they have now passed may resort to their reconciliation process, and budgetary process, in which they need a simple majority to get things through. is that a wise thing for democrats to do? >> well, many of them think it's wiser than not having a bill at all, because the sort of rules of the senate are just lost on the public at this point. i think that the senate will be far more interested in what david is talking about, which is when you have over 70% of people going, start all over or just stop completely, that's a political problem for democrats. i don't think they are worried that much about reconciliation if they use that, that being a fast track to get around republican opposition. so the question is whether there are enough democrats to actually support that, because it's a time honored institution reconciliation. and they would be going down.

it has been used before. let's say this is not something new, and there are some democrats that say let's not go down this road because we may not always be in the majority. >> there are some democrats that say after the health care meeting, the president needs to get out there and pool the card along. and if the bill does not get to his desk to sign, it's his fault. what do you think? >> i think the democrats are going to look to him to take the lead in the conversation today. they will tend to hold back a bit and look to him to out maneuver the republicans as the republicans try to out maneuver him. but when this is over and this day is over, the rumor in washington is the president will wait a couple days, and i heard all the voices, and here is what i will support, and namely we are going to do sk major about

malpractice reform, and if they won't come along, it will prove they don't want a health care bill at all. and the preferred option at the white house in the moment is plan a, to go with reconciliation. and if they don't get votes, it's to go back to the scaled back version, and there is no plan c. >> the best place to watch the debate is right here. it starts at 10:00 a.m. eastern. when we come back, building back america. some stay-at-home moms have found a way to build things back.

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love that song. >> have not heard that for a long, long time. >> brings back the good old days. >> today, we have another success story. >> it's giving a chance for moms to bring home the bacon without ever leaving the house. and good morning, tom. >> reporter: hey, how are you doing? we are here at the university of texas where lots of young folks are learning how to enter the tough business world, and they can take a lesson from a business right here in town. it's very new, really, compared to other businesses. and yet it has done something that really trumped this recession here. it looked for a hole in the market not being filled and resources not being used as well as they might be. take a look. the morning commute for julie bareut are only as far as the

kitchen, where she grabs coffee and puts out the cat and starts reading what other people right on the internet? >> i feel like i have the best of both worlds, contributing to the income and participating in my kids' lives. moms have found new income, purpose and satisfaction in a company called bizarre voice. >> i am a single mom with four kids. >> i wanted to be home. >> i needed something that would allow me to contribute to my husband's income, especially in the economic times. >> you use us all the time but don't probably realize it. >> reporter: what does this do? it runs those consumer product review sections that you see on company web sites when you want to buy a tv, a tamacamera and c. >> you need to make sure that conversation doesn't have anything racists or profane or

religious statements. >> so they can say anything they want, as long as it's legal. >> yeah, you want to have some standards. >> reporter: under five years, bizarre voice have picked up many clients, all in the middle of a global recession. >> so in this office we have 250. as i mention, we have quite a few that work at home. >> his simple philosophy, care about the workers and they will care about the company. need proof? the vacation policy is this. take as much as you need. >> in four years and nine months of business, treating people with that amount of respect, not a single person abused it. >> how many volumes of "war and peace" have you read?

>> i can plan my work schedule around my family. >> the result? just listen. >> how many of you were optimistic about the future of your area right now? >> reporter: it was really pretty overwhelming the response of people there. these are folks who are genuinely excited about their company and prospects, and it's not just stay at home moms but it's also stay-at-home dads. these are working jobs that can be done at home, and these folks saw an opportunity, and they know a lot of skilled people are out there and for one reason or another they cannot be at a regular office in this recess n recessionary time.

this is 500 times bigger than they thought it would be by this time in its growth. >> so obviously, tom, we are still waiting to see the barbecue, and you on doubt we will, but do you have another photo for us of you eating something somewhere? >> no, we worked so late so we stopped after the dancing and had to go home after that. hang in there. and go easy on the oatmeal tomorrow. >> we have a big storm heading this way, or perhaps it would get disrupted, even if you did send it, even though we know you are not going to, tom. >> it's clearing up nicely here. >> enjoy the weather. >> reporter: yeah, and the barbecue. and rob marciano is tracking the weather forecast, and most importantly the travel forecast for you. stay with us.

♪ . albany, rain and 33 degrees, and lots of fog and low clouds. rain, snow, lots of wind and as high as 38 later on. rob marciano tracking the extreme weather. a lot in the northeast. how bad is it going to be? >> it's going to get worse, i can tell you that. if you live in new york city, back through philly, you are not

going to see 2 to 3 feet of snow, and how is that for optimism? and it's snowing in new york, and they were seeing rain and now wet snow. philadelphia seeing snow. and hudson river into the lower mid-30s. and then seeing flooding rains across parts of connecticut and massachusetts. and temperatures around the freezing mark in albany. wet snow for them as well. philadelphia seeing snow. heavier snow is beginning to fall just to the west of the jersey shore. it's mostly in the form of rain. and the rain snow line is going to fluctuate back and fourth right here. and new york will see snow, and changing over to rain at times and back over to snow. it will be a big issue, as you can imagine. it will be the most affected.

and right now we are seeing delays at philly, and 45-minute delays in north carolina, and 1:30 delays for new york. and blizzard conditions potentially tonight as the winds whip around us. you will see big waves across the shoreline. and boston, big wind and waves for you. and from new york to philly, in the 6 to 12 inch range. if you need comfort food, coney island has what you ordered up. this hot dog, they are estimating it to be 140 years old, with the original receipt. this hot dog was discovered and it will go into the museum. if you guys get hungry and need

comfort food. it should do you well. >> what happened? did somebody leave it in the freezer? >> apparently so. >> that shows you how long it takes you to digest a hot dog. >> yeah, if there is a nuclear war, two things that will be left, cockroaches and hot dogs. >> thank you, rob. and dr. sanjay gupta opens up his mail bag with answers for you. that's coming up. if perfection is what you pursue, this just might change your course. meet the new class of world class. the twenty-ten lacrosse, from buick. may the best car win.

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[ male announcer ] return moisture to your face with gillette fusion. proven to lubricate during shaving and hydrate after. the fusion shaving system. clinically tested to hydrate your skin. welcome back to the most news in the morning. 56 minutes past the hour. it's time for your "am" house call. and president obama's health care summit kicks offer in an hour. the whole thing will be broadcast on c-span. >> we expect there will be plenty of partisan bickering there. what will it all mean for you? and we have dr gupta with us from atlanta. and why is dental insurance not considered part of medical insurance? >> that's a good question, and one of we get quite a bit.

for a lot of insurance plans out there, dental is not considered part of your actual health insurance. a lot of people focused on this. we found last friday, president obama did address this particular issue. take a listen. >> it's my hope that we can include dental care in the various proposals that we are putting forward. at minimum, i think it's very important that we have dental care for our kids. >> let me break it down like this. the senate bill that we have been talking about for sometime now that serves as a template for the white house that we are talking about today, does talk specifically about increasing dental coverage for kids, 21 and younger. the results of the discussion of expanding who qualified for medicare, so more people, including kids, could get basic dental coverage. and as things stand out, 1 in 5 kids have no dental coverage at all, which is a problem because of the relationship between your

teeth and the rest of your body is very clear. people that have more teeth are more likely to have inflammatory problems later in life, and being able to address the problems early will probably save a lot of money down the road. >> and they are also finding links between premature birth and babies when mothers don't have good oral hygiene. and then another question from virginia. what will happen when there are simply not enough doctors to take care of all the patients? this is something that we talked about, people having to go 100 miles out of their town to see an obgyn? >> yeah, and if that is related to malpractice premiums that were too high. and we talk about health reform overall, giving more people a card, an insurance card, is something that may happen as a result of this.

we are probably about 16,000 primary care doctors short in this country. you have more people with insurance, and you don't have enough doctors, and what they predict is that over the next decade or so they could be 40,000 to 50,000 doctors short. they talked about some plans to try and improve that, and providing more incentives to go into primary care, and more reimbursement, and having a card alone doesn't matter unless there is a doctor to see you. >> always good to see you. thank you so much.