the civil marriage protection marriage act that legalizes same-sex marriages in the state. it's the top of the hour. we move out, suzanne malveaux moves in. >> it's nice to be back. >> doing little politicking. >> it was a lot of fun. >> a lot more to do. >> all right. live from studio 7, i'm suzanne malveaux, want to get you up to speed for this thursday, march 1st. warning sirens, tornadoes on the ground. this is overnight in frankfurt, kentucky. the second night of violent weather slashing across the middle of the country. a twister touching down here 80 miles away in elizabethtown, kentucky, tore up several buildings. >> at least 12 people are dead in the wake of the storms, hundreds are hurt and people in the hard-hit areas are counting their blessings today.

>> after i rolled five times, i can remember everything about it. i was -- once it hit the ground on the fifth time, everything -- i saw daylight and i was sitting up against the stove down there just leaned up with my back against it like i was sitting in a chair. i don't know how i'm here. >> someone from above, huh? >> no doubt. good lord didn't call me. wasn't my time. >> wasn't his time. parts of southern illinois are declared disaster areas today. the governor of illinois will join us in a minute. two more american troops have been killed in afghanistan. it is the latest in a series of attacks against nato, following last week's burning of korans at a u.s. military base in afghanistan. authorities say the troops were gunned down by a suspected afghan soldier and another man believed to be a language instructor. coalition forces killed both of the shooters.

>> syrian activists say opposition fighters have withdrawn from the city of homs. after weeks of relentless attacks by government forces. the attacks left hundreds of people dead in that neighborhood. today the u.n. human rights council adopted a resolution condemning syria's widespread and systematic violations against civilians. the teen accused of shooting up his high school and killing three classmates will be formally charged today. t.j. lane will face charges of aggravated murder and will be tried as an adult. lane is 17 years old. witnesses say he opened fire in the school cafeteria monday morning, shooting five people. three of them have died. all teens. more than 1,000 people are breathing a sigh of relief this disabled cruise ship "costa allegra" finally reached the

seychelles islands in the indian ocean. the ship lost fire after a fire in the engine room. >> not having enough food. not having a place to rest at night. the heat is unbearable. we had to spend most of our nights on the top deck of the ship. >> tough stuff. the passengers and crew expected to be put on planes and sent home soon. mitt romney with another victory. he won the wyoming caucuses, picking up ten delegates to santorum's night. romney won the primary in michigan on tuesday but is only getting half of the 30 delegates, the other 15 are going to santorum who finished a close second. both santorum and gingrich have georgia right here on their minds today. season to santorum is holding a rally in atlanta, gingrich is having an event about 30 minutes from now in woodstock, georgia. next tuesday is super tuesday. and remember these disturbing images that federal

regulators wanted tobacco companies to put on cigarette packaging? now a federal judge ruled requiring them violates the company's right to free speech. the american cancer society is calling the decision bad for public health. a government appeal is expected as well. back to the top story now. killer storms that pounded several states overnight as well as the day before. on the phone with us now is ill know governor pat quinn who joins us. thank you very much. i know you have been dealing with a lot of heartache, a lot of people who are suffering now. can you give us a sense, overall, of the kind of damage that you're seeing in your state today? >> well, it's devastating. you know, the area, the path of the tornado was -- took everything in its path. commercial buildings just leveled to the ground and obliterated. many homes just destroyed completely. but what is inspiring is the tremendous effort of people in harrisburg illinois and all

across our state to help their neighbor. we have all kinds of volunteer efforts going as well as government working to recover and rebuild. anybody watching, they should think about the salvation army of southern illinois and the red cross of southern illinois. both of those are on the front line providing -- administering to people who are devastated. at 5:00 in the morning yesterday, this 180-mile-per-hour tornado came tearing through their community, and wreaking havoc. >> governor, what do the people need there on the ground most? >> well, i think right now it's clean up. even yesterday afternoon and evening when i was there, there was chain saws going, cutting the trees and debris out of the way. then carpenters, volunteer carpenters on the roofs of building pounding nails and fixing up the roofs. there's a lot of clean-up supplies needed. we are talking to some major companies, walmart, office depot, walgreens, to help people at these volunteer centers.

we have a lot of volunteers. they are always welcomed to come to harrisburg. it's in deep southern illinois. i would say that contributions to the red cross and salvation army both are well-received as well. >> governor, i understand you toured the area of the devastation in harrisburg and you also declared a state of emergency, a declaration of disaster in your state. what does that allow you to do? do you have more resources? do you have what you need on the ground? >> we had a terrible flood in southern illinois last year, so our emergency management people know exactly what to do in emergencies like this. we have our state police deployed, our department of transportation. lots and lots of other people. we declared it a state disaster area, but we also have to really size up and measure all of the damage that's been done in the next couple weeks because we want to file a federal disaster relief request as well. i did receive a call from the

white house yesterday pledging their total help and cooperation. we're pleased with our federal help, local help. most inspiring is volunteer citizens. we had an 80-year-old woman yesterday before 5:00 a.m., she got the alert, she went door to door knocking on doors, making sure people did get to safety in their homes. we were able to, i think, save a lot of lives by that friend douse outpouring of every day people doing their best to help their neighbor. >> governor, do you a sense of how many people have been impacted in your state by these tornadoes? how many people lost their lives or have been injured and the kind of damage there? >> six people lost their lives yesterday. we mourn their loss and pray for their mortal souls. we have about 100 injured right now in hospital. and then the property devastation is immense. it takes more than a tornado to put down the people of illinois, especially southern illinois. we all believe in banding together, working together to

rebuild and recover. that's really our mission right now. and i saw it firsthand yesterday in the eyes of so many people who were scared to death. if you had 180-mile-per-hour freight train coming right at you, you know, people could only pray. those that survive, we want to make sure we go forward. >> governor pat quinn of illinois, thank you very much for joining us. obviously we wish you and everybody on the ground there the very best. i knows there a lot of help that's necessary, but it sounds like there are people who are rising to the occasion. thanks again, governor. here's a rundown of some stories we're covering first here from some of the tornado survivors who lost their homes and almost their lives. and the fight over whether or not employers should be required to cover birth control goes up to a vote in the senate in just a minute now. we'll tell you what is going on and we'll ask what you think about it. then a woman is thanking her 3-year-old grandson for saving her life. you won't believe this amazing story about this little boy.

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well-known conservative blogger andrew breitbart has died in los angeles. he was 43 years old. he was the first to post the infamous twitter photos of congressman andrew weiner last year of weiner his underwear. weiner eventually stepped down. and breitbart was also behind the controversial scandal of shirley sherrod. it was breitbart who posted portions of a speech she gave before the naacp. the online video was edited to appear as though sherrod was making racist statements. she was quickly fired, but when the entire story went public, it was clear she was making

statement of racial allegations. sherrod said the news of mr. breitbart's death came as a surprise to me when i was informed tof it this morning. my prayers go out to his family as they cope through this very difficult time. here is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. should employers be able to deny insurance coverage on moral or religious grounds? right now the senate is getting ready to vote on an amendment that would do just that. carol costello is here in the house in atl. >> the talk-back question. it's so nice to see you. >> the weather so much nicer here. >> let's talk about that administration. the senate is about to vote on the blunt amendment, have not heard of it? yes, you have. two words, birth control. if passed the blunt amendment would allow employers to withhold insurance coverage for any health care service that violates their religious beliefs

orb moral beliefs like birth control. the catholic church supports it. republicans like rick santorum and mitt romney do, too it's a matter of religious liberty, they say. but democrats say the bluchbt amendment dministratio blunt amendment is really a war against women. rush limbaugh blasted a woman who called the blunt amendment a health care issue. >> what does it say about the college co-ed susan fluke who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex. what does that make her? it makes her a slut, right? it makes her a prostitute. she wants to be paid to have sex. she's having so much sex she can't afford the contraception. she wants you and me and the taxpayers to pay her to have sex. what does that make us? we're the pimps. >> see what i mean?

some democrats argue the blunt amendment opens the door to discrimination. let's say your boss is opposed to smoking. can he or she deny you health insurance if you get sick? senator blunt says not so. employers would be required to prove that their objection was rooted in long-held moral or religious convictions. the talk-back question today, should employers be able to deny insurance coverage on moral or religious grounds? facebook.com/carolcnn. i'll read your responses later this hour. >> i can only imagine. wow. all right. >> you're still reeling from the rush limbaugh thing. >> it's all very shocking. i imagine people have strong opinions about it. big difference, right? birth control, having sex. we'll very what happens. right? >> i can't wait for the responses. thanks, carol. a man in harrisburg, illinois, says he is lucky to be alive. his town of 9,000 took the biggest hit from a series of

tornados that tore through the midwest yesterday. 12 people were killed. more than 100 hurt. several hundred homes and businesses also destroyed. >> sounded like a train. she head to the basement. i headed to grab our daughter who was in bed. she's handicapped. >> i was don't basement, i'm screaming at him just grab her, grab her. >> we went down the basement, all the water runs through the floor and started flooding the basement. we came out through the cellar door and noticed the church was gone. >> i wanted to cry. i'm just so thankful. all of the stuff that is right here and in there was on top of me. i was inside that bathtub. i couldn't move. it was just really rough. >> what was going through your mind? >> i -- i swore we were going to die. all i could do was pray. >> i wasn't just heartbroken for

my mom, i was praying for everyone who lost a loved one. this is just -- you don't imagine something like this happening and hitting so close to your family. you see it on the news. you don't ever think it's going to happen to you. >> the only thing that is getting me through this is knowing she's in heaven with god and that jesus christ is giving me the strength to be able to endure all this. >> i can't imagine. so sad to see. >> forgive me. >> i'm sorry. >> our bedroom was in that far corner. >> it was chaos. there were men from all over town, not just emergency crews, but men, women, children all here trying to find anybody. we dug for two hours at least before they found her body. >> the lives that are lost. that's the main concern right

now. it's -- everybody down here, we're like a family. so -- >> a tight-knit group. >> yeah. >> you knew everybody personally. >> yep. >> i was standing at the back door looking out. i had just got out of bed, the sirens were going off. my husband was in the bathroom. >> and then what? >> then i felt the trailer shaking. and i woke up underneath the traile trailer. >> me and the two dogs i have and the trailers started rolling down the hill. you can see what's left. after i rolled five times, i can remember everything about it. once it hit the ground on the fifth time, everything. just saw daylight. sitting up against the stove down there, with my back against it like i was sitting in a chair. don't know how i'm here.

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check stories our affiliates are covering. in apache junction, this man was pulled to safety after he jumped off a mountain with his parachute was on backwards. they say he would have plunge to the ground had a gust of wind not pulled him to the mountain. amazingly he only broke an ankle. >> 911, what's your emergency? >> mommy needs help. >> your mom needs help? >> no, nana needs help. >> can you believe this 3-year-old saved his grandmother's life by calling 911 when she had a seizure. ethan stayed on the line with dispatchers until paramedics showed up, he even unlocked the front door for him, found his grandmother's medication list in his purse. police were so impressed with ethan, they got him a brand new bike. and this grandmother is hoping to become the oldest cheerleader in nfl history.

sharon simmons said she always wanted to try out for the dallas cowboys but she had to put her dream on hold to raise her daughter. the oldest cheer leader to ever make the squad was 42 years old. reality star snooki, well, they say she's glowing. we check out the rumors that she may be pregnant before that, time to get to travel insider, as cnn reporters producers, we often have the inside scoop on where to go. >> reporter: i'm brian my favor is alexandria, virginia, you can come here to get a great meal, do some shopping and get a history lesson.

this is the town of george washington. you can find the grave site of his personal physician here, james crake. it's a little spooky, so i say we get out of here and find some other spirits. this is one of my favorite places in old town to end the evening. the blue light means they're open, it's the speakeasy, so you just knock on the door and get in. you might be lucky enough to be here when todd, the owner and bartender here, is here to mix you a drink. what are we having tonight? >> i don't know, vodka, gin? >> let's try gin. >> a little dash of gin to give it a backbone. three drops of citric acid in there. orange flower water. ice and stir. smack it, wave it to the

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this was for you in your writing. you write it so eloquently. tell us first what happened when this tornado hit. >> first of all, i'd like to say that i appreciate how totally lucky i am. just two doors down from me, my neighbors houses were devastated. that's the first thought that entered my mind this morning when i woke up. i'm so lucky i woke up in my own bed. but the storm just hit just incredibly quickly. didn't have time -- didn't even have time to panic. we just did what we knew we had to do. hunkered down and just kind of waited for the glass to quick breaking around us. then we got up and started checking on neighbors and did what we needed to do. >> how did you know when you were first in trouble? >> just sounded different than anything i ever heard in my life. it was so intense, the wind was just so strong. and the sirens were blowing.

it was just -- it was just -- we have storms here all the time. there's nothing unusual about that. but it just -- you could just tell it was on top of you. >> les, i want viewers to know, we're seeing photos that you were able to take of some of the damage that was around you. and at one point is, you write in your article that you were worried about your dog. you wrote this account, you had actually said that it was -- you had not seen our dog in a few minutes. we had been out of bed. we both started calling him in a few moments we heard the clicking of toenail against hardwood floor. that was a reassuring sound. your dog was okay. y'all got out safely, yes? >> yeah. we have a golden retriever who is just a little over a year old. let's call him enthusiastic. he usually sleeps by our bed. we didn't know where he was. we both started calling for him. it took -- it was only seconds, i guess, but it seemed like

forever. all of a sudden that annoying click of his toenails against the floor all of a sudden from sounded pretty good we were happy when he started crawling up and nuzzling us. >> when he crawled up and started nuzzling you, what gave you the wherewithal to collect yourself and start writing about this? >> oh, i talked to my boss and he said he wanted a first-person account. that's what i did. you know, when you write that so fresh afterwards, you're not really thinking about it. you're just putting what you feel on paper and it really wasn't a hard thing to do. it was so fresh in my mind an vivid. you know, you understand when you're there. you know, that is one it's most vivid and it was easy to do. >> did you talk to your neighbors? i know you feel so lucky and fortunate but the neighbors beside you lost everything. >> yeah. we walked around a bit yesterday and, you know, it's universal. a lot of people are really -- one guy told me, he said

everything i have i lost. but at the same time he was quick to note that i'm fine, my wife is fine. and another neighbor, he has dogs, they were fine, too. a lot of people spent time yesterday walking around the neighborhood, checking on everybody making sure everybody was fine. >> what are you doing today? we had stories about people reaching out and trying to help each other. >> we're -- i'm just basically -- i have a lot of work to do at my house. we're hanging out there. sort of getting things together for insurance company and just cleaning up what we can clean up and, you know, just trying to salvage the few items we did lose outside. >> les winkler, thank you very much. we are so glad you're okay, that your dog is okay, too. and we did enjoy your article, your firsthand account. i guess you have a boss who is kind of demanding there. keep writing. keep getting through tchlit. we appreciate you were one of the fortunate ones.

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all right. love her or hate her, reality tv star snooki has become a household name. yes, we know. now there's word that she might be pregnant. here's cnn's jeanne moos. >> reporter: even if the idea of watching "jersey shore" makes you ill -- there's no playing hookie from snooki. >> oh, my god! >> reporter: you can't escape her or the rumors of her pregnancy that have been reproducing like rabbits. >> looks like snooki has a meatball in the oven. >> reporter: now page six of the "new york post" says it's confirmed and several websites also say she's three or four months pregnant. this despite previous denial --

>> i definitely do want kids. i'm not pregnant. >> reporter: after denial. >> so you're saying no? you're saying no to this? >> no. >> reporter: she acted offended saying people must think she looks fat. >> it's like an insult kind of. it sucks, because being pregnant should be a real thing and a happy thing. and i'm not. >> reporter: don't women always lie when they're pregnant? >> the first trimester, you want to get through it, you don't want to jinx anything. >> isn't snooki entitled to the same thing? >> reporter: normally people are goo goo gaga over birth announcements, but instead of talking about a bundle of jersey joy, already the kid is being called jersey spore. comments online were merciless. didn't governor christie declare her uterus a disaster area? according to page six, the father is her boyfriend, giani laval, seen on the show too wasted to return snooki's affection. >> you're supposed to kiss me. >> reporter: no baby that night.

on "live with kelly" the hostess analyzed snooki's recent behavior on the show when they played a game trying to bust balloons squished between partners. >> she refused to play with us. >> she didn't want to bust the balloon. >> reporter: if snooki snookered interviewers by lying, interviewers tried to snooker her back. wendy williams used beer to trap her in a super bowl toast. >> so you're not pregnant! that was the pregnancy set-up. >> reporter: snooki makes no bones about it. she wants babies. >> guido babies. if your babies come out not tan what will happen. >> i'll spray them. >> reporter: from the delivery room direct to the tanning salon. jeanne moos, cnn -- who are you calling a spore, huh? new york. all right. you have been signing off on our talk-back question. should employers be able to deny

insurance coverage on religious ground? eric writes employers should not be able to deny coverage. it's health insurance not moral insurance. more responses just moments away. you ready? we wanna be our brother's keeper. what's number two we wanna do? bring it up to 90 decatherms. how bout ya, joe? let's go ahead and bring it online. attention on site, attention on site. now starting unit nine. some of the world's cleanest gas turbines are now powering some of america's biggest cities. siemens. answers. blast of cold feels nice. why don't you use bengay zero degrees? it's the one you store in the freezer. same medicated pain reliever used by physical therapists. that's chilly. [ male announcer ] new bengay zero degrees. freeze and move on. about providing for his little girl. hey don't worry, e-trade's got a totally new investing dashboard. everything's on one page. i'm watching you. oh yeah?

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and complete your will in minutes. at legalzoom.com, we put the law on your side. all right. hip-hop mogul, author and activist russell simmons is on the phone joining us from new york. we discovered, and we're following your tweets here, you just tweeted that tonight i'm co-hosting a reception for barack obama in 2008.

we started a mission, made headway but now we have more work to do. i understand you are actually going to be part of a big event with a lot of celebrities in new york this evening. what can you tell us about it? >> well, this is -- we had one with the fashion community, i'm doing this one with chopra, with the spiritual community. a lot of different -- if i was in hollywood, it would be a hollywood community event. a lot of creative industries support the president and a lot of spiritual people support the president. he's done a lot of good work. he's the compassionate president working on health care for all of us who is concerned about lifting us up from the bottom up. he's doing a lot of work to help the middle class, protect the middle class, help the underserved communities. he's done a great job so far. what he's done to give women equal pay, what he's done for the gay community. what he's done to try to fight

the prison industrial complex. i have a list that we had going into the first campaign. a lot of those things are accomplished, but there's a lot more to do. >> sure. >> this event is an effort to raise money so that he can be competitive with his opponents and we can continue our work. >> russell, i understand it starts off with a dinner and the price tag for that dinner for that seat, $35,800. are you going to be putting up that money tonight along with 80 other folks? >> well, listen, the price tag goes from 38,000 down to $250 for students and for young people. we want everybody included. but, you know, i've long been a supporter of getting all the money out of washington. i don't like that there's super pacs or any of these things. the president has to be competitive. if one of his legacy issues is getting the money out of politics or changing campaign

finance laws, he has to be funded to do so. you know, so the criticism is he shouldn't have a super pac or raise as much money as he can, well his opponents are proving that the people with the money win. we have to get the money to win, then we can work on campaign finance. >> russell, one of the things that back in 2008 that was so fascinating was that there was so much enthusiasm around barack obama and he was new. a lot of young people came out and were a part of the process here. we've seen some of that enthusiasm diminish. how do you get that back? how do you get that going again? generate the kind of enthusiasm you had four years ago? >> i think a lot of people are a bit inpatient if they look at what he inherited and what he did, and we'll make sure as we campaign -- i will go on the road, work. a lot of other young people are. i think when we remind people where we were, how far we've come, how much we've accomplished, i think people

will be excited to come back in the fold. i think they will. the polling is telling you the president's approval rating is going up. the work he's doing is being magnified, as we talk more about it. we will get it all back. >> all right. russell simmons, great to see you. we are following your tweets, follow our tweets if you will at suzanne malveaux. and we'll be keeping up with new that event this evening. thanks, russell. >> thank you very much. you've been sounding off on the talk back question, should employers be able to deny insurance coverage on moral or religious grounds. the senate is considering that very thing, an amendment that would do just that carol costello is joining us. a lot of people i know, the quotes you had from rush limbaugh, people are weighing in on this. >> yes. rush limbaugh's comments have

evoked passionate response. michael says does the employer receive federal funds or tax credits or deductions for insurance programs? then yes they must. this from francis this is a pandora's box. a employer could deny cancer coverage because they think prayer is the cure. godwin says employers should not have to pay for health care that violates their religious beliefs, particularly on the issue of contraception. if they were forced to, it would amount to a violation of their own rights to free expression. sean says if this bill passes i predict that many business also officially declare moral alignment with christian science, making practically any medical procedure or medicine morally objectional. imagine the savings. >> and amy says if he don't want to pay for your own birth control, you have the right to work for someone other than a religious organization. facebook.com/carolcnn if you

would like to weigh in. we'll have more responses in about 20 minutes or so. >> we would like you to stick around. we always like you stick around for got stuff. >> the weird stuff. >> sometimes weird, too. you're moving to atlanta, soon. you'll be looking to buy a house. check out this house this is not atlanta, any chicago this is michael jordan's mansion that is up for sale. we're talking nine bedrooms, 15 bathrooms. you know, you never can have too many bathrooms. >> 15 bathrooms? >> 15. >> a lot of toilets to clean. >> i suppose he didn't have to clean them. look. there's the famous number 23 on the front gates. you got seven acres out there. a kitchen island, breakfast bar, swimming pool, indoor pavilion, guesthouse. check out the basketball court. we were just seeing that basketball court. for all the high rollers there what are we talking? the price tag, i think, 29

million. cool $29 million. >> unbelievable to me. i always wonder, you have that humongous house, do you use all of the house? >> i can't imagine. you take turns, i suppose. one bathroom for this day. one bathroom for the next day. >> it would take you a half a month to use every bathroom in your house. >> yeah. hopefully that's not necessary. he's probably playing basketball or something. it's cool though, huh? >> it is cool. i won't probably be purchasing a home like that. who can afford that? not me. >> newt gingrich counting on georgia to keep his campaign going, but he's battling rick santorum for the conservative vote. the race for super tuesday is in our political ticker up next. i didn't know how i was going to do it, but i knew i was going to get that opportunity one day. and that's what happened with the university of phoenix. nothing can stop me now. i feel like the sky is the limit with what i can do and what i can accomplish.

my name is naphtali bryant and i am a phoenix.

437 million, stakes are high for the super tuesday race. five days away now. newt gingrich is betting on georgia to keep his presidential hopes alive. he's campaigning at this hour. gingrich said that he's the candidate that represents real change. >> if i were to capture in one simple way to explain why i'm running and why, frankly, i don't think the other candidates

in the end are particularly relevant, one of them may win. because money matters. but i don't think it's relevant. they are just the same old baloney. one is a massachusetts moderate and they are not going found mentally change washington. >> rick santorum is challenging gingrich for conservative votes in the south. santorum is campaigning in atlanta. he said, number one question, who can beat barack obama? >> the next question is, who would be the president that you trust, who would go to washington, d.c., to make the kind of dramatic changes that are necessary in this country? who would have the ability to go out and rally the american public? who would be able to have the fortitude to stand up to the tough abuse that you're going to get? yes, from the media and from the

left and maybe from those within your own party. stand up and stay strong and have a record that you can stand for your convictions. >> next hour we're going to talk with a conservative political columnist about whether tuesday is a make or break day for newt gingrich. the latest political news. you know where to go. cnnpolitics.com. it's the new age of baby making. more and more women are getting pregnant later in life. ♪ ( whirring and crackling sounds ) man: assembly lines that fix themselves.

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♪ isn't that cool? and that's pretty cool. ♪ we're living in a new age when it comes to baby making. women who are deciding to have children later in life are increasingly using other women's eggs to get pregnant and other women are freezing them for the future. dr. sanjay gupta takes a look. >> suzanne, egg donation is relatively new. for most couples, egg donation meant finding a doctor to harvest and stimulate the female partner to carry the baby. but now with this new egg

freezing process, the freezing of the egg without the crystallizing of ice, it makes the egg much more stable and thereforereproductive specialists are able to store donor eggs. i want to show you what this means for one couple who is struggling at secondary infertility, the inability to carry babies to term. take a look. >> at 30 she had to use hormone therapy to get pregnant. two years later they again had a hard time conceiving a second child. they tried hormone therapy, in vitro vert lie zags. >> by the third time i sort of knew it was becoming -- it was stressful. >> after rounds of unsuccessful treatments, she couldn't produce any viable eggs so she chose to use an egg donor and may was born. >> it was just emotionally taxing journey.

i knew that one day i would look back and forget the struggle and i did. it's hard for me to think about it now. but but we have a wonderful thing and i can't imagine it being any other way. >> the decision to use an egg or sperm donation is a personal one. it's often the best solution. it can offer higher success rates. >> so a 40-year-old woman, i'm not making eggs, good quality eggs anymore, a donor egg from a 25-year-old woman. you combine it with sperm from her partner. is this something that happens a lot or -- >> oh, yes.

absolutely. about 10 to 15% are involved in egg donation. >> 15 to 20% of that? >> more and more families are choosing this route to have a baby. >> they have a baby picture they can choose from and a list of background history, what their genetic makeup is or interests, maybe their education. >> and they get to choose? >> they get to choose. >> how much does that process cost? >> it's $16,500. and that includes everything. >> if a woman in her mid-40s is pregnant, has a baby, is it almost assumed that woman had an egg donor? >> i would think probably overall in 30 years they have a pregnancy of 45 with their own eggs. that's not a lot. >> michelle says they will share

their story with their children. >> it needs to be looked at as not some weird thing to use alternate methods. you know, nontraditional ways to have a family. >> people describe it in ten years hopefully it's like describing for the doctor and that will help, too. it's nothing we've worried about. >> the doctors we've talked about said they've been able to achieve 66% pregnancy rate from frozen eggs. it's right around the same percentage that had with the fresh cycles they were doing before. that makes the process cheaper and also more successful for those waiting to use donor eggs. suzanne, back to you. top of the hour, i'm suzanne malveaux. i want to get you up to speed. at least 12 people are now reported dead after a powerful line of storms carved across the

midwest. the governor of illinois declares the southern third of his state a disaster area today. at least six people died in the town of harrisburg and while people were cleaning up in illinois, tornadoes struck again. this is what daylight revealed in kentucky this morning. at least two twisters touching down there overnight. >> i got up and took two steps off the couch and then me and two dogs i have and the trailer started rolling down the hill and you can see what is left and after i rolled five times, i can remember everything about it. and i was -- once it hit the ground for the fifth time, i saw daylight. >> the state of emergency in the tiny kansas town of harveyville, a few miles south of topeka, people saw straight line winds up to 120 miles per hour and

headed for shelter. >> like a train. she headed to the basement and our daughter in in bed. >> i'm down in the basement screaming at him, grab her, grab her. >> we went down in the basement and all of the water starts running through the floor and we came up through the cella are r door. >> i was just so thankful. >> the resort town of branson, missouri, got beat up as well. about 200 people were injured in the branson area. two more american troops have been killed in afghanistan. it's the latest in the series of attacks against nato following last week's burning of korans at a u.s. military base in afghanistan. authorities say that the troops were gunned down by a suspected afghan soldier and another man believed to be a language

instructor. and syrian activists say opposition fighters have withdrawn from a key neighborhood in the city of homs. it comes after weeks of relentless attacks by government forces. the attacks have left hundreds of people dead in that neighborhood. today the u.n. human rights council condemn syria's widespread and systematic violations against civilians. just a few hours from now, maryland becomes the latest state to approve same-sex marriage. the district of columbia already allows same-sex marriages. five others have laws providing for civil unions. all right. remember these disturbing images? these are disturbing images that fed drag regulators want tobacco companies to put on packaging. now a federal law requiring them

violates the free speech. they call it bad for public health. government appeal is also expected. want to go to harrisburg right now. this is a town still reeling from the shock of a tornado strike and there is so much work ahead. don lemon joins us. you're at a new location now where i understand people are just trying to get through the day, trying to clean up and assess and figure out what to do next. don? >> reporter: yes, they are. and we were just a couple of minutes ago, suzanne, in a residential neighborhood. now we're in a commercial area and this is why i'm holding these. because this was a sports store. there are footballs, soccer balls here. this is new merchandise still strewn about. that's really the least of their worries. we are going to have to clean all of this up.

it's really unbelievable to see how this tornado really picked some spots and then left others. this is a display. what i'm standing next to here, huge support columns. one of the columns from the store and it's just been trashed right here. you can see part of them trying to get their things out there and looking for and you can see what they are going into now. and people are getting the valuables out. one of the guys is jeff streets. he was getting ready for work in the morning. it was really early in the morning. he had his youngest daughter and two grandsons there and his wife. he's in the bathroom and all of a sudden he hears what sounds like a truck coming towards his

house and he didn't know what hit him. here's the story. take a look. >> bedroom on this side and completely destroyed and this is where i was and how the bathroom got left, good enough for me to survive. only god knows. >> reporter: when you ran out, hu to come around from the street? >> yes, sir. i came out of that door and you can see where i busted it to get out. i crawled overall this stuff and came out to here hollering for anybody. >> reporter: and they started coming out one by one. i don't even want to think about

it. and i don't know what i would have done. if i had lost my daughter and two boys, i don't know what i would have done. >> and if you look up on that ridge right there, that's where those six people died. the last we saw him, he and his neighbors and family were putting whatever was left, whatever they could find in that rubble inside of a pickup truck. anybody thought they were loading that up. look at this. show you the power of the winch here. look at this truck. and there's a little bit more to the right.

and you will of the weight and i can't believe he and his family are okay. yesterday there were some folks who were at your location. are those people just trying to pick up their lives and leave that alone. >> reporter: it's always a concern. but there are so many people around. not only media, volunteers, police officers, neighbors, friends, and family, one would be really foolish to come into this area and try to loot. they would get their butts kicked, to put it bluntly. there are too many people who care about the people in this community to let anybody come in and loot. so i don't think that's a problem and if they did try to come in, as i said, it would be over for them. >> okay. don, thank you. appreciate it. here's a rundown of some of the stories we're covering over the next hour. first, more bombs raining down

on the city of homs. new questions about who is in control of a key neighborhood. and the nightmare is over now for passengers of the "costa allegra." the ship finally makes it to land. and what you know about the new privacy law in effect today.

senate just moments ago voted to kill a controversial proposal by republicans that stemmed from the fight over contraceptive coverage. now, the bill would have allowed employers to opt out of the health coverage if they disagreed with it. opponents say the legislation gave employers too much power to deny coverage for workers. the controversy erupted over a mandate to provide contraceptive coverage even for workers at religious schools and institutions. the white house has since backed off of the directive. heavy bombardment by forces in the city of homs has gone on for almost four straight weeks now. hundreds of people have been

killed in city alone. including 22 killed there today. that is aid cording to opposition groups. our nic robertson is in neighboring lebanon. we're hearing that the syrian opposition forces are now withdrawing from one of those key neighborhoods in homs. that's where government forces have been focusing a lot of those attacks and now you have the red cross present perhaps being allowed in that area. what does this tell us about what is taking place? >> reporter: suzanne, these develops today are hugely significant. the free syrian army, the opposition, say that they are going into a tactical withdrawal, they say. they left behind 4,000 civilians. they called on the international committee for the red cross and syrian red crescent to intervene and come and help the civilians. the red cross and red crescents say they will be able to get the

ambulances in as early as tomorrow to help get to those wounded people and remain there. they say they were taking medical and relief supplies. they say they are not sure about the security risk for themselves and it's taken a huge negotiation in order to get to this place. the syrian government army is now in that neighborhood that was so hotly contested for so long now. the syrian government army going house to house searching out people. suzanne? >> does this mean, nic, that assad forces that have been attacking these folks, that they are essentially squashing this revolution? that they are winning now? >> reporter: an example of the -- if it's an example of the limit of the free syrian army then, yes.

what this is is a defeat for the free syrian army. they call it a tactical withdrawal and the reality is, they couldn't hold out against what was a more searier sophisticated force and it's been crushed out of that area. and we have no idea of the devastation and scale destruction and it's a signal from the government as we have seen they have done. they have switched and will likely switch to other neighborhoods and areas. we're already getting reports of other places in homs now facing renewed and heavy shelling. so the indications are this could have a ripple effect in other areas. they just don't have a big strong hold to supply it, suzanne.

>> human rights council adopted a resolution condemning syria's bloody crackdown. can thisress du restaurant lugs anything or is it simply a piece of paper? >> reporter: it's a piece of paper. they said that it's taken a lot of details to be allowed here. the government, let's face it, has only let them in when they crushed the opposition. they showed no sign of letting the help in. it's just a piece of paper, suzanne. that's all. >> nic robertson, thank you so much. three days after losing power, the "costa allegra" finally reached shore. ng, healt. our exclusive active naturals wheat protein formula works with your hair, targeting damage, restoring strength and resilience for up to 90% less breakage in just three washes.

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the "costa allegra" has finally reached port after losing power. dan, what is the scene for us? what is next? >> reporter: suzanne, the more than 600 passengers of the stricten cruise liner are

finally on dry land, many of them quite emotional after three days adrift in the indian ocean following a fire in a generator on the "costa" ship. >> it was a concern at the beginning because it could have been far worse than it was. i think the crew did a good job of containing it and keeping it under control. but it could have been disastrous, yes. there's no doubt about it. so that concern lasted for about an hour or two and then it was abated because we were assured that everything was okay. and it was. >> reporter: the same company that owns the ill-fated "costa concordia" have been holding a press conference defineding their action. they've announced a compensation package for passengers. about two-thirds of those passengers have taken the package and will get money and a free package. the rest are flying out tonight.

suzanne? google's new privacy policy goes into effect today. an economic initiative that serves 60,000 people in some of the poorest communities in kenya. >> the people by sharing knowledge and also providing a platform for people to explore their talents. my thinking was that that was another way of breaking the vicious cycle. [ male announcer ] the draw of the past is a powerful thing.

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that's going to have to be done by a certain date. you always have homework, okay? i don't have homework today. it's what's right here is what is most important to me. it's beautiful. ♪ ♪

here's a rundown of some of the stories we're working on next. google starts tracking your online movements today. find out how you're going to be affected. and andrew breitbart has died. we'll talk about his legacy. and candidates focusing right here on georgia. find out why. google's new controversial privacy policy going into effect today. the company is going to pull together information from you from all of its sites. what does this mean? dan simon reports that advocacy advocates are not happy. >> reporter: keith helped draft the company's controversial privacy policy. >> it's about proving relevance,

about information that you've shared with google to make the products more useable for you. >> reporter: it does that by keeping track of all of your activity across all of google's sites, like google and youtube and maps and builds a profile of you to display more relevant ads and search results. >> we'll treat you as a single user across all of our products, information from one service to the others. >> reporter: and that's what fright continues privacy watchdogs. they worry that one company will know too much about us. attorneys general from 36 states wrote a bliss tering letter to the company, calling the new policy an invasion of privacy and others sounding the alarm that there's no way to opt out. >> if there are things that you want to keep private about your life, those records are all in there. >> reporter: but google calls that untrue and says the criticism is unfounded. now it's going ton the offensive that is violating users' rights.

>> it's about delivering the best service that we can to users. based on our experience with users, we know that a consistent, seamless experience across all of our services is. >> reporter: users will still have a wide area of controls and users can decline targeted ads and log out of their accounts and use google services anonymously. >> so what's all the fuss about? >> i think it's based on misperception. i think people think that something is happening that is not in fact happening. >> reporter: google may have their receives to blame. they agreed to settle a lawsuit over charges that the company used deceptive tack kictics and recently google was found to have circumvented privacy controls on apple safari browser, missteps that only provided more scrutiny. >> we want to deliver products that delight users and that they

find extremely useful. to the extent that we deviate from that mission, we're going to lose users. our competition is only one click away. >> reporter: google knows it still has convincing to do but people will take the time to actually read the policy, they will appreciate what the company is trying to do. at a time when so many of us are sharing our lives online, google can see that what we know what we're doing with our private information. dan simon, cnn, mountain view, california. so my next guest says, weapon don't have anything to worry about with google's new privacy policy. john, first of all, why not worry? it seems like they've gotten a lot of information from different places. >> sure. i'm not sure i would ever say don't worry. we're in a world now where we are sort of giving up information about ourselves and not really understanding the implications of that. the implications may not be

horrible but we're doing that. so we need to protect ourselves and the privacy people that say we should be worried or cautious. and simplifying their terms and allowing themselves to use information which you've given them in their maps and youtube and g-mail. so what is happening today is they are not collecting any new information, they are just making better use of it. >> and where are they getting all of this information from so they can essentially put together this profile of you? >> well, everything that you do that involves google product. so if you have a youtube account and you search for cat playing piano stuff, they will know that. if you search for a place on google maps and you don't clear your history, they will know that. if you have a google plus account, google plus is their social network and you share information on that and post things on that, they know that. they also know by sniffing at

your mail, this is how you get those ads by looking at your mail. the sorts of things that you might be interested in advertising. what they are doing now is taking all of that, instead of using the you r youtube information for youtube and the g-mail information for g-mail, they are putting them together. >> is there a way to avoid all of this being tracked? >> the first way is abstinence. google make it is fairly easy, by going to a dashboard and your add preferences and you can opt ut of everything. you can also not have the same account in every place. you can be one person on youtube and another person on someplace else. they will require you to sign up for a google plus account but you don't have to be the same user. bloggers allow you to block, suppress your web history. so the sky isn't falling here at all. >> but you know what, john, there's a reuters report out

that says twitter may be selling and marketing your information as well. do we know anything about that? >> i just saw the other story. evidently, based on the reuters story, what twitter is doing is selling information that you have, once again, given twitter. your tweets are archived. some people put location to these tweets. so what's happening is these companies will take that information, go over it with a fine-tooth comb and figure out how to better market stuff to you. the easy way out, again, is either abstinence or being careful about things like sharing your location and what you say in public. so there is an inherent responsibility to be aware that what we say out loud is going to be used against us, like the miranda rights tell us. you should be understanding of that sort of thing. >> john, thank you for break that down for us.

appreciate it. we're all tweeting. >> no going back. right. >> all right. thanks again, john. controversial outspoken blogger andrew breitbart died this morning. he posted the anthony weiner photos and was behind the federal worker shirley sha rod. so did he define the new age of blogging? howard kurtz is going to join us to talk about it. if you are one of the millions of men who have used androgel 1%, there's big news. presenting androgel 1.62%. both are used to treat men with low testosterone. androgel 1.62% is from the makers of the number one prescribed testosterone replacement therapy. it raises your testosterone levels, and... is concentrated, so you could use less gel. and with androgel 1.62%, you can save on your monthly prescription. [ male announcer ] dosing and application sites between these products differ.

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. you may not know the name andrew breitbart straight out. the conservative blogger was the first to post the anthony weiner photos and behind the shirley sherrod. he was just 43 years old. howard kurtz is joining us from washington. first, we want everyone to know that we give our condolences to the breitbart family. rick santorum called his death a huge loss for the conservative movement and i want to listen, if we can, to santorum's

reaction. >> obviously, for him and his family, it's a big shock. what a powerful force. it's almost -- when you think of anybody out there who has more energy and just out there constantly driving and pushing, what a huge loss, in my opinion for our country and certainly for the conservative movement and our prayers go out to his family. i'm really sorry to hear. >> howard, what do we think breitbart's legacy will be? >> well, i interviewed him several times and he was a passionate guy who was able to use the internet mostly to drive a very conservative message to embarrass liberal targets, including congressman weiner, as you mentioned, and had he not had a tendency to go too far on

occasion, i think he would be remembered more as a successful warrior on behalf of causes on the right. but in the example of shirley sherrod, who your viewers may recall, he posted an incomplete edited video that made her appear to be saying racist things but her message was exactly the opposite. not only did he do that, but he never really apologized for it and that's the reason i think that he actually leaves behind a mixed l mixed legacy. >> how is it that one man can be so powerful when you look at his role in the media? was it because he was using online social interactions and messaging that way? how could he become such an influential person? >> well, ten years ago you couldn't have had ann drew breitbart become the figure in the conservative causes because he would have had to get his messages out through televisions and newspapers and through magazines and that's a hard thing to do when you consider someone to be a fringe figure.

but he started biggovernment.com and not only had his own work and causes that he was pushing, but he also provided a platform for other conservative activists. for example, james o'keefe, the guy who famously made the acorn undercover videos. that was also accused of being edited. but breitbart gave these people a forum and then the story would catch fire and those in the mainstream media would pick up those stories and even give a bigger mega phone. >> howard kurtz, thank you. we have a statement from shirley sherrod on his death. she says, the news of mr. breitbart's death came as a surprise to me when i was informed of it this morning. my prayers go out to mr. breitbart's family as they cope during this very difficult time. newt gingrich hanging his hopes on georgia. will it be a make or break for his campaign. we're going to ask a georgia political insider.

super tuesday is just five

days away. the fight is on, campaigning in georgia, one of ten super tuesday states. newt gingrich is pinning his hopes on georgia. his own win so far has been south carolina and that was a month ago. 437 votes up for votes. georgia here, one of the biggest prizes on super tuesday, as we mentioned, it is a crucial test for newt gingrich. joining to us talk about that, kyle wingfield. he's a political columnist with atlanta journal constitution. great to see you. >> great to be here. >> first of all, georgia, 76 delegates, a big, big prize here. how confident are you that newt can get his own home state? >> well, that's what all of the signs point to. certainly rick santorum was here in atlanta just this morning and also in northwest georgia at a

manufacturing hub trying to at least guarantee himself second place here. i think a win over gingrich would be a real. >> gingrich has said himself, you've got to win your own home state or get out. if he does for the do that in georgia, should he pull out? >> it's going to be very hard for him to make the argument that he still has a path to victory in this race if he doesn't win his home state. there are a couple other states tuesday that he's contesting seriously. oklahoma, tennessee. but this is the one. it has the most delegates. it's where he lived for a great many years and it's where his biggest base of natural support is. so if he can't get it done here, it's going to be tough to see a way forward. >> if he doesn't get it done here, if he ends up dropping out afterwards, where do his supporters go? are they likely to go to romney or santorum? >> i would expect most of them to go to santorum.

lately the pattern is, romney gets his certain number of supporters and the rest of the vote, the most conservative voters in most cases split between santorum or gingrich depending on which state it is, where they have natural strength. so i would expect them to go to senator santorum. >> santorum very much attracting the social conservatives which is very important in this southern state. who does it benefit more? how does that play out? >> well, on election day i would expect the grassroots support that santorum has been building to be more effective. governor romney has raised a lot of money here. especially in metro atlanta. i would expect a certain floor that he wouldn't fall below, it would be a big deal if santorum could get into second place here over governor romney and behind gingrich. >> let's look forward to ohio as well. it's a lot more reflective,

microcause sem, if you will, and which direction they will go for the general election. where do we think the moderates are falling? >> well, generally in this race they have been falling towards mitt romney. and he's going to be very strong there, according to the polls. most of the polls there do have rick santorum leading there. but, you know, he was leading in michigan for a while, too, and governor romney closed the gap. michigan is not ohio for a lot of reasons. there's a lot of personal reasons for that. romney grew up in michigan and had a lot of close family ties there. so i wouldn't expect an exact repeat like michigan but i think we'll see a similar sort of conversation. >> sure. are you like me, ready for super tuesday? are you ready for this day? >> i am ready. >> we're all getting there. we're ready for super tuesday. we'll talk to you as things come back. thanks again, kyle. gas prices ticking up for

the 23rd straight day. but a well-known oil tycoon says americans have little reasons to complain. he outlines his plan to make the country more knowledge independent. time now for the help desk. joining me this hour, john, president of consumer education with smart dcredit.com. thank you for being here. first question comes from beth in michigan. she and her husband disagree with what to do with extra $500 a month. they have an emergency fund that will sustain them for 2 1/2 heres. we contribute 20 to our retirement accounts and 5,000 a year to our children's 529 accounts. should we pay down our mort gage gauge or invest in the stock market? >> i say split it. you're winning in both situations. you're paying down pretty

inexpensive debt and putting money at risk but can grow at a much faster rate. >> maybe a little more in the 529 plan, too. $5,000 a year. college is expensive. >> if there's anything left, max that out. >> lynette, sandra is married. she's a stay-at-home mom. her husband is disabled and works full time. what kind of life insurance should they get? >> they should. >> she's smart to be thinking about this. the fact is, if something happens to her, if her husband who is working would have to pay a bunch of services and daycare and nanny and that kind of thing. she should look into life insurance for him. he might need a supplemental life insurance policy. he likely has one on the job. ensure.com is where he can go to comparison shop and find insurance options that meet their needs. >> guys, thank you very much.

send us an e-mail at any time to cnnhelpdesk to cnn.com. this is $100,000. we asked total strangers to watch it for us. thank you so much, i appreciate it, i'll be right back. they didn't take a dime. how much in fees does your bank take to watch your money ? if your bank takes more money than a stranger, you need an ally. ally bank. no nonsense. just people sense.

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gas prices are up for the 23rd day in a row. well-known energy tycoon says americans should not be complaining. he's got a plan to increase the independence. he discusses america's energy problems, possible solutions in depth. >> the united states has the cheapest energy of anyplace in the world. we are the cheapest. and if you're buying gasoline today in europe, you're paying 10 or $12 a gallon and we're complaining about $5 a gallon. we're complaining like hell here in the united states and we don't understand what the price of the energy is around the world. i'm boone pickens. i've been in the oil and gas

industry since i got out of school in 1951. so i consider myself to be an energy expert. the problem is we buy oil from the enemy. five millions barrel a day comes from opec. we're fools to do it because we have resources in america that could actually displace the opec oil. i don't care what it is. i'm for coal, i'm for natural gas, for wind, solar, biomass, anything in america i'm for but nobody has a meeting in washington and says, maybe we ought to look at these. they don't look at anything on energy. they don't spend any time on energy. we have an opportunity now to get control of our energy destiny because we have vast reserves. when you move your trucks, i'm interested in the trucks. i'm not interested in your car so much. but i want the 18 wheelers. when you do that, you'll cut out

three million barrels a day in imports. three million barrels a day for opec is what we accomplish that with 18 million trucks and you can do that in five years. all you need now is leadership. leadership will solve a lot of problems and we desperately need it in america. we have no plan. we've got 40 years no energy plan. we're the largest user of oil in the world. 20 million barrels a day. china is second. ten million barrels a day. everybody has an energy plan but america. bank of america customers may soon have to dig a little deeper into their wallets. we're going to tell you why.

this just in, we want to bring this to you. the americans who were held in egypt and were not able to leave that country, we understand that the plane carrying the american workers has left cairo. that is according to an interior minister spokesman. these were folks working with a nonprofit group inside of egypt. they had been held. they had been charged. this has created a great deal of tension between egypt as well as the obama administration being secretary of state hillary clinton getting involved in it recently. many people trying to weigh in essentially to get those americans out of egypt, out of cairo, back to this country.

we are now learning that this has -- this impasse has been broken, that this travel ban has been lifted and these americans are now out of that country. we're going to have much more on this developing story as we get more information. bank of america, the nation's strongest bank by a number of customers also kerg changes to some of its checking accounts, changes that could cost you money. alison kosik is at the new york stock exchange. alison, let's talk about the numbers. bank of america, how much could customers actually be paying? >> how much you're going to pay, suzanne, depends on what kind of account you have. "the wall street journal" is reporting and at this point bank of america is testing 6 to $25 if you open up a new bank of america checking account. they are testing this program right now in arizona, georgia, and massachusetts. but there is a way to avoid the fees. you have to maintain a minimum balance. if you bank online.

if you take out a mortgage with bank of america. bank of america currently charges fees for some of it is checking accounts right now but what is happening, what is changing is that they are trying to change the fee structure of their checking accounts. suzanne? >> also, the bank fees, they are getting more common, not just barveg of america but across the industry. why is that happening? >> because the banking industry, suzanne, is being hit hard by the weak economy. they are limiting rules that they can take in. b of a sales fell. they are going to cut 30,000 workers. the fees are backing more and more common, not just with bank of america. look how many checking accounts have fees right now. in 2011, 55% of checking accounts had fees. compare that to 2009. so what you really see happening, not just bank of america are these banks really trying to make more money, trying to make up for the loss of money because of those new

regulations and it's not just a bank of america thing. it's an industrywide thing going on. >> and a real quick check of the markets, how are they doing today? >> we're in the green. dow is up 51 points. nasdaq is up 24. first-time claims for unemployment benefits are staying at the 400,000 level. they are focusing on the positive today. suzanne? >> good news. thank you, alison, appreciate it. cnn is continuing right now with zoraida. good to see you. >> hello. it's 1:00 on the east coast and 10:00 on the east coast. let's get straight to the news. the pictures speak for themselves. the numbers is staggering