the international community could take its first action today against libyan leader moammar gadhafi. the u.n. security council meets this afternoon, right here in new york. >> president obama has been consulting with top european leaders over possible sanctions against the libyan regime. emily schmidt is in washington with more on the crisis. good morning, emily. >> reporter: rob and peggy, good morning to you. diplomats say they are not ruling out any options on sanctions. this means that libya's dictator could soon face more resistance from abroad, to go along with the uprisings at home. libyan anti-government protesters are moving closer to their capital, closer to moammar gadhafi's last area of control. and they say, they're united. >> there's no division between us. all one team. and we'll fight as one team, until we die or he's out. >> reporter: gadhafi shows no signs of leaving voluntarily. in a call to state tv, he says the protesters were on drugs. and blamed al qaeda for the uprising.

>> translator: it is bin laden who is duping your sons. this is a fact. >> reporter: this independent video from an eastern port city earlier this week shows the force of people fighting for gadhafi. >> they shoot people in the head. and in the chest. direct. the goal was to kill the people. not just to fire on them. >> reporter: the unrest has caused crude oil prices to surge 20% in the past week. president obama says he thinks the market can ride out the situation in libya. that, as thousands of foreigners are trying to get out of libya. many have landed in european airports. while more than 150 americans are on a ferry in libyan waters, stuck because of high seas. the white house says the president is doing all he can to evacuate them. >> he also obviously is very concerned about the safety of americans. and that is a priority. >> reporter: the u.s. also hopes to get a charter flight on the ground in tripoli today.

the problem is the same bad weather that stalled the ferry also kept the flight from landing yesterday. rob? >> emily schmidt reporting this morning from washington. thanks, emily. so, how did libyans communicate about protest plans once gadhafi shut down social networking sights like facebook? well, they went undercover. and used match.com. the opposition sent a coded message, where is miriam, and thousands signed on as women. militants in pakistan have attacked tankers that were carrying fuel to nato forces in afghanistan, killing four people. the attack set off a massive fire on the outskirts of peshawar. at least ten tankers were set ablaze in the attacks. the victims were drivers or their assistants. and rescue workers in new zealand are not optimistic they will find anymore survivors from tuesday's 6.3 earthquake. more than 100 people are known dead. and more than twice than number

are still missing. they think there are 120 bodies inside a christchurch office building that collapsed and then burned. boeing is going to produce the new generation of airplane refueling tankers for the u.s. military. the air force awarded the american aircraft manufacturer the biggest contract ever yesterday, $35 billion. the last time flying refueling tankers were delivered to the air force was about 50 years ago. the new tankers will be based on the boeing 767. >> i worked on this plane for 15 years. they are getting their money's worth. it's a great airplane. and it's well-built and designed. >> it's for the american military. the american military defends americans first. >> boeing beat out a european manufacturer that analysts thought would get the contract. building the aircraft will create tens of thousands of jobs, most of those located in kansas and washington state. the oldest surviving space shuttle is set to dock with the international space station tomorrow, where it will deli

a humanoid robot. it's mission number 39 for "discovery," a trail blazer that reached for the stars nearly 30 years ago. more, now, from bob woodruff. >> reporter: the "discovery's" crew of six said a final prayer before boarding, as record crowds lined the beaches and causeways of florida to witness "discovery's" final launch. over nearly 3 decades of space flight, "discovery" has logged over 140 million miles and spent 352 days in orbit. >> liftoff of space shuttle "discovery." >> reporter: it's the most-traveled spacecraft in history. >> i'm always struck by that. it's just beautiful. it's powerful. it's almost overwhelming. >> reporter: when eileen collins became the first woman to pilot a shuttle, it was aboard "discovery." and from "discovery," dr. bernard harris became the first african-american to walk in space. "discovery" launched the hubble

telescope and was the first orbiter to rendezvous with mir. >> it's cool that "discovery" has this kind of history to it. >> vehicle has exploded. >> reporter: "discovery" led the way back into space, after both the "challenger" and "columbia" disasters. >> it will stick with me forever. >> reporter: richard jones, the flight director of the mission, was right here in mission control when "columbia" went down eight years ago. >> i still carry a scar, to this day. it was the worst day of my life. >> reporter: once again, "discovery" is leading the way. but this time, it is the beginning of the end of the space shuttle era. bob woodruff, abc news, johnson space center, houston. well, downed trees and power lines are littering parts of the south this morning, after a wave of severe storms. at least ten twisters touched down, as heavy thunderstorms battered six states. >> winds hit 80 miles per hour in tennessee, where thousands of customers lost power. and in kentucky, at least three

amish children were killed in a storm there. they were swept into a swollen creek as their family tried to cross the road in a buggy. now, for this morning's weather from all around the nation. up to a foot of snow in the cascades, rockies and sierras. even san francisco could see a dusting by tonight. heavy rain in southern california. up to ten inches of snow, from cleveland to augusta, maine. torrential downpours, flooding and gusty winds from washington, d.c. to boston. >> a wet 50 here in new york. and 81 in atlanta. just 1 below zero in fargo.lis.. 34 in boise. and 68 in phoenix. well, coming up, toyota is forced to recall millions more vehicles. that's part of your business news, coming up next. and a little later on the show, motown comes to the white house. plenty of moves being busted. and even the obamas themselves got in on the act. ererererererer

overseas stocks are climbing this morning. tokyo's nikkei average climbed 0.7% today. hong kong's hang seng rose nearly 2%. in london, the ftse opened higher. and on wall street, the dow fell 37 points yesterday. the nasdaq gained almost 15 points. well, believe it or not, toyota has issued yet another massive recall. this time, nearly 2.2 million vehicles, are being recalled because the gas pedal could become trapped by floor mats or even jammed in the carpeting. toyota has now recalled 14

million vehicles since 2009, to fix a wide range of problems. and a little bit of good news. most workers can expect to take home a little bit more money this year. a new survey finds that companies plan on increasing pay by an average of 3%. that's up from 2.7% last year. and would be the biggest hike since the start of the financial crisis. and the irs are offering leniency for some who are struggling with their tax debt. the agency has announced new rules, to make it easier for them to climb out of the hole. fewer claims on taxpayers' properties and making the claims less damaging to the credit rating. there's progress being reported in the nfl labor negotiations. the federal mediator working on that said the league and the players union had reached some agreement in the last week. talks will resume tuesday, less than 72 hours before the current collective bargaining agreement expires.

when we come back on this friday morning, details on the terror arrest in texas. and charlie sheen, all right. his latest blast and affect on the show. no need to rush back to work now. charlie can say on the tropical vacation a little longer. >> yes, he can. details on that and more when we come right back. with chili's new $6 lunch break combos. choose from a house salad or hot, tasty soup. then pair it with a massive texas toast half sandwich, like our delicious classic turkey or our gigantic new southwestern blt, smothered in cilantro lime mayo and jam-packed with three glorious slices of applewood smoked bacon. served with fries, that's big flavor for just 6 bucks! the $6 break for bold, weekdays at chili's. that's why there's lubriderm® daily moisture. it contains the same nutrients naturally found in healthy skin. skin absorbs it better and it lasts for 24 hours.

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let's raise a glass to cookies just out of the oven. to the morning bowl of cereal. and to lactaid® milk. easy to digest and with all the calcium and vitamin d of regular milk. [ female announcer ] lactaid®. the original lactose-free milk. have ripped through the south put on quite a show in little rock last night. a dazzling bolt of lightning struck the capitol dome. it was quite a sight to see there. you can check out that video. luckily, there was no major damage to the building. wow. >> pretty incredible there, all caught on camera. the stormy weather will make for a slick morning commute, on i-95 from washington to boston. snow-covered on i-90, from buffalo to cleveland. and slippery on i-5, from portland to sacramento. on i-90 and 94 in the rockies, as well. and wet roads in southern california.

>> and if you're flying today, you can expect some airport delays in san francisco, l.a., salt lake city, chicago, detroit, boston, new york, d.c. -- and philadelphia. >> a lot of delays. >> a lot of delays. well, a college student from saudi arabia is expected to appear in federal court in texas today, charged in a terror plot. >> prosecutors say it involved attacks on dams, nuclear plants and even the home of an ex-president. karen travers has more details now from washington. hi, karen. >> reporter: good morning, rob and peggy. this was a chilling announcement from the fbi. and they're crediting a tip with leading them to the suspect. law enforcement officials say this man, khalid aldawsari, was the real deal, a bona fide terrorist threat. >> he's your classic lone wolf terrorist. in fact, he's potentially the scariest type. >> reporter: the chemical engineering student from saudi arabia, is suspected of planning large-scale attacks using bombs. on aldawsari's target list,

nuclear power plants, dams in california and colorado, backpack bombs for a dallas nightclub. streets of new york city. and perhaps most shocking, former president george w. bush's dallas home. referred to by the suspect as the tyrant's house. >> this guy appears to be very serious. >> reporter: law enforcement officials say it was alarming. the young saudi was able to live largely undetected in the united states. the tip came on february 1st. the carolina biological supply notified law enforcement officials that aldawsari had purchased a chemical that can be used to make a high explosive. two weeks later, fbi officials searched the suspect's apartment. there, they found a bombmaking factory. a hazmat suit, lab equipment, wires, clocks and chemicals used to make explosives. much of it bought online at amazon.com. aldawsari also signaled his intentions to carry out terrorist attacks on a blog he maintained and in his diary. the fbi believes aldawsari was

in the final stages of a terrorist plot. he's been charged with attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and will hold court in texas here today. rob and peggy? >> all right, karen. thanks. we turn to a tragedy in houston. four, young children are dead after a fire in a day-care center in a private home. the operator of the day-care center managed to pull out two of the kids before the fire got too intense. she, herself, was taken to the hospital. well, there's another bizarre twist this morning in the life and career of actor charlie sheen. last night cbs and warner brothers said, they're done. they're ending the production of sheen's sitcom "two and a half men." >> that's at least for now. it's all because of sheen's rant on a radio talk show. >> you're completely clean, aren't you? >> 100%. you know? here's your first pee test. the next one goes in your mouth. no, you won't get high. it's all good. it's all good, guys. quit panicking.

look what i'm dealing with. i'm dealing with fools and trolls because i don't have time for these clowns. i don't have time for their judgment and their stupidity. they lay down with their ugly wives in front of their ugly children. and just look at their loser lives. and they look at me and say, i can't process it. well, no. you never will. stop trying. just sit back and enjoy the show. >> harsh words from charlie. after last night's announcement, sheen fired back with a statement, calling the show's producer, quote, a contaminated, little maggot. now, the show, just to be clear, is not canceled. it could resume production down the road. some sports. baseball fans can take heart. spring training games begin today. there's plenty more that will happen throughout the weekend. as for last night's hoops, highlights from espn news. >> good morning. cole wright here with your espn news update. we're headed straight to chicago for a battle of mvp candidates. lebron james taking on derrick rose and the chicago bulls. early in the first quarter, heat down four. lebron with the reverse dunk. another look.

that brought them to within one. fourth quarter now. 20 seconds left. game tied at 89-89. d. rose with a little. out past luol deng. the three was good. you can see, wade was staying open to help lebron. and deng made them pay. bulls on top, 92-89. ensuing bulls possession, at the top of the key, not good. not happy about that one. and rose was jazzed up. bulls win, 93-89. gallinari, ramon felton, wilson chandler, all making a debut for the nuggets against the celtics. fourth quarter, green down a pair. paul pierce hitting the three from the wing. celtics up by one. minutes later, chandler, anything you can do, i can do better. he had 16 in this 1. the nuggets took a one-point advantage again. three minutes to play. it's nene, and kenyon martin getting the hoop and the hack. he had 18.

nuggets up four after the made free throw. two minutes left. martin, with the steal. ty lawson. the nuggets end the game on a 16-0 run as they win 89-75. that's it for your espn news update. and don't forget, tune in to "the highlight express" for the latest and greatest in the sports world. until then, back to you in new york. >> good game there. it was party time at the white house, as the living legends and the hottest stars teamed up to honor the incomparable motown sound ♪ ♪ you're all right >> jamie foxx, james legend, nick jonas and seal, belting out the classic hits. smokey robinson took the stage with sheryl crow. and stevie wonder wowed the crowd before the president and first lady themselves cut the rug with some steps. it's part of the white house music series. jamming at the white house. coming up next, the stories that we'll be following later today, including the ongoing

crisis in libya. and the protests in wisconsin's statehouse. they weren't enough to stop anti-union legislation from moving forward. details on that, straight ahead. stay with us. [ male announcer ] got a cold? [ sniffles ] [ male announcer ] not sure what to take? now click on the robitussin relief finder at robitussin.com. click on your symptoms. get the right relief. ♪ makes the cold aisle easy. ♪ the robitussin relief finder. it's that simple.

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moammar gadhafi. there's growing international pressure on gadhafi to stop killing protesters. the continued unrest could bring another volatile day in the oil markets. prices have surged 20% in the last week because of worries about production in libya. prices were slightly higher in overseas trading. relatives are asking new zealand officials why it's taking so long to identify the bodies of victims of this week's earthquake. new zealand's government says the rescue effort is drawing to a close. it's now a recovery operation. amid continuing protests in the state capitol, wisconsin's assembly has passed a bill to strip workers of their union rights. president obama is sitting down at the white house today with democratic governors from across the country. the president is expected to expressways the states can work with washington to boost the economy and create jobs. and the crew of space shuttle "discovery" is spending the day looking for possible

damage. several pieces of foam insulation broke off. "discovery" docked with the space station tomorrow. for some of you, your local news is next. >> and for everyone else, "america this morning" will be back with a look forward, of course, to sunday's oscars and the heavy favorites. stay right there. 3 o'clock. my daily meeting with a salty snack and then a 3:15, with my guilt. [ female announcer ] new special k cracker chips. 27 crispy chips. 110 delicious calories. mmmmmmm...good meeting. same time tomorrow? [ female announcer ] find them in the cracker aisle. i see a bag and think... i could have a chip. yeah right. that's why they're called chips? [ female announcer ] new special k cracker chips. 27 crispy chips. 110 delicious calories. another cracker chip? don't mind if i do! [ female announcer ] find them in the cracker aisle. that can take so much out of you. i feel like i have to wind myself up just to get out of bed. then...well, i have to keep winding myself up to deal with t, the trouble concentrating,

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all right. oscar sunday around the corner. if you're doing an oscar pool, like we are, perhaps you picked "the king's speech" for best picture. i did. you did not. >> but who gave "the king's speech" its own voice? sandy kenyon has the history behind the movie. >> what do i call you? >> your royal highness. >> reporter: a king by any other name is king. her father was the same man portrayed by colin firth in "the king's speech." so, the news f her approval was welcome. >> she recognized the fact that nt of respect ritten and made, and admiration of her father. >> reporter: her father then overcame what was called a speech defect.

>> my position is to relax the throat. >> reporter: the king's courage inspired a young british boy, who fled with his family and headed to safety in great long neck, long island. >> by the time i got to new york, i was stuttering. >> reporter: david seidler's parents urged him to follow the king's example, as a way to gain control over his stammer. >> if he could do that, maybe there was hope for me. so, he was my childhood hero. >> reporter: the story tells how he found his voice with the help of a australian commoner, lionel logue. >> this was in the box. >> reporter: this is the real king's speech. a few slim pieces of paper that stand as a powerful monument of one man's courage and another man's effort to help him. >> i have a voice. >> yes, you do. >> reporter: this sunday, oscar vote voters will speak with one voice. and almost everyone expects

colin firth to take home an academy award. it would be a stunning upset if he didn't. i'm sandy kenyon, for abc news, on oscar's red carpet in hollywood. >> you have him picked for best actor, though. >> we'll see. take my chances. have a great weekend, everybody. in the headlines, a despicable crime after a

horrible tragedy. teens burglarize the home of a teenager after a rafting accident while the family was at the memorial service. >> i'm kristen sze. >> i'm eric thomas. some of us are waking up to a steady drum beat of rain but it's from the highway patrol that says winter weather advisory, slow down. very important today. >> especially if you know what