making news this morning -- winter's return. >> it's breaking weather news. a tornado destroys homes and cuts power overnight. right now, the midwest is bracing for near blizzard conditions. some areas could get a foot of snow. and fallout fears. the investigation under way about an alarming video. appearing to show u.s. marines desecrating a corpse of a soldier. a world class skier. known for her skill and good looks. this morning, she's in a coma, fighting for her life. good morning, everybody.

i'm rob nelson. and i'm paula faris. the balmy, and almost boring winter ends for us today. >> the vase occasion is over. a storm is soaking the northeast. making travel miserable. the big story, those in the midwest, the biggest snowmaker of the season is now bdigging i. >> they were wondering when it was going to hit. >> tada. >> here's tahman bradley. >> reporter: this morning, parts of the country are digging out or cleaning up. a possible tornado ravaged towns in north carolina. the streets were filled with rubble overnight as residents and emergency responders viewed the remains. dozens of homes and buildings were damaged. some completely levels. hundreds without power. >> i got a call about 5:55, saying my grandma's house got

hit by a tornado. >> right here. you can see part of the barn that came from that barn right down there. >> trees down. powerlines down. just in that swath. >> reporter: in denver, snow was the problem. and it fell at the worst possible time. right in the middle of rush hour. the roads left drivers complete le helpless and frustrated. >> every time it snows, people try to get up this hill. they can't make it. most of them have to turn around. after awhile, they come to a can of worms. >> reporter: today, more wild weather. several states across the midwest are bracing for major storm. it's expected to bring the heaviest snowfall of the season. it probably won't leave 20 feet on the ground like in cordova, alaska. >> that town had to special

order shovels to deal with the snow. we're following another story that's been unfolding overnight in mississippi. a judge there has stopped the release of 21 inmates who had been pardoned by the outgoing governor while the pardons are being investigated. >> reporter: in mississippi, they came searching for their tough on crime former governor, haley barbour. it felt like a knife in the back to the victims, whose loved ones were killed, raped, and robbed by the people set free. this man killed his estranged wife. her mother marched to the state capital hoping to get some answers. >> i can't understand how a man that has children of his own could do this. >> reporter: governor barbour

was long gone. randy walker, shot in the 4ed by one of the men, did find the new governor. >> the constitution gives the governor that power. it's his decision to make. barbour ter: governor said it was tradition to give workers at the state capital a bit of understanding. we went looking for barbour, too. he's beginning his private 4r50i6 in florida, earning cash by speaking at a big event sponsored by a bank. families of the victims wish he had talked to them firssteve steve osunsami, abc news, atlanta. president obama is back at the white house. after a quick campaign fund-raising trip to his hometown. they can't give up in the battle to win the white house for another four years. after the official events, the president made a surprise visit

to his old home. mr. obama confidently told his neighbors, i won't be back to this house for another five years. meanwhile, mitt romney opened his south carolina primary campaign by blasting the president for being silent when it comes to the threat posed by iran. he acknowledged the nearly 10% unemployme unemployment rate. he holds an event there before heading to florida. newt gingrich is out with a new web ad attacking romney. it's called for the dogs. gingrich was criticizing romney's business practices. he released a tv ad that portrays romney as a flip-flopper. the armed services are investigating reports that a

video of soldiers urinating on the corpse of a soldier is real. the u.s. is denying it had anything to do with the assassination of a scientist in iran. the man was killed instantly. his driver also died. some experts have suggested that iran itself was behind the killing in an effort to pin the killing on israel and the u.s. iran's leader was 90 miles from miami. he met with recaaul castro in c. and there's more bizarre fallout from the death of kim jong-il last month. you'll remember the scenes of people wailing in the streets. reports north koreans

are being given sixth months for not mourning their leader. kim's body may permanently lie in state. there are also plans for a statue. time for the weather across the nation. up to ten inches of snow around the midwest. chicago, milwaukee, the upper peninsula of michigan. snow in western new york and northern new england. heavy rain wraps up this morning from philly to new york. >> a frigid 4 degrees in fargo. the teens in omaha and minneapolis. sacramento, 60, seattle at 40. we received new details overnight about the orange juice investigation. the chemical found in imported juice. the whole story is coming up. how about a bald barbie?

cancer survivors go online to get a barbie of their own.a

welcome back, everybody. there's word this morning of major ford recall. the automaker says thousands of escape suvs from a decade ago have a faulty brake situation. if you have one, park it outside until the issue is fixed.

they're always recalling some minivans. overseas markets were mostly lower. tokyo's nikkei average lost 62 points today. hong kong's hang seng slid 57 points. in london, the ftse opened lower. on wall street, the dow fell 13 points. the nasdaq index picked up eight points. tension is at an all-time high as we have seen from the occupy wall street movement. two-thirds of us think there are strong conflicts. that is a 50% increase from two years ago and the most in two decades. and big news this morning. you don't have to worry about a world without twinkies. the financial problems of the company that makes them doesn't necessarily mean the demise of the guilty pleasure. they filed for bankruptcy

yesterday, but other companies are looking to continue to produce the items. there's word that coca-cola triggered the initial investigation into the orange juice. it found a chemical used to kill fungus in its juice imported from brazil. love this story. parents of young cancer survivors are using facebook to lobby for a barbie doll more like their daughters. there's no comment from mattel other than form letters so far. people that liked the facebook page nearly doubled yesterday. great for families that have suffered through cancer and alopecia. next on this third morning, were parents really kept from seeing their babies when beyonce

delivered her baby over the weekend? and the tragedy on the slopes. world class skier sarah burke in a coma this morning. my name is jill strange, i'm forty-nine years-old, i love gardening, and i love volleyball. i've been taking osteo bi-flex for several years now. i really can't see myself not taking it. osteo bi-flex is a great product. i can go back and do gardening with comfort. [ male announcer ] osteo bi-flex, the glucosamine chondroitin supplement with 5-loxin advanced. shows improvement in joint comfort within 7 days. [ jill strange ] since taking osteo bi-flex, there's nothing that i can't do. [ male announcer ] osteo bi-flex. the #1 doctor and pharmacist recommended brand. but one is so clever that your skin looks better even after you take it off. neutrogena® healthy skin liquid makeup. 98% saw improved skin. does your makeup do that? neutrogena® cosmetics.

well, good morning, there, times square. it's a slick ride for commuters in the northeast this morning. soaking rain coming down since last night from philadelphia up to boston. up to 2 inches are expected before it all ends later this morning. >> for a looked a morning road conditions. the northeast rain drenches i-95 from boston to philadelphia. wet and icy on i-90 from buffalo to new england. snowy highways in the midwest. high winds on i-40 from oklahoma city to memphis. >> calling out six tomorrow. thank you for >> and you don't drive.

>> if you're flying today, airport delays possible in boston, new york, philly, d.c., detroit, memphis, atlanta. a rough travel day. two bomb shell revelations have emerged on what casey anthony was saying as her trial approached. >> she told psychologists that her father drowned caylee in the family pool. >> anthony says she was drugged at a party, blacked out, and then raped. she says she doesn't know who caylee's father is but claims she loved her daughter at first sight. and joran van der sloot will be sentenced to murder tomorrow. he pleaded guilty. his attorney claimed the killing

was triggered by a sort of post traumatic stress disorder. state officials said they found no basis about recent complaints about the hospital where beyonce gave birth. some parents said they were kept from seeing their babies in the nicu. kept there from the security guards hired for beyonce. one of the world's best scores a is in the hospital this morning. 29-year-old canadian sarah burke is in critical condition. she's believed to be in a medically induced coma. she's a pioneer in her sport and had lobbies successfully to have it included in the next winter olympics. some of the nba's highest profile teams were facing off last night. the highlights from espn news. good morning, i'm todd

grisham. this is your espn news update. fantastic games in the nba last night. the heat visited the clippers. under 1:00 to go in the fourth. billups fouled while shooting a three by lebron james. he can't believe it. 14 seconds to go, lebron drives, he gets fouled. and goes to the line. with a chance to give his team the lead. but he would do this on the first free throw. missing. he makes the second. ties the game at 86-86. five seconds left. clippers with a chance to win it. their new acquisition, chris paul, for the win, no. we go to overtime. under 2:00 left in overtime, clippers up one. blake griffin gets this to go. clippers take a three-point lead. final seconds of overtime. clippers avoiding the foul. jordan wide open. he can touch the rim. the heat fall apart in overtime. clippers win it. 95-89. how about the defending nba

champion dallas mavericks. visiting the garden. jason terry knocking down this three. giving the mavs a three-point lead. under 30 seconds remaining. boston down by three. give it to pierce. good idea. he makes it. tied at 85-85. the german, dirk nowitzki. and one. mavericks win it, 90-85. they've now won 6 of their last 8 games. for up to minute news and highlights. you know where to go. espn news. it's what we do. i'm todd grisham, have a good day. now to the world of entertainment. the fans of film, tv, and music have spoken. katy perry was at the top of the list. she won five people's choice awards. >> favorite movie and comedic actress went to emma stone. aid dam sandler won best

coimmediac comedic actor. our own george stephanopoulos shows his wild side on late night tv. can't wait to see that. and a story you can use to impress your friends. an astounding new fact about our galaxy. my name's jeff. i'm a dad, coach... and i quit smoking with chantix. knowing that i could smoke during the first week was really important to me. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix is proven to help people quit smoking. chantix reduced my urge to smoke -- and personally that's what i knew i needed. [ male announcer ] some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these, stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic

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welcome back, everybody. time to check "the pulse" beginning with a story that may blow your mind. >> am i going to explode? implode? >> it seems that outer space is a lot more crowded than once thought. >> how crowded? well, a discovery being announced today in the journal, "nature," says that in the milky way galaxy alone, there are 100 billion planets. billion with a "b," like rob. >> thank you for clarifying. we appreciate that. we shouldn't be so arrogant. we don't know what else is out there. >> there's a lot out there. obviously. we're this tiny little planet here. halle berry once told oprah she would never get married

again. >> apparently she changed her mind. she's now supporting a ring from her fiance. >> she's been married twice. she has a 5-year-old daughter from a third relationship. congratulation congratulations. >> i don't know what planet. >> that was a joke. for years, george stephanopoulos cultivated a stoiic image. >> since joining "gma," he has developed a different persona. >> let's do it. okay. you first? >> go ahead. [ cheers and applause ] there you go. >> definitely tune in to "gma."

george should be in rare form today. well done. for some of you, your local news is coming up next. to watch it for us. otal strangers 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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until you reach your goal. nicorette mini. quit one cigarette at a time. an east bay teacher is arrested on charges of having sex with the studenttp-z new report points to a huge fall in foreclosures that is only half the story. the truth behind the numbers. mike will have his own numbers. our 14th spare the air. chilly morning, but record highs on the way. >> frances will updating the day's top stories now. a rare winter tornado ripped

through two north carolina counties, damaging more than two dozen home there is. ten people were injured. hundreds lost power. 21 mississippi inmates pardoned by outgoing governor haley barbour won't be going anywhere soon. the releases were put on hold. there are fears of major backlash against u.s. service members and people serving overseas after a video surfaced of marines apparently urinating on dead taliban members. philly, get your umbrellas out. well, all week, we have been showing you the next generation of tech gadgets being unveiled at the consumer electronics show in las vegas. not all of us can afford the 3-d tvs they're drooling over. >> we see the new stuff under 100 bucks.

>> reporter: the newest innovations of technology tend to be on the pricier side when they first come out. we found some reasonableable gadgets that will keep you up to date and not break the bank. this tracking device. >> oost about $8 or $9 a month to track your dog. >> reporter: check out the hex bag. it holds your ipad or tablet device in the front so you don't need to pull it out to use it. why should you have to take your gloves off to use touch screens? >> they have built-in conductors. a lot of different fashion types of glove. they range from 20 to 50 bucks. >> reporter: we found new innovations for computing. a chinese company came out with a new mike roechip technology

for a cheaper price. which ever manufacturer decides to use it, you would find tablets out there this size for around 100 bucks. looking ahead those 00$5,000 to $10,000 oled tvs probably won't cost you as much in a few years, if the past is a good indiana gator. >> 15 years ago, the first plasma and lcd big screen tvs were shown. $5,000 to $10,000. now you can buy them in a store for under $500. >> reporter: the great thing about the tech world is that prices drop and things change. we're already seeing items that are out of date. >> always good stuff there. that's what's making news in america this morning. that's what's making news in america this morning. stay with us for "good closed captioning by closed captioning services,inc