making news in america this morning, down and dirty in detroit. marco rubio and ted cruz team up to attack donald trump who opened the latest republican slugfest by boasting about his anatomy. >> if they're small, something else must be small. i guarantee you there's no problem. >> that moment getting lots of reaction overnight, and as the party looks past the primaries, new talk of a brokered convention after mitt romney's blistering assault on trump. we're covering it all live in washington. future plans. the current president putting lots of speculation to rest revealing where he'll live after the white house. important health alert. new evidence of aspirin's ability to fight cancer. should it be part of your morning routine? and if you can afford this boat, hopefully you can afford

to fix it. well, good friday morning. we begin with the republicans who want to be president slinging nasty insults and hitting below the belt. >> a narrowed down field of four took to the stage in detroit last night for the latest republican debate. hours after mitt romney blasted donald trump, the front-runner was the number one target facing an all-out assault and dishing it right back. it's "your voice, your vote." abc's megan hughes has the highlights. >> reporter: fresh from his commanding seven victories on super tuesday, donald trump got no respect. >> if you're our nominee -- >> hold on. hold on. >> i'm talking. >> reporter: trump's rivals now teaming up against him. >> because he doesn't have answers, and he's asking us to make him the president of the united states of america. >> believe me -- >> reporter: ted cruz in second place is trying hard to make it a two-man race. >> donald trump has written checks to hillary clinton, not once, not twice, not three

times, ten times. >> reporter: marco rubio again assailed trump's character. >> he has spent a career of convincing americans that he's something that he's not. >> reporter: all the taunting finally got a rise out of trump. >> this little guy has lied so much about my record. >> here we go. here we go. >> he has lied. he referred to my hands, if they're small, something else must be small. i guarantee you there's no problem. i guarantee you. >> reporter: the billionaire real estate mogul also fighting back. >> donald trump is a phony, a fraud. >> reporter: against a scalding attack from the 2012 gop standard-bearer, mitt romney. >> he was a failed candidate. he should have beaten president obama very easy. he failed miserably. >> reporter: this debate was also a rematch between donald trump and his nemesis, fox news anchor megyn kelly. >> hi. >> hello. >> how are you doing? >> nice to be with you, megyn. >> great to have you here. >> you're looking well. you're looking well. >> as are you. >> reporter: this weekend the republican slate faces voters in four states and puerto rico. with the detroit debate over

michigan is still a political hot spot. democrats debate in flint on sunday. on tuesday, the state hosts an important primary for both parties. megan hughes, abc news, washington. >> quite a night, indeed. now, despite the explosive exchanges, all three candidates pledge to support trump if he is the nominee. but mitt romney's blistering attack on trump may be teeing up the gop for a fight at the convention. sources say he's urging republican voters to pick up candidates in an attempt to keep trump from securing the nomination outright. earlier we asked a member of abc's political team just exactly how all that would work out. >> so, what happens is that means that no candidate will get that magic number, 1,237 delegates, and so then it could go to the floor of the convention in july in cleveland, and this is how it would work. so, the delegates become unbound on later voting, and they can vote for other candidates, or they could vote for somebody else, and that's what there was

a lot of talk on thursday, is mitt romney riding in on his ride horse to save the party. >> well, a source close to romney says romney is definitely not running for president, but he just wants to make a difference by making the case against trump. well, also at last night's debate, marco rubio slammed democrats for politicizing the water crisis in flint, michigan. >> rubio also backed michigan's republican governor rick snyder who has now hired lawyers at state expense to assist with civil representation in the case. the residents of flint got some help from the federal government yesterday through expanded medicaid coverage, but a $200 million aid package is stuck in the senate because of procedural issues. and hillary clinton was keeping a close eye on the debate and having a little fun at the expense of the republicans. clinton fired off a string of tweets including this gift of herself asking how many more of these do we have to sit through and in a caption under the candidates, she wrote unintelligible yelling. >> well, clinton is delivering a

speech on the economy in detroit today as her husband campaigns on her behalf hundreds of miles away. former president bill clinton met with supporters in jackson, mississippi, telling them his wife is the best change agent he's ever seen. and bernie sanders campaigned in kansas ahead of tomorrow's caucuses there. sanders had overflow crowds in lawrence. that's a college town full of younger voters, and he talked about his free college tuition plan. sanders and clinton are both making stops in michigan today. okay, so the mexican government has given its first official response to donald trump's pledge to build a border wall and make mexico pay for it. the mexican treasury secretary saying emphatically and categorically under no circumstances would his country pay for such a wall. new developments in the escalating tensions with north korea overnight. leader kim jong-un has ordered his military to be on standby for nuclear strikes at any time. the threats are part of a campaign of propaganda following tough new u.n. sanctions.

yesterday north korea launched short-range missiles into the sea. well, breaking news overnight from southern california where a suspect is in custody for deliberately driving into a federal building in orange county. the fbi is investigating the incident as a vehicle assault. sources tell the "l.a. times" that the 45-year-old driver was motivated by hatred toward the government. a federal employee believed to be an investigator was injured and he was hit by the driver. well, winter shows no signs of easing up today with another blast from the mid-atlantic north into new england. that means at least a good dusting of snow along with plenty of rain, and it will be cold with windchills sending temperatures plunging into the teens and single digits. the obamas won't be going far when they leave the white house in january. president obama revealing that his family will be staying put in washington so that daughter sasha will be able to finish high school without transferring in the middle. the president's older daughter malia starts college this fall.

well, still ahead, could tom brady still face suspension over deflategate? plus, an emotional week in the courtroom for erin andrews. a new phase in the trial getting under way today. and no germs here. the airplane bathroom that actually sanitizes itself.

well, nice day for a ride in tacoma, washington. watch the right side. there's a blue mini cooper speeds past, the driver hits an suv that spins on to its roof while sliding down the highway. look at that. the man who posted the video says there were just minor injuries. also from washington state

police say that driver likely fell asleep at the wheel before plowing into a gas pump and sparking a fire. he remained inside the truck for nearly a minute before escaping. two pumps were destroyed but there were no serious injuries. closing arguments begin today in erin andrews' lawsuit against her stalker and a hotel in nashville. defense attorneys called their final witness yesterday. andrews is seeking $75 million claiming the marriott show tell there didn't do enough to protect her from a stalker who booked a room right next door to hers and recorded video of her naked. well, could be weeks are 0 even months before we know if tom brady's deflategate suspension is being reinstated. the nfl asked for the four-game ban to be put back in place. it had been thrown out a week before last season started. one judge yesterday called the evidence of ball tampering compelling if not overwhelming. six weeks left till filing tax returns.

encouraging numbers coming, the irs reports more than 58 million returns have been filed so far. that, by the way, that's more than a third of what they're expecting. and for those receiving refunds they're getting an average of $3,053, an increase of $5 over last year. and good news for m&m fans. the candy is now available in three new flavors. coconut and honey nut and nut. they're asking us to vote which should become a permanent selection. >> the honey nut looks good. we'll see. when we come back, the important health alert about aspirin. and then the mistake at the dock. a megayacht takes a bit of a tumble. the flu virus. it's a really big deal. and with fever, aches, and chills,

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the great lakes and along the west coast. if you're flying airport delays are possible in washington, philadelphia, new york, boston and san francisco. well, experts are applauding the announcement by soccer legend brandi chastain that she will donate her brain to concussion research and the degenerative brain disease cte. >> they say it's especially important since so few female athletes have been studied for concussion risk. here's now abc's kayna whitworth. >> reporter: the soccer star known for that celebration at the world cup, coming forward about the dangers of the sport. 47-year-old brandi chastain announcing she will donate her brain to research on cte, the degenerative brain disease linked to concussions. >> brandi is such an iconic figure for a big chunk of our country that hasn't really been focused on the concussion issue. >> reporter: as a college player chastain did suffer from two concussions, now a mom and a soccer coach, she's concerned

about the damage all those headers may have caused. >> she is having no symptoms and she's living a normal life, but she is so well aware of what could be awaiting her. >> reporter: chastain telling "usa today" "but as you grow older, you sometimes say, gosh, am i losing my memory or did i used to forget when i went into a room what i went in there for?" adding she hopes the research will protect younger players. cte can only be diagnosed after death, and has been found in numerous nfl hall-of-famers and male soccer players but so far never in a female athlete. kayna whitworth, abc news, los angeles. >> new research links aspirin to a reduced risk of certain cancers. doctors found that people who take low dose aspirin every day had a 19% lower chance of developing colon cancer. they also found a 3% lower risk of cancer overall for those taking low dose aspirin at least twice a week but they warn aspirin is not a subty tut for

colon cancer screening. in california they're now considering once again raising the smoking age to 21. the state senate expected to take up the bill now that the assembly has passed it. republican opponents say teens who are old enough to join the military and get married should be able to smoke if they want to. san francisco has already raised the age to 21. and a silicon valley jail was on lockdown for hours after a brawl broke out involving dozens of maximum security inmates. it was all caught on newly installed security cameras. they were bought and paid for by santa clara county sheriff lori smith earlier this week. smith put the nearly $800 tab on her personal credit card after being told it would take two years and up to $20 million going through normal budgetary channels. >> she showed them, huh? >> yeah, she did. a shocking discovery by u.s. customs and border protection agents in california. they say this man was being smuggled into this country inside the partially modified

gas tank of an suv. an image system first detected something that was unusual in the toyota sequoia and further inspection revealed he was hiding in the cramped compartment. the driver was arrested. police in south carolina are looking for this man who they say stole some meat from a walmart. then he took off. but it's what happened outside the store that's getting a lot of attention. you have he that there, while he was making his getaway, he stumbled and smacked right into the suv. he hit the ground but managed to recover quickly and got away with about $40 worth of meat. wonder if it was worth it. oh. >> maybe had a barbecue he had to get to. a million dollar goes down the drain. this luxury yacht was being lifted but the harness on the massive crane suddenly snapped as you see, the shiny new yacht plunged into the water upside down. crews watched helpfullily as it

slowly sank into the murky river. >> oh, boy. >> hopefully it's insured. after that failure let's see who had success on the hardwood last night. >> good one there. nba western conference highlights from our guys at espn. >> kevin connors, john anderson and after some discussion, i guess i will relent in the spurs do not have to be the first thing we talk about even though they're 59-9. >> the other team is 55-5. they did it again. they've still yet to lose at home this season. golden state beating oklahoma city for the second time in less than a week. look at steph curry on a string behind his back over kevin durant and serge ibaka. steph was only 5 of 15 from deep in this game. we're going to show you some of the ones he made, 11 of his 33 came in the fourth quarter. the golden state bench was outstanding and the warriors do it again. 55-5. let that wash over you, 121-10

of the final. he'd get some votes. >> might be the best choice at this point. spurs and pelicans. leonard and duncan, 52-9 bunch. go on a run in the fourth. kawhi leonard, lamarcus aldridge doing the work. the jumper there. leonard, his team down two, so smooth. and then five-point lead. let's make it eight and let's just finish this thing right here, spurs win it 94-86. they're now 29-0 at home this season. 29-0. that actually is better than the golden state warriors. >> who are still pretty good themselves at home. undefeated as well. >> that's it for us. you watch either of those you're having a good morning. >> thanks, guys. up next in "the pulse," the new airplane bathroom that cleans itself. plus, i ain't afraid of no ghosts. but we're learning from the new "ghostbusters" teaser. be sooo ct feels like everyone can go

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welcome back. time for "the pulse." a potential solution for germ-filled toilets. >> boeing is working on a completely touchless bathroom with the wave of a hand or touch of a foot pedal. a germophobe's delight. >> ultraviolet light kills nearly 100% of all germs. no word on when this system could debut in boeing planes. >> apparently you're not in the laboratory when the light goes on. >> that would be kind of weird. made famous for "ghostbusters" is among the things that will be back when the reboot hits the big screen. >> until now not much was known about "ghostbusters" other than all female cast led by melissa mccarthy and kristen wiig but now the film's first trailer is offering a sneak peek. >> we have dedicated our whole

lives to studying the paranormal. now there are sightings all over the city. there are people out there that need our help. >> you're a brilliant engineer. erin, no one is better at quantum physics than you. we can provide a real service. that's hot. >> the new "ghostbusters" is set to hit theaters on july 15th. >> my proton pack is ready. after a week of cranky politicians could you use a little love? well, check this out. the social butterfly spreading joy at her local supermarket. her name is joy. >> instead of focusing on the food she roams around the aisles and gets personally greeted with the other shoppers. that cute little wave. yeah. >> and a hug. >> got to hug. good going for you joy. a way to win customer satisfaction. >> she could be a walmart greeter in 80 years.

>> more news, folks, after this. rheumatoid arthritis. before you and your rheumatologist move to a biologic, ask if xeljanz is right for you. xeljanz is a small pill for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well. xeljanz can reduce joint pain and swelling in as little as two weeks, and help stop further joint damage. xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections, lymphoma, and other cancers have happened. don't start xeljanz if you have an infection. tears in the stomach or intestines, low blood cell counts, and higher liver tests and cholesterol levels have happened. your doctor should perform blood tests before you start and while taking xeljanz, and monitor certain liver tests. tell your doctor if you were in a region where fungal infections are common, and if you have had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections. xeljanz can reduce the symptoms of ra, even without methotrexate. ask your rheumatologist

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live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news. >> ings 4:30 club. i am natasha zouves. >> i am reggie aqui, friday, march 4. mike has a look at the forecast this weekend. mike? >> it will be stormy. it is going to start today. right now it is quiet. but it does not feel right. too harm. too humid. drizzle. and the golden gate bridge show how most it is. pockets of rain through the morning. we will transition to isolated shower by noon and better chance of scattered showers at 4:00 through 7:00, and it will be quiet before the boom, the hammer is lowered on saturday and sunday. that is coming innext. sue? >> yes, quiet and light. just a little bit of falling you

mentioned. mist in the air over the waldo grade. this is emeryville through berkeley and 80, the east shore freeway on the way to the bay bridge. very light conditions. everyone is moving at the licht. now, to the san mateo bridge, where traffic is slowing nicely from hayward to foster city for 15 minutes. road work out there. we will upstate that in a few. >> breaking overnight a woman is recovering this morning after her car went into the antioch marina. >> crews received reports of a car in the water at 10:30. the woman got out of the sinking car on her own. a witness described what happened. >> she was driving recklessly. suddenly, she sped up and went to the dock driving around at 45 miles per hour. she launched into the water. the crews took the woman to the hospital. at this point we do not know what sort of injuries she

sustained. >> the last thing any of you commuters need to hear this morning, something is seriously wrong with bart. trains are getting knocked out of service. amy hollyfield is at the embarcadero station. >> taking trains away does not help a very crowded situation. we look forward to hearing what bart passengers have to say. bart is saying they now have 80 cars that are in the shop. that is because they have electrical problems and the problems are happening in the transbay tube, trains are going east and are getting knocked out of service. officials do not know why. it is a mystery. it worsens this week. on monday, bart lost 40 cars. this comes as ridership is up. they are losing trains. ridership was at a record high in february. the commute is just getting started and early. trains are rolling. we plan to talk to