good morning. on "early today," bloody sunday. libya's military opened fire on protesters as the country's regime digs in. showdown in washington. republicans and democrats point fingers over the growing risk of a government shutdown. and golden ticket. it is the wedding of the year so who was invited and who got snubbed? captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello. a very good morning to you. welcome to our viewers across the nation, including those in

the pacific time zone. libya is now the flash point in the middle east, and the outcome of demonstrations there has reportedly been the most violent since of beginning of what seems like a rebellion across the entire region several weeks ago. yesterday reports say security forces again opened fire on anti-government protesters who want libyan leader moammar gadhafi out of power. because of lybia's tight restrictions on reporting, it is difficult to know exactly how many have died. the associated press says more than 200 have been killed. however, moammar gadhafi's son claims the death toll is only 84. he warned if his father is removed from power, the country would fall in to a civil war. he claimed his father remains in charge with the army's backing, although the whereabouts of colonel gadhafi himself aren't unclear. some reports say protesters have taken over a local army barracks with the military's blessing. although libya has seen the most violent unrest, a wave of protests continues to shake ç

other countries in the middle east. yemen is entering its 12th day of demonstrations against that country's long time ruler who has held power for more than 30 years. after nearly a week of protests and deadly confrontations in bahrain, opposition leaders are weighing whether to begin talks with that regime. and in iran, hundreds of thousands of anti-government protestors reportedly rallied across the country yesterday despite the deployment of thousands of security forces. in china, police are staging a show of force after a call for pro-democracy rallies across that country, despite the appeal for a so-called jasmine revolution. only a handful of people reportedly joined the demonstrations yesterday. authorities in the meantime detained activists, disconnected some cell phone text messaging services, and censored internet postings. here at home on capitol hill, if lawmakers don't put aside their differences on the budget and find a compromise soon, it appears the government

shutdown may be inevitable. for more on that we go to kristen dahlgren, live in washington. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning. well, here is the timing. the senate is in recess this week. when they come back, they'll just be about five days before that deadline when funding for the government runs out, and so talk of washington here turning to a possible government shutdown. the house over the weekend did pass $61 billion in spending cuts, but senate democrats now say that americans will be paying the price for that, and house speaker john boner has said he is not going to pass even temporary funding without some serious slashing. a bit of an impact here. the last government shutdown back in 1995-1996. then speaker newt gingrich was blamed for that one, and so we're continuing to watch this time republicans say that they think that they'll have enough support with the record

deficits. of course, it's a big game of chicken here in washington now. we'll see who blinks first, if anybody. >> kristen, thank you. wisconsin teachers union is calling for teachers to return to work instead of attending protests. it's against an anti-union bill. demonstrators spent the weekend trying to put a stop to a republican plan to all but eliminate union rights for state workers. supporters of the measure say it's needed to control state debt. right now it's stalled. only because 14 minority state democratic senators have fled the state to prevent a vote. wisconsin governor scott walker lashed out at those senators saying they were failing to do their jobs by hiding out. and now here is a look at some other stories making news early today in america. in virginia, a surveillance camera rolled on a jewelry store heist where the suspect used the smash and grab approach to snag some pretty expensive watches. in all the thief got away with 40 watches, each worth about

$6,000. no arrests have been made. in new mexico, a police cruiser was sandwiched between an 18 wheeler and a concrete barrier. take a look at this. the cruiser's dash cam captured the big rig switching lanes and slamming in to the police vehicle on interstate 25. the truck driver did not stop and is wanted for questioning. the officer was injured but is expected to be okay. in washington, explosives were used to bring down a piece of american history. ah, there she blows. workers deoeished multiple structures including a powerhouse built in 1943 as part of the manhattan project which created the world's first atomic bomb. finally in idaho, rescuers worked 19 hours straight to free a dog stuck in an underground pipe. the jack russell terrier was with his owner when he wandered off and fell inside the pipe. the rescue crew had to remove asphalt and steel before they were able to pull the dog out and return it to the owner for a little love and a much needed

bath. ah. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. you know, 19 hours in that pipe, and he looked pretty good. >> his new name should be trouble. >> seriously. >> a nice bath, i'm sure he will be doing just fine. let's talk about what's happening out there today. big storm system over the weekend brought blizzard conditions here to nebraska and south dakota, minnesota. now that snow is moving through areas of the mid-atlantic. even new york city getting a little bit of snow this morning. out west cold air has moved in through much of the rockies. some of that has moved in even down to areas of california and arizona. a little storm system is coming down southward right along the coast. bringing just a little bit of precip to the coastal areas. this isn't a big rain event. most of it will stay off shore, but you can see on the radar here we have light rain. some of that may head down to fort bragg. a little bit of light snow. also up interstate 5. for the most part a lot of clouds today.

should be a dry forecast. now, as i mentioned, temperatures have dropped. it's only 42 this morning in phoenix. 30 in albuquerque, and 40 in vegas. there is chilly air out there. definitely winter has returned, and you need the gloves and the hat and everything else that you have been wearing all winter long. 61 in l.a. that's one of the warmer spots. know else cloudy and stuck in the 40s. that's a look still kind of clo standards too. tuesday forecast coming up. looks like more rain for the northwest, veronica. >> regardless, bill, i have a proposition for the west coast. why don't we trade some of our snow for some of their sunshine? >> they do that for a reason. >> hmm, just for one day. a week? all right. wall street's çunstoppable valley. the seemingly unstoppable rise

in the price of gas, and the responsible rolls royce. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, he has created a whole new image for himself on the big screen, and it's selling like hot cakes at the box office. coming up, a 20-year-old makes history at the daytona 500, and kobe bryant puts on a show at the nba all-star game. you're watching "early today."

>> good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm veronica de la cruz. here are some of your top headlines this morning. a marine scientist warns the bp oil spill has decimated life in parts of the gulf of mexico. there is crude remaining stuck at the bottom of the sea floor. she also disputes an assessment by bp that the gulf will recover by the end of next year estimating that microbes have only consumed about 10% of the leaked oil. texas lawmakers are expected

to approve a law soon allowing students and professors to carry concealed weapons on college campuses. if the measure is approved, texas will become the second state following utah to pass such legislation. and invitations to the april royal wedding in england are in the mail. among those invited to prince williams' nuptials are david and victoria beckham but reportedly not on the list, the obamas and duchess of york sarah ferguson. u.s. markets are closed for the presidents' day holiday, but here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day tomorrow. the dow gained 73 points fridayç the s&p inched up two, and the nasdaq added two. the nikkei rose 14, but in hong kong, the hang seng fell 109. the question when traders go back to work tomorrow is simple.

how long can this current rally keep running? wall street posted its third straight week of gains with the s&p 500 now up almost 7% for the year and more than 20% in just six months. friday, the nasdaq finished within 25 points of its highest level in a decade. if earnings are a factor, the rally has a good chance of continuing. of the over 400 s&p 500 companies reporting earnings so far, 71% have beaten wall street estimates. later this week, major retailers including walmart, target and macy's will report. housing related data dominates this week including home prices on tuesday, existing home sales wednesday, and new home sales thursday. investors will get a sense of the state of 2010's fourth quarter economy with the release of gross domestic product data on friday. with the rumbling in the middle east combined with the price of gas at the pump, energy stocks are sure not to fall too low this week. the average price of a gallon of regular in the united states jumped more than five cents over the last two weeks to a national

average of $3.18 a gallon. billings, montana had the lowest average price among cities surveyed at $2.95. san francisco had the highest at $3.54 a gallon. speaking of high priced gas, there is good news if are you green-minded and also have the green. rolls-royce announced the company's first electric powered luxury vehicle, a phantom. it will be unveiled at the geneva motor show on march 1st. outdoor on the ice, the great american race, and an upset in the battle of top ten college basketball teams. plus, kobe makes some powerful statements at a little big name get together. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. i have a little bit of everything for you on this presidents' day, record high, snow, freezing rain, and even warm temperatures. your monday forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, kobe bryant has shown before he's a big game player and last night he showed it again in front of a hometown crowd at the nba all-star game. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good monday morning.

the 60th annual nba all-star game held in los angeles and kobe bryant looked right at home. here we go to staples. he delighted fans from the opening tip. he may be pushing 33, but he still has some pop in those legs. in the third, lebron james there for the block, but kobe powered it home. the west running away with it. lebron sparked a comeback in the fourth. scored 14 of his 29 in the quarter. unfortunately not enough. west won it 148-143. kobe's fourth all-star mvp trophy. college hoops. another weekend, another loss for ohio state. 11th ranked purdue with the honors. purdue knocked off number three ohio state 76-63. nascar daytona 500 started with a tribute and ended with history. paying homage to the past, daytona went silent on lap three to honor the late dale earnhardt who lost his life ten years ago

on this very track. his son finished 24th. when it was all said and done, trevor bayne took the checkered flag. in just his second sprint cup race he took the biggest event. a hard hitting affair between the blackhawks and penguins. jordan henry hit the boards and the boards hit back. the glass popped out and landed on a couple of fans. everybody was okay and it went to a shoot-out. patrick kane, the game winner, and the blackhawks won it 3-2. and finally hockey the way it was meant to be played, outdoors. temperatures near freezing, but the flames are red hot. this beauty in the second. flames won the heritage classic 4-0. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin.ç >> narrator: "early today" sports is brought to you by ice blue aqua velva. men get it. so how does a movie about alien teens hiding out on earth

fran evil race do at the box office this weekend? your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus these items may not look like it, but they're signs and symbols of women fighting for their weekend equality. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this monday. a holiday for a lot of people for work and for cools. if you do have to go out on the roads, no issues many the west.

a little light rain around eureka. cloudy through much of the west. it is a cool morning. make sure you wear the winter clothes. by the time tuesday rolls around, still chilly, but at least the sun will return to much of california and arizona. in nevada we should be all right. 58 in vegas. up in the pacific northwest, we'll take our next little storm system moving in with some rain. temperatures there 43 in seattle and 46 for you in portland. well, if if you are watching us on k-5 news in seattle, washington, watch a diver swim with a live octopus at the window on washington waters at the seattle aquarium. that's your pacific event of the day, veronica. >> doesn't that sound fun, bill? >> i would do it. i think that's cool. >> would you get in the tank or you would just watch. >> i would actually do it. snoshgelling i saw an octopus once. impressive. now here is an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. who says that you can't be an action star with a number one film when you're close to 60 years old? liam neeson's thriller "unknown"

took the top spot this weekend following up his 2009 action hit "taken" with $21.8 million at the box office. making the victory even more sweet, he did it without the coveted younger audience. 54% of the audience was 50 and over and a whopping 89% 25 and over. an action story about a teenager alien on earth opened in second and "gnomeo and juliet" finished third. it finished so closely to "i am number four" the movies could change rankings tomorrow when final numbers are released. and the weekend's other new wide release the martin lawrence comedy big mama's "like father like son" finished a disappointing fifth under expectations with just $17 million.

i say we just protest bad movies. let's start one right here. >> they still make millions of dollars. >> that is a problem. the one good one was "king's speech." you have to go see it. >> i think people will see it after it wins about a million awards. this comes to us from dallas, texas where women are having it their way, they're creating havens of rest and relaxation designed to keep the husband and the children away. these days more women are transforming their empty closets and their spare rooms into mom caves. no man caves staples like big screen tvs or beer stained rugs will be found here. instead flowers, photos and candles create a sanctuary where moms indulge in peace and serenity in a style and flavor all their own. thumbs up. i'm veronica de la cruz, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day on your nbc station.

venice helped celebrate carnaval with a rat. thousands lined the banks to see a parade of over 100 traditional venetian row boats. the rat's inclusion in the famous celebration is a recent tongue in cheek edition which playfully frowns on the growing commercialism of the event. giant pandas are among china's most treasured and endangered species, so trainers go to great lengths teaching them to repopulate in the wild. they wear panda suits helping the bears make a gradual transition from captivity to wildlife. in the final stage before release, they're still provided food, but encouraged to find their own especially their

favorite, bamboo. and one artist in a california tattoo shop hasn't just raised eyebrows. after ten years, she's also raised over $100,000 for a children's hospital. one day a year, a tattoo-a-thon, she and the other artists in her shop, they donate a day's pay and the hospital is said to be so grateful, it plans to name part of a new wing after the shop. wild bills. what do you think about that? >> i think that's a pretty good idea. if you're going to donate money, do it to a children's hospital. >> absolutely. do you have any tattoos? >> no, no, i am still pure. i if i get in trouble with the law, i don't want to be identified. >> time for an early look at some of the stories we're follow throughout the day right here on nbc. schools and government offices will be closed today for presidents' day. some states recognize the holiday as honoring george washington. others abraham lincoln, while still others pay tribute to all u.s. presidents.ç u.n. secretary general ban

ki-moon will be in los angeles taking part in a facebook town hall aimed at promoting the use of social media to raise awareness on critical global issues. and another reason for nascar fans to celebrate beyond this weekend's daytona 500. today is nascar's birthday. on this day in 1948, the national association for stock car auto racing was incorporated. all day long, you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with nbc "nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. massachusetts senator scott brown sits down for his first live morning interview about his new book and his troubled childhood. and as prince william and kate middleton prepare for their upcoming nuptials, find out how princess diana kept her own wedding dress a secret before her big day. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm veronica de la cruz. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of

the day today on your nbc station. have a terrific monday.