stay tuned for "carson daly." thanks for watching, have a great night, hope to see you tomorrow! bye bye! [ cheers and applause ] ♪ this morning on "early today," rising optimism. a new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll shows more americans believe the economy is getting better. house call. an emotional farewell to congresswoman gabrielle gifford who steps down to focus on her recovery. and terr on the ice. dramatic movements as a roof collapses on a skating arena in slovakia. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

hello. good morning. welcome to our viewers across the nation, including the pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry. today we begin an improving outlook. according to new poll numbers it appears americans are becoming more optimistic about the state of the economy. the latest nbc news/"wall street journal "poll finds 30% say the country is headed in the right direction. that's up eight points from a month ago. 45% approve of the job president obama is doing in handling the economy. that is a six-point rise over the last month. and more people said they believe the economy will get better instead of worse in 2012. that is a seven-point jump over last month. all three polls came in at the highest positive levels they have been at in a year. on the heels of that, president obama kicked off a three-day campaign-style swing through five battleground states yesterday. and his first stop in arizona, there was a tense exchange between the president and that state's republican governor jan

brewer. nbc's tracie potts is joining us now from washington with those details. >> lynn, grorpg good morning. you can see jap brewer with her finger in president obama's face. this exchange was over her book account scorpion for breakfast. in it she characterizes a meeting with president one-on-one on immigration saying he was patronizing on border issues. she's accusing the administration of ignoring immigration which is a big deal in her state. governor brewer delivered to the president a handwritten note that she says it included an invitation for them to meet again. apparently the president said he was disturbed by the way their meeting was characterized but the white house says they'll meet again. >> thank you, tracie potts there in washington. president obama's new plan

for the military will be outlined today. the .oregon plan will cut $260 billion in projected spending over the next five yores to make required reductions. the u.s. army would slash the number of combat brigades from 45 to as low as 32 cutting as many at 80,000 soldierses. well, it was an unprecedent momentum on capitol hill yesterday. members of congress openly wept as they bid farewell to one of their own. arizona representative gabby giffords had to make a very difficult choice between the career that she loves and the recovery she vows to complete after last year's assassination attempt. nbc's kelly o'donnell reports from washington. >> reporter: a truly extraordinary day. party and politics simply did not matter. >> gabby, we love you. we have missed you. >> the brightest star among us,

the brightest star congress has ever seen. >> reporter: gone were the usual fiery passion. >> no matter what we argue about here on this floor or in this country, there is nothing more important than family and friendship. >> reporter: so many wanted to honor gabrielle giffords' grace and resilience. >> her strength is an inspiration to all of us and all americans. >> reporter: giffords' year-long hard-fought recovery brought her back here and continuing that work is the reason she will not stay. >> my district deserves to elect a u.s. representative who can give 100% to the job now. >> reporter: with her arizona colleagues of both parties gathered around, best friend congresswoman debbie wassermann schultz read the letter of resignation for giffords.

>> i will recover and work again. >> reporter: giffords was determined to deliver it herself. speaker boehner caught her briefly and then let his own tears flow. giffords last vote would be on a bill she co-wrote. like all bills she brought forward, it passed unanimously. >> reporter: from the bear hug with president obama, to congress members who hate to see her go. >> i don't want to see you go. you make me so proud. i missed you. now for a look at your national and region weather, here is meteorologist bill karins with a look at the forecast. i love when politics doesn't

matter. >> i don't think we have seen the last of her. probably the first chapter. well, good morning, everyone. yesterday we had a tremendous amount of rain in texas. why is that important? first off, it did significant damage but more importantly it took a big chunk out of the worst drought in texas history. they had a ton of rain that was statewide from austin to san antonio to waco, pretty much the entire state got soaked by the latest storm system. that was good news for them. we are continuing to watch the jet stream now focusing right into the coastline here of oregon. it's not like we have a big organized storm moving onshore. there's a weak low and a cold front passing through washington state, but just the fact that the moisture stream off the pacific is just going straight into the state. that's why we are continuing to see areas of light rain. it is a very warm, mild pacific air. we have snow at the highest elevations but for the most part for the mountain passes this is just plain old rain.

the forecast the next couple of days will get a break on saturday in portland before the next batch of rain moves in on sunday and monday. today's forecast for the there. further to the south more concentrated weather in northern california. southern california is competing with miami. both areas have been in the lower 80s lately. >> lucky them. rub it in. coming up, big ben speaks and wall street likes what it hears. plus, if a multitude of reports are to be believed, demi moore needs help for much more than exhaustion. coming up, the champs get their rings, and an mvp makes a

hall of fame call. you're watching "early today."

good morning. welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are your top headlines this morning. the u.s. navy s.e.a.l.s team six the same unit that raided and killed osama bin laden was the unit that parachuted into somalia to rescue hostages jessica buchanan and her coworker. they flew out by helicopter. an american journalist kidnapped in somalia on saturday is still being held there for ransom. treasury secretary timothy geithner does not expect to say if president obama wins a second term. geithner too old bloomberg tv the president asked him to remain last august but he doubts he'll be asked to stay again.

a deadly explosion in thailand as a fireworks explosion killed four people. the celebration occurred north of bangkok in celebration of the lunar new year. a youth ice hockey team practicing as holes appear before the roof on their head. then the whole roof came crashing down onto the ice. amaze. >> i nobody was hurt. and a bank robber in brazil accidentally shoots himself in the foot. the thief left limping but went to the hospital seeking treatment. now here's a look at one of your top health headlines on msnbc.com. new studies found that the drug avastin helps tumors appear in some women with early stage breast cancer. in november, the government revoked approval for avastin for advanced breast cancer because of side effects but it is still used in europe and japan. research continues on whether avastin improves long-term survival of breast cancer patients. for more information on this,

and other health stories, check out the health page at msnbc.com. >> announcer: "early today" health is brought to you by vagisil, bring u.s. yourself back. now here is an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,756, after adding 81 points yesterday. the s&p was up 11 points. the nasdaq gained 31. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei lost 4 points. 34 points. but in hong kong, the hang seng spiked 28%. stocks picked up steam on wednesday after learning the fed intends to keep its easy money policy in effect longer than originally planned. the nation's central bank said it would probably keep interest rates near zero until late 2014 citing, "mott rat economic growth and still struggling housing market." chief ben we are nankey revealed quantitative easing that is not out of the question.

overall that was bad news for banks which find it harder to earn a return on low rates. the price of gold hit six-week high on hopes it could be an appealing hedge against inflation sending mining and freeport mcmoran higher. apple reclaimed its title of world's most valuable company after historic fourth quarter results. and textron soared 15% after the upbeat earnings forecast. delta and us airways shot up on healthy earnings report. corning glass tumbled 11% after predicting double-digit price declines due to dwindling demand for lcd-tvs. meanwhile, netflix shot up douk digits in late trade after reporting it recovered three-quarters of the customers it lost after raising prices last year. according to realtytrac, foreclosed homes accounted for a

percentage of the sales than the year before. finally, a florida woman hopes what she calls jet art will take off with fashion buyers. she stands behind a jet engine using its hurricane-force exhaust to splatter paint an toe blue jeans. good luck with that. coming up, the year of opposites continue in college basketball. new jersey's nets pull out a nail-biter. and their cross-river rivals, the knicks, stumble once again. plus, the clippers' black griffin does what he does best in the battle against l.a. the early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. in weather it's an umbrella day for many areas of the east coast. we might as well make that for tomorrow, too. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports there was a full night of nba action wednesday night highlighted by last season's champions receiving their just reward. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all the sports head lives. >> good morning. there were 13 northbound games last night but only one gets my ringing endorsement. to dallas for the mavs receiving their championship rings.

owner mark cuban shelled out $1.4 million to pay for the flashy jewelry. each ring worth about $40,000. and the extension was worth every penny last night. the t-wolfs won it, 95-90. the los angeles lakers needed a fourth-quarter rally to beat the clippers. and the lakers are in city bragging rights with a win. the 76ers got more than they can handle from the nets. tying the game with one second left in regulation, kept it going in overtime. philly was surprised in o.t. carmelo anthony tries anything to end the next current slump. you can cross jumping rope off the list. that didn't work. never a good thing with anderson verajel fills up the score sheet. college hoops upset of the work turned in by oklahoma state.

freshman he brian gnash scored 13 of 27 in the final minutes. oklahoma state beat number two missouri, 79-72. finally, back to the mavericks, dirk nowitzki dits play but managed to put his stamp on the game while being interviewed on the bench. >> oh my god! oh! let's go home! >> the mavs certain did shut it down and went home losing by 15. dirk, don't get your day job. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. coming up, the celebrity who hasn't had sex for decades. and what do you bet after winning half a million bucks? your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, if you think about weight lifting and this comes to mind, stay tuned for a surprise. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this thursday morning. we have rain for you early today, especially in oregon down to northern california. but as the front pushes to the south we'll see some foggy conditions early tomorrow morning. then we'll clear it out. we'll see a decent friday out there. definitely the heavier rains are today. if you're watching us on king-5 news in seattle, washington, in nearby auburn see sentimental photographs of people and their animals in the vick torn era at

best friends at the white river valley museum. that's your pacific event of the day. >> love it. bill, thank you so much. here's a look at your early morning entertainment headlines. a source told e! news going into the hospital, demi moore was, quote, acting like she was suffering from a seizure. tmz reports moore's hospital trip was brought on by inhaling nitrous oxide. sources say moore is addicted to one or more prescription drugs and that addiction led to the breakup with ashton kutcher. elsewhere, elizabeth taylor auction mania continued at chris ty's on wednesday when a portrait that once hung in her living room sold for $2 million. all right.

project runways tim gunn who admits he hasn't had sex for the last 29 years, that's not a typo. finally, rapper 50 cent who reportedly won $500,000 betting on the giants making the super bowl, now says he will post a naked picture of himself on twitter if the giants win it all. come on. he's just trying to get twitter followers. this comes to us from kusa 9-news in denver where one girl really knows how to pull her weight. 13-year-old abby is the champion weightlifter. she set eight world records in a recent competition. she started picking up the barbells a couple years ago when her dad took her to the gym. now she can lift 176 pounds, that's nearly twice her own weight, and she's starting to dream of future olympic glory. i wouldn't be surprised. best of all, she says the boys at school have promised to stop messing with her. they know what's good for them. i'm lynn berry. this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

in the republic of georgia, one farmer's four-legged friend will have you doing a double-take, because the newest addition to the farm was born with four legs in front and two in the back. the six-legged lamb has some trouble walking because his front legs are noticeably weaker. otherwise, the lamb seems to be developing at pace and becoming quite popular with residents throughout the community. survival of the fittest may be an understatement at one event in malaysia. martial arts warriors being beaten over and over again with a stick.

why would anyone want to do that? the fierce blows didn't seem to faze these warriors. they must be prepared to protect the country should anyone try to destroy it. i think they have it covered. finally, a classic cheap eat is getting a complete makeover, but it is going to cost you. the most expensive hot dog in canada went on sale for a hundred bucks. the gourmet frankfurter includes atlantic lobster, kobe beef, trussle oil and a drizzle of $2,000 cognac. the owner of the dog who is getting lots of attention says he wants to expand his business across the country. good luck with that. >> that beef is really pricey. >> it is. i love the surf and turf thing, but not on a bun with cognac. >> i would do it. i would try it. >> i'm thinking of a $2.50 dog on a stick from a vendor in new york city. time for the early look at the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. attractive but deceptively low

ticket airfare prices are about to get a makeover as new rules into effect. airlines must now display prices that include all season taxes, a difference that could be as much as 20%. michael jackson's three children will help immortalize their late-father in a ceremony at the grauman chinese theater. they will use jackson's gloves and shoes to make impressions in the cement. and ellen degeneres turns 54. all day long stay on top of the 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 on the "today" show. a look into the cause of demi moore's hospitalization earlier this week and her road to recovery. and actress michelle williams talks about her recent oscar nomination and what it is like to play marilyn monroe on the big screen. now keep it on this channel

for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a good one.