good night. see you tomorrow! [ cheers and applause ] ♪ this morning on "early today," make or break? mitt gets his moment to try to win over doubting republican conservatives. tarnished image? fbi files on steve jobs reveal not everyone was impressed with apple's iconic cofounder. and historic hall. authorities seize 15 tons of pure powder meth at a ranch in western mexico. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to our viewers across the nation, including the

pacific sometime done. i'm lynn berry. today, we begin with a campaign crossroad. later today in washington, gop presidential hopeful mitt romney will deliver a speech to 10,000 members of the conservative political action conference. with rival rick santorum three victories tuesday night leaving more than just a hint conservative republicans aren't so enthusiastic about romney as the party's nominee, his performance today could be crucial. with more on that and the ongoing fight over health care coverage for birth control, nbc's brian mooar joins us from washington. brian, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, lynn. mitt romney's most conservative supporters have been urging him to step up his game. today is his chance. ♪ >> reporter: before the gop presidential hopefuls address a big gathering of conservatives here in washington today, former candidate rick perry set the tone. >> if it's halftime in america, i'm fearful of what the final score is going to be if we let this president start the second half as the quarterback! [ cheers and applause ] >> reporter: it is a critical

chance for rick santorum to build on his big primary season wins earlier this week. and make the case he is the conservative candidate who can win. it's a chance for newt gingrich to rally his supporters. but it may be mitt romney who has the most riding on his c-pac appearance. >> it's an incredible opportunity for mitt romney to speak to the conservatives. >> reporter: he is struggling with conservatives and expected to explain his time as massachusetts governor. while the candidates may attack each other, the president and his administration's controversial contraceptive process will be targeted. and the president himself not ready to sound off. >> come on. thank you. come on. >> reporter: but his republican rivals are. >> this attack on religious freedom cannot and will not stand. >> reporter: ron paul is sitting out this year's conference. after a big role change, that straw poll vote is being seen as

a key test for santorum. lynn. >> all right. brian, thanks so much. else where, since the first partial meltdown in t1979, the government has approved a license for nuclear power facility. by a 4-1 vote, the nuclear regulatory commission okayed a plan to build two new atomic reactors in eastern georgia. the new reactors would be built on an existing site owned by the southern company. the construction plan would have the 14 billion dollar reactors operating as soon as 2016. two other nuclear plants in south carolina are also being considered for approval in the next few months. following the deadly soccer riot in egypt, the muslim brotherhood is flexing its newfound muscle in egypt, calling for the military there to surrender power to a new civilian government. the group once outlawed in egypt now controls more than 50% of the seats in a newly elected parliament. the brotherhood wants one of its

leaders names prime minister so he can form a new government instead of waiting until the june deadline for the generals now in charge to hand over power. more than 70 people died in the soccer riot which the muslim brotherhood said showed that the military failed to provide leadership, security, and economic stability. here is a look at some of the other stories making news early today in america. dramatic video inside a georgia walmart shows a young girl fighting off a man trying to abduct her. the 7-year-old made every kick count, hitting her attacker as hard as she could until he let her go. the man fled, but police nabbed him shortly after the incident. the suspect who was out a parole for voluntary manslaughter conviction, nowtte charge. a brief car chase turned into a very long standoff in a los angeles residential neighborhood. after the driver abandoned the stolen vehicle, police chased the suspect and car thief up a roof. the ordeal ended after the

suspect surrendered after being hit with bean bag projectiles. passengers on a los angeles bound flight from chicago know what it's like to travel with hollywood royalty. 42 statuettes scheduled to be given out at this year's academy awards arrived afternoon -- on the commercial flight. they got their own chocolate version. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is meteorologist todd santos with your weather channel forecast. good morning. >> good morning, livin'. certainly an upgrade from the pret zels. >> any time chocolate is involved. >> i have to agree. for travelers this morning, should see decent conditions northern edge of the five and through the northeast. dealing with showers once again today. later this afternoon, though, i have to mention chicago. we will start to see snow showers getting going around the area. it's really into the evening hours. if you have a plane bound to or from chicago, that's where you might be able to see some issues. showers tracking across the

southern portion of the country as well, including dallas. as far as the west is concerned, we're seeing some of these showers. a lot of the heaviest rain you see just off the coastline is going to skirt the olympic peninsula and push into southwestern british columbia. quiet across a got a stretch of colorado. might get more going along the western edge of wyoming. it's really not until sunday. there's a look at some of that pacific moisture moving in. spotty showers along that northern edge of the five. most of the rain chances really north of the bay area. temperature-wise, 48 in san francisco. by later on this afternoon, temperatures tahoe.

a few warm spots on the map, including san diego. so at least for many of us across the southwest, still a beautiful day. we'll talk more about the snow and rain as we get into the weekend. >> all right, todd. thanks so much. well, job numbers sparkle, no more kodak cameras, and guys are more romantic than women? your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, a tear-jerker story from previous tearjerkers is set to make the other films cry this weekend at the box office. coming up, lakers versus celts. a goal from center ice, a dance party break down in pebble beach. you're watching "early today."

good morning. welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. blaming, quote, terrorists. syrian state television says 25

people were killed and 175 wounded today in two explosions that targeted security compounds in syria's largest city, which has largely remained loyal to president assad during the nearly 11-month-old uprising against his rule. newly released fbi files paint a less-than-flattering picture of steve jobs. during fbi interviews before the apple became an adviser to first president bush, former colleagues called him arrogant and questioned his honesty stating he will, quote, twist the truth in order to achieve his goals. a top aid to arizona congresswoman gabby giffords is running for her seat. ron barber was injured in the same shooting that nearly took giffords' life last year. marine corps is apologizing for a photograph taken in 2010 posing in fronts of a nazi flag.

the spokesman says the marines will not be disciplined because they thought "ss" stood for sniper scouts. authorities maybe a historic drug bust in mexico, seizing 15 tons of pure methamphetamine. that's equal to have half of all seizures in the world in 2009. now here is another look at one of your top health headlines on msnbc.com. a new study says a cancer drug reversed alzheimer's disease in tests on mice. in just six hours, the drug reduced levels of a protein in the brain linked to alzheimer's by 25% and the mice showed an improvement in their mental function. human studies are needed but the results suggest in early stages, alzheimer's could be a reversible disease. for more information on this and other health stories, check out the health page at msnbc.com. now here is an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,890 after adding six points

yesterday. the s&p was up a point. the nasdaq gained 11. taking a look at overseas trading this morning. in tokyo, the nikkei fell 55 points. in hong kong, the hang seng d p dropped 226. thursday's latest upbeat unemployment report could help stocks continue higher today. the number of people seeking unemployment fell near a four-year low last week. a sign strong hiring may continue in the coming months. in europe, an agreement on debt restructuring moves to the greek parliament which must pass unpopular budget cuts before euro zone finance ministers sign off on a bailout deal. exports from china fell in january. the biggest decline since the 2008 crisis. a new sign of weak global demand and a slowing chinese economy. more than a million coffee makers are being recalled after reports of people being sprayed with hot liquid or tea leaves.

linkedin added 14 million members. call of duty is still selling well, but overall retail sales of video games fell 34% in january because of the lack of new game titles. it is the end of an era for eastman kodak as the company stops making digital cameras and pocket video cameras. the 25 billion dollar foreclosure abuse settlement with top mortgage lenders will mean better refinancing for some homeowners and checks for up to $2,000 for some of those who lost their homes. and just in time for valentine's day, new studies on dating show that single men don't want to date a lot of women and are more romantic than women. the surveys also found that as in the past, although most women prefer a man with a job, more than one-third said if they were really interested, unemployment wouldn't matter. coming up, the lakers block the celtics in overtime.

the warriors overtake the nuggets. and one very lucky way to score. plus, the shot that has this golfer busting moves in pebble beach! your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. mother nature has moves of her own today. we'll talk more about that snow. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, last night's classic nba matchup between the lakers and the celtics proved why it is so important to keep playing right up until the buzzer. here is fred roggin with an early look at all of your sports headlines. good morning. it is somewhat of a rivalry week in sports. it started with the pats/giants rematch in the super bowl and then a thriller between duke and north carolina. last night, lakers and celtics. to boston we go. a rivalry like none other. check out how the celts started the game off. the tip, hike, and between his legs and off and running. lakers with fancy ball movement of their own. kobe to pau gasol who dished to andrew bynum. harlem globetrotters would have been proud. seltings by two at the half. this went down to the wire. lakers trailed by two. kobe's shot off the mark but pau gasol there to tip it in and tied the game, forced to overtime. fast forward to end of o.t. celts down one.

paul pierce for the win, no. ray allen for the win. rejected by gasol and the lakers hung on. 88-87. nuggets continue to struggle and lost their fifth straight last night. golden state rode the hot hand of stephan curry. warriors win it. 109-101. hockey, caps and jets. keep an eye in the middle of the screen. byfuglien with a shot from center ice and he scores! take another look. the shot took a wild bounce. a goal from that distance ought to be a three-pointer. jets won in a shoot-out 3-2. finally, pebble beach pro am underway yesterday. tiger woods the favorite, but ken duke had the shot of the day. par 4 16th, duke's approach from the fairway, up, on line and in the hole for an eagle! look at duke's reaction. that is either dancing or he has something in his pants. get down with your bad self, ken. there is the cabbie patch. nice, nice. luckily, duke's golf game is better than his dancing.

>> that is your early look at sports on "early today." have a great weekend. i'm fred roggin. so who would you pick to play princess diana in a movie? your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, there are little life coincidences. you're watching "early today."

welcome back to "early today." at looegs -- least wanted to show the showers in the bay area. maybe a light sprinkle here and there. better chances to the north. maybe a little light snow in the high elevations. for the most part, rain across the coastline. southwest, absolutely beautiful. tomorrow, showers return to l.a. if you're watching on kntv nbc 11 in california's bay area, see candid captured moments from the studio of andy warhol. that's your pacific event of the day. >> all right, todd. thank you so much. >> here is an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. that sound you may hear this weekend will be the sound of husbands and boyfriends being dragged to the movie theater. expectations are high for the romantic drama "the vow" starring channing tatum and rachel mcadams.

a true story about newlyweds who loses her memory after a car crash. it's tracking strongly with women. it is expected to take top spot up to $30 million and perhaps as many tears. for the guys, there is the weekend's clever counterprogramming. "safe house" probably will take second with $25 million or more. the 3d re-release of 1999 "star wars episode one" taking in about $20 million. the weekend's final new film, the pg fantasy adventure sequel "journey 2" will grab $15 million. casting news to tell you about. australian naomi watts will play princess diana about the upcoming film about the last two years of her life. a lot of pressure. >> there has to be when you're playing a beloved public figure.

>> i haven't seen her in many things. i know she was in a recent movie. this could be a bit of a comeback for her. it will be interesting to see. in albany, georgia, in nearby sylvester, it was déjà vu for a pair of paramedics. the emergency crew quickly realized jordan was going to be born inside their ambulance. but no problem for these guys. especially since two years ago, it turns out they helped jordan's mom deliver his older sister exactly the same way! they're experienced pros, but never the second time around with the second mom. one of them needs to play the lottery. or maybe mom does. i'm lynn berry. this is "early today," your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

one artist in russia is getting a lot of praise, but no one knows exactly who he is. known only as p183, the graffiti artist keeps his identity hidden as his work gains international recognition. abandoned buildings and walls have become a canvas for his politically inspired graffiti. by hiding his identity, he hopes to give people a more direct interaction with the message of his art. you can feel the love at an aquarium in tokyo. affectionate sea mammals are out for this valentine's day. seals embrace their trainers and blow kisses to spectators among

other tricks. while sea otters chow down on heart-shaped treats. up to 8,000 people come to see the animals getting cute on the weekends. in had sweden, scientists believe they've answered that age old question, why do zebras have stripes? according to their study stripes are meant to keep away horse flies. they painted horse statues and coated them with glue. the flies preferred solid black, dark coats to white, but stayed away from the stripes even more because of how they reflect white. i'm going to be changing my entire wardrobe when i go to the beach. >> good to know. neat. >> note to self. >> checking out the stories we will follow today on nbc. president obama sign a bill designed to combat elicit drug trafficking on america's northern and southern borders was the last piece of legislation sponsored and voted on by former representative gabrielle giffords.

in new york, a woman accused of stealing a baby from a harlem hospital over 24 years ago is expected to plead guilty in federal court in manhattan. indicted and charged with kidnapping last year, she's expected to plead guilty to a lesser charge. actress elizabeth banks turns 38. all day long, you can stay on top of the latest developments on those stories and others as they break on msnbc. tonight, be sure to watch brian williams on "nbc nightly news." here's what's copping up on the "today" show. rick santorum in a live interview in the next step in his suddenly surging campaign. and a surrogate mother who decided to carry her sister's babysits down with ann curry and her sister to share their story. 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.

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