update in about 7:25 and every half hour after that. good morning. super tuesday, the most important day main the gop raceo far. voters casting ballots in 11 states. how would it shake out? would it be the end of the road for one or more candidates? we'll break it down. we're going to make it. a mother who put her life on the line to save her two young children during that deadly twister outbreak. she lost parts of both legs while shielding her children as the tornado struck. this morning, her story. and the creator of "desperate housewives" admits to striking nicollette sheridan on the head. he heads back to the stand

the head. he heads back to the stand today, tuesday, march 6, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and welcome to "today" on this tuesday morning. i'm ann curry. >> i'm matt lauer. happy super tuesday. 11 states are holding primaries or caucuses on this day. and in many of them when you look at the polling, the races are tight. >> that's true. while georgia has the most delegates up for grabs the most important test for mitt romney and rick santorum is ohio where they are in a virtual dead heat in the polls. we'll have the latest from the campaign trail straight ahead this morning. >> also, jury selection is set to begin today in a drunk driving case that made headlines in part over an unusual move by the defendant. a florida millionaire allegedly ran a stop sign and crashed into a young man. the driver died. to protect his wealth the

accused has adopted his own girlfriend. we'll have more on that. >> also this morning, more sponsors have pulled out of rush limbaugh's radio show following his choice words for a georgetown law student. how much damage has he done to himself? we'll ask today's professionals about that and more this morning. we begin with a super tuesday contest across this country. peter alexander is in the key battleground state of ohio. peter, good morning. >> reporter: hey, ann. good morning to you. it's finally here and voting is officially under way this super tuesday. it's the biggest day of the primary season. the four republican presidential candidates today head four different directions, but ohio may be the biggest surprise. rick santorum will end his day here. a senior adviser for the romney campaign says they feel they have been gaining ground over the last two weeks but say even at this hour the race here could go either way. >> i'll tell you. we have been all over the state

from a to z. all right? akron to zainesville. >> reporter: after campaigning across ohio through an alphabetic city, the letter mitt romney is really focused on is w -- winning here and racking up enough delegates in the other contests to solidify his grasp on the nomination. >> i need your vote. get out there, and together we can keep america the hope of the earth. >> reporter: with the race in the key battleground state a dead heat. >> it's gut check time. who wants it the most? what do you say? [ cheers ] >> reporter: an ohio victory for rick santorum is critical to his campaign and would reignite questions about romney's ability to rally the republican party behind him. >> we need to make sure ohio puts forth the best possible nominee to take on barack obama. >> reporter: newt gingrich, whose name has largely been e erased from the headlines since his win in south carolina hopes

to battle into the spotlight with a big win in his home state. >> it looks like in georgia we will carry the state by four or five times the margin that romney had in michigan. >> reporter: ron paul is setting his sights on alaska, north dakota and idaho. >> you do the right thing. we'll put a lot of wind in this guy's sails. >> reporter: in an often bitter campaign where every word is heavily scrutinized on monday it was ann romney's turn. >> i don't consider myself wealthy which is an interesting thing. >> reporter: the democratic national committee tried to seize on the comment as another example of the romneys being out of touch but the romney campaign blasted back at the democrats calling it a new low and accusing them of taking her remarks out of context. here's how she finished that thought. >> i don't consider myself wealthy. which is an interesting thing. it can be here today and gone tomorrow. how i measure riches is by the friends i have and the loved ones i have and the people that i care about in my life.

that's where my values are. those are my riches. >> reporter: today ann and mitt romney head to the state where mitt romney serves as governor, that's massachusetts. romney is fighting a cold but it's his chance to vote for himself. as for newt gingrich, he now lives in virginia but the gingrich campaign says he won't be voting there or at all because his name is not on the ballot. >> interesting to note. all right, peter alexander. thank you very much. david gregory is moderator of "meet the press" and chuck todd is nbc's political correspondent. deshgt and chief white house correspondent. you heard santorum. it's gut check time. over 400 delegates up for grabs in 11 states. it's not enough for anyone to actually win enough delegates to win the nominations, so what are the chances, david, for mitt romney, who, of course, the leader, to become now after today the presumptive nominee? the unequivocal presumptive

nominee? >> romney hopes math is momentum. he hopes to make the case that it's mathematically impossible or highly improbable for santorum or gingrich to make a run at the magic number, the required number, to get the nomination. but symbolism is more important. you're talking about ohio, tennessee. if he can say that i have won ohio and florida in this nomination fight, two of the biggest battle grounds in the fall campaign, i think that's tremendously important. if he can demonstrate he has some popularity in the south, i think he can say to his party, look, it's time to coaless around me. >> georgia has the most delegates but ohio has the second most with 66. there, as you mentioned with mitt romney and santorum, they're in a virtual dead heat. if santorum doesn't win ohio could he be out of the race? >> the pressure is on santorum. he has to win ohio and tennessee today. even though we have romney as the frontrunner, it's santorum that has to do the winning today

to make the case that he has a path to the nomination. he has already lost ohio in this respect. mitt romney is already going to win a majority of the delegates out of the state of ohio. while that is -- maybe it means more if somehow romney wins the primary fight. i think the fact that santorum's inability to not be on the ballot in virginia, to not be on the ballot in some places in ohio, to not have these full delegate slates, only underscores the issue inside where the romney folks are saying what are you doing to us here? we're the ones that have set up organizations in 50 states in the territories. we know what we're doing. how is santorum can't get on the ballot in virginia, how is he going to take on president obama? >> you seem to be agreeing with this. the reality is that santorum and gingrich are both still in the race. they're dividing up all these conservative votes. the reality is that romney is on his way to getting the nomination. stopping him is going to be extremely hard. it's not impossible, but it's getting harder and harder and harder, and i think what chuck's point is that you have to say to

santorum or gingrich, what's the plan here? tell us what the logical route is. if gingrich can only win georgia, that's not really a path to the nomination. >> if he can't win georgia with 55%, 60% of the vote, to me that's not very impressive. >> doesn't the poll show him doing very well in georgia? >> it wouldn't shock me tonight if he didn't break 40, and then all of a sudden if he is in third or fourth everywhere else, i think that kind of is an issue for newt. obviously if he loses georgia, he almost has said himself he is out of the race. the question is does he get out of the race if it's sort of a limping victory out of georgia? if georgia is sort of the only place he wins and everywhere else he finishes third or less, how can he sit there and say i've got a path forward? i wouldn't be surprised if he didn't finish -- if he didn't make it. >> i want to ask you about tennessee. tennessee is the third state we really need to watch. >> there's part of the state that's more moderate. the howard baker, lamar alexander of the state where mitt romney thinks a more

moderate republican and the view of a lot of conservatives can win. if he can demonstrate some strength in the south, that becomes important for him. he hasn't done that yet. >> newt could split the vote, and 33% could be a winning number for mitt romney. >> you have a big day today. go get it. david gregory and chuck todd. for complete coverage of the super tuesday results, watch the nbc news decision 2012 special tonight at 10:00, 9:00 central time, and at 8:00 p.m. on the west coast right here on nbc. by the way, president obama will hold his first news conference in more than three months this afternoon and nbc will bring it to you live at 1:00 p.m. eastern time. it is now 7:09. here's matt. >> thanks so much. now a remarkable story that emerged from the devastating tornadoes that ripped through the midwest and south. an indiana mother lost parts of her legs while laying on her children to keep them safe. nbc's tom costello is at the university of louisville hospital where she's recovering. good morning, tom. >> good morning. she's in fair condition.

stephanie decker has seven broken ribs. she lost one leg at the knee. another at the ankle. she was home alone with 8-year-old domenic and 5-year-old reese when the storm with 175 mile per hour winds began ripping the home to shreds. alone in their new home with a tornado fast approaching, stephanie decker knew the only chance she and the kids had of surviving was to wrap them in a blanket and lay on top of them. >> everything started hitting my back. beams, pillars, furniture. everything was just slamming into my back. i had my children in the blanket and i was on top of them. i was reaching around, holding them and they were screaming. mommy, i can't live without you. i don't want to die. don't let me die. i said you're not going to die. we're going to make it. >> reporter: when the storm cleared the home was gone, wiped from the foundation with

stephanie and the kids buried in the rubble. >> it was my leg. i realized either it was cut off or it was barely attached. i took my phone, made a video to my husband. telling him i love him. >> reporter: that's when 8-year-old domenic climbed out of the rubble and ran for help. a neighbor, sheriff's deputy brian levins came to find stephanie bleeding heavily. >> she's like, i'm dying. i said, i ain't gonna let you die. >> reporter: realizing her leg was severed brian used a belt as a tourniquet. it saved her life. >> her kids were able to get out and call for help. so her kids saved her life. >> i prayed to have the strength to survive. i wanted these kids to have a mom, and i did not want them to grow up without me. >> reporter: stephanie and the kids were in the basement when brian and his friends came running. as you can see, brian is awfully torn up about all of this.

here's what's amazing. the kids were completely unharmed. not a scratch. for the rest of their lives they will know in a real way the love of their mother and the sacrifice she was willing to make. matt. >> boy, will they? what a remarkable story. thank you very much. it's 11 minutes after the hour. now once again to ann. >> matt, thanks. now to a disturbing story involving serious allegations of rape inside the u.s. military. nbc's national investigative correspondent michael isikoff has details for us. michael, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ann. eight current and former u.s. service members are accusing u.s. military officials of tolerating a staggering number of assaults within the u.s. military. and the focus is in part on events that one of the most prestigious areas of the country, the marine barracks in washington.

ariana clay was a marine lieutenant with a shining future. after serving in iraq she said she was raped in 2010 while at the elite marine bar racks in washington. >> an officer senior to me and his civilian friend came to my house on a saturday morning uninvited. both of them threatened me with death and raped me. his reason for doing that, he said, was that i had humiliated him in front of his junior marines and he wanted to humiliate me back. >> reporter: the first female lieutenant at the marine barracks said she was raped there in 2006. >> he grabbed my shoulder, pushed me against the wall. tried to kiss me. the last thing i remember was hitting my head on his desk. i have zero doubt that my company commander raped me the night of march 16th. >> reporter: today they are filing a lawsuit over sexual assaults, now estimated by the pentagon at 19,000 a year. department officials vow a crack down. >> we own the problem. we need to fix it.

ly also tell you the majority of your commanders out there absolutely want to do the right thing by any victim of sexual assault. >> reporter: marine barracks washington, strongly dispute the allegations. clay's alleged assailant was acquitted of rape, but convicted of adultery. both women say they were accused of misconduct, including fraternizing with fellow officers. >> they said i welcomed the sexual harassment by wearing makeup and running shorts. >> the retaliation i experienced was horrible and ongoing. >> reporter: nbc news obtained this hurt feelings report posted on the facebook page of the marine barracks protocol officer. that was last november. it was intended as satire, it mocks marine who's file complaints, listing such reasons as i am a cry baby. >> this is disgusting. that's what's wrong here. >> reporter: marine corps officials say the officer who posted the document is

-- has been disciplined for what one called poor judgment. this issue isn't going away. the entire subject of a military sexual assault including clay and helmer's allegations will get more attention in an upcoming documentary "the invisible war" in an upcoming documentary that has the pentagon on edge. >> all right. michael isikoff with some important reporting. thank you so much. let's get a check of the rest of the top stories. natalie standing by with those. >> good morning, everyone. the u.s. and israel are presenting a united front in key meetings at the white house. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu pushed for diplomacy first in dealing with iran. john mccain is taking a hawkish stance against syria calling for the u.s. to step up milita militarily and lead air strikes against their president. this is the top u.s. commander in the middle east and is warning congress that syria has a large cash of chemical and buy

logical weapons. this marks one of the explicit descriptions of the weapons capability that z u.s. has offered to date. everybody loves raymond patricia heaton is apologizing. heaton sweeted to fluke, hey gal, please let us pay for your starbucks, movie theater tickets and your favorite hot wings. anything else? and encouraged tweeter followers to send condoms so she'd never reproduce. heaton has since apologized on twitter. strong growth and bernt that are predicted hiring has economists growing optimistic according to a new associated press survey. for more on that, let's check in with mary thompson at the new york stock exchange. >> good morning. those economists predicting the unemployment rate will fall to

8% by election day and 7.4% by the end of 2013. all of this coming ahead of friday's employment report where the economy is seen adding 210,000 nonforeign jobs last month. but hiring isn't the only thing on the rise. the energy administration saying the price of a regular gallon of gasoline is at its highest level since last may at over $3.79 a gallon. back to you. >> we're feeling it at the pump. thanks so much, mary thompson. at last night's madison square garden exhibition, she was a game away from losing to sher poe va, so she sent in the big guns. the number one golfer in the world, rory mcelroy, he beat her at her own game taking that point. but she still had the last laugh beating them in the showdown. 7:17 right now.

back over to matt, ann, and al. >> a powerful duo. >> that's right. >> natalie, thanks very much. first check of the weather now with al. . >> we have some warm weather to talk about. a lot of heat. you look at the jet stream. it's way up to the north. the midsection of the company. st. louis going to be 25 degrees above normal. 27 degrees above normal in omaha. look at the temperatures. 70 in omaha. 56 in st. paul. chicago at 57 degrees. rest of the country, here's what you have temperature wise. 80s in the southwest. 20s and 30s in new england. plenty of sunshine into the ohio river valley. plenty of >> you'll want to hold on to your hats. we've got gusty winds developing. good morning. i'm meteorologist christina loren. the winds are going to strengthen as we head throughout

the afternoon. and we're talking about with gusts at tropical storm force, so gusts between 39 and 73 miles per hour. especially throughout the higher elevation. as we head through tomorrow we'll stay breezy but 63 degree, 70s return for thursday. and that's your latest weather. >> all right. thanks very much. the creator of desperate housewives will be back on the stand today in the termination trial. this after mark cherry told jurors his decision to kill off sheridan's character came months before she accused him of battery. nbc's mike tieve is in los angeles with the latest. good morning. >> good morning, matt. as hollywood lawsuits go, this one is a bit more than nick let sheridan's salary. but for sheridan herself, the jury veshlgt would have a big impact in a career with few highlights on "desperate

housewives." she looks demere walking into court. she played a character for five years on "desperate housewives." in court monday, she heard the executive producer say the decision to kill off her character three seasons ago, she was electrocuted, was made four months before the hitting incident. in a brief hallway conversation with his disney bosses. i didn't send any e-mails, cherry testified. i walked over and had a talk with them. >> there's no documents to support that anywhere. their position is we e terminate a $4 million a year actress in a five-minute conversation. >> back too the hitting incident, it was described as a light tap to demonstrate an upcoming scene. but with a number of characters who bite the dust said it was a hard hit and a tearful testimony last week said it was only after she complained about it that her

character was written out of the show. legal analysts lori levenson said the timing is key. >> if the jury believes that four before she's fired the green light had been given, then she doesn't have a claim. it wasn't in retaliation. >> whatever the reason, her career has been under the radar. the show drew more than 20 million viewers a week. more than 100 million worldwide as america's top comedy. when sheridan fgs in a scandalous clip before a football game, the ratings for the next episode of housewives sored even higher. the other stars including eva longoria could be called as witnesses in this trial. longoria told a radio station she supports mark cherry. >> he's funny and sweet. >> they dropped the character

because the ratings were softening and wanted to cut costs. in fact, the show is confirmed that this season will be its last. while some of the shows other stars have gone on to movies and television projects, sheridan's one pilot found no takers. >> all right. thanks, mike. coming up, jury selection begins today in the high profile drunk driving case of a florida man who is trying to protect some of his fortune by adopting his girlfriend. we'll have the latest on that. but first, this is "today" on nbc. [ female announcer ] pillsbury presents:

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use caution when driving or operating machinery. common side effects include nausea, trouble sleeping and unusual dreams. it helps to have people around you... they say, you're much bigger than this. and you are. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor if chantix is right for you. >> good morning. 7:26 now. i'm laura garcia-cannon. tight security is in place for tonight's speech by israeli president shimon peres. a crowd of more than 2,000 will attend including leaders from several faiths. many are concerned about israel's futueuture as tensions rise. >> when there is war in the region and the threat of iran gaining nuclear capabilities, this is a time when people from across the religious and ethnic spectrum in the bay area are eager to hear and to meet

president perez. >> president perez will spend time at faye facebook staging an online discussion. let's check the forecast now with meteorologist christina loren. >> good morning. it's hard to tell from this picture that just about an hour ago we had dark clouds and showers rolling through. but all of the clouds clearing rapidly as those winds start to pick up. winds will be the story of the day. windy this morning sustained between 15-30 miles per hour. this afternoon we will see peak wind gusts possibly as strong as tropical storm force, 39-73 miles per hour. and damage is possible as those winds wear down for six or seven hours. you need the jacket, temps in the 50s but by tomorrow spring-like weather. 63 as we kick off wednesday. >> the winds of course make the advisories pretty much all of the bay area bridges on this

map, here, this is the problem. for the san mateo bridge and an accident along the flat section as you approach, getting removed from the lanes now. crews made it there but look at the jam. use the dumbarton as your alternate. further south we're looking at northbound routes 101, 280 jamming up, 85 and 87, early slowing but holding steady for a tuesday. back to you. >> for the latest check out nbc bay area on facebook. ok, guys-- what's next ? chocolate lemonade ? susie's lemonade... the movie. or... we make it pink ! with these 4g lte tablets, you can do business at lightning-fast speeds. we'll take all the strawberries, dave. you got it, kid. we have a winner. we're definitely gonna need another one. small businesses that want to grow

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7:30 now on a tuesday morning, the 6th of march 2012. lots of sun in new york city, but it's one of the coldest mornings we've had in quite a while. it's only 29 degrees outside as we say hi to the people on the plaza. that's the bad news. good news is going up to near 60 tomorrow. >> crazy weather. what's going on? >> inside studio 1a i'm matt lauer alongside ann curry. just ahead, have you ever ordered something at a restaurant simply because, wow, that sounds healthy? >> i have. david zinczenko found a dish with a great name that's not the calorie equivalent of three big macs. this morning he can help us make

better choices. also coming up, today's professionals weigh in on the hot topics including a powerful new anti-bullying movie that most teens can't see because it received an r rating for six bad words. >> and a programming note. remember the father who shot his daughter's laptop because he didn't like what she posted about him on facebook? that video has been viewed more than 30 million times on youtube. tomorrow on "today" we'll have a live interview with the father and his daughter, because she's no longer grounded. we want you to submit your questions on our website, today.com. we'll have more with them tomorrow night on "rock center" with brian williams. >> we begin this half hour with new details on a dui manslaughter case against a florida millionaire who made headlines for adopting his girlfriend. nbc's kerry sanders has the latest on the story. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ann. that adoption is a legal

maneuver designed to protect john goodman's fortune if he's found guilty and later loses a civil trial. this morning jury selection begins because goodman has pled not guilty and plans to fight the dui manslaughter charges. he has one of the hottest defense attorneys in the nation representing him, attorney roy black. 48-year-old john goodman's sedan, a high end bently, allegedly ran the stop sign and t boned 23-year-old scott wilson pushing wilson's car across the intersection and flipping it upside down in the canal. in the early morning darkness as wilson's hyundai sank into the water, goodman is accused of stumbling from the scene, phoning friends, a lawyer and then 54 minutes later, finally dialling 911. >> yes, i just had a wreck and um, my phone was dead. i'm on -- where am i?

>> reporter: in that 7:57 call to 911. >> is everybody okay or what happened? >> reporter: goodman asks the same question three times. >> is everybody okay? >> i'm not sure, sir. >> reporter: it's a powerful piece of evidence. the victim in the car did not die in the accident. the medical examiner said scott wilson drowned. >> he was the most amazing person you could meet. >> reporter: scott's parents lily and william wilson. >> i would like to know if there was a possibility that he could have jumped in after he hit the car and got him out. that's what i'm questioning. >> reporter: hours later at the hospital, detectives took these pictures of goodman grinning. a nurse had just drawn fluids. his blood alcohol level 1 .7, more than twice the legal limit. goodman whose family sold their air conditioning business for $1.4 billion could be forced to pay civil damages in a lawsuit filed by the victim's family, a

penalty that might threaten his family fortune. a majority of the money is currently locked up in a trust fund for his two biological children n. an unusual maneuver he arranged protection for the remaining fortune. goodman legally adopted his 42-year-old girlfriend giving her immediate access to an estimated $100 million. his two children have now filed to block that adoption and the transfer of wealth. >> what's interesting is that the law allows it to happen. there is nothing in florida law to prevent this from occurring. >> reporter: goodman is known worldwide for the famed international polo club he wrote in wellington, florida. in this video goodman talked about riding and the sport that was the focus of his life. it is believed the night of the accident after a night of partying at bars he was headed to his home, a sprawling estate in palm beach county.

attorney roy black successfully defended william kennedy smith here on rape charges 21 years ago. on this case, as this case begins, attorney roy black says he has no comment. this civil case is scheduled for later this month. interestingly as this case gets ready to begin, it is clear that as things stand, the girlfriend will not go without any money. matt? >> kerry sanders, thank you so much. savannah guthrie is "today" legal correspondent and star jones is a veteran legal commentator. >> good morning. >> let's talk about the criminal case. john goodman had double the legal alcohol limit. he left the scene. he admitted he was driving. given the evidence what does roy black have to do to defend against the prosecution? >> black is behind the 8 ball. the prosecutor knows what she's doing. she's done it more than 50, 60

times. however the first theory is the first responders. when the defendant left the scene of the accident and then came back and returned, ems didn't find the victim initially. they did not find him in the water until after the tow truck came. so the concept could be that he did not, in fact, cause the death of the victim. that's going to be one theory. the second theory is when was he actually drunk? because there was so much time in between when he left the scene, left the bar, had been drinking in public and then returned, there was alcohol in this barn where he was. remember that part? there could be the concept of he drank after the accident, not before. >> 54 minutes before you call 911. are you less culpable because ems couldn't find the body? >> these are arguments the defense may make. they have bad facts, some of which you have identified.

number one, trying to say, well, it was the first responders' fault. they didn't get there this time. they didn't find the body. allegedly according to prosecutors this defendant started the chain of events by allegedly driving drunk, causing an accident. the defendant is the reason this young man is in the canal. >> but you've got roy black. never count him out. >> he'll do the best he can with the facts he has. according to the evidence he waits 54 minutes to call 911. also according to the evidence he blows a .7 in terms of alcohol and they have lay witnesses, people who saw him after the accident who said he asked them, do i appear drunk? there are strong facts on the prosecution's side. >> we have to move to the civil case. we know florida law allows john goodman to adopt his girlfriend apparently to protect his millions. if this is such a blatant strategy, what protection does the court or the family have? let's not let be lost that a young man has died in this case. that family has reason to have a

civil case. >> it backfired a little bit. the judge now has said because this was what is apparently an attempt to defraud the court that the girlfriend's amount of the trust would be fair game for the family of the victim to go after. >> two different things going on. there is the civil case and the judge has ruled, look, jurors in the civil case can consider the huge fortune they otherwise wouldn't have been able to consider because he adopted his girlfriend. now they say it is fair game to consider in terms of punitive damages. secondly a probate court will look into the adult adoption, determine if it is a sham against public policy. it's not clear that court will uphold the adoption. >> i found out last night that allegedly the defendant, goodman, and the girlfriend had a disagreement. she was only supposed to get 5% of the trust. in theory, the only part that's now back in play would be the 5%.

not the third of the trust as an official child of the defendant. >> that's the first time i heard that. thank you for that. star jones, savannah guthrie, thank you this morning. we'll see you later for today's professionals. now a check of the weather from al. >> thanks, ann. these friends are trying to get jeans for homeless kids? >> yes. we work for dodst something.org, the largest nonprofit that caters to teens and social change. this is our fifth year running teens for jeans and demi lovado is our spokesperson. >> it will be windy out west. gusts in l.a., 35 miles per hour. 40 in phoenix. 55 in las vegas. as we move east, we've got the difference between low pressure back to the west, high pressure along the east coast. st. louis, chicago, omaha, tulsa, dallas, with gusty winds

possibly causing airport delays. windy from the great lakes to texas. snow through the rockies and the cascades. sunshine along the eastern seaboard. >> we've got those gusty winds whipping through the bay area. good morning. . i'm meteorologist christina loren. they are going to strengthen before we really see the wind start to subside later this evening into tomorrow morning. we're talking about at least 6 to 7 hours of very strong wind, hammering the area. temperatures are only going to end up in the 50s with the windchill factor, you'll need the jacket. 63 degrees, warming you up into the weekend. don't forget. you can get your forecast any time you need it on the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. ann? >> coming up next, the startling amount of carbs and sodium in your favorite restaurant meals including a dish with as much salt as nine cans of potato

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we're back now. 7:44 this morning on eat this, not that. chain restaurants are great for a quick and not too expensive meal but some dishes can be loaded with much more than you bargained for. david zinczenko is author of "eat this, not that!" the no diet weight loss solution. great to see you. >> great to see you, matt. >> we are not putting down fast food or the people who eat them. a lot of people don't have other options. you can make better choices. >> people focus too much on calories. that's like going into the jungle watching for tigers and

forgetting about the alligators and lions. you have to make more nutritious choices. >> worry about sugar, sodium and carbs. starting with perkins berry pancakes. all about the carbs here. >> you should get 300 carbs a day. this has 200. this is 800 calories of pure carbohydrates. 110 grams of sugar. that's 450 calories worth of sugar, the equivalent of the seven klondike ice cream sandwiches, matt. >> you got my attention. when you're at perkins there are other options. eat my favorite omelet. this is an omelet with swiss cheese, bacon, mushrooms and spinach. 430 calories and you get protein, fiber. that's what you want in breakfast, not carbs. >> p.f. change's pork double pan fried noodles. almost 8,000 milligrams of

sodium. first of all, look at the portion. >> people get it and think that's a serving size. it has 8,000 milligrams of sodium. there is a reason you can't eat just one chip. it has a drug inducing effect. salt makes you hungrier. it increases the appetite. this dish has almost a week's worth of sodium which would be the equivalent of nine cans of pringles chips. >> i want this as my center piece for my thanksgiving table. that's beautiful. >> go with the garlic noolddles. you save a thousand calories and only 1400 milligrams of sodium. >> from ihop, the chicken salad. >> you think it's a salad with chicken, spinach. it must be good for me. it has 118 grams of fat. you should get 65 grams max a day. so this is almost double in this healthy-sounding salad. 1600 calories.

it's the equivalent of these three big macs. >> that's not good. all right. but the other option is the take two combo. half double blt and fresh fruit. >> 470 calories. you knock off 1100 calories. >> mcdonald's, double quarter pounder with cheese value meal. >> super sizing is the surest way to have a super size effect on you. 1,550 calories, 67 grams of fat. it's a day's worth. it's got a day's worth of sodium as well. >> 17 bowls of kraft ez mac is the equivalent. what do i do? >> get a burger, four chicken nuggets and an iced tea. that's a thousand calories you save. >> dairy queen, banana cream pie blizzard, 83 grams of sugar. >> this is one blizzard even the sled dogs can't help. >> you saved it for the end. >> it's the equivalent of nine bowls of cookie crisp.

when you're at dairy queen go with the banana sundae. don't slip on that banana, have this banana. >> you don't need two for the same meal. david zinczenko, good to see you. >> thanks, matt. >> still ahead, what kim kardashian is doing with the wedding gifts in the wake of her marriage that lasted 72 days. first, these messages. [ johan ] a cup of joe is a sedan.

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>> good morning. it's 7:56. i'm laura garcia-cannon. a full house is expected at this morning's san jose meeting over pension reform. the city council is set to vote on the wording of a pension reform measure for the june ballot. an investigation found the mayor used an inflated estimate of the city's pension obligations for the coming years. it comes one day after seven california lawmakers asked for a state audit of the city finances. mayor chuck reed calls the demands politically motivated but would not object to an audit. checking the forecast with meteorologist christina loren. >> good morning. temperatures are on the cool side. and when you factor in all of this wind, you've got a significant windchill factor so you need your jacket today. temperatures now in the upper

40s, only headed to the upper 50s even in the warmest cities across the bay and that wind will make it feel 10 degrees cooler. winds all day long. we could see damage, downed power lines and trees and weak limbs hammered for up to six hours. wednesday we warm up to 63, 70 by thursday, the weekend looks pretty good. we'll stay nice and dry for sunday. a little bit of fog and maybe, maybe, a stray shower late sunday into monday. let's check your drive. >> toward the east bay, the tray we're jammed up out of richmond, san pablo. the richmond bridge, the bay bridge, all of the bay area bridges have wind advisories as well. a live look outside, we'll show you the jam, northbound 880 from the coliseum to 23rd where there is an accident and down to downtown and the san mateo bridge to the south. the accident there has cleared from the flat section.

we're starting to see speeds come back over 50 miles per hour. >> thank you. for the latest traffic and news check out nbc bay area on facebook. look! here she comes! ♪ she'll be comin' 'round the mountain when she comes... ♪ ♪ when she comes. ♪ it'll be spinning new chrome wheels when it comes. ♪ ♪ when it comes. ♪ custom spoiler, race grade pistons, ♪ ♪ gt35 turbo charger. ♪ and they'll all know that it's kevin's awesome car. ♪

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8:00 now on a tuesday morning, the 6th day of march 2012. we have a big crowd this morning waving at their families back home. maybe they're just flapping their arms to stay warm because it's 30 degrees. hey! the temperature went up to 30. it was 29 earlier. >> tell them how warm it will be tomorrow, al. >> it will be 60 tomorrow. >> man, oh, man. what's going on with the weather? i don't know. i feel like i look like a bug trying to stay warm in this coat. i'm ann curry along with matt lauer and al roker. boy, the today professionals are

chomping at the bit. >> they will talk about cool subjects. how often do you say rush limbaugh and lindsay lohan in the same sentence? they will weigh in on both high profile people and will be talking about the new bullying documentary that's attracting controversy as well. even as donny tries to put in his earpiece. >> he'll get that organized before they talk about it in the seg is meant. we'll also talk about stresses in marriage. it happens in every marriage and a new study is revealing that how your partner copes with stress could make or break your relationship in the long run. it starts the moment you say "i do." in fact it's important that first year of marriage. we'll get the results of the study coming up spp later on demi lovato entered the spotlight at the ender age of #. at 19 she's bouncing back after battling personal demons. coming up she'll open up about her recovery and perform for us

live. >> that's a lot to get to. let's start inside at the news desk. natalie has the headlines of the morning. >> good morning, everyone. voters are headed to the polls on the biggest day so far for the republican presidential candidates. 11 states are holding primaries or caucuses today. the biggest prize is ohio where polls show mitt romney and rick santorum running neck and neck. newt gingrich is hoping for a big victory in his home state of georgia to revitalize his campaign. an iranian news agency is reporting that iran will let u.n. inspectors visit a military complex where the west believes secret nuclear tests are being done. iran has previously barred inspectors from the site while denying it is trying to develop nuclear weapons. the international atomic energy association said it was not aware of iran's announcement and could not comment on when access would be allowed. a government study today says black students are three times

more likely than whites to be suspended or expelled from school. the department of education report finds that 70% of students arrested or referred to law enforcement for school infractions are black or latino. education secretary arnie duncan says the government is not alleging overt discrimination but say it is data should challenge educators to address the discipline gap. the former general manager of a restaurant co-owned by paula deen claims in a lawsuit that the celebrity chef and her brother created a hostile work environment. lisa jackson alleges that sexual innuendo and racial slurs at uncle bubba's seafood house in georgia gave her panic attacks. a deen spokesman refused to comment. and a quick round up of what has you talking online. a thief with the heart of a saint is a top search on yahoo. officials at christ's church say a box containing the preserved

heart of saint lawrence o'toole was stolen this weekend. irish police say it is the latest in a series thefts involving religious relices. tmz reports that kim kardashian has donated twice the value of her wedding gifts, an estimated $200,000 to the dream foundation, a charity for people with terminal illnesses. her gifts became an issue when the marriage fell awe part in 72 days. after weeks of dodging pregnancy rumors, snooki is facing questions about her new ring. people.com is reporting that snooki is now engaged to her longtime boyfriend. guess we'll find out soon enough. it's 8:04. now back to matt and ann. >> thank you very much. chilly morning. >> it is. but it will warm up. demi will be warming up fans and

she'll be coming out at 8:30. stand by. let's check your weather. for today our pick city is dayton, ohio. nbc 2 wdtn. mild air will be making its way east. we have snow to talk about through the central rockies, pacific northwest along the coast. rain, nothing heavy. we have windy conditions around the central great lakes. windy through texas. gulf coast looks great. plenty of sunshine and 80 degrees in miami. only 42 for the high in new york city. good morning to you. we'll see highs in the 50's i'm meteorologist christina loren. but the big weather feature of the day, very gusty winds already starting to pick up in places like novato, sustained 31 miles per hour. certainly strong enough to knock down any loose objects in your backyard throughout the day today. they will get stronger throughout the second half of the day. peak wind gusts expected between

2:00 and 4:00 p.m. after we get through windy tuesday, wednesday looks better. 63 grows. as as the cry goes up for demi, they're very excited about this. >> all right, al, thank you so much. coming up, we have we have "today's professionals" in the house, they'll talk about the stars, people who had their phones hacked and an antibullying movie that most teens can't see because it has an "r" rating. all i could do was worry ! specialists, lots of doctors, lots of advice... and my hands were full. i couldn't sort through it all. with unitedhealthcare, it's different. we have access to great specialists, and our pediatrician gets all the information. everyone works as a team. and i only need to talk to one person about her care. we're more than 78,000 people looking out for 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare.

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>> no. here's the problem with -- not the problem with advertisers, the problem with rush. the advertisers still on are basically voting, yes, we're okay with it. they have no choice. i'm an ad guy, obviously. they have no choice but to go away. it's one thing when you say something inappropriate and you're bullying up. when you're bullying down and basically sullying 97% -- al said an interesting thing to me. he's attacking our daughters. he's calling our daughters sluts if they use contraception. the things that go under the table. advertisers will speak and speak loud. >> one of the most depressing weeks we've seen. and i felt like we were 50 years ago, we were more civil talking about contraception and women's rights than we have been this last week. i thought it really sullied a lot of the conversation. i want to remind people, for a man who's been married four times and has no children, i assume he has used some form of contraception or the women he slept with, and we know he has used viagra.

he's been caught buying viagra, which is covered by medical insurance plans and contraception is not. if you want to talk about a double standard, i'll put those two medications on the table. >> and remember what this young women was testifying about. she was testifying about a colleague, another student, who could not afford the medicine, not the contraception, the medicine necessary to treat an illness so that she would not lose her ovary. we need to keep thing in perspective. this is an attack on women's health. >> let's be clear about this. saying outrageous, hurtful, harmful things is not the exclusive territory of those on the right. people on the left have said awful things. >> absolutely. >> used slurs against women and my anothers, all kinds of things. is this just the system -- is this what the viewers deserve? >> no. i think the system has a way of self-contracting. viewers understand the world we live in. and then there's a line. and he crossed the line. i'm actually imploring advert e

advertisers -- maybe we can use this to make a change in the voice out there. forget rush. advertisers, take a stand right now, every single one of you. >> bullying up is one thing when you go after a politician or big-time entertainer. when you go after someone, college student, similar to don imus call people nappy-headed, you're looking at my kid and we don't allow that. >> move on. rather racy images, photos of actresses olivia munn and christina hendrix suffered online. they say they were on their cell phones and hacked and leaked to the internet. what's the level of outrage here? >> i've got zero. i mean, have you to understand -- forget them personally. this is the world we live in. if grownups and children and noncelebrities don't understand that everything out there is now vulnerable, you just got to get on the game. >> i'm not the person that's going to stand in front of my makeup mirror and take a picture of myself in anything. if they hacked it, they didn't

get anything from me. >> i'm not committing to that. >> wait a second. these are personal photos. this is privacy. >> it is against the law. we know it's against the law. we also know they're creeps. >> it's a world with semipermeable membranes. if anything, a message for our kids, be careful. >> let's move on. a new documentary is coming out from harvey weinstein's company which won academy award for "the artist," it's about bullying. people who have seen advanced copies say it's extremely powerful. let's take a look at a short clip. >> i feel kind of nervous going to school because i like learning but i have trouble with making friends. >> they say he's a geek. some kids have told him he's worthless, to go hang himself. and i think he got to the point where enough was enough.

>> here's the problem. in the course of telling this very disturbing story, the movie has six, count them, six four-letter words. it's probably going to get an "r" rating and as a result, the very kids who need to see this, technically, shouldn't be able to see it. what's the solution? >> i think the word is technically. i think they'll get access to it. parents will take them, a way around it. but it's sort of the goofy double standard we have about language. we just talked about the vit la week. four-letter words, when used -- i don't want to say appropriately -- >> in the right context. >> there has to be -- there has to be some exceptions to these hard rules. >> i don't understand the difference between using those words and what letting kids see heads being blown off in action movies. obviously, this is a teachable moment. a parent, an older sibling can take their younger siblings to see this film. it's our house film -- >> i don't think the "r" rating is the problem.

it's most important parents see it. i believe every bullying starts at home with the parent. you can stop it. obviously, have you to hold a kid responsible but i think it's more -- >> i think you're right. i think you're right. >> kids know what's going on in the cafeteria. the parents need to know what some kids are doing. >> should the movie company create a version of this with those words taken out or bleep so they can show in every school -- >> we know that would be harvey's easy out but he won't budge. >> he wants the attention. >> let's talk about lindsay lohan. who saw her on "saturday night live" and her interview here. did she do what she needs to do to make a comeback? >> she has to stop smoking and throwing up. those vocal chord changes, listen to me from a doctor's standpoint, she has to take better care of herself. it was a baby step out of the starting blocks. it's not healthy. >> the two most prolific known iconic actresses, elizabeth taylor and marilyn monroe. we loved --

>> they didn't have tmz in their background. >> but we love the troubled actress with chops which is what she has. she will be huge her entire lifetime. >> i'd like to see her get healthy. speaking from somebody who knows what it's like to just go around and around in this media bubble, you can't get healthy on television. you cannot get healthy doing "saturday night live". >> i thought that was a great step back. >> it's okay for you to work with her career. but talking about working with her emotionally and physically -- >> part of getting better is working. >> we talked about this. one of the things that bothered me last week is when you said, how long have you been clean? she says a long time. every addict knows precisely precisely the day. >> we want her to work. >> precisely. >>. >> but want her to work so she can get better for the long term. >> thank you. up next, are some relationships doomed from the start like these three? the toll and stress and how your partner deals with it have on

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don't miss out. back now at 8:19 with today's relationships. the first year of marriage is often referred to as the honeymoon phase but stress can burn out the flame. sharon jason is the behavior and relationship reporter for usa today. she wrote an article on this subject. dr. sills is a clinical psychologist. good morning to you both. studies have now indicated, and we know that stress is just a part of life but studies are indicating that how supportive you are as a partner to your spouse during stress can affect the probability, the possibility that you will stay married. >> it can chart the course of the relationship. stress affects everyone. you're not going to escape it. how you support your partner makes a big difference and how much you communicate with each

other. >> this makes a lot of sense. the truth is when we get involved in marriages, we really want to be supportive when things are bad. >> that's important. we want to do it right. we are looking for a responsive partner. what's helpful to me may not be to my husband. the first year of marriage, i'm teaching my partner what i need. i'm trying to listen to what he needs. maybe when he has a bad day he says, just rub my back. i don't want to talk about it. i want to talk about it. that's what we are learning. >> there is a fundamental difference sometimes between how some men handle stress, whether they want to talk about it and whether women want to overtalk about it. what's your best advice? we can't change the way a spouse will behave, right? he may want to go into his man cave. what can we do to make sure we get the support we need when things are bad? >> the experts say to talk about

it. they say you should have conversations that stress is a test on the relationship and it can determine the functions of the marriage. >> what do you say to your husband when he says, i don't want to talk about it. >> if you don't want to talk, tell me what you do need. i'll hear about it later. maybe you need a glass of wine and a back rub. but i might say, i want to talk about it and i want to whine for five minutes and i don't want advice. don't tell me what to do. just tell me i'm fabulous. >> you want somebody to hear me. >> i want you, in my marriage to give me what makes me feel better. it doesn't have to be what makes you feel better. >> that's exactly it. they say you need to function as a team. and stress makes you think are you the enemy or are you an ally? >> a lot of men say it's stressing me out to have you talk about how stressful you are. >> we suggest three things. you have to have a no stress time. i want to spend time with you,

not with the problems. maybe dvd "friday night lights" and have it forever. also, you can whine but you have a time limit. lots of couples ask for that. >> we just expired our time limit. thank you so much. good information. and now here's matt. >> ann, thank you very much. now down to florida to say hello to mr. willard scott. >> let me tell you, everything exciting happens in florida. take a look over there. carr real estate has a lovely sand castle on the beach for $2 million. it can be yours. give us a call after the show. i get a cut. now let's check out our birthday buddies. we have winners today and always. this is ronnie cook from sarasota, florida. i was just there for lunch. 103. she's a licensed pilot and she's married her flight instructor. holy mackerel.

romance in midair. loretta zoellner, that's a beauty. indianapolis, indiana, that's where the super bowl will be -- oh, it happened? i missed it? i have to get a job. she's 106 years old today. she's an excellent baker and has very strong religious beliefs in the good lord. you can't beat that. here's george bunnell of sto stockbridge, georgia. not in massachusetts where gene shallit lives. he loves westerns, western stories and songs. he's a handsome texas cowboy. here's vivian roberson of has kel, texas. 103 years old. she was a school teacher almost

all of her life. that's beautiful. george edlund of muskegon, michigan. 100 years old. world war ii vet who attends the same church where he was baptized. that's nice. take a look at maria driscoll from boonsboro, maryland. 104. and attributes longevity to taking vitamins every day. that's it. now back to the wonderful city, new york on the hudson. bye-bye. [ cheers ] >> all right, willard. thank you very much. just r your local news.

good tuesday morning to yo . 8:26. i'm laura garcia-cannon. jury trial selection resumes in the try of ross mirkarimi. the judge decided to allow the ex-girlfriend to testify. she claims he abused her when they dated. mirkarimi's lawyers want to change venue, saying a fair trial in san francisco is impossible. and the attorney for his wife is challenging the use of a videotape of her and her arm, bruised, as evidence. a recalli recalling could come

wednesday. >> folks, the south bay, slow northbound drive for all of 0 free weigh about 87 kicking in north of capitol expressway. 880, 17 off the summit and los gados towards 880 and 101. across the san mateo bridge westbound slow. earlier accident cleared a half hour ago but it's been slow since. high winds. just like it says on the sign. 880 past the coliseum gumming up. earlier accident cleared. >> check out nbc bay area on facebook. i'll have another local news update in a half hour. have a great morning.

hello. i'm kelly diaz. we've received breaking news that some sort of mate trikts seems to be forming in the san jose skyline near the airport. experts tell us it's going to be big. reporter headed to the scene. stay tuned for more details.

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it's 8:30 now on a tuesday morning. it's the 6th day of march 2012. super tuesday politically. and a super tuesday weatherwise in new york city. bright blue sky. chilly temperatures. that will improve in the next 24 hours. out on the plaza i'm matt lauer along with ann curry, al roker

and natalie morales. in the background i think you can hear the music of teen pop star demi lovato. she's making a comeback after troubling times in her life. she'll be in our studio to perform for us in a couple of minutes. do you folks want her to come out? [ cheers ] >> there she is right there. [ screaming ] >> demi lovato, welcome out to the plaza. a lot of fans gathered here and they are yelling loudly. >> oh, my gosh! >> very exciting for them. she agreed to come out to see them after actually hearing their response. that's a lot of sweetness. those girls are making a memory they will not forget. also coming up in this half hour, we'll be talking in the kitchen about food and learning to make a great stand-by,

chicken parmesan. >> love it. >> with michael white, one of the best. >> then coming up, we'll head to the ice rink. kristi yamaguchi is here. she has a new children's book out. olympic gold medalist 20 years ago. we'll talk about what else she has in the works. >> she's terrific. >> also some of the most common accidents that can happen at home. we'll show you how to protect your family, keep everybody safe. >> that was a hard turn. >> absolutely. lots to get to, mr. roker. but first we have lisa rinna. >> hi! >> hi, guys. >> from nbc's daytime soap "days of our lives." ten years since you did billie reed on the show. why are you bringing her back? >> i thought it would be fun. i played her when i was in my 20s. again in my 30s. now again in my 40s.

when can you do that? >> it's impossible any other way. >> i thought it would be fun to act again. >> you can do it. other cast members are going back. you say it feels like a high school reunion. >> eight of us worked together in the '90s that are back. >> they all look exactly the same. >> so do you. >> it's like going back to high school and we all like each other. we're having fun. it's a great time. >> in the show, how have relationships changed since you were last on the show? weren't you married to somebody? >> they're all changed. are you kidding? it's a soap opera! they're all changed and i'm hoping for a new love interest. >> give us a hint. >> i was with bo brady. now he's with hope. we don't want to mess that up. but there's a cute doctor in town i have my eye on. >> harry hamlin? >> it's fun. it's like free cheating.

>> have you been to our show? >> have you seen what my husband does on camera? it's even. we're good. >> good luck with that. married 15 years? >> 15, yes. together 19. that's like 150 in hollywood, isn't it? >> it is. >> that's right. lisa, good to have you here. have fun on "days of our lives." and now a check of the weather. >> now, mr. roker. >> fantastic. no soap opera in weather. we have things quiet today. sunshine in the eastern half of the country. windy from the great lakes into texas. we have wet stuff and snow out through the rockies. tomorrow we see a warm-up. the warm air making it to the eastern seaboard. we have snow in the central rockies. wet weather through the great lakes into the plains. hit or miss showers or thunderstorms in the lower miss those winds are really picking up. good morning, i'm meteorologist

christina loren, and they are not even yet at their strongest. that will be later on, between 2:00 and 4:00, as you make your way home from work. driving a high profile vehicle, take it easy over the open water bridges and higher elevations. winds sustained 31 miles per hour novato. like i said, winds will strengthen. gusts at tropical force strength later on today between 39 and 73 miles per hour. throughout the rest of the day, 58. you're still excited? [ cheers ] >> demi and you're on tv! >> al, thank you so much. coming up, we'll have dem demi lovato. first, this is "today" on nbc. [ female announcer ] what would you call an ordinary breakfast pastry

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easy as 1-2-3, a dish for the whole family to enjoy. chicken parm is a classic, but we're putting a twist on it this morning with the help of chef michael white from here in new york city. michael, good morning. good to see you. >> good to see you. >> you're killing it. you are doing so well with your place. >> we're doing well. >> one of the reasons you do well is you take great dishes and add your own little twist to them. chicken parm, how do you do that? >> this could be veal, chicken. we go into the store. you see a lot of breaded chicken cutlets and people put the cheese and tomato and do it quickly. i just want to take a second to show you pounding out the chicken breast, season it with salt. we go into flour. this is the traditional breading method. you put a little bit of flour, go into egg beaten with a little bit of water to loosen it up.

and then not to touch raw egg. chefs don't worry. >> but in the home kitchen you don't want to cross contaminate. >> exactly. then go into the bread crumbs. >> can you use panko? >> this is panko buzzed to get it finer. let's toss it back and forth. this is something that can be done prior to service. >> they can be room temperature? >> exactly. let's go to the saute pan. >> olive oil? >> yes. lots of times the olive oil gets burned and such. a little bit of whole butter will give it a toasted flavor. we're going to do that in this one that's going. >> because you are going to put it under a broiler later you want to undercook it? >> undercook it just a hair. it's great for a dinner party or a mother at home, a little bit

beforehand. we'll toast it, put a pat of butter in it. >> just a few minutes here, right? >> it's quick. that's the great part about a chicken cutlet. and kids love them. they're flavorful. >> fantastic. you're going to put a white sauce on it. most people think of a tomato sauce. what goes into it? >> also, my name is michael white. >> exactly. not lost on us here, michael. >> mark should be laughing now. >> he's not here. he went down stairs. [ laughter ] >> wow. the last time i made a vortex here. we're going to make a bechamel. you can do lasagna, anything you want with it. this is warm milk. >> why warm? >> it won't ball up on you then. we'll mix it quick, bring it to a boil. add parmegiano. this is a cutlet. we'll put ham on this. this is prosciutto cotto.

a little bit of ementhal. >> you can use traditional swiss. >> you bet. this goes under the broiler for a second. we're going to plate this. now spinach. kids don't like to eat spinach. saute it in butter. everybody loves it. >> hide it under some chicken parm. >> exactly. go right to the plate. a little bit of butter and sea salt. we'll plate this beautiful cutlet right on top and finish it with a little bit of the bechemel sauce. >> it could be parmesan. we sell 45 of these a night. everybody talks about eating light. this is one of the best sellers. >> what are you serving it with? >> this is a side dish of salt

cod. this is duck, rabbit and this is the inside of cheese with fig. these are little griddle cakes. >> looks like an english if you have muffin. >> too bad. >> still ahead, a live performance down stairs from teen pop star demi lovato and natalie take as spin on the ice rink with kristi yamaguchi. after this. this is "today" on nbc. this is the story of sam,[ fem]

who made an unexpected arrival. [ woman ] he was 4 months early, weighing 1 pound, 12 ounces. [ female announcer ] fortunately, sam was born at sutter health's alta bates summit medical center. [ woman ] the staff was remarkable. they made me feel safe, trusting, cared for. [ giggles ] they saved his life. i owe all of them my son. [ female announcer ] alta bates summit medical center and sutter health -- our story is you. ♪ this week olympic gold medalist turned author, kristi yamaguchi. can you believe it's been 20 years since she won figure skating gold at the 1992 winter olympics in france. now the mother of two has published her second book. her children's book is called

"it's a big world, little pig." good morning. >> good morning. >> this is your second book. let's go back to the olympic moment 20 years ago. can you believe it? does it seem like a lifetime ago or just yesterday? >> it feels like 10 years, not 20. >> we're getting old together. >> we were just toddlers in 1992. >> you were a toddler when you won the gold. you have two girls, kiara and emma. have they seen the clips, the highlight reel? >> they have seen clips. they saw the performance a few days ago. i don't think they really get it. they're like, okay, that's fine. >> cool, mom. but they have never seen the gold medal? >> they haven't. it's on loan at the u.s. figure skating museum and hall of fame in colorado springs. >> you need to arrange a trip. >> some day we'll head out there. >> tell me about the book. it's based on your life. but involves a pig.

why a pig? >> well, it's the second poppy book. she has her first international competition. i drew from my experience and my first international competition at the age of 14. >> you went to sarajevo. but poppy is going to paris. >> that's where my first worl championships was. it's about meeting new friends, having your first international experience and taking in new cultures and everything. >> understanding that it's a big world, the languages and differences. it can be scary for little kids sometimes. was it scary for you? your first international competition back then. do you remember the time when you were 14? >> i was more excited. i couldn't wait to meet people and learn some words in a different language and back then it was the soviet union. meeting skaters. >> yeah. >> it's such a different culture.

they are so fascinated with levi's and anything western. it was a different -- it left a big impression on me as a young child. i thought it would be fun to share with other kids. >> you were very involved in the illustrations as well. i understand you even sent the illustrator pictures so he could have the gold medal poses in poppy's illustration as well. >> it was fun to work with tim ballard. he does an amazing job. the fashions, the clothes and costumes obviously. had to get the skating positions just right that are in the book. >> i'll do a turn here. let's make it more interesting. in terms of your kids, i understand one of your daughters is learning to skate with rudy galindo. >> our youngest, emma, is taking lessons. >> the next generation. great to have you here, kristi

yamaguchi. the book is "it's a big world, little pig." still to come, demi lovato with a live performance in studio. first, this is "today" on nbc. hey guys, breakfast! ♪ [ female announcer ] if whole grain isn't the first ingredient in your breakfast cereal, what is? now, in every box of general mills big g cereal, there's more whole grain than any other ingredient. that's why it's listed first on the side. from honey nut cheerios to cinnamon toast crunch to lucky charms, get more whole grain than any other ingredient... without question. just look for the white check.

clinically proven unisom helps you fall asleep faster and stay asleep so you wake rested. unisom. fall asleep faster. sleep longer. >> announcer: the toyota concert series on "today" brought to you by toyota. >> at just 19 years old demi

lovato has already faced her share of adversity battling addiction and depression in her young career. she talks about it in a candid documentary airing tonight on mtv. she's ready for a fresh start with her new album. appropriately it is called "unbroken." demi lovato, good morning. >> hi. >> why put yourself out there? why have you been so willing to be brave and talk about your recovery in this mtv documentary? >> well, i decided to tell my story because i know there are a lot of young teens out there, girls and boys, that are dealing with the same issues i have been through. if i'm able to use my voice to do good in the world then i definitely want to cothat. >> you saw the response earlier when you were outside. how passionately people are moved by your music and your courage. what does it mean to you now having that kind of encouragement? >> it means everything to me. having that support is -- i don't have the words for it. it's amazing.

the fans i have are incredible. >> you are headed back on tour. to finish what you started last year, are you fearful, excited, both? >> i think i'm both excited and a little fearful. but fearful as in nervous. i always get nervous before i go on the road. just because i'm going to be on stage in front of a lot of people. >> what song are you singing for us this morning? >> i'm going to sing "give your heart a break." >> as we all should. demi lovato, great to have you here. >> thank you. >> ladies and gentlemen, "give your heart a break." ♪ ♪ the day i first met you ♪ you told me you'd never fall

in love ♪ ♪ but now that i get you ♪ i know fear is what it really was ♪ ♪ now here we are so close ♪ yet so far ♪ haven't i passed the test ♪ when will you realize ♪ baby, i'm not like the rest ♪ don't wanna break your heart ♪ i wanna give your heart a break i know you're scared it's wrong ♪ ♪ like you might make a mistake ♪ ♪ there's just one life to live ♪ ♪ there's no time to waste, to waste ♪ ♪ so let me give your heart a break ♪ ♪ your heart a break ♪ let me give your heart a break ♪ ♪ your heart a break ♪ oh, yeah, yeah ♪ on sunday, you went home

alone ♪ ♪ there were tears in your eyes ♪ ♪ i called your cell phone, my love ♪ ♪ but you did not reply ♪ the world is ours, if you want it ♪ ♪ we can take it, if you just take my hand there's no turning back now ♪ ♪ baby, try to understand ♪ don't wanna break your heart ♪ i wanna give your heart a break ♪ ♪ i know you're scared it's wrong ♪ ♪ like you might make a mistake ♪ ♪ there's just one life to live there's no time to waste, to waste ♪ ♪ let me give your heart a break ♪ ♪ your heart a break ♪ let me give your heart a break ♪ ♪ your heart a break ♪ there's just so much you can take ♪ ♪ your heart a break ♪ let me give your heart a break ♪ ♪ oh, yeah, yeah ♪ when your lips are on my lips ♪ ♪ then our hearts beat as one

♪ but you slip right out of my fingertips ♪ ♪ every time you run ♪ yeah ♪ whoa ♪ don't wanna break your heart ♪ wanna give your heart a break ♪ ♪ i know you're scared it's wrong ♪ ♪ like you might make a mistake ♪ ♪ there's just one life to live ♪ ♪ there's no time to waste, to waste ♪ ♪ so let me give your heart a break ♪ ♪ cause you've been hurt before ♪ ♪ i can see it in your eyes ♪ you try to smile it away ♪ some things, you can't disguise ♪ ♪ don't wanna break your heart ♪ baby, i can ease the ache ♪ the let me give your heart a break ♪ ♪ give your heart a break ♪ there's just so much you can take ♪ ♪ give your heart a break

♪ give your heart a break ♪ oh, yeah, yeah ♪ the day i first met you ♪ you told me you'd never fallen in love ♪ [ applause ] >> bravo, demi lovato. thank you so much for bee ing he this morning. the new album is "unbroken." we're back after your local news. flu .

good morning to you. 8:56 right now. i'm laura garcia-cannon. yahoo!'s making big changes and it could mean lay-offs. a blog on the web cites anonymous sources saying a massive restructuring in the works. the company says leadership is

engaged in a process that will generate significant changes at yahoo! but final changes have not been made. monitoring the forecast. christina loren. >> monitoring very gusty winds. good morning to you, laura. good morning to you at home. keep that in mine, windy all day long. temperatures on the cool side. with the windchill you'll need the jacket. tomorrow 63. warmer for thursday. up to 70. yes. noooo! [ male announcer ] yep, subway broke the 200-calorie breakfast barrier. with delicious fresh fit mornin' melt breakfast sandwiches. subway. eat fresh.

is there a prize in there? oh, there's a prize, all right. is it a robot? no. is it a jet plane? nope. is it a dinosaur?] [ male announcer ] inside every box of heart healthy cheerios are those great tasting little o's made from carefully selected oats that c help lower cholesterol. stickers? uh-uh. a superhero? ♪ kinda. [ male announcer ] and we think that's the best prize of all. ♪

i'm suzanne shaw. our editorial last week supporting the three-strikes reform initiative sparked a lively debate. frank wants reform. life sentences for shoplifters and drug users are a costly and ineffective way of dealing with crime. stephanie agrees. that three strike law should only be for the worst criminals, molesters, rapists, murderers. shariffa hopes to redirect tax dollars. this has cost millions of dollars needed for schools. peter argues we should keep the tough sentencing laws as they are. if you have two felonies shouldn't you have learned your lesson by then? if not, good riddance! noel, i'm not opposed to

revision but after 20 years of interviewing crime victims i'm a hard sell. we hope you'll let us know what you think about three strikes reform online at nbceditorials.com. we're back with more of "today" on a tuesday morning. it's the 6th day of march 2012. there is nothing wrong with today other than a little bit of a chilly temperature here in rockefeller plaza. it's 30 degrees right now. goingp a little. but look at the sunshine. just a little bit of a tease of what awaits us later in the week. >> that's right. it will be so nice. it's going to be 60 degrees tomorrow. >> warming into the mid 60s. >> and 85 by friday. i'm matt lauer along with ann curry, al roker and savannah guthrie. on a serious note, an incredible

story of survival coming out of the string of deadly tornados in the midwest. >> it's a story of a mother's love. we'll tell you about a woman who essentially put her own life on the line to save her two young children as the twister was bearing down on their home. she lost parts of both legs while shielding her kids in a blanket underneath her. the kids survived. we'll hear more about their story coming up this morning. >> and as we look at the diet s.o.s., joy bauer has some great information. everything from meats, vegetables and seafoods packed with iron if you're anemic and what to eat if you have high blood sugar and high cholesterol. also, great blue tgluten-free meal ideas. >> when i thieat carrots now i think of joy bauer. >> in today's relationships a

serious story. if your first marriage fails a lot of people take the second or third leap of faith. statistics show second and third marriages have a high rate of failure. we'll have good advice. >> that's not encouraging. maybe some advice will help us all. >> i knew i should have taken that left turn at albuquerque. >> you should have stopped at carro carrots. natalie is at the news desk. >> good morning. it's the busiest day of the republican race for the white house as voters head for the polls on super tuesday. more than 35% of the delegates are up for grabs giving the candidates a make or break shot at the gop nomination. mitt romney is pushing to solidify the front-runner status with a win in ohio. rick santorum could give him a run for his money there. meantime newt gingrich is hoping for a win in his home state of georgia. an amazing survival story of a mother's sacrifice. she lost parts of both legs protecting her children from a

massive tornado. nbc's tom costello is at the university of louisville hospital in kentucky where she's recovering. good morning. >> reporter: stephanie decker is in fair condition. she has seven broken ribs. she lost a leg at the knee, another at the ankle. she was at home with 8-year-old domenic and 5-year-old reese when the storm with 175 miles per hour winds started tearing the home to shreds. alone in their new home with a tornado fast approaching, stephanie decker knew the only chance she and the kids had of surviving was to wrap them in a blanket and lay on top of them. >> everything started hitting my back. beams, pillars, furniture. everything was just slamming into my back. i had my children in the blanket and i was on top of them. i was reaching around, holding them and they were screaming. mommy, i can't live without you. i don't want to die. don't let me die.

i said, we're going to make it. >> reporter: when the storm cleared the home was gone, wiped from the foundation with stephanie and the kids buried in the rubble. >> i looked at my leg. i realized either it was cut off or it was barely attached. i took my phone, made a video to my husband. telling him i love him. >> reporter: that's when 8-year-old domenic climbed out of the rubble and ran for help. a neighbor, sheriff's deputy brian lovins came running to find stephanie bleeding heavily. >> she's like, i'm dying, i'm dying. i said, i ain't gonna let you die. >> reporter: realizing her leg was severed brian used a belt as a tourniquet. it saved her life. >> her kids were able to get out and call for help. so her kids saved her life. >> i prayed to have the strength to survive. i wanted these kids to have a mom. i didn't want them to grow up without me.

>> reporter: they're not going to grow up without her. she's alive and in fair condition. both kids survived without injury amazingly. they will now know for the rest of their lives how much their mother loves them and the sacrifice she was willing to make. natalie, back to you. >> so true. thank goodness for the quick-thinking neighbor as well. tom costello with a great story in louisville, kentucky. thank you very much. give her our best wishes. the u.s. and israel are presenting a united front for now against a nuclear iran. in key meetings at the white house, ben i canjamin netanyahu president obama met to deal with iran. patricia heaton is apologizing for slamming sandra fluke on twitter. fluke was blasted by rush limbaugh as a, quote, prostitute, for testifying on capitol hill that birth control should be subsidized. heaton tweeted, hey, let us pay for your starbucks, movie tickets and your favorite hot

wings, anything else? and encouraged twitter followers to send fluke condoms so she would never reproduce. heaton has apologized saying, don't like you being dissed. so sorry. and sing us a song, you're the p piano dog. you'd wag your tail, too, if you could pelt one out like this scandinavian sensation. take a listen. ♪ [ howling ] >> so he's a little off key. we won't hold it against him. petu lives in finland where he may have a bone to pick with the piano tuner. very cute. six minutes past the hour. now back to al upstairs with a check of the weather. >> he does a check of the rendition, how much is that doggy in the window. >> yes! >> for today, we have a little bit of a weak system coming in from california. that's going to bring rain and

pacific northwest snow. very light. a lot of windy conditions out west. we have windy conditions from chicago down to dallas today. plenty of sunshine is along the eastern seaboard. a little on the chilly side but the warm air in the mid section with temperatures in the 70s. the warm air makes its way to the east. tomorrow in new york and places in the northeast in the upper strong winds slated to batter the higher elevations across the bay area today. good morning, i'm meteorologist christina loren. winds are picking up as we speak. up to 16 miles per hour sustained oakland, 20 in concord. futurecast shows you winds will get stronger between 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. deep magenta, that is strong wind. 10:00 p.m. we'll relax winds. ng outrees is the high today. on s.o.s. ♪ >> time for joy's diet s.o.s.,

answers to your daily diet dilemmas. "today" nutritionist joy bauer is here to discuss everything from iron rich foods to gluten-free meals that are chapp and quick. >> good morning, al. >> mikayla is joining us via skype. good morning. what's your question? >> i'm a serious ballet dancer at the institute of american ballet theater. i have a demanding dance schedule and mild anemia. often during class i get light headed. can you recommend iron rich foods besides the spinach and kale i already eat? >> the best sources are clams, oysters, lean beef like sirloin, top and bottom round, flank steak and skinless poultry. interestingly enough, the dark sources have more iron than the white types of poultry like

breast. so go for drumsticks or thighs when you can. the second best category of iron-rich foods are the vegetarian sources. the dark greens you're eating are loaded. keep eating leafy greens. also edamame, lentils, starchy beans and tofu have iron as well. and when you eat the vegetarian sources they are not as absorbable as the animal proteins. couple them with a food rich in vitamin c because c helps to boost the absorption within your body. when you eat your spinach and kale, drizzle some fresh lemon juice on top. the lemon juice brings vitamin c to the table to bump up the iron in your body. >> thanks for your question. >> good luck. >> now to sharon in texas on the line joining us live. good morning. what's your question? hello, sharon? i think we may have lost sharon.

let's go to our viewer e-mail. this one coming from emily in north carolina. emily writing, i'm a graduate student with a busy schedule and a tight budget. i found out this summer i have celiac disease. what are delicious gluten-free meals that are cheap and quick? i'm sick of rice and beans. >> good question. you can pretty much eat anything that you would normally eat if you were eaten gluten. sandwiches, cereals. hit a large grocery store or health food shop and buy a few gluten-free healthy staples like whole grain crackers, cereal, pasta and condiments. then learn a few go-to recipes for each of the meals. she should definitely hop on the computer to check out so. gluten-free recipe blogs. gluten-free girl, gluten-free goddess. there are a slew out there. >> and there is so much more available today than five years

ago. our son is gluten-free. >> no more rice and b.c. lioean emily. >> this e-mail from shannon in south dakota. she writes, what's your take on having a cheat maeal or the chet day on the weekend when you're dieting? >> give yourself the option for one cheat meal each weekend while dieting can be a good idea. it keeps you from feeling deprived, gives you staying power. and also acts like incentive or reward for putting in so much work during the week. for people that don't know what a cheat meal is, it's an indulgent meal or caloriffic meal that ordinarily wouldn't fit on the diet. >> splurge. >> that's what it is. it's a splurge meal. on the other hand, i really don't think having a cheat or

splurge full-on day is a good idea. you take in thousands and thousands of extra calories and it can take you two, three, four days to recover. really. >> that's not a splurge. that's a binge. >> exactly. people turn it into that. i give two thumbs-up to a cheat meal, but two thumbs-down to the cheat day each week. >> joy bauer, thanks so much. >> thanks, al. >> ahead in today's relationship why second and third marriages often don't last and advice on avoiding past mistakes. later the drama moves from wisteria lane to a los angeles courtroom in the case of nicollette sheridan versus her "desperate housewives" producer. right after these messages. special k protein shakes and meal bars. with 10 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber each... they satisfy your hunger longer so you can stay on track. [ telephone rings ] ♪

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creamy spinach artichoke dip, crispy garlic chicken spring rolls. they're this season's must-have accessory. lean cuisine. be culinary chic. this morning on today's relationships, why second and third marriages often fail. gail saltz has advice to help you avoid the same mistakes if you're planning a trip down the aisle. good morning. >> good morning.

>> i was surprised by the statistics. second and third marriages failing more than the first but by a lot. like 67%. >> second ones. and 73% of third ones. >> why is this happening? >> i think it's multi determined as is usually the case. one reason is people rebound off the first marriage. they don't want to be alone. they feel scared by what's happened to them. it's disturbing. instead of resolving the issues that caused the first break-up they move into the second one and bring all of that with them. people tend to have their children. you know, before the age of 35 or late 30s that's often their first marriage. when they come to the second marriage they are often already have kids which adds complications. but also kids are often the dplu that binds. >> it's true. >> you might be fighting but think, i don't want to split up because of the kids. that doesn't happen in later marriages. >> let's get people thinking before they jump into it once

again. additional challenges that they are facing the second and third marriages. what are they? >> well, the mixed families and different styles of parenting and bringing in money. you're coming in with your own money and not wanting to share it necessarily because you have worked for it all. being desensitized to the idea of divorce. you know, you run into trouble and go, well, i have been down this road before and i survived. >> it's not easy on the kids. >> that's the thing. even if they are your step-children and your children it's difficult on both kids each time you get divorced. they develop an attachment to the person who is their step-parent. all that tu multi is not good for the kids. >> how much time is needed to recover after a divorce in your opinion? >> i can't give you an amount.

but you need a period where you grieve the first marriage, understood why you picked that person and was it a good reason or not and might you want to rethink it and what were the things that failed in the first marriage so you can think about how you're not going to repeat it another time. usually that takes more than a year. >> right. you don't want the rebound relationship as you mentioned. >> exactly. >> how do you know when you're emotionally ready to move on? >> when you have digested the story of why you pick a person, what that's motivated by and what caused the demise of the marriage. when you feel you're okay on your own two feet. when you feel like you're okay by yourself, you don't need the marriage to not be alone, to not be complete. that should tell you you're ready to move on. you have to think about certain things. fix your broken picker. people pick people who resonate with their past. i picked a bad boy because i think i can make him a good boy

or i picked somebody who's jealous because it makes me feel loved. lo and behold in the marriage i'm tortured by constant jealousy. why are you doing it? you work on that. build tools and coping skills for the marriage. if you were a big nagger and that was the end of the marriage, how are other things you can ask for things in marriage. if you didn't want to have sex and that was the end of the marriage, address your sexual issues so it doesn't come into the second or third marriage. you want to adjust things and realize if you want to make the commitment to marriage you better mean it. >> you've got to make it work. >> hey, date. have a long-term relationship. invest in someone that you maybe even want to live with them. you don't need to get married unless marriage is for you. it's a commitment. you have to work through it. >> thank you, gail. >> thank you. still to come, from the tv to the kitchen, how to make your home safe for kids. first, these messages.

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we're back and want to say hello to the latest contestant to have the scales tip against him on "the biggest loser." chisholm, welcome. >> thank you. >> you lost 79 pounds on the ranch. where are you now? >> i have lost 100 pounds. so i weigh 261. >> great. >> i recently hit that. it feels good. >> wonderful. >> seemed like last week was an upset. nobody expected you to be voted off. what was your reaction? >> it was crazy. i didn't expect what happened. we all had a goal to hit 5% and

you were immune. i was one pound away from it. >> oh, man. >> wow, that's rough. >> it was rough. >> you looked stunned. >> i was. now you get to see me crying. >> you can see your dad is so upset. he offered to switch places with you. why didn't you? >> you know, i think that when it comes down to it, the point of being on the show is taking responsibility for the actions that brought you to that point in your life. it was time to just say, i didn't get what i was going to do. i'm the one who didn't lose the weight. it's time for me to take responsibility for that and do this at home. >> good for you. meanwhile it's been somewhat hard to go back home and work out and do all that you need to do, right? >> yeah. >> with the band and your girlfriend you're busy. how do you manage? >> it's crazy. last time i was at home i didn't care about eating right, working

out so i could do whatever i want. >> you've made it a priority now. that's terrific. "the biggest loser" airs tonight at 8:00/7:00 central here on nbc. >>om in cgup, making your home safe for your kids after your local news and weather. (bell rings) hi. good morning. big news. we're spreading the word about new honey bunches of oats fruit blends and their unique taste combinations. like peach/raspberry... and banana/blueberry. we're telling everyone. with one flavor in the granola bunch and one on the flake. try some. mmm! two flavors. in harmony. yummy. four nutritious grains and two big fruit flavors to make your day bunches better. those five food groups sound a whole lot better when you put them in a taco shell instead of a pyramid. old el paso. when you gotta have mexican.

good morning to you. 9:26. i'm marla tellez. tight security in place for tonight's speech by israeli president shimon peres. san francisco's temple emmanuel. a crowd of more than 2,000 will attend, including leaders from several states. many are concerned about israel's future as tensions rise over iran's nuclear program. >> we're in a region and the threat of iran gaining nuclear capabilities, this is a time when people from across the religious and ethnic spectrum in the bay area are eager to hear

and to meet president perez. >> he's at facebook this morning meeting with mark zuckerberg in an online facebook discussion. a report on the uc davis pepper spray incident is delayed. one of the officers in the city is seeking a court order to bar release of the reports. back in november, officers sprayed dozens of occupy protesters. the report follows an version by a private firm and it was supposed to be released on uc davis' website tote. the internal investigation into the officer's actions is still ongoing. we'l the ve the foreka and the roads after the break.

(sir can-a-lot) good day, ma' lady. [muffled] i am sir can-a-lot. i am sir can-a-lot, here to save you from another breakfast bore. wake up those eggs with glorious spam! (woman) hmmm... that's actually a good idea. [nervous giggle] (ancr) break the monotony. for more fun ideas visit spam.com. welcome back. time 9:28. taking alike at wind speeds. take a look at west wind, 25 miles per hour sustained in san jose. that's a strong wind for us down here. and we're also getting very gusty wind through fairfield, 15 miles per hour sustained there. concord, 20 miles per hour. only going to hit 50s. cold front came through earlier.

it's moving out of the area, that's what's kicking up winds. tomorrow up to 63, warming up to 70 by thursday. let's check the drive with mike. slow on the pins. southbound 101. northbound side had an accident at willow that's cleared. southbound side jammed up to palo alto, both directions. northbound worse because of an accident around shoreline on the northbound side around 85. a couple of other accidents clearing to the shoulder. there's 880 past the coliseum. slow up to 23rd where we have the earlier accident that happened over an hour. that cleared but we just had that kicking off the slowdown and that doesn't clear up until later on in the morning. back to you. >> thanks. we'll be back with our next news and weather update in 30 minutes. see you again at 9:56.

that right there is your laptop. you see it's out here on the ground. this right here is my .45. [ gunshot ] >> that was the first round. >> who can forget that straight-shooting north carolina dad showing how much he disliked his daughter's facebook post? well, we will have an exclusive interview with the now infamous father and his daughter tomorrow on "today." matt will have more tomorrow night on "rock center with brian williams." if you have questions for them head to today.com. can you believe it? that video got 31 million views

on youtube. 30 million on "today" show. >> very good. >> it sparks a lot of feeling. >> on both sides. that's what's interesting. >> of course members of the geek squad are going, no! no! >> not the computer! >> meanwhile coming up, a new episode in the "desperate housewives" courtroom drama. the executive producer mark cherry takes the stand in nicollette sheridan's wrongful termination suit. why did he give the actress the ax? we'll hear what he had to say in just a little bit. >> also, home is supposed to be the place where children are safe, but it's the scene of many, many serious accidents that could be avoided from your television sets to your furniture to what's in your cabinet we'll show you how to make sure you and your kids are safe. including those garbage bags. first a check of the weather for us, al. >> absolutely. first of all for today we have light rain in the pacific northwest, snow through the

rockies. sunny and mild and even windy from texas into minnesota. sunshine and chilly air along the eastern seaboard. tomorrow warmth makes it to the ohio river valley in the lower gulf. cool conditions and cloudy in northern new england. sunshine up and down the west coast. snowshowers central rockies. rain from the upper great lakes all the way into the central plains. well, it's a cool start to your tuesday and we've got a windchill factor out there. good morning, i'm meteorologist christina loren. wind will be the word of the day in the weather department. wind strengthening throughout the afternoon. cold front came through. that disturbance kicked up the pressure gradient. throughout the day today, the winds will batter especially the higher elevations of the bay area. relentless wind for six to eight hours. tonight they'll calm down. tomorrow, sunshine, 63 inland. up to 70 by thursday. >> and that's your latest weather.

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your turn. your time. your year. join for free. weight watchers points plus 2012. because it works. the courtroom drama is unfolding in the "desperate housewives" wrongful termination suit. >> neck let sheridan is trying to prove she was dropped from the show after complaining about being hit by the executive producer marc cherry. >> mike taibbi has more from the los angeles courthouse. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. as hollywood lawsuits go this isn't for huge money. just a bit more than nicollette sheridan made in the last of her five years on the show. but for sheridan the jury ruling

could have a big impact. she looks almost demure walking into court in contrast to her character. >> do you know someone my age with a body like this. >> reporter: in court monday she heard executive producer marc cherry say the decision to kill off the character was made four months before the alleged hitting incident. in a brief hallway conversation with his disney bosses. >> i didn't send any e-mails, cherry testified. i just walked over and had a talk with them. sheridan's attorney was incredulous. >> there are no documents to support that. their position is, yeah, we terminate a $4 million actress with back end participation in a five-minute conversation. >> reporter: back to the hitting incident, cherry described it as a light tap to demonstrate an upcoming scene but the actress on the show with a lot of hitting and with a number of characters who bite the dust say it was a hard hit and said it

was only after she complained that her character was written out of the show. legal analyst lori levinson says timing is key. >> if the jury believes four months before she's fired the green light had been given for it to happen she doesn't have a claim. it wasn't in retaliation. >> reporter: whatever the reason, sheridan's career since "housewives" has been under the wire. the show drew more than 20 million u.s. viewers a week and more than 100 million worldwide as america's top comedy export. when sheridan did a scandalous promotional spot before a monday night football game, the ratings for the next episode of "housewives" soared higher. the other stars including felicity huffman, eva longoria and teri hatcher could be called as witnesses in the trial. eva longoria told a radio station in an interview she supported marc cherry. >> he's funny, sweet, couldn't hard a fly. >> reporter: they said they

dropped the character because the ratings were softening and he wanted to cut costs. in fact, the show has confirmed that this season will be its last. while some of the stars have gone on to movies and other successful television projects, sheridan's pilot found no takers. >> ouch. mike taibbi. coming up next, he's an equestrian and olympic hopeful who is the daughter of new york city's mayor. we'll talk to her. and then dangers in the home. how to keep your kids safe after these messages. bird chirping ] [ snoring ] [ clears throat ] hop to, gang. it's showtime. uh, do you know this guy? i'm not gonna cry, am i? only if you don't believe in the power of friendship. really? you guys are good. [ male announcer ] your favorite movies right when you want them.

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in a tasty new combination. [ laughing and cheering ] pop-tarts. joylicious. 29-year-old georgina bloomberg grew up in the spotlight as new york city's first daughter. her dad is mike bloomberg, but she's made a name for herself in the equestrian world and she can now add seasoned author to that resumé. her second book is called "my favorite mistake." this is your second book. i know it is a trilogy, so there will be a third. was it easier to write the second than the first? >> it was. once we had the characters

cemented and we knew what we wanted from the characters and who they were we were able to follow it. it's a circuit that i have been through. i grew up in the horse show world so i know what happens and where each character should follow. it was fun. we got to go in depth as opposed to doing introductions. >> for those who aren't familiar it's a young adult book. what's the premise? >> the a circuit is the top level. when you're a junior rider which is 18 and under you compete on the a circuit. you're doing junior classes. hunters, jumpers and you're trying to make a name for yourself whether it's getting into a good college on a scholarship or get a great job you're competing on the a circuit, having to work with other kids from different backgrounds and give up your life to the support. >> you have three main characters. in the second novel we see more drama. >> there is more drama. we were able to get more in depth so it's more fun. the kids are teenagers and when

you're working hard, working with people every day there will be drama. >> you're a huge supporter of equestrian. do you have dogs? >> i have two dogs and a miniature horse i adopted as well. >> wow. >> i'm very, very much in love with all of them. adoption is a huge cause that's important to me. it's been rewarding. >> actually, the proceeds from this book go toward -- part go to the aspca. >> to the equine fund. i have done a lot of work with them. i worked with amazing people there. it's a great organization. they do great works. they are able to fund different organizations across the u.s. that can work on animal welfare, especially horses. saving horses from auctions where they are going to slaughter, making sure horses aren't starved or kept in inhumane situations.

hundreds of organizations received funds from the aspca equine fund. hopefully i can help more with the books. >> some people see a resemblance to you. she's the daughter of a billionaire. is it auto biographical? >> i have gotten the question so many times. for me, there is a little bit of myself in each character. i understand how people see tomi as me. i thought, you know, she's loyal, hardworking, down to earth, smart. if people think i'm tomi, that's a compliment. >> does your dad read the books? he's really not your demograp c demographic. he read the first book and said he enjoyed it. he has to say that. he's supportive of everything i do and vice versa. i'm proud of him, too. >> thank you so much. georgina bloomberg, great to talk with you. the book is called "my favorite mistake." up next, keeping your home accident proof with tips from lou manfredini. first, this is "today" on nbc.

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this morning on today's h e home, making a safe environment for your kids. accidents in the home are one of the leading causes of fatalities but many are avoidable. lou manfredini is host of "house smart." he has things you can do now to prevent problems later. good morning. >> good morning. >> we think of it as home sweet home but it's one of the places that can cause a lot of death and injury. >> what we have here is an illustration of the four dangers we take for granted. maybe we don't even think about it. we'll get to others in a second. the first is your television set. as you are watching this program how is your television set mounted? the advent of flat screen televisions or the older tvs, the big crts with flat panels, this is a huge issue.

i loive in chicago. since october four children have died due to television sets falling on them. the computer products safety commission said since 2000, 2010, 169 deaths of kids under the age of 8. 22,000 injured. >> right. >> this is a serious thing. this is a flat screen l.e.d. television set. probably weighs in the neighborhood of 40 to 60 pounds. >> right. >> this can tip over. >> easily. >> this is a strap in the back. this strap by sanus out of minnesota. it's a $20 item. it fits into the screws that you would normally mount the tv to the wall. we'll talk about it in a second. >> it's easy. just a bracket on the wall. >> screws to the back of the furniture and then screws to the wall. >> you can tilt and turn and do what you want to do with it. >> you have to do this. the safest way is to mount it on

a wall. this is a wall mount system. there are tilts. they have articulating ones. we have flat screens with similar set-ups to this. >> very sturdy. >> we're not talking a huge investment. the strap is $20. these things start in the neighborhood of $40. i understand with decor and you want to do things. if you have a television set whether it is a large crt unit, look at the cabinet it's on. make sure the cabinet is large enough that when children are running around, you have grandchildren, this is where problems occur. this is a huge hazard. it's not required by any kind of law to buy the straps. i don't know that we need a law. we need common sense to use these things. >> not just tv. any furniture. >> that 22,000 injuries is not just televisions. it's cabinets and appliances. >> okay. now poisoning is another area unfortunately where we see a lot of injuries, deaths and a lot of

these are under the kitchen sink. under mine now. >> the big risk is children under 6. this is not an indictment on the cleaners or chemicals. they all do their job. they're great cleaners. they are hazardous. they are under your cabinet right now and they're not locked. if you have a small children, you need to lock the cabinet. any one of these if a child were to drink it -- look at the color of this. >> looks like grape juice. >> it's a great cleaner. you have to protect the kids. this is a garden variety bottle of ammonia. >> flips right off. >> no safety cap. look at what you have in the home. >> lock it up. >> make sure you protect your kids. >> now suffocation is another way that a lot of children lose their lives. it can be as simple as a garbage bag, balloons. >> most suffocation comes from food. this is another area. the plastic bags we have, knot them up. make sure they are not anywhere around.

balloons. smaller balloons when children start to blow them up, if they can't blow it all the way it can be sucked into their esophagus. it's almost impossible to get it out. be mindful of this. the cord on the blinds. this is a perfect example. i don't want to see any blinds with a tether on the bottom here. a child can put their head in here and get hung up. you need to have blinds with cords that are cut and loose. and you need to pay attention. tied up high. they can also get tangled inadvertently and knot up even loose ones. be mindful of this. this is an area where somebody could get strangled. >> are these still around? >> they just bought this. this shouldn't be around. there are still products like this on the shelf. be mindful of this. >> make sure you know what you're doing. over here, fire safety equipment in our house. we know you have to have a fire alarm on every level in your

home. >> it's one -- >> also important to change the batteries. >> now there are new laws. these detectors and fire extinguishers don't last forever. on average they last five to seven years. there is a new law in new york that will probably go across the country. the detectors themselves after five years are going to give you a beep to tell you it's time to replace. it will drive you crazy because you'll think the battery is out. you'll replace the battery but it's still beeping which means you have to replace it. >> same with carbon monoxide? they wear out. >> they wear out every five to seven years. now it will have an audible alarm. fire extinguishers on the three-year anniversary, even if it's green, discharge it and buy a new one. have a safety plan, too. >> and practice the safety plan. lou manfredini, appreciate it. still to come, he's sticking around to talk about hardwood flooring. >> and more music from teen

sensation demi lovato after your local news and weather.

good morning. 9:56. i'm marla tellez. a full house expected at this morning's san jose city council

meeting over pension reform. the city council set to vote on wording i've pension reform measure for the june ballot. nbc bay area investigation found the mayor used inflated estimate of the city's pension obligations for the coming years. it comes one day after seven california lawmakers asked for state audit of the city's finances. mayor reed calls the lawmakers' demands politically motivated but say his would not object to an audit. one of the three groups trying to recall oakland mayor jean quan is calling it quits. the oakland tribune reports it stopped operations yesterday. the group has run out of money to pay canvassers to gather the needed signatures before the deadline. a second group will continue to gather 20,000 signatures by the july deadline. recall and restore says it will work with that campaign. let's check the forecast now. meteorologist christina loren

has the sprinkles. have they cleared? >> yeah, we're done with the rain. as the cold front moves out of the area, we have windy conditions picking up. temperatures on the cool side. cold air travels behind the front. 58 in san jose. with the windchill you'll need your jacket all day. you can ditch that jacket tomorrow afternoon. 63, up to 70 by thursday. a good looking warm-up on the way. we've got to get through this windy tuesday. let's see the drive with mike. >> wind advisories all over the bay, bridges, hold on tight. look to the peninsula side of the dumbarton bridge. southbound 101, as you're coming through menlo park, typical pattern. northbound side, accident at shoreline is on the shoulder but slowing out of mountain view, typical. southbound 880 slow through newark and front. down to 237, slowing through sunol and the approach to the bay bridge. back to you. >> sounds like a typical commute. we'll be back at 10:26 in our

next news and weather update. find us on facebook.

captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello, everybody. wake up. it's booze day tuday. it's march 6th. we're happy you're here with us. the fourth hour of the "today" show. >> it's hard to even talk about the chat with what is in front of us. >> we just got to wish a very happy birthday to the oreo. i don't know why, but apparently it's a big -- what's the birthday, you guys? >> it's 100. >> 100! i didn't realize oreos sort of

morphed from different countries around the world. >> yes. >> they have their own little impact on them. >> well, they have a special edition. this is the 100th birthday oreo in the u.s. they don't usually look like that but it says 100. >> it sure does. that's the classic one. >> i can't even -- the rows of oreos i've eaten as a kid in my life. the whole rows. and then they fry them, put them in ice cream. they do everything with oreos. >> absolutely classic. the first were made at chelsea pier and sold in hoboken. >> 30 cents. that's it. should we do it now or -- >> driving me crazy. this is the one from indonesia. >> get in there. no. that is argentina. i want to try these. >> i like the big fat oreos. >> what is this, china? these are china. these are the, like, wafers. >> oh, my gosh. oh, my gosh. i like the china ones even

better. >> you do? >> mm-hmm. >> they're gooey. >> mm-hmm. so sad there are people in the nation watching this. can't have a little bite. so sad. >> that's great. that's a good one. that's a really good one. which one are the mins? >> this is from indonesia. this one, hoda. >> this one? indonesia? >> apparently it will clear up your sinuses. yeah. >> what is that? >> indonesia. >> that's not great. >> i didn't try the others but this one wins. i don't have to try. when you know you know. the u.s. is the number-one oreo consumer. i wonder how many are sold in one year around the world. please check that out on google. >> okay. >> ask your friend. >> let's wash it down with a little something. >> i can have milk but you can't. >> no. i like to eat oreos. some like to -- what do you call it when you go like this? twist them?

>> it's supposed to say something about your sex life, how you eat an oreo. i just made that up. >> i ate them just like that straight out of the box. >> seriously, though. google that. i love saying that to people. google that. >> oreo eaters. they twist them and eat them separately. lick the inside. >> the favorite thing in my world. >> kim kardashian. a 72-day wedding. there was a big question about what was going to happen to all the wedding presents people had sent her. she was getting some flak for it. everyone wondered what is she going to do with all those wedding gifts? well, we have the answer for you today. she has decided to keep the gifts, but she says she's going to donate twice their amount to a charity. >> the estimated value of them. >> $200,000 to the dream foundation, a charity that helps adults facing life-threatening illnesses. >> if most of your gifts had come from a registry, i guess

you would know the value. mine didn't come from her registry. >> if they didn't come -- >> yeah. >> how would she know? >> i sort of gave her a lifetime supply of my favorite -- she loves candles, so i gave her those huge kringl candles, the garden gardenia. >> oh. >> i don't believe in giving expensive, expensive things to people that already have everything. i wanted something she knew -- then i made a nice donation to the dream center in los angeles. different from the dream thing that she's giving this to because i know she's spent a lot of time bringing things to the people down there that are helped through the dream center. people don't know this. she gets flak, kryes, but i hapn to know on many, many occasions she sends clothes down there, all kinds of jewelry, she sends -- to the woman who are battered and in human trafficking.

emily post says you should send every gift back. >> since the wedding was so short, it seems weird. i guess it's fine if you gave a gift and someone says hey -- she wrote a note. i can't remember the details. >> i haven't checked my mail yet. >> i would like to thank you for the generous and thoughtful wedding gift. it has taken me some time to put everything together, but i want you to know that the money for every gift received has been give on the dream foundation. >> i wonder if she had to discuss that with kris because it is marital property. >> you're right. did you watch "the voice" last night? it's on at 8:00. the deal is they take two singers of the same genre and they have to go head to head in a sing-off. it's frustrating because you love both of these because you like this kind of music -- >> two r&b guys. >> two r&b guys. the girl who started it yesterday, i think you guys

remember, this is the song "rolling in the deep." angie sang it -- she sang it the -- do you guys remember her? >> yeah. >> angie had a sing-up a, and this was amazing. so let's go to the sing-up a, you guys, and take a look at this one. ♪ forever's going to start tonight once upon a time i was ♪ ♪ falling in love now i'm only falling apart nothing i can say ♪ ♪ a total eclipse of the heart once upon a time there was light in my life ♪ ♪ now there's only love in the dark ♪ >> now you can pick and i'll tell you who. >> i would have picked her. >> she got cut. the one who made it, chessa, the other one. >> why? >> they said she was more powerful. >> i didn't hear the performance. ♪ total eclipse of the heart

>> i still would have picked the other girl. >> anyway, you're watching these head to head -- >> better than that. >> that's one. and then there was another sing-off, too, and this was for team christina. there were a couple guys. let's see if you can pick the ringer here. a gospel singer, anthony evans, and a single father. ♪ nothing at all if it ain't you, baby if it ain't you, baby ♪ ♪ some people want diamond rings or just want everything ♪ ♪ but everything means nothing if i can't have you ♪ >> okay. now who would you pick based on that? >> they're both, both great. >> the guy with the glasses? >> i dig that. >> i pick the guy without the glasses. >> and you would be right. congratulations. >> okay. >> on the judging. so anyway --

>> they were wrong on the last one, sorry. >> but it's so exciting because they both sound so good and you're watching them go head to head. >> heartbreak, i'm telling you. but you'll hear years from now or months from now about people that didn't make the cut signing great record deals and maybe better success than the person that ultimately wins. that's the genius of it. >> it gives them a platform. >> i could have never made it in the music industry starting out now. >> why? >> the world has changed so much. if you don't sing that way, you don't get noticed. >> you don't get noticed. can we just open this one? oh. that one's green inside. >> that looks like baby poo. >> no, i'm not going to eat baby poo. i'm not. the top cities in the whole world for the best looking men. >> that is not tasty at all. where are they? >> number five is buenos aires. yes. number four is lisbon.

number three, amsterdam. number two -- all right, you do live there -- new york city. and number one is stockholm. >> the sexiest men in the world live in stockholm. >> all right. >> good to know. that is really nice to know. >> book your tickets now. >> immediately. >> yeah. >> they were talking, though, about the best places for women and then -- >> they aren't the same. >> none of those are on the list. >> the best places to be a woman. >> the best place to be a woman generally is in ice land because it has the greatest equality between men and women. so there. >> i've been to iceland about three times. it's a beautiful, beautiful country. >> yes. >> nobody seems particularly thrilled to be there. i shouldn't say that, maybe. i'm just telling you the truth. they just don't seem like a very happy people. they're not, like, lilliputians. they're not like in the emerald

city, we represent -- they're not like that. they don't seem too happy. >> the places where women live the longest is japan. women can live 87 years, beating men by seven years. >> but why would you want to? you know? >> they're healthier, too. >> they eat a lot of fish. >> the best place to be a mother, norway. >> the low risks of -- >> infant mortality. and the best place to be a lady of leisure, pack your bags, everyone, we're to denmark. they spend 57 more hours a day -- minutes a day doing things. >> unpaid work. i guess they're being kept by very handsome swedish guys that have moved from stockholm living with them in denmark. >> this is enough. enough of this. let's go. >> the happiest place in the entire world. >> where? >> best place for a woman, best place for a handsome man. >> where? >> greenwich, connecticut. >> oh, isn't that sweet. that's where you are. >> because my neighbor told me so.

kidding. >> it is time to bring up -- this is earth shattering, and it needs to be on our show. >> this is disturbing on a few levels. >> all right. you've had chicken mcnuggets, i'm sure millions of times. but have you ever had chicken mcnuggets that look like george washington wa? somebody paid for this one $8,100 for that. look. pretend like the coin is facing the other way, okay? >> i wonder what it looks like the other way. probably not as good. >> it looks like ralph nader on the other side. >> anyway, somebody paid $5,100 for that -- >> 8,100, wasn't it? >> for that nugget. that money is going to charity. >> the weird part, the lady that had it and sold it, she kept it in her freezer for three years waiting for it to gain in value. no doubt. >> people will pay for -- >> but now what's she going to do with it? >> i don't know. >> it's going to unload unless

it's in a pressure-packed something, put it on the wall, come in here. guys, you know, show you my etchings. this guy's going to go, come on over, baby, i'll show you my nugget. it's not the same. >> guys say i'll show you my etchings? >> you never heard that? >> no. i'll show you my etchings? >> yes. how old am i? >> what are etchings? >> that used to be the come-on. i'll show you my etchings. >> it did? that's weird. okay. anyhoo, it is booze day tuesday, and this wine significant because we've taken a test, a quiz, to find out exactly what type of wine is best match for our taste. >> this is called -- i think it's an online wine club. for wine or something. >> they asked us how dewe like our coffee. do we like it with cream, cream and sugar, whatever. salt and citrus, berries, mushrooms. m they cooked up something for us, and we've actually been drinking it for three days.

>> i know. >> never had a chance to get to it. >> i apparently have -- >> a citrus palate, which implies you like lighter flavors rather than oaky. >> let's try it. >> is that good? >> right down my alley. absolutely delicious. what is it? >> i don't know. they mix it up. >> it is a wine. hoda. can you go back to what she said about it, please? hoda likes richer, fruitier red wines that are lush, decadent, big and bold. just like she likes her men. >> i don't like being called -- >> lush, decadent -- >> i don't like being called big and bold, though. something about that. >> no. you -- >> all right. hold on. >> that's not the way you drink wine, by the way. you were guzzling just then. >> i was thirsty. that's good. >> my apparently is called secret white wine. >> secret. from the columbia valley in sta

to join us for our live coverage preside's ne conference from the white house briefing room. this san nbc news special report. here is brian williams. now we welcome the entire nbc television network. in a little under two minutes we will hear from president obama from the white house. a news conference happens to be scheduled for a big day for the gop, super tuesday, 424 delegates at stake. we are joined by david gregory, moderator of "meet the press." if you're the president of the united states what do you say today? >> there's a lot you can say. he will focus on the economy and housing which is such an important issue. the back drop is politics. this is a president who a few months ago was calling himself an underdog, now talking about

his chances, talking about having five years go in his presidency. he will show he is doing the hard work of the president as he frames the debate about the economy and foreign affairs. this is the more intimate setting than what we're used to is often the east room of the white house, the long walk down the hallway. you see the network correspondents looking over their shoulders because out of that blue door -- here we go -- the president of the united states. good afternoon, everybody. now, i understand there are some political contests going on tonight, but i thought i'd start the day off by taking a few questions, which i'm sure will not be political in but before a few announcements about some steps we're taking to help responsible homeowners who have been struggling through this housing crisis. now, we've clearly seen some positive economic news over the past few months. businesses have created about

3.7 million new jobs over the last two years. manufacturers are hiring for the first time since the 1990s. the auto industry is back and hiring more than 200,000 people over the last few years. confidence is up. and the economy is getting stronger. but there are still millions of americans who can't find a job. there are millions more who are having a tough time making the rent or the mortgage. paying for gas or groceries. so our job in washington isn't to sit back and do nothing, and it's certainly not to stand in the way of the recovery. right now we've got do everything we can to speed it up. now, congress did the right thing when they passed part of my jobs plan and prevented a tax hike on 160 million working americans this year. that was a good first step. but it's not enough. they can't just stop there and wait for the next election to come around. there are a few things they can

do right now that could make a real difference in peoples lives. this congress should, once and for all, end tax breaks for companying shipping jobs overseas and reward companies creating jobs in the united states. i put forth a proposal to do just that. this congress could hold a vote on the buffett rule, so that we don't have billionaires paying a lower tax rate than their secretaries. that's just commonsense. the vast majority of americans believe it's commonsense, if we're serious about paying down our deficit, it's as good a place as any. finally this congress should pass my proposal to give every responsible homeowner a chance to save an average of $3,000 a year by refinancing their mortgage at historically low rates. no red tape, no run-around from the banks. if you have been on time on your payments, if you have done the right thing. if you acted responsibly, you

should have a chance to save that money on your home. perhaps to build up your equity or have more money in your pocket that you can spend on businesses in your community that would make a huge difference for millions of americans families. now, if congress refuses to act, i've said i'll continue to do everything in my power to act without them. last fall we announced an initiative that allows millions of responsible homeowners to refinance at low interest rates. today we're taking it a step further. we are cutting by more than half the refinancing fees that families pay for loans insured by the federal housing administration. that's going to save the typical family in that situation, an extra $1,000 a year on top of the savings that they would also receive from refinancing. that would make refinancing more attractive to families. it's like another tax cut that will put money in peoples

pockets. we will do this on our own. we are also taking a series of steps to help home owns who served our country. it's unconscionable that members of our armed forces and their families have been some of those who have been most susceptible to losing their homes due to the actions of unscrupulous banks, and mortgage lenders. over the last few years that happened. a lot. so as part of the landmark settlement we reached with some of the nation's largest banks a few weeks ago, here's what we're going to do. if you're a member of the armed forces whose home was wrongfully foreclosed, will you be substantially compensated for what the bank did to you and your family. if you're a member of the armed forces with a high interest rate who was wrongfully denied the chance to lower it while you were in active service, which banks are required to do by law,

the banks will refund you the money you would have saved along with a significant penalty. the act will make sure you are not forced into foreclosure because you have a change in station but can't sell your home because you owe more than its worth. some of the money will go into a fund that guarantees loans in favorable terms to our veterans. there will be more foreclosure protections for every man and woman who is serving this country in harm's way. as i said before, no amount of money will be enough to make it right for a family who has many their piece of the american dream wrongfully taken away from them. no action, no matter how meaningingful will entirely deal our housing market on its own. this is not something that the government by itself can solve. but i'm not one of those people who believes we should sit by and wait for the housing market to hit bottom. there are real things we can do right now that would make substantial difference in the

lives of innocent, responsible homeowners. that's true in housing, that's true in any number of different areas when it comes to insuring this recovery touches as many lives as possible. that's going to be my top priority as long as i hold this office. i will do everything i can to make that progress. with that i will take some questions. i will start with mike. >> yes, sir. on the middle east and as it relates to american politics a little less than a year ago, moammar gadhafi said he would rouse people from their homes and in syria bashar al assad is killing people. there's a massacre underway. your critics, most notably john mccain said you should start air strikes now. and on iran, mitt romney went so

far as to say if elected iran will get a bomb. >> mike, you asked a couple of questions there. let's start with the iran situation, since that's been the topic of news for the last few days. when i came into office, iran was unified, on the move, had made substantial progress on its nuclear program, and the world was divided on how to deal with it. iran is feeling the bite of the sanctions in a substantial way. the world is unified. iran is politically isolated. what i have said is that we will not count iran on getting a nuclear weapon. my policy is to prevent them from getting a nuclear weapon if

they get a nuclear weapon, it could trigger an arms race, it could fall into the hands of terrorists. we've been in close consultation with all our allies, including israel, in moving this strategy forward. at this stage, it's my belief where we have a window of opportunity where this can be resolved diplomatically. that's not just my view, it's the view of our top intelligence officials, the view of top israeli intelligence officials. as a consequence, we will continue to apply the pressure, even as we provide a door for the iranian regime to walk through where they could rejoin the community of nations by giving assurances to the international community that they're meeting their obligations and they're not pursuing a nuclear weapon. that's my track record. n now, what's said on the campaign trail, you know, those folks

don't have a lot of responsibilities. they're not commander in chief. and when i see the casualness with which some of these folks talk about war, i'm reminded of the costs involved in war. i'm reminded of the decision that i have to make in terms of sending our young men and women into battle. and the impacts that has on their lives, the impact on our national security. the impact it has on our economy. this is not a game. there's nothing casual about it. and, you know, when i see some of these folks who have a lot of bluster and a lot of big talk, but when you actually ask them specifically what they would do, it turns out they repeat things we've been doing over the last three years. it indicates to me that's more

about politics than actually trying to solve a difficult problem. now, the one thing that we have not done is we have not launched a war. if some of these folks think that it's time to launch a war, they should say so. explain to the american people exactly why they would do that and what the consequences would be. everything else is just talk. >> that goes with syria as well? >> with respect to syria, what's happening in syria is heartbreaking and outrageous. what you have seen is the international community mobilize against the assad regime and it's not a question of when assad leaves or if assad leaves. it's a question of when. he has lost legitimacy of his people. and the actions that he's now taking against his own people is inexcusable and the world community has said so in a more

or less unified voice. on the other hand, for us to take military action, unilate l unilaterally, as some have suggested, or to think that somehow there is some simple solution, i think is a mistake. what happened in libya, we mobilized the international community, had a u.n. security council mandate, had the full cooperation of the region, arab states and we knew we could execute very effectively in a relatively short period of time. this is a much more complicated situation. so what we've done is to work with key arab states, key international partners. hillary clinton was in tunisia to come together and to mobilize and plan how do we support the opposition?

how do we provide humanitarian c assistance? how do we continue the political isolation? how do we continue the economic isolation? we will continue to work on this project with other countries. and it is my belief that ultimately this dictator will fall as dictators in the past have fallen. but the notion that the way to solve every one of these problems is to deploy our milita military, you know, that hasn't been true in the past. and it won't be true now. we have to think through what we do through the lens of what's going to be effective but also what's critical for u.s. security interests. >> jake tapp etapper. >> thank you, mr. president what kind of assurances did you give me netanyahu what kind of role

the u.s. would play if sanctions fail to effect iran's leaders to change behavior? what kind of assurances did you tell him and should -- i recognize the difference between debate and bluster -- but shouldn't we be having in this country a vigorous debate about a war? >> there is no doubt that those who are suggesting or proposing or beating the drums of war should explain clearly to the american people what they think the costs and benefits would be. i'm not one of those people. because what i've said is that we have a window through which we can resolve this issue peacefully. we have put forward an international framework that is applying unprecedented pressure. the iranians just stated that

they are willing to return to the negotiating team and we have the opportunity even as we maintain that pressure to see how it plays out. i'm not going go into details of my conversation with prime minister netanyahu. what i said publicly doesn't differ from what i said privately. israel is a sovereign nation that has to make its own decisions about how best to preserve its security. and as i said over the last several days, i'm deeply mindful of the historical precedence that weigh on any prime minister of israel when they think about the potential threats to israel and the jewish homeland. what i've also said is that because sanctions are starting to have significant effect inside of iran, that's not just my assessment, that's a uniform assessment, because the sanctions are going to be even tougher in the coming months,

because they're now starting to effect their oil industry, their central bank and because we're now seeing noises about them returning to the negotiating table, that it is deeply in everybody's interests, the united states, israel, and the world's to see if this can be resolved in a peaceful fashion. and so this notion that somehow we have a choice to make in the next week or two weeks or month or two months is not borne out by the facts. the argument we've made to the israelis is that we have made an unprecedented commitment to their security. there is an unbreakable bond between those two countries, but one of the functions of friends is to make sure we provide honest and unvarnished advice as to what is the boaest approach

achieve a common goal, particularly one where we have a station. this is not just an issue of israeli interest, it's an issue of u.s. interest. it's not just an issue of consequences for israel if action is taken prematurely. there are consequences to the united states as well. and so i do think that any time we consider military action that the american people understand there's going to be a price to pay. sometimes it's necessary, but we don't do it casually. you know, when i visit walter reed, when i sign letters to families, that have -- whose loved ones have not come home, i'm reminded that there is a cost, sometimes we bear that cost but we think it through. we don't play politics with it. when we have in the past, when

we haven't thought it through and it gets wrapped up in politics, we make mistakes. and typically it's not the folks who are popping off who pay the price, it's these incredible men and women in uniform and their families who pay the price. and as a consequence, i think it's very important for us to take a careful, thoughtful, sober approach to what is a real problem. that's what we've been doing over the last three years. that's what i intend to keep doing. if i can quickly follow up. you might not be beating the drums of war but you did publicly say we've got israel's back. what does that mean? >> what it means is that historically we have always cooperated with israel with respect to the defense of israel. just like we do with a whole range of other allies. just like we do with great britain. just like we do with japan. and that broad statement, i

think, is confirmed when you look at what we've done over the last three years on things like iron dome that prevents missiles from raining down on their small towns along border regions of israel that potentially land on schools or children or families. and we're going to continue that unprecedented security commitment. it was not a military doctrine that we were laying out for any particular military action. it was a restatement of our consistent position that the security of israel is something i deeply care about, and that the deeds of my administration over the last three years confirms how deep that commitment is. jackie? where is jackie? there you are. >> with the news this morning

that the u.s. and its allies are returning to the table or taking up iran's offer to talk again, more than a year after those talks broke up in frustration, is this iran's last chance to negotiate an end to this nuclear question? and you said three years ago, nearly three years ago in a similar one-on-one meeting with prime minister netanyahu that the time for talk, by the end of that year, 2009, you would be considering whether iran's negotiating in good faith. you said at that time that we're not going to have talks forever. so here we are nearly three years later. is this it? did i think you would be here three years after those first talks? >> you know, there is no doubt that over the last three years, when iran has engaged in negotiations, there has been

hemming and hawing and stalling of the issues in ways that the international community has concluded were not serious. and my expectations, given the consequences of inaction for them, the severe sanctions that are now being applied. the huge toll that it's taking on their economy. the degree of isolation they're feeling now which sun preis un s unprecedent unprecedented. they understand that the world community means business. to resolve this issue will require iran to come to the table and discuss in a clear and forthright way how to prove to the international community that the intentions of their nuclear program are peaceful. they know how to do that.

this is not a mystery. so it's going to be very important to make sure that on an issue like this there are complexities, it obviously has to be methodical. i don't expect a break through in a first meeting. but i think we'll have a pretty good sense fairly quickly as to how serious they are about resolving the issue. and there are steps that they can take that would send a signal to the international community and that are verifiable that would allow them to be in compliance with international norms, in compliance with international mandates, abiding by the nonproliferation treaty, and provide the world an assurance that they're not pursuing a nuclear weapon. they know how to do it. the question will be whether in

these discussions they show themselves moving clearly in that direction. ed henry? >> thank you, mr. president. i wanted to follow up on israel and iran. you said repeatedly that you have israel's back. i wonder why three years in office you have not visited israel as president. related to iran and israel, you have expressed concern about this new talk of war driving up gas prices further. your critics will say on capitol hill that you want gas prices to go higher because you have said before that will wean the american people off fossil fuels on to renewable fuels. how do you respond to that. >> ed, do you think a president of the united states going into re-election wants gas prices to be higher? anybody here think that makes a lot of sense? look, here's the bottom line with respect to gas prices. i want gas prices lower because they hurt families.

because i meet folks every day who have to drive a long way to get to work and them filling up this gas tank gets more and more painful, it's a tax out of their pocketbooks, out of their paychecks. and a lot of folks are operating on the margins right now and it's not good for the overall economy. because when gas prices go up, consumer spending oftentimes pulls back. and we are in the midst right now of a recovery that is starting to build up steam. we don't want to reverse it. what i have also said about gas price prices is that there is no silver bullet and the only way we'll solve this problem over the medium and long-term is with an all-of-the-above strategy that says we are going to increase production, which has happened. we are going to make sure that we are conserving energy.

that's why we doubled fuel efficiency standards on cars, which will save consumers about $1.7 trillion. and take about 12 billion barrels of oil offline which will help to reduce prices. and we're going to develop clean energy technologies that allow us to continue to use less oil. we've made progress. the good news is 2010, first time in a decade that our oil imports were actually below 50%, and they have kept on going down. and we're going to keep on looking at every strategy we can to, yes, reduce the amount of oil we use while maintaining our living standards, maintaining our productivity, maintaining our economic growth and we'll do everything we can to make sure consumers are not hurt by it. there are some short-term steps we're looking at with respect

to, for example, there are certain potential bottlenecks in refineries around the country that we've been concerned about. we're concerned about what's happening in terms of production around the world. it's not just what's happening in the gulf. you've had, for example, in sudan some oil that's been taken offline that's helping to restrict supply. so we're going to look at a whole range of measures, including, by the way, making sure my attorney general is paying attention to potential speculation in the oil markets. i asked him to reconstitute a task force that is examining that. we go through this every year. we've gone through this for 30 years if we're going to be competitive, successful and families are secure in the long-term, we have to make sure we have a set of options that

reduce or overall dependence on oil. with respect to israel, i'm not the first president who has been unable because of a whole range of issues not to visit israel as president in their first term. i visited israel twice as senator, once right before i became president. the measure of my commitment to israel is not measured by a s g single visit. the measure of my commitment to israel is seen in the actions that i've taken as president of the united states. and indisputable that i've had israel's back over the last three years. >> thank you, mr. president. do you believe rush limbaugh's apology to the georgetown law student was sufficient and heart-felt? do you agree with the decision of the growing number of sponsors that have decided to drop his show, stop supporting his show? and has there been a double standard on this issue?

liberal commentators have made similar provocative or distasteful statements and there hasn't been such an outrage. >> you know, i'm not going to comment on what sponsors decide to do. i'm not going to comment on either the economics or the politics of it. i don't know what's in rush limbaugh's heart. i'm not going to comment on the sincerity of his apology. what i can comment on is the fact that all decent folks can agree that the remarks that were made don't have any place in the public discourse. you know, the reason i called ms. fluke is because i thought about malia, sasha, one of the things i want them to do as they get older is to engage in issues

they care about. even ones i may not agree with them on. i want them to speak their mind inial civil, thoughtful way. and i don't want them attacked or called horrible names because they're being good senators. i wanted sandra to know that i thought her parents should be proud of her. and that we wanted to send a message to all our young people that being part of a democracy involves argument and disagreements and debate. we want you to be engaged and there's a way to do it that doesn't involve you being demeaned and insulted

particularly when you're a private citizen. all right. jessica yellen. >> mr. president -- >> jessica. >> apologize -- >> thank you, mr. president. top democrats have said that republicans on a similar issue are engaged on a war on women. some top republicans say it's more like democrats are engaged in a war for the women's vote. as you talk about the talk of war in another arena, and this could raise concerns among women, do you agree with the chair of your democratic national committee that there is a war on women? >> here's what i think -- women are going to make up their own mind in this election about who is advancing the issues that

they care most deeply about. one of the things i've learned being married to michelle, i don't need to tell her what it is she thinks is important. mi and there are millions of strong women around the country who will make their own determination about a whole range of issues. it's not going to be narrowly focused just on contraception. it's not going to be driven by one statement by one radio announcer. it is going to be driven by their view of what most likely is going to help support their families, make their mortgage payments, who has got a plan to ensure middle class families are secure over the long-term what is most likely to result in their kids being able to get the education they need to compete, and i believe that democrats have a better story to tell to

women about how we're going to solidify the middle class and grow this economy, make sure everybody has a fair shot, everybody is doing their fair share, and we have a fair set of rules of the road that everybody has to follow. so i'm not somebody who believes that women will be single issue voters. they never have been. but i do think we have a strong story to tell when it comes to women. >> would you prefer this language be changed? >> you know, jessica, as you know, if i start being in the business of arbitrating -- >> you talk about civility -- >> right. what i do is practice it. so i'm going to try to lead by example in this situation as opposed to commenting on every single comment that is made by either politicians or pundits. i would be busy. i would not have time to do my

job. that's your job to comment on what is said by politicians or pundits. >> lori montenegro? >> mr. president, polls are showing that latino voters seem to be favoring your re-election over a republican alternative, yet some of them are still disappointed, others upset about the promise that you made on immigration reform that has yet to come to pass. if you are re-elected, what would be your strategy? what would you do different to get immigration reform passed through the congress, especially if both houses continued as they are now? which is split? >> well, first of all, just substanti substantively, every american should want immigration reform. we have a system that's broken. we have a system in which you have millions of families here in this country who are living in the shadows, worried about

deportation. you have got american workers that are being undercut because of those undocumented workers can be hired and the minimum wage laws may not be observed, overtime laws may not be observed. you've got incredibly talented people who want to start businesses in this country or to work in this country, and we should want those folks here in the united states, but right now the legal immigration system is so tangled up that it becomes very difficult for them to put down roots here. so we can be a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants. it is not just a hispanic issue. this is an issue for everybody. this is an american issue that we need to fix. now, when i came into office i said i am going to push to get this done. we didn't get this done. and the reason we haven't gotten it done is because what used to be a bipartisan agreement that

we should fix this ended up becoming a partisan issue. i give a lot of credit to my predecessor, george bush, who said this should not be something that the democrats should support, the republican party is invested in this as well. that was good advice now. it would be good advice now. and my hope is that after this election, the latino community will have sent a strong message that they want a bipartisan effort to pass comprehensive immigration reform that involves making sure we've got tough border security. and this administration has done more for border security than just about anybody. that we are making sure that companies are not able to take advantage of undocumented

workers. that we've got strong laws in place. and that we've got a path so that all those folks whose kids often are u.s. citizens, who e are, you know, working with us, living with us, in our communities, and not breaking the law, and trying to do their best to raise their families, that they got a chance to be a fuller part of our community. what i think will change -- what i will do -- look, we'll be putting forward as we have done before a framework, a proposal legislation that can move it -- move the ball forward and actually get this thing done. ultimately i can't vote for republicans. they're going to have to come to the conclusion that this is good for the country and that this is

something that they themselves think is important. and depending on how congress turns out, we'll see how many republican votes we need to get it done. norah o'donnell, how are you? >> thank you, mr. president. today is super tuesday. i was wondering if you would weigh in on some of your republican opponents. mitt romney criticized you on iran and said hope is not a foreign policy. he also said that you are america's most trekless president since carter what would you like to say to mr. romney? >> good luck tonight. >> no really. >> really. lynn, since you've been hollering, since you're from my hometown, make it a good one.

>> my question is about the switch of the g-8 summit from chicago to camp david. the reason from the white house is that you wanted a more intimate people of chicago would like to know what did you know now that you didn't know when you booked hometown chicago, and what role did security threats play in the decision? >> keep in mind, lynn, we will still be showing up with a whole bunch of world leaders. typically we try to attach the g-8 summit to the nato summit so that the leaders in the g-8 summit don't have to travel twice to whatever location. so last year in france we combined a g-8 with a nato summit. we'll do so again. i have to say, this was an idea that was brought to me after the initial organizing of the nato summit.

somebody pointed out that i had not had any of my counterparts who i worked with now for three years up to camp david. g-8 tends to be a more informal setting in which we talk about a wide range of issues in a pretty intimate way. the thinking was people would enjoy being in a more casual back drop. i think, you know, the weather should be good that time of year. it will give me a chance to spend time with mr. putin, the new russian president. and from there, we will then fly to chicago. i always have confidence in chicago being able to handle security issues. you know whether it's taste of chicago or loppalooloppalooza,

bulls championships. i'm sure your new mayor will be quite attentive to detail in making sure everything goes off well. all right? okay. go ahead. last one. >> thank you. thank you. mr. president, just to continues on that, when the nato leaders gather in chicago in may, do you expect they'll be able to agree on a transition strategy? and are you concerned at all that the koran burning and the episodes that followed since then threaten your ability to negotiate with partner? >> keep in mind that the transition policy started in lisbon. we have been following that strategy that calls for increasing turnover to afghans and a full transition so that our combat role is over by 2014. and our coalition partners have agreed to it. they are sticking with it.

that continues to be the plan. what we are now going to be doing over the next -- at this nato meeting and planning for the next two years is to make sure that that transition is not a cliff. but that there are benchmarks and steps that are taken along the way in the same way that we reduced our role in iraq, so that it is gradual, calf agaafg capacity is built, that we are putting in place the kinds of support structures that are needed in order for the overall strategy to be effective. now, yes the situation with the koran burning concerns me. i think that it is an indication

of the challenges in that environment and it's an indication that now is the time for us to transition. you know, obviously, you know, the violence directed at our people is unacceptable. and president karzai acknowledged that. but what is also true is president karzai, i think, is eager for more responsibility on the afghan side. we're going to be able to find a mechanism whereby afghans understand their sovereignty is being respected and that they're going to be taking a greater and greater role in their own security. that, i think, is in the interest of afghans, it's also in our interest. and i'm confident we can execute but it's not going to be a smooth path. there's going to be bumps along the road just as there were in iraq. >> are these bumps along the

road or are you seeing a deterioration after the koran burning itself, the violence that followed, that hinders your ability to work out things like the handoff of the detension center? >> none of this is easy, it never has been. the most recent riots over the koran burning are tragic, this happened a while back when a pastor in florida threatened to burn a koran in iraq as we were making this transition there were constant crises that would pop up and tragic events that would take place and there would be occasional setbacks. what i tried to do is set a course, make sure that up and down the chain of command everybody knows what our broader strategy is, and one of the incredible things about our

military is that when they know what our objective is, what our goal is, regardless of the obstacles that they meet along the way, they get the job done. and i think president karzai understands that we are interested in the strategic partnership with the afghan people and the afghan government, we are not interested in staying there any longer than is necessary to assure that al qaeda is not operating there, and that there is sufficient stability, that it doesn't end up being a free-for-all. so we share interests here. it will require negotiations. there will be time where things don't look as smooth as i'd like. that's kind of the deal internationally on a whole range of these issues. all right? thank you, guys.

oh. -- can i just make one other comment? i want to publicly express condolences to the family of donald payne. congressman from new jersey. a wonderful man, did great work both domestically and internationally. he was a friend of mine so my heart goes out to his family and to his colleagues. all right? brief note there at end, donald payne was new jersey's first and currently only black member of the congressional delegation, a veteran, part of a political dynasty family from the newark area, died of colon cancer, we were alerted to that this morning. the president already put out a statement today offering his condolences. brief housekeeping. those who were tuned in this hour for "days of our lives" today's episode will air in its entirety tomorrow. and we don't want to let too much time go by without reminding you that we'll have special