he lost a lung due to an infection when he was a teenager but went on to become a priest in 1969. he joined the jesuit order, embracing an austere lifestyle. even as a cardinal and archbishop of buenos aires, he shunned the privileges and trappings that usually come with the job. >> he took the tram to work. he lived in a small apartment rather than in the archbishop's palace. he's not a man of a lot of fuss, pomp and circumstance. >> reporter: in 2005, bergoglio was the runner up behind joseph ratzinger to replace the late pope paul john ii. she regarded as a strong defender of catholic doctrine. described by his biographer as a balancing force, he earned a reputation in argentina as a fierce advocate for the poor. >> this is a man of god. a man of evangelization. a man who is a great defender of democracy in a country where democracy is under real stress right now in argentina. >> reporter: his election has sparked excitement in latin america both out of cultural pride and the recognition of the

growing importance and influence of that part of the world. >> bergoglio brings latin america to rome and to the world. >> well, the man chosen to lead the roman catholic church has a busy first day. nbc's claudio lavanga is at the vatican this morning. claudio, what's the mood like where you're at right now? >> reporter: well, richard, pope francis had a very early start this morning. he paid an unannounced, unexpected visit to the basilica here in rome. the biggest sanctuaries here in the eternal city, for the amusement of the church core, he doesn't expect to be that early. but he did say from that balcony last night in front of tens of thousands of people in st. peter's square to welcome him, that's what he wanted to do, to pray for the virgin mary. but this is fitting with card

his character. no heavy red coat as many of the predecessors chose. expect, richard, more simple gestures from what is becoming the people's pope. >> claudio lavanga, thank you for reporting all this time. the head of tsa will be on capitol hill today facing questions over the controversial decision to allow passengers to carry small knives on commercial airlines. flight attendants unions and at least three major airlines oppose this change, saying it makes air travel less safe. some prominent lawmakers have voiced their concerns as well and now one is drafting a measure to stop the tsa from reversing course. administrator john pistole said the agency confiscates more than four tons of signal knives each month but doesn't think they pose a catastrophic threat. it was a recording that may have been a game changer in the 2012 presidential election. mitt romney's 47% comment.

>> 47% with him who believe that they are victims, who believe government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, you name it. and so my job is not to worry about those people. >> well, after that video was released, romney said it was a very unfortunate statement. and it was not what he meant. now for the first time the man who thought that infamous 47% remark is speaking out. he spoke exclusively with msnbc's ed schultz about why he shot that video. >> i think it defined him at a critical point, you know, and defined him exactly for who he was, and, you know, i thought kind of job well done because it's exactly what i had hoped at least. you know, everybody can make their own judgment on whether they believe what he is saying to be true or not, but at very least, the people heard, all the people that couldn't afford the

$50,000 to be there, regular people like myself, they hurt what he really believes. and that was the important part of it and that's what's happened for sure. >> he said he wanted people who couldn't afford the $50,000 for that. let's take a look at weather, dylan dreyer joins us now. it's a tale of two coasts right? >> oh, for sure. the west 15 to 20 degrees below normal. and the southwest, 15 to 20 degrees above normal. the northwest is dealing with a couple of lighter showers. although most of the heavier rain is just off the coast of northwestern washington state. but that is going to change as we go into tonight and tomorrow. we've got this stream of moisture coming off the pacific. that is going to bring more rain to the seattle area, eventually stretching down into western oregon too. here's where the warm is.

look at our high temperatures today. phoenix, about 93 degrees. l.a. up to 80. we'll be in the 50s in the pacific northwest but 69 degrees in medford, oregon. not too bad out that way. so looking ahead, we are going to stay above average, normal high in l.a. is in the mid-60s. we should be in the mid-70s through the rest of the week, weekend, even monday, we're above average with a who have of 71 degrees. now phoenix, arizona, the normal high is in the mid-70s. we're well above that. today, tomorrow, saturday, we should get into the 90s, even upper 80s by sunday. things do start to cool off by monday. but it should still be in the mid-80s. lots of sunshine out60s in pend.

elko, nevada, 60 degrees. 85 in bakersfield today. so it is warm all through california, through arizona. that's where the warm is across the country is right now. >> shall we head over to the transporter right now? >> i'll do it. i'll get there in a heartbeat. >> dylan, thanks so much. coming up, 60 charged in a massive gambling operation that takes down florida's lieutenant governor. plus, the conservative comfab called cpac begins today in washington. how a 6-year-old girl escaped a vicious dog attack in new york city. we're back in two.

and welcome back. stories making news this morning for you. florida's lieutenant governor jennifer carroll resigned, a day after answering questions on the republicans' role in the veterans charity that was reportedly corrupt. investigators say it was a front for a $300 million gambling operation nearly 60 other people have been charged. the annual gathering of conservatives known as cpac gets under way today in washington. day one speakers include three

possible 2016 presidential candidates senators marco rubio and rand paul as well as texas governor rick perry. things got heated when on capitol hill during a senate hearing on sexual assaults in the military. one case involved a general who overturned a military jury's verdict convicting a top combat pilot while assaulting a woman at his home. that decision is creating an uproar with many. here's senator claire mccaskill. >> i question now whether that unit, that that man that returns to, whether there's any chance a woman who is sexually assaulted in that unit would ever say a word because what that general just said is that jury's decision didn't matter. >> hugo will be no lenin. venezuela apparently waited too long to embalm the body of hugo chavez. it's unlikely his body will be put on permanent display because officials didn't start the preservation process soon enough.

and this is one cheese you cannot cut. wisconsin's marica mature gouda has been named the nation's top cheese after winning the u.s. championship cheese contest. it beat out more than 1700 other cheeses in the running. she was happy. well the rumors have been swirling many started by samsung but the speculation all ends in 12 hours at the times square unveiling of its new galaxy s4 smartphone. yesterday, apple's marketing chief was already on the defensive calling into question whether it will operate on the latest android operated software. ceo tim cook has been ordered to testify in a government suit against apple over an alleged ebook price fixing scheme. on the housing front, realtytrac reports housing starts in february were up 10% over the previous month still. there are 25% less homes in the beginning stages of foreclosure than there were in january 2012. more good news for you.

the federal reserve says the income to debt ratio of u.s. households is at the lowest level since 1980. now, on wednesday, investors welcomed news that we spent more at retailers in february. that is despite smaller paychecks and likely thanks to an improving job market. bad news for the fans of the google read arer rrsv. the company will do away as part of spring cleaning. not a fan of comcast, streaming access through march 25th through the 31st. if you are a fan of egg whites and fast foods, you'll be glad to hear mcdonald's is launching a lighter version of their egg mcmuffin. this one has white cheddar instead of american cheese and 50 less calories than the original. wes welker trades tom brady for peyton manning. kobe bryant goes down for the count. plus, it's that time of the year again where teens get to

learn an age-old lesson about spring break dos and don'ts, next.

now to some other stories that caught our eye this morning. frightening security video from new york captures a pit bull viciously attackinging a young girl over the weekend. she was walking with her

grandmother when the dog ran up and locked on to the girl and started whipping her back and forth. several people ran up and pride the dog off. the girl luckily got away with a nasty scare with minor puncture wounds to her arm and leg. a california daycare worker child endangerment charges after she allegedly spiked sippy cups with sleep medicine. she has since been fired and the cups were confiscated before any kids had a chance to take a drink. a michigan middle schooler shocked teachers and classmates when she showed up packing $20,000 cash in her backpack. police were alerted after the 12-year-old girl began handing out hundreds to her classmates. the little robin hood claims she received the money from a neighbor and all the cash has since been recovered. wow. spring break partiers down in florida had a rude awakening when local police broke up their fun. while some tried to argue, most took their punishment in stride. they were handcuffed and

shackled these teens giggled their way to county lockup. an alarming number of stranded sea lion pups in southern california have many marine biologists concerned. hungry, sick and malnourished sea lion pups are turning up left and right, so much so that the pacific marine mammal center has declared a state of emergency. to take you to sports, the miami heat are now the fourth team in nba history with 20 straight wins. there were 48 points against philadelphia. lebron james and dwyane wade made some crucial baskets. in the final minutes to pull out a 98-94 victory over the sixers. the heat has to win the remaining games to beat the all-time record of 33 straight. to atlanta, the lakers' kobe bryant twisting his ankle and was down on the court in obvious pain. according to the "los angeles times" here, it's a severe sprain and kobe is out indefinitely. the hawk beat the lakers 96-92. in college basketball number 19 syracuse took a big lead in the second half against seton hall.

in the big east tournament. the 75-63 orange victory advances them to the quarterfinals to face pittsburgh this afternoon. now, one of the top receiver it's in nfl, wes welker, is leaving the new england patriots. he reportedly turned down $10 million from the pats to sign a $12 million deal for two years with the denver broncos. lindsay vonn won her sixth straight downhill title after the last race was cancelled because of fog. vonn is rehabbing after knee surgery. american surfer kelly slater had some amazing rides on waves in australia to win the 2013 quick silver pro gold coast competition. the pope wasn't the only one drawing crowds. former nba star dennis rodman is in italy. saying he hopes to meet the new pontiff and spread what he calls his mess avenue of peace and love. >> announcer: "early today" sports is brought to you by just for men auto stop. gray is over.

just ahead for you look what miranda lambert found on the side of the road. what's going on with the cast of the "mary tyler moore show"? you're watching "early today."

good morning. enjoying a nice warmup out west. especially the southwest where temperatures will be about 15 to almost 20 degrees above average for this time of year. look at our highs. even up in billings, montana, 69 degrees today. 78 in l.a. 93 degrees in phoenix. we're looking at some hours in the northwest.

the same goes for tomorrow but that warm air holds strong in the southwest tomorrow, too. show that's where all the warm air is hiding right now. taylor swift's pr people are working overtime now. hundred of fan letters addressed to swift were found unopened in a tennessee dumpster, prompting major damage control. swift's rep said the letters were likely misplace. fans of the 23-year-old were upset their bedazzled letters were not read. actor ed asner was hospitalized after having trouble speaking after his one man hit show. his spokesperson said the 83-year-old is exhausted. cult hit tv veronica mars cancelled in 2007 is coming back in the form of a movie. on wednesday, the show's creators opened a kick-starter campaign for the film and raised over $2 million in just a few hours smashing previous kick-starter records. speaking of back from the dead, "bill and ted's excellent adventure" is supposedly getting a third helping.

keanu reeves said the film is on its way. and will feature bill and ted dealing with their 40s. maria lambert tweeted photos of a puppy she rescued from an oklahoma highway. she said she found the pup all alone in the middle of the road with his food bowl and bed. why is that -- that's very strange. >> it is. i feel like he was just left there, the poor thing. so sad. luckily, had has somebody good to take care of him. >> got me all choked up. i'm richard lui, this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, on your nbc station.

in the san jose mercury news, catholics hope pope francis can change the chump. the first pontiff being from the americas, signaling the return to the apostolic mission. and in "the washington post," nra money helped reshape gun law. three decades changing perception of the second amendment. and now to a little bit of pope trivia. wednesday cardinal jorge mario bergoglio assumed the new role and new name pope francis. which makes us wonder why do popes take on new names? apparently, the first pope to do so was named mercuius had to change because of its pagan roots. so he chose john ii. what are the most common names. john has been used 23 times. benedict and gregory are tied at number two, both used 16 times.

the most recent being pope benedict xvi. a few notable selections that have not been repeated, pope linus spelled like the peanuts character and pope lando. all humor aside it was a historic day. let's take one more look at the sights and sounds from the last 24 hours. ♪ [ speaking foreign language ] habemus papam. [ speaking foreign language ]

[ bells chiming ] >> what an emotional 24 hours. here's a look now at what's coming up later on the "today" show. matt goes one on one with the tsa administrator john pistole over the backlash over the tsa's small knives policy. gerard butler talks about his new thriller. "olympus has fallen." >> now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm richard lui along with dylan dreyer. thanks for watching "early today." just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. we'll see you tomorrow

. . it is friday eve. good morning. i'm jon kelley.

>> i'm laura garcia cannon. >> i don't want to take credit for such a great and glorious day but thanks for remembering. 52, oakland, 52 degrees to start in sunnyville. gilroy, 48 degrees. you hit 87 yesterday. we broke temperature records. we'll let you know if that happened in your city. not quite as warm but just about. these days are short-lived. take it through the forecast. it is 4:31. watch out for fog. we'll talk about that fog. right now, a very clear view of fremont. no issues there for 880 as far as visibility. not even for traffic. a light volume southbound with these headlights. the map will show you 880 a little far south and northbound as you are heading towards montague expressway. looks like some cleanup going on. dust in the air, a little glow throug