it's monday, march 7th. coming up on "early today," the world wide reaction to nancy reagan's passing as admirerers remember a shrd adviser and devoted partner to ronald reagan. then to politics as the democrats debated flint's water crisis and the auto industry's bailout when things got testy. >> if you are talking about the wall street bailout where some of your friends destroyed this economy -- >> you know -- >> excuse me. i'm talking. >> we'll tell you how the candidates faired after weekend voting ahead to tuesday's big day. and check out the world's largest aircraft. nfl legend peyton manning calling it quits later today. those stories and much more on a

busy start to our week. "early today" starts right now. the world continues to react to the passing of nancy reagan. the words used mostly to describe her -- loyal, devoted, shrewd, and protective. former president jimmy carter said she will also be admired for her strength of conviction and her lifelong devotion to her husband. former first lady barbara bush nancy reagan was totally devoted to president reagan, and we take comfort that they will be reunited once more. bill and hillary clinton -- her strength of character was legendary, particularly when tested by the attempted assassination of the president and throughout his battle with alzheimer's. george w. bush said mrs. reagan was fiercely loyal to her beloved husband and that devotion was matched only by her devotion to our country. and from the president and the first lady, in her long good-bye with president reagan, she became the voice on behalf of millions of families going through the depleting aching reality of alzheimer's. nbc's lester holt takes a look back at how nancy reagan's public journey began on the

silver screen. >> reporter: nancy davis was an actress herself when she met ronald reagan on the mgm lot in 1949. he was already a star. but though she had her own hollywood dreams, she later said she found her greatest role as his wife. >> i think i was born to be married. i was the happiest girl in the world when "i" became "we." >> reporter: they married in 1952, a simple ceremony, and even appeared together in "hellcats of the navy," the last of her 11 films. >> i began to think maybe you were playing the south sea circuit. >> you knew better. >> how could i know. did you give me a postdated check? >> reporter: from then on by her own description, her life was devoted to her husband, as mother to their two children patti and ron and as stepmother to his two children by former wife jane wyman. then came politics and her long career as a first lady, first in california to governor ronald reagan in 196666.

>> what's ronnie's greatest asset to the women voters? >> my. just being ronnie, i guess. >> reporter: and then to president reagan in 1980. after the president was shot by a would-be assassin just two months into his first term, his wife was forever shaken. >> every time he went out and talked to thousands of people, my heart stopped. >> reporter: but she carried on, steadfast in her chosen roles as the president's protector, best friend, and partner, with efforts like the anti-drug campaign for which she was forever linked. >> when it comes to drugs and alcohol, just say no. >> reporter: she was criticized for consulting an astrologer

about the president's schedule, dubbed queen nancy for her expensive taste in fashion and white house decor, and accused of managing her husband. >> doing everything we can. >> doing everything we can. >> reporter: but the fact is she never wavered as a loving wife in all the ways she knew, and when in the mid-'90s the former president revealed he had been diagnosed with alzheimer's disease, the partner who would rarely leave his side visited the republican national convention to share her family's pain and a new cause. >> we learn as too many other families have learned of the terrible pain and loneliness that must be endured as each day brings another reminder of this very long good-bye. >> so, nancy, let me say thank you for all you do. thank you for your love, and thank you for just being you. >> reporter: she stayed close to her ronnie even in her last years. she made it a point to be there when the reagan library hosted election year debates and to visit her husband's resting place, a love story to the very end. >> the reagan family says mrs.

reagan died peacefully in her sleep sunday. she was 94 years old. in her honor, flags have been ordered to fly at half-staff at the u.s. capitol. and in california flowers are being left outside the reagan library where nancy reagan will be laid to rest alongside her husband. funeral plans have not yet been released. now to the 2016 election. the democrats faced off in flint last night ahead of tomorrow's michigan primary. both candidates were quick to pounce on the ongoing water crisis in the city and didn't hold back on governor rick snyder's role or his future. >> so i would have a full investigation, determine who knew what when, and, yes, people should be fired. >> president sanders would fire anybody who knew about what was happening and did not act appropriately. i believe the governor of this state should understand that his dereliction of duty was

irresponsible. he should resign. >> i agree. the governor should resign or be recalled, and we should support the efforts of citizens attempting to achieve that. >> governor snyder has responded saying in part, in the coming days, political candidates will be leaving flint and michigan, and they will not be staying to help solve the crisis, but i am committed to the people of flint. i will fix this crisis and help move flint forward. later on things got testy while talking about bailouts and the economy in one of the most talked about moments on social media. >> some of your friends destroyed this economy -- >> you know -- >> excuse me. i'm talking. >> if you're going to talk, tell the whole story, senator sanders. >> let me tell my story. you tell yours. >> i will. >> i said let the billionaires

themselves bail out wall street. it shouldn't be the middle class of this country. >> okay. so -- >> wait a minute. wait. can i finish? you'll have your turn. >> that is like the nra's position. no. >> can i finish, please? all right. >> bernie sanders helped his -- boosted his chances for the nomination this weekend with wins in maine, nebraska and kansas. clinton meanwhile won in louisiana and is ahead in total delegates, 1,100-492. both candidates now look to tomorrow's primaries in michigan and mississippi. the republicans also face off in tomorrow's michigan and mississippi and idaho as well as the caucus in hawaii, this as ted cruz had a big weekend closing in on the donald's lead. nbc's gabe gutierrez has more. >> reporter: donald trump made a grand entrance at the world golf championships, teeing up a fierce fight on marco rubio's home turf. >> marco rubio had a very, very bad night, and personally i'd call for him to drop out of the race. >> reporter: the billionaire front-runner trouncing his

rivals on super saturday in louisiana and kentucky, but ted cruz is surging after decisive wins in kansas and maine, now only 87 delegates behind trump. >> there's one campaign that has beat him not once, not twice, but five times, and that is our campaign. >> this is shaping up to be a two-person race because only donald trump and ted cruz have shown the ability to win repeatedly. >> reporter: the so-called establishment may not like cruz. >> but if ted's the alternative to trump, he's at least a republican conservative. >> reporter: rubio finished fourth in maine and third everywhere else. >> we knew this to be the roughest period in the campaign given the makeup of the electoral map. >> reporter: last night he won puerto rico's primary, scrounging for delegates, but he faces an uphill battle. on tuesday, michigan votes, and the latest nbc news/wall street journal/marist poll shows trump with a commanding lead there. john kasich, a distant fourth. john kasich! >> reporter: he campaigned in his crucial home state of ohio with arnold schwarzenegger. >> we need to connect with one

another because that's the spirit of america. that's where america lives. >> gabe gutierrez reporting there. and police are searching for the man who shot an idaho pastor delivering prayers at a ted cruz rally. 30-year-old kyle odom is wanted for critically wounding pastor tim remington in the parking lot of alter church in coeur d'alene sunday. on saturday remington delivered the invocation at a rally for republican presidential candidate ted cruz. in a statement the cruz campaign said our prayers are with pastor tim, his family, and the doctors who are supervising his care. one of the nfl's biggest stars peyton manning is retiring. the star quarterback is the league's all-time leader in that position with a record 200 wins and the most passing yards. manning is calling it quits after 18 nfl seasons, most of them with the indianapolis colts. he is going out on a high note. last month he led the broncos to victory in super bowl 50. he's expected to make an official announcement later

today. steady rain led to white knuckle driving in the bay area last night. the storm caused more than a dozen landslides and downed numerous trees. heavy snow wreaked havoc. motorists along interstate 80 drove in near whiteout conditions. bill karins is here to tell us what is in store. >> about an inch of rain in san francisco, san jose and sacramento. unlike the storm out over the weekend this is going to make it through southern california. you can see lightning strikes with this, too. it has a good punch with it. this will be arriving probably in l.a. about two hours away. that will take us close to the peak of morning rush hour. you see fresno with soaking rain. bakersfield about to get rain

and l.a. about two hours away. rainfall amounts about a three-hour period of rain this morning and more rain over the next couple of days. southern california this is the storm of the week for you this morning and then more rain over the next couple of days farther to the north as the weather pattern shifts. as far as snowfall amounts we are going to pick up significant snow about three quarters of it is probably done with. we have some indications of possibility of additional 6 to 12 inches. temperatures are cooler with the rain. much of california, phoenix you are dry today as we go through tomorrow you have a slight thro southern california and eventually some could reach as far south as san diego.

we appreciate the rain but with it sends problems. >> i'm sure the meteorologists are not used to these kinds of forecasts. >> it's been a tricky last couple of weeks and will probably continue. good news around jimmy carter. plus have a car? you are watching "early today." ♪ mom: hm, how about...? dad: hey haley, break a leg, huh? girl: that's rude. that means you're going to do fantastic. oh! well, thank you. are you nervous, honey? a little. buena suerte, mi hija. i'm gonna rock this thing! vo: now that's the good stuff. the sonoma collection. only at kohl's. pepper discovers jimmy dean delights, made with real egg whites, lean cut meats, and whole grains. an excellent source of protein,

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former president jimmy carter finished his cancer treatment. the 91 year old revealed the good news to his church congregation. >> and then the doctors determined that i didn't need any more treatments. i continue to get regular mri and other scans, and that way if cancer shows up again, i'll start getting treatments again. couples competed in the wife

carrying championship sunday. competitors raced nearly a quarter mile through obstacles. an american man and french foreign wife won for the second year in a row clocking in at 1:40. well, let's get down to business now. the price of gas has jumped over seven cents in the past two weeks. crude oil fries prices rise. gas is still 70 cents cheaper than this same time last year. the world's largest aircraft is getting ready for the maiden voileage. the airlander 10 is a cross between a blimp and a plane it carries 48 passengers and ten tons of cargo. on wall street we could

start monday on a down note. stocks coming off a strong week following the better than expected jobs report. asian markets ending higher today. back over to you. and just ahead, one of the biggest upsets in nba history, and a painful mascot mishap. sports is up next. (baseball on tv in background) with heart failure, danger is always on the rise. symptoms worsen because your heart isn't pumping well. (water filling room) about 50 percent of people die (dog whimpering) within 5 years of getting diagnosed. but there's something you can do. talk to your doctor about heart failure treatment options. because the more you know, the more likely you are... (dog whimpering) to keep it pumping. pepper discovers jimmy dean delights, made with real egg whites, lean cut meats, and whole grains. an excellent source of protein, it fuels her up with energy

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we need to be ready for my name's scott strenfel and r i'm a meteorologist at pg&e. we make sure that our crews as well as our customers are prepared to how weather may impact their energy. so every single day we're monitoring the weather, and when storm events arise our forecast get crews out ahead of the storm to minimize any outages. during storm season we want our customers to be ready and stay safe. learn how you can be prepared at pge.com/beprepared. together, we're building a better california.

this morning on "today," al and dylan take the plunge. watch as "today's" weather team takes part in the special olympics polar plunge for charity, which also included lady gaga and taylor kinney. let's get you caught up on this morning's sports headlines. for that i send you to dara brown. kobe bryant set up for one of the biggest upsets. the lakers led by jordan clarkson and rookie d'angelo russell handed the defending nba champions their sixth loss of the season. kobe bryant had 12 points, and steph curry scored just 18 points as his warriors shot the season's worst 13% from three-point land. final, lakers, 112, warriors, 95. more nba pain. the miami heat mascot bernie dished out his own version of a stunt gone wrong as his furry friends paid the price. now, back to the action. the thunders' kevin durant nailed his tenth triple double of the season, but it wasn't all easy as buck miles plumlee

stuffs durant's dunk attempt. oklahoma city hung on to take the home team bucks 104-96. chase utley's two-game suspension has been dropped. major league baseball rescinded the penalty for an incident that resulted in a broken leg for mets short stop ruben tejada during the 2015 and mlb series. the league has since enacted new rules for runners sliding into second. those rules didn't exist when the collision occurred. just ahead, which movie dominated this weekend's box office. plus see why beyonce is the coolest class mom at her daughter's school. you're watching "early today." yeah, i was just talking uhabout yourico?... emergency roadside service and how it's available 24/7 and then our car overheated... what are the chances? can you send a tow truck please? uh, the location? you're not going to believe this but it's um... it's in a tree.

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now for some entertainment news. it was a record-breaking weekend for disney's "zootopia." took the top spot at the box office. >> i saw it. it was good. >> you did? they set a record even beating out "frozen". actress lena dunham was hospitalized over the weekend for a ruptured ovarian cyst and has to have surgery. she has been public about her struggles with endometriosis. ♪ i will always love you come on.

i will always love you ♪ >> we love you so much. >> supermom beyonce belted it out for students at her daughter blue ivy's school in a tribute to the late whitney houston. the surprise performance was for a school fund-raiser. boy, good to be in that school, huh? "saturday night live" was full of political shows. speaking of trump, he's on track to become the republican nominee. so to all of you voters out there who have thought for years i hate hillary, i could never vote for her, to you, i say welcome. because i've got clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, and here you are stuck in the middle with me. was like pow! it added this other level of clean to it. it just kinda like...wiped everything clean.

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the death of nancy reagan brings a closing chapter of a powerful love story, and it began in hollywood, continued to the white house, and often played out on the world stage as harry smith reports it endured all the way to the end. >> reporter: nancy reagan was a contract actress when she met the dashing head of the screen actors guild ronald reagan. as they sat down to dinner, each claimed to have an early call the next day, an old actor's excuse in case things didn't go well. no such insurance was needed. march 4th marked 64 years since their wedding day. when you look at pictures of nancy and ronald reagan from their days in california to their time in the white house, they so often looked like

love-struck kids, soulmates, the love of each other's life. this is a letter from the president to mrs. reagan pulled from an nbc special. mrs. reagan reads, dear first lady, as president of the united states, it's my honor and privilege to cite you for service above and beyond the call of duty and that you have made one man, me, the most happy man in the world for 29 years. >> they were inseparable, steadfast, especially in times of trial. through the assassination attempt, her breast cancer -- >> i'll say welcome home. >> -- alzheimer's disease, through sickness and health, till death do us part, that was ronnie and nancy. some years after the president's death, mrs. reagan told "vanity fair," i miss ronnie a lot, an awful lot. people say it gets better. no, it does not. their love explained best by the president himself who wrote to mrs. reagan, i'm not whole without you.

you are life itself to me. that is a love story. harry smith, nbc news, new york. >> beautiful. you hope they are together again, right? >> i want to cry when i watch that. i can't imagine a love like that. that is incredible. >> after his death when she was leaning over him and hugging the coffin. several families in flint, michigan, with children showing high levels of lead will file a class action lawsuit against the city and state as well as an engineering firm. and happy birthday to actress and comedian wanda sykes who turns 52. "breaking bad" star bryan cranston turns 60, and football hall of famer lynn swann turns 64 today. as always keep it here for more news, weather and sports. thanks for watching "early today." i hope you make it a great monday. 7 soggy roadways and 'standingwat.

but the rain is not through wit there's still some green on r timeline on when we'll see somee sam/vos this morning. and dodging disaster...in pacif with a damaged sea wall, and buy close to falling off a cliff..c. today in the bay, starts rightn. =sam/2shot= good mng - and tnks for joining us. i'm sam brock. =kris/2shot= and i'm kr sahez in for laura g. =kris/anim= weather alert:croclimate =is/live= as a powerful storm l commute. this is a li look asan jose