for some of you the news continues for others check back continues for others check back later for the morning news a captioning funded by cbs it's wednesday, march 14th, 2018. this is the "cbs morning news." groundbreaking physicist stephen hawking dies at 76. hawking refused to allow a debilitating disease to stop his work, which led to major discoveries on black holes and relativity. >> it took a little longer than we thought, but we did it. >> the democratic candidate in the southwestern pennsylvania special election declares victory, but his opponent is not conceding. the house race is too close to

call. and today thousands of students across the nation will take a stand against gun violence by walking out of class one month after the deadly florida high school shooting rampage. good morning from the studio 57 newsroom at cbs news headquarters here in new york. good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. early this morning british physicist stephen hawking died. he was 76 years old. he died peacefully at his home in cambridge. hawking studied the mysteries of space and time, topics few understand. he was known worldwide for his brilliant mind and his body that betrayed him. tina kraus reports on hawking's rather remarkable life. >> reporter: stephen hawking was one of the greatest scientists of our time, often called a 21st century albert einstein, he was famous for his work on the origins of the universe from the big bang to black holes.

diagnosed with lou gehrig's disease as a young man, he was confined to a wheelchair, but hawking was proof you could overcome even the greatest of obstacles. >> i never thought i would get so far. >> reporter: his 1988 book "a brief history of time" became a bestseller and made him an unlikely international celebrity, and a cameo on "the simpsons" brought him greater fame. >> the episode was very funny. most know me through "the simpsons." >> reporter: president obama awarded hawking the medal of freedom for his knowledge of science. he kept on pushing. he took a zero gravity flight in 2007, a lifelong ambition and the first time in 40 years he

could move without his wheelchair. an authority on the past and the future, hawking will be remembered for his brilliant mind and fierce determination. tina kraus, cbs news. in this country, the special congressional race in pennsylvania that attracted nationwide attention is too close to call. with 100% of the precincts counted, democrat conor lamb and republican rick saccone are separated by under 600 votes. the race is seen as a potential bellwether for the upcoming mid election. saccone, a trump supporter, says he will fight to the end. lamb declared victory even though there are outstanding absentee ballots. >> tonight we celebrate regaining our voice and our votes in the great business of governing this country we love. >> it's not over yet. we're going to fight all the way to the end.

you know i never give up. >> today saccone will meet with staff to consider his options. today thousands of students will walk out of school to protest gun violence in this country. nearly 3,000 protests are planned from coast to coast. the action comes one month after the deadly shooting at florida's marjory stoneman douglas high school. nikki battiste is in parkland, florida. good morning, nikki. >> reporter: good morning, anne-marie. students here at stoneman douglas set the stage for the student walkout to honor the classmates that they lost and to fight for gun reform. they will be joined by thousands of students across the country who are expected to march, observe a moment of violence, or wear orange, a color symbolic of gun violence awareness. at exactly 10:00 a.m. students across the u.s. and other parts of the world will walk out for 17 minutes, one minute for each of the victims massacred at park

land's marjory stoneman douglas high school in parkland, florida. >> we the young students are advocating for change and we want change now kwr they . >> reporter: they estimate more than 3,000 schools will participate today. leading the walkout are the students at stoneman douglas high school who started the movement to urge lawmakers to pass tighter gun laws. >> i want people to know stoneman douglas will be the last school this happens to. we want to be the change. we want to be the generation that changes everything. >> reporter: some schools across the country are discouraging students from walking out, even reprimanding them with detention or counting them as absent for the day. new research published in child development shows teenagers who participate in activisik tctivio higher levels of education than teenagers who don't. >> activism may help kids to

develop professional skills, it may help them to connect with social networks that are really important to them, and it may also give them a way to build a sense of their own capacity and potential. >> reporter: another event, the march of our lives rally, is scheduled for march 24th. that demonstration is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of participants. the message here at parkland is never again. they'll not stop until schools are safer and congress takes steps on gun legislation. anne-marie? >> nikki battiste in parkland. thank you so much, nikki. the person charged in the parkland shooting, 19-year-old nikolas cruz is scheduled to appear in court. cruz's lawyers say he'll plead guilty to all charge if the death penalty is taken off the table. secretary of state rex tillerson had vast experience in international business but didn't understand one of the basic rules of washington. do not argue with your boss in public, especially if he's the president of the united states. tillerson's disagreements with

mr. trump cost him his job. margaret brennan reports. >> i received a call today from the president of the united states a little after noontime from "air force one." >> reporter: a shaken rex tillerson relinquished control of the state department. he had been warned in an early saturday morning phone call from white house chief of staff john kelly that his job was in jeopardy. tillerson who had been traveling in africa cut short his trip. hours after he learned he had been fired and was replaced by cia trektder mike pompeo when the president tweeted the news. >> with mike pompeo, we have a different thought process. >> reporter: president trump said he fired america's top diplomat because they disagreed on foreign policy. >> i actually got along well with rex, but really it was a dirnts different mindset.

it was a different thinking. >> reporter: the president said they clashed over the iran nuclear deal. he wants to tear up the international agreement while tillerson cautioned breaking america's commitment could make it harder to reach a deal with north korea. on "face the nation" sunday, director pom pea yeo skirted questions about whether tillerson would leave those talks. >> tillerson said this would be done through him is. that still the plan? >> this is a level, the president is going to drive this effort, this negotiation, but it will take a team to build out the picture. >> reporter: the president also had rejected tillerson's advice to stick to the u.s. commitment to the paris climate accord and drew out the advice and an asia-pacific-free detail. he also overruled tillerson and instead took jared kushner's advice to relocate the embassy in jerusalem to israel this year. he told tillerson he had no plans to resign and did not deny he called president trump a moron in a private meeting. >> did you call the president a moron? >> i'm not going to dignify the question.

we've got so many bigger issues that we could be talking about. >> reporter: it was tillerson's experience as exxonmobil mogul that originally convinced mr. trump to appoint him. now he plans to retire back to his ranch in texas. >>'ll now return to private life, to private citizen as a proud american, proud of the opportunity i've had to serve my country. >> that was margaret brennan reporting. president trump heads to st. louis today to discuss economic growth after making his recent visit to california since his election. mr. trump inspected prototypes for the wall he wants to build along the mexican border and had some harsh words for the existing barrier. >> we have a lousy wall over here, but at least it stops 90%, 95%. when we put up the real wall, we're going to stop 99%, maybe more than that. >> the president also blasted california governor jerry brown. he accused brown of putting the entire nation at risk by

refusing to take tough action against illegal immigrants. three illinois men are under arrest in the suspected bombing of a mosque last summer. they were charged. no one was injured. the men are also suspects in the attempted bombing of an illinois abortion clinic. investigators are trying to figure out why a bus carrying texas of a high school band left the highway and plunged down a ravine in alabama. the band was coming home from a music festival at disney world yesterday morning. most band members were asleep when disaster struck. >> i woke up and the band director who was now driving was at the front and saying hairy, hairy, hairy like a hairy situation and felt a huge bump and everything went black. >> the bus driver was killed, three were injured, six in serious condition.

coming up on the morning news now, pet tragedy. an airline is apologizing to a dog owner for a heartbreaking accident. and another white house exit. why the president's assistant was fired. this is the "cbs morning news." ssistant was fired. this is the "cbs morning news." on stage. e i wanted to be clear. i wanted it to last. so i kept on fighting. i found something that worked. and keeps on working. now? they see me. see me. see if cosentyx could make a difference for you- cosentyx is proven to help people with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...find clear skin that can last. don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx. before starting cosentyx, you should be checked for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms. or if you have received a vaccine or plan to. if you have inflammatory bowel disease, tell your doctor if symptoms develop or worsen. serious allergic reactions may occur.

never give up. see me. see me. clear skin can last. don't hold back... ...ask your dermatologist if cosentyx can help you find clear skin that lasts. enjoy the season with a great deal on a new toyota. like low apr financing on the technology-loaded corolla... ...the adventurous rav4... ...the rugged tundra and more! i'm rebuilding the deck?? yep. okay.. right now, start your spring with great savings on an incredible selection of our most popular models. offers end april 2nd. for great deals on other toyotas, visit toyota.com. ready, set, go get your toyota today. toyota. let's go places. here's the story of green mountain coffee roasters sumatra reserve. let's go to sumatra. the coffee here is amazing. because the volcanic soil is amazing. so we give farmers like win more plants. to grow more delicious coffee. which helps provide for win's family. all, for a smoother tasting cup of coffee. green mountain coffee roasters.

only tylenol® rapid release gels have laser drilled holes. they release medicine fast, for fast pain relief. tylenol® people in new england are shoveling out after a fierce nor'easter. some areas got 2 feet of snow yesterday. there were also hurricane-force winds. it's the third major storm in two weeks, and at one point more than a quarter million people were without power in massachusetts, connecticut, and rhode island. another white house staffer has lost his job, and a pet tragedy on an airline flight. those are some of the headlines on the morning newsstand. "the new york times" reports an united airlines apologized after a passenger's dog died in an overhead compartment. this video may be disturbing.

this woman was traveling with her two children and french bulldog on monday night from houston to new york. she ordered her to put the dog in the overhead inbound because it was obstructing the aisles. despite the passenger's objections. when the plane landed, she opened the bin to get her dog. >> she opened the kennel and he wasn't responding. she picked him up and started shaking him and that's when she realized that he was dead. >> well, united says pets should never be placed in the overhead bin. "the wall street journal" report's president trump's personal assistant was fired. he was escorted from the white house monday. he was reportedly denied a financial clearance over financial problems related to online gambling and mishandling of his taxes. yesterday the presidential campaign said macatee will join the 2020 campaign as a senior adviser for operations.

>> "the hill" says a police officer accidentally fired his gun while on assignment at a washington area middle school. alexandria, virginia, police say the unidentified school resource officer fired the shot while inside his office at george washington middle school yesterday morning. no one was hurt. the officer reported the incident to his supervisor and the school. he'll be placed on temporary leave. and another story of a gun going off inside a school. "the californian" reports that a teacher who also serves as a reserve police officer and city councilman accidently fired a gun in a school. he was lecturing about safety in a seaside high school yesterday when he fired a shot. he pointed the gun at the ceiling and one student suffered a minor injury. still to come, queen's salary. a pay inequity scandal hits a popular tv show, "the crown." scandal hits a popular tv show, "the crown."

their pro-v formula is like a multi-vitamin. making your hair 2x stronger see the difference when you add 3 minute miracle daily conditioner. your body was made for better things than rheumatiod arthritis. before you and your rheumatologist f^.^ you. k if xeljanz xr is right for xeljanz xr is a once-daily pill for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well. it can reduce pain, swelling and further joint damage, even without methotrexate. xeljanz xr can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections, lymphoma and other cancers have happened. don't start xeljanz xr if you have an infection. tears in the stomach or intestines, low blood cell counts and higher liver tests and cholesterol levels have happened. your doctor should perform blood tests before you start and while taking xeljanz xr, and monitor certain liver tests. tell your doctor if you were in a region where fungal infections are common and if you have had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections.

xeljanz xr can reduce the symptoms of ra, even without methotrexate. ask your rheumatologist about xeljanz xr. righbreakfast sandwichesese delifor just $4.ld's mix and match the bacon, egg & cheese mcgriddles, the sausage mcmuffin with egg, or bacon, egg & cheese biscuit. a deal that will make your morning routine, a little better. breakfast at mcdonald's here's a look at today's forecast in some cities around the country. on the "cbs moneywatch," pay inequality hits the netflix show "the crown." diane king hall is at the new york stock exchange with that and more. good morning, diane. >> good morning, anne-marie. investors will be watching for

signs of inflation when the latest producer price index is released this morning. meantime news of rex tillerson's firing had little impact on wall street, however, stocks fell on worries over protectionism and impacts to tariffs on industry. the dow slumped 71 points. the s&p 500 fell 17 points. the nasdaq lost 77 points. singapore-based chip maker broadcom is expected to officially announce it is ending its bid for qualcomm. the president blocked it this week on behalf of national security concerns. qualcomm chips are used in half of all smartphones. the mega merger would have been the biggest ever tech deal. and the executive producers of netflix drama "the crown" admit that the show's star claire foy was paid less than co-star matt smith. foy won numerous awards. matt smith was paid more than foy for the first two seasons of the show.

the show's executive claims that's because he came to the show after starring in the popular british tv series do "doctor who." anne-marie. still ahead, olympic glory. an american snowboarder wins big at the paralympics in pyeongchang. and if you have heart failure, entrusting your heart to entresto may help. entresto is a heart failure medicine that helps improve your heart's ability to pump blood to the body. in the largest heart failure study ever, entresto was proven superior at helping people stay alive and out of the hospital compared to a leading heart failure medicine. don't take entresto if pregnant. it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren. if you've had angioedema while taking an ace or arb medicine, don't take entresto. the most serious side effects are angioedema,

low blood pressure, kidney problems, or high blood potassium. ask your doctor about entresto. and help make more tomorrows possible. ♪ president trump is doing so far. plus, this iraq war vet killed 3 female hostages in the north bay. why his legal guardians say he's also a victim. and an election too close to call... why experts say the race in pennsylvania... could signal a shaky future for the trump campaign. join us for kpix 5 news this morning... beginning at 4:30. good morning. it's wednesday, march 14th. you could generate your own energy,

at home. or to save energy, unplug unused appliances. do your thing, with energy upgrade california. here's a look at today's forecast in some cities around the country. athletes from around the world are competing at the paralympic games in pyeongchang, south korea. the u.s. leads the way with eight gold medals. one of the winners is baton rouge snowboarder bre na huckaby. huckaby lost her right leg to bone cancer at the age of 14. she's also the first ever amputee athlete to pose for

"sports illustrated" swimsuit edition. >> to see, you know, myself out there just showing you you're perfect no matter how you are, i inspired myself. like it was incredible. >> huckaby dedicated her gold medal to her 2-year-old daughter. and an amputee in illinois is working to make her life more comfortable for other people using prosthetics. troy malone had to have his right leg amputated below the knee due to an accident at work in 2014. he started a clothing line for prosthetics wearers called ampu wear. he hopes to sell jeans fitted with zippers by the end of the year. coming up on "cbs this morning" in the series "note to self," the most winningest basketball coach mike krzyzewski

shares a heartfelt message to his younger self. i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news." ♪ oh, look... another anti-wrinkle cream in no hurry to make anything happen. neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair® works in just one week. with the fastest retinol formula available. it's clinically proven to work on fine lines and wrinkles. one week? that definitely works! rapid wrinkle repair®. and for dark spots, rapid tone repair. neutrogena®. see what's possible. why is dark magic so spell-bindingly good? it's a bold blend of coffee with rich flavors of uganda, sumatra, colombia and other parts of south america. like these mountains, each amazing on their own. but together? magical. all, for a smoother tasting cup of coffee. green mountain coffee roasters. she pretty much lives in her favorite princess dress. but once a week

i let her play sheriff so i can wash it. i use tide to get out those week old stains and downy to get it fresh and soft. you are free to go. tide and downy together. trusyou and lantus. you go together, so stay together. ♪ stay together with a $0 copay, you've got zero reasons to leave, and every reason to stay. lantus is used to control high blood sugar in people with diabetes. do not use lantus to treat diabetic ketoacidosis, during episodes of low blood sugar, or if you're allergic to insulin. get medical help right away if you have a serious allergic reaction such as body rash or trouble breathing. don't reuse needles or share insulin pens. the most common side effect is low blood sugar which can be life-threatening. it may cause shaking, sweating, fast heartbeat, and blurred vision. check your blood sugar levels daily. injection site reactions may occur. don't change your dose of insulin without talking to your doctor. tell your doctor about all your medicines and medical conditions. check insulin label each time you inject. taking tzds with insulins like lantus

may cause heart failure that can lead to death. stay together with the lantus $0 copay. ♪ let's stay together talk to your doctor or visit saveonlantus.com. our top stories this morning, physicist stephen hawking has died. he was 76 years old and suffered with als since he was 21. hawking studied and wrote about the mysteries of space and time, becoming one of the biggest celebrities in science. his life was chronicled in the 2014 film "the theory of everything." hawking died at his home in cambridge. and the closely watched congressional race in pennsylvania is too close to call. democrat conor lamb and republican rick saccone are separated by 600 votes. it's drawn national attention

because it's seen as a possible predictor of the upcoming elections. president trump and england is calling for russia to come clean on the poisoning of former spy in england. meanwhile another spy has turned up dead. >> the body of nikolai glushkov came monday night. and it comes two weeks after sergei skripal and his daughter were poisoned. by a military nerve agent made in russia. he now joins a list of 14 other russians who have died on british soil, some under mysterious circumstances and whose cases are now being reviewed. skripal and his daughter yulia remain in critical condition as does the first police detective on the scene. novichok is a particularly lethal nerve agent. >> it's an unbelievably cruel and unplaentd way to go. >> reporter: toxicologist andrea

sella says it wouldn't take much. >> in terms of the amount you're talking about, you're talking a few drops are sufficient to actually do away with someone. the real question is how you deliver it. >> reporter: sella says novichok is made by mixing two compounds together and is instantly lethal. it's usually found as a liquid and can be sprayed or swallowed. >> we speak of these as weapons of terror. they really are. >> reporter: meanwhile in russia foreign minister sergey lavrov dismissed the allegation s as nonsense and demanded the british hand over a sample of the nerve agent. the russians had until midnight to provide some explanation of how that nerve agent made it to britain. now it's up to prime minister theresa may to follow up on her threats to increase sanctions, freeze the assets of russian oligarchs here, and maybe excess

d expel diplomats. charlie d'agata, cbs news, london. coming up on "cbs this morning," norah reports from saudi arabia and meets with women who are preparing to take the wheel as the country lifts its long-standing driving ban. plus an alarming rise in snorkel-related deaths. we'll look at one type of mask that is raising safety concerns. and in the series "note to self" the most winning basketball coach mike krzyzewski share as heartfelt message to his younger self. that's the "cbs morning news" for this wednesday. thanks for watching. i'm anne-marie green. have a great day. watching. watching. i'm -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

i'm michelle griego. and i'm kenny choi. good morning everyone. it is wednesday, march 14. you are taking a live look at the golden gate bridge. it is still wet out there.

another morning with rain drops on the windshield. good morning. >> good morning. let's get a check of the forecast and traffic. >> the wet weather will last until saturday, so get used to it. it will be on a not showers. you may think it is over momentarily, but as you see, slick roads out there. your headlines today include on and off rain throughout the morning. this afternoon we could see a chance of thunderstorms and again tomorrow as this cold front is bringing unstable air. it will feel chilly as well. afternoon high of about 10 degrees colder than yesterday. the snow is coming down pretty strong right now. we will track it all for you on doppler coming up. we are tracking an accident that will slow down super commuters this morning. this is westbound 205. this is due to