for more news download the cbs news app on your cell phone or connect to tv. i'm tom hanson, cbs news, new york. . it's tuesday, march 15th, 2022. this is the "cbs morning news." lethal assault. russia continues hammering cities in ukraine, even as more peace talks are scheduled today. no war. how a woman crashed the set of a live russian news program to protest the invasion. we're coming for you, that's the bottom line. we're coming for you. >> gunman warned, the search intensifies in two cities for a man suspected of shooting at least five homeless people including two fatally. captioning funded by cbs captioning fd by cbs good morning and good to be with you.

i'm anne-marie green. russia and ukraine are holding another round of peace talks today as russia continues to b bombard cities across the country. projectiles were seen over the city's skyline. drone footage shows residential buildings ruined in the besieged city of mariupol. officials say shelling by russia's military is preventing humanitarian aid from being delivered to people who desperately needed and they're calling it a nightmare. the white house is considering whether president biden should travel to europe in the coming weeks for face-to-face talks with european leaders about the war. laura podesta is in new york with all of this. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. that trip has not been finalized, but one possibility is that president biden will visit nato headquarters in belgium on march 24th and make other stops in europe. the russian offensive has

largely stalled on the ground in ukraine. >> some of that is due to their own stumbles and missteps and logistical problems but a lot of it is due to the ukrainian resistance. >> reporter: the kremlin has responded by stepping up their aerial barrage. missiles continue to rain down on kyiv and other cities. despite the bombardment president volodymyr zelenskyy said his government would continue to hold cease-fire talks with russia. zelenskyy is scheduled to deliver a virtual address to the u.s. congress tomorrow. he's expected to urge lawmakers to send more military and humanitarian aid. >> we will not allow any country to compensate russia for its losses. >> reporter: the white house warned china not to interfere after moscow reportedly asked beijing for weapons and cash. >> should they provide military or other assistance, that, of course, violates sanctions or supports the war effort, that there will be significant consequences. >> reporter: nearly 3 million

people have already fled from the violence in ukraine, according to the u.n. poland has received more than half of the refugees. the cease-fire negotiations will take place over a video link. the initial talks had been held face-to-face in belarus. anne-marie, yesterday, ukraine's prosecutor general said the two sides have also discussed a prisoner exchange. >> all right. laura podesta in new york. laura, thank you so much. well, some of the most intense fighting is in southern ukraine. as chris livesay reports, russia is trying to take over the black sea coast. >> reporter: it's a war of annihilation in the words of ukraine's president. nowhere is that more clear than mariupol. a child cries for her father, trapped on the balcony of their shelled apartment block in russia's brutal siege of the

extra teej strategic port city, it's not just a blast but a blockade, cutting off thousands of people from food, water, heat, and electricity. local authorities say more than 2,500 civilians have now been killed here since the war began. and russia's ruthless drive to conquer ukraine's black sea coast. british military intelligence says russian warships like these training in the black sea last month have already isolated it from maritime trade and travel as putin sets his sights on the former crown jewel of the russian empire, odesa, today ukraine's biggest port and home to its navy. but to get there, they're trying to force their way through mykolaiv. the scene of fierce and indiscriminate shelling for days, this weekend kill three people hiding in a bomb shelter beneath a school. the city of half a million people is now half deserted, and those brave enough to step

outside need to prepare for urban guerilla warfare. civilians are donating their old tires to set on fire to disorient the enemy, while soldiers mobilize the artillery, anything to save their city and to save the sea. >> that was chris livesay reporting. now, russia is cracking down on independent journalism, has been doing that since the invasion. but one protester tried to get her message across on live television. an anchor was speaking during a newscast when a woman appeared with a sign that said "no war" in english. there was also a message in russian calling on people not to believe in russian propaganda. the lady who was later arrested was reportedly an employee at the station. later we'll talk with stephanie power. she'll address the growing humanitarian crisis as more ukrainian citizens flee their country.

the mayors of new york city and washington, d.c., are asking for the public's help in finding a man who shot five homeless people in the last two weeks. two of the victims died. investigators released a new close-up surveillance video of the suspect. the attacks began march 3rd in washington. authorities say that the gunman -- the gun, rather, was used -- the same gun was used in all five shootings. >> we don't want to lose another resident in this city, in new york, or anywhere else. this person is carrying out a premeditative act of shooting innocent people. >> a $70,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the suspect's arrest. china is seeing its biggest outbreak of covid cases since the beginning of the pandemic. health officials reported about 3,500 infections today. that is more than double from

the day before. there's been more than 10,000 cases in china since the beginning of the month. most of the new cases are in the northeast part of the country. no deaths, however, have been reported. >> and a florida judge is permanently preventing the release of photog, records into the investigation of comedian bob saget. the judge said he would issue a permanent injunction that was requested by saget's family. the 65-year-old star of "full house" was found dead in january in an orlando hotel room. the medical examiner said saget died from an accidental blow to the head, likely from a fall backward. well, coming up, cooperation in space. an american astronaut on the international space station is set to return home in a russian capsule. what nasa is saying. and later dolly parton bowing out. her surprise announcement regarding her rock and roll hall of fame nomination. this is the "cbs morning news." hall of fame nomination. this is the "cbs morning news."

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a bill in idaho to ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy is headed to the governor. yesterday the state house passed the laej legislation, which is modeled after the six-week ban on abortion in texas. it's already passed the state senate and is expected to be signed by republican governor brad little. the bill allows family members to sue a doctor who performs an abortion after six weeks. a pro wrestling star has died, and nasa weighs in on an american astronaut catching a ride with russia. the "associated press" reports on american astronaut onboard the international space station who will return to earth on a russian spacecraft despite growing tensions over the invasion of ukraine. nasa says mark vande hei is scheduled to board a soyuz

capsule with two cosmonauts. it will touch down in kazakhstan. they say there's no sign of tension between the american and crew members. >> when you're in space, there's no borders. you don't see country lines or state lines. the teams continue to work together. are they aware of what's going on on earth, absolutely. the teams are professional. the astronauts and cosmonauts are some of the most professional groups you'll ever see. >> today vande hei breaks the single flight record of 340 days. espn says professional wrestling legend and hall of famer scott hall has died. he broke his hip last month and suffered complications during surgery to repair it over the weekend. hall nicknamed the bad guy revolutionized wresting as a member of the founding faction.

he was the wwf in 1996 where he was known as a razor raymond to sign with ww. scott hall was 63 years old. house and senate officials are considering a phased reopening of the u.s. capitol complex after shutting down due to the pandemic. since march of 2020, the general public has not been allowed to enter the complex. only lawmakers, staff, the press, and official visitors have been allowed in. the first phase of the proposal if agreed to would start march 28th. it would allow for tours of up to 15 people to resume. still ahead, thankful to be alive, what a major league baseball star is saying after surviving a car crash on the way to spring training. surviving a car crash on the way to spring training. welcome to allstate. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ here, you don't have to love cars to save when you bundle your home and auto. but if that's what you're into. that's cool. bundle and save up to 25% with allstate.

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here's a look at today's forecast in some cities around the country. well, apple users, you can keep your mask on.

the tech giant rolled out a new update yesterday this allows people to unlock their phone calls without taking off their face covering. this applies to the iphone 12 and newer smartphones. you'll have to rescan your face, though, after the update. previously the only way to use face i.d. with a mask required an apple watch. on the "cbs moneywatch" now, the gender pay gap, and betting on march madness is expected to hit an all-time high. diane king hall is in new york with those stories and more. good morning, diane. good morning, ann marie. stock futures are pointing to a flat open this morning. investors are assessing the economic impact of new covid outbreaks in china. key manufacturing plants in china have been locked down to an increase in cases. yesterday the dow edged up a point while the nasdaq fell 262, closing at its lowest level since december of 2020. the s&p 500 lost 31. today is equal pay day. it marks how far women have to

earn to equal what men made in the previous year. the white house says women earned 83 cents for every dollar man made back in 2020. a recent glassdoor study found that 41% of employed women say the gender pay gap is a serious problem at their company. costco is ending special hours for seniors, health care workers, and first responders. the big box retail chain made the announcement yesterday. it's held its special operating hours for the past two years because of the pandemic, but the last day will be april 17th. the hours also apply to people with disabilities or those who are immunocompromised. these special hours currently run from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on tuesdays around thursdays. and have you filled out your march madness bracket yet? americans are expected to spend more than $3 billion on this year's college basketball tournament. that's according to the american gaming association. roughly 45 million americans plan to make at least one wager. since last year, 29 million more

people can legally bet thanks to new sports betting markets in several states. anne-marie? >> see, i don't know much about basketball, so i filled out a break it, but i'm just like filling it out, but what we do here is we have a snacket. >> i like it. i like it. >> it's where we pick our favorite snacks, diane. that's where i'm an expert. >> i want in on that. i've won before, but it was completely a fluke. yes, i want in on the snacket this year. >> all right, all right. i'll get you a form. diane king hall in new york. diane, thank you so much. >> thank you. up next, ready for lift-off, a "saturday night live" comedian is the latest to launch into space. ♪ new activia plus. ♪ ♪ c, d, zinc. no need to think. ♪ ♪ head over heels. get a+feels. ♪ new activia plus with nutrients to help support your immune system. start with activia. your gut is where it all begins. start with activia.

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here's a look at today's forecast in some cities around the country. ♪ everywhere i hear the sound ♪ well, the rolling stones are embarking on a new tour to mark their 60th anniversary. the group announced they'll kick off their new tour called 60 in madrid on june 1st.

they'll tour ten countries. the drummer charlie watts died last year at the age of 80. country music stardolly parton is saying thanks but no thanks to the rock and roll hall of fame nomination. while she's extremely grateful she's pulling out of this year's nominations. she says, i don't feel i've earned that right. i really do not want votes to be split because of me, so i must respectfully bow out. par on the is a member of the country music hall of fame. >> and new york mets first baseman pete alonso says he is thankful to be alive after his truck flipped over three times in an accident. yesterday alonso told reporters he was driving his vehicle sunday to the mets spring training camp when he was hit by a car that ran through a red light. his wife was following in another car. she posted videos on social media.

alonso had to kick the windshield to get out of his mangled truck. >> for me, i'm thankful to be alive, to be healthy. i'm thankful to be here. anything can happen at any given moment. i'm super, super blessed to be here. >> alonso thanked ford for great engineering. and "saturday night live" star pete davidson is the latest celebrity to edge to the edge of space. jeff bay o''s blue origin says the comedian will be one of its four passengers with others on board. it will lift off from texas next week. the ten-minute flight allows passengers to experience weightlessness. he's an honorary guest while the other passengers are all paying an undisclosed amount. coming up only on "cbs mornings,"" a behind-the-scenes look of the training of air marshals who keep our after sayre. i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news." keep our air safe. i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news."

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our top stories this morning, russia and ukraine are holding another round of peace talks today as russian forces continue to bombard cities across the country. while russia's offensive has largely stalled on the ground, the kremlin has responded by stepping up its aerial barrage. meanwhile in the besieged city of mariupol, officials say a convoy of 160 civilian cars was allowed to escape along a designated humanitarian route. previous attempts to evacuate civilians and deliver aid had failed. sources tell cbs news president biden is deciding whether to travel to europe to

talk face-to-face to european leaders about the war. one possible location is brussels, which is the headquarters for nato. the war in ukraine has many americans boycotting businesses and products including vodka, but as bradley blackburn explains, they may not have the impact you suggest. >> reporter: if there's proof in the power of symbols, it's there in washington. since 2020, they've been bottling their all-american vodka with an image of the u.s. capitol on the front. now they're getting orders from customers making a political statement. >> we're seeing customers being excited it's local and voicing their concern about making sure they're not buying a brand coming from russia. >> reporter: it's an unexpected boost from this brand as russian vodkas are being pulled from liquor store shelves and bars. the truth is very little vodka consumed in the u.s. is russian.

last year only 1% of imports came from russia according to the u.s. dill distillery association. at new york's russian vodka room, there's now a ukrainian flag outside, and behind the bar, no actual russian vodka. >> these are from holland. this is from holland. that's ketel one. miroff, that's from ukraine. >> reporter: the bartender is polish, still business here dropped 80% after the invasion. >> people hate everything with russia now. >> reporter: the russian association is hurting big companies too. stolichnaya is changing its name to just stoli. its spirits are now 100% non--russian. >> russia is not -- russian vodka is not just a russian thing. she said the wrong backlash can hurt the wrong victims. >> we're not supporting the war. we're trying to make a living. >> reporter: something she hopes people remember when they're trying to take a shot at russia. coming up on "cbs mornings," the growing humanitarian crisis

in ukraine. we're going to speak with samantha power, former u.s. ambassador to the united nations. plus only on "cbs mornings" a behind-the-scenes look of the training for air marshals who keep you safe in the skies. and we'll speak with the director of the oscar-nominated documentary "flee," which tells the story of a refugee's journey. that's the "cbs morning news" for this tuesday. thanks for watching. i'm anne-marie green. have a great day. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com