eye on the prize. illinois is up for grabs, and the results could shake up the republican presidential race. rapid melt. time-lapse video captures the spring thaw of a lake in minnesota. and center stage. one of the most high-profile women in the world makes her big debut. good morning, everyone. i'm lynn berry. those stories and more are straight ahead. this is "first look" on msnbc. we're going to begin this morning with a big swing state. in the republican race for the white house, all eyes are on illinois. voters head to the polls in that

state's primary today where a convincing victory for front-runner mitt romney would make it very difficult for his rivals to keep running. nbc's tracie potts joins us with more on that from washington. tracii, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. rick santorum is hoping to do well in illinois, but it's going to be an uphill battle for him. meantime, mitt romney, even though he is the front-runner at this point, is not taking the land of lincoln for granted. >> these pan takes are something else, i'll tell you. >> reporter: mitt romney in his third day campaigning in illinois the land of reagan and obama. >> i'm looking for the nod here in illinois. >> reporter: romney is up nine pointes, santorum is the underdog, ineligible because he filed paperwork too late. on monday, santorum tried to redwrien the key interest in this race. >> don't care about the unemployment rate is. >> i do care about the

unemployment rate. it does bother me. i want to get people back to work. >> reporter: then santorum clarified. >> of course i care about the unemployment rate. i want it do go down. but i'm saying my candidacy doesn't hinge on whether it goes up or down. >> reporter: it's today's numbers, the illinois vote, which mitt romney hope solidifies a win. >> a loss in illinois or even a narrow win by romney will certainly seed a lot of doubts about the strength of his candidacy. >> for now, no question, romney has pulled ahead at least in terms of the official delegate count. nbc's latest tally, 443 delegates for romney, 184 for rick santorum. lynn? >> tracie, thanks. our coverage begins with "way too early" and "morning joe," continuing to prime-time. don't miss a minute of our

special coverage of the illinois primary here on msnbc, the place for politics. elsewhere, nbc news has obtained the republican party's proposed new budget, which will be unveiled later today, and in it the gop will propose massive tax reform by consolidating the six current tax brackets into just two, 10% and 25%. the plan would also repeal the alternate minimum tax and reduce the corporate tax rate to 25%. the budget promises to it decrease loopholes and tax subsidies and it does not specify who would qualify for which of the two tax brackets. the justice department and fbi have opened an investigation into the shooting of a black teenager in florida last month. unarmed 17-year-old trayvon martin was killed by a neighborhood watch captain, george zimmerman, who has not been charged. on a 911 tape, zimmerman was specifically told by police not to pursue martin, who was

walking home. on another tape martin can be heard begging for his life before being shot by zimmer machb who claimed self-defense. more than 435,000 have signed an online petition calling for zimmerman's arrest. well, the shooting of trayvon martin has brauts out a public outcry and the teenager's family is now demanding justice. last night on "politics nation," tracy marlten, trayvon's father, talked about his son's murder and also his character. >> we don't want our son's death to be in vein. we're looking for answers. we haven't received any answers. and we just don't understand, you know -- i don't have any understanding as to why my son is dead to this it day. he was an upbeat individual. i tried my best to groom him to be an upstanding citizen, to be

that man that society doesn't want us to be. i wanted him to explore things, you know. he had admirations of being an aviation mechanic. trayvon never had a run-in with the law. i was molding my son to be a man, a young man, and that was taken away from me. that was taken away from his mother. and it's devastating. >> "politics nation" is weekdays at 6:00 p.m. eastern here on msnbc. here's your first look at some of the other news going on around america today. several boats went up in flames last night at a yacht club in san diego. at least three vessels were destroyed, a fourth damaged. this all happened in mission bay, not far from the seaworld resort. no word yet on the cause of the fire. surveillance video shows a

tleef smashing his way into cases at an indiana jewelry store last month. he and two other burglars managed to get their hands on less-expensive watches and jewels using a bin to collect the stolen goods. police are hoping blood drops left at the scene will help them find the suspects. and finally, this is pretty cool. take a look at this time-lapse video of what's being cold an ice-out. as another day of warm weather finally melted a minneapolis lake for the season. this all happened on monday, which fittingly was the last full day of winter. at least on the calendar. we use quotations around "winter." it took 90 months for the lake to thaw. temperatures have been shattered this year in and around the twin cities. for a look at your national and regional weather, here's bill karins. good morning. >> i think i have a tan.

>> just for being out for a few hours. bill got out the baby oil and the mirror thing. >> no. you missed it. i was out with the baby. >> there you go. all the same. >> kind of the same. good morning, everyone. incredible warm temperatures from the midwest to the great lakes, but we're paying the price in tex it tastexas. that's where things are changing. it was warm and now it's cold. the it clash is producing large, large thunderstorms. this little image captured a tornado, it appears to be on the ground in devine, texas. no real big reports of damage with that. but we're watching too much water in texas. funny, we've had such drought conditions over the last couple of years, hard to even talk about flooding from heavy rain because it's so beneficial. this is too much rain too fast from the slow moving thunderstorms. san antonio picked up two to three inches of rain in two hours last night, still problems with water on the roads there. now we're watching areas like waco and dallas, it's just

continuing to rain and it's been raining all night lochk. so that morning commute won't be fun. even around austin we've received reports of heavy rain. the little white flashes on the map are lightning strikes. we've had thousands of them. in the last hour, we've had over 12 it,000 lightning strikes from this line of storms through texas. very active weather. the maroon color is flash it flood warnings, tulsa got drenched with flash flooding, too, yesterday. there are all the problems with water around austin and san antonio. who's next? this line of storms will weaken this morning, re-form this afternoon. then from little rock through louisiana, you are going to get a lot of heavy rain the next two days. as far as the temperatures went yesterday, i was talking to lynn earlier, i mean, it was just incredible. we were in some areas near albany, new york, near 80 degrees, wisconsin near 80, minneapolis at 79, and even this morning we're starting chicago at 68. if you're starting at 68, just look how warm you'll be on your

first day of spring. lynn, in the 80s. >> what? >> it's chicago. chicago today, lynn, will be the sixth day in a row of record heat. >> they're shaking their heads i've talked to them. everyone is enjoying it. bill, thanks so much. coming up, al he keeps shining, oil keeps climbing and your new number two in burgers. coming up, bad news for the north carolina tar heels. the devils and rangers duke it out and peyton manning has draitdrai traded in his colt for a bronco. you're watching "first look" on msnbc.

your finances can't manage themselves. but that doesn't mean they won't try. bring all your finances together with the help of the one person who can. a certified financial planner professional. cfp. let's make a plan. [ female announcer ] nature valley granola bars, rich dark chocolate, toasted oats. perfect combinations of nature's delicious ingredients,

from nature valley. ♪ nature valley granola bars, nature at its most delicious.

welcome back to "first look." i'm lynn berry. police in france are conducting a massive manhunt for the person who shot and killed three children and a teacher yesterday at a jewish school in southwest france. authorities say the same gun was also used in two other

shootings. local police who normally don't carry weapons have been issued guns. the lawyer for sergeant robert bales says his client remembers very little about the killing of 16 afghan civilians. bales' wife said in a statement that she, too, wants to it know what happened. and it's reported that bales owes $1.5 million from a 2003 arbitration that found him guilty of securities fraud. and in eastern china, a 2300-foot-long highway bridge was demolished by more than a ton of kmroesives after they clean up all the debris, they will start building a new highway system. well, england's newest royal, the duchess of cambridge, came through her latest test in the public eye with flying colors. her husband prince william of course is in military duty and kate made her first speech as part of the royal family. >> reporter: it was the last

remaining hurdle to be seen and heard. the duchess of cambridge has mastered the winning smile, gotten to grips with the discreet pleasantry and now in ipswich she arrived with a speech in her pocket. kate did first what she does best, putting children at their ease. but the focus here at the tree house hospice was on her first public address, a small room, a few invited guests, but intense scrutiny. >> i'm only sorry that william can't be here today. he would love it here. a few of his that i share is that through teamwork so much can be achieved. what you have all achieved here is extraordinary. >> reporter: she was clearly relieved at the end. another box ticked on the list of royal duties performed in prince william's absence. if kate ever did have any doubts about flying solo, she's put

them behind her. the walk-abouts, the tree planting, and now the public address. they apparently hold no fear for her. william is expected to return from his tour of duty in the falk lands later this week. he will find that the wife he once steered through public engagements like this is now more than comfortable in public on her own. itv news, ipswich. and now let's get your first look at how wall street will kick off the dow. the dow opens at 13,239 after adding 6 points yesterday, s&p up 5, nasdaq gaining 23. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo,ed nikkei at the 12 points but the hang seng tumbled 27. apple vstdors got the long-awaited news that the world's most profitable company will soon begin sharing ilgts wealth. in a departure from the days of steve jobs, successor tim cook

revealed apple will begin paying a tiff dend of $2.65 a share later this year in addition to launching a $10 billion stock buyback program. apple hit another historic high, closing above $600 for the first time. meanwhile, an analyst downgrade sent next tell spiring with predictions that future iphone versions could dauz a disconnect with spring's network. elsewhere, a healthy analyst upgrade gave u.s. steel a 6% boost. the price of oil continued to climb, bubbling up more than $1 a barrel to settle above $108. on the economic front, news that u.s. home builders sentiment was unchanged in march failed to trigger much market movement. u.p.s. climbed 3% on news of its deal to buy europe's second largest express mail company. elsewhere, amazon is buying kiva systems for $775 million, a robot maker.

the new york mets owners and trustee for bernard madoff's victims have settled out of court for $162 million though that figure will likely be reduced. the mets have been accused of knowingly profiting from madoff's ponzi scheme. on the fast food frofrnt, wendy's have dethroned burger king for the first time ever. and what better way to welcome spring than a little free fried food? right? well, you can go to outback steak ithouse. they're giving away blooming onions today to help you bloom into spring. just today. run, don't walk. coming up, injury threatens the tar heels' tournament a milestone night in chicago. plus, a battle royale from the opening face-off sparks the victory over the devils. your first look at sports is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. i think it's final seconds, ohh, down by two, shoots a three, game over.

so two seconds ago... hey mr. and mrs. harris, where's kevin? say hi kevin. hi. mom, put me down. put...the phone...down. hey guys. did you hear... the choys had their baby? so 29 seconds ago. well we should get them a gift. [ choys ] thanks for the gift! [ amy and rob ] you're welcome! you're welcome! [ male announcer ] get it fast with at&t. the nation's largest 4g network. at&t. ♪ but sometimes i wonder... what's left behind? [ female announcer ] purifying facial cleanser from neutrogena® naturals. removes 99% of dirt and toxins without dyes, parabens or harsh sulfates. so skin feels pure and healthy. [ female announcer ] from neutrogena® naturals. [ kareem ] i was fascinated by balsa wood airplanes since i was a kid. [ mike ] i always wondered how did an airplane get in the air. at ge aviation, we build jet engines. we lift people up off the ground to 35 thousand feet. these engines are built by hand with very precise assembly techniques. [ mike ] it's gonna fly people around the world. safely and better than it's ever done before.

it would be a real treat to hear this monster fire up. [ jaronda ] i think a lot of people, when they look at a jet engine, they see a big hunk of metal. but when i look at it, i see seth, mark, tom, and people like that who work on engines every day. [ tom ] i would love to see this thing fly. [ kareem ] it's a dream, honestly. there it is. oh, wow. that's so cool! yeah, that was awesome! [ cheering ] [ tom ] i wanna see that again. ♪ ♪ when your chain of supply goes from here to shanghai,

that's logistics. ♪ ♪ chips from here, boards from there track it all through the air, that's logistics. ♪ ♪ clearing customs like that hurry up no time flat that's logistics. ♪ ♪ all new technology ups brings to me, that's logistics. ♪ welcome back to "first look." i'm lynn berry. in nfl, the most coveted free agent ever, peyton mavenmanning, will make his new home in the miami high city. here's nbc's fred rogen. >> good morning. peyton manning is back on the horse. the former colts' quarterback is negotiating a deal with the denver broncos. believed he'll sign for five years and nearly $5 million. it marks the end of tebow mania in denver. they're expected to trade him. college hoops, north

carolina title hopes took a hint. marshall broke a bone in his wrist and underwent surgery. tar heels have not completely ruled him out from playing against ohio friday. to chicago where the bulls embarrass the magic. all this without the mvp derrick rose. carlos boozer stepped up in his absence, a game-high 24. bulls ran all over the magic, 85-59. to a niail-biter, hawks and celtics, atlanta down 4, joe johnson dialed long distance, cut the lead to 1. last chance for the hawks, needing a three for the tie, not even close, ends the game with an airball. celtics held on to win 79-76. hockey, the red wings did everything they could to rattle ovechkin, a stick to the face, a hard hit at the blue line. that just got alex going, responded with a pair of goals, capitals got a much-needed win

5-3. finally, a feeling the rangers and devils don't like each other. as soon as the puck hit the ice, so did the gloves. three separate fights in the first three seconds of the giex. 40 minutes in penalties and this one was off to a rousing start. rangers drew first blood on the scoreboard as well, jumed out to an early lead, winning 4-2. the first team in the east to clinch a playoff spot. that's your first look at sports. i'm fred rogen. for another look at the weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins. bill, that looks vaguely familiar, how you greet me each morning. scaring me a little bit, make sure i'm on my toes? >> i'm not worried. good morning, everyone. beautiful weather out there continues. i mean, look at yesterday. even in new england it was just -- it really is insane this time of year, hartford almost at 80 degrees yesterday, buffalo at 74. it's a very warm morning around d.c. i think you could be one of the

warmer spots today, you're at 63. the forecast highs today, 75 in d.c., the first day of spring, buffalo, new york should be around 77 and sunny. in the middle of the country, lynn, i upped the forecast highs in chicago today, now i'm going 85. >> why not? just keep ticking it up and up. bill, thanks so much. .coming up, an award winner, a record setter and a big bomb on the silver screen. plus, we'll tell you about ashton kutcher's new out of this world plan. your first look at entertainment is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. ut my car because... i think it's a cool car. i think it's stylish and it makes a statement at the same time. and i've never had a car like that. people don't totally understand how the volt works. when the battery runs down the gas engine operates. i don't ever worry about running out of battery power... because it just switches over to my gas engine. i very rarely put gas in my chevy volt. i love my chevy volt and i've never loved a car.

♪ and hello to "whoa, yum." use campbell's cream of chicken soup to make easy enchiladas, cheesy chicken & rice, and other chicken dishes that are oh...so...whoa. campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do.

hypothetically speaking, at

the end of the day, has your husband ever come home and said to you, oh, that john boehner, what an idiot? >> it has never happened. never, never. he is always upbeat, particularly about congress. >> how can you not be upbeat? >> everyone just giving that grin. bill, too. >> she deadpanned good, that was nice. time now for entertainment news. disney announced yesterday what we all already knew, damage control, and bill called it before the movie came out. "john carter" is an epic bomb. the studio took the unusual step of publicly detailing its total losses, including marketing 200 million bucks. it's doing well overseas apparently. oprah winfrey's network is

laying off a fifth of its partners. last week rosie o'donnell was canceled. maybe we saw that coming. sean penn will receive an award from nobel peace prize winners from his relief work in haiti. charlie sheen's ex brook mueller has pleaded guilty to a cocaine charge to a deal that will wipe her record clean, if she serves a year of probation trouble-had free. james cameron claims to set a record riding his new submersable what he calls a torpedo into the western pacific. >> and finally, billionaire richard branson says he's booked his 500th customer to fly a future flight into space. it's ashton kuch ir. he apparently dropped 200,000 bucks. you know he's single now. he's got nothing better to do. >> 500 people signed up for 200,000. that's a lot of zeros. >> a lot of people with a lot of money. just for a trip to space.

i'm lynn berry. this is "first look" on msnbc. stay tuned "way too early with willie geist" starts right now. mitt romney is happy to be out of the south and poised, according to most polls, to win the state of illinois tonight. the question is, will the romney campaign's math argument become more compelling with a big win in a big state like illinois? we'll talk live in a second to mark hill principal. staff sergeant robert bales meet s with his attorney and sas he doesn't remember most of the night of the massacre in afghanistan. this is as bales' wife apologizes to the families much the victims. the question is, what will the top commander in afghanistan tell congress today about the mission. it looks like after flirting with teams from miami to san francisco, peyton manning is hepding to denver. the question is, what happens now to tim tebow? it's way too early for this.