it appears to have stopped. >> pretty amazing to catch those reactions. southern california has not seen an earthquake that strong in 20 years. is mother nature sending a signal something stronger is in store? gm is expanding its recall to include a highly popular suv and does the new internal investigation mean more recalls are on the way. and now fresh data in the missing malaysian plane adding more questions. did investigators get the original flight time line wrong. this is "way too early". good morning. i'm thomas roberts. it is tuesday, march 18. welcome to "way too early," the show that would totally freak out if we could feel an earthquake here at the 30 rock

studio. the people at ktla channel 5 are the only ones that got it right, diving under the table. the rest all stayed there totally calm. amazing it was caught on camera. but we'll talk about that coming up. we want to bring you the latest in the search for the missing plane. it takes us inside the cockpit where officials believe it was no accident when the jet steered far off course. the "new york times" saying the changed flight path was programmed in to and on board computer. this is renewing the focus on the pie lolot and first officer. it's still unclear if the jet line are's computerized route was altered before or after takeoff. malaysian officials are facing more criticism, this time for backing off their belief that the signalling system was disabled before the final radio transmission from the plane. they now say it could have happened anytime within a half hour window. katy tur following it for us from london. bring us up to speed.

>> reporter: you're right, initially they believed the last transition where the co-pilot said all right good night happened after the acars system was turned off. but now they're saying they really don't though when it was shut off. it's been over a week, but still no closer to figuring out what happened or why. they are searching a massive am of space within this very big a arc. now they say chinese are searching the land over the northern corridor. without any real answers, there has been a ton of speculation from leading theorys that it crashed somewhere in the very deep independent krian ocean to accepted one that it landed on an island. there is even a theory that it tailed another beloeing 777 to trick radar. and there is a growing sense we may not know anything for a very long time. 26 countries are involved in the search, but there are signs that it is getting scaled down. the u.s. navy is pulling its

destroyer the "uss kidd" and its helicopters back saying the search is better done by long range aircraft. malaysian authorities have searched both the co-pilot and pilot's home and they are focusing on the pilot the's own in-home flight simulator. but so far they have not come up with anything. >> it really is confounding that there aren't more direct leads especially if this is a terror act. katy, thank you. president obama made his strongest statement yet against putin's aggression in ukraine to a collective shrug from the kremlin. last night putin signed a document declaring crimea a sovereign and independent state. it follows the vote in which 95% came out in favor of the annexation. white house calls it illegal. earlier in the day, president obama announced targeted sanctions against 11 russian and

ukranian officials in hopes of putting pressure on putin's inner circle. the president said this could be just the first step if russia doesn't reverse course. >> we are imposing sanctions on specific individuals responsible for undermining the sovereignty, territorial integrity and government of ukraine. we're making it clear that there are consequences for their actions. if russia continues to interfere, we stand ready to impose further sanctions. we'll continue to make clear it will diminish its place in the world. >> russian officials are responding with sanctions of their own against our u.s. senators and congressmen. putin is expected to release his own sanction list as early as today. but it isn't only putin who is appearing to scoff at the president's move. here at home president obama is facing critics who say he didn't go far enough. >> i think vladimir putin must

be encouraged by the absolute timidity. the president said we will, quote, consider other options. the president should have said we'll provide military assistance to ukraine and that will be in defensive weaponry. >> mitt romney also coming out writing president obama and secretary of state clinton travel the world in pursuit of their promise to reset relations and to bhild friendships across the globe. their failure has been painfully evident. it is hard to name even a single country that has more respect and admiration today than when president obama took office. for the country's sake, they must succeed. timing is of the essence. residents in los angeles got a rude wake penning yesterday

morning. it was the largest quake in l.a. since 1994. fortunately no reported injuries and damage was only minor. but got everybody's attention. new e-mails are shedding light on the george washington bridge scandal in new jersey. governor chris christie's campaign manager received a series of updates about the brunlg bridge elai's lane closures. stepien's attorney say they do not implicate his client in the scandal, however the investigative committee claim they prove that he was involved in the scandal and even helped coordinate responses with that the ghuf's office. rachel bunny mellon, the business heiress, has passed away. she married one of the country east richest men back in 1948 and later became friends with jackie kennedy. she even helped redesign the rose garden at the white house.

but it was in 2011 that john edwards was indicted on charges he tried to hide $725,000 paid by mellon in an effort to cover up his relationship with his pregnant mistress. mellon was not accused of any wrongdoing, but her long time lawyer says she died at the virginia estate that she loved yesterday. she was 103 years old. friends and family of lauren scott say she are shocked by her apparent suicide. reports say she was found hanging from a scarf in her new york city apartment monday morning. scott the long time girlfriend of mick jagger designed dresses for a-list stars including nicole kidman and amy adams. jagger says he's devastated by the ynews. and kid man says she's hart broken about the loss of a friend. no foul play is expected lauren scott is believe order have been 49 years old. a parent of a young boy in

north carolina says his school is punishing the wrong person in an alleged case of bullying. the 9-year-old was told to leave his my little pony lunch sack at home because it created a disruption in the classroom. his mom says her son complained of being pushed around and teased because of the bag. she says the school needs to crack down on the other kids, not her son's choice for his lunch sack. it's like saying that a short skirt is a trig forerape. the school says it's looking into the conduct of the other students but still standing by telling the kid not bring the lunch pail to school. we shift attention to business. markets are continuing to rally. green arrows across the board. geoff cutmore live in london for us. so what are people focusing on today? >> good morning to you. well, i think it might be a struggle early on unless we get

some new input here. because we're treading water in the european session quite frankly. and the early indication on your futures is that you might get a little bit of a weak start to the trade. but we're a few hours away from the session really kicking off here, so this is very early on. worth pointing out the federal reserve goes into its two day meeting, that kicks off today. tomorrow we will get janet ye yellen holding her first press conference. away from that, it's a case of if you can't beat them, join them for microsoft. the ceo saying they are looking at a release of microsoft office for the ipad. now, analysts say they probably missed about $2.5 billion a year by not making this software available to the ipad about 200 million ipads in circulation. it looks like that is now going to be redressed. >> this is big news for those

owners out there of the general motors vehicle. carmaker announcing three separate recalls after the ceo mary barra requesting a xri then sif internal safety review. take a look. >> i want you to know that we are completely focused on the problem at the highest levels of the company and we're putting the customer first and that is guiding every decision we make. that is how we want today's gm to be judged. how we handle the recall will be an important test of that commitment. >> also whether or not the internal review will put anymore recalls out there. how will it impact the company's bottom line? >> critics of this story say it's about time gm started forget serious and get on the pr on this one. but the markets not that excited about it. the stock closed up 1% yesterday on the announcement of the fresh recalls. and so far they're only talking about a hit to earnings of about

$300 million in the terms of the scale of gm, that is a relatively small amount before history tells us that as long as companies continue to produce good auto product, they can look through these recalls even though clearly this one is very serious and we didn't want to down play the consequences to the families and those who feel they have suffered as a result of these problems. >> absolutely. geoff cutmore live for us in london. thanks. we want to talk about our tweter question for today. there is a new report out suggesting today's workload is about the same as it was 30 years ago when it comes to kids and their homework. so how did your homework assignments compare to students today? tweet us your answers using #way too early. we'll put the best ones on the air later in the show. still ahead, it's almost official. phil jackson's coming to new york, but how does michael jordan feel about that? and then the half man from 2 1/2

men has changed his look and his attitude. what angus t. jones is saying about his split from that hit show. that and a check of weather. reverend wright's comments were not only wrong, but divisive at a time when we need unity, racially charged at a time when we need to come together to solve a set of monumental problems. [ male announcer ] this is jim.

a man who doesn't stand still. but jim has afib, atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat not caused by a heart valve problem. that puts jim at a greater risk of stroke. for years, jim's medicine tied him to a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. but now, with once-a-day xarelto jim's on the move. jim's doctor recommended xarelto. like warfarin, xarelto is proven effective to reduce afib-related stroke risk. but xarelto is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem that doesn't require routine blood monitoring. so jim's not tied to that monitoring routine.

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xarelto is not for patients with artificial heart valves. jim changed his routine. ask your doctor about xarelto. once-a-day xarelto means no regular blood monitoring -- no known dietary restrictions. for more information and savings options, call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com. colts owner jim irsay is out of jail this morning. he was arrested sunday night for driving under the influence as well as possession of a controlled substance. irsay refused comment as he walked by reporters. but police say he was driving erratically, failed several

roadside sobriety tests. the nfl says the controversial owner will be subject to discipline. to the nba where the playoff push is being overshadowed by phil jackson's move to the knicks front office. the team will hold a press conference today to make this deal official. jackson will be in charge of all basketball decisions and he has two big ones right up front here. whether to resign carmelo anthony and whether to bring back coach mike woodson. at least one person has great expectations for the 13 time champ. michael jordan saying phil is fantastic at managing egos and personalities, maxing out whatever potential is there. only problem for the knicks, doesn't seem like the potential is there at least for right now. we head to cleveland. if you think the cavs can't get anything right on the court, which this out.

that's pretty sick, right? amazing special effects. only if the team could harness that confidence to help it get ahead. the cavs are 26-41. but if you can't dazzle them on the court, dazzle them with special effects. we go to denver where one of best defensive players of will his generation, he takes his reputation seriously so he's not letting any mascots dunk over his head. yeah. was there a mat there? good to see he's matured since his playing days there. there is a little mat there. let's get a check of the weather

who bringing the sunshine. >> gingham memo is too hard to say, so i just gave up on that one. but spring starts this week. on thursday, it will officially be string, so whatev spring. but we have sis and snow across virginia and north carolina. winter weather advisories because of black ice this morning. and areas like the northern plains and upper midwest, we have winter storm warnings. so we can't shake the winter for sure. not a lot of heavy freezing rain, but just enough to glaze the road just to the east of richmond, virginia. so keep that in mind this morning. it will be very slippery for the morning commute. back towards south dakota, we are expecting 5 to 7 inches especially just north of minneapolis. the heaviest of the snow is expected later on today.

but we will see some warm areas. temps low to mid-60s in parts of the midwest and back through the tennessee river valley. around here, about 42 degrees. tomorrow new york city should get closer to 50. only bad side is that it does come with rain. but i think we'll take it. >> really important weather question. who wore it better, me or barnicle? >> barnicle is sitting closer, so i'll go with him. >> thank you. >> we'll get you straight to the eye doctor. coming up on "morning joe," inside the cockpit of the missing plane. latest developments in the search for malaysian flight 370, new information about why the plane veered off course. when we come back here, we'll huddle around the water cooler, your favorite cereal characters won't at that time the fight against sugar lying down. the new trail are you must see. how did we do it last time? i don't know... i forget.

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so at the top of the show, we talked about the ongoing mystery of what happened to the flight. tell your friends a boeing 777 typically uses a 7,000 foot runway to land. but it could land on one 5,000 feet long if it needed to.

time to hulgd arouddle arou water cooler. louis has an update. >> the former star of the sitcom 2 1/2 men is opening up about his division to leave the hit show. angus t. jones called the show filth and begged fans to stop watching back in 2012. he was one of the highest paid teen actors in history but he said the show did not conform with his religious beliefs. if n. case you're not familiar, this is what jones looked like when he starred on the show. at one point making $350,000 an episode. he has since backtracked on his harsh comments about the show calling himself the quote hypocrite. >> that is a lot of money. >> a lot of money to walk away from. you must have strong beliefs for that 350 k. jimmy fallon is closely watching the situation this ukraine. >> officials in crimea published an exit poll to show the ruts we're then tick.

just to see what they had to say.tick. just to see what they had to say. >> is smart vote. russia is strong country. you would be a fool not to join. and marina said is smart vote, russia is strong country, you would be a fool not to join. normal people. >> putin looks good in a wig. >> every day people. >> meanwhile jimmy kimmel may have solved an 8-year-old st. patrick's day mystery. >> curiosity leads to large crowds in the community. many of you bring binoculars and even camera phones to take pictures. >> looked like a leprechaun to me.

>> i've watched that maybe 500 times. i still can't figure out what the hell happened there. seems highly unlikely that all of those people saw a leprechaun together. but it's never been proven. this woman, though, i think had the most logical explanation. >> others find it hard to believe and have come up with their own theories and explanations for the image. >> could be a crack head that's on the wrong stuff. >> this amateur sketch -- >> it could be. it's a possibility. >> could be. or it could just be mayor ford was there. finally the war on sugar is getting serious. and some of our favorite kids cereal krabts won scharacters w lying down. >> captain crunch. >> general mills. >> world's most decorated captain. >> rival sources lead us to believe this man is responsible for the attacks.

>> it is time to usher in a new era of high fiber cereal. >> you can't do that. kids won't buy it. >> maybe. but the parents will. >> don't be stealing my lucky charms. >> too good. >> all right, louis, thank you, sir. still ahead, how your homework assignments compare with students. your best most creative tweets coming your way. (meow mix jingle) right on cue. (laughs) it's more than just a meal, it's meow mix mealtime. with wholesome ingredients and

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earlier we asked you how homework assignments of take compare with when you were a student. so what did we get? >> i didn't need a hydraulic backpack, a chiropractor, parental ph.d. pack and large energy drink to finish my session. >> that's four things to make a difference. can we point out you're eating honey bunches of sugar right now? >> yes.

that's how i used to do mine. lots of sugar. okay. and then jefferson says we doodled. they google. >> and steve says they the worl libraries in the palm of their hands. quit your complaining! #get off my lawn! that does it for "way too early." "morning joe" starts right now. ♪ for the first couple of days all i could do was replay memories and under see him and smell the clothes. i think i was in the stage of preparing for the worse because i think we all expected there is to be a crash. my feeling is i think they are still alive. i don't believe thene