>> donald trump relishes his south carolina victory, as his two closest rivals jockey for position as trump alternative. we're also getting a closer look at the democrats' strategy ahead of their first primary in the south. but for bernie sanders the path to victory just got a lot more complicated. and mourners gather to remember the victims of that deadly shooting rampage in kalamazoo as uber confirms the suspected shooter was one of his driver's. it's 5:30 on the east coast, 2:30 out west, and this is "way too early." good morning. it's monday, february 22nd, i'm jonathan capehart. done with south carolina, donald trump is looking ahead to super tuesday for the s.e.c. primary.

595 delegates are at stake in 11 states. with more than half in the south. in atlanta, trump took multiple victory laps in front of a crowd of 6,000 and talked about unnamed opponents who had recently dropped out. he also dealt with the protester shutting off the lights while he spoke about immigration. >> we have 179,000 illegal immigrants who are criminals. these are people that were convicted -- think of it. think of it. no, they're going. they're going. they're going. they're going. and as much as you want to put them in our jails, they were probably sent here so that we'd put them in our jails, because to put them in our jails -- they didn't pay the electric bill -- to put them -- oh, i like that much better. you know, these politicians that i'm dealing with, i mean they're up on the stage these people, they don't have a clue. some are nice guys. some i don't like. some i do like. i won't get into the ones that

left, because they're gone. once they're gone, they're gone. they leave, they leave. good luck. we think you're wonderful. how do you like them? wonderful people, they're great. the only category i do badly in is my personality. and that's okay. who cares? and you know what? you want to know something? i'm a better person than the people i'm running against. i see it. let me tell you. >> marco rubio and ted cruz are trying to frame themselves as the alternative to the front-runner. rubio rallied 4,000 people in franklin, tennessee, yesterday. an event that was moved outside to accommodate the crowd. >> there is a lot of -- i can barely -- i should have wore my high heel boots because i can't see all the way back there. let me just tell you i believe this is our largest crowd in the campaign. >> rubio continued the day in little rock, arkansas, speaking to a rally with 2,000 people. and ended the night out west, with 1500 people in north las vegas, nevada.

with jeb bush out of the race, major establishment forces are looking for a new candidate to stop trump. and some top donors have turned to rubio. but ted cruz, who was also campaigning in nevada yesterday, dismissed rubio's ability to win. >> he was asked what state can you win? you weren't able to win in iowa. you weren't able to win in new hampshire. you weren't able to win in south carolina. when can you win a state? and the answer he gave is well, i think we could win florida on march 15th. now that's a fairly amazing admission that they don't believe they're going to win here in nevada. apparently they don't believe they're going to win any states on super tuesday. >> it seems donald trump is once again casting doubt on a rival's eligibility to run for the white house, only this time he's raising citizenship questions about marco rubio via retweet. as south carolina voters prepared to cast their ballots on saturday, trump retweeted a message suggesting both rubio

and texas senator ted cruz are ineligible to be president. here's what both trump and rubio had to say about it on abc's "this week". >> i think the lawyers have to determine that not it was a retweet, not so much with marco. i'm not really that familiar with marco's circumstances -- >> but then why retweet it? >> -- but i think that -- because i'm not sure. i mean, let people make their own determination. >> you're really not sure that marco rubio is eligible to run for president? you're really not sure? >> i don't know. i really -- i've never looked at it, george. honestly i've never looked at it. somebody said he's not. i retweeted it. i have 14 million people between twitter and facebook, and instagram, and i retweet things and we start dialogue and it's very interesting. >> well, this is -- look, this is a pattern, this is a game he plays. he says something that's edgy and outrageous and the media flocks and covers that and then no one else can get any coverage on anything else. that worked when there were 15 people running for president. it's not going to work anymore. i'm going to spend zero time on his interpretation of the

constitution with regards to eligibility. >> but trump had a different take on rubio's citizenship just last month. >> you think the same cloud hangs over marco rubio? >> no, i don't think so. it's a very different thing. >> because he was born in the united states. >> he was born here. definitely. he was born on the land. ted was not born on the land. and there's a very strict reading that you have to be born on the land. >> following a hard-fought win in nevada, hillary clinton's campaign is set to focus on gun control ahead of saturday's south carolina primary. a campaign official tells nbc news that today connecticut governor dannel malloy will join a prominent south carolina gun control advocate to highlight what the campaign calls bernie sanders' record of voting against gun safety. meanwhile, five mothers who lost children to gun violence and police incidents, including the mothers of trayvon martin, sandra bland, and eric garner, will host forums all over the state. that comes after a win for clinton in nevada, where she excelled with black voters. according to nbc news entrance polls, she beat sanders in that

demographic 76% to 22%. and ahead of a south carolina primary in which african-americans will likely make up more than half the electorate, the clinton campaign has released two new ads, including this one with morgan freeman. >> she says their names. >> trayvon martin. >> shot to death. >> dante hamilton. >> unarmed. >> sandra bland. >> did nothing wrong. >> and makes their mothers fight for justice her own. she speaks for a city poisoned by indifference. >> we need action now. >> and stands with the president against those who would undo his achievements. just like she's always stood with us. >> bernie sanders' efforts to win over south carolina didn't get off to a great start. the senator visited a baptist church where he was reportedly met with indifference from the congregation. "the new york times" writes, quote, instead of flocking to him, many of the church's 780 members present looked up for a moment, then quietly went back to eating their sunday feast.

but later on in the evening, senator sanders drew a fired up crowd of 5,000 people to an event in greenville, where he was introduced by actor danny glover. and despite the loss in nevada, sanders told the audience his campaign is still the one with momentum. >> we were 50 points down in iowa. we were 30 points down in new hampshire. and just about five weeks ago we were 25 points down in nevada. a lot has changed in the last few months. this is a campaign that has the momentum. and we have the momentum not only in the democratic primary process, if you look at national polls, and you want a candidate

who is going to defeat donald trump, you're looking at that candidate. this morning we are learning more about the suspect accused in that deadly shooting rampage in kalamazoo, michigan. police say 45-year-old jason dalton was an uber driver and had no criminal record. meanwhile hundreds of people remembered the victims during a special prayer service at a kalamazoo church last night. nbc's blake mccoy has more. >> a shooter on a rampage, randomly terrorizing innocent people in kalamazoo, michigan, saturday night. >> we have somebody just driving around, finding people, and shooting them dead in their tracks. >> reporter: police have identified the shooter as 45-year-old jason brian dalton. they say his spree of terror began at 5:44 p.m. a mother of three, shot multiple times in a residential parking lot. she's expected to survive. then, 10:08 p.m. rich smith and his teenage son tyler shopping for a new car are shot and

killed at a dealership. a short time later, 10:24 p.m., four women shot and killed in a cracker barrel parking lot. on their way home from a play. among them, 60-year-old mary joe nye who was killed along with her sister-in-law and best friend, 62-year-old mary l.nye. a 14-year-old girl who was with them was taken to the hospital, pronounced dead for more than an hour, when police tell nbc news doctors were preparing to remove her organs for donation, and she suddenly squeezed her mom's hand. still alive, they rushed her into surgery. michigan's governor met with the girl's parents. >> she's working hard to stay alive. and she's got our thoughts and prayers. to have a chance to come back from this. >> reporter: detectives searching the home, and car of jason dalton recovered a 9 mi y millimeter handgun and other evidence they say ties him to the shootings. neighbors across the street from where dalton lived with his wife and two kids are in disbelief. >> total shock, and we'd say

total out of character for jason. >> reporter: dalton was a driver for uber. at least one person claims he rode with him the day of the shooting. uber says it's horrified and heartbroken that it did a background check and police confirmed dalton did not have a criminal record. what do we know about a motive? >> we don't know anything about a motive right now. right now, our common denominator in this is him. the randomness of this is hard to deal with. and that's one of the most frightening things about it. >> the county prosecutor expects the suspect to be arraigned today. this morning, isis is claiming responsibility for a series of bombings in syria yesterday that reportedly left almost 130 people dead. a syrian news agency reports three bombings near a shiite shrine in damascus, and that many of the injured were women and children. at the same time, u.s. secretary of state john kerry said yesterday that washington and moscow had negotiated a provisional deal on a truce in syria's civil war.

world powers had hoped to see a cease-fire go into effect on friday. still ahead on "way too early," apple's unlikely ally. the tech company gets a big boost in its fight with the federal government from none other than the key architect of the u.s. surveillance program. plus -- >> i've got chills up my spine. that was amazing. >> a door-to-door dash to the checkered flag ends in an historic photo finish at the daytona 500. those stories and a check on weather when "way too early" comes right back.

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( meand to the city.c ) we said goodbye to the day. and drifted off into the twilight. and when we woke, we found that the whole world had reinvented itself.

sail with princess cruises, the best cruise line in europe. princess cruises. come back new. it takes a lot of work... but i really love it.s. i'm on the move all day long... and sometimes, i just don't eat the way i should. so i drink boost® to get the nutrition that i'm missing. boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. all with a great taste. i don't plan on slowing down any time soon. look for savings on boost® in your sunday paper. fbi director james comey is firing back following apple's refusal to help unlock an iphone belonging to one of the san bernardino shooters. in a statement posted last night comey writes, we simply want the chance, with a search warrant, to try to guess the terrorist's passcode without the phone

essentially self-destructing, and without it taking a decade to guess correctly. that's it. we don't want to break anyone's encryption or set a master key loose on the land. at the same time former nsa and cia director took issue with comey's approach in an interview with usa "today." >> in this specific case i'm trending toward the government. but i got to tell you, in general i oppose the government's effort, personified by fbi director jim comey, jim would like a back door available to american law enforcement in all devices globally. and frankly, i think on balance, that actually harms americans' safety and security. >> let's turn to business now, where one of the uk's most prominent politicians, london mayor boris johnson, yesterday became the latest defector within the conservative party to declare his support for a british exit from the eu. >> the last thing i wanted was

to go against david cameron or the government, but after a great deal of heartache, i don't think there's anything else i could do. i will be advocating, vote leave, or whatever the team is called. because i want a better deal for the people of this country. to save them money, and to take back control. that's really, i think, what this is all -- this is all about. >> the move is a blow to prime minister david cameron, as he ramps up his push to keep the uk in the 28-country bloc ahead of a june 23rd referendum. cnbc's jeff cutmore joins us live from london now for more. and jeff, what are the implications of this financially? >> well, this is fascinating. battle lines are being drawn here, jonathan. politically, at least, with david cameron one side, and boris johnson on the other. for the business community, though, it's more difficult to work out who is going to win and who is going to lose.

half of the ftse 100 ceos have come out and signed a letter saying that they think business is better off being part of the eu. they say it's stronger, safer, and better for business for britain to remain a member of this european bloc, having said that, that still means that half of those ftse 100 businesses are not saying anything at this point. one of the issue just worth bearing in mind, the pound has had its biggest decline since 2010 on the back of boris johnson's declaration. that, at least, will be good news for the exporters. back to you. >> wow, jeff cutmore live from london. thank you. time now for sports. and we begin with nascar's chase for the sprint cup. to daytona beach, florida, for the season opener at the daytona 500. and the great american race would come down to the final inches. drivers denny hamlin and martin truex jr. in a dash to the

checkered flag. >> come to the line. race to the finish at the daytona 500. bouncing off each other. >> this is unbelievable. i think it was denny hamlin. >> hamlin heads down -- heads down victory lane for the first time at daytona. he edges truex by 1/100 of a second for the closest finish in the event's history. turning now to the nba, in detroit, a tremendous effort by the pelicans' anthony davis visiting the pistons last night. davis put up an nba season-high 59 points in the game, leading new orleans past detroit by a score of 116-106. the 59-point total is a career high for davis, and also a franchise record. to oklahoma city, and the thunder hosting the cavaliers in what was expected to be a tight match-up. but cleveland shoots past okc with a 115-92 blowout win. the team's fifth straight victory. meanwhile, during the contest, one fan sitting courtside had a

few words for the cavs lebron james. james was a good sport about it, though, he posted a version of the clip on instagram with the caption, i guess she told me. let's get a check on your weather now with nbc meteorologist bill karins. that is the best. >> teach you a lesson, right? i'm sure he heard -- they hear all that stuff, too. it's right there in the front row. that's great. lebron handled it well, too. jonathan, the story this week is going to be a couple of rainstorms. first one is a light one. the second one is going to have severe weather with it. maybe tornadoes and a little bit of snow on the backside. this is the first storm bringing some heavy rains just north of houston. northern louisiana. this will eventually begin to slide into mississippi and alabama today. so, heaviest rains mobile northward, jackson, montgomery, birmingham, and atlanta will get storms late today, too. that's the best chance of any

airport delays and then this evening some of that rain makes it towards the carolinas. so the week ahead we get this first storm that's going to be moving out. then the second one will be moving through the gulf tomorrow, up the east coast, maybe a little bit of snow on the backside, jonathan. illinois, indiana, and michigan. and that will be it by the end of the week we're fine. and temperaturewise it's not a bad day, jonathan. enjoy this today, d.c. 52 degrees after a beautiful weekend, it continues. >> that's great, bill. thanks a lot. still ahead, diversity in hollywood ahead of this sunday's oscars. the only studio that got an "f." plus the president and first lady try to keep up with a 106-year-old white house guest. how they made her dream come true, next on "way too early." know your financial plan won't keep you up at night. know you have insights from professional investment strategists to help set your mind at ease. know that planning for retirement

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welcome back to "way too early." there are twin reports out this morning slamming diversity in hollywood production. a major study from the university of southern california analyzed the directors, writers, crews, cast, and roles of more than 400 tv and digital series. just one-third of speaking characters were female. even fewer were from minority groups. and just 2% from lgbt identified. meanwhile, the front page of "usa today" projects another year of a lack of minority inclusion in movies. the paper analyzed 184 movies set to come out, and ranked them based on number of films and inclusiveness. one studio received an "f." that studio was paramount.

now, let's get a check on the morning's other headlines and for that we head to the control room and louis burgdorf. >> good morning, jonathan. female pop stars are rollrying around tickish to singer ke$ha after losing a legal bat with a producer who she claimed sexually assaulted her a decade ago. a spokeswoman for taylor swift says she donated a quarter of a million dollars to help the singer with her legal fees. on friday a judge ruled against releasing ke$ha from her contract that requires her to work with producer dr. luke. the 28-year-old singer has filed a sexual assault civil suit claiming he drugged and sexually abused her shortly after she turned 18. now the producer whose real name is luke gotwald has never been criminally charged but has denied the claims and countered with a breach of contract and defamation suit. he has produced some of the biggest pop hits from the last decade including california girls by katy perry and party in the usa by miley cyrus. let's go to another story from the music industry and curtis jackson knowns to the hip-hop

world as 50 cent filed for bankruptcy last year his stage name had never seemed more ironic. now after flaunting a massive amount of cash and various instagram photos a judge has ordered him to court. one photo displays a refrigerator full of money with a caption, got to keep a cool stash, happy holidays. and another image jackson sits on a bed full of money eating a popsicle, and apparently watching tv. a judge has ordered the rapper to court to explain the instagram photos citing concerns about a lack of transparency in the case. all right. this is my favorite story of the morning. we go to the white house, they posted an endearing video of 106-year-old washington, d.c. resident virginia mclauren visiting the president and first lady for a celebration of black history month. now, mclauren's energy was so infectious that even the president had a hard time keeping up. >> virginia mclauren. >> hi! >> how are you? >> i'm fine. >> oh, it's so nice to see you. >> it's an honor.

it's an honor. >> you want to say hi to michelle? >> yes! >> slow down there. don't go too quick. she's 106. >> no, you are not. you are not. >> well, you got to slow down. >> oh, my goodness. >> thank you. >> i want to be like you when i grow up. >> you can. >> she's dancing. come on! >> oh, my goodness. >> what's the secret to still dancing at 106? >> she's going. >> just keep moving. >> yes. >> we're so happy to have you here. and look at those nails. >> nails are all done. >> whoo! >> whoo! >> those nails. >> yes, sir! i know. i thought i would never be able to get in the white house. >> well, you are here. >> and i tell you -- >> you are here. >> i am so happy. >> and we are happy to have you. >> a black president. >> look at him. right there. >> a black wife. >> that's me. >> yes!

>> and i'm here to celebrate black history. >> that's exactly right. >> yeah. that's what i'm here for. >> we're glad you're here. >> that is just unbelievable. >> oh, my gosh. >> jonathan, she says the secret is just to keep moving but god, we should all be so lucky. >> i know. get it grandma. she was just the cutest. that made my day and it's only 5:57. >> that's it. that's what we do here during the other stories section. >> that's right. and that does it for me and "way too early." coming up on "morning joe," donald trump and hillary clinton cement their status as their party front-runners. that leaves ted cruz and marco rubio battling to be the trump alternative while bernie sanders tries his best not to burn out. "morning joe" is just moments away. incredible bladder protection from always discreet

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at angieslist.com. we have 179,000 illegal immigrants who are criminals. these people -- [ boos ] think of it, think of it. no, they're going, they're going, they're going. [ cheers and applause ] as much as you want to put them in our jails,