it is the top of the hour on msnbc. we are following breaking news. at any moment, the governor of new york is expected to announce he will not run for re-election. it comes after revelations in an aids domestic abuse case. we are following a major snowstorm battling the entire northeast. tens of thousands of people lost power. airport delays across the country. we will preview the coming gold medal events. hello, i'm david shuster, live in washington. we are going to begin with breaking news out of the white house. white house social secretary

desiree rogers will have more room in her calendar. she's decided to step down. lawmakers criticized her after salahi's crashed the state dinner. they testified, rogers refused. president obama defended her and called it an error. she says it's a good time for me to explore opportunities in the corporate world. desiree rogers, social level to the president and vice president. she will step down at the end of the month. you are looking at a live picture from new york. new york governor, david paterson is about to drop his bid six days after kicking off his re-election campaign. we expect him to step up to the podium any minute now. mike, tell us about the events that led to this. >> the events began two years

ago on march 18th. the day after the inauguration of david paterson. he was elevated to that position after a prostitution scandal took down eliot spitzer. now, he admits his own marital indiscorrections, one with a former state employee. from there, it's downhill. you followed this for two years. his approval rating is about 22%. only 45% of so lower than andrew cuomo. that and the fact he has no money in his war chest and no democratic support from the white house to the state house made it almost impossible to imagine a winning scenario. yet, yet, he announced he was running, he was in it to win it. he was going to be elected because he was the accidental

governor until this point. he was going to make a big comeback like the comeback's in his past. he is the first african-american governor of the state of new york. he's legally blind. he's the sign of a famous political family in new york. his father and mother prominant in political circles. we are waiting for him to come up to the podium and him to say he will suspend and end his campaign for election as of now. not sure whether he will step down. this is a short trip to the pollices in the state of new york. >> mike, thank you very much. we are going to keep him around. let's bring in the state editor for the new york post. "the new york times," this week, a lengthy story about the efforts governor paterson made to protect an aid and get an abuse case squelched. it infuriated democrats.

what role do you think that played to make the announcement today? >> it's crucial. part of it was that the governor was forced to ask andrew cuomo to conduct an investigation, a criminal investigation, which is now ongoing. >> tell us a little more, fred, about the investigation itself and the facts surrounding the incident. >> caller: it's very, very critical. a key to the governor, he was involved with a woman in the bronx. she alleged johnson beat her on halloween. she went to family court in new york city, trying to get an order of protection against this individual. state police and the governor himself were involved in efforts to prevent her from doing that. she went to court three times, only in the end, after getting a call from the governor, did she decide not to pursue it. it seems it governor was

meddling in a domestic violence incident. >> mike, how surprising was this to you? as he pointed out, six days ago, governor paterson was digging in his heels and preparing for the re-election campaign. >> the city, he was a likable guy. he had an unusual path. fred knows this, too. high achievement. he graduated high school in three years and entered columbia as an under graduate. he flunked out and had to do the first of many, many comebacks of his life. he was never gubernatorial. he was a governor. his announcement last saturday was a surprise. in spite of everything, $3 million in a war chest, nothing for a sitting governor and no support that was significant. i wondered why he was going to run and looking for a way out.

in the "times" reporting seemed to seal it. it was the straw that broke the camel's back. here is what he said about the circumstances and the paterson announcement we are expecting. >> i think it's the right decision for david. he was not in a strong political position for the controversy. dave paterson is a terribly decent man who cares about the right things and made difficult decisions for new york that i think will benefit the state, david, down the road. so, it's sad to see a decent man step aside, but it's the right decision for him and the right decision for new york. again, we are expecting governor paterson will step to the microphone in a couple minutes. it could be five or six minutes at this point. we are going to keep monitoring this. we will bring you the news conference when it happens. in the meantime, we'll move to a

couple other stories. the northeast is dealing with an incredibly dangerous storm today. in new york city, almost two feet of heavy, wet snow has fallen. it's packing hurricane force winds. that's bringing down a lot of trees and power lines. officials say, at one point, more than 1 million people lost electricity. at least three deaths are linked to the storm. one man was killed in central park after a tree branch fell on him. hundreds of flight cancellations and delays in the northeast. for the second time in a month, 1 million students in new york city schools were told to stay home and take a snow day. for the latest on the snow totals and when it will end, we turn to ginger zee. >> it's interesting. this storm, right now, ranking fourth as far as biggest snowstorms ever in central

park's history. the top came in 2006. they had 23.6 inches then. you have 20.8, so far. look at other numbers. philly got away with it this time. less than a half foot. the snow is winding down. the storm isn't moving. it isn't leaving, yet. it will not leave until late tomorrow. the dwindling storm will be the story much of the day. on top of what you have had, three, four inches in some places up in maine as the storm pulls away. you mentioned delays. there are thousands of delays. over a thousand cancellations. the winter storm warning in effect until tomorrow is rece receding. what's not looking better is the wind gusts upward of 40 miles per hour in some places. now, 31 in philly. it's not the only storm on the

map. go west and find lots of rain to much rain through barren land. it gives the potential for mud slides. a lot going on here, david. >> ginger, thank you very much. we have breaking news that's coming in from tacoma, washington. a special education teacher was shot and killed bay former college co-worker today as she walked into her classroom. the suspect just got out of jail for violating a restraining order the victim obtained against him. he was killed in a shoot out with police, a short time after the school shootding. reaction continues across the political world over president obama's health care summit yesterday. the president called for six more weeks of bipartisan talks. legislation will move forward mid april with our without republican support. we spoke with tim kaine about the push for more republican feedback.

all right. obviously, that's the wrong tame. governor kaine said it's up to republicans to decide in a couple weeks whether or not there's enough there to decide to join. kaine said it's smart for democrats to try to get something done. john mccain said the republicans want to make changes, but they believe the process should be slower and more incremental. since the start of president obama's health care summit, we asked if you thought it was a sign of real reform or politics as usual. now that you have seen part of it, if you would like to weigh in, text a for real reform or b, pollices as usual.

we'll bring the results, coming up. now, to the winter games in vancouver. with just two more days to go, team usa leads with 32 overall, including eight gold medals. germany, 26, norway, 19. today, lindsey vonn will hit the slopes for one last attempt to add to her vancouver hardware. chris jansing is in vancouver. what do you have? >> reporter: thanks very much. we are talking about the alpine team, one of the big stories. >> hi. >> it's a mess up at whistler. >> it is a mess. the weather is horrible. snowing, sleeting, fog in and out. they have a good prep on the course. they do injecting where they put water into the snow and try to almost make a skating rink out of it on the line that goes down

the course. the problem is the temperatures are so warm, they are having a hard time getting the ice set up. good deterioration is going on. >> factoring that in, how do you like lindsey vonn's chances? >> she's gone out in the slalom this morning. she's finished with her olympic experience. she's done. she's not disappointed. she came in here professing five medals so the pressure she had on herself superseded anybody else's. when you risk what you risk and attack the course. there's a line of being in ond out. she popped out of the first run. sara is in eighth position. she's in a good spot to pounce on the second run. what we are going to look for is flip 30 or flip 15. the person ranked first will run in the 30th or 15th position.

most likely in the 15th because of the snow deterioration. >> let's talk about bode. he comes up saturday. it's his fourth medal of the olympics. >> his chances are good. however, the snow is getting funky. with someone like bode who skis on the edge like he does, he's looking for a good response from the snow and not too much movement under his feet. he has to be on his feet. this rest day today is going to help him. >> what do you think about his head space. >> he's in a great space. he's the old bode we remember and fell in love with. he's confident, doesn't cross that mind between confident and co cocky. he's got the bode smirk on his face. when he chooses to win and be the best, he can be. his drive comes from within. >> thanks very much.

that would put him in high company in terms of the number of medals won at a single olympics game. back to you david. >> we're going to interrupt you. governor david paterson is talking. let's listen. >> for the past 25 years, it's been my highest privilege to serve the people of new york, the new york senate and the governor's office. in that sense, every decision i have made, as i said in my state of the state address, focuses around this question. are we doing what's right for the people of new york? at times, it's not been easy, but no matter how difficult the circumstances were, i have never

forgeten my oath nor my responsibility to serve the people of new york with faith and with integrity. over the past couple of years, working with the legislature, we have reduced $33 billion worth of deficit. by this april, that number will go over $40 billion. that is three times as much as we have had to do before and over six times the deficit collections in a normal two-year period. in that period of time, i have had to act alone as i did last december, to save the state from insol van si by delaying payment that is kept the state from going bankrupt and preserved our credit rating at the same time. all the while, i have laid the foundation for our fiscal economic rescue, making new york a leader in the new economy of knowledge, technology and

innovation. i have lowered the playing field for minority and women-owned businesses. when i came in 2007, they were receiving only 5% of state procurement contracts. can you imagine this? women, 51.8% of the population, 22% preapproved contracts. got 2.6% of the business. we have increased that participation by four times in under two years. we have eradicated the rockefeller drug laws, stronger penalties against drug kingpins and reunited families ravaged by the ineffective, unworkable war on drugs.

in addition, i have introduced landmark legislation, reforming the pension system, our public authority system, our public higher education facilities and health insurance coverage. the legislature passed them all and also, i signed into law a bill passed by the legislature that defines the perimeters of a valid mortgage loan and predatory lending. all of these measures and others have improved the quality of life for new yorkers immediately, but will have values for generations to come. but, there's more work to do. up until the last few days, i was looking forward to participating in that work for a full four year term. i am being realistic about politics. it's not the latest distraction, it's an accumulation of obstacles that kept me from bringing my message to the public. therefore, there are times in public you have to know when not to strive for service, but to

step back. that moment has come for me. today, i am announcing that i am ending my campaign for governor for the state of new york. it's become increasingly clear to me, in the last few days, that i cannot run for office, and try to manage this state's business at the same time. right now, new york state needs a leader who can devote full time to this service. in addition, i am looking forward to a full investigation of actions taken by myself and my administration. but, i give you, this personal oath. i have never abused my office, not now, not ever. i believe that when the facts are reviewed, the truth will prevail. now, let me make this clear. there are 308 days left in my term. i will serve every oneover them fighting for the people of the

state of new york. we have serious challenges and we have to come together from different areas of the state in a nonpartisan way and address these issues. our budget still has massive deficit. families are struggling for survival. businesses are fighting to make payroll and new yorkers are still losing their jobs. right now, what we need is a governor who will devote his full attention to those issues and other issues that come into this jurisdiction. i would like to thank all the people who have worked with me here in the governor's office, all of my staff, all of you who have covered me, those who worked in my campaign and all new yorkers for the opportunity to serve all of you. i hope that history will remember that i fought the good fight, i did what was hard and that i put the people first. thank you very much.

governor -- >> governor david paterson saying he will not run for re-election. he cannot run and manage the state's business. he's realistic about politics. they have been driven by difficult stories for governor paterson including allegation that is he interfered with an investigation in an abuse case involving an aid that he perhaps tampered with a witness in the case by a phone call and state police may have interfered as well. he said he has never abused his office. he decided he will not run for re-election. let's go to mike taibbi. what did you make of the statement? >> he said what i expected him to say. the one thing he added was to say let me be very clear, there

are 308 days left in my term and i will serve every one of them fighting for the people of new york. he's asking that the investigation of him and his administration continue to a conclusion that will prove he never abused his office, not ever, not once. let's listen to some of the answers he's giving. >> okay. >> will help those in public service who really have signed up to do the right thing, who worked hard, who make mistakes. i'm one of them. we all make mistakes. but, i think that we are trying to do right by the public and when we become sort of celebrity cartoon characters to make fun of, we forget they are real people trying to do a good job. i hope that some who i thought were disrespectful will be more respectful of those who come later than they were to me.

i'm not angry about it at all. i rest assured i did my best, i worked hard, i made a lot of difficult decisions. i had to stand alone at times, trying to make it clear what our economic situation was and what our responsibilities are. i am perfectly satisfied with thank you. >> so, governor david paterson wrapping up with questions. the reason we are showing a split screen is because he's not the only intriguing announcement today grabbing on to people. desiree rogers told the chicago sun times she is going to resign at the end of the month. desiree rogers was caught up in the controversy over the couple that crashed the state dinner last fall, the salahi's. we are expecting more from that

from robert gibbs. in the meantime, a lot to digest with david paterson announcing he's going to cooperate with the investigation. he tried to do the best he could. at the beginning of the statement, he never forget his oath to serve the people of new york with faith and integrity and what's right for the people of new york. he said what's right for him to do now is focus entirely on managing the state and not running for re-election. as mike taibbi pointed out, another 308 days left and governor paterson is going to keep working to balance the state budget, dealing with the pension system. a lot on his plate. he's not particularly popular in new york despite his accomplishments he said in the statement. in any case, the story line gets more intriguing. there were some democrats hoping

that governor paterson would announce he was leaving the governor's office immediately because of the cloud of controversy surrounding his aid. he's making it clear, he's going stick around for the final 308 days and cooperate with the investigation. he will tend to the business of the state full time. that's the big story for governor paterson. mike, any final thoughts in terms of as this investigation moves forward into the aid. where do we see that going? >> it's a potential problem. he's going to stick around for 308 days. if the investigation leads to a criminal indictment, how will it change how others will want him to do. there's a possibility as we know, of an impeachment bill submitted in the house which could go to a trial in the

senate. he's not clear of this, yet. they are serious allegations from the governor himself. >> all right. nbc's mike taibbi. he's with us with david paterson and on the right. it should be a fabulous white house briefing from robert gibbs as questions involve desiree rogers. she's close with valerie jarrett. questions over what happened in the office last fall with the big state dinner for the leader of india and the salahi's were able to join the delegation. they were able to walk in even though they were not on the guest list. they were able to get in and mingle and have photographs taken. there were complaint that is desiree rogers could have done more to have somebody from her

office with the secret service. she could have done more by having somebody with the secret service at the gate. she pointed out the secret service was able to call anytime themted. they could have picked up the phone. it became a hot political potato in washington. they testified in congress, even though they invoked their rights. wouldn't answer questions, they step forward to the microphones. they would not let rogers go to invoke a fifth amendment rights. this have been a political hot potato as far as an opportunity to go after desiree rogers. they may not think it's much of a big policy po sigsitiopositio powerful. who gets access to the first lady and members of the administration. with her stepping down and leaving at the end of this month

or the end of march, now, the search is on for the next social secretary. also, somebody who can perhaps bring a new sort of agenda to the social secretary's office and leave the old controversies behind. desiree rogers a close obama friend from chicago, who decided after 13 months, she is going to step down. a programming note for you. this briefing looks like it's not going to happen before we are off the air. we are going to leave air in a minute to bring you the continuing coverage of the olympic games in vancouver. before we go, we had the survey about the president's health care summit. we want to bring the hults. the results about the president's health care summit. we asked if it was a sign of reform or politics as usual.

53% of you said politics as usual. 53% said politics as usual. 47% may be better than the white house was thinking. it gets to the idea a lot of democrats think the president's summit, yesterday, because of the attention it generated on health care and the president's efforts to reach a bipartisan compromise will help the white house. in the meantime, that's our show. abbreviated for today. stick around for the olympics on msnbc. speed skating is up next. you can catch me live.

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