we will tell you the story behind this incredible video. we're going to start with today 2,000 government employees at the department of transportation furloughed without pay today. almost $200 million is being held up all by senator jim bunning. moments ago bunning got into this exchange with majority leader harry reid. i hope republicans will reconsider and think about their constituents standing in the unemployment line as we speak. >> if we can't find $10 billion to pay for something that we all support, we will never pay for anything on the floor of this u.s. senate. i have offered several ways to do this, including trying to negotiate with the majority leader staff. none have been successful.

again, bunning is mad that the unemployment benefits the senate wants to pass will not be paid for. so what he's done is put a hold on some government spending starting with the department of transportation that's affecting a lot of infrastructure projects, even a drunk driving program and causing the d.o.t. to start furloughing workers. the battle between bunning and the white house is intensifying with real consequences. president obama is meeting with defense secretary robert gates to discuss a major reversal of the bush administration's nuclear weapons policy. it's a strategy that could cut arsenal by the thousands. something that's been hotly debated in the add manage. the president rejected proposals the united states declare would never be the first to use nuclear weapons. president obama turned his attention to education during remarks at america promise event

hosted by the chamber of commerce. the president announced $900 million in grants to get help to schools that need it most. to be eligible for money the school districts must take drastic actions, reopen some schools as charter schools or shut down some schools completely. >> we know that about 12% of america's schools produce 50% of america's dropouts. we're going to focus on helping states and school districts turn around their 5,000 lowest performing schools in the next five years. >> general colin powell founded the america's promise alliance, the nation's largest partnership organization dedicated to improving the lives of american children. today the united nations began rushing aid deliveries to chilean towns crushed by this weekend's massive earthquake and the ensuing tsunami. secretary of state hillary clinton is set to visit the region tomorrow. the magnitude 8.8 quake killed more than 700 people and

destroyed or damaged half a million homes. right now at one toppled apartment building, rescued workers say they are seeing signs of life. they believe there are about 60 people buried in the rubble there. mean while with food in short supply and desperation growing, there has been some looting. police say they have arrested dozens of people for violating a curfew. nbc news correspondent mark potter in santiago with the latest. mark. >> reporter: hi, david. even here in santiago, this was such a massive earthquake, they could feel it very strongly here. the damage in the capital city is nothing compared to along the coastal area. but as you can see behind me with this apartment building, there is damage here. this building was knocked off the foundation by the earthquake. the residents had to flee, some had to be rescued. fortunately no one because killed. they have lost their homes. this building will have to be knocked down, condemned by the city. the worst of the damage was to

the west and to the south of us along the coastal areas in the towns of concepcion and constitution. along that area there. block after block after block of homes and buildings knocked down. lots of desperation. there have been problems. you alluded to problems with police and looters. indeed, police were there trying to quell looters in marketplaces, also going after banks. the military was called in to try to bring order. reportedly order has been restored there. they had to go to great lengths to do that and impose a curfew. smaller towns along the area got hit in the much bigger towns. some of them were basically wiped off the the map. not only were they rattled by the hurricane -- excuse excuse me, by the earthquake, but also hit by the tsunami that followed. some of them washed away. town centers, entire neighborhood, all of that.

it's a very tough situation. the chilean officials are referring to this as an enormous catastrophe. they are asking for international aid particularly for rescue groups and also for portable hospitals, because the hospitals here, many of them, have been knocked down. the u.s. says it will help. chile has said it's very much in need of help. back to you, david. >> nbc news correspondent mark potter live in santiago, chile. thanks for the update. the destruction in chile has many people thinking about the earthquake threat along the u.s. pacific coast. coming up, living on the san andreas fault line. how prepared is california and the city of san francisco for the next big one. that's ahead this hour. returning to breaking news at the top of the show. the man charged with kidnapping elizabeth smart is now set to stand trial. a short time ago the judge in the case ruled 56-year-old brian david mitchell does not suffer from a mental disease or defect

that harms his ability to understand the proceedings against him. so those proceedings may continue. smart was 14 in 2002 when she was kidnapped from her home. we're joined now by ed smart, father of elizabeth. ed, thank you for being with us. what's your reaction to the judge's ruling today? >> it's a great day. it's been a long time coming. mitchell is finally having to face his own music. so it's great. i think that, you know, it's been far too long. you wouldn't think trying to determine whether somebody was competent or not would take as long as it has taken. >> when you hear the details of this case, that somebody would have to be crazy to do the sort of things this monster did. on the other hand, it sounds like there was a basis, a very strong basis for the judge to rule, no, in this guy's world he was acting rationally and will be able to understand the

charges against him. >> absolutely. i think he has known all along what he was doing. and the fact that it had to come down to getting the type of case put together that the u.s. attorneys office did, calling in staffers and having professional witnesses, it just doesn't seem like it should be this difficult to tell whether somebody is malingering, basically faking it, or whether he is really suffering from something. but the bottom line, i believe, came down to the fact that, you know, staffers who spent significant amounts of time with him were the ones who brought to the table what mitchell was really like. in the end, when you make comments like it's amazing what you can get away with when you act a little crazy, you know, that's no longer going to be the case. >> ed, first of all, how is your

daughter doing? and what's next in this case? >> well, elizabeth is doing great. she's currently serving in lds mission over in france and just having a wonderful experience. as far as the case moving forward, i guess that's in the defense's hands now, whether we go to trial or there's a plea. you know, it would be great if we could get it resolved sooner rather than later. but the bottom line is, accountability is coming about and that mitchell is going to have to be accountable for his actions. and in the end, i just don't want to ever see him hurt anyone the way he hurt elizabeth. >> ed smart reacting to the news in the case that a judge ruled 56-year-old brian david mitchell is competent enough to stand trial, so the charges against him will proceed. ed, thanks so much for joining us this afternoon.

we appreciate it. >> you bet. thank you. again, a pretty good decision in this case involving elizabeth smart. of course, it is a big ruling. now, could it be a break in the case of this woman, chelsea king? police linked a convicted sex offender to the disappearance of the california teen named chelsea, there's still no sign of her. the osmond family tragedy. we'll get some insight to the depression that prompted marie osmond's son to take his own life. is celebrity one of those societal factors that can increase the risk? stunning dash-cam drama, an officer was sent flying moment after he stopped to help a driver in need.

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the suicide bomber who attacked a cia base in afghanistan is raising new questions about u.s. precautions there. the posthumously released recording the bomber claimed he lured intelligence officials into his trap by sending them misleading information about terrorist targets. the bomber claims he intended to kidnap a single jordanian intelligence officer but stumbled on an unexpected opportunity to attack a large group of americans and their jordanian allies all at once. new reports about a possible u.s. connection to the mysterious assassination earlier of a hamas leader killed at a luxury hotel. two wanted by police, suspects whose images on hotel cameras apparently entered the united states soon after the incident. sources say one carried a

british passport february 14th. another suspect came to the united states with an irish passport on january 21st, one day after the hamas leader's body was found in that dubai hotel room. a suspect behind bars in the case of chelsea king, a san diego teenage who vanished. they are questioning the man in hopes of finding the girl. police collected evidence that led them to john albert gardner, iii. has he not been charged since his arrest. police say he is not cooperating. today chelsea's parents spoke out about the arrest. >> we're grateful we have somebody that can more than likely lead us to our daughter. that's what we're hoping for is that we're led to our daughter. >> gardner he mains jailed without bail following weekend arrest for investigation of rape

and murder. it was not immediately known where he hired an attorney. today in chicago, family and friends bid a final fairwell to the seaworld trainer killed by an orca last week. hundreds attended the funeral of dawn brancheau in chicago's south side. she died after a killer whale tilikum grabbed her pony tail and apparently pulled her into the water in front of 20 spectators. 40-year-old dawn brancheau most likely died of traumatic injuries and drowning. for hundreds of thousands of people without power in the northeast, march really is roaring in like a lion. crews are out today trying to retore power to nearly 200,000 people still without power after friday's storm. newark, new hampshire and maine are the hardest hit states.

february was a record setting month for cities, including a few who saw the most snow. philadelphia 5.1.5, baltimore 49.7, pittsburgh, 48.7, washington, d.c., dulles airport, 46.1, new york city 36.9 inches. the most snow for any month in new york's history. today we begin our special week long series so long capitol hill. we're talking to members of congress who will not be returning. our first guest, north dakota senator byron dorgan, a democrat. you'll hear him explain why he's leaving and what he thinks needs to be changed in the nation's capital. winter games have come to a close. what vancouver moments will you be talking about? we're counting down our top three. plus talk about a lawsuit. ron goldman's father wants the clothes off of o.j. simpson's back and he's going to court to try to get them. appetizers.

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marie osmond in seclusion following the suicide death of her son michael. a tragic area marked faith marks the place where he jumped friday night. marie and her husband had eight children, five of whom were adopted including michael. in 2007 marie admitted on television michael had gone to rehab but she never said why. marie osmond issued this statement. my family and are i devastated and in deep shock by the tragic loss of our dear michael and ask everyone to respect our privacy during this difficult time. this is a week after andrew koenig committed suicide. joining us "today" show contributor and clinical psychologist jeff gardere. we know there are often societal factors involved in depression. how does celebrity play into

that. >> what we find is children in celebrity families, all eyes are usually on them even if they are not celebrities in their own right. they have a tremendous amount of pressure, david, to live up to the expectations, the star quality of their parents. that extra stress in their lives makes it difficult for them. >> is it also the case, though, suicide cuts across every dem stenographic group, culture in a sense. is it the case maybe we spend more time paying attention to the suicide of celebrity families because they are celebrities. >> we absolutely do. because we do know that for kids ages 10 to 24 and some people may say 15 to 24, that age range, it's the third leading cause of suicide in this country. so this is a very difficult statistic for people to swallow but it's very real. quite often as parents when our kids talk about hurting

themselves, we don't take them serious enough. if there's an issue where the child has clinical depression and we're not involved in the treatment as much as we should as parents, that child can slip through our fingers and suicide may be the result. there has been so much progress in the last 20 years with antidepressant medication and drugs. i wonder what sort of impact that has had and whether we're nearing a situation where if we could just get kids to hang on for a few more years the drugs might get so much better as to be able to block what's going on in terms of the chemical imbalance that seems to be affecting so many of them. >> absolutely. the issue is for parents. we don't like to see our children on the medications, antidepressants. we're afraid what the effects might be, side effects for a child who is growing. that's a real concern. we do know antidepressants do help some of these kids get through their issues along with psychotherapy. yet again, the knife cuts both

ways. we know there's some antidepressants where it has been very well known some of the side effects may be suicidal behavior in itself. again, we are at a place in our lives, in our research, where we just don't know what the real effects of these antidepressants can be for these young people. as they get older, become adults, we know they are much more effective. >> "today" show contributor and clinical psychologist dr. jeff gardere, thanks for coming on, we appreciate it. >> thank you. >> for signs of suicide for yourself or somebody you know, logon to suicidepreventionlife line.org or 1-800-273-talk. coming up, the showdown over health care reform. republicans are not budging. will democrats try to muscle through a bill using majority rules? a sex scandal sent him

running away from politics. mark foley in a new kind of business. hear what he wants you to buy. tonight is the night the entertainment world will focus on jay leno as he makes his big return to "the tonight show." will he win over the public after late night wars with conan? [ female announcer ] the latest athletic fabrics that keep you cool and dry have now inspired stayfree® to create a whole new level of comfort when it comes to your period. only stayfree® ultra thins have thermocontrol™. designed with the comfort of athletic fabrics in mind, stayfree® with thermocontrol™ quickly wicks moisture away for exceptional dryness.

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what do you plan to do now? next 300 days, anything goes. you get the real paterson now, pure, uncut, colombian paterson. remember how bad a governor i am already, imagine how awful i'll be when i'm not trying to impress anyone. i can just let myself go like a typical housewife in new jersey. >> "saturday night live" with its unique take on new york david paterson's decision not to seek re-election. all eyes on nbc late night again tonight when jay leno hosts the legendary tonight

show. he's back after a public and sometimes nasty battle with conan and the nbc network. julia boorstin is following the story. >> everyone is watching to see what the first show will be like and if jay leno can reclaim the ratings he had. when conan replaced him he lost half of jay leno's audience. he's going to have sarah palin on, the cast of jersey shore and olympic skier lindsey vonn. he's trying to get people to tune back in and forget about everything that happened with conan. i would expect him to discuss this and make some jokes about it. >> wow, well, i can't wait for the sarah palin segment. i think that's doing to be the one to watch. in any case, julia, out in los angeles, have fun out there

tonight. thank you. >> thanks. it is now time for the fastest three minutes of news. we go down to the wire. ready? hit the stock. we start in france where the cleanup is under way after hurricane cynthia smashed through sea worlds flooding towns. today rescuer workers trying to get to people stranded. it hit belgium, portugal spain. a suburban cleveland officer flying over the guardrail. the dash-cam shows a car spinning out of control after being hit by another car on the roadway. amazingly the officer is expected to be okay. next, a lawsuit over o.j. simpson's soot jacket and pants. today attorneys will settle a lawsuit that demands simpson's former manager hand over the clothes the former football star was wearing when he was acquitted of murder in 1995. the father of the victim ron goldman wants the clothing as part of a wrongful death lawsuit

award. a disgraced congressman looking for a fresh start, making what's old new again. florida republican mark foley stepped down in 2006 amidst a scandal involving racy e-mails and texts he sent to pages. now he's opened up a consignment shop in palm beach. many for sale are from the washington home he had to give up when he left office. the longest runway at the country's busiest airports was shut down today. the track at jfk airport will be closed for four months for renovations. repairs include widening the runway. the runway usually handles a third of the airport's total air traffic. good news for all of you headed to spring break beaches in the sunshine state. shark attacks in florida are on the decline. the state did have a deadly attack this year. a university of florida report out today shows the number of attacks has actually dropped for the third year in a row.

take a look at this sad looking animal. it's called a blob fish. don't expect to see one of these on your next swim. not only do they live a half mile under the sea in australia. scientists say because blob fish keep getting caught up in crab and lobster pots, they are on the verge of extinction. might be bye-bye blob fish. headed to israel where a dog is cruising around in fine fashion. the four-year-old dog had been born without front legs. really. now, thanks to a new prosthetic prototype harness, he has a good reason to keep his tail wagging. they have some ingenuous engineers in israel. amazing. that brings us down to the wire,

five seconds today. it is time for the shuster showdown and the ongoing saber rattles over health care reform. president obama is expected to announce how he would like lawmakers to move forward possibly suggesting using reconciliation, a fancy name for majority rules. republicans awarding democrats, a dangerous political path to take. >> it would be a political kamikaze mission if they jammed this through after the american people are saying, look, we're trying to tell you in every way we know how, elections, surveys, town hall meetings we don't want this bill. nancy pelosi is asking democrats to focus on what's best for americans and stop worrying about getting relettinged. >> this will take courage. it will take courage to pass social security. why are we here? not to perpetuate our service in

congress. we're here to do the job for the american people. >> so if the democrats try to do it with just 51 in the senate, will that help or hurt them politically? joining us for the showdown, founder of the public relations and consulting firm ts navigations. armstrong williams, radio talk show host and syndicated columnist. i know you both are dying to talk about that dog in israel. but regarding health care, does it matter how the democrats get it done? >> it doesn't, because the republicans will attack them no matter what. senator alexander said we're going to work to repeal reform. that tells me they are not going to get any support with the occasional congressman. if the democrats want to be courageous, as speaker pelosi says, where is the stethoscope? where is your idea? this is our idea. don't go for it all, just what we need done. every i don't know of their guys

has a story about what hurts them. that's what they have to focus on. >> how about it? it's a political winner if they get it done. >> i don't think the issue is republicans. i think when pelosiios terminology and some terminology republicans used it's appealing to centrist democrats who have serious problems with this legislation. if you want them to put their head on the guillotine and be part of that chopping block, i do think democrats are part of the problems, not republicans going forward. i don't think they have the votes in the house. >> isn't it more of a problem for democrats if they can't produce anything after a year and a half on this? >> you cannot ignore the telltale signs from the past like massachusetts. and the americans are still, for some reason, even though they want health care, this version of it, they don't want what the president is putting forward. maybe pelosi and the democrats know something we don't know. i just find it hard to believe the president would go on this suicide mission unless they are

reading different polls. there are americans out there that really want this. they feel in the end by the time midterm elections come around they will be back in their corner. you have to trust the president. many don't agree with the health care bill but the president must know something. we just don't know. >> i don't think pelosi and reid know anything we don't know. >> i hope they do. >> i think you're right. people don't like what they think is in the bill. i truly believe the democrats are going to win or lose, dave, on health care in the fall no matter what they do. if they don't do anything, they are going to lose for as you said, all this time not investing. if they accomplish something, they can go to those districts and say you know what, here in fort smith, arkansas, you pick the place, because of this bill, that means 18 or whatever people can do this. that's the way they connect to fight for re-election. if you lose without going down fighting, they deserve to lost. >> as far as the process is concerned, in terms of whether it's fair or not, senator conrad, democrat of north dakota

talking about using a bare 51 votes reconciliation to get this done. watch. >> the major package of health care reform cannot move through the reconciliation process. it will not work. it will not work because of the rule that says anything that doesn't score for budget purposes has to be eliminated. >> now, there's an exception to the bird rule, the parliamentarian would be the one to enforce rule, someone could overall him, president of the senate, vice president joe biden. here is what he said about that one this morning. watch. >> it is the decision of the vice president, whether to play a role here. >> he can play president of the senate. >> absolutely. i have seen vice presidents play that role in other very important situations. >> the vice president could overrule the parliamentarian. >> absolutely. the parliamentarian only can advise. it is the vice president who rules.

>> vice president biden, the obama administration can do whatever they want if they can get 51. >> parliamentarian doesn't decide, it advises. the president of the senate, vice president, who is the decider. it's not as if they are playing with the rules in that sense. whether you use reconciliation for this, if you find a way to genuinely meet the rules of reconciliation. armstrong sees me filing because i don't know what the final package will be yet. >> that's the problem, david and tom, that really, the president, republicans, congress, none of them really know what's in this bill. they really won't know what we're getting until we actually have a bill. are they willing to risk in all this time, they must have something to show that health care reform is going to get people real health care who are struggling for it. >> they have to show health care works. if it works the democrats win. if it doesn't work and explodes the deficit, only causes more

problems, we lose. always a pleasure to see you both. thanks so much for coming in. >> thanks, dave. time for our top three. today we're bringing what we consider to be the top three moments from the 2010 winter olympic games. to be fair we did not consult with tom or armstrong on any of these. number three, lindsey vonn after the shin injury took no time putting it to rest, took gold. silenced those questioning whether she could fulfill expectation sz. number two, gold medal hockey showdown that lived up to all the hype. when the americans tied the game with 24 seconds left, looked like they had the momentum heading into overtime. the 22-year-old face of the canadian games nhl star sidney crosby, sid the kid, won in overtime, winning the gold medal saving the host company's national pride. he's now sid the hero. the number one moment didn't

involve gold but one olympian's courage. joannie rochette took to the ice a day after her mother died. she completed a stunning performance, the bronze medal and dedicated it to what she called her biggest fan, her mom. joannie rochette, our number one story from the olympic games in vancouver. up next the week long series so long capitol hill. each day we talk to a lawmaker saying it's time to go. starting us off north dakota senator byron dorgan. why is he leaving congress after three terms? what pushed him over the edge? what would he change if he could? we'll ask him after this. and all of these. paid invoices go right here. bang! - that hasn't been paid yet. - what? - huh-uh. - all my business information is just a phone call away-- to my wife... who's not answering. announcer: there's a better way to run your business. intuit quickbooks online organizes your business in one place. it easily creates invoices

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i will not be a candidate for re-election this november. the people's business is not getting done. i have decided my senate career will end after this, my

fourth term. i do not love congress. i will not, therefore, be a candidate for re-election to the united states senate this november. today we begin a special series called "so long capitol hill." every day we'll talk to members of congress who decided not to run for re-election in 2010. the first democratic senator to announce this cycle was democrat byron dorgan from north dakota. on january 5th, senator dorgan stated, quote, let me be clear that this decision does not relate to any dissatisfaction that i have about serving in the senate. yes, i wish there was less ranger and bipartisanship in the u.s. senate these day but still it's about serve. you made it clear what it's not about. what is it about. >> i've served in elected office since 26 years old, unlike a lot of people who served since

midlife, 30s, 40s, 50s, i have served in elected office for 30 years. so only in the senate would it be shocking for someone in their mid-60s who has served for 40 years to announce their retirement. i want to do some other things in life. this has been a great privilege. it's time, i think. >> what's the one thing you would change about the senate or the way congress works, if you could? >> well, i know the rules are cumbersome, dating back 20 years, described as the saucer that cools the coffee. things don't get done quickly. this is not a place where things are done efficiently or quickly or perhaps effectively. it's frustrating for that reason. i think what we're seeing is some of the rules that are being abused. i mean, you know, the filibuster was never intended to be used 100 times in a year. that doesn't make sense. >> is it just republicans abusing them or were the

democrats abusing them as well when the republicans had control? >> well, we've never seen anything like this. we see filibusters on the motions to proceed, not the bill itself. the motion to proceed to a bill that's noncontroversial and is going to get 94-0 vote when it finally gets up to vote. the only reason they do that is to abuse the process, i think. i wish that wasn't the case. i hope the american people will have a chance in the fall to say to some of those folks trying to stop everything from happening, from getting done, we'd like you to do some things. we'd like to get the best of what each party has to offer. i'm proud to be here, proud to serve, proud to be a democrat. it's been very hard to get things done this year, however. >> senator, one of the things you tried to get done over the summer that had bipartisan support, the bipartisan drug prescription bill, would have allowed prescription drug from canada, ceo estimated $15

billion savings over ten years of the white house decided to oppose it. there's some reporting it was because of the deal the white house cut with the pharmaceutical companies early in the year. the vote lost, 41-58. how big a setback was it? have your own party's president, the people in your party essentially working to kill this thing? >> actually we had a majority in favor of the legislation. it was bipartisan. the legislation would say that the american people shouldn't be paying the highest prices for prescription drugs in the entire world. that's unfair. yeah, i was upset. i was frustrated we didn't get this done. the fact is i still think i'll get it done this year. i'll have an opportunity to offer it this year. i think we'll get a vote to put this in law. taking on the pharmaceutical industry is not very easy in this town, as you know. i've been doing it for a long time. i think i'm going to win that issue this year and give the american people fair drug prices, the same kind of prices other people in the world are paying for brand name

prescription drugs. finally as far as north dakota in the decision this fall, governor john holvin, potter has 17%. any chance your democratic person will win this or is it a given the republican will win. >> i don't think anything is a given. there will be additional people in the race. >> senator dorgan, good of you to come on today. good luck with whatever you choose to do in your career post senate. >> thanks a lot. i appreciate it. >> you're welcome. again, join us every day this week as i spoke to a different member of congress who is not running for re-election. we are looking for honest answers, not political ones about what's really going on in congress. our special series called so long capitol hill, 3:00 eastern right here each day this week on msnbc news. the massive earthquake in chile has us thinking about the next big one that could hit the

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we are watching a developing situation near salt lake city. a possible hazmat situation at an irs building. live pictures coming from klc. nbc has not confirmed the information, but a local newspaper is reporting crews have been called to the building, called monday morning for a hazmat incident. we will continue to monitor the situation and update you as news warrants. new video coming into the msnbc newsroom of the moment an 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck chile saturday morning. voices on the tape can be heard calling, calm down. so far 700 confirmed deaths. the sufficient state department has just received a formal request to help out the chilean government. right now the united states is mobilizing relief surfaces. there is 100% chance of the

earthquake hitting somewhere today. in fact, there will be thousands across the world. but most will barely be noticeable. scientists do not know when or where the next big one will happen. in the past seven days, california's had 701 earthquakes, but none of them more than a small rumble. geologists say stresses continue to build along faults including the san andreas fault in san francisco, and a large quake is only a matter of time. so are we prepared? joining us is matthew bentenhaas with california's emergency management agency. matthew, a number of seismologists believe we're in a sick will, and that the pacific coast of the u.s. has now received increased stresses. so on the assumption that we have increased the possibility of an earthquake in your state, are you prepared? >> well, you can never be 100% prepared and 100% safe. but we work every day to make sure that we are better prepared in building our capabilities. we have the best in the world in

aid system here in california and the best fire, law enforcement, volunteers to support our efforts. unfortunately we regularly go through earthquakes, just before haiti's earthquake on tuesday, on saturday, we had a 6.5 earthquake up in eureka. it gives us a test and opportunity to test our systems and make sure that we're getting better. with the 8.8 earthquake in chile, obviously working closely with the pacific and west coast and alaska tsunami warning center, early saturday morning we were alerting our first responder partners throughout the coastal california areas of the potential for a tsunami. >> but here's an issue a lot of people have, and they say that the building codes you have in san francisco are among the best in the world, in northern california. that even those would not be enough for a magnitude 8.8, 9.0 earthquake should it strike near san francisco. how do you respond to that? >> one of the things we continue to do is work closely with the

sign tickets and use the best science and super computers of the we've done that throughout looking at our water systems, looking at our buildings. regularly doing our exercises. this is why governor schwarzenegger has been so insistent that we have to improve the delta water system. we look and we know that that water system is vulnerable. that's why he went with the legislator to make sure we're putting it on the bonds for this fall, $11 billion investment to secure that water system. because we know it's not safe. but we've made investments in san francisco on buildings. we've just seismically retrofitted the b.a.r.t. tunnel. so we continue to prepare for these things. the difficulty, of course, is these are no-notice events. we have to continue to insist that we're prepared, because it's not a matter of if a large earthquake of 7.8 is going to happen here in california, or even in the midwest, along the new madrid fault, it's a matter of when it's going to happen. that's why we exercise annually. >> matt, we've got to leave it there. secretary of california's

emergency management agency, matt, thanks so much for coming on today. we appreciate it. >> thank you, david. finally, the olympic games are over, but the best tournament in sports is about to begin. the indiana high school basketball play-offs. late last week, my alma mater, bloomington high school south, finished their regular season with another victory, bringing their record this season to 20 wins and no losses. last year south went undefeated and won the state play-offs. so the streak now stands at 46 victories in a row. that is one better than the 45 by oscar robinson decades ago. the winning streak, the longest winning streak in indiana high school basketball not held by oscar robertson, though, but it's held by another school and that stands at 50. so the opportunity for bloomington south to break that record will come if panthers win the sectionals, then the regionals, and make it to the final four. from a very, very proud alum, good luck bloomington south and

to everybody participating in hoosier hysteria. the play-offs start tomorrow. enjoy. that's our show for this monday. i'm david shuster live in washington. "the dylan ratigan show" is up next. dylan will have the latest on a tea party favorite who could prove to be an upset in tomorrow's primary for texas governor.f questi s. s. can paperless billing get me paid faster? how can i keep my best employees? how can i bring down my insurance costs? and while at american express open we may not have all the answers, we know who does. other owners. that's why we're helping business owners connect. together, we're building a community for them to talk, share and help each other. a place called openforum.com where owners can swap ideas and ask questions. will tweeting get me more customers? how can i make my business green? and one question seems especially popular. how can i get paid faster? how can i get paid faster? i was about to ask you the same thing.

and they're inspiring ideas like acceptpay. a new tool from open that lets owners invoice digitally and helps them get paid faster. ask a question. find an answer. join the conversation at openforum.com.

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oh, we want to make sure all our ducks in a row. yeah. volume control syndrome. but we focus on the talent and skill that each person... brings to the team. i mean, no one's really concerned about labels. not even mine. labels get in the way. disabilities rarely do. visit thinkbeyondthelabel.com to evolve your work force. sglnchsz good afternoon to you. i'm dylan ratigan. in health care, the game on the line. the democrats trying to beat the clock with a little reconciliation. are they doomed no matter what they do at this point politically. and is it fair. will the american people, no matter how they play this, cry foul. plus, chaos in the streets of chile after that massive historic earthquake. can looting ever be justified. the fight for real financial reform, yes, the special interests are completely in control of your congress. we'll show you precisely how